HAZEL CONSIDERED MAKING A RUN FOR IT.
She didn’t trust Queen Hylla, and she certainly didn’t
trust that other lady, Otrera. Only three guards were left in
the room. All of them kept their distance.
Hylla was armed with just a dagger. This deep
underground, Hazel might be able to cause an
earthquake in the throne room, or summon a big pile of
schist or gold. If she could cause a distraction, she might
be able to escape and find her friends.
Unfortunately, she’d seen the Amazons fight. Even
though the queen had only a dagger, Hazel suspected
she could use it pretty well. And Hazel was unarmed. They
hadn’t searched her, which meant thankfully they hadn’t
taken Frank’s firewood from her coat pocket, but her sword
was gone.
The queen seemed to be reading her thoughts. ‘Forget
about escape. Of course, we’d respect you for trying. But
we’d have to kill you.’
‘Thanks for the warning.’
Hylla shrugged. ‘The least I can do. I believe you come
in peace. I believe Reyna sent you.’
‘But you won’t help?’
The queen studied the necklace she’d taken from
Percy. ‘It’s complicated,’ she said. ‘Amazons have always
had a rocky relationship with other demigods – especially
male demigods. We fought for King Priam in the Trojan
War, but Achilles killed our queen, Penthesilea. Years
before that, Hercules stole Queen Hippolyta’s belt – this
belt I’m wearing. It took us centuries to recover it. Long
before that, at the very beginning of the Amazon nation, a
hero named Bellerophon killed our first queen, Otrera.’
‘You mean the lady –’
‘– who just left, yes. Otrera, our first queen, daughter of
Ares.’
‘Mars?’
Hylla made a sour face. ‘No, definitely Ares. Otrera
lived long before Rome, in a time when all demigods were
Greek. Unfortunately, some of our warriors still prefer the
old ways. Children of Ares … they are always the worst.’
‘The old ways …’ Hazel had heard rumours about Greek
demigods. Octavian believed they existed and were
secretly plotting against Rome. But she’d never really
believed it, even when Percy came to camp. He just didn’t
strike her as an evil, scheming Greek. ‘You mean the
Amazons are a mix … Greek and Roman?’
Hylla continued to examine the necklace – the clay
beads, the probatio tablet. She slipped Reyna’s silver ring
off the cord and put it on her own finger. ‘I suppose they
don’t teach you about that at Camp Jupiter. The gods
have many aspects. Mars, Ares. Pluto, Hades. Being
immortal, they tend to accumulate personalities. They are
Greek, Roman, American – a combination of all the
cultures they’ve influenced over the 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.’
The girl with the auburn hair approached the queen and
bowed.
‘The prisoners are safely locked away,’ Kinzie reported.
‘But …’
‘Yes?’ the queen asked.
Kinzie swallowed like she had a bad taste in her mouth.
‘Otrera made sure her followers are guarding the cells. I’m
sorry, my queen.’
Hylla pursed her lips. ‘No matter. Stay with us, Kinzie.
We were just talking about our, ah, situation.’
‘Otrera,’ Hazel guessed. ‘Gaia brought her back from
the dead to throw you Amazons into civil war.’
The queen exhaled. ‘If that was her plan, it is working.
Otrera is a legend among our people. She plans to take
back the throne and lead us to war against the Romans.
Many of my sisters will follow her.’
‘Not all,’ Kinzie grumbled.
‘But Otrera is a spirit!’ Hazel said. ‘She isn’t even –’
‘Real?’ The queen studied Hazel carefully. ‘I worked with
the sorceress Circe for many years. I know a returned soul
when I see one. When did you die, Hazel – 1920? 1930?’
‘1942,’ Hazel said. ‘But – but I wasn’t sent by Gaia. I
came back to stop her. This is my second chance.’
‘Your second chance …’ Hylla gazed at the rows of
battle forklifts, now empty. ‘I know about second chances.
That boy, Percy Jackson – he destroyed my old life. You
wouldn’t have recognized me back then. I wore dresses
and make-up. I was a glorified secretary, an accursed
Barbie doll.’
Kinzie made a three-fingered claw over her heart, like
the voodoo gestures Hazel’s mom once used for warding
off the Evil Eye.
‘Circe’s island was a safe place for Reyna and me,’ the
queen continued. ‘We were daughters of the war goddess,
Bellona. I wanted to protect Reyna from all that violence.
Then Percy Jackson unleashed the pirates. They
kidnapped us, and Reyna and I learned to be tough. We
found out that we were good with weapons. The past four
years, I’ve wanted to kill Percy Jackson for what he made
us endure.’
‘But Reyna became the praetor of Camp Jupiter,’ Hazel
said. ‘You became the queen of the Amazons. Maybe this
was your destiny.’
Hylla fingered the necklace in her hand. ‘I may not be
queen for much longer.’
‘You will prevail!’ Kinzie insisted.
‘As the Fates decree,’ Hylla said without enthusiasm.
‘You see, Hazel, Otrera has challenged me to a duel.
Every Amazon has that right. Tonight at midnight, we’ll
battle for the throne.’
‘But … you’re good, right?’ Hazel asked.
Hylla managed a dry smile. ‘Good, yes, but Otrera is
the founder of the Amazons.’
‘She’s a lot older. Maybe she’s out of practice, having
been dead for so long.’
‘I hope you’re right, Hazel. You see, it’s a battle to the
death …’
She waited for that to sink in. Hazel remembered what
Phineas had said in Portland – how he had had a shortcut
back from death, thanks to Gaia. She remembered how
the gorgons had tried to re-form in the Tiber.
‘Even if you kill her,’ Hazel said, ‘she’ll just come back.
As long as Thanatos is chained, she won’t stay dead.’
‘Exactly,’ Hylla said. ‘Otrera has already told us that she
can’t die. So, even if I manage to defeat her tonight, she’ll
simply return and challenge me again tomorrow. There is
no law against challenging the queen multiple times. She
can insist on fighting me every night, until she finally
wears me down. I can’t win.’
Hazel gazed at the throne. She imagined Otrera sitting
there with her fine robes and her silver hair, ordering her
warriors to attack Rome. She imagined the voice of Gaia
filling this cavern.
‘There has to be a way,’ she said. ‘Don’t Amazons
have … special powers or something?’
‘No more than other demigods,’ Hylla said. ‘We can die,
just like any mortal. There is a group of archers who follow
the goddess Artemis. They are often mistaken for
Amazons, but the Hunters forsake the company of men in
exchange for 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.’
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. 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,’ Hazel said. ‘My friends and I
killed Phineas, one of Gaia’s other servants in Portland.
Maybe we can help!’
The queen shook her head. ‘You can’t interfere. As
queen, I must fight my own battles. Besides, your friends
are imprisoned. If I let them go, I’ll look weak. Either I
execute you three as trespassers, or Otrera will do so
when she becomes queen.’
Hazel’s heart sank. ‘So I guess we’re both dead. Me for
the second time.’
In the corner cage, the stallion Arion whinnied angrily.
He reared and slammed his hooves against the bars.
‘The horse seems to feel your despair,’ the queen said.
‘Interesting. He’s immortal, you know – the son of Neptune
and Ceres.’
Hazel blinked. ‘Two gods had a horse for a kid?’
‘Long story.’
‘Oh.’ Hazel’s face felt hot with embarrassment.
‘He’s the fastest horse in the world,’ Hylla said. ‘Pegasus
is more famous, with his wings, but Arion runs like the
wind over land and sea. No creature is faster. It took us
years to capture him – one of our greatest prizes. But it
did us no good. The horse will not allow anyone to ride
him. I think he hates Amazons. And he is expensive to
keep. He will eat anything, but he prefers gold.’
The back of Hazel’s neck tingled. ‘He eats gold?’
She remembered the horse following her in Alaska so
many years ago. She had thought he was eating nuggets
of gold that appeared in her footsteps.
She knelt and pressed 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.
Hylla and Kinzie stared at her.
‘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.
‘Unbelievable,’ Kinzie said. ‘The last girl who tried that –’
‘Now has a metal arm,’ the queen finished. She studied
Hazel with new interest, as if deciding whether or not to say
more. ‘Hazel … we spent years hunting for this horse. It
was foretold that the most courageous female warrior
would some day master Arion and ride him to victory,
ushering in a new era of prosperity for the Amazons. Yet
no Amazon can touch him, much less control him. Even
Otrera tried and failed. Two others died attempting to ride
him.’
That probably should’ve worried Hazel, but she couldn’t
imagine this beautiful horse hurting her. She put her hand
through the bars again and stroked Arion’s nose. He
nuzzled her arm, murmuring contentedly, as if asking,
More gold? Yum.
‘I would feed you more, Arion.’ Hazel glanced pointedly
at the queen. ‘But I think I’m scheduled for an execution.’
Queen Hylla looked from Hazel to the horse and back
again. ‘Unbelievable.’
‘The prophecy,’ Kinzie said. ‘Is it possible … ?’
Hazel could almost see the gears turning inside the
queen’s head, formulating a plan. ‘You have courage,
Hazel Levesque. And it seems Arion has chosen you.
Kinzie?’
‘Yes, my queen?’
‘You said Otrera’s followers are guarding the cells?’
Kinzie nodded. ‘I should have foreseen that. I’m sorry –’
‘No, it’s fine.’ The queen’s eyes gleamed – the way
Hannibal the elephant’s did whenever he was unleashed
to destroy a fortress. ‘It would be embarrassing for Otrera if
her followers failed in their duties – if, for instance, they
were overcome by an outsider and a prison break
occurred.’
Kinzie began to smile. ‘Yes, my queen. Most
embarrassing.’
‘Of course,’ Hylla continued, ‘none of my guards would
know a thing about this. Kinzie would not spread the word
to allow an escape.’
‘Certainly not,’ Kinzie agreed.
‘And we couldn’t help you.’ The queen raised her
eyebrows at Hazel. ‘But if you somehow overpowered the
guards and freed your friends … if, for instance, you took
one of the guards’ Amazon cards –’
‘With one-click purchasing enabled,’ Kinzie said, ‘which
will open the jail cells with one click.’
‘If – gods forbid! – something like that were to happen,’
the queen continued, ‘you would find your friends’
weapons and supplies in the guard station next to the
cells. And who knows? If you made your way back to this
throne room while I was off preparing for my duel … well,
as I mentioned, Arion is a very fast horse. It would be a
shame if he were stolen and used for an escape.’
Hazel felt like she’d been plugged into a wall socket.
Electricity surged through her whole body. Arion … Arion
could be hers. All she had to do was rescue her friends
and fight her way through an entire nation of highly trained
warriors.
‘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,’
Hazel said. ‘You’d only have to defeat her … um, every
night until we succeed.’
The queen nodded grimly. ‘It seems we both have
impossible tasks ahead of us.’
‘But you’re trusting me,’ said Hazel. ‘And I trust you. You
will win, as many times as it takes.’
Hylla held out Percy’s necklace and poured it into
Hazel’s hands.
‘I hope you’re right,’ the queen said. ‘But the sooner you
succeed the better, yes?’
Hazel slipped the necklace into her pocket. She shook
the queen’s hand, wondering if it was possible to make a
friend so fast – especially one who was about to send her
to jail.
‘This conversation never happened,’ Hylla told Kinzie.
‘Take our prisoner to the cells and hand her 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 mischievously, and for the first time
Hazel felt jealous of Reyna. She wished that she had a
sister like this.
‘Goodbye, Hazel Levesque,’ the queen said. ‘If we both
die tonight … well, I’m glad I met you.’
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