The fire pit in the middle of the hall exploded. In moments, flames as tall as trees were licking up the sides of the building. Lemnians and Argonauts alike ran for the protection of the jungle. Heat billowed from the broken mouth of the hall, and soon the inferno had spread to the armory. The fire feeding her rage, Danae sent another stream of life-threads into the burning hall and whipped the flames toward the wooden statue of Artemis. It caught alight instantly, and the effigy began to eat itself, crumbling as it burnt.
Polyxo’s buzzard soared into the sky, flying away from the old woman’s hut. In the light of the fire, it looked like there was something metallic glinting on its breast.
Then a flicker of movement drew Danae’s attention back to earth. The hunched figure of Polyxo was stumbling across the clearing toward the jungle.
She walked toward her without hurry, her eyes cold and bright as stars.
The old mantis was crawling by the time Danae reached her, dragging a salvaged bag of potions along the ground. Her face was covered in soot, and she spat out blackened phlegm as coughs racked her body. She looked up as Danae came to stand in front of her.
“You...did this.”
“Yes,” Danae’s voice was hard as iron.
“On the beach, it was you who shook the earth.”
“Yes.”
The old woman grabbed her foot. “Please don’t kill me.”
She withdrew her leg in disgust. “I don’t drug and murder people, unlike you.”
Polyxo laughed. It was an ugly sound, muddled with pain. “You know nothing, child. Our men took and took until our bodies were broken.” She coughed up another lump of phlegm. “Artemis knows—she set us free.”
“Sofia said she drained the men, what does that mean?”
“You already know.” Polyxo smiled, revealing bloody teeth. “You reek of power. Just like her.”
“No.” Danae backed away. “I’m nothing like her.”
She became aware of screaming, the smell of scorched wood and charred flesh. She looked at the burning hall and was transported back to Delphi, to standing on the mountainside outside the flaming city as the horror of Apollo’s vengeance washed over her. But this time, the destruction was hers.
She turned back to Polyxo, but the old woman had disappeared.
29
Ash and Salt
Dawn wandered listlessly over the island.
Danae sat on the beach, looking out at theArgo. The mast had been restored, a new steering oar fashioned, and the ship’s hull was a battered patchwork of freshly stripped wood. Heracles stood beneath the prow, hammering the last few planks into place. The crew had worked through the night to repair the vessel, with the hero bearing the brunt of the labor.
After the fire ravaged the village, victory had come swiftly. Once revived, Jason regained command of the Argonauts, and at his order, they rounded up the rest of the hunters, executed them and piled the bodies on what remained of Artemis’s burning effigy. But it was a sullen and subdued crew that now carried the weapons, food and animal pelts they’d pillaged across the beach to the ship. No one seemed to be able to look the others in the eye. The fiercest fighters in Greece weren’t used to the shame that accompanied powerlessness.
By some miracle, in all the chaos, it seemed no one but Polyxo had seen Danae start the fire. The old mantis had vanished into the jungle and not been spotted since. After confronting her, Danae had been engulfed by a weariness that seeped into her marrow. She felt empty, like she was just a sack of mindless flesh and bone. Part of her hoped it was temporary. Part of her didn’t.
Perhaps it was a blessing, given what had happened.
Polyxo’s words echoed around her skull, taunting her.
You reek of power. Just like her.
For the first time, she wondered if she was more monster than savior. How could she ever hope to become the light that frees mankind if all she did was destroy?
“It is time,” called Jason.
Danae slowly pushed herself to her feet and wiped the sand from her dress. She’d changed back into her black seer’s robe. It felt fitting for what she had to do.
The crew set down their loads and flocked to their captain.
