IMPORTANT: Two chapters went up this week: this one (chapter 37) and a bonus one yesterday (chapter 36). If you didn't tune in yesterday and just clicked on the latest chapter, you might have missed the last one. Be sure to read that one first.
For the rest of his life, there would be two things he'd always vividly remember. The first was the echoing sound of his friend's body connecting with the bottom of the chasm. It'd replay in his head, again and again, bringing a sickening feeling into his stomach each and every time. The second was the look on his face right before he pulled his sword on them. The look of a man who already knew he was dead, a fearful expression that showed he didn't want to die but was wholly willing to do so so that the ones he loved might live — that look would forever be burned into his retinas. It'd be the first thing he pictured when he thought back on Jason, and it'd be a difficult challenge to not tear up every time it happened.
It'd take a while to get the actual attack out of his head, too — the image of several ghostly swords being plunged through his back and out his front, sending blood into the air. It'd be a long time before he recovered from that, but he eventually would. The memory would become hazy until he couldn't clearly picture it anymore, but the same couldn't be said for the other two. The echoing sound was the punctuation point at the end of the final sentence while his face told an entire book he'd instantly memorized word for word.
"Percy." Reyna grabbed his shoulder and shook him to get his attention. He could hear the despair in her voice, but also an urgency that just barely pulled him from his grief.
"We need to go!" she said.
Percy wiped the tears out of his eyes and looked up. Evidently, the lifeless apparitions weren't satisfied with just taking one of them, as they were now coming for them at a quick pace. They walked across the pit that divided them as if there were ground beneath their ethereal feet, and some began to break into a jog.
"We can't leave him," Percy choked.
"He- he's gone," Reyna said. He knew she was trying her best to steel herself and hide her emotions, but it wasn't working. "We have to move."
She pulled him to his feet as the ghosts made it halfway toward them. She took his hand and pulled him away from the ledge. He reluctantly allowed her to lead him away from the place where Jason had just been killed. They turned to face a new wall with another tunnel flanked by a pair of torches, but this one didn't just disappear off into darkness. There was light at the end of it.
They ran hand in hand through the tunnel and didn't stop until a loud noise sounded behind them. They turned around to see the entrance had caved in, blocking them from their ghostly pursuers. Then a maddeningly long silence followed while they both took time to process what happened.
"No," he muttered. Then louder, "No! No, he can't just be —"
He choked, then turned and weakly punched the wall. He leaned his head against it and a thousand thoughts ran through his mind, a thousand different scenarios in which Jason could have survived. None of them were plausible. He felt Reyna's hand on his back as he desperately tried to claw for hope that was too far out of his reach. He heard her unsteady breathing that told him she was doing her best not to cry.
Quickly, the desperation turned to fury. He turned away from the wall to the tunnel's exit and took off at a sprint for it. If the Fates weren't at the end of it, he'd march through however many more trials it took to reach them and make them pay.
Reyna might have been following him; she might have said something. He didn't know. He was too blinded by anger to notice or care. Jason was dead. He could either slow down and let that fact consume him or do everything in his power to make it not true.
He reached the end of the tunnel and came out into a very small but surprisingly elegant cave. A fragrant scent immediately met his nostrils that almost calmed him down a bit, but his anger was stronger than whatever incense was burning. There were tapestries all over the walls and several candles lit around the room. The walls and even the floor had more of the indecipherable text carved all over it. Toward the back was a long, plush bench. Sunlight shone through a small hole in the roof directly at it.
Percy stopped and stared around, but there was nothing else here. There was no new tunnel leading off somewhere else or any altar they had to give their blood to. This was the end, and there was no one here.
"Moirai!" Percy yelled. His voice bounced off the cave walls, but no one answered his call.
Reyna showed up next to him and tried to grab his hand, but he absentmindedly pulled it away. Even though he wasn't looking at her, he could feel her about to say something, but she didn't get the chance to. Just then, he was hit with a sense of vertigo. The entire room seemed to spin which nearly caused him to topple over, but he managed to keep his balance. When it was over, the bench was no longer empty.
From left to right sat Clotho, the spinner; Lachesis, the measurer; and Atropos, the cutter. They all looked identical, other than the color of robes they wore. He could tell which was which because they were in the process of working a line of thread, each doing their designated tasks. They appeared very old and stared with blank faces and curious eyes. They were three of the most powerful deities in the world, which made what came next extremely stupid.
Looking back, Percy would later realize how suicidal his next actions were. At present, he was too grief-stricken to stop himself from making stupid decisions. First, he charged the Moirai with his sword in hand, fully intending to strike. After running into an invisible wall that knocked him back, he opted instead to yell at them.
Since moving to Rome, Latin had become his primary tongue. The instant he saw the moirai, he completely forgot that. He switched back to Greek and chose a handful of colorful insults to shout at them. Any other deity would have smitten him as soon as he opened his mouth, but the Fates just calmly sat and took the verbal abuse.
He took a second to catch his breath before continuing. "'The Hollow is fatal to the unworthy.' Is that what you think he was? Was that why you murdered him? You're wrong! He was more worthy than any of you! Bring him back!"
Once it was clear he was done shouting for the time being, the Moirai opened their mouths and spoke in unison.
"Where future is birthed beneath the ground,
The eagle falls and hope is found.
End shall crises of morrow and now,
Upon an exchange, should a king allow."
As they spoke, a block of that mysterious text on the ground began to glow. With every word uttered, the symbols morphed into regular Greek letters transcribing their speech. Once they finished, the text continued to glow for several seconds before returning to looking like gibberish. Percy's eyes lingered on it for only a moment before returning to the Moirai.
He opened his mouth to yell some more, but Clotho spoke over him.
"The Oracle of Delphi uttered that prophecy," she said. "Its words are inevitable and unfightable. That was why you were not allowed to know them."
"Jason Grace never heard it either," said Atropos, "but knew it was his destiny to fulfill it."
"Don't say his name!" Percy said. "You killed him!"
Lachesis shook her head. "He killed himself. He made a choice to withhold information instead of turning back."
"He lied to you," said Clotho. "His beloved daughter of Aphrodite did not guide him through the maze."
Reyna was as surprised as him. "Daughter of —?"
"The person whom he had lost was himself, and so that was who he saw," said Atropos.
"He was told that Rome had to make a sacrifice," said Lachesis. "Either he or you —" all three pointed at Reyna "— would have to willingly give up their life for the quest to succeed."
"He could have fought prophecy," said Clotho. "He could have told you what he knew and the eagle would still fly, at the price of an entire pantheon."
"No," Percy muttered and wiped his eyes.
"But that was not who he was. He understood the necessity —"
"Don't you talk about who he was! You never knew him! We did! Bring him back!"
"Death is irreversible," said Atropos.
"You're goddesses! Bring him back! He wanted to go back to Neapoli. He was happy. He deserves to live!"
They just gave him regretful looks. Percy tried to advance on them again but was thrown back by an unseeable force, just like before. This time, when he tried to get up, he only made it to his knees. He slumped there, defeated, and the tears began to fall for real. Reyna was at his side a moment later and pulled him into a hug. He wrapped his arms tightly around her and sobbed into her shoulder, and she did the same.
It takes time to fully process death. One minute your friend is alive and by your side with optimistic plans for his future, the next he's lying dead at the bottom of a pit. How are you supposed to just accept that? How are you supposed to just carry on, knowing that he won't?
He'd dealt with loss before, too much and too often. But all those deaths were driven by human motivation. His mother, killed in a violent street brawl; the demigods, murdered by their brethren for trying to make peace; Nico and Bianca, silenced for knowing too much; Daedalus, publicly executed for a lifetime of mistakes he'd spent several trying to make up for — some deaths were more random than others, some stung more, but they all had a person snuffing out their lives. Jason died because three all-powerful hags wrote a poem that said it was necessary.
It just felt so arbitrary and unnecessary. The Hollow had been perfectly engineered to kill him in the most unexpected way while still giving him the illusion of choice. Jason shouldn't be dead, but for some reason he was.
He could place the blame on the Fates, and he was making a damn good effort to, but what was the point? Ten thousand years would pass and his name would be long forgotten, yet they'd still stand as healthy and whole as ever. A human life was like a blink of an eye to them. What was one compared to an entire pantheon of gods?
Percy remembered when he'd woken up in the Temple of Apollo. He'd looked Titan's idiot goons in the eyes and told them Jason was his brother. He realized now that he hadn't been lying. Jason may not have opened up a whole lot, but the few times he had he'd laid it all out on the table. Percy would have trusted him with his life.
Just a number of months ago Percy was betrothed to his childhood friend and determined to liberate his people from the clutches of Roman conquerors. Then he'd met two wonderful strangers that were members of those armies. In such a relatively short time he'd grown so close to them. He'd fallen in love with one, and the other would leave an unfillable hole in his heart.
He couldn't guess how long he and Reyna stayed like that, sorrowfully wrapped in each others' embrace. It could have been hours for all he knew. He'd never forget what the Fates did nor forgive them, but at least they had the decency to be patient and allow the two of them to grieve.
When the water finally stopped flowing, Reyna whispered, "We had a mission."
Percy just gave a weak nod, made even weaker from his chin resting on her shoulder.
"He'd want us to finish it," she said.
Percy pulled away and wiped his face. He took a very shaky breath and gave a more pronounced nod.
"You're right," he said. "Let's get it done with. . . for him."
Together they stood. They turned to the Fates who were just sitting there, watching them. Percy took Reyna's hand and did his best not to get angry again.
"Can you convince Jupiter?" Reyna asked the Fates. Her voice was steady, but he could hear the disdain in it.
"To do what?" asked Atropos.
Percy took a single step forward and balled his free hand into a fist. "You know damn well wha —"
Reyna squeezed his hand, which was enough for him to reign himself in. He took a deep breath and allowed her to do the talking.
"Unity," she said. "Whatever that means. Can you convince Jupiter to do it?"
Lachesis answered. "We believe it to be plausible."
"If you needn't more time," said Clotho, "We can go to Olympus forthwith."
Reyna looked at Percy and he nodded. She looked back to the Fates and opened her mouth, but didn't get a chance to say anything. Percy felt the same sensation as going through the tunnels. When he could see again, they were no longer in the cave — they weren't even in the Hollow anymore.
They now stood within the throne room on Olympus. It took Percy a moment to process that this was the same Olympus he'd been to before. They stood within Zeus's decreasingly grand palace, the twelve Greek Olympians slumbering in their thrones. The hearth in the middle of the room was unlit and he could see Hestia lying there peacefully, exactly the way he'd last seen her.
Percy turned around and found the Moirai standing behind him. Since Reyna was still holding his hand, she was forced to turn around too.
"I thought we were going to Roman Olympus," Percy said, confused.
Atropos shook her head. "No. It shall take place here. This has to occur with a majority of the gods in one place."
Percy looked around, but it was still only the Greeks. When he turned his gaze back toward the Fates, he noticed they were staring at him expectantly.
"What?" he said.
"You must invite the Romans here," said Lachesis.
Percy furrowed his brow. "Me?"
"You are Greek," said Clotho. "With the son of Hermes's passing, you're the eldest conscious Greek of godly blood. You're the only one with the status to do so."
Percy looked at Reyna, and she shrugged. It was weird standing in a room full of gods and being told that you have the most authority. He looked back to the Fates, who were waiting.
"I invite the Roman gods here," he said to no one in particular.
Seconds passed before the doors to the palace slammed open and a crowd of people marched in, most with weapons drawn and wearing full battle armor. At the lead was a crowned man wielding a golden spear that a single bolt of electricity snaked around. Right behind him was his wife, Juno, who looked very somber. Next to her was Vesta, who carried the pithos in her arms and smiled warmly at Percy. Behind them were many guards that looked vaguely reminiscent of their sleeping Greek counterparts — Percy could recognize Apollo, Diana, Mars, Bacchus, and a few others, but most he couldn't name.
The one that really drew his eye, though, was an older looking man wearing a golden crown in his long, white hair and holding a silver trident that stood as tall as him, which was bedazzled with numerous pearls in intricate detail. His beard matched his hair and his face only had a few wrinkles. He wore no armor, only a toga that left half his muscular chest bare. Other than his weapon of choice and the fact that his eyes were sea-green like Percy's — he'd always assumed he'd inherited them from his father — Neptune bore no resemblance to Poseidon, who had the appearance of a forty-year-old at most.
The Roman sea god marched in proudly with the rest of his peers and eyed Percy with a calculating look. Percy took the lack of malice in his eyes as a good sign. He wasn't entirely sure what to think of him, though.
It seemed to take Jupiter a moment to realize the Fates were in the room. He stopped several paces away from them and the rest of the Roman gods took formation behind him.
"Parcae," he said with a startled look.
"It's Moirai, today," said Clotho.
"What is the meaning of this?" he asked.
"You needn't have prepared for conquest," said Lachesis.
"This is a matter of peace," said Atropos.
Jupiter sheathed his spear on his back, but still looked somewhat confused. Then a hand placed itself on his shoulder. He turned around to face the third and last crowned Roman deity — a gaunt man wearing soft-looking robes over his pale skin. It looked as if he'd just appeared behind Jupiter.
"Brother," said the new god. "I have dire news."
"You only ever have dire news, Pluto," said Jupiter dismissively.
"It pertains to your son."
Jupiter's stern face turned deadly. "No."
"I'm sorry. Not only has he perished, but he did not enter into my domain," Pluto explained.
The king's expression tightened. "What?"
"I believe he's gone to Hades."
Percy's heart clenched.
Jupiter furiously turned on the Fates. "Why is my son in the Underworld of a sleeping Greek?"
But it was Vesta who answered. She stepped forward and held the pithos high for everyone to see, then announced, "The exchange of offerings has been made. The Greeks seek unity."
Most of the Roman gods began muttering amongst each other.
Jupiter seemed to take a second to understand her, then narrowed his eyes. "My son? You traded my son's life for a spirit in a bottle so as to bail them out of their predicament?"
"This is larger than just them, husband," said Juno.
If it was even possible for the king to look more furious, he did. Jupiter turned to face her so abruptly that she had to retreat two steps back, but she kept her composure.
"What did you do?" he demanded.
"I helped my champion fulfill his destiny," she answered, a tiny waver in her voice.
"You led him to his death!"
"You knew the prophecy; you all knew it."
"Every time you try to interpret a prophecy people die!" Jupiter shouted.
Juno flinched. "This has to happen, my love. It's in our best interest; it's in everyone's best interests."
"I will not have my people subjected to —"
"Jupiter," said the three Fates at once.
He focused his glare on them.
"They speak the truth," said Clotho. "Their demise —" Atropos and Lachesis pointed at the sleeping Olympians, "— will not ensure your triumph."
"It'll only pave the way for history to be repeated," said Lachesis.
"You know that no empire is eternal," said Atropos. "Rome will eventually fall, as Greece did before it. Mortals will stop worshipping you."
"When that day comes," said Clotho, "you'll be sleeping in your chairs, and there will be no one to come to your aid."
"Greece fell because their gods were too weak to stop it," Jupiter argued. "Zeus buried himself because of his own incompetence. I'll not dirty my spade in digging him up when I can work to make sure my people build an empire strong enough to reign for millennia."
"Your hubris will be your own undoing," said Lachesis. "The ancient law of unity exists for a reason. The time has come."
"Shun it and you will fall, with your fellow gods and the world alongside you," said Atropos. "The choice you make here today in regards to them will inflict the same punishment upon yourself."
"Jupiter," said Vesta. "Please. This is the only way. Don't let your son's death be in vain."
"I never asked him to give his life for them!" he said.
"But he did. He made a choice, because he and these two heroes knew how important this was. We need the Greeks just as much as they need us."
Jupiter paced silently for a while, apparently deep in thought. Percy couldn't even begin to understand what he was thinking. He didn't even know what it was that was being debated, or why the king of gods was so averse to the idea.
Jupiter finally stopped and met Percy's eyes. He looked him and Reyna over for a few seconds before saying, "The daughter of Bellona and the Savior of Greece. Do you believe you've earned that title, Graecus? You think you can just call us here and have all your precious gods wake up, hale and hearty?"
Percy took a shaky breath. "I never called myself a savior of anything. I don't know what this unity thing is, but I know you should do it. It'd be stupid to let Jason have died for nothing."
Reyna squeezed his hand. Vesta shot him a warning look, but the damage was done.
"Stupid?" said Jupiter. A spark of electricity arced off his skin and into the air. "You're calling me stupid?"
Percy's eyes widened. "No! No, I only meant —"
"Shut up. This is the hero who summoned us? He is the supposed Savior of Greece? He comes so far and does so much and doesn't even know what it is he's fighting for."
Percy winced. That last sentence pretty much summed up his entire life.
"I'll not do it," Jupiter said.
Vesta looked shocked. "Brother —"
"I'll not do it," Jupiter repeated, "until he proves himself."
"Has he not already done enough?" Vesta protested.
"Not another word. My decision has been made. He shall retrieve the scythe of Kronos — only then will he have earned the right to bear his title."
"Don't you mean Saturn?" Percy asked before he could stop himself.
Jupiter glared at him. "Unlike that fool —" he pointed at Zeus "— I did not hesitate to dispose of a weapon that dangerous. Once my father had been defeated, I handed his scythe over to Pluto. After disposing of Saturn's remains, we had the weapon properly destroyed. But in the culmination of Zeus's war, he tossed Kronos's scythe aside to gather his chopped up bits and toss them into Tartarus. It was promptly taken, and has been missing ever since."
"So why wait until now to do something about it?"
"We've tried," Jupiter seethed. "Both him and I. The heroes we've sent in search failed to return alive. If you're as worthy as my eldest sister believes you to be, you'll succeed. It shall remain to be seen whether this is the case."
"So what do we —?"
"There will be no 'we'," Jupiter said shortly. "It's you who needs to prove yourself, not her. Bellona's daughter stays behind."
"But —"
"Enough questions."
Percy gritted his teeth. It became clear to him that Jupiter made a habit of cutting people off. He glanced at Reyna who just looked at him helplessly.
"You will journey to Mount Othrys where you'll find Atlas," Jupiter ordered. "Due to his special condition, he can never fully succumb to the curse that has befallen the other Greeks. He was Kronos's most trusted officer; if anyone knows where the scythe is, it's him. And before you ask, his Roman equivalent is in Tartarus where all titans belong. Unlike the Greeks, we did not show a semblance of mercy to our enemies, so you'll only ever see theirs on the surface world."
Percy looked around at the other gods, all of whom were watching him expectantly. He glanced behind him where he saw his sleeping father among the other Greek Olympians. Then he met Reyna's eyes, who gave him a single nod of encouragement.
Percy looked back to Jupiter. "Fine. How will I get there?"
"Meet me at the edge of the city," Vesta said to him.
"Vesta," Jupiter warned.
"I know," she said. "No helping him. But he is still my champion and I would speak with him before he departs."
Jupiter scoffed, but said, "So be it. Be quick about it."
Vesta gave Percy a small smile and then left the palace. He knew that was his cue to follow, but he wasn't ready to go just yet. He'd just lost his best friend and didn't want to have to deal with that alone, or for Reyna to have to cope on her own. But it was clear he didn't have much of a choice in the matter.
He turned to face her once again, taking both her hands in his. He wanted to kiss her, but didn't know whether the gods would find that inappropriate, especially considering her mother was probably among them somewhere. Before he got the chance to decide whether he wanted to chance it, she wrapped him in a hug.
"Come back safe," she whispered in his ear. "I can't lose you too."
"You won't," Percy promised.
He wasn't going to let go of her, but then Jupiter cleared his throat. He reluctantly pulled away and turned to face the gods, who had parted to leave a clear path out of Zeus's palace. Percy gave Reyna one last look and then began walking after his patron goddess.
The Hollow was supposed to be the last obstacle. That's what she'd told him. Now he was off to do some random side quest that many other demigods had died failing to complete, evidently. He had to wonder if a "final obstacle" even really existed. Every time he came around the track toward the finish line, there was always another lap he had to do. How long before the chariot began to fall apart or the horses became too exhausted?
Worse yet was that he was the only rider left, now. He wasn't allowed to take Reyna with him, and now Jason was gone. He had to keep racing alone, while the final lap kept getting further and further away. And it wasn't like he could just stop, either; someone had to cross the finish line, and he was the only one able to do so.
Outside the palace dozens of minor Roman gods were lined up along the path, all watching him silently. One goddess in particular drew his gaze, though. She was in a full set of plate armor and had a sword sheathed on one side of her waist and a blazing torch on the other — the heat didn't seem to affect her. As he walked by, she gave him a scrutinizing look, as if she were both warning him and trying to determine his worthiness at the same time. Her black eyes matched Reyna's but lacked her warmth at the moment.
He reached the edge of Olympus where he and Jason had landed the only other time he'd been here. Vesta was sitting cross-legged in front of Blackjack and Scipio, who had somehow managed to make it here all the way from the Hollow. The pithos stood up behind her and there was a satchel in her lap.
Percy refused to speak first. He was still partly in shock, and also cross with her. She'd known full well what would happen to Jason, and she'd sent them off to the Hollow anyway. He wasn't about to reprimand her for it, because he didn't want to waste any more time, but he could still be quietly angry.
"I'm certain my apologies will mean very little to you," she said as if she'd read his mind. "So I'll save them for when you've had more time to process."
"Is that all?" he said bluntly.
"No. You must understand that my brother can have severe tunnel-vision when it comes to the Greeks. He's always been bitter about having to live in Zeus's shadow, as he'd been 'the original'. For the past decade or so he's grown accustomed to being the only king. Even though deep down he might understand that this is in his best interest, he'll not so readily compromise his position of power."
"With all due respect, my lady, I don't care. All I want to know is what unity means. I want to know what my friend died for."
Scipio tilted his head at that, but didn't comment.
She sighed sadly. "If you've not figured it out on your own by now, then I can't help you."
Percy rolled his eyes. "I'd expect no less. Can I go now?"
"You may, but you'll be wanting this." She held up the satchel. "Jupiter wishes me not to aid you, but this is small enough. He won't have to know."
Percy took it from her and swiftly mounted Blackjack.
"I really thought he wouldn't make you do this," she said. "Perhaps I was being naive or maybe Elpis is just affecting me. But I'm certain if anyone can succeed, it's you. Good luck."
With a flash of light, she disappeared.
"What was all that?" Blackjack asked once she was gone.
"Don't worry about it," Percy replied. "Let's go."
"What of the others?" said Scipio.
Percy's eyes began to well up again, and he blinked back the tears. "Reyna's being forced to sit this one out, and Jason. . ."
It took Blackjack a moment to understand. "No."
"'I want to know what my friend died for,'" Scipio quoted with a heavy voice.
Percy just nodded.
"I'm so sorry, Boss," said Blackjack.
"Let's just fly. Scipio, you don't have to come. Stay here with Reyna and keep her company for me, would you?"
Scipio nodded, uncharacteristically quiet.
"We'll be back soon, Skippy." Blackjack spread his wings and took flight.
A/N: Just a quick note: there've been zero line breaks for the past four chapters. Bet you didn't notice. I'm not making a pattern of it — it just came naturally with how the last few chapters have been structured. The pattern will probably be broken next chapter, but it was fun to be able to work without them for a while. Let me know what you thought of their absence — did it make the chapters flow better? I realize I use them quite often, but that's just my writing style. Anyway, see you all next week. Again, I'm sorry.
