Act II - From The Sea We Rise

Part V - Great globs of gore, we'll storm the shore and seek the unknown… then can we go home?

Andy had confusing dreams. She saw a curly-haired faun in ragged clothes running after her and quickly told him: "I don't have any spare change."

"What?" the faun said. "No, Andy. It's me, Grover! Stay put! We need your exact location. I think Tyson is close..."

"Who?"

The scene shifted suddenly. Andy stood on the Field of Mars. A face appeared in the landscape: a sleeping woman, her features formed from shadows and folds in the terrain. With eyes still closed, she spoke: "This is the demigod who destroyed my son Kronos. You don't look like much, Andy Jackson, but you're valuable to me. Come north. Juno can play her little games with Greeks and Romans, but in the end, you will be my pawn. You will be the key to the gods' defeat."

Andy's vision turned dark. She woke, shivering. For a moment she forgot where she was. She lay in her bunk, staring at the ceiling and trying to control her racing heartbeat. She sat up. Her roommates were rushing around, getting dressed and brushing their teeth. Dakota was wrapping himself in a long piece of red-speckled cloth; a toga.

Frank's head popped up from the bunk below. He had bags under his eyes like he hadn't slept well. "Hey. We've got a senate meeting."

Dakota staggered around with his head stuck in his toga. "Um," Andy said, "should I wear my bed sheets?"

Frank snorted. "That's just for the senators. There're ten of them, elected yearly. You've got to be at camp five years to qualify."

"So how come we're invited?"

"Because… you know, the quest." Frank sounded worried, like he was afraid Andy would back out. "We have to be in on the discussion. You, me, Hazel. I mean, if you're willing…" Frank probably didn't mean to guilt her, but how could she say no to that big pouty baby face? The faun had told her to stay put, but Andy felt like she had no choice.

"I, um… I'd better get ready..." She climbed out of bed and got dressed. The whole time, she thought about Anthony. If she went on this quest, would he ever find her?

Reyna and Octavian led the procession of senators out of camp. Hazel, Frank, and Andy trailed behind. Andy noticed Nico di Angelo in the group, wearing a black toga and talking with Gwen. He caught her staring and choked on his own words. Andy would've found that funny if she wasn't so sure he was trying to avoid her.

Dakota stumbled along in his red-speckled robe. A lot of other senators seemed to be having trouble with their togas, too. Andy was glad to be wearing a regular purple T-shirt and jeans.

"You didn't bring any weapons, did you?" Hazel asked suddenly.

Andy's hand went to her pocket. "Why?"

"No weapons allowed inside the Pomerian Line," she said. "The city limits. Inside is a sacred 'safe zone.' Legions can't march through. No weapons allowed. That's so senate meetings don't get bloody."

"Huh. Julius Caesar would've appreciated that rule," Andy said.

Frank laughed. "Don't worry. Nothing like that has happened in months."

On the side of the road stood a white marble statue of a life-size muscular man with curly hair, no arms, and an irritated expression. "Single file, please!" the statue said. "Have your IDs ready." The senators passed through easily. The statue checked the tattoos on their forearms and called each senator by name. "Gwendolyn, senator, Fifth Cohort, yes. Nico di Angelo, ambassador of Pluto, very well. Reyna, praetor, of course. Hank, senator, Third Cohort; oh, nice shoes, Hank! Ah, who have we here?"

Hazel, Frank, and Andy were the last ones. "Terminus," Hazel said, "this is Andy Jackson. Andy, this is Terminus, the god of boundaries."

"New, eh?" said the god. "Yes, probatio tablet. Fine. Ah, weapon in your pocket? Take it out! Take it out!" Andy didn't know how Terminus could tell, but she took out her pen. "Quite dangerous," Terminus said. "Leave it in the tray. You can pick up your weapon on the way out."

Reluctantly, Andy put her pen on the tray. As they approached the forum, she was struck by the sheer number of people. "I still can't believe all these people are demigods."

"It's a good place to go to college or raise a family without worrying about monster attacks every day," said Hazel.

Andy imagined what that would be like: getting an apartment in this tiny replica of Rome. She imagined holding hands with Anthony not having to worry about monsters or certain death. Her eyes started sting and she shook the idea out of her head.

She followed Hazel and Frank inside. They sat on the left side of a semicircle. The ten senators and Nico di Angelo occupied the front row. Octavian stood in front with a knife and a Beanie Baby-lion. Reyna walked to the podium and raised her hand for attention.

"Right, this is an emergency meeting," she said. "We won't stand on formalities. First of all, we're not here to vote on the quest itself. The quest has been issued by Mars Ultor, patron of Rome. We will obey his wishes. Nor are we here to debate the choice of Frank Zhang's companions."

"All three from the Fifth Cohort?" called out Hank from the Third. "That's not fair."

"And not smart," said the boy next to him. "We know the Fifth will mess up. They should take somebody good."

"As quest leader," Reyna said, "Frank has the right to choose his companions. He has chosen Andy Jackson and Hazel Levesque."

A ghost from the second row yelled, "Absurdus! Frank Zhang isn't even a full member of the legion! He's on probatio. A quest must be led by someone of centurion rank or higher. This is completely—"

"Cato," Reyna snapped. "We must obey the wishes of Mars Ultor. That means certain... adjustments." She clapped her hands, and Octavian came forward. He set down his knife and Beanie Baby and took the velvet package from the chair.

"Frank Zhang," he said, "come forward." Frank glanced nervously at Andy. Then he got to his feet and approached the augur. "It is my… pleasure... to bestow upon you the Mural Crown for being first over the walls in siege warfare." Octavian handed him a bronze badge shaped like a laurel wreath. "Also, by order of Praetor Reyna, to promote you to the rank of centurion." He handed Frank another badge, a bronze crescent, and the senate exploded in protest.

"Silence!" Octavian said with authority. "Our praetor recognizes that no one below the rank of centurion may lead a quest. For good or ill, Frank must lead this quest, so our praetor has decreed that Frank Zhang must be made centurion."

Andy saw what an effective speaker Octavian was. He sounded reasonable and supportive, but his expression was pained. He carefully crafted his words to put all the responsibility on Reyna. This was her idea, he seemed to say. If it went wrong, Reyna was to blame. He had had no choice but to support Reyna, because Octavian was a loyal Roman soldier.

Reyna must have recognized this too. A look of irritation flashed across her face. "There is an opening for centurion," she said. "One of our officers, also a senator, has decided to step down. After ten years in the legion, she will retire to the city and attend college. Gwen of the Fifth Cohort, we thank you for your service." Everyone turned to Gwen, who managed a brave smile. "As praetor," Reyna continued, "I have the right to replace officers. I admit it's unusual for a camper on probatio to rise directly to the rank of centurion, but I think we can agree… last night was unusual. Frank Zhang, your ID, please."

Frank removed the lead tablet from around his neck and handed it to Octavian.

"Your arm," Octavian said. Frank held up his forearm. Octavian raised his hands to the heavens. "We accept Frank Zhang, Son of Mars, to the Twelfth Legion Fulminata for his first year of service. Do you pledge your life to the senate and people of Rome?"

Frank muttered something no one understood. Then he cleared his throat and managed: "I do."

The senators shouted, "Senatus Populusque Romanus!"

Fire blazed on Frank's arm. For a moment his eyes filled with terror. Then the smoke and flame died, and new marks were seared onto Frank's skin: SPQR, an image of crossed spears, and a single stripe, representing the first year of service.

"Now," Reyna said, "we must discuss the quest."

"Do you have a plan for the quest?" Octavian asked Frank. "Do you even know where you are going?"

"Um..."

Hazel put her hand on Frank's shoulder and stood. "Weren't you listening last night, Octavian? Mars was pretty clear. We're going to the land beyond the gods: Alaska."

The senators squirmed in their togas. Senator Larry stood. "I know what Mars said, but that's crazy. Alaska is cursed! They call it the land beyond the gods for a reason. It's so far north, the Roman gods have no power there. The place is swarming with monsters. No demigod has come back from there alive since—"

"Since you lost your eagle," Andy finished for him. Larry was so startled, he fell back on his podex. "Look," she said, "I know I'm new here. I know you guys don't like to mention that massacre in the nineteen-eighties—"

"She mentioned it!" one of the ghosts whimpered.

"—but don't you get it?" Andy continued. "The Fifth Cohort led that expedition. We failed, and we have to be responsible for making things right. That's why Mars is sending us. This giant, the son of Gaea, he's the one who defeated your forces thirty years ago. I'm sure of it. Now he's sitting up there in Alaska with a chained death god, and all your old equipment. He's mustering his armies and sending them south to attack this camp."

"Really?" Octavian said. "You seem to know a lot about our enemy's plans, Andy Jackson."

"What did you say to me?" Andy glanced at him menacingly. Octavian tensed. Andy considered smacking him on the ear, but decided to take a deep breath. "I'm adding two and two, pal. More than you're doing, that's for sure. We're going to confront this son of Gaea and we'll get back your eagle and unchain this god whatever his face."

Octavian sighed in exasperation. "You don't even know the name... how do you expect to do all this and get back by the Feast of Fortuna? Do you even know where to look? Do you even know who this son of Gaea is?"

"Yes." Hazel spoke with such certainty that even Andy was surprised. "I don't know exactly where to look, but I have a pretty good idea. The giant's name is Alcyoneus."

Reyna gripped her podium. "How do you know this, Hazel? Because you're a child of Pluto?"

Nico di Angelo had been so quiet, Andy had almost forgotten he was there. Now he stood in his black toga. "Praetor, if I may," he said. "Hazel and I… we learned a little about the giants from our father. Each giant was bred specifically to oppose one of the twelve Olympian gods, to usurp that god's domain. The king of giants was Porphyrion, the anti-Jupiter. But the eldest giant was Alcyoneus. He was born to oppose Pluto. That's why we know of him in particular."

Reyna frowned. "Indeed? You sound quite familiar with him."

Nico picked at the edge of his toga. "Anyway, the giants were hard to kill. According to prophecy, they could only be defeated by gods and demigods working together."

Dakota belched. "Sorry, did you say gods and demigods… like fighting side by side? That could never happen!"

"It has happened," Nico said. "In the first giant war, the gods called on heroes to join them, and they were victorious. But with Alcyoneus... he was different. He was completely immortal, impossible to kill by god or demigod, as long as he remained in his home territory." Nico paused to let that sink in. "And if Alcyoneus has been reborn in Alaska..."

"Then he can't be defeated there," Hazel finished. "Ever. By any means. Which is why our nineteen-eighties expedition was doomed to fail." Another round of arguing and shouting broke out.

"Silence!" Reyna called. "Senators, we must act like Romans. Mars has given us this quest, and we have to believe it is possible. These three demigods must travel to Alaska. They must free Thanatos and return before the Feast of Fortuna. If they can retrieve the lost eagle in the process, so much the better. All we can do is advise them and make sure they have a plan." She looked at Andy without much hope. "You do have a plan?"

"Uh, hold that thought." Andy turned to Nico. "I thought Pluto was the god of the dead. Now I hear about this other guy, Thanatos, and the Doors of Death from that prophecy... What does all that mean?"

Nico took a deep breath. "Okay. Pluto is the god of the Underworld, but the actual god of death, the one who's responsible for making sure souls go to the afterlife and stay there,that's Pluto's lieutenant, Thanatos. He's like… well, imagine Life and Death are two different countries. Everybody would like to be in Life, right? So there's a guarded border to keep people from crossing back over without permission. But it's a big border, with lots of holes in the fence. Pluto tries to seal up the breaches, but new ones keep popping up all the time. That's why he depends on Thanatos, who's like the border patrol, the police."

"Thanatos catches souls," Andy said, "and deports them back to the Underworld."

"Exactly," Nico said. "But now Thanatos has been captured, chained up."

Frank raised his hand. "Uh… how do you chain Death?"

"It's been done before," Nico said. "In the old days, a guy named Sisyphus tricked Death and tied him up. Another time, Hercules wrestled him to the ground."

"And now a giant has captured him," Andy said. "So if we could free Thanatos, then the dead would stay dead?" She glanced at Gwen. "Um… no offense."

"It's more complicated than that," Nico said.

Octavian rolled his eyes. "Why does that not surprise me?"

"You mean the Doors of Death," Reyna said, ignoring Octavian. "They are mentioned in the Prophecy of Seven, which sent the first expedition to Alaska..."

The ghosts snorted and protested. Nico put his finger to his lips. Suddenly all the Lares went silent. Some looked alarmed, like their mouths had been glued together. "Thanatos is only part of the solution," Nico explained. "The Doors of Death… well, that's a concept even I don't completely understand. There are many ways into the Underworld. With Thanatos imprisoned, all those exits will be easier to use. Now, the Doors of Death, those are the personal doors of Thanatos, his fast lane between Life and Death. Only Thanatos is supposed to know where they are, and the location shifts over the ages. If I understand correctly, the Doors of Death have been forced open. Gaea's minions have seized control of them—"

"Which means Gaea controls who can come back from the dead," Andy guessed.

Nico nodded. "She can pick and choose who to let out. If we rescue Thanatos, that means at least he can catch souls again and send them below. Monsters will die when we kill them, like they used to, and we'll get a little breathing room. But unless we're able to retake the Doors of Death, our enemies won't stay down for long. They'll have an easy way back to the world of the living."

"Foes bear arms to the Doors of Death," Reyna said. "That's the Prophecy of Seven…" She looked at Andy. "If this begins the ancient prophecy, we don't have resources to send an army to these Doors of Death and protect the camp. I can't imagine even sparing seven demigods..."

"First things first." Andy stopped her. "I don't know who the seven are, or what that old prophecy means, exactly. But first we have to free Thanatos. Mars told us we only needed three people for the quest to Alaska. Let's concentrate on succeeding with that and getting back before the Feast of Fortuna. Then we can worry about the Doors of Death."

"So you do have a plan?" Octavian asked skeptically.

Andy looked at her teammates. "We go to Alaska as fast as possible. Then we improvise."

Reyna studied her. "Very well, Andy Jackson. Nothing remains except for us to vote what support we can give the quest."

"Praetor, if I may," Octavian said.

"I think everyone prefers you stay quiet," said Andy.

"The camp is in grave danger," Octavian insisted. "Two gods have warned us we will be attacked four days from now. We must not spread our resources too thin, especially by funding projects that have a slim chance of success." He looked at the three of them with pity. "Mars has clearly chosen the least likely candidates for this quest. Perhaps that is because he considers them the most expendable."

"I'm serious, Octavian," Andy stepped toward him. "Watch it or I'll show you who's expendable."

Octavian stepped back and cleared his throat. "Perhaps Mars is playing the long odds. Whatever the case, he wisely didn't order a massive expedition, nor did he ask us to fund their adventure. I say we keep our resources here and defend the camp. This is where the battle will be lost or won. If these three succeed, wonderful! But they should do so by their own ingenuity."

Frank jumped to his feet. Before he could start a fight, Andy said, "You know what? We don't want your help, Octavian. You killed my panda. I don't want anything from you. But, Reyna, at least give us transportation. Gaea is the earth goddess, right? Going overland, across the earth... I'm guessing we should avoid that. Plus, it'll be too slow."

Octavian laughed. "Would you like us to charter you an airplane?"

The idea made Andy nauseous. "Gods, no. A boat. Can you at least give us a boat?"

Hazel made a grunting sound.

"A boat!" Octavian turned to the senators. "The child of land and sea wants a boat! Sea travel has never been the Roman way, but she isn't much of a Roman, is she?"

"I will hit you."

"Stop it, you two," Reyna said sternly. "A boat is little enough to ask. And it seems-"

"Let us see if these questers have the strength to survive without help, like true Romans!" Octavian laughed.

Reyna straightened in her chair. "Very well," she said tightly. "We'll put it to a vote. Senators, the motion is as follows: The quest shall go to Alaska. The senate shall provide full access to the Roman navy docked at Alameda. No other aid will be forthcoming. The three adventurers will survive or fail on their own merits. All in favor?"

Every senator's hand went up.

"The motion is passed." Reyna turned to Frank. "Centurion, your party is excused. The senate has other matters to discuss."