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Some things are Fated to happen, so I cannot change everything.
The metal door was half hidden behind a laundry bin full of dirty hotel towels. Aaron could sense it's potent magic, but it was faded at the same time. It hadn't been used in some time. His eyes moved to the Mark of Daedalus and he knew they were in the right place.
"It hasn't been used in a long time," Annabeth said.
"I tried to open it once," Rachel said, "just out of curiosity. It's rusted shut."
"No." Annabeth stepped forward. "It just needs the touch of a half-blood. Not to be mean but not even Aaron can just activate the Maze and he is extremely powerful."
Sure enough, as soon as Annabeth put her hand on the mark, it glowed blue. The metal door unsealed and creaked open, revealing a dark staircase leading down.
"Wow." Rachel looked calm, but it was a falsehood. The girl's aura told a tale of fear a mile wide, but she was brave so she pushed it to the side. Her face was still covered in flecks of gold."So…after you?"
"You're the guide," Annabeth said with mock politeness. "Lead on."
"Wait." Aaron said. "I have a gift for Rachel." From in his shirt, he pulled out a talisman. "I made this when we were waiting for Percy to return from Calypso's island. It is a talisman for you Rachel, Lapis Lazuli and silver, to help with your sight and mind. I spelled it for protective magic." he gently placed it over Rachel's head, where it rested comfortably on her collarbone. "No one but you or I can take it off. I knew that we would meet again after you met Percy twice. The magic will focus your gifts, make them stronger and protect you from harm. It will also help with channeling magic for spells."
She smiled waterly at him and barreled in for a hug. "You are the best, you know that right?"
"Naturally."
The stairs led down to a large brick tunnel. It was so dark that it was hard to see anything. Aaron cast a werelight spell and suddenly they could see everything. As soon as the light turned on, Rachel yelped.
A skeleton was grinning at them. It wasn't human. It was huge, for one thing—at least ten feet tall. It had been strung up, chained by its wrists and ankles so it made a kind of giant X over the tunnel. It had a massive single eye socket.
"A Cyclops," Annabeth said. "It's very old. It's not…anybody we know."
Rachel swallowed. "You have a friend who's a Cyclops?"
"Tyson," Percy said. "My half brother."
"Your half brother."
"Hopefully we'll find him down here," Percy said. "And Grover. He's a satyr."
"Oh." Her voice was small. "Well then, we'd better keep moving."
She stepped under the skeleton's left arm and kept walking.
After fifty feet they came to a crossroads. Ahead, the brick tunnel continued. To the right, the walls were made of ancient marble slabs. To the left, the tunnel was dirt and tree roots.
Percy pointed left. "That looks like the tunnel Tyson and Grover took."
Annabeth frowned. "Yeah, but the architecture to the right—those old stones—that's more likely to lead to an ancient part of the maze, toward Daedalus's workshop."
"We need to go straight," Rachel said.
"That's the least likely choice," Annabeth said.
"You don't see it?" Rachel asked. "Look at the floor." "There's a brightness there," Rachel insisted. "Very faint. But forward is the correct way. To the left, farther down the tunnel, those tree roots are moving like feelers. I don't like that. To the right, there's a trap about twenty feet down. Holes in the walls, maybe for spikes. I don't think we should risk it."
Annabeth beamed and hugged Rachel's side. "I knew you could do it. I can see the brightness but not the traps. You have the sight alright."
Aaron pressed a kiss to the girl's temple. "Lead on, oh sighted mortal."
"No traps?" Percy asked anxiously after a bit.
"Nothing." Rachel knit her eyebrows. "Should it be this easy?"
"I don't know," Percy said. "It never was before."
"So, Rachel," Annabeth said, "where are you from, exactly?" She said it kindly, looking at Aaron for a moment before smiling.
"Brooklyn," she said.
"Aren't your parents going to be worried if you're out late?"
Rachel exhaled. "Not likely. I could be gone a week and they'd never notice."
Aaron froze. " Why not? Screw it, you're my kid now, you have us and we care."
Rachel did not start crying but he could tell she was close.
Suddenly there was a creaking noise in front of them, like huge doors opening.
"What was that?" Annabeth asked.
"I don't know," Rachel said. "Metal hinges."
"Oh, that's very helpful. I mean, what is it?"
Then I heard heavy footsteps shaking the corridor—coming toward us.
"Run?" Percy asked.
"Run," Rachel agreed.
They turned and fled the way we'd come, but they didn't make it twenty feet before they ran straight into monsters. Two dracaenae—snake women in Greek armor—leveled their javelins at their chests. Standing between them was Kelli, the empousa cheerleader. How she was bad from Tartarus already was... concerning to Aaron.
"Well, well," Kelli said.
Percy uncapped his new blade, Annabeth pulled her knife and Aaron his bow but in an instant, Kelli pounced on Rachel. Her hand turned into a claw and she spun Rachel around, holding her tight with her talons at Rachel's neck.
"Taking your little mortal pet for a walk?" Kelli asked me. "They're such fragile things. So easy to bre=-AH!" She screeched as the Talisman's magic took effect and burned her and sent her flying back into the snake ladies. Her body convulsed horrible and only stopped when Aaron's arrow took her life. The two snake ladies died moments later.
Behind them, the footsteps came closer. A huge form appeared out of the gloom—an eight-foot-tall Laistrygonian giant with red eyes and fangs.
The giant licked his lips when he saw us. "Oooh, Dinner!" He died when Aaron launched an arrow into his throat.
Rachel was shaking. "Thanks for that talisman, who knows what would have happened... I know it might not seem like it, but the way forward is still forward... it is like the most dangerous path is the right one."
They all, bar Aaron, looked at her hesitantly, but they obeyed and moved forward.
Up ahead they could see bronze doors. They were about ten feet tall, emblazoned with a pair of crossed swords. From behind them came a muffled roar, like from a crowd.
Aaron groaned. "I can feel a powerful force ahead, one of your brother's Percy... we are going to have to kill him, I imagine. You ready you three?"
They all nodded and Aaron kneeled down and pulled out a small silver dagger. "This is like Celestial bronze, the metal in Annabeth's knife. I carry it with me for ritualistic magics but I think you need it. It will not kill as fast or hard as Celestial bronze or Imperial gold or Orichicalcum but it will kill. Aim well and do not let fear swallow your heart."
She nodded and gripped the dagger tight. "I won't"
In the center of the arena, a fight was going on between a giant and a centaur. The centaur looked panicked. He was galloping around his enemy, using sword and shield, while the giant swing a javelin the size of a telephone pole and the crowd cheered. The first tier of seats was twelve feet above the arena floor. Plain stone benches wrapped all the way around, and every seat was full. There were giants, dracaenae, demigods, telekhines, and stranger things: bat-winged demons and creatures that seemed half human and half you name it—bird, reptile, insect, mammal.
But the creepiest things were the skulls. The arena was full of them. They ringed the edge of the railing. Three-foot-high piles of them decorated the steps between the benches. They grinned from pikes at the back of the stands and hung on chains from the ceiling like horrible chandeliers. Some of them looked very old—nothing but bleached-white bone. Others looked a lot fresher. In the middle of all this, proudly displayed on the side of the spectator's wall, was green banner with the trident of Poseidon in the center.
Above the banner, sitting in a seat of honor, was an old enemy.
"Luke," Percy said.
It was odd that he could hear Percy over the roar of the crowd, but he smiled coldly. He was wearing camouflage pants, a white T-shirt, and bronze breastplate, Next to him sat the largest giant anyone had ever seen, much larger than the one on the floor fighting the centaur. The giant next to Luke must've been fifteen feet tall, easy, and so wide he took up three seats. He wore only a loincloth, like a sumo wrestler. His skin was dark red and tattooed with blue wave designs.
There was a cry from the arena floor, and They all jumped back as the centaur crashed to the dirt beside them
He looked at them pleadingly. "Help!"
The centaur couldn't get up. One of his legs was broken.
Aaron moved and in one motion, he blocked the approaching giant's path and cut off his hand with a quickly summoned blade. With another, he beheaded the terrified giant
The crowed exploded into hateful sneers but Aaron just spiked his magic and the yelling stopped. "Oh just shut up, what honor is there in killing a badly wounded opponent? I know for a fact that in the original Collesium they did not fight to the death, you know that too. Now back off!"
Luke didn't do anything, but the tattooed giant rose. "The legendary Magical mortal, the lover of Hades and Discoverer of powerful magic. The first mortal to obtain immortality in centuries. I see you... now, what is it that you want from Anteus?"
Shivering internally, knowing he would not stand a chance against this being, he opened his mouth to speak when a tremendous force washed through him...
The majesty of Gaia herself. Her powerful, eternal essence flowed through him and he spoke with her voice.
"My son, this boy is my Champion, healer of the earth and protector of my realm. He alone is why I have chosen not to rise and smite the cruel gods for abusing my children and allowing for pollution to harm my realm. He has healed the polluted rivers, he had strengthened my soils and started the process of having my lands purified. You will not harm him, you will allow him and his to pass. Keep the son of Hermes occupied until they are long gone then allow him to pass as the Fates allow him to act. Do this and you will continue to tread lightly on the Earth, fail to do so and I will withdraw my blessing!"
Aaron stumbled, shaken. " The hell?"
The crowd was dead silent, as were his friends. After a minute, Anteus stood. "Mother has spoken. You may pass, I will do as she asks, as I have always done." He gestured to the other door and Aaron and his friends, not stupid, hurried away, hearing the screams of Luke and his group in defense.
As they hurried into the maze, Annabeth turned to him. "Gaia's Champion?"
"I have no idea, I mean I did set up for the rivers to be healed by some Satyrs and my shrines purify the Earth by nature...I also helped get Metis out of Zeus and so on. I guess Gaia saw that I was doing good and named me her Champion. You heard her, she wanted to rise against the gods but... The Prophecy of the Seven must have been about her." They all turned to him. "It was a prophecy about Seven Demigods, a major prophecy but... I... I saw it destroyed. The future must have changed. I must have changed the future, negating it... cool. Um.. Gaia, thank you for not going against us. Expect a sacrifice from all of us and some major healing to your realm."
They all jumped at the sound of flawless laughter and knew they had been listened to...
Chapter end, tell me what you think in the reviews.
This was a lot of fun. I liked Gaia's reasons to act against the gods to be multifaceted not just cause she is evil.
Love, your Ninja Overlord,
Mika.