It was one thing to plan an attack, but an entirely different matter to implement it.
Kat stopped them before they could span out and start toward the chamber where the tomb was. "I'm going to do some quick recon. Let's see if they know the seal is breaking and are waiting for us."
Sin held her hand for a full minute. He stared at her with every part of his heart in his eyes, shining there for her to see. "Don't you dare get hurt."
Kat grinned playfully. "You keep talking like that and I'm going to think that you actually like me."
"I love you, Katra, and I don't want to bury you."
She knew exactly how hard it was for him to say those words. The fact that he said them before so many witnesses...
Nothing had ever touched her more. "Don't worry, I'll be back to torment you before you can even miss me."
"You better be. Without you, I might actually manage to grow an ego-May the gods forbid." He kissed her quickly, then sent her off.
Kat changed to her Shade form to float through the winding caverns unseen and unheard. Everywhere she went, there didn't seem to be much activity. The demons didn't appear to be gathering their forces at all.
"When should we start rounding up the humans?"
She froze at the sound of a sharp, feminine voice coming from a room just ahead of her.
She approached it carefully, then peeped around to find Kessar and a woman lounging before a fire.
"End of the week," Kessar said. "No need to have them here any sooner. I hate listening to them whine and cry. Mewling, pathetic creatures."
Kat felt a giddy rush. He had no idea the seal was broken... Oh this was good. Finally, some luck for all of them.
Smiling, she took a step back.
And bumped into something solid.
Kat's heart stopped beating as she reached around and touched an arm. Please be one of us, please be one of us... She turned slowly, hoping to find Xypher or one of the others.
It wasn't.
It was a tall male demon who eyed her like the roasted turkey on a Thanksgiving's Day buffet. He shouldn't be able to see her, and yet somehow he did.
"Kessar! We have a spy in our midst." He reached for her.
Kat vanished instantly and returned to Sin and the others. "Houston, we have a problem. A demon spotted me and is calling for help."
Sin cursed.
"But," she added quickly, "the good news is, they don't know about the timer speeding up."
Deimos met Sin's gaze. "With any luck, they'll think Kat was alone."
Sin nodded. "We need to split up to keep them from learning how many of us are here." He turned toward his servant. "Kish, stay with Simi and Xirena and follow me and Kat. We're headed for the tomb to stop the clock."
"We'll divert the demons," Deimos said. "And raise all manner of hell."
"Thank you."
Deimos inclined his head to Sin. "Are we all ready?" He looked around at his brethren who all appeared to relish the coming fight. Letting out a blood-chilling war cry, he and the rest of the Dolophoni ran through the caverns.
Thank the gods they weren't on a snowy mountain top with all that noise. There would be an avalanche for sure.
M'Adoc put one finger in his ear and waited until they'd vanished. "I hate their dramatics... and the decibel level."
Then he and D'Alerian and M'Ordant headed after them at a much more subdued pace.
Kat looked around. "Where's Xypher?"
"He went to keep an eye on you."
"I didn't see him."
"That's because I was doing recon of my own."
They turned to see him looking pale.
"Where did you go?" Sin asked.
"Zakar. I know why the clock is ticking and you're not going to like it in the least. They embedded the lock in his chest."
Sin felt sick at the news. "You're kidding."
He shook his head. "I assume that whatever spell makes the lock work-"
"Caused it to accelerate. Zakar is part demon and god. The combination must have been what caused it."
Xypher nodded.
Kat squirmed at the thought of poor Zakar and the pain he must be in. "Can we get the lock out?"
"You can look, but I don't think so."
Sin's face was harsh, cold, and furious. "Kessar's paying me back for his brother's death."
"No," Xypher said, his voice thick, "he's paying Zakar back for helping me. Bloody bastard."
Kat put her hand on Sin's arm to comfort him even though she knew he was past that. How could a simple touch alleviate the pain he must be in?
"Take us to him," he said raggedly.
Xypher did.
Sin felt his face go pale as he saw his brother on his knees next to the tomb that held the Dimme. Dressed only in a pair of jeans, Zakar was slumped against the stone with his hands chained apart.
He ran to his brother's side. "Zakar?"
Zakar's face was contorted by pain as he met Sin's gaze. Sympathetic agony tore through Sin. He'd give anything to spare his brother this.
"You realized what they've done?" Zakar asked.
"Yes."
Zakar's golden eyes bored into him. "Then kill me and stop it."
Sin shook his head. There was no way he could do such a thing. "I can't kill you. You're my brother."
"Kill me, Sin," he said from between clenched teeth. "I'm not worth saving. End my suffering."
"No."
His breathing labored, Zakar looked at Kat. "Tell him, Katra. We don't have time to argue. The demons are already fighting the others and they'll be here shortly. I can hear them. Tell him to kill me and stop the release."
Kat hesitated. How could she tell Sin to kill his own twin? It would be the worst sort of cruelty-which was no doubt Kessar's plan.
It would kill Sin to hurt him. Out of all the powers she had, why couldn't she have had one to stop the...
Kat paused as an idea struck. "Wait. I have a plan." She went to Zakar to study how the lock was embedded in his chest. The sight of it made her cringe. Kessar had gone out of his way to make it as painful as possible.
Forcing the bile down, she met Sin's hopeful gaze. "Simi can pull the lock out and I can heal the wound instantly."
"Are you sure?"
She nodded. "Absolutely."
Sin cupped Zakar's head between his hands. "I believe in you, Brother. You stay with me and we'll get through this."
Zakar's eyes were filled with hope as Simi moved toward him. She seized the chain from his back. "This is going to hurt you a lot. I'm sorry for that." Then she jerked it free.
Zakar let out an echoing scream before he fell forward, into Sin's arms. Blood poured from his mouth and back.
Aching for both of them, Kat took Zakar from Sin and let him slump against her. "I've got him. Go reset the lock."
As soon as Sin reached for it, she placed her hand over Zakar's back and closed her eyes to heal him. She wouldn't have long to revive him or it would be too late.
Before Sin could insert the Rod, the lock flew from his hands.
Kat cursed as she realized her powers weren't working either. Zakar wasn't healing.
A feeling of dread consumed her. This wasn't right.
And in that instant, she knew what had happened.
Kessar.
Turning, she saw him standing in the doorway with the lock in his hand. "You didn't really think you could win this easily, did you? That you'd send your conspirators to attack my demons and I wouldn't know where to find you? For shame."
Sin ran at him, but Kessar slammed him down without even touching him. He did the same as Xypher tried to attack. "I have the Tablet of Destiny and you have no powers."
"Bullshit," Xypher snarled. "I stole it from you." He pulled a medallion from his pocket.
Kessar laughed as he held his arm up to show a small, identical medallion hanging from his wrist. "Do you really think I'd be so stupid? Had you really taken it, I would have chased you straight to the halls of Olympus to reclaim it. As I said, you have no powers now."
Xirena scoffed. "I got mine."
"And the Simi has hers."
But before they could even move toward him, Kessar stepped back and sealed them into the room. The sound of scraping stone echoed around them and slammed shut with a resounding crash. Kat ran at the door, but it was a solid slab of stone in the way that would take an elephant to move.
And it wasn't budging. Damn it!
Kat let out a disgusted breath. "I can't believe this. We're trapped in here, with the Dimme, while the lock is on the other side." She turned toward Sin. "How long till our powers are back?"
Sin looked as ill as she felt. "A few hours according to last time."
"Sweet," she said sarcastically, "and we have how long till the bitches awake?"
"Less than two."
She mimicked Mr. Rogers's voice. "Can you say screwed, boys and girls? Yes, I thought you could."
Sin ignored her as he went to Zakar's side. A muscle worked in his jaw as he pulled his brother to him and held him quietly in the darkness.
Kat wanted to cry for him. Her heart heavy, she moved to stand by his side and gently rubbed his shoulders. "I'm so sorry, Sin. I didn't know it'd turn out this way."
"I know."
But it didn't change anything. Zakar was still dead and they were trapped. Kat sank to her knees to hold him while he held his brother.
"Akra-Kat?"
She turned at Simi's call. "Yes, sweetie?"
"The Simi is going to get akri to come and make it better."
How she wished it were that easy. But her father was as trapped as they were. "I've already tried that."
Kish studied Simi for a minute. "Why don't we send the demons out to get the Rod and bring it back to us?"
"They can't stand alone against the number of demons outside," Xypher said. "They're two against thousands. It would be a slaughter."
"I'm going to get akri." Simi vanished.
Sin didn't speak a word at all. He just held his brother and looked as if his heart had been ripped out, too.
"I don't understand your moodiness."
Ash rolled his eyes as he stood in front of Artemis's settee with her glaring at him. "I'm not moody, Artie. I'm usually pissed whenever you're around. This is nothing new to you."
Before she could respond, Simi appeared.
Artemis curled her lip. "Oh get that out of my temple before it wets the rug."
"You don't have rugs," Ash reminded her, unamused by her attack on Simi.
"The floor then."
Simi hissed at Artemis.
Ash ignored the goddess and turned to Simi. "Hey baby, what do you need?"
"Akra-Kat is in trouble, akri. Them demons have her caught and she's got no powers. They're going to let the really mean demons out to eat her."
Artemis stood up and came forward, her face white. "What do you mean she has no powers?"
"They got this medallion that sucks all the powers of a god away and they used it on Akra-Kat. Now they're going to kill her."
Before Ash could move, Artemis vanished. An instant later, she reappeared. "You might need to come with me."
"You think?" Sin would tear her apart. But Ash needed verbal confirmation from Artemis before he acted. "You're releasing me from my promise?"
"Yes, now help me protect my daughter!"
Kat looked up as a shadow fell over her. Her heart stopped as she saw Acheron. "You're here."
Using his thumb, he pointed to Artemis over his shoulder. "Nothing like a bear worried over a cub." He frowned at the sight of Zakar in Sin's arms.
Sin laid his brother down as he saw Ash and Artemis, but to his credit, he didn't attack the goddess.
"What happened?" Ash asked.
Kat swallowed before she answered. "Kessar killed him. I was going to heal him, but my powers are gone."
Ash met Sin's agonized gaze. "Don't worry, Sin. You've lost enough. I'm not going to see this happen to you again." Kneeling on the ground beside the body, Ash placed his hand over Zakar's chest. Two heartbeats later, Zakar gasped as his body seized. He lurched forward, coughing.
The relief on Sin's face was tangible. "Thank you, Acheron."
Ash inclined his head before he took the rest of the cavern in.
"Can you stop the Dimme?" Kat asked hopefully.
Ash rubbed the side of his face as he considered everything. "I don't control the Rod. It's not Atlantean. Only Sin or Zakar can stop them."
Sin helped his brother to his feet. Zakar appeared to have a bit of trouble breathing, but he was alive and that was all that mattered. And with every breath he took, he seemed to get stronger.
Sin met Ash's gaze. "We need our powers."
Ash turned to Artemis.
She stared at the men blankly. "What?"
Ash's irritation with her was more than apparent. "Kat is a Siphon. Even weak, she can take powers. One of us is going to have to share with her and the other will have to get the Rod from Kessar and return with it here."
Artemis screwed her face up. "I'm not touching that demon. He's disgusting."
"Then you'll have to share a few powers with Kat... and Sin."
Artemis fumed. Everyone who knew her knew the goddess didn't like to share anything. "Fine. But who will protect her if you fail to get the Rod?"
"Simi... and trust me, I won't fail."
Kat wasn't quite so confident. "What if Kessar takes your powers before you get the Rod?"
Ash smiled wickedly. "I'm going to hope the Tablet can't take all of my powers. I should still have enough juice to do some damage."
Kat didn't like the sound of any of that. "Hope? This isn't the time to be hoping."
Ash winked at her. "This is a perfect time for hope. The more dire the situation, the more you need it."
Sin snorted. "You know something's going to go wrong."
"Probably." Ash's silver eyes were twinkling as if he relished the thought. "It always does."
Artemis folded her arms over her chest. "I don't like this plan. I want one where my powers stay inside me."
"There's no other plan and not really enough time to think of one." Ash indicated the tomb with a jerk of his chin. "You'll have a better time negotiating with Apollymi than you will with them. The only one who can contain them is Sin and he has to have his powers back to do it."
Kat gave her mother her best pout. "Please... we need you. I need you."
Artemis reluctantly held her hand out to Kat.
Kat smiled at her mother, grateful that she was being reasonable for once. "Thank you."
"You better be thankful." Artemis cast a hostile glare to each one of them. "All of you."
Sin wasn't quite so accommodating when Kat tried to touch him. "Are you sure you're not reversing this and taking what little powers I have left to give to Artemis?"
She more than understood his fear. Even so, she couldn't resist teasing him for it. "Guess you'll have to trust me, huh?"
Sin hesitated. Deep inside, he was terrified of touching her now. Kat could kill him. Not just physically, but if she betrayed him...
There would be no way back and he knew he'd never recover. He was more vulnerable now than he'd ever been before. All the centuries of betrayal were there and they wanted him to run for the door.
But as he looked at her, his heart truly believed she would never hurt him again. Not intentionally.
It's now or never...
His heart thundered in his chest as he took her hand in his and waited for her to betray him.
Kat closed her eyes and summoned her failing powers. She felt the small electrical charge that went through her as she sorted through her mother's powers to find the ones she'd taken from Sin all those centuries before. Once she found them, she let these from her back to Sin.
Artemis jerked back. "You're weakening me too much."
Sin was frozen as he realized that Kat hadn't betrayed him... more to the point, he had powers he hadn't felt in thousands of years. And it felt damn good.
Kat had returned to him everything she'd taken. Everything. He had his full god's strength back. Lifting her hand to his lips, he kissed her knuckles.
"Hey!" Acheron snapped. "If you want to keep that mouth attached to your head, I suggest you put some distance between it and her skin."
Sin laughed as he pulled back. "Sorry." He turned to Ash. "I'm ready to battle."
"Good. Let's do it."
He could feel the blood pumping through his body as he and Zakar, who was disguised as Sin, headed toward the fighting. The smell of blood was thick in the air and it permeated his head. He licked his lips in anticipation of what was to come.
The blood lust inside him was ferocious as it begged for a taste of what he smelled. It was a beast that lived inside him that was forever hard to leash, especially in battle. It craved nourishment, reminding him how long it had been since he last fed. He should have taken a small bite from Artemis before he set out on this quest.
But it was too late now.
He entered the main cavern chamber. The Dolophoni were still standing... at least all but two who lay on the floor. M'Adoc was in one corner, eliminating two demons with one sword stroke.
Ash met D'Alerian's gaze before a demon lunged at him and D'Alerian killed it.
Two demons moved to attack. Ash's incisors grew as his body was thrown into battle mode. He grabbed the first demon to reach him by the throat in one hand and slammed him to the ground, then spun to catch the other. The beast inside wanted to rip the demon's throat out. But he chose a more humane death. He shot a bolt between its eyes.
"Kessar!" he shouted, leading Zakar through the fray as he spotted their leader in the back.
The humor on the demon's face melted into disbelief as he saw Acheron there. He reached for the medallion on his wrist and held it up, then chanted in Sumerian.
Ash laughed as he felt his skin turning blue. "What makes you think that ancient mojo's going to work on me?"
Ash reached for the medallion, then cursed as it burned him. He'd forgotten that the emblems of other pantheons didn't play well with him. Not that it mattered. Pain was one thing he could deal with. Closing his hand over the Tablet, he ground his teeth against the searing agony of it burning against his palm and fingers.
It was sucking his powers out of him. But he still had enough left to do damage.
Snatching the Tablet, he tossed it to Zakar, then head-butted Kessar who staggered back.
Kessar let out an evil laugh as he caught himself and straightened.
A bad feeling went through Ash. "What are you laughing at?"
The demon straightened before he leaned against Ash to whisper in his ear. "By bringing Zakar back and handing him the Tablet with your blood on it, you just opened the tomb to the Dimme. Congratulations, Apostolos. You are the harbinger of Telikos... the end of the world."