Something I was missing.
The word “worthy” kept echoing in my head.
I went over to the large, circular boulder and ran my hand along the surface. It was dense granite, immovable. I couldn’t even guess how much it would weigh. Or what kind of strength a person would need to possess in order to roll this out of the—
“Demophon!” I said, the name returning to me in a rush.
Io’s eyes went wide. “Yes! My father constantly told Xander and me that story!”
“Who?” Zalira asked as she stood up.
“There was a king who buried his sword under a huge boulder and said that when his son, Demophon, was ready and truly worthy, he would move the rock, claim the sword, and become the new king,” Io explained.
Truly worthy.
“We don’t have a Demophon here,” Ahyana said.
“No, we have me.” And I knew what to do. “Come over here and help me pry this railing off the wall.”
My adelphia got onto the stairs and did as I asked. The screws holding the railing were rusted out and easy to break off with our swords.
But the handrail—it had to be Chalcidian steel, considering how bright and strong it was. I guessed that it was about eight feet long. That seemed like it would work.
“Lia, what are you doing?” Io asked.
“You’re the one always telling me that the goddess has given us everything that we need and we have to figure it out on our own. Can you take the railing over to the large boulder?”
While my sisters carried that, I ran to the center of the room and grabbed the smaller rock, lifting it easily. It was sturdy and solid, and would do the trick. I placed it right next to the large boulder and then took the railing from my adelphia.
“I suppose I didn’t technically figure this out on my own,” I told them. “Archimedes did. My father used to quote him all the time: ‘Give me a lever long enough and a fulcrum on which to place it, and I shall move the world.’”
They helped me put the railing into the right position, wedged between the large boulder and the smaller one.
“Now we apply force by pulling down here to take advantage of the leverage.” I showed them the end of the railing farthest from the boulder. “The lever will act as a force multiplier. Come help me!”
All five of us grabbed the top of the bar and pulled with all our might.
“It’s working!” Ahyana said.
The boulder was definitely starting to move. “Keep going!”
It went a few inches, and I told them to stop so that I could move the smaller rock close again and readjust the railing. We did this several more times, painstakingly slow, but groaning and heaving with all our might, bit by bit, we did it.
When the boulder was moved, it revealed a circular patch of dirt. I got on my hands and knees and started digging. Vibrations rumbled against my hands, and it reminded me so much of my first day in the temple, when I had been digging in the garden with Io as she taught me how to plant flowers.
I had felt a great pool of power, just out of reach.
And now I felt it even more strongly.
My fingers brushed against something hard. I brushed the dirt away to see the hilt of a weapon that gleamed a bright gold. I assumed it was a sword. My chest felt so light, my mouth gone dry.
Dea’s sword. This was Dea’s golden sword.
The greatest weapon.
“Is that ...” Io didn’t finish her sentence, sounding every bit as exhilarated as I felt.
My heart beat so quickly it felt like it might float away. I dug around the sword until the hilt was totally visible. I grabbed on to it and yanked it out of the dirt.
