The Battle for Sanctuary: The Titan's Legacy: Vol: 2 (Volume 2) (42 page)

“
Maybe
not, bud,” Justin answered as he clapped his friend on the
shoulder. “But sometimes brains over brawn really is the
answer.”

“
Yeah,
right,” Aaron muttered morosely.

Maria
winked surreptitiously at Justin and suggested they find Julia and
Yolanda.

The two
girls were happily chatting away when Justin and the others found
them in the chamber of Tethys. The domed ceiling held more scenes of
war and peace and the weapon of Tethys, a silver axe accompanied by a
small shield, were displayed on the back wall.

“
Look,
I'd be much better using that axe than you would, Yolanda. Seriously.
I mean, I'm small but I'm quick and agile and...”

“
And
would throw up at the first sight of blood,” Yolanda replied
dryly. “Don't be silly, Jules. No way you could fight with that
thing. I'm older, stronger and I've seen a few things in my life.
Trust me, I'd do better in a hand to hand fight.”

Before
Julia could retort, Maria interrupted.

“
Guys,
fighting for real is different than pretend. It's ugly, messy
and...and horrible. I hope neither one of you ever has to find out
what it's really like.”

Maria's
somber tone got the other girls attention and Justin could see that
they were remembering Maria's battle with Medusa.

“
If
you say so, Maria,” Julia said, suddenly serious. Yolanda
reached out and gently patted Maria's hand. Maria smiled sadly.

“
So
where are Jason and Richard?” Justin asked, looking around.

“
Oh,
they said they'd seen all of this already and went back outside,”
Yolanda told him.

“
Let's
join them then,” Maria suggested and everyone followed her out
and into the main room.

As they
were heading for the front door, Richard and Jason burst in and ran
toward them.

“
What's
going on?” Maria asked. “What's the rush?”

“
It's,
it's...” Jason stuttered.

“
Fitzgerald!”
Richard said loudly.

“
Fitzgerald?”
Justin was stunned. “Here? But he can barely move. How can he
have gotten all the way here from medical?”

“
Because
he was carried by...well, come and see for yourself.”

Jason
and Richard turned around and hurried back toward the door; the
others rushing to follow them.

When
they exited the museum, there were several people standing beside the
fountain waiting for them. Justin stopped dead and stood there, his
mouth dropping open.

Mr.
Fitzgerald was there, looking frail and ill but his eyes were bright
and Justin thought he detected a hint of amusement on his face.
Borgen and Dhalena stood nearby along with the medic, Stabel, who
kept watching Fitzgerald with a concerned expression.

But
Fitzgerald wasn't walking. He was being carried. And it was the
person who was carrying him, along with his companion, who had caused
Justin to stare in disbelief.

Standing
head and shoulders above everyone around him, with a small,
ebony-skinned servitor beside him, was Prometheus. The Titan was
smiling benevolently at all of them.

Justin
managed to make his legs move and walked slowly toward the waiting
group. His friends trailed along behind him.

“
Prometheus?
What are you doing here?” Justin managed to say.

Before
the Titan could answer, Daemon, his little servitor, cut him off.

“
It
was my doing. Yes, all mine! I told him, I did. I said, how can you
sit here and let those brave children fight for you? Have you no
pride, no shame?” He looked up at his master and his voice
softened. “You've paid for your mistakes. Yes, you have. Come
out into the light now, I said. It is time.”

After a
fond glance at his servant, Prometheus looked at Justin. “He
was right, of course. For once.” Daemon began to sputter but
the Titan waved at him to be silent. “My brothers and sisters
gave their lives to protect our home. Cronus sacrificed everything to
keep the human race from destroying itself. How could I sit there in
good conscience and allow others to do what I would not? This is the
last bastion of the Titans, Justin. I cannot let it fall without a
fight.”

Looking
at his friends, Justin could see that they were as stunned as he was.

“
But
how did you get here?” Maria asked. “There was no
stairway from the desert level to the home of the gorgons. And what
about them? Didn't they try to stop you?”

Daemon
laughed gleefully. “I know ways through Sanctuary that even
Titans don't know. There was a hidden way through the desert to the
snake people. I did not tell you because when you left us, the main
stairs were intact.”

“
Yes,
thank you, Daemon,” Prometheus said. “As for the gorgons,
well, the death of their queen has left them in disarray. They battle
with each other for the right to lead. I will be surprised if there
are many left to rule over when the battle is done.” He glanced
with compassion at Fitzgerald. “We learned of Mr. Fitzgerald's
injuries from a servitor when we arrived several hours ago and we've
been working on a strategy to retake Sanctuary ever since.”

“
And
you have an idea?” Justin asked eagerly.

“
Several
ideas, Justin,” Mr. Fitzgerald said weakly. He looked up at the
Titan. “Could you put me down please? That bench there will do
nicely.”

“
Of
course, old friend, of course,” Prometheus replied and gently
set Fitzgerald down on a bench next to the fountain.

“
Thank
you,” the man said. He looked at Justin and the other teens.
“Now, we've made a few decisions but all of them hinge on your
cooperation and approval. It is you who will be taking all of the
risk, so please feel free to offer suggestions as we go. And don't be
afraid to say no. We won't think any less of any of you should you
choose not to help us.”

Justin
walked up to Mr. Fitzgerald. It didn't feel right for him to be
standing and looking down at the obviously sick man, so he squatted
down and rested on his heels. Some of the others did the same. Julia
and Yolanda sat on the smooth paved ground and Maria sat on the bench
beside Mr. Fitzgerald.

“
Now,
the first thing we have to do is get you up and into the top level of
Sanctuary. We can do nothing from here.”

“
But
how do we do that, sir?” Justin asked. “I mean, if we
climbed up from here, how long would it take us to reach the top?”

Mr.
Fitzgerald sighed and glanced at Daemon, who apparently took this as
his cue to answer.

“
There
are over one hundred levels above this one to travel through before
you reach the top level of the complex, young sir.” His tone
was almost smug.

“
Over
a hundred?” Justin's mind boggled. “But it took us almost
two weeks just to make it to this one, which is what, level five?”

“
Precisely,
Justin,” Mr. Fitzgerald said. “There are creatures within
Sanctuary much more dangerous than the gorgons. And some of the
levels are probably blocked off entirely. No, the only way to reach
the main level is to reactivate the water Gates.”

“
But
sir, weren't the Gates shut down by the renegade Titans?”
Yolanda asked.

Prometheus
answered the question. “Indeed they were. I have a thought or
two as to how it was done, but the means are hardly important.
Rather, we must find a way to repair whatever damage was done to the
Gates so that we can get you up there quickly.”

“
And
how do we do that?” Justin asked.

“
I
have an idea,” Mr. Fitzgerald said and turned to look at Julia
and Yolanda. He smiled at them. “It was these two young ladies
who actually gave me the notion.”

“
Us?”
Julia said, surprised.

“
Really?”
Yolanda asked.

“
Yes
indeed. It was when I learned that the two of you are both
descendants of Tethys and had been gifted with her talent for water
manipulation. I believe that is the key.”

Justin
thought for a moment and then it dawned on him. The Gates were
water-based, of course. So perhaps using the talent for water would
enable them to repair the Gates.

His face
must have given his thoughts away because Mr. Fitzgerald smiled at
him.

“
Justin
sees it.” He looked back at the two girls. “Alone, your
talents might not be strong enough to repair what has been done to
the Gates. But you have become used to working together and your
powers combined are greater than your powers are separately.”

“
So
you think we can..repair these Gates, sir?” Yolanda asked as
she looked up at Prometheus.

“
I
do, my dear.”

“
Is
it...dangerous?” Julia asked in a subdued voice. The Titan
smiled.

“
Not
at all, young lady. It involves willpower alone. And it can be
accomplished from this very spot.”

Yolanda
stood up, brushed off her jeans and helped Julia to her feet.

“
Okay,”
she said in a determined voice. “What do we have to do?”

“
It
is very simple, Yolanda,” Mr. Fitzgerald said and leaned
forward in his seat. He nodded at the fountain. “Use the water
source of the fountain as your conduit. As I'm sure you've all
noticed, Sanctuary is rich in water; it flows through every level. It
is all connected. We need you to follow the water pathways from here,
upward to the main fountain on the top level. I know you've never
seen it, but it should not be hard to find. It is the largest source
of water on that level.”

Julia
looked a bit confused, so Yolanda took her hand and said “Feel
your way into it, Jules. Remember? Like we did with the ice before.
You feel it flow and just follow it along.” She gave Julia's
hand a squeeze. “Don't worry, once we're in there, you just
follow my lead.”

“
Yeah,
okay,” she said and smiled tremulously at her friend. “You
lead, I'll be right there with you.”

“
That's
my girl,” Yolanda said with a grin. “Easy does it.”
She looked at Mr. Fitzgerald. “So how do we repair this damage
you were talking about?”

“
You
should perceive it as a blockage or alteration in the flow of the
water. It sounds simplistic but don't worry about it. Just use your
power to break it up, press through it. Make the water flow in the
direction it wants to flow in, without interference. That's all there
is to it.”

“
Huh.
Sounds simple enough.” Yolanda went over and sat on the edge of
the fountain. Julia sat beside her, still holding her hand. They both
took a deep breath.

“
All
set, Jules?” Yolanda asked.

“
Right
behind you, Yolanda.”

Both of
the girls put their free hands in the water. “Let's go,”
Yolanda said and she and Julia closed their eyes.

Maria
stood up and went to stand next to the girls. She watched them
closely, looking concerned.

“
Are
you sure they're safe, sir?” Justin asked Mr. Fitzgerald
quietly.

“
Perfectly,
Justin. Their combined powers are more than a match for whatever the
renegades did to block the Gates.”

Everyone
seemed to be focused on Julia and Yolanda. The teens looked anxious,
the servitors seemed calm. Even Prometheus and Daemon were watching
them intently. Justin stood up and sat down on the bench beside Mr.
Fitzgerald.

“
What
exactly did the renegades do to disrupt the Gates, sir?” he
asked quietly.

The man
looked intently at Justin. He seemed to be contemplating his reply.
Finally he answered, keeping his voice low.

“
You
may or may not have noticed that no one has mentioned what special
talent Hyperion developed.”

Justin
was startled. He thought about it and realized that Fitzgerald was
correct. He knew what powers the other founding Titans had except for
Hyperion. And his wife, Theia.

“
I
actually hadn't noticed, sir. But yeah, now that you mention it. I
don't know what powers he or his wife used.”

“
I'm
not surprised, Justin. It's not spoken of very often. You see, all of
the Titans developed their abilities to aid their fellows. Cronus, of
course, needed his power over earth to create titanium, to build the
servitors, to help to construct Atlantis and...” Fitzgerald
waved at the city around them “Sanctuary as well. Oceanus and
Tethys learned to control water to supply it to their city, to create
the Gates, and on and on. But Hyperion. Ah, Hyperion's heart was
always black, even though his fellow Titans did not realize that
until it was too late.”