They flew back down Mouvast Mountain, excited about this ‘tour’.
“Yes, I think we’ll finish at the temple, seems as I’ll be sleeping there,” Hecate agreed.
“So, the fighting area,” Broudie said, Jay could tell he was excited, it was Broudie’s favourite place, other than the weapon room.
They strolled along the grass, climbed over the bridge and walked into the fighting area.
“You know. I wanted to have twelve entrances to here. Athena said it was too much hassle,” Hecate told.
“Really?” Jordan questioned.
“Yes, and I said that the fighting area should have a changeable ground level as well. With a podium in the middle so as you could make it a bit more real, but, yet again, too much hassle.”
“That would be awesome,” Broudie agreed dreamily.
“Athena’s going to have me weaving when I get up to Olympus, what with me saying all these things,” Hecate laughed to herself.
“Maybe we could change it,” Bobby suggested.
“Yeah, it’d be simple with thirteen magic users around,” Hecate said.
“More like five hundred and thirteen. You count as five hundred odd sorceresses,” Jay corrected, getting in with the whole ‘sucking up to a god’ thing.
“Oh, we have to be careful here, you need to look out for spears,” Alice chuckled, pointing to the small gap in the tree to their right.
“Why is that then?” Hecate questioned.
“Jay got speared by Broudie accidentally as he was walking in,” Amy told.
“And you are alive!?” Hecate asked.
“He turned himself into fire and the spear passed through him, wasn’t very well at all after,” Liam replied.
“No I wasn’t,” Jay agreed.
“And that was in his first few weeks,” Hollie said.
Jay felt quite embarrassed. He liked being really good at things, but he didn’t like people admiring him, he was just uncomfortable with it.
They walked towards the campfire now, which was burning bright orange and yellow like it always did.
“And here’s where we sleep,” Amy told.
“Oh, I don’t think I helped with this bit,” Hecate pondered, trying to see if she recognized anything.
“You won’t be able to go in them though, some sort of barrier on the door so only the owners can go in,” Jay informed.
“Oh, I’ll be able to get in easily,” Hecate laughed.
“Mormo can too,” Mormo told.
“Well I hope it’s tidy?” Hecate chuckled.
“I haven’t exactly used mine much,” Jay replied.
“Then we’ll start with yours.” Hecate strolled into the centre where the campfire burned. She did a three sixty turn then pointed to Jay’s hut and walked over to it.
“Eh, we’ll get ours sorted,” Liam said, racing over to his own. The others did the same, all looking slightly worried that they hadn’t cleaned up.
Jay walked behind Hecate as she opened the door.
“Can’t even see inside can you? Quite clever is our Athena. But can’t keep me out.” Hecate walked straight through the doorway without any struggle.
Jay followed and closed the door behind him. The heat of the house was so relaxing he just felt like falling to sleep or slouching into his hot comfy sofa and reading one of his books that Hollie had given him.
“Eh, welcome to my hut,” Jay announced timidly.
“Well did a nice job in here, very Hephaestus, and very warm,” Hecate said, turning left into the lounge.
The books were spread on the table, one on the chair. The rug was curled on the sides and there were little bits of grass on the carpet. Hecate glanced at Jay and then waved her hand. The carpet uncurled and the books packed themselves into a neat pile.
“Bit empty, needs to have some ornaments or something in here. Do you think?” Hecate asked.
“Mormo thinks so,” the ghost agreed and the dragon squawked like a bird.
“Eh, yeah sure,” Jay said.
“Great, how about here.” She pointed at an empty corner and a dark red wood cupboard appeared, the books that were on the table floated onto it and then Hecate pointed her finger at the blank coloured wall. A shelf appeared, and loads of stones and shells appeared along it, weird ornaments that moved like seaweed stood on either side.
“Wow.”
“Good isn’t it, let’s move onto the kitchen.” Hecate swept through into the kitchen. She made no change in the kitchen apart from sprucing a wall up in yellow and red tiles that read, ‘Jay wears the ring of Hephaestus’.
“How about upstairs?”
Hecate moved into the hallway, added some elegant, moving plants and a venus flytrap. Then she saw the cupboard under the stairs that Jay had never opened before. She opened it up and peered inside.
“What’s in there?” Jay questioned.
“Well nothing, but I think you need your own workshop so I’ll use this space as one, if that’s all right? Doubt you have one upstairs.”
“A real workshop?”
“So you don’t have one, well you do wear the ring of Hephaestus, god of the forges. I reckon you best have one.” Hecate ducked, and she had to at her height, her head into the gloomy cupboard. She was there for a minute or so, and when she came back out, a switch appeared by the door.
“All done,” Hecate announced.
“Can I have a-”
“Not yet, have a look tonight.”
“What’s it like?”
“Wait patiently, I’ve added some pictures and some stuff you could do. I’ll be waiting for my package on Olympus, take your time on it, I want it to be as good as Hephaestus’ work. But for now, I’ll take a look upstairs, come on.”
Did Hecate just ask him to make something for her? A goddess had asked Jay to make something for her, how great was this? He could have is own company and sell everything, ‘J P’S PARLOUR OF ACCESSORIES, EVERYTHING YOU’LL EVER NEED IN ONE SHOP’. ‘Other than food,’ he thought.
Then she went on upstairs, Jay bouncing happily up behind her.
She added another moving plant in the bedroom and spread two pictures on the wall. One was of everyone at the hideout, all in fighting positions and the other was of all of their adventures on the quest.
It was like a cartoon strip with dozens of scenes. Jay diving into the sea, the Panotii and Frederick, the dracaenaes, the Hippocampi visit, the two headed snake Amphisbaena, the entrance with the trees, the sirens, the Cyclops, the Ampherlios, the palace, Hecate and Mormo, and finally the dragon.
“How did you know of our journey?” Jay questioned.
“I can read minds, the gods used to too. But the ones that have started fading can’t do it no more,” Hecate answered.
“So not all the gods are fading?” Jay asked.
“Course not, do I look like I’m fading, do you think Hephaestus’ fading. He’s probably getting stronger,” Hecate replied.
“Really?”
Jay had presumed all the Gods were fading and that eventually they’d all be gone. But now when he thought about it, Hollie had told him the reason why they were fading was because of mortals evolving. But with all the technology round in the twenty first century why wouldn’t Hephaestus be stronger, and Aphrodite, she was the goddess of love. So love is still around and there are more mortals nowadays so there would be more love.
Now Jay thought about it, it seemed most of the Gods weren’t fading. But then there’s Artemis, she must be getting weaker because no one hunts for food no more. And Ares, well there aren’t any wars nowadays, it’s all to do with keeping peace.
With those thoughts in his mind, Jay, Hecate, Mormo and the dragon walked back down the stairs and out of the hut. Hecate gave out a huge sigh of relief as she exited,
“Fresh air, I was boiling.”
“Mormo didn’t feel it.”
“Because Mormo doesn’t feel,” Hecate said harshly. “Well I’ll move onto the next now.??
? Hecate, Mormo and the dragon opened the door beside Jay’s and walked through.
Jay walked over to the campfire and sat on one of the logs. He waited for a few minutes, playing with the fire.
He could sit and watch the orange flames dance all day, it mesmerised him and comforted him. Either that or there was a siren inside the fire singing their stupid songs.
That bought Jay back to what they’d said: ‘Thrown to mortality, he turned on them.’ What could that have meant? It must’ve been true, they spoke truth, that’s what it said in the book. And what about the conversation on the plane? Nothing had come of that either. And the sphere, the disappearing tracks, the Nereids at the waterfall the week he arrived.
What had happened with all that? They’d completed their quest, yes, but no one had figured out who the people on the plane were, or who might’ve left the tracks, who the sirens could’ve been singing about! It hadn’t even been mentioned. It had been forgotten.
Maybe they were clues? Clues to why the Gods are fading, or how to stop them fading. What if Jay could piece all the clues together and find out what’s going on, find a way to save the mortal and magical world from fading away?
Then Liam came out, followed by Hecate and Mormo. The goddess moved to the next hut whilst Liam came to join Jay.
“What did she do in yours then?” Jay asked, knocking back his thoughts, saving them for later.
“Loads. She replaced the front room lighting with an actual replica of the sun. She added a whole new room for me to do my potions in and gave me loads more stuff to make them with. But she didn’t even let me take a look,” Liam said, sitting on the log beside Jay.
“Yeah she made me a room, like a forge, under the stairs and said I couldn’t look in it until tonight,” Jay agreed.
“Well, obeying the gods aren’t much fun,” Liam concluded jokingly.
“Did she put any moving plants up?” Jay questioned.
“Loads, and a big poster of your quest, she said she was going to put it up in each hut,” Liam replied.
“Did she say yours was empty?”
“No, she said I should be careful with my potions though, said I must have spilled something on the floor and if I’d have stood on it I could have died, that’s the main reason why she made the potion room for me,” Liam bit his lip then laughed.
They told each other what Hecate had done in their huts just in time for someone else to join them on the logs.
Lochlan told them about his, then when Broudie came out, he told them about his. And then eventually there were eleven of them sat around the fire, chatting and discussing with excited expressions.
“I really can’t imagine you weaving, or doing anything like that,” Bobby chuckled.
“I quite like it, and it is a skill of Athena so I am good at it,” Amy persisted.
“That’s all of you then isn’t it?” Hecate concluded, strolling out of Alice’s hut and joining the ring bearers at the fire. Alice closed the door behind her and skipped over.
“So where does our guided tour take us next?” Hecate questioned.
“The waterfall?” Jay suggested.
“Nah, not much there really, I know what that it looks like. Anything else?” Hecate asked.
“Well then, we’ll go to the court,” Hollie told.
“Now that’s more like it. A good old game of squally ball,” Hecate agreed.
“You play squally ball?” Broudie pondered.
“You do make me laugh. I am the goddess of magic, I invented squally ball. Well along with a load of other sorcerers and sorceresses,” Hecate replied.
“Let’s go then.” Philippa jumped up excitedly.
“Race you.” Hecate clicked her fingers and disappeared.
“Gods, she’s nothing like a goddess, it’s ridiculous,” Alice said.
“Yeah. She’s more like a big kid,” Liam agreed.
“Well as she said, Hokvalmia.” Philippa erupted into grass and appeared again about twenty metres in front.
Jay got himself ready and was about to chant the spell when he turned into fire?
Wait? Did he just…? Without a spell!
It must have been Hecate strengthening their powers again. He jumped into the sky and rocketed along the grass, over the huts, over the stream and then towards the stadium.
He slowed down and dived towards the ground. He saw Hecate and Mormo, then suddenly Philippa emerged from the grass.
Jay hit ground and extinguished, just like he had done on mount Mouvast, except this time with extreme satisfaction glowing from his face.
“Took long enough.” Hecate lifted her arm up as if checking the time, and as she did, a clock appeared and disappeared. “Habits,” she muttered.
“Can I go on your team?” Jay asked, “For squally ball.”
“Me too?” Philippa added.
“Yeah, Mormo will play too, you two can play front and us two will play back,” Hecate agreed.
“Great,” Jay muttered as everyone else joined them.
“So, let’s play then.” Hecate wondered into the stadium and walked onto the far court. Mormo followed.
“Who’s going to go on your team Hecate?” Amy questioned.
“I have my team,” Hecate replied.
Jay and Philippa looked at each other and then sprinted over to join the goddess.
“Ok, who’s up against these then?” Amy looked around.
“I’ll go,” Hollie volunteered.
“Me too,” Liam said.
“And us.” Broudie and Lochlan strolled onto the pitch.
“Let’s take our seats then guys.” Amy and the rest climbed up into the stands. The floating speaker still levitating above the net. “I have a feeling this’ll be a fun game.”
“Which side shall I play?” Jay asked Philippa.
“You take left,” Philippa told.
“Right then, we’ll play a high short game and play a back win. Hit it from height and around for you two,” Hecate spoke.
“Said like a professional.” Mormo nodded from behind Philippa.
“What does that mean?” Jay whispered.
“Just always hit the ball straight down and jump high. Then the two at the back will score the winners when the front two on the other side hit it long,” Philippa said.
“I think you’ve got me more confused,” Jay laughed.
“Everyone ready?” Amy asked from the stands. “Then let’s start. Rackets at the ready,” After that part of the sentence giant rackets appeared in all the players’ hands, “and the squally,” this time the ball appeared on the ground next to Hecate who picked it up with her hands, “Then let’s play squally ball!!!”
A whistle blew and the game began.
Jay heard the swing of a racket and the sound of a spell, one he’d never heard of before. The speaker started with a huge gasp and screamed ‘Hecate’ when the squally darted over the net and then immediately changed direction as it passed over the net, so as it was now falling vertically down.
The speaker began commentating on the game, much more excitedly than it had done before.
“Get it!” Hollie screamed from the back.
“Broudie and Lochlan both dived for the ball and missed. It hit the ground and the speaker screamed,
“Two points for team Hecate ghost and kids.”
“Good name,” Philippa agreed jumping into the air at the first point.
The ball was in Liam’s hand now. He leapt into the air and swung his racket. The squally flew over the net towards Jay, who did as Philippa had said and jumped up high. He screamed the invisibility spell and hit the ball. He touched ground again and something wrapped round his ankle. He looked down and saw that there were vines shooting from the ground and catching his feet, which made him think of when he tortured Frederick with his rampant waffle about saving the gods.
He tugged his leg free and focussed back on the game, constantly moving to prevent getting caught. He was jumping around like he was
stood on a hot plate, dodging the leg holding weeds that continued to erupt from the ground.
“Mormo gets this one,” Mormo screamed as the ball travelled back into their court.
She shot up into the air and hit the ball just above Jay’s head. She didn’t even say a spell, maybe she didn’t possess magic?
Jay sighed thinking the ball was out of the court, but instead the squally bounced off the air.
The invisible barrier around the court shone white, and the ball shot back at Lochlan, who saved the ball from touching the ground.
They shot around the court for about four minutes. Jay and Philippa now wearing more than one pair of legs and melting into the floor if they stood still for too long.
Hecate, on the other hand, was only suffering from a giant beak, which, according to Jay was something that would get in the way, but apparently not for Hecate, who used her yellow and red beak to hit the ball higher and then hit it again with her racket so as she had more height.
The game was slightly unfair to say the least. Hecate was doing great for Jay’s team. What with blurting out weird spells that did amazing things, like some which spelt a letter in midair whilst crossing the net, changing directions and making it harder for the other team to hit. The score was forty eight to twenty four. They needed just one more hit to win.
“Aquamarnias!” Hecate yelled shooting the squally to the back of Liam’s side of the court.
“Liam hit the ball back, drenched, and it came for Philippa. She backed up as the ball flew over the net. Then Jay had a brain wave,
“SLICING SPELL!” He urged.
“What?” Philippa replied getting ready to swing.
“Do it,” Jay ordered.
Philippa hesitated for a moment then shouted, “Delargio!”
A vine wrapped round her ankle and she was thrown to the ground.
She just managed to hit the squally back over the net. Her arms went brown and fury and her head smashed on the ground. Jay went over to help then looked up.
The squally had transformed into a small blade, like a knife, and was spiraling its way at Lochlan.
Lochlan went to swing with his racket but stepped away in fear. The squally hit the ground as a blade in the centre circle, sticking vertically in the ground. Ten points!
The blade transformed back into the large squally, and Lochlan was completely dumbstruck.
“Yeah!” Jay jumped into the air with delight.
“THAT’S A WIN FOR TEAM HECATE GHOST AND KIDS. A MILE IN THE LEAD. WHAT A GREAT SPELL!” The speaker concluded, “Curses withdrawn.”
Jay returned to his normal self the vines that had wrapped round his ankles retreated and Philippa got to her feet.
“Great idea,” she smiled rubbing the back of her head.
“Thanks.” Jay put the bat on the floor and it disappeared.
“Good game.” Hecate strolled over, Mormo happily smiling behind her.
“Ok, who’s gonna play next?” Amy called out.
“I’ll stay on for another game, and Mormo. That makes another two teams, yes?” Hecate suggested, doing a one eighty and going back to her position on the court.
“Me, Alice anyone else for our team.” Amy looked around, walking down from the stands.
“Good game guys, you deffo had an advantage,” Lochlan told.
“Well, you could say that.” Jay smiled, climbing up above the court.
“Well great spell choice Philippa, never knew you could use that one,” Liam congratulated.
“It was Jay really,” Philippa corrected.
“Really?” Hollie asked.
“Brain wave,” Jay said.
“Never mind brain wave, what about heat wave, I’m glad you didn’t use that,” Broudie said chuffed.
“I forgot about that.” Jay pondered about what a winner that would have been for his team.
“Try it out against Hecate maybe,” Liam suggested.
“She’s only gonna slaughter you anyway,” Hollie agreed.
“I was hoping that was my last game,” Jay laughed, taking a seat next to Philippa and Liam in the stands.
“I’ll do it.” Hollie walked past them and stood at the stand in the centre of the seats.
Everyone was already in the right places. It was Alice, Amy, Jordan and Bobby against Hecate, Mormo, Cameron and Claire.
“Everyone ready?” Hollie started, “Racket’s at the ready…and the squall…Then let’s play squally ball.”
The game was a near twin to the one Jay had just played. Hecate’s team were doing great with the goddess of magic, could you possibly lose? The game ended with one of Mormo’s rebound hit’s that confused Amy and Cameron, and made them bang into each other. They fell to the ground letting the squally touch the ground in one of the back quadrants.
“That’s a win for heca-morma-cama-claire. Leading by twenty clear points. Curses withdrawn.”
So that was the end of the second game of squally ball.
After that, they played another four more! Hecate’s team winning every time, her having more than double the amount of points of the loosing team. Jay played in two of the games using his ultimate heat wave attack three times in each. It worked quite well on Hecate the first time. But she got to know the trick. Unlike Mormo who went into a daze and scored his team ten points.
The games finished, Hecate not out of breath whatsoever in comparison everyone else’s flustered cheeks.
“Well,” Amy announced, the sun hidden behind the stadium walls, “I know that most of us, excluding Hecate, are well out of breath and will extremely appreciate a hearty dinner.” Amy herself closed her eyes dreamily at that sentence.
“Great, I was feeling a bit puckish,” Hecate agreed. “C’mon Porseus,” Hecate called.
“You’ve named the dragon?” Liam questioned.
“Well it sounds a nice name, no?” Hecate asked.
“I suppose, does it mean anything?” Bobby questioned.
“No,” Hecate laughed, “nothing in Greek mythology means anything, or makes any sense. It’s what makes it so fun.”
She smiled, and the twelve teenagers, Mormo and herself walked slowly out of the squally ball stadium and out into the fresh evening fields.
Make way for magic.
(Chapter 21)