They arrived at Camp Jupiter at midday when the sun was highest in the sky. The congregation paused in front of narrow, dark river that squiggled through the valley. The rays of Apollo reflected playfully across the ripples of the river. At first glance the valley seemed almost at peace but with the trained eye of war veterans, the heroes could make out the signs of battle. Dust heaps, remains of monsters, were scattered across the fields, stray arrows and disarmed weapons littered the grounds, and in the distance were heaps of rubble were great structures once stood.
"What year are we?" Theseus, the youngest, asked.
"2011," the death god answered. "The day after Polybotes invaded this camp to be exact."
Odysseus whistled in awe. It had been almost four-thousand years since any of them had walked the Earth. The group of ancient heroes did full three-sixties as they consumed the scenery around them and absorbed the enormity of their situation. They were brought back to life and even maybe the some of first souls, probably the only ones. Some of the heroes even caressed their faces and examined their skin with microscopic precision. It had been centuries since they actually felt their hearts beating in their chest, the real sun beating upon their faces, and the weight of gravity pulling them down. They were mortals once again and they didn't know wether to be elated or repulsed.
Thanatos gave them a few moments to revel in their humanity before speaking. "We walk from here," he said, "but before we continue on I give you back the possessions you owned on the day of your deaths."
Thanatos reached inside the shadows of his never ending cloak and began removing objects. He removed objects left and right distributing them to the correct owners. The spartans regained their armor, swords, spears, and shields. Achilles grasped his Pelean spear, his shield, and armor. Bellerophon was handed his bow and spear and at the sound of his whistle the winged horse, Pegasus, materialized from the Heavens and landed gracefully beside his master. Jason strapped on his armor and sheathed his sword; Odysseus reclaimed his massive long bow; Theseus repossessed his cudgel and sword while strapping his shield across his back. Perseus had a whole treasure trove of items: he gathered his adamantine sword, his armor, his duplicated helm of invisibility, his Medusa's head sack that he wore on his belt, and his Hermes Boots. Hercules donned his Nemean Lion Armor and hefted up his mammoth sized club.
When Thanatos deemed everyone was ready he nodded to the Little Tiber, "Across the river."
The troop of men made there way to the river bank and stood at it's shores warily. Hesitantly Odysseus made the first step and dunked his foot into the current. Immediately he reeled his foot out of the water. Not because of the temperature but the pure power that the river emitted causing Odysseus to feel a jolt flow up his leg. Odysseus looked up to the Death God and shook his head.
"What, is the little pussy cat afraid of taking a bath?" Thanatos asked almost chuckling. "It's just water. Okay I lied a little. It has a slight connection to the River Styx but it's nothing lethal. It's been rumored the waters of this very river can take away some magical curses and wash away sins," he paused and peered into Achilles's soul, "but those are merely rumors."
Odysseus shook his head in disgust once more but eventually he swallowed his pride and fear and stepped into the depths of the unknown. One by one wading through the chilling water. After a brief ice bath they were all standing on the other side, all except for one. The others all waited on the opposite side as the watched Achilles who was looking dreamily into the water. If what Thanatos was saying was true then all Achilles had to do was take one step and his curse would be lifted forever. Although he had been dead for the last 3000 years he still felt the weight of it bearing down on his shoulders even in the Underworld. Now that he was alive again it was even worse. All he had to do was step into the current and it would wash away the heavy burden but then again he wouldn't be invincible. He would once again be a mere human being that instead of only worrying about a minuscule part of his body he would have to worry about protecting the whole thing. For a few minutes he contemplated the pros and cons of the situations but came to the conclusion that he was dead already and had been for centuries. If he were to die, so be it, and if he didn't take the step forward he wouldn't get to humiliate the gods and earn his prize.
Confidently, Achilles stepped forward and plunged into the Little Tiber. Pain seared through his entire body. It felt as if his veins pumped fire and his skin was being burnt away with acid. The pain was the worse in his heel. Thankfully the torment lasted for a few moments before he was able to make his way to the opposite shore and climb out of the frigid water. Once out of the water, standing dripping wet, and freezing he still couldn't shake off a new feeling that he had never enjoyed before; freedom. He was finally free. Free from the grips of failure, his mistakes, his parents expectations, and his entitlement to civilization. Achilles felt like a new person and he felt that he was starting a new life. He was given a second chance and he wasn't going to waste it. He looked back at the river once more, made a silent thanks, and joined his fellow heroes as they continued onward.
"I don't like this, things are changing too quickly." Theseus murmured to himself after watching Achilles climb out of the river.
The large group trudged their way past the empty mess hall, the barracks, through the Fields of Mars, until they finally reached the main city. Even from where the group stood, the outskirts, the group could make-out the giant warship in the center of the forum that was surrounded by the whole camp. All the campers had their weapons at drawn and stood at ready as if the warship was Pandora's Box or a ticking time bomb waiting to be detonated. Would it offer friendship or was it another Trojan Horse?
"Is that what it think it is?" Jason asked in disbelief and awe.
Thanatos knew what he was thinking. "Your eyes do not deceive you but you are only half correct my Argonaut. That is Argo II, the re-imagining of the original. Magnificent isn't she? Instead floating in the water like its predecessor, it fly across the sky like an eagle," Thanatos said in wonderment. "That son of Hephaestus has a lot of talent…the future, this present, it's amazing is it not?"
"Certainly," Jason agreed. The similarities between the Argo and Argo II were uncanny with the exception that the Argo II had few other added features in which Jason had no comprehension of their exact functions.
"The future-I mean present-it's strange," Hercules put in.
The others nodded their agreement. They all had been dead for 3000 years or more and today they were ripped from their "ancient Greek and Roman" mindset and brought to this modern world. Sure, the Heroes of Old were aware of the events that happened in the world above them as they existed in the Underworld but today was their actual first up close experience with the things they could only imagine. They saw their very first automobiles, skyscrapers, and Steve Jobs products. Thanatos tried to explain modern society as best as he could in as little time but still the resurrected heroes thought the future was even more terrifying than a date with Echidna.
"All of you go to the mess hall and conceal yourselves out of sight," Thanatos ordered. "I'm going to introduce you one by one when they have their Feast of Fortuna. They missed it yesterday so they'll try to do it today and even more so now because they have unexpected company."
"Someone will definitely see us," Theseus pointed.
"Oh right," Thanatos said face palming himself before snapping his fingers. "Now, you're invisible."
The heroes looked down at their still visible bodies before looking back up at the Death God and giving him incredulous looks.
Thanatos sighed. "I altered the Mist you nitwits! Only I can see you. You will only be revealed when I will allow it. It's a perk you get being the lieutenant of Hades, you know?"
Perseus shook his head, "No, we don't know."
"What ever, I'll be back."
"How long will that be?" Bellerophon asked.
"A few hours," Thanatos told them.
"No," all the heroes replied in unison.
"Are we forgetting the arrangement we made?" Thanatos asked referring to the deal they made which essentially made them the gods' slaves.
The heroes sighed in defeat and nodded in obedience to the bargain.
"You are going to remain hidden and wait for me to return. Don't touch anything, don't speak to anyone, and don't break anything. Understand?" He waited for the heroes to nod before continuing. "I'll see you in a couple of hours," he ordered.
"What are we supposed to do till then?" Odysseus questioned.
"Keep your mouths' shut," and with the snap of his fingers, Thanatos was gone.
"That one has spent too much time at the theatre," said Achilles.
"That one is needed to be wary of," concluded Hercules.
Thanatos observed the odd spectacle below him from the top of the Senate House. He arrived just on time to see the Camp Half-Blood campers disembark from Argo II. A giant drawbridge like door swung open from the side of the Argo II's hull creating a runway for people and materials to be offloaded from the ship. A congregation of Greek delegates marched proudly from the ship. First to get off was a tall blonde girl with stormy grey eyes who was accompanied by a satyr and a centaur. Then they were followed by a blonde boy, a Native American girl, and a mexican Santa Clause elf. The next who followed where the Hunters of Artemis, and then the cabins by order of alphabet: Aphrodite, Ares, Athena and so on. When all the passengers had finally unloaded they stood at attention facing the Romans apprehensively.
The two opposing groups-the Greeks and Romans-looked at each other in awkward silence. The tension caused by the atmosphere made Thanatos feel as if he was watching two mastiffs play tug-of-war over a piece of steak. The whole situation was a giant rubber band being stretched to it's breaking point. Just before the two sides broke out into an all out battle, Percy Jackson decided to be the mediator and step forward and tried to get the two sides get to know each other a bit. The young demigod spouted out amusing claims that made Thanatos grin. Then Jason Grace stepped forward to try and offer some assistance. They made some introductions and then the black haired girl with her silver and gold dogs, who Thanatos believed to be Reyna, stepped forward. Then the stormy eyed blonde did the same and more introductions were made. Like a sheep the centaur started forward and began spouting off words such as "peace," and "unity," and "the fate of the world," bla, bla, bla. Thanatos didn't really care about the specifics he just wanted them to make their peace so he could do his damn job. This wasn't even his true job which caused him to be more irritated with both groups. The task that Hera had assigned him was well out his pay grade. Then out of know where Lupa and her wolves showed up which surprised everybody and made all the Romans get down on one knee. The Greeks didn't kneel which made the Romans even more dubious about the Greeks. More things were said by both sides in order to avoid conflict. Thanatos prayed that this wouldn't lead to another war because he had just finished reaping the last battle and he didn't feel like delivering the death speech to more souls again.
Then Percy Jackson stepped up onto a nearby fountain to give himself a high posture and began rather cliche speech. In speech paraphrased in Thanatos's words: "My friends-may it be Greek or Roman-the Gods have gathered us here today in hopes for us to work together and to defeat a common enemy. If we don't work together civilization will be lost." Then Jason stepped in who said essentially the same thing as Percy and then Chiron, then Lupa, then Annabeth, then Thalia, then Reyna, and so on. They all seemed to be saying the same exact thing for the past hour and a half; "why can't we be friends?" Thanatos counted his yawns and couldn't recall how many times he rolled his eyes before what he wanted to hear and see was said and done.
There was a silence and then two twins on the Greek side from Hermes cabin cheered, "Yeah Percy!" The greek side started to cheer which caused them to chant: "Allies, Allies, Allies!" and then reluctantly the Roman side joined in. Hera was actually right. Her precious heroes managed to actually pull off the impossible.
But then a scrawny kid that Thanatos recognized as Octavian took his turn to exercise his perception of the First Amendment. He began to spout off some stupid stuff that just made him look paranoid and power hungry. At first a few people considered what he said but then Lupa stepped forward and crushed his arguments utterly.
He stormed off out the city shouting "You'll see that I'm right!" That got everybody cheering louder than before. So the two sides did have common enemy but more closer to home than they thought.
Hazel Levesque made a comment about Octavian meaning well or something similar, playing the nice-girl card, Thanatos didn't really care and neither did everyone else because she was drowned out by cheers.
"Finally!" said Reyna, "Welcome friends of Greece. We are happy to have you as guest in our Camp. Tonight we will have a magnificent feast. Please take your time to look around our City and make yourselves at home."
The two sides collided together and for the first time in history it wasn't in combat. Percy rushed to Annabeth and pulled her into a long passionate kiss on her lips. Others shook hands in the act of friendship, and those who saw familiar faces embraced. Tyson the cyclops crushed everyone in sight with bear hugs, The Hunters and the Amazons seemed to take a liking to each other, and the Ares and Athena children seemed extremely impressed by how the Romans ran things. The crowd dispersed as some went to look around the city, others showed off fighting moves and weapons, and some traded stories and made introductions, and some took a tour of Argo II.
Thanatos spotted Chiron by himself and swooped down to intercept him. He tailed Chiron for a few moments waiting for the right moment to talk to him. His waiting time was protracted and he had to hide behind in an alley because the snot nosed Percy Jackson had to talk to him. Eventually the kid left and Thanatos found his opening.
"Pssst… psst…. Chiron."
Chiron continued trotting on obliviously causing Thanatos to roll his eyes.
"Chiron you stupid centaur!"
Chiron turned and his eyes grew big. "Lord Than-" Chiron began but was cut off by the God of Death.
"-Get over here Chiron. Discreetly please."
"Lord Thanatos how may I be of service?" Chiron asked happily.
"I was wondering if you could do a little favor for me," Thanatos said slyly.
The mess hall was jammed pack with demigods, veterans, lares, satyrs/fauns, and mythical creatures alike. The satyrs were telling the fauns of their duties at Camp Half-Blood which the fauns took a liking too, the Ares and Mars kids arm wrestled, and the Mercury/Hermes kids started a blackjack table. Plates of food weren't the only things zipping around the room that night. There were people constantly getting up from seat to seat to visit different tables and meet new people. The night was full of good eats and good laughs.
After a couple hours of storytelling and joking Reyna stepped down from her Praetor chair and called for silence. "Friends of new and old welcome," she paused as a few whoops and cheers sounded and waited for the hush. "I hope you are enjoying your meals and each other's company because for it will not last long. I am sorry to be the bearer of bad news and be the one to cut your new found peace short but inn two days time we will gather our greatest warriors who will board Argo II and disembark on the greatest quest since the search for the Golden Fleece when the original Argo was still in commission. We will fly to the land of our roots, find Death's Doors and close them. Only then can we defeat our true enemy, Gaea, but that can only be possible if we unite together as one. Yes, sacrifices will be made, friends and family will die, but we can stop many others from dying as long as we work together and fight with every bit of strength that we have. Tonight is our last night before we proceed with a great mission that for some of us will be our last, so let's make this night one to remember because we might never get a chance like this again." Pause. "May fortune smile in our favor," she raised her glass. "To the gods!"
"To the gods!" Everyone else replied.
The room lingered with the awkward silence. Even with the festivities reality of the world around them managed to slither it's way into their hearts. It was true some of them would die or maybe a lot of them. Blood and tears would be shed and hearts would be broken. There was a blatant rift cause by Reyna's words and the looks of impending doom on their leaders faces'.
Jason stood to remedy it. "Come on you guys. Eat up, have a goody time because in two days we will enter the land of our ancestors and we must fight for our honor and theirs'. In order to win we must fight like the heroes that came before us, fight like the legends who we aspire to be."
That was when Thanatos finally revealed himself. "Or you can fight side by side with those legends!"
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