Yes and trouble ahead of them

Chapter 10: Shattered Shackles:

After leaving the cache, we returned to the road toward Delphi. The journey felt long, even on horseback, though Ikaro, with Arbos’s maps in hand, served as our guide through the Greek landscape.
“…And that’s why you always keep a good map on hand,” Ikaro declared from the front, his tone smug as he glanced over his shoulder at Iris, clearly enjoying his role as the self-proclaimed expert.
“Yeah, yeah, I know,” Iris replied, her irritation thinly veiled. She rode beside me, her eyes narrowed at her brother. “But do you really have to check the map every two seconds? I expected our ‘expert guide’ to be able to find his way without constantly stopping to look at it.”
I chuckled quietly, enjoying their usual exchange of banter.
Ikaro dramatically folded the map, his expression wounded. “I DON’T need the map all the time,” he retorted, his voice defensive. “I’m just double-checking, making sure this road actually leads to our destination.”
“I thought our destination was already decided?” I asked, tilting my head. “Aren’t we heading straight to Delphi?”
“We are,” Ikaro confirmed, his tone taking on the air of someone about to deliver a twist, “but we’re not taking the route through Thebes. That would be much too calm and uneventful for my plan.”
Iris groaned, rubbing her forehead as though bracing herself. “What plan, Ikaro? Please don’t tell me you’re thinking what I think you’re thinking.”
“If you’re thinking we’re going to Corinthios first,” Ikaro said with a wide grin, glancing back at her, “then yes, you’re absolutely right.”
“Corinthios?” I echoed, blinking in surprise. “Why would we go there? What could we possibly need from—” I stopped mid-sentence as realization dawned. “Oh. Now I get it.” I turned to Iris, whose exasperated expression confirmed my suspicion.
“Not fucking Corinthios,” Iris said flatly, shaking her head. “That city is a complete cesspit.”
“It’s not that bad,” Ikaro defended, though he quickly faltered under Iris’s glare. “Okay, fine, it’s bad. But it’s not as bad as Helos! And we need to resupply. Plus, if we can find a good ship and crew, they could take us to Delphi much faster than riding.”
“And drain our coin in the process,” Iris shot back, crossing her arms. “Father’s vault wasn’t overflowing with riches, you know. It was meant for us to start over, not for extravagant travel plans.”
“We could sell the horses,” Ikaro suggested with a shrug. “Once we get to Delphi, we can replace them. Besides, Kayn here is a master negotiator.” He grinned at me, as though I’d already agreed to his idea.
I raised an eyebrow. “Hmm. I don’t mind bartering, but are you sure this is the best course of action? It’s true the journey would be shorter, but what if we can’t find anyone willing to take us?”
“Corinthios is full of scoundrels and cutthroats,” Ikaro admitted, “but shipmasters there are always looking for work. A trip to Delphi is simple enough for them. The problem, like Iris said, is the price…” He trailed off, his expression thoughtful.
I glanced at Iris, who immediately held up her hands. “Don’t look at me. You’re the boss here,” she said, leaning back slightly in her saddle.
I sighed, considering the options. Both had valid points, but Ikaro’s plan did make sense if we could manage it. After weighing the pros and cons, I finally nodded. “Alright, Ikaro. We’ll head to Corinthios.”
Ikaro whooped in victory, raising his fist in the air triumphantly. “Trust me, you won’t regret this!”

As we continued along the road to Corinthios, the sun hung low in the sky, casting golden rays over the landscape. The rhythmic clopping of our horses’ hooves provided a steady backdrop to our conversation. Ikaro and Iris’s bickering remained a constant, their teasing punctuating the otherwise quiet journey. Occasionally, Iris fell back to ride beside me, and our conversations turned more private.
“So, what do we really know about this Oracle?” Iris asked, her tone curious but thoughtful. She leaned slightly in her saddle, her gaze fixed ahead as if searching for answers in the horizon.
“Not much, honestly,” I admitted. “All I know is what Athena told me—and I’ve already shared that with you both. She wasn’t exactly forthcoming with details.”
From the front, Ikaro twisted in his saddle, a mischievous grin lighting up his face. “Well, I’ve heard a very important rumor about the Oracle,” he said, his tone dripping with mock seriousness.
Iris raised an eyebrow, skeptical. “Oh? And what might that be?”
“I heard she has the biggest breasts in all of Greece!” Ikaro declared, using both hands to illustrate his point in an exaggerated, comical gesture.
Iris’s eyes widened in disbelief before she rode up and punched him square in the shoulder. “Ikaro, you absolute pig!”
I couldn’t help but burst out laughing at their antics.
“Ow!” Ikaro complained, rubbing his shoulder dramatically. “What? I’m just passing along the important information I received!”
“In what twisted universe is that important information?” Iris retorted, hitting him again, though a smile tugged at the corners of her lips despite her irritation.
Ikaro smirked, undeterred. “Maybe Kayn can ask Athena and confirm for us.”
I raised an eyebrow, caught off guard but amused by the suggestion. “Why on earth would I even ask her something like that? Can you imagine the scene? Me, approaching Athena—the goddess of wisdom, mind you—and asking, ‘Hey, are the rumors about the Oracle’s, uh, assets true?’” I let out a laugh, shaking my head at the absurdity. “Though now that you’ve planted the idea, I admit I’m a little curious if the rumors are true.”
Iris shot me a sharp look, though her expression teetered between exasperation and **** amusement. “If I were Athena, I’d have punched you both for being insufferable pigs.”
“Oh, come on, sis,” Ikaro said with a wide grin. “We’re just joking. And besides, you’ve got nothing to be jealous about.” He wagged his eyebrows at her suggestively.
Iris’s jaw dropped, her face flushing as she glared daggers at her brother. “Alright, that’s it!” she growled. Without warning, she leaned over, grabbed Ikaro by the arm, and yanked him clean off his horse, sending him tumbling to the ground.

The two rolled in the dirt, bickering and wrestling like a pair of unruly children. “Take it back, you idiot!” Iris demanded, pinning her brother with surprising strength.
“Okay, okay! I take it back!” Ikaro yelled through fits of laughter, struggling half-heartedly against her grip.
I watched the chaos unfold, laughter spilling from me as I leaned back in my saddle. “All right, you two, that’s enough,” I said, my voice laced with amusement. “Before one of you breaks something—or worse, spooks the horses.”
Iris finally released Ikaro, standing and brushing off her clothes as she shot me a mock glare. “You’re lucky I didn’t drag you into this, Kayn. You were just as bad as him.”
“Hey, I was only an innocent bystander,” I protested, holding up my hands in mock surrender.
“Sure you were,” she said with a faint smirk, her irritation softening into something closer to amusement.
Ikaro climbed back onto his horse, still grinning despite the dust covering his clothes. “For the record, Kayn, I like your sense of humor. Nice to have someone in the group who appreciates my genius.”
Before I could reply, a faint sound reached my ears—voices and the clinking of metal, carried on the wind. I sat up straighter, holding up a hand. “Wait. Do you hear that?”
Iris and Ikaro both froze, their expressions sharpening. “Yeah,” Iris whispered.
“It sounds like people,” Ikaro said, his brow furrowing. “But they’re not speaking our language.”
My grip tightened on my horse’s reins. “We should check it out—it might be bandits.”
Both siblings nodded in agreement, and we dismounted, hiding our horses among a cluster of trees. Quietly, we crept toward the source of the sound, keeping to the cover of bushes and rocky outcrops.
Peering out from behind a boulder, we saw them—a group of five men clad in heavy, ornate armor, their weapons gleaming even in the fading light. One of them stood apart, his armor distinct, his posture commanding. Clearly, he was their leader.
“Persians,” Ikaro muttered under his breath. “Sharkat Tala. That’s the Gold Company in their tongue.”
I followed his gaze to a pair of large cages set up in the center of their makeshift camp. One held a group of huddled captives, their faces pale and gaunt. The other was further away, its contents obscured by shadows.
“Who are they?” I whispered. “And what are they doing here?”
“Mercenaries under Xerxes,” Ikaro explained grimly. “They’re elite soldiers, but they’ll fight for anyone who pays their price. And they’re **** traders, too the bastards.”
Iris’s expression darkened as she looked at the captives. “We have to do something,” she whispered urgently.
“I agree,” I said, my voice firm as I stepped forward. But Ikaro grabbed my arm, pulling me back.
“Whoa, whoa, easy there,” he said. “These aren’t some ragtag bandits. They’re highly trained mercenaries. Rushing in would get us all killed.”
I looked at him, my jaw clenched. “So what’s your plan? We can’t just leave those people.”
Ikaro’s eyes lit up as a grin spread across his face. “We need a distraction,” he said, his mind clearly working through the options.
Iris raised an eyebrow. “Okay, and?”
Ikaro pointed at me. “We’ve got it right here.”
“What?” I asked, confused, as both siblings turned to me with identical mischievous grins.