Chapter 14

I emergedto find death all around. While we'd been tucked inside my oversized purse—having epic sex—the town had been destroyed.

The buildings remained mostly standing but heavily damaged. Fire scorched the walls and had turned to ash the parts that weren't stone. Doors, shutters, roofs, all gone, leaving Zuzamenn a shell of what it used to be.

But worse than the destruction of property? The bodies strewn where they'd fallen. The dwarf who'd come to our aid just outside the bakery, half burnt, but I recognized his long beard and the axe he still clutched. The fae woman lay on the cobblestones, face first, a viscous pool of blood spreading from her head.

Every step I took showed a new atrocity. My fault. Maybe if I'd not told my sisters to run and I'd not hidden, we could have made a difference. But we'd been cowards, thinking only of ourselves. We'd left these people to fend for themselves, and they died because of it.

I didn't even realize I'd gathered magic to me until Typhon murmured, "You're not to blame for this."

"How do you figure that?" I demanded as I whirled. My magic swirled with me, whipping my hair in a wild storm that only affected me. "We came here and drew the deusvenati."

"Not true. They had already been by before our arrival. They returned because they'd not gotten what they wanted."

"They wanted the oracle." I uttered a bitter laugh. "A woman who would have died probably within hours if we'd not interfered."

"What happened? You saw her?"

We'd not spoken of what I'd seen and heard. Too busy resting and then taking our pleasure while others suffered. A part of me knew staying would have led to me dying, but it didn't assuage my guilt. "We found the oracle grievously injured and hidden inside a pocket dimension, but one much nicer than my purse." I grimaced. "She was dying. Poisoned by a deusvenati blade. Her flesh rotting."

"Did she speak before her demise?"

"She didn't die. She'd been awaiting our arrival." My lips pinched as I remembered her rambling. "She mentioned something about the beginning of the end. Told us we had to confront the deusvenati on their world but not everyone would go home." Part of the reason why I panicked and sent my sisters fleeing. My head ducked. "The oracle grabbed hold of my sister and cursed her, transferring the oracle thing to Frieda, which somehow healed the oracle not only of her injury but age. Once she'd finished fucking us over, the oracle shoved us back out into her apartment. The rest you know."

"Your sister is the new oracle?"

I nodded.

"Hunh. It's been millennia since that's happened," he murmured thoughtfully.

"Miffed one of your champions got co-opted?"

He shook his head. "On the contrary, that explains why my reservoir of magic is stronger. When your sister took over the oracle's power, it must not have been compatible with my blessing, so it returned to me."

"You have magic again?"

"Yes, but I can't keep it." His lips turned down.

"Why not?"

"Because the moment Ariadne and I share a world again, she'll siphon it, making herself stronger."

I grimaced. "That's bullshit."

"That's part of the curse." He tapped the collar at his neck. A collar I'd ignored when I'd been taking my pleasure with his body. A body now once more clothed. Pity. I'd enjoyed exploring it in the dark and would love to see it in daylight.

"What are you going to do with the excess magic?"

"The only thing I can do. Give it away."

I arched a brow. "Going to bless a new champion?" I tried to not let any jealousy enter that query.

He snorted. "I have all the champion I need in you."

"Enyo still has your blessing too."

"But she is far away. Which means you'll have to receive the gift."

"I thought you already gave me your gift. Twice," I murmured with a wink.

Who said a god couldn't blush? "We should transfer it now before anything further happens."

"Are you sure? I mean, don't you want to keep it for a little bit?"

His lips twisted. "While I would love nothing more than to wield my own power again, I also recognize that keeping it makes it possible for Ariadne to get stronger. All it would take is her arrival in Zuzamenn and—" He snapped his fingers.

"Good point. Okay then, how do we do this?" I stepped close to him and closed my eyes before uttering, "Bless me, oh mighty monster god."

"So irreverent," he muttered before he leaned down and his mouth pressed against mine.

Mmm. A kiss. Don't mind if I do.

I wrapped my arms around his neck, feeling a tingling that started out familiar and carnal, then turned into a jolt of lightning. My body went stiff, my mouth parted on a gasp, and my eyes rolled back in my head. I jiggled like I'd grabbed hold of an electrical wire.

When I recovered, it was to find myself held close to Typhon.

"Well, damn," I huffed. "Getting magic never gets any easier." I glanced at him. "Which reminds me, in Bane's cave, when the portal opened and me and my sisters got struck by that lightning…"

"I'd accumulated some magic while incarcerated, and knowing Ariadne would steal it the moment I entered the world again, and sensing champions blessed in my name, I cast it out."

"Hence why we all got stronger," I mused aloud. I cast him a glance from under my lashes. "You okay with me being the powerhouse in this relationship?"

"We aren't in a relationship."

"Oh really?" My brow arched. "Not going to fuck me ever again?"

For a second, I had him stumped. His mouth opened and shut before he sighed. "I am not ready for this era."

At his reply, I laughed. "More like you'll never be ready for me, but it's okay." I tapped his cheek. "I'll drag you kicking and screaming to bed if I have to."

"There will be screaming, but only because you're climaxing," he growled.

I laughed. "I should hope so. That's my favorite part." The moment of levity faded as the reality around us penetrated once more. I sighed. "Guess we need to figure out our next move. The oracle said we had to confront the deusvenati on their turf. But my question is, how to get there?"

"We find the archway to their world."

That sounded easy enough, but I had questions. "I'm surprised they have one. I mean them being anti-magic and all, not to mention, I thought their armor absorbed magic. How is it they can use the portals at all?"

His lips flattened. "The archways aren't magical but rather permanent passages."

"Not that permanent, or hadn't you noticed how the ones on Earth were broken?"

"Think of them as a doorway, then. The arches open from one place to another, but that access can be destroyed."

"You said they can't go to Earth, though. Why?"

"I don't know." He shrugged. "I assume there is some reason, but I've never been privy to it."

"So you're only assuming they can't." I frowned. "Meaning my siblings could be in danger if the deusvenati chose to follow."

Suddenly panicked, I didn't think. I opened a shortcut between us and the arch we'd used to arrive. I emerged from my quick trip to see the door crushed, the stone edifice now rubble.

My mouth rounded. "It's broken. What if they didn't escape?" I glanced around, suddenly terrified I'd find my siblings' lifeless bodies.

Typhon, who'd followed me, knelt and put a hand on a chunk of the debris before murmuring, "The deusvenati must have gotten here before them and blocked their escape."

"Oh no. No," I wailed. I'd failed my sisters. They'd—

"Calm yourself." Typhon put a hand on my shoulder. "Your sisters aren't dead."

"How can you be so sure?"

He stared at me.

And it took me a second to realize I'd have felt it if they died. But still… "Okay, so they live. Doesn't mean they're safe."

"There are two possibilities," he stated. "One, the deusvenati captured them. Two, they escaped via another portal."

"What about the third option? They're hiding somewhere on this plane." I glanced around as if I could see them.

He snorted. "You're smarter than this."

My shoulders slumped. "If they'd remained on Zuzamenn, I'd know it. Okay, so how do we figure out where they are?"

"We can enter the available portals one by one and see if you feel them on the other side."

My nose wrinkled. "That sounds time consuming. If the deusvenati took them, that could be the difference between life and death."

He didn't argue with my statement.

I chewed the tip of my thumb. What to do? Chase after my sisters, or continue on the original quest? If my sisters were captured, then I had to save them. If they were safe in another dimension, then the best thing I could do was eliminate the threat to them.

"We need to go to the deusvenati world," I announced.

"No." He just had one word, and it took me by surprise.

"Why not? It solves a few problems at once. One, we'll find out if they have my sisters. Two, we possibly locate Ariadne."

"Too dangerous." He shook his head.

"I thought you wanted your power back?"

"I do, but even I recognize how foolhardy it would be for the two of us to enter the deusvenati stronghold alone."

"Then how are we supposed to defeat Ariadne?" Not to mention, the oracle had said we needed to go there.

He rolled his shoulders. "I don't know. Perhaps we can't."

Such a defeatist attitude and very unlike the god I'd come to know. Which could only mean one thing. "You can't let your affection for me cloud your judgement."

"I am not—"

I cut him off. "It's not your fault. I am rather incredible. In and out of the sack. But the fact remains that so long as Ariadne has your stolen power, she's a threat. She needs to be handled."

"We have no way to fight the deusvenati."

"Then we don't fight them." An idea began to form in my mind. "We need to go back to town." Once more I ripped open a shortcut and returned to the devastation. I glanced around, seeking something in particular. Of all the bodies lying prone, I didn't see any in golden armor, but… I stalked to the fae woman and crouched.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

Rather than reply, I grabbed her body and heaved it, avoiding a look at her smushed face in favor of grabbing the golden arm that was hidden under her. The one lopped off during the battle.

I hefted it with interest. And immediately dropped it.

I grimaced. "The spell-sucking magic is still active."

"Because it's not a spell." Typhon knelt and pointed. "The metal itself is what absorbs the magic."

My lips pursed. "What's it doing with it, though?"

"I don't understand."

I gestured to the armor, which retained its golden sheen despite its wearer being gone. "Power doesn't just disappear. If it's absorbing it, then it must be going somewhere." I took a second before asking, "Is this metal the same as that around your neck?"

"Possibly. Why?"

"Because your collar is linked to a matching bracelet, right?" At his nod, I added, "Therefore it stands to reason the armor is also paired to something."

"Not sure why that matters."

I didn't either, but I had to wonder what the deusvenati were doing with all the magic they'd been accumulating.

I grimaced as I lifted the severed arm, blocking my magic from leaking. The fleshy arm suddenly slid out and flopped to the ground. I almost decorated it with barf.

"It looks human." If I ignored the blue blood stains.

"In most respects they are. Their evolutionary differences are minor."

"Have humans killed deities?" I used to think that impossible, but apparently, it was just difficult.

"From what I've been able to gather, some were killed. Others went mad and took their own lives. Some simply moved away."

"Why?" I asked as I turned over the metal casing that was doing its best to suck me dry.

"Given what I know of Earth's history, sometimes a civilization outgrows deities. Earth certainly has. I couldn't believe how few remain."

"I mean, why did the deusvenati kill theirs?"

"If rumor can be believed, a great war was waged between two gods on their world. It involved much magic and devastating results. By the time it was done, only one god remained, but the people on both sides were angry. Angry at what had been wrought in the name of power, and so they set out to rid themselves of all magic."

"How did my mom get a hold of the bracelet and collar she gave Ariadne? I can't see her going somewhere that hates gods just to help someone else with their revenge."

"Again, according to stories, the deusvenati tried to spread their gospel of god-hate to other worlds. It mostly failed, but in their effort to convert, some of the devices were left behind."

"I'm surprised they weren't destroyed."

"You shouldn't be. There will always be those wanting to use others," he said softly.

"I know you didn't want me messing with your collar while Ariadne is elsewhere with your power, but what if we went to the deusvenati world—"

"Nullarcana."

"What?"

"That's the name of their dimension."

Despite having heard him mention it once before when naming the dimensions, I snickered as the play on words caught my attention. "Wow, talk about a lack of imagination."

"Would you prefer its original name of Atlantis?"

My mouth rounded. "Fuck off. It is not." At his serious expression, I added, "Atlantis was a place on Earth."

"Earth used to have a permanent portal on an island that linked the two worlds. But the gods of our plane severed it when the deusvenati revolted and killed their god."

"Well, shit." Not much else to say because hot damn. This kept getting more interesting. "So I do have a question. If the deusvenati hate magic, why would Ariadne go there? She had to know they'd either kill or corral her."

"Can one really understand the mind of someone gone mad?"

I shook my head. "She is too crafty. She must have a reason." I eyed the golden metal left behind. "How hard would it be to create a replica of this armor?"

"Not hard but I have to ask, why?"

"Camouflage. If we're going to visit Atlantis, we need to blend in."

"That won't work. They don't have female soldiers."

"Because they're sexist. I get it. But here's the thing. We don't have to both be soldiers." A plan began to form in my mind. "What if a soldier who got left behind suddenly returned with a prisoner?"

"They'll know I'm not one of them."

"Don't be so sure." I tugged his hand and led him up the street to where I saw another golden glint and pointed at the smashed body under a camel lizard. "They didn't collect all of their dead."

"If anyone speaks to me, they'll know right away," he pointed out.

"Then avoid talking much. Besides, they're going to be distracted by your witchy prisoner."

"Absolutely not," he exploded.

"Admit it, it's a great plan. A not-so-dead deusvenati returns with a magical prize."

"That might end up dead the moment we cross over."

"If they were killing witches on sight, why take the townspeople with power? Why not slaughter them where they found them?" I shook my head. "They captured them for a reason."

"Why are you so determined to go?"

"Because the oracle said we had to."

"Since when do you listen to anyone giving you orders?" he grumbled. "And besides, didn't you say she claimed not all would return?"

"She did, but here's the thing. I have to go because that's the only way I can be sure my sisters aren't there. It's also the only way we can see what Ariadne's up to."

"If she's there. And even if she is, how do you expect to get close? I don't know that world. Couldn't navigate it. Even if we got lucky and landed in the right city, I would assume Ariadne, with the magic she holds, will be under heavy guard."

"I can't believe the god of monsters just wants to give up."

His jaw tensed. "I don't. But I'm also not eager to get ourselves captured or killed."

"Pessimist. Have a little faith, because here's the thing. If we get close enough to Ariadne that I can remove the controlling bracelet, you get your power back, right?"

"Yes."

"Surely an almighty monster god can control a bunch of misotheists in tin cans?"

His lips quirked. "Maybe."

"Only maybe?"

"Need I remind you they killed their last god?"

"Don't compare yourself to an idiot. Send a few big monsters after them, and that will get them rethinking their life choices. Not to mention, that god didn't have me on their side." I winked.

"It's a terrible plan."

"Got a better one?"

"No."

"Do you want to go back to Earth and mope about it until you're old?"

"I won't get old."

"You won't be a god again either without taking a risk."

He glanced at the sky and didn't say anything for a moment, so I prodded.

"Need I remind you that a certain god showed up on my doorstep demanding I help get his power back?"

"I recall. But that was before."

"Before what?"

His lips pinched. "Nothing. Very well. You want to try this foolhardy plan, then how's this?"

His flowing cloak suddenly sucked into his body and changed, molding to his frame, becoming golden armor that encased him head to toe.

I whistled at the end result. "Damn. You look just like one of those bastards."

"You, however, are lacking something." His voice had a tinny sound to it. He held out his hand and, on it, formed a circlet of dull metal just like the one he wore.

I gulped. "Is that—"

"A fake. Thank my cloak for agreeing to part with a tiny bit of itself to complete the disguise." He held it out to me, and I hesitated before grabbing it.

Knowing it wasn't real didn't ease the trepidation of putting it around my neck, feeling the choking solidness of it. For a moment I panicked when it sealed shut.

Typhon grabbed me by the arms and soothed, "Fear not, you still have your magic."

It took me sending out a blast and punching a hole through a wall to sigh in relief. "Sorry."

"Don't be. I well remember how it felt when mine went on and I was suddenly cut off from everything."

"Were you always a god?" I asked suddenly.

"No. Gods are made, not born."

"Made how?"

"Through extraordinary circumstances."

I smelled a story, but it would have to wait because, with our disguises in place, there was only one thing left to do.

I dragged him into the empty bakery where death hadn't struck and fucked him. Fucked a god until he bellowed my name.