Liam staggered into the wall.
“You murdered him,” he said, his voice dull with shock. He dropped to his knees, his left hand going to Brax’s neck. It was a forlorn hope, but...
His hand came away – sticky with Brax’s blood.
Ares snorted. “I killed an enemy combatant, saving the life of the hero of Purgatory,” he said, casually, as he stepped over the lizardman’s corpse. “And slew the rapist of my daughter. Not murder by any stretch of the imagination.”
Liam felt cold as Ares set the blade down to lean against the wall. The god shook his head as he turned back to Liam.
“Now,” he said. “How did you get here?”
Liam gulped. “Well,” he said. “Sysminor exploded. He somehow tore a hole in Purgatory. I figured, uh...” He tried to control the tremor in his voice. His eyes flicked to Brax, then back to Ares. He let his spine stiffen. “I figured that if we didn’t get out, we’d tumble into space. Since we were in a teleport shrine, I guessed.” He paused. “Did you ever wonder why every wizard out there is an elf or a goblin or a valk or a lizardman?”
Ares waited.
“There are plenty of human priests, but no humans who used the magic of the Ancients.” Liam rolled his shoulders. “Because it’s not magic. Is it?”
Ares spread his hands. “Magic. Technology. Is there a difference at a certain point?”
Liam nodded. “So, we were going to die. And I figured that the systems of Purgatory, if they still worked at all, would want to rescue one of their citizens. Brax is - was - a lizardman, and they’re natives.” He shrugged. “And I have a translation spell. Meg put it on me when we first met. The spell turns my English into Latin or Greek or Coptic depending on who I am speaking to. Since I had nothing left to lose, I tried talking to the computer controlling the teleporter. Fortunately, it worked.” He grinned, ever so slightly. “And the Ancients had a word for emergency teleport.”
Ares chuckled. “Very clever, mortal. I can see how you defeated my daughter.”
He stepped away from the crystal bulbs that sat on his desk, finger trailing along the wall.
“So, here is what is going to happen, Liam Vanderbilt of Earth. You are going to return to your friends. You are going to tell them whatever you want – but the world will know that Ares aided in the slaying and defeating of the worst threat we have ever faced. With Sysminor and Brax dead, the lizardmen will be scattered to the winds and crushed. And with the deaths of Sif, Odin and Athena-”
Liam’s eyes widened.
Ares shrugged. “Surrender orders get muddled in times of war. We couldn’t have known that the lizardmen stationed at their cages were told to execute them.” He smiled, eyes cold. “With them dead, the Aesir and the Dodekatheon will fall into chaos.”
“Kind of a low opinion of your fellow Olympians?” Liam asked at that. Athena may have been smart, but she wasn’t the lynchpin of their pantheon.
Ares snorted.
“They will have help with their demise, help that will be unnoticed without the Goddess of Wisdom around. Brigid cannot be trusted, considering the magic she shared with Sysminor. The world will look to leaders.”
He gestured to himself, then to Liam.
“It will have them.”
Liam’s throat felt dry.
Ares held out his hand.
Liam took the hand with his right, not wanting to smear the god’s hand with blood. He felt a cold presence flood his mind and had just enough time to kick himself for being an idiot.
Thanks for letting me know you plan to betray me, mortal, Ares said, his voice echoing inside Liam's skull. His hand clenched and Liam gasped, falling to one knee, pain shooting through his body. Ares’ face was a mask of fury – all control crumbling away as he squeezed Liam’s hand harder and harder. Bones grated and blood started to drip between Ares’ fingers.
“You didn’t think I could see your plans for betrayal?” Ares snarled. “You’re as bad as my whore of a daughter. All of you ignorant, short lived mayflies.” He shoved Liam back and Liam skidded on the floor, clutching the mangled wreck of his hand to his chest. Ares shook his head.
“I was chained for millennia by people like you,” Ares snarled, pointing his finger at Liam. “Did you think I started life as a cowardly, ignorant fool? I was just Ares! Ares of Thrace, mercenary and warrior! I came to Sparta to learn of their true arts of war, and when they saw me fight, they called me Lord of War. Then Lord became God. And where my friends, my family, died of old age and sickness, I remained hale and healthy.” He shook his head. “I met the others – Zeus and Athena and Apollo. And the stories. Oh, the stories.” He turned from Liam, striding away.
“I had a real brother. A real father. But the stories said that gods must be of kin. What other way could it be?” He laughed, bitterly. “Thanks to you mortals, I became Zeus’ son. One of his few non-bastards!”
Liam pushed his legs along the ground.
“You stole my memory, my life, my everything, and now... now, I’m taking it back,” Ares whispered, his hand dropping to the helmet.
Liam’s back bumped against the teleport shrine.
“Ares,” Liam rasped.
Ares turned.
“Don’t talk. Just kill people,” Liam hissed around the pain of his ruined hand. He slapped his palm down on the teleport shrine and Brax’s blood smeared against the shrine. Somewhere, deep inside of Purgatory’s ancient machines, a genetic lock recognized a familiar pattern. Liam prayed that it didn’t get too confused by his fear sweat as he focused his mind on one thing. Not on the god before him, nor the revelations around him. No. He thought only of a computer as he bellowed: “Return teleport!”
Ares leaped forward, moving faster than Liam could have possibly imagined. A searing pain exploded through his foot.
He felt everything turn inside out.
***
Meg’s arms gave way. She was cold. She had never been quite so cold before. The ground was frozen solid, turning the air itself into freezing mist. Her body thumped into the ground and she felt the chill sapping her. Her wings beat weakly and she closed her eyes.
“Come on,” she mumbled. “I’m just a bit sleepy.”
“Meg!”
That voice made her eyes open.
She lifted her head.
She saw that someone was walking through the mist. It cleared and Meg beamed, her arms pushing herself off the ground. She felt so weak and dizzy and cold that the mere movement left her gasping for air. But Liam staggered forward and landed beside her. On his face.
She saw why. He had been hobbling along, using the wall of the canyon to support himself. His left foot was missing. It wasn’t even bleeding – it just looked like the leg had simply decided to stop being a leg there.
Liam slid forward as best as he could.
Meg closed her wing around his side.
“So,” Liam whispered. “How's it going?”
“You know,” Meg said, her voice shaky. “Could be better. I can’t get up. Too weak. Too dizzy. T-Too cold.” She shook her head. Liam shivered convulsively next to her. The two of them pressed together.
“Never thought I’d die of hypothermia,” Liam muttered. “On fucking Purgatory of all places.”
Meg chuckled. “I remember that play you told me about.”
Liam grunted.
“The one with the Jeders?”
“Jedi,” Liam murmured. He had turned his face to her wing.
“Yeah,” Meg said, her voice quiet.
“I’m not cutting myself open so you can crawl inside me,” Liam whispered.
“Aww,” Meg groaned. “You come inside me all the time.”
“Not the same!”
The mists parted before them. A figure stepped forward, clad in a makeshift set of thick clothing – bits of lizardmen furs, Cross Guard tunics, Hellenic leggings. Kilts had been wrapped around the arms, and gauntlets had been strapped to their hands. They looked like a walking pile of cloth, moving carefully forward on the blasted and frozen ground.
They paused as they saw Meg and Liam and broke into an awkward waddling run.
The last thing Liam heard was a familiar voice.
“I found them! I found them! They’re alive!”
***
Liam truly woke in bed. He had woken a few times before, fluttering in and out of wakefulness. He had felt the rocking of the boat under him and known it was still time to sleep. He had felt the settled presence of a real floor under him – but also had heard strange words in strange languages and had known it was still time to sleep.
Now, he was in a bed he remembered. His left hand reached out and landed on a firm, perky tit. He nodded.
That seemed right.
His other hand reached out.
Another tit, this one larger and softer.
Liam nodded.
Also correct.
“I see someone is awake,” Mary’s voice purred from the left side of him.
All is right with the world, Liam thought.
“So,” Mary said as Liam and Meg started to rise from the bed, moving as if they were far older than they were. “There is good news and bad news. The bad news is that...” She paused. “You’re both still hurt.”
Liam found out what she meant. His left foot was gone. In its place was an elegant, beautifully made collection of brass clockwork and smooth wood paneling. It clicked softly as he wiggled his toes – his focused thoughts making it move and twitch as if it was his own foot. He looked from it to Mary.
Mary nodded. “Yes. Hephaestus himself crafted it.”
Liam gulped. He wasn’t sure how he felt about this. So, instead of responding, he just slid his arm around Meg’s waist. Meg was looking like she was near to tears and trying to keep herself from bursting into a series of sobs. Her wing didn’t stop caressing Liam’s back. Her lips kept finding parts of his head as she nuzzled him, bumping him gently. It was like she was just making sure he was there.
“Meg’s injury is worse,” Mary said, quietly.
“I feel fine,” Meg said, her brow furrowing.
“The healers say that something broke in your head – you were badly hurt, and Neb healed the surface pains. You flew while something in your head was torn. By the time a healer saw to it, the injury was settled too deeply,” Mary said, quietly. “I’ve spoken with valkyrie, they all say the same thing.”
Liam looked at Meg. Meg looked baffled.
“Meg, you can’t fly,” Mary said, quietly.
“The fuck I can’t!” Meg snarled. Her wings fanned and she looked ready to start flying right here, right now. Mary stepped forward, her tail lashing.
“Wait, don’t-”
But Meg was at the window. Liam moved forward but felt his foot twitch unexpectedly under him. He over-balanced and fell to one knee as Meg spread her wings. She leaned out the window. Paused. Stepped back. Her eyes closed and she looked as if she wanted to throw up. Her hand went to her throat and she gasped.
“Breathe, Meg, breathe,” Mary said.
Liam forced himself to his feet.
Meg shook her head, growling. “I’m dizzy. I, oh gods, I feel-” She put her hand over her mouth.
Mary put her hand on Meg’s shoulder. “The valks say that some who got wounded in the same way, well...” She gulped. “They...”
“They kill themselves,” Meg said, her voice hollow.
Liam felt a fear unlike anything he had ever felt before burn through him. Everything stopped mattering at that moment. His hands grabbed onto Meg’s hand, squeezing her.
“Meg, I-”
“Oh, come the fuck on,” Meg said, rolling her eyes. “I’m not going to murder myself because I’m hurt. Come on.” She smirked at him. “You’re the one who told me how fast technology improves. We don’t know how to fix this now. But we will and when we do, I am going to fly again.” She grinned. “Just, you know, stick around to hold me when my bravado wears off and the reality of the situation sinks in. Okay?”
Liam closed his eyes and said a quiet prayer.
Thank God for Meg.
“Always,” he said. “Always.”
***
A war won. An army returned in victory – Liam was shocked at how many members of the Cross Guard had survived the Battle of the Blood Groove, as it was being called. Considering the amount of blood that had been spilled at the mouth of the canyon - an amount that got larger and larger with every retelling of the story - the name felt somewhat appropriate. But despite all the changes that had been brought to his life, there was still paperwork and meetings and worries.
The gods sat on the left side of the table, while the mortals sat at the right, and Liam at the head. Artemis, her face buried against the still regrowing hair of Athena. Loki, next to a red faced Brigid. If Loki’s left hand didn’t join her right on the table by the time the meeting started, Liam was going to start coughing loudly. A sorrowful looking Sif.
To the right, there was Laurentinus, Vani, Sunchaser, Meg, Neb – whose nose was jammed in Tethis’ notes and journal – Liv and Mary.
Liam coughed loudly and glared at Loki.
Loki drew her left hand from under the table and subtly licked her fingers clean.
“The first meeting of the Babylon Council has come to order,” Liam said, trying to sound impressive and not at all like someone who could barely believe that they were all here. It still felt downright surreal. “First order of business: a situation report.” He nodded to Loki.
Loki’s palm slapped the table. Her magic of illusions came in handy – better than PowerPoint, that was for sure. A shimmering map of the Hellenic League’s territory glowed into existence. Several cities had their names floating over them. New Athens, Hydrafont, Pluto, and more. Tiny symbols flickered into being next, showing the positions of observed armies. The map expanded northward, showing the Aesir lands.
Liam sighed as he saw the symbol of Thor over Wodan. The city’s name might need to change now.
“The first rule of warfare is simple: no plan survives contact with the enemy.. Ares might be smarter than he used to be,” she said, her voice quiet, “But he either forgot that or got too caught up in everything else that was going well for him. He didn’t expect Athena to escape on her own.”
Artemis looked decidedly smug. Athena simply shrugged.
“And he didn’t think that Odin might sacrifice himself for his son and his wife,” Loki said, her voice dropping to a quieter octave. The original report that she had given Liam had been remarkably emotionless. Liam had wanted to go to her and hug her but he had still been confined to his bed. Odin had drawn all of his power into himself when the executioners came. The speed of Sysminor’s defeat played against them in this case, as Ares orders had come well ahead of the news that the Aesir were now free.
Odin had known the risks. According to reports, he hadn’t hesitated. His immense form had taken dozens of nulldarts and spears and magical blasts from the lizardmen stationed in Wodan. He had slain them all before collapsing. There had been a hope that he would simply fall into a coma. But that hope hadn’t borne fruit. Now, the Aesir were led by Thor with Munin and Hugin on his shoulders and Sif at his side.
God help them if he didn’t listen to his wife.
“The Dodekatheon has fallen into civil war. Ares urges Zeus to fight his brothers as revenge for how they failed to help him during Sysminor’s attack. Considering the long enmity between Hades and Zeus, getting that war started was roughly as difficult as getting Zeus to cheat on Hera. Apollo remains neutral, but if things go as they are, New Athens will conquer Poseidon’s capital, Hydrafont, by the end of the year. The Tuatha are struggling to recover from the scandal with Brigid and Sysminor’s apparent affair.” She rolled her eyes at that. “Pirates infest the oceans. And, as a final cherry on top, the lizardmen have not disbanded. This is good and bad. Good because it means there aren’t several thousand ravenous lizardmen turning to banditry. Bad because... well...” She shook her head. “Brax’s army has retreated into the sea, and from all reports are coming here.”
In any other world, the idea of an army of almost six thousand lizardfolk swimming through the ocean without rest might have been impossible.
But Purgatory was a place where anything could happen.
“We can meet them with hot lead and cold steel,” Laurentinus said, grinning. “Our defenses are better than ever. And those sirens the valks have gotten? They scare the shit out of the enemy.”
Mary shook her head. “They surrendered at the Blood Groove. Their general is dead-”
Liv didn’t flinch at that. Meg quietly squeezed the elf’s shoulder.
“-their god is dead,” Mary continued. “We have their leaders in captivity.”
Liam’s heart thudded faster. Their leaders: a few high ranked officers, and a few sorcerers in nullcages. And Fizit. He toyed with that thought, and put it away for later.
“And?” Artemis asked. Multiple requests had finally gotten through to the goddess that she didn’t need to boom every word she said.
Mary scowled at Artemis. “We’re not going to slaughter six thousand men and women who have already lost just because they’re scaled.”
“They started one of the most destructive wars in Purgatory’s history,” Loki said, with the tone of someone playing devil’s advocate. “And let's not forget, one of them crucified you and hundreds of people like you. You may turn the other cheek, but what about the rest of your city?”
“The War Against the Ancients was worse,” Neb said, her voice distracted as she turned a page in her notes. Liam hadn’t seen the scribe without her nose in Tethis’ notes. She was obsessively searching for a cure for Meg’s injury, even if it took puzzling through magical theory so complicated that every other wizard in Babylon had declared it the writings of a mad woman.
“That one didn’t leave a bloody hole in the world,” Laurentinus said, shaking his head.
Liam shook his head. “We’re not going to kill them. Besides.” He held up his hand. “We have an air force. We need a navy.”
Quiet came to the table.
Even Laurentinus seemed taken by that idea.
Sif sniffed and wiped at her nose. “And what of my people?” she asked. “Thor seeks to bring peace but there are so many thanes who see this as a chance to grab a name for themselves. Many are demigods.”
“We’ll lend Thor every piece of support we can,” Liam said. “We’ve got the only air force in Purgatory, and no matter what New Athens tries, we have the biggest gunpowder plant and musket making facility out there.”
Sif nodded. She steadied.
“We need more than just guns, though,” she said. “So much anger comes from old enmities. Things that came from before the war...”
“Diplomats?” Meg asked.
“I was thinking diplomats who everyone can trust, diplomats whose loyalties are to someone beyond the Aesir and who aren't loyal to a god that might want our lands,” Sif said. “I’ve noticed that your Order of Mary is quite respected throughout the city.”
Liam chuckled. “Missionaries,” he said, quietly. “But not assholes this time.”
The others looked confused. Well, the others save for Mary, Meg and Neb. But that was mostly because Neb was still distracted by reading notes. Then Neb sat bolt upright, sprang to her feet, and screamed at the top of her lungs.
“Holy fucking what? She’s a fucking genius!”
The entire room sat stock still.
“Liam?” Meg asked, looking at him.
“I don’t even know,” Liam said.
“Is Tethis’ body in the city?” Neb asked, her tail lashing back and forth. Liam blinked, then looked at Mary. Mary shrugged.
“You said you didn’t want her body to get lost, it’s in her crypt. We renew the stasis spell, so she can be emba-”
Neb sprinted out of the room, leaving behind a shocked set of gods and mortals.
Liam coughed. “Continue to discuss this without me,” he said, reaching down to carefully wind his foot until it was sure to work until he arrived at the location. Hephaestus had made something wonderful, but clockwork ran out of juice alarmingly fast. “Remember, we need to get ready to take down Ares.”
Liv brightened at that.
Liam caught up with Neb halfway to the crypts. The Chosen of Anubis didn’t slow down, and didn’t seem to even notice Liam as he called out after her. The city of Babylon bustled around them – the ending of the war had brought a return to civilian infrastructure. But more, buildings were becoming taller and others were starting to go up around the walls.
People wanted to live here.
They arrived at the crypt breathless. “You almost died so many times that Tethis knew that if she hadn’t been nearby, if healers hadn’t been nearby, you’d have not been healed properly, or at all.” Neb gasped. “So, Tethis, between working on the muskets, was working on a new healing spell.”
A faint memory tugged at Liam. He had remembered someone mentioning that.
“Yeah, but didn’t the other wizards say it made no sense?” he asked.
“It doesn’t make sense, unless you remember!” Neb tapped her temple. “The brain is where we think.”
“I-” Liam blinked. “Yes?”
“Valks know it, or at least suspect it. You know it. Tethis knows it. Some people haven’t caught up,” Neb said as she walked to the crypt where Tethis was laid. The tomb was closed tight and glowed with the pale blue light of the stasis spell. She grabbed the top of the tomb and shoved, her arms trembling. Liam sighed and stepped forward. With his help, Neb got the tomb open.
Tethis looked as she had when she had been lain there.
“Okay!” Neb said. “Watch this.”
She rubbed her paws together, then placed them on Tethis’ body.
A glowing light flashed through her palms and into Tethis. Tethis back arched. She slumped back, her funeral wrappings opening slightly.
Liam frowned at Neb. He was starting to feel a cold rage growing inside of himself, but it wasn’t even aimed at Neb. It was at this whole surreal, stupid situation. Tethis was-
Tethis’ eyes opened.
She sat up.
Gasped.
Coughed.
Then looked around, her wrappings falling off her shoulders, exposing her cushy, gently sloping green breasts. Her nipples were hard as tiny diamonds and seemed to beg for Liam to kiss and caress them. She had never looked more beautiful at that moment as she blinked up at Liam.
“Oh,” she said. “Oh, man, that was dumb. Don’t pull swords ohff!”
She grunted as Liam swept her into his arms and squeezed her.
She was alive.
She was alive.
After so much death – after so many slain and lost. After so much pain.
Tethis was alive.
And soft.
And warm.
Liam kissed her. Hungrily. His tongue plunged into her mouth as his hands grabbed her clothes. Tethis moved with the same eagerness, her slender arms wrapping around his neck. Soon, she wasn’t just half naked. She was fully nude and Liam was holding her up by her rump. He stepped forward, then turned and sat down on the only bed his brain could recognize. The soft cushion of her tomb welcomed his back as he laid on his back, still kissing Tethis. She ground and bucked her hips against his chest, sliding her moist cunt against him.
Tethis broke the kiss, then reached back. Her hand tugged Liam’s kilt backwards.
“Oh gods, I can’t wait,” she whispered.
“U-Um...” Neb whimpered, standing off to the side. Despite her midnight black fur, her muzzle burned as bright as the sun.
Tethis slid herself backwards. Her green thighs spread as her ears lifted upwards and she looked down at Liam.
“Don’t you want to know how-” Neb continued.
Liam grabbed Tethis' hips and thrust into her. His back arched and his butt left the floor. His cock plunged into Tethis and she arched her spine as much as his, her hands grabbing onto the lip of her tomb. Her breasts bounced in an almost perfect circle as her emerald green skin started to glisten with sweat. She rocked her hips forward and backwards, panting and moaning. Liam grabbed onto her ass, then cupped her breasts.
He found those dark emerald nipples, pinching and twisting her nipples.
Tethis squeaked, then threw her head back and moaned again.
Ignored by the two, Neb guilty slid her paw between her thighs as she watched Tethis rise and fall from her own sarcophagi, the wet sound of sex made all the louder by the passion and by the silence filling the rest of the crypt. She couldn’t help herself. She knew that Anubis wouldn’t be happy about this, uh, happening here.
But she was sure a sacrifice or two would appease her god.
Hopefully.
“Oh Liam, oh Liam,” Tethis moaned. “Oh gods, fuck me!”
“I’m cumming!” Liam clenched his jaw. He normally lasted longer, but Tethis was so fucking tight and smooth and wet. He had forgotten how good she was. Forgotten what it was like to not have a hole in his life.
He shuddered and spent himself inside of Tethis as she lay forward against him, shuddering in time with every tremor that quivered through his body. His hands cupped her ass and he panted softly. His eyes were closed.
“Damn,” he murmured.
Together, the two lay there, soaking in the bliss.
***
“You know,” Meg said, her voice dry. “Most people would wait to learn why someone had come back from the dead before fucking their brains out.”
“Shut up,” Liam said, grinning as Tethis panted against him, her breasts squished against his chest.
“I admit,” Tethis said, sitting back. Her thighs pressed against Liam’s and her rump jiggled as she settled herself back again. Liam found himself growing hard inside of her. “We really should have gotten to the bedroom first.”
Liam grinned, sheepishly. He felt a twinge of guilt as well.
But…
“Fuck, it’s good to have you back, Tethis,” Meg said.
Neb – who had been the one to inform the rest of the council of what had happened – remained in the background. Blushing.
“Soooo,” said Meg, “We can bring anyone we want back to life now?”
“Not, ah, quite,” Tethis said, her voice rising to a moan as Liam started to lazily thrust into her again. His cum sloshed inside of Tethis and she squirmed and moaned, throwing her head back. “Ah fuck.”
Meg purred. “I have to get in on this.”
She leaned forward and kissed Tethis. As Meg was perched at the lip of the tomb, this meant she was kissing Tethis upside down, their mouths and tongues playing together awkwardly. But for all the awkwardness of the position, their passion more than made up for it. When Meg drew back, she was already looking ready to take her top off and join them in the tomb, space be damned.
Tethis panted. “I wasn’t actually dead. The spell, mm, it detects catastrophic damage or blood loss. Activates. Puts the brain into stasis, like your preservation spells. But, ah, with a feedback loop that maintains the, mm, brain. Uh. Bits. That make, fuck yes-’ Her breath came out in a tiny wheeze as Liam’s hand lazily found her clit. “Thinky, uh, stuff, words!”
Meg pouted. “Why’d you only use this on yourself?”
“It’s, mm, really complicated,” Tethis admitted.
“Most of t-the people who read her notes, uh, didn’t even know what it was,” Neb said, coughing quietly.
Tethis grinned. “But you figured it out, Neb.”
Neb turned even more bright red. “Yup!”
“Can you cast it again?” Meg asked.
Tethis nodded. Then her palms slapped down on Liam’s chest. Her eyes glowed and she grinned hungrily – the same kind of hunger she had shown when she had finally become brave enough to ask for what she wanted.
“After round two.” She started to really work her hips, looking over her shoulder at Meg. “M-ay-bee round three.”
***
Fizit lay in her cell, her hand on her belly. She felt the child inside of her kick. She had never before been so adrift. She had no one to tell her anything. No one to share a secret with. She didn’t even have her own mind. Instead, her mind was filled with that most undignified emotion.
Panic.
Abject panic.
Her hand circled around and around and around as she rubbed her belly and tried to not imagine... well, everything. The cell bars were nullcrystals, like the cages that they had kept gods and mages in during the war. She had her power, so long as she stayed at the corner of the cell. But so what? She was in a city, far from her people. With a child. Her child. Her child.
It had become more and more real, every day, every week, growing inside of her.
They could take it and dash its brains out.
They could stab it with a spear.
They could-
Fizit closed her eyes.
Footsteps made her open them again.
Standing in the door was Liam Vanderbilt. He looked in at her, his arms crossed over his chest. Since the orgy months before, she had thought of him little. But seeing him in the flesh again reminded Fizit of what had impressed her about him the first time they had met: his overwhelming size. Not the size of his cock, though that was impressive. No, it was how tall he was.
And she had never before felt more small.
Well.
Feeling and actions had little to do with one another, when you were Fizit.
She stood and crossed her arms over her chest.
“Lord Godkiller,” she said.
“Fizit,” Liam said. He opened his mouth, then closed it. “I... I didn’t know you were pregnant. But even...” He shook his head. “Fizit, Tethis-”
“I’m not sorry,” Fizit said, her tail tense, twitching from side to side. “That’s what you want to hear, right? Well, I won’t lie I lied for my people, but right now, my people might as well not exist. It’s down to me. And right now, I won’t insult you or myself. Tethis was a strategic threat. A single godkiller bomb teleported in our camp would-”
Liam blinked. His mouth opened, then closed.
“Wow,” he said. “I never thought of that.”
Fizit’s tail whipped hard enough to cause the air to crack.
“You what!?”
Liam shook his head. “Liv was at the camp. Any bomb there would kill her, and any number of other innocents.”
Fizit sighed. “Well, it’s in the past now. Please, wait until my child is born before-”
“I’m not having you killed,” Liam said. “Maybe I was tempted. But... no.” He shook his head.
Fizit hissed. “Don’t you dare do this because you pity me, Liam Vanderbilt. All I have left is some measure of pride, and I will not survive because you pity me. I-”
“Fizit!” Liam put his hand over his face. “Tethis is alive. Okay?” He shook his head. “The war is over. And a bigger one is coming. One that is going to make Sysminor look like a walk in the park. I need someone who can run a spy network, who I can trust. I have you.” He dropped his hand from his face, looking at her. “And in a few kindlings, six thousand of your people are going to arrive and need a place to stay. People to accept them.” He sighed. “It’d be a fuck of a lot easier with you. Especially once we start trying the ones responsible for war crimes.”
Fizit felt like she had been completely blind sided.
The General had told her.
He had said, when he had laid out the rough outline of his ‘plan’ - to make a peace that would end Sysminor and still give her people a home – that Liam Vanderbilt was their best choice. But that she might need to die, in the end.
Tethis had to die.
So she’d have to die.
And now…
Now…
She shook her head. “Why?”, Fizit asked, her jaw tight as she spoke. “Why do you want me to be your spymaster?”
“Have you watched yourself at work?” Liam laughed. “You make J. Edgar Hoover look like a mentally unstable paranoid who drugged his co-workers with LSD for fun.”
Fizit looked blank. “I...” She paused. “I will need to think about it.”
Liam nodded.
He turned and started to walk away. He called back over his shoulder. “And we’ll take care of your child. And find the father, if he’s still alive.”
“Oh, that’s easy,” Fizit said, casually, her tail twitching from side to side. She’d never trade on her womb for her life. It felt too close to betraying all of womankind to her. But now?
“It’s you,” she finished.
Liam walked into a wall.
***
Liv’s blade hummed as she swung it around her head. She cut as fast as she could, then stopped, then cut faster, then stopped. She measured each slice – and found that it wasn’t getting any faster.
She frowned.
That was okay.
Ares had raped her mother.
He had killed her lover.
But she had time.
Elves always had time.
The door to the training room opened and Liam stepped inside. “Hey,” he said.
Liv nodded curtly to him. “Thanks,” she said. “For, uh...” she trailed off. “For telling me about... about what Ares did.” She didn’t want to say his name. Just thinking it sent a squeeze of pain through her heart and brought her to the edge of tears no Spartan should ever show.
She didn’t have time for it.
“Now, when were you going to tell me?” Liam asked.
Liv looked at him, her brow furrowing.
“You’re pregnant,” Liam said. “Fizit thinks that when Sysminor reactivated the lizardmen’s regeneration and super-stamina, he turned their cross fertility on. Normally, it takes a magical spell for two people to make a child, if they’re different species at least. But, well...” He looked like he wasn’t sure if he should be appalled, shocked, or pleased.
Liv snorted.
There were some advantages to being an elf. She could spend weeks grieving…
Later.
For now…
She drew her sword. Cut.
Still the same speed.
She had to be faster.
She would be faster.
Liam squeezed her shoulder. “I’ll help you take care of the baby.”
Liv frowned. “I, uh. Okay.”
Liam nodded. “So, what are you practicing?”
“My father was faster than me. I have to train until I am faster than him,” Liv said.
Liam bit his lip. “Your father said some things. I’m not sure I understood all of them. But...” he paused. “Fizit told me what you saw in the security station. The recordings?” He shook his head. “Do you want to hear my theory?”
Liv snorted. “No.”
“It’ll help you kill your dad,” Liam said, shrugging as he walked away from Liv and sat down on one of the benches that ringed the training room. Liv slashed at the air, sheathed her sword.
“Fine,” she said, looking right at him.
She’d grieve later.
She didn’t need to see the pity in his eyes. She refused to look at it, she refused to recognize it. If she opened a chink, anywhere...
“Well,” Liam said. “I think that gods get their powers from their worshipers.”
“No fucking shit,” Liv snarled.
“But I think it's two sided,” Liam said. “The beliefs of the worshipers changes gods to fit what they think they are. So, that’s why Ares stayed Ares for thousands on thousands of years. I mean, I’m going to be a hugely different person if I live to be a hundred. What if I live to be five thousand?” He shook his head. “But gods are still themselves. They’re still like how they are in the stories I remember reading. If they were people, that wouldn’t make sense, would it?”
Liv frowned. “So, we... what? Ares’ stories don’t seem to be sticking.”
And that helmet has something to do with it, she thought.
Liam nodded. “But your story’s just beginning. You’re world famous. How hard would it be to turn that fame into worship?”
Liv’s brow furrowed.
Liam grinned.
“How’d you like to be the next God of War?”