We did as he said, but when we portaled to the playground, the dragons were too far away for our powers to reach them. And from their bright orange color, there was no mistaking what breed these dragons were—Helios’s solar dragons. They looked the same as the ones we’d come across in Kerberos, the ones that had given us rides to the top of the mountain in exchange for the Golden Sword of Athena. Perhaps they were the same ones.
The solar dragons were an enigma—while they were under Helios’s command, they seemed to think for themselves and not be on any one side. Now that Helios was banished, he wouldn’t have even a semblance of control over them. There was no saying what they would do now or whose side they were on.
Even though it was a long shot, I strung an arrow through my bow and aimed at the dragon in the back of the pack. But it was too late. The dragons flew at supernatural speed, and they were already out of range. The arrow missed, and the dragons flew into the night, disappearing over the horizon.
“They’re flying east,” Danielle said, staring out at where they’d disappeared.
“Mount Etna is east,” Blake said. “It can’t be a coincidence that they’re heading that way.”
“Greece is east as well,” Chris pointed out. “Maybe they’re just flying home.”
“What’ll happen when the humans see them?” I asked. “Won’t they freak out?”
“Unless they come into direct physical contact with them, they won’t be able to see them,” Blake explained. “Their minds can’t process magic like ours can. We can see the dragons… but a human would probably just think they were seeing large birds.”
“So Becca was only able to see the true form of the harpy because the harpy touched her,” I realized.
“Yes.” Kate nodded, gazing off into the sky. “And with so many creatures escaping, there will be more of them on Earth than there have been in thousands of years. Even if we succeed in stopping Typhon and the Titans… after this, the world will never be the same.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Before I knew it, we were standing in Darius’s living room, in our gear and with our weapons, waiting for Hypatia to create the portal to Mount Etna. She’d been in Italy for a few days, making sure everything was prepared for our arrival. I paced around, unable to stay still as I went over the plan in my mind. I wanted to feel ready, but I didn’t. How could I ever feel ready for something like this?
We’d been doing meditation exercises for the past hour, focusing on yellow and orange energy—focus and strength—to prepare us for the upcoming fight. I’d also been calling upon blue energy to help calm down. It helped, but I still felt jittery. After all, most of the other times we’d gone off into a big fight—like when we left for Greece, Antarctica, and Kerberos—we’d been thrown into it without having much time to worry. The only other time we’d had time to train and prepare was for Medusa.
Typhon was going to make the fight with Medusa look easy.
The only thing keeping me from completely freaking out was the knowledge that out of all the witches—and demigods—in the world, we were the ones chosen by the gods to complete this task. They wouldn’t have selected us if they didn't believe we were capable of succeeding.
If the gods believed in us, then I had to believe in us too.
“You okay?” Blake walked up to me and took both of my hands in his. The moment he did, calmness rushed through my veins—blue energy. Instead of using the blue energy to calm himself down, Blake had sent it to me.
“Thanks,” I told him, giving his hands a small squeeze. “You didn’t have to do that. I’m sure you need the blue energy for yourself.”
“You needed it more than me,” he insisted. “I know you might not admit it, but I could tell.”
I nodded, because he was right. Then I gathered red energy—courage and love—and sent it toward him. He held my hands tighter, his gaze intense, and sent me back red energy in return.
We would all make it through this. We had to. I’d already lost Blake once—I couldn’t lose him again.
But I couldn’t push down the knowledge that there was a chance we wouldn’t make it. Despite our powers, we weren’t immune to death. Except for Kate, of course, since she was now immortal.
Darius’s phone rang, and my heart pounded faster, knowing it had to be Hypatia.
“She’s ready to create the portal,” Darius said after hanging up.
I nodded, and Blake and I made our way to the center of the room to join the others. Kate held onto the backpack with Medusa’s head. As the only immortal in the group, it was safest for her to be in charge of it. She and Chris were holding hands, and Danielle stood as strong as ever—a warrior princess ready to fight.
“You all know the plan.” Darius looked around at each of us, his eyes brimming with concern. “I’ve trained you the best that I can in the time we’ve been allowed. You’ve fought some of the most dangerous monsters in history, and while you may not have killed all of them, you’ve managed to survive. The five of you are the strongest willed and most resilient people I’ve ever known, and I’m honored to be your teacher. So go out there today knowing that you’re trained and ready, and make me proud.”
“We will,” Chris said, his voice strong and confident. “We’re the Elementals. You can count on us—always.”
Then Hypatia created the portal, and together, the five of us stepped through.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
The end of the world looked like it had already hit the island of Sicily, Italy. The sun hadn’t risen yet, but I could still make out the volcano looming out in the distance, gray clouds and ash pouring from the crater and emptying out into the sky. We’d portaled straight onto a helicopter tarmac, where one helicopter waited for us, along with a pilot. I recognized the pilot as one of the witches who had been on the crew of the yacht in Greece.
“Ash has been rising from the volcano for the past week,” Hypatia informed us. “Geologists are baffled. But I think it’s safe to say that if Typhon frees himself from the volcano, this disaster will be worse than when Poseidon lost his temper in 1906 and caused the Great San Francisco Earthquake. If Typhon fully escapes, this entire island could be blown to pieces.”
“We’ll stop him before it gets that far,” Blake said.
“Exactly.” Kate nodded. “The first thing he’ll see when his head emerges from that crater will be Medusa’s gaze.”
“And the moment Typhon’s finished off, I’ll create a portal large enough for the helicopter to fly through and bring us back to Kinsley,” Hypatia said.
“I still don’t like that you’re risking yourself by coming with us,” I told her. “I know we need a Head Elder with us to create the portal home since it’s the only way to know our exact location once the fight is over, but can’t it be someone else? I don’t understand why it has to be you.”
I’d been worried about Hypatia coming with us since she first told us about that part of the plan days ago. Yes, she was a Head Elder, which made her powerful, but she didn’t have close to the amount of power that the five of us Elementals had. She wouldn’t be able to do much of anything in the fight against Typhon—if it came to a fight at all. She was just another person who I’d come to care about who would be risking her life for us.
“If not me, then who else?” she asked. “I’ve been with the five of you since you journeyed through Greece to slay the hydra. I know what the five of you can do—I’ve seen it first hand—and I believe in you. I’m proud to accompany you on this mission.”
“Thank you,” I told her, since she clearly wasn’t budging on this. “We won’t let you down.”
But even as I said the words, I wished I could believe that everything would go as planned as much as everyone else. How were they so confident when I felt like a wreck inside?
“Um, you guys?” the helicopter pilot said, pointing up at the sky. “Are those what I think they are? Because if they are… then we’re in big trouble.”
I turned a
round to look where he was pointing, and saw six orange dragons flying through the sky, heading straight in our direction.
Crap, I thought, panic rising in my throat as they got closer.
This was not in our plan of how things were supposed to go this morning.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Kate reached for her bag. “Get ready to close your eyes,” she warned. “Because I’m turning these dragons to stone.”
“Wait!” I reached forward, stopping her from unzipping the bag.
Her eyes widened, and she looked at me like I was crazy. But she didn’t try to push me aside, which I assumed meant she was willing to listen.
“We’ve worked with these dragons before.” I spoke quickly, since the dragons were getting closer. “I know that they’re Helios’s Solar Dragons, but their only loyalty is to themselves. If we can offer them something they want, they might help us in this fight.”
“I already gave them my sword once.” Danielle held the Golden Sword in the air, ready to fight. “I’m not giving it up again.”
“Then what are we offering them?” Chris asked. “We need to think quick, because they’re almost here.”
“We’ll figure it out,” I said. “For now, let’s see if they would be willing to make a deal and side with us against Typhon.”
“We also need to be ready to fight, just in case.” Blake held his lighter in one hand, and his sword in the other. “At least this time, I’m here to protect you from their fire.”
I nodded, since I knew he said that to be comforting—and that his power could save us if the dragons attacked—but I hated the thought of him using up energy before the fight with Typhon. Hopefully it wouldn’t come to that.
“And I’ve got Medusa’s head ready to whip out the moment the dragons make it clear they’re not cooperating,” Kate said. “But you’re right. The more numbers we have on our side against Typhon, the better. Plus, if these dragons have any sense of self-preservation—and from what you’ve told me about your previous encounter with them, they do—it’s in their best interest to side with us.”
“They will side with us,” I said, trying to convince myself as much as the others. Because while I believed we had a chance, they were also dragons. Could any of us truly know what they would do?
“Hold down your weapons so they know we don’t want to fight.” Kate stepped forward, the wind whipping around her hair as she stared out at the approaching dragons. “But still be on guard and ready to use them if necessary.”
I did as she said and lowered my bow to my side. The others did the same with their weapons.
“We don’t want to fight you!” I yelled once they were within hearing range.
They stopped flying toward us, and they flapped their wings to fly in place overhead.
I assumed that meant they were listening. “We’ve worked with you before,” I continued, speaking loudly to project my voice. “It happened in another timeline, so you won’t remember it, but you accepted a deal from us in exchange for your help. I think we can work out another deal today, if you’ll give us a chance and hear us out.”
They looked to the largest dragon in the front of their formation—I assumed he was their leader. I held my breath in anticipation. This was a huge risk, because we couldn’t afford to weaken our energy by using our powers right now. But if the dragons chose to attack, we would have no choice but to fight back.
Luckily, the leader lowered himself to the ground and shifted to his human form. Tall, strong, and pale, with bright auburn hair, I recognized him from the first time I met him in Kerberos. But of course he didn’t recognize me, since the timeline when we’d met had been erased.
The others in the pack followed his lead and shifted into their human forms. They all had similar skin and hair colors, and like before, they were all naked. I supposed it didn’t make sense for them to bother with clothes, since they would rip them apart every time they shifted.
“The only way you could remember another timeline is if Chronos allowed you to travel through a time portal,” the dragon leader finally spoke, his voice low and steady. “He did this for you?”
“Yes.” I nodded. “The primordial deities want us to succeed in defeating Typhon and sealing the portal to Kerberos. We failed in the original timeline, but since the primordial deities are on our side, Chronos allowed Danielle and me to travel through a time portal to correct our mistakes. There’s no time right now to get into specifics, but I hope you take my word that in the previous timeline, we worked out a deal and you helped us on our quest. We hope you’ll be able to agree to another deal with us today.”
“Especially since Helios has been banished to Tartarus, so you’re now free to act independently from him,” Kate chimed in.
“We are dragons,” the leader reminded us, although we hardly needed reminding. “Yes, we drove Helios’s chariot around the sun and worked out many mutually beneficial deals with him, but we always act independently and in our best interests. The Olympians should have known that about us before banishing us to Kerberos with the rest of the creatures who sided against them in the Second Rebellion.”
“They should have,” Danielle agreed. “But we all know that the Olympians are far from perfect, and they and the primordial deities are on our side in this war. We’re going to win. And if you help us today, they’ll be forced to take notice, and you’ll be rewarded for your bravery.”
“Rewarded how?” The leader’s mate stepped forward and raised an eyebrow. “Are you making us an offer?”
“Yes.” I stepped forward as well, crossing my fingers that this would work. “If you help us fight Typhon today and do not turn on us afterward, we promise you protection by the Twelve Olympians. You will be forgiven for your previous crimes against them, and once this war is over, you’ll get a clean slate.”
“Who are you to make such a lofty promise?” the pack leader asked. “I don’t see any Olympians here with you today. How can we know that this deal will be kept?”
“I am Nicole Cassidy, daughter of the god Apollo, and gifted with power over the element of spirit.” I raised my head high, standing strong and holding my gaze with his. “And I swear on Zeus that the gods will cooperate with this agreement.”
“No.” Hypatia gasped. “If the gods don’t accept, Zeus will be forced to kill you.”
“I know,” I said. “But it won’t come to that, because they will accept.”
But as confident as I was trying to sound, I couldn’t be one hundred percent sure. It was simply a risk I needed to take. The first rays of sunlight were appearing over the horizon, and more ash was rising from the volcano by the second. We didn’t have enough time to figure out what else the dragons would be willing to trade.
In Kerberos, Erebus had warned us that dragons were selfish creatures who would only help others if it benefitted them. I knew in my gut that this—guaranteed safety—was of utmost value to them. Plus, they would attack us if we didn’t strike a deal with them. Medusa’s head could only turn them to stone one at a time, which would give them a chance to do some serious damage to us. Our chance of surviving a fight with six dragons and then having enough energy to win in the fight against Typhon was slim to none.
So basically, we were dead if they didn’t accept the offer. I only might be dead if they did accept the offer. Hopefully the gods would go along with the terms. If they refused—and I couldn’t imagine why they would refuse, since these terms could save the world—I hoped that Apollo would go to bat for me and convince them to change their minds.
“I also swear on Zeus that if you help us defeat Typhon, you’ll be safe after the war,” Blake said, stepping up to stand next to me. He nodded at me once, as if telling me not to stop him from doing this. But I didn’t plan on it, so I took his hand and squeezed it, hoping he got the message that I appreciated his support.
“I swear on Zeus, too,” Kate said, and soon she was followed by Danielle, Chris, Hypatia, and even the helicopter pil
ot.
“We’re all willing to risk our lives to ensure your safety,” I told the dragons, more confident now that I had the support of the others. “When we win, we’re going to be on the right side of history, and we’re offering you a spot there with us. But we don’t have much time before the equinox, so we need an answer. Will you accept our offer and fight with us against Typhon? Will you be a part of saving the world?”
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
They didn’t answer for a few seconds, and I stood frozen in fear, terrified that they would refuse.
“We accept,” the leader finally said.
I let out a long breath of relief, able to move again. It worked. The dragons were going to fight with us. We still had a lot to work out from here—such as hoping the gods followed through on their end of the bargain, but at least it was a good first step.
“That was easier than I thought it would be.” Kate lowered her hand from the bag, clearly accepting that she wouldn’t need to use Medusa’s head on the dragons, although she did look perplexed.
“You have Chronos on your side,” the dragon leader explained. “If we refused you, what would stop him from creating another time portal and sending you back through it to attack us the moment we escaped from Kerberos? It’s a risk we cannot take. Plus,” he continued, a smirk crossing his face. “We never came here to hurt you. We always intended on helping you, so you would not force us back into that dreadful hell dimension. You only sweetened the deal by promising amnesty from the gods.”
“What?” My mouth dropped open, shocked. “Seriously?”
“Yes,” he said, his eyes twinkling in amusement. “Seriously.” Then he stepped up to the helicopter and shook his head. “Although I must say, your choice of transportation leaves much to be desired. If Typhon gets one of his hands around this clunky metal flying contraption, he will crush it in his fists.”
“Then we’ll have to make sure he doesn’t get his hands on it, because it’s the only mode of transportation that we have,” Blake said. “We don’t have time to find anything else.”
Elementals 5: The Hands of Time Page 7