Bonds

Knight, Two Girls, And A Train

Knight could feel the slight change in the Penta-rail's magnetic field as the massive electromagnets energized beneath his feet. Monolithic amounts of electricity were being transferred from the Imperial Gold rail up into the undercarriages of every car, distributed evenly to the electromagnets along the length train, and then converted into propulsion thanks to the unique magnetic properties of Stygian Iron. It was a delicate system that required perfect timing to avoid being tossed from the track, and it was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen.

"It's like a maglev," the daughter of Athena observed as she and Queen took their seats. "Right?"

Okay, the second most beautiful thing.

He didn't know how to put into words the overwhelming feeling that came over him when Annabeth reintroduced herself. The closest he could articulate would be exploding from happiness, but it still lacked the depth he wished to convey. While he didn't like people bowing and curtsying before him, the way she looked up at him with those stormy gray eyes and glowing smile became an exception. He would do anything to make her smile like that at him again and not breakdown in tears like the night before.

He of course tried to tell her as much, but all that came out of his mouth was a stuttering string of syllables that lacked any sense of coherence; which Annabeth just smiled at. Thankfully, he was led away to a podium with Queen by Brontes and Steropes, where they were to publicly announce that New Tartarus was at war. Public speaking was never something he enjoyed, but he could say he could relay a message coherently. That is until he started to describe Zeus' long blonde hair and stormy gray eyes, confusing the assembled masses.

Luckily, Queen stepped in and saved him from further embarrassment. His sister, titans bless her, was able to take everything he said and turn it into something that made sense. She explained that he was tired from an intense drawn-out battle with Zeus, with him emerging victorious and the king of the gods in chains. The crowd, which had grown uneasy at the news of war, burst into thunderous applause as an image of Zeus imprisoned next to the avatar of Tartarus was projecting into the air above them. His strange behavior completely forgotten. Queen then went on to assure everyone that the war would have minimal impact on their daily lives but asked that everyone be vigilant for anything out of the ordinary.

It struck him just how good Queen was at reading their people and telling them what they wanted to hear.

After Queen's speech, they were forced to stand around and have their pictures taken by monsters who called themselves reporters and journalists (whatever those are) and answer a few questions. They of course made him stand with Brontes and Steropes for a couple, then with Queen, his sister linking their arms together, and then something called a "group shot". One of the telekhine reporters must have been able to read his mind though, and suggested that he stand next to the strange, new girl for a picture.

He didn't need to be told twice, nearly tripping over his own feet to get closer to Annabeth. A harpy with multiple cameras strapped to its body and wings suggested he hold her hand, making some of the other reporters chuckle and smirk, and he thought it was a great idea-

Until he remembered Annabeth's threat from the previous night and the cyclopes' lecture on consent...

He started to explain that he couldn't, that it was up to her, when the daughter of Athena grabbed him by the hand and intertwined their fingers together.

He... he didn't really know what happened after that. The next thing he was aware of was his mentors shoving him into their private car of the golden train.

"Yeah!" his voice cracked as he answered Annabeth's query. He was absolutely mortified when both girls started to giggle at him, but he tried to pretend he didn't just sound like a hyperactive telekhine pup. "I mean, yes," he coughed into his fist. "The Penta-rail is very similar to the maglev trains in the mortal country of Dapan. Just, you know... bigger and better," he added with a smile.