AN: Yeah, I got nothing to say. School and work are still a bitch, but whatever at this point. At this point, I can only confirm that this will be updated twice a month but that's about as much as I can give you now especially with the first exam season coming soon. We'll see how the situation goes as it develops.
Also, I'll admit that I wasn't happy with how I wrote this chapter in the beginning weeks so I scrapped it and started over.
Thanks for sticking with me for so long. I always appreciate your support.
Labyrinth
"Ughhh, this smells like the aftermath of one of Bacchus' parties back during the Empire." Darius remarked as they traversed further down the maze, earning retching noises from his brothers.
"With less nudity and more monster slaying." Hadrian replied as he looked at the various corpses littering around them. He kicked the skull of a human away with his boot, making it clatter around on the floor. "Are we sure those demigods, Faun and Cyclops know what they are doing?" he asked once more.
Thalia glanced back and gave a short reply, "Yep. I think so at least." hearing the groan of Hadrian. She turned around and put both hands on her hip, "Do you want to be the one to lead us instead?" watching the centurion shake his head. "Then shut it."
"Bossy." Darius mumbled underneath his breath but she heard it loud and clear judging by how she snapped around to glare at him. In a complete flip of emotions, she stuck her tongue out at him and made a face at the centurion.
"Don't forget childish." Hadrian muttered out.
"I'm sure Lord Virtus will be pleased to know that we're teasing each other instead of completing our objective. You're all children." Magnus started with a roll of his eyes.
They lagged a bit behind just as the questing group from the camp turned the corner and were about to keep their pace up when the torches burned out, putting them into darkness.
They could hear the sounds of the walls shifting around them, making everyone on edge as they could have been completely in the blind if not for the blessing of Perseus.
The torches were re-lit and everyone was brandishing their weapons in a defensive stance while in a circle back-to-back. A dozen or so corpses rose from the other pathways and rushed into theirs, forcing the group into a very tight confrontation.
Thalia ducked under a rusted blade and jammed her spear into the rotting flesh of a corpse, causing it to crumble into a mangle of flesh and bones. Using Aegis, she slammed the edge of it into the skull of another, later using the shield to flip the corpse onto its back, and shot her spear forward in its chest.
Magnus spun around and kicked one in its midsection and grabbed one by the neck and slammed it into the ground with a loud thud before crushing its throat with his hand as he sliced the head of another clean-off. Darius impaled a row of them with his spear and pinned them to a wall, allowing Hadrian to slam his sword through all of their necks with one wide swing and aided by his shield at the last one. Aurelius bashed his helmeted-head into the face of his enemy and stabbed his gladius through the underside of its jaw when it stumbled backward while already engaging the next with the dagger on his belt.
"Well, they most certainly bleed and die like mortals." Hadrian remarked as he ducked and covered himself with his shield as one tried to pounce on him. He shot his boot out and kicked the corpse's feet out from under him before crushing his boot onto the skull.
It seemed like the waves were never-ending as more and more continued to flood the corridor.
"Just all equally as ugly." Darius grunted out while he smacked one with his backhand and head-butted another. A door was spotted forming by Thalia as she shot a burst of lightning out of Aegis towards a dashing group of corpses.
"Door!" she yelled out as she narrowly ducked under a pair of rusted daggers and swept her spear at their feet.
"Well, what are you waiting for?! We'll cover so you can go!" Magnus shouted back.
Thalia wasn't the happiest with that suggestion and was about to make her stance clear on it when Aurelius slapped his shield with his gladius.
"FORM PHALANX!" Aurelius ordered in a no-nonsense tone and in one swift motion, the four centurions started to hack at their opponents with renewed aggression while also taking big steps back before standing shoulder to shoulder with each other, dropping into a crouch and presenting their shields as one. The size of the four Romans with their shields and the width of the corridor meant that the corpses had to literally go through them to reach the other side. Unfortunately for them, the four centurions held their ground and maintained their shield wall to perfection.
"Little one! So help me, if you don't go through that door first, I will tell your father when we get out of here!" Darius yelled at her when she still stood behind the four. He let out a seemingly maniacal laugh when a rotten arm tried to reach his face and thrust his spear into an eye socket.
"Go!" Hadrian ordered when he noticed that she was still unmoving.
At their continued prompting, Thalia hesitantly ran to the door and pulled it open, looking for any immediate threat before she took one step in and held the door open. "Come on!" she shouted at them.
Hadrian nodded at Aurelius who returned the gesture, "BREAK OFF!" Aurelius ordered and the other three started to move towards the door with Aurelius fending off the rear and was the last to enter the room in which Thalia slammed the door shut the moment he rushed in.
Thalia looked at Darius incredulously, "Did you seriously pull that card with me?" she asked in disbelief.
"Absolutely I did." he said with no shame and even a small smirk.
"Dick." she muttered out.
He grinned, "Indeed, I do have one. Very smart." patting the top of her head in a patronizing sort of way but with no real malicious intent behind the gesture as she tried to duck under his hand.
Aurelius gave them both a pointed look, but more so towards his brother-in-arms, "Hey!" gaining their attention. "Focus up." he sternly said, making Darius give one last swipe to Thalia before he took his position.
"We've now lost the demigods and now are as good as blind in the Labyrinth. Any ideas?" Magnus asked the others as he kneeled down to inspect the room they were in.
"With us being attacked, there's the likelihood that the campers were also caught in the same situation." Darius mentioned.
Aurelius shook his head, "That doesn't answer the question. We're still blind in here."
"We need a way out of here. Every second we waste here, the trail goes cold." Hadrian said with disdain.
"Interesting." a voice in the room said, prompting everyone to draw their weapons again.
Thalia barely contained her frustration, "Fuck, what now?!" temporarily lighting the room up as her spearhead crackled with electricity.
"Show yourself immediately!" Aurelius commanded.
A large figure with two faces, one facing east and the other facing west on one head, dressed as a stereotypical doorman emerged from a muted flash in the farthest part of the room. The gold pin on his long coat acted as a visual reminder to the four Romans and they gripped their weapons ever so slightly tighter.
The two parties traded looks with one another before Aurelius took a cautious step forward.
"Lord Janus." Aurelius said tersely.
"Romans." the god looked over the centurions before his eyes fell on the only Greek, "Interesting. You have a Greek with you." he moved to get closer to her only for Aurelius and the others to step in between.
"We're here by command of Lord Virtus." Hadrian revealed, making the god pause in his tracks.
"Lord Virtus?" Janus, the right face asked questioningly and with hope. He rolled the name off of his tongue and smacked his lips a few times. "They mean the fallen king." Janus, the left face answered with a roll of his eyes.
The right face of Janus looked hopeful, "Lord Virtus lives for true?" he asked with awe, though the left side of his face seemingly disagreed. "Even if he did, he will probably take another bolt from Lord Jupiter again anyhow."
Darius looked angered and took a step forward, inching his gladius back out of the sheath, "Watch your tongue. A god you may be, but that does not mean we will let your words pass without retaliation against our lord."
The right side of Janus sighed, "Please ignore him. He's been worse than usual lately." he tried to placate them and to stop his other side from sprouting anything that could make the situation worse. His attention shifted to the non-roman girl that was behind the four centurions that stood in front of her protectively, "Identify the girl that stands behind you." his left face ordered.
Magnus slammed the bottom of his shield into the ground, "WE most certainly will not nor will she have to identify herself to the likes of you! Now, let us pass so we can continue on our journey!" he shouted protectively.
The eyes on both of Janus' eyes glowed slightly, "You dare defy the orders of a god?!" the deity shouted back in dual voices.
Aurelius unsheathed his gladius and glared at the god, "We serve at no one else's command, but Lord Virtus. Now, move or you will be-" and stopped when he felt a hand rest on his left pauldron.
"Uncle Aurelius, it's fine. I don't have a problem whatsoever." Thalia told him with a reassuring smirk she gave him before looking at the god. He nodded hesitantly and allowed her to step forwards while staying near her in case of danger with the other three spreading out around them and weapons drawn.
Janus leaned down slightly to get a better look at Thalia before turning his head so the left side could do the same. "What is your name, young demigod?" the right side of Janus' face asked politely.
Thalia stood straighter and looked him in the eyes, "Thalia Grace, daughter of Perseus." his brows rose up at her answer.
"We weren't aware that the fallen king had any offspring?" the left face replied, his statement coming out more like a question. "You don't look like him." he continued and Thalia bristled at the comment, "In fact, you look more like a child of Jupiter or dare I say Zeu-"
"Well, I'm Perseus' daughter so deal with it." Thalia interrupted with a glare as miniature lightning bolts danced along her fingertips. "You going to help us out of this room or not? We have a quest to do and it's probably quite ahead of us by now." she asked impatiently.
"You're not very patient are you?" the left face observed with a frown, "We could help your problem, but it would cost you dearly." making the right face sigh in exasperation. "No, it would not cost you much. Please ignore him. All you would have to do is answer a question as truthfully as you can and we shall assist with your problem." the right face reassured and slapped the left side of his face. "Would you stop doing that?! We have a duty to do and we must uphold it." which made the left face scoff, "Ah yes, a duty that I most certainly did not agree to, and on top of that, I have to listen to you sprout sunshine and positivity out of that mouth of yours." the left face sniped back.
The two faces soon got into an arguing match with each other, drawing the ire of the five. Aurelius nodded at Darius, who slammed his fist onto the center of his shield, gaining the attention of the bickering god. Thalia ran a hand down her face and mumbled something that made those closest to her snort in laughter, "If you two are done or whatever, I'll answer the damn question if it means that we can be away from you sooner." agreeing with their request.
Janus stood straighter and nodded seriously, "Very well. What assurance do you have that your father will keep you around when he has now been reunited with his lover? Will they not plan to have a child of their own together? A child of their own power? You might be his in name but you do not have the divine blood of his."
Magnus scoffed at him, "Be careful of how you speak to her." he warned with a low tone, protective of their lord's daughter.
Janus disregarded his warning and looked at him, "She said she was ready to hear the question and she did. Now, I await an answer from her." and all of them turned to look at Thalia only to find her wide-eyed and shook her head vigorously.
"Even if they would, they won't do that to me or my brother." her hands crackled with electricity as the rest of her body was soon to be covered in lightning bolts, glaring at the god in full force. The four centurions looked to her as it sounded like they heard the doubt in her voice for a split second. "Now, I answered your stupid question so let me leave!" she shouted and popped her spear back open to shoot a bolt at the ground in front of Janus.
"I would suggest you listen to her before our lord gets involved and trust me when we say that neither he nor Lady Zoë will appreciate your comments and questions." Hadrian said in passing with his eyes narrowed though it turned into a concerned look at Thalia, who looked like she was a hair away from trying to skewer the minor god.
Janus looked at all five of them, weighing the options in his head before he waved an arm behind him, a door appeared with white light bleeding through the crack at the bottom. "The door will take you to the intended destination of the demigods you were following." the left face informed with a sneer and a sigh from the right face.
Thalia gripped her spear tightly and was going to take a step forward towards Janus when a hand stopped her. She looked to see Aurelius shaking his head at her, "He is not worth the effort. Use your head, he will never do that to you. Leave it or we will ask forgiveness later when we carry you out of here because you didn't listen to us." he asked nicely of her.
She shook his hand off with a grunt and stomped her way to the door, not realizing how the door shut behind her forcibly when she crossed the threshold. Hadrian let out a curse and went to open the door only to find that the other side of the door was now different with Thalia nowhere in sight waiting for them. The four centurions that were tasked to her widened their eyes in shock before they all drew their weapons and surrounded Janus with rage upon their faces.
"Oh I'm sorry, but were you all supposed to be going with her?" The left face asked with a smirk and watched the four Roman soldiers dash to the door in an attempt to locate Thalia, leaving the respite from the labyrinth as they dived back into it.
At the same time
With Perseus and Zoë
Sitting on the edge of their bed, Zoë glared at Perseus. Her husband was pacing back and forth in front of her. "No. We're not going." she told him with an edge to her voice. He sighed and stopped his pacing and kneeled in front of her, taking her hands in his.
He gave her a small comforting smile, "I know you don't want to see her and I quite frankly don't want to make the trip there, but I don't want to solely rely on the enchantments on her island and she at least deserves to be asked in-person if any of the opposing Titans tried to reach her." he reasoned with his wife.
"She tried to kill you!" she argued hotly.
He gave a quiet chuckle, "Well, a lot of them wanted to kill me back then. She did after all join her father in their war against us." he responded and glided his thumbs across the back of her hands.
"I am not laughing, Perseus." using his name instead of a term of affection like she normally would to try and convey her seriousness on the matter. He sighed and kissed her forehead.
"I know, my love, but I know you always trust me to do the right thing." he replied, kissing her forehead again. She leaned her head onto his shoulder and sighed.
"Fine, but only because I trust you, and doing this would probably take your mind off of Thalia's quest." teasing the last part with a grin before kissing him on the lips lovingly. She pulled back from their kiss moments later and was met with the grin of her husband.
"You know me so well." he said while pulling her up with him. "Though I do worry about the lack of communication from any of them." he wondered with worry for his daughter and his centurions.
"They'll be fine. They're perfectly capable of handling any situation that might come their way while down there." Zoë reassured him calmly, "Besides, Thalia is a resourceful girl. She'll know what to do if she's in trouble." she added as she rubbed her hands up and down his arms in an act of comfort.
Perseus flashed a new black suit jacket onto him and offered the crook of his arm to her. She looped her arm through his and let him flash them to Ogygia.
