Alcides

The agora was crowded when Brody and the others arrived. Humans and gods gathered in small groups, most of them chattering about Alcides. “ Is he here yet?” Hermes called out. His winged sandals fluttered, and he flew up and away, over the crowd. “ Where’s the mighty champion Alcides?” “ Hey! ” Brody called. “ Where are you going? Don’t forget about us! ” “ Never mind, ” Julia said. “ We’ll never catch up to him in this crowd. ” She stood on tiptoes. “ We’ll never see anything either. ” Markos pointed to the wooden roof of a nearby stall. “ Let’s climb up there. Then we’ll be able to see everything. ”

“ Good idea. ” Brody jumped up and grabbed the edge of the roof, preparing to swing himself up. But looking back at Julia, he hesitated. She was shorter than he was; she’d probably never be able to reach the tall roof. “ Here, ” he said, letting go of the roof. “ I’ll give you a lift. ” He made a step with his hands. Julia hesitated for a second. “ Thanks, ” she said at last.

She stepped onto Brody’s cupped hands. He hoisted her up until she could grab the edge of the roof and pull herself onto it. Then he scrambled up and pulled Markos up after him. Markos was right. Brody could see the entire agora from the roof. “ Look, there’s Hermes, ” Julia said, pointing. “ Over there with Apollo and Artemis. ” Markos shaded his eyes. “ I see Aphrodite and Ares too. I wonder if Hera is here. Maybe she decided to stay away—to annoy Zeus. ” “ Never mind them, ” Brody said. “ I want to see Alcides. ” He flexed his muscles. “ I have to beat this guy. ”

At that moment a hush fell over the crowd. Then Zeus stepped onto the dais at one end of the agora. Behind him were two teenage boys. “ Is that Alcides?” Brody peered at the taller and more muscular of the boys. “ Hey, he doesn’t look much older than me. ” “ Who’s the other kid?” Julia asked. Brody glanced at the second youth. He was hanging back behind Zeus and the larger boy. “ He’s kind of scrawny. I doubt he’s an athlete. ”

“ Greetings, visitors and citizens of Olympia! ” Zeus’ deep voice boomed out over the crowd. “ The moment you’ve awaited is here. I present to you my mortal champion—Alcides! ” The larger youth stepped forward. Most of the humans in the agora cheered, while the gods murmured or jeered. Brody leaned forward, trying to get a good look at Alcides. Zeus’ champion was built like a football player. But Brody knew that most of his teammates back home would probably make fun of Alcides’ long, flowing brown hair. “ This is the mighty Alcides?” Apollo called out. “ He doesn’t look very mighty to me! ”

Zeus smiled. “ Fear not, sun god. Alcides might look mild-mannered, but he has the heart of a lion and the strength of an ox. Show them, my boy. ” Alcides nodded and looked around. A large wooden wagon stacked high with logs was parked near the dais. Hopping down gracefully, Alcides bent—and lifted the wagon over his head in one easy motion. “ Whoa! ” Brody said. “ How’d he do that?” “ So he’s strong, ” Artemis called out. “ Very impressive. But strength won’t help him win a footrace. ”