Awakening (Book One of the Eklektos Series)

Chapter Twenty Seven

"Escape and evade." Ares' voice rang out, harsh as the crack of a whip in the otherwise silent evening. "You all know the rules. Reach the mess hall without getting dead, and then make it back here. Standard infiltration exercise. Credit for not being stupid and raising any of the alarms. More credit for beating the crap out of anyone that does find you, before they can do anything about it."

Ares' eyes rested on Kali's empty expression and he continued "You five were chosen at random for the first round. Every other demigod you meet out there is an enemy. It doesn't matter if they are friends, lovers, or family. They are expected to bring you down and they will do nothing less if you are found. Some are not above the use of deadly force to accomplish this."

"How long do we have?" Kali asked, her voice even.

"Sunset to sunrise. There will be no penalty for taking all of that time, but the task will be completed before the sun hits the top spire of the mess hall. Regardless of what happens, the exercise will not end until all five of you are back here, or your time has run out." Ares puffed himself up and advised "You will retrieve the flag I have placed on the spire and bring it back here with you. Simple enough for you?"

Ben, whom Kali hadn't seen since the assessments, muttered "They know our objective?"

"No, but any more questions and they'll probably find you before you even move. Now find something to use as a weapon if you don't have one and get going." With that, he was gone. The five demigods glanced at each other silently for a moment before agreeing that they should probably do as Ares said.

Ben was the first to move, grabbing a small hammer from the workbench and drawing his own knife. He glanced at Kali and muttered "I'll keep watch until you're ready."

Kali nodded and scanned the room for anything useful. She had taken to carrying her staff everywhere, hanging on her belt with the long knives, so she had no need for a weapon. Ben evidently carried his knife everywhere as well, but the others seemed to be unarmed. Trevor could use his fists, but Lily and Jack were not fighters. They looked around them blankly; they didn't seem to have a clue what they could use. Kali grabbed a rake and threw it to the strawberry blonde girl, thinking that a gardening tool would be quite apt for a daughter of Demeter.

Jack flashed a hopeful smile, showing his perfect white teeth, and Kali rolled her eyes. He still hadn't stopped flirting with her every chance he got since his bet with his brother. His short hair showed off more of his attractive features than his twin's dreadlocks, but Kali wasn't interested. His flirting was less confrontational than the gods' at least, but no more welcome.

After a few moments, Jack had managed to find a broken shovel to use as a staff. Trevor had tied some planks of rotting wood to his arms and was holding horseshoes. Kali could only assume they were an improvised version of brass knuckles. Not pretty, but effective. She muttered to Lily and Jack to stay close and then moved outside the stables to meet Ben.

He beckoned them over into a clump of foliage and relayed the situation in a hushed voice. There were demigods dotted around the whole camp, as far as he could see. No building was without some coverage, and there was a group near the stables. "As far as I can tell, they're in small groups but they're not communicating with each other. If we take some out, I don't think it'll lead the others to us."

Trevor clapped the horseshoes together with a bloodthirsty smile. "So, I don't have to hold back?"

"Uh...sure." Ben replied, rolling his eyes. "We'd do better with a distraction. Unless we plan to take out every demigod here, which I wouldn't advise."

Trevor looked disappointed as the rest of them agreed. Kali said "I could start a fire by the Colosseum if I get close enough. They must know who they're looking for, so fire would draw them to me. Then our path back here will be open."