"Wow, today's training was intense." Brody collapsed onto a bench in Markos' courtyard that evening. Every muscle in his body ached.
"You did well, Brody." Markos sat beside him.
"Hermes seemed pleased with your speed by the end of the session. And your long jump was much improved."
"But not improved enough," Julia said. "Did you see Athena's champion?
He jumped much farther than you, Brody."
"Julia!" At that moment Markos' older sister hurried toward Julia.
"We need your help in the kitchen. The men are hungry."
"That's right." Brody smirked at Julia. "We're hungry. Go cook our food, woman."
Julia gritted her teeth. "I'm busy," she told Helene. "I'll be there in a minute."
Helene frowned. "Please hurry. We're expecting Hermes and Caerus for dinner again, and Father wants them to be pleased with our hospitality."
"You should go to the kitchen," Markos said to Julia as Helene disappeared.
"Hermes will be angry if you are not following the customs here."
"I'm going," Julia retorted. "But first we should talk about what to do."
"What do you mean?" Brody asked. "We already know what we're going to do.
I'm going to keep training until I'm stronger and faster than I already am.
Then, after I win the Olympics, we'll go on my victory tour before going home."
"Forget your victory tour," Julia said. "The passage could close at any moment, remember? We need to get home as soon as we can."
Brody shrugged. Julia worried too much. Hermes was a god, which meant Hermes could do anything.
That probably included opening a new passage if the first one closed.
Still, Brody was too tired to argue with Julia about it right now.
"Okay," he agreed. "So the plan is, I win the Olympics, and then we go home. Is that better?"
"Yes," she replied.
"Julia!" Helene yelled again.
Julia sighed loudly. "Coming!" she yelled back.
Then she stomped off into the house.
"She might be right, you know," Markos said after Julia was gone.
"Once the Games are over, you should take the first opportunity to return home."
"Why?" Brody stretched and yawned. He wondered what was for dinner.
"Because . . ." Markos hesitated, glancing around carefully, and then lowered his voice.
"The gods can't be trusted. If you delay, Hermes might forget his promise to let you go."
"Really?" Brody blinked in surprise.
"But don't worry too much," Markos said. "If you bring glory to Hermes through your performance in the Games, he might not forget.
In fact, if you beat Zeus' champion, Hermes will probably let you do anything you want, including leave."
Brody relaxed again. "Then I'll just have to win," he said. "No problem."
Over the next couple of days, Brody did his best to put the plan into action.
He trained as hard as he could, doing everything Hermes asked him to do.
Hermes was still focused on the running races in the Games, though he also made Brody practice wrestling and javelin throwing.
Then one day Hermes told Brody it was time to practice throwing the discus.
Brody had never done that before. "I'm really good at throwing a football," he told himself. "It's probably the same thing."
But Brody quickly learned that a discus was a lot heavier than a football.
His first few throws were a disaster; the discus landed near his feet with a thud.
"This is definitely not going well," he thought, casting a look at Hermes.
When Markos brought him some water, Brody stood watching Artemis' champion for a few minutes.
The other athlete was nearby, practicing his discus throw too.
"I get it!" Brody declared suddenly. The other athlete swung the discus a few times before releasing it.
"Here." Brody thrust the water back at Markos and then grabbed the discus again.
This time he swung the discus back and forth before throwing it, just like the other athlete had done.
"Excellent!" Hermes cried as the discus flew halfway down the marked course.
"Much better, my champion! Now try it again!"
An hour later Brody's arm muscles were aching.
But Hermes was beaming. "We're making progress, young mortal friend!
We might just turn you into an Olympic champion yet.
As soon as you've mastered the discus, we'll move on to boxing. Oh, and the chariot race, of course."
"Chariot race?" Brody echoed. "You mean with horses?"
"Of course." Hermes tapped his chin thoughtfully.
"Poseidon owes me a favor—perhaps I'll ask him if I can borrow a team of horses."
Brody was surprised. He didn't know much about horses. But he wasn't worried.
"I've done great at everything else so far," he thought.
"I'm sure I'll be great at chariot driving too!"
Just then Apollo hurried over with Artemis at his heels.
"You look happy, Hermes," Apollo declared. "I suppose that means you haven't heard the latest gossip about Zeus' champion."
"Gossip doesn't worry me, my friend," Hermes retorted.
"Not when I have the finest champion in Olympia."
Brody grinned proudly.
"The gossip should worry you," Artemis said.
"Zeus claims that the mighty Alcides is training by racing against the swiftest deer in the forest—and beating them every time!"
"That's right," Apollo added. "I hear that Alcides chases down wild boars and strangles them with his bare hands for his dinner.
And he once threw the javelin so far that Zeus himself couldn't see where it landed."
Hermes scoffed. "It's easy for Zeus to brag when nobody has seen his champion yet.
I'll believe Zeus' tales when I finally see Alcides with my own eyes."
After Apollo and Artemis left to share their gossip with Ares, Hermes looked less cheerful than he had a few minutes earlier.
"Blast Zeus and his bragging," he muttered. He glanced at Brody.
"But perhaps some of his tales are true. So you'd better keep training hard, boy!"