Page 213 of A Touch of Chaos

Persephone and Hecate both looked at the god.

“What?” he asked. “I’m just being honest.”

“That’s your half brother, isn’t it?” Persephone asked.

“Your point?”

“I don’t know. I think it’s kind of weird that you think your brother is hot.”

“Half,” said Hermes. “And why is it weird? It isn’t like I want to fuck him.”

A strained silence followed Hermes’s words.

“Why do I get the feeling that none of you believe me?”

“Because we don’t,” said Hecate.

“I bet you’ve fucked your brother,” said Ares.

“You wish, Ares!”

If Hades were here, he would have started this battle just to shut them up, Persephone thought.

She eyed the wall that surrounded Theseus’s fortress. It was tall and tiered, and hundreds of archers stood ready with their bows, armor gleaming in the firelight.

“The gates are still closed,” Persephone said.

“Give him time,” said Hecate.

She would because she had no choice, but Persephone worried. She had hated Hades’s plan from the moment he had suggested it. It felt like allowing him to return to the labyrinth, and with the horror of Cronos’s reality still plaguing her, all she feared was that he would not return this time.

“So many mortals,” Persephone said quietly.

So many souls, she thought.

“All willing to die for a demigod who has no control over their afterlife,” said Hecate.

“Already considering how you will punish them?” Persephone asked, looking at Hecate.

“Aren’t you?” Hecate returned.

“I don’t see why we have to wait until they are dead,” said Persephone.

In the next second, the ground between them opened, and Cerberus climbed from the depths of the Underworld. He was fearsome to behold, his eyes red and glowing with rage, teeth bared, his deep and guttural growls echoing in the quiet.

It was the first time Persephone saw movement from the Impious, the first time she sensed fear.

“I knew I trained you well,” said Hecate with a smug smile that Persephone returned.

She placed a hand on Cerberus’s side. As she did, there was the distinct sound of a bowstring loosening. She caught sight of an arrow whizzing toward Cerberus, but it was cut down by Artemis, whose own white arrow shattered it into pieces. Briefly, Persephone met the goddess’s gaze, offering a nod of thanks before she stepped beyond their lines.

“How dare you try to hurt my dog,” she said as power gathered in her hands. The ground trembled beneath her and opened, splitting the ranks of the Impious. Some were swallowed by the earth while others managed to race away. As they broke formation, the mortals began to yell and raced toward them, weapons in hand, and a volley of arrows came down on them.

Persephone summoned her magic, and vines grew up the sides of the walls, knocking rows of soldiers from their places.

The demigods vanished, and Persephone barked an order.

“Cerberus, snack!”

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