12
Reyna
"So, you can talk to horses? What's up with that?"
"My dad's the god of horses," Percy said. "So, you know, I get the perk of being able to talk to them."
"Wish I could talk to horses," Tabitha said, toying with her dice. "Or any creatures, really. You know how cool that would be? Like, that squirrel over there. What if-"
"Speaking of," Nico said, interrupting. "Do you think Blackjack could help?" he asked towards Percy.
"Probably," Percy said thoughtfully. "I haven't seen him in a while, but it shouldn't be too hard to call him. I'd have to make sure some of his buddies come too, though."
"Well, ring him up!" Tabitha said. "Wait, how do you do it? Is it like a special whistle, or do you just use the Force and communicate telepathically?"
Reyna sighed as she shook the brown hoodie she had been wearing, trying to get some of the water off before tying it around her waist. As relieving as it was to have company, she would have been lying if she said that their constant banter and questioning didn't tire her out somewhat, especially on Tabitha's part. Not only did the girl want to know everything, she was constantly tossing out jokes and teasing, which Percy seemed perfectly content with returning most of the time. Things seemed more hectic now than before, when it was just her and Mason.
She stopped, glancing up and around at the terrace and the scattering of people around them.
"Wait," she said firmly. Her tone held enough seriousness that the other three demigods stopped talking to look to her. "Where's Mason?"
They all glanced around as well. "I think he said he would try to find a bathroom," Nico said.
"He'll be back in a minute," Percy said. "Right?"
Reyna scrunched her eyebrows in thought for a moment. She wasn't entirely sure, but she thought she remembered him mentioning that more than a few minutes ago. Something like worry began to creep into the back of her mind.
She stood up from the table. "He's been gone too long. Come on," she said, giving the rest of them a pointed look.
Tabitha and Nico both slid out from the table bench, leaving Percy alone sat at the table. "Hey, if he needs to do his business, I'm not going to interrupt-"
"Perseus."
He raised his hands in surrender as he stood up. "Okay, okay, I'm coming."
The four of them made their way to the nearest building, where they quickly spotted the entrance to the bathrooms. Percy went inside as the rest of them glanced between the handful of tourists walking around the area. A minute later, he emerged, shrugging. "Nothing."
Reyna cursed under her breath. Why had he gone off on his own? He may have proven his capabilities, but even he knew he wasn't prepared to deal with half the stuff they had coming to them on his own. For a moment Reyna felt like an exasperated mother whose naïve child had wandered off while out on a vacation.
The feeling quickly faded into something like guilt. Regardless of who he was or what they were doing, she was the one responsible for this group. It was her quest, and as Praetor, she had a duty to lead her companions through it, not leaving anyone behind. It didn't matter that he was a mortal; she had said it herself: he was a part of the quest. And she had lost him, even if only for a moment.
As the four of them began to disperse to search the area, she felt a tug at her shirt. She looked down to see a young girl looking up at him with a worried expression.
"Lady, my brother's in trouble. You need to help him!"
Reyna studied the child. She was cute, with shoulder-length blonde hair and a simple purple shirt. Her blue eyes were wide and intent on Reyna's.
"Your brother? What kind of trouble?" she asked hesitantly. She didn't exactly have time for this, but ignoring the girl would essentially go against everything she had just considered as far as leaving people behind.
"He went up the tree, and I stayed on the ground, and now he's crying because he can't come down. You need to help him get down!"
Reyna shifted her jaw. Every minute they weren't searching for Mason was another minute he could be getting further from them, or a minute closer to something… happening to him. However, something in the back of her mind was ringing, like it was alerting her of something being wrong even with this little girl.
Regardless of what it was, Reyna made a decision.
She glanced behind her to where Tabitha was a few feet away and waited until she met her gaze, silently gesturing for her to follow. She saw Tabitha nod before calling over Percy and Nico, and the three of them followed Reyna as she and the small girl began to walk away.
The girl led them a short distance away from the terrace to the tree line at the edge of the paved path. As they neared it, Reyna glanced to Tabitha again, who was now beside her, then down to her hands where she was still holding her die. Tabitha seemed to pick up on the cue again and nodded, kneeling down. She shook her wrist for a moment before letting the black and red die go, where it skittered across the black pavement before coming to rest.
Nine.
Tabitha glanced up to Reyna with a shrug and a look as if to say well, it's a slight improvement, but not great.
"Come on, hurry!" the girl cried, tugging at Reyna's hand. Reyna couldn't tell if the girl had even noticed the other people with them.
Reyna turned to Tabitha, Percy, and Nico, mouthed stay close, stay sharp, and followed the girl into the trees.
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The first thing that made Reyna especially suspicious about the situation was the fact that the girl seemed to know exactly where they were going. The child walked a few feet in front of her, weaving between trees and over branches with a surprising amount of ease. Goat Island wasn't particularly large, but the forested area was still thick with foliage, and it seemed as though it would be easy for a child to lose their way. As Reyna and the other demigods followed the child, however, she seemed to have no reservations about where they were going.
The second thing Reyna noticed was the fact that the further they delved into the forest, the darker it became. The trees were one thing, with their wide coverage of the light grey morning sky, but there was an odd sort of dimness filling the space that she began to notice, like a heavy cloud was gradually moving in front of the sun. It was subtle, but her battle-trained senses were keen to pick up on the subtle.
The final thing that put the nail in the coffin of Reyna's concern was when the girl disappeared.
It took her a moment to register, as there wasn't any sound or trace of anything happening. She had glanced to the side, and out of the corner of her eye the girl slipped past another tree and simply didn't appear on the other side. Reyna stopped in her tracks, scanning the area rapidly. She spun around, looking straight at Nico, who was looking at her with a similarly confused expression, shadows cast across his face. As she did, he turned to see what she did.
Percy and Tabitha were gone.
Reyna whipped out her sword, and Nico followed suit with his.
"What is-" Nico began to say before he spotted something behind Reyna, eyes wide. As she turned around again, a voice rumbled through her body, seeming to come from all around her.
Some of you know what it's like to be forgotten.
Reyna held her sword firmly, glaring at what looked like a person's silhouette standing a few feet away between two trees. It stood at least eight feet tall, looming over them like a tower eclipsing the sun. It seemed to almost blend with the shadows being cast by the tall trees, and the edges of its form trailed off thin wisps of grey, misty smoke. The growing darkness around them obscured the figure's facial features, a dim and uniform visage staring down at them.
Some of you are the ones guilty of forgetting.
The feeling of something pressing against her side distracted Reyna for a moment, as she glanced to see Nico now standing right beside her, their arms brushing against each other as he gripped his Stygian iron sword with both hands. As the shadows enveloped them, a surge of appreciation passed through her for the friend at her side. They both stood resolute.
Whatever the case, I happen to have a vested interest in ensuring that you, your quest, and any memories of your souls are wiped clean from this world.
A shiver took Reyna's body as the words washed over her. The voice was somehow soft and grating at the same time, but worst of all, it was familiar. A weight of worry manifested in her gut, realizing this had to have been what happened to Mason. She gathered the strength to speak.
"What have you done with him?" she asked.
The figure stood still, unwavering. Silence. Reyna couldn't tell if they didn't know or were neglecting to answer.
"Who are you?" Nico said in a raspy voice.
The voice filled the space again.
I am the one that none remember. The empty space hidden away in the depths of your subconscious. A nothingness to mirror all else.
The figure lifted its hand, which Reyna now saw held a weapon: a simple jet-black short sword without a hilt.
You are both strong enough to earn the respect of my name before your erasure. But know that it will mean nothing to you.
As the voice spoke the single word that was its name, Reyna could feel it piercing through the air and into her mind, sending a cold chill down through her body, before it left just as quickly as it entered, leaving a small, black hole in the corner of her mind where the memory had dissipated.
Reyna breathed deeply, steadying both her mind and her body. The dread that emanated from the figure washed over her like a wave, but she stood upright against the current. The forest around them was encased in darkness now, the skies above out of sight.
"It matters not who you are," Reyna said firmly, readying her stance. "I am not alone." She looked to Nico, who met her eyes with a piercing intensity, and she knew she was right.
The figure shifted ever so slightly.
You will be.
Then it dashed forward.
Reyna and Nico split, both diving out of the way in opposite directions as the shadowy form descended on them. Dead leaves and twigs rustled under Reyna's form as she darted up from being prone.
The figure turned to face her, its hood billowing slightly. Before she could take a strike at it, it faded into the surrounding shadows, leaving behind a smokey trace where it was. Reyna's senses heightened, her battle instincts keeping her as aware as possible. She felt her right side suddenly grow cold, and she whipped around just in time to raise her blade and deflect the sword swinging down towards her head. Her hand immediately retracted and stabbed forward towards the shadowy form, which was deflected in return.
She and the figure continued to trade strikes, always just barely missing each other's forms or being blocked at the last moment. The figure drifted in and out of the shadows repeatedly and moved its body and blade with a skilled nimbleness, forcing her to rely on all of her senses to keep track of her combatant. In the dark, the figure seemed more like a shadow than a person, its movements eerily fluid and blurred as it wordlessly assaulted her with blows. The forest was eerily quiet aside from the sounds of the clashing blades and the crunching leaves under her feet.
Because of this, Reyna's focus was momentarily shaken when she heard a voice cry out.
"Reyna!"
She glanced around as she stumbled back, trying to catch herself. The voice was a fair distance away, and she couldn't tell if it was Nico or Percy or Mason. As she backed up, she looked around to try and catch sight of where it had come from.
The figure manifested yet again, bearing down on her with its dark short sword. As she ducked under the swing, she saw a glimpse of a figure a few feet behind her opponent, leaning against a tree with a blade in their hand.
Reyna pushed forward with a barrage of strikes before slipping past the shadowy figure, darting over to where the person was. It was Nico, propped up against a tree. He looked up at her with a strained expression, his free hand held out as if it were holding onto something invisible.
"Trying to break the darkness," he said, grimacing. "Too strong."
She stood in front of him, scanning the space around them. He must have been trying to dissipate the magical darkness enveloping the forest, something undoubtedly being caused by whoever or whatever this figure was. The son of Hades had control over darkness and shadows, but if this figure did as well, there was no telling how much force it would take to wrestle that advantage away. Regardless, she decided it was time to find out.
"Keep trying," Reyna said with urgency. She reached out to lay a hand on his shoulder, and she concentrated on her hand. The torch-and-sword symbol on her forearm burned on her skin, and Nico stood up straighter under her hand, his eyes closed.
As Reyna felt the rush of energy and emotion that Nico emitted, the space around them began to shift. The shadows cast by the trees began to move almost like a liquid, as though something were physically pushing the darkness itself away. Light gradually crept in between the leaves above, grey sunlight breaking through.
Reyna let go of Nico, trying to withstand the feedback from Nico that came from using her power. Bellona's power caused her to receive some of the pain of those she used it on, and she had lent strength to Nico before. A wave of pain, both physical and emotional, washed over her, but as she refocused on her surroundings, a brief thought crossed her mind that it was tamer than she remembered.
Her eyes landed on a figure stood about fifteen feet away from them. It was the same dark figure from before, but in a new light. It stood hunched over slightly, its black cloak and hood still obscuring most of its body. However, she could now see its face: the grey skin and rounded facial features of a male Giant, the one she had seen in her dream, staring her down with a guarded intensity.
"Clever," he said, his voice plain and unenhanced as it was earlier. "But it will not be enough." He raised his blade yet again, pointing it towards her.
As Reyna lifted her golden sword to face him down once more, another voice echoed through the trees.
"Reyna! Nico!" Reyna recognized Percy's voice, a good distance away but growing closer.
She looked back to the Giant, her eyes still burning with intensity. "Like I said, not alone."
As she stared down the figure, she looked deep into his eyes for the first time. They were as grey as the rest of him, and they held a strange calmness. This was a calculating opponent, she knew. One that weighed every move, every breath with an unwavering attention to detail. But, as she looked into his eyes, she saw a glint of something else, something she recognized from a handful of opponents she had dueled over the years.
Respect.
Without another word, the figure turned its head and faded into the shadow of a tree, its form dissipating like mist into the darkness. Reyna stood still, staring unwaveringly into the space where it was and considering whether to try to pursue it before being jarred by a hand on her shoulder.
"Thanks," she heard Nico say. The son of Hades was still hunched over from exhaustion, but held a small smile of reassurance on his face. "You okay?"
She nodded, her expression still dazed.
"Hey!" she heard Percy say breathily as he and Tabitha joined them, his eyes wide and his sword held in one hand. "What happened?"
"Something powerful. Someone powerful," Nico said. "What happened with you?"
"We got separated from you guys somehow," Percy said, putting away his sword. "Everything got dark, and we heard voices, but we weren't sure whose. We stumbled around for a while before it got light again, then we saw you. You said… someone powerful?"
Nico nodded. "I don't know who, but… I know they can control the shadows. Probably the Mist, too. It took everything we had just to drive back the darkness."
"Where'd they go?" Percy said, glancing around them.
Nico looked to Reyna. She shook her head. "He escaped, faded away like before," she said. "He probably saw his chances with the light and more demigods and retreated."
"Well, whatever it was, I hope they don't come back."
Reyna thought back to her dream with the Giant and what he had spoken about stopping her. It seemed unlikely this would be the last time they met, but she didn't say that out loud.
"And what the Hades happened to that kid, anyway?" Percy asked. "They just disappeared."
"Like I said," Nico replied. "Probably an illusion created with the Mist to lure us here. I wouldn't be surprised if they weren't real at all."
"We still need to find Mason," Reyna said with the same urgency as before. "I assume he was lured here, too."
The rest of them nodded somberly, and they began to sift through the trees, being aware to stay close together. They took to calling out Mason's name, yelling it out into the forest.
After a minute of calling out, Reyna caught sight of a figure a few dozen feet away, slowly limping towards them. Even from a distance she recognized him, and she quickly closed the distance between them. As Mason stumbled towards her, he said nothing, his expression glazed over. Reyna stopped a couple of feet in front of him and began to say something, but he didn't stop, instead lurching forward and collapsing into her in a hug.
She stumbled back slightly in surprise, her hands outstretched. His breathing was shaky, and she could hear him try to steady it as he exhaled breathily over her shoulder. Recovering from her surprise, she laid her hands on his back and returned the hug. She wasn't quite sure what to make of his reaction, or how she felt about it, but she decided not to worry about it for the moment. Whatever it was that had happened, he probably needed some level of reassurance, and she wasn't about to deny him that. It felt… right, somehow.
They stayed like that for a long moment before Mason broke away. "Sorry," he mumbled. "That was inappropriate, I shouldn't-"
"Mason," Reyna said.
He looked at her with a hesitant expression. "Yes?"
"Are you okay?" Her eyes looked into his with a sympathetic expression.
He nodded slightly. "I think so. Now." A small smile crossed his face. "Now that you're here."
She looked him over. He seemed unhurt physically, showing no signs of injury aside from the limp he always had. There were traces of dirt and a couple of leaves on his clothes, and his hair was a bit more disheveled than before. On the surface he seemed fine, but she could tell from his face and eyes that something had shaken him. His eyes still held that spark of positivity and warmth she had come to recognize, but they now also held a hint of something like fear or worry.
"So, what happened to you?" she heard Percy say from behind her. She turned to see the rest of them standing a couple feet off. Reyna shook her head at Percy's bluntness.
"It doesn't matter," she said decisively. "We need to get out of here." She glanced around them, now able to spot the way they had come from in the early afternoon overcast daylight. She began to make her way towards the road, stopping to rest a hand on Mason's shoulder for a moment before leading the way through the trees.
As they trudged through the small forest, they all remained quiet. Reyna was slightly surprised at Tabitha's silence, and she realized the girl hadn't said anything since they reconvened from being separated. Reyna glanced over to where she was walking, towards the back of their group and close to Percy. The girl was blank-faced, staring down at the ground in front of her as she walked. Clearly something about the experience had shaken her, or was at least occupying her thoughts at the moment, or else she would have been asking a plethora of questions.
Reyna pondered Mason and Tabitha's reactions. It had certainly been a harrowing encounter, and she wasn't sure what they would have done if not for her and Nico's powers working together. But it seemed like some of them had seen something different from the others, as though whatever force they were subjected to was showing or telling them different things. Plus, Mason hadn't seemed anywhere near the rest of them when they faced the Giant, and he had clearly experienced something as well. Whatever it was, it was clear that there was more to this adversary than shadow tricks and swordplay.
She looked over to Mason, who was walking just a bit behind and beside her. Even as he walked with a blank expression and a slight limp, she couldn't help but feel relieved not only by the fact that he was okay, but also just by his presence. Something about him seemed like it warmed the air around him wherever he went, and the chill of the morning air didn't seem so bad with him nearby.
Reyna still couldn't figure him out, not really. A silly part of her was still mildly frustrated by the fact that he seemed to actually be entirely normal. No ulterior motive, no dark secrets, no as-of-yet unrevealed godly heritage. At least then she would have a reason to feel like he was something special like her instincts seemed so insistent to make her believe.
Then again, she also thought back to what Tabitha had said about luck and things happening for a reason, as well as the apparent significance Panacea thought he would play in their quest. Maybe there was something unique in him, a reason she had stumbled across him. A thought crossed her mind about which possibility would mean more: a discovered significance or one created from nothing.
"Oh, by the way," Percy spoke up as they neared the end of the trees. "While we were in there, I called my buddies to maybe come help. But now that we're fine, and they're here, it'll work out anyway!"
Reyna saw Mason look back in curiosity as he stepped out onto the pavement. "Buddies? You mean-"
A hefty whoosh sound interrupted him as a black form swooped down and landed directly in front of Mason, who stumbled and fell over, bracing himself with one hand. Reyna looked out to see the dark form of a pegasus, now stood proudly in front of them.
"Hey Blackjack!" Percy called out, stepping forward to pat the creature's neck. "Just in time for the party!"
The pegasus whinnied as it leaned into his hand affectionately. As the two of them greeted each other, Reyna stepped forward to help Mason up, pulling him to his feet. He gave her an appreciative and possibly embarrassed smile.
"No, there's no pinata- not an actual party, Blackjack. You know what I mean."
A very clear whine came from the creature.
"Yeah, yeah, maybe later. You got your friends?"
As Percy spoke, two more lighter-haired pegasi landed just behind the first with a gust of air.
"Guido, Porkpie. Good to see you."
Mason leaned in to whisper in Reyna's ear. "So, we're sure he's not just crazy?"
She smirked back at him, the two of them sharing an amused look.
"Well," Percy said, turning to look at the rest of them. "We ready to go? These guys can get us to Olympus in no time at all, given that Zeus isn't feeling particularly grumpy today. But I'll ride alone, so if he is then it's just me and Blackjack taking the zap."
The pegasus bumped his arm with another whine.
"It was a joke, chill out." He looked back. "So, pair up? I guess we can do guys and girls, if that's fine with you all."
There weren't any objections. They all climbed onto their respective pegasi, Percy taking Blackjack while Reyna and Tabitha mounted Guido and Nico and Mason mounted Porkpie.
"Uh, I assume there aren't any seatbelts?" Mason said, his voice betraying a significant level of nervousness as he held onto Nico's waist.
Percy just laughed, and then they took off into the sky.