Chapter 4

After gathering to the Evil Queen, Carlos asked to stay behind. There was someone he wanted to see before setting out to sea. Mal agreed and Jane chose to stay with Carlos.

Carlos led her up to the southern wing of the castle. As they approached their destination, the floor became more and more cluttered with rusty traps and fur pelts. The walls were decorated with blown up fashion magazine covers and pictures from runway photoshoots. Carlos took a minute to glance at his old bedroom, one of the few places he every truly considered safe on the Isle. Eventually, they came to a stop in front of a faded red door.

"Uncle Horace," Carlos called with a knock "It's me. Open up."

After undoing three deadbolt locks, a short pudgy middle-aged man stuck his head out from behind the door. His eyes lit up.

"Carlos, my boy!" he said with a laugh and a thick British accent.

Horace pulled Carlos into a massive hug and let out a deep sigh.

"It's good to see you boy."

"You too. How is she?" Carlos asked, causing a tension to fill the air.

"Best as she can, all things considered," Horace answered, trying his best to sound upbeat "I think she's well enough for a couple visitors."

Carlos managed a nervous nod. Jane squeezed his hand gently and gave him a comforting smile. Carlos was glad she was here. Truth be told, he wasn't sure he'd be able to face this without her.

Set in the middle of the room was a massive Victorian brass bed, bigger than anything Carlos could've imagined growing up on the Isle. And lying in the middle of that bed, drowning in a sea of silk sheets and fur blankets, was a pale, frail-framed woman with black and white hair, staring blankly up at the ceiling. An oxygen tube was hung from her nose and several celestial bronze medical devices were attached to her shriveled arm. A deep jagged scar framed the right side of her face, leaving her with a constant reminder of the act that condemned her to the Isle of the lost.

Carlos felt a lump form in his throat as she stared at the villain once known as Cruella De Vil. "Hi mom."

Cruella said nothing, letting out a wheezy breath as she struggled to make eye contact with her son.

Carlos never had the best relationship with his mother. Mainly due to her constant mental health problems. For as long as Carlos could remember, Cruella had struggled with mental illness. According to Horace, it dated back to when she was a child; Long before he, Cruella or Jasper even knew such a thing existed. Only that it got worse after her car accident, which lead to her being arrested for trying to make fur coats out of a hundred and one Dalmatians. On her good days, when the Evil Queen was able to scrap enough ingredients for one of her healing tonics, Cruella was a kind and loving mother. On her bad ones, she was a ticking timebomb, who couldn't tell the difference between past and present events, rambling about imaginary demon dogs with glowing red eyes. Carlos spent most of his childhood walking on eggshells, trying his best not to fall apart every time his mother forgot his name or claimed her furs had come to life and were plotting to eat her.

When Carlos came home with the VKs, he learned that Cruella's lungs were failing along with her sanity. No one in Auradon knew how to help her. Even Rapunzel, the daughter of Apollo with the healing hair, could do nothing more but ease her pain. Percy and his friends had seen this before. A terrible disease caused by Cruella's twenty two year old smoking habit. The children of Apollo had been studying for almost a century. Unfortunately, there was still no cure.

"Sorry I haven't been able to visit more often," Carlos apologized "Things have been a little crazy lately. Evie's in trouble. But we're going to help her."

Evie and Cruella had always been close. Growing up, the daughter of the Evil Queen spent hours adoring Cruella's designs. In return, Cruella taught Evie how to sew.

"It does your mother good to see you lad," a voice said.

Carlos turned around and saw a tall, lanky dark-skinned man standing in the doorway. He had curly dark hair, smoldering dark eyes and a scruffy beard. He was dressed simply: a workman's jumpsuit, an old wool jacket and a rusty leg brace.

Carlos gasped. "Jasper."

As crazy as it sounded, Carlos had never met Cruella's right-hand man before. He knew who Jasper was, sure. They were pictures of all over Cruella's share of the castle. But Carlos had never laid eyes on the man until now. Jasper was always on the move.

For as long as Carlos could remember, bundles of supplies had been showing up on Cruella's doorstep. Care packages that she and Horace swore came from Jasper. Tools to fix the pipes, scrap metal to patch the holes in the roof, a sewing machine to make new clothes in the winter, a security system to keep rival villains at arm's reach, boxes of Cruella's favorite tea and Horace's favorite biscuits (yes, Carlos called cookies biscuits). Carlos didn't know how Jasper kept finding this stuff, much less how he held onto all of it living on the Isle with a bad leg, but he was grateful. He had always suspected that the only reason the other villians let Cruella join their crew in the first place was to get a piece of Jasper's gifts.

"Hullo Carlos," Jasper greeted in a surprisingly gruff voice "It's nice to finally meet you in the flesh."

He walked slowly across the room. His leg brace made a squeak-thump, squeak-thump, with every step. Jasper shook Carlos' hand and Carlos felt a jolt rush through him.

"Rough palms," Jasper noticed "me too. Looks like we both have a talent for honest work, eh?"

Jasper reached into his jacket and placed something next to Cruella's bed. A single red rose. He bent down and place a kiss on her forehead.

Jane gasped. "Carlos, this is your,"

"I'd rather tell him myself my dear," Jasper interrupted "That's why I'm here."

Carlos nearly winced as Jasper clasped a firm hand on his shoulder.

"Come to the garage with me, lad. We have much to talk about."

Carlos wanted to protest, but before he could, Jasper was already leading him out the room. The halls echoed with the squeak-thump, squeak-thump of his leg brace.

"I'm sure you must have questions with me," Jasper acknowledged "I know that I wasn't around as much as you would've liked, but I did my best to make sure your needs were provided for."

As they continue to walk, Jasper started to change. His voice deepened. His scrawny form became big and brawny. His beard thickened and his squeaky leg brace had been replaced with an intricate machine made of polished celestial bronze. By the time they reached the garage, Jasper had transformed into a 250 lb mega-mechanic with a smoldering beard and a weathered face.

"Let's start with my name," the new Jasper decided "It's not Jasper. It's Hephaestus, god of forges. I'm your father, boy."

Carlos felt as if the world had turned upside down.

Hephaestus tapped the giant chunk of scrap metal that was once Cruella's 1962 Rolls Royce De Vil.

"I've been meaning to fix this. Thought we could finish the job together. Father-son bonding and whatnot."

Carlos felt his blood boil as his father handed him a wrench from a toolbox. This god of the forge, formally known as the thief Jasper, had been little more than ghost to Carlos his entire life. Still, he had always made sure Carlos and Cruella had what they needed to be okay. But why show himself now? Why wait eighteen years to see his son? Eventually, Carlos took the wrench.

"We should start with the ignition," he decided.

They worked in silence for a while, trading tools and brainstorming solutions to the latest roadblock.

After about twenty minutes, Carlos asked his first serious question. "Does my mom know who you really are?"

"No, "Hephaestus answered as he rolled under the car to check the fuel line.

"Your mother's native country was one of the last to be added to Auradon. By that time, they had already dubbed the gods as nothing but myths and fairytales. She has only ever known me as Jasper. Pass me a Phillips head."

Carlos did and as he was asked and started checking the fuel injectors. "How'd you know what to send us?"

"Horace. He's an automaton."

Carlos nearly dropped his wench.

"His CPU crafts an itemized list of necessary items," Hephaestus continued "The dogs track them down and leave them at the doorstep."

"Dogs?" Carlos repeated "What dogs?"

Hephaestus rolled out from under the car and let out a sharp whistle. Carlos' eyes widened as a pair of automatons walked into the garage: Two celestial bronze English mastiffs. Their eyes…they had glowing red eyes.

"Those dogs. My mom saw those dogs," he realized "She thought they were coming to kill her. Your delivery system drove her insane!"

Hephaestus winced. "Your mother loved dogs when we met. I thought that as long was they weren't Dalmatians,"

"Why did you even come here?" Carlos demanded "You thought fixing one lousy car would make up for missing my entire life!?"

For a moment, Hephaestus' eyes blazed. His beard started to smolder. Then Carlos remembered that his father was also the god of fire and backed away.

Hephaestus sighed. "I know you let down, boy. I know the pain I've cause you. Do you know how I got this?" he asked, tapping his leg brace.

Carlos frowned. "It happened when you were a kid, right? You fell off of Mount Olympus?"

"Fell," Hephaestus let out a dark chuckle "I was thrown off, boy. By my own mother."

Carlos shuddered.

"That's what brought Cruella and I together. We both had terrible mothers."

Hephaestus wasn't kidding. After Mal revealed herself to be a daughter of Hades, Carlos finally decided to share his dark family history.

Cruella De Vil's real name was Estella, the only daughter of a Baroness who was the face for a generation of high couture fashion. The Baroness, Carlos's grandmother, was so against being a mother that she faked a miscarriage and attempted to throw her newborn daughter away. Estella grew up on the street, where she met Jasper the god and Horace the automaton. When Estella found out the truth about her past, she devised a plot to take back her family home of Hellman Hall. Ben offered to return the estate the Carlos, but he wasn't sure he wanted anything to do with his family's legacy. The last two generations of the De Vil family to live there had gone complete insane.

"You want to know why I'm here, Carlos?" Hephaestus asked "Two years ago, your cousin Luke, son of Hermes, made a deal with the devil that is that Titan king Kronos to tear down Olympus."

"Why?"

"Because his father was never there. Because he found living on the street with Annabeth and Thaila more comforting that being raised by the madwoman that is his mother. In four short years, that college boy nearly destroyed everything the gods have ever built over the course of three thousand years. Fortunately, your mate Jackson put a stop to it. So Zeus offered him a place amongst the gods."

Carlos blinked. "Percy had the chance to be a god?"

"He did indeed. And he turned it down," Hephaestus said with a hint of admiration "Not only that, he made demands. Made us swear to better by our children. Implied that Luke was a monster of our own making. And you know what? He was right. We were just too proud to admit it."

Hephaestus groaned as he stood up, looking his son in the eye.

"That is why I am here, Carlos. To try and repair some of the damage cause in my absence. I want to be a better father to you, to all my children. But I'm not good with…. people. As I said, I was born with a face not even a mother could love. This quest you are about to go on, it will test you. In ways the Isle never could. It will take you down a path you will not expect. Just now that I am here for you, my son."

Carlos felt like his emotions were caught in a blender. He didn't hate Hephaestus, but he couldn't bring himself to forgive him either.

"I'll finish the car. It'll be ready by the time you need it."

And just like that, Hephaestus and the car disappeared, leaving Carlos alone with his thoughts.

After gather as much intel as they could from the Evil Queen, the rescue party made their way to Evie's castle for one final meal together before they left on their journey. Annabeth was going over battle strategies with Ben and Lonnie. Grover was setting up a large picnic table, where Percy reviewing navigation charts with Harry and Triton. Jay was catching up with Gil and Mal. Tyson was roasting a spit of chicken, beef and lamb over an open fire. Carlos wondered if this was what Camp Half-Blood was like. There was a warmth here, an unconditional bond of love and friendship that made Carlos looked forward to the day Auradon's demigod camp was finished.

"Hey." Mal's smile wavered at the look on Carlos' face "You okay?"

Carlos sat at the table and down at the table and sighed. "I met my dad today."

He told them everything. About Jasper the god, Horace the automaton and Hephaestus' poor attempt at family bonding.

Percy stared at Carlos in awe. "Your dad sent you child support?"

Carlos blinked. "I just found out that my entire childhood was a lie, and that's what you want to talk about?"

"Yeah dude. Your dad sent you child support. The gods never send child support."

"Or admit when they're wrong," Annabeth added "Hephaestus really is trying to be better."

Carlos felt a knot form in his stomach. "I can deal with my dad later. Right now, let's just figure out how to save Evie. We know which way to go?"

"Working on it," said Percy, shuffling through his charts.

Sailing to Auradon was easy. Sailing back out, not so much. The Mist surround Auradon was so thick that it altered time and space. It confined a small continent into a single square mile of sea water in the middle of the Bermuda triangle.

"The Mist around Auradon is like a funnel," Percy explained "with the big end leading out into the sea of monsters. One that narrows into Auradon. To get to Circe, we have to sail against the current. We take the wrong route, we could end up days, maybe weeks off course."

"Uncle Percy?"

Percy looked up from his charts to see a familiar face looking back at him: A young girl with long black hair and ocean blue eyes. She wore a coral yellow sun dress with white flats and had her hair tied back with a sea green hair band. The daughter of the little mermaid Ariel and the granddaughter of Triton.

"Melody? What are you doing here?" Percy asked.

"I want to go with you," she demanded, "I want to help stop Circe. Henry told me what you guys were up to and,"

"Absolutely not!" Triton snapped.

"I want to help. I can fight. Uncle Percy's been teaching me."

Triton looked at Percy like he wanted to feed him to a pack of sharks. "You have been teaching my granddaughter swordplay?"

"What? No. I've been teaching how to use her trident."

"Where did she get a trident!?"

"Tyson made her one."

"First time using imperial gold," the cyclops commented "very tricky."

"It's so pretty," Melody praised "I can't wait to skewer Circe with it!"

"You will not be skewering anything, young lady," Triton promised "Because you are not going!"

"But Grandpa-,"

"Don't 'But Grandpa,' me, young lady! You are staying in school where it is safe. Have you forgotten what Uma's aunt did to you? Have you forgotten what her mother did to yours?"

"No Grandpa, I didn't. And I didn't forget that you scared Aunt Uma away either."

Triton's face turned as red as Sebastian the crab.

Percy laughed. Even though he'd barely known her a month, Percy had quickly grown to love his niece and her untamed spirit.

"That's enough. I appreciate you wanting to help Melody," Mal said sincerely "But this quest is too dangerous for you. You can stay for dinner but after that, I think it's best if you head back to school."

"But," Melody opened her mouth to speak and sighed "Yes, your majesty."

Mal then addressed the rest of her group. "Percy, you and Harry keep looking for that route. The rest of you, listen up. The Evil Queen told me where to find one of her husband's spell books. Apparently, he was some sort of sorcerer demigod. So when we get to Circe's island-,"

"I can't go with you," Jane blurted out "I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry. I love Evie, I want to help. It's just that my dad,"

She stopped herself, her eyes wide and panicked.

"I can't. I just can't."

Annabeth and Percy shared a glance. Jane was a daughter of Apollo, the sun god who had been stripped of his godhood by Zeus. The last time they spoke to him, he was on a mission to regain his immortality.

Carlos reached out and took Jane's hand. His girlfriend was many things, but a fighter wasn't one of them. Hers was more of a gentle strength.

"It's okay Jane," he said, wiping a tear from her cheek.

Jane glanced at the others and realized they all felt the same. Then she kissed Carlos.

His heart pounded like a jackhammer. His lips tingled. His stomach felt all warm and fuzzy.

"I love you Carlos," Jane whispered "You're my dream come true."

Carlos' jaw dropped.

"I'm going to take Melody back to Auradon Prep," said Jane "I'll…I'll see you guys before you leave."

Carlos nodded, still reeling from the rush of the kiss, unable to speak until Jane and Melody were gone.

"Did Jane just say she loves me?"

"Sure did," Jay teased as he playfully elbowed Carlos in the ribs "How's it feel, bro?"

"Good," Carlos said with a goofy smile "Really, really good."

"Carlos," Mal couldn't help but smile at the look at his face "Do you love Jane?"

Carlos nodded. Then his face turned white. "I never said it back. Jane!"

"Easy lover boy." Jay grabbed Carlos' shoulder as he attempted to chase after his girlfriend.

"You can plan your big romantic gesture after we save Evie."

"I think I found the route," Percy said hopefully "we should make it if we sail northeast towards Portorosso, we should make it."

"Portorosso's covered with coal reefs," Harry chided "I say we head southeast towards Motunui. It's a least a day faster and,"

"No!" Percy and Annabeth said at the same time.

"That's Maui's territory," Annabeth said gravely "We cannot take the children of Poseidon into Maui's territory."

"Who's Maui?" Grover asked.

"The protector of Motunui," Ben answered "His people think he's a god."

"He doesn't like me," Mal added "He's been acting weird around me ever since I came out as a daughter of Hades. What's he's deal?"

"His deal is stay away from him," Triton ordered "That brute is no friend to Olympus."

"Percy," Grover frowned as he felt the waves of guilt and secrecy coming through their empathy link "What aren't you telling us?"

Percy's eyes became guarded. "Do you trust me, Grover?"

He nodded.

"Then trust me: If I could tell you more, I would."

Percy groaned as he threw up his charts. "This is crazy! There's no way out of princess fairy land!"

"If I may," a female voice offered.

Standing in the middle of the yard was a white-skinned woman with messy dreadlocks made of glowing algae and rotting teeth, wearing a tattered dress and holding a bronze shield.

The sons of Poseidon shot to their feet. Percy drew Riptide. Tyson grabbed his club from under the table. Triton ripped the string of shells from his neck, and it transformed into a bronze trident.

"I may be able to provide some of the answers you seek," the woman offered, with a thick Caribbean accent.

"You. What do you want?" Percy asked with a scowl.

"I mean no harm, Percy Jackson. Only to offer my aid," she answered innocently "for your next daring quest."

"You are not welcome here, sea witch. Begone," Triton demanded.

The woman laughed. "Such bravado, Triton. Do you think such arrogance will make up for your diluted power?"

"I've more than enough power to deal with you!"

"Don't fight," Tyson said, placing a hand on his brother's chest "Daddy said no more fighting."

"I am well aware of Poseidon's decree, young cyclops. That be why I have brought this."

The woman raised her hand and revealed a roll of parchment paper.

Percy kept his sword raised as she handed it to him. "What is this?"

"Navigation charts," the woman answered, "to guide you to the isle of Circe."

Percy stared at the charts like they were a can of Greek fire. "How do I know this map isn't going to lead me and my friends straight to our deaths?"

"I give you my word, these charts will lead you to your destination," the woman vowed "I swear upon the River Styx."

"Why are you doing this?" Percy asked "The last time I saw you, you tried to kill me. And Jason Grace."

"And then you helped him build me a shrine in Camp Jupiter. This be a peace offering."

"Thanks. Appreciate it." Percy set the charts on the table "Don't let the door hit you on the way out."

"Beware, Percy Jackson. An ancient curse mars the border waters of Auradon," the woman warned "If you wish to have hope of reaching Circe, it must be broken. To do that, the powers of Hades and Poseidon must work as one. Seek out the heroes that defend them waters: A daughter of Athena who hides a throne of thieves. A son of Aphrodite with a touch of destiny. And," A smile spread acorss the woman's face as she concluded "a witty son of Hermes who always be chasing what lies beyond the horizon. Seek them out, and they will lead you to the source of the curse."

"These heroes wouldn't happen to have names, would they?" Percy asked.

"When you see them, you will know. I will be watching over you Percy Jackson," the woman promised. And just like that, she disappeared in a gust of sea breeze.

"Percy," Grover said nervously "Was that?"

"Uh-huh."

"Who?" Mal asked "Who was that?"

"Distant relative," Percy answered, capping his sword.

"Do you trust her?" Ben asked.

"Not really," Percy answered, staring at the charts "But right now, I don't think we have a choice."