Disclaimer: I do not own PJO.
Author's Note: This is, for all of you newcomers, a series. I recommend that you read both Forgotten and Child of the Titans before reading this story.
Anyways… I know this is going to be cryptic, and hard to understand at first. Just know that it will make sense in the end. I can't answer any questions that have to do with the plot, but any other questions are permitted. Also, this takes place roughly seventy years after Child of the Titans. It starts out as Clarisse's POV. Don't worry – everything will be explained, mostly through flashbacks. Just give it time.
The hot sun woke me, as it did every morning. Even though it was winter, and I was in an air-conditioned house, it did nothing to blunt Texas's terrible heat. Even now, decades later, I wasn't used to it. But I was fine with that. I wouldn't be here much longer.
My name is Clarisse. I am a daughter of Ares – but you probably know that, along with many other things about me.. What you don't know is that I am now working at Eurytion's ranch. It used to be Geryon's, but after Perseus Jackson vanquished him, Eurytion took over.
I had been taken here almost seventy years ago now, and given immortality. I wasn't meant to be part of anything. But through perseverance, hard work, and nosiness equal to that of Athena's children, I had stumbled on the plan meant to last nearly a century. I let my mind wander back, remembering the events that had led to the discovery that had shaped my life.
I stood on a rock, looking down on the forest stretching out before me. They weren't there. The last of the heroes had gone missing this morning, and had not yet returned.
The quest to return Zoë from the Underworld had been successful. They had all made it back, except one Huntress, who had been killed by a creature known as a spawn. Another had been struck down, but with Chiron's healing, she had recovered.
But then, just two days after they had returned, Percy had gone missing. Both the Hunt and the campers had searched, but he had not been found.
The day after that, Zoë was gone as well. This sent whispers circulating throughout the camp. Since Zoë apparently had refused to return to the Hunt after being returned from the dead, the Aphrodite campers had gotten the rumors going around. But the very next day, Thalia went missing as well.
This rock had been where we had stopped looking. Either they were dead, they were captured, or they didn't want to be found. Even the Hunt, even Lady Artemis herself, had been unable to pick up a trail.
For several days, nobody else disappeared. Then, five days after Thalia, both Soaron, the son of Hekate, and Cassandra, the daughter of Gaia, had gone missing, too. Also, scouts reported seeing a woman, dressed all in black, walk through the borders and then out again an hour later, carrying a strange bundle. When they had tried to confront her, she literally froze them, as in with ice. It took them an hour next to the climbing wall to thaw out. Her trail led straight through New York City, where we were unable to conduct a search – there were too many mortals, and mortals were forbidden to witness the Sacred Hunt. Also, turning everyone into jackalopes was hardly an option – we were trying to save the mortals, not destroy them.
Then it was Annabeth. Then Nico. Chiron himself had been on sentry duty, and he had seen nothing. Nothing had damaged the barrier, and yet nothing had been registered as going through. This led to the inevitable conclusions: Either the barriers were failing (again), they were still within the borders, or someone with the strength of a god – or a Titan – was doing this.
But someone had to do something about it. And standing there, upon that rock, I knew that I had to be the one to take the initiative. I made my decision. I would take two or three Hunters and one of those wolves, and I would chase their trail for as long as I had breath in my body. I may not like some of them, but we needed them. If it was the Titans who had them, we were in serious trouble.
I turned, running back through the woods, where everyone was still searching. No one would be in the Ares cabin. I would pray to my father, then, if I got what I needed, I would get the Hunters and go, leaving a note behind so they knew I wasn't one of the missing.
Five minutes later, I was kneeling at the small altar in the Ares cabin.
A minute after that, I was in the Hephaestus cabin, stealing Illusioner, or whatever Beckonderf had decided to call the projector thing that he had made. I stuffed it in my bag along with a police uniform, a dog collar and leash, police inspection tape, and I.D. There was also a small supply of food, three water bottles, and, of course, my spear and shield.
It took some maneuvering and stealth, as well as a steep bribe, to get myself, Acacia, Mathilda, Phoebe, the camp van, and the wolf known as Archaic out, but I managed it.
"So what's the plan?" asked Phoebe, looking at me. She was a tall, stocky, and well muscled girl of twelve years old in appearance, while she in reality was a teenager Artemis had picked up while in England in about the year 1600.
I grinned. I had everything I needed. "Using this –" I held up the projector "– we are going to appear as three police officers with a bloodhound, and then proceed to cordon off the entire area of where we find a trail. Hopefully, it has enough battery life. You three will dress in the uniforms as trainees, while I will use the projector to appear as a police officer. I also have appropriated an I.D., in case our story is questioned."
All three nodded. I knew Acacia fairly well – she was from Maine, and was only about forty years old, which was nothing compared to most of them. She was friendly, supportive, and an excellent fighter. She was also a daughter of Athena, and would be our planner for battle or any infiltration necessary.
I knew Phoebe, too – she had a temper, and was quite stubborn, but she was the best tracker the Hunters had – almost as proficient as Artemis herself. She might not like me, but she would be willing to do anything to help Zoë.
Mathilda was the only one I didn't know quite as well. I had decided to take her for three reasons – her excellent grasp of strategy, her legendary skill with sword and bow, and her cooperativeness. She was more than willing to let others lead, as long as she liked where they were going. I had tried gently probing among the Hunt to find out who she was, but they refused to answer any questions, adding an aura of mystery about her.
"But why do we have to go through all of this trouble?" asked Acacia. "Won't the Mist just cover our tracks, and make the mortals see us differently?"
"It could," I agreed. "But who says it has to make us appear as we want it to? We have no way of knowing what they would see."
"What if we, personally, manipulated it?" persisted Acacia.
I glared at her. I had tried to be more controlled, and not lose my temper, but it got hard. "Look, I've been planning this for a while, and this is the best way to do it! We can't Mist every single Tartarus-spawned human in New York that passes by! The point is to do this quickly, and to be as inconspicuous as possible. Misting the lot of them isn't going to work. What if one of them is clear-sighted?"
"Oh," said Acacia.
"No need to be so vehement, Clarisse," said Mathilda quietly from the front. She was the oldest, and therefore was driving. "We all agreed to come, and we all are on equal footing. Just because you got the ideas doesn't mean you have to be right." She spun the wheel, then glanced back at me.
"Point taken," I mumbled. Even if I didn't like how she had worded her statement, she was right. Besides, it didn't make sense to argue with the Hunters. I needed them.
Looking back on everything, I had to smile at my temper. After so long, I had long since mastered my temper. I only got mad if I wanted to, now.
I shook my head, clearing my thoughts of the memories. I needed to stop remembering, and start moving forwards. And I knew that it was time.
The Titans had taken over almost sixty years ago now. They had been badly weakened by the war, however, and it was only in the past forty years that they had reasserted their claim to the world. In less a year, they had defeated all of the rebellious mortals.
The satyrs had turned when the Titans stopped the lumber and deep sea fishing industries. The gods had never taken any moves to stop mortals from destroying the wild, so when the Titans finally saved the Wild, the satyrs were more than happy to help them. The small fraction remaining loyal to the gods had gone into hiding. Nobody knew where they were.
The Titans had allowed us to remain at the ranch after we started sending them supplies. Geryon, thankfully, had not yet reformed. The last thing we needed was for a three-bodied idiot to stumble upon the weapons in the attic, the Cyclopes in the basement, or the satyrs in the woods. Eurytion and I may have appeared to help the Titans, but we had always remained loyal to the gods.
Yawning, Eurytion strode out of his huge bedroom, Orthus on his heels. "Sleep well?" he asked, pulling a box of cereal from the pantry.
I turned and looked at him. His eyes, though sleepy, were alert, and he took in my travel clothes, chain mail cloak and armor, my spear, sword, and shield. He also saw the determination in my eyes.
"It's time?" he asked quietly.
I nodded, letting a smile drift across my face. "It's time," I agreed, putting the sharpening stone into my pocket. "Time to free the Timeless."
Eurytion nodded. "Three things you should take," he said, rummaging around in his pockets. First, he brought out an old sand dollar. It was covered in dust, but it still gleamed slightly. Frowning, I took in the glimmer in the center, and two tiny holes in the back.
"What is it for?" I asked.
He shrugged. "I've got no idea. Percy gave it to me before he… left, told me to keep it safe. He said it might be useful. I've got no idea why, but you might need it. Also…"
He turned and walked into the bedroom, then came out with an old pistol and a small bottle. Dusting off the gun, he handed it to me.
"It's the only gun I could find that matched the celestial bronze bullets I had," he said. He then handed me three small, round chunks of glowing metal. "Just in case," he said.
Eurytion held up the bottle. "This is the most powerful tranquilizer you're ever likely to find," he said. "If you need to battle mortals, just smear a little onto your weapons. The metal itself won't ham them, but they'll fall asleep as soon as it touches them."
He gave it to me, then put a hand on my shoulder. "Good luck, little sister. May the Fates will you to succeed. I would wish for the gods to be with you, but…" he broke off. When the gods were defeated, the Titans had imprisoned them in places unknown. Nobody but the Titans themselves knew where the gods were now.
I nodded, unable to speak. I had spent so long at the ranch; it was my home. I almost couldn't bear the thought of leaving it.
Finally, I was able to say my goodbyes and start to walk, out of the ranch, towards my destination where the timeless ones, the ones who had escaped, were waiting.
That's pretty much how I'll give you what happened right after CoT – bits and pieces at a time. Any questions I can answer, I gladly will.
Thanks!
~Sa Rart~