Blade's Edge || Deception Book II ||

Chapter 33: The Bane of Olympus Pt. I

I took a deep breath before heading into the ruins of Othrys, the black pillars seemingly a little taller than before. There was not a single soul in sight as I passed through the ruins, keeping a steady, confident pace towards the sky where Artemis knelt. I didn't know if that was good luck, or bad luck, but it didn't matter. Resolve settled in me, a thousandfold from what I thought had been before, and I was ready to tackle whatever came my way.

"Who's there?" Luke's voice echoed through the still, fog-shrouded air, and I stilled momentarily before gathering myself, placing on my cool, cultured, mask.

"It's Rianna!" I called back, my voice steady.

There was a heartbeat of silence, suffocating and eternal, and then I heard footsteps and he skidded around the corner, coming to a stop at the sight of my lopsided smirk fixed firmly on my face.

"Hey," I said simply. "I'm back."

Pure relief flashed through his eyes, so strong that it nearly caused me to lose my composure. "Thank the gods," Luke murmured, so soft I could barely hear it. He closed the gap between us and, faster than I could blink, wrapped me in a crushing embrace that I found myself collapsing into, my hands digging into the back of his grey sweater. "I'm so sorry," Luke whispered, his voice featherlight against my ear.

"Shh," I hushed, drawing back to stare into his blue eyes. "We'll figure it out. There's gotta be another way."

Luke opened his mouth to object but I slapped him lightly and shook my head. "I'm not taking no for an answer."

"There's that typical stubbornness," Luke said, his voice turning hoarse.

"You wouldn't love me otherwise," I hissed, though my lips curled in a genuine smile. "We'll figure it out. Together."

Luke's eyes flashed with doubtful hope, but he didn't argue further and turned towards where he'd come from. "Atlas is waiting. You better have a good excuse for why you were gone for so long."

Shit, I thought. I had my excuse ready, but I was hoping that the titan would have forgotten about an insignificant mortal. Apparently not. I sighed. "Alright."

I trailed behind Luke, a respectful distance behind, nothing more than lieutenant to the future host of the Titan of Time. And fought the urge to gulp as we emerged into the stormy cavern of the sky and I saw Atlas, standing there in a fresh suit, looking like a very buff, scary, albeit giant, bodyguard of the President of the United States.

"Where were you?" Atlas rumbled, menace clear in his tone.

"I went to the botanical museum to find curare," I replied. "It's a native plant to the Amazon jungle that can be used as a potent poison for arrows or as anesthesia," I added at the blank look Atlas was giving me. "Forgive me, General, but I've been trained in medicine and healing and I couldn't help myself when I found out about this." I cast my gaze downward in a show of submission. "I should have asked you for permission first. I'm sorry."

Atlas blinked slowly at me, then shrugged his massive shoulders and turned away. "Very well, daughter of Hecate. Just be sure to let at least Luke know if you ever decide to go on another . . . plant hunt. It seems like your knowledge of this will be very useful, if potent poisons are to your knowledge."

"Thank you, General," I murmured, hiding my smile as I bowed again. "I will."

Atlas nodded and shot a victorious glance towards Artemis. "I'm going to pay a visit to our allies. Boy," he added, addressing Luke. "You're in charge here until I get back tomorrow. Understood?"

"Yes, General," Luke affirmed. "I'll make sure everyone stays in line."

As soon as Atlas trudged off in his new suit and was off the slopes of Mount Tam, Luke whirled on me with a disbelieving laugh. "Rianna, you never told me you were so good at lying! I would have believed you myself had I not known the truth. You sure you're not a child of Hermes?"