Caleo - Finding Calypso

3 / To Kiss The Ice Princess

"You're dead." I spat, "You were killed in the blast from your wind-bomb on the Argo II, remember now?"

Khione laughed softly.

Soft snowflakes began to fall.

"You can't kill a goddess, Leo, I can never die."

Behind her, I finally saw what had been causing all of the screams. The higway had frozen over. The well worn roads had been covered by a thick sheet of ice. Cars skidded in every direction, a lorry had fallen onto it's side.

Khione noticed me staring.

She smiled coldly.

"Well, I had to distract the mortals somehow. Now Leo Valdez to bussiness."

I gave her my dirtiest look and said,

"Get stuffed Khione, I don't have time to be worried about small fry like you."

She laughed softly again.

Was it my imagination, or had she taken a step closer...

"My my! Aren't we full of ourselves? No time for me? We'll see about that."

She reached up and stroked my cheek with a long, pale fingure.

"You will dance for me Leo Valdez. I will make you pay. Come with me, come to my court in the North."

My thoughts seemed to be slowing down, like my brain was litteraly freezing. I opened my mouth to tell her to get lost, but somehow I couldn't form the words.

"Look, lady," I spoke with a great effort. She had taken another step closer, her nose was almost touching mine now. I wanted to get away from her and blast her with as much fire as I could muster, but it was like my feet were frozen to the ground.

"I've already told you I'm not interested in joining you ice skulpture collection. Now let me go and I won't have to set you on fire."

She didn't reply, just took another step forward.

She held my gaze with her cold brown eyes. She curled her fingures under my chin.

I wanted to scream at her, push her away and blast her, but I was frozen, almost litterally.

Then she leant froward and clamped her lips onto mine.

My brain felt fuzzy. A sence of numing cold began to spred through my body.

No! Fight her, don't let her get control.

Khione seemed to sence me resisting. She forced my chin up and sunk her lips down onto mine. Her hand slid down my body, stroking my chest.

The cold sence that had begun at my lips was spreding to every part of my body. It was too late. Khione had won. I would join her frozen museum. Another foolish boy who thouhgt he could get the better of her.

She forced her lips onto mine, drinking the last little peices of hope out of me. Draining me.

And then, like a thunderbolt, a thouhgt came to me.

More like a picture, an image.

A memory.

A smiling girl, with the sunlight reflecting off her hair, her eyes laughing at me.

Calypso.

Then I remembered my tool belt.

I managed to push my hand into the belt and drew out a chisel.

Then with all my remaining force I stabed.

Khione broke away from me, stagering.

I gasped for air, the feeling slowly returning to my limbs.

I looked a Khione, she was breathing hard and fast.

The handel of the chisle was protruding from her chest.

"I told you Khione," I gasped, still out of breath, "Never. Mess. With. Leo. Valdez."

I stepped forward and touched her forehead with one fingure.I channeled all of my hate and anger for her into that fingure and felt it grow red hot.

Khione didn't scream, she didn't try to escape. She just melted.

Maybe goddesses can't die, but I get the feeling I won't be seeing her again for a very long time.

~

Festus and I flew through the sky, just above the clouds.

Normally I almost enjoy looking at all the different cloud formations.

But not today.

I touch my lips with the fingure I used to melt Khione.

I can still fell a faint tingleing, left from the feeling of the Ice Princess suctioned onto my face.

She'd tried to drain all of the hope and fire out of me, she almost did it.

I shiver at the thouhgt of the endless cold that had settled over me.

And then, I remembered the picture of Calypso that had made me snap out of it.

Calypso.

I will find her.

I did once, and I will again.

I stair up into the sky, where the first stars are starting to appear.

"Thank you Calpso, for saving me from Khione," if Festus heard me, he didn't show it,

"Thank You."