BOOK TWO
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Cicero diverted another of Demetrius’s blasts just enough to miss the twins. “Can’t you work your magic on those dragons?” Flori asked them, concerned that Jove and Cicero would soon be overwhelmed.
“They’re too far away for us,” they answered benignly.
After many longer-than-normal seconds, the Queen and Prince fell backwards with an injured gasp. The Queen sat up first, looking bewildered, and somehow much, much different than a moment ago. The Prince sat up, fighting the onset of shock.
“How did it go?” Flori asked. “Did you win?” An arm thrust out of the wet sapling.
“I did. Not exactly how I expected.” He breathed erratically. He had to get control of himself!
“Well, hurry, make her do it.”
“No need.” The Prince picked up the North Star with shaking hands; it glowed. He looked skyward. “Stop,” he whispered. Above them, the dragons ceased combat, leaving Jove and Cicero confused. The paralyzed Chrysanthians and guards stopped struggling and laid there. “Listen to your Queen,” he ordered, then looked at his mother, who was looking around, terrified. “Tell them to stop fighting. Tell them it’s over.”
“Why?” she asked with quavering voice.
“Please. Just do it,” the Prince ordered with polite urgency. “They’ll listen to you.”
“You seem to be doing just fine.”
“It won’t last.”
The Queen whimpered, a weird sound coming from someone so fearsome, but she pulled herself together to shout, “Stop fighting, everyone! It’s over.” Every creature within earshot obeyed their beloved Queen. The people around her murmured, 'Yes, my Queen, whatever you wish,' and the like. The dragons flew away. She looked to the Prince for approval, and he nodded. Then, she noticed her hands. She held them up to the light as one might when determining the dirtiness of a drinking glass. Her hands confounded her.
“What happened in there?” Flori asked. The Prince gave her a significant look indicating that they would talk later, then turned to the twins.
“I guess you can stop doing…what you do, now,” he told them.
“We already have,” they answered chipperly. Chrysanthians stood up slowly, testing their once again useful legs. Two ran over to the Queen, desperate to help her, asking if she was injured. She thanked them and told them she was fine, though their over-attentiveness made her suspicious of them. A forced throat clearing grabbed everyone’s attention.
“So, what did I miss?” Where a birch tree once grew, there now stood the daughter of Zeus in all her naked glory. The Chrysanthians scurried about, tending to their charge, who received the attention in dire silence, surveying the broken tables with dark concern. She dismissed them as soon as she was dressed. “What happened here? Who are you people?”
“We came here to stop something horrible from happening,” the Prince said.
“Something horrible is going to happen if you don’t leave right now. Zuli, Mito, we have to clean this up before he gets here.” The Chrysanthians did not move. “Why do you hesitate?”
“There’s no time, Chrys.” Mito answered meekly. Chrysanthia’s eyes flashed at the Prince.
“Do you know what’s going to happen when my father arrives?” she asked with accusation.
“He’s going to show his true form and kill everybody,” the Prince stated.
“He’ll reveal his true—yes, that’s right.”
“If you’ll allow me, I think I can protect us. Everybody.” Chrysanthia looked to her friends for a visual cue that this guy told the truth. To her confusion, they looked to the Queen, who tensed up at the attention.
“He seems to know what he’s doing,” the Queen confirmed, unsurely.
“What the hell is going on?” Chrys shouted mystified. “Why do they care what she thinks?” The strangers hemmed and hawed.
“It’s a long story…” Flori said.
“I can fix it, but right now…” the Prince added.
“Forget it!” the demi-god barked. Then, she sighed. “I hate only living for one day a year. I never know what’s going on.”
The Prince took that as a go ahead. He closed his eyes and connected to every mind he could in the vicinity. When he was sure he had as many as possible he uttered his directive, “Blind.” He opened his eyes, knowing the command would not work on himself. His friends’ eyes remained shut.
“Did you do it?” Jove asked impatiently.
“Yes.” Eyes opened all around him, accompanied by gasps.
“It didn’t work!”
“What were you even trying to do?” Chrys asked.
“Try again, try again!” Flori said quickly. The Prince closed his eyes and concentrated, his heart beating faster and faster. He couldn’t find as many minds this time.
“Do not see,” he ordered. Everyone peered at each other fearfully, panic rising.
“You should have run,” Chrysanthia lamented. The Prince focused again, reaching even fewer people this time.
“Make yourself blind.” He heard screams. People’s hands were attacking their own faces. “Stop!!” he shouted, and they stopped. The Prince fell backwards.
He couldn’t save them.
He had done it for nothing. Everyone reached out for each other in grief. The Prince crawled to Sasha’s side. Her breathing had stopped; she had died.
“Look, I’ll talk to him. He’ll listen to me. This time he has to listen. Everyone will be fine.” Chrysanthia over-assured everybody.
Then, with impeccable timing, a lightning bolt shook the room, throwing many to the ground. There Zeus stood, massive in a small crater, smoke clearing around him, his face angled with anger. Everyone prepared for their fate. “Father! Father, wait, before you do anything--”
“Who did it?” Zeus bellowed, perplexing the room.
“Who did what, Father?”
“She did,” the twins snitched, pointing at Sasha.
“Revive her.”
“I can’t,” the Prince said.
“Not you,” Zeus snapped. Chrysanthia came over.
“Move away from her,” she advised. “Everyone back up.” Chrys rubbed her hands together, and blue energy sprouted up from each palm. She placed her hands firmly on Sasha’s chest, causing Sasha’s whole torso to spasm upward, tiny lightning bolts danced over the both of them. When Chrys let go, Sasha crashed to the floor expelling a horrendous coughing fit. Her eyes opened, bloodshot and tearing up. Zeus walked to Sasha and lifted her off the ground with one hand, bringing her face to face with him. He examined her closely.
“You are human? All human?” he asked. Sasha nodded, hoping that was the right answer. “Who are you?”
“Sasha…is my name…Mr. Zeus.” She felt stupid for that last part.
“Do you know what you have done, Sasha?”
“I saved my friends.”
“You have done something forbidden. Something even I may not do. You, a human!” Sasha considered standing up to him, she considered apologizing, begging, joking, feigning ignorance and a myriad of other responses, but in the end, she just stared at the god in dread. “How did you do it?” he asked curiously.
Sasha swallowed a giant lump before speaking. “I borrowed power from a magic diamond,” she said as matter-of-factly as possible, then attempted a disarming smile, but achieved only a terrified grimace.
“Show me this diamond.”
“It’s here,” the Prince said, handing it over. Zeus took it and put down Sasha, who leaned heavily on the Prince for support. Zeus inspected the North Star as he meandered over to Chrysanthia.
“Hello, my darling,” he said kissing her cheek. “Sorry for the dramatic entrance.”
“That’s okay, Daddy, good to see you,” she said hugging him. A cautious sense of relief ran through the room after this exchange, hugs and kisses don’t usually precede mass murder, everyone figured.
“Why don’t we start cleaning up this place. I am hungry from my journey. Let’s salvage what we can and try to enjoy our day.” Zeus addressed the strangers in their midst. “I have many questions, but she is in no condition to answer. When she is rested, we’ll talk. After that I’ll decide a proper punishment for you all. In the meantime, won’t you join us in a delicious meal? It may be your last, so you should probably say yes.” They all received the invitation with mixed emotion.
“They’re too far away for us,” they answered benignly.
After many longer-than-normal seconds, the Queen and Prince fell backwards with an injured gasp. The Queen sat up first, looking bewildered, and somehow much, much different than a moment ago. The Prince sat up, fighting the onset of shock.
“How did it go?” Flori asked. “Did you win?” An arm thrust out of the wet sapling.
“I did. Not exactly how I expected.” He breathed erratically. He had to get control of himself!
“Well, hurry, make her do it.”
“No need.” The Prince picked up the North Star with shaking hands; it glowed. He looked skyward. “Stop,” he whispered. Above them, the dragons ceased combat, leaving Jove and Cicero confused. The paralyzed Chrysanthians and guards stopped struggling and laid there. “Listen to your Queen,” he ordered, then looked at his mother, who was looking around, terrified. “Tell them to stop fighting. Tell them it’s over.”
“Why?” she asked with quavering voice.
“Please. Just do it,” the Prince ordered with polite urgency. “They’ll listen to you.”
“You seem to be doing just fine.”
“It won’t last.”
The Queen whimpered, a weird sound coming from someone so fearsome, but she pulled herself together to shout, “Stop fighting, everyone! It’s over.” Every creature within earshot obeyed their beloved Queen. The people around her murmured, 'Yes, my Queen, whatever you wish,' and the like. The dragons flew away. She looked to the Prince for approval, and he nodded. Then, she noticed her hands. She held them up to the light as one might when determining the dirtiness of a drinking glass. Her hands confounded her.
“What happened in there?” Flori asked. The Prince gave her a significant look indicating that they would talk later, then turned to the twins.
“I guess you can stop doing…what you do, now,” he told them.
“We already have,” they answered chipperly. Chrysanthians stood up slowly, testing their once again useful legs. Two ran over to the Queen, desperate to help her, asking if she was injured. She thanked them and told them she was fine, though their over-attentiveness made her suspicious of them. A forced throat clearing grabbed everyone’s attention.
“So, what did I miss?” Where a birch tree once grew, there now stood the daughter of Zeus in all her naked glory. The Chrysanthians scurried about, tending to their charge, who received the attention in dire silence, surveying the broken tables with dark concern. She dismissed them as soon as she was dressed. “What happened here? Who are you people?”
“We came here to stop something horrible from happening,” the Prince said.
“Something horrible is going to happen if you don’t leave right now. Zuli, Mito, we have to clean this up before he gets here.” The Chrysanthians did not move. “Why do you hesitate?”
“There’s no time, Chrys.” Mito answered meekly. Chrysanthia’s eyes flashed at the Prince.
“Do you know what’s going to happen when my father arrives?” she asked with accusation.
“He’s going to show his true form and kill everybody,” the Prince stated.
“He’ll reveal his true—yes, that’s right.”
“If you’ll allow me, I think I can protect us. Everybody.” Chrysanthia looked to her friends for a visual cue that this guy told the truth. To her confusion, they looked to the Queen, who tensed up at the attention.
“He seems to know what he’s doing,” the Queen confirmed, unsurely.
“What the hell is going on?” Chrys shouted mystified. “Why do they care what she thinks?” The strangers hemmed and hawed.
“It’s a long story…” Flori said.
“I can fix it, but right now…” the Prince added.
“Forget it!” the demi-god barked. Then, she sighed. “I hate only living for one day a year. I never know what’s going on.”
The Prince took that as a go ahead. He closed his eyes and connected to every mind he could in the vicinity. When he was sure he had as many as possible he uttered his directive, “Blind.” He opened his eyes, knowing the command would not work on himself. His friends’ eyes remained shut.
“Did you do it?” Jove asked impatiently.
“Yes.” Eyes opened all around him, accompanied by gasps.
“It didn’t work!”
“What were you even trying to do?” Chrys asked.
“Try again, try again!” Flori said quickly. The Prince closed his eyes and concentrated, his heart beating faster and faster. He couldn’t find as many minds this time.
“Do not see,” he ordered. Everyone peered at each other fearfully, panic rising.
“You should have run,” Chrysanthia lamented. The Prince focused again, reaching even fewer people this time.
“Make yourself blind.” He heard screams. People’s hands were attacking their own faces. “Stop!!” he shouted, and they stopped. The Prince fell backwards.
He couldn’t save them.
He had done it for nothing. Everyone reached out for each other in grief. The Prince crawled to Sasha’s side. Her breathing had stopped; she had died.
“Look, I’ll talk to him. He’ll listen to me. This time he has to listen. Everyone will be fine.” Chrysanthia over-assured everybody.
Then, with impeccable timing, a lightning bolt shook the room, throwing many to the ground. There Zeus stood, massive in a small crater, smoke clearing around him, his face angled with anger. Everyone prepared for their fate. “Father! Father, wait, before you do anything--”
“Who did it?” Zeus bellowed, perplexing the room.
“Who did what, Father?”
“She did,” the twins snitched, pointing at Sasha.
“Revive her.”
“I can’t,” the Prince said.
“Not you,” Zeus snapped. Chrysanthia came over.
“Move away from her,” she advised. “Everyone back up.” Chrys rubbed her hands together, and blue energy sprouted up from each palm. She placed her hands firmly on Sasha’s chest, causing Sasha’s whole torso to spasm upward, tiny lightning bolts danced over the both of them. When Chrys let go, Sasha crashed to the floor expelling a horrendous coughing fit. Her eyes opened, bloodshot and tearing up. Zeus walked to Sasha and lifted her off the ground with one hand, bringing her face to face with him. He examined her closely.
“You are human? All human?” he asked. Sasha nodded, hoping that was the right answer. “Who are you?”
“Sasha…is my name…Mr. Zeus.” She felt stupid for that last part.
“Do you know what you have done, Sasha?”
“I saved my friends.”
“You have done something forbidden. Something even I may not do. You, a human!” Sasha considered standing up to him, she considered apologizing, begging, joking, feigning ignorance and a myriad of other responses, but in the end, she just stared at the god in dread. “How did you do it?” he asked curiously.
Sasha swallowed a giant lump before speaking. “I borrowed power from a magic diamond,” she said as matter-of-factly as possible, then attempted a disarming smile, but achieved only a terrified grimace.
“Show me this diamond.”
“It’s here,” the Prince said, handing it over. Zeus took it and put down Sasha, who leaned heavily on the Prince for support. Zeus inspected the North Star as he meandered over to Chrysanthia.
“Hello, my darling,” he said kissing her cheek. “Sorry for the dramatic entrance.”
“That’s okay, Daddy, good to see you,” she said hugging him. A cautious sense of relief ran through the room after this exchange, hugs and kisses don’t usually precede mass murder, everyone figured.
“Why don’t we start cleaning up this place. I am hungry from my journey. Let’s salvage what we can and try to enjoy our day.” Zeus addressed the strangers in their midst. “I have many questions, but she is in no condition to answer. When she is rested, we’ll talk. After that I’ll decide a proper punishment for you all. In the meantime, won’t you join us in a delicious meal? It may be your last, so you should probably say yes.” They all received the invitation with mixed emotion.
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