A blind man could see that Maximos and Callidas were pissed about my choice to ignore their advice and commands and to go ahead and choose the role anyways. I couldn’t have passed up the opportunity to control the Laruas in isolation from the rest of Elysium. Choosing to be a gardener or a brick layer just to keep their approval would be shooting my side’s efforts in the foot. That didn’t mean I couldn’t try and brush things over though.

“I can help you more now. Help the Isle of Poros more.” I said.

“The Lord of Sutures has to stay impartial, he who trains and binds the Laruas to service does so for all of Elysium.” Callidas said. “You manipulating that would be in violation of the common trust.”

“Right, just like you bringing all of the new arrivals to Poros and trying to convince useful ones to become indebted to you serves all the islands here equally,” I said sarcastically.

“Are you trying to speed run making as many enemies as possible?” Callidas demanded.

“Of course not. Why would I want to harm or irritate the people of Elysium? We win by me doing this. Poros wins. I’m on your guys’ side, I have one of the most pivotal positions in the isles, and I won’t be wishing I was weak enough to be one of the Blessed who just drink and sleep eternity away. Put yourself in my place and be honest, given the choice between being someone important like a judge and the guide or being a streetsweeper, which would you choose?” I said.

Maximos and Callidas looked at each other.

“Point taken.” Maximos sighed. “This still causes problems. Puts the eye of the High Council upon us. Upon you. They’ll think we’re scheming.”

“So let them think we hate each other.” I suggested. “Your first impulse to what I did was to be angry, let them think that’s what you really are. Spread the rumor that you’re upset that I’m bringing attention to your movements, let it trickle through your people and find its way to your enemies. They already think you’re conspiring as is; every paranoid leadership thinks that of subordinates they don’t fully control, just give them enough to think I’m a risk to your operation.”

Maximos drank more Nectar and studied me. “The High Council’s informants aren’t going to buy it that easily. We’ll need more than words at dinner parties and memos.”

“Nothing like a good fight to sell a fake disagreement.” I said.

“What?” Callidas asked.

“Beat the crap out of me. Publicly. Chase me out of the Isle of Poros, hell, have Callidas drag me out of here and throw me onto the ship that’ll take me to my island of Thaxos.” I said.

“You’re serious?” Maximos said.

“I’m the Lord of Sutures, aren’t?” I said, smiling. “Give me some stitches.”

“We should throw him through the window of the courthouse.” Callidas said decisively.

“I like that window.” Maximos said mournfully.

“Throw me through the goddamn window.” I said, getting up and walking back inside. I put on a mask of a raged expression, pride and fury intermingling like volatile substances boiling over. I threw open the doors and stalked in, the remaining Blessed inside staring at me like I was a wild animal.

“Get back here and give up that role!” Maximos said, rushing in. I wasn’t sure if he was just a good actor or he was still angry about the situation, because he was really selling it with his voice.

“You think I’ll give it up that easily? And be a brick layer?” I threw back my head and laughed.

“We’ll make you give it up! You’re no Lord of Sutures!” Callidas said, coming in almost like we had scripts planned before hand and he had just heard his cue.

The people present seemed engrossed in the drama.

“Make me.” I replied.

Callidas stepped closer and punched me in the face, whipping it to the side. I grabbed him and kneed him in the gut before rearing my head back and then forward into his nose, crunching the cartilage. Maximos wrenched me away from Callidas and slammed me to the ground, driving his elbow into my chest. I spat blood and mist. He got up and he and Callidas started kicking my sides and stomping on my face viciously. I ensnared Callidas’s leg like a python and bit into his calf like it was fruit. He roared and Maximos crushed my sternum in.

The two of them kept piling on blows, Callidas getting down on his knees to pummel me over and over in the face. Biting his leg had probably been a step too far, but we really needed to make everyone witnessing my beatdown to be convinced this fight would be brutal to the point of death if anyone was mortal. The two of them picked my broken, slowly repairing body up and brought me close to one of the windows inside the courthouse. With my one eye that wasn’t swollen shut from Callidas Aezion’s fists, I could see the glass panes I was going to be tossed through. I agreed with Maximos, it really was a shame we were going to break them because they were a beautiful work of art, stained glass pieces forming a scene of the goddess Aphrodite rising from the sea on a seashell.

The two of them swung my body back and forth twice and on the third pass they launched me through the glass, the weak metal holding it all together breaking apart and the colored glass shooting out in sprays of vibrant shards. My face and arms were terribly cut and the abrupt halt of my momentum when I struck the ground dislocated my right shoulder. Callidas leapt through the gaping hole and pierced me with a searing gaze as he walked like a lion over to me like I was a wounded antelope.

“You want to be the master of the Isle of Thaxos so bad? I’ll take you there, boy!” Callidas sneered, grabbing me by the hair and dragging me across the ground. Apparently he had taken those particular words literally.

“Don’t come back to Poros!” Maximos shouted, peering out of the hole.

The onlookers cheered. Some of them kept focused on me as I was dragged by my hair but others were going to Maximos for the details of why the fight had started. Callidas made fast pace but I could still hear Maximos ranting about how I had betrayed his kindness and trust by stealing a role I wasn’t meant for. If all went well, the whole of Poros would hear of this within half an hour and the whole of Elysium would learn of the division within two hours.

Halfway to whatever dock he was taking me to, Callidas got tired of pulling me and picked me up and put me in a headlock.

“Good job.” He whispered to me.

“Sorry about biting your leg.” I whispered back.

“It was good motivation to keep going.” Callidas said, nonchalantly.

We made sure to look as pissed at each other as possible whenever passerby came along us as Callidas hurried us to a ship that would take me to my new holdings. When we got to the docks, he made sure to make a show of throwing me onto the deck and then spitting on my prone form.

“Larua! Take us to the Isle of Thaxos.” He commanded one of the white masked servants staffing the ship.

It didn’t move.

“Larua.” Callidas said, confused. “Take us to Thaxos.”

It turned to me and tilted its head.

“Yes. I give permission.” I said, realizing what it was waiting for. It was interesting that they wouldn’t defend me, but they wouldn’t take their master somewhere against my will.

The masked men got to work with their enhanced strength and set us sailing forth. Callidas and I found more comfortable seats.

“So what’s really going on with you?” I asked him.

“What do you mean?” Callidas replied.

“You wouldn’t tell me before, the reason you were near the gates earlier when I arrived even though you weren’t supposed to be there.” I said, fishing for information.

“I didn’t tell you then, why would I tell you now?” Callidas said.

“Because we’re on the same side. Because I just let you beat the crap out of me so that I can help you. I have an important role now, I could have gone to others instead of choosing Poros’s side.” I said.

“I have a smuggling side practice.” He admitted.

“Smuggling? In what?” I asked.

“Nectar and Ambrosia.” Callidas said.

“To Asphodel?” I wondered. But if so, Achilles would have known about it.

“No, to the mortal realm.” He replied.

If I had a drink in my mouth I would have spit it out.

“You’re smuggling the food and drink of the gods out of Elysium to the mortal realm? To who?” I said.

“To the Regent.” Callidas said.

“What does my grandfather need it for?” I said.

“I imagine he eats and drinks it.” Callidas said, scratching his neck. “Lots of value for both the dead and the living to consume it.”

I eyed him. “You’re not telling me the truth.”

“He probably doesn’t need it.” Callidas admitted. “One such as him is beyond its ability to improve or enhance.”

“So then what does Augustas use it for?” I said.

Callidas shrugged. “How should I know?”

I switched tracks. “You know a way out of the Underworld?”

“Obviously.” He said flatly.

“Where is it?” I said.

Callidas laughed. “I haven’t even told Maximos, much less you. I’m not giving away my trade secret.”

I let the matter go though I now had the desperate urge to pry it out of him. Where was this exit? Did Hades allow for the smuggling operation? What was my grandfather doing with the Nectar and Ambrosia if Callidas didn’t think he was using it himself?