Chapter 25
"Amphitrite, are you alright? You look like you're a million miles away right now."
"I'm alright dear, only thinking of what I have to do if it turns out that it really is Ares. Would you be able to introduce me to him, I will need to see if it is really him."
"Wouldn't that be dangerous if it is him? Wouldn't he recognize you?"
"He hasn't seen me in centuries, but if I am to close his stone will sense mine. Maybe I could see him from a distance then?"
"Last time I saw him he was in the temple in the hidden room with Drakon's tomb. Hopefully he didn't open the sarcophagus yet, he said he was going to wait until the other students got here to open it. He wants it to be documented from what they find. Actually the other students are probably here already or on their way by now. We should head to the front of the temple see if the others are here. If they are then he would have them all go to the hidden room so they may observe and study what was found."
Maera then started walking towards the front of the main temple with Amphitrite following behind her. "Hopefully I can get a glimpse of him and see with my own eyes if it is Ares." As they worked their way around to the front of the temple they both stopped right in front of the main steps. Maera looked across the way to the parking lot to see if the blue van that they rented while she and the other students were here studying was parked in the lot. Maera hoped they haven't shown up yet, but as she thought that the van itself was coming up the hill and making its way to the parking lot.
"There is the van now in the parking lot, hopefully they don't start investigating my son's tomb right away. Now that I know he will be my son, I don't know how I feel about them digging into his tomb. Who knew that I would have a son that was born in the ancient past and would be a great king? We need to find the professor before the others get there."
Maera looked around hoping to see if Professor Morton would step out from the temple. No sooner did she thought of it, he came walking down the main steps of the temple, and headed over to the students who were coming out of the van. She could see from where she and Amphitrite stood that her professor walked straight up to Mike and started talking to him. "That's him Amphitrite, the one in dark jeans, and red shirt." She turned to face her and found Amphitrite looking at her professor as if she had seen a ghost.
"Amphitrite is that him, Ares?" Maera's heart was pounding in her ears, she was hopping that her teacher wasn't the god of war. Amphitrite took ahold of Maera's arm and squeezed it tightly.
"Maera it's him, I can't believe it but it is. He's been alive all this time, hiding among the mortals. No wonder my husband couldn't find him, he was hiding in plain sight. He's been passing himself off as a history professor of ancient Greek. He would know the history because he has lived it, he's seen it all. Ares has hardly aged, he must still have the stone with him then, and he must still be searching for others born with gifts, like yours. That's how he has stayed young all this time, by absorbing those gifts. Ares is dangerous Maera, he must know who you are and want your gifts that you have."
"How would he know, yes he's been my teacher these last four years, but how could he know that I have the second sight or even know exactly who I am?"
"He does know of the story about you, well almost everyone that's a god or goddess. Even we sea creatures know the story of you. It starts out of how your Actaea's niece who was also born with gift of sight, you came to the island during a storm, and was treated as a lady of the court of King Aeolus and became his true love. Also, Ares knew what you meant to Aeolus. He does know about you in the past but the two of you never met while you are there. He must not know then or else he would have stolen your gift by using the stone a long time ago."
"He would know now because we were in that room together and on my son's sarcophagus was my name alongside Aeolus's." Maera could feel her heart pounding and the thought of going up against the god of war was something she wasn't prepared for nor know how to defeat him.
"You mustn't let him suspect you truly are. If all possible do not be alone with him, for if he figures it out Ares could steal your gift and could end up killing you. I know you are to travel back to the past sometime soon. You must be careful until then."
"From what Actaea had told me it will be during the autumn equinox, right around the time of the fall festivals. Which is only in two weeks, it's nearly the end of summer."
"That is when you will go back, on that day you will travel to the past."
"Do you know how it will happen? Actaea said it was during a storm where she found me on the beach."
"If I can remember, you will be on a boat during a violent storm. Then somehow you will be sent to the past. I'm not entirely sure, but something will set the stone off for it is trying to protecting you. Keep it with you at all times Maera and try not to be alone with Ares. Also, from what I remember Drakon is buried his father's sword. You mustn't let Ares get ahold of it for the stone and sword together will make him unstoppable."
"If anything is found there will be other people in the room, I don't think he would try anything in front of them. If he has hidden himself among us humans all this time he wouldn't give himself away. When I was asked to sign up for this expedition I was told if anything was to be found Athens's national history museum would be the ones to display the items. We would get full credit for it. He would have to hand over anything that is found in that room. If the sword is buried with Drakon he wouldn't be able to steal it if there are others around him.
Is there any way to get ahold of the old gods that still are alive? What about Poseidon or Zeus? Wouldn't both of them together with their powers combined be able to stop Ares? Zeus is Ares's father after all."
"I haven't seen Zeus in a long time, I wouldn't even know where to start to begin looking for him, and same with the other old gods and goddess. Some have long ago died, there is only a handful left now. I will have to contact my husband and tell him I found Ares. He will know what to do, but in the meantime you must be careful around him. He mustn't find out who you are Maera. Keep the necklace on you at all times, and if Aeolus's sword is buried with your son do whatever you can from Ares possessing it. I need to go find Actaea and warn her about what is going on. I don't want to leave you alone knowing now it is Ares. Perhaps come with me to see Actaea?"
"If I leave now he would suspect something, and I know you don't want me to be left alone with him. If he hasn't figured it out yet of who I really am, then I'm safe for now. I only have to stay clear of him for just two weeks, then I will be supposedly sent back in time to the past."
"Please stay safe and everything that you have learned use it when you travel back. Everything will be alright, and we will meet again if not in this time but in the past. I will try to see you again before you leave. Once I see Actaea I will need to leave here and contact my husband and tell him everything that has happened." Amphitrite went to hug Maera and she held onto her tight.
"I hope we see each other again in this time. I'm so glad that I got to meet you. When you see Actaea tell her I will come down to see her if not today but in the next day or so. I have to figure out what I am going to do next if Ares decides to keep the sword for himself. I have to get to the sword before he does, but I'm hoping that with the other students around he won't try anything."
"I will contact Poseidon as soon as I leave here and tell him what is going on, but first I need to see Actaea. Stay safe and pray to the old gods that Ares does not come to realize who you really are, and keep the necklace on you at all times."
Amphitrite hugged her one last time then she turned to head back to the other side of the temple. She didn't want to be seen by Ares for if he recognized her then he would learn who Maera was and she couldn't risk that.