The Gatekeeper's Secret: Gatekeeper's Saga, Book Five (The Gatekeeper's Saga) (26 page)

Chapter Twenty: Stalemate

Thanatos
and the rest of the Athena Alliance flew across the sky in dozens of chariots toward Mount Olympus, ready to storm the gates. They weren’t surprised to find an army loyal to the king defending the fortress on the outside. Heartless Nike, the goddess of victory and daughter to Ares, hovered beside her brother, Enyalios, another war god. They both held long spears in each hand. Palaistra, Hermes’s daughter and the goddess of wrestling, hovered beside them, and behind this trio were Keto and Phorcys and their monstrous daughters Scylla and Echidna, the half nymph and half snake. Than found it ironic that the old man of the sea wouldn’t help him and Apollo save Athena, but he seemed all too eager to defend the gates of Olympus for King Zeus.

The loyal army had no chance against the band of rebe
ls Athena had amassed. Even horrible Scylla hesitated in raising her pincers against the sheer multitude of gods and goddesses on Than’s side.

“Move away from the gate!” Hades demanded.

Athena lifted her spear. “We seek justice, not defeat!”

“Get back, you traitors!” the son of Ares shouted in reply.

No one gave the order to charge, but Alecto and Meg flew like bullets past the front line and directly for Enyalios. Their hair hissed and the blood dripped onto their victim in a foul mess. Artemis followed their lead and took down Palaistra. Poseidon and Amphitrite pummeled over the old man of the sea and his wife, making Scylla shriek. But soon both Scylla and her sister were tied in the iron chains of Hades and demobilized with the paralyzing sting of Poseidon’s trident.

Before the conflict was resolved,
Than felt a soul calling to him from the inside of the court. He naturally disintegrated, and, like a magnet, flew through the gate. The four Seasons gawked at him, but did nothing as he passed. A horrible feeling in the pit of his stomach made him mourn the death of his twins before he laid eyes on the soul beckoning to him.

It was Hermes.

Now it was Than’s turn to gawk.

Hermes?
Than whispered to the soul of his cousin as he took in the scene. Therese was chained to Zeus’s throne with Hestia beside her, arms up in a protective posture against Zeus, who stood stunned at the sight of his son’s head at his feet. Than realized he had little time to act, and if he was to save his family, he must act now. He disintegrated into the hundreds.

As one of him left with the soul of Hermes, the remaining hundreds pinned Zeus to the ground and trampled down the gates, allowing the other members of the Athena Alliance to enter.

To Hermes, Than said, “Why did you do it?”

Hermes stammered a bit, looking disoriented, but when
Than put his hand on his cousin’s shoulder, the messenger god seemed to regain his presence of mind.

“I felt the baby,” Hermes said. “When I was chaining Therese, the baby kicked me.”

“Babies,” Than said with a grin as a wave of emotions swept over him.

“Huh?” They neared Charon’s raft.

“Twins,” Than explained as he guided his cousin aboard.

“Well, now.”

“You saved their lives, cousin.” Than looked away to hide his tears from the other god. He watched Charon drag the long pole through the river as he’d done for centuries. “Did it hurt?”

“The kick from the baby?”

Than stifled a smile. “No, the…” He drew his index finger across his throat.

“I can’t remember.”

Than grinned again and patted Hermes on the back. “Good.”

They followed the path past the judges, who had nothing to say of an immortal’s soul, and headed straight for Tartarus.

“This is your first time down here as one of the dead, am I right?” Than asked. Hermes had never died in Than’s lifetime, but his cousin was older.

“First time,” Hermes said. “It’s strange to be on this side of death.”

Hermes had escorted the souls for hundreds of years before Thanatos took over as Death.

They followed the
Phlegethon where it met the iron gate. Than dragged it open against the rock. The screech of iron on stone brought Tizzie’s notice to them. She looked up from her victim, befuddled by their approach. Than explained in a brief prayer. Then he turned to Hermes.

“You won’t be down here long.”

They rounded a corner toward the cascading asphodel and dim orange light where the Phlegethon no longer flowed.

A figure shuffled toward them from the darkness.

Than flinched at the sight of Pete Holt. Even though he was not a corporeal presence, the sockets of his ethereal head had been emptied.

“Ah,” Pete said with a strange smile. “My killer has finally arrived.”

Hermes turned a fearful look toward Than. “What’s this all about? I do a good deed, and I’m punished for it?”

“Funny,” Pete said. “The same thing has happened to me.”

“I have nothing to do with it,” Than said to Hermes. “Pete, Hermes never meant to kill you. What’s this about?”

“I only came to thank him,” Pete said.
“For saving Therese and the twins.”

“You knew about them?” Than asked. “Why didn’t you say something?”

“Not in time to do anything about it,” Pete said.

Than didn’t know what to say.

“But now that I’ve seen them,” Pete continued, his empty sockets staring back at Than, “You can tell your father that his suspicions are right.”

With eyebrows drawn together,
Than shook his head. “What do you mean?”

“Your twins are
the
twins,” Pete replied.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Hermes asked.

“The lord of the Underworld can tell you.” Pete turned and shuffled back toward the darkness.

“Why can’t you?”
Thanatos demanded.

“It’s your father’s secret; not mine.”

***

Therese watched in amazement as Than multiplied and dominated Mount Olympus. Several of him broke the chains and shackles that bound her, and one took her in his arms.

“Let’s get you away from here,” he said.

“No, wait.”

She gingerly scooped up the head of Hermes. Than followed her
lead and found the body, and together they carried the messenger god to the safety of his chambers, where they laid him out on his bed. Most of the blood had already drained. When they positioned him just so, he actually appeared to be sleeping.

Therese still could not believe what he’d done for her. What strength and courage it must have taken to unsheathe the sword, whip the arm around, and bear the blade against
his own neck. She shuddered.

Then she turned to
Than and said, “I want to fight.”

“But we still don’t have Zeus secure,” Than protested. “As I was pinning him down, he slipped a thunderbolt from his boot.”

“What?” She headed for the great hall, but Than grabbed her arm.

“Let me take you to safety,” he said gently. “Zeus swore on the River Styx to swallow you. I don’t want to risk it.”

“I can’t run to safety while everyone else…”

“It’s not just you I’m worried about,” he said.

Therese narrowed her eyes, trying to guess his meaning, but came up with nothing.

“You’re pregnant.”

She clutched her belly. “I’m what?”

He pulled her into his arms. “We’re having twins.”

Her jaw dropped and she searched his eyes, looking from one to the other. Was he telling her the truth? Was she really pregnant with twins?

“Please let me take the three of you to safety before things get worse.”

Tears sprang to her eyes and she nodded. “Okay.” For the sake of the babies, she supposed she would have to go.

They god travelled directly to their rooms, where he carried her to bed.

“Stay here with me for as long as possible,” he said.

She snuggled against him. “Tell me what’s happening. Why can’t the Alliance take Zeus into their custody?”

“He’s taken a hostage.”

Her body stiffened.
“Who?”

He didn’t reply. Instead, he covered her mouth with his, and clutched her in his hands, and this was all the answer she needed.

Zeus had Than.

He loved her like it was the last time.

***

Hypnos staggered back, butting up against the door to the forge. Zeus held Than in a head lock with one arm, and he gripped a thunderbolt at the end of the other.

“I’ll paralyze him for all eternity if anyone moves,” the king of the gods barked.

“And I’ll do the same to Ares,” Poseidon roared.

Everyone turned to see Poseidon with his trident directed at Ares while three
Thans held the god of war still.

No one moved.

Hypnos looked from Poseidon to Zeus. The nostrils of both gods flared. Their faces, equally red with rage, looked like demons. Except for the rapid rise and fall of their chests, they stood like statues.

The voice of Hades reverberated throughout the hall, but Hip could not see the source of it.

“We are at a stalemate, brothers,” Hades said. “I wear the helm and could easily unhand you of your thunderbolt, brother, but I want to offer a compromise.”

Hip held his breath, wondering how Zeus would respond.

Hera fell on her knees before Zeus. “Please, my lord. Listen to what Hades has to say.”

“My heart still pains from the sting of your betrayal!” Zeus growled.

“You left me behind!” Hera said through tears. “You managed to save the others.”

“Your room was the furthest from me. One of the Furies discovered me before I could get to you. I came back for you, but you had already lost faith in me.”

This would not bode well, Hip thought as he studied Hera’s face. The corners of her mouth were pulled down so low that she resembled the mask of tragedy. He’d seen her frown a million times, but never had it been so deep.

“It doesn’t matter,” Hades interrupted. “Hera has already sworn to support the Athena Alliance. She wants her equal portion as ruler of the skies and leader of the gods.”

Zeus narrowed his eyes. “Is this true, Hera?”

Hera climbed to her feet and wiped the tears with the back of her hand.
“Every word of it. I love you, but I despise some of the choices you have made. I want you to swear an oath.”

“Not that long ago, you wanted to destroy
Thanatos and his sweetheart over an apple, and now you’ve sworn an oath to serve with them?” Zeus scoffed.

Hera put her hands on her slender hips and dared to walk closer to the king of the gods. “Do you know why my apples mean so much to me? Do you?”

“Because they give immortality to all who eat them,” Zeus said in a matter-of-fact tone. “And you want to hoard that power from the other gods. I don’t blame you. I am the only god who can grant immortality to a person through the consumption of ambrosia. You want your way, too.”

Tears fell from Hera’s eyes and slid down her cheeks. “You are wrong, husband.” Her voice was sad and quiet. “I love my apples because they were a wedding gift to me from Gaia. The day I accepted you as my husband, she planted the tree. She told me that as long as it had apples hanging from its branches, your love for me would live; but if a day came when there were
no more apples hanging from its leaves, that would be the day your heart would turn cold to me.”

Zeus’s eyes widened and then his face grew tender. For once since Hip had known Zeus, the lord of the gods appeared speechless.

The voice of Hades, still invisible beneath his helm, broke the silence. “Does the tree still bear apples?”

“It does,” Hera replied. “But I’m afraid Gaia was wrong. My lord no longer loves me, or he would hear what I have to say.”

“Am I not listening to you now?” Zeus said. He continued to hold Than in a head lock and did not drop his thunderbolt, but his face had softened and his nostrils no longer flared.

Hera moved even closer to the king, so that less than five feet remained between them. “You have been faithful to me for many years.”

“Indeed, I have.”

“And you were afraid to set Metis free, because of the prophecy.”

“Not afraid. I wanted to act wisely. I wanted to protect the order of Mount Olympus from an old Titan threat. But Athena would not rest.”

Hera crossed her arms at her chest. “So you hatched a plan to trick her.”

“No one was supposed to get hurt.”