She'd either be overjoyed right now, or majorly pissed.
He had left the meeting shortly after that. The shift in the group's dynamic had been apparent from the moment he walked into the room, and he knew that he was no longer the one they looked to to take the lead. Not that that should have been me in the first place, right Songbird?
Marcus sat by Chastity's side on the bed. She had been brought into the Big House, where any movement or change in her condition could be monitored closely. He gently brushed a piece of her hair away from her face, as the open window had blown it over.
Maddie sat with him, as she had been the one to show him where Chastity's room had been set up in the Big House and was now perched on the chair next to the bed. "She was found with her lyre next to her." Maddie gestured to the table, where it had been set up. "We don't know if she was using it, or if having it nearby would help, but we thought it better to not take any chances."
Marcus nodded. "Anything else?"
"What do you mean?"
"Is there anything else that we've found out?"
Maddie thought for a moment, the look on her face for just a moment looking like her old self before she became deadly serious once more. "Nothing. The Children of Apollo and Hypno both agree. Her body is here but her mind, or maybe more accurately her soul, just seems to… not be. She seems to simply be dreaming, but no Child of Hypno we brought in could grasp what was happening in it, or even fully find the connection to it."
Marcus turned his attention to her. "I'm sorry Mads… Here I am freaking out, and I never even stopped to think of what this must be doing to you…"
Maddie shook her head, forcing a smile to her face. "No. I'm a healer. Part of the job is to recognize the facts as… as they are, not what we want them to be."
"That's not what I meant and you know it." He leaned forward, taking her hand in his gently. "It's okay to not be okay."
Maddie bit her lower lip, and Marcus saw the tears she was keeping at bay. "I'm a healer." She repeated, but Marcus could read the rest in her eyes. "I'm a healer, but I can't even help my closest friend when she needs me."
"We'll find a way to help her." Marcus reassured her. "With the two of us, she'll be healed in no time."
Maddie smiled sadly and squeezed his hand once. "Yeah… I'm sure we'll find a child of Hecate or Psyche sooner rather than later. It can't be like there's only a few right? The Gods will be on our side and guide us."
Marcus couldn't find it in his heart to say what was in his mind. It's a long shot… They have Gods on their side too… Instead he smiled and nodded. "Like the Olympians would let one of their chosen ones sleep on the job."
Marcus was rewarded by a small giggle from Maddie. "Even one as fond of their beauty sleep as Chastity."
"Exactly." Marcus looked over at Chastity, an idea forming in his head. A bad idea, but the only one he could think of. "You should go back to that meeting Mads. They'll need your input."
"But-"
"Don't worry, I'll stay with Chastity." Marcus said with a smile. "After all, it's not me that they'll be needing. Phillip is the tracker, you're the one with the encyclopedia of the Gods in your head. Together, I'm sure you'll figure out where they're hiding."
Maddie hesitated a moment longer before nodding and standing, walking to the door. "Fine… but if anything changes-"
"I'll call. I promise."
With a final nod, Maddie left the room, closing the door behind her. Marcus waited a moment more to make sure she had truly left when he turned back to Chastity. Gods, I hope this works.
He had spent the entire week defending his mind from attacks from an outside source. He knew his own mental plane well enough by now, he had even started learning how to reach outside it, if only barely. He wasn't confident enough in his new strengths to give the others hope, but…
He closed his eyes and reached out, gently squeezing Chastity's hand as he did. Where are you…? Come back to me, to us, Chastity. He reached outward, forcing his mind to reach beyond the walls he had been building around it. Tentatively he reached further, and further, stopping when he sensed a thread, small but there, and strong. Gratefully, he fell back behind his own mental barriers, making them as strong as he could as he took the moment to center himself.
The healers were right. Her body is here but her soul… Marcus stood, pacing the room as his thoughts raced. Had she been attacked in Camp? He didn't know of any half blood power that could separate a soul from a body, but that didn't mean it couldn't happen. Absent-mindedly, Marcus ran his fingers across the strings of Chastity's lyre as he passed, causing a soothing sound to ripple through the room. He stopped. Her lyre… She had been found with her lyre, her instrument in more than just the literal sense. Lately he had seen her use more and more insane magics, but this…? Could she have done this… herself?
He scowled as he thought. If, perhaps, she had used her own magic to induce a sleep-like state, separating her mind or soul from her body through her own will… Was that even possible? And if it was, why would she do something like that…?
Marcus had to know. He scanned the room, searching for anything to refract light, any way to possibly get an Iris message out. If her mind was separated, would that even work? He had to try. He had to at least attempt it, but the more he thought, the more he hesitated. Iris would probably laugh at him if he even tried using her services. He couldn't reach out any other way. Marcus aimed a kick at the chair in the room, his frustration boiling over and knocking it into the shadowed corner on the opposite side of the room.
Wait…
He knew one Goddess that wouldn't taunt him. One who would listen to him. One would be willing to carry his message wherever he wished. "She even does it for free." Alicia's voice came back to him. Nyx. Shadow Messages. Marcus turned to look at the shadowed corner of the room again. That could work… Nyx worked in the shadows. Not only that, as the Primordial Goddess of night, she was the mother of Hypno. She would be able to follow this trail, find Chastity's… whatever, wherever it went.
He only hesitated for a moment. "Protect her Marcus". He refused to fail again. He stepped into the shadows and took a deep breath.
"Nyx, hear my call. I wish to speak with Chastity Montgomery."
For a moment, nothing happened. Then another moment. And then another. Just as he was about to give up, the darkness against the wall in front of him shimmered. For a moment, he thought he was looking into a mirror, but he realized Nyx had answered his call, but was instead showing him the room where he stood, with Chastity. He got the feeling she was mocking him.
"Dammit!" He hissed. "Don't play games with me!" He slammed his fist into the wall. He stood there for a moment, his breath coming in short bursts as he fought down his emotions. I won't fail. I won't! He stood that way for a long moment, seemingly wallowing in defeat, until finally, he spoke again.
"I knew it…" He said softly. "Even the great Nyx can't find her…" He turned his face away, looking back towards the center of the room. "Or perhaps, she's as easily fooled as the rest of these Olympians. No wonder Iris is the one they all pray and give drachma to. The one trusted to carry messages. I would have thought a Primordial Goddess would have been more powerful than a mere rainbow, but I guess I was wrong."
Marcus imagined he could feel the simmering anger from the darkness behind him, but he forced himself to ignore it as he sighed. "Fine then. If you can't do this simple task, then what use are your services? I'll have to make a rainbow I guess, Iris will probably see straight away where Chastity truly is."
He turned back, just in time to glimpse a short burst of static across the image in front of him, quickly replaced with a quick image that got replaced with more static, but the image was one that would forever stay burned into his mind. A face, made of what seemed to be ash, with two burning supernovas in place of eyes. And those eyes had glared a hole through him.
The image flickered again and in front of him, he saw what appeared to be a riverbank. In the near distance, a palace could be seen, one seemingly made of obsidian and full of majesty, though that wasn't what caught Marcus' eye. That was reserved for the girl standing on the riverbank, gazing up at the palace.
"Chastity!" Marcus breathed.
She spun, looking around before her eyes finally settled on Marcus.
"M… Marcus?!" She asked, incredulous. Marcus felt the relief flooding through his chest start to wane as he really took her in. She looked almost identical to the way she looked in the room with him, except…
"Are you… glowing?" Marcus asked. She was. Around Chastity was a slight pink aura, not strong enough to be immediately noticeable, but there nonetheless.
"Forget that, how are you… How did… What is that?!" Chastity gestured towards him.
"That's not important! Where are you?!" Marcus scanned the horizon behind her. That palace reminded him so much of something…
Chastity shook her head, crossing her arms and fixing him with a piercing stare. "Oh no, you don't get to just ignore my question. How exactly are you reaching me here? That's no Iris message I've ever seen!"
Marcus stopped and stared at her, incredulous. "Chastity… Do you have any idea the panic going on right now?! We're all worried sick about you!"
"So that's how that feels…" Chastity muttered.
Marcus took a deep breath, trying to reign in his mounting annoyance. "Look, the others are in the other room right now, planning to try and find, then raid a New Olympian camp just to find a half-blood who might be able to help you. Right now is not the time to be playing my greatest hits to make me regret my mistakes."
Chastity looked at him for a moment. "They don't need to do that. Tell them they don't need to do that." She turned away, kicking at the rocks at her feet as she did so, muttering. "Gods, this wasn't supposed to take this long! 'Find Orpheus, get the lyre, you'll be so strong'."
"Orpheus?" Marcus asked, causing Chastity to whip her eyes back to him. "Chastity, Orpheus is dead."
"Well duh, I know that." She spat back. It didn't escape Marcus' notice that she was far more testy than normal, which he guessed made sense under the circumstances.. But if she had done this to herself, as her reaction confirmed to him, she wouldn't be that testy unless…
Unless she was in danger. Marcus scanned the palace again, trying to place it, as it was the only landmark in sight.
"Chastity, where are you?"
"Leave it alone Marcus. I'll be home soon. Just wait there patiently and keep the bed warm." She threw back, resorting to her usual tactics to try and distract him. But it had finally clicked. He knew what that palace reminded him of. It looked so much like Olympus, but Olympus wasn't by a river, it didn't look so dark. But he knew of one place that did.
"Chastity… Are you in the Underworld?"
Chastity opened her mouth to deny it, but he saw her change her mind. Slowly she nodded. "... Yes… Marcus, I know what you're thinking, I see that hero complex starting all over again. Don't-"
"We're coming after you." Marcus growled.
"No! Look, this is something I have to do. Me. I'm not putting you all in danger just because-"
"Ugh you're starting to sound like me!" Marcus threw his hands up.
"Don't you compare the two!" Chastity fumed. "This is different! I can end the spell at any time, I'm not putting myself in all that much danger!"
"'All that much' has the ring of 'quite a lot' Chastity."
"Look, I'll be fine! Don't-"
Before she could finish her sentence, Chastity whipped around, her eyes scanning the area beyond the screen.
"What? Chastity, what's going on?" Marcus had never felt so helpless.
"Gotta go." Chastity whispered, getting close to the image, so close Marcus felt if he reached out he could touch her cheek. "Don't you dare try to come after me!"
With that, She swept her hand through the image, breaking it and the connection. Marcus watched the shadows return to being simply that before a curse left his lips.
Like hell!