The trio made their way from city to city, putting on shows which
delighted
the citizens. Everywhere they drew crowds around them. Balder,
playing
the flute, would have the crowd mesmerized. There wasn't a song he
couldn't play, and sometimes, he would make up tunes. Helios would do
simple tricks such as coins out of the air, snapping his fingers and
birds
would appear, which always amazed them. In one town, he did make a
statue
of Zeus disappear, then reappear. Ammon would challenge the strongest
men
in the town to various feats of strength.
The girls in town would flirt with Balder as he was very handsome. Of
course, he would look at them with those blue eyes of his and the girls
would sigh. Ammon always scared everybody as his size alone was
intimidating. Helios emitted an air of mystery thus he was given the
most
respect.
They were sitting under a Cypress tree resting having traveled for most
of the day.
"Where do we go from here?" Ammon asked.
"It should be Carthas," Balder replied.
Helios was not in a talkative mood. He was thinking he needed to get
back
to the underworld to check on things. Balder asked what was the hurry,
nobody there was going anywhere. They spent the night under the tree
as
they would be in Carthas the next day.
Carthas was a town located in a valley between two mountains. It was
noted
for olive oil and wine-making. Travelers from far and near would come
there to buy their oil and wine. There were two men in the town who
grew
the best grapes, one of them was Molus.
Molus had not been blest with sons, only three daughters - Persephone,
Freyja, and Kali. Persephone, who was the oldest, loved to be among
the
vineyards and tended a small flower garden beside the house. She had
her
father's looks - dark hair, light eyes, and medium build. Of the
three,
she was the one who knew the business and stood to inherit the estate.
Freyja was fair-haired with a light complexion, and was very shy. She
preferred being inside, taking care of the house. She took after her
mother, who also had been shy and quiet. Kali, the youngest, took
after
both parents. She had a bubbly personality and didn't mind the
out-of-doors as she was always doing something outside the house. She
could be counted on to bring a smile whenever one of them was sad.
Word was going around the town about the trio of entertainers that had
been
performing in other cities and were on their way there. Kali thought
it
would be nice to see this group of entertainers. She talked Freyja
into
going. Persephone had no time for entertainment as harvesting time was
almost there. She would help gather in the grapes along with those her
father had hired.
Molus wasn't going to let them go alone, but would relent only if
Persephone would go to keep the other two in line. Kali begged
Persephone
to go. Finally she said yes. The girls left out and arrived at the
square
just as the show was getting started.
Balder was playing a lively tune. Everybody started to dance. Balder
happened to see Kali and went over and motioned for her to join in the
dance. Kali was very good at dancing and soon everyone was watching
her,
much to the dismay of Persephone, who gave one of her sisterly looks.
When
Balder finished, Kali was out of breath. Balder continued looking at
her,
noticing how beautiful she looked. He came over and introduced
himself,
seeing how tiny she was. Kali looked into his blue eyes, which
reminded
her of the sky on a clear day. She blushed at the way he looked at
her.