Disclaimer: Rick Riordan owns all the characters. I own nothing.
Chapter 4
Leo's POV
It was coming. The big battle against Gaia was imminent. The journey towards Greece had been turbulent with constant monster attacks leaving the crew of the Argo II with very little sleep. But here they were at last. Seven demigods against Hades knew how many monsters. Actually they probably did, Leo thought, seeing as they've all come out of Tartarus. The seven weren't completely helpless though. Annabeth was wicked with a dagger and, if all else failed, she could confuse the monsters with her smart talk. Well, she did that enough to Leo in any case. Percy and Jason could summon a freaking storm together and they had others powers Leo could only dream of. For instance, Jason could fly over and kill enemies while out of their reach and Percy could make his own personal hurricane. Frank could turn into animals or go all son of Mars on them and get that weird red glow that made him invincible. Hazel had that amazing horse so she could lop monsters heads off faster than they could stab them. Piper could dual wield celestial bronze daggers or shoot fresh produce using her cornucopia. She could even convince monsters it would be fun to kill their friend next to them rather than the demigods. And Leo could… fire really small fireballs at the monsters or bash their brains out with a hammer. That was presuming he could actually get close enough to do that and also presuming the other monsters didn't think he looked like he'd be fun to kill. Leo groaned and buried his face in his hands. Gods, he would be the laughing stock of demigods for generations. He could just imagine it…
'Dad, what happened to Grandpa Jason and Grandma Piper in the war?'
'Well son, your grandpa, grandma and five others called Percy, Annabeth, Frank, Hazel and Leo fought against the Earth Mother Gaia. A great storm arose thanks to your grandpa and Percy. Your grandma, Hazel and Annabeth, Percy, Frank and Jason whirled through the monster ranks until there was nothing left.'
'And what about Leo?'
'Well, according to your grandpa, he ran around in flames, wielding a giant hammer and yelling like a lunatic.'
Yep, things were definitely looking up for Leo. A touch at his shoulder brought him back to reality.
'Leo? Are you okay, buddy? Now isn't really the time to be freaking out.'
Leo looked up. Jason was standing over him, eyes full of concern. All the others were looking at him expectantly too. He grinned at them.
'Yeah. Just, you know, thinking.'
Piper laughed.
'Leo, if there's anything you don't do, it's thinking.'
Leo tried to put on his best wounded expression. 'Hey…'
Hazel inhaled sharply.
'Guys, I hate to break up the good natured banter here but, look.'
Leo looked where she was pointing. His heart plummeted. The monster army was coming. It was time.
Calypso's POV
Something was happening. Calypso was sure of it. The seas had turned grey and churned wildly. The skies had turned cloudy and thunder rumbled. Even Ogygia would not be spared from this war. Calypso turned back to her flowerbed. Soon, it would not be safe to be outside. She performed some long lasting magic on her plants and hurried inside her cave. Her thoughts were with Leo. She was frightened for him. She knew he was out there, facing whatever monsters Gaia had waiting for him. He had told her all about his quest during his short stay with her. And Gaia's appearance hadn't helped to ease her anxiety. Suddenly, her fear intensified. What if Leo died on the quest? Would Hades punish him for not fulfilling his oath? Or would he reward him for dying a hero's death. Calypso was so preoccupied with her thoughts that she got the shock of her life when she walked into her bedroom. Standing in the middle of the room was a god. He had a leg brace and rough, calloused skin. His hair and beard was tangled.
'Hephaestus.' Calypso was still in shock.
'Hello. I thought I might pay you a visit, given how taken you are with my son.'
Calypso felt her cheeks redden.
'But I thought you were incapacitated with your Greek and Roman forms in conflict.'
'Ah. Yes. Well, you see, our children form our different forms have resolved their problems. We are still a little bit conflicted what with having our two aspects mixed but your thoughts about Leo were so strong you invoked my presence.'
'Why me? You know Leo is at war. Why couldn't you use my thoughts to appear to him and help him? Why?'
'I'm sorry Calypso. Gods cannot interfere directly in the affairs of mortals. Surely you know this. It hurts do have to stand by but if there is anything we have learnt over the eons, it is to know when to let go. It also hurts when they die in our names but we must ensure they died for a reason.'
'What are you…? No. No. No no no. Leo will not die. He can't. He won't. You won't let him. See his future. Tell me if it's true.'
'I can't. The future is clouded. You above all people should know this. And even if I could, I wouldn't want to. Do you know how hard it would be to not only have to stand by and watch but know if he's going to die? I care for him but I wouldn't be able to live with the pain of knowing just what would happen before it happens.'
Calypso sighed. But she supposed she had known that all along. Hephaestus nodded as if she'd told him some amazing truth. He then clapped a hand to his forehead and his form flickered briefly.
'My time is up. Don't worry. I sense your imprisonment will soon draw to a close. You will be free.'
With that, Hephaestus erupted in a column of flames and disappeared. Calypso stumbled to her bed and sat down heavily.
'You can't leave me Leo.' She whispered this to no one in particular. 'You promised me. You promised.'
