The Fate of Olympus | Reynabeth [✓]

34. Back to Mount Olympus

How shameless-the way these mortals blame the gods.

From us alone, they say, come all their miseries, yes,

but they themselves, with their own reckless ways,

compound their pains beyond their proper share.

Zeus, in The Odyssey

_____

9. We want justice.

_____

Annabeth, along with a group of camp counselors from Camp Half-Blood and Reyna, returned to Mount Olympus. There was no one to greet them at the elevator in the Empire State Building. It was unusual, but the elevator ran smoothly.

When they reached the six hundredth floor, Mount Olympus was silent.

There were no gods. Even Mr. D. was nowhere to be found.

"Where are they?" asked Lou Ellen as they exited the elevator. Her voice echoed unnaturally against the marble hall. She looked down at the floor like she expected it to crumble from beneath her slight weight.

Percy said, "No one knows for sure where the gods are."

"Well," said Nico, "I'm pretty sure they're not dead."

Annabeth's stomach turned. She had the feeling she knew what had happened to the gods, but for once in her life she held her tongue. Maybe the gods hadn't been ignoring their demigod children for the past few weeks. Maybe their silence had been part of Annabeth's wish to the Fates. But she wasn't sure if it was the right thing to want anymore. After all, maybe hubris was really going to be her downfall...

There was uneasy silence on Mount Olympus. There were no fires in braziers, no people mingling in the market of the plaza. Even the fountains at the center of the city had been turned off. It was as if everyone had packed up and left. There weren't any minor gods or immortal demigods present. Annabeth's sneakers squeaked on the marble and the sound echoed through the marble colonnade.

They arrived in the throne room. Enormous thrones, intended for gods in their massive forms, circled a fire pit of ash.

Percy said, "My dad's always been really attentive toward Tyson and me," he said. "Maybe this'll get his attention."

Percy clambered onto his father's throne. Annabeth braced herself for the earthquake or a thunderous voice to crack through the silence, but nothing came. Just more silence. The empty fire pit bothered Annabeth. Wasn't it supposed to be the eternal flame?

Nico and Reyna climbed on Hades's throne to see what would happen. Silence greeted the gesture.

One by one, the head counselors tried to sit on their parents' thrones, but nothing happened.

Annabeth climbed onto Zeus's throne, sure that the king of the gods would shake her to pieces immediately. She wasn't sure what to expect-maybe an electric current running through her body that would paralyze her with pain.

Instead, she felt a good kind of stirring in her chest, like she had accomplished her life's work. She looked at all of the demigods, sitting on their parents' thrones. And Annabeth realized that she was at the head throne, with Percy and Reyna by her side. The prophecy came into sharp focus.

If you are rescued by a friend,

Then life as we know it shall end.

The gods were no more, thought Annabeth. Her wish to the Fates had come true: abusive gods would have to face retribution. So it was the beginning of the new order. It was the era of the DemiGod.

~~~

A/N: Thank you for your support!