Taking in everything she’d said, I remained silent, sorting through the information one piece at a time. The Titan seemed content to let me take my time, so I did.
If what she was saying were true, there was no way to kill the Titan and keep just Avalon. They were intertwined, forever together.
That was going to be a problem.
It also seemed apparent that the Titan remembered everything Avalon had been through, like she had been a second set of eyes, always watching.
Looking at her, standing so close, I itched to know exactly where Avalon was inside the Titan. Licking my lips anxiously, I breathed out softly, watching her face. “You can . . . hear her? What she’s thinking?”
“Of course. She could hear me, too, when she was in charge. It’s no different now.” Smiling, she reached out, running her hand down the side of my face. “She’s very happy to see you and thinks you look tired. I agree. Life in prison does not suit you, though we’re both grateful you cared enough to save us.”
“Avalon,” I said, my voice breaking. Covering her hand with my own, I leaned into her touch, feeling as if my world were shattering around me.
I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t talk to this monster, or look at her and stay objective. Every single sense I had was saying to go to her and kiss her, to love her and keep her safe. But she wasn’t Avalon, no matter how much she looked like her.
“What’s your name?” I choked out, trying to focus on something else besides the fact that my zou moi was right here in front of me and completely out of my reach. I couldn’t let go of her yet, not when I’d spent so long aching to feel her skin on mine again.
“Phoenix.” Proudness exuded from her as she shared the name she’d picked for herself.
“Born from the ashes,” I added, nodding. “It suits you, I think.”
“Thank you.” Her gaze washed over me, thoughts hidden behind the mask of a face. “You are just like I remembered you. Strong and independent. Handsome. I didn’t think—” Her voice caught as she hedged her next words, a strange gleam in her eyes. “I remember everything Avalon ever said or did,” she started again, her words shaky. “Every feeling. Every desire, good or bad. Most of all, I remember how her time with you seemed to eclipse the rest of her life. My life.”
Leaning in, her breath washed over me like an electric shock. “Her love for you was so intoxicating. I didn’t think I would still feel it when I was the one in control.” Her voice grew softer and I found myself leaning in to meet her, despite every single muscle in my body screaming for me to stop.
Chapter Fourteen
Cristos
Her lips brushed over mine and the world exploded. It was as if I’d been suffocating and she were breathing the life back into me. Releasing her hand, I wrapped my arms around her waist, yanking her against me as I kissed her back roughly. Her own fingers dug into my back, her tongue in my mouth. I couldn’t get enough of her, my grip on her so tight it felt as if I were crushing her.
“Cristos,” she murmured against me, her skin hot.
Too hot.
Wings ruffled over my arms, feathers brushing my skin. The kiss suddenly didn’t feel the same as it had all the times before when I’d kissed Avalon.
Because it wasn’t Avalon.
Filling with dread, I froze, pulling away slightly. “Stop,” I said pitifully. “I can’t do this. It’s not right.”
“What’s not right about it?” Breathless, she stared at me, our arms still wrapped around each other.
“You’re not her,” I replied simply, not even trying to mince my words. “I want Avalon and no one else.”
“Don’t you understand? I am Avalon. She is me. We are the same!” She looked at me like I was crazy or stupid, maybe even both. “You can’t separate the two of us. It’s impossible. If you want Avalon, then you have to want me, too.”
“It’s not the same,” I insisted. “You are not her. You may be joined, but you are each your own separate person. I’m sorry, Phoenix. If I can’t have just Avalon, then I don’t want anyone.”
“If you really loved her, you would see that what you’re asking is crazy.” Breaking away, she took several steps back, watching me as if she’d never seen me before.
“And if you really loved me, you would relinquish your control back to Avalon.”
It was a long shot, but I was willing to try it. The kiss had made me lose my head, my heart racing like I’d just run a million miles, but there was still some opportunity to try and learn something from her.
“I can’t!” she spat back. “I won’t! Not until this war is over. Maybe not even then. Do you not understand how dangerous it is for us out there? Everyone wants to kill us!”
“Then what are you doing here, fighting? Shouldn’t you be hiding instead of building an army?”
“We won’t be safe until the Titans and Olympians alike are taken care of,” she said coldly. “Surely, you see that. Your own father banished you from his presence after you were repeatedly attacked by Titans. Unless someone rises up to challenge both of them, the world will live in fear.”
“And you think you’re the person to do that?”
“Yes, I do. Damn it, Cristos! I came here to free you and ask you to join me! I thought you of all people would understand what it is I’m trying to do!”
“I understand. You’re trying to seize power. That’s what you’ve always done. You finally took it from Avalon, so now you’re trying to take it from everyone else.”
Her mouth snapped shut at that and she glared at me. A red glow filling her eyes. “I take it that your answer is no, then? You won’t come with me?”
“No, I will not.”
Her nose twitched, the only sign of the anger she was holding back besides the glow in her eyes. “Fine,” she said calmly.
Lunging forward, she wrapped her arms around me again, soaring into the air and back toward the gates of Tartarus. She flew much faster this time, holding me much more painfully. The flight that had taken over a minute before was done in a number of seconds.
Dropping me on the ground in the middle of the battle, Phoenix turned to the guard closest to her, raised her hand, and shot a stream of fire at him until he was engulfed.
“You want to stay on the other side?” she said to me coldly. “Then so be it.”
Without missing a beat, she struck out at me, her hand coming for my face. Luckily, I dodged her attempt at knocking me out, rolling across the ground. Phoenix was quick, though, and I soon found myself lifted into the air by her massive wings once more.
“There’s no use in fighting!” She was scolding me, her eyes burning red with fury at my having spurned her. “Not even Zeus himself could kill me!”
Silently apologizing to Avalon, I kicked her in the stomach, succeeding in getting her to release me. The fall back to the ground was short, thankfully, but I didn’t have much time to try and get away before she was on me once more.
Suddenly, she screamed out, turning and revealing the arrow stuck in her shoulder. Looking around, she caught sight of Arsenio, standing on top of the guard hut, another arrow pointed right at her. Fire suddenly shot from her eyes, hitting just next to where he was standing. He’d given me all the leeway I needed with the distraction, and I punched her in the side, grabbing the arrow and twisting it as she fell to one knee.
“Why are you doing this? Why won’t you just come with me?” She screamed, batting me away with one arm. “We love you! You are hurting Avalon, too!”
“No,” I growled, looking at her in anger. “You’re the one hurting her. Every time you surfaced, she was in pain. I bet she’s not even conscious right now, because of all the agony you’re causing her. She wouldn’t stand for this. This is all you!”
The anger built up in me as I stared her down, knowing that she was hurting the woman I loved, keeping her from me on purpose. Even worse, she was trying to use Avalon to get me to do her bidding. Phoenix loved me? She didn’t even know what love was.
>
The lightning was building inside me. I could feel it, slowly leeching away from the pit of my stomach, branching out through my arms, tingling in my fingers. It was wild and free, just like the anger I was feeling at the moment.
“I’m hurting her? You’re the one that almost killed her! You made her walk through a forest covered in snow in wet clothes and handcuffs! You couldn’t even call her by name—you called her It! Avalon may have forgotten what kind of person you really are, Cristos, Son of Zeus, but I never did. Every time you touched us, I shuddered with revulsion. You threw yourself at us and Avalon let you get to her, but I won’t let it happen again!”
With each breath, Phoenix grew in size, reaching her maximum size in a matter of seconds. She was huge, hovering over everyone like some hulking giant, her skin red with flames. Eyes glowing once more, she continued to scream at me, the heat rolling off her increasing. She was about to explode in a fiery rage and everyone nearby would be hit.
Everyone else seemed to have noticed the same thing, the battle field clearing quickly, each side running for cover. There was nowhere for the us to hide, though, and no telling how far her detonation would reach.
“Cristos!”
Turning, I saw Hades furiously motioning for me to join him against the wall, Arsenio sliding down from his perch to join us.
“The gates of Tartarus will form your graves,” Phoenix said, her tone deadly.
In one fluid motion, the Titan crashed through the great stone gates, shattering them to pieces. Large chunks rained down around us, some landing on fleeing guards. Picking the largest of the pieces up, the giant, winged beast hurled it at me, a grim look on her face and tears in her eyes.
And I let the lightning inside of me free.
Directing it just out of feel, I let the magnificent arch out, feeling it twist and rip from me like it was being torn from my very soul. It didn’t hurt to use the powers, though. In fact, I felt more free than I ever had, as if a part of me were dancing in the powers, connecting the pieces together. There was no need to concentrate, only to feel.
The electricity struck the side of the hill, blowing a crevice into the stone. It was just big enough for the three of us to run into before the giant stone that had been thrown at us crushed into the opening, effectively burying us alive for the time being.
Hades immediately conjured a ball of fire in his hands, using it to survey the tiny cave I’d managed to create. Lightning faded away into the walls, a fair bit of smoke and dust in the air from the impact.
“Impressive,” he said, staring at me in awe. “How long have you been able to do that?”
“About three seconds,” I replied, smiling some.
“Incredible,” Arsenio mumbled, coughing slightly. “I mean, of course you would wait until the exact last moment to unlock your powers. If we weren’t about to be killed by a Titan, I might rough you up some myself.”
“Avalon’s not going to bother us,” Hades said, shaking his head. “We were just in the way of what she wanted.”
Frowning, I thought over my conversation with Phoenix, sharing the pertinent information and her name with the two of them. However, I kept the kiss to myself; no one else needed to know about that.
“She’s recruiting them for her army,” Arsenio said, frowning. “She’ll free all of them and offer them a place with her.”
“And most of them will take it.” Hades looked grim as he looked around us. “No one else has come to rescue them. Phoenix has effectively created a force that the Olympians and Titans alike will have to deal with.”
“What are we going to do?” Arsenio took a deep breath, slowly accepting the turn of events. I, on the other hand, wasn’t so sure there was anything we could do. Phoenix had a point—someone needed to stop the fighting between the Olympians and the Titans. She was going about it the wrong way, but her motives were pure.
Or at least that was what she wanted me to think.
“We need to contact Zeus and let him know,” I said quietly.
“Yes,” Hades agreed. Leaning against the wall, he watched the ball of fire in his hands. “But first, we need Katrina.”
“What?” Arsenio raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms, suddenly seeming like he was tired off everything.
“And in order to get Katrina, we need to get Erebos and my helmet back.” Thinking, Hades rubbed his chin. “I assume if we stay in here for the next hour or so, we should be safe to leave. Most of the creatures here will take off as soon as they’re released. Phoenix will go with them, to lead them to wherever she’s been gathering people. After that, we can head straight out.”
“I’m sorry, you said we’re going after Erebos? One of the generals of the Titan army? The one with your helmet that will conveniently make us fear him? How is that a good idea?” Arsenio half laughed, looking at Hades like he was crazy.
“There’s nothing too crazy for the powers of Olympus to take.” Motioning to me, Hades continued. “Cristos has the powers of his father, you have your father’s powers, and I have my own. There hasn’t been a Titan in history who could withstand that, not even Kronos himself.”
“You’re nuts.” Arsenio turned his back to Hades, looking to me with pleading eyes. “Tell him, Cristos!”
Staring at Hades, I thought over what he was saying. “With Phoenix creating her own army, we need to beat the Titans now,” I said slowly. “Cut off the head before it goes crazy. Olympus can’t handle being attacked on two sides.”
“Exactly,” Hades agreed.
Arsenio rubbed his hands through his hair, sighing heavily, before tossing them up in surrender. “Fine. Let’s go kill Erebos. I wasn’t planning on living much longer anyway.”
Chapter Fifteen
Hades
“Why didn’t you save me, Hades?”
Breathing sharply in, my eyes flew open, the dark canopy above my bed seeming like a great and terribly abyss, finally come to take me away. After a second breath, though, my mind was clear enough to remember where I was.
Sighing, I rolled out of the sheets, rubbing my face vigorously. I was so close to finishing it all. Would the nightmare end, then? Or would I always be plagued by the death, even while Katrina slept in the bed beside me? Rising, I headed for the closet, deciding it would be better to go over the attack plans again if I wasn’t going to be able to sleep.
Cristos, Arsenio, and I had spent the last week going over every possibility of what could happen tomorrow. Our plan to take down Erebos was carefully laid, but depended on a lot of luck for our side. For starters, I was only mildly sure of where the Titan was, and I had no idea what reinforcements he would have. Whether it was ten or ten thousand minions, the three of us were ready to face the situation and give it our all.
I hoped.
“You don’t look so well, Brother.”
Halting, I didn’t even look back toward the door, not believing the voice was actually there. Surely, it was another dream, some long forgotten memory come to haunt me. But, no the King of the Gods had never come here, to my room before.
“Then again, I suppose I don’t look so well, either.” Zeus sighed and fell silent, the air in the room seeming to hum with an electricity that only he could bring.
Looking over my shoulder, I took in my youngest brother’s appearance. He had never seemed so old to me before, or frail looking. He wasn’t even in his armor, which was almost more surprising than him showing up here after all these years. Instead, he wore a plain white shirt and pants which looked suspiciously like black pajama bottoms. His hair was swept out of his face, like always, his physique ever that of a Greek god, each part of him exactly the same as it had always been. And yet, there was a weight noticeably resting on his shoulders. He didn’t stand up as straight as he used, or smile as often, the dark circles under his eyes telling the story of many sleepless nights. Even the way he looked at me made me think he was close to breaking.
“What are you doing here?” I finally asked, turning to face
him fully. Crossing my arms, I waited for him to answer, the quiet space between us full of my unasked questions, it seemed.
His gaze fell to the floor, his body slumping even more, and I suddenly realized that he was really struggling with whatever had dragged him out of bed to come here in the middle of the night.
“I remember the last time I was here.” In a transparent attempt to avoid answering my question, he leaned against the door frame, looking around bleakly. “It seems much darker now. That day—”
“I remember just fine what happened that day, thank you.” Cutting him off tersely, I went back to finding a shirt, already feeling the fumes of anger an annoyance burning under my skin.
“I’d hoped it would work, you know.” He sounded annoyed as well, but there was something to his tone that shared a sadness with me. He hadn’t come to talk about his last visit, but it was weighing heavily on his mind, now that he was here.
But why was he here? Frowning as I scooped my shirt off the floor and pulled it over my head, I tried to ignore the sneaking suspicions building up inside me.
“You had a pretty funny way of showing it,” I finally replied, coming back out into the open. “I seem to recall you trying to blow the whole place up.”
“I was scared.”
“Wow. Big of you to finally admit it.” Crossing my arms, I glared at him. “There was no harm in giving Katrina that potion, though. I knew it, and I think you did, too. You just couldn’t stand the thought of me being happy without your permission.”
“Stop it.” His own anger spiked, the color in his face turning slightly red at my words. “You know that’s not what it was about. Breaking our laws like that . . . it’s dangerous, Hades. It could set into motion a whole series of events that will destroy every last Olympian. It could destroy the Titans, too, for all we know.”
Exoria (The God Chronicles #5) Page 10
