𝐯𝐢. THE QUEST FOR THANATOS

▬▬▬ CHAPTER SIX ▬▬▬

Okay, I have THREE things to announce!!!

Firstly, cullenxss just published an Étienne fic called "HUMAN REMAINS" so go check it out and give the MC your prayers cuz her love interest is Étienne Rosier 😍

Secondly, el (from Quotev) made a playlist for this series and I THINK I figured out how to make the scan code thingy someone mentioned... Anyways, here it is:

(I hope it works)

MOVING ON! Thirdly, I have decided... to make my sorta-not "meet my ocs" book. I just need to make it pretty and all that. But first, is there anything you wanna see on there?? I already have character birthdays, heights, abilities, bios, etc. But is there something more specific that you wanna see???

WHY WAS IT THAT ETHAN always had bad first-meetings with any of Esmerelda's relatives? First was Nico, who he met in a deadly, insanity inducing Labyrinth, who also tried to cut his head off. Then there were the Tonks family who he might have accidentally traumatized by breaking into the house they were staying at while covered head to toe in blood and carrying a nearly dead body over his shoulder. Then there was her father who tried to run him over even though a giant was already trying to kill him. Then there was her uncle who he met in a creepy wizarding prison.

And now, there was her unstable Roman half-brother who tried to throw him off a cliff.

(The only decent first-meeting he had was with Alabaster, who welcomed him into the Hermes cabin. No wait, there was Lou Ellen too, but they met each other right after a war ended so it was still kind of chaotic.)

"Something's wrong," Nico murmured to him. "You nearly fell off the edge. The eagles should've came to you immediately but they never even noticed you."

"Must be the Mist," Ethan grunted, getting back up on his feet. "Little shit's trying to cover up another murder attempt."

Nico gave him an inquisitive look, to which he explained, "He killed his family over the winter. Essie found out through a news article."

The boy just sighed. "Why does my mom always attract the crazy people?"

Hell if I know, Ethan thought.

"Sorry about that!" Étienne called out, flashing them a 'guilty' smile. "I didn't mean to throw you so far!"

"Oh did you?" Ethan snorted. "I guess you didn't mean to surround us by the Mist too then?" Étienne's smile slipped and Ethan shot him another glare. "Yeah, I could tell. I'm dating your sister after all, I know when the Mist is being used."

It would explain why everyone else was fighting as if they couldn't see them. He could even hear Octavian squawking about looking for Étienne, even though he was right here for everyone to see. The eagles couldn't see what was going on either, meaning if he needed any emergency aid, they were doomed.

(Unless Nico was kind enough to alert anyone.)

"Well, since you're aware of me trying to kill you, I guess I shouldn't bother playing nice," Étienne shrugged simply before launching his next attack.

His own shadow streaked towards him, and Ethan and Nico dove to the side to avoid the hit. Ethan flipped back to dodge another attack. Nico darted forward to get to Étienne, but a large shadowy hand appeared and grabbed the younger kid by the scruff of his shirt.

"You can stay back," Étienne said to him, looking only mildly annoyed. "You're lucky you're my nephew."

Nico basically hung there, his jaw dropped as if he couldn't believe he had willingly called him his nephew. Étienne was practically accepting the fact that they were family and while that was sweet and all, Ethan would rather he snapped out of his shock to give him some back up.

It wasn't that he was threatened by Étienne or anything, but it was almost second nature for him to aim for killing blows. He fought to kill. He only ever held himself back in sparring matches but that was only because his opponent was holding back too. Étienne clearly wanted him dead, and it was hard for him to not return the favor.

Why do all of my girlfriend's relatives always try to kill me? He wondered in annoyance as he ran forward, evading every hit while trying to close the distance between them. 

First it was Nico, then Regulus, and now this sociopath. 

He remembered Frank's words about him being reliant on his powers, and how tiring him out would be the best strategy to take him down, except Étienne was just getting started and he wanted to end this fight quick.

He used his whip. He lashed it outwards and it wrapped itself around the boy's neck. He pulled the whip down, Étienne's head following suit, and brought his knee up to strike him on the forehead.

But the son of Trivia was resilient. Instead of crumpling on the ground, he grabbed Ethan by the front of his shirt to keep him still, his sword sweeping up to cut him in the jugular. Ethan could feel the golden blade nick his skin slightly when he moved back.

He locked swords with him and managed to disarm him. Étienne's sword came flying in the air, landing on the ground a few feet away.

Ethan pointed his sword at his face

"You lose," he said firmly. "Now back down. Don't make me hurt you, Étienne."

The younger boy gritted his teeth in frustration, and brought his hands up in defeat, but there was something off about his expression. It looked like he was straining himself... No wait, he was concentrating.

He had registered the glowing green eyes too late.

"Ethan watch out!" He heard Nico shriek.

He whirled around and saw it. Large broken parts of the water canons were flying towards his direction, the sharp points and edges all aimed at him.

It startled him so bad that he stumbled back, falling on his bottom. It would be too late for him to dodge any of them, so he brought his arms up and braced himself.

But nothing came.

"W-what...?!" He heard Étienne exclaim.

Ethan opened his eye and put his arms down. The broken canon parts were a foot away from him, laying on the ground like they had just suddenly dropped there.

He looked over at Nico. The large shadowy hand was gone, and now the kid was on all fours on the ground. He looked stunned too.

"Putain!" Étienne cursed in French. His eyes were glaring deep into his soul. "What did you do?!"

"What are you talking about?!" He snapped back, getting up on his feet. He hadn't done anything!

"You took it away! You fucking—"

"—AHHHHH!" A familiar, high-pitched scream cut him off.

Esmerelda.

They whipped their heads towards her. Somehow, the horde of Romans had surrounded her. She was completely overwhelmed now. People were on her, jabbing at her with their weapons while she deflected each hit with the shaft of her pilum while also going on the offense.

Other campers from her cohort came to her defense, but it was already too late.

"The game is won!" Reyna announced as Percy, Frank, and Hazel, arrived with the banner, riding on Hannibal's back. "Assemble for honors!"

As the rest of the campers regrouped on the Field of Mars, Ethan and Nico rushed over to Esmerelda's aid, leaving a fuming Étienne behind.

Esmerelda was breathing heavily, cuts and bruises all over her skin. There was a small pout on her face, so at least they knew she wasn't too injured.

"Are you okay?" Ethan asked her. "What happened back there? You were holding everyone off so easily!"

"I don't know," she moped. "I was just pushing them back with my magic but then... then I just couldn't do it anymore."

"What?" Nico looked confused. "You mean you got tired?"

"I dunno..." She shrugged hopelessly. "I felt better after I took a bath at the bathhouse—that place is great by the way—but when I was fighting, I just... couldn't use my magic anymore. I don't know what happened. There wasn't much time to think on it since everyone was attacking me."

Ethan thought back to what happened with Étienne. His attack had stopped all of a sudden. The shadowy hand holding Nico had disappeared too...

Esmerelda looked down and curled her fingers up. A small pebble glowed green and rose up in the air. It brought a smile to her face.

"Oh! I guess it's back now!" She exclaimed. "But I wonder what happened..."

Yeah, Ethan agreed. He wanted to know what happened too, but he had a feeling he had something to do with it.

"Did anything weird happen to you guys?" She asked.

"Sort of," he mumbled. "But I was too busy trying not to get killed by your brother to pay it much attention."

Her shoulders drooped. "He tried to kill you?"

He nodded.

She dipped her head back and groaned.

Suddenly, Nico let out a sharp intake of breath.

"Oh no," he whispered. "Someone's dying."

"Help!" Somebody yelled.

A couple of campers rushed out of the fortress, carrying a girl on a stretcher. They set her down, and other kids started running over. 

It was Gwen. She was laying on her side on the stretcher with a pilum sticking out of her armor—almost like she was holding it between her chest and her arm, but there was too much blood.

Medics were working hard to save her, but Esmerelda could sense it and so could Nico. Gwen was not going to make it.

Finally one of the medics looked up at Reyna and shook his head.

For a moment, there was no sound except water from the ruined cannons trickling down the walls of the fort. Hannibal nuzzled Gwen's hair with his trunk.

Reyna surveyed the campers from her pegasus. Her expression was as hard and dark as iron. "There will be an investigation. Whoever did this, you cost the legion a good officer. Honorable death is one thing, but this..."

Gwen had been murdered, they all realized.

There were marks engraved in the wooden shaft of the pilum: CHT I LEGIO XII F. The weapon belonged to the First Cohort, and the point was sticking out the front of her armor. Gwen had been speared from behind—possibly after the game had ended.

Esmerelda clutched her pilum tightly while she scanned the rest of her cohort. Étienne was using a sword, so it couldn't have been him. Michael still had his weapon too. Everyone had their weapon on them... except for Octavian.

Étienne was already looking at him too, his face unimpressed as if he was thinking, 'I've committed better murders than this'.

Suddenly Gwen gasped.

Everyone stepped back.

Gwen opened her eyes. The color came back to her face.

"Wh-what is it?" She blinked. "What's everyone staring at?" She didn't seem to notice the seven-foot harpoon sticking out through her chest.

A medic whispered, "There's no way. She was dead. She has to be dead."

Gwen tried to sit up, but couldn't. "There was a river, and a man asking... for a coin? I turned around and the exit door was open. So I just... I just left. I don't understand. What's happened?"

Oh my gods, Esmerelda thought with dread. Please don't tell me Hades brought Charon back to the DOA.

Everyone stared at her in horror. Nobody tried to help.

"Gwen." Frank knelt next to her. "Don't try to get up. Just close your eyes for a second, okay?"

"Why? What—"

"—Just trust me."

Gwen did what he asked.

Frank grabbed the shaft of the pilum below its tip, but his hands were shaking. The wood was slick. "Percy, Hazel—help me."

One of the medics realized what he was planning.

"Don't!" He warned. "You might—"

"—What?" Hazel snapped. "Make it worse?"

Frank took a deep breath. "Hold her steady. One, two, three!"

He pulled the pilum out from the front. Gwen didn't even wince. The blood stopped quickly.

Hazel bent down to examine the wound.

"It's closing on its own," she said. "I don't know how, but—"

"—I feel fine," Gwen protested. "What's everyone worried about?"

She was helped back to her feet.

"Gwen," Hazel said gently. "There's no easy way to say this. You were dead. Somehow you came back."

"I... what?" She stumbled against Frank. Her hand pressed against the ragged hole in her armor. "How—how?"

"Good question." Reyna turned to Nico, who was watching grimly from the edge of the crowd. "Is this some power of Pluto?"

Nico shook his head. "Pluto never lets people return from the dead."

Usually, Esmerelda winced. She could feel Ethan grab her hand to give her some comfort.

A thunderous voice rolled across the field: "Death loses its hold. This is only the beginning."

Campers drew weapons. Hannibal trumpeted nervously. Scipio reared, almost throwing Reyna.

"I know that voice," Percy said. He didn't sound pleased.

In the midst of the legion, a column of fire blasted into the air. Campers who had been soaked by the cannons found their clothes instantly steam-dried. Everyone scrambled backward as a huge soldier stepped out of the explosion.

The soldier was ten feet tall, dressed in Canadian Forces desert camouflage. He radiated confidence and power. His black hair was cut in a flat-topped wedge like Frank's. His face was angular and brutal, marked with old knife scars. His eyes were covered with infrared goggles that glowed from inside. He wore a utility belt with a sidearm, a knife holster, and several grenades. In his hands was an oversized M16 rifle.

Ares, Esmerelda realized. Or Mars, actually.

Frank reluctantly sank to one knee, and everyone followed whereas Reyna dismounted. Esmerelda did so as well. This was Clarisse's dad (sort of) and she had nothing against the guy. She had to yank Ethan down to bow.

"That's good," the soldier said. "Kneeling is good. It's been a long time since I've visited Camp Jupiter."

Percy was the only one who wasn't kneeling. Instead, he was glaring at the god.

"You're Ares," he said. "What do you want?"

A collective gasp went up from two hundred campers and an elephant.

"You've got spunk, demigod," Mars commented. "Ares is my Greek form. But to these followers, to the children of Rome, I am Mars—patron of the empire, divine father of Romulus and Remus."

"We've met," Percy said. "We... we had a fight..."

Ethan and Esmerelda groaned quietly.

Percy, please shut up.

The god scratched his chin, as if trying to recall. "I fight a lot of people. But I assure you—you've never fought me as Mars. If you had, you'd be dead. Now, kneel, as befits a child of Rome, before you try my patience."

Around Mars's feet, the ground boiled in a circle of flame.

"Percy," Frank said. "Please."

Percy clearly didn't like it, but he knelt.

Mars scanned the crowd. "Romans, lend me your ears!" He laughed—a good, hearty bellow. "I've always wanted to say that. I come from Olympus with a message. Jupiter doesn't like us communicating directly with mortals, especially nowadays, but he has allowed this exception, as you Romans have always been my special people. I'm only permitted to speak for a few minutes, so listen up."

He pointed at Gwen. "This one should be dead, yet she's not. The monsters you fight no longer return to Tartarus when they are slain. Some mortals who died long ago are now walking the earth again."

(He was glaring at Nico when he said that.)

"Thanatos has been chained," Mars announced. "The Doors of Death have been forced open, and no one is policing them—at least, not impartially. Gaea allows our enemies to pour forth into the world of mortals. Her sons the giants are mustering armies against you—armies that you will not be able to kill. Unless Death is unleashed to return to his duties, you will be overrun. You must find Thanatos and free him from the giants. Only he can reverse the tide."

None of this was exactly new to Esmerelda. Or Ethan. Or even Nico. But everyone else looked pale.

Mars looked around, and noticed that everyone was still silently kneeling. "Oh, you can get up now. Any questions?"

Reyna rose uneasily. She approached the god, followed by Octavian, who was bowing and scraping like a champion groveler.

"Lord Mars," Reyna began. "We are honored."

"Beyond honored," Octavian added. "So far beyond honored—"

"—Well?" Mars snapped.

"Well," Reyna said. "Thanatos is the god of death, the lieutenant of Pluto?"

"Right," the god said.

"And you're saying that he's been captured by giants."

"Right."

"And therefore people will stop dying?"

"Not all at once," Mars said. "But the barriers between life and death will continue to weaken. Those who know how to take advantage of this will exploit it. Monsters are already harder to dispatch. Soon they will be completely impossible to kill. Some demigods will also be able to find their way back from the Underworld—like your friend Centurion Shish kebab."

Gwen winced. "Centurion Shish kebab?"

"If left unchecked," Mars continued. "Even mortals will eventually find it impossible to die. Can you imagine a world in which no one dies—ever?"

Octavian raised his hand. "But, ah, mighty all-powerful Lord Mars, if we can't die, isn't that a good thing? If we can stay alive indefinitely—"

"—Don't be foolish, boy!" Mars bellowed. "Endless slaughter with no conclusion? Carnage without any point? Enemies that rise again and again and can never be killed? Is that what you want?"

"You're the god of war," Percy spoke up. "Don't you want endless carnage?"

Mars's infrared goggles glowed brighter. "Insolent, aren't you? Perhaps I have fought you before. I can understand why I'd want to kill you. I'm the god of Rome, child. I am the god of military might used for a righteous cause. I protect the legions. I am happy to crush my enemies underfoot, but I don't fight without reason. I don't want war without end. You will discover this. You will serve me."

"Not likely," Percy said.

Mars grinned like they were two old buddies talking trash.

"I order a quest!" He announced. "You will go north and find Thanatos in the land beyond the gods. You will free him and thwart the plans of the giants. Beware Gaea! Beware her son, the eldest giant!"

Hazel made a squeaking sound. "The land beyond the gods?"

Mars stared down at her, his grip tightening on his M16. "That's right, Hazel Levesque. You know what I mean. Everyone here remembers the land where the legion lost its honor! Perhaps if the quest succeeds, and you return by the Feast of Fortuna... perhaps then your honor will be restored. If you don't succeed, there won't be any camp left to return to. Rome will be overrun, its legacy lost forever. So my advice is: Don't fail."

Octavian somehow managed to bow even lower. "Um, Lord Mars, just one tiny thing. A quest requires a prophecy, a mystical poem to guide us! We used to get them from the Sibylline books, but now it's up to the augur to glean the will of gods. So if I could just run and get about seventy stuffed animals and possibly a knife—"

"—You're the augur?" Mars interrupted.

"Y-yes, my lord."

Mars pulled a scroll from his utility belt. "Anyone got a pen?"

The legionnaires stared at him.

Mars sighed. "Two hundred Romans, and no one's got a pen? Never mind!"

He slung his M16 onto his back and pulled out a hand grenade. There were many screaming Romans. Then the grenade morphed into a ballpoint pen, and Mars began to write.

Frank looked at Percy with wide eyes. He mouthed: Can your sword do grenade form?

Percy mouthed back, No. Shut up.

"There!" Mars finished writing and threw the scroll at Octavian. "A prophecy. You can add it to your books, engrave it on your floor, whatever."

Octavian read the scroll. "This just says, 'Go to Alaska. Find Thanatos and free him. Come back by sundown on June twenty-fourth or die.'"

"Yes," Mars said. "Is that not clear?"

"Well, my lord... usually prophecies are unclear. They're wrapped in riddles. They rhyme, and..."

Mars casually popped another grenade off his belt. "Yes?"

"The prophecy is clear!" Octavian announced. "A quest!"

"Good answer." Mars tapped the grenade to his chin. "Now, what else? There was something else... Oh, yes."

He turned to Frank. "C'mere, kid."

Frank looked like he wanted to jump off a cliff.

He took a step forward anyways, but there was great pain in his eyes.

Mars grinned. "Nice job taking the wall, kid. Who's the ref for this game?"

Reyna raised her hand.

"You see that play, ref?" Mars demanded. "That was my kid. First over the wall, won the game for his team. Unless you're blind, that was an MVP play. You're not blind, are you?"

Reyna looked like she was trying to swallow a mouse. "No, Lord Mars."

"Then make sure he gets the Mural Crown," Mars demanded. "My kid, here!" He yelled at the legion, in case anyone hadn't heard. Frank wanted to melt into the dirt.

"Emily Zhang's son," Mars continued. "She was a good soldier. Good woman. This kid Frank proved his stuff tonight. Happy late birthday, kid. Time you stepped up to a real man's weapon."

He tossed Frank his M16. As Frank caught it, it turned into a spear. It was golden, and there was some sort of sharp white tooth at the tip.

"The tip is a dragon's tooth," Mars told him. "You haven't learned to use your mom's talents yet, have you? Well—that spear will give you some breathing room until you do. You get three charges out of it, so use it wisely."

Frank didn't understand, but Mars acted like the matter was closed. "Now, my kid Frank Zhang is gonna lead the quest to free Thanatos, unless there are any objections?"

Of course, no one said a word. But many of the campers glared at Frank with envy, jealousy, anger, and bitterness.

"You can take two companions," Mars said. "Those are the rules. One of them needs to be this kid."

He pointed at Percy. "He's gonna learn some respect for Mars on this trip, or die trying."

Esmerelda and Ethan glanced (well, Ethan glared) at Percy as if they were saying, 'you better not die!'.

"As for the second, I don't care." Mars continued. "Pick whomever you want. Have one of your senate debates. You all are good at those."

The god's image flickered. Lightning crackled across the sky.

"That's my cue," Mars said. "Until next time, Romans. Do not disappoint me!"

The god erupted in flames, and then he was gone.

Reyna turned toward Frank. She raised her arm in a Roman salute. "Ave, Frank Zhang, son of Mars."

Everyone followed, even though Frank looked like a part of him had just died on the inside.

╞═════𖠁𐂃𖠁═════╡

After that grim scene, everyone was sent back to their barracks. Each Cohort had four barracks with ten bunk beds each, or at least, that was what Hazel had told her. But apparently the First Cohort (and possibly even the Second) had more luxurious accommodations.

Well, 'luxurious' wasn't the word she would use, but this was a lot more luxurious compared to what the other Cohorts had.

Instead of bunk beds, everyone had their own extra large twin bed. There were curtain racks around each space for privacy reasons, and a sizable looking trunk on the foot of the bed where everyone could put their things in. There was a couple large flat screen TVs on the wall, several mini refrigerators, and even a few fancy looking reclining chairs with the massaging feature.

Everything about the First Cohorts barracks would've been nice and all if it hadn't been for the fact that Esmerelda just had to be staying in the one barrack Octavian was occupying...

At least I have Étienne with me, she thought positively.

"Here," her brother said, handing her some clothes that were put in a plastic packaging. "They're pajamas. They're super comfy, you'll love them."

Esmerelda saw that people were hiding behind the curtains to change, so she did that too. Étienne hadn't been kidding when he complimented the pajamas. They were the softest cotton fabric ever, as if she was wearing a cloud. She wanted nothing more than to lay in bed and drift off into a nice sleep, but she had to wait and see what would happen next.

As she pulled back her curtains, she saw everyone else had finished dressing and were awaiting Octavian's next words.

"I have a Senate Meeting to attend early in the morning so I have no time to waste watching over all of you," he announced primly. "So I want all you of you to go straight to bed."

Everyone did as they were told, and Esmerelda managed to catch a glimpse of Octavian's small living space before the curtains closed. She was almost surprised to see how plain his bed looked. She had been expecting a stuffed teddy or two.

The lights turned off and the room turned dark. Esmerelda crawled into bed, ready to get this stressful day over with...

But then an hour later she was seeing through somebody else's eyes.

She was seeing the outside of the barracks, looking straight at one of the porches of the Fifth Cohort's barracks. Focusing on that, she Mist traveled away, glad that the curtains were obscuring her from everyone's visions.

"Oh good," Ethan sighed when she arrived. "I was worried you would be asleep."

Nico was with him too, and they were both dressed in the same comfortable pajamas as her.

"Come on," Nico whispered, jerking his head back as a signal to follow him. They crept to the very last barrack on the row, hiding between it and the large gates.

"I thought it'd be important to talk about that quest Percy's going on," Ethan began. "Frank's the leader, and he already picked Hazel to take up the last spot. That means neither of us can watch over him."

"No, I think having Hazel there is good," Esmerelda shook her head. "After I died, I met up with my mom in the Underworld. She told me which demigods were part of the Nine, she confirmed the two of us, Percy, Annabeth, Jason, Leo, and Hazel."

Nico's eyes widened. "She's one of the Nine?"

"Yeah, and I have a feeling Frank is too."

"Wait," Ethan cut in. "What about what's-her-face, Piper or whatever. She went on that quest to rescue Hera along with Jason and Leo. Your mom didn't say anything about her?"

She shrugged. "I asked, but she wasn't certain, but I'm sure she's one of the Nine. That means we've got all of the members now."

"Frank may be the leader, but his choice to bring my sister along isn't set yet," Nico informed them. "That's part of what tomorrow's Senate Meeting will be about. I'll make sure she gets chosen to go."

Ethan quirked a brow. "Uh, how come you have an invite to the Senate Meeting?"

Nico shot him a smug look. "I'm the Ambassador of Pluto, so I kind of have some influence in these meetings."

Ethan just rolled his eye while Esmerelda gushed.

"You're an ambassador?! Ohhhh, Nico, that's amazing!" She beamed, looking down at him with pride. "I'm so proud of you! That sounds like such an important job!"

"I doubt it," Ethan grumbled. "His father probably just told him to tell the camp that."

He was ignored.

"Thanks," Nico said to her before shooting him a triumphant look.

"Maybe we can come with you too," Esmerelda suggested. "Disguised of course. I can use the Mist to make sure Hazel comes. It would be easier that way."

"I wouldn't risk it," Nico shook his head, frowning. "The Senate Meetings takes place in New Rome, and there's a god guarding it."

"I thought all gods were told to go back to Olympus?" She asked.

"Terminus is special. He's the Roman god of boundaries, the protector of the limits both of private property, and of the public territory of Rome, so he stays here to protect the camp," he explained. "There's a chance he might sense two trespassers sneaking through the Pomerian Line and retaliate."

Esmerelda perked up. "Pomeranian Line?"

She looked excited, as if she genuinely believed there was a line of pomeranians somewhere within the camp.

Nico shot her an amused look. "No. Pomerian Line. It's the city limits."

She deflated.

Ethan sighed. "Alright, so we'll leave it up to you. Make sure Hazel gets the spot."

"I will," Nico promised, his face turning serious. "I have a feeling Hazel has a big role in this quest anyways."

╞═════𖠁𐂃𖠁═════╡

Esmerelda woke up to Octavian standing beside her bed. The terrible wake up call had shocked her so bad she actually tumbled off the other side of her bed.

"Oh sorry," he apologized, walking over to her side. For some odd reason, he was wearing a fancy looking toga.

He offered her a hand, and she took it warily.

"You were sleeping late, so I had to wake you up." He said, giving her a smile she didn't buy.

"Thanks," she flashed him a strained smile.

He was about to speak with her further, but then he caught Étienne's eye, shuddered, and decided against it.

Now that she was finally left alone, she hid behind the curtains and got dressed into a new set of clothes. After that, she joined everyone outside to the mess hall, but on the way there she couldn't help but notice how intently Octavian would stare at her and Étienne, as if he was a shopper trying to decide between two things to buy.

When they reached the mess hall, she saw that a couple more people were wearing togas as well.

"What's up with the togas?" She whispered to Étienne, who was stacking his plate with pancakes.

"Oh, it's the formal attire. All members of the senate have to wear them. Even your son is, look," he motioned over to the Fifth Cohort.

She turned and saw Nico dressed in a toga like the other senate members were, except his was pure black, which she wasn't surprised about.

As more people reached the mess hall for breakfast, more whispers broke out about Percy, who was too busy eating to pay them any mind.

"Two gods in one day..."

"Un-Roman fighting..."

"Water cannon up my nose..."

Reyna suddenly stood up fifteen minutes in, and Esmerelda was worried that breakfast would be short, but she announced that the senate would now convene in the city, and only the folks in togas got up to leave. Fortunately, everyone else got to stay and continue eating.

Then morning classes came, and the Senate meeting was still going on. Esmerelda was starting to grow bored of waiting. None of her classes merged with the Fifth Cohort, so she couldn't even spend time with Ethan. She had Étienne with her at least.

"Why don't you have a tattoo like everyone else?" She wondered during their spear throwing class.

Étienne pulled his arm back and threw his pilum out. It pierced through the target, but missed the center by a few inches much to his disappointment.

He turned to answer her. "I haven't done anything to prove myself yet, so I'm still considered a probatio." He explained, showing the probatio tablet he had hanging around his neck. It was just like hers.

"Prove yourself...?" It sounded kinda similar to how demigods used to be claimed back at Camp Half-Blood before the Second Titan War.

"Yeah. Something impressive really. I don't know. That Hazel girl, last month, she got her mark by saving that son of Bacchus—Dakota—from a unicorn stampede. She also managed to get them back to return to their stables. Reyna and Octavian decided to give her the mark after that."

"Octavian's allowed to choose who gets the mark?" Gods, how much power did that guy have?

"The augurs are the ones who gives the mark, so Octavian has a lot of say on who gets it." He shrugged. "I've seen it happen before with Hazel. Apparently they use 'fire from the heavens' so getting the brand hurts. I don't mind staying as a probatio for a while."

Whether the fire was from the heavens or not, getting burned in general hurt like a bitch, so she had a similar stance with him on not being too eager to get it.

(Though, she had to admit the tattoos did look sort of cool.)

After they retrieved their pilums from the target, Esmerelda decided to change the subject.

"So," she began coolly, giving him a flat look. "I heard you tried to kill my boyfriend."

He had the audacity to give her the puppy eyes.

"Sorry," he said.

"Étienne, we talked about this. You can't try to kill people just because you don't like them," she said in an exasperated tone, as if she was scolding him for a bad grade rather than a murder attempt.

"I don't like him," he mumbled. "He looks scary, why are you even dating him anyways?"

"He's not scary!" She defended, and then took back her words. "I mean... okay yeah, he looks a little scary, but he's actually really really sweet!"

"He tried to kill me last night during the games!"

"Because you were trying to kill him," she deadpanned.

"I can't believe you're taking his side," he grumbled petulantly as she used accio to summon back their spears. Everyone else gave them annoyed looks but they ignored them. "He did something weird, you know, back at the fight. I was going to kill him but then..."

"Then what?" She asked as she prepared her throw.

"My powers stopped working."

She hadn't been expecting that answer, so her aim was completely off when she threw the spear. It skimmed the edge of the target before missing entirely. Rather than grimacing at the poor performance, she whipped her head back to her brother.

"What do you mean by that?"

"I almost got him," he scowled. "I used my telekinesis to grab all the broken canon parts—and that took me a lot of effort you know?—and I threw it at him, but just when they were about to hit, they all just... dropped. I even used my umbrakinesis to hold your son back, but that disappeared too."

Esmerelda's brows furrowed. That sounded just like what happened to her. She had been attacking the enemy cohorts with her magic when suddenly she couldn't do anything anymore. No magic. No Mist. No powers. Nothing. It left her no choice but to try and fend everyone off with a pilum.

It was weird, but it had been temporary (thank gods). After the games ended with her side losing, her powers had returned so she didn't think much of it.

"Ethan had something to do with it," Étienne scowled darkly. "That piece of shit. He's almost as annoying as Alabaster and Maxence. I was so close to killing him..."

"No," Esmerelda said firmly, pushing back her confusion about the temporary loss of powers. "No, Étienne. You will not kill him."

He looked at her, stunned, like she had sucker punched him in the face.

"B-but—"

"—I said no," she repeated, her voice lowering into a harsh whisper. "You already killed your family, you will not lay on my boyfriend. I won't have it."

"You're siding with him?" He said, breathing heavily. His green eyes were glowing, and she could see the nearby shadows stirring nervously.

"Étienne please," she pleaded. "I know what you're like, I know you like to hurt people. I tolerate a lot of things you do, but if you killed him, if you killed any of them, I can't—"

"—Fine," he bit out. He looked severely pissed. "Fine..."

The two of them fell silent after that, and the class resumed.

╞═════𖠁𐂃𖠁═════╡

Sometime during classes, the Senate Meeting had finished. Esmerelda hadn't realized it until lunch, where she spotted the senators along with Percy, Hazel, and Frank.

Rumors spread quickly, though, so she was already aware that the three questers would be going to the land beyond the gods (which was Alaska) to defeat Alcyoneus, one of Gaea's sons. Apparently, he was the sole reason why the first expedition in the 80s failed, because the only way to kill him was to get him out of his territory. He couldn't be killed by the combined efforts of a demigod or a god.

Reyna made a brief speech wishing them luck. Octavian ripped open a Beanie Baby and pronounced grave omens and hard times ahead, but predicted the camp would be saved by an unexpected hero (whose initials were probably OCTAVIAN).

She refrained the urge to wring his neck. She also found out that Percy, Hazel, and Frank would be sent on their death quest with the barest amount of help since Octavian wanted them to do things the 'traditional way' and prove themselves as proper Roman soldiers. That little shit.

After lunch, everyone went to their afternoon classes but Esmerelda and Ethan had a different idea. They sneaked off to the Fifth Cohort barracks where Percy, Hazel, and Frank would be, busy packing. Ethan was fortunate to have such a chill centurion, she doubted Dakota would scold him for skipping. Octavian and Michael however...

"Hey," Esmerelda greeted them as they stepped into the barracks. "You guys ready for your quest?"

She had a fake smile plastered on her face. She figured she might as well look upbeat for their sakes.

"Absolutely not!" Frank smiled. "We're going to die!" He matched her enthusiasm despite the grim words.

"We have nothing planned," Hazel frowned deeply, looking stressed. "We're supposed to save Thanatos from his chains, but he alone won't be able to take control of the Doors of Death from Gaea. That would be another quest, with an army of the best demigods, my brother said."

"Foes bear arms to the Doors of Death," Percy recited the chilling line. "It's connected to the Prophecy of Nine."

Ethan shot Esmerelda a knowing look. Turns out her guess about Hazel and Frank being part of the Nine had been right.

"When do you think you'll come back?" He asked them. "Not to worry you, but we're expected to get attacked soon."

"I know," Frank winced, feeling very worried. "We have no choice but to complete our quest and return by June 24th, the Feast of Fortuna. That's when the attack will happen."

"Well, you got four days," Ethan said bluntly. "So you better think of something soon. Good luck though."

Esmerelda felt something weird in the air. A shiver of power coursing through the room. She sent Ethan a questioning glance, but she already had a pretty good feeling what he had done. She suppressed the urge to give him a teasing smile.

He gave them some actual good luck. I knew he liked them! She internally squealed.

"You guys will be fine," Esmerelda assured them, moving forward to give them all warm hugs. "And Percy, who knows, maybe you'll be able to get all your memories back during the quest!"

"Unless you die," Ethan pointed out.

"Ethan!"

He brought his arms up. "What? It's a possibility."

"Ignore him," she rolled her eyes. "He's just kidding. You guys are totally not gonna die."

Please, please don't die, she begged.

Once they were all packed up, they were ready to go. The five of them left the barrack when Percy suddenly paused.

"Um, actually," Percy began. "Essie, Ethan, can I talk to you guys for a moment?"

Hazel and Frank walked ahead to give them some privacy, and Esmerelda wondered why he looked so hesitant about going to the quest.

"Yesterday, before I had to go to the Senate Meeting, I had a dream," he said. "I dreamt of a faun and Annabeth. They both told me the same thing: to stay put. But... I can't because of this quest. They said they were coming here. Mentioned someone called Tyson being close to me."

"Did they say when they'll be here?" Esmerelda perked up. Had Jason remembered the location of Camp Jupiter? Or maybe Tyson just got a lock down on Percy's scent?

"No," he shook his head. "But I have a feeling I might miss them if I go on this quest. I don't know who those guys were, but I trust them."

"Did they say anything else?" Ethan asked.

"They talked about you, actually," Percy's lips quirked up. "Told me to trust you guys and for us to stick together. So... I take it you guys lied to Reyna back there? About not knowing me?"

"Yep," Ethan answered, and snorted at Esmerelda's horrified face. "Oh calm down, babe, it's not like Juno said Percy wasn't allowed to figure it out."

"I knew it," Percy grinned. "I knew we knew each other! Were we, like, best buddies or something? Did we go on double-dates a lot?"

"No," Ethan said bluntly. "I tried to kill you. Many times."

"Ethan," Esmerelda groaned.

The boy just shrugged. "That's actually a little more believable. Hey, if I don't come back by the time that Tyson dude or the others reach me, will you tell them that I'll be fine? Oh, and, uh, tell Annabeth 'sorry' for not listening to her. Was she my girlfriend?"

"Yes," Esmerelda beamed. "You guys are the cutest couple, ever! And—"

"—Ooookay," Ethan cut her off, not wanting to hear her ramble about Percabeth of all people. "You should get going Percy. Try not to die, and try to get your memories back."

Percy actually went up to hug them, much to Ethan's great annoyance.

"I'll see you guys soon," he said with a wave, and hurried to catch up with Hazel and Frank.

Ethan and Esmerelda watched as they rode Hannibal to edge of the valley, trying to ignore the sense of doom they were getting.

"They better make it out alive," Ethan mumbled under his breath as they walked back to their classes.

Esmerelda was about to speak, until she heard Étienne's voice.

"I can't believe you two skipped!" He seethed, popping out of the shadows like a monster from a horror movie. There was a deep scowl on his face, and his green eyes looked disappointed. He was like a father catching his two disobedient kids.

Esmerelda nearly jumped three feet into the air.

"Étienne!" She placed a hand over her heart. "You scared us!"

"Yourself, you mean," Ethan crossed his arms, unimpressed with the boy's entrance. "You didn't scare me at all, but seeing you is definitely pissing me off. Got another murder attempt in mind?"

"Don't tempt me," Étienne spat. "Octavian noticed your absence, Essie, and then he noticed your stupid boyfriend was absent too. He and Reyna are already looking for you, so I'm here to shadow travel you back. Maybe we can use the bathroom excuse or something."

"Too late!" A loud voice shrilled.

Up above, they heard the flapping of wings. They looked up and saw Reyna riding on Scipio, with Octavian behind her. He must expected one of them to use their charmspeak because she could see some wax plugged in his ears.

"So!" Octavian shouted as Scipio lowered to the ground. "Three unruly campers skipping classes! I've never been so disappointed, especially since two of you belong to my own Cohort! Unbelievable!"

"You don't need to yell, you know," Ethan said, irritated. "We can hear you just fine."

"WHAT?" He proceeded to keep his voice raised.

Reyna winced at the volume, and rose a hand to silence him. She looked back at the three, her features stern.

"Such behavior isn't allowed," she said, staring them down sharply. "Tomorrow, the three of you will be serving your punishment. I will let Octavian decide on what to do with you."

Octavian?! She and Ethan exchanged tired looks. This week just kept getting worse and worse.

— author's note —

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