Beware of Gods

I.
My mother always told me the stories
of gods and mortals
She warned me of their selfishness and how they would only bring ruin,
But she never told me how

II.
He was the rising sun over my lands
I fell for the brightness of his smile
and the nimbleness of his feet
and the way my name came tumbling out of those lips

III.
The first time I kissed him he was hard and unmoving
He couldn’t look at me as I drew back
I ached when he left

IV.
The first time I lay with him it was as if the planets had finally alligned
Every breath was a lungful of stardust 
and every caress was the creation of galaxies

V.
The war had changed him
It was easy enough to see
His every touch was heavy
and weighed down by the hopes of thousands of men
I could see the blood of many staining him yet I could only do nothing

VI.
Taking his place was my choice
His pride was as big as any gods but I would not let it be his downfall

VII.
I was soaring over the heads of the enemies
Slashing, stabbing into anything near me
I watched in horror has Hector’s sword cut through me,
my blood spilling out like the many truths I had wished to tell him
Truths that he would never hear

VIII.
“Gods are dangerous” my mother had warned me 
But she never warned me of their smile
or their laugh
or the way their very presence felt like ambrosia 
It wouldn’t have mattered anyway
We were always destined to be