by Eliza Raine
‘We need to write it down, so that we have the words perfectly,’ he said, and turned to her. ‘Come on.’ She reached for his outstretched hand and he led her to the hauler.
They made their way quickly to his chambers, where he began opening drawers in the chest by his huge bookshelves. He muttered and cursed as he moved things around and Hedone was sure she heard him say Evadne’s name. If she remembered correctly, Evadne was good at puzzles. Like Theseus had been. A pang of painful guilt and regret hit her as Theseus’s face floated before her, but it was gone before she could register what it meant.
‘Here,’ Hercules said, turning to her with a wad of paper and a pencil in his hands. ‘Do you still remember it?’
‘Yes,’ she said and took them from him, resting the paper on her knees as she perched on the edge of the couch. Hercules moved behind her, watching over her shoulder as she wrote down, word for word, what Nereus had said, saying it aloud in the same sing-song tone the shapeshifter had used. The huge windows at the end of Hercules’s bedroom, beyond the open doors, suddenly turned dark and her head snapped up to watch as dark clouds engulfed the ship. Hedone forced down the surge of panic as the light around them dimmed dramatically. They had reached the pier to enter Leo. Suddenly flashes of purple lit the smog, then there was a lurching sensation and they shot forward. She almost lost her seating on the couch, but Hercules’s strong arm wrapped around her shoulders in a heartbeat. And then they were through, bright blue sky filling the space beyond the glass again and causing her to let out a long breath of relief.
‘Are you all right, my love?’ Hercules asked her, his grip around her easing.
‘Of course.’ She swivelled around to face him, giving him a reassuring smile.
‘Good. You’ll get used to that, when we live here,’ he said.
Her heart swelled, as it did every time he mentioned their future.
‘I know I will. Thank you.’
He stared back into her eyes for a moment, his expression serious, then kissed her gently. Power and lust and heat flooded her body, and she kissed him back, letting the feelings wash over her. But he pulled away too quickly and she tried not to let her disappointment show her on face as he refocused on the paper on her lap.
‘Now, it must be some sort of word puzzle, as there’s no other clues here to a “symbol of power”,’ he said.
‘Yes. You’re right,’ she answered, fixing her own attention as firmly as she could on the riddle.
8
Lyssa had no idea what the rhyme meant. At all. But Evadne, Phyleus, Len and Nestor were each adamant they could solve it first. It had almost turned into a competition, all four of them now spread across the deck, hunched over pieces of paper and chewing their lips. She was happy to leave them to it until they reached the islands. They were still about twenty minutes away and a bit of healthy competitiveness would probably improve their chances of solving it quickly.
Lyssa rested her arms on the railings of the quarterdeck and felt a wave of something akin to nostalgia as they sped over Mount Olympus. As usual, plenty of huge pleasure Zephyrs were making their way in a lazy circles around the beautiful mountain, and white stone mansions could be seen everywhere, floating amongst the crackling purple clouds. She avoided looking towards the one that belonged to Hercules. The one she had grown up in. She didn’t miss the mansion, or Leo. But she missed her mother. She missed her little brother. She missed being part of a world where her worries were insignificant, and her dreams weren’t haunted by blood and fury.
Perhaps she would have ended up with the same fears, the same nightmares, even if her past had played out differently, she told herself, as she watched Zeus’s grand palace on the peak of the mountain get smaller as they zoomed onwards. Perhaps she would have ended up with a whole load of different problems, but nobody real to share them with. What would a life surrounded by Leo aristocracy have been like? That was exactly what Phyleus had run away from, she thought. He had told her that she was real, in a world of falseness. Sadness gripped her and she shut her eyes. She reached instinctively for the reassurance of her ship, and let the power seep into her. She was doing the right thing.
‘Captain, we need to decide who is going to be involved in the Trial,’ Epizon said from behind her.
‘Yes,’ she said, grateful for the interruption to her thoughts. ‘How are you feeling? Do you want to fight? Or join me talking to the Hesperides?’
‘As much as I would love to be with you, Captain, I fear I would be a hindrance if you needed to react quickly. I’m not strong enough to fight at my best.’ His face was pinched and tight as he spoke and Lyssa knew what it cost him to say those words. He was truthful, sure, but he was also proud and fierce and no fighter wanted to admit they were weak.
‘OK. Well, that’s good, you can keep an eye on Evadne and Eryx. They’re both staying on the ship.’
‘Eryx is a good fighter, and fast. I think you should let him go with Nestor and fight Ladon,’ Epizon said, but she shook her head.
‘No. Have you seen the look in his eyes when he’s quiet? I know that look. As soon as he sees Hercules he’ll lose it. And that will likely end up with him dead. He stays on the ship.’
‘Then Nestor fights alone,’ said Epizon. ‘Phyleus must go with you.’
‘Why must he?’ She scowled.
‘He brings out your emotions, which will add sincerity to your plea and make them more likely to want to help you. Plus he’s more articulate than you,’ he added with a small grin.
Lyssa stepped forward and punched him on the arm.
‘I went to the academy in Leo, I’ll have you know,’ she said in her best posh voice.
‘Could’ve fooled me,’ Epizon shot back. She laughed.
‘Yeah. I wasn’t there long. Do you think Nestor will be all right, fighting alone?’
‘Other than you and Eryx, she’s the strongest on the ship. If anybody has a hope of getting past Ladon, it’s her. And she will relish the opportunity.’
Lyssa nodded. She knew that much was true. And Hercules was less likely to make a target of the centaur than of someone he knew had been on Lyssa’s crew a long time.
‘OK. I’ll tell her and Phyleus.’
9
Evadne stared hard at the riddle, her brain racing through possibilities as she processed the words. The uncomfortable planks she was sitting on and the hard railings she was leaning against faded to nothing as she focused on the challenge. This was exactly the chance she needed to prove herself to Lyssa. She was good at puzzles, really good. She needed to get the answer before the others. After spending so long feeling so useless and ignored on the Hybris, the desperation to excel now was almost overwhelming her. Calm down, she told herself, aware that her thoughts were racing too fast and fearful she would miss something. Read it carefully, she chided.
Forests cover all of the southern islands of the realm
Fly low until you see the stone arches surrounded by elm
Five mighty arches bear a carved symbol of power
Four lead to monsters that would make you hide and cower
One leads to an exquisite garden of bounty and beauty
Choose the path wisely: that shall be your heroic duty
It had to be a word puzzle, she was sure of that. There weren’t enough clues for it to be anything else. The first letter of each line makes... She wrote the letters down, then scribbled them out. That didn’t work. Far too many ‘F’s. The last letters? She wrote those down, then sighed and scribbled them out too. Was it an anagram? She began writing down words that stood out, rearranging the letters to try to form new words. She came up with nothing. There were six lines in the riddle, and the answer was a symbol of power. She probably needed one letter from each line to make up a word, she guessed. Maybe she could work backwards, see what would fit. The elements of power were well known in Olympus; Air, Earth, Fire, Water and Electricity. None of those words had six letters, though, she thought, biting the end of her pencil. Frowning,
she tried to recall the books she’d read on ciphers and the puzzles she had played with as a child.
Six lines, one word. A thought struck her, and she began writing quickly. The first word from the first line, the second word from the second line, the third from the third. When she had written them down all she scanned the list and leaped to her feet, excitement thrilling through her.
‘Captain? I’ve got it!’ she called, trying to keep a huge smile off her face. Lyssa turned from the railings, where she was standing with Epizon, and raised her eyebrows.
‘Really?’
‘Really?’ echoed Phyleus, getting up from where he’d been sitting against the mast.
‘Yeah, really?’ Len, the satyr, was trotting towards her, and Nestor strode up behind him.
‘Yes, look.’ She held out the paper, showing them all the list of words. ‘First line, first word, second line, second word, et cetera,’ she said, trying not to fidget as they leaned forward and inspected the paper.
Forests, Low, Arches, Monsters, Exquisite, Surely.
‘Flames,’ said Phyleus quietly, then beamed at her. ‘The first letter of each word! Well done! I mean, I would have got there in the end, but that was quick.’
‘Course, I would too, but yeah, well done,’ added Len gruffly. Evadne let the smile spread across her face as Lyssa took the paper from her.
‘Nice work. You’re sure?’ she asked, and Evadne could see the hesitance in her eyes as they flicked to Phyleus’s.
‘Yes. Positive,’ she answered, knowing Lyssa really wanted to hear it from the others.
‘It makes sense, Cap,’ said Len. Lyssa nodded and turned back to Evadne.
‘Good. If you’re wrong, and I fly my longboat through this arch to a deadly monster and Hercules wins this Trial, the rest of my crew will make sure that you end up going through the wrong arch too. You got that?’ she said, turning to Epizon.
‘Got it. If you die, throw Evadne through the same arch to be killed by the monster,’ Epizon said, standing up straight and nodding formally. Evadne looked at him wide-eyed until Lyssa strode towards the longboat and Epizon gave her an exaggerated wink. Eryx’s grunts of protest behind her tailed off and she sagged in relief. She didn’t doubt that the daughter of Hercules could be ruthless, not for a moment, but the more time she spent on the Alastor, the harder it was to believe that her big first mate would hurt a soul. She’d seen him fight, though, and she knew he was good. Guilt washed through her when she thought about Hercules nearly killing him on Scorpio. Thank the gods Epizon had survived.
‘Captain, there’s an island down there that looks like it has a big ring of trees on it,’ called Abderos, his chair up against the railings on the quarterdeck. Lyssa jogged to the railings herself, leaning over.
‘Lower the Alastor, see if we can spot any stone arches,’ she said. Evadne felt the ship drop slightly, and moved to the railings too, peering down at a small island floating in the blue sky below them. She’d visited these islands as a child with her school, hiding from the other kids and their games up in the branches of the trees, where she’d get as comfortable as she could and read. ‘I can see stone,’ called Abderos. Evadne squinted until she could just make out the arches too.
‘Right, Phyleus, Nestor: longboat now,’ Lyssa barked, and then turned to Evadne, her face serious.
‘Evadne, I’m trusting you because my crew seems to. On both the arch and talking to the Hesperides. Hercules will make many, many more lives miserable if he wins the Trials. This is your last chance to tell me if I’m making a mistake,’ she said, her green eyes fierce.
‘I want Hercules dead as much as you do,’ Evadne said, holding her gaze. ‘I swear, I’m telling you the truth. It’s the fire arch, and you are more likely to get the apple from the Hesperides than by trying to defeat Ladon.’ She projected her sincerity into the words, standing straight and holding her chin up.
‘Good,’ said Lyssa, after a beat. ‘Then we’ll see you soon.’
Just minutes later Lyssa was in the boat with Phyleus and the centaur, the crew calling ‘Good luck!’ as they lifted off the deck of the Alastor.
‘Nice work,’ said Eryx, stepping up beside her as she watched the longboat zoom towards the arches below them.
‘Thanks,’ she said quietly. Her heart was racing. She believed she was right about the fire arch, but she wouldn’t relax until she knew for sure.
‘I think you’re gaining her trust,’ Eryx said, as the little boat swept past the arches.
‘Hmm. Let’s see if this works out before we get ahead of ourselves,’ she muttered, and held her breath as the longboat paused before one arch, then sailed through, disappearing from sight.
10
Lyssa took a deep breath as they passed through the arch that had flames carved all over its rough surface, only exhaling when they emerged into more clear blue sky. Ahead, a fair way below them, she could see a single tiny island. She didn’t think it could be much bigger than a Zephyr ship. From above it looked like one massive, sprawling tree, with a ring of lush green grass around it.
Most of the islands on Leo had a magnetic pulling effect when you got close to the edge, and your feet would become so heavy you couldn’t lift them at all, which meant you couldn’t fall off. You could only move inland. She hoped this island was the same. It didn’t look like it had a lot of room for fighting.
‘I guess that’s it,’ she said, and the little boat sped towards the island. As the longboat moved lower Lyssa could see something moving amid the canopy, so slight that it looked like the branches themselves were alive. This was the wrong colour for a branch, though. ‘Is that Ladon?’ she asked quietly.
‘Where?’ replied Phyleus, squinting and leaning over the side of the boat.
‘Moving amongst the branches,’ said Nestor, her gaze steady and fierce. ‘Yes, I believe it is.’
‘Where are the Hesperides? This plan is useless if we have to get past Ladon to reach them.’
‘I guess we’ll have to land and find out.’ Phyleus shrugged.
Lyssa lowered the longboat onto the lip of grass around the tree, keeping as close to the edge as she dared. Nestor leaped from the boat as soon as they touched down.
Phyleus followed her, then held his hand out to Lyssa. Just a few weeks ago she would have scoffed, told him she didn’t need his help climbing out of a longboat, but the sadness in his warm eyes made her press her lips tight together. She took his hand, and jumped down onto the soft grass.
‘Captain Lyssa,’ a deep, silky voice hissed. She whirled around, looking up at the tree. It was, without a doubt, the most stunning example of any tree she’d ever seen.
It was nothing like the mighty giants that stretched to the sky on Taurus, or the broad leafy trees making up the humid forests on Cancer and Gemini. Instead, it was unnaturally symmetrical, the solid trunk hosting ever-widening branches that curved up and around into a dense ball of wood and greenery. Veins of gold glittered through the bark, almost like they were liquid, rolling and shimmering in streams and running into the deep green leaves, rippling out in complicated patterns. Lyssa could easily believe that this tree would bear fruit made of solid gold. It oozed power and beauty and luxury.
A deep burgundy colour caught her eye amongst the glittering gold and bright green. It was everywhere, she realised as she concentrated, slithering in and out of the branches.
‘Ladon?’ she called aloud. She had expected an unevolved creature when Zeus had described Ladon as his pet. Surely he wouldn’t keep an intelligent dragon trapped on a tiny island like this? There were so few left in Olympus.
‘I welcome your visit,’ the voice replied. ‘We get lonely, here alone.’
‘We?’
‘Yes. The Hesperides and I.’
‘How long have you been here?’ she asked.
‘Lyssa, who are you talking to?’ hissed Phyleus.
‘You can’t hear him?’ She turned to Phyleus in surprise.
‘Hear who?’ T
he dragon chuckled and the sound sent shivers through her body.
‘I am only talking to you, Captain Lyssa. Although that young man is interesting indeed. He has the ichor of Hades in his veins.’
‘How do you know that?’ Lyssa stared up at the tree, trying to discern some distinct features of the dragon, but all she could see were flashes of deep red.
‘I am ancient. More ancient than you can imagine. And I don’t see or feel in a way that you could comprehend. For instance, I know that you have extremely precious cargo on your ship.’
Lyssa bit her lip, frustration and a frisson of fear muddying her thoughts, but sending pulses of power through her muscles as well. If Ladon knew Tenebrae was on the ship, then Zeus would soon too.
‘We’re here for an apple. May we have one?’ she called back, ignoring his comment. The dragon laughed again.
‘Absolutely not. I must guard these with my life. You know, one of these apples caused a war once.’
Lyssa clenched her fists as Nestor stepped forward.
‘Ladon?’ the centaur called.
‘Hello, little centaur, tool of Artemis.’ The dragon’s voice rang out loudly, and Lyssa almost jumped in surprise.
‘I am no more a tool of a god than you are, Ladon,’ she answered. ‘Zeus told us we could kill you, for an apple. Does that not anger you?’
‘If I am killed, I will be reborn. Although I doubt very much you would be able to end my life. Nobody has managed that in thousands of years.’
Lyssa could hear the smile in the dragon’s voice. Adrenaline was starting to surge around her body, making her impatient and angry.
‘Show yourself!’ she shouted.
‘Lyssa!’ Phyleus hissed beside her. ‘We’re not supposed to be—’ But his words were cut off by a ripping, slithering sound. The tree creaked as an enormous, exquisite dragon emerged from the foliage.
Lyssa had seen pictures of dragons, and seen them in flame dishes, but Ladon in the flesh was utterly breathtaking. His body was mostly snakelike, but he had short legs ending in clawed feet, which were gripping the tree trunk as he slithered down towards them. His head was ringed by an orange-and-gold mane that moved like fire, and flames danced in his intelligent, inky black eyes. The skin on his delicately scaled face shimmered, and vicious teeth lined his long snout. Two long wispy whiskers projected from above his flaring nostrils, probing the air ahead of him as he came to a stop halfway down the trunk. His head was the size of the longboat, at least.
