"What"s that?" Helen asked cautiously, her bravado wearing thin.
Poseidon and Apollo positioned themselves behind Zeus. Aphrodite kissed Helen"s cheek, released her hand, and reluctantly went to stand behind her father. Hector, Lucas, and Jason all reacted in kind and angled themselves behind Helen and Orion.
"I want your shiny new world," Zeus replied.
More G.o.ds joined him. A huge woman in armor came first. Then a boy who moved so fast he seemed to buzz like a hummingbird, a hunchback carrying a hammer, a man with grapevines in his hair, and finally another woman wearing a dress of peac.o.c.k feathers, all fell in behind Zeus.
Helen looked at Orion. Lucas bit down hard, grinding his teeth to keep himself from yelling. Didn"t she just tell him a few hours ago that he was the one who helped her figure out everything? Lucas watched as an understanding pa.s.sed between Orion and Helen. He didn"t know what it was because she was withholding information. Again. Helen and Orion made a silent agreement, and she turned to face Zeus.
"You can"t have it," Helen said deliberately.
Zeus smiled like Helen had just given him keys to the world he really wanted. "Challenge."
Helen hoped like h.e.l.l this worked.
"Accepted," Hector said, barreling forward until he was at Helen"s right hand and glaring at Zeus over a few feet of sand. Voices shouted out, and several challenges were made at once as the crowd of Scions all reacted to Hector"s move against the G.o.ds.
"Wait!" Helen held up an arm to stop Hector from starting a melee right then and there. Lucas and Jason came to keep Hector in check.
"I haven"t seen such fire in a hundred generations," Zeus said, laughing. "You"re right, Apollo. He"s brave, even braver than your boy at Troy, but dumber than a block of marble."
"Easy," Orion said to Hector. "Trust us."
Zeus leaned in close to Hector, close enough for Helen to see the lightning bolts that flashed inside his amber eyes. "If he had an ounce of sense, he would remember that no matter how skilled he is, he cannot kill me."
"Exactly," Helen said in a controlled voice. "So it"s not a true challenge. The G.o.ds aren"t allowed to fight mortals in duels, which is why at Troy only demiG.o.ds fought demiG.o.ds. The G.o.ds can try to kill Scions with ocean waves and lightning bolts and curses. But they are not allowed to partic.i.p.ate in one-on-one combat with us unless they"re mortal as well. Like when Ares tortured me in the portal. He wasn"t immortal there, so he could kill me. But away from a portal, the G.o.ds need to find a way to make us fight each other instead. Like they did at Troy."
"And like they"re doing right now," Orion continued pointedly, so more Scions could hear and understand that the G.o.ds were just trying to kill them all off.
"There are rules to these things. You"re already my chosen champion," Helen said. "And you"re mortal, so Zeus has to pick a mortal champion, too."
"How did you learn all this?" Zeus asked Helen with narrowed eyes.
"A little river told me," she answered, inwardly sighing with relief that her Helen of Troy memories were correct.
Helen saw Hector relax and smile. Lucas and Jason eased back, finally trusting that Helen and Orion knew what they were doing.
Most of the other Scions relaxed as well. Even though the other Houses didn"t know Hector personally, they had all heard of his reputation. He had killed Creon, a Shadowmaster, with his bare hands. As far as they were concerned, that was proof enough of his skill in single combat.
There really was no Scion who could match Hector, except maybe Helen herself. He was the perfect hero. The biggest physical threat was Daphne and she adored Hector. No matter what Daphne"s motives were, and Helen openly admitted to herself that she had no idea what those could be, Helen sensed that her mother would never kill Hector. He reminded her too much of Ajax.
At least, that"s what Orion and Helen were banking on. Neither of them could think of a Scion who could beat Hector, so they hoped that the death toll for the day would end at two-Phaon and some other poor thing, hopefully from the Hundred Cousins or from a distant offshoot of the House of Athens.
All of this last-second planning she and Orion had done should have put Helen at ease, but it didn"t. When she looked back at Zeus, his smile had grown wider.
Helen noticed a disturbance around them, like the sand dunes were coming alive. A moment later, the dunes were covered in strange men, dressed in archaic armor. Helen could see that some had shiny red eyes, and others had hard, armor-like skin or pincers for hands. Myrmidons. She remembered Automedon killing Zach, and her fingertips crackled with angry lightning.
"Do you think you can take a Myrmidon?" Helen asked in an aside to Hector, realizing that she and Orion hadn"t accounted for this.
"I got it," he whispered back confidently. Helen looked past Hector to Lucas, who pursed his lips and nodded, silently confirming that he thought Hector could do it, too.
"I have chosen a champion as well, Helen," Zeus announced. Triumph gleamed in his eyes. "Achilles to match your Hector."
The Myrmidons parted and let a single warrior pa.s.s through their ranks to stand across from Hector. Helen knew this warrior-his walk, his haircut, even the T-shirt he was wearing, although at that moment it was mostly covered by strange armor. He"d had that shirt for two years now, and Helen knew it was his favorite. Everything about him was familiar to Helen, except for the newly developed power she could sense in him now.
"Matt?" Helen howled disbelievingly. "What the h.e.l.ls are you doing hanging out with a bunch of Myrmidons?"
He glanced at her and quickly turned his attention to Hector.
"It"s not you I want," Matt said to Hector. "There"s only one life I want to take, and it was never yours. I came to kill the Tyrant."
"Matt," Lucas said calmly while Hector and Matt stared each other down. "There is no Tyrant."
"Oh yes there is," Matt said harshly. He looked at Helen.
They had been friends since they were too little to stand, and she had never seen his face like this. It was like he hated her.
"She may not be doing anything to hurt you now, Lucas," he continued. "But absolute power corrupts absolutely, and there has never been a being with more power than Helen."
Helen felt dizzy and slightly nauseous. Because she knew he was right.
"Helen? The Tyrant?" Orion said, guffawing with disbelief.
Tantalus, Daedalus, and Pallas all moved away from Helen and positioned themselves behind Matt.
"Dad," Orion hissed, but then quickly shut his mouth. Helen saw his eyes harden, and she could see in his heart that Orion was scolding himself for not having antic.i.p.ated this.
Helen looked at Hector and saw him staring at his father, Pallas. There was genuine hurt in his eyes, but no blame. They were so different that it didn"t surprise either one to find the other on the opposite side of the war.
Castor stood firmly behind Lucas, glaring at his brothers. Helen felt Daphne take a position behind her and Orion.
More Scions shuffled around on the outskirts of the group. Tense, murmured arguments flared up and then subsided as individual members broke from their Houses and decided for themselves which side they preferred-Helen"s or the G.o.d"s. Two distinct sides were being drawn. Matt raised his voice so everyone could hear him.
"The prophecy says that the Tyrant is the vessel where the blood of the Four Houses has mixed. Tell me Orion, how many powers did Helen get in the blood-brother exchange with you and Lucas?" Matt said. "Nearly all of them, right? That"s what we"ve figured."
Matt gestured to Claire and Ariadne, and they moved to join his side. Helen felt her stomach slide down like she was on a roller coaster. All of a sudden, she couldn"t breathe.
Losing Matt was a big enough blow, but losing Claire was unthinkable. Her Giggles. Her best friend ever, and she"d picked the other side. Helen knew that Claire had doubts about her. She should have tried to talk to Claire instead of keeping secrets, but instead she"d let the rift between them grow larger and larger. And all that fear she saw in Claire"s heart had taken over.
Helen heard Jason whisper Claire"s name to himself, and when she glanced over at him, it looked like he was dying inside. Helen had a brief memory flash of Troilus, whose wife, Cressida, betrayed him by choosing a Greek lover over him. Helen could see into Claire"s heart, and it was obvious how torn she was. But when Helen looked at Matt"s heart, there was no conflict. He believed what he was doing was right.
"Matt. How can you do this?" Helen asked, trying her hardest not to cry.
"Because you can control the earth, the sea, and the sky," Matt said as more and more Scions joined his side. "You can call lightning, manipulate gravity, and pull all the swords out of an army"s hands by generating a magnetic field. You can control hearts, and now I learn that you"ve even created your own world. Helen, is there a force you don"t command-except maybe yourself? You nearly killed Lucas your emotions were so out of control, and from what I"ve seen your behavior is getting more erratic as time goes on, not less." Helen looked away and made a frustrated sound, but Matt continued. "Most important, please explain to me, if you can make your own world-a perfect world that you control utterly-what"s to stop you from destroying this one if we don"t do exactly as you say?"
Silence.
All Helen could hear were waves and seagulls. Matt would be the first to figure that out. He"d always been so darn smart.
"Do you remember homecoming freshman year?" Matt asked. He shifted on his feet uncertainly, his eyes sad.
"Yeah," Helen said with a shrug. "A bunch of us spent the whole night talking around the bonfire, like, five minutes down the beach from here."
"Do you remember Zach asking us if we could build a time machine, would we use it to go back and murder Hitler when he was just a baby?"
"Yes," Helen replied, her voice coming out like a croak. "I remember. So I take it you think I"m Hitler."
"No. I think you"re the Tyrant," Matt said. "You have the potential to be much worse."
"My daughter can"t be the Tyrant. Listen to me!" Daphne said pa.s.sionately as she waved her hands to get everyone"s attention.
It was the first time Daphne had ever stood up for her, and even though Helen was still furious at her mother for what she"d done to Jerry, she couldn"t help but be touched.
"The Tyrant is supposed to replace Hades. He is supposed to become the Scion lord of the dead. Helen is meant to rule the sky and replace Zeus, which is exactly why he got a champion to challenge her." Daphne pointed an accusing finger at Zeus and won over a few believers. "Think about it. Zeus is about to get overthrown by a Scion with more powers than he has, and he"s trying to turn us against her so we"ll kill her for him. She"s powerful, yes, but Helen can"t be the Tyrant."
"Where is it written that the Tyrant has to take Hades" place?" Matt asked, his voice frighteningly calm. "The three major G.o.ds are supposed to be replaced by three Scions-that we know from prophecy. We"ve always a.s.sumed that the Tyrant would rule Hades, but the Tyrant could as easily rule the sky."
Daphne paused. All the vigor went out of her argument, and a fearful look crossed her face. "I"m sorry," Daphne whispered to Helen, her cheeks pale.
"It"s okay, Mom. I"ve suspected this for a few days now. Born to bitterness?" Helen asked, not unkindly reminding her mother of the prophecy. "Is there anyone in the world more bitter than you?"
"No. You don"t understand," Daphne continued, and then stopped when Helen stepped forward and dared to tread on the line in the sand that had formed between the two sides.
"Matt"s right. I"m the Tyrant. Or I"m supposed to be, if the Fates have their way. But you"ve got to trust me. I"m going to make sure that doesn"t happen."
"I know you"ll try," Matt said, and sighed heavily. "You"ll mean to do only good things with your powers, and in the beginning, you"ll right wrongs and defend the weak. I know you will. But it has to go sour eventually. No one person, no matter how well-intentioned, is meant to rule the world."
Helen could see the electric change in him that she"d noticed before, that thing that made him more than just Matt. He was different, stronger, and full of strange magic, but even still, Helen knew he was making all the same choices he would have a year ago. He was still Matt-a true moral compa.s.s-and, as usual, he was right.
"You"ve always hated bullies. And I guess I"m the biggest bully on the block now, huh?" Helen said with a fond smile. Matt smiled with her. Neither of them wanted this to happen.
"Everybody hang on," Claire said anxiously, rushing to stand between the factions like she could think up a bridge between the two. "Lennie-maybe there"s a way you can give some of these powers back? Is there something you can do to, I don"t know, just be you again so we don"t have to freak out?"
"Sorry, Gig," Helen replied, knowing that she was hurting her best friend more than she ever had before. "This is me. It always has been."
Claire"s eyes filled with tears. But no matter how much she loved all of the people standing on the other side of the imaginary wall that was building between the two factions, Helen knew that Claire was going to do what she thought was right.
When she took her place again behind Matt, Helen didn"t blame her. In fact, she admired Claire for her strength and bravery even though it stung like crazy.
Helen wished she could shout out her plan, tell her friends and family why she was doing this, but she couldn"t. The Fates might not be able to hear her while she was with Orion, but Zeus certainly could, and while the Fates might be her ultimate enemy, Zeus was the one she had to find a way to imprison. Until she did that, Helen couldn"t give back an ounce of power or she knew she wouldn"t be strong enough to fight him. And then Zeus would find a way to kill every last one of them.
Like Helen of Troy before her, Helen Hamilton knew that she"d happily play the bad guy and make everyone hate her, before she"d allow all the people she loved to die. She remembered Ariadne telling her once that for a Scion to name her daughter Helen was like a Christian naming her child Judas. Like all the other Helens before her, Helen Hamilton had decided that being Judas to her family was worth it-so long as they survived.
"I"m sorry, Claire," she said, trying in vain to do a mind-meld with her friend and get her to understand without saying anything. "But I"m not giving up my powers."
"And that"s that," Matt said, truly saddened. "She won"t ever be our "Lennie" again, Claire. She"s made her choice-power over us."
Matt angled his head over his shoulder and made an inhuman chittering noise. Helen recognized it. Automedon had used it to command his men when he attacked Helen, Hector, and Claire in the woods outside a track meet.
The Myrmidons reacted to Matt"s command by backing up and forming a semicircle on their side of the "wall." One of them moved forward and retrieved Phaon"s body, and a second group came forward and swept the sand clean. They were as efficient as an army of ants, and within seconds a new battleground had been cleared inside the makeshift arena on the beach.
An offering was brought into the circle. A pumpkin.
"What"s going on?" Helen said to Orion, as memories of cooking with her father, turning pumpkins into pancakes, pie, and Popsicles crowded into her mind.
"It"s one of her symbols. Hecate"s power covers a lot of different things," he whispered in answer to her half-formed question. "Portals, crossroads, boundaries, trade, and bargains are the big ones, which is why she officiates over duels, which are sort of a bargain if you think about it. But she"s also the witch G.o.ddess. Something about Macbeth and bargaining your soul. The pumpkin is one of her symbols because she"s the first witch."
Helen stared at that silly pumpkin, quite certain that the Fates were laughing their heads off at her. She loved pumpkins. Of all the many-life memories that Helen had recently been subjected to, the memories that she made on Nantucket were her favorites. Jerry had given her the best life she"d had in all of her many existences. Daphne had been right when she"d said Helen should thank her for making her think that Jerry was her father.
One look at that blasted pumpkin, and she knew that she"d trade all this Scion nonsense, all of her wondrous powers, for one more night of baseball and ice cream with her dad. Just one night where Lucas could come over for some pasta, eat awkwardly in front of her overprotective father, and then they could all watch sports and argue about politics like everyone else in Ma.s.sachusetts. But that perfect night would never happen.
Helen would never be a normal high school kid again.
A bright flash, and a strange orange fire erupted around the boundaries of the arena. Hecate didn"t reappear, but her presence was manifest in the hum of power that encircled the ring. The pumpkin disappeared. The fire went out. The challenge was set.
The crowd behind Helen whispered frantically to one another. Thunderclouds rolled in off the water, and lightning flashed in the distance. Zeus and the Olympians arranged themselves to have the best view. They were enjoying this.
Helen tried to step into the arena and found that she couldn"t. Orange fire flashed. A regular person would have been burned by it, but it only threw Helen back a few paces. Matt walked easily into his spot, ten feet away from the line in the sand at the middle of the cleared oval. He unsheathed his sword, a thick, wicked-looking thing that made Helen"s breathing pick up. She tried again to enter the circle, only to find an invisible barrier stopping her. Helen tried to use her talent to create a portal to get inside the ring, but nothing happened. Hecate could even bar a Worldbuilder from crossing a boundary if she wanted to. Helen paused to mull this over.
"What are you doing, dummy?" Hector asked her, half a laugh in his voice. As she had been reminiscing about pumpkin pancakes and contemplating the power of Hecate, Lucas, Jason, and Orion had been busy strapping armor onto Hector piece by piece in what looked to her like a ritual.
"What do you mean, what am I doing?" Helen asked-irked as usual when Hector made fun of her. "He doesn"t want to fight you, he said he only wants me."
Hector only laughed harder at her melodramatic tone. "You"re not about to steal my glory, Princess."
She really hated it when he called her that.
"Don"t call me . . ."
"He"s your champion, Helen!" Lucas snapped, and his tone was not playful like Hector"s.
Helen looked at Lucas. The fear and frustration in his eyes silenced her immediately. She knew Lucas was upset with her for not handing over Everyland when Zeus asked for it. She wanted to scream at him that she had a plan, d.a.m.n it, but of course, she didn"t dare do that.
"You took an oath, and for us, those aren"t just words," Lucas continued. "You cannot walk into that arena. Only Hector can meet your challenger now."
"W-wait," Helen said stumblingly, her tongue growing heavy in her mouth with fear as the first part of her plan came undone. "Matt said he doesn"t want Hector, he only wants me. So this is my fight."
"No it isn"t," Hector said seriously. All his lighthearted joking vanished, and Helen could hear the voice of an ancient hero in him.
For a moment she saw Hector standing on a great wall, watching Achilles half insane with grief over the death of Patroclus, beating the horses of his chariot raw while calling out Hector"s name to meet him in single combat. Matt didn"t look like Achilles, but he had the same presence, the same power. She didn"t know how it had happened, but somehow, Matt had become Achilles, the Warrior.
"This has always been my fight," Hector said gently.
"Don"t do it," she whispered, her voice failing as she remembered what happened the last time.
"Don"t do it!" echoed another, much more strident voice.
Helen turned and saw Andy pushing her way through the disturbed crowd. Her face was shocked, like she couldn"t believe what she was saying and doing, but couldn"t seem to stop herself.