Page 146 of Crown of Olympus
“Your father… Before he — after I…” The words tangled on my tongue. What I wouldn’t give for a bratty,but wise dragon in my head right now. I tried again. “Before I sentenced Zeus to Tartarus, he told me that my mother’s death was an accident. That his blade was meant for me.”
“But you were a baby?! You were… Furies, you were born that day, weren’t you?” he pressed, having connected the dots all on his own.
You never told me the whole prophecy, did you, Apollo?he signed succinctly. His suspicion was evident in every terse gesture.
Apollo shook his head, the corners of his lips turned down.
“Time to go, Apollo,” Hera seethed, wrenching open the same mirrored panel Archimedes had passed through. The sun god left in silence, offering no further explanation. The moment the panel slammed shut, Aros, Caelus, and I were attacked — faster than before.
Cuts slashed across our faces, hands, and legs; every inch of visible skin opened up. The flurry came swift and sharp.
“You can make it stop,” said Hera coyly. “Just say the words. Spill your secrets, and keep the others’ at bay,” she crooned.
“I guess it’s my turn then,” Aros sighed, his tone laced with resignation. The attacks relented. He heaved a deep breath and began softly.
“Ihatemy father. It’s no secret that the Ares’ children are many. What is less known is that we all have different mothers.”
“All of you?!” Caelus asked. “But there must be… what, a hundred?”
Aros nodded. “Well, most of us. And a hundred and two, at last count. My own mother is a goddess named Bia.”
“I recognise that name,” Caelus said quietly.
“Of course you do,” Hera scoffed. “She was one of your father’s lovers. Where is that winged wench now?” She scowled at Aros.
“Far away,” he bit back. “From you especially. Somewhere beyond Poseidon’s seas. Beyond even my reach.” His toneshifted. Sadness crept in. Abandonment. “She was the goddess of force and power — until she renounced those titles. Ares saw them as a challenge. One he could best… physically.”
“No,” I whispered, horrified.
“Yes,” Aros said. His sad amber eyes met mine. “I am the result of a shameful act of force. Of Ares twisting my mother’s strengths against her in the cruellest of ways. I am every reminder of her pain and defeat.”
“Oh, Aros…”
He stood abruptly. “I’ll see you at the Crown Selection, Nyssa. Hera, if you please. You’ve carved the secret from my flesh — I’d like to retire now.”
Hera smirked and wordlessly waved her hand. The exit appeared.
“And then there were two,” she crooned, a wicked smile carved into her features. She continued toying with the chain at her throat as she prowled, seemingly oblivious to our cries of pain.
My father continued slicing into me with his shadow dagger, taunting me with whispers.
“Say it.”
“Oh, go on, do tell them.”
All the while, he danced from mirror to mirror, echoing Hera’s mindless circles.
I closed my eyes, turning off the conscious part of my mind — just like he’d taught me. I no longer felt the nicks and scratches. Only the deepest wounds managed to elicit sound from my throat.
Time no longer meant anything. The only thing I did not lose track of was the feeling of Caelus’ fingers clasping my upper thigh.
Even as he curled in on himself, even as his cuirass fell open in tatters, he did not let go. Perhaps I was his anchor. Perhaps he was mine. Perhaps pain was making me delusional.Either way, I held tight to the knowledge that he was holding tight to me.
But eventually, I broke.
My resolve shattered the moment Caelus was struck — harder than before. An echo of an arrow wound bloomed right near his heart. An inch to the left and it would have been a direct hit.
He finally let go of my leg to clutch his chest, breaths coming in short, rapid rasps. His silvery eyes locked onto mine, as golden ichor poured from the hole.
