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Artemis’ trusted nymph, Iphigenia, stepped back allowing Selene to pass beyond the waterfall, basket in hand. She walked into Artemis’ temple to find her resting by Sayeh’s too still, form.  “Hey,” Selene said softly, “how is she?”

Artemis turned her head to watch as she strode in, Selene’s eyes filled with compassion for Sayeh. Artemis crinkled her brow as she noticed that there was something different about Selene, but she couldn’t place what it was. 

“Hey.” Artemis got up to give her a hug, and with a deep sigh she replied, “Sayeh’s in a coma.”

Selene returned her hug and asked, “And you? I was worried you hadn’t left her to eat.” She lifted the basket of food she had brought.

Artemis wiped a quick tear from her eye and smiled a small smile. “I am ok. And you?”  She raised her hand to Selene’s cheek. “You look…you’re different, nice but different.” She took the basket from Selene, amazed by her caring attitude. “Thank you, you’re so sweet to come by, Sel.”

Selene smiled slightly, self-consciously running her hands through her hair. “I tried to go back to work, but I couldn’t stop thinking about you and Sayeh and…well, of home.” She paused before continuing, “My staff have everything running so smoothly.” She shook her head. “I felt I was needed here, more than there. Did you see your mom? Leto?”

Artemis watched as Selene ran her hand through her hair. She gasped and grabbed Selene by her shoulders, touching her hair in shock. “Your hair….it’s your hair. Sel…you cut it?”

Selene blushed and Artemis realized her reaction was stronger than she should have made it, releasing her suddenly, she smiled weakly, “You’re sure you are alright, though? You look stunning, regardless. The short cut suits you.”

Selene smiled, “Yeah, I’m ok. A lot changed while you were with your mom, but that’s ok.” She sat down by Sayeh and started pulling out containers of food. “I just…I couldn’t stand my hair falling in my face anymore…after…” She looked up from the food containers into Artemis’ eyes exchanging a brief, knowing glance, before looking back at her task at hand.

Artemis sat down beside her. Iphigenia brought them plates and joined them. “Visiting Mom was the best thing I have done in a while, I needed it. What did you mean by a lot has happened? Are you alright?”

“Good,” Selene replied. “I visited Ares. He taught me how to fight with less carnage, and to use a blade. 

Emotions flowed across Artemis’ face as she took that in. “You’re taking training from Ares?” Her eyes grew large as she asked the question.

“Yes,” Sel answered with a nod. “Ares and I are a unique combination.”

Artemis winced, feeling a tinge of jealousy prick at her when Selene said she was a unique combination with Ares. Artemis was surprised by her own feelings and something her mom had said played through her mind, but she quickly pushed it aside. 

Selene caught Artemis’ reaction from the corner of her eye at the mention of Ares and said, “Ares…” She shook her head and chuffed. “His mouth and mine…” Selene rolled her shoulder, “He is showing me how to use the things I already have, or wear, to defend myself more like a mortal, so I get into less trouble for excessive force.” Selene laughed, then realized this was not the time for laughter. Her face fell and she sighed deeply, then reached out to hold Artemis’ hand. “I’m sorry. I came asking about you and we are talking about me, sweet friend. Tell me, what did your mom say? I am here if you need me, ok?” 

Artemis blushed at her touch and gripped her hand tight. “Same goes for you, you know?” Selene kept Artemis’ hand in hers as her thoughts drifted to how soft they felt in hers, despite the rough work she did outdoors. Artemis ran her thumb over Selene’s knuckles, caressing them. Something about this time felt different and they held onto each other. 

Artemis smiled sadly, “You know, it was only when I met my mother that I realized how much I was missing her.”

Selene nodded knowingly. “Like when I saw Helios. It was like ripping open stitches?”

Artemis nodded vigorously. “Exactly, you know how it feels. At the same time, meeting her meant the universe to me.”

Selene looked up at her, glanced back at Iphigenia and remembered they weren’t alone. “Yes, I can imagine.”

Artemis followed her eyes and looked at Iphigenia, who sat there with a smirk on her face and a plate full of food in her hands.

Selene reluctantly let go of Artemis’ hand and picked up a plate, dishing food onto it. “So, was she able to help you through some of the memories Ananke stirred up?”

Artemis shuddered slightly at the mention of Ananke’s name before she followed suit and took a tiny amount of food on her plate. “I am sorry, Sel. The food is great, but I just don’t have an appetite when Sayeh’s like this.”

Selene nodded in understanding. “I figured, but knew you needed to eat, so I thought I’d bring you something worthwhile.”

Artemis smiled warmly at her thoughtful care, their gazes locking for a moment before she continued, “My mother gave me a different perspective which helped, but mostly she gave me an idea of how I can save Sayeh. I knew my mom would be able to help.”

Selene felt her cheeks flush with heat and dropped her gaze back to her plate. “So, what’s the plan?”

Artemis smiled and took a forkful of the food and chewed on it before she spoke, “Mom thinks that I should speak to Hekate instead of searching for the heartfire by myself. I sort of agree with her. Kate does have the magic to help me find it and I will go to the end of the universe if I have to for Sayeh.

Selene nodded while eating and listening. “Well, you aren’t going alone. You know that, right?

I told you before, you aren’t alone, Arty.”

Artemis smiled and looked down before Iphigenia shoved her elbow into her side. Artemis pushed her back and replied, “I was kinda hoping you’d say that, Sel. I could use your help and support…actually it’s a great comfort having you by my side.”

“Why do you think I came home?” Artemis blushed and smiled slightly as Selene continued. She looked Arty in the eyes and said, “Sayeh and you, you saved my life…” She looked down, unsure how Artemis would respond, then back up at her.

Artemis’ eyebrows crinkled as she let the words sink in. HOME, she had said HOME. Artemis repeated to herself. She quickly stopped herself from going there, remembering the last time she took the risk of falling in love. She smiled softly.

“We saved each other…actually Sayeh saved us both.” Her eyes, filled with sadness, resting on a sleeping Sayeh she added, “I just hope I can save her before it’s too late.”

Selene looked away, remembering her place. “I’m sorry. I overstepped.” Uncomfortably, she placed her hand on Sayeh and said quietly, “Me, too. I hope you find the heartfire and bring it home to her.”

“Overstepped? No, you did not, Sel. I am glad you’re here.”

Selene looked back at Artemis, “No, I made you uncomfortable. Just know, I’ll follow you anywhere, ok. You’re my dearest friend and I will do anything to help Sayeh and you.”

Artemis placed her hand on Selene’s again, “I know, and I want you to know that I am here for you, anytime.”

Selene smiled slightly as her heart warmed to Artemis’ touch again and she thought, If only she knew how I really felt.

Artemis went back to pushing the food around on her plate. “Anyway, I need to find Kate first and see what she has to say. I am planning to go to her at sundown.”

Selene nodded and asked, “Where to?”

Artemis looked at her, “I think she’s around the GC.”  Artemis took three cups and poured Selene, Iphigenia, and herself glasses of water before taking a sip of her own. Iphigenia excused herself and went to the inner chambers to prepare the concoction that had been keeping Sayeh alive.

Selene took the water, her hand touching Artemis’ again and her face flushed as she took a sip, hiding behind the glass.

Artemis noticed Selene twitching and thought to herself, am I seeing things or do I sense something different between us? She shook her head in an attempt to get the thoughts from her mind. “I am glad to hear that.”

“So, you’re leaving to find Hekate at sundown?” Selene asked.

Arty nodded, “Yes, I will check here at the GC first,” she said looking at Sayeh. “If she’s not there, I will have to seek her out by sending her a chant that she can hear from me. That will reveal her location to me.”

“Do you want me to come with you?”

Artemis shook her head slowly, “No, sweet, Sel…this one I need to do by myself. Plus, you need to focus on your lab.”

Selene reached up and put a loose strand of Artemis’ hair behind her ear. “If you’re sure. It isn’t going anywhere, you know.”

Artemis looked down and smiled. “I will be sure to reach out if anything begins to go south. I promise.”

Selene nodded and put her hand back in her lap. “Please, never hesitate to ask. OK?”

Artemis smiled. “Thank you, Sel. For always being there.”

Selene smiled and nodded. “Why don’t you try to rest? Phi and I can sit and watch over Sayeh, or I can go, but you need to try to rest before you go find Hekate. Ok?”

Artemis nodded. “Yes, I need the strength to make this journey. Hopefully, Kate can help me find the heartfire.”

“Would you like me to stay? You know I don’t sleep, so I can stay with Phi if you like.”

Artemis smiled brightly, “That would be wonderful.”

Sel nodded and smiled. “Very well.” She cleaned up the meal and stood to walk towards the entrance. “Artemis, thank you for allowing me to enter your temple. I know it’s a special place for you and it hasn’t gone unnoticed.”

Artemis followed her and reached out to hug her. “No, thank you for offering to help.”

Selene hugged her in response, feeling warm all over. “Rest sweetie. We are here.”

Artemis inhaled deeply, the smell of her hair and the warmth in her embrace left her smiling and confused over what she was feeling for Selene.

Selene thought to herself, I don’t want to let go. I wish I could hold her while she sleeps, but she pulled back so Artemis could go. “Go…rest.”

Reluctantly, Artemis pulled out of her arms. “Yes…I must go.”

Selene turned and walked to the entrance, sat down with Iphigenia and kept guard for the evening.

Artemis is scribed by the amazing Rashmi Menon. The original story was posted on InThePantheon.com This post was written in tandem by Rashmi and myself at the beginning of a wonderful story-line I am pleased and proud to be a part of. Stay turned to see where this leads.

London Calling

By: EmberSkye Savage

Pacing through the courtyard, the grass moved under her feet.  Persephone fidgeted with the edge of her dress, tugging it a little before she exhaled, blowing her hair out of her face.  It had been a long time since she had gone out to do anything fun. Eyes traced up to the sky above as she shook her head in exasperation at herself.  This was the whole point she reminded herself. To live. Have fun. Experience new things. Spring was about change and rebirth and now she was about to move forward with her own rebirth. 

Pausing, she once again smoothed the skirt on her dress before laughing at her own antics. “Come on, it’s not like you haven’t delved into the realm of the unknown before.”  Years of time spent alone in the underworld, she had taken to a habit of talking to herself when she thought she was alone.  

When Selene had last visited, they had wandered through the gardens together,  talking about what they would do come spring. The plan to go out had been like a beacon she looked forward to, that and the visits to Helios made the last few days of winter seem to pass by almost too quickly.  Persephone only hoped she had chosen clothing that fit the club Selene had told her about. 

Selene walked around the corner wearing a short, silver number and stilettos. Her eyes lit up when she saw Persephone standing there waiting for her. “Percy!” she called out, the nickname one she had given her friend over the months of visits to the underworld. “You look amazing!” Taking Percy’s hands, she raised them, taking in her beautiful, pink-flowered number. “It’s perfect! Are you ready?” Persephone smiled and nodded, Selene looked down as she turned to lead the way to her car, and she noticed Persephone wasn’t wearing shoes. “Percy, darling, are you sure you’re ready?”

“Yes, why? I thought you said this was perfect?” she said, following Selene’s gaze. 

“Shoes?” Selene said as she giggled.

“Oh. Sorry!”  She turned and dashed back towards the doors to the god complex, blond hair fluttering behind her.

A few minutes later Persephone returned and they climbed into Selene’s chariot to fly to the airport. “I know it would be faster to go to London in the chariot, but I have been trying to keep it here in Olympus, so we’ll take the jet,” Selene explained to Persephone

Hal, Selene’s private pilot, was waiting for them on the tarmac. They all quickly seated themselves on the plane and Hal took off, landing less than an hour later in London. The ladies continued their conversation as they exited the jet and made their way to Sel’s waiting silver convertible. The wind blew through Persephone’s blonde hair as they drove down the road, a smile creeping across the Iron Queen’s face as the joy of freedom filled her. Sel grinned seeing her friend’s face light up and chuckled a little as she turned back to look at the road. 

The club was one Selene frequented and the owners treated her like she ran the place. To say the ladies were VIPs would be an understatement. 

The sounds of the club filled Persephone’s ears as they made their way past the line, the doorman waving Selene in, to the disappointment of many who waited. Persephone hopped on one foot, then the other as she finished pulling her heels on.  She could feel the beat of the music as if it were in her bones. She held Selene’s hand, letting her friend lead her through the crowd. Everything here was new, wonderful, and a cacophony of beauty, it struck a chord of playfulness she hadn’t felt in years.  

They arrived in a small booth designed to give them a perfect view of the room, and Persephone ordered something simple to start. A light cocktail without the heavy alcohol mortals used to drown out their sorrows.  Persephone’s eyes darted around the room as she watched everyone around her. Singles, couples, and groups danced in joy, celebrating their revelry. It was as if the whole room opened up to call to all that would listen. The people around them were living in the moment and carefree, their faces beaming with pleasure. Persephone leaned over to Selene, trying to whisper, but was quickly drowned out by the heavy bass. She pitched her voice higher to be heard.

“Ok. You were right. I can see how this will be very fun.” The laughter behind her voice conveyed her enjoyment. “I see why you like it.” Her cheeks had warmed, flushing pink underneath her eyes which shimmered with excitement.

The waitress came back over to refill Selene’s whiskey, with a devilish twinkle in her eye she ordered a pomegranate mimosa for Persephone. Selene smiled at her friend as she watched her bounce to the music in the seat beside her. She grabbed her glass and threw her drink back before she grabbed Persephone’s arm and pulled her onto the dance floor. 

The mortals quickly crowded around the two women as they danced and moved to the music. Persephone’s face made Selene laugh as it crinkled in response to the crowd of people suddenly around her. Selene relaxed and felt the auras of the mortals, smiling as she watched her friend begin to ease a bit more. 

After a few songs, Persephone wanted a break and they wandered back to their booth. They sat down and had a few laughs while drinking their drinks. “So, Percy, what do you think?” Selene asked, nodding her head at the drink she had ordered her friend. 

“I like it,” Persephone replied, taking a sip, “It’s pomegranate, right?” 

Selene nodded. “And champagne.”

“Champagne!” Persephone exclaimed, “are you trying to get me drunk, Selene?” 

A Cheshire grin spread across Selene’s face. “Not entirely, just, relax a little, maybe.” She shrugged and looked her in the eye. “Sorry, really. I just want you to have fun.”

“I’m having fun, I just don’t drink as much as you do, Sel.”

“I know. So, wanna dance again?” Persephone nodded and slid out from the booth, walking out onto the dance floor, Selene followed her, grinning ear to ear. 

Persephone felt the music as it surrounded them. The rhythm seemed to echo her own heartbeat, the music a call to memories long ago.  The dancing was much like the revelry in Olympus when they were younger, wild, carefree, with no rules. Persephone felt it overcome her, and with a wild smile of her own, threw herself into the dancing surrounded by the gyrations of the mortals.  She laughed with Selene, it was refreshing to do something different. She imagined this is what the parties of Dionysus must have been like. Time became nothing, as each song passed Persephone felt it all wash away. There was nothing except for the music and herself. Her body swayed and moved until Selene pulled her back to their booth, winding through the dancing mortals. Somewhere between leaving the seat and returning, Persephone had lost her shoes, bare feet making no sound in the powerful party.  She dropped down into the chair and smiled again at Selene. 

“This is amazing. I am so happy you invited me!“ Cheeks flushed from the exertion, the color returning after her stay in the Underworld, Persephone finished off her drink and leaned against Selene.  “Thank you. I have needed something like this for a long time.“

Selene smiled broadly. “Any time, dear friend! I’m so happy to see you truly smile again.”

Persephone is written by EmberSkye Savage. Writing has always been a passion and hobby, “For longer than I’m willing to admit my age.” It’s a good thing that L.L. has always wanted to write for a living because writing is paying the bills as an Instructional Design and Developer. At night Ember runs stories through her head, and is working on the ever present novel that writers always have in the works.

You can find her latest adventures at https://www.inthepantheon.com/author/persephone/ and on Twitter https://twitter.com/Emberskye

Back To Reality

What a welcome back, I thought, shaking my head. The first few months of my return to Olympus were unbelievable. The ramifications were still being felt; not all of the titans had been captured and who knew what was still to come? My lab was coming along nicely and most of my staff had started work. I was so pleased with everyone at Crescent Talent Agency. I hadn’t had one hiccup, Tyche be praised, the entire time. That was saying something with it being the heightened frenzy before the storm that was festival season, and then the Coronavirus struck. Coachella, CRSSD, Stagecoach and, of course, Full Moon Party in Thailand, just to name a few of the places CTA was supposed to be represented. My staff had pulled off the cancellations seamlessly, replacing many of the festivals we were to participate in with online events. I was so fucking impressed. Don’t get me wrong, I knew I had hired an amazing team, but this proved to me that my agency is self-regulating and highly sufficient.

I decided if my chariot was good enough for Titan hunting, it was good enough for work, so I let Hal take a month off, paid of course, and flew myself from place to place. I was always careful to fly under the cover of night, and to secure my steeds and chariot in a safe place, using the charms Hekate had taught me millennia ago to hide them.

Raylen and I were headed into the New York office after having spent the evening before together. New York was not one of my favorite places, but it was an entertainment hub, so here I was. The hustle and bustle of the super crowded streets were not as bad as they normally are but still seemed overwhelming to my senses. I was about to be driven a little closer to bonkers when Raylen pulled me off the sidewalk and into a little no-name book store. The sounds were immediately buffered like I had just entered the ocean and swam to its depths. The warmth and smells wrapped around me like a warm blanket, providing the comfort of an embrace. I took a deep breath and let it out again.

“Oh Raylen, this is heaven. Where are we and how did you know I needed a break?”

She smiled at me and winked. “It was all over your face, hun. Plus, I have been dying to show you this gem for a while now.” She took my hand and lead me back to the stacks where she pulled out an old, leather-bound book and showed me the date on the inside of the cover: 1590. I looked up at her with wide eyes. “But how?” She just grinned and flipped through the pages; all were original drawings and etchings bound into a book.

“Thought you may like it in here,” she said with a smug grin. I pressed her up against the shelves and locked my lips over her mouth. A sense of shock ran through me and I pulled back quickly.

Raylen looked at me and asked, “What’s wrong? Did I do something?”

I tried to regain my composure, but the moment had passed and I shook my head in response. “No, no it wasn’t you. I just, I can’t do this…whatever, this is, anymore.” I rushed through the door, leaving an astonished Raylen behind.

Back out in the noise and people, my mind spun in a whirlwind, I felt dizzy all of a sudden and gripped a nearby light pole. What the actual fuck was wrong with me? I closed my eyes and steadied myself before a gentle hand rested on my shoulder. “Arty?” I asked softly as my mind drifted to my friend. The hand withdrew nearly as quickly as it had appeared and I heard a small gasp from behind me. I slowly turned around to find Raylen standing there with tears in her eyes and her hand over her mouth. I shook my head at her and sighed. “I’m sorry Raylen. I told you I can’t do this anymore.” I don’t know what’s changed, but something has.

She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand before the tears actually spilled out and replied quietly, “It’s not like I expected much to begin with.” She gave a little shrug looking away from my eyes. “You’re a Titan, a goddess, and all over the world in the blink of an eye. I can’t expect to be the only one, much less, enough for you.” I had nothing much to say in response to that, so we continued our walk in relative silence, other than the racket around us.

We reached the office building and rode the silent elevator together. Every time I opened my mouth to say something, I stopped. I felt bad for leaving her hanging, but she wasn’t wrong either. The doors opened and I plastered on a smile as we went our separate ways. The day was filled with planning meetings that I barely paid attention to. My thoughts kept drifting back to Sayeh and Artemis all day. I needed to get back to them…I shouldn’t have left. I’m not needed here. I checked my watch for the millionth time, and another 30 minutes later, the meeting was finally over. Before I excused myself, I told them all how proud of them I was and how well they were doing.

I made my way to Central Park and to my chariot, keeping the charms in place, I took off in broad daylight towards home. Home, I haven’t called any place HOME in centuries. Living a very nomadic lifestyle with no real living space to call my own, now, all I want to do is be back at Olympus with Arty and my family. Yes, my family.

I cracked the reins, which I rarely felt the need to do, and we sped off even faster than before. I arrived at Olympus National Park and let my steeds roam. I headed to the GC and made a few purchases. This was one of those times I wished I had living quarters at the GC. I could have, almost everyone else did, but I used my floor for my lab, so I didn’t even have a shower here like I did at my offices. I walked over to Ares Gym and pestered Reginald, Ares’ secretary, for a place to change. Throwing on the newly acquired t-shirt and shorts from the gift shop and some cheesy sandals, I walked back out towards Hearthfire Catering where I had placed an order when I first arrived. They had carefully packed my food in a nice, sturdy basket instead of a flimsy bag and I was set.

I walked back out to my chariot and dropped my gift shop bag containing my business suit inside before I headed towards the cave where Sayeh and Artemis were staying. At the waterfall, Arty’s head nymph, Iphigenia, came out to see who was there. I nodded in reply and told her I was there to bring Arty some dinner.

“Who is it, Iphigenia?” came Arty’s exhausted voice from within the cave.

“Lady Selene, ma’am,” she replied with her head turned back towards the cave.

“Selene?” her voice seemed to be a little brighter, but that could have been my wishful thinking. “Let her in, you know that she is a friend, Phi, always let her in.”

“Yes, ma’am.” She nodded and stepped back to allow me to enter.

HOW TO FIGHT A MORTAL

Guest Author post: Ares/ Teresa Watson

A continuation from my previous Selene post: Scorpio Moon

I led the way to my office, allowing Selene to go in first before following her inside and closing the door. Gesturing to a leather chair across from my desk, I leaned my broadsword against my bookcase, then sat down.

“Nice office,” she said. She glanced around the room, taking in my surroundings warily as she took a seat. She stopped her scan as when she reached my face, and I could see the tension in her shoulders relax.

“How can I help you, Selene?” I asked cautiously.

“I’ve been thinking, Ares, with all that has been going on with the Titans being out and all that, I am, essentially, unarmed. I have my might and power, but,” she gestured with her hands, “I have no weapons, nor the knowledge to use one.” She paused for a moment, trying to gauge my reaction before continuing. “I was hoping you could help me find the right blade, perhaps, and train me how to use it,” she concluded, placing her hands back in her lap, awaiting my answer.

“I didn’t think you’d be that worried about protecting yourself,” I replied sardonically. “I mean, you took Atlas out with one punch.”

Selene glared at me, not happy that I was belittling her capture of Atlas. “I kicked his ass fair and square. I didn’t remember hearing of you catching anyone, God of War.”

I arched my right eyebrow slightly. “A rather lucky punch, I might add. But he has been known to have a glass jaw. And I was busy protecting my father, Titaness. His life is far more important than anyone else’s around here.”

We sat in silence for a minute. “I did not come here to fight. Well, I mean, actually I did. But not verbally.”

“Oh, I can accommodate your desire for a fight,” I retorted.

Sighing, Selene said, “This is not what I had in mind when I came here. Perhaps this was a bad idea.” She stood up.

“What exactly do you want from me, Selene?”

“I want to be able to defend myself with mortals around without going full Titan. The stares I get are very uncomfortable. There are times when I want to go to a club and have a good time. But there’s always some jerk who wants to play grab ass, then there are broken bones, police reports, whispers, stares…” she sighed.

I stood up and walked around the desk, looking her up and down. She was wearing a light pink silk blouse, black slacks and black Louboutins. Hey, when you hang around Reginald long enough, you recognize name brands. The top two buttons on her blouse were undone, and a delicate silver chain hung down to the “v” of her breasts. She wore a silver Rolex on her left wrist. The last time I had seen Selene, her blond hair was much longer; now she wore it at shoulder length. “You have at least two weapons on you right now,” I told her. “Your necklace, for starters. You could use it to choke someone from behind, like a garotte.”

“A what?” she said, gently touching one side of her necklace.

“A garotte. It’s basically a thin wire hit men use on their victims sometimes.” I moved behind her. “Do you mind if I show you?”

“Go ahead.”

I carefully pulled the necklace up, and then held it up against her throat, tightening it slightly. “If you twist it and jerk backwards, you’ll catch them by surprise. Keep applying pressure; your victim will be too busy clawing at their neck, trying to breathe, to fight back. With your strength, choking them to death shouldn’t take long. Once they’re dead, you can drop them to the ground, remove the necklace, and go along your merry way.” I released the necklace and moved to stand in front of her again. “Of course, the same method could be used on you. The only difference is your strength. Breaking such a chokehold would be easy for you.”

“A rather gruesome sounding death,” Selene said.

“Squeamish?”

“Of course not,” she snapped. “What a ridiculous question.”

“Your second weapon is your feet, namely those heels you’re wearing. Drive one of those down on the top of an annoying date’s foot, and he’ll leave you alone. If he doesn’t, take off the other heel and drive it into his eyeball.”

“And ruin a perfectly good pair of shoes?” Selene exclaimed. “Are you crazy?!”

I threw my hands in the air. “You want to defend yourself like a mortal woman, this is how you do it. Do you think they give two shits if there is an eyeball driven through the heel of their shoe if they have survived a violent attack?”

“If they’re expensive like these are, yes!”

My head started to hurt, and I rubbed my forehead. “Do you wear this kind of outfit when you go out at night?”

“No, I usually wear a dress and heels.”

“Come with me.”

I led her out of the office and down the hall to my weapons room. She gasped when she saw the various swords, daggers, spears and guns hanging on racks around the room. “Did you make all of these?” she asked as I walked toward the back of the room.

“Some of them, yes,” I admitted as I stopped in front of an oak cabinet. “Heph made the rest, except for the guns.” Opening the door, I turned and looked at her. “Are you right or left handed?”

“Right.”

“Take off your pants,” I said, facing the cabinet again.

“Excuse me?”

“I didn’t stutter, and your ears didn’t flap. Take off your pants,” I replied as I selected a slender blade from the cabinet.

“Look, I know you have a reputation with the ladies,” Selene said, “but I am not about to sleep with you just to get a damn knife.”

Sighing, I turned around and looked at her. “Selene, I can’t very well select a knife for you if I can’t tell how well the sheath will fit against your leg. Now, are you going to take off your pants, or am I going to have to rip them off you?”

She glared at me for a moment, then without breaking eye contact, she slid the zipper down, unbuttoned them, then seductively pushed them off her hips and let them slip down her legs to pool at her feet. Stepping out of them, she stood in front of me with her hands on her hips. “Better?”

“Much, thank you,” I replied. I walked over and knelt by her right leg. “Spread your feet.” Muttering under her breath, she parted her legs slightly. “A little more.”

She growled as she complied. “Don’t push me, Ares.”

“You’re not my type, Selene,” I chuckled. I tied the sheath around her leg. “Is that too tight?”

“No,” Selene said, shaking her head. “I can hardly tell it’s there.”

“That’s the point,” I said, sliding the knife out of the sheath before standing up. “It’s called a stiletto knife. It’s made of carbon steel, weighs about six to seven ounces, and it’s about six inches long. Double edged and as you can tell, the blade narrows as you get down to the tip. The key thing to remember is to slip it out of the sheath in a way that your attacker can’t tell what you’re doing. Once you get it out,” I took a step forward, “act quickly. If you’re facing him, make sure you keep his eyes locked on your face, then ram it into his stomach as hard as you can. If you can do it more than once, great. But once should be enough, because he’ll immediately grab for the spot where you stabbed him. Shove him backwards and run.”

“If he’s behind me?”

I turned around so my back was to her. “Wrap your arm around my throat.”

Selene chuckled. “You really want me to do that?”

“You really want to try and kill me when I’m the one holding the knife?”

“Good point.” She put her arm around my throat without applying pressure.

“If you’re in this position, once you’ve managed to slide the knife out, stab him in his thigh. It will gush like a geyser. Again, he’ll grab at it with both hands. Once he lets go, run for it.”

“What if he doesn’t let go? What if he tries to make a grab for the knife?” she asked, dropping her arm.

Turning around, I slid the knife into the sheath, then put my hands on her shoulders. “Selene, you are a strong woman. A Titaness. You could snap a man’s neck with your bare hands and not break a sweat. You asked for my help because you didn’t want to do that. You want to be seen as a normal woman, not some freak. I am sure that if you find yourself in a situation where you have to defend yourself, you will find the strength to keep anyone from taking your knife from you, even if that means you have to break a few bones in the idiot’s body. You took out Atlas because you thought he was going to kill you, did you not?”

“Well, I knew he would try.”

“And you found the strength to prevent that from happening. You will do the same again if you have to. Why don’t you remove that knife and sheath from your leg, put your pants back on, and we’ll go back to my office? We can set up some training sessions for you.”

A couple of minutes later, we were headed back to my office. “You’ll need some practice with that stiletto,” I told her. “There are practice dummies in the courtyard training area that you can use. The next time you come, bring a skirt.”

Suddenly, I heard some yelling from the lobby. “Hey! You can’t go back there!” Reginald exclaimed. “Stop right now!”

Selene and I rushed in that direction. As I came around the corner, I collided with someone, and instinctively grabbed them. It was a disheveled young woman, her brunette hair sticking up in all directions, her blue eyes wide and full of fear. Her clothes were dirty and torn in some places, and she smelled of booze and the woods. “Are you Ares?” she asked, grabbing the front of my shirt tightly.

“Yes, I’m Ares, but who are you?”

“My name is Kara. Why the hell didn’t you come rescue me like he wanted you to?”

Then she passed out in my arms.

“A friend of yours?” Selene asked, one eyebrow slightly arched.

I scooped the woman into my arms and looked Selene right in the eyes. “I’ve never seen her before in my life.”

Ares’ Original Post was shared on the Online magazine: In The Pantheon which you can find here….

https://www.inthepantheon.com/how-to-fight-a-mortal/war/triangle/ares/

Other works by this author can be found at….

https://www.amazon.com/Teresa-Watson/e/B009OH84HQ?ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1&qid=1593778137&sr=8-1

Scorpio Moon

Returning to the GC building after the essential destruction caused by Hera’s rage was awe-inspiring. I thought about the fight with Atlas and Ourea, suddenly thankful those confrontations had not taken place in heavily populated areas. I walked in at the ground level, maneuvering my way back through the hard-working mortals to the only working elevator. I entered and pressed the little round circle with “25” on the wall panel; the doors started to close, stopped, then slammed shut. The vibrations and shaking of the elevator made me wonder if I’d even make it to my floor without the cable breaking. If that happened, it would be a hell of a ride down to the basement, and I wasn’t sure Zeus would appreciate me crashing into his maintenance manager’s office. Even the ding from the speakers seemed warbled as the floor was reached and the doors rattled back open.

I sucked air through my teeth and exited the elevator into chaos. I stepped over a fluorescent style bulb that lay in pieces at the entrance and surveyed the damage of what had been the beginnings of my lab. I guess I felt lucky in that the lab was still in the process of coming together and it hadn’t been fully equipped or staffed yet. I did lose my contractor and architect, and some of the scientists were going to need re-convincing to sign on, but overall, thank Lady Tyche, no one was seriously injured nor had brought in the expensive equipment.

I pulled out my phone and began making a detailed list of the damages and the equipment that needed replacing. I made a separate list of the things that survived the incident and sent them both to my new contractor. I put my phone back in my rear pocket and got to work, stepping out into the stairwell and commandeering a larger wheeled trash can, broom, and dustpan from the staff that were working their way through the building.

I made quick work of the larger things and had soon filled the landing of the stairwell right outside my door. I called down to the lobby, putting in a request for someone to come pick up the trash, and by the time I heard noises from the stairwell, I had filled another garbage bag. Opening the door, I startled the mortals working on the pile.

“Mmm…ma’am,” one mortal tried to muster with a nod of his head. I saw the boxes and items strewn down the stairwell at varying flights and started laughing. They all looked back and forth from me to each other. Another employee asked, “Are you ok, ma’am?”

Looking at their faces made me laugh even harder. I managed to snort out, “Were you throwing the boxes down the stairs? Because if so, I want in.”

To their continued looks of shock, I raised up the bag in my hand and yelled, “GERONIMO!” and chucked it down the middle of the well, watching it drop straight down to the lobby level and land with a satisfying SPLAT. The closed-in space echoed with our collective laughter at the shouts of surprise heard from the lower levels. We spent a little while kicking the boxes down the stairs before the men got to the parts that actually needed to be carried down. A few of them got to work on that, while the remaining mortals followed me into my lab.

“Ms. Moon,” one of the employees said upon entering my lab space. “Why are you here doing the grunt work?”

I looked him straight in the eye and simply said, “Why not?”

Color filled his cheeks before he found his voice again and replied, “Because, ma’am, we’re employed by the GC to do this.”

I smiled gently at him and replied, “Because no one is below a good day’s work. Besides, this place,” I gestured to the lab space around us, “is my hobby, my pride and joy. If I can’t put a little sweat and elbow grease into it, then how can I expect my employees to?”

With extra hands to help, we finished the entire floor and even got some minor repairs in by the time I sent them on their way.

I had just gotten a cup of coffee from Dark Sparks and walked into my office when I heard the stairwell door open and close again. I popped my head out but didn’t see anyone there. I hurried to the other door, cautiously opened it and peeked out, but found it vacant. Shaking my head, I walked back to my office and grabbed my keys off my desk. I knew Dinlas was working on new security features, but I just didn’t feel confident in my surroundings anymore. Ever since the fight with Ourea, things had not settled right with me. The quiet I used to find soothing was almost a ringing in my ears, and every little noise made me jump. Looking around, I realized that besides my own hands and might, I had no other defenses. Some things needed to change. I ran my hands through my hair and shuddered, the memory of being yanked out of the air by Ourea flashed through my mind. The vines wrapping tighter the more I struggled and my hair, gods, my fucking hair was in my face and blinding me. I remembered the feel of Arty’s blade in my hand and knew what I must do. I walked around my desk and opened the drawer, pulling out a large pair of scissors. I snatched my hair into a ponytail at the nape of my neck and cut it off. With that, I stormed out of my office, determination evident on my face. I locked my office door then the stairwell door before pressing the button for the elevator. I hoped Ares was in his office this late.

I strode across the nearly empty lobby, out into the complex area, and down the few blocks to Ares’ office and the gym. I entered the building and was stopped by Ares’ assistant, Reginald. Alarms started going off and he was pointing a can of pepper spray at me, clearly leery of my presence. I tried to calm myself and turned on my charms. Smiling brightly, I said, “Is all this noise for me?”

Reginald replied, “Just step back, missy. I know who you are, and I know what you want. You are not taking this cool drink of water without a fight.”

Looking down, I caught a glimpse of his Salvatore Ferragamo shoes and gasped. “Those are this season’s, aren’t they?” I said, pointing at his brown Italian leather shoes.

Ares came out of his office in a huff, a broadsword in his hand. He shook his head and calmed down when he saw it was me. “Selene, this is a surprise.” Turning to Reginald, he said, “Turn off that damn alarm. She’s on our side.” He looked at me and asked, “You still are, aren’t you?”

I nodded and smiled brightly, then asked Reginald if we could take a quick weekend shopping trip to Milan sometime. “Oh, that would be fabulous!” he said excitedly.

“Did you come by just to get fashion advice from my secretary, Selene, or is there another reason you’re here?” Ares asked.

“I need some advice, and you were the first person I thought to ask.”

Gesturing toward his office, he said, “Why don’t we go to my office?”

 

 

In The Pantheon

Titans Rising: Moving Moutains Part 2

The ordeal with Ananke, the Primordial of Misery was physically over, yet my despair was nowhere near finished. I was the canvas upon which she left her mark: quite the artist, considering my emotional bleeding scars. She broke me from within. How was I ever to get over something like that? Add the fact that I had made no progress in my investigations into the mortal hunting club, I was feeling like an absolute failure.

I shook the thoughts from my head as I reached the GC building. I was here to visit Dad, who was slowly recovering from his tryst with a particular poet.

Was this the beginning of another Titanomachy?  I shuddered, remembering the ten-year war.

The sound of the elevator bell jolted me as the elevator doors opened, I stood staring at it for a few minutes. I couldn’t muster the courage to step into the elevator. Every time I tried, the memories of falling, of the darkness and the abyss, flooded my mind. My pulse raced and my breathing quickened; I steadied myself against the wall.

Relax, just breathe. You are not in the abyss anymore.

I took a few deep breaths trying to calm myself.

Oh, forget it! I am taking the stairs! 

I was more comfortable climbing ninety floors than riding an elevator. It was not an easy feat; my mortal legs paid the price.

Dad was asleep when I walked into his room. Hera, my stepmother, was nowhere to be seen. I sat beside my dad, holding his hands for about an hour or so before I headed out for my meeting with Selene.

As planned, I stopped by Selene’s floor on my way out. She offered a sympathetic ear to my woes; her reaction to them, though, took me by surprise. For the first time in a few decades, I saw her dark side. We discussed the Titan, Ourea, and the mess he was causing in the woods of Olympus National Park. Just then, I heard a distress call from the animals as they fled from the woods. I reckoned it was Ourea who was terrorizing my wildlife; he knew I would come for them, making me an easy target. Selene offered to help me with the situation. We left the OA building together, she on her chariot, and I on Sayeh.

After Ananke, I was not only weak, but also apprehensive. I second-guessed everything I did. My once sharp reflexes now seemed less than perfect. My tracking skills were not helping me this time, and my judgment was clouded by fears.

Fears of failure, of letting down my family, of not being strong enough to fight a Titan!

Flying above the park, I witnessed the seething, living tsunami of terrified animals as they swarmed out towards the outskirts of the park. The source for their frenzy lay hidden in the thick woods. I flew along, tracking the movements of the animals, searching for Ourea. Sayeh was not far along when I heard from Selene’s steeds about Ourea’s location.

I reached the area where I expected to find Selene. Getting off Sayeh, I walked into the woods with my bow and arrow ready to strike.

“Selene,” I called out, looking for her glow. The drubbing beat of my pulse resonated in my ears. My heart began to race when I realized that I could not find her moonbeam and had also lost my telepathic connections with her steeds. The sound of my breathing was louder than the crunching of twigs and leaves under my feet. Something was off, and I feared the worst. I searched for a few more minutes before I heard groans coming from the branches above. I looked up, slowly, and gulped at the sight of Selene hanging upside down. Long thick vines coiled all around her body, tangled in with her hair, wrapping itself around her face and covering her mouth. I dropped my bow and pulled out my silver blade to cut the vines and free her. Selene twisted and turned, trying to send a beam of light. Her eyes widened as she tried to focus on something behind me. She groaned at her inability to do either. Sayeh was standing guard behind me, so I was not worried about Ourea taking me by surprise. Selene kept trying to tell me something. The more she twisted, the tighter the vines looped around her.

“Sel, I am going to get you out of this, I promise. Please, stop moving, it isn’t helping when you do that,” I pleaded.

She shook her head vigorously in response, causing the vines to tug at her hair and cover her entire face. I reached for the vines and cut across them, releasing it from her face and neck.

“Arty, behind you!” She screamed as soon as the vines were freed from her neck. I turned around, but it was too late. Ourea had used the time to conjure large quantities of stones and earth fashioning a hill, and he charged at us with it. Sayeh flapped her wings, pushing Selene and me out of Ourea’s path. The vines towed Selene to the other side, but not before she pulled out my broadsword from my quiver. Sayeh leaped to put herself between Ourea and me. Angry at having missed his target, the Titan hurled the hill at Sayeh.

“No!” I ran towards Sayeh as she fell. Grit and dirt enmeshed with her raw, scarred flesh. Blood splattered on the ground and ran in tiny scarlet streams from her body. She laid there whimpering for a while and then became silent. I listened for her heartbeat; it was dwindling. I must move the heavy stones and silt off her body if not, she would be crushed within minutes.

Using my terrakinetic powers, I pushed the rocks, sediments, and dirt off Sayeh, but she did not even flinch. Before I could tend to her wounds, Ourea came up behind me and pulled me off her. Selene, now free, was busy fighting the vines from wrapping around her again. Every time she cut them down, they came back longer and stronger.

I knew I was not physically in a position to fight a Titan like Ourea. He is the Titan of Mountains and possessed the strength of a thousand mountains put together. And, me? I was a mess, both physically and emotionally. If Selene and Sayeh weren’t here with me today, Ourea might have already destroyed me.

“Arty, these vines, they don’t stop growing!” Selene called out. Ourea laughed at our vulnerability.

“Did you two really think I came unprepared?” the Titan asked with a growl. “I have been waiting for this day for a millennium. Zeus’ precious little daughter! What is he willing to sacrifice for your life?” He dragged me through the woods.

I had multiple problems in front of me, and they all needed to be solved at once. Sayeh needed me, the vines had to be destroyed, the wildlife had to be contained before they caused a stampede, and above all was Ourea. I was, now, a mouse in a trap caught between opposing needs. Do I let go of the prize and save my life, or do I sacrifice everything for the prize?

My priorities at this point were clear. Sayeh, Selene, and my wildlife. Nothing else mattered.

Moxie! If I could only get through to her, she’d find a way to deal with those vines. Selene could escape with Sayeh while I distracted Ourea.

Where was Moxie when you needed her? I didn’t know who else to call for help in this situation.

Moxie, Moxie, Moxie! I pinged her again and again.

I turned to look at Selene, who was relentlessly fighting the vines. She was fighting my battle. My heart wept for Sayeh, who was struggling to breathe. I tried to send a healing spell her way, but Ourea flung me by my braids onto a large oakwood tree. I heard a few snaps as blinding pain fired through my ribs. At the same time, I saw short mirages and glimpses of my experience as though I was reliving it. I realized it was Moxie deciphering my messages to her.

She did hear my calls after all. 

“Moxie…the vines! How do I stop these vines?” I relayed my thoughts to her, looking at Selene and the vines.

Ourea pulled me up by my feet, he hauled me onto his shoulders and started walking towards Selene.

“Arty…no! Get up!” Selene cried, unable to come to my aid. One wrong step and the vines would wrap around her again. She glared at Ourea with eyes rimmed red from angry, unshed tears.

Images of forest fires started popping into my mind. At first, I did not understand why I was seeing them, then I realized it was probably Moxie sending me ideas. But, a forest fire? There was no way in Tartarus that I would burn down my beloved park, even if it meant losing this battle. 

Moxie! I yelped. 

This time, she sent me an image of fire and another of Selene. Before I could decipher her meaning, Ourea threw me to the ground, pinning me down. It seemed he was waiting for someone to arrive.

In the back of my mind, I kept trying to decode Moxie’s messages. It was only when Selene cut the vines from their roots that I interpreted the meaning of those images.

The only way to stop the vines was to burn them out. But how?

My thoughts must’ve been transmitted to Sayeh, because I saw her feebly lift her head. She tried to breathe fire, but all that came out from her nostrils was a wisp of smoke. Ourea smirked at Sayeh’s efforts to breathe; however, he did not realize what she was attempting to do.

No, Sayeh! You’re too weak to do this, save your energy, I need you!

Sayeh and I looked at each other; her emerald green eyes twinkled for just a second before she turned to look at Selene, willing her to move. Selene read the situation and jumped away from the vines just as Sayeh raised her head. I saw a slight flicker of a blue flame before I heard the all too familiar rumble beginning from her belly. She growled, using every ounce of energy, sending large streaks of bluish golden flares at the vines.

Ourea screamed, running towards them, but they were incinerated within seconds. Before he could react, I conjured a herd of bison in his direction. Selene and I ducked under Sayeh’s wings as a herd of more than a hundred bison charged at the Titan in a stampede. They hauled him to the outskirts of the woods. Breaking free from the stampede, Ourea ran into the city.

I felt Sayeh’s pulse weakening until it was barely there. I knew I had to act quickly, else, I would lose her forever.

“Arty, Ourea…he’s fled,” Selene said, running after him, but I stopped her.

“We’ll get our turn, Moonbeam. Lose the battle now to win the war later!”

 

Author’s Link: Rashmi Menon

Artemis: In The Pantheon

Titans Rising: Moving Mountain Part 1

Artemis.” I touched her arm enough to stop her ascent but not to alarm her, “Talk to me. Are you ok?”

“Uh, yeah, I will be. I’m just going to check on Dad. Have you been up?” Her tone was unsteady and I knew the state of Zeus was wearing on her, but this seemed more than just worry.

“Artemis, look at me, sweet one. I know you. This is not just worry. We have been friends too long for you to just shrug me off.” I caught her eyes with mine and gave her a solid look of affirmation.

Nodding, she began. “I will be ok, moonbeam, it will just take time. I just came back from fighting Ananke, and she used my own memories against me. Plus Dad…I just have so much on my mind and heart right now.” She shook her head as if trying to get something out of her head. “And now, on top of everything, Ourea has been messing around in the Olympus Forest and my animals are in distress.” She looked back at the stairwell as her thoughts wandered back to Zeus.

Letting go of her arm, I replied, “Go, check on your dad. Then come back here and we’ll plan our attack on Ourea. Okay?”

Her gaze returned to mine as she ascended the stairs. “Our attack?”

“Absolutely. This is my home now, and you are in no condition to face him alone. Come back and let’s talk more, okay?” She nodded in response and headed back to the stairs. I watched her go up, favoring her abdomen, and wondered what she wasn’t telling me. A lump formed in my throat as I watched my friend leave, and I began to realize I felt something awaken in me I thought was beyond me at this point. I shook it off as all that had been happening and the length of time I had known the goddess.

I wasn’t sure how long she would be gone, and I didn’t want her to try to head out alone, so I went to the lobby and grabbed a couple of cups of coffee from Dark Sparks, one of the few places still open and relatively unscathed by Hera’s outburst. I looked around at the lobby and the team of mortals running to and fro, hard at work on the repairs for the home of the gods. One reason I loved these creatures was how hard most of them work. Day after day, they got up and put their best foot forward to do it all again. I thought about the mortals that harmed one another and felt the darkness rising in me, but then, in the back of mind there was a little light. Artemis. She worked so hard, like these people, to be a light for the mortals that had been so resilient against such abuse and hurt. Yes, Artemis would be ok, but she needed time to heal. The lump returned to my throat as I thought of her again. I’d better head back, I don’t want her to think I left her, not now.

I chose the stairs again, as the thought of the rickety elevator was unnerving. Plus I didn’t want to risk missing Artemis. Why was she using the stairs? I wondered and told myself to ask her when we spoke later. I arrived at my floor with burning calves and entered my lab. I shook my head as I walked in, taking in the carnage again. To the left of the stairwell and elevator was my office and the breakroom I had built for my employees. There had been several rows of lab tables with boxes of beakers and supplies, but they were now littered with debris and shattered glass. This was going to take a bit of cleaning, but it was not a total loss. I set the coffees down on my desk and found some cleaning supplies in the partially-stocked breakroom. I wiped down the desk and cleaned off my couch so we had somewhere to sit. I was just about to head to the breakroom when I heard the heavy stairwell door open. “In here,” I called so she knew where I was.

“Moonbeam?” she called.

Heat reached my cheeks at the sound of her voice and instinctively, I raised my hands to my face. Dropping them, I shook it off and answered her. “Yeah, Arty, first door to your left.” She pushed the door open as I continued, “I got you a coffee. I thought you could use one.”

She took the cup I had offered and sat on the arm of the sofa, keeping an arm across her middle. I took my cup and sat near the center of the couch before I got her attention. She was staring toward my desk, but I could tell she wasn’t really present. I slowly moved my hand to rest it on her knee in an attempt to bring her back, but not trigger her. Even at my slow and light touch, she jumped.

“Sorry, Sel, I…what were you saying?” She was looking at me now and my heart sank.

“How’s Z?”I asked softly.

Her face told more than her words and it hit me like a ton of bricks. Her normally olive complexion was placid and her once-bright eyes were grey and sunken.

“No change,” she said, distant.

I moved a little closer. “Talk to me Arty, please.”

Artemis took a sip of her coffee and got up from the sofa. Turning toward me, she started to speak urgently, almost as though she was waiting to pour out the emotions that she had kept locked. “What do you want to know, Sel? How Ananke threw me down the elevator shaft into my own subconscious? How I thought I was going to be stuck there with the Primordial of Misery for an eternity? Or how she made me relive each and every one of my most painful memories from my long, immortal life?”

She took a few quick steps away from me and started pacing up and down the length of the room. “Ananke brought to surface all that I had tucked away into the deepest darkest corners of my mind. She made me watch them unfold again and again until I thought I was never going to be able escape from that misery. I almost failed, Sel! I don’t know how or where I found the strength to fight her and bring us both out of my subconscious.”

I sat in awe as she told her account. The more she told me, the more my heart sank. I wanted to soothe her pain, take it away.

“Sel? Selene? Are you okay?” she asked with alarm in her voice.

“Huh? Yeah, just worried for you, why?”

“Look around. You’ve gone dark.”

I blinked and realized how dark the room was. Damnit, I never wanted her to see this side of me. “I…I’m sorry, I just got upset from your pain, is all. I’ll be okay.” With effort, I checked some of my rising anger so the room wasn’t as dark, and I focused on the matter at hand.

“So, Ourea…let’s split up and look for him. I’ll take my chariot and you can take Sayeh. We’ll cover more ground that way. If I find him, how will I call for you?”

“Your horses. Tell your horses to relay to me he has been found and where you are. And if I find him, I’ll call your horses. So if they veer off the course you set, let them, okay?”

I nodded. I knew from experience, Artemis could talk to animals, so this came as no surprise to me. We trashed our cups and walked out of the office together. I stopped her before we got to the stairwell door, turned, and pulled her into a gentle hug. “Please, be careful out there, okay?”

She nodded, pulling back from me. “I just want this all to be over and Dad to be okay.”

“I know, me too.” With that, I opened the heavy door and we descended together.

Walking out of the GC, I climbed into my chariot, and Artemis mounted Sayeh. We took off over the park and split off in opposite directions. I flew just above the treetops, scanning the forest floor for any movement that wasn’t normal. After about twenty minutes of scanning, a flock of birds flew up in front of me in a startled state, while a small herd of deer bolted from the same direction. I pulled hard on the reins, turning back towards the direction the animals had fled. The Titan was storming through the forest like a berserker, leaving fleeing animals and crushed plant life in his wake.

I called out to my steeds, “Tell Artemis what we found,” and looked for a clearing to set down in. Landing in a small patch of green, I got the horses settled and took off after Ourea. I knew Arty would be right behind me, and I had to catch up to him. I reined in my glow and took a leaping run through the trees in the same direction I had seen the Titan go.

I was mid-jump when I was yanked out of the air by my long hair, which had been flowing behind me. Vines grew out of Ourea and wrapped around my neck and body, holding me still. A growling voice buzzed in my ear, “Did you really think I wouldn’t know you were coming behind me? Even reining in your glow, I can see you kilometers away.”

I tried kicking his shin and flipping him over my back, but all it did was anger him and he pulled me in tighter. “Now, where’s that hunter friend of yours?”

 

In The Pantheon

Titans Rising: Paris – After Effects

 

Ate smoked out of my office, and I turned to Eos. “Why did you stop me?” I yelled. 

“Because if you had done what I saw in your head, we wouldn’t have heard all she had to say.”

I walked back to the bar, grabbing Eos’ glass on the way, and set them down on the bar counter. I stood there a minute and took a deep breath, trying to calm down. I felt the glow and warmth emanating from Eos as she came up behind me and placed her hand on my back. It wasn’t until she did, that I realized how dark I had become. Isolation wasn’t a good thing for me. Family helped me stay in check. Family…my thoughts drifted to Zeus and the Olympians.

“Helios was still in the wrong, Eos too. Ate was right. I do remember last time. Last time the Olympians won and should have. Zeus asked me back. He didn’t have to reach out to me at all. Could they become my family?” 

Eos smiled wryly at my thought process and released my back. “That’s what I thought you’d say.” Her eyes changed to a darker green and she turned towards the door. 

“Eos, wait!”

She turned back, looking at me over her shoulder, and said simply, “I don’t think I will. We clearly still don’t see eye to eye.” She opened my office door and walked out, leaving it wide open. 

I stood there for a while, stunned. Cherie sat at her desk, paler than usual as Eos strode past her. She shook her head a little as she tried to wrap her mortal brain around the side effects and events she witnessed over the last few hours. 

“Cherie, love? What are you still doing here? It’s the middle of the night.” I asked her as I approached her, my eyes following Eos to the elevator. I knew there was no use chasing her as her mind was made up, just like mine. 

I turned my attention back to Cherie as she struggled to find her words. I walked up to her and cupped her face. The effects of two very emotional Titans and a goddess were too much for her and her brain was unable to process. I bent a little and dropped my hand from her face to the back of her neck, slipping my other arm under her knees. I lifted her slight form and carried her to my couch. I sighed deeply as I stood. 

I kept watching over her for a few minutes to make sure she was coming around before slipping into my personal quarters for a blanket and damp cloth for her forehead. I came back out and draped the blanket over her and perched on the coffee table next to her before placing the damp cloth on her head. 

“How did this become such a massive clusterfuck so quickly?” I thought to myself. 

I didn’t really need to talk to Zeus. I knew his answers without asking. 

I turned my attention and focused back on Cherie, and seeped some of my pent-up energy into her. This is me, the healer, the mother. I needed to find the fight and help fight back the Titans. Seeing Cherie stir and watch as the focus came back into her eyes, I felt she would be ok, and I could move on. I stood, walked to the bar and pulled out a glass. I bent and opened the small fridge from under the counter and gathered a few ice cubes in my hand before standing and dropping them into the glass. I poured her some water from a bottle on the counter and brought it to her. I set it down on the coffee table and flipped the cloth on her head to the cooler side. 

“Wha…what happened…” The woman tried to sit up, and I laid my hand on her shoulder gently, but firm enough to get my point across. She laid back against the couch and pressed her hand to the cloth on her head.

“It’s ok, you’ll feel better soon. When you do, go home and stay there. Your life is more valuable to me than this place. Ok?” 

She nodded slightly in response. 

“I have to go now, but I will be back to check on you soon. We can talk then.” 

She wrinkled her face questioningly but didn’t argue. 

“I’ll help you make sense of it all when I return, just trust me for now, ok?”

Her eyes began to close as she relaxed in the trust we had developed. She knew this side of me, and that was enough. 

I stood and looked around my office. I took a deep sigh. I turned towards the window and called my steeds. I opened the window and stepped out into my awaiting chariot. I closed my eyes and felt out my fellow Titans. I knew I needed to talk to someone. Another Titan to help me get my thoughts out. But who? I flew southwest towards Mt. Olympus as I thought. “Maybe Asteria or Dione, no, they haven’t been around like me. I don’t even know if they are involved in the fight this time. Wait, Leto! Surely she has answered Apollo’s or Artemis’ call for aid.” I thought about where she might be and turned at Mt Olympus. 

I approached the GC in a matter of minutes, but I was not prepared for what I found. The building had smoke billowing out of the busted windows, and the mortal fire rescue teams were rushing all around, trying to get the people out and stabilize the building. “What in Tartarus happened here?” I thought to myself. My next thought was to my lab and the mortals I had hired to build it. “Gods! I have to do something!” I pulled my chariot up to the 25th floor where my lab was located and stepped in through one of the shattered windows. 

Oh, gods! Twisted metal and glass shards were everywhere. The cabinets were dangling from the wall, and their doors were hanging from the hinges. The tables were littered with ceiling tiles and debris. I continued walking through the room and began calling out for anyone on the floor. The first mortal I found was one of the workmen that had been hanging ceiling tiles. I’m pretty sure he broke some bones falling off the ladder, but I knelt down beside him and asked if I could help him out of the building. He mumbled and nodded. I slid one arm through the rubble and under his shoulder, gingerly sitting him up. I paused when he groaned and gave him a moment to readjust. Now that he was settled, I finished securing him in my arms and stood up. We carefully made our way back to the window and into my chariot. We flew down to ground level and I delivered him to one of the ambulances parked outside. I flew back and repeated the process until all the mortals from my floor were out and safe. Then I started on the next floor. I keep asking myself, “What happened here? Was it the Titans? Something to do with Pollux and Castor’s key? A mortal attack?” I shook off the questions and continued my work. I had just reentered the building and headed to the stairwell when I saw Artemis coming down a flight of stairs in a panic. “Arty? Artemis, are you ok? You’re clearly upset. Do you know what happened here?”

Titans Rising: Enemy of my Enemy {guest author}

 

Guest author Amber Albright

Trying to find a Titan is harder than it seems; that’s for damn sure. After hitting up the few offices that I knew about, I eventually found her in Paris. Shit, how many locations does one need?

Sighing, I walked to the large building that held the little moon Titan inside. I guess ‘little’ would be an insult, given her age and all, but who am I to pass on the opportunity to insult someone?

For our meeting, I wore a low-cut white pantsuit with matching shoes, and I trotted up the stairs to the entrance of the building. It was busy inside, with a bunch of people running around like chickens with their heads cut off. Maybe business was booming for Miss Titan. I chewed my gum, popping bubbles, as I entered the elevator, pressing the floor I needed. I guess I could have turned into mist and went that way, but if the Titan decided to get handsy, I needed all my strength.

The elevator dinged at the top floor as the doors slid open. I walked in like I owned the place, my heels clicking on her expensive floor. A woman stood from the receptionist desk, opening her mouth to speak at my sudden intrusion. I didn’t hear what she said as I raised my hand, knocking on the door.

The door opened almost instantly. A tall, platinum-blonde Titan met my gaze.

“Ate?” She spoke with surprise as she raised her hand, stopping her receptionist behind me. “It’s okay, Cherie.”

I didn’t give her a second glance as I pushed my way in. The office was large with a huge bay window off to the side. A couch and chair sat opposite each other, the same color as her hair. Off to the left, there was a desk with a computer and paperwork upon it.  She had a small bar along one of the walls, and she wasn’t alone. An equally-tall woman sat in a chair off to the back, and from the energy she possessed, it told me that she was another Titan. Eos.

Eos was the Titan of the dawn, and although equally pretty, her hair held more of a rustic red to it  compared to her sister’s. This could work for me if I played my cards right. Although I had hoped for one Titan, I could try to persuade two. Maybe. I turned back to Selene and plopped down on her fancy couch, throwing my arms behind me as I popped another bubble.

“Hello, cupcake,” I purred as I gave her a once over. “You’ve aged well.”

“I have better moves than you, dear,” she responded, nodding to her receptionist before closing the door.

“Good one, S. What’s it been? A century or so?”

Rolling her eyes at my comment, she proceeded. “Or so.”  She headed to the bar, speaking over her shoulder, “Pick your poison.”

Smirking, I popped another bubble, “Oh, honey, you don’t have my poison.”

She scoffed in a mock laugh. “Oh, I’m sure.”

I watched as she pulled out three glasses and opened a decanter of Scottish whiskey, pouring two.

She turned back, heading to her sister, handing her a glass. “Sorry, Ate, you remember my sister, Eos?”

My smirk dropped for a second as I responded, “I remember everything. And a little birdie told me, you guys do, too.”

She nodded briefly before tapping her foot. “Drink or not?”

I shook my head in response. “I’ll pass. I don’t plan to stay long.”

She shrugged and returned the third glass. She walked back towards the couch and me.

“What’s on your mind, and be specific.”

Standing from the couch, I walked over towards her desk, slowly dragging a single finger across it, while glancing at the paperwork. I saw nothing of importance. I turned back to her, clasping my hands in front of me.

“I have a proposition for you. As you both know, the Titans are free. Just as I know your dear old brother is back in his cell.”

She sighed at my words. “And? We were just on our way to see…” she stopped rolling her eyes as she made air quotes, “King Zeus.”

Hearing his name made my blood boil, but I composed myself so that they didn’t even notice the sudden change. Taking a deep breath, I slowly smirked at her comment.

“And do what exactly? Ask him for a favor? You know as well as I that he will give you nothing. What if I have something better in mind?”

Selene didn’t miss a beat.

“He has been reasonable before,” she paused, throwing back her drink, and headed to the bar for a refill. She stopped, checking to see if her sister needed one, and returned to her seat. “You have our attention. Go on.”

Folding my arms, I leaned against her desk “As you know, since your memories are intact, I was exiled. Banished. Erased. Now I could care less what happens to you, but that doesn’t mean someone else isn’t interested.”

She scoffed. “Someone besides Atlas?”

My smile slowly widened as I stepped forward.

“Yes someone older than even Atlas. Titans ruled long before the Gods and now look at you. Bending to their will. Answering their call. Time is up, S. The Titans want you back.”

“What’s the offer?” she asked as Eos stood close to her.

“Join Kronos. Help ruin Olympus with me, and then you don’t have to worry about your precious brother ever being imprisoned again.”

She tilted her head for a moment before responding, “I remember, quite clearly, how that went down last time. What’s different this time?”

Eos watched me for a second before grabbing her sister’s glass. After refilling both glasses, she returned to sit by her sister. I turned away from them heading, towards the window, placing my hands on the windowsill before turning back.

“Look at the world now. The Gods are weak. Complacent. They crave love, work jobs; they’re practically mortal. They haven’t fought in a war in centuries.” I paused, my voice turning cold. “And besides, the last time the Titans didn’t have me.”

Selene stood and headed over to the window, the air around her changing as she got closer. The look on her face alone told me I’d hit a nerve somewhere. She seemed livid, almost as if her face took on a darker shade. She placed her hand above mine, pinning me near the window.

“And you think you can make that much of a difference, little God?” she asked through clenched teeth.

If she was trying to intimidate or scare me, it wouldn’t work, but I played along with it. I smiled, backing slowly, shaking my head in amusement, like a child.

“Nope. But what’s about to happen is going to make the Titan war look like a piece of cake.” I paused, tapping my chin. “What’s the saying? The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Besides you forget. I. Remember. Everything.”

Selene’s voice raised as the nerve I was trying to reach starts to crack. “As do I, child.” She turned back to Eos, striding toward her, and snapped at me again. “I was outcast and isolated, too. Or are you that fucking conceited?”

I tilted my head toward her, stepping closer once more, my brows furrowing. “You see, that’s the difference between you and I. You’re doing nothing about it. You’re working for them. Helping them. It’s kind of pathetic. A Titan as their lap dog.”

My remark sent Selene over the edge, and the room began to darken as she started towards me. She stopped by her sister, grabbing her hand. “I haven’t done any help, that’s for damn sure! I simply thought a change in pace may be a good idea.”

I stood in place, folding my arms, as I stared at her. “You thought wrong, and you’re a fool to think they won’t turn on you, too. Think about it. Or would you rather ask for visitation rights for the rest of eternity?”

She snatched her hand from Eos, who was currently the only light source in the room, and stared back at me. The air in the room thickened from the two Titans I just pissed off, and I know there isn’t much more I can say. Shrugging, I dropped my arms as I placed my hands on my hips.

“The offer still stands, S. If you want it. I’m sure Kronos will find you sooner or later.”

I grinned coldly, once more giving a wave to both Titans as I morphed my body into fine black mist and exited through the window.

Titans Rising: Paris – Eos

 

I threw open the door from my Paris office, which scared the shit out of Cherie. “Oh mes dieux, comment êtes-vous arrivé ici.”

“How did I get here? I’m a Titan, remember, Cherie? I can go anywhere I want,” I said in a sharper tone than she deserved.

She looked at me like she was going to cry.

“I’m sorry, Cherie, it’s been a long day,” I apologized. I wasn’t angry at her. She didn’t deserve my wrath.

She stood from her desk and walked up to me, touching a patch of dirt on my face. She looked me up and down and linked her arm in mine.

“No, Lady Selene, I apologize. Let’s go take care of you.” She walked me back into my office through to my personal quarters. She pulled out a washcloth from the cupboard and turned on the water at the sink. Her hand trailed from the faucet to the lever to begin filling the sink with water. She dipped the cloth in the water and wrung it out. I leaned against the counter, mulling over the events of the last few days while she gently cleaned the dirt off of my face and arms. She untucked my tank top and pulled it off over my head. Rinsing the cloth out turned the water a reddish-brown color, and she continued the careful cleaning of my flesh wounds as I stared off into space.

Snapping back to the present, I took her hand from my shoulder where she was wiping at a bruise. “Cherie, I think I just need a shower,” I sighed deeply.

“As you wish, my Lady. I know you never do, but if you want to talk, I am here.” She bowed her head and I kissed the top of it.

“Thank you, sweet girl, but no. There are some things mortals shouldn’t know.”

With that, she laid the washcloth on the sink, pulled the plug, and walked out of the bathroom. I finished stripping and got in the shower. The hot water pelted my bruised body, but I didn’t really feel it, my mind was elsewhere.

“Helios, can you still hear me? I can still feel you. I have to get you out. I can’t do this without you.” 

My pleas were met with silence. If he was gone, how could I still teleport? How did I still feel so…so strong and connected? I had more questions than answers, and I refused to live this way.

I turned off the water and stepped out of the shower. I dressed in silence, but my thoughts were screams in my head.

It wasn’t enough time. I have so much I still want to say to you. Maybe Zeus will let us send letters or have visitations. He turned himself in. That’s good, right? He helped me fight Atlas, he could have taken Atlas’ side. I needed more time! 

Screw this form, I needed to see more and figure out what was going on! I went to the window, opened and jumped.

My chariot was there and I landed with both feet and took the reins in one smooth, practiced motion. The horses took off at my mental command, and we flew off into the thermosphere. I spent a few hours just flying around, trying to sense where everyone was and who was free. My sister, Eos, and I have been estranged since the last war when she took the Titans’ side. She wasn’t imprisoned like our brother was, and I felt it better that we stayed apart…until now.

I wonder what she knows. Helios didn’t mention her, but we didn’t exactly have much time to talk or catch up. I closed my eyes and tried to find her. I turned to the west and slapped my reins as we took off in the direction of the sunrise. “Eos, dear sister. I need your counsel. Where are you?” 

“Here, dearest Selene. Keep coming to the west and I will meet you there. I have been waiting for you to call.”

“Yes, sister, I feel you.”

I slapped the reins again, and my steeds quickened their pace. Minutes later, we landed smoothly less than 200km from Paris. The wind whipped as Eos came out from hiding. Her red hair whipped behind her as she approached me. We were both cautious as we approached each other.

“How, how long have you been here?”

She dropped her head.

“Long enough. I am – proud of you, Sel. All you have accomplished, and to be welcomed back into the Pantheon.” 

“Thanks. I think,” I spoke out loud. “Look, let’s cut to the chase.”

My emotions were still raw from the flash visit of Helios, and now seeing Eos, with our rocky relationship, wasn’t helping matters. Maybe talking aloud will keep my emotions from showing as bad.

“Do you know anything more about the Titans’ uprising than I do?”

Eos nodded. “Some. I have been approached, but haven’t acted upon anything yet. Honestly, I wanted to see where it went, and whose side you took.”

“Me? You never cared what I thought before. Why would it matter this time?”

The anger was rising, but I tried to keep myself in check. She wasn’t as powerful as Helios, but our connection still played off each other and our moods likewise. I could feel her anxiety and she, my anger. We stepped back from each other. This was one of the many reasons we stayed apart. We were too volatile to each other.

I took a deep breath and exhaled it slowly.

“So, have you seen Helios? Who approached you?” I paused to give her time to answer.

“Who doesn’t matter, and no, I haven’t seen Helios. Now, thanks to you, I won’t be able to,” she spat, pure hatred and disdain dripping from her words.

“Eos, you got it all wrong! I swear! He turned himself in! I want nothing more than for us to be together again! The trifecta reunited.”

The reality of Atlas’ words rang in my head.

Eos just looked at me. She was waiting for me to finish my statement, but I was lost in thought. I shook my head, trying to get the Titan’s words out of my head. I looked at Eos and all I could do was step up and give her a deep, hard hug. She stiffened under my embrace. She slowly drew her arms up and absently patted my back in return.

“Oh, Eos. My dear sister. How could I judge you any harsher than Helios?”

At that, she relaxed into me and we just stood there for a while in each other’s embrace.

After some time, Eos pulled back and said, “So, who are we joining, Sel?”

“Depends on the answers I get from the king.”

We stepped back into my chariot and took off back to my Paris office. With the Titans on the loose, finding Zeus wasn’t going to just be as simple as an office visit. We needed to regroup.