Where You Go ― Jason Grace

xiv. return of the ice bitch

"And me and Ophelia?" Piper asked. "Why are we still alive and unfrozen?"

Khione glanced at her brother with annoyance. "Zethes has claimed you, for one thing."

"I kiss magnificently," Zethes promised. "You will see, beautiful one."

"As for Ophelia," Khione said. She turned to look at Ophelia with her dark, cruel gaze. "I hate her. Deeply and truly. Without you, Jason would have stayed with me in Quebec."

Ophelia narrowed her eyes in to a glare, trying to convey all of her hatred without the use of her mouth.

"Delusional, much?" Piper mocked, since Ophelia couldn't do it herself.

Khione turned back to look at Piper. "You are a meddler, the daughter of a useless goddess. What can you do alone? Nothing. Of all the eight demigods, you have no purpose, no power. I wish you and your friend to stay on this ship, adrift and helpless, while Gaea rises and the world ends. And just to be sure you are well out of the way..."

She gestured to Zethes, who plucked something from the air—a frozen sphere the size of a softball, covered in icy spikes.

"A bomb," Zethes explained, "especially for you, my love."

"Bombs!" Cal laughed. "A good day! Bombs and muffins!"

"Uh..." Piper lowered her dagger. "Flowers would've been fine."

"Oh, it will not kill the pretty girl." Zethes frowned. "Well... I am fairly sure of this. But when the fragile container cracks, in... ah, roughly not very long... it will unleash the full force of the northern winds. This ship will be blown very far off course. Very, very far."

"Indeed." Khione's voice prickled with false sympathy. "We will take your friends for our statue collection, then unleash the winds and bid you goodbye! You and Ophelia can watch the end of the world from... well, the end of the world! Perhaps you can charmspeak the fish, and feed yourselves with your silly cornucopia. You can pace the deck of this ship and watch our victory in the blade of your dagger. When Gaea has arisen and the world you know is dead, then Zethes can come back and retrieve you for his bride, and I'll decide what to do with Ophelia. What will you do to stop us, Piper? A hero? Ha! You are a joke."

Ophelia glowered at the goddess, hoping beyond hope she had some sort of secret latent heat vision powers so she could make the snow goddess burst into flames. 

Alas, nothing happened.

Then Piper doubled over in laughter.

Calais started to join in, until Zethes elbowed him.

Khione's smile wavered. "What? What is so funny? I have doomed you!"

"Doomed me!" Piper laughed again. "Oh, gods... sorry." She took a shaky breath and tried to stop giggling. "Oh, boy... okay. You really think I'm powerless? You really think I'm useless? Gods of Olympus, your brain must have freezer burn. You don't know my secret, do you?"

Khione's eyes narrowed. "You have no secret," she said. "You are lying."

"Okay, whatever," Piper said. "Yeah, go ahead and take my friends. Leave me and Ophelia here... useless." She snorted. "Yeah, Gaea will be really pleased with you."

Ophelia had no earthly idea what Piper's plan was, but if it was to piss off Khione, it was working fabulously. Snow swirled around the goddess. Zethes and Calais glanced at each other nervously.

"Sister," Zethes said, "if she really has some secret—"

"Pizza?" Cal speculated. "Hockey?"

"—then we must know," Zethes continued.