I appeared in the throne room of the gods, my stomach churning violently from the sudden transportation. Sure, I'd jumped through a portal and accidently shadow-traveled once, but the form of wind travel that some of the gods used was not good for my stomach. But there was no way I was going to lose my lunch in front of the gods, so I held my stomach and kneeled in Zeus' direction.
He was wearing a dark blue pinstriped suit, and his black hair came down to his shoulders. He had a gray and black well-trimmed beard, and while that may have made him look somewhat normal, his shockingly blue eyes and proud, stern face scared the living daylights out of me. As he bristled at my direction, I could smell the ozone in the air, and much to my chagrin, I saw little sparks jumping between my fingers.
Stop it, I thought to myself, glaring at my hands while keeping my head low. Zeus probably already wanted me killed a few days ago when I intervened to save Thalia, but all I could wish for at the moment was that he would hear me out.
All around the throne room, the gods looked at me in curiosity, like I was the newest specimen they'd gotten to observe under their microscope. They'd even summoned Lord Hades, who was staring at me in confusion from Hestia's hearth.
Right when I thought my ADHD would get the better of me, Zeus told me in a thundering voice, "Rise, young demigod."
I slowly got to my feet, keeping eye contact with him as I let my arms dangle to my sides, trying to convey innocence. I mean, I was innocent anyways. It's not like I had a choice in who my father was, or else I would've asked the Fates to make me a daughter of Poseidon in a heartbeat. That would've been nothing compared to who I thought my father was.
"Who are you?" the goddess directly to the right of Zeus, Hera, asked.
While I wanted to smack the Queen of Olympus upside the head for everything she had done to the seven, I bit my tongue, reminding myself that the events in the books hadn't come to pass yet.
"My name is Andromeda Collins," I told them, keeping my voice steady without sounding prideful. "I'm fourteen years old, and I recently arrived at Camp Half-Blood. I don't know who my godly parent is as I grew up an orphan and ran away from the abusive couple that adopted me."
Okay, let me explain the fourteen-years-old thing before anything else happens. While I had been sixteen back on my Earth, Salina told me that by jumping through the portal, my age could be screwed up. Nothing dramatic, like I wasn't going to go from sixteen to four or to eighty-three, but my age could differ within a three year range. When I kept lookout one night on our way to camp, I had asked Salina how old I was, and she told me the portal had made me fourteen years old on this Earth.
"You're positive you don't know who your parent is?" Athena asked me, her gray eyes staring so intensely at me that I was waiting to burst into flames. Ooh, bad wording. I didn't need to go supernova again anytime soon.
"I haven't been claimed, Lady Athena," I told her respectfully. "And I don't even know if my mother or if my father is the reason I'm a demigod. The orphanage I grew up in couldn't identify anyone as my parents, but they took me in anyways and raised me as their own child. The only thing that was left with me was a blank piece of paper with my name written on it."
"Andromeda," Zeus mused, "just like the wife of Perseus. It's not a common name, as I'm sure you know, so whoever your mortal parent was knew enough about us to give you such a name."
"I figure I was named Andromeda as she and her husband had a happy ending, something of a rarity in the ancient times," I replied, slightly surprised at how laid back Zeus was being. But I knew better. All it would take was one word out of place and he would fry me with the Master Bolt without a second thought.
"Brother, you're rambling," Hades scolded him, his obsidian black eyes watching my every move like a hawk. I shuddered at the sudden chills I got, and truth be told, I don't know if that was out of fear or because of Hades.
"Yes, why have you called a council to introduce us to this demigod?" Artemis asked from her throne, absentmindedly plucking at the string of her silver bow.
Seeing the goddess in person was a bittersweet feeling, because even though both Zoe and Bianca's names had transferred onto the people to save list, two of her Hunters, Jasmine and Atalanta, were destined to die in their places. The Fates told me to change the future, but they couldn't just up and save everyone, or the balance between life and death would be upset. For every person I saved, someone else had to die.
"Her actions at Camp Half-Blood have warranted this meeting," Dionysus said, shocking the majority of the council. He scowled at their expressions and lowered his wine magazine. "Just because I'm the god of wine doesn't mean I don't care about our well-beings. This girl is dangerous."
"How so?" Poseidon asked Mr. D.
"Why talk about it when I can just show you?" Apollo offered, and I took a step back, not wanting to be touched by the sun god. Not that I was afraid of him, but I hated being touched by people I didn't trust, and I'm sorry, but after learning how Apollo's mind worked, there was no way I was letting him into my mind.
"Please, don't touch me," I whimpered, biting the inside of my lip so tears were forced to well in my eyes. Let's just say I could play the role of a victim very well.
"Leave her alone, Apollo," Artemis hissed, shooting her brother the stink eye. "She doesn't trust males after being abused, I'm sure." I nodded at her statement, going along with her. "No god may touch Andromeda for the remainder of this meeting unless they get her explicit permission, understood?"
"Thank you, Lady Artemis," I said while bowing to her.
"Anything for a young maiden, but I'm afraid my idiotic brother was right for once. It's much easier for us to look into your memories rather than speak about them."
"I will allow for a goddess to display my memories to the Olympians," I agreed. "If you are really that concerned about my existence, maybe this will ease those fears."
"Do you have anyone in particular you'd prefer?" Demeter asked through a mouthful of cereal, bringing the faintest traces of a smile on my face.
I glanced over at the hearth, where Hestia had her back turned on the council, tending happily to the flames and humming an old melody under her breath. "If she doesn't mind," I began, "I wish for Lady Hestia to be the one to display my memories."
"Hestia?" Aphrodite questioned, looking up from her mirror for the first time. "Why her?"
"Watch it," Poseidon growled, gripping onto the business end of his trident so tightly I thought he was going to snap it in half. "That's my sister you're disrespecting."
Hestia blushed at all the sudden attention, but she agreed to what was asked of her. She turned from an eight-year-old to looking more around my age, anywhere between fourteen and seventeen. She brushed her chocolate brown hair back behind her ear, tucking it into her shawl before pressing a finger to my forehead, an image projecting itself in the middle of the throne room like we were in a movie theater except the image was 3-D.
I knew that all the memories up until this week were fake as a result of the Mist, but the part about my being at the orphanage was heavily based off my real experiences back home. The memories about being abused came directly from what I saw Percy go through and stories I heard through some of my friends at the orphanage who had ended up there because of deadbeat parents.
The only real memories were the ones of this week, starting from when I woke up in the middle of the forest next to the abandoned car factory where the Cyclops had been holding Thalia and Luke while Annabeth and Grover tried to save them. They saw everything, but thankfully, my interaction with Sally Jackson and my dreams had been hidden, most likely thanks to some godly interference. As for the part where they saw me reading, the Mist changed the title of the book to read The Cambridge Guide to Greek Mythology. Athena had beamed at that part.
Any time my powers flared up, the gods shared similar looks of concerned and conversed in rapid fire Greek, too fast for me to pick up anything more than a few words. The image cut off after I had asked Chiron for help, leaving the gods staring at the floor of the throne room as they stared at me, like they were unsure about what I was.
Their guess was as good as mine.
"You're extremely powerful," Hades said at last, breaking the tense silence. "But your powers are still very unpredictable. From what I saw, they react at times when your emotions are strongest. You're dangerous, Andromeda."
"That's nothing that can't be fixed with some training," Athena said, shooting her uncle a scathing look. "She can become a very powerful ally for us."
"I'd feel better if she swore allegiance to Olympus," Hera said, staring at me with a blank expression, like she wasn't sure if she wanted to smite me or smile at me. "With this kind of power, I'd like knowing that she wouldn't join any of our enemies."
"Why would I do that?" I asked. "The gods have shown me nothing but kindness ever since I learned of your existence. I have no reason to betray Olympus."
"I agree with my wife," Zeus said, shutting me up instantly. "I thank you for helping those demigods to camp, but you cannot be left unchecked by Olympus. Since I feel merciful today, I will give you two options. Either swear allegiance to Olympus or join the Hunters of Artemis if you wish to live, Andromeda. If not, I'm afraid we must kill you where you stand."
The decision didn't take longer than a second.
I kneeled at the foot of Zeus' throne and said in a loud and clear voice, "I, Andromeda Lilliana Collins, hereby promise to serve Olympus to the best of my ability and to never betray the gods on my own free will. This is swear on the River Styx."
"Are you sure you want to swear on the Styx?" Hades said solemnly, like I didn't know what I was doing.
"This I swear on the River Styx," I repeated with conviction, standing up as thunder roared across the clear sky.
The Olympians seemed placated by my vow, Zeus especially. I felt a lot better knowing that the gods didn't doubt my loyalty, because I knew it was going to be put to the test in the next upcoming years. I'd probably be interrogated about Percy, and seeing that I planned on leaving Camp Half-Blood for the year, I'd be questioned about that too. I needed to talk with Hades later, but right now, baby steps.
All of a sudden the Olympians gasped in…fright?
Great, what happened now?
Aphrodite and Demeter had dived behind their thrones, peaking from behind the seats to look at me. Hephaestus was so surprised he dropped whatever he was working on and summoned a ball of fire to chuck at me. The rest of the gods weren't much better, each one of them had their weapon trained on me. The only exception was Hestia, whose eyes were full of so much fear she had disappeared into the hearth to get away from me. Even Hera, who I've never heard of picking up a weapon after the first Titan War, had summoned a gold staff with a lotus on the end, pointed directly at me.
Glancing down at my skin, I saw that I was glowing gold, like Apollo, except this light was much harsher and more primal. My camp clothes melted away in a swirl of gold dust, leaving me in a sleeveless white chiton with a neckline so low I was thoroughly embarrassed. Delicate gold armbands encircled my biceps. My braided hair now flowed down past my shoulders, and I could feel that something had been woven in, but I didn't know what.
By now, the glow was already fading, but I still looked up and felt my heart sink to my feet. Glowing right above my head was a golden hourglass and scythe crisscrossed like an X – the symbols of Kronos.
"Oh, gods," I choked out. "How is this possible? I thought you chopped him into a million pieces!"
"I think maybe you have the answer to that, traitor," Zeus roared, ready to chuck the Master Bolt at me.
"I didn't ask to be his child!" I shrieked. "I know nothing of my conception! I don't even know who my mother was!"
Don't fret, my daughter, Kronos' steely voice said in my mind, his presence like someone had shoved a spike between my eyes. They won't kill you, but I don't have such qualms. Turning against your own father, tsk, tsk. I shall kill you myself for your treason.
"Get out of my head! Get out!" I shouted, pounding my fists against my skull even though I knew it was useless. I pulled at my hair like I was about to rip it out of my scalp, screaming over and over again for Kronos to leave, but he seemed perfectly content to laugh, tormenting me to no end.
We will see each other again soon, Andromeda. And don't forget, from now on we are enemies.
I had been so consumed by trying to Kronos out of my mind that I hadn't even noticed what had been going on with the gods. As I slowed my breathing down so that I wasn't hyperventilating, I saw that both Poseidon and Hades were holding Zeus down while Hera sat on his hands, preventing him from using his Master Bolt.
"You're traitors! The whole lot of you!" Zeus shouted like a petulant child. "Her father is going to kill us all! She'll corrupt our children, make them join him instead of us!"
"Did you ever pause to think, Lord Zeus, that we share the same father?" I told him, raising my eyebrows at him. "Technically, I'm your half-sister. You trust in Poseidon, Hades, Hera, Demeter, and Hestia, all of whom were born of Kronos and Rhea, just like yourself. I saved your daughter, Lord Zeus, and I pledged myself to Olympus while also swearing on the Styx. I will never serve Kronos, father or not."
"She's right, Father," Athena and Artemis said. Well, they both said something along those lines, and I just decided to combine it into one sentence.
"We'll train her on Olympus," Hermes added, shooting me a not so subtle wink. I had a feeling he would want to talk with me later. "That way, we can keep an eye on her, and she can gain our trust. We can send her to bring our children to camp, so they'll be prepared when he decides to attack."
"I agree with Hermes," Apollo added quickly, smiling at me. I would've smiled back, but I was rubbing my eyes, blinded by how white his teeth were. Note to self: start carrying sunglasses at all times around him.
"We'll vote on it," Zeus grumbled, "but first, if my loving wife and brothers would so kindly get off of me, please and thank you."
I stifled a laugh at that, watching as Hera snatched Zeus' bolt while Hades and Poseidon helped him to his feet. Hera waved the Master Bolt at Zeus in a patronizing way, as if to say, You'll get this back when you start behaving like an adult.
"Alright, alright," Zeus sighed, thoughtfully scratching his beard. "All in favor of training the girl on Olympus and sending her out for our own missions? Hades and Hestia, please vote as well."
Out of the fourteen gods, ten gods raised their hands. The four that had abstained were Zeus (of course), Ares (probably upset about Holly), Dionysus (the feeling's mutual), and Hades (shocker…not).
"The motion is passed. Andromeda will come to live on Olympus and shall be under our supervision. She is permitted to leave if she asks for permission or if one of us sends her to do something. Are the terms acceptable?"
"Yes, Lord Zeus, they are more generous that I could ask for," I said politely, giving him a curtsey just to sweeten the pot or tick him off, I wasn't sure which.
"Then I adjourn this council," Zeus said, flashing out in a huge bolt of lightning. The gods began flashing out one by one, but a couple stayed behind, clearly wanting to talk to me. The first of those gods, to my surprise, was Hades.
He was just as terrifying as Rick Riordan had described him. His black eyes were those of a madman, but there was also deep sadness rooted in them as well. His skin was paler than freshly fallen snow, making the darkness of his clothes all the more shocking, especially when his robes shimmered with the faces of damned souls cropped up to the surface.
"I don't trust you, girl, but if the council has voted to let you live, so be it. I'll be watching you," Hades told me, his aura making me want to take an eternal nap at his feet or jump off a cliff, whichever was most convenient for him.
"Wait, Lord Hades," I said before he could disappear. He turned to face me, his infamous sneer glued onto his face. "I know about Nico and Bianca," I said in a whisper, watching as his expression changed into one of fear and panic hidden behind a mask of steely calm.
"And what do you intend to do with that information?"
"Well, now that I serve Olympus, I could free them from their holding and deliver them to you. Or I could lead them to camp if you wish. It's all the same to me, sir."
Hades was silent for a few seconds, probably thinking of what was in it for me by saving his children. Then, whatever hope had been in his eyes died immediately. "You serve Olympus," he spat bitterly, "and I'm not an Olympian."
"You're still the eldest son of Kronos," I pointed out. "And while you may not be considered an Olympian by your family, you still deserve as much respect as the rest of them. When I made my oath, you and Hestia were already included in them. If you ever need someone in the mortal world, I will do what you ask of me, no questions asked."
Hades' gaze softened from steel to rock, but he clearly believed me as he hadn't tried to kill me. "I will remember your offer, Andromeda," he said at last. "I may just take you up on it one day." Then Hades waved his hand, and he disappeared, melting into the shadows.
The other gods that had remained in the room were Poseidon, Athena, and Hermes. I decided to talk with Athena first, knowing that if she and Poseidon stayed in the same room for too long, bad things would happen.
All Athena wanted to tell me was that my training began with her next Monday at her palace promptly at eight in the morning. Before she left, she thanked me for guiding Annabeth to camp, and then she disappeared in a column of smoke.
Hermes approached me next, and as I suspected, he was asking about Luke. I told him everything he needed to know, making him very happy. He then asked, "Why did you lie to Luke about why you saved him? We both know I didn't send you to the Cyclops lair that night."
In a nervous habit of mine, I rubbed my wrist that held my bracelet. "Let's just say I know some stuff about Luke's fate and am trying to prevent the outcome. I've had some dreams with different endings, none of them very good. But sometimes, Luke survives, and I'd rather that than the alternative."
"But you can't change fate," Hermes said sternly in a very father-like tone. "The harder you fight against a prophecy, the more likely it is to come true."
"I'm aware of that, Lord Hermes. I may not be completely successful, but if I did the job I was assigned correctly, Luke doesn't have enough reasons to join my father. Thalia is still alive. He believes I was sent by you to help them. For the time being, this is enough."
"How can you be so sure?" Hermes asked, his eyes searching my own, trying to see if I was telling the truth. And I was. That detail had changed, too. I knew who would become my father's vessel instead of Luke, meaning that Luke was destined to survive the upcoming war.
"You just have to trust me on this, Lord Hermes," I said, hoping that my words were reassuring enough. "Luke won't betray us."
Hermes nodded sadly, probably thinking that I was a naïve young girl making rash promises I couldn't keep. Then his caduceus, which was in cell phone mode, began vibrating, and he shot it a scathing glare before resignedly picking it up, walking a few paces, and disappearing who-knows-where.
Poseidon was the last god that wanted to talk to me, wearing a sheepish expression as he approached me. I had a feeling he was going to ask about Percy, so before he said anything, I said, "Lord Poseidon, I need to show you something that I refused to show the others. It was for his safety."
His eyes widened. "You know?"
"I do, my lord. I give you permission to access my memories."
Poseidon pressed a finger against my forehead, and like before, my memories turned into a 3-D image projected in front of the two of us. The memory of running into Sally at the Sweet on America candy shop surfaced, and I allowed Poseidon to watch my conversation with Sally. I also gave him access to my recent dream about Sally and Percy, the one where the two had finally left that deadbeat, Smelly Gabe.
He pulled his hand away, a smile resting casually on his lips. "You really loved her, didn't you?" I asked Poseidon, watching as he gazed wistfully at Sally's fading body.
"I did," Poseidon answered, his smile fading now that the images had vanished. "She is the only mortal woman I have truly fallen in love with. While it's true that I had the most children in the ancient days, they were mainly the results of having too much nectar to drink or trying to show off to Zeus. Sally, she's a queen among women. I offered to stop the tide for her, and she called me crazy. While I can't help but regret the fate that now rests upon his shoulders, I'm glad Sally has another family member."
"Did you ever ask Lord Zeus about the circumstances surrounding the death of Sally's parents?"
Poseidon's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "How did you know about that? The only ones who know about that are me and her son."
"Like I told Lord Hermes, I get really vivid dreams. Sometimes they are of the past, sometimes I see possibilities for the future. Heck, I've witnessed the present a handful of times," I replied with a shrug.
"I see." He didn't sound convinced. "And, for your information, my brother didn't have anything to do with Sally's parents dying. Something went wrong with the engines and the computers half way through the flight, and when the plane crashed, everyone died in the explosion from the fuel catching on fire."
I winced at the thought. Although I've never been on a plane, the thought of being in a metal tube thirty thousand feet in the air was absolutely terrifying for me.
"Sorry for bringing that up, my lord. Now, is there anything else you require of me before I take my leave?"
"Yes, there is one thing I need for you to do." Poseidon reached into his pockets of his khaki shorts, the kind someone would wear to the beach, and pulled out a blue ballpoint pen. "Guard this for me, will you? I tend to lose things a lot being the god of the sea, even a magical sword, for instance."
"Anaklusmos," I whispered, holding the pen as if it was a stick of dynamite. "Riptide."
"So you've heard of the blade? Good, that's good. As you know, the sword is enchanted to return to its owner no matter the distance, and for the time being, it's yours. I want you to hold onto Anaklusmos for me until my son comes of age. Once he reaches camp, I'd like for you to give the pen to him and to let him know that it was a gift from me."
"Of course, Lord Poseidon," I said, tapping my charm on my bracelet, causing for my bag to appear. I placed Riptide into my bag, redid the brooch, and returned my bag back to its charm form. Somehow I knew that if Aphrodite caught me wearing my black bag over my chiton, she'd freak.
Poseidon looked me up and down, like he was trying to predict just how much I was really worth to Olympus. He wore his poker face, that unreadable expression you so typically got from the sea.
"Train well and become a hero, Andy. Show me that I was right to let you live."
Then the god of the sea became a fine mist, disappearing with the next gust of wind that blew into the throne room.
I breathed a sigh of relief now that I was alone in the throne room. With the exception of Hestia, that is, but I seriously doubted she wanted anything to do with me right now after she had become one with the flame to escape me.
"Great," I muttered to myself, realizing that I was still on Olympus and had no idea where the elevator doors leading down to the Empire State Building were.
After many wrong turns and many glares from very unhelpful nymphs and satyrs, I eventually found the elevator doors and pressed the button the lobby, watching as the number started from six hundred and began to rapidly count down. To my disgust, some horrible whiny song was being played from the overhead speakers.
Another note to self: ask Apollo to do something about the elevator music.
Once I got back to the mortal world, I got a lot of weird looks from the tourists. They were probably wondering why a fourteen-year-old came out of an elevator by herself wearing a white chiton to the Empire State Building. To which I would reply, it's the average day in the life of a demigod.
Or am I a demititan?
Nah, demigod sounds better.
So what if my father was the King of the Titans? Calling myself a demigod was like another big middle finger I could give him, so hell yeah, I'm a demigod.
As I walked out onto the street, I debated whether I wanted to go directly back to camp or do some stuff I had to take care of first. Camp could wait, I decided, ducking into a corner thrift shop, buying myself a new shirt and some jeans while shoving the chiton into my bag. While I was in the dressing room, I pulled out all the flowers Kronos had embellished in my hair. He had placed freaking poppies and flowers that would bear pomegranates if they'd been allowed to live. Because what better way to piss off a room of temperamental immortals than put the flowers that the majority of them despised into the hair of his daughter.
Now that I could pass off for a normal New Yorker, I had my bag out and was holding onto it, my bracelet charms tapping my skin with every step I took. Salina had somehow made the two daggers I grabbed during the Capture the Flag game a part of my ever-growing arsenal, as I recognized two new charms had been added to my bracelet.
I walked into an alleyway, where I shouldn't get too much attention, and opened myself up to all my senses. It was like meditating, in a sense, but instead it let me target on individuals rather than my own thoughts.
Once I found who I was looking for, I hopped into a taxi and gave the driver the directions. A few minutes later, we stopped near Grand Central Station, which was next to the Sweet on America shop. I handed the driver a fifty dollar bill and told him to keep the change, making him a very happy man.
From out here, I could see Sally talking animatedly with Percy, who had pulled up a stool next to the countertop and was flipping through a huge book. If I had to guess, that book was had something to do with marine life or superheroes.
I walked into the candy shop, the bell tingling softly as the door opened. Sally looked up from her son and gave me a smile, letting me know that she recognized me. Percy was completely oblivious to my presence, completely enamored by what he was looking at. By the way, I was right; in his hands was a book titled The Encyclopedia of Fish. Huh, interesting title.
"Hello, Sally," I said sweetly, giving her a bright smile.
"Hello…goodness me, I don't remember your name," Sally said, blushing in embarrassment.
"Oops, that's my fault. My name is Andy."
"Isn't that a boy's name?" Percy blurted out, causing for Sally to blush even more.
"That wasn't very nice, Percy. Please apologize to Andy."
"Don't worry about it," I told her, waving off her concern. "My real name is Andromeda, but it's long and people like to tease me, so I call myself Andy for short."
Percy's eyes lit up. "That happens to me too! My name's Perseus, but I go by Percy for short."
"That's a very cool name," I told him, smiling at Sally once I saw the charm I had given her hanging from a silver chain around Percy's neck. She mouthed a silent thank you, which I brushed off, saying there was no way I would let someone stay in an abusive relationship if I could help. "What are you reading?"
"A book about fish! That's a…a," Percy stared at the words under the picture, squinting at them as if it would help him read it better.
"That's a lionfish," I supplied, recognizing the picture. I tried to read the captions, and to my surprise, the words stayed still. Thank the gods, I thought. I don't have dyslexia.
"Yeah! They're poisonous though, so that's bad."
I spent another hour in the shop, talking with a very excited Percy about his fish book, and he told me about the new apartments that his mom was looking at for the two of them. Sally had to go help some kids and their parents that came in to buy candy, but I kept Percy entertained, which I knew would help relieve some of Sally's stress.
Finally, it was closing time and Sally sighed, rubbing her eyes in exhaustion. Percy had fallen asleep against the counter a while ago, but once I noticed he was out, I pulled out my sleeping bag that the Hermes cabin had provided me and let Percy rest on it instead of having him slumped over a glass counter.
"Do you need help cleaning up?" I asked Sally, returning the stool I was sitting on to its proper place.
"Oh, you don't have to do that," Sally protested as she got some paper towels and window cleaner. "You've helped me enough by keeping Percy distracted. I love him, but sometimes having a hyperactive seven-year-old is extremely tiring."
"You're telling me," I laughed, and I told her about some of the kids at camp who were six and seven. Those children could run their mouths off for hours and run at least twenty miles without stopping, easy.
As we finished cleaning up the rest of the shop, someone walked into the candy store. "Sorry, we're closed," Sally said, her back turned to the door.
I, on the other hand, was facing the door and paled at what I was seeing. Standing there was Smelly Gabe holding a gun in his hand.
And the gun was pointed directly at Percy.