Hercules: The Breaker Of Realms

In this realm, as in any other, broken bonds, cold logic, and deadly ambition coincide. No great warrior is consigned to purgatory. Only those with the most self-serving of interests survive. Those with a lust for bloodshed and detritus. You, demigod, are such a warrior. You are the breaker of realms, the voice tells him. A series of images appear. He sees himself raising his club aloft, men rushing at him with blades, and then his own hands bloodied beyond recognition. But then he opens his eyes and sees the dark of night. His wife, Megara, is sleeping peacefully beside him. Herakles' thoughts return to the fact that the day before was his wedding day. Creon, king of Thebes, gave his daughter to him in marriage. Herakles had proven himself a shining military exemplar, vastly excelling those who fought with him and the ranks of the enemy. He had defeated the Minyans at Orchomenos with flawless ease, and Creon effusively praised the demigod's act of defending Thebes. His wedding day unfolds in his mind, the memory of it freshly adorned and perfumed with exquisitely satiated longing. Creon ensured that he and his bride had a lavish wedding, one which prized Herakles' unique valor and which glowed with the promise of a love unending. All of Thebes had gathered to witness the splendor of the wedding. Megara wore a white toga. Herakles marveled at her beauty. The two were joined together in a bond forged to remain unbroken. A bond now reduced to nothing after Hera rained down madness about the demigod. The walls were awash with blood, and he can almost hear her shriek echoing across the dark sky. Hera reduced him to a demigod doomed by his own actions. The sight of the night sky buries itself deep inside him. This is my future, he tells himself. The night that taunts me with my tomorrow's endless black horizons. He sees Megara as she lays blissfully asleep in bed, unconsciously sweeping the empty space beside her with a languid stroke of her arm. For a moment, he sees a change in her expression. The look of quiet bliss slowly becomes consumed by a darker expression.

• | Author: Costas Komborozos
• | Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
• | Publication Date: Jan 17, 2016
• | Number of Pages: 153 pages
• | Language: English
• | Binding: Paperback
• | ISBN-10: 1523444126
• | ISBN-13: 9781523444120