Reyna stared down apprehensively at the coffee cup in front of her, watching the wisps of steam floating up from the liquid's surface. She sighed and gently cradled the mug before taking a small sip. A warm feeling coursed down her windpipe and to the rest of her body, and she let out a small moan of delight. Her gaze moved to her right side. Arcadia stood next to her with a small smirk of satisfaction on her face.
"I told you it was divine," Arcadia said as she took a sip from her own cup. "The secret is a small bit of nectar, but don't tell Avaris I said that. She would yell at me for using it in hot chocolate."
"Maybe that's why it's so good," Reyna teased with a smirk of her own. She lowered her cup and looked around the small room that she was using as an office. Arcadia was still hunting for a building that they could use, and she had narrowed down the choices. Reyna just wanted something that was far enough away from Camp Half-Blood and all the fanatic Greeks there.
Arcadia hummed but didn't say a word. A knock resounded from the other side of the door, and Reyna spoke, "Come in."
The door opened, showing Bristol as he stepped into the room. He bowed to Reyna before holding the door open. Sparta followed in from behind and gave a half bow, still injured from defending their base. Aquitaine was escorted in by the two of them. Her arms were chained in front of her, but she still bowed her head towards Reyna.
"All three of you sit," Reyna ordered. Her watchful gaze focused on Sparta. The centurion gingerly sat down. She wore no armor, as it would be impossible to with all of the bandages that covered her chest. Bristol pulled the chair out for Aquitaine, and he waited for her to sit before pushing in her chair and sitting down in his own seat.
Bristol wore his armor, and he looked relaxed. He had led most of the Sixth Legion to safety, and many more of them would be dead if Bristol hadn't acted when he did. Bristol met Reyna's eyes and then respectfully averted his gaze. Reyna would never get used to people almost three times her age treating her as a superior.
Reyna moved her survey to Aquitaine. The centurion, or maybe former centurion, didn't look up at her imperator. She had been stripped of her weapons and armor after finding her way back to the Sixth Legion. Reyna closed her eyes, recalling the events that led up to this point. She had been called away with Aquitaine to meet with a representative of the Council.
The ruling body of Rome: the Council. Reyna first thought the five leaders worked together and made decisions that affected all of the clans underneath their rule. It turned out that Seva was the sole leader of the Council, and she lured Reyna and Aquitaine directly into a trap.
Reyna was handed over to Eris to be tortured and punished. Aquitaine, well, she wasn't quite sure what happened to Aquitaine. Reyna saw a former member of the Sixth Legion slam a flail into Aquitaine's back and then faceplate, but that was the last she saw before she had been dragged away.
According to what Annabeth said, she had found Aquitaine in a cell. The centurion escaped with her and a demititan named Sarah. It left Reyna with the big question of if she could trust Aquitaine or not. A deep, tired sigh left Reyna.
"I overheard you sending a message to Seva: your sister," Reyna started her interrogation. She let those last two words hang in the air. Aquitaine slowly looked up at her. Even under trial, the daughter of Venus looked calm and collected. "You told her that 'if you kept playing games, it would blow up in your face'. What did you mean by that."
"Julius Caesar always knew that I was a part of the wolf clan. He saved me from my father," Aquitaine elaborated. She sluggishly locked eyes with Reyna. As the imperator peered deep into the centurion's eyes, she could see that while the expression of Aquitaine was blank, her eyes were tired and red, possibly from crying. Was it because her sister betrayed her, or because she was on trial?
"My father wanted me to be the perfect protector for my older sister. If I failed, I was punished. The punishments got worse the more and more that I failed. One day, he beat me within an inch of my life and told me to find my way back home. When he left me bleeding out at the barrier of the Sixth Legion, Caesar approached me. He offered me a new life if I killed my father and helped the legion destroy the wolf clan," Aquitaine continued.
"Why turn your back on your family?" Reyna questioned. Aquitaine rubbed her eyes and sighed tiredly. Reyna remained impassive and studied the older woman. She knew Arcadia had thrown Aquitaine into a makeshift cell while she awaited judgment from the imperator. "How do I know you won't do the same to the Sixth Legion?"
"The Sixth Legion is my sworn family," Aquitaine promised. "My father was not a real father to me. I was only born to be a guard for my sister. If I died, I don't think my father would have truly cared. The Council and the wolf clan fought for control of Europe, but my clan did terrible things to the people underneath them. Women were forced to have children with our strongest warriors, and when a woman grew too old to bear children, she was used as a toy for the men."
"The other clans didn't respect us, they feared us. We did terrible things to keep people in line. If a clan tried to rebel from father, he would gather up their children and do unspeakable acts," Aquitaine whispered in a hushed tone. She looked down, as if she was trying to suppress memories. "I couldn't be a part of that anymore. That is why I accepted Caesar's help to free Rome from the monster that was my father."
"I don't know how Seva survived the day of the assault. She should have bled out since there was no one to help her. Sparta stabilized me long enough for Avaris to save my life. I know Caesar wiped their memories but I don't know how," Aquitaine continued. "When he learned that Seva was still alive, he decided to work with her and try to keep Rome in his grasp."
"Because of the prophecy that Rome would be in the grasp of the wolf clan until only one remained?" Reyna pressed in her questioning. Aquitaine nodded. "Are you and Seva the only two remaining members left?"
"Everyone else is dead," Aquitaine spoke with finality. "Caesar personally made sure that all of them were executed. He spent time making sure all of the loose ends were tied up. Caesar did not take a massacre lightly. But the game that I spoke of was not telling you the truth about everything. I truly thought we could work with Seva. I didn't know she would do this."
"What of the bounties under your bed?" Reyna probed. Aquitaine looked at her again but didn't answer. "You lied to me and almost got your fellow centurions killed. You knew that Seva led the Council, but you didn't tell me or Arcadia. When Caesar died, why didn't you tell me?"
"I am not a severion, and I would not kill any of the leaders. Those bounties under my bed were planted there," Aquitaine affirmed. Sadness and grief permeated her eyes again. "I'm sorry that I didn't tell you, imperator. I swore to Caesar that I would never tell anyone else. I'm sorry."
Reyna closed her eyes to digest all the information. She knew that they couldn't afford to have any doubt going into a war, especially if they were fighting the Council's army. Reyna believed Aquitaine, though. She believed that Aquitaine really did think of the Sixth Legion as family and was doing what she thought was best. It had cost the legion greatly, however.
"I understand what you have to do, imperator, but please do not exile me. Just kill me," Aquitaine pleaded. Reyna slowly opened her eyes and looked at her centurion. "Nikaia is still out there, and if she gets her hands on me, she will do terrible things. The other clans would love to take a shot at me. Please just kill me."
Reyna sat forward and grabbed the faceplate that rested on her desk. It belonged to Aquitaine. There were a few lines of pink and red on the black armor. Aquitaine bowed her head, as if she was ready for the executioner's block. Reyna spoke, "I won't exile you. I know what it feels like to be torn from your home, and that is not something I will do to you."
"But," Reyna paused, standing up with her hand on her sword. Bristol looked away and shook his head. Sparta looked down to avoid Reyna's gaze. Aquitaine met Reyna's eyes for a brief moment before returning her focus to the floor. Reyna walked towards her. "Someone opened the library of Alexandria. I was told only a member of the wolf clan could do that, and I thought it was Seva. Was it actually you?"
"It was," Aquitaine confirmed. "Caesar sent me to store some of his records in the vault. I'm not sure what they contained, but he said they were of the utmost importance."
"Caesar mentioned nothing of these to me," Arcadia said accusingly.
"He also didn't tell you Aquitaine is a member of the wolf clan," Reyna commented.
"Was, imperator. I am not a member anymore," Aquitaine corrected politely. "My loyalty is only to the Sixth Legion."
Arcadia snorted and shook her head. Aquitaine looked back down, as if resigning mournfully to her fate. Reyna let go of her sword and handed the faceplate to Arcadia. The goddess raised an eyebrow, "You have seen the Sixth Legion since its inception. You know everyone who has ever been a member. You are going to be in direct command of Aquitaine, and when she shows you more loyalty than any member of the Sixth Legion ever has, you will give this back to her."
"Understood, imperator. I will make sure she does not earn this back easily," Arcadia promised. Reyna nodded and turned towards Aquitaine. It took a moment for Aquitaine to gape up at her.
"I'm not going to kill you," Reyna said. "Just know that no one in the Sixth Legion is going to trust you, even if you earn your faceplate back. You have to win their trust back."
"I will," Aquitaine promised. "Thank you for your mercy, imperator."
Reyna shook her head and looked at the floor. Maybe, she wouldn't have hesitated to have Aquitaine executed before she killed her mother, but Reyna was sick of violence. Reyna finally spoke, "Dismissed."
"Come on," Arcadia ordered. She grabbed Aquitaine by her arm and pulled her to her feet. Aquitaine didn't fight as she was dragged out of the room. Bristol stood and bowed. Sparta slowly stood and gave another half bow.
"Make sure to rest, Sparta. I need you back in shape," Reyna ordered.
"Of course, imperator. I will do my best," Sparta replied with another half bow and limped out of the room after Bristol. Reyna sighed and grabbed the cup of hot chocolate to take another sip. Her silent bliss lasted for only a minute as there was another knock on the door.
"Hey," Hylla greeted as she stepped into the room.
"Hey," Reyna repeated, still staring at her desk. She forced herself to look up at her sister. Hylla walked towards her.
"Annabeth wants to talk to you," Hylla began. Reyna shook her head. "I told her you were busy."
"I don't want to talk to her right now," Reyna muttered.
"I know. No one is forcing you to either. But I have something else to talk to you about. Do you remember Adonia? Leader of the Amazons in Greece?" Hylla asked. Reyna nodded slightly. The Amazons in Greece had helped them against the Aramaspi and Metis. Their leader died on Hylla's shoulders.
"Before Adonia died, she told me about this old vault. Kinzie and I have been trying to find it for a month. We finally found it and just came back from there. The place was full of broken items and artifacts, and there was a dead body in the middle of all of it. The walls were covered in insane ramblings that were scribbled with blood. We also found something important. Under the body."
Hylla placed a binder onto the table and opened it. Reyna stared at the bloody pictures that were inside the binder, but she recognized most of them. The pictures were of the peacekeepers, and there was a ton of notes written in Latin. Hylla spoke, "We found these scattered throughout the room. It seemed like someone didn't want this place to be found."
"Why not clean up the evidence then?" Reyna queried. Hylla shrugged and flipped to the last page. Reyna focused on the picture of Neith. To the right of the picture, there was a page that looked like it had been torn out of a history book. Reyna stared down at the picture of an ancient pharaoh. "What the hell?"
"Do you know who that is?" Hylla questioned. Reyna didn't answer. She stared at the picture of the old pharaoh: Cleopatra. She had been a pharaoh in the old lands: Egypt. She worked with Romans, especially Julius Caesar. They had a relationship.
Reyna's eyes moved to the other photo. It was the same person, but she now wore modern clothes. She was at a cafe handing money off to someone.
"She's a peacekeeper. One they wanted me to replace," Reyna slowly pieced together.
"Wanted you to replace?" Hylla repeated, clearly confused at the idea. Reyna's eyes widened at her slip, and she looked at her sister. Hylla stared back at her with wide eyes. "What do you mean replace? As a peacekeeper?"
Reyna gaped at her sister. Could she trust Hylla? Sure, Hylla said that she had Reyna's back, but there was a huge difference between Reyna saying she had killed her mother and telling Hylla that the rest of the gods were next if the peacekeepers had their way.
"Yeah. As a peacekeeper," Reyna finally said. It wasn't exactly a lie, but it also wasn't the full truth. Hylla studied her and nodded.
"Assuming this vault belonged to that dead body, they died protecting this secret," Hylla deduced. "It calls her a magician, but I don't think she's going to pull a rabbit out of a hat anytime soon."
Reyna nodded and gently took the binder. She studied it, "Do you mind if I keep this?"
"Go ahead," Hylla replied. "Have you ate yet?"
Reyna shook her head. Hylla stood and spoke, "Don't move. I'm going to get us food."
Reyna nodded and watched her sister leave. She focused back on her hot chocolate and the binder. A sigh left the imperator. There had been this feeling of confusion over the last few months. Reyna was always in the dark. She was always one step behind everyone and learning things after the fact, but she was done with that. Reyna was going to be one step ahead of everyone else this time, and she knew where to go to do just that: the sealed vault beneath the library of Alexandria.