Chapter Text
It had been a week since they had won. A week since Gaea had awakened. A week since Leo Valdez had sacrificed himself.
They should have been celebrating the fact that they’d won. It just didn’t feel like a win, not when it had cost them so much. They had all expected Leo to appear, as though he was hiding, just waiting to spring a practical joke on them. But the longer they went without so much as a sign that he could be alive, their hope began to diminish. Even so, the campers kept a close eye on the skies, just waiting for Leo to make a fantastic and dramatic entrance, as they shuffled about the camp rebuilding, looking after the wounded, and performing funeral rites.
The nights were the most difficult. Of course, Chiron had hoped that the campers would be able to get some sleep. That had not been the case, though, for days now. Everyone had been exhausted just after the war, but they settled back into their lives, more or less. But there was always someone out of bed when they were not supposed to be.
This is how Jason had found himself perched on the top of Half-Blood Hill, his knees pulled tight to his chest and eyes trained on the horizon. When nightmares kept him awake, he found slight comfort in the hope that he may see the silhouette of his best friend returning against the sunrise. He supposed he should be grateful that the harpies that usually enforced the curfew had taken a leave of absence, or he would have been eaten by now for sure. That being said, he found it hard to be grateful for much of anything these days.
Jason sighed, leaning to the side slightly to rest his head on the pine tree that had sustained his sister’s life force and, in turn, protected the valley. He shifted his attention to the valley, which was just now coming back to life in the morning light.
“How am I going to get through this?” He asked, his voice hardly above a whisper. He supposed it would be strange to talk to a tree, especially since it no longer harbored Thalia’s spirit, but he couldn’t bring himself to care. “I feel like everyone’s looking to me, and I just… I don’t know if I can be what they need me to be.”
The pine offered no advice, as was expected. His attention focused once more on the valley, where the children of Apollo were already changing shifts in the infirmary. His gaze shifted to the small outcropping of tents that had appeared near the cabins, which the Romans were currently occupying. There had been an attempt to consolidate the soldiers into the cabins of their parent’s Greek counterparts, but they had all quickly realized that tensions between the two camps were still much too high for that to be a sustainable solution. There were, of course, exceptions to this. Hazel, for example, had elected to stay in the Hades cabin, and Jason, himself, had been attempting to stay in the Zeus cabin. In truth, he mostly ended up wandering about camp, up on Half-Blood Hill, or in the Poseidon cabin, if the nightmares were particularly bad.
The first night he had entered Percy’s cabin, he’d felt guilty for intruding. After he had found Percy already awake, though, and after they had spent most of that night talking, Jason found he didn’t feel as guilty anymore. Especially after Percy had sought him out, not wanting to disturb the entire Athena cabin or worry Annabeth too much, but seeking the same comfort that Jason had been. Jason, of course, knew that those had been on the milder side of the nightmares Percy experienced. The more severe ones were the ones that could only be calmed by Annabeth’s presence. The two of them had hardly spoken of Tartarus with Chiron, much less anyone else.
The Romans, finally roused by the noise of the valley, began to stir, small groups traversing the green to the community showers. As Jason watched, he could see Chiron emerge from the Big House and run a hand through his hair as he stood on the porch. Jason knew everyone was stressed, Chiron included. Mr. D still hadn’t returned, which left Chiron and the demigods to their own devices. Morale was low, despite the massive victory they’d just achieved. To make matters even worse, himself and the rest of the Seven were under a near constant barrage of questions. Chiron had tried to steer the rest of the campers away, to give them space, but even Chiron couldn’t be everywhere at once. As much as Jason loved Camp Half-Blood, he was beginning to feel a little suffocated. This place had been his home, but now it just reminded him of what he had lost. Without turning, he looked in the direction where Bunker 9 was hidden in the woods. The children of Hephaestus had not yet worked up the courage to sift through Leo’s workspace, and neither had Piper or himself.
Jason sighed heavily, wishing his sister was there. “What would you do, Thalia?” He whispered.
“Brooding isn’t a good look on you.” A voice below him remarked.
If he hadn’t been so sleep deprived, Jason would’ve jumped out of his skin. Looking down the slope, he was met with the sight of Nico di Angelo, the son of Hades, in his usual black tee shirt and black jeans. Though, in anticipation of the August heat, he had chosen to forgo his signature aviator jacket.
Jason felt the corners of his mouth twitch upward, even just slightly. “You would know.” He countered, glad that the son of Hades had decided to remain at Camp Half-Blood.
Nico smirked. “Of course, I’m an authority on the matter.”
Jason chuckled slightly, but unfocused his gaze from the younger boy.
Nico dropped the cheery demeanor he had put on, opting instead for his usual sullen expression. “How are you doing?” He asked, his voice so impossibly soft that Jason had to strain to hear him.
Jason shrugged numbly. “Same as ever, I guess.”
“It wasn’t your fault.” Nico insisted, climbing up the slope. “You couldn’t have stopped him.”
Jason shut his eyes. He’d been hearing those same phrases all week, and they’d been banging around in his brain like pinballs. “Yeah, I know.”
Nico took a deep breath and sighed. “Jason, I--”
The other boy stopped when the conch shell was blown to gather them for breakfast.
Saved by the bell, Jason thought as he rose to his feet, using the trunk of the pine to steady himself. He didn’t miss the apprehensive look that Nico gave him, but he headed to breakfast anyway, forcing the younger demigod to follow him. On the way, they fell into step with some familiar faces. He spotted Clarisse speaking in hushed tones with one of her siblings over to his left. To his right, Reyna was leaning against a wall of the pavilion, surveying the throng of people headed her way, the way she always did when she was deep in thought. The Stolls had cornered a member or two from the Fifth Cohort, and Jason could only imagine what trouble they might get up to together.
In the wake of the war, there had been some paramount changes made around the camp. For example, the Seven had been allowed to commandeer one of the tables meant for the Big Three, rather than sit separately. When Jason and Nico finally entered the pavilion, they found the table already occupied by Percy, Annabeth, and Piper. The three were speaking in hushed tones, but stopped when Jason and Nico joined them.
The silence was deafening, and Jason tried his best to ignore it. He plucked an apple from a bowl of fruit and cleaned it off on his shirt before taking a bite. When the conversation still hadn’t picked back up, he raised an eyebrow at his friends. “Why so quiet?”
Percy blinked and decided to look anywhere but Jason. “Heh, sorry, man, we were just talking about--”
“Me?” Jason finished, looking at the three of them skeptically. Nico seeking him out unprompted, now that was relatively normal. New, but normal. But if these three were talking about him...
“Oh, no, Jase, that’s not it.” When Jason raised an eyebrow, Percy smiled sheepishly. “Okay, you were a part of the conversation, but it wasn’t anything bad, I promise. At least, I don’t think.”
While Percy had been trying to explain himself, the rest of the Seven, as well as Reyna, settled at the table.
“What’s nothing bad?” Hazel asked, glancing between them.
Percy and Annabeth exchanged a look, and Annabeth sighed. “Have any of you been having… abnormal dreams lately?”
Reyna frowned. “‘Abnormal’, as in abnormal for us, or ‘abnormal’ as in abnormal in general?”
Annabeth looked at Percy, who shrugged helplessly. “Abnormal for us, I guess.” He said, though he sounded unsure.
Jason raised an eyebrow. “Like… are we talking quest-type, prophetic dreams here? Or super specific nightmares?”
Percy groaned and picked at the stack of blue pancakes in front of him. “That’s the thing, it doesn’t feel like either of those, and I have no clue why.”
“Well, what was the dream? Maybe, if we work together, we could figure it out?” Frank suggested hopefully.
Percy sighed. “All I remember is that it had to do with Artemis somehow.”
Nico leaned forward with a frown. “That’s it? Usually your dreams have a lot more detail in them.”
“I know, that’s why it’s so frustrating.” Annabeth said.
Hazel pursed her lips. “So, all we have is Artemis? That could mean so many things.”
“So, have any of you been having dreams like this? Cause I’m starting to think I’m going crazy.”
Jason, along with everyone else, shook his head, and Percy threw up his hands in defeat. “Great. I probably am going crazy.”
Annabeth put a hand on his shoulder. “Hey, maybe not crazy. You just fought in your second war in a year. Maybe you’re just stressed out.”
“But then why would the dream be about Artemis and not my dad or something?”
Annabeth shrugged. “Maybe you’re subconsciously fixating on something that has to do with her? I have no idea, Percy.”
Before they could speculate any further, a small group of silver-clad Huntresses raced from the woods into the pavilion, with the leader only stopping once she reached their table. She ripped off her hood and looked around frantically, her chest heaving. Before Jason even had the opportunity to be happy she was there, Thalia managed to speak.
“Came.. as soon.. as we--” Thalia stopped and frowned. “Where’s the threat?”
Jason blinked in shock. “Uh, what threat?”
Thalia didn’t appear to hear him, looking about the camp frantically. “She... She has to be here. It’s the only explanation.”
Percy rose from his seat, concern etched across his face. “Whoa, Thals, calm down. Who has to be here?”
Despite his calm tone, Thalia became even more agitated. “Artemis, Kelp Head. Who else?”
Annabeth knit her brows in confusion. “Why would Artemis be here? Mr. D hasn’t even come back yet.”
Thalia groaned in frustration and ran a hand through her hair. “I don’t know ! All I know is that I had a dream, but I can only remember that it had to do with Artemis and camp, and I came as quickly as I could.”
Percy blinked. “That’s… weird. I had a dream, and I can only remember that it had something to do with Artemis, but I didn’t see anything about camp.”
“Maybe because you were already here?” Frank suggested.
“Maybe.” Annabeth agreed with a frown. “But that doesn’t explain why it’s just you and Thalia who’ve had dreams like this.”
“Maybe it’s a Big Three thing?” Piper suggested, picking at the orange in front of her.
Nico shook his head. “Then why haven’t Hazel, Jason, or I had dreams like that, too? It doesn’t make sense.”
“Maybe because you two have a connection to Artemis?” Reyna said, glancing between Thalia and Percy. “I mean, Thalia’s her lieutenant, right? And, from what I remember, Percy’s really the only male demigod that Artemis can tolerate. It would make sense she would reach out to you two.”
“Sorry I’m late, guys.” Will Solace said, sinking onto the bench next to Nico. “What’re we talking about?”
Jason studied him. Recently, Will had started to get closer with Nico and the rest of them. In fact, Will had checked over each of them in turn. As it turns out, Will was really easy to talk to. The Apollo cabin had been running on fumes for days, but Jason knew it was hitting Will the hardest. He was the best healer they had, and he barely got a break.
“Something’s going on with Artemis, apparently.” Nico answered. “Thalia and Percy both had dreams about it, but they can’t remember the rest of their dreams.”
Will sat up straight, his attention clearly piqued. “Something to do with Artemis? What do you think it is?”
He sounded so hopeful, Jason almost felt guilty. Will was clearly hoping that, if Artemis was reaching out, then Apollo would soon, too. Everyone had been trying to reach out to Apollo for days with offerings and prayers, but there’d been no answer. Jason knew the silence was starting to grate on some of the campers. It was as if their parents had said: Thanks for saving us once again. Good luck! And just left them to their own devices. Even the ominous thundering that would usually occur when someone said something against the gods had stopped. Jason had been able to get through an entire rant at his father’s statue in Cabin One, complete with screaming and throwing things, without it so much as clouding over.
“We don’t know yet.” Annabeth said gently.
“She could be in danger again.” Percy said, his expression darkening.
“Percy, don’t say that.” Thalia said softly, having finally caught her breath.
“Why not? After the last five years, is it really so unbelievable that they wouldn’t give us a break?”
Jason frowned. “He’s got a point.”
Before anyone could say anything, Chiron trotted up to the pavilion, causing Jason’s frown to deepen. Chiron was always at the pavilion before mealtimes, so why not now?
As the centaur approached, Jason could tell something was wrong. Chiron wore the same expression now as he did when he delivered terrible news. Jason’s heart sank. So they were right. The gods were asking for their help again.
“Children.” He greeted, his voice tight. “You are needed in the Big House.”
Jason rose from his seat and met Chiron’s eye. “What for?”
If Jason didn’t know any better, he’d think that Chiron was purposefully avoiding eye contact with him. Chiron took a shaky breath. “Just… come with me. Please.”
They all rose and started making their way across the green, and Chiron joined them after picking Clarisse out from her cabin’s table.
As Clarisse fell into step with Jason, she looked at all of them quizzically. “Any idea what’s going on?” She whispered.
Jason shook his head. “None. Best we can figure is the gods want our help again.”
Clarisse stared at him, dumbfounded. “But we just--”
“I know.”
Clarisse sighed. “Guess it was just a matter of time.”
Chiron led them to the living room of the Big House, the same room that Jason had met with Chiron in when he arrived. Gods, had that really been only eight months ago? Grape vines still grew up the walls and across the ceilings. The fireplace had not been lit, but Seymour, the stuffed leopard head Mr. D had rescued from a garage sale and brought to life, was still proudly displayed above the mantle.
As they entered, they were met with the sight of a woman with long auburn hair pacing the room. When she turned to look at them, Jason recognized her eyes immediately. Instead of appearing as a twelve-year-old girl, as she usually did, Artemis had taken the form of a woman in her early twenties. Her hair reached her mid-back, and her bright, silver eyes were rimmed with red. Instead of the usual gear that the Hunters wore, Artemis had opted for jeans, hiking boots, a gray tank top, and a black and white checkered flannel.
When she saw them, she sighed in relief. “Thank Olympus, you’re all here.”
Thalia looked like she wanted to run and hug the goddess, but she settled for holding onto Jason instead. “My Lady, what’s going on?”
Artemis sighed and wrapped her arms about her torso. Jason knew that she was a goddess, and older than him by a few millennia, but she looked so small and fragile in that moment. “There is so much to explain in such a short amount of time. Chiron has explained that the war with the giants was won just a week ago?”
The demigods exchanged glances, unease settling in.
“Um,” Percy started, raising an eyebrow at her. “No offense, but shouldn’t you have known that, Lady Artemis? We just saw you and the rest of the Olympians a week ago in Greece.”
Artemis shook her head. “For me, it was almost a year ago.”
The only sound in the room was Seymour’s occasional purr. Finally, after what seemed like forever, Nico spoke up.
“What do you mean? How is that possible?”
Artemis sat down heavily on the couch and rubbed her hands over her face. “It’s a long story. The short version is that I had an idea that may just be insane enough to work, and an acquaintance is helping me bring it to fruition.”
Annabeth was the next to speak, her voice hollow. “Something happens in the future, doesn’t it? Something bad. That’s why you’re here. To try and fix it.”
Artemis smiled fondly at her. “Clever girl. You would’ve made a great Hunter. But, yes, you are partially right.”
Partially? Jason thought, confused. Then, realization set in. “You need us. We’re part of your plan. That’s why you’re here.”
Artemis flinched at his words and fixed her eyes on the carpet. “I-- I apologize. I know you’ve just fought in a war, and I know that we’ve already asked too much of you, and--”
The goddess’ response filled Jason with shock and dread. In all his life, he’d never heard one of the gods sound so terrified, or apologize, especially not to demigods.
“What happens in the future?” He asked, causing everyone to look at him. “What’s going on that’s so bad you’re best option was to go back in time and find us?”
Artemis shook her head. “I can’t tell you.”
“Why not?” Jason demanded. “If we’re putting our lives on the line again I think we deserve an explanation.”
“Jase, relax,” Percy said softly. “Think about it, man. How many rules is she already breaking by being here? She came back here to ask us for help, and I can only imagine the kind of punishment that would be waiting for her if Zeus knew what she was up to, cause I highly doubt she has his permission to be here.”
Artemis sniffed. “He’s right.” She looked back up at them, tears pooling in her eyes. “I wouldn’t have come if I didn’t think that this would do something, at least. I’d go myself, but… I can’t stay long in the past. It’s different for demigods.”
Jason sighed heavily. “What do you need us to do?”
Artemis wiped at her eyes and stood. “It would be easiest to explain fully once we get there, but… I’ll be taking you all to the past.”
Jason looked at Chiron, who had elected to stay in the hallway. The centaur was stubbornly refusing to look at any of them, and it was clear that he didn’t want them to go. But, if Artemis was right, and things were really that bad almost a year from now, it would be kind of selfish to refuse, right?
Thalia took a shaky breath. “I-- I’ll have to talk to the Hunters I came with, to let them know--”
“I’ll speak with them, Thalia,” Chiron cut in, his voice measured. “Lady Artemis cannot stay much longer.”
“When are we going to come back?” Will asked, panic seeping into his voice. “I-I’m-- The Apollo cabin might need my help--”
“You will return to this exact moment when everything is finished.” Artemis assured him. “It will be like you never left.”
“This whole thing has really been thought through, huh?” Clarisse muttered.
“I promise you that this is a last resort. I never wanted this to be the solution, but… I fear it’s the only thing that may still help.”
As they held onto each other, making a chain so that Artemis could take them with her, Jason looked around at his friends. Each of them had the same determined expression that they’d had just a week prior, and he inwardly sighed. When does it end? He thought, wondering if any of them would actually know peace before their time came to an end.
“I would suggest you close your eyes. It can be a little disorienting.”
Jason barely had time to heed the goddess’ warning before the world started spinning. He shut his eyes tightly, hoping he wouldn’t lose his breakfast on this little trip. After what felt like hours, they finally stopped spinning, and Jason hesitantly opened his eyes, looking around. They had materialized in a large hallway with white stone walls, bright marble floors, and a ceiling open to the stars above.
Off to his right, he heard someone retching.
“Oh, that is so much worse than shadow travel.” Nico muttered, holding his stomach.
Jason looked around, taking in the state of the group. “Where--”
“Olympus, June of 2006.” Artemis answered immediately, slightly swaying where she stood from the journey. She turned to look down the hallway, and smiled slightly. “I have a surprise for all of you. For your troubles.”
Jason frowned and followed her gaze. He began to ask what she meant, but the question died in his throat. When he spoke, his voice was hoarse and he could feel the tears stinging his eyes. “Leo?”