Paldimori Gods Rising Box Set

by T. L. Callahan

  I looked into the hand mirror again. I hadn’t noticed anything on his back last night. Of course, the light had been dim and there were far more interesting parts of his body to focus on. There were way too many questions and not enough time for answers. “He has this tattoo on his back?”

  “Birthmark. Not tattoo. Yes, very similar. He is unique even for us. He’s the strongest Chaos we’ve ever had, since the original anyway.”

  “But what does it mean—”

  Screams sounded in the distance, interrupting us. Molly and I looked at each other. “Grayson,” we said together and then burst out laughing.

  22

  Whatever Grayson had done to clear a path worked well, and we made it back to my room without seeing a single person. After taking a quick shower, I threw on workout clothes. Molly had some explaining to do. Unfortunately, she rushed me out the door to do more training before I could ask my questions.

  We went to the horse meadow. Molly had secured a chariot for us, and we practiced in the field. It was different than driving on the track. The new challenge soon had me forgetting all about my mysterious body art.

  We hurried back to my room afterward to get dressed for the competition. When I exited the shower for the second time that day, Molly stood by my bed holding out scraps of an outfit that immediately had me balking. Leather. Leather and chunky chicks was not a good combo. I told her that repeatedly. She asked nicely, I’ll give her that. She needed to understand that it wasn’t going to happen.

  “Do I need to have Chaos come help you dress?” Molly threatened, tapping her foot.

  “Like I’m scared of him.” I crossed my arms defiantly. “He better keep his distance if he doesn’t want to feel my foot on his balls.”

  “Great!” She smiled brightly. “Let me call him up here.”

  “Er, that’s ok. He’s probably doing important stuff for the Games. Like flower arrangements. You can never have too many of those.”

  “Oh, I’m sure he’ll make time to come help his mate. You guys could work out your differences. Show him your ball stomping skills.” She was struggling not to laugh. “I’m sure he’ll be impressed.”

  “He would be. But maybe later. I’ve got a competition to win. And I’m not his mate.” I glared at her. “Aren’t you supposed to be telling me not to get distracted?”

  “You’re right. You lust monkeys can’t be in the same room together.” She held the clothes out to me. “Time to strap on your balls and put on your leather.”

  “Gah, that’s a horrible image. You’re damn annoying, do you know that?” Grimacing, I grabbed them and stomped toward the bathroom. “Fine. If I break something trying to contort my way into this, you only have yourself to blame.”

  Lots of grunting and cursing later, my leather-clad-self followed the sound of voices to the kitchen. Grayson stood at the counter eating an apple. His black hair was a bit more mussed than normal, but he didn’t look the worse for wear for his escapades. On our way downstairs he regaled us with how he incited a bunch of bats to attack the other contestants in the gym. His descriptions of the scene of the crime had us laughing all the way down to the training area.

  Molly turned right from the elevator and led us past the forest. We continued walking for several minutes until we turned into a corridor I had never seen before. We followed the dark passage until we came to a wide opening in the cave. The early afternoon sunlight shone brightly beyond the opening, and a warm breeze caressed my cheeks.

  We were going outside! Finally. It felt like we had been locked away in that cave for years. I breathed in deeply, filling my lungs with the fresh air.

  Lined up inside the opening to the cave, the chariots stood in a magnificent spectacle. The crude training chariots had been replaced by deadly but elaborate works of art that brought the House symbols to life. I waved at Kade and Grace as we passed by. They were checking over a chariot that looked like a short tree. The front portion was made from a massive hollowed-out tree trunk covered in inch-long thorns. Spiny branches twisted back on each side to form the sidewalls. Green leaves lined the top edge of the chariot all the way around and down to the platform in the back. Thick giant green leaves padded the inside, offering some protection from all those sharp spikes.

  We moved down the line. Mikhail was leaning insolently against his gold chariot letting two female servants polish his tall boots. “Stay out of my way out there today, little girl.” He sneered at me. “Wouldn’t want there to be any more accidents.”

  Arrogant prick. As if the accident had been my fault. He was the one trying to cut me off. Well, that wasn’t going to happen today. He was going to lose. “We certainly don’t. I’ll make sure I’m way out front so you won’t have to worry about hitting me again.”

  “Bitch! You almost hit me a dozen times during training. Don’t tell me you haven’t had it out for me. Best just watch your back.” He pointed his finger at my chest threateningly. “We all know you’ve done whored yourself out for that money. I’m here to tell you, ain’t nobody winning that but me.”

  “We’ll see about that.” I turned on my heel, ready to get away from him.

  Balls of flame suddenly erupted from his chariot. Backing away sharply, I bumped into Molly and sent us both sprawling. Mikhail was laughing his damn head off. I expected to see the chariot burning to the ground, but instead, it looked as if the flames were part of the design. Hammered gold formed the eye area of a face from above the brow line to mid-nose. The patina of the gold created shadows that gave the face an almost skeletal look. Within the open eye sockets were roiling balls of flame that hissed and leaped. An intently furrowed brow passed judgment over every person that walked by.

  “You mind getting off me?” Molly grunted.

  Oops. “Sorry.”

  “You’ve got to learn some control,” Molly said, dusting herself off a bit more vigorously than was warranted. “That could have been bad.”

  “What? I didn’t cause that. Did you see his chariot? The punk did that on purpose.” I sent Mikhail a look that I hoped showed how much my fists wanted to make his acquaintance.

  “The flames aren’t supposed to shoot out like that.” Molly rubbed her butt and sighed. “You made them do that. I felt you.”

  That couldn’t be right. Could it? People couldn’t make fire do what they wanted. Nah, Molly was just hangry or something.

  There was no mistaking the next chariot as belonging to anyone but the House of Arrows. The exterior extended out like the bow of a ship into a black arrowhead point that matched the sharp blades protruding from the wheel hubs. Large arched wings in red swept back on either side of the point and wrapped around to create the body of the chariot. The horses wore red leather bridles lined with sharp black arrowhead tips that stood up at an angle atop their heads and chest plates with the House symbol. It looked like I was going into battle rather than competing in a race full of amateurs.

  Even my outfit felt more suited to combat. Tight black leather pants were tucked into knee-high black boots with red flying arrow buckles. My shirt was a long-sleeved red leather tunic. That wasn’t the worst part though. No, I couldn’t be “Dominatrix Girl” without my trusty corset. Dia would be laughing her ass off if she could see me now. All I needed was the cape.

  The corset was black with wide red seams and red laces down the back. The front was covered in a lightweight black metal plate that started below my breasts and came down to a single arrowhead point right at the top of my thighs. The sides were longer and covered my hips. The back was cut high enough to display my ass—designed with input from Eros no doubt. The bust part cupped me perfectly and was covered in red metal pieces that looked like feathers.

  “You realize I look like a reject from one of those comic conventions, right?”

  “Warrior princess looks good on you,” Molly teased. “Lucky for you there aren’t any nerds in sight. I have enough trouble keeping your harem away.”

  While Molly pointed out the d
ifferences in handling this heavier chariot, Grayson acted as a human force field. He sent anyone packing who attempted to get too close to me, even the other servants bringing my meal. He was telling everyone that would listen that he was now my personal servant. Between watching Grayson and feeding the horses, the time slipped by quickly.

  We were signaled to mount our chariots. Molly wished me luck then left to take her place. The guides would be positioned throughout the forest to monitor the competition. Grayson helped me with my helmet. He would be waiting here for my return. I slipped my booted feet into the leather straps of the platform and gripped the reins ready to get this party started.

  “All right, guys, time to kick some ass,” I said through my headset.

  “You got this,” Molly encouraged. “Don’t hold the horses back. They know what they’re doing. So do you. Good luck.”

  We started forward, keeping the chariots in the line formation. With my visor up, I was momentarily blinded as we passed through the opening into the sunlight. Ah, real live sunlight. How I had missed it. Everything seemed more vivid. I wasn’t sure if that was due to having been cave-bound or because it was absolutely beautiful here. The sky was a vibrant blue. The meadow where we halted was a sea of rich green dotted with millions of flowers. My nose tingled with a dizzying mix of lavender, rose, hyacinth and many others I couldn’t name.

  Stretching out beyond the meadow was a lush valley nestled amidst several mountain ranges. This would have been a spectacular view by itself. However, it was the scene that surrounded the Kyrion that awed me.

  In the center of the meadow stood six tall trees that fanned out in spectacular displays of fruit-laden branches. Sitting nestled in their centers, amidst boughs that formed perfect thrones, sat the Kyrion. The men all wore black leather pants that showed off their toned legs to perfection. Eros nodded to me. Then plucked a peach from his tree and took a bite. He sprawled in his seat running a finger along the open collar of his red shirt as he seductively licked away the juice that coated his lips. A blush heated my cheeks. That man was sinful seduction wrapped in angelic beauty and splashed with mischief. God help the female population.

  My eyes roamed against their will to the man in all-black surrounded by limbs of blood-red apples. Even from fifty yards away I could feel the heat radiating from him as he stared back at me. I narrowed my eyes, visualizing throwing those apples at him and knocking his ass from that tree. If he thought the tattoo on my back meant I was his mate or whatever, he had another think coming. Confusion crossed his face, and he leaned forward as if to say something.

  I turned away to survey the rest of the scene. Thanks to Molly, I could now put a name to all of these beautiful faces on display. Erebus slouched insolently in a gray shirt amidst the arms of a tree bearing dark green avocados. Nyx posed seductively in a lemon tree with her assets barely concealed by a white strapless dress with an indecently short skirt. Tartarus, in a golden shirt unbuttoned to his navel, sat in rigid intensity within the arms of a tree filled with dark purple figs.

  All of the Kyrion looked otherworldly sitting on their tree thrones, but Gaia was clearly the belle of the ball. She sat in the center in a massive tree that eclipsed the others by half, surrounded by branches of golden pears. Her hair fell in a cascade of curls down her bare shoulders. Her green eyes sharply measured each contestant as she lazily petted a red fox curled in her lap.

  Her dress reflected every season. Springtime vines dotted with flower buds cupped her generous breasts. The vines circled around her stomach, offering large glimpses of pale skin as the buds opened into a summertime rainbow of colors. They circled her hips and a skirt of vibrant green leaves joined the array of flowers. As it reached her feet, the vines grew into tree limbs and continued to spiral toward the ground.

  Birds of all kinds sat amongst the green-tipped branches, singing songs that should have sounded discordant but were oddly melodic. The green leaves transitioned into a fall medley of red, orange, and yellow. The last section of limbs, some twenty feet below where Gaia sat, showcased winter’s splendor with ice-covered red berries framing a tunnel that ran through the base of the tree.

  The birds abruptly stopped their song as Gaia raised her hand, and a few moments of silence filled the air. “The House of Seasons welcomes you to the first competition of the Paldimori Games. Remember rule number two. No Kyrion may aid you once the race has begun unless a unanimous decision is reached. The first to make it back through the tunnel wins. May you be as cunning as a fox and as fast as the falcon. The Forest of Epochès awaits you.”

  I flipped down the visor of my helmet and gripped the reins as Gaia finished her speech. Suddenly, the birds screeched then took flight, signaling the start of the race. I cracked the reins, feeling a jolt of adrenaline spike through my system as the horses took off.

  We thundered across the meadow toward the tunnel of Gaia’s tree. We would be forced to go through single file, which could help or hurt depending on my position in line. I reached the tunnel first. The darkness of the tunnel disorienting after the full sun of the field.

  Then we were out the other side in the blink of an eye and racing toward the edge of the green forest. Once amongst the trees, I scouted for the wide dirt path just as Molly had instructed. The path was marked by a procession of tall green trees on either side, some with tightly closed buds lining their branches. Smaller saplings between the trunks of those giants struggled to make their way to the sun. Further down, the path disappeared around a sharp turn. Glancing over my shoulder, I spied Kade gaining ground. The path was wide enough for two chariots to run side-by-side, but it would be close. Snapping the reins, I urged the horses faster.

  We flew down the path and entered the turn. One wheel of my chariot left the ground, and I fought to keep it level. We came to a straight section as Kade pulled ahead of me. He hadn’t prepared for the change in terrain, though. Every thirty yards or so, a tree root was exposed on one side of the path or the other. Kade hit the first one head on and was knocked down onto his butt. He held on to the reins trying to keep his balance, which caused the horses to slow down considerably.

  Taking advantage, I dodged around him and cut over in time to avoid the next root. Back and forth I maneuvered, missing most of the roots until the ground leveled back out. Chancing a peek over my shoulder, I was thankful to see I had gained quite a bit of ground.

  Omph! Tree limbs smacked against my helmet and sent a riot of orange flowers floating all around us. Shit! Pay attention to the road, Lia.

  We skidded around a right turn that dropped sharply downhill into a large meadow of thick grass and yellow flowers. I silently thanked Molly for this morning’s training and let the horses choose their way through the knee-high grass while I scanned the tree line at the opposite end, looking for the path. Unlike the thick green forest I had left behind, the one ahead was awash in the colors of fall. The path lay beneath a set of trees that leaned heavily against each other to form an X.

  I made it to the halfway point and glanced back to check on the competition. Kade had used the beaten down trail we had made to catch up with me. Now he dogged my heels while letting my horses do all the work. Damn freeloader!

  Mikhail had taken a different route and was skirting the edge of the forest. Damn. Damn. Damn. He was going to beat me to the other side if I didn’t do something. Redirecting the horses to cut across to the tree line several yards in front of his chariot, I hoped we would come out ahead. Mikhail picked up speed when he realized what I was doing. I urged my horses on even faster.

  Minutes later, I pulled alongside him. Then Kade pulled up to my other side. We closed in on the path quickly, none of us giving way. With the trees angled over the path the way they were, two abreast would take some work. There was no way all three of us could pass through together. I yelled encouragement to Ninny and Saam, probably deafening Molly through our headset.

  Mikhail edged into me, bumping my wheels. The spiked hammer protruding from the hub
of his wheels slipped between my wheel spokes. Crack! Splinters of wood flew up. My own arrowhead hubs sliced back. With our wheels interlocked and Kade on my other side, there was nowhere to go. Seeing his opportunity, Kade pulled ahead and passed under the leaning trees first. Finally able to put some space between Mikhail and me, I urged the horses on again. If only we could gain a little ground to cut him off.

  Mikhail rammed into me hard enough to throw me into the sidewall. Steadying myself, I gritted my teeth at the sound of the damage being done as our wheels locked together again. This was going to be a tight fit. The horses passed beneath the crossed trees, and I ducked down to keep from being knocked off. The side of my chariot scraped the tree, sending pieces of rough bark flying. Mikhail wasn’t so lucky. His chariot rammed into the tree on the right with a horrible scraping noise. He had leaned over instead of ducking to avoid the trees and his shoulder took a direct hit. He leaned heavily against the front of his chariot and switched the reins to his one good arm.

  The trees gave an ominous groan as we cleared the opening. Mikhail panicked. One-handed, he haphazardly whipped his horses into a frenzy. Idiot! With our wheels still locked together, his horses were dragging my chariot along with them. The popping of breaking roots sounded like gunshots only feet behind us. I spared a quick look back to see the trees starting to fall in our direction. They were going to topple right onto us.

  We needed to free our wheels. Up ahead a break in the trees on my side of the path caught my attention. I steered the horses sharply toward it and, with a horrible crunching noise, the wheels disentangled. My chariot flew off the road and was suddenly airborne. The fall leaves on the ground had concealed a dip in the terrain. Behind me, the trees smashed to the ground.