Monsoons and Monsters: Godhunter Book 22

by Amy Sumida

  “Fled or not”—Odin scooped me up and stood—“the Greeks will answer for this.”

  Odin strode out of the room and then out of the building. I clung to him as the remnants of the Death Mist faded and my strength returned. I told him that he could set me down, that I was better, but Odin wouldn't listen. He just kept walking toward the peak of Olympus; Athena's palace. As he went, gods came out of their homes and stared at us in confusion. There was obviously something wrong, but Odin said nothing to them, not even when they called out questions to us. I started to answer, but he shot me a silencing stare.

  That wouldn't do for the Greeks. They were a curious lot. So, they followed us, and by the time we reached Athena's front door, we had quite a gathering assembled behind us.

  “Athena!” Odin roared.

  The crowd murmured anxiously as we waited for Athena to answer the summons. Finally, the goddess opened her front door. Her eyes went from me, to Odin, to the curious crowd of Greek gods behind us. I saw it all processing in her quick mind, but still, she couldn't work out what had happened. That must have been hella frustrating for the Goddess of Wisdom.

  “Tell me,” she said simply.

  “Eros tried to murder me with the Death Mist,” I said as I pushed on Odin's chest until he set me down. “He fooled us into believing that his magic needed to connect with mine. The connection only caused us to feed off each other, spurring our magic into a frenzy, but it did nothing to sustain us. It was all a ploy to lure me into trusting him enough to enter a vulnerable state with him. Then he infected me; body and soul. He tried to murder me after I came here to save him.”

  “After she came here to save him at your request,” Odin snarled at Athena.

  “Akhlys!” Athena shouted.

  The crowd shifted until a disgusting woman stepped forward. Her skin was a sickly, pale green and her eyes were hazy like those on a corpse: the Death Mist. She was dirty and hunched over with emaciation, her knees swollen beneath the hem of her ragged toga. Her nose dripped snot, and her cheeks ran with sluggish, black blood. Dust covered her shoulders, and it was muddy in spots as if she'd been crying, or someone had been crying on her. But she smiled grimly.

  “Athena,” the woman gurgled.

  Holy hellfire, Eros had sex with this woman just so he could kill me? That was some kind of burning hatred.

  “Is this true? Did you give Eros the Death Mist?” Athena demanded.

  “He seduced me.” She chortled as if she knew how ridiculous that sounded. “How could I say no to the God of Love? A girl gets lonely, you know.”

  “That traitorous filth! That Ephialtes! He has shamed us all! We owed the Godhunter a debt, and yet she honorably agreed to help us once more, and this is the thanks we've shown her? No! This will not stand. The Greek Pantheon will not be painted in dishonorable colors,” Athena spat. “Summon the sirens!”

  A horn sounded, echoing over the mountaintop, and within seconds the sound of birds drowned it out. A flock of winged women landed beside us and bowed to Athena. I remembered seeing them earlier, from Eros' room, but I also knew them from the Battle of Olympus. These were the bitches who almost killed Azrael. I snarled, but Odin laid his hand on my arm.

  “They acted under Zeus' orders, Vervain,” he reminded me. “Don't hold it against them.”

  “And now they will act under mine,” Athena added. To the sirens she said. “Eros has betrayed us and attempted to murder our ally, the Godhunter. Find him for me, and bring him here... by any means necessary.”

  The sirens bowed and then shot into the sky without another word.

  “Alex!” Athena shouted.

  A snowy owl flew out of the palace behind Athena and landed on her outstretched hand.

  “My lady?” The owl asked. One of his massive eyes strayed to me, and he nodded.

  I held up a hand in greeting. We'd met once in the Land of Dreams when he had delivered a message for Athena. Back then, we'd been looking for Zeus.

  “I need you to help in the search for Eros,” Athena said to the owl. “he has betrayed us and attempted to murder the Godhunter.”

  “The villain!” Alex hissed. “Do not despair, Godhunter; I will find Eros, and my mistress will make him pay for his evil deeds!”

  Alex, aka Aleksanteri, launched himself into the sky and started flapping off after the sirens. Athena seemed a little surprised by Alex's outrage, but she quickly recovered.

  “Go back to your homes,” Athena called to the other gods. “When the traitor is found, I will call you forth, and we will sentence him together.”

  The Greeks loved a good lynching as much as anyone else.

  “My deepest apologies, Godhunter,” Athena said to me. “You came to us in good faith and tried to help one of our pantheon despite the burden it placed on your most treasured relationships. For this, you almost lost your life. That will not be tolerated. Eros will be apprehended, and amends will be made.”

  “It's not your fault, Athena,” I said gently. “I don't hold it against you or the Greek Pantheon.”

  Her eyes widened in surprise as Odin stiffened.

  “My wife doesn't speak for me,” Odin growled. “I have a different opinion on the matter.”

  “Odin,” I snapped. “She is blameless.”

  “She is the head of her pantheon, Vervain,” Odin said. “As the King of Asgard, I know what that entails. She is responsible. She should have investigated Eros' claims before she summoned you. That was poor judgment, at the very least, and negligent abuse at the worst.”

  “Your husband is right,” Athena agreed stoically. “I am responsible for this, and I intend to make things right. You have my word, Allfather. I will not stop until I have Eros in chains. We will sentence him, and I assure you, it will be harsh. Or, if you prefer, I will give him into your hands, and you may do with him as you see fit.”

  “That will do.” Odin reached out and shook Athena's hand.

  Chapter Nine

  “That will do?” I asked Odin after we reformed in Pride Palace. “Who are you; Shrek?”

  “Vervain, please,” Odin said wearily. “I nearly lost you today. I cannot handle your gallows humor right now.”

  “What the actual fuck are you talking about?!” Trevor roared.

  Trevor was standing in the doorway of the dining room, staring at us with wide eyes. He'd obviously heard us coming in and had come out to welcome us home... only to hear Odin's cryptic announcement.

  “You want the good news or the bad news?” I asked cheerfully.

  “Vervain,” Azrael snarled as he stepped out of the dining hall too.

  “Do you want to wake the baby?” Re hissed as he hurried out after Az. “She's just gone back to sleep, and Kirill is going to be pissed if she starts screaming again.”

  “She was screaming?” I asked in horror.

  I was remembering an incident a couple of weeks ago in Faerie. The boys had woke in the middle of the night, screaming bloody murder. Arach and I had rushed into the room, but they settled right away and went back to sleep without saying anything to us. We had thought it was nothing more than a nightmare, possibly shared between them; the twins were that close. But now, I realized it was something far more sinister.

  “Like her world was ending,” Re said with narrowed eyes. “Why was she screaming, La-la?”

  “Eros tried to kill me,” I whispered. “I think he might have succeeded for a moment; before my magic kicked in and rejuvenated me.”

  The men began to shout. I held up my hands and quieted them, reminding them about Lesya. They lowered their voices but kept questioning Odin and me until we had given them the whole story.

  “We're such fools!” Re hissed. “We should have been more careful.”

  “I'm going to tell Kirill.” Trevor headed into the dining hall. “Though, he's probably been listening in on this conversation the whole time.”

  I followed Trevor, and the rest of the men followed me. As I entered the dining hall, I met Kir
ill's stare; it had darkened to indigo. He had Lesya draped over his shoulder, and he started to get up with her, but I waved him down. Trevor reached him before I did, and began to explain, but Kirill shook his head.

  “I heard it all,” Kirill said. “Vervain, are you all right?”

  “I'm fine,” I said gently as I sat beside him. “It takes more than poison to kill me; remember?”

  “I remember. I vas only one zere,” he said grimly, and then looked over to Trevor. “At least until Teharon and Trevor showed up.”

  Trevor grimaced and looked away. That had been a bad time for us.

  “Ve hunt now?” Kirill asked the group as a whole.

  “There's no need,” Odin said. “Athena has sent the sirens and Aleksanteri after Eros. They'll catch him and bring him to us. All we have to do is decide on how long we want to make him suffer before we kill him.”

  “I don't know if it will be that easy,” I noted. “Eros has spent a lot of time planning this attack. I'd be surprised if he didn't have his escape planned as well. He's also a Greek, so he'd know exactly who Athena would send after him.”

  My hand strayed to Lesya's soft hair, and I stroked it gently. I was more pissed off over the pain that Eros had caused my children than what he'd caused me. I was going to tear the bastard's arms off and beat him with them.

  “Zen ve should hunt,” Kirill said decisively.

  “I have to return to Faerie soon,” I said. “I don't know if we should start hunting just yet.”

  “Give the sirens a chance,” Odin suggested. “If, after Vervain returns from Faerie, they haven't caught him, then we'll go after Eros.”

  The men agreed, and I pulled my knees up to my chest, laid my head on Kirill's shoulder, right beside our daughter's, and went to sleep. Nearly dying can take a lot out of a girl.

  Chapter Ten

  I didn't wake up until the next day. There had been no news from Athena, though Persephone and Hades had stopped by to see how I was and offer their deepest apologies. Of course, I didn't hold them responsible for what had happened, no more than I held Athena so. But that was how they felt, and although they had arrived at Pride Palace while I was still sleeping, they waited for me to wake up so that they could make their apologies in person. Cause my friends were classy like that.

  “Enough.” I held up my hand, and Persephone stopped groveling. “You two are my family. You've given me sanctuary, fought beside me, and have been there for me through some of the worst trials of my life. I know that you would never do anything to hurt me. In fact, I suspect that you took those positions on the Olympian council simply to make sure they treated me fairly in this situation.”

  Hades chuckled while his wife gaped at me.

  “Oh please, Sephy.” I rolled my eyes. “You act like I don't know you.”

  “There are other benefits to being an Olympian,” Persephone protested.

  “But we took the positions to look after our friend,” Hades admitted. “That's what friends do. And by the way, Vervain; you have been there for us too.”

  “I'm glad you think so,” I said gently. “I love you both; you have nothing to apologize for. But I wouldn't refuse your help with finding Eros if the sirens fail.”

  “Oh, they'll fail,” Persephone huffed. She continued after I gave her a prompting look. “Well, they never found me, did they? That's the whole reason they're sirens and not just my attendants. My mom got pissed that she had given them wings for nothing.”

  “To be fair, bunny-nose,” Hades said, “you were hidden by the most powerful god in their pantheon.”

  Some may argue that Zeus had been the most powerful god in the Greek Pantheon. He definitely had control over the Greek gods, but he had used ambrosia (the immortality food the Greeks ate in order to live forever) to do so. Yes, he had been powerful in his own right, but so had Hades. Zeus ruled a mountain, while Hades ruled the Underworld... and all of the dead who resided within it. The argument was moot now anyway; Zeus was down to one magic—his Oak—and he was no match for Hades anymore. So, I suppose that did make Hades the most powerful Greek god. Good to know.

  “Regardless,” Persephone said primly, “they failed, and Eros will doubtless find sanctuary with someone powerful too; he is not without allies.”

  “Yeah; like all the gods who hate me,” I joked.

  “Tima, too soon,” Kirill said dryly.

  “Seriously, though,” I went on, “when am I going to stop paying for killing Aphrodite? It feels endless.”

  “She was the Goddess of Love.” Hades shrugged. “She may have become a bitch at the end, but love has a way of blinding people, especially when you fall in love before the bitchiness begins.”

  “And some men like bitches,” Sephy muttered.

  “Not I,” Hades swore as he kissed her cheek. “I like my women sweet and with bunny noses. If you recall; I never pursued Aphrodite. I have eyes for only one woman.”

  “You're so weird.” Persephone giggled. “And I love it! I love your burning eyes.”

  “Do you two need to borrow a room?” Trevor asked.

  “If it wouldn't be too much trouble,” Persephone said brightly.

  Trevor gaped at her, and Persephone laughed boisterously.

  “Damn; she got you,” I said to Trevor. “The Werewolf Prince bamboozled by Bunny-Nose. What is this world coming to?”

  “She didn't bamboozle me,” Trevor said defensively. “She fooled me with those sweet eyes. They're like an innocent baby goat's.”

  “Isn't that what bamboozled means?” I asked.

  “I've never seen a goat with green eyes,” Azrael mused simultaneously.

  “Bamboozled is a little more intricate than fooling,” Odin said. “Like what Eros did. Though it hardly feels like the appropriate word for that evil.”

  “I don't think I want to be compared to a goat,” Persephone said. “And I definitely don't want to be compared to Eros.”

  “Fair enough,” Trevor muttered.

  “Hey, V; I heard about what happened with Eros,” Pan said as he walked into the dining hall. “You okay?”

  “Yeah, I'm good.” I waved him toward a seat. “We were just discussing the possibility of the sirens finding him.”

  “Well, I may have something that will help with that,” Pan said hesitantly.

  “Go on,” Odin said.

  “My father.” Pan held up a hand when my husbands started to protest. “I know he didn't actually find Lesya, but he did try his best. Dad hasn't declared whether or not he's letting go of his own issues with Vervain, but he wanted me to convey to all of you that he had nothing to do with Eros' plans, and to make up for his part in their implementation, he's offering to help in the search for Eros.”

  “Tell your father that I'm grateful for any help he wants to give me,” I said to Pan.

  “We don't know if—” Trevor started.

  “Whether or not his intentions are good, his help won't hurt us,” I cut Trevor off. “And I'm not going to spit in a hand offered to me in friendship.”

  “That's wise.” Odin agreed.

  “Wonderful!” Pan exclaimed. “I'll go tell him.”

  He turned to leave and nearly ran into Morpheus.

  “Morph!” Pan exclaimed. “Good to see you, buddy.”

  “Thanks, it's good to see you too,” Morpheus beamed at Pan before striding into the room—he was still getting used to the idea of having friends. “Perfect; I've caught a few of you here. There's something strange going on that I want to talk to you all about.”

  “Stranger than Eros trying to kill Vervain?” Azrael asked.

  “Yes.”

  “Oh, this sounds good.” Pan turned around and came back into the room. “Lay it on us, Morpheus.”

  “It may be nothing,” Morph said, “but I was in the Dream Realm, and happened upon several humans who were deeply unsettled. I took a glimpse past their veils and found a common theme in their nightmares: electricity.”

  “Electricit
y?” I asked. “That is strange.”

  “I thought it unusual enough to warrant further investigation” Morpheus nodded. “So, I researched the humans with the nightmares, and several live in the same regions as each other; down to the same cities.”

  “The same cities?” Odin leaned his forearms on the dining table. “You have my attention.”

  “Well, I looked into those cities, and all of them have experienced a major power outage within the last month,” Morpheus said. “Not just a blackout, but a complete failure of their power grids. It seems like too much of a coincidence to me.”

  “It is,” Trevor declared with a scowl. “Power grids don't go down very often. Do you have a list of these cities?”

  “Right here.” Morpheus pulled a folded paper out of his jacket and handed it to Trevor. “Should we take a look at the power stations?”

  “Absolutely,” Hades said. “We need to know if there's a magical explanation for this.”

  “You mean; we need to know if a god is behind this,” I corrected.

  “Isn't that what I said?” Hades smirked.

  “You know vhat vould make search easier?” Kirill asked me.

  “Tlaloc's goggles?” I lifted a brow.

  “Da.” Kirill nodded. “Zey can see magic traces. Make it easier to search area.”

  “I'll go grab them, and we can head out immediately,” I offered.

  “Maybe you should stay home with Lesya,” Trevor said to me. “What with Eros out there.”

  “I don't think he's going to be waiting for me in a power station,” I huffed. “And I don't want any of you using those goggles; they can be hard to resist.”

  “And you believe that you have more willpower than we do?” Hades asked with an annoyed look.

  “No; I have faerie blood,” I countered, “and I think that helps me resist the allure of god magic.”

  “Fair enough,” Hades conceded, but he did so gruffly.

  “Then who's going to stay with our girl?” Odin nodded to where Lesya was playing with her toys in front of the fireplace.

  “Could I?” Pan asked excitedly. “It's been a long time since I took care of a little one.”