“I have delivered Helen to the Egyptians. I have brought down the walls of Jericho for you. Agamemnon, Odysseus, and most of the other Achaian warlords have been swept away. New invaders are conquering their lands. They’ve paid for their conquest of Troy.”
His eyes glittered. “But you haven’t.”
“I’ve done what you asked. Now it’s your turn to live up to your end of the bargain.”
“A god does not bargain, Orion. A god commands!”
“You’re no more a god than I am,” I snapped. “You have better tools, that’s all.”
“I have better knowledge, creature. Don’t mistake the toys for the toymaker — or his knowledge.”
“Perhaps so,” I said.
“Perhaps?” He smiled tolerantly. “Do you have any idea of where you are, Orion? No, of course not. Do you have any idea of what my plans are leading to? How could you?”
“I don’t care…”
“It makes no difference whether you care or not,” he said, his eyes brightening. “My plans go forward despite your petty angers and pouts. Even despite the opposition of the other Creators.”
“They are trying to find you,” I said.
“Yes, of course. I know that. And they asked you to help them, didn’t they?”
“I haven’t.”
“Haven’t you?” He was suddenly suspicious, eyeing me warily, almost angrily.
“I’ve served you faithfully. So that you will revive Athene.”
“Faithfully, yes. I know.”
“I’ve done what you asked,” I insisted.
“Asked? Asked? I never ask, Orion. I told you what must be done. While the others dither and discuss and debate, I act.” His breathing quickened, his eyes took on a look of madness. “They don’t deserve to live, Orion. I’m the only one who knows what to do, how to protect the continuum against our enemies. They don’t realize it, but they’re actually serving the enemy. The stupid fools, they’re working for the enemy! They deserve to be destroyed. Wiped out. Utterly.”
I stared at him. He was raving.
“I’m the only one worthy of existence! My creatures will serve me and me only. The others will be destroyed, as they deserve to be. I will be alone and supreme! Above all others! Forever!”
I grew tired of his ranting. “Apollo, or whatever your name is, it’s time for you to revive Athene…”
He blinked at me. More soberly, he replied, “Her name is Anya.”
“Anya.” I remembered. “Anya.”
“And she is quite thoroughly dead, Orion. There will be no reviving.”
“But you said…”
“What I said is of no matter. She is dead.”
My fingers twitched at my sides. He stared at me, and I could feel the forces he commanded engulfing me, drowning me, freezing my body into stillness even though he chose to leave my mind awake.
With a scream that shook the heavens I broke free of his hypnotic commands and sprang for his throat. His eyes went wide and he tried to raise his hands to defend himself but he was far too slow. I grabbed him and the momentum of my spring tumbled us sprawling to the blood-colored grass.
“You built strength and killing fury into me too, didn’t you?” I bellowed as I squeezed the life out of his throat. He made terrified strangling noises and batted at me ineffectually with his hands.
“If she can’t live, then neither can you,” I said, tightening my grip, watching his eyes bulge, his tongue swell. “You want to wipe out the others and reign supreme? You won’t even last another minute!”
But powerful hands pulled my arms away and lifted me to my feet. I struggled against them, uselessly, and then realized who was holding me.
“That’s enough, Orion!” said Zeus sharply.
I glared at him, blood-fury still pounding along my veins. Four other male Creators held my arms tightly. Still more of them, women as well as men, stood grouped around the fallen Apollo and me, dressed in an assortment of tunics, robes, glittering metallic uniforms.
Zeus waited until I stopped struggling. The Golden One lay gagging and coughing on the dried-blood ground, leaning on one elbow, his other hand touching his throat. I saw the purple imprints of my fingers there and I was only sorry that I hadn’t been allowed to finish the job.
“We asked you to find him for us, not murder him,” Zeus said, his sternness struggling against a satisfied little smile.
“I found him for myself,” I said. “And when he refused to revive Ath… Anya, I knew he deserved to die.”
Shaking his head at me, Zeus said, “No one deserves to die at the hands of another, Orion. That is the ultimate lie. Can’t you see that he’s mad? His mind is sick.”
New fury surged through me. “And you’re going to help him? Try to cure him?”
“We will cure him,” said the lean-faced Hermes. “Given time.”
He knelt over the fallen Apollo and touched him with a short metal rod that he had taken from his tunic pocket. The welts around the Golden One’s neck faded and disappeared. His breathing returned to normal.
“Physical repairs are the easiest,” Hermes said, rising to his feet. “Repairing the mind will take longer, but it will be done.”
“He wanted to kill you — all of you,” I said.
Hera replied, “Does that mean we should kill him? Only a creature thinks that way, Orion.”
“He killed Anya!”
“No,” said the Golden One, climbing slowly to his feet. “You killed her, Orion. She became mortal for love of you, and she died.”
“I loved her!”
“I loved her too!” he shouted. “And she chose you! She deserved to die!”
I strained against the men holding me, but they were too many and too strong. Even so, Apollo dodged backward, away from me, and Zeus stepped between us.
“Orion!” he snapped. “To struggle against us is pointless.”
“He said he could revive her.”
“That was his madness speaking,” said Zeus.
“No it wasn’t!” the Golden One taunted. “I can revive her! But not for him. Not so that she can give herself to this… this… creature!”
“Bring her back to me!” I screamed, straining uselessly against the four who held me.
Hera stepped before me, her taunting smile gone; instead her face was grave, almost sympathetic. “Orion, you have served us well and we are pleased with you. But you must accept what must be accepted. You must put all thoughts of Anya out of your mind.”
She reached up and touched my cheek with the tips of her fingers. I felt all the fury and tension drain out of me. My body relaxed, my rage subsided.
To Hera I said, “Put all thoughts of her out of my mind? That’s like teaching myself not to breathe.”
“I feel your pain,” she said softly. “But what’s done cannot be undone.”
“Yes it can!” the Golden One snapped. He laughed and glared at me. Zeus nodded at Hermes, who gripped him by the shoulders. The burly redhead I called Ares also stepped close to the Golden One, ready to restrain him if necessary.
“I could do it,” he said, his eyes wild. “I could bring her back. But not for you, Orion! Not so that she can embrace a creature, a worm, a thing that I made to serve me!”
“Take him back to the city,” said Zeus. “His madness is worse than I thought.”
“I’m not the mad one!” Apollo ranted. “I’m the only sane one here! The rest of you are crazy! Stupid, shortsighted crazy fools! You think you can control the continuum and save yourselves? Madness! Nothing but madness! Only I can save you. Only I know how to keep your precious necks out of the noose. And you, Orion! You’ll never see Anya again. Never!”