Chapter 8: Gathering Clouds

It was late that night. I was trying to sleep, if it could be called that. The voices were at a low hum at the back of my head. This was the prime opportunity I would have.

Which is why it was devastating to wake up a moment later to a bright glow in my room suddenly.

"Uuugh…" I said, rubbing my eye as I sat up. "Who is it, and why are you glowing?"

"Honestly, one would think even such a new godling would be more attentive to their surroundings, Jackson." A female voice said.

I shrugged, and got out of the bed. Definitely not anyone from around camp, that was for sure. "Didn't think I'd be seeing your Ladyship tonight, Lady Hera."

Hera rolled her eyes at me, looking like she would really like to smite me where I stood, but honestly I was more awake than I would admit, and I feel like Hera knew that.

"Perseus, I need…" Hera said, rotating her jaw in annoyance, "…I need a favor."

I almost snorted on my own uvula. "Why on earth would you ask me for a favor?"

"That is something that you cannot yet know, half-bl—godling." Hera said, straightening herself up. "All you need know is that the fate of the world rests on this favor."

I rubbed my forehead in agitation. Why was it always me? "Seems I have been hearing that a lot recently. What's the favor?"

"I need you to disappear for a while." Hera said.

I listened as she began explaining where I needed to go, hypothetically, why I needed to go (short of actually telling me why she needed the favor in the first place), that I needed to be under the pretense of having amnesia, and what the results of this favor would ultimately be.

I just stared at her for a minute.

"And why should I do any of this? Sounds like a lot of trouble to make peace between two parties that don't have any clue about the existence of the other anyway."

"But you will need your combined strength to fight the coming threat." Hera said, pushing the issue. "And 'what's in it for you' is the chance to survive the oncoming slaughter."

I raised an eyebrow. "Is… is that a threat?"

"It is, but it doesn't come from me. An older force, even older than the Titans, has begun to stir. I myself will shortly be investigating a certain area for traces of this ancient one's aura." Hera said. "I fear for what may be stirring under the surface of our reality."

Hm. This did sound bad.

"Fine. I'll do your strange favor, despite everything else…"

"Fantastic. Hold still." Hera said, beginning to move her arms.

"Uh, why?" I asked.

"To transport a godling takes much more energy than normal." Hera said. "To give one amnesia is something even more difficult."

"Woah, woah, woah. I never agreed to have amnesia. I'm not gonna agree to that. And just tell me where to transport. I'll do it myself."

"No, godling, you must be oblivious to your surroundings. Those you meet will not help you if they can sense that you are already aware of your world."

I held up a hand.

"I don't know what train of thought you are having right now, and excuse me for saying this, Lady Hera, but I will not allow myself to be given amnesia. If you would prefer, surely there's another way to… simulate, forgetfulness."

Hera huffed. "You godlings are always so difficult!"

"Runs in the family," I said. "Just give me a few minutes with Annabeth, and then—"

"No!" Hera said, waving her hand. Suddenly, I felt like my access to the outside world was revoked. I couldn't teleport out, for some reason. "My plan relies heavily on your disappearance from this camp! Annabeth must search for you, and you cannot be found!"

I just gawked at her. "Okay, so basically, you want to give me amnesia, and since you know that the first thing I'd do if I remember anything would be to run to Annabeth, you would probably erase her from my memory as well. Second, I can't say goodbye, or anything to Annabeth. Third, you want me to go to a strange place where they don't apparently accept me if I know how to defend myself from monsters and such. Finally, I'm going to a place where if they knew I was from Camp Half-blood, they would most likely try to kill me anyway."

"It must be done, if this universe is to survive what is coming." Hera said. "And even if they tried, they couldn't kill you. Not with any weapon they possess. Now don't fight it, you'll regain your memories eventually, I'm sure."

Hera snapped, and I felt the current of power rushing towards me. It felt like what made me Percy Jackson was being drained away to who-knew-where. Was I mortal? What was my name again?

Annabeth.

The word slammed into me, despite the swirling hole where the rest of my memories seemed to be draining away into. It remained there, solid against the current of amnesia Hera was forcing on me. I felt something else inside me. It was as though my core woke up, opened its eyes, and frowned.

No.

This will not be allowed.

Hera's jaw went slack, as I steamed from the effort of resisting her power. My memories flooded back into me, and I stood up.

"Did you honestly just think I wouldn't fight back? There's no way I will let you erase any memory of Annabeth. I'm not ready to forget this life of mine." I said.

I was mad, sure. Who wouldn't be? But at the same time, I knew that Hera was just trying to do what she thought was best, and honestly, I knew she had legitimate concerns about this 'ancient threat'.

"How did you—" Hera said, for once completely speechless. Well, almost anyway. "You just—"

"Lady Hera, I understand and share your concern about whatever this threat is. But I'll only do this favor if you promise not to mess with my memories." I said.

Hera seemed to dispute this within herself for a few moments, before huffing. "Fine. But you will have to act oblivious, and you must make it believable." Hera finally said.

"And what about Annabeth?" I asked. Hera huffed again.

"The Athena girl?" she asked.

"Yes, the Athena girl has a name. It's Annabeth. What about her?"

Hera turned, ignoring my question. "I'll contact you again when I need you to begin this mission of yours. For now, you must go into hiding."

I rolled my eyes. "Fine. Do it."

Hera snapped again, and this time I let her power wash over me, and in an instant, I found myself in a small cave, in the middle of seemingly nowhere. As I approached the entrance to the cave, however, I felt a thrum of energy in front of me. I was thrown backwards, landing a ways away on my butt.

"Hera, seriously? You child-locked me in a cave?" I said to the stone walls that were evidently the only things that were supposed to keep me company.

Hm. There was a wall of energy that I couldn't get past for the time being. I began to realize just how tired I was. Resisting Hera's first 'snapping' took a lot out of me. As I thought about it, a sleeping bag and a spare pillow appeared at my feet. I rolled my eyes, but laid down, and closed my eyes.

"Percy!" I heard a voice say. "Percy, where are you?"

I had heard that voice before. Hearing it say those words in the way it did, scared the crap out of me.

It was Annabeth. She sounded worried.

I sat up. I looked around, and it took me a minute or two to realize that I was looking at Camp Half-blood, but I could still feel the damp rock under me from the cave.

This was a dream.

Annabeth was roaming the grounds, looking… almost everywhere.

"Percy, c'mon, this isn't funny anymore!" she was saying, looking in the canoe lake. "I know you can hear me, Perseus!"

Uh oh. First name basis right now. I was gonna get in soooooo much trouble later, wasn't I?

"Annabeth, I'm right here!" I said, though I couldn't help myself. I was actually surprised the amount of control I had in this dream. Usually I couldn't even move, much less actually speak. But in this one, I could still even feel the breeze on my arms.

And what surprised me more was when Annabeth looked up.

"Perseus Jackson, you scared me to death!" she said, storming up to me.

"Wait, Annabeth, you need to kno—" I began, but she found out before I could finish. When she tried to give me a hug, and her arms went through me, I could see her gears moving, kicking into at a higher level.

"You're dreaming right now, aren't you?" Annabeth said. Her face fell. "You're not here?"

"No, I'm not. Listen, this is really important," I said, trying to speak fast. "Hera came to me last night, and told me abou—"

"Hera did this?!" Annabeth groaned. "I should've known."

"Yeah, but listen. She said that there was ancient trouble brewing, and she needed my help. Technically, I'm not supposed to be telling you this, but I have to. She wants you to be looking for me like you have no idea where I am."

"But I don't know where you are, Seaweed Brain. That's the point." Annabeth said.

"More incentive for method-acting," I said, smiling. "She's put me in a cave for the time being, but she needs you to be looking for me. I'll resurface later, but I need you to pretend to your utmost that you never had this conversation with me."

I suddenly felt Hera's presence begin to intrude on my connection here. I grit my teeth as her thoughts flooded into my head.

No, Perseus! How dare you move against my plan! Do you even realize how long it took to—

'Hera, it's too late anyway. I've already told her, but she'll do her best. I know Annabeth, unlike you.'

I know the Athena girl, godling!

'Not like I do.' I thought. I turned back to Annabeth, tuning Hera out. "I will come back to you. Don't worry."

"I always worry about you, Seaweed Brain." Annabeth said, smiling though her eyes glinted with sadness. "That's why you're still alive."

"True." I said. "I'll see you soon, Wise Girl."

I very much doubt that, godling.

My connection to Camp Half-blood was cut, and I found myself before Hera, in all her glorious peacock plumage.

"I can't have you contacting Camp through your dreams, which I thought I had remedied already. But you seem to be stubbornly holding onto the idea that telling the Athena girl will make things better."

"Annabeth's a survivor, and she'll do whatever it takes to get the job done." I said. I was even surprised at myself today, at the levels of defiance I had shown the queen of the gods.

"We shall see." Hera simply said. "Until then, I think you'll be taking a much longer nap than you probably expected."

I groaned. "You're going to just keep me here until it suits you to let me go?"

"In a nutshell, yes." Hera said. "Sit tight. You'll probably wake up in about six months or so."

"SIX MONTHS?!" I shouted, but by that time Hera had already vanished from my dream.

The world around me began crumbling into dust, and I slipped into a deep, black, oblivious sleep.