“Well,” Pirithous said with a smirk, “the chain was meant for a Titan, after all. Someonefarmore powerful than you.”
He knelt at Apate’s side, cupping her chin in his hand as if he were going to inspect her teeth. Hazel wanted to run him through with her sword, but she was too horrified to move.
“You see,” Pirithous said, “when Hades released me from my punishment, he thought I would quietly fade away, becoming one of those impotent shades who drift around Asphodel. But I did not. I wandered the darkest corners of Erebos, consumed with righteous fury. I knew I had been given a sacred mission—to bring order to the Underworld by replacing that lazy, incompetent, corrupt, unfair…” He shuddered, struggling to bring his anger under control. “By replacing Hades.”
He stood, smiling directly at Hazel. “Oh, I had no problem finding followers who agreed with me! But I needed more than bodies. I needed something that could trap a god. It took me ages, but I found it—a chain forged by Hephaestus himself, infused with the power of Zeus and the entire Council of Olympus. And then, like so many things made by the gods—it had simply been forgotten, abandoned, tossed aside. Much like me and all my followers!” He faced Dolus and Apate. “You should feel honored, my newest recruits. You have been bound”—he paused dramatically—“by the chains ofPrometheus!”
A terrible wail rose from Apate, forcing Hazel to clamp her hands over her ears.
“Free us!” cried the goddess.
“You will regret this!” howled Dolus.
Hazel shivered. She had told Pirithous much the same thing in the Court of the Dead. And yet, despite the terrible power of these gods, here was Pirithous with the upper handagain.
The spectacle still held everyone spellbound. Mortal bystanders, having recovered from their initial shock, were starting to gather around the plaza. Half a dozen cars had stopped in the street, both drivers and passengers hanging out their windows, aiming their phones at the crowd of monsters. In the distance, Hazel heard thethump, thump, thumpof an approaching helicopter. A news crew? The police? Either way, it was the last thing they needed.
Asterion squeezed her hand. “What should we do?”
Hazel wished she had an answer.
Next to her, Arielle cradled Quinoa more closely. “I don’t think we can fix this,” she murmured. “We need to cut our losses and get away from here. If we all run at once, he can’t stop us all.”
“Maybe she’s right,” Quinoa said. “I don’t want to become food for anyone!”
They had a point, but it still didn’t feel right to Hazel. She couldn’t simply leave all this behind, could she? She hadn’t solved anything. She couldn’t let Pirithous win. Demigods weren’t supposed to flee; they were supposed to stand and fight!
Meanwhile, Pirithous was glorying in his newest triumph. He strutted around the chained gods, his arms raised.
“Look what I have done, Hades!” he shouted to the skies. “This will be your fate, too!”
Asterion knelt next to Hazel. “It must be your decision, Praetor. I can see you struggling with this, but we will follow your lead.”
Hazel gripped her spatha. Maybe helping the others flee really was the best option—to save as many lives as they could—but it didn’t sit well with her. She needed to understand these chains. She needed to take their power away from Pirithous.
“Hades!” Pirithous called out again. “I am giving you the opportunity to defend yourself! Present yourself for my judgment!”
He is delusional, Hazel thought.Father will never show up for him.
Pirithous dropped his arms, and then he turned to address his followers. “No matter! We will continue our efforts until the accuseddoesshow his face. With our two new recruits, we will be stronger than ever!”
Dolus howled in anger. “We arenotyour recruits!”
“We will never work for you, fool!” Apate agreed.
“That is your choice, of course,” said Pirithous. “You can stay shackled in the chains of Prometheus for as long as you wish. The iron does have a way of convincing its victims, though. When I first summoned Laverna and put her in those chains, she lasted almost half a day before the eagle found her.”
The twins stopped struggling.
“Eagle?” said Dolus.
“Oh, yes!” Pirithous said. “A clever bird. It knows exactly how to cut open the belly of a god and feed on their immortal organs.Verypainful, I understand. And it will just keep feeding…forever, as long as you are chained. But you don’t have to worry about that just yet. Your first problem will be the agony that comes from simply wearing those shackles. That should start right about…now.”
The twins writhed, screaming, as their restraints began to glow and steam.
Hazel couldn’t stand it. She had no love for these gods of deceit, but there was nothing fake about their cries of pain. She wasn’t sure she could do much, but she readied her spatha.
As quickly as it started, the gods’ agony subsided. They collapsed, gasping and exhausted, smoke still billowing from the irons around their necks.
