Archive of Our Own

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Disclaimer: I don't own PJO/HOO/TOA

"Ahem," Zeus cleared his throat, looking around to meet everyone's gazes with a grim expression. Not everyone was physically present in the throne room, of course, but everyone at least had an Iris Message to represent themselves at the impromptu meeting.
"I am sure that everyone has felt the same stirring that I have also felt in the past few months," he began, looking serious. The gathered Councillors all nodded or stated that they had indeed felt the movements coming from the World.
"Yes, and Tartarus is being strange as well," Hades added from his IM. In the distance, a strange amount of noise could be heard from Punishment, even more than usual.
"What do you mean?" Hera asked, looking concerned.
Hades wore a grim expression, heaving a heavy sigh as he answered her. "Monsters are stirring, and Thanatos has disappeared. Spirits have been taking the opportunity to escape. My servants are overrun, trying to keep order. The Fields of Punishment are having riots. It's madness down here."
Akantha shifted in her throne, a memory floating to her from her Roman form.
Hazel Levesque, dead since 1947, had suddenly joined the living again. She had walked out of the Underworld, hand-in-hand with her Greek half-brother Nico, who spent a fraction of his time acting as the 'Ambassador to Pluto' at Camp Jupiter. Given the tragedy of Hazel's life and her horrifying but brave death, delaying Alcyoneus' rebirth, Valeria had said nothing, but she had granted her approval of Hazel joining the Legion. But the way Hades spoke, it seemed more than just a thirteen-year-old heroine had taken advantage of Thanatos' disappearance.
"My Roman son, Jason Grace, has also been taken from his home at Camp Jupiter," Zeus revealed. Akantha didn't dare to glance at Hera's shimmering image, nor did she allow her mind to go to the young boy sleeping in her Temple on Olympus. They planned to take Thalia and put the children in the needed places that night, after the Saviour of Olympus went to bed.
"I fear the worst is happening," Zeus declared grimly. "She is awakening."
The room seemed to darken as a ripple of gasps and hisses ran through the gathered gods. Akantha found herself gripping her sword so tightly that her knuckles had gone white from the force of her grip.
She had known it was happening of course. She had realized that the Earth Goddess was stirring in her sleep decades ago, when Marie Levesque was first possessed in the presence of her child before going to Alaska. But now it seemed so much more real. No longer a possibility, but a guaranteed certainty. The Giants were returning.
"After much pondering on the matter, I have concluded that our overly-active presence in the world as of late has disturbed Her slumber. As such, I have decided that we will no longer have a presence in the world. Not until She is once again deep in sleep, and after that, we will continue to be less involved in mortal matters."
Akantha realized that her mouth had dropped open in shock, and she hastily closed it. "My Lord, please re-consider," she began to beg, as the rest of the gods began voicing their own objections to Zeus' decision.
"Have you lost your mind Brother? This is the worst idea you have ever had, and you've had a lot of bad ideas!" Poseidon snapped from his IM.
Artemis rose from her throne, waving her bow in protest as she cried, "Father, no, what about my Hunters? They need me to guide them."
"Father, I'll go mad stuck in here, it's so boring and the concerts never have any new artists, or women," Apollo pleaded, looking stricken at the thought of being confined to the mountain for an unknown amount of time.
"Brother, please, don't do this, it's not the correct way to deal with Her," Hestia was as gentle as ever in her disagreement with the king.
"Father, if I'm stuck in here for the next few centuries, my messages will get so backlogged, I'll spend a millennia trying to sort through them!" Hermes looked on the verge of a heart attack as he waved his constantly pining phone in Zeus' direction.
"Rats!" One of his snakes, George, added cheerfully.
"ENOUGH!" Zeus thundered, cutting through the cacophony of complaints and dissent. He rose to his feet, glaring around at everyone.
Dread pooled in Akantha's stomach as she noticed the strange, manic light in her liege lord's storm-cloud grey eyes. Whether the others realized it or not, and Akantha guessed that at least some of them had seen the light and understood what it meant, Akantha knew the truth, and would warn them as soon as she could. Zeus had been corrupted by Her insidious power.
"I am King!" Zeus bellowed furiously, still glaring at them all. "My word is law to you all, and you will follow it! You have until tonight to make your preparations and return to Olympus, though Poseidon, his wife and children, and Hades, Persephone and their children may remain in their respective domains instead."
"Oh, thank you for your graciousness, Your Majesty," Poseidon grumbled under his breath. He fell silent at Akantha and Hestia's chiding looks.
Demeter looked indignant, no doubt having realized that if they were still under quarantine when spring came, Persephone would not be returning to her.
"As I was saying," Zeus gritted out, casting a bitter glare at his brother. "While you may leave to make preparations for remaining on Olympus, you must return by midnight and you may not speak to your mortal children, understood?"
The group nodded, and Akantha carefully spoke, knowing she had to word her request delicately, least she anger the enchanted ruler.
"My lord, may I speak to Chiron and Lupa, to alert them to what is happening? I have duties that they will need to take over whilst we are secluded."
He pursed his lips and pondered her request for a moment, before nodding curtly. Then he waved a hand sharply through the air in a diagonal motion. "You are dismissed. Remember, be back by midnight."
After giving them all one last threatening look, he disappeared in a crack of bright lightning. The gods all quickly followed him, Akantha heading straight for her temple to grab Jason so that she could perform the swap. She didn't notice the uncharacteristic look of suspicion Apollo wore as he watched her rush off hastily.

Lupa paced unhappily, a growl emanating from deep within her throat.
The audacity of the Giants and Lycaon's pack infuriated her. The Wolf House was sacred ground! And they dared to take it over. Four of her pack had been killed, several others were badly wounded and they had still ended up losing control of the House. Even worse, several of Lupa's scouts had reported that Lady Juno, the Queen of the Olympus herself, was being held captive in a cage in the courtyard.
And that didn't even take into account that Jason Grace, her best legionnaire and the Praetor and leader of her half-blood pups, had been kidnapped several days prior.
It was a disaster, and pointed to only one conclusion. The Earth Mother was re-awakening, and unlike the last few times that she had stirred, Lupa was certain she would not be coaxed back to sleep by the gods this time.
"Lupa."
The Wolf Mother of Rome tensed at the call and turned. As she had expected, Valeria, goddess of Heroes, Strength, Bravery and Loyalty, stood behind her.
She appeared to be in her mid-to-late twenties with long, raven-black hair that had a single streak of grey, done in elaborate curls with a laurel crown nestled in the dark locks. Her eyes were a stunning sea green colour and there was a faint scar going through her left eyebrow. She was dressed in a long silver tunic under Imperial Gold armour and sandals and there was a serious expression on her Roman-esque face.
In her arms, she carried a young girl of about sixteen human years. The girl in the goddess' arms had spiky black hair and a black leather jacket. She had a spray of freckles across her nose, and she was built like a long-distance runner, lithe and strong. When Valeria put her down, Lupa saw that she wore a pair of skull earrings a Death to Barbie T-shirt showing a little Barbie doll with an arrow through its head.
She had the scent of a child of the Sky God, but, more importantly, she had scent unique to one half of the demigod species.
"Why, my lady, do you bring me a Graecus of all things?" Lupa bared her teeth as she spoke.
She didn't dare to be more disrespectful than that to the elder goddess. Valeria was her friend, and more tolerant than most Olympians. But she was still an Olympian goddess, and expected to be treated as such.
"Her name is Thalia Grace, daughter of Zeus," Valeria replied. "She is the one who defeated Saturn last summer. The Greek demigods consider her their leader."
Lupa's eyes narrowed in suspicion. "That does not explain why she is in Roman territory," the wolf growled. Valeria pursed her lips, sea green eyes flicking briefly in the direction of the House.
"When she awakens, which will not be for some months I expect, not until the time is right, she will have no memory," Valeria continued in a low, hurried voice. No doubt she feared her presence being discovered by their enemies. "You will train her, and send her on to Camp Jupiter, as you do for all your children. You will not say a word of her Greek lineage, is that understood?"
"What have you done?" Lupa asked suspiciously.
Her thoughts flashed to Jason. Jason who was also a child of the King of the Gods, and who was the leader of Camp Jupiter. Jason, who had disappeared from inside his own house, inside the protections of Camp. Lupa had feared an enemy demigod managed to slip inside, but now another possibility occurred to her. Gods could come and go from Camp Jupiter whenever they wished.
Valeria's jaw tensed at the wolf's question, eyes flashing warningly. "I asked if you understood my orders," she replied coolly. "Do you?"
Lupa bit back a growl, bowing her head in submission. "Yes, my lady," she agreed. "I will do as you say, and treat her as if she is any other of my cubs."
"Good," Valeria nodded in satisfaction. "There is one more thing," she continued, a frown of displeasure crossing her face briefly before her expression returned to neutrality. "Lord Jupiter has declared that Olympus is closed until further notice. I will not return for some time."
"I see," Lupa replied slowly. She frowned at the announcement. It was both disturbing and illogical. Very out of character for the Roman King of the Gods, though perhaps not so much for Zeus. Maybe the Greek version had managed to influence his Roman counterpart?
Valeria cast another glance down at the sleeping girl, letting out a heavy sigh. "Very well," she murmured. "That is all I have to do here, but I still have tasks to complete. May the Fates be on your side, Lupa."
"And yours, my lady," Lupa bowed her head respectfully as Valeria began to glow.
Akantha materialized on a bus trundling through the Nevada desert. The Mist hid her appearance, and not even the satyr protector sitting at the front noticed her arrival. She adjusted her grip on the unconscious boy as she strode purposefully down the aisle to the back seat, where an elfin-featured Latino boy sat alone, twisting some pipe-cleaners together.
Unfortunately, the plan to have Aphrodite's charmspeaking daughter as one of the Seven couldn't happen. Piper McLean was not yet capable of accepting her demigod heritage. Apollo had warned she would die quickly if she came to Camp before she turned sixteen, two years from now. As such, they had decided to replace her with Akantha's own daughter Lena and used the Mist to keep Tristan McLean from following through with his plan to send his daughter to the Wilderness Survival School.
Carefully, Akantha sat Jason down beside the Hephaestus child and then turned to focus on the remainder of those aboard the bus. She called on the Mist, and began twisting their memories, inserting false memories of Jason in everyone save for the protector and the anemoi theollai.
That done, she turned to cast one last look at the son of Jupiter. "Good luck, Jason Grace," she murmured. "You're going to need it if you want to survive what's coming."

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO/HOO/TOA. BTW, Apollo will be OOC from his TOA representation. This is how I planned it and how the plot worked out, so *shrugs*.

Despite Will Solace, apparently a son of Apollo, assuring them that there was nowhere else safe for half-bloods, Jason didn't feel safe within Camp Half-Blood's borders.
In fact, he felt the exact opposite. Every instinct started to scream at him that he was in enemy territory and he needed to run away or attack immediately or else the armed heroes surrounding him would kill him first.
None of those demigods seemed like they wanted to attack him, however, despite the weapons all of them were carrying around. They all seemed much more concerned with the missing girl, Thalia, than with the two new residents of Camp Half-Blood. Finally, a daughter of Hephaestus named Nyssa took the newly-claimed (and obviously trying to hide his panic and bewilderment at the strange turn his day had taken) Leo to show him to their mutual cabin.
Luke had stomped off as soon as they landed, but a young girl about Jason's age had offered to escort him to Chiron, whoever that was. Speaking of which.
"Who's Chiron?" he asked as he trailed behind the daughter of Vale-Akantha. Jason didn't know why he kept using Roman names for things, just like he didn't know his surname, why he had a tattoo saying SPQR on his arm or who 'Reyna' was. But maybe this 'Chiron' could help him figure it out. Certainly, the rest of the half-bloods seemed to think he would have answers to his mysterious amnesia.
Lena glanced back at him. She had raven-black hair and tanned skin, and a horrifying scar that looked like something with claws had raked them across the left side of her face. Her sea green eyes held a look of pain and bitterness that contrasted with the gentle smile she had given to him and Leo.
In fact, now that Jason thought about it, almost all the campers he had met that afternoon shared the same look of haunted grief. Something awful had happened to them, and probably recently, if Jason was any judge. Not that he knew if he was a judge of peoples' personalities or not, of course.
"Do you know the stories of the centaur who trained the original Jason?" Lena asked. Her voice was tired, and he saw that there were shadows under her eyes and her cheeks were thin. Whatever had happened, it was definitely awful. Jason didn't think he even wanted to know what had happened.
He wondered if, before losing his memories, his eyes had held a similar look of grieving resignation. If he too had seen dozens of friends die and knew that it was only a short while until he joined them in Pluto's realm.
"How is he still alive?" Jason asked, forcing his increasingly morbid thoughts away.
Lena shrugged, turning her head back to the front as they neared the large blue house that seemed to be the headquarters of the Greeks' safe haven.
"He's immortal," she explained. "Or mostly immortal, at least. As long as he is needed to train heroes to fight for the gods, he will survive. He's the wisest person you'll ever meet, I guarantee it. And the saddest. He raises most of us as his own."
Jason wondered what that must be like, to see people you loved like sons and daughters die. He had already learned that Luke, eighteen, was one of the oldest demigods currently alive. Being a half-blood seemed like a very dangerous fate, destined to end as tragically as a Greek play.
They entered the rec room where Lena quietly informed him all council meetings were done in, and were greeted by a tall centaur wearing a troubled expression.
"Chiron!" Lena called for his attention. "We have two new campers. This is Jason."
Chiron turned, and his face gained a horrified expression as he laid eyes on Jason. "You should be dead," were the first words out of his mouth.
Jason decided he didn't like Chiron very much either.

"You're playing a dangerous game, my old friend."
Akantha jumped in surprise at the unexpected voice and quickly spun around. Standing behind her, looking uncharacteristically grim, was Apollo. His normally bright blue eyes were stormy, and his fine jaw was tense as he stared stonily at her.
"I am not playing any games," she retorted. She was keenly aware of the incriminating evidence playing out on the reflection of her mirror, hidden by her torso.
"Is that so?" Apollo hooked an eyebrow, frowning seriously at her.
It was a mark of how risky her and Hera's plot was that even the usually relaxed and cheerful god of the sun was glaring at her. Possibly the first time ever that she had seen his Greek form wear such an expression.
As that thought crossed her mind, she paused momentarily to double-check which version she was speaking to her. Yes, it was definitely his Greek form. His cheekbones and jaw weren't sharp enough for it to be the Roman one, and he wore a Greek chiton, not a Roman toga.
"Yes," she nodded. It was true, after all. Akantha did not consider this a game. Games were fun. The fate of the world depended on whether or not the Greek and Roman heroes could unite and work together. If they couldn't...Akantha quickly put that thought to the back of her mind, to be brooded over later when she wasn't at risk of being exposed.
Zeus couldn't find out what she and the Queen had done. Not until Lena, Jason and Leo had freed Hera and they began preparing for the coming war.
Apollo stepped closer, forcing her to lean back and crane her head to look up at him. Doing things like changing forms was a lot harder than most mortals would think, a result of having to constantly devote part of her attention to staying in one form. And sentimentality demanded that she not change the body from how it was when she was a mortal.
"You know more than any of us the dangers of the two sides of our children interacting, Akantha," he hissed at her. "It's why we wiped Thalia's memory, even after promising on the Styx to re-unite her with her Roman brother.
You would risk causing a civil war, now of all times! We need to focus on making Father see sense and re-open Olympus, but this will damage our ability to think, and our children will be too busy ripping each other and their opponents' homes apart to defend themselves, or help us against Her and her children!"
"No," Akantha denied fiercely, though his words dug into all of her worst fears. "No, that won't happen. That's why they don't remember, so they will be able to gain each others' trust and vouch for their camps. But you know as well as I do and perhaps more that it is too dangerous for them to remain separate anymore. Not when She is stirring."
"You were a mortal when She last sought vengeance for the Titans," Apollo growled. "You cannot-"
"I understand even more than you ever will, Apollo," she snarled back furiously. "As you said, I was a demigod when the First War was fought. I know what it is like to be a demigod facing their might, and I swear on the Styx, I know they will not survive, and neither will we. Not without both sets of half-bloods fighting alongside each other."
Apollo glared at her, but evidently he didn't know how to counter that argument.
It was not her words, not really. But the fervency she said them with. The fear in her normally calm and steady green gaze as she spoke of the might of the beings that she had died fighting to subdue. Suddenly, a thought occurred to him. It was a shocking thought, but so obvious he was embarrassed to not have realized it sooner.
"You are afraid," he said slowly. Akantha stiffened, face gaining an indignant, furious expression and as well she should. She was the goddess of bravery. He didn't think he had ever seen her afraid before. Not even when they were facing Typhon, who was as deadly as the Giant Army, though in a different way.
She sighed, her shoulders slumping. She stepped away from the mirror showing Jason and Lena speaking to a son of Hypnos named Clovis about Jason's amnesia. She ran a calloused hand through her grey-streaked raven locks. Unlike most gods, Akantha had been made an immortal, and she stubbornly kept her body exactly the same as it was the day that she died, scars and all.
"Yes," she admittedly resignedly. After all, being brave meant acknowledging your fear, accepting it, and having the strength to do what needed to be done anyway. "Yes, I am afraid," she continued.
"I am afraid to face the Army again, and I am deathly afraid that my and Hera's plan won't work and another civil war will break out among our children. I am afraid for Lena and Claudia, my only living children, and what they will face in the coming months.
But I am even more fearful of what will happen if we don't do this. She is too dangerous, and her army is too strong, for me to sit back and do nothing, as the king has ordered us too."
Apollo gritted his teeth and looked away from her. On one hand, he had always been firmly in favour of keeping their children separate from each other. Despite what they thought, he loved all his children, and wanted them to live long and happy lives.
On the other, he trusted Akantha, and he trusted her judgement. He sensed the truth and her own belief in her words as she spoke.
The plea she was making for his aide remained unspoken. It seemed to hang in the air between them, along with other words and conversations long left unsaid.
"Fine," he sighed reluctantly. "Fine," he repeated.
As god of prophecies, he had more insight into the future then most did until the predicted events came to pass, but even he had very little answers.
Despite that, he knew (but had denied it) that the Prophecy of Seven as the Romans had named it, called for a mix of both Greek and Roman heroes. He even knew who it was. The identities had been up in the air until just a few days ago when he had suddenly known who was needed for the quest through the Mare Nostrum to the Ancient Lands.
Jason and Thalia Grace, full siblings with different versions of the Sky God as their father. Hazel Levesque, a daughter of Pluto who was currently a probatio in the Twelfth Legion. Frank Zhang, a son of Mars and Legacy of Poseidon who had yet to even learn of his status as a child of a god. Leo Valdez, son of Hephaestus and a fire-user. Luke Castellan, Hermes' current favourite son. Lena Dare, Akantha's only surviving Greek daughter, her twin brother having been killed trying to prevent Kronos possessing the unfortunate Chris Rodriguez, completed the group of seven.
"I will help you, however I can," he sighed tiredly. He carefully didn't examine the feelings that sprang up in him at her dazzling smile of relief.
"Thank you," she gasped, grabbing his hands and clutching them tightly to her chest. "Thank you, Apollo. You are such a good friend."
He grimaced. 'Friend'. There was never an uglier word in any language, he mused to himself with a combination of bitterness and dark humour. Even now, after having dozens of children with various men and women over the centuries and with the man thrice incarnated and spending his afterlife as one of the rare few who managed to achieve the Isles of the Blest. Even now, Akantha still wouldn't consider anyone save her dead mortal husband in a romantic light. She had only ever spent the night or two at most with the father of her children.
"Jason will be leading Leo Valdez and my daughter on a quest to free Hera," Akantha revealed. "They are repeating their previous actions, and she is being held at the Wolf House. They will need a prophecy."
He gave a sharp nod, striding briskly towards the door. "I will see to it," he promised her as he left the temple in which she lived.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO/HOO.

The demigods were gathered around the campfire, watching Lena's cousin, the redheaded mortal Rachel Elizabeth Dare, expectantly.
Her green eyes rolled into the back of her head and purple smoke billowed from her mouth. Her voice turned harsh and grating, and a reptilian smell filled the air.
"I am the Oracle of Delphi," she rasped, staring unblinkingly at Jason. "Speaker of the prophecies of Phoebus Apollo. Approach, Seeker, and ask."
Jason swallowed, and walked over to her, hoping his expression didn't reveal his nerves or the exhaustion summoning the lightning to prove his heritage had caused him.
"How can I find and free Lady Jun-, uh, Lady Hera, Queen of Olympus," he asked, hastily correcting himself from Juno to Hera.
"Child of Lightning, beware the earth," she croaked out.
"The giants' revenge the seven shall birth,

The forge and pegasus shall break the cage,

And death unleash, through Hera's rage."

"Well, that definitely sounds cheerful," a son of Hermes muttered under his breath as the smoke and smell of snakes disappeared. Rachel slumped backwards off of her stool, and a pair of blonde teens with bows over their shoulders and blue eyes bent over her.
Out of the corner of his eye, Jason saw Lena's face go pale in horrified realization. She snapped her head around to look at Chiron. He too had a grave look on his face, but he shook his head at her, stopping her from revealing whatever conclusion she had come to.
"Beware the earth," Jason muttered. "I can't fly all the way to California. Especially not with other people."
"The forge obviously means a child of Hephaestus," Nyssa sighed despondently. "Seeing as I'm in charge while Jake's recovering, I guess I should be the one to go-"
"It's me," Leo abruptly said, standing up.
Nyssa frowned at him, along with the rest of the campers. "Leo," she told him seriously. "This is fate of the world important. You could die. You don't have any experience with this stuff."
"I saw Hera too," he insisted, causing a ripple of surprise and muttering. "And I can get a ride for us." He gave Jason a pleading look, and the son of the Sky God studied him thoughtfully for a few moments before finally giving a nod.
"Alright, Leo," he agreed. "If you can get us a ride that doesn't involve being ground-bound, then you can come."
"Awesome," he muttered. His skin had gone pale, as it sunk in what he had just volunteered himself for. "Shit," he breathed softly under his breath as he sat back down. His new siblings were giving him worried looks while his own thoughts raced ahead, planning how he would catch a dragon.
"The pegasus," Jason was muttering. "Isn't that one of Valeria's symbols?"
"Akantha, actually," Lena sighed and stood, drawing everyone's eyes to her. Save for the new arrivals, everybody was giving her looks made of concern, sympathy, and worry. "Valeria is her Roman name. Goddess of Heroes, Bravery, Loyalty and Strength. My mother. Seeing as I'm currently, the only one," she faltered, a pained look crossing her features for a second. "Of her children at the moment. It'll have to be me."
She looked drained and stressed, and a blonde boy Jason recognized as Will Solace, hastily stood to speak.
"Lena, are you sure?" he asked worriedly. "What happened last time you went on a ques-"
"I know what happened!" she snapped back, green eyes shimmering with unshed tears. "But there's no other option, Will. My mental health is not of comparable importance to the survival of Western Civilisation." She turned to Chiron and Jason, lifting her chin defiantly. "I can do this."
"Alright then," Jason exhaled. "Me, Leo and Lena. Seems like a good mix."
"Unless Lena has a mental breakdown half-way through the first mile," an Asian girl sitting beneath the Aphrodite banner muttered obnoxiously to the sister sitting at her side. Pretty much the entire camp gave her looks of cold malice.
"Shut up, Drew," Lacey, the head of cabin ten (chosen by their mother herself after Silena's death in the war), snapped angrily at her half-sister.
The other girl fell silent, an angry blush on her cheeks as she stood and stormed away in humiliation.
"Well then," Chiron sighed. "I think it's time everyone goes to bed. It's been a long day."

Images flashed across the back of Apollo's eyelids as he used his connection to the Oracle to see the future.
Or rather, the current most likely future for this particular universe. A lot of people forgot that Apollo was also the god of knowledge. As such, they tended to be surprised when he explained to them that there were multiple possibilities for the path the universe would take, and that the Multiverse Theory was in fact real. It was really almost offensive that people were so surprised to hear him being clever.
But the point was, what Apollo and his Oracle Saw, was not guaranteed to happen. It was simply the most likely course of events to occur due to the choices made up until then.
Once he had sent down a prophecy for the Son of Jupiter and his (chosen by Akantha) companions for the quest, Apollo had gotten down to business, attempting to see what was going to happen next. His visions were not very encouraging.
For one thing, Gaia seemed to have compensated for the change in Olympian Councillors. Enceladus, Athena's Bane, had not been resurrected. Instead, she had somehow managed to have a new son. Ambrosio, the Bane of Akantha. Apollo was unhappy to note that his name meant 'indestructible' or 'eternal'. The god hoped it wasn't an indication of Ambrosio's skills.
Maybe they would be in luck and he wouldn't be a fearsome opponent? Akantha was the goddess of Heroes, Bravery, Strength and Loyalty. Maybe Ambrosio would be a weak, disloyal coward. That would be excellent, all they'd have to do was intimidate him into fleeing. No need for embarrassing reliance on half-bloods.
Apollo huffed, shaking his head exasperatingly. He knew better than to hope for that. None of Gaia's children were easy to defeat. Even the idiot twins, Ephialtes and Otis, Dionysus' Banes, were hard to fight.
That led him to another concern. It seemed that Gaia had sacrificed quantity for quality this time around. Only the Olympian Councillors' Banes had been summoned, the minor gods' enemies had not. But, that being said, they seemed to be stronger this time around.
And finally, like her defeated son, Kronos, Gaia had recruited several angry minor gods to her cause. Including, of course, Athena.
There were several others, and a few more that she seemed to be in negotiation with. Hopefully they could get to those ones pre-emptively and convince them to stay with Olympus, or at least to remain neutral in the coming war.
He exhaled heavily, an uncharacteristic frown on his face as he opened his bright blue eyes just seconds before his twin sister, dressed in silver camouflage and appearing to be a twelve-year-old girl with auburn hair, as usual, came striding in like she owned the place.
"Hey there, baby sis," he greeted her in an obnoxiously cheerful manner, hiding his worry and frustration under a bright smile while he jumped to his feet. "Whatcha doin' here, Arty?"
She glared at him, fingering her bow like she was debating whether or not she could get away with bashing his head in with it. Or, knowing his feministic and sadistic sister, whether or not she could get away with castrating him, and then bashing his head in.
"Do not," she gritted out threateningly. "Call me. Arty. And I am not your baby sister. I was Mother's midwife while you were being born, for the love of the Fates! Gah! I don't know why I even bother. You're incorrigible, Brother."
"Yeah, yeah, I hear ya," he bobbed his head enthusiastically as he spoke. "So, Baby Sister (she glowered furiously at him, her grip on her bow growing so tight he could almost hear it cracking beneath her deceptively thin looking fingers) what are you doing here, visiting my humble abode?"
He gestured around him at the elaborate temple, filled with all the latest (and best) mortal gadgets as well as relics from the old days. He had things going all the way back to Ancient Greece stowed in his temple. Thankfully, his temple was not in Kronos' way when the Titan King was making his way to the throne room the August before, and as a result had been mostly unscathed by the attack.
She huffed, resting her empty hand on her hip and cocking it to the side. "I'm bored," she grumbled. "I want to get out of here and go hunting with my girls. Unfortunately, I can't. So instead, I decided to see if you wanted to have an archery competition with me."
"Sounds good," Apollo nodded casually. "Let me just get my bow."
A wave of his wrist had his bow, the golden coloured symbol of his power and the source of his title of 'god of archery', appearing in his hand, his quiver strapped across his back, filled with a never-ending supply of arrows. Golden arrows made from solidified sunlight, of course. Not wood, like his unfortunate children were forced to use.
The Twin Archers strolled out of Apollo's temple, sniping at each other. Of course, beneath the angry jibes was affection and love for their sibling. Despite their constant bickering, no two gods loved each other or were more dedicated to their companion as Artemis and Apollo were. Like mortal twins, the godly twins were both two halves of a whole.
Apollo, the god of the sun, was the light side of their yin and yang, whilst Artemis, the goddess of the moon, represented the dark side of their pairing. It was this loyalty and love for his sister that had led to Apollo offering to help her sneak out of the mountain so she could go and check on her beloved hunters.
He really needed to learn how to stop putting himself on the line for the women he loved. If he had been a mortal and incapable of controlling his appearance, the stress of it all would have caused him grey hairs.
They arrived at the secluded archery court at the equivalent to where the four hundreth and thirty-first floor would be if Olympus was a part of the Empire State Building itself and not simply a mountain on top of it.
They used it often when they wanted to have private contests with each other, instead of going to the more public court near the main courtyard. Unbeknownst to anyone save for the Twins, there was a secret exit they had created in the private court, specifically to let them leave Olympus if they were being confined for some reason.
They had put it in place after they were both banned from leaving for three centuries back in Ancient Greece after an argument between them had resulted in the creation of the Sahara Desert and Africa moving the equivalent to seven thousand years of gradual natural movement closer to the equator. Really, Apollo still thought that his father had been overreacting to the situation. It wasn't as if the place had been that frozen before they had thawed it.
"It's clear," Artemis hissed after they had double-checked and established that no one was lurking around their private court.
"Okay," Apollo gave a crisp nod. "I can guarantee at least two hours. More than that, and people will start getting suspicious."
Of course, everybody else was no doubt trying to figure out how to break out of Zeus' confinements as well as the two of them. But despite that, no doubt all of the other gods and spirits would be happy to throw the Twins into the line of fire to serve as a distraction for their own escapades to the outside world, or for their secret attempts to contact their children.
Artemis nodded back at him, hurrying over to the hidden portal. She pressed her palm to it, causing it to glow in a dull silver light, that looked almost grey.
"Thank you, Brother," she called to him over her shoulder before shrinking into the shape of a black falcon and flapping her wings to steady herself.
"You're welcome," he replied. A smirk twitched at his lips as he added a cheeky, "Baby Sister."
Artemis let out an indignant squawk and cast him a vicious glare before she flew through the flickering portal. As soon as she was gone, it shut back down again.
Apollo sighed and, with a flick of his arm, placed an arrow in his bow and began shooting rapidly at the various targets decorating the clearing.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO/HOO. Unfortunately, my holidays are now over 
, and as a result, my time for writing will be decreasing. I will still be updating, but unfortunately, school and study must take priority.

Lena had a vacant expression on her face as she sat between Jason and Leo on the back of the dragon while they flew towards Quebec. Festus, Leo had called it. Happy the Dragon, who had been terrorizing the camp for months. There was a joke in there somewhere, but Lena was too drained to figure out what it was.
She had sworn (though thankfully not on the River Styx) never to go on another quest. Not after seeing her twin brother, her other half and best friend, be killed in front of her eyes. But what else could she have done? Refused to save the world on the grounds that she had PTSD and she'd been having dreams of her mother's death back when Akantha was a mortal?
Lena had suspicions, dark ones, about what the prophecy had meant. The gods had done their level best to bury all mentions of the Gigantomachy as deeply as they could. But for a child of Akantha, how could they not know how their mother became a goddess? Like all children of Zeus knew how their father was nursed by the immortal goat Amalthea, all children of Akantha knew the story of their mother's death while she was a demigod fighting alongside the gods against the almost-indestructible giants.
Beware the earth, the giants' revenge the seven shall birth. The lines of the prophecy seemed clear to her. The Earth Mother was awakening, kickstarting the Second Great Prophecy. She frowned slightly, recalling the words of her cousin's first predication.
"Seven half-bloods shall answer the call,

To storm or fire, the world must fall.

An oath to keep with a final breath,

And foes bear arms to the Doors of Death!"

Bleak, to be sure, but the First Great Prophecy had been as welland that had turned out in their favour. Obviously, the giants were rising again to seek vengeance for their Titan siblings, so 'the giants' revenge the seven shall birth' was clearly stating that this quest was going to kickstart the new Great Prophecy.
The next line in the Great Prophecy, 'to storm or fire, the world must fall' was grim. The world and the earth were often synonymous, so hopefully 'the world must fall' meant the Earth, as in Her, must fall, not Western Civilization.
'An oath to keep with a final breath' was too difficult to interpret without more data. The only thing that she could intrept from it was that someone was going to make a promise, and most likely the success of the Olympian side in the war would rely on its' fulfilment.
The last line, 'and foes bear arms to the Doors of Death', had Lena at a loss, though. What were the Doors of Death, and who were the enemies that united to attack them? Why did they need to in the first place? The Seven themselves were probably part of the group, but that brought up another question. Who were the Seven, anyway?
Lena huffed, her breath coming out in a cloud of white. It was odd, flying on a dragon's back, she reflected to herself. As both a member of the billionaire Dare family and a demigod, she was used to both the most luxurious and worst conditions in life. She had been on dozens of jets since she was an infant, but they were always enclosed.
Here, she was outside. Despite the winter air, the heat radiating off of Festus kept her warm, and the strength in her toned legs, combined with Jason and Leo's bodies pressed against her, kept her from falling to her death, not thick steel walls. She honestly preferred the safety of the plane to trusting her life to a recently malfunctioning robot dragon that had been attacking the camp for months.
She let out another huff, but this time it was because Leo had fallen asleep and his head had hit her chest. She rolled her eyes and reached out to adjust him so that he would neither fall off, nor would he be fondling her. She was incredibly grateful for Jason's silence, though a glance back had established that he too was still awake.
She didn't want to talk, about things in general, or about the quest. She wanted to go back in time and be the one who died. She wanted her brother back.

Jason looked around the ice palace warily. The whole place, along with the princess Lena had identified as the snow goddess, Khione, made the air on the back of his neck stand on end.
Why did the Greeks have a goddess of snow in the first place? He wondered irrelevantly. Did it even snow there? He thought it was too hot for that. And what was that whole thing about Leo smelling of fire? Maybe because he was the son of the god of fire? Was Vul-Hephaestus, why did he always use Roman words and names? actually the god of fire or was it merely one of his symbols?
He shook his head, forcing his erratic thoughts to focus. Lena was walking on his left, and it was obvious to him that she was a veteran demigod. Her sea-green eyes continually scanned the area as they walked, and her hand rested lightly on one of the charms hanging from a bracelet that dangled on her left wrist. He guessed that it was a weapon and, like his sword/pilum, Ivilivs, it was disguised as a pegasus charm.
'Valeria favours all her children and legacies with magical weapons after she claims them upon their arrival at Camp. All of them are suited to the child's style of fighting, and all are nigh on indestructible.' Drifted through his head. He frowned deeper, bothered by the lack of concrete knowledge that was hidden in his head.
Thalia's picture burned a hole in his pocket, driving him insane with longing and confusion. To know that he had a sister out there somewhere, maybe with the answers he so desperately wanted. It was maddening, and he had found himself frantic with fear for her. What if she died before he ever got a chance to meet her? To know her?
Physically, Thalia and he apparently looked like complete opposites. They both had blue eyes, but that was it. Her hair was black and his was blonde. Her complexion was more Mediterranean, his kind of, the side of his mouth twitched ruefully, Roman. Her facial features were sharper, sort of like a hawk's, maybe.
Still, Thalia looked so familiar. Hera had left him just enough memory that he could be certain Thalia was his sister. But Luke had a certain that Thalia was an only child. Wouldn't she have told her boyfriend about her younger brother? Did Thalia even know about him? How had they been separated, or had they simply never met? That didn't make sense though, because he remembered his sister, at least, enough to recognize her face and name.
Hera had taken the answers to his questions. She'd stolen everything from Jason's past save a memory of someone called Reyna, shoved him into a new, unfamiliar life, and now she expected him to save her from some prison just so he could get back what she'd taken. It made Jason so angry, he wanted to walk away, let Hera rot in that cage: but he couldn't. He was hooked. He had to know more, had to know where Reyna was and that made him even more resentful.
At the end of the hallway they found themselves in front of a set of oaken doors carved with a map of the world. In each corner was a man's bearded face, blowing wind. Jason was pretty sure he'd seen maps like this before. But in this version, all the wind guys were Winter, blowing ice and snow from every corner of the world.
Khione turned. Her brown eyes glittered, and Jason felt like he was a Christmas present she was hoping to open. Or like she was a cat, and he was the mouse she was about to pounce on.
"This is the throne room," she said. "Be on your best behaviour, Jason Grace. My father can be … chilly. I will translate for you, and try to encourage him to hear you out. I do hope he spares you. We could have such fun."
Jason guessed this girl's definition of fun was not the same as his.
"Um, okay," he managed. "But really, we're just here for a little talk. We'll be leaving right afterward."
The goddess smiled. "I love heroes. So blissfully ignorant."
Lena rested her hand on the dagger that hung from her waist. It seemed more like a mirror than an actual weapon, but the callouses on Lena's palms said she knew how to use it. "Well, how about you enlighten us?" She challenged coolly. Her distrust for the goddess shone clearly out of her face.
Khione's expression darkened. "Watch yourself, daughter of Akantha," she growled. "Your mother has no dominion here. She cannot protect you."
Lena raised a mocking eyebrow at that. "So, this palace is full of disloyal cowards then?" She smirked. "I think you're forgetting your noble brothers, who were such notable heroes they were offered immortality."
Zethes stepped forward, invigorated by Lena's words. "Yeah, she's right!" he snapped. "Do not insult me! I am a mighty hero!"
Khione scoffed and turned back to open the doors. Lena stepped closer to Jason.
"She was in negotiations with the Titans when we defeated them," she breathed into his ear. "Don't trust her. I can sense disloyalty in her."
Knowing instinctively that children of the goddess of loyalty could sense such things, Jason gave a faint nod and Lena stepped away, tossing her shoulders back and straightening her spine. Jason copied her, feeling (some) confidence fill him when he so.
If the entrance hall was cold, the throne room was like stepping inside an iceberg.
Mist hung in the air. Jason shivered, and his breath came out in bright white puffs of air. Along the walls, purple tapestries showed scenes of snowy forests, barren mountains, and glaciers. High above, the aurora borealis pulsed along the ceiling. A layer of snow covered the floor, so the two demigods had to step carefully. All around the room stood life-size ice sculpture warriors, some in Greek armour, some medieval, some in modern camouflage. All of them were frozen in various attack positions, swords raised, guns locked and loaded.
The heroes' belief that they were mere sculptures was quickly ruined. Jason tried to step between two Greek spearmen, and they moved with surprising speed, their joints cracking and spraying ice crystals as they crossed their javelins to block his path.
From the far end of the hall, a man's voice rang out in a language that sounded like French. The room was so long and misty, Jason couldn't see the other end; but whatever the man said, the ice guards uncrossed their javelins.
"It's fine," Khione said. "My father has ordered them not to kill you just yet."
"Super," Jason said.
Zethes prodded him in the back with his sword. "Keep moving, Jason Junior," he instructed. Jason grimaced at the name while Lena's lips briefly twitched before she returned to seriousness.
"Please don't call me that," he requested as politely as he could.
"My father is not a patient man," Zethes warned in reply. "If you keep him waiting, you will join the sculptures."
"Just what I always wanted," Lena muttered sarcastically.
"Truly?" Zethes asked hopefully. She smiled tightly and shook her head, making him droop in disappointment.
They kept walking, and the mist parted to reveal a man on an ice throne. He was sturdily built, dressed in a stylish white suit that seemed woven from snow, with dark purple wings that spread out to either side. His long hair and shaggy beard were encrusted with icicles, so Jason couldn't tell if his hair was grey or just white with frost. His arched eyebrows made him look angry, but his eyes twinkled more warmly than his daughter's, as if he might have a sense of humour buried somewhere under that permafrost. Jason hoped so. Maybe if he and Lena were entertaining enough, they would become herosickles.
"Bienvenu," the king said. "Je suis Boreas le Roi. Et vous?"
Khione opened her mouth to translate, but Lena stepped forward and gave an elegant curtsy before she could.
"Votre Majesté," she said, in a voice as smooth as chocolate "Je suis Lena Dare. Et c'est Jason, fils de Zeus."
The king smiled with pleasant surprise. "Vous parlez français? Très bien!"
"Oui, Votre Majesté," Lena replied. She tossed Jason a quick wink, and he smiled back. He liked Lena. Not in a romantic way, but in a friends way. Which was good, because they were working together to prevent global destruction and awkward romantics could get in the way of that.
The king laughed and clapped his hands, obviously delighted. He said a few more sentences then swept his hand toward his daughter as if shooing her away.
Khione looked miffed. "The king says—"
"His Majesty says Khione won't have to translate now," Lena interrupted, giving a too-sweet smile in Khione's direction.
Behind them, Zethes snorted, and Khione shot him a murderous look. She bowed stiffly to her father and took a step back.
The king sized up Jason, and Jason decided it would be a good idea to bow. "Your Majesty, I'm Jason Grace. Thank you for, um, not killing us. May I ask … why does a Greek god speak French?"
Lena had another exchange with the king.
"He speaks the language of his host country," she explained. "He says that all gods do this. Most Greek gods speak English, as they now reside in the United States, but Boreas was never welcomed in their realm. His domain was always far to the north. These days he likes Quebec, so he speaks French."
The king said something else, and Lena turned pale and stiffened, grabbing the hilt of her dagger.
"The king says …" She faltered. "He says—"
"Oh, allow me," Khione said. "My father says he has orders to kill you. Did I not mention that earlier?"

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO/HOO/TOA. BTW, someone mentioned TOA in a review, and I regret to say that I don't plan to write that series. I might, eventually, but I don't intend to right now.

Akantha braced herself, hiding any hint of her disobedience under a mask of calm collectedness, and knocked loudly on the large, ornately carved, doors that she stood in front of.
"You may enter, Akantha," Zeus' voice boomed from within the chambers.
She strode in, going to stand a few steps from the mahogany desk, and gave a deep curtsey, inclining her head in respect to her king as she did so.
"Your Majesty," she greeted him as she rose back to her full height. "You sent for me?"
"Yes, I did," he nodded back at her, a serious expression on his face. "I have an important task for you, my lady."
"Whatever you wish of me, Sire," she responded promptly. "I am your loyal servant."
Perhaps she was overdoing it a bit, but the god of the skies didn't notice if she was. To Zeus, such fawning was nothing more than his due, and it was entirely appropriate for the usually prideful gods and goddesses that he ruled over to humble themselves before him.
He rose and clasped his arms behind his back, pacing back and forth whilst shaking his head. "It's a terrible situation, Akantha," he told her grimly. She followed his movements with her eyes, saying nothing to interrupt him as he continued.
"Despite my direct orders, I know for certain that certain Olympians continue to contact their children for various reasons. Even worse, Hera is missing, and before she disappeared, she stole my demigod children from their beds and broke the Laws, by sending Jason to Camp Half-Blood and I suspect that she means to send Thalia to Camp Jupiter."
She managed to turn her expression blank as he spun on his heel to face her. As he moved, his body rippled, changing from his Greek form to his Roman one. She shifted into Valeria in response to her king's change.
"To top everything off," he said, Valeria blinking as her Greek self's memories merged with her own and allowed her to grasp what was happening. She hid her worry that the king might have learned of her recent actions much more easily than her Greek counterpart had.
"The Wolf House has been seized by Lycaon's pack," Jupiter continued. "Lupa and her own wolves have been driven from it. Our sacred ground has been violated by those savages!" His voice rose to thunderous level that made the walls tremble as he spoke of Lycaon's actions.
Valeria bowed, her face grim and serious. "I agree, my king," she said. "Something must be done. The situation is intolerable."
'And nothing she had just said was a lie,' she thought to herself with a hint of smugness. Everything about what was going on was completely unacceptable.
"I know that you are loyal to me, Valeria," Jupiter went on, his voice lowering to a more normal sound. "And so, I give you this task. My son, Jason, has taken your Greek daughter and Vulcan's newly claimed son to find my wife. I want you to monitor them, and aid them as best you can."
Valeria bit back her smile of pleasure as she bowed, murmuring her obedience to his orders.
"And," Jupiter continued, a sudden feeling of anxiety beginning to creep up Valeria's spine. "I want you to find the gods who dare to defy my orders and report them to me. So that I can, deal, with them and their illegal actions."
Valeria again suppressed her dismay, instead giving a curtsey, followed by a perfect Roman salute.
"Might I be excused to go about my assignments, Sire," she requested respectfully, already trying to figure out what to do. Jupiter nodded, waving his hand at her dismissively as he sat down in plush red armchair.
She gathered all of her into herself, glowed brightly, and disappeared back to her temple. Once she had rematerialized in the safety of her room, she buried her head in her hands and groaned loudly. If she didn't come up with names to hand over to Jupiter, he would quickly realize that she was not as loyal to him as she had been before this had all begun.
If she did hand over the list of lawbreakers, however, she would lose the trust of everyone save the king, which was not a situation she wanted to be in. Especially as she was breaking the rules, too.
What was she going to do?

As Khione led them down the stairs, Jason noticed that Leo's eyes followed her. Leo started combing his hair back with his hands. 'Uh-oh,' Jason thought. He made a mental note to warn Leo about the snow goddess later. She was not someone to get a crush on.
At the bottom step, Khione turned to Lena, who glared back at her furiously. "You have fooled my father, girl. But you have not fooled me. We are not done. And you, Jason Grace, I will see you as a statue in the throne room soon enough."
"Boreas is right," Jason replied. "You're a spoiled kid. See you around, ice princess."
Khione's eyes flared pure white. For once, she seemed at a loss for words. She stormed back up the stairs-literally. Halfway up, she turned into a blizzard and disappeared.
"Be careful," Zethes warned them. "She never forgets an insult."
Cal grunted in agreement. "Bad sister."
"She's the goddess of snow," Jason said. "What's she going to do, throw snowballs at us?" But it was all just bravado. Jason had a sinking feeling that Khione could do a whole lot worse than give them frostbite (which could be very bad anyway, given they needed fingers to wield their weapons).
Leo looked devastated. "What happened up there? You made her mad? Is she mad at me too? Guys, that was my prom date!"
Lena gave him a look full of disdain. "You do realize that she's a goddess?" she snapped. "Trust me, get entangled with that bitch, and you'll find yourself with a shortcut to the Underworld." She began stalking towards the exit, a troubled frown on her lips.
Leo blinked after her for a moment before turning to Jason. "Seriously man, what happened?" he asked. "Why's Lena so pissed?"
Jason grimaced and jerked his head towards the door. "Let's go," he ordered. "We'll talk on the way."
Truth be told, Jason had no idea how to explain what had happened in Boreas' throne room. The god had turned into his Roman form, as if Jason's presence had given him Multiple Personality Disorder.
'You will tear each other apart' he had predicted, eyes shining with malicious glee. 'Aeolus will never have to worry about demigods again.' And more instinctive knowledge had risen in Jason's mind. The knowledge that every war in history had been started by demigods, and then spread to the mortals. His heart sank all the way down to his boots as he and Leo headed for the door.
Lena was exhausted as they fled Ma Gasket and her sons' warehouse on Festus' newly-repaired back. Her ankle throbbed, and Jason had fallen asleep, his head pressing against the top of her back, right between her shoulder blades. Despite her fatigue, she couldn't sleep. Her mind was racing, trying to understand everything that they had learned over the past few days and put it together.
But it was like trying to solve a jigsaw puzzle with half of the pieces missing. There were so many hints as to what they were missing, but the answers they so-needed continued to evade her, fluttering just outside of her grasp.
"Lena, you awake?" Leo spoke up from in front of her.
"Yeah," she sighed. "I won't be falling asleep for a while, I think. You can go to sleep if you want," she offered. "I can keep us afloat for a bit."
He shook his head. When he turned his face in her direction, she caught a hint of a frown on his mischievous face.
"I'm good," he told her.
"Alright," she agreed, too distracted and weary to argue.
"What happened the last time you were on a quest?" he asked suddenly, after they had flown in silence for the best part of forty minutes.
Lena, who's thoughts had been back on the mystery of Jason's identity, jolted at the question. "Why do you want to know?" she snapped, her voice colder than Khione's had been.
Leo shrugged. She could hear the soft clicking and scraping noises as he fiddled with some of gears. Beckendorf had always done the same thing, she remembered wistfully, thinking of peaceful nights in front of the campfire with her brother, the dead son of Hephaestus tinkering beside them.
"Did anyone tell you what happened last winter?" she asked finally.
Leo started slightly, evidently having given up on her replying, and nodded. "Yeah," he said. "Nyssa said there was kind of fight or something."
Lena gave a bitter laugh at that. "Some kind of fight or something," she repeated flatly. "Yeah, sure, you could say. I mean, out of the one hundred campers and Hunters who defended Olympus from the Titans' army, only thirty-seven lived, but yeah. Put it like that."
"I'm sorry," Leo replied lowly, sounding shocked at the number. Lena had been shocked too. She had counted each body, trying to disprove Will's report of the fallen. She had discovered he was wrong, because another girl had succumbed to her own wounds in the time that it had taken for him to report, and for Lena do preform a recount.
"I didn't know," Leo added, shifting anxiously. The sounds of his fidgeting had stopped, for once.
"The year before that was when I went on my quest," she explained. "Have you heard of the Labyrinth?" She explained it simply when he shook his head. "It is, or rather, it was, a magical underground maze, that spanned the entire US.
Thalia and Luke found an entrance leading to it, right in the middle of the forest at Camp. We all knew immediately that the Titans would use it to attack, so my mother ordered Luke to lead a quest to find its' creator, Daedalus. We hoped to convince him to support us, or at least not support the Titans. Without his help, they wouldn't have been able to navigate it.
Luke chose Thalia as his first companion, of course, and usually there would only be three for safety reasons. Its' an important number to the Greeks. But the prophecy Luke received called for Nico di'Angelo, the son of Hades, myself, and," she inhaled deeply to steady herself. "My brother, Lucas, to go with him on the quest."
"You have a brother?" Leo asked in surprise. He obviously hadn't put together the obvious. Lena felt a surge of fondness rise in her for the slightly dim mechanic.
"He was my twin," she confirmed, her faint fondness disappearing as she remembered the horrors of the Labyrinth Quest. Leo tensed at the use of the past tense. "But, anyway, like I said. You're not supposed to have more than three people per quest. It practically guarantees that someone, or several someones, will end up dying."
She drew in another shaky breath, feeling tears prickle in her eyelids, mixing with the unnatural snow. Why was it snowing in July, anyway? Was Khione punishing her for not being respectful enough or something?
"We ended up coming across an entrance to the Titans' base at Mount Othrys," she continued in a low voice. "Right in the middle of the ritual to allow Kronos to possess a guy called Chris Rodriguez. We intervened to try and stop it. We failed, and Lu, Lucas was k,ki,killed."
"Jeez, Lena," Leo muttered. "I had no idea."
"Yeah, that's obvious," she scoffed, her green eyes shimmering from the tears she was stubbornly holding back.
"I killed my mother," Leo revealed softly after a few moments of silence. Lena started in surprise at his claim.
"What?" she demanded, her eyebrows shooting up.
Quietly, he explained what had happened. The woman made of earth, his powers over fire, his mother being locked inside the building as he lost control and set it aflame. The same Earth Woman appearing to him while he was getting Festus, earlier that night.
"It wasn't your fault," she whispered. It felt as useless as when her brother's spirit had told it to her, when Hades let her meet with him for those precious few moments after the war ended, or anyone else who had said so.
Leo didn't reply, and Lena didn't press. They stayed together in quiet understanding as Festus continued to fly.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO/HOO

"Are all sewers this nice?" Jason wondered, as the three questers huddled together in the underground tunnel.
"No," Lena and Leo answered in unison. They exchanged brief looks, Lena even managing to give a half-smile, the closest to a smile they had seen her make so far.
"Which way do we go?" Lena asked, before Jason could press them for information on how they knew that.
"That way," the son of the sky god replied, pointing south.
"How d'you know?" Leo asked curiously, making Jason shrug.
"There's a draft going in that direction," he explained. "Maybe the venti went with it."
It seemed like a weak reasoning, but it was as good an idea as any they had, so they shrugged and nodded.
"We should rest for a bit, first," Lena suggested. "Get our energy back. We'll need our strength to fight the anemoi."
The boys nodded, and they all sat down a bit away from the hole they'd climbed down.
"Anyone got anything to eat?" Jason asked, looking between his two companions. Lena shook her head apologetically, but Leo grinned and held up his thumbs.
"Thought you'd never ask. Chef Leo is on it!"
Lena and Jason sat on a brick ledge while Leo shuffled through his pack.
Jason was relieved at the chance to rest. He was still tired and dizzy, and hungry, too. But mostly, he wasn't eager to face whatever lay ahead. He turned his gold coin in his fingers.
'If you are to die,' Hera had warned. 'it will be by her hand.'
Whoever "her" was. After Khione, the Cyclops mother, and the weird sleeping lady, the last thing Jason needed was another psycho villainess in his life.
"It wasn't your fault," Lena said.
He frowned at her apparent non-sequitur. "What?"
"Getting jumped by the Cyclopes," she said. "It wasn't your fault."
He looked down at the coin in his palm. "I was stupid. I left you alone and walked into a trap. I should've known…"
He didn't finish. He should have known everything, and he shouldn't have allowed the Cyclops to trick him while Lena was unconscious. All that information was supposed to be in his head. He could feel the places it should be—like empty pockets. If Hera wanted him to succeed, why had she stolen the memories that could help him? She claimed his amnesia had kept him alive, but that made no sense. He was starting to understand why some of the others had wanted to leave the goddess in her cage.
"Happens to all of us, Jason," Lena insisted. Something in her voice seemed strange, like her words were restoring his strength to him. That seemed like something he should know, too. "We're demigods, yeah, but we're not flawless," she continued. "We're still just human. Everybody makes mistakes. What's important is that we don't repeat them, and that we keep on fighting."
A few feet away, Leo lit a small cooking fire. He hummed as he pulled supplies out of his pack and his tool belt.
"Lena," he said slowly. "What happened last summer? Some sort of war, right?"
Lena's expression grew shadowed, and Jason spotted Leo tensing. But she opened her mouth and explained, slowly and with a haunted expression, the brutal war fought in the shadows of the Greek world. How the Titans had sought to return to power, aided by two treasonous Olympians, and the demigods had defended Olympus. How most had died, fighting against overwhelming numbers, and no one had escaped unscathed. How her own twin had been killed trying (and failing) to stop Kronos from getting a body.
"Annabeth was like a little sister to Thalia and Luke," she said, lips twisting bitterly. "They wanted her declared a hero, and sent to Elysium for coming back to Olympus at the end. The gods refused, thank them. She only came back to save Thalia and Luke. She didn't deserve to be honoured. Not after what she caused. The people she killed."
"I'm sorry," Jason replied quietly. He paused, before adding. "It seems familiar, but not quite. The Olympus part, and the bit about Annabeth, I don't recognize that. But the war itself.." He trailed off. Lena gave him an assessing look.
"Well, you clearly knew about this world before Hera took your memory," she mused. "And everyone knew what was happening. It makes sense that you recognize it."
"And bingo!" Leo announced, interrupting Jason's reply, though what he was going to say, he didn't know. Leo came over with three plates stacked on his arms like a waiter. Jason had no idea where he'd gotten all the food, or how he'd put it together so fast, but it looked amazing: pepper and beef tacos with chips and salsa.
"Leo," Lena said in amazement, genuine surprise lighting her usually grim expression. "How did you—?"
"Chef Leo's Taco Garage is fixing you up!" he said proudly. "Dig in!"
The tacos tasted as good as they smelled, and all three of them scarfed them down eagerly. While they ate, Leo tried to lighten the mood and joke around. Jason was grateful to him for it. Lena was becoming a friend, but she was too solemn and grim. Knowing what she had been through, it felt disrespectful to try and joke with her.
After they were finished, Lena announced that she was going to sleep, and promptly curled up, using her bag as a pillow.
The boys sat in silence for a few minutes, drinking lemonade Leo had made from canteen water and powdered mix.
"Good, huh?" Leo grinned.
"You should start a stand," Jason said. "Make some serious coin."
But as he stared at the remains of the fire, something began to bother him. "Leo … about this fire stuff you can do … is it true?"
Leo's smile disappeared. "Yeah, well …" He opened his hand. A small ball of flame burst to life, dancing across his palm.
"That is so cool," Jason said sincerely. "Why didn't you say anything?"
Leo closed his hand and the fire went out. "Didn't want to look like a freak." He shrugged, looking uncomfortable.
"I have lightning and wind powers," Jason reminded him. "Lena can talk anyone she wants to into trusting her, and she's so strong she can lift an entire forklift single-handedly. You're no more a freak than we are. And, hey, maybe you can fly, too. Like jump off a building and yell, 'Flame on!'"
Leo snorted. "If I did that, you would see a flaming kid falling to his death, and I would be yelling something a little stronger than 'Flame on!' Trust me, the Hephaestus cabin doesn't see fire powers as cool. Nyssa told me they're super rare. When a demigod like me comes around, bad things happen. Really bad."
"Maybe it's the other way around," Jason suggested. "Maybe people with special gifts show up when bad things are happening because that's when they're needed most."
Leo cleared away the plates. "Maybe. But I'm telling you … it's not always a gift."
"You're talking about your mom, aren't you?" Jason guessed. "The night she died."
Leo didn't answer. He didn't have to. The fact that he was quiet, not joking around—that said enough.
"Leo, her death wasn't your fault," he insisted. "Whatever happened that night—it wasn't because you could summon fire. This Dirt Woman, whoever she is, has been trying to ruin you for years, mess up your confidence, take away everything you care about. She's trying to make you feel like a failure. You're not. You're important."
"That's what she said." Leo looked up, his eyes full of pain. "She said I was meant to do something important—something that would make or break that big prophecy about the seven demigods. That's what scares me. I don't know if I'm up to it."
Jason wanted to reassure his friend, but he knew better. Demigods didn't have happy endings. They had funerals and scars and siblings left behind to spend the rest of their lives filled with grief and guilt for their lost loved ones.

The place was so obviously a monster lair, Lena could've laughed. An underground shopping mall? Seriously, what would the monsters think of next.
Despite the fact that it was obviously a trap, the three demigods entered the elevator and pressed the button for the fourth level anyway. It was the monsters they were following, so it was into the monster lair that they would go.
"Guys, you've got to see this," Jason told them, a second after exiting the lift with his sword held aloft.
Lena's eyes widened at the sight they met.
The department store looked like the inside of a kaleidoscope. The entire ceiling was a stained-glass mosaic with astrological signs around a giant sun. The daylight streaming through it washed everything in a thousand different colours. The upper floors made a ring of balconies around a huge central atrium, so they could see all the way down to the ground floor. Gold railings glittered so brightly, they were hard to look at.
Aside from the stained-glass ceiling and the elevator, there were no other windows or doors, but two sets of glass escalators ran between the levels. The carpeting was a riot of oriental patterns and colours, and the racks of merchandise were just as bizarre. There was too much to take it at once, but there was also normal stuff like shirt racks and shoe trees mixed in with armoured mannikins, beds of nails, and fur coats that seemed to be moving.
Lena whistled slightly. "I gotta admit," she muttered to the boys. "This is definitely the nicest trap I've ever seen."
Leo stepped to the railing and looked down. "Check it out." He pointed down to the centre of the ground level.
In the middle of the atrium a fountain sprayed water twenty feet into the air, changing colour from red to yellow to blue. The pool glittered with gold coins, and on either side of the fountain stood a gilded cage—like an oversize canary cage.
Inside one, a miniature hurricane swirled, and lightning flashed. Somebody had imprisoned the storm spirits, and the cage shuddered as they tried to get out. In the other, frozen like a statue, was a short, buff satyr, holding a tree-branch club.
"The anemoi," Lena noted.
"And Coach Hedge," Jason added. "We need to get down there."
A voice said, "May I help you find something?"
All three of them jumped back, Jason and Lena grabbing their swords.
A woman who looked about fifty had just appeared in front of them. She wore an elegant black dress with diamond jewellery, and she looked like a retired fashion model. Her long dark hair swept over one shoulder, and her face was gorgeous in that surreal super-model way—thin and haughty and cold, not quite human. With their long red-painted nails, her fingers looked more like talons.
She smiled. "I'm so happy to see new customers. How may I help you?"
Leo glanced at Jason like, All yours.
"Um," he started, "is this your store?"
The woman nodded. "I found it abandoned, you know. I understand so many stores are, these days. I decided it would make the perfect place. I love collecting tasteful objects, helping people, and offering quality goods at a reasonable price. So this seemed a good … how do you say … first acquisition in this country."
She spoke with a pleasing accent, that made the boys start to relax. Her voice was rich and exotic, and he wanted to hear more.
"So you're new to America?" Jason asked.
Lena frowned at the boys, darting looks between them and the woman as they chatted. It was obvious that the woman was some sort of sorceress, and Lena began mentally scrolling through her list of Greek figures to try and place the enemy. She would have to deal with the woman herself, as the boys were under her spell. But perhaps she could use her ability of making people trust her to break them from the enchantment. After all, what if the woman managed to turn them against her? It would be difficult, fighting (and not killing, as she was trained to) her friends while she tried to get to the witch as well.
"Shall we start with the potions?" The 'Princess of Colchis' as she had introduced herself, suggested.
"Cool," Jason nodded, reminding Lena of a mindless sycophant, and not a veteran hero (which she had known he was from the start. There was a certain air about the half-bloods who'd been fighting for some time. A tired resignation that nothing, not even amnesia apparently, could quite hide or erase.)
"Guys," Lena interrupted, tinging her words with a hint of her power, demanding their loyalty. "We're here to get the storm spirits and Coach Hedge. N-"
"And you shall," the princess smiled slyly, an evil glint in her eye. "But first, we must browse y inventory. And negotiate. After all, my dear. I am a saleswoman."
That made two strikes against 'Her Highness'. She was a sorceress, and a salesperson. Lena wasn't sure which was worse.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO/HOO

Valeria swept through the marketplace of Mount Olympus with a grace that no mortal could achieve, and even another goddess would envy. Apollo walked beside her, their arms interlinked.
"Do you think that he will believe you?" The God of the Sun whispered to her as they headed for the theatre. They had always been close friends, ever since Valeria first achieved immortality, and so no one batted an eyelash at the two of them whispering intimately to each other. It was a familiar sight to the residents of Olympus.
She glanced at him, giving a tiny headshake and silently warning him that this was not the place to discuss treason, or lying to their king.
"Wait, I want to look at that one," Valeria declared as she halted them beside a stall selling various dresses in styles from all over the world. She pointed, and the green-skinned dryad manning the kiosk pulled down the dress she had gestured to.
It was a vintage swing dress in a deep blue with navy lace covering it and several buttons going up the chest. It reached her knees, flaring out of course, and had elbow length sleeves.
She snapped her fingers to conjure a floor length mirror, snapped them again to have the dress appear on her in place of her former green tunic and white linen trousers, and spun to see herself in the mirror.
It really did bring out the green of her eyes, she thought appreciatively to herself.
"Beautiful," Apollo told her. He grasped her hand and held it to his lips to give it a kiss. "Truly, my beloved sun weeps to know its' beauty does not compare to yours, my dear friend."
She gave him a broad smile, one that could easily brighten a room, even if she were a mortal, and nodded. "I will take it," she announced, looking at the dryad, who bobbed a curtsey.
"Five sesterces, my lady," the dryad replied respectfully.
Before Valeria could hand over the coins, Apollo's hand flew out and he dropped the gold pieces into the shopkeeper's waiting hand. Then he once again linked arms with the other immortal and pulled her away from the stall, in the direction of the open-air theatre once again. He waited until they were passing by an empty alley before he tugged her inside it, maneuvering her into an intimate position against the clean marble wall.
"Well," he hissed in her ear softly, disguising his question as him kissing her neck. Most people thought that they had a relationship, anyway. It gave them a handy alibi. "Will he believe you?"
"You are the god of prophecy," she murmured back to him, moving her head so that their lips were centimetres from each other and anyone who looked at them would assume that they were kissing each other. "Why don't you tell me if His Majesty will believe my story?"
"Valeria," he huffed, not removing himself from the position. "No games."
She pulled away, inclining her head in a nod. Neither Valeria nor Akantha had ever been one for playing mind games, anyway. Politics irritated them, as they were far too straight forward for the required dancing around topics and double meanings. They were the Goddess of Honour, too, after all, and stabbing people in the back for the sake of politics simply wasn't in the nature of either version of the goddess. It was the reason why everyone had realized that Juno had taken Thalia and Jason Grace and swapped them, but no one save for Apollo had figured out that the Goddess of Bravery had aided in the scheme.
"I believe that he will," she assured him, understanding why Apollo was so concerned.
He himself was regularly contacting his various children in their dreams, giving them vague warnings of the war to come, and he was also covering for Diana. His twin sister was sneaking out as often as she could to visit her Hunters. If Jupiter learned of Apollo's actions, his wrath would be worse than it had been in years, no one had any doubt of it.
"I intend to claim that several minor gods whose loyalty to Olympus is wavering, is contacting Lycaon's pack," she explained her plan in more detail than her vague sentence of 'I am going to blame several traitors for breaking the decree' that she had told him earlier.
"I will say that I believe them to have conspired together with Lycaon to kidnap Queen Juno. This will both calm his rage at his decree being broken, and allow sever of Her allies to be taken off of the game board before they can give her any help. Then, at the Winter Solstice, we, along with the rest of the Council, can pool our powers to break the enchantment She has placed on the king. After that, Queen Juno, Vesta and I will be able to convince him to listen to reason regarding the giants."
Apollo was slightly doubtful of that. But, if anybody could convince the King of the Gods to recant something he had said, and to accept a stain on his pride, then it would be his wife, beloved sister and his most-favoured advisor and subject.
"How goes the quest?" he asked, pulling away from her and tucking her hand into his elbow before they began to walk to the theatre again. As they left the alleyway, their forms rippled and changed slightly.
He felt Akantha stiffen slightly. Having once been a demigod, going on dangerous quests, as well as her emotional and mental connection with every hero there was and had been since her elevation, she understood the difficulties and pressures of them far better than the rest of the gods. Her children going on one always distressed her, though she made the sacrifice for the sake of the safety of Olympus.
"My daughter has defeated Medea, and destroyed that awful shopping centre she was running to help supply the Giants' forces," Akantha informed him, as they entered the theatre and began climbing to their seats. "They are now on their way to Aeolus' palace, somewhere in Omaha, Nebraska, I believe."
A vision suddenly flashed through Apollo's mind, and he winced in pain, lifting a hand to his forehead to rub at his temples.
Akantha pushed him into his seat, and sat down beside to wait for it to end. She signalled a passing aura for two sticks of ambrosia, and two glasses of nectar. The waitress quickly handed them over, and Akantha was just finished swallowing her first sip of the godly drink (that tasted like the Ancient Greek drink Zacharonero that her long-dead mother had used to make for her as a mortal child.), when her friend started and dropped his hand from his head with a low groan while he looked around himself, a hint of confusion flitting over his gaze.
Akantha had long gotten used to such episodes, and she said nothing, merely handing him his own nectar to gulp down.
"Thanks," he sighed tiredly, before looking seriously at her. She stiffened, instantly concerned by the hesitant look in his sky-blue eyes. "Don't panic, alright? But Lena, Jason and Leo are going to crash and land in Midas' house. She'll get turned to gold, but Jason will kill Ol' Donkey Ears and his Reaper Brat, and turn her back to flesh."
Akantha's grip tightened on her glass, and she bit back a swear, resisting the urge the fling her glass on the ground in a childish fit. Oh, why did her poor girl have to suffer so much? Why did the Fates insist on favouring Lena, of all people?
(And it was them favouring her. (If they didn't like her, they would have simply killed her off early, like her dearly-departed son, Lukas). Them keeping her alive and putting Lena through so much was the Fates' way of honouring her youngest daughter. Damn them.)

Jason hated being a demigod. He might not have any memories, but he was pretty damn sure that a mortal teenager would never have to be in this situation. But him? Oh, no. Jason was a demigod, which meant that his friends being turned to gold by resurrected kings from Ancient Greece was just typical for his life.
"Hedge!" Jason yelled. "Need help in here!"
For the first time in history, the satyr didn't come charging in, eager for bloodshed in a very un-nature spirit way. Jason wondered morbidly if the lasers had gotten him, or if he was sitting at the bottom of a trap pit.
"No goat to the rescue?" Midas chuckled cheerfully. "Sad. But don't worry, my boy. I promise that it's really not painful. Lit can tell you." He gestured to his son, who gave an agreeing nod.
Jason brightened as a metaphorical lightbulb flicked on over his head and he got an idea. His last hope, really. If this didn't work, they, and the world at large, were all screwed.
"I choose combat," he said urgently. "You said that I could choose to fight Lit instead."
Midas' expression fell in disappointment, but he shrugged and nodded. "Actually, I said that you could die fighting Lit. But of course, if that is how you wish to die, then it is your decision."
The king backed away, raising a hand in a silent signal for them to begin and Lit stepped forward with his sword raised in an attack position.
"I'm going to enjoy this," Lit said, giving a bloodthirsty grin. "I am the Reaper of Men!"
"That's great for you," Jason retorted. "I'm so happy for you, really. Now, come on, Cornhusker." Jason summoned his own weapon. This time it came up as a javelin, and Jason was more than appreciative for the extra length.
"Oh, a gold weapon!" Midas said, giving an approving nod. "Very nice. I like it."
"Thanks," Jason nodded, right before Lit charged.
Jason had to hand to his enemy. The guy was fast. He slashed and sliced, barely giving Jason the time to dodge the strikes, but while he fought, his mind went into a different mode. He was analyzing the patterns, learning Lit's style. He quickly noticed that it was all offense, no defence. Jason could use that.
Jason countered, sidestepped, and blocked. Lit was blatantly surprised to find him still alive after two minutes.
"What is this?" Lit growled. "You don't fight like a Greek. I have never seen the style of fighting that you use before."
"Legion training," Jason replied, unsure how exactly, he was able to say that with such confidence. "It's Roman."
"Roman?" Lit struck again, and Jason deflected his blade, sparks appearing from the weapons' clash. "What is this Roman?"
"Here's a history lesson for you, dude," Jason answered. "While you and Pops over there were dead, Rome defeated Greece. Created the greatest empire of all time."
"Impossible," Lit dismissed the statement immediately. "I have never even heard of them."
Jason spun on one heel, smacked Lit in the chest with the butt of his javelin, and sent him toppling into Midas's throne with a loud curse.
"Oh, dear," Midas said, inclining his head to see his son. "Lit? Are you alright?"
"I'm fine," Lit growled, looking furious.
"You'd better help him up," Jason suggested helpfully.
"Dad, no!" Lit cried as his father reached for him.
His yell came too late. Midas put his hand on his son's shoulder, and suddenly there was a very angry-looking gold statue sitting on Midas's throne.
"Curses!" Midas wailed. "That was a naughty trick, demigod. I'll get you for that." He patted Lit's golden shoulder. "Don't worry, son," he urged the statute. "I'll get you down to the river right after I collect this prize."
Midas raced forward. Jason dodged, but the old man was spry for his age (and undead state). Jason kicked the coffee table into the old man's legs and knocked him over, but he knew that Midas wouldn't stay down for long.
Then Jason glanced at the golden statues of his friends, Lena reaching for her sword, Leo raising his hands defensively. Anger washed over him. He was the son of the King of the Gods. He could not, no, he would not fail his friends.
He felt a tugging sensation in his gut, and the air pressure dropped so rapidly that his ears popped. Midas must've felt it too, because he stumbled to his feet and grabbed his donkey ears.
"Ow! What are you doing?" he demanded indignantly. "My power is supreme here!"
Thunder rumbled. Outside, the sky turned black with storm clouds.
"You know another good use for gold?" Jason said, giving a dangerous grin.
Midas raised his eyebrows, suddenly excited. "Yes?"
"It's an excellent conductor of electricity," Jason announced as he raised his javelin, and the ceiling exploded.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own HOO.

When Apollo came rushing into her quarters, Akantha knew that it was time.
Swiftly, she rose to her feet and hurried across the room to meet him in the centre.
"They'll be at the Wolf House in less than an hour," the sun god declared breathlessly, his blue eyes frantic. "Your new Enemy is there, and their king will break free while they are there. They may die, or they may survive, but you must go. Quickly. I'll show you Artemis and I's route."
Akantha nodded firmly, her sea-coloured eyes stormy and determined. "Which floor?" she asked, as he grabbed her wrist and began dragging her to the door. As they rushed through the streets of Olympus, the goddess cursed the wards preventing her from simply flashing straight to the Wolf House. Anyone who crossed their paths jumped out of the way hastily.
They arrived at the exit, and, in preparation for arriving on sacred Roman ground, Akantha shifted into her Roman form, dressed in full Imperial Gold, battle gear, a purple cloak flowing down her back from the clasps on her armour. She glanced at Apollo, who had also changed in response to her action, and was giving her a solemn look.
"I will stay here and cover for you," he promised her softly. "For as long as I can."
"I will return soon," she replied, lifting her chin to meet his gaze steadily. "With the Queen. We will be back by the meeting." The end of her sentence, 'or not at all' hung unspoken in the air.
Apollo nodded and paused for another moment. He leaned in, catching her lips with his own in soft kiss. She responded, a feeling of warmth engulfing her. She and Apollo had often been lovers, for such things were as much a part of a god's life as a mortal's.
But, sometime over the past two or three centuries, the feelings of friendship and companionship had deepened. In some ways, it reminded of how she had felt towards her husband Lysander, back when she was a mortal in Ancient Greece. But, it was different, too. She thought she might be in love with him, but love was different for mortals and immortals.
"May the Fates be on your side," he said, after pulling away from their embrace.
She nodded, adjusting her grip on her faithful sword. Anaklusmos glowed, the reassuring weight of her symbol of power a comfort to her as she prepared to face the things that had once killed her. "May they be on all of our sides," she responded grimly. "For if they are not, then all hope is lost for Olympus, and the West."
Apollo waved his arm, and the arch-shaped trees glowed for a second. When the bright yellow light had faded enough to be looked at, Valeria could see a scene, tinged in a lemon-yellow shade, through them. It showed the Wolf House, and she could see Lena, Jason and Leo, and Zoe Nightshade, the Lieutenant of the Diana's Hunters, all surrounding an earthen spire. She could just make out through the tightly placed bars, Hera standing inside and ranting angrily. It was definitely Hera, for Juno would never be so petulant. At least not in public.
And, in the distance, there was another, larger spire. It was far bigger then Hera's cage—a solid dark mass about twenty feet high. Underneath the mass of fused tendrils Valeria could see out the shape of a head, wide shoulders, a massive chest and arms, like the creature was stuck waist deep in the earth. But, she knew that it was not stuck—no, it was rising.
"You need to hurry," Apollo urged, breaking her from her study of the scene.
"Yes," she agreed. Without another word, she stepped through the portal, rematerializing in the woods. An Earthborn foolishly attempted to attack her, and it dissolved with a careless wave of her hand. The sound attracted the attention of those surrounding the cage, making them raise their weapons and spin around as she hurried forward, the snow crunching under her Roman-style, knee-high sandals.
"Mother!" Lena cried, she rushed forward to Valeria, but paused, confusion crossing her expression. "Mother, what are you wearing? Is that gold armour? And Roman? And do you look different? What's going on?"
Valeria held up a hand to stem her daughter's stream of questions. She quickly looked around, her jaw tightening as she again took in the spire that contained Porphyrion. Thankfully, there didn't seem to be any sign of any other giants, which was a mercy. Though, Apollo had spoken of her Bane being present.
"Now is not the time, Lena," she said. "Keep on your guards," she ordered the heroes. "That spire contains the King of Giants, the Bane of Jupiter, and the most powerful of their army. And, Apollo warned that my own Bane would most likely be here."
"Another of those damn things?" Hera burst out furiously, forestalling any questions from the heroes. "Get me out of here! Now!"
Valeria grimaced and reluctantly turned to the Queen. "Your Majesty," she said dryly. "This seems rather familiar, does it not?"
History repeats itself. Last time the Giants had risen, Akantha and Heracles had led Lysander and close friend, Acacia, a Daughter of Zeus, to rescue the goddess. Acacia had been killed, and the War had begun. She hoped it would go better this time. At least Hercules wasn't here to make everything complicated with his ego and libido. She was sure
Hera scowled grumpily at her. "It's about time that you got here, Lady Valeria," she gritted out, glaring. They never quite managed to get along, though they could work together acceptably, for both of them were willing to put Olympus first.
The two goddesses ignored Zoe's uncomfortable shifting, and the demigods' whispers that 'Valeria', was again a Roman name. Lena gave her an anxious look, like she wondered if Valeria was really her mother. In response, the Goddess of Heroes gripped her daughter's shoulder firmly, trying to communicate the love she felt to all of her children, no matter of their heritage, to her. Lena relaxed, her green eyes warming slightly as she shifted closer. Valeria welcomed the movement, for any contact that she shared with her children was precious to her.
"With thys' permission, miladies," Zoe said, bowing to the goddesses. "I will go and aid my hunters. We shall soon be overwhelmed, and I shall be more of help fighting, then with this."
"Go with my blessing," Valeria agreed, and the maiden ran straight off without another word, in the direction of the loudest frantic yelling of her sisters.
"At sundown, it will be too late," Hera was explaining impatiently. "The giant will awake. He will offer me a choice: marry him, or be consumed by the earth. I cannot marry him. We will all be destroyed. And as we die, Gaea will awaken."
Leo frowned at the giant's spire. "Can't we blow it up or something?"
"Without me, you do not have the power," Hera said. "You might as well try to destroy a mountain."
"What about Lady Valeria?" Jason asked, the three questers glancing her way.
She shook her head, looking regretful. "If only it were so simple," she sighed. "But, I became an Olympian goddess only three years ago. Porphyrion's power far eclipses mine. I do not have the strength to destroy his cocoon."
The demigods grimaced in disgust at the word 'cocoon', but it was really the only proper way to describe it. Or possibly 'egg', but Valeria didn't think that was the best name for it. She supposed that it hardly mattered either way, anyway. Her strange thoughts reminded her of when she was a demigod, and had a severe case of what was now called ADHD, but at the time was simply known as 'battle instincts'.
"Just hurry up and let me out!" Hera demanded. Her leg twitched like she was trying to stamp it, but she was too deeply stuck in the mud to manage it.
Jason scratched his head, frowning in thought. "Leo, can you do it?"
"I don't know." Leo's voice was filled with panic, and Valeria noted the way Lena reached for his hand to comfort him with interest. The goddess made a note to speak to the Love Goddess, about what she was doing to her daughter. Valeria had no desire for Lena to be hurt more than she had already been by Lukas' death. "Besides, if she's a goddess, why hasn't she busted herself out?"
Hera paced furiously around her cage, cursing in Ancient Greek. "Use your brain, Leo Valdez. I picked you because you're intelligent. Once trapped, a god's power is useless. Your own father trapped me once in a golden chair. It was humiliating! I had to beg—beg him for my freedom and apologize for throwing him off Olympus."
"Sounds fair," Leo said.
Hera gave him the godly stink-eye. "I've watched you since you were a child, son of Hephaestus, because I knew you could aid me at this moment. If anyone can find a way to destroy this abomination, it is you."
"That is true," Valeria agreed. "All of you were chosen because of your strength in your respective areas. You are true heroes, and I know that you and Lena will succeed in freeing Hera, whilst Jason and I fight."
"But it's not a machine. It's like Gaea thrust her hand out of the ground and …" he paused, eyes widening in realization. None of the demigods seemed to have noticed Valeria's mention of fighting. "Hold on. I do have an idea. Lena, I'm going to need your help. And we're going to need time."
The air turned brittle with cold. The temperature dropped so fast, the demigods' lips cracked and their breath changed to mist. Frost coated the walls of the Wolf House. Venti rushed in —but instead of winged men, these were shaped like horses, with dark storm-cloud bodies and manes that crackled with lightning. Some had silver arrows sticking out of their flanks. Behind them came red-eyed wolves and the six-armed Earthborn.
Lena and Jason raised the swords the Goddess of Loyalty had granted them, and Valeria saw Leo first remove a packet of breath mints in his anxiety, before swapping it for a hammer.
From somewhere behind the monsters, they heard a girl's laughter, clear and cold. She stepped out of the mist in her snowy white dress, a silver crown atop her long black hair. She regarded them with those deep brown eyes, as the Olympian goddesses glowered furiously at her. Valeria in particular was infuriated.
"Bon soir, mes amis," said Khione, the goddess of snow. She gave Leo a frosty smile. "Alas, son of Hephaestus, you say you need time? I'm afraid time is one tool you do not have."
Khione smiled, her dark eyes glittering, as a dagger of ice grew in her hand.
"What've you done?" Jason demanded.
"Oh, so many things," the snow goddess purred. "The Hunters aren't dead, if that's what you mean. They will all make fine toys for our wolves. I thought we'd defrost them one at a time and hunt them down for amusement. Let them be the prey for once."
The wolves snarled appreciatively.
"Yes, my dears." Khione kept her eyes on Jason. "The lieutenant almost killed their king, you know. Lycaon's off in a cave somewhere, no doubt licking his wounds, but his minions have joined us to take revenge for their master. And soon Porphyrion will arise, and we shall rule the world."
"Traitor!" Hera shouted. "You meddlesome, D-list goddess! You aren't worthy to pour my wine, much less rule the world."
Khione sighed. "Tiresome as ever, Queen Hera. I've been wanting to shut you up for millennia."
Khione waved her hand, and ice encased the prison, sealing in the spaces between the earthen tendrils.
"That's better," the snow goddess said. "Now, demigods, about your death—"
"You should not be so confident about your victory, Khione," Valeria interrupted harshly, raising her sword. "It will be your downfall." Uneasily, Valeria noticed that Khione's smirk simply widened at her threat. Apollo's warning darted through her mind again, and she scanned the area, searching for her Bane. At least she would not be caught off guard, and had three half-bloods with her to help defeat him.
"You're the one who tricked Hera into coming here," Jason was saying. "You gave Zeus the idea of closing Olympus."
The wolves snarled, and the storm spirits whinnied, ready to attack, but Khione held up her hand. "Patience, my loves. If he wants to talk, what matter? The sun is setting, and time is on our side. Of course, Jason Grace. Like snow, my voice is quiet and gentle, and very cold. It's easy for me to whisper to the other gods, especially when I am only confirming their own deepest fears. I also whispered in Aeolus's ear that he should issue an order to kill demigods. It is a small service for Gaea, but I'm sure I will be well rewarded when her sons the giants come to power."
"Traitor!" Valeria hissed in fury. "You will pay for this!"
"You could've killed us in Quebec," Jason added. "Why let us live?"
Khione wrinkled her nose. "Messy business, killing you in my father's house, especially when he insists on meeting all visitors. I did try, you remember. It would've been lovely if he'd agreed to turn you to ice. But once he'd given you guarantee of safe passage, I couldn't openly disobey him. My father is an old fool. He lives in fear of Zeus and Aeolus, but he's still powerful. Soon enough, when my new masters have awakened, I will depose Boreas and take the throne of the North Wind, but not just yet. Besides, my father did have a point. Your quest was suicidal. I fully expected you to fail."
"And to help us with that," Leo said, "you knocked our dragon out of the sky over Detroit. Those frozen wires in his head—that was your fault. You're gonna pay for that, too."
"You're also the one who kept our enemies informed about us," Lena continued. "We've been plagued by snowstorms the whole trip."
"Yes, I feel so close to all of you now!" Khione said. "Once you made it past Omaha, I decided to asked Lycaon to track you down so Jason could die here, at the Wolf House." Khione smiled at him. "You see, Jason, your blood spilled on this sacred ground will taint it for generations. Your demigod brethren will be outraged, especially when they find the bodies of these two from Camp Half-Blood. And, with the goddess Valeria lost, too, it will simply be the icing on the cake. They'll believe the Greeks have conspired with giants. It will be … delicious."
Lena and Leo didn't seem to understand what she was saying. But Valeria could tell that Jason knew. His memories were returning enough for him to realize how dangerously effective Khione's plan could be. Unlike the Greeks, who had completely forgotten their Roman cousins, and their enmity, the Lares had kept the Roman grudge against Greece alive.
"You'll set demigods against demigods," Jason said, his face pale, and not with the cold.
"It's so easy!" said Khione. "As I told you, I only encourage what you would do anyway."
"I'll not allow it, Khione!" Valeria snarled. "You shall not destroy the West!"
Khione laughed. "I am a goddess too, Valeria. We wind gods are creatures of chaos! I'll overthrow Aeolus and let the storms run free. If we destroy the mortal world, all the better! They never honoured me, even in Greek times. Humans and their talk of global warming. Pah! I'll cool them down quickly enough. When we retake the ancient places and destroy the roots of the gods, I will cover the Acropolis in snow."
"The ancient places." Leo's eyes widened. "You mean meant Greece."
"You could join me, son of Hephaestus," Khione offered, wearing a confident expression, though her enemies showed no concern over Leo's loyalty. "I know you find me beautiful. It would be enough for my plan if these other two were to die. Reject that ridiculous destiny the Fates have given you. Live and be my champion, instead. Your skills would be quite useful."
Leo looked stunned. He glanced behind him, like Khione might be talking to somebody else. Then he laughed so hard, he doubled over. "Yeah, join you. Right. Until you get bored of me and turn me into a Leosicle? Lady, nobody messes with my dragon and gets away with it. I can't believe I thought you were hot."
Khione's face turned red. "Hot? You dare insult me? I am cold, Leo Valdez. Very, very cold."
She shot a blast of wintry sleet at the demigods, but Leo held up his hand. A wall of fire roared to life in front of them, and the snow dissolved in a steamy cloud.
Leo grinned. "See, lady, that's what happens to snow in Texas. It—freaking—melts."
Lena laughed. "Tartarus, Valdez!" she called over to him. "If we get out of this alive, I'll be your prom date!"
Leo grinned, and Valeria was also pleased. Lena deserved to happy, and if the son of Hephaestus gave her that, she would welcome him. He was brave, and loyal, and heroic, and strong. Perfect, in the eyes of the one who reigned over all of those domains.
Khione hissed. "Enough of this. Hera is failing. Porphyrion is rising. Kill the demigods. Let them be our king's first meal! Ambrosio! Come and kill your nemesis!"
Valeria raised her sword. And then the ground began to shake.
"Valeria!" a horrible voice bellowed from behind them. The demigods and goddess turned their heads to take him in.
He was the opposite of Valeria in looks, at least. Thrice her height, he had yellow cobras for hair. His chest was bare, and covered in blonde curls, and he wore nothing but a dirty loincloth, with decomposing heads dangling from a frayed rope wrapped around his waist. His face was too ugly and scarred to look at directly.
"Leo, Lena," Valeria ordered crisply, not taking her eyes from her nemesis. "Release Hera. Jason, defeat Khione's minions, then join me in fighting Ambrosio. I cannot defeat him without the help of a demigod."
"Yes ma'am," they all agreed. Leo and Lena bent over the cage, and Jason turned to face the oncoming horde as they charged. Meanwhile, Valeria set her jaw, and hurled herself at her Bane, Anaklusmos raised.
Ambrosio laughed mockingly as she attacked.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own HOO. That's the last part of TLH, as we all know the rest. (If you don't, why are you reading this?) I'm always anxious about fight scenes, so I hope you enjoy this one! R&R!

Valeria forced herself to block out any sounds of her daughter, Leo, and Jason's battle. Despite their desires, Lena and Leo had been forced into fighting, instead of being able to focus on freeing Hera. She gave herself long enough to snap her fingers and bless them all, before sending them away from her thoughts as best as she could. Instead, she concentrated on Ambrosio, the Bane of Akantha/Valeria. The Bane of her.
Clearly, Gaia had learned from Damasen's pacifistic tendencies, because Valeria's Bane was most definitely not her opposite in abilities. He matched her blow for blow, and within a few clashes, Valeria was forced to retreat, panting for breath. Golden ichor welled up and flowed from various cuts over her body. Her neck stung from where she had just missed being decapitated, an action that would have her straight to Tartarus until she could manage to reform, and who knew how long that would take?
Ambrosio let out a belly-shaking laugh as she darted out of range of his heavy blows. He was, she had estimated, at least thrice her strength, and the same amount her size. His skin was at least ten inches thick, and as tough as drakon hide. It seemed that Gaia had chosen to have this child be a brutal, unyielding enemy for the newest Olympian. Valeria had only managed to land a single blow, across his chest. But it was shallow, and had barely given him pause.
"You cannot defeat me, little goddess," Ambrosio gloated. "I am not weak, fearful, or disloyal. I am the strongest, most determined and the best fighter of my siblings!"
"Yet, you don't appear to possess the brains to make use of your strengths," Valeria taunted, hoping to anger her opponent into making a mistake. He simply chuckled again, the sound making the broken-down walls of the Wolf House shake.
"You cannot manipulate me, little goddess," Ambrosio declared. Valeria gritted her teeth in annoyance at the nickname's repetition. "My mother learned from her mistake with that traitorous fool, Damasen. Each of your domains, I possess to an even stronger level.
You are strong, but I am stronger. You are brave, but I am braver. You are-"
"Yes, yes," Valeria snapped. "I get it. You are a better version of me. Stop with your useless rant. It's wasting my time, and I am fed up of it."
Ambrosio scowled, his face darkening angrily as he let out an angry snarl. He charged at Valeria again, and she blocked the blow, that would otherwise have pierced straight through her armour and into her abdomen, just in time.
"Pathetic!" she panted. She slashed her sword, and smirked triumphantly as Ambrosio's left ear fell to the ground, with a large chunk of his skin, and several cobras. They wriggled for a few more seconds, before going still, and dissolving into monster dust.
"You're pathetic," she repeated, keeping Ambrosio's attention on her. Her sword continued to parry the blows of his spear, but she was feeling the strain in a way that she had not since her days as a mortal. Only the days-long battle with Typhon had compared, and even then, this was worse.
Each time their weapons clashed, or Ambrosio landed another blow on her, she felt herself become more and more drained by the fight. As her Bane, he could literally absorb her strength and turn it against her, and he was making full use of the ability.
She was forced to adjust her size regularly to accommodate the vicious battle she was engaged in, shooting up and shrinking down depending on the blow. Just past Ambrosio's towering form, she could see that Jason had managed to defeat his foes, and was now trying to creep up behind the giant.
"You are a child, playing at being a warrior," the goddess continued. She could see, that despite his earlier boasting about her being unable to manipulate him, her comments were getting to Ambrosio. He was scowling, and his blows were becoming sloppier.
"You know nothing of war!" Valeria went on, spinning to avoid being stabbed, and shooting upwards in order to quickly slash his arm, before going back to the ground again, and attacking his knees viciously.
"Your mother knew of how pathetic your siblings were, and she remembered how easily we beat them the last time the giants rose! She knew that we, the gods, were so superior to you pathetic monsters, that she chose to try and make her next children us! Face it, Ambrosio. You are nothing more than a soon-to-be defeated knock-off of me!"
Ambrosio let out a scream filled with outrage, and lunged for her. She swung her sword, burying Anaklusmos halfway through his neck in one lightning-fast movement. At that same exact second, Jason shoved Ivlivs hilt-deep into the giant's ankle, using all of his blessing-increased strength to pierce the thick flesh.
Ambrosio only had time to widen his eyes, choke out a denial and attempt to swipe the smug goddess standing over him, before he crumbled into dust.
She turned to study the demigods, sweeping her eyes over the courtyard. Piles of monster dust, snow, and scorch marks littered the sacred grounds where the Romans came to train with the Wolf Mother, and learn if they were worthy of joining the Twelfth Legion.
Lena and Leo were slumped against each other for support, Leo nibbling on a chocolate-shaped piece of ambrosia, while Lena sipped at a canteen of nectar, the glow of Valeria's blessing fading from around her.
Jason was dismounting from a tempest venti, and once he stood on the ground, the storm spirit reared on his hind legs, arcing electricity across his hooves and neighing proudly. All three of them were littered with cuts and bruises, but as far as Valeria could tell, there was nothing life-threatening to be concerned about.
"Very good, Heroes," she told them approvingly, nodding her head. "You do your lineage proud." The three straightened, Lena beaming in happiness at her mother's praise.
Then they heard a loud cracking sound behind them, and spun to see what was happening. The melting ice on Hera's cage sloughed off in a curtain of slush, landing in a heap on the ground.
"Oh, don't mind me!" the goddess called sarcastically. "Just the Queen of the Heavens, dying over here! But, please, continue with whatever it was you were doing."
The three demigods jumped into the pool and ran to the spire. Valeria was already there, and she kneeled just beside the cage, ignoring the wet seeping into her toga and onto her tanned legs. Her expression was grim as she examined the spire.
Leo frowned as he surveyed the situation. "Uh, Tía Callida, are you getting shorter?"
"No, you dolt!" Hera cried, tossing up her hands exasperatedly. "The earth is claiming me. Do something, for Olympus' sake! And hurry up with it!"
As much as the half-bloods disliked Hera, what they saw inside the cage alarmed them all. Not only was Hera sinking, the ground was rising around her like water in a tank. Liquid rock had already covered her shins.
"The giant wakes!" Valeria warned them urgently, casting a quick glance at the other spire. With each inch that Hera shrunk, it grew, and now it seemed to brush the sky itself. In order to see the top, the demigods had to lean back their heads until their necks were doubled over in a painful position, and it still seemed to be growing.
"You only have seconds!" Hera added frantically, eyes wide and alarmed as she too looked worriedly at the other spire.
"On it," Leo said. "Lena, I need your help. Talk to the cage, and try to bend the bars while you're at it."
"What?" she blinked. She grabbed two of the bars, and began trying to pry them apart with difficulty. Her mother's turquoise-coloured blessing appeared around her, and her grip strengthened. "I get the second part," she panted, fighting to break apart the cage. "But whad'ya mean, talk to the cage. It's a damn cage! It's got no ears!"
"That thing you do, where you make people trust you," he insisted, referencing her judicious use of Akantha's version of charmspeaking. "Do it to the cage."
She huffed, but began to coo to the cage. "Hey there, Earth Mother. Why don't you relax for a while, huh? You've been working so hard, keeping this bratty queen trapped for so long ("Hey!" Hera cried indignantly, glaring at the demigod.) Why not take a nap for a bit? You know that you can trust me. I'll keep her stuck in here for you. Just doze for a bit, then you can take over again."
The more she talked, the more confident she sounded. It certainly seemed to have some effect on the cage. The mud was rising more slowly. The tendrils seemed to soften just a little—becoming more like tree root than rock. Leo pulled a circular saw out of his tool belt. Then Leo looked at the cord and grunted in frustration.
"I don't have anywhere to plug it in!" he groaned.
Valeria was staring at the spire, unreplying, and the storm spirit horse Tempest jumped into the pit and whinnied, before circling himself in what was clearly an offer.
"Really?" Jason asked his new horse.
Tempest dipped his head in confirmation, and trotted over to Leo. Leo looked dubious, but he held up the plug, and a breeze whisked it into the horse's flank. Lighting sparked, connecting with the prongs of the plug, and the circular saw whirred to life.
"Sweet!" Leo grinned. "Your horse comes with AC outlets!"
Their good mood didn't last long. On the other side of the pool, the giant's spire crumbled with a sound like a tree snapping in half. Its' outer sheath of tendrils exploded from the top down, raining stone and wood shards as the giant shook himself free and climbed out of the earth.
Valeria cried out, flinging out a hand to send the debris flying away from them, just in time to spare them all concussions. Lena faltered for a half-a-second, before redoubling her attempts to break the cage open. Her sea-green eyes were wide with fear, and fixed on the new giant, along with the rest of them.
Jason hadn't thought anything could be scarier than Ambrosio.
He was wrong.
Porphyrion was even taller, and even more ripped. He didn't radiate heat, or show any signs of breathing fire, but there was something more terrible about him—a kind of strength, even magnetism, as if the giant were so huge and dense he had his own gravitational field.
Like Ambrosio, the giant king was humanoid from the waist up, clad in bronze armour, and from the waist down he had scaly dragon's legs; but his skin was the colour of lima beans. His hair was green as summer leaves, snakeless and braided in long locks. Weapons—daggers, axes, and full-size swords, some of them bent and bloody—maybe trophies taken from demigods eons before, decorated his long locks. When the giant opened his eyes, they were blank white, like polished marble. He took a deep breath.
"Alive!" he bellowed. "Praise to Gaea!"
When he glanced at Valeria for guidance, Jason's heart fell. She was staring, frozen, at the giant king. Suddenly, Jason remembered that Valeria had died fighting Porphyrion. How would it feel, to face the thing that had once killed you? Was even the goddess of bravery capable of such a feat?
Jason swallowed, gathering up the remnants of his resolve and reminding himself of what was at stake. "Leo," he said.
"Huh?" Leo's mouth was wide open. Even Lena seemed dazed, though she continued pulling at the bars desperately, mumbling as soothingly as she could to the earth.
"You guys keep working," Jason ordered. "Get Hera free!"
"What are you going to do?" Leo asked. "You can't seriously—"
"Entertain a giant?" Jason said. "I've got no choice."
"I will be with you," Valeria promised, snapping out of her frozen state and rising to her feet. "Come, Praetor. We battle for Rome."
"Twelfth Legion Fulminata," Jason replied as he followed. He didn't know where the words came from, but they increased his determination to fight until the death, if needs be.
"Excellent!" the giant roared as they approached. "An appetizer! Who are you—Hermes? Artemis?"
"I am Valeria!" The goddess called back. Any signs of fear disappeared, and she glared loathingly at their enemy. "The Roman Goddess of Heroes, Bravery, Strength and Honour! I hope you have enjoyed your rebirth, giant, for it shall not last long!"
"I'm Jason Grace," Jason added, feeling stupid. "Son of Jupiter."
Those white eyes bored into him. Behind him, Leo's circular saw whirred, and Lena talked to the cage in soothing tones, trying to keep the fear out of her voice.
Unease flashed across Porphyrion's expression for a second before it disappeared and he threw back his head and laughed. "Outstanding!" He looked up at the cloudy night sky. "So, Zeus, you sacrifice a son to me? The gesture is appreciated, but it will not save you. And, you, goddess. I recall you. Or, to be precise, I recall crushing your head beneath my foot."
Valeria spat at his feet, contempt radiating from her. "I did not stay dead for long!" she declared. "Which is far more than you can say!"
"If you knew who I was," Jason yelled up at the giant, taking up the speech baton. "You'd be worried about me, not my father. I hope you enjoyed your two and a half minutes of rebirth, giant, because I'm going to send you right back to Tartarus."
The giant's eyes narrowed. He planted one foot outside the pool and crouched to get a better look at his opponent. "So … we'll start by boasting, will we? Just like old times! Very well, demigod. I am Porphryion, king of the giants, son of Gaea. In olden times, I rose from Tartarus, the abyss of my father, to challenge the gods. To start the war, I stole Zeus's queen." He grinned at the goddess's cage. "Hello, Hera."
"My husband destroyed you once, monster!" Hera shrieked. "He'll do it again!"
"But he didn't, my dear! Zeus wasn't powerful enough to kill me. He had to rely on a puny demigod to help, and even then, we almost won. Isn't that right, Valeria?"
"But you did not!" She retorted, glaring at him, "You lost!" she reminded him. "As you will lose again!"
Porphyrion shook his head, laughing confidently. "Ah, but this time is different!" he announced. "This time, we will complete what we started. Gaea is waking. She has provisioned us with many fine servants. Our armies will shake the earth—and we will destroy you at the roots."
"You wouldn't dare," Hera said, but she was weakening. Jason could hear it in her voice. Lena kept whispering to, and pulling at the cage, and Leo kept sawing, but the earth was still rising inside Hera's prison, covering her up to her waist.
"You will never succeed!" Valeria added, but Jason could see concern, hidden in her eyes. The mention of destroying them at their roots had hit a cord in the goddesses. Which was very bad, the demigod figured.
"Oh, yes," the giant said. "The Titans sought to attack your new home in New York. Bold, but ineffective. Gaea is wiser and more patient. And we, her greatest children, are much, much stronger than Kronos. We know how to kill you Olympians once and for all. You must be dug up completely like rotten trees—your eldest roots torn out and burned."
The giant frowned at Lena and Leo, as if he'd just noticed them working at the cage. Jason stepped forward and yelled to get back Porphyrion's attention.
"You said a demigod killed you," he shouted. "How, if we're so puny?"
"Ha! You think I would explain it to you? I was created to be Zeus's replacement, born to destroy the lord of the sky. I shall take his throne. I shall take his wife—or, if she will not have me, I will let the earth consume her life force. What you see before you, child, is only my weakened form. I will grow stronger by the hour, until I am invincible. But I am already quite capable of smashing you and your pathetic goddess of heroes into grease spots!"
He rose to his full height and held out his hand. A twenty-foot spear shot from the earth. He grasped it, then stomped the ground with his dragon's feet. The ruins shook. All around the courtyard, monsters started to regather—storm spirits, wolves, and Earthborn, all answering the giant king's call.
"Great," Leo muttered. "We needed more enemies."
"Hurry," Hera insisted.
"I know!" Leo snapped.
Porphyrion raked his spear across the top of the ruins, destroying a chimney and spraying wood and stone across the courtyard. "So, child of Zeus! I have finished my boasting. Now it's your turn. What were you saying about destroying me?"
Jason looked at the ring of monsters, waiting impatiently for their master's order to tear them to shreds. Leo's circular saw kept whirring, and Lena kept talking, but it seemed hopeless, even with Valeria beside him. She was still bleeding from her fight with Ambrosio. Hera's cage was almost completely filled with earth.
"I'm the son of Jupiter!" he shouted, and just for effect, he summoned the winds, rising a few feet off the ground. "I'm a Child of Rome, Consul to demigods, Praetor of the Twelfth Legion." Jason didn't know quite what he was saying, but he rattled off the words like he'd said them many times before. He held out his arms, showing the tattoo of the eagle and SPQR, and to his surprise the giant seemed to recognize it.
"I slew the Trojan sea monster," Jason continued. "I toppled the black throne of Kronos, and destroyed the Titan Krios with my own hands. And now I'm going to destroy you, Porphyrion, and feed you to your own wolves."
"Wow, dude," Leo muttered. "You been eating red meat?"
Jason launched himself at the giant, determined to tear him apart. Valeria at his side. Somehow, Ivlivs had been lost and Jason was weaponless, but filled with reckless determination.
The idea of fighting a forty-foot-tall immortal bare handed was so ridiculous, even the giant seemed surprised. Half flying, half leaping, Jason landed on the giant's scaly reptilian knee and climbed up the giant's arm before Porphyrion even realized what had happened.
"You dare?" the giant bellowed.
Jason reached his shoulders and ripped a sword out of the giant's weapon-filled braids. He yelled, "For Rome!" and drove the sword into the nearest convenient target—the giant's massive ear. Valeria, having grown a pair of wings, sent a blast of pure energy from the tip of sword along with it.
Lightning streaked out of the sky and blasted the sword, throwing Jason free. He rolled when he hit the ground, the impact cushioned by Valeria, who had conjured a cloud of air beneath him. When he looked up, the giant was staggering. His hair was on fire, and the side of his face was blackened from lightning. The sword had splintered in his ear, and smoke was coming from it. Golden ichor ran down his jaw. The other weapons were sparking and smouldering in his braids.
Porphyrion almost fell. The circle of monsters let out a collective growl and moved forward—wolves and ogres fixing their eyes on Jason.
"No!" Porphyrion yelled. He regained his balance and glared at the demigod. "I will kill them both myself."
The giant raised his spear and it began to glow. "You want to play with lightning, boy? You forget. I am the bane of Zeus. I was created to destroy your father, which means I know exactly what will kill you. As for you, goddess of strength, I killed you once, I will do so again!"
Something in Porphyrion's voice told Jason he wasn't bluffing. As the giant raised his spear, Jason knew there was no way he could deflect this strike, even with Valeria's help.
This was the end.
"Got it!" Leo suddenly yelled.
"Sleep!" Lena insisted, her voice so forceful, the nearest wolves fell to the ground unconscious and began snoring.
The stone and wood cage crumbled. Leo had sawed through the base of the thickest tendril and apparently cut off the cage's connection to Gaea. The tendrils turned to dust. The mud around Hera disintegrated. The goddess grew in size, glowing with power.
"Yes!" the goddess cried triumphantly. She threw off her black robes to reveal a white gown, her arms bedecked with golden jewellery. Her face was both terrible and beautiful, and a golden crown glowed in her long black hair. "Now I shall have my revenge!"
The giant Porphyrion backed away. He said nothing, but he gave Jason one last look of hatred. Then he slammed his spear against the earth, and the giant disappeared into the ground like he'd dropped down a chute.
Around the courtyard, monsters began to panic and retreat, but there was no escape for any of them from the goddesses' wrath. Valeria had also begun to glow, and Hera glowed brighter.
"Cover your eyes, my heroes!"
But Jason was too much in shock. He understood too late.
He watched as Hera turned into a supernova, exploding in a ring of force that vaporized every monster instantly. Jason fell, light searing into his mind, and his last thought was that his body was burning.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO/HOO.

The Councillors all knew the plan, and they were all ready to play their part in it. Everyone (save for Akantha and Hera, who were busy with Porphyrion and Ambrosio, of course) was at the WInter Solstice meeting.
In order to not tip off the Lord of the Skies as to their plans, they all acted normally. Poseidon and Zeus were arguing over what was better, sea or sky disasters, and Hestia was desperately trying to calm them down, as they had already created four storms in various areas between them, trying to 'prove their points'. Unfortunately, she was unsuccessful, as they couldn't hear her pleas to restrain themselves over the sounds of waves crashing wildly and the wind whipping about ferociously. Thankfully, Zeus was so intent on proving his superiority to his brother, he didn't even mention Akantha's absence, nor did he seem to mind the lack of his wife (and her nagging him on his lack of fidelity to her.)
Demeter was loudly berating Hades, bemoaning her 'poor' daughter's 'captivity', as well as insisting that Hades "do something about that disrespectful brat of a son that you have! He refuses, outright refuses, to eat any cereal! He eats those horrid MacDonald's meals instead. It isn't healthy. I bet that if we got him on a proper, fibre-based diet, he wouldn't be so rude and depressed looking all the time! Hades, are you listening to me? Hades! Listen to me!"
The god of the dead looked away from his phone screen and glanced at his sister/mother-in-law in a bored manner, his indifference to her ranting radiating from his casually slumped form. "Huh? I think Nico's diet is fine, Demeter. And so what if he likes dark colours? He is my son, after all. Don't worry about it."
"Oh!" she threw her hands up in the air and stamped her foot like a child holding a tantrum. "Hades you are impossible! My poor Kore, having to spend so much of her time dealing with you. I-"
Across the Hall of the Gods, Artemis and Aphrodite were also having a showdown, only it was a lot more physical than the other fights going on around the room.
It had started with an outwardly sweet, and truthfully almost cruel, comment from Aphrodite to Artemis about her maiden vow and the fact that she was a goddess of childbirth, despite having no children of her own. Artemis' temper, which had always been badly controlled, especially when it came to that topic, flared, and she snapped back that Aphrodite would know a lot about children, given she had so many that she couldn't even count them all, and that was just currently alive and claimed at Camp Half-Blood!
A few minutes and several more increasingly angry comments later, the two goddesses were rolling around on the marble floor. Artemis was currently sitting on Aphrodite's stomach, clutching her shoulders and using them to slam her head against the ground. Aphrodite, meanwhile, was somehow managing to repeatedly slap the goddess of the hunt across the face. In order to make sure that it really hurt, the love goddess had turned her hands into sharp talons with claws sticking out of the knuckles. As a result, gold ichor was flowing heavily from Aphrodite's head, and Artemis' cheeks were so damaged, she would have died if she were mortal.
Thankfully, the two fighters were both immortal, so no one was concerned. In fact, Hephaestus, Hermes and Apollo were standing back and watching.
"Fifty drachmae on Artemis," Hermes commented to his brothers. Hephaestus shot him a disgruntled look, due to the fact that he (as a good spouse should) was routing for Aphrodite.
"Double on my wife," he growled, adjusting the lenses on his video camera slightly, in order to get a better shot of Aphrodite pulling out a large chunk of Artemis' auburn hair. Catfights between the Goddess of Love and the Goddess of Maidenhood always got brilliant reviews from the critics who reviewed Hephaestus TV, and given the lack of drama lately (what with Olympus and its' residents all being under lockdown), he needed some new entertainment in order to get his reviews back up.
The one god who was having trouble keeping his anxiety about what was to come was Apollo. His usually bright blue eyes were almost navy they were so dark, and he was obviously distracted and lost in thought. He played with his bowstring as he stared at the wall with a heavy frown on his typically-cheerful features.
Hermes' grin faltered at the sight, though he truthfully wasn't very surprised. As the god of truth, Apollo was a terrible liar, and his status as god of the arts didn't help much with that.
"Well Apollo?" he asked boisterously, hoping that the sound of his voice would distract the sun god from his grim thoughts. "How much, and on which goddess?"
Apollo started and turned to them, forcing a smile that was a bare echo of his typically blinding beam. "One hundred on Arty, obviously," he declared brightly. "No one beats my baby sis at anything. 'cept for me with archery, of course."
Hermes snickered at that. "Better not say that to her face," he told him in amusement. "Castration might be the worst thing that she does to you, if she hears you say you're a better archer then she is."
Apollo shrugged, wearing a look of fake-innocence on his face as he forced himself to play his part in the drama. "I am the god of truth," he pointed out with a smug grin. "As such, I cannot lie, now can I?"
Hermes paused at that. Honestly, no one was sure about that, and Apollo never let on if it was an actual fact or not. Though he claimed it was regularly, if he was incapable of lying, how would they figure it out? He was the one who could detect lies, not any of them. On one hand, Apollo did tend to tell the truth more often than not, but sometimes, he said things that were so outrageous you couldn't think that they were anything except a lie.
Hermes was saved from having to reply by two bright flashes. When the light had faded, Hera and Akantha were standing in their place. Hera looked well-enough, given that she had spent the best part of two weeks in a cage, having her power sapped by the Earth Mother. Akantha, on the other hand, had clearly been in a battle, and taken severe damage during it. But, although all of them wanted to go and check her over, (especially Apollo and her father), their arrival was the signal to enact The Plan. The gods stopped their fighting, going serious and tensing up as they all turned to look at Zeus.
Zeus had been distracted by his wife and niece's abrupt arrival, and so he was unprepared for the golden net suddenly tossed over him by several gods. He squawked furiously, briefly flashing back to the first time this had happened, several centuries before Akantha had even been born, let alone become a goddess.
"How dare you?!" he boomed furiously. In the mortal world, five planes suddenly crashed, three tornadoes began without warning in various areas, and almost every state in America began suffering a series of Category Five storms, that would result in death tolls hitting the millions, as well as costing several million dollars in property damage.
"Uncle, my king, I hope that you will forgive us for this, eventually," Akantha said softly, stepping forward. "We are simply trying to save you from the malicious tricks of the Earth Mother and her servants. We do not seek to take your position from you."
He glared at her bitterly, ignoring her words. "You, Akantha?" he spat bitterly. "To think that I have been betrayed by the goddess of loyalty and honour, of all my subjects. I might have suspected this from one of them, but you! This, I could never have anticipated."
She flinched, glancing briefly at the ground before squaring her shoulders and meeting his gaze once again. "As I said, Your Majesty," she murmured. "We are not attempting a coup, we are trying to save you from Gaia's trap."
He growled furiously at her repeated claim. "She sleeps!" he insisted, causing his irritated brothers to roll their eyes. "And she will stay asleep, if we follow my plan!"
"She stirs, Husband," Hera replied, striding into the centre of his restricted vision. "I have only just been released from my capture by her minions, and I come bearing grave news." She paused, looking around to meet everyone's eyes, meeting Akantha's gaze last, before returning to meet her husband's storm-coloured eyes again, seriousness radiating from her slim form.
"Even if the Earth Mother remains asleep, for the moment," she emphasized that part firmly, making Zeus' scowl deepen. "Her children do not. Porphyrion has risen once again. He and his servants have declared their intention to 'destroy us at our roots,' to quote them directly."
A series of gasps went through the gods at that, many of their faces paling in horror at the implications of Hera's announcement.
"Yes," Akantha nodded, supporting Hera's claims. "The Gigantes, and their army, intend to make for the Ancient Lands. No doubt, they will attack Rome first, to weaken us, before going on to Mount Olympus. The original Mount Olympus."
"Impossible," Zeus denied, his expression stricken with the gravity of what his wife and advisor were saying. "Not even the giants would dare be so audacious as to attack us there."
All of them understood the subtext of what Akantha and Hera were saying. The gods all drew their power from several things. The beliefs of those who followed them, their domains and, finally Mount Olympus itself. But this particular Olympus, as well as its' predecessors, and the other magical places that had shifted with Western Civilization, took its' power from its' original home. If the original mountain was destroyed, so would they be.
"It is undefended, my lord," Akantha pointed out quietly. "As such, it is our most vulnerable point. In truth, they would be fools not to take advantage of it. Do you truly, truly and genuinely, believe that the Gigantes won't try to attack us? Even without their Mother urging them to? Truly?"
Zeus didn't reply for a moment. "Well," he said finally, anger darkening his expression. "I take it you have a plan then? Why not tell it to us? And how is causing a Civil War going to help us?"

Thalia groaned and stirred. Then she froze, because something was wrong. Her eyes snapped open, and she jumped to her feet with the ease of practice, scanning the area for threats. She frowned, because she had no idea where she was, other than the courtyard of a ruined building. That led her to another, even more important realization.
She didn't know who she was, either. Nor did she know why she was dressed in nothing but black jeans and a shirt saying 'Death to Barbie' with a doll that had an arrow stuck through its' head on, not even a pair of socks, let alone shoes to protect her toes from being sliced open by the stones on the ground. She definitely didn't know why she held a mace canister in one hand, and the other was automatically rubbing at a silver bracelet. The delicate piece of jewellery was not, she knew instinctively, her style. But it was also the most important part of her outfit, lacking though it was.
Her ink-black hair reached in tangled locks to past her shoulder-blades, like it hadn't been cut in months, and her side-bangs flopped into her eyes, obscuring her vision. She could feel the leaves and twigs entangled in it, supporting her conclusion that she had been sleeping in the woods for some time.
It seemed like summer, and she thought that she was probably on the east coast somewhere, for whatever reason, but her thin clothes gave little shelter from the biting, wet wind. It would rain soon. She shifted, a sense of 'danger!' crawling through her. She wasn't supposed to be here. This place was dangerous.
Why was she here, in the Dangerous Place, instead of, where? Where was she? Where was she supposed to be? Why wasn't she there, and why had she been sleeping the woods? What was going on? Who was she?
That was when the wolves came, and she summoned her spear and shield on instinct. She shifted into a fighting stance, and a thought occurred to her in the back of her mind.
Well, she thought to herself. That answers one question I have. I'm a warrior.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO/HOO. I wasn't sure about the prophecy but *shrugs indifferently*. It's not a major factor anyway. And Octavian is gone in this AU, so no power-hungry augurs causing civil wars between the camps.

Thalia stared up at the giant woman who had just appeared in the centre of the Field of Mars. Something about her seemed familiar, yet not at the same time. Pretty much the same way everything had felt since Thalia had woken up in the Wolf House. Regardless, Thalia copied the rest of the legion, going down on one knee and peering up at the goddess.
"That's Lady Valeria," Hazel whispered hastily in her ear. "Goddess of Heroes, Loyalty, Strength, Bravery and Honour. She's one of the most important gods in the pantheon." Thalia nodded, giving her new friend an appreciative smile.
"Romans!" Valeria called. "I come before you with grave news. Letus has been chained, and our enemies control the Doors of Death. As long as they do so, monsters cannot be killed. They will reform, moments after destruction. Mortals will die, and simply walk back into Life. The Council has decided that a quest must be issued, and we have chosen the heroes who will go on it."
"Your will, and that of the gods, is our command, milady," Victoria Reynolds, Camp Jupiter's quiet Augur, said respectfully. "But what of a prophecy, to guide the questers? I cannot-"
"No," Valeria agreed. "But Apollo has graciously given a prophecy to me. Firstly, however. Frank Zhang, Hazel Levesque, and Thalia Grace. Step forward."
Thalia had been expecting this, she realized as she stood and headed to the front where everybody could see her. Frank and Hazel both looked stunned, but somehow she knew that quests involving the fate of the world were a regular thing for her. She had been expecting this unconsciously since she had heard of how Polybotes' army was marching towards Camp Jupiter.
She bowed to Valeria. "Nice to see you again, my lady," she said. And she had met the goddess before, even if she didn't know where. She made Thalia feel safe, which was intriguing and strange. Safety wasn't something that Thalia was very familiar with, but she definitely liked it. Valeria smiled back at her.
"Indeed, Thalia," she nodded. "I apologize for the removal of your memories, but it is needed. Rest assured, they will return in time. For now, I once again require your services in leading a quest. You will take Hazel Levesque and Frank Zhang to the land beyond the gods, and free Letus."
"But my lady!" A guy jumped up to object. He was obviously a complete moron, because he ignored Valeria's expression going frosty at her desires being protested.
"Thalia Grace has been here for less than a day," the guy ranted. "There are dozens of rumours about Levesque and her powers. As for Zhang, he hasn't even been claimed yet, and he has caused nothing but trouble since he got here-"
"Enough!" Valeria snapped. The guy's mouth snapped shut, and he swallowed nervously as he finally realized that he had just angered a goddess. "What is your name and lineage?" Valeria demanded curtly.
"Uh, Larry Travesco. Son of Mercury. Milady," he stammered out.
Valeria sneered down at him. "Mercury must be humiliated tohave such an embarrassment as one of his sons," she stated curtly. Larry's face went bright red, and the other legionnaires shifted away from him slightly. None of them wanted to associate with someone scorned by a goddess.
"Thalia Grace may be new to the Legion, but she has done more to preserve Olympus than anyone else in this camp," Valeria went on, expression steely. "Hazel Levesque's powers are not your concern, she is an ally of Rome, and a loyal legionnaire. I can personally attest to that. As for Frank Zhang, he has not been claimed, due to his father's banishment from Olympus."
"Mars," someone whispered, making Valeria nod crisply.
"Yes," she confirmed. "Frank Zhang is the son of Mars, and the legacy of Neptune. That is the end of the matter, I will hear no more objections to Our decisions. I will give the prophecy now." She paused to clear her throat and gather her thoughts before continuing.
"To the north, beyond the gods, lies the legion's crown. Falling from ice, the daughter of Jupiter shall drown. Against the strength of the earth their fight will be, and the winner's name will go down in history."
It was not, Thalia thought to herself, a particularly encouraging prophecy, not they ever were. But this bit about 'the daughter of Jupiter shall drown.' Thalia did not like that line. Not at all.
Valeria glanced around again, giving Reyna in particular a stern look. "I expect that the Legion will aid the quest in whatever way is necessary," she ordered sternly. "Transportation, supplies. Remember that the fate of the world is relying on this quest."
"Yes, my lady," Reyna agreed, bowing deeply and struggling to maintain a neutral expression. "We will do all in our power to ensure that the quest is successful."
"Good," Valeria nodded. "This," she waved her wrist, conjuring a long, dragon-tooth-topped spear and handed it to Frank. "Is a gift from your distant grandfather, Lord Neptune. He has agreed to allow his nieces permission to sail, if it is necessary for the three of you to go by water. You must not go over land, for the earth itself is working against you."
She paused in her speech again, scanning the ranks of anxious Romans. She looked at her daughter, who's eyes were wide with worry.
"You must prepare yourselves," she told them solemnly, looking grave. "Polybotes, the Bane of Neptune, leads an army to invade Camp Jupiter. They will attack on the Feast of Fortune, and you are all heavily outnumbered. But," she clapped, making everybody jump at the sudden, loud noise. "You are Romans, the great warriors of Olympus! You are born for battle, and I have faith that your strength, bravery, honour, and loyalty to Olympus will allow you all to triumph! You will repel Polybotes' attack, and show those pathetic monsters the true and great might of Rome! Twelfth Legion Fulminata!"
"Twelfth Legion Fulminata!" the legionnaires yelled back. Valeria disappeared with a loud clap of thunder, and Reyna turned to the three selected questers. Hazel's eyes were wide, and Frank looked stunned. He kept muttering "Mars, how could Mars be my father?" under his breath.
"Well then," she said, her voice cool. "It seems that the three of you must be prepared for your quest. We will make the arrangements tonight, and you will go tomorrow."
She glanced around at the gaping half-bloods, scowling. "Go!" she snapped. "Get to your duties!" The legionnaires scattered immediately in fear of the praetor's temper.

Nico waited at Camp Jupiter until the questers had left, so that he could see Hazel off. He was full of worry for his sister, and the fact that she was accompanied by Thalia (the strongest and best fighter that he knew, in either camp), only mildly eased his worry. Technically, Hazel was older than him. She had been born before him, at least. But Nico was physically older than her, and he had more experience than she did with the demigod world, or rather, with fighting.
He had known what a risk he was taking, when he had stumbled over Hazel in the Fields of Asphodel and decided to sneak her back into Life. But his father had not said anything, and neither Thanatos nor the Furies had descended on them both, intent on dragging Hazel back to the Underworld and him before the Lord of the Death who ruled it. But now, with a quest to release Thanatos, would Hazel be taken away? The thought made him feel sick.
He knew that he wasn't the best brother, but he loved Hazel as dearly, if differently, as he loved Bianca. Bianca had always filled a parental role for him, and she had abandoned him without a second thought when the first opportunity came knocking. He had never really been able to forgive or forget that, and he held a certain amount of distrust for her now. Hazel, he felt a fierce desire to protect from the cruelties of the world, and he didn't think that she would ever leave him, purely to make her own life easier.
He hated her mother for everything she had put his little sister through, and he often thought that Marie Levesque had not deserved what she got. She should have gone to the Fields of Punishment for hurting Hazel. Hazel should've gotten the Fields of Elysium, or even the Isles of the Blessed. She was certainly kind and good enough for it.
As he approached Tartarus, Nico forced himself to shove away his circular thoughts and raised his Stygian Iron sword in a defensive stance that had been the first sword move he had ever learned to use, back at Camp Half-Blood.
He crept up to the edge, hesitating. He already knew that the 'Life' side of the Doors were at the House of Hades in Greece, and it made a sick sort of sense that the 'Death' side would be in Tartarus itself. But he wasn't sure what to do now.
Nico had the same pride that all children of the Big Three seemed to inherit from their fathers. But he wasn't arrogant, and he definitely wasn't an idiot. If he went down into Tartarus, he was doomed. Could monsters even be killed there? It was where they went after being defeated, after all. Maybe they were invulnerable in the Pit. Nico would be a prime target, as a half-blood. They would descend on him like hungry wolves, and he would be quickly overwhelmed, especially if they had a giant or Titan with them.
A sudden snap drew his attention, and his instincts kicked in just in time to let him avoid being skewered on a dracenae's spear tip. But that same movement also caused him to slip. The choice of whether or not to go down into Tartarus was taken from him, as he fell down a seemingly unending tunnel of blackness. As he fell into the Pit of Monsters.

Valeria sighed, crossing her arms under her breasts and staring over the Olympus War Map. It was a 3D model of the entire world, in what a mortal would might consider similar to an interactive, and solid, holograph. It showed everything in minute detail, with moving figurines and areas both magical and mortal.
All areas under the control of other pantheons were blanked out. One good thing about the many deities there were in existence was that they couldn't affect each other. And their enemies couldn't either. Some fools had tried combining religions, but it never worked, thank the Fates. So, at least they didn't have to worry about Gaia allying herself with the Egyptian Apophis, who was also stirring. What was with ancient and evil deities waking up lately? It was getting to the point of ridiculousness. Valeria had heard rumours of Norse trouble, too.
Still, even without those areas, the entire US, as well as the Ancient Lands, were under the control of Olympus. And they still had influence on the areas they had once been, but left, as well. It meant they had a great deal to defend, and not nearly enough soldiers to defend them with. The exact same problem as they had during the Titanomachy last year.
Her keen eyes spotted something, and she reached out. She picked up the mock Ogygia, pulling it closer to her face to check. As she had thought, there was a mini Calypso, representing her true self, doing gardening on the island. A small growl of frustration escaped the goddess' lips, and she replaced the miniature island.
"What is it?" Apollo asked. He and Diana were at the Ancient side of the map, trying to see if their mother was in danger on Delos, their mutual sacred island. The map also showed wards, and what state they were in.
The Twins feared that Latona, a very peaceful Titaness, would be taken as a hostage by the giants, for their love for her was well-known. As such, they were checking on her regularly. Valeria pitied the fool who ever tried to hurt Latona. The tale of Niobe might be one of the more-known incidents of the Twins defending their mother, but that was actually one of the milder punishments given to the fools who insulted the Titaness of Motherhood and Demurity. Valeria supposed the other punishments were too awful to speak of for the mortals who learned of them.
She sighed, adjusting Anaklusmos in its' sheath on her belt. "Calypso remains on Ogygia, in violation of Zeus' oath to his daughter. I shall go and release her immediately, along with extending our apologies."
"She will be displeased at having been forgotten," Diana commented. "Rightfully so."
Valeria grimaced at that. "Yes," she acknowledged. "But I have been very busy, with the camps, and the coming war. And there are a great many immortals to be released." Jupiter had given his chief advisor sole responsibility for fulfilling Thalia's demands, and things had begun to slip through the cracks.
"We'll see you at the War Meeting later, then," Apollo nodded simply.
She grimaced again, before disappearing in a flash of light, rematerializing on Ogygia, in front of a shocked-looking Calypso.
"My lady Calypso," the goddess greeted the Titaness. "I have come to free you from your imprisonment, as per the Oath of Manhattan."
She later admitted to Apollo, that she could not remember the last time she saw such naked hope on a person's face, immortal or otherwise. It had been a good feeling.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO/HOO.

"That looks familiar," Thalia said, pointing inland as they passed Stinson Beach, where a single mountain rose above the green hills. Her face was tinted green from sea sickness, but she was holding her own despite that the Romans' 'navy'. A.k.a, a tiny boat called the Pax.
Upon stepping carefully aboard the neglected boat, Frank had glowed a sea green colour from the blessing of Neptune, and promptly discovered the ability to control boats, and tell where they were whilst on the water. They were speeding along far too fast to be natural, but for once Frank had faith in himself.
Like the night before, when he had led the Fifth Cohort to victory in the War Games, he knew, instinctively, how to bend the boat and the ocean to his will. A gift from Neptune, he supposed. Either way, it was appreciated. Though he felt terrible that Thalia and especially Hazel were so sick from the motion of the sea. Children of the sky and Underworld were apparently not good when it came to sea travel.
"That's Mount Tamalpais," Frank explained to his new friend. "The current location of Mount Othrys. There was a huge battle there last year. Camp Jupiter stormed the fortress, and Jason Grace battled the Titan Krios himself, and won. Then they destroyed Saturn's throne, and that weakened him enough to allow the gods to defeat him and his armies."
"Were either of you there?" Thalia asked. Her electric blue eyes were sharp as she studied them thoughtfully. There was something else there too. Like an echo of an memory, and a bad one at that.
Hazel shook her head. "No," she replied. "I arrived about two months later, and Frank only arrived about three months ago."
"Around the time I woke up," Thalia noted. Her gaze returned to Mount Tam, a brooding expression crossing her face. "I was there, once," she said, her voice sounding distant and detached. "They captured me. And Zoe was killed. Annabeth and Luke." She cut herself off, shaking her dark head. "I can't remember, gods damn it!"
Hazel bit her lip, then tentatively reached out to clasp hands with the other girl. "Lady Valeria said that they would come back," she offered uncertainly. She wondered when Thalia had been captured, and what had happened to her during her imprisonment. Did that have something to do with the gods' decision to take her memories.
Thalia sighed and nodded. "Yeah," she acknowledged. "It's just so frustrating!"
"I can't imagine," Frank said sympathetically. Then, "Hazel!"
The dark-skinned girl suddenly pitched forward, unconscious. Thalia managed to stop her hitting the ground, and they laid her down as best they could on the second bench, the two of them sitting beside each other.
"Has that happened before?" Thalia demanded anxiously, as she pressed the back of her hand to Hazel's forehead in search of a fever. "Her just passing out like that?"
He shook his head worriedly, his eyes wide with worry. "Not that I've seen, or she's said," he replied anxiously. "She's never-" He fell silent, waving his hands around worriedly.
Thalia bit her lip for a moment, removing her hand and leaning down to pull out the emergency kit from under their bench. As she had suspected, the large box contained a blanket, which she spread over Hazel. "There's no fever, and she's not clammy or anything," she said as she tended to the younger girl.
The actions all seemed oddly familiar to her, and Thalia knew instinctively that she had acted as a mixture of a mother and an older sister to someone before. A pair of grey eyes like storm-clouds, under a head of blonde princess curls, flashed briefly in front of her mind before disappearing again. The picture brought a feeling of grief, heartache and betrayal to her heart.
"It might just be the sea sickness," Thalia continued, when the image had left. "The Big Three don't like it when their brothers' children cross into each other's domains, even with permission. I can't shadow travel without getting sick, and I bet Nico or Hazel would be killed if they ever went on a plane. But we should probably get her back onto land."
Frank was still worried, but he nodded unhappily. He had only known her for a day, but already he trusted Thalia. She was tough, and he knew without a doubt that her experience in the world of Roman myths far outstripped his own, or even Hazel's. She had an aura around her. Like she had seen everything, and knew that there would eventually come a day when she didn't win. And power positively radiated from her every move.
They fell silent, Frank focusing on controlling the waters and Pax. When they spotted land, a hundred and fifty miles north of the Golden Gate, according to Frank, they docked and took Hazel out. After she finished securing the area, Thalia paced in thought, her spear out and ready for an attack, while Frank sat beside Hazel, keeping a constant eye on her.
Finally, the young girl groaned and sat up groggily, pressing a hand to her forehead. "Where are we?" she asked.
Frank exhaled loudly in relief. "Thank the gods you're awake!" he exclaimed. "We're in Mendocino, about a hundred and fifty miles north of the Golden Gate."
"A hundred and fifty miles?" Hazel groaned. She didn't seem surprised to have fainted, and Thalia felt a hint of suspicion sting her, though Frank was oblivious. "I've been out that long?"
Despite her suspicions, Thalia knelt beside her, again putting her hand on Haze's forehead to check for a fever. "We couldn't wake you," the daughter of Zeus informed her cousin. "When we saw land we decided to bring you ashore. We thought maybe the seasickness—"
"It wasn't seasickness," Hazel interrupted. She took a deep breath. Thalia saw a look of shame cross the thirteen-year-old's face as she looked down at the ground, fiddling with a piece of grass that she had picked up.
"I—I haven't been honest with you," she said, her voice shaking slightly. "What happened was a blackout. I have them once in a while."
"A blackout?" Frank took Hazel's hand, wearing a concerned and confused expression. "Is it medical? Why haven't I noticed before?"
"I try to hide it," she admitted. "I've been lucky so far, but it's getting worse. It's not medical…not really. Nico says it's a side effect from my past, from where he found me."
Thalia's eyes narrowed. "Where did Nico find you, exactly?" she pressed. Nico Di'Angelo, the King of Ghosts, echoed in the back of her mind. You shall rise or fall by the ghost king's hand...
Hazel's bottom lip trembled slightly, her molten gold eyes shining with unshed tears as she clenched her fists tightly, making them turn pale. In spite of her blatant distress, she lifted her chin. "I'll explain," she promised. She clawed through her pack, frowning and breathing unevenly. "Is…is there anything to drink?"
"Yeah." Thalia swore in Greek as she realized her own bag was still on the Pax. "That was dumb. I left my supplies down at the boat."
Hazel shouldered her pack and sword. "Never mind," she said, putting on a brave face. "I'm fine now. I can walk.…"
"Don't even think about it," Frank refused, shaking his head and waving her back down. "Not until you've had some food and water. I'll go and get the supplies."
"No, I'll go." Thalia said. She wasn't dumb, and she could see Frank's hand on Hazel's. Besides, this place made her feel uneasy, and Thalia was the most powerful of the group. If they had to split up, she had the most chance on her own. She scanned the horizon in search of obvious signs of trouble, but there was nothing to see—just the lighthouse and the field of grass stretching inland. "You two stay here. I'll be right back."
"You sure?" Hazel said feebly. "I don't want you to—"
"It's fine," Thalia insisted, straightening up properly. "Frank, just keep your eyes open. Something about this place…I don't know."
"I'll keep her safe," Frank promised.
Thalia gave another quick nod, then dashed off. She wanted to get back quickly, because something was definitely going to attack them, she just knew it.

Valeria watched as Thalia attempted to Iris Message her boyfriend. She could feel her Akantha side's guilt, but the Roman aspect was stonily neutral as she waved her hand, disrupting the attempt. She saw Iris frown, and sent her a mental message.
"She must not be allowed to contact the Greeks," Valeria told her Greek friend. "Not yet anyway. It is too dangerous. We must wait."
Iris pursed her lips, but gave a subtle nod. "I understand, my lady," she whispered back to Valeria through their linked minds. "I do not like it. But I do understand. I shall trust in your judgment." She broke the link and turned to Thalia, wearing a sympathetic expression. Thalia herself looked crushed with disappointment.
"It's like you're dialling somebody," Iris said gently. "But you've forgotten the number. Or someone is jamming the signal. Sorry, dear. I just can't connect you."
Thalia's shoulders slumped, and she looked away, biting down hard on her lip.
"Maybe we should try contacting Reyna, and giving her a warning about the army," Hazel ventured carefully, giving Thalia an anxious look. The daughter of Zeus squared her shoulders, her trademarked look of steely determination settling on her face again, covering her internal anguish.
"Good idea, Hazel," she complimented the other girl. She turned to Iris. "Can we?"
Iris brightened, giving a clap. "Sure thing," she agreed without hesitation. "But I think that I'll get Fleecy to do it for me. I tend to leave the majority of my IMs to her, nowadays."
Jupiter strode into the room as the young nymph bounced forward, smiling brightly.
"My Liege," Valeria bowed to him, ignoring the image, as it was merely showing Fleecy instructing Hazel on how to send a message by rainbow. In the other half, it showed Frank watching with a gaping mouth as his skeletal servant ripped the basilisks to shreds.
"Valeria," Jupiter nodded back to her curtly. His eyes fixed on the image of Thalia, and his form rippled into that of Zeus'. Valeria copied him, turning into Akantha, in response.
"How fares my daughter's quest?" Zeus asked. Now that the spell Gaia had put him under was broken, and he had acknowledged that their enemy was awakening, he was again dressed for war, wearing Celestial Bronze armour, just as his Roman counterpart wore Imperial Gold. The Master Bolt hung from his belt, and he rested a hand upon it possessively.
"Well, though they narrowly avoided crossing paths with Polybotes and his army," Akantha answered. She waved at the mirror, hanging behind her. "Do you wish to see?"
"Yes," he replied curtly, moving to stand beside her as she turned back to the image.
"O Fleecy, do me a solid," Hazel was chanting, looking doubtful as to her success. "Show me Reyna at Camp Jupiter."
The rainbow in front of her rippled, showing the Praetor, reclining in the baths with a troubled look on her face. She screamed in shock at the sudden appearance of the Iris Message, lunging for a knife resting nearby.
"Reyna, Reyna wait!" Hazel called. "It's Hazel. I'm using something called an Iris Message to contact you. It's something done by the goddess of rainbows, Iris, apparently. I need to give you some information."
Reyna relaxed slightly, once she had grabbed a towel and wrapped it around herself. "Okay, go ahead," she ordered curtly, and Hazel began to explain everything they knew about the army marching for Camp Jupiter.
"They were lucky," Zeus noted. "Iris would be no use if they had been discovered by the army, and we can only help against the giants. All the regular monsters, the half-bloods will have to deal with themselves."
Once he had admitted that Gaia was rising again, Zeus' first act had been to order all the gods to respond to pleas for help from the demigods if they faced a giant. It was an order that they all thoroughly approved off, even if it hurt their pride to need help from their mortal children to defeat their opponents. They did, and so eliminating the Gigantes had to be top priority.
"It would be preferred if as many giants as possible were dealt with before reaching Greece," Akantha commented. "The less we have to face in the battle in the ancient lands, the easier the others will be to defeat."
And, if they could fight ones that weren't their Banes, it might also help. The giants were each designed to face a specific god, and their abilities would do them no good against one who was not their destined enemy or their enemy's mortal child. Bellona had suggested that tactic, and it had been agreed upon which god would (hopefully) face which giant. Akantha herself had agreed to aid her king against Porphyrion, once again. As she had died doing, her husband lost in that same battle, though he had not been granted godship.
"But as long as the Doors of Death remain open, Gaia can simply restore our Banes to life once again. Or she could even bring back the Titans who are in Tartarus." Zeus pointed out grimly. "The Doors must be closed, or all hope is lost for Western Civilization."

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO/HOO. So, this is more of a filler chapter, happening while the questers are dealing with Phineas.

"Can I help you, Apollo?" Akantha asked, raising her left eyebrow at him and placing a hand on her hip as she leaned against the doorframe.
He had arrived at her room while she was both brooding over the quest Thalia, Hazel Levesque and Frank Zhang were on, which her Roman was aspect was monitoring constantly, (at least until they reached Alaska, after which she would be helpless to aid or guide them.) and watching over Lena. The Greek members of the Prophecy of Seven were struggling to finish the Argo II in time for the approaching deadline, but Gaia's servants were sabotaging their work ruthlessly. Hephaestus had blessed all of his children, in order to increase their ability to work, and it had done wonders for the progress on the ship.
Akantha had to admit, she loathed the fact that her only currently-living Greek daughter was a member of the coming quest. That Claudia was not was of no comfort to the mother. Whether Greek or Roman, they were both her children, and Claudia would not escape the war. Her poor daughters, forced to fight in two wars in less than a year, and neither of them nineteen yet!
Even Akantha had not been in such a situation during her mortal life. She had performed many quests, yes. But she had only been involved in one war. The First Gigantomachy. The war that had killed her and her husband, and left her firstborn son an orphan, raised by her half-sister Philomena. And now, her daughters were in almost the exact same situation that she had been, all those centuries ago. Gods, why were the Fates doing this?
"Akantha." Apollo clicked his fingers in front of her face, snapping her out of her thoughts of her children. "Akantha." She noticed that they had somehow ended up in her living room, sitting across from each other with her vintage oak coffee table between them, two glasses of nectar resting on it.
"Yes, yes," she flapped her hands at him. "I'm fine, I was just lost in thought. What can I do for you, my friend?"
He paused, giving her a look of intensity that many who saw only the playboy, poetry-spouting mask that he wore, would have been shocked to see him wear. "Is that all we are to each other?" he asked softly. "Friends?"
She cocked her head to the side, frowning at him and crossing her arms just underneath her breasts. "I don't know," she admitted, studying him carefully. "What do you want to be?"
She was not inclined to marry again, but she would be open to being with Apollo romantically. Although she was the goddess of loyalty, including romantic loyalty, oddly enough, she could still have multiple romantic partners at a time. She did not fully understand it, but she accepted it. And, if being a long-term relationship with Apollo did end up stopping her trysts with various mortal men, well. Akantha had only ever had less than a hundred lovers in her millennia of life, and that counted her late husband. And, of course, she had no expectations of him being faithful to her in return. She wasn't Hera. As long as he didn't humiliate her, or let her see his conquests, she was perfectly content for him to be with whomever he desired.
He met her gaze, sky blue eyes connecting with sea green ones, and licked his lips slowly before he answered. "I want to be with you."
A half-smile played at the corners of her cupid's bow shaped lips, just a little uneven. "You're with me right now," she pointed, determined to hear him say it straight out.
Apollo inhaled deeply, holding the breath for a moment before exhaling again. "I want to marry you."
Her smile faded again. "Marriage is off the table," she said firmly. She saw a flash of hurt in his eyes, and felt guilty for it. But part of her would always belong to Lysander, and she couldn't make herself so much as contemplate remarrying without feeling as if she were betraying her lost beloved's memory.
"That being said," she went on. "I would not be opposed to, a less formal relationship with you." His eyes brightened again, a smile playing at his lips.
He switched seats, moving from the seat across from her, to sit on the small sofa beside her. Their bodies pressed up against each other, and he entangled his fingers in her raven-coloured curls as they kissed. Soon enough, their clothes were gone and they had shifted to Akantha's large, California king bed. A much more comfortable place for the activity they were engaged in.

Calling it a dream would be too strong of a word. Gods did not dream. But, when they wanted to, they could sleep. And, when Akantha slept, she remembered. And right now, she was remembering her wedding day. She turned over, cuddling closer to Apollo's firm body as the memory played itself out in her mind, complete with thoughts and all.

"Are you absolutely certain about this, Sister?" The twelve-year-old daughter of Poseidon asked her fourteen-year-old elder sister worriedly. Her sea green eyes, the same colour as their mutual father's, shared with all of their half-siblings, were full of anxiety. She was dressed in her best chiton for the occasion, and her hair was done up with little white flowers.

Akantha bit back a frustrated sigh at Philomena's question. Since she and Lysander had announced their engagement the month prior, people had asked both of them if they were sure at least three times a day. Personally, Akantha thought that just acknowledging their relationship and risking Poseidon and Athena's wrath said enough about their commitment to the wedding. But their siblings were determined to change their minds apparently and had only a few hours left to do so.

"Philomena," she said turning to face her and waving Calista away, the blonde daughter of Aphrodite frowning as she moved back.

Unlike everyone else at the demigods' safe haven, the children of the love goddess were supporting Lysander and hers' match. They thought it a very romantic and sweet story. Though Akantha was not fond of the 'star-crossed lovers' title they had been given. Star-crossed lovers never had happy endings, and she was selfish enough to want one with the love of her life. Surely the Fates would grant them that, after all they had done for Olympus? Surely they deserved it?

"I understand your concern," she told Philomena, reaching out to clasp her favourite sister's hands in her own. The callouses on their hands scratched as they rubbed against each other. "And that you think only of my safety and happiness but I truly believe that the only way for me to be happy and healthy is by marrying Lysander. I have been struck by Eros' arrow and without Lysander at my side, I will surely waste away."

Her speech was more dramatic than usually made by herself and her half-siblings but it served its' purpose of emphasizing her genuine belief in her words.

Philomena sighed and her shoulders slumped. "Our Lord Father is very displeased. Lady Athena also. I am afraid for you Akantha."

Akantha's eyes fell to the floor. Their decision to ignore the feud and become friends had caused chaos in the camp. Their engagement had resulted in a tsunami caused by her father's fury. Akantha suspected that she would be disowned upon speaking her vows. Despite that, however, the young half-blood was determined not to yield. She would marry Lysander, or she would die. Those were the only acceptable options. At least they would be reunited in the Underworld.

"I love him," she pleaded with her sister to understand. "I cannot lose him. If Father disowns me, then so be it."

They had considered the consequences of their decision carefully and decided that even if they were smote for marrying, it would be worth it as long as they spent even one minute as husband and wife.

Philomena closed her green eyes and bowed her head in acceptance. Akantha felt a smile begin to play on her lips. "Well then," the other daughter of Poseidon said softly. "We should finish getting you ready shouldn't we?" The smile grew to full size at her sibling's acceptance.

Calista came back over and began working on Akantha's makeup while Philomena inserted delicate purple acacia flowers into her raven locks. The scent from Akantha's ritual bath the night before lingered as they worked in silence.

A knock came at the door and Calanthe, the fifteen-year-old daughter of Zeus who was Akantha's closest friend entered holding a delicate veil made of beautiful dyed lace. Calanthe was the only one who had supported them completely from the start, as even the Aphrodite children had been wary initially, and Akantha loved her all the more for it.

"Oh!" Akantha let out a gasp as she took it. "Calanthe it's beautiful! Where did you get it?"

"My gift to you," Calanthe smiled back. "Congratulations on your nuptials my dearest. I regret that I won't witness the ceremony."

Akantha felt her smile falter at the words but didn't try and change the other woman's mind. Lord Poseidon and Lady Athena would be angry enough. Akantha dreaded to think what would happen if the daughter of Zeus were to accompany her to Hera's temple.

"Come," Calanthe changed the subject as Philomena and Calista stepped back, Akantha now suitably dressed save for her veil. "Let me place it on you. The party will be here soon enough." Akantha closed her eyes as she felt her friend attach the fabric to her head. When she re-opened them, her view was obscured by light green and blue lace.

A feeling of amazement that this was finally happening suddenly overcame her, and Akantha felt herself inhale sharply. That was when the room she saw the room briefly brighten through the fabric.

"My daughter," the voice came from behind and all the girls spun around, falling to their knees in respect at the sight of the God of the Sea. His eyes flicked over them. "Philomena, inform the party that there will be a slight delay before Akantha can come out. I wish to speak with my daughter in privacy."

Philomena rose, curtsied and rushed out, Calanthe and Calista copying her with anxious looks sent at the still kneeling bride. Poseidon frowned at his eldest mortal daughter for a moment before gesturing for her to rise. She did so with reluctance.

It seemed that she would not be getting married after all,

she thought dully to herself. She wouldn't obey if Poseidon ordered her not to go forth with ceremony and then he would probably kill her for it. Poseidon was less quick to kill than most of the Olympians, but he (rightfully) had no tolerance for disrespect.

"You intend to marry a son of Athena," the god finally snapped, his voice shaking with fury. "A goddess who has continually offended me and attempted to humiliate me. You wish to lower yourself by marrying one of her spawn!"

Akantha swallowed slightly at the rage in his voice before settling into a battle stance, deciding to treat this as if she were fighting a hydra instead of speaking to a parent. In this case, she would have perferred the hydra.

"I understand your displeasure, My Lord, but Lysander is-"

He cut her off and she felt her nose twitch in irritation. She hated to be interrupted.

"I care not what he is or is not. He is a son of Athena. Either you retract your decision to marry him or you will no longer be my child!"

"Then I am no longer your child!" Akantha snapped as she lost her temper. "So be it! I love him and I will not change my decision." In a contest between her father, whom she was only seeing for the first time today, or the love of her life, there was no contest. Lysander, always.

Poseidon stared at her disbelief before curtly nodding. "Very well," he told her curtly. "You do not have my pleasure, but you do have my blessing."

Akantha's eyes widened in shock as she watched her father dissolve into a sea breeze. She stood in a shocked, and confused, stillness for another minute before turning and walking out to where the marriage party waited, anxious looks on their faces. Lysander relaxed at the sight of her unharmed, hurrying to her side.

"Are you well, my beloved?" he asked anxiously, his storm cloud grey eyes scanning her worriedly for any sign that she had borne the brunt of the god of the seas' displeasure.

She locked eyes with him and broke into a beam. "Lord Poseidon has approved of our match!" He instantly swept her into his arms and spun her around in delight, also beaming.

"Well then," Chiron declared with a happy smile. "I think it's time to proceed don't you?"

Lysander helped her into the chariot before he climbed in and Akantha chuckled slightly at the pegasis' grumblings at being made to carry them as she linked her hands with Lysander. He gave her a brief smile before concentrating on guiding the chariot to the temple dedicated to Hera.

The ceremony passed in a blur for Akantha. She had no memory of Chiron sacrificing a goat for them, or cutting her hair to signal losing her innocence, or the ceremonial bath. She didn't know when it ended or how they got back to the pavilion for the feast. She only remembered Lysander's face and a sense of happiness and peace that she would never feel never again.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO/HOO.

"Why are we here?" Hazel asked in bemusement, as she and her two companions clambered out of the Pax. Ella hovered in the air above them, muttering statistics anxiously under her breath.
"We're here for reinforcements," Thalia explained. "Hopefully," she added under her breath, before holding up a silver ring and elaborating. "Reyna's older sister is Queen of the Amazons, and they're based out of Seattle. She asked me to find her and ask for help in defending the camp."
"Reyna has a sister?" Frank repeated, looking terrified at the thought.
"Amazons," Ella muttered. "Amazon country. Hmm. Ella will find libraries instead. Ella doesn't like Amazons. Fierce. Shields. Swords. Pointy. Ouch."
Frank went pale as he registered what, exactly, Reyna's sister was, something that had previously escaped his notice. "Amazons? Like…female warriors?"
"That would make sense," Hazel mused. "If Reyna's sister is also a daughter of Bellona, I can see why she'd join the Amazons. Daughters of the war goddess, after all. But…is it really safe for us to be here?"
"Nope, nope, nope," Ella said, shaking her head rapidly. "Get books instead. No Amazons."
"We have to try to get her to listen to us at least," Thalia said grimly. "Camp Jupiter won't be able to defeat the army that we saw without help. And we need new transport. The boat is falling apart at the seams."
Hazel looked down at the floor of the Pax. Water was leaking between the floorboards. "Oh," she muttered.
"Yeah," Thalia huffed. "We need something else, 'cause it'll do no good if we drown because of leaky boat. If it lasts that long." She turned to their harpy companion. "Ella, honey, do you have any idea where we can find the Amazons?"
"And, um," Frank said nervously, "they don't, like, kill men on sight, do they?"
Thalia's lips quirked in a smile as she nodded. "Yeah, I'd like to know that as well."
Ella glanced at the downtown docks, only a few hundred yards away. "Ella will find friends later. Ella will fly away now." Which is what she promptly did, leaving their questions unanswered.
"Well…" Frank sighed and plucked a single red feather out of the air. "That's encouraging."
"Very," Thalia agreed drily. "Let's grab our things and start hunting for badass women warriors, shall we?"
They barely had time to unload their supplies before the Pax shuddered and broke into pieces. Most of it sank, leaving only a board with a painted eye and another with the letter P bobbing in the waves.
"Well, I guess that's the end of that," Hazel muttered, turning back to her grim looking friends. "What now?"
Thalia raked a hand through her dark hair as she stared at the steep hills of downtown Seattle. "We hope the Amazons will help."
"Right then," Hazel sighed. "We should hurry." The others hastened to catch up as she began striding quickly into the centre of the city.
They explored for hours. They found some great salty caramel chocolate at a candy store. They bought some coffee so strong, Hazel claimed that her head felt like a vibrating gong. They stopped at a sidewalk café for lunch and had some excellent grilled salmon sandwiches.
Once they saw Ella zooming between several high-rise towers, a large book clutched in each foot. But they found no Amazons. All the while, they were vividly aware of the time ticking by.
June 22 now, and Alaska was still a long way away. They had only a few days left to get to the glacier (that they still didn't know the name or location of), find and defeat Alcyoneus, and get back to Camp Jupiter in time to help repel the coming invasion. They really couldn't afford this delay, but Camp Jupiter desperately needed the help of the Amazons. So, they continued to search for any signs of the Amazons. But without more of an idea of how to find the women, or even an understanding of the local landscape, they were hopelessly lost.
Finally, they wandered south of downtown, into a plaza surrounded by smaller glass and brick buildings. Hazel shifted anxiously, feeling her demigod instincts tingle. She scanned the area carefully, certain that she was being watched.
Her face lit up as she spotted what she was sure was the source of her anxiety. "There," she said, pointing it out.
The office building on their left had a single word etched on the glass doors: AMAZON.
"Oh," Frank said, looking flustered. "Uh, no, Hazel. That's a modern thing. They're a company, right? They sell stuff on the Internet. They're not actually Amazons. Not warriors."
"Except that a lot of mythological people use companies and stuff as fronts," Thalia mused, her electric blue eyes narrowed in thought as she studied the building. After a moment of contemplation, she nodded briskly and strode inside. Exchanging looks of unease, her two fellow questers quickly darted after her, unwillingly to leave their friend alone.
In Hazel's opinion, the lobby was like an empty fish tank—glass walls, a glossy black floor, a few token plants, and pretty much nothing else. Against the back wall, a black stone staircase led up and down. In the middle of the room stood a young woman in a black pantsuit, with long auburn hair and a security guard's earpiece. Her name tag said Kinzie. Her smile was friendly enough, but her eyes contradicted the expression that she wore. They always seemed to look through you, as if she was thinking about who might attack them next.
Kinzie nodded at Hazel and Thalia, ignoring Frank entirely. "May I help you?"
"Um…I hope so," Hazel said after a second of hesitation. "We're looking for Amazons."
Kinzie glanced at Hazel's sword, then Frank's spear, though neither should have been visible through the Mist.
"This is the main campus for Amazon," she admitted cautiously. "Did you have an appointment with someone, or—"
"We have a message for Queen Hylla from her sister, Reyna, Praetor of Camp Jupiter," Thalia interrupted. Quick as the lightning Thalia called down from the heavens, Kinzie had jumped over the table, almost like she had phased straight through it, and a dozen other women, all of them heavily armed, came rushing in.
"You want to speak to the queen?" Kinzie repeated grimly. "Don't worry, you will. She'll be the one deciding what's going to happen to you. Trespassing on our territory without an invitation is punishable by death."
The Amazons confiscated the trio's weapons and marched them down so many flights of stairs, the trio all lost count of them, though Frank was sure that they had gone down at least seventeen different staircases.
They ended up emerging in a cavern so big it probably could have accommodated ten large high schools, with sports fields and all. Stark, fluorescent lights glowed along the rock ceiling. Conveyor belts wound through the room like water slides, carrying boxes in every direction. Aisles of metal shelves stretched out forever, stacked high with crates of merchandise. Cranes hummed and robotic arms whirred, folding cardboard boxes, packing shipments, and taking things on and off the belts. Some of the shelves were so tall they were only accessible by ladders and catwalks, which ran across the ceiling like the scaffolding used in elaborate theatres.
As she studied the cavern, Hazel remembered the old newsreels that she had seen as a child. She had always been impressed by the scenes of factories building planes and guns for the war effort—hundreds and hundreds of weapons coming off the line every day.
But that was nothing compared to this, and almost all the work was being done by computers and robots. The only humans that any of them could see (save for the Amazons themselves of course) were some black-suited security women patrolling the catwalks, and some men in orange jumpsuits, like prison uniforms, driving forklifts through the aisles, delivering more pallets of boxes. The men wore iron collars around their necks.
"You keep slaves?" Hazel knew it might be dangerous to speak, but she was so outraged she couldn't stop herself. Thalia also looked a mixture of furious and worried as her eyes lingered on the collared men. Frank had gone pale, and was eyeing the Amazons with a renewed wariness.
"The men?" Kinzie snorted in contempt at the accusation. "They're not slaves. They just know their place. Now, move."
They walked so far, Hazel's feet began to hurt. Noticing, Frank moved closer and wrapped an arm around her to help support her. The Amazons gave them dark looks, but didn't protest.
Hazel was sure that they had to be getting to the end of the warehouse when Kinzie opened a large set of double doors and led them into another cavern, just as big as the first.
"The Underworld isn't this big," Hazel complained, which probably wasn't true, but it felt that way to her feet.
"Never mind the Underworld, Olympus isn't this big," Thalia added, looking annoyed and feeling blisters form on the bottoms of her feet.
Kinzie smiled smugly at their comments, taking them as compliments. "You admire our base of operations? Yes, our distribution system is worldwide. It took many years and most of our fortune to build. Now, finally, we're turning a profit. The foolish mortals don't realize they are funding the Amazon kingdom. Soon, we'll be richer than any mortal nation. Then—when the weak mortals depend on us for everything—the revolution will begin!"
"What are you going to do?" Frank grumbled, also frustrated by the long trek into the Amazons' base. "Cancel free shipping?"
A guard slammed the hilt of her sword into his gut, making him double over in pain. Thalia tried to help him, but two more guards pushed her back at sword point.
"You'll learn respect," Kinzie snapped at Frank furiously. "It's males like you who have ruined the mortal world. The only harmonious society is one run by women. We are stronger, wiser—"
"More humble," he retorted with uncharacteristic sarcasm lacing his tone of voice. The guards tried to hit him again, but Frank had learned his lesson the last time, and he managed to duck just in time, resulting in the sword whistling through thin air instead. A vicious chuckle escaped Thalia before she hastily stifled it.
"Stop it!" Hazel ordered. Surprisingly, the guards listened to her demand. "Hylla is going to judge us, right?" Hazel asked. "So take us to her. We're wasting time."
Kinzie nodded. "Perhaps you're right. We have more important problems. And time…time is definitely an issue."
"What do you mean?" Thalia asked sharply, her eyes narrowing in suspicion at the words.
The women didn't reply, but one of the guards grunted. "We could take them straight to Otrera. We might win her favour that way."
"No!" Kinzie snarled, looking enraged at the thought of it. "I'd sooner wear an iron collar and drive a forklift. Hylla is queen."
"Until tonight," another guard muttered quietly.
Kinzie gripped her sword. For a second the three questers feared that the Amazons might start fighting one another, but Kinzie seemed to get her anger under control.
"Enough," she snapped. "Let's go." They crossed through a lane of forklift traffic, navigated a maze of conveyor belts, and ducked under a row of robotic arms that were packing up boxes.
Most of the merchandise looked pretty ordinary: books, electronics, baby diapers. But against one wall sat a war chariot with a big bar code on the side. Hanging from the yoke was a sign that read: ONLY ONE LEFT IN STOCK. ORDER SOON! (MORE ON THE WAY)
Eventually they entered a smaller cavern that looked like a combination loading zone and throne room. The walls were lined with metal shelves six stories high, decorated with war banners, painted shields, and the stuffed heads of dragons, hydras, giant lions, and wild boars. Standing guard along either side were dozens of forklifts modified for war. An iron-collared man drove each machine, but an Amazon warrior stood on a platform in back, manning a giant mounted crossbow. The prongs of each forklift had been sharpened into oversized sword blades.
The shelves in this room were stacked with cages containing live animals. Hazel gasped in horrified shock at what she was seeing—black mastiffs, giant eagles, a lion-eagle hybrid that must've been a gryphon, and a red ant the size of a compact car. Thalia also looked less than pleased, and Frank clenched his jaw to restrain his fury.
They watched in horror as a forklift zipped into the room, picked up a cage with a beautiful white pegasus, and sped away while the horse whinnied in protest.
"What are you doing to that poor animal?" Hazel demanded angrily.
Kinzie frowned. "The pegasus? It'll be fine. Someone must've ordered it. The shipping and handling charges are steep, but—"
"You can buy a pegasus online?" Frank asked in surprise.
Kinzie glared at him in disgust. "Obviously you can't, male. But Amazons can. We have followers all over the world. They need supplies. This way."
At the end of the warehouse was a dais constructed from pallets of books: stacks of vampire novels, walls of James Patterson thrillers, and a throne made from about a thousand copies of something called The Five Habits of Highly Aggressive Women. On it sat a young woman with dark hair and a serious expression.
Hylla, Daughter of Bellona, and Queen of the Amazons.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own HOO. Btw, I forgot to mention this, but a reviewer sent me a message about it. In chapter 11(?) I call the Twins' mother Latona, and they said their mother was Leto. Which is correct, but Latona is her Roman name. It was the Roman Twins who were in the scene, so I called her by her Roman name. Enjoy the chapter, I love r&ring!

"This is it," Valeria whispered softly from her elegant throne in the Hall of the Gods, as she watched Thalia, Frank and Hazel board the small airplane after showing the veteran legionnaire the papers that Reyna had given them.
The members of the quest only had a short while in the air before they crossed the border into Alaska. Once the trio had arrived in the Land Beyond the Gods of Olympus, they would be unable to do anything more to help the questers. Nor would they know, until either Thanatos returned to report, or the spirits of the questers entered the Underworld, whether or not the group of warriors had succeeded in their goals.
"Indeed," Diana murmured, their fellow Olympians staying silent.
Juno had a neutral expression, and her gaze was the only one fixed on the right side of the mirror, which showed the Greeks, hastily filling the Argo II with supplies for the quest to the Ancient Lands. Jupiter and Pluto were both intent on the left side of the mirror, which was showing their children sitting on the plane, debating where Alcyoneus would be, and what their plan to defeat the giant (immortal on his home ground) and release the personification of death would be. All the other gods were focused on the middle of the mirror, which showed the Twelfth Legion.
Under the direction of their remaining praetor, and the nine Centurions that were still at Camp Jupiter, the gold-armoured soldiers were readying themselves to defend their home. The 'Veterans' Cohort', only ever summoned for emergencies such as this, or the attack on Mount Othrys last year, were guarding the city and directing the civilians into the safehouses built for them. The rest of the Legion were putting the finishing touches on their formations in the Field of Mars. They had clearly decided to fight on their home turf, and hold the enemy in the place where they were so practiced, rather than attempt to hold Polybotes and his army at the River Tiber or the camp entrance, and be forced back.
Valeria approved. She may not have been a war goddess, but she was a strong and experienced fighter. It was clear to her that if her heroes had tried such a strategy, their lines would have been quickly broken, and their ranks would have descended into chaos. Not to mention the risk of mortals noticing and getting in the way, despite the Mist.
She glanced at her father and grimaced. His sea-green eyes were full of venom as he glared loathingly at the shimmering image of Polybotes, his mortal enemy. She didn't blame him for his despising the thrice-damned giant. She had felt that same loathing towards Ambrosio, and, many millennia ago when she was still a mortal, towards Polybotes himself. She had never been more pleased with a victory than when she and Poseidon had combined their abilities to destroy the vicious monster, that was the anti-thesis of her father.
She let out a heavy sigh as the side of the mirror showing the three questers suddenly shimmered and went blank. They disappeared from her radar, just as every half-blood who entered Alaska had. None of the others had ever come back. The questers had now crossed into Alaska, and were now beyond the reach of the gods. Pluto gripped the arm of his throne so tightly Valeria could hear it crack, and a heavy tornado suddenly sprang up in Haiti along with violent thunder storms in Indonesia and on the East Coast of the States from Jupiter's anger and fear for his daughter.
"May the Fates be with them," the goddess of heroes whispered under her breath, hoping against hope the heroes would succeed and survive their mission.

Thalia estimated that more than two-thirds of her memories had returned by the time they reached Hubbard Glacier. The glacier where they hoped (and Thalia was a tad amazed that she was actually hoping to be walking into a giant's lair) Alcyoneus was holding Thanatos captive.
She was in a foul mood, though she tried her best not to take it out on her friends. But the fact was, as pleased as she was to remember her friends and home at Camp Half-Blood, all of her bad memories returned as well. She was bitterly furious as she recalled how she and Luke had been so convinced that they could relax after the Titan War. Because Apollo had claimed that the Prophecy of Seven wouldn't apply to them. That they would probably be long dead by the time that it came into play. Bullshit. So much for the god of truth.
Arion skidding to a stop, smoke drifting from under his hooves, broke Thalia from her resentful thoughts.
"Thank the gods, it's over," the daughter of Zeus sighed in relief, scrambling to dismount and hearing the snow crunch beneath her feet as she stood on the icy ground.
Thalia swallowed as she stared in a mixture of horrified amazement at the sight in front of them. She heard the others suck in shocked gasps from behind her.
Ahead of them stood a frozen Roman camp like a giant-sized ghastly replica of Camp Jupiter. The trenches bristled with ice spikes. The snow-brick ramparts glared blinding white. Hanging from the guard towers, banners of frozen blue cloth shimmered in the arctic sun.
There was no sign of life. The gates stood wide open. No sentries walked the walls. Still, all of them shared an uneasy feeling in their gut, as their battle-toned instincts screamed that something was wrong. There was a heavily oppressive sense of malice surrounding them. It was as if the earth were trying to wake up and consume everything—as if the mountains on either side wanted to crush them and the entire glacier to pieces.
"Stick together," Thalia ordered hoarsely as they warily began heading for the snow-covered fortress, Arion trotting on at Hazel's urging, snorting unhappily and shaking his head in distress.
Thank the gods for small miracles, the ice seemed to be stable, covered with a fine carpet of snow so that it wasn't too slippery.
Hazel urged Arion forward with Thalia and Frank walking on either side, spear and bow ready. Thalia had already summoned Aegis in anticipation of them being ambushed, and sparks were dancing on her fingertips. They approached the gates without being challenged. Hazel and Frank were both trained to spot pits, snares, trip lines, and all sorts of other traps Roman legions had faced for eons in enemy territory, and Thalia was also experienced in finding traps. But none of them saw anything—just the yawning icy gates and the frozen banners crackling in the wind.
At the edge of a 'hilltop' they stopped and looked down. From their vantage point, they could see straight down the Via Praetoria. At the crossroads, in front of the snow-brick principia, a tall, dark- robed figure stood, bound in icy chains.
"Thanatos," Hazel murmured. She felt as if her soul were being pulled forward, drawn toward Death like dust toward a vacuum. Her vision went dark and she almost fell off Arion, but Frank caught her and propped her up. Thalia stepped closer, a look of sisterly concern on her face as she silently passed over a small bit of ambrosia.
"We've got you," Frank promised Hazel, looking determined. "Nobody's taking you away."
Hazel gripped his hand, not wanting to let go. He was so solid, so reassuring, but Frank couldn't protect her from Death. His own life was as fragile as a half-burned piece of wood.
"I'm all right," she lied. Thalia gave her a look that said she knew that the younger girl was lying, but changed the subject before Frank could say anything. No matter what any of them wanted, they all knew what the stakes were, and they had no time to waste.
"No defenders?" Thalia raised a suspicious eyebrow. "No giant? This has to be a trap."
"Obviously," Frank agreed. "But I don't think we have a choice."
Before Hazel could change her mind, she urged Arion through the gates. The layout was so familiar—cohort barracks, baths, armoury. It was an exact replica of Camp Jupiter, except three times as big. Even on horseback, Hazel felt tiny and insignificant, as if they were moving through a model city constructed by the gods. Her friends agreed with her, shivering more from unease than fear.
They stopped ten feet from the robed figure.
Now that they were here, they all felt the desperate urge to finish the quest. They all knew that they were in more danger than they had been at any previous time during the quest. Instinctively they understood that Thanatos could simply touch one of them, and they would die.
But Hazel also had a feeling that if she didn't see the quest through, if she didn't face her fate bravely, she would still die—in cowardice and failure. The judges of the dead wouldn't be lenient to her a second time. Thalia knew if they didn't succeed, she would never see her boyfriend or brother again, and Frank had simply resigned himself to doing what he knew needed to be done.
Arion cantered back and forth, sensing their disquiet.
"Hello?" Hazel forced out the word. "Mr. Death?"
Borderline hysterical as she was, Thalia snickered slightly at the name. Her laugh quickly died as the hooded figure raised his head.
Instantly, the whole camp went into action. Figures in Roman armour emerged from the barracks, the principia, the armoury, and the canteen, but they weren't human. They were shades—the chattering ghosts from the Fields of Asphodel. Their bodies weren't much more than wisps of black vapor, but they managed to hold together sets of scale armour, greaves, and helmets. Frost-covered swords were strapped to their waists. Pila and dented shields floated in their smoky hands. The plumes on the centurions' helmets were frozen and ragged. Most of the shades were on foot, but two soldiers burst out of the stables in a golden chariot pulled by ghostly black steeds.
When Arion saw the horses, he stamped the ground in outrage.
Frank gripped his bow. "Yep, here's the trap." Thalia fell into a defensive stance, scanning the shades with a calculating expression as she weighed up their odds.
The ghosts formed ranks and surrounded the crossroads. There were about a hundred in all—not an entire legion, but more than a cohort. Some carried the tattered lightning bolt banners of the Twelfth Legion, Fifth Cohort. It was Michael Varus's doomed expedition from the 1980s. Others carried standards and insignia the questers didn't recognize, as if they'd died at different times, on different quests—maybe not even from Camp Jupiter. Thalia thought she spotted someone in an ancient Camp Half-Blood t-shirt, but it was gone too quickly for her to certain.
Most of the shades were armed with Imperial gold weapons—more Imperial gold than the entire Twelfth Legion combined possessed.
Hazel could feel the combined power of all that gold humming around her, even scarier than the crackling of the glacier. She wondered if she could use her power to control the weapons, maybe disarm the ghosts, but she was afraid to try. Imperial gold wasn't just a precious metal. It was deadly to demigods and monsters. Trying to control that much at once would be like trying to control plutonium in a reactor. If she failed, she might wipe Hubbard Glacier off the map and kill her friends. She couldn't take the risk of hurting them. Or worse.
"Thanatos!" the young girl turned imploringly to the robed figure. "We're here to rescue you. If you control these shades, tell them—"
Her voice faltered in shock, her mouth falling open along with Thalia's, when the other demigoddess glanced back at them and also caught sight of him. The god's hood fell away and his robes dropped off as he spread his wings, leaving him in only a sleeveless black tunic belted at the waist. He was the most beautiful man Hazel had ever seen, though Thalia was not quite as awed, having met many astonishingly beautiful gods.
His skin was the colour of teakwood, dark and glistening like Queen Marie's old séance table. His eyes were the same honey gold as Hazel's. He was lean and muscular, with a regal face and black hair flowing down his shoulders. His wings glimmered in shades of blue, black, and purple.
Beautiful was the perfect word to describe Thanatos—not handsome, or hot, or anything like that. He was beautiful the way an angel is beautiful—timeless, perfect, remote.
"Oh," Hazel said in a small voice.
The god's wrists were shackled in icy manacles, with chains that ran straight into the glacier floor. His feet were bare, shackled around the ankles and also chained.
"It's Cupid," Frank said.
"Definite supermodel material," Thalia agreed, scanning him admiringly. She would never be disloyal to Luke, she was not her father. But surely there was no harm in just looking?
"You compliment me," Thanatos said. His voice was deep and melodious. "I am frequently mistaken for the god of love. Death has more in common with Love than you might imagine. But I am Death. I assure you."
None of them doubted his words. Hazel felt as if she were made of ashes. Any second, she might crumble and be sucked into the vacuum. She doubted Thanatos even needed to touch her to kill her. He could simply tell her to die. She would keel over on the spot, her soul obeying that beautiful voice and those kind eyes. Thalia and Frank were also heavily weakened by his presence, though not to the same degree as their friend.
"We're—we're here to save you," she managed. "Where's Alcyoneus?"
"Save me…?" Thanatos narrowed his eyes. "Do you understand what you are saying, Hazel Levesque? Do you understand what that will mean?"
Thalia stepped forward. "We're wasting time." She swung her spear at the god's chains. Celestial bronze rang against the ice, but the spear stuck to the chain like glue. Frost began creeping up the blade as Thalia pulled frantically. Frank ran to help. Together, they just managed to yank the weapon free before the frost reached their hands.
"That won't work," Thanatos said simply. "As for the giant, he is close. These shades are not mine. They are his."
His eyes scanned the ghost soldiers. They shifted uncomfortably, as if an arctic wind were rattling through their ranks.
"So how do we get you out?" Hazel demanded.
Thanatos turned his attention back to her. "Daughter of Pluto, child of my master, you of all people should not wish me released."
"Don't you think I know that?" Hazel's eyes shimmered, but her voice was steady and accepting. She would do what was necessary, no matter what the cost to her.
"Listen, Death." She drew her cavalry sword, and Arion reared in defiance. "I didn't come back from the Underworld and travel thousands of miles to be told that I'm stupid for setting you free. If I die, I die. I'll fight this whole army if I have to. Just tell us how to break your chains."
Thanatos studied her for a heartbeat. "Interesting. You do understand that these shades were once demigods like you. They fought for Rome. They died without completing their heroic quests. Like you, they were sent to Asphodel. Now Gaea has promised them a second life if they fight for her today. Of course, if you release me and defeat them, they will have to return to the Underworld where they belong. For treason against the gods, they will face eternal punishment. They are not so different from you, Hazel Levesque. Are you sure you want to release me and damn these souls forever?"
Frank clenched his fists. "That's not fair! Do you want to be freed or not?"
"Fair…" Thanatos mused. "You'd be amazed how often I hear that word, Frank Zhang, and how meaningless it is. Is it fair that your life will burn so short and bright? Was it fair when I guided your mother to the Underworld?"
Frank staggered like he'd been punched.
"No," Thanatos said sadly. "Not fair. And yet it was her time. There is no fairness in Death. If you free me, I will do my duty. But of course these shades will try to stop you."
"So, we free you and have to fight for our lives again," Thalia said curtly. "That soundsabout right for the course. How do we break those chains?"
Thanatos smiled. "Only the fire of life can melt the chains of death."
"Meaning?" Thalia snapped. "Gods, I hate it when they give me riddles."
Frank drew a shaky breath. "It isn't a riddle."
"Frank, no," Hazel protested weakly. "There's got to be another way."
Laughter boomed across the glacier. "My friends," a rumbling voice boomed. "I've waited so long for your arrival!" They all spun to stare at the direction of the voice.
Standing at the gates of the camp was Alcyoneus. He was even larger than Polybotes was. He had metallic golden skin, armour made from platinum links, and an iron staff the size of a totem pole. His rust-red dragon legs pounded against the ice as he entered the camp. Precious stones glinted in his red braided hair.
The giant approached, grinning at Hazel with his solid silver teeth.
"Ah, Hazel Levesque," he said, "you cost me dearly! If not for you, I would have risen decades ago, and this world would already be Gaea's. But no matter!"
He spread his hands, showing off the ranks of ghostly soldiers. "Welcome, Thalia Grace! Welcome, Frank Zhang! I am Alcyoneus, the Bane of Pluto, the Eldest of the Giants and the new master of Death. And this is your new legion."

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own HOO.

Making the decision to free the God of Death wasn't, despite appearances, an easy decision. Not for any of them. Frank was still grieving deeply for his beloved mother and Thalia was feeling painfully raw, the memories of the Titan War feeling as fresh as they had been last year on the day that she had led the small force of Greek warriors against an enemy that far-outnumbered them. More importantly, the anguish she had felt, seeing her friends' bodies in various positions, was as painful as the day she had spent hours watching their shrouds be burnt, clutching Luke's clammy hand tightly in her own.
She didn't need to look at the names engraved on her camp necklace to list off the names of each of the fallen, and she didn't need a picture to conjure up their faces.
The fact that Thanatos was the one to take their souls to the Underworld, and that if he stayed imprisoned, there was a chance, however slim it was, that they could regain their lost loved ones, lingered at the back of their minds even as they readied themselves to fight for his freedom. They were only human after all.
And then there was Hazel.
Frank truly loved Hazel, heart and soul.
Love was different for demigods than it was to mortals. Mortals their age declaring they loved someone were usually simply exaggerating a crush or intense attraction.
On the other hand, demigods, forced to mature years before their mortal peers due to the danger of their lives, and the high death toll of their people. Even though the Romans had a much higher chance of having a lifespan than their Greek cousins, they still had a high death toll. The chances of a half-blood or one of their children surviving outside of the safety of Camp Jupiter and New Rome's wards were slim to none, depending on the strength of their scents and fighting ability. But even the best fighters burnt out eventually.
So, yes, when Frank fell in love with Hazel, it wasn't a childish love that would disappear under the pressure of the war that they had become involved in. It was a true, battle-tested love that was only going to strengthen from the coming battles. And Thalia had grown to love Hazel like she was a little sister over the past few tension-filled days. They didn't want to lose her. Not yet.
And Hazel herself just didn't feel ready to die again. Just because she was the daughter of Pluto didn't mean she didn't want to live. But they all understood that what was at stake was far more important than their own desires and fears. They needed to free Thanatos, or the Giants would win and Western Civilization would be destroyed. No, their own desires didn't matter when the world was at stake. The life of a demigod was full of pain and sacrifice and they all knew it.
That was why they all put aside their reluctance and met Alcyoneus' challenge with stonily defiant expressions.
"Hazel." Frank's voice was steady, not letting any of his fear and pain taint his voice. "That package you're keeping for me? I need it."
Thalia blinked in bemusement as Hazel glanced at him in dismay. Sitting on Arion, it occurred to Frank that she looked like a queen, powerful and beautiful, her brown hair swept over her shoulders and a wreath of icy mist around her head.
"Frank, no," she refused. "There has to be another way."
"Please," his voice finally shook slightly. "I—I know what I'm doing."
Thanatos smiled and lifted his manacled wrists. "You're right, Frank Zhang. Sacrifices must be made for the greater good."
"Easy for you to see," Thalia snorted bitterly. "You're not making it, are you?"
The giant Alcyoneus stepped forward, his reptilian feet shaking the ground, he was so large. "What package do you speak of, Frank Zhang?" he rumbled as excitedly as a child on Christmas Day. "Have you brought me a present?"
"Nothing for you, Golden Boy," Frank replied coldly. "Except a whole lot of pain."
The giant roared with laughter. "Spoken like a child of Mars! I always liked him. Too bad I have to kill you. And this one...my, my, I've been waiting to meet the famous Thalia Grace."
"Don't use my last name," Thalia hissed angrily, sparks darting around her clenched fists and hair like tiny fireflies.
The giant grinned at her. Frank randomly thought that the giant's silver teeth made his mouth look like a car grille.
"I've followed your progress, daughter of Jupiter," said Alcyoneus. "Your fight with Kronos? Well done. Gaea hates you above all others…except perhaps for that upstart. Your brother Jason Grace. A family thing, I suppose? I'm sorry I can't kill you right away, but my brother Porphyrion wishes to keep you as a pet. He thinks it will be amusing when he destroys Jupiter to have the god's daughter on a leash. After that, of course, Gaea has plans for you."
"Yeah, that all sounds very enticing." Thalia's voice was dripping with sarcasm as she raised her spear and Aegis. "But you've got a few details wrong. I'm actually the daughter of Zeus. I'm a Greek from Camp Half-Blood. Not a Roman."
The ghosts stirred. Some of the ones wearing Roman armour drew their swords and lifted shields. Alcyoneus raised his hand, gesturing for them to wait.
"Greek, Roman, it doesn't matter," the giant said easily, undeterred by Thalia's announcement. "We will crush both camps underfoot. You see, the Titans didn't think big enough. They planned to destroy the gods in their new home of America. But we giants know better! To kill a weed, first you must pull up its' roots.
Even now, while Polybotes leads my forces to destroy your pathetic little Roman camp, my brother Porphyrion is preparing for the real battle in the ancient lands! We will destroy the gods at their source."
The ghosts pounded their swords enthusiastically against their shields. The sound seemed to echo across the mountains.
"The source?" Frank asked, blinking in surprise. "You mean Greece?"
Alcyoneus chuckled. "No need to worry about that, son of Mars. You won't live long enough to see our ultimate victory.
I will replace Pluto as lord of the Underworld. I already have Death in my custody. With Hazel Levesque in my service, I will have all the riches under the earth as well!"
Hazel gripped her spatha and uncharacteristically spat at his shimmering silver feet. "I don't do service. Certainly not to giants."
"Oh, but you do!" the giant cried. "Your efforts are what gave me life! True, we had hoped to awaken Gaea during World War II," he admitted. "That would've been truly glorious. But really, the world is in almost as bad a shape now. Soon, your civilization will be wiped out. The Doors of Death will stand open. Those who serve us will never perish. Alive or dead, you three will join my army."
Thalia sneered and adjusted her grip on her spear. "Not likely, Golden Boy. We're gonna send you right back to the pit that sired."
"Wait." Hazel spurred her horse toward the giant. "I raised this monster from the earth. I'm the daughter of Pluto. It's my place to kill him."
"Ah, little Hazel." Alcyoneus planted his staff on the ice. His hair glittered with millions of dollars' worth of gems. "Are you sure you will not join us of your own free will? You could be quite ... precious to us. Why die again?" Hazel's eyes flashed with anger. She looked down at Frank and pulled the wrapped-up piece of firewood from her coat.
"Are you sure about this?"
"Yeah," he said, not hesitating to nod.
She pursed her lips. "You're my best friend, too, Frank. I should have told you that." She tossed him the stick. "Do what you have to. And Thalia…can you protect him?"
Thalia smirked as she studied the ranks of ghostly Romans. "Against a small army? Sure, no problem. These bastards are going down."
"Then I've got Golden Boy," Hazel said firmly, her godly blood showing in her strong tone. The wind whipping her hair gave her a story-like air as she charged the giant.
As Hazel battled against the giant, and Thalia fended off the attacking shades of the dead demigods, Frank unwrapped his sacred stick and knelt at the god of death's feet.
His hands trembled as he brought thoughts of fire to his mind, instantly igniting the stick. Slowly, painstakingly slowly, the manacles began to melt.
"Good," Thanatos praised him softly. "Very good, Frank Zhang."
Frank's life passed before his eyes as pain wracked his body. He barely noticed Hazel and Thalia's yells as they fought, caught up in memories of his mother and the quest.
With a clank, the first chain broke. Quickly, Frank stabbed the firewood at the chain on Death's other leg before he risked a glance over his shoulder.
Thalia was fighting like a tornado. In fact…she was a tornado. A miniature tornado made of wind, electricity and ice vapour all churned around her as she waded through the enemy, knocking Roman ghosts away, deflecting arrows and spears with her fearsome shield and the nature-formed armour. Since when did she have that power?
She moved through the enemy lines, and even though she seemed to be leaving Frank undefended, the enemy was completely focused on her, ignoring Frank and Thanatos. At first Frank didn't understand why—but then he saw Thalia's goal. One of the black vapoury ghosts was wearing the lion's-skin cape of a standard bearer and holding a pole with a golden eagle, icicles frozen to its wings. The legion's standard.
Frank watched as Thalia ploughed through a line of legionnaires, scattering their shields with her miniature cyclone. She knocked down the standard bearer and grabbed the eagle.
"You want it back?" she shouted at the ghosts. "Come and get it!"
She drew them away, and Frank couldn't help being awed by the bold strategy. As much as those shades wanted to keep Thanatos chained, they were Roman spirits. Their minds were fuzzy at best, like the ghosts Frank had seen in Asphodel, but they remembered one thing clearly: they were supposed to protect their eagle.
Still, Thalia couldn't fight off that many enemies forever. Maintaining a storm like that had to be difficult. Despite the cold, her face was already beaded with sweat.
Frank looked for Hazel. He couldn't see her or the giant.
"Watch your fire, boy," Death warned. "You don't have any to waste."
Frank cursed as he realized the second chain had melted.
He moved his fire to the shackles on the god's right hand. The piece of tinder was almost half gone now and started to shiver. He focused on the family gift, remembering Neptune gazing coolly at him from his grandmother's bedside. I blessed your family with a unique gift as a reward to the Princeof Pylos for his heroics. Have you figured out what it is yet?
He remembered his mother saying: You can be anything.
Then he remembered his grandmother's stern face. Yes, Fai Zhang. Your mother was not simply boosting your self-esteem. She was telling you the literal truth.
He thought of the grizzly bear his mother had intercepted at the edge of the woods. He thought of the large black bird circling over the flames of their family mansion.
The third chain snapped. Frank thrust the tinder at the last shackle. He could barely stay upright the pain was so bad now. Yellow splotches were dancing in his eyes.
He could just see Thalia, having been pushed back to the edge of the glacier, struggling to fend off the unending and undying army that was attacking her.
As for Hazel, she and Alcyoneus had managed to destroy most of the barracks in their battle. Now they were fighting in the wreckage at the main gate. Arion was playing a dangerous game of tag, charging around the giant while Alyconeus swiped at them with his staff, knocking over walls and cleaving massive chasms in the ice. Only Arion's speed kept them alive.
Finally, Death's last chain snapped. With a desperate yelp, Frank jabbed his firewood into a pile of snow and extinguished the flame. His pain faded. He was still alive. But when he took out the piece of tinder, it was no more than a stub, smaller than a candy bar.
Thanatos raised his arms. "Free," he declared with obvious satisfaction.
"Great." Frank snapped as he blinked the spots from his eyes. "Then do something!"
Thanatos gave him a calm smile. "Do something? Of course. I will watch. Those who die in this battle will stay dead."
"Thanks," Frank muttered sarcastically, slipping his firewood into his coat. "Very helpful."
"You're most welcome," Thanatos said agreeably. Frank couldn't tell if he had realized he was being sarcastic or not, and he decided it didn't matter. "Thalia!" Frank yelled, turning to the exhausted daughter of Zeus. "They can die now!"
She nodded, but her tornado was flickering out. "Help Hazel!" she called back, looking determined. "Go! I've got this!"
He hated to choose between them, but despite that, he turned his back on Thalia and began running to Hazel, leaving Thalia to fend for herself.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO/HOO. Apparently I reposted chapter 15 by accident. Sorry and here's the real one.

By the time they disembarked from their battered (and smoking) chariot at Camp Jupiter after the sickeningly fast four-hour long trip, Thalia had regained all of her memories. Hazel patted Arion encouragingly on the neck.
"You did so wonderfully," she told him warmly. "We could never have managed this without you and the help you've given us."
The horse snorted, and Thalia got the impression that he was saying "You think?" from the expression in his eyes. She couldn't bring herself to fully care, however.
She clambered out of the chariot and stretched, groaning from the stinging discomfort. Her legs screamed in pain as she wobbled awkwardly out of the chariot. Her joints were so stiff, she could barely walk. If he went into battle like this, the enemy would laugh. So much for the Saviour of Olympus. Can't even handle a chariot ride.
Frank didn't look much better than her. His face was tinged green as he hobbled to the top of the hill and peered down at the camp. "Guys…you need to see this." The two girls felt their hearts sink at the stricken tone in his voice.
When Thalia and Hazel joined him, both of them groaned in dismay and horror at the sight that met their eyes.
The battle had begun, and it wasn't going well. The Twelfth Legion was arrayed on the Field of Mars, trying to protect the city. Scorpions fired into the ranks of the Earthborn. Hannibal the elephant ploughed down monsters right and left, but the defenders were badly outnumbered.
On her pegasus Scipio, Reyna flew around the giant Polybotes, trying to keep him occupied. The Lares had formed shimmering purple lines against a mob of black, vaporous shades in ancient armour. Veteran demigods from the city had joined the battle, and were pushing their shield wall against an onslaught of wild centaurs. Giant eagles circled the battlefield, doing aerial combat with two snake-haired ladies in green Bargain Mart vests—Stheno and Euryale.
The legion itself was taking the brunt of the attack, but their formation was breaking under the force of the over-whelmingly numerically superior foe. Each cohort was an island in a sea of enemies. The Cyclopes' siege tower shot glowing green cannonballs into the city, blasting craters in the forum, reducing houses to ruins. As the questers watched, a cannonball hit the Senate House and the dome partially collapsed, smoke beginning to rise from the crater, and flames starting to dance over the building.
Thalia noted with more than a little relief that the flames were a regular orange-yellow. If they had used Greek Fire for the cannons, it would have been the icing that topped the cake.
"We're too late," Hazel said, despair radiating from her slumped form.
"No, we're not," Thalia refuted straight away. "They're still fighting. We can still salvage this. We're not too late. Not while one person is still fighting."
"Where's Lupa?" Frank asked, desperation in his voice. He was looking around wildly, and Thalia briefly realized that, excepting the battle with Alcyoneus, which was a different type of battle, he and Hazel had never been in such a situation before. Thalia, on the other hand, had done this sort of thing so often back during the Titan War, it almost felt routine. They were already doing better than during the Battle of Manhattan. She flinched mentally away from those memories, concentrating on Frank, who was still talking about Lupa and the wolf goddess' pack.
"She and the wolves…they should be here," he insisted.
Thalia pursed her lips as she thought about her time with the wolf goddess. She had come to respect Lupa's teachings, but she had also learned that wolves had limits. They weren't front-line fighters, they were hunters. They only attacked when they had vastly superior numbers, and usually under the cover of darkness. Besides, Lupa's first rule was self-sufficiency. She would help her children as much as she could, train them to fight—but in the end, they were either predator or prey. Romans had to fight for themselves. They had to prove their worth or die. That was Lupa's way. That was the Roman way.
"She did what she could," Thalia murmured. "She slowed down the army on its' way south. Now it's up to us. We've got to get the gold eagle and these weapons to the legion."
"But Arion is out of steam!" Hazel said. "We can't haul this stuff ourselves."
"Maybe we don't have to." Thalia scanned the hilltops hopefully. If Tyson had gotten the dream message she had sent to him in Vancouver, help might be close.
She whistled as loud as she could—a good New York cab whistle that would've been heard all the way from Times Square to Central Park.
Shadows rippled in the trees. A huge black shape bounded out of nowhere—a mastiff the size of an SUV, with a Cyclops and a harpy on her back.
"Hellhound!" Frank scrambled backward.
"It's okay!" Thalia assured him. "These guys are good friends of mine. You can trust them, I swear on the Styx."
Thunder boomed to seal her oath as Tyson climbed off and ran toward her with a loud cry of "Friend Thalia!".
Thalia tried to brace herself, but it was no good. Tyson slammed into her and smothered her in a chokingly tight hug. For a few seconds, Thalia's lack of oxygen meant that she could only see black spots and lots of flannel. Then Tyson let go and laughed with delight, looking Thalia over with his massive baby brown eye.
"You are not dead!" he said, clapping happily. "I like it when you are not dead!"
Ella fluttered to the ground and began preening her feathers. "Ella found a dog," she announced. "A large dog. And a Cyclops."
Thalia wondered for a second if Ella was blushing, but before she could decide, the black mastiff she had inherited from Quintus/Daedalus pounced on her, knocking Thalia to the ground and barking so loudly that even Arion backed up in nervousness.
"Hey, Mrs. O'Leary," Thalia said with fond resignation, patting the Hellhound on her nose. "Yeah, I love you too, girl. Good dog."
Hazel made a squeaking sound. "You have a hellhound named Mrs. O'Leary?"
"It's a long story." Thalia replied as she got back onto her feet and wiped off the dog slobber. "You can ask your brother…"
Her voice wavered and trailed off when she saw Hazel's expression. She had almost forgotten that Nico di Angelo was missing. She reached out to press the younger girl's shoulder affectionately.
"We'll get him back, Hazel," she promised softly. "I promise."
Hazel's gold eyes glistened with unshed tears, but she forced herself to push her pain aside and focus on the matter at hand. "So, what's the plan?"

Thalia left the Fifth Cohort behind to continue aiding their comrades. The sight of the eagle, finally restored to the legion after decades of being lost, reinvigorated every Roman who spotted it. They surged forward, regrouping and attacking with vicious delight, monsters dissolving into piles of gold dust all around her, until Thalia was almost struggling to see there was so much of it.
At the base of the aqueduct, the First and Second Cohorts were trying to encircle Polybotes, but they were taking a pounding. The remaining Earthborn threw barrage after barrage of stone and mud. Karpoi grain spirits-gods, Thalia was never going to be able to eat cereal again without imagining it coming to life and killing her-were rushing through the tall grass abducting campers at random, pulling them away from the line. The giant himself kept shaking basilisks out of his hair. Every time one landed, the Romans panicked and ran. Judging from their corroded shields and the smoking plumes on their helmets, they'd already learned about the basilisks' poison and fire.
Reyna soared above the giant, diving in with her javelin whenever he turned his attention to the ground troops. Her purple cloak snapped in the wind. Her golden armour gleamed. Polybotes jabbed his trident and swung his weighted net, but Scipio was almost as nimble as Arion. Thalia felt a surge of respect for her younger brother's girlfriend. Jason clearly had good taste.
Then Reyna noticed the Fifth Cohort marching to their aid with the eagle. She was so stunned, the giant almost swatted her out of the air, but Scipio dodged. Reyna locked eyes with Thalia and gave her a huge smile. Her joy radiated from her as she called to the rest of the troops.
"Romans!" Her voice boomed across the fields. "Rally to the eagle!"
Demigods and monsters alike turned and gawked in astonishment as Thalia bounded forward on her hellhound.
"What is this?" Polybotes demanded. "What is this?"
Thalia felt a rush of power similar to the one she felt when summoning her storms, coursing through the standard's staff. She raised the eagle and shouted, "Twelfth Legion Fulminata!"
Thunder shook the valley. The eagle let loose a blinding flash, and a thousand tendrils of lightning exploded from its golden wings—arcing in front of Thalia like the branches of an enormous deadly tree, connecting with the nearest monsters, leaping from one to another, completely ignoring the Roman forces. It was stronger than any lightning Thalia had ever managed to call herself.
When the lightning stopped, the First and Second Cohorts were facing one surprised-looking giant and several hundred smoking piles of ash. The enemy's centre line had been completely charred to oblivion.
The look on the arrogant Centurion Hank's face was priceless. The centurion stared at Thalia with shock, then outrage. Then, when his own troops started to cheer, he had no choice except to join the shouting: "Rome! Rome!"
The giant Polybotes backed up uncertainly, but Thalia knew the battle wasn't over.
The Fourth Cohort was still surrounded by Cyclopes. Even Hannibal the elephant was having a hard time wading through so many monsters. His black Kevlar armour was ripped so that his label just said ANT.
The veterans and Lares on the eastern flank were being pushed toward the city. The monsters' siege tower was still hurling explosive fireballs into the streets. The gorgons had disabled the giant eagles and now flew unchallenged over the giant's remaining centaurs and the Earthborn, trying to rally them.
"Stand your ground!" Stheno yelled. "I've got free samples!"
"Go!" Thalia ordered, handing the eagle to Dakota, who straightened up with pride as he accepted the emblem.
"Tha-" Hazel began, but Thalia cut her off.
"I've got this," she promised.
"Indeed," a voice piped up from beside her. They all started in surprise, staring in stunned surprise at Neptune, who was dressed in full battle regalia. Everything he wore was made of gleaming Imperial Gold, and he gripped a gleaming silver trident in one hand. He seemed a lot moodier than the relaxed god she had known him to be in his Greek form.
He raised an eyebrow at the shocked daughter of Zeus. "Are you ready?"
Thalia straightened, regaining her focus. "Yes, milord," she promised.
Neptune nodded sharply, then turned to march towards his Bane. "Polybotes!" he bellowed. "Coward! Fight me!"
Polybotes chuckled darkly as Thalia rushed to catch up with the god.
"Ah, my old foe," the giant smirked. "How are you doing, I believe that's what they say these days, is it not?"
Neptune adjusted his grip on his trident, and grew until he matched Polybotes' height. "I shall be significantly better once I have sent you back to Tartarus where you belong," the sea god growled back.
Polybotes laughed, then suddenly, without warning, lunged. Neptune blocked, just as horns began to blow in the northern hills. Another army appeared on the ridge—hundreds of warriors in black-and-grey camouflage, armed with spears and shields. Interspersed among their ranks were a dozen battle forklifts, their sharpened tines gleaming in the sunset and flaming bolts nocked in their crossbows. Thalia, Hazel and Frank all recognized them as soon as they spotted the forklifts.
"Amazons," Frank said, his tone flat. "Great."
Polybotes laughed triumphantly. "You, see? Our reinforcements have arrived! Rome will fall today, just as it did so many centuries ago!"
The Amazons lowered their spears and charged down the hill. Their forklifts barrelled into battle. The giant's army cheered—until the Amazons changed course and headed straight for the monsters' intact eastern flank.
"Amazons, forward!" On the largest forklift stood a girl who looked like an older version of Reyna, in black combat armour with a glittering gold belt around her waist.
"Queen Hylla!" Hazel exclaimed. "She survived!"
"To my sister's aid!" The Amazon queen shouted to her troops. "Destroy the monsters!"
"Destroy!" Her troops' cry echoed through the valley.
Reyna wheeled her pegasus toward Thalia. Her eyes gleamed. I could hug you right now, her expression said. "Romans!" She shouted. "Advance!" The legionnaires cheered as they obeyed her orders. Thalia spotted a dark haired girl, with features similar to Lena's, glowing with the blessing of Akantha/Valeria as she led the Second Cohort towards the invaders in a charge.
The battlefield descended into absolute chaos. Amazon and Roman lines swung toward the enemy like the Doors of Death themselves. But, beside the aqueduct, Thalia stood at Neptune's side, Aegis out and her spear held aloft as she faced down the giant.
A lot of monsters liked to monologue before fighting. But Polybotes was evidently one of the few who didn't, because they simply jumped straight into the battle, without any boasts. Thalia felt a tad uncomfortable at the breech of tradition, but pushed it aside to focus on fighting.
The giant thrust his hand under the water. As the torrent passed through his fingers it turned dark green. He flung some at Thalia, who instinctively deflected it with her shield. The liquid splattered the ground in front of him. With a nasty hiss, the grass withered and smoked.
"My touch turns water to poison," Polybotes said. "Let's see what it does to blood!"
He threw his net at Thalia, but Neptune turned it into dust with a gesture before he diverted the waterfall straight into the giant's face. While Polybotes was blinded, Thalia charged. She plunged her spear into the giant's belly then withdrew it and vaulted away, leaving the giant roaring in pain.
The strike would have dissolved any lesser monster, but Polybotes just staggered and looked down at the golden ichor spilling from his wound. The cut was already closing.
"Good try, demigod," he snarled. "But I will break you still."
Thalia spat at his feet, then ran at him again. Polybotes, as arrogant as all monsters, didn't notice as Neptune slipped behind him, nor did he spot the darkening clouds that were gathering above them in the sky. He was too focused on blocking Thalia's continuous and vicious attacks.
"Surrender, demigod!" Polybotes boomed. "Your cause is hopeless, the West will fall!"
"Not likely, Polybotes!" Neptune boomed. "You are as foolish and arrogant as you have always been."
Polybotes gasped as the three tips of the sea god's trident suddenly stuck out of his torso. At the same time, Thalia, called down the strongest lightning bolt she could summon. He looked up at the sound of the crack, and it struck him right in the eye. With a furious cry, he dissolved into a steaming heap of seaweed, reptile skin, and poisonous muck.
Thalia stood there, panting in shock and exhaustion. Neptune turned to her, his expression grim. "This is not the end," he warned her. "Even with Thanatos free, until the Doors of Death have been restored to the control of Olympus, Gaia's forces will be able to return."
He disappeared, just as the Romans arrived. For a moment, the battlefield was silent except for a few fires burning, and a few retreating monsters screaming in panic.
A ragged circle of Romans and Amazons stood around Thalia. Tyson, Ella, and Mrs. O'Leary were there. Frank and Hazel were grinning at her with pride, and she cast them an exhausted smile in reply. Arion was nibbling contentedly on a golden shield.
The Romans began to chant, "Thalia! Thalia!"
They mobbed her. Before she could understand what was happening, they were raising her on a shield. The cry changed to, "Praetor! Praetor!"
Among the chanters was Reyna herself, who held up her hand and grasped Thalia's in congratulation. Then the mob of cheering Romans carried her around the Pomerian Line, carefully avoiding Terminus' borders, and escorted him back home to Camp Jupiter.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own HOO. Oh, and I know that I uploaded the wrong chapter for chap 17, but I fixed it straight away. If you haven't read it yet, do it now before reading this one. Enjoy!

None of the half-bloods abroad the Argo II were aware, as they approached their camp's counterpart, that the gods were watching them in a grim silence.
"This," Hermes predicted with uncharacteristic gravity, "Going to go terribly wrong."
"No," Akantha rebutted him. "It won't. They will not defy our will, and this is our desire."
"I hope you are right, Daughter," Poseidon replied, his expression dark.
"I am," Akantha insisted. Only Apollo saw the doubt she felt.
"Enough," Zeus ordered curtly. "There is nothing more to be done. Akantha, prepare yourself. If needs be, you will go and intervene."
"Aye, Sire," she replied, nodding sharply.
They fell silent as the Argo II began to descend through the clouds above Camp Jupiter.

It had started off badly when the heavily-armed warship had flown into the sky above the Principia. Luke had double and triple checked the ballistae to make sure they were locked down, trying to keep himself busy. Then he had confirmed that the white "We come in peace" flag was flying from the mast so they wouldn't be attacked by the Roman eagles that Jason had told them about.
Lena had reviewed the plan and the backup plan with them all, warning Leo to "be serious, for once in your life. Screw this up and it's Civil War 2.0."
Most importantly, the two of them had pulled aside their war-crazed chaperone, Coach Gleeson Hedge, and convinced him to take the morning off in his cabin and watch reruns of mixed martial arts championships. Then Lena had slipped him a sedative hidden in an orange juice so he had fallen asleep, as well as locking his door from the outside so he couldn't get out and terrorize anyone.
Everyone agreed that the last thing they needed as they flew a magical Greek trireme into a potentially hostile Roman camp where they would be horrifically outnumbered was a middle-aged satyr in gym clothes waving a club and yelling "Die!"
Despite all of their precautions, everybody was still worried. What if the Romans panicked and attacked them on sight?
It was a reasonable concern. After all, while the Greeks were willing to let bygones be bygones so they could focus on Gaia, they had had several months to adjust to the necessity of working with Rome. On the other hand, the Romans apparently still clung to the old feud (probably because of the Lares), and the Argo II definitely did not look friendly.
It was two hundred feet long, with a bronze-plated hull, mounted repeating crossbows fore and aft (that could operate by themselves), a flaming Celestial Bronze dragon for a figurehead, and two rotating ballistae amidships that could fire explosive bolts of Greek fire powerful enough to blast through concrete…well, it wasn't the best thing they could bring with them to a meet-and-greet with the neighbours.
The 'New Argonauts' as they had been nicknamed by Camp Half-Blood, had tried to give the Romans a heads-up. Lena had ordered Leo to send one of his holographic scrolls to alert Thalia to their approach. Leo had wanted to paint a giant message on the bottom of the hull—WASSUP? with a smiley face—but Lena had vetoed the idea, concerned that the Romans might not have a sense of humour and would interpret it as mockery, angering them.
"Too late to turn back now," Luke muttered under his breath as they flew into position. Lena guessed it was meant be silent, or at least unheard. Jason and Leo hadn't noticed at any rate.
Leaning over the railing slightly, Lena could see a small metropolis coming into view. It was surrounded by a small fortress and a fast-flowing river. The Little Tiber. According to Jason, it was infused with the spirit of the original Tiber, back in Rome, and served as a ward for Camp Jupiter. The demigod, carefully studying the small city, could see the traces of smoke drifting up into the air and the gaping, jagged holes in various building. There had been a battle here, very recently.
From the looks of it, the New Argonauts had just missed it. Lena felt a mixture of emotions at that. She was relieved that Camp Jupiter hadn't fallen to the giants' army, but she wished that they could have arrived in time to help for several reasons.
One, she hated to think that people who might have lived if they had been there were now dead. Two, a much crueller reasoning, was that if the Greeks had been able to aid in the defence of Camp Jupiter and New Rome, there would have been no, or at least considerably less, doubt about their desire for friendship. Given what Jason had told them all about the lingering prejudice against Greece in the Roman camp, that good will would have been a great help in their case for unification against Gaia and her armies.
Still, there was nothing to be done about it now. Lena continued to scan the sprawling grounds as her three crewmates took their places.
On the stern quarterdeck, Leo rushed around like a madman, checking his gauges and wrestling levers. Most helmsmen would've been satisfied with a pilot's wheel or a tiller. Leo had also installed a keyboard, monitor, aviation controls from a Learjet, a dubstep soundboard, and motion-control sensors from a Nintendo Wii. He could turn the ship by pulling on the throttle, fire weapons by sampling an album, or raise sails by shaking his Wii controllers really fast. Even by demigod standards, Leo was seriously ADHD. Still, Lena loved him for his hyper-craziness. He was the only one who could make her smile nowadays.
Luke was now pacing the deck anxiously. She could read the tension and eagerness he was feeling in his rigid spine and expression. The dark shadows under his bright blue eyes and the sharpness of his features from lack of proper eating in the past few months showed how much of a toll Thalia's disappearance had taken on him. Not surprising, really. Lena guessed it had probably brought back awful memories of her being kidnapped by the Titans three years ago.
Then there was the last member of their crew. Jason. He stood at the bow on the raised crossbow platform, where the Romans could easily spot him. His knuckles were white on the hilt of his golden sword. Otherwise he looked calm for a guy who was making himself a target. Over his jeans and orange Camp Half-Blood T-shirt, he'd donned a toga and a purple cloak—symbols of his old rank as praetor. With his wind-ruffled blond hair and his icy blue eyes, he looked ruggedly handsome and in control—just like a son of Jupiter should. He'd grown up at Camp Jupiter, so hopefully his familiar face would make the Romans hesitant to blow the ship out of the sky.
Lena wondered how it felt, to know that you were about to reunite with a sibling you thought was dead for most of your life. She tried to hide the resentment she felt towards the two Graces at that fact. She was never going to reunite with Lukas in this life.
He had said, in their last goodbye that had been her reward for defending Olympus, that he was going to wait for her to go for rebirth. But he had also made her swear on the River Styx to do everything in her power to live a long life. Even with Leo brightening her life a bit, it was a promise that she continued to resent making. How were you supposed to live with half of your soul missing?
She felt a sudden shiver, as if a psychotic snowman had crept up behind her and was breathing down her neck. She blinked in bemusement at the metaphor she had come up with, deciding that Leo had started to influence her too much as she turned to scan the area, finding no one was there.
It must be her nerves. Even in a world of gods and monsters, Lena couldn't bring herself to believe that a new warship would be haunted. An old one, yes. A brand new one, that hadn't even seen battle yet? No way. Their luck couldn't be that bad, considering they were still alive and unmaimed. The Argo II was well protected. The Celestial bronze shields along the rail were all enchanted by the Hecate children back at Camp Half-Blood to ward off monsters, and their onboard satyr, Coach Hedge, would have sniffed out any intruders.
The cold pressed closer. She thought she heard a faint voice in the wind, laughing. Every muscle in her body tensed. Something was about to go terribly wrong. She almost ordered Leo to reverse course, but she was stopped before she could.
Then, in the valley below, horns sounded. The Romans had spotted them.
Dozens of kids in togas were streaming out of what Lena guessed was the Senate House to get a better view of the Argo II. More Romans emerged from the shops and cafés, gawking and pointing as the ship descended.
About half a mile to the west, where the horns were blowing, a Roman fort stood on a hill. It looked just like the illustrations Lena had seen in military history books (Lukas had loved them. He had wanted to join the army.) It had a defensive trench lined with spikes, high walls, and watchtowers armed with scorpion ballistae. Inside, perfect rows of white barracks lined the main road—the Via Principalis.
A column of demigods emerged from the gates, their armour and spears glinting as they hurried toward the city. In the midst of their ranks was an actual war elephant.
Lena wanted to land the Argo II before those troops arrived, but the ground was still several hundred feet below. She scanned the crowd, hoping to catch a glimpse of Thalia. A friendly face would be gratefully appreciated right now.
Then something behind her went BOOM!
The explosion almost knocked her overboard. She whirled and found herself face to face with an angry statue.
"Unacceptable!" he shrieked, so loudly that she worried her ears would start bleeding.
Apparently he had exploded into existence, right there on the deck. Sulfurous yellow smoke rolled off his shoulders. Cinders popped around his curly hair. From the waist down, he was nothing but a square marble pedestal. From the waist up, he was a muscular human figure in a carved toga.
"I will not have weapons inside the Pomerian Line!" he announced in a fussy teacher voice. "I certainly will not have Greeks!"
Lena felt herself stiffen indignantly at that. His tone was full of contempt as he spat out the word 'Greeks'. Like being a Greek was the equivalent to being a slug.
Jason shot Lena a look that said, I've got this. Lena hoped he was right. She had a feeling braking the Romans' talking statue might cause diplomatic difficulties. And she dearly wanted to break the statue. Who did he think he was, talking to her and her friends like that? (As with all of her siblings, Lena's fatal flaw was a fierce loyalty and protective nature towards her friends. It had caused many a problem when she sought physical retribution for a friend's distress.)
"Terminus," Jason said. "It's me. Jason Grace."
"Oh, I remember you, Jason!" Terminus grumbled. "I thought you had better sense than to consort with the enemies of Rome!"
"But they're not enemies—"
"Impertinence!" Terminus exclaimed loudly.
How is that being impertinent? Lena wondered silently.
"It's lucky for you that I've just been through a battle," Terminus announced. "If I were at full strength, I would've blasted this flying monstrosity out of the sky already!"
"Hold up." Leo stepped forward, wagging his Wii controller. "Did you just call my ship a monstrosity? I know you didn't do that."
The idea that Leo might attack the statue with his gaming device was enough to snap Lena out of her state of being frozen in shocked fury, and back to resonability.
"Let's all calm down." She raised her hands to show she had no weapons. "I take it you're Terminus, the god of boundaries. Jason told us that you're responsible for protecting the city of New Rome, right? I'm Lena Dare, the daughter of-"
"I don't care who you are, daughter of Valeria!" Terminus interrupted. Lena gritted her teeth tightly. She hated being interrupted fiercely. Unfortunately, one of the flaws of being a child of the goddess of strength was that they all had quickly roused tempers.
"Don't cut me off when I'm talking-" she began hotly.
"Right!" Jason interrupted her. She switched her vicious glare to him, contemplating whether or not punching him and breaking his nose would count as an act of war in the Romans' eyes. "Anyway, Terminus, we're here on a mission of peace. We'd love permission to land so we can—"
"Impossible!" the god squeaked. "Lay down your weapons and surrender to the might of Rome! Leave my city immediately!"
All of the half-bloods frowned in confusion.
"Which is it?" Leo asked, voicing all of their thoughts. "Surrender, or leave?"
"Both!" Terminus said. "Surrender, then leave. I am slapping your face for asking such a stupid question, you ridiculous boy! Do you feel that?"
"Wow." Leo studied Terminus with professional interest. "You're wound up pretty tight. You got any gears in there that need loosening? I could take a look."
He exchanged the Wii controller for a screwdriver from his magic tool belt and tapped the statue's pedestal. Lena rolled her eyes.
"Leo!" she snapped. "He's a god! Gods don't have gears!"
He ignored her (oh, she would make him pay for that later), and continued to tap away at the god's pedestal.
"Stop that!" Terminus insisted. A small explosion made Leo drop his screwdriver. "Weapons are not allowed on Roman soil inside the Pomerian Line."
"The what?" Luke, who had been silent up until then, staring intently down at the Romans surging into the square, asked.
"City limits," Jason translated.
"And this entire ship is a weapon!" Terminus declared. "You cannot land!"
Down in the valley, the legion reinforcements were halfway to the city. The crowd in the forum was over a hundred strong now. Lena quickly scanned the faces and spotted Thalia. To her surprise and relief, Thalia was wearing a purple cloak. The symbol of a praetor. Lena smirked slightly at that in amusement. Hah. The Romans had elected the leader of the Greek camp as their new co-praetor. That was the epitome of irony, in Lena's opinion.
She looked at Luke, who was so fixed on Thalia he seemed like he was about to climb over the railings, and swiftly made a decision.
"Leo, stop the ship," she ordered.
"What?"
"You heard me. Keep us right where we are."
Leo pulled out his controller and yanked it upward. All ninety oars froze in place. The ship stopped sinking.
"Terminus," Lena said, "there's no rule against hovering over New Rome, is there?"
The statue frowned. "Well, no…"
"We can keep the ship aloft," she coaxed him. "We'll use a rope ladder to reach the forum. That way, the ship won't be on Roman soil. Not technically."
The statue seemed to ponder this. Lena wondered if he was scratching his chin with imaginary hands.
"I like technicalities," he admitted. "Still…"
"All our weapons will stay aboard the ship," she promised. "I assume the Romans—even those reinforcements marching toward us—will also have to honour your rules inside the Pomerian Line if you tell them to?"
"Of course!" Terminus said. "Do I look like I tolerate rule breakers?"
"Uh, Lena…" Leo said warily. "You sure this is a good idea?"
She closed her fists to keep them from shaking. That cold feeling was still there. It floated just behind her, and now that Terminus was no longer shouting and causing explosions, she thought she could hear the presence laughing, as if it was delighted by the bad choices she was making.
But they had to talk to the Senate, to convince the Romans to help them defeat Gaia. There was no other option that might end without peacefully.
"It'll be fine," she said. "No one will be armed. We can talk in peace. Terminus will make sure each side obeys the rules." She looked at the marble statue. "Do we have an agreement?"
Terminus sniffed. "I suppose. For now. You may climb down your ladder to New Rome, daughter of Akantha. Please try not to destroy my town."
As she shimmied skillfully down the rope ladder, Lena feared that she had just doomed them all. 'Mother,' she thought to Akantha. 'Help us. Please.'
This was it.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own HOO. I'm so glad everyone enjoys this story so much.

The tension in the plaza was so thick, it couldn't have been cut with a knife. All of the Greek delegation (including Thalia and Jason, despite the fact that neither of them really counted given their 'ambassador' status) were tense and stiff. They all longed for their weapons, especially Lena.
She felt like she had during the last day of the Battle of Manhattan. She had, like many during that chaotic mess of a battle, ended up separated and on her own, encircled by an overwhelming number of enemies. At least this time she wasn't completely on her own. She wished she had never suggested giving up their weapons, however. The sword her mother had given her, and the knife that had belonged to her brother, would have made her feel a lot safer, surrounded and outnumbered as she was by Romans.
She stood shoulder-to-shoulder with her group, her and Leo's fingers entangled enough to provide support to each other, but still light enough that they could pull away quickly and fight if they needed to. For once, Leo was silent and serious, keeping himself under control, without a single finger twitching. Lena had spent a lot of time over the past few months, working on getting him to understand the severity of their lives and that there was a time and a place to be a jokester, without actually ruining his light-hearted demeanour.
The Romans surrounded them warily, a group in togas that must have made up the Senate in the front. Thalia and a Puerto Rican girl, who must have been Reyna, Jason's girlfriend that he'd been longing to be reunited with since he had remembered her face, stood at the front, the two other Romans who Lena had spotted with her (formerly) missing friend were hovering a step behind her, just in front of the Senators.
It was a mark of how wary everybody was that, despite how much Luke and Jason had been mooning over their girlfriends, and how desperate they had been to reunite with them, they didn't move from the line the four of them had made. Luke and Thalia had locked eyes with each other and were sharing a silent conversation through them, in a way that only came from years of intense closeness. Jason was looking almost pleadingly at Reyna, but her expression remained stubbornly neutral, though it relaxed slightly when she took in Lena and Leo's entwined grips, evidently reassured that her boyfriend was still hers.
Lena offered a weak smile, summoned her bravery, and stepped forward slightly, reluctantly releasing Leo's hand in the process. She pretended not to notice how the legionnaires stiffened as she did so, and pressed a hand to her chest, hoping her slim form made her appear unthreatening.
"I'm Lena Dare," she introduced. "Daughter of Akantha, Valeria to you." She gestured back at her friends. "This is my boyfriend, Leo Valdez, son of Hephaestus, or Vulcan for Romans. Luke Castellan, son of Hermes, a.k.a Mercury, and you all know your old praetor, Jason Grace, son of Jupiter. We're here in regards to the Great Prophecy, uh, the Prophecy of Seven as you call it. We're the contingent from Camp Half-Blood."
"Why?" one of the guys wearing a medal that declared him to be one of the camp's centurions demanded suddenly.
Lena blinked in genuine confusion. "Why what?" she asked in a bewildered tone. She restrained a grimace, wishing she were better at hiding her emotions. Like Lukas had been. (Lena was unaware that most people thought she was very good at hiding her feelings, and in fact caused Chiron a great deal of concern, as he worried that she buried her emotions instead of dealing with them, a sure-fire way to become depressed, in the life of a demigod.
The centurion glared at her. "Seven questers," he began. "Your Camp Half-Blood," he scoffed the name, making all the Greeks (including Thalia and Jason, who looked away from their respective partners to narrow their eyes at him). "Is, counting Praetor Thalia, sending four. Then, if you count Jason, though I'm not sure we can given the fact that he's been with the Graecae for almost a full year, now, we're donating three, two of which are just out of their probatio terms. That doesn't seem like fair math to me.
And, according to Praetor Thalia, you want to cross the Mare Nostrum, which has been outlawed for centuries. How do we know this isn't some sort of Greek trick?"
"Do you doubt my words, Henry Rivers, legacy of Bellona?" a cool voice boomed out. Lena, who had tensed angrily at the accusation, instantly relaxed and a smug smile grew on her face as she recognized the familiar sound of her mother's voice.
It faltered slightly, as she took in Akantha's clothes and features. Or rather, as she took in Valeria's clothes and features. She should have realized immediately that it would be her mother's Roman aspect who appeared, given they were in the Roman camp.
But she didn't. Not until she saw the slightly different bone structure in her mother's face, and the toga worn under a set of Imperial Gold armour along with leather Roman sandals laced up to her knees, instead of the Greek chiton, Celestial Bronze armour and Ancient Greek-styled sandals, paired with unquestionably Greek features that she was used to. Akan-Valeria's expression was more severe too, matching her stern tone, that was harsher than Lena had ever heard from her mother.
For a moment, Lena was, for the first time in her life, frightened of her mother. Then, Valeria glanced quickly at her, giving a quick, gentle smile that caused her to relax and regain her confidence once again. The goddess continued to stride to the centre of the forum, lightly touching a dark-haired girl on the shoulder as she passed her. From the look of the girl, it was Claudia, Lena's older half-sister. Jason had first mentioned her months ago, and Lena didn't know how she felt at the thought of having a sibling that wasn't Lukas. Nothing good, that was for sure.
Valeria arrived in the middle of the large, open square, and turned slowly on her heel, her green eyes narrow as she surveyed the large crowd of soldiers. She finally stopped at 'Henry Rivers, legacy of Bellona'.
For a descendant of the goddess of war, he looked ready to faint in terror at the sight of the goddess of heroes. Lena wondered why.
No Greek ever acted as fearful or fawning when in the presence of the gods as the Romans were acting right now. Usually they were just irritated at the interruption to their day and lives. Most of the Romans, however, were on their knees, and the others looked like they wanted to, but were refraining due to the Greeks' lack of obeisance.
"Well?" Valeria's voice was cool as she stared down at the fearful legacy.
(And Lena still found herself stunned to silence whenever she thought that a place existed where half-bloods lived long enough to have children and grandchildren. Ancient heroes hardly counted after all, when the mortal lifespan at the time had been about twenty, never mind that of the children of the gods. Teen pregnancy wasn't encouraged anymore, so there was no such thing as a Greek legacy.)
"I said," Valeria continued, when Henry didn't say anything, simply standing in place and shivering with fear. "Do you doubt my words, Henry Rivers, legacy of Bellona? Or perhaps you will answer me if I call you by your nickname? Do you doubt my words, Hank Rivers, legacy of Bellona?"
Lena heard a hint of contempt in Valeria's voice, and she suspected that she knew the origin of it. As the goddess of strength and bravery, her mother liked people who stood strong in the face of their fears, and scoffed at those who cowered away from them in fear. Given the fact that Akantha was the milder incarnation of the goddess, Lena imagined that Valeria was downright scornful of cowardice. She didn't blame her for it, of course. Lena was the same, as all her siblings had been.
"N, no, milady Valeria," Henry 'Hank' stuttered out.
His voice was so quiet and trembling, Lena could barely make it out. She could tell some of the further away members of the audience couldn't hear at all, as the discussion was being passed on by word-of-the-mouth through the closer members.
She spotted her half-sister (who was one of those who were standing, but looked more like she stood due to lack of fear, instead of not wanting to appear weak in front of the Greeks) rolling her eyes disgustedly, and gave her an understanding look on impulse. Claudia smirked back at her. Abruptly, Lena decided that while no one could ever replace her twin, maybe it would be nice to become friendly with her half-sister. In the interests of inter-camp diplomacy of course. Not because she sometimes found it lonely to be an only child, now that Lukas was gone. Of course not.
"And," Valeria went on. "Did Praetor Thalia not announce that it was the desire of the gods that the two camps unite in order to defeat the Earth Mother and her Giant Army?"
"She did," Hank confirmed. His grey eyes flickered around desperately in search of aid, but no one met his eyes. Apparently the Greek half-bloods were more willing to court the wrath of the gods than their Roman cousins were.
Well, Lena could live with that. She liked her camp's atmosphere, thanks very much. The thought of living through the endless drills, being sewn into a sack of angry ferrets and tossed in the river if she disobeyed a rule, like Jason had described it, made her grimace in distaste. Give her crappy campfire songs and lava rock walls any day.
Still, the concept of a city where demigods could live in safety, go to college, and raise children, fascinated her more than she wanted to admit. She had always, since she and her twin had first been attacked by a monster, their father dying in the process, harboured a dream of living a peaceful life. Growing old with a man she loved, having a safe home where she didn't need to fear being attacked constantly, birthing and raising a child. Lena was probably one of the few young women left alive whose greatest ambition was to be a stay-at-home mother. It was a dream only Lukas had known about, and he had always encouraged her not to give up hope of it. Learning about New Rome had re-awoken those buried dreams inside her.
"So," Valeria was saying, while her Greek child's thoughts wandered. "Why do you question it?"
"Milady," Hank croaked. "I do not question your will. Only that the Graecae are properly relaying your desires-" He fell quiet immediately as Valeria raised an elegant hand, her lips pursed tightly in displeasure at her will (and the rest of the Olympian Council's, Lena supposed. Naturally, her mother was very loyal.) being questioned in any manner.
"All the members of the quest were carefully picked, based on their skills, reputations, heritage, Apollo's visions and the talents that would be required for the quest itself," she announced, before elaborating at the curiosity on everyone's faces. What had caused them to be chosen? Lena had wondered about that from the start.
"Thalia Grace was chosen for her status as the current most-powerful demigod alive, and her previous experience with Great Prophecies," she explained, her tone curt. "Jason Grace was chosen, as he was the more powerful leader of Camp Jupiter at the time. Only the two of them would do to act as ambassadors for their respective camps, and it has worked out well.
Luke Castellan was chosen as he is, save for Thalia herself, the most experienced and talented fighter in Camp Half-Blood at the moment. Leo Valdez is the only current fire-user in either of the camps, and the one who drew up the blueprints for the Argo II, which will allow the questers to safely cross the Mare Nostrum to the Ancient Lands. Because he is the one with the best understanding of the ship, he was required to go also.
My daughter, Lena Dare, was chosen as she is the most powerful of my two surviving children, and all my children have an unparalleled knowledge of the First Giant War, due to my own history with it. That knowledge will be a boon, when the questers are fighting the giants. She also has a rare ability for my children. It is similar to charmspeaking in that she can convince people to trust her using her words.
Hazel Levesque has an understanding of the Earth Mother and her giants that no one else alive can match, not mention her raw power as a child of Pluto, who is, of course, one of the Elder Three Gods. And Frank Zhang was chosen because his lineage is ancient in a way no other demigod's it. His blood contains not just the Roman ichor of Mars, but the Greek of Poseidon, from my Greek half-brother, Frank's distant ancestor the Prince of Pylos. Due to his descendancy from the Prince, he was a unique ability that this camp saw just yesterday. Now."
She turned again, meeting everybody's eyes steadily. "Does anyone else have any complaints about the Council's decision?"

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO/HOO

If Valeria thought that her presence would make the two groups more comfortable with each other, than she was dead wrong.
On the other hand, it did motivate everyone to hurry up and get some form of a peace agreement drafted up, and her pointed comment that anyone who tried to incite mistrust between Camp Half-Blood and Camp Jupiter would be considered a traitor to Olympus kept anyone against the alliance from speaking their thoughts. That meant that the Senate, along with Valeria herself and the Greek delegation, all ended up in the Senate Chambers immediately, skipping the lunch being gobbled down by the rest of the legionnaires in favour of creating a peace agreement.
Valeria had conjured a small replica of her throne on Olympus, the Senators had all taken their seats (Frank and Hazel were in what was swiftly becoming 'their' seats) and Reyna was in her own chair, her tight grip on the arm of her chair the only indication of her stress. But Luke, Lena and Leo were still standing awkwardly in the middle of the room, Hazel occasionally shooting fearful looks at the son of Hephaestus from her seat. And Thalia and Jason had both made for the second praetor chair, bumped into each other, and were now hovering awkwardly, avoiding each other's eyes and trying to decide what to do.
Valeria decided to clear up the confusion, and she waved her hand to conjure a platform, before she then summoned four extra chairs under a Camp Half-Blood banner to rest on it. Each chair had the symbol of the delegates' godly parents imprinted on it to show which demigod it was intended for.
"It is the desire of the Gods that Thalia remain as praetor of Camp Jupiter for the duration of the war," she declared in a regal voice. "While Jason will retain command of Camp Half-Blood. We hope that by doing so, both camps will have a proper amount of representation in the other, until there is time to make a more binding and long-term plan for peace and unity between both people."
"Yes my lady," Reyna agreed warily, echoed by everyone else.
Looking tense, Jason led the rest of the Greeks over to the platform. Thalia, meanwhile, sat on her chair, after exchanging a long look with her boyfriend.
"Now," Valeria went, taking charge of the meeting. "This meeting is not to debate whether or not the quest will be permitted. It is solely to inform you what is going to happen, what the questers need to do, and to give a prophecy that will guide you whilst in Rome.
The Twelfth Legion is not allowed to declare war on Camp Half-Blood, and vice versa.
While on the quest, Thalia will use Iris Messages to continue in her position as Praetor, while Reyna will keep control of all day-to-day matters. Any questions?"
Everybody shook their heads, making her nod in satisfaction.
"Now," Valeria repeated. "Who understands the source of the Greco-Roman feud?"
Everyone blinked in bewilderment, before a senator, (who had been shooting ugly looks at the Greeks since they had arrived) spoke up. "The Greeks are-"
"No," Valeria cut him off plainly. "The Romans started it. We invaded Greece, and enslaved and murdered many of their country. And, above all, they, in the eyes of the Greeks, defiled the Gods. Which is both true and not. In some ways, we were improved by the Flame moving. For example, our Greek counterparts are more divided and argues more often.
However, Rome also ruined us in many ways, also."
The Romans looked scandalized at her claim that they had been the ones to start the bloody war, but Valeria spotted Lena hastily looking down to hide her smirk. She ignored it, continuing. It was important for everyone to understand this. In fact, her Greek counterpart was currently giving this same lecture to Camp Half-Blood.
"We were split in half, and now suffer from what a mortal would call Multiple Personality Disorder," Valeria explained. "We were much less inclined to fight in our Greek forms, and we became crueller. But above all, the worst crime was committed on Minerva."
The Romans shifted uneasily, while Thalia, Lena and Luke stiffened. Leo looked uncomfortable, but he didn't have the same emotional connection as his friends did. He had not fought in the Titan War.
"The Roman Invasion damaged Athens, where she was primarily worshipped," Valeria told them, her tone grim. "She was stripped of her title and sanity by their actions. Especially the theft of the Athena Parthenos. The suffering she went through at the hands of Rome is what eventually led her to side with the Titans during the recent war, and convinced Mars to side with her too."
The Greek demigods all hissed at the mention, eyes widening. It was a taboo subject for them, as was the many heroes who had been lost because of the decision. Lena's eyes widened and started shimmering, and her hand clenched tightly in a mixture of anger and grief. Valeria's maternal instincts longed to comfort her grief-stricken child, but she put it aside to explain.
Anyway, she doubted this version of her would be able to help very much. Akantha could send a dream to her that night instead.
"The Parthenos anchored Athena to the world in a way," Valeria continued. "When it was taken, and the Flame moved to Rome, her sanity, and much of her power, was lost. She was reduced to a mere echo of herself, and not a good one either. The majority of her remaining sanity was consumed by a desire for revenge on the empire, and a fixation on recovering her Parthenos, and thus herself. Throughout the centuries, every civil war has had Greeks on one side and Romans on the other."
A dry smile lifted her lips briefly before it disappeared into her severe look again. "While the Romans may have begun the feud, the Greeks, prompted by Athena, continued it. The rage was worsened each time Minerva sent another hero to die looking for the Parthenos.
At least, it worsened until we began keeping you all separated. When we did that, the Greeks lost their hatred, as they could not remember the source of it. But the Lares," here she shot a cold look at the ghosts, who flinched and flickered nervously at her dissatisfaction. "Kept the grudge alive here in the Roman territory.
So much of the hate was entangled with the Parthenos, that Apollo has predicted that only having a Roman restore the Parthenos to Greek territory will end the split between the gods' forms, and the grudge as well. That will be the questers' first task."
"But, Mother!" Lena protested, earning herself disapproving looks from the Romans, who never said a word in contrast to the gods' wills. "Hundreds of us have searched for the Parthenos!" she insisted. "Nobody knows where it is! And anyone who goes in search, doesn't come back! We don't have time for two suicide missions! We're too busy with the first, thanks very much!"
"It's in Rome," Valeria informed her, causing surprise to ripple through the audience.
"You know-" Thalia began, but was cut off by the goddess.
"Before you go to Rome, you must go to Georgia, and seek out the primordial Phorcys for advice on how to fulfil your quest. Here," she threw a shining silver drachma, to everyone's surprise, at Jason. He fumbled for a second before gripping it.
"This, Jason Grace, is your responsibility," she told him firmly. "Using the Mark of Athena, find the Athena Parthenos, that you may repair what your ancestors destroyed."
He swallowed, gripping the coin tightly as he nodded. "I will do so, my lady," he agreed as steadily as he could. She studied him with neutral green eyes for several minutes, before nodding and returning the groups' attention to the matter at hand.
"As I said," she began. "The quest will first need to divert to Atlanta, to be more specific you must go to Atlanta, which is where you will meet with Phorcys and his wife, Keto and seek their advice on how to find the Parthenos."
(Reyna and Jason both stiffened at the mention of the city, no doubt recalling their own visit to the place, as well as their friend's death. The Greeks, with their significantly smaller numbers and their immense amount of quests, had certainly been affected far worse than Camp Jupiter had by the Titan War, but the Romans had suffered their fair share of grief for sure.)
"But why can't you just tell us where it is?" Leo asked.
Lena whacked him softly on the knee, giving him a chiding look for having so rudely interrupted the goddess. Valeria regarded him with a frank look that made him shift, feeling like his soul was being weighed and judged unworthy. He glanced down at the floor uncomfortably.
"We have always known that the Parthenos is in Rome," Valeria said finally. "As we remember it being brought there, just after Athens was invaded. But we were all extremely disorientated by Western Civilization moving for the first time and our sudden personality shift, not to mention the war between our two sides. It was all incredibly confusing for us. We didn't realize the importance of the statue, and so paid it no attention. By the time we realized its' significance, it was hidden from our senses by the magic of our enemies.
We knew it had to still be in Rome, because if it were moved, we would have sensed it straight away. But its' specific location is beyond our knowledge, regrettable though it is."
"Oh," he muttered awkwardly. "Right. Okay then."
"Leo," Lena hissed at him, too quietly for anyone save the goddess and Leo himself to hear. "Just shut up. Right now. Please."
"Shutting up," he mumbled back, before finally going silent. His fingers twisted, obviously eager for something to fidget with.
"Any other questions?" Valeria asked. The Senators and delegates, as Mercury had labelled them, all shook their heads, staying silent. "Good. As I was saying. Once you have spoken with Phorcys and Keto, you must hurry to cross the Mare Nostrum as quickly as you can. Be careful, and do not mention Juno to the gatekeeper. They are bitter enemies.
Once you have crossed the sea, you will go to Rome first. Nico di'Angelo is being held prisoner there by the giants Gration and Hopladamus. Gration is the bane of Artemis, while Hopladamus is Apollo's enemy. Take care, for they are both vicious and cunning.
In Rome, Jason must go alone in search of the statue, while the rest of you go to confront the gigantes. The prophecy for this is entirely Roman. It was one of the prophecies lost when the ancient oracle, the Sibyl of Cumae, burnt her books. Apollo as the god of prophecy has a record of every prediction ever made, however. Listen carefully, for it may save your life.

Sky's son walks alone

The Mark of Athena burns through Rome.

Twin Banes snuff out the angel's breath,

Who holds the key to endless death.

Giants' bane stands gold and pale,

Won through pain from a woven jail."

Jason bit back a hysterical giggle at that. Well, that explained why he was the one the gods had chosen to find and restore the Athena Parthenos. 'Sky's son' didn't give a lot of room for doubt nowadays, though if it had been 'Sky's child', it would've been murkier.
His panicked thoughts were interrupted when he caught sight of Hazel's expression. The young girl was obviously distraught by the prophecy, and for a second Jason couldn't understand why it had upset her so much. Then he mentally repeated it, his heart sinking as he went over the third line again. 'Twin Banes snuff out the angel's breath.'
Angelo was angel in Italian. Hazel's brother, who Valeria had just mentioned was being held prisoner by the giants a few minutes ago, was named Nico di'Angelo. If anybody had 'the key to endless death', it would be the mysterious and knowledgeable son of the Lord of the Underworld.
'Oh Gods', Jason thought as he felt the colour drain from his face. He could see understanding dawn on several others as well. Frank wrapped an arm around his girlfriend and pulled her close to his side, his own concern making his eyebrow wrinkle with tension.
Valeria cast a sympathetic look at Hazel, before returning her focus to the subject. "There is one more thing that you must know," she warned them.
"What?" Thalia asked grimly.
"The giants intend to destroy Rome on July 1st. Twelve days from now."

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own HOO/PJO

Gaia felt anger stir in her as she watched the demigods rush around in preparation for their quest. Like all of her emotions when she slept, it was vague and distant, like she was watching someone else feel it for her. With Valeria there to oversee the group, and with her having banned war between the two camps, her original plan would no longer work.
It had been easy to infect Leo, relatively weak mentally due to the trauma of his mother's death and his time on the streets, with the spirit of one of her dead servants. She had planned to have him fire on the Roman city, thus igniting a war and hopefully causing tension between the Seven, damaging their ability to fulfil their quest.
But Valeria was there and her presence stopped the spirit from attacking. It couldn't even stir from Valdez's subconscious, as the slightest movement would draw her attention. That, in turn, would lead to it being exorcised in short order, and likely she would check the other half-bloods for possession as well, not to mention putting safeguards against such things on them. Then Gaia would be without spies.
Still, she would make do. Even with the two camps united, her army still dwarfed them numbers-wise, and she had control of the Doors of Death, allowing her to revive them immediately if they were defeated.
She felt her other, Roman form, stir slightly in distress at her murderous thoughts, and it made her contemptuous. Terra, her Roman form, was a weakling, and Gaia despised her as fiercely as Athena loathed Minerva. Terra was 'Mother Nature', sweet and loving. Therefore, it was up to Gaia to avenge her child alone. At least it was relatively easy to suppress Terra.

"Wow." Luke's voice was awed as the Seven surveyed Georgia, where they had just arrived, less than two days after the Greeks had arrived at Camp Jupiter.
They had landed near the summit of a forested hill. A complex of white buildings, like a museum or a university, nestled in a grove of pines to the left. Below them spread the city of Atlanta—a cluster of brown and silver downtown skyscrapers two miles away, rising from what looked like an endless flat sprawl of highways, railroad tracks, houses, and green swathes of forest.
"It's gorgeous," Lena agreed.
"Ah, lovely spot." Coach Hedge inhaled the morning air. "Good choice, Valdez."
Leo shrugged. "I just picked a tall hill. That's a presidential library or something over there. At least that's what Festus says."
"I don't know anything about that!" Hedge barked. "But do you realize what happened on this hill? Frank Zhang, with your heritage, you should know!"
Frank flinched at suddenly becoming the centre of Hedge's attention. "I should?"
"A son of Ares stood here!" Hedge cried indignantly.
"I'm Roman…so Mars, actually," Frank corrected him weakly, as the others shifted uncomfortably at the mention of the treacherous god. As far as they knew, he and Athena were imprisoned in Tartarus, but everyone feared they would make a deal with Gaia to be released.
"Whatever!" Hedge snapped. "This was a famous spot in the American Civil War!"
"I'm Canadian, actually."
"Whatever! General Sherman, Union leader. He stood on this hill watching the city of Atlanta burn. Cut a path of destruction all the way from here to the sea. Burning, looting, pillaging—now there was a demigod!"
Frank inched away from the satyr. "Uh, okay."
Thalia and Luke exchanged quick looks. They were both worried that their group landing in a spot that had significant history in the Greco-Roman feud had bed omens. Still, there was no choice.
"Let's try not to burn down the city this time," Lena suggested. "And it's time to split up."
The coach looked disappointed. "All right. Where to?"
Thalia pointed toward downtown. "When in doubt, start in the middle."
Getting there was surprisingly easy. The three of them headed to the Carter Centre—and asked the staff if they could call a taxi or give them directions to the nearest bus stop.
One of the librarians, whose name was Esther, insisted on driving them personally. She was so nice about it, Thalia was sure that she was a monster in disguise; but Hedge pulled her aside and promised that Esther smelled like a normal human.
"With a hint of potpourri," he said. "Cloves. Rose petals. Tasty!"
Thalia decided to stay on her guard though. Just in case.
They piled into Esther's big black Cadillac and drove toward downtown. Esther was so tiny, she could barely see over the steering wheel; but that didn't seem to bother her. She muscled her car through traffic while regaling them with stories about the crazy families of Atlanta—the old plantation owners, the founders of Coca-Cola, the sports stars, and the CNN news people. She sounded so knowledgeable about the town that Thalia decided to try her luck.
Valeria had offered them one last clue, after all. Along with one of her father's pearls that let people breathe under water, which Thalia found more than a little bit nerve-wrecking.
"Uh, so, Esther," she said, "I've got a question for you. Salt water in Atlanta. What's the first thing that comes to mind?"
The old lady chuckled. "Oh, sugar. That's easy. Whale sharks!"
The two half-bloods exchanged wary looks.
"Whale sharks?" Frank repeated nervously. "You have those in Atlanta?""At the aquarium, sugar," Esther said. "It's very famous! Right downtown. Is that where you wanted to go?"
Thalia considered the question. She didn't know what an Ancient Greek sea god would be doing at a Georgia aquarium, but she didn't have any better ideas. And immortals were strange. Maybe he enjoyed the colours, or hanging out with his subjects or whatever. Either way, it was a place to start.
"Yes," she confirmed. "That's where we're going."
Esther dropped them at the main entrance, where a line was already forming. She insisted on giving them her cell phone number for emergencies, money for a taxi ride back to the Carter Centre, and a jar of homemade peach preserves, which for some reason she kept in a box in her trunk. Frank stuck the jar in his backpack and thanked Esther, who had already switched from calling him sugar to son.
As she drove away, Frank said, "Are all people in Atlanta that nice?"
Hedge grunted. "Hope not. I can't fight them if they're nice. Let's go beat up some whale sharks. They sound dangerous!"
They ended up standing beside a line, of all things. It was strange, and Thalia fidgeted, resisting the urge to just force her way through. She also avoided thinking about Jason, because she just didn't know what to think.
For so long, she had thought that he was dead. He was frozen in her mind as a two-year-old eating a stapler. And yet, he was a strong, accomplished demigod, only a few days away from turning fifteen. It made her heart ache. She wanted to reach out to him, but she feared rejection. What if he hated her for not being with him, as she had promised to always be?
That was when a woman in a blue-and-green Georgia Aquarium shirt came up to them, smiling brightly.
"Ah, VIP visitors!" She had perky dimpled cheeks, thick-framed glasses, braces, and frizzy black hair pulled to the sides in pigtails, so that even though she was probably in her late twenties, she looked like a schoolgirl nerd—sort of cute, but sort of odd. Along with her Georgia Aquarium polo shirt, she wore dark slacks and black sneakers, and she bounced on the balls of her feet like she simply couldn't contain her energy. Thalia thought that her name tag read KATE, but you could never be sure, with dyslexia.
"You have your payment, I see," she said. "Excellent!"
"What?" Thalia asked, completely confused and immediately suspicious.
Kate scooped the three denarii out of Frank's hand. "Yes, that's fine. Right this way!"
She spun and trotted off toward the main entrance.
Thalia looked at Coach Hedge and Frank. "A trap?" she predicted grimly.
"Probably," Frank replied glumly. "Isn't everything?"
"Even tasty food," Thalia agreed. "Monsters are behind all these popular businesses. Explains so much. Gods, I hope Green Day aren't monsters."
"She's not mortal," Hedge said, sniffing the air. "Probably some sort of goat-eating, demigod-destroying fiend from Tartarus."
"I'll put money on that," Thalia nodded.
"Awesome." Hedge grinned his patented bloodthirsty smile. "Let's go."
Kate got them past the ticket queue and into the aquarium with no problem.
"Right this way." Kate grinned at the three of them, making Thalia shift warily. "It's a wonderful exhibit. You won't be disappointed. So rare we get VIPs."
"Uh, you mean demigods?" Frank asked.
Kate winked at him impishly and put a finger to her mouth. "So over here is the cold-water experience, with your penguins and beluga whales and whatnot. And over there…well, those are some fish, obviously."
For an aquarium worker, she didn't seem to know much or care much about the smaller fish. They passed one huge tank full of tropical species, and when Frank pointed to a particular fish and asked what it was, Kate said, "Oh, those are the yellow ones."
They passed the gift shop. Frank slowed down to check out a clearance table with clothes and toys.
"Take what you want," Kate told him.
Frank blinked. "Really?"
"Of course! You're a VIP!"
Frank hesitated. Then he stuffed some T-shirts in his backpack.
"Dude," Thalia hissed, "what the heck are you doing?"
"She said I could," Frank whispered. "Besides, I need more clothes. I didn't pack for a long trip!" He added a snow globe to his stash, which didn't seem like clothing to Thalia. Then Frank picked up a braided cylinder about the size of a candy bar.
He squinted at it. "What is—?"
"Chinese handcuffs," Thalia explained.
Frank, who was Chinese Canadian, looked offended. "How is this Chinese?"
"I don't know," she shrugged. "That's just what it's called. It's like a gag gift."
"Come along, everyone!" Kate called from across the hall.
"I'll show you later," Thalia promised.
Frank stuffed the handcuffs in his backpack, and they kept walking.
They passed through an acrylic tunnel. Fish swam over their heads, and Thalia felt irrational panic building in his throat. 'Keep it together, Thalia' she instructed herself. 'Don't think about the fact that you can barely swim and Poseidon doesn't like you. That doesn't matter right now. The real threat is Kate.
Hedge had already detected that she wasn't human. Any minute she might turn into some horrible creature and attack them. Unfortunately, Thalia didn't see much choice but to play along with her VIP tour until they could find the sea god Phorcys, even if they were walking deeper into a trap. Something about the name bothered her, though.
They emerged in a viewing room awash with blue light. On the other side of a glass wall was the biggest aquarium tank Thalia had ever seen (not that she had seen a lot of aquariums). Cruising in circles were dozens of huge fish, including two spotted sharks, each twice Thalia's size. They were fat and slow, with open mouths and no teeth.
"Whale sharks," Coach Hedge growled. "Now we shall battle to the death!"
Kate giggled at his declaration. "Silly satyr. Whale sharks are peaceful. They only eat plankton."
Thalia scowled, slipping a hand inside her pocket to touch her mace canister. How Kate did know the coach was a satyr? Hedge was wearing pants and specially fitted shoes over his hooves, like satyrs usually did to blend in with mortals. His baseball cap covered his horns. The more Kate giggled and acted friendly, the more Thalia disliked her; but Coach Hedge didn't seem fazed.
"Peaceful sharks?" the coach repeated in disgust. "What's the point of that?"
Frank read the plaque next to the tank. "The only whale sharks in captivity in the world," he mused. "That's kind of amazing."
"Yes, and these are small," Kate said, nodding. "You should see some of my other babies out in the wild."
"Your babies?" Frank asked.
Judging from the wicked glint in Kate's eyes, Thalia was pretty sure that she didn't want to meet Kate's babies. She decided it was time to get to the point. She sure as Hades didn't want to go any farther into this aquarium than necessary. More to the point, she didn't want to get further from the exit than necessary.
"So, Kate," she said, "we're looking for a god, named Phorcys. Would you happen to know where he is?"
Kate snorted. "Know him? He's my brother. That's where we're going, sillies. The real exhibits are right through here."
She gestured at the far wall. The solid black surface rippled, and another tunnel appeared, leading through a luminous purple tank. Kate strolled inside, the other two quickly following.
The last thing Thalia wanted to do was go after them, but if Phorcys was really on the other side, and if he had information that would help their quest. Not to mention Frank and Hedge. Thalia took a deep breath and followed her friends into the tunnel.
As soon as they entered, Coach Hedge whistled. "Now that's interesting."
Gliding above them were multicoloured jellyfish the size of trash cans, each with hundreds of tentacles that looked like silky barbed wire. One jellyfish had a paralyzed ten-foot-long swordfish tangled in its' grasp. The jellyfish slowly wrapped its' tendrils tighter and tighter around its' prey.
Kate beamed at Coach Hedge. "You see? Forget the whale sharks! And there's much more."
She led them into an even larger chamber, lined with more aquariums. On one wall, a glowing red sign proclaimed: DEATH IN THE DEEP SEAS! Sponsored by Monster Donut.
Thalia had to read the sign twice because of her dyslexia, and then twice more to let the message sink in. "Monster Donut?"
"Oh, yes," Kate said. "One of our corporate sponsors."
Thalia swallowed. She had had several bad experiences with Monster Donuts, but her last one in particular hadn't ended well. It had involved acid-spitting serpent heads, much screaming, and a cannon.
In one aquarium, a dozen hippocampi—horses with the tails of fish—drifted aimlessly. Thalia had seen several hippocampi in the wild. She had even ridden a few; but she had never seen any in an aquarium. They just floated around, occasionally bonking against the glass. It was like their minds were addled.
"This isn't right," Thalia muttered.
She turned and saw something even worse. At the bottom of a smaller tank, two Nereids sat cross-legged, facing each other, playing a game of Go Fish. They looked incredibly bored. Their long green hair floated listlessly around their faces. Their eyes were half closed.
Thalia was so furious, she could hardly breathe. The whole scene was disgusting. She glared at Kate. "How can you keep them here like this?"
"I know." Kate sighed. "They aren't very interesting. We tried to teach them some tricks, but with no luck, I'm afraid. I think you'll like this tank over here much better."
Thalia started to protest, but Kate had already moved on.
"Holy mother of goats!" cried Coach Hedge. "Look at these beauties!" He was gawking at two sea serpents—thirty-foot-long monsters with glowing blue scales and jaws that could have bitten a whale shark in half. In another tank, peeking out from its' cement cave, was a squid the size of an eighteen-wheeler, with a beak like a giant bolt cutter.
A third tank held a dozen humanoid creatures with sleek seal bodies, doglike faces, and human hands. They sat on the sand at the bottom of the tank, building things out of Legos, though the creatures seemed just as dazed as the Nereids.
"Are those—?" Thalia was so disbelieving that she struggled to form the question.
"Telkhines?" Kate said. "Yes! The only ones in captivity."
"But they fought for Kronos in the last war!" Thalia protested. "They're dangerous!" She had the scars to prove it, too.
Kate rolled her eyes. "Well, we couldn't call it 'Death in the Deep Seas' if these exhibits weren't dangerous. Don't worry. We keep them well sedated."
"Sedated?" Frank asked. "Is that legal?" Thalia gave him an incredulous look, unable to believe that he thought monsters would care about the laws of mortals. He flushed.
Kate appeared not to have heard, or else she was ignoring him. She kept walking, pointing out other exhibits. Thalia looked back at the telkhines. One was obviously a youngster. He was trying to make a sword out of Legos, but he seemed too groggy to put the pieces together. Thalia had never liked sea demons, but now she felt sorry for these ones.
"And these sea monsters," Kate narrated up ahead, "can grow five hundred feet long in the deep ocean. They have over a thousand teeth. And these? Their favourite food is demigod—"
"Demigod?" Frank yelped.
"But they will eat whales or small boats, too."
Thalia's instincts were screaming like alarm bells. She didn't like how much Kate knew about them. She definitely didn't like the way she casually tossed out information about drugging captive creatures or which of her babies liked to devour demigods.
"Who are you?" she demanded. "Does Kate stand for something?"
"Kate?" She looked momentarily confused. Then she glanced at her name tag. "Oh…" She laughed. "No, it's—"
"Hello!" said a new voice, booming through the aquarium.
A small man scuttled out of the darkness. He walked sideways on bowed legs like a crab, his back hunched, his arms raised on either side like he was holding invisible plates.
He wore a wet suit that was several horrible shades of green. Glittery silver words printed down the side read: PORKY'S FOLLIES. A headset microphone was clamped over his greasy wiry hair. His eyes were milky blue, one higher than the other, and though he smiled, he didn't look friendly—more like his face was being peeled back in a wind tunnel.
"Visitors!" the man said, the word thundering through the microphone. He had a DJ's voice, deep and resonant, which did not at all match his appearance. "Welcome to Phorcys' Follies!" He swept his arms in one direction, as if directing their attention to an explosion. Nothing happened.
"Curse it," the man grumbled. "Telkhines, that's your cue! I wave my hands, and you leap energetically in your tank, do a synchronized double spin, and land in pyramid formation. We practiced this!"
The sea demons paid him no attention.
Coach Hedge leaned toward the crab man and sniffed his glittery wet suit. "Nice outfit." He didn't sound like he was kidding. Of course, this was coming from the satyr who wore gym uniforms for fun. Willingly.
"Thank you!" The man beamed. "I am Phorcys."

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO/HOO. Thanks for the reviews. Enjoy.

Thalia mentally mulled over the information she had about Phorcys and Keto. Valeria had said they were primordial sea gods. She hadn't said anything about them being the deities of the dangers of the deep, both hidden and otherwise. Not to mention being the mother and father of all the sea monsters that existed, as well as creating the large sea creatures. Nor had she said that they had sided with Kronos in the last war and been exiled to Atlanta as punishment for it.
Thalia felt a bit betrayed, actually. Akantha had never been so vague. Evidently her Roman counterpart wasn't as helpful the Greek. It sucked.
And Keto had just led Coach Hedge away. She didn't trust this whole 'innocent sea creature nerd' act that Keto had going. Not when she had just manipulated one of their people into leaving the group and going off alone with her. And Phorcys' temper might appear comical right now, but Thalia had too much experience not to realize how dangerous an immortal's temper was, regardless of how ridiculous they appeared.
The clothes were simply an attempt to throw the demigods off their guards. Thalia was sure of it.
Frank seemed to agree with her, the two of them exchanging looks full of uncertainty and nervousness at their situation. Part of Thalia wanted to just engage Phorcys and Keto immediately. At least they'd be caught off-guard, giving Thalia and Frank the advantage. But there was no way to communicate a plan to Frank, and she was wary of attacking a god. Were primordials bound by the Ancient Laws like the newer Olympians?
She decided to try going the rarely-successful talking route first. It had to work at some point, right?
"So, um, Phorcys," she said carefully. "Valeria sent us. She told us that you might know what your mom Gaea is up to, and those two giants, Gration and Hopladamus. The Banes of the Twins Archers. And if you happen to know anything about the Mark of Athena and the Parthenos—"
"Valeria thought that I would help you?" Phorcys asked.
"Well, yeah," Thalia replied smoothly. There was only one fool-proof way to get a god to do you a favour, and it always worked like a charm. Flatter them. "I mean, you're Phorcys. Everybody is always talking about you."
Phorcys tilted his head curiously so that his mismatched eyes almost lined up. "They do?"
"Of course. Don't they, Frank?"
"Oh…sure!" Frank said. "People talk about you all the time."
"What do they say?" the god asked.
Frank gained a cornered look. "Well, they say that you have great pyrotechnics. And a good announcer's voice. And, um, a disco ball—"
"It's true!" Phorcys clacked his fingers and thumbs in excitement. "I also have the largest collection of captive sea monsters in the world!"
"And you know stuff," Thalia added, skilfully ignoring and hiding the disgust she felt. "Like about the Twins' Banes and what they're up to."
"Yes, those two," Phorcys said casually. "They're both the strongest giants. Physically, you know. Terrible at archery, but close combat? They excel at it. Because Apollo and Artemis struggle with it far more than they would ever allow to be acknowledged. And their strength is incomparable. They could each lift Mount Everest and hurl it a few thousand yards. Quite smart too. As I understand it, they liberated (he emphasized the word and winked) a few nuclear bombs and started rigging up some place in Rome with them."
"Nuclear bombs?" Thalia repeated in a hoarse tone of voice. She and Frank had both gone pale. Phorcys nodded, completely unconcerned.
"Yes, that's what I heard," he nodded. "They're preparing a doomsday show in Rome," Phorcys sneered. "It's one of Mother's silly ideas. They're keeping some prisoner in a large bronze jar." He turned toward Frank. "You're a child of Ares, aren't you? You've got that smell. The twins Ephialtes and Otis imprisoned your father the same way, once. Gration and Hopladamus stole the idea from them. Very rude."
"Oh, definitely very rude," Thalia nodded.
"Child of Mars," Frank corrected Phorcys at the same time. "Wait…some giants trapped my dad in a bronze jar?" He knew that his father was a traitor, but he still didn't know how to feel about him being kidnapped and held captive in a jar.
"Yes, such a stupid stunt," said the sea god. "How can you show off your prisoner if he's in a bronze jar? No entertainment value. Not like my lovely specimens!" He gestured to the hippocampi, who were bonking their heads apathetically against the glass.
Thalia tried to think. She felt like the lethargy of the addled sea creatures was infectious. Or maybe it was the air. "You said this—this doomsday show was Gaea's idea?"
"Well…Mother's plans always have lots of layers." He laughed. "The earth has layers! I suppose that makes sense!"
"Uh-huh," Thalia agreed. "And so her plan…"
"Oh, she's put out a general bounty on some group of demigods," Phorcys said. "She doesn't really care who kills them, as long as they're killed. Well…I take that back. She was very specific that two must be spared. One boy and one girl. Tartarus only knows why. At any rate, the twins have their little show planned, hoping it will lure these demigods to Rome. I suppose the prisoner in the jar is a friend of theirs or some such. That, or perhaps they think this group of demigods will be foolish enough to come into their territory searching for the Mark of Athena." Phorcys elbowed Frank in the ribs. "Ha! Good luck with that, eh?"
Frank laughed nervously. "Yeah. Ha-ha. That would be really dumb because, uh…"
Phorcys narrowed his eyes.
Thalia slipped her hand into her pocket, gripping her Mace canister. Even the dumbest of monsters couldn't have failed to figure out that they were said foolish demigods. Yet, Phorcys didn't attack them. Instead, he relaxed again.
"Ha! Good one, child of Mars. I suppose you're right. No point talking about it. Even if the demigods found that map in Charleston, they'd never make it to Rome alive!"
"Yes, the MAP IN CHARLESTON," Frank said loudly, giving Thalia a wide-eyed look to make sure that she hadn't missed the information. He couldn't have been more obvious if he had held up a large sign that read CLUE! Sometimes the Hunters were right. Boys were morons. Then again, monsters were worse, no matter what gender they were.
"But enough boring educational stuff!" Phorcys said. "You've paid for the VIP treatment. Won't you let me finish the tour? The three denarii entrance fee is non-refundable, you know."
Thalia couldn't even pretend to be excited about more fireworks, donut-scented smoke, or depressing captive sea creatures. But she glanced at Frank and decided they'd better humour the crabby old god until they found Coach Hedge and got safely to the exit. Besides, they might be able to get more information out of Phorcys.
"Afterwards," Thalia said, "can we ask questions?"
"Of course! I'll tell you everything you need to know."
That sounded ominous. Phorcys clapped his hands twice. On the wall under the glowing red sign, a new tunnel appeared, leading into another tank.
"Walk this way!" Phorcys scuttled sideways through the tunnel.
"Do we need to-?" Frank asked.
"No," Thalia replied dryly.
"Oh, okay." Frank hurried after Phorcys. Reluctantly, Thalia followed.
The tunnel ran along the floor of a gymnasium-sized tank. Except for water and some cheap decorations, it seemed majestically empty. Thalia guessed there were about fifty thousand gallons of water over their heads. If the tunnel were to shatter for some reason… She swallowed heavily, clenching her fists. She knew that Poseidon was less inclined to murder half-bloods on account of their parents than Zeus or Hades, but she still feared the day he turned his wrath on her. He was a god, after all. They all tended to follow a certain pattern.
Phorcys stopped in the middle of the tunnel and spread his arms proudly. "Beautiful exhibit, isn't it?"
Thalia tried to distract herself from thoughts of drowning by concentrating on details. In one corner of the tank, snuggled in a forest of fake kelp, was a life-sized plastic gingerbread cottage with bubbles coming out of the chimney. In the opposite corner, a plastic sculpture of a guy in an old-fashioned diving suit knelt beside a treasure chest, which popped open every few seconds, spewed bubbles, and closed again. Littered across the white sand floor were glass marbles the size of bowling balls, and a strange assortment of weapons like tridents and spearguns. Outside the tank's display wall was an amphitheatre with seating for several hundred. It was nice.
"What do you keep in here?" Frank asked. "Giant killer goldfish?"
Phorcys raised his eyebrows. "Oh, that would be good! But, no, Frank Zhang, descendant of Poseidon. This tank is not for goldfish."
At the title 'descendant of Poseidon', Frank flinched. He stepped back, gripping his backpack like it was a mace he was prepared to swing.
A sense of dread trickled down Thalia's throat like cough syrup. Unfortunately, it was a feeling she was very used to.
"How do you know Frank's last name?" she demanded. "How do you know he's descended from Poseidon?"
"Well…" Phorcys shrugged, trying to look modest. "It was probably in the descriptions Gaea provided. You know, for the bounty, Thalia Grace, daughter of Zeus."
Within seconds, Thalia's spear was out and she had summoned Aegis. Phorcys flinched slightly at the sight of the shield, but regained his composure quickly. "Don't double-cross me, Phorcys. You promised me answers."
"After the VIP treatment, yes," Phorcys agreed. "I promised to tell you everything you need to know. The thing is, however, you don't really need to know anything." His grotesque smile stretched wide. "You see, I don't like being taken away from my oceans. And as long as the gods are in charge, I will be. So I have a better plan. The gods can't win without you, so you're not leaving. You're VIPs—Very Important Prisoners!"
Thalia lunged. Frank hurled his backpack at the sea god's head. Phorcys simply disappeared.
The god's voice reverberated through the aquarium's sound system, echoing down the tunnel. "Yes, good! Fighting is good! You see, Mother never trusted me with big assignments, but she did agree that I could keep anything I caught. You two will make an excellent exhibit—the only demigod spawn of the Big Three in captivity. 'Demigod Terrors'—yes, I like that! We already have sponsorship lined up with Bargain Mart. You can fight each other every day at eleven AM and one PM, with an evening show at seven PM."
"You're crazy!" Frank yelled.
"Don't sell yourself short!" Phorcys urged him. "You'll be our biggest draw!"
Frank ran for the exit, only to slam into a glass wall. Thalia ran the other way and found it blocked as well. Their tunnel had become a bubble. She put her hand against the glass and realized it was softening, melting like ice. Soon the water would come crashing in.
"I can't breathe underwater, Phorcys!" she shouted. "Can't be an attraction if I'm dead!"
"Ah, but Valeria gave you a little present, didn't she?" he replied cheerfully. "Pop them in now. We'll make sure to include more along with your sedatives. When your minds are all muddled by the drugs, you'll follow instructions. Don't worry about it."
She cursed him as he laughed, yanking out the small pearl Valeria had given to her and swallowing it just a second before the glass dome shattered, and the water crashed in.
Thank the gods, the pearl worked, encasing her completely in a bubble of air that had moulded itself to her body. Like an extra layer of skin, or something. She hadn't even gotten wet. Her shoulders slumped in relief.
Then she remembered Frank, and she immediately felt a surge of panic and guilt. Thalia had been so worried about herself that she had forgotten her friend was only a very distant descendant of Poseidon. Frank couldn't breathe underwater, and Valeria had only given Thalia a pearl.
But where was he?
Thalia turned in a full circle but saw nothing. Then she glanced up. Hovering above her as a giant goldfish. Frank had turned—clothes, backpack, and all—into a koi the size of a teenaged boy.
Thalia burst out laughing, having to press a hand against the wall of the tank as lightly as she could in order to steady herself. As she chuckled, she got the feeling the goldfish was giving her a baleful look. She waved him off, her chuckles beginning to settle as she regained her focus.
They began looking around for a way out, but it was impossible. There were no weak points, no cracks or exits that Thalia and Frank could find. Their lack of ability to speak to each other only made their efforts harder.
Outside the glass, Keto was leading Coach Hedge through the amphitheatre, lecturing him on something while the coach nodded and admired the stadium seating.
Coach! Thalia tried to yell. Then she realized that it was hopeless. The coach couldn't hear her yelling from inside the bubble and the tank.
Frank bumped his head against the glass but Hedge didn't seem to notice. Keto walked him briskly across the amphitheatre. She didn't even look through the glass, probably because she assumed the tank was still empty, or else she didn't want to let Hedge see them. She pointed to the far end of the room as if saying, Come on. More gruesome sea monsters this way.
Thalia realized she only had a few seconds before the coach would be gone. She swam after them, but she had never been a good swimmer, and this water seemed to be actively hampering her and pushing her back. She abandoned her spear and used both arms.
Coach Hedge and Keto were five feet from the exit.
In desperation, Thalia scooped up a giant marble and hurled it at the tank wall with all her not-inconsiderable strength. It hit the glass with a thud—not nearly loud enough to attract somebody's attention.
Thalia felt her heart sink in despair.
But Coach Hedge wasn't just anyone. He was a satyr. The sound made him glance over his shoulder. When he saw Thalia, his expression went through several changes in a matter of microseconds—incomprehension, surprise, outrage, then a mask of calm.
Before Keto could notice, Hedge pointed toward the top of the amphitheatre. It looked like he might be screaming, Gods of Olympus, what is that?
Keto turned. Coach Hedge promptly took off his fake foot and ninja-kicked her in the back of the head with his goat hoof. Keto crumpled to the floor.
Thalia winced in sympathy. Despite he familiarity with being kicked in the head, she had never been happier to have a chaperone who liked mixed martial arts cage matches.
Hedge ran to the glass. He held up his palms like: What are you doing in there, girl?
Thalia responded by pounding her fist on the glass and mouthed: Break it!
Hedge yelled a question that might have been: Where's Frank?
Thalia pointed at the giant koi.
Frank waved his left dorsal fin in a 'sup? Gesture.
Behind Hedge, the sea goddess began to move. Thalia pointed frantically.
Hedge shook his leg like he was warming up his kicking hoof, but Thalia waved her arms to stop him, No. They couldn't keep whopping Keto on the head forever. Since she was immortal, she wouldn't stay down, and it wouldn't get them out of this tank. It was only a matter of time before Phorcys came back to check on them.
On three, Thalia mouthed, holding up three fingers and then gesturing at the glass. All of us hit it at the same time.
Charades had never been Thalia's favourite game, but Hedge nodded like he understood. Hitting things was a language the satyr knew well.
Thalia hefted another giant marble, gesturing Frank over to help.
Keto rose to her knees. They had no time to waste.
Thalia counted down on her fingers. Three, two, one!
Frank turned to human and shoved his shoulder against the glass. The coach did a Chuck Norris roundhouse kick with his hoof. Thalia used all her strength to slam the marble into the wall, but she did more than that. She called on the lightning inside her, enforcing it with all the pain and anger she kept buried, and flung a blinding white bolt of electricity at the glass.
The wall cracked. Fracture lines zigzagged from the point of impact, and suddenly the tank burst. Thalia was sucked out in a torrent of water, her air-armour vanishing. She tumbled across the amphitheatre floor with Frank, some large marbles, and a clump of plastic seaweed. Keto was just getting to her feet when the diver statue slammed into her like it wanted a hug.
Coach Hedge spit salt water. "Pan's pipes, girl! What were you doing in there?"
"Phorcys!" Thalia spluttered, as she scrambled to her feet. "Trap! Run!"

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own HOO. Enjoy, and as always, thanks to everyone who reviewed, faved, followed and kudosed this. (So everyone knows, these stories are posted to and AO3.) Μεσόγειος θάλασσα is Mediterraen Sea in Greek. According to Google Translate, anyway. BTW, I'm quite sick at the moment, so if there's a while between updates, or some mistakes, please excuse them.

Akantha sighed tiredly as she rubbed her forehead in a very mortal way. It was a strange gesture for an immortal to make. Gods weren't supposed to get headaches, after all. And she had grown up in Ancient Sparta, where her mother had raised her to be a lady.
Even in Sparta, where the women had been taught to defend themselves (unlike the women of Athens, who would simply cower and beg if threatened. Akantha had been a firm supporter of the suffragette movement.) there had still been a certain expectation that females (even illegitimate ones) would act in a particular way. If her dear mother had seen her perform such an inelegant gesture, the sweet woman would've gone into shock.
"Akantha," Zeus strode in briskly. She instantly sank into a curtsey. Unlike when the other gods (grudgingly) offered him obeisance, he immediately gestured permission for her to straighten up again. "How fairs the quest?" he demanded. Just by looking at him, she could see the pressure the new Giant War, following right on the heels of the Second Titan War, was putting on his broad shoulders.
Gods could control how they looked, but several things affected them in doing so. The state of their domains, and the state of their emotions. Zeus was stressed, and the king of a society that was currently at war, and his appearance reflected that.
Zeus was usually very tall (about 6'5 feet), with an imposing, and very muscular body. His hair was black and reached to his shoulders and he had a neatly trimmed grey-and-black beard. He had a serious and proud, but very handsome face and electric blue eyes, inherited by almost all of his mortal children. When he was in a good mood, the air around him smelled like rain and clean wind and his normal attire was a dark blue pinstriped suit. But, due to the war, that had changed.
He now reached eight feet, looming over Akantha's short five-foot-five form, though he retained the imposing air and firmly defined muscles. His hair was pulled back by a brown leather band, like the ones used in Ancient Greece, instead of hanging loose around his face, which had developed lines and was permanently in a scowl nowadays. Because of his unhappiness, he carried the scent of the ozone with him and his eyes were a stormy grey colour, showing his agitation. He was dressed in an American Army General (five-star, the highest rank used only in wartime) dress uniform with black dress shoes so polished they literally gleamed in the light of the War Room.
Akantha herself was wearing a battle chiton, dyed turquoise, under gleaming Celestial Bronze armour, and a pair of comfy Greek-style sandals. The Flame of the West had moved so many times, yet Akantha still found herself clinging to various relics of ages past.
"Well enough, my lord," she responded to his earlier question, her thoughts and scanning of her king having only taken the goddess a fraction of a second to complete. "The Seven have just left Charleston. There was very little trouble. They struggled a bit to find the map itself, but they managed. It was trapped by spiders, as generally Athena only sent her own children after the damn thing. But, of course, none of the Seven have a fear of spiders, so they escaped easily enough. They're nearing the Pillars now. A few more hours, at most."
She debated mentioning that Aphrodite had spoken to a few of the girls, but decided against doing so. As far as Akantha could tell (Aphrodite had blocked her view of the events, so she had only seen Jason and Luke retrieving the map, and not the goddess of love's conversation with the female members of the Prophecy of Seven.) Aphrodite had merely talked to the girls. And Akantha trusted her not to do anything to their relationships. Not at the moment, anyway.
"Then it should only take them about a day to reach the Μεσόγειος θάλασσα," Zeus nodded, a distant expression on his face. "Good, good. How is their timing so far, Akantha? Will they reach Rome in time, or do they need a bit of help?"
Usually, the aloof king of the skies would never even consider offering so much help to half-bloods on a quest. If they were one of his children, or on a particularly important quest, he might give a bit of aid, or instruct a subordinate to help in some manner, but this was far more than that. Akantha wasn't sure whether she ought to be pleased at the fact that he was being so accommodating, or terrified at the implications of Zeus' obvious concern over the current state of affairs in their world. Actually, she did know how to feel. Utterly terrified.
"I think a bit of help would be best, my lord," she answered quietly, not letting any of her dread slip into her tone or expression.
Zeus nodded curtly. "I shall order the winds to increase the speed of the ship, and tell Poseidon to have some of his warriors guard the Argo II when they are sailing. And I'll have Hermes alert Hercules to allow them through without preforming any tasks. We cannot afford for this quest to fail. It would mean the doom of us all."
Akantha didn't reply to that. Mostly because she knew that it was the truth.

Lena woke to the sound of a horn. It was different to the usual horn used on the Argo II, and she fell out of bed, she was quick to get out. She feared they were under attack, and raced up to the deck, sword in hand and still dressed in her sleepwear. (Her nightclothes consisted of Lukas' old football sweatshirt and a pair of drawstring shorts in navy. The short bottoms and the way the sweatshirt slipped down to show off her left shoulder revealed the many scars she had earned over her years of fighting.)
She was the first up, save for Coach Hedge, who had been on watch the night before. Everyone else arrived up minutes later, evidently having taken the time to get hastily dressed. Frank's Vancouver Winter Olympics shirt was inside out. Thalia wore pajama pants and a bronze breastplate, her spear held in front of her and Aegis out, though she quickly restored it to shield form when she couldn't find any enemies to fight on the deck. Luke was wielding a toothbrush like it was a sword (and, to be fair, it had a pointy end. Lena still doubted it would be much help in an actual attack, though.) Hazel's hair was all blown to one side, as though she'd styled her hair for a costume party and pinned it in place with a ton of hairspray; and Leo had accidentally set himself on fire in his excitement. His T-shirt was in charred tatters. His arms were smoking.
By the time they arrived, Lena and the coach had already identified the source of the noise, and Lena was strictly informing the ever-bloodthirsty satyr that he was not allowed to fire the ballistae at it. About a hundred yards to port, a massive cruise ship glided past. Tourists waved at them from fifteen or sixteen rows of balconies. Some smiled and took pictures. None of them looked surprised to see an Ancient Greek trireme. Lena guessed that the Mist made it look like a regular boat, or perhaps the cruisers thought the Argo II was a tourist attraction of some kind.
The cruise ship blew its' horn again, and the Argo II shook violently from the vibrations.
Coach Hedge plugged his ears and scowled as he complained. "Do they have to be so loud?"
"I think that they're just saying hi," Frank guessed.
"WHAT?" Hedge yelled back, unable to hear what the Chinese-Canadian boy had said, and equally unable to read lips.
The ship edged past them carefully, heading out to sea. The tourists kept waving. If they found it strange that the Argo II was populated by half-asleep kids in bronze and gold armour and pajamas and a man with goat legs, they didn't let on. Maybe the Mist made them look like half-asleep business people instead.
"Bye!" Leo called, raising his still smoking hand. A flame flickered on his middle finger, and he hastily yanked it back down and stuck the finger in his mouth to suck it and try to quench the flame.
"Can I man the ballistae?" Hedge asked hopefully. His eyes flickered towards the cruise boat, telling the Seven just what he planned to do with said missiles, if he were given permission to touch any of them. Lena reached up to rub her temples in exhaustion, wondering what had possessed them to bring Gleeson Hedge of all protectors, instead of Grover Underwood, an experienced quester and a member of the Council of the Cloven Elders, or even her and Lukas' own former protector, Sam Greenwood. Even Maron, the old Elder who had been expelled from the Council after the Titan War seemed like he would have been a more sensible choice at the moment. Anybody else would have a better choice than Gleeson bloody Hedge.
"No," Leo replied through a forced smile.
Hazel rubbed her eyes and looked across the glittering green water. "Where are—oh…Wow."
Lena followed her gaze and let out an amazed gasp. Without the cruise ship blocking their view, she saw a mountain jutting from the sea less than half a mile to the north. Lena had seen impressive cliffs before. She'd driven Highway 1 along the California coast with her father and twin as a child. She'd even visited the Grand Canyon once (and stood at the bottom, gaining a better view than someone standing on top would have).
But nothing she had previously seen was as amazing as this massive fist of blinding white rock thrust into the sky. On one side, the limestone cliffs were almost completely sheer, dropping into the sea over a thousand feet below, as near as she could figure. On the other side, the mountain sloped in tiers, covered in green forest, so that the whole thing reminded Lena of a colossal-sized sphinx, with a massive white head and chest, and a green cloak over its' back.
The Rock of Gibraltar," Luke identified the sight, his blue eyes wide with awe. "At the tip of Spain. And over there—" He pointed south, to a more distant stretch of red and ochre hills. "That must be Africa. We're at the mouth of the Mediterranean."
The morning was warm, but Lena still found herself with shivers running up her spine as she considered the implications. Despite the wide stretch of sea in front of them, she felt like she was standing at an impassable barrier. Once in the Mediterranean—the Mare Nostrum to the Romans and the Μεσόγειος θάλασσα to her own people—they would be in the ancient lands. If the legends were true, their quest would become ten times more dangerous. Leo, who was standing beside her, entwined their hands nervously.
"What now?" she asked. "Do we just sail in?"
"Why not?" Leo said, using that overly-chipper tone he gained whenever he was trying to cover up his fear. "It's a big shipping channel. Boats go in and out all the time."
Not triremes full of demigods, she thought darkly.
Thalia and Luke gazed at the Rock of Gibraltar with identical looks of grimness on her faces. Lena recognized that brooding expression from the Titan War. Pretty much everyone in camp had worn a variation of it. It almost always meant that the wearer was expecting trouble.
"In the old days," Thalia said slowly, squinting to recall the details she needed, "they called this area the pillars of Hercules. The Rock was supposed to be one pillar. The other was one of the African mountains. Nobody is sure which one."
A thunderous boom shook the Argo II, though Lena wasn't sure where it came from this time. She didn't see any other ships, and the skies were clear. She released Leo's hand and clutched her sword, giving the area a wary scan.
As she did so, she realized there was a contrast between the 'veterans' and the 'newbies' of the quest, so to speak. Leo, Hazel and Frank, all of whom had known of their heritage and been fighting a few months each, not to mention spending most of that time hidden by the wards of the two camps, were unarmed and only tensed when they noticed the others' reactions to the noise.
The veterans, however, Lena, Luke, Thalia and Jason, had all grabbed their weapons upon awaking, and fell into fighting stances as soon as the noise began. As had Coach Hedge, who did have a lot of experience as a protector, Lena would acknowledge.
"These Pillars of Hercules," she said, still scanning the surrounding area for signs of any hidden enemies. "Are they dangerous?" She'd heard of the Clashing Rocks that led into the Sea of Monsters, but not the Pillars of Hercules.
Thalia and Luke exchanged quick looks. "For Greeks, the pillars marked the end of the known world. The Romans said the pillars were inscribed with a Latin warning—"
"Non plus ultra," Frank said.
Everyone gave him surprised looks. "Yeah. Nothing Further Beyond. How did you know?"
He pointed. "Because I'm looking at it."

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO/HOO. Sorry if Thalia's train of thought is strange at the start, it just came out like that and any way I tried to change it made it worse, so *shrugs*. Enjoy! R&Ring makes me happy! Happiness makes me update! *wink, wink*.

Logically, Thalia understood that everything was going so smoothly because the gods were being actively helpful (for once). But despite that, she was disturbed beyond belief by it all. Thalia wasn't used to not being attacked when outside of Camp borders, and when they were sailing through the Atlantic, the lack of assaults on the Argo II by Gaia's minions had freaked her out more than her pride would ever allow her admit. Hercules/Heracles allowing them passage through to the supposedly forbidden Mare Nostrum without making them do something for him, whether under orders from the Olympian Council or not, hadn't helped her nerves.
Therefore, she was actually pleased when their entrance to the Mediterranean Sea heralded the beginning of semi-constant attacks from various monsters both aerial and aquatic. But her pleasure had decreased when she and Jason ended up alone together on guard duty the night before they were due to land in Rome. Tension radiated from them both, each of them sending glances towards each other as they paced the deck and then hastily looking away the other noticed.
Thalia chewed on her lip, scanning the water surrounding her. She was no child of the sea god, but even she could sense ancient power the dwelt within the depths of the Mare Nostrum. Every hero of the Ancient Western Civilization, whether they were Greek or Roman, had sailed these seas. From Akantha herself to Aeneas. But no half-blood had traversed these waters in millennia, not since the Flame of the West had shifted for the second time, and left behind hundreds of monsters without any demigods to prey upon.
She had hoped at first that it was only her own paranoia that whispered to her that those monsters were stirring right now, sensing their arrival, and not her highly-toned instincts warning her. She was pleased at first to have the nervous wait be over, but two days had worn her out. Be careful what you wish for, she supposed. She had wanted to be attacked, and now she was severely regretting that desire, and wondering what on Earth she had been thinking. She sighed frustratedly.
"Thalia?" She was jolted out of her thoughts by Jason's voice as he jogged up to her side, his Imperial Gold sword, Ivlivs, raised as he scanned the area warily. "Did you see anything?"
She shook her head, feeling her voice abandon her as it kept doing when her baby brother was around. It was very uncharacteristic for her, and she knew that her strange attitude around him was worrying both Luke and Lena, the only ones on board the Argo II who had known her long enough to realize just how very not like her it was. But she couldn't help it. It was Jason. Her little brother. The little brother she acted like a mother to when she herself had been barely older than he was. The little brother she had thought to be dead for over a decade. Jason.
Part of her wanted to embrace him as tightly as she could, and never let him go. Another part of her wanted to flee in confusion and fear, and still another part resented both of those parts. It all combined to make her freeze up and lose the ability to think, speak, and possibly even breathe every time he looked at her with nervous blue eyes. Eyes that matched her own, and held a fear in them. She just wasn't sure what he was frightened of. Was it her, or her hypothetical rejection that he was wary of? She felt fear too. Fear of what he would do when he learned of how she had failed in her promise to protect him. Fear that he wouldn't want her as his sister.
She supposed the tension between them was the reason they had been elected as the guards for the night by their companions. They were due to arrive in Rome the next day, and while Jason went off on his solo-quest to find the Parthenos (and the mere thought of it made her shudder in fear. Was she going to lose him again, right after getting him back? She didn't think that she would be able to bear that), the rest of them were to go and find and free Nico, while at the same time fighting and defeating two giants. Both missions had a high chance of death. They had to talk, and clear the air between them, because who knew if they'd get another chance? Thalia, of all people, knew how short life could be, and how easy it was for the Fates to cut a person's life-string.
She exhaled heavily, summoned her bravery and spun on her heel to face him. Somehow, she met his eyes, though it wasn't easy. "Do you have any questions for me?" she asked bluntly.
He bit his lip, and gave a slow nod. "What happened?" It was such a simple sounding question, but it seemed to hide more depths and layers than the ocean they were sailing on.
She glanced away, scanning said sea. It was calm, and a beautiful navy colour. No sign of any monsters wanting to have a couple of half-bloods for a midnight snack. "Our mother was an eighties TV starlet named Beryl Grace," she began slowly, drumming her fingers against her spear, which she was currently using as a post to lean on.
She sighed, feeling her expression twist into bitterness like it always did when she thought of her mother. She prayed that Jason hadn't had any false beliefs about the woman, because if he did, hearing the truth would probably devastate him.
"Jason … I'm not sure how to say this. Our mom wasn't exactly stable. She caught Zeus's eye because she was a television actress, like I said, and she was beautiful, but she didn't handle the fame well. She drank, pulled stupid stunts. She was always in the tabloids. She could never get enough attention. I can count on one hand the number of times I saw her without a glass of wine. She … she knew Dad was Zeus, and I think that it was too much for her to take. It was like the ultimate achievement for her to attract the lord of the sky, and she couldn't accept it when he left. The thing about the gods is… well, they don't hang around." She didn't even blame Zeus for leaving. She would have left long before she actually did if not for her little brother.
She peeked at Jason out of the side of her, feeling her heart sink at the dismay in his expression, but forced herself to continue. It was his family too, no matter how crappy it was. He had the right to know the truth about it.
She offered her hand uncertainly, and felt a trill of pleasure when Jason took it.
"When I was about two or three," she said, "Zeus started visiting Mom again. I think he felt bad about wrecking her life, and he seemed—different somehow. A little older and sterner, more fatherly towards me. I didn't understand why at the time, but now I realize that he must have been visiting as Jupiter, not Zeus. And for a while, Mom improved. She loved having Zeus around, bringing her expensive presents, causing the sky to rumble. She always wanted more attention. That's the year you were born. I adored you straight away. You were so cute and helpless. I was a kid myself, but I didn't trust Mom to look after you so I did it myself. Diapers, feedings, everything.
Of course, Zeus eventually stopped coming by again. He probably couldn't stand Mom's demands anymore, always pestering him to let her visit Olympus, or to make her immortal or eternally beautiful. When he left for good, Mom got more and more unstable. That was about the time the monsters started attacking me, and a few tried to get to you as well. Mom blamed Hera. She claimed the goddess was coming after you too—that Hera had barely tolerated my birth, but two demigod children from the same family was too big an insult. Mom even said she hadn't wanted to name you Jason, but Zeus insisted, as a way to appease Hera because the goddess liked that name. I didn't know what to believe."
She fell silent for a moment, staring at the ground as she thought of that time. She had only been seven by the time Jason, not quite four-years-old, had been taken away and given to Lupa. She had understood her heritage and been responsible for taking care of Jason and everything, but she had still been just a child. Lost and confused. Just remembering seemed to almost bring her back to that time, and the stress of fending off the constant attacks with nothing but her lightning. One time, she had arrived just as a draecenae had been raising a knife over her little brother's cot, and the memory still gave her nightmares.
"How did I end up with Lupa at the Wolf House?" Jason asked after a bit.
Gently, Thalia squeezed her brother's hand. "If I'd known you were alive, known about the Romans and their camp… gods, things would've been so different. But when you were almost four, and I was seven, Mom packed us in the car for a family vacation. We drove up north, toward the wine country, to this park she wanted to show us.
I remember that I kept thinking it was strange because Mom never took us anywhere, and she was acting super nervous. I was holding your hand, walking you toward this big building in the middle of the park, and …" She took a shaky breath, her heart aching. "Mom told me to go back to the car and get the picnic basket. I didn't want to leave you alone with her, but it was only for a few minutes. I thought it would be okay. I couldn't have been gone ten minutes.
When I came back … Mom was kneeling on the stone steps, hugging herself and crying. She said—she said that you were gone. She said that Hera had claimed you and you were as good as dead. I didn't know what she'd done. I was afraid that she had completely lost her mind.
I ran all over the place looking for you, but you'd just vanished. She had to drag me away, kicking and screaming. For the next few days I was hysterical. I don't remember everything, but I know that I called the police on Mom and they questioned her for a long time. Afterwards, we fought. She told me that I had betrayed her, that I should support her, like she was the only one who mattered. I told her that she was the traitor, and she had killed her own son.
I just couldn't take it anymore after that. Your disappearance was the last straw. I ran away from home, and I never even thought of going back, not even when Mom died a few years ago. I thought you were gone forever. I never told anyone about you—not even Luke or-, any of my other friends. Not even Lena after her brother died. It was just too painful."
She turned and tried to meet Jason's eyes, but he wasn't looking at her. He was looking past her, at something in the distance. Thalia turned, realizing that at some point during her story, they had sailed into a thick fog. But it wasn't thick enough to hide the ship that was seconds away from ramming into the bow.
Thalia cried out, but before she or Jason could do anything, the two ships slammed together, and Thalia found herself knocked to the deck, scrapping her hands and chin, her spear rolling away to the other side of the ship as the ground swayed alarmingly.
She rolled over and scrambled to her feet alongside Jason, but by the time she had regained her wits and footing, the ship was already swarmed with dozens of enemy warriors, all of whom looked strangely like humanoid dolphins, and one of whom held a sword to her brother's neck. She froze, eyes darting around for a solution. Aegis (still in its' bracelet form) and a Celestial Bronze knife tucked in her boot were the only weapons she had left now, but there was no way that she would be able to reach them in time before the warrior slit her brother's vulnerable throat.
While a few of the dolphin warriors surrounded them, staying out of range of any possible attacks, the others swarmed the lower decks. Thalia could hear them scuffling with her newly-awoken friends, Lena yelling angrily and items shattering, but she knew that there were too many for the Seven to defeat in their half-asleep states.
She cursed herself for being so distracted by her memories that she had failed to do her duty and protect the ship from invaders. That was why they had a watch, after all. If someone was hurt, or worse- No, she couldn't let herself think like that.
On one side of the ring of spears, the dolphin warriors parted to let someone through. He appeared to be human, but from the way the dolphins fell back before him, it was clear that he was the leader. He was dressed in Greek combat armour—sandals, kilt, and greaves, a breastplate decorated with elaborate sea monster designs—and everything he wore was gold. Even his sword, a Greek blade like Riptide, was gold instead of bronze.
The golden boy, Thalia realized, remembering Luke explaining his most-recent dream that morning at breakfast. They'll have to get past the golden boy.
What really made Thalia feel nervous was the guy's helmet. His visor was a full-face mask fashioned like a gorgon's head—curved tusks, horrible features pinched into a snarl, and golden snake hair curling around the face. Thalia had met, fought and defeated all three of the gorgons before, not to mention wielding Aegis. The likeness was good—a little too good for her taste.
She glared at him, stubbornly pushing away any feelings of fear. "Who are you?" she demanded. "What do you want?"
The golden warrior chuckled. "Hello, daughter of Zeus." The golden warrior's voice was rich and velvety, with an exotic accent—Middle Eastern, maybe—that seemed vaguely familiar. "Always a pleasure to humiliate my dear uncle via his pathetic spawn. I am Chrysaor, the Golden Sword. As for what I want…" She could literally hear the smirk in his voice and she bit back a shiver of disgust as he looked her up and down smugly. Jason bristled angrily at the look, and she felt uncomfortably like he was undressing her with his eyes. "Well, that's easy. I want everything you have."

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO/HOO.

"You must admit that it's quite an ingenious plan," Akantha said idly to Hades as they watched Thalia take advantage of the dolphin warriors' fear of Dionysus and start to babble on about how Dionysus was their captain, and he was now infuriated by the Argo II being invaded.
Her lie was reinforced by her crewmates, Frank making a huge spectacle of turning himself into a dolphin while Lena and Hazel began acting as if they were insane. Lena started petting the dolphin warrior holding her, and it gave her the delphine equivalent of a disturbed look as she cooed about what a 'pretty little rainbow cat' it was. Hazel meanwhile, started faking some sort of fit and shrieking hysterically about rainbows, of all things. The others were all lying (badly) and adding support to the act. Despite their unconvincing performances, the monsters followed the typical pattern of immortal stupidity by believing the demigods' show completely.
Still, it was an excellent idea. Akantha had done something similar during her own time as a member of the original Argonauts, back in Ancient Greece. Of course, her own crew hadn't gone along half as well as the New Argonauts did. Akantha smirked as she remembered how she and Atalanta had teamed up against Heracles after one too many derogatory comments about their gender and abilities. To this day, the arrogant man still cowered in fear at the sight of her.
"I suppose so," Hades reluctantly agreed, breaking her from her musings.
Her smirk widened at the distaste in his expression. No doubt complimenting any child of Zeus caused him near-physical pain. Still, even Hades had reluctantly acknowledged that Thalia and Jason Grace were far less arrogant and entitled than the majority of their other half-siblings, mortal and immortal alike.
"Careful, Uncle," Hermes forced a chuckle, his expression strained as he did some work on his phone, George and Martha hissing softly to each other about one thing or another. "People might start to get the impression that you don't hate everyone anymore."
Hades fixed the Messenger of the Gods with an icy look. "You-"
"Hush!" Akantha cried. "They're arriving!"
Time worked differently in heavily magical places. Frankly, it was a necessary precaution, because otherwise the immortals would all become dreadfully bored, and when a selfish being with the power to bend reality to their will became bored, things such as tsunamis, volcano eruptions and other types of natural disasters tended to occur.
At any rate, because of the time distortion in Olympus, what was several hours for the Seven was only moments for the group of gods watching the quest.
"This is it, then," Demeter murmured, clenching her hands into her flowing green skirt. "They've arrived in the Ancient Lands. Oh Chaos, may the Fates be on our side, for surely we need their favour now more than we ever have needed it before."
"Indeed," Akantha agreed breathlessly. "Where are Apollo and Artemis? They must prepare for battle immediately."

Jason swallowed as he wandered along the River Tiber, wishing that Reyna were with him. He had said goodbye to his friends already, the six of them having been forced to rush off and get to Nico and the giants. And this was his quest, and his quest alone. He had to be alone. But he still wished that Reyna were there. Her steady companionship, and graceful ease at fighting, not to mention her mere presence, would have been a great help in boosting his own self-confidence at what he was about to do.
The thought of how, if he failed, the gods would be split in two forever, and the two camps would never achieve a proper peace between them, hovered at the back of his mind as he found himself wandering into a restaurant and ordering a pizza. After ordering, he sat down at an outside table and started fiddling with Ivlivs for comfort.
The view was beautiful, he thought as he munched on the pizza, which seemed strangely tasteless in his mouth as he chewed and swallowed, staring out over the river. At least if he died, he could go knowing he'd seen the original Rome, and made peace with his sister. Though, the new knowledge of his mother was distinctly unwelcome. He couldn't remember her at all, and what he'd learned was not what he had hoped to discover.
The sound of a Vespa broke him from his thoughts, and he looked up from the table he had been unconsciously staring at just in time to see an old-fashioned, baby blue motor scooter pull up in front of him. Seated on it were two people who looked almost identical to Gregory Peck and Audrey Hepburn (Lena had a surprising fondness for black and white romantic movies, and Lou Ellen Blackstone had organized a camp-wide movie night to mark her birthday a few months ago.)
His mouth dropped open in surprise, but the woman spoke before he could.
"We've just had the most wonderful day!"
"You're Audrey Hepburn," he replied blankly. Wasn't she dead?
She frowned in bemusement. "Oh, I think that you've mistaken me for someone else. I'm Rhea Silvia. I was the mother of Romulus and Remus, back just before the founding of Rome."
"But aren't you supposed to be dead?" Jason protested. Whether she was Rhea Silvia or Audrey Hepburn, she was not supposed to be alive and prancing around Ancient Rome on a baby blue Vespa. Then his insides went cold in horror as he realized what must have happened. Rhea Silvia was not the first undead person he had met recently after all. "You're with Gaia!"
"No I most certainly am not!" she snapped back, looking offended.
"She isn't," the man (not Gregory Peck, obviously). "I am Tiberinus, god of the River Tiber. Given the current situation, I do understand your assumption, but I assure you that it is incorrect. Please, allow me to explain. You see, long ago I saved Rhea's children, Romulus and Remus, and brought them to the wolf goddess Lupa to be raised and trained by her, as the first of many. Later, when King Numen tried to kill her, I took pity and made her my wife. She has been ruling the river kingdom at my side ever since. (Rhea Silvia smiled fondly and clasped his hand in her hers as Tiberinus continued.)
Right now, however, we are here to help you."
"Help me? How?"
"My naiads told me that you were here." Tiberinus cast his dark eyes over Jason, as if he was judging whether or not Jason was worthy of the task he had received. "You have the map, my boy? And your letter of introduction?"
"Uh…" Jason bit his lip as he handed Tiberinus the letter and the disk of bronze.
The god looked them over quickly. "Well, all of your documents seem in order," he declared. "We should get going. The Mark of Athena awaits!"
Jason summoned his courage, stubbornly reminding himself that he had faced a Titan in single combat, as well as two giants, and he had survived. He could do this. "Alright," he agreed. "So, what do-?"
"Come, Jason, my boy," Rhea Silvia chirruped cheerfully. Jason thought bitterly that, despite having once been a mortal and borne two half-blood children, she didn't seem remotely upset or concerned at his likely fate. Sometimes he really hated gods. "We will show you where your path starts. After that though, you're on your own."
As they sped through Rome on a scooter, Tiberinus and Rhea Silvia gave Jason a miniature tour of the ancient city, pointing out spots of battle, a building that had been a church, temple, palace, and was now an apartment block, and the spot where Romulus and Remus had washed ashore. Jason had to admit, he was fascinated by it all.
"There's so history," he breathed, not he even realizing that he had spoken aloud until Rhea Silvia laughed lightly.
"Oh, my dear child," she smiled at him. He knew that she was beautiful, but she was too delicate and sweet for his tastes. Like most demigods that he knew, he preferred his partner to be strong, and capable of taking care of herself in a fight, instead of being a liability like Rhea Silvia seemed as if she would be. Reyna could never be considered a liability in a fight, only an asset.
Gods, he missed her. Those few minutes they'd managed to spend together at Camp Jupiter before he'd left again hadn't been close to enough. Neither had the nightly conversations that they had shared over IM.
"Rome has a lot of history," Rhea Silvia told him. "But compared to Greece, its' just a baby. You'll see when you get there. If you get there, of course."
"Of course," he replied dryly.
"Here we are," Tiberinus announced suddenly as he pulled over in front of a large marble building, the façade covered in city grime but still beautiful. Ornate carvings of Roman gods decorated the roofline. The massive entrance was barred with iron gates, heavily padlocked.
"I'm going in there?" Jason suddenly wished that he had brought Leo and his toolkit for help. Or maybe Luke, with his ability to manipulate any lock that he came across.
Rhea Silvia covered her mouth and giggled again. "No, my dear. Not in it. Under it."
Tiberinus pointed to a set of stone steps on the side of the building—the sort that would have led to a basement apartment if this place were in Manhattan.
"Rome is chaotic aboveground," he said, "but that's nothing compared to below ground. You must descend into the buried city, Jason Grace. Find the altar of the foreign god. The failures of your predecessors will guide you. After that…I do not know."
Jason's backpack felt heavy on his shoulders. He had been studying the bronze map for days now, scouring the little library of mythological books from both camps for any hint of information. Unfortunately, the few things he had managed to discover had only made this quest seem even more impossible. "My predecessors…none of them made it all the way to the shrine, did they." It was a statement, not a question.
Tiberinus shook his head. "But you know what prize awaits, if you can liberate it."
"Yes," Jason nodded. He steeled himself. He was a Roman, a former Centurion and Praetor of the Twelfth Legion. The son of Jupiter and Defeater of the Titan Krios. He had fought two giants, and killed one. He could do this. He would do this.
"Thank you, my lord and lady, for your help," he said formerly, climbing off the scooter and bowing to them.
Rhea Silvia finally turned solemn, both of the gods giving him serious looks.
"If you succeed, it could bring peace to the children of Greece and Rome and unite the two forms of the gods in a way never before believed possible," Rhea Silvia told him. Her ditzy attitude had disappeared, and the weight of a dozen centuries of life bored into him from her dark brown eyes. "If you are successful in finding it, it could change the whole course of the coming war."
"If I live," Jason reminded her stoically. After all, if he found it, but died fighting the Parthenos' current guardian, as hundreds before him had done, then it would all be useless. Perhaps his failure would even be enough to break the fragile peace between the Romans and the Greeks, and cause them to defy Valeria's orders and start another Civil War. Maybe it was a bit arrogant to think of himself as being so important, but the possibility was there.
Tiberinus nodded sadly at his words. "Because you also understand the guardian that you must face?"
Jason recalled the spiders at Fort Sumter, the children of Athena's collective worst fear, and the dream that Frank had described—an ancient and powerful voice, hissing in the dark.
"I understand."
Rhea Silvia looked at her husband. "He is brave," she murmured to him. "And, unlike the others, he is neither a child of the traitor Athena, nor a Greek on Roman ground, hindered by such things. Perhaps he will succeed where the others have all failed."
"I certainly hope so," the river god replied, patting her hand gently. "We shall see soon enough, I suppose. Good-bye, Jason Grace. And good luck."
Rhea Silvia beamed at him, her bright mood restored once again. "Oh, we have such a lovely afternoon planned! Off to shop!"
The Gregory Peck and Audrey Hepburn lookalikes sped off on their baby-blue motorbike. Jason stared after them for a moment, his heart heavy in his chest. Then Jason turned and descended the steps alone.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO and HOO. As always, thanks for any reviews, kudoses, etc.

Jason had been underground more times than he could count, for more reasons than he was capable of remembering, let alone listing off. But this time it was different. This time he was by himself, without any support or back up to help him fight what was coming. A foe so terrible, no other hero had ever managed to escape it alive. Of course, if his suspicions were correct, he had a better chance than any of them would have had.
Jason hadn't been alone, properly by himself in some place, since he could remember. Always, there had been an ally nearby, even if that ally was a wolf watching over him for Lupa. He had to admit, if only to himself, that he was frightened by the feeling. He clutched Ivlivs, now in its' sword form, for comfort. The familiar feeling of the gold weapon gave him strength as he crept downwards through the steps that were placed on the floor of the tunnel.
Any time he hesitated, he reminded himself of the importance of his mission, and that he had no choice but to succeed in it. If the Athena Parthenos was really down here, it could decide the fate of the war. It could save them all, and heal the rift that had cost billions of mortals and half-bloods their lives over the centuries.
Every Civil War in history and Athena's betrayal of the gods during the Second Titan War had all occurred because of the Ancient Romans' arrogance when they had stolen the Parthenos and degraded the Greek goddess of wisdom and battle strategy. The gods had not been truly whole ever since the first time the Flame of the West had shifted.
All of that could be fixed if Jason could just find the Parthenos and defeat his foe. No, that wasn't the way to phrase it. This was the way to say it: Jason would find the Parthenos and defeat his foe, and he would prevent any more bloodshed occurring over it.
At the bottom of the steps he reached an old wooden door with an iron pull ring. Above the ring was a metal plate with a keyhole. Jason started considering ways to pick the lock, but as soon as he touched the pull ring, instinctively using the hand that still held the Mark, a fiery shape burned in the middle of the door: a silhouette of Athena's owl, appearing to be in front of a newer looking Bolt of Zeus. Smoke plumed from the keyhole as the door swung inward.
Jason looked up at the entrance to the tunnel one last time. At the top of the stairwell, the sky was a square of brilliant blue. Mortals would be enjoying the warm afternoon. Couples would be holding hands at the cafés. Tourists would be bustling through the shops and museums. Regular Romans would be going about their daily business, probably not considering the thousands of years of history under their feet, and definitely unaware of the spirits, gods, and monsters that still dwelt here, or the fact that their city might be destroyed today unless a certain group of demigods succeeded in stopping the giants. His friends, including his sister, were in danger, and he was turning his back on them, going to face a deathly foe alone.
Turning away again, Jason stepped through the doorway and found himself in a basement that was an architectural mutant. Ancient brick walls were crisscrossed with modern electrical cables and plumbing. The ceiling was held up with a combination of steel scaffolding and old granite Roman columns. The front half of the basement was stacked with crates.
Out of curiosity, Jason opened a few. Some were packed with multicoloured spools of string—like for kites or arts and crafts projects. Other crates were full of cheap plastic gladiator swords. Maybe this had been a storage area for a tourist shop at one point.
In the back of the basement, the floor had been excavated, revealing another set of steps—these ones made of what looked like white marble, though it wasn't as slippery as marble was when he carefully stepped onto the first one- that were leading even deeper still underneath the ground.
Jason crept carefully to the edge. Even with the glow cast by his sword, it was too dark to see below. He placed his hand on the wall and felt around until he found a light switch that he quickly flipped into the "on" position. Glaring white fluorescent bulbs illuminated the stairs. Below, he saw a mosaic floor decorated with deer and fauns—maybe a room from an Ancient Roman villa, just stashed away under this modern basement along with the crates of string and plastic swords.
How old was this place anyway? How many heroes had climbed down in search of the Parthenos? How many had failed to even reach this part of the quest?
The room was about twenty feet square. The walls had once been brightly painted, but most of the frescoes had peeled or faded. The only exit was a hole dug in one corner of the floor where the mosaic had been pulled up. Jason crouched next to the opening. It dropped straight down into a larger cavern, but he couldn't see the bottom.
He could hear running water though. He guessed that it was maybe thirty or forty feet below. The air didn't smell like a sewer—just old and musty, and slightly sweet, like mouldering flowers. Perhaps it was an old water line from the aqueducts. There was no way down. At least, for most people there wasn't. But most people weren't sons of the Sky God, with the ability to fly.
"Here we then" he muttered, more for the sake of hearing a sound other than the running water than anything else.
As if in reply, something glowed in the darkness. The Mark of Athena (without his father's symbol, now) blazed to life at the bottom of the cavern, revealing glistening brickwork along a subterranean canal forty feet below. The fiery owl seemed to be taunting him: Go on then and give it your best shot Roman. Or will you die like all the others?
He lifted his chin, accepting the challenge and leaping off, controlling the winds to take him down to the bottom, where he landed in a crouch on the brick ground. His feet slipped, but he managed to steady himself and avoid slipping into the canal. He didn't know how deep it was, but he had never learned to swim, being raised in a very non-seafaring community, as well as the son of Jupiter, and he didn't want to risk dying of drowning when he was so close to completing his quest.
He held up his faintly-glowing sword to see the tunnel better. The channel ran down the middle of a brickwork tunnel. Every few yards, ceramic pipes jutted from the walls. He guessed that the pipes were drains, part of the ancient Roman plumbing system, though it was a surprise to see it so well intact still. He dismissed it, as it was unimportant, and focused. Which way?
The tunnel seemed the same in both directions. Then he spotted it. About fifty feet to his left, the Mark of Athena blazed against the wall. Jason could swear that it was glaring at him with those big fiery eyes, filled with contempt as if to say, What's your problem, you idiot Roman? Hurry up and get on with it!
Jason was really starting to hate that owl.
By the time he reached the spot, the image had faded again so he started to look around the tunnel for more clues. There was a broken section in the brickwork, as if a sledgehammer had knocked a hole in the wall. He floated to investigate. Sticking his spare boot knife (standard issue, courtesy of Camp Half-Blood's ever-lasting supply of weapons, unlike the Romans' limited supply.) through the opening for light, Jason was able to see a lower chamber, long and narrow, with a mosaic floor, painted walls, and benches running down either side. It was shaped sort of like a subway car.
He stuck his head into the hole, hoping that nothing would bite it off. At the near end of the room was a bricked-off doorway. At the far end was what was almost definitely an altar.
Jason pursed his lips together in thought as he pulled his head free of the hole to think, whilst keeping a wary eye on his surroundings in search of any 'surprises'. The water tunnel kept going, but Jason knew, in his bones, that this was the way. He remembered what Tiberinus had said: "Find the altar of the foreign god." There didn't seem to be any exits from the altar room, but it was a short drop onto the bench below. He would be able to get out again with no problem.
Still gripping his knife, Ivlivs returned to its' coin form and secure in his pocket, he made his way down into the altar room.
The room's ceiling was barrel-shaped with brick arches, but Jason didn't like the look of the supports. He was no architect, but he had built enough forts at Camp Jupiter to know a thing or two about the subject. Directly above his head, on the arch nearest to the bricked-in doorway, the capstone was cracked in half. Stress fractures ran across the ceiling. The place had probably been intact for two thousand years, but he decided that he would rather not spend too much time here. With his (shared with every other demigod's) luck, it would collapse in the next two minutes.
The floor was a long narrow mosaic with seven pictures in a row, like a time line. At Jason's feet was a raven. Next was a lion. Several others looked like Roman warriors with various weapons. The rest were too damaged or covered in dust for Jason to make out any of the details. The benches on either side were littered with broken pottery. The walls were painted with scenes of a banquet: a robed man with a curved cap like an ice cream scoop, sitting next to a larger guy who radiated sunbeams. Standing around them were torchbearers and servants, and various animals like crows and lions wandered in the background. Jason wasn't sure what the picture represented, but it didn't remind him of any Roman or Greek legends that he had ever heard about.
"The foreign god," Tiberinus had said. Were there really gods in existence that were outside the Olympian Pantheon? How could such a thing be possible?
And now really wasn't the time for a philosophical debate with himself, Jason reminded himself as he continued to look around the large room.
At the far end of the room, the altar was elaborately carved with a frieze showing the man with the ice-cream-scoop hat holding a knife to the neck of a bull. On the altar stood a stone figure of a man sunk to his knees in rock, a dagger and a torch in his outraised hands. Again, Jason had no clue what any of the images meant or what story they told.
He took a step toward the altar and heard his foot go CRUNCH. He looked down and realized with horror that he had just stepped on a human rib cage.
His intense training was the only thing that allowed him to separate himself from his emotions and swallow back an instinctual scream. Where had that even come from? He wondered. Unlike in movies, he had glanced both up at the ceiling and down at the ground when scanning the room, and he hadn't seen any bones. Now the floor was littered with them. The rib cage was obviously old. It crumbled to dust as he carefully removed his foot. Nearby lay a corroded bronze dagger in the same style as all the ones made by Cabin 9 at Camp Half-Blood. Either this dead person had been carrying the weapon, or it had killed him.
He swapped his dagger for Ivlivs' sword form again and held out his blade to see in front of himself. A little farther down the mosaic path sprawled a more complete skeleton in the remains of an embroidered red doublet, like a man from the Renaissance. His frilled collar and skull had been badly burned, as if the guy had decided to wash his hair with a blowtorch.
Wonderful, Jason thought sarcastically. He lifted his eyes back up to the altar statue, which held a dagger and a torch.
It had to be some kind of test, Jason decided. These two other guys had failed. Actually, correction: not just two guys. More bones and scraps of clothing were scattered all the way to the altar. He couldn't guess how many skeletons were represented, but he was willing to bet that they were all demigods from the past, children of Athena on the same quest as him, the son of Jupiter and their mortal enemy according to centuries of history.
"I'm not gonna be another skeleton on your floor," he called to the statue, hoping he sounded determined and not like he was about to throw up, which is pretty much how he actually felt right then.
Along the benches, a dozen ghosts shimmered into existence—glowing purple men in Roman togas, like the Lares at Camp Jupiter. They glared at him as if he had interrupted their meeting.
At the other end of the chamber, an old-looking ghost rose with some difficulty (did ghosts have arthritis?) and stood by the altar, his dark eyes fixed on Jason. His first thought was that the Lare looked like the pope. He had a glittering robe, a pointed hat, and a shepherd's crook. His second thought was that his friends would never let him live it down in the Underworld if he was killed by a bunch of ghostly Christians.
"This is the cavern of Mithras," said the old ghost in a rumbling voice. "You have disturbed our sacred rituals. You cannot look upon our mysteries and live."
Oh great.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO/HOO.

The tunnel ran straight and smooth, but Jason was too experienced to take any chances. If not for his flying abilities, he probably would have died when he jumped out of Mithras' cavern, after all.
Carefully, Jason stretched out his pilum and used it to tap the floor in front of him to make sure that there were no traps.
As he walked, the sickly-sweet smell he had picked up on earlier began to get stronger and stronger with each step, setting his already high-strung nerves on edge. The sound of running water faded away behind him as he walked. Instead, he started to hear a dry chorus of whispers like a million tiny voices. They seemed to be coming from inside the walls, and they were getting louder. Somehow, it doubted it was more ghosts.
He shuddered in disgust, and pulled his hand away from the wall, least whatever was inside come out and start trying to gnaw his arm off or something. As he did so, he realized that what he had previously believed were old curtains or something were actually cobwebs that covered the walls in thick layers. Bile climbed up his throat, and he forced himself to swallow it back down as he readjusted his grip on his long pilum, grateful for the comforting feeling of his weapon in his hand.
He knew what was coming. Her Ladyship, the Weaver. The worst fear of the children of Athena. But touching and seeing the web made him shudder as he realized just how close he was.
Duty first, he reminded himself, clenching his jaw and forcing himself to continue onwards. "Duty first," he muttered. "For Rome, for the gods. Olympus be on my side."
Prayer said, he started walking again until, finally, the corridor ended in a doorway filled waist-high with old lumber. It looked as if someone had tried to barricade the opening. That didn't bode well, but Jason still used his pilum to push away the boards as best he could before he carefully crawled over the remaining pile, getting a few dozen splinters in his free hand.
On the other side of the barricade was a chamber the size of a basketball court. The floor was done in Roman mosaics, though they had faded over the centuries. The remains of tapestries hung from the walls. Two unlit torches sat in wall sconces on either side of the doorway, both covered in cobwebs and in layers of dust.
At the far end of the room, the Mark of Athena burned over another doorway. Between Jason and that exit, however, the floor was bisected by a chasm fifty feet across. Spanning the pit were two parallel wooden beams, too far apart for both feet, but each too narrow to walk on unless Jason was a professional gymnast, which he wasn't.
He was, however, born with the ability to fly. Therefore, despite his exhaustion (he didn't think he had ever used his powers so heavily in such a short amount of time before, even when during the Invasion of Othrys. And he still hadn't come face-to-face with Her Ladyship yet, either.) he braced himself to go across the chasm.
Noise from behind attracted his attention, however, and he turned to look over his shoulder. The corridor that he had come from was filled with hissing noises. Cobwebs trembled and danced as the first of the spiders appeared: no larger than gumdrops, but plump and black, skittering over the walls and the floor.
What kind of spiders were they? Jason had no idea. He didn't know if they were poisonous either. All that he only knew was that they were coming for him, and he only had seconds to escape.
Turning, he ran out into the chasm, feeling the air 'solidify', for lack of a better description, beneath his feet as he dashed across as quick as the wind could carry him. The spiders' chattering rose to a crescendo, making him shudder and resign himself to joining the members of cabin 6 in the ranks of the arachnophobics from now on.
Upon staggering onto the other side of the chasm, Jason spun, still gripping his pilum like a lifeline, and glared defiantly over at the black army of creepy-crawlies that were chasing him as he caught his breath and tried to figure out what to do next.
He couldn't risk another use of his powers, and he didn't see any reason why the spiders wouldn't be able to reach him by climbing the walls or the ceiling. If they started to do that, he would have to run for it, and he was pretty sure that he was too worn out to move fast enough to evade them and their intimidating pincers.
But, for some reason, the spiders didn't follow. Instead, they all massed together at the edge of the pit—a seething black carpet of creepiness. After a few moments of staring him down, they dispersed, flooding back into the burned corridor, almost as if Jason was no longer interesting enough to bother with.
It only made him more uneasy.
Sighing in tired resignation, he turned and began to make his way down the next corridor, keeping his pilum out and ready.
He didn't have far to go.
After twenty feet, the tunnel opened into a cavern as large as a cathedral, so majestic that Jason had trouble processing everything she saw. He supposed that this was the room from Frank's dream, but it wasn't dark, like the son of Mars had described it as being. There were bronze braziers filled with glowing magical light around the room, interspersed with gorgeous tapestries. The stone floor was webbed with fissures like a sheet of ice. The ceiling was so high, it was lost in the gloom and layers upon layers of spiderwebs.
Strands of silk as thick as pillars ran from the ceiling all over the room, anchoring the walls and the floor like the cables of a suspension bridge.
Webs also surrounded the centrepiece of the shrine, which was radiating so much power that Jason had trouble forcing his eyes upwards to look at it properly.
Looming over him was a forty-foot-tall statue of the goddess Athena, with luminous ivory skin and a dress of gold. In her outstretched hand, Athena held a statue of Nike, the winged victory goddess—a statue that looked tiny from here, but was probably as tall as a real person. Athena's other hand rested on a shield as big as a billboard, with a sculpted snake peeking out from behind, as if Athena was protecting it. Aegis.
Altogether, Jason thought that it really did look like Athena. He had seen a lot of statues, or pictures of statues of gods made by mortals that didn't resemble the immortals at all, but this giant version, made thousands of years ago, made him think that the artist must have met Athena in person. He had captured her perfectly. Save for one thing.
The goddess' expression was serene and kindly, instead of twisted in anger and bitterness. You would never guess, looking at her, that she would one day betray her family to gain vengeance for her pride being stripped from her.
"The Athena Parthenos," Jason murmured, not realizing that he was speaking aloud. "It's really here."
Jason realized that his mouth was hanging open and he forced himself to close it and swallow. He didn't have time to go into shock when he had only accomplished half of his mission. He had found the Athena Parthenos. Now, he had to figure out how to get it to safety.
Strands of web covered it like a gauze pavilion. Jason suspected that without those webs, the statue would have fallen through the weakened floor long ago. As he stepped into the room, he could see that the cracks below were so wide, he could have lost his whole foot in them. Beneath the cracks, he saw nothing but empty darkness. This whole cavern was on the verge of collapse, and it was entwined with the Parthenos. His heart sank as another thought occurred to him, making a chill wash over him.
Where was the guardian? And, for that matter, how was Jason going to free the statue without collapsing the floor? He couldn't very well shove the Athena Parthenos down the corridor that he'd come from, and he didn't have close to the amount of strength required to let him lift it with his powers in good circumstances, let alone when he was already dead on his feet from over-using them.
He scanned the chamber, hoping to see something that might help, or at least give him an idea of what to do. His eyes wandered over the tapestries, which were heart-wrenchingly beautiful. One showed a pastoral scene so three-dimensional, it could've been a window. Another tapestry showed the gods battling the giants. Another showed a landscape of the Underworld. Next to it was the skyline of modern Rome. And in the tapestry to his left…
He caught his breath in shock. It was a portrait of two demigods kissing. To be more specific, it was he and Reyna's first kiss, in the shadow of a maple tree in New Rome Park, two days after the end of the Titan War. How was a tapestry of that intimate moment here, of all places?
Above him in the gloom, a voice spoke. "For ages I have known that you would come one day, my sweet boy."
Jason shuddered in disgust as shivers went crawling up his spine. Suddenly he felt like a toddler again, abandoned in the ruins of a strange house by his mother. The voice sounded just as Frank had described it: an angry buzz in multiple tones, female but not human.
In the webs above the statue, something moved—something dark and large.
"I have seen you in my dreams," the voice said, sickly sweet and evil, like the smell in the corridors. "I had to make sure you were worthy, the only hero clever enough to pass my tests and reach this place alive. Indeed, you are a most talented hero. This will make your death so much more painful to the gods when you fail utterly."
It felt as though icy acid were filling Jason's veins. He wanted to run. He wanted to plead for mercy. But he was a Roman legionnaire. He could not allow himself to show weakness—not now.
"You're Arachne," he called out, keeping his gaze fixed on the shadow's movements. "The weaver who was turned into a spider."
The figure descended, her form becoming clearer and more grotesque the closer she came to him. "Cursed by the dratted Athena," she spat bitterly. "Scorned by all and made into a hideous thing…because I was the better weaver."
"But didn't you lose the contest?" Jason frowned.
"That's the story written by the winner!" cried Arachne, waving at the tapestries. "Look on my work! See for yourself!"
Jason didn't have to. The tapestries were the best that he had ever seen, counting the ones in New Rome, given to the Legion by the gods, or the ones kept by the children of Athena in Camp Half-Blood. He briefly wondered if Athena had really lost—if she had just hidden Arachne away and rewritten the truth. It would fit with the character of the goddess he knew.
But right now, it didn't matter. Saving Western Civilization did.
"You've been guarding this statue since the ancient times," Jason guessed. "But it doesn't belong here. The gods need it, and I'm taking it back."
"Ha," Arachne scoffed at his claim.
Even Jason had to admit that he sounded ridiculous. How could one boy, covered in injuries and dust with barely enough strength to lift his own weapon left, possibly manage to remove this huge statue from its' underground chamber?
"I'm afraid that you would have to defeat me first, my sweet boy," Arachne said with saccharine sweetness. "And alas, that is impossible."
The creature finally came out from behind the curtains of webbing, and Jason realized that his whole quest was hopeless. He was about to die, and the hope for the gods would go with him.
Arachne had the body of a gigantic black widow, with a hairy red mark in the shape of an hourglass on the underside of her abdomen and a pair of oozing spinnerets. Her eight spindly legs were lined with curved barbs as big as Jason's dagger, and her arms were a disturbing cross between pincers and actual human arms. If the spider came any closer, her sweet stench alone would have been enough to make Jason collapse. But the most horrible part was definitely her face.
Arachne might once have been a beautiful woman. But time, anger and Athena's curse had changed all of that. Now black mandibles protruded from her mouth like tusks. Her other teeth had grown into thin white needles. Fine dark whiskers dotted her cheeks. Her eyes were large, lidless, and pure black, with two smaller eyes sticking out of her temples.
The creature made a violent rip-rip-rip sound that might have been laughter. "Now I will feast on you, my sweet," Arachne cackled. "But do not fear. I will make a beautiful tapestry depicting your death."
Jason yanked out a piece of ambrosia and shoved it in his mouth. The fate of the world is depending on me, he reminded himself, his fear suddenly seeming to disappear. I cannot fail.
Oddly enough, his mental voice suddenly seemed to sound a great deal like Lady Valeria. It went on to whisper that, in his current state, he needed to trick Arachne, because combat wouldn't work against her. Pride was Arachne's weakness, and he needed to use that.
The words seemed to spring to his mind, and he seriously wondered whether or not the goddess was actually telling him what to do. He didn't question it too deeply, though, because it was working, and Arachne was letting down her guard.
"It's shameful, what the gods have done," he said smoothly. "Forcing the most beautiful woman I have ever seen to hide away with the greatest works in all of creation. I suppose they're jealous. All they care about is their own lust, and they know that no one would even glance at them if you were in the room."
Because they'd be too horrified by the sight of her to look away, he added mentally. He hid a cringe at the strange chittering noise the spider-woman made. She was giggling, he realized with disgust. And the strange colour on her cheeks was a blush. Oh gods, he was going to be sick.
She skittered nearer to him, batting her eyes in what he supposed was meant to be a coquettish manner. "Do you really think so?" she asked hopefully, making him feel a bit bad. Then he reminded himself again of what was at stake, the heroes she had ruthlessly slaughtered, and it allowed him to steel himself enough to continue with his ruse.
"I do," he promised. "I've always loved spiders. Such a, unique species."
"And so dangerous too," Arachne added eagerly, moving closer to him again. "So many of my babies are lethal! Isn't it amazing how many different ways of making mortals suffer they have?"
Almost, he thought. Just a little further.
"Fantastic," he told her smoothly. "And so elegantly, as well! Of course, I can see where they get it all from." He ran his eyes over her like he was appreciating her body. In truth, however, he was looking for a weak point. And he found the perfect one.
Seeing that Arachne had relaxed her guard, and was now only a few steps away, Jason carefully stepped closer, relieved when she failed to tense up and attack him.
"May I?" he asked, giving her (what he hoped was) a seductive look.
Her hideous face broke into a wide beam, and she nodded eagerly. Jason leaned in towards her face, and stabbed.
Arachne cried out in rage and pain as his pilum went straight through her underbelly, the tip sticking slightly out of the monster's back. Jason leapt back, pulling his weapon free, just as the ceiling of the cave crashed in. He raced for the Parthenos as he listened to Arachne's shrieks of vengeance, and his quest-mates yells for him to hold on, and to wrap the ropes they threw at him around the Parthenos.
All the while, the cracks in the fragile floor widened more and more, as the earth shook and debris fell from the hole.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO/HOO.

Finding the place Valeria had told them to go to so they could find Nico was easy. Thalia led them all right to it, on an abandoned stretch of hillside overlooking the ruined Forum.
Getting in was easy too. Leo easily broke through the padlock, and the metal gate creaked open. No mortals saw them. No alarms went off. Stone steps spiralled down into the gloom. It disturbed all of them, how simple it was. Simple + demigods = trap. Everybody knew that. As basic as 2+2=4
Still, they knew that they had no choice.
"I'll go first," Thalia declared, hefting her spear and wearing a grim expression. No one protested, but Luke was so close behind her that it barely classed as being behind her instead of beside.
They descended cautiously. Thalia and Luke took the lead, with their weapons raised cautiously. Lena and Leo followed, while Frank and Hazel walked behind them all, guarding their backs.
The stairwell was a cramped corkscrew of masonry, no more than six feet in diameter and Lena kept her eyes open for traps. With every turn of the stairs, she anticipated an ambush. The cornucopia that had been on her bed when she woke that morning was hanging on a leather cord over her shoulder. It could only have come from the gods, likely her mother, but she didn't understand why. What was she supposed to do, shoot smoked hams at the giants?
As they wound their way underground, Lena saw old graffiti gouged into the stones: Roman numerals, names and phrases in Italian. Other people had been down here more recently than the Roman Empire.
Finally, they reached the bottom.
"Watch this last step," Thalia warned, having been using her spear to prod for any traps.
She jumped to the floor of the cylindrical room, which was five feet lower than the stairwell. Why would someone design a set of stairs like that? Lena wondered. She was no architect, nor did she particularly care about that sort of thing, but even she knew that made no sense. It was easy, but confusing, and she just knew that they had to be walking into an ambush. It was the only logical explanation. Her spine was rigid as she carefully clambered down after Leo, with Frank and Hazel following silently.
Upon entering the room, she immediately began to scan it for any signs of a trap set by the giants. The curved walls had once been painted with frescoes, which were now faded to eggshell white with only flecks of colour. The domed ceiling was about fifty feet above them, and seemed solid enough.
Around the back side of the room, opposite the stairwell, nine alcoves were carved into the wall. Each niche was about five feet off the floor and big enough for a human-sized statue, but each was empty.
The air felt cold and dry. Worryingly, there were no other exits.
"All right." Thalia crossed her arms, frowning. "What do we do now?"
"I dunno," Luke admitted as he stepped to the middle of the room.
Instantly, green and blue light rippled across the walls. Lena heard the sound of a fountain, but there was no water. There didn't seem to be any source of light except for the demigods' various blades.
"Do you smell the ocean?" Hazel asked uneasily.
Lena hadn't noticed at first. She had always had a horrendous sense of smell, a source of much teasing from her brother, who could identify all the ingredients of a dish just by smelling it. But, upon focusing, she realized that Hazel was right. The scent of salt water and storm was getting stronger, like a summer hurricane approaching. All the others muttered confirmation of the smell as well.
"An illusion?" she suggested, not sure if she would prefer an illusion or actual water at the moment. All of a sudden, she felt strangely thirsty.
"I don't know," Leo said warily. "I have a bad feeling about this."
"It feels like there should be water here—lots of water," Frank told them. "But there isn't any. I've never been in a place like this, but it seems strangely familiar."
For a second, Lena was confused as to how he would know that. Then she remembered that he was a (very) distant, but apparently favoured, legacy of Neptune. Considering Mars' status as traitor to the gods, Frank had been announcing himself as a descendant of Neptune instead of as the son of Mars. She didn't blame him. The mere thought of the god of war brought up memories of her brother's death.
Hazel moved to the row of niches, touching the bottom shelf of the nearest one, which was a little above her eye level. "This stone…it's embedded with seashells," she murmured, turning back to him. "You have been somewhere like this before, Frank. This is a nymphaeum."
Lena was sure of it now. Her mouth was definitely getting drier.
"A what?" she asked, having to swallow in order to speak. When had she last drunk something? Surely, she'd had no drink at all today, she was so thirsty.
"We have one at Camp Jupiter," Hazel explained, "on Temple Hill. It's a shrine to nymphs."
Lena ran her hand along the bottom of another niche, recalling the things she had read in order to prepare herself for meeting the Romans. Hazel was right. The alcove was studded with cowries, conches, and scallops. The seashells were ice-cold to the touch.
Lena had always liked the nymphs at Camp Half-Blood. They were friendly spirits—silly and flirtatious, generally harmless. They got along well with the children of Aphrodite and Akantha, who had done them many favours both before and after becoming a goddess. They loved to share gossip and beauty tips, and were always willing to lend a helping hand to a half-blood, as long as said demigod was polite in asking for whatever it was they wanted.
This place, though, didn't feel like the canoe lake back at Camp Half-Blood, or the streams in the woods where she normally met nymphs. This place felt unnatural, hostile, and very dry.
Hazel stepped back and examined the row of alcoves. "Shrines like this were all over the place in Ancient Rome," she told them. "Rich people had them outside their villas to honour nymphs, to make sure the local water was always fresh. Some shrines were built around natural springs, but most were man-made."
"So…no actual nymphs lived here?" Leo asked hopefully. He'd been terrified of all nature spirits since their encounter with the maenads. She didn't really blame him for it, either. Those girls were nuts.
"I'm not sure," Hazel admitted. "This place where we're standing would have been a pool with a fountain. A lot of times, if the nymphaeum belonged to a demigod, he or she would invite nymphs to live there. If the spirits took up residence, that was considered good luck."
"For the owner," Luke guessed. "But it would also bind the nymphs to the new water source, which would be great if the fountain was in a nice sunny park with fresh water pumped in through the aqueducts—"
"But this place has been underground for centuries," Lena pointed out, frowning at the thought of being stuck underground, which she hated. Lukas' body, limp and bloody, hovered at the back of her mind, and she felt bile climb her dry throat. "Dry and buried. What would happen to the nymphs?"
The sound of water changed to a chorus of hissing, like ghostly snakes. The rippling light shifted from sea blue and green to purple and sickly lime. Above them, the nine niches glowed. They were no longer empty.
Standing in each was a withered old woman, so dried up and brittle they seemed like mummies—except mummies didn't move. Their eyes were dark purple, as if the clear blue water of their life source had condensed and thickened inside them. Their fine silk dresses were now tattered and faded. Their hair had once been piled in curls, arranged with jewels in the style of Roman noblewomen, but now their locks were dishevelled and dry as straw.
"What would happen to the nymphs?" the creature in the centre niche repeated.
She was in even worse shape than the others. Her back was hunched like the handle of a pitcher. Her skeletal hands had only the thinnest papery layer of skin. On her head, a battered wreath of limp golden laurels glinted in her wild hair.
She fixed her purple eyes on Lena. "What an interesting question, my dear. Perhaps the nymphs would still be here, suffering, waiting for revenge."
"Door's gone!" Leo warned urgently as the six half-bloods all gathered together, back-to-back. Leo lit his fingers.
"Watch it, ladies," he waved the flaming hand at them. "I'm hot!"
Lena groaned, thumping her forehead.
"Water doses fire, you idiot!" Thalia shrieked at him. "Now you've gone and pissed them off!"
Leo paused and winced. "Oops," he muttered. He tried to give a charming smile. "Hey, ladies, let's talk about this-"
"Quiet!" the centre nymph cried. "Do you know who I am? I am Hagno, the first of the nine!"
Lena elbowed Leo, silently warning him not to say anything about the nymph's name fitting her appearance. His jokes wouldn't help right now.
"The nine," Frank repeated. "The nymphs of this shrine. There were always nine niches in each shrine. Three by three. Three is a sacred number."
"Of course." Hagno bared her teeth in a vicious smile. "But we are the original nine, the ones who attended the birth of the King of Olympus."
Thalia's eyes went wide. "Zeus? You were there when he was born?"
"Such a squealing whelp," Hagno nodded. "We attended Rhea in her labour. When the baby arrived, we hid him with Amalthea so that his father, Kronos, would not eat him. Ah, he had lungs, that baby! It was all we could do to drown out the noise so Kronos could not find him. When Zeus grew up, we were promised eternal honours. But that was in the old country, in Greece."
The other nymphs wailed and clawed at their niches. They seemed to be trapped in them, Lena realized, as if their feet were glued to the stone. If that was true, then maybe...
"When Rome rose to power, we were invited here," Hagno continued. "A son of Jupiter tempted us with favours. A new home, he promised. Bigger and better! No down payment, an excellent neighbourhood. Rome will last forever."
"Forever," the others hissed.
"We gave in to temptation," Hagno sighed. "We left our simple wells and springs on Mount Lycaeus and moved here. For centuries, our lives were wonderful! Parties, sacrifices in our honour, new dresses and jewellery every week. All the demigods of Rome flirted with us and honoured us."
The nymphs wailed and sighed.
"But Rome did not last," Hagno snarled. "The aqueducts were diverted. Our master's villa was abandoned and torn down. We were forgotten, buried under the earth, but we could not leave. Our life sources were bound to this place. Our old master never saw fit to release us. For centuries, we have withered here in the darkness, thirsty…so thirsty."
The others clawed at their mouths.
Lena felt her own throat closing up. She could see the others swallowing desperately, no doubt as desperate for a drink as she was.
"I'm sorry for you," she said carefully, voice hoarse. "That must have been terrible. But we are not your enemies. If we can help you—"
"Oh, such a sweet voice!" Hagno cried. "Such beautiful features. I was once young like you. My voice was as soothing as a mountain stream. But do you know what happens to a nymph's mind when she is trapped in the dark, with nothing to feed on but hatred, nothing to drink but thoughts of violence and revenge? Yes, my dear. You can help us."
"The giants are our neighbours." Hagno smiled. "Their chambers lie beyond this place, where the aqueduct's water was diverted for the games. Once we have dealt with you…once you have helped us…Gaia has promised that we will never suffer again."
"She's lying," Frank pleaded. "She's using you-"
Hagno cut him off. "We have saved our last life force for this day. We are very thirsty. From you six, we shall drink!"
All nine niches glowed. The nymphs disappeared, and water poured from their alcoves—sickly dark water, like oil.
The basin filled with alarming speed. The six questers pounded on the walls, looking for an exit, but they found nothing. They climbed into the alcoves to gain some height, but with water pouring out of each niche, it was like trying to balance at the edge of a waterfall. Even as Lena stood in a niche, the water was soon up to her knees. From the floor, it was probably eight feet deep and rising.
"I could try lightning," Thalia suggested. "Maybe blast a hole in the roof?"
"That could bring down the whole room and crush us," Leo pointed out.
"Or electrocute us," Lena added.
"Not many choices," Thalia muttered.
"I'll try and see if there's a way out further down," Frank offered, before turning into a shark and diving down. He came moments later, already returned to human form, struggling to breathe and coughing. "It's no good," he muttered. "Water's too dark. Poisonous as well."
He was right. Even as the water rose around her, Lena could feel it weakening her. Her leg muscles trembled like she'd been running for miles. Her hands turned wrinkled and dry, despite being in the middle of a fountain.
The others moved sluggishly. Luke's face was pale. He seemed to be having trouble holding his sword. Leo was drenched and shivering. Hazel's hair and skin didn't look quite so dark, as if the colour was leaching out of them. Frank pressed a hand to the wall, using it for support.
"They're taking our power," Lena croaked. "Draining us."
"Thalia," Luke groaned, "do the lightning."
Thalia raised her spear. The room rumbled, but no lightning appeared. The roof didn't break. Instead, a miniature rainstorm formed at the top of the chamber. Rain poured down, filling the fountain even faster, but it wasn't normal rain. The stuff was just as dark as the water in the pool. Every drop stung Lena's skin.
"That wasn't what I wanted," Thalia said.
The water was up to their necks now. Lena could feel her strength fading. It felt like some sort of joke. After everything she had gone through, a bunch of nymphs upset over their broken nails were going to steal her life.
'The cornucopia' her mother whispered in her mind. 'Lena, use the cornucopia. You know what to do! Use it!'
And suddenly, Lena did know what she needed to do.
"We can't fight this," she said. "If we hold back, that just makes us weaker."
"What do you mean?" Luke shouted over the rain.
The water was up to their chins. Another few inches, and they'd have to swim. But the water wasn't halfway to the ceiling yet. Lena hoped that meant that they still had time.
"The horn of plenty," she explained as quickly as she could. "We have to overwhelm the nymphs with fresh water, give them more than they can use. If we can dilute this poisonous stuff—"
"Can your horn do that?" Leo struggled to keep his head above water. He looked scared out of his mind, and it broke her heart.
"Only with your help." Lena knew from Chiron how the horn worked. The good stuff it produced didn't come from nowhere. It came from the wielder's emotions. To create enough clean fresh water to fill this room, she needed to go deep, tap her emotions as much as she could. Unfortunately, she was losing her ability to focus from her weakness. It would take all of their combined strength to do this and succeed.
"I need you all to channel everything you've got left into the cornucopia," she said, coughing. "Think about the sea."
"Salt water?" Frank asked, crinkling his brow as the group all struggled to her.
"Doesn't matter! As long as it's clean. Thalia, think about rainstorms—much more rain. Everybody needs to hold the cornucopia."
They huddled together as the water lifted them off their ledges and held the cornucopia between them, everyone resting at least a finger on it.
Nothing happened. The rain came down in sheets, still dark and acidic.
Lena's legs felt like lead. The rising water swirled, threatening to pull her under. She could feel her strength fading.
"No good!" Thalia yelled, spitting water.
"We're getting nowhere," Luke agreed.
"We need to work together," Lena cried. "Everyone think of clean water—a storm of water. Don't hold anything back. Picture all your power, all your strength leaving you."
"That's not hard!" Leo said.
"But force it out!" she said. "Offer up everything, like—like you're already dead, and your only goal is to help the nymphs. It's got to be a gift…a sacrifice."
They all went quiet at that word.
"Let's try again," Thalia raised her chin. "Together."
"Together," they all echoed.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO/HOO. First part of the battle between the Twin Archers and the Seven vs. Gration and Hopladamus.

Thalia took the lead again as they left the nymphaeum and crawled down the drainage pipe one-by-one. After thirty feet, it opened into a wider tunnel. To their left, somewhere in the distance, they could hear rumbling and creaking, like a huge machine needed oiling. None of them had absolutely no desire to find out what was making that sound, so they all agreed that must be the way to go.
Several hundred feet later, they reached a turn in the tunnel. Thalia held up her hand, signalling at the others to wait while she peeked around the corner. Hazel, who could barely contain herself now that they were so close to rescuing her brother, shifted impatiently. Only the weight of Frank's hand on her shoulder kept her from shoving her way past her friends into the next room.
The corridor opened into a vast room with twenty-foot ceilings and rows of support columns. It looked like the same parking-garage-type area Thalia had seen in her dreams, but now it was much more crowded with various things.
The creaking and rumbling came from huge gears and pulley systems that raised and lowered sections of the floor for no reason the half-blood could make out. Water flowed through open trenches (oh, great, more water, just what the daughter of the sky god had wanted after almost drowning), powering waterwheels that turned some of the machines.
Suspended from the ceiling were cages of live animals and monsters—a group of angry hellhounds, a lion, several wolves, a whole pack of hyenas, and even an eight-headed hydra. Ancient-looking bronze and leather conveyor belts trundled along with stacks of weapons and armour, sort of like the Amazons' warehouse in Seattle, except this place was obviously much older and not as well organized. And a lot more dangerous.
To put it simply, the whole room was like one massive, scary, unreliable machine.
"What is it?" Hazel whispered. "Can you see my brother?"
"No sign of him from this angle," Thalia replied in an equally-quiet voice. She couldn't see the giants, so she gestured for her friends to come forward and take a look.
About twenty feet inside the doorway, a life-size wooden cut-out of a gladiator popped up from the floor. From the numerous holes scattered over its' torso, it had clearly been used for weapons practice. Repeatedly. It clicked and whirred along a conveyor belt, got hooked on a rope, and ascended through a slot in the roof.
"What in Pluto's name?" Frank muttered softly as they stepped inside.
Thalia scanned the room, tense for another ambush. There were several dozen things to look at, most of them alive and in motion, but one good (possibly the only good) aspect of being an ADHD demigod was that, when it came to chaos, Thalia was completely comfortable. About a hundred yards away, she spotted a raised dais with two empty oversized praetor chairs. Standing between them was a bronze jar big enough to hold a person.
"Look." She pointed it out to her friends.
Hazel cried out, starting forward. Thankfully, Leo grabbed her wrist and pulled her back before she could get more than a step or two away.
"Careful, Hazel," Lena chided her gently. "We already know it's a trap. And look how obvious it is, right there in the open with no guards. That's way too easy."
"Of course," Luke nodded.
"But we have no choice," Hazel insisted. "We've got to save Nico!"
"And we will," Thalia reassured her young friend. "But we won't be any help to Nico if we're killed trying to save him. "Be careful, and keep an eye out for the giants." She started across the room, picking her way around conveyor belts and moving platforms.
The hellhounds in the hamster wheels were growling and panting at them, their red eyes glowing like headlights as they glared down at them. The animals in the other cages rose to their feet, tensing as their gazes focused on the group of half-bloods.
Thalia tried to keep an eye out for traps, but everything here looked like a trap. She remembered how many times she and her friends had almost died in the labyrinth a few years ago. From the dark looks on Luke and Lena's faces, they too were remembering the labyrinth, and the bloody losses that had occurred as a result of Daedalus' selfishness.
He may have regretted his actions in the end, but that didn't make up for any of it. His sacrifice had come far too late. Lukas, Lee Fletcher, Victoria Miller, Addison Reynolds. The list of heroes who had died due to Daedalus giving Ariadne's string to the Titans went on and on. Twenty-nine half-bloods between the ages of ten and eighteen, lost due to his fear of the Underworld. Twenty-nine people out of the seventy-three that had gathered to defend the camp that day. Thalia felt her rage spark at the mere memory of it, and she hoped that he was writhing in the Fields of Punishment nowadays. And that he would have the sense to stay out of this latest godly conflict.
They jumped over a water trench and ducked under a row of caged wolves, one of whom took a swipe at Frank's head, forcing the tall boy to duck hastily. They had made it about halfway to the bronze jar when the ceiling opened over them. A platform lowered. On it, were two giants.
Both had a writhing mass of turquoise and bronze coloured snakes hissing on their head. They wore dirty loincloths that had once been bronze, sandals, and wielded sharp spears. One of them, the slightly taller, but slimmer one, had a shield, while the other had a bronze net. They both had sinister grins on their faces as they stepped off of the platform and smirked down at the demigods grouped in front of them.
The half-bloods all tensed and grasped their weapons, glaring back at the giants as the taller of the two monsters began to cackle, while the other, who had a severe and ugly scar across his neck, simply smirked and made a strange grunting noise.
"So, you've come to rescue your friend, just as Mother predicted you would," the non-scarred one announced. "How very sentimental you heroes are."
Hazel, uncharacteristically enraged, spat at his feet. "Better sentimental than soulless!" she exclaimed furiously, glaring at him.
His expression twisted into a scowl, as Frank grabbed his girlfriend by the arm and pulled her back, eyeing the giant fearfully.
"I," the giant began, after finally ceasing his glaring competition with the short girl. "am Gration, the Bane of Artemis and this is my brother Hopladamus, born to destroy Apollo and doze the light of the sun itself! And you, young half-bloods, have the honour of witnessing their destruction today."
"Do not be so certain of your victory," a woman's voice called from behind the giants. "We defeated you before, and we will do so again!"
The two groups turned. In the doorway stood two people. A woman, appearing to be about twenty-years-old, with silver-yellow eyes and long auburn hair held back in a tight braid, dressed in a silver battle toga beneath Imperial Gold armour. Beside her was the most handsome any of the demigods had ever seen, with blonde hair in a Roman-style cut, and sky-blue eyes dark with fury. Like his sister, he wore a battle toga (in gold rather than silver) and Imperial Gold armour. Both of them were armed with intricate bows and had quivers filled with shining silver and gold arrows strapped to their sides.
"Diana, Apollo," Gration smirked at the two gods, who glared back. "How good of you to join us. And just in time to witness the destruction of the Seven, at that."
Diana glared at him, and, quick as lightning, her bow was nocked and raised. Too quickly for any of the demigods to see, an arrow shot towards him, in what they were certain would be a perfect bullseye. But, just with just centimetres to spare, Hopladamus' hand shot up and he grabbed the arrow out of the air in front of his brother, snapping it in half with ease and letting the two halves fall to the ground.
Diana snarled in fury, and Apollo made to speak, but he was interrupted by a cry of shock and pain from Lena. Everybody spun, looking at her just in time to see her collapse to her knees, hands clutching at her stomach, where a dark bloodstain was rapidly forming and growing on her orange 'Camp Half-Blood' t-shirt. But the most distressingly part of the scene was the anguish and betrayal on her face at the one who had attacked her.
Too intent on the scene between the Twin Archers and their Banes, none of the Seven had noticed as Leo's typically cheerful and brown eyes had turned cruel and gold. Trusting him completely, her own gaze fixed on the obvious enemies, Lena hadn't tensed when he stepped closer to her side, grasping her sword-arm to pull her nearer to him. She thought the screwdriver in his hand, and his actions, were merely part of a plan he had come up with and was about to tell her.
Then she saw his eyes and made to call out or struggle. But, before she could do anything, he was already piercing her abdomen with the same Phillips head screwdriver that she had given him as a birthday present several months prior. The tool perforated her just below her heart, in between her ribs. Lena cried out, tasting the familiar, metallic taste of blood in her mouth as the warm liquid spurted out of her lips. He pulled the screwdriver back out as the others turned to them, and she collapsed to the ground in a helpless heap, blood pooling around her body in a crimson halo.
For a second, as she stared up at her boyfriend through darkening vision, she thought his eyes returned to the brown that she knew and loved. But it was an unfamiliar look of horror on his face, not his typical expression of delight and mischief. It vanished so quickly into the blank mask of whatever had taken him over that she wasn't even sure if it hadn't simply been her own mind deluding her as she fainted.
The possessed Leo's attack on Lena seemed to be a cue.
Gration slammed his hand onto a button that none of the heroes had noticed, releasing the angry animals from their cages. They were all clearly trained, because they completely ignored the giants and gods, instead bounding for the half-bloods, who had all been stunned into motionless by the sudden carnage. Frank, at the sight of the attacking animals, managed to regain his senses. His body rippled, and he changed into a large brown bear, rushing to face them. Luke was forced to join him a second later, when a hyena jumped at him and he just barely avoided its' claws.
Meanwhile, Apollo was attempting to get to Lena's side, aware that time was of the essence. Thalia, well experienced with battlefield triage, had already gotten to her side and was kneeling at her side, trying to stem the bleeding while Hazel attempted to hold off Leo without hurting him in any permanent manner.
Diana and Apollo shot arrow after arrow, trying to clear a path through the triumphantly cackling giants and the attacking animals so they could get to the half-bloods' sides to help the group. They couldn't flash themselves, both because of the structure itself, which was in no shape to contain the full essence of a god with collapsing in on itself, and because the heroes would be killed by it. There was no way for them to close them eyes without being killed by their opponents, and if they saw the gods' true forms, that would also kill them. Therefore, they were pinned down.
In the midst of all of the chaotic fighting, no one noticed as the bronze jar where Nico had been kept fell over onto its' side, the lid sliding off and sending a wave of air into the tiny cage.
The son of Hades gasped, his dark eyes snapping open wide as he struggled to breathe and clamber out of the jar, still unseen by any of the furiously fighting groups.

Up on Olympus, the gods had been gathered in the War Room to watch the events occurring in Rome. On one screen, Jason was just about to enter the cavern where he would meet with the cult of Mithras. On the other, the battle between the Twins, six of the Seven, and the giants Gration and Hopladamus was playing out badly for their side.
The gods grimaced when the heroes spoke to the once-again sane nymphs. Hermes looked down as Hagno declared how excited she was to see Pan again before leaving to follow her sisters. Then they tensed as the group continued on in search of Nico di'Angelo and the giants.
Despite the plan to have keep the gods from fighting their Banes as much as possible, Apollo had predicted catastrophic failure if anybody other than he and Diana fought Gration and Hopladamus in Rome. As such, the Twins had hastened to Rome, but were forced by the wards put in place to take a more mortal route, rather than simply flashing in as soon as the demigods arrived.
They gods watched in tense silence as the two giants arrived.
But none of them suspected Gaia's plan until too late. Akantha shot to her feet, screaming in horror and grief as her only surviving Greek child collapsed in a pool of blood.
Hermes, Bellona and Neptune were forced to tackle her and hold her writhing form in place as she struggled to go and help her injured child. They all knew that they could do nothing but watch as the events unfolded themselves.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO/HOO. I'm sorry if everybody thinks that this chapter is crap, I struggled with it for a while. I don't know much about battles or fighting, and I don't want to make them seem anything less than the horrific, traumatic events that they are by downplaying it. Hopefully my next will be better.

Everything had all gone so wrong, so fast, Thalia couldn't keep up. One moment the Fates had actually seemed to be on their side for once. The Twin Archers were there, ready to defeat their respective opponents, and their group outnumbered the giants. Admittedly, these two giants had seemed to be more sensible than most giants, but Thalia had been confident in their chances of success. Then it had all fallen apart in a single moment.
How long had Leo been possessed? She wondered as she pressed down as hard as she could on Lena's wound. Had he been under the control of Gaia and her minions this whole time? Why hadn't any of them noticed? Had he been trapped in his own head, screaming for someone to notice his plight and the danger to them all, this whole time? Speaking of danger to them all, what if the Gaia had taken advantage of her control over the Argo II's sole engineer and main pilot to sabotage the ship?
Thalia shook her head, pushing those thoughts out of her mind. All of that was vitally important, of course. They would need to do a careful and thorough check later to make sure the Argo II was undamaged, and that none of the rest of them were also under Gaia's control. But for now, animals were everywhere trying to rip the half-bloods to shreds, the Heavenly Twins were pinned down, and one of Thalia's closest friends was bleeding death beneath her hands.
Hazel stood above them, trying to protect the other two girls, incapacitate Leo without actually harming him, and keep the various animals at bay all at the same time.
Thankfully, while Leo was a brilliant engineer and craftsman, he was terrible when it came to outright fighting. Hazel preformed a sort of jab, using the opportunity it created to step inside and then slam the pommel of her sword into the side of Leo's head. He dropped to the ground immediately, unconscious. Despite that, Thalia kept a wary eye on his form, both to ensure he wasn't trampled, and that he wouldn't wake up and attack one of them again. Hopefully the blow to his head had been enough to end the possession, at least temporarily.
Thalia glanced around in search of her other friends amongst the chaos-filled underground cavern. Luke and Frank were back-to-back, dealing with three hyenas and a hydra. Luke was bleeding from a long cut that went straight across his stomach in a diagonal cut. Thankfully, it seemed to be shallow, though it still bled. Frank's shoulder was smoking, but his injury had been cauterised by the hydra's fire. No doubt he was in agony, but he was pushing through the pain.
Thank the gods for the demigods' high tolerance for pain. And thank them for the fact that the mortal animals seemed to be as vulnerable to the half-bloods' weapons as the hellhounds were. No matter how illogical Thalia felt that was.
The Twin Archers were living up to their statuses as gods of archery. Not a single arrow was wasted, each one hitting a monster in a lethal position. Unfortunately, the tide of beasts seemed never-ending or lessening, and even killing them was adding to their problems as much as helping.
The air was filled with the gold dust of defeated monsters, and blood that sprayed from the wild animals as they were killed. The thick layer of dust that hovered in the air, combined with the blood and natural darkness of the cavern, all made it hard for any of the half-bloods to see. The flashes of gold and silver light that came from the gods' arrows made it even worse, as the random flares of light caused headaches for the demigods. The steadily piling bodies of dead animals made it awkward for them to navigate the cramped cave.
Leaning against the far wall, evidently content to watch as their enemies were torn apart by wild animals, were Gration and Hopladamus. The sight of their smirks made Thalia fill sick with furious disgust. Beneath her fingers, Lena lay still, her skin getting steadily paler as her blood continued to spill out onto the ground, despite Thalia's attempts to prevent or delay it.
As the daughter of Zeus watched, a cheetah leapt out of from the shadows at Luke. On instinct, Thalia cried out to warn him, but it was unnecessary, and she cursed herself for it. She knew better than that. Artemis shot at the animal even as Thalia called out, the arrow going right through its' throat and into the side of a hellhound that was mid-bound.
But Thalia's cry had distracted her boyfriend. Even as the cheetah crumbled to the ground, adding to their obstacles, Luke was turning towards her voice, and the attack he assumed was coming. The hydra took advantage of his distraction, and slashed at him.
Luke yelled in pain as he went flying and slammed headfirst into the stone. He fell to the ground, lying there in his own puddle of blood.

Watching as things continued to grow steadily worse, the goddess of loyalty knew that she could no longer stand idly by. Taking advantage of those who were restraining her being momentarily distracted by the scene of the battle on the mirror, she flashed away.
She rematerialized in her Roman aspect just outside the wards that had blocked the Twins from entering directly into the cavern, and, without any finesse, began ripping them to pieces. The wards were strong, but Valeria was stronger.
Her domains were some of the few spheres of power under the control of Olympus untainted by the modern world, or the fading belief in their religion. Heroism, bravery, loyalty and strength had all stayed basically the same. Because of it, Valeria and several other gods who controlled metaphysical things, such as Fortuna the goddess of luck and Venus, the goddess of love, were the most powerful of the Olympians, despite common beliefs, as those things didn't change, though society and the world did.
The wards in pieces and swiftly fading, Valeria raced inside. Any beings who got in her way were incinerated, and, if someone were to ask her, the goddess would be unable to say if they were all monsters or not. Nor would she be able to bring herself to truly care.
The sight inside was even worse than it had appeared to be on the screen. Hazel was struggling to fend off multiple animals, including two hellhounds, the bodies of dead animals littered the floor and caused the half-bloods to stumble as they tried to deal with the never-ending stream of vicious creatures. The Olympians were unable to hold them at bay due to Gration's power over wild beasts. Any time they killed one, he simply created a new one to replace it.
Valeria felt her heart thud painfully against her chest as she spotted her daughter. Hazel had been forced away from Lena and Thalia to get between her weak brother and a pair of hellhounds. While necessary, it had forced Thalia to start fighting. The pool of blood Lena lay in grew larger and larger even as she watched.
The goddess of strength snarled in fury, and darted into the battle like an avenging angel, with Anaklusmos glowing in her hands. Hacking everything in her way into a dozen pieces, Valeria swiftly cut a path to the Twins. Diana dealt with any creatures that somehow managed to get in close to them, whilst her brother kept the rest at bay with his bow and unfailing aim. Even with their combined fighting prowess and Diana's own power over wild animals, however, they were unable to either create a path to their mortal allies, or get to their Banes to fight them and turn the tide in their favour.
The sight of Valeria's arrival had the two giants tensing, and she saw Gration summon more of his enslaved beasts. The good news was he directed them away from the demigods, who took advantage to cluster together as best they could. The bad news was that he directed them towards the gods, who had gathered together between the door and the centre of the room to fight.
"Valeria!" Diana called, a smile of relief flickering over her lips briefly before she returned to her previous expression of steely focus. She was currently grappling with a huge tiger about twice her size, using it to brace herself as she kicked backwards and slammed her foot into a hyena that was creeping up behind her. It went flying back into the wall, where the impact split its' head open.
"Your help is most welcome, my dear Valeria," the god of poetry called to her as he fired four arrows. Each went in a different direction, hitting bullseyes. He was lucky he wasn't trying to come up with any poems at the moment, otherwise he would have immediately invoked her fury.
In other circumstances, she might have flirted with him a bit. And she enjoyed his poetry, no matter how terrible some of his rhymes were. But with her daughter's spirit half-way to the Underworld across the room, her only concern was getting the god of healing across the gap to attend to her child.
"I'll clear you a path," she sent to him mentally. "You heal the heroes while Diana and I hold them off. Then we'll go for the giants."
The Twins each gave her their acknowledgement of the plan and Valeria took it as her cue. Without another word, she launched herself into the middle of the room, where she began proving that she had earned her reputation for being the greatest fighter in history, goddess or mortal.
Diana swiftly darted in to join her, and together they quickly began to regain the advantage. At the same time, Apollo raced over to the demigods and began to tend their injuries. He grimaced as he used his powers to diagnose them, before beginning to heal Lena and Nico both at once. He usually hated to divide his attention between patients, but in this case he had no choice. If he delayed healing for either of them, they wouldn't make it.
Gration glared at the sight of the two goddesses' fighting prowess and continued to summon more beasts to try to overwhelm them. (He was hopeless at close-quarters combat) Hopladamus, who was Apollo's bane and utterly incompetent at aiming a bow, charged at them.
By silent agreement, Diana took over dealing with the animals while Valeria spun to face Hopladamus. Her sword met his spear with a loud clash, the impact making her arms shudder from the force of it. She grimaced. Despite his uselessness with archery, the giant more than made up for his deficit when it came to his spear and net, which was virtually indestructible.
She jumped back out of range of his swipe, a victorious smirk forming as she spotted Thalia and Hazel rushing to help her, weapons raised and rage on their faces.
After the girls joined, it became a mess of loud clashing, swearing and the blurred series of images that was the only thing Valeria ever managed to recall about her fights. At some point, Hazel managed to use the diamonds embedded in Hopladamus' net to get it away from him, heavily impacting his ability to fight.
By the end of the battle, Valeria held Anaklusmos to Hopladamus' damaged throat, while Thalia raised her spear above his abdomen, the long weapon sparking with electricity.
"NO!" Gration bellowed, genuine grief in his voice as she and Thalia turned his twin to dust.
He glared at them, his rage radiating from his trembling body. "You dare," he growled, his rage turning his vision red and ruining his ability to think properly. "You imprudent Olympians dare to murder my brother! You will pay for this!"
In a fit of reckless fury, he charged headfirst at her, only to be halted by Apollo appearing between them. The god had an arrow in hand that he used with surgical precision to stab the giant through the heart. At the same time, Frank let loose his only arrow, mere inches to spare between the two as they sunk into his body.
Turning, Valeria saw Lena, still unconscious, but alive and obviously going to stay that way. Luke was up again, worn out but calm, and Diana had already removed the corpses of the dead animals. This particular battle was over, but another, worse one, was yet to come.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own HOO.

Some people would be petrified with fear at the mere thought of falling into Tartartus, the Pit of Monsters. They would shriek the entire time as they fell to their doom, and pray desperately to every god that they could think of for mercy.
Thalia, Daughter of Zeus and Saviour of Olympus, one of the Seven, was not one of those people. Really, she could barely think at all. It was like a dark fog, caused by a mixture of raw shock and horror at the situation, combined with the sickening ass-over-head fall itself, had descended over her mind, keeping her from concentrating on anything save for continuing to breathe through the fall.
If she thought anything towards the gods during her long tumble into the Abyss, it was a series of vicious curses that, after all she had done and sacrificed in their name and the name of Olympus itself, they still wanted more from her.
How, she wondered bitterly, in a rare second of clarity that managed to break through her dizziness, did they expect her to survive this? The only reason Nico had escaped was due to him being captured right after falling into the Pit. And he was the son of Hades! She and Luke were struggling to survive just falling! They hadn't even reached the bottom yet!
For the first part of her fall, she had been unconscious, the speed and sudden change in air pressure knocking her unconscious. When she woke up, she was still falling. The sound of the air whistling as she passed through it so rapidly that she nearly got sick. The only reason that she didn't throw up everything in her stomach was that she hadn't eaten anything since before she and the rest of the New Argonauts had arrived in Rome, and her stomach was empty already. When she finally dared to turn her head slightly, she spotted Luke.
He was curled into a ball to protect himself, his head tucked safely between his stomach and his legs. It had to be a terribly uncomfortable position, and he would no doubt be sore and stiff when he straightened out, after holding that position for gods only knew how long. But she understood why he had chosen to go into that position. It kept his head and stomach protected, and it also kept him from seeing the ground approaching, most likely bringing their doom with it. Not that there was any ground to be seen.
It was simply more of a long tunnel of darkness. No colour could be seen at all, even from their bright orange Camp Half-Blood t-shirts. It all seemed grimly ominous as they fell, deeper and deeper beneath the earth. The very air itself seemed to suffocate her, rejecting her and everything that she stood for, and every instinct within her screamed that she was in enemy territory. But this was far worse, and far more frightening, than when she had been in Camp Jupiter.
Monsters who died all went to Tartarus, but what happened to a demigod if they died in Tartarus? Would their souls still get to the Underworld? The thought that they wouldn't, that she and Luke might die in the Pit of Monsters and their souls be condemned to wander it for the rest of eternity (which would be a very short one, if Gaia had her way) was the worst fate that Thalia could ever conceive of. It was that thought that made her finally start to sob, silently. Tears streamed down her face, and she continued to fall through the tunnel. Eventually, the air started to get hotter, and the tears on her cheeks dried up.
Around the same time, the scenery began to change. She almost wanted it to stay the same. At least then she could pretend this was just a long nightmare, and not the start of what was almost definitely going to be the worst part of her life.
The darkness that she had gotten so used to finally took on a grey-red tinge, stinging her eyes and ruining her vision, which had adjusted to the black void. The whistling in her ears turned into more of a roar. The air became intolerably hot, permeated with a sulphuric smell like rotten eggs that made her empty stomach churn.
Without any other warning, the chute they'd been falling through opened into a vast cavern. Maybe half a mile below them, Thalia could see the bottom. For a moment she was too stunned to think properly. The entire island of Manhattan could have fit inside this cavern—and she couldn't even see the whole of it, despite her bird's eye view. Red clouds hung in the air like vaporized blood. The landscape was all made of rocky black plains, punctuated by jagged mountains and fiery chasms. To her left, the ground dropped off in a series of rugged cliffs, like a huge staircase that was leading deeper into the abyss.
She was briefly reminded of a place in Ireland that Silena had visited once, 'The Giant's Causeway'. The cliffs brought Silena's photos of the place to Thalia's mind. The irony of the name made her smile bitterly.
The stench of sulphur made it hard to concentrate, but she focused on the ground directly below them and saw a ribbon of glittering black liquid snaking through the landscape—a river. Which one though?
There were five rivers running through the Underworld, the Lethe, the Styx, the Cocytus, the Phlegethon, and the Acheron, all flowed into the heart of Tartarus. The River of Forgetfulness, The Oathmaker, the River of Lamentation, the River of Fire (or Healing, depending on what you read) and the River of Pain. Thalia had no desire to go into any of them. Her bath in the Styx had been far more than enough, and the memory of the agony she had felt as she gained the Curse of Achilles made her shiver. That being said, if the myths were right about the Phlegethon being the Underworld's equivalent to ambrosia and nectar...
She reached out, trying twice before she managed to grab hold of her boyfriend's arm and tug him to her. He unfolded from his curled-up position and clutched her close to him. She willingly wrapped her arms around his neck as she frowned in concentration and reached for that place in her gut that she drew her power from. Controlling the 'air', if that's what it really was, was hard, harder than it had ever been before. But she managed, directing their fall and landing them safely on the edge of the river. Still entwined with each other, they fell sideways to collapse, gasping heavily, on the rocky ground.
Despite her discomfort, Thalia didn't want to move. If she sat up, she would have to face reality. She and Luke were trapped in Tartarus. At their feet, the River Cocytus roared past, a flood of liquid wretchedness. She knew that it was Cocytus because she could hear it whispering from where she lay. It muttered to her subconscious, trying to convince her to give up, that her quest was pointless. The sulphurous air stung her lungs and made her skin feel like she was covered in pins and needles. When she looked at her arms, she saw that they were already covered with an angry rash. Cocytus continued to murmur in her mind "You're dead anyway," it taunted her, sounding sickeningly like Gaia. "Just give up. Your existence was a mistake, anyway."
Thalia had always hated to do what she told. Wanting to defy the whispers that she would fail, she tried to push herself into a sitting position and gasped in pain. Luke jerked up at the sound of her cry, and he too let out a sound of pain, though it was more the surprise than any actual feelings of pain. They had a high tolerance of that sort of thing.
Their locked gazes, wearing grim expressions at the situation that they were faced with. The beach wasn't sand. They were sitting on a field of sharp black-glass chips, some of which were now embedded in both Thalia and Luke's palms.
The air was acid. The water was misery. The ground was broken glass. Everything here was designed to hurt and kill. They had no food, no water. No ambrosia, nectar or even mortal medical supplies that they could use to tend their injuries. Only each other, and their weapons.
"What the Hades are we going to do now?" Luke croaked, his voice hoarse. His face was flushed, and Thalia could see patches of a purple rash beginning to form on his skin already. The very atmosphere of Tartarus was rejecting them.
What were they going to do now?
"I don't know," she admitted, feeling dull and stupid. "I suppose standing up would probably be a good start, though?"
He smirked, but it was half-hearted and bleak, not even a shadow of the mischievous grin that she loved so much. They fumbled to their feet, shaking and leaning on each other for support as if they had lost several pints of blood.
Thalia summoned her spear and leaned on it, while Luke used his sword to prop himself up, thankful that it had been strapped so tightly to his side. He didn't want to contemplate what would have happened if he and Thalia had been stranded in Tartarus without any weapons.
"We can do this," he insisted, looking into her electric blue eyes stubbornly. He could read the fear within them, and the doubt. He felt the same, but he also knew that belief was an integral part of a demigod's survival. Not just belief in the gods and monsters that governed the world, but belief in themselves, and their own personal skills. There wasn't anything or anyone whom he believed in more than Thalia.
She swallowed, and raised her chin a trademarked look of defiance. "Of course, we can do this," she sniffed, as if there had never been any doubt on the whole matter. "Why wouldn't we?"
She glanced around, frowning deeply at the lack of navigational tips or any obvious landmarks. "Which way then?" she asked.
She started to bite her lip, but felt the weakened skin tear the minute her teeth grazed it. Not wanting to lose any more blood than necessary given the circumstances, she stopped immediately, and started drumming her fingers on the handle of her long spear instead.
Usually the gleam of the Celestial Bronze was a comfort to her, a bit like a child's security blanket. Now, however, the light made her feel anxious. It felt a bit like she had turned into a lighthouse, summoning all the denizens of the Pit to her and Luke's location.
How many monsters were in Tartarus? She wondered. How many had been sent there by her or Luke, and sought revenge? Could the monsters even be killed in Tartarus, when Tartarus was where they went after being defeated?
She shook her head, forcing those questions to the back of her mind. They would probably find out the answers to them soon enough, anyway.
Luke looked around, wearing his own frown. "Well, I-" he began to say, but a sound interrupted him. They froze, raising their weapons and turning to scan the area. But it was futile, and they knew it. With the amount of broken boulders scattered around, there were dozens of shadows that had the potential to be concealing some monster, eager to taste the flesh of the Saviour of Olympus and her lover.
Thalia turned slightly, trying to see into a dark corner formed by the cliff, and stumbled, her ankle twisting and sending her sprawling, her spear rolling away, out of her reach. Luke called her name, fear in his voice. A second later, as a massive dark shape hurtled down at her.
It was a snarling, monstrous blob with spindly barbed legs and glinting eyes. She had time to think: so that's Arachne. But she was stuck, the pain from her ankle strangely bad for a mere twist and her senses smothered by the sickly-sweet smell.
Then she heard the familiar sound of Luke's sword. Swishing through the air His blade swept over her head in a glowing bronze arc. A horrible wail echoed through the canyon.
The golden dust that had once been the Mother of Spiders rained over her body like a mist made of gold. Thalia started to cry again.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own HOO. This chapter will explain how Thalia and Luke fell into Tartarus, and the next will show a glimpse of the gods. And later I will, on request, be posting a one shot in Akantha Flowers, showing Akantha having a regular funday with some other gods before the Wars, so keep an eye out.

The atmosphere aboard the Argo II was dismal. Leo worked in constant silence at the ship, refusing to speak to anyone, even Lena. Actually, he avoided Lena in particular, as he was stricken with guilt over having stabbed her, and he couldn't bring himself to meet her eyes. Lena herself was pale-faced and strained, seeming more like a ghost than anything else. The one time Leo had reached out to touch her, she had flinched away from him in instinctive fear. That had only made things worse between the two.
Nico was bedridden in Hazel's bed while he recovered from his stay in the giants' hands, and Hazel only left his side if she was on watch. When she did leave, Frank took over care of his girlfriend's brother, and the two had become sort-of friends. Coach Hedge had locked himself away, blaming himself for Luke and Thalia falling into the Pit. "I should've blown more stuff up!" he moaned regularly, tears pouring freely from his eyes.
Finally, Jason stalked the ship with a tight air around him, eating and sleeping the bare minimum required to survive.
More than anyone else, Jason blamed himself for his elder sister and her boyfriend falling into the Pit. After all, they had been saving him when they got caught in the pull of the Abyss.

Arachne's cavern was filled with chaos as the demigods rushed around. Frank, in the form of a giant eagle, was working with Leo and Hedge (who were controlling a long crane that was coming out of the Argo II's hull) to secure the Parthenos. Thalia and Jason were helping them as best they could, working together to untangle it from the thick layers of web that tied it to the lair.

Meanwhile, in the cave itself, Hazel was struggling to hold the ground together using pure willpower. Despite her best efforts, though, the tug of Tartarus was too strong. The ground was crumbling away more with every second. Luke knew that his shoes would be no match for the tug of Tartarus' gravity, and so he cringed against the wall, praying to Akantha for help. Lena and Nico were both aboard the Argo, Lena preparing the ship to be able to leave as soon as everyone and the statue were all safely aboard.

"We need to hurry!" Thalia yelled to her friends as she dodged a large piece of debris. "We need to get out of here before the ground's completely gone!"
"Almost got it!" Jason called back. "Just one more strand! Got it!" he added a moment later, as his sword finally cut through the last of the sticky white web. "Leo, pull it up! Pull it up!"

Immediately, Leo and Hedge began hauling the crane back, its' claw tight around the Parthenos, as Frank flew beside them as a guard. Meanwhile, the two children of the sky god rushed over to grab the other two half-bloods still in the cave so they too could flee the place.

Thalia grabbed Luke, and Jason got Hazel. They began flying back up to the Argo, but it was difficult. They had to fight against the winds, and they could feel Tartarus trying to pull them in. The cars from the lot and the large shards of debris that kept raining down on top of them didn't help either, as they kept having to dodge them, often having to go lower again at the same time.

Eventually, it all came to a head. A large white camper van fell into the hole, right above Jason and Hazel. They were too low to risk going further down, and the winds were too strong for them to simply fly sideways.

Thalia and Luke saw it and exchanged quick glances. They had a silent conversation in that seconds-long look, the kind that only people who have known each other inside and out for years could. And they nodded to each other, silently agreeing about what they had to do.

Clutching each other tightly, they flew sideways, right into Jason and Hazel, who were bracing themselves for the impact of the van. The two cried out in surprise as they were sent careening into the hard wall, but managed not to fall of the ledge they had crashed into. They huddled together against the wall, watching in stupefied horror as Thalia and Luke were caught in the pull of the Pit. Hazel shrieked and held Jason back as the two Heroes of Olympus went tumbling into the darkness.

"We'll meet you at the Doors!" Luke bellowed as he was dragged downwards. "Get Nico to take you there! We-" whatever else he wanted to say was lost in the sounds of the winds as he fell out of their sight.

By the time Frank and the rest of the New Argonauts had arrived, the tunnel to Tartarus was gone. And so were Thalia and Luke. Only Jason and Hazel were left, Jason staring right ahead in shock, while Hazel sobbed hysterically into her hands, the force of her tears making her slim body shake violently.

Jason knew that it was his fault that Thalia and Luke were gone. If he had dodged the van himself, if he had been quicker in getting the Parthenos out of the webbing... Godsdamnit, he should have been able to do something!
"Jason," Lena stuck her head around the door to the training room. Her usually tanned skin was pale and her eyes were tinged with red from her frequent bouts of crying over the past week and a half.
Despite her pain, however, Lena had not been moping about like the rest of them. Her strength had shone through once again, and she had stepped forward to take control of the crew before they all fell apart. Despite the awkwardness that continued to hover between her and Leo, she hadn't let it affect the quest in any way. He admired her for that. Jason couldn't say that he'd been half as regal and composed as she was being.
"What?" he asked dully, not stopping hacking at the automatons Leo's half-siblings Nyssa and Christopher (not Chris) had built for the Seven to train against. One was shaped like a hellhound, one like a draecenae, and the third one was like an empousa.
"We're about to land in Bologna," Lena reported, slapping the button to deactivate the robots. "Nico has news for us."
"Great," he mumbled, returning Ivlivs to its' coin form and following her to the dining room.
Everybody was there already, save for Coach Hedge, who was standing guard on the deck. Lena strode to the seat at the top of the table and sat down, Jason taking his usual place at her left-hand side.
"Nico has some new information in regards to the House of Hades," Lena announced plainly, getting right down to the point. "Nico, if you would?"
Nico, pale and weak, but straight-backed and grimly determined, sat forward. "I communed with the dead last night," he stated, as if speaking to the dead was an everyday kind of thing. "I was able to learn more about what we'll face," he continued. "In ancient times, the House of Hades was a major site for Greek pilgrims. They would come to speak with the dead and honour their ancestors."
Leo frowned. "Sounds like Día de los Muertos," he commented. "My Aunt Rosa took that kind of stuff seriously."
Frank grunted. "Chinese have that, too," he stated, "ancestor worship, sweeping the graves in the springtime." He glanced at Leo. "Your Aunt Rosa sounds like she would've gotten along with my grandmother."
Leo grimaced. "Yeah," he said unenthusiastically. "I'm sure they would've been best buds."
Nico cleared his throat. "A lot of cultures have seasonal traditions to honour the dead, but the House of Hades was open year-round. Pilgrims could actually speak to the ghosts. In Greek, the place was called the Necromanteion, the Oracle of Death. You'd work your way through different levels of tunnels, leaving offerings and drinking special potions—"
"Special potions," Leo muttered. "Yum."
Lena leaned over and wacked his head, like it was two weeks ago and he had never stabbed her in the stomach, but she didn't look at him. "Leo, shut up. Nico, go on."
"The pilgrims believed that each level of the temple brought you closer to the Underworld, until the dead would appear before you," Nico continued with his explanation. "If they were pleased with your offerings, they would answer your questions, maybe even tell you the future."
Frank tapped his mug of hot chocolate. "And if the spirits weren't pleased?"
"Some pilgrims found nothing," Nico said. "Some went insane, or died after leaving the temple. Others lost their way in the tunnels and were never seen again."
"The point is," Lena cut in quickly, "Nico found some information that might help us."
"Yeah." Nico was blatantly glum, and it made his companions' nerves increase. "The ghost I spoke to last night…he was a former priest of Hecate. He confirmed what the goddess told Hazel yesterday at the crossroads. In the first war with the giants, Hecate fought for the gods. She slew one of the giants—one who'd been designed as the anti-Hecate. A guy named Clytius."
"Dark dude," Leo guessed. "Wrapped in shadows."
Hazel turned toward him, her gold eyes narrowing. "Leo, how did you know that?"
"Kind of had a dream."
No one was particularly surprised by his words. It was a logical explanation, for a half-blood, at least. Lena silently reached over to rub his arm in silent support as Leo explained how he had learned of an attack on Camp Half-Blood by the giants. Jason tried not to shudder as he listened to Leo describe Camp Half-Blood in ruins. He told them about the dark giant, and the strange woman on Half-Blood Hill, offering him a multiple-choice death.
"So the giant is Clytius," Jason muttered, pushing away his drink. "I suppose that he'll be waiting for us, guarding the Doors of Death."
"And Camp Half-Blood is going to be attacked," Lena added, her face lined with worry for her home. She had lived at Camp Half-Blood since she was ten, seen it through multiple invasions. It still terrified her, to think of her safe haven being attacked. She forced her dread aside to think of the practicalities of the situation.
"We'll have to contact Chiron and warn him," she muttered, drumming her fingers on the table. "At least there's a month to prepare. Maybe the Party Ponies would be willingly to help."
"Reyna will be willing to help, I'm sure," Jason offered. "I can IM her later."
Lena shot him an appreciative smile while Frank rolled up one of the pancakes and started munching. "And the woman in Leo's dream?" he asked.
"She's my problem." Hazel declared as she passed a diamond between her fingers in a sleight of hand. "Hecate mentioned a formidable enemy in the House of Hades—a witch who couldn't be defeated except by me, using magic."
"Do you know magic?" Leo wondered.
"Not yet."
"Ah." He bit his lip. "Any idea who she is?"
Hazel shook her head. "Only that…" She glanced at Nico, and some sort of silent argument happened between them. It was obvious to everyone that the two of them had had private conversations about the House of Hades, and they weren't sharing all the details. No one had pressed, however, trusting that they would tell when the information was needed. "Only that she won't be easy to defeat."
"But there is some good news," Nico offered, with a half-hearted attempt at a smile. "The ghost I talked to explained how Hecate defeated Clytius in the first war. She used her torches to set his hair on fire. He burned to death. In other words, fire is his weakness."
Everybody looked at Leo.
"Oh," he said. "Okay."
Lena reached over and squeezed his hand, giving him a gentle smile. "Well, that's good," she murmured. "And you won't be alone, Leo. We'll all be there too, giving support."
"Thanks," he mumbled back. The others all politely averted their eyes from the scene, which felt very intimate for whatever reason.
"And when is this happening, again?" Leo finally asked.
"August first," Hazel replied straight away. "The Feast of Spes, goddess of Hope."

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own HOO. FYI, Pete is the name Thalia gave to amnesiac-Iapetus. You see where it comes from, right? IaPETus. I hadn't intended to add him and Damasen at first, but 'foes bear arms'. He's needed.

Akantha winced as she peeked around the door of the Great Hall of the Gods. Her king sat on his throne, a dark snarl on his face as he scowled at thin air like it had personally offended His Majesty. She dreaded having to do what she needed to do. And yet, despite the personal risks to herself, she didn't exactly have much choice in the matter. Zeus' fury was taking its' toll on the mortal world in the form of massive, long-lasting storms. If he didn't calm down enough to creating them soon enough, then there'd be no civilization left for Olympus to defend.
The poor half-bloods were all terrified, sacrificing the majority of their food supplies to the gods and Zeus in particular, trying desperately to appease him. The death tolls for the mortals in America on its' own were in the millions. That wasn't even counting the missing, or the dead and lost in the other countries of the world. Other pantheons had been registering complaints at the damage to their territories.
The sole bright side of everything was that Apollo had managed to stop Hermes before he could crash the Internet. Instead, he had merely blocked up the Post Office. It was a bureaucratic disaster for the mortals, but the storms were so bad they couldn't have sent anything anyway. And they were so reliant on the Internet now that if Hermes had crashed it, the entire society would have been destroyed as a consequence.
As a result of all of it, Akantha had been chosen to go and try to calm the King of Olympus down. Hera had offered to go, but the dratted goddess of families, despite being the patroness of young women, had been barely (and badly) hiding her smugness at her stepdaughter's fate, and her hope that the young woman wouldn't survive the Abyss. If she had gone to try and ease her husband's fury, she would probably have only made everything even worse.
So instead, the king's favourite advisor was going.
"My lord," she called to him as she stepped inside, closing the door softly behind her. She went half-way up the hall and stopped, curtseying before him and keeping her eyes fixed on the floor in a submissive manner.
Such things didn't come naturally to her, but she could do it, when she remembered what was at stake. Above all, Akantha was loyal to Western Civilization, and she would do whatever was necessary in order to protect it. Including humbling herself. It was easier, given that he was her king, then it would have been to do the same thing to anybody else.
"What is it, Akantha?" Zeus growled. He glowered at her darkly, the air smelling heavily of ozone as he gripped his Master Bolt so tightly his knuckles turned whiter than Hades' own pale skin.
"My lord, we, that is to say, the rest of the Council, are concerned," she began, making sure that she was treading very, very carefully. All of the Big Three had easily inflamed tempers, with her own father being the most easy-going, and Zeus turning from calm as clear skies to angry as a storm cloud within a heartbeat.
"Concerned about what?" Zeus snapped back, though his even angrier expression said that he knew exactly what was worrying the rest of the gods.
"The latest death tolls are more than six billion mortals in less than three days," Akantha said delicately. "And that's not counting the others who've died in the past ten days, or the nature spirits. Lord Hades and Thanatos are unable to keep up with the sudden influx of dead into the Underworld. The demigods are terrified, and the other pantheons are submitting complaints. We are in danger of breaching our treaties with them, at the worst possible time for our people. Apollo and Artemis cannot make their rounds, the storms are too strong. Artemis was knocked out of the sky when she tried, it was so bad."
He narrowed his eyes at her warningly, daring her to say what they both knew that she needed to. "What are you saying, Akantha?" he demanded.
She straightened, meeting his eyes and putting away all pretences of submission. She had to make him listen. And she knew exactly what to say to make him do so. "My lord, you must stop taking your fear and anger over Thalia's fate out on the world. The only ones at fault for all of this, are Gaia and her giants. You must focus your rage into defeating them, or Thalia's sacrifice will have been for nought. It will do no good to defeat Gaia, as we will, if there are nothing but ruins left for us afterward. You must stop the storms my lord. You are destroying your own kingdom."
He shot to his feet, rage radiating from his body, which was trembling with anger. "GET OUT!" he bellowed at her, raising his Bolt like he intended to zap her with it. "NOW! OUT!"
She turned and left the room at a calm pace, her long Grecian-styled dress swishing around her ankles. As she closed the door behind her once again, she sensed the storms that had been plaguing the world for the past week and a half begin to die down. A satisfied, but tired, smirk played at the edges of her lips as she trotted down the steps to where Apollo, Aphrodite and Hephaestus were waiting for her. Aphrodite and Hephaestus had their arms linked, with Aphrodite leaning against her husband and playing worriedly with a loose thread on his dungaree overalls. Apollo had his arms crossed over his chest, and all three of the other Olympians wore anxious and stressed expressions. The dark air that hung around everyone seemed particularly wrong when it came to Apollo and Aphrodite, given the pair's typically cheerful attitudes.
"How'd it go, then?" Apollo asked tensely.
"You managed to get through to him, obviously," Aphrodite added. "But is he still furious?"
"Very," Akantha bobbed her head. "But hopefully he'll listen to me and concentrate that fury on Gaia and her armies, instead of the innocent mortals."
"If he does," Hephaetus spoke up, startling them. The taciturn god typically left the conversation to his wife, letting her speak for them both. "Then the Fates themselves won't be able to save any of them."
"Ain't that the truth," Apollo muttered, a distant look in his sky-blue eyes as he stared out at something only he could see.

Thalia wasn't sure what made her angriest. The fact that she and Luke were literally in Hell, that they had been reduced to drinking fire that tasted of petrol to survive, or that they were now surrounded by arai.
Actually, right that instant, it was probably the arai that made her most furious. Where the Hades had the idea of justice come from, because Thalia's life was proof that there was no such thing. As was every other half-blood in existence.
At least the monsters could be defeated, she comforted herself. Small comfort, they could temporarily send their enemies further down into Tartarus. But the downside of that was that, as far as they could tell from eavesdropping on various conversations between various monsters, the Doors of Death were in the very middle of the very bottom of the Pit. As a result, every monster they killed made the legion they were going to face grow larger. Or else it allowed the monster out into the mortal world, where it became another threat for their friends to face.
She shook the thoughts away, forcing her mind to concentrate on the present situation.
"How many on your side?" she whispered to Luke, who was guarding her back, just as she was guarding his.
"Thirteen," he muttered in reply. "What about you?"
She scanned the group of arai. If not for the number of them, as well as the fact that none of them carried a whip, she might have mistaken them for the Furies. They certainly looked like the Kindly Ones did. They were wrinkled old hags with large, bat-like wings, brass talons, and glowing red eyes. They wore dresses made of tattered black silk, and their faces were twisted and ravenous. No doubt the thought of BBQed heroes was a tasty one for them all.
"Fifteen, above and around," she informed him grimly. And all of them would inflict a wound on them, should Thalia or Luke land a lethal blow. And each would probably be a mortal wound, as the monsters had all used their dying breaths to create those curses. She almost wanted to ask if the situation could possibly get worse, but she didn't want to tempt the Fates.
"So, twenty-eight all together," Luke muttered. "Γαμώ." That summed the whole mess up perfectly, in Thalia's opinion.
"We go down fighting together, yeah?" she said, nudging his arm with her elbow.
He flashed her a quick grin before returning his gaze to their current enemies. "Of course."
"How sweet," the lead arai sneered. "Just like all heroes. Going down fighting. So very foolish and futile of you."
Thalia glared, but refused to engage the hag in a verbal fight. She hadn't had any of the Phlegethon fire in over thirty minutes, and she needed to save as much of her energy for the coming fight as possible. Especially as she would need to get herself and Luke back to the River of Healing as soon as she could after the fight was over, so the 'fire-water' could heal their wounds. And Pete was gone, furious at how she had used him. She couldn't even blame him. She had used him, just as the gods had used her, for years.
She felt Luke shift onto the balls of his feet, and adjusted her own footing in preparation to attack. But the arai moved first, and before Thalia fully realized what was happening, she was being descended on by flying hags, scratching and clawing at her.
Within seconds, she and Luke were forced apart by the group of demons, and the tide quickly turned against them.
Although they took out about three arai each within the first few minutes of the battle, they paid for it. Luke gained a long slash across his stomach, a stab wound through his shoulder, and an arrow wound to his thigh. Thalia, in turn, received a deep cut to her shield arm, one that went so deep it hit her arm bone, at least three broken ribs by the feel of it, and a broken ankle. Despite the injuries, though, they both managed to keep upright, fighting with everything in them.
But, with each arai they defeated, they earned themselves another injury, one that could easily be fatal on its' own. Combined? Thalia knew that they were dead.
Eventually, Luke was sprawled unconscious behind her, lying in an ever-growing pool of blood. There was a scar crossing straight through both of his eyes, and Thalia feared the worst for his vision. If he was permanently blinded... No, she couldn't think about that now. Besides, it probably wouldn't matter. Thalia herself was only standing through pure force of willpower alone, and she seriously doubted her ability to actually fight another arai off. She was so weak, they would probably have to lift her arm and direct the spear into their chests themselves.
She struggled to breathe, feeling her badly crushed ribcage shake as it tried to expand (she had killed another arai, and the three broken ribs had turned into a completely destroyed rib cage instead).
So this was where she was going to die. In Tartarus, from the very wounds she had inflicted on her own enemies, half-dead and trying to protect her equally-injured boyfriend. She couldn't even tell if he was still breathing. For all she knew, he was dead already.
Yet another demon swooped down on her from above, and Thalia somehow managed to stab it, her arm shaking from her own pain and weakness. She felt the effects of the curse immediately, and it made her drop her shield and spear from the pain. Her mouth burned worse than the taste of the firewater of the Phlegethon. She doubled over, shuddering and retching, feeling as if a dozen fiery snakes were working their way down her esophagus.
You have chosen, said the voice of the arai, the curse of Phineas…an excellent painful death.
White smoke curled up from her body as she slumped to the ground. She crawled to Luke's side, reaching out to rest her hand on his arm. Her own chin landed on her upper-arm. "'m so s'ry," she mumbled to him weakly. "I l've y'u."
He didn't stir, and she felt an ache in her heart far worse than any of the arai's curses. "'m s'ry, Pete," she mumbled. "Pl'se t'll N'co th't too."
To her surprise, as blackness crept over her vision, she thought she saw one of the arai burst into gold dust. But then again, it was probably just wishful thinking. A nice dying sight though, even if it was completely fake.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO/HOO. Enjoy the newest chapter. After this, I think that I'm going to skip ahead to them arriving at the House of Hades.

Venice was beautiful, Lena had to admit. She gazed out over the Floating City as the Argo II descended into one of the many, overcrowded docks that were scattered over the city.
In fact, it was probably the most beautiful city that she had ever seen. On one side of the busy wharf they were entering was a shipping channel about half a kilometre wide. On the other spread the City of Canals itself. A mess of red-tiled roofs, metal church domes, steepled towers, and sun-bleached buildings in all the primary colours and more—red, white, ochre, pink, and orange, all packed tightly together.
Everywhere you looked you could see various statues of lions. They were on top of pedestals, over doorways, on the porticoes of the largest buildings. Lena just hoped that none of them were automatons, because she didn't fancy becoming a lion tamer for the circus.
Where streets would be in every other city in the world, canals filled with water in various shades of blue and green snaked their way through the neighbourhoods, each one with motorboats and gondolas gliding through them. People lined the sidewalks, shopping, browsing the markets and having ice-cream, happy and oblivious to the war for the fate of the world that was being fought right under their noses.
Yes, it was definitely the most unique and beautiful place that she had ever laid eyes on.
For once, she actually felt like she was at peace. Akantha was deeply connected to water through her father, even after her ascension to godhood, and her children had all inherited a love of the sea. Being so near the water almost managed to soothe the stress and the headache that Lena had been feeling since she had woken up seven months prior to the sound of the conch shell being blown and Luke yelling that Thalia was missing.
Unfortunately, as she was still the current leader of the quest, given everyone else was on the verge of having mental breakdowns, (and who could blame any of them for that? They were just kids after all, ranging from thirteen to sixteen, and the fate of the world was resting on their shoulders. How the Hades had the Fates come to the conclusion that was a good idea in any way?) Lena needed to get down to business.
"Alright," she said, turning her back on the city to look at her comrades, all ready and waiting on the deck. "Who wants to go on the mission and find that address?"
"Wait," Hazel interrupted before anybody could reply. She pointed urgently at something as the Argo II clicked into an empty spot at the wharf. "Look at that! What are those things?"
Lena spun back around, her dark ponytail whipping against her cheek. She spotted the problem immediately, and groaned in frustration as her sense of peace evaporated immediately. What had, from the sky, appeared to be a large number of dogs, was in fact a trick of the Mist. They were, in fact, some sort of monster that Lena had never seen or heard of before. And very strange monsters they were, too.
Each creature was about the size of a cow, with a bowed back like a broken-down horse, matted grey fur, skinny legs, and black cloven hooves. The creatures' heads seemed much too heavy for their necks. Their long, anteater-like snouts drooped to the ground. Their overgrown grey manes completely covered their eyes. As the group of demigods watched, one of them flickered, changing in a large beagle.
Several people were patting and cooing at the things, and Lena said a silent prayer of thanks to the gods that monsters were generally uninterested in mortals, because there was no way in Tar-Hades, that the New Argonauts could defeat all of the creatures, especially when the narrow streets were so packed with mortals who would only see a group of crazy teenagers attacking a pack of cute stray dogs.
Any vestiges of peace she had been feeling swiftly slipped away as she considered the situation with a grim expression.
"The mortals think they're stray dogs," Jason pointed out redundantly.
"Or pets roaming around," Lena shrugged. "My dad went to a business meeting in Venice once. I remember him telling me there were dogs everywhere. Venetians love dogs. Some kind of local superstition or something, I bet. Still, they're not attacking them at least."
"They don't look too scary," Leo said hopefully. "Maybe they're vegetarian."
"That would be lucky for us," Nico drawled. "And demigods are never lucky."
Lena hid the sympathetic look she wanted to send him, knowing that he wouldn't appreciate her sympathy for him.
In many ways, the Greek children of the Big Three had it far worse than their Roman half-siblings. As far as Lena understood, the Romans had been completely unaware of the Great Prophecy, and as such had felt only awe (and probably some jealousy) towards Jason as he was growing up. The Titan War had been over by the time Hazel came to Camp Jupiter, and so neither of the Romans had lived under the shadow of the First Great Prophecy.
In Camp Half-Blood however, most people had held some amount of wariness towards Thalia and the di'Angelos, knowing that there was a chance that one of them could destroy the world. Most of them felt guilty about it, because the three were good people, but half-god or not, demigods were still human beings, with human fears and reactions.
Nico, being the son of the Lord of the Dead and an amnesiac from the 1940s, had it the worst. It didn't help that he had come to the conclusion that no one would ever like or trust him due to his heritage, and he had drawn into himself as a result.
"But what are they?" Frank asked. "They look like…a group of starving, shaggy cows with sheepdog hair."
Everybody exchanged glances and shrugs, but apparently no one recognized what type of creature the things were. That didn't reassure Lena, as it reminded her of the Great Stirring, and monsters so old even the gods had forgotten them returning from Tartarus. But it was supposed to be over, unless Gaia beginning to wake up from her millennia of slumber had restarted it. In which case, they had yet another problem to add to their list of disasters to deal with.
"Maybe they're harmless," Leo suggested, breaking Lena out of her thoughts "They're ignoring the mortals."
"Harmless!" Hedge laughed scornfully at that. Lena sort of agreed with him. The words 'harmless' and 'monsters' didn't go together, at all. Even Tyson, though sweet and childlike, was capable of being lethal. "Valdez, how many harmless monsters have we met? We should just aim the ballistae and see what happens!"
"Absolutely not!" Lena snapped, glaring at the satyr, who frowned in disappointment. "There are too many of them, and the area is too packed with innocents. If we attack and those creatures stampede…" She let her sentence trail off without finishing it, knowing her friends agreed with her from their matching expressions of grimness.
"We'll just have to walk through them and hope they're peaceful," Frank said, his face declaring how much he hated the idea already. "It's the only way we're going to track down the owner of that book."
"Frank is right," Lena nodded. "We'll have to risk it. Leo, what's the address again?"
Leo pulled the leather-bound manual from underneath his arm. He'd slapped a sticky note on the cover with the address the dwarfs in Bologna had given him.
"La Casa Nera," he read. "Calle Frezzeria."
"The Black House," Nico translated. "Calle Frezzeria is the street."
"You speak Italian?" Leo asked, blinking in surprise.
"He is Italian," Lena deadpanned, rolling her eyes, before repeating her earlier question. "Now, again, who's going? No more than three, of course. Nico, seeing as you speak the language, I think you should go. Is that okay?"
Nico nodded curtly, his arms crossed over his chest. Despite having been out of the giants' hands for over a week now, he was still thin and weak looking, with dark shadows under his eyes. Lena, who had been in the bed beside him when they were in the med-bay, had seen the new scars that littered his torso. She had no doubt that the ones on his psyche were far worse.
"Fine," he agreed. "Makes sense. And besides, I can sense a lot of restless spirits in the city. If they decide to attack, I'm the best person to fight them off."
Lena nodded. She had been there when Nico was declared 'the Ghost King', and seen him control spirits. Even Hazel, despite being the daughter of Pluto, had minimal control over the dead. On the other hand, she could control the earth in a way that neither Nico nor Bianca had ever been able to. It was strange how genetics worked, especially for children of the gods.
"Okay, so Nico's going," she confirmed. "Who else then?"
Jason frowned at the horizon. "Maybe I should stay on board. There was a lot of venti in that storm last night. If they decide to attack the ship again…"
He didn't need to finish. They'd all had experiences with angry wind spirits. Jason and Thalia were the only ones who'd had much luck fighting them.
Coach Hedge grunted. "Well, I'm out, too. If you soft-hearted cupcakes are just going to stroll through Venice without even whacking those furry animals on the head, then forget it. I don't like boring expeditions."
"It's okay, Coach." Leo grinned. "We still have to repair the foremast. Then I need your help in the engine room. I've got an idea for a new installation."
"I'll go," Frank offered.
Lena nodded simply. She had noticed how Leo's jokes about Frank's usefulness had been hurting the shapeshifter lately, and she guessed that he wanted to be helpful. Mentally, she made a note to tell Leo to knock it off, because all of them were vital to the quest, and Frank's unique power had saved them a dozen times over. And she would also have a quiet word with Frank as well, to reassure him that he was an important part of their group. Keeping her crew's moral up was an important part of being in charge, and Lena was currently the leader of the group. That meant such things were her responsibility.
Lena shot him a stern look, but let it be. "Okay, so that leaves Hazel or me. Hazel?"
"I'll go with them," Hazel agreed, reaching over to take Frank's hand and flashing a gentle smile at her half-brother.
It always amazed Lena how sweet and naïve Hazel was. Not even the youngest of the Aphrodite girls back at Camp were so gentle. Everybody was tainted and bitter from their experiences, ranging from parental troubles (mortal and immortal), to the trials of being a half-blood and a teenager in general. Especially the veterans of the Titan War. How could Hazel be alive, and yet still maintain a shred of innocence in her?
"Alright then, that's settled," Lena clapped her hands together sharply. "Get going. Leo, tell the coach what he needs to do, then the two of us are going off to buy some more supplies."
"But-" Leo began to protest. He clamped his jaw shut at her stern look, giving a resigned nod. Everything decided, the group split up.
An hour later, Lena and Leo were exiting a supermarket, both of them clutching plastic bags full of food and medical supplies. Lena also held a paper bag with several extra t-shirts and bottoms to replace the multiple clothing items that had been damaged beyond repair during their various fights over the past while.
They made their way in silence back to the wharf where the ship was docked, unhindered by any of the monsters. When they got to a bench, Lena stopped.
"We need to talk, Leo," she told him softly as she sat down. He worked his throat furiously for several moments before reluctantly sitting down next to her, leaving a gap of air between them.
"You need to lay off Frank," she said after a minute of trying to organize her thoughts.
"What?" Leo crinkled his brow in confusion.
"Those jibes you keep making," she replied, voice hard. "Like the one about being worth three or four of him. It's not okay. He's a good person. A valuable member of this quest. You're trying to put him down to cover up your own insecurities, and that's not okay. Knock it off."
Leo gritted his teeth, but he had no rebuttal. She had hit the nail on the head, as per usual, and he had never been good with witty remarks in the first place. Give him an engine any day. He hadn't intended to, but the way Lena talked made him feel ashamed, like he had been bullying Frank somehow. Leo didn't want to be that type of person.
He hadn't wanted to stab Lena either.
"It wasn't your fault, Leo," she whispered. "It was the Earth Mother's. You have to forgive yourself, because the rest of have forgiven you already. You're only making everything harder for the rest of us as well as yourself by punishing yourself for what happened."
With that, she stood, collected the bags again, and continued making her way to the ship. Leo hurried after her, her words ringing in his ears.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO/HOO.The Argo II hovered directly over the river. A few hundred meters away at the top of the nearest hill stood a cluster of ruins. They didn't look like much—just some crumbling walls encircling the limestone shells of a few buildings—but from somewhere within the ruins, tendrils of black ether were curling up into the sky, giving it an ominous air. As the New Argonauts watched, a bolt of dark energy ripped through the air, rocking the ship and sending a cold shockwave across the landscape."The Necromanteion," Nico announced, his voice grim. "The House of Hades."Another bolt shot down, and Lena winced as she grabbed hold of the railing to keep from falling. "Maybe we should set down in the river," she murmured as she steadied herself.Hazel shook her head in rebuttal. "I wouldn't," she said. "That's the River Acheron."Leo crinkled his brow in confusion, but he was the only one. Everyone else simply grew grimmer at the announcement."The River of Pain," Lena whispered to him. It was explanation enough. He swallowed and nodded, tuning into the others' conversation in time to hear the end of Hazel explaining that the main river might have been in the Underworld, but they were right above its' source."Yeah, let's stay up here," he decided. "I don't want any zombie water on my hull."Across the deck, Nico raised the sceptre of Diocletian. Its' orb glowed with purple light, as if in sympathy with the dark storm. Lena shivered. The thought of the dead being summoned had always made her feel ill. It simply wasn't right, in her opinion. The dead were dead, and they should stay in the afterlife, unless they were being reborn, which was an entirely different subject. Nico's power to control the dead, as well as the ability of the children of Mars/Ares to summon soldiers who had lost a war to do their bidding, had always seemed wrong, and just plain cruel, to her.Still, Lena was a pragmatic person. In spite of her distaste for the power, she wasn't about to reject a possible source help, if it was available. "Have you figured out how to use that, then?" she asked the son of Hades, gesturing at the sceptre."We'll find out." Nico stared at the tendrils of darkness undulating from the ruins. "I don't intend to try until I have to. The Doors of Death are already working overtime bringing in Gaea's monsters. Any more activity raising the dead, and the Doors might shatter permanently, leaving a rip in the mortal world that can't be closed.""Well that sounds fun," Leo mumbled under his breath as Coach Hedge grunted."I hate rips in the world," the satyr declared. "Let's go bust some monster heads.""Coach, you should stay on board," Frank said suddenly, wearing a strange expression as he glanced at Hedge. "You can cover us with the ballistae."Hedge frowned. "Stay behind? Me? I'm your best soldier!""We might need air support," Frank insisted. "Like we did in Rome. You saved our braccae."The two of them stared at each other, clearly sharing a silent conversation. Lena looked between them, then nodded curtly. It was obvious that she was missing something, but she trusted Frank. If he wanted Hedge to stay behind, then she would trust his judgement."I agree with Frank," she said abruptly. "We need someone to stay behind and protect the ship, and you have the most skill with using the ballistae.""Well, you're right about that, Cupcakes," Hedge sniffed. "Fine, I'll stay behind in case you need backup.""Right then," Jason clapped his hands together, looking overly-bright. "Now that that's settled, I think that it's time to get started."Without speaking, Lena threw the rope ladder over the side of the rail for them to climb down. She swung her leg over a moment later. Thalia decided that she needed to stop thinking that her life couldn't possibly get any worse, because it was obvious that the Fates were determined to prove her wrong. They had narrowly escaped being caught by Koios due to the Death Mist Nyx had covered them with, and now they were literally, stomping on the heart of Tartarus.It was definitely the most disturbing place Thalia had ever laid eyes on, that was for sure. The purplish ground was slippery and constantly pulsing. It looked flat from a distance, but up close it was made of folds and ridges that got harder to navigate the farther they walked. Gnarled lumps of red arteries and blue veins gave her and Luke some footholds whenever they had to climb, but the going was slow. She could feel the liquid rippling through them, and was forced to swallow bile back down her throat every few minutes in disgust.And of course, the monsters were everywhere. There were packs of hellhounds prowling the plains, baying and snarling and attacking any monster foolish enough to drop its' guard, even for just a second. Arai wheeled overhead on leathery wings, making ghastly dark silhouettes in the poison clouds. Empousai and dracaenae glowered and shoved each other out of the way as they attempted to skip ahead of their compatriots."We should hurry," Luke urged. "If we can't get to the Doors in time…" His voice trailed off. Thalia followed his gaze and bit back a gasp of shock at the sight that greeted her.Several yards ahead of them, jagged streaks of darkness tore through the air. It looked just like lightning, except it was pure black."What in the name of the gods?" Thalia gasped, as softly as she could."The Doors," Pete explained, frowning unhappily in the direction of the dark lightning. "There must be a large group going through."Thalia's mouth tasted like gorgon's blood. Horror filled her to the brim and made her quiver in fear even as she clenched her fists tightly around the shaft of her spear in a raw, helpless fury.Even if their friends from the Argo II had successfully managed to find the other side of the Doors of Death in sync with them, how could they possibly fight the waves of monsters that were coming through, especially if all the giants were already waiting for them? It would be the five remaining of the Seven, Nico and Hedge versus an unending army of monsters.And that was a best-case scenario. Neither Thalia nor Luke had forgotten that Lena and Nico had both been recovering from nearly-lethal injuries when they had fallen into Tartarus. There was every chance that either one of or both of them were still too weak to fight. And anyway, who knew how time worked in the Pit? For all they knew, a day in Tartarus was a century in the mortal world and they would walk out of Tartarus into a world made up of ruins.Thalia shuddered at the thought and shoved it away to the back of her mind to stay among all of the other bad thoughts that she didn't like to consider. "Do all the monsters go through the House of Hades?" she asked Pete, to distract herself from the terrible image. "How big is it in the first place?"He shrugged. "Perhaps they are sent elsewhere when they step through. The House of Hades is in the earth, yes? That is Gaea's realm. She could send her minions wherever she wishes."Thalia's heart sank down to her stomach. An unending legion of monsters coming through the Doors of Death to threaten her baby brother and her friends at Epirus—that was bad enough. Now she imagined the ground on the mortal side as one big teleportation system, depositing giants and other hungry-for-demigod blood creatures anywhere Gaea wanted them to go—Camp Half-Blood, Camp Jupiter, or in the path of the Argo II before it could even reach Epirus.Luke, however, had another, though equally valid, concern on his mind. "If Gaea has that much power," he asked, running a hand through his dirty hair worriedly and grimacing when his fingers caught on a tangle. "then couldn't she control where we end up as well?"Pete scratched his chin as he considered the question. "You are not monsters. It may be different for you."Well isn't that just fabulous, Thalia scoffed mentally, though she stayed silent so as to avoid taking her anger out on her innocent Titan friend. (And those words still seemed wrong when put together. Still, Pete was a good person. Far better than she was, at any rate.)She turned away from those thoughts to focus on the matter at hand. She definitely didn't relish the idea of Gaea waiting for them on the other side, ready to teleport them into the middle of a mountain; but at least the Doors were a chance to get out of Tartarus. It wasn't like they had a better option. Or another one at all. At least this way they had a possible chance of escaping the Pit.Pete helped them to clamber over the top of yet another ridge. Suddenly the Doors of Death were in plain view—a freestanding rectangle of darkness at the top of the next heart-muscle hill, about a quarter mile away, surrounded by a horde of monsters so thick Thalia could've walked on their heads all the way across without needing the slightest amount of support from the air.The Doors were still too far away to make out much detail, but the Titans flanking either side were familiar enough. The one on the left wore shining golden armour that shimmered with heat."Hyperion," Luke muttered, scowling in frustrated recognition of the immortal's identity. "That guy just won't stay dead."The one on the right wore dark-blue armour, with ram's horns curling from the sides of his helmet. Thalia had only seen him in dreams before, but it was definitely Krios, the Titan that her little brother Jason had killed in the battle for Mount Tam."Pete's other brothers," Luke noted. The Death Mist shimmered around him in a cloud, temporarily turning his face into a grinning skull as he glanced carefully at Pete. "Pete, if you have to fight them, can you?"Pete hefted his broom, like he was ready for a messy cleaning job. "We must hurry," he said, which Thalia noticed wasn't really an answer. Not that she blamed him. They had done pretty much nothing for him, and in return he had been forced to fight his brothers, repeatedly. Guilt sat in her stomach like a rock. "Follow me." Up in Olympus, the War Council had convened again."Lady Trivia, your report," Jupiter ordered. His jaw and fists were clenched so tight they had turned white and he was dressed in full battle regalia."As we feared, it is Clytius and Pasiphae whom Gaia has chosen to guard the mortal side of the Doors," the goddess of magic and crossroads reported. "However, Hazel has successfully tapped into her mother's legacy and I am confident that she will be able to defeat the witch. While she is less practiced in using my arts, her power far outstrips that of Pasiphae."The king hmmed and drummed his fingers on the arm of his throne as he thought."Lady Bellona, give your report," Juno demanded, when it became clear that her husband was too lost in his own head to continue with the meeting.The dark-haired goddess of war rose gracefully from her throne, shooting her mother an irritated look at the lack of respect in her tone, but otherwise left it alone. Valeria was sincerely relieved about that, as they were far too busy to be capable of affording time to deal with petty things like Juno's ego."At last count, Gaia has restored over two thousand monsters to life," Bellona announced solemnly. The number was large enough that it caused several gods to let out sounds of shock and horror, and Bellona gave a grim nod."Yes," she agreed. "It is truly horrifying. But the good thing is that they are split up. An army of five hundred, led by Hippolytus, is heading for Camp Jupiter. Thankfully, the Seven's warning allowed them to prepare. The Party Ponies are there already, and Camp Jupiter is sending a detachment of legionnaires consisting of the Fourth and Fifth Cohorts to assist in the Greek camp's defence. They are also working around the clock to set up traps and such.""What of the rest of the monsters that the Earth Mother has raised?" Valeria asked. "You haven't mentioned where she has sent them?""Yes, of course, my lady," Bellona bowed at her respectfully. "Three hundred guard Epirus, while the rest are at Mount Olympus. The original Mount Olympus.""It will end where it began, then," Apollo murmured. "Full circle."

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO/HOO. I hope everybody had a merry Christmas, and that you all have a good New Years. I sure did.

Hazel was deeply ashamed of herself. She was a demigod in the middle of a vital quest to help save the world and preserve Western Civilization. Having a breakdown, crying, just because she'd been separated from her boyfriend and brother? It was so incredibly selfish. There was no other was to describe it. Heroes weren't allowed to do things like that, especially not in the middle of a battle.
Thank the gods, at least Lena had her head screwed on straight.
The green-eyed girl grabbed Hazel's arm, stopping her from slamming her bare fists against the boulders that separated them from the rest of their group again, and forced her to turn and look at her. Leo fidgeted with his hammer, his expression pinched in worry as he kept one eye on the girls and the other on the tunnels ahead of them.
"Hazel, Hazel, stop!" Lena snapped, shaking her slightly. "Calm down before you hurt yourself. Or one of us, for that matter."
Hazel stopped struggling to get away, but her bottom lip trembled as she gazed at her friend with shining gold eyes. "Frank and Nico," she whimpered. "They're-"
"Fine," Lena interrupted. "I swear to you Hazel. All three of those boys are strong fighters. I guarantee you, something so mundane as a rockslide could never kill them. It'd be an affront to half-bloods everywhere, and we'd be forced to resurrect them and violently murder them to cover up the shame of all of it." She added the last part with a joking smile that didn't quite hide the strain and worry in her eyes for their missing friends. All of them.
Hazel let out a choked snort of amusement at the dark humour, nodding shakily. Carefully, Lena released her wrists, scanning her for any signs that she was about to lose it again.
"I know that this is frightening, and overwhelming," she murmured gently to the younger girl. "But we can do this. You can do this. I believe in you."
Her words were infused with power, and Hazel's spine straightened as she felt her strength be revived. She slipped back into the role of loyal Roman legionnaire, as she had been trained, and gave a sharp nod to the others.
"I'm good," she promised.
"Cool!" Leo cheered, breaking the tension and ignoring the exasperated (but fond and loving) look that Lena shot him. "So which way next?"
Hazel looked at each of the sub-tunnels. All four of the arteries looked identical, but they didn't feel like each of them were the same. Two didn't give her any feelings at all save a slight amount of danger. One felt as if it would lead them to safety, and sunlight. The last one...
"That one," she decided, pointing at it. "It feels coldest. The most dangerous."
"Always a good sign," Lena said wryly, taking the lead again and holding up her sword in a defensive position. The glow of the Celestial Bronze didn't do much to light their way, but it gave some illumination to their path, which, in turn, gave the three heroes a hint of relief as Leo and Hazel followed at her heels, their own weapons held aloft in preparation to fight the waiting enemies.
When she concentrated, Hazel could sense all of the details of the tunnel. It sloped gently downwards for about three hundred feet, before it opened out into a large, open chamber.
Hazel shivered as they neared it. The last time she had felt something like this, it had been the mid 1940s, and she had been forced to pull down the cavern she was in, killing herself and her mother to save the world. It wasn't an experience that she cared to repeat.
"Be ready," she whispered to her friends, about half-way down to the cavernous room where their enemy waited. "We're getting close."
"Close to what?" Leo asked, his voice a fraction too loud.
"Close to me." The voice was female, and cold, and filled with ancient, strong magic. Even as the words registered in Hazel's mind, she found herself losing concentration. Suddenly, she, Lena and Leo were all in the room itself, and Hazel was swaying, trying to steady herself against the dizziness invoked by the sorceress' voice.
"Welcome," the woman continued "I've looked forward to this."
Hazel's eyes swept the cavern, searching. She couldn't see the speaker.
The room reminded her of the Pantheon in Rome, except this place had been decorated in Hades Modern. The most die-hard of goths would scream in terror and flee at the sight of it.
The obsidian walls were carved with scenes of death: plague victims, corpses on the battlefield, torture chambers with skeletons hanging in iron cages—all of it embellished with precious gems that somehow made the scenes even more ghastly.
As in the Pantheon, the domed roof was a waffle pattern of recessed square panels, but here each panel was a stela—a grave marker with Ancient Greek inscriptions. Hazel wondered if actual bodies were buried behind them. With her underground senses out of whack, she couldn't be sure.
She saw no other exits. At the apex of the ceiling, where the Pantheon's skylight would've been, a circle of pure black stone gleamed, as if to reinforce the sense that there was no way out of this place—no sky above, only darkness. Glancing at her friends, she could tell that they too were unable to find any escape routes. Their tunnel entrance had disappeared, replaced by a wall made of smooth rock.
Her stomach twisted uneasily as she adjusted her grip on her sword pommel and scanned the room. She froze in her assessment when she reached the middle of the room.
"Yep," Leo muttered. "Those are doors, all right."
"Somehow, I didn't think that they'd be an actual set of doors," Lena added out of the corner of her mouth. Her eyes didn't rest on the Doors, however. Instead, she kept her eyes and head moving, looking for their enemy. Hazel, however, couldn't bring herself to tear her gaze away from the sight in the centre of the room.
Fifty feet away was a set of freestanding elevator doors, their panels etched in silver and iron. Rows of chains ran down either side, bolting the frame to large hooks in the floor.
The area around the doors was littered with black rubble. With a rising sense of fury, Hazel realized that an ancient altar to Hades had once stood there. They must have destroyed it to make room for the Doors of Death. They had desecrated one of her father's sacred altars, the deepest insult that you could give to a god.
"Where are you?" she shouted. Lena sent her a chiding, though understanding, look.
"Don't you see us?" taunted the woman's voice mockingly. "I thought Hecate chose you for your skill."
Another bout of queasiness churned through Hazel's gut. On her shoulder, Gale barked and passed gas, which didn't help.
Dark spots floated in Hazel's eyes. She tried to blink them away, but they only got darker. The spots consolidated into a twenty-foot-tall shadowy figure looming next to the Doors.
The giant Clytius was shrouded in the black smoke, just as she'd seen in her vision at the crossroads, but now Hazel could dimly make out his form—dragon-like legs with ash-coloured scales; a massive humanoid upper body encased in Stygian armour; long, braided hair that seemed to be made from smoke. His complexion was as dark as Death's (Hazel should know, since she had met Death personally). His eyes glinted cold as diamonds. He carried no weapon, but that didn't make him any less terrifying.
Leo whistled. "You know, Clytius…for such a big dude, you've got a beautiful voice."
"Idiot," hissed the woman.
"And he can talk without moving his lips, too," Lena smirked slyly. "That takes skill. Thumbs up, man. Congrats."
Halfway between the demigods and the giant, the air shimmered and solidified into the shape of a beautiful, tall woman.
She wore an elegant sleeveless dress of woven gold, her dark hair piled into a cone, encircled with diamonds and emeralds. Around her neck hung a pendant like a miniature maze, on a cord set with rubies that looked like solid drops of blood.
She was beautiful in a timeless, regal way—like a statue you might admire but could never love. Her eyes sparkled with malice.
"Pasiphaë," Hazel stated. It wasn't a question. Lena and Leo tensed.
The woman inclined her head. "My dear Hazel Levesque."
Unsurprisingly, it didn't take long for the sorceress to tire of arguing with the heroes, and soon enough the three of them were racing through the darkness of the Labyrinth, dodging her and Hazel's traps. Leo spared a second to give her a thumbs up when they escaped the maze, though his happiness swiftly disappeared when he saw the state of his distraught girlfriend.
Not even Pasiphae or Clytius dared to mention the tears that fell freely from Lena's eyes as she fought the memories creeping up on her. But then again. That could have been due to the raw rage that radiated from her as she snarled out threats towards them both.

Thalia and Luke lay unconscious on the ground, Clytius standing between the three questers and their vulnerable friends.
Lena clenched her hand so tightly around the pommel of her sword, her knuckles went stark white. Raw fury made her breath heave and she was sure that she looked half-insane with her dirty, tear-streaked face and wild hair. Her curls had come out of her usual plait, and frizzed up around her head in a raven halo.
"Get away from them," she growled, glaring at Clytius with an expression of pure loathing. Gods, she hated to have spent even just a few seconds in that horrible maze. The centre of her nightmares for two, nearly three, years now.
To Lena's mind, the Labyrinth was synonymous with death. The image of her brother's body, pierced by that thrice-damned sword blade was always there, in the back of her mind. But right now, it seemed to take over her thoughts completely. The desire for revenge screamed in her blood, demanding justice for Lukas' life.
She couldn't, wouldn't lose any of her friends or her boyfriend in the same place as she had lost her twin. Damn Daedalus and his cowardice! She hoped that he was screaming in agony in the Fields of Punishment. It was his fault for creating the Labyrinth and fleeing Hades' wrath, instead of accepting his rightful punishment for killing Perdix.
Her thoughts were disjointed and all over the place, even more than was typical for a half-blood with ADHD. She could barely focus. She wasn't even sure what Clytius was saying. Her ears echoed with Lukas' final cry, and her mother's snarl of fury as she recalled being dragged away from her brother by Thalia and Luke, Akantha lunging at the King of the Titans in order to delay them being pursued.
"-got the fire!" Leo finished exclaiming, breaking her from her wild thoughts. She blinked spots out of her eyes frantically as her boyfriend sent a plume of orange flames at the giant.
But Clytius was too strong to be defeated as simply as that. His smoky aura thickened, absorbing the flames. As the fire disappeared, Leo choked, falling to his knees and clutching at his throat with wide eyes.
"No!" Hazel cried, running to help him.
Lena, however, didn't dare to go to his aid. Her mother's blessing activated as she lunged at Clytius, trying to get a jab in at him. But as soon as her blade touched the smoke, it went ice-cold, so cold it burned her hands and she was forced to drop it with a cry of pain. Her anger ratcheted up several more notches.
She jumped back as Clytius cackled in dark amusement and triumph. "Don't you understand, you foolish little heroes?" he asked them mockingly. "I devour magic. I destroy the voice and consume the soul. You cannot oppose me."
Lena glared bitterly at him, but found herself being flung against the wall by an unseen force. She could see Hazel and Leo in the corner of her eye. Leo was struggling to breathe, still on his knees, while Hazel was pale and trembling, her eyes darting around in search of an escape route.
"You're supposed to be weak against fire," Hazel stammered, her own eyes darting between Leo, Lena, Thalia and Luke (the latter two still unconscious, cradled by Clytius' dark smoke).
Clytius laughed mockingly at her. "True enough," he agreed. "But Leo Valdez's flames are far too weak to harm me!"
"What about my flames, old friend?" everyone's heads snapped around to the newly-revealed entrance, where a blond woman in a black dress stood, the Mist swirling around her.
The giant stumbled backward, bumping into the Doors of Death.
"Lady Hecate," Lena gasped out through a blood-filled mouth (she had broken her ribs again. The feeling was depressingly familiar to her.)
"Indeed," the goddess of magic agreed. She spread her arms. Blazing torches appeared in her hands. "It has been millennia since I fought at the side of a demigod, but Hazel Levesque has proven herself worthy. What do you say, Clytius? Shall we play with fire?"

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO/HOO. I do own Akantha, and I'm delighted that she's so popular. I hope that everybody enjoyed their Christmas and New Years!

After the mess that was their attack on the House of the Hades, the last thing that Lena wanted to do was deal with more evil spirits. Her already-bad mood was made even worse by the fact that she had been forced (along with Thalia, who looked like she was on the verge of skinning the next person to dare and glance in her direction) to dress like an Ancient Greek serving-maiden. Lena preferred to avoid dresses and skirts completely.
It was almost impossible to fight in them without tripping (she had no idea how the Aphrodite girls managed, and even they only wore skirts on special occasions that required dressing up.) and a half-blood's luck meant that she was practically guaranteed to be attacked while impractically dressed.
Still, at least she could move without her hands shaking from arthritis, and walk at a steady pace without needing to pause and gasp for breath. Poor Jason wasn't so lucky.
"This was an awful idea," he wheezed, pausing again to catch his breath. "Hazel's spell is too strong. I'll never be able to fight like this."
"We're not going to fight," Lena insisted, silently hoping that she hadn't just jinxed their little side-mission. "We're going in, getting the info, and getting out. Easy."
"Touch wood," Thalia huffed, grimacing as she tugged at her long white dress. She looked as awkward as Lena felt in the clothing. With the white shift and the gold hair ribbons and make up (who knew Hazel was so talented? Though, she was an artist. Lena supposed it made sense she knew how to make people look beautiful as well.) Thalia looked a bit like an angel. Frankly, Lena didn't think that it suited her.
Absently, Lena rubbed a thumb across the cornucopia that was hanging from her leather belt, like it was her sword. It wasn't remotely as comforting as touching her beloved weapon, but a sword would have ruined the disguise, and its' bracelet form was too modern looking as well. Lena had been forced to make do with strapping a knife under her skirt, as had Thalia. Jason was the only one of them able to carry a sword, and Lena doubted that he would even be able to lift it, let alone fight with it if it came to that. And it probably would.
Below where they rested near the peak of one of Ithaca's mountains, Afales Bay glittered, the water so blue it might've been dyed. A few hundred yards offshore, the Argo II rested at anchor. Its' white sails looked no bigger than postage stamps, its' ninety oars like toothpicks. Looking at it, no one would guess that it carried the best hope for the survival of Western Civilization.
"Stupid Ithaca," Jason grumbled as he at last gave in and sat down a rock to catch his breath. Lena raised an eyebrow at him, then looked down at the island. Personally, she thought it was a rather beautiful place. If she hadn't been a demigod that attracted monsters like bees to honey, she would have liked to visit here on vacation.
A spine of forested hills twisted down its' centre. Chalky white slopes plunged into the sea. Inlets formed rocky beaches and harbours where red-roofed houses and white stucco churches nestled against the shoreline. The hills were dotted with poppies, crocuses and wild cherry trees. The breeze smelled of blooming myrtle. It was definitely one of the prettiest places that Lena had ever seen. The temperature was about a hundred and five degrees, something Lena revelled in, though Jason and Thalia had both complained about it.
Her sole complaint was that the air was as steamy as a Roman bathhouse. It hampered her ability to see, something that made her tense on instinct.
"You sure that this is the right hill?" Jason asked, finally seeming to have gotten back to normal. So to speak. "Seems kind of – I don't know – quiet."
Lena glanced at him, giving a short nod. "Yup," she promised. "It's definitely the place that I saw in my dream. And remember what Hazel said? It has-"
"The biggest gathering of evil spirits I've ever sensed," Jason repeated, cutting her off. "Yes, I remember." His tone said what he felt about the statement, and frankly, Lena agreed with the sentiment. It completely ruined her liking for the island.
"Sounds like the perfect place to visit," Thalia inserted wryly. When Lena looked at her, her sarcastic smile didn't reach her eyes. Lena bit her lip, returning to her study of the landscape to disguise the fact that she was worrying for her friend, not the mission.
It hadn't been long since Thalia and Luke had escaped Tartarus. Given the fact that they had literally gone through hell, Lena probably would have been worried if she thought that they were fine. But that still didn't help her suppress the nagging desire to fix everything. Then again, that had always been her problem. She tried to keep everything together, to the point that it destroyed her. It was her fatal flaw.
"I hope that our disguises hold up," Thalia commented, crossing her arms and tapping her foot. "The suitors were nasty customers when they were alive. If they find out we're demigods –"
"Hazel's magic will work," Lena replied firmly. "We have to have faith in her. She's made a lot of progress with her powers."
"But she's still very unpractised with them," Thalia pointed out with a grimace. "I'm not trying to be unfair. But we all know that new powers drain you quicker and harder to sustain."
"Then we should hurry up and meet the suitors, shouldn't we?" Lena asked knowingly. She picked up her things and began walking forward again.

Akantha had not been to Greece in several centuries. Not since the early thirteenth century at least. It was hard for her to go, as every time she went, she was hit with memories of Ancient Greece and her youth. Although the lands had changed with the times, she could still easily see the country she had grown up in whenever she was there. The last time she had been here, she had taken Thomas Anderson the Third, Lysander's reincarnation, to live there with her.
Thomas had been a mortal, and one of the closest childhood friends of Richard the Lionheart of England. She had met him while he was helping Richard in the Third Crusade. They had left with the king's blessing and gone to live in Greece as husband and wife, Akantha using her powers to get them land and to make herself appear to age. They had spent three wonderful decades together, having three sons and a daughter before his second death in twelve twenty-six.
Hades had promised that she would be informed should her late husband be reincarnated again, but to her knowledge he was still in Elysium. She supposed it was for the best. She thought that losing him for a third time might kill her spirit, if not her physical form.
She shook her head, suppressing any thoughts of Lysander/Thomas and focused on the task at hand. She scurried through the thick undergrowth in the shape of a mouse until she could see the clearing with the only pine tree on Delos, under which the Twin Archers had been born. Wind whipped at her fur, making her it fly in the air.
Crouching in the bush, Artemis was holding her bow tightly, scanning the clearing with her silver eyes narrowed. She didn't spare a glance for Akantha as the goddess of loyalty scampered up to her and morphed back into her human form.
"The archaeologists?" the goddess of the hunt asked her in a low tone.
"I dealt with them," Akantha whispered back. "I used the Mist to convince them to take the day off. They all went over to Mykonos and took the boat with them. And there are no tour groups coming this week. I checked."
"And Apollo has gone to deal with the pathetic guards that Krios has guarding the edges of the island," Artemis smiled viciously. "They're stuck here, at our mercy." Her expression had a vengeful cast to it, and Akantha couldn't say that she was surprised by it.
Neither of the Twins ever took well to anybody threatening or insulting their mother. Queen Niobe and her children were strong proof of that.
The attack of the giants on their beloved island of Delos, and the subsequent capture of Lady Leto had infuriated them both, and they were both screaming for revenge against those who had dared to capture their mother and trespass on their territory.
"I'm back," Apollo announced, slipping in to join them in the brushes. Akantha gave him a soft smile and reached out to touch his hand briefly to comfort him before pulling back and focusing again. As the sole member of their group who wasn't currently at least partially blinded by anger at the giants, it was her responsibility to keep a clear head and stop the Twins doing anything foolish in their mother's name.
"They're holding her in the ruins of the old temple where your statue used to be," she reported. "As we suspected, Krios is there along with about a hundred monsters. She doesn't appear to be harmed, but she is bound in both Imperial Gold and Celestial Bronze chains that are fused together somehow."
"Bastards must have stolen them when they attacked Hephaestus' forge in Hawaii," Apollo spat bitterly, looking even angrier.
"Probably," Akantha murmured in agreement. Mimas, the Bane of Hephaestus, only ever copied things. He was completely incapable of actually coming up with his own ideas, let alone putting them into practice.
"Come on," Artemis urged, rising slightly so she could begin running, without being seen. "We must hurry."
They nodded and copied her actions, racing through the ruins of the ancient city. The biggest ruins in Europe, untouched by modern life save for the archaeologists and tour groups that came and went. As she hurried through, Akantha spared a moment to feel a bit of fond awe for the place.
It spoke to the mutual idiocy shared by all monsters that none of the group guarding Leto noticed them (granted, all three of them had turned into foxes, but still. They should have realized the only animals around were birds, and even they had scattered at the arrival of the monsters.).
But Akantha couldn't really bring herself to complain, as it meant that they were all taken completely by surprise when she jumped onto Krios' back (still in fox form) and used her sharp canines to bite into Krios' neck, cutting his speech to Leto on why she should join Gaia short and turning it into a bloody gurgle.
She jumped back down, expanding into her regular form, sword raised, in the process, and didn't give the Titan a chance to react before she leapt at him, Anaklusmos flashing. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Leto crouching to avoid her children's arrows. The sharp gold and silver projectiles flashed through the air, sticking each of the monsters in various lethal points and making them burst into clouds of gold.
Akantha, pushed the Twins and the monsters to the back of her mind and concentrated on Krios. While he didn't come close to being the toughest or best fighter she had ever engaged with, he was durable, and strong. Even the best fighter could be killed if they were unlucky and tripped at the wrong moment. And she was conscious of the fact that Nike was out of control in Olympia.
Hopefully, the Seven knew about that by now and were headed to deal with it. The Gigantes couldn't be defeated without Nike on their side. Thankfully, Akantha didn't need to outright win this fight. She merely needed to delay Krios long enough for the Twins to release their mother and escape with her.
She stepped back and spun her sword in a half-circle, intercepting Krios' own weapon. They held that position for several moments, each of them straining to hold the other back, before Krios yelled and yanked out of the deadlock. He stepped back, the strength of his footsteps making the ground shiver slightly, and Akantha quickly darted after him.
She went for the neck, just managing to slice him slightly before he moved away and struck her arm. She cried out in pain, the sound covering the noise of Apollo's arrow flying through the air.
The Twins had finished defeating the monsters, and in turn had released their mother. Artemis had then fled with her, while Apollo stayed behind to help Akantha, who was too engaged in the fight to realize that she could leave.
Krios yelled in pain as the arrow found a weak point in his armour, going through the leather strap and burying itself deep in the Titan's left shoulder.
"Let's go, Akantha!" Apollo yelled to her. She nodded, and they both began to glow as they flashed away, leaving Krios alone on Delos, enraged and screaming.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO/HOO. Sorry I was gone so long, guys. My computer broke at the same as I was admitted to hospital with pneumonia. Crappy way to start the year. Hopefully the rest will be better. Enjoy the chapter and thanks to everyone who's reviewed, kudosed, faved, etc it!

"This is the Propylon," Frank announced as he waved towards a stone path lined with crumbling columns. "One of the main gates into the Olympic valley."
"Rubble!" Leo declared, ignoring how Lena rolled her eyes at him exasperatedly.
Frank continued to read the pamphlet he had picked up without acknowledging the younger boy. "And over there –" He pointed to a square foundation that looked like a patio – "is the Temple of Hera, one of the oldest structures here."
"More rubble!" Leo said.
"And that round bandstand-looking thing – that's the Philipeon, dedicated to Philip of Macedonia."
"Even more rubble! First-rate rubble!"
"Honestly, Leo," Lena sighed. "Haven't you got any respect at all for our history and culture?"
"Of course!" Leo exclaimed. "I have tons of respect for crumbling old rocks."
She rolled her eyes and shook her head in resignation, though a tiny smile played on the edge of her lips for a moment before she turned serious again.
Happily oblivious to them, Frank continued his guided tour. "And over there … oh." He glanced at the others. "Uhm, that semi-circular depression in the hill, with the niches … that's a nymphaeum, built in Roman times."
They all paled, remembering their near-death experience in the nymphaeum back in Rome with Luke and Thalia.
"Here's an idea," Lena said darkly. "Let's not go there."
"I love that idea," Leo agreed.
They kept walking, Frank still giving his miniature tour.
"This is the Pelopion," he explained, pointing to another set of ruins.
"Come on, Zhang," Leo scoffed, fidgeting with his toolbelt absentmindedly. "Pelopion isn't even a real word. What was it – a sacred spot for plopping?"
"Leo!" Lena snapped.
Frank looked offended. "It's the burial site of Pelops. This whole part of Greece, the Peloponnese, was named after him."
"I suppose I should know who Pelops was?"
"He was a prince, won his wife in a chariot race. Supposedly he started the Olympic games in honour of that."
Hazel sniffed. "How romantic. 'What a nice wife you have, Prince Pelops.' 'Thanks. I won her in a chariot race.'"
Eventually, they came to a stop at some wide steps leading to another ruined building – the Temple of Zeus, according to Frank.
"There used to be a huge gold-and-ivory statue of Zeus inside," Frank told them.
Lena nodded in agreement. "It was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. Made by the same person who created the Athena Parthenos."
"Please tell me we don't have to find it," Leo winced. "I've had enough huge magic statues for one trip."
"Agreed."
"Hey, Lena," he said abruptly a moment later, his eyes widening in worry and making the others tense up. "remember that statue of Nike in the museum? The one that was all in pieces?"
"Yeah?" she frowned. "What about it?"
"Didn't it used to stand here, at the Temple of Zeus?" Leo asked anxiously. "Feel free to tell me I'm wrong. I'd love to be wrong."
Looking grim, Lena began fidgeting with her sword/bracelet. "You're right," she confirmed. "So, if Nike was anywhere … this would definitely be a good spot."
Frank scanned their surroundings. "I don't see anything."
"What if we promoted, like, Adidas shoes?" Leo wondered. "Would that make Nike mad enough to show up?"
Lena gave a sharp, mildly panicked laugh. "Oh, yeah, I bet that would totally be against her sponsorship deal," she sniggered sarcastically. "Those are not the official shoes of the Olympics! Nike wearers are losers, Adidas wearers are winners!"
Hazel rolled her eyes. "You're both impossible."
Behind them, a thunderous voice shook the ruins: "YOU WILL DIE NOW!"
They jumped and spun around, Lena cursing her stupidity under her breath as she did so.
Towering over them in a golden chariot, with a spear aimed at Lena's heart, was the goddess Nike.
Summoning and then raising her sword, Lena scanned Nike, her mind slipping into battle-mode as she automatically began to search for weaknesses.
Like all goddesses, Nike was beautiful, and rather tall. She was wearing a glittering sleeveless dress, with her dark hair in piled-up braids circled with a gilded laurel wreath. Her expression was wide-eyed and a little crazy, like she had just drunk twenty espressos and then proceeded to ride a roller coaster. She was wielding a long spear, tipped with gold that Lena suspected to be Imperial Gold, and she had a set of wings that matched. They glittered so brightly that Leo leaned over to mutter in Lena's ear that "if those things were solar panels, they'd produce enough energy to power Miami."
Lena gave a slight nod, but continued to survey of the goddess of victory. She was riding a golden chariot pulled by two white horses that reared and nickered. War horses.
"Lady," Leo was the first of the group of demigods to speak up. "Could you fold your flappers, please? You're giving me a sunburn."
"What?" Nike's head jerked towards him like a startled chicken. "Oh … my brilliant plumage," she realized. "Very well. I suppose that you can't die in glory if you are blinded and burned."
She tucked in her wings. The temperature dropped to a normal hundred-and-twenty-degree summer afternoon, making Lena sigh in relief. She blinked quickly, getting rid of the spots that had been dancing in front of her eyes.
Frank cleared his throat. "Are you Nike or Victoria?" he asked tentatively. It was a bad idea.
"Argghh!" The goddess clutched the side of her head. Her horses reared again, causing Arion to do the same and forcing Hazel to lean forward and grab hold of his neck to avoid falling off her steed.
The goddess shuddered and then split into two separate images.
On the left was the first version, the one who had threatened to kill them for Lena promoting Adidas shoes over Nikes: a glittery sleeveless dress, dark hair circled with laurels, her golden wings folded neatly behind her.
On the right was a different version, dressed for war in a Roman breastplate made of gleaming Imperial Gold and greaves. In contrast to her other self, she had short auburn hair that peeked out from the rim of a tall helmet. Her wings were white, and made of feathers. Her short toga-styled dress was purple, and the shaft of her spear was fixed with a plate-sized Roman insignia – a golden SPQR in a laurel wreath.
"I am Nike!" cried the image on the left.
"I am Victoria!" cried the one on the right.
Watching her speak gave Lena a headache. The goddess was literally saying two different things at once. She kept shuddering and splitting in two, making Lena feel dizzy and nauseous. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Leo patting his toolbelt and eyeing the goddess like she was a broken car and he was contemplating how to fix her engine.
"I am the decider of victory!" Nike screamed. "Once I stood here at the corner of Zeus's temple, venerated by all! I oversaw the games of Olympia. Offerings from every city-state were piled at my feet!"
"Games are irrelevant!" yelled Victoria. "I am the goddess of success in battle! Roman generals worshipped me! Augustus himself erected my altar in the Senate House!"
"Ahhhh!" both voices screamed in agony. "We must decide! We must have victory!"
Arion bucked so violently that Hazel had to slide off his back to avoid getting thrown. Before she could calm him down, the horse disappeared, leaving a vapour trail through the ruins.
The half-bloods exchanged worried looks. Dealing with an unstable goddess was not something that any of them felt good about.
"Nike,' Hazel said in a soothing tone, as she stepped forward slowly. "you're confused. Gaia has poisoned your mind to make your two aspects fight against each other."
"I know that!" The goddess shook her spear, the tip rubber-banding into two points. "I cannot abide unresolved conflict! Who is stronger? Who is the winner?"
"Lady, nobody's the winner," Leo pointed out. "The Greeks and Romans aren't at war with each other. We have an alliance."
"No winner?" Nike looked stunned, as if he had just said that the sky was green, not blue. She ignored the second part of his statement with the expertise of an immortal.
"There is always a winner! One winner. Everyone else is a loser! Otherwise victory is meaningless. I suppose you want me to give certificates to all the contestants? Little plastic trophies to every single athlete or soldier for participation? Should we all line up and shake hands and tell each other, Good game? No! Victory must be real. It must be earned. That means it must be rare and difficult, against steep odds, and defeat must be the other possibility."
The goddess' two horses nipped at each other, as if getting into the spirit.
"That's very true," Lena tried to appease the goddess. "Nothing's worth it if you don't earn it. But the two camps aren't fighting one another, we're fighting Gaia. Why-"
"Until the Parthenos is restored, there is no victor!" Victoria declared. "There must be a victor, Mother Gaia has ordered it!"
"But Nike, you were Zeus's charioteer in the last war with the giants, weren't you?" Hazel argued.
"Of course!"
"Then you know that Gaia is the real enemy. We need your help to defeat her. The war isn't between the Greeks and Romans. We're in alliance against her."
It was no use. The goddess was fixated on either the Greeks or Romans winning, and she would not be gainsaid.
"The Greeks must perish!" Victoria roared.
"Victory or death!" Nike wailed. "One side must prevail! That is the only way for there to be peace!"
They all exchanged helpless looks. Lena had learned from her dreams that the goddess of victory had been suffering from mental assaults by Gaia, making her two aspects war against each other. They had hoped to reason with her, and deliberately balanced their choice of representatives to avoid her aura turning them against each other. Clearly, however, neither Nike nor Victoria was willing to be reasoned with. So what were they going to do instead? Somehow, fighting the goddess of victory seemed like a really bad idea.
The goddess brandished her spear. "You will determine the matter once and for all! Today, now, you will decide the victor! Four of you? Excellent! We will have teams. Perhaps girls versus boys!"
"Uh … no." Hazel gave an uneasy smile, despite the fact that she and Lena would probably be the winners in that scenario. Leo was no fighter, and Frank was more long-range than anything else.
"Shirts versus skins!"
"Definitely not," Hazel refused, eyes widening with the horror that came from being a girl raised in the 40s.
"Greeks versus Romans!" Nike cried. "Yes, of course! Two and two. The last demigod standing wins. The others will die gloriously."
A competitive urge pulsed through Lena's body. It took all of her will power not to grab her sword and attack Hazel and Frank. She could see that the others were being affected the same way. Thankfully, they all managed to hold themselves back. No doubt if any of them were there with people whose parents had feuds, however, it wouldn't have been so successful.
"Look, lady, we're not going to go all Hunger Games on each other," Leo insisted stubbornly. "Isn't going to happen."
"But you will win a fabulous honour!" Nike protested as she reached into a basket at her side and produced a wreath of thick green laurels. "This crown of leaves could be yours! You can wear it on your head! Think of the glory!"
"Leo's right," Frank said, though his eyes were fixed on the wreath. His expression was a little too greedy for the other's tastes. "We don't fight each other. We fight the giants. You should help us."
"Very well!" The goddess raised the laurel wreath in one hand and her spear in the other.
Lena blinked in surprise before she and Leo exchanged looks. "Uh … does that mean you'll join us?" she asked warily. "You'll help us fight the giants?"
"That will be part of the prize," Nike confirmed. "Whoever wins, I will consider you an ally. We will fight the giants together, and I will bestow victory upon you. But there can only be one winner. The others must be defeated, killed, destroyed utterly. So what will it be, demigods? Will you succeed in your quest, or will you cling to your namby-pamby ideas of friendship and everybody wins participation awards?"
"And if we refuse?" Lena lifted her chin defiantly, eyes flashing rebelliously.
"Ha!" Nike's eyes gleamed maniacally. "If you refuse to fight each other, you shall be persuaded!" She spread her golden wings.
Four metal feathers fluttered down, two on either side of the chariot. The feathers twirled like gymnasts, growing larger, sprouting arms and legs, until they touched the ground as four metallic, human-sized replicas of the goddess, each armed with a golden spear and a Celestial bronze laurel wreath that looked suspiciously like a barbed-wire Frisbee.
"To the stadium!" the goddess ordered. You have five minutes to prepare. Then blood shall be spilled!"
Leo opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off before he could begin.
"Run!" Nike bellowed. "To the stadium with you, or my Nikai will kill you where you stand!"
The metal ladies unhinged their jaws and blasted out a sound like a Super Bowl crowd mixed with feedback. They shook their spears and charged the demigods. Self-preservation kicked in, and the group turned and fled, Lena's braid streaming out behind her like a banner.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO/HOO. A/N: as everyone has probably noticed, I have not been updating as much as usual for the past few weeks. I am quite sick, and struggling to find the motivation and energy to write. It took the best part of a week for me to write up this chapter, which I would typically have done in a day or so. I AM NOT abandoning this, or my Ana Jackson series. I intend to finish this story, then start of Ana Jackson and the Battle of the Labyrinth. Thanks to everyone for sticking with me. You're the best. Sorry if this chapter isn't up to my usual standard of writing, I did my best under the circumstances.

"The Seven are about a day or two away from Athens," Valeria reported. "Where the majority of the surviving giants, King Porphyrion, your own enemy, Mimas, Bane of Vulcan, Periboia, Bane of Venus, my opponent Ambrosius, the idiot twins Otis and Ephialtes, Alektos, who is Victoria's enemy (and she has been restored to her proper mindset, if you were unaware, my lord) and finally Asterius, Bane of Bellona. The others have been taken care of, thankfully. However, Polybotes was revived prior to the Doors of Death being closed, and now Camp Half-Blood is under siege, with him in command of the attack."
"How are they managing the situation?" Jupiter asked, studying the glowing 3D map.
Valeria waved her hand over it, causing it to zoom into Long Island, showing Camp Half-Blood, surrounded by a legion of monsters and a wall about five stories high, courtesy of the reinforcements from Camp Jupiter.
"They are holding. Thankfully, the abilities of the children of the agriculture gods are keeping them from any risks of starvation. They are beginning to run low on medical supplies, however. The wall built by the Romans is allowing them to hold the army off, however I suspect, and the war gods agree with me, that Polybotes is merely indulging them and testing their strength for the moment. As soon as he has received word from his Mother or King, he will go at them, no holds barred, and they will be outnumbered 50 to 1. It would be a slaughter."
"I see," Jupiter mumbled, looking troubled. "Any chance of more reinforcements from Camp Jupiter or any other allies?"
Valeria's jaw was tense as she shook her head grimly. "Camp Jupiter has sent as many as they can, but should they send anymore, New Rome will be left virtually defenceless. The Party Ponies and nature spirits have also sent as many as they can, but they were hit hard by the Titan War last year, and most of them are pacifists by nature. The Hunters and the Amazons have joined forces and are all struggling to hold Seattle."
She waved again, and the image changed to reveal the Amazon Headquarters in Washington, piles of corpses and gold monster dust littering the courtyard. Queen Hylla was seen ordering a retreat into the building, as the wall was blasted apart by a bomb made of Greek Fire.
"There is no giant leading them, but there is a Titan," she grimaced as her words were confirmed by the large form of Perses, storming into the courtyard.
Jupiter glowered at the map. "Send Diana to help the Amazons and Hunters defeat Perses and his army," the king of the gods ordered, making a snap decision. "And your father will go to Camp Half-Blood. One of the heroes there will be able to help him defeat Polybotes. As for the rest of us, we will meet the Seven in Athens, and defeat the rest of the Gigantes."
"As you command, my lord king," Valeria agreed, bowing deeply. She was just about to leave when Jupiter stopped her.
"Valeria!" he called sharply, making her glow cease abruptly.
"Yes, my lord?"
"Speak with Vulcan," he ordered. "Have him make up the strongest armour he can for each of the Seven as quick as he can. If even one of the girls and the boys each spill blood on the grounds of Mount Olympus..." his voice trailed off, but he didn't need to finish in the first place.
Should both a male and a female demigod spill blood on the sacred grounds, Gaia's awakening would finally happen. There was a reason that the Olympians had deliberately kept the fighting of the First Giant War away from their hallowed lands. This time, however, they had no choice in the terrain. The battle would be on Mount Olympus, and that was that.
None of the half-bloods had the Curse of Achilles to protect them, and it was pure stupidity to think that the fragile-bodied heroes would be able to escape a dangerous and intense battle without being touched by their enemies, hardwired for battle or not. Therefore, Jupiter's idea was the best way to try and prevent Gaia waking up.
"I shall do so, Sire," she agreed, breaking out of her thoughts, though she continued to frown. She hesitated, then added. "And if that precaution fails?"
Jupiter gave her a grim look. "If that fails, then the West is doomed."

Zoe had thought all hope for her sisters and the Amazons was lost when Perses had arrived. The Hunters had spent months hunting down the remnants of the Titan Army, and then begun attempting to slim down the new Giant Army.
Unfortunately, with the Doors of Death open, and the god of Death imprisoned, they had made very little progress, and she had grieved deeply as more and more of her sisters fell because a monster reformed too quickly for them to recover from the fight. Unlike their enemies, the Hunters did the proper thing and crossed the River Styx, as loyal servants to the gods should. They had eventually been reduced from forty-six Hunters to nineteen, and joined forces with the beleaguered Amazons in their headquarters of Seattle.
The Amazons had also been suffering from heavy attacks, ever since Queen Hylla had managed to defeat Otrera three times in a row and declared that the Amazons stood loyal to the gods, against the Gigantes and their army. Their own army had previously consisted of about seven hundred women. About two hundred had left after Otrera's defeat and disappeared. The following attacks had stopped the warrior women from investigating where they had gone, and their army was now down to four hundred and seventy-three women who were still alive and in fighting condition.
"This is surely the end for the two of us and our sisters," Queen Hylla murmured quietly to Zoe as they stood in her personal study, a map of the area spread out over her desk. "The wards are holding for the moment, but we can only manage so long. Our sorceresses are strong, but none of them can withstand the force of a Titan's power, combined strength or not. Even if we do manage to hold out longer than a day or two, we don't have enough food supplies to keep all of us going, especially not with the amount of energy we're expending on fighting, and just pure adrenaline."
"We are strong, my queen," Kinzie, the queen's right-hand woman, declared passionately.
"The Fates are on our side," Phoebe added. "and our mistress will not abandon us in our hour of need."
Zoe opened her mouth to speak, but was interrupted.
"Indeed, I will not."
The four women scrambled down onto their knees at the sound of the voice, snapping their eyes shut tightly. They waited until the glow had disappeared before carefully inching open their eyes, revealing Artemis, in her adult form, dressed for battle with a grim expression.
"My lady," Zoe breathed in relief. Her shoulders slumped as a weight lifted off of them. She was still anxious, because the circumstances were still very grim. But she had great faith in her beloved mistress, and she was confident that the odds had just turned in her favour. Artemis had never let her down before, after all.
Artemis graced her lieutenant with a warm, if tired, smile. "Zoe," she greeted her fondly, before turning grave. "I apologize that I could not have come to your aid before this," she told the four women. "Unfortunately, hunting down and eliminating the Gigantes before they could do much damage has been the priority for all the gods. As goddess of hunting, I have been placed in charge of tracking them down.
However, when we learned that Perses had taken command of the army that is attacking you, Lord Zeus agreed that I could come and defeat him. However, I must warn you. I can deal only with Perses. The rest of the army are outside my abilities to deal with, due to the Ancient Laws."
"We can handle the monsters, my lady," Hylla assured the goddess confidently, not even batting an eye. She had been a good choice for Queen of the Amazons, in Zoe's opinion, even if she had limited experience with the outside world in comparison to other members of the group. Just like her sister, she was calm, composed and confident in any and every situation, and an expert fighter and tactician. Of course, most children of Bellona were.
"Our only concern was dealing with Perses," Hylla continued, oblivious to Zoe's thoughts. "He is, of course, the Titan of Destruction. While we are all excellent warriors, fighting a Titan is on an entirely new level, and we have been fighting for several weeks already. We are very grateful for you to agree to fight him for us."
Artemis hummed, and withdrew two silver hunting knives, her eyes gleaming like a wolf's. She raised an auburn eyebrow. "Shall we?"

Artemis and Perses circled each other with matching expressions of dark determination on their faces. As she paced, matching him step-by-step, Artemis assessed her opponent.
Perses, as the Titan of Destruction, was very strong. But only physically. When it came to actually thinking and strategizing, he was utterly useless. He had one way of fighting, and one only. Hit them 'til they stopped moving. The solution to the question of how to defeat him, therefore, was simple. She needed to be agile, and avoid his hits, while at the same time managing to land her own hits on his vital areas.
His strength was comparable to Atlas, though he had none of his brother's intelligence, and Artemis knew that he would be able to defeat her if he managed to land enough hits.
As she had predicted he would do, Perses lost his patience first. He lunged at her, wielding a large Xiphos styled sword in his right hand, and a Hoplon shield strapped to his left arm.
Quickly and easily, she darted out of the way. She slipped behind him and used her two hunting knives to neatly cut the tendons in his left leg, making him roar in a mixture of pain and rage. He spun around and hacked at her gracelessly with his sword. She ducked and changed into a panther, just long enough to scratch a set of claw marks across his unprotected chest, increasing his fury.
She changed back into her humanoid form, just in time to duck a swing of his sword that nearly sent her head flying from her shoulders, although her waist-length braid was not so fortunate. She growled in anger as she spotted half of her rope of auburn hair, lying on the ground.
Like all gods, Artemis was vain, and she had a secret love for her hair, always keeping it in pristine condition, no matter what the circumstances she was in.
Now, however, Perses had ruined it, and she didn't have the time to spare to regrow it when she was busy trying to defeat him. Oh, he would pay for embarrassing her. He had made a fatal mistake by angering the goddess of the moon.
She dodged yet another attempt to pierce her torso, ignoring the cracks that were appearing in the courtyard as a result of Perses' strength, and swapped her knives for a long spear instead, just in time to block another attack. She rolled her silver-yellow eyes, irritated by Perses' repetitive actions. At least he was staying quiet, save for his regular growls and snarling. She was in no mood to exchange barbs with an idiot like Perses the Destroyer.
She bit back a wince as she felt her connection to another of her girls (she couldn't tell which without pausing to look and see which of her links to her hunters were still active) snap as another one of her surrogate daughters was murdered. It made her rage double and she let out an angry war-cry before leaping through air and managing to grab hold of Perses' neck, swinging herself on top of his shoulders.
Then, she plunged her spear as deep into his chest as she could, smirking as she saw the tip burst out of his back. The Titan choked for several moments, golden ichor flowing from his mouth, before his body crumbled into dust. Straightening up, Artemis wasn't surprised to see that his army was already fleeing, several Hunters and Amazons quickly starting to give chase.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO/HOO. Next chapter will be the fight between the Seven/gods versus the giants. Then there'll be an epilogue and everything'll be finished. I can hardly believe it.

Claudia had been placed in charge of the contingent of Romans that the Twelfth Legion had sent to aid their Greek allies. She had been chosen by Reyna for the task due to the fact that it was a well-known fact in New Rome that not only was Claudia's loyalty to Olympus unquestionable (as with all of the children of Valeria/Akantha) but she was also utterly indifferent to the feud between the Romans and the Greeks. Had there been another war between the two camps, she would of course have sided with Camp Jupiter, but she personally had no problems with the Greeks. As well as all of that, she was a well-respected officer, and very good at fighting.
Currently, Claudia stood in the rec room where the Greek counsellors held their meetings, leaning against the wall and listening in silence to the conversation/argument going on. Everybody was discussing various ideas for what to do when Polybotes' army (inevitably) broke through the barrier the Romans and children of Hephaestus had built around the camp grounds.
"It's only a matter of time," Lou Ellen Blackstone said grimly, crossing her arms over her chest as she spoke her grim prediction.
Claudia studied the daughter of Hecate and Head Counsellor for Cabin Twenty (really, Claudia couldn't understand why the Greeks would group their members in such a way. Okay, it let you be closer to your siblings, but it meant each cabin had a different number of people, and it propagated stereotypes related to each god. It didn't seem like a good system to her. No wonder the Greeks had lost as many of their heroes to the Titan Army as they had.).
"Those walls are tough, but they won't hold up against a continuous, full-strength assault," Lou Ellen continued. "And neither will the wards. Peleus isn't invincible, if they get the Fleece, we're screwed."
"We thought that about defending Olympus last year," another of the counsellors, this a blonde son of Apollo named Will Solace, argued back. Despite his optimistic words, his grim expression said that he didn't really believe what he was saying. "And we still managed that."
"Yeah, 'cause of reinforcements and Thalia fulfilling the prophecy," Jake Mason, a son of Hephaestus, snorted bitterly. "We can't count on any strokes of luck like that this time 'round. Unless Tyche decides to give us a hand?" He raised an eyebrow at Chiara Benvenuti, daughter of the goddess of luck. The other counsellor grimaced at him as her friend, Valentina Diaz, daughter of Aphrodite and head counsellor for her cabin, reached over to squeeze her hand comfortingly.
"My madre is on the side of the gods," Chiara insisted, her Italian accent heavy, but not heavy enough to keep them from understanding her words. "But, you are correct. We cannot rely on luck when it comes to defending our 'ome. Luck can be good, but..."
"It can also be bad," Butch Walker, head counsellor for the Iris cabin, completed her sentence. He huffed and slammed a fist on the ping-pong table. "Damn it!" he snarled. "We're wasting time by arguing pointlessly and going in circles. We need to do something!"
Claudia stayed silent. She was here to represent the Twelfth Legion, but Claudia freely admitted that battle tactics were not her strength. She was much better at making up plans on fly, as were most children of the goddess of heroes.
"We should bring the fight to them," Layla Delgado, daughter of Enyo, suggested. Her grey eyes were fierce and narrowed in contemplation as she considered how best to fight the enemy army. "Attack them on our terms, rather than let them dictate the terms of the fight." Claudia gave an absent nod at that. Fighting their terms was always preferable.
"That's risky," Clarisse LaRue, daughter of Ares, commented. "And it doesn't solve the problem of numbers. No matter what way we do it, we can't avoid the fact that they outnumber us three-to-one. Only thing attacking them would do is end the waiting game." Claudia nodded in acknowledgement of her point as well. She liked Clarisse a lot. She was fierce, strong, loyal, and had no care for the old feud.
(Truthfully, very few of the Greeks did. They had apparently completely forgotten about the fight, and without the goddess of wisdom to provoke them, they cared only about protecting their home.)
"That's exactly my point!" Layla argued, her jaw set stubbornly. "We're all going mad, just waiting for something to happen. At least if we attack, the tension'll be over and done with, and we can avoid the Camp itself being damaged. That way the survivors can retreat back behind the wards to regroup and tend to any injuries from the battle."
"And how do you propose we deal with the giant that's leading them?" Connor Stoll asked sarcastically. Connor, along with his brother Travis, was subbing as one of the two co-counsellors for the Hermes cabin while their elder brother Luke was with the rest of the Seven. Claudia had become good friends with both of the Stolls too, and she wouldn't mind if her and Connor's friendship became something more.
She had noticed however, that the stress and worry was not doing anything good for the brothers' mental health. Both of them had become grimmer and sharper with their sarcasm the longer the siege went on, and she knew from Connor himself that they had been struggling to sleep. Nightmares of the recent Titan War were affecting them badly. Well, the same thing was happening to most of the Titan War vets, actually. Including Claudia. They all needed a holiday or something. Not to be involved in yet another major battle.
"Yeah," Travis added, a bitter smirk on his face. "Were you elevated to godhood recently, Lay? The two of us can team up to kill the unkillable giant leading the assault on our home."
Layla glowered and them both, her hand twitching towards the Celestial Bronze knife tucked into her belt. Chiron, in his wheelchair disguise, hastily intervened.
"No weapons or powers are to be used indoors!" he snapped, giving a disapproving look to the dark-haired girl. Layla scowled and sulkily released the hilt of her knife, still glaring resentfully at the Stolls. "Boys," Chiron sighed and turned to the two, who looked away like guilty children. "I understand and share your worry, but we must not allow ourselves to turn against each other. Together we are strong, but, if we begin fighting with each other, it will only guarantee that the Earth Mother wins this war. We must not give her what she wants!"
The Greeks, who all clearly held their centaur trainer in as high a regard as the Gods themselves, stopped arguing. Layla and the Stolls glanced at the floor repentantly, looking abashed. Just then, a scuffle could be heard coming from outside the building.
Fearing that the anticipated attack was finally happening, everybody jumped to their feet, grabbing their weapons, and ran for the doorway. There was several minutes of shoving at each other as everybody tried to be the first out the door before they all managed to start spilling out of the room and raced down the hallway and out onto the porch. There, they all froze in surprise, staring with wide eyes at the dark-haired, green eyed man who was striding briskly up towards the Big House, a large shimmering silver trident in one hand, and a dark look on his handsome face. He was dressed in silver, Greek-styled armour, emblazoned with a dolphin leaping from a wave on the chest plate.
It was Poseidon, Claudia realized. The Greek god of the sea, storms, earthquakes, droughts, floods and horses. The Greek aspect of her grandfather. He wasn't very liked by the Romans, who scorned sea travel, but he was still given the respect due to one of the Big Three.
Mainly due to an old story, where Valeria had become enraged when she discovered that her father had only been allocated a temple about the size of a shed after they had been forced to move Camp Jupiter to the Bay Area after its' previous site had been destroyed in an earthquake. His descendant had been blamed without evidence and banished, which had only angered her more.
Valeria had been so furious that she had stripped all of the Senators, the Praetors and the Augur of the time of their positions. The Senators had been banished (though their families had been spared the goddess's wrath), and the Praetors and Augur were kicked out of the Legion in disgrace for daring to disrespect one of the Gods.
Shen Lun, Neptune's legacy, had been offered the chance to return to the Legion, but had politely refused her, stating that he could no longer trust them. That had resulted in the goddess of heroes stripping the Legion of several awards, warning them that next time it would be their lives if they failed to show the proper reverence due to all of the Olympians. Never again had any Roman dared to disrespect any god, no matter how they felt about them.
Case in point, all the Romans that Claudia could see from her vantage point had fallen to their knees and bowed their heads the moment they caught sight of the Earthshaker. Claudia herself would have joined them on her knees, but she was squashed between Katie Gardener, daughter of Demeter, Clarisse, and several others. She barely had enough room to crane her neck to see, let alone give obeisance to the Stormbringer.
Poseidon stalked up to the Big House, ignoring the demigods and nature spirits staring at him with a mixture of awe and fear, and gave a curt nod to Chiron, who was at the front of the group. "Chiron," he greeted him gruffly. "I have come to deal with Polybotes. Choose the two best warriors here, one from the Greeks, and one from the Romans, to join me in the fight. We will attack at noon, when the army is at their weakest. See to it that everyone is prepared."
It was a smart choice, Claudia thought. It meant that Polybotes would be fighting three opponents, with three being the most important number in their mutual religion, and neither the Greeks nor the Romans would be offended by being excluded. She would have to represent the Romans, of course. She was acknowledged as one of the best fighters in Camp Jupiter, after all, and the highest ranking legionnaire available. Romans took ranks seriously. Far more seriously than their Greek relations apparently did.
"Of course, my lord," Chiron agreed, bowing from his waist, which turned into a horse's body (he too had assumed they were under attack, and abandoned his disguise and grabbed his bow and quiver from the side of the door after arriving on the porch.
Poseidon gave a curt nod, informed them that he would be at the beach, drawing extra strength for himself from the ocean, and disappeared in a shower of saltwater droplets.
Chiron turned, scanning the group of heroes on the porch before his gaze landed on Claudia's section. "Centurion Claudia, Clarisse," he called. "Come here please."

The half-bloods' sudden attack caught the enemy army by surprise and unprepared. They were lounging around various fire pits when they were suddenly bombarded with attacks from the ballistae and archers that were lining the tops of the walls. Chiron was in charge of the archers, and as far as Claudia could tell, not one of his arrows missed their mark. Within moments, dozens of monsters had been reduced to piles of gold dust.
While the monsters all screeched and ran around like headless chickens, the smarter 'officers' yelling orders to try and arrange their troops into some kind of organized fighting force, the gates were opened and the ground fighters all came pouring out in droves.
The Greeks were arranged in phalanxes, their ease with it showing that, despite their more relaxed attitude, they were still perfectly capable of being excellent fighters. The nature spirits and the Party Ponies each had their own phalanxes, but it was obvious that they weren't born to be warriors like the demigods were. Finally, the Romans were arranged into various groups, and Claudia and Clarisse scrambled to keep up with Lord Poseidon, who was striding through the battlefield, making a beeline for Polybotes.
At the sight of the approaching god, the giant let out a bellowing laugh that made everyone who heard it shiver as goosebumps ran up their spines. Claudia swallowed and steeled herself. It was easier when her mother's blessing appeared around, glowing and filling with a mixture of strength and reassurance that only a parent could give to their child. Even if that parent was goddess whom said child had only seen and spoken to a handful of times.
"So, Poseidon," Polybotes smirked as they stopped a few feet away, those surrounding them backing away to give them space for the fight. "You've finally surfaced from that underwater palace of yours. At last. I look forward to killing you before I deal with that queen and those brats of yours. Especially that thrice-damned upstart who helped kill me in the last war. I'll make her death slow and painful. Maybe I'll even make her my pet. Wouldn't that be fun? Having your favourite child on a leash, at my mercy as your subjects serve me as their master."
Poseidon snarled, slamming the butt of his trident into the grass-covered ground. "Arrogant fool!" he spat back. "You will die today! And this time I will make sure your dust is so dispersed, you will never be reborn! Ever!"
Polybotes glowered back at him. "Are you so sure?" he sneered. "Both the gods and heroes of this millennium are far weaker than in the Ancient days. You do not even have a child to fight me with! Instead you are forced to rely on the child of a traitor and that blasted Akantha's Roman daughter. It's pathetic."
Poseidon smirked. "Are you so sure?" he drawled. Suddenly, he lifted his trident and angled it so that the tips were aimed at the giant. A gust of water, so cold that Claudia could spot specks of ice in it, came shooting out of each tip, combining and twisting together into a long rope of deadly water and then hardening into a spear made of solid ice. Polybotes blocked it with his own trident, shaking his head to release several basilisks as he did so.
"Is that the best you can do?" he sneered, as the icicle shattered and the shards crashed to the ground. The snakes began slithering towards the two heroines, who quickly began attempting to stab them, while avoiding being bitten. Not an easy feat when you're dealing with agile serpents the same shade of green as the waist-length grass they were in.
"Not even close," Poseidon replied coldly, before lunging towards his Bane, trident raised.
"Why don't people ever cut this damn grass?" Claudia snapped at Clarisse as she jumped out of reach of a lunging basilisk, taking advantage of being able to see it in order to jab her pilum through its' open mouth and making it dissolve. At least it had to rear up above the grass to attack.
"Extra test for new arrivals," Clarisse shrugged as she electrocuted another with her spear. "They have to fight their pursuers in awkward terrain."
Claudia grudgingly acknowledged the pros of that approach. Finally, between the two of them, they managed to deal with the dozen basilisks, as well as the two Bargain Market vest-wearing gorgons who tried to attack them, one of them offering them various deals before Clarisse stabbed her to make her shut up. Then, they raced to join Poseidon, who was fighting Polybotes grimly, with both them seeming to be evenly matched, with an almost equal number of wounds, though Polybotes' injuries seemed to be closing up faster.
Poseidon slashed Polybotes' net in two, and half of it ended up falling on top of Clarisse, making her swear violently as she fell to her knees, tangled in the heavy magical rope. Claudia paused, torn between helping her friend and helping Poseidon, only for Clarisse to make the decision for her.
"What are you waiting for?" she snapped at her. "GO! Kill that son of a bitch!"
Claudia nodded and turned away, rushing over. Polybotes didn't see her, but she could tell from his brief nod that Poseidon had. She readied herself, raising her sword so it was level with Polybotes' ankle. All she needed was to strike him when he was next wounded by Poseidon, and the Bane of the Sea God would be dead.
Her chance came seconds later. Poseidon stabbed his trident several inches deep into a small area in Polybotes' stomach, unprotected by his green and blue armour, which was itself badly cracked from the fight. Immediately, before Poseidon had even pulled his symbol of power back out, Claudia jabbed with all of her blessing-increased might. Polybotes let out a furious cry of realization, just as he began to crumble into dust.
Claudia didn't hesitate, spinning around and preparing to race back to Clarisse's aid. She froze in horror as she realized that she was too late. Although Clarisse's bottom half was still covered by the net, her upper half was not. And her head was severed from her body, it having rolled so that her blank eyes seemed to be glaring accusingly at Claudia. A pool of dark red blood was spreading around her, staining her hair. She was dead.

I know, I'm sorry! I didn't even realize that I was going to kill Clarisse until I was writing her death. But it is a war. Not everyone can survive, unfortunately. And the story writes itself, honestly.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO/HOO. Well this is the climax. I'll write an epilogue, and that's the end of it. I hope you enjoy it.

"We're beneath the Erechtheion," Lena explained in a low tone, shifting her grip on her sword as she surveyed the ancient grove where the rivalry between the god of the sea and the goddess of wisdom had first begun. "It's a temple to both Athena and Poseidon, where their feud first started. I don't know if there's still any power left here, though. The gods removed any power from Ares and Athena's old temples, so they couldn't be used to give them strength during the Titan War.
Anyway. The Parthenon should be diagonally to the southeast of here. We'll sneak around the perimeter and disable as many siege weapons as we can, make an approach path for the ship."
"It's broad daylight," Thalia pointed out pessimistically. "We'll be seen."
Lena scanned the sky. "That's why I made a plan with Frank and Hazel," she explained. "Didn't get the chance to tell you two earlier, it was kind of a last minute thing. Hopefully … ah. Look."
A bee zipped overhead. Dozens more followed. They swarmed around a column, then hovered over the opening of the pit.
"That's Frank," Lena grinned. "Say hello."
Luke raised his eyebrows in surprise as he and Thalia raised their hands to wave at the swarm.
"How does that even work?" he mused.
"Does it really matter as long as it does?" Thalia asked reasonably. Luke inclined his head in acknowledgement at that.
"Touché," he hummed. "Anything else we need to know?"
"Frank's our go-between," Lena informed them. "As soon as he gives Hazel the word, she'll –"
"Gah!" Luke cut her off with a surprised yelp, and Lena hastily clamped her hand over his mouth. Which looked very strange, because suddenly each of them had turned into a hulking, six-armed Earthborn. Thalia grimaced, recalling the Death Mist back in Tartarus. She wished that she had been given a head's up so that she could prepare herself for this.
"Hazel's Mist," she said, noticing that her voice sounded deep and gravelly. She looked down and scowled at her new body.
Tall, with a tangled mess of belly hair, a dirty loincloth, stubby legs and oversized feet. If she concentrated, she could see her normal arms, but when she moved them they rippled like mirages, separating into three different sets of muscular Earthborn arms. A pounding started in her head.
"Hideous," she grumbled irritably. Hey, Thalia was no fashion-obsessed Barbie girl, but what female didn't enjoy looking nice? And what human being wanted to look like a Gegeine?
Lena grimaced at her, the expression doing her new features no favours. "Hey, I'm with you," she insisted, her tone apologetic as she raised her hands in a gesture of peace. "But this is our best chance to get up to the throne unnoticed. You know that as well as I do."
Luke grimaced, and Thalia repressed an instinctive shudder at the sight of an Earthborn making a face, as well as the desire to stab both of her companions. She really wished she'd had time to prepare herself for this.
"Are we sure that walking right up into the middle of enemy territory after being repeatedly warned that our blood will wake the Earth Mother is a good idea?" Luke asked, deliberately avoiding using Gaia's name for safety's sake.
"We don't exactly have much options," Lena replied ruefully. "Believe you me, I'm not too fond of the idea either."
"Well, it's too late to back out now," Thalia interrupted. "We'll split up, and meet at the throne. May the Fates be with you both."
"And you," Lena replied, before darting off into the swarm of monsters. Thalia and Luke paused long enough to exchange a frantic kiss before copying her.

At first it was simple. There were monsters everywhere – hundreds of ugly Gegeines, Cyclopes and more casually milling through the ruins – but most of them were gathered at the Parthenon, watching the ceremony in progress.
Thalia, aided by her disguise, strolled along the cliffs of the Acropolis unchallenged. Near the first onager, three Earthborn were sunning themselves on the rocks. Thalia walked right up to them and, before they could make a sound, cut them down with her spear. All three melted into heaps of gold monster dust. Quickly, she slashed the onager's spring cord to disable the weapon, then kept moving, determined to do as much damage as possible before the sabotage was discovered.
Carefully, she skirted a patrol of Cyclopes. The second onager was surrounded by an encampment of tattooed Laistrygonian ogres, but Thalia managed to get to the machine without raising suspicion. Once in range, she dropped a vial of Greek fire in the sling. When they tried to use it, it would instead explode, hopefully taking a couple of its' operators with it.
She kept moving. Gryphons roosted on the colonnade of an old temple. A group of empousai had retreated into a shadowy archway and appeared to be slumbering, their fiery hair flickering dimly and their brass legs glinting.
Hopefully the sunlight would make them sluggish if they had to fight.
Whenever she could, Thalia slew isolated monsters, but she walked past larger groups. Trying to take them on would attract too much attention to risk.
Meanwhile the crowd at the Parthenon grew larger. The chanting got louder. Thalia couldn't see what was happening inside the ruins – just the heads of twenty or thirty giants standing in a circle, mumbling and swaying in some sort of chant that sent shivers up her spine.
She disabled a third siege weapon by sawing through the torsion ropes, hoping that it would give the Argo II a clear approach from the north.
Suddenly, the chanting stopped. A BOOM echoed across the hillside. In the Parthenon, the giants roared in triumph. All around her, monsters surged towards the sound of celebration. Thalia was instantly filled with dread.
She hastily joined up with a crowd of sour-smelling Earthborn and made her way up the main steps of the temple, then climbed a section of metal scaffolding so she could see above the heads of the ogres and Cyclopes. The scene in the ruins almost made her cry aloud in horror.
Before Porphyrion's throne, a group of giants stood in a loose ring, hollering and shaking their weapons as two of their number paraded around the circle, showing off their prize. The giant Mimas had Luke wrapped in his massive fist. He was struggling desperately, but it was clear that his attempts were futile.
It took all of Thalia's strength (and the knowledge that she would only make things worse if she blew her own cover) to keep her dismay from showing, and to join in on the cheering with the monsters. A second later, she jumped three feet in the air in surprise as Lena placed a hand on her shoulder.

If Lena hadn't been there, she never would have believed it. In fact, she didn't even fully remember everything that happened during the battle. For the rest of her life, the events of the Battle of the Parthenon would be nothing more than a bunch of patchwork scenes, smashed together.
She remembered looking up as the clouds parted over the Acropolis, and how black space spangled with stars, the palaces of Mount Olympus gleaming silver and gold in the background. An army of gods charged down from on high, and it was a breath-taking sight to behold.
There was supersized Zeus riding into battle in a golden chariot, a lightning bolt the size of a telephone pole crackling in one hand. Pulling his chariot were four horses made of wind, each constantly shifting from equine to human form, trying to break free. For a split second, one took on the icy visage of Boreas. Another wore Notus' swirling crown of fire and steam. A third flashed the smug lazy smile of Zephyrus. Zeus had bound and harnessed the four wind gods themselves. The goddess Nike soared beside the king's right shoulder, roaring "VICTORY TO THE GODS!" at the top of her not-inconsiderable lungs.
At Zeus' left flank rode Hera, her chariot pulled by enormous peacocks, their rainbow-coloured plumage so bright it made black spots dance in front of Lena's vision.
Her own mother rode astride Pegasus himself, dressed in full battle regalia. A silver cape was flying behind her and her sword, Anaklusmos, was held high towards the sky.
In the last second, just before the gods reached the Parthenon, they seemed to displace themselves, like they'd jumped through hyperspace. The chariots disappeared. Suddenly Lena and her friends were surrounded by the Olympians, now human-sized, tiny next to the giants, but glowing with power. Lena barely had time to comprehend what was going on, and that she and the others were all suddenly covered in lightweight armour from head-to-toe, when Jason shouted and charged at Porphyrion. Shrugging, she joined the others in the chaotic fight.
The fighting ranged all over the Parthenon and spilled across the Acropolis. Out of the corner of her eye, Lena could see Jason and Thalia, fighting Porphyrion alongside their father. Nike was darting around, dissolving monsters into gold dust so quickly it seemed like she was in the epicentre of a sand-filled whirlwind.
On the opposite side of the temple, Frank Zhang and the war goddess Enyo smashed through an entire phalanx of giants – Enyo with her spear and shield, Frank (as an African elephant) with his trunk and feet. The war goddess laughed wildly and stabbed and disembowelled like she was a little kid destroying piñatas at a birthday party.
Hazel raced through the battle on Arion's back, disappearing in the Mist whenever a giant came close, then appearing behind him and stabbing him in the back. The goddess Hecate danced in her wake, setting fire to their enemies with two blazing torches. Lena couldn't see Hades, but whenever a giant stumbled and fell the ground broke open and the giant was snapped up and swallowed.
Luke and Hermes were flying through the air on their winged shoes as they took on a pair of giants dressed in a mixture of ballet tutus, scarves, and other theatre clothing items. Lena recognized them from her 'Which Monster Is It Anyway?' book as Otis and Ephialtes.
Luke's sword, Backbiter, cut deeply into Otis' leg, while his father wacked him around the head with his caduceus, causing the dual effect of making Otis dissolve and making the snakes, George and Martha, hiss their angry complaints. Ephialtes roared in fury and ran at them in a foolish move that ended in his receiving a sword to the eye, and a caduceus to the ear.
As for Leo, he was racing across the deck of the Argo II, shooting ballistae, dropping hammers on the giants' heads and blowtorching their loincloths. Behind him at the helm, a burly bearded guy in a mechanic's uniform was tinkering with the controls, furiously trying to keep the ship aloft. It must have been Hephaestus.
Lena herself had teamed up with her mother, and they were making considerable progress. They had already killed Periboia, and Ambrosius, Akantha's Bane, was badly wounded. With a loud cry of determination, glowing brightly with her mother's blessing, Lena leapt in the air. She flung herself towards Ambrosius' stomach, while her mother charged towards his large neck, Pegasus neighing his own defiance and opposition towards the monster. Their attacks landed in unison, and the giant crumbled into dust.
Lena began to fall, letting out an instinctive scream of fear, only for Akantha to reach out and grab her out of the air, pulling her to safety on her steed's back.
"It's almost over," Akantha breathed to her, as she directed Pegasus towards where Jason, Thalia and Zeus were still fighting against Porphyrion.
Zeus was certainly a sight to behold. His power radiated from him and smelled of rain and clean wind. He made the air burn with energy. Up close, his lightning bolt appeared as a bronze rod a metre long, pointed on both ends, with blades of energy extending from both sides to form a javelin of white electricity.
As they cantered up through the air to them, he used his bolt to slash across the giant's path and Porphyrion collapsed into his makeshift throne, which crumbled under the giant's weight.
"No throne for you," Zeus growled. "Not here. Not ever."
"You cannot stop us!" the giant yelled. "The Earth Mother will awaken!"
"Not while I stand!" Akantha cried, anger obvious in her tone and manner.
At the same time, Zeus blasted the throne to rubble. The giant king flew backwards out of the temple and Jason and Thalia ran after him, their father at their heels. They backed Porphyrion to the edge of the cliffs, the whole of modern Athens spread out below. Lightning had melted all the weapons in the giant's hair. Molten Celestial bronze dripped through his dreadlocks like caramel. His skin steamed and blistered. Porphyrion snarled and raised his spear.
"Your cause is lost, Zeus. Even if you defeat me, Mother shall simply raise me again!"
"Then perhaps," Zeus smirked, "you should not die in the embrace of Gaia. Thalia, Jason, my children …"
The two siblings advanced, weapons held aloft and determination radiating from them.
Porphyrion lashed out wildly with his spear, but Thalia cut it in half with her spear. Meanwhile, Jason charged in, jabbing his sword through the giant's breastplate, then summoned the winds and blasted Porphyrion off the edge of the cliff. As the giant fell, screaming, Zeus pointed his lightning bolt, while Thalia and Jason raised their hands, sparks flying around their fingertips. An arc of pure white heat vaporized Porphyrion in midair. His ashes drifted down in a gentle cloud, dusting the tops of the olive trees on the slopes of the Acropolis.
"Done," Akantha murmured, beginning to guide Pegasus to the ground again. "All of the giants are dealt with now."
"What about Ga-, the Earth Mother?" Lena asked.
"We shall deal with her," Akantha replied, as she dismounted from her steed and patted his neck, before lifting Lena herself off of the winged horse.
As the demigods grouped together to watch, the gods all formed a circle, and began to chant. More gods, who had not participated in the battle, also appeared and joined the chant. In the centre of their circle, Gaia's form of a woman made of mud, eyes closed in slumber, appeared. Her expression was twisted in anger and she cursed them as she writhed in pain.
"She's shrinking," Frank whispered to them after a few moments. Lena nodded, having already spotted the subtle eroding of the Earth Mother's body. The longer the chant went on, the faster she shrivelled up, and the softer her voice became.
By the time her body was the size of the gods' knees, Gaia's tone had gained the cadence of someone on the verge of sleep. By the time she disappeared completely, she was almost snoring.
"It is done!" Zeus declared once she was gone, in a booming voice. "The Earth Mother and her children are bound once again and the Prophecy of Seven is fulfilled. The West is safe once more!"
The cheering was so loud, the ground seemed to shake from it. It was an irony that Lena didn't miss.

----- CHAPTER BREAK -----

Disclaimer: I don't own PJO/HOO. I'm delighted that everybody enjoyed this story so much. I won't be doing a TOA version, but here is a short epilogue to give a glimpse of the Seven as adults. When I have an idea for it, I'll add to the oneshots, but that'll be on-an-off. I'll be posting the first chapter of Ana Jackson BOL in the next few days too. Thank you all again.

Apollo must've been in a good mood that day, because the sun was shining brightly as the Seven and their children celebrated the summer solstice.
After the end of the feud between the Greeks and the Romans, the gods had decided that they would establish a 'neutral territory', positioned halfway between both Camp Half-Blood and Camp Jupiter. It was much smaller than either New Rome, or the city's new Greek sister-city, επίνειο (Haven), and contained a population made up of both Greeks and Romans, and their children, many of whom had mixed ancestry. It was named Peace, and had heavy wards placed on it by Hecate herself to prevent any violence breaking out within its' walls. (Save, of course, for the arenas).
Several times a year, Thalia and Luke, and Jason and Reyna, along with their children, left their homes in New Rome and επίνειο and headed to Peace in order to meet up with their friends and family. At summer time, they arrived just in time to celebrate Jason's birthday on the first of July, and then left again two weeks before school restarted for the year.
Lena groaned slightly and rotated her ankle, cursing her swollen stomach for blocking her from simply leaning down to give it a light massage.
"Ankles?" Hazel asked her with a knowing sympathy. The daughter of the loyalty goddess grimaced back as she nodded.
"Yeah," she huffed. "Gods, why do the Fates punish women like this? And which of the gods did I annoy to curse me with another pregnancy? I thought that I was done after Adele!"
Adele, short for Adelpha, was Lena's third child. She was turning seven that year, and constantly dogging the footsteps of her elder sisters and idols, twins Elpis and Eirene. All three had inherited their father and paternal grandfather's skills at creation and forging, but were far better fighters than Leo could ever claim to be. They were also much calmer, though Adele had a habit of bursting out into random fits of giggles at strange (and often inappropriate) moments. Lena had been trying to curb that, though.
Hazel, who had one child, five-year-old Emily, patted her reassuringly on the hand. "Not much longer," she offered soothingly. "Only three weeks left until your due date arrives, and you know that Alizka is never wrong about due dates."
"That's true," Lena acknowledged. Of course, it would be strange if a daughter of Eileithyia, the goddess of childbirth, was bad at predicting delivery dates. "Still, I think it's ridiculously unfair. Why should women be the ones to suffer so the next generation can be born? If Leo so much as glances at me wrong after this, I'm neutering him and blowing up the bloody shop he loves so much."
"You would never," Reyna, who had, up until then been sitting silently on the Hazel's other and keeping a watchful eye on her three sons, Theo, Zeke and Anthony, smirked. "You've put way too much work into that thing. You'd sooner blow up your own house then your shop."
Lena scowled and crossed her arms, the expression darkening even more when her stomach prevented her from preforming the motion properly.
It was true, she grudgingly conceded in the safety of her mind. While Leo (along with his two favourite siblings, Nyssa and Harley) did the actual mechanic work in their small mechanic shop in New York City, Lena was the one who actually kept it running.
It was she who did the accounting, ordered any parts, designed and updated the website, and made sure they were regularly advertised in various publications. In truth, Lukas and Esperanza's Repairs was as much her baby as the twins and Adele were.
"What's this about blowing up Lena and Leo's shop?" Thalia asked, trotting up with a glass of lemonade in hand. Out of the entire group, only Thalia and Luke didn't have kids. It was not a choice made themselves, but one the Fates had made for them. Still, they were happy with their life, as far as Lena knew, so she didn't press.
Letting out a small chuckle, Reyna began explaining that Lena was in a bad mood and threatening her husband and their family's livelihood. Thalia laughed and agreed that Lena would sooner declare her allegiance to the Egyptian pantheon than damage her business, causing said daughter of Akantha to smack her arm with a goodnatured grin that belayed her action.
They had come a long way from the broken teenagers who had saved the world. They were still damaged, but they were happy, and there was a lot to be said for that.

Adelpha: beloved sister
Elpis: hope
Eirene: peace
Alizka: defender of mankind (version of Alexandra)
all Greek names