Harry Potter
Percy lead the way towards the city. It grew as they drew closer, along with the berth of the sunset. The city had a sort of aura abound it, like a deep purple mist. The was some sort of astrological signs imprinted into the ground, along with a shallow wall around the city scattered with stars. It was unnervingly quiet, no bustle of heavy machinery. In the wall was a door in an indigo color, open, but guarded buy a young man, maybe 16 or so. He had a bow slung across his back, along with a quiver of arrows. Harry exchanged looks with a few of the others. The whole group was also quite quiet, only a few making small talk between them. Eventually, they approached the door. The young man perked up, fingering his bow. Annabeth spoke for probably the loudest since we'd gotten here. "We mean no harm. We are merely searching for shelter."
"Why do you have weapons, in that case?"
"Defense," she answered quickly.
He nodded. "If you want to enter, I need to confiscate your weapons.
Annabeth exchanged looks with the lot of them. "Can you give us a sec?" He nodded, and the group of them stepped to the side.
"I think we should do it," interjected Annabeth first. Four shook his head, disagreeing. Quite a few of the others looked uneasy too. "We won't be completely defenseless, though," Annabeth reasoned. She looked behind her to make sure no one was listening. "I mean, the wizard's wands aren't susceptible, and Percy's pen reappears in his pocket..."
They thought it over for a few seconds, then agreed, some a bit more reluctantly than others.
Turning back towards the young man, Annabeth replied to him, "We consent." She took her dagger out of her pocket. Harry tried to look inconspicuous with the other wizards. Tris, Katniss, Peeta, and Four pulled out their guns and passed them up to Annabeth, looking unnerved.
The rest of the demigods revealed their weapons, except for Percy.
Apparently while they were talking, the man called for two more guards, who arrived and confiscated the weapons. The two of them eyed the rest of them suspiciously, but didn't question it.
The guards lead the way into the city, towards the center and what appeared to be a castle, in a mix of the cultural styles of Roman and Indian. They passed streets full of merchants selling in the streets, along with outdoor restaurants with tables and chairs scattered in a controlled chaos. It was shockingly quiet, no one was yelling or fighting, but having civil conversation or simply thinking without a word.
There were small, quaint, near Victorian style houses bordering some paths, but there were no cars in sight. There were children playing in the streets, running between each other, but not raising their voices too high. There were clothes hanging on the line, and a delicious smell emanated from an outdoor bakery.
The young man who was guarding the gate hurried up to Harry. He smiled, and said brightly, "Sorry, it was part of my training. I have to protect the city. I'm Ezereal, by the way."
"Harry," he answered, grinning back. "Where are we going?"
"To see the Empress, of course," Ezereal answered.
After about five minutes, they reached the castle. The purple aura-mist was slightly thicker here, concealing a figure on a Buddhist-looking throne. As they approached, the mist thinned, yielding a mysterious yet powerful-looking woman with an exotic skin tone and flowing, long back hair. She boasted a Middle-Eastern style dress, and wore an Indian headpiece on her head, both embossed with the deep purple color matching the aura.
Another older man and woman stood off the the side, next to the woman, and on her other side, another, younger man stood.
Ezereal and the other two guards dipped their heads in respect. The woman stood from her throne and looked at them in recognition. "I am Elyssae-Lydian Midoria, Empress of Primordia. Who are you, and why are you here?"
Annabeth stood up. I'd gathered she was the smartest and best speaker in the group, and that was saying a lot. "We come seeking shelter for a short while. We mean no harm to you or your people."
The Empress considered this, and sat down. "I will allow you to stay for tonight, and I will decide for a longer period of time tomorrow. Your weapons will also be confiscated until that time. You may stay in the Libra Wing."
Annabeth nodded. "Thank you, Empress."
Ezereal and the guards led them out of the room and towards a separate wing and entered a room scattered with stars and connections of the constellation Libra.
Harry smiled. Maybe this quest wouldn't be so bad after all.