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18. Medea
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Lorna and Piper cornered the princess as Jason and Leo went off to check out the living fur coats.
"You want them shopping for their deaths?" Piper demanded.
"Mmm." The princess blew dust off a display case of swords. "I'm a seer, my dear. I know your little secret. But we don't want to dwell on that, do we? The boys are having such fun."
Leo laughed as he tried on a hat that seemed to be made from enchanted raccoon fur. Its ringed tail twitched, and its little legs wiggled frantically as Leo walked. Jason was ogling the men's sportswear. Boys interested in shopping for clothes? A definite sign they were under an evil spell.
"Secret?" Lorna asked Piper. Piper looked distraught so Lorna didn't push it.
Lorna glared at the princess. "Who are you?"
"I told you, my dear. I'm the Princess of Colchis."
"Colchis. I can't remember. Where's Colchis?" Lorna cracked her brain, trying to remember where she had heard that word.
The princess's expression turned a little sad. "Where was Colchis, you mean. My father ruled the far shores of the Black Sea, as far to the east as a Greek ship could sail in those days. But Colchis is no more—lost eons ago."
"Eons?" Piper asked.
The princess looked no more than fifty, but a bad feeling started settling over Lorna—something King Boreas had mentioned back in Quebec.
"How old are you?" Lorna asked.
The princess laughed. "A lady should avoid asking or answering that question. Let's just say the, ah, immigration process to enter your country took quite a while. My patron finally brought me through. She made all this possible."
The princess swept her hand around the department store. Lorna's mouth tasted like metal. "Your patron ..."
"Oh, yes. She doesn't bring just anyone through, mind you —only those who have special talents, such as me. And really, she insists on so little—a store entrance that must be underground so she can, ah, monitor my clientele; and a favor now and then. In exchange for a new life? Really, it was the best bargain I'd made in centuries."
Run, Lorna thought. We have to get out of here. But before she could even turn her thoughts into words, Jason called, "Hey, check it out!"
"Yeah, check it out, this lady is mega creepy." Lorna said sarcastically.
From a rack labeled distressed clothing, he held up a purple T-shirt like the one he'd worn on the school field trip —except this shirt looked as if it had been clawed by tigers.
Jason frowned. "Why does this look so familiar?"
"Jason, it's like yours," Piper said. "Now we really have to leave."
But Lorna wasn't sure Jason could even hear Piper anymore through the princess's enchantment.
"Nonsense," the princess said. "The boys aren't done, are they? And yes, my dear. Those shirts are very popular —trade-ins from previous customers. It suits you."
Leo picked up an orange Camp Half-Blood tee with a hole through the middle, as if it had been hit by a javelin. Next to that was a dented bronze breastplate pitted with corrosion—acid, maybe?—and a Roman toga slashed to pieces and stained with something that looked disturbingly like dried blood.
"Your Highness," Piper said. "Why don't you tell the boys how you betrayed your family? I'm sure they'd like to hear that story."
Her words didn't have any effect on the princess, but the boys turned, suddenly interested.
"More story?" Leo asked.
"I like more story!" Jason agreed.
"Crap." Lorna facepalmed. "They act like kids."
The princess flashed Piper an irritated look. "Oh, one will do strange things for love, Piper. You should know that. I fell for that young hero, in fact, because your mother Aphrodite had me under a spell. If it wasn't for her—but I can't hold a grudge against a goddess, can I?"
The princess's tone made her meaning clear: I can take it out on you.
"But that hero took you with him when he fled Colchis," Piper remembered. "Didn't he, Your Highness? He married you just as he promised."
The look in the princess's eyes made Lorna sympathise with her.
"At first," Her Highness admitted, "it seemed he would keep his word. But even after I helped him steal my father's treasure, he still needed my help. As we fled, my brother's fleet came after us. His warships overtook us. He would have destroyed us, but I convinced my brother to come aboard our ship first and talk under a flag of truce. He trusted me."
"And you killed your own brother," Lorna said, the horrible story all coming back to her, along with a name—an infamous name that began with the letter M.
"What?" Jason stirred. For a moment he looked almost like himself. "Killed your own—"
"No," the princess snapped. "Those stories are lies. It was my new husband and his men who killed my brother, though they couldn't have done it without my deception. They threw his body into the sea, and the pursuing fleet had to stop and search for it so they could give my brother a proper burial. This gave us time to get away. All this, I did for my husband. And he forgot our bargain. He betrayed me in the end."
Jason still looked uncomfortable. "What did he do?"
The princess held the sliced-up toga against Jason's chest, as if measuring him for an assassination. "Don't you know the story, my boy? You of all people should. You were named for him."
"Jason," Lorna said. "The original Jason. But then you're —you should be dead!"
The princess smiled. "As I said, a new life in a new country. Certainly I made mistakes. I turned my back on my own people. I was called a traitor, a thief, a liar, a murderess. But I acted out of love."
She turned to the boys and gave them a pitiful look, batting her eyelashes. Lorna could feel the sorcery washing over them, taking control more firmly than ever. "Wouldn't you do the same for someone you loved, my dears?"
"Oh, sure," Jason said.
"Okay," Leo said.
"Guys!" Lorna ground her teeth in frustration. "Don't you see who she is? Don't you—"
"Let's continue, shall we?" the princess said breezily. "I believe you wanted to talk about a price for the storm spirits —and your satyr."
Leo got distracted on the second floor with the appliances.
"No way," he said. "Is that an armored forge?"
Before Lorna could stop him, he hopped off the escalator and ran over to a big oval oven that looked like a barbecue on steroids. When they caught up with him, the princess said,
"You have good taste. This is the H-2000, designed by Hephaestus himself. Hot enough to melt Celestial bronze or Imperial gold."
Jason flinched as if he recognized that term. "Imperial gold?"
The princess nodded. "Yes, my dear. Like that weapon so cleverly concealed in your pocket. To be properly forged, Imperial gold had to be consecrated in the Temple of Jupiter on Capitoline Hill in Rome. Quite a powerful and rare metal, but like the Roman emperors, quite volatile. Be sure never to break that blade..."
She smiled pleasantly. "Rome was after my time, of course, but I do hear stories. And now over here —this golden throne is one of my finest luxury items. Hephaestus made it as a punishment for his mother, Hera. Sit in it and you'll be immediately trapped."
Leo apparently took this as an order. He began walking toward it in a trance.
"Leo, don't!" Piper warned.
He blinked. "How much for both?"
"Oh, the seat I could let you have for five great deeds. The forge, seven years of servitude. And for only a bit of your strength—"
She led Leo into the appliance section, giving him prices on various items.
"Keep an eye on Leo. I'll talk to Jason." Lorna clenched her fist.
She pulled him aside and slapped him across the face.
"Ow," he muttered sleepily. "What was that for?"
"For you being a bloody idiot! Snap out of it!" Lorna hissed.
"What do you mean?"
"She's charmspeaking you. Can't you feel it?"
He knit his eyebrows. "She seems okay."
"She's not okay! She shouldn't even be alive! She was married to Jason—the other Jason—three thousand years ago. Remember what Boreas said—something about the souls no longer being confined to Hades? It's not just monsters who can't stay dead. She's come back from the Underworld!"
Jason shook his head uneasily. "She's not a ghost."
"No, she's worse! She's—"
"Children." The princess was back with Leo and Piper in tow. "If you please, we will now see what you came for. That is what you want, yes?"
Lorna shot a deadly glare at her. They took the escalator down to the base of the fountain. For the first time, Lorna noticed two large bronze sundials —each about the size of a trampoline—inlaid on the marble tile floor to the north and south of the fountain. The gilded oversize canary cages stood to the east and west, and the farthest one held the storm spirits. They were so densely packed, spinning around like a super-concentrated tornado, that Lorna couldn't tell how many there were—dozens, at least.
"Hey," Leo said, "Coach Hedge looks okay!"
They ran to the nearest canary cage. The old satyr seemed to have been petrified. He was frozen midshout, his club raised over his head, his curly hair stuck up at odd angles.
"Yes," the princess said. "I always keep my wares in good condition. We can certainly barter for the storm spirits and the satyr. A package deal. If we come to terms, I'll even throw in the vial of healing potion, and you can go in peace."
She gave Lorna a shrewd look. "That's better than starting unpleasantness, isn't it, dear?"
"We can negotiate," the princess said.
"Totally!" Leo agreed. "Name your price."
"Leo!" Piper snapped.
The princess chuckled. "Name my price? Perhaps not the best haggling strategy, my boy, but at least you know a thing's value. Freedom is very valuable indeed. You would ask me to release this satyr, who attacked my storm winds—"
"Who attacked us," Piper interjected.
Her Highness shrugged. "As I said, my patron asks me for small favors from time to time. Sending the storm spirits to abduct you—that was one. I assure you it was nothing personal. And no harm done, as you came here, in the end, of your own free will! At any rate, you want the satyr freed, and you want my storm spirits—who are very valuable servants, by the way—so you can hand them over to that tyrant Aeolus. Doesn't seem quite fair, does it? The price will be high."
Lorna could see that her friends were ready to offer anything, promise anything. Before they could speak, she played her last card.
"You're Medea," Lorna said. "You helped the original Jason steal the Golden Fleece. You're one of the most evil villains in Greek mythology."
"Jason, Leo—don't trust her." Pipe's words were so intense it made Jason stepped away from the sorceress.
Leo scratched his head and looked around like he was coming out of a dream. "What are we doing, again?"
"Being complete imbeclies." Lorna sneered. They looked at her with a puzzled look.
"Boys!" The princess spread her hands in a welcoming gesture. Her diamond jewelry glittered, and her painted fingers curled like blood-tipped claws. "It's true, I'm Medea. But I'm so misunderstood. Oh, Lorna, my dear, you don't know what it was like for women in the old days. We had no power, no leverage. Often we couldn't even choose our own husbands. But I was different. I chose my own destiny by becoming a sorceress. Is that so wrong? I made a pact with Jason: my help to win the fleece, in exchange for his love. A fair deal. He became a famous hero! Without me, he would've died unknown on the shores of Colchis."
Jason—Lorna's Jason—scowled. "Then ... you really did die three thousand years ago? You came back from the Underworld?"
"Death no longer holds me, young hero," Medea said. "Thanks to my patron, I am flesh and blood again."
"You ... re-formed?" Leo blinked. "Like a monster?"
Medea spread her fingers, and steam hissed from her nails, like water splashed on hot iron. "You have no idea what's happening, do you, my dears? It is so much worse than a stirring of monsters from Tartarus. My patron knows that giants and monsters are not her greatest servants. I am mortal. I learn from my mistakes. And now that I have returned to the living, I will not be cheated again. Now, here is my price for what you ask."
"Guys," Piper said. "The original Jason left Medea because she was crazy and bloodthirsty."
"Lies!" Medea said.
"On the way back from Colchis, Jason's ship landed at another kingdom, and Jason agreed to dump Medea and marry the king's daughter."
"After I bore him two children!" Medea said. "Still he broke his promise! I ask you, was that right?"
Jason and Leo dutifully shook their heads, but Lorna wasn't through.
"It may not have been right," Lorna said, "but neither was Medea's revenge. She murdered her own children to get back at Jason. She poisoned his new wife and fled the kingdom."
Medea snarled. "An invention to ruin my reputation! The people of the Corinth—that unruly mob—killed my children and drove me out. Jason did nothing to protect me. He robbed me of everything. So yes, I sneaked back into the palace and poisoned his lovely new bride. It was only fair—a suitable price."
"You're insane," Piper said.
"I am the victim!" Medea wailed. "I died with my dreams shattered, but no longer. I know now not to trust heroes. When they come asking for treasures, they will pay a heavy price. Especially when the one asking has the name of Jason!"
The fountain turned bright red. Lorna summoned Tremor. "Jason, Leo —it's time to go. Now."
"Before you've closed the deal?" Medea asked. "What of your quest, boys? And my price is so easy. Did you know this fountain is magic? If a dead man were to be thrown into it, even if he was chopped to pieces, he would pop back out fully formed—stronger and more powerful than ever."
"Seriously?" Leo asked.
"Leo, she's lying," Piper said. "She did that trick with somebody before—a king, I think. She convinced his daughters to cut him to pieces so he could come out of the water young and healthy again, but it just killed him!"
"Ridiculous," Medea said, and Lorna could hear the power charged in every syllable. "Leo, Jason—my price is so simple. Why don't you two fight? If you get injured, or even killed, no problem. We'll just throw you into the fountain and you'll be better than ever. You do want to fight, don't you? You resent each other!"
"Guys, no!" Lorna said.
But they were already glaring at each other, as if it was just dawning on them how they really felt. Lorna had never felt more helpless.
Leo scowled. "Jason's always the star. He always gets the attention and takes me for granted."
"You're annoying, Leo," Jason said. "You never take anything seriously. Flirt with every girl you know. You can't even fix a dragon."
"Stop!" Piper pleaded, but both drew weapons—Jason his gold sword, and Leo a hammer from his tool belt.
"Let them go, Piper," Medea urged. "I'm doing you a favor. Let it happen now, and it will make your choice so much easier. Enceladus will be pleased. You could have your father back today!"
"You work for Enceladus," Piper said.
Medea laughed. "Serve a giant? No. But we all serve the same greater cause—a patron you cannot begin to challenge. Walk away, child of Aphrodite. This does not have to be your death, too. Save yourself, and your father can go free."
Lorna could see that Piper was considering it. "Piper, don't."
Leo and Jason were still facing off, ready to fight, but they looked unsteady and confused—waiting for another order.
"Listen to me, girl." Medea plucked a diamond off her bracelet and threw it into a spray of water from the fountain. As it passed through the multicolored light,
Medea said, "O Iris, goddess of the rainbow, show me the office of Tristan McLean."
The mist shimmered, and Lorna saw a study. Sitting behind the desk, talking on the phone, was a lady in a dark business suit, her hair swirled in a tight bun.
"Hello, Jane," Medea said.
Jane hung up the phone calmly. "How can I help you, ma'am? Hello, Piper."
"You—"
"Yes, child," Medea said. "Your father's assistant. Quite easy to manipulate. An organized mind for a mortal, but incredibly weak."
"Thank you, ma'am," Jane said.
"That isn't a compliment!" Lorna said.
"Don't mention it," Medea said. "I just wanted to congratulate you, Jane. Getting Mr. McLean to leave town so suddenly, take his jet to Oakland without alerting the press or the police—well done! No one seems to know where he's gone. And telling him his daughter's life was on the line—that was a nice touch to get his cooperation."
"Yes," Jane agreed in a bland tone, as if she were sleepwalking. "He was quite cooperative when he believed Piper was in danger."
"I may have new orders for you, Jane," Medea said. "If the girl cooperates, it may be time for Mr. McLean to come home. Would you arrange a suitable cover story for his absence, just in case? And I imagine the poor man will need some time in a psychiatric hospital."
"Yes, ma'am. I will stand by."
The image faded, and Medea turned to Piper. "There, you see?"
"You lured my dad into a trap," Piper said. "You helped the giant—"
"Oh, please, dear. You'll work yourself into a fit! I've been preparing for this war for years, even before I was brought back to life. I'm a seer, as I said. I can tell the future as well as your little oracle. Years ago, still suffering in the Fields of Punishment, I had a vision of the eight in your so-called Great Prophecy. I saw your friend Leo here, and saw that he would be an important enemy someday. I stirred the consciousness of my patron, gave her this information, and she managed to wake just a little—just enough to visit him."
"Leo's mother," Piper said. "Leo, listen to this! She helped get your mother killed!"
"Uh-huh," Leo mumbled, in a daze. He frowned at his hammer. "So ... I just attack Jason? That's okay?"
"Not okay!" Lorna screeched.
"Perfectly safe," Medea promised. "And Jason, strike him hard. Show me you are worthy of your namesake."
"No!" Piper ordered. "Jason, Leo—she's tricking you. Put down your weapons."
The sorceress rolled her eyes. "Please, girl. You're no match for me. I trained with my aunt, the immortal Circe. I can drive men mad or heal them with my voice. What hope do these puny young heroes have against me?"
"Circe? Oh, I remember her. I remember destroying her spa." Lorna sneered.
Medea smirked at her. "Now, boys, kill each other!"
"Jason, Leo, listen to me." Piper commanded. "Medea is charming you. It's part of her magic. You are best friends. Don't fight each other. Fight her!"
They hesitated.
Jason blinked. "Leo, was I just about to stab you?"
"Something about my mother ... ?" Leo frowned, then turned toward Medea. "You ... you're working for Dirt Woman. You sent her to the machine shop." He lifted his arm. "Lady, I got a three-pound hammer with your name on it."
"Bah!" Medea sneered. "I'll simply collect payment another way."
She pressed one of the mosaic tiles on the floor, and the building rumbled. Jason swung his sword at Medea, but she dissolved into smoke and reappeared at the base of the escalator.
"You're slow, hero!" She laughed. "Take your frustration out on my pets!"
Before anyone could go after her, the giant bronze sundials at either end of the fountain swung open. Two snarling gold beasts—flesh-and-blood winged dragons—crawled out from the pits below. Each was the size of a camper van, maybe not large compared to Festus, but large enough.
"So that's what's in the kennels," Leo said meekly.
The dragons spread their wings and hissed. Lorna could feel the heat coming off their glittering skin. One turned his angry orange eyes on her.
"Don't look them in the eye!" Jason warned. "They'll paralyze you."
"Indeed!" Medea was leisurely riding the escalator up, leaning against the handrail as she watched the fun. "These two dears have been with me a long time—sun dragons, you know, gifts from my grandfather Helios. They pulled my chariot when I left Corinth, and now they will be your destruction. Ta-ta!"
The dragons lunged. Leo and Jason charged to intercept. Lorna was amazed how fearlessly the boys attacked—working like a team who had trained together for years. Medea was almost to the second floor, where she'd be able to choose from a wide assortment of deadly appliances.
"Oh, no, you don't," Lorna growled, and took off after her.
When Medea spotted Lorna, she started climbing in earnest. She was quick for a three-thousand-year-old lady. Lorna climbed at top speed, taking the steps three at a time, and still she couldn't catch her. Medea didn't stop at floor two. She hopped the next escalator and continued to ascend.
The potions, Lorna thought. Of course that's what she would go for. She was famous for potions.
Down below, Lorna heard the battle raging.
Leo was blowing his safety whistle, and Jason and Piper were yelling to keep the dragons' attention. Lorna didn't dare look. She grabbed a shield from an armored manikin on floor three and continued to climb. She reached the top floor, breathing hard, but she was too late.
Medea had reached the potions counter. The sorceress grabbed a swan-shaped vial—the blue one that caused painful death—and Lorna did the only thing that came to mind. She threw her shield. Medea turned triumphantly just in time to get hit in the chest by a fifty-pound metal Frisbee. She stumbled backward, crashing over the counter, breaking vials and knocking down shelves. When the sorceress stood from the wreckage, her dress was stained a dozen different colors. Many of the stains were smoldering and glowing.
"Fool!" Medea wailed. "Do you have any idea what so many potions will do when mixed?"
"Kill you?" Lorna said hopefully.
The carpet began to steam around Medea's feet. She coughed, and her face contorted in pain—or was she faking?
Below, Leo called, "Jason, help!"
Lorna risked a quick look, and almost sobbed in despair. One of the dragons had Leo pinned to the floor. It was baring its fangs, ready to snap. Jason and Piper were all the way across the room battling the other dragon, much too far away to assist.
"You've doomed us all!" Medea screamed.
Smoke was rolling across the carpet as the stain spread, throwing sparks and setting fires in the clothing racks. "You have only seconds before this concoction consumes everything and destroys the building. There's no time—"
CRASH!
The stained glass ceiling splintered in a rain of multicolored shards, and Festus the bronze dragon dropped into the department store. He hurtled into the fray, snatching up a sun dragon in each claw. Only now did Lorna appreciate just how big and strong their metal friend was.
"That's my boy!" Leo yelled.
Festus flew halfway up the atrium, then hurled the sun dragons into the pits they'd come from. Leo raced to the fountain and pressed the marble tile, closing the sundials. They shuddered as the dragons banged against them, trying to get out, but for the moment they were contained. Medea cursed in some ancient language. The whole fourth floor was on fire now. The air filled with noxious gas. Even with the roof open, Lorna could feel the heat intensifying. She backed up to the edge of the railing, keeping her sword pointed toward Medea.
"I will not be abandoned again!" The sorceress knelt and snatched up the red healing potion, which had somehow survived the crash. "You want your boyfriend's memory restored? Take me with you!"
Lorna glanced behind her. Leo, Jason and Piper were on board Festus's back. The bronze dragon flapped his mighty wings, snatched the two cages with the satyr and the storm spirits in his claws, and began to ascend. The building rumbled. Fire and the smoke curled up the walls, melting the railings, turning the air to acid.
"You'll never survive your quest without me!" Medea growled. "Take me with you!"
For one heartbeat, Lorna was tempted. Then she saw Medea's grim smile. The sorceress was confident in her powers of persuasion.
"Not today, witch." Lorna stabbed Medea in the stomach.
She didn't have time to see what happened to her as she jumped over the side. Lorna summoned the water in the fountain, riding on a wave towards Festus. Leo and Jason caught her, hauling her aboard the dragon. She heard Medea screaming in rage as they soared through the broken roof and over downtown Chicago. Then the department store exploded behind them.