Page 72 of Crown of Olympus
My dragon followed Aros’ lead and blew flames at the machines sneaking up behind us. Aros’ manticore — Rufus, of all names — pounced from target to target, slamming them into the ground, giving us the opportunity to take them out permanently. Caelus’ wolf charged the ones whose fires had sputtered out, clawing and chewing them down into pieces of scrap.
Minutes passed before they were all destroyed.
Patches of scorched earth sizzled, and arrows littered the plain like porcupine needles.
A laugh slipped out unbidden. The others looked at me like I’d grown an extra head.
“Robots,” I chuckled. “Deadly tin-can robots.” Throwing my head back, I howled, falling to my knees. As the laughter grew louder, they couldn’t help but join in.
First was Aros with his bloodthirsty roar. Then Aphrodite, with her wench’s cackle. And finally, Caelus cracked a grin — laughing with a sound so deep and harmonious, I felt it in my very marrow. It caught me so off guard, I couldn’t look anywhere but at him. I wanted to swim in that sound — and Ihated just how much I wanted to hear it again. Hated how quickly he was sliding under my skin and past my mental walls.
Eventually, the laughter dried up and we shifted our attention back to the fortress. I’d lost sight of the other champions, but we still had half a day to work our way in and claim our medallions.
Caelus extended a hand to help me up. Hesitating for a heartbeat, I grasped it firmly as his lips twitched up into another smile.
In the end, we’d decided to follow my earlier suggestion and keep heading towards the gates. There had been no sign of Archimedes, even though we’d all seen him charge this way. No sign of other traps or fortress sentries either.
Just as we reached the enormous stone wall, a deep, churning rumble came from somewhere to our right. I turned my head to see… nothing. There was nothing between where I stood and the jagged cliff face. No new adversary, no sabotaging goddess. Just empty space.
The rumble grew louder, now mixed with the sounds of rushing water and howling wind.
The seas.
What was Poseidon up to?
My dragon launched into the air, keeping watch, as I cautiously approached the cliff. Creeping forwards on all fours, I peered over its edge into the endless ocean, my allies lined up beside me. What we saw had my jaw snapping open — I’d never seen anything even remotely like it. Aphrodite inhaled sharply, and I heard a muffled curse from one of the males.
The waves were no longer crashing against the rocks far below. Instead, the waters were being pulled against their natural flow — backwards and upwards. They formed one gigantic wave of tsunamic proportions, headed straight for us.
“RUN!” I screamed, lurching to my feet.
I bolted, legs pumping, back along the line of the wall. My lungs heaved as my boots pounded into the dirt. I spared no thought for the other gods, trusting their instincts would carry them far away from the incoming wave. I only thought of the dragon high above me. She was too tiny, too small, to survive a wave of that size breaking over her.
As I ran, I tested out the bounds of our bond.
I reached inwards, quickly locating a thin tether that pulsed in time with her wingbeats. Our bond, our link — strong, secure, and vibrant. As I went to yank on it, I brushed against a thicker one leading elsewhere. It felt solid. Safe. Unrelenting.
My fate thread?
I didn’t have time to think through the implications. The wave was too close now.
I tugged on the smaller bond, willing the dragon to come back down to me, where my shadows could keep her safe. She dove straight down, wings cinched in tightly to her tiny purple body before flaring to slow her descent.
I caught her in my arms like we were playing a high-stakes game of catch, encircling her in a thick black bubble of shadow. She’d be safe in there — for now.
I made it all the way back to the gates, hoping it was far enough out of the breaking zone. Caelus and Aros arrived just on my tail, panting hard, with Aph just a little behind them. Their creatures had kept pace, protecting them even from the might of a tsunami.
By now, the wave had risen above the level of the cliff, almost higher than the fortress walls. A flash of silver glistened atop the crest, something metallic and entirely out of place. I squinted, my jaw jutting out as I realised what it was.
“Is that…?” Aph wheezed.
“Leander,” I confirmed.
It hadn’t been Poseidon interfering at all — just his son,with his generic steel sword. Mustn’t have earned a dick-stick like daddio yet.
I had to give him credit, though. He’d actually used his brain to outwit the robot-laden field and fifty-foot wall. As though he could feel my glare, Leander turned his head, grinned, then offered a sarcastic salute before riding the crashing wave over the other side of the fortress wall.
The wave broke violently against the structure in a thunderous detonation of water meeting stone. The wall held firm — a testament to Athena’s foresight — until the water retreated back over the cliffside, leaving only wet stone and muddy earth behind.
