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There was no doubt in his gaze that I was responsible. He was clearly aware that the Spartoi weren’t able to harm him and despite the armor, I apparently wasn’t passing as one of them.
The stone structure fell with a deafening crash, but I couldn’t let myself think about that. Couldn’t let myself analyze the cost of war, and whether it was right for those agathos to pay it when they’d been drawn in by the temptation of food and trapped up there with no way of leaving.
I grabbed Ariston’s spear, aiming at the dragon’s left eye this time, though it bounced off his face as he spun away. He was creeping closer on all four giant lizard legs, flaming wings outstretched either side of him, clearly debating how best to get me alone to fry me with his appendages.
“Sorry,” I mumbled, discarding my shield and grabbing Ariston by the back of his body armor, and marching him forward, unsheathing my sword from my hip at the same time. I wasn’t proud of using one of my fellow soldiers as a human shield, but I wasn’t going to let him get hurt, either.
Ariston didn’t struggle, but he was dragging his feet, leaning as far back from the dragon as possible. The dragon lifted itself to its full height, wings beginning to beat the air, readying itself for takeoff where it would regain the airborne advantage.
But the distraction had been just long enough for T to rouse himself, and he slid up the wall of the ditch with impressive speed and silence before launching himself onto the dragon’s back, flattening him to the ground. The dragon bent its wings back, pressing the flames against T’s skin, and I didn’t allow myself time to hesitate.
I shoved Ariston aside, grabbing his sword, so I had one in each hand, and charged. The dragon thrashed, and T’s roars of pain were morphing into something a little more weak and reedy. If Tcoulddie, then this would be the moment it happened.
The dragon spotted me approaching, and I darted out of the way as it made a snap for me with a mouthful of vicious teeth. Calling on all of my experience in the ring, I forced my feet to move rather than to plant firmly in place, dancing in close before shifting away again, taunting the dragon with my proximity while he alternated his attention between me and T.
There were shouts behind me, though I couldn’t tell if they were encouragement or discouragement, nearly drowned out by the agonizing sounds of human suffering where the structure had collapsed. Something arose in me that wasn’t quite bloodlust, but it was similar enough. It was rage and frustration, horror and disbelief.
And unlike with the bloodlust, where I ran from the sensation until it caught up and smothered me, I leaned into the feeling. And when T dragged himself higher up the dragon, grabbing his face and digging his thumbs into the beast’s eyeballs, I seized the opening.
I ran forward on steady feet, raising the blades above my head and plunging them into either side of the dragon’s throat. It let out a piercing howl, the movement of its vocal cords making it even harder to push the blades all the way to their hilts, twisting and digging into the thick, armor-like flesh.
“I’m sorry,” I grunted, silently saying a prayer that this dragoncouldin fact be killed, and that if it was, Thanatos would take care with its soul. He had been a weapon, and now he was dying for it.
My arm muscles strained and burned as I twisted the blades again, black blood spurting out of the wounds and hitting my face, my helmet, my breastplate.
And finally,finally, the dragon fell still.
Chapter 26
Godslikedtohearthemselves talk, I decided. I wasn’t complaining necessarily, because hearing about the world and the primordial gods who’d come from Chaos, about the Titans who’d risen to prominence through violence, and then the Olympians who’d taken their place—also through violence, it was a theme—was fascinating. And in some ways, I saw hints of what I thought it was that Tartarus was looking for.
They spoke about their lives before with longing, and they spoke of Gaia’s victory that sent them here to this prison with a sense of calm, rather than a cold, vicious need for revenge.
And I knew nothing about anything, but that seemed good, didn’t it? The problem was that I didn’tknow. All I knew about the upperworld—the ones who’d be most impacted by this decision—was the snippets I’d heard from the various underworld deities I’d spoken to. The onlyconcretememory I had of the upperworld was the sunshine on my face, the sound of rustling trees, and the baby laughing.
In my head, it was perfect the way it was. Why mess with perfection?
“Halfling,” a low voice growled, making me jump. Aphrodite shot an impatient look at the god who’d interrupted her story, but the ire melted out of her expression after a moment.
“My husband,” she explained. “Hephaestus.”
“Oh.” The god narrowed his eyes at me, and I guessed I didn’t school my surprise fast enough. It was just that Aphrodite wassobeautiful, and Hephaestus was… more rugged. He was bulkier than most of the other gods, though not as tall as Zeus. While a couple of them had beards and long hair, none were as wild as Hephaestus’. In his toga-like outfit, it was clear to see that hair extended over his entire upper body.
“Come,” he commanded. “They all talk too much. Let me show you more of what has been our home these past millennia.”
“Oh, okay.” I stood, staying a step behind as he limped out of the lounge room full of couches, heading down a stone corridor before taking a sharp left and heading down a narrow, winding staircase.
“You looked as though you needed a break. They will talk and talk and tell you nothing,” Hephaestus grumbled. “They all like to hear the sounds of their own voices, and all believe they have something of value to add. Something thatmustbe heard. However, in the time we’ve been trapped here, we have learned to listen to one another much better. We collaborate better.”
The spiral staircase ended, and I heard the roar of flames before I saw the enormous fire. It was some kind of forge, I guessed. The walls were lined with weapons and helmets and armor, each one entirely unique and some quite odd.
“I have a limited amount of material to work with, so most of what you see has been melted down and made anew many times over. For centuries, I had no space to myself, but once it became clear to the others that I was struggling without somewhere quiet to go, they decided to create this area exclusively for my use.”
That was nice of them. Collaborative. Kind.
Hephaestus picked up an axe, spinning it easily in his hand before mounting it back on the wall again.
“My wife and I used to have… a contentious relationship. She loves Ares, always has. Ares loves her back.”
