FanStory.com - Battle of Nyx Valleyby davisr (Rhonda)

Background
Years after a fire took her parents' lives, Echo worked at a small town newspaper. She was rescued from danger by her old friend, Theo, who took her to live in his world, one full of its own danger.

End of the last chapter:

Theo dropped to the ground and began to hack at the bird with a practiced sword. Seconds later, the other bird landed, its feral cry piercing the violent storm.

Without thinking, Hermes stood on the back of his horse and leapt into the air as though he could still fly. Of course, he couldn't, but landed like a cat on his feet. His feet! He looked down and saw the glow of quicksilver. So, he thought, the twins didn't realize he was the fastest god in Olympia for more than one reason. It wasn't just about the wings. Hermes was back in business. He had speed, agility, and a very powerful sword.

New Chapter begins:

Theo became aware of Hermes joining the battle and was relieved to see him fighting with amazing speed and agility. This renewed his own strength and resolve. Though difficult work, he gave more damage than he received.

Out of the corner of his eye, he watched his cousin brandishing his sword like an avenging angel. In and out, in and out, he alternately dodged and attacked the second bird.

For a brief second, Theo allowed himself to be astounded by Hermes the warrior. Gone was his playful guise and whimsical nature. This, Theo decided, was what made his cousin a ruling god.

In that moment of distraction, Theo violated one of the cardinal rules of engagement, and paid dearly for it. An immediate and excruciating pain tore down his left shoulder and arm.

He stared at the bird as it lifted upward, and watched it swoop around like a tarantula stalking a lizard. He could almost imagine a smile in the skin that pulled back its copper beak.

The paralyzing pain caused him to drop his shield into the raging water. As he watched it float away, he shook his head and grasped the sword with both hands. Resolute before this mortal danger, Theo waited for the bird to dive in again.

When it did, he stared into the creature's dark, beady eyes. It was a universal challenge and denial of fear. At the last second, he darted to the left and stabbed with his sword straight into the bird's right eye. A second stab in the same spot sent the beast screeching into the air.

Theo turned his attention back to Adam. Terrified, he watched as the swollen river covered his brother.

"Noooo!" Theo cried. He slid his sword back into its scabbard and dove into the water. Immediately, his heavy armor pulled him under. He reached into a sheath on his thigh and pulled out a serrated hunting knife.

In a few swift movements, he cut through the straps that held his armor. His body protection then joined his shield in the river. Lighter now, but less protected, Theo bobbed to the surface. For the moment, he sheathed his knife and treaded water to assess the situation.

He made out the Cyprus tree ahead of him, the tether still jerking about as though attached to a giant fish. Theo swam for the spot, oblivious to the wound in his shoulder and arm.

Once to the tree, he grasped the rope, and followed it hand over hand until he felt two responding hands grasp his.

He braced himself against the tree and jerked up until his brother's head, sputtering and coughing, cleared the water. Theo pulled his knife again and slashed through Adam's bonds.

"Thanks, brother," Adam said. He fought the current to stand upright. "Now, give me a sword and let me fight these bastards."

"I have only mine," Theo said. They both looked at Hermes, who had managed to work his way closer to them.

"You two get on Nifty and get out of here," he ordered. "Make for the cliff ahead. They won't attack next to a wall of stone."

"We can fight," Adam insisted.

"You're weak from the water and your brother is about to bleed to death."

Theo hesitated, so Hermes let out a cry in the language of horses. Nifty galloped to Theo's side. Hermes responded with more horse talk, and Nifty bent to his knees.

"Of course you speak horse," Theo said as much to himself as anyone.

Hermes ignored Theo's remark and bellowed again. "Go!" The look in the elder god's eyes carried the authority of one of the ruling twelve that even the removal of his immortality couldn't take away. Theo acquiesced. The rescue mission Theo might be in charge of, but Hermes outranked him in battle.

"Come on Adam."

Without another word of protest, the brothers climbed onto Nifty's back. The great roan stallion plunged into the engorged river.

Adam tore off his shirt and tied it around the deepest part of Theo's lacerated arm. He wasn't Phoebus' son for nothing. He had spent as much time in his father's hospital as in his training field.

Theo glanced over his shoulder at his brother and nodded thanks. How the lad had changed since the siege on Mount Olympus first began!

Stroke after perilous stroke, the great stallion strove against the rapidly flowing water until they made it to the other side. By that point, all three were exhausted. Had they not been in such dire conditions, they might have rested on the shore. But they weren't safe and so they pressed on until they reached the steppes of the cliff beneath the Styx castle.

There, the brothers dismounted and left Nifty to find grass to replenish his strength. They sat on the ground and leaned against an outcropping that partially shielded them from the storm.

"I feel like a deserter," Adam said. He tapped his head against the stone wall behind him. "Just like I felt helpless tied to a tree while you and Hermes fought."

"You're a soldier following orders from your commander," Theo responded. "Hermes can fight easier without worrying about rescuing the two of us."

"Can you see him?" Adam asked.

"No, but I hear the sounds of battle. That means he's still alive. We'll wait here until he shows up."

Adam nodded, but didn't seem convinced that just sitting and waiting was the bravest course of action. He closed his eyes and rested his head.

Theo did the same, and his eyes grew heavier and heavier in spite of the growing pain in his arm. He opened thick eyelids and saw a shadowy figure standing in front of him. The man gazed as though sizing him up. Satisfied, he winked and blew dust in Theo's face.

"Seriously, Hypnos?" Theo nodded off to dreamland.

"Immediately, he found himself standing in a cave lit by torches and candles. There was a group of men and women seated in a semicircle around a rather handsome couple dressed in formal dinner attire. The man was tall and muscular with handsome features. He wore a black tuxedo and exuded an air of authority.

The woman, vaguely familiar, had auburn hair that flowed around a white gown. She was beautiful in all senses of the word, and seemed self-assured. While she didn't look particularly happy, she didn't come across as scared, either.

Theo drew in closer, apparently invisible to the couple seated at the table. The man rose to his feet, pulling the girl after. There was a scuffle with another person, and then the man kissed the woman on the lips. She looked revolted and tried to squirm away. He held her tightly for a dramatic moment and then released her.

This same scene played over and over in his head until another took its place.

This time, the young lady was asleep in bed, her head resting on a feather pillow. She looked so serene and innocent. He wanted to lean over and kiss her on the forehead. He knew this girl, it was the woman betrothed to be his bride.

As he watched her sleep, a breeze blew the curtains above her head. Echo twitched and her face grew troubled. A wispy silhouette of the god of the dead materialized before her. Hades bent over and kissed her in her sleep, causing Echo to wince and cry out.

"Echo, come with me," Hades whispered in her ear.

"No, go away," Echo muttered.

Hades' ghostly hand touched her forehead and his voice grew louder. "Come with me."

"I will not!" Echo sat upright in her bed. "I don't belong to you, no matter what you did to me. I'm going to marry Theo and you know it."

Theo reached out dream arms to take her, but they fell helplessly to his side.

"Echo, Echo," he cried out, the words of his dream leaking into the real world.

********

Adam gazed at his brother sleeping fitfully on the ground. His brow was furrowed with worry and his lips called for his beloved. His words reverberated off the canyon wall mocking her name.

Adam felt he had failed them all. He hadn't been able to stop Hades from kissing Echo, and he had endangered Hermes and Theo by getting captured. All of these failures began to boil inside him until they became an inferno of rage.

Across the plain, he heard Hermes scream out in pain. He glanced back down at Theo, blood now soaking through his makeshift bandage. "Brother, forgive me. Hermes is your captain and you have to take his orders, but I don't."

Adam cupped his hands over his mouth and called out for the black stallion, Recovery. The horse pranced to his side and bowed. Adam grabbed his brother's sword, then jumped on the steed's back and urged him toward the battleground. It was time to earn his own respect.