Forsaken Deity

Chapter 27

A bolt of lightning cracked above her and Zeus caught it, the sparks trailing along his arm. Zeus and Cronos appeared to have grown in size, their power rolling off them in waves. It could almost be seen in the air and if she opened her mouth she thought she would taste it.

Concentrate, Lissandre repeated.

How do I open the gate? I can’t find it.

You will feel it in a moment - below!

Thea jumped as a turret of water shot straight up to where she had been floating and Oceanus rose into the sky on a stream of water. He appeared bored, body relaxed, and he stared at her coldly. “Hurry up and die, human. I've been away from home long enough.”

He held out his hand and water bullets ripped across the sky toward her. Thea braced herself to stop the attack but needn't have bothered as Athena descended from the sky, large sword in hand. With her other, she grabbed Oceanus' outstretched hand, twisting it and throwing his body over her shoulder. Bones snapped as Athena broke his arm and, raising her leg high, her heel shot down, burying itself in his chest. The Titan tore through his water tower, the stream spraying outwards all the way down to the river. The river rippled and Thea stared, open mouthed at Athena.

The goddess still appeared as pristine as she had when the battle started, her armour gleaming and not a hair out of place. She glared at Thea. “Do your duty, mortal, and open the gate!”

Thea closed her eyes, trying to regain focus, and heard the air shift as Athena moved away to engage with another opponent. A steely determination crawled through her as she searched. She sensed Lissandre's approval and focused on the earth below, her awareness heightened as she kept a look out for any more sneak Titan attacks.

After dodging two more attempts, she felt a familiar tug and the sound of the battle faded as she connected with the gate. Triumph flared through her core and opening her eyes, she held out her hand, instinct taking control.

That's it, Lissandre encouraged. Embrace the gate in your mind and then open it.

Thea could feel the edges of the gate. Hyperion drew close once more and Hermes slashed him across the chest as Thea gripped the edges with her mind. Combining her powers, she pulled them open. A groan tore through the earth and she moved it aside, instinct and faint memories from Lissandre helping to guide her. Trees cracked in two as a hole the size of a small football field opened below them. It went through the river and the water fell into the hole from both ends.

I did it!

It's not over yet. You still need to access the chains and attach them to Cronos.

Focusing on her next task of finding the chains, she was unaware of the Gods taking action around her. With the gate now opened, they wasted no time attempting to throw them down into the pit.

Apollo and Atlas were right over the hole and Atlas appeared to be forcing Apollo into the hole with his gravity trick. Apollo wasn't going down alone though; he had a tight grip on Atlas' leg and the Titan was being dragged down as well. Apollo's grip began to loosen however and as he lost his hold, an arrow protruded from Atlas' chest and the Titan roared, breaking his gravity control. Apollo seized the opportunity. Reaching up, he grabbed his leg once more and spun in a ball before throwing Atlas into the darkness. A scream rose from the pit, accompanied by other unsettling noises as the Titan was welcomed to his new prison. Apollo gave his sister a wave of thanks and jumped through the air to help her with Epimetheus.

On the far side of the hole, Enyo was still engaged with Lapetus. She was covered in open wounds, some already beginning to heal. She had a hold of Lapetus' right knee, crushing it beneath her fingers as he screamed in agony. He swung his fist up, smashing it into the left side of her face, and Enyo stumbled backwards, blood flying from her mouth.