Chapter 15! Enjoy, everybody!
Must I repeat the disclaimer again? I think you all get it.
Maybe he didn't mean everyone to overhear, but they did.
The campfire almost went out completely.
"What we do know," Rachel said, "is that the first phase has begun. A major problem has arisen, and we need a quest to solve it. Hera, the queen of the gods, has been taken."
Silence again. And then people start talking at once.
Chiron pounded his hoof again, but Rachel still had to wait before she could get their attention.
Rachel started to talk. She told them about what I found when I got to the Grand Canyon, and about what the storm spirits said. She talked about Piper passing out in Hera's cabin. Finally, Rachel told them about what Jason saw in the Big House, and what Hera's warning was.
"Jason," Rachel said. "Um…do you remember your last name?"
He looked self-conscious, but he shook his head.
"We'll just call you Jason, then," Rachel said. "It's clear Hera herself has issued you a quest."
Rachel paused, and everybody stared. Jason set his jaw and nodded. "I agree."
"You must save Hera to prevent a great evil," Rachel continued. "Some sort of king from rising. For reasons we don't yet understand, it must happen by the winter solstice, only four days from now."
"That's the council day of the gods," I said, standing up again, and moving to Rachel's side. "If the gods don't already know Hera's gone, they will definitely notice her absence by then. They'll probably break out fighting, accusing each other of taking her. That's what they usually do.
"The winter solstice," Chiron said, "is also the time of greatest darkness. The gods gather that day, as mortals always have, because strength is in numbers. The solstice is a day when evil magic is strong. Ancient magic, older than the gods. It is a day when things…stir."
"Okay," I said, really getting annoyed with Chiron. "Thank you, Captain Sunshine. Whatever's going on, I agree with Rachel. Jason has been chosen to lead this quest, so-"
"Why hasn't he been claimed?" someone yelled obnoxiously from the Ares cabin. "If he's so important—"
"He has been claimed," Chiron announced. "Long ago. Jason, give them a demonstration."
He stepped forward nervously, looking as though he didn't know what Chiron was talking about. He glanced at Piper, who mimed flipping a coin.
He reached into his pocket. His coin flashed in the firelight, and when he caught it, he was holding a lance—a rod of gold seven feet long, with a spear tip.
Rachel and I stepped away from the lance, not wanting to be speared.
I looked shocked. "Wasn't that…" I hesitated. "I thought you had a sword."
"Um, it came up tails, I think," Jason said. "Same coin, long-range weapon form."
"Dude, I want one!" yelled the same obnoxious guy from the Ares cabin.
"Better than Clarisse's electric spear, Lamer!" one of his brothers agreed.
"Electric," Jason murmured. "Back away."
Rachel and I got the message. We leapt backward just as electricity filled the air. My hair stood up on end.
Jason raised his javelin and thunder cracked open the sky, a bolt of lightning arcing down the golden spear point and hit the campfire with the force of a bomb.
Rachel and I almost flew off our feet.
When the smoke cleared, the entire camp sat in shock.
"Um…sorry," Jason said, lowering his lance.
Chiron brushed some coals from his beard. "A little overkill, perhaps, but you've made your point. And I believe we know who your father is."
"Jupiter," Jason said. "I mean Zeus. Lord of the Sky."
Everyone started to babble for what felt like the tenth time today. I raised my hands.
"Hold it! How can he be the son of Zeus? The Big Three…their pact not to have mortal kids…how could we not have known about him sooner?"
Chiron didn't answer, but I got the feeling he knew the answer.
This guy was starting to really get on my nerves.
"The important thing is that Jason's here now," Rachel said. "He has a quest to fulfill, which means we will need his own prophecy."
She closed her eyes and swooned. To campers ran forward and caught her and sat her down on a stool that a third brought forward. Green mist swirled around Rachel's feet for the second time that night, and I saw Piper slightly recoil. Rachel opened her eyes and they glowed green. She opened her mouth:
"Child of lightning, beware the earth,
The giant's revenge the seven shall birth,
The forge and dove shall break the cage,
And death unleash through Hera's rage."
Rachel collapsed on the last word, and the three campers carried her away into the darkness.
"Is that normal?" Piper asked. Everyone looked at her, and she realized she broke the silence. "I mean…does she spew green smoke a lot?"
"Gods, you're dense!" Drew sneered. "She just issued a prophecy—Jason's prophecy to save Hera! Why don't you just—"
"Drew!" I snapped, rounding on her. "Piper asked a fair question. Something about that prophecy definitely isn't normal. If breaking Hera's cage unleashes her rage and causes a bunch of death…why would we free her? It might be a trap, or—or maybe Hera will turn on her rescuers. She's never been kind to heroes."
Jason rose. "I don't have much of a choice. Hera took my memory. I need it back. Besides, we can't just not help the queen of the heavens if she's in trouble."
Nyssa stood up. "Maybe. But you should listen to Annabeth. Hera can be vengeful She threw her own son—our dad—down a mountain just because he was ugly."
"Real ugly," snickered someone from Aphrodite.
"Shut up!" Nyssa growled. "Anyway, we've also got to think—why beware the earth? And what's the giant's revenge? What are we dealing with here that's powerful enough to kidnap the queen of the heavens?"
No one answered. I looked at Chiron, and we started having a silent exchange.
Me: It can't be the giant's revenge.
Chiron: Don't say anything. We don't want to scare them.
Me: I'm right? I can't believe it. We have to tell them!
Chiron: Later, Annabeth. If you told them, they would be too terrified to proceed.
Gah, that centaur was really good at getting on my nerves.
I took a deep breath. "It's Jason's quest, so it's Jason's choice. Obviously, he's the child of lightning. According to tradition, he may choose any two companions."
Someone from Hermes, Travis, yelled, "Well, you, obviously, Annabeth. You've got the most experience."
"No, Travis," I said. "First off, I'm not helping Hera. Every time I've tried, she's deceived me, or it's come back to bite me later. Forget it. No way. Secondly, I'm leaving first thing in the morning to find Percy."
"It's connected," Piper blurted out. "You know that's true, don't you? This whole business, your boyfriend's disappearance—it's all connected."
"How?" Drew demanded. "If you're so smart, how?"
Piper looked annoyed, but she didn't say anything. I came to her rescue.
"You may be right, Piper. If this is connected, I'll find out from the other end—by searching for Percy. As I said, I'm not about to rush off to rescue Hera, even if her disappearance sets the rest of the Olympians fighting again. But there's another reason I can't go. The prophecy says otherwise."
"It says who I pick," Jason agreed. "The forge and dove shall break the cage. The forge is the symbol of Vul—Hephaestus."
Nyssa's shoulders slumped. "If you have to beware the earth, you should avoid traveling overland. You'll need air transport."
"The flying chariot's broken," Nyssa continued, "and the pegasi, we're using them to search for Percy. But maybe Hephaestus cabin can help figure out something else to help. With Jake incapacitated, I'm senior camper. I can volunteer for the quest." She sounded unenthusiastic.
Leo suddenly stood up. "It's me."
Several of his cabinmates tried to pull him down, but he resisted.
"No, it's me, I know it is. I've got an idea for the transportation problem. Let me try. I can fix this!"
Jason studied him for a minute. Then he smiled. "We started this together, Leo. Seems only right you come along. You find us a ride, you're in."
"Yes!" Leo pumped his fist.
"It'll be dangerous," Nyssa warned him. "Hardship, monsters, terrible suffering. Possibly none of you will come back alive."
"Oh." His face fell. Then he realized everyone was watching. "I mean...Oh, cool! Suffering? I love suffering! Let's do this."
I nodded. "Then, Jason, you only need to choose the third quest member. The dove—"
Drew leapt to her feet. "Oh, absolutely! The dove is Aphrodite. Everybody knows that. I am totally yours."
Piper clenched her hands. "No."
Drew rolled her eyes. "Oh please, Dumpster girl. Back off."
"I had the vision of Hera; not you. I have to do this."
"Anyone can have a vision. You were just in the right place at the right time." Drew turned to Jason. "Look, fighting is all fine, I suppose. And people who build things…" She glared at Leo. "Well, I suppose someone has to get their hands dirty. But you need charm on your side. I can be pretty persuasive. I could help a lot."
I felt this weird feeling to agree with Drew.
"Well…" I said. "Given the wording of the prophecy—"
"No!" Piper yelled, and her voice sounded richer. "I'm supposed to go."
Everyone started to nod. Drew looked around, thunderstruck.
"Get over it!" Drew snapped. "What can Piper do?"
Piper's mouth opened, but she didn't say anything.
"Well," Drew said smugly, "I guess that settles it."
Light suddenly glowed around Piper. I saw her hair curl itself, and her clothes suddenly transformed into a pure white gown. Gold armbands snaked around Piper's arms. Makeup was applied to her face, and she looked absolutely gorgeous.
Everyone stared at Piper like she just exploded.
"What?" she demanded. She looked above her, and then down at herself. She yelped.
She tugged at her dress, and then felt her hair.
"Oh, god," she gasped. "What happened?"
Stunned, I pointed at Piper's reflective dagger. Piper gingerly pulled it out and stared.
"Beautiful," Jason said, staring. "Piper, you…you're a knockout."
Drew's face was of horror.
"No!" she cried. "Not possible!"
"This isn't me," Piper protested. "I—don't understand."
Chiron folded his front legs into a bow, and the rest of the camp followed suit.
"Hail, Piper McLean," Chiron said gravely. "Daughter of Aphrodite, lady of the doves, goddess of love."
I think that's a pretty good spot to end!
Besides, the Double R did, too, so...
I'm just a big copy-cat.
Not much to say here, so I'm just gonna leave now.
Please leave me a review! They're super fun, and easy to make!
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