AN: So, the next chapter. I am sorry it took so long but I am going to try and focus a bit more on this story before I begin the sequel to The Sea's Daughter. Hopefully you all like this chapter, and I'll have the next one up as soon as I can.
One More Day.
Chapter 3: The Lost Heroine.
"You are asking for trouble, step-mother dearest."
The Queen of the gods eye twitched as she turned to stare at the beautiful goddess who'd entered a part of a garden on Olympus she was currently plotting in.
in front of her was a large fountain and inside was images of Persephone Castellan – Hera had to remind herself the girl was recently married.
"I am not your stepmother, Aphrodite," Hera said, and the goddess rolled her eyes.
"How rude," she said, walking over to stand in front of the water fountain. "I just thought I'd lend you advice...niece."
Hera gritted her teeth at the reminder that Aphrodite was technically her aunt. Born from Ouranos and the sea, she was the half-sister of the Titans. A goddess despite her parentage, the first to be born actually.
"I never asked for your advice, Aphrodite," Hera said, turning to take a better look at the goddess.
The goddess smiled, a glimmer of something unusual in her ever changing eyes. Hera raised an eyebrow and realized with a start this was not Aphrodite, but Venus.
"Hera," Venus said.
"What do you want Venus? I'm pretty sure Zeus would be unhappy to know our Roman forms were conversing with other Greek forms."
Venus laughed, a melodic sound.
"Like he wouldn't be upset if he knew what you were planning," she shot back.
"It's for the best," Hera said and she felt Juno just under the surface, agreeing with her. "The camps must be united if we wish to survive the next Great Prophecy."
Venus raised an eyebrow.
"And this has to do with Percy, how?" she asked.
"She is one of the seven," Hera said. "I've always been aware of who the seven would be. It works out well, my plan will be the first part of saving our family."
"At what expense? Percy is our family, for some of us more then others," Venus nearly snarled.
Sometimes it was surprising how much more disciplined and warlike Venus was compared to Aphrodite. She was even more fiercely protective than her Greek form at times.
"Why do you care, Venus?"
"Because, she is of my bloodline," Venus admitted, seeing no harm in it. "Sally Jackson is my granddaughter, Laura Jackson was my daughter. I told Laura it would be safest at Camp Jupiter for her family, mortals who are married to demigods are allowed to live in New Rome after all. But she was determined to be as normal as she could. She never even told Sally of her heritage."
"So Sally Jackson isn't clear sighted at all...she's a legacy?" Hera inquired, her eyes wide.
Venus shrugged.
"She is, and that makes Percy my great-granddaughter. Aphrodite knows this as well, it's one reason we've been so interested in her life. Why we helped her during the Labyrinth quest, and helped her friends save her when she was kidnapped."
"Than she is even more perfect then I once thought. She'll be the perfect demigod to unite the camps. Both Greek and Roman."
Venus sighed.
"I had hoped telling you this would change your mind. I must remind you that she is pregnant. If anything is to happen to either Persephone or her child..." Venus trailed off, glaring hatefully and with a promise of future pain in Hera's direction.
Hera withheld a shiver. She wouldn't want to admit it but Aphrodite or Venus were not goddesses to cross. They had ways of being nearly worse then any goddess at causing trouble and making one wish they had never upset her.
Her domains did her fury when angered no justice.
Than again, the saying Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, was coined by crossed lovers and Venus was the goddess of love. So it went without saying she wasn't an enemy you wanted.
"I have taken precautions. I have had my daughter, Eileithyia, looking into it for me. She had a few suggestions on how to fix the problem without hurting mother or child. She had told me the child is set to be born in early April. That give me plently of time to have her safely tucked away with Lupa and for her to play her roll in the prophecy later."
Venus gave her a looked and sighed.
"I tried, but I hope you are aware that her husband, will not be happy about this," Venus said.
Hera scoffed.
"Luke is a new god, what could he do?"
Venus began to laugh.
"Oh, I do pity you Hera. Luke may be a new god, but he is not like the other new gods we've had. He has delt with much, including Kronos taking host inside his body. His domans speak for themselves, I would not want to anger the god of rage...would you?"
With that Venus moved back and transformed into a beautiful, if not slightly larger then normal dove and flew off.
Hera watched her go and frowned. She knew Venus had a good point, and it was sort of strange.
Some of what the love goddess had said Hera would expect from Athena or even Minerva – though the latter did not quite hold the spark she held as Athena.
Hera knew her step-daughter had a great hatred for the Romans for defiling her in ways they to this day did not seem to understand.
All the greeks felt for the wisdom goddess, even Poseidon had gone so far as to comfort Athena on the day the Romans tore down everything the goddess stood for, making her into a mokery of a goddess as Minerva.
Athena, to this day, hated becoming Minerva for long periods of time and had never had a child in her Roman form.
"In the end, they will see I only had their best interest at heart," Hera said to herself as she gazed into the fountians water.
In which portrayed the daughter of Poseidon heading back to her cabin from spending time on the beach with her husband.
"It's time," Hera said, nodding and in a flash and lingering smell of lotus flowers she was gone.
xXx
Annabeth looked around at the campers, worry clear on her face.
She was currently teaching an Ancient Greek lesson, something she now taught with Percy seeing as the girl was not allowed to teach any of the active lessons.
Chiron didn't want to take any chances, of Percy getting hurt or angering Luke or Poseidon.
Annabeth would be the first to admit godhood suited Luke, and it was clear with his domains he wasn't an enemy to be had. Not that he ever had been.
She digressed though, the point of her worry was not Luke or Chiron, it was the fact Percy hadn't showed up yet.
When she hadn't showed up for breakfast Annabeth had taken it she was still asleep – she tended to sleep in more then not these days. But now she wasn't so sure, and it was beginning to worry her.
"Have you seen Percy today?" Annabeth asked as her class of demigods changed out for the second time that morning.
Her first class consisted of mostly minor god and goddess children. The next was a mix of minor and major – including the Aphrodite and Hermes cabins.
"Nah, I was just showing the newbies here," Chris said, as he entered with the next class. "Why, didn't she show yet?"
"No," Annabeth said, frowning. "I'm beginning to worry. Do you mind taking over the lessons until I get back from checking on her?"
Chris shrugged, shaking his head.
"Sure, it's fine," Chris said. "I'm sure she's fine though. I know when my aunt was pregnant with her kid, she slept like...all the time."
Annabeth chuckled.
"I'll be back," she said, and left for the Poseidon cabin.
It only took a few seconds to run up to it, and knock. Just in case she was worried over nothing and in reality it was simply Luke's fault she was late.
She'd walked in on them once not long after they'd returned to camp. It was actually sort of scaring event for her.
"Sephie, are you alright?" she called, knocking once more.
Silence met her and she frowned before sighing and pushing the door open. She did so slowly but she didn't have to. To her surprise the room was empty, no sign of Percy was inside.
It was too clean, too...void. Her heart sank and she knew then something was terribly wrong.
She spent the next ten minutes looking everywhere, inside the cabin, outside, and around the grounds. Finally the only place left was the Big House. There was nothing anywhere.
"Chiron!" she yelled as she ran into the Big House so fast she practically slid to a stop.
The centaur was talking to Luke about something, clearly it was rather important from their shock at seeing her.
"Annabeth," Luke said, his blue eyes going from surprised to concerned. "What's the hurry?"
"It's...she's missing!" she gasped out, catching her breath.
Both Chiron and Luke's faces went serious as they turned to her.
"Who's missing?" Chiron asked.
"Percy," Annabeth said and instantly Luke was in front of her, his eyes rather cold and speckled with a glowing icy white color making his eyes even more icy and glacier colored.
"What do you mean Annabeth, where is Persephone?" he asked, almost demanding.
Annabeth blinked, and took a step back before speaking.
"I don't know. I went to check on her, she never came to lessons this morning, nor breakfast. I thought she just sleeping in..." Annabeth blinked hard, as if forcing back a mist of tears. "Her cabin is empty and I've looked everywhere. I can't find her. She's just gone!"
Luke stepped back, shooting the slightly frightened girl a apologetic look and looked at Chiron.
"Call together the counselors," he said. "We have much to discus now."
"Alright," Annabeth said, nodding.
"And Luke..." Chiron began, turning to where the god once stood only to find him gone.
He blinked, and sighed, shaking his head.
On the ground where Luke had once stood was a scorch like mark. In the air was the smell of the flowers off a Hawthorn tree – a pungent odor, similar to the smell of decomposing flesh oddly enough.
Annabeth knew the Hawthorn Tree to be one of Luke's symbols, his sacred tree. She felt for the odor to have been left behind and so strongly he had to be angry.
xXx
Up on Olympus the council of twelve were having a meeting, not exactly common but with a war having just passed them by and another Great Prophecy spoken they were meeting more often.
Hera was oddly enough rather quiet, kept glancing at Poseidon strangely.
"So, we are..." Zeus' words were cut off by the throne room doors being thrown open and an angry god entering.
Hermes was the first to stand, and walk down towards his obviously upset son.
He was steaming, literally, in his rage. Luke wasn't the god of fire, but being the god of rage was close enough his rage gave an illusion of being almost fiery. His eyes were nearly glowing with this same aura.
"Luke, what is this?" Zeus asked, standing glaring down at the god who seemed unaffected.
"Where is she?" he asked, looking at each member though some more then others.
"Luke, just calm down," Hermes said, placing a hand on his sons shoulder, flinching at the stinging burning from the action.
Luke looked at his father and his anger faltered for a moment. Hermes truly didn't seem to know what he meant, but looking at the counsel his anger returned.
"Where is my wife!?"
The silence and shocked looks came almost instantly.