XLIII
Frank
(A/N: Sorry for the lack of updates, this chapter is kind of crazy. I don't know what went through me here, but rest assured, my sanity will come back. Roleplaying as a iron-age country does not help. Anyways, hope you enjoy.)
Frank found himself in a dream, like he always did when he blacked out. This time, he found himself in a dark clearing, with the moon shining brightly above him. Beside him was the shadowy figure that he had seen nearly a month ago.
He was still wearing a dark cloak, with the hood pulled over so that Frank couldn't see his face.
"Frank Zhang." his voice was icy. Frank flinched when he said it. "You have begun to scratch the surface of your powers. But this is not enough." he continued. "You still have not achieved your full potential!"
Frank felt a little annoyed. "Well, I mean, it's not like I didn't already manage to turn into inanimate objects, right?"
But deep within the shadows that resided in his hood, the man's eyes flashed, literally. They looked like tiny embers. "You have much more potential than that. For instance, you can shape-shift in and out of inanimate objects at will."
Frank had never realized it, but yes, he had.
"So go, son of Mars, and show that giant his rightful place." the cloaked figure said.
Frank shut his eyes, and when they opened, he was back in the real world, back in his human form. Hazel was standing right above him, chanting incantation after incantation, but she was only doing so well. He was only a few feet away from one of the tubes-she must have dragged him away from his crash-site. They were surrounded by a huge army of monsters, with all different kinds. There were Harpies, Stymphalian Birds, Cyclopes, Centaurs, the whole bunch.
Looking at the tubes, Frank saw that not even a dent had been made on them, which meant that something was very wrong. He stood up, and Hazel noticed. "Hey, you're awake!" she said, relieved. "Incantare: Unda Sectando!"
Wave of pursuit. A giant wave of H2O came crashing down on the monsters around them, chasing them wherever they went. Slowly, they dissipated, just leaving them, Polybotes and a whole ton of flying monsters.
Frank transformed into a gun and shot a bullet out of his own mouth. Ditching the gun, he shot forward. While in flight, he transformed into a shockwave.
Yes, he'd transformed into energy. Which felt a little uncontrollable at first, but he sent a large amount of it at the enemy forces, sending them flying off the hill. He turned into an elephant, which turned out to be one of his best animals, and charged left and right, sending enemies into the sky wherever he went. His large tusks whipped back and forth, slicing away at the monsters. Meanwhile, Hazel summoned shards of Celestial Bronze, sending them at the monsters. They instantly turned to dust after getting sliced by them.
Frank and Hazel were slowly gaining ground. Now, the enemy ranks had been thinned, and more clumped up. Frank saw his chance, and turned into a bolt of electricity. He zigged and zagged, entering the body of a cyclops, and trying to find the quickest way to the exit. But then, he saw his chance.
He made a leap of faith, straight towards the tubes connected to Polybotes' arm. He entered the giant, and when he exited, the giant was reeling in pain. Now, the tubes were a burden.
But not for long. Because as soon as Frank turned into a human once more, he immediately felt a wave of nausea. Then another, and another. He began to feel lightheaded, then all the power went out of him. He fell to the ground, and Hazel did too.
He raised his hands to his eyes, and saw the impossible. They were fading. Fast. Now, there was just a dim glow left. Frank noted that Hazel was far worse off- her body was flickering, yet she was so pale and see-through Frank could see the monsters charging at them through her.
It was the siphoning of Rome. Frank could feel it- he was getting weaker by the second. Polybotes stood over them, gloating, as the wave of monsters closed in.
This was the end. Frank was sure of it- they were dead. No god was going to swoop out of the sky and save them.
Of course, over the course of the last three months, Frank had learnt to never underestimate his luck. Suddenly, the sky darkened. Thunderclouds blotted out the sun. Rain started to drench them, and waves rolled in from the bay.
At first, Frank thought that perhaps Zeus had come to help them, but then the man rose out of the sea.
He was dressed in a Greek chiton, and was about as tall as a giant. He stepped on the shore, then charged towards the hill. Frank's eyes widened as he shot jet-like streams of water straight at his face. He summoned water daggers and sliced two of the tubes clean in half. A giant flow of dust started to flow out of the ends.
Polybotes shrieked in rage and pain. With a flick of his hand he turned the water to poison, and it dropped to the ground. But it had been done. Now, Rome was flowing back into the ground. Frank felt his energy coming back.
Suddenly, the newcomer hunched over and fell to the ground. He looked at Frank. "Finish-it." he muttered.
"Who are you?" Frank asked apprehensively.
"I am-" he spasmed. "Neptune- no, Poseidon!" his eyes grew duller, and Frank started to see less and less of the light in them. "Finish it!" he yelled.
Polybotes laughed. "Not looking so good, eh, Poseidon?" he taunted, laughing. "This puny little hero cannot defeat me- I am too powerful!"
Poseidon winced in pain. "You would be surprised." he muttered. Suddenly, he let out a guttural scream. "LOOK AWAY!" he yelled. Frank only had a second to turn away before Poseidon exploded turned into his pure form.
Polybotes looked at the remains of him- a giant pile of charred earth- and laughed.
Frank suddenly realized what Poseidon had done.
"Hazel!" he yelled. "Now!" They both charged straight at him. Frank transformed into a tiger, his claws raking through the legion of monsters. Hazel muttered incantation after incantation, occasionally changing the Mist to alter the scenario. As they got closer, Polybotes swung a fist at them, now freed from its binds thanks to Poseidon. Frank dodged it, transformed into a ball of lava, and spread out across his hand. He screamed and tried to shake him off, which worked, but it only helped Frank turn into a swarm of bees and attack his eyes. He'd seen it in an online cartoon once (don't ask where he got the computer), so he assumed it would work.
It did more than just work. Polybotes crashed down to the floor, slapping his eyes, trying to get the bees out. Unfortunately for him, it didn't work.
"Incantare: Arcus Milia!" she yelled. Million arcs? Frank didn't know, but he had the sense to fly out of the Giant's body before she unleashed the spell.
He flew back to the ground and transformed into him again as giant arcs of electricity coursed through Polybotes' body. He screamed in pain, and when the steam subsided, he was steaming hot and looked like mush. Frank recoiled at the sight of him. It looked like a pile of sludge was talking.
"You fools," the pile of mud gurgled.
"Yeah, Polybotes?" Frank asked. "What amazing things do you have to say?"
"You fools." he repeated. "Do you think that you can win against Gaia? My mother? Do you? She is unstoppable! To her, you're just a bunch of pesky wimps."
"And that's wise, because we're the ones who are going to stop her."
Polybotes laughed. A cruel, maniacal laugh.
"If you really think that, then you all are dead. She has plans for all seven of you- and she knows that they won't all be able to their plan. She has told me: one will fail their mission. One of you will allow her to wake. She does not know who, but she knows this. Oh. Also, Frank Zhang and Hazel Levesque, I wish that your relationship good luck."
He laughed at them, seemingly enjoying his moment. "And if you think that you've won this battle, think again. Goodbye, demigods."
He exploded into a wave of wet sand. The dust seeped back into the ground. Frank felt his strength coming back.
Suddenly, a tiny orb of light came out of the ground, cracked and exploded in their faces.
"What was that?" Frank asked.
"The anchor in Camp Jupiter." Hazel replied. "But that's beside the point. What did he mean by-"
Her face went completely white her eyes widened.
"What are you staring at-" Frank turned around and saw what he originally thought would only be possible in science fiction novels.
The monsters were slowly shedding their skin. Scales fell to the ground and disappeared. And what was left was... the bodies of countless people, residents of new Rome.
They hadn't escaped in time. They'd become part of Polybotes' army.
Frank thought back to all the Stymphalian Birds, Hellhounds, Harpies he'd killed. He wanted this to be a sick joke, but it wasn't. He'd killed his own people.
Tears fell down Hazel's face. "No." she muttered. "No!" she fell to the ground and screamed.
Frank wanted to do the same, but he couldn't. He forced himself to get up, whistle for Arion. When the horse came, he seemed to understand what had happened. He gently lifted Hazel onto his back, then Frank climbed on and buckled his seat belt. He did the same with Hazel.
Gaia would pay for this.
"Arion." he spoke, and he felt centuries older. "Take us to Camp Half-Blood."