You would've deduced who the first antagonist is by the end of this chapter. Sorry if you're underwhelmed. Also occurs to me there hasn't been an awful lot of fighting either. Sorry about that too.
"If I love you, what business is it of yours?"
~Johann van Goethe
Zoë
Perseus had been in the big house for a long time. With a great deal of nervousness and reluctance, she noticed, the boy had asked all parties present to give him some time to talk to Chiron alone. She tried not to feel perturbed at his action, but the fact that he wouldn't even meet her eyes when they walked out was enough for Zoë to know he was hiding something. He owed her nothing, she knew, but was it perhaps not wrong of her to feel even a little bit hurt? She had, after all, spilled everything, or at least, her biggest secret to him. Maybe not in detail, no, but the boy got the gist of her problems. It was still too painful for details anyway, whether she wanted to tell Perseus or not.
Brushing those mindless, borderline selfish thoughts aside, she did a quick one-eighty, taking in the surrounding countryside. Beautiful, sun kissed hills lining shallow valley's dotting the landscape as far as the eye could see. No cities, no civilisation, just tree's and grass, exactly how Zoë liked it. Rome was a wondrous sight in it's own way, but she definitely didn't want to live there. It was simply too chaotic for her taste, and she suspected Perseus felt the same way. No. This was where she belonged. Amongst the peaceful, rolling hills of central Italia.
She skipped down the pathway leading from the big house and into the village, a small smile gracing her lips as she went. At the bottom stood Pholus and the gray-eyed girl from their first altercation, both deep in conversation. She had intended to go off and explore the village, but the glaringly obvious absence of Perseus from her side put her off somewhat.
As she approached, the two continued their conversation, Pholus turning her way and giving her welcoming smile. Despite spending weeks together on a boat, she knew next to nothing about the man, yet she trusted him fully.
She smiled in kind, and then turned her attention towards their conversation.
"…the only safe place for people like us. Greece Is now a total no-go area," the blonde said, not even acknowledging Zoë's presence, much to her ire.
"Aspasia here, was just telling me about the demigod exodus from Greece. The God's have forsaken the place. Monsters now ravage every corner, from Mount Olympus to Knossos. She barely made it out alive," Pholus explained at her questioning gaze. Zoë nodded, biting her lip in an attempt to prevent a snort that was in danger of being let loose, upon hearing the blonde's name.
"My mother visited me in a dream. She told me to gather as many demi-gods as I could, and head for Rome. Unfortunately, monsters found us before we could leave. I…lost a few of my brethren. Chiron found us aimlessly wandering the countryside. He put us to work in setting up this place, so that Greek demi-gods would always have a safe place of their own. Unfortunately, that hasn't been working out for us so far…"
"What happened?"
"A group of locals came, demanding we leave or else the God's would smite us. We chose to ignore them, and everything was fine for a few days. New demi-gods were coming every day, nothing seemed amiss. One night, though, out of the blue, people started to go missing. We searched all over for them, but no one saw anything, no one heard anything. They would say goodnight, and never say good morning."
"How many did you lose?"
"We started off as a group of about 27. That number grew to 40 over several weeks. Now there's just 12 of us. Oddly, they left the young, inexperienced demi-gods, and kidnapped the more capable ones," the blonde explained, and Zoë frowned at the blunt, nonchalant way she referred to her missing comrades. Did she not care that they could be dead?
The daughter of Atlas was about to ask about why the trio of seemingly seasoned fighters had not been taken, Aspasia included, when the door to the big house opened, and Perseus walked out. His face was plastered with a mask of calmness, though his twitching, balled up fists told a different story. Zoë felt the blonde tense up beside her at the sudden appearance of Poseidon's son. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw her face slip into that expressionless façade she had seen when they had first met, in complete contrast to the air of sadness Zoë had felt when she had talked of her fallen compatriots.
"Well? What did he say? You were in there an awfully long time," she asked, once Perseus had completed the unnecessarily long trip from the big house, via the winding pathway.
He shrugged, raking his hair with his hand, something she noticed he would do when he was nervous, much to her amusement. "Not much, I'm afraid. He explained the situation with the village. He asked me to return the kidnapped demigods, in return for answers. I suspect he's holding a lot back," he said, though he seemed distracted, Zoë observed. They're eyes met, and as if sensing her inquisitive stare, sent her a tiny nod, one that surely meant they would talk later.
"How do we know they're alive, much less find them?" inquired the ever blunt Pholus, and Zoë had the urge to roll her eyes at his lack of tact.
"Chiron seemed pretty certain they were still alive. As for finding them, apparently we'll find clues in the Temple of Vesta, in Rome," he explained, again, shrugging, as if he didn't particularly believe it himself.
He turned to Zoë with a smile that didn't quite match his unique, mismatched eyes.
"I assume you're with us, Nightshade?" he asked, his banter audibly dampened, though she decided to ignore it, and instead play his game.
"You're on, seaweed brain," she responded, and he smiled. A genuine smile, this time, one that met his eyes. She couldn't help but smile in turn, happy that she could cheer him up with just the use of an awful nickname.
He then turned his attention to Aspasia, whom she noticed was shaking slightly, though her standard mask of stoicness was ever present.
"And you? Chiron said we might need the extra hands," he suggested, Aspasia freezing when he referred to her.
"Why would I want to help you!" she exploded, her pent up anger seemingly detonating all at once.
Perseus flinched back in shock, and Zoë couldn't help but do the same.
"Have I…err…done something to offend you?" he questioned, taking a few seconds to get over his initial shock. Aspasia was red faced, ready to spontaneously combust at any moment.
"Your existence is offensive enough!" she exclaimed before promptly turning on her heel and stomping away, likely to stop herself from getting physical.
"That was…unexpected…" the sea god's son said, his eyes rooted at the spot where the blonde had seethed from view.
Zoë nodded absent-mindedly. There was something off about the blonde. Whether it went further than a petty grudge, she did not know.
LINE
The Temple of Vesta wasn't difficult to find. It was located in the heart of Rome, right next to the Forum. Unfortunately, it did mean walking through some pretty uptight area's. The closer they neared the centre, the more snobby the people got. Zoë didn't think they were dressed all too badly, but apparently they stuck out like a half-naked Spartan general in the Athenian democratic assembly.
Pholus basked in the dirty looks he received, his head held high and humour gleaming on his scar torn face. Perseus, on the other hand, like she did, clearly didn't enjoy the attention. His pace was brisk, wanting to get away from the multitude of eyes that followed him. He silently glared at the pavement as he went, and Zoë had the real urge to shout at those who stared.
Luckily, the area immediately surrounding the temple was in a quiet, enclosed area, behind the forum itself. It was also dusk, so there weren't many people around, a few stragglers here and there.
The trio paused in front of the marble steps leading into the elegant, but understated temple. The
They were silent for a while, gazing intently at the strangely hypnotic, red hue, before Perseus turned to them.
"We should split up, find out what there is to find out, and leave. I don't think we should stick around for very long," he said, the light provided by the hearth illuminating once side of his tanned face.
"Sounds good. Meet back here?" Pholus replied eagerly, his hand gripping his sword tightly. The man was way too enthusiastic for a fight that, by all accounts, probably wouldn't happen.
Perseus said nothing, instead turning to Zoë once more. "Go with Pholus up the main entrance. I'll skirt around the back. He'll protect you a lot better than I ever could. You still have my knife, right?"
She bit her lip, but nodded in response, her hand instinctively floating to her thigh where the knife Perseus had given her before gallivanting after an apple, rested. She had hoped they would have some alone time, mainly so she could ask him what had him so subdued.
"Good," was all he said before unceremoniously turning on his heel and moving to walk away. She quickly grabbed his arm before he could get more than a yard away. Her cheeks reddened instantly, but she didn't remove her arm.
"Are you alright, Perseus?" she asked, deeply concerned at his sudden and unexplained shift in mood.
He didn't turn to face her, his chest rising and then falling in a deep sigh.
"I'll be fine," he answered, before gently removing himself from her soft grasp, and walking off around the back.
As Zoë watched his slowly retreating, she couldn't help but ask herself if she was somehow to blame for his contagiously low spirits that were now starting to infect her.
It was weeks before she had her answer.
Perseus
Without a doubt, the headache Perseus awoke to was the worst pain he had ever experienced. Whoever, or whatever had knocked him out, did a great job in making sure he felt it. Indeed, it was like the sky itself had been dropped on his head and he was now experiencing the aftermath.
He reluctantly opened his eyes, expecting to be assaulted by a wave of light that would surely add to the headache currently afflicting him. Instead, nothing changed. No assaults on the senses, no overwhelming brightness, no difference in discomfort, only darkness, and with a hint of desperation, he blinked several times in quick succession, hoping, praying, the world would burst into light. It didn't. He tried to move his hands, but so numb were they that the now useless appendages wouldn't follow any of his commands. It didn't matter anyway. The stiffness in his shoulders and the light clang of metal was enough to tell him he was in shackles.
He released a long, pained groan that echoed around whatever hell hole he 'found' himself in. The smell, while putrid, was not strong enough for the place to be a sewer. The faint sound of running water pointed to a cave of sorts, not that the idea of being imprisoned in a cave was particularly pleasing.
He racked his brain, trying to remember how he had fallen into such a mess, to no avail. He couldn't think straight through the layers of pain.
He snorted in blackened amusement at how totally random the situation seemed. However, a wave of searing hot pain tore its way through his head, clearing his mind of any humour he found in the present situation. Whoever had hit him had really done a number on him. It seemed they had given him the full Herculean, 'here's my head, please bash it in', treatment.
Something crawled over his outstretched leg, and he immediately stiffened in response. Whatever it was, it was small with sharp claws; probably a mouse or a rat. With a growl, he violently threw his legs up, the miniscule amount of weight on his legs disappearing, and not a few seconds later, a pathetic squeak resonated around the pitch blackness. He sighed, relieved, thinking the only way the day could get any worse was if he caught some kind of incurable disease.
As if part of one massive joke, his day got a lot worse, and it wasn't as a result of some illness that would devour him from the inside.
"I see you've acquainted yourself with your roommates," a deep, menacing voice called, and instantly, all the hairs on Perseus's neck and arms stand on end. The room, if at all possible, darkened even further. The temperature dropped considerably, and he had the sudden, screaming urge to run far, far away from there.
He forced his head to turn where he thought the speaker was. Even so, he couldn't bring himself to respond. He choked on his words as he spoke them, resulting in unintelligible sounds, not unlike the ones toddlers released.
Then, as if someone had taken an axe and cleaved his head in twain, but without the satisfaction of dying as a result, wave after wave of pain hit him. Pain that made 'the worst pain he had ever experienced', pale in comparison. He writhed and thrashed against his tethers, with each 'swing of the axe' indecipherable and unclear images flashing through his mind. He bit down his lip until he was sure blood was pouring out in an attempt to prevent himself from screaming. He wouldn't scream, not when it would serve to satisfy the speakers clear lust for sadism. Instead, the only sounds that escaped him were the occasional vibrations that escaped his throat, and the scraping of flesh on jagged stone, as his legs spasmed.
The assault abruptly stopped, leaving Perseus limp, weakened beyond measure, and panting heavily.
"Impressive…Most people give up and die after a few seconds, but not you Perseus. Truly, you are the one," the speaker said, his voice now absent of the veiled energy released with his prior words. The man actually sounded happy to see Perseus alive.
He continued to breathe heavily in his shackles, not trusting himself to respond.
The sound of footsteps against the damp cave floor filled his ears. The more they drew closer, the more Perseus felt an irrational fear build from within his chest. Maybe not from the man himself, though he would be lying if he said the speaker didn't install some type of apprehension, but definitely the man's presence. He seemed to just radiate fear, so much so that it almost had no effect. It was too artificial, too inexplicable, to be proper, everyday fear, that often controlled people's lives.
As the sound of footsteps got closer, two dark red eyes gradually appeared out of the darkness, until they were so close, Perseus had to crane his neck painfully to meet them. They paused in front of him, and then quickly lowered to his level. He assumed the red eyed heathen was kneeling because nothing else was visible apart from the unearthly eyes, piercing into his helpless soul.
The eyes creepily probed him, somehow seeing in the lightless void, occasionally narrowing or squinting. Irrational fear aside, Perseus felt nothing short of uncomfortable under what he had assumed to be a man's gaze, though what kind of man spoke fear, and had red eyes, he didn't know.
"Yes…yes…you'll do nicely. With you at our side, fear and panic shall rise once more, and those spineless Olympians will be none the wiser," the man said after a while, almost talking to himself, as if Perseus wasn't there. Or maybe he just didn't care.
The man was nothing short of psychopathic, so either of the two could be true. "W-what makes you think I'll h-help you do anything?" the 16 year old stuttered, finally finding his voice.
Despite the darkness, Perseus knew the man was smiling. "You misunderstand me, boy. It was not a request. We know who you are, what you are. We know what the fates so kindly bestowed onto you. You will help us. It is merely a question of how," the man promised, and if Perseus hadn't felt vulnerable before, he did now. He shifted uncomfortably in his chains. No one, bar a select few, were supposed to know about who he was. Either someone had told, or Perseus was in the company of someone far more powerful than he realised.
He decided to stop thinking about who, or how his secret had gotten out. It was pointless in the situation he found himself in. Instead, he resolved to gather any information he could.
"You said 'we', as if there were more of you," he asked, hoping to at least discern the identity of his captor.
"Ah, yes, my slightly dim-witted, crazy brother. You will come to know him, and I, very well, I'm sure. After all, we do have eternity together," the man avowed, all the while speaking in a tone that made it clear he was telling the truth, minus the 'eternity' part. There was no way in Hades he was spending eternity with a crazy sadist who certainly belonged in a jail cell somewhere.
The man abruptly stood up, and walked out, laughing manically, like he had just made the funniest joke in the world, leaving Perseus with nothing.
He spent the next few hours in complete darkness, half wondering how to get out his current predicament, and half wondering if he had just been kidnapped by a colossal pervert, before he succumbed to exhaustion and sank into a dreamless sleep.
Couldn't think of a decent Greek name for the Daughter of Athena so I just went with an Anti- Aptronym. I won't name names, but please inform me if I did the 'antagonist' right. I haven't read the book he is portrayed in.
Thundercade – Thanks. I'm especially glad to hear Zoë's character is perfect. My ego inflated several inches at that one. There will be an increase in PoV switching, something that I'm usually not keen about, but I think is quite important for the next few chapters.
Kinjaz01 – Perhaps.
The Sorrowful Diety – True, but stale bread is stale bread.
Drakenn – Maybe. It seems that is the thing most readers have a problem with, or there are more things but they simply don't tell me.
Omega Alpha Hydra – Relieved to hear that. As for Pokémon Go, I haven't actually played it. I just said it for comic effect. Whether it was funny or not remains to be seen.
Shigure Toshiro – Ta.