“Good luck to you guys. Hopefully the next time I see you, we’re all victors.” Tristan waves to us as we walk out the doors of the lobby.
“Good luck to you as well. Take care of my academy and my people, yeah?”
“Like they’re my own, Beth. That’s a promise.”
I just hope I live long enough to see that promise fulfilled. If I don’t, all is lost and the world burns while Hera cackles at her victory.
9
“Where are we?” I yawn several hours later.
“Just outside of Flagstaff,” Raven says. “Tristan was right; there’s something off here.”
“What do you see?” I sit forward in my seat.
“It’s not something I see; it’s more of a gut feeling. My gut rarely fails me.”
“Except when it’s growling at you to fuel the bottomless pit.” Greyson chuckles. “Ow, babe.”
“Don’t make fun of me. Something seriously feels off.” Raven whacks him on the arm.
“No, you’re right. I feel it too. It’s like a strong concentration of magic is nearby.” I glance out the window.
“We’re almost to the volcano. Do you think it’s a forge too?” Greyson asks.
“I have no idea, but the books said that almost every major volcano held one of Hephaestus’ forges so it’s possible.” I shrug.
“Something’s been bothering me,” Kira says.
“What is that?” I turn to her.
“I couldn’t find any stories indicating Hephaestus had run-ins with monsters or ordered the death of monsters. What are we going to face on this journey if he didn’t interact with monsters or really anyone?”
“The queen could send any number of nasty things at us, but I’m hoping that she’ll be too busy with her battle against Zeus to worry about what we’re doing.” I glance at Kira over my shoulder.
“He was a part of the giant war but that’s about it,” Kira explains. “Most of his stories involve revenge on the other gods, like Aphrodite and Ares for their affair.”
“What about his automatons? They could potentially be a problem,” Raven says.
“Yeah, especially since losing his hammer is likely weakening him. The automatons could go berserk.” I stare out the window at the mountain growing larger the closer we get to it.
“We can’t forget about the demon pigeons either,” Greyson says. “Weren’t they said to be made by Hephaestus?”
“You just spoke that into the damn universe,” I grumble. “How many times do we have to fry the fuckers before they die and stay dead?”
“Too many times already.” Raven sighs.
“And we’re likely going to have to kill them again before this mission is over.” I rest my elbows on my knees, leaning between the front seats.
“Maybe they stayed in Arcadia.” Kira chirps.
“Shit,” I say as something occurs to me. “What if the queen sends them to the academy instead of coming for us?”
“Where’s the strategy in that?” Kira asks. “There are tons of demigods at the academy that can use fire magic. The birds would barely make a dent.”
“If she is even worried about us retrieving the hammer.” Raven turns in her seat.
“The hammer is what will turn the tide so why wouldn’t she be worried that we got it?” I ask.
