misplaced || l. valdez

11 || more prophecies get issued and piper finally has a mom

° ~ •. ♆ chapter eleven ♆ .• ~ °
"more prophecies get issued and piper finally has a mom"

Shocked silence. Then fifty demigods started talking at once.

Chiron pounded his hoof again, but Rachel still had to wait before she could get back their attention.

She told them about the incident on the Grand Canyon skywalk- how Gleeson Hedge had sacrificed himself when the storm spirits attacked, and the spirits had warned it was only the beginning. They apparently served some great mistress who would destroy all demigods.

Then Rachel told them about Piper passing out in Hera's cabin. Piper was trying to keep a calm expression, even when she noticed Drew in the back row, pantomiming a faint, and her friends giggling. Mari glared and stuck her tongue out at them.

Finally Rachel told them about Jason's vision in the living room of the Big House. Mari looked around at the tense group and figured it was a bad idea to tell the group her message from Juno— or Hera. Jason and Piper's messages seemed so similar, and Mari didn't even know what hers meant, so adding another piece to an already confusing puzzle was not going to help.

"Jason." Rachel said. "Um... do you remember your last name?"

He looked self-conscious, bur he shook his head.

"We'll just call you Jason, then." Rachel said. "It's clear Hera herself has issued you a quest."

Rachel paused, as if giving Jason a chance to protest his destiny. Everyone's eyes were on him; there was so much pressure, Mari thought he would buckle. Yet he looked brave and determined. He set his jaw and nodded. "I agree."

"You must save Hera to prevent a great evil." Rachel continued. "Some sort of king from rising. For reasons we don't understand yet, it must happen by the winter solstice, only four days from now."

"That's the council day of the gods," Annabeth said. "If the gods don't already know Hera's gone, they will definitely notice her absence by then. They'll probably break out fighting, accusing each other of taking her. That's what they usually do."

"The winter solstice," Chiron spoke up, "is also the time of greatest darkness. The gods gather that day, as mortals always have, because there is strength in numbers. The solstice is a day when evil magic is strong. Ancient magic, older than the gods. It is a day when things... stir."

The way he said it, stirring sounded absolutely sinister— like it should be a first degree felony, not something you do to cookie dough.

"Ok," Annabeth said, glaring at the centaur. "Thank you, Captain Sunshine. Whatever's going on, I agree with Rachel. Jason has been chosen to lead this quest, so—"

"Why hasn't he been claimed?" somebody yelled from the Ares cabin. "If he's so important—"

"He has been claimed," Chiron announced. "Long ago. Jason, give them a demonstration."

At first, Jason didn't seem to understand. He stepped forward nervously, glancing up at Piper and Mari. Piper nodded encouragingly, and she mimicked flipping a coin. Mari gave him a quick thumbs-up and mouthed, "What she did."

Jason reached into his pocket. His coin flashed in the air, and when he caught it in his hand, he was holding a lance— a rod of gold about seven feet long, with a spear tip at one end.