“Are we ready for this?” Ren asked.
“At this point, I don’t think we have a choice.”
Ren dove in first, Jasmine and I followed. The water was as cold as I remembered it from the night of the invitation—maybe even colder as it was the end of November. This time we didn’t have a light in the water to guide us, so we were basically swimming blind. I hoped Ren knew approximately where he was going because I didn’t have any sense of direction. We be swimming in a circle for all I knew.
Eventually, Ren stopped swimming and just floated. Jasmine and I floated up next to him. It was obvious now the portal wasn’t open for us, and Ren was going to need to try and create one. Even in the dark, I could see Jasmine start to panic. I reached over and grasped her hand to try and calm her down.
Ren moved his hands around in the water. It looked like he was conducting an orchestra. After a few minutes, a soft blue glow formed in front of him. It was working. He was doing it. But then the glow collapsed in on itself and vanished. Frustration marked Ren’s face as he swirled his hands around again, in sharper, more precise movements.
Jasmine tugged on my hand. I turned to see her struggling in the water. I pulled her to me, put my mouth on hers, and blew oxygen into her. I drew back, and she gave me a thumbs up that she was okay now. I wanted to tell Ren to hurry because I knew it wouldn’t last. My lungs were even starting to burn.
The blue light flared to life again, growing. A narrow whirlpool formed under the glow. Ren smiled as his creation came to be, but then his brow furrowed as his gaze darted everywhere, and his hands stopped moving. Something was wrong.
Suddenly, the whirlpool expanded until it had encompassed all three of us. Then we were violently thrust sideways through the water. The force of it sent all three of us spinning. We were being sucked through a portal, but I didn’t think it was one that Ren had made.
After a few minutes of being catapulted through the portal, we came shooting up out of the water to land on the cold, hard rock of the cave. I knocked my head when I landed, making everything fade a little behind my eyes, then go sharp again. I rolled onto my back and blinked up into a few angry faces looming over me.
One of those faces belonged to Zeus. “Bring them to the auditorium. We will assemble the school for a tribunal.”
Ares loomed over me and then yanked me to my feet by the back of my jacket.
The three of us were marched into the school like criminals. I was surprised someone didn’t put shackles on our wrists and ankles. Jasmine shook so hard her teeth chattered. I reached over and grabbed her hand but was pulled away again. Ares looked positively gleeful with his role as jailer.
We didn’t enter the academy through the front doors but around back to another entrance. Then we were led through several corridors I didn’t recognize and through a set of wide double doors and into a spacious domed auditorium with 360 degree seating. It reminded me of an ancient coliseum where gladiators fought to the death for the amusement of the masses. And like those doomed gladiators, we were marched into the middle and left to stand there out in the open to await our fate.
“I’m scared.”
This time I went and hugged Jasmine. “It’s going to be okay.”
“How?”
“I don’t know, but I refuse to accept that this is the end.”
Ren clenched his jaw, fighting back his fear. “I don’t want to be expelled.”
“Neither do I, but we all knew this could happen.”
“How did they know?” Jasmine wiped at the tears welling in her eyes. “Someone told them. Do you think it was Lucian?”
I shook my head. “No. I refuse to believe that.”
“It could’ve been, Mel,” Ren said. “No one else knew.”
Another set of doors opened, and all the Gods entered, lining up on the edge of the platform in a circle around us. Then through those same doors, our peers streamed into the stadium and sat in the raised rows.
I looked for Georgina and found her in the second row. Our gazes met, and she gave me a soft smile. She was probably beating herself up for letting me go on this ill-fated excursion. I wanted to tell her that it wasn’t her fault. I would’ve gone no matter what she said or did. I was stubborn that way. She had to have known that by now.
My gaze then found Lucian. He sat not far from Georgina. His face was a mask of sadness and frustration, and it nearly broke my heart to see it. Someone had ratted us out, but I knew deep in my heart that it wasn’t Lucian.
Zeus stepped forward into the center of the auditorium. “The three of you are charged with abandonment of your post. The punishment for such a crime is memory wipe and expulsion from the academy.”
There was a collective gasp throughout the stadium. But I spotted one happy audience member. Revana couldn’t stop smiling.
I stepped forward. “May I speak in our defense?”
“It’s not a trial but go ahead.” Zeus waved his hand toward me.
“The fault lies entirely with me. I convinced both Jasmine and Ren to come with me by telling them about the earthquakes in their hometowns. They wouldn’t have ever known if it wasn’t for me.”
Jasmine bolted forward. “That’s not true.”
“Melany never forced us.” Ren shook his head.
“I should be expelled, not them. They are great soldiers. I’ve been nothing but a problem. You can ask any of the professors.”
Ares nodded, as did Aphrodite.
“Not true!” Jasmine came up to my side. “Melany is the best of all of us. She can—”
Zeus put up his hand to stop us from talking. “I appreciate the strength you have to fight for your friends. You have won them a second chance.”
Ren put his hands over his face and shook his head.
Jasmine was about to say something that I knew she shouldn’t; I grabbed her hand and squeezed it. “It’s okay.”
“Nothing is okay, Mel. Nothing.”
Zeus nodded to Ares, and he came over to me and Jasmine. He took her arm. “Let’s go.” He nodded to Ren.
Before she was led away, Jasmine wrapped her arms around me. “I’ll never forget you. Ever.”
I swallowed, not wanting to shed tears in front of everyone. No, I would shed my tears when I was alone. Which was going to be soon. I could handle the expulsion and never going back to Pecunia, but not being able to remember my friends or Lucian was a dagger to the heart. It was cruel and inhumane. I would do anything not to have that happen. I would suffer through any other punishment.
Ares led my friends off the platform and back into the crowd of recruits. Jasmine and Ren both took up seats by Georgina, who reached out and grabbed their hands. Solidarity. They were going to need it. I hoped they stuck together no matter what. They made a great team.
Once Ares returned to the circle of Gods, Zeus raised his hands, ready to pass my sentence. But I had one more thing to say before he condemned me.
“Those weren’t earthquakes that destroyed Pecunia and New Athens.”
A murmur rushed through the stadium. A few of the Gods glanced at each other.
“I saw the cracks in the ground. It looked like something pushed out of the earth. The damage was secluded to just those two towns and nowhere else. That’s not how earthquakes behave.”
I thought for sure Zeus was going to shut me up, but he actually looked interested in what I had to say. I reached into my pocket and pulled out the piece of golden rope. “I found this at my childhood home among the devastation.” I held it up for everyone to see. There were some surprised whispers in the crowd. “It’s not an ordinary piece of rope. It looks like something enchanted. Something magical. Something one of the Gods would possess.”
That started a major stir.
Aphrodite stepped forward. “She’s lying. She’ll say anything to get out of her punishment.”
“Why are we listening to this?” Ares bellowed. “She broke the rules. There isn’t any room for discussion.”
I noticed Hera, Apollo, and Athena nod in agreement. Demeter, Hephaistos, and Dionysus remained tight-lipped, which I appreciated. The other Gods looked beyond bored. Like they had a million other things to do today besides destroying my life and sending me into exile.
Zeus approached me and took the rope. He ran his fingers over it, frowning. “You found this in the earthquake zone?”
I nodded.
“It doesn’t change anything, Zeus.” Aphrodite approached him.
He met her gaze and it wasn’t friendly. “I will decide whether it changes anything or not.”
She returned to her spot in the circle with a pout.
“Melany Richmond, you have proven to be resourceful, resilient, and fearless. Three traits I admire, especially in a soldier. You have moved me to give you an opportunity to stay in the academy.”
There was some clapping and cheers from my peers.
“You can’t be serious?” Ares blurted.
Relief surged over me. I couldn’t believe I’d convinced the almighty Zeus to give me a second chance. I met my friends’ gazes and smiled.
“I will give you a choice.” Zeus turned to the crowd as if to regale them. “Accept a bolt of my lightning, or be expelled and thrown into exile.”
“No. She’ll be killed!” Demeter bolted forward.
All the blood left my head, and I thought I was going to pass out.
I looked out at the crowd and saw Lucian on his feet. “Don’t do it, Blue.”
“No,” Jasmine and Georgina both shouted. “Mel. It’s not worth your life!”
I looked at my friends and Lucian. I never wanted to forget them. The thought of it churned my stomach. What would I be without my memories of them, of this place? I’d be empty and alone for the rest of my life. What kind of life would that be? Not one worth living, that was for sure.
Swallowing down any fear I had, I lifted my head proudly. “I’ll do it.”
Chapter Sixteen
LUCIAN
I couldn’t sit and watch this. It was wrong. I tried to dash out into the stadium—I wasn’t sure what I was going to do, but I had to do something—but Heracles, who had been sitting in the rows with the students, grabbed me before I could.
“You can’t stop it, Lucian.”
“The lightning will kill her. She’s not ready to control it.”
“She’s strong. Stronger than you think.”
Zeus held his arms up toward the murmuring crowd, and a crack of thunder zipped in the air over head. “Silence.”
That stopped everyone from talking.
“Everyone needs to witness the bravery of this girl, as she attempts the lightning trial.”
Melany walked to the middle of the arena and stood there waiting. She looked so courageous out there on her own, preparing to undergo the most dangerous and most difficult trial of the academy training. I wanted to go to her, hold her hand, hug her, and tell her how I truly felt for her before it was too late.
“During the trial, Melany will have to hold my greatest and most powerful weapon crafted for me by the great cyclops, Arges—the lightning bolt.”
Zeus clapped his hands together causing a loud crash of thunder to reverberate through the stadium, making everyone jump. The floor shook from the power of it. Then he slowly drew his hands apart. In between them the air sparked and crackled, until he’d formed a five-foot long bolt of glowing white lightning.
I could feel the power of it, even from where I stood. The little hairs on my arms lifted, and I could taste ozone on my tongue.
Zeus stepped toward Melany, whose face paled with every step he took.
“She will need to pick it up and hold it for no less than two minutes. There have only been ten recruits in the past one hundred years able to complete this trial. And they have gone on to glory as part of my clan.”
Rearing his hand back, Zeus stuck the lightning bolt into the floor in front of Melany. She jumped back in surprise. Zeus moved back and waved his hand toward her. “You may start.”
A tense hush fell over the arena. I couldn’t sit and watch, so I stood beside Heracles just on the edge of the main platform. I dug my fingernails into the palms of my hands to keep me grounded. Nerves rooted deep in my gut, and I felt nauseated as Melany took a step forward.
She closed her eyes for a moment, lifted her head, and I saw her lips move. Was she praying? I could’ve told her it was useless, as all the Gods were standing in this room, most of them indifferent to what was going on. No one was going to rescue her.
When she opened her eyes again, she took a wide stance, then wrapped her hands around the bolt, and picked it up. Her face instantly contorted in pain as the electricity shot through her. There were several shocked gasps in the audience. I looked over to see Georgina and Jasmine clutching hands, their eyes wide in horror as they watched their friend be tortured.
Seconds ticked by and Melany still held the lightning. Her whole body shook with the effort. Even from here, I could see her hands had turned red, burned from the heat of the electrical current pulsing through the bolt. I couldn’t believe she still held it. By the looks on the Gods’ faces, they couldn’t believe it, either. Zeus looked practically gleeful.
After a minute, the glow of the lightning intensified, and sparks started to flare, and I wondered if Zeus had done that on purpose. But his face told me that what was happening wasn’t anticipated. Frowning, he moved toward Melany. Was he going to put a stop to it?
Just as he went to reach for the bolt, zigzags of white lightning surged up Melany’s arms. She opened her mouth and let out a blood-curdling scream as more waves wrapped around her body from head to toe until she was entombed in crackling white bolts.
People in the stands jumped to their feet.
“Stop it!”
“It’s killing her!”
I tried to push past Heracles, but he held me firm. I watched in horror as Melany was consumed by the lightning. But then I saw something dark swirling around her; it was like black smoke curling up from the floor. It weaved in with the electrical current, surrounding her body.
Demeter broke ranks and ran toward the spectacle. “Put a stop to this. Now. You’ve proven your power.”
Even Hephaistos and Dionysus rushed forward.
Zeus reached over and grasped the bolt in one hand and yanked it out of Melany’s grip. The second that happened, she dropped to the floor like a puppet without strings.
Apollo moved out of the circle and crouched beside Melany. I could see him checking her pulse on her neck and then picking up her wrist.
I pressed against Heracles again. “Let me go.” If Apollo said she was dead, I was going to hurt someone. I was going to make someone pay.
He nodded to Zeus. “She’s alive.”
“She did it,” someone from the crowd yelled. “She held it for over two minutes.”
There were a few cheers and some clapping, but for the most part, everyone was a bit stunned at what we’d just witnessed. I wasn’t sure what to call it. It was supposedly a trial, but it felt like corporal punishment. Torture even.
Heracles smacked me on the back, but not as hard as he usually did it. “You see? She’s strong.”
“She could’ve died, Heracles.”
His smile faded, and he bent toward my ear. “It was a message. You and your friends would do well by heeding it.” He moved away from me.
“Take her to the infirmary,” Zeus said, his voice no longer commanding.
Chiron pushed through the crowd that had started to gather around the platform, everyone craning their necks to get a glimpse of Melany on the floor. Once people saw him, they made room. Standing close to seven feet tall, the centaur was very imposing. Apollo gathered Melany in his arms and very gently draped her over Chiron’s back, and then together they left the stadium.
“Classes are canceled today,” Zeus said. “Everyone return to your dorms.”
It was a bit of chaos as recruits and Gods and others streamed out of the
auditorium. I caught up with Georgina, Jasmine, and Ren as they exited through the main doors.
“Do you think they’ll let us see her?” Georgina asked.
Jasmine shook her head. She looked worn out. “I doubt it.”
“I can’t believe that just happened.” Ren rubbed at his mouth, and then his voice went low. “It was almost like they wanted to kill her.”
I looked at each of them, wondering if I should tell them what Heracles had said to me. “I think we need to be careful from now on and don’t trust anyone. Especially not any of the professors.”
“Who do you think ratted us out?” Jasmine’s gaze was pointed, and I assumed she suspected me.
“I don’t know, but I’m definitely going to find out.”
She nodded to me, and I hoped that meant she believed me. Because if she thought I had informed on them, then maybe Melany did, too, and I couldn’t live with that. Especially not after what she’d just gone through.
“Jasmine!”
The voice came from behind us. Jasmine turned just as Mia shoved through a few people and launched herself at the other girl. She wrapped her arms around Jasmine and hugged her tight.
“I was so scared. I thought you were—”
“I’m fine, Mia.” She gave Mia a soft smile.
We walked together through the corridor, and when we rounded the corner to head to the main foyer and the staircase to the dorms, Dionysus was there, leaning up against the wall.
“Lucian, mate, we need to have a little chit chat.”
Ren gave me a look of concern, but I shrugged it off. “You guys go ahead. I’ll catch up to you later.”
“Let’s go to my office.”
I followed Dionysus down another hall, up some stairs, then down another empty corridor until he stopped in front of a very ornate wooden door. All the carvings were versions of him dancing, or singing, or engaging in some suggestive activities with what looked like wood nymphs. He opened the door and we went in.
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