Beyond Hades: The Prometheus Wars (36 page)

"Anyway," continued Thomas, "one of the stray bullets must have hit me, because right after those bastards left me, I collapsed... and the Titans brought me here. These people are peaceful, Talbot, and they've been persecuted. First by the Olympians, and then by our people who thought they could steal their most sacred artifact. You
must
help them!"

There was so much power in Thomas's plea that Talbot had to look away.

"How can I help them?" Talbot asked helplessly.

"Give them guidance," rasped Thomas. "They are a race of people strong in body, but weak in aggression. This is something to be applauded, but holds them back when dealing with issues of violence. You must help them to retake their home world; to return to Gaia before their children become beasts such as those of this world."

At mention of the beasts, Talbot remembered Earth's dilemma. "How do I close the rifts, Thomas? They've fractured and now creatures are breaking through into Earth from here."

Thomas drew in another rattling breath, his skin looking increasingly more sallow by the moment. "There is no way to close the rifts from this land," Thomas said, his words barely audible. "They lied to us both, it seems.... They want the power these people possess, but they'll never get their hands on it. The only way to close off the power of the rifts is through the mechanisms in Atlantis."

Talbot looked away. "Another minotaur broke through when they tried to open the rift for me and it destroyed the base. I'm pretty sure Atlantis is completely flooded again."

Thomas looked horrified, his weak breathing coming in choked gasps. "Then all is lost...." Blood began to flow steadily from the corner of Thomas' mouth, and Talbot moved to call for help, but was forestalled by the sudden intense power of his brother's grip on his forearm.

"Save them, Talbot...," his brother gasped. "Save these people, they have done no harm to any -"

The words stopped, cut short as breath ceased flowing into his brother's lungs. Talbot looked down helplessly before crying out for help with all his might. The door exploded inwards, and Wes charged through, followed closely by Themis. They reached the bedside swiftly, but Talbot knew it was too late.

His brother was gone. Again.

Wes had to pry Thomas's fingers from their grip on Talbot's arm, such was the intensity of his brother's final wish, a wish he had begged Talbot to secure. Talbot glanced at Themis, seeing the sorrow upon the Titan's brow, and made his decision.

"I want you to go and find Prometheus," he said. "Gather your leaders, we need to discuss something."

"What are you talking about?" asked Themis, her voice tremulous.

Talbot's face was set, his emotions controlled. He held the gaze of the Titan, staring deep into her swirling eyes for several moments before responding.

"We're going to war," he said, his voice full of venom. "We're going to convince your leaders to go to war against the Olympians."

***

"What the hell are you playing at?" Wes hissed at Talbot.

Prometheus had finally been convinced to gather the leaders of the Titans. They were in a simple room with two lounge-type chairs and a low table - low for the Titans, of course. It was shoulder-high for Wes and Talbot, the chairs chest-high, which they had to jump to get into.

"We need to retake Olympia," replied Talbot calmly. "People have been playing us from the start. It's time we take matters into our own hands, and the first step is to put the Titans back in their home world - a land the Olympians forced them from. Then we have to return to Earth and devise a way to get back into Atlantis -"

"Atlantis is swimming beneath an ocean of fish shit," interrupted Wes.

"I know that, and it's a big issue, but not one for now. Our first course of action is to put these people back in their home. They have a power my brother spoke of, something our own leaders were attempting to get their hands on. It may be they can assist us by using this power, it may not. Regardless, we will do this thing for one simple reason."

"And what's that?" asked Wes.

"Because it's the right thing to do," replied Talbot. "You know that. I saw it in your eyes when Prometheus told us his story. Beneath your cocky arrogance beats the heart of a man who strives to do what he perceives is right. I need your help on this, Wes. Not simply because it might aid us in the long run - indeed it may not - but because these people need our help. Do I have to remind you that Prometheus saved our lives out there?"

"Hmm. Good point," said Wes. "Okay, let's say I agree to help these buggers, what do you suggest we do? I've got a sword. You've got nothing except your sparkling wit and a newfound sense of bravery - which I like, by the way. But it won't conquer a race of people smart enough to open doorways between dimensions."

"My brother told me these people aren't fighters, that they lack the aggression required to win a conflict."

"Well, that makes a great argument for not pushing them into a war," argued Wes.

"Don't you see? They're going to die. Maybe not this generation or the next, but pretty soon they're going to start mutating into things like those things that have been attacking us. They're terrified, and I don't blame them. Can you imagine knowing something like that was going to happen to your family?"

Wes looked away, an unreadable expression upon his face. "What do you suggest?" he asked, no trace of sarcasm in his voice.

"There must be some way to motivate them into trying to retake their own planet. Surely there's something we can offer by way of advice which will help push them toward the right course of action."

Wes thought about it for a moment. "You give them one of your little speeches like that one, and I reckon you'll convince them. They might be a bunch of sissies, but they also want to go home. Remind them of that, and you'll persuade them to fight."

Talbot was unsure of Wes's reaction, but had to take him at his word. The two waited, resting until Prometheus returned to them.

"It took some convincing," said Prometheus, his stoic demeanor and unblinking, smoky-black eyes not betraying the excitement his voice conveyed, "but they have agreed to meet in council. The fact that there was an abnormal birthing today has possibly swayed them as well."

"Abnormal birthing?" asked Talbot.

"Yes, the first of its kind. A child chewed its way clear of its mother, killing her in the process." The words were delivered blankly, but Talbot caught the horror floating within them. Wes swore softly beside him.

They followed Prometheus through a myriad of corridors until they once more arrived at the central entrance hall. All three descended the stairs to the ground floor, and Prometheus led them to one of the corner doors, closest to the front of the building. They passed through it and Talbot almost froze.

Packed into the huge room were several hundred Titans, some with children or even babies. Every Titan had smoky, swirling eyes similar to Prometheus, but in varying colors, and all those blank, lidless gazes were turned toward Talbot as he entered the hall, seeming to peer deep into his soul.

He looked straight ahead and saw six male Titans, arranged behind a long table upon a high dais at the front of the room facing the crowd. It took Talbot a moment to realize how much like a courtroom this looked, the six Titans arrayed like judges. His nerve threatened to fail, and Talbot felt the tremors of uncertainty begin in his knees.

Now was not the time for rethinking his strategy, however, and Talbot swallowed his fear, striding confidently to the front of the room and facing the six elders.

Prometheus stopped beside Talbot on his left, Wes slightly behind him on the right. "The one in the center is Lord Kronos, leader of our people," whispered Prometheus.

Kronos was a middle-aged, powerful-looking Titan, his eyes like storm clouds. His salt and pepper beard flowed down over his chest, but his hair was cropped above his ears and curly like Prometheus's. This man bore the mantle of leadership like a beacon, and Talbot swiftly decided to address him alone.

"Lord Kronos," he said loudly enough for the entire hall to hear. "I have come from a land called Earth, like my brother Thomas, who recently died in this very house. We -" he indicated Wes, "- are here on a mission to close the rift gates my people inadvertently opened while trying to come to this world to steal some elusive power from your people."

A great murmuring sounded throughout the room, only silenced when Kronos held up his hand. The mutterings quickly dispelled.

"My companion and I didn't come here for that power," continued Talbot quickly. "We only want to close the gates which others opened in ignorance. If we don't close them, there is a great likelihood that all our dimensions will merge into one and everything we know will be destroyed."

Talbot paused in his speech, considering his next words carefully. "And we need your help. What would you give to have your home world, Gaia, returned to you?"

Talbot turned to look around the room at the citizens of this foreign city, torn from their home world and thrown into this hellish realm against their will. He thought he saw the spark of hope in some faces as the importance of his words began to sink in, but many were equally struck with fear. These were a people who didn't trust easily, and despite their size, they were not aggressive. These Titans exuded nothing of the warlike tendencies Talbot recalled from the random tales of Greek mythology Thomas had told him when they were younger, or the snippets he'd acquired from his work as an archaeologist.

From what Talbot recalled, the Titans had ruled before the Greek gods had come into existence. There were six elder gods - possibly the same six seated before him; he was sure Kronos was among those named - as well as some others who had gone to war against Zeus and the Greek gods. In fact, as he thought about it, Talbot seemed to remember something about Zeus being Kronos's son, but pushed the thought aside for the moment.

All the things which were now taught as myths had emerged from these creatures along with the others they had already encountered. Surely the stories were twisted and expanded upon retelling over the centuries, but they were based upon fact. He could imagine the Olympic gods warping the truth about the Titans in order to make their own role seem less horrific upon retelling.

But on reflection, Talbot was troubled. He could accept that these creatures had been displaced from their home, but Zeus had not seemed the kind of man to send these people to their doom. And Heracles had sacrificed himself in order for them to continue in their quest. The Olympian had died in the most horrific manner Talbot could imagine in order for them to have some sort of success in their mission.

Could it all have simply been a ruse just to get him and Wes to leave Olympia? And what about the rifts? Doubt began to creep into the corners of Talbot's mind like mildew in an attic.

All he had to go on was what his brother had told him. He
had
to help these people return to their home world. After that, well.... Talbot really had no plan for after that.

He steeled himself. "You need to go to war against the Olympians," he said, turning back to Kronos. The panel of six Titans seemed to recoil slightly in shock.

"We cannot go to war against the Olympians!" said Kronos. "They decimated our people during the last encounter when they forced us from Gaia. They have sealed us here. We cannot open the rift gate from this side. Our people have tried to decipher the Elder-tongue, but it is pointless. It is most galling, especially since they created a portal right here in the city!"

"If I were able to open the rift, could you raise an army?" asked Talbot.

Kronos leaned forward, his lidless, cloudy eyes staring at Talbot. "My people are not warriors, we are peace-loving. We lack the knowledge of warfare, though we yearn for the lands we were born in, and we cannot stand the fact that our children will eventually become monsters." The king of the Titans glanced at the others sitting with him, who all nodded slightly. He gazed out at the hundreds of faces of his people, unemotional, but also seeming to yearn for what Talbot had offered them -