What the hell? “If his dad’s the head honcho, why’s he in prison?”
“It’s a long story,” she said. She then addressed Hercules. “Do you mind if I tell him?”
“It doesn’t matter who knows my shame,” he said simply. His voice was weary and filled with sorrow, as if his eons of life had been too much for him.
Minerva turned to Ev and said, “All right, then. Herc is actually a demigod. His mother was a mortal.”
“So he’s only half god?” Ev asked.
“Yes. He was happy, once. He even had a family. But then… certain things happened… and he ended up killing them. It wasn’t his fault.”
“Wasn’t it?” Hercules said, pointing the blame squarely at himself.
“No, it wasn’t,” she insisted. “It was Hera’s fault. You weren’t in control of your actions.”
“Regardless, the deed was done by me.”
Minerva sighed. “He insists on blaming himself, Ev. But Herc’s a good guy. Really, he is. Anyway, after the deaths of his family, he set out on a journey to complete twelve trials and redeem himself. Legend says he succeeded, but the truth is, he failed. After that, he became wild with despair, going on a rampage until his father finally had him locked up. He’s been here ever since.”
“Shit,” Ev said. “I’m sorry.” That was just about the worse story he had ever heard. He’d never met anyone as pitiable as Hercules.
“Your pity is appreciated, but ultimately useless. It will not erase my crimes.”
Minerva said, “Maybe not, but we’re offering you another chance. Help Ev find his friends, and maybe your family can rest easier wherever they are. Come on, Herc; it must be torture for them to watch you rot in prison for millennia.”
“I… don’t know…” Hercules said.
“Look,” Ev said. “I won’t pretend to know exactly what you’ve been through, but I lost my parents, and I do know the pain stays with you. But you’re not doing anyone any good staying in here. If you want to redeem yourself, come with us.”
He examined them for several moments. Then, “I suppose you do have a point. I can’t continue dishonoring their memory in self-pity. Release me… if you can.”
“What are you talking about?” Ev said. He grabbed the bars of the cell. “I just pull like so and—ungh!” Try as he might, he couldn’t get the bars to budge.
Minerva said, “Sorry, Ev; I should have told you. The bars on this level are made of haradium. These are, after all, the most dangerous of Zero Grade’s criminals.”
“Then how do we get them out?”
“Remember that key card you took off of Ophion’s body? Use it there.” She pointed to a card reader on the wall next to the cell door.
He did so, and it opened. Hercules strolled out, and Ev swiftly removed his collar. “I can feel the power returning after centuries of weakness. It feels so good!” the goliath said.
“All right,” Ev said. “Let’s get the hell out of here.”
A voice to his right suddenly said, “I think we’ve been forgotten.”
Minerva responded, “He’s right. There are other prisoners in here besides Hercules.”
Embarrassment washed over Ev like a sudden downpour. He’d been so wrapped up in recruiting Hercules that he forgot about the others cells in here.
They opened them, and several more gods strolled out, eager to be freed from their collars. The first one—the one that had just spoken—was called Thor. Minerva identified him as the god of thunder.” Like Hercules, he had long hair and wore the puke-beige prison uniform of Eden. And while he wasn’t as large as Hercules, he was still a fine physical specimen.
The third prisoner freed was a pale, svelte woman with a boyish hair cut named Valkyrie. Thor identified her as a friend of his.
The final prisoner was Sarutahiko, a forty-ish-looking man who resembled Orochi and the late Izanami and Izanagi with his narrow eyes and black hair. Like them, he was a deity for an ancient nation called Japan.
“Looks like we’re good to go,” Minerva said after all their collars had been removed.
Ev nodded. “Then what are we waiting for? Let’s go.”
They began running back to the elevator. However, the air suddenly began shimmering all around Ev. Before he knew it, he was taken away to some place else.
He heard Minerva calling his name as was taken away.
Chapter VII
The next thing he knew, he was standing in a cell, presumably still in Eden. A strange-looking woman stood on the other side of the bars. “So you’re Ev Bannen. Hmmmm. I was hoping you’d be a bit taller.”
“Who are you?”
She was taken aback by that. “Oh. Right. We’ve never met before. I’m the warden of this prison.”
“So you’re Jane.”
She adjusted her glasses. “Correct. And you, my new friend, have a lot to answer for. The Flawless Few will no doubt have many questions for you, but I just have one.”
Ev eyed her impatiently. “Which is?”
She sneered. “What do you think of glasses?”
“I—huh?”
Rolling her eyes, she elaborated. “Glasses. You know, these things on my face. What do you think of them?”
That had come so far out of left field he was at a loss. Of all the stupid questions she could have asked, she chose that one. Nevertheless… “They’re OK, I guess.”
Her eyebrows flared up in anger. “‘They’re OK’? ‘OK’? How dare you! Glasses are mankind’s greatest achievement, rivaled only by the invention of the wheel. They instantly turn anyone they touch into someone of unmistakable sophistication! Just putting on a pair raises your IQ by a factor of ten. I won’t stand by and let you ruin the good name of glasses.” She began huffing and puffing at that point.
At that moment, Ev realized the inmates were running the asylum. He had stepped both feet into the nut house. “Look, crazy lady. I’d love to debate optometry with you, but I really need to get back to my friends. We were right in the middle of something very important when you interrupted. So if you’ll excuse me…”
“Ha!” She pointed an accusing finger at him. “You’re not going anywhere. This is my prison, and the Flawless Few will have my head if I let you escape. It’s hard enough being a Second Gen without that to deal with. Plus, you disrespected glasses. I won’t let that go without some serious punishment! You’re staying right here until I’ve had my fun.”
“Like hell I am. I can tell these bars aren’t made of haradium; you’ve got no way of keeping me here, so—”
His words were cut off by the walls, floor and ceiling of the cell abruptly collapsing in on him. Before he knew it, he was being crushed by a powerful force.
Jane cackled at him from behind the bars. “I tried to tell you how amazing glasses are, and mine are the greatest of all. You didn’t realize they were conjured weapons, did you? They have the ability to warp space around whatever I desire.”
Ev couldn’t move. His body was being scrunched by the environment around him. “Bitch!”
“Oh, looks like someone needs to have the mouth squished out of him!” She flexed her arms and pressed them together and towards the floor, willing the cell to crush him even further.
Ev struggled against the steel bulkheads, but he was literally caught in a vice. It was all he could do to keep from being smashed like an egg. He grunted in fierce exertion as Jane did her damndest to kill him.
“Die! Die! Die! I don’t care if the Flawless Few don’t get to question you. YOU INSULTED GLASSES!” Her voice was now strained, and Ev sensed she was expending a lot of energy to press the attack. That gave him hope; if he could just outlast her, maybe he could get out of this.
With renewed determination, he put everything he had into repelling the walls, floor and ceiling. His vision became blurry, but he could just make out Jane’s enraged expression; she was putting everything she had into this battle as well.
Whole minutes passed. Ev started to doubt his
ability to keep this up. His energy was being drained at a terrifying rate, and he feared Jane simply had more stamina than him. Both of them yelled in fury as each fought to end the fight.
Eventually, though, the contest did end. The pressure suddenly let up, and Ev smashed through the steel that had been holding him.
Jane quickly retreated down the hall, and Ev stumbled out after her. He needed to finish this; as long as she remained conscious, she still posed a threat.
She stood thirty yards down the corridor. As Ev suspected, he was in another cell block. However, there wasn’t anyone else around. This had to have been one of the areas they’d already liberated.
“Damn you!” she yelled. “You haven’t won yet! I just got tired for a moment. I still have the energy to crush you.”
She flexed her arms, and sections of the floor where Ev was standing suddenly shot up as pillars to the ceiling. He leapt out of the way just in time to avoid getting crushed again before charging down the corridor.
Her arms waved frantically, and now it wasn’t just the floor bursting out at him; the walls and ceiling also exploded outwards. Using every ounce of concentration he had, he managed to avoid them as he hurtled towards her. With every inch he took, he came closer to her.
“Just die, you glasses-hating pooslicker! “She roared.
But it was too late; a split-second later, he was on her. He swung his arm and buried his fist deep into her face, smashing her beloved glasses and sending her flying down the hallway.
Exhausted, he fell on his ass. Behind him, all the pillars Jane had created suddenly collapsed; apparently, her power could no longer support their existence.
After a minute, he got up and staggered over to where she laid. He examined her closely; she was alive, and he breathed a sigh of relief. Once again, he had had to hit a woman. He hated himself for that, but it couldn’t be helped. Still, he found himself wishing he had hit her somewhere other than her face. Woman should never be hit in the face. Images of his battered mother flooded his consciousness, her swollen face fresh in his mind.
He shook his head. No. Women shouldn’t be hit at all if you can help it. Even if they were a yurring lunatic like this woman.
“Ev!” Minerva came running down the hall, along with their new friends.
“Minerva! How did you find me?”
“Are you kidding? Your god-energy’s very strong, and everyone’s has a unique signature. It was easy tracing you back to this level.” She looked past him at the unconscious body. “Is that…?”
He nodded. “Yep. Warden Jane. Well… probably former Warden Jane. I doubt the Flawless Few will let her keep her job now.”
“They’ll probably execute her for this,” Minerva said.
Ev stared at Jane. She looked so peaceful lying there. Suddenly, he made up his mind. He picked her up and held her in his arms.
“What are you doing?” Minerva said, astonished.
“Getting her out of here.”
“Are you insane? She’s the enemy. From what I can tell, she just tried very hard to kill you.”
He looked at Jane with sympathy. “I won’t leave a woman to die, even if it means I become a monster.”
Minerva face displayed confusion. “What does that mean?”
“It’s… a long story.”
“The boy has seen his fair share of torment,” Hercules said. “Let’s believe in his humanity.”
“I agree with our gigantic friend here,” Thor added.
Minerva threw up her hands in surrender. “Fine. She may not deserve it, but I guess Warden Jane gets to live another day.”
* * *
They left Eden and returned to Ghorj’s shack. He wasted no time embracing his wife. “I thought I’d never see you again!” He said as hot, salty tears streamed down his face.
“I never gave up hope!” She said, planting fresh kisses upon his lips. Up to this point, Ev hadn’t pegged her for the romantic type.
“Mama!” Sumi shouted as she hugged her mother’s legs.
Minerva bent down and picked her up her well-toned arms. “I missed you so much!”
After they had finished catching up, Ghorj suddenly noticed the figure in Ev’s arms. “Who’s that?” Ev told him. “What? Why in the Flawless Few’s name did you bring her here?”
“Because Ev’s a good person,” Minerva said.
A sheepish Ev explained, “I was kinda hoping you could look after her until she wakes up.”
“No way!” Ghorj said. “I knew you were crazy, but I didn’t think you were that crazy.”
But Ev was insistent. “Please. She’ll be killed if Zero Grade finds her.”
“Good. She deserves it! And besides, we have a child. When Jane wakes up, Sumi will be in danger.”
“Well, that’s why we brought this,” Ev said. “Herc?”
Hercules stepped forward and produced an Eden collar. “Put this on her when she finishes healing, and she’ll be no threat to you.”
Ghorj’s eyes darted from the collar to Jane. Finally, he said, “Well, it is poetic justice, I suppose, making her wear one of those. Fine—bring her inside.”
* * *
The Worthless guided Maya and Priscilia through the Crystal Woods (as they were called), and eventually directed them to a hole in the ground. It was so well-hidden, Maya would have walked right into it if they hadn’t warned her it was there.
“We live down here, where it’s not so cold,” the oldest boy—who had identified himself as Yan—said.
Maya looked closer; there was a ladder going down into deep darkness. No, she saw as she peered into the abyss; there was a sliver of orange light at the bottom.
“Down,” an impish girl said. It wasn’t a command, but more of an explanation of where to go.
“You first,” Priscilia said.
“Priscilia!” Maya elbowed her.
“What?” Priscilia said. “It could be a trap. We don’t know these people.”
“It’s not a trap,” Maya insisted.
“How do you know?”
“I just do.” She felt instinctively she could trust these children. After being around evil for so long, she had gotten good at sensing it in others. She was, after all, right about Arcturus Reich.
Priscilia sighed. “Fine. But I’m going last.”
“Have it your way,” Maya said.
Yan went down first, followed by Maya and the other children. Priscilia, true to her word, went last, keeping an eye on the opening above, presumably in case it closed behind them or someone followed them in.
When Maya reached the bottom, she found a sparsely-lit tunnel which extended some thirty feet ahead. The odd torch hung from the wall here and there, but it was clear they didn’t take great care to keep the place lit.
“What a dump,” Priscilia said as she touched down.
“Be respectful,” Maya whispered.
The haughty girl shrugged but said nothing more.
“Follow me,” Yan said.
They soon emerged into a much larger underground bunker of sorts. It consisted of a large round dirt chamber which splintered off into other corridors. Unlike the tunnel they had just come from, the chamber was well-lit. In addition, numerous sleeping bags lined the floor and surrounded a sizeable wooden table. Rugs made from an unknown animal’s skin hung from the walls.
“Well, this is a surprise.”
Maya and Priscilia eyed the curious character approaching them. “You can say that again,” Priscilia said.
This… person… was about five-foot-six, slender, with bronze skin, bald, no eyebrows or any facial hair. Their only clothing was a simple black robe.
“Fascinating,” the being said. “We don’t get many visitors out here. Where did you come from?” This person spoke with such a gender-neutral voice, Maya couldn’t tell if it was a man or woman.
Maya explained, “We came from Narska in a ship, but it was destroyed and we found ourselves here.”
That seemed to delight
this person. “Narska! Amazing. No one but Zero Grade has ever come here. Well, no one except a few astronauts forty-six years ago.” In 2976, Morovia had sent explorers on the first manned mission to the moon. It all went smoothly until they touched down on the lunar surface. After that, all contact was lost and MoSPEA (Morovian Space Exploration Agency) quietly canceled all further missions. Many people cried conspiracy, but nothing was ever proven. Maya now wondered just how much Joe Lambda knew about it.
Where Gods Dare (Divine Protector Book 4) Page 8
