by Leia Stone
It was Hyperion’s turn to look weary. “The sins get smarter along the scale until the nine is fully formed. Each of them learns and adapts at a much faster rate. They know we’re after them, they know that three of them are locked away. They’re going to make it so much harder for us as it goes along. Survival instincts are kicking in.”
I stood straighter. “Well, let’s go wake some dead.”
Hyperion raised an eyebrow. “You sure?”
I nodded. “I helped Cronus do the others. I can help you with these two, and maybe by then we will have a lead on Jealousy.”
Koios looked at Hyperion. “I’ll hold down the fort. Be safe.”
Hyperion reached out and grabbed my arm and then we were gone.
My feet slammed down on green mossy earth as mist fell from the sky.
“Holy shit.” I spun at the sound of roaring water and stared in wonder at a giant waterfall. We were on the bed of a river surrounded by huge trees with moss crawling up the bark. The waterfall before us was perched high up on a hundred-foot cliff. “This is amazing.”
Hyperion grinned. “Okeanos had strict instructions for his final resting place.”
Damn, I wanted to be buried here too. It was so peaceful I almost forgot the world was ending.
Hyperion side-eyed me. “We need to go for a little hike, and I hear you don’t do exercise.”
I snorted. “Cronus is a damn liar. I’m fine to hike, given that it’s at a human pace.” I pulled out my phone and flipped the camera to the front facing. “Just need a quick selfie with this waterfall.”
Hyperion’s lips twitched as he fought a smirk. “Of course.”
I snapped a cute pic but didn’t upload it yet, because I wasn’t stupid and now that I knew Zeus and Cronus were Insta-stalking me I wasn’t posting shit until I was well away from this place.
Hyperion started to walk up the ridge.
“Where are we?” I looked around in awe.
“Issaquah Washington.”
Issa what? Issa amazing whatever it is.
I totally hiked the not-small hill without fainting or puking and only complained like four times, so that was a new record. We were now three-quarters up the way to the top of the fall and the sound of the water was deafening.
“We need to go behind it, into a cave,” Hyperion yelled over the noise.
“Behind the waterfall?” I wasn’t dressed for this shit.
Hyperion nodded. “I would zap us in but it's tricky with small spaces. Might get stuck inside the mountain.”
#WhatTheWhat? #Nope
“Well, we don’t want that.”
I let him grab my hand and lead me to a tiny ledge where my feet could barely grip on as I pulled my arms up to scale the side of the mountain under a freaking waterfall. We passed beneath the sheet of water and I had a moment of extreme clarity. Life could be really beautiful. And I was a small and tiny speck in this huge universe. I wasn’t going to let Cronus or anything get me down anymore. I was going to live for myself. New and improved Maisey. Animal lover, selfie lover, less boy crazy.
Once we reached an opening, Hyperion leapt off the ledge and yanked me inside.
“Well, life with you Titans sure isn’t boring,” I said.
“Hello, Maisey,” a woman said behind me and I leapt halfway out of the cave and nearly fell off the ledge.
One of the Fates was standing right up against the cave wall. Clotho I think it was, old as fuck and staring at me with a starry-eyed gaze.
“Umm … hello, ma’am.” She was old enough to be my great grandmother, and controlled my fate, so I was going to show her some goddamn respect.
Upon seeing her, Hyperion groaned. “What now?”
Clotho reached out her clawed and wrinkled hand. “Her line ends after tomorrow and we can’t see where it goes.”
Hyperion stiffened beside me and I swallowed hard.
“What does that mean?” I looked to Hyperion for answers.
He sighed. “Either you’ve got so many different choices you can’t decide on one or…”
“You die,” Clotho warned, and chills ran the length of my arms.
“Okay, back up. Why don’t you just tell me what I’m doing before my … line ends … and I’ll make sure not to do it…”
Clotho shook her head. “I cannot give such information without risking too much.” She spun on Hyperion. “She needs to stick with Cronus. He is the only one who can protect her. Their … paths…” She slowed and seemed to be reaching for her words more carefully. “Are heavily, heavily intertwined.”
Hyperion shot her a dark stare. “Cronus can’t be around her right now. If you’re not going to give us useful information, then be gone, woman!”
The old woman tightened her fist and suddenly Hyperion gasped, grabbing at his side like he had the world’s worst stitch.
“Listen to me!” the Crone shouted. “I’m telling you. Cronus and Maisey need to stick together. The fate of the world depends on it!”
I blinked at how odd it seemed for an old woman to scream like a banshee.
Hyperion winced. “Okay! I’ll relay the message.”
She released her grip and then took one more look at me. “May the gods have mercy on you, child.”
She poofed out of existence.
#WhatTheActualFuck #CantBreathe #IWantMyMommy
I was unsure when the panic attack started, just that it had. I was hyperventilating and feeling dizzy as the cave spun.
Hyperion reached out awkwardly and patted my back. “Just breathe.”
“I’m gonna die and I’m going to take the whole world with me.” I fought back the tears that wanted to come. My throat felt like it was twice the size, constricting the air I desperately sucked in.
Hyperion shook his head. “The Fates are drama queens. They do this sort of thing often.”
I pinned him with a glare. “Oh yeah? They tell you you’re going to die often?”
He shrugged. “Just the once … before Zeus killed me.”
“Ohmygod!” I started to pace the cave. “Not helping!”
Hyperion planted his feet before me and reached out to grasp my shoulders. “Let’s wake Okeanos and then we will find Cronus. I’ll tell him you need to stick together, okay?”
Relief poured through me and I pretended it had nothing to do with being around Cronus and everything to do with circumventing that particular nasty fate.
“Okay.”
I was so wrapped up in my own self doom I didn’t even realize Hyperion had dug up Okeanos’ remains. Only when I saw the blue light pour from his hands and surround a piece of bone did I notice the resurrecting going on.
“Help me out,” he said roughly.
I stepped forward, knowing the drill this time, and placed my hands on his shoulders. Blue light encased our bodies while I tried to push the Fate’s message out of my head. I needed to focus on the here and now.
Resurrecting with Hyperion wasn’t as easy as with Cronus. It took longer, hurt more, and I threw up twice.
#Joy #JobPerk
Once the Titan-god of the ocean or whatever the hell he was popped into the cave, Hyperion informed him of the situation.
“I know,” Okeanos said, sounding much more relaxed than most Titans. He looked more relaxed too, with his white blond hair, silvery eyes, and surfer tan. “Thanatos told me. How can I help?”
His voice was deeper than I expected, and it was no surprise that he was as hot as all hell. All the Titans so far had been. There was something a little feminine about Okeanos though. His eyes, his mannerisms, the way he walked.
#PrettySureHeWoreEyeliner #BetterThanMe #GayTitanAlert
“We need to find Cronus. The fates just gave Maisey a death prophecy.” Hyperion tried to lower his voice, but I obviously heard him.
Ocean hottie winced. “Damn. That’s rough.”
I glared at Hyperion. “You said it wasn’t a big deal. Now it has a name?”
Death prophecy? #FML
<
br /> Okeanos reached out and put a hand on my shoulder. “Selene says hi and she’s proud of you.”
His message from Selene stopped me in my tracks. If his aim had been to distract me, it worked.
I already had a mother, one I loved very, very much, who was taken from me far too soon. But even though I never knew her, somehow I still felt connected to Selene. Like a bonus mom. Hearing my bonus mom was proud of me made me happy in a weird way.
“Let’s help Cronus get Jealousy. He’s been giving us quite the show.” Hyperion’s gaze flew to me and my cheeks reddened at the memory of Cronus and my near rage sex.
Before I could retort, we were snapped out of the cave and landed on the hard asphalt of a street somewhere downtown.
I spun and saw Cronus with Hound, peering through the window of an apartment.
Hound turned, and upon seeing me, broke into a run. With a grin, I dropped to one knee and opened my arms as the giant beast jumped into them.
“I knew you secretly liked me,” I told him, rubbing him under the chin. “I missed you too.”
He licked my face once and then stepped off me. We’d been through a lot together, and he’d damn well better not take sides in Cronus and my fight. I was taking custody of the dog. Fight me.
Cronus looked over his shoulder and saw me with Hound and then his gaze moved to Okeanos and Hyperion. His jaw was tight, some twitching going on, but he didn’t seem to question our presence or his newly-risen-from-the-dead brother. He just nodded. Way to be a badass and take it all in stride. Whatever. I could do that too if I really wanted to. I liked my freak-outs … I owned them.
“Any luck finding Zeus?” Hyperion asked him.
He shook his head. “Or this crone he speaks of.”
How many crones were there? Surely they knew them all?
“Time to return Jealousy to the box he came from?” Hyperion added.
I cleared my throat. “Uh, from now on, my grandfather will not refer to my box. In any way, shape, or form.”
Hyperion went deathly pale like he hadn’t even realized what he’d said. “Sorry, Mais,” he mumbled, and I snorted out some laughter.
“Totally fucking kidding. It’s all good. I just use humor to lighten the mood when I’m about to die. It’s a character flaw.”
Cronus almost looked like he was going to smile. Okeanos was smiling broadly, rockin’ his stoned surfer vibe.
Cronus suddenly snapped to attention, looking into the window again.
“Get ready,” he said in a rush.
“Ready for wha—?” Before I could finish, the sound of breaking glass filled the alley. Cronus dove through the fucking window like a cop doing a drug raid on TV. #BadBoys
Hyperion and Okeanos blinked away—presumably inside.
“Hey!” I yelled, running toward the smashed window, preparing to crawl in. Before I made it close though, Hound bit down on my jeans, holding me in place.
I looked down at the beast. “You little traitor!”
There were shouts and growls and the sound of things breaking inside. Meanwhile, I was pinned to the alley by a Hellhound.
Not even the weirdest day of my life.
Chapter 5
I had no idea what signal Hound was waiting for, but no matter how hard I tried to get away from him, he didn’t give me an inch until he was ready. And when he was ready, he simply stepped aside like he wasn’t just trapping me a moment ago.
“You’re getting neutered,” I told him with a huff, running toward the house. “That means they cut your balls off!”
It sounded like he yelped, but I missed it because I was attempting to dive roll through the window Cronus had entered. Unlike the Titan, I was less CSI Miami and more that fat yellow bear that really liked honey and kept getting his ass stuck in the honey pot. Thankfully, my jeans protected me from the worst of the glass, and I landed in a heap without too many new injuries.
“Maisey!” Cronus shouted.
I stood, dusting myself off, taking in the whole room. Cronus was in the corner, his hands out as a blue light shone from them. Hyperion was standing at his back, one hand on his shoulder like he was powering the Titan of time. It reminded me of what I had to do when they brought the other Titans back to life. Jealousy was a screeching humanoid monster in the center of the room, bucking and fighting against the hold the Titans had on him like he was stuck in a cage. Okeanos was nowhere to be seen, or so I thought at first, before I noticed him on the ceiling. He was up there like hot Titan Spiderman; some of the barrier around Jealousy was spiraling out of his hands.
“Mais, anytime today would be fucking great,” Cronus shot out.
I wanted to tell Cronus he was next on my neuter list, but let’s be honest: I liked that dick too much to cause it any harm.
Jealousy caught my eye as I walked closer, the Sin not as translucent as he had been last time. He looked almost human—but also not at the same time: eyes too large, and the color akin to olive green; face tinted in shades of green too, with shadows covering him in low light.
“You look like a swamp monster,” I said, tilting my head as I stepped up beside Cronus. “An ugly as fuck monster.”
Yeah, I was kind of a bit salty about what he did to me back in New York. Fucker.
“I did you a favor,” he sneered. “Gave you your heart’s desire.”
Ignoring the sliver of truth in that, I sucked in a deep breath, ready to do what had to be done.
“Drop the barrier,” I said to Cronus, my hands ready.
The necklace at my throat hummed in anticipation, and I knew it was the sins inside of me. No idea what they were so excited about, but a smarter person would probably be worried.
#AFutureMaiseyProblem
Cronus’ eyes met mine, just a brief connection, before he lifted his magical hold on Jealousy. Lurching forward, I knew I couldn’t waste a second. This sin could disappear like a blast of energy, and I would not let that happen again. If he affected me and the Titans the way he had, then humans would be in huge trouble.
He was fast, I’d give him that, but I was a split second faster. The moment my hand connected to him, there was a literal earthquake, the building shaking plaster down over us; the windows that weren’t already broken cracked.
A scream built in my chest as I fought the pain. This wasn’t the first Sin I’d absorbed, but without having the bond to Cronus, that meant this time I was all on my own.
A huge hand wrapped around mine, anchoring me when I felt like I was about to drift away, a slithering pain racking my body as the sin sucked into me through the necklace, an inky black mass protruding out of my chest. Cronus pulled me closer, his other hand rubbing circles across my back.
“Breathe, Maisey. Breathe through it. You’re almost there.”
Jealousy took his sweet-ass time settling into my … wherever the fuck they were in my body. I could barely focus because Cronus was rubbing circles on my back. The other sins started spinning and turning inside of me, making room for Jealousy, and I gritted my teeth against the pain. Hunching forward in a ball, I cried out as the last of the Sin disappeared inside of me.
When I got myself under control well enough to straighten, I rubbed a hand over my face, pausing at the loud gasp.
I turned to Hyperion, who was staring at me, unblinking, and he wasn’t the only one. Okeanos, down from the ceiling, was shaking his head as he examined me. Finally, I turned to Cronus and he was furious—eyes glacial blue, jaw that could break down a wall, and visible energy streaking across his skin. For a second, as he fought for control, everything in the room froze. Everything but Cronus and me. I knew this because Hyperion was reaching for me, a concerned expression replacing his previous gasp.
What the hell was going on?
Cronus seemed to realize what he’d done, and with a shake of his head everything moved again. Time. Fuck me. He’d just manipulated time. His powers were seriously coming back full steam. Every day he was on Earth he grew stronger and stronge
r.
I was happy about that, but mostly I was wondering why the fuck they were all gawking at me.
Glancing down, I blinked at my hair, which was swirling in arcs around me. I could just catch glimpses of it as it wrapped around my waist. My white-blond, ten-thousand-likes hair was now streaked with black. My fingertips were black again too, but I’d expected that. This was the previous impact the sins had had on me, and it was my new normal.
But the black hair … that was … worrying. What did it mean?
“I told you that she couldn’t take on any more sins,” Cronus bit out. His fury was palpable; I could taste the bitter tang on my tongue. “It’s changing her. This is only four—and the lesser powerful of the nine. We have to figure out another solution!”
Well, well, look who was back to caring about me, the hot and cold bastard.
Hyperion placed a hand on my arm, his face concerned and kind. “Maybe there’s something about Maisey we don’t understand. Something that’s reacting to the power of the sins. Maybe we don’t have all the information we should. I think we need to speak to someone who might have a clue…”
#IWishIHadAClue
I pulled my floating hair back into the top knot, which had come loose.
“Selene,” Cronus said.
#DeadBonusMom?
“It’s going to take some real sweet talking for Thanatos to allow the living to visit the dead,” Okeanos said from where he stood, stoic. “The last I heard, it has only happened once or twice before.”
“End of the fucking world,” I reminded him. “Surely that’s going to qualify.”
He held his hands up like he didn’t want to fight about it, and I took that gesture literally.
#IWin.
Okeanos’ lips twitched and I wondered if he could read my mind.
“Well, let’s do this, then,” I said.
Hyperion cleared his throat. “Maisey, are you forgetting that thing we need to tell Cronus?”
I tilted my head back to meet his eyes and I could feel my forehead screw up.
“The thing? What thing?” My hair might have black in it now but I was still a blonde at heart.
