Page 3 of Immortal Sun

“It’s bar tending, not rocket science.” I sigh. “And I need to keep her close so it’s going to be me. I don’t want her having a lot of contact with the others…Besides, they’re all pretending like the world isn’t burning, having kids, giving up on the trials. And don’t think I know exactly what you have planned. I’m not going to end up married off or worse have one of you scare her shitless with your stories of fallen angels only to drop her off at my doorstep and say survive. She’s mine.”

Anubis’s eyebrows arch. “Oh?”

“You know what I mean. She’s the last. She means nothing.”

“The more you speak the more it seems like you’re trying to convince yourself, then again what’s one small insignificant human life, hmm?”

“Exactly.” I look away.

“I’ll send her in once she gets here for training tomorrow. Cyrus, I hope you find what you’re looking for. And in the end, I hope it is worth it.”

I give him my back and listen to his solid footsteps as he leaves my office and opens the door to the raging noise from the bar. I don’t even hear it shut. It’s loud, it's always been chaotic.

It’s good. This is good.

I’m almost done.

It’s almost finished.

Balance will always outweigh Chaos.

And power will always overcome death.

I look in the direction of Olympus knowing it’s there, waiting for me. History will always repeat itself even when I’m gone.

By the time I make it outside to the street for a much-needed break, the weather’s gone from sunny to chaotic, like it can sense what’s about to happen or maybe it’s pissed about what’s been happening, what needs to continue to happen in order to keep those waves where they belong. The trial must continue. I must finish it. The Puget Sound feels different tonight. Many of the islands are no longer living beings, simply rocks scattered across the ocean, all except one so full of anger it refuses to let time take it.

“Settle down, Ken,” I whisper under my breath, knowing he can hear the vibrations of my voice through the wind, even if he doesn’t want to. A giant crack sounds in the distance as a tree snaps in half on the small island, hurling itself into the water. Nature’s throwing a small tantrum as per usual.

I snort out a laugh of amusement. So testy. “Yeah, well stop eating only fish, bread won’t kill you.”

I turn my back from the direction of his home, close my eyes, and breathe in the salty breeze mixed with the smell of cigarettes and booze.

“It wasn’t always like this, was it?” I say mostly to myself. “It’s almost like I can’t remember anymore what it was like to fly.”

The wind abruptly dies down, and I go back into the noisy bar to tell my staff we are about to prepare Styx for its final guest.

CHAPTER 2

CLEO

“Old myths, old gods, old heroes have never died. They are only sleeping at the bottom of our mind, waiting for our call. We have need for them. They represent the wisdom of our race.”— Stanley Kunitz

Igrip the railing as the fresh sea breeze of the Puget Sound stings my face. I loathe ferries. I always have. They’re large water taxis that move at the speed of a snail and right now it’s taking everything in me not to just jump into the freezing cold water and swim.

“Please. Please.” I tug at my bracelet and stare at the Olympic Mountain range.

My brain can’t help but continue to spit out the actual facts.

Nearly a million acres just outside of Seattle of nothing but mountains and water surrounding it.

Seventy-three miles of coastline alone.

Thirty-two glaciers.

Scientists have explored only about five percent of the earth’s oceans and according to myth we even have a giant squid or Kraken in ours. Not to mention the fascinating draw of one of the only islands in the Puget Sound where archeologists have found Egyptian hieroglyphics.

I look over the edge. A single tear slides down my cheek dropping dramatically against the railing, between my two hands still gripping tight. It’s around a thousand feet in depth.

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