I hissed soundlessly.
Fuck it.
I had more power than any Olympian. It was probably time for me to own my Titan heritage if I ever wanted to fend off all my foes.
I summoned my power, and an invisible flame burst out of me.
I nearly cried in joy. I’d managed to cloak my flame, so no one could detect my power source. My flame incinerated the vines around my neck, and they turned to ash and dropped from my skin.
Demetra screamed as I burned her power source.
“Stop, Marigold!” Murphy stared at me in shock. He hadn’t expected me to turn the tide like that. “What kind of power did you use?”
It had all happened so fast. But now Axel reached us.
“What the fuck?” he roared. “I walked away for only a minute!”
When he saw the trail of blood around my neck, he turned to Demetra. I’d summoned back my flame, so she’d stopped screaming. But she still cowered on the ground, glaring at me in fear, rage, and hatred.
“You dare to hurt my Cookie?” Axel asked.
“Marigold attacked me first,” Demetra said.
“One-eighth is lying!” Yelena shouted.
“I don’t give a fuck if she attacked you or anyone else,” Axel said. “No one makes Marigold bleed. Not even the gods are allowed to hurt her.”
The bystanders gasped at his declaration.
“It’s no big deal, Axel,” I grunted. “It’s just a stupid catfight.”
He raised his foot and kicked Demetra, sending her airborne.
As I said, demigods only abided by their own rules and code.
“Demigod Axel,” Murphy said, “they were practicing. This is a combat class, so naturally, students get hurt. As future soldiers, they are supposed to—”
Axel didn’t let him finish before his fist connected with the instructor’s nose. I winced at the crunch of bones breaking. Then Murphy was on the ground, looking completely dazed and shocked and miserable.
Unfortunately for him, Axel had been on edge ever since the dark mage and his mutants had almost taken me. Two kidnappings aimed at me had put all the demigods in a panicked, foul mood. And now Murphy and Demetra had inadvertently offered themselves as Axel’s punching bags for his pent-up rage. None of the demigods, except Paxton, could stand seeing me hurt.
And all the demigods had horrible tempers.
“What did I tell you, Murphy?” Marie said softly beside him, but she didn’t offer a hand to help him up.
The students drew back from around me, returned to their former positions, and started sparring diligently with their partners. I could see that they all silently prayed the demigod’s attention wouldn’t fall on them.
A few hands shook as they drove their wooden swords toward their partners.
“Cookie,” Axel called, touching my neck. “I need to get you to the healers.”
“I already healed,” I said. “Her poison can’t hurt me.”
I was getting stronger.
“Marigold needs a better partner,” a silvery, masculine voice chimed in the air.
The God of War walked into the room.