Forsaken Deity

Chapter 23

Thea sighed, watching the flame flicker in the breeze. For nearly two days there had been no advancement on the flame situation. It was easier to create the fire, but she still couldn’t make it larger. The best she could manage was moving the small flame through the air after that.

Apollo’s advice to get angry just wasn’t working. Her brain was clouded with worry over the impending battle and she just wasn’t ready. The more she failed the bigger the worry grew, and the night before she had lain awake, watching a flame flicker above her, its orange light mocking her.

Hermes being gone was another problem. Zeus had decided to get his revenge in pettiness, by sending Hermes all over to alert the other Gods that the time was close. She hadn’t seen him since they got back from the forest two nights ago. He had left in a hurry, promising to be back soon, and left her and Artemis to deal with a pouting Apollo who was upset he’d missed the big showdown with Zeus.

Artemis sat next to her, sharpening arrow heads, and the noise was grating on Thea’s patience. Artemis barely left her side, giving her no spare time to relax. Even Apollo was beginning to feel on edge. The Gameboy had been destroyed and Artemis was on his back too, hitting him whenever his teaching grew lax. If he’d been a normal human, Thea knew he’d be black and blue by now from all the blows Artemis had inflicted.

Just after lunch, a reprieve had come in the form of Ares, the God of War. He was a large man, all muscle and scars. She wasn’t sure how he had scars, being a God, but she didn’t dare ask. He was bare chested, wearing nothing but a leather Trojan style warrior skirt. A strap ran across his chest, holding a large bronze shield in place on his back, a chariot etched into the metal.

He appeared in the field next to Apollo’s head, and Apollo moved quickly, sitting up. “Come on, Ares! I didn’t need to see that, I just ate!”

Ares looked down at him, amused. “Good to see you too, Apollo.” His voice was deep but quiet, seeming to fill up the silence. “Hello, Artemis. It has been some time since we fought together. Hope you haven’t lost your touch.”

“It’s probably still better than yours,” she muttered, throwing another arrow into the sharp pile.

His eyes landed on Thea and she nodded her head. “Hello.”

“You must be the young woman our messenger is enamoured with.”

“You saw Hermes?”

“Yes,” he smiled thinly. “He has nothing but praise for you. I trust you will live up to your reputation.”

“I hope so too,” she murmured, turning back to the flame in her hand.

Apollo stood up. “Come on, Ares. I’ll show you where you can dump the shield.”

They walked off, Ares reminding Apollo that his shield was valuable and would not be dumped, and Thea felt her shoulders relax. She knew he was on their side but just his presence was threatening.

Artemis continued sharpening. “You all right?”

“Yeah, just on edge. Are they all going to be as scary as him?”

Artemis grinned. “No, he’s probably the scariest of the bunch next to Athena. She should be coming in a couple of days.”

“How many are coming, exactly?”

“Unfortunately, not many. Many of the Gods don’t want to be involved anymore. They gave up caring some time ago. Fortunately, Cronos won’t have an army himself, only a handful of Titans so we won’t be completely outnumbered. Including Apollo, Ares and myself, the rest should be Athena, Zeus, Enyo, Hera and Hephaestus.”