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"It's not hot," Reyna argued. She stared down at the chicken that she had just eaten and then stared into Nico's eyes. He seemed to be debating if it was worth to eat it or just give up. In the end, Nico sat the chicken down and looked at the table. "I guess I win."
"Why are we doing this?" Nico asked. Reyna shrugged and looked at the chicken again. Her mouth was completely on fire. Apparently, the chicken was made with ghost peppers, jalapenos, and a dozen other types of peppers. Frank seemed to love them, but he had warned them that it was extremely spicy.
Reyna, being a Roman first and Puerto Rican second, took the challenge as both one to her pride and heritage. Nothing was too spicy for her, other than this chicken. Reyna pushed the plate away and looked at Nico. Truthfully, they were both bored.
Nothing life threatening had happened for like a week. It was getting kind of dull. Reyna didn't need the world to end, but a fight or two would be fun. Reyna glanced up at Nico. Of course, his week had been slightly more interesting than hers.
Nico and Will had participated and won two of their chariot races. The first race they had completely destroyed all of their competition. During the second race, their chariot had been completely destroyed, along with the chariots of everyone else. They had only won because Nico was holding onto a majority of the chariot when it was thrown across the finish line.
The two had been drafting up a new chariot, but it was quickly becoming boring. Reyna sighed and focused on the table in front of her. She slowly looked up and saw that Nico was staring at her right side. The smell of perfume slowly overtook Reyna's senses.
It took a moment for Reyna to turn her head and looked at the goddess on her right. Venus smiled brightly at her. Oh gods no. This couldn't be happening. Reyna was fine with being bored. She didn't need to do anything, especially for Venus.
"How are you enjoying the girlfriend?" Venus asked. Reyna forced herself not to glare, and she looked away. Was Venus threatening her now, or did she really care? Was Reyna just another one of her love experiments?
"Lady Venus, what can we do for you?" Reyna muttered. She stared at the table and slowly looked up. Venus was still watching her with that stupid smile on her face. Reyna closed her eyes. She hadn't even seen Arria, ever since she went on her mission. "Yes, I am enjoying my girlfriend."
"That's good," Venus commented. Reyna could hear the smile growing, and she was mere seconds from throttling the goddess of love. "I need a favor from the two of you. An unfortunate incident happened yesterday, and that incident involves my sword."
Reyna let out a deep breath and rested her head on her hand. She forced her hand to keep her mouth shut. Nico nodded slightly and had his lips twisted in a weird way, kind of like he was trying to keep from smiling at Venus' ridiculous claim.
"Sword?" Nico asked. Reyna took a deep breath. Sure, they had seen Venus use her sword against Bendis, but that was like the only time that would ever happen. Reyna was sure of it. "What happened to your, uh, sword?"
"It was stolen," Venus answered. Reyna looked up but kept her jaw shut with her hand. It was getting really hard to not laugh. Nico nodded and made an odd noise. Reyna took a deep breath and finally lowered her hand. She could already see where this was going. "I want you two to retrieve it."
"Why us?" Reyna questioned. She was expecting those words, but why did Venus want to use the two of them in particular? There was a lot more capable demigods that was not the two of them. Reyna really didn't mind being bored for another week. "One of your children could get it. Piper's not doing anything."
"Piper is staying at Camp Half-Blood," Venus said, but it was said very quickly and with urgency. Reyna glanced at Nico. It wasn't like Piper couldn't defend herself, so why didn't Venus want her to leave Camp Half-Blood? It didn't make sense. "She has her own problems to deal with."
Reyna noticed that Nico was watching her, and she nodded. After this, they would find out what Piper's problem was and help her with it. For now, they would have to help Venus find her sword. It probably just wanted to find an immortal that would use it more.
"Alright. What happened to your sword? Do you know where it is?" Reyna asked. It would be best just get the job over with and move on with her life. Nico leaned forward and watched Venus intently.
"I thought Ares was going to surprise me with a date, as I had received a ticket to a mortal cafe not far from here," Venus said. Gods, she couldn't even be in her Roman form. Reyna sighed and focused back on Venus' words. "It was some kind of mortal poet night, with a special guest appearance. When I got there, all I saw was a bunch of minor gods and goddesses."
Reyna leaned back in her seat. Were the minor immortals sick and tired of how Venus treated them? It wasn't like Venus had say in their love life, did she? Reyna looked down at the table. Nico spoke, "So, they stole your sword?"
"No. They were just an audience," Venus said. She took a deep breath and fanned her face. "A masked man walked onto the stage and welcomed us all. He proceeded to read a poem that mocked me and all of the other Olympians. Of course, I only let him get a few lines in, and I stood to smite him. Your Thracian friend, Bendis, decided to attack me from behind. I guess revenge from when she blew up my van and lost the fight to me."
"Bendis stole your sword then?" Reyna questioned. She wasn't looking forward to hunting down Bendis. Reyna could probably take her in a fight, but Bendis was also an immortal. Any mistakes by Reyna or Nico would end in a lot of pain.
"She was a distraction. While I was fighting her, that poet grabbed my sword and disappeared from sight. I received a poem on Olympus today. It mocked me more and told me to meet him at an art gallery that belonged to a man I have been courting," Venus explained. She looked to her right and nodded.
Reyna slowly looked to what Venus had her attention on. Of course, there was an art gallery down the street. A glance back at Venus showed that was where they needed to go. Reyna looked back at the chicken. This was all Frank's fault. If he hadn't suggested the restaurant, they wouldn't be stuck helping Venus.
"Be careful," Venus warned. She looked directly at the two of them. "I don't know who this poet is, but something tells me he is more than just an average mortal. I don't need my two favorite demigods to get hurt."
"Favorite," Nico repeated. He looked at Reyna, and she just sighed deeply. Why couldn't she just fly under the radar and not be noticed by Venus? The goddess suddenly grabbed Reyna's arm, and she stiffened. Reyna slowly looked at the goddess.
"Trust the wolf," Venus warned. Reyna opened her mouth in confusion. Venus started intently into her eyes. What in Bellona's name was Venus talking about? What wolf? "The wolf is a friend, but the rest are not."
"What?" Reyna asked. She blinked, and Venus was gone. Reyna looked at Nico, but he looked just as confused as her. "I don't understand her. What is she talking about? I don't know what that means. Why does she have to be so weird and annoying?"
"I guess that we can trust any wolf that we run into," Nico said. Reyna shook her head and grabbed the basket of chicken. She stood and dumped it into the trash. Reyna dropped the tray off and followed Nico out of the restaurant.
"How badly is this going to suck?" Reyna asked. Nico shrugged. Reyna glanced at him and then looked at the watch on her wrist. She knew Arria was busy out doing something, but it would be nice to get some kind of message. Nico seemed to notice her look.
"She'll be back soon," Nico promised. Reyna glanced at him and received a smile. She forced herself to smile back. "You should enjoy the free time. When Arria gets back, she is going to be all over you."
"You're hilarious," Reyna said, but she could feel how red her face was. Nico laughed at her. Reyna shot him a death glare and stopped in front of the art museum. It seemed to be open, but no one was walking in and out. "Greeks first."
Nico glanced at her and opened the door. As they stepped into the art museum, Reyna was forced to take in the terrible decor. The first was all of the gods awful art that covered the main foyer. There was painting hanging all over the walls that looked like they had been done by a child painting for the first time. Most of the painting were just paint thrown on the canvas or actual stick figures by their stick homes.
There was a few vases sitting on counters that all had some kind of dent or odd color on it. Reyna forced her attention away from the art and at the main counter. Someone was standing at the counter, with their back turned. A man was on his knees by the counter and had his arms tied in front of him. There was a gag in his mouth, and he looked terrified.
The doors behind them locked, and Reyna turned her head. There was no way they could reopen the doors without taking the time to undo the twenty locks and security system that guarded it, and there was no glass on the doors to break through. There was also no windows in the main foyer. Reyna looked back at the figure.
"Aphrodite, I'm so glad you could grace us with your disgusting presence," the figure said. Their voice sounded male and very powerful. He turned around. Reyna stared at the mask that the man wore. The mask looked to be made of marble and had a crying face on it. "Oh, you're just demigods. Did she only send two pathetic demigods to hunt me down?"
Reyna sighed and looked at Nico. She spoke, "I really just wanted to get the sword and get out of here, but now, we have to rescue this mortal."
"You could just run from your problems, like you always do," the man said. Reyna's eyes shot up towards the man, and she glared at him. "Despite being brave in battle, you're a coward with everything else. Granted, your father would still be alive, if you have been a coward and ran from him."
Reyna stared at the man and found herself unable to breath. How did he know about her father? Reyna looked down and found herself being brought back to that night. She closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths.
"Leave her alone," Nico growled. Reyna heard the ground near them starting to split open. The man simply laughed. Reyna forced her eyes open and saw that the man was sitting on the counter. "Who are you?"
"I should be asking you that," the man said. Nico glared. "You have helped the demigods during both wars, and I dare say they couldn't have won the Battle of Manhattan without your plan for Percy Jackson. No one remembers you though, You're just destined to fade away in the background, unloved and forgotten. It will be like your sister. Who even remembers poor, little Bianca?"
"Be quiet!" Nico snapped. He stepped forward, but there was tears forming in his eyes. Reyna took a deep breath and tried to focus. She grabbed Nico's shoulder, and he looked at her.
"He's making us mad. We have to stay focused," Reyna said. She heard a noise to her right and could have sworn that she heard whispering. It was like shadows were watching her. Reyna closed her eyes and took another deep breath. "Don't listen to him."
"Ladies and gentlemen, we have a Roman here than can actually think," the man said. He smiled. "But, does she really think, or does she just follow orders? Son of Hades, I would be careful around that one. You never know when she will follow orders and stab you in the back. Just ask her former centurion."
"He was a traitor," Reyna snapped. She took a deep breath again and looked down. Reyna saw blood dripping from her hands, and she closed her eyes once again. The blood wasn't real. The man was just making her see things. Reyna tried to stay focused.
"I wish we had more of an audience," the man said. It sounded like he was grinning. "If we did, we could play a guessing game. I have a psychopath and a traitor standing in front of me, but who is who? Is Reyna, the girl who murdered her own father, the traitor? Or, is it the boy who is nothing more than a disgrace to his sister's memory, Nico?"
Reyna wanted to speak, but her jaw was clenched to keep from crying. Something told her that the man was enjoying it all a little too much. The man continued, "Think about it. Nico's sister sacrificed herself to save a group of demigods. What has Nico done, in comparison? Nico did try to sacrifice the hero of Olympus to Hades, which would have meant the end of the world. He let Annabeth and Percy fall into Tartarus. Maybe, he's the psychopath. Does he regret any of it?"
"Querella," Reyna interrupted. She took another deep breath and looked up at the god in front of her. Querella laughed and stood. "Why did you steal Venus' sword?"
"The stories always said that I could not find fault in that little goddess of love. It took many years, but all you need to do is look at her children. You will find two traits in them. The first trait is that they are cowards, and if they are not cowards, they are a traitor. They are just like the goddess of love herself," Querella said.
Reyna nodded slightly and glanced around the room. Querella's words stung terribly, and it was bringing back horrible memories. Her eyes focused on looking around for Venus' sword, and she finally found it on Querella's back, of course.
"I had to find a reason to get Venus here. She's not a fighter, but she does love this stupid thing," Querella said. He grabbed the sword, and Reyna stared at how pink it was. It was an embarrassment to swords. "I will show the world that I can insult the goddess of love, but since she was too much of a coward to come her herself, I have no problem destroying the two of you first."
"I can't wait to shut his mouth," Nico muttered. Reyna glanced at him and nodded. She glanced at the watch that Arria had given her and slowly moved the dial to a javelin. Reyna pressed the button and watched the javelin appear in her hand.
"Got my back?" Reyna asked. Nico nodded. Reyna flipped the javelin in her hand and allowed all of the pain of remembrance and anger to focus her. She suddenly threw the javelin right at Querella. He dodged and appeared in front of Reyna. She barely blocked his sword. "Get the mortal out of here!"
Nico slipped around the two and ran towards the mortal. Reyna focused on dodging Querella's attacks. She wasn't going to bother trying to block them. The immortal would probably just use his strength to dislocate her shoulder.
Truthfully, Reyna didn't have a plan. She just knew they needed to get the mortal out of danger and get the sword. From there, they would have to make something up. Reyna dodged another sword attack. Querella wasn't that skilled, which was nice. He probably fought more with words than an actual weapon.
"Still running from our problems?" Querella asked. Reyna forced herself to stay focused on the fight. She couldn't afford to get angry. "Oh, you don't even want to defend yourself? You must know that you deserve it. How long will it be before the Greeks and Romans go to war? We both know they cannot coexist. When they go to war, how long will it be before you stab your best friend in the back?"
"That's enough," Reyna snapped. She hated to hear the words, and all it did was upset her even more. Reyna swung her sword and Querella caught it. Reyna really didn't have time to regret her mistake, as Querella tore her arm out of socket and threw her across the room.
Reyna hit the ground hard and slid a few feet. A small groan escaped, and all Reyna could do was regret not wearing armor. Why did she let Nico convince her to do stupid things? Reyna focused back on Querella and slowly sat up.
It took Reyna a moment to see that Nico was back and fighting Querella. He had even actually managed to scratch the god. Reyna cursed and scooted back towards the wall. Her attention focused on her right arm. She was able to move her fingers and wrist, but there was no way for her to move her shoulder. It would take a lot more than just relocating her shoulder to repair the damage.
"Stupid immortals and their stupid strength," Reyna muttered. She slowly got to her knees and saw that Nico was flawlessly dodging everything Querella threw at him. Reyna was really impressed and a little proud. Now, she just needed to get the sword from Querella.
Reyna slowly started to get to her feet, and she heard Querella say something. Reyna couldn't make out the words, but she saw the hatred in Nico's face. He stabbed forward. Querella dodged and suddenly stabbed Nico in his side.
Truthfully, Reyna didn't really remember what happened next. She just remembered seeing red and gripping a javelin. When she blinked next, she had Querella pinned to the ground and was pressing the javelin into his stomach.
"Don't you ever touch him again," Reyna hissed. Querella grinned at her, despite the ichor that was trickling out of his mouth. "It's not going to be so funny when I tear this javelin out of your stomach and drive it through your face!"
"My friend wouldn't allow that," Querella said. His eyes were looking past Reyna. Without thinking, Reyna turned. A fist slammed into her stomach. She collapsed to her knees and wheezed for breath. It felt like she was about to vomit.
A hand gripped Reyna's jaw and forced her to look up. She glared up at Bendis. Why was a Roman god working with a Thracian goddess? Reyna was pulled to her feet and hissed in pain. Bendis shoved her into the wall.
"Take your shot, Roman," Bendis taunted. Reyna glared and glanced at Nico. The pink sword was still buried in his side, but there was scary amount of blood pooling from underneath him. If Reyna was going to take her shot, it had to be a good one.
Reyna took a deep breath and felt herself focus. Most of the pain in her shoulder dulled. Reyna pressed the button on her watch and saw everything moving in slow motion. She turned the dial on the watch, as the sword appeared in her hands. Reyna moved the sword to her right hand and went to stab Bendis.
Bendis dodged to the side and slammed her fist into Reyna's chest. Reyna ignored the explosion of pain and pressed the watch's button against her thigh. A dagger appeared in her hands, and she stabbed it into Bendis' lung. Reyna tore the dagger out and threw it right at Querella's throat.
Reyna slipped past the two and ran to Nico's side. She scooped him up without stopping and slammed into the nearest shadow. Her tattoo burned, and thankfully, Nico was conscious enough to use shadow travel. As soon as her feet hit solid ground, she collapsed to her knees and laid Nico down.
Reyna heard cries of surprise, but all she could do was focus on the pain that came rushing back. She placed both hands to her right side. It took everything in her power to keep from collapsing and crying in pain. It felt like her rib cage was shattered. Reyna closed her eyes and dug her hands into the ground.
"What happened?" someone demanded. They were standing right above Reyna, but all she could do was focus on the terrible pain in her side. A hand grabbed her shoulder. "Roman, stay with me."
Reyna blinked a few times and looked up at Clarisse. The hand didn't move from her shoulder, and it was probably the only thing keeping her from collapsing to the ground. Reyna took a pained breath and spoke, "Nico. Help. Please."
"He's being helped, Roman. You need to calm down," Clarisse said. She placed a hand to Reyna's side, and Reyna cursed in pain. Just the light touch that Clarisse was using felt like Reyna was being punched again. The praetor pressed her head against her fists. "Someone did a number on you two. What happened?"
"Venus' sword," Reyna wheezed. She felt Clarisse gently grab her jaw and pour nectar into her mouth. It didn't much to help the pain, but it did give her a single second of relief. "It was taken by Querella."
"Wait, isn't that Momus?" Annabeth asked. Reyna slowly looked up at the daughter of Athena. Great. She would get lectured again about getting injured. Reyna managed half of a shrug. Who cared what his Greek name was? "What was he doing with Aphrodite's sword?"
"Lure her out," Reyna answered. It was hard to form full sentences. All she wanted to do was curl up in a ball and pass out. "Bendis was there. No clue why."
"I've ran into her before," Clarisse muttered. She helped Reyna to her feet. Reyna wheezed and almost collapsed to her knees again. Clarisse picked her up with ease and carried her to the infirmary. Out of the corner of Reyna's eye, she saw demigods swarming around Nico. Her attention moved back to the daughter of Ares that was carrying her.
Ever since Clarisse and Reyna had talked about Clarisse's deceased friend, they had formed a closer bond. Reyna didn't know if it was out of respect or appreciation for listening, but she didn't mind it. Reyna heard a door opened, and as she was laid down in a bed, a groan escaped.
Clarisse lifted Reyna's shirt and whistled loudly. She used her dagger to allow Reyna to see the reflection of her completely bruised side. Clarisse spoke, "That might be some internal bleeding right there."
"Yeah," Reyna muttered. Her eyes stared at the ceiling. She let out a pained breath and placed a hand to her face. Her only thoughts were about Nico. Would he be okay, or would he die by a pink sword? Reyna would make fun of him, after she spent a decade or two getting over his death.
Reyna forced those thoughts away and looked at Clarisse. She suddenly grabbed Clarisse's arm tightly and spoke, "Don't lie to me. Is Nico going to be okay?"
Clarisse studied her for a moment. She finally nodded and spoke, "I think so. The wound is pretty bad, but he's got healers surrounding him. If it was thirty seconds later, I don't think he would have made it."
Reyna nodded and let go of Clarisse's arm. She kept her eyes on the ceiling. The searing pain in her ribs wasn't getting any better, and her shoulder was starting to hurt as well. Reyna's mind was racing though. It was no coincidence that Bendis and Querella had been at the art museum together. It seemed to be a trap for Venus, and the goddess of love had used Reyna and Nico to spring it. She had to have known what was going to happen.
Reyna clenched her fist and felt both of Clarisse's hands touch her side. She let out another pained breath and tried to focus her pain into anger and direct it towards Venus. It would be like the goddess to allow demigods to spring the trap and take the punishment. It wasn't like Venus hadn't already ruined her life enough.
After staring at the ceiling for a few more moments, Reyna let out a pained breath and tried to allow her anger to dissipate. She heard a door open and slowly turned her head. Someone gently grabbed her face a moment later.
"I left you alone for two minutes," Arria whispered. Reyna stared up at her girlfriend and was kissed gently. She was too shocked to return the kiss, but the shock turned to confusion. Why was Arria at Camp Half-Blood?
"It was more like a few weeks," Reyna whispered. Arria gave her a small smirk and sat by her. Reyna turned her head and stared at Arria. "Why are you here? It's kind of the last place I expected you to be."
"I was about to head back to Camp Jupiter, but there was a situation here in New York. There's some kind of monster here that doesn't appear often. It attacked a few members of the Inquisition, including their leader," Arria said. Reyna nodded. It was kind of hard to feel sorry for the leader of the Inquisition, considering they had threatened Reyna. "I was hoping Chiron or his contacts would know something about the attacker."
"What kind of monster?" Clarisse asked. Arria shrugged and gently grabbed Reyna's hand. Reyna smiled slightly and kept her eyes on her girlfriend. The pain was a lot more manageable now. "Who are you anyway?"
"Just an agent of Bellona," Arria replied. She glanced down at Reyna. "I'll check on Nico for you and let you know how he is. When I get back, you can tell me happened."
Reyna nodded and rested her head against the pillows. Half of her thoughts were on her girlfriend. Arria's mission had gone well, but she was already involved in another problem. It almost sounded like something Reyna would do. The other half of Reyna's attention was on her best friend. The sword wound had looked pretty bad, and Reyna really hoped that Nico would be okay. If not, Querella and Bendis would pay.