The bedlam in the conference room on the eighteenth floor rose a few more decibels. My entourage (Great Zeus, how I hate that word) discussed the situation, loudly protested the violation of our perceived sanctity, and rehashed the events of the night. I let them have their moments. I allowed them to do what I could not, namely lose control, show anger, scream, and shout. And people think it is good to be a leader.

Leadership means setting an example. It means maintaining the utmost control of oneself. It doesn't mean getting to do precisely what you want to do when you want to do it. Leadership means putting everyone under your charge first. Leadership means putting their interests in front of mine. Why would anyone want this job? I certainly didn't.

It took great restraint not to join them in their shouts of anger and outrage. They made the noise and I breathed slowly and deliberately. I concentrated on breathing as if it were the most important thing in the universe. I gave it more attention than I had given anything in a very long time. Control. I had to control what I was feeling because if I didn't, I would fly off to find Eli, without a plan, without help, and likely get myself and him, and by extension Ares and Bill, killed.

The fog around my brain lifted a little bit and I found I could actually think instead of simply reacting. I raised a hand and said, over the din, "Quiet down, people. You will all have a chance to speak. You heard the story of what happened and the conclusions Ares, Bill, Hermes and I came to. Opinions?"

The din renewed as everyone tried to speak at once. This would never work. I held up my hand again. "One at a time!" Next to Ares at the large conference table sat Mnemosyne, or Memory. She braided her golden blonde hair into a crown that encircled her head. Hanging loose it probably touched her ankles. Her sparkling green eyes danced with anger. "What do you say, Memory?" I asked her.

"I want to touch your mind to see exactly what happened."

"When we are finished," I told her. "I intended to ask you because I don't want to miss anything, any clue, that may be important. You will also probe Ares." She nodded. Mnemosyne is a Titan and in the Golden Age, her job was caring for memories. She could find the smallest memory in a brain and when she touched it, no personal distortion caused by perceptions and ideas marred the memory. She saw memories as if they were a movie in high definition. To Memory, everything was clear and bright.

Metis, my mother spoke next. In her, I could see my own eyes of pale gray and hair of pale red. On her, they appeared very striking. I duplicated my mother's appearance, except I stood a head and shoulders taller than her. "Athena Dear, I counsel you to wait." Are all mothers the same? Only thinking of my safety, I am sure.

"Noted," I said to her and then looked at Hercules. Big, black hair and a beard, Hercules would suggest brute force as he always did. No waiting. Just do what has to be done, and do it quickly. "And you?"

"With all due respect to your mother, waiting is a mistake. We need to act quickly and decisively," Hercules said to me in his deep rumbling voice that sounded as if he regularly chewed rocks. Very predictable and not much help from either one.

Next to Eli's accustomed place on my left sat Titan. Titan was Helios's brother and the one from whom the entire race on Earth took their name, although most knew him today as Atlas. Like Helios, his hair sparkled brighter than the brightest red sunrise and his eyes glimmered like twin suns. Where Helios's hair hung long enough to almost brush to his calves, Titan's hair hung in curls that barely covered the back of his neck. When they stood side by side Eli towered over his older brother by four or five inches. Titan spoke with a voice that eerily reminded me of Eli. "I know my niece, Circe, from old and from recently. She is obsessed with two things: power and revenge. Helios will be alright for a time, but Circe doesn't have infinite patience. I agree we must plan a strategy, but we must also act with haste if we want to see Helios alive again." Titan's frank manner of speech chilled me to the bone and I visibly shivered.

Hermes leaned on the conference table with his two front pig’s feet and said, "So, we need a plan to rescue Eli that won't get Athena captured or killed."

"But, we need Helios to tell us where Circe is holding him," Jason said--Jason, husband to the now-dead Demeter. No warmth emanated from his face. He turned cold as the north wind after his wife's murder by the very one we sought. Green eyes and short brown hair. Jason was a reckless and formidable ally, even though he was a minor deity with no defining ability.

"Maybe not," Ares said. "We haven't even tried to find him."

"I agree," I said. "Finding Eli is the first step. We cannot rescue him until we know where he is, anyway." I stood and gestured to Ares and Bill. "You two come with me." The rest of my entourage remained in the conference room with a collective look of puzzlement on their faces. "We will be back shortly," I told them.

Without being asked, Hermes trotted beside Bill, as I knew he would. I went back to the elevator that would take us up to the penthouse. I had to know if we could locate Eli. It didn't seem conceivable that Circe would steal him away and not let us know where to find him. Still, I preferred to look for him on my timetable and not on hers. We four stepped into the lobby of the penthouse that was my new home.

"Okay," I began. "We will go out to the balcony and start this show." I walked in that direction. "Hermes, you need to interfere only if we get into trouble, and then you will bring us back here. Understood?"

"Yes," he snorted. "But, wouldn't it be easier if I joined your power partnership?"

"Maybe it would be easier, but I have too many people in my head now. No. I don't want to add to my confusion," I told him. Eli, Ares, Bill Townsend, and I had created a power group without realizing the implications when it happened. We created the group to find and destroy Phobos because we thought he was the one who murdered several people in Hampton Roads, recently. We discovered it was Eli's daughter, Circe, instead, but only after we had created the power group. Once done, it couldn't be undone. Hermes' face fell with disappointment. He and Bill formed a special bond on their own and he was eager to explore that relationship even closer.

I nodded toward Ares and he took that as a signal to start our search. I stood before him and looked deeply into his eyes. I considered my brother. He stood as tall as Eli at six inches over six feet and I had to look up at him. His obsidian hair hung nearly to his waist in rippling waves and his eyes burned like two coals. His weathered skin told the story of his years upon years on the field of battle. Other than his eyes, he more closely resembled Zeus, our father, than any other. Those eyes captured my attention and I felt his mind moving inside mine, tearing down barriers that I always held in place to protect myself from the insurgence of thoughts from others. And to keep others away from my innermost thoughts.

Within seconds, my mind opened to him and we merged into a single creature. I held a hand toward Bill and averted my eyes away from Ares's dark, dark ones. Bill's eyes were light brown like a puppy's eyes and his short dark blonde hair refused to be tamed. If Ares was tall, Bill was taller by five inches. I strained my neck to keep his eyes locked with mine. Still, Ares outweighed Bill by at least 50 pounds. Scarecrow Bill always looked like he needed to eat more.

I felt Bill enter our power center and each of us settled into our comfortable nest. Each time we joined our power, it became easier and easier to accomplish, unlike the first time, when we created a tornado in my dining room. A moment later, I gave Ares the mental signal and we flew away from the balcony. Flying, in a metaphysical sense, and not really flying. Anyone watching us would see three people standing in a circle, holding hands and apparently not moving.

In reality, Norfolk stretched out below our feet as we sought the magic that Circe created. I knew what it looked like because I felt and saw her magic more than once, recently. A magic signature is as individual as a fingerprint. When I found her, I would know it. We widened our search to include most of the mid-Atlantic region and still no Circe. She could, literally, be anywhere on the planet and I would search the entire world to find Eli.

I felt Ares tug at my hand and I saw what he saw. Circe's magical trail hung like a green ribbon in the air. It alternately twisted like a coiled spring and straightened, leading us on toward her lair. Having found her trail, we traveled much faster. She dwelt in the south. Not too far. Not out of reach. Still on the same continent. The bright green bubble below us told me her location. It was opaque and we couldn't see the house underneath. Hanging in the air, we made note of the location.

The bubble of green energy was obvious. A small child could have located her lair. Circe was nothing if not cunning. I sent a message to my fellows. "This is not it. This is a trap." Even though I couldn't physically see Ares, I felt him smile when I uttered my conclusion.

In less than an instant, we were back at the penthouse. Or rather, I should say, we hovered in the air beside the penthouse. We searched the air high above the building and below, all the way to the parking lot. The bright green ribbon beckoned to us, but it was a false trail.

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Then, I saw it. Circe's magic did indeed leave a trail. This one more closely resembled a single thread of a spider's web. The starlight caught it and it glittered as if it were covered in morning dew. Just a brief span of time. Less than a second, less than a moment. But, I had it firmly in my mind and saw it as clearly as if Eli, himself, pointed it out. Maybe he did. Just because he wasn't in our physical proximity never meant he was not still in contact with us. I pushed our power toward him and he led us onward.

Eli still lived! To have that knowledge confirmed made me feel better by half. I followed him, dragging Ares and Bill with me. Lightening speed. Nearly instantly, we found him in a small house on the western shore of Florida. Circe built her house, her center of power, near water, as I did with my penthouse and as Zeus did with his home in the middle of the Sea of Japan. It was more difficult for enemies to gather power from water. Water formed a natural barrier between life under the surface and life above the surface. Water magic was different and only the water gods could draw from its power. A large body of water offered much protection because we knew Circe’s dangerous magic would never come from that direction.

The house was tiny, probably as small as my apartment over the bookstore in Norfolk, that is to say, barely nine hundred square feet. No other house stood within a mile in either direction. Directly behind the house, the wetlands stretched away to the north, east, and south. Circe chose well. Approaching from the land was nearly impossible over the salt marsh and approaching from the sea meant one would be visible for a long time before arriving at her house. The quickest way in was to transport and I surmised she had set up a number of barriers and false walls of power. In the dark, dark, predawn I could see some of her barriers as clearly as I saw the house itself. They glistened as if they were made of blue-green glass and phosphorus.

Eli was inside, I knew just as if I saw him with my own eyes. Circe bound him to a chair and covered him with a spell that prevented him from transporting away. She inhibited his metaphysical prowess considerably.

I gave the signal and we were instantly back inside our own heads. I knew where Circe held Eli. I knew she was aware of our intrusion. I knew she waited for us, alert and ready. I knew she would never make this project easy.

I stood for a moment longer, contemplating the journey we just made to Florida. We possessed more concrete information but that never meant we were any closer to rescuing Eli.

"So, we know where he is," Ares said to me.

"Really, Captain Obvious," Bill said. He was irritated, but not with Ares. "The bitch has him in that house, so we go in and get him."

"That's exactly what she wants us to do, Captain Obvious," Ares countered to Bill, his voice sounding strangely like Bill's voice.

"That doesn't mean we can't do it. I suggest you start trying to think of something, Ares." I said. "Let's get back to the others before the neighbors call the cops because our party has gotten too loud."

Back in the conference room, my entourage was somewhat quieter. Phoebe spoke before I had a chance to sit down. "Circe is powerful," she began. "But, we Titans are more powerful." The old prejudices still lingered. Titans always felt they were better than the Olympians. Would that ever change? Phoebe's hair was as red as Eli's and her eyes sparkled as if she filled them with blue glitter. Her skin was white as milk and no blemish marred the surface of that perfect face.

“Do we actually know how much power Circe has gained?" My Mom asked.

"Circe still lived after I took off her head with a sword. How many of us can do that?" The room finally fell silent. Maybe it was simply knowing you can do it. I was not aware of anyone, Titan or Olympian, who tried it before Circe.

"Leto, do you have any suggestions?" I asked the mother of Apollo and Artemis by Zeus. Where her mother Phoebe was a ginger, she was a blonde. But she still possessed eyes of glittering blue. Titans felt their blood thinned on Earth because many of their offspring looked more like humans than Titans. The glittering throng was haughty and arrogant. More arrogant than their Olympian children. That is why they tried to overthrow Zeus and their arrogance is likely why they failed so miserably in their attempt to wrest power from him.

"Athena," Leto began. She took a deep breath and then continued, "I am not given to war or to battles or to conflict. I am a Titaness of light, but my milieu was caring for the little ones, the young, the children. This is beyond my scope."

"Then, why are you here?" Hercules asked her.

"Why is your wife here? She is as non-combatant as I am," Leto countered.

"Point taken," Hercules said. He smiled fondly at his tiny wife, Hebe, who looked as if she were a teenager instead of a woman who was nearly three thousand years old.

Ares answered Leto's question. "You are here because Athena draws power from all those around her."

Ares, Hermes, Bill, Eli, Hercules, Hebe, Jason, Nike, Dionysus, and Ariadne formed the core of my power. I wasn’t completely certain yet who would hang on the wall of my throne room besides Eli, Ares, Dion, and Hermes. I wish Dad had told me how he chose the twelve great Olympians.

I pondered on the choices for a moment. Titan, perhaps. He was powerful and brilliant, not only in appearance but in intellect, too. But, Phoebe was the goddess of bright intellect in the Golden Age. Was she a better choice? My mother Metis? She was Zeus's counselor during the Titan War. Mnemosyne was a good choice, but so were they all.

Also in the room sat Bia who was Nike's sister. She was force, power, might, bodily strength, and compulsion. She and her sister Nike stood by my side, today, as my enforcers just as they once stood at Zeus's side as his. Calliope was Mnemosyne's daughter and one of the Muses who presided over epic poetry. She was powerful, being a daughter of Zeus, but she was still untried in my circle. Boreas sat among us, the god of the north wind. Lastly sat Irene, the goddess of peace. Was a peaceful solution possible, even with Irene in our midst?

Twenty companions. Twenty people to keep track of. The larger my entourage, the harder my job because they were in my charge and they became mine to care for and to protect. Already, Demeter died under my so-called protection. I wondered how many more of these would die before we were victorious.

Bia spoke next. "Why don't we all descend on Circe's house, en masse? Surely she cannot destroy all of us."

Ares said, "Are you certain of that, Bia? Circe killed Demeter from thirty miles away. She also proved she can kill more than one by the same method when she killed those eleven boys in the mall a few miles from here. That was a show of power and ability." Bia hung her head and nodded.

"Listen to me for a moment, Athena," Ares said. When he used that tone, I always got nervous. "You have a powerful group at your disposal. Have you forgotten about Phobos and Deimos? Eris?"

"What? Are you crazy?" I asked him. "They, along with ten others, are my prisoners."

"Yeah, I agree with Athena, there," Bill added. "You don't bust people out of jail so they can help the good guys." The Brooklyn in his bones grew stronger when he was stressed or angry and his accent, at the moment, was thick enough to stop a train. "You got some of the bad guys locked up and they need to stay that way. As a police officer..."

"Former police officer," Hermes interjected.

Bill glared at his friend and then added, "All right, all right. As a former police officer, I can't condone that."

Ares glared at Bill, not at all intimidated by Bill's imposing height. "What is Phobos guilty of, anyway? He didn't kill those people. Circe did,” Ares said.

"But you said yourself," Bill argued, "Maybe they didn't kill the latest victims, but they have killed tons of other people in their lifetimes."

"By that criteria," I pointed out to Bill, "All of us are guilty."

"But, we can still use their strength. We can restrain them," Ares said.

Bill shook his head, violently. "I still say you don't bust people out of jail."

"Have you ever seen The Dirty Dozen? 48 Hours?" Ares asked him.

"Movies. Movies. Not reality." I think Bill even stomped his foot.

Titan spoke from his chair, his voice quiet and calm, but carrying the weight of a race with him. "Now, wait a moment, Bill. Ares may have a point. There is strength in numbers. We can compel Phobos to help us."

"Titan," Metis said. "You may be able to extract an oath from Phobos that would bind him tighter than any magic compelling spell you can put on him." Then to the rest of us, she said, "What about the rest of you? Have any of you actually spoken with Phobos to ask if he will help us?"

"Mother, you are right," I said. I began to understand why she was Zeus's counselor. "We need to talk to Phobos and extract a vow from him."

"A word of caution, Daughter," Metis said to me. "The vow you extract must be of his own free will or you will negate the strength of the vow and he will bolt at the first opportunity. Create a scenario where he suggests helping you instead of you suggesting it."

I nodded. Wise counsel, indeed. "So, our next step will be to enlist Phobos's help. Ares, work on a plan while we are about our task. You are the greatest strategist that ever has been and I could use some of that, now."

Ares nodded and then said, "I have an important part of the plan in place already. Do you want to hear it?"

"Yes, of course," I said.

"The first part of the plan is, you go to sleep. I can feel your strength fading. You have expended a lot of energy this evening and you need to rest. You won't be any good to anyone if you faint away from exhaustion."

"But..."

"No buts," Ares interrupted. "Go to bed."

"Circe isn't resting," I countered.

"You can bet that she is. She is a smart one."

"What time is it, now?" I asked. I always depended on Eli to keep me posted as to the time of day. He always knew where the sun was in the sky. Without Eli, I had to rely on others. I may even have to buy a watch. I mentally shook myself. Even something simple as buying a watch would admit that I think Eli may not survive this ordeal.

"4:30 a.m.," Boreas said after consulting his Rolex.

"Everyone meet back here at 7:30. Bring a plan with you." I strode out of the conference room.