Fighting the king of giants alone without a weapon was the worst thing Layla had ever seen someone doing. Jason, however, didn't wait to hear her advice. Before Layla could tell him anything he flew towards the giant's leg.
As much as she would like to help him there was still an army of bloodthirsty monsters to be taken care of.
She slashed with her sword and stricked with lightning bolts for what seemed like aeons but the monsters kept coming back.
With every hit she grew more and more tired. When she finally heard Leo's voice saying "I got it!", it was probably the best moment of her entire life.
"Yes," Hera got out of the cage. She grew double in size and glowed with power. Her black robes got replaced with a with a white gown. "Now I shall have my revenge."
All the monsters including the giant backed away, the later had a look in his eyes the clearly said 'This is far from over.'
Hera started to glow even brighter. "Cover your eyes, my heroes!" She said.
Layla knew fully well what was going to happen, if she kept her eyes open, so she closed them and turned away from the glowing goddess.
About half a minute later, Layla decided to risk opening her eyes. Thankfully, the goddess wasn't glowing anymore.
"It's safe. You can open them." She told the others. Leo and Piper did so.
"Wow." Leo exclaimed. Layla looked around and understood what had made his eyes widen. Hera's trick hadn't only killed the monsters but had also cleared the place up. There wasn't a single evidence that a battle had occurred there. The hunters that had been frozen by Khione were also back to normal.
Layla wasn't very fond of hugs but she immediately ran and embraced Leo and Piper into one. This quest was finally over.
"We did this." Piper said. "And Jason must-" Suddenly she stopped. "Where is Jason?"
Layla saw him first. He was lying at the floor nearby, unconscious.
"Jason," Piper shook him. "Jason."
"It's no use, child." Hera stood behind them once again in her black robes as if she was ready for a funeral. She looked sad. Layla couldn't believe it at first but the goddess was actually mourning for the hero.
"This is your fault. Do something!" Layla said to Hera accusingly.
"Do not address me that way, girl. I am the queen-"
"I said fix him!"
"I did warn him. I would never intentionally hurt the boy. He was to be my champion. I told you to close your eyes before I revealed my true form!"
"Um..." Leo frowned. "True Form is bad, right? So why did you do it?"
"I unleashed my power to help you, fool!" Hera protested. "I did that so I could disintegrate the monster, restore this place and even save these miserable hunters from the ice."
"But mortals can't look upon you in that form!" Thalia said rushing at Jason side. "You've killed him!"
"That's probably what the prophecy meant, Death unleash, through Hera's rage." Leo shook his head. "Come on, lady. You're a goddess. Do some voodoo magic on him! Bring him back."
"He's breathing!" Piper screamed.
"Impossible," Hera said. "I wish it were true, child, but no mortal has ever-"
"Jason." Piper called. "Listen to me. You can do this. Come back. You're going to be fine."
Nothing happened.
"Healing is not a power of Afrodite," Hera said. "Even I cannot fix this, girl. His Mortal spirit-"
"Jason." Piper said again. "Wake up."
Jason gasped and opened his eyes. "What - what happened?"
"Impossible!" Hera said again.
Piper hugged him tightly until he whispered "Crushing me."
"Sorry." Piper laughed as Layla went next to him.
"How are you feeling?" She asked.
"Hot." he murmured. "Mouth is dry. And I saw something... really terrible."
"That was Hera," Thalia said. "Her majesty, the loose cannon."
"That's it, Thalia Grace." Said the goddess. "I will turn you into an aardvark, so help me-"
"Stop it, you two." Piper ordered. Surprisingly, they both shut up.
Layla helped Jason to his feet and gave him the last nectar from their supplies as Piper continued. "Now, Hera- your Majesty- we couldn't have rescued you without the Hunters. And, Thalia, you would never have seen Jason again- I wouldn't have met him- if it weren't for Hera. You two make nice, because we've got bigger problems."
It worked, the two of stopped glaring at each other and turned to glare at Piper instead, probably debating which way they were going to kill her. That's why they say, if you want people to be united, give them a common enemy.
Finally, Thalia spoke up. "You've got some spirit, Piper." She pulled a silver card from her pocket. "You ever want to be a Hunter, call me. We could you use you."
Hera crossed her hand. "Fortunately for this hunter, you have a point, daughter of Afrodite." She studied Piper for a moment before adding. "You wondered, Piper, why I chose you for this quest, why I didn't reveal your secret in the beginning, even when I knew Enceladus was using you. I must admit, until this morning I was not sure. Something told me you would be vital to the quest. Now I see I was right. You're stronger than I realized. And you are correct about dangers to come. We must work together." Piper looked down unable to reply to the compliment.
Layla, however, caught herslf wondering what her role in the quest was. Hera must've sensed her uneasiness because she turned to her.
"When, I told Jason to choose a fourth quest member, Layla Grace, I knew that one way or another it would've be you. I must say that, at first, I was worried about you. I half-expected you to be working as a spy. Well, you proved me wrong. And I have to say that your performance during the battle was... decent."
"Thanks, I guess." Layla knew that this was the closest thing to a compliment she would ever hear from Hera.
Leo stepped forward. "I don't suppose that Porphyrion guy just melted and died, huh?"
"No, obviously." Hera agreed. "By saving me, at this place you prevented Gaia from waking. You bought us some time. But Porphyrion has risen. He simply knew better than to stay here, especially since he has not yet regained his full power. Giants can only be killed by a combination of God and demigod, working together. Once you freed me-"
"He ran away." Jason said. "But to where?" Hera didn't answer as if she was waiting for them to figure it out.
And Layla did. She remembered what Porphyrion had said about destroying God's at their roots. Greece. That's were the giant was going. She and her sister shared a look and she knew they were on the same page.
"I need to find Annabeth." Thalia said. "She has to know what's happening here."
"Thalia..." Jason gripped her hand. "We never got to talk about this place, or-"
"I know." She said. "We lost you here once. I don't want to leave you again. But we'll meet soon. I'll rendezvous with you back at Camp Half-Blood." She looked at Hera. "You'll see them there safely? It's the least you can do."
"It's not your place to tell me what to d-"
"Queen Hera." Piper interrupted.
Hera signed. "Fine. Yes. Be off with you, hunter!"
Thalia hugged her siblings one last time and then left with her Hunters.
It was finally time to return to camp but Layla still had an unanswered question.
"Jason, what happened to you here?" She asked. "I mean, after mom left you here. You said it was sacred ground for demigods. Why? What happened after we left you on your own? Do you remember?"
Jason shook his head. "It's still murky. The Wolves..."
"You were given a destiny," Hera said. "You were given into my service."
"Because you forced my mum to do that."Jason scowled. "You couldn't stand knowing Zeus had three children with her. Knowing tgst he'd fallen for her twice. I was the price you demanded for leaving the rest of my family alone."
"It was the right choice for you as well, Jason." Hera said. "The second time Zeus visited your mother, he wasn't in his greek aspect all the time. Sometimes she imagined him different. Never before had this happened- two children from the same mother, born at the same time but from a different father. Even I, the goddess of motherhood, can't explain that. You had be separated from them. This is where all demigods of your kind start their journey."
"Of his kind?" Piper asked.
"She means Roman." Jason said. "Demigod are left here. We meet the she-wolf goddess, Lupa, the same Immortal wolf that raised Romulus and Remus."
"And if you're strong enough you live." Hera nodded.
"But..." Leo looked at the goddess and Jason confused. "What happened after that? I mean, Jason never made it to camp."
"Not to camp half-blood, no." Hera agreed.
"You went somewhere else." Layla realized. "That's where you've been all these years. Somewhere alse for demigods- but where?"
"The memories are coming back, but not the location." Jason replied. He then turned to the goddess. "You're not going to tell me, are you?"
"No." Hera said. "That part is your destiny, Jason. You must find your own way back. But when you do... you will unite two great powers. You will give us hope against the giant's, and more importantly- against Gaia herself."
"You want us to help you, don't you?" Layla turned to the goddess. "How are we supposed to do that if you're holding back information?"
Hera decided to say one of those useless things gods always say and annoy demigods. "Giving you answers would make them invalid. That's the way of the fates. You must forge your own path for it to mean anything. Already, you four have surprised me. I would not have thought it possible... " She shook her head. "Suffice to say, you have performed well, demigods. But this is only the beginning. Now you must return to Camp half-blood, where you will begin planning for the next phase."
"Which you won't tell us about." Jason grumbed. "And I suppose you destroyed my nice storm spirit horse, so we'll have to walk home?"
"Storm spirits are creatures of chaos. I did not destroy that one, you are probably going to see it again one day." Hera said.
"Let's hope not." Layla murmured. "Annoying, arrogant horse looking spirit."
Hera waved the comment aside. "I have an easier way home for you. As you've done me a great service, so I can help you- at least this once. Farewell, demigods, for now."
Suddenly, the world started spinning so fast, Layla closed her eyes to avoid blacking out.