Releasing the Gods

by Leia Stone

Panacea helped Rhea up. She was as gray as Cronus had been. Thankfully, his color had returned to a nice normal bronze; clearly the gods didn’t do well with power loss. One day I’d figure out where their power came from—was it worship, or something more?—but for now I’d just be grateful they had some, and that it was able to transport us to where Sickness was frozen in the middle of a town.

  “Where are we?” I whispered.

  “Lynmouth, England,” Rhea mumbled, her head falling forward.

  The town itself was beautiful beyond anything I’d ever seen back home, with cobbled paths, and buildings clearly filled with history and life, all of which was shadowed by the bodies lying in the street. Bodies surrounded in vomit and … other bodily fluids. Bodies that were bloated with death and disease.

  I coughed, covering my mouth, my eyes filling with tears at the horror of what I was seeing. “Sickness did this?” I choked out. “In … a few days?”

  And we’d wasted time. With me almost dying, and with the hotel, and … #Arghhhhh

  I wanted to throw my head back and scream, but that wouldn’t help anyone. It was too late now to save this small town, but we could save the rest of the world.

  “Sickness is this way,” Rhea said, pointing beyond a large, ornately carved fountain that seemed to make up the center of the city. It hid the sin from sight, but as we crossed around, I let out a gasp to see how many bodies were piled at his feet. He stood tall, arms held aloft, like a statue greeting his people. His dead people. No doubt he had been spreading his disease when Rhea froze him, but it was too late for those close by.

  “Sickness first and then we burn this town,” Cronus said, face steely. “Otherwise it will spread far and wide until there’s no hope for the rest of the world. This is ground zero.”

  None of the gods showed any outward reaction to the death surrounding us. They moved through the bodies, not sparing them a second glance. Meanwhile, my heart was trying to shatter from my chest. Old and young, children held in the arms of their parents … no one was spared. No one! I wanted to rip Sickness into a million pieces, break his skin, and tear into whatever lay below.

  All of this for power. Power!

  A sob formed in my throat, and then a hand wrapped around mine, and I stared at Cronus. He wasn’t looking at me, but somehow he knew the agony coursing through me. These were my people, and their lives had been ripped away. I had opened the box. Whether it would have opened on its own, we’ll never know. As far as I was concerned, this was all on me. My fault.

  “Stop,” Cronus said softly. “Stop looking and stop feeling guilt. The sins are the only ones to blame here. They made choices to be what they are, just like they did when they were first manifesting. You didn't do this.”

  I hadn’t even realized tears were tracking down my cheeks until I tasted the salt on my lips. I was too devastated to wipe them away, and there was no time.

  “You can’t be infected by Sickness twice,” Cronus told me. “You’ll have to touch him to channel his essence into the necklace. We’ll lend you power. You’re not strong enough on your own.”

  Sickness stood a full head above me. I could see his eyes shifting as the energy Rhea used to hold him wore off. He was not going to go easily.

  But what he didn’t know was that I was the most stubborn woman on Earth and he’d just pissed me off.

  “Time to go back into your prison, motherfucker,” I growled, reaching out to grasp his shoulders.

  Rhea scoffed. “Very ladylike.”

  “Oh shut up and help us,” Cronus barked at his ex-wife.

  The moment my hands landed on Sickness’s shoulders, a dark sickly energy slammed into me, making my stomach churn. Cronus placed a hand on my left shoulder and Hyperion on my right. Their blast of power channeled through my back and outward from my palms, causing Sickness to break from his frozen state and scream into my face.

  The putrid smell of bile and death blasted over me and I had to fight not to vomit.

  “Rhea!” Cronus shouted.

  “Oh, all right!” She placed her hands on my back as well and her icy power trickled down my entire spine and then up into my arms and out through my fingers. The necklace at my throat began to vibrate, feeling like it was shaking my entire skull. Sickness fell to his knees as this triumvirate of power coursed through me and I started to feel…

  “I feel sick,” I blurted.

  “His power is going into the necklace … just hang on,” Cronus murmured.

  Sickness looked up at me with such malice, so close to my face, it was terrifying. “It’s too late. You’ll never get us all in time,” he rasped, before his entire body started to break apart. He went from god to blobs of black inky liquid in seconds. When he fell away from my hands, I pulled them back, instinctively knowing not to touch the blobs.

  “Alright, let's carefully set him inside the necklace,” Cronus called out. “Rhea, protect Maisey or I’ll kill you myself.”

  She growled, shifting her position to stand in front of me and guide the black blobs into the necklace. Suddenly, my chest felt ice cold, so cold it hurt.

  “I’m having a heart attack!” I shouted, clutching my chest just under the necklace.

  Rhea rolled her eyes. “I’m just freezing the skin around the necklace so Sickness can’t attach to your form.”

  Attach to my form? #WTF. Was that possible? We really needed to have a chat about the side-effects of this shit before we were halfway through.

  “And he’d better not or I’ll hold you responsible,” Cronus told her, his tone hard.

  Hyperion laughed. “Brother, I haven’t seen you this enamored since Rhea—before she slept with half the pantheon of course.”

  “Shut up!” Both Cronus and Rhea called out at the same time.

  I was dying. My chest was so cold that I knew I would meet Thanatos and my mother soon. I didn’t even have time to process Hyperion’s claim that Cronus might be enamored with me.

  Suddenly the necklace felt like it weighed a thousand pounds. The black blobs were gone and I stared down at the crystal at my throat, looking for signs of the darkness it held. All I could see were icy frost tendrils around my heart.

  “That’s enough, Rhea,” Cronus growled.

  With a grin, she thawed the ice and I felt like I could breathe again, rubbing at my frozen chest.

  “That was fun. Who’s next?” Hyperion rubbed his hands together, his long blond hair shaking around his shoulders.

  “Yes, Cronie, where are we needed next?”

  Cronus glared at his ex-wife. “Sickness was your responsibility. You clean this mess up and make sure it doesn’t spread.” He pointed to the heaps of dead bodies.

  She scoffed, looking offended. “Who put you in charge?”

  Hyperion spoke up. “We did. Eons ago. Do as you’re told.”

  I cleared my throat. “Show them respect as well,” I said softly. “I know they’re only humans to you, but they’re not to me. They’re important. They died when they shouldn’t have.”

  Cronus pressed a hand to my lower back and all these warm feelings shot through me. “Give them a burial fit for a Titan,” he told Rhea, and even though she didn’t look that excited about it, she didn’t argue.

  With that, the two men turned away, Cronus grabbing my hand, dragging me with him. Only I was privy to the daggered glare that Rhea shot me as we retreated.

  Hah. Take that bitch. #IGotYourMan

  “Shall we find Strife and Turmoil? Help out Crius and Koios?” Hyperion asked as we walked.

  Cronus nodded, “I think that would be wise. The sins are acting a little different this time, and something tells me they’re going to team up. It’ll be a group effort to contain them.”

  Hyperion looked down at me. “Maisey, how are you feeling?”

  I shrugged. “Like a bear is sitting on my chest.”

  Hyperion nodded. “That should lessen as the necklace takes hold of Sickness and integrates him.”

  Cronus fro
wned. “I wouldn’t put more than three Sins in the necklace. I’m afraid of what it might do to Maisey. After that, we need a new plan.”

  I nodded. “I think it’s time you finally told me how Selene is my mother. She’s been dead for a thousand years. Plus, I had a mom, and she had photos of me in the hospital. I’m … I need to know now.” I’d let him get away and deflect this question too many times already.

  Hyperion sighed. “It’s a bit of a guarded secret, but … I agree, you should know. Understanding where you come from is very important to discovering who you are. And I fear, my lovely Maisey, you’re going to need to know exactly who you are before this is all over.”

  #Nice #OminousWarningsAreTheBest

  “Thanatos lets Selene leave the underworld once a year on the full harvest moon and return to Earth in a borrowed body in order to fill the Earth with her moon energy. Now, usually she just wanders on her night, sending her energy into the land, but twenty-one years ago … things went a little differently. She met someone on her night on Earth.”

  “Oh.” Go Mom. “So the body she borrowed…”

  Hyperion shrugged. “The human who carried you, that raised you, was your birth mother, but Selene's energy being present at the time of conception makes you born of two mothers.”

  Weird as fuck. My mind spun. So Selene body-jacked my mom’s womb for a night? Gross. Weird. #BlackingItAllOutNow

  “Wait … met someone? Are you saying the dad I grew up with wasn’t my real father either?”

  Hyperion’s brow furrowed. “She never would tell me who the father was. But having heard her thoughts on the man your mother married, I’m guessing he wouldn’t be the one to break her usual yearly routine. You must understand, Maisey, there are no other children born in this way. You were an aberration for her, for some reason, and I’m wondering if this was fate’s way of ensuring that you’d be here to help us now.”

  Great. Nice to know I was just being moved around fate’s board like a fucking pawn. #WellScrewYou #IwasNoPawn #QueenAllTheWay

  “Sorry to interrupt, but we need to look for Crius and Koios,” Cronus told us, worry furrowing his brow just a little.

  Closing my eyes for a second, I pushed all of these revelations down hard, into a place that they would stay until I had time to stress about it. My mom, who I loved more than life, was still my mother. Mostly. So I’d hold on to that and deal with the rest in the therapist’s office like all responsible adults.

  When I opened my eyes, I readied myself for the next blast across the world.

  Hyperion looked between us both, and something on my face had him frowning. “Maisey has had a trying day. Let me find our brothers while you both rest. I’ll send for you when I need you. We already know that every sin from here on will be harder to lock away.”

  Cronus swayed a little on his feet. “I could use a recharge.”

  Hyperion nodded. “I’ll take Hound. I’ll send word once I’ve found them.”

  Poof. He was gone.

  I looked at Cronus. Just he and I, alone in a cobbled street in Europe. “Where do you wish to lay your head tonight? Anywhere in the world…”

  A slow grin crept over my face. “Bali.”

  Cronus slipped his hand behind my lower back and pressed my entire body against his. “Done.”

  There was blackness for a moment and then sunlight blasted into the space. I looked up and saw that we were on the beach, right in front of a ginormous luxury hotel.

  I peered at the sign. Ritz Carlton Bali.

  A contented sigh escaped me. “You know me so well.”

  He chuckled and handed me a wad of cash. “Our bond is thinning. I don’t know why, but we should be able to be apart for a bit. Find us food. I need meat, none of that tofu crap. I’ll grab us a room.”

  Room. Meat. My mind went totally in the gutter. I hadn’t forgotten my promise. I was going to make this giant god beg for it. Only then would my wounded ego be healed. Cronus stepped up to the welcome desk and I pushed our bond as far as it would go, walking ten yards to the restaurant. Part of me didn’t want to acknowledge that our bond was thinning; it made me fucking sad. Were the Fates doing it? I absentmindedly ordered him four steaks with mashed potatoes and me some steamed veggies with truffle mac and cheese to go.

  I knew the world was ending and this was a very tiny pit stop to recharge, but I was really hoping I could at least take a small dip in the ocean before we had to save the world. Earth was so beautiful, and I’d traveled some of it by now so I could say that.

  When I had the food, I waited on a lounge chair for Cronus to show up. I’d powered up my new phone and shook my head at the twenty thousand followers I’d amassed. Normally I’d be jumping for joy—this was a literal dream coming to life—but the memory of that town … of what Sickness did to it. I couldn’t find the same joy in that achievement.

  It all just seemed so empty now.

  “Ready?” Cronus’ voice pulled me from my daze

  “Ready.” I stowed my phone, jumping up to follow him away from the rooms and toward the water.

  “Where are we going?”

  He just kept walking, not saying a word. As we turned the corner, I saw that there were three exclusive huts on the water, like on stilts over the water.

  “Oh my God, are we staying there?”

  Please say yes.

  Cronus grunted. “The rooms were all booked. These are…” he mumbled something I couldn’t hear.

  “What? Speak up, dude.” I ran to get closer to him.

  He stopped and sighed. “Honeymoon suites. I told them we were newlyweds so they would sell us the honeymoon suite.”

  Laughter bubbled out of me. “Oh, baby, you shouldn’t have.”

  A smile twitched at the corner of his lips. “Come on,” he said, leading me toward the floating cabana.

  Please, God, don’t let Hyperion find the other sins for like three days, minimum.

  Excitement thrummed through me as I walked over the bamboo bridge that led to our hut. This was my first time in Bali, and staying in a honeymoon cabana with this bronze god was perfect.

  #LetsMakeBabyGods #BegForIt

  As I stepped into the hut, the scent of jasmine lingered on the breeze, then my eyes fell on Cronus, who was aggressively wiping flower petals away from the bed sheets and onto the clear Plexiglas floor.

  I snorted. “Wow, this is incredible!”

  The blue crisp water beneath us was vibrant and called to me.

  “Who puts petals on a bed? Honestly?” Cronus looked annoyed.

  I was loving every minute of it.

  “Food,” I sang, holding up the bag. Someone was hangry.

  Cronus’ gaze snapped to mine. The way to this man’s heart was through his stomach.

  Twenty minutes later, both of us full and content, we lay back on the Plexiglas floor and looked up at the ceiling.

  “I’m beat,” he mumbled, eyes heavy and lidded.

  I nodded. “Me too, but I’ll never forgive myself if I don’t take a dip in the ocean.”

  His eyes sprang open.

  “Join me?” I suggested innocently. #YeahRight

  “I don’t have swim shorts.” His voice was husky and low.

  I shrugged. “Neither do I.”

  I popped up into a standing position and peeled off my crop top. Ahh, it felt good to be free of the clothes I’d worn to fight Sickness.

  “Maisey…” Cronus rumbled behind me.

  I shrugged out of my jeans next, exposing my thonged ass right in his face.

  “What?” I spun around to face him.

  #InnocentAF

  His eyes were practically glowing. “We need to focus.”

  I shrugged. “I’m focused. I’m focused on swimming and then napping before we save the world.”

  I turned then, doing a full-on model catwalk walk, giving him a view of my ass before exiting the cabana and going out onto the porch. #NoShameInMyGame

  When I spun to invite him in one
last time, he was right there behind me, shirt off and standing there only in his boxer shorts.

  Sweet mother…

  The muscles on this man's body were like the statue of David. I wanted to reach out and touch him, rip off my underwear and sit on him, but I remembered my promise. He would beg for it. Not me.

  I took one last look at the Promised Land and then turned around and jumped in.

  Warm water crashed around my body and it felt so refreshing. A second later, Cronus jumped in next to me.

  He hadn’t said a word, he was just watching me, like an animal watches its prey.

  “Have you ever been in love? I saw briefly in your memories but couldn’t get a good feeling for how serious it was.” His question shocked me; I hadn’t expected that.

  This mofo knew every man I’d ever been with! I wanted to hide. Then I remembered he was a bajillion years old and had definitely slept with more people than me.

  I shrugged. “I thought so, but once it was over, I think not.” Jonathon Waters was kind of just a douchebag who took my virginity.

  “Love can be destructive. I’ve seen it ruin many humans,” he mused. “Gods and Titans too.”

  I whistled low. “Rhea really did a number on you.”

  He shook his head. “Maybe at the start, but really Rhea was a marriage born of duty. My duty to bear gods. I simply don’t like sharing, but I never truly loved her.”

  That declaration shocked me a little. He seemed to care for her even now, but … I guess it was clear that he cared about everyone in his inner circle. It wasn’t the same as loving someone like that though, and I was strangely happy knowing she hadn’t been the love of his life.

  That meant it was time for the “make him beg” plan to commence.

  I unclipped my bra and let it float to the top of the water.

  “Ahhh,” I exclaimed, glad to have my breasts free from that sweaty thing.

  Cronus looked like he’d swallowed a bug.

  “Maisey. What are you doing?”

  I shrugged, knowing full well this water was crystal clear and that I was trying to kill him.

  “Bras are torture. Besides, I’m sure you’ve seen enough of these in your day.” I pushed my shoulder blades together to make my cleavage pop.