Page 69 of Becoming Monsterous

Instead of letting him kill me, I meet his gaze—and put the full force of all my powers into it.

The desire for vengeance brims within me. I feel the long years that Medusa fought and suffered. The centuries that the god of vengeance lived before giving up his life and his powers to her.

All the injustices done to my men. The horrors I saw in the Shadow World. Soul Protectors, turned into Shades.

It isn't just my vengeance that's on the line right now.

It's vengeance foreverychild of the gods who's been lost and tortured for so long.

I freeze Percy in his tracks, turning him into stone. My powers take hold slowly—first his face, then his neck, shoulders, biceps, forearms... and hands.

They're frozen around my neck, still choking the life out of me. I can feel his powers coursing into me, a gift from Medusa, the ability to take his magic by turning him into stone. They give me the ability to undo his freeze spell—but without his hands moving, I can't get air.

The only strength I have is to unfreeze my mouth and lips enough to gasp for what little air I can get.

It isn't enough. His hands are stone around my neck, and I can feel myself fading. I'm not going to make it.

That's what I think.

Until Cornelia slithers from my hair, shoves her silken nose under the Magistrate's stone hands, and strikes them with her fangs.

The other snakes soon join her, becoming unfrozen one by one, shaking off Percy's spell.

They bite and strike at his stone hands until they've chipped away enough marble that his fingers fall off and I'm freed.

Stumbling back, I gasp and choke for air. My chest heaves, and I nearly collapse on the ground I'm so weak.

As soon as I get strength and air, I use the last bit of the powers I stole from Percy to undo all of the freezing spell.

One by one, the monsters around me come to life. The cryptwings swoop, fall, and land on the ground. Angus roars and stumbles mid-charge. Aleron snarls and goes for the Magistrate angrily, while Morpheus just blinks and looks around himself slowly.

"That was epic," Lise declares, landing gingerly near me and staring at the Magistrate's now-stone body. "What are you going to do with him?"

I start to tell her that I don't know, then realize that I do.

"He should get a little taste of his own medicine, don't you think?" Bending down, I pick one of his stray stone fingers off the ground, then neatly pocket it into his robes. "Exile sounds like a good start, for him and all the rest of the summoners who wanted to do it to others. Maybe he can stay marble for a while, though. Just to be sure he's learned his lesson."

I'm sure that if Percy could speak, he'd snarl at me and say something insulting.

Lucky me that I'm a gorgon warrior, so I turned the man into stone instead of listening to more of his bullshit.

I'm proud of you, little warrior.Medusa's happiness is a warmth in my chest.You're going to do great things.

* * *

While many ofthe monsters don't have the same ability to love and care as the Shades, I'm discovering as I walk around the gorgon cave that many of themdohave some kind of heart beneath the surface.

Buried deep beneath the surface, of course.

We've had to turn many of them to stone for now, or put them under a deep slumber. Others are in cages made of summoner's shields, while many simply gather together in herds and flocks, angry and mistrustful.

The summoners, meanwhile, have been easy to bespell. While I didn't like it, Morpheus reminded me that making them loyal to me is a far better option than killing them or turning them to stone. So I used my powers on them—but we all agreed it was better to keep them here for now.

After all, their abilities are needed in the Shadow World.

"We're going to reshape this place," Madame Renoire tells me, motioning towards the empty corners of the now-huge gorgon cave. "Not just this cave, but all the Shadow World. It was meant to be a sanctuary and a retreat, after all. The time has come to keep that promise."

I think of all the suffering and strife that's happened in this dark place, and look around at the strange, inhuman, often frightening monsters we're surrounded by. "Do you really think there's hope for them?"

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