Adrastia (The God Chronicles Book 4) (2 page)

Everywhere I looked, the monster was not. The usual trails I followed, manifesting as color waves in the air only I could see with my tracking powers, covered the whole room, making it impossible to know exactly where it was. I only had one identifying marker—its characteristically red hair—and I was having to watch each matching woman very closely.

The dancing continued on endlessly, bodies bumping together, music never stopping, and more and more people packing inside the building. Retaining focus on finding the leading monster was becoming more difficult, especially knowing there were innocents being attacked and made to wait for their deaths by others on the level above us. I preferred to go in and get a job done without taking my time about things.

A loud groan caught my attention and I turned, moving to the beat against the man back to back with me. The woman he was clutching had her face buried in his neck, her fiery hair cascading over his shoulder and covering her own hand, gripped around his bicep. We were so close it tickled my own arm, curling under my shoulder and brushing across my neck.

As she broke away from him, he released another pained moan, the same sound that had alerted only me. The woman laughed, tossing her head back, her locks flipping back to show her features, revealing what I'd expected to find.

Ruby red blood covered the lower half of her face, dripping off her chin and rolling down her neck into the enticing amount of cleavage her shirt left uncovered. The white lace blouse looked to be stained with the gore of more than one victim.

She continued to roll her neck, laughter bubbling from her bloody maw, her sharp teeth barely visible. The man she'd fed on was fading fast, I could feel him beginning to collapse against me, when she all but tossed him into the arms of what must have been her lackey. He slowly began making his way through the crowd, off to dispose of the body.

"Hey fella," the empuse cooed, sliding into the space her previous meal had occupied and up against me, running her hands over my jacket, down the front of my chest. "Wanna dance?"

She smiled at me sweetly, on a high from all the feeding she'd been doing. Despite the ongoing massacre, her teeth were white and shining at me from between her plump lips. Golden eyes looked into mine, no hint of danger in them. If it weren't for the fact she was covered in death, I might have even found her attractive.

I couldn't help but be impressed with her setup, the brilliance of it all astounding, especially since she shouldn't have been able to obtain an enchantment this strong from anyone. It likely meant I would be going on a hunt for a witch or two next.

"Why don't we go somewhere private?" I purred back. "Where I can have you all to myself?"

"Ah, ah, ah," she said, waving a finger in my face. "That's not how it works. I like the dance floor, don't you?"

She raised a hand in the air and made a flicking motion, the music getting louder immediately after she did so.

"It's so much cozier here," she grinned, rubbing up against me. "And you can still touch whatever you want."

I danced with her for a minute, letting her fall back into her over confident state, where she would never expect what was coming next.

"You know," I started, grinding with her, my hands sliding up her arms that were wrapped around my neck. "It's going to take a lot more than some loud music and sex appeal to trick me into believing you aren't a beast. And as soon as I'm done with you, I'm going to burn this place to the ground and destroy all of the other monsters you're hiding here."

She stopped cold, her sexy smile fading away faster than waves from the shore, her expression turning to ice. Suddenly, her hands ripped the glasses from my face and threw them on the ground.

"Adrastia!" she hissed, shoving away from me and pushing through the crowd.

Adrenaline pumped even harder through my system, a smile covering my face as I began the chase.

The music kept the people around me sluggish and unwilling to move, the mortals finally getting enough sense to slide out of my way after watching several others get shoved to the ground. As I passed the source of the melodies, I grabbed my sword from its hiding place at my back.

Yanking it from the beat up bag, the room instantly became brighter, lightning sparking from the blade in every direction. Grasping the golden hilt, I swung it down hard, a satisfying crunch and sizzle meeting my ears as the entire sound system was fried. It only took a minute for the effects of the enchantment to wear off, screams filling the air as people awoke to the carnage around them.

The empuse was still in my sight, running for a side door, throwing people out of the way, teeth snapping at those who stood frozen in fear.

I passed through the opening not long after her, moving at full speed, determined to not let her escape.

Suddenly, a metal something connected with my face, shooting out from a small crook in the wall. Warmth oozed out of my nose, my skin stinging, but my training helped me keep my head.

Grabbing the metal object, I recognized it as one of the demon’s legs, another trait she shared with all of her kind. Using a single arm, I ripped her out of her hiding spot, throwing her against the wall, and thrusting my sword towards her at the same time.

She hissed at me in pain, ducking out of the way at the last moment, and scurrying from the sparks that leaped off the brick of the narrow hallway. To her credit, she didn't try to run again, instead revealing a small, silver dagger she'd hidden in her waistband.

"The great Adrastia," she said breathlessly, agitation and fear showing in the way she rocked from foot to foot. "I never would have thought I was such a threat the gods would send you after me."

"They don't send me anywhere," I replied coolly. "I go where I want and take care of any filth I feel like."

She hissed again, the sound turning into that of a scream at my insult.

"Still," she continued, sneering as she composed herself. "I would have thought your time was better spent hunting Titans. Maybe you're more like your Uncle Hades though, too afraid to do his job and lose another precious item."

The anger I displayed as my sword swung toward her wasn’t real. As I’d planned, the blade missed her by a longshot.

A crazy cackle resonated in the space, her confidence seeming to grow as I'd hoped it would.

"Oh, did I hit a nerve?" she laughed again, taking a step forward and jabbing her knife towards me.

Moving easily to the side, I knocked her back, waiting for the right time present itself.

"I spent time in Tartarus already, you know," she spat bitterly, trying to circle around me. "I'm not going back. It wasn't fair for the gods to lock us all up in the first place, stripping from us our rights to wander the earth as we once did."

"You have no rights," I replied smoothly. "You were a danger to a growing world, so you were removed."

"Not anymore," she laughed. "Ever since The Undoing, we've been free. Nothing is going to change that, not even a petty war between gods. Especially if what they say about Hades is true."

"And what do they say about him?" I inquired, letting her get worked up, her nerves obviously coming to a quick end.

"That he went mad. That he fell in love with a mortal, not realizing she was working with the Titans, and it broke him. Is it true he only tries to find a way to be with her again? How can you adequately run a prison if its master won't even go near it?"

She smiled at me snidely and I saw my moment. Lunging forward, I knocked the knife from her hand and grabbed her wrist, jerking her around and slamming her back into the wall.

She cried out, feet flailing, as she made a futile attempt to kick me again.

With a swift jab of my sword, I stabbed her clean through, her body dangling on the blade as it sank into the solid wall behind her. Screams tore from her throat as the lighting that encased the blade shot through her, her body trembling violently until I pulled the metal from her.

I looked down at the burned body as it fell to the floor, dead eyes still looking up at me in terror.

"There's just one difference between my uncle and I," I said, wiping the blood stained sword on my pants. "I have nothing that precious to lose."

Chapter Two
   

Mount Olympus.

It was the only real home I'd ever known, and yet, at times, it felt more like a training ground than anything else. I could barely remember a time when I wasn't in the fields with my father, brandishing a sword as he barked orders at me. As I aged, the orders stopped and sparring matches began.

It wasn't that he was a bad father. He was quite the contrary, actually. After The Undoing, he stepped into the role of general, as he had in every other war the Olympians fought. Personal interests and desires were put aside for the greater good of our people. But, when it came to my mother and I, he never shirked on his duties. The amount of love he had for us was apparent in everything he did, right down to teaching me how to fight and defend myself.

My mother, Karly, hadn't been so keen on me learning the ins and outs of battle, which was to be expected from her. She hadn't always been a goddess as she was now. Her human nature wasn't used to a world where everyone needed to learn how to kill as soon as they could hold a weapon. After what she'd witnessed during her brief time with the gods, she was easy to convince, though.

When my training was complete, I joined the ranks of hunters with the other gods, always on the lookout for Titans and the beasts that had escaped Tartarus. The combat was always ongoing, guerrilla warfare employed by both sides. Each knew it was only a matter of time before another large battle would rip through the lines.

At first, I accepted missions from my father and his brother, Poseidon. I'd bring in the Titans, slay the beasts, and report back to them as soon as possible. The longer I did this, the more it became clear I had a knack for it, a special ability that far outweighed the other Olympians and their skills.

Soon, I started staying away from home longer, searching out my own targets, studying what was happening to the mortal world, and guessing where my bounties were located. Before long, I stopped taking orders all together. Finally, I'd reached the point of being able to be my own general. With each capture and take down I completed, the gods admiration for me grew. Before long, the Olympians were calling me Avenger and treating me like a much revered hero.

My prey took notice as well, giving me the title Adrastia. The name had formerly belonged to a goddess who was lost to us during The Undoing. I took it as a compliment, enjoying the fact they basically called me "The Inescapable."

I sighed, looking at my reflection in the gold lined mirror of my personal quarters. It was nice to be clean again, free of the grime of the human world. Here on Olympus, I always felt like everyone was doing their best to stay fresh. It hadn't ever been made out to be a big deal, but, for whatever reason, I felt it was.

Pulling my long, black hair back into a ponytail at the nape of my neck, I smoothed the strands between my hands, examining their reflection as I did so.

"Well, well. The prodigal son returns."

Catching sight of my visitor in the looking glass, I smiled widely and turned around.

"Arsenio," I laughed warmly. "I thought for sure you would have met me at the gate."

"Perhaps that's why you slipped in as quietly as you left?" he asked with his own teasing grin.

"I knew you had a weakness for club girls," I snorted, folding my arms across my chest. "I thought you'd better sit that one out."

"You left me here for weeks," he exclaimed. "I turned around for two minutes and you were gone! Are you seriously saying you didn't think I could handle it?"

"Are you seriously going to keep pretending you're mad at me?" I snickered.

"I am the son of Poseidon," he said in faux haughtiness. "I don't pretend. I feel deeply and forever."

"Half son," I countered, pushing away from the vanity and walking towards him. "With a sense of humor to boot."

He broke out into a wide grin as I advanced, moving forward to meet me and share in a hug between brothers.

"It wasn't that bad, you know," he offered, shrugging as he broke away from me. "Aphrodite was here for most of it."

"Still chasing what you can't have?" I laughed again, clapping him on the shoulder.

"A demi-god can dream," he smirked, a mischievous grin twisting on his lips. "Besides, I've heard talk of how irresistible Italian men are. I figure, if I lock in on that and the allure I get from being the son of Poseidon, she'll be helpless to my charms."

"She's the goddess of love and married," I snickered. "I'll believe it when I see it."

"I'll hold you to that," he chuckled.

Walking past him, I left the bathroom, crossing to the bed that sat in the connecting room. Zeus's sword lay there waiting for me, my constant companion in every place except home. Anywhere else lacked the feeling of trust I felt here.

"Your mom will be excited to see you," Arsenio said from behind me, leaning in the doorway between the two spaces, his arms folded over his white, cotton clad chest. The seal of Poseidon was stitched over the right breast, the silver thread shining in the soft light.

"It's her birthday," I stated simply. "I wouldn't miss it for anything."

"Momma's boy," he teased.

"Absolutely," I replied seriously.

"She'd be ecstatic you were home even if it wasn't her birthday," he continued thoughtfully. "Unlike my mother, who basically refuses to acknowledge I exist, now she knows I have the same powers as my father."

"Put the family issues away for the time being," I said, tying a belt sheath around my waist and placing the sword inside, my figure already clad in a loose, gold shirt marked with Zeus’s thunderbolt and black pants. "We won't be staying for long. My last stop gave me a lead on where we need to go next."

"Oh, I get to come on this mission?" he teased, an eager light shining in his eyes.