Apollo's 11

by Anna Collins

  "Yes, tell us. A little back story can always help; besides we have a long way to go" I added.

  Joe nodded "this is not anything like a normal marriage. The devil has needs, and only a human girl can satisfy it. On the moonless night, when the powers of all night creatures are at the peak that's when Satan chooses to get married. The wedding ritual takes place after the middle of the night. He always makes sure the place where the wedding takes place is breathtakingly beautiful and mystical even the dreamless start dreaming in that place." Joe sighed.

  There was that undefined terror in his eyes as he went on.

  "Then the exchange of vows takes place. They stand on an altar which is well decorated with black and blood red roses. The vows are totally different from a normal marriage. Here the Satan initiates the vows, he asks the human girl to bestow her youth and life to him, but he doesn't promise anything. In fact, he doesn't even show his face. All this while his face is covered by a hooded black cloak. But his presence was so powerful that it shook me to the core" Joe's words began to tremble and he was continuously wiping his face with a handkerchief.

  "And the girl accepted him? Without raising a single question?" Rick asked in awe.

  "That's how the spell of hypnotism works. The girl was smiling all the time and there was that excitement in her eyes and I felt so sorry for her. But I was helpless, I knew that my voice was too weak to stop that disaster. I was just like a flee to them" he sighed.

  "Then?" I asked.

  Joe wiped his tears "Satan held his bride's hand up to his face, then he kissed her and whisked her away to dance. Suddenly the pin drop silence that had filled the air got broken by a blissful classic music which was very soothing, even for the shallowest heart. He danced and danced with his new bride, showing all signs of affection, the affections that a girl longed for all her life. I kept looking with astonishment as the devil showed all the gentleness in the world."

  "Why was he being so gentle? He could kill her right away, what was the need of this mock marriage?" I yelled, playing with someone's feeling was something that I could never tolerate.

  Joe smiled sadly "because he is the devil. He is the most romantic person; he likes to do it in style."

  I gripped the steering wheel in disgust. "Freya, please don't fall for the charms of the devil. I am coming to get you" I whispered with every hope in my heart that Freya would not fall for this deadly event. She was very smart.

  "How long will it take to reach there? It's almost midnight" I asked.

  "We are almost there son, take the right turn" Joe instructed.

  "What happens after the dance?" Rick asked.

  Joe continued "After the dance was over, with a single kiss on the lips he disappeared. He converted himself into a puff of black smoke and took a flight with the wind. As soon as he was gone, a globe of fire fell in the hand of the bride. Strangely the fire didn't seem hot at all, it actually seemed like she washolding a hot pack on a winter's night, it must have been warm and refreshing. But when I looked closely at the globe of fire I found out that it was actually an envelope, containing a letter. The letter instructed to meet him at a certain place at 2:55 am and to it also said make sure to be on time. At the end, it was signed off with his signature, a pair of two cross firing arrows and a thumb printed in blood.

  She kissed the note and stepped into the waterfall, maybe wishing that it would clear off the tiredness of the day. The water droplets fell on her body and her body relaxed involuntarily. Then she closed her eyes, it occurred to me that she was dreaming of her new life, of the promises, the beauty, and tranquility the devil made. The spell totally hypnotized her to believe that he would live up to his promises. He shut her eyes with a beautiful curtain of hopes and promises to distract her from the ugly truth, after few seconds when her mind and heart were filled with nervousness and feelings of excitement for her new life, thousands of needles were poking her body from inside and outside.

  She winced in pain and confusedly looked around to find out what was going on. Her body, her mind was just blown away, the water droplets did not only fell on her body it also pierced her skin. Utterly horrified she quickly ignored her pain and sprint out. She checked herself on the crystal clear water of the waterfall which was now reflecting her face. What she saw twisted her brains in complete confusion as there was not even a single drop of water on her body or head. She was completely dry.

  The clock displayed the time of 2:55 and the devil appeared immediately in his full flesh. By now Rebecca was urging me to go back, but my feet refused to move. I wanted to see what happened next, maybe there was a slight hope in my heart that the devil might not kill the girl.

  She ran to him and tried to utter some words but was stopped by him. He put a finger on her lips, shushing her and with his other hand, he signaled her to wait. Suddenly out of nowhere a gust of wind came and hit her, making her shiver which was closely followed by an excursing pain. She screamed with pain. Her cry of pain echoed through the forest, finally breaking the invincible silence and then the most horrified scene took place.

  Her skin looked like it was moving up and down side by side, actually, the blood in her veins had started boiling; forming bubbles and soon her veins thickened up and it burst open spilling blood from every direction but before the blood could touch the ground it disappeared into thin air.

  After the blast, she fell on the ground. Her whole body was covered with red-brown long lines and open wounds; it was a heart-wrenching scene. Then the devil came to her and picked her up by the waist or at least whatever was left of it anyway, and put his lips on her which looked like a kiss but in reality he did not press his lips on her, he started sucking on it.

  Something started moving from the pit of her heart, causing her more unbearable pain, she struggled to get out of his grip with the little energy that was left in her. Then she stopped trying, maybe because her body went completely numb. The black of her eyes which was the only unaffected area after the vein blast also turned totally white.

  A white colored smoke went from her mouth to his, it was her energy, her soul. The very soul she was created with. Done with engulfing her whole life source, he threw her body away like thrash and her lifeless body fell pitifully on the ground. He took a few steps back and started uncovering, it was the moment when his horrific real face came out. The face was so ugly and haunting that it could make anyone cry and traumatize for life. On seeing his face, I could no longer hold back, my body gave up and I passed out."

  Chapter Forty-Six

  Freya

  "Wow! I never knew this kind of place existed in between this dense forest" I looked around, taking in the picturesque view of the greenery.

  And the most amazing thing was the melody coming out from the waterfall. It was running streams of crystal clear water.

  The bushes had every possible color of rose planted on them from blood red roses, to sky blue, to creamy white, every color was present there.

  In between the curtain of the trees and flowers there existed a wooden stage, made entirely with rosewood and was beautifully decorated by a contrast of red and black flowers. There was also few strands of little white flower hanging on the green strands at the very end of the wooden stage.

  It was a moonless night but then also the place was perfectly white. I meant that there was not even a single shadow of darkness. I began wondering where was the source of the light?

  "Like it?" Mrs. Hudson's voice startled me.

  "Um...yes, all this is very beautiful. But what's with the decorations? Is there a ceremony or something like that?" I asked in confusion.

  Mrs. Hudson pursed her lips for a secret smile "you will know it soon. For now, I need you to get rid of these clothes and wear something which defines more of an elegance" she instructed, giving a look of disapproval to my dress.

  My brow creased "we are just sitting for a prayer. What is the need to dress up?"

  The only answer I got was an angry glare "do as I say,
we need to perform this ritual with perfection. This is not a joke" she said.

  Ooh! That was almost harsh. But I let her be, maybe she was a perfectionist.

  "But I didn't bring any clothes with me" I bit my lip.

  "I have got it covered. You groom yourself up there" she pointed to a cabin, which was almost a mile away from the waterfall.

  I nodded and went there to change my dress.

  Though hard to guess from the outside view, it was a pretty and cozy room. It had a full-length dressing mirror and two cabinets which were filled with various kinds of cosmetics and jewelry. It seemed a bit weird at first. Ahh maybe this was Mrs. Hudson's place, she had formed her own world in this meadow, away from everyone.

  On the bed, which was covered with satin bedsheet there lied a gorgeous red gown. The gown was flowery and resembled that of a ballroom gown. Without burning my brain cells I decided to wear it as it was getting very late and was almost time for the ritual to take place.

  To my surprise, the gown fitted me perfectly. It was a bit tight on my bosom, but it only made me look sexier. It had red stone flowers all over the neck and hemline. Other than that it was a plain satin red gown. I didn't bother to pin up my hair, it stayed messily over my back.

  " I'm late. I must go out now. God! Please help us, please send Robert back to me, totally safe and sound" I folded my hands for a silent prayer.

  Freya walked up to Rebecca, wearing that red gown. Looking more beautiful than Rebecca had expected. Rebecca's lips curled into a devilish smirk "Master will be so pleased with me. Finally, I will get what I had always wanted" she whispered to herself.

  "It's almost midnight. Master can come anytime. I must try to cast the spell of hypnotism over her. On a moonless night, her shield will no longer work" She continued to blabber as she stood near Freya.

  Freya was about to say something when Rebecca closed her eyes and blew a gust of air from her mouth into Freya’s right ear. Freya shook then went stiff as if she had transformed into a wax statue. She was not even blinking her eyes.

  "My spell worked perfectly. You are so in trouble my little Freya" Rebecca laughed like a winner.

  Chapter Forty-Seven

  Robert

  We kept walking restlessly through the dark dense forest. The only source of light were the flashes coming out of our cell phones. "I think we are there, it seems exactly like the place that you had described" I announced.

  Rick sighed "Yes, I can also see some rays of light coming out from behind those bushes."

  "Boys.It's twelve past five" Joe said with a straight face.

  I hit my head "damn! We are late" I cursed under my breath and ran to the direction of the light. Rick and Joe were following me.

  The sight almost paralyzed me. In the middle of several bushes, there was a loft of fire. It was burning continuously, casting it's light on the face of that woman who gave me life. The woman who was everything to me. I sighed, taking in her sight. But what was she doing and where was Freya?

  "Robert, look here. Sis is sitting on the stage, but why is she looking so pale and lifeless" Rick pointed and was about to go to Freya when Joe stopped him "don't ruin it with your foolishness! Freya is in a state of hypnotism; she will not react to anything."

  He continued "Robert go ahead and hold Rebecca. She is meditating, she is completely powerless for one minute."

  "But what will I do now?" I asked, feeling clueless. "I can't kill her and one minute will not be enough for us to save Freya" I added with a bit of hesitation.

  "I know something, I was reading a book on black art. There I saw that witches become powerless if one cuts down the lock of their hair" Rick jumped.

  "Let's try that then," I said, completely blinded by the need of the situation.

  "Here, take this nail cutter. It also has a small knife in it. You can cut the hair using this" Rick suggested.

  A part of me was shouting that this was the lamest possible step but I had no other choice.

  Joe did not say anything so taking his silence as his approval I ran there.

  She was still murmuring something in a language similar to that of Romanian or Spanish. For a moment I so wished to drop everything and hug her. I wanted to cry and tell her how much I had missed her over these years. But I couldn't do it. As Joe said, she was not my mother anymore, she was an obedient follower of the devil.

  I shook my head "you can do this Robert" I said to myself and gripped a lock of her hair in my palms. I had just put the knife on it when she turned to me and for a moment I was taken back by her welcoming eyes, it showed nothing except love, care, and tears of happiness.

  "Robert, my son" she uttered.

  Robert, don't let her fool you, my alter ego warned me. That's when I closed my eyes and cut down a generous amount of her hair.

  She growled like a monster and black scars started to appear all over her beautiful face.

  I stood frozen, trying to comprehend what was going on in front of me.

  Just then Joe appeared out of nowhere and pushed her into the huge loft of fire. She screamed and cried for help and then vanished in the thin air.

  Joe laughed like a winner "it's done Rebecca, now you are just a history. You shouldn't have treated me like that" he uttered.

  I was breathing heavily. My mom had just died and again I was the reason behind it, but why was I not feeling guilty about it?

  "Robert look! Sis has opened her eyes" Rick yelled. Freya was lying on his lap. I quickly rushed to them.

  Chapter Forty-Eight

  Freya

  The smokes of white fog began to disappear and his handsome face came into my view. His beautiful sculpted face and that cubic jawline which was no longer clean shaven but filled with several black specks of the dust of stubble. His red lips were chanting my name as I lied in his arms, the safest place in this whole world.

  His intoxicating, yet smooth gaze was nurturing my features making me wonder what if he was really mine and if he was mine then what good I ever did to achieve him?

  I kept looking into his blue eyes, God! I hadn't seen him for so long. Wait...was it really him? Or was I dreaming? I blinked my eyes to make sure.

  But he stayed right where he was, and I was still lying in his arms. "Freya! Can you hear me?"

  "O-M-G! Robert, is it you?" I sat up and touched him to make sure if he was for real.

  He smiled and held my face in the palm of his hands "yes sweetheart it's me. I am right here" he said in his loving tone.

  I smiled as tears of happiness filled my eyes "Robert" I took his name and buried my face in his chest, weeping loudly "why did you leave me alone? do you know how much I cried for you?"

  He gently removed myself from his arms and made me look into his eyes. "Shhh," he uttered as he gently kissed away my tears and I closed my eyes to feel the warmth of his soft lips.

  When I opened my eyes and saw Joe Hudson and Rick, standing right behind Robert, I became self-conscious and pushed him away.

  Robert eyed me with a confused look and I pointed at Rick and Joe Hudson with the corner of my eye. He shook his head and smiled mischievously.

  "Sis, are you all right," Rick asked with concern as he sat right beside Robert.

  I nodded and smiled.

  "Yes, she is fine. The spell that Rebecca cast on her, broke with her death. We are safe now" Joe reassured.

  "What spell? what is he talking about?" I asked holding my head.

  "I will tell you everything on the way. But for now, let's get out of this ominous place" Robbert suggested.

  I was still confused.

  Then he carried me in his arms and took me to the car. Aww! How much I missed him.

  On the way to home. They told me the whole dramatic story.

  I was so angry on that Rebecca if she wasn't dead already then I swore I had full plans to go and grab her by the neck. How dare she torture my Robert like that?

  But everything seemed to have sorted out. We were safe and that was
the most important thing.

  While Robert drove, I leaned on his shoulder and kissed his chest. I could feel him smiling when he kissed me on top of my head. It felt so right, so perfect, almost like heaven.

  Robert

  She was totally relaxed in my embrace, moaning softly and enjoying the attention. She turned her head and met my lips with hers.

  This kiss was different. Not coerced, this one was genuine, unhurried and passionate, as her tongue quickly pressed into my mouth to introduce itself. She was delicious and turned in my arms as much as she could while keeping my hand firmly in place on her breast. Her hand caressed the side of my face.

  "I think we'd better take this inside," she breathed between kisses.

  At her behest, we headed back. It took several minutes for us to make it back, largely because we kept pausing to embrace again every few steps. I became more intimately familiar with the curves of her backside, so firm, muscular, and sexy. Her kisses were sweet and grew more expressive with each cycle.

  We did finally find our way to the elevator doors. Once they opened, we stepped in.

  The doors closed, and her arms reached around my neck again. This kiss was necessarily brief, as the ride was short. Moments later we were at the door of my room, and she wasted no time opening the portal for us, pulling me in behind her.

  "Truly alone at last," I laughed, and scooped her up. She giggled like a schoolgirl as I carried her to the bed, placing her gently on her back before laying atop her.

  Now, I kissed her hard. I was, shall we say, eager. So was she, and she soon had found her way on top of me. The snug fit of her dress made straddling me difficult.

  "Damn dress!" she giggled, rolling off the bed. She reached behind her neck, intent on removing it.