Styxx (Dark-Hunter 22)

Her stomach cramped at those harsh words. "What all has been done to him?"

Archon sat back as he thought about it. "Apollo had been passing him around on Olympus until Athena found out and stopped it. Then he brought him here for our amusement."

Those words hit her like a blow. "What type of amusement?"

"What do you think we did to him? He led an army into our nation and slaughtered our citizens and mortal family members. We couldn't let that go unpunished. Once we got bored with him, we threw him to the queen as Apollo's gift and she had him put in the arena for fights and other highly creative events so that her people and soldiers could take out their own grievances against him and the other Greeks."

"And no one in Didymos has noticed his absence?"

"No. Apollo took care of it."

Did she even want to know more than what Frick and Frack had already told her? "Care of it. How?"

Archon shrugged. "Don't know. Don't care. So why the interrogation over him?"

"I didn't know he was here until today."

"Ah. Well, if you get a chance, you might want to attend the fight this afternoon. Even as wrecked as he is, he manages to hold off his attackers until they spring a trap on him, or unleash the dogs or cats to bring him down. It's much more entertaining to watch when you know he can't win no matter what he does. Still he tries to win. It's so strange, really. The humans and Apollites also take wagers to see how long he'll last. Then at the end, they let the crowd determine the punishment for his crimes."

"Punish him how?"

"He's either sentenced to be beaten or ceremonially raped for the crowd's entertainment."

Her breath left her lungs. Hard. It took everything she had not to attack Archon. "And you find this acceptable for the man who refused to harm our innocent people? One who used his own troops to make sure Atlanteans weren't raped while the Greeks fought here?"

He shrugged nonchalantly. "Our people are the ones who decide his punishments. Not me. I'm not about to interfere with their entertainment after the terror he put them through."

"And how long do you think this punishment should last?"

"Talk to his owner. Again, I'm not interfering for a piece of Greek shit that doesn't matter to me."

But he matters to me....

Bethany counted to ten and forced herself to leave before she gave in to the urge to blast Archon where he sat.

Instead, she went to Didymos next to see what had happened during her year of extreme stupidity. How was it possible that Styxx could be gone from home for a year and no one would notice?

Yes, she was violating all kinds of pacts, treaties, and bylaws, but she didn't care at this point. She wanted too much blood....

Bethany started for the palace then stopped herself. Galen would be the one who would have missed him. Surely if anyone knew Styxx was gone, it would be his sole friend and mentor. So she went to the barracks where she found the old man in his quarters.

Assuming the guise of a Didymosian soldier, she entered. "Where's Prince Styxx?"

Galen sighed wearily. "I don't know. I haven't seen him in a very long time."

She used her powers to compel him to speak what was on his mind. "Are you all right, Master Galen?"

"Not really, but it's not me I'm worried about. The prince hasn't been right since his woman left him."

"How so?"

Galen sighed heavily. "I know war often changes people, and losing someone you love ... but he's just not the same boy I trained. It's almost like he's possessed by something. Like a demon has control of his body. But don't breathe a word of that. I don't want to see him returned to the Dionysion. Not after what they did to him the last time."

In that moment, she knew exactly what Apollo had done. She just didn't know why. Her anger mounting, she left Galen and went to the palace where she found "Styxx" laughing with a member of the senate. "He" felt her foreign god powers immediately and turned all attention toward her.

Bethany crooked a finger.

The "prince" excused himself to join her in the hallway. As soon as they were out of sight of the others, Bethany turned on Poena-the Greek spirit of retribution-and slammed the Olympian daemone against the wall. "Why are you masquerading as the prince?"

Poena shrugged. "Apollo told me to while the prince is being punished."

"For?"

"Hubris."

Hubris? Really? To the Greek gods, that was the greatest sin any mortal could commit, and she couldn't imagine Styxx, as humble as he was, ever thinking himself a god or above one. "Against?"

"My assumption would be Apollo since he's the one who called me in for it."

With every spoken word, Bethany's rage tripled. "And where would Apollo be?"

Poena shrugged.

Bethany grabbed her by the throat and shoved her into the wall again. "Fetch him to me. I'll be in his temple here in town. And if you value your existence, you will not pretend to be Styxx another day."

"Excuse me?"

"Oh bitch, please, give me one. Right now, I'm ready to call down every Olympian and Titan, and open a major can of Atgyptian whoop-ass on the whole lot of you. Or better yet, how do you think the Greek people would react if I told them how their gods blithely allowed one of their beloved heroes to be wrongfully punished for a full year by their enemies? How many converts do you think I'd get to our pantheon?"

"You wouldn't dare."

"Really, don't push me right now. Fetch your master to me and be quick about it." Bethany flashed herself straight into Apollo's temple ... which could be construed as an act of war.

A war she was aching to start, even if she had to fight it single-handedly.

Disgusted, she walked around the open area and sneered at the altar where people had made offerings to Apollo for a benevolence the worthless prick totally lacked.

"What are you doing here?"

Bethany turned around to face him. "I am so glad you didn't keep me waiting."

Apollo glared at her. "You should have met me in Atlantis. Not here."

"If I were sorry, I'd apologize. As it is, this is merely a courtesy visit to let you know that I've freed Styxx from your hellhole."

Apollo shook his head. "You can't do that. He's not yours."

"My understanding is that you gave him away."

"I didn't give him to you."

"You cast him to my brethren to torment," she reminded him. "I am allowed to take him after that."

"Not unless you want a war."

"Really?" She raked Apollo with a sneer. "You'd start a war over a mere mortal?"

"Why not? I've started them for a lot less. Besides, he hasn't learned his lesson."

"And what lesson is that?"