queens are excellent at treason
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Hadley wondered how long it would take for her to find where they took Percy and Frank. How many guards there would be. How fast they could run out of the warehouse. What Hazel could do since they were so far underground. Unfortunately, planning had never been a talent of hers. And even though she was a skilled fighter without her weapon, she was no match for an army of well-armed Amazons. But maybe today would be the day her mother favored her.
Hylla was armed just with a dagger- easy enough to beat- and seemed to be reading their thoughts. "Forget about escape. Of course, we'd respect you for trying. But we'd have to kill you."
"You can try," Hadley challenged instinctively.
Hazel nudged her arm. "Thanks for the warning."
Hylla shrugged. "The least I can do. I believe you come in peace. I believe Reyna sent you."
The queen studied the necklace she'd taken from Percy.
"It's complicated," she said. "Amazons have always had a rocky relationship with other demigods- especially male demigods. We fought for King Priam in the Trojan War, but Achilles killed out queen, Pentheslea. Years before that, Hercules stole Queen Hippolyta's belt- this belt I'm wearing. It took us centuries to recover it. Long before that, at the very beginning of the Amazon nation, a hero named Bellerophon killed our first queen, Otrera."
"You mean the lady-"
"-who just left, yes. Otrera, our first queen, daughter of Ares."
"Mars?" Hazel asked.
Hylla made a sour face. "No, definitely Ares. Otrera lived long before Rome, in a time when all demigods were Greek. Unfortunately, some of our warriors still prefer the old ways. Children of Ares... they are always the worst."
"The old ways..." Hazel trailed off.
Hadley had heard the rumors about Greek demigods, and Romans leaving for the Greek way of doing things. Octavian believed they were plotting against Rome. A small part of her believed it (the Greek demigods, not the evil plotting). When she first heard the rumors, she had wondered if anyone knew more about the old way of doing things, and why someone would leave the legion to pursue them.
"So the Amazons are a mix of Roman and Greek?" Hadley asked.
Hylla continued to examine the necklace- the clay beads, the probatio tablet. She slipped Reyna's silver ring off the cord and put it on her own finger. "I suppose they don't teach you about that at Camp Jupiter. The gods have many aspects. Mars, Ares. Pluto, Hades. Being immortal, they tend to accumulate personalities. They are Greek, Roman, American- a combination of all the cultures they've influenced over the eons. Do you understand?"
"I- I'm not sure," Hazel stammered. "Are all Amazons demigods?"
The queen spread her hands. "We all have some immortal blood, but many of my warriors are descended from demigods. Some have been Amazons for countless generations. Others are children of minor gods. Kinzie, the one who brought you here, is the daughter of a nymph. Ah- here she is now."
The girl with auburn hair approached the queen and bowed.
"The prisoners are safely locked away," Kinzie. "But..."
"Yes?" The queen asked.
Kinzie swallowed like she had a bad taste in her mouth. "Otrera made sure her followers are guarding the cells. I'm sorry, my queen."
Hylla pursed her lips. "No matter. Stay with us, Kinzie. We were just talking about our, ah, situation."
"Otrera," Hazel guessed. "Gaea brought her back from the dead to throw you Amazons into a civil war."
The queen exhaled. "If that was her plan, it is working. Otrera is a legend among our people. She plans to take back the throne and lead us to war against the Romans. Many of my sisters will follow her."
"Not all," Kinzie grumbled.
"Well, I don't know about you," Hadley said, "but I've never met a legend I couldn't punch."
A small smile cracked at Kinzie's face. Hadley pointed at her with a smile and Kinzie rolled her eyes.
"But Otrera is a spirit!" Hazel said. "She isn't even-"
"Real?" The queen studied Hazel carefully. "I worked with the sorceress Circe for many years. I know a returned soul when I see one. When did you die, Hazel- Nineteen twenty? Nineteen thirty?"
"Nineteen forty-two," Hazel said. "But- but I wasn't sent by Gaea. I came back to stop her. This is my second chance."
"Your second chance..." Hylla gazed at the rows of battle forklifts, now empty. "I know about second chances. That boy, Percy Jackson- he destroyed my old life. You wouldn't have recognized me back then. I wore dresses and makeup. I was a glorified secretary, an accursed Barbie doll."
Kinzie made a three-fingered claw over her heart, warding off evil.
"Circe's island was a safe place for Reyna and me," the queen continued. "We were daughters of the war goddess, Bellona. I wanted to protect Reyna from all that violence. Then Percy Jackson unleashed the pirates. They kidnapped us, and Reyna and I learned to be tough. We found out that we were good with weapons. The past four years, I've wanted to kill Percy Jackson for what he made us endure."
"But Reyna became the praetor at Camp Jupiter," Hazel said. "You became queen of the Amazons."
"Seems much better than showing people around a spa island for eternity," Hadley added.
"Maybe this was your destiny."
Hylla fingered the necklace in her hand. "I may not be queen for much longer."
"You will prevail!" Kinzie insisted.
"As the Fates decree," Hylla said without enthusiasm. "You see, Hazel, Hadley, Otrera has challenged me to a duel. Every Amazon has that right. Tonight at midnight, we'll battle for the throne."
"But... you're good, right?" Hazel asked.
Hylla managed a dry smile. "Good, yes, but Otrera is the founder of the Amazons."
"Exactly," Hadley said. "She's an old lady. Out of practice from being dead."
"I hope you're right. You see, it's a battle to the death..."
She waited for that to sink in. Hadley thought back to Gaea's other patrons and the gorgons who had tried to re-form in the Tiber.
"Even if you kill her," Hazel said, "she'll just come back. As long as Thanatos is chained, she won't stay dead."
"Exactly," Hylla said. "Otrera has already told us that she can't die. So even if I manage to defeat her tonight, she'll simply return and challenge me again tomorrow. There is no law against challenging the queen multiple times. She can insist on fighting me every night, until she finally wears me down. I can't win."
Hadley imagined Gaea with the power of the Amazon army, marching to attack New Rome. The voice from her dreams filling the cavern and commanding one of the most powerful forces in the world.
"There has to be a way," Hazel said. "Don't Amazons have... special powers or something?"
"No more than other demigods," Hylla said. "We can die, just like any mortal. There is a group of archers who follow the goddess Artemis. They are often mistaken for Amazons, but the hunters forsake the company of men in exchange for an almost endless life. We Amazons- we prefer to live life to the fullest. We love, we fight, we die."
"I thought you hated men."
Hylla and Kinzie both laughed.
"Hate men?" said the queen. "No, no, we like men. We just like to show them who's in charge."
Hadley shrugged and nodded to herself.
"But that's beside the point. If I could, I would rally our troops and ride to my sister's aid. Unfortunately, my power is tenuous. When I am killed in combat- and it's only a matter of time- Otrera will be queen. She will march to Camp Jupiter with our forces, but she will not go to help my sister. She'll go to join the giant's army."
"She can be stopped," Hadley insisted.
Hazel nodded. "When we were in Portland with our friends we killed Phineas, one of Gaea's other servants. Maybe we can help!"
The queen shook her head. "You can't interfere. As queen, I must fight my own battles. Besides, your friends are imprisoned. If I let them go, I'll look weak. Either I execute you four as trespassers, or Otrera will do so when she becomes queen."
"Well, there has to be a way to beat her and escape," Hadley argued. "Without making you look weak, that is."
Hylla's shoulders dropped as she looked at Hadley. "You are a daughter of victory, I am one of war. We are cut from the same cloth. But I don't see a way to fight this."
Hazel seemed to shrink down. "So I guess we're all dead. Me for the second time."
In the corner cage, the stallion Arion whinnied angrily. He reared and slammed his hooves against the bars.
"The horse seems to feel your dispair," the queen said. "Interesting. He's immortal, you know- the son of Neptune and Ceres."
Hazel blinked. "Two gods had a horse for a kid?"
"Long story."
"Oh." Hazel's face flushed slightly.
"This is why I barely pay attention to family trees," Hadley joked.
"He's the fastest horse in the world," Hylla said. "Pegasus is more famous, with his wings, but Arion runs like the wind over land and sea. No creature is faster. It took us years to capture him- one of our greatest prizes. But it did us no good. The horse will not allow anyone to ride him. I think he hates Amazons. And he is expensive to keep. He will eat anything, but he prefers gold."
Hadley chuckled. "Expensive taste."
"He eats gold?" Hazel asked.
She knelt down and pressed her hand against the floor. Immediately, the stone cracked. A chunk of gold the size of a plum was pushed out of the earth. Hazel stood, examining her prize."
"Unbelievable," Kinzie said. "The last girl who tried that-"
"Now has a metal arm," the queen finished. She studied Hazel with new interest, as if deciding whether or not to say more. "Hazel... we spent years hunting for this horse. It was foretold that the most courageous female warrior would someday master Arion and ride his to victory, ushering in a new era of prosperity for the Amazons. Yet no Amazon can touch him, much less control him. Even Otrera tried and failed. Two others died attempting to ride him."
Hylla's words reminded Hadley why she treads carefully around the few horses at Camp Jupiter. She wasn't scared of the animal- Hadley would never admit to such a thing- but she had seen what an angry horse could do and didn't want to be the one who lost a few fingers because she put a bridle on wrong.
Hazel put her hand through the bars again and stroked Arion's nose. He nuzzled her arm, murmuring contently, as if asking, more gold? Yum.
"I would feed you more, Arion." Hazel glanced pointedly at the queen. "But I think I'm scheduled for an execution."
Hadley laughed as Queen Hylla looked from Hazel to the horse and back again. "Unbelievable."
"The prophecy," Kinzie said. "Is it possible..?"
Hadley could almost see the gears turning inside the queen's head, formulating a plan. "You have courage, Hazel Levesque. And it seems Arion has chosen you. Kinzie?"
"Yes, my queen?"
"You said Otrera's followers are guarding the cells?"
Kinzie nodded. "I should have foreseen that. I'm sorry-"
"No, it's fine." The queen's eyes gleamed- the way Hadley's did whenever she participated in war games. "It would be embarrassing for Otrera if her followers failed in their duties- if, for instance, they were overcome by two outsiders and a prison break occurred."
Kinzie began to smile. "Yes, my queen. Most embarrassing."
"Of course," Hylla continued, "none of my guards would know a thing about this. Kinzie would not spread the word to allow an escape."
"Certainly not," Kinzie agreed.
"And we couldn't help you." The queen raised her eyebrows at the two of them. "But if you somehow overpowered the guards and freed your friends... if, for instance, you took one of the guards' Amazon cards-"
"With one click purchasing enabled," Kinzie said, "which will open the jail cells with one click."
"If- gods forbid!- something like that were to happen," the queen continued, "you would find your friends' weapons and supplies in the guard station next to the cells. And who knows? If you made your way back to this throne room while I was off preparing for my duel... well, as I mentioned, Arion is a very fast horse. It would be a shame if he were stolen and used for an escape."
A smile spread across Hadley's face and she cracked her knuckles. "I knew I'd like the Amazons."
"Queen Hylla," Hazel said. "I- I'm not much of a fighter."
"Oh, there are many kinds of fighting, Hazel." Hylla told her. "I have a feeling you're quite resourceful. Whereas Hadley is strong and fierce. And if the prophecy is correct, you will help the Amazon nation achieve prosperity. If you succeed on your quest to free Thanatos, for instance-"
"-then Otrera wouldn't come back if she were killed," Hazel said. "You'd only have to defeat her... um, every night until we succeed."
The queen nodded grimly. "It seems we both have impossible tasks ahead of us."
"But you're trusting us," said Hazel. "And I trust you."
"You're going to win," Hadley agreed. "As many times as you have to."
Hylla held out Percy's necklace and poured it into Hadley's hands.
"I hope you're right," the queen said. "But the sooner you succeed the better, yes?"
Hadley slipped the necklace into her pocket and Hazel shook the queen's hand.
"This conversation never happened," Hylla told Kinzie. "Take our prisoners to the cells and hand them over to Otrera's guards. And, Kinzie, be sure you leave before anything unfortunate happens. I don't want my loyal followers held accountable for a prison break."
"Shame," Hadley said, turning to Kinzie. "Would've loved to fight with you."
"The feeling is mutual," Kinzie grinned.
The queen smiled mischievously, and Hadley felt a small pang of sadness. She missed times like these before war games back home.
"Good-bye, Hazel Levesque, Hadley Richards," the queen said. "If we both die tonight... well, I'm glad I met you."
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we're slowly approaching the chapters
i haven't finished writing
hopefully the looming threat of posting
them will help me finish
thanks for 2k reads!