by James Hunter
Hephaestus’ Inferno Shield covered my left arm. With all these weapons, I could take on Hades if I needed to. But at least—at the very least—I would find Myrina, Doris, and Ianthe. I knew where they were. And there was a doorway that led right to them.
For once, the godstone was quiet. It wasn’t glowing, vibrating, or talking to me. What was its problem? Maybe I’d shocked it into silence.
Since I was above ground and, uh, on the same plane of existence, I messaged Hippolyta. Hey, is Lycastia City good? Did we get attacked?
She answered immediately. War God! There have been no signs of our enemy. And yet, we have about half an hour until the next attack. Six a.m.
And that was when a good number of my abilities, along with the Crystal Scythe, would reset. Perfect. I would need them in the Underworld.
I flew through the columns and then walked down onto the grimy marble in front of the rectangular portal that led to the realm of Hades. Dead warriors covered the walls around me. Vanquished warriors like Myrina.
Jacob, what the hell? What are you doing? Phoebe asked.
Going to save Myrina. I strode forward and hit the green portal; it was like walking into a solid wall made of iron bricks reinforced with vibranium. My nose took the brunt of the blow. My face went numb as I reeled backward, arms pinwheeling to keep balance. Luckily I was in control; the godstone would’ve slashed down that portal with the Crystal Scythe, or tried to anyway.
You can’t, Jacob. The sigil in Lycastia City is still active. Phoebe was a dozen seconds too late.
THEN WE DESTROY IT! Yeah, all caps. I was shouting at my Rune-Caster like the god of douchebags even with the necklace.
She didn’t respond for a minute. When she did, her voice came to me tentatively. Yeah, that’s probably the worst idea ever. If we destroy the sigil, Hades will come traipsing out with a million nightmares tucked in his nasty little pocketses.
While my rage had given me the idea, the more I thought about it, the more sense it started to make. Listen, Phoebe, this is Jacob. This is me. I’m thinking clearly.
No, you’re not, she sent. You’re all messed up over Myrina.
And Doris. And Ianthe, I added. Yeah, sure, but come on. This was our great offensive. I vote we go all in. This is our chance to hit Hades hard, on his own turf, and he won’t be expecting it. Besides, even with the sigil busted, it would take him a minute to gather his troops.
Phoebe’s mech tromped into the temple of death. She wheezed her machine up to me. Instead of using the messaging system, she looked right into my eyes and said, “You are not doing this to defeat Hades. You are doing this to save Myrina.”
“And Doris. And Ianthe.” I smiled at her. “You’re right. But if things go south, I can upgrade my godstone with Hephaestus’. We can try the shard first, and if that doesn’t drive me insane, I can use the whole thing.”
She pondered that for a minute, head tilted, eyes glimmering with curiosity. She shook away her obvious intrigue. “I am so curious to see if that would work, but in the end, it’s too risky. Dammit, Jacob, I’m a girl who likes to take chances, but at some point, we have to be careful.”
I pressed forward. “Maybe. Maybe not. This is our chance to end this, Phoebe. It feels ... right.”
She shook her head. “I’m not much for feelings. Logically, this is the wrong course of action. Hades pretty much took out most of the other gods during the Olympian War. And we’re going to be facing him on his own turf. You don’t have my vote on this.”
Everything she said made sense. The safe play was to establish our forces in the temple and wait him out. I could continue to slay monsters and level up until I was strong enough to seal off the rift. Then Hades would be trapped in the Underworld forever.
Yet, I knew I couldn’t wait. Eventually, Hades would find Myrina, and if he turned her against us, I wasn’t sure we could fight, let alone defeat, the Battle Warden. The morale hit would be too much for me. The other Amazons might be fine with it—this was just business for them, another day at the office—but it would destroy me.
I locked eyes with Phoebe. “I can’t let Myrina go. I can’t.”
The Rune-Caster smiled warmly at me. “Good thing this isn’t a democracy. You’d be outvoted. You are the god of war, Jacob. We serve you. If you want us to go, we’ll go, but we’ll need to stop off at Lycastia City to collect supplies.”
That made me smile. “And to pick up Hippolyta.”
Phoebe laughed and returned to messaging me. She is going to be beside herself. She hated staying behind all the time. We’ll send her in first. She loves a good fight.
She did. All my Amazons did. And I was going to give them a fight to end all fights. Literally. I reached out a hand, and Phoebe stepped off her mech and into my arms. I held her for a second.
She relaxed into me. You’re the weirdest, gentlest, most feelingest War God ever. I hope you know what you’re doing.
I hoped so too.
No Going Back
I SWEPT PHOEBE OUT of the Temple of Hades in the Helios Chariot, her arms wrapped around my stomach, her body pressed tightly against me. We stopped on the steps out front. The rest of my Amazons had finished destroying the monster generators, and the scent of the scorched ichor filled the air, twisted and nauseating. Black smoke boiled up in great pillars from where the fountains had been dismantled and burned.
When I told my Amazons my plan, they all frowned. Every single one of them. After watching me dismantle Earl’s army almost single-handedly, they had confidence in my abilities, but the idea of invading the realm of the dead and going toe to toe with Hades on his own turf ... well, that was a hard sell. But I was sure this was the way to go. For one, I wasn’t going to abandon Myrina to Hades’ tender mercies. Two, the move itself was so bold, there was simply no way the god of death would be ready for it.
Loxo and Sophia had returned from scouting the city’s perimeters. No sign of any other unfriendlies. Loxo sighed at me. I noticed she had grabbed the Vambraces of Boreas off Antiope. Good, I was glad she had them.
“This is a terrible idea,” the Huntress said, not even attempting to placate me. “Listen to me, Jacob, I was dead. In the Underworld. I know what Myrina and the others are going through. It is a terrible place of misery and suffering. A nightmare. However, facing Hades in the Underworld will mean our destruction.”
Phoebe was right there in my head to agree with her. See? A terrible idea. Like in books, when the hero totally screws up just to advance the plot. We’re all telling you the same thing.
Persephone, though, was oddly silent. Okay, maybe it wasn’t odd, because she looked like the oldest woman ever to exist in the history of everything. She clutched her belly where the pomegranate seeds were working furiously to kill her.
“It is a desperate plan,” she croaked, her voice dusty and dry as fall leaves. “However, my husband will not anticipate this. We will catch him unaware. Yes, you are a courageous one, War God, and wily. I will go through the portal either way. I created it, after all, to my everlasting shame. I will run reconnaissance. When you come through, I might have a good idea of where to go and what to do.” She limped over and touched my arm. “Oh my Zeus, your love for your Amazons is touching.” She patted my shoulder in a grandmotherly fashion.
I just hope it doesn’t get us all killed, Phoebe sent, sarcasm dripping from the words.
I ignored that and covered Persephone’s age-spotted hand with mine. “Thank you for helping us. I’m sorry you never found your mother.”
Tears glistened in her eyes. “But I found you. I believe in you, War God. Fortune favors the bold. And this?” She paused, smacked her withered lips, then cracked a crooked smile. “This is truly a bold plan.”
Ariadne helped Persephone up onto her bull, Thunderfoot. Bambi and Kimmie guided the animal up the steps and into the temple. Once Persephone passed through the rift into the Underworld, she’d be okay. Back to her ever-shifting self.
Meanwhile, Phoebe an
d I left on the Helios Chariot and tore ass over the ocean, a fresh wind whipping the scent of death and burning meat from my nostrils. Cruising in the chariot, it only took us fifteen minutes to make the trip to Lycastia City. We raced over the western ramparts and bounced down onto the cobblestones of our hometown. My air force followed. Asteria as a giant eagle—silent and oddly stoic—Toxaris on Flutterhoney. Our other winged mounts would pick up Hippolyta and the rest of her skeleton crew, then ferry them back to the Temple of Hades for the final assault.
Once we destroyed the sigil, Lycastia City lost all strategic importance. It would still be our home, sure, but Hades would have no reason to venture there—well, maybe spite. But if I failed that spectacularly and Hades made it out of the Underworld, then the destruction of Lycastia would be the least of my problems.
I dropped off Phoebe at her workshop to get the Hammer of Hephaestus and gather supplies we’d need to create the figurines to bring Myrina, Doris, and Ianthe back to life. Phoebe pointed out that we needed extremely high temperatures to forge the Battle Wardens.
“It’s the Underworld,” I replied with a shrug. “Fire, brimstone, shit like that should be everywhere. If we can’t find high heat in Hell, then Hades is doing things all wrong.”
She laughed. Good point. And Calla might be able to summon some wicked-hot flames. And I suppose we do have the Inferno Shield. Might be, I could rig that thing up into a portable forge.
I grabbed an anvil and threw it in the Helios Chariot as though it weighed no more than a six-pack of Budweiser. And since there didn’t seem to be a weight limit on the chariot, I planned to take pretty much anything not bolted to the floor. Eat that, United Airlines.
Go destroy the sigil. I’m almost ready, Phoebe sent after a few more minutes of frantic packing.
“Yes, Mom,” I joked.
When I walked into the Temple of Ares, the godstone flared. Fool! I gave you the task of protecting the sigil! Now, you would destroy it?
“You got it, buddy,” I told the troublesome gem, my voice echoing off the marble pillars and high ceiling. “I’m going to save Myrina. I’m going to end Hades. This will be over by noon. So shut up, hold my beer, and let me work!”
I jerked the Crystal Scythe off my back.
The godstone burned in my chest. It was trying to take control again, frantically wrestling against me. The necklace vibrated like mad, gears whining loudly, and I remembered the houndeyes from the Half-Life video game. The houndeyes had made a similar sound before they exploded. If I could recall video games from the 1990s, that certainly meant I was free of the godstone’s influence and was all Jacob Merely.
Still, though, thinking was hard. It felt like I had a live wire plugged into my chest; my ears rang, my eyes blurred. With every step, the pain, the noise, grew louder and louder.
But I kept on walking, pushing through the pain. If the Marine Corps had hammered one thing into my head, it was that pain was weakness leaving the body.
I had to be strong, stronger than ever before. Stronger than Ares. Stronger than Hades.
And when my determination faltered, I thought of Myrina, bleeding to death as she stood there. I remembered our kiss, our bodies entwined in the vastness of the library. The countless times we’d trained together. If my love for her destroyed the universe, then it deserved to be destroyed.
Finally, after what felt like eternity, I stood before the statue of Ares. The sigil gleamed with a jagged red light, pulsating as if it knew its time was over.
DO NOT DO THIS, FOOL!
I ignored the godstone. However, I had to pause. This was it. Once I destroyed the sigil, there was no going back. I was risking everything. We couldn’t just sneak into the Underworld, grab the souls of my dead Amazons, and then tiptoe back out. No, if I did this, we’d have to face Hades in the Underworld and end the threat there. It was an all-or-nothing gamble. But if the Marine Corps had taught me anything else, it was go big or go home. And, even though no one else believed in me, I knew I could do this. Hades was powerful, but I had the godstone of Hephaestus, and with that little gem up my sleeve ... well, it would level the playing field.
It had to.
DO NOT DESTROY THE SIGIL, MORTAL! the godstone thundered once more.
“Fuck it, and fuck you.” I slammed the Crystal Scythe into the statue.
The stone statue shattered, flinging marble around the room. The godstone howled. Raged inside my head. The amount of energy unleashed knocked me back and cracked the columns. The ceiling groaned above me, threatening to fall at even the slightest provocation.
I spun and darted out of the temple.
I cleared the building just as the ground beneath me trembled, trees swaying in the distance, enormous waves pounding at the beach. Clouds poured into the sky, rumbling with thunder, crackling with lightning. One brilliant finger of electricity reached down and lit the jungle on fire. I glanced back over one shoulder, surprised as all hell that the temple hadn’t given up the ghost. Those Greeks sure knew how to build things, I guess. Beneath me, the ground continued to shake and buckle.
Luckily, I could fly.
I took to the air and found Phoebe on the Helios Chariot, ready and waiting to split. She had a small chest clutched in her bronzed arms.
“Those the figurines?” I asked.
Got it in one, boss. She cocked an eyebrow and glanced around. I see you’ve destroyed the sigil.
“I didn’t want this to be another boring day.”
Thunder boomed. The smell of sulfur filled the air and then everything was obscured with ash. Holy shit. Had one of the mountains become a volcano? Hard to say, but all the signs pointed to yes.
By that time, a dozen winged horses had come to grab Hippolyta, our other Battle Wardens, and the Forest-Witches who’d stayed behind to brew potions. They took off with their passengers in tow, while Eagle Asteria grabbed any stragglers.
Phoebe and I raced away in the Helios Chariot through the ash, smoke, and fire the island had become.
Well, this is all very dramatic, Phoebe sent. How come the end times are full of storms and earthquakes and not kittens and puppies?
Another explosion filled the air. Sparks shot through the haze. The scent of sulfur was overpowering now. One of the mountains had definitely blown, no doubt about it. Hopefully, Lycastia would survive the inevitable destruction to come, but if not ... well, I could always rebuild, assuming I survived. Besides, I reminded myself, like the sigil, the city had served its purpose. That purpose was done now. Maybe I would just let the place die—a relic of a different time—and take my crew to new and better pastures. After all, with the Stair at my disposal, there were new worlds I could go to, new vistas to explore.
Phoebe and I sped through the sky, sandwiched by the wave-tossed sea below and the stormy sky above. Hot rain spat down. More lightning, more thunder. The scent of the burning jungle and molten rock drifted up to us, the dust and ash making it increasingly harder to breathe.
I didn’t slow the six fire stallions down until we dove into the chaos and hurtled through the black marble columns into the Temple of Hades.
My Amazons packed the space, shoulder to shoulder, all in formation and ready to move out. They stood at parade rest—legs spread shoulder width apart, hands resting on their weapons. The Rune-Casters had assembled behind the formations, the remaining siege weapons lined up and good to go. When I arrived, my troops snapped to attention, revealing a path down the center just big enough to accommodate the chariot. As I approached the portal, I couldn’t help but notice that all the corpses of the tortured Amazons had been pulled from the walls.
The corpses were respectfully laid out, their bodies covered with white cloth.
Dead ahead, the portal was no longer green, but glowed a brilliant electric blue, which reminded me of an oversized bug zapper. With a flick of the reins, I stopped the Helios Chariot directly in front of the rift leading into the Underworld. With a thought, I dismissed five of the fiery elemental horse
s. The portal was big enough to accommodate a single horse at most.
Phoebe gave me a kiss on the cheek, slipped from the chariot, then limped to her mech, waiting nearby.
We were ready. I stood on top of the chariot to address my army. “I know many of you disagree with my actions.”
“I do not!” Hippolyta called out from the back. “I finally get to fight!”
We all laughed. I checked the faces of my Amazons, and they were all smiling. They looked at me with pride in their eyes. Maybe they didn’t fully agree with me, but they were willing to fight and die on my hunch, no questions asked. Absolute loyalty.
For a second, my confidence slipped. What in the hell was I doing? Was this a mistake?
Then I found Phoebe’s face. She nodded with a smirk on her face. Next to her, Asteria loomed as a huge blue prehistoric cave bear. Myrina should have been there, next to them. Dammit. My doubts left me.
“We’re taking the fight to Hades—to Hell itself,” I said. “We’re going to rescue our fallen. And we’re going to end this war. Hades has never faced an army like us, bound together through love and common purpose. I know you all believe in me, but here’s the thing: I believe in you. With you at my back, there’s nothing we can’t do.”
That brought a cacophonous cheer that shook the temple as much as any earthquake.
The air was thickening with smoke and ash. It was time.
“I’m coming for you, Myrina,” I whispered, turning to face the portal.
The godstone was quiet. It was done. Now, it was my turn to lead.
That was the thing about being a leader, making decisions, and taking risks. Everyone can be an armchair quarterback. Very few ever take the chance to throw the ball themselves.
Right or wrong, I snapped the reins and my single conjured stallion surged forward, pulling the Helios Chariot through the portal and into the Underworld.
