"BY THE ORDER of the Olympians," a loud voice resonated across Mount Olympus, "the pardoned Aera Kim shall be escorted back to Camp Half-Blood by Percy Jackson, upon which she shall be placed under careful surveillance for an indefinite measure of time..."
Aera blinked and Aphrodite had vanished from where she stood before. House arrest? How glamorous. She should've known she wouldn't have been let off eye-bag-free. Aera rubbed the tear stains off her face, where her mother had placed her sickly soft fingers. Her nauseating talk with Aphrodite about love and her sisters and all that godly mushy crap had made her skin crawl. She was being pressured into take the fall for her sister. Now it was decreed that she was going to be shepherded out by a fish. Perfect. Just perfect.
Nature spirits, immortals, and minor gods and goddesses all crowded the streets of the now rubbled divine city, shooting scornful glances, muttering, and whispering. None in Mount Olympus spared Aera a friendly gaze. Their hearts all beat at erratic paces, generating discord everywhere Aera went. It made everything else inaudible. But it wasn't hard to tell what their opinion of her was. There were so many people closing in around her, hurling questions and insults and demands. Some immortal even came over and spat on the ground in front of her.
Those who lived on Olympus were supposed to be at the highest order of the world. And yet Aera felt like a washed up child-star who had been arrested for going off the rails and the inhabitants of Mount Olympus were her bloodthirsty paparazzi.
Aera had never felt more isolated. Luke was dead and so was Silena, the two people she loved the most. Kronos had disappeared. His army was dissolved and most had been forced into hiding to avoid the wrath of the Olympians. Aera no longer had a purpose.
Percy kept his disgusting sea urchin claw steadily on her shoulder as he ushered Aera forward. He knocked over deities when they got too close and ordered everyone to stay back. Aera was too drained to protest, hanging her head low as they traversed the seemingly endless path out.
Their awkward ride in the elevator was the single most embarrassing minute of Aera's entire life. The music was awful—Neil Diamond or something. Neither of them exchanged a word. Percy kept pretending to have a poker face, but he also kept shooting glances at Aera through the corner of his eye and clearing his throat.
Kill me. Aera wished she had died, not Luke, just so she didn't have to be stuck there in that elevator with that anglerfish.
When they finally arrived at the lobby of the Empire State Building, it felt like a millennia had passed. There, a middle-aged white man and a woman were arguing with a bald security guard.
"I'm telling you," the woman yelled, "we have to go up! My son—" Then she saw Percy and her eyes widened. "Percy!" She hugged him so tight Aera heard the jump in his pulse. Now she really wanted to die.
Aera had never seen Percy's mother before. She had always imagined his mom as something of an algae-ridden shark, a mortal as crusty and salty as the sea god she courted. Instead, since the universe just despised her that much, Sally Jackson was a strikingly beautiful woman.
Her blue eyes sparkled and changed tints in the light. Her hair was long and brown with a few streaks of grey but her bright smile made her look a lot younger than she probably was. And her skin was, like, perfect and dewy and moisturized, not dull and saggy like an old person's at all. It was just not fair.
"We saw the building light up blue," Ms. Jackson gushed, out of breath. "But then you didn't come down. You went up hours ago!"
"She was getting a bit anxious," the man beside her explained. He had salt and pepper hair and the air of a snooty college professor. Who was this? Her sugar daddy?
"I'm all right," Percy promised. "Everything's okay now."
After Ms. Jackson completed a thorough check to make sure her precious Percy pookins was alright and unharmed, that was when she noticed Aera.
"You must be Aera," she said stiffly, regarding her with an expression of tension. "The demigod lieutenant of the Titan."
Aera's internal sirens went off.
"Hey, mom, it's—" Percy was cut off when Ms. Jackson suddenly stepped out from behind her son and surged forward.
Aera braced herself. She and Percy had been rivals for years. How many times had she tried to kill Percy? How many times had she sabotaged his life, harmed his loved ones, and tried to steal his happiness? If his mother was going to get revenge for all the pain she had caused him, Aera knew she deserved that and more.
But when Ms. Jackson reached her, she did something that really shocked Aera.
She hugged Aera.
"Well done," Ms. Jackson murmured, squeezing her affectionately. "You did it." Ms. Jackson took both of Aera's hands in hers, eyes shining with tears. "It must have been so scary. You must have wanted to give up so many times. Does it feel a little better now that it's over?"
The motherly affection radiating off Ms. Jackson made it difficult to function. She didn't look at Aera like she was the Ravager of Olympus or the traitor of Camp Half-Blood. She looked at Aera as though she were Percy's classmate, a teenager, a 16-year-old girl and not someone who had almost razed the world to the ground.
Aera was stunned. Her voice got trapped in her throat so she mustered a weak nod.
"Oh, my." Ms. Jackson gasped, brushing Aera's hair behind her ear. "You're much prettier than they say. Inside and out. You, Aera, are the true beauty of Olympus."
Despite the fact that Aera had blood all over her ripped clothing and frazzled hair, acne on her cheeks, stomach flab, and more flaws than ever before, Ms. Jackson gave Aera a smile that disintegrated all of that—a smile that told her she was worthy.
Aera broke down crying. It was too much. She didn't care that Percy, who was her arch nemesis, and this random man, who was maybe Ms. Jackson's sugar daddy, were watching her. She didn't care that the gods were probably still frowning down on her from Olympus, as were countless deities for what she had did.
Aera had never felt the warm embrace of a mother. She envied Percy to the Underworld and back for having one; a mother who could hug him when he was scared, a mother who was his safe place.
So while Ms. Jackson cradled Aera in her arms as she cried like a child, Aera realized that her efforts for Kronos and everything this rebellion stood for had been misguided. What Aera had been striving for all this time wasn't power or respect or even love. What Aera had wanted to death was to be understood.
Why was that so hard for them to understand?
There was a chilling three minute silence before Silena's message settled in. Then everyone in the bunker started asking questions all at once. Silena was the spy? She fed Kronos information? Did Luke force you to serve Kronos? Did they blackmail you? So are you a traitor or not?
"Wait a minute!" Nyssa said, holding two burned, calloused hands out. "If Aera was held against her will, that means Silena was the real lieutenant of Kronos all along! She made Aera cover up for her so she could secretly be on both sides!"
Her siblings joined her in her riot.
"What a snake!"
"I knew there was a reason I never liked her!"
"How could Silena do that to her own siblings? Jolina was her head counselor!"
"She's horrible!"
Aera went numb. For a few seconds, she wasn't even sure she was breathing or that her heart was beating. Her whole body was disoriented; all five of her senses were so overloaded they failed to process the environment that surrounded her.
This had never happened before. Aera was always on alert, always on guard. Being a demigod with ADHD made you restless but it also made you extremely aware of the details of your surroundings. Now it felt as though something had clogged up her pores, her foundation caking, her hair clumped up in too much hairspray.
Then Jason suddenly entered Aera's limited scope of vision, his blue eyes darkened in concern, his eyebrows furrowed. He set a hand on her shoulder, leaning down to whisper, "Are you okay?"
Aera didn't hear him.
Chiron was stomping his hoof on the ground to get the demigods' attention but it was no use. It was the walk of shame out of Mount Olympus all over again. Only this time, they had shifted their center of derision to somebody else, somebody Aera couldn't bear to see dragged through the mud. She snapped out of her daze.
Before anyone could gather what she was doing—before she could gather what she was doing—Aera swiped the disk out of the CD player and hurled it at the ground. When the disk shattered, Aera slammed her foot into the shards multiple times until the hundreds of pieces were small enough to swallow.
That got their attention at once. Everyone froze, gawking at her.
"A-Aera?" Piper stammered, the most tongue-tied Aera had seen her. "What did you just do?"
Aera exhaled, imagining a makeup wipe removing all emotion off her face as she faced the rest of the demigods. "This video is fake."
The campers rose up in protests again.
"Fake? How could it be fake?"
"Leo made it up," Aera lied.
"Me?" Leo's eyes bugged out.
"You were the only demigod who knew about this bunker," Aera said, stringing something together on the spot. "Silena's the daughter of Aphrodite. How could she get in here if it was built for children of Hephaestus?"
"I-I-I-what?" he stuttered.
"It might have been a joke," Aera continued, crossing her arms and pretending to be accusatory, "but it wasn't a very funny one."
Leo glanced at Jason and Piper desperately. "Wait, guys, I swear, I never—"
Annabeth came toward Aera, a brutal expression on her face. "You're lying."
Her intense grey eyes frayed her nerves. Aera clenched her fists. "I am not—"
"You're doing that thing where your eyes don't match your mouth."
Aera opened her mouth to retort. Annabeth cut her off.
"If Silena is the real culprit," Annabeth said firmly, "everyone deserves to know the truth." She spoke without pity or regret or sadness like this was just another logical problem for her to resolve and get over with.
"Yeah..." Nyssa agreed, but she sounded much more sheepish than before, "...she made you do it." Some other reluctant hums of agreement arose.
Aera had never despised Camp Half-Blood more than in that moment. If it had been anyone else, Aera wouldn't have cared. But this was Silena. Her sister.
She suppressed some biting comments. "Let's get one thing straight here. I betrayed camp. I led a rebellion to overthrow the gods. I devised plans to accomplish the Titan Lord's goals and I'm the one who saw them through. To say my sister made me do all of that is untrue and the ultimate insult."
Chiron's tail slapped the floor uncomfortably. "My dear, I advise you to give this some more—"
"Everything you heard in this bunker stays in this bunker," Aera commanded. "End of conversation."
Aera turned on her heel and stormed out the exit.
"Why's she so mad?" Aera heard Nyssa ask the others behind her. "She can clear her name with this."
"She's still the traitor of Olympus." Jake Mason put in right before the doors slammed close. "You can't expect rationality from that."
Aera closed her eyes, taking a deep breath to anchor her pulse. She had to get away from here. Yet to decide her destination, Aera was about seven feet from the entrance of the bunker when the doors flew open again and she heard Annabeth's voice say, "You are such a coward."
Aera whipped around furiously. "I'm not the one who hid behind a boy for 5 years!"
"Oh, really?" Annabeth challenged as Jason, Piper, and Leo emerged from the bunker, looking equally stressed out. "If it weren't for Luke—"
"Silena did everything she could to protect me!" Aera shouted, her patience stretched out like leggings that were too tight. "This is the only way I can protect her. You can't take that away from me, too!"
"That's not the issue here," Annabeth countered. "You should've said something, Aera. You should've told me!"
Aera felt like she had just been electrocuted. Silena's secret was something she had planned on holding onto until the Judgment Pavilion.
She had failed her sister. Aera looked away, on the dangerous verge of tears—out of frustration, out of guilt, it didn't matter. But she knew one thing: she could not cry in front of Annabeth, of all people. She would never be able to live that down.
"Annabeth," Jason warned. "She was in a tough spot. Watch what you're saying."
"We all were," Annabeth said tartly. "It was war. Everyone learns to deal with their losses."
"It's different for everyone," Piper said in a soothing voice. "Aera doesn't feel things the same way you do. When it gets too much, she turns off her emotions to stay in control of her heart. She hasn't been able to properly grieve yet."
Annabeth hesitated, Piper's charmspeak washing over her. Then she shook her head. "That's her doing. I tried to make amends after the war. I tried to reach out to her. She doesn't want to fix things!"
"It's not that easy," Leo mumbled. "Organic life forms can't be fixed like a machine."
"That doesn't mean she has to take the fall for someone else!"
"Annabeth," Piper interjected.
"Why do you even care?" Aera snapped. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Jason slip away, disappearing back into the forest in the direction of camp. She didn't have time to ponder it as Annabeth got right in Aera's face.
"You don't even regret what you did," Annabeth spat, "so stop pretending to be a martyr! I've spent the last seven months rebuilding what you destroyed while you were gods-know-where, involving yourself with lovers and drowning yourself in luxury just so you could avoid the consequences of your own actions. I can't even search for Percy right now because I'm stuck here cleaning your mess!"
"They were putting maggots in my bed!" Aera recalled bitterly. "Someone wrote 'Aera is a traitor' on the door of Cabin Ten in centaur's blood. For the first month after the war, I couldn't go anywhere without Chiron or everyone would start fights with me. They have a whole cabin dedicated to taking care of Ethan Nakamura, but Argus could barely keep the angry campers out of the infirmary while I recovered! And it's always been this way! I've never been welcome here!"
"That's not an excuse! The one thing that was asked of you after the war was to stay quietly at camp and you couldn't even do that!"
"My sister and my boyfriend had just died!" Aera protested, her pent up anger spilling over. "And in the most brutal ways possible! You don't get it! What was I supposed to do? Stay here at camp, wallowing in their memories and torturing myself every day?"
"Silena and Luke were my family, too!" Annabeth cried. "I lost them, too!"
A ton of bricks seemed to hit her in the chest. Aera locked eyes with Annabeth and a barrage of memories flashed between them. Sunny days at the beach. Pampering sessions while brainstorming ways to dominate the world. Relaxing spa visits to ease stress. Group chocolate binging after every setback. Watching the fireworks together as they each shouted their most hopeful wishes.
Annabeth was the head counselor of the Athena Cabin, but Silena always had a fluffy pink pillow prepared for her in Cabin Ten. Luke had given both Aera and Annabeth their first ever sword lesson. Now, their ghosts were the only thing the two girls had in common, their last piece of common ground, and it was on the verge of crumbling forever.
Aera watched as Annabeth fell a step back, her face stoic. Piper and Leo had backed into the outer shell of Bunker 9 as though they wanted to melt into the building.
Annabeth had made up her mind, but judging from the resolute look in her stormy grey eyes, Aera wasn't going to like it one bit.
Aera finally understood what Annabeth had meant to have someone you used to love right in front of you and they felt a million miles away. Could they ever close so far a distance in this lifetime?
"Percy was right," Annabeth said, and she spoke firmly, like the words had already been carved into marble. "Keeping you here is the worst choice for everyone. You should go. Leave."
Aera got her answer. They couldn't.
Silena used to say that there was a thin line between love and hate but between Aera and Annabeth was an ocean dividing them. They stood on either shore, staring at the other across the water, longing to be reunited. But neither could or would swim that far for the other. This was their relationship. This was their tragic fate.
‧₊˚♡
Drew was absolutely livid. The second Aera explained to her what was in that video and who had seen it, she deployed every single sibling in Cabin Ten to spread rumors across camp about Gaea's uprising: a new iPhone that was demigod-compatible, the forbidden relationship between Apollo and someone in Cabin Fifteen, how Porphyrion was a complete perv—anything to deflect the attention away from Silena and what had happened last summer.
Within a few hours, Cabin Ten's gossip had infiltrated all of camp, from the demigods training on the lava climbing wall to the Demeter kids in the strawberry fields. They were all chattering about the latest of the giants and how the king of them had kidnapped Hera to get her to marry him (talk about desperate!).
"This is all that Leo kid's fault!" Drew was in the middle of Cabin Ten, going on a tirade about how immature he was, even though she and Leo were the same age. "He showed that video to everyone!"
Aera watched Drew pace angrily in front of her. Just five minutes ago, Aera had the clairvoyance to order Lacy and Mitchell to keep the rest of the campers at the amphitheater so that there was no one around but her to witness the wrath of Drew Tanaka. She was glad she did. Drew flying off the designer handbag handle was all but pretty.
"Leo didn't know," Aera said impassively, fiddling with Jason's necklace on her chest. "He didn't watch the video beforehand."
Drew launched into another fervent rant. "Those insufferable Hephaestus kids won't keep their mouths shut! I know they won't! They hold a grudge against us just because Mom didn't want to marry their dad! Ugh, and we were doing so good making everyone forget last summer! We did a fashion show with all the trendiest armor in the shed, we bedazzled Cabin Five's spears, we baked cookies and served everyone hot chocolate in cute little Mrs. Clause outfits—do you even know how exhausting it was to finally convince Chiron to let us do the Jingle Bell Rock number from Mean Girls? He said it was too age-inappropriate! And now—and now...UGH! That good-for-nothing, rotten Leo Valdez!"
Drew's chest rose and fall rapidly
"Are you done?" Aera asked boredly. "If you keep that nasty frown on your face, it'll stay there forever."
Drew narrowed her eyes at Aera, super edgy and charismatic with her hot pink eyeliner, but all Aera could see was her little sister Tanaka who always wore oversized puppy sweaters, cried whenever she saw a butterfly, and had a giggly obsession with romance mangas.
"Why are you so calm about this?" Drew questioned suspiciously. "You took the blame for Silena. You regret it now?"
Aera shrugged. "I never said I did it. They just wanted more reasons to hate me." An epiphany struck her. "You're not surprised?"
"About what?"
"That Silena did it. Everyone in Cabin Ten went home to their parents when the war started. Only Silena and Jolina and her minions stayed behind at camp. It must've been confusing when you came back and everyone was gone."
"Nope," Drew answered breezily, popping the p. "I was glad nobody was here anymore. I could finally get rid of all these old-timer's outdated shoes. Did you know Jolina secretly kept a pair of Skechers under her bed the whole time she was lecturing us about never wearing sneakers?"
She did not. Aera was pretty taken aback by this. And Drew's tenacity.
"So what are you going to do now?" Drew raked the length of Aera's body with unimpressed eyes. "You're going to ditch camp again, aren't you?"
Aera smiled but it did little to ease the ache in her chest. Moving toward her bunk, she retrieved a pink cardboard box. While Drew was going full on Gossip Girl mode, Aera had packed up the last of her belongings left in Cabin Ten.
"Jolina and her minions aren't around to abuse anyone anymore," Aera said wistfully. "You've been running things fine on your own. Plus, I bet you my limited edition Hello Kitty Louis Vuitton bag Piper's going to start a new chapter for Aphrodite. I don't have a place here anymore."
Drew crossed her arms defensively. She had her black hair twisted in a "messy" bun she spent hours perfecting and was donning a white-and-gold Versace bathrobe. Aera was pretty sure that one was hers. "So you're just gonna give up?"
If anyone else had said those words to Aera, with that condescending tone and wearing her clothes, she might have shoved her hand into their chest and ripped their heart out on the spot. Aera let it go because it was Drew Tanaka and Aera always went easy on Drew Tanaka.
"You and I are the only ones who remember the history of this cabin," Aera said. "The others were too young. They don't understand Silena's role as a spy or what she did to Jolina and her minions. I'm the last of Silena's memories you have to throw out."
Those last words hurt more than Aera cared to admit.
Drew glared at her. Ignoring the burning hole in her stomach, Aera sat down on Drew's bed and played with the baby pink My Melody plushie next to the pillow.
"This is what Silena would've wanted," Aera said, maybe to Drew, maybe to herself.
"Silena would've wanted the best for you," Drew said quietly.
"This is the best..." Eyes stinging, Aera took a shaky breath. "I'm doing my best."
Drew went silent. Aera thought she had about two and a half seconds before Drew went ballistic on her for not only getting on her bed with outside clothes on, but also cuddling her favorite stuffed toy. Then Drew flung her whole body at Aera.
"You stupid, stylish martyr!" Drew wailed, burying herself into Aera's arms. "I hate you!"
To Aera's surprise, a rush of relief came over her as her younger sister sobbed into her hair. Drew was a year younger but she had grown up in the same environment as Aera. They had seen the same things, heard the same things, and endured the same things. If there was anything Aera could count on, it was that Drew understood where Aera was coming from. This comforted her more than she expected.
"You're still the same crybaby as before," Aera criticized, but held Drew close to her chest. She ignored the way her own eyes felt misty. "Is that why you wear hot pink eyeliner now, hm? So it distracts people from how swollen your eyes are?"
"You know I hate using frozen spoons to de-puff." Drew sniffled. "It's too cold!"
Aera stroked Drew's back. "Don't de-puff. Don't hide it anymore. If you're having a hard time, let someone know. You don't have to act so strong and beautiful all the time."
"That's rich, coming from you!" Drew quipped back.
She detached herself from Aera, black mascara dribbling down her cheeks in streaks. Aera took a makeup wipe from the stash on Drew's nightstand and cleaned Drew's face just like old times when Drew was a 9 year old baby and despised doing a skincare routine more than anything else in the world.
Finally, Drew couldn't take it anymore and swatted Aera's hands away, bare-faced and fresh. Aera always thought Drew was the most beautiful when she went natural. She had small but full lips like a rosebud and wide almond-shaped eyes that were so, so gorgeous.
"What about Jason?" Drew questioned.
Aera's heart traitorously skipped a beat at his name. "What about him?"
Drew shifted closer on the bed to get the tea. "He's going to settle down here, isn't he? He's a child of the Big Three. Percy's still missing so he's going to become a leader. Can you really leave Jason behind at camp?"
Aera got up and threw the makeup wipe in a pink glittery trash bin. "That's none of your business."
"Now who's hiding their feelings?"
Feeling mildly annoyed, Aera plopped back down on her bed and grabbed the My Melody plush by the ears. "You said he was just being nice out of guilt. A white savior complex."
Drew yanked her plushie away from Aera, as expected. "That was before he came to me first."
"What?"
"Oh, didn't I tell you?" Drew said as she began grooming her My Melody with her hands. "While you and Annabeth were screaming at each other in the woods—so on brand, by the way—Jason came to Cabin Ten. In broad daylight. Scared Mei out of her YSL so hard she spat out her afternoon collagen soup."
Aera was confused. "What for?"
"He told me everything that happened. He was worried about you. Said a bunch of mumbo jumbo about defending your honor and your feelings and whatever. He was scared you were going to do something drastic for Silena's sake. He asked me to look out for you." Drew crinkled her nose in disgust at Jason's necklace on Aera's chest as if it were a creepy crawly. "As if I don't already do that, telling you not to wear gold jewelry when it doesn't go with your cool-toned complexion..."
Aera fiddled with his necklace again. "Jason did that?"
"Why do you look so surprised?" Drew said with a smirk. "He's, like, a total simp. You worked your charm on him, didn't you?" Drew squealed and pinched Aera's arm teasingly. "Ooh! The ravager of hearts strikes again!"
Aera tried not to be nervous. "It's nothing."
"Totally, yeah, I'm sure." Drew's smirk grew. "I could already tell by the way he was looking at you when you guys crash-landed in the lake. You totally have him hooked around your finger."
Aera suddenly felt rosy in the face. Drew had no clue about their meeting in San Francisco, or Jason's betrayal. If Aera told her, she had the instinct Drew might cut up all his t-shirts or set his cabin on fire. She couldn't take the humiliation or Zeus smiting her for burning down his cabin.
"No," she said, "I mean, there's nothing going on between us. Jason is...barely a friend."
Drew was about to laugh again when she saw the serious look on Aera's face. "Huh?"
"Well, this was a super nice and super cathartic chat." Aera hastily got to her feet, slinging her hair behind her shoulder and kicking her box of things forward. "Sadly, I have places to be and people to bless with my divine beauty. Bye! See you at New York fashion week!"
Aera ran for the door, only to find someone standing there. She almost tripped over her own feet, which was so ungraceful and so unlike her. "J-Jason?"
"Speak of the lightning bolt," Drew teased.
Jason flushed under the doorway, stuffing both his hands in his pockets. "Hi."
His tan skin seemed to glisten and glow in the late afternoon sunlight. His watercolor blue eyes were mesmerizing. He looked so handsome and so distracting in just a t-shirt and shorts, Aera wanted to faint. Again, so unlike her.
Forcing a big smile, Aera tried not to be obvious as she manually slowed down her pulse with her powers. She played it off as fixing the necklace across her neck—Jason's necklace.
"Drew," Aera hissed, waving at her behind her back to go away. "Drew!"
"Alright, alright, I'll leave you two love birds alone!" Drew chimed, getting up from her bed. "But just remember Medusa got turned into a snake lady for doing it in a holy—"
"Get out!"
Drew cackled, sashaying out of Cabin Ten.
Then it was just Aera and Jason there and somehow Aera's heart-rate multiplied. Why was he here? To profess his undying love? To kidnap her luxury goods? To forcibly recruit her into his barbarian camp again?
Then Aera remembered she was hot and desirable so she beckoned him forward and said coolly, "You can come in."
Jason entered Cabin Ten with all the tense wariness of entering a lion's den. He peered at the lace curtains, potted carnations in the windows, and pink and seafoam green beds like there was a monster about to jump out at any second.
He nodded to something behind her. "What's with the box?"
"Oh, you know." Aera shrugged, kicking it with her foot gently. "Just some spring cleaning."
"It's December."
"The seasons revolve around us, we don't move around them," Aera snapped then cleared her throat and in a lighter, sweeter voice asked, "Anyway, did you need something?"
"No, uh..." Jason ran his hands through his hair. "I, uh, just wanted to check up on you. How are you doing?"
Check up on her? What was Aera? Like, a hospital patient?
"Peachy," she answered tonelessly. So awkward.
"That's good, yeah, that's, uh, great."
Jason scratched his head.
Aera blinked.
"So, I heard this really interesting rumor about a new iPhone that's compatible with—"
"I'm leaving," Aera blurted.
Jason hesitated.
"Finally going on that France trip you wanted, huh?" He started to grin so broadly Aera felt so bad. "Hope you enjoy it. Maybe you can tell me about The Eiffel Tower, the Notre-Dame, the Louvre Museum, and all those other geeky history things you think I'll like when you get back."
"No, I'm leaving, leaving," she clarified. "As in I'm never coming back to Camp Half-Blood."
Jason's smile instantly dropped. "Is that even allowed? I thought you were on parole."
"If they stop me, I'll just say I saved Hera and have a pass. Plus, the gods have been leaving everyone's prayers on read. I doubt they'd notice."
Jason cocked his jaw. "Can I ask why?"
Aera sniffed. "I don't like it here. The bathrooms are too dirty."
"Aera—"
"Save your breath," Aera cut him off. She already knew what he was gonna say, and she didn't want to hear it. "I don't belong here. They don't want me here."
"Hey, you don't know that," he said softly. "Maybe if you told everyone the truth—"
"I wanted them to die, Jason," Aera revealed, relishing the way his eyes widened. "I hated them. Jolina and her minions made my life at camp a living Field of Punishment. I didn't feel sorry at all when I realized what had happened. I was glad Silena had taken care of them. I still am."
"That's not your fault," he said, but Aera had heard the quiver in his voice. "It wasn't you. It was your sister."
The word 'sister' seemed to twist the knife deeper into her chest. He had defended her decision in front of Annabeth and now he was opposing her? Why was he making things so confusing?
"Why are you saying this?" Aera asked vindictively. "Because you feel sorry for me? Or is it because you feel guilty about what you did in San Francisco?" She scoffed. "Don't be. I'm sure betraying me was barely a sacrifice for your honor."
Hurt flashed in his eyes. "That's not true. I—"
"Before we left for our quest, I got rid of all of Silena's belongings and now I've destroyed the one thing she left behind for me. What else do you want me to do, Jason?"
Jason wet his lips nervously. "I want you to think this through."
Aera could hardly bear the way the color drained from his face. She had to corner him before he did. She couldn't give him an edge.
"You said you would defend my honor," Aera said, seizing the opportunity to remind him. "Silena's a part of me I can't erase. I can't have her memory ruined. She should be remembered as someone brave and selfless because that's who she was."
"Even if that's true, what you're planning to do means you'll have to carry that guilt with you forever. Guilt that isn't yours."
"They'll hate me either way!" Aera rebutted. "What difference will it make if Silena was the mastermind behind one strategy? I'm the traitor. I'm the villain. I'm the despicable person. Everything that happened is my fault. I should bear it."
Jason looked like a wounded animal, like Aera had struck him, even though she was denouncing herself. "But you don't deserve that."
Now she was seriously starting to get annoyed.
"You don't know that," Aera countered. "You don't know me at all. And I don't know you. If there's one thing this useless quest has taught me, it's that I'll always be better off alone."
Jason winced again. "You don't mean that."
Aera shook her head. "We'll never make it."
Jason drew closer to her, closer than arm's length, his pulse accelerating. "You don't know that."
"You're the son of Jupiter and one of the most powerful demigods alive. You were born to lead. Every move you make makes history. You need someone who can support you the way Hera devotes herself to Zeus and the way Penelope waited relentlessly for Odysseus. That's not me. I can't be who you need."
Those were the words Aera wanted to say, the words her heart was despairingly trying to convey. But now that they were so close, Aera caught a better glimpse of the shirt Jason was wearing. It was Luke's. Thalia must've forgotten that she left it behind in Cabin One and Jason discovered it, thinking it was his sister's.
All of her nightmares during her three and a half days of recovery had consisted of Jason dying in her arms the way Luke did.
Aera couldn't shake the image of Jason in the Wolf House, his eyes rolled back, his clothes steaming, and his heart hauntingly still, as Piper's voice desperately tried to pull him back from the Underworld. The longer they stood together, inches apart, their breaths colliding, the more monstrous her fear grew.
If Aera stayed here, every time she looked into Jason's kind blue eyes, or ran her fingers through his soft blond hair, or felt his strong, protective arms around her, she would have to remember that desperation, that hopelessness, that powerless feeling, again and again. She couldn't put herself through that pain again.
It would really destroy her this time.
Her pride won a stale victory.
Aera said plainly, "I'm a Greek and you're a Roman." Jason flinched like she had just pressed a sizzling curling wand to his skin. "Isn't that enough?"
"Don't do this." Jason shook his head miserably and her heart cracked at the sight of his desperate eyes. "Please, Aera. It's not safe out there."
His voice was nothing like the powerful commander of a Roman legion or the son of Zeus, just a scared little boy who received more damage than he ever deserved.
"Where are you even gonna go—" He reached for Aera's hand, but Aera did what she did best. She went straight for the heart.
"We were born to destroy each other," she said coldly. The anguish in his eyes intensified. "Meeting you might have been fate, but my fate is full of curses. You're just another one of them."
A battle of anger, sadness, and remorse clashed across Jason's face. Deep down, Aera knew what she was doing was wrong, and that she would eventually regret it, but she couldn't stop. She couldn't be here anymore.
Jason didn't want her. He didn't know what he was getting himself into by falling for her. She knew he didn't. Aera poisoned everyone she touched.
"I still stand by what I said before," Jason stated after a moment. He seemed to have regained his composure in a short moment but his breath still hitched slightly. "If leaving is what you really want, I won't stop you. I won't track you down again. Just because I can't convince you to stay by my side doesn't mean I want to keep you close by force. But you have to know..." His eyes softened again and Aera nearly caved in. "You have to know, Aera, that I never, for a second, regretted that week in San Francisco. I never regretted meeting you."
Aera almost crumbled. She wanted so badly to throw her arms around him, kiss his forehead, tell him she was so, so sorry for everything she had said and done and that he was so wonderful and kind and deserving of everything good in this world and that she was a horrible person.
But she didn't.
Aera couldn't bear to look at him, so she stared at the seafoam green rug under their feet instead. That shade of green stirred a memory of hers.
Once, a long, long time ago, Percy Jackson had demanded to know the reason why Aera broke away from her friends, her family. He had confronted her on Mount Tam, where her army of monsters were marching up the side of the mountain. The palace was rising, brick by brick. Artemis was trapped under the weight of the sky. The demigods were no match for Atlas the general. He was a Titan. All Aera had to do was take out Percy. If he wasn't going to cooperate in summoning the Ophiotaurus for them to sacrifice, she would just have to sacrifice his guts.
"Everyone thinks I'm hiding behind someone else," she answered as she slashed at him. "If it wasn't Luke, it would've been me. If it wasn't you, it would've been me. I am sick of being in your shadows. This world will know my name. If I can't be loved, then I'll be feared."
Percy clashed swords with her, pressing her with more strength than she'd expected. He shook his head bitterly, glowering at her with something she had never seen in his bright sea green eyes, which had always peered at her with admiration and wonder. It was revulsion.
"You're the best at emotions," he growled. "So why can't you feel how loved you are?"
In that moment, Aera wondered if Jason had the same impression of her as Percy did. She wondered if everyone could see right through her. She wondered if everyone knew what a weak and ugly person she was.
That harrowing thought was terrifying enough for Aera to leave Jason in the middle of the Cabin Ten alone without another word, battling her own tears and acting like fighting in a one-woman-army on the frontlines of her own fear ground wasn't causing any casualties to her happiness.
She walked away from him and his overtly straitlaced personality, overbearing sense of justice, the little white scar on his lip, and all the other perfect imperfections she had come to appreciate about him, and vaguely wished that one day, she would have the courage to tell him all of that.
For now, Aera had nowhere to go. She was pretty much a fashionably dressed hobo at this point. Going to her mortal father's house would only stir up another disaster. Piper's dad had shown her this. She didn't have any mortal friends she could crash with either. Her feet took her to the only other place she felt safe in.
The cliffs.
The cliffs of Long Island Sound were an area secluded by the woodlands. It stood tall and imposing, like the proud posture of a haughty supermodel, reaching towards the sky with rugged edges weathered by time. As the sun dipped into the horizon, its golden rays bathed the crystal clear waters of the lake in a warm, amber glow.
Before, Aera used to come here all the time to train, back when nobody saw her as a formidable opponent. The memories of her earliest struggles lingered like cheap perfume.
The relics of the past consisted of a barely holding-together practice dummy, indents in the fluff-littered dirt where Aera had drawn portraits of her favorite hero hunks with a stick, and a blue water bottle.
Aera picked up the water bottle from the large grey boulder, turning it over in her hands. It was nothing special, just a plastic cylinder with a flip-top lid.
Everyday when Aera was satisfied with her practice, sweaty and tired and in a frenzy to freshen up before Jolina caught her looking like a hosed down flower and gave her a 30, that bottle would be filled to the brim with cold, fresh water. She couldn't remember exactly when the water bottle first appeared on the rocks, only that it had a marvelous impact on her.
Somebody had left it there for her, an admirer, she believed, someone who was rooting for her in the shadows. Whenever Aera felt discouraged, she would think about that person, and how they believed in her, and it would give her the confidence she needed to keep going.
One late evening, a sand-dusted clam shell and a handwritten note had been left next to the water bottle in her beautiful sanctuary.
Aera pried open the shell with a knife, revealing a gleaming saltwater pearl nestled within the tissue bed. The note read: "the world is your oyster and you are the perl".
That same night, Aera begged Beckendorf to fashion her a hair accessory with the pearl. She never took it off since.
Now in the present, Aera stared at her distorted reflection in the plastic bottle, which seemed to have been empty and abandoned for years. Was this really who she had become? A let down? Someone unworthy of another's trust and admiration?
Aera sunk next to the rock on that lonely cliff and broke down. She'd held it in for too long.
Aera hugged the pearl hair comb to her chest and sobbed so much she almost threw up.
How could an object that gave her so much hope be a symbol of ruin to Jason and his brethren? Was that just a sign that all she was made for was destruction?
Aera and Jason would never work out. She was the daughter of Aphrodite; she could foresee these things, drawing a roadmap of possibilities and potential.
For them, all roads led to tragedy. But why was she so sad about it? Aera hated herself for being sad. Silena's memory was in danger of becoming a caution tale and here she was feeling sorry about herself over another boy.
Aera had known Luke for nine years and dated him for two. It only took her a couple months to move on from his death—a death that she caused. She didn't even cry at his funeral. Jason was still here, within reach. She had known him for a month tops. Aera wasn't even sure she fully trusted that he wouldn't go behind her back again. So why was her heart breaking?
Aera was probably the worst person ever in the entire world. She was so hateful and evil and selfish. She had never done anything good in her life to be deserving of his love. She couldn't even rebel against the gods right. How could Aera even think about starting a new life with someone like Jason when all those innocent demigods were still fresh in their graves?
Somewhere in the middle of her totally embarrassing pity party for 1, the hairs on the back of Aera's neck raised. The trees stopped rustling and the crashing sound of the waves grew faint.
A powerful presence appeared, hovering over her.
"The fate of the world rests in your hands," said a stern, motherly voice, "and here you are, concerned that you are not good enough for a mere boy. Perhaps, I was mistaken. Perhaps you are not the Ravager of Olympus I thought you were."
"Go away!" Aera buried her face in her knees. Ugh, she so did not want to see her of all goddesses right now. What was she even doing here? Had she eavesdropped on her conversation with Jason? She was so nosy!
"This was never my first intention," Hera stated critically. "You were leagues from my choice of hero. Alas, we are caught in an unprecedented predicament. You cannot fight this alone. You must keep your friends close. They shall be your greatest allies."
Aera's sobs wracked her body so intensely she struggled to draw a steady breath. She hated herself even more for sitting on the ground, dirtying her clothes, and crying like a little kid, especially in front of the universe's most royal pain in the butt, but she couldn't help it. Aera wasn't a frequent crier but as soon as the dam crashed, the tears seemed to be an endless waterfall.
"Jolina—Annabeth—Percy—Silena—Luke—And now Jason," she hiccuped. "When is it going to be good enough for it to just be me—without needing anyone else? When am I gonna be enough on my own?"
"Child," the goddess said, for once, sounding sympathetic, "you were never meant to be alone. Those temporary stripes that were tattooed to your arm? They were not mere decoration. They forewarn your future and signify your belonging to something greater than what you could imagine—a joining of two camps, a collective from two sides, a family."
A family? Aera would've laughed in the goddess' face had she not been choking over her own tears. She was dead to this family. And so they were to her.
"I am the goddess of family," Hera continued. "And our family has been divided for too long. If we remain this way, we cannot win. Gaea is counting on this. You must unite the heroes of Olympus and sail together to meet the giants on the ancient battlegrounds of Greece. Only then will the gods be convinced to join you. It will be the most dangerous quest, the most important voyage, ever attempted by the children of the gods. Much less a known traitor."
"Why?" Aera whimpered. "Why does it have to be me?"
"It has always been you."
It could only be you, Luke's dying voice echoed in her head, twisting the knife further in her chest.
"I don't want to!" Aera shouted. "I DON'T WANT TO DO THIS ANYMORE!"
"Fate is not something you desire," Hera said, infuriatingly serene. "It is your birthright."
"My birthright?" Aera lamented, nearly hysterical. "I never asked to be born. But because I was, I have to listen to everything you say? I have to live a short, miserable life as your puppet?"
"I have done only what is necessary. I have involved you only because it was necessary."
Aera snapped her head up but she couldn't even get a clear glimpse of the world's most annoying goddess through all those waterworks. On second thought, that was probably the best for her eyesight.
"Yeah, right!" she retorted. "You voted to have me killed last summer!"
"Do not resent me, child," the goddess chided. "I have done beyond what is expected to safeguard your life. If not for I, you and the trivial dilemmas of your fickle heart would have burned to ashes in that explosion of Greek fire. You should be grateful."
"You did that so you can keep playing me as your doll!"
"The prophecy demands that we change. The giants shall rise. Each can only be killed by a god and demigod working together. Those demigods must be the eight greatest of the age. It would not do you wisely to sit here and whine like a petulant child."
"You don't understand how it feels!" Aera blubbered, not hearing half of what came out of the goddess' never-ending mouth. "You have no idea what it's like for me! You can't expect me to obey your orders when you've never once tried to understand my grief, my heartache! Five millennia have passed and you still know nothing about mortals! About loss! You hate demigods because you refuse to acknowledge our struggle. You see us as nothing but a broken oath. A decaying branch on your perfect family tree. When we suffer more in a single lifetime than you gods have in over four thousand years!"
The goddess' form flickered with power. Aera expected some horrendous punishment like zero likes on her bikini pics. But instead of turning her into a blobfish or an unfortunate girl dressed in early 2000s fashion, the goddess simply gave a dry smile, despite Aera's highly distraught, highly snot-riddled state. At least Aera assumed it was a smile (she hadn't wiped her eyes yet).
"I have that reputation, it's true," Hera admitted, her voice doused with cynicism. "But if you want the real truth, Aera, I often envy other gods as much as their mortal children. You demigods can span both worlds. I think this helps your godly parents—Aphrodite, Hephaestus, even Zeus, curse him—to understand the mortal world better than I. And I envy your liberation as a woman, your expression of sexuality, none of which are in my nature as the marriage goddess to demonstrate."
That put a stopper in Aera's hysteria. The goddess of family was capable of showing humility? Aera couldn't believe it. Did the sun rise from the west? Did they finally elect a female president?
Wanting to save what was left of her dignity, Aera wiped her eyes and got a better look at the goddess. For whatever reason, Hera seemed to have taken on the appearance of a WASP mom; a white lady with a shiny brown hair, wearing a button down blouse, neat, straight-fit denim jeans, and black ballet flats.
Aera wondered if the goddess had assumed this form to appear more earthly—because it certainly didn't help mask the wealth, power, and snootiness that radiated off her. She was dressed in casual clothing but the expensive pearls and gold jewelry she had on couldn't be ignored.
Honestly, if Aera spotted her at the shopping mall, she would to sit her tired feet down, sip some iced tea, and watch with mild amusement as Hera argued with the manager. The original Karen.
"What?" Aera sniveled. "You want me to feel sorry for you?"
"You forget I am the patron of women," Hera said airily. "Whatever doubts plague you also find a target in I."
"But you aren't a girl's girl," Aera pointed out. "You forced Jason's mom to give him up to you as a tribute, out of pure jealousy. You took him away from Thalia, his sister who loved him. Now you've wiped his memories, stolen his identity, and thrown him into enemy territory in the most ugly shade of purple ever. The horrible thing is he still believes in you—and your lack of ability to find clothes in cute colors. Jason still wants to fight for you even if it means whatever psychotic plan you've cooked up will harm him too. You don't deserve him." Aera sniffed up her snot and felt another wave of tears coming. "I don't deserve him."
Ugh, this was so damaging to her reputation. Aera could already hear those meddlesome nature spirits up on Mount Olympus gossiping about the treacherous thorn of the gods entangled with her star-crossed lover, the most noble demigod prince of Olympus. She touched Jason's necklace hanging from her neck, her fingers tracing over his last name carved into the dog tag.
It was impossible to read the goddess' expression now. What was it—amusement? Disdain? Affection? Empathy?
"I must admit," the goddess mused, "even over the course of several millennia, the potency of Aphrodite's skillfulness never ceases to astonish me."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
Hera gestured to the necklace on Aera's chest. "Jason has overcome you. You, who possesses a will that can defy very gods."
It means you always have a friend waiting for you back home.
Aera did not have enough mental energy to process the goddess' words. Her chained up heart would not allow it. "But I'm supposed to kill the Romans and their outdated choices of fashion. I'm supposed to make those stupid barbarians extinct or whatever. That's why Khione kept us together with her snowstorms."
Hera clasped her hands in front of her, a golden bangle dangling from both wrists. "That D-list goddess was relying on your mutual differences when she brought you into each other's paths. Be that as it may, I have my own reasons for bringing about this union. Your mother, Aphrodite, was also pleased for you."
Aera scoffed. "Aphrodite's never spared me a second glance."
Hera gazed down at her scornfully. "I hold little favor for Aphrodite, but you choose to remain oblivious to your mother's attentiveness."
"What attention?" Aera demanded, her anger rising to her ears, taking over her sorrow. "Aphrodite let Jolina abuse her siblings however she wanted. She made sure Silena could rest easy at my expense. She gave Piper a vial that helped mend her relationship with her dad when that same vial could've saved my grandmother. That meant my mother was always capable of caring for her children. She just didn't want to care for me."
Hera shrugged as if Aera's heavenly mommy issues were no biggie. "You shall have the opportunity to share your criticisms when you have completed what needs to be done."
"And if I don't?"
"There shall be bloodshed like we have never seen," the goddess said ominously. "Demigods shall destroy one another. The giants shall overrun Olympus. Gaea shall wake, and the earth shall shake off everything we have built over five millennia. It shall be the end of us all."
"What if that's what I want?" Aera questioned deviously. "What if I want the world to end?"
"Fear has always been your greatest weakness," Hera censured in the most agitating, grating voice ever. "Again, your enemies approach. And again, you avoid confrontation."
There it was again! Aera wasn't running away. Why did everyone keep saying that?
"Fine!" she barked through gritted teeth. "Show me what I'm supposed to do then!"
"Oh? So the Ravager of Olympus wishes to save the sacred grounds she sought to raze?" Hera had the nerve to mock her.
"Get over yourself!" Aera snarled. "I'm not agreeing to this stupid plan of yours because I still regret what happened with Luke or because I'm scared of what punishment awaits me after the Judgment Pavilion. I'm doing this because your idiot of a champion still believes things will work out and I would rather burn in the Fields of Punishment for an eternity than watch you gods betray him! You need all eight of us to make this work, don't you? The moment you let Jason down, you'll have to find another demigod to do your dirty work!"
"Do not bargain your life for his, foolish girl," Hera reprimanded, narrowing her green-blue eyes which were the color of peacock feathers. "Jason is worth more to the gods than you are."
"Prove it then," Aera challenged recklessly, the words spilling from her mouth without hesitation. "Use me to defend him and his place. You said the Greeks and the Romans have to work together to defeat our enemies. You gave me those awful tattoos to show that we're meant to work together. Take me back to the Romans. Let me make amends with them. Let me be the bridge instead of him."
The edges of Hera's form seemed to bristle with frustration. "You do not understand what you are asking for. The dangers you play at."
"I don't care what happens to me," Aera declared and it was dizzying how much she meant it. "Whatever it is, Jason lives. Not me. This world doesn't need to lose another good hero."
Hera considered this. Truthfully, Aera wasn't fully aware of what she was saying, only that she was saying it. People walked over bridges to get to the other side. The thought of anyone stomping on Jason in their dirty shoes was maddening to her.
"It won't be so simple," Hera said at last. "Your brash display of treachery has set us back more than you presume. Your name shall arouse the utmost of scorn among the Romans. You shall surround yourself with those who harbor the deepest grudge against you. They shall pray endlessly for your downfall and plot to see you suffer. You shall endure inevitable pain and sacrifice along the way. You may not survive. If you do, you shall never be the same again."
"So, just a normal day in the life of a demigod then."
Hera ignored her. "I made an unfavorable gamble placing my trust in you that day on the summit. The skies are watching you, child."
"That's creepy."
"As much as I would have preferred otherwise" Hera continued seamlessly, "you are destined to leave your mark on this world. Many expect highly of your abilities, but do you actually have what it takes? Are you prepared to lose what you love most?"
"What I love most?" Aera asked in confusion, now engrossed in the goddess' words for the first time. "Who? Jason?"
"No." Hera shut that thought down quickly, giving her a look. For a second, Aera almost thought Hera was about to give the godliest eye roll in history but held back, out of divine decorum.
The goddess' lips pressed into a thin line. "Oddly enough, your greatest love is not a person, or a god, or even yourself. It is your freedom, your human will. Something that has allowed you to walk wherever you like, whenever you like, even after rebelling against the highest powers that exist in this universe."
Luke had once told her something similar, something about how immortals are constrained by ancient rules. But a demigod can go anywhere, challenge anyone, as long as they have the nerve. And one thing about Aera was that she had the nerve.
"All your life you have lived with no responsibility to anyone but yourself," Hera said, which would've made Aera mad to hear if it wasn't facts. "Up until now, you have survived with no true loyalties. This dark path ahead, you cannot walk alone. Are you finally ready to give up your freedom for the good of the world?"
"Are you finally ready to stop giving cliché hero saves the world monologues?" Aera asked.
"Will you crumble under the pressure or will you finally take your place in this world the way The Fates have designed?"
"Oh, you're still going."
"Will you have enough strength to bow your head to the gods? To surrender your pride and put the good of others before your selfish desires?"
Aera blinked. Hera stared at her expectantly like she was waiting for something. Aera rolled her eyes.
"Do not heed my words so lightly," Hera chastised. "Once you have made your choice, you can never turn back."
Aera hesitated. She thought about Silena, dying in someone else's arms on the battlefield after making an unthinkable choice. She thought about Luke gripping her shoulders and begging Aera to kill him before Kronos ascended to his true form. She thought about Beckendorf, who had sacrificed his life right before her eyes without a single moment's hesitation. She even thought about Annabeth and Percy—hate those ugly sea urchins—who were supposed to have their happily ever after, only to be torn apart again.
You may not survive. If you do, you shall never be the same again.
Hadn't Aera already gone through a series of transformations the last five years? She had turned her back on her friends, wound up the ranks of the Titan army slowly but surely, watched her loved ones die, and made a last minute decision that restyled the fate of the whole universe.
If she was still the same girl that she was at the beginning, at 12 years old, barely able to pick up a sword or a contour brush, then she was probably doing it all wrong.
Aera was almost 17 years old now, presented with yet another life-altering conundrum. The trials that laid ahead would not be her death, but her rebirth, for that was the beauty of this life, always changing, always growing, always dressing up to fight another battle. She would survive this and come out of it hotter, smarter, and with a nicer body than ever. She always did.
Aera decided then. "I will."
"Then you shall have my blessing until the hour your measures betray this vow," Hera announced, waving her hand toward Aera.
As the goddess' magic took its effect, a warm drowsiness seeped through Aera's body. At the same time, her muscles felt invigorated. Her bones felt stronger. Her senses were sharpened. She could hear the faintest insect trills in the woods, taste the sharp salt in the ocean breeze on her tongue. Aera wasn't as heartbroken as she was a second ago. She was confident, more self-assured, a bright conviction burning inside her.
"In a few months," Hera foreshadowed, "you shall wake up in the Wolf House and embark on the customary path of a Roman half-blood. You shall earn their trust by becoming one of them and unite our two camps."
"In a few months?" Aera murmured, but even her own voice sounded muffled.
The drowsiness took over and Aera laid herself down on top of the boulder, her saltwater pearl comb tucked in her hair, Jason's necklace rested on her chest. As her eyelids drooped shut, the last thing she saw was Hera standing over her watchfully like a mother over her baby's crib, imagining what kind of person their child would grow up to be.
"Rest now, traitor of the gods," said the queen of Olympus, "and awaken my champion."
AUTHOR'S NOTE ♡ and that's a wrap on catharsis!! aaaaaa it's been a long time coming im so excited for the son of neptune there are still a few more things i need to play around with for the sequel of this fic but once it's done i'll update catharsis with a link letting you guys know it's here
fun fact: the name aera means 'love' in korean but aera is also hera with an a (for aphrodite) (; and my question for you guys is what was your favorite/most memorable part of catharsis? and what would you like to see in the upcoming sequel? any and all answers are allowed ! hehe i love you guys and as always, thank you all so so so soooo much for reading and i'll see you in the next update! <3