Chapter: 11 Battle of the Beasts
The forces of the Underworld had taken Mount Olympus entirely by surprise. The gods and their servants valiantly swooped into battle. Chariots and fiery weapons zoomed overhead as Tomas and Elsa dashed to regroup with the others. Cerberus barreled its way through the cloudy pillars, snapping its jaws at all who neared it. "Hephaestus!" exclaimed Zeus. "Ready my thunderbolts!" The blacksmith hammered away in his forge while Hermes flew over to grab ammunition. Zeus turned to Zi, "You'd best be getting out of here. Things are going to get monumentally destructive!" The god flung a bolt directly into a horde of minotaurs.
"Tomas!" called Zi as she and Benjamin squirmed through the crowds. "Where are you?" A minotaur took a swing at her. Zi rolled under it and launched an arrow into his jugular. "Keep moving!"
Tomas gripped Elsa by her wrist and led her through the chaos. They stopped dead in their tracks when on of Cerberus' paws stomped in front of them. All three of the beast's heads turned to close in on the duo. Tomas bashed the center head on the snout with his shield. The flanking heads snapped at him, only to be struck by Elsa's ice magic. "Elsaaa!" hollered Anna in the distance.
"Anna?" worried Elsa. She ran back into the battle.
"Elsa! The others are this way!" exclaimed Tomas.
"I have to find my sister!" Elsa shouted back before disappearing into the carnage.
Zi bumped into Tomas, causing both to stumble. "Thank heavens, there you are." she panted.
"Where's Elsa?" asked Benjamin.
Tomas motioned towards the battle. "Looking for her sister in that mess."
Ben gulped, "And how are we supposed to get through that?"
"Coming through!" cried Hercules as he soared down on his pegasus. He flipped over in midair and crashed into the enemy swarm with a thunderous punch. He picked up two harpies and bashed them together. "Let's go!"
"You heard the big guy!" agreed Tomas as he raised his sword and charged into the fray.
A lightning bolt zapped into the ground, electrocuting an entire line of minotaurs, reducing them to nothing but ash. "Anna!" called Elsa as she ran through the destruction. "Annaaaaaa!"
Back on the Crusader, Alek was still in a rousing discussion with Audrey over the possibility of Tomas being their son. "You have to agree that it is most certainly plausible!"
Audrey's glance strafed from Alek's to the children playing on deck. "It's all possible, Alek. I'm open to having a discussion when Tomas returns, just-"
Alek began to worry, "Just what?"
Audrey's eyes widened at the sight of a silhouette rising from the ship's port bow. A scaly arm began sweep over the railing. "Hilda! Herfinn! Get out of there!" The children panicked until a crew member shoved them to safety. He turned to face the gorgon as it climbed on deck. Despite her reptilian body and serpent hair, she was one of the most beautiful women in the land. From the moment he looked into her gaze, he was immediately turned to stone. Herfinn was about to look when Hilda shielded him. The children ran for cover under the lower decks as the gorgon pursued. A second sailor jabbed her a harpoon. She hissed with a shriek and locked eyes with him, turning him to stone as well.
"Hey!" taunted Alek. The gorgon turned pursue him. He immediately ducked under a table with Audrey and shut his eyes tight.
"That was your brilliant plan?" cursed Audrey. "How can we kill what we can't see?!"
"I don't see you coming up with anything," he jeered.
"I don't see you. Period!" She kept her eyes shut as the Gorgon gripped each by the throat.
"Do you know who I am?" she hissed as the two remained silent. "I am Medusa. Your reckoning. Your...demissssse." She tightened her grip on their necks. "Tell me...Why will you not open your eyes? I am very beautiful. One may even say, the mosssst beautiful." She whispered in Alek's ear as her serpents slithered around his face.
"Leave him alone!" choked Audrey.
"Or what?" Medusa laughed.
"Or this!" A sailor exclaimed before jamming his spear into her tail. Medusa recoiled and attacked him. Alek and Audrey regained their breath while watching her decimate the sailors and turn them to stone.
Alek urged, "Audrey, get to Hilda and Herfinn. I'm going to help our men before this ship becomes a statue gallery."
"Not without me you're not!"
"Audrey, there isn't much time. Protect the kids. They need you." He aggressively kissed her lips before charging over. Alek readied his sword and slashed at her tail before diving into cover. He buried his face in his hands as she slithered by.
Alek could hear one of his sailor's plead, "No...Please...Noooo!" His petrified body smashed against the deck, and fragments of stone crumbled everywhere around.
Infuriated by this sight, Alek stood tall with his eyes shut. "Leave them be, you bitch! Take me! I am the captain after all!" Medusa slithered after him, and Alek dashed for the mast. He began to climb it, his eyes squinting tighter with each sound of her closing in.
Audrey traveled into the ship until she found Hilda and Herfinn trembling behind a crate. "It's just me," she said before crouching in front of them. She drew her sword and kept it pointed at the stairs. "No matter what happens...no matter what you hear...keep your eyes shut. Do you understand?" The children nodded before quickly covering their faces.
"Herfinn!Close your eyes!" intoned his big sister.
"I...I..." Herfinn was much to terrified to keep back his jitters.
"Here," Audrey removed the velvet sash from her captain's coat and handed it to Hilda, who proceeded to blind Herfinn.
Alek reached the top of the mast and furiously swung his sword. He could feel his panic rising within. "Come on!" he called. "You want me? Come and get me!" He heard Medusa inching up behind him, and sprung his trap. With a swipe of his sword, he snapped the fastenings on the mast, causing the sail to drop and wrap itself around her. "Gotcha!" He watched as the sail encased the beast and fell towards the sea. It was then that Alek realized part of the sail had entangled itself around his ankle. "Oh...sh-" was all he could say before being dragged overboard with her.