New Olympus Saga (Book 1): Armageddon Girl Read Online Free PDF

life to save you.”
    New pain and discomfort. Someone was
taking the duct tape off her. It felt just the way she imagined duct tape would
feel coming off her skin, except more painful. Her hair! “Can you tell your
friend to watch the hair? ‘Cause he’s pulling my hair worse than Ellen Weathersby
did back in sixth grade.” The tape coming off her eyelids was the worst. “Son
of a bee! That hurt!”
    “I can’t contact him while I’m here with
you, unfortunately,” Cassandra said. “But now you are safe, at least for the
time being.”
    She could feel herself being wrapped up
in a blanket, and whoever was carrying her off was being a lot gentler than the
previous bunch. Knight in shining armor rescue fantasies annoyed her, but they
were better than nightmares about being victimized by maniacs.
    “Okay, so I pass the test and I’m the
Chosen One and all that good stuff. What now? Do I get to go on a quest to find
the Golden Dildo of Gondor or something?” Among all the fear and bewilderment,
a brief flash of excitement poked through. A quest? That would actually be, really,
really, wicked cool.
    The delusions have become so strong the
patient may never lead a normal life…
    Screw you, imaginary shrink! I’m off to
find the Golden Dildo of Gondor and stick it down the nearest Crack of Doom!
    Cassandra said nothing, but Christine got
the feeling the blind woman could hear her inner dialog just fine. Stupid dream
know-it-alls.
    “You will see, my dear. It’s going to be
a difficult time for you. Try to keep in mind you are stronger than you think.”
    “That should have been ‘Stronger than
think you are, remember you must try.’ And you should be green and about two
feet shorter,” Christine replied, surprising herself. Smart comebacks weren’t
her thing; she could think of smart comebacks, but usually minutes or hours
after the actual conversations when the comebacks would have been relevant. Her
dream self was quicker on her mental feet, apparently. And sassier. She’d
always wanted to be sassy and had never made it past awkward and
unintentionally funny.
    “Sleep now, Christine.”
    And sleep she did.
     
     

 
    The Freedom Legion
     
    Atlantic Headquarters, March 13, 2013
    It once had been an insignificant island
in the Caribbean, somewhere off the coast of Haiti. Now it glittered with half
a dozen skyscrapers, a permanent population of over ten thousand people, two
universities, and one of the most sophisticated communication and sensor
networks on the planet. Overlooking it all was a neoclassic monstrosity on a
hill. It loosely resembled the Parthenon but was many times larger; the
structure had been called ‘the mother of all city halls.’ The huge building was
the Western Hemisphere's headquarters for the Freedom Legion. Freedom Island
was a living symbol of the greatest accomplishments of humanity and
parahumanity, working together for the welfare of all. At least that was what
all the brochures said. He even believed it on his good days.
    Watching from the viewing room on top of
the tallest building on the island, the hero of the ages took it all in. After
a while he closed his eyes and vividly recalled the ground-breaking ceremony,
back in 1953. Europe was still recovering from the war, and the world was still
struggling with the war’s aftermath. The theme of the ceremony had been ‘Never
Again.’ Never again would the good people of the world allow the horrors of the
previous two decades to be unleashed on the helpless and innocent. The Freedom
Legion would be beholden to no nation or vested interest. It would be a truly
transnational organization dedicated to the benefit of the entire planet. In
his mind’s eye he saw the gathered leaders and dignitaries of all the great
powers. Winston Churchill, who had just regained his seat as Prime Minister,
watched the proceedings with a jaundiced eye. Dwight Eisenhower’s smile was
forced and stiff, and Chiang Kai-shek had not bothered to