Page 54 of Midlife Demigod Unexpected

“What are you doing?” I asked.

“I’m calling my sword to me,” she said.

Styx and Morel jumped to their feet.

“I don’t think you’re Thor,” I grumbled.

“What? How the hell else am I supposed to get the sword?” she asked.

“Maybe you’re not supposed to have it. Maybe you have to use Dark Fae magic or something?”

“Let’s see if my aim’s any better?” she said, holding up her hand and aiming it at Mae’s cage door.

“That was spot on,” I said as the lock undid and the door swung open. Styx and Morel were on their feet now, screaming at us as they rushed forward. Styx waved her hands in large motions causing the dust on the ground to stir up. She was digging. The floor was falling away beneath us, and the river was coming back.

“This chamber is the place where the rest of the river will run through,” she said. “We only need to give the six of you as a sacrifice and then the River Styx will run freely through New Attica.”

“I hate to break it to you,” I said. Even though I was wobbly on my feet, I held my hands up against her, “but I don’t think that is what will happen today.”

I swayed a little as I tried to steady myself. Chloe flew down in her bat form. Mae had jumped down out of her cage. I fired a golden shot and hit Jane’s door open. She did a swinging backflip out of her cage, landing perfectly with both feet firmly on the ground and arms outstretched.

“How do you make middle-age look so damn good?” I asked.

“Incoming!” Chloe called.

I turned as Styx’s arms brought water up out of the ground.

“She plans to drown us!” Chloe cried.

“You will be a sacrifice to the river,” Styx said. A rock protrusion came out of the side of the wall where she and Morel stood as the water rose up around us.

The water was flowing toward the opening of the crypt.

“Let go!” I said to the rest of the coven. We could feel the ethereal bodies of the dead souls grappling against us, working to pull us under. “Hold your breath and let go!”

They all looked at me in fear, but they knew there was no fighting it. We were being taken in by the River Styx and if we faltered, it would be even worse. We had to understand what the river wanted to do with us and then find a way out. My only hope was our breaths held long enough for that to be possible.

Chapter 39

The water swirled all around my head and my face as I held my breath. Long bony fingers pulled at the tendrils of my hair. I wanted to scream in disgust, but I knew going with the flow was the best way to get through this. The flow was fast and furious, pushing us along. I reached out and found Chloe’s hand in the darkness. I could feel the energy connect. All the coven members must be joining hands. Each time they connected; our energy surged until we were all connected together in a chain.

We were stronger together and we all knew it.

When we were all connected, I began kicking in the direction the water was flowing, pulling them with me until they understood what I was trying to achieve. Let Styx and Morel think we had drowned.

I kicked harder. I was losing my breath quickly and knew I was going to run out of breath before I was able to find any air. I only hoped my sisters in the coven were all still connected and able to hold their breath as well.

The pain in my lungs sharpened, searing. I kicked harder and harder. Finally, I knew there was no way I was going to be able to last anymore so I kicked for the surface, hoping against hope we were beyond the sight of Styx and Morel and hoping there was actually air up at the surface.

I burst through the top of the water, desperate for air and clinging to the hope all of my coven sisters had survived the swim also. I pulled on Chloe, who came up, and one by one we pulled each other up out of the water until all six of us were bobbing heads in the River Styx. If I was not mistaken as I looked around at the massive cavern, we were in Undirheim.

“What the fuck?” asked the demon who stood on the edge.

“We need help,” I said.

“You’re in the river,” the demon said, shaking his head.

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