by Vera Strange
“Yeah, because he’s running out of time,” Mae said. “That Celestial Alignment is coming up tonight, according to the book. I was gonna read more about it—”
“Ugh, we left the book behind,” Hector said in despair. He wheeled back toward the library, but he was pretty sure going back there was a bad idea.
On top of everything else, the librarian seemed pretty annoyed by their screaming and stampeding through the stacks. If Hades didn’t kill him for coming back, she probably would.
Hades was scary—but librarians could be scarier if you disturbed their precious peace and quiet, not to mention their books.
Mae shot him a look, then arched her eyebrow.
“No, we didn’t,” she said.
“Wait, what do you mean?” Hector asked.
She produced the Lord of the Underworld book from under her shirt. She’d smuggled it out.
Hector shot her an impressed look. “Playing dirty to win, huh?”
“Sometimes you have to,” Mae said with a smirk. “Too much is at stake. Maybe even the whole world.”
Hector was forced to agree—the fate of the world rested in their hands. They had to defeat Hades and keep him from getting the Zeus Cup, or he’d release the Titans and destroy the earth.
They started back toward Hector’s house as the sun was sinking. Hector didn’t like what night would bring. He glanced at the stars, picturing the planets aligning in a cosmic row, providing Hades the ability to release the Titans if he got out.
As they passed through downtown and under the awning for Hero’s, Hector peered inside at the Zeus Cup, illuminated in the case. Clearly Hades couldn’t take it for himself, or have Pain and Panic do it for him, or he would have grabbed it by now. Only Hector, it seemed, could deliver it to the god, and his mom kept the key with her at all times, so it was secure.
For now.
“Who knew one little trophy could cause so much trouble?” Mae said thoughtfully, following his gaze.
“Yeah, and pain and panic,” Hector quipped.
They both laughed. Maybe he was turning into his dad with his sense of humor, after all.
“But it did do something good,” Mae added wistfully.
Hector met her eyes. “Oh yeah? What’s that?”
“It brought us together,” Mae said, reaching out to squeeze his hand. “I never told you this. But before you, I never had a real friend.”
“Wait, what do you mean?” Hector said. “You go to the public school. You must have a ton of them.”
Mae shook her head. “Hard to hang out when you’re always at the track. The other kids don’t understand.” She bit her lip. “But you do.”
“Yeah, more than I’d like to admit,” he agreed. “Well, if we’re confessing. Before you, I never really had a friend, either.”
“Really?” she said, sounding surprised.
“Unless you count my brothers. But they have to like me,” he added with a self-deprecating laugh. “You’re different.”
They rounded the corner and heard yelling. It sounded like two kids, and they sounded like they were in trouble. It was coming from off the side of the road.
“Help! We’re stuck!” yelled one kid. “Hurry, call nine-one-one!”
“Please, save us!” yelled the other one. “We’re trapped!”
Mae grabbed his arm. “Do you hear that?”
They bolted off the road, toward the woods. The kids’ shrill voices were coming from under a giant boulder. It looked like they’d climbed into a hole and got stuck.
“We have to help them,” Mae said. “But how?”
Hector felt a surge of strength travel through his body. He still had the powers that Hades had bestowed upon him.
“Here’s the plan,” he said. “I’m going to lift the boulder, then you get the kids out, okay?”
“You can lift that?” Mae said. “It’s huge. It must weigh, like, a million pounds.”
Hector bent down, braced his legs, and pushed his hands under the boulder, gripping it. Then he grunted and dead-lifted the giant rock, pushing it up and off of the trapped kids.
Mae looked shocked, but then quickly sprang into action.
“Here, give me your hand!” she called, helping the first kid wriggle out. He was blond and chubby with rosy cheeks.
Mae helped the other kid, who was taller and skinny with dark skin and hair.
“Careful, I’ve got you!” she said, pulling him to safety as well.
“Everyone good?” Hector asked.
Mae nodded, and Hector released the boulder, letting it crash down.
“How’d you do that?” Mae said, wide-eyed.
“Hades gave me powers, remember?” Hector said. “At least I was able to use them for good.”
“Like a true hero,” Mae said.
They turned to the kids, who held on to each other, trembling.
“Jeepers, mister!” the shorter one said. “You saved us!”
“How can we thank you?” the skinny kid added.
Hector felt good, like he’d just done something right for once. Plus, he made a great team with Mae. He grinned at her, but then the two kids pounced on Mae.
“No, get off me!” she yelled, fighting them. But the kids were stronger—too strong.
“Hey, what’re you doing?” Hector yelled. “We saved you!”
“Stirring performance, don’t you think?” the skinny one said.
“Yeah, I was going for innocence,” the chubby one added.
They clapped their hands over Mae’s face to stifle her screams, and started dragging her away.
“Wh-what do you mean?” Hector stammered.
Suddenly, like magic, the kids morphed into Pain and Panic. Hector couldn’t believe what he was seeing.
The two demons stared back at him with their yellow eyes. “Bring Hades the Zeus Cup before the Celestial Alignment at midnight,” Panic said.
“Yeah, or you can kiss your little friend here goodbye,” Pain added, wriggling his claws.
The demons dragged Mae away into the forest. Hector chased after them, branches smacking his face, and cornered them in a small clearing.
“Let her go!” Hector said, preparing to fight them off. “Where are you taking her?”
Mae squirmed in their clawed grip, trying to get free. Panic leveled his gaze on Hector.
“It’s the girl for the Cup,” he said.
“You have until midnight,” Pain added in his goofy voice. “Or the Boss Man keeps her soul trapped in the River Styx—”
“Shut up!” Panic said, shooting Pain a look. “You weren’t supposed to tell him that!”
“Oh right!” Pain said. “Hurry, let’s skedaddle before he figures it out!”
With that, Panic threw down a potion. The bottle exploded, and the demons vanished in a puff of pink smoke, taking Mae with them.
“No! Please!” Hector shouted.
He coughed from the smoke, waving it away, trying to grab Pain or Panic or Mae or anything.
But they were gone.
Hades’ demons had kidnapped Mae. Pain and Panic were aptly named. They did cause pain and panic wherever they went.
This was all Hector’s fault. If he hadn’t made the deal with Hades, then Mae would be okay. He didn’t know what to do. He stood in the clearing, feeling hopeless. This was worse than when he lost the preliminary race to Mae. Worse than when Hades started haunting his every step.
It was worse because it wasn’t just about him anymore—it was about his best friend.
His only friend.
Mae, I’m going to save you.
But how? he wondered, surveying the woods. The sun was starting to descend in the sky. That meant he didn’t have much time left. Also, he didn’t know where the demons had taken her. Where could he even start?
He thought back to what Pain and Panic had said, racking his brain, and then it hit him. They said they’d trap her soul in the River Styx. He remembered seeing illustrations of the fiery river
in the book Mae had stolen from the library. He knew where the river was located.
In the Underworld.
That’s where they were taking her. That’s where Hades was holding her hostage.
All he had to do was get the Zeus Cup by breaking it out of his family’s store, and then somehow find the door to the Underworld, so that he could give it to Hades and rescue Mae.
But Hector hesitated—releasing Hades from the Underworld could be bad. Like, world-ending, cataclysmic kind of bad. He shuddered, remembering the images of the Titans from the book in the library.
But he had to save Mae.
Maybe there was a way to save her and still keep the Zeus Cup out of Hades’ hands. Hades manipulated mortals—he tricked them. Maybe Hector could do the same thing.
He’d have to play dirty to win this time.
And he only had a few hours to do it.
Hector had a plan, but he needed help. And there was only one person left that he trusted.
He found Phil lounging on his bed, playing video games. He was the oldest—and the only brother who had a TV and PlayStation in his room.
“Phil, I need your help,” Hector said, rapping on the door.
“This is my week off,” Phil said. “Stop bothering me, Wonderboy. All I want to do is veg out and play my Hercules RPG. Don’t you have autographs to go sign?”
He swiped at demons in the game with a flaming sword.
“Look, I’m sorry for how I’ve been acting,” Hector said, feeling remorse pooling in his chest. “I know I let winning the Cup go to my head. And I’m sorry. It was a mistake.”
“You got that right,” Phil said, not looking up. “And I’m never going to forgive you.”
“What…never?” Hector said in surprise. He often fought with his brothers, but one rule in the Gomez family was that you always forgave each other after.
But then Phil cracked a smile. “Nah, I’m just messing with you!” he said, grabbing Hector and giving him a solid noogie for good measure. Hector’s scalp burned, but he deserved it.
“Hey, freak, get off me!” Hector giggled, swiping at Phil. He rubbed his head.
They both laughed hard, then settled down. “So, what do you need?” Phil said, cocking his eyebrow. “Figure it must be important for you to come in here and grovel like this.”
“Uh, well, I need to get the Zeus Cup out of the trophy case,” Hector started. He felt a stab of nervousness, but plowed ahead. “And Mom and Dad can’t know about it.”
Phil frowned. “Why do you need the Cup?”
“Uh, I can’t tell you,” Hector said. “You won’t believe me.”
Phil broke into a sly smile. “Oh, I get it. Juan and Luca were right. You wanna impress some girl, is that it?”
“No, that’s not it,” Hector started, his cheeks burning with humiliation.
“Is it the girl from the track?” Phil asked, suddenly interested.
“Okay, fine,” Hector said. “It does have to do with Mae.”
Phil nodded, then stood up and cracked his knuckles. “Older brother duty applies in this case. I’ve got you. I’ll help.”
“Wait, you will?” Hector said.
“Of course,” Phil replied. “What are older brothers for?”
“Uh, kicking your butt at the track?” Hector chuckled.
“Well, that too.”
“So we gotta get that key from Mom,” Hector said. “Any ideas?”
“Oh, that’s easy,” Phil said. He sifted through his desk drawer, then produced a set of keys. He dangled them in front of Hector, making them clink together.
“No way! You have a copy?” Hector said. His eyes focused on the hefty, golden one.
“Yeah, when I turned sixteen, Mom said I earned my own set of keys for the store,” Phil said. “And that one day, I’ll inherit the business.”
“But why didn’t you tell me?” Hector said.
Phil clapped his shoulder and stood up. “I dunno, she made me promise to keep it secret. She didn’t want you or Luca or Juan getting jealous or something.”
“Figures,” Hector said. “What don’t we fight about?”
Phil snorted. “Yeah, Mom knows us pretty well.”
They shared a laugh, as only brothers could.
Hector thought it over. “So you’ll help me sneak the Zeus Cup out of the store? What if we get caught and you get in trouble?”
“I can take a hit for the team,” Phil said. “Let’s roll.”
“Let’s be quick,” Phil said as he unlocked the front door at Hero’s and led Hector inside.
“Why quick?” Hector asked, glancing around nervously.
“Mom doesn’t usually check on the security cam footage,” Phil replied, shutting the door quietly behind them. “But you never know. She and Dad are watching football. She could get bored.”
“Too bad that dating show’s not on tonight,” Hector said, following his brother into the dimly lit store. “The one with the girls fighting over that one guy and the roses.”
“That doesn’t exactly narrow it down.” Phil smirked. “Don’t they all have that stuff?”
“Point taken,” Hector said, heading for the trophy case.
Hector paused reverently in front of the Zeus Cup, displayed in all its glory. He glanced nervously at the security cams mounted on the walls. They each had red lights lit, indicating the cameras were recording.
Phil slipped the heavy key inside the lock and twisted.
Click.
The door swung open on smooth hinges. Hector reached inside, his fingers wrapping around the trophy. He felt a surge of energy flow through the Zeus Cup into his fingers.
There was power in the Cup—that much was clear. And it seemed to be getting stronger. Maybe because the Celestial Alignment was coming up.
Hector clutched the trophy as they left the store, and Phil locked the door behind them.
“Need a ride?” Phil asked, cocking his head toward his truck.
“Nah, she’s meeting me here,” Hector lied. “In the park.”
Phil nodded. “Have fun, little bro. Just let’s make sure we put the trophy back by the morning.”
With that, Phil winked, climbed into his truck, and sped off. Rock music blared out as the truck vanished from view. This had been so much easier than Hector could have imagined.
And now he was all alone.
Hector headed for the park. His camera bag smacked his leg as he walked. He clutched the Zeus Cup in his hands tighter. His plan had better work—or he’d be out of options. He didn’t have much time left.
He glanced at the night sky. The sun had just dipped into the horizon, throwing the little downtown area into darkness. All at once, the streetlights flickered on, casting their halos of light.
The full moon was rising. It peeked over the horizon. Soon the Celestial Alignment would hit its pinnacle—and Hector would be out of time to save Mae. He felt that familiar wave of self-doubt wash through him, but he pushed it away. He had to be a hero tonight—a true hero this time.
I have to save her, he thought. Even if it’s the last thing I do.
When he got to the Hades statue, he studied it. Hades stared down at him impassively. He needed to find the door to the Underworld. And clearly, the Zeus Cup was the key to opening the door. But where was it? He didn’t have a clue, or even know where to start.
He gripped the golden trophy while he inspected the statue. He ran his free hand over the smooth facade, but didn’t find any clues that would help. Finally, Hector turned his eyes to the sky. The full moon was steadily rising. He missed Mae. She would know what to do, or at least where to start looking.
“Come on, think,” he whispered to himself.
He didn’t know where the door was. But who did?
That’s when it hit him. He didn’t know if it would work, but he had to try.
“I summon Pain and Panic,” he said. He felt silly even saying those words.
He waited, but nothing happened.
Hector stared up at the statue in frustration. He tried to think about everything he’d read in the book that Mae took from the library. How did Hades summon them?
“Hey, doesn’t your master want the Zeus Cup?” Hector said, spinning around. He held the Cup over his head. “So, where are you little monsters hiding? Get over here!”
At first, nothing happened.
But then he felt a sudden zap—like a surge of electricity—emanate from the Zeus Cup into his hands and his body. He could feel the power of the ancient relic.
Poof.
Suddenly, in a puff of pink smoke, Pain and Panic materialized in front of him.
“Hey, we’re demons—not monsters,” Pain said, sounding insulted. “Get it right, mister.”
“Yeah, don’t insult us,” Panic added in a chipper voice. “And ya know, we’ve got other stuff to do. Kidnapping, maiming, torture, et cetera. The Boss Man isn’t very patient.”
“Summoning isn’t instantaneous,” Pain added, rolling his eyes. “There’s lag time. Don’t you know anything about dark magic? What’re they teaching you in school these days?”
They both stared at him expectantly with their yellow eyes.
“So whatcha want, Wonderboy?” Panic asked.
Hector hated that stupid nickname now more than ever.
He held up the Zeus Cup for them to see. It caught the moonlight, glinting with golden light. Pain and Panic jumped up and down in excitement.
“Whoo! Lookie here, Wonderboy brought the Zeus Cup,” Pain said.
“Oh, give it to us!” Panic swiped at it, but Hector yanked it back.
“Where’s the door to the Underworld?” Hector asked, holding the trophy away from their greedy claws. “I want to give it to Hades in person.”
“Uh, we’re not supposed to tell you that,” Pain said, cringing back in fear. “We’re just supposed to retrieve the Cup.”
“Yeah, his most lugubriousness wouldn’t be happy,” Panic added.
“Come on, what can he really do to you?” Hector prodded.
“Maim,” Pain said right away.
“Torture,” Panic added. “Trust us, you don’t want to see him really flame out. It’s super gnarly.”