Chapter 17 #2
Her magic bounces off the net, sizzling with sparkles again, and I roll my eyes. What does she think she’s going to do with that? Glitter me to death?
“Beth,” Raven screams.
Three more demons materialize in front of me as I move toward Raven who is slashing at three demons of her own. One got past her and lunges for the prone guys underneath the net. I crack my whip, and it wraps around the demon’s ankle, flaring with power and turning it to ash.
“You good, Raven?” I shout, dodging claws and ducking another blast of glitter hell from the goddess of beauty.
“Never better, but there are too many of them. We can’t keep this up indefinitely.” Raven swings her ax, beheading three demons at once.
“I don’t know.” I slice my blade through two more demons. “I’d say we are doing a pretty good job of holding our own.”
“Behind you,” Greyson shouts.
I jump at the last second and the claws meant for me dig into the chest of the demon in front of me and it crumbles to dust while I swipe my blade through the one who just tried to stab me in the back with its claws.
“Thanks, Greyson.” I glance at the shifter still struggling to get free of the net. “That’s not going to work. That’s made by Hephaestus to trap his cheating wife and her lover. The only person who can remove it is the man himself.”
“Fuck,” Raven shouts as claws swipe at her side.
Greyson roars and his bones break and reform into his huge snarling wolf but the net holds firm, even expanding to account for the size of the wolf. Raven drops to her knees, holding her side, and I race to her, cutting down several more lizard demons on my way to my injured friend.
“Here.” I toss her my medical pack and turn back to the encroaching demons. “Three drops on your tongue. I can’t do this all on my own.”
“I’ll heal on my own,” Raven says.
“Not fast enough to stop me from doing something insanely stupid.” I smirk.
My whip flies out around me as I spin in a circle. The electricity crackling along the edges almost look like flames. Five demons advance on me and the first demon crumbles to ash until one by one they fall, and I’m surrounded by clouds of dust and ash.
Greyson’s mournful howl breaks through the clashing sounds of battle as the beast continues to thrash.
“Greyson, I need you to calm down. Raven’s healing. She’ll be fine, but you could crush Draven beneath you if you’re not still.” I call to the giant shifter as I sweep my leg out in a roundhouse kick followed by a swipe at the demons around me with my sword, cutting them all down.
“I’m okay, Greyson.” Raven crawls to the net and flops in a heap at Greyson’s side.
The wolf whines and nudges her through the golden net but she can’t touch him through the fine material.
I stand in front of the net and my injured friend with my whip and sword at the ready. No demons are getting past me to hurt them. I just need to stall and buy Kira some more time to bring us the hammer.
“Kill her,” Aphrodite roars. “Kill them all.”
Ten demons rush forward all at the same time. I hold my ground but scan the mountainside. I could take them out with my magic easily, but I don’t know when Kira is going to get out of the damn forge and get me some help from either her or a god like her father.
I point my crackling blade at the nearest demon and lightning arcs off the tip, hitting the demon in the chest and blowing it back ten feet into two other demons before it turns to ash.
“It’s cute that you think these assholes can take me out when a Titan tried and failed.” I laugh as three demons rush me this time. Waiting until the last second as one on each side slash their claws, I drop to my back.
The demons claw at each other’s chests, killing each other in the process. They are the dumbest creatures; it’s almost sad killing them. It’s too easy. The last one lunges at me, but I flick my whip and electrocute it to a pile of ash as well.
“They don’t have to kill you quickly. You’re half-human; eventually you’ll tire and then you will get sloppy and then you will die.” Aphrodite flips her hair over her shoulder, grinning at me.
“Who set you up for failure by giving you bad intel?” I laugh. “I bleed gold, bitch.”
“What?” she screeches. “That’s impossible. I found you and your mother all those years ago. I know for a fact that you’re human.”
“You?” I roar. “You gave me up to the queen and got my mother killed?”
Electricity hot and lethal explodes from my hands in an arc toward the goddess but the six remaining demons step in front of her and their bodies convulse before bursting into dust, covering the goddess in dead demon parts.
“Argh, that’s disgusting.” She waves a hand and the ash all over her skin and hair disappears in a puff of glitter.
“When Zeus wins this war against the queen, you will pay for your part in my mother’s murder, you selfish bitch.” I shoot more lightning at her, but she bats it away like it’s nothing.
“You admit it, then. You can’t possibly bleed gold if you were born to a human mother.” She cackles and blasts more sparkly shit at me.
Dropping my sword, I quickly call Hades’ shield and block the glitter bomb headed my way. The shield absorbs the magic, but pain explodes in my back as I slam against the side of the mountain at the impact. Gold blood trickles down my face from my hairline.
“No. That’s not right,” Aphrodite wails.
“Obviously it is because I am bleeding before your eyes.” I wipe the blood from my face with my sleeve. “You were lied to and set up to fail by your own people.”
“No, I may not be able to kill you because you’re a goddess now, but I can hurt your friends.” Aphrodite disappears and reappears a second later, holding Raven up by her hair. “Surrender now or your friend here will pay the ultimate price.”