Act II Chapter VI: "And they fear what the new age can and will do."
Hylla didn't bother to clean the blood off of her arm. Nor did she clean her clothes. Annabeth tried not to gag as they were led into the large office. Queen Hylla sat behind a desk that was covered in files, notes, and a few maps. Along with some fresh flakes of blood from her arm.
Annabeth swallowed painfully as the door was closed behind them. They were left alone with the queen. Annabeth looked around the room to distract herself from the tension that was almost suffocating. The walls were covered in different kinds of maps from all over the world, both modern and old.
A bookshelf was to Hylla's right, and it had a random assortment of books. All the way from wars to different languages. To Hylla's left was a counter that had a few alcohol bottles on it. It was what was behind the queen that caught Annabeth's attention.
Which was a fountain of blood.
Because why not.
"Is this a test from Mars?" Hylla asked as she leaned forward. She rested her elbows on the desk and tapped her fingers together. The blood on her forearm had mostly dried, but some of it still slid down from her appendage. "Or a punishment?"
"Hylla," Reyna began. Hylla remained silent as she stared at her fingertips. Her face was starting to pale, like she had seen a ghost. "Hylla!"
"Hey, we didn't bring your sister here for no reason," Clarisse spoke up as she leaned forward.
"My sister died the day that she decided to latch herself to Lupa's teet," Hylla spat as she glared at Clarisse. "What you have brought here is nothing more than a shade."
Annabeth glanced to her side and saw the careful look on Reyna's face. Her eyes gave her away, though; the words hurt her. Hylla seemed to notice it too.
"What do you two want?" Hylla asked as she moved her gaze from Clarisse to Annabeth. "My receptionist said you were from... Camp Olympus?"
Annabeth could see the stewing anger in Clarisse's eyes, and she reached a hand out to grab her arm. Annabeth spoke with a bow of her head, "Queen Hylla, it is an honor to meet you. We are demigods, who under the guidance of our teacher Chiron, are trying to bring back a safe place for demigods to go.
"Instead of being divided like Camp Half-Blood and Camp Jupiter-" Hylla's scowl deepened, and Annabeth tried to redirect, "-we want to be unified like your Amazons are: a well oiled machine. We have a safe place to stay, and we even have a god to protect our walls. All we need is a way to communicate with demigods who had gone through Chiron's training before."
"We know you have Iris," Clarisse interrupted. Annabeth shot her a look, but Clarisse just shrugged.
"I have Iris?" Hylla repeated. "And who is that?"
"Ask your sister," Clarisse stated. Annabeth hung her head and barely resisted the urge to facepalm.
"What sister?" Hylla asked as she raised her hands. Reyna looked down at the desk.
"Queen Hylla, we believe that the goddess Iris is here with Amazons," Annabeth clarified. "And that she may not entirely want to be here."
"You think that we're holding a goddess hostage?" Hylla questioned incredulously. An amused look came to her face as she leaned back. "And what makes you think that?"
"Cut the bullshit," Clarisse interrupted as she stood up. "Otherwise, I'll challenge you to your queenship right here and now."
Gods. This was just getting worse and worse.
"Unfortunately, you must be a member of the Amazons to challenge me," Hylla informed coldly. The amused look was lost. "Otherwise, it is just an idle threat."
"It's not idle," Clarisse promised as she stepped forward. "We're not stupid, and we're not accusing you of anything. We have proof. The Oracle showed us."
That seemed to throw Hylla off slightly. Annabeth chimed in, "We found the Oracle that used to reside at Camp Half-Blood. She led us to the Amazons and said that we would find Iris here. We don't want to fight, Hylla. We just want to provide a safe place for all demigods."
"There were two safe places for demigods," Hylla began as she looked them over. Then, her gaze moved to the middle of their group. "And, what happened to those safe places?"
Reyna stared at her sister and remained silent. A cocky smile touched Hylla's lips, "The Romans died with their ambitions and burned. Just as the Greeks did. Now, you tell me that you want to gather up whatever remaining Roman and Greeks there are and get them to work together? I think you're just going to have a repeat of all those decades ago."
"And how do you know about what happened to the camps?" Clarisse questioned.
"Where do you think the survivors went?" Hylla asked. "There are always survivors. Some died to monsters. A few made it here and told the Amazons what happened. It became a legend and a warning.
"Why do you think they fear me so much?" Hylla continued as she leaned forward. "They heard about what the old age of Romans did. About how they purged the Greeks after purifying their own. And they fear what the new age can and will do."
"The past is in the past," Annabeth stated. "The Greeks and Romans that are left in the world will unite. We have to. To save the gods."
"That's a shrine to my father," Clarisse commented as she looked past Hylla. The queen glanced back at the fountain of blood. Annabeth could barely see the symbol in the middle of the fountain. "And, you asked if Ares was testing you or punishing you."
"Mars," Hylla corrected.
"War is the same in Greece and Rome," Clarisse rebutted. Hylla bowed her head slightly like she was conceding the point. "I can see the war in your eyes. I watched how you dispatched that unworthy challenger. All to impress the god of war, right?
"And what impresses a war god more than a show of strength?" Clarisse continued. "It's about your actions, not your words. Right? What can we do to show you our strength as an extension of your own? In exchange for Iris."
"You seem convinced we had the goddess," Hylla stated.
"The Oracle told us," Annabeth lied. Though, it wasn't a complete bluff. The Oracle didn't tell them per say; she just showed them images.
"Iris provides us with the ability to instantly communicate with any Amazons around the world," Hylla revealed as she dropped all pretenses and stood up. She paced back and forth behind her desk. "What could you possibly offer the Amazons in exchange for that?"
Annabeth opened her mouth, but Clarisse grabbed her arm. Clarisse spoke, "It's not what we can do for the Amazons. It's what we can do for you, Queen Hylla."
It was silent in the office as Hylla continued to pace. She finally stopped and turned her back to them, facing the fountain. Hylla spoke, "There is one thing, but it will require blood. And a lot of it."
Hylla looked at her arm that was covered in blood. Then, she stuck it in the fountain. As she retracted her arm, Annabeth's eyes widened. Instead of Hylla's arm being covered in blood from the fountain, it looked like the fountain had sucked the blood up.
"There is a group of discontented Amazons. Rebels, if we really have to give them a title," Hylla explained as she stared at the fountain. "Before they left, they stole my belt. I think it's tacky, but I want it back. I won't take a slight like that."
Hylla turned back toward them, "I want them to understand what happens when you cross me. And, I want the rest of my loyal Amazons to have a lesson that won't be forgotten. Bring me the belt. It's gold and made of interlocking chains. I have their location, so I want you to go there and find the rebels and my belt. There is one more thing."
Hylla walked back toward the desk and leaned on it. She met Reyna's eyes. Reyna swallowed painfully as she tried to look at Hylla. Instead, she seemed to shrink in on herself. A cold smile crossed the queen's face.
"Kill. Them. All."