FANTASY | CONTEMPORARY FANTASY | FICTION SERIES | WEB NOVEL
Titan’s Daughter | Chapter 9
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They struggled to catch their breath, sucking in air to quench their oxygen-starved lungs. Some hunched over, while others collapsed onto the ground, their legs burning with exhaustion. Jason, with his strong lungs and well-trained legs, was not untouched by the exhaustion but certainly fared better than the rest. Those countless hours of cross-country training have now served him well. He caught his breath quicker, steadier. Yet, out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Theseus, his younger brother, squirming in agony on the ground.
The sun, blistering overhead, did no favors for anyone, especially not for Nyx, pale, who wilted under its glare. At fifteen, he was scrawny, all limbs, looking more like he was built from straw rather than bones. Using a nearby rock as a backrest, he fumbled with one hand to retrieve the pouch from his side, the only thing he managed to grab in the chaos. In his haste to quench his thirst, he gulped down air and liquid simultaneously, choking as he did so. Wiping his mouth, Nyx offered the pouch to Jason. “Here,” his voice was raspy.
Like many nights since he entered this realm, Jason had been kept awake. His first night in the unfamiliar forest was no different. As the campfire slowly died, he watched the four Undun Guiders take turns keeping watch over the dense woods. Throughout the night, he had seen several unordained, clutching their bellies, and hastily retreated into the woods beyond the campfire’s glow to relieve themselves — charred rodents didn’t agree with their modern stomachs. Before daybreak, his brother was also up.
With morning dew gathered on leaves, Jason and Theseus already had their scarabs fastened around their waists and shields on their backs. The Undun Guiders went around waking the rest of the unordained from their slumber. Unaccustomed to leaves and dirt as their beds, they longed for the comforts of the modern realm, they moaned and grumbled, Their arrogance, naivety, and disregard for their surroundings eventually caught up with them when the hounds attacked, tearing apart those paralyzed with fear. Some fled into the deep woods, pursued by the relentless beasts. While two Undun escaped with Jason and the remaining unordained, the other two — Aithe and a wind manipulator — put up a fearless fight.
Five days had passed since Jason and his brother arrived at the Bastion Profylaki, the starting point for all the unordained. They had only four days to learn how to wield a sword and shield before setting off on the journey to the Hall of Registrar. Jason had witnessed the unordained demigods showing off their abilities at the Bastion Profylaki, but it was the first time he had witnessed true ordained demigod powers in action. Aithe conjured flames while the wind user fueled them, creating a raging inferno that allowed them to escape. But whatever madness consumed the wolf-like creatures, fire did not seem to deter some of them.
They ran for hours, desperately trying to put as much distance as possible between themselves and the hounds. Aithe caught up with them at an old bridge made of rope and wood suspended over a gorge, but they had already crossed and she was on the other side. The hounds caught up. She knew she wouldn’t make it across in time, so she drew her sword, and with several slashes, she severed the ropes. The wooden planks plummeted, taking with them three of the wolfish creatures and Aithe herself.
Theseus struggled to keep up with the group and lagged behind the other unordains, so Jason stayed close to his brother. The Undun, Christos, maintained his position at the back, making sure no one fell too far behind. They followed the lead of the remaining Undun Guider, Yannis, who navigated through the forest. Every step he took seemed calculated, even when the path was barely visible, until they reached the rock — a massive boulder stripped of its color by time, leaving it a pale monolith in a sea of green. The stone was etched with arrows pointing in different directions and strange writings. Theseus would have found it fascinating if he weren’t writhing in pain. Here, they paused to gather their strength.
Jason took a sip from the pouch and grimaced at its unacquired taste. It helped alleviate his fatigue and clear his mind. He’d noticed something peculiar. These pure-blooded demigods couldn’t seem to get enough of the jasmine brewed drink. He’d seen them gulp it down, and go in a kind of bliss-out trance. It reminded Jason of that one time he saw a cat lose its mind over a fresh batch of catnip.
His brother also despised the acrid taste. The first time he tried it, the liquid barely settled in his belly before it came back up. Jason couldn’t blame him. The stuff tasted like a mixture of lime and spoiled milk.
He nudged Theseus with his foot, offering him the pouch, but Zethos snatched it from him and drank greedily.
Polemos, a hulking figure with arms like tree trunks and shoulders like boulders, rose to his feet, unfurling his massive frame. He was as big as a bear and almost as hairy. A short war hammer was strapped to his back. He had shattered a hound’s jaw with it, but before the creature met its demise, it had left him a parting gift — a deep gash across his face. Polemos concealed it beneath a blood-soaked cloth wrapped around his head, covering his left eye. This realm had offered him death, but he had refused, laughed at it even. He took the pouch from Zethos and stared at him for a moment, his lone good eye scowling beneath furrowed brows. Jason half-expected Polemos to strike Zethos, but instead, he simply dropped the pouch into Theseus’s lap and walked away.
Theseus took a quick sip from the pouch, his jaw muscles twitching as he made a pained expression. Sitting beside him was a girl. She hugged her legs, sobbing softly. Jason tried to recall her name and then heard his brother whisper it, “Iris.”
Theseus attempted to offer her the pouch. Suddenly, Jason realized that she was the younger sister of the wind-using Undun Guider who helped protect their escape. Iris paid Theseus no mind, choosing instead to stay in her grief. Callisto sat on the other side of Iris with an arm around her shoulders. They had quickly become friends during their two days at the Bastion Profylaki.
“Cally?” Theseus said, extending the pouch to her.
“I’m good,” she replied.
Theseus scanned the group and spotted Nephos leaning against a tree, shield on his back, a sword at his side, and a pouch strapped across his torso. Theseus passed the pouch back to Nyx.
Three girls with strikingly similar faces and large, round eyes huddled together near Jason. Two of them had long, silky black hair, while the third sported short purple locks. Fear gripped their eyes, freezing their gaze. Jason followed their line of sight and saw the hounds emerging from the dense part of the forest just beyond the horizon.
Jason hoped they would reach the town on the other side of the mountains that the Unduns mentioned, but the hounds found a way around the gorge and picked up their scent once again. They were still a day and a half away from the town.
“Shit, they found us,” Jason muttered as he scooped up Theseus from the ground. Panic rippled through the rest of the group.
“Run!” Christos shouted, his bronze breastplate adorned with two wavy horizontal lines etched into the upper left section.
The pack of hounds charged towards their prey, their eyes filled with frenzied rage.
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