His name is Taras, and he is incredibly old, having lived for over three thousand years. He has witnessed ancient times and now resides beneath the Palace of Knossos. However, Taras is not alone in his eternal vigil. His sister, Aketa, sits beside him, also bearing the weight of their age. They exist without the need for sustenance, untouched by hunger or thirst. Their eyes remain perpetually open, blurring the line between life and death.

Despite the ambiguity of their state, it holds little significance to Taras and Aketa. They have been diligently watching and waiting for the past three millennia. They are the watchers, entrusted with a solemn duty. Nearby, the god Poseidon stands within the temple. Their eyes are fixed upon his golden statue, which glistens with opulence. The temple itself is adorned with gold, from the god's hands and face to his flowing hair. Even in the darkness, his golden eyes emit a radiant gleam.

As the brother and sister fulfill their role as watchers, they keep a vigilant gaze over Poseidon. It is a sacred responsibility they have undertaken, one that transcends the boundaries of time and mortality.

Audiobook:

The Watchers

Chapter one

The big caves

My name is Taras. I am old...

3,000 years old. I sit here, under the Palace of Knossos. My sister, Aketa, sits next to me. She, too, is old. 3,000 years.

We do not eat, we do not drink, and our eyes never close. Are we dead, or alive? It is not important. We sit, and we wait. And we watch. For 3,000 years. We are the Watchers.

The god is here, too. The god Poseidon, god of the sea, stands here in this hall. We watch his statue. It is gold, all gold. He stands here, five meters tall. His arms are gold, his hair is gold, his face is gold. And his gold eyes shine in this dark hall. We are his Watchers.

Jim and Stella, his sister, are on holiday in Greece. They are staying at a hotel in Iraklion, on Crete. They are talking to their friend, Nikos. Nikos is a Cretan and lives near the Palace of Knossos.

'What are we going to do tomorrow? Can we go to Knossos?'

'Yes. Why not? It's a very famous place. And very, very old. About 3,000 or 4,000 years old.'

'Yes, I'd like to...'

'Stella! Look at this. If's about Knossos. It's very interesting.'

CRETE NEWS

10 August

Caves Under Knossos Iraklion, Crete

UNDER the famous Palace of Knossos there are many caves. Some of these caves are very big, and some are many, many meters under the ground. What is in these caves? Nobody knows The caves are very dangerous.

Next week Yannis Papadakis is going to...

'We're going to find these caves, Stella! Are you coming with us, Nikos?'

'But Jim...'

'Yes, yes, I'm coming with you. You can stay with me at my mother's house near Knossos.'

'Good. We're going to need a lot of things. Lights. And food and water. And we need...'

'Yes, but it's OK. I can get everything.

'Jim, the caves are dangerous.'

'Yes, but Nikos knows a lot about caves.'

'Yes, I do. And I know the Palace of Knossos very well. Don't forget... I work there!'

'But do you know these caves under Knossos?'

'No, I don't. But we're going to be careful.'

'Oh, all right. When are we going?'

'Tomorrow!'

Sometimes there are lights in these halls. And music. The people from the Palace come down here. They are small, quick people, with dark eyes and dark hair. They bring lights, and food, and water... and they dance the dance of the god. They are the god's people.

No, no, I forget... They do not come now. These halls are quiet... dark and quiet. It is always night now. There is no music, no dancing. There are no people in the Palace now... not after the fire and the water from the sea. They are dead... all dead.

And we, Aketa and I, sit in the hall of the god. We wait and we watch. We are the god's Watchers.

Chapter two

The first day

At the palace of Knossos. It is seven o'clock in the morning. Nikos is looking for the door to the caves. Jim and Stella are waiting for him. The sun is hot.

'I'm thirsty. I'm going to drink some water.'

'Don't drink a lot. We need it in the caves.'

'Have we got everything?'

'I think so. The bags are very heavy.'

'Jim! Stella! The door's here! Come on, we can go down now.'

'Be careful!'

'It's very dark. I can't see anything.'

'Here, hold this light. We need all the lights now.'

'Walk slowly. And be very careful.'

'Yes, I know!'

'How many caves are there? This is the tenth cave now.'

'I can see another one in front of us. A long one.'

'I'm tired. I don't want to look at any more caves today.'

'How about some food? I'm hungry.'

'Yes, let's eat something. And we can stay here for the night.'

'Good! Where's the bag? The food is in there.'

'How old are these caves, Nikos?'

'I don't know. 3,000 years? 4,000 years?'

'Do many people come to these caves?'

'Not many people, no. Only the old Greek gods. The god Poseidon lives in caves, some people say.'

'The god Poseidon! There are no old gods in these caves.'

'How do you know, Jim?'

'The old Greek gods are only stories. You read about them in books. They're not important today.'

'Oh yes, they are. Don't laugh at them. And Poseidon is a dangerous god. All the books say that. He's the god of the sea, and the god of earthquakes, too. We have a lot of earthquakes in Greece. Don't forget that.'

'Oh Nikos! That's silly! The god of earthquakes? Everybody knows that earthquakes...'

'No, Jim. Nikos is right. We don't understand everything. And don't laugh at Poseidon... not here in these caves.'

The years come, and the years go. 3,000 years. My sister Aketa and I sit... and wait. It is dark and cold in the hall of the god. The sun never shines here.

Sometimes people come to these halls. They are not the god's people. They look for gold, only gold. And Poseidon is angry. It is the gold of his people... and now it is the god's gold, because his people are dead. Nobody can take the god's gold, or look at the gold face of the god... and live.

But there are no lights, no people now. Only the god Poseidon stands here in this dark hall - god of the blue sea, god of the green sea, god of this dark hall.

We are his Watchers.

Chapter three

The second day

'Wake up, Stella. Good morning, Nikos!

'Morning? It's always night in these caves! What's the time?'

'Seven o'clock. Are we going on... or back?'

'What do you think, Nikos?

'Mmm. I don't know. How many caves are there? Fifteen? Twenty? I don't know. But we can look at the next... or two.'

'Or three, or four, or five. I know you, Jim. You want to see everything.'

'This is the fourteenth cave. And this cave is big, very big.'

'Look! This is a road. We're walking on a road!'

'Yes, you're right. It's a very old road, too. Look at these stones on the floor. They're thousands of years old.'

'But whose road is it? And where does it go to?'

'I don't know, but we can follow it.'

'But it's six o'clock now. I think...'

'Listen! I can hear water. Can you hear it? There's a river in front of us.'

'We can't get across a river!'

'Oh yes, we can!'

'I don't want to go across. It's dangerous.'

'No, it isn't. Come on, Stella!'

'Stella's right. Rivers under the ground are dangerous, but...'

'Listen! I can hear something...'

'It's only the river, Stella. It's all right. We can go across the river, and then we can stop and stay there for the night.'

'Yes. We can make a fire, and have some food.'

Listen, sister. Do you hear anything? There are people at the river. They are talking and laughing. Listen, sister. They are coming here... to the hall of the god. Why? Who are they? What do they want?

Gold... They want gold. All people want gold. They cannot eat it, they cannot drink it. But the love of gold is in all men... and women, too.

But they cannot take the god's gold. We are his Watchers. We call the god, and we say his name. Then the god wakes... and he speaks.

Chapter four

The third day

'When are we going to go back? This is the third day now. I don't like these caves.'

'Why not, Stella?'

'I don't know. I can hear something... or someone. It's not the river. I want to go back, Nikos.'

'Yes. Sometimes I can hear something, too. But there's nobody in these caves, Stella. Only us.'

'Let's look at one more cave. Then we can go back. OK?'

'What's Jim doing?'

'I don't know. He's looking at something. Jim, what are you...?'

'Hey! Look at this! It's a bowl... a gold bowl.'

'It's beautiful. Can I hold it for a minute? It's very heavy, too. Look at all this gold!'

'Is it old, Nikos?'

'Yes, thousands of years old, I think.'

'We can sell it - we can get a lot of money for this bowl.'

'We can't do that! It's not ours.'

'Whose is it, then?'

'It's, well, it's... I don't know. But it's not ours!'

'Don't take it, Jim. Leave it here.'

'No, I'm going to take it. It's ours now.'

'Can you hear them, sister? They are near the hall now. Listen... They are looking for gold... gold. All people want gold.'

'Look at that next cave. Can you see it? It's huge.'

'It's not a cave... it's a hall... a huge hall.'

'Jim, Nikos, don't go in there!'

'Why not, Stella?'

'I think someone is watching us. I don't like it.'

'Why don't we go back? Please!'

'Who is watching us? We're the only people here. Stella I don't know. But someone, or something, is watching us. And it doesn't like us.'

'Don't be silly, Stella. Nothing is watching us. Come on.'

'I can see them now, sister. Two men and a woman. They are young. Two of them have blue eyes... They are not people from the Palace.'

'They are not the god's people. And they cannot come in here. They cannot take the god's gold.'

'They cannot look at the face of the god.'

'Look at those statues there. They're very, very old. They're...'

'I don't like them. Look at their eyes! Come away, Stella.'

'I can see something at the end of the hall.'

'Look! What is it? It's tall... very tall. It's a statue, a huge statue... and it's shining. It's gold - all gold!'

'Don't look at it. Don't go in there. Please, Jim, please! It's dangerous. Stop him, Nikos. Stop him.'

'They are looking into the hall now. Call the god!'

'Now, sister, now! Say the name of the god! They cannot come in... They cannot come in...'

'Shh, be quiet for a minute. Wait, Jim. Listen.'

'Why? What's...'

'Shh! I think Stella's right. There's something...'

'Listen! Nikos, what's that? Can you hear it?'

'Oh no! No! The ground is moving... It's an earthquake! There's going to be an earthquake! The stones are falling! Run... Run! Back to the river... Run!'

'Quick, Stella! Run... Run!'

'We can't! The walls are falling... Everything is falling! We can't get out! We can't get out!'

CRETE NEWS 14 august

Earthquake at Knossos-

Three Young People are Dead

Iraklion, Crete

Anna Stavros, mother of Nikos Stavros, says: 'Nikos and his two English friends, Jim and Stella, are in the caves under the Palace of Knossos. But where is the door to the caves? Nobody can find it now after the earthquake. My son and his friends cannot get out. They are dead.'

The god Poseidon, god of the sea, is angry. He speaks, and the ground moves, and the stones fall.

But the god can sleep again now, sister. The men and the woman are quiet. They cannot move. They lie under the stones. They hold the god's gold bowl in their hands, but they cannot go back across the river. And they cannot look at the face of the god.

The god's gold eyes shine in this dark hall. We are his Watchers...