━━ chapter sixteen
the most courageous female warrior

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    ━━They confiscated Fiona's dagger, which she was not happy about. Marching down so many flights of stairs, she glared at the backs of the Amazons hoping for some Pluto power that would make them just burst into black flames, like whenever she killed monsters. But no, it didn't happen, which just made her mood worst. They emerged in a cavern so big it could have fit five Camp Jupiters. Stark fluorescent lights glowed down from the rock ceiling, conveyor belts wound through the room like waterslides carrying boxes in every direction, along with aisles of metal shelves that stretched out forever, all stacked high with crates of merchandise. Cranes hummed, robotic arms whirred━all of which folding cardboard boxes, packing shipments and taking things on and off the belts. Some shelves were so tall they were only accessible by ladders and catwalks, which ran across the ceiling like those in the theatre for stage lights. The only humans around━that Fiona could see━were some black-suited security women patrolling the catwalks, and some men in orange jumpsuits, like prison uniforms, driving forklifts through the aisles, delivering more pallets of boxes. The men wore iron collars around their necks.

    Hazel was livid, "You keep slaves?"

    "The men?" Kinzie snorted. "They're not slaves. They just know their place. Now, move."

    When Fiona gets her dagger back, Kinzie will be the first one she'll shank. They walked so far that her feet began to hurt, and then Kinzie just opened a second set of large double doors and led them into another cavern, just as big as the first.

     "What the━?" Fiona frowned. "Okay, I'm sure not even the Underworld is this big."

    Kinzie smiled, smug, "You admire our base of operations?" Fiona went to say no, she was just making a comment but was cut off, "Yes, our distribution system is worldwide. It took many years and most of our fortune to build. Now, finally, we're turning a profit. The mortals don't realise they are funding the Amazon kingdom. Soon, we'll be richer than any mortal nation. Then━when the weak mortals depend on us for everything━the revolution will begin!"

    "What are you going to do?" grumbled Frank. "Cancel free shipping?"

    A guard slammed the hilt of her sword into his gut. Percy tried to help him, but two more guards pushed him back at sword point.

    "You'll learn respect," said Kinzie. "It's males like you who have ruined the mortal world. The only harmonious society is one run by women. We are stronger, wiser━"

    "More humble," Percy muttered.

    The guards tried to hit him, but he ducked.

    "Stop it!" snapped Hazel, and surprisingly, the guards listened. "Hylla is going to judge us, right? So take us to her. We're wasting time."

     Kinzie nodded. "Perhaps you're right. We have more important problems. And time ... time is definitely an issue."

    "What do you mean?" asked Fiona.

    A guard grunted. "We could take them straight to Otrera. Might win her favour that way."

    "No!" snarled Kinzie. "I'd sooner wear an iron collar and drive a forklift. Hylla is queen."

    "Until tonight," grumbled another.

    Kinzie gripped her sword, and for a second, Fiona thought the Amazons would start fighting each other. But Kinzie got her anger under control and said, "Enough. Let's go."

    Crossing a lane of forklift traffic, they navigated a maze of conveyor belts and robotic arms. Most of the merchandise looked ordinary: books, electronics, baby diapers, that sort of thing. But against one wall sat a war chariot with a big barcode on the side. Handing from the yoke was a sign that read: ONLY ONE LEFT IN STOCK. ORDER SOON! (MORE ON THE WAY!).

    They entered a smaller cavern━finally, Holy Mars!━that looked like a combination of a loading zone and a throne room, which was a very strange blend. The walls were lined with metal shelves six storeys high, decorated with war banners, painted shields and stuffed heads of dragons, hydras, giant lions and wild boars. Standing guard along either side were forklifts modified for war, which would be hilarious if they weren't so terrifying. An iron-collared male drove each machine, but an Amazon warrior stood on a platform at the back, manning a giant mounted crossbow. The prongs of each forklift had been sharpened into oversized sword blades.

    The shelves in this room were stacked with cages containing live animals, and Fiona felt her anger get worse. There were black mastifs, giant eagles, a lion-eagle hybrid that might've been a gryphon and a red ant the size of a compact car. Her eyes widened, her throat dry. "You━you keep them caged up? What ... what━" she watched in horror as a forklift zipped into the room, picking up a cage with a beautiful white pegasus and sped away while the horse whinnied in protest, "━what is wrong with you lot? What are you doing to that poor animal?"

    (Fiona suddenly thinks she might go vegetarian, which was a weird sensation).

    Kinzie frowned. "The pegasus? It'll be fine. Someone must've ordered it. The shipping and handling charges are steep, but━"

    "You can buy a pegasus online?" Percy asked.

    Kinzie glared at him. "Obviously you can't, male. But Amazons can. We have followers all over the world. They need supplies. This way."

    They approached a throne made from about a thousand copies of something called The Five Habits of Highly Aggressive Women, where at the base of the steps, several Amazons in camouflage were having an heated argument while a young woman━Queen Hylla, Fiona assumed━watched and listened from her throne. Hylla was in her twenties, lithe and as lean as a tiger. She looked so much like Reyna, it was scary. A little older, yes, but strikingly similar. They had the same long black hair, the same dark eyes and the same hard expression like she was trying to decide which of the Amazons before her should die first. She wore no crown, but had a strange belt around her waist of interlocking gold links, like the pattern of a labyrinth.

    Kinzie took one look at the argument and grunted in disgust, "Otrera's agents, spreading their lies."

    "What?" Frank frowned.

    Then Hazel stopped so abruptly that the guards behind her stumbled. Fiona watched her, confused, but followed her gaze nonetheless. A few feet from the queen's throne, two Amazons guarded a cage. Inside was a horse━a large and powerful stallion with a honey-coloured coat and a black mane. His fierce brown eyes regarded Hazel.

     "It's him," she murmured.

    "Him, who?" asked Percy.

    Kinzie scowled, annoyed, but then she saw where they were looking, and her expression softened. "Ah, yes. Beautiful, isn't he?"

    "Is he ..." Hazel looked like she had seen a ghost, but a beautiful ghost. "Is he for sale?"

    The guards all laughed.

    "That's Arion," Kinzie said patiently. "He's a royal treasure of the Amazons━to be claimed only by our most courageous warrior, if you believe the prophecy."

    "Prophecy?"

    Kinzie's expression became pained, almost flushing in embarrassment. "Never mind. But, no, he's not for sale."

    "Then why is he in a cage?"

    "Because ..." she grimaced, "... he is difficult."

    Difficult was an understatement. As if on cue, the horse in the cage slammed his head against the doors, and the metal bars shuddered. The guards retreated nervously, and Percy winced as if he could tell exactly what the stallion was saying. His lips moved in a soundless, "Wow, okay ..." even if he wasn't making a sound, Fiona knew it was sarcastic. It was him. It just was sarcastic.

     Hazel pursed her lips, looking torn. "Just asking," she managed. "Let's see the queen."

    The argument grew louder as they approached. In seeing Fiona and Hazel, Hylla snapped, "Enough!"

    The arguing Amazons shut up immediately. The queen waved them aside and beckoned Kinzie forward. She showed Fiona and her friends towards the throne. "My queen, these demigods━"

    The queen shot to her feet, "You!"

    She glared at Percy with a murderous rage. Percy muttered something in Ancient Greek that Fiona tried her best to translate, something along the lines of some very, very bad cuss words. "Clipboard," he said. "Spa. Pirates."

    This made absolutely no sense to Fiona, but Hylla nodded. She stepped down from her bais and drew a dagger from her belt. "You were incredibly foolish to come here," she said. "You destroyed my home. You made my sister and me exiles and prisoners."

    "Percy," said Frank uneasily. "What's the scary woman with the dagger talking about?"

    "Circe's Island," Percy said. "I just remembered. The gorgon's blood━maybe it's starting to heal my mind. The Sea of Monsters. Hylla ... she welcomed us at the docks, took us to see her boss. Hylla worked for the sorceress."

     Hylla bared her teeth, "Are you telling me you've had amnesia? You know, I might actually believe you. Why else would you be stupid enough to come here?"

     Fiona stepped in front of Percy, eyeing the dagger warily. "We come in peace," she said. "What did Percy do?"

    "Peace?" the queen raised her eyebrows at Fiona. "What did he do? This male destroyed Circe's school of magic!"

    "Circe turned me into a guinea pig!" Percy protested.

    (Wait, what?).

    "No excuses!" Hylla snapped. "Circe was a wise and generous employer. I had room and board, a good health plan, dental, pet leopards, free potions━everything! And this demigod with his friend, the blonde━"

    "Annabeth," Percy tapped his forehead like he wanted the memories to come back faster. Fiona pursed her lips at the mention of his friend. Stop it, she told herself. Don't be a silly girl and get jealous, get over it Fiona! "That's right. I was there with Annabeth."

    "You released our captives━Blackbeard and his pirates," she turned to Fiona and Hazel. "Have you everbeen kidnapped by pirates? It isn't fun. They burned our spa to the ground. My sister and I were their prisoners for months. Fortunately, we were daughters of Bellona. We learned to fight quickly. If we hadn't..." she shuddered. "Well, the pirates learned to respect us. Eventually, we made our way back to California where we━" she hesitated, as if the memory pained her. "Where my sister and I parted ways."

    She stepped up closer to Percy, but Fiona stopped her, a murderous glare of her own. Standing in between the two of them, her eyes dared Hylla to try. Yes, Fiona knows that she doesn't have a weapon and Hylla was probably a very good warrior, but Fiona will win━hopefully. "Get out of the way," she told her.

    Fiona gritted her teeth, "We come in peace," she replied back. "Look at the ring on his necklace. Reyna sent us. Your sister."

    Hylla frowned. She lowered her knife and gazed over Fiona's shoulder to Percy's necklace. The point rested on the silver ring, and the colour drained from her face. "Explain this," she glared at Fiona. "Quickly."

    Fiona wanted to say━ "I will if you back off," but she felt like Hylla wouldn't care, so she just did her best to explain. She described Camp Jupiter, she told the Amazons that Reyna was their praetor, and the army of monsters that was marching south. She told them about their quest to free Thanatos in Alaska. As Fiona talked, another group of Amazons entered the room. One was taller and older than the rest, with plaited silver hair and fine robes like a Roman matron. The other Amazons made way for her, treating her with such respect that Hazel wondered if she was related to Hylla━until she noticed how Hylla and the older woman stared daggers at each other.

    "So we need your help," Fiona finished her story, rather stiffly. "Reyna needs your help."

    Hylla gripped Percy's leather cord, Fiona tensed, ready to fight but she just yanked it off his neck━beads, ring, probatio tablet and all. "Reyna ... that foolish girl━"

    "Well!" the older woman interrupted. "Romans need our help?" she laughed and the Amazons around her joined in. "How many times did we battle the Romans in my day? How many times have they killed our sisters in battle? When I was queen━"

    "Otrera," Hylla interrupted, "you are here as a guest. You are not queen anymore."

    The older woman spread out her hands and gave Hylla a mocking bow. "As you say━at least, until tonight. But I speak the truth, Queen Hylla," she said the word like a taunt. "I've been brought back by the Earth Mother herself!" (Oh, gods, here they go again...) "I bring tidings of a new war. Why should Amazons follow Jupiter, that foolish king of Olympus, when we can follow a queen? When I take command━"

    "If you take command," Hylla said. "But, for now, I am queen. My word is law."

    "I see," Otrera glanced at the assembled Amazons, who were standing very still, as if they had found themselves in a pit with two wild tigers. "Have we become so weak that we listen to male demigods? Will you spare the life of this son of Neptune, even though he once destroyed your home? Perhaps you'll let him destroy your new home, too!"

    Fiona felt her breath, feeling the tension grow. "I will pass judgement," Hylla said in an icy tone, "once I have all the facts. That is how I rule━byreason, not fear. First, I will talk to these two," she jabbed a finger towards Fiona and Hazel. "It is my duty to hear out female warriors before I sentence them or their allies to death. That is the Amazon way. Or have your years in the Underworld muddled your memory, Otrera?"

    The older woman sneered, but didn't try to argue. Hylla turned to Kinzie, "Take these males to the holding cells. The rest of you, leave us."

    Otrera raised her hand to the crowd, "As our queen commands. But any of you who would like to hear more about Gaea, and our glorious future with her, come with me."

    About half of the Amazons followed her out of the room. Kinzie snorted in disgust, then she and her guards hauled Percy and Frank away. Soon, Fiona, Hylla and Hazel were alone except for the queen's personal guards. At Hylla's signal, they moved out of earshot. She then turned to Fiona and Hazel. Her anger had dissolved, and there was now desperation in her eyes.

    "We must talk," she said. "We don't have much time. By midnight, I will most likely be dead.

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    ━━If for some reason, Reyna would ever actually read this, Fiona wants to say, she's sorry, but she does not trust her sister Hylla, at all. If she was to be honest, she thought about grabbing Hazel and making a run for it. Hylla was only armed with a dagger, and they were underground, maybe their dear old father Pluto might actually be some help for once, and not be a jerk. But, they were both unharmed, and as much as Fiona hated to admit it, these girls knew how to fight really well.

    The queen seemed to just read Fiona's thoughts, and said, "Forget about escape. Of course, we'd respect you for trying. But we'd have to kill you."

    "I appreciate the warning."

    Hylla shrugged. "The least I can do. I believe you come in peace. I believe Reyna sent you."

    Hazel frowned. "But you won't help?"

    Hylla studied the necklace she had taken from Percy. "It's complicated," she finally decided. "Amazons have always had a rocky relationship with other demigods━especially male demigods. We fought for King Priam in the Trojan War, but Achilles killed our queen, Penthesila. Years before that, Hercules stole Queen Hippolyta's belt━this belt I'm wearing. It took us centuries to recover it. Long before that, at the very beginning of the Amazson nation, a hero named Bellerophon killed our first queen, Otrera."

    Fiona arched a brow. "Wait, you meant that old lady━"

    "━who just left, yes. Otrera, our first queen, daugther of Ares."

    "Ares? Not Mars?"

    Hylla's face turned sour. "No, definitely Ares. Otrera lived long before Rome, in a time when all demigods were Greek. Unfortunately, some of our warriors still prefer the old ways. Childen of Ares ... they are always the worst."

    Fiona felt the hairs on the back of her neck rise once more. She felt exposed here━just by what Hylla had said. The old ways ... Children of Ares .... Octavian always believed the rumours about Greek demgods still existed and were secretly plotting against Rome. But Fiona had never really believed it ... until Percy came to camp. Not that he was evil, or planning to destroy them. But Greek demigods ... if anyone was a Greek demigod, Fiona knew Percy would be it. All of the whispers, the coicidences, they all surround Greek myths and ways. She was just too scared to ask. One because he didn't remember, and two, if he was, she didn't know what this would mean for Camp Jupiter. Juno took those memories away for a reason.

    "The old ways ..." Hazel murmured. "You mean the Amazons are a mix ... Greek and Roman?"

    Hylla continued to examine the necklace. She slipped Reyna's ring off the cord and put it on your own finger. "I suppose they don't teach you about that at Camp Jupiter. The gods have many aspects. Mars, Ares. Pluto, Hades. Being immortal, they tend to accumulate personalities. They are Greek, Roman, American━a combination of all the cultures they've influenced over the aeons. Do you understand?"

    "I━I'm not sure. Are all Amazons demigods?"

    The queen spread her hands. "We all have some immortal blood, but many of my warriors are descended from demigods. Some have been Amazons for countless generations. Others are children of minor gods. Kinzie, the one who brought you here, is the daughter of a nymph. Ah━here she is now."

    Kinzie approached the queen, and with a fluff of auburn hair, bowed. "The prisoners are safely locked away," she reported. "But..."

    "Yes?"

    Kinzie swallowed like she had a bad taste in her mouth. "Otrera made sure her followers are guarding the cells. I'm sorry, my queen."

    Hylla pursed her lips. "No matter. Stay with us, Kinzie. We were just talking about our━ah━situation."

    "Let me guess," Fiona crossed her arms. "Gaea brought Otrera back from the dead to throw you Amazons into civil war."

    The queen sighed, "If that was her plan, it is working. Otrera is a legend among our people. She plans to take back the throne and lead us to war against the Romans. Many of my sisters will follow her."

    "Not all," grumbled Kinzie.

     "But Otrera is a spirit!" said Hazel. "She isn't even━"

    "Real?" the queen studied the girls carefully. "I worked with the sorceress Circe for many years. I know a returned soul when I see one. When did you die, Hazel, Fiona━1920? 1930?"

    "A few days ago," muttered Fiona while Hazel said:

    "1942. But━but we weren't sent by Gaea. I came back to stop her, as did Fiona. Our father, Pluto, gave her his blessing to himself. This is our second chance."

     "Your second chance..." Hylla's gaze flickered to the rows of battle forklifs. "I know about second chances. That boy, Percy Jackson━he destroyed my old life. You wouldn't have recognised me back them. I wore dresses and make-up. I was a glorified secretary, an accursed Barbie doll."

    Kinzie made a three-fingered claw over her chest, before pushing it out━a symbol to ward off evil. As Hylla told her story on Circe's Island, and Percy's unleash of terror━or rather, the pirates he had unleashed━Fiona tried to think of a way to get them out of here. She was sure that however this conversation turned out, they will die. She had to get her and Hazel out of here, find Percy and Frank and then continue their way to Alaska. If they couldn't convince Hylla to help her sister, then they had to get a move on.

    The conversation continued back to Otrera, and how she has challenged Hylla's throne through a fight to the death. While Hylla was good, Otrera had Gaea on her side, and a pair of wedged-open Doors of Death, and a Death god captured. "Even if you kill her," said Fiona, "she'll just come back. As long as Thanatos is chained, she won't stay dead."

    "Exactly," nodded Hylla. "Otrera has already told us that she can't die. So, even if I manage to defeat her tonight, she'll simply return and challenge me again tomorrow. There is no law against challenging the queen multiple times. She can insist on fighting me every night, until she finally wears me down. I can't win."

    Fiona glared at the throne. She imagined Otrera sitting there, and while she didn't trust Hylla, she distrusted Otrera far more. "Pray to my grandmother," she suggested, "maybe she will see Otrera's win as a cheat and give you victory."

    Hylla pursed her lips, "Even Victoria can't give me a victory over the Doors of Death, Fiona."

    "There has to be a way," said Hazel. "Don't Amazons have ... special powers or something?"

    "No more than other demigods," Hylla said. "We can die, just like any mortal. There is a group of archers who follow the goddess Artemis━" Artemis, not Diana? The Greek deity? Fiona doesn't like how Octavian's rumours seemed to be getting closer and closer to the truth, "━They are often mistaken for Amazons, but the Hunters forsake the company of men in exchange for almost endless life. We Amazons━we would prefer to live life to the fullest. We love, we fight, we die."

    "I thought you hated men," frowned Hazel.

    Hylla and Kinzie both laughed. "Hate men?" said the queen. "No, no, we like men. We just like to show them who's in charge," Fiona snickered to herself. She liked to do that, too ... just ... not in the way where she'd put them in orange jumpsuits. "But that's beside the point. If I could, I would rally our troops and ride to my sister's aid. Unfortunately, my power is tenuous. when I am killed in combat━and it's only a matter of time━Otrera will be queen. She will march to Camp Jupiter with our forces, but she will not go to help my sister. She'll go to join the giant's army."

    "We've got to stop her," Fiona said. "My friends and I━we killed Phineas, one of Gaea's other servants in Portland. I have the ... um━I think ability?━to send returned souls backed to the Underworld for a little longer before Gaea returns them. Maybe I could━uh━kill Otrera for you?"

    The queen shook her head. "You can't interfere. As queen, I must fight my own battles. Besides, your friends are imprisoned. If I let them go, I'll look weak. Either I execute you four as trespassers, or Otrera will do so when she becomes queen."

    (Fiona was right in the end, wasn't she ... she doesn't like this victory).

    Hazel sighed, "So I guess all three of us are dead. Fiona and I for the second time."

    Fiona fiddled with her necklace, and thought about the shrivelled seed inside. She still didn't know what that meant━whether she was free from her curse, or she only had limited time left, now before she returns ... right now, she was feeling it was more the latter. In the corner cage, the stallion whinnied angrily. He reared and slammed his hooves against the bars.

    "The horse seems to feel your destair," the queen said to Hazel. "Interesting. He's immortal, you know━the son of Neptune and Ceres."

    Hazel blinked. "Two gods had a horse for a kid?"

    Fiona frowned, "Hazel, Neptune is the god of horses. This isn't his only offspring of that sort. He fathered Pegasus, too. But that would mean that that's ..." her eyes widened at the stallion in realisation. "How did you manage to capture Arion?"

    "He's the fastest horse in the world," Hylla agreed. "Pegasus is more famous, with his wings, but Arion runs like the wind over land and sea. No creature is faster, not even Victoria's speed can match his. It took us years to capture him━on of our greatest prizes. But it did us no good. The horse will not allow anyone to ride him. I think he hates Amazons. And he is expensive to keep. He will eat anything, but he prefers gold."

    Hazel's shoulders tensed. "He eats gold?"

    The sisters shared a look. Hazel frowned, as if to ask, I wonder...? Fiona nodded, curious as well. After the small exchange, Hazel decided to kneel and press her hand against the floor. Immediately, the stone cracked. A chunk of gold ore the size of a plum was pushed out of the earth. Hazel stood, examining her prize. Fiona resisted the urge to smile. She was proud of her little sister. Fiona wishes she had cool powers like that, but still, she was proud.

    Hylla and Kinzie stared at her, astonished. "How did you...?" the queen gasped. "Hazel, be careful!"

    Hazel approached the stallion's cage. She put her hand between the bars, and Arion gingerly ate the chunk of gold from her palm.

    "Unbelieveable," Kinzie breathed. "The last girl who tried that━"

    "Now has a metal arm," Hylla finished. She studied Hazel now with a fresh interest, as if deciding whether or not to say more. "Hazel ... we spent years hunting for this horse. It was foretold that the most courageous female warrior would some day master Arion and ride him to victory, ushering in a new era of propserity for the Amazons. Yet no Amazon can touch him, much less control him. Even Otrera tried and failed. Two others died attempting to ride him."

    But they haven't met Hazel. Fiona felt no worry as her younger sister put her hand through the bars and stroked Arion's noze, and he nuzzled her arm, murming contentedly. "I would feed you more, Arion," said Hazel, before glancing pointedly at the queen. "But I think I'm scheduled for an execution."

    Queen Hylla looked back and forth from Hazel and the horse, "Unbelieveable."

    "The prophecy," Kinzie breathed. "Is it possible...?"

    The gears turned inside the queen's mind, formulating a plan. Suddenly, Fiona's spirits lifted. Was there hope? Could there be hope? "You have courage, Hazel Levesque. And it seems Arion has chosen you. Kinzie?"

    "Yes, my queen?"

    "You said Otrera's followers are guarding the cells?"

    Kinzie nodded. "I should have foreseen that. I'm sorry━"

    "No, it's fine," her eyes gleamed━a gleam full of mischief and mirth, like she was a school girl about to cause some serious trouble. "It would be embarassing for Otrera if her followers failed in their duties━if, for instance, they were overcome by some outsiders and a prison break occured."

    Kinzie began to smile, "Yes, my queen. Most embarassing."

    "Of course," continued Hylla, "none of my guards would know a thing about this. Kinzie would not spread the word to allow an escape."

    "Certainly not."

    "And we couldn't help you," the queen raised her brows at Fiona and Hazel. "But if you somehow overpowered the guards and freed your friends ... if, for instance, you took one of the guard's Amazon cards━"

    "With one-click purchasing enabled," Kinzie added, "which will open the jail cells with one click."

    "If━gods forbid!━something like that were to happen," went on the queen, "you would find your friends' weapons and supplies in the guard station next to the cells. And who knows? If you made your way back to thise throne room while I was off preparing for my duel ... well, as I mentioned, Arion is a very fast horse. It would be a shame if he were stolen and used for an escape."

    Fiona's fingers itched at this opportunity. Her gaze snapped to Hazel's, who looked buzzed, but unsure. "Queen Hylla," she said. "I━I'm not much of a fighter."

    "Oh, there are many kinds of fighting, Hazel. I have a feeling you're quite resourceful. And, if the prophecy is correct, you will help the Amazon nation achieve prosperity. If you succeed on your quest to free Thanatos, for instance━"

    "━then Otrera wouldn't come back if she were killed," nodded Hazel, realising. "You'd only have to defeat her ... um, every night until we succeed."

    The queen nodded grimly. "It seems we all have impossible tasks ahead of us."

    "But you're trusting us," said Hazel, gesturing between her and Fiona. "And I━we━" she added at Fiona's nod, "━trust you. You will win, as many times as it takes."

    "As a legacy of the goddess of victory, I second that," Fiona rose her hand. "If anyone deserves victory━a fair victory. It would be you."

    Hylla held out Percy's necklace and poured it into Fiona's hands. "I hope you're right," she said. "But the sooner you succeed, the better, yes?"

    Fiona slipped the necklace into her pocket. She and Hazel each shook the queen's hand, wondering if it was possible to make a friend so fast━especially one who was just ready to excute them.

    "This conversation never happened," Hylla told Kinzie. "Take our prisoners to the cells and hand them over to Otrera's guards. And, Kinzie, be sure you leave before anything unfortunate happens. I don't want my loyal followers held accountable for a prison break."

    The queen smiled mischeviously, and nodded at the two sisters. "Goodbye, Hazel Levesque and Fiona Midgrass," she said. "If we all die tonight ... well, I am glad to have met the two of you."

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    ━━As soon as the entire pallet of jewellery exploded with a sound like a thousand slot machines hitting the jackpot, the plan was in motion. Fiona watched in glee as two of Otrera's followers━Doris and Lulu━were hit by a tidal wave of silver friendship bracelets, and were washed right over the railing. They would've fallen to their deaths, but Hazel had the bracelets leap at the guards and wrap around their ankles, leaving them hanging upside down from the bottom of the catwalk, screaming like lame little girls.

    Fiona wanted to have some fun herself, so she grabbed a jewell-topped walking cane and swung it right at the third Amazon girl. She whacked her with so much force, it snapped in two. She fell to the ground, unconscious, and Fiona spun the broken cane in the air, catching it with a grin. As she did, Hazel shouted over the side at Doris and Lulu, "Amazon cards! Pass them up, unless you want me to undo those friendship bracelets and let you drop!"

    Four and a half seconds later, Hazel had two Amazon cards. She chucked one at Fiona who caught it and raced over to the cages. She swiped the card, and the doors popped open.

    Frank stared at the girls in amazement━or well, really it was all Hazel. She was the true hero here. "Hazel ... that was amazing!"

    Percy nodded, "I will never wear jewellery again."

   "Except this," Fiona tossed him his necklace, giving him a small grin. "So, our weapons and supplies are at the end of the catwalk. We should hurry. Pretty soon━"

    Alarms began wailing throughout the cavern.

    "Yeah," Hazel said, "that'll happen. Let's go!"

    So, the first part of an escape was always easy. They retrieved their belongings with no problem, then started climbing down the ladder. Every time Amazons swarmed nebeath them, demanding their surrender, Hazel made a crate of jewellery explode, burying their enemies in a mound of gold and silver. When they reached the bottom of the ladder, Fiona let out a laugh at the sight of Amazons trapped up to their necks in bead necklaces and such.

    "You, Hazel Levesque," Frank said, "are entirely freaking incredible."

   "Oh, save the flirting for later!" said Fiona. "Come on!"

    They stumbled across one Amazon who must have been loyal to Hylla, for as soon as she saw the escapees, she turned away like they were invibisble.

     Percy started to ask, "What the━?"

    "Some of them want us to escape," said Fiona. "Come on, I'll explain later, Fish Fingers."

     The second Amazon they met wasn't exactly so friendly. She was dressed in full armour, blocking the throne-room entrance. However, Percy was ready this time. He drew Riptide and stepped into battle. As the Amazon jabbed him with her spear, he sidestepped, cut the shaft in half and slammed the hilt of his sword against her helmet. The guard crumpled.

    "Mars Almighty!" Frank let out. "How did you━that wasn't any Roman technique!"

    Percy grinned, and Fiona thought he looked very handsome right at that second. (Oh, let her have it just this once! She's co-leading a prison break, her adrennaline is high!) "The graecus has some moves, my friend. After you."

    They sprinted into the throne room, and as promised, Hylla and her guards were no where to be seen. Hazel dashed over to Arion's cage and swiped an Amazon card across the lock. Instantly, the stallion burst forth, rearing in triumph.

    Percy and Frank stumbled backwards. Fiona was tugged along with them. "Um ... is that thing tame?" asked Frank.

    The horse whinnied angrily.

    "I don't think so," said Percy. "He just said, 'I will trample you to death, silly Chinese Canadian baby man'."

     Hazel stared at him, "You speak horse?"

    "'Baby man'?" Frank spluttered.

    "Oh my gods, this horse is awesome!" grinned Fiona.

    "Speaking to horses is a Poseidon thing," said Percy. "Uh━I mean a Neptune thing."

    "Then you and Arion should get along just fine," Fiona's gaze twinkled with amusement up at him. "He's a son of Neptune, too, after all."

     Percy turned pale. "Excuse me?"

     It was strange, but if this wasn't such a bad situation, Fiona had the urge to reach up and kiss that stupid look off his face and laugh about it (which was very alarming for her, can you imagine?). "The point is," said Hazel, "is he's fast. He can get us out of here."

    Frank did not look thrilled. "Four of us can't fit on one horse, can we? We'll for off, or slow him down, or━"

    Arion whinnied again.

    "Ouch," Percy said. "Frank, the horse says you're a━you know, actually, I'm not going to translate that. Anyway, he says there's a chariot in the warehouse, and he's willing to pull it."

     "There!" someone yelled from the back of the throne room. A dozen Amazons charged in, followed by men in orange jumpsuits. When they saw Arion, they backed up quickly and headed for the battle forklifts. Hazel vaulted onto Arion's back.

    She grinned down at them. "I remember seeing that chariot. Follow me, guys!"

    She galloped into the larger cavern, scattering a crowd of males. Fiona, Percy and Frank followed her, knocking out as many as they could on their way. Fiona sped through, stabbing the hilt of her pugio into stomachs, shoulders, and heads faster than one could say watch out! A warrior with a dagger always had to be fast, but even she, in this moment, felt like she was moving faster than she has ever before.

    Finally, they reached the chariot. Arion stopped by the yoke, and Percy set straight to work with the reins and harness.

    "You've done this before?" Frank asked.

    Percy didn't answer. His hands flew, and in no time, the chariot was ready. He jumped aboard, helping up Fiona who was right behind him. "Frank, come on! Hazel, go!"

    A battle cry went up behind them. A full army of Amazons stormed into the warehouse. Otrera herself stood aside a battle forklift, her silver hair flowing as she swung her mounted crossbow towards the chariot. "Stop them!" she shouted.

    Fiona felt a spur of adrennaline, and maybe that was why she felt a tug in her gut and a hum in her ears. She whispered, "No," to Otrera, though she knew she would never hear. And yet, the woman froze up, very confused. She tried to man the crossbow, but it was like she wasn't controlling her movements. Instead, it was Fiona.

    Absolutely surprised, Fiona didn't waste anymore time, and instead just took advantage of the cazy situation to order, "Tell them to fall back."

    And just like that, Otrera shouted, "Fall back!" to her warriors. "Fall back!"

    They did as they were told, confused, but followed her orders. Fiona took a breath, releasing the feel in her stomach, and the humming in her ears stopped. But, she felt dizzy. She turned to Percy as Arion bolted across the cavern, murmuring. "I think ... I might ... I'm tired ..." and like that, she slumped into his arms, unconscious.

✿✼:*ﾟ:༅。.。༅:*·ﾟﾟ·⭑

    a/n: *gasps* we're getting more hints to fiona's powers oooooooooooo, excitingggggg. and like ^^ she literally went, imma sleep wake me up later *falls*.