Zeus's Condition

The moon's glow shone brightly in the night sky; a small village stood nestled silently outside a massive forest, shutters having been closed for the night; a path leading from the town snakes its way into the woods, stopping suddenly at a clearing. Beams of moonlight struggle to make their way thru the thick foliage of the dense forest. The trees stood dark and foreboding, clumped together, their jagged branches reaching towards the sky, moss hanging off the branches. I make my way down this path. The path was well worn and flat, having been used for years. I was on watch duty tonight, a punishment, it would seem. I was given brief instructions, "stay on the path, don't come back till morning, and take a torch. " I continued to walk down the path, twisting and turning deeper into the forest, the fire making obscene shadows that danced around me. "I hate nights like this," I mumble to myself. Every time I enter the forest, the hairs stand up on my neck; this night is no different. I shake off the feeling, seeing the clearing up ahead. Making my way into the clearing, I give a tired sigh, knowing it's going to be a long night. The clearing is an area of the forest where nothing grows; the village is not sure if it was us from generations ago or something much more sinister, but nothing has grown for as long as I've been here. I stick the torch into a bracket nailed into a nearby tree and sit on a stump just off the clearing. Sitting with my arms resting on my lap, I think about the events leading up to today. 'Pissing off the Gods is one way to make yourself known,' I think bitterly with a humorless smile. Just as I was about to have my pity party, the hairs on the back of my neck tingle with a sense of urgency I've never felt before, a sudden sense of danger washes over me, and I stand and quickly extinguish the flame. Stepping further into the tree line, close enough to see the clearing, I wait for whatever it is. A shadow suddenly darkens the clearing's edge, growing bigger by the second; a mass of fur and teeth steps out into the bare earth. I gulp, already knowing who it is. "You shouldn't be here…." I say suddenly, my voice gruff and masculine. The creature pauses and glances in my direction, eyes glinting a deadly yellow from the moon, electricity crackling around him. I step out of the darkness, broad-shouldered and grizzled, glaring at the creature. "I said, You shouldn't be here, Achatius!" The creature, now known as Achaitus, bares his teeth, drool dripping off his sharp canines. Suddenly, without warning, I drop to my knees, a scream tearing from my throat. The worst pain I've ever felt splits my skull open. Raising my hands, I clasp them over my ears, hoping to stop whatever is happening. A voice like ice spills into my head, almost as if it were talking aloud, "Really? And why shouldn't I be here?; you're the one who summoned me." Still weeping at the creature's feet, I look up, feeling a cold sweat take me, shivering in fear, "Zeus sent you." "Indeed he did." replies the creature, "seems the big man upstairs has some issues with you." "I-I didn't mean it! I swear! I-It won't happen again…." I beg "No need to beg." The creature replies, "Zeus already has A punishment set up for you." suddenly I let out another blood-curdling scream, but it's different; this time, it's almost as if a howl is mixed. I panic, experiencing a white-hot pain over my entire body, fear paralyzing me. The creature grins in delight, having another job to do. He turns toward me and, without a moment's notice, jumps at me, and all at once, I feel more pain than I've ever felt, our souls morphed together, combining man and beast. Another voice spoke up, whispering in my ear, "On this day, man and beast shall become one, ten years and counting, they shall remain, if in that time they defy me, they shall be forever locked together.'