Welcome to the fourth story in my version of The Trials of Apollo. I hope you enjoy it.
It had been a long odorous trip from Palm Springs to the San Francisco Bay Area. The plane had dropped the former god and his master off at a private runway at the Oakland Airport.
Waiting for them at the airport was an elongated black SUV. Apollo gulped at the sight. If not for the intervention by Brooke, on behest of the Celtic Parathion, the car would have been a hearse for the body of his half-brother.
He had been so distracted by that thought the former god had run over a skunk. Now the entire vehicle stunk from both death and musk. On the passenger side of the vehicle, Meg had raised the windows to stop some of the smell from getting into the car.
"How could you miss seeing a skunk on the road? He was practically the size of an overgrown house cat!" Meg yelled at her slave.
"Excuse me for having other thoughts on my mind. I would have avoided it if I could. By the gods, who decided that skunks had to have one of the worst stink defenses in the world?"
Meg rolled her eyes and stuck her tongue out. "Well if you hadn't killed the poor animal, I could have enjoyed the scent of nature alongside the freeway. I have never smelled real eucalyptus leaves before."
Apollo chose to ignore them as they continued on their journey. The traffic was thick and the former god had never had to deal with that before. His knuckles were white as he gripped the steering wheel for dear life.
He let out a sigh of relief when he saw the sign telling him he was approaching the Caldecott Tunnel. All he had to do was spy the magical entrance to Camp Jupiter and this part of the journey would be over.
Apollo suddenly shivered and was surprised to see goosebumps along his arms. "Meg, why would I suddenly have goosebumps on my arms?"
"Well, that's usually the sign that something bad is going to happen."
At that exact moment, something landed on the roof of the car. Meg let out a yelp.
Whatever had landed on the roof, started walking across it. It had to be heavy considering it was leaving large dents as it walked. Apollo let out a scream with ten sharp nails that appeared near his head as part of the roof was torn off.
He looked up to see what creature had done it and immediately wished he hadn't. It was a ghoulish looking humanoid with a blue-black hide with foggy white eyes. It wore a loincloth made up of black feathers.
The smell coming off him was ten times worse than the skunk smell. The former god and his master both gagged at the smell. Meg yelled out an order, "Swerve!" before puking on the floor of the car.
Having no choice, but to obey, Apollo swerved the car. He watched helplessly as the car swerved out of traffic before jumping over the guardrail and plummeting down the side of the canyon.
The car was sliding down the wall at incredible speed. Both Meg and Apollo screamed in terror. The monster on top lost its balance and fell off the roof.
Apollo let out another scream as the car started to flip over. "DO SOMETHING!" he let out in high pitch wail.
Meg held out her hands and then thrust them upward. At that moment giant eucalyptus tree branches caught the car and lowered it to the ground below. Both of them crawled out the doors and started throwing up.
"Are…you okay?" Apollo asked his friend.
"Less talking. More running." Meg gasped as she took off. Apollo quickly followed, only stopping long enough to grab his quiver and bow, as the monstrous stink hit him. It seems the morbid zombie creature was still alive.
They had only gotten about ten feet away when they heard the creature utter the word, "FOOD!"
Meg kept running, but Apollo stumbled. Getting up on his feet he turned around and called out, "Don't I know you from somewhere?"
The creature stopped puzzled that his "food" was talking to him. "FOOD KNOWS ME?"
"Yes, give me a minute! Almost got it! Oh no, you're a eurynomos. Why aren't you in the Underworld?" the former god demanded. In reality, he was trying to buy himself a few seconds to get a lead on the monster.
The zombie creature flashed its sharp teeth in a hideous smile. "UNDERWORLD FLESH IS ROTTEN. MASTER LET'S ME EAT FRESH FLESH!"
Apollo was confused by that statement considering Hades was supposed to be this creature's master.
"NEW MASTER BETTER THAN OLD MASTER! HE IS BETTER THAN STUPID EMPERORS! APOLLO WILL MEET MASTER VERY SOON. NOW I EAT FOOD!"
Apollo let loose an arrow. It bounced off the zombie's shoulder and only slowed it down for a few seconds. The mortal god ran for his life, hoping to outpace the hungry creature.
As he ran, he noticed Meg was coming back towards him. She wasn't alone. Following her, were a small assortment of fauns, dryads, and a brownish-pink haired female teenager in full legionnaire armor.
The girl was carrying a heavy manubalista. "Get be…hind…me!" she called out in a trembling voice. Apollo ran a few more feet before sliding behind the teenager.
The girl was still trembling as she ordered the zombie to stand down. The creature laughed and mocked her. Saying he had already eaten the flesh of her comrades and that she was next.
The bolt flew through the air and into the creature's chest. The zombie vanished in a cloud of feathers and dust.
Everyone was quiet for a minute before one of the fauns looked up at the girl. "Did, you just hit that creature?"
The girl snorted and nodded. She seemed also surprised that she had managed to accomplish such a feat. Quickly, she stuck a piece of bubble gum in her mouth and started blowing bubbles to calm herself down.
"Thank you for the save miss?"
"Lavinia. Who are you two?"
Meg answered the question, also including they were bringing important news about the emperors, before asking how close they were to Camp Jupiter. That seemed to knock the girl back to reality and she urged them to follow her as they headed for the safety of the camp.
Hearing this, all the nature spirits disappeared. Lavinia grabbed a faun named Don by the wrist saying he owed her. The faun whined about something he hadn't exactly promised, but in the end, he was forced to help.
As they hurried around to the other side of a nearby lake, Lavinia explained how there was a secret entrance to camp on the other side. "I discovered it recently. Don told me that this cute nature spirit Poison Oak would be at the picnic you interrupted."
"I implied that! I didn't promise it! You didn't have to shirk your sentry duties again if you didn't want to!" the faun replied hurriedly.
Apollo was not as surprised as he thought he would be. Looking at the gangly teenager, she seemed more like a giraffe than a soldier in training. He then got kicked in the shin by Meg for slowing down.
They finally made it to the other side of the lake. Meg and Apollo were exhausted. "Can we please take a break?" he asked.
Lavinia shook her head. "I'm supposed to be on guard duty. I need to get back before my partner reports me for neglecting sentry duty again. Also, those zombie creatures hunt in pairs. We don't want to stick around for the second one to show up."
From across the lake, they heard a guttural yell. Meg turned her head and squinted. "I think Thing Two found Thing One."
"Move it!"
The four of them squeezed inside an absurdly narrow dark tunnel. This secret entrance was probably meant to get civilians out because Lavinia's legionnaire armor kept scraping against the side of the tunnel.
The tunnel seemed never-ending. Apollo wasn't sure how far they had walked, but his legs were turning into jelly. A glance at Meg told him she was worried about something.
"Are you okay?"
"I'm okay. I just got this feeling something is wrong." She took her rings and switched them to sword mode. The light from the Imperial Gold blade was a welcome relief, even if it didn't spread more than a foot in front of the group.
Lavinia was fiddling with her Star of David necklace anxiously. "I hope you don't have to use those. The last few days have been the worse in my life. Too many people dying. Having to watch those zombies eat the flesh of my dead friends is not something I want to see again."
The group resumed their trek. They had only gone a few more feet when Don stiffened. "Something isn't right. I'm smelling something rotten getting closer."
Lavinia pushed him forward saying they didn't have time for this. Don stopped again and Lavinia shoved him forward again. "Come on Don. My sentry shift is over. I don't need my partner finding out I was late getting back because you wouldn't move fast enough."
"Too late!" a voice called out from the other end of the tunnel. The person power marched down the tunnel towards them. The former god recognized this demi-god as Hazel Levesque. The last time he had seen her was during the battle against the giants in Greece.
"Lavinia, what is going on? Why are you late returning and who are these two?"
Before the brown-pink hair girl could respond three huge guttural roars filled the tunnel. The group looked behind them and saw three eurynomos coming down from the other end of the tunnel.
"Get back! Don't let them scratch you!" Hazel warned as she pushed forward to face the monsters. She gripped her spatha tightly despite knowing it wouldn't do any good in these close quarters.
Lavinia's weapon was useless as well. Meg's swords might keep them back for a little bit, but there simply wasn't enough room to battle them without getting scratched.
Apollo stepped forward until he was standing next to Hazel. "I'm going to try to lull them to sleep with a lullaby," he whispered.
Unbeknownst to the former god, the zombies had excellent hearing. Hearing what he said, they lunged forward at him.
Hazel shoved the former god back quickly. Just not quick enough as Apollo screamed in pain. One of the zombies had scratched him across his stomach.
"FOOD!" the trio yelled.
Hazel snarled and summoned a solid tower of quartz crystal. It killed one zombie and the other two were trying to figure out a way past when they went slack for no reason.
One of the zombie's heads jerked up and its mouth opened. Out of it came a very menacing, old sounding voice. "Ah, if it isn't Hazel Levesque. Your tricks are getting tiresome."
The daughter of Pluto refused to show fear. "Stop hiding behind your minions' coward! What kind of leader are you letting your troops do all the work?"
The zombie's head jerked back so far it nearly can clear off. A raw, painful, and creepy, laughter filled the tunnel.
"A smart leader that's who. You and I are alike Hazel, trapped between life and death. Soon you and your handsome boyfriend will become my bodyguards."
Hazel didn't respond. The talking zombie finally wiggled past the quartz crystal. "Why fight against the inevitable. I can always summon more dead and kill you and the others with ease."
The creature leaned forward and whispered, "After all, the dead are most at home underground."
Hazel grinned and whispered back. "You know what else is underground? Valuable minerals."
At that second hundreds of different minerals and crystals popped out from all directions. The zombies were crushed instantly. The shaking continued and the group got out of the tunnel as fast as possible.
Once they were completely out, Hazel collapsed the tunnel. Summoning several large diamonds she formed a barrier around the entrance should the zombies find a way to clear the tunnel.
Taking a deep breath, she looked at the group. "Alright, you can all fill me in on what's going on as we make our way to the barracks. For your sake, I hope that you have good news. We could use some right now."
Hazel led them at a brisk pace to the camp. She slowed her pace slightly when she saw that Apollo was struggling to keep up. Turning her head around, she informed the former god that once they had told the praetors their news, a medic could help with Apollo's wound.
Upon reaching the camp, it was obvious how costly the battle had been. Last year during the fight with Gaia the Twelfth Legion had lost maybe a quarter of their forces.
Now they appeared they may only have a quarter of soldiers left. Each soldier had some part of their body bandaged up. Several people were trying to get around on crutches.
On the porch of the barracks, a few of the legion's members were trying to repair their damaged weapons. Everyone appeared exhausted, yet continued to stand up, ready to fight.
In front of the Principia, stood praetors Frank and Reyna. Reyna was wearing the proper attire of her station. Frank, however, appeared to have just woken up despite it being late afternoon.
"Centurion Levesque, please give us your report," Praetor Reyna stated in a guarded tone.
"Praetors, earlier today on sentry duty, my partner Lavinia noticed a vehicle with a eurynomos on the roof. Lavinia investigated and rescue these two from the creature and its associates.
The tunnel we used to get in has been blocked up. They can't use it to get in. As for our guests, I would like to introduce Meg, daughter of Demeter and the god Apollo, who bring us news about the situation we find ourselves in."
Everyone in the camp looked at the two of them. Meg shoved Apollo forward. "I order you to explain the situation. Lavinia, please show me the closest bathroom!"
The twelve-year-old took off running with the pink haired soldier hoping she wouldn't burst before they reached a working toilet.
Apollo had no choice, but to tell the camp what had happened in Palm Springs. He described in detail how they confirmed the identity of the third emperor. That the Celtic pantheon sent him one of their champions to assist him along that part of his and Meg's quest.
When he reached the part about the battle on the boat, he sensed everyone growing tension as he described how Jason was mortally wounded by Caligula.
Praetor Reyna interrupted the story. "Where is Jason's body? Tell us, you didn't leave his body at the bottom of the bay!" her voice was tight and she was holding back tears.
"There is no body to return because Jason is still alive!" Apollo quickly said. The camp cheered to hear that when Praetor Frank gave them the signal to quiet down again.
"Apollo, if Jason is not dead, then why didn't he come back here? Surely, he understood how perilous our situation is. A good soldier would never turn his back on the legion."
Apollo took a deep breath, trying not to gasp from the pain coming from his scratch. "Jason Grace died temporarily. To bring him back, Brooke allowed young Piper to use a vial of the Water of Life, her gods had bestowed upon her.
The water restored him to life. A price had to be paid to compensate for his soul being returned to the land of the living. Jason Grace is no longer a demigod. All his powers, including the ability to see through the Mist, were taken as payment. He is now a normal boy."
Everyone in the camp gasped. Some soldiers dropped their weapons and others looked horrified. Both Frank and Reyna looked unsteady on their feet. No one could believe it. How could Jason Grace, son of Jupiter, be mortal?
Frank recovered first and demanded to know where Jason was. His second question was if Jason's abilities had been temporarily stripped and could come back.
"Jason is currently under the care of Coach Hedge and his family in Oklahoma. He plans on finishing high school before making any other decisions, including when he'll return to New Rome."
Everyone started asking questions at the same time. Could Jason even find Camp Jupiter? Was he allowed to still design and create shrines on Temple Hill? Should they celebrate the fact he was now a mortal or hold a funeral for his fallen status?
Everyone was so busy talking, no one noticed Apollo clutching his side in pain and passing out in front of the Principia. Everyone, except for Frank, who started yelling for the healers to help the former god.
The former god felt his consciousness drifting away until it was overlooking Caligula's massive fleet making its way to Camp Jupiter.
The tyrant himself was lounging in a gold-threaded Lazy Boy recliner enjoying a cocktail. In another recliner rested Commodus.
He was wearing protective shades indicating his eyes were still damaged from looking at the divine forms of Apollo and Aletheia back in Indianapolis. Other than that, he was enjoying tanning his perfect body.
"Why are we slowing down Caligula? I want to get to Camp Jupiter and destroy Temple Hill so I can erect my own temple."
"Ah patience young Commodus," his fellow emperor replied patiently. "Our deceased ally needs a chance to take his revenge against Apollo and Camp Jupiter. Once he's finished, then you can erect as many temples for yourself as you want."
Commodus grumbled unhappily, "Why are we working with him again anyway? Can't we carry out the plan without trying to control-?"
Caligula responded in a tone indicating he was threatening Commodus. "We need his help, Commodus. Just as I helped you when you were in trouble, remember?"
Commodus stated he had already thanked him enough. After all, how could he have known that the god had teamed up with a minor goddess? "Hopefully, we won't run into any pesky god-blessed mortals. Next time I see those teenagers, I'm going to snap their necks and serve them as dinner to my beasts."
Caligula's face flickered with anger for a few seconds before he relaxed once more. "I would love to do the same to the Celtic's mortal champion. Her interference denied me the honor of killing a son of Jupiter."
The man stirred his drink as his nose scrunched up. "Even my nephew suffered at the hands of a few blessed mortals. Still, we have nothing to worry about this time. Camp Jupiter knows better than to allow mortals to fight in their ranks. Only demigod and legacies have that honor. Now, let's turn our attention to Plan B."
While Apollo was dreaming, Praetor Reyna was making her way up the Via Praetoria in the direction of New Rome. However, the city wasn't her destination. Instead, she headed to the north side of the lake directly opposite of Temple Hill.
In the last three months, a small group of about twenty modern day tents had been set up about ten feet from the Pomerian Line. The people residing in the tents were not allowed to pass the Pomerian Line or into Camp Jupiter unless by invitation from either a centurion or praetor.
The tents were homed to a growing community of homeless kids. Homelessness was not something Camp Jupiter or New Rome had ever had to deal with, since arriving in America.
When the first one appeared at the Decumanian Gate right after sunset, the camp had thought they would be welcoming a new recruit. Instead, the sentries came upon a crazed Terminus bellowing at a bespectacled female teenager, who was cowering in fear. She a death grip on a letter she had been holding.
The letter explained who she was and why she had come here. She had been offered haven by Orbona the Roman Goddess of Orphans, here in the secret valley. Soon after her arrival more homeless kids started showing up on almost everyday.
With the magnitude of lives lost during the war against the giants, the goddess had been roaming the country and finding children who needed a home and for parents who had lost their child in the war. The goddess's intentions were pure. Orbona probably was unaware of the problems she was causing.
Not everyone was pleased with this growing situation. Homelessness was not an issue New Rome was set up to handle. A influx of children who couldn't fight in the legion was a drain on resources.
Also, with the current threat going on, no one had even given much thought about the possibility of adopting the kids. The Senate had agreed to house them just outside the city limits until they could start finding homes for the kids.
Reyna and Frank had been taking turns, keeping the homeless camp updated on the situation. During the battle, the homeless community had been evacuated to the aqueduct to prevent them from fighting per the rules of the legion.
Currently, the homeless population was about thirty kids, ranging from eleven to seventeen. The kids had come from many different situations. Some of them were runaways, others had been kicked out of their homes for a variety of reasons, and a few of them were genuine orphans. Each one of them here for the hope of a better life.
The community went silent as Praetor Reyna appeared. They had heard the tunnel collapsing earlier in the day and were expecting her. She looked around and was unable to locate the person she looking for. "I have news to share with you, citizens. Where's Raquel?"
The nearest tent door unzipped and a fifteen-year-old girl crawled out and stood up. She had a mixed complexion, somewhere between light tan and cocoa brown. Her eyes were light brown and she had short curly brunette hair.
She was slightly taller than average and she appeared to a bit healthier than the other kids. She was wearing a gray hoodie with baggy black pants. Because she was the first one Orbona invited, Raquel Flores, was the unofficial leader of the community. No one had challenged her for leadership. The younger kids looked up to her. The older ones admired her leadership skills.
The teenager locked eyes with the praetor, wondering what she had to say. She hoped it was good news. Her community could use some. "What is going on now? Do you need our help with whatever was causing the commotion earlier?"
There was a bit of edge in Reyna's voice as she informed the girl that the current situation didn't require their aid. "I just wanted to update you that we have the god Apollo visiting us. He's been made mortal, but he still deserves to be treated with respect. Do you understand?"
Raquel nodded, her eyes hardened. She knew that Reyna was holding something back. "Are you sure that's everything?"
"Everything relevant to you and the others. I need to get back to camp."
She turned to leave only for Raquel to snag her wrist. "Reyna, please let us help you. I can see that you're exhausted. We might not have been here for the battle, but we've seen the damage. You need us."
Reyna removed her wrist and reminded Raquel in a sharp tone that she was a civilian and not a soldier in the legion. "You will do as you're told until the Senate votes otherwise."
Watching the praetor storm back towards the camp left Raquel feeling frustrated. This was not what she had expected when she was told she could find a home here.
Raquel had been living on the streets of Colorado Springs for three years after her drug addicted mother had thrown her out of the house. Having no friends or relatives to take her in, the girl had been forced to survive on her own.
She had gone to CPS and had been briefly been in a foster home, but it hadn't worked out. Her foster parents had tried to re-home her after only a few weeks for some reason.
She suspected it had been because she was an African-Latino and all the other foster children had been Caucasian, like the foster parents. Knowing she wasn't wanted, Raquel had taken her chances on the streets.
Those three years had hardened her in many ways, but they had not taken away her loving heart. Nor had her dream of finding a home where she would be loved and safe.
The teenager recalled the day Orbona had found her. She had been foraging for food behind a grocery store. Lots of fruits and veggies were thrown away because they didn't look perfect. Some grocery stores would donate the damaged food to homeless shelters, but not this one.
She had found herself an apple and was about to take a bite when someone spoke. "Forging for food in a dumpster doesn't seem good for your health, child."
Whipping into a defensive position, the teenager had come face to face with a woman who seemed as out of place as she did.
The woman had been wearing a sky blue dress with golden embroidery. The style was reminiscent of what the ancient Greeks or Romans might have worn. Around her shoulders was a white shawl with golden stars scattered across it.
Her jewelry complemented her fair skin and eyes. Her luscious black hair almost reached the ground.
The lady took a few steps closer. "Child, if you're hungry, why not go home to eat?"
Raquel did not answer the question. There was something about the woman that made her uneasy.
The woman's eyes had switched from concern to sadness. "Do you have a home, child?"
"My name is Raquel, not child!" the teenager snapped. "I don't have to tell you anything."
"No, you don't, Raquel. Not if you don't want to. I'm just surprised to see someone your age forging for food."
Raquel snorted. "You're kidding me, right? Everyone in Colorado Springs has seen at least one homeless kid in their life."
"I'm afraid I'm not from around these parts. I came here on business."
"What business is that?"
"I work with children, finding them homes, with families who have lost their own."
Raquel raised her eyebrows. "You're a social worker? Shouldn't you be in an office somewhere matching kids to foster parents?"
The lady laughed lightly. "I'm not exactly a social worker, but my job is similar. Forgive my manners, I should introduce myself. My name is Orbona. I sense you've never heard that name before."
Raquel shook her head. She relaxed her body, no longer seeing the lady as a threat.
Seeing this, Orbona continued speaking. "What if I told you I could find you a safe place to live? A place where you can find not only a family but friends and a purpose. A chance to help others and learn to defend yourself."
"I've heard that offer before. What makes your offer any different?"
Orbona smiled brightly and plucked a letter out of a hidden pocket in her dress. "The place I'm describing has been around for centuries. The people living there have carried on the traditions of their ancestors for just as long.
"If you accept, you will become part of a hidden world. A world of wonder and danger. Your life will be changed forever and there will be no going back to who you were once before. Instead, you will become the person you were meant to be."
It was that last sentence that had convinced Raquel to accept Orbona's offer. A chance to discover who she could become instead of living as a street kid forever.
Shortly afterward, Orbona had teleported Raquel here. The goddess had been right. This hidden world was full of wonder and danger. Despite being frustrated by her present circumstances, this was the best decision she had made in her life.
I don't care what Reyna thinks. We're going to find a way to help Camp Jupiter and the people of New Rome, Raquel thought to herself. "Alright, everyone let's get something to eat, and then we're going to have a community meeting!"