Page 130 of Axios

“How far is the journey?” Demetrius asked, unable to hide his excitement as he smiled. The whiteness of his teeth was a stark contrast to the bronze tint of his sun-kissed skin.

“Over a week at least,” Eryx answered him. “Possibly two, depending on how fast we move and whatever obstacles we meet on the way.”

“Obstacles?” Demetrius inquired, the smile slipping from his young, handsome face.

“Attacks or blockades from Thebes,” Eryx specified in a calm voice, as if he were speaking of the weather rather than something so dire. “All invasions of Boeotia in the past were met with heavy opposition.”

One of the commander’s voices boomed over all the noise, and we were told to move into formation and prepare to set out.

King Cleombrotus was leading the invasion, and he rode up on his horse at the front of the army, near the cavalry soldiers.

I gave one last hug to Leanna, a kiss to Icarius’ head, and a ruffling of the hair to Leo, before turning away from them and joining my men in line. As we began walking, I saw Nikias in the crowd of people watching us leave.

His forlorn expression caused my gut to knot, and the strange feeling I’d had the night before while talking to Eryx about our departure seeming different re-emerged.

During the battle at Tegyra, I had assumed it had been the conflict Nikias had seen in the vision the oracle had given to him, the one where he’d mentioned something happening to Eryx. However, what if it hadn’t been that one?

Put it from your mind, I told myself. Worrying solved nothing.

So, I focused on marching instead—the steady pounding of our feet upon the dirt and the occasional clanking of shields, the warmth of the sun on the back of my neck.

“What is on your mind?” Eryx asked, peering at me from the corner of his eyes.

“The sun,” I answered. It was honest, although not exactly what had been on my mind.

He looked at me oddly before nodding and facing ahead.

Eryx, as anenomotarch, led one of theenomotiaforces—which was the smallest unit in a Spartan army and consisted of around thirty men. Haden, Demetrius, Cassius, Ian, Melias, and I were part of his division upon his request.

“I heard the other officers speak of the army in Orchomenus joining us before we reach Boeotia,” he said. “We will have a dominating force with the armies combined. Thebes will not know what hit them.”

Quill.

Eagerness at seeing my friend again after nearly three years blossomed in my chest, and the worries of war were forgotten. I even wished we’d move faster so that I could see him sooner.

“I knew that would make you smile,” Eryx spoke, looking over at me with a grin of his own.

“You know me better than anyone,” I said, feeling the weight lift from my chest.

Surprisingly, days passed with hardly any confrontation. We traveled through the terrain, and the only conflicts were the ones that occurred between some of the men in our army. Nothing too terrible, though, just the fatigue and irritation getting to them. Once they’d swung at each other a few times, they were fine.

When we neared Boeotia; however, we noticed the routes had been blocked. With an army of our caliber and number marching, it was not unusual for Thebes to have received word of our approach. They had scouts all throughout the area.

Our advance was stalled, and so we decided to find land off the road to make camp for the night. Quill’s army was supposed to join us soon, and I was becoming impatient.

“Look,” Eryx said once we’d made a fire and sat down, pointing to a mountain to the side of us. “Do you know what that is?”

I observed it, seeing nothing special or unordinary. “A mountain?”

He laughed and bumped my shoulder. “Well, yes, but do you knowwhichmountain?”

I shook my head.

“It is Mount Helicon,” he explained with an inflection of excitement in his tone. My heart thrummed as I realized he was about to tell me a story. “There is a spring located deep within the mountain, you see. And do you know what occurred at that spring?”

Again, I shook my head. “Tell me.”

“Once, there was a man from Thespiae who was a magnificent hunter. However, he was not just a simple man. He was the son of a river god, and his name was Narcissus.” Eryx tore off a sliver of meat and chewed on it. More men had joined us around the fire—including Demetrius and Cassius—looking at him and waiting to hear more. “Not only was Narcissus a hunter, but he was also very beautiful. Maidens and young men fell at his feet, pining for his attention, but he refused them all.”