Contents
Chapter 26: Changing Beasts
Overview
Escorted beneath the coliseum, Alexis and allies are locked in cells while Olympians cite Medusa as pretext. Patro offers reconciliation, which Alexis refuses, deepening rifts. Confined with Kharon and Augustus in a one-bed cell, Alexis faces crisis when Fluffy Jr collapses; Augustus suspects a tumor, but Alexis believes he is molting.
Summary
Olympian guards march Alexis and the others down into the coliseum’s catacombs, citing Medusa’s threat and warning that escape equals treason. Non-competitors Charlie and Helen are locked up anyway, signaling a political show of force. Drex, Agatha, and Hermos are also caged, and tension simmers as heirs and guards posture.
Patro invites Alexis to share his and Achilles’s room to talk and defuse hostilities. Remembering their abandonment, Alexis declines. Patro’s façade cracks into hurt and anger; Achilles glares at Alexis. Patro storms into their cell, closing the door on further reconciliation.
Vorex of House Poseidon, a familiar heir, urges compliance, and Alexis enters a cramped stone room with Kharon and Augustus. The door is chained, revealing they are effectively prisoners. Inside, there is only one bed, forcing an uncomfortable intimacy among the bonded trio.
Before they can set ground rules, Fluffy Jr convulses and collapses. Alexis panics, searching for injuries, and finds a quivering lump along his spine. Augustus, grim, suggests a tumor; Kharon urges acceptance. Desperate, Alexis demands alternatives, and Augustus mentions rare “molting” seen in powerful beasts, though he doubts it applies here.
Clinging to her bond and Fluffy Jr’s lingering strength, Alexis rejects the tumor diagnosis and decides he is changing, not dying. As Nyx and Poco comfort the beast, Alexis, still hopeful, proposes sleeping in the bathtub to avoid the single-bed situation—only for Kharon to refuse, leaving their confinement and personal tensions unresolved.
Who Appears
- AlexisPOV; imprisoned below the coliseum; refuses Patro’s overture; trapped with Kharon and Augustus; defends Fluffy Jr’s molting theory.
- KharonProtective husband; clashes with guards; doubts molting, suspects tumor; refuses Alexis sleeping arrangement.
- AugustusHusband; threatens guards; identifies possible tumor but mentions rare beast molting; balances anger with restraint.
- PatroOffers Alexis a place to talk; rejected; reacts hurt and bitter, escalating rift; shelters with Achilles.
- AchillesStands with Patro; glares at Alexis; leaves with Patro to their cell, deepening factional divide.
- Fluffy Jr.Alexis’s protector; collapses with spinal lump; possible tumor versus rare molting transformation.
- VorexPoseidon heir guard; recognizes Alexis; enforces orders while cowed by Chthonic power.
- CharlieNon-competitor jailed with Helen; protected by Augustus’s threats; symbolizes Olympian overreach.
- HelenNon-competitor imprisoned with Charlie; caught in political show of force.
- DrexAlly caged separately; worried for the group; accompanied by Toucey.
- AgathaFlirtatious ally; enters her cell nonchalantly, easing tension with bravado.
- HermosAlly accompanying Agatha; resigned to confinement, provides sardonic counterpoint.
- NyxSerpent companion; coils around Fluffy Jr. in comfort during his collapse.
- PocoCompanion that soothes Fluffy Jr., underscoring group’s care for the beast.