Deep Water (34 page)

This was news to Amphitrite. “I can’t
answer for Poseidon’s actions,” she said. “But if you had come to me I would
have moved heaven and earth to help you.”

“And what could you have done?” Thetis
sneered. “A sea nymph turned minor goddess through your husband’s pleasure?
You’re even more powerless than I was.” She lifted her arms now, spreading
long, spindly fingers that ended in black nails. “But I don’t need anyone now.
The vermin’s science destroyed my beauty, but in return it has given me power,
more power than I’d ever dreamed of. And now I will take this planet for myself
and remake it in my own image, and not you, or Poseidon, or Gaia Herself can
stop me.”

Amphitrite could sense something building
in her sister’s form, something so utterly wrong that she wanted to recoil from
it. She channeled her fear into anger, pushing power into her weapon. The
trident’s silver tines began to glow with a pure white light. “I won’t allow
you to hurt anyone else,” she said.

Thetis laughed. “Oh, my dear. Soon I won’t
need to hurt anyone else. You’ll do it for me.”

Another flicker of those long, eerie
fingers, and a trio of ilkothelloi emerged from the rocky walls behind Thetis.
Each one of the huge, transformed mermaids had clawed hands and an oversized
mouth lined with pointed shark-like teeth. Amphitrite backed away, knowing
their new venom glands carried Thetis’s repurposed ichor.

She brought up her trident in time to meet
an
ilkothella’s
charge, jabbing at the creature’s
face. It recoiled at the last moment, but its straggly hair caught on the
trident’s tines. Amphitrite yanked back hard, tearing out a good-sized clump of
hair in the process. The creature screeched in pain. Another ilkothella
attacked and Amphitrite spun, spearing it in the stomach. The ilkothella
screamed and dissolved into a foul black foam.

The remaining ilkothelloi lunged in
unison, hideous mouths open and snarling at the death of their
packmate
. Amphitrite brought up her trident like a stave,
using the pole to break their charge. Both ilkothelloi grabbed onto the trident
and held fast, and the sea goddess twisted, using her divine strength to spin
them around like a bizarre windmill. With a howl the creatures were torn away
from her trident.

Amphitrite darted forward and stabbed the
closest ilkothella, then twisted and rammed the butt of her trident into the
stomach of the second. It folded over, and she was able to spin the trident and
dispatch it with the glowing tines.

Trying not to breathe in the black foam,
she backed off and glared at her sister. “Is that truly the best you can do?”

Thetis clapped like a child. “Of course
not, sister. I just wanted to see you in action again. I was afraid the years
of pandering to the vermin had eroded your fighting skills, but they’re as
formidable as always,” she said in approval. “You’ll make a magnificent second
in command.”

Amphitrite grimaced. Thetis’s willingness
to sacrifice her creatures was just as appalling as the thought of being turned
into one of them. “I’ll never bow my head to you.”

“Oh, we’ll see about that.”

Something stirred in the depths behind the
Mad Nereid, a massive shape that rose and continued to rise like the billowing
plume from an underwater vent. Amphitrite stared up at the creature in horror,
recognizing it.

“Oh, Gaia,” she whispered as she felt a
portal open at her back. “Sister, what have you done?”

****

Poseidon cut their forward momentum into
the colder water, heart turning over in relief as he saw Amphitrite standing
with her back to him.

Then his attention was caught by the
floating form of the Mad Nereid. “Thetis!” he thundered. “Stop what you are
doing and surrender to me immediately!”

She waved at his arrival. “Greetings, Sea
Lord!” she called, giving him a rictus grin. “Your arrival is most fortuitous.
In the words of the vermin, say hello to my little friend!”

Poseidon had thought the shape behind her
was a huge rocky outcropping until it moved. It could only be called monstrous.
Even he couldn’t see all of the huge creature, but what was visible looked like
a cross between a whale, a shark, and one of the
creatures
mortals called a dinosaur. Covered with scaly hide in bold streaks of grey and
black, the heavy, blunt head was ridged down the sagittal crest, and the long
jaw was full of viciously sharp teeth. Where a whale’s flippers should be were
short, thickly muscled limbs ending in an articulated clawed paw. Poseidon
noticed grimly that the innermost “finger” was opposable, most likely serving
as a thumb. If Thetis’s creature could grasp and hold things like a primate,
its deadliness increased exponentially.

Griffin let go of him, floating at his
side. “Shit,” the new god said. “I thought I saw arm buds on one of the right
whales. She’s putting them through some kind of forced evolution.”

Amphitrite’s head turned at Griffin’s
voice, eyes going wide in shock. “Griffin?”

“He’ll explain later,” Poseidon said
briefly. “I’ve seen this sort of creature before, millennia ago. We called it
kētos
, sea
monster.” Part of his brain noted details for Bythos’s analysis later. The rest
focused on what he had to do now. “Both of you, stand back.”

Rerouting power into his form, he began to
swell, shooting up through the water until he was as huge as Thetis’s
kētos
. His
armor had disappeared during his transformation, leaving him naked and armed
only with his trident.

He glanced down at Thetis. The Mad Nereid
didn’t appear to be overly worried about his transformation, giving him a
ruined smile. She swept back out of the way, gesturing to the
kētos
as if
inviting him to try his luck.

The creature came forward now, exposing
powerful hind legs and a longish tail that could be used as a blunt force
weapon. The jaw undoubtedly held venom glands, and the claws were most likely
venomous as well. Killing it with divine will alone was out of the question
while he was at this size, but grappling with it would be equally dangerous.

But he was damned if he would shrink to a
safer size in the face of Thetis’s spiteful rebellion. He would take her
creature on directly, Gaia damn it, and he would win.

He brought up his trident, looking for
weak points in the scaled hide, and tried a thrust at the
kētos
’s
belly. It moved more
quickly than he expected, shifting to the side rather than pulling back. Those
clever paws grabbed for the trident and he yanked it back, dropping into a crouch
as he circled around. The
kētos
turned to follow him, gaping jaw opening wider
and releasing a rumbling hiss.

Then it lunged.

****

Backing away with Amphitrite, Griffin
watched as Poseidon whipped up his trident to fend off the scaled monster. At
first glance it appeared that the titanic forms were evenly matched. The God of
the Seas had fighting skills and a deadly weapon on his side, but the
kētos
possessed a brute strength that would
have done justice to a MMA champion.

He winced as the
kētos
’s
tail lashed around,
slamming into Poseidon’s side and knocking him back. “I can’t just stand here
and watch.”

Amphitrite’s hand tightened on her own
trident, and she glared across the plateau at her sister. “If I go after Thetis
now, that might distract her monster and give Poseidon an opening.”

“Yeah, but can you handle her? She’s not
just a Nereid anymore.” Griffin glanced at the dark bruises that bloomed along Amphitrite’s
shoulder and upper arm. “And you’re hurt.”

“I don’t have a choice, beloved. Besides,
I’m not just a Nereid anymore, either.” She turned her head, staring at him
closely. “Just as you’re not mortal anymore, are you?”

“No.” Griffin’s awareness of his new
status sparked through his consciousness. His human thinking had to change
right now. “Go after Thetis, but be careful. I’m going to help Poseidon.”

“How?”

He couldn’t help himself. “I’m going to
release the kraken.”

Amphitrite’s smile was quick but
brilliant. “You and your movie nights. Be careful, beloved.” She kissed him,
then swam off towards her sister.

Griffin turned his attention to the titans
facing off against each other. Fighting the
kētos
as a human was
pointless. With only one day of coaching his martial arts skills were next to
nonexistent.

Good
thing I have another option.
He’d learned that switching forms was
like looking at a lenticular picture, where multiple images existed in the same
space. What you saw depended on the angle from which you viewed the picture.

He shifted his internal viewpoint of his
body image away from the biped form he’d spent the last fifty years inhabiting.
Now he perceived an
Enteroctopus
dofleini
,
still bilateral but with a shell gland, a mantle, and well-developed head with
eight sucker covered arms.

He let himself flow into the immense new
form, felt his additional limbs unfurl and stretch through the water. Being an
oversized Giant Pacific octopus felt very, very different from being a human,
but it also felt damned good.

He pushed up towards the fighting figures.
Right. Let’s get this over with.

Chapter Fifteen

Poseidon and the
kētos
engaged in a deadly dance,
exchanging feints and thrusts with savage grace. The god’s ribs ached from the
beast’s earlier blow, but he ignored the pain. Their thumping impacts on the
gritty floor of the plateau had churned up silt, reducing visibility to the
point where Oceanus’s
Keep
was now swathed in a thick
blue fog.

Poseidon had already switched over to
godsense
. He suspected the constantly grunting
kētos
was
using sonar, based on the vibrations he could feel rippling across his skin. He
lunged at the beast again, whipping his trident around like a stave to ward off
the thick tail. The impact drove them apart. He flexed his core muscles to
twist in the water, pain rippling along his right side as injured muscles
strained to keep up.

Grimacing, he drove forward again. This
time he managed a thrust at the beast’s belly. The tines made contact, tearing
three shallow wounds in the hide. The
kētos
flinched back, tail coming up protectively as it
snorted at him.

I will kill you,
godling
,
came to his mind, as clear as any god’s
mental sending.

Obviously Thetis had been tinkering with
the
kētos
’s
mind as well as its body, increasing its sentience and investing it with a
bloodthirstiness that wasn’t native to whales.
You may find that more difficult than you anticipate
, he thought
back at the creature.

We shall see. When
I offer your broken body to my Mistress, She will be well pleased.
It champed huge
jaws.
She will let me eat your mates
afterwards, and I will enjoy their screams.

His temper rose.
I am the God of the Seas, beast, not Thetis. And you will obey me or
die.

The
kētos
hissed, bubbles
streaming up either side of its snout.
Then
try to kill me,
godling
. I dare you.

****

Amphitrite stopped her drift towards her
sister when Thetis turned, glaring at her. “Sneaking up on me?” she sneered.
“That’s unlike you, little sister.”

“It seems we’ve both changed, then.”
Amphitrite was still furious, but her heart ached at the ruined form that had
once been her beloved older sister. “Thetis, there’s still time to stop this.
I’m begging you, let us help you. Let
me
help you.”

The Mad Nereid drew herself up. “And what
do you think you can do for me, Amphitrite? Can you heal the gaping wounds in
my body? Can you push my flesh back where it belongs? Asclepius couldn’t, and
he’s a god of healing. What makes you think you can do anything?”

“You asked Asclepius for help?”

“Of course I did. He shook his head and
said I was beyond his power to heal, that I had been infected with something
not of nature and he had no control over it.” Thetis flung her arms wide, filmy
rags trailing on the current. “He left me to die, little sister. Like a rotting
fish that was too foul to eat. The mewling cock deserved everything that
happened to him.”

A horrible suspicion came to Amphitrite.
During her therapy sessions with Nick and his
mers
she’d taken the opportunity to question Pythia about the whereabouts of her
master. The great golden snake wrapped around the Rod of Asclepius had no idea
what had happened to the god, only that she had woken from one of her sleeps to
find him gone and the rod in Hyacinth’s junk shop. She’d assumed that the god
of healing had left it there while he went on an errand.

Now Amphitrite wondered if it had been
left there for safekeeping. “Where is Asclepius now, Thetis?”

Cracked grey lips curled over jagged
teeth. “None of your business, little sister. By the way, if you’re trying to
distract my creature by threatening me, it won’t work. He has his orders.”

If Thetis had managed to kill a god and
take his power into herself… “One last time, I beg you. Stop all this before
it’s too late,” Amphitrite said. “Poseidon will kill you if you don’t.”

“You’re assuming he can,” Thetis said,
laughing. “And you were more than willing to do it yourself an hour ago, I
believe. What changed your mind? Was it the fact that our bitch goddess of a
grandmother brought your pet back?” She reached out, and a lethal-looking black
trident appeared in her hand. “I begged her for help as well, you know. She
ignored me. And yet she brought your pathetic mortal back from the dead and
made him a god. I wonder, will she save you once I’ve had my teeth in you?”

She lunged forward, her trident’s tines
glittering blue-black as they struck at Amphitrite’s face. Amphitrite parried
the attack, spinning her trident underhand and smacking the shaft against
Thetis’s hands.

The Mad Nereid jerked back, grinning.
“Just like old times, eh?”

Amphitrite refused to answer, saving her
breath. The injured muscles in her left shoulder were healing, but the
tenderness plus the healing process itself were slowing her down. She and
Thetis had always been evenly matched when it came to family sparring sessions.
Even if she’d been uninjured it would be a tossup as to who would win this
battle.

With a wounded shoulder… She gritted her
teeth and deflected another lunge from her sister.

****

Poseidon powered forward, savagely
thrusting his trident at the
kētos
. When it spun away from his thrust he did as
well, slamming the trident butt into the creature’s belly before bringing it up
hard into its jaw. The
kētos
flew backwards through the water, its tail scraping along the plateau floor for
a hold. Poseidon immediately followed, realizing his mistake too late when the
creature’s tail lashed forward and wrapped around one ankle, yanking it up hard
and spinning him over before slamming him into the unforgiving gravel of the
plateau.

The impact knocked the trident from his
grasp and the water from his lungs. Gasping, he doubled up and tried to grab
for the offending appendage around his leg, but it jerked him into the ground
again, this time on his already wounded side. Agony exploded in his ribs.

And then the tail loosened, scraping over
his skin. Panting against the pain, he looked up and saw enormous sucker-lined
tentacles wrapping around the
kētos
’
s
limbs, pulling it away from him.

The beast howled in outrage, writhing in
Griffin’s
cephalopodic
grip. It snapped at one
tentacle, but Griffin whipped it out of the way at the last moment.

 
Fucker’s strong
, Poseidon heard
in his mind, Griffin’s mental voice straining.
I don’t know how long I can hold it, love.

Just a moment
longer.
Poseidon held out a hand, and his trident flew to it. Hauling himself up sent
more waves of pain through his chest. He ignored them, advancing on the
struggling pair to pass judgment.
Do you
have anything to say for yourself, monster?

Somehow, that horribly misshapen jaw
managed something like a grin.
Go ahead
and kill the body,
godling
. I shall face you again.

So be it.
With a grunt,
Poseidon hefted his trident and drove it deep into the
kētos
’s
belly. The monster
folded around the weapon, thrashing against Griffin’s tentacles. Cracks ran
along its scaly skin, and great chunks began to foam into that noxious mist
that was becoming unpleasantly familiar.

To Poseidon’s surprise the
kētos
didn’t explode like the mutated whale
had. It simply dissolved into a massive cloud of foulness that blocked out the
weak light from above. The giant octopus backed off quickly, adding a twirl
with his tentacles to get rid of any lingering touch of the
kētos’s
death throes.
Christ, those things reek.

So I noticed.
Poseidon pressed
a hand to his side, wincing.
Ammie
. Where is she?

****

Amphitrite leapt over Thetis’s weapon,
forcing herself to twist away from the deadly tines. It sent a sickening wave
of pain down her side, and she clamped her jaws shut against a moan.

“Ready to give up yet?” Thetis taunted
her, driving her back towards one of the rock walls surrounding the plateau. “I
promise, it’ll only hurt … well, forever, actually.” She parried a thrust with
a dismissive smack of her trident’s shaft.

Weaker now, Amphitrite dropped into a
crouch, staring at her malevolent sibling. All Thetis had to do was get past
her guard and bite her, and it was all over. “Thetis, don’t do this,” she tried
one last time.

That horrible smile appeared again. “Yes,
beg. I do love hearing it, you pretty, silly little fool,” Thetis said, lifting
her trident. “I can’t wait to see what my venom makes of you.”

Amphitrite wished she had breath for one
last shout of defiance. Her sister’s weapon thrusts had forced her backwards
against the rough rock wall. In exhausted despair, she looked up and saw
Poseidon and Griffin battling the
kētos
. They couldn’t help her.

Willing away regret, she channeled her
remaining energy into making one final lunge at Thetis. Her only hope now was
to have her sister run her through with the glittering black trident. She could
then surrender her immortality and return her essence to Gaia, just as the
goddess Claire had.

She directed one last thought at her
mates.
I will always love you both. Be
happy with each other—

A massive silver trident slammed down,
clanging against Thetis’s weapon and driving it to the side. Arms wrapped
around Amphitrite, jerking her sharply backwards.

Gasping in pain, she stared at the fully
armed triton who had just pulled her away from death.

“Commander
Kasos
,
my lady, at your service,” he said, maneuvering her around so that she was behind
him. “I believe your son is attending to the Lady Thetis.”

Over the triton’s shoulder, Amphitrite
could see a furious Aphros in his sea centaur form, silver trident whirling and
stabbing at his aunt as he harried her. Then a gigantic orange tentacle slid
into the scene, slapping Thetis away like she was a discarded toy.

The Mad Nereid shrieked once in rage and
disappeared. To Amphitrite’s horror, Aphros’s muscular fish tail bunched as he
prepared to go after her.

“No!” she called. “Aphros, wait!”

“Listen to your mother, my son.” Poseidon
appeared at her side, pulling her close. “You can’t defeat her by yourself.”

Aphros grimaced, but swam over to them.
“We can’t just let her go like that, Father!”

Poseidon shook his head, looking at the
black cloud slowly approaching them. “We don’t have a choice right now. We won
this round. You’ll have to settle for that.”

Especially since
you two have gotten banged up a fair bit
, Griffin said, his tentacles dropping
down to form a protective bulwark around them.
I haven’t gone through God 101 yet so I don’t know how to stop her, and
neither of you are in any shape to fight.

Amphitrite noticed Poseidon’s grimace and
the tight lines around his eyes. “You’re injured?”

The sea god’s beard twitched. “Her beast
was particularly playful. I suspect I have a few cracked ribs at the moment. You?”

“I think I tore something in my shoulder.”
She gingerly touched the body part in question and sucked in a pained breath.
“Yes, definitely a tear and bruising.”

Poseidon sighed, the arm around her
gentling. “Might I suggest we all go home? Thetis will have to wait for her
comeuppance until a later time.”

Wearily, Amphitrite nodded.

****

After dispatching
Kasos
to take Sthenios and Skylla back to their palace stable, Poseidon opened a
portal to the waters of Olympic Cove. To his surprise Griffin remained in
cephalopod form, wrapping a careful tentacle around each of them and carrying
them as he swam through the shimmering gate to the cove’s waters.

I
have to get used to this body, after all,
he said, giving the octopus
equivalent of a shrug.
Besides, I kind of
like it.

“You make a very handsome octopus,
beloved,” Amphitrite assured him.

It was early evening at the cove. When
they reached the shallows Griffin transformed back to human form but still kept
an arm around each of them, helping them out of the water. Before, Poseidon
would have been offended at someone thinking he needed assistance of any sort.
Now, he relaxed onto Griffin’s supporting shoulder.

“Any reason why we’re here instead of your
palace?” Griffin asked.

Poseidon jerked his chin at a rectangle of
light that opened in the yellow cottage. A figure with a flashlight in one hand
and a doctor’s bag in the other came through it, heading towards them on an
intercept course. “I want Nicholas to examine Amphitrite.”