Page 91

I hurry to explain, “He explained that Atlantis once fed Olympus. That a vein connected it to all the realms before it sank.”

“It did,” Hephaestus admits. He straightens, less metal in his eyes as he asks, “Where did you see Poseidon?”

“Um—”

“He comes to the Underworld, doesn’t he?” Hephaestus presses.

“I—” I shift uncomfortably.Why do I feel as though I’m spilling my friend’s secrets by telling them this?

“It’s no matter.” Hephaestus stands. “All that matters now is Atlantis took her power from Olympus and left Olympus with only the Gods who inhabit her to feed her.”

I frown again as the room descends into silence, my mind working to set the pieces of the puzzle before me into place.

Long ago, the three realms were crafted. Atlantis, Olympus, and the Underworld. A direct vein of life—an umbilical cord, to honor Hephaestus’ explanation—surged from Chaos to Atlantis. It was the realm of power so great; it could feed the other two realms by a vein connecting it to Olympus and again to theUnderworld. But this power that fed the realms had been pulled from the source Goddess. From Chaos.

When Atlantis sank into the sea, she severed her vein to Olympus, leaving the realm to either starve or feed from the Gods whose greed forced her to seek refuge in the sea. She maintained her connection to the Underworld, but the power in her reserves was limited, and the vein shrank, growing weak.

I know now that this happened because of Uranus’ betrayal. When he ravaged Chaos, consuming her and claiming her power for himself, there was no more source power to pull. The gift of Chaos should have been lost forever, but the Fates had intervened, I know now, with my creation.

Uranus’ inability to temper the wild of Chaos’ power for himself led him to house it inside my Goddesses spirit, inside me. I am his daughter by spirit even though I am the daughter of Hyperion by seed and Demeter by womb. The power I possess, stolen from Chaos and Aether and Hyperion in his unawareness of self during the possession of Uranus, to use his bodily form to create me, is massive.

But it comes down to the fact that inside me lives the power to sustain the realms. Not simply the Underworld as we all thought. Butallthe realms. The three. The triangle of power that was alwaysof Chaos.

If only I knew what to do with that power.

Or what to do now that I know I possess it.

Chapter

Thirty-Eight

Persephone

I can’t sleep.The room is too quiet, the shadows cast by the low flames in the hearth too dark. Still, I long to fall into dreams. To see Hades.

I ache for him in a way that has salty tears stinging my eyes. I ache for the comfort of Leuce and Hydra.

Hydra made it out mostly unscathed, thanks to the rescue of Ares’ war horses—or Pegasuses. But Leuce was taken away by the gladiator guards she’d fought in valiant effort to save me from Athena and lost.

Ares spoke candidly about Leuce’s fate, and I’ve been distraught ever since. Knowing that she is suffering because of me is too much to bear.

Negative thoughts are a whirl of wind in my thorny mind. The thorns keep catching them, one after the other, feeding them to me until my breaths are shallow and my tears are hot. As soon as I overcome one, another snags.

The cycle is vicious.

A sharp sob cuts the silence as I roll onto my side, wishing Hydra could be with me now. Instead, she is with Ares’ horses, guarding Hephaestus’ mountain abode from any who, most assuredly, are searching the realm for us.

Snagging a pillow, I yank it into my chest. It makes me feel just a little less alone and for a moment, my body sags into the mattress. The fire gives another little pop, the sound somehow soothing in the silence. My eyes flutter closed as, for a single moment, there is blissful silence.

I dreamthat I am hanging over the arena. Ares is no longer fighting, no longer moving. Athena laughs in my ear before she drops me.

A scream rips from my throat and my body jolts as the dream begins to fade. Only, warm strong arms and the scent of woodsmoke and earth pull me back in.Hades.

A sob wrangles my scream, and he shushes me gently, soothingly. “Shhh. I’ve got you. Shhh.”

“You’re here.”

“I’m here.” His lips are on my ear where the icy burn of Athena’s lips still stings. I shudder in his arms that tighten around me. “I’m here, little goddess.”