The Flame of Olympus (Pegasus, #1)
Kate O'Hearn
Prologue
War came to Olympus.
There was no warning. No clues that an unknown enemy was building an army against them; an army whose only goal was complete destruction. One moment there was peace, the next they were fighting for their very existence. It was bloody, brutal and totally unexpected.
But for one Olympian, it was the perfect opportunity to fulfil a dream.
Paelen ducked behind a marble pillar and watched the best Olympian warriors gathering to take on the invaders. Jupiter was leading the attack with his thunder and lightning bolts in hand. His wife Juno stood on his left, grave-faced and ready. On his right, Hercules was looking strong and prepared, as were Apollo and his twin sister Diana with her bow. Mars was there, and Vulcan with his armoury full of weapons. Standing behind them in his winged sandals and helmet was Mercury, the messenger of Olympus. All preparing to fight.
Paelen’s gaze trailed over to Pegasus. The stallion’s eyes blazed and wings quivered as his golden hooves pounded the ground in anticipation of the upcoming battle. Further back gathered more Olympians, all there to defend their home.
But Paelen had no intention of fighting. He wasn’t a warrior. He was a thief with plans of his own which didn’t include getting killed in a battle they couldn’t possibly win. War was everyone else’s problem. He was too busy concentrating on how best to profit from it. With the defenders occupied in the struggle against the Nirads, a thief would be free to enter the palace of Jupiter and take whatever they wanted.
But Jupiter’s treasures weren’t what interested Paelen. What he desired most was the shiny gold bridle worn by Pegasus.
Everyone in Olympus knew the bridle was the greatest treasure of all. It alone held the key to possessing the powerful winged stallion. With Pegasus under his control, Paelen could go anywhere he wanted and take whatever caught his eye, with no one able to stand against him. This was the true prize, not the silly jewels or gold coins that could be found in the abandoned palace.
As Jupiter called his fighters forward, Paelen crept closer to listen to his desperate speech.
‘My children,’ he said gravely. ‘We are in our darkest hour. At no other time in history have we faced such terrible danger. The Nirad fighters have breached our borders. Even now they are making for the Flame of Olympus. If they succeed in extinguishing it, all our powers, all we have ever known, will be lost. We must stop them. That Flame is our very existence. We cannot let them succeed. If we do not make our stand against them now, then everything we have known will be destroyed.’
Paelen listened to the murmurs of the crowd and felt the tension growing. His eyes were still locked on Pegasus. The stallion shook his head and snorted, causing his golden bridle to give out an enchanting tinkle that no other forged gold could ever make.
Hearing the bridle’s song made Paelen’s fingers itch to reach out and snatch it from the stallion. But he controlled himself. This wasn’t the time to make a move. His dark eyes were drawn back to their desperate leader.
‘We who never die, now face our destruction,’ continued Jupiter. ‘But it is not only our world we must defend. All the other worlds we guard will fall if the Nirads defeat us. We fight for them!’
Jupiter raised his lightning bolts in the air and their ferocious booms echoed throughout all Olympus. ‘Will you join me?’ he cried. ‘Will you rise against these invaders and drive them back to where they came from?’
Paelen’s eyes grew wide at the sight of all the Olympians raising their arms to Jupiter. Pegasus reared on his hind legs and opened his wings in salute. Battle cries filled the air.
‘For Olympus!’ howled Jupiter as he turned and led his warriors into battle.
1
Emily put her hand on the window and felt the glass shaking from the heavy peals of thunder cracking overhead.
All day the radio had been reporting on the unexpected and violent storms raging up and down the east coast of the United States. Where Emily lived, in the heart of New York City, the storm was at its worst. Sitting alone in the apartment she shared with her policeman father, she never imagined that a simple thunderstorm could be this bad.
She clutched her cellphone and felt guilty for lying to her father. He’d just called to check on her.