Page 116 of Axios

More Spartans were slain, and the ones who saw the same odds against the enemy as I did joined the other cowards and fled the battlefield.

A body moved beside mine, and I looked to see Haden at my left. He nodded at me and focused ahead.

Quill joined us next at Eryx’s side.

“Where’s Theon?” he asked, looking between the three of us. From his place, he could not see Theon’s body.

I did not have the heart to tell him the truth. Not in that moment when the truth would only devastate him and prevent him from fighting with a clear mind. So, I said nothing.

Among the fallen, I saw a Theban soldier kneeled down by another, holding the dead man in his lap and stroking the hair from his bloodied face. When a Spartan attacked, the man did not move to stop him. He only sat there holding who I believed to be his lover and met death with a sad smile.

When more soldiers advanced on us, the four of us fought with everything we had—every ounce of strength we could muster and all the anger at having our brethren slain. We shifted into a different formation. Eryx at my side, Haden at my back, and Quill at Eryx’s back. We used our shields to protect ourselves and each other.

My blade became an extension of my arm and I hacked and stabbed at any man who came within reach.

However, there were soon too many Thebans around us for us to keep the formation, and we were forced to split apart, each of us fighting on our own. Eryx was too far away for my liking, and when I looked to see how he fared, I saw four men surrounding him.

I stabbed the man I was fighting in the throat and kicked his body off my blade before charging to Eryx.

I cannot lose him.

Before I reached him, he had easily cut through the men. He glanced up at me, blood dripping down his torso and staining his helmet—all from the enemy and not his own.

The relief was too much and I smiled. Of course he could take care of himself.

“Ax!” he yelled before running toward me.

I was confused as to why he appeared so frantic. Then, I turned around and came face to face with the enemy.

He plunged his sword into my stomach and held my stare. He was young—too young to have had such hate penetrating through his dark eyes. He shoved harder before withdrawing the blade.

At first, the stab had only felt like a punch, but then a sharp, stinging pain unlike any I had ever known spread through me. I wheezed and clutched the wound as blood gushed from it. Crimson covered my hands, and they uncontrollably shook as I looked at them. I struggled to stand as my body fought against me and swayed.

The other soldier then took his shield and bashed me in the face with it.

The ground felt like it was quaking and everything blurred. I didn’t know if I was still standing or if I’d fallen to the ground. My hazy vision only gave me glimpses of bodies moving around me. Indistinct shadows.

Arms came around me then and I heard an agonized howl.

Darkness fell over my eyes—an impenetrable shroud. Momentarily, I thought I had gone blind, but then I realized my eyes had just shut. I tried to open them, but they were too heavy. Yet, even while I was trapped in the dark, I heard commotion all around me: screams, roars of fury, and weapons clanging.

“Do not leave me!” A voice called from far away. But if the voice was far away, why did I feel wet dripping on my face and feel warmth around me? “Axios. I beg of you.”

Everything then drifted away, and the world fell silent. No more cries or sounds of battle. Just blissful silence. The dark—and the numbness it provided—beckoned to me, and I gave in, letting it take me at last.

Chapter Thirty-One

The first thing I noticed was warmth on my skin. It tingled along my arms and down to my toes, and it felt so wonderful that I did not wish to move. And then it registered in my mind that Icouldmove. That I felt anything at all.

Slowly, I opened my eyes to see the blue sky above me. A bird flew overhead, and I followed its movements.

“Ax?” Eryx appeared at my side with a hopeful expression. He looked different, though. His usually expressive green eyes looked tired—drained—and shadows lay below them as if he hadn’t had a good night’s rest in many moons. “Thank the gods. You’re awake.”

He smoothed his hand across my forehead.

I did not know where we were or what we were doing. Nothing made sense. I glanced around us and saw men performing daily tasks: gathering wood for fire, some cooking meat, some were training with others, and a few stood by the lake, staring out over the water. We were in Orchomenus.

My muddled mind eventually cleared, and I remembered the battle. Being stabbed.