CHAPTER 10: The Mystery Deepens
They group arrived in the Middle House in short order. Rachel, Reyna, and Nico were a little dazed from the Transfer Plate travel, but Suzy found that she was pretty much alright. She was a pro at Transfer Plate travel, after all. Fred, Arthur, and Leaf were alongside her, as was Doctor Scamandros, or 'Doc,' as Suzy liked to call him. And then there was that goddess that thought that she was all high and mighty until Rachel showed up to show her what's what.
"The Middle House," Arthur asked.
"It's where Art wants this goddess prisoned," Scamandros explained. "He wants to put all of the gods in different places, to avoid plots and collusion."
"Plots and collusion," Reyna repeated. "Makes sense. Though they're more likely to brutally argue and fight amongst themselves."
"Yes, that would seem very likely," Scamandros agreed, "though I think we'd want to avoid that too."
Suzy took a moment to survey the scene. They were in the Middle of the Middle, the center of the three sections of the Middle House. The temperature, in typical fashion, was not cold, not hot, but somewhere in the middle. The terrain was rocky, and the artificial sun shone brightly in the sky. Unlike the Flat, the sun in this section of the Middle House actually worked. To the group's left, The Extremely Grand Canal wound through the Middle of the Middle, and, a short distance away, curved upward into the air on its way to the Top Shelf.
"So, where are we taking this batty-eyed goddess?" Fred asked.
"You will be giving her to me." Suzy, and everyone else, turned around to find someone new standing with them. Suzy immediately recognized the Denizen as Friday's Dusk. Like all of the other Dusks, this one was wearing an outfit completely black in color. In this case, it was a long, flowing robe that was dark as night. Also, this Dusk had the normal, soft demeanor of any typical Dusk. Unlike the other Dusks, Friday's Dusk had shoulder-length hair that was white, as opposed to the typical black. Suzy had wondered about this when she first saw him, but then noticed that it was a soft white, like a moon.
"Friday's Dusk," Suzy stated. "It's good to see you ain't off somewhere sucking the experience out of people."
"You know that the practice is now forbidden," Dusk replied smoothly. "Besides, my mistress, Lady Friday, has mostly gotten over such desires, and so have I."
"Good," said Arthur flatly. "Now, where will you be taking her?" He gestured toward the love goddess, who still hadn't said anything since arriving in the House. She was sitting still, staring glumly at the rocky ground.
"The New Architect has commanded that I put her in the eyrie of my Winged Servants of the Night," Dusk answered.
Arthur shuddered. "Are you sure?" he asked slowly. "It seems cruel to even subject her to…that."
Dusk shrugged. "I do as commanded. I'll order the Winged Servants of the Night not to bother her, at least, not too much."
Arthur sighed and handed Dusk the chain of the Old One. Dusk accepted it with a smile, fluttered his black wings, and took off toward the Skylock above, Aphrodite dangling from the chain and screaming wildly.
"Well, that's done," said Suzy cheerfully. "Tea and biscuits?"
The famed group of seven sped quickly across the rugged landscape. Hazel had joined them from the Fifth Cohort, leaving Dakota in charge, and was riding her horse, Arion. The horse had also grudgingly agreed to carry Leo, who was bounding around uncomfortably while holding on for dear life. Above them, Percy and Annabeth were smoothly riding Percy's pegasus, Blackjack. Next to them, Frank had transformed into a falcon, flying in the air with wings spread.
Jason watched all of his friends traveling together from the back of Tempest, a ventus that was a friend of his. They were traveling low to the ground, slightly behind Arion. Piper was sitting calmly behind him, her arms wrapped around his midsection in a protective, loving manner. Despite the fact they were riding a storm spirit, which blew harsh winds and crackled lightning occasionally, both he and Piper were enjoying the ride together.
Up ahead, in the far distance, a great dust cloud billowed up around Aurum and Argentum. Those two were more important than anyone else going on this search, for they were hounds, and were able to track Reyna's scent. They had met up with the two hounds back at Camp Jupiter, and Frank had immediately thrust one of Reyna's belongings in front of them. The hounds wasted no time charging off eastward, and they hadn't stopped since.
"How do you think Reyna made it this far?" Piper asked from behind Jason. Despite that fact that they were traveling at high speed, Jason could hear and speak easily.
The son of Jupiter sighed. "I don't know, Pipes. Whoever captured them must have a quick means of travel."
"Or maybe Nico shadow-traveled," Piper pointed out.
"I don't know," Jason repeated, "Nico was pretty wiped after traveling from Epirus all the way to Long Island. I'm not sure he'd have had the strength."
"You're probably right," Piper admitted. "I guess we'll find out when we find them."
Jason remained silent for a moment, but then his eyes widened as he realized what Piper was implying. "You don't think they ran away, do you?"
Piper hesitated. "I'm not sure," she replied slowly.
"Piper!" Jason exclaimed in surprise. "Reyna is more loyal to the legion than anyone else I know, she would never abandon them!"
"I know, Jason—"
"Look," he interjected, "you may not find her trustworthy when it comes to me, and that's understandable, but she's completely trustworthy when it comes to the legion as a whole, and the Greeks."
Piper looked slightly offended. "I told you, Jason, I've moved past that. And I know that she's completely dedicated to her legion."
"Then you can't possibly think she ran away!"
"Then you explain how they suddenly disappeared from the middle of camp!" Piper yelled.
Jason looked around, hoping no one else had heard. Luckily everyone else was too far away to have heard Piper yell.
Piper took a deep breath. "I'm sorry for yelling, Jason, but look at the facts. The camp border is protected. No monsters or enemies of the gods could have entered. Maybe they got captured outside the camp boundary, but either way, they left Camp Jupiter willingly. They ran away."
Jason shook his head. "No," he denied. "No. Reyna wouldn't do that. She wouldn't!"
"I'm sorry Jason," Piper said, hugging her boyfriend tightly. "There's no other explanation. Besides, look who she was with. Not only would Nico di Angelo be willing to run away, he's done it before. And Rachel Elizabeth Dare has no ties to either camp."
Jason took a deep breath. Oh Reyna, he thought sadly. He still didn't believe that she would ever leave the legion, but now he at least had to open himself up to the possibility. Piper's logic was sound, as much as he hated to admit it.
What Jason couldn't figure out was why she would do it. Reyna was unbelievably loyal and dedicated. She had fought and bled for the Twelfth Legion more than any other legionnaire, including himself. She wasn't one of those leaders that delegated everything to other people. She herself was involved in the day-to-day running of Camp Jupiter, from training and fighting to meals and Senate meetings. She had basically built the legion from the bottom up, so why would she leave it so suddenly?
Maybe she had finally snapped. Jason knew all about Reyna's special power, her ability to lend strength to others. Jason knew that she was constantly lending her strength to each of the legionnaires, and she had stayed their strong leader regardless, but one could only keep that up for so long. Maybe she had finally grown weary of doing what she did, maybe the weight and pressure had finally grown to strong.
A pit of sadness sprouted in Jason's stomach. He hoped that that wasn't the case. True, Jason loved Piper, true, Jason had chosen Piper over Reyna, true, that probably left Reyna devastated, but the two had still remained friends. Jason did still care for Reyna, like he cared for all of his friends. He did not want her to be in any sad, depressed state.
I'm going to find her, Jason thought to himself. I'm going to find her and help her in any way I can. All of us owe her that much, at least.
Jason felt the same way about Nico di Angelo. Thanks to the god Cupid, Nico had been forced to reveal his deepest, darkest secret to Jason, that he was gay, and that he had a crush on Percy Jackson himself. The complete sadness, the feeling of being utterly alone, Jason knew that those feelings had tormented for the better part of two-and-a-half years. He had done his best to make Nico feel welcomed, to convince him that he and his friends had his back no matter what. He thought he'd succeeded too, Nico had told Jason himself that he planned on staying.
I guess not, Jason thought glumly. Gods, Nico, I hope you're safe.
As for Rachel Elizabeth Dare, Jason barely knew her, but if she was in danger then he had to help. It was his responsibility as a demigod, as a hero.
Suddenly Jason heard a whoosh next to his ear. He turned to his left and saw that it was Blackjack, carrying Percy and Annabeth.
"Blackjack says the hounds are stopping!" Percy called.
Jason nodded firmly, and immediately willed Tempest to slow down. Frank up above, and Arion on the ground were doing the same. As Tempest slowed down, Jason was able to get a good view of his surroundings. They were in a barren region, he could see, with very little vegetation. They were traversing some low hills, and were approaching the shore of a very large lake. Across the lake stood a city, a city that Jason found familiar.
"Salt Lake City," he stated. He recognized the place from when the Argo II stopped here after fleeing Camp Jupiter. Sure, he had recently been hit in the head with a boulder and was kind of out of it, but he still remembered the place. He could smell the salt from the Great Salt Lake even aboard the ship, and he could smell it now.
The hounds had come to a complete stop, each of them sniffing the ground around a certain area between the shore of the lake and a giant boulder.
"Reyna and the others were here?" Leo asked after dismounting Arion. He was wobbling around, spinning in circles and dazed.
"Why don't you sit down, Leo," Jason suggested.
Leo replied by crashing to the ground. "Just let me lay down a minute," he said woozily.
Percy shrugged. "Why would they be brought here?" he asked.
Piper sighed. "Jason, would you like to tell them?"
All eyes turned to him. Jason took a deep breath, forcing the bad news to the forefront of his mind. "Piper and I have been talking," he said slowly. "We…we don't think they were kidnapped, we think they ran away."
Jason was expecting shocked glances and gaping mouths, but the only person who seemed truly shocked was Frank. The rest wore solemn looks, as if they themselves had been thinking the same thing and now had confirmation.
"Ran away?" Frank asked. "Reyna would never!"
Jason immediately put a hand on Frank's shoulder. "I know, I thought the same thing, trust me. But there's no other explanation, there's no way they could've been taken from the middle of Camp Jupiter."
Frank took deep breaths, he looked like he was about to cry, but he held it in. "Okay," he said quietly. "Okay. Let's just get them back."
Annabeth smiled at him. "That's the spirit, Frank. I'm sure she had a good reason."
"Hey, guys," Hazel called. "Come look at this."
Jason's eyes turned to where Hazel was standing. She stood next to Aurum and Argentum, who were still sniffing at the same spot. The rest of the group (save Leo) walked to where she was standing.
"Whoa," said Percy. He pointed to a spot on the ground, and Jason saw what he was talking about. The ground there was burnt, which would've been normal had it not been for the shape of the burned patch. It was long, thin, and strikingly resembled a chain.
"How does that even happen?" Piper asked in wonderment.
"There's something else," Annabeth perked up. She was standing a few feet away, next to an object on the ground, which she picked up.
"A hat?" Jason asked.
Sure enough, it was a hat, a very squashed one. Though it was dirty, Jason could tell that it was, or had been, a color similar to a blue of some sort.
"There's a tag of some sort," said Annabeth, examining the hat very closely.
"What's it say?" Frank asked.
"This hat is the sole property of Suzy Turquois Blue, tenth in precedence within the House. If found, please return to Monday's Dayroom, to a wool-headed butler by the name of Sneezer. If you decide to nick this top hat, may the Piper's ghost haunt you until the day you die. Thanks," read Annabeth. She turned to the rest of the group. "I have no idea what this means."
"Do any of us?" Jason scoffed.
"Is this Reyna's idea of a joke?" Percy asked.
"Reyna doesn't exactly do jokes," Frank pointed out. "Either Reyna and the others have gotten involved in something really strange, or this isn't related at all."
Suddenly, the two hounds jumped up from where they were sniffing and bounded toward Annabeth and the hat. They sniffed it for two seconds, then bounded off southward, to go around the lake.
"Well, that answers that," said Hazel. Not wasting any time, she beckoned to Leo to get off the ground and hopped on Arion. Percy and Annabeth hastened to their steed, and Jason followed their lead alongside Piper. Soon they were in the air, heading eastward again.
At least we have some small lead, Jason thought hopefully. But he still felt mostly despair. That hat brought up more questions than it answered, and they were still nowhere near close to finding Reyna.
The bright, artificial sun of the Border Sea shone strongly. It was hot, humid, and salty, but Wednesday's Dawn was used to this, of course. Over the course of her time in the House, she had no doubt that she had traversed every inch of the Border Sea, both above and below the surface. The Sea must be constantly tended, and that responsibility had fallen entirely on her ever since Lady Wednesday's…predicament.
Now, though, that responsibility was handled by the New Architect, who easily kept the Border Sea within its bounds through the use of his Keys. Now Wednesday's Dawn was free to tend to other important matters within her domain. Under her command were the Nissers, the protectors of Lady Wednesday that bore tridents like Wednesday herself. She was also in charge of maintenance of Port Wednesday, along side Wednesday's Dusk. Other than that, she spent her time lazily flying over the Border Sea, watching the ships sail beneath her and the waves crash.
Her golden winds spread, Dawn decided that it was time for a dip. She quickly shifted into her shark form and dove beneath the waves, immersing herself in the clear blue waters of the Border Sea. For the first time in millennia, Dawn was happy. She no longer had to trouble herself with the troubles of the Border Sea, her mistress was back to her normal, beautiful self, and she now had a Noon and Dusk to share in the burden, instead of her being all on her own.
Suddenly, in the distance below the surface, Dawn spotted a dark spot in the water. She squinted, but was unable to make out what it was. It looked like an object to her, something that was floating just beneath the surface. She wasn't surprised to see it, for any object that is truly lost anywhere in the Universe finds its way to the Border Sea eventually.
Curious, Dawn decided to go closer to the object, to see what it was. Dawn propelled herself with her golden wings, travelling at high speed toward the object. Slowly, for it was far, the object began to grow larger and clearer in Dawn's vision. She wondered how a large object like that could make its way to the Sea. Surely something that big couldn't get lost?
As she approached, the water began to grow colder and slightly darker. A familiar chill began to creep up Dawn's spine, a feeling that she did not like at all. The dark object seemed to be darker than it initially appeared, and seemed to be growing larger, not just because Dawn was approaching it, but it was actually expanding in size.
Suddenly Wednesday's Dawn realized what it was and shot out of the water. She hovered there for a moment, the 'object' a mere few feet away. Above it, the sky turned stormy, and rain began to fall. Dawn stared at the 'object' with disgust, the 'object' that turned out to be a giant mass of Nothing.
"How is this possible?" Dawn whispered to herself. "It must be what Art had mentioned a week back, about the Void pressing on the House." According to the New Architect, this happened every few centuries or so. The Void would press up against the House, and the amount of Nothing and Nithlings within the House would increase for a bit of time, before the Void receded.
"I hope Art is right," Dawn murmured. She quickly unsheathed a small trident that was clipped to her side. It wasn't nearly as powerful as the Third Key, but it contained enough sorcerous energy, courtesy of Wednesday's Dusk, to allow Dawn to attend to her duties. "Nothing, begone!" she commanded, and the great mass of Nothing returned to the Void. For now.