XVI. The Sea of Monsters
The three Lestrange and Crouch Junior were far better escaped convicts than Padfoot had been, Adra mused.
While the ministry had tried to sent dementors to Hogwarts – then hadn't even been able to approach the improved wards that now even stretched over Hogsmead.
The minister had been sputtering in unjustified righteous anger – but Dumbledore had been rather quick to point out that forcing the school to lower it's wards had never been done in History – and would create quite a precedent. For once all of the dark, grey and light aligned political parties had unanimously agreed to let the matter drop, not wanting to but the school where most of the children in the country studied at risk.
There were rumors of sighting left and right – but Adra knew well-enough that many people called to claim that they'd seen the fugitive even when it wasn't the case, only to garner a bit of attention.
By the end of November, she'd gotten a surprise visit from Apollo while they were all finishing a study session in the library.
Fortunately, she'd felt the build in godly energy in time to warn the mortal around to close their eyes – the next moment a tall, sunny blond with golden skin and golden eyes was shaking her, big dramatic tears in her eyes "Why are you trying to corrupt my little sister, Shadow? Was I bad? Did I not care about my half-bloods children enough? Are my prophecies not good enough? Is it because there's not enough sun in Scotland?"
Stunned silence echoed, while Adra managed to force the sun god to let her go, and made him sit beside her "What is going on, Apollo?"
"It's Arty! She's… She's… She's playing around with Dionysus and she told me you were the one who told her to do so!" the god loudly wailed
Adra sighed, and had to restrain her laugh. She'd heard how bad the male twin could be about his elder sister, but it was the first time she witnessed a full crisis. She noticed that Sirius and Leifr were silently handing out pop-corn to their friends and rolled her eyes.
As for Aketh – his first encounter with a god from the currently most powerful pantheon in activity wasn't quite all that he'd been expecting…
"They are not playing around," Adra patiently corrected "they're working on a way to heal the Wild."
The loud sobs stopped.
"Oh." a beat "But then how come she's so friendly with him? Arty doesn't like men!"
"Arty doesn't like trashy men." Adra corrected "Which is quite natural given how many of her hunters are girl she rescued from bad situations."
"But… I'm not trashy…" Apollo pouted-protested "And she always throws me out of her camp…"
"From what she told me, you always flirt with her hunters, despite the fact they don't like it. You are trashy in her eyes."
Big eyes full of tears, as soulful as those of a puppy turned toward her "Are you saying I'm worse than Dionysus? The god of ecstasy?" he protested
"Well, Dionysus is the god of ecstasy for man and women, he's pretty respectful." Adra had to point out "You'll notice he also has far less half-bloods than you."
"I don't want my little sister to like another man! It ended badly last time!"
"Don't you think Artemis is old enough to know what she wants?"
"She's my little sister!"
"She's your older sister. And she's just friend with Dionysus, it's rather normal given that they share part of the same domain. Stop worrying about it. What do you think Artemis will do to you if she thinks you don't trust her enough to take care of herself?"
The hale skin of the sun god paled at the idea – and he seemed to forcefully rein himself in.
"Healing the Wild, uh?" he mused "May be I should talk about it with other gods of the Wild…"
"That's the problem, with Pan gone they're a bit stuck."
"Well, we aren't the only pantheon around, all of the Wild gods can't have faded, right?"
"Well since I met Cernunos a few weeks ago in when Leifr introduced his latest Spicy Fireale in the Sidh, clearly not…"
"Spicy Fireale?" Apollo's eyes lit up "Wait, not the moment… Then maybe I should talk to them, so that my beloved sister isn't stuck with that lout."
"I'm pretty sure Neith is hiding somewhere in the desert." Sirius pointed out
"Great! Thanks! See you!"
The god disappeared.
"So that was Penny's dad?" Hermione mused "Thank the gods she only inherited his looks..."
"We're not telling him that most Wild gods are tied to sexuality one way or another, right?" checked Leifr with a wicked smile, eyes burning in amusement
"By the time he realizes, it will be far too late." Adra laughed "Besides, it's not wrong in that seeking the help of the other pantheons could be the solution to Artemis and Dionysus' problem."
"So, what's the Wild? And why does it need healing?" Lucian wondered
The god-born started to answer, and the group had soon forgotten all about Apollo's visit.
¤.¤.¤
It had nearly been Yule, and they were at the clan now rather sprawling compound when Artemis had visited.
"So I've heard my brother came crying to you?"
"I've got a Pensieve if you want to see the memory?" Adra suggested
The silver-eyed goddess looked sorely tempted, but finally answered "No thanks. You managed to give him a good idea but… I may need your help."
"Oh?"
"Seeking other gods of the Wild is a good idea but what brother hasn't yet realized is that I'm rather unique as a virgin goddess. Most of the other gods of the Wild that haven't faded yet are male and libidinous." Artemis rolled her eyes "And I'm honestly far too susceptible to pummel them, which isn't quite the best way to start a conversation."
"You would be surprised." Adra sighed "still, I see what you mean."
"And you are able to handle Dionysus quite well."
"Well he is part of my Domain… As would be any other Wild deity." Adra realized "You want me to talk to them?"
"To open the talk at least." Artemis explained, looking rather uncomfortable with having to ask anyone for help "Just long enough for everyone to realize I just want us to work on something that would help all of us, despite our differences."
"Well gods of Death do have their own reunion," the incarnated goddess mused, earning a surprised look from the Greek goddess "so why not a reunion of the Wild?"
Adra wasn't quite tied to the Wild like she was to Chaos or Death since it only partially relied on her Domains – as such, the two goddesses agreed on looking for the other deities together.
Artemis would track them, as some may still be alive despite having lost most of their pantheon; and Adra would do the talking.
They hadn't yet started, when Odin had made his presence known – while they'd known he was here, since he was visiting with Sleipnir, they hadn't thought he was quite interested in their talk.
"If I may intervene?"
"Please do so." Artemis graciously accepted – while he wasn't her king, he was still a king of gods after all
"I'm the one tied the strongest to the Wild among the Aesir." he informed them "Freya would be the one you're looking for among the Vanir."
Adra's eyes widened in surprised – the only overlapping she'd felt between her Domains and the king of the Norse gods was a minor affinity to Death…
"The Wild is Life and Chaos." he stated, making the two nod "But it's also Death and Magic."
Adra's eyes widened at the affirmation, as the world around them seemed to hum in a different tone, as if simply by naming it, the Wild had came alive for a moment in the area – proving quite easily his affirmation that he was strongly affiliated with it.
"You want to heal the Wild right?"
Artemis elegantly inclined her head, the gesture strangely mature on her child's body.
"There can be no life without death in the Wild." she nodded – she knew as much after all, she was a huntress
"In past days, I used to cull the monster to prevent them from destroying too much of Nature." Odin mused, lone eyes looking far beyond them "I would rid, and those tied to the Wild would answer. In the days, there were many of them – but with time, my hunting spirits died, the minor gods and goddesses faded… And there weren't enough people left to hunt with Then, the Mist was raised, and the Monsters were hidden away." his brow wrinkled "Naturally, without a predator, civilization grew rampant and quickly started to encroach over the Wild." a shrug but by then, our time was long since over…"
"The Wild Hunt." Adra realized, eyes wide, wondering how she hadn't seen it before
Wixen still talked about it – about madness and chaos, but also about balance, about joining the hunting procession and culling the monsters – be they creature or humans.
How about each hunt, nature would rejoice, for justice had been met and balance restored – the harvest were always more bountiful after the hunt, and the forest greener and full of game…
"This is what we need to do." she realized "A worldwide Wild Hunt."
Her mind was racing – to think about the consequences about such a large scale event – but at the same time…
It should – no it would work.
Many would die – monsters, yes, but sometimes clad in human skin…
But many more would benefit.
[New Life Quest! The Call of the Wild
Goal Complete: you've find a way to help the Wild
Reward: +10XP, Call of the Wild perk unlocked]
[New Perk unlocked
Call of the Wild (1 PP): unlocks Sensing the Wild skill
Available: 16PP]
"We really have to gather the other gods." Artemis concluded, having realized the same thing as her, thought she didn't have the background knowledge of wixen tales
"I'll open Asgard to all." Odin promised, startling the two of them – this was a rather open-ended invitation, something that rarely happened between pantheons no matter how quickly things were changing
Seeing their surprised looks, he nodded toward Artemis "It's like you said. A few of us may butt heads but in the end… It's something for all of us. And I doubt any of us is in any hurry to fade."
[Life Quest Updated! The Call of the Wild
Goal Complete: you've find a meeting place
Reward: +10XP, Call of the Hunt perk unlocked
Goal Update: gather as many deities of the Wild as possible]
[New Perk unlocked
Call of the Hunt(2 PP): +10 to Hunting
Available: 16PP]
Odin had left them after promising to talk to Cernunos and Áine – and Adra and Artemis had started to hunt.
The Potter Heiress, who'd immediately unlocked the Call of the Wild perk, thinking it would came in handy in this situation, was seeing her skill grow quite quickly – but it was about the only positive point of their trip.
¤.¤.¤
As days blended into weeks, and she met on weekend after weekend with the Greek goddess, they were coming to a rather dire realization.
The Wild had weakened so much – that only most powerful or well remembered deities tied to it had managed to avoid fading with it.
Adra knew that during the week, while was at Hogwarts – Carter was taking the map where they'd pined all the emplacement of nearly completely faded deities not even strong enough to talk or manifest, and was going to each of them, trying to urge Nature to work a bit overtime around them.
It was a drop in the desert for those gods whose name they hadn't always been able to learn – but the god tied to Life couldn't help himself…
Julius and Ruby were worried for their son – and it was Pyxis that had explained how difficult it could be sometime as a god to go against your own nature – and Carter, who was so close to Life, just had to try and help, even a little.
It had taken weeks for the clan to manage to convince him to slow down – by then, the news of a precocious spring all around the world was on TV, and Carter had well and truly realized that right now, his own domain wasn't enough to regenerate the planet's life-force.
But with so few Wild deities still present – would they even be enough to manage a hunt?
"We'll need the First Circle deities tied to the Wild to give us a power-boost." Adra had agreed
"Well, between your brother and the two of us, we're three for four." Carter pointed out, smiling for the first time in weeks
Of course that didn't meant that all the problems concerning the hunt were over, far from it – after all, to call the powers of a First Circle deity down on a Mortal Realm wasn't something easy; there was a reason why the binding of their soul was so painful when the incarnated themselves in a new mortal body.
Usually, Adra would have volunteered herself – but there was no way she'd survive channeling both Chaos and Magic strongly enough to power up a world-wide hunt.
For the same reason, Pyxis and Carter were out too.
"You're forgetting something, hime-chan." Luna sing-songed, as she skipped toward the two of them
"What is it?"
"How did you know about the hunt?"
"I'm pretty sure any wixen-raised child has heard it."
"There you have it!"
The two Old One shared a glance, eyes widened at the same time
"Not one person…"
"But a whole population!"
"But how to make them do it… We can't just ask, can we?"
"You, as in Carter Kane and Adrasteia Potter can't." Luna agreed easily "But Light and Shadow?"
¤.¤.¤
While Adra was helping Artemis, Nico, Thalia, Luke and even Bianca had decided to drop by Camp Half-Blood – even thought they didn't usually spent the winter holidays there.
They'd drop by Percy's place first – and had been rather surprise to realize that the son of Poseidon had gained a sibling… If not quite like he'd expected. Tyson had been homeless in New York when the boy had stumbled upon him – wary had first, he'd soon realized that the cyclop wasn't hostile – and bore many scars.
Feeling bad for the surprisingly gentle monster, the ten year old boy had shared his lunch with him – and called his father. Dewin had quickly realized that the cyclop, no matter how tall he appeared, was still a child, and had explained that there were quite a few monsters like him, born from one-night-stand between spirits, or between spirits and gods, and all but thrown away by their parents.
Somehow – over the following weeks, the Lewis-Jackson family had gained a new member… Then Poseidon had dropped by for a visit, and been rather stunned to find not one, but two of his children.
Needless to say Percy had been quite disappointed in his godly parent – until the Geek deity had explained he hadn't even known about him, otherwise he would have helped. He then explained that had he'd known about him, he'd sent help – and guided the boy toward Atlantis, where there was a camp for his spirit children as just like for the human half-born, he couldn't take the boy there himself.
Poseidon had also explained that while he was quite thankful to the family to have taken in Tyson – it would still be good for him to attend the camp, as it was the best place for him to have a good education. Of course – while the journey was a bit more hectic than simply riding to Half-Blood Camp, they'd still be able to communicate by Iris message, and see him over the holidays.
Sally, Dewin and Percy – had immediately decided to make a family trip of it.
"Wait… You're going on holiday through the Sea of Monsters?" Nico realized
"Hey! Don't sound so judgmental," Percy protested "I mean you regularly spent your holidays in hell!"
"That's not the… Oh. Wait, actually it does make some sense if you says it like that." the son of Hades mused
The Sea of Monster – was a nightmare for heroes, the sea all heroes had to sail through during their quests… And apparently, the way to Camp Fish Blood for first-timers, officially making it the most dangerous rite of passage even ahead of Lupa's training and the following journey toward Camp Jupiter of the Roman
Going there for a family vacation did sound dumb – but while she didn't know who was her godly parent, Sally had some rather strong ties with water, Dewin as son of Hecate was a very powerful wizard, Percy was the strongest son of Poseidon born in quite a while and Tyson was a cyclop – enough said.
Maybe this did qualify as a holiday for them…
"Do you have a boat then?" Luke wondered, having come to terms with the situation more quickly
"Oh yes!" Percy enthousiastically agreed "There's a magical shipyard in New Haven and dad did some work for them a couple of decades ago, so when we told them we wanted a ship, they give us priority over most of their orders." his eyes lit up "They made us a beauty of a trireme, and since she's enchanted by dad, she's state of the art!"
Luke, Thalia, Nico and Bianca had spent the night at the Lewis-Jackson's home in the magical district – and the next day, they'd split up, the four half-bloods from the clan heading toward Camp Half-Blood, while the Lewis-Jackson family were heading toward the shipyard, where their trireme was ready for her baptism and her maiden voyage.
While still a bit dubious about the strange vacation – they weren't too worried for the family, knowing that between Percy's training, and Dewis' nearly two hundred years of survival as a half-blood, the trip may be dangerous, but they seriously doubted they wouldn't manage.
Beside – since it wasn't really a quest, if worse came to worse, Percy could always ask Adra for help...
¤.¤.¤
Stepping out of the magical district, the quartet was expecting a quiet, if boring bus trip – instead, they were met with screams – and passer-by to reacting to them in the typical way of people affected by the Mist.
Sharing a worried glance, they hurried in the direction from which the young, female voice was coming.
"Stop fighting! We've been told to bring you to our lord alive, but it doesn't mean we can't remove a bit or two!"
"Get away from me!" a red-head girl, that couldn't be older that ten, was screaming
Clearly she was terrified – yet somehow she was still standing her ground.
Cornering her were seven tall women, with fiery hair, red glowing eyes and donkey legs – one fleshy, the other looking like celestial bronze.
"The fuck do empousai want with a little girl?" Luke couldn't help but wonder – they were well known for only drinking the blood of men as their sustenance
"That's not the most important thing right now!" Thalia pointed out, jumping in the fray, aegis on her left arm, a spear sparkling with lightning in her right hand
Luke nodded – and followed suite, while Bianca was tagging along with Nico, who'd slipped in the shadow to come back out between the young girl and her assailants.
While jumping toward the nearest empousa, Nico was whistling for Ki Du – the grim eagerly joining in the fight.
"Don't be like this boys, I'm sure we can have a good time!" one of the monsters called out – both Luke and Nico feeling the honeyed words trying to take them over
"I fucking hate Charm-speak!" Luke protested, the mental strength he'd earned thanks to resisting successfully to Kronos helping him instantaneously snap out of it, Nico but a second behind him
The seven empousai were quite agile, meaning that the fight wasn't that easy – especially that the half-bloods were also trying to protect the little girl they seemed so intent to catch…
But finally, they started to fall one by one.
The first dodged Bianca's rapier right into Nico's own sword; then another got too daring while trying to catch the red-head girl and was skewered by Thalia, and soon enough, there were only four half-bloods and a little girl half-hiding behind Ki Du in the small alley, golden dust floating around them.
[New Secondary Quest! Golden Girl...
Goal Complete: Rescue Rachel Dare
Reward: +5XP
Bonus Goal Complete: defeat the Empousai (7/7)
Bonus Reward: 7*10XP, +1 PP
[Hunt Complete: Empousai (LV40)!
Reward: +10XP, unlocksEmpousai's Fangs,Empousai's Tongue andEmpousai's VoicePerks]
[New Perk unlocked
Empousai's Fangs (1PP): +5 to Blood
Empousai's Tongue (2PP): +5 to Seduction and Persuasion
Empousai's Voice (10PP): grant the ability to charmspeak
Available: 16PP (Bianca: 9PP / Nico: 14 PP / Thalia: 21 PP / Luke: 7 PP)]
"Thank you." the girl finally managed to say, before she finally took a proper look at them and opened her eyes in shock "I… I know you!"
She started to fumble, finally managing to open her school bag and getting a drawing pad out of it under the intrigued glances of the four half-bloods – curiosity soon replaced by stunned surprise as they realized that indeed, the girl did know them.
Page after page of the notebook were filled with drawing – and with a talent they wouldn't expect from someone so young, Rachel had been drawing scenes which all of them recognized…
¤.¤.¤
There was Alabaster least the great temple, Thalia getting claimed after her first quest, Luke eating with the rest of table eleven at Camp Half-Blood, and so on!
"I'm not going mad!" the girl realize, bursting in tears as tension seemed to leave her body "You really do exist out of my dreams!"
"I think," Luke said as Bianca hugged the crying girl and tried to console her "That we need to take her to Camp."
The other three agreed – while demigods did have prophetic dreams, there weren't often as clear and detailed as this girl's seemed to be.
"I think this is where I need to go." the little girl agreed, eyes seemingly to momentarily glow ethereally
Luke's eyes widen, feeling something far too familiar at the way the next moment, she was looking a bit lost, as if not quite remembering what she'd just said.
"She's not a half-blood." he realized
"She saw the monsters!"
"A clear-sighted mortal then." Bianca pointed out "I mean we're not too far out of the wixen district, and they can all see throught the Mist, so it's not that improbable."
"She doesn't look like a witch." Nico contradicted
"Not a witch, no." Luke agreed "She's like my mother." this affirmation stunned the other three into silence "An oracle."
[Secondary Quest updated! Golden Girl...
Bonus Goal Complete: identify Rachel's powers
Bonus Reward: +10XP, +1PP]
It was only recently that Luke had realized what had happened to his mother – once Zeus had finally relented and let the Greek god meet with their children, Apollo had visited him when he was at the New York wixen hospital permanent ward where his mother resided.
While May Castellan was far better than she had been, she still had relapses from time to time that meant it was better for her to stay there – but sometimes, on the good days, Luke could take her out and go for a walk in the city, or even get lunch somewhere…
(flashback begin)
That day – hadn't been one of the good days.
"I'm sorry." Apollo said, startling the half-blood that had been watching his mother twist and turn in an agitated sleep "The vision drove her mad because of the curse, it's not like this usually..."
The god of prophecy had explained – about the Great Prophecy, and how it had led Zeus to kill Hades' lover.
How the oracle of Delphi had then angered the god by telling the god it was his own fault for being late since she'd warned him…
"But… prophecies are notoriously nebulous, aren't they?" Luke had interrupted in surprise
"They are." Apollo agreed "They only become clear once they've been accomplished most of the time, only given a hint here and there… Freewill had to be preserved after all."
Luke still couldn't understand how the oracle could have told something – not only to a grieving man – but to a god. Did she have no preservation instinct?
"She'd grown arrogant in her own power." Apollo answered his unasked question "Even Hades isn't allowed to kill the clear-sighed mortals that have taken on the role of my oracles."
"There are worst things than death." Luke whispered, eyeing his tormented mother
"There are. Since he couldn't kill her, Hades refused death to my oracle. Her body has withered, but her soul is still trapped, and with it the power of the oracle of Delphi."
"Was my mother supposed to be the next oracle then?" Luke wondered, putting facts together
"She could have." Apollo agreed "And despite knowing about the curse, she tried."
"And the curse extended to her." Luke realized
"There curse was lifted when the tapestry was rewoven," Apollo explained "thought the oracle is still stuck in the Mortal Realm as long as someone don't the burden over from her like your mother tried to do… And without the curse, it'll free her this time." a sigh "Though I doubt she'll have a happy after-life. My uncle does know how to hold grudges."
"But it's too late for my mother." Luke whispered – all the healers had told him as much after all, so he'd had years to get used to it
He bowed toward the blond god "Thank you. Thank you, for finally letting me know why she's like that."
(flashback end)
Luke had told the clan about the god's visit – and explanation – later that day, when he'd headed back home. That evening had been filled with group hugs, hot chocolate, and light-hearted stories to help the grieving boy come to terms with reality once more.
Ever since – he had found himself rather curious about Apollo's oracle.
¤.¤.¤
Chiron, who was always one to encourage learning, had been able to answer his question the next time he'd headed to Camp, explaining that while the god of prophecies always had several oracle around the Greek territory, the oracle of Delphi had been the one staying with the heroes since the West had still been in Greece.
He'd explained that usually, Apollo was rather kind with his oracle, because their life wasn't easy – only a clear-sighed mortal could inherit the position, but their power of prophecy was stronger than any of Apollo's own half-blood, making it all but impossible to control. Not to mention that oracle were quite prized, as no matter how nebulous their prophecies and visions were, they were still quite helpful most of the time.
It was maybe because of this kindness – than the last oracle of Delphi had been so arrogant, mistaking it for her own power…
And ending up cursed for it.
Truth be told – Luke had very little pity for the cursed girl whom brought it on himself in his mind. He was only sorry that the curse had also extended to his mother – but still didn't resent Hades… May had known about the curse after all, when she'd tried to take the burden of the oracle over.
The four had soon arrived to Camp Half-Blood.
Little Rachel, who'd been explained about half-bloods and gods along the way, and was quite happy to finally have answers – and words to put on her vision – was instantly attracted by the Great House attic.
Where all that had ever been given a quest at Camp knew the terrifying mummy actually possessing the oracle of Delphi.
"It's a rather unusual situation." Chiron was soon saying "I haven't seen such a powerful gift in centuries… But usually the new oracle only come to take over the burden when they are much older."
"I know she's in a hurry to leave." Rachel said
"I doesn't mean you should have to sacrifice your childhood for her." Dionysus was the one to comment – openly ignoring the stunned glance he was earning
He was known for disliking half-bloods, not mortals after all! Especially a child that was burdened by something she shouldn't be shouldering!
The words seemed to hit home, and the young red- head's voice caught in her throat.
"Then what do I do?" she couldn't help but ask "I can't stop seeing things! I don't want to enjoy my childhood if it means putting all of those people in danger!"
"Then you do both." a warm voice said
While all except Dionysus were bowing at the new arrival, Rachel stepped up and went to him, watching him intently.
"You're Apollo."
It wasn't a question.
"I am."
"Aren't your oracles supposed to be like lonely virgin hermits?"
¤.¤.¤
"That was a long time ago." Apollo answered, ignoring the snorts at the 'lonely virgin hermit' comment "The oracles were powerful woman, and back then the mortals didn't know how to handle them."
"So I don't have to be alone?"
"You don't." Apollo agreed "The previous oracle all lived their life beyond the camp, even if they always came back to it." Chiron was nodding alone "Beside if they really needed to be celibate, quite a few of them would never have been able to take the role." he laughed
The centaur looked scandalized – but Luke couldn't help but agree.
His mother had been a candidate for the role after all, and since he'd already born by then – she clearly couldn't have been celibate!
"Can I really do both?"
There was some untold softness to the god's smile, proving once more to Luke that he really did favor his oracle – even the one that weren't yet "Of course you can."
Little Red really was quite witty and courageous for her age – especially given that contrarily to Percy or the other half-bloods her age he knew, she didn't have the advantage of the better body and powers the child of the god benefited from.
Yet she still went up into the gloomy attic where boht Luke and Thalia remembered the terrifying dessicated corpse of the mummy that hosted the oracle – and came back brimming with a new yet age-old aura of power.
[Secondary Quest Complete! Golden Girl...
Goal Complete: Rachel Dare has taken over the role of Pythia
Reward: +5XP
Bonus Goal Complete: the new Pythia won't have to sacrifice her normal life
Bonus Reward: +10XP, New York City Girl perk unlocked]
[New Perk unlocked
New York City Girl (2PP): +10 to City-Life Survival
Available: 16PP (Bianca: 9PP / Nico: 15 PP / Thalia: 22 PP / Luke: 8 PP)]
Chiron took Rachel back to her home a few hours later. With some help from the Mist, the Dare couple had been convinced that Camp Half-Blood was an elite camp for gifted children – which it was, in a way, and her parents had been convinced to drop her there for week-end and holidays. She came back to camp with a bag of clothes and necessities – and was soon taking over the attic for her own, somehow managing to commandeer some of the hal-bloods to help her air out the room and move out the old furniture...
¤.¤.¤
Soon, it was time for the new oracle's first dinner at Camp Half-Blood – and one thing was quickly apparent to the four half-bloods as they headed to their respective table…
There were missing people.
"They've gone to the other side haven't they?" Luke realized with a heavy sigh
"We've all been having dreams." Connor, another son of Hermes, admitted "Promises of revenge over the gods, of being truly appreciated and respected…"
"Honestly most of us realize it's a pile of dung." Travis, his older brother, took over "But for some…"
"Some still haven't been claimed." Lou Ellen, a daughter of Hecate, explained "And others feel the Olympians don't give enough respect to their parents." she shrugged "Honestly even I can see where they come from."
The dark-haired and green eyed demigoddess gestured to the table of cabin eleven, that even off-season was quite full.
"While I am grateful to your father to host us all in his cabin and at his table…" she eyed the empty table of Hera's cabin, Thalia eating alone at table one
, the twin Castor and Pollux all by themselves at Dionysus' table "Why the fuck don't we have more cabin? More table? Why can some gods get away with forgetting about us like dead-beat parents?"
Nobody could really refute what she was saying.
"Of course, things have gotten better." the girl admitted "But while I personally finds it great and hope it only continues to improve… Some have given up on the gods."
"And they think the Crooked One will give them a better life?" Nico couldn't help but protest "They could have asked me! I was there when he rose! This… this thing is monstrous, and terrifying, and even before they improved, I'd much rather have thrown my lot with the Olympians than him…" he proclaimed heatedly – something rare enough that people were taking notice, that he realized as he wasn't quite done with his rant
"Even when the satyrs and the children of harvest and spring because of my father despite not yet knowing he was the Silent One, it still was better than that being of madness!" at that, quite a few of the nature spirits had half-bloods wince, remembering the talk they'd had with both Persephone herself and Dionysus
Once they'd been forced to look past their instinctive reaction of distrust toward the child that emanated the feeling of death, quite a few had felt quite ashamed of themselves – as they'd soon realized that in the end, Nico was just another half-blood, though one born with powers opposed to their own.
"You're preaching a believer." Lou Ellen pointed out with an amused laugh "But honestly… Some of them are too far gone in their hatred and bitterness to see reason."
"But still…" Nico protested, now calmer "They're our comrade. We've learned, and laughed, and trained beside them. And now they've just… Gone to the enemy? Going to fight against us because we don't want to oppose our parents and actually do believe in them?"
The tables were rather gloomy – as quite clearly, no one liked the option any better than him…
"We won't have any choice, if they persist in aiding the Crooked One." Thalia pointed out from her table "As much as I don't want to fight against Ethan, Anna or Jamie," she said, naming a few of the year rounder that had disappeared from Hermes' table "I don't want to see a world ruled by dear old grand-pa." a wink "Besides, they don't know we've got a hidden weapon on our side!"
At the uncomprehending whispers around the camp, Thalia grandly announced "Do you know how many half-bloods there are in Adra's family?" she let a few moments go by, letting the tension rise "Four! Six counting her fiancé's family!"
The grandiloquent announce made the children laugh – finally lightening up the gloomy atmosphere.
Of course – Thalia hadn't made the announce without talking about it with the clan before… And the gods leaving as half-bloods in the family had all agreed that when war came, they wouldn't be standing by. While they couldn't use their true might as gods, as it would be both too much godly interference and an insult to the local pantheon – they'd cleared with Zeus the fact that they could fight by the god-born's side, as long as they used an incarnate body and didn't go over it's mortal limits.
Thalia, just like Luke, Nico and the other half-bloods in the family, had spared enough times with Adra or Sirius to know that even restricted by a mortal body, an incarnated god made for a powerful half-blood.
It wouldn't be enough to change the course of the war – but it could help win a fight, or more importantly, save a few life.
¤.¤.¤
The next morning started far to early.
The cleaning harpies were screeching loudly enough to awaken the whole camp, and there were sounds of struggle.
"Camper out of bed! Dinner for harpies!"
"Thief! Thief in the camp!" another voice was claiming one it took Luke but a second to recognize
That was Groover, a kind, albeit a bit clumsy satyr he'd befriended when he'd started to attend camp – right now, he was sounding scared out of his mind.
"Will you shut up!" he heard a voice shout-whiper as he jumped out of bed, most half-bloods around him doing the same
"It's too late, give it up! We really should be doing this, you heard Nico!" another voice added urgently
"Bah, what would a son of Dead Corpse know?! He's got daddy waiting for him underground!"
"Do you really think the Crooked One will keep his promises?" the doubtful voice protested
"It's too late for second thoughts!""
There was a teenager aggressively pointing his sword at Groover – the other trying to calm him down. The first, Luke recognized as Adrian Nevez, a rather brash unclaimed demigod – the other, he was rather surprised to note, was Chris Rodriguez, a recently claimed son of Hermes.
"It's not!" Luke protested – it was quite clear Chris was rethinking his position by the minute, Nico's heated speech during dinner having probably helped. The other son of Hermes' eyes widened in relief, and he started to take a step away from Adrian.
Around them, most of the camp was awake and out of bed by now, Chiron having arrived and hastily ordered the grumbling harpies aways, while the campers were ready to jump into the fray, cries of "Traitor!" echoing around.
Finally realizing he wasn't in a winning position, Adrian gave up trying to push the satyr out of the way of the tree where the golden fleece had been hanged and enhanced the protection of the camp and general health of all living things in camp – and instead started to run away, dragging a struggling Chris away with him.
"The fuck." Clarisse La Rue, daughter of Ares, protested "He wants to be an asshole and defect, alright… But dragging someone who's less dumb than him and realized which camp was the right one! No way!" she turned toward Chiron "Give me a quest." she all but demanded "I'm going after them."
Thalia and Luke stepped forward with her, silently given her their support.
Chiron was looking conflicted – both wanting too to go after the camper that had been kidnapped right under their eyes, yet a bit reluctant to sent the trio right to the wolves. He wasn't given the time to answer one way or another, or Rachel had stepped forward, unseeing eyes glowing an unearthly, sickly, green as a voice far too deep for her voice claimed…
"You will sail an iron ship to break-thought
In the sea of monster you shall pursue
Find allies in the sea and mankind's predatory
And in the end be late to save your quarry."
Clarisse's eyes widened uneasily at the rather worrying words– and Luke realized that there really was more to the rumor that the brash girl had a crush on his half-sibling.
[Life Quest updated! A Thief's Downfall / Thunder Princess
Goal Complete: be part of the team heading into the sea of monsters
Reward: +5XP]
"Don't give up before it even starts." Nico was the one to whisper to her reassuringly "After all, my prophecy didn't make sense until the end."
¤.¤.¤
"Tch. I know that." the tall, muscular daughter of Ares answered curtly – yet nodding in thanks nonetheless at his words before turning toward Luke and Thalia "Well seems like we've stuck together, the oracle has spoken. Pack up and meet me by the beach in ten minutes."
After checking that Groover was alright, Luke did just that – and by the time Thalia and him arrived by the sea-side, there was an old, rather impressive looking steamship rising out of the water, with the nameCSS Birmingham becoming visible as the seaweeds started to fall down the hull.
In the old warship, two skeleton wearing a confederate uniform were lowering a dinghy to the water, and soon beaching in front of them, before climbing down and saluting the daughter of Ares.
"Aren't the dead par of the Silent One's kingdom?" Thalia couldn't help but ask
"The spirits of the losing side of every war owe a tribute to Ares." Clarisse explained with some pride "I prayed for a naval transport since apparently we're headed toward the sea of monsters…" she stepped in the dinghy "Well, come on, we haven't got all day!"
"Do you know which way we're going?"asked Luke as the dinghy was nearing the rather impressive ship
"Way I see it, that bastard didn't have that long to run away, so if the prophecy's pointing us at the sea of monster, they're probably on their way there too." she pointed at a large cruise ship illuminating the night a few miles from them "This ship's been here since yesterday. The 'Princess Andromeda'." she rolled her eyes "What a sissy name! Anyway, I found it strange it was staying it the area, usually they either dock in Manhattan or go down further south, but they never just stay here… And now that the bastard's on the move, it's moving too? There's no such thing as coincidences!"
[Life Quest updated! A Thief's Downfall / Thunder Princess
Bonus Goal Complete: identify the enemy's ship
Bonus Reward: +10XP, +1PP]
Luke and Thalia shared an impressed glance.
"I don't think I'd have noticed something like that." Thalia admitted
"That's because you're only there for the holidays." Clarisse pointed out "But I'm a year-rounder, this is my home." she shrugged "Don't tell me you wouldn't have noticed a strange car parked right int front of your courtyard?"
"Not much cars in the area, only a forest." Luke laughed "But I do see your point, there are hitchhikers, and campers… And we would know if they weren't using the usual trails or camping spot and sniffing around home."
They were soon on the bridge, the captain asking the very question Thalia had asked earlier – after giving him the same answer, she was soon following the man toward the deck where the dead crew was waiting for her orders.
"We're following this ship, and headed toward the sea of monsters!" she announced "It'll probably be dangerous, and we don't much a bout the enemy right now, but that they're following the Crooked Man and been recruited half-blood! This is your chance for eternal rest, so get this ship going!"
Just like Clarisse had guessed – the Princess Andromeda was heading at full-speed toward the south-west – toward the Bermuda Triangle, which was the current location of the sea of monsters.
The problem was, the cruise ship, was going much faster than them, and it clearly wasn't only because it was more modern – no there was magic, or something similar at work. Within a few hours, the Princess Andromeda had grown smaller in the distance, making Clarisse antsy.
Of course that wasn't the only problem – of course not.
¤.¤.¤
In two days, they would be entering the sea of monster – and all three knew their classics well enough to know what it meant.
"So, we're going with the danger rocks or the monsters?" Thalia asked
"This ships canons can't blow apart rocks." Clarisse pointed out "Besides, there's no way we'd be able to go fast enough to slip through, the ship's already suffering."
Luke and Thalia nodded – the skeletal captain had informed them that his ship wasn't made for high sea. Between the fact it'd been magically unsank thanks to Ares and the captain's know-how, she was holding fast for now… But all of them could hear that the creaking and grinding were growing worse by the day.
If they were to find allies in the sea of monster – it better be ones that had a good ship, because the CSS Birmingham wouldn't be seaworthy for much longer.
"Charybdis and Scylla it is then." Thalia mused "Do you have a plan?"
"Scylla's up on a cliff, and those cannons can't shoot too high." Clarisse explained "We could all hide under-deck, and try to rush forward, but if she doesn't find easy food on the deck, she may well try to pick apart the whole ship."
Something said ship wouldn't fare well with, they all knew.
"Charybdis then? You want to go in the vortex?"
"It'll put a strain on the ship too."
"I know." Clarisse agreed "But at least the captain should be able to steer the ship in a way that puts less strain on her, while we wouldn't be able to do anything against Scylla."
She eyed Thalia thoughtfully "You're good with lightning, right, do you think you could try to fry Charybdis hard enough to prevent her from sucking up the sea?"
Thalia frowned, clearly wondering about it too.
"I wouldn't be able to do it for very long." she mused "Maybe a few minutes max." a shrug "I'd have to see how big she is to be sure."
A day and a half latter, they were watching at the steadily growing cliff and whirlpool.
The sea around Charybdis was ebbing and flowing with each of her gigantic breath. A large, three minute long inhaling – an everything half a mile around her was sucked toward her in a large, dangerous whirlpool. A gushing exhaling and the sea was rushing out in large, violent waves.
"With how the sea moves around her, once we're in range of her whirlpool, all will play out within a breath's duration." Clarisse mused
"The problem isn't going to get near…" the captain pointed out "But getting away." skeletal shoulders shrugged "I don't see how the ship's going to keep together."
Indeed – the closer they were coming, the more evident it was that the sea just around the monster between each breath in and out was a watery hell.
"If I strike her when she closes her mouth." Thalia mused, intently watching the sea rushing in an out of the gigantic maw every three minutes "Would the ship be able to speed through?" she asked the captain "Mind you, she'll probably try to trash around, so the sea still won't be that calm."
"We can pass in five minutes." estimated the captain
"I won't hold that long."
"Then we enter the vortex, then you fry the bitch!" Clarisse suggested with a blood-thirsty smile
"Dangerous." the captain mused "But doable."
Apparently, asking him his advice had struck something in the dead – while he'd been rather indifferent at first, the more they'd treated him like a thinking being, the more he'd gotten involved in the situation, and now it seemed he was putting his pride as a seaman on the line.
The CSS Birmingham would breakthrough – or die trying (again). But the would make a real effort for it.
Thalia went to the bow of the ship, and started to focus.
Soon, the CSS Birmingham was in the whirlpool, the captain managing to put her to side to lessen the strain on her. A tense minute went by – then another – and they were now close enough to sea the multitude of badly aligned teeth pointing out in all direction the hellish, gigantic black maw that made their ship seem small.
The CSS Birmingham started to fire – some bullets falling in the gigantic mouth, others snapping some of her teeth. The wailing roar seemed to grow louder, and more plaintive – and Luke sen a mischievous, satisfied smile at the gunners, the son of Hermes not even disturbed by the nightmarish grin they gave him in answer.
"Extra-strong scratching power and chilly sauce are always a good idea." he proclaimed proudly
Clarisse had a complicated expression on her face – half focused on the ship and it's perilous trek, half happily blood-thirsty at seeing the cannons shooting, half disbelieving that Luke's suggestion of coating the cannonballs was working so well.
The mouth snapped shut, the sea suddenly became calmer – and Thalia threw a hand toward the sky, a bead of sweat dripping down her neck.
The sky seemed to break apart, and a gigantic lightning bolt surged downward, striking right at the monster.
There was a high-pitching, ear-splitting shriek as Charybdis started to trash around – but while the sea was agitated, it was negligible compared to the hellish pot of conflicting sea currents that her breathing could induce.
By the one minute mark – it was clear Thalia was weakening; the sea grew more agitated, and Charybdis' trashing more pronounce.
By the two minute mark – they were nearly out of range.
[Life Quest updated! A Thief's Downfall / Thunder Princess
Goal Complete: enter the sea of monster
Reward: +5XP
Bonus Goal Complete: you've managed to pass through Charybdis' whirlpool unharmed
Bonus Reward: +10XP, I've got the Power and Charybdis' the One for Me perk unlocked]
[New Perk unlocked
I've got the Power(5PP / free for Thalia): +10 to Lightning
Charybdis' the One for Me (5PP): +10 to Strategy
Available: 16PP (Thalia: 23 PP / Luke: 9 PP)]
"We're clear ma'am." a skeleton sailor confirmed to Thalia
¤.¤.¤
The daughter of Zeus indicated that she'd heard – and nearly fell on the deck as she let go of her control, finding that her legs were suddenly barely keeping her up. She didn't even find the energy to be grossed out by the fact it was an undead that had helped her stay on her feet, instead thanking him, and tiredly leaning on him as he gentlemanly escorted her back to the bridge.
"Way to go, lightning girl!" Clarisse praised loudly
Of course – while they'd managed to enter the sea of monsters in one piece, it was clear that the ship was now on it's last legs. To top it all – there wasn't a map of the area, who was ever changing and didn't rely obey to the physical laws of the Mortal Realm since just like Olympus, it was pretty much part of the Dream Realms.
The next few hours were tense; the engine sounding worse and worse and only still holding together thanks to the skills of the crew. Soon, a sailor was reporting that there was a water leakage in the hull – a hole, then another were found, and the CSS Birmingham was creaking louder and louder.
The captain made the crew prepare a dinghy and stock it with provisions.
"If the situation gets worse," he warned "you'll need to abandon the ship."
"What about you?" Thalia couldn't help but ask
"We're already dead ma'am." he reminded her not unkindly "And it's not the first time we've sunk."
It was mid-afternoon by the time they saw land.
Quickly, the crew pushed the trio toward the dinghy, that was soon lowered to the sea – making them realize how much lower on the water the ship had grow as more and more water had leaked in…
"That was a good battle ma'am." the captain said to Clarisse, saluting just like they'd done when she'd first come onboard
"That it was." Clarisse agreed "You've paid your debt, captain."
There was a smile on the skeleton's face – and suddenly, the ship started to sink in the water much more quickly.
"Thank you."
[Life Quest updated! A Thief's Downfall / Thunder Princess
Bonus Goal Complete: the CSS Birmingham was released from service
Bonus Reward: +10XP, +1PP]
The trio waited until the ship had completely gone under before starting to row toward the small island that was growing larger by the moment, with a mountain in the middle, lush green vegetation that belied the fact it was winter, a spattering of white buildings that could have come out of a Santorini postcard, and even a beach and some palm trees.
The harbor was filled with a rather odd assortment of boats that seemed to come from all around the world – and all the era too.
"The current is taking us right toward the island." Luke noticed "This is way too convenient."
"It is." Clarisse agreed "But we're not going far in this dinghy, so maybe we'll find a way to get something better there, or get a way to track the Princess Andromeda."
"We won't let our guard down." Thalia confirmed
On the dock, they were welcomed with a woman looking like a flight attendant – perfect dazzling smile, perfectly combed hair, perfectly adjusted blue uniform – just a little too perfect.
Just like they'd noticed from afar, there was all kind of ship docked – and Clarisse was eyeing them intently, as if already wondering if there was a way to commandeer one. There was a US Navy submarine moored near an elegant yacht, some dugout canoe, an old three-mast vessel and even what appeared to be a World War II British helicopter carrier...
"Welcome! Is it you first time at C.C. Resort Spa?"
The trio exchanged unsure glances, and the woman nodded "Ah I see, first time. We'll, how about we start with an herbal wrap for the girls, and of course a makeover for the young sir."
There were ringing bells in Luke's mind, as the more they wandered in the resort, following the attendant, the more he was feeling a sort of forced calm wash over him.
By his side, he could see both Thalia and Clarisse falling under it too – thought there was a growing tick on Clarisse's brow as the blond woman kept on extolling the virtues on the massages and other treatments the place offered.
The place was beautiful white building clinging to the mountain side, with swimming pool at every level, all connected with water-slides, underwater tubes and waterfalls.
¤.¤.¤
"Percy would love this place." he mused
Thalia didn't react to his comment, making him event more certain the place was playing with their mind… With a thought, he called the messaging system of Chaos Game, and quickly composed and sent a message. Dismissing the Interface, he hardened his resolve – Percy was a son of Poseidon, there was no way the boy wouldn't find them now that he'd called for help.
Now, he had to keep the girls safe until the cavalry arrived.
It took him some time before he realized – that all the resort's clients, lounging on deck chair, sipping on cocktail or getting some kind of herbal care done were women.
Quickening his step, he took Thalia's hand – relaxed as she was by the enchanting area, she simply smiled at the action instead of pointing out that a quest wasn't quite the moment for a date.
"Say," he told her with his best smile "do you have anything for couple?"
It was only because he was watching for it that he caught the slight slip on the girl's face – and her sneer.
"What a great idea!" Thalia agreed enthousiastically, confirming once more to Luke that something was amiss
While she didn't mind taking care of herself, and did enjoy a good massage from time to time – she'd never expressed any interest in this kind of lovely-dovey, sirupy, couple activity.
"Ah… I'm afraid that those aren't part of our package," the attendant contradicted after getting her expression under control "But don't worry, I guaranty you'll like our treatments!" she quickly reassured Thalia
"Can anyone get treatment at the spa?" Luke asked, once more interrupting the woman's speech
This time, the fleeting annoyed expression was a bit longer.
"Of course!" she assured with her picture perfect, oh so fake, smile
"Then shouldn't we invite the Lewis-Jackson?" Luke suggested to Thalia "Think about it, it's a perfect place for a family vacation, and they're already in the area."
"Well, of course if you wan to invite your friends…" the blond woman agreed
"Ah, but maybe we should tour the place a bit more to tell them what they can do?"
"Oh, could we?" Thalia asked "We wouldn't want to take to much of your time."
Luke had to held in a smile a he realized that his girlfriend voice's had subtly shifted over the course of the conversation.
The dazed, dreamy tone was now the falsely cheerful one she used when stuck in annoying situation where she had to stay polite – like say a the garden-party held every year on Adra's birthday, before the political guests finally leaved...
¤.¤.¤
A short message via Chaos Game confirmed to him – that the daughter of Zeus had managed to snap out of it. Looking at Clarisse, whose tick on the brown was growing by the minute – it was clear she wasn't too far off too.
Soon, the attendant had been reluctantly persuaded to let them tour the spa first – after all mind control worked the best when the victim was happy and going with the flow, contradicting them too much meant taking the risk of letting them realize something strange was going on for the woman.
Not that she knew they'd already broken free.
It was by the time they were touring the library that Clarisse finally freed herself from control, loudly claiming "Bah, this is boring, isn't there a place more fun?"
"More fun?" the blond repeated, finally realizing things were slipping out of her control
"Yeah, this place is boring." the daughter of Ares claimed "Why would I want to do all those nancy things?"
"Don't you want to unleash your true self?" an enchanting voice asked
The voice was a sweet as honey, the woman even more beautiful than all those they'd encountered until then on the island, with long black haired braided with gold, piercing green eyes and wearing a silky black dress.
It was only the fact that by now all three had understood that something was going on that allowed them to resist the mental manipulation as she smiled "Come with me, let me show you what I can do for you!"
Clarisse looked ready to argue – but Thalia was discretely pinching her before talking over her, still in the overly sweet and enthusiastic tone she used in society when she didn't care about someone but couldn't outright insult them "Oh are you the director of the Spa? Your place is beautiful!"
"Thank you my dear, I am C.C., and this place is my little paradise."
"It really is." Thalia agreed "Like we told your attendant, we are waiting for friends." she winked exaggeratedly "I figured Sally could use some me-time while her husband takes care of the boys, and this is seems like the perfect place for it!"
"Of course." C.C. agreed with a graceful smile "In the meantime why don't you follow me to the makeover room so that I can show you what I can do for you?"
The trio reluctantly followed, knowing that directly contradicting the woman when they didn't know yet how to get out of the situation wouldn't be a good idea. Soon, they reached a large room with black walls covered in mirrors.
There was a loom as a dinning-table, a tapestry shimmering on it like it was three-dimensional, depicting a waterfall scene so real the water looked like it was moving, and the clouds were drifting in the sky.
It was really impressive – yet somehow, Arachne's own work still felt even better despite the fact it wasn't enchanted like this.
"Maybe we should suggest Ara to try her hands at enchanted weaving?" Thalia mused
"Oh? You've got a friend who enjoys weaving?"
"You should tell her to come too, I always enjoy sharing my hobby." it felt – strangely honest from the woman
"I'm afraid it would be difficult, she's in Great Britain." Thalia answered honestly
Apart from the loom, the place was rather spare, with only a few pieces of white elegant furniture. The pet cage on the table, full of squealing guinea pigs, was the only discordant note in the room.
Maybe it was because of his own twisted humor, but this was what made Luke realized where they were – or rather, who was in front of them. Suddenly, it was quite evident just why there were only woman around, and what the "makeover" consisted of for the men.
"How about I start with a full image consultation for the young gentleman while you test our facial care mask?"
"Oh I couldn't," Luke protested "l may have been born in the USA, I'm a British at heart, ladies first!" he stepped back, and caught from the corner of his eye a familiar shape
There was a trireme docking a few levels bellow – one with two azure sails ornate with a Poseidon trident inscribed within Hecate's wheel
While he'd never seen the ship with his own eyes – he'd seen numerous pictures of it just a few evenings before at the Lewis-Jackson's home.
"I'm afraid any makeover will have to be delayed a bit." he said, sending a charming smile at the enchantress "Our friends have just arrived "We really should great them since we're the one who told them to come."
C.C.'s expression was distracted, and she waved them toward the blond attendant "Of course, of course. Hylla, take them to the dock then take care of them, I need to check something."
"Of course my lady."
"So," Thalia wondered "Why are you working here?"
"Why wouldn't I?" the blond wondered, her tone the most honest it had been in all their time on the island "The place is great, the care makes all of us beautiful, not to mention the contract has excellent health advantage and the starting pay is quite decent." she smiled "This place really is a paradise."
"For women." Luke interjected as they neared the dock
"For women." the blond agreed, finally realizing he'd been freed of the mental control for a while "This is a place where we're freed from you pigs."
¤.¤.¤
"How sad. That's such a narrow-minded view of life." a familiar voice commented as a shimmering shield suddenly appeared between the trio and their attendant
"Honestly, this place seems really great." Luke sighed from behind the shield as Hylla started to throw magic at them "But really? Mind-control and changing the men in guinea pigs?"
"It's downright dumb. People would pay to come here, you don't need the mind control." Thalia pointed out "And just forbid the resort to men if you hate them so much, but don't force your opinions on others."
"We're freeing those women from the control of men!"
"By controlling them yourself? That makes you no better than them you, dumb cow." Clarisse was the one to answer "If you really have a problem with them, just pound them instead of hiding behind magic like a damsel in distress." she claimed, slapping her fist on her palm
That was the moment where Dewin's own magic finally got through, knocking the blond woman out.
"Luke, pray to your father!" the man urgently instructed, making the teen's eyes widen as he realized what the other meant
After all, not matter how skilled of an enchanter Dewin was, it was rather doubtful he could compete with Circe herself. The only way she'd even been beaten by mortals in the old tales – was when they'd been immune to her magic.
Thanks to Hermes' own holy herbs.
Of course, since it was a quest, his father couldn't interfere too freely – that was probably why Clarisse had only gotten such an old ship rather than more recent one.
Calling his Inventory, he grabbed his old panpipes.
The instrument was well cared for – it was a spoiled he'd earned years ago on his first quest, when Thalia and him had encountered some sirens. The girl remembered they'd been surprised by the spoil, since sirens were more known as harp-players – but the panpipes was a good fit for Luke, who like quite a bit of the children of Apollo and Hermes was musically inclined.
An offering – had to be important, either in monetary or sentimental value. The strongest the value, the most effective the offering would be… And right now, they really needed something strong.
"Oh Hermes, please accept my offering."
The instrument disappeared in flash of golden light – and in it's place, a large bottle of pills and a bag of soluble medicine appeared.
On the bottle, a label was proclaiming "Hermes' Multivitamins" – and they were the cute fancy-shaped one that tended to be bought for children. Despite still feeling a bit blue about giving up his beloved panpipes, Luke couldn't help but snort as once more, his father demonstrated where his own twisted sense of fun came from. The bag of powdered medicine had a more sober packaging, had a warning on the label "Extra Strong, only for the immortals. Must be diluted a thousand time for any use for mortals."
Not wasting any time, Luke downed a chewable gum, handing one to the rest of the group before calling "Percy! We're gonna need your help!"
"Coming!" a familiar voice, the young boy soon jumping out of the ship "Take the helm, mom!"
The son of Poseidon jogged toward him "So, what do you need?"
"This," Luke said pointing at the soluble powder "In all the water of the island. And everyone drenched!"
"Done." Percy promised, rushing toward the nearest pool.
While the customers were still lost in their day-dreams, the beauticians and other attendants had realized something was wrong – but Dewin was already raising shields left and right, and the trio of questers, making use of his help, were bashing in the girls left and right, leaving a trail of unconscious body.
Finally called by the racket, Circe barged on the chaotic scene, calling with fury "Intruders! You are destroying my beautiful island!"
"Nope, we're simply freeing the people from your control." contradicted Luke
"Impossible!" the enchantress protested with fury in her voice "Wix magic is mere child-play compared to my abilities!"
"You've made two mistakes there." Luke contradicted, as all the water of the island suddenly surged around them, drenching everyone "First, Dewin isn't merely a wizard, he's your half-brother." he pointed out "Second, I'm a son of Hermes!" her eyes widened in true fear at that, and he knew she'd realized what they had just used
Around them, the women drenched in the Multivitamin extract were coming back to their mind – and they were angry.
"Make that three mistakes." Luke mused "Your third mistake was to make those girls angry."
¤.¤.¤
While it wouldn't last eternally – right now, all the newly freed women were immune to magic. And while some were simple mortals, there were also quite a few demigoddess among their numbers, and even some lesser spirits.
"Well," Luke mused as they turned their anger toward the enchantress "Shall we go and free the guinea-pigs?"
"Wait!" the voice was coming from an attendant that looked rather similar to Hylla "Please, listen to me!"
"Follow us and say what you need." Clarisse decreed as they started to climb back toward Circe's 'makeover room'
"Please don't free them here." the girl pleaded "The one our lady keeps in that cage… They are the worse of the worse." she explained, true fear in her eyes "I know what we did was wrong but… Some of them really earned it."
"You're less bigoted than the other girls." Clarisse commented in her usual brash manners "What are you doing here?"
"Most girls here have good reasons not to like men." the girl said "Me among them, I'm just more level headed." she pointed at the cage near which they'd arrived "There are killers and rapers in him, and one of them is the one that abducted my sister and I. Circe saved us."
"Arg! This is giving me a headache!" the daughter of Ares protested loudly "There are idiots everywhere in this island!"
"Well… Why don't we just call someone that can take care of those guys?" Thalia mused "Circe has been neutralized by Luke's dad medicine and mister Lewis magic, the girls are free… While we still have a cruise ship to catch."
"You're… not wrong." Clarisse realized
The gods couldn't interfere in their fights, nor help them too much in the quest's goal but this – had nothing to do with their quest, and the fight was over.
A message latter, and Bianca was stepping out of the shadows, and was quickly explained the situation.
Taking a hold of the bottle of pills, and the pet cage, she nodded, mused "Alright I'm going to start by taking care of Circe and helping the girls home, then I'm feeding those guys veritaserum laced multivitamin."
Thanking her, the trio of questers was soon meeting back with the Lewis-Jackson family on their ship.
[Life Quest updated! A Thief's Downfall / Thunder Princess
Goal Complete: escape Circe's Island
Reward: +5XP
Bonus Goal Complete: free Circe's prisoners
Bonus Reward: +10XP, +1PP
Bonus Goal Complete: prevent the worst of the prisoner from sowing chaos
Bonus Reward: +10XP, +1PP]
Sally and Percy spent the better part of the next hour swimming around the ship and asking the passing fishes and other sea-life form whether they'd seen the Princess Andromeda – then they'd climbing back onboard and Percy had taken the helm – the trireme seemingly coming alive under his hands, as the son of Poseidon demonstrated the innate ability to sail, and to control a ship, he'd apparently inherited from his father.
A trireme – shouldn't be able to go as fast as their ship was, all knew – but between how heavily enchanted the ship was, and Percy's masterful control… The trio of questers were pretty sure that right now, they were faster than even the Princess Andromeda herself!
ADRASTEIA LV 58 (13 YO)
BODY
Agility 17(38)
Strenght 12(24)
Endurance 12(14)
SPIRIT
Intelligence 12(49)
Wisdom 17(36)
Fortitude 11(32)
HEART
Empathy 15(25)
Perception 11(33)
Sociability 15(25)
LUCK 14(33)
PERK ACQUIRED (96PP spend, 16PP available)
Black First Rite (1PP): grants Easy Black Magic Potency (+10 to Easy Spells of Battle Magic, War Magic and Curse)
Moon First Rite (1 PP): unlocks Light Battle Aura (+10 to all damages)
Potter First Rite (1 PP): unlocks Sensing Skill up to 25 SP
Ravenclaw First Rite (1 PP): unlocks +10 to easy memory tests and +5 to Mentamancy Skill
Moon Aura (2PP): unlocks a battle aura that grants +10% to all damages when active, and drains 25 MP per minute active
Khonsou'Small Favor (2PP): grants Easy Shielding Magic Potency (+10 damages parried by Easy shield spells)
Thot's Small Favor (2PP): grants Easy Healing Magic Potency (+10 healing done by Easy spells of all Healing Schools)
Black Curse Magic Understanding (3PP): grants +10 to curse
Lovegood Divination Magic Understanding (3PP): grants +10 to divination
Moon Strategy Understanding (3PP): grants +10 to strategy
Peverell Healing Understanding (3PP): grants +10 to healing
Potter Transfiguration Understanding (3PP): grants +10 to transfiguration
Ravenclaw Rune Understanding (3PP): grants +10 to rune
Black Magical Potency (4PP): Grants +10% to MP
Lovegood Light Magic Seeing Ability (4PP): unlocks magic seeing skill up to 25
Moon Blood-stealing Aura (4PP): the Moon aura now allows the user to get back your Blood Skill % of HP per attack
Peverell Reiki Potency (4PP): grants +10% to RP
Potter Reiki Potency (4PP): grants +10% to RP
Black Heir (free): grants +5% MP, one free bloodline talent to be chosen (All Regen rate +5%)
Moon Heir (free): grants +10% KP, one free bloodline talent to be chosen (Atavism)
Peverell Heir (free): grants +5% RP, one free bloodline talent to be chosen (HP +10%)
Potter Heir (free): grants +5% MP, one free bloodline talent to be chosen (RP +10%)
-Slytherin Heir (free): grants +10% MP, one free bloodline talent to be chosen
Jack of All Trade (5 PP): +1 SP per level
Natural Genius (2 PP): double book learning rate (locks Hard Work Genius Perk)
A Father's Strength (5 PP):+5 to all Communication
Blood of the Pharao (5PP): unlocks all Egyptian Magics
Cyclop's Skin (2PP): +5 to Physical and Elemental Resistance
Slytherin Member (free): +2 WIS, access to the Slytherin Students Rooms
Gryffindor Honorary Member (free): +2 SOC, access to the Gryffindor Students Rooms
Ravenclaw Honorary Member (free): +2 INT, access to the Ravenclaw Students Rooms
Hufflepuff Honorary Member (free): +2 EMP, access to the Hufflepuff Students Rooms
Slytherin Knowledge (2PP): +10 to parselmagic
Ravenclaw Knowledge (2PP): +10 to seeing magic
A Spirit's Guidance (5PP): +10 to True Form
Cyclop's Lungs (10 PP): grants the ability to breath underwater
Gryphon's Wings (10PP): grant the ability to summon and dismiss wings
FIRST PATH - (+10% MP and RP, +5 to SPIRIT MC, +10 to Magic Skills)
AWAKENING PATH - (+10% to RP regen, +5 to HEART MC, +10 to Weapon Skill)