Urian woke up to the most glorious smell of bacon. Now that alone almost made living worthwhile. At least it made the fact he was no longer a Daimon worthwhile.

Getting up, he quickly dressed and headed for the kitchen, where Danger and Alexion were in the middle of some heated discussion over something.

“What are we talking about?” Urian asked as he joined them. “Do I smell bacon?”

She sighed irritably. “Teach a Daimon to eat real food and he’s impossible.” She went to make more for him. “We were talking about your houseguest you didn’t mention feeding.”

Urian’s eyes widened as he realized he’d been caught. “Um …”

“Don’t worry. You’re not in trouble. I was just telling Alexion that I think there’s a lot more to him than we’ve been told.”

Grateful that she was being reasonable where Styxx was concerned, Urian nodded. “No shit, right? You know who he is?” he asked Alexion.

He gave Urian a droll stare. “Acheron’s brother.”

Urian returned the stare full force. “You ever heard of the Stygian Omada?”

“I’m Groesian. Of course I’ve heard of them. Who hasn’t?”

Danger looked up from the frying bacon. “Well, I’m French and confused. What’s the Stygian Armada—”

“Stygian Omada,” Urian repeated.

“They were a legendary army that waged war against Atlantis,” Alexion explained. “In all of Greek history, it was the only army that ever fought on Atlantean soil and won. They were practically on the main steps of the palace when they were called back to Greece for peace talks.”

“Yeah.” Urian jerked his chin in the direction of the temple where Styxx was staying. “And brother Styxx was their general the army was named for.”

“Bullshit!” Alexion roared in denial.

“No. Real. I saw the battle scars on him myself. Ash has always said he was from Atlantis. He’s never mentioned the Greek city-state he was born in so I didn’t know.… But Styxx is Styxx of Didymos.”

Alexion gaped. “You’re shitting me.”

Urian shook his head sarcastically.

“Again, French Revolution here. Les Mis, I get. This …” She wagged the spatula. “My extent of Greek history is Troy with Brad Pitt and”—she looked over at Alexion—“Mr. Luscious in his armor.”

Alexion went bug-eyed. “Please don’t call me that in front of Urian.”

Urian laughed, then sobered and explained it to her. “Didymos was the Athens of its day, and Athens was not much more than a big village back then. The largest and strongest of the Greek city-states, Didymos was two border islands that buffered the rest of Greece from Atlantis. And Styxx was the greatest, most successful general in their long and prestigious military history. His battle tactics and the way he ran his army were studied extensively by the soldiers of my time. We all wanted to grow up and be him. In fact, the way he trained and the principles his mentor taught him were the foundation of the Spartans and their military ethics. That’s how good he was. But in all my readings about Didymos and Styxx, I never saw more than one prince mentioned.… Him. And nothing of a princess in anything, not that that was unusual.” He held his hand up to Danger to stop her before she spoke. “And don’t lecture me on ancient stupidity and their treatment of women.… I am not personally responsible for misogynistic ancient writers just because I happen to be male.”

He looked back at Alexion and resumed their discussion. “Because of that, and the fact that he and Ash were babies when they died, I never made the connection that Acheron’s brother Styxx was the leader of the famed Stygian League.” But now that he thought about it, he should have realized that Styxx’s sister was Ryssa. That had been really dense on his part not to put that together.

Alexion snorted. “That explains his arrogance.”

“But he’s not arrogant,” Urian and Danger said simultaneously.

“Yeah,” Urian said, grabbing a slice of bacon, “what she said.”

She put more bacon on a plate for Urian. “He’s sweet, Alexion. Really sweet.”

Swallowing his bacon, Urian laughed. “I would not use that word myself for him. He’s lethal and you can’t miss it, but I’ll be honest. I’d call Ash arrogant before I would Styxx.”

Alexion sucked his breath in sharply. “Don’t let Acheron hear you say that.”

“I know. Believe me.” Urian sighed heavily. “Man, I don’t know what happened between them, but it’s a damn shame. Can you imagine having Styxx of Didymos train you to fight?”

“Be like taking lessons from Achilles or Alexander the Great.”

“That settles it then,” Danger said as she put the uncooked bacon back in the refrigerator.

“What?” Urian asked.

“We’ve got to reconcile them.”

Alexion burst out laughing. “That is a pipe dream, honey. I’ve known Acheron for over nine thousand years. And it will be freezing on the equator before Acheron forgives Styxx for what he did.”

She shrugged. “Well, you know what they say—”

Urian passed a knowing stare to Alexion. “We who are about to die salute you?”

She rolled her eyes. “No. Over, under, around, or through, there’s always a way.”

Urian snorted at her optimism. “Unless the rock falls on you while you’re trying to go under it. Then you’re toast.”

Alexion laughed. “Well, she is French.”

Urian brushed his hands off as he left them to plot. Personally, he didn’t want to know. Last time he’d been embroiled in something like this …

He’d lost Phoebe in the worst sort of way. And in the back of his mind, he kept seeing the huge sun emblem on Styxx’s back. Given how much that man hated Apollo, he couldn’t imagine he’d put it there.

A mark like that reminded him of the Dark-Hunter bow that Artemis placed on all of her Dark-Hunters. Or the Spathi marks that he and his brethren had from Apollymi. Ownership brands from the gods.

Marks those bastards had worn when they’d attacked Sheba’s tribe.

For thousands of years, they’d been fighting this war with the gods. Against Apollo and Helios. Artemis and Apollymi. While they all wanted to pretend they were something more than pawns, Urian was beginning to doubt if they were anything but.

Was there ever such a thing as free will?

His mind went back to what he’d told his father about Oedipus. He was no longer sure if he had the right answer. Did they bring about their own downfall?

Or were the gods just that damn determined to ruin them that even if they hadn’t taken the steps necessary for their own destruction, the gods would have found some other means to wreak their havoc upon them?

It certainly felt that way right now. That none of them had control of anything. Not even the gods.

And in the middle of their petty feuds stood mankind and the Apollites, both of whom were getting their asses kicked.

Urian sighed.