Time Bomb Ticking Away
Author's Note: So… The Lost Hero… Yeah…This has been on my computer for… months. And it is probably really bad. Alas. I haven't posted anything in FOREVER, so I figured I'd post this. Also. Several assumptions. I have never seen Gladiator- it is on my to-do list- the quote in here is an assumption. I think it is in there, but I have no idea in all honesty. Second- I'm putting this in a future setting. The Greeks never made it to the Roman Camp and the Romans began to head for Greece all on their lonesome. So. Yeah. I think that's all. Um… I apologize for any grammar mistakes. If there are, I'll edit it at a later date- I tend to find them after I post stories. So.. Enjoy! {Sorry for the rambling!}
Surrounded by Romans demigods chanting and screaming in Roman-err…Latin, I couldn't help but feel more out of place than I had the whole time I'd been in Castra Stativa. Of course, being the unnamed, amnesiac, Son of Pos-Neptune that I was…I'd been pretty on my own for the last six months.
I stood at the helm of the Palinurus, gripping the wheel as tightly as I could, trying to keep the bucking ship under control. Nevertheless, I found myself more invigorated by the crashing waves on all sides of me, than I was by what I assumed was a powerful and exciting speech being given by the dark haired daughter of Ares standing beside me. They kept telling me that I would start understanding Roma-Latin eventually, but in six months, I hadn't had revelations.
I kept waiting for Reyna- that's the daughter of Mars…wait did I say Ares before? Oh well. I kept calling them by their Greek names-an act which was going to get me killed soon, I feared… Oh! To finish what I was saying, I kept waiting for Reyna to shout something about "we who are about to die," or something. With an inward laugh, I reflected that, that was the last time I let her choose the movie. Gladiator was good and all, but I'd had enough of the fighting and stuff in real life. Nevertheless, the after movie special had-
A rush of pain raced though my mind. Whatever I was remembering must have been part of the memories that I didn't have anymore… Stupid amnesia.
"Avete, heroes et heroides!" Reyna shouted to the fifteen assembled demigods on the lower level of the ship. It was her concluding line. It was always her concluding line. And, after two missions, and now this sailing quest, I still didn't know what it meant.
On my other side, Gwedolen, a daughter of Deme-Ceres, and Dakota, a son of Apollo, stood chanting with the others. I'd gone on these last three quests with the two of them- and as it stood, Dakota's parenthood was the one god I never forgot. I figured it was because Apollo was only god who'd kept his name totally intact. The god of the sun, I figured, must be pretty full of himself.
-Snow all around. Hunters. Blond hair. A cliff. "I am so awesome!" A chariot.
Pain flashed behind my eyes and I had to swallow an agonized shout. These flashbacks I kept getting always had some kind of pain accompanying them. It seemed as though someone didn't want me to remember who I had been.
"How was I, Water Boy?" A hand gripped my shoulder as Reyna, Gwen and Dakota walked over to my place by the wheel.
"Great as always," I smirked. I was good at BSing my way through the fact that I had no idea what she was saying during her speeches.
"You're sailing quite well," commented Gwen as she took her place next to me. For some reason, the daughter of Ceres had some type of hero worship-crush on me that I just couldn't dissuade her from.
"Yeah…" I said offhandedly, trying to keep control over the boat. I didn't know Mediterranean waters as well as I knew the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. "Dad must be keeping an eye on us."
"The Tres Magni do seem to keep more of an eye of their children that the other Dei…" Dakota muttered as he began to walk away. "Iuno and Iuppiter always kept a closer eye on Jason than anyone else ever did."
There was that name again: Jason Grace. If everyone kept bringing him up, I was going to get an inferiority complex. It was always Jason this, and Jason that. You're good but you wouldn't stand up to Jason. Jason would be sailing this ship right now if he was here. Jason's the Praetor… JasonJasonJasonJason…. I sighed. It was really frustrating to hear about the Son of Jupiter over and over again.
My head shot up. "Land ahoy," I whispered. "We're approaching land!" I called to Reyna who had walked away to stand amongst some of the other Romans. "Fifteen minutes at the most. The fog's too thick to see it, but I can sense the water's end!"
Reyna shot me an appreciative look and began to shout to the others… In Latin… Again. I was really starting to hate that language.
"She's telling them that we're approaching land," Gwen told me, coming to stand next to me, her gauntlets in her hand.
I turned partially, to look at her. "I know that's what she's saying." I couldn't let on that I didn't know Latin. Every time I did Lupa or Reyna would say something, and in all honesty, that was getting kind of old. And I knew I was gonna start getting in trouble for it.
Gwen shook her head and crossed her arms. "No you don't," she said with a grin. "But I won't tell. I promise." She crossed her heart jokingly. She was nice, but there was something about her that I just couldn't become interested in. "It'll come to you though. Eventually, I promise. We all understood it eventually."
"It just took you all a shorter eventually than it's taking me, huh." With her arms crossed, I could see the six slash marks tattooed on her forearm, indicating that she'd been at Castra Stativa for six years. The regal eagle, that marked her as part of the Roman Legion and that stared haughtily out at me, had not taken when they had tried to tattoo it on my arm. Instead of beautiful browns and whites, my arm had become inflamed and red wherever the ink had touched me. Even now, four months after the attempt, it still hurt to touch the irritated skin.
"You'll get it," Gwen said again, putting her gauntlets on and walking away to put on the rest of her armor. I already had most of my armor on. It felt heavy, cumbersome and unnecessary. That was one thing I knew but hadn't told anyone. I was invulnerable: I'd accidentally dropped my sword the other day, and caught it by the blade.
It hadn't cut me.
I'd come to the realization that somehow I was invincible, though I had no idea how that had happened. There had to be some kind of catch though, and I was worried to find that out.
I sighed. With no one else standing around, I began to list everything I could think of about myself- something I had gotten into the habit of doing over the last couple of months. "My name is Percy Jackson, I am a son of Pos-Neptune. I am invulnerable… I fight with a sword called….Riptide…" I trailed off and sighed. "I don't know anything about myself…" How pathetic.
I could see the shores of Greece coming into view and sighed heavily. Five months of preparation, and one month of straight sailing and it was all coming to a close. And I still had no idea who I am.
Stupid Seaweed Brain…You'll get it eventually.
A weird shiver wracked up and down my body. I was hearing voices in my head. Great, now I'm crazy.
Of course you're crazy, Kelp Head. It was never in any doubt.
Great. Just great.