The agent’s dark curly hair was a mess, and his face looked dirty and singed from the fire. He smelled of smoke. “I’m wondering the same thing,” he said shakily. “I don’t know whether to thank you for saving us from the fire or to shoot you for trying to kill us.”
Emily raised her flaming hand. “Just try it!”
“No one is going to shoot anyone here,” her father ordered. “We heard cries and found these men in the temple. Did you send them here?”
“Not by choice,” Emily said furiously.
Diana, Apollo, and Chiron were standing back. “Will someone please tell us what has happened?” Diana said. “Emily, did you destroy the weapon?”
Emily shook her head. Then her eyes landed back on Agent B. “No, we didn’t, because he already sent it to Olympus!”
Everyone turned to Agent B.
“It wasn’t me,” Agent B challenged. “I was assigned to capture Emily and Joel, that’s all. It was the others in command who did it!”
“It does not matter who did it,” Chiron said as his hooves pounded the ground in rage. “You have destroyed our people and our home. How did you do it? How did you get the weapon to Olympus?”
Agent B crossed his arms over his chest and refused to speak.
Emily glared at him. “The CRU found Diana’s jewel in New York, and once they figured out how to use the Solar Stream, they sent the weapon to Olympus. We just came from there. It killed everything. People, animals, plants, even the insects are gone. Now the CRU are setting up bases and have claimed Olympus for themselves.”
“No!” Diana said. “It is my fault. Our world is dead because of me. If I had not lost my jewel, they could not have taken Olympus.”
“No, Diana,” Emily’s father said as his hard eyes fell on the CRU agents. “It’s their fault. Not yours.”
“We did what we had to, to protect Earth,” Agent B said. “You Olympians are a deadly infection. We had to cut deep to save our world!”
“Don’t you start with that!” Emily shot back. “I’ve heard all about the CRU’s plans from back at Area 51. You’re going to take over the world.”
“Change the world,” Agent B insisted. “For the better.”
“Change it or take it over, it’s all the same!” Emily shot back. “But we won’t let you do it! Do you hear me? We’re going to stop you!”
“Emily, calm down,” her father said. He looked at his sister. “Mo, would you and the others take the agents away before Emily really loses her temper?”
Maureen nodded. “Good idea.” She and several aging Olympians moved forward to collect the CRU agents. “I think it’s about time you saw all the damage you’ve done to these people. You are all going to help us take care of them.”
Emily noticed that in the time they had been gone, Diana and the others had aged even more. Diana’s hair was now white and thin. Deep age lines cut across her face.
Emily’s eyes scanned the area fearfully. “Where’s Pegasus?”
A whinny from behind let her know that Pegasus was there. She turned and what she saw made her gasp. Pegasus’s back sloped deeply, and his wings hung down at his sides as he walked slowly toward her. But he whinnied excitedly and called to her.
“Pegs!” Emily ran up to the stallion and embraced him tightly. “Olympus is gone. The CRU have taken it!” She pressed her face into his warm thick neck and was grateful that at least he was still alive.
Paelen was being supported by Brue as he approached Joel. His hair was gray, and he was even more hunched over. “What happened to you?” he asked loudly. “You’re covered in blood. I knew I should have gone with you. You cannot be trusted on your own!”
“You couldn’t have stopped this.” Joel spoke loudly enough for Paelen to hear. “I was hit by a piece of Jupiter’s palace. It’s in the Solar Stream and on its way here right now.”
“What?” Emily’s father cried. “Jupiter’s palace is coming here?”
Emily and Joel explained everything that had happened from the point when they left Xanadu and traveled to Earth to when they returned.
“We didn’t realize how powerful the Solar Stream was,” Emily said. “If we had stayed in it, we’d have been killed. I’m just glad my powers worked and got us back here.”
Chiron shook his head and muttered softly to himself. The hair on his horse’s body was now white. The top of his head was bald, his face heavily wrinkled, and his upper torso sunken.
“This is bad—very, very bad indeed,” he said. He started to pace the area. “I told Jupiter that building a permanent portal would be disastrous. The Solar Stream is too powerful, too dangerous to be contained. But would he listen to me? No. After all, who am I? Just his half brother—why should he listen to anything I had to say!”
“Chiron, stop,” Diana said. “What is happening?”
The centaur shook his head. “It is far more than just the palace coming here. In destroying the arch at the other end, Emily destroyed the containment field. There is nothing to stop the Solar Stream from sucking in the whole world. Olympus is now on a collision course with Xanadu.”
“What?” Emily cried. “No, that’s not possible.”
Chiron nodded. “It is not only possible; it is what is happening. If the Xanadu arch opens, what is left of Olympus will come smashing through it.”
“Emily, you must destroy the arch,” Apollo cried. “Right now, before it all gets here.”
“But Stella is still in there,” Emily argued. “I can’t. Not until she and the dog are safe.”
“It’s too dangerous,” Chiron insisted. “Stella must be sacrificed for the good of Xanadu.”
Emily shook her head. “I won’t do it. Not until Stella is safe. It’s because of us that her parents have been taken by the CRU. I promised her I would save them, and I will.”
Pegasus whinnied and nodded.
“Your faith in Emily is admirable, old friend,” Chiron said to Pegasus. “But I do not agree. Emily must destroy the arch now.”
Joel shook his head. “Stella and the dog were sucked in before everything else. They’ll arrive before the rest. If we clear the area around the arch and wait, the moment they come through, Emily can destroy it.”
“No, no, no,” Chiron insisted. “You are gambling with the lives of everyone here. The risk to Xanadu is too great.”
“All life is precious, Chiron.” Riza spoke softly from Emily’s mouth. “We can do this. All will be well. Stella and the dog will survive, and Xanadu will be safe.”
“Riza, are you sure?” Emily’s father said.
Emily nodded. “We both are.”
Paelen tutted and muttered, “I still do not like it when you do that, Emily.”
For the rest of the night, those who could work carried those who could not walk away from the arch. The CRU agents had been stripped of their weapons and forced to help with the move.
When the area was clear, Emily stood beside Pegasus, stroking his neck.
“I’m so scared, Pegs,” Emily admitted. “My powers keep growing, but not my control over them.”
She told the stallion of her loss of control at the Acropolis Museum and her fear that if Riza hadn’t stopped her, she would have destroyed Earth.
Pegasus pressed his head to her.
There was little Pegasus or anyone could say or do that would ease Emily’s troubled mind. They could never understand how she felt. Or how she could feel the powers’ strength increasing. What was she turning into? She hated to even consider it, but was she becoming what Agent B had called her—a weapon?
All night they waited, prepared for Stella’s arrival at any moment.
“Remember what Chiron told you,” Emily’s father said. “The moment Stella and the dog come through, no matter what condition they’re in, you ignore them. Fire everything you’ve got at
the arch. If all goes well, it will close the Solar Stream before everything else gets here.”
Agent B shook his head. “I think the centaur was right. It is too dangerous to wait for the girl. Emily, you must destroy that thing right now. Your sentimentality will get us all killed.”
Emily raised a threatening finger to the agent. “Don’t you dare tell me what to do; I am this close to showing you how I feel about you and your men!”
“Em, calm down,” her father said as he put his arm around her. “Ignore him. Just concentrate on what you need to do. Don’t let anything distract you.”
Emily nodded. Neither had the heart to say what would happen if she failed. They already knew. The entire debris field, which could actually be all of Olympus, would tear through the arch and destroy Xanadu.
“Get ready,” Diana warned.
Everyone gathered closely together. There was no point hiding from the arch. If this went wrong, no matter where they hid, the collision of the two worlds would be catastrophic.
“You can do this, Em,” Joel said. “We’re right behind you.”
Emily looked back at him and Paelen and smiled weakly. She turned back to the arch and waited.
Suddenly the arch burst to life with the blazing light of the Solar Stream. “Here we go!” Chiron called. “Emily, fire the moment the girl comes through. Do not hesitate!”
Fear coursed through Emily like an electric current. Her nerves were ready to snap. What if she couldn’t save them?
Calm yourself, child, Riza called softly. I am with you. We are one. We will save them together.
For the first time since she’d become aware of Riza’s presence, Emily was grateful to her. She took a deep breath and felt herself calming as she waited for Stella.
Loose objects from the artifact chamber at Jupiter’s palace began to fly through the arch, forcing everyone to duck and dive to avoid being struck by the flying objects.
And then came the dog. Mike yelped and howled as he flew wildly through the air. Emily’s father lunged forward and caught him in midair, and they tumbled to the ground together. Stella, still in her wheelchair, followed close behind. Her cries filled the air as she cartwheeled through the arch. An elderly giant ran forward and caught hold of her before she could slam into a thick tree.
“Now!” Chiron cried. “Fire!”
Emily reacted instantly. She released the Flame at the arch, using all the power and control she had. The blazing light of the Solar Stream was still open, and the two powers met in an explosive union. Sparks filled the air, and the crackling sound of energy was deafening. As Emily fed more power into the Flame, pieces of palace debris continued to shoot through the arch.
Push harder! Riza called. Focus and push. Command the Solar Stream to close!
Emily did as Riza suggested. She focused and pushed her powers as hard as she could.
There was a blinding snap and a brilliant whoosh.
The marble arch was gone. The Solar Stream closed.
A cheer rang out. Emily fell to her knees, exhausted from the strain. “Thank you, Riza,” she panted softly. “Thank you . . .”
The world around her started to spin and finally went dark.
20
EMILY OPENED HER EYES, GRATEFUL to see Pegasus settled on the ground beside her. She was lying on a blanket under the shade of a tall jungle tree. The sun was high, so she must have slept most of the day.
“Hi, Pegs,” she said softly as she stroked the stallion’s neck and soft muzzle.
Mike was on the other side of her with his large head lying on her legs. He whined when Emily looked at him. “Hey, boy,” she said as she patted his head.
“That dog hasn’t left your side since I carried you here,” her father said as he knelt down beside her. “Joel told me you’ve called him Mike.” He smiled. “He does remind me of your mom’s dog.”
Emily smiled at the dog. “That’s what I thought.”
“So, how are you feeling?”
“Really tired,” Emily said.
“I don’t doubt it after everything you’ve been through.”
Emily sat up and looked around. The makeshift camp was crowded, with very little in the way of shelter or supplies. She saw Joel with Paelen and Stella. They were petting Brue’s two heads. Chrysaor was lying on the ground beside Joel.
Emily was stunned to see Agent B kneeling down beside the Muse Terpsichore, helping her to drink a cup of nectar. Other CRU agents worked among the aging Olympians, helping to feed them.
“Dad, what happens now? We can’t return to Olympus, and we really can’t take everyone to Earth; it would be too dangerous for them.”
Her father dropped his head. “None of us can go anywhere anymore. We’re all trapped here.”
Emily shook her head. “No, Joel and I have our blue jewels. We can still open the Solar Stream.”
“I didn’t want to tell you this until you were feeling better, but I doubt there will ever be a good time.”
Fear coursed through her. “Tell me what?”
“Chiron insists the Solar Stream must never be opened again.”
“Why?”
“He believes the debris field is still in there, waiting to be released.”
“But I destroyed the arch!” Emily cried. “It can’t come to Xanadu.”
“Yes,” he agreed. “But the Solar Stream is massive. It’s like a giant, powerful river. The direct route to Xanadu that Jupiter and his brothers created was just an offshoot of that river. Chiron believes the debris field will continue to scatter and travel the length of the whole Solar Stream, waiting for a place to finally come to shore. If we reopen it, there is a strong chance it will come through. Or even if it doesn’t, anyone who tries to travel within it risks being hurt or even killed by the debris.”
Emily frowned. “What about Earth? What happens if the CRU use their blue jewel again? Will Earth be destroyed?”
“Let’s not even go there,” her father said. “I just pray for the sake of the planet they don’t.”
Emily lay back down. “I really messed up, didn’t I? If I hadn’t destroyed the arch on Olympus, we could have left here.”
“No one blames you. You did what you thought was best. You couldn’t let the CRU find Xanadu; everyone understands that. Unfortunately, none of us realized what would happen once the arch was destroyed.”
Emily leaned forward and kissed Pegasus’s soft muzzle. “At least we destroyed the rock and stopped it from doing any more damage to you. We’ll find a way to live here. Just as long as everyone is all right, that’s all that matters.”
Her father sat back on his heels. “I’m so sorry, Em. But you didn’t destroy the rock. The Titan weapon is still in the Solar Stream. Even now it’s aging everyone.”
Emily’s eyes shot straight to her father. “No! That’s not possible. It was destroyed with Olympus.”
He shook his head. “No, it wasn’t. Look at Pegasus. He’s still aging.”
Emily stared at Pegasus and noticed the fallen feathers scattered around him. The pearling in his eyes was thicker than before.
“You mean this was all for nothing?” Emily cried. “Going back to Earth and losing control of my powers was all for nothing? The CRU have finally won. The Olympians are dying, and we’re trapped on this jungle world with no way back to Earth.”
“Stop it, Emily.”
“But, Dad, I’ve ruined everything.”
“I said, stop,” her father said firmly. “You tried your best. The Olympians were doomed the moment that box was opened. You had no control over that.”
Pegasus nickered in agreement and pressed his face to her.
“I should have been able to stop it!” Emily cried. “I’m the Flame of Olympus, the last Xan! What’s the point of all these powers if I can’t protect the Olympians?” Sh
e climbed to her feet. “I won’t lose you, Pegasus! Not now and not ever. There has to be something I can do. I have Riza’s powers. I’ll use them all up if I have to, but I won’t let you die! Do you hear me, Pegasus, you won’t die!”
Emily ran into the temple. There had to be an answer locked somewhere deep within the thick stone walls. Some way to save them. It couldn’t end like this.
“Why, Riza?” she shouted through the long, empty corridors. “Why give me all these powers and not let me save them? It’s not fair!”
Emily collapsed to the stone floor. Pegasus was dying. Paelen was dying. Diana and Apollo were both dying.
But it was the thought of losing her beloved Pegasus that cut the deepest. Life on Xanadu without him would be unbearable. She’d believed she had lost him once, back at Area 51, and that had nearly destroyed her. But at least she’d thought it had been fast and painless. This was so much worse. Pegasus was in pain. He tried his best to hide it, but she could feel it from him.
“Please, Riza,” she begged, “help him. I’ll do anything you say. I’ll let you take over my body; just save Pegasus.” Riza stirred, and Emily could feel her sympathy.
I am so sorry, child. I love Pegasus too, but we cannot save him. Not even the Xan could stop time from running its course. Were he wounded, we could heal him. But this is age. It is natural. When the Xan lived, we existed outside the boundaries of time. But still we could not interfere with it, even if the Titans used it as a weapon. Pegasus will continue to grow old, and then he will die.
“No!” Emily cried. “I can’t lose him. I just can’t . . .” It was the helplessness that hurt the most—to be so powerful, and yet so powerless.
“Em,” Joel called softly through the darkness.
He arrived at her side and pulled her into his arms. “Vulcan just died. He and Stella were talking, and he just collapsed and died.”
“I’m so sorry, Joel,” Emily said, holding him tighter.
“After everything we’ve fought for . . .” Joel’s voice broke.