by Kate O'Hearn
‘Cameras?’ Paelen repeated. ‘I do not understand.’
‘Yes, cameras.’ Agent J theatrically waved his hands in the air. ‘It is like great serpent’s eyes that show us what you are doing,’ he said. ‘You were never alone. We were watching you the whole time. I must say, that was a neat little trick with the vending machine. I’m surprised you weren’t sick from eating all that chocolate.’
‘I told you before, I need ambrosia,’ Paelen insisted. ‘You would not provide it. That food was the closest I could find. Now please, I need to help Pegasus.’
Paelen started to move, but several security guards stepped forward to block his path. ‘I do not wish to fight you, but I will. I must go.’
‘I told you, you aren’t going anywhere,’ Agent J said. Then he looked at his men. ‘Take him down.’
Paelen charged forward as the guards surrounded him. It was little effort for him to fight them off. He tossed them around the laboratory like they were rag dolls. When all the guards were down, Paelen shoved Agent J aside and made it to the corridor. He ran in the direction of the stairwell.
‘He’s running, he’s running. Lock down the facility. Repeat, subject is running. Lock it down!’ Agent J cried.
Loud alarms burst to life throughout the building. Paelen looked back and saw the men running towards him.
Paelen concentrated on getting to the stairs. But as he entered the stairwell, he heard the sounds of many feet charging down the stairs in his direction.
‘Stop!’ they ordered. ‘Stop or we’ll open fire!’
Paelen felt the sharp stinging of bees. He looked down at his chest and saw darts sticking into him. He pulled several out and threw them back at the men who shot him. When they struck home, the men fell to the ground unconscious. Paelen realized the darts were intended to make him go to sleep.
He continued up the stairs, using the darts against the men coming for him. But as each man fell, more replaced them. Soon the stairwell was filled with men chasing after him from below as well as above.
‘Stop!’ they shouted.
But Paelen couldn’t stop. He needed to get to Pegasus, to warn the stallion. Charging forward, he started to fight with the guards. But even though he was much stronger than all of them, their numbers were too great. He was quickly overwhelmed.
A sudden brutal blow came from behind and he was struck in the back of the head. Paelen turned to see the man pulling back his weapon to hit him again. It wasn’t necessary. As Paelen’s world started to go dark, more men pounced on him and drove him down to the floor.
17
It seemed to take half the night to work their way to where Emily used to play with her family in Central Park. Emily was back on Pegasus and trying to lead the group. But without a flashlight, and still no city lights to guide them, the way was dark and treacherous. The constant sound of the helicopters was a reminder of the danger they were in.
‘You sure you know where you’re going?’ Joel asked.
‘Not really,’ Emily admitted. ‘It’s been years since I’ve been up this high in the park. But it shouldn’t be much further.’
As they picked their way through the trees, Pegasus suddenly stopped. His dark ears sprang forward and he pawed the ground. Diana also stopped. She held up her hand and listened.
‘There is someone moving ahead,’ she said softly as she raised her brother’s spear and prepared to fight.
‘Em?’ a voice called softly. ‘Is that you?’
‘Dad!’ Emily responded. ‘Dad, we’re here!’ Weak with relief, she reached forward and patted Pegasus’s neck. ‘It’s all right, Pegs,’ she said. ‘It’s my dad.’
Forgetting her wounded leg, Emily slid off the stallion’s back. But when her feet hit the ground, her leg gave out and she fell. Her father was at her side in an instant, taking her in his arms.
‘Oh, Em, I’ve been so worried about you!’
Emily put her arms around him and immediately felt better. ‘Dad, I’m so sorry I didn’t tell you what was happening.’
‘What is happening?’ he asked. ‘Em, the city’s in an uproar!’ He looked at her bandaged leg. ‘And what happened to you?’
‘Do you remember the night of the big storm?’ Emily asked. ‘Not long after the Empire’s top blew up, Pegasus was hit by lightning. He crashed down on our roof. That’s how I got my black eye. When I went to help him, his wing accidentally hit me.’
‘Pegasus?’ her father repeated. ‘That winged horse I heard about was the actual Pegasus from the Greek myths?’
‘Roman,’ Joel corrected, stepping out of the shadows. ‘And they aren’t myths, they’re all real. I’m Joel, sir. A friend of Emily’s from school.’
Emily’s father shook Joel’s hand. Joel indicated Diana. ‘Officer Jacobs, I’d like to introduce you to another Olympian. This is Diana.’
‘Diana? The Great Hunter?’ Emily’s father asked as he studied the tall woman.
Diana nodded formally. ‘Officer Jacobs. It is an honour to meet the father of Emily.’
‘Call me Steve,’ her father said a little helplessly. He looked back to Emily. ‘I don’t understand any of this,’ he said. ‘What’s happening here? How and why are there Olympians in New York?’
Emily and Joel tried to explain as best as they could, right up to the point of being in the park.
‘It’s hard to accept any of this.’ Steve stared at Pegasus and shook his head. ‘I’d heard it was a white stallion you were riding today. What happened to him?’
‘He was white,’ Emily said. ‘Too white. As he got better, Pegasus was starting to glow. So we dyed him black to try to hide him from the CRU.’
Emily kissed the stallion softly on the muzzle. ‘Pegs, this is my dad,’ she said. ‘Dad? I’d like you to meet Pegasus.’
Emily’s father cautiously stroked Pegasus’s muzzle. He lifted the edge of the blanket to see the glowing white feathers of his wings resting on the dark body. ‘I’m seeing you, but I can’t believe you’re here.’ He patted Pegasus’s strong neck. ‘Even touching you doesn’t seem to help.’
‘He’s real, Dad,’ Emily said. ‘And he’s broken his wing again. But now there are these awful creatures after him.’
‘Nirads,’ Diana corrected.
‘I – I still don’t understand.’ Steve shook his head. ‘How can any of this be real? What can it all mean?’
‘It means that the war in my world has sprung forward into yours,’ said Diana. ‘And unless we get the golden bridle back, neither world will survive.’
Emily explained to her father about the golden bridle – how it killed Nirads – and about the history of the Flame and how Pegasus had to find the Daughter of Vesta to relight it.
Steve combed his fingers through his hair and cursed. ‘I held that bridle in my hands a few days ago. If only I’d kept it!’ He looked at Diana. ‘Why don’t you make more golden weapons?’
‘Minerva made the bridle for Pegasus,’ Diana explained. ‘But we do not know how she created it or what other metals she used. She was one of the first captured by the Nirads. Vulcan tried forging other Olympian gold.’ She showed everyone the golden tip of her spear. ‘It can wound the Nirads, but only the special gold from the bridle can kill them. We must get it back if we are to defeat them.’
‘That won’t be easy. I met the kid who stole it from Pegasus. The same night he arrived, the CRU were informed. They took him and everything with him away. I don’t even know where they are holding him. They keep their locations quiet.’
Pegasus neighed behind Diana.
‘Pegasus says our main concern is the Daughter of Vesta,’ said Diana. ‘We must get her back to Olympus.’
‘But we’ve got to wait for his wing to heal first,’ Emily pointed out, ‘which means we need somewhere safe to hide until then.’
‘Well, we can’t stay here,’ Steve said. ‘You’ve seen the helicopters. By dawn, this entire park will be crawling with CRU agents and the military. We’re goin
g to have to keep moving and try to stay one step ahead.’
‘How do we hide a large horse in the middle of New York City?’ Joel asked. ‘No offence, Pegasus, but you know what I mean.’
The stallion remained silent as he rested his head on Emily’s shoulder. She suddenly had a thought.
‘I know! We hide him in plain sight!’ Emily looked over to her father. ‘Dad, you know how they’ve been trying to shut down the carriage rides in the park because of that campaign for better treatment of the horses?’
‘Yes,’ he said. He looked at Diana and explained. ‘Several groups aren’t happy about the treatment of the horses in the city, and I agree with them, it’s awful. Finally the number of carriages is dropping.’
‘Exactly,’ Emily said excitedly. ‘So there are extra carriages at the stables …’
‘I get it!’ Joel said. ‘You want to steal a carriage and attach Pegasus to it. We’ll keep his wings covered. Then we’ll simply walk right out of the city and find the Daughter of Vesta!’
‘Great idea,’ Steve said. ‘Let’s do it!’
Getting out of Central Park with Pegasus proved more difficult than they expected. It was well past midnight and there was still a lot of traffic on the roads. What disturbed them the most was the sheer number of police cars, running with their sirens off but lights flashing, followed by countless army vehicles travelling throughout the city.
They waited until almost two in the morning before they made their move. They exited the park on 104th Street. The closest livery was on 50th.
‘We’ve got to walk Pegasus over fifty blocks downtown?’ Joel moaned.
‘Unless that wing of his is strong enough to fly, he’s got to stay on the ground like the rest of us,’ said Steve. ‘We’ll head over to one of the quieter avenues and make our way downtown.’
As the long night progressed, Emily felt her leg begin to swell. But she kept it to herself. She brushed aside the feeling of nausea and concentrated on getting to the stables. Above them, helicopters broadened their search patterns so the group kept close to the shelter of the buildings.
‘Wouldn’t they be after the Nirads first?’ Joel asked.
‘I’d imagine so,’ Steve answered. ‘I’m sure they think Pegasus is still in the park.’
‘I hope you are both correct,’ Diana said as she looked up. ‘I do not like those flying machines one bit.’
Suddenly all around them the city burst into brilliant light as the blackout finally ended and the power came back on. Soon the air was filled with the horrendous noise of shrieking alarms as endless security systems came online again. Street lights started to work and 10th Avenue was lit up like a carnival.
‘It couldn’t have waited just a few more minutes?’ Joel complained. ‘Just a few more stupid minutes! Is that really asking so much?’
‘All right,’ Steve said tersely. ‘We didn’t expect this. But we’ve only got a few more blocks to go. Let’s speed up.’
They had travelled no more than a block when they heard the sound of police sirens drawing near. They ducked into a large doorway just as several police cars raced past.
‘They didn’t even slow down to look at us,’ Emily commented.
More police cars rushed by.
‘Something big is up,’ Joel said. ‘I have a bad feeling about this.’
‘Nirads are in the area,’ Diana warned as she sniffed the air. ‘I can smell them.’
Beneath her, Emily could feel Pegasus quivering. ‘Pegs can smell them too.’
‘I can’t,’ Joel added. ‘Where are they?’
Diana sniffed again and pointed along 58th Street towards 5th Avenue. ‘Down there.’
‘That’s the entrance to the park!’ Emily said. ‘The Nirads have made it to Central Park?’ She looked down to Pegasus. ‘Pegs, how are the Nirads tracking you?’
‘They have tasted his blood,’ Diana answered. ‘They are using it to follow his trail. We can not lose them. The only thing in our favour is they cannot run very fast.’
‘If the Nirads are only a few blocks away from us,’ Joel added, ‘they don’t have to run fast to catch us.’
‘Come on,’ Steve said. ‘Let’s get that carriage and get the hell out of this city!’
When they reached 50th Street, Emily’s father led the group to a tall grey roller door. Posted above the door was a sign: O’Brian’s Livery.
‘This is it?’ Joel asked. ‘What a dump!’
‘How do we get in?’ Emily asked.
‘We break in,’ her father replied.
Emily studied her father in his police uniform and realized how difficult this must be for him, being an officer of the law.
‘This isn’t going to be easy.’ He inspected the pad lock. ‘I can’t use my gun. It’ll make too much noise.’
‘There’s another entrance here,’ Joel suggested as he stood before a normal-sized door beside the bigger one.
‘True, but we won’t get Pegasus or a carriage through that. We need to open this big one here.’
‘Let me try,’ Diana said. She reached across and easily tore both the lock and the hasp away from the door.
Everyone looked at her in shock.
‘I may have lost my powers,’ Diana said, ‘but not my strength.’
Steve hoisted the large roller door up on its rails. ‘That will come in very handy!’
Emily ducked as Pegasus stepped under the door. Steve pulled it closed again once everyone was through. As they looked around, the overwhelming smell of horses and filthy, soiled straw filled their nostrils. Up ahead, multiple carriages stood in a long row.
Above them on the upper floors, they could hear the sound of horses’ whinnying.
‘They know we are here,’ Diana said as she listened to the calls of the horses. ‘They are suffering.’
‘So will we be if we don’t grab a carriage and get out of here,’ Joel warned.
‘You choose a carriage, I must see to the horses.’ Diana started to climb a tall ramp to reach the upper floors.
‘Diana, wait! We don’t have time for this!’ Joel cried.
‘There is always time for animals,’ Diana called back as she disappeared up the ramp.
Beneath her, Emily could feel Pegasus reacting to the distress calls from the horses. She looked around at the filthy walls and chipping paint. ‘Dad, this place is disgusting,’ she said.
‘I know, honey. I would love to see all of the stables in the city shut down. But until then, we’ve got to get moving.’
Emily wanted to help her father and Joel look around. But she was feeling too ill. She knew now that something was seriously wrong with her leg. Sensing her pain, Pegasus turned back to check on her.
Emily could see the question resting in his eyes. ‘I’m not feeling very well, Pegs,’ she admitted quietly. ‘But I can’t tell them yet. We’ve got to get out of the city and find the Daughter of Vesta first.’
She looked into his beautiful face and felt a rising twinge of jealousy. Somewhere out there was another girl who was calling to him. This stranger held the stallion’s heart, not Emily. Despite all the danger they were in, Emily found herself resenting the unknown girl and the place she would hold in Pegasus’s life.
‘We’ve got something,’ Joel called from the back of the building. ‘Emily, bring Pegasus here.’
Suddenly shouts and screams came from above. Emily barely had time to catch hold of Pegasus’s mane before the stallion had dashed down the hall and up the ramp. At the first level, Pegasus kept moving. He was starting to race up the second ramp towards Diana when an unconscious man tumbled down from above.
‘Diana!’ Emily called, as a second man was also thrown forward and tumbled down the ramp.
‘I am here.’
Pegasus leaped over the second man and made it to the next level. He ran down the narrow hall between the tiny stalls, skidding to a stop a short distance from Diana. She was standing before the open door of a stall. Her head was down. Emily c
ould see tears shining on her cheeks.
‘What’s wrong?’ Emily asked. She looked into the stall and saw a chestnut mare lying on the floor. It wasn’t moving.
‘She is dead,’ Diana said softly. ‘They worked her to death. But those men didn’t care. I heard them cursing her. She lived a life of misery in this wretched place and they were complaining about what it would cost them to replace her.’
When Emily’s father arrived, Diana charged forward and seized him by the collar and hoisted him in the air. ‘What kind of world has this become where you treat your animals like this?’
‘Diana, please, put him down!’ Emily shouted. ‘Put him down! He didn’t do anything!’
‘Perhaps not. But he lives in a world that allows this to happen.’ Diana lowered Steve to the ground. ‘It is unforgivable.’
Both Joel and Steve looked at the dead horse.
‘I know it’s terrible,’ Steve said. ‘I’m ashamed of what we’ve become and how we treat our animals. But some of us are trying to change things. To make them better.’
‘Then you are failing in your attempt!’ Diana spat. She pointed at the dead horse. ‘I have been away far too long. When this is over and my world is restored, I will return. This will not be allowed to happen again. Such places as this will know my wrath.’
She looked at Joel. ‘You said you knew of me from your books?’ she said. ‘Then you know I feel about animals. I will not tolerate this kind of abuse.’ She crossed to another stall and started to open the door. ‘These horses must be set free. This is no life for them.’
‘I agree with you completely,’ Steve said. He stepped over to Diana and put his hand over hers. ‘But we don’t have time to help them all. Diana, listen to me. We don’t have long before those two guys wake up or someone else notices we’re here. We may have already tripped some alarms. Who do you think will be interested to hear of a break-in at a livery stable? A LIVERY STABLE, Diana. The CRU, that’s who. And who will they think of?’ Without waiting for an answer, he pointed at Pegasus. ‘They’ll think of him. We must get out of here as quickly as possible.’