I jogged out to where the police cruiser still sat, lights flashing. The greeter waved at me as I hurried by. “Thank you for coming to Blue Box!”
I stepped outside and froze in place. Because all my plans just shot out the window in a single wicked smile from nine Hydra heads.
Hercules stood in front of Angel the Hydra. He was dressed in the same black armor that was a blend of old school and modern. Leather bulletproof vest, a helmet that looked like something the SDMP wore, and several weapons at his side, two of which were guns. The one I kept my eye on, though, was his sword strapped to his back. I knew from experience that a hero’s weapon could damage me—badly.
“Drakaina. We end this now.”
I nodded. “Hercules, this doesn’t have to go down this way. Hera doesn’t care about you. She had Hades imprison your father.”
His face darkened. “My father rarely has time for me, so why would I care about his capture?”
“He didn’t know that Hera was manipulating you.” I felt the need to try to make this right, as much to keep him from attacking me as because I understood what it was to always want someone to love you. “You won’t make her believe in you. You will never be good enough for her to call you her son. But you are a good man. I believe that.”
His face darkened further. Ernie leaned in close. “Maybe don’t go that route. With a woman, yes, but a man being told he’s being an idiot when he has a sword strapped to his back—not so much.”
Oh dear. So much for familial bonds. I stepped around the car, and the Hydra let out an echoing hiss across all nine of her heads. I refused to change tactics. I knew I would have to eventually, but maybe I could talk Hercules down. Maybe I could do with him what I couldn’t do with Cerberus. A thought lit me up.
“You are nothing more than a dog on a chain to Hera.” I paused. “And I don’t think you are a bad guy, or you wouldn’t have helped me dig my mother out of the bakery.” I swallowed hard past the sudden lump. Hercules looked away from me.
“I gave her my word I would stop the monster ravaging the world.” He bit the words out.
“It isn’t me,” I said. “Surely you can see that it isn’t me? She’s using your desire to please her.”
He put a hand over his eyes. “What would you have me do? Turn on her?”
“No. Just don’t fight me,” I said, hope blooming in my chest. “I . . . I need to speak with Hera. I need to convince her that she doesn’t have to do this. She’s killing people; the virus is wiping out the humans at a rate that in no time will leave the world decimated.”
His jaw twitched. “I can call on her. She will come.”
The hope that had bloomed withered and died as the Hydra swept a head toward Hercules. “Watch out!”
But I was too late. She slammed into him and sent him flying through the air, at a speed I knew would take him out of the fight for a good amount of time.
Ernie shot high into the air. “I think you should shift now.”
I silently agreed.
I called up the Drakaina in me with a mere thought, and the shift took me faster than ever, coursing through my body. As I emerged from the shift, the Hydra was already charging me. I ducked out of the way, and she dug her claws into the asphalt, spinning her body around to face me. She roared. Spit flew from all nine mouths, splattering my body. I coiled around myself, tucking my body away from her claws as she reached for me. I knew from our previous encounters that with her nine heads, claws, and wicked teeth, she outmatched me. But my venom . . . my venom could do her in. If I could get my fangs in her. I hissed at her, a rumbling sound that reverberated through my entire body and gave her a good look at my fangs as I swayed from side to side.
She paused for a moment, all her eyes narrowing at once, and then she shook herself and launched toward me.
I let her chase me backward, forcing me across the mostly empty parking lot. She charged me, all her heads stretched in my direction. I knew what I had to do, I just had to wait for her to give me an opening. I stopped at the far edge of the asphalt where the trees met the edge, and I flattened myself to the ground. She shot over me, and I slithered between her front legs. She clamped down on my tail with one of her mouths, crushing through the skin and bone. But I was already in place. I coiled myself around her, loop after loop, all the way up her nine necks so that all her heads were pinned together like a gothic flower bouquet. Her one mouth still held my tail, and I squeezed her until she let it go with a pop.
With someone else, I would have tried to talk her down. But she’d killed my mom. With glee. On purpose. She had killed her own family and gotten away with it.
Anger snapped up through me as hot and sweet as melting chocolate and much more deadly.
I struck hard, as fast as any lightning bolt from Zeus. I dug my fangs deep into one of her necks and pumped my venom into her body. She jerked and tried to claw at me, but I had her wrapped up good, pinning her entire body down. She writhed and snarled, her jaws clamping open and closed repeatedly as she bit at the open air. Over and over, there was nothing she could do. I held on for all I was worth, knowing it was just a matter of time.
I listened for her heartbeat as I kept my mouth tight on her. Which is why I didn’t see the blow coming. I was hit hard on the back of the head, hard enough to knock me away from the Hydra and loosen my coils on her. My vision spun, and I struggled to get my bearings.
Angel took advantage of my momentary distraction, and all nine of her heads clamped down on me at once, teeth digging through the flesh and bone, and I reared my head back in pain, unable to stop her. She had me stretched out like a piece of pasta being rolled in a long line. I blinked several times, fighting to see who had hit me. Hercules had come back, that had to be it. Damn him for not seeing the truth.
A soft, feminine laugh rolled through the air. “Oh, you think Hercules got you? You think that because I am the goddess of love, I can’t fight? Stupid snake.” Aphrodite strolled into view, her face sharp with hatred. How I had ever thought her beautiful I had no idea. The reality was she was as hideous as any of the monsters I’d met in the underworld. I hissed at her, which flicked some of the venom off my fangs, and managed to splatter it on her. She screamed and clutched at her face as she spun away.
The Hydra turned her heads as Aphrodite burned under my venom. She dropped me to laugh, and I hit the ground hard with a thump that resonated through my entire body. Pain ripped through me, but I pushed through it and made myself put some distance between us.
It was only then that I saw the parking lot set out in front of me. On one side stood Smithy, Panacea, Artemis, and the other members of the pantheon who were with Zeus. On the far side was Hera, her hair and skirts flowing around her as beautiful as ever, and her crew, which included Hermes. And Hades, of course, but it was Hermes that hurt me. He saw me looking at him and shrugged. “Sorry, got to go with the winning team, Drakaina. And we can all see it isn’t going to be you.” Well, that at least explained why I could never get ahead of Hera, why she always seemed to be that one step in front. Hermes had been playing both sides . . . I should have at least suspected.
I turned away from him and flicked my tail forward, catching the screaming Aphrodite with the broken tip despite the hurt of it, and sent her toward our side and right into her husband’s arms. I didn’t care what happened to her; I had bigger problems. Angel circled around me, her heads weaving back and forth, forward and back. I struggled to keep my eyes on all of her heads.
Ernie dove in beside me and whispered in my ear. “Time, you just need time. The venom is working. She’s slowing down.”
All well and good. I twitched my head to send him away. Time wasn’t on my side, that was the problem. If it were just a matter of time, I could survive anything. But the reality was that the toxins from her fangs were working in me too. I could feel them making me want to lie down and close my eyes. Angel shot forward, and I didn’t duck or dive. I opened my mouth and took one of her heads complete
ly inside of it. My body coiled, convulsing around her as I pulled her closer. The eyes on the other heads widened in tandem as she realized what I could do at the same time I did.
I was going to swallow her whole.
While a part of me recoiled at the thought, the Drakaina in me approved.
She can’t hurt you inside of you. Your stomach acid will break her down in seconds. Already the head in you is dissolving.
I knew I had only one shot at this. I whipped my body around, twisting and writhing as I fought to get a hold on the big monster. No longer was she on the offensive as she scrambled to get away from me, fighting to put distance between us. I opened my mouth, and the stump of a neck slid out, limp, hanging down, dripping green blood.
I shot forward, grabbing another head and yanking it toward me, my jaw unhinging as I worked it around her and partially swallowed it. Just far enough to let my stomach acids burn . . . The remaining seven heads came at me, driving teeth into my head, ripping chunks of flesh off. The pain was intense and shattered my confidence that I would make it out alive. But I didn’t stop what I was doing.
I let go of the now-headless second stump and grabbed a third, and then a fourth, and a fifth. I was winning, but it was at a cost that I wasn’t sure I would survive. Her claws dug into me, holding me as much as I held her. We were tangled around one another in a death match that was going to end only when one of us stopped breathing.
Blood flowed around us in a river of color and pain that swept through the parking lot.
“You’ve almost got her, Alena. Then we win!” Ernie yelled from what felt like a very long way away. I swayed where I was, staring down the last head of the Hydra. Her body and face sagged with pain, yet as we locked eyes there was nothing but hatred in hers. Hatred and my death. I grabbed her around the neck, got my mouth over her final head, and dragged her into my throat. I tightened my hold on her body as it jerked, her claws raking my sides with one final protest of her death. Slowly, her final heartbeat gave a thump, and then there was nothing but silence.
I let her go and slumped sideways, unable to even pretend to keep my own head up. I looked down the length of my body. I was missing huge chunks of flesh, and I knew the lower part of my tail was broken, the bones snapped clean in half. Spots where her claws had raked me oozed the rainbow blood that glittered on the asphalt. Her toxins flowed through me, and the sound of my heart slowed, beating painfully.
I lay down. I had done the first part, but now I needed to finish it.
Into my range of vision swept a woman in white—Hera. I’d seen her only once, at the stadium after I’d finished off Achilles. But I would have known her anyway. Her cold beauty, the queenly presence she maintained. She was a goddess through and through. She stopped in front of me, obviously not afraid of me in my current state. I couldn’t blame her. I wasn’t sure I could even lift my head, never mind actually strike a blow at her.
“Drakaina, it seems that you and I are destined to meet on the field of battle. So come at me, snake. Let us see your power in all its glory against a goddess of the pantheon.” She flicked her hand, and a sword appeared. This couldn’t be happening. She wasn’t serious, was she?
“Even you know that isn’t fair, Mother.”
Hera spun to one side. “Hercules, I’m surprised you made it back in time to see the finale.”
He glanced at me and gave me a slow nod. “This has been a long time coming. You want to fight? Then you can fight me.”
The pantheon around us oohed, like an awestruck crowd at a Backstreet Boys concert. Across the way, Panacea pushed her way through the crush of people. Hercules drew Hera’s attention away from me, and Panacea had her hands on me. “I can heal you a little, but it will take much of your strength.”
I nodded, and warmth flooded through me. I closed my eyes, wanting only a moment to rest, a moment to take in the lack of pain rushing through my body. Only I barely got a moment before the crowd cried out, and I forced my eyes open. Hera stood over Hercules, a sword through his belly. “You see? You are not the fighter you believe yourself to be.”
“You would kill me, then?” He gasped, one hand around the edge of the sword. It had to be cutting into his palm, but he didn’t pull back. She shook her head. “No, but I can’t have you meddling.” She yanked the sword out, and he gasped again. She spun it around and hammered it into the top of his head. He fell backward with a thud onto the asphalt.
I raised myself up and swayed where I was.
Hera sneered at me. “Even half-healed, I can take you, snake.”
I stared at her, thinking about all the things I had to say, none of which could be done in this form. I let the Drakaina go and slowly shifted down to my human form. Naked, standing on a half-healed but still-broken foot, gashes and bite marks all over my body, I faced her. “No more death. Please.”
She laughed. “Oh, you think you can talk me out of this? Hades warned me that you would try.”
I shot a look at Hades, who shrugged. “I want to see if you’re as good as you think you are,” he said.
Why, oh why, would he make this harder? Because he was an elephant butthole, just like the majority of the pantheon. I wrapped my arms around myself. “You are killing humans; you aren’t making them love you. They fear you, and you’ve only made them love me more because I stand between you and them. If you keep killing them off, the only member of the pantheon with real power will be Hades as he collects their souls.”
From above my head came a soft sound of agreement from Ernie. “Excellent point, Alena.”
Hera’s eyes glittered as she stepped toward me. “I will kill you, and they will see you for the monster you are. And don’t worry about Hades. He will never rule.”
Hades grunted as if she’d slapped him.
I kept my eyes on her. “You keep saying that, but it isn’t true. All the humans will see is a goddess who was supposed to protect them turn into the monster. The roles have reversed, but it doesn’t have to be that way.”
“You cannot convince me.” She rushed forward with a thrust that sent her sword through my right shoulder.
I cried out and fell back, but spun upward again to face her, resolute in my next words. “If I let you kill me, will you stop this? Will you stop the virus and give Zeus his damn divorce?”
The crowd around us gasped, and her eyes widened. “Is that what you think this is? A divorce squabble?”
“That’s what Hades said.” I pointed at him, noting that Zeus was now beside him, still wrapped in chains, mind you, but there.
Her shoulders tensed, and Hades tried to step back into the crowd, but Zeus blocked him. Not that Hades could get away from Hera’s gaze. Her whole body stiffened, and she took a step toward him before stopping herself and swinging around to me. “Your words are rather good at distracting me, Drakaina. I will have no more of it.” She took a few steps backward, as if giving me room.
Smithy waved at me, getting my attention. “You have to shift. You can’t take her like this.” Like this? Like what? I was missing something, I had to be.
I kept my arms wrapped around my body, and a last desperate thought coursed through me. I lifted a hand to Ernie, and he shot close to me. I whispered to him, “Get as many people infected with the virus here as fast as you can. Take Smithy and the others and get them to help.”
His eyes were full of worry. “You will be alone.”
I nodded. “I know. Go.”
He was gone in a flash, and I didn’t watch to make sure he did as I asked. I didn’t need to. I trusted him.
I wasn’t sure I had it in me to shift again, but in my belly, I knew Smithy was right. Again, I was faced with either bending my morals or dying. Life was worth fighting for, I knew that. I called the shift forward and let it take me. My snake form reared up, high above Hera, but only for a split second.
Hera’s form grew, rising up until she was the same size as me. This was what Smithy had meant, then.
A giant woma
n to face a giant snake. Oh dear, this was not going to go well. I pulled back, readying to strike, when she swept forward with her sword, which had also unfortunately grown in size. I fell backward, twisting to spin around until I faced her again, now from flat out on the ground. I wasn’t going to be fast enough. I could feel it in my blood and muscles. The toxins and then the healing from Panacea had taken too much out of me.
Hera smiled down at me, her hair spooling out all around her on a breeze I couldn’t feel. She looked every inch the warrior goddess, and I knew that fighting her would only end with one of us dead—most likely me. I flicked my tail out and slammed it into her legs, throwing her off balance. She stumbled sideways toward the Blue Box and barely caught her balance at the doors. The few humans left there cried out and stared up at her in horror.
I gathered the last of my reserves. This was like the last dessert at a bake-a-thon gone terribly wrong—I had to just hold on long enough to get through to the finish line. I coiled back, rising up higher than I ever had before, until I was almost completely on the back quarter of my tail. I was nearly twice my normal height as I slithered forward, moving as fast as I could. Hera spun up with her sword, and her eyes widened as she had to look up at me.
“Why won’t you just die?” She pulled her arm back for a swing, and it was my opening. I shot forward with the last of my reserves driving me. I coiled around her body and arms, squeezing her until she dropped the sword. Her body shrunk, like a deflating vanilla soufflé disappearing into my coils. I wasn’t going to lose her—not this time. I didn’t know if I could, but I thought about being smaller, shifting down to a comparable size.
Behind us, Ernie cheered. “Go, Alena, go! You’ve got her on the run.”
“Little shit,” Hera snarled. But I was following her in size, so as she finished her downsizing I was still there, wrapped around her, squeezing her tight, staring into her eyes. Something passed between us, and for a moment I saw myself. I saw a woman scorned, tossed aside like she was nothing, unloved by the man who should have stood by her forever. It cut through me as sharp as any weapon.
Hisses and Honey (The Venom Trilogy Book 3) Page 21