I push the back door open and round the SUV to the trunk and pop the hatch. My arm strains against the weight of the heavy packs as I pull them out of the trunk and check them. Hiking and climbing gear just in case we need to scale the mountain.
“Perfect.” I grin.
“We won’t even need to see Pan because we’re prepared this time.” Greyson pulls his pack over his shoulders and clips the belt around his waist.
“Pan may not even show because of it,” I say with a twinge of disappointment.
“Unless he has a cryptic dire warning for us,” Draven grumbles.
“His are less cryptic than Adrian and the fates combined. He doesn’t see the future, though, so there’s that.” I shrug my own pack on, making sure to clasp both my bag and medical supplies to it.
We’re going into the last leg of this journey and usually that means everything is about ten times harder than anything we’ve faced so far. Considering I nearly died earlier today, my hands shake with nerves. I ball them into fists so no one can see my weakness.
“You ready to head out, B?” Raven grips my shoulder.
“Yup, let’s get this over with and go back to our friends.” I square my shoulders and tilt my head higher.
“Yes,” Raven says. “I want a good fight, and this mission has been quiet compared to previous missions.”
“I nearly died, Raven.” I roll my eyes.
“While I had to shoot stupid arrows at a giant instead of actually getting my hands dirty.” She sticks her tongue out at me.
“Which way do we need to go?” I ask.
“We should go about a hundred yards to the east before we try to cross the northern border. I’m hoping the blockade will be gone by then and we can cross through the trees.” Greyson glances down at the map in his hands and points to the east of our current location.
We trudge through the surprisingly quiet forest with little trouble.
“Where are the dryads?” I whisper. “They aren’t giggling or messing with us at all.”
“Don’t ask questions. Just be grateful,” Raven says. “They haven’t noticed I’m here yet.”
“Are you sure they haven’t left their trees because of all the activity? There are a lot of humans trampling the place.” Kira frowns.
“I mean, it’s possible but that’s not like them because the humans can’t actually see them. Much like the monsters’ spirits are invisible to the humans.” I step over a fallen branch.
“It might be the fact that this whole area is a hotbed for volcanic activity, and they feel the difference and are scared of an eruption,” Raven says.
“That’s probably the most likely scenario. They will be back once we get the hammer back and everything eases up.” I nod.
“Let’s keep going east for a little while. I still smell the humans.” Greyson taps his nose.
“I think I smell it too,” Kira says. “That’s so weird.”
“You’ll get used to the heightened senses eventually.” Greyson smiles at her over his shoulder.
“Good to know it’s not always like this.” She shudders.
“There.” Greyson points up ahead. “Do you smell that?”
“It’s powerful.” Kira sneezes. “It’s like ozone and magic.”
“Also, the wildness to the smell of ancient forests and fresh water,” Greyson says. “It’s Pan.”
“I didn’t think we would see Pan,” I say, bouncing on my toes. “He’s not busy with the war the way Hermes and the others are. Thank the gods.”
“Let’s go see what he has to say to us this time.” Raven adjusts her grip on her sword.
