by Kate O'Hearn
‘So you’re saying the shard created Diamond Head?’ Emily said.
‘Possibly,’ Chiron said. ‘We cannot know for certain.’
‘One thing we do know,’ Joel said, looking at the welcome book from the hotel. ‘If the Flame-shard really is in Diamond Head, then it’s in one of Hawaii’s top tourist attractions. Look . . .’ He offered the book to Emily while Paelen peered over her shoulder. ‘They have tours there all day long. You can go into the crater and even climb up to the ridgeline.’
Emily looked at the photographs of the dormant volcano. In one shot taken from above, it was clear to see that it was actually a volcano. It showed a wide, deep crater that was encircled by a tall wall that ended in the high ocean-side peak they saw from the hotel roof. It was large and, judging from the diagram, took up a good percentage of this part of the island.
‘It says that this island is called Oahu and that it has several volcanoes,’ Emily said, reading from the book. ‘There’s another one not far from here called the Punchbowl – it’s now a military monument. So how are we supposed to get the shard out of Diamond Head if it’s a tourist attraction?’
Joel pointed down to the information sheet on Diamond Head tours. ‘Look, it says it closes at six. We’ll wait till dark and head over when everyone is gone.’
Emily looked around the room and saw a clock. ‘It’s almost three. That’s a long wait. Every minute we waste gives Lorin time to get here.’
‘I do not like waiting either,’ Chiron said, ‘but I cannot see what choice we have.’
The long afternoon slowly ticked away, and soon Pegasus woke up. Emily was there the moment he opened his eyes.
‘Take it easy, Pegs, you’re safe. Thanks to you, we’re all safe,’ she whispered in his ear.
Chiron settled down on the floor beside the stallion. ‘You have done us all proud, my friend. You brought us to the shard. Soon Emily will claim it and we can return home. Just lie still and regain your strength.’
Pegasus nickered softly and looked meaningfully at Emily.
Emily leaned forward and kissed the stallion’s closed eye. ‘I’m fine. It’s you that has me worried.’ She reached over for the plate of ambrosia cakes she had summoned for him. ‘Here.’ She offered him one. ‘Please eat as much as you can, it will help you recover.’
Pegasus sat up and ate the entire plate full of cakes. Then he drank a large bowl of nectar. When he could take no more, he settled down again to rest.
As they waited for the sun to set, Emily grew more and more worried. Would they be discovered? Would Lorin find them before they could get the shard?
News from Olympus only added to the strain. Fawn was in constant touch with her sister. Sapphire was with Emily’s father and aunt, and being kept safe in the tunnels beneath the palace while fighting raged above ground.
More and more Titans were moving into Olympus. Jupiter’s forces were doing what they could to defend against the invaders, but the Titans were using stealth and planning in their attacks. Little damage was being done to the buildings of Olympus, but many of its citizens were being captured and taken back to the prison world.
The news from Tartarus was no better. Though Dax was recovering, Venus, Mars and Hercules had been dragged from the cell. There was no word about what was happening to them.
‘I should be there,’ Chiron cursed.
‘We all should,’ Joel added. ‘Olympus needs us.’ He turned to Emily. ‘The moment we get that shard, you’ve got to take us back there.’
‘I will,’ Emily promised as she started to pace, waiting for the moment when they could move.
By the time night fell, Pegasus was strong enough to stand. He wandered around the suite and tested his wings. He was sore from the long flight and his skin was still raw and cut open from the harness. But his strength was returning.
Just after two in the morning, they turned off all the lights and walked out on to the dark patio.
‘That’s Diamond Head.’ Emily showed Pegasus, Chiron and Chrysaor. ‘That’s where the shard is.’
‘We should get moving,’ Joel said. ‘It’s going to be a long walk.’
Pegasus nickered softly.
‘You are not going,’ Paelen said. ‘Pegasus, you have had a very long and exhausting flight. You must stay here and recover. We can go there and come back.’
The winged stallion shook his head and snorted.
‘They are right,’ Chiron said. ‘You have been greatly tested; you must stay here with me. They will not do anything foolish.’
Pegasus would have none of it and continued to protest.
‘Pegs, please,’ Emily said. She stroked his soft muzzle. ‘You can barely move. I can’t ask you to carry me there.’
Pegasus shook his head again and dropped his wing to invite Emily up on to his back. When she didn’t move, he nickered at her and fluttered his wing impatiently.
Paelen translated. ‘He says he has carried you this far, he will not stop now. He will not be dissuaded. He is ordering you up on his back.’
Chrysaor nudged Joel with his snout.
‘Not you too,’ Joel said. ‘You’re in no better shape than he is!’
‘Pegasus, you are being stubborn,’ Chiron chastised. ‘This is foolish and you know it.’ After a long series of sounds from Pegasus, Chiron shook his head. ‘There are times when you are more stubborn than you father!’ The Centaur turned to Emily. ‘He says if you try to walk there without him, he will follow you anyway.’
Emily knew he would. Reluctantly, she climbed up on his back while Joel settled on Chrysaor. Fawn stayed at the hotel with Chiron, to keep in close communication with Olympus.
‘Please be careful,’ Chiron said. ‘Do not take any foolish risks.’
‘We won’t,’ Emily promised. ‘The same goes for you. Don’t answer the door to anyone.’
‘Agreed,’ Chiron said.
The Centaur and Fawn stood back as Pegasus tested his wings. He stretched them wide and flapped them until they moved with ease. When he was ready, he trotted across the large patio area and leaped confidently over the railing. Pegasus sailed out over the beach and then to the ocean. They didn’t want to fly over the coastline and risk being seen by late-night strollers on the beach.
‘Are you all right?’ Emily called to Pegasus and patted his neck. The stallion’s head bobbed in the air and he nickered back to her.
Chrysaor was gliding easily in the ocean winds close beside them. After a few minutes, Pegasus manoeuvred in the sky and started to head back inland. Diamond Head’s dark mass loomed directly ahead.
‘It looks ominous in the dark,’ Joel called. ‘Almost like a big mouth waiting to bite down on someone.’
‘Let’s hope it doesn’t decide tonight’s the night it’s going to erupt,’ Emily called back.
As they drew closer to the massive crater top, Pegasus tilted his wings. He touched down lightly on the narrow ground at the ridgeline of the volcano. The terrain around them was rocky and uneven. Grasses and weeds grew along the rim and short trees dotted the sides.
Pegasus shook his head and snorted.
Paelen and Chrysaor landed beside them. ‘He has asked you to check your senses,’ Paelen said. ‘Can you feel the shard?’
Emily sat up tall on the stallion’s back. She closed her eyes and reached out with her senses. She was overwhelmed by the nearness of the shard. But as she filtered through all the feelings, she sensed that it was down in the actual crater floor.
‘It’s down there,’ she said. ‘Right in the very centre.’
‘How is this a volcano?’ Joel asked. ‘Look down there, there’s a parking lot and lighted signs everywhere. It’s just a big tourist attraction.’
‘Remember what that woman said this afternoon,’ Emily said. ‘It’s no
t really a volcano any more.’
‘This is just too weird,’ Joel offered. ‘Let’s just get in there, get the shard and get out.’
Pegasus flapped his wings and glided down into the crater, landing in the centre of a paved parking area.
Emily discovered that the lights they’d seen from above were from the public toilets and on a very big wooden sign that read ‘Diamond Head State Monument’. She slid off the stallion’s back and stood beside him. ‘I can feel it – it is right around here.’
‘Where, exactly?’ Joel said. ‘Look around – this crater is bigger than three football fields! How are we ever going to find it in here?’
The crater was not only large; it looked like a nature park. There were long grasses and trees growing all around and it was full of wildlife. They heard the sounds of crickets and small scurrying animals. Bats danced in the air, chasing flying insects drawn to the lights. There were paved trails winding through the trees, and even a few squat buildings surrounded by fences. It couldn’t have looked less like a volcanic crater if it tried.
‘I’ll find it because I have to,’ Emily said. She closed her eyes and could feel the power of the shard everywhere – it seemed to glow from the rocks and volcanic boulders around them, it rained down from the leaves in the trees and shot up from every blade of grass. The Flame-shard had become an integral part of the life in Diamond Head.
But as the moments ticked by, it called to her from a specific spot. Emily walked away from the stallion and moved across the pavement of the parking lot.
She opened her eyes. ‘It is everywhere, but strongest right here, beneath us.’ Inside her head, she could feel Riza’s excitement mixing with her own.
‘Everyone, stay back,’ Emily warned. ‘I’m going to summon it. It feels as if it’s really deep so I don’t know how it will find its way out.’
Pegasus and the others moved back as Emily stood in the very centre of the parking lot. She held out both her hands and closed her eyes and lifted her face to the stars. ‘Come,’ she commanded.
At first nothing happened. But then the ground beneath them rumbled ever so slightly.
‘Whoa,’ Joel called, steadying himself. ‘Did you feel that? Was it an earthquake?’
‘Come!’ Emily repeated, louder. Again, the ground rumbled in response, but the Flame-shard remained trapped beneath them. ‘It’s not working! I can feel it there, but it’s like something is holding it down. Maybe I’m not strong enough to call it up.’
Her temples pounded and Emily knew Riza was trying to reach her. ‘Can you call it, Riza?’ Emily said aloud. A single, painful pounding in her temple was the ‘yes’ answer.
Emily lifted her arms. Her hands trembled as they stretched above the ground where the Flame-shard was trapped. This time, she did nothing and let Riza summon the shard. And although the ground rumbled and shook harder, nothing else happened.
Emily wiped sweat from her brow. ‘It’s right here, I can feel it. But it can’t move. Not even Riza can summon it.’
‘Try again,’ Joel ordered. ‘It’s got to work. You need that shard.’
‘I know!’ Emily shot back. ‘But something is holding it.’
Pegasus nudged her gently. He nickered softly. ‘He would like to try,’ Paelen said. ‘He will break up the ground for you to summon the shard.’ Paelen started to walk backwards. ‘He warns us to move away.’
Emily followed Paelen and Joel away from Pegasus. She had seen him do this once before, at Area 51, when he had used his powers to return water to Groom Lake. Back then the earth beneath his hooves had cracked and opened like an egg.
‘Good luck,’ Emily called.
Joel took Emily’s hand as they stood back to watch Pegasus. The winged stallion shook his head, snorted and then raised himself high on his hind legs. With his wings open wide, he brought his front legs down with a force that shook the ground.
The sounds of deep cracking rolled out of the ground like rumbling thunder. Pegasus rose and smashed down on the ground a second time with his sharp front hooves. The rumbling intensified.
With a third and final attempt, they watched the pavement beneath their feet cracking. Giant fissures opened and chased through the parking area and spread across the entire surface of the crater.
The ground shook with the force of a mighty earthquake. Emily could see Joel calling to her but could not hear what he was saying over the explosive sounds. Before she could ask him to repeat himself, a huge geyser of water shot up through the crack closest to Pegasus. It continued up into the sky and rained down on them with a force that knocked everyone to the ground.
‘Emily, get the shard before Diamond Head erupts!’ Joel shouted as he helped her to her feet.
The roaring of water rushing through the fissures was deafening as the ground beneath them heaved. They were all knocked down again.
Emily climbed to her knees. She held her hands near the opening and summoned the Flame-shard.
‘Well?’ Paelen cried.
‘It’s not working!’ she shouted. ‘It’s still trapped!’
Joel knelt beside her. ‘Has the water put it out?’
Emily felt the draw of the shard just as powerfully as ever. ‘No – it just can’t move!’
The rumbling increased and the ground heaved. More cracks appeared as the roaring sounds of a second, third and then fourth geyser erupted. One caught Pegasus in the underside and lifted him into the air. Pegasus tried to use his wings, but the water pressure was too forceful. He was cast aside and crashed back down to the ground.
‘We must go,’ Paelen shouted. ‘The crater is going to blow!’
They ran over to Pegasus to help him up. Joel lifted Emily on to the stallion’s back and slapped his rump. ‘Go, Pegasus! Get Emily out of here before we drown!’
Paelen was already in the air and shouting down at Joel, ‘Hurry!’
Chrysaor appeared beside Joel, squealing as the water level rose up to his snout. Joel jumped on his back and the boar flapped his wings and struggled to take off.
The ground rumbled and shook as the volcano erupted – not with lava, but with water. Pegasus and Chrysaor flapped unsteadily from above as a piercing warning siren rang out all over the island.
Police and fire sirens competed with the larger warning siren as the ground continued to tremble and shake. Windows in the buildings closest to the volcano shattered and rained glass down on the streets. People flooded out of their hotels and ran further inland in blind panic.
As they flew over downtown, the street lights flickered and went out. Electrical boxes shorted out and started to burn. They watched a car tearing through an intersection and crash into a taxi going in the opposite direction. It was pandemonium on the ground as Honolulu suffered the large earthquake.
As they reached the patio area of their suite at the top of the Outrigger Reef, Chiron was waiting for them. ‘What has happened? The earth is shaking. Did you do this?’
‘We couldn’t get the shard,’ Emily explained breathlessly. ‘Pegasus used his powers to open the ground. But then it started an earthquake and the crater filled with water.’
Joel and Paelen ran into the living room and switched on the television. News reports flashed on all the networks, advising the public to remain calm – but due to the large earthquake and aftershocks centred in Honolulu, tsunami warnings were now in effect for all the Pacific Islands. Everyone was advised to move inland to seek higher ground.
‘A tsunami?’ Paelen asked.
‘It’s a tidal wave,’ Joel explained. ‘That must have been the loud siren we heard. It means a big wave is coming. It will destroy the coast if it hits. We’ve got to evacuate.’
‘We can’t,’ Emily said. ‘We still haven’t got the shard.’
‘How do we get it?’ Joel said desperately. �
��Especially now that the whole crater is filled with water!’
‘This is not good,’ Chiron said. ‘We have endangered all these people.’ He turned to the stallion. ‘Pegasus, I fear you have underestimated your powers. Now that you have drawn water from the ground, it will not stop. The shard is even further from our reach.’
‘Wait,’ Emily said, looking around. She held out her hand. It was steady. ‘The earthquake has stopped. Maybe it’s not so bad.’
‘Em, we filled the whole crater with water!’ Joel said. ‘That’s just about as bad as it gets!’
‘If only Neptune was here,’ Paelen said. ‘He could clear the water from the crater in no time.’
‘Good idea,’ Joel agreed. ‘And maybe Jupiter could open the ground to get the shard. Can we call them to Earth?’
Chiron rubbed his chin. ‘We could try. But with Olympus under attack, Jupiter may be hesitant to leave.’
‘He’s going to have to,’ Joel said. ‘Emily’s life is at stake.’
Chiron nodded. ‘Fawn, please speak with your sister. Tell her what has happened and that we need the Big Three here as soon as possible.’
As Fawn started to reach out to her sister, the door to their suite burst open.
Standing in the doorway was a young woman wearing a straight, long, floral dress and finely tooled sandals. She had waist-length black hair and a wreath of white flowers around her head. And if her face was anything to go by, she was livid.
‘What are you doing here?’ Her dark eyes flashed from Chiron, to Pegasus, down to Chrysaor and, finally, Fawn. She frowned. ‘And just what is a night dweller doing on my Island?’
27
‘Who are you?’ Joel challenged the stranger. ‘That door was locked. How did you get in here?’
‘I am Pele, and these are my Islands!’ The woman stormed up to Chiron. ‘Answer my question, Centaur. Who are you?’
Chiron stood tall and bowed elegantly in respect. ‘I am Chiron of Olympus. It is a great honour to finally meet you, Pele.’
