Page 114 of Dead End

A gruesome lupine creature appeared above, his griffin wings so powerful, they tore the upper branches from the trees.

Kane in his monster form.

He descended like a meteor, fast, furious, and without mercy. He flung Fuchi to the side, smashing her body against a sturdy oak tree. The goddess fell to the base in a heap. For one brief, shining moment, I believed the arrival of Kane’s group would be enough to sustain us.

I was wrong.

More deities had also arrived, although I was thrilled to see Bossu among them. The momentary distraction cost me. A rock-like fist made contact with my stomach, knocking the air from my lungs. I slumped to the ground and gazed distractedly at the expanse of sky above me as I attempted to regain my breath. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught movement. At first, I thought they were simply a flock of birds passing overhead until my eyes focused and I realized they were crows.

I snapped back to earth as an oversized foot appeared above my face. I rolled to the side in time to avoid a crushed skull. Jumping to my feet, I felt a rush of adrenaline as an arrow whooshed past me, and not just any arrow. The kind that had been fashioned from the nearest branch. The kind that could only have been crafted by a nature mage.

Brody stepped out from behind a tree to examine his handiwork. “T’was foolish of me to think I could find this kind of excitement outside of Fairhaven.”

“T’was,” I agreed.

Above us, crows cawed. The earth seemed to bend andbreak under the weight of all their divine might. To be fair, their egos were probably the real culprit.

“Remember, we need Bossu,” I announced to everyone within earshot.

“Which one is Bossu again?” Cam asked.

I pointed across the clearing. With his three horns and bullish head, the god was easy to spot.

“Time to grab the bull by the horns,” Gun quipped.

“You first, lad,” Brody said.

Bossu unleashed a roar that even frightened Feng Po’s tiger. The beast bolted into the woods.

“Somebody get that tiger on a leash!” I yelled. I didn’t want the creature happening upon innocent bystanders.

“On it,” Sage said. She whistled and West was by her side in a heartbeat, still in his wolf form. Together they dashed in the direction of the tiger.

Brody nocked another arrow and let it fly.

Bossu seemed to be surrounded by other deities at all times. If he moved three feet to the left, his tight circle accompanied him. If I had any doubts about my plan, they vanished with this observation.

I fought my way toward Bossu. His size was intimidating, but speed was my ally. As I slashed and struck my way through deities, Mars managed to disarm me. My longsword flipped to the ground.

“You should’ve stayed behind your castle walls,” Mars sneered. “You don’t have the power to defeat me, let alone the rest of us.”

Max attacked from the side. He bulldozed the Roman god to the ground and promptly sat on him. “Kami, I’ve got one!” he yelled.

I continued my pursuit of Bossu, still surrounded by his own version of castle walls.

The realization slammed into me. Of course.Of course!

“You have no power!” I yelled, although it didn’t matter as long as Bossu had others with power willing to protect him.

The god’s head jerked toward me. His eyes glittered like two chunks of coal dusted in diamonds. HeknewI meant him.

Because I was right.

“That’s why you lust for power so badly!” I shouted over the din. “You have none of your own.” Unlike most of the deities, Bossu derived his power solely from others, all external, no internal. Bossu needed a Board of Directors and an Executive Committee. He needed avatars fueled by the power of the gods inside them. He needed the protection of his fellow deities to prop him up. Bossu was desperate to cling to his secondhand power and prestige, and that made him more dangerous than anyone else in this fight.

My teammates continued to clear a path for me. Kane’s monster form swiped at Dis. The Night Mallt and her hunters swarmed the others in an attempt to break through their ranks.

Bossu’s eyes blazed with barely contained fury. “How dare you. I am worshipped,” he ground out.

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