Reyna really thought she was going to have a peaceful sleep. She thought that she would pass out in friendly conditions and wake up in the same if not better conditions. The first hope was shattered as she found herself in what looked to be an arcade. Reyna slowly looked around and stared at all of the people gathered around a machine.
All of them wore black shirts that had a strange symbol on the front of it. The symbol was a large, yellow dot that had a slice taken out of it. The slice of that dot faced other smaller but full dots. Most of them held a pizza in one hand and a red cup in the other.
A simultaneous groan escaped the group huddled around the machine. Reyna risked taking a step closer. The symbol on the machine was the same one as everyone had on their shirt. She slowly looked down at her watch. It was Saturday, and if her watch was actually correct, this was the sixth day of her so called vacation. That also meant she had been unconscious for maybe a day.
Reyna took a step backwards and felt herself bump into a table. She turned and slowly examined the table. There was a small plaque on the table that read two million and five hundred seventy points. Reyna blinked a few times and stared at the plaque. Plates of pizza and cans of Diet Coke littered the top of the table. Reyna slowly looked at the person sitting at the table.
"Oh no," the man said. He lowered his pizza, exposing his red nose and chubby face. His bloodshot eyes studied Reyna, and some sauce from his pizza fell onto his Hawaiian shirt. "What did Johnson burn down?"
"Bacchus," Reyna greeted. Normally, she would bow to the god or even drop to a knee. She was too tired, annoyed, hurt, and confused for that. Reyna grabbed onto a chair and collapsed into it. "I don't know who Johnson is, but why are you here?"
"It's the yearly Pac-Man tournament," Bacchus answered. He looked at the machine, and a smile came to his face. "These mortals think they can beat my score, but even if they do, I will just destroy it again."
"Pac-Man tournament," Reyna repeated. Somehow, the god of wine taking a break from Camp Half-Blood to play a game against mortals was the most normal part of her week. "Do you play in it every year?"
"My father won't allow me," Bacchus answered. He glared up at the sky. "I was only able to do it this year because Chiron put in a good word for me, and I have been bothering my father for the last two decades."
Reyna slowly looked back at the arcade machine. It almost sounded nice, to be spending time with mortals and not have to worry about being killed by blood thirsty monster. Bacchus spoke, "Praetor, why are you here, interrupting my vacation?"
"I don't know," Reyna admitted. She looked back at the Olympian. "Do you know a goddess named Brizo?"
Bacchus had been taking a sip of his Diet Coke, but upon hearing the name, he tensed. He seemed to swallow his drink and slowly sat it on the table. Bacchus spoke, "Yes. I know her well."
"Well, she's trying to destroy Camp Half-Blood," Reyna said. She studied Bacchus. While she had heard a few stories about him, she didn't really believe them. Bacchus had to be just like Terminus, dedicated to protecting his camp. "She has these Sirens that she helped create. They have all of the campers except for a few under their spell and they want to murder all of the Greeks."
Bacchus made a noise, like he didn't even care. Obviously, he was still trying to swallow down the rest of the soda. Reyna waited for him to declare that he was going to head right back to Camp Half-Blood to help or even just tell her how to free the Greeks.
Instead, Bacchus stared down at his shirt and flicked away some of the sauce that was there. He lazily looked at the arcade machine to make sure that no one was close to his score. Reyna spoke, "Do you have any ideas?"
"If you are not under their spell, you should leave. If you don't leave, try to clean up the bodies before I get back," Bacchus answered.
"What about the Greeks? They are your campers," Reyna said. Bacchus simply shrugged. Reyna just stared at him and tried to think of what to say. She finally shook her head and slowly stood. "Do you not care about the people that you are suppose to care for?"
"Do you?" Bacchus countered. Reyna could her eyes starting to narrow, and she tried to keep herself calm. "You have to be annoyed at them, don't you? All of them are just trying to get themselves killed constantly. They always look to you to solve your problems."
"That's the point of being a leader, isn't it?" Reyna asked. Bacchus studied her for a very long moment. "With how long you have been at Camp Half-Blood, I know you understand that."
"With how short of a life you have, you should understand that you don't need to make it any shorter by angering a god," Bacchus warned. Reyna looked away. She crossed her arms and tried to think. Why was she having this dream? She wanted to think of the Garden of Bacchus, not the stupid arcade the god was hanging out in.
"Brizo was once loved and revered. Then, Poseidon came and stole her worshipers. She became more involved in mortal affairs, hoping to find someone to cling to," Bacchus said. Was this the only information he would give? It was useless to Reyna.
"She already told me her sob story while she was trying to interrogate me," Reyna muttered. She looked down at the table. "Chiron is trapped underneath some kind of spell. Annabeth always said that you would love for all of the Greeks to disappear. I thought she was joking, but I think you'll get your wish."
"What brings us life will also bring us death," Bacchus warned. Reyna slowly looked up at him. The god stood and walked back towards the machine. "If you'll excuse me, a moral is getting close to my score."
"You have to help Camp Half-Blood. There is no way they can handle Brizo on their own," Reyna said. Bacchus didn't even look back at her. He simply snapped his fingers, and Reyna's world went dark. Her eyes snapped open, and she took deep, pained breaths.
Reyna immediately tried to sit up, but pain tore through her entire body. She collapsed back onto the ground. Her hand slowly moved to her shoulder, and she felt the sling on her shoulder. It felt like an actual sling, so someone must have paid a visit to the infirmary.
Upon seeing Rachel, Reyna relaxed. Then, she realized they weren't alone. Reyna turned her head and stared up at Brizo. The goddess grinned down at her, and Reyna tried to back away. There went her hope of waking up in a safe situation.
"Don't wake on my account," Brizo said. Reyna slowly looked around and found one of the Sirens and two Greeks standing near her. One of them, of course, was Clarisse. Reyna didn't recognize the other one, but before she could even think, Clarisse grabbed her by the sling and pulled her to her feet.
Reyna yelled in pain and felt her knees go weak. She was completely exhausted, despite however much sleep she had gotten. Brizo walked towards Reyna and grabbed her face. The goddess spoke, "Did you really think that you were that smart?"
"Yes?" Reyna asked after a moment. The back of Brizo's hand slammed into Reyna's mouth, and the force of it would have knocked Reyna to the ground. Thanks to Clarisse's grip, she stayed on her feet. "I don't even know what you're talking about."
"You tried to trick me," Brizo snapped. She grabbed Reyna's jaw tightly. "You told me that the bunker would have the others there, but there was nothing. No one was in the bunker."
"Were you checking Bunker 8 or 10?" Reyna asked. She wasn't quite sure what happened next. Reyna just knew that she had been standing on her feet one moment and was flat on her back the next. Her jaw ached in pain, and it also felt like Brizo had decided to punt her brain across the camp.
"Leave her alone," Rachel said. She was being held back by the Siren and unnamed Greek. An evil grin came to Brizo's face. She walked towards Rachel and grabbed her arm. "I'm not going to do anything that you want."
"You will," Brizo said. She moved her other hand to Rachel's face. "You are going to pledge your loyalty to me, or I break the rest of your friend's bones."
Reyna tried to tell Rachel not to listen to the goddess, but her words came out in a slur. She tried to sit up, but Clarisse kept her pinned with a well placed boot right to the collarbone. Reyna let out a strangled cry of pain and laid her head back.
After a few moments, Rachel looked down. She spoke, "I'll do what you want, as long as you don't hurt her. How did you find us?"
"You have the audacity to hide in my base. I was always going to find you," Brizo snapped. She grinned. "You are going to my altar and will pledge your loyalty to me. Then, you are going to fill the box for my Sirens. Am I understood?"
"I understand," Rachel began. She seemed to be looking for a way out, but there really wasn't one. Reyna was in no shape to defend herself, but she was going to fight back. Her hand slowly reached towards her boot, and she grabbed the small knife that was hidden inside.
Reyna threw her knife right at Brizo. It grazed the goddess' face, and golden ichor trickled from the wound. A single drop of the blood of the gods hit the ground. Brizo placed a hand to her face. A murderous look came to her eyes, and she walked towards Reyna.
Maybe, that wasn't Reyna's best idea. She tried to move backwards, but there was nothing she could do with the foot still pressed firmly into her injured shoulder. Brizo grabbed Reyna by her shirt once again and pulled her to her feet. She slammed Reyna directly into the wall.
A yell of pain escaped Reyna, and she laid her head back. She stared at Brizo and felt the goddess grab her face once again. Brizo whispered, "I am going to kill you. Do you understand that? Your usefulness has ran out."
"Wait," Reyna said. She laid her head back. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the Siren walk towards them. "There is one thing that I can offer you."
"What would that be?" Brizo asked coldly. Reyna used her good hand to punch Brizo right across the face. The cut on Brizo's face opened more, and her blood hit the Siren. The Siren suddenly yelped in pain and jumped backwards. Reyna stared as she saw that a small piece of the Siren's skin was burning.
"Your blood burns them," Reyna realized. Two hands wrapped around her neck a moment later, and she gasped. She hit at Brizo's hands and found herself unable to breath. Reyna kicked at the goddess and tried to desperately fight her way out of her situation.
"You can't kill Reyna!" Rachel protested. She tried to pull away from the Greek that held onto her but couldn't. Reyna wanted to nodded her agreement. She very much liked being alive and not having the life choked out of her. "She's cursed!"
Reyna's eyes shot towards Rachel? Cursed? What was that suppose to mean? Reyna couldn't focus on the words. She was busy trying to keep herself alive, but there was nothing she could do. The world was darkening, and this was going to be the end.
"I don't believe in curses," Brizo said, and even though it seemed impossible, she tightened her grip.
"There's a prophecy. Whoever kills her will incur the wrath of an Olympian," Rachel said. "And, it will curse our camp and kill everyone here. Please do not kill her. I will show you the prophecy."
Brizo let go of Reyna. The only thing Reyna could do was collapse and cough miserably. Every cough sent terrible pain through her body, and she tried to breath properly. A foot to the gut drove the air right back out of her. Reyna collapsed on her back and choked on nothing.
"Trust me. We have been trying to get rid of Reyna for decades now," Rachel said. Reyna tried to raise her head and glare at the Oracle. What in Bellona's name was Rachel even talking about? "She is a cursed Roman, defeated in battle by the Spartans and forced into servitude for Camp Half-Blood, under Ares' command. He has promised to curse anyone who kills her."
Brizo stared down at Reyna and let out a sigh. Reyna slowly turned on her side and let out pained wheezes. Her eyes were watering, and it still hurt to breath. Just existing hurt. She hated everyone. Every single Senator that had sent her to Camp Half-Blood and the Greek who suggested it could all rot in Tartarus for all she cared.
"No wonder you have such disrespect," Brizo commented, and she spat down at Reyna. Her gaze moved to Rachel. "You are coming with me. You, the ugly one, watch the servant. Don't let her leave you sight."
Clarisse nodded and stood by the door. The other Greek and the Siren dragged Rachel out of the room. Brizo followed behind them, but she did spare another glance back at Reyna. The only thing Reyna could do was stare at the goddess and watch her go. The door slammed shut behind her with a deafening slam.
"Clarisse, did they free you?" Reyna whispered. Clarisse just stared at her. Her eyes were still green and had no emotion in them. Reyna laid her head back. "Oh, that's great. In that case, I'm going to lay here and curse my life. Then, I'm going to have to hurt you and break out of here. Any problems with that?"
When Clarisse didn't respond, Reyna gave her a thumbs up, followed by a middle finger. She curled up on her side and rested her head on the ground. Reyna had some sort of concussion, not to mention the fact that her collarbone felt completely destroyed. Life just really sucked.
Reyna would take five minutes to dwell on her life. Then, she would get back to business, but could she really do anything in her injured state? Reyna stared up at the ceiling. She had to assume that the Greeks made it out of Bunker 9 but were unable to help her. Reyna was on her own.
Reyna needed to get away from Clarisse and free Chiron. The only question was how she was going to do that, but she still had four and a half minutes to hate her life. She was definitely going to use up all of that time. Reyna let out a deep breath and closed her eyes. She sent up a silent prayer that everything would work out.