Page 249 of Bonds of Hercules
Twenty-year-old Alexis faced down the murderous leader of Sparta. Humans worshipped him as a god—he was still just a man.
Zeus arched a golden eyebrow as he mimicked my motion, pointing his scepter down at me.
Do it.
Smite me.
Hades bellowed something—his fog filled the stadium—Sparta hovered on the precipice of war.
Mutually assured destruction.
Persephone screamed.
The crowd was wailing, fog multiplying.
Lightning flashed off in the distance.
“I know what you did!” I shrieked at the top of my lungs. If I was going to die down here, then he was going to know, and I’d take Sparta down with me.
The human world was already in shambles. Spartans didn’t deserve to emerge unscathed.
Zeus’s expression was unimpressed.
I kept the rod pointed at him.
Hades thundered something and Zeus turned—he recoiled as he looked around the fog-covered stadium.
Zeus lowered his scepter, pointing it away from me.
Slowly, Hades’s inky power also dissipated.
Creatures and Spartans cowered in their seats—war was narrowly avoided.
Zeus turned back to the arena. “SECOND ROUND!”
The gate slowly lifted.
A familiar ungodly screech echoed through the arena.
Murmurs and gasps of shock chorused.
“HOWDAREYOU!” Ares’s voice boomed.
“They are under INVESTIGATION!” Hades shouted. “WHAT IS THIS?”
Zeus’s voice echoed around the stadium. “The federation has ruled this appropriate to test her might—she’s defeated them before, she can do it again.”
“YOU WANT WAR!” Hades responded.
“NO,” Zeus bellowed. “I WANT WHAT IS BEST FOR SPARTA … This is onherhonor—she must prove her might.” He waved his scepter. “Don’t … make me use this.”
Absolute power corrupts absolutely.Lord Acton must have been a Spartan with the power of fate foreseeing this very moment.
Turning toward the Chthonic section, I shook my head no, hoping Hades understood the message.
This was my task,myrevenge.
Fluffy Jr. whined at my feet, and Nyx was still unmoving, wrapped around my leg.
