27. Chapter 27
Chapter twenty-seven
Phineas
P hineas hit the target with the iron arrow, threw the bow to the ground, and ran to the armed warrior head-on. His opponent was more skilled than the others, but he’d improved enough in his technique that it only took him one stride and the right footwork to take out the curly-haired god before he could dodge any subsequent attacks and make it to the other side of the trees, marking the end of the course.
The curly-haired god was around the same age as Phineas and was one of the best opponents he’d ever faced. He had the broad shoulders and wide build of a warrior but lacked the proper training to match how far the young Ares had come over the last few months. On top of that, the training course had become even more rigorous, which served Phineas well. He was getting better. He was focused and finally overcoming some of the obstacles he’d never been able to.
It helped that Corre wasn’t there. It was hard for him to think whenever she was around.
“Good work, Terraceus,” Phineas said, offering a hand to the fallen soldier and lifting him out of the dirt.
“Thanks,” the god mumbled, avoiding Phineas’s gaze. Terraceus had been one of Athena’s top pupils, and, for a while, Phineas was pretty sure they’d all thought he’d never surpass him. He was bound to at some point, though. He was Ares. It was his duty. His birthright.
When Terraceus walked by him, Phineas clapped a hand on his shoulder. “Hey, can you hold on?”
The other god stopped but still didn’t meet Phineas’s gaze. “What is it?”
The young Ares let his shoulder go and walked over to face him. “You’re the best warrior I’ve ever seen.” Terraceus huffed and started to leave again when Phineas quickly added, “I’m going to recruit soon. I need to get my army together.”
The curly-haired warrior stopped, then slowly swiveled on his heel to study Phineas with narrowed eyes. “What’s gotten into you?”
“What do you mean?”
“You’re different.”
“I was going to say the same thing,” a melodic voice interjected.
Phineas turned to see Athena, whose ruby lips were turned into a half-smile. “I watched you carefully today, and with that clear shot,” she nodded toward the fallen bow, “you could give Apollo a run for his money.”
“Just focused on the craft,” Phineas said, but he couldn’t hide the satisfaction on his face. Athena wasn’t one to throw around compliments.
“Of war?”
Phineas gave one nod. “Of war.”
She eyed him steadily. “Why the sudden focus?”
“Exactly what I was wondering,” Terraceus said. His pinched face still watched Phineas warily.
He flinched. Maybe it wasn’t the best idea to bring Terraceus on as one of his soldiers.
No, I need to. He’s the best.
“I just—”
“You’re worried,” Athena said. It wasn’t a question, and Phineas knew there was no lying to his mentor, so he gave her another quick nod.
“There’s been a lot of talk—”
“Of Hades,” she said. Again, not a question.
“Yes. Of Hades.”
“His men have been everywhere,” she said with a sigh.
Phineas nodded again, but his fists clenched at the thought of him. Theron . Just thinking about him made his blood boil. It wasn’t even what he’d done to him that day that had made him so angry. It was what he’d done to Corre.
He’d done something to her. Phineas was sure of it. The way her eyes looked after she’d run into him was more than enough indication that something was off, and she’d been off ever since. Like her mind had been altered. He’d taken her focus away and beguiled her somehow. And she hadn’t even been scared. It was almost as if she’d found him intriguing . There was no telling the kind of wicked power the monster held. Corre might not be strong enough to resist that curiosity of hers or her notorious recklessness. It had gotten them in trouble more than once in their lives.
“Phineas, let’s go to Lerna. I heard you can see the new baby dragons there,” she’d said when they were about ten years old. He’d vehemently shook his head.
“No, Corre, we’ll get caught, and that old Belen will get after us again .”The giant, boar-like man hated children more than his pets’ excrements, and he especially hated children who messed with his things, riling up his creatures and forcing him to chase after them and move faster than a tortoise.
“So?”she said, one of her teeth missing as she grinned mischievously. He was convinced she enjoyed getting into trouble.
“So? So we could get our butts whooped again!”he said, but she just laughed and said they were twice as fast as the old brute and could outrun him.
“We didn’t outrun him last time,”Phineas said flatly.
She’d groaned and continued pleading her case until he finally relented. And, lo and behold, they’d gotten caught, and Phineas’s heart had practically ground its way into powder at how fast and hard it pounded in his chest to the other edge of the woods.
After they’d finally caught their breath and Corre had sprawled herself out onto the thick grass, moving her palms through the dirt like she was swimming on the forest floor, she’d said , “See? I told you we could outrun ‘im.”
Although Phineas had been furious at the ordeal she’d put him through, he smiled. She was the bravest girl he’d ever met. The bravest kid period. And he’d been in awe.
“All right, I’ll do it.”
Phineas stared at the platinum-curled god in shock. “What?”
“I’ll do it. I’ll be in your army. But I have to be second-in-command.”
Phineas’s heart leapt. “Yes, of course.” A smile stretched across his face, but Terraceus’s expression only darkened.
“If what you and everyone else have said is true, a war is coming, and I want to be prepared.” He looked at Phineas in a way that made the young Ares swallow hard.
A war was coming. And he needed to lead.
“Okay,” Phineas said weakly, but Athena clapped him on the back.
“You’ll do great,” she said, and he tried his best not to show what he was really feeling.
“Yeah,” he whispered, still very much uncertain, but he knew he needed to trust her. He had to live up to his title. He squared his shoulders and looked up. “Okay,” he said again, firmer this time. “Terraceus.” The god looked at him, and Phineas gestured to the woods behind him. “Let’s go again.”
Corre
Corre woke up the next morning, giddy to see Theron still sleeping in the bed next to her. No. Markus .
She trailed her fingers along his jawline, moving her hand up to brush one of his dark curls out of his face. She stroked his hair and marveled at the blackness of it. It looked like a liquid night sky without any stars. Like a potion made from the universe.
When he made a pained moan, her stomach dropped. His face was strained, and his body jerked slightly. His teeth clenched as he began writhing, sweating. She shook him gently. “Markus. Wake up.” He didn’t budge. “Wake up,” she pleaded. “You’re having a nightmare.”
His body jerked again.
“Markus!”
He gasped, his torso lunging forward. Sweat had stuck his hair to the back of his neck, and his chest was heaving.
“Markus,” she said again, but his name came out in a gasp. He looked at her in shock, his eyes still reeling from some unseen thing in his dreams. “What’s wrong?” He wiped a hand down his face, taking calculated breaths.
Corre scooted closer and rested her head on his shoulder. When he was okay with that, she placed an arm loosely around his shirtless torso. She closed her eyes and held him like that until his heart stopped racing and his breathing returned to normal.
“It was just a nightmare,” he said at last, the bass of his voice humming in her ear. He looked down at her, his frown deepening. “What?”
“I’m worried. You were in so much distress.”
He took another deep breath. “Yeah. I was.”
“Do you always have nightmares?”
He paused. “Yes.”
“Like that?” He nodded. She hesitated before asking, “What are they about?” He shifted his body awkwardly, and she rested her back on the headboard. “It’s okay. You don’t have to tell me.”
“No. It’s all right. It’s just . . . a memory-night from when I was young. The day I came here. It was horrendous.” He gave her a forced smile. “Seems like my mind is bent on torturing me. I can’t even rest while I’m asleep.”
Corre’s head fell to his shoulder again. “Sounds terrible.”
“It is.”
“You were thirteen, right?”
“Yes, and it was only the beginning of a life of nightmares.”
“It doesn’t have to be like that. Your life doesn’t have to be full of nightmares.”
He snorted. “Right.”
“I’m serious. You can change your life.”
He laughed tightly. “You think my situation is better than it is.”
“No, I don’t, which is why I want to help you change it.”
“How could we possibly do that?”
“I don’t know.” Her mind reeled. There had to be something.
“Well . . . I guess I could change things . . .”
A smile broke across her face. “Really?”
“Maybe. When I take the throne.”
“Markus! Yes! Of course. We should focus on that!” She grabbed his hand, but his body was still rigid, and his eyes were no happier than they’d been when he’d woken up. Her shoulders fell. “Why don’t you seem happy? Or hopeful?”
His eyes shifted to hers, but his body stayed stuck in place. “Correlia . . .” His voice trailed off and, for a long time, he didn’t speak. He looked like he wanted to, so she waited. Finally, he said, “Do you know why we were appointed our roles on Mt. Olympus?”
She frowned. “Yes, I think so.”
“So you know who made the Decree.”
The Decree. She learned of it in school and was taught by her mother. She knew the story backward and forward. It was the only thing that held any answers. “The Mighty Decree.”
“The Mighty Decree,” he spat like the words were poison on his tongue.
The Mighty Decree was created by the Titans and a certain set of Great Deities at the beginning of everything. When the world was created and Mt. Olympus was formed, the twelve mighty Titans created the first round of gods and goddesses. The Original Chosen. These included Zeus, Hera, Athena, Hermes, Demeter, and many others. They hadn’t been given any titles at the time of their creation, and thus, there’d been no order. The world was in chaos. Confusion and disarray.
Seeing the mayhem, the Titans and the greatest, most powerful deities formed what was now referred to as the Mighty Decree. This set the laws and regulations of Mt. Olympus that would then spread to the remaining world. It was in this decree that each god and goddess had been given his or her respective title and responsibilities. There needed to be order, so each Titan made a plan to make it so.
There needed to be a god or goddess for absolutely everything. And when the Original Chosen had children—and there were still many other roles that needed to be filled—more titles were appointed. Most children were taken to the Moirai—beings who could see the prophecies of each child as an infant—and then the Titans bestowed upon them their titles and gave their parents their responsibilities to fill, and any other information they needed to know.
Which was why it was odd that Markus had been so old when he was taken to the Underworld, and that his parents weren’t his guardians. Had he also been appointed as a baby? Had he always known his fate?
Not every child was given a title, so it was very possible that he’d been an ‘unblessed god’ before being burdened with the title of Hades. Corre never liked that term. Unblessed gods and goddesses had ‘lesser’ abilities and no grand purposes for the mortals of Earth. To Corre, each god and goddess had a unique purpose, but the Titans didn’t see it that way. Therefore, the Great Ones on Olympus often didn’t see it that way, which caused a lot of contention, and undue and undeserved respect on the worthy and disrespect on the innocent.
“The Mighty Decree is just a piece of paper,” she said.
“A powerful piece of indestructible paper.” He cast her a wry smile.
“I’m serious.”
“So am I.” His smile fell. “There’s nothing we can do.”
“Then why bring it up?”
“Because I will be Hades one day. But,” his voice quieted, his body tensing, “you know I have no choice but to wait. The Titans give us our titles—with Zeus’s help—and we have to deal with it and do what we’re told.”
“Exactly. The Might Decree says you’re Hades, and, Markus, you’re twenty-five. You should have been given the throne by now.”
Pain flickered in his eyes. “I will take the throne one day. I’m simply not ready yet.”
“ Thanatos says you’re not ready, but does he get to decide that?”
“What?”
“It isn’t his call, is it? The Titans appointed which god would rule the Underworld. You were chosen as part of the Mighty Decree.” She squeezed his hand. “If it’s not up to him, you can find a way to it. To take what’s rightfully yours.”
The shadow of a smile passed on his lips but vanished almost instantly. “There’s no way for me to know. Thanatos is the only Great Deity here, and he says I’m not ready. So that’s that, I guess.”
“That can’t be it,” she said, running a hand gently through his hair. “You’re the strongest god I’ve ever seen. Something isn’t right.”
Markus stared off but didn’t speak. She didn’t expect him to, but she’d hoped he would. She hoped he might have some idea of how he could finally take his place as ruler of the Underworld.
She wasn’t sure if she should say it, but she needed him to know.
She looked right at him and said, “Someone told me that Thanatos was a placeholder and that his days are numbered on the throne. Is that true?”
He blinked. “What? Who told you that?”
“I don’t know his name. I found him here, actually. He was a scruffy-looking mortal.”
“A mortal? In Tartarus?” She nodded. He pondered it, still frowning. “That doesn’t make any sense. Are you sure he was mortal?”
“I guess I can’t be completely sure, but he looked like one.”
He leaned back, raking his hand through his hair. “So, this person—this mortal—said Thanatos’s days are numbered?”
“Yes. That he’s a placeholder.”
“Well, I knowthat. He’s not Hades. I am.”
“Exactly. There must be something we can do so you can take the throne. Because Markus,” she scooted closer and took his hands in hers. “I don’t think he’ll ever give it to you willingly.”
He shook his head and got to his feet. “He’s been training me. He’s made me who I am. He’ll do it. I’m just not ready.”
Corre’s stomach dropped. She was losing him. “Markus, no. Are you listening?”
“Yes, I am.” The words came out clipped. His eyes were still lost in thought. One feeling between them was mutual: nothing was making any sense. Finally, he sighed, and any edginess in his voice faded away. “Maybe you’re right.”
The knot in her stomach loosened. “So will you help me?” The hope in her chest soared, but when he turned and looked at her, he didn’t have to say a thing. She knew what he was thinking.
And just like that, all the hope she’d held in her body crashed to the ground.
“I’m sorry,” he muttered. “I just don’t think I can.”
“You can ,” she said, rising to her feet. She held his face in her hands and looked deep into his eyes. “I promise you, you can.”
He didn’t shake her off. He didn’t resist. He didn’t do anything but look at her with tears forming in his eyes. When his lip started to quiver, he gathered her in his arms and held her against his chest. As he silently cried, she held him.
There was no use making him feel more torn than he already did right now. Or to make him admit the abuse he was finally starting to see. He didn’t need to decide anything right now.
It was okay for him to just be .
“It’s okay,” she whispered, brushing her hand along his back. “It’ll be okay. I promise.”
She held him until he was ready to start his training for the day. After he silently got ready, she kissed him on the cheek and wished him good luck. He smiled and thanked her, then quietly left the room.
And although the pain in her heart was getting worse, she knew that he needed rest for the time being. Mental rest.
They could talk about this another day.
She just hoped it wouldn’t be too late.
Corre spent the following hours paralyzed in thought. She couldn’t stop thinking about Markus and how little time she had left here. She thought about her mother, of Phineas, and her looming 20th birthday. Her chest tightened.
She welcomed the sound of Markus’s voice when he came back mid-day, just as her stomach started to growl. “I brought bread and cheese,” he said, eyes bright with no hint of the conversation they’d had earlier.
She let out a deep sigh of relief and took the food from his bruised hands, but the relief soon turned to horror when she saw his purple, tattered hands. “Your knuckles! What did you fight today? Did you not have your sword?”
He took a hunk of cheese and sat next to her. “I had my sword. I just didn’t have the chance to use it.” He tossed the food in his mouth.
“Because?”
“Because it was a chimera,” he said with a groan, lying back on the bed.
A pang of terror scurried up her back. “A chimera? Markus, I—”
He sat up and kissed her, and the zing of his lips blurred her thoughts and left her dizzy.
“I love when you call me that.” When she opened her eyes, he was smiling so fully she couldn’t think of anything else.
Her nose crinkled as she smiled and kissed him on the cheek. “I like calling you that.”
He leaned forward and kissed her on the cheek, and then her lips, her neck, and down to her collarbone. When a breath snagged in her throat, she closed her eyes and let herself fall onto the bed. He moved to hover over her and kissed her deeply. She flung her arms around him right before her stomach let out an agonizingly long growl.
His lips let go of hers, and he burst into peals of laughter.
Her cheeks warmed. “That’s so embarrassing,” she said, slapping her hand to her forehead.
“No, you need to eat. Come on. Up!” He took her hands and pulled her up. He handed her a generous piece of bread. “If you hurry, you can come train with me.”
Her face lit up. “Really?” He nodded, his lips stretched into another wide smile. She beamed and took the bread, throwing the whole thing into her mouth.
“What are you doing?!” he cried, and she laughed, her cheeks as full as a squirrel’s.
“I nee’ to ‘urry,” she said before gulping it down. She regretted swallowing the whole thing when it stuck in a great bump in her throat. While she struggled to work it down, he chuckled. “What?” she asked flatly, finally gulping it down.
“Do you want something to drink?”
“Yes.” She glared at his amused expression. “And then we’ll train, right?”
His eyes softened, and he stroked the side of her face, letting his fingers fall down her neck. “Of course. Whatever you’d like.”
She leaned forward and kissed him, and when he grabbed hold of her, kissing her in that marvelous way that made her head spin, she decided she could wait to train. The dungeon wasn’t going anywhere.