Hey guys! I hope you enjoy this chapter! And, I want you all to know that the whole Tartarus stuff? Yeah that's gonna have a darker arc, and obviously there will be some difference in who's down there. Mwahahahah.
Replies:
Undeath9087: Hah, Leo is a fungus and he's proud since it means that Zoe actually admits that she doesn't totally hate him! As for the whole break up thing, it will probably last a decent amount of time, I'm curious to hear about your thoughts on who it's going to be and how I'm going to do it. I mean, it won't be give me any ideas because I've already set that arc in stone so feel free to tell me- and it won't spoil anyone because I won't confirm or deny either way.
Weirdhead: You weak fool! I am already the ruler of the dark side! Why else would I have brutally killed off Percy! I mean she was literally stabbed in the back.
The Official Clarisse: Nope, I'm afraid not, it's a much more beloved ship that will get hurt- and something happens during the break up that'll make it that much more painful. And no, no history between Medea and Calypso- they'd never have even met, but Medea hurt Leo and as far as Calypso is concerned that is very much a no go. She will stab anyone who makes him sad- I love my protective Calypso. She loves Leo with all her heart- even if he isn't quite the boy he was when they first met.
Drizzle: Well, I mean even without Percy being there they need to go to the Roman Camp because they know that the others members of the Seven are likely to be there if that makes sense. And yes Percy is still in the underworld.
When Leo looked back on the journey across the bridge he would look back on it and shudder- The demigods, the daughters of Atlas and the Satyr went across the bridge first, Hedge leading the way, dragging Piper with him, Calypso sticking close, a few steps behind.
Leo, Zoe and Jason had brought up the rear.
They'd been talking, trying to figure out roughly what they should do next when Jason had talked about the Wolf House, mentioning that was where he'd seen Hera in his dreams.
Zoe had been shocked at that- and she'd told them that while she'd never been there herself she did have a few Roman hunters who would know where to go.
And of course, because things always had to be complicated, that had been when the bridge had started to dissolve.
Thankfully Jason had grabbed him before he could fall, but they'd been cut off from Zoe, who had promised to take her hunters and find the Wolf House and hold it until they were able to reach it-" she'd smiled slightly as she'd added, "I am sure thy shall find your way to it. After you have saved your friends father from his prison."
Which officially made her one of Leo's favorite people- she wasn't so bad really, beneath the whole 'Males are evil' facade- she'd definitely softened somewhat. She didn't hate all men anymore, she merely disliked most of them.
Still, it was a comfort- and Piper had been nearly in tears when they'd managed to join the two girls and the Satyr on the floating island and told her what had happened.
Calypso had, to Leo's surprise, simply smiled and said that they'd see Zoe again soon enough- and that as much as she loved her sister she had known that when they parted ways she'd stay with Leo- and that had made Leo want to cry.
He knew he wasn't the boy she'd fallen in love with on her Island what felt like a lifetime ago- he knew that it hurt her that he was more closed off than he had been at times- but she'd never said a word, she'd comforted him when he'd had hard days without his big sister.
Gods but he didn't deserve her and yet somehow she gave him those warm smiles and he felt like he was floating- and gods but Percy would tease him so much over that even if she was just as gone on her girlfriends.
And that thought, surprisingly he didn't feel the usual ache he got when he thought about his big sister. Maybe he was finally starting to move on from his grief.
In any case, he and Calypso were hand in hand as they made their way up towards Aeolus' palace- and Leo elbowed her gently, nodding towards his friends when he spotted Jason grabbing Piper's hand to help steady her when she nearly slipped on icy steps.
Coach Hedge was just capering ahead with that ridiculous and honestly kind of annoying Satyrish skill.
Finally they arrived at the top of the island. Bronze walls marched all the way around the fortress grounds, though Leo couldn't imagine who would possibly attack this place. Twenty-foot-high gates opened for them, and a road of polished purple stone led up to the main citadel—a white-columned rotunda, Greek style, like one of the monuments in Washington, D. C. —except for the cluster of satellite dishes and radio towers on the roof.
"That's bizarre," Piper's voice was shocking in the quiet that had fallen over them.
"Guess you can't get cable on a floating island," Leo muttered the words. "Jeesh, check this guy's front yard. "
The rotunda sat in the center of a quarter-mile circle. The grounds were amazing in a scary way. They were divided into four sections like big pizza slices, each one representing a season.
The section on their right was an icy waste, with bare trees and a frozen lake. Snowmen rolled across the landscape as the wind blew, so Leo wasn't sure if they were decorations or alive.
To their left was an autumn park with gold and red trees. Mounds of leaves blew into patterns—gods, people, animals that ran after each other before scattering back into leaves.
In the distance, Leo could see two more areas behind the rotunda. One looked like a green pasture with sheep made out of clouds. The last section was a desert where tumbleweeds scratched strange patterns in the sand like Greek letters, smiley faces, and a huge advertisement that read: watch aeolus nightly!
"One section for each of the four wind gods," Jason guessed. "Four cardinal directions."
"Makes sense," Leo shot his friend a small smile, "You're definitely the logical brains of this operation."
"I mean- you're the genuis-"
"Technical genius-"
"What does that make us?" Piper raised an eyebrow and Leo grinned.
"Oh that's easy, you're the charm, you talk them all around, and Cal is clearly the group medic-"
"I'll take it." Calypso decided, "Just remember I can kick your ass Leonidas-"
"How could I ever forget? It's one of my favorite things about you-"
"Can you stop the flirting?" Piper let out a laugh, "What's coach then?"
"The muscle." Leo declared, "Right coach- and you're not listening."
"Right- right, sorry I just- I'm loving that pasture. " Coach Hedge licked his lips. "You guys mind—"
"Go ahead," Jason said quickly, exchanging looks with Leo. It was probably be for the best to send the satyr off. It would be hard enough getting on Aeolus's good side without Coach Hedge waving his club and screaming, "Die!"
While the satyr ran off to attack springtime, Jason, Leo, Piper, and Calypso walked down the road to the steps of the palace. They passed through the front doors into a white marble foyer decorated with purple banners that read olympian weather channel, and some that just read ow!
"Hello!" A woman floated up to them. Literally floated. She was pretty in that elfish way Leo had learned to associate with nature spirits—petite, slightly pointy ears, and an ageless face that could've been sixteen or thirty. Her brown eyes twinkled cheerfully. Even though there was no wind, her dark hair blew in slow motion, shampoo-commercial style. Her white gown billowed around her like parachute material. Leo couldn't tell if she had feet, but if so, they didn't touch the floor. She had a white tablet computer in her hand. "Are you from Lord Zeus?" she asked. "We've been expecting you. "
She was also see through- which clearly Jason found very strange and Leo resisted the urge to groan as his friend couldn't help but ask;
"Are you a ghost?"
She looked understandably insulted at that, her smile turning into a pout. "I'm an aura, sir. A wind nymph, as you might expect, working for the lord of the winds. My name is Mellie. We don't have ghosts. "
Piper came to the rescue. "No, of course you don't! My friend simply mistook you for Helen of Troy, the most beautiful mortal of all time. It's an easy mistake."
Wow, she was good. The compliment seemed a little over the top, but Mellie the aura blushed, and Calypso looked impressed as she exchanged looks with Leo. "Oh … well, then. So you are from Zeus?"
"Er," Jason said, "I'm the son of Zeus, yeah. "
"Excellent! Please, right this way. " She led them through some security doors into another lobby, consulting her tablet as she floated. She didn't look where she was going, but apparently it didn't matter as she drifted straight through a marble column with no problem. "We're out of prime time now, so that's good," she mused. "I can fit you in right before his 11:12 spot. "
"Um, okay," Jason said.
The lobby was a pretty distracting place. Winds blasted around them, so Leo felt like he was pushing through an invisible crowd. Doors blew open and slammed by themselves.
The things he could see were just as bizarre. Paper airplanes of all different sizes and shapes sped around, and other wind nymphs, aurai, would occasionally pluck them out of the air, unfold and read them, then toss them back into the air, where the planes would refold themselves and keep flying.
Leo was startled to see a Harpy flutter past. She looked like a mix between an old lady and a chicken on steroids. She had a wrinkled face with black hair tied in a hairnet, arms like a human plus wings like a chicken, and a fat, feathered body with talons for feet. It was amazing she could fly at all. She kept drifting around and bumping into things like a parade balloon.
"Not an aura?" Jason asked Mellie as the Harpy wobbled by.
Mellie laughed. "That's a harpy, of course. Our, ah, ugly stepsisters, I suppose you would say. Don't you have harpies on Olympus? They're spirits of violent gusts, unlike us aurai. We're all gentle breezes. "
She batted her eyes at Jason.
"Course you are," he said.
"So," Piper prompted, "you were taking us to see Aeolus?"
Mellie led them through a set of doors like an airlock. Above the interior door, a green light blinked.
"We have a few minutes before he starts," Mellie said cheerfully. "He probably won't kill you if we go in now. Come along!"
And Leo had to admit, that it was impressive as they were led onwards. The central section of Aeolus's fortress was as big as a cathedral, with a soaring domed roof covered in silver. Television equipment floated randomly through the air—cameras, spotlights, set pieces, potted plants. And there was no floor. Leo almost fell into the chasm before Jason pulled him back. "Holy—!" Leo gulped. "Hey, Mellie. A little warning next time!"
An enormous circular pit plunged into the heart of the mountain. It was probably half a mile deep, honeycombed with caves. Some of the tunnels probably led straight outside. Other caves were sealed with some glistening material like glass or wax. The whole cavern bustled with harpies, aurai, and paper airplanes, but for someone who couldn't fly, it would be a very long, very fatal fall.
"Oh, my," Mellie gasped. "I'm so sorry. " She unclipped a walkie-talkie from somewhere inside her robes and spoke into it: "Hello, sets? Is that Nuggets? Hi, Nuggets. Could we get a floor in the main studio, please? Yes, a solid one. Thanks. "
A few seconds later, an army of harpies rose from the pit—three dozen or so demon chicken ladies, all carrying squares of various building material. They went to work hammering and gluing—and using large quantities of duct tape, which didn't reassure Leo. In no time there was a makeshift floor snaking out over the chasm. It was made of plywood, marble blocks, carpet squares, wedges of grass sod—just about anything.
"That can't be safe," Jason said.
"Oh, it is!" Mellie assured him. "The harpies are very good."
And Leo eyed it for a long moment before shrugging and striding forward before Jason could grab his arm, Calypso moving with him- and sure enough the floor held and Leo grinned, "Good workmanship I see Mellie." he winked, "You're good."
He glanced back to Piper and Jason and watched as Jason stepped forward, Piper gripping his arm and following him. "If I fall. You're catching me."
"Uh, sure-" and gods but you could fry and egg on Jason's face, Leo wished he had a camera right now.
"Come on lovebirds. We've not got all day." which earned him twin glares from his friends and loud bubbly laughter from his girlfriend.
Mellie led them toward the middle of the chamber, where a loose sphere of flat-panel video screens floated around a kind of control center. A man hovered
inside, checking monitors and reading paper airplane messages.
The man paid them no attention as Mellie brought them forward. She pushed a forty-two-inch Sony out of their way and led them into the control area.
Leo whistled. "I got to get a room like this. "
The floating screens showed all sorts of television programs. Some Jason Leo—news broadcasts, mostly—but some programs looked a little strange: gladiators fighting, demigods battling monsters. Maybe they were movies, but they looked more like reality shows.
At the far end of the sphere was a silky blue backdrop like a cinema screen, with cameras and studio lights floating around it.
And in the centre, was a man who Leo knew instinctively had to be Aeolus.