“That’s why I want to learn.” She rubbed her hands together. “So let’s go. Do you have some wooden swords or something? Maybe a shield?”
Athena walked to the closet and disappeared inside. When she returned she held two long staffs, like walking sticks.
“What’re those?”
Athena tossed one to her. “It’s a bō. You use it like an extension of your arms.”
Andie’s face fell as she turned the staff back and forth. She’d wanted the sword. But she already held it correctly, right palm away and left palm in, so maybe her hands did remember.
Andie sighed. “I feel like the lame Ninja Turtle. Don’t you have any sai?”
“You can do more with this,” Athena said, and quickly used the bō to pop Andie in the chest. Lightly, very lightly, but the girl nearly buckled.
“Ow!” Andie rubbed her sternum.
“There’s an easier way, you know,” Athena said.
“There is?”
“I could just choke you to death.” Andie took a hasty step back, and Athena laughed. “Take it easy. I’m kidding.”
“Well don’t. You’re not very good at it.”
Athena spun the bō. Maybe time wouldn’t pass so slowly after all.
*
“We’re never going to find her.”
Odysseus stared up into the trees of Taman Negara and felt small. The rain forest canopy stretched up and out and on forever; or at least that was how it seemed. And they were going to plunge into it, headfirst, to try to pick up the months-cold trail of one dying goddess.
Hermes didn’t agree or disagree with Odysseus’ declaration; he was too busy trying to explain to their boat guide that they didn’t have a hotel to get to and didn’t need transport to one. He knew enough of the local language to keep things civil, and he’d gotten them this far, but his vocabulary failed in the face of the guide’s good-natured insistence. He had to resort to a lot of wild hand gestures.
Odysseus adjusted his pack on his shoulders. They’d stopped off at a hostel near the airport to shower, but it hardly made a difference. Hours and a very long boat ride later, the humid air felt like a second, very amphibian skin.
“Okay, okay, so we’ll die,” Hermes said loudly, and both he and the guide threw up their hands. He picked up his duffel and affixed it like an improvised backpack. When he met Odysseus’ eyes, the look they shared spoke volumes. They were already tired and felt like shit, and it was only going to get worse.
“How did I let Athena get me into this?” Hermes grumbled. He picked an arbitrary spot in the forest and stepped in.
“I thought you were excited for the chance to get out of Kincade, mate.”
“Yeah? Well, you were excited to tag along.” Soft ferns brushed against their legs as Hermes picked his way through a patch of dense green leaves to a space where the ground was clearer, coated with dark soil and dead plant scraps. “So who’s laughing now?”
Odysseus didn’t think either one of them was laughing, but he knew why they’d come. Athena’s determination to murder Achilles left little doubt. Gathering forces and destroying arsenals. His Athena. She’d never stop fighting. Keeping her off Achilles’ scent was going to be the battle of his life.
“I know it’s early to be asking, but do you feel anything? Can you feel Artemis anywhere?”
Hermes lifted his head and scanned the trees. “Nothing yet. Maybe nothing ever. My god-dar was never as good as Athena’s. Even before we started dying. Probably not the answer you were hoping for. Now that we’re here, this place certainly seems a lot bigger than Cassandra’s fingerprint, doesn’t it?”
They walked for a few moments, listening to the sounds of rustling leaves and insects. The jungle did seem larger than Odysseus had imagined. Everything was a wonder; the heaviness of the air, the span of the leaves. And if the noise was any indication, they were surrounded by at least three million bugs.