Fires of Olympus: Books Ten, Eleven & Twelve (The Immortality Trials Book 4)

by Eliza Raine

  The thought made him pause. What if he did shoot them? They needed to take a live creature to Poseidon’s throne room, but if he captured one and then killed the rest... nobody else could win.

  ‘Asterion, man the ballistas. On my mark, shoot the hippocampus.’

  ‘What? Why?’ asked Hedone, her big eyes full of concern.

  ‘It is the easiest way to win, my love.’

  ‘But... They’re innocent. And so beautiful.’

  A pain blossomed in his chest, unlike anything he had felt for a long time. She was so... good. So kind. She didn’t understand how cruel the world needed to be. And he didn’t want to be the one to tell her. But he had no choice.

  ‘Innocence is a gift, Hedone; one that few of us can indulge in. The hippocampus are ignorant. They will feel no fear or pain and they will be contributing to a much higher cause.’

  She stared up at him, then gave a small nod. Suddenly her eyes focused on something behind him and widened in fear. He turned and froze. The creature looming over the Hybris was almost as big as the ship. It had a man’s chest and three human-looking heads, each with a green spiked crown growing like horns around masses of dark hair. Four arms protruded from its chest, each ending in vicious-looking claws like a crab’s, and behind it towered dark green, leathery arched wings. Instead of legs, the thing had a tail like that of a serpent, covered in long sharp barbs and seemingly unending.

  ‘You have broken through my net,’ the central head boomed. ‘You will not steal my cattle!’ The creature swiped with his tail so fast that Hercules barely had time to command the Hybris to move out of the way. The momentum of the swipe rocked the ship and they all stumbled and scrabbled as they lurched.

  ‘Hedone, go to my quarters. You will be safer there,’ he said as he gripped her wrist and steadied her. She started to protest but he fixed his eyes on hers. ‘For me, my love. Please. I can’t fight well if I’m concerned for your safety.’

  ‘OK. But be careful,’ she said, then turned and ran for the hauler. Hercules turned back to the monster, ready for the fight, and couldn’t help the bark of glee that erupted from him. Geryon was whipping his tail at the Alastor now. The tiny ship darted out of the way and all three of Geryon’s heads roared, before he swooped after them.

  ‘Asterion, man those guns,’ Hercules ordered, fixing his eyes on the closest hippocampus.

  8

  Lyssa laid her hands on the mast, her body tingling as the Alastor drew on the Rage swirling through her. She let Abderos direct the ship out of the monster’s path, and concentrated on only letting a trickle of power boost the ship; enough that they could outrun Geryon but not so much that they would be overwhelmed. Why hadn’t the stupid creature gone for the Hybris instead of them? The sense of injustice made her Rage surge up and the ship shot forward. She heard Len yelp and Epizon’s voice rang through her mind.

  ‘Easy, Captain!’

  ‘Sorry,’ she answered ‘But what are we going to do? We need to catch one of those hippocampus.’ She projected the last thought to everyone on board.

  ‘There’s probably enough stuff in the cargo deck for us to make some sort of net,’ suggested Phyleus.

  ‘Really? You think we have time to make a net?’

  ‘Do you have any better ideas?’ The Alastor rocked as Geryon flashed past them, his wings almost touching the mast. Lyssa released a burst of power and they darted to the right.

  ‘No, but I don’t know how long we can keep this up,’ she said.

  ‘Try to draw him over to the Hybris. See if he wants to play with them for a little while instead,’ Len said.

  ‘Good idea. Ab, head towards the Hybris. Everyone else, go and see what you can find in the cargo deck.’

  She heard a chorus of ‘yes, Captain,’ in her head as the massive serpent tail flicked past on her left.

  ‘You’re doing great, Ab,’ she told him as they veered away.

  ‘Thanks, Cap. You’re doing pretty good yourself!’

  She squinted ahead of them, but from her low position in the middle of the ship, at the mast, she couldn’t see the Hybris. This was not the start to the Trial she had hoped for. When they’d spotted the Hybris moving with such purpose and guessed its crew knew where Geryon’s hippocampus were, they thought they’d lucked out, and followed at a safe distance, letting Hercules do all the hard work for a change. So how in the name of Zeus had they ended up as a toy for this great winged beast while Hercules was free to try to catch a hippocampus?

  ‘Cap, I think we can make something from the crates themselves. Maybe lower them over one or something.’

  Lyssa frowned at Len’s voice.

  ‘That sounds pretty flimsy. Maybe I should just swim out and grab one.’

  ‘Just grab one?’ Phyleus sounded shocked. ‘Lyssa, you can’t just grab a hippocampus. Do you know how strong they are?’

  ‘Not as strong as me. And it’s Captain, not Lyssa,’ she fired back.

  9

  Eryx took a deep breath, and pushed himself off the railings of the Orion. As usual, they were late to the party, but they’d got there in time to see the shape of a ship in the distant blue, and follow it.

  When they arrived at the net, both the Hybris and the Alastor were on the other side. Hercules was swimming after a skittish, shining hippocampus, more beautiful than any that Eryx had ever seen. A massive creature with three heads and tall wings was swishing around the Alastor, whipping its barbed tail at the ship as it zipped around. It looked almost like they were dancing, he thought as he launched himself from the side of the ship and kicked through the water towards the hole in the net.

  Antaeus powered past him, his legs that much bigger and stronger.

  For ten full minutes they tried to widen the hole enough to get their giant Zephyr through it, swimming back and forth between the net and the Orion to get more air, but neither of them were making much progress. The glimmering fabric was insanely strong, and try as he might, Eryx could not tear it with his fists.

  He thought about Hercules killing the Amazons, throwing the boy from the Alastor to the horses, grinning with savage glee when he’d killed the centaurs at the feast before the Trials started. He thought of the fear on Evadne’s face when he’d last seen her before they were flashed out of Themiscyra.

  Anger and determination sent strength surging through his muscles and he felt the fabric finally give a little. He glanced over at Antaeus, who had managed to widen the hole by about a foot, then back at the huge Orion. They would be here forever. Frustration made him screw his face up, bubbles of air escaping his mouth. He kicked his way back to the ship, where he pulled himself back on board and took a few deep breaths.

  ‘We’re never going to get through like this,’ snapped Busiris.

  ‘We might if you got off your ass and helped,’ Eryx spat back, pushing loose strands of his long hair out of his face.

  ‘I don’t swim,’ Busiris sneered.

  ‘Then it’s time you learned.’

  ‘Enough.’ Antaeus’s voice cut across them as he landed on the deck with a thud. ‘Change of plan. We guard this hole, and when that lowlife coward comes through, we steal his hippocampus.’

  ‘What?’

  ‘Look.’ Antaeus pointed, and Eryx followed his finger. Hercules was rolling through the water, a struggling hippocampus wrapped in his huge arms. Hercules, although not as big as Eryx, was still big enough to wrestle it effectively. They were just above the Hybris, and Eryx watched as Hercules rolled over and over, forcing both himself and the animal towards the ship.

  As they reached the invisible dome the hippocampus began to flail wildly, then the two of them were falling fast to the deck. There was a loud bang and one of the many other shining creatures on the far side of the net shot backwards, then began to drift slowly downwards, unmoving.

  ‘What’s happening?’ Eryx frowned as another hippocampus did the same.

  ‘He’s killing the others,’ drawled Busiris. ‘Smart. Very smart
.’

  Eryx turned to him in disgust.

  ‘There’s no need to kill them!’

  ‘If he has the only live hippocampus it massively increases his chance of winning,’ Antaeus said darkly. ‘We wait for him here.’

  10

  ‘Cap, I think we have a problem.’ Abderos’s voice cut through Lyssa’s concentration as she funnelled more power into the Alastor.

  ‘Gods, what now?’

  ‘Hercules is killing the hippocampus. And I can’t get close to his ship with those ballistas firing.’

  ‘What? Why would he kill them?’

  ‘I think he’s caught one. It’s hard to tell, I’m trying to steer and keep an eye on him at the same time.’ As he said the words a massive wing clipped the side of the ship and they rolled dangerously far to the right. Lyssa gripped the mast hard.

  ‘Nestor!’ She half-bellowed the thought at the centaur.

  ‘Yes, Captain?’

  ‘Get up here now, I need a lookout.’ Nestor was up on deck in less than a minute, galloping past her to the prow. ‘Ab, sail over the Hybris, as close as you can. Nestor, has Hercules caught a hippocampus?’ The ship veered upwards and Lyssa loosed a burst of energy to propel them past Geryon’s snapping claws.

  ‘Yes, Captain.’

  Lyssa bared her teeth.

  ‘Geryon is going to get bored of playing with us when he realises his pets are dying. We need options, now.’

  There was a roar from somewhere nearby and then the Alastor lurched harder than it had so far. Lyssa’s hands were knocked from the mast and she stumbled sideways.

  ‘Captain, there’s water down here!’ Epizon’s voice shouted in her mind, as Geryon swooped over the ship. She looked up at him, all three sets of gleaming blue eyes fixed on her as his tail came hurtling towards them. She threw herself forward, plunging all her Rage into the ship the second her hands made contact. The Alastor darted forward so fast she was thrown from the mast again, but its momentum, and Abderos’s skill at the wheel, kept the ship moving, heading up.

  There was an ominous creaking sound and Lyssa turned her head as Nestor yelled, ‘Look out!’

  The sound of galloping hooves rang out over the creaking as Lyssa struggled to her feet, then she was bowled over by Nestor’s huge white horse body, as the main mast came crashing down onto the deck, right where she’d been standing. Lyssa rolled, physical pain tearing through her as the glittering solar sails collapsed around her, obscuring everything from view. She felt the mast splitting like her own body was breaking, smashing the planks as it fell as if her own bones were being pulverised.

  ‘Lyssa! What’s happening?’ Phyleus’s voice pierced through her pain and she clung to it.

  ‘The Alastor!’ she said desperately. ‘We have to save her!’ She was on her knees, trying to work her way out from under the heavy sails, the ship still lurching and shaking. Tears were filling her eyes as she felt the broken planks under her hands, felt the ship’s straining energy ebbing away. She roared, forcing her own strength and power into the wood beneath her palms, willing the ship to rise. ‘The surface,’ she told the Alastor, as fiercely as she could. But without the main sails, the ship only shuddered and heaved. ‘Please,’ she begged, pouring more and more of herself into the ship as the tears spilled from her eyes and onto the wood. ‘Please. I need you!’

  And then she felt the ship rising, the fallen sails pressing down on her as they rushed upwards through the ocean.

  11

  Evadne’s breath caught as the Hybris reached the hole in the net. She had sneaked up to the front quarterdeck, which she knew would be empty, and was crouched between the railings and the front wheel, watching and waiting for the right time to act.

  She didn’t think this was it. The Orion was pressed up against the fabric net, the opening guarded by the three huge full giants and Eryx, his fists clenched, bouncing from foot to foot. She heard Hercules roar and the ballistas start firing.

  ‘You’re not strong enough to fight me, puny little man!’ shouted Antaeus. ‘You hide behind your big guns and show the world what a coward you are!’

  The ballistas stopped. Evadne’s entire body tensed. That was a smart way to stop Hercules from firing his guns, but in a one-on-one fight, few could beat him, even giants. What was Antaeus thinking?

  ‘You’re not worth my time. Get out of the way,’ she heard Hercules call back. From her crouched position, she could only see the side of the Hybris, the wheel blocking her view of the middle of the deck, where Hercules stood. She knew the hippocampus was tied up on the rear quarterdeck, where Asterion was.

  ‘Fight me, little Hercules! My crew are stronger than yours and I am definitely stronger than you.’

  Hercules laughed, long and loud.

  ‘So the giants’ legendary stupidity proves to be true!’ he called. ‘Have it your way.’

  Evadne felt the whole Hybris jerk as Antaeus leaped through the hole in the net, onto the deck of Hercules’s ship. The two brothers thudded onto the deck after him. Hercules didn’t fight fairly, the giants must know that. Why would they bait him like this? Anxiety for Eryx was welling inside her. She didn’t want them to fight. She didn’t want Eryx anywhere near Hercules.

  An internal war had been raging within Evadne all the way to Aquarius. Self-preservation, the need to be off the ship, was dominating her thoughts, but the small persistent voice insisting that Hercules must not win immortality wouldn’t quieten down. Was she willing to risk her own life to stop him winning? Morally, she should at least try, for the sake of the thousands of other lives he may ruin in his endless future. But fear froze her thoughts, and crippled her ability to actually do anything. She wondered, from a selfish point of view, if she escaped and Hercules gained immortality, would he bother to come after her? Would she spend the rest of her life running from him? Or would he have far more exciting things to keep him busy, so that he forgot about her completely? Up until a few moments ago, she had been formulating a plan to escape when they got to Poseidon’s throne room, to try to disappear into the underwater city and take her chances. The selfish voice was louder and had been winning. Who was she to go up against somebody as powerful as Hercules?

  But as she watched Eryx land on the deck of the Hybris, she knew the choice had been made for her. She couldn’t let him die.

  Antaeus and Hercules continued to taunt each other while she crept as silently as she could to the front hauler, before riding it all the way down to the cargo deck. She was forming a new plan, fast. She’d found that egg on Scorpio, and the tonic – the anapneo –inside it was rightfully hers. It was time to show Hercules that he hadn’t beaten her. Not yet.

  12

  Hedone couldn’t decide how she felt about being relegated to the safety of Hercules’s quarters. She understood that he might be distracted if he wasn’t sure she was safe, but she felt utterly useless just sitting in his rooms, holding on when the ship lurched around. And the anxiety of not knowing if he was OK was killing her.

  Eventually, fed up of pacing up and down the room, Hedone pulled open the door to the corridor. She had helped Theseus in every Trial, so surely she could be of some use to Hercules? But would he be mad with her for ignoring his instructions? What if she did distract him? She bit down on her bottom lip, then jumped in surprise as she saw a flash of movement at the end of the corridor. She stepped back into the room, pulling the door almost shut. Peeking through the gap, she watched as Evadne jogged quickly down the corridor and slipped into the galley. She was moving fast enough that Hedone suspected she was doing something she wasn’t supposed to be.

  Opening the door again, Hedone crept down the corridor, stepping silently into the galley. Evadne didn’t notice her, as she was loading a bag with cans of food and jars of water.

  ‘What are you doing?’ she said.

  Evadne whirled around, grabbing a kitchen knife from the countertop.

  ‘There’s no point trying to stop me!’ she said with a calm that wa
s belied by her shaking hand.

  ‘Stop you doing what?’ Hedone looked at the bag she was filling, and at her leather fighting clothes. ‘Are you leaving?’

  Evadne nodded.

  ‘What happened to your hair?’ Hedone asked, stepping closer. The sleek ponytail that Evadne normally wore was gone. Her blue hair had been cut short and hung jagged around her jaw.

  ‘When Hercules asks, tell him you didn’t see me,’ Evadne said, still holding the knife up.

  ‘Why are you leaving?’ Evadne stared at her.

  ‘You... You really don’t know?’

  ‘Know what?’

  ‘How he treats me? If I stay here, he’ll kill me, sooner or later.’

  Hedone’s face broke into a smile as she realised what was going on.

  ‘Don’t be silly. Of course he won’t. You’re just feeling insecure since I came on board. I’m sorry he made you give me your dresses, and I guess it’s true life might be a little different for you on the Hybris now, but the life of a server for someone like Hercules is better than most in Olympus will ever get.’

  Evadne let out a small, strangled laugh, and Hedone frowned.

  ‘He cut my hair. He held a knife to my throat and he cut my ponytail off,’ she said, a frantic edge to her voice.

  ‘No. No, he wouldn’t have done that,’ Hedone said. The girl must be lying to her. Hercules had said she was cunning. But her hair... Nobody would have done that to themselves.