"Check. Mate."
The game was not going in the Maiden's favour and those two words only inspired fury. Her hands balled into fists as she sought to hide her emotions from an old opponent. Portia glared at the black and white board, and Cain noticed.
"Do you see how the King and Queen work together to finish the game?" Cain taunted.
"I see no King or Queen from where I am sitting." Came her swift reply.
Cain shrugged. "Perhaps it's only a matter of perspective?"
She swiped at the board, sending the remaining places flying though they all vanished before hitting the floor.
"You are a fool. A reckless, ignorant fool!" She snapped.
Unbothered by her outburst, Cain merely lifted his glass and took a a sip of the red wine. It was a decent vintage from a small village not far from where they currently were; safe and unseen, miles from anywhere important. It had been one of his favourite places to visit as a child, the seaside holiday spot popular in the summer and with the seasons changing the visitors had abandoned it once more. One of the last memories he still had of his parents, or, those he had thought of as his parents, came from here. It was good to come back and see it so, unchanged, when so many other things had.
Cain sat his glass back on the table, eyes lingering on the wooden lion for a moment before he picked it up.
"Again, perhaps it's only a matter of perspective?" He dropped it back onto the table. "For all your abilities, you are still a terrible opponent and an even worse loser. Shouldn't you have seen it coming?"
Portia bit her tongue until she tasted blood. Her nails sliced into her palm and for a moment she ceased to breath.
"You know I can't, not when she is involved." She hissed through clenched teeth.
"She? I was talking about Chess."
"What do you think will happen next old, friend?" Portia opened her hands, rubbing them on her thighs as circulation returned. "Do you think she actually loves you? That she saved you out of the goodness of her heart? It was for her own personal gain. None of this was for you. Wake up, Cain. You've always been blind when she is involved!"
"I guess we have that in common." He leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table and his head on his hand. "Thing is, I can now see this bothers you more than it has ever bothered me."
His casual disregard of her concerns only enraged her further yet her anger vanished as he stood, the look in his eyes turning deadly. The cool sea breeze that had chilled them earlier vanished, and the old shack they were seemed suddenly twice as small. Refusing to be intimidated she matched him front on, returning the look with one of her own.
"Why are you here, Portia?" He demanded. "Enough with the games. The vision has passed. Let it rest, or perhaps your disappointment at my survival tells me even more about your true intentions?"
"I am not your Oracle anymore, Cain. I am the Third!" She poked him in the chest, hard. "Remember that when you speak to me with such disrespect."
"You are only where you are because of her, do not forget that or the fact there have not always been three. If you think I don't know when you're up to something, you're gravely mistaken."
"Are you threatening me?"
"That depends." He shrugged. "Why are you really here?"
Portia closed her eyes, and turned away, drifting towards the doorway.
"We were friends once. We have had our differences from time to time, but none-the less, friends we remain. I came to warn you. There is a line you must not cross with her. They do not want it to be. The vision may have passed, but she still holds the power over your final end!"
"I know." He agreed. "But that still doesn't explain why you're here."
"They've always had a plan for her and you were never supposed to be as much of a part of it as you are. She should have killed you." She held up two golden threads, loosely plaited together. "Instead it continues on. Stop, now."
"And you say I have control issues." He mumbled.
"You do. You are both much to impulsive, and stubborn and-"
Cain looked at the threads closely. "We've been here before. What if you three are not as all knowing and powerful as you claim to be? What if this is fate?"
From where she stood Portia looked out across the sand to the water. He raised a point she had also urged the others to consider. The less control they had the more determined they seemed to be to get it. Which is why she was here, doing as they asked yet again. Unsure what else to say, she repeated what Adala had said to her.
"The ocean will always find the shore, yet are forever changing. Still they live in a harmony of sorts, each knowing their place. You two are more like a tsunami and an earthquake." Portia finished dryly. "Don't be some naive, Cain. You've always wanted what you can't have, only to get it and be disappointed. Doesn't she deserve more than that, or do you not care as much as you say you do. Then again, does she?"
Turning back to where he now sat, she moved closer. Her steps slow as she planned her next attack.
"It's not as if she has even told you how she feels, if it's even real. If it's, love. To me it all seems like a way to simply hurt Apollo, to flaunt you in front of him as he did with her?" She drank her wine, seeing the darkness slowly reappearing across his face. "If the past has shown us anything, she will always go back to him."
If he knew her tells, she knew his too, and she's just reached a check mate of her own.
"I think it's time you leave." It wasn't a suggestion and with a subtle nod, Portia vanished.
Cain rolled his shoulders before cracking his neck, leaning back comfortably in his chair before his feet went up onto the table. He was content to let her claim a false victory. If only she didn't keep playing the same moves every time, she might have a chance at actually winning.
Now who was the fool?
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So it's 1130PM - I know nothing about chess and I did this on my phone in bed as I had to get it out of my head... sorry if I've used the term check mate wrong 🤦🏻♀️ Good night x