✦ ༉‧₊˚⋆˚( ⁿᵒᵗ ᶠʳⁱᵉⁿᵈˢ )˚⁺✧₊˚.*♡
🍪 — 003. we speak about gods.
"WE STARTED WITH THE twelve Olympian gods," Isa explained as she led Piper around. "Male gods on the left, female on the right. Then last year, we added a whole bunch of new cabins for the other gods who didn't have thrones on Olympus ─ Hecate, Hades, Iris, ─ "
The tour was doing alright. Piper seemed to know a bit about Greek mythology as they walked around the Camp. After getting her the new weapon and trying to reach her dad, which had failed, Isa decided to continue their tour and show her everything around, after getting George to get Annabeth to sleep a bit before campfire.
"What are the two big ones on the end?" Piper asked.
Isa frowned. "Zeus and Hera. King and queen of the gods."
Piper headed that way, and Isa followed, though she didn't act very excited. The Zeus cabin always reminded Isa of a bank. It was white marble with big columns out front and polished bronze doors emblazoned with lightning bolts. Hera's cabin was smaller but done in the same style, except the doors were carved with peacock feather designs, shimmering in different colors. Unlike the other cabins, which were all noisy and open and full of activity, the Zeus and Hera cabins looked closed and silent.
"Are they empty?" Piper asked.
Isa nodded. "Zeus went a long time without having any children. Well, mostly. Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades, the eldest brothers among the gods ─ they're called the Big Three. Their kids are really powerful, really dangerous. For the last seventy years or so, they tried to avoid having demigod children."
"Tried to avoid it?"
"Sometimes they. . . um, cheated. Thalia Grace for example, who's the daughter of Zeus. But she gave up camp life and became a Hunter of Artemis. Percy, the missing camper, he's a son of Poseidon. And there's a kid who shows up sometimes, Nico di Angelo ─ son of Hades. Except for them, there are no demigod children of the Big Three gods. At least, not that we know of."
"And Hera?" Piper looked at the peacock-decorated doors.
"Goddess of marriage." Isa rolled her eyes, "She doesn't have kids with anyone but Zeus. So, yeah, no demigods. The cabin's just honorary."
"You don't like her," Piper noticed.
"Well, after what she did to my friends, you can say so." Isa said, remembering the story and everything that happened after the Labyrinth quest, "She hates Vivi and Annabeth more. I just generally dislike her and may have told her off in one of my dreams."
"You told off a goddess."
"Not my proudest moment, but yeah."
Piper looked down the base of the doors. "So who goes in here?"
"No one. The cabin is just honorary, like I said. No one goes in."
"Someone does." Piper pointed at a footprint on the dusty threshold. On instinct, she pushed the doors and they swung open easily.
Isa stepped back. "Um, Piper, I don't think we should ─ "
"We're supposed to do dangerous stuff, right?"
And Piper walked inside.
Why was that attractive?
In all her years spent at Camp Half-Blood, Isa never step a foot in Hera's cabin and she wanted to leave immediately as soon as the two girls entered.
It was as cold as a freezer, with a circle of white columns around a central statue of the goddess, ten feet tall, seated on a throne in flowing golden robes. Hera's piercing eyes seemed to follow Piper and Isa. At the goddess's feet, a fire burned in a bronze brazier, which was odd but not that odd. A stone hawk sat on Hera's shoulder, and in her hand was a staff topped with a lotus flower. The goddess's hair was done in black plaits. Her face smiled, but the eyes were cold and calculating, as if she were saying: mother knows best. Now don't cross me or I will have to step on you. There was nothing else in the cabin ─ no beds, no furniture, no bathroom, no windows, nothing that anyone could actually use to live.
Piper froze in front of Isa, making the smaller girl stumble into her. Isa peeked from behind the girl and to where Piper's eye were darted at. They weren't alone. Behind the statue, at a little altar in the back, stood a figure covered in a black shawl. Only her hands were visible, palms up. She seemed to be chanting something like a spell or a prayer.
"For fucks sake, Rachel!"
The other girl turned. She dropped her shawl, revealing a mane of curly red hair and a freckled face that didn't go with the seriousness of the cabin or the black shawl at all. She wore a green blouse and tattered jeans covered with marker doodles. Despite the cold floor, she was barefoot.
"Hey!" she ran to give Isa a hug. Isa may not be close to Rachel as Annabeth and Vivi are, but being around them a lot, the girl got to know their oracle a bit more, "How are you? Any signs of Percy?"
Isa sadly shook her head, "No," she said, "But we found three new demigods, one of them is this pretty lady beside me."
Rachel grinned slightly at Isa.
"Rachel, this is Piper," Isa said, rolling her eyes at the redhead, "Piper, this is Rachel Elizabeth Dare, our oracle."
"The friend who lives in the cave," Piper guessed.
Rachel grinned. "That's me."
"So you're an oracle?" Piper asked. "You can tell the future?"
"More like the future mugs me from time to time," Rachel said. "I speak prophecies. The oracle's spirit kind of hijacks me every once in a while and speaks important stuff that doesn't make any sense to anybody. But yeah, the prophecies tell the future."
"Oh." Piper shifted from foot to foot. "That's cool."
Rachel laughed. "Don't worry. Everybody finds it a little creepy. Even me. But usually I'm harmless."
"You're a demigod?"
"Nope," Rachel said. "Just mortal."
"Then what are you. . ." Piper waved her hand around the room.
Rachel's smile faded. "Just a hunch. Something about this cabin and Percy's disappearance. They're connected somehow. I've learned to follow my hunches, especially the last month, since the gods went silent."
"Went silent?" Piper asked.
Rachel frowned at Isa. "You haven't told her yet?"
"I was getting to that, eventually," Isa said. "Piper, for the last month. . . well, it's normal for the gods not to talk to their children very much, but usually we can count on some messages now and then. Some of us can even visit Olympus. Annabeth, for example, spent practically all semester at the Empire State Building."
"Excuse me?"
"The entrance to Mount Olympus these days."
"Oh," Piper said. "Sure, why not?"
"Annabeth was redesigning Olympus after it was damaged in the Titan War," Rachel explained. "She's an amazing architect. You should see the salad bar ─ "
"And starting about a month ago, Olympus fell silent." Isa cut the red-head off making Rachel stuck her tongue out. "The entrance closed, and no one could get in. Nobody knows why. It's like the gods have sealed themselves off. Even my mom, who usually always visits her children, doesn't answer me, and our camp director, Dionysus, was recalled."
"Your camp director was the god of. . . wine?"
"Yeah, it's a ─ "
"Long story," Piper guessed. "Right. Go on."
"That's it, really," Isa shrugged, "Demigods still get claimed, but nothing else. No messages. No visits. No sign the gods are even listening. It's like something has happened ─ something really bad. Then Percy disappeared."
"And Jason showed up on our field trip," Piper supplied. "With no memory."
"Who's Jason?" Rachel asked.
"My ─ " Piper stopped herself and Isa watched her curiously, "My friend. But didn't Hera sent Vivi a dream vision."
"Yup," Isa said. "The first communication from a god in a month, and it's Hera. . . again, I have nothing against her, just. . . we're not on the same page. Anyways, she told Vivi she'll find out what happened to Percy if she goes to the Grand Canyon skywalk and look for a guy with one shoe. And we find you guys, but no Percy."
"Something bad is happening," Rachel agreed. She looked at Piper and Isa watched as Piper didn't meet Rachel's eye.
"Guys," Piper said. "I-I need to ─ "
Before Piper could continue, Rachel's body stiffened. Her eyes began to glow with a greenish light, and she grabbed Piper by the shoulders. Isa saw Piper trying to get away, but Rachel's hands were like steel clamps. It was never a good idea to touch an Oracle while they're speaking.
Free me, she said. But it wasn't Rachel's voice. It sounded like an older woman, speaking from somewhere faraway, down a long, echoing pipe. Free me, Piper McLean, or the earth shall swallow us. It must be by the solstice.
Green smoke enveloped Piper and Rachel, and Isa couldn't really make out their figures. She could only hear the same echoing voice: Our enemies stir. The fiery one is only the first. Bow to his will, and the irking shall rise, dooming us all. FREE ME!
Piper's knees buckled, and she fell to the floor unconscious.
"So. . ."
Jason felt like he didn't belong here. That was his first thought. The second was that the girl who was taking him to The Big House ( he wanted to ask what that was ) was one of the prettiest girls he had seen ( or, at least, remembered seeing ). The bow she was holding disappeared and transformed ( could he say it like that? ) into a pair of sunglasses she put on her head. Her hair laid straight, black, almost shinning in the afternoon sun, touched her shoulders; and her skin pale, but somehow tan, making her even more beautiful.
"How rude of me," the girl said and laughed, and Jason thought that was music to his ears, "I'm Freya Zabini, daughter of Tyche, goddess of of luck, chance, destiny, and fortune."
"Jason. . . um, I don't remember the last name."
"That's okay, don't worry." Freya said calmly, like Jason was no threat.
"Mind if I ask, but who was that girl?" the blonde boy asked.
"Which one," Freya said, "You were surrounded by a lot of them."
Jason awkwardly scratched the back of his neck, "Um, the one that called Piper. . ."
"Oh, Drew," Freya nodded, her hands swaying behind her back, "She's the daughter of Aphrodite. I don't really know her that well, nor I want to. From stories and gossips I heard since I was at this Camp, she's a person you don't want to mess with."
"Right. . ."
"But don't be scared of her. Give her some eyeliner or perfumes and you'll be on her good side, she loves those."
"How long have you been here, I mean, at the Camp." Jason asked, looking down at the daughter of Tyche.
"I came when the Labyrinth opened," Freya said more to herself then to Jason, "Then there was the war and now this. . . about year and a half."
Jason nodded slowly, processing what she said.
"Maybe you'll be claimed tonight," Freya said. She looked as Jason and tilted her head, "Maybe Apollo, you have the same hair as Will, or maybe. . . I don't know. I didn't know when my mother claimed me. . . Who do you think is your godly parent, dad or mom?"
"Does it matter who my godly parent is?"
"No, of course not!" Freya smiled, "I'm curious. I haven't been claimed for long, only after the war. That was the deal."
"But, aren't all gods related? Does that mean we all are?"
The girl laughed slightly, "Hades no! Gods may be related, but that doesn't stand for their off springs. They don't have DNA, so technically, you're only related to other children of your godly parent. Got it?"
"So, if someone who you like has the same godly parent. . ."
"You can't date them silly," Freya said, "Oh, here we are!"
A four-story manor painted baby blue with white trim stood in front of them. The wraparound porch had lounge chairs, a card table, and an empty wheelchair. Wind chimes shaped like nymphs turned into trees as they spun.
Then, a sound of hooves got their attention. Rounding the corner of the porch was a man on horseback. Except he wasn't on horseback ─ he was part of the horse. From the waist up he was human, with curly brown hair and a well-trimmed beard. He wore a T-shirt that said World's Best Centaur, and had aquiver and bow strapped to his back. His head was so high up he had to duck to avoid the porch lights, because from the waist down, he was a white stallion.
"Chiron!"
The centaur smiled at Freya, then stared at Jason like he had seen a ghost, color draining from his face, "You. . . You should be dead."
"Sorry, what?" Freya's eyes widened.
"Freya, go to your cabin," Chiron said, still looking at Jason.
"Chiron ─ "
"You're dismissed."
With a huff, Freya left towards archery area, glaring back at Chiron as he escorted Jason inside The Big House.
Isa thinks she screamed more then Piper when the said girl feel unconscious. Rachel stared down at the girl, looking at her hands like she didn't understand what had happened. The door of Hera's cabin flung open and Vivi, Annabeth and George looked at three girls with confused and worry expressions.
"What happened?" Vivi asked, "I heard your scream from Hermes' cabin!"
"Rachel, green mist, Piper, vision," Isa rambled, her hands shaking as she kneeled beside the girl, "We ought to help her. She needs to see Chiron."
With a help from George, he and Rachel grabbed a hold of Piper, each of her arms around their shoulders. Vivi and Annabeth helped Isa stand up, daughter of Hermes taking her shaking hands as they led her out of the cabin. The group walked as fast as they could to The Big House, with receiving a lot of confused and curious looks, but none of them cared. Piper needed to be treated, that's all that mattered in the moment.
Annabeth flung the front door opened and Rachel and George dragged Piper in between them. Chiron and Jason's eyes widened, and the blonde stood up, rushing towards them.
"What happened?" he said. "What's wrong with her?"
"Hera's cabin," Isa gasped, "Vision. Bad."
Rachel looked up with tear stained cheeks. "I think. . ." she gulped. "I think I may have killed her."
"We've got to heal her," Jason insisted. "There's a way, right?"
Chiron put his hand on her forehead and grimaced. "Her mind is in a fragile state."
"I can't even heal her," Isa muttered, "Chiron, I can't heal her!"
"Easy, Isa, everything is going to be alright," Chiron said, patting the dark haired girl's head, "Rachel, what happened?"
"I wish I knew," she said. "As soon as I got to camp, I had a premonition about Hera's cabin. I went inside. Isa and Piper came in while I was there. We talked, and then ─ I just blanked out. Isa said I spoke in a different voice."
"A prophecy?" Chiron asked.
"No. The spirit of Delphi comes from within. I know how that feels. This was like long distance, a power trying to speak through me."
George ran in with a leather pouch.
"Chiron, what happened back there ─ I've never seen anything like it." Isa said, "I've heard Rachel's prophecy voice. This was different. She sounded like an older woman. She grabbed Piper's shoulders and told her ─ "
"To free her from a prison?" Jason guessed.
Isa stared at Jason. "How did you know that?"
Chiron made a three-fingered gesture over his heart, like a ward against evil. "Jason, tell them. George, the medicine bag, please."
The boy handed the centaur the bag.
Chiron trickled drops from a medicine vial into Piper's mouth while Jason explained what had happened when the room froze ─ the dark misty woman who had claimed to be Jason's patron. When he was done, no one spoke.
"So does this happen often?" he asked. "Supernatural phone calls from convicts demanding you bust them out of jail?"
"Your patron," Annabeth said. "Not your godly parent?"
"No, she said patron. She also said my dad had given her my life." Vivi and Annabeth frowned. "I've never of heard anything like that before. You said the storm spirit on the skywalk ─ he claimed to be working for some mistress who was giving him orders, right? Could it be this woman you saw, messing with your mind?"
"I don't think so," Jason said, "If she were my enemy, why would she be asking for my help? She's imprisoned. She's worried about some enemy getting more powerful. Something about a king rising from the earth on the solstice ─ "
Annabeth turned to Chiron. "Not Kronos. Please tell me it's not that."
The centaur looked miserable. He held Piper's wrist, checking her pulse. At last he said, "It is not Kronos. That threat is ended. But. . ."
"But what?" Annabeth asked.
Chiron closed the medicine bag. "Piper needs rest. We should discuss this later."
"Or now," Jason said. "Sir, Mr. Chiron, you told me the greatest threat was coming. The last chapter. You can't possibly mean something worse than an army of Titans, right?"
"Oh," Rachel said in a small voice. "Oh, dear. The woman was Hera. Of course. Her cabin, her voice. She showed herself to Jason at the same moment."
"Hera?" Annabeth's snarl was even fiercer than Seymour's. "She took you over? She did this to Piper?"
"I think Rachel's right," Jason said. "The woman did seem like a goddess. And she wore this-this goatskin cloak. That's a symbol of Juno, isn't it?"
"It is?" Vivi scowled. "I've never heard that."
Chiron nodded reluctantly. "Of Juno, Hera's Roman aspect, in her most warlike state. The goatskin cloak was a symbol of the Roman soldier."
"So Hera is imprisoned?" Rachel asked. "Who could do that to the queen of the gods?"
Annabeth crossed her arms. "Well, whoever they are, maybe we should thank them."
"Maybe send flowers as a thank you gift." Vivi added.
"Annabeth, Vivi" Chiron warned, "she is still one of the Olympians. In many ways, she is the glue that holds the gods' family together. If she truly has been imprisoned and is in danger of destruction, this could shake the foundations of the world. It could unravel the stability of Olympus, which is never great even in the best of times. And if Hera has asked Jason for help ─ "
"Fine," Annabeth grumbled. "Well, we know Titans can capture a god, right? Atlas captured Artemis a few years ago. And in the old stories, the gods captured each other in traps all the time. But something worse than a Titan. . . ?"
Jason looked at the leopard's head. "Hera said she'd been trying to breakthrough her prison bonds for a month."
"Which is how long Olympus has been closed," George said. "So the gods must know something bad is going on."
"But why use her energy to send me here?" Jason asked. "She wiped my memory, plopped me into the Wilderness School field trip, and sent you a dream vision to come pick me up. Why am I so important? Why not just send up an emergency flare to the other gods ─ let them know where she is so they bust her out?"
"The gods need heroes to do their will down here on earth," Rachel said. "That's right, isn't it? Their fates are always intertwined with demigods."
"That's true," Vivi said, "but Jason's got a point. Why him? Why take his memory?"
"And Piper's involved somehow," Rachel said. "Hera sent her the same message ─ Free me. And, Vivi, this must have something to do with Percy's disappearing."
Vivi fixed her eyes on Chiron. "Why are you so quiet, Chiron? What is it we're facing?"
"Chiron," Annabeth said, stepping forward, "What is it?"
The old centaur's face looked like it had aged ten years in a matter of minutes. The lines around his eyes were deeply etched. "My dear, in this, I cannot help you. I am so sorry."
Annabeth blinked. "You've never. . . you've never kept information from me. Even the last great prophecy ─ "
"I will be in my office." his voice was heavy. "I need sometime to think before dinner. Rachel, will you watch the girl? Call Argus to bring her to the infirmary, if you'd like. And Vivi, Annabeth, you should speak with Jason. Tell him about-about the Greek and Roman gods."
"But. . ."
The centaur turned his wheelchair and rolled off down the hallway. Annabeth's eyes turned stormy. She muttered γαμημένος κένταυρος, which made Isa laugh slightly.
"I'm sorry," Jason said. "I think my being here ─ I don't know. I've messed things up coming to the camp, somehow. Chiron said he'd sworn an oath and couldn't talk about it."
"What oath?" Annabeth demanded. "I've never seen him act this way. And why would he tell me to talk to you about the gods. . ."
Her voice trailed off. Isa followed where she was looking, and she just noticed a golden sword sitting on the coffee table. She touched the blade gingerly, like it might be hot. Vivi was by her side in a second.
"Is this gold?" Vivi said, tracing her finger over the blade. "Do you remember where you got it?"
"No," Jason said. "Like I said, I don't remember anything."
Annabeth nodded, like she'd just come up with a rather desperate plan. "If Chiron won't help, we'll need to figure things out ourselves. Which means. . . Cabin Fifteen. Isa, do you want to come?"
"No thank you," she said, "I'll stay with Piper here."
niki speaks!
finally updated this!! i'm so happy about it.
we're slowly starting to get into this book
and the relationship between characters
and honestly i can't wait.
but also,
MIDNIGHTS!!
hello!??
ms taylor outdid herself,
i'm in love
you're on your own kid has to be my fav
as well as anti-hero
have a nice day/night!
bye!