Chapter 66 – The Storm: Part 3
Percy's gut still ached from the small earthquake he'd caused to shake loose the first stake from the ground, but he was more than capable of swinging his sword. Still, the speed with which the girl attacked him took him by surprise. He jerked back from one sica and managed to block the second, but the first came back around and swiped him on the arm. It wasn't a deep cut by any means, but it took Percy by surprise.
Percy could see the alarm in Nico's eyes as the girl drew first blood, but one of the hide armoured men behind Nero stopped Nico from intervening by lunging at him with his spear. Percy cut his gaze back to Meg as he barely dodged another swing. It made him grit his teeth, shifting his grip and adjusting his stance slightly.
Kronos hadn't fought against him in Alaska with two blades, but he had been so fast with his one that it was practically the same situation – only slower now against Meg. Percy dodged to the side with her next swing, flicking his wrist to slap aside the second sica with Riptide. The parry unsettled her, only slightly, but that was enough for Percy. He stepped forwards inside her guard and brought the flat of Riptide down onto her helm.
It had been much harder against Kronos.
Meg cursed, staggering back from Percy. Her voice made Percy hesitate, despite the pain in his free arm from her first cut. She was clearly young, much younger than any mortal in this situation deserved to be.
Still, she recovered herself and then threw an arm out. Percy didn't know what she'd done, until a vine from a nearby tree wrenched Riptide straight out of his hand. Percy yelped in surprise, before he bristled and grit his teeth. Percy reached out to feel the river which he knew ran through the Camp's forest, but the pain in his gut suddenly tripled when he tried to pull at it and he swore viciously.
Meg lunged, and Percy panicked. He threw his hand out wildly towards her and Meg was flung back away from Percy, pulled by her own blood in her veins airborne over Nero's head. Percy dropped to one knee, gasping with the pain that crackled through his gut and made his head spin. He felt Riptide reappear in his pocket.
"Enough, Meg," Nero said. The twin siccae disappeared. Percy glanced up and narrowed his eyes at Nero. Nico had killed the man who'd intercepted his movement and now stood slightly in front of Percy. It didn't stop Nero from observing Percy closely as if Nico wasn't even there. "Well, I suppose my kinsman will be pleased to know the source of the attack on his boat. He was rather concerned that it was a sea god, despite the protections he'd put up in place. How did you manage to reach his boat from here?" Nero asked, sounding incredulously impressed.
"What?" Percy asked, before he recalled his dream, the massive twist in his gut as he'd woken up and the pain since.
"It was quite unfortunate. His boat nearly sank," Nero mused as he watched Percy closely. Nero smiled slightly. "How would you like to come with me?" He asked Percy.
Percy blinked. "What?" He repeated, almost breaking out into laughter in his disbelief.
Nero chuckled. "Come with me," he repeated. "Any demigod whom can almost sink a boat which is on the opposite side of the country to them is one worthy of consideration."
Opposite side of the country. At least that narrowed Kronos' location down from every ocean on the planet to just the Pacific. Percy narrowed his eyes. He gestured behind him with Riptide, the movement making his gut twist. "You've just kidnapped campers," he said flatly. "And tied them up, and covered them in something flammable," Percy snarled. "And now you're asking if I want to join you?" Percy demanded angrily.
Nero blinked, looking surprised by Percy's anger. "Oh, no, no," he disagreed with a firm shake of his head. "That was the Grove," he firmly said. "It called them all here, that's not my fault."
Nico scowled. "It didn't tie them all up."
Nero's dark eyes cut towards Nico with clear annoyance, but the son of Hades just narrowed his own straight back at him, completely unfazed. Nico had spent time in Tartarus, staring down real monsters, and he was clearly unimpressed by Nero. Percy heard cursing behind them and turned in time to see Leo and Grover scramble out of the way of the second stake to fall. Fortunately, it fell without crushing the demigod tied to it. They dragged the second stake off to the side with the first. All the captured beings and demigods were all clearly in a statis of some kind, leaving them healthy despite some having been missing for over a month.
Nero sighed in the brief silence that followed. "Fine," he said to them. "If you all insist. We can do this the hard way."
Meg lunged at Nico, Percy wavering on his feet slightly as his vision went in and out of focus. The other three men with Nero rounded on Percy. Percy ground his teeth, managing to parry one of their stabs aside before the second man practically slapped Riptide out of his hand.
The blade of the third pressed against Percy's throat.
"Demigods tend to burn out if they use too much power," Nero mused as he watched Percy closely, probably noting the heaving chest and dizziness from his unsteady stance. "Perhaps punching a hole through the hull of my kinsman's yacht past the western edge of this country was not the smartest of ideas you have had."
Percy glared at Nero, feeling a trickle of blood roll down the side of his neck. Off to the side, Nico was hesitating, his eyes on Percy. Percy tried to reach out to the blood of the guard holding him, but the pain in his gut made him abort his attempt.
The son of Poseidon didn't look at him, only watching Nero as the Emperor spun towards Grover. "You are the Lord of the Wild, no? Command the Grove of Dodona to open. Or my friend here will remove the son of Poseidon's head."
"Kronos will be pissed," Percy called.
Nero just waved a dismissive hand. "If he ever finds out, which he will not. He is – as you are no doubt aware since you destroyed the yacht – also not in the position to argue with me."
Percy just wanted that confirmed. Still, Nero informing him that the yacht he'd seen in his dreams was real meant that Kronos was in no position to be moving or even arguing anytime soon. Thinking back to that dream, Kronos had almost seemed paralysed as he had laid on the floor of that yacht. Percy didn't know how such a thing could have happened.
What could paralyse a god like Kronos?
Nero had returned his gaze to Grover as Percy was shoved to his knees. Each of the three men looked like they were strong enough to throw Percy around if they wanted to. Grover was looking at Percy with wide eyes. Leo was still digging furiously at the third stake which held Cecil, Luke's half-brother, but Nero didn't seem concerned with him.
Voices whispered through the trees, coming straight from behind the thick wall of trees beyond Leo and the stakes. Nico's hand slipped into his pocket where the wind chimes were that Rhea had given him, his dark eyes boring into Percy and trying to tell him something.
Percy didn't understand what his message was, but Nico spun to face Grover. "They'll kill Percy," Nico urged. "Grover!"
Percy yelped as the sword pressed a little firmer into the side of his neck.
Nero smiled.
Grover clenched his jaw, his gaze turning in the direction of the voices from the Grove. Then, shaking his head slightly, Grover shut his eyes as he turned to the massive doors before him. "Open," he said. The voices from the Grove settled slightly as the giant doors swung open silently.
The sword was removed from Percy's neck and he immediately jerked away. None of the three men tried to stop him as he retreated, Nico immediately helping him.
Percy wiped at the wetness on his neck and grimaced at the blood gleaming on his hand. He paused briefly as he watched the girl, Meg, skip into the Grove once the doors were opened. Percy caught a brief glance of the massive trees beyond the doors which had been shielded from view before he returned his gaze to Nero.
The Voices from the Grove grew louder all at once, and the young girl cried out, her hands clamping over her helm. Percy yelped and covered his own ears, along with practically everyone else.
Nero seemed to be the only one unaffected and smiled, striding forwards until he stood in the middle of the path framed by the stakes. He surveyed the Grove of Dodona beyond the doors with a pleased smile even as the voices screamed louder at him. "It's unfortunate we cannot control this one," Nero mused. "With some luck, that meddlesome goddess will be unable to recover." The god-Emperor pulled a vial of something horribly familiar out of his pocket and Percy's eyes widened.
Grover froze. On the ground not far from Nero's feet, Leo was staring up at the Emperor with eyes wide in terror and disbelief.
Percy took a stumbling step forwards. "Leo, move!" Percy roared.
Nico was a step ahead of Percy. He side-stepped into Percy's shadow and appeared out of Leo's even as the vial of green fire fell. Percy's heart crawled into his throat as he watched the vial shatter, Nico and Leo disappearing a mere second before the Greek fire vial exploded into an inferno of swirling flames where they had been standing.
Percy felt Nico's hands close around his upper arm, stopping him from charging recklessly forwards as the Greek fire raced up the stake holding Cecil Markowitz hostage and engulfed him in twisting and churning green flames.
The statis broke around him, eaten away by the Greek fire at the same pace it incinerated Cecil's legs, then leapt to his upper body at a terrifying pace. Cecil screeched, an inhuman noise that tore from his throat as his blue eyes widened – the same colour as his older half-brother, Luke.
Nero had backed up to watch as he laughed, spreading his arms wide as if conducting an orchestra. Percy froze, his heart crawling into his throat as he stared with wide eyes. Grover was hurriedly commanding the Grove of Dodona to close as the Greek fire rose and spread, five more of the stakes aflame like green spires that stretched into the sky. The smoke failed to pierce through the canopy of the outer grove, billowing and blocking the sunlight from reaching through the canopy in a thick layer.
The grove in an instant turned from the lush green meadow, darkening until Percy could barely see his hands before his face. Within their confines, the hostages screamed and writhed, the noises ringing in Percy's ears as the green flames roared, glowing in the darkness. Nero himself glowed too as he stood before the dying demigods, a spectre before raging green flames, the ethereal glow of immortality brightening the area around him.
Nico's hand disappeared from Percy's and an instant later he was lunging out of the shadows at Nero. The god-Emperor unsheathed his sword faster than Percy could follow and almost lazily flicked Nico's blade aside.
Percy snatched Riptide out of his pocket, stumbling after Nico and intending to help him against Nero. The Roman Emperor stabbed Nico in the shoulder with his gladius before Percy could reach them. He raised his sword, and red flames crashed against Nero's back as Leo reached him first.
Percy's gut twisted and he let out a furious shout. He grit his teeth. "Come on!" Percy snapped at himself, trying to urge himself on past the pain. Nico and Leo needed his help.
Percy was surprised to find that the two stakes which had been removed and dragged aside were safe. Leo had burnt the grass around them in a giant circle to prevent the Greek fire from jumping onto the flammable stakes.
Grover was inside the Grove, desperately trying to stop the green flames from jumping through the trees within.
The grass in the Grove had ignited too, so Percy had to watch his step and avoid stepping in the spreading patches of Greek fire. Percy's tears as he looked upon the incinerated forms which had formerly been his fellow demigods were evaporated instantly by the heat from the fire.
"Leo!" Grover yelled, his voice hardly audible over the roaring of the fire. "I need help! The Grove!"
Percy clenched his jaw. "Come on," he whispered. "Please! Someone help!" Percy roared, his voice nearly breaking with how loud he screamed. He wasn't entirely sure whom he was speaking to now. Whether it was himself or someone else watching, he wasn't sure. "Please!" Percy cried out. A few drops of his blood fell to the ground, and Percy made a split second decision.
Percy took his hand off his neck, crouching to bury his bloodied hand in the ground. "I don't know if this is how this works," Percy rasped out, "but this isn't a quest. Whoever can help, please – stop this."
The screams had all gone silent. Nico and Nero were fighting, the Emperor's guards standing idly around the two along with the girl, Meg. None of them were watching Percy.
Percy couldn't do anything himself, but he hoped someone – or something – could.
A shiver passed through the trees, even wreathed with green flames as they were. The earth rose around Percy's hand before his eyes and encased it with mud. When he jerked his hand free, it raced up his arm and Percy flinched as he felt it run over his cut neck.
Beyond the gates, over half of the Grove of Dodona was aflame. Grover was directing Leo in starting fires in the path of the Greek fire, trying to make rudimentary firebreaks.
Even the trees aflame in the Grove were suddenly moving and rustling as if they weren't alight.
Grover clearly felt it first, his instructions to Leo faltering. The fire user looked urgently back at Grover. "Grover!" Leo yelled, looking utterly horrified with the situation and Grover's hesitation. Grover raised a hand up to Leo, gesturing for him to stop speaking.
The Grove was still screaming all the while, but the voices had faltered and dropped slightly with the destruction of half of the Grove.
Percy felt it next, beyond the link to the earth which had healed the cut along his neck.
Later, he'd attribute it to being the son of the earthshaker. Nico suddenly looked struck, clearly having felt the same thing Percy had.
A presence far more ancient than anything either of the two cousins could have ever imagined.
Nero took advantage, lunging towards Nico when he saw his distraction. In the same instant, the earth beneath Nero's feet rolled. In fact, the entire Grove shuddered in unison with the Earth itself. The earth's movement shifted Nero several feet across from Nico, lunging and hitting nothing but air. Percy lowered Riptide. Inside the Grove, the earth had risen in a giant wave, smothering the Greek fire beneath its weight.
As if it had never happened, the earth settled again, flattening out again with a few remaining rumbles. Percy took a deep breath. Nico looked pale and had frozen as much as Nero had.
Gaea's presence still permeated the earth around them, in every single inch of the earth around Percy.
It sent chills up his spine, a being older and more powerful than anything Percy could fathom.
Nero took a step forward towards the Grove, and the gates instantly slammed shut.
The ground smouldered still, wisps of heat curling from the earth, but every last spark of Greek fire had been smothered by Gaea's action in defence of Rhea.
Nero's expression twisted with rage, but he didn't take another step. Instead, he sighed and nodded slightly, looking exceptionally disappointed as he turned and sheathed his gladius at his side. His remaining companions did the same, grabbing their dead man on the way out of the outer grove.
Percy narrowed his eyes, but Nero paused before he descended into the myrmeke tunnels and looked back at them, his gaze lingering on the smouldering Grove with a satisfied if not irritated smile before he met Percy's eyes. "I expect we will be meeting again. Next time, try to put up more of a fight. It was quite disappointing."
The demigod bristled angrily, but before he could snap something back at him, Nero had disappeared.
Percy took several steadying, deep breaths. The smoke from the fire was beginning to clear and allow light into the outer grove again, and Percy's stomach twisted.
Austin Lake and Sherman Yang were the only two demigods to survive.
There was nothing remaining of the other eight stakes, beyond piles of ash and four bodies burnt beyond recognition. The remaining four had been nature spirits. Percy hoped they would somehow reform.
Nico wiped at his face as he stared wide-eyed at the piles.
"Hey," Percy whispered, his voice breaking slightly. "Are you…?" He was going to ask if Nico was okay, but he clearly wouldn't be. Nico could feel it when people he knew died.
Nico mutely shook his head, dragging his gaze away from the burnt bodies. Percy swallowed, trying to ignore the smell of burnt flesh. "We've got to untie Austin and Sherman," Percy quietly said, his heart roaring in his ears as he tried to swallow down the urge to be sick at the sight. The smell of incinerated flesh hung in the air around them. He just wanted something to do with the bodies still remaining around them.
His cousin seemed relieved to have something to focus on too, and Percy and Nico set about using their swords to try to cut through the sticky resin binding the two demigods to the stakes. Percy's skin crawled as he grabbed at the resin to try to hold it down, his mind flashing over how quickly it had all ignited.
The flames had gone from Cecil's feet to his head in a single second.
Percy glanced up when the doors to the Grove opened, a horrified Grover scanning the destruction wrought on the outer grove. "How is it inside?" Percy asked. Leo, standing next to Grover, just shook his head slightly.
"Not as bad as out here," Grover said, looking close to tears. "Did you feel…?"
"Gaea?" Percy asked, finally managing to get a rip in the fabric tying up Sherman. Leo looked irritated at the mention of the Primordial. He immediately cut away at it firmer, and the fabric gave way beneath Riptide. The faint glow to the fabric died as it was cut through, and Percy watched as the son of Ares shot upright in a panic as the statis spell died. "Whoa, hey, it's okay," Percy quickly said. "You're okay."
Sherman Yang was calm for a few moments, before horror bloomed on his face as he took in the grove beyond Percy. "What happened?" He demanded sharply. "Where are we?"
Percy glanced up as Nico moved. He'd untied Austin and the son of Apollo also looked scared out of his mind. But Nico now seemed to be heading towards the inner Grove, where the Oracle of Dodona would whisper from the trees. "Nico?" Percy called, even as Nico's hand slid into his pocket and he pulled out the wind chimes.
His cousin looked back at Percy briefly, before the doors slammed shut behind him.
Percy swore.
Grover just sighed. "Nothing to do but wait now," he said to Percy.
The ground shook.
Percy let out an audible groan. "What now?" He grumbled, even as he sensed the issue. His eyes widened slightly, before Percy slowly relaxed.
Grover looked questioningly at Percy, but the son of Poseidon waved him off. "Nothing. Just was a giant statue approaching offshore."
Leo's gaze jerked towards Percy. "That's nothing to worry about?"
"It isn't now," Percy said. "I just felt a sea-serpent take it out. I guess the gods are paying attention."
On instinct, as soon as Thalia felt her limbs form again and her body become flesh, an electric shock was sent throughout her body. Thalia couldn't help it. She heard a loud curse, the voice of a male with an odd accent. In the same instant, the hands which had been on her disappeared.
A loud chattering and whistling kicked up around her even as Thalia stumbled and dropped to one knee, cursing as she touched a hand to the stab wound in her side from Lityerses. It was the worst wound he had dealt to her in their short bout. Thalia grit her teeth as she pressed the hand against her side, firmer now and cried out in pain as the pain flared and blood seeped from between her fingers.
Thalia frowned at the wooden panelling under her feet. A second later, the ground beneath her rocked to the side before teetering the other way. Thalia instantly felt queasy. She looked up, startled to see dolphin-headed men keeping a firm distance from her, chattering uneasily at the display of the powers of Zeus.
A waterspout rose the other side of wooden railings, wooden decking briefly obscuring the horizon across a gleaming ocean. Thalia tensed when she saw the golden mask over the men's face. She was used to seeing that visage on her shield, but it didn't make it any easier to face. Still, the man with the gorgon's mask was one she'd heard of before.
"That is the thanks I get for saving the life of the daughter of Zeus?" The man demanded as he stepped out of the waterspout and onto the wooden decking, completely dry. The accent had the same old lilt to it that many of the older beings she'd met did, the ones alive during the times of Ancient Greece.
Just like Zoë Nightshade, the last lieutenant of Artemis.
Thalia narrowed her eyes at Chrysaor, the son of Medusa and Poseidon. "You saved my life?" She was on one knee, pain making it difficult to breathe. Chrysaor had helped Gaea during the last war, she recalled as she watched him warily.
The man pulled off his mask. Thalia recoiled in surprise at the similarity to Percy's face that was staring back at her. His hair was so similar to Percy's that for a brief moment Thalia thought she was looking at him. But there was a strange amber tone to his eyes, darker and stormier than Percy's and looking more than just a man as he directed an annoyed scowl at Thalia. A more obvious mark of his parentage was the sharper and longer canines as he smirked. Thalia had briefly encountered one of Medusa's gorgon sisters in the past and recalled the tusks they'd had. An imperial gold aor, an ancient Greek sword, rested at his side – the same blade which had batted away Lityerses' attempted final strike.
"Yes," Chrysaor said. "I don't hear a 'thank you'," he said to her. His hair was sticking up from the shock Thalia had given him. Some of his men – the men cursed by Dionysus to be part dolphin – chittered. Chrysaor turned to frown at them.
Thalia recoiled as one of them dropped to the wooden deck when the world rocked again. Chrysaor's wooden, Greek trireme tipped as a large wave rolled underneath the boat. Thalia tried to stare at the horizon to stop her nausea, but was distracted by the men dropping around them. Chrysaor didn't seem concerned as he watched his crew collapse.
"Why?" Thalia demanded, baffled, hissed out from between clenched teeth. Her free hand fisted, crackling with electricity. She'd be a fool to trust him, knowing that he was one of those that the Hunters had considered taking out in the ongoing clean up from the wars against the Titans and against Gaea.
Chrysaor just turned his frown towards Thalia instead. "You're bleeding over my deck," he said to her disapprovingly, seemingly not caring in the least at the dark glare she shot at him.
Thalia grit her teeth. "Where are we?" She demanded, worry in her voice. "The other Hunters-" Blood dripped between her fingers. The electricity crackling around her fist died away, Thalia lacking the strength to sustain it any longer.
"Dead, probably. If they're lucky," Chrysaor said cheerfully as he strode past her, ignoring the twitch she made for a weapon that was no longer at hand as her vision swam. Chrysaor disappeared into the cabin behind Thalia briefly, his voice coming from inside. "Captured if they're not. I've heard the Triumvirate are making their move finally. With them, the better option is death. You're going to collapse soon, there's a bed in here if you want to come over so I don't have to carry you."
"We need to save them," Thalia said sharply. She didn't know much about Chrysaor, had only heard brief mutters about him roaming the seas and preying on vulnerable seafarers, leaving the wrecks of their ships to sink into the ocean's depths. She knew he'd attacked Jason and the others in their quest to stop Gaea, at Gaea's behest, but clearly he'd just saved her life despite the Hunters attempting to take him out in the rare occasion the rogue son of Poseidon would step onto land. Thalia tried to rise, but cried out and toppled over as one of Chrysaor's crew whistled and chittered at her. Thalia grit her teeth, on her back on the deck and staring up at the sky overhead. Chrysaor's mother was a monster, but Thalia was in the middle of the ocean stuck on his ship. Attacking him when surrounded by the ocean, which he could clearly control with ease, would be a bad idea – that was if she even could in the first place.
Chrysaor poked his head back out of the cabin with a loud sigh as he looked down at her, his nose crinkling in distaste. He came back out, crouching next to Thalia. "No," Chrysaor said. "I was only asked to save you," he said. "I didn't get paid to save the others too." Thalia's vision swam, darkening, but Chrysaor held out a few cubes of ambrosia to her. "Before you bleed out anymore over my deck," he said.
Thalia angrily accepted the ambrosia. Chrysaor looked smug as he pushed himself up to his feet, his eyes on one of his crew around them. Thalia shut her eyes as Chrysaor's crew chattered and whistled around her, thinking of her sisters in the Hunt whom had been abandoned against the Roman force they'd been fighting. Anger and disbelief turned her stomach, along with the rocking of the boat in the waves. She could feel the itching at her side as the ambrosia squares worked to heal some of the damage, just enough that she wouldn't bleed out immediately.
The daughter of Zeus opened her eyes, taking deep breaths through the pain. "Why just me?" She forced out, anger obvious in her voice.
Chrysaor caught the movement and turned briefly to glance at her, a smile lifting up the corner of his lips. The movement bared his canines – the little tusks which protruded out from his mouth briefly exposed. The crooked smile was so eerily alike to Percy that Thalia was reminded this was Percy's half-brother, despite how different they clearly were. He eyed Thalia's side, seemingly satisfied that it had mostly stopped bleeding and Thalia wasn't going to continue bleeding all over his deck. Thalia's vision still swam and she didn't dare try to stand as the deck of the trireme shifted and rolled beneath her. "I saved you because I was paid to," he said flatly. "And… I have been around long enough to know that when Oceanus and Poseidon seem to be in agreement over something, it is best to listen to them." He gestured to his crew. "Oceanus said he would alter the curse on my crew into my favour if I helped you, and my father is paying me generously." Chrysaor shrugged. "That is all there is to it. I was paid."
Thalia's eyes widened slightly. "Poseidon asked you to save me?" She echoed, baffled. Poseidon had never been interested in her – as a daughter of Zeus – to the point of intervening to help her and she couldn't understand why he would seem to care now.
Chrysaor chuckled. "Yes. I couldn't believe it either. A daughter of Zeus," he said, his upper lip curling in distaste. Lightning flashed across the clear sky overhead, but other than a brief glance skyward Chrysaor seemed unconcerned. He had good reason, for Thalia doubted Zeus would risk blasting a son of Poseidon while they were in the open ocean. It would be akin to declaring war against his older brother. And Chrysaor had just saved Thalia's life. "It's been a long time since the gods have been meddling as much as they seem to be now," he said. "And as desperately."
"But they don't care enough to ask you to save the other Hunters?" Thalia demanded. She grit her teeth. Over the past few years, she'd made her home in the Hunt and knowing that her newfound family could all be dead or captured now left her feeling both lost and angry. "They are Artemis'-"
"They don't care," Chrysaor cut across. "Why would Poseidon or Oceanus care for Artemis' Hunt? Neither do I. I was only asked and paid to keep you alive, not them too," he dismissed as he crossed his arms with a fierce scowl. "I don't care enough to ask why."
With those words, it was difficult to believe that Percy was the half-brother of this monster, even with that scowl looking so similar to the looks Percy often levelled at monsters himself. Thalia's gaze darkened. "You would condemn them all to death or torture?" She asked sharply, electricity crackling between her fingers.
Chrysaor's eyes flashed, darkening like a storm rolling in. A wave struck the ship that nearly had Thalia sliding into the railings. Half a dozen of the dolphins still flopping around on the deck fell into the sea. Chrysaor seemed alarmed that he'd thrown his own crew overboard and Thalia watched angrily as they were all lifted back onto the deck of the ship with a wave of his hand. In a blur of motion, faster than anything Luke had seen either Luke or Percy manage, Chrysaor's golden sword was levelled at Thalia's throat with a scowl. "Artemis and her Hunters – you included – chase me solely for the fact that my mother is Medusa," Chrysaor said. "Yes, I would. You're only alive still because I've been paid, don't push it," Chrysaor warned her.
There was silence for several long seconds, before Chrysaor sheathed his sword again. Thalia grit her teeth. "Drop me off. I can save them myself."
Chrysaor eyed her in disgust. "I would love to, but we are in the middle of the Pacific ocean and you can't even get to your feet yet," he said to her. "Where do you expect me to drop you off? I picked you up from Indianapolis, it'll be a long journey for you, but maybe you'll make it before their ambush is finished," he said, sarcasm obvious in his tone. "You'll have to put up with me, apologies, Hunter," the pirate said, clearly smug.
Thalia wanted to slap the amused smile off his face. She shut her eyes, despair flooding her at the situation. It had all happened over a few minutes. The Roman Emperors had struck and in the same instant they'd won the first decisive battle of a new war.
"It's too late. They are already gone," Chrysaor said to her. "Suck it up, they deserve it. Now, I can take you back to shore," he said. "I don't want you on my ship any longer than you have to be," he grumbled, turning his back on her. "Find a bed and sleep. You'll need it if you want that to heal so you can be useful to anyone."
The ambrosia had done wonders and stopped the bleeding, but the wound was far from healed. Thalia stared out over the horizon. As she stared, her thoughts blank from the shock of realising she may now be the only remaining Hunter of Artemis left, Thalia heard Chrysaor shouting orders to his crew.
Her eyes furrowed as his words registered, and Thalia forced herself to her feet, hissing between clenched teeth as she stepped up to the edge of the railing, hunched over as she leaned heavily against it. Chrysaor's men – now apparently able to change from dolphins to men at will thanks to Oceanus – were swimming through the wreckage of what looked like a super yacht next to the boat.
One of them jumped from the water as a dolphin, changing mid-air until two feet hit the deck of the trireme, an ornate and solid gold bust of some ancient Roman Emperor clutched in his hands.
Thalia stiffened as Chrysaor stopped next to her, a hand on the hilt of his golden sword. "I sensed it happen from many miles off," he said, noting her disbelief at the massive yacht which was floating on the surface. If it weren't for his protruding canines, his smile would be a perfect imitation of Percy's. It took Thalia aback. "I'd recognise Poseidon's presence anywhere. Someone with the powers of Poseidon took out the yacht of one of the Emperors and I thought… well, can't just let all of that sink now, can I? It's just a waste of good gold," he said, looking very smug and satisfied with himself.
Thalia just scowled in response as she watched the dolphins pick through the yacht. "The Emperors… they're going to attack New Rome," she slowly said. It was the only thing that made sense with all of their recent movements, the armies they were clearly raising. Commodus clearly had an entire Roman legion at his command. She thought of her brother, Jason, back at New Rome. He would be completely unaware. "People are going to die and you're picking through the wreckage of a yacht. I need to warn them," she said. Thalia grit her teeth. She'd just lost her sisters of the Hunt to the Emperors. Thalia wouldn't allow them to take her brother from her too.
Chrysaor paused briefly. "You want to go to your death? New Rome is doomed. Even if they can prepare a defence in time, the Triumvirate are immortals not bound by immortal law. They can't take immortal form yet, but they still have immortal strength and… well, immortality. How do you expect to kill immortals whom can't be killed?"
"We'll find a way," Thalia said firmly, angrily. "We always do." Thalia had struggled for so long to find a family, and for those years in Artemis' Hunt it had been the only life she'd wanted. Now it was gone, and Artemis wasn't even around. Would the goddess be aware that her Hunt had been ambushed, wherever she was?
"Someone always dies in the process," Chrysaor said in amusement. "I hope it's not you. It's irritating if this effort at saving you is wasted."
Thalia turned to glare at him. "Do you care about anyone?" She asked angrily. First, he'd abandoned her Hunters to die, and now even after saving her life he didn't seem interested in trying to help her. Thalia wasn't sure what she expected, really. His mother was Medusa. He was only interested in the riches he could scavenge out of the destroyed yacht of Caligula.
Thalia's opinion of Percy over time had shifted from him being a son of Poseidon's calmer aspect to Poseidon's more destructive one over time as Percy had grown into his own skin while he'd aged. But at least Percy was gentle, careful and defensive of his friends, like the ocean picking and choosing whom to drown or sweep out to sea and whom to allow to live. Chrysaor just seemed eager to drown everyone, the unyielding and merciless depths of the ocean.
The son of Poseidon propped a foot on top of the railing of his ship, peering down over the railings. Thalia realised he was using his powers to keep the remains of the yacht from sinking, forcing it to remain on the surface so his crew could strip it bare. The casual show of power, seemingly without even straining him, gave Thalia reason to pause. As cruel as Chrysaor clearly was, he was still a demigod of old and had had many millennia to hone his powers. "You have to consider, Thalia Grace," Chrysaor said, causing Thalia to sharply narrow her eyes at him at his use of her full name. Chrysaor's smile was sharp. "Just why Poseidon and Oceanus of all immortals seem to be willing to work together. They have never agreed with each other before. They have not always been at war, sometimes an uneasy peace between them, but allied? United?" Chrysaor was frowning down at the ocean as he watched his crew. "This has never occurred before. There is something more at stake here than it seems, more than just the destruction of New Rome. You're thinking too small."
Thalia bristled at the clear insult. "And you're thinking only of yourself," she snapped at him.
"Of course I am," Chrysaor said, looking offended that she'd ever suggest he consider someone else. "I'm a pirate." He smirked. The similarity to Percy was uncanny, but Thalia found herself grateful that Percy was far less destructive and callous than his older half-brother. "But what worries me, is what the gods seem so afraid of if the Seas are uniting as a single force for the first time since the birth of my father." He watched curiously as a crew member grabbed onto the rope ladder over the side and was hauled up by his fellow crewmembers still on the trireme, making his way over to Chrysaor. "Why? What do they think is going to happen that has them so concerned that the two would put aside all enmity in order to agree on something?" He murmured. "Especially when that something is saving the life of one of Zeus' daughters?"
Thalia hesitated. That was a very good question. That it led to Poseidon acting to save her life too was something that raised the hair along the back of her neck. He'd never been fond of her due to her heritage, and yet he'd just sent his son to save her life. Thalia's hands tightened on the railing of the ship.
"The gods last intervened in mortal affairs like this during the Trojan War," Chrysaor mused. "And everyone knows how that ended. This is all going to be a disaster," he said gleefully.
Thousands died. The son of Poseidon had a good point. Even if Thalia despised him on principle she could admit that much. "Take me to shore?" Thalia repeated. A large wave came from nowhere and promptly splashed up over the railing. Thalia swore violently as the seawater lashed against her injuries, Chrysaor laughing from beside her as he strode off down the deck, casually swinging his golden aor.
The ancient son of Poseidon turned to look back at her, his eyes dancing with a savage glee at the apparent prospect of thousands dying in the battles that would hit the Greek and Roman worlds. "It's sure to be entertaining," he said. "I want to know what the gods are so afraid of."
Thalia decided then and there that Percy was irritating, but she much preferred him over Poseidon's other, more monstrous sons. Somehow, Percy seemed to have missed that savagery that had been passed down to Poseidon's other children.
Augustus wasn't yet healed nearly enough to be participating in any battle, but he still strapped on his half-melted chest plate with a grimace. Marcus handed Augustus two pila, before doing the same to Antonius. He picked up two for himself and the Emperors all strapped them to their backs. The Romans had an apartment building they'd bought and were using as a base from which to move and operate against the Triumvirate, and it was to there that they'd taken Jason and Piper.
Jason had looked around at the weapons and armour, alongside other equipment and stacks of nectar and ambrosia, in astonishment. The Triumvirate were clearly not the only ones whom had gathered a fortune in the times since their deaths.
"There's one more dragon to take down," Antonius said. "Along with Medea and likely a squadron of Triumvirate legionnaires."
"And Caligula's guard," Marcus added. "He's fond of his Germani corporis custodes. It will be a tough battle."
"One that must be fought," Augustus said firmly. He was moving slowly but determinedly as he prepared his weaponry for their strike against Medea. "And we know Caligula is busy with his fleet."
Jason frowned heavily. "He has a fleet?"
"Yes," Marcus said. "But rumours say that some sea spirit attacked his flagship, punched a hole straight into the hull. That will keep him occupied at least."
Piper frowned. "I thought the gods weren't allowed to intervene?"
Augustus chuckled. "If that is the case, then what happened during the Trojan War, graecus? Of course the gods interfere. What else do they have to do in an eternal life to keep themselves entertained other than interfering in the matters of mortal men?"
The First Emperor had a point, Jason mused as he checked that he had the Spear of Achilles. Sometimes he missed having a sword to use, but the Spear was a gift from Rhea and he'd be stupid not to use it. Marcus looked over to Jason, a faint frown marring his features before he pulled a shield out of one of the crates in the room. The oval shield was pristine, completely unmarred. It was curved inwards on either side, leaving sections along the sides where a spear or sword could be stabbed out from.
"Trajan was using it," Marcus said to Jason as he handed it to him. "Clearly, he has no use of it now." It was lighter than a standard Roman shield, designed to be used for a single fighter, one whom wasn't fighting within a shield wall. Jason hefted it with his left arm, testing the weight and the movement of the shield with the spear he wield, before he nodded slightly to Marcus.
"Thank you, Imperator," Jason said. It was probably one of the finest, if not the finest, shields that Jason had ever seen.
Marcus inclined his head.
Antonius and Augustus had paused to watch as the shield was handed over to Jason, Augustus raising an eyebrow at Marcus. The latter only shrugged slightly back at Rome's First Emperor. "He needs it more than any of us do. Perhaps it will bring Rome strength in the years to come."
Jason glanced back to the shield he now held.
Piper gathered some nectar and ambrosia, but refused any of the weapons offered to her in favour of Katoptris.
In a solemn silence, the five left the apartment and marched out into the street. Augustus was still clearly in pain, but he'd firmly refused to stay behind. Jason may not have entirely understood the 'immortal Emperor' existence, but it was clear that Augustus was healing at a terrifying rate. These three were god-Emperors, just as the Triumvirate were.
How were Jason and the others supposed to kill the Triumvirate if Augustus was still up and moving after being struck by Medea's flames. Jason spoke up as they entered the Labyrinth again, now prepared for a confrontation against Medea, her remaining sun dragon and any other enemies they may encounter.
"What exactly are we facing here?" Jason asked as he strode behind them, Piper at his side. She had one hand closed around the hilt of Katoptris, clearly not entirely trusting of the Emperors. Jason was glad to have her at his side. "The fire beneath the earth? Do any of you know what it is?"
"Yes," Marcus said. "You don't?" He asked, looking back to Jason. The son of Jupiter shook his head slightly, and the former Emperor grimaced. "Caligula intends to make himself Neos Helios, the-"
"New Helios," Jason muttered under his breath.
Marcus didn't seemed happy to be interrupted, and continued on. "The New Helios. The mass of fire is what remains of Helios, the Titan of the Sun. Medea has devised a way of… controlling the remnants of her grandfather, in the service of Caligula."
Piper's eyes widened. "But Helios is a Titan! How's that possible?" She demanded. "Medea – she's just a sorceress," Piper said. "Compared to an immortal Titan, a being older than even the human race?"
Augustus' gaze was grim. "Even the gods have their limits, as much as they hate to admit to it. Helios is already weakened, his domain has gone to Apollo. Many would say there is no need for his existence any longer. Medea has managed to call together his scattered essence and caged it within the cavern you two encountered."
Piper pressed her lips together. "Caged? He's been setting fire to California."
"And one must consider what he would do if he were not caged," Antonius pointed out. "But Caligula intends to take the power of Helios for himself, once he is weak enough. I would rather Helios have it himself than give it to Caligula."
"What would happen if he did?" Jason asked carefully. "If he did get Helios' strength, his power?"
"Nothing good," Marcus said. "Which is why we must stop Medea. Caligula has enough influence and strength already. He doesn't need Helios' on top of his own."
Jason nodded. "Agreed," he said.
"And if we stop her soon enough, there's a chance that Helios will fade back into the Abyss whence he came. He could very well lack the strength needed to keep himself together," Augustus said.
The air was becoming stifling hot again, uncomfortably so. The Labyrinth rumbled around them with the exhale of the flames of Helios. Piper grimaced. "How do we know one of those plumes won't come through this corridor?"
"We don't," Antonius said dryly. "But we push on anyway, for Rome. If Caligula gathers Helios' strength, he will march on New Rome and destroy it."
Jason's gaze darkened. "We won't let him," he swore, hand tightening around his Spear. All Romans seemed determined to act solely with that, as if defending Rome was all that was driving them forwards. Piper hesitated briefly before she continued on.
The descent back through the Labyrinth was unnerving for Jason, half expecting to encounter any number of Caligula's legions, but it was worryingly quiet.
"Where are they all?" Piper finally asked when they emerged out into a wider corridor, one arching far over their heads. "I thought we were expecting Caligula's forces."
Jason noted the Roman mosaics lining the floor and walls, the depression in the ground in the centre. He raised an eyebrow. "Is this a bathhouse?" He asked in bewilderment.
Marcus chuckled. "So it seems," he said. Jason spotted the skeletons in the depression and frowned. "The Labyrinth is telling is that it doesn't like Romans," Marcus said in amusement. "It's trying to turn us around, but we are god-Emperors ourselves and the Labyrinth will not stop us."
Sweat trickled down Jason's neck and spine as it grew ever hotter the further they descended.
He was relieved when he noted the orange glow of fire at the end of the corridor, scorch marks and ash along the floors and walls. They emerged out into the same cavern that Jason and Piper had encountered before, the mass of fire and heat boiling at the bottom of the cavern the remnants of the Sun god Helios. The same golden filaments lined the walls, stretching down into the cavern.
Jason guessed that was Medea's magic at work to keep Helios contained. As he watched, Marcus unhesitatingly stepped forwards and pressed his palm flat against the tendrils, tugging his hand away from them as a ripple of light spread out from his palm.
"Ready yourselves," Marcus warned. Jason watched as Piper peered down over the edge into the cavern beneath them, a look of worry in her eyes.
"Do you really think that Helios will just disappear after?"
The Roman Emperors didn't answer. Jason shrugged. "He's a god," he offered. "I don't know. Can they ever really die?"
"It's possible for them to be so limited and scattered that they lose much of their influence," Marcus said. "But truly gone? No. I don't think so."
There was concern gleaming in Piper's eyes as she looked back to Jason, and she hesitated slightly before returning her attention to the fire beneath them.
"What is it?" Jason asked.
"He was gone," Piper slowly said. Beneath them, the fire heaved and slowed its movements briefly, an ancient voice whispering and murmuring something in a tongue older than Time. "For thousands of years. My father – he wasn't taken for long, but I still missed him. Do you think anyone misses him?" Piper asked.
Jason paused, turning to look into the cavern too; at the Sun Titan slowly being gathered together again beneath them. "Maybe," he murmured. "But I'm not the Titan expert. That's Percy," Jason said.
Some realisation seemed to come to Piper then, her eyes widening sharply. "Jason – Helios, his father-"
An explosion of light burst across the cavern and Jason recoiled sharply, bringing his new shield up on instinct and crouching. The other four all reacted similarly where they stood. Jason was glad he did, for a blast of light slammed into the shield he was holding. The force of the blast pushed him back a foot, but the vast majority of the blow was absorbed by the shield.
"Move!" Marcus barked, even as he was throwing one of his pila at Medea.
The sorceress had formed in mid-air, hovering above the fire pit which spit plumes and rolled in anger. The whispers from the ancient Titan rose in strength, Helios' anger focused on Medea. A plume of fire turned the thrown pila to ash with a wave of Medea's hand, twisting and turning to shoot in Jason's direction.
Jason dove to the side, the fire roaring past his side and crashing into the wall behind him. He cursed, forcing himself to move as rock crumbled, slamming into the platform he was standing on.
The three Emperors struck out at Medea with their pila, each flying true, but a shield of fire disintegrated them all. Jason yelled, lightning crackling down the length of the spear and blasting out at the sorceress. It burst through the fire shield, but cracked like thunder against a shield of light which Medea formed and deflected off to the side.
"Jason!" Piper exclaimed, grabbing him and pulling him enough that Medea's return strike missed him by a mere foot. It was hot and close enough that it caused Jason's armour to warm and blisters to form along his arm. "Helios' father – Hyperion!"
Jason grit his teeth, throwing out his shield before them in time to catch Medea's next blast. The force still pushed him stumbling back. "What about him?" He demanded, before he recalled Percy's warning.
Hyperion had been investigating the Burning Maze himself.
Jason's eyes widened. "He's looking for Helios," he breathed out. Jason looked around the cavern, his thoughts racing. They had a brief moment of respite as Medea focused on the three Emperors, her eyes aflame as she hovered above the fire pit. Fire lashed against the cavern walls, Helios' whispers having quietened as Medea controlled the flames.
Jason grabbed Piper's arm and dragged her back from the edge of the path as fire roared up before them, briefly masking Medea from view. The Spear of Achilles crackled and Jason sent a strike of lightning into the flames which rushed towards them, forcing them to recoil back briefly. The cavern shook with a deep, bellowed roar in response, fire bursting out into vents far above them.
Piper's eyes widened. "No!" She cried out, and Jason spun in time to watch as Augustus hit the wall, struck directly by a blast of flames. The Emperor's face contorted in agony as his armour bubbled and melted across his torso, skin melting and fusing across his body.
Jason flinched, dragging Piper to the ground as another blast roared over their heads. "Go!" Jason barked at Piper, watching as Marcus' and Antonius' palms glowed with divine light. They struck at Medea in unison, but the light was absorbed by the fire shield before her. Jason heard Piper inhale sharply next to him.
"Jason!" Her voice was tinged with disbelief and relief.
Piper was already on her feet and moving on, trying to keep moving so they were harder for Medea to hit. Jason was quick to join her side. "What?" He gasped out, his arms burning from the exposure to Helios despite his diminished strength.
"Look up!" Piper gestured above them, her eyes wide. "Hyperion!"
Jason's head jerked up.
It didn't take him long to spot the Titan.
Hyperion stood above them, garbed in gleaming golden armour that reflected the flames of Helios beneath them all. His sword was a great golden one, awash with fire that cast a light over the cavern around him, illuminating the entrance he'd clearly come through.
He glowed brighter than the flames of Helios.
Jason stared up at him in disbelief. Medea struck out at the Emperors again with the raging fires of Helios, which had started whispering again in the Old Tongue.
Even with how far above them Hyperion was, across the pit of fire, Jason could see his burning eyes through his helmet, like twin orbs of flame. The warmth from the fire was nearly unbearable. Medea was screaming insults at the Emperors as they traded blows, none of them having yet noticed Hyperion standing and watching.
"I have an idea," Jason said. "Get ready to run when I say."
Piper dragged her eyes away from the Titan looming above them, shaking slightly. Jason too had felt the terror shooting down to his bones at the immortal's presence.
Hyperion did not look happy.
Jason could only hope that his anger was focused towards Medea. Would the Titan be eager to see Helios resurrected only to be used to power a false god? Jason doubted it. There was no way to warn Marcus and Antonius since they were so distracted with Medea. The cavern's walls had practically been blown apart between the three of them already, giant holes and gashes carved out of them.
The son of Jupiter raised his spear, lightning crackling down it's length and down his arm, and sent a bolt at Medea. He felt the drain on his strength, but kept going as she reacted and flicked the bolt aside. Jason adjusted each strike slightly, moving them up.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Piper realising what he was doing and start backing up, moving around to Marcus and Antonius whom looked pale and worn as they tried to catch their breath.
Jason aimed his final bolt for just over Medea's head, tensing as he watched her deflect it up, past her head and shifting the angle up. Jason was gasping for breath, his heart roaring in his ears as Jason used his own strength to adjust the angle slightly – and he watched the deflected bolt of lightning slam straight into Hyperion under his guidance.
Marcus' eyes widened, clearly having been so focused on Medea that he hadn't seen the Titan waiting above them.
A challenge against an immortal if ever there was one.
"Run!" Jason roared as Hyperion raised his sword off his shoulder, suddenly glowing so brightly and harshly that it stung Jason's eyes.
Medea whipped around at the glowing light, growing still when she looked up at Hyperion above her.
Marcus cursed, grabbing Augustus by the shoulder of his armour alongside a struggling Antonius. "By the gods, go!" Marcus snapped at Jason as he saw him hesitating.
Above them, Hyperion raised his palm, a ball of light and fire forming around and between his fingers.
Jason grit his teeth, but turned and bolted into the closest passageway. Piper scrambled in behind him, having decided to protect his back if Medea lashed out at him. Jason doubted that would happen, she was far too worried about Hyperion's presence.
The roar of fire rose, overwhelming everything else around them "Go," Jason gasped out, shoving Piper in front of him as he turned back. "I have to make sure the others get out. Go, Piper!"
"I'm not leaving you!" Piper snapped back at Jason. "I won't!"
Jason just shook his head at her. "Someone has to make it back to New Rome!" He said sharply. "Warn Reyna, tell her what's happened here." The son of Jupiter ran back through the entrance into the cavern just as a blast of fire erupted, out of the depths of the cavern and up past the entrance of the corridor.
Hyperion.
"Jason!" Piper screamed.
Yeah, so this is where it starts getting really nasty. Sorry, not sorry. Deaths will happen, lots of them. We need tension and high stakes in this!
Jennifer Whitten: thanks!