“Hey!” A voice sounded from down the beach, garbled and strange.

I turned, spotting the same rock resting on the beach. But it was moving toward us.

“A giant turtle,” Ares said.

He was pale green, and at least ten feet across. I’d never seen one so big. His eyes gleamed a brilliant emerald. They stayed glued to us as he moved nearer, his flippers awkward on dry land.

“A sea turtle,” I said.

“Points for the lady,” the sea turtle said. “I am Nestor.”

As he neared, I realized that he looked far too big for his shell. His softer bits positively burst out of the holes. Even his expression looked uncomfortable, like he was wearing a too-small shoe. Up close, the shell itself was beautiful—a shimmering green.

“What are you doing here?” Nestor demanded.

“We need to cross the sea,” I said.

A crafty look entered his eyes. “Do you, now?”

“Yes. We’re after the stone of Synnaroe. We need to protect it from great evil.”

“Which would make this a quest!” he crowed.

“I suppose so, yes.”

“Then you will need my help,” the turtle said. “You cannot cross the sea of Poseidon in anything other than a material from the sea itself.”

“Really?” Ares looked skeptically at the sea. “It looks like a regular sea.”

“Hardly.” Nestor shook his massive head. “But I can help you. And it won’t cost you hardly a thing.”

“What do you mean?” A rustling sounded from behind me. I turned and looked, but saw nothing in the forest at our backs. I turned back to the turtle.

“Well, you see, a turtle’s shell can make an excellent boat. If you help me find a newer, larger shell, then I will give you my old one, and you can ride across the sea in it.”

“Turtles don’t change their shells. Hermit crabs, yes. Not turtles.”

“You’re in the land of the gods, sugar. You really think turtles follow earthly rules here?”

Sugar? Was this turtle watching TV from the 80s? “You have a point. But it’s round. I’ve never seen a round boat. How do we steer?”

“The Welsh managed with the coracle. I’m sure you can as well.”

True enough. The ancient round boat of the early Welsh had been effective.

“But it has holes in it,” I said.

“Bah! Cover them with something.” Nestor shook his head. His gaze was still crafty, but his mouth turned down at the edges. A turtle frown. “It will be a good deal for you. And a good deed.”

“How so?”

“I am desperate. Not only am I uncomfortable and it is too difficult for me to travel on land to retrieve my own new shell, I am trying to pursue my dream. And you can help me.”

“What dream?” Ares asked.

The turtle hesitated just briefly. Either he was too shy to share his dream or he was coming up with one.

Nah. I shouldn’t doubt him right off the bat.

Nestor sucked in a breath. “I want to be a member of Poseidon’s fleet of carriage-pulling sea turtles. I’ve waited all my life to grow big enough—which is really quite a while, if you must know—but now I need a bigger shell. It’s a matching fleet, so I must match.”

“That’s quite a story,” Ares said.

Nestor glared. “It’s not a story! It’s my dream.”

I’d give the turtle credit—he really sold the tale. If it weren’t so ridiculous, I could almost imagine Poseidon riding in a carriage pulled by a dozen matching sea turtles. But his eyes looked crafty. This turtle was taking us for a ride.

A rustling sounded from behind me again. I turned, catching sight of a flash of gold just before it disappeared.

“Well?” Nestor prodded. “Will you help me? I can tell you exactly where the shell is. It will only take you five minutes.”

“Why can’t you do it, then?”

“My shell is too big to fit between the forest trees, and the shell is on top of a rock. I cannot reach it.”

“Hmm. Let me confer with my friend,” I said.

The turtle nodded.

I gestured to Ares, and we moved a dozen feet away. I leaned in and whispered, “This smells fishy.”

“Yes. Poseidon is known for his horses and carriage, not turtles.”

I nodded, then caught sight of another flash of gold in the forest, low, near the ground. For a second, it looked like a little wing.

Winged shoes.

“I think Hermes is here,” I whispered. “In the forest.”

“Trickster god.”

“Yeah.” I racked my brain, trying to think of why the turtle would want this. Though it could be devious, sometimes the truth really was the most obvious thing. “I think we should help him. He’s clearly miserable.”

“We don’t have a lot of time.”

“No, I know. You’re right. But it’s only five minutes. And he looks so unhappy. We can’t leave him like this. With your speed, it might be even quicker.” I frowned. “And remember. We’re in the world of myth now. Quests like these shouldn’t be ignored.”

Ares nodded. “Valid point. But if it’s more than a five-minute task, it’s too much of a risk.”

“Fair.” I turned back to the turtle and approached. “We will help you, but be honest … If it is going to take more than five minutes, we will have to return and help you after we save the stone of Synnaroe. But I vow that we will return.”

“Only five minutes, I promise,” Nestor said. “And you need my shell anyway, as it is the only way to cross the sea. So you must help me.”

“I can conjure us a boat,” I reminded the turtle. “I’m a conjurer.”

“Won’t do you much good when Poseidon claims it for his own.”

I frowned, not wanting to believe him. But there was every chance he was right. “Fine. Tell us where to find your shell.”

“Not far.” He gestured with a big flipper, back into the woods. “That way, not a two-minute run away from the sea, sitting on top of some rocks.”

I nodded and looked at Ares. “Ready for a quest?”

“Always.”

“Then this time, use your speed. I’ll try to keep up.”

He nodded and we hurried off, back through the woods. Ares raced ahead, disappearing into the forest.

I caught up with him two minutes later, just in time to see him standing on top of a massive pile of rocks, the huge shell balanced on his head like a coin on its edge.

He jumped down. I panted, admiring him. Frankly, it was a ridiculous feat of physical prowess.

I gazed up at the shell, which rose fifteen feet above his head. “Think you can run like that?”

“Yes.”

“All right, then. Let’s go.” I turned and raced back through the forest, Ares sprinting ahead of me.

When I arrived back on the beach, the new shell was already laid in front of Nestor. We’d completed the task in four minutes, max.

Not bad.

He had a big turtle grin on his face as he wiggled inside of his old shell, yanking his fat flippers back in through the holes, then shimmying out of the hole where his head protruded. Magic swirled around him as he scurried across the sand to his new shell. His green form looked a bit squishy and strange—no wonder he needed a shell.

As he was making himself comfortable inside his new home, I approached the old shell that he’d promised to give us.

Before I reached it, a golden blur shot from the trees and jumped on top of the shell.

The man grinned at us.

Hermes.

No question about it. He looked like a California beach dude, with gleaming curls and a tan. Golden winged shoes fluttered at his feet. His magic pulsed on the air, feeling like a brisk wind and tasting of water.

“That’s our shell,” I said.

“Not anymore.” He grinned.

I looked at Nestor in time to see the crafty gleam in his eyes. “You tricked us, turtle.”

Nestor sighed. “It’s all part of the test, of course.”

I glared at him, then Hermes, who also looked pretty tricky. “What test? If you wanted the shell, Hermes, couldn’t you just have helped Nestor yourself?”

“I was prohibited from climbing the pile of rocks upon which it sat. So Nestor and I came up with this plan.”

Ares frowned and crossed his arms over his chest, but said nothing. Clearly he didn’t approve of the trickery.

“Whatever,” I muttered. “Keep your shell. I’ll conjure us a boat.”

“Do not waste the magic,” Hermes said. “Poseidon will claim any craft that does not come from his own sea.”

“Then we do need that shell,” Ares said.

I glanced quickly at him, noting the warrior’s stance. Please don’t try to fight a god.

I didn’t want to play Hermes’s games, nor did I want a fight. So I conjured a small model of a boat, then set it down at the edge of the sea. The little boat floated on the crystal blue water, and I gave it a good push, letting it glide farther out. It floated on the sparkling surface, drifting deeper and deeper.

Then sank like a stone.

Hermes grinned. “You see?”

He was clearly loving this. Jerk.

“What do you want for the shell?” I asked.

He tapped his chin. “Hmmm.”

“Wait,” Nestor said. “Do not deal with him. He may ask the impossible.”

“Then what do we do?” Ares asked.

“I will carry you over on my back.” Nestor nodded. “You helped me, and I will repay that.”

Hermes scowled, but Nestor shot him a “what are you going to do about it?” look.

“Deal.” Maybe I should have thought about it longer—considered all the options, since he could technically drop us in the middle of the sea—but we were desperate. And Hermes did look tricky. After the move Hephaestus had pulled on us, I didn’t want to deal with another god if I could help it.

Ares met my gaze, a question in his own.

“We should try to have faith,” I murmured.

“I won’t let you down,” Nestor said.

“I hope not.”

Hermes looked disappointed, but I ignored him. He’d gotten what he wanted.

Nestor dragged himself into the shallows, his green shell shimmering against the glittering blue sea. Ares and I climbed onto his back. It was pleasantly rough, providing me with enough grip so that I didn’t slip off. I perched on the top, Ares at my side.

Joy bubbled up inside me. I was riding a giant sea turtle!

“Oof,” Nestor said. “You really need to lay off the Twinkies.”

“Twinkies?” I laughed.

“They’re my favorite human food. Aren’t they yours?”

“No. But if you get us across safely, I’ll conjure you some Twinkies.”

Nestor turned his massive head to look back at us, his eyes sparkling. “Really?”

“Really.”

He nodded. “A deal, then.”

I felt a bit better, knowing that he wanted those Twinkies on the other end. He’d probably be more likely to deliver us.

Nestor pushed off into the sea. Water lapped at the edges of our living raft, but we were high enough that we’d stay dry as long as there were no big waves.

I turned to watch the receding shore. Hermes was staring after us, brow creased. I couldn’t make out the expression in his eyes, which made unease prickle at the back of my neck.

I did not want to be on a god’s bad side.

“Think he’s pissed at us?” I asked Ares.

“Hard to say,” Ares said.

“Eh, Hermes is all right,” Nestor said. “Though your buddy is right. He’s a tough one to read. He could still pull a nasty trick on you, so just hope you don’t see him again.”

It was all we could do. I snuck a peak at the mirror in my pocket. Drakon was flying but it was not yet dark, thank fates.

The ride across the sea was beautiful. It sparkled like blue diamonds the whole way across, the sun hanging high overhead. Nestor kept up a steady pace. I couldn’t help but peer into the water, hoping for a glimpse of Poseidon. Or worse, a kraken.

But when the threat came, it dove from above.

I heard the rush of wings and glanced up, just in time to see a massive albatross with serrated teeth diving straight for us.

“Bird!” I screamed.

“Hold tight!” Nestor yelled.

I gripped at a ridge in his shell, heart thundering. I sucked in a deep breath and Nestor dove. Water engulfed me. I hung on for dear life as water rushed around me. Though the salt water stung my eyes, I kept them open.

Ares held on next to me. It was bright blue beneath the sea. Nestor was so fast that I couldn’t maintain my sitting position. Instead, I dangled off his back as we shot through the water.

My lungs burned as we raced along beneath the sea. All around us, the albatross shot into the water like torpedoes, brilliant white bubbles exploding around them. There were dozens of the large birds.

Below, I caught a brief glimpse of a fabulous castle beneath the sea. Poseidon’s lair. Excitement thrilled through me.

I wanted to scream at Nestor to go up for air. My muscles were weakening without oxygen, my grip slackening.

As if he sensed my problem, Ares grabbed me around the waist, holding me tight to him. By the time Nestor burst to the surface, black dots were dancing in front of my vision. I sucked in air, gasping and choking. The dots faded.

I glanced back, frantic to see if the albatross were coming for us. Instead, they floated on the surface far behind us, wet and bedraggled.

I gasped. “Why aren’t they chasing?”

“Not great divers, those carnivorous albatross,” Nestor said. “It’ll take them a while to dry off enough to fly again.”

“Then why did they dive?” Ares asked.

“They get excited. Can’t help themselves.” Nestor laughed. “Dumb birds.”

I sucked in air as I struggled to a sitting position. Next to me, Ares appeared to be fine.

“Why aren’t you out of breath?” I asked.

“Giant lungs. All that running,” he said.

So it wasn’t just magic that made him fast, but also strength and practice.

“Well, thanks for keeping me on. It was getting dicey there for a while.” I kept my gaze wary the rest of the way, eyes peeled for any more albatross or other threats. By the time the shore appeared on the horizon, I was more than ready for my turtle ride to be over.

As we neared, dread began to chill my skin. We weren’t approaching the lovely forest and white sand beach of the land we’d left behind. No—this was far darker, with twisted white trees and a black sand beach. Even the sky was darker, as if it were perpetually night over the forest.

“What is this place?” I asked.

“Hades’s realm,” Nestor said. “I will not stay long. You must be quick.”

“I thought it was underground,” Ares said.

“A modern human interpretation,” Nestor said. “It is accessed by the sea. Or the rivers Acheron or Styx, from the other side.”

“Shit.” My gaze traveled over it. Though rationally I knew that all of the gods were pretty jerky and any of their realms might hold death for us, this was freaking Hades.

Hell.

The water lost its sparkling blue shine as we neared, turning gray and murky. It lapped at the edges of Nestor’s shell, leaving a brown stain.

“Quickly now,” Nestor said as he beached on the shore. “And don’t forget my Twinkies.”

I scrambled off, Ares behind me, then turned. Quickly, I conjured four Twinkies. One by one, I tossed them into Nestor’s mouth. His eyes gleamed as he chomped merrily.

I tossed the last one. “Thank you, Nestor.”

Nestor smacked his lips. “Thank you.” He shuffled back into the water and swam back to sea as quickly as he could.

The back of my neck tingled, and I turned to face the forest. It was about twenty yards away, across the black beach. The trees were an eerie ivory color and the leaves black as pitch. Though there were similarities to some of the vampire realm forests, it was different. Worse.

“Does it feel like it has eyes?”

“Yes.” Ares studied the forest, his muscles tensed.

I swallowed hard and started toward the forest, skin prickling with wariness. As we neared, the ivory trees shifted.

I stopped dead in my tracks. “Oh, fates. Are those bones?”

“Yes.”

Every tree was made of bones, pale and white. Thousands of them. And the black leaves were actually … bats. They perched on all the branches, thousands of them.

I sucked in a ragged breath and continued forward. As we neared, a sickness welled inside me. Queasiness spread up from my stomach, filling my whole chest.

“Do you feel that?” I asked.

“No, what’s wrong?”

“My magic feels weaker. Like it’s repressed.”

“Your life magic won’t interact with the death magic here, possibly.”

“Yeah, I think you’re right.” I pushed myself forward, heart thundering. I did not like the idea of going in there with weakened magic.

We were nearly to the trees when the first one lashed out, a limb made of hundreds of bones snapping toward us. Bats took off into the sky.

I dove out of the way, rolling in the black sand.

I scrambled to my feet. “Shit! Does everything in this world like to whip out at you?”

“Apparently so.”

I conjured two shields, grateful that this magic was working, at least. “Hades needs to get some new plans. Hephaestus already did that.”

Ares gave me a sharp look. “Don’t piss off the gods.”

I winced. “Yeah, good point.” I turned to the forest. “I like your trees, Hades. Very threatening.”

Ares chuckled. “I’m sure he didn’t see through that at all.”

“I’ll just keep my mouth shut.” It was one thing to say something stupid at a party. Entirely another to do so in front of the vindictive Greek gods.

We edged closer to the forest, waiting for the tree’s attack. They stilled as we entered.

Immediately, hunger struck me. Hard.

“You feel that?” Ares asked.

“Yes. I’m starving.”

“Magic.”

I nodded, trying to ignore the hunger. Though part of me wanted to conjure a banana or something, I didn’t want to let my guard down long enough to eat. And since this was magic induced, I doubted it would help.

“Let’s keep going.” I crept through the forest, my shield held high.

The bats sitting in the trees of bones watched us pass. Deeper into the forest, bright red fruits appeared on the limbs. My stomach grumbled. Desperately, I wanted to reach for one.

“Pomegranates,” Ares said.

“Shit.” I licked my lips. “Isn’t that what Persephone ate? Then she had to stay in the underworld part of the year.”

“Yes. Don’t eat of the fruits of hell.”

“Got it.” I stared resolutely forward, ignoring the shiny red fruits.

Something shimmered on the air, feeling distinctly like irritation. Like the forest was growing weary of our resistance. The trees trembled, as if desperate to strike out. A pomegranate shot off the tree. I threw up my shield to block the fruit. Then more came, shooting towards us.

I tried blocking them all, but there were too many. One nailed me in the thigh, a hard blow that would leave a hell of a bruise. “Ouch!”

“Run,” Ares said.

We sprinted through the forest, darting between the trees. The fruits flew left and right. I could block the ones that went for my body, but my legs were unprotected. Every time one of the heavy, hard-shelled fruits nailed me, I stumbled.

Then, the bats came. They shrieked as they launched themselves from the trees, dive-bombing us. I shielded my face with an arm, sprinting full out. The little beasts collided with my body, sinking their teeth in deep. Occasionally they’d pierce the fabric of my jeans or get a bite into my bare hand.

Soon, my lungs were burning and all of me hurt like hell. I called on my dragon sense, begging it to find us a cave or something to hide in.

“We need to find cover!” Ares yelled.

“You read my thoughts!” I yelled.

I’d just latched onto a location when a voice boomed through the forest. “Stop!”

I halted in my tracks, skidding on the ground. Ares, as if compelled, did the same.

I lowered my arm, panting, and peeked out. The bats and pomegranates had frozen in midair. A beautiful woman stood in front of me. She wore a Greek-style dress and had golden threads of wheat woven through her hair. Her magic was a balm to my soul, flowing out of her like a rush of cool water and the feel of rich, life-giving dirt. She held a torch that glowed bright, making her look like she stood in a pool of sunlight.

I dropped my arm. “Persephone!”

A cocky smile tugged at her lips. “How did you know?”

“Your magic. And the wheat in your hair.”

“Well done. And you are Phoenix Knight, our newest hero.”

“I sure hope so.”

“You doubt yourself?” she asked.

I shrugged. “Maybe.”

“You shouldn’t.” She looked at Ares. “He doesn’t. Ares Warhaven believes in you. Should I?”

“That’s a doozy of a question.” I glanced warily at the bats, grateful to see that they were still frozen in midair.

“Then why don’t you answer one for me?”

“Okay.”

“You will have a choice of two monsters to fight when you attempt to reach the River Acheron to leave this place. Would you rather fight the Empusa or Medusa?”

“I know who Medusa is. But what is the Empusa?”

“The Empusa is the daughter of Hecate and the spirit Mormo. She was born evil, her only desire to devour the flesh and blood of others. She has hair of flame, dagger teeth, and the wings of a bat. Though there is a small chance you can defeat her, your chances are much better against Medusa. You must only avoid looking into her eyes so that you aren’t turned to stone. But if you want to escape her, you must kill her. It would not be terribly difficult, as she is not much of a fighter.”

I scoffed. “That’s easy. I’ll take the Empusa.”

Ares glanced sharply at me, as if surprised that I would choose the more dangerous monster.

Persephone’s brows rose. “And why is that?”

“Medusa isn’t really a monster, according to Ovid. She was cursed because Poseidon raped her in Athena’s temple. Athena was so angry that she turned Medusa into the monster she is today. So I’m not going to sign up to kill her.”

Persephone nodded. “You know your history.”

“And the difference between right and wrong.”

“That as well.” She waved me forward. “Come with me. I will help you.”

“Will Hades be okay with that?” I asked.

“Ha! Hades. He thinks he owns me. But I do as I please during my time here. And I will help you. Your magic is that of life, like mine. And you’ve chosen wisely twice. You’ve helped my friend Nestor, and you chose to fight the correct monster. You are worthy, Phoenix Knight.”

I liked hearing it, but really, I’d just done what anyone would do. I didn’t see how it made me worthy if everyone would do it.

But I didn’t argue, just followed along behind her.

“Move quickly, now,” Persephone said. “My magic will not hold them forever.”

We ran through the forest, following her between the trees of bones. They didn’t attack us as long as we were with Persephone. Finally, the trees thinned as we neared a cave.

Persephone ducked inside. “Come.”

Her torch lit the gray stone walls of the cave. It was narrow and tight. My breath drew short. I hated tiny places like this.

We squeezed through, going deeper and deeper into the mountain, until finally, we reached a room of medium size that had an enormously tall ceiling. A beam of light filtered down from the ceiling, shining upon a silver helmet that sat upon a pedestal in the middle of the room.

I gasped. “Is that Hades’s helmet of invisibility?”

Persephone grinned. “It is. He has no idea that I have it. I requested that Hephaestus make me a replica, and I left it in his armory. Now, whenever he puts it on, I pretend that I can’t see him.”

“He buys that?”

“A guy with an ego as big as his? Sure. He never saw it coming.”

“Why did you do it?” Ares asked.

She shrugged. “Why not? Sometimes I like to be invisible. And this place is protected from him. The light conceals it from his gaze.”

“Well done.” My gaze all but stroked the gleaming silver. What an incredible artifact.

“You may wear it to escape here. It will help you get past the Empusa. If you hold Ares’s hand, he, too, will be invisible. When you get to the river Acheron, leave it with the child of Cerberus.”

“A miniature three-headed dog?”

“Two-headed.” She smiled. “His third has yet to come in.”

Like baby teeth. But heads. “Okay. Thank you.”

She nodded. “You must hurry. Beat Drakon to the stone of Synnaroe. You are the world’s only hope, Phoenix.”

I swallowed hard and nodded, determined to be worthy. “Thank you. Truly.”

I reached for the helmet and put it on. The metal was heavy and smooth. Cold magic chilled me, dripping down my skin like water. The invisibility charm. I gripped Ares’s hand, and he shivered as the magic washed over him.

“It works.” Persephone grinned, then pointed to a passage on the other side of the room. “Follow that next passage there. It will lead you to the Empusa’s territory. Try not to let her hear you. Get past her, then cross the river Acheron. Do not forget to give the helmet to the child of Cerberus.”

“I won’t. Thank again.” I then turned and ran for the tunnel. Ares gripped my hand tightly, jogging alongside. Fortunately, this tunnel was wider. But the way was long. By the time we spilled out into the dark forest on the other side, I was grateful to be in open air.

We stilled to take in our surroundings. The trees here were made of bones, but the bats were gone, leaving the branches bare. The ground was barren and rocky. Silence reigned.

I nodded at Ares, and we set off, running through the forest as quietly as we could. My dragon sense pulled us along, directing us toward the River Acheron. Our exit.

The first flap of wings made my hair stand on end. Though I wanted to look back, I pushed myself forward, desperately trying to control my breathing.

The shriek nearly made me stumble. All around, thousands of bats fluttered alongside. Ah, hell. Empusa’s minions?