DEMIS (A Clash With Lightning)

34

The weather throughout their entire journey had been merciful. Sunny skies and comfortable temperatures had blessed the waters—until today. Today, the sky was gray, the winds were strong, harsh rain stung the skin when it landed, and lightning split across the sky, followed by the loud crack of thunder.

They were about four hours off the coast of Rome, headed straight for Lake Avernus. Lake Avernus was a well-known entrance to the Underworld, a passage that would allow the living to enter.

Jasmine cracked her knuckles while handling the sail. It was obvious she would be the one to steer during the storm. She could handle the rain. Her mind was plagued with thoughts of meeting Alexander again. Seeing him in the restaurant just a few days ago had been terrifying. She'd been doing her best to improve during this mission for two reasons—she desperately wanted to be strong enough to beat him, and she needed to protect the life she knew. She thought about her mother, her friends from school, and her cat. If the Titans took over, everything would be over. She was equally desperate to keep Alexander out of her mind.

Unfortunately—and she would never admit this out loud—Alexander had left a lasting impression on her. His power was suffocating, that was clear, but she could tell he wasn't evil. He was just misguided, blinded by his rage. She couldn't imagine having her mother turned into a monster and being forced to kill her. It made her feel conflicted about killing him.

She was pulled from her thoughts when a loud boom of thunder startled her. She looked up at the sky. Alexander must be expecting them, and this was his version of a warm welcome. It would be impossible for Zeus to conjure up a storm like this in his current state. It was hard to believe that they were already nearing the end of their quest. They just needed to find Ban's armor and head straight to Hades' castle.

She let out a sigh of relief when the boat finally reached the shore. She conjured the water to push them further into the sand so their boat wouldn't be swept away by the storm. Then, she knocked on the cabin door to let her friends know it was time to go. They'd been camping out in the safety of the cabin for a while, so she'd had plenty of time to think about their journey and what direction she wanted to go.

"Gods, this weather is horrible," Josh complained, covering his face with his hands.

"Yeah, let's hurry and find the entrance. We have no time to waste," Keith said seriously.

The weight of the situation was heavy on everyone's shoulders. Handling monsters was one thing—handling a son of Zeus was another.

They reached Lake Avernus on foot. The storm continued its brutal assault as they finally saw the grand lake, surrounded by toxic, volcanic fumes. The fumes rose directly from the volcanoes in the Underworld. They knew they were close. The group covered their noses to avoid inhaling too much while looking to Ban expectantly.

Ban lifted his hands above the water and channeled his death energy. The blue lake began to turn gray, matching the raging sky above. It started to spin rapidly, creating an intimidating whirlpool. Ban showed no strain on his face. His power had grown stronger over the past few days, and this was nothing to him.

The water angrily crashed against itself as the whirlpool sped up, revealing a dark pit at its center. Ban turned to look at his friends.

"We have to jump in," he said.

"Of course we do," Keith groaned. "Well, good thing we're already wet."

He then leaped into the whirlpool—either bravely or stupidly. No one was quite sure. Jasmine panicked and jumped after him in case he needed help.

"Keith!" she shouted as she plunged in.

"I kinda thought we'd all jump together at least," Josh grumbled. "I guess I'll see you guys there." He hesitantly cannonballed into the whirlpool as it dragged him to the center.

Rose stepped up to Ban timidly. She held out her hand for him to take. "Do you want to jump together?"

"Of course I do." Ban managed a small smile. He would never be good enough for her.

They held hands as they leaped into the water before the rapids tore them apart and dragged them under.

The water was painfully cold. It made their muscles go numb with a prickling sensation. It was heavy, too—like a house pressing down on them. Then, all of a sudden, they were standing on the shore of the River Styx.

They looked around at each other to make sure everyone was accounted for. A collective sigh of relief followed when no one was missing.

Ban cringed when he noticed the crowd of lost souls gathered in the shrubbery. It reminded him that he had more to do than just defeating Alexander. Once this was all said and done, he would make sure a massive bridge was built over the lake. It wasn't these poor souls' fault that they hadn't been buried with their coins—they deserved an alternative. He would make sure it happened, even if he had to overthrow his father to do it.

"I've already been here," Ban announced to his friends. "I know where we need to go."

They followed him onto the dock, ignoring the dirty looks from the souls waiting in an almost never-ending line as they skipped ahead. They stood at the dock as Ban explained they had to wait for Charon to pick them up.

"We don't have a way to pay him," Jasmine pointed out. "None of us are dead, and we don't have soul coins."

Ban had forgotten about that. He was sure he could convince Charon to take them for free. If humans went extinct because of the Titans, Charon's source of income would disappear. That was investment enough for a free ride—for once.

When the boat creaked up to the dock, Charon didn't seem surprised to see living people at all. He tipped his baseball cap in greeting before grinning at them.

"It's about time you lot got here," he said. "I've been waiting for days."