invisible string | f. zhang

ii. breaking a heel & declaring war

"Well," Reyna says, "Thanatos is the god of death, the lieutenant of Pluto?"

"Right," The god replies.

"And you're saying that he's been captured by giants."

"Right."

"And therefore people will stop dying?"

"Not all at once," Mars explains, "But the barriers between life and death will continue to weaken. Those who know how to take advantage of this will exploit it. Monsters are already harder to dispatch. Soon they will be completely impossible to kill. Some demigods will also be able to find their way back from the Underworld — like your friend Centurion Shishkebab."

Gwen winces, "Centurion Shish kebab?"

"If left unchecked," Mars continues, "Even mortals will eventually find it impossible to die. Can you imagine a world in which no one dies — ever?"

Octavian raises his hand, "But, ah, mighty all-powerful Lord Mars, if we can't die, isn't that a good thing? If we can stay alive indefinitely — "

"Don't be foolish, boy!" Mars bellows, "Endless slaughter with no conclusion? Carnage without any point? Enemies that rise again and again and can never be killed? Is that what you want?"

"You're the god of war," Percy speaks up, "Don't you want endless carnage?"

Maribelle nods, he does have a point.

Mars's infrared goggles glow brighter, "Insolent, aren't you? Perhaps I have fought you before. I can understand why I'd want to kill you. I'm the god of Rome, child. I am the god of military might used for a righteous cause. I protect the legions. I am happy to crush my enemies underfoot, but I don't fight without reason. I don't want war without end. You will discover this. You will serve me."

"Not likely."

Maribelle waits for the god to strike Percy Jackson down, but he doesn't. He only grins, which might be more terrifying in her opinion.

"I order a quest! You will go north and find Thanatos in the land beyond the gods. You will free him and thwart the plans of the giants. Beware Gaea! Beware her son, the eldest giant!"

"The land beyond the gods?" Hazel squeaks.

"That's right, Hazel Levesque. You know what I mean. Everyone here remembers the land where the legion lost its honor! Perhaps if the quest succeeds, and you return by the Feast of Fortuna . . . perhaps then your honor will be restored. If you don't succeed, there won't be any camp left to return to. Rome will be overrun, its legacy lost forever. So my advice is: Don't fail."

"Um, Lord Mars, just one tiny thing. A quest requires a prophecy, a mystical poem to guide us! We used to get them from the Sibylline books, but now it's up to the augur to glean the will of gods. So if I could just run and get about seventy stuffed animals and possibly a knife . . ."

"You're the augur?" The god interrupts.

"Y — yes, my lord."

Mars pulls a scroll from his utility belt, "Anyone got a pen?"

The legionnaires stare at him. Maribelle checks her skirt pockets and her bra. Nothing.

Mars sighs, "Two hundred Romans, and no one's got a pen? Never mind!"

He slung his gun onto his back and pulls out a hand grenade. The Romans scream, but then the grenade morphs into a ballpoint pen, and Mars began to write.

"There!" Mars finishes writing and throws the scroll at Octavian, "A prophecy. You can add it to your books, engrave it on your floor, whatever."

Octavian reads the scroll, "This says, 'Go to Alaska. Find Thanatos and free him. Come back by sundown on June twenty-fourth or die.'"

"Yes. Is that not clear?"

"Well, my lord . . . usually prophecies are unclear. They're wrapped in riddles. They rhyme, and —"

Maribelle almost huffs in annoyance, why was he trying to argue with a god?

Mars casually pops another grenade off his belt, "Yes?"

"The prophecy is clear!" Octavian announces, "A quest!"

"Good answer. "Now, what else? There was something else . . . oh, yes."

He turns to Frank, "C'mere, kid."

Maribelle's eyes widen as Frank steps forward.

Mars grins, "Nice job taking the wall, kid. Who's the ref for this game?"

Reyna raises her hand.

"You see that play, ref?" Mars demands, "That was my kid. First over the wall, won the game for his team. Unless you're blind, that was an MVP play. You're not blind, are you?"

"No, Lord Mars."

"Then make sure he gets the Mural Crown," Mars demands, "My kid, here! Emily Zhang's son, she was a good soldier. Good woman. This kid Frank proved his stuff tonight. Happy late birthday, kid. Time you stepped up to a real man's weapon."

He tosses Frank his gun and it changes in midair, becoming smaller and thinner. When Frank catches it, the weapon was a spear.

"The tip is a dragon's tooth," Mars says, "You haven't learned to use your mom's talents yet, have you? Well — that spear will give you some breathing room until you do. You get three charges out of it, so use it wisely. Now, my kid Frank Zhang is gonna lead the quest to free Thanatos, unless there are any objections?"

Nobody argued. Maribelle claps excitedly for the boy. Frank looks at her with wide-eyes, shaking his head.

"You can take three companions," Mars says, also eyeing her, "Those are the rules. One of them needs to be barefoot girl over here, per Venus' request," Then, he points at Percy, "One of them needs to be this kid. He's gonna learn some respect for Mars on this trip, or die trying. As for the second, I don't care. Pick whomever you want. Have one of your senate debates. You all are good at those."

Maribelle's eyes widen, why would she go on a quest? And why would her mother ask for her to go?

The god's image flickers and lightning crackles across the sky.

"That's my cue," Mars says, "Until next time, Romans. Do not disappoint me!"

The god erupts in flames, and then he was gone.

Reyna turns toward Frank, "Ave, Frank Zhang, son of Mars."

The whole legion follows her lead, "Ave!"

—

a/n: i am terrible at writing battle scenes hahaha hopefully i will get better as we go along. bc my girl can Fight.