Chapter 07

It wasn't that I wanted to eat the granola bar. My stomach felt like it was going to spew everything out again after every bite, but I also knew that if I was to stand even the slightest chance, I'd have to eat.

I crumbled a bit of the bar into the forest ground. "Gods, whoever may hear me, please lend me strength to free Jess." Otus had been wrong. If it wasn't for him reminding me of what heroes are supposed to do, I might have turned my back and run. I wasn't a hero after all. I was just a normal kid from Boston. I frowned at my own thoughts. Whining wouldn't get me anywhere, much less my friend. Slowly, I made my way back to the log cabin, although it looked more like a log mansion, size-wise. I had one high explosive and the normal bronze pommel left. Blowing the house up was out of the question, that would just burn Jess alive. Maybe she wouldn't even realize, asleep as she was.

There wasn't much to the house. A couple of windows, big enough to be doors, and a small, fenced courtyard at the backside. No garage, no shed, nothing that could be of use for luring one of the brothers out. I knew I had to take them one by one, preferably Ephialtes first. He seemed to be the one to be outwitted much more easily. Just as I finished this thought, something from the other end of the courtyard – I was sitting near the fence behind some bushes – made a bellowing sound, something I had never heard before. Granted, I grew up in a city, so there was a lot of wildlife I had never heard of before. But whatever it was, it started movement in the building. Only seconds after, Otus burst out the backdoor, even in the darkness I could make out the desperation in his eyes. "I heard her!", he yelled. "It was definitely Artemis! Where are you?"

As if to answer, silvery light started glowing from where I had heard the bellow, slowly growing more dim, as if the source was getting more distant.

"Wait! Artemis, wait for me!", the giant screamed and ran after the light.

"Brother, shouldn't we stay together? You said the hero is still out there!", called Ephialtes from the door, but Otus didn't seem to pay him any mind.

Silently, I thanked Artemis for her intervention, for whatever reason she might have done it and snuck closer to the building. Ephialtes had gone inside again, closing the door behind him. To my surprise, it was neither locked nor particularly loud, and I managed to enter the house without making a sound.

I found myself inside a kitchen that matched the size of the entire building. The counters reached at least my shoulders, most of them were even taller. I could make out some of the kitchen utensils, especially the knives, big enough to be a short sword for me to let my blood freeze in my veins. Continuing through the kitchen, I found some sort of living room, where I found my target. Ephialtes was sitting on a couch next to an urn, solid chains strapping around it in a cross pattern. I couldn't make out what he was saying, but he seemed to talk to the urn. Enough for me to assume that Jess must be inside. The rest of the room was sparsely furnished. An armchair next to the couch, a table with a plate on it, probably for snacks but nothing more. Nothing to hide behind either, but Ephialtes had his back to me anyways. Just a couple more steps forward and- A horribly loud creak came from right under my feet.

"Brother, we really need to repair this floor-" The giant on the couch turned around to face what he thought was his brother, then he stopped mid-sentence as his expression froze for a second.

All or nothing! I jumped forwards, extending the blade of my sword from its hilt and cut at my enemy. Ephialtes just barely managed to stumble out of reach, but I chased after him, some sort of frenzy had gripped me. Jumping on the couch, my height almost matched his, something he clearly wasn't used to when fighting. His first punch went too low, I had no problem jumping to the side. With a thundering crack, Ephialtes arm vanished inside the couch, just where I had been standing before. It was just for the blink of an eye, but that was enough. My blade whipped forwards, cutting the stuck arm clean off.

Howling, the giant tumbled backwards, holding the stump. There was no blood, only fine golden dust trickling from the wound.

"Wait! Wait!", he whimpered. "I can help you! I'll get your friend out of the jar and you can go. Just don't kill me! I don't want to go back there, we just got out a couple of years ago!"

Something in my mind told me that I would be able to get Jess out of that urn without troubles, and I felt how my face froze to the grimace of a smile and how a voice that wasn't quite my own left my mouth: "No."

This simple word was enough for Ephialtes to become corpse-pale. "Lord Ares", he whispered before I stepped over him, my bastardsword arching down like a bronze comet. The giant's body shivered, and then first the flesh around the wound I left him turned to dust, then the rest of the body.

Suddenly, I was able to think clearly again. Whatever had gripped me was gone now. One more swift strike, and I cut the chains apart that held the urn, lifting Jess out was the more difficult part, but I managed. She was lighter than I had imagined from someone who trains their body every day. I carried her out to the car, Otus was still nowhere to be seen, but I hurried regardless. It didn't look like she would wake up soon, so I placed her on the back seat of the giants' car, noticing that her backpack was still inside. I took the wheel, thanking all gods who would listen for the driving school my orphanage had let me partake in. The engine howled as I turned it on, and we were off to the way we came. I hoped there were enough signs to lead me to LA before the gas ran dry.