I was covered in open wounds and drenched head to toe in blood, and not all of it was mine.
Gore was caked beneath my nails that hadn’t been ripped off.
“But I don’t have any powers,” I whispered.
Scales slid against my neck. “It’s in your blood, whether you want it or not,” Nyx said. “You do. You always have—you just haven’t known it.”
“TWENTY COMPETITORS REMAIN.” Hades’ distortedvoice cracked like a whip. “ONLY TEN WILL MAKE THE CRUCIBLE—PROVE YOURSELF NOW OR PERISH.”
I wiped crusted blood from my throbbing nose.
The “C+A” tattoo on my forearm flashed, and my vision blurred.I miss Charlie. I miss Fluffy. The urge to fall to my knees and crawl into the fetal position was overwhelming.
Maybe in an alternative world, I did.
In this world, a large body came barreling out of the fog. Yet again.
A fist caught me on the left side of my head. I kicked out and scratched as arms wrapped around me and wrestled me to the ground. They ripped at my hair, trying to get purchase on my head to snap my neck.
Nyx hissed and lunged.
Like the others, the boy collapsed.
I shoved his body off and lay on my back in the rain, gasping as I tried to catch my breath—a leg kicked out of the fog.
This new attacker slammed a steel-toed boot against my side. Ribs cracked. A second appeared and kicked before I could get to my feet.
“An abandoned female mutt—you’re clearly anabominationwho was abandoned for a reason. Our Houses taught us how to deal with defects like you,” he snarled.
A third joined.
Thunder boomed.
Nyx lunged off my neck.Thwack.Her weight slammed down against my chest.
I stopped feeling the blows—didn’t notice my blood spraying across their shins—as panic filled me.
Rain poured harder.
“NYX!” I screamed as I grabbed at her invisible body. She was icy and limp in my arms.
No. No. No. No. No. No.
The feeling inside my chest was overwhelming.
I shrieked like an animal and clawed with my nails at the legs of the beasts who’d hurt Nyx. My arm cracked as a boot hit it, and I didn’t care.
NYX!
Scrambling, grappling, screaming, I clawed at the men with my remaining nails—tore their skin off their bones as they swore and tried to shake me off. Lunging forward, I bit them with my teeth.
Their blows did nothing, because Iknewhow to take a beating.
One of them slipped and fell. I threw myself to my feet and lunged after them. They scrambled back.
Three against one.
They hurt Nyx. She’s always been there. Curled around me in a cardboard box.
