The animals had been driven between the fires
earlier; a cow, a sheep and an ox, representatives of the best the Kingdom had
to offer. And now the people are
dancing around the huge bonfire. Sirena stands and looks over each of the men,
wondering to herself who she dares to approach. Which one is willing to give his very life for Taure Ru?
The Green Man walks slowly out of the forest
and into the clearing, drawn by the fire and the revelry. He stops at the fire to feel its warmth
and to stoke it.
Sirena then sees a man entering the clearing
and standing by the fire. He is
muscled and strong but what catches her eye is that he is wearing the mask of
the Green Man.
The Green Man stands at the fire admiring the
woman who is not dancing. He walks
toward her.
Sirena notices that the fire seems to blaze
brighter and higher as he passes it.
Her breath catches and she knows that this is the one.
The Green Man: "What is your name,
beautiful one?"
Sirena shyly acknowledges the compliment with a
small tilt of her head. "I am Sirena, High Priestess of Taure Ru. Are you
the one for whom I have been waiting?"
The Green: "Dance with me and we shall see."
Sirena feels a strong attraction to this quiet
man. But she feels sorrow for him.
She has accepted that tonight will be her death; there is no other way. She places her hand in his and allows
herself to be drawn toward him and into the dance.
The Green Man: "Do you not want to know my
name Sirena?"
Sirena looks at the eyes glittering beneath the
mask as the Beltane fire burns beside her and within her. "Aye, I would
know your name. Which one of the loyal warriors from Taure Ru are you?"
The Green Man: "I am not of Taure Ru. No one in these lands is worthy of you,
my lady."
Sirena feels his arms around her tighten and
she whispers, "You are not of Taure Ru? From where, then, do you
hail?"
The Green Man pulls her body against his so that
flesh touches as they sway and their bodies meld together. "I am from the highest plane of
existence. Do you not know who I am?"
Sirena shakes her head "I do not know who
you are. I have never seen you before.
I would recognize your form and your bearing. Who are you?"
The heat from his body warms her as she feels his hands stroke her back
and his strongly muscled arms take possession of her. The heat within her increases and she feels the same desire
for him that the dance holds for her.
The Green Man: "You will know my name soon
enough then. What does a name matter? Let us enjoy each other, this heat,
this fire."
Sirena moves with the virile man towards the
fire and she notices the flames leaping higher as if in response to the music. His skin glistens but not with sweat and
his eyes shine but not from the reflected firelight.
The music has become heavy and insistent with
drums, the revelers are giddy and wild and are slowly pairing off to run into
the woods, the fields, the villages, wherever they can find a secluded spot to
couple and enjoy their desire. Sirena
sees them move away from the fire and dares to place her hand upon the man claiming
him as hers lest another woman take him.
Sirena whispers to him "I am prepared to
give my life that the fields and the animals be blessed tonight. But you, do you know of the penalty for
lying with one of Belenus' own?"
The Green Man ignores the intent in the
question as he asks, "So you are sworn to Belenus?" He dances her
closer to the bonfire.
Sirena: "Aye, Belenus claimed me as His
long before I knew what being a Priestess meant.“
The Green Man: "Then the mighty one has
good taste. And now it is time; we
will bless the fields together. You
are the perfect woman for that.
You are fertile and full of passion, just what growing crops need."
Sirena blushes “I must do what is required of a
High Priestess even though the penalty is high. We must go to the fields now before it becomes light. You accept your fate?"
The Green Man: "Aye..we must go to the
fields now..."
They walk hand in hand to the fields where
Sirena, in a desire induced daze, turns to face the Green Man and he grabs her,
bending her over his knee. She
swoons as the green man takes her in his arms and kisses her passionately and
then is abruptly brought back to reality as flames appears to consume him and
they engulf her. He transforms from
human to his true form.
Sirena screams as the flames begin to burn her.
"Belenus, my Lord..." she gasps.
Belenus: "I am your Lord, your God, your
Belenus and tonight I will take you as mine forever."
Sirena, in great distress, whispers
breathlessly "Have you come to take me with you My Lord?"
Belenus tears her dress from her body and lets
it burn on the ground. "I
have come to take that part of you which only I can have."
Sirena is terrified but rejoices in her heart. The
touch of the God is exquisite with both pain and pleasure, the pride in knowing
that he has chosen her and she answers, "I am yours to do with as you wish
My Lord."
The fire that is the God burns fiercely as he
grabs her roughly and wraps her writhing body around his. He watches with pleasure as she cries
from the torment of his fire.
The touch of the God is almost more than she
can bear. Sirena is ecstatic but in agony. Which is it the God intends for her to feel? She does not
know, nor does she care. She only knows that the High Priestess will bless the
fields with the God as has always been in tradition. The fields of Taure Ru will be fertile and overflow with bounty
at Harvest.
Belenus grins as he forces his flame to reach
deep within her, searing her and branding her forever. Every part of her body
will feel the flame of his possession.
Sirena can stand no more as she is consumed
with his inflaming kiss. The fire
burns deep within her and sears her very soul. She shudders, convulses and faints.
Belenus throws her to the ground
Sirena lies unmoving upon the fields, her
passion spent and spreading onto the earth…
Belenus stands over the fallen Priestess, still
burning fiercely. "I have
taken that which is mine. You are
to take no others but me. I will allow you to live so that I may return when it
suits me. You are a healer...heal
yourself and live your meager life but worship me with all your passion." He disappears into a cloud of smoke.
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OOC: Scene I was played in Taure Ru, but since
there were no fields in TR we moved to Isle of Wayrest for Scene II. Thank you Llarian for having excellent
fields! A special note of thanks to
the dear friend who stepped up to play Green Man/Belenus with me. I could not
have done this without you.