Nemesis. What if this power wasn’t only a curse but a gift, something unwieldy and dangerous, passed from a goddess to her daughter, and on and on, something that longed to be used? What if it could be a weapon in Alia’s hand?
She closed her eyes and reached toward that dark, winged thing. She grabbed hold, fastening it to her, so that she was only anger now. Alia could almost feel the shift of wings between her own shoulder blades—and there was no fear, only a vibrant surety. This is mine. This is my right. She nudged at the power inside her and felt it take flight.
The soldier in the passenger seat lifted his radio and smashed it into the driver’s head. Jason flinched back as the driver turned on his attacker and they began to grapple in the front seat.
“Scholes!” Jason shouted as the driver took his foot off the pedal and the Humvee decelerated. “Chihara! What the hell are you doing?”
Alia opened her eyes, saw the ring of soldiers. She reached toward her power, and this time she shoved.
Suddenly, the soldiers outside were screaming, shouting, their swords clanging as they turned on one another.
“Damn it,” said Jason. “This must be because we’re so close to sunset.”
“Yeah,” said Alia. “That must be it.”
“Do—” Jason began, then shouted as the Humvee tilted forward and the front of the vehicle hit the road with a loud metallic clang. “What the—”
“I think she took the front tires off.” The Humvee’s rear sank with a sudden thunk. “And those would be the back tires.”
“Where is she?” he said, turning in his seat.
“She’s coming for you.” Alia looked through the windows and smiled at the havoc she had made. It was only the beginning. “We’re coming for you.”
“Don’t look so pleased, Alia,” Jason said, and she could see only frustration in him, no terror, no worry. If anything, he looked almost eager as he drew a long sword from the Humvee’s main compartment. “This fight is just starting.”
He threw the door open, blade gleaming in his hand.
Diana cast the last of the tires away in time to see Jason crawl from the box that had been the Humvee and launch himself to his feet. He was armed with a sword and paused only to snatch a shield from the inert arm of one of his fallen men.
There was no time to survey the chaos around her, to worry if, back in the lab truck, Theo and Nim would succumb to this battle madness, too.
The soldier closest to Diana had knocked his compatriot to the ground and was slamming his shield against his opponent’s face. Diana seized it on the upswing and cracked it once across the soldier’s head. He dropped forward, cheek to cheek with his comrade.
She faced Jason now. They were ringed by fighting men. The other truck had driven off the road.
Diana tested the weight of the sword in her hand. It was fairly short, but its shape would make it good for both cutting and thrusting. Though the steel was of average quality, the blade seemed sharp enough.
“Your men aren’t coming to your rescue,” she said.
Jason rolled his shoulders. “I don’t need a rescue.”
“You already lost to me once on the way up the mountain.”
“Let’s say I let you believe what you wanted to believe.”
Diana shook her head, realizing he’d feigned his fatigue on that starlit peak. “You lie as easily as you breathe. Always you held back. Well then,” she said, “let’s see what your best looks like against an Amazon.”
They circled each other slowly. But Jason had no reason to wait to assess her strengths. He’d been doing that for days. He lunged.
Their swords met, clashed, the sound of steel against steel ringing off the hillside. Diana felt the force of the blow all the way up her arm. He was strong and knew how to use his weight.
They drew apart, blades sparking. He attacked, and Diana parried, spinning left, keeping her shield up as he made a fresh jab at her ribs. Strong, she noted, but also used to being the strongest player on the field. He slammed his shield into hers, expecting her to fall back. Instead, she shoved, sending him flying.
He crashed into the side of one of the trucks but was on his feet in the blink of an eye. He shook off the pain of the impact and smiled. “The soldiers I am going to build from your blood.”
Not if Theo can help it, she thought as Jason rushed at her, his sword glinting like a flash of lightning in a bank of clouds. He moved in a flurry, swiping and thrusting, driving her backward. She shifted her weight, returning each blow. It was startling, strange. How many hours had she spent preparing for such a moment? And yet this was nothing like the drills or sparring matches in the training rooms of the Armory. Because now her opponent was prepared to deal a killing blow.
“You’re fast,” she noted.
Jason smiled, and the dimple that had charmed her so easily appeared. “You’re not just fighting me,” he said, his breathing even. “You’re fighting the warriors who defeated the Amazons. Achilles, who bested Penthesilea. Telamon, who brought low Melanippe. Hercules, who defeated Hippolyta.”
She hated hearing her sisters’ names, her mother’s name on his lips.
Diana raised a brow. “A wise warrior learns from her mistakes.” She adjusted her stance. “And you’re forgetting who taught me to fight.”
She brought her sword down in a furious arc. Jason raised his shield to block the blow but stumbled. Diana kicked out with her right foot, driving her heel into his solar plexus and knocking the wind from his lungs.
This time he did not rise so quickly. She descended on him with every bit of skill she’d learned, the echo of her sisters’ teachings reverberating through her movements, the lessons they’d learned and passed down to her.
Jason returned the blows, but his movements had slowed. He was still feeling the force of her kick, struggling to catch his breath. She slashed and he pivoted right, avoiding the strike, but she’d never intended to make contact. She checked her attack, changing direction, and brought her blade down in a swipe against his shield arm. He hissed as blood bloomed along his skin. She took the opening and brought the hilt of her sword down swiftly on his shield, knocking it free of his hand. It hit the ground with a dull clang.
Diana changed her grip and swept her blade hard right, batting his sword away.
He scrambled backward, his left arm dripping blood. He looked less frightened than confused, as if he couldn’t quite fathom where his weapons had gone. “No,” he said. “This is all wrong. Achilles, Hercules, they won. In all the stories, they best the Amazons. They are the victors.”
“Those are the stories your poets tell, not mine. Surrender, Jason Keralis.”
Jason growled his frustration, circling left. “Did Menelaus surrender when Paris stole his bride? I know you aren’t willing to deal a killing strike.”
“You can’t win. Only my sisters can match me in fair combat.”
A fevered look came into his eyes. “Then put aside your weapons. Fight me hand to hand. Best me and take your victory.”
Would that end this? Give him the defeat in honest combat he sought? She doubted it. Diana shrugged, tossed her sword and shield far out of reach.
Jason sighed and shook his head. “So honest, so righteous.” His lips curved, the beginnings of a smile, sharp as a knife blade. “So easy to dupe. Only your sisters can match you?” He drew a syringe from his pocket. “Then you will fall to the might of the Amazons.”
She remembered what he’d said on the banks of the Eurotas. I began building a serum from your DNA the first day we met. Her cells, her strength.
“No!” Diana cried.
He jammed the needle into his thigh and depressed the plunger, then tossed the empty syringe aside. Jason straightened, cracked his neck. His grin widened. Diana took a step back.
“The sun sets,” said Jason, flexing his fingers as if testing the feel of his new strength. “An age of heroes begins. And I believe I promised you a beautiful death.”