Welcome everyone to chapter 20!
GUESS WHAT?!
Sorry, I'm just excited about this chapter. Like for real, I LOVE this chapter! Probably cuz one of my most favorite characters gets to come out and play with us!
I hope you enjoy and let's get right into this!
Author's Note:
So I know technically Jupiter is Jason's dad but they're going Greek-Mode right now so just bear with me.
Nico awoke on the ground outside the infirmary building.
Remembering his conversation with Amira the night before, he quickly scrambled to his feet and rushed back inside. He went to the Alagaesian's former room where he saw Piper. Stepping in, he saw the rest of their group as well.
"Nico! Do you know what happened to Amira?" Jason quickly asked when the Son of Hades walked in. Nico paused for a moment then he decided they should know.
"You won't find her here." He confessed honestly. "She's gone. She left last night."
"She left? Why would she leave?" His sister asked worriedly.
"The better question is where would she go? Amira doesn't know anything about anywhere on Earth." Jason remembered before Nico replied.
"We should go look for her." Frank suggested. "She most likely doesn't know how to use an elevator so she's probably still on Olympus."
"That makes sense. Split up." Annabeth instructed. "Ask everyone and look everywhere. We can't finish the quest without her. Meet back here in twenty minutes whether you find her or not."
The seven nodded and rushed their separate ways.
Already knowing that Amira wasn't on Olympus, Nico walked over to a nearby fountain and sat down. He thought about the night before and how easily Amira stopped him. All she said was one word and he was out. If she was really that powerful and really was working the enemy then she could be a serious threat. And if Tartarus turned her against him and the others then she could wipe them out with no problem!
Nico frowned. Remembering hard, he had a strange feeling that there was something off about the way she acted. She seemed so hesitant to cast her spell it was almost like she didn't want to. But if Amira didn't want to hurt any of them then why did she swear herself to Tartarus?
"Nico?" He looked up to see Hazel walking over. The son of Hades gave his sister a rare smile.
"Hey Hazel. You find anything?" He asked, already knowing the answer. Hazel shook her head dejectedly.
"Nothing. Where do you think she could have gone?" Nico shrugged but Hazel narrowed her golden eyes. "You know something, don't you? Where is she, Nico?"
Nico sighed. He said he wouldn't lie if asked and he's being asked. Despite not being close to Amira, it hurt to have someone betray their little family.
"Let's find the others first. I don't wanna say it twice." He relented. Hazel nodded. Twenty minutes later, they managed to group together everyone.
"Anyone find her?" Leo asked.
"Leo, if one of us found Amira then wouldn't she be here with us?" Piper pointed out.
"Well, apparently she's not on Olympus so where else could she possibly have gone? She knows nothing of anywhere on Earth." Jason grumbled.
"Nico knows something," Hazel announced. Everyone turned to the son of Hades, who half-glared at his sister. She shrugged without remorse.
"Do you know what happened to her?"
"Yeah. I said I wouldn't outright tell you guys but I wouldn't hold back or lie if asked." Nico answered in response to Frank's question. "Amira took off last night. She swore herself to Tartarus to get-"
"Wait- what? What do you mean 'she swore herself to Tartarus?'" Annabeth interrupted, looking confused.
"She had his mark on her wrist. I tried to stop her last night but she knocked me out. She said Tartarus promised to "return what he stole" and I'm guessing means her magic. Apparently it won her over and that's why she snuck out. She's long gone by now."
The shock on his friends' faces was absolute.
"But… why? Why would she do such a thing?" Hazel whispered after a moment of shocked silence, hurt very clear in her sweet voice.
"I don't know. Maybe she was forced by another hostage? Whatever it is, we need to get some help. I say we tell Zeus and ask him to bring over Percy and some others from Alagaesia." Her brother suggested.
"But what if he doesn't listen? We'd have nothing and no one on our side." Piper argued.
"Why don't you ask him, Jason? He might be more willing if his son asked." Frank suggested. Jason rubbed his neck awkwardly.
"I'm not sure. I mean even if I do, he's still pretty stubborn and big-headed." Thunder rumbled faintly but he rolled his blue eyes. "I guess we could try though. The longer we stall, the longer it will take to defeat Tartarus."
Annabeth nodded.
"You're right. We should hurry."
Fifteen minutes later, Jason stood before the few members of the Gods' council that happened to be on Olympus at the time.
Most people wouldn't have much trouble asking their dad for a favor but their dad usually wasn't a super powerful god who could blast them with a bolt of lightning the size of a limousine if they said something he didn't like. Jason knew his father wouldn't blast him but they weren't exactly that close.
So taking a deep breath, he hesitantly made his request.
"Jupiter- I mean Zeus- dad, um…" He stumbled over titles, face red. "Uh, Amira has been swayed to Tartarus's side, possibly by another hostage so I was hoping to kindly ask you if you could bring someone she knows from her world here to try to help us."
Shock came to the god's faces when Jason said what Amira had done. Ares turned to Zeus and pointed an accusing finger.
"I told you she wasn't a good idea! Now we've got a major problem! Her magic is dangerous and now she's on the enemy's side. Might as well get ready for another war!" He exclaimed in exasperation.
"I would think you'd be quite excited by the thought of another fight." Athena retorted sarcastically.
"Normally, yes, but not against Tartarus! Plus now he's got a super strong magic Rider on his side." The god of war grumped.
"I actually don't think so." Nico interrupted. "Amira could have killed me when I confronted her but she didn't. She's not evil, just confused."
"Tartarus is no fool. He would have made her swear on the Styx or stronger." Poseidon guessed, chin in his hand.
"And how many times have you two broken that kind of treaty?" Hades pointed out, looking at his brothers. Wisely they didn't respond. "However, bringing another Dragon Rider might be what we need. After all, they're not exactly doing anything over there anymore."
"I had just had the same thought," Zeus nodded, refusing to admit that he agreed with his brother. "But the question is who?"
"I have an idea that might just solve this problem," Athena announced.
"Of course you do, Bird Brain. You probably had everything already planned before they even came in here." Poseidon grumbled, waving a hand towards the demigods. The goddess of wisdom humphed.
"Yes, in fact, I did. Because Amira Moraow being on Earth was not well planned and something was obviously bound to go wrong."
"What about Percy? Can you bring him back?" Annabeth asked her mother. But Athena shook her head.
"No. Perseus must remain in Alagaesia for the time being. Don't worry, it will be someone she knows."
The demigods took that as their cue and left the throne room.
== Ω Ω Ω ==
"Who do you think they'll pick to help?"
The seven demigods were sitting on the steps outside the throne room, waiting impatiently as the gods took their sweet time.
"How would we know if none of us have ever been to Alagaesia before?" Nico retorted, lying on his back on one of the giant steps, and Frank turned pink.
"I'm also wondering who they will pick but it's more of a 'are they someone Amira likes' question. I wouldn't put it past the gods to purposefully pick someone she hates or doesn't know." Annabeth agreed with a grimace.
"True. I really just want her to snap out of it though" Jason sighed, the first to meet and trust the purple-haired half-elf. "Yeah, she can't undo the oath but I at least want her to see that what she's doing is wrong."
"She already does," Nico muttered, more to himself. He looked up when he noticed the others were staring at him.
"What do you mean, Nico?" Hazel wondered.
"The night she was leaving, something about her just seemed off." Th son of Hades reported. "She moved really hesitantly like she was doing something she didn't want to. Why she would do something she didn't want to I don't know, but she-"
"Amira is doing so to protect you."
A new voice appeared to cut Nico off and the seven demigods jumped to their feet, grabbing weapons and spinning around to see a stranger standing behind them.
The man looked about twenty years old. He was fit, well muscled, and seemed about Jason's height. His serious face and fierce gray eyes were framed by shaggy dark brown hair. He was strikingly handsome but had a guarded look in his eyes, a longbow and quiver slung over his back and a sheathed sword at his hip.
The man narrowed his grey eyes and drew a red-bladed sword at the sight of their weapons.
"Who are you?" Annabeth asked the stranger. She knew from his medieval-style clothes that he was from the same world as Amira but as none of them had ever been there before, no one knew him.
"Where is Amira? I know she is here, tell me where she is." He demanded in answer.
Annabeth slowly lowered her drakon-bone sword, motioning to the others to do the same.
"Amira isn't here. Well, she's not here with us. She swore herself to a super dangerous and powerful enemy and we need your help to get her back." Jason told him.
His comment brought a dry chuckle from the man.
"Well, you chose the wrong person to help you. Amira hates me, more than you would ever think possible." He told them honestly. "Any help I try to give would just make whatever this is worse."
Annabeth closed her eyes and forced herself to take a slow breath, pressing her lips together. Of course the gods chose someone Amira hated!
"Is there anything you know about her that could help us?" She then asked. The man shrugged, red sword still in his hand.
"I told you: I am the last person to ask about Amira. If you needed help so badly then you should have chosen someone else."
"We didn't choose to get your help," Annabeth frowned, her patience growing thin. "We asked the gods and they picked you. So you can either drag your a*s back into the throne room and sit to leave everything and everyone, including you and Amira, to be destroyed or you can help us defeat Tartarus and save Amira, resulting in you both being sent back to your world. Which will it be?!"
There was a long moment of silence as Annaberth's friend looked at her in shock, surprised by the daughter of Athena's sudden outburst. Then the stranger stepped back and sheathed his red sword.
"My brother would kill me if I let his apprentice die. I have no way to return so I will help you." He decided. Annabeth nodded, getting the reply she wanted.
"I'm Annabeth Chase." She introduced. She nodded to her friends and they did the same. For a moment, the man said nothing then he placed three fingers on his forehead in an all-too-familiar gesture and introduced himself.
"My name is Murtagh."
Murtagh was confused.
He had been scouting with Thorn when he was sucked into a large wind-funnel. Recognizing the portal from what Eragon had described, he realized that whoever had taken Amira from her homeland was doing the same to him. He had appeared in a large room with giant people who sat on thrones. They had told him that he had been brought to 'Earth' to help defeat What's-His-Name. At first, he was going to refuse but then they said that Amira was here. Then he had to agree.
He knew Amira hated him and he knew why. Murtagh knew he couldn't undo the past and take back what he had done and he also knew she wasn't going to forgive him. But after seeing the worry and pain Eragon was in the past days, he couldn't say no to helping get her back home.
"So did you get all that?"
The blonde, Annabeth, was trying to explain to him about the "Greek world" but Murtagh's head was in overdrive. Gods, monsters, titans, half-bloods... The whole thing gave him a headache.
"Do you want the honest answer? My mind is overwhelmed." He told her honestly. The blonde nodded.
"Good, what means you heard everything. So do you know why you're here?"
"Amira is helping your enemy."
"Yep." Annabeth nodded, crossing her arms. "She appeared in the woods in our camp and we helped her figure where she was and protected her. Then she betrayed our trust and pledged herself to Tartarus, the biggest bad guy this world has seen, and turned her back on everyone who helped and cared for her."
"You say that like she is the enemy." The Red Rider noted, narrowing his eyes.
"Wha- I'm just stating the facts of what happened!" Annabeth defended.
"Why did Amira join your enemy?" He asked, changing the subject.
"We actually aren't sure. From what Nico told us, we are guessing that she was bribed with having her magic back after she lost it so-"
"A Rider can't lose their magic. It is something we learn." The Red Rider argued.
"Well, somehow Amira did. Maybe it was from not being in in her world for so long, maybe it's from losing her dragon, or maybe-"
"WHAT?!" Murtagh exclaimed. "Amira lost her dragon! How?!"
"Tartarus had captured it and-"
"Her." The Alagaesian could see his interrupting was starting to annoy the blonde.
"Tartarus captured her and used her against Amira as blackmail to make her do what he wanted." Annabeth explained impatiently. "But Amira ended up telling us his plan so he killed her dragon as punishment."
Murtagh's grey eyes widened in shock and he fell back onto one of the giant steps, a hand in his hair.
Balenda was killed?! It was no wonder Amira did something so... un-Amira-like. Losing their dragon was the worst possible thing that could happen to a Rider. If Amira really did lose her soul-partner… and at such a young Rider's age…
"When did this happen?" He asked, in shock.
"It was about three days ago." Someone answered as she came to stand next to the two, Piper he remembered. "But it was horrible. Amira got really angry and hurt and completely destroyed the area we were in."
"How did she do that?"
"We don't know. She just screamed and a wave of energy blew everything apart." Jason told him, joining the conversation.
Murtagh barely managed to hide his surprise. Amira lost control of her magic? The last time she had done that she had nearly killed herself, not to mention destroyed an entire village. She hadn't even been far into her apprenticeship either.
He, Eragon, and Arya secretly knew that Amira was one of the most powerful Riders to have been claimed and so they all always made sure she had her magic under control. If she really has sided with the enemy-
"Wait, she's lost control before?"
Murtagh looked up in surprise.
"What?"
"You said Amira had lost control before. When?" Annabeth asked. He cursed when he realized he must have thought aloud.
"Yes, she has. Eragon told me what she did but it was a very long time ago."
"Well...? What happened?" The blonde wasn't relenting and the dark-haired Rider groaned aloud.
"It was but a few months into her apprenticeship. Amira and Eragon were in a small town when something happened, I was not told what, but it had caused Amira so much pain that she released a powerful blast of magic that destroyed the entire town. The amount of energy she unconsciously used nearly killed her and she was torn when she awoke and was told what she had done. Eragon said she wouldn't use her magic for nearly seven days after." Murtagh explained. He frowned when he saw the nervous expressions the demigods gained. "What happened to Amira?"
"You said Amira had nearly killed herself last time?" Piper finally gave in. Murtagh nodded. "Well… She actually did this time."
"What do you mean? She did what?" He narrowed his eyes, not sure if he wanted to know what she meant.
"Amira… She killed herself."
And that concludes the twentieth chapter of A Strange and Different Land!
Thank you all for reading and I hope you chose to continue the story. Please feel free to leave a review. Criticism, advice, compliments or corrections are welcome.
Have a good one and I'll see you later!
