Forever in pain.
Ash winced at the memory.
Unable to stand the thought of it, he headed for the door.
"Where are you going?" Artemis asked.
"To find Themis and undo what you've started."
Artemis suddenly appeared in front of him, blocking his way to the door. "You're not going anywhere."
"Then call off your dog."
"No."
"Fine." Ash looked down his right arm at the she-dragon tattoo that ran from his shoulder to his wrist. "Simi," he commanded. "Take human form."
The dragon lifted itself from his skin, shifted its shape into that of a young demonic woman, no taller than three feet. She hovered effortlessly to his right.
In this incarnation, her wings were dark blue and black, even though she usually preferred burgundy for them. The darker color of the wings combined with the color of her eyes told him just how unhappy Simi was to find herself here on Olympus.
Her eyes were white, rimmed in red, and her long yellow-blond hair floated around her. She had black horns that were more beautiful than sinister and long pointed ears. Her flowing red dress wrapped around her lithe, muscular body, which she could mold into any size from one inch to eight feet tall in human form or as large as eighty feet as a dragon.
"No!" Artemis said, trying to use her powers to contain the Charonte demon. It didn't faze Simi, who could only be summoned or controlled by Ash or his mother.
"Whatcha want, akri? Simi asked Ash.
"Kill Thanatos."
Simi flashed her fangs as she rubbed her hands together gleefully and cast an evil smirk at Artemis. "Oh, goodie! I get to make the redheaded goddess mad!"
Artemis looked desperately at Ash. "Put it back on your arm."
"Forget it, Artemis. You're not the only one who can command a killer. Personally, I think it would be interesting to see just how long your Thanatos would last against my Simi."
Artemis's face paled.
"He won't last long, akri," Simi said to Ash, using the Atlantean term for "lord and master." Her voice was quiet but powerful and had a singsongy quality that was quite musical in tone. "Thanatos is barbecue." She smiled at Artemis. "And I like my barbecue. Just tell me how you want him, akri, normal recipe or extra crispy. I'm partial to extra crispy myself. They crunch louder when deep-fried. Reminds me, I need some bread crumbs."
Artemis swallowed audibly. "You can't send it after him. It's uncontrollable without you."
"She does only what I tell her to do."
"That thing is a menace, with or without you. Zeus forbid it should ever go out into the human world alone."
Ash scoffed at that. "She's less a menace than you are and she goes out all the time on her own."
"I can't believe you'd unleash it so carelessly. What are you thinking?"
While they argued, Simi floated around the room, making a list in a small leather-bound book. "Ooo, let's see, I need to get my spicy barbecue sauce. Definitely some oven mitts, 'cause he's gonna be hot from being flame-broiled. I need to get a couple of them apple trees to make wood chips so the meat be nice and appley tasting. Give it that extra yumminess, 'cause I don't like that Daimon flavor. Ack!"
"What's it doing?" Artemis asked as she realized Simi was talking to herself.
"She's making a list of what she needs to kill Thanatos."
"It sounds like it's going to eat him."
"Probably."