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Poseidon
A thousand times, I almost tell Icarus I’ve changed my mind. A thousand times, I almost go against everything I am and sail away from Olympus and all the trouble that awaits my return. A thousand times, I stay silent instead.
“Poseidon, I have to go.”
I look askance at Icarus, only to realize I’m still gripping his hand too tightly for him to slip free. He’s not trying, but he’s right. The entire Aeaean crew is milling about on the deck of the other ship, unsure what to do. They need him, need his direction and his comforting words. I just…need it, too.
“Three months,” I repeat. I’ve never believed in mantras before, but I have a feeling I’m about to. Two words, a promise I am determined to uphold.
“Three months,” he confirms. He kisses me hard enough to buckle my knees, and then he’s gone, slipping through my fingers as if he was never truly mine to hold.
No. Damn it, no .
I can’t afford to lose faith the moment he stops touching me. I don’t make promises I don’t intend to keep, that I’m not sure I can keep, and I’ll do everything in my power to reunite with him. I’ve never felt a connection like this before, and I suspect I never will. I just have to survive long enough to realize it.
He walks away, easily crossing the plank, and steps down onto the deck of the other ship. Several of my people who came with Ceto cross to me and help unhook the plank and ropes keeping the ships near each other.
“Where do you want us?”
“Nowhere yet.” I glance at Ida. Zir is Orion’s next in command, a solid, reliable person with pale skin and a nearly shaved head. Tattoos crawl up zir neck to frame zir pointed chin, all nautical themed.
Even that glance is too long looking away from Icarus, growing small in the distance as Ceto guides the ship away from the coast, from Olympus, from me .
Am I making a mistake?
I don’t know. I don’t fucking know . If there was someone else to step into Poseidon’s shoes without completely undermining any attempts to fight Circe, if we weren’t actively under attack, if, if, if. But there’s no one else. Triton’s eldest daughter can be trained, at least enough to take over, and Orion and Polyphemus and the rest can help her settle in and find her feet once I’m gone.
All that takes time, though. I’ll be hard pressed to keep my promise to find Icarus in three months, but the thought of it taking longer is untenable. I have given Olympus everything, have done my best for a city and people who were never supposed to be under my command. For the first time in my life, I want something for me and me alone.
I want Icarus. I want a life at his side, whatever that ends up looking like. I have no preconceived notions. The idea of years stretching out without having every detail in place is a little scary, but it means leaving behind the memory of my uncle for good. It means…I get to choose.
In the distance, I can no longer make out Icarus on the deck. I swallow past the sudden tightness in my throat. “Let’s go.”
Ida doesn’t make me say it twice. Ze strides away from me, issuing orders with the ease of someone who’s used to being obeyed. Ze has held zir position for years now and has several ships under zir direct command. It shows.
All too soon, we’re sailing back into Olympian waters. The city looks much like it did when we left, and yet it feels dramatically different. As if this morning is the first in a new era. That’s the kind of superstitious thought process I rarely indulge in, but I can’t shake the feeling that everything has changed.
That sensation solidifies as we reach the docks and the group of Athena’s and Hades’s people waiting for us. Zeus is nowhere to be found, but Athena and Hades stand a careful distance apart as their people file onto the ship and separate into groups, obviously following orders given out while they waited for me to arrive.
I walk down the metal plank to the dock and head to Athena first. “The Aeaeans have been taken care of.”
She nods, her gaze on the ship. “I think it was a mistake to let them go. There’s little enough reason for the other four ships to keep going instead of turning around and picking up where they left off.”
“They won’t.” They’ll have their hands full with Icarus making moves on Aeaea. Even if they were inclined to continue the assault on Olympus, they’ll have to choose a course of action to prioritize and it will certainly be their home.
“We’ll see.” She crosses her arms over her chest. “We have no idea where Circe is. It’s a problem.”
“More than a problem.” I twist and look toward the city center, even though I can’t see Dodona Tower from this position. “Zeus?”
She smiles tightly. “He’s going to call a meeting officially relinquishing control of his coup.”
“I’m sure the rest of the Thirteen will love that.”
“Undoubtedly.”
Especially Hera. But she’s not my problem any longer. Our alliance is at its end. I want to believe she wouldn’t have gone behind my back and opened the gates for Circe, but I can’t say it with any amount of surety. She’s ruthless to a fault, and if she thinks she can save her family, there’s no depths she won’t descend to.
Hades shifts closer, his expression unreadable. “I’ll leave some of my people here to assist with things—and continue reporting to me—but I’m returning to the lower city.” To his people and his pregnant wife.
I extend my hand. “Thank you for your help tonight.” I have no doubt Zeus would want to press the importance of continuing with a legacy-title alliance, even without a coup in the works, but I don’t bother saying it. Hades knows everything I do; it’s why he’s here. He’ll show up when we need him next time, too.
“Keep me updated.”
“I will.” I watch him leave and then glance at Athena. “Do you need me here for this?”
“Go.” She waves me away. “I know how to reach you if I need you.”
I go. After a brief internal debate, I call Orion and Polyphemus and tell them to meet me at the main house. After a longer internal debate, I call Pallas.
It’s early but she answers on the third ring. “Hello?”
“It’s Poseidon.”
“Yes, I know. What can I do for you?”
This is the moment of no return. If I hand over the title, I’ll lose the control it gives me. I won’t be able to protect the people under my command any longer. I’ll have to trust that my read on Pallas is correct and that she’ll step up with enough support. I had intended to hold this title until my dying day, but…Gods, I’m tired. I didn’t even realize how tired until I shared the burden with another person for a few days. No, not just another person. With Icarus .
“I would like you to come to the house for a meeting. Now, if you’re available.”
She’s quiet for a moment, and then says, “Okay. I’ll be there in fifteen.”
There’s no going back now. No time to second-guess myself. “I’ll see you shortly.” I hang up and head for my SUV.
Twenty minutes later, the four of us are closed in my rarely used study as I outline my plan. Orion and Polyphemus are shocked, but it’s Pallas who speaks first. “But…are you sure? You’re Poseidon and I’m just—”
“You’re not just anything,” I cut in gently. “But I understand better than anyone the burden I’m asking you to take up, especially considering our current circumstances. I won’t abandon you in the midst of this conflict—have no fear of that—but after…”
Pallas favors her late mother more than her father. She’s a slight woman with light-brown skin and long, straight black hair. She’s been spared the blue eyes that plague our line as well. She sits perfectly still, her spine straight and her gaze a little too direct to be perfectly comfortable. “My father never would have agreed to this.”
There’s no point in arguing that. She’s right. “I know. But it’s not his decision. It’s yours.”
She swallows visibly. “I…” Pallas pauses and shakes her head sharply. “I want it. Not just because you’ve served for so long and deserve your own happiness. I want the chance to prove myself. To…well, to do it all.”
I focus on Orion and Polyphemus. “You have thoughts. Let’s hear them.”
Polyphemus speaks first, his words practically tripping over each other as they leave his mouth. “You’re going to throw it all away for him ? You’ve known him a couple of days, and he’s the enemy!”
“I’m not throwing anything away.” It’s so strange that the longer I sit with this plan, the calmer I feel. “I’m passing on a burden I’ve been carrying most of my life. One I never would have chosen for myself. I think I’ve earned that, don’t you?”
Polyphemus sputters, but Orion nods. “He’s right, Po.” They turn to Pallas. “Treat us fairly and we’ll support you unquestionably.”
She blushes prettily. “I don’t expect unquestionable support. There’s plenty I won’t know, even after Poseidon, uh, vacates the title.” Her voice firms the longer she speaks. “I will value any and all of your input for as long as you’re willing to give it.”
She’s going to be fine.
The realization washes over me, bringing a tide of exhaustion in its wake. We’ve done so much, and yet there’s still so much left to do. The threat of Circe has never been greater, and we don’t even know where she is. Zeus and Hera’s war might be even more dangerous to Olympus as a whole. There’s mess wherever I look, and it’s a tangled knot of one disaster after another.
And yet…
Hope has taken up residence in my chest, and there’s no dimming it. As Pallas keeps talking with my people, I shift to look out the window to the east. The ocean is hidden from view, but the promise remains, beating in time with my heart.
Three months. Wait for me, Icarus. I’m coming to you. I promise .
Table of Contents
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- Page 36 (Reading here)
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