Page 36 of Blood of Olympus

Caelus—

I said I was fine, he snapped.

Affronted, I withdrew. A minute later, a tentative murmur echoed through my mind.

I’m sorry. How is everyone else doing?

About as well as expected.

His reply was nothing more than a surge of dread. Then: We have some work ahead of us.

We do.

Shoving aside the sliver of hurt I still felt, I turned my attention back to the tests. Aros was now walking each of them through another round of swordplay, assessing them all individually — against himself.

Erato possessed no skill with a sword. All were too heavy for her to wield, and she huffed a frustrated breath, a heartbeat from meltdown.

“If I were a betting man — and a betting man I was — I’d wager she could hold her own with those daggers,” my imagination whispered.

A sickening combination of doubt and concern festered inside my gut as I called out to her. “Use your daggers. Aros — your sword against her daggers.”

He frowned, but allowed it.

Our surprise mirrored each other’s as Erato not only managed to fend off every attack from his sword, but also surreptitiously held a sharp point to the underside of his balls in an attack no one saw coming.

Wide-eyed and wired, Aros quickly conceded, and before she could flounce away to join Aphrodite, smirking on the sidelines, I called her over.

Never one to waste time with small-talk and pleasantries, I dove right in. “You knew him, didn’t you?”

Erato’s perfectly sculpted brows flinched, her whole body reacting. The transparent fabric of her split skirts trembling as she almost conceded a step.

I knew I was right before she opened her mouth.

“Damn straight she did,” my mind agreed in Charon’s cockiest drawl.

“I did,” she confirmed, straightening. “You have my deepest condolences, your grace.” Her head cocked to the side, full lips pouting in contemplation. “If I may ask, how did you know?”

“That last move” — I grinned — “he taught me that one, too.”

Her eyes flicked away and her lips softened into the softest of smiles. “He pulled it on me once. I demanded he immediately teach me how he did it,” she said, laughing.

“Much to Aros’ chagrin that he did, I’m sure.”

“Indeed..” She smirked, inclining her head before withdrawing to a noticeably more subdued Aphrodite.

As the afternoon wore on, Aros tested them further.

Pan and Dionysus had an almost unparalleled knowledge in plant uses — be it anything from poison to poultices — only Demeter surpassed them. She coaxed seeds out of some tiny weed that had managed to break free of the arena floor, whispered to the bounty in her cupped hand, and blew them into the air. Moments later, saplings sprouted out of the earth, vines pierced the arena walls, and grass carpeted an entire quarter of the open space. I watched as the saplings grew into enormous oaks and beeches, and the vines extended their limbs like elegant fingers. They wrapped around the branches and banisters like a lover’s caress, creating a viridescent canopied web stretching far above my head.

The gods fell silent — awestruck — and the animals hooted and howled.. Glaucus landed gracefully on a high tree limb, keeping his watchful yellow eyes trained on the combatants. Rufus pranced merrily into the trees. A familiar sapphire-toned serpent raced across the floor, and disappeared into the six-inch high, buttery-soft grass.

“Sorry,” Demeter chuckled sheepishly. “I got a little carried away.”

I considered her for a moment, noting for the first time how her eyes almost matched mine — same shape, same long lashes — the green just a few shades darker.

A smile split my face. “Don’t be. It’s a wonderful addition to the arena. We have absolutely no idea where Kronos will launch his war from, and our soldiers will be far more adept if they’ve learned to fight around unyielding trees, in tight quarters.”

Aros nodded. “Aye. We’re going to need every advantage we can get.” He turned to address the entire group. “Split up! Apollo, you’re to instruct a group in power-wielding. Artemis, you’re to instruct archery, and the rest of you will come to me for weapons training.”