~ { Shadow and Beauty } ~

Gaea's Gone. For Now

{Kiara}

Kiara's gut twisted. This was the moment Piper had warned them about. They'd played right into Enceladus's hands.

   The giant must've read Kiara's expression, because he laughed even louder. "That's right, daughter of Pluto. I didn't expect you all to stay alive this long, but it doesn't matter. By bringing you here, Piper McLean has sealed the deal. If she betrays you, I'm as good as my word. She can take her father and go. What do I care about a movie star?"

    Kiara could see Piper's dad more clearly now. He wore a ragged dress shirt and torn slacks. His bare feet were caked with mud. He wasn't completely unconscious, because he lifted his head and groaned. He had a nasty cut down the side of his face, and he looked thin and sickly.

   "Dad!" Piper yelled.

   Mr. McLean blinked, trying to focus. "Pipes...? Where..."

   Piper drew her dagger and faced Enceladus. "Let him go!"

   "Of course, dear," the giant rumbled. "Swear your loyalty to me, and we have no problem. Only these others must die."

   Piper looked back and forth between Leo and her dad.

   "He'll kill you," Leo warned. "Don't trust him!"

   "Oh, come now," Enceladus bellowed. "You know I was born to fight Athena herself? Mother Gaea made each of us giants with a specific purpose, designed to fight and destroy a particular god. I was Athena's nemesis, the anti-Athena, you might say. Compared to some of my brethren—I am small! But I am clever. And I keep my bargain with you, Piper McLean. It's part of my plan!"

   Jason and Kiara were on their feet now, lance and sword ready; but before they could act, Enceladus roared—a call so loud it echoed down the valley and was probably heard all the way to San Francisco.

   At the edge of the woods, half a dozen ogre-like creatures rose up. Leo realized with nauseating certainty that they hadn't simply been hiding there. They'd risen straight out of the earth.

   The ogres shuffled forward. They were small compared to Enceladus, about seven feet tall. Each one of them had six arms—one pair in the regular spot, then an extra pair sprouting out the top of their shoulders, and another set shooting from the sides of their rib cages. They wore only ragged leather loincloths, and even across the clearing, Kiara could smell them. Six guys who never bathed, with six armpits each.

   Leo stepped toward Piper. "What—what are those?"

   Her blade reflected the purple light of the bonfire. "Gegenees."

   "In English?" Leo asked.

   "The Earthborn," Kiara said. "Six-armed giants who fought Jason—the first Jason."

   "Very good, my dear!" Enceladus sounded delighted. "They used to live on a miserable place in Greece called Bear Mountain. Mount Diablo is much nicer! They are lesser children of Mother Earth, but they serve their purpose. They're good with construction equipment—"

   "Vroom, vroom!" one of the Earthborn bellowed, and the others took up the chant, each moving his six hands as though driving a car, as if it were some kind of weird religious ritual. "Vroom, vroom!"

   "Yes, thank you, boys," Encedalus said. "They also have a score to settle with heroes. Especially anyone named Jason."

   "Yay-son!" the Earthborn screamed. They all picked up clumps of earth, which solidified in their hands, turning to nasty pointed stones. "Where Yay-son? Kill Yay-son!"