Chapter 22
No POV
Nico and Thalia were the first knee to come out, Percy followed quickly after.
"You guys aren't dead!" Leo said enthusiastically when he saw them come from their respective doors.
" Gee thanks for the confidence." Thalia grumbled.
Leo and everybody else stared at her.
" Thalia what happened to your hair?" Will asked.
Thalia twiddled with her hair," I grew it."
" Well I can see that." Leo scoffed." How?"
Thalia flipped her hair." A certain goddess helped me a bit."
Nico started laughing." Thalia, when did you get so girly?"
Now it was Nico's turn to be stared at.
" Did something happen Nico? Are you mentally okay?" Leo asked, fear intermingled within his voice.
Nico tilted his head," No, of course not. Why would you think that?"
Percy and Will exchanged uncertain glances. Nico looked at the sleeping Annabeth in Percy's arms.
" Hey, where's Merope?" Nico asked.
Percy glanced at his shoes. He set Annabeth leaning against the cave before his arms gave in.
" Percy, why do you have Annabeth but not Merope?" Thalia asked, joining Nico.
Percy sighed and told them all about his trial and how he was supposed to choose between Annabeth and Merope. About how Gaea lied and tried to kill Merope anyway, but then a mysterious kid jumped in to save her.
" He says hi." Percy said looking at Nico." Do you know him? He has dark hair and golden eyes. It seems like he can control movement or something like that."
Nico tapped his head," No, I've never heard of him or seen anyone other than Kronos with golden eyes."
Percy nodded," I thought so. His name was Regele and he said he was part of a group called the Five Cheaters of Death."
" Then maybe he know me because I once pursued his overdue soul?" Nico thought,"But I don't remember every task my father asked me to do, after all, he does give me a lot of jobs. There was this one time my father asked me to chase the soul of a demigod who could control souls. I mean, how ironic is that? I chase his soul and his could chases other souls. But the guy was cool. I got to know him better after a while. I found him all the way in Japan! There was-"
Everyone knew something was wrong. Nico was talking too much. Thalia was being too girly. Percy was the only one who seemed unaffected.
" What horrors they must've been through to be so traumatized." Leo shook his head slowly.
Suddenly, the ground burst open. Literally. Gaea popped out of the ground, breaking the very floor. Percy, with reflexes his friends had never seen him have, jumped over to pick Annabeth up.
Gaea's face was scrunched up in anger. Her red eyes glistening more than usual. She was now twelve feet high. Just enough to be able to move in the cave.
" O MY FREAKING GOD!" Leo yelled." GAEA'S MAD!"
" Yeah, Regele kinda made her mad." Percy said, significantly more calm than Leo.
" Kinda?" Will said.
" RAAAHHHHHHHHHH!" Gaea roared.
" Got an idea on how to calm her down?" Nico asked, jumping from stone to stone. The ground wouldn't stay still.
Thalia hovered above them.
" Since when did Thalia know how to fly?" Nico grumbled, jealous.
Thalia shot two jabs of lightning at Gaea, who let them land on her. Completely unaffected, Gaea continued to tantrum on.
" Hey, don't you think this is related to the She will give, you must tame thing? Maybe it's her giving up her sanity and we have to tame her." Percy said.
" Well I don't really know who this Regele guy is, but she must hate the Five very much for her to lose her composure." Will said.
" I don't know if you noticed, but we're up against THE HOLY EARTH MOTHER! WANNA HELP OUT?" Leo shouted.
Nico laughed again, sending shivers down Leo's spine. The laugh was so innocent. Too innocent. That freaked him out.
" I have an idea!" Percy said.
" We're listening Annabeth Jr." Leo shouted while melting a piece of rock that was being thrown at him.
" Thalia and Leo, I need you guys." Percy said." Nico, control the ground so that the rocks don't go too wild. Will cover Nico, make sure not a single piece of dust gets on him while he's focusing."
" R-right!" Will said, there was something else in his voice too. Did it quiver?
Nico clapped his hands together as if he was praying. All the rocks stopped dancing around and only twitched every now and then. Gaea tried to lift them up again, however, Nico just set them back down harmlessly. Will distracted Gaea by shooting arrows from a distance. Not that it hurt her or anything, but it certainly annoyed her.
" FOOLISH HALF BLOODS!" She cried out.
Percy had never tried to do something so complicated before. And it didn't help that the floor still moved a bit and the earth mother was screaming.
" Hey Percy, my face feels different. Like it's more smooth now." Leo said." Don't tell me you pulled me over just to put some Dove on my face."
" Woah, Leo, you look really different." Thalia said from behind.
Leo turned around. He gaped at Thalia.
" I could say the same…"
Thalia's black hair had turned blonde, and her skin, smooth and fair. She looked a lot like Merope. Leo's complexion was lighter. His hair, instead of dark brown, was now dark purple, and his irises gleaming gold.
Percy pointed at Thalia." You're Merope." He said, then turned to Leo." And you're Regele. Both of you are going to bow to the earth mother, beg for forgiveness, make yourselves look like fools. Flatter her. Tell her about how powerless you guys are and I'm sure she'll be happy."
Leo stared at Percy in disbelief." Yeah she'll be happy! She'll be happy to kill me! I'm not ready to die yet."
" What if she attacks us?" Thalia asked.
" Pretend to get hit, then drop on the floor dead." Percy said." It's fool proof."
" You actually think the Gaea, mother of both Titans and Giants, could be fooled with us playing possum?" Leo asked.
Percy nodded.
" Great. I'd like to have my grave decorated with a statue of myself." Leo mumbled.
Leo and Thalia, now Regele and Merope snuck on the scene. Nico looked tired. Beads of sweat were already dripping from his face, he looked as if he could pass out at any moment. Percy signaled Regele and Merope to 'get on with it.'
Regele and Merope sighed.
"Hey, you are no match for me." Leo said unenthusiastically.
" Regele…" Gaea snarled. She was falling for it. Leo flinched at the pure hatred in the words.
" The pressure! There is no way I can win, you're too powerful for me to defeat!" Leo said, serious.
Gaea smirked." I was wondering when you'd understand. You merely delayed your death the moment you provoked me."
" No kidding. I have no idea what I was thinking." The entire conversation was not acting anymore, it was real.
" We grovel at your feet o powerful one!" Thalia hesitantly got on her knees and begged forgiveness for all the things they did wrong and that Gaea would not kill them.
Percy whispered to the half exhausted Nico what was going on. Leo and Thalia heard him slightly giggle.
'The brat.' They both thought.
" No, you do not deserve to be allowed to live. You mocked me once, so now I shall destroy you!" Gaea picked up a large boulder without touching it and threw it at Thalia and Leo.
They both braced themselves to break the attack. Just before the rock hit them, Leo and Thalia smashed it with their fists, along with some fire and lightning. Since they were under the rock when they smashed it, and Gaea was high above them, Gaea could not see what they were doing. Once the stone shattered, both disguised demigods collapsed on the floor dramatically. Gaea frowned. She had always envisioned destroying them to be much harder. Either way, they were both dead, and she had won! They even groveled at her feet. Feeling satisfied, she shrunk back to normal human size.
" I have done it! I have killed-" Gaea spun around. Regele and Merope were not there. She cursed.
" I saw them decompose into dust." Thalia quickly said.
Gaea turned to the daughter of Zeus, she had not seen her during the battle, but maybe it was because Gaea was so focused on the other two.
" Now that those two are out of the way." Gaea turned her attention back to the other demigods." I congratulate you on passing the first set of trials."
Everyone took large breaths of relief. Nico, surprisingly even cheered.
" Your first gifts should be somewhat obvious by now." Gaea inclined her head, and the three dragons appeared.
Will and Leo huffed in jealousy.("You have a dragon Leo" Will grumbled.)
" Cool!" Nico shouted, still half asleep but sounding more energetic than usual.
" Now I must tell you a truth. You three must be prepared to take it." Gaea suddenly hushed down into a whisper.
All three lost enthusiasm and listened intently.
" They are the reincarnation of your loved ones."
Silence.
Then...
" Luke is now a dragon?!"
" How can my mother be one of my gifts? She died!"
" You dragged my sister into the body of a dragon!?"
Questions piled up. Anger piled up. They had all known their loved ones were coming back to life, but not as a dragon. The three expected them to start the reincarnation from a baby, a human baby. Not a dragon.
" Quiet." Gaea's voice was sharp." Percy, yours is the aqua blue and silver one. His name is Luke. Thalia, yours is the metallic golden one. Her name is Beryl. Nico, yours is the pure white one. Her name is Bianca."
At each name, the three looked at their own dragons.
Thalia looked uncertain at both Luke and Beryl.
" Do they have memories?" Nico asked.
Gaea shook her head." None. You will be strangers to them as they will to you."
Percy felt stupid, but he sensed a rope slowly dragging himself towards the dragon. His dragon.
Luke had leather like skin. It was not too smooth but not too rough either. His silver hair was long and started at the scalp and ended all the way to the the tail. His eye color was the same, the usual sea blue, only now his pupils were slitted, like a reptile. His entire body was that of traditional chinese dragon, however, the face was not large and boxy. It was instead thin and sleek, like a serpent. It had four medium sized legs spread out in pair along the body. The dragon had no wings but I could tell it can fly just as well as the other two.
Thalia and Nico had the same notion.
Thalia's dragon, Beryl, had two thick legs that she stood on and two little useless arms. Her body was covered in golden armor, even her face. Beryl was strong and majestic looking. Her kings were large and armored just like the rest of her body. Her chest plate seemed to stick out a little more, making her look proud all the time.
Bianca was, well pure white. If Luke was sleek, and Beryl was majestic, then Bianca was beautiful. Her black eyes were angled upwards, and her snout was a perfect rounded v. She had four graceful legs that she depended on to stand and shimmering claws underneath the furry hand. Beryl's wings were big, but Bianca's were larger. They looked like angel wings. Her tail was long and expanded to make almost a peacock feathered ending, only white.
The three heard Gaea sigh. Percy, Thalia, and Nico snapped from their own personal worlds and watched Gaea slowly open her eyes to expose the usual fresh green color it once was.
" My task is done. Now go away you measly demigods. I'm sleepy." Gaea said, yawning. She melted into the earth." My anger is finally subdued..."
Percy's dragon let out a low growl that sounded a lot like multiple hiccups.
" Huh? Hey you-"
Luke snapped his jaws and nearly took a bit of Percy along with it. Percy ducked just in time.
" What was that?!" Percy yelled dazed."You don't bite your master like that!"
Obviously the dragon did not like Percy calling himself his master, because it straitened tall, and tried to bite some more of Percy.
Percy jumped as the dragon charged. Sidestep. Chomp. Duck. Chomp. Roll. Chomp. Percy got on top of the dragon and ran across it's back.
" This is insane!" He panted.
The dragon flew up, twisting with intense flexibility skills, knotting himself, swirling. Luke occasionally bumped into the cave wall.
" Help!" Percy yelled. but his so called friends were busy with the other dragons.
Bianca instantly liked Nico. She purred with a higher pitch than Luke, nuzzling Nico's face. Nico nuzzled right back.
Beryl was giving Thalia the cold shoulder. When Thalia tried to touch Beryl, the dragon would lightly smack her hand away with her tail.
" Ow…" Thalia mumbled.
" So Percy, how did you disguise Thalia and Leo so good?" Nico asked, as if Percy wasn't struggling in a full on battle with a dragon.
" If you shut up and help maybe I'll tell you!" Percy yelled as he used his celestial bronze sword to stop Luke in mid-bite.
Nico and Thalia shrugged to each other.
" Apologize to Luke." Thalia said. He voice wavered for a moment. She had still not gotten over the fact that Luke was still alive.
" I didn't do anything wrong though!" Percy dodged.
" Do it anyways." Nico ordered.
" Okay Okay! I'm sorry Luke!"
Luke stopped for a moment before roughly dropping Percy on the ground.
" Hey!"
Luke growled.
" I did not!" Percy rumbled back.
Nico raised an eyebrow." Did you just understand what Luke said?"
" Yeah, didn't you?"
Thalia and Nico exchanged looks.
" Nope."
" Zilch."
" I guess it could be a bond thing."
Bianca squeaked. Nico jumped.
" Bianca just talked!" Nico eyes wide.
" Hey Beryl! Wanna tell me something too?" Beryl leaned down and snorted smoke into Thalia's face."That-cough-was not understandable."
" Hey guys, not trying to ruin the cool kids club, but where to now?" Leo jumped in. He didn't sound resentful, just playful.
" Camp Half Blood." Percy said.
" How again? I mean sure, you've got dragons that can take us there, but what about supplies? We have nada." Leo said."It's at least a two day journey."
Bianca squeaked again.
" Really? That'd be great!" Nico said.
" What's so great?" Percy asked.
" Bianca says she knows how to shadow travel."
Leo whistled."Great. How far can she go because we have to go halfway across the world."
Bianca screeched threatenly at Leo, who backed off.
" She says she can go all the way." Nico said in Bianca's defense.
" You're lucky to have a dragon that listens to you." Percy mumbled. Thalia nodded in agreement. Their two respective dragons shot them death glances.
Bianca communicated with Nico, who nodded. Bianca interlaced her tail with the other dragons. Leo and Will rode Festus, who came in late to the party. Percy rode on Luke(neither were happy) and Thalia rode on Beryl(ditto) along with Annabeth in her arms. Nico good beside Bianca. And together, Nico and Bianca fused their powers together to create a large enough pathway for four dragons and five demigods.
Thalia had never been through a shadow travel before, but now she wished she hadn't. Thalia didn't know if all shadow travels were supposed to be cold and fast, like the wind harshly smacking your face. Not to mention dark. She didn't know how Nico could stand that feeling. A shard of light finally appeared in front of the demigods after the longest travel Nico had ever done.
Sure enough, Clarisse, Ares kid, stared at us until she realized she was looking at four dragons, the Three, Will, and Leo popping out of a shadow.
" Wha-" She stopped herself. She didn't want to know." You missed a lot."
" You too!" Nico said." We flew across the Pacific on the really fat but comfy Festus and fought Nyx and-" He paused."Then crashed because-" Nico stopped again." We landed on Mesopotamia and rode on hippocampi all the way to Mesopotamia. I was sick of the water by then and Gaea ate Annabeth and Merope. Oh, I forgot to mention how annoying Merope was the entire trip. But then she got saved then kidnapped by this kid who said he was part of the five! We fought Gaea and got out dragons which was our…first…gif-"
Nico collapsed. Completely exhausted.
Clarisse stared at us, then at Nico.
" Well, he didn't say it all in chronological order." Thalia said helpfully.
" Yeah, well, while you guys were out having fun, a lot of things are changing here." Clarisse said, suddenly acusive.
Leo's turn to babble."Do you have any idea how hard it was to get halfway across the world, fighting monsters in the land without gods? It' horrible! I had to freaking stalk three dragons," He pointed and Luke, Beryl, and Bianca."for over 24 hours in the desert! Watching them bathe in a cool pool! I became a Nico!"
" It may have been hard." Clarisse's voice cracked now." But at least the enemy was in front of you. Our enemy is something we can't fight."
Percy looked intensely at Clarisse." What happened?" It wasn't every day someone related to Ares was scared.
" You know Pandemonium?" Clarisse said.
Thalia nodded. She had seen the new about it.
" Well, it's in the camp, and it's already killed four campers."
For the sounds of the dragons, Luke is deep and sounds like he's gargling. Beryl is the classic dragon roar and Bianca is kinda like mew's voice(from pokemon).
The First gift is officially over, and it only took like what, 15 or so chapters? The next quest should be much longer(maybe, i free write these so I can only guess).
Chapter 22 end