Leo never realized how happy he was to know Hedge. The coach had been tough on him at the Wilderness school, but that was all forgiven when Hedge dunked him in the river. The water was freezing cold, but Leo just summoned a little fire to warm himself up. Anything was better than being a gold statue.
Piper had been a different story. They had to dunk her in the river for longer, and she had hypothermia. Hedge worked some nature magic to help Piper as much as he could. It still sucked to see her shivering in her sleep.
The storm caught his attention. It was a magnificent beast. The wind tried multiple times to stop them from creating a fire, but it was no match for Leo. His awesomeness overwhelmed it.
As thunder boomed, Piper's eyes snapped open. She quickly sat up and looked around. Piper spoke, "L...Leo?"
"You're safe," Leo promised. He motioned to the blankets wrapped around her. Piper managed a half smile as she wrapped the blankets tighter around herself.
Leo rubbed his own blanket. He spoke, "We have to put you in the river, and you may have gotten some hypothermia. We can both thank Reyna for saving us."
"And me," Hedge complained as he looked up. He had been using a stick to poke the fire. "Sure, Reyna did all the cool stuff, but I helped unfreeze you."
"How did she defeat Midas?" Piper asked. Her gaze turned towards Reyna. A sad smile came to Piper's face. Reyna was asleep next to the fire and using her backpack as a pillow.
"Pinned him under a chandelier. She didn't want to free the other statues and let them have revenge. I don't know why though. I would have," Hedge commented.
Leo rolled his eyes and added more flames to the fire. He glanced around the dark cave. Leo spoke, "I'm glad you missed the storm spirits. There was a harness and Reyna's Pegasus. It did not go well."
"Where are we now?" Piper asked. Despite her hypothermia, she took off one of her blankets and laid it over Reyna.
"Some placed called Pikes Peak in Colorado," Hedge answered. "Aeolus likes to put his floating palace on the peak."
"If it's floating, how can it be put on the peak?" Leo wondered.
"Valdez, I'll make you drop and give me fifty," Hedge warned. Leo smirked, but he didn't want to think about that.
"I think it's the evening before the solstice, but I do not like deadlines," Leo commented.
"Is that why you never turned assignments in on time?" Piper teased. Leo gasped in mock shock as he grabbed a pan. He dropped burger patties on it and hoped that he didn't attract anything like wolves.
Leo told them about his dream with Athena. For a few moments, the only sound was crackling fire. Hedge, unsurprisingly, broke the silence, "Well, it's probably going to take Camp Half-Blood burning to the ground before Zeus admits that the immortals need the help of mortals. There's nothing worse than a god admitting they need help."
"Athena seemed to hate the fact that Reyna existed. She also said that the demigods had to unite. How are they going to unite if everyone is at Camp Half-Blood?" Leo questioned. He glanced to his right. "Hedge?"
"I'm just as lost as you three are. You spend a hundred years on this earth, and they still won't let you fight in wars," Hedge grumbled.
"A hundred," Leo repeated as he stared. He bit his tongue to keep from laughing.
"That's only fifty in human years, so don't act too surprised," Hedge said. He crossed his arms.
Leo did his best to work on making the food. The storm outside could possibly keep them trapped in the cave. He really didn't want that. How were they going to let nature stop them when the world was at stake?
As he cooked, his attention shifted to everyone in the cave. Hedge was munching on parts of his club. Piper was trying to keep herself warm, and Reyna was still asleep near the fire. She needed the sleep though.
There was silence in the cave for a few minutes. Leo figured the food was almost done, and he was getting ready to serve it. Piper suddenly looked up and whispered, "Hard sacrifice."
"What?" Leo questioned. He was pretty sure that he had heard her wrong. Piper nodded as if sure with herself. She grabbed Reyna's shoulder and shook it.
Reyna's eyes snapped open. She looked around and settled on Piper's face. Piper spoke, "I need to tell you guys something."
Reyna slowly sat up and glanced at Leo. She rubbed her eyes tiredly. Piper watched them and took a deep breath.
"I had a dream a few days before Reyna appeared at the school. Enceladus told me that I had to help him by betraying you guys, or my father would be killed. When I tried calling him, all I got was his assistant."
"Medea told me that Jane, my father's assistant, was wrapped around her finger. She helped Enceladus capture him. Then, I was ordered to take you two to a mountain because he wants both of you dead. It would be an exchange of you two for my father," Piper explained.
"Was there anything about the background that you can remember?" Hedge asked in a quiet voice.
"The Golden Gate Bridge," Piper answered. She took a deep breath. "I have to be there by noon tomorrow."
No one said anything about that. Leo stared at the ground. The look on Piper's face hurt. She clearly expected them to turn on her. Leo passed burgers out, but no one touched their food.
"Piper, you should have told us sooner," Leo began. "We can help you."
"Why aren't you mad?" Piper demanded. "I was told to betray you guys and kill you! We can't help my dad because Enceladus will probably kill him since I told you guys this."
"Your father is a hostage being used for leverage," Hedge interrupted. "All Enceladus wants is for you to go to that mountain, so Hera has to be somewhere else. Classic case of distraction."
"We rescue Hera, or we rescue Piper's father," Leo realized.
"It's not like Enceladus will even let Piper go. If he kills any of you, that ruins the great prophecy. You guys are three of the people involved," Hedge stated like it was obvious. Leo knew they all thought it, but they avoided talking about it.
"Enceladus dies," Reyna said for the first time since Piper's revelation. "We rescue Hera and Piper's father. Then, I will personally drive my sword through Enceladus' heart."
Piper looked at them with tears in her eyes. Reyna gently put her arm around Piper's shoulder and pulled her close. There was a scary intensity in Reyna's eyes.
"We need to know where this mountain is. Bay Area is a really bad place for demigods. It was the hangout for the Titans a long time ago. Now, Atlas holds up the sky on the mountain," Hedge said.
"During the second Titan war, Kronos built a new palace there. That place just crumbled when Kronos was defeated by Percy Jackson," Hedge continued.
"No, it was taken by force," Reyna said. Her eyes stared out in the distance as if lost in another memory. "I was there."
"What do you remember?" Piper wondered. Reyna closed her eyes as if the memory was fleeing. She finally shook her head. Leo took a bite of his food. The others slowly followed his example.
Before they could finish, there was a loud howl. Leo groaned. He knew that he was going to attract wolves. Leo jumped to his feet and whipped out a hammer.
Piper tried to stand, but pain showed in her face. She looked ready to black out for a moment. Reyna grabbed her and spoke, "Don't move."
Red eyes appeared at the entrance. Leo found his hand shaking. More eyes appeared as creatures larger than Great Danes appeared. Even though the creatures were wolves, they looked and moved like humans.
The apparent leader of the pack was about the height of a horse. There was dried blood on his mouth. He looked like he had killed something and was ready to do it again.
Then, Reyna did her Catholic priest thing. She stepped forward and snapped an order in Latin. The alpha wolf hissed back, and the wolves backed away. It only took a few moments for the pack to reappear and fan out even more.
"I'll give you three time to get away," Hedge whispered.
"They'll tear you apart," Piper whispered. She had her dagger out in front of herself protectively. Leo didn't think that it would do much to help.
"They can try," Hedge muttered. He almost looked like he relished the chance to take on the entire pack by himself.
"We are a pack," Reyna snapped. She looked at them gripping her own sword. "And, no one is getting left behind."
As the wolves parted, a man stepped forward. His hair seriously needed a wash because of how greasy and nasty it was. He also had a crown of finger bones, and Leo did not want his fingers to be added to that crown. The robes he wore was made up of all kinds of fur that probably sent anger through Piper's vegan heart.
The man looked like he ran miles for fun. Despite how athletic his body looked, his face was paler than the snow. He glared at Reyna with red eyes that held the most intense hatred that Leo had ever seen.
The man snapped something in Latin. Leo didn't even hear it because was staring at the man's teeth. Did that thing even floss? He really needed a dentist.
"Speak English," Hedge snarled.
"Daughter of Rome, tell your Faun to shut his mouth," the man ordered. Leo raised an eyebrow. Why was everyone using the Roman name for Hedge?
"It's satyr," Hedge snapped. He stepped forward.
"A son of Hephaestus along with a daughter of Aphrodite. They will make a delicious snack," the man commented. "And, we have a daughter of Rome whose mother must be extremely disappointed in her because she hasn't killed the other two yet."
"I have been patrolling all over the west for you," the man continued. He turned to his pack. "We will be rewarded well for our work here. As King Lycaon, I will get first taste. Then, you all can join in."
Leo pulled a vial of clear liquid out of his tool belt. He had totally just thought of it, and it appeared in the tool belt. Lycaon didn't notice because he was trying to find an opening, but Reyna's sword followed him and was directly pointed at him.
"You invited Zeus to dinner, and to make sure it was him, you tried to feed him human flesh," Piper said in a weak voice. "Zeus killed your sons and turned you into a wolf."
"The first werewolf," Hedge muttered. "He is as immortal as his terrible stench."
"You die first Faun," Lycaon promised. His attention turned towards Reyna. "Then, I will drag you to the Wolf House where one of my companions has the honor of killing you. Next time, you should be careful of who you anger."
"We are going to destroy you if you don't leave," Piper said. She had gotten to her feet and sounded like she was trying to use charmspeak. Lycaon just laughed in her face.
"I'm going to enjoy eating you," Lycaon commented. He glanced at his pack to make a comment to them. Reyna lunged forward and drove her sword into Lycaon's face, but the sword went right through him.
"You need silver girl," Lycaon hissed. He went to lunge forward, but Leo made his move. Leo threw the vial in front of the wolves. He shot fire at the gasoline.
Some of the wolves had fire jump onto their fur, and they ran into the snow. Others retreated. Reyna took a step back and stayed in front of Piper. Suddenly, she looked into her backpack and pulled out a pocket knife.
"I'm out of the good kind of gas," Leo reported as the gasoline died away. "What's with the pocket knife?"
"It's silver," Reyna answered. "We have to make a stand here. Failure is not an option."
Leo refused to say it, but failure looked like the only option. He still raised his hammer. Hedge hit his club against his hand as if death excited him. Piper stayed on her feet and lifted her dagger as much as she could. Reyna opened her pocket knife.
"Pray to whatever god you want," Lycaon hissed. "They won't hear you. Even if they did, they won't help you."
A wolf suddenly stiffened and made a choking noise. It collapsed to the ground with a dagger in it's neck. Wolves turned around but were quickly cut down by invisible forces. Lycaon caught a knife aimed right at his neck.
"Retreat!" Lycaon yelled as he saw the knife. He threw it aside, and it skidded across the ground landing at Reyna's feet. "We are not done daughter of Rome. That's a promise."
As one, the pack turned and ran from the cage. One wolf flew back into the cave with a spear in its chest. It slowly melted into a puddle of shadows.
The sounds of fighting cleared away. They were left alone in the cave. Reyna cautiously picked up the knife and looked up at the entrance as a group of women filed in.
The women all wore black jackets and black pants. Leo didn't want to say he was instantly in love, but he totally was. All of the women wore hoods that covered their faces. The one in the middle had a golden belt of interlocking rings. She was probably the leader.
"I think this is your knife," Reyna said after a moment. She held out the knife, but her other hand gripped her sword. The woman took off her hood.
Leo did a double take. The woman had black hair and black eyes like Reyna. Her face looked almost like Reyna's as well. The only thing was that she was older.
"H..Hylla?" Reyna quietly asked after a moment of silence.
"Hey sis," the woman replied. She pulled Reyna into a tight hug. "You had me worried."
Leo exchanged glances with Piper. This woman, Hylla, was Reyna' sister. Leo looked back at his friend.
Reyna pulled away after a moment and looked around. She looked confused and a little scared. Hylla grabbed her sister's shoulder tightly and spoke, "Kinzie, I need you to take some Amazons and hunt down the wolves."
A girl on Hylla's right nodded. Leo only caught a glimpse of auburn hair before she disappeared from sight. Hylla looked at the three of them and spoke, "We have a lot to talk about."