Pegasus and the Origins of Olympus (8 page)

‘We Olympians are so very sorry that Riza was left behind,’ Diana told her. ‘But we are so very grateful to the Xan for making us the people we are.’

‘Yes,’ Apollo agreed. ‘And we will gladly continue the work the Xan started so very long ago.’ He stood. ‘I must return to Olympus to tell the others what we have learned. We must celebrate the discovery of Xanadu and show our gratitude to Riza.’

‘You don’t have to do that, Apollo,’ Emily said. ‘We aren’t any different than before. Please, can’t things stay the way they are?’

Apollo bent down and kissed Emily lightly on the forehead. Like his sister, he had dark hair and brilliant blue eyes and was incredibly handsome. Emily blushed at his attention.

‘I must share this, Emily. It is far too important – this is part of our heritage too. Also, I need to find out what is happening with the others. If I leave now, I should be back tomorrow.’

‘Let him go,’ Diana said. ‘Apollo is right. This is monumental news, Emily. It must be shared. Olympians must be told that we are part of the Xan.’

They stood around the archway and watched Apollo open the Solar Stream and disappear.

‘How are you feeling?’ Joel asked Emily when Apollo was gone.

‘We’re fine,’ Emily said. ‘We feel kind of weird, but we’ll be OK.’

‘You’ll be OK when you stop saying “we”,’ Joel said. ‘You are Emily. You look like Emily and you talk like Emily. Even if Riza is in there with you, you are more Emily than her.’

‘I agree with Joel,’ Paelen said. ‘You are Emily. I could never call you anything but that.’

Beside her, Pegasus snorted and nodded his head.

‘You too, Pegs?’ Emily said.

Once again, Pegasus bobbed his head up and down.

Emily smiled at her friends, but knew they could never understand how she had changed. She wasn’t just Emily any more. She was also Riza.

‘Of course I’m still your Emily,’ she said reassuringly. ‘But if I say some strange things, you’re just going to have to accept it.’

Paelen laughed and punched Emily playfully. ‘So there will be no difference. You are always saying strange things!’

They spent the next day in the temple. Though Emily had recovered a few scattered memories of the Xan, Riza’s personal life was still a mystery. Walking through the temple, she was as surprised by the discoveries as everyone else.

They soon found that each chamber was dedicated to a specific world the Xan had visited. It was like sections of a library that held books on different subjects, with each section supplying details of the people and life-forms the Xan discovered, including their requirements for continued survival.

‘Simply fascinating,’ Chiron said excitedly, as he asked Emily to do translation after translation.

Some chambers described worlds where nothing was needed. The Xan quietly visited them to ensure everything was all right, but did not do anything. Other chambers spoke of bringing the survivors of dying worlds to Xanadu and the work involved in creating an environment suitable to sustain their lives.

‘This is amazing,’ Emily’s father said as Emily read information from the wall of a new chamber. ‘What an extraordinary people the Xan were. Look at all the work they did for so many worlds. I wonder if we will find a chamber describing Earth.’

‘Or Olympus,’ Paelen added. ‘Did the Xan know about us?’

Emily nodded. ‘
We did
,’ she said in the strange, gentle voice they now knew was Riza’s. ‘
We visited both your worlds many times
.’

Emily’s father shook his head in wonder. ‘The Xan were the guardian of so much.’

‘It’s just like the Olympians today,’ Emily said. Pegasus was standing close at her side as she stroked his strong, warm neck. ‘Pegs, you go to other worlds along the Solar Stream and watch over the people.’

‘Not like this,’ Paelen said. ‘Compared to what the Xan did, we do nothing.’

‘Especially you, little thief,’ Diana teased. She approached Emily’s father. ‘Steve, come with me, I have something to show you.’

Emily and her friends continued to look around. ‘This place is so cool!’ Joel said. ‘I wonder how big it really is.’

‘Do you think we might be able to visit some of the different regions the Xan have created here?’ Paelen asked.

Emily shrugged. She walked up to one of the walls in the chamber and rubbed her hand along the writing. ‘It says that we can visit this people’s continent. But I’ve seen warnings in other chambers to stay away.’

‘Why?’ Joel asked.

‘I’m not sure,’ Emily said. ‘We’d have to read all the details. Maybe those continents are dangerous.’

‘
No
,’ Riza corrected aloud, ‘
not dangerous for us. But for some, the inhabitants do not know they have been moved. We must not contaminate them
.’

‘Riza?’ Paelen said, speaking to her directly.

‘
I am here, Paelen. We both are
.’

‘Can Emily come back please?’ Joel said uncomfortably.

Emily smiled. ‘Joel, I never left. But Riza wanted to tell us something.’

‘This is getting too freaky!’ Joel said. ‘No offence, Riza, but it’s going to take some time to get used to you being in there.’

‘
No offence taken, Joel
,’ Emily said with Riza’s voice. ‘
But understand this. I have known you as long as Emily
has. We have no secrets between us. I was with you at Area
51 when we kissed
.’

‘You did
what
?’ Paelen shot an accusing look at Joel.

‘Hey, that was private,’ Joel said, his face turning red. ‘It was between Emily and me.’

‘
And me
,’ Riza said, laughing softly.

Paelen looked from Emily to Joel. ‘Is there something you two want to tell me?’

Emily blushed. ‘Not really.’

‘Yeah, let’s just keep exploring,’ Joel said gruffly as he stormed out of the chamber.

They were back at camp excitedly discussing their findings when the arch of the Solar Stream came to life. Apollo appeared. They knew something was wrong as soon as they saw him.

‘Father is gravely ill and he has asked for Emily. I fear he is dying.’

‘What?’ Diana cried and rushed over to her brother. ‘That is impossible! Father only just went back.’

‘I know,’ Apollo agreed. ‘It is happening very quickly. Many Olympians are taking ill, including Pluto and Neptune.’

At the mention of his father, Pegasus reared. He whinnied and threw his head back.

‘What’s wrong with them?’ Emily’s father demanded.

‘Father will not say. Only that I am to bring Emily home immediately. He said that Olympus is in grave danger. He has ordered those Olympians here to remain here. He does not want you infected.’

Diana leaned forward and peered closely at her brother’s face. She reached out and touched the hair at his temples. ‘Apollo, your hair is going grey.’

He nodded. ‘So is everyone’s in Olympus. That, and much worse. We are all ageing rapidly.’ He turned to Emily. ‘We have no time to spare; please hurry.’

Pegasus protested loudly and reared again.

‘No, Pegasus, you must remain here,’ Apollo said. ‘No one is immune to this. It is affecting the older Olympians fastest, but none of us are safe. Father believes Emily, Steve and Joel will be safe to return as Aunt Maureen remains unaffected.’

‘I am not staying here,’ Diana insisted, ‘not while Father is ill. You know you cannot stop me, Apollo. So stand aside.’

Apollo dropped his head, knowing there was no stopping his headstrong sister. ‘Father asked all Olympians to remain here.’

‘Then Father is about to be disappointed!’ Diana shot back. She looked at the others in the camp. ‘Those who do not wish to return are welcome to stay here with no judgments made against you. But I for one will not.’

Chiron shook his head and pawed the ground with a hoof. ‘I will not remain here while Olympus is in danger.’

No one in the camp followed the orders to stay on Xanadu. One by one, they charged through the portal into the Solar Stream.

Jupiter lay in his bed. His skin was dry and leathery and he was deathly pale. He looked like he had aged a thousand years since Emily had seen him last. His grey beard was white and thin and his eyes were sunken in a face too wrinkled to recognize.

‘Father!’ Diana pushed past Emily and ran up to Jupiter’s bed. ‘What has happened to you?’

The leader of Olympus opened his eyes wearily. They were covered in a white film; he was completely blind.

‘Emily,’ he rasped, ‘I must speak with Emily.’

‘I’m here,’ Emily said softly. Pegasus was behind her and reluctantly followed her up to the leader’s bed. He neighed and shook his head, greatly disturbed by the sight of the leader of Olympus looking so frail.

Emily reached for Jupiter’s hand. ‘I’m right here. Please let me heal you.’

‘You cannot,’ Jupiter said. ‘I am not ill. I am old. We are all growing old. Not even your powers can stop the ravages of time.’

‘No, Father, do not speak,’ Apollo soothed as he crowded in. ‘Save your strength.’

Jupiter shook his head and strands of thin, white hair fell from his rapidly ageing head. ‘I have no strength left, as I have very little time left. Apollo, I am dying. My beloved Juno passed but moments ago. Vesta and Ceres have also gone. I will join them soon. Neptune and Pluto will follow me.’

Emily’s hand flashed up to her mouth. ‘They’re dead? But that’s not possible! You’re Olympians, you can’t die!’

Pegasus whinnied in misery as he pawed the marble floor of Jupiter’s chamber.

Diana looked desperately around the room. ‘What is happening? Why are you ageing?’

‘It is not just me,’ Jupiter struggled to say. ‘You too, my precious daughter, have started to age.’

‘How?’ Emily’s father demanded. ‘What has changed? Is it Xanadu? Is that world infecting you?’

‘It is not Xanadu,’ said Jupiter. ‘It is the Titan’s final revenge. After all this time, they have won the war – unless Emily can stop them.’

‘Me?’ Emily gasped.

Jupiter struggled to sit up. It took both Diana and Apollo to help him into a seated position.

‘Listen to me,’ Jupiter said in a fading voice. ‘Long ago, long before Olympus was how we know it now, there was a great war.’

‘Yes, Father,’ Diana said gently, ‘you defeated the Titans.’

Jupiter nodded, but then shook his head. ‘We almost failed. It was in the height of the battle. With our powers matched against each other, neither side could defeat the other. The war raged on and on. All we were achieving was destruction. Olympus was in ruins, Earth was almost destroyed and many worlds are gone now because of us.

‘Finally, we were able to raise an army strong enough to take on my father, Saturn.’

‘Your father!’ Emily cried. ‘The leader of the Titans was your father?’

Jupiter nodded. ‘It is a very long and complicated story. I have no time left to tell you.’

‘I’ve studied the myths. I can tell Emily about the war with the Titans,’ Joel offered. ‘But what happened? What did Saturn do?’

‘He and the Titans created a new army. They called them the Shadow Titans. They outnumbered us by many thousands. They were difficult to destroy or even stop. But that was not the end of it. The Titans also created a devastating weapon capable of killing us and ending the war.’

‘I never heard any of this,’ Apollo said. ‘It is not written anywhere.’

Jupiter shook his head. ‘No, we kept it secret. It happened long before you and Diana were born. Before all that we now know. It was from the dark time.’

‘What was the weapon?’ Emily asked.

‘It was a large stone. It held the power to strip us of our abilities and to rapidly age us – to death.’

‘What?’ Diana cried. ‘That is monstrous.’

‘Wait,’ Joel said, shaking his head, ‘this doesn’t make sense. If Saturn was your father, surely the weapon would affect him and the other Titans as well. To use it against you would have been suicide.’

Jupiter shook his head. ‘No, my father was as clever as he was evil. He found a place to hide, free from the effects of the weapon. He and the other Titans fled there and left it to the Shadow Titans to distract us while they had volunteers prepare the weapon.’

‘What happened?’ Diana pressed. ‘Father, how did you defeat them?’

Jupiter dropped his head and his eyes closed.

‘Father!’ Diana cried, shaking his arm. ‘Father, wake up!’

Jupiter opened his eyes.

‘How did you stop the weapon?’ Diana repeated.

Jupiter paused, struggling to remember. Then he nodded. ‘The weapon, yes. Before it could be launched against Olympus, Neptune, Pluto and I struck first. We entered their camp and before the weapon’s powers could destroy us, we secured it in a golden box created by Vulcan. We then embedded it in a sheet of rock and buried it deep in the ground. And there it has lain undisturbed for all this time.’

‘Why didn’t you destroy it?’ Emily asked.

Jupiter sighed. ‘We could not. It stripped us of our powers and was killing us as we drew near. We were fortunate to even survive the encounter. But then, we were still very young and powerful.’

Diana sucked in her breath. ‘You faced the weapon directly?’

‘We had no choice. But it aged us greatly in a very short time and we lost many of our powers. However, we did manage to secure the weapon before it destroyed everything. After that, with the Titans still in hiding, we were finally able to defeat the Shadow Titans.’

Emily leaned closer. ‘It aged you? Is that why you and your brothers look older than everyone else?’

Jupiter nodded weakly. ‘It was the price we paid for winning the war.’

‘So what has happened now, Father?’ Apollo asked. ‘Why are we all ageing?’

Jupiter sighed. ‘The box has been opened. I can feel it. Its deadly powers are seeping through the Solar Stream. Soon it will finish the job it was created for. It will destroy Olympus and kill everyone here.’

‘No!’ Joel cried. ‘No, we won’t let that happen. If the box has been opened, we will close it again! Maybe this time we can even destroy the weapon. Tell us, Jupiter. Where did you hide it? Where was it buried?’

Jupiter struggled to remain awake. ‘Where we fought and won many battles against the Titans,’ he mumbled softly. ‘On Earth. We buried the box far from Olympus in a place where humans built a temple to my brother, Neptune – though they knew him as Poseidon. It is in a place you call Greece …’