With one hand on the rock and the other flailing for balance, I recover.
Blast and brimstone, that could have been bad.
I take a single second to press my forehead to the rock and close my eyes, letting out a breath of relief.
“Olympus, if this is your mountain…” I whisper the words to one of the Ourea. Different mountains have their own gods, and I think we’re still in Olympus, so it makes sense. “I pray that you give to us sanctuary from…” I almost say death, but a tiny part of me knows that would hurt Hades, to pray to be saved from him. I don’t know if it’s loyalty to him or something else that changes the words on my lips. “From peril.”
Tucking my elbows into my body, I rest my palms against the mountain at shoulder height, searching for any holds close in that might work. I find a better grip with my right but am still searching with my left.
That’s when my plank moves in again. Now my heels are right at the edge. Anyone with bigger feet has to be on their toes by now. The others had it right. Just get off the damned plank. I turn my head, pressing it against the rock, and gasp. Something around Dae-hyeon’s neck is glowing blue. A necklace, maybe. His plank is farther out, too. He asked one of his questions.
I turn my head to find Zai is also standing on more plank than me, so he also asked a question. If anyone asks one more, I’m in trouble.
I need more plank. Quickly. My mind gloms on to the first thing I can think of. “Clotho?” I ask, not that I can see her. “Is my name Lyra Keres?”
“Yes.” Her voice floats around inside my glass cage.
Immediately, my plank moves back out, and I adjust with it. As soon as I’m steady, the small breath of relief I take pinches off, because I immediately realize my mistake.
Sure, the question gained me six inches and extra time. There’s probably a dirty joke in there somewhere. But Clotho’s answer told me nothing. Or did it?
True would answer yes. And Random has a fifty-fifty chance of answering yes. But False would answer no, right? That must mean Clotho is either True or Random. A tiny thrill bubbles in my chest. I figured something out, at least. Maybe this riddle won’t be as hard as I expect.
Just then, my plank scoots in again, and I panic. I have no idea what to ask next. And there’s not enough time to think. Fuck.
I close my eyes and hold on and try to block everything else out. What would narrow it down? If I was in my tiny office in the den, working on a spreadsheet, trying to figure out which thief brought an item back, what questions would I ask?
Before I can think through a plan, my plank suddenly recedes again, and off to my left a scream rends the air. I whip my head around only to have to catch my balance as the horrible sound of a body scraping down rock comes from below me. It feels like they fall forever before there’s an awful thud.
Then…silence.
38
Riddle Me This
After a long, pounding silence, my plank suddenly starts moving again.
Fast.
Until I’m up on my tiptoes.
And because I’m looking his way, I know Zai is one of the askers because he has more to stand on. The furrow in his brow and the way he’s still flipping pages in that odd book tell me he hasn’t figured it out entirely.
Can I trust Zai? Poseidon’s words rattle around in my head. But I am damn sure I can’t solve this alone. If, like the others, we worked together… But how?
“Zai!” I call out.
I don’t have enough room to kick at the glass. Hells. How do I communicate with him?
The memory of Hades’ voice whispers through my mind.
The tattoos.
He said they could be used to find out information. Can they…talk?
I stare at my forearm, and an idea takes shape. Hades told me not to use his gifts unless I absolutely needed them, but teetering over this drop feels like a do-or-die moment.
I’m going to have to risk it and try to work with Zai.
It takes some maneuvering of my hands above my head to be able to trace a line up the inside from my wrist to my elbow.
Just like for Hades, in the wake of my touch, the glittering lines form on my skin. My owl, panther, fox, and tarantula all blink at me, each moving as they stir to life. Hades said to think through their skills to use them wisely, but this one seems pretty obvious. Well, assuming I’m right and the animals are capable of communicating with people.
“Hey, pal.” I lightly tickle the owl, who flaps his wings. The sensation is like a rustling under my skin. “I need you to be a messenger to Zai.”
The owl tilts his head, round eyes trained on my face.
“Tell Zai if he promises to fly me down if he wins, I’ll tell him the question I already used and the answer.” Then I describe what I’ve learned. “And tell him I have two left if he needs them.”
My owl friend spreads his wings wide and leaps from my arm, becoming real and life-size as soon as he’s away from me. A twitch of movement catches my eye, and I look up, then press my belly into the wall of the mountain, stomach churning. One of the Daemones is outside the glass of my cage, gaze intent on me…and my arm.
But she doesn’t stop me or kill me or take me away screaming…so…I guess I’m okay?
The owl, not paying the Daemon any attention, swoops low under the glass, then back up into Zai’s glass cage, and perches on the book in his hands.
I suck in hard as Zai startles, bobbling, but he doesn’t fall.
