Marcus DimascioThe Hurricane Throne

CHAPTER NO.10

"Marcus!" a girl's voice yelled. "Wake up!"

My eyes snapped open. I clung to Ventus's reins, the wind blowing wildly. The memory dream left my body in a state of shock and sadness – remembering my training from my father made my gut ache with nostalgia.

"Marcus! For the third and final time today, WAKE UP!"

Chloe shook my shoulder desperately. She was pointing behind her, whilst clinging my waist with her other arm. "We got company!"

I looked behind her and saw the problem. Two chariots were closing in behind us. Each of them was being drawn by a team of pegasi. In each chariot, there were a couple of people. They held bows and arrows. They wore old fashioned Greek and Roman armour, and they all wore battle helmets. One of them was holding a bronze axe, just over a meter tall.

They did not look happy.

"It's them," I loudly told Chloe.

I looked in front of me. Where's Hermes? I thought.

Then, I looked down and saw him, like a pebble falling out of the sky. He was gliding down at a steady rate, slowly descending towards the ground below. His winged shoes fluttered wildly, his coat whipping in the wind.

I whipped Ventus's reins. "Ventus, get me closer to Hermes!"

Yes my lord, the stallion replied.

Ventus folded his vapored wings in and dropped forwards, shooting down at the speed of a bullet. I could've sworn that I haven't ridden a winged stallion that could fly this fast before. We reached Hermes in seven seconds.

"Hermes," I cried, "we're in trouble! And when I mean trouble, I mean very BIG trouble!"

The messenger god quickly looked back at the threat. His eyes almost flew out of his eye sockets. He looked back at me and spoke very quickly.

"Dive!" he bellowed at me. "I'll meet you at the Santa Monica beach! Whatever you do, not stop!"

He surged forward, riding the wind and speeding onwards. He disappeared into the clouds.

"You heard him, Ventus," I shouted at the horse. "Get us to the beach!"

The storm spirit didn't need to say anything. He continued to plummet to the earth below. Chloe wrapped both her arms around my waist tightly, holding on for dear life. I kept stealing glances at the incoming charioteers; their weapons brandished menacingly, especially the one who was holding the freaking axe.

"They must've spotted Ventus when they were patrolling the area or something!" Chloe screamed. "We've got to get out of their sight!"

She looked at Ventus. "You hear me? Lose them in the clouds! We might have a chance of losing them up in the clouds!"

The stallion snorted and bobbed his head. Extending his wings, he shot upwards into the sky, leaving a trail of cloud vapour behind him which quickly faded away as we shot through one of the red clouds, like a bullet hole in a piece of paper.

The air went so cold; Ventus might has well of taken us into outer space.

We went over the top of the clouds, the charioteers nowhere to be seen. Ventus kept flapping his wings, flying us over to our destination. The air became thick with the sheer cold, numbing my arms and my legs.

Chloe had her bow out and was already aiming an arrow behind us. "I can't see them. Where are they?"

"I don't know," I growled in annoyance. I looked left and right, but saw nothing. "They could be anywhere!"

They're right below us! Ventus yelled in my head.

I looked down and saw them, the charioteers. They didn't seem to notice us at all, since they looked over the sides of their chariots. They looked very unhappy than ever before.

I had an idea. Though the odds could be against us...

I looked back at my sister. "Do you trust me?"

She frowned. "Do you really need an answer for that one?"

"I suppose not," I muttered. "Get your bow ready!"

She looked at the people below us and groaned. "Sometimes you have the worst ideas ever."

She pulled back her bowstring and an arrow appeared.

"Ventus." I patted his neck. "When I say 'now', you dive downwards. You got that?"

I hear ya loud and clear, sir.

I held up my hand and waited...and waited.

On the count of three! I said to both Ventus and Chloe in my head. Ready?

Yes! Chloe replied back. Not really fond of heights, but I'm ready!

I counted with my fingers. One...two...THREE!

Ventus folded in his wings and spiralled downwards.

Chloe let loose her arrow. The arrow made contact with one of the chariots and exploded. There was a bright flash of light and the vehicle burst into flames, sending the driver into a panic. He drove headfirst into the other chariot.

It was mass chaos. The two vehicles crashed and broke apart, the drivers falling over the ruined sides. Over the roar of the wind, I heard them screaming in fear as they fell through the sky.