My breakfast suddenly felt heavy in my stomach. I shifted, uncomfortable.
“There are no dungeons,” Oizys said.
Her voice startled me out of my thoughts. “Where do they imprison people then?”
She tossed a flat stare over her shoulder. “They don’t.”
Queasiness morphed to all out panic. I bolted upright. “They killed him?!”
Watching her reflection, I saw Oizys roll her eyes. “Don’t be stupid. If Hades or Kyrillos were going to pull a power play like that, everyone would know.” She examined herself a final time before turning on her padded stool to face me. “We just have to figure out where they would put him.”
“Tartarus,” I said, and shivered automatically. I did not want to go back there. Plus, the place was huge. “Let’s rule everywhere else out first.”
Oizys raised an eyebrow. “Scared, Springtime?”
I snagged a pillow from the daybed and wriggled it under my butt. “Uh, yeah. And don’t even try to convince me that you enjoy hanging out there. Because there’s gloom and doom, and then there’s just plain stupid.”
“Nobody enjoys hanging out there,” she said, sounding more than a little convinced of my stupidity.
“Dead people and Olympians don’t,” I said. ”Your kind might think it’s a happy fun park.”
I got an annoyed sigh, but no actual response. I crossed my legs and thought it over. “He wouldn’t be in the palace. That’s too obvious. The first place I’d search.”
“Somewhere that would cause Prometheus maximum pain,” said Oizys, rising to root through the jumble of stuff on her dresser.
“His rock.” We said it in unison. And then, just as quickly, we both shook our heads. “No. Kai would want to keep Prometheus in the Underworld.”
We stared at each other, both somewhat startled. “Great minds think alike,” I murmured.
“Then I don’t know how you reached that conclusion.”
I waved my hands around, faking scared. “Ooh. Insults.”
A corner of her mouth lifted ever-so-slightly into a grin. I had to look really hard, but it was there.
When she spoke, though, her voice was as matter-as-fact as ever. “Even if Kyrillos didn’t actually bind him to the rock again, he could recreate the psychological trauma of it. Briareos, Kottos and Gyes, the Hekatonkheires who helped subdue him initially, live—”
“In Tartarus,” I finished, glumly. “It fits. Kyrillos turned Prometheus over to the giants’ keeping. We have to get him out of their hundred-handed clutches.”
“Three hundred-handed clutches,” Oizys corrected, snagging a tube of lipstick. “A hundred hands each. Along with their combined hundred and fifty heads.”
“Thank you so much for clarifying that,” I snapped. “Because we wouldn’t want any hope going into this.”
She uncapped the tube to paint her lips purple. “Best to know what we’re up against.”
I sighed. “You’re right. I don’t suppose there’s a handy map of Tartarus anywhere?”
Oizys pointed to herself. “Spirit of Misery and Woe, here. If those giants are doing their jobs properly, Prometheus’ pain will call me to him like a beacon.” She sounded pretty miserable about that.
I didn’t blame her. “Okay, so what do you need to—”
“Shut up for five minutes.” She tossed the lipstick back onto the dresser and moved over to her bed.
I shut up.
Oizys hung backward off the bed, her hair sweeping the floor. Her eyes were closed but it didn’t look comfortable.
For a few minutes there was no sound except our breathing. I looked around the room, trying to spot the source of the lovely floral aroma. Given the clutter strewn over the bed, the daybed, the dresser, and another low table, it could have been anywhere.
Oizys raised her head, her eyes bleak. “Found him.”
My heart sank. “And he’s in …”
She rolled herself into a sitting position. “Yeah.”
“Then it’s field trip time. We’ll need ear plugs. And possibly gas masks.” Because I doubted I could withstand long-term exposure to either the sounds or the smells of the damned.
Oizys pointed at my ugly dress. “First, you need some proper clothes.” She strode to her closet and flung the door open. Inside was a whole lot more black. She flipped through her stuff, pulling out a black T-shirt and black cargo pants. “Change.”
It wasn’t a suggestion.
But since it was a damn sight better than what I was wearing, not about to get an argument from me. I stood up, took the clothes, and headed into the bathroom, sponging away any stinkyness as best I could, and using my finger as a toothbrush. With the help of her bathroom mirror, I smoothed the more obvious snarls out of my hair, grimaced at my reflection, and decided this was as good as it was going to get.
Truthfully, it was pretty good. My Sophie self would have looked like something the cat dragged in, but Persephone looked like a slightly tired supermodel.
I stuck my tongue out at her face, and headed back into the bedroom. “Ready.”
Oizys smirked. “So you didn’t burst into flame wearing black, huh?”
“Sorry to disappoint. Do I get boots?”
She snatched up her glasses from her dresser and put them on. “I don’t share footwear.”
I didn’t have any memory of Persephone owning anything other than sandals. Great.
I looked around. “Thoughts on the ear plugs and gas masks?”
“Yeah. Suck it up and suck it up, princess.”
“Bite me.”
“Ohhhh,” Oizys pursed her lips. “Springtime shows her thorns.”
I felt a momentary pang. This was just an enchantment, and when things returned to normal, we’d probably be mortal enemies. Too bad. I liked this chick. I allowed myself a small smile at how easily Oizys could take Bethany down a notch or two. Then I crossed to the door and opened it. With a flourishing arm sweep, I motioned for Oizys to lead the way.
We kept to the back stairways and corridors as much as possible. Seeing the two of us together, especially when I was dressed like Oizys’ Mini Me, would raise too many questions. Luckily, it was fairly simple to get out undetected. The souls we passed on our way to Tartarus didn’t know us. And frankly, they were more concerned with being dead than finding out what we were up to. All of which allowed us to get within nose-hair-blistering distance of Tartarus relatively easily.
We stopped in front of the bronze fence. This was nowhere near where I’d gone through to meet Demeter. The section was totally smooth, with no door in sight. I debated whether or not to mention that I knew a way in, but figured it would lead to questions I wasn’t about to answer. So I kept quiet and let Oizys take the lead.
She placed her hands on the fence. A violent shudder ran through her.
I moved to push her back, remembering how the cries of the damned had chilled me to the core. But she kicked out at my leg.
“Ow!” I rubbed my calf. “Fine. Touch it, you psycho.”
Oizys looked at me. Her eyes glowed red.
I took several steps back and brought out my green light.
She just laughed. “Like you could take me.” In a feat of insane strength, even for a supernatural being, she dug her fingertips into the bronze, and shredded it like paper.
My eyes bugged as Oizys tore a jagged opening.
“Go.”
I hesitated, taking in her ragged breathing. The red in her eyes had dimmed somewhat. “Touching the fence powered you up, didn’t it? You got strength from their pain.”
Her fingers tightened on the rough segment of fence. “It’s fading fast,” she said. “If you don’t want me to kick your ass so I can amp up again, I suggest you move it before I lose my grip.”
I hopped through the hole, staggering back as a wave of sheer despair overwhelmed me. This was way worse than wherever I’d met with Demeter.
I gritted my teeth. “Lovely.”
Oizys ducked
through the opening and let go of the fence. It snapped itself back into place with no sign that it had ever been disturbed.
“Impressive.”
She gave me one of her flat stares and wiped her brow with her arm. Then she tromped past me toward a large boulder.
Awesome traveling companion. I gagged on a particularly vicious waft of sulphur, and an image of a burning pomegranate tree slammed up inside my head.
No way! I knew scent was a trigger but this was a terrible time to get hit. I hustled my butt to catch up with Oizys, keeping my mind on our task and trying to forget the putrid smell.
Oizys strode around the boulder. Without pausing or checking to see if I was still with her, she veered sharply left and entered a low cave.
I scowled at the blackness in front of me, just as the beam of a high-powered flashlight popped on inside.
“Figured you’d be afraid of the dark, Springtime.”
I headed into the cave, making sure my voice was pure sweetness. “What dark? I was going to wrap you in my light vines and use you as a lantern. But a flashlight works too.”
That shut her up.
I peered around as best I could. It didn’t seem too bad. We were in a narrow tunnel made of craggy, black stone. A bit musty, and reeking of old rotten eggs, but at least it was dry.
Famous last words.
My next step went down. I stumbled, just managing to stop myself from falling into a puddle of warm, murky liquid. “Do I want to know?”
“The rivers converge to trickle through here.”
“And you let me go in sandals? What if my feet melt?”
I could practically hear her indifferent shrug. “Next time, buy proper footwear.”
“You’re a real joy.” I shuffled along behind her for a bit, trying not to think about what might live in the water to feast on my toes. I kept moving. There wasn’t much more than a slight prickly heat. I didn’t feel corrosive acid eating the flesh off of my bones. “Can you tell if … well, if they’re hurting him?”
“Yes.”
“And?”
“They’re leaving him alone. For the time being. But that means that my sense of him is fading. So pick up the pace.”
That was the best I could hope for. A jog was more than a fair price to pay.
We continued in silence for a while. I tried not to think about how fast I’d be smushed if all this rock came crashing down on me. Or what was waiting at the other end of the cave. Mindless chatter seemed like the best plan. “Are you going to Hades’ masquerade ball?” I asked.
“Like I have a choice.” Oizys sounded totally disgusted.
Best not to mention I’d inadvertently given him the idea. I picked my way gingerly along. The water had risen to just above ankle height, and there was a eye-watering stink of dead fish. “You got a costume yet?”
“I’m not wearing one.”
“Way to take all the fun out of it.”
Oizys stopped abruptly. I stumbled into her and whacked my head on her chin when she turned to face me. We both swore.
“There is nothing fun about one of Hades’ parties,” she said, shoving me back a step. “It’s all backstabbing and plotting and secret agendas.”
I rubbed my chin. “Which is different from any other day around here, how?”
“I keep to myself,” she hissed, and she went on walking.
True. I’d noticed that. “Your anti-social tendencies trump your evil ones.” I trailed my right hand against the stone wall to keep my bearings, since Oizys held the flashlight in a low beam that only helped her.
“I’m. Not. Evil.”
She actually sounded hurt. “Sorry.”
“Do you think Kyrillos is evil? Your boyfriend is heir to this kingdom, but I don’t see that stopping you from jumping into bed with him.”
I wasn’t jumping into bed with anyone. But I got her point. And she was right. “I think many varied things about that boy,” I muttered. “None of which have to do with his birthright.”
“Then don’t paint me with that brush.” She whipped around, momentarily blinding me with the flashlight. “You Olympians. You’re all so judgmental. So self-righteous.”
“Like Underworlders aren’t? You thought all I was good for was dancing among flowers.”
“Poor baby,” she mocked, adjusting the light so I could see the sneer on her face. “Someone thinks you’re pretty and useless. Cry me a river. You don’t have everyone automatically assuming you’re evil.”
With that, she stormed deeper into the tunnel.
I stood there, the fetid water swirling around my feet. Maybe, sometimes, I could be judgmental. Even if I was, weren’t we all? Did that make it all right? If anyone had asked me, I would have said that Hades’ gang was evil and Zeus’, what? Good? Less evil? Opposite, somehow.
I took a few faltering steps forward. Oizys had sounded hurt. Like this actually mattered.
I guess it wasn’t that black and white.
I sloshed along until I’d caught up with her again. “Is that why you like Prometheus? Because he doesn’t judge you?”
“Isn’t it why you like him, too?”
I didn’t know about Prometheus, but Theo hadn’t. Did we spare the people we loved? No, because I certainly laid a whopper of a judgement on Hannah. I squirmed, self-loathing and guilt rearing their ugly twin heads in a bitter knot in my stomach. I didn’t want to have this conversation anymore. I sped up. “You need a costume for the ball.”
“Maybe I’ll borrow your clothes and go as you.”
I snorted out my laughter. That was unexpected.
Oizys turned, balancing the light so she could see my expression. “You don’t care?”
I put a hand on her shoulder, trying not to double over laughing. “Care? I think it’s brilliant. Can I do your make up?”
Oizys stared at me like I was insane, but I distinctly heard an amused, “Maybe” before she disappeared around a corner and made what sounded like a smothered yelp.
My adrenaline spiked and I stupidly ran after her. I flew into the next section of tunnel, made it about three feet in, and dropped like a dead weight into nothingness.
Seventeen
At first I screamed. And then a howling drowned out the sounds and storm winds battered me against the cave walls like a bouncy ball.
It. Hurt.
Also, I was wet, and trying very hard not to think about all the grossness in the water that drenched me. I was tumbling down a hole, alongside the river, where it turned into a waterfall.
I called up my vines and fired one toward the walls. Luckily, the light held against the wet stone, and I could control my descent to Oizys. I fired another vine down into the gloom and prayed for a hit.
“Ouch!”
“I got you.” Carefully, I lowered myself down with one hand and reeled her toward me with the other.
She was flailing on her end of the line, the vibrations making it that much harder to keep my descent steady in the gale force wind that whipped up the tunnel. My knee banged a sharp outcropping of rock. “Stop struggling,” I yelled. “You’re causing tension.”
“It’s the wind. I’m getting seasick,” she said, when I managed to pull even with her.
A gust swung us right under the waterfall. I swung us out again as fast as I could, but not before we were both sputtering noxious water. “Try not to get this stuff in your mouth,” I said.
“No kidding.” She looked a little queasy so I picked up the pace.
The beam of the flashlight pointed down, so I could see we were maybe fifty feet from the ground. Bright flashes of lightning lit the way as I lowered us to the exit below. Talking was impossible. The winds were so strong and so loud that it was all I could do to keep us moving.
I focused on descending inch by painful inch, as the wind smacked us against the wet walls, and blew our faces into crazy funhouse mirror distortions. What should have taken seconds, took about ten minutes. Oizys lost her grip on the flashlight, an
d it hit the ground, going out. Not that it mattered, since we still had the lightening.
I glanced down to check our progress and realized that what I had mistaken for the bottom of the tunnel was just a ledge of rock with an exit to the outside. The tunnel continued downward to the left of the ledge, the water roaring down the canyon alongside. I had to land us on terra firma or risk continuing on to who-knew-where, along with the nasty river water.
We hit the ground in a bumpy heap.
I had never loved dirt so much.
We were bruised, wet, filthy, and judging by the scene outside the cave entrance, about to find ourselves in the midst of a violent storm.
I tested my limbs. Nothing seemed to be broken but everything hurt.
Oizys and I exchanged glances. Then she tipped her head toward to the entrance and raised her eyebrows, in question.
I nodded. Here goes nothing.
We got to our feet. Bracing our shoulders against the wind, we pushed our way out of the cave.
It would have been beautiful if it wasn’t so terrifying. Above me, streak of purple and black smashed against each other, while lightning snaked in jerky tendrils. I could only stare at it through slitted eyes. There was too much dirt flying around.
I tugged the collar of my shirt over my nose and mouth, against the twin scents of sulphur and electrical dust. I held it in place with my right hand, and hurried to take in our surroundings.
We stood at the edge of a vast pitted crater. All around us, the sides curved toward the sky. We were like ants against this vast backdrop of destruction.
And anguish. Did I mention the anguish?
The wind literally wailed. The air felt charged with an electric despair, so entrenched, so heavy, that every step was like trudging through a misery swamp. The wind would have severely tested the foundation of even the strongest building. But there was nothing to knock down. Only Oizys and me, as we struggled from boulder to boulder, bent double, looking for Prometheus.
The ground rumbled beneath us.
My Life From Hell Page 19