There was a dragon in the middle of camp.
Lea was a little confused about that. She turned to look at the Thalia's Tree to make sure that she wasn't hallucinating and that Peleus was still there. He was. So, why was there a dragon in the middle of camp?
The camp alarm went up. A conch horn blew. All the satyrs started screaming, "Don't kill me!" Half the camp ran outside in a mixture of pajamas and armor. Lea narrowed her eyes, waving a glowing hand over her body and allowing the armor that she got made back in that trip to the marvel verse.
The dragon set down right in the middle of the green, and the new boy yelled, "It's cool! Don't shoot!"
Where the fuck did he get a dragon? Was that the one in the woods? Silena and Beckendorf's metal love child?
Hesitantly, the archers lowered their bows. The warriors backed away, keeping their spears and swords ready. They made a loose wide ring around the metal monster. Other demigods hid behind their cabin doors or peeped out the windows. Nobody seemed anxious to get close.
The dragon was huge. It glistened in the morning sun like a living penny sculpture —different shades of copper and bronze—a sixty-foot-long serpent with steel talons and drill-bit teeth and glowing ruby eyes. It had bat-shaped wings twice its length that unfurled like metallic sails, making a sound like coins cascading out of a slot machine every time they flapped.
The dragon reared its head and shot a column of fire into the sky. Campers scrambled away and hefted their weapons, but the boy slid calmly off the dragon's back. He held up his hands like he was surrendering, except he still had that crazy grin on his face.
"People of Earth, I come in peace!" he shouted. He looked like he'd been rolling around in the campfire. His army coat and his face were smeared with soot. His hands were grease-stained, and he wore a new tool belt around his waist. His eyes were bloodshot. His curly hair was so oily it stuck up in porcupine quills, and he smelled strangely of Tabasco sauce. But he looked absolutely delighted. "Festus is just saying hello!"
Drew looked as if she might faint.
"That thing is dangerous!" Carmen shouted, brandishing her spear. "Kill it now!"
"Stand down!" someone ordered.
It was Jason. What was even more shocking was the way that Carmen immediately followed through with the order. She rarely followed Clarisse's orders. He pushed through the crowd, flanked by Annabeth and Nyssa.
Jason gazed up at the dragon and shook his head in amazement. "Leo, what have you done?"
"Found a ride!" Leo beamed. "You said I could go on the quest if I got you a ride. Well, I got you a class-A metallic flying bad boy! Festus can take us anywhere!"
"It—has wings," Nyssa stammered. Her jaw looked like it might drop off her face.
"Yeah!" Leo said. "I found them and reattached them."
"But it never had wings. Where did you find them?"
Leo hesitated. "In ... the woods," he said and Lea furrowed her brow. That... it wasn't a lie, but she could tell it wasn't the entire truth. "Repaired his circuits, too, mostly, so no more problems with him going haywire."
"Mostly?" Nyssa asked.
The dragon's head twitched. It tilted to one side and a stream of black liquid—maybe oil, hopefully just oil—poured out of its ear, all over Leo. Drew gagged and snapped her fingers, three of her siblings materializing at her sides. Her triplet brothers, or as Lea called them, the RowdyRuff Boys, all surrounded Leo. He yelped as her brothers pushed and pulled and yanked him around. The campers ducked as oil-stained clothes went flying through the air. Lea let her armor fade away as a green shield circled around her. She yawned as one of Drew's sisters rushed forward from the lake with a bucket of water, stepping back as Mirajane passed over some of Drew's shampoo and conditioner.
When her brothers finally stepped away, Leo looked a thousand times better.
"Just a few kinks to work out," Leo said after looking himself over. Lea raised her brows. Much better than looking as if he was on the runway for grease stains.
"But how did you survive... ?" Nyssa was still staring at the creature in awe. "I mean, the fire breath ..."
"I'm quick," Leo said. "And lucky. Now, am I on this quest, or what?"
Jason scratched his head. "You named him Festus? You know that in Latin, 'festus' means 'happy'? You want us to ride off to save the world on Happy the Dragon?"
The dragon twitched and shuddered and flapped his wings.
"That's a yes, bro!" Leo said. "Now, um, I'd really suggest we get going, guys. I already picked up some supplies in the—um, in the woods. And all these people with weapons are making Festus nervous."
Jason frowned. "But we haven't planned anything yet. We can't just—"
"Go," Annabeth said. Her expression was sad and wistful, like this reminded her of better times. Lea felt her own heart ache because gods if this wasn't something her brother would do (and well, Lea too but this wasn't about Lea). "Jason, you've only got three days until the solstice now, and you should never keep a nervous dragon waiting. This is certainly a good omen. Go!"
Jason nodded. Then he smiled at Drew. "You ready, partner?"
Drew looked at the bronze dragon wings shining against the sky, and those talons that could've shredded her to pieces. Lea walked forward quickly, waving a protection charm over her. "Let's do this," Drew said, giving them a little wave before they were in the air and gone away.
"I'm surprised she didn't take Ginevre," Eliza murmured as she stepped to Lea's side. Both of their gaze lingered onto the dragon getting smaller in the distance.
Lea shook her head. "Ginevre took off a little after we got back yesterday to search for Percy with Blackjack and the others. She'd come if we called for her."
Eliza hummed. "And what is this I hear about you scaring my newest baby sister?"
"Scaring?" She tilted her head to the side and looked at her through hooded eyes. "Oh, she hasn't seen anything scary yet."
"Leave her alone, Lee," Eliza warned, and there was something dangerous in her eyes and words. "You know not to get in the middle of our cabin's... arrangement." Arrangement was a very nice way of putting it.
"I just gave her a warning," Lea countered. "An eye opener so to be speak. She should be glad that I did instead of witnessing it herself and revealing it to the rest of camp." She then furrowed her brows. "And if you have such a problem with it, where were you when I did it?"
"I didn't say that," Eliza huffed. "But Drew's the head for a reason. The more you step in then the more some can try to undermine her authority."
"You all are fucking terrifying. But no, seriously, where were you?"
"Had a sleepover with Rachel and Annabeth in the pit. We sent you an IM, but Drew said that you were already asleep."
Lea hummed.
And then Eliza turned the conversation back to the girl whose name Lea had already forgotten. "She's new, Lee. Come on, she doesn't know." Doesn't know that Lea lost too many people for her not to be protective of those she had. Trent, Alabaster, and Ethan right after each other with Silena and Beckendorf dead on top of that. Her brother was missing. Her best friend gone on some dangerous quest. Medea and Magnus on the other side of the country. Her own soulmate was grounded? by his father.
She was protective of those that were still standing with her.
"Cut her a bit of slack." Annabeth said, coming up to their side.
Lea scoffed. "If I gave everyone a bit of slack, I'll get kidnapped again." But she nudged the girl so that she didn't think that Lea blamed her for that. No, that was all on Trent.
"Where are we going this time," Eliza asked as they moved away to plan their next search. Annabeth pulled out her laptop. "Have you heard from Nico or Thalia?"
Annabeth shook her head. "Nico says he was following a lead over on the west coast and Thalia was tracking him one down in the midwest. I was thinking we could keep covering the east coast all the way down to Florida."
Lea nodded, "I'm going to go search out nexus points to connect my mageia too." She had planned to go back to Arizona except she'd go to Sedona. There was powerful energy there, old mageia, things that stimulated and fed her own. It was very spiritual, connecting to the core of the planet in a unique way. If Mama Earth wanted to have get her a little avatar and go on a nice little scroll across her body and see what the funny little mortals did to it, then that would be the perfect place to do so.
"Thinking it'd boost it?"
"Its like Drew said. All of this is connected. Whatever was strong enough to kidnap the Queen of Heaven. The First and Last born daughter of Kronos and Rheia, raised by Oceanus and Tethys." She shook her head and shivered. "I'm going to need a major boost in power to get even a glimpse of it."
And quite honestly, that may not even be enough. She'd need a coven and well... she doesn't really have one of those. Unless Medea, Magnus, and Alabastard counted.
(Did Trent count? Did he count? He did this. He started this. He broke her.)
Lea shook her head, feeling so young and so old all at once. "I'll use it to try to find Ethan also. Whatever's going on. I don't want Drew distracted because of him." And she didn't want to be either. She didn't... She didn't think many people understood when they gaze at Drew with their pity, saw the way his name curved around her waist in kanji, and their siblings whispered about it... they didn't understand the way she lashed out and crafted her love into weapons that resembled her half-brothers, Deimos and Phobos, or why she felt so broken—they didn't understand how Lea understood her so well, how her barbed words never seem to sink and tear at her heart because... Because Lea could still feel that metaphorical blade in her back still against her spine, twisting deeper and deeper until she could feel the sharp press of it against her lungs and cutting alongside her heart with every step that she took. Because Drew didn't just lose her soulmate; Lea lost her best friend. And how could Drew's words hurt when not just one, not just two, but three... all three of them that paraded themselves around as a brother figure to her, someone that she could trust; her friends, people that she let across the boundaries that steeled her heart from hurt and they hurt her anyway.
"Okay," Annabeth nodded. "Stay in touch. We can't... we can't lose you too." Lea gave her a small smile, though she knew the pain in her eyes was reflected on their faces also.
"Take Salome with you," she ordered. Lea raised a hand when both of them began protesting. "If I get into some trouble, I'll teleport right back here. If you get into some trouble, she can bring you right back here." The tiger still had the teleportation spelled polish that she and Hermes kept on her.
"Fine," Eliza grumbled and Lea smiled charmingly before summoning her supplies to her. Lævateinn was warm against her ear. Her enchanted knives were hidden around her body. Her core was like ninety-two percent heal and her mageia stores were full. She took a page out of Alabaster's book and had Drew's sister, Ángela, sew runes of power into most of her clothing which Lea activated herself. It went a bit better because she also had some enchanted thread from Kírkē for more of her clothes. Her grimoire was tucked into her bag alongside some snacks for her to eat and the necklace filled with Hermes' ichor was warm around her neck.
Lea took one deep breath, envisioning the Sedona Vortexes before letting her mageia wash over her and carry her away.
Hermês sat along the edge of the mountain, listening to Apóllōn as he sang under his breath while sketching a portrait of Huákinthos who was ahead of them talking with Dáphnē. Not too far away from them, Dionysos was on a scroll with his wife. It was a bit of a break if he was being honest. He, Árēs, and Alatheia had managed to check in with everyone on the mountain to assure themselves that they were not traitors, but there were still those on the ground levels. They would be going out to check on them soon enough but Father had called for a status report.
His gaze was on the mortal plane, listening to Lea curse as her spell on the cartier ring around her finger failed to track Ethan.
It reminded him of Annabeth and Luke in an abstract way.
Speaking of his son, he turned his gaze over to Connecticut watching as May cleaned her house. Since the curse had been lifted and the oracle moved on, she no longer sank into theia mania. It didn't make the grief any easier to bear, especially not once she came to the completely correct conclusion that it was partially because of her that Luke's fate ended up being what it was.
(Truthfully, Hermês could pin the blame completely on her. He told her! The oracle was unable to move on at the time. It wasn't for her. He told her that it was not worth the risk and she had so anyway. Humans loved to blame the gods, or well, the devil nowadays, for their misfortune. But .her. And yet he made it no better. He simply hasten everything to go to ruins so quickly. His poor Luke. His poor May.)
"Look," Apóllōn murmured as he appeared at his side. One of the screens showed a new episode from Hḗphaistos Television Network: Love & Monster Hunts . The ratings shot through the roof since they were stuck on the mountain though admittedly, he had been more interested in the Real Housewives of Poseiria . Once the theme song ended (which was sang by the Moûsai, Eliza, and Apollō's daughter, Krisa), the screen showed the three halfbloods on their quest to rescue the Queen of Heavens.
A quick glance at the background showed them to be in Québec City, the current home of Boréas, and also one of the gateways to the land of the Hyperboreans, men living beyond the home of Boréas.
The two stood to make their way back to the throne room where the screen would be better and the golden tables and tripods within the room were automatons animated by Hḗphaistos, and trundled in and out of the hall as required with food and drinks served by Hebe and Ganymēdēs. No one blinked as Huákinthos immediately ditched Dáphnē to slink to Apóllōn's side, fitting into his side so easily. The nymph in question rolled her eyes, laughing as she moved to join the various other godly huntresses around.
Lússā and the Neikea were sitting around one of the smaller screens. Lússā was saying: "I hope this season is good. I mean Say Yes to the Quest and New Roma: The Wolf Within were better than the seasons before." Hermês gritted his teeth, considering that both of those seasons ended with the death of his son and countless others, but still. It was a bit inconsiderate.
As they settled into their respective thrones, they took note of Iovis, Aphrodítē, and Hḗphaistos gazing so intently at the screens that if anyone other than the god of crafts had created them then they would catch on fire. The Boreádai flew up towards the trio on the dragon, dressed in their horrible clothing and hideous appearances. A shame truthfully. They had looked much more pleasant in the olden days with their long, delicate, graceful and curly hair.
The various deities that held prominence in the domain of beauty were a bit sick at the sight which only just reminded Hermês of how Aphrodítē had placed them the twins out of view during the quick vow renewal that Ζεύς and Hḗrē had the year before—before they had to go off and fight Typháōn.
"They look like an off-brand version of my half-brothers if they didn't know a skin regime." Drew was saying. All of her divine-born half-siblings were scowling in offense as they looked between themselves to see just whom she was speaking of. And Hermês was not surprised that Hermaphróditos was smirking because she was clearly not talking about them.
Kalaïs looked at them, grunting just a bit. "No clearance."
"'Scuse me?" Leo said.
"You have no flight plan on file," explained Zetes. "This is restricted airspace."
"Destroy them?" Kalaïs smiled.
The dragon began to hiss steam, ready to defend them. Jason summoned his golden sword, while Drew reached for her bow and arrows but Leo cried, "Hold on! Let's have some manners here, boys. Can I at least find out who has the honor of destroying me?" Hḗphaistos grumbled.
"I am Kal!" Kalaïs grunted.
"That's short for Kalaïs," Zetes said. "Sadly, my brother cannot say words with more than two syllables—"
"Pizza! Hockey! Destroy!" his twin offered.
"—which includes his own name," Zetes finished.
"I am Kal," Kalaïs repeated. "And this is Zetes! My brother!"
"Wow," Leo said. "That was almost three sentences, man! Way to go."
"Oh, your son is so sweet and polite," Aphrodítē complimented.
"Thank you," Hḗphaistos said absently.
Kalaïs grunted, obviously pleased with himself.
"Stupid buffoon," his brother grumbled. "They make fun of you. But no matter. I am Zetes, which is short for Zetes. And the lady there—" He winked at Drew, but the wink was more like a facial seizure. "She can call me anything she likes. Perhaps she would like to have dinner with a famous demigod before we must destroy you?"
There was a tense silence as Aphrodítē stared in horror. "What did he just say?" she hissed. No one with sense answered her.
"No, thank you," Drew said politely though there was a green tinge to her pallor. "That's ... a truly horrifying offer."
"It is no problem." Zetes wiggled his eyebrows. Aphrodítē's eye started twitching as if she was about to go down and show him exactly why beauty was pain. "We are a very romantic people, we Boreádai."
"Boreadai?" Jason cut in. "Do you mean, like, the sons of Boreas?"
"Ah, so you've heard of us!" Zetes looked pleased. "We are our father's gatekeepers. So, you understand, we cannot have unauthorized people flying in his airspace on creaky dragons, scaring the silly mortal peoples." He brushed his hair out of his acne-covered face. "Which is sadly why, unless this is an emergency landing. We will have to destroy you painfully."
The parents of this specific trio grumbled and growled and turned very intimidating eyes onto those that were muttering about needing some excitement.
"Destroy!" Kalaïs agreed.
"Wait!" Drew said as her hand drifted closer to where she kept her back up weapons. "This is an emergency landing."
"Awww!" Kalaïs stated disappointedly. He would fit right in with those jocks that Aphrodítē called children.
Zetes studied Drew. "How does the pretty girl decide this is an emergency, then?"
"We have to see Lord Boreas. It's like totally urgent! Please." She fluttered her eyelashes, summoning tears to dot at the corner of her eyes.
"Oh, she's good," Kleio murmured.
Zetes picked at his silk shirt, probably making sure it was still open wide enough. "Well ... I hate to disappoint a lovely lady, but you see, my sister, she would have an avalanche if we allowed you—"
"And our dragon is malfunctioning!" Drew added, words dripping in charm. "It could crash like any minute!"
On cue, the dragon shuddered and turned his head, spilling gunk out of his ear, splattering a black Mercedes in the parking lot below. Hḗphaistos grunted. "Need to tighten the filter gasket."
"No destroy?" Kalaïs whimpered.
Zetes pondered the problem which wasn't really a problem if he knew what was good for him. Then he gave Drew another spasmodic wink. "Well, you are pretty. I mean, you're right. A malfunctioning dragon—this could be an emergency."
"Destroy them later?" Kalaïs offered, which was probably as close to friendly as he ever got.
"It will take some explaining," Zetes decided. "Father has not been kind to visitors lately. But ναί. Come, faulty dragon people. Follow us."
The Boreádai sheathed their swords and pulled marshaling wands and bats from their belts. Kalaïs and Zetes turned and swooped toward the hotel's tower as the trio followed them. A loud cry drew their attention to the Latin camp where it seemed that Medea and Magnus were just informed about Percy and Ethan's disappearance. The girl had sunk to her knees, crying and sending her magicka into the lands as if she could pull them from the dirt like Prumathe crafting humans from clay. Magnus and one of her other blessings attempted to calm her, but she would not listen. Thus, it was no surprise when the son of Vēiovis and the last of her blessings came by to sedate her as she became more frantic.
When they turned back to the main screen, Jason and Drew were being led by Khiónē to her Father. Khiónē was as a fresh coat of snow with bountiful curls that spilled down her back like the night sky. There were small flakes of snow meshed into her hair to resemble glitter and hair clips. Her eyes were as cold as coal.
Hermês really could not see whatever Uncle Poseidón had seen in her. Her sister, Kleopátra, however was much more his speed though she paled in comparison to his Leaneíras. She was out of the palace and traipsing the Laurentian Mountains with her mother as both of them were goddesses of the mountains.
"Warmth is not a good idea here," the goddess advised as the two questers held hands for warmth, "especially when I am your best chance of staying alive. Please, this way."
It was not much longer before they made their way to the throne room.
Khiónē turned. "This is the throne room," she said. "Be on your best behavior, Jason Grace. My father can be ... chilly. I will translate for you and try to encourage him to hear you out. I do hope he spares you. We could have such fun."
Veritas snarled. "I'll rip out her entrails if she so dared!"
"Um, okay," Jason managed. "But really, we're just here for a little talk. We'll be leaving right afterward."
Khiónē smiled. "I love heroes. So blissfully ignorant."
Drew rested her hand on her hip. "Well, how about you enlighten us? You say you're going to translate for us, and we don't even know who you are. You're Khione, right? The goddess of snow. I have some snow boots back at Camp from your last Winter Collection."
The goddess blinked in surprise. "I admit that I am a little surprised that you recognize me. Even in the ancient times the Greeks did not know me well. Their island homes were too warm, too far from my domain. But ναί, I am Khiónē, daughter of Boréas, goddess of snow." She stirred the air with her finger, and a miniature blizzard swirled around her—big, fluffy flakes as soft as cotton.
"Now, come," Khiónē said. The oaken doors blew open, and cold blue light spilled out of the room. "Hopefully you will survive your little talk."
"They have no other choice to if Boréas knows what is good for him." Iovis muttered.
Along the walls, purple tapestries showed scenes of snowy forests, barren mountains, and glaciers. High above, ribbons of colored light—the aurora borealis—pulsed along the ceiling. A layer of snow covered the floor, so they had to step carefully. All around the room stood life-size ice sculpture warriors—some in Greek armor, some medieval, some in modern camouflage—all frozen in various attack positions, swords raised, guns locked and loaded.
When Jason tried to step between two Greek spearmen, and they moved with surprising speed, their joints cracking and spraying ice crystals as they crossed their javelins to block Jason's path.
From the far end of the hall, Boréas called out in French: "Stand down. Let them pass."
"It's fine," Khiónē said. "My father has ordered them not to kill you just yet."
"Does she not know my daughter speaks French?" Aphrodítē mused. "It is the language of love."
"Super," Jason said.
Zetes prodded him in the back with his sword. "Keep moving, Jason Junior."
"Please don't call me that."
"My father is not a patient man," Zetes warned, "and the beautiful Drew, sadly, is losing her magic hairdo very fast. Later, perhaps, I can lend her something from my wide assortment of hair products."
"Excuse me," Drew snapped, turning to him with a glare. Hermês resisted the urge to shudder. She looked like a horrible yet terrifyingly beautiful amalgamation of Apóllōn and Aphrodítē. Her curls were falling, but to think it was magic? "There is no magic hairdo. And I have no need for your hair care products when I am the owner and operator, Khryseê! Hmp. And even if I did want hair products, I would ask for Khiónē's instead of the three bottles of gel that you're using. Also, mullets were so 1980's. Loser."
She turned to follow Jason and Khiónē as the mist parted to reveal Boréas on an ice throne. He was sturdily built, dressed in a stylish white suit that seemed woven from snow, with dark purple wings that spread out to either side. He looked like a long-hair Martin Short playing Jack Frost.
"Welcome," the king said. "I am Boréas the King. And you?"
Drew passed Jason her winter gear as she stepped forward to curtsy before the king.
"Your Majesty," she said, "I am Drew Tanaka. And this is Jason, son of Zeus."
Boréas smiled with pleasant surprise. "You speak French? Very well!"
"Drew, you speak French?" Jason asked.
"Qui," she nodded. "French is one of the top five romantic languages of the world."
Boréas laughed and clapped his hands, obviously delighted. "You won't need to translate, daughter," he said, as he swept his hand toward his daughter as if shooing her away.
Khiónē looked miffed. Drew gave her an apologetic smile, bowing before her, still speaking french: "My apologies, Lady Khione." The goddess gave her a considering look before bowing stiffly to her Father and taking a step back.
Boréas sized up Jason who quickly got with the program to bow. "Your Majesty, I'm Jason Grace. Thank you for, um, not killing us. May I ask ... why does a Greek god speak French?"
Drew and the King went back and forth which was terribly boring so Hermês turned his attention back to Leaneíras who had transported to another spiritual vortex when it was clear that Sedona could not supply her the answers that she needed. He wished that he could do more to help her, but Father had already scolded him about sneaking into the land of dreams to speak with her.
It was not fair at all. How come Here could meddle with the lives of the demigods and he could not attend to his blessing? Especially after they had finally found their footing.
He focused back on her to see that she had transported over to one of the Beaguard's family stores. The mortal man had been distraught when he learned of his daughter's death, but in a bid of sympathy, they told her that she had passed away in her sleep after losing her blessing and not because of her traitorous actions. On the occasion, Leaneíras and the others could be found helping him around whenever they managed to spare the time.
"I have orders to kill all demigods," Boréas mused, smiling amiably.
Hermês' attention snapped back to the screens before turning to look at his Father.
"Who gave that order," wise Ζεύς demanded as he looked around the room. "I know that I did not so who would order the extermination of all the demidivine?" As if some of them were not the potential khaos-mates to a deity.
No one answered for none of them were stupid enough to make an order like that.
"Kill us?" Jason said. "Why?"
Drew huffed. "I'm not even wearing murdered-by-a-god outfit. Also, I cannot die until I participate in the Olympics."
"She's not good enough for that," her half-brother, Érōs, commented and Apóllōn turned to him in complete offense, eyes burning with hatred.
"Brother," Hermês cautioned as Aphrodítē smacked her son aside his head. Thankfully, Huákinthos sat upon Apóllōn's lap and tucked himself into his side therefore derailing any curses and insults the god of archery and hunting wanted to spew.
"Because," the god said, in heavily accented English while ignoring Drew's words, "my lord Aiolos has commanded it."
Thunder shook Olympos.
"Apóllōn, do inform your sister to spare a visit Aiolos and inform him of my... displeasure for the orders that he has decreed."
"Of course, Father."
That only made Hermês himself more worried for Lea who was traipsing the country all on her lonesome though it did explain a few things over the last few months.
Boreas rose. He stepped down from his throne and furled his wings against his back. As he approached, his children bowed. Jason and Drew followed their example.
"I shall deign to speak your language," Boréas said, "as Drew Tanaka has honored me in mine. Toujours, I have had a fondness for the children of Aphrodítē. As for you, Jason Grace, my master Aiolos would not expect me to kill a son of Lord Ζεύς... without first hearing you out."
"I am glad that I am still afforded that much respect," Father muttered.
"Aeolus is the master of the winds, right?" Jason asked. "Why would he want us dead?"
"You are demigods," Boréas said, as if this explained everything. Granted, it did. "Aiolos' job is to contain the winds, and demigods have always caused him many headaches. They ask him for favors. They unleash winds and cause chaos. But the final insult was the battle with Typháōn last summer..."
Boréas waved his hand, and a sheet of ice like a flat-screen TV appeared in the air. Images of a battle flickered across the surface—Typháōn, wading across a river toward the Manhattan skyline. All of them swarmed around him, pounding the monster with lightning and fire. Finally, Poseidón appearing to provide assistance as he sent the giant off to hell.
"The storm giant, Typháōn," Boréas explained. "The first time the gods defeated him, eons ago, he did not die quietly." Boréas murmured. "His death released a host of storm spirits—wild winds that answered to no one. It was Aiolos' job to track them all down and imprison them in his fortress. The other gods—they did not help. They did not even apologize for the inconvenience. It took Aiolos centuries to track down all the storm spirits, and naturally this irritated him. Then, last summer, Typháōn was defeated again—"
Father turned to look at Athḗnē. "Did I not order the four cardinal wind gods and their children to assist Aiolos and gift him permission to issue quests to utilize the demigods to help capture them? I recall doing so in both instances, but my memory may not be so well." He turned his attention to Hermês and Mnemosyne. "You both hold dominion over memory. Do you recall me giving these orders?"
"Ναί, mi'lord," all three of them said.
Ζεύς hummed but said nothing though his eyes were stormy.
Boréas was gesturing around the room to the various ice statues as they had lost a few moments of the conversation, but thankfully, Hḗphaistos recorded these so they could go back and watch whenever. The only downside was that it would take half a year's time or longer to get the enemies' side of the footage as the Second Titanomakhía had proven.
Drew made a strangled noise. "You mean—they're all demigods? Frozen demigods? They're alive?"
"An interesting question," Boréas conceded, as if it had never occurred to him before. "They do not move unless they are obeying my orders. The rest of the time, they are merely frozen. Unless they were to melt, I suppose, which would be very messy."
Khiónē stepped behind Jason and put her cold fingers on his neck. "My father gives me such lovely presents," she murmured in his ear.
Veritas snarled, standing to her feet in full body armor. "She's dead."
"She's immortal," Kairos noted.
"That'll just means the lesson should stick."
"Join our court," Khiónē said. "Perhaps I'll let your friends go."
"What?" Zetes broke in. "If Khiónē gets this one, then I deserve the girl. Khiónē always gets more presents!"
"I am the gift that keeps on giving," Drew agreed. "But I am not wearing my person-of-interest-kidnapped clothes."
"Why do you have such weird named clothes," Jason hissed. Apóllōn sighed in agreement, and Hermês remembered that the girl had an entire wardrobe of Apóllōn-ordered-me or Apóllōn-trained-me and various other clothing that utilized his brother's name in the closet that she jokingly named Huákinthos.
Zetes turned to Drew, smiling at her. "I am fated to have a love as beautiful as I am."
Drew sniffed, turning her nose up and turning away. "My mother would kill me herself."
"Now, children," Boréas said sternly. "Our guests will think you are spoiled! Besides, you moved too fast. We have not even heard the demigod's story yet. Then we will decide what to do with them. Please, Jason Grace, entertain us."
There was loud pop, and Khiónē flew backward, skidding across the floor. Veritas cackled loudly like those women from the horribly inaccurate movies about witches.
Zetes laughed. "That is good! I'm glad you did that, even though I have to kill you now."
For a moment, Khiónē was too stunned to react. Then the air around her began to swirl with a micro-blizzard. "You dare—"
"Stop," Jason ordered, with as much force as he could muster. "You're not going to kill us. And you're not going to keep us. We're on a quest for the queen of the gods herself, so unless you want Hera busting down your doors, you're going to let us go."
The gods gave impressed looks. Hḗrē's temper was legendary only her siblings equaled her in strength... well all those except Hestia whose disappointment was worse. Khiónē's blizzard swirled to a stop. Zetes lowered his sword. They both looked uncertainly at their father.
"Hmm," Boréas said, eyes twinkling. "A son of Ζεύς, favored by Hḗrē? This is definitely a first. Tell us your story."
Hermês did not wish to hear that, so he turned his attention back to watching Lea as she visited the store by the one she called Usnavi and Vanessa. The two of them were technically her godparents and not a comic book character though she would hear nothing of it. She fed them some excuse about how she and Percy would be leaving to spend the holidays and subsequently, the next semester with her Father's people. It was enough to keep people from questioning where Percy was, and she also expressed her worry since Drew was declared missing once more. That was partially why they were staying with their Father according to her cover story. A retaliation from getting away from the traffickers the year before.
And she rushed out, blushing to the tips of her toes as they spoke rapid spanish to each other, and the one named Benny cooed about her relationship to Hermês.
"Father, don't listen to her," Khiónē was saying when Hermês glanced back at the screens. "She's a child of Aphrodítē. She dares to charmspeak a god? Freeze her now!"
"I would never," Drew lied. Apóllōn and Hermês snorted while all the gods that fell victim to her charm while she was training grumbled though they knew not to say anything lest they wanted to end up on the bad side of Apóllōn and Aphrodítē. "Besides, Your Majesty, once we complete our quest, we can speak favorably to King Zeus and Queen Hera for your help. Mother did plan their marriage renewal here last year. Why not do it again? Winter Wonderland is one of my favorite themes."
"She's good," Father grunted. Apóllōn and Aphrodítē beamed.
"What is that on your forearm, demigod?" Boréas' eyes widen as he took in the SPQR tattoo while Khiónē hissed and stepped away.
The god's eyes widened. Khione actually hissed and stepped away, holding on tightly to her grecian form.
Then Boréas laughed, form flickering as an icicle cracked from the ceiling and crashed next to his throne. His beard disappeared. He grew taller and thinner, and his clothes changed into a Roman toga, lined with purple. His head was crowned with a frosty laurel wreath, and a gladius hung at his side.
The various gods watching hissed, one hand going to their heads as their own forms shifted involuntarily.
"Aquilon," Jason said.
The god inclined his head. "You recognize me better in this form, yes? And yet you said you came from Camp Half-Blood?"
Jason shifted his feet. "Uh ... yes, Your Majesty."
"And Hḗrē sent you there..." The winter god's eyes were full of mirth. "I understand now. Oh, she plays a dangerous game. Bold, but dangerous! No wonder Olympos is closed. They must be trembling at the gamble she has taken."
"Jason," Drew said nervously, "why did Boreas change shape? The toga, the wreath. What's going on?"
"It's his Roman form," Jason said. "But what's going on—I don't know."
The god laughed. "No, I'm sure you don't. This should be very interesting to watch."
"Does that mean you'll let us go?" Drew asked, looking between them in interest.
"My dear," Aquilon said, "there is no reason for me to kill you. If Hḗrē's plan fails, which I think it will, you will tear each other apart. Aiolos will never have to worry about demigods again."
"I don't suppose you could explain?" Jason asked.
"Oh, perish the thought! It is not for me to interfere in Hḗrē's plan. No wonder she took your memory." Aquilon chuckled, apparently still having a great time imagining demigods tearing each other apart. "You know, I have a reputation as a helpful wind god. Unlike my brethren, I've been known to fall in love with mortals. Why, my sons Zetes and Kalaïs started as demigods—"
"Which explains why they are idiots," Khiónē growled.
"Stop it!" Zetes snapped back. "Just because you were born a full goddess—"
"Both of you, freeze," Khiónē ordered. All the children of Ζεύς shifted a bit not liking the way that their Father sat up in interest at that command.
"Now, as I was saying, I have a good reputation, but it is rare that Boréas plays an important role in the affairs of gods. I sit here in my palace, at the edge of civilization, and so rarely have amusements. Why, even that fool Notus, the South Wind, gets spring break in Cancún. What do I get? A winter festival with naked Québécois rolling around in the snow!"
"I like the winter festival," Zetes muttered.
"My point," Aquilon snapped, "is that I now have a chance to be the center. Oh, ναί, I will let you go on this quest. You will find your storm spirits in the windy city, of course. Chicago—"
"Father!" Khiónē protested.
Aquilon ignored his daughter. "If you can capture the winds, you may be able to gain safe entrance to the court of Aiolos. If by some miracle you succeed, be sure to tell him you captured the winds on my orders."
"Okay, sure," Jason said. "So Chicago is where we'll find this lady who's controlling the winds? She's the one who's trapped Hera?"
"Ah." Aquilon grinned. "Those are two different questions, son of Iūpiter."
Drew's eyes sharpened in interest.
"The one who controls the winds," Aquilon continued, "ναί, you will find her in Chicago. But she is only a servant—a servant who is very likely to destroy you. If you succeed against her and take the winds, then you may go to Aiolos. Only he has knowledge of all the winds on the earth. All secrets come to his fortress eventually. If anyone can tell you where Hḗrē is imprisoned, it is Aiolos. As for who you will meet when you finally find Hḗrē's cage —truly, if I told you that, you would beg me to freeze you."
The gods froze within the throne room. Intellectually, they all suspected just who this new enemy was. They turned to their Father who grimaced as he looked to his siblings. Hēsíodos had notated the succession "myth" for the historians of the modern-day age, but he had been intimately correct. Despite the fact that Father had already established his kingdom, it was no surprise that after the last four years... there was another challenge to his rule despite it literally being prophesied that no other shall rule over the gods other than he.
"Father," Khiónē protested, "you can't simply let them—"
"I can do what I like," he said, his voice hardening. "I am still master here, am I not?"
The way Aquilon glared at his daughter, it was obvious they had some ongoing argument. Khiónē's eyes flashed with anger, but she clenched her teeth. "As you wish, Father."
"Now go, demigods," Aquilon said, "before I change my mind. Zetes, escort them out safely."
They all bowed, and the god of the North Wind dissolved into mist.
Father hummed, waving his hand at the screen and letting it go dark. "I believe we shall look into what other things that Khiónē has been getting into. Aphrodítē, would you do the honors of leading this?"
"Of course, Father Ζεύς."
Father turned to look back at his siblings. "We need to speak privately."
WORD COUNT: 7266
GODS NAMED:
1) Lússā - daimona goddess of mad rage, fury, crazed frenzy and, in animals, rabies. The Athenians spelt her name Lytta.
2) Neikea - daimones of quarrels, feuds, and grievances
3) Prumathe - the Etruscan name for Prometheus and thus, the name that I am utilizing as his roman name
THINGS TO KNOW:
1) Sedona, Arizona has long been held as a deeply spiritual location in the US. and the Sedona Vortexes are regarded as swirling centers of energy revered by spiritual seekers worldwide.
2) Zetes and Kalaïs were credited with very delicate and graceful hair, which was said to give them the ability to fly (though in some tales they have wings). They had great pride in who had the longest curls between the two of them and by boasting about these locks, they were uplifted. They had dusky wings which gleamed with golden scales.
2A) A reminder that the letter C did not exist in ancient greece so any names that had a C should replaced with a K
2B) Kalaïs in one tradition is said to be the beloved of Orpheus and yes, I do mean that Orpheus
2C) They also have the same mother as Khiónē so she too would have been a demigod that ascended to godhood UNLESS she was born AFTER her mother became a goddess which would then make her the only divine born of her three siblings because yes, Boréas and Ōreithuia had four kids, the Boreádai, Khiónē, and Kleopátra who was the first wife of Phineas and yes, I do mean that Phineas.
2D) There was no letter Y either.
3) Khiónē had a son with Poseidón, but there was a nymph named Khióne that Boréas slept with and get this, in one tradition, Boréas had wanted Huákinthos also but yk Huákinthos chose Apóllōn but wait there's more... its been speculated that Boréas and Apóllōn had a thing. And guess what else? Apollō and Mercurius slept with Philonis which was the roman name for ANOTHER Khionê.
A Little Jokey Joke:
1) Say Yes to the Quest - Greek demigods going on quests and being shown on HephaistosTv
2) New Roma: The Wolf Within - Roman demigods going on quests and being shown on VulcanusTv
3) Love & Monster Hunts - a play on the Love and Hip Hip reality series
4) Real Housewives of Poseiria - a play on the Real Housewives reality series
COMMENTS FROM THE AUTHOR:
1) Zeus is going to breakdown and cry with his siblings because he's stressed. He's the baby and he deserves it. He never had the chance to be the baby so his siblings baby him where no one else can see.
2) I'm so ready to get in on Lea's HoO arc. Because the big quest is already outlined and everything with the little details, but Lea's a story all on its own. I mean I based it off a barbie movie, lmfaoooo. But like, its also not a barbie movie. You'll understand when I get to it, but I'm so excited because its the little details that I keep thinking to add that I cant wait to write.
2A) For some of the scenes, I already have prewritten comments to post right here for you all. And I'm still adding on to the chapter (or well, extra) that details why i chose some choices to be soulmates and Im also including a chapter thats filled with deleted scenes.
2B) Speaking of that, as I was putting one of the deleted scenes down, it reminded me of Surface Pressure's rewrite and can I just say... yall are gonna be so pissed when I get to that one. Like wow. Its a MAJOR difference from the OG version. Its differences in there of course, but that one... man... man.
3) Another thing that I don't find realistic is how Piper stays out of the news and magazines. The ppl went crazy back then reporting on Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan etc. And I know someone is gonna comment about how they were of legal age, but like we had TEEN MAGAZINES that talked about Selena Gomez, Miley Cyrus, Joe Jonas etc. Ik somebody remembers J-14 and Tiger Beat; Seventeen is still running. Piper would have definitely been in the news.
3A) Jason and Thalia would have definitely been a part of a Buzzfeed television show. Because Jason just going missing and no one knows? A recipe for them. And then for Thalia to disappear right afterwards?
4) Yk what would have been really funny in a Jason-centric pjo companion series? If all his adventures happened on the winter solstice and one just happened on the summer solstice. No, even better. Percy gets the solstices and Jason gets the equinoxes. Im not doing it but like it would have been hilarious.
5) BEFORE I forget again, Leo and Piper will still have their friendship. Like they started together, but it also wont be as deep as canon (not that it was that deep over there either hmp.) Their friendship would be like Percy and Thalia. Close friends from a distance and whatnot.