Chapter 3
We Receive A Suicide Mission as A Prize
Frank's P.O.V.
The dinner was delicious as alway, but it didn't help my mood. The fifth cohort was sure to lose, and that was all that spoiled a lovely dinner with my friends. I, Hazel, Dakota, Gwen, Natalie and Percy were sitting together, and everyone was talking, but I could tell that even they were miserable. Nevertheless, I tried to enjoy. Natalie and Hazel were explaining war games to Percy, who was munching on his pie, which for some unknown reason, was blue. Dakota and Gwen were discussing tactics, Dakota's mouth stained red, with occasionally asking me - "Right, Frank?" I just nodded, knowing that this was all rubbish.
"So Percy, you have any more superpowers like controlling water?" I asked.
"Not that I know of. Only dyslexia and ADHD," he said.
"You have dyslexia? And ADHD?" I asked, shocked. Percy didn't look like someone who couldn't read or write properly.
"Yeah, I guess most people here have it,"
"I don't, I'm lactose intolerant, though," I said, remembering the horrible time when I had that vanilla ice - cream (don't ask).
"So why is this cohort the worst, I mean why does everyone say so?" Percy asked.
"We are good with weapons, Percy, but the real reason is that," Natalie explained, pointing to the place where the standards were kept. "The eagle, the legion's standard. A legionnaire of the fifth lost it. And not just once...the second time.. it's still missing. There was this big expedition to Alaska.."
"The prophecy you saw in the temple, a legionnaire, Michael Varus tried to interpret it. The augur warned him, but he still led an expedition to Alaska. We lost it there and–,"
"The fifth cohort took the blame," Percy guessed. I nodded. "But what is the deal with the eagle, why is it special?"
"The eagle was said to be a gift from Jupiter himself. It shoots tendrils of lightning. It contains Jupiter's power, his blessing. This is how the legion got the nickname 'Fulminta'. It means 'armed with lightning."
"Since then, the legionnaires of the fifth have been outcasts," Hazel said."Hey Percy, who is bigger between you two?"
"Dunno, I don't remember my birthday," Percy said.
"I was born on 8th December, 1993," Natalie said.
"Dunno, anyway so do we have a plan for war games?"
At this, nobody said something. Percy seemed to understand. Then, horns blew and everyone headed for the field of Mars. Hazel returned after a few minutes, telling us our arrangements.
"Good thing, we have Hannibal. Bad thing, the fort is defended by the first and second cohorts, and the fortifications are very difficult to get in," she said.
I looked up at the fort. There were all kinds of traps, including water….water. A crazy idea started forming in my mind. Only if it worked, then victory was assured. I stopped in my tracks.
"Hey, I have this crazy idea, which might help us win. You can see the plumbing and all, Percy, Nat, you can control water. And Hazel, you are good underground. What if we use tunnels to get close, and then we can–,"
"Take them by surprise. If our assault is good enough, the others will be able to get in too. It can mean a victory. You're a genius, Frank," Hazel said, and I might or might not have blushed a little.
So everyone agreed, and with this crazy idea in mind, we went to the war games. As planned, Hazel got them in a tunnel.
"This one will get us the closest. It will open ten meters from the east wall," she explained.
"How do you know that?" Percy asked, amazed.
"I just do. I guess it's one of the Pluto things. Like you can control water."
"Well, it's great," Nat said. She was wearing her battle bracelets on both hands. And a small square pin was attached on the back of her T-shirt. Anyone would have thought she would be stupid to go into battle without weapons, but I knew better.
"Hey, Natalie, you are not taking any weapons?" Percy asked.
"I have mine," she said.
Percy looked confused but he didn't ask more. I was moving along with enthusiasm, just when I stumbled over a piece of metal. I cursed.
"What is this? Is it silver?" I asked.
"Platinum, don't touch it. It'll go down after a few moments. Just leave it," Hazel said. Natalie glared at her.
As promised, we emerged on a hole ten meters away from the east wall. I nocked my hydra arrow and aimed. It was a shot only skilled archers could make.
"Percy, Nat, can you take care of the cannons?" I asked.
"Thought you'd never ask," Nat said, grinning. I could hear the fifth battling their way. The third and fourth cohorts were standing back and laughing, watching their 'allies' get beaten up. I was so angry, that I felt like going there and help them, but I had to make sure I focused.
"So let's go with the bow," Natalie said as she tapped her pin and left bracelet. Immediately, she had a bow in her hands and a quiver full of arrows. Percy glared at her.
"Gifts from Vulcan. I went on a quest for him. The quiver has an endless supply of arrows. And it's easy to carry," she said as a matter of factly.
"Vulcan's good then," Percy said.
"Oh no, he gave them to me saying that I'll need them the next time he sends me on a quest," Nat sighed. Then a cry jolted them from their chat.
"Aah, there they are. Attack," the defending cohorts had spotted them.
"Disable the water cannons, now!" I said.
Percy and Nat flicked a hand and the cannons exploded, showering water everywhere. The first and second cohorts were in complete chaos. I shot my arrow, and immediately ladder like structures made from Imperial Gold formed. Everyone froze and looked at us. Gwen was the first to unfreeze.
"Attack," she yelled, and everyone started climbing the fort. The third and fourth cohorts had joined now.
"We can't let them take the flag," I said, climbing.
"No, the flag is ours today," Percy said.
I climbed up the fort and immediately started shooting arrows. Natalie, Percy and Hazel also climbed up. There was complete chaos.
"Come on, dear sister. Let's show them," Percy said.
"Of all the cool names you could have called me," said Natalie, turning to him. "you call me 'dear sister'."
"Then what do you want me to call you?" Percy asked. I saw a pilum coming towards them.
"Look out," I yelled. Immediately, in perfect synchronization, they both leaned backwards and caught the middle of the pilum.
"Oh, this is gonna be so much fun," Percy said, a glint in his eyes. Nat, too, tapped her bow and quiver, and they became a bracelet and pin again, and as she tapped her right bracelet, a gladius materialized in her hand as she charged into battle.
The next few minutes, I was so excited and I felt so powerful, I just kept on shooting arrows one after another.
The first and second cohorts were nervous now. Part of their problem were Percy and Natalie. Percy fought with completely tactics, and Natalie, oh gods, I had never seen her fight so fast. She disarmed and knocked out her opponents in a blink of an eye. Not five minutes had passed, and the second cohort lay dazed and cold on the ground. Hazel had already moved ahead with Hannibal to get the flag. I marched inside.
The first cohort were putting their last stand around the flag. Octavian was ready with his weapons. While Percy cleared out the legionnaires, Nat was fighting Octavian. Octavian tried to grab her hand as she tried to attack him.
"You don't touch me, you scum," snarled Natalie and within seconds, Octavian was groaning on the ground. I was shooting arrows so fast that I didn't even realize that the first cohort was defeated. Percy took the flag as we climbed onto Hannibal. Everyone in the fifth cohort was shouting and cheering as we marched past. All the cohorts looked bewildered. But my happiness was more than that. Probably now, Apollo would notice me and claim me, I thought. Reyna was grinning so broadly, that I was surprised that she was ever so happy. But our happiness was short lived as I saw healers rushing with a girl on a stretcher.
"Oh, my gods. It's Gwen," whispered Natalie beside me, as the cheering died. The healers started working on her, but after five minutes, one of them turned towards Reyna and shook his head. I was stunned. The cohort edged towards Gwen.
"There will be an investigation," Reyna shouted. "Whoever did this, shall be punished. Honourable death in battle was one thing….but this."
I saw her wound. She had been stabbed from the back. And on the spear, engraved were the words CHT I LEGIO XII F. I searched the cohort for Octavian. He seemed particularly interested, then made a face as if he was really sad for the loss.
"It's Octavian, that bloodthirsty scum," I whispered to Hazel, Percy and Natalie.
"I should have cut his hands off there," Nat whispered back, with so much fury in her voice that made me sure that then next time Natalie and Octavian meet in combat, Octavian would probably regret killing Gwen. Then all of a sudden Gwen gasped. Everyone looked startled. She sat up.
"There – there was a ferryman. He – he asked me for a coin. But I didn't have one so I came back," she said.
"Gwen, wait a minute," I said. "Hazel, help me."
"Don't do it," one of the healers said.
"What would it do, make things worse?" Hazel snapped.
Together we pulled out the pilum from her armour.
"I don't know what's going on. I'm perfectly alright. It doesn't even hurt."
Sure enough, her wound was closing.
"How can this…?" Nat said.
"Is this something related with Pluto?" Reyna asked to Nico, who shook his head and glared at Hazel as if warning her to be quiet.
Just then a column of fire appeared between the circle of campers. A soldier stepped out of it. His face and body were battle worn, covered with scars and he wore a utility jacket, with grenades and a gun. He was ten feet tall, with a well built body. And the strange thing? I felt attracted towards him. I fell on my knees and everyone followed my example.
"Ah, kneeling is good. It's been a long since I visited here. But this visit is shot. Jupiter is not allowing much communication between gods and demigods, but this is an exception," he said, looking around and saw Percy, who was still on his feet.
"You - you are Ares. I think I fought you once," he said, studying him.
"Insolent, are you? No, I'm not Ares, that's my Greek form. I'm Mars - or Mars Ultor, the war god of Rome," Mars said, eyeing him dangerously.
"Percy, please kneel down. Don't make things worse," Natalie whispered to Percy, who hesitantly knelt down.
"So, my reason to visit here, yes? Thanatos is chained in Alaska, the land beyond the gods. This young lady here," he said, pointing to Gwen. "She's supposed to be dead, but she's not. Monsters are not dying. And Gaea is controlling the doors of death along with the giants, who are going to attack your camp on the Feast of Fortuna. The monsters are in thousands, and if you don't free Thanatos before that, you'll die. Bless you, you can even find your lost eagle there. And until them, people and monsters alike won't stay dead, just like Centurion Shishkebab here."
Gwen winced but nobody said a word.
"So, get a quest started. Any questions?" Mars looked around. "Oh, you can get up now."
Just then, Octavian stepped forward.
"Lord Mars, it's a great honour to have you here. But a quest needs a prophecy. And since the Sybilline Books are lost, it's the duty of the augur to read the will of the gods. Now, if I just get about seventy teddy bears and a knife–,"
"You're the augur?" Mars asked. Octavian nodded. Mars took out a piece of parchment and asked for a pen. When nobody had one, he pulled a grenade out of his best and turned it into a pen. I asked Percy whether his pen does that, but he told me to shut up. Mars wrote something down and gave Octavian the parchment.
"This says 'Go to Alaska and find and free Thanatos before the Feast of Fortuna, or die'. Lord Mars, prophecies are usually supposed to be unclear–,"
"Yes?" Mars said, taking out another grenade out of his pocket.
"No, the prophecy is clear. We will arrange a quest," Octavian announced.
"Oh and second thing, yeah. C'mere kid," he said to me. I slowly edged forward, and a depressing thought settled over me. I knew what was going to happen.
"Who was the ref for today's game?" He asked. Reyna raised her hand.
"Well, you saw how brilliant my kid played, right. Make sure he gets a mural crown. He's my kid, you know. Good job, kid," he said. I honestly felt so embarrassed that I couldn't even feel happy fro getting the mural crown.
"And he'll be leading the quest. This disobedient lad here. He's supposed to be in it. The other two, you decide. Okay I'm supposed to go now. Good luck, kid," he said and disappeared in a flash of light.
"Everyone, go to the barracks. There will be a senate meeting tomorrow, deciding what to make of this quest," Reyna announced.
I too, walked with my friends back to my barracks, looking forward to the senate meeting and a quest to rescue death, with a hundred and ten percent chance of dying.