Stone Cold NV: World of Sin, Book 1

by J. A. X. Mikesell

  “Oh, that’s nice Cory. Slam everything around already, why don’t you?” I mocked. “Did you want to throw some of their statues over there too?”

  “I didn’t mean to. It’s marble, so I thought it would have been heavy.” Cory replied as she stepped inside. “Why would you make a marble door be so light?”

  “Now is not the time to bicker you two. We came here to speak with Zeus and then be on our way to defeating Araminta. So let’s try to remain civil until we are done with that.” Pappy said while looking around.

  We slowly walked down the expansive corridor toward the giant statue of Zeus sitting on a throne at the end. Statues of various sizes and shapes suggested more gods and goddesses to either side, some even showing different beasts.

  “So how do we try to get his attention for his help?” I asked. “Do we tap on his knee? Clear our throats real loud?”

  “Honestly, I am not sure. That was never in the story that we were told by our family. Apparently the gods really don’t like being disturbed unless it’s for a very good reason. Or a very good price.” Chris explained. “Oh, there’s a podium up those stairs to the left of the statue. Maybe there are some instructions up there.”

  We ascended the stairs and came to a stop at around chest height of Zeus’ statue. Cory went to the podium and read aloud from a stone tablet.

  “Those who wish an audience with the gods must ask their question or concern and give it to the messenger before any response will be received. Please write down the reason for your visit and place it in the box to the right of the podium.” She finished with a more questioning sound to her voice than anything.

  “Well, write it down and put the message in there.” I said.

  “There’s nothing here to write with. Or anything to write on for that matter.” Cory said. “Does anyone have a pen and paper?”

  “No need for that.” A voice echoed around them. “I can just take your message now since I stopped by to see if there were any.”

  We looked around to find the person that spoke, looking over the edge of the bannister and the base of the statue. Not seeing anyone, we turned to the stairs to look down and back towards the door we came in from, but still couldn’t see anyone.

  “Over here.” The voice said again.

  Cory jumped when she looked towards the box at the right of the podium. A tall, lean man in a flowing outfit that almost looked like a business suit stood there pulling out a few cards and closing the box to lock it again.

  “I needed to get the messages that others had left and since I’m here, I can just take your message now.” He told Cory.

  “Oh, um…” Cory stumbled over her words. “Um, well, we’re needing to speak with Zeus to ask if we can borrow his hammer and anvil for a potion we need to make to get rid of a demon.”

  “Hammer and anvil, you say?” The man asked, pushing his thick glasses back up his nose. “Zeus doesn’t use a hammer and anvil. He’s the god of lightning, my dear. His tool just forms itself and he uses it from there. You need to speak with Hephaestus. He’s the god that does all the smithy work.”

  “Oh, could you take him a message instead of to Zeus then?” Cory asked hopefully.

  “What do I look like? The post office? Of course I can, I’m Hermes.” The man replied, gesturing down at himself as if it were obvious. “What is your preferred form of payment? A favor? Or do you have something that I might want?”

  “What do you like? I might be able to get you something that you would want. I don’t really have time to try to keep a favor for someone.” Cory replied.

  “Feisty. I like you.” Hermes said slowly. “What do you have with you right now?”

  “I have my bag and my Anima. You’re not getting either of those.” Cory replied. “Perhaps we should find somewhere else to go.”

  “If there was another place, you would have already gone there.” Hermes said. “Only the desperate come to us. I have no need for an Anima. Gods don’t need to have a creature to tell us we’re good with what we do. What does your bag look like? Mine is getting a little threadbare, rough winds, you know.”

  “No, I will not give you my bag.” Cory told him.

  “You have no idea how much that would help with my deliveries.” Hermes said. “A bag that can hold as much as yours would do wonders for my posture. My chiropractic budget would be reduced immensely.”

  “My bag can’t hold anything more than other bags.” Cory said, “What else would you want?”

  “I see.” Hermes said thoughtfully. “You don’t want your family to know that you created a bag with a small portal in it. No need to worry, I won’t say anything at all.”

  Cory’s eyes grew large and then narrowed, giving him a look full of daggers.

  “You did what to your bag?” Pappy asked in shock. “Wait, no. That’s not why we’re here. Hermes, is there anything else you would take as payment today?”

  “Does anyone know where to get some shoes that hold up for longer than a couple of days?” Hermes asked. “It’s either the bag or a few pairs of everlasting shoes.”

  “How about I come over there and peck out your eyes instead, you foul worm?” A voice came from Cory’s bag before the head of her phoenix popped out. “She said no deal on the bag. Besides, it’s where I sleep right now you prick.”

  “THAT is your Anima?” Hermes asked, eyes glistening with desire. “Please tell me that is a phoenix, and not just a bird with a remarkably similar head?”

  “She is not going to be your payment.” Cory said heatedly.

  “No, no. You misunderstand. If she is a phoenix, I simply want a tail feather.” He said, holding out a very worn-looking quill. “This eagle feather is only five hours old.”

  “A tail feather?” Cory asked, looking down at Kalama with a questioning look.

  “Well, it will grow back. I’ve never given a tail feather to anyone before, though. I have had some molt, but never taken one out.” Kalama said. “I don’t see the harm in it, as long as he doesn’t use it for a focused attack on me directly.”

  “Oh no, I wouldn’t dream of it.” Hermes said. “I only want one because they last a lot longer than other quills with the speeds I have to go, blasted gods and goddesses with their stupid messages. Can’t get up to speed with the world and get phones, can they? Noooo… Of course not. Why do that when they can just tell me to run around like a chicken with my head cut off?” Hermes complains.

  Kalama disappeared back into the bag and after a moment a muffled Ouch came out before her head came back out with a long tail feather dangling. Hermes stepped forward and took it from her, then gave a flourishing shake of his hand, showing the tail feather now with a fountain tip and a bead of dark liquid forming.

  “Perfect!” Hermes exclaimed. “This will last at least a hundred years. You have some very fine feathers there, my friend. If you ever molt any of those tail feathers and are around the area, please let me know and I will gladly take them. Even molted feathers last around fifty years or so.”

  Kalama turned her head, seemingly embarrassed.

  “What exactly is your message that you would like to send to Hephaestus?” Hermes asked.

  “We would like to speak with him to see if we can borrow his hammer and anvil.” Az told him. “Preferably as soon as possible.”

  “Right.” Hermes said, writing on a parchment roll before putting it in a messenger bag at his side. “I have a lot of other messages that I need to deliver before this one, but he will get your message.”

  "Wait, we’re on a very tight schedule. We need to speak with him-” I said, but stopped when I realized I was talking to empty air.

  “Now what?” Cory asked. “Should we try to find the last items on the list and come back later?”

  “Hermes is usually quick with his deliveries. I think we should wait.” Chris explained.

  “We still have to find Araminta’s Anima and go talk to the virtue.” Cory started complaining. “We really don’t have a
lot of time to sit around and wait for-. AAAHHH”

  “I am so sorry that took so long.” Hermes said as he popped in existence beside her. “Aries was on a rampage yet again and would not shut up about rising tensions and how some other god stole one of his prized swords. Oh, I’m sorry. Did I startle you?”

  “It’s fine.” Cory said. “Did you get him our message?”

  “Oh yes. He said that he will need to speak with you before he could agree to letting you borrow his equipment. Something about mortals making his hammer reek. He wants you to go see him immediately at his home under Kilauea.”

  “Wait… Hawaii? I thought he was a Greek god.” I said.

  Az

  The portal closed behind us as we stepped into an antechamber of a mass of caves, boiling lava flowing by in a lazy river. Pappy casts a shield charm to cover us all, his emerald green mist hovering close to our bodies, the baby blue streaks floating only in front of us so that the darker color didn’t impede our vision.

  A solid gold machine stood before us. Shaped to resemble a giant cat.

  “Follow me.” It said, leading them to Hephaestus who is bent over his anvil, hammering away, his back facing them.

  “Mind telling me why mortals are seeking the help from a forgotten god?” His voice rumbles to them.

  There are a few other solid gold machines around working different tasks while they converse.

  “Hello, sir.” I said. “We were wondering if we could borrow your hammer and anvil to help stop a lot of deaths. We need to make a potion to-”

  “You expect me to just give you my hammer and anvil? Why should I care if mortals perish? Perhaps Hades will be happier and get off my back about making more weapons for you humans.”

  “I’m sure that Hades will not be happy when he realizes that the people that are dying do not pass on. Their souls are being consumed by one of the seven deadly sins.” Pappy told him.

  The hammering stopped abruptly, and Hephaestus turned slowly to walk towards us, limping slightly. I could see Cory cringe when she saw the misshapen face staring at us. One eyeball was higher than the other. The eyebrow jutted out, making it look as if his eye had retreated into his head. His nose looked as if it had been broken repeatedly and never set to heal properly.

  “What do you mean they do not pass on? How are they being consumed?” He asked in a deadly serious voice.

  “We think that the sin is eating them. We’re not sure why, nor how, but we need to stop it immediately.” I said. “That’s why we need to use your hammer and anvil. To help make this potion and put Araminta back where she came from.”

  “Araminta? She’s back already?” Hephaestus asked, startling us all. “I helped put her in that prison when she first rose to power. How did she get out?”

  “We’re not sure. We were called to the Smithsonian to look at a crime scene about a stolen gun, the traces of magic left in the gun lead us to Vegas where we found out that the death toll had risen a lot in just a matter of one week.” Pappy explained. “To make a long story short, we were given some information that too closely matches the fact that we are dealing with Araminta. Someone found a way to give us all the information to put the puzzle together, and even a way to defeat her. Which is partially where you come in.”

  “This certainly is not good. The dead are supposed to have their souls go to the underworld for rebirth and to pass knowledge back to the universe.” Hephaestus said, scratching idly at the top of his head. “Yes, you may use my hammer and anvil. You may use them here, and here alone… If you can wield them. Now leave me, I have to finish a new plate of armor for Aphrodite to go hunting with Artemis. You may return when you have the last of the ingredients.”

  “Thank you, sir.” I said.

  Az

  “Ok, so we have the plants we need, and permission to use the hammer and anvil. Now we just need the other 3 harder ingredients.” Cory said idly as we sat in a cafe on Fremont Street. “Seriously, how are we supposed to get ambrosia? We already got help from two different gods. Can we really try and get another to help? Not to mention getting the essence of a virtuous person. We have no idea what to even look for. And we have to find and trap Araminta’s Anima, which I’m sure is going to be oh so easy to do.”

  I sat silent for a couple minutes as I ate my sandwich before finally looking up at her.

  “Cory, those two gods were willing to help us with this. I’m sure we can find another to help with getting the ambrosia. As for the essence, I really think we just need to go find that Gavin fellow and talk to him.” I pulled out Gavin’s wallet from my bag. “I still have this, and it has his address. So we don’t really even have a lot to do except go to his house and ask for his help.”

  “Once you two finish your lunch, I need you to go find him immediately and convince him to help us. I have to go speak with the mayor and go over details of the case.” Pappy said as he stood from his empty plate. “If you need me, just call and I’ll be there as soon as I can. If not, then we can meet up later tonight at the hotel.”

  ◆◆◆

  “Are you sure this is the right neighborhood, Az?” Cory asked quietly. “It’s so run down and dirty. I think you read the address wrong. People that live in something like this can’t possibly be a virtue of any kind.”

  “What makes you say that? Just because they don’t live in a nice little suburb like we do, doesn’t mean that they can’t be decent people.” I told her, giving her a side eyed glare. “Hell, there are rich people that live in mansions that are worse than just about anyone else you’ll ever meet in a neighborhood like this.”

  “I guess that’s true.” Cory said, blushing. “I just think of how I would feel if I lived somewhere like this. I would probably find it hard to be nice to a lot of people if I didn’t have what they have.”

  “Don’t tell me you’re still infected with Envy.” I said, groaning.

  “No, I don’t think I am. It’s just hard to put myself in someone else's shoes and view life through their eyes, I guess.” Cory said. “I’ll be fine. Thank you for reminding me that not everyone reacts the same in situations.”

  “Don’t forget it either. We don’t need you falling back into that trap. You may have completed your trial and got your Anima out of it, but that was a bad situation all around.” I said, starting for the door. “Let’s hurry and talk to him and see if he’ll be willing to help.”

  We walked over the dirt and weed infested lawn to the door and knocked. After a few moments, an older man answered the door.

  “Can I help you?” He asked them through the screen door.

  “Hello, I found a wallet that has this address listed on their ID. Is Gavin here?” I asked him.

  “Oh, how nice. He’s been pretty sad about it going missing. He was just about to leave and go to the bank to cancel everything. He’ll be happy it was found. Let me go get him. Would you like to come in for a minute?” The old man asked, holding the door open. “It’s mighty hot out there. Don’t want you melting on my front stoop now.”

  He led us into the front room through an entryway that could desperately use a few coats of paint and some updated carpet instead of the threadbare 60s design. He told us to sit on the couch, then went through a doorway towards the back of the house. We sat on the old, stained couch. The cushions were so worn that it was more like sitting on a bench than on household furniture. We could hear the old man shuffle slowly through the kitchen.

  “Gavin!” He shouted, presumably shouting down some stairs. “There’s a nice young couple here, they found your wallet and brought it to you. Come on up and tell them thank you.”

  A muffled shout came back and the old man came back with a couple glasses of water, handing them to us before he sat in a rocking chair across the room.

  “He’ll be up in a moment. Said he was getting dressed from his shower.” He told us. “You two don’t look like you’re from around here. On vacation?”

  “No, sir. We came with our grandfath
er on an assignment with the Council.” Cory told him.

  “The Council?” The old man asked, leaning back and looking at us. “You look a little young to be working for them.”

  “We’re members in training.” I replied. “This is our first assignment. Retrieving a stolen item and returning it to where it belongs.”

  “I see.” The man said, nodding. Then turned to the doorway as footsteps approached. “Did you hear that, Gavin? These two are junior members in training for the Council. Maybe you can see if they have any openings for you to try and get in there as well.”

  “Dad, I already have a plan. I just need to get a little money set aside for the business I want to open. It won't take too much longer.” A young man with brown hair and gray eyes said as he turned to me and Cory. “So you two found my wallet? Where was it? I had sworn I had it with me when I got home and then went to run to the store last night for dinner and found out it was gone.”

  “I had found it in an alley. I don’t remember exactly where, but it was in the middle so it didn’t look like it was thrown away after someone stole anything.” I said, reaching in my bag and pulling out the wallet. “I only opened it enough to get your address from your ID. I hope it all really is still there.”

  Gavin took it from me and opened it, looking at everything, and then gave a sigh of relief.

  “It is. All the cash and cards and everything.” He said. “You really are a lifesaver. I was so worried that I’d have to start over with getting the money together again to start my business. I know it’s not much, but I have the thirty dollars in my wallet you can have as a reward.”

  Cory and I looked at each other, nodding, before turning back to Gavin.

  “Instead of a cash reward for that, we actually could use your help with something. Would it be alright if we explained what we are doing here in Vegas and see if you would help?” Cory asked.