Page 20 of Left Hand of the Divine
Erebus’s eyes emptied of their ferocity and glazed over as he stared back at Thane. “That is a shame. It was always a wonderful language to hear.”
I could translate it if I needed to, but with it being a near-extinct language, it wasn’t something I came across anymore, so I didn’t get to practise it. “Did anyone hear what I said?”
“No,” Atticus replied. “We were all a bit busy with Erebus’ grand entrance.”
Erebus chuckled and walked towards me. Instinctively, I braced myself against the possibility of an attack.
“You may believe what you like, but the evidence would suggest that there is something more to you beneath the surface. I can sense that and I have known this version of you for all of five minutes. Perhaps you should look to this gut that you are so fond of and see if that holds some inspiration.” Erebus took my hand and placed it back on the stone door. “Try again.”
A spark of electricity zipped through my fingers where his hand rested on mine. I closed my eyes and gripped the drachma in myother hand. I clutched it so tightly that there was probably going to be an imprint of Charon’s face in my palm.
I called my death magic to the surface, letting it flow through me and around the Drachma. I tugged the strands of my power until it pulsed through the air, vibrating against my skin and humming through the stone.
“Dig deeper,” Erebus breathed, his voice steady and soft.
I could hear the others squabbling over something, probably why Erebus was still holding my hand, but I tuned them out. The world faded, and my focus narrowed to the feel of the drachma in my hand, Erebus’ touch and the darkness stirring deep in my soul.
I pulled it to the surface, and it felt like something otherworldly. Something alien.
It was cold, and it doused the fire of my Reaper, chilling me from my core all the way to the tips of my fingers. Air froze in my lungs; ice ran through my veins.
What the hell was this?
The stone began to tremble beneath my fingers.
“That’s it,” Erebus said, spurring me on. “Just a bit more.”
I grasped at more of the darkness, but it was coming too quickly. I couldn’t stop the flow of it. It poured through me, like a tidal wave, overflowing until I could sense it in every atom of my being.
My feet lifted in the air, and wind howled around me, pulling at my hair and clothes. I lost myself in the darkness, the intoxicating pull of it sparking like lightning beneath my skin.
“Roux!” Someone shouted, but they sounded so far away. I couldn’t tell who it was.
The power surged, electrifying the air around me. It was terrifying, impossible, and beautiful. I could rewrite the stars, change someone’s fate. Hell, I could make the world bend tome.I could—
Hands grabbed my face, pulling me back from the brink of madness. Bright red eyes bored into mine, and I gasped as my mind cleared and the world came back into focus.
“The door,” Erebus gritted out. His jaw was clenched, and his hands trembled with the effort of holding onto me.
I nodded and whispered Charon’s enchantment.
Everything within me detonated as my energy fuelled the spell. Erebus flew backwards, and I dropped to the floor. My knees buckled, my body not having the strength to hold me upright. My vision blurred, and I felt hollow, like my soul had been ripped from me. I’d used every bit of power I could, but at least it seemed to be working. The stone vibrated, dust falling from the ceiling as the door shook and began to crumble.
“Get back!” Atticus shouted right before the door exploded.
I coughed as the dust kicked up by the door opening hit my lungs. Light filtered through, making the particles swirl and dance in graceful arcs. I crossed the threshold into the room where Prometheus had left us at the beginning of our journey into the Vault, and I found my own little welcoming committeewaiting for us.
Hermes, who was Zeus’ little errand boy, stood with Prometheus, his hips cocked and that damn gold glitter twinkling in the air around him. The last time Hermes appeared was in my office, and I still had glitter embedded in the carpet.
His green eyes sparked with mischief as he watched us exit the Vault. “Well, well, well, what do we have here?”
Nobody said anything. We’d literally been caught with our hands in the proverbial cookie jar, and Hermes knew it. His face had a smugness written all over it, like he couldn’t wait to tell anyone and everyone who’d listen to him about the juiciest bit of gossip. Our names were about to be all over the lips of the Council of Gods, and not in a good way.
Prometheus stood behind him, looking sheepish and trying to blend into the background. He wasn’t doing a very good job of that though. The guy was far too pretty to disappear. With sandy blonde hair and eyes like mercury, he looked like he belonged on the cover of a magazine.
Hermes pulled a letter out of his pocket and strolled towards me, that smug little smirk making him look cocky. “I’ve come to deliver this. You’ve been summoned, Roux.”
I took the envelope from him. “Summoned?”
