The manticore was a creature only a god could kill. This was only common sense!
And yet, somehow, today a mortal had managed to do the impossible.
Athena wondered if even with the full breadth of her divine intellect, and eons of accumulated strategic knowledge, she could have done as well in his shoes.
She looked at him again —very closely.
He was mortal. She was certain of that.
Ther air of power all gods had was missing from him.
But then the strength he'd demonstrated during both his battles did not make sense. The speed was also wrong. The sharpness of his mind, and his impossibly acute instincts . . .
None of these should have appeared on a mortal body.
Athena realised with surprise, that she had been intently staring at Adam for a while now.
She realised that where there had only been cold indifference before, there was now curiosity and a slight reluctance to see him perish.
And this was even despite him being a variable that could end up ruining her plans!
But the change in her feelings wouldn't make any difference, for she had never been one for sentiment anyway!
Two times now, he'd turned defeat into victory under impossible circumstances.
And even now that he was injured to the point of not even being able stand on his feet, she still feared that he might be able to do it a third time!
For the sake of completing her plan and obtaining what she wanted, he had to die!
Athena looked to Echidna and commanded. "This time, summon one of the strongest of your brood—one of the godkillers. He must not survive the next fight!"
The godkillers were Echidna'a strongest monsters— a brood made by combining the divine remains of vanquished titan gods with her monstrous essence — and there were only seven if them; each one as strong as any one of the Olympians.
It was overkill(literally) of course, but she needed to be certain of the outcome of the next battle. This was also the respect she could give him as adversary.
And Echida indeed obeyed her words to letter . . . because the next creature that stepped out of the spatial tear caused a collective hiss to rise out of the gathered spirits as they all backed into their seats.
It was almost seven meters tall with a muscular, leonine body. It was covered in golden fur that seemed almost metallic, and rather than hair, its mane was made up of eternally burning, strands of living flame.
At the end of its tali, there was also an eternally burning tongue of fire.
A powerful golden energy shimmered around it form, intensifying by the second— the mark of divinity.
Nyx was already frozen when Asteria grabbed her sleeve and worriedly said:
"Master that is . . .the lion of Nemea!"
Nyx was briefly startled out of her reverie and looked fearfully at the lion.
The Nemean lion was ranked third amongst the seven god killers. It's teeth could tear through god flesh with remarkable ease and it also possessed divine powers of flame from the titan blood it had been created from.
Forget Adam, even the Olympian gods themselves —for the sake of their own self preservation— would tread carefully before this beast!
"Enough!" Nyx's voice commanded within Adam's mind. "Return to me immediately! You have no chance against this monster! None at all!"
In response, Adam briefly met her gaze then, slowly, he shook his head.
The color left Nyx's face entirely, and she felt Asteria's grip on her sleeve tighten.
Meanwhile Athena observed this interaction with a frown. She was not afraid of Adam defeating the Nemean lion in the slightest. It was completely impossible.
And this was not because she looked down on Adam, after all the things she had watched him do tonight had been extraordinary.
But the Lion was third among the god-killers. . .
Even she, as a fully realised goddess would approach it with caution and she was Athena, daughter of Zeus, goddess of wisdom and strategic warfare.
But then, why was he so calm?
He had seen the beast.
He had to know that the chances of him surviving this creature were completely nil, to say nothing of defeating it.
She'd run the simulation of the battle multiple times in her head, accounted for Adam's abnormal strength, speed, and instincts, but no matter how she looked at it, his chances were still down to zero.
And yet . . .
She watched Adam as he forced his body to stand back on the stage.
A strange light flickered within his eyes as he faced the monster.
"Lena, this beast has a corporeal body, does it not?"
"Yes it does . . .but . .. Ah! I see what my lord's plan is now, and I suppose it could work in theory . . . but bewarned: Based of readings of the creature's strength, if your attempt fails and it lashes out, you wont even know how you died!"
"Ah well, what's life without a few risks?"
After his exchange with Lena, Adam's eyes closed in concentration and he completely stopped moving. His shoulders were slumped and even his breathing was completely even.
And then, very slowly, he raised is right hand, palm outward, fingers open, waves of psychic force expanding from his mind and rippling towards the divine lion.
And then he took a step towards the beast.
For some reason the lion did not attack immediately, despite its burning red pupils being locked onto his body.
Adam took another step towards the Nemean lion, his palm still open.
He finally opened his eyes and locked gazes with the lions crimson pupils.
There was no longer any aggression in his gaze, and his posture was ungaurded and open. At this moment, he was not the least bit threatening, but the beast still did not attack.
And so Adam continued walking forward.
When he entered a space within five meters of the beast it finally reacted: A feral growl ripped from between its teeth as all its muscles tensed in warning.
But Adam did not stop walking. . .
The lion trembled faintly, but it still did not pounce!
The distance narrowed between them.
Five feet . . .four . .. three . ..
At this point he was close enough to the beast to feel it's power in the air: The scalding heat of its body.
The lion stared at him. Behind its predatory red eyes, there seemed to be no small amount of conflict and confusion.
When Adam reached out and placed his extended palm on the wide bridge of its nose, it did not resist.
Across the amphitheater Echidna had become enraged.
"Enough!" The Nemean lion was agitated by her scream. A furious roar rumbled in its chest and malice returned to eyes. It tensed ominously, preparing to strike . .
Then Adam spoke. "You willl not harm me."
And the lion stopped in its tracks.
"Kill him!" Echidna's voice became more shrill.
The lion roared and shook its head in confusion, It's burning red eyes shifting rapidly between Adam and Echidna.
A deep, distressed growl tumbled out of its chest.
But Adam kept his palm one creature's nose, their gazes still locked. His psychic force penetrated the beast's mind completely and left a deep imprint within its psyche.
"You will obey me!," Echidna wailed, desperately trying to call upon the deep bond she had with the creature as it's creator, unfortunately, her efforts bore no fruit.
The Nemean lion shuddered, every inch of its body trembling once, then It lowered its head in an obvious gesture of respect and servility.
Echidna went mad with rage, about to lounge forward when Athena blocked her path with an arm.
Adam rested his hand on top of the lions broad head, and the beast was still.
The throne room went silent.
"Impossible." Athena whispered incredulously.
Adam stroked the lions head once before passing his hand through its mane of fire.
The flame was hot and uncomfortable, but his enhanced body was capable of withstanding it.
He pulled himself onto the lions large head and the creature carried him without the slightest resistance, straightening to its full height, then it released a proud roar that shook the colosseum and rattled every seat.
Echidna let out a horrible shriek.
The amphitheater erupted into cheers and Nyx let out laugh. It was a bright, musical sound. Her eyes were practically glowing with adoration as she looked at Adam who was perched up on his new tame.
Besides her, Asteria also joined in her joy.
Never had she imagined that this outcome was possible!
They'd all felt helpless when Athena had made her cruel ultimatum. For how could any mortal stand up to the brutality of Echidna's monsters.
She'd been terrified when Adam had stepped forward, but she was powerless to stop it.
And then she'd been in awe when he'd killed the Hydra, and thought she was in a dream when he defeated the manticore. But none of that could compare to the shock in her heart when she witnessed the one of the godkillers bowing before him!
A beast that struck fear into the gods. . .
Kneeling before him . . .
She should've have known that he lover was the most special mortal in existence!