Here we are everybody, the final chapter of Book Four! It's been a fun one, and we've got more coming! This one wraps up the aftermath of the battle with Tartarus...and sets up Book Five. Hope you enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters (except the OC's) Percy Jackson & The Olympians, Heroes of Olympus, or Trials Of Apollo. All of that belongs to Rick Riordan.
14. An Old Friend Returns
Matt
I think I've been taking the Earth for granted.
Guess when you stay in one place long enough you get used to it. It's only until you're forced out of it that you really start to appreciate it.
The place that we ended up in was beautiful. I'm not a geography expert, but it might've been Alaska, or a place in Europe or something. Behind us sat nothing but rolling green hills, a mossy color that wasn't quite a dark color, but blander and lighter. No houses, no trees, just landscape.
And in front of us lay the ocean, under a completely clear blue sky. The water was gray, and the air was chilly, with a little wind. Yep, it was obviously still December.
I just drank it in for a moment, and paced a couple of steps just to make sure that this was real. Not some illusion Tartarus had cooked up.
I closed my eyes, breathed in deep through my nose, and then opened my eyes again. Nothing changed, it was still there.
I smiled, and sighed.
Everyone was stirring and realizing what was going on too. Hades was the first to stand up straight besides me.
He looked around, confused, "Where is this? I don't sense a single person nearby."
"Doesn't matter-" I mumbled, not even looking at him. "-It's not down there."
"Is it over?" Malachi asked.
"I-I think so…" Sera whispered, checking her hands to make sure they were still intact.
Everything was quiet for several seconds. I think we were still trying to get used to the scenery change. It was quite a shift, obviously, going from night black to bright blue was jarring. That coupled with just not really knowing what to say, you could only hear the sound of crashing waves before us.
Hades spoke up again, "Well, if that's it, I'll be taking my leave."
He started to dematerialize, but Harper stopped him. She must've snuck up on my left. I hadn't noticed where she landed in the blip.
She stepped past me and stood at his back, "Hey, Lord Hades."
His back was facing us, and he raised his head up, showing his jet-black hair. His shoulders slumped with a sigh, "Yes, girl?"
She scanned him up and down, and almost flicked her head backwards to look at us, maybe searching for the right words.
Finally, she found them. A simple, "Thanks."
I was kind of confused. Did I miss a conversation between them or something? One look at Malachi, Sera, and Talon told me that something had happened that I didn't know about. You know, up until now, I hadn't really questioned why Hades even showed up in the first place. In the back of my mind, I figured Tartarus's messing around screwed up his own Underworld. So he wanted revenge.
But now I'm starting to think that Harper somehow convinced Hades to help us. Which is…really impressive, considering how stiff Hades can be.
Hades in response, just grunted. "For what?" Then he chuckled, "See you brats later."
He dematerialized in black smoke, and disappeared, presumably back to his domain.
That left the eight of us. I remained quiet while the others wanted to catch up.
"So…how did you guys end up down there?" Harper asked Annabeth, turning to face her.
Poor Annabeth looked like she'd just worked a twelve-hour shift, without eating the entire day. Absolutely miserable. But she snapped out of it and answered Harper.
"Got captured while planning our wedding." She nodded, her lips tight, "Fun stuff."
While those two talked, with Harper putting a comforting hand on Annabeth's arm, Malachi came to me and stood at my right.
"You're okay?"
"Yeah, I think so. Maybe not mentally, but…you know, what's new?"
"I'm sorry for what happened. I wish we could've gotten there sooner."
"Indeed." Sera said, coming up to my left. She looked up at me with concerned, big blue eyes. "Are you alright, Matt? You are not hurt, are you?"
I looked between both of them, unable to hold back my smile at their concern.
I reached out with my arms and wrapped them around their necks. With a tug, I pulled both Malachi and Sera into my sides, Sera made a peep and Malachi stiffened in surprise.
"I'm just fine, guys, now that you're all here." I thought back to when I saw them after visiting Atlas, and I felt guilty.
"I really appreciate you guys coming for me, especially after taking you all for granted."
Malachi was confused, "What do you mean?"
"In my head, you know-" I said, trying to explain, and come clean. "-I kept thinking that I was the only one that cared about stopping Ouranos, but…I was wrong. Very, very wrong. You guys, everyone, you're the best. I'm sorry for ever thinking that."
There was a moment of silence, and for a second I thought they might have just remembered it and decided to hold it against me. But relief filled me when I felt Sera wrap her arms around my midsection and press her face against my side. On the other end, Malachi patted me on the back.
"You have nothing to apologize for, my friend." he said, shaking his head at me.
Sera hugged me tight, "We will always come for you, Matt. You saved me, remember? You helped save Malachi too. For that, and for all that you've done besides that, we owe you for the rest of our lives."
Their words dug at me like a knife. A really warm, good knife, that hit in all the right places.
"You don't owe me a thing. It's just what friends are for, right?"
They both nodded, and started chuckling in unison. Interrupting our little moment, came Talon, bumbling over to see what was going on.
"What the hell's with all this mushy stuff?" He joked, "Haven't gone soft, have you, kid?"
Sera pulled her head away from me and scolded Talon, "Oh shush, Talon. He has been through so much; he doesn't need to hear your bad jokes."
"Ah, it's alright." I said, "We can afford to be soft for today, don't you think?"
Talon thought about it, "Eh, you might be right." He brightened up, like he was remembering a fond memory. "How about that fight though, huh? Man, that was some awesome shit! Matt with his cannon thing, Harper with that weird pink sword! Oh, and me, being badass as usual with my guns." He made a finger gun and little sound effects with his mouth, pretending to shoot me.
It was at this point that Harper came up behind him and punched him on the shoulder, "You're forgetting that you shot me with most of those bullets, dumbass."
Talon threw a dismissive hand, "Ah, but you survived, didn't ya?! Oh, and who can forget Malachi! That curse is really something!"
I was shocked at that. Curse? Did he say Curse?
I pulled away from both he and Sera to gawk at him. So that's how he got so much power…
"Curse? You have the Curse of Achilles, man?"
Malachi nodded sheepishly, "Kind of. It was the only way to keep me from dying of that sickness." He shrugged, "Didn't hurt against Tartarus too."
Hearing the word Curse, Percy and Annabeth chimed in, with Percy raising an eyebrow. "Did somebody say Achilles Curse?"
Malachi raised his hand, almost groaning at the sudden attention. Percy pumped his fist and exclaimed, "I knew it! That's why his attack didn't do anything to you!" But then Percy became puzzled, "Wait, but how did you absorb the energy? I thought only Matt could do that."
"Matt doesn't absorb and keep the energy, Seaweed Brain." Annabeth corrected, "He absorbs it into an attack, not into his own energy. That's what Malachi did."
Percy was still not getting it, "Either way, that's not a Curse sort of ability. Or at least one I'm used to. For me, it was sort of just…good strength, good speed, bad stamina, and a really bad weak spot." He then almost whispered his next question for some reason, "You do have a weak spot, don't you?"
He nodded, "I do. And I'm not sure why I have these strange abilities. Perhaps…it just has to do with the person? Or maybe awakening your aura has something to do with it. When you got the Curse, Percy, you hadn't awakened your aura yet, had you?"
Percy shook his head, "No, I hadn't. Huh, maybe that was it." He almost looked a little jealous, and mumbled, "I miss my curse. Stupid Camp Jupiter river…"
Annabeth just punched him on the shoulder and told him to stop whining.
Over the following chatter, I caught eyes with Harper. I haven't really had a chance to talk to her yet, any words we'd spoken had been about the battle, and…I still felt like we needed to have a conversation.
But now just didn't feel like the right time. It seemed like we had some things to take care of.
So we silently said to each other, later.
Not two seconds after that, I heard a groaning noise behind me, and what sounded like the grass stirring. I turned around to see Yuri on her knees, her hands keeping her upright. She looked like she was about to throw up.
The others saw my gaze, and gave me nervous looks. They weren't sure what to do.
I lowered my voice, "Just give me a minute guys, okay?"
They nodded silently, and I made my way over to her, with my hand outstretched.
"You okay?"
Yuri leaned back on her legs and breathed out hard through her mouth, sending a rogue strand of black hair flying back in place. I couldn't quite make out the look on her face, was it one of…guilt? Maybe she could tell that I was a bit angry with her for pulling that crazy stunt back her.
"I think so." She placed her hand in mine and I pulled her up, "Thank you."
For the first time since we've met, I think I actually felt taller than her. She also wouldn't look me in the eye.
My hands found their way to my hips, "That was a really stupid stunt you pulled back there, Yuri. Really stupid."
She made eye contact then, and said seriously, "I know. But I made you a promise, and I intended to keep it."
I shook my head. It was really, really hard to stay mad at her. I knew that the only reason I was mad was because I cared too much, and I didn't want her to go, especially going out on my behalf. If it happened, it would haunt me for the rest of my life.
But it didn't happen that way. For once…I managed to stop someone I care about from dying.
So I sighed, "You scared me to freaking death, Yuri."
Her gaze softened, "I know…and I am sorry."
"It's okay." I tried to lighten the mood with a joke, "Guess I just didn't actually believe you'd do it, so I was pretty surprised."
But Yuri took it as a challenge to her resolve. Her eyes flashed a dangerous blue, "When I lived on the Earth, on this surface, a promise was a very serious thing. Every promise was made on the Styx. They meant an infinite amount, and you died if you broke them." I regretted saying what I said, because it seemed like I'd struck a nerve. "I was promised something once, but someone I cared about…and it didn't last. It was broken, and it was then that I knew what it felt like to get the bad end of the stick. I could've never done that to you."
"Hey, I was only-"
But she was on a roll, "Your cause was a noble one, and I owed you. I was more than willing to sacrifice myself to help you and your friends escape Tartarus, so that is what I attempted to do."
I put up a calming hand, "I understand. Believe me, I do. I know how seriously you take promises, I just…worry, you know? I didn't want to lose you."
She didn't say anything for a moment, and I took that chance to add in, "It's…hard, to lose someone."
She processed what I said, and I processed what she said. I think at the end of the day, we should just let it go. I think she thought the same thing, because we didn't speak on it anymore.
We turned and stared out at the water. I stole a glance at her and she was looking at it fondly, as if she'd never look away. And I couldn't blame her. I had to wonder when the last time was that she had seen real water.
"It's been many, many years." She confirmed, "The water that I summon is mere molecules in the air. It's not as pure or vast as the great ocean." She breathed in the salty air, "How I've missed it."
I smiled at the sight. I felt happy for her. The little amount of time I spent in Tartarus was nothing compared to Yuri's time. She'd been in that prison for centuries, maybe even millennia.
"You're free now, Yuri." I said, "You can do whatever you want now."
"And I suppose I have you to thank, yet again. Perhaps I can spend my time repaying you? I'm sure you'll do something else to put me deeper in the hole."
"Uh, was that a joke?"
She snickered, "If you want it to be."
I chuckled, and listened to the waves crashing against the edge of the green. I began to think about what was coming next.
But Yuri caught me before I could comment on it, "I caught a glimpse of your attack. That was quite impressive."
"I just kept taking in energy. Even chaotic at one point, which just skyrocketed it like crazy."
"And it destroyed Tartarus."
"For good?"
She hesitated, "Well…I'm not sure. It's hard to say with a Primordial. Perhaps you should've stabbed it with that knife to ensure his permanent death, but even still, I'm not sure what would've happened. What you did was more than enough to keep him away."
"But if-"
"Matt." She said firmly, "Don't let him cloud your thoughts. He doesn't deserve it. He's gone, you finished him, it's over. You don't have to question what happens after."
I wanted to believe her, but something kept nagging at me. As powerful as that cannon was, I'm just not sure it was quite enough. Maybe ninety nine percent so, but not one hundred…
I mean, we didn't use the knife, and because of that, Tartarus can reform. It may take a hell of a long time, but it can happen. And that thought just bugs me.
But I managed to keep my cool, and nod, "O-Okay, you're right."
Yuri nodded, and directed her stare back to the water. To my left, I could tell that everybody was still waiting on me, but I didn't really want to wrap this up. It felt like I was about to say goodbye, and I hated that feeling.
"So, where will you go?" I asked, and upon hearing no immediate answer, I added, "I mean, it's a big world, right? Lots of places you probably want to visit."
She nodded, "Yes. I think I'd like that."
I started to say something, but I didn't want to guilt-trip her.
However, she must've been reading my mind, "You want me to come to your Camp?"
"I mean…I wouldn't mind it." I shrugged.
She gave a small laugh, "You are sweet, Matt, but I couldn't. I don't belong there."
I knew she'd say it, so I shouldn't bother trying to convince her otherwise. But of course I still gave a tiny groan, "Why not? You'd be great there! The campers would love you!"
"Thank you, but I don't think it would be a good idea. You all have your own goals that you're trying to achieve…I would just get in the way."
I wanted to say that was crazy, but I could already tell by reading her emotions that she wasn't budging. It wasn't that she wanted nothing to do with us or anything, she just didn't want to be an intruder. I couldn't really understand, we were getting along fine!
"Matt, you are not a boy, you are a man. You don't need me, and you don't need the gods." She cocked her head at me, a knowing sparkle in her eyes. "You have good friends, and that is worth far more than the help of any deity."
"Well, even if I don't need you, that doesn't mean I don't want you around. I mean, as far as I'm concerned, you're one of us now. I don't care if you're a titan."
She kept staring at me, and I figured I'd better go ahead and take the hint.
"But I understand what you're saying."
She turned to me, "But I'll definitely come by to visit on occasion. And if you ever need me for anything, I'll be there."
I nodded, "Okay. Um, how would you know if I need anything?"
She tapped her temple, "Trust me, I'll know."
"Alright. So this is…goodbye? For now, at least?"
"For now, yes." She started to walk away, but something stopped her. "Matt, I…have something I need to say, before I go."
"Sure, what is it?"
She seemed to be having trouble with this part, for some reason. Everything else was told to me fairly properly, but this was a bit shaky.
Finally, she gathered up the words that she wanted to say. "I…always wanted a child, a son specifically. And well…you…"
My eyes widened a little, and I felt sort of, I don't know, honored to hear her say it. Or at least imply it. I remembered what she said down in Tartarus, that time we talked about her past, and even then, she had mentioned she wanted a kid. But it never happened.
She continued with a nervous laugh, "Forgive my incoherency, I've never said these words to anyone before, and it is…rather hard for me. But I will say, I have not cared for anyone in a long time the way I care for you. Though we may be apart, we will always be connected. The same way you are connected to your friends."
Then, she reached out and pulled me in for a hug. It was warm, and safe. For some reason it felt oddly familiar, like I'd done this a thousand times in my childhood.
I hugged her back briefly, before I could even tighten my grip, she had already pulled away. Just as she did, I felt something soft press against my forehead. When I looked up, it was Yuri planting a kiss there.
She leaned back and smiled at me, "You take care of yourself, Matt. Goodbye."
Before I could even process what happened, or say anything to her, she was gone. Yuri jumped into the water and disappeared in the waves, back in her domain. I imagine she felt on top of the world right now, finally able to feel her natural element again, after who knows how long.
I waved, "Later, Yuri."
Noticing her absence, everyone must've decided that it was time to go. I had taken care of my goodbye, because Harper came over to fetch me.
She came with a raised eyebrow, and a suspicious gaze. Though I could already tell she was only joking in what she was about to say.
"You sure you guys are just friends? Or did something happen down in Tartarus that I need to know about?" She snickered.
But I must've looked more gloomy than I thought, because her smile fell, and she nodded sympathetically.
"She'll visit, I'm sure."
"Yeah..."
I stared off in silence, while Harper fidgeted uncomfortably.
"So...everyone's waiting. Malachi's going to teleport us back."
I shook my head, snapping out of my trance. "Right. You uh, have some stuff you need to take care of right? And then we can talk?"
Me knowing seemed to catch her off guard, but she gave a single nod, "Yeah, I do. We can meet up later, if you want."
"Sounds good to me."
Talon was getting impatient, because he waved us over, "Come on, let's get this show on the road! I gotta feed Snowflake!"
Before he blew a gasket, we decided to shuffle over and grab onto Malachi. In a flash, we were disappearing from the world around us.
Harper
When we got back to Camp, it was pure chaos.
A good chaos though, I'd say. All of the campers crowded around us and begged to know what happened. We were all a little thunderstruck, and pretty much vegetables, unable to say anything.
But Percy and Annabeth, being Camp directors, were able to finally calm them down and explain what happened. I found my eyes trailing to a familiar set of black hair.
"Aiden?"
"Sis!"
Both he and Nico came rushing over to me, and I met them halfway, getting away from the crowd. Aiden crushed me in a hug, and pulled away quickly to ask me a million questions.
"What the hell happened? We came back and didn't see any of you anywhere! Then we hear some rumor that you're down in Tartarus?!"
"Yeah well, it's kinda true."
Nico shook his head, "Damn, really?"
"Yeah."
"I'm sorry we weren't here to help." He said, "Had we known we'd be down there in an instant."
Aiden nodded rapidly, "Hell yeah we would! You should've sent an iris message, or, or-"
I grabbed his shoulders, "Aiden, it's fine, really. We handled it."
"But, but-"
"I didn't send an iris message because I wanted you guys to enjoy your holiday. And you did, right?"
He shook his head for a second, about to mumble more nonsense, but then he thought about it, "Well, yeah, we enjoyed it. It was good. Hazel was so happy to see Nico."
"Then that's all that matters."
He hesitated, "Well…if you say so, sis."
"Is everyone else alright?" Nico asked, "Matt okay?"
I took a look back at him, at everyone. They were scrambling to explain what had happened to the campers, answering question after question, gesturing their hands like crazy.
"Yeah, he's fine." I scrunched my face, "Hey, what day is it?"
"The twenty-third, why?"
I smiled, "Got back just in time, then. It's not Christmas yet."
Aiden looked at Nico and then back at me, with a raised eyebrow. "That's not like you, Harper. You've never smiled about Christmas before."
"Well…guess I've just never had a reason to, until now."
I decided I probably needed to get away from all of the chatter to gather my thoughts. I talked to Aiden and Nico a bit longer, promised them I'd get them something good for Christmas, and made my way to my cabin.
But when I crossed the long stretch of grass past the campfire, I found someone standing next to my doorway, under the torches.
It was...my mom.
Judging by the way she was leaned up against the wooden wall, she'd been waiting for a long time. She had her arms crossed and her eyes half open.
I stopped dead in my tracks, what was she doing here? Was she worried about me or something?
"Mom?"
Her head whipped up instantly, her eyes wide now and her body straight as a needle. I hadn't expected that kind of reaction. Why was she acting so weird?
"Oh, Harper!" She called, and ran over to me, her arms outstretched. When her body crashed into mine, I was nearly knocked off my feet, and almost crushed to death in a spine crunching hug.
"M-Mom, can't...breathe."
"Oh, sorry." She apologized and pulled away, albeit barely, keeping one hand on my shoulder and the other on the back of my head, cradling it. "I was worried you wouldn't come back."
I was surprised, and I must've looked it too, because she took her hands off me and looked at the ground with shame. "Surprising? Yes, it probably is. I suppose that's the...first time I've ever hugged you, isn't it?"
I wasn't really thinking about it, but now that she pointed it out...yeah, that's the first time I can ever remember her hugging me. I'm not even sure if she held me as a baby. Man, she was acting really weird right now.
"Um, I guess it is." I said, "Are you okay? You're acting kinda strange."
"I'm fine now that I know you're safe." She looked to the cabin door, almost nervously, "Can we go inside and talk for a moment?"
"Yeah, sure." There was an awkward moment where I waited for her to open it, you know, it being her literal cabin and all, but she just stood there, waiting for me to do so. I guess she was trying to be polite. My mom, who's usually blunt and pretty much the original copy of me, is trying to be polite. Okay, now I'm a bit freaked out.
She followed in after me and I shut the door. She used some of her aura to light the torches inside of our cabin, on the walls next to our beds. It was getting pretty dark out, so I'm glad she did it. In a few minutes we'd be in the pitch black.
She looked pretty uncomfortable, and I figured I'd have to offer her a seat or something to get her to stop fidgeting. So I gestured to my bed, and she sat on it, me trailing soon after to her left.
"So, what's up?"
"I just wanted to see you, and...make sure that you're okay. I heard what happened with, you know-"
"Tartarus?"
She flinched, "Yes. I wouldn't be throwing names around so casually like that, though."
I snorted, "It's fine, he's gone now. We defeated him when we were down there, or well, Matt technically did. He used this giant Red Beam Cannon imbedded with chaotic energy to pretty much disintegrate him."
I said all of that pretty fast, and Mom was rearing her head back, trying to keep up. She seemed to not miss a word, "The Son of Hercules? I see, so it was true. All of your...comrades were down there with you."
"Friends, mom. That's what they're called."
She nodded quickly, "Oh yes, you're right. Friends."
"Well, there was this other person. A female titan actually, named Eurybia. Matt and she became friends when Tartarus trapped him."
"The name sounds familiar." She said, but didn't give it much thought, "Well then, that's good news. None of the gods were sure on what to do, we had no idea if you were dead, trapped forever, or anything. I'll tell the others that you defeated Tartarus, which by the way, is an incredible feat. I honestly didn't think it was possible that the ancient laws would allow it."
"Well, we don't know for sure if he's dead or not. I mean, we beat him, don't get me wrong. But killed him? That's another story."
She nodded, "I see. Well, all that matters is that you're alive. I'm...sorry I wasn't there to help you."
Normally I'd start blaming her, and having a fit, but now...it just doesn't really bother me. I mean, seeing that crazy shit on Olympus kind of opened my eyes to the fact that the gods have their hands full too, and it's not just us. Also, Hades coming to help changed my mind a bit too on gods' general laziness. I'd definitely had a change of heart compared to a couple of years ago. I was able to smile at my mom and throw a careless hand.
"Ah, it's alright. I know you guys were busy." I cocked my head, "Mom, I gotta ask, why are you acting so...weird? It's like you're nervous about something."
I felt kind of bad for calling her out like this. I could tell she was trying to be nice, but it just seemed forced, or difficult. I'm not sure what the word is, but she was clearly out of her comfort zone. I just wanted to know what was up.
Finally she gave up and sighed. "I'm just not used to this. Interacting with you, waiting for your return from a battle, showing...affection. It is all new to me."
"I understand."
"I want to be a part of your life, Harper. A regular part of it. Not an invisible force that watches from afar, abandons her children, or...causes them to live in an unsafe household."
She said it carefully, and peeked at me from the corner of her eye. I didn't feel any anger or frustration though, which I'm sure she was afraid to elicit.
"All of that's in the past. I don't hate Dad, and I don't hate you."
"Really? No grudge at all? Not even under the surface?"
I shook my head, "No. I think I've just moved past all that. It feels...better, to be honest. Like I finally got a good night's sleep, you know? Like all the stress I'd been carrying for years was finally lifted." A snicker escaped my lips, "Who knew revenge could be so unhealthy?"
Mom surprised me with a nod, "You are right. Sometimes I am ashamed to represent it. It can be good, in the heat of the moment, but in the long term...it only brings self-destruction." She smiled warmly at me, "I'm glad you've moved on from it. Truly, Harper."
I smiled back, "Thanks. And I don't feel like that towards you now, I promise. We've started over, right? That's how I look at it."
"Yes, I do too. I...I promise to do better now, Harper. I don't want to fail you and Aiden like I failed Levi..."
She trailed off, and I could tell by the sound of her voice that she was holding back tears. I knew she'd probably thought about it as much as I had, and it probably tore her apart. The one time she comes back to help us, Levi gets killed.
I took ahold of her hand, "Hey, you didn't fail Levi. What happened wasn't your fault, it wasn't anybody's. Atlas did that, not you. And I know you're not going to fail me or Aiden. Have you talked to him any?"
She nodded, sniffing, "I spoke to him before you got here. He's a brave boy."
"He is." I said, "Look, nobody's asking you to jump in headfirst and be here all the time. We understand you have responsibilities you have to take care of. So we can just take it slow, okay?"
Mom looked grateful. I'd pretty much said every word she wanted to hear, yet I meant all of them. She squeezed my hand, "Okay. Would it be fine if I came by for Christmas? I've heard families spend time together on that day the most."
I chuckled, "Yeah, that would be great."
She nodded, and gently slipped her hand away, starting to stand up. "Well, I know you probably want to talk to your friends, or perhaps get some rest. I imagine it's been a long few days. I'll leave you be."
I almost responded in agreement, but something stopped me. "Hey mom, wait a second."
"What is it?"
"I uh, need a favor, if you don't mind. A quick one."
"Of course. What?"
I released the breath I didn't know I was holding. "Can you take me back to the old house? There's something I need to do."
She looked a little surprised by it, but didn't refuse. "I...can, yes. Now?"
"Yeah, if you don't mind." I stood up and made sure I had my knives in their sheathe. I carefully took out the Heavenly Diamond one and placed it in the drawer next to my bed, along with the Blade of Eros, which I propped up against the wall in between the nightstand and the bed. If they want it back, they can just come and get it, I didn't really plan on going to Olympus to return it anyways.
Once I finished, I reached out and placed my hand on Mom's shoulder. She looked to make sure I was ready, and then enacted the teleportation process.
We flashed out of the air and into the weird kaleidoscope world, full of the crazy color spiral and everything. Now I'm just used to it, even the queasiness that comes up in my stomach. But let me tell you, first time teleporters, you will throw up. No way around it.
When we zipped back into reality, I was glad I had some experience, because throwing up now would totally ruin the mood. I didn't though, thankfully.
She'd taken us right to the spot I'd hoped for. We hadn't landed in front of the now condemned house, but behind it, in the tall, unmowed grass, near the group of trees back there.
But one tree specifically caught my eye. It was the red leafed one, the one that never got old, the one that never lost its leaves, the one that Levi and I used to practice under years ago. It was where he was buried. I remembered it like it was yesterday. Months ago, Matt, Mom, and I had come here to put him to rest. That's when Zeus showed up too, and I pretty much passed out of exhaustion, and probably a little heartbreak if I'm being honest.
But now it was just Mom and I. I didn't mind her being here for this at all, in fact, I kind of wanted her too.
I motioned for her to follow me, and together, we walked all the way to the tree. It was the furthest one to the back, right in front of the long field that eventually led to the road. That meant the sun shone on it the brightest out of the others, because it was like the lone wolf, a bit farther away and not as tight knit.
I stopped right in front of Levi's little grave we'd made. It was still here, no headstone, nothing with his name on it, just a mound of dirt that signified his late presence.
I didn't really feel depressed looking at it, to be honest. I'll never not feel sad, that's true, but right now...I sort of accepted that he wasn't here anymore. Maybe for the first real time since it happened.
"His grave? What did you need to do here?" Mom asked.
"I just...needed to talk to him for a minute."
At her silence, I turned to assure her that I'm not crazy, but Mom waved an understanding hand.
"No, I completely understand. I'll um...leave you be for a moment."
"O-Okay."
Mom walked about thirty feet to the left towards the house, just out of earshot, and left me alone with Levi. I didn't want to exclude her or anything, but I felt a little on the spot with her standing right behind me. I felt like I needed to make every word perfect, but really, I didn't even know what to say. I felt like I needed to speak to his corpse, but I had no idea on what words to use.
"Hey...Levi." I said, and then promptly shook my head, "Sorry, I know this is dumb. You're not even alive, and here I am trying to talk to you."
No response, of course. Just the wind.
My eyes darted everywhere, beating around the bush on what I really wanted to say. I was trying to find something to lead up to it, something to stall.
"Glad nobody's burned the house down since we've been gone. Honestly if someone wanted to fix it up they could, it's just got some grass growing out of it, and...maybe some rotting, but that's not too bad, right?"
I reached behind me and felt of the knives on my sheathe and remembered why I was really here.
I sighed and knelt down to the dirt mound.
"It's been...hard, without you. I kept remembering, things that I've never even thought twice about before, but they always had some sort of lesson to them. And I've been wondering all this time how I can keep you with me, how I can keep you alive, even when you're not really here."
"And I think I've figured it out a little now. I think I've accepted it more and more, that the truest way to keep someone alive that you've lost...is to let them live through you. If I take all of the good things you taught me, and use them, then your memory lives on. At least, through my actions."
I pulled out both knives and held them before me, tracing the bronze metal with my eyes. "It's not the outcome I wanted, and I can't help but think what could've been a lot. What you at our Camp would've been like, or even years down the road. How different would things be." I sighed, and remembered another lesson in that moment. It was quick, and blurry, but I remembered it.
"But I know what you told me long ago. Dwelling on things that could've been only keeps you from what's going on right now. And I need to focus on what's going on now. We...won, today. I mean, the first real victory in a long time for us. We actually took down Tartarus and ruined a good bit of Ouranos's plans. I mean, those two were planning on working together."
I imagined him being too overwhelmed by that sentence alone and I laughed lightly, "Yeah, I know. That sounds crazy. But the point is, I think we've earned a little time for celebration, for once. Christmas was really never our thing when we were kids, but this year...I think I'm gonna go all in on it. Hell, I might even decorate my cabin."
The wind stopped and everything got quiet. My smile fell and I took one last good look at my knives. The knives that I'd held for years and years, the knives that have saved me countless times. Extensions of myself. It's hard to put in the bond between a person and an object, but I don't know, I just feel like they're almost...a part of me. Not just weapons.
But even still, I know what I have to do. So much of them is connected to Levi, and if I ever truly want to let go, if I ever truly want to move on, then I need to do this.
"You said if I ever felt like I was ready...to give these back." I spun them around in my hands a couple of times and stabbed them hard into the mound of dirt, where they stood straight up, hilts facing the sky.
It looked like a good alternative gravestone to me.
I stood straight up and looked down at them, "Well, I think I'm ready to finally let go. They're yours again."
I just watched them sit still for a minute or two, with no thoughts left in my mind, I knew I'd said all the words I wanted to say. Yet, I felt my feet planted to the ground.
It was when Mom came over that I broke out of my trance. She didn't question what I did, why I put the knives there, my words, or anything. She just asked if I was ready to go.
"Are you ready, Harper?"
And I'd never loved her more for it.
I smiled, and took one last look at both the knives, and Levi. "Yeah, I'm ready. Take me home."
Matt
It was good to see Camp again.
Even the massive mob that crowded us and asked ten million questions was a sight for sore eyes. I was happy to answer all of them.
I saw Harper leave the crowd a few minutes in, and I knew she needed to think about some things. I think Aiden said Nemesis was here, so I didn't ask any questions or try to eavesdrop. I knew what she was going through. I was kind of in the same boat.
After Percy and Annabeth calmed the crowd down, I walked off to the side and glimpsed at the building tops of New York City, just drinking in the sight. I'd never found it more beautiful.
I heard leaves rustling and felt the aura of Malachi coming up next to me. He spoke with a soft greeting, "It's good to be home, isn't it?"
I nodded, "Sure is. I never thought I'd miss the sight of smoke and a big city so much."
He looked sideways at me, "You're thinking about something."
I chuckled, "That Curse give you psychic powers?"
"No, I just know. And I don't need to hear it, I just want to know that everything is okay."
"Everything's okay. It's just...I don't know, in that few days I was down there, it sort of opened my eyes to a lot of things. As crazy as it sounds, the experience actually might've been good in some ways."
Malachi shrugged, "It is often in our worse moments that we learn from the most. I feel the same way about my time being trapped in Mount Othrys. Being used as a killing machine. I've thought about it every day, how I can redeem myself, how I can become better and erase my past self. But...I think I've come to the conclusion that you don't need to do any of that."
I understood what he was saying, "You're right. It's best to keep those memories intact, that way-"
"You can compare." Malachi finished, smiling. "You can compare your best self to your worst self, and see how far you've come. That's my goal, to get infinitely better than I was, to leave a mile wide gap."
I patted him on the shoulder, "I'm really glad to hear you say that, man. And if it means anything from an outsider, I think you're making great progress."
He nodded gratefully, "It does, Matt. From you, it does." He looked back at our group and cocked his head at me, "You know, Talon has always been my best friend, but you...well, I don't quite know what we are. In some ways, it's more than that, but in other ways...it's not."
I laughed, "I don't think many people could ever create a label for our relationship. First we want to kill each other, then we become friends, have a year apart, then a few more fights here and there, and...well, you know it's a lot."
"But I would not trade it for anything." He said, "Comrade, is fitting. I think."
I put out my hand, and he clasped it firmly, like we were about to arm wrestle. "Comrade."
The others saw us and decided to come over. Sera was really excited.
"We did not miss Christmas!" She squealed and jumped in Malachi's arms. "Oh, how I love Christmas! It is truly the best time of the year!"
Talon groaned, "We know. I still have Jingle Bells stuck in my head from when you sang it on the Island."
Sera looked offended, "You told me that my singing was great!"
Talon grumbled, "It is, princess, but there is too much of a good thing, you know."
Percy gave a nervous laugh, and put his arm around Annabeth. "I hate to say it, but it might be a pretty lame one this year. I mean, we were so busy with the whole Tartarus debacle, not to mention the wedding plans, that we kind of didn't do any shopping. Like any, at all."
"Hey, it's not the presents that matter anyway, Percy." Annabeth said, "We're all together. I don't care if this sounds cliche, but that's what matters, right?"
Talon kicked at some leaves on the ground, "Presents are pretty nice though, blondie. Specially' when you needed to make up for your gift this year."
Annabeth reared her head back, "I literally got what you asked me to get. A black cowboy hat!"
Talon groaned loudly, and leaned forward with his hands up for emphasis. "Brown. I said brown! Don't you know your colors, woman?!"
Before Annabeth and Talon got into an all out fistfight, Sera stepped between them and broke it up.
"Stop, you two!" She pushed Talon back, "Annabeth is right. We should be grateful that we are all alive and okay, not worrying about what color of the stupid hat you wanted."
Talon gasped, "Stupid? Sera, you-"
"Talon." She warned. It was kind of funny, and a little surprising, to see Sera get so firm with Talon, who was a stuttering mess. We were all trying not to laugh.
He got red in the face, and looked at the ground in embarrassment. "Alright alright fine, you're right. Geez."
Sera lit up, "Yay!"
"You know actually, it only being the twenty third, we could probably still get something for each other." Percy offered. "I mean, the stores aren't closed or anything. We'd just all have to go shopping tomorrow."
"Secret Santa?" I said, "Remember how that went last time?"
Everybody groaned, and I got a collective sense of don't remind us.
"We don't have to do Secret Santa." Annabeth said, "But we could still get a gift for each person."
We all seemed to like that, but before we could really talk about it, I broke in.
"We can talk about it more later guys; I need to go to the city really quick."
"What's up?"
"Oh, it's nothing. I just need to visit my mom, make sure she's okay. Wish her Merry Christmas, you know."
They all nodded and wished me goodbye, and I took off into the city, using Viribus to manipulate the wind.
When I got to the hospital, I felt a little nervous.
I looked up at it from the street, and remembered what happened, when I first encountered Tartarus.
Now looking back on everything that happened, in such a short amount of time, it seemed like years had passed. It was so strange.
I took a deep breath and walked up the steps to enter the building. I checked in as usual, the place was perfectly fine. The window had been fixed, the nurses and the patients were okay, none dead, no harm done. Which was a relief.
I was still bit worried about mom though. I hope the temporary spell Tartarus had her under didn't affect her mind in any long-term way. I'm no doctor, so I really don't have much of an idea.
I'd just wish her Merry Christmas, and talk for a bit, if she's able. Spending that time down there, I realized I needed to stop taking people for granted. Including her. I think Yuri opened my eyes to that.
I turned the corner, and when I got down the hallway, I was able to peek into my mother's room. The door was open, which I found odd. Did she need one of the nurses?
But upon closer inspection, I couldn't believe what I saw. Or rather, who I saw standing there, right next to my mother's bed.
Standing a head taller than me, towering over the room, was my grandfather, Zeus.
He had on his usual clothing, a pin striped suit, cleanly pressed, with dress shoes, bulging muscles, and a dark beard. His appearance wasn't the part that shocked me, I mean, it did, but I felt a horrible sense of deja vu.
Though, before I decided to act crazy and barge right in, I told myself that Tartarus was beaten. There was no way he was performing the same trick again. To be sure, I reached out with my aura sense, and sure enough, it was actually Zeus. Before, I hadn't even felt for his aura, and Tartarus didn't have a detectable one, so I knew there was nothing to worry about here.
Or maybe there was. What the hell did he want? Why was he with my mom?
I walked in the room with a raised eyebrow. "Grandfather? What are you doing here?"
Zeus turned around to look at me, his eyes flashed an electric blue for a split second, and then it faded. "Ah, Matt, come in."
I looked past him, and suddenly, I forgot he was even in the room. Because there, on the bed, my mom was sitting upright. She looked more awake than I'd ever seen her. Her eyes were wide open, she didn't have bags under them, she didn't look malnourished, she looked as healthy as I'd ever seen her.
When she spoke to me as normal as ever, that was the kicker.
Her eyes were welling up with tears as she smiled, and that was the moment I knew...she was healed.
"Oh Matt, it's so good to see you."
I felt my lip quiver on its own. I was too shocked to even know I was starting to cry. I just kept shaking my head, unable to believe it. Finally, I looked to Zeus, and he shot me an assuring nod.
"Mom!" I said, and I ran to her, like a little kid. Crashing into her arms, we laughed and hugged tighter than ever before, for several minutes probably, or hours. I couldn't tell. All I knew was that my mom, my sick mom, was well. She was finally well. I could feel it in her lifeforce, her own mortal aura, that there was no longer the mental imbalance, no longer that nasty blockage that had been there since I was thirteen.
I pulled back and looked between them rapidly, utterly confused as to what was going on. I was beginning to question if everything was a dream.
"How-I mean...how did this happen?!"
Mom nodded at Zeus, "You have Lord Zeus here to thank. He came by yesterday and...we talked for a bit, about you."
I was confused, I looked up at Zeus, "Really? What did you-"
He looked like he wanted to explain everything but stopped himself. "We'll talk in a bit, Matt. Right now, I want you to enjoy being with your mother. Spend some time together, I'll be back in a few minutes."
"But wait-"
Even before I started moving my mouth, he was gone in a quiet flash, and I was talking to mid-air.
I sat down next to mom and started to ask her what the hell was going on, why Zeus randomly healed her when apparently, he could've all this time. But...looking at her, I didn't even want to. I was just happy.
"Mom-" I breathed; "-I just can't believe it. I can't believe you're better now. It's been four years."
She nodded with her eyes closed, "I know, honey. Four miserable years, for you, I imagine. I'm so sorry that I wasn't in the right mind, that I couldn't talk to you normally. I'm sure you've had so much going on with the monsters and your life that you wanted to tell me about. I feel like I've missed everything."
I immediately put my hand on her shoulder and started rubbing it. She looked incredibly guilty.
"Hey, don't start with that. You know I don't blame you for a single thing. You couldn't help it."
"I know, but still. I know it's been hard, hasn't it."
I couldn't deny it. I was done lying to her, especially now that she's back and well, I needed to tell the entire truth. "Yeah, that's one way to put it. It's been absolutely crazy for these past couple of years."
She nodded sadly, "I do remember some things you told me. I remember Harper, and your other friends. I remember something about a...giant bull that you rode?"
I laughed, "Yeah, the Cretan Bull. That was a fun one."
"And a few more things. But I'm sure there's a lot to it."
I sighed, and took my hand off to plop it on my lap. "Yeah, there's a...lot. Like a lot, a lot. I can't go through every bit of it, that'll take all day."
"Well, we don't have to cover it all today, just tell me the big stuff."
I nodded, "Alright, well to put it frankly...I'm at war, mom."
She was silent, and her eyes were wide staring at me, maybe trying to gauge if I was joking or not. But when she found out I was dead serious, she spoke again.
"You weren't kidding, that was frank. What do you mean war? Who with?"
"It's a war between us demigods, and gods, against this Primordial named Ouranos. You know who the Primordials are, right?"
"Yes."
"Well, he's one of them. He was the original sky god, at the beginning of time. He's got this notion that the Earth belongs to him, and always has. Just because he was here before most of us, it gives him the right to shape it in his image. He got cut to a million pieces by his son, the titan Kronos. You know the story, right?"
"I know that part, yeah."
"Well, he kind of wants revenge against fate itself, I guess." I shook my head, feeling a horrible taste building in my mouth just talking about him. "None of his motivations or ambitions excuse him from what he's done though. He's nothing more than an evil, cruel, sadistic psychopath that wants to inflict pain on others any way he can. He wants the world all to himself and he doesn't care who he has to kill or hurt to get it. He's a monster."
"It...sounds like it."
I hesitated on what I was about to say next. I'd never really told her about this, and I was afraid to now. But I knew that if I didn't say anything, it would be in the back of my mind any time we talked. I needed to come clean, she deserved to know.
"Mom, he killed dad. He killed him right in front of me, with a weapon that kills gods permanently. Like, they can't reform. They just stay in their afterlife, good or bad. Dad's was good, fortunately."
I breathed it all out in one suspenseful sentence and waited for her reaction. I had my arms tensed up, ready to hug her if she burst into tears. But surprisingly, she didn't.
She looked devastated, but she didn't bawl or anything. In fact, she nodded, like she already knew.
"Yes...I know. Zeus told me yesterday."
I gawked. He what?!
"Wait, yesterday?"
She nodded.
I started racing in my own head, the main thought screaming in my mind was why? Why did he not let me tell her? I mean, it made it a bit easier, because I dreaded telling her about that, but...I also felt responsible for it, you know? I was the one that saw it, so I should be the one to tell her. I'm her son.
But all I could say was, "Are you okay?"
She took a moment to respond, sniffing a couple of times and wiping a tear away. It was still very fresh. I can't imagine what she looked like yesterday.
"I will be. It's hard knowing that I might never see him again, but Zeus also told me what he did. How he found you, trained you, and sacrificed himself for you. That's what made me cry the most, if I'm being honest. Tears of joy that you two were able to spend some time together before he went."
"We did." I remembered fondly, "We didn't get along first, but over time...I grew to love him. He was amazing."
"I'm so happy, honey." She was trying hard to keep it together, I could tell. I noticed she was wearing the necklace he made for her, the one he gave me before he died. I imagine she was thinking about that right now. "I'm just so, so sorry that you had to see that. Zeus told me about this...Ouranos that has been causing so much trouble."
"He has." I growled, "He's been making our lives a living hell. He likes to torture me for no reason. His latest trick, telling his brother to terrorize me and drag me into the deepest pit of hell for a few days."
She shook her head, "Oh my god...Matt, I'm so-I don't even know what to say."
"Yeah, it's been a wild ride. But I know we're close to beating him, Mom, I just know it. We defeated his brother only a couple of hours ago, and that was a big win. If we can just catch up to Ouranos before he reaches his prime state, we can end it for good. Then everything will be normal. We can be a normal family again."
I squeezed her hand, and she squeezed it back firmly. We smiled at each other.
By that time, apparently a few minutes had passed, because Zeus came back in the room, silently. But I felt his presence.
"May we talk for a minute, Matt?" He asked.
I nodded, "Yeah, that's fine. I'll come back as soon as I can, Mom."
"Okay, honey. Thank you again...Lord Zeus." She said and gave a little bow of thanks.
"You are welcome. I only need to borrow your son for a moment."
"That's fine."
I figured he'd explain everything in this talk, so I was more than happy to go with him wherever. I put my hand on his broad shoulder and felt myself get taken away.
We didn't go into the kaleidoscope world, we were instantly transported to Olympus, beside the palace where all the minor gods were. We stood near the edge of the city, at the marble balcony overlooking New York.
It had finally turned dark out, the sky was littered with stars, the air was chilly and crisp. I honestly felt enriched by it.
"I'm glad to see you all returned safely."
I turned to him immediately and asked, "Why'd you heal her?"
He tightened his lips and nodded; he knew I was going to cut to the chase. Well, what did he expect?
"To make amends."
I...actually wasn't expecting that answer.
"With me?"
"Yes, with you. I know your feelings towards me lately haven't been very high. Most of that is my fault, yes, and I wanted to change that. With Hercules gone, and Jason...well, also gone. You and Thalia are all I really have left, and she's so busy I rarely see her."
"You have your godly children too."
"Yes, but with them, it's different. You'd understand if you were a god. Millions of years of the same thing is a bit bland."
I wasn't sure what to say. "Well...thank you. I'm grateful, don't get me wrong, but why now? You couldn't have done it all this time?"
He sighed, "Fate is a serious thing, Matt. Defying it can be fatal, even for me. Most deaths are signed with fate, and most events that happens to mortals, are also signed in fate. To intervene in such a thing is...dangerous, to put it lightly."
I was starting to get what he was saying. He actually took a huge risk in doing what he did. He wasn't supposed to heal her, but he did anyway.
"You went against fate by healing her."
He nodded, "Fate itself, is a being. Not an abstract force. It can speak and interact, like I can. Only it is a bit harder to harm. I was forced to endure quite...much, yesterday after I healed your mother."
I wanted to ask what, but I fought against it. He probably didn't want to explain. Just judging by his face I could tell that something happened yesterday.
"Pain?"
"Yes, an abundance of it. It's nothing I haven't taken before. I've defied fate a few times, and it's the same physical torture as always. It's really not all that bad, I'm almost over it now, and it's only been a day."
I felt my negative feelings towards him fading away and started to feel a little guilty. He'd gone through all that just to fix the bridge with me? Maybe I should've just cut him some slack to start with...
"But you're powerful. Couldn't you fight back?"
He shrugged, "I could. But a battle like that would last for eternity. And frankly I'm not interested in fighting Fate for that amount of time. I'd rather take a beating here and there and be done with it."
"Thank you. I...I forgive you, okay? I'm sorry for being such a brat and blaming you for what happened to Levi. That was stupid."
"No, you had a point, Matt. I'm not saying you didn't. I have not been there like I should, and I'm going to change that, starting now."
"What do you mean?"
He took in a deep breath, "Matt, I brought you up here for two reasons. One, to explain why I healed your mother, and two...to offer you something."
Now my heart started pounding. At that moment, I began to get anxious, and a bit excited. What was he talking about? Was it a weapon?
"O-Okay, what is it?"
He turned to me and stood straight, as tense and poise as a statue, full of seriousness.
"I'm offering you the same thing my son did when you met him again. I want to mold you into the perfect weapon to fight Ouranos."
My eyes widened, and I felt like my entire body had been lit on fire.
I think my jaw might've dropped to the floor too, "You mean...training? A-Are you serious?! You'd train me?!"
Zeus nodded, smirking. "Yes, I would. I've realized that the time may come when I will have to fight Ouranos myself. Now, our main goal, and yours too, I imagine, is to catch him early and nip it in the bud. Before he can reach his prime state, or an even higher one."
I nodded vigorously, pumped with adrenaline.
"But should he, for whatever reason, enter his prime state and defeat me...you will need to step up."
That was when I scrunched my face up, almost laughing at the prospect. "Ouranos defeat you? I doubt that."
I figured Zeus would be cocky and agree, but no, he seemed very serious. "Never underestimate your enemy. It's a mistake I made many times in my youth. When I fought Typhon for the first time, I thought the bigger they were, the harder they fell. He was big and dumb, that's what I thought, and I underestimated him."
"He beat you?!"
"Well, no. But he got some good hits in. Hits that he shouldn't have, if I were smarter and more prepared. The point is, while I may be more powerful, Ouranos is very, very smart. He could come with a trick that even I don't know about and use it against me. You can never count anything out, Matt. There could be an upset in any battle. So however unlikely it may seem, there is a possibility that he will defeat me. That is when you will have to step up. I know for a fact I'll be able to wound him, so you'll be able to finish him off, I'm sure."
I gulped, suddenly feeling overwhelmed. He made it sound like it would just be me fighting him. What about my friends?
He read my mind, and shook his head, "When the time comes, they may not even be able to do anything. The power gap will be so large, it may only be you, that can stop him."
"O-Only me? But there's no way! It took all of us to defeat Tartarus a couple of hours ago! And we had help from both Hades and Yuri!"
Zeus nodded, trying to calm me down. "Matt, trust me. If you agree to let me train you, I will turn you into something far more powerful than you are now. I will make you nigh unstoppable. It will not be easy, in fact, it very well may be the hardest thing you've ever done. But when you come out...the fruits of training will flourish."
I wasn't sure what to say. The idea was incredible. Training with Zeus is a once in a lifetime privilege, that I'm positive no hero, demigod, or even god has ever had the chance to partake in.
"How long would it take?"
Zeus raised a knowing finger, "That's a good question that I hoped you'd ask. I want to show you something."
He started walking, and I followed him into the palace. We entered the massive building and passed the thrones, into a room that led into a giant hallway.
We walked down it for several minutes, finally coming upon a small door.
Zeus ducked under it and opened it. Where it led to was one of the strangest things I'd ever seen.
Inside was the literal opposite of Tartarus's world. In color at least. It was an infinite stretch of the color white, and nothing but white. It was hard to tell where the ground began and where the roof began. The only foreign thing that inhabited it, was a large hourglass sitting on the ground, about fifty feet from both of us.
"What is this place?"
Zeus gestured to it, "This Matt, is something very few people know about. It is the training room of the gods. A separate dimension where time is slowed. I created it myself long ago."
I was in awe, "You...made this place? It's amazing!"
"Here, you can train for one day, and that will equate to one year."
I gawked up at him, completely taken back. One day and one year? As the same?!
"H-How is that even possible?!"
"It's a different dimension where time is slower, that's all. On the outside, a day will have passed, but in that day, you will have trained for one year."
I was constantly shaking my head, absolutely struck by the new information. "Th-That's insane! How come the gods don't train in here all the time?"
He grumbled, "Because they're lazy. I cannot talk though; I rarely use it myself. But in light of these recent events, I think I may have to. And you will too, if you accept my offer. To answer your question of how long it will take. Only five days."
I did the math quickly, and when I did, I could barely get the words out.
"That's five years' worth of training." I started shaking with anticipation, "Holy shit!"
"Yes. Five is not too much, and not too little. I didn't want to stay too long, because five days on the outside could be catastrophic. Even one day could be, but we're going to take the chance, and I'm going to teach you things you've never thought possible. I'll teach you how to Master the Bolt, how to fight without thinking, how to obtain abilities that the other Olympians would be jealous of. But I need to know if you want to or not. Do you?"
I didn't even need to think about it. Five days was nothing! And if this worked out...I'd be infinitely stronger than before, and I'd have a whole slew of abilities to use against Ouranos if I need them. This is a huge opportunity that I can't pass up.
I nodded, "I do."
Zeus smiled, "Good, I figured you would agree. Now then, if you'll follow me-"
"Um actually-" I started, not trying to be rude. "-Would it be okay if I spent Christmas with my friends first? Then we start?"
Zeus made a grunt and started to refuse. But then he thought about it for a second, and reluctantly agreed. "I...suppose. But on the day after, I'm coming to retrieve you. Understood?"
"Got it."
I felt like I was on top of the freaking world right now.
Training with Zeus. Zeus, the king of the gods.
I couldn't believe it. I kept wondering what we might do, and how it'll make me change. Does that mean I'll age five years, or do I stay the same?
Ah, it hardly matters. But I'll tell you this, I'm really excited.
"Hey there."
Turning around to the source of the soft voice, I saw Harper standing not ten feet away from me. I'd returned to the balcony overlooking the city, not really wanting to leave Olympus quite yet. It was really me being so overwhelmed by the prospect of the upcoming training that I didn't feel quite in the right mindset to fly back to Camp.
"Hey..." I greeted, "What are you doing here?"
She moved her shoulder and showed me the Blade of Eros strapped to her back, wrapped in a long leather sheathe that looked to be new. She didn't have that before. "Well, I came to return this thing, but Zeus told me I could keep it. Gave me a new sheathe and everything."
"Oh, that's cool." One look at her waist...and I didn't see her knives. "Whoa, where are your knives?"
She stopped walking and looked down, as if forgetting she'd not brought them with her. Then she nodded, like she remembered what happened the next second.
"Yeah, I sort of...gave them back to Levi. Right before I came here, actually. Mom dropped me off."
That made me furrow my eyebrows. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. She'd had those knives for years, why would she give them back?
"I know what you're thinking," She said, "But I just felt like I was ready to leave them behind. Part of Levi is attached to those things, and if I can't let them go, I'll never move on from what happened." She chuckled, "Besides, they deserved to be retired. They've been through a lot."
She walked closer to me and propped her forearms on the marble railing, looking deep off into the city, while I never took my eyes off her.
"Are you okay?"
She sighed, and nodded, "Yeah, I think so. I guess I thought I was okay at first, but...I wasn't. You were right before, when you said that I was trying to block out the pain with all that aggressive training."
I cringed, "Harper, I'm sorry about all of that, I should've never said those things."
"No, you were right." She insisted, "I just didn't want to admit it, but you were right. I was trying to block it all out, keep my mind off it through fighting, but it never worked. I would still think about him, regret everything, wonder all the time what I could've done differently. Heh, I nagged on you for not getting enough sleep, when I was no better."
"But I still need to apologize for what I said." I mumbled, "I was wrong. You guys are the best, most dependable people I could ever ask for. I was stupid to ever say I couldn't lean on you for anything. Selfish to think that it was only me having a hard time with Ouranos, when all of you have had it much worse."
She shook her head, "It's not a contest. We've all had it hard."
I turned to her, "I know but still, I'm sorry. For everything."
She stared up at me for a moment, then bit her lip and took my hand to shake it. Like we were making a deal.
"Fine, fine, consider yourself forgiven. I was over it a long time ago anyway, you know I could never stay mad at you."
I snorted, "Yeah, you could."
She elbowed me in the ribs, but then just as quickly, reached up to lace her arm around mine and rest her head on my shoulder. Offering a small, "Shut up."
For a moment, we just looked at the city and the stars together. I savored this moment, this feeling, because I knew that like all the other moments we have together, it was scarce. This was the lull between the battles, this was the shred of peace we're allowed. We had to take what we could get, because I knew soon, something else was coming. And I don't just mean training.
"So, your mom stopped by." I said, "How's she doing?"
Harper shrugged, "She's doing okay. She wants to be a regular part of my life now, and Aiden's."
"Really? That's good of her."
When she didn't say anything, I asked, "You think she means it?"
"Oh yeah, I don't doubt that she does. I'm just...not used to it, you know? It's going to take some adjusting. But I can tell she's really trying, and I can't fault her for that."
I smiled, thinking about what I was going to say next.
"I've got some great news about my mom."
"Yeah? Did you get to talk to her today?"
"Yeah, I did. I got to talk to her, good as new."
It took her a second to catch on to what I was saying, and when she did, she pulled herself away from me.
"Wait, are you saying..."
I could barely hold back my grin, "Yep, Zeus...he healed her. She's back to normal!"
Harper's face lit up with a smile, and we found ourselves both laughing out of joy. She jumped up to hug me tightly, and I immediately clamped my arms around her waist, just as tight. Man, that sword really did make her stronger. I felt like my spine was going to crack.
When she pulled back, she could hardly get the words out. "Holy shit, Matt, that's...that's-"
"Amazing? I know. It's honestly surreal. I still can't believe it."
"So she's going to get to move back into her old apartment? Or how's that going to work?"
I cocked my head. Huh, I forgot to ask Zeus about that. When I left, she was still in her patient room, but I figured she'd have to leave, since she's you know, well now.
"Ah, it doesn't matter. She's well now, and that's all I can really think about."
She nodded and hugged me again. It felt good. Everything was perfect right now, and I couldn't have been happier. We defeated Tartarus, my mom's back to normal, Harper's with me again.
But...
I felt my smile fade when I remembered the conversation I just had. I never even thought about being away from her for almost a week, especially when we just reunited after all that hell we went through. I'm not sure she's going to like it.
Leave it to me to never think these things through.
"Um Harper, do you know why I'm here?"
"No. I mean, Zeus told me you guys talked, but that's about it."
I cursed under my breath. Leave it to him to tell my mom about dad's death, yet he can't let me off the hook with telling Harper about training? No, no, he's right. I need to tell her myself. Don't be a coward.
"Well, he healed my mom, that's true. But...he also offered me something."
"What?"
I hesitated, but just came out and said it in one sentence. "He offered to train me."
Harper heard me clearly, and her eyes went wide. "Whoa...that's..."
"A big deal? Yeah."
"Very." She nodded, "Train you how? Wait, why would he offer that in the first place? Does he even have the time for that?"
"Well, apparently he's thinking that it may come down to him fighting Ouranos himself. And he wants to have a backup plan in the event that Ouranos somehow kills him. If he does, he wants me to step up and finish Ouranos off."
"By yourself?" She yelped, "But that's crazy!"
"I said so too. But he assured me that when we were done, I'd be on another level of power." I shrugged, unsure about the whole thing, "I can't really see how I can get much stronger than I am now, but it is Zeus we're talking about. If anyone can do it, he can."
She nodded, and then raised an eyebrow, "You think he'll make you a god?"
"He might offer. But I won't go for it. I'm not becoming a god, I've already told myself that."
She knew why, so she didn't say anything further about it.
"So...you okay with that? Me training with him?"
She took in a deep breath and let out a long sigh. Truth be told, I was a bit worried about her reaction. I remembered how it had been when I went away to train with dad for an entire year, without even telling her. Bad move on my part. At least now I was telling her though, but she might not be okay with it even then.
Finally, she shrugged, "Of course I'm okay with it. If it's going to help us stop Ouranos, then you do what you think is best."
I was a bit shocked, "Really?"
"Well yeah." She said, matter of factly, "You know I want to kill that bastard. This sounds like a good opportunity, so yeah, go for it. I understand."
I was relieved, to be honest. But you know, I should've expected this from her, she's way more mature and understanding than I sometimes give her credit for. I guess I just tend to overthink a lot.
"Wow, I don't know what to say, Harper. You're...awesome."
She punched me lightly on the shoulder, "I already knew that, dummy. So, how long will it take? And when do you start?"
"Well, here's the thing on that. Zeus apparently has this giant chamber, or...room, rather, that's basically a separate dimension where time passes slower than normal. So for instance, a day out here would be a year in there."
Her jaw fell to the ground, "Damn, that's a big difference."
"Tell me about it. He's going to train me for five days, so the equivalent of five years total."
She looked about as surprised as I did, putting the pieces together of just how much training that really amounts to. If it truly is the same thing, no difference, then that's five years of constant training. With Zeus, no less.
"Wow...that's a lot of training, Matt. Now I'm starting to believe that you actually could take on Ouranos alone at the end of this."
"Ah, let's not get crazy. I'm never not going to need you guys, so let's get that straight right now."
"Matt, believe me, you're not hurting our feelings by making us sit on the bench. Trust me."
I chuckled, "He wanted to start right away, but I convinced him to let me start the day after Christmas."
Harper nodded, and then took my hands in hers, locking her one good blue eye with both of mine. "Well then, Shark Boy, that gives us about two days to catch up on our time together. What do you want to do?"
"Well, you know we gotta decorate our cabins, get a gift for each other, maybe roast some marshmallows, make a gingerbread house...oh, and you can't forget to leave out the cookies for Santa."
She laughed, "Okay, I get it, Mr. Christmas. I'll lighten up this year."
I let my smile fall and shushed her by placing my hand under her chin, lifting up ever so slightly to align our mouths. Her smile also fell, eyes sparking and becoming as vulnerable as glass.
"But before all of that...we've gotta cover the first thing on the list."
I closed the three-inch distance and pressed my lips to hers, as soft as a feather. She grabbed onto the back of my neck and deepened it. Before I knew it, we were holding on to each other tight and in a deep lock that couldn't be broken.
So you know, if Santa happened to be flying by that night, just to scout out the houses he had to deliver gifts to...I wouldn't have noticed a thing.
(Christmas Day)
This might go down as the best Christmas ever.
I might have to tell you about the whole day leading up to our gift exchange and all that, but right now, I really want to talk about what happened after.
Because this is kind of important.
We were all sitting around the living room in the Big House, right next to the blazing, warm fire in the fireplace. Me, Harper, Percy, Annabeth, Malachi, Sera, Aiden, Nico, and Talon, all side by side.
The couples sat together on a piece of furniture, real close, just after having opened their gifts, while Talon had a chair all to himself. To be honest, it was hard to feel sorry for him, he looked pretty happy that he had all the space he wanted.
It had been great, and we were having so much fun. The guys and the girls got together yesterday morning (without both parties knowing the other did, of course) and decided to go last minute Christmas shopping. It was a scramble, mainly because us guys hardly knew what to get, and because we only had a few hours to do so.
But it turned out alright in the end, and everything went great. Honestly, I don't think it really mattered what we got each other, as long as we were together, with no one to fight for at least a single day.
It went perfectly. That is...until he showed up.
Now don't get me wrong, I like the guy, a lot. But when he came to Camp, everything changed. Our little moment of peace? Interrupted. Our protective bubble of happiness and bliss? Popped. Reality struck again, and the war was back on blast.
Talon had just told a dumb story that he was trying to convince us of its realism. Something along the lines of, "No, I'm serious! I found a reindeer when I was a kid, and rode it! What? Of course it flew! All reindeer fly, idiot! No, they don't need wings, shut up!"
It was dumb, but we were having a good laugh over it. Until we heard a loud knock on the door.
It only came about three times, but they were very firm knocks that broke through our chatter and silenced the room.
Percy looked to Annabeth, "One of the campers?"
She leaned to look out the window to the far right of the door, displaying all of the campers engaged in a massive snowball fight.
"No it can't be. They declared a snowball war on each other a few minutes ago. It wouldn't end that soon."
We were all pretty confused by that point. We invited Nico and Aiden to come in before we opened the gifts, so who could it be? Nobody else would be checking up on us now, unless maybe it was a god. But that can't be right either, the only god I was aware of coming today was Harper's mom, and she already stopped by earlier.
A bit cautious of the situation, I decided to reach out with my aura sense. And when I did...I nearly fell out of my seat.
I felt a very familiar aura. An aura that I hadn't felt in over a year, belonging to an old friend of mine.
But the stranger thing that struck me...was the aura next to his. It was incredibly powerful, and downright foreign compared to even his. This aura felt like it was from a completely different realm.
Malachi must've reached out with his ability too, because we turned and locked wide eyes with each other at the same time. We both shared the same expression.
Oh no.
Talon noticed, because he nearly shouted, "What the hell is it? Who's out there?"
Harper nudged me, "Do you know who's out there, Matt?" She didn't have her sword right now, so I knew she didn't have a way of telling.
I didn't even answer her. I got up slowly, and walked to the door like it was going to explode.
If he was back, and he was here to talk with a very powerful stranger...then this couldn't be good.
He said he would set off to find the other pantheons. To gather them up and create an army. But I didn't think he'd be back this soon.
Carefully, I placed my hand on the knob and turned it. Taking a shaky breath, I tried to calm my nerves the best I could. When I felt ready to face my friend, and the stranger, I pulled the door open.
When I did, my aura sensing didn't decieve me.
In the doorway, with the snow behind him, stood my friend, Sigurd Borgarsson. The Son of Odin. And next to him stood a shorter person, most likely a girl, with a hooded cloak over her head and body, and a mask covering her face. The mask looked oddly like a...cat. A cat that you would find in a Hibachi restaurant meant for holding pens or something. You know, the smiling ones with one of their paws in the air.
As for Sigurd, his hair had gotten a lot shorter, and his beard a little longer. Instead of it being medium length and smooth, it was now faded on both sides, long on the top and flowing to the side with the wind. His beard had once been neatly trimmed, and only wrapping around his jaw and lip. But now it did that and then some, becoming unkempt and a bit wiry.
He still wore that same eyepatch, that same cloak, and that same stoic expression.
When everybody else saw the two, there was an audible gasp, and I knew everyone's eyes had turned to dinner plates.
I was the first to speak, my hand still on the doorknob. "S-Sigurd?"
He looked like he hadn't slept in days. And judging by the grim nod he gave me just now...he didn't have the best of news to give.
"Hello, Matt. It's been a long time."
Before I could even respond, the girl with the cat mask was stepping in front of Sigurd and getting in my face.
"Where is the one named Talon?" She asked, in a commanding tone.
I wanted to immediately reply with 'hold on lady, we don't even know who you are.' But something told me to keep my cool and stay calm, because I could tell she wasn't someone I wanted to piss off. So I just gestured over to Talon, who was sitting in his chair, utterly confused.
"Me?" He placed a hand to his chest, "What the hell do you want with me? Who are you?"
The girl looked away from me and turned her back like I'd never existed, and paid full attention to Talon, scanning him up and down.
Finally, she spoke, every word articulated and clear. But it wasn't really how she said it, it was the content of the words. They...shocked us all.
"I'm the one that knows where your father is, boy. And I'm the one who's going to take you to him."
(End Of Book Four: The Pit Of Fire)
