The Son of Neptune hoo-2

by Rick Riordan

  ‘What are you going to do?’ Frank grumbled. ‘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,’ Kinzie said. ‘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 said.

  The guards tried to hit him, but Percy ducked.

  ‘Stop it!’ Hazel said. Surprisingly, the guards listened.

  ‘Hylla is going to judge us, right?’ Hazel asked. ‘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?’ Hazel asked.

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

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

  ‘Until tonight,’ another guard muttered.

  Kinzie gripped her sword. For a second Hazel thought the Amazons might start fighting one another, but Kinzie seemed to get her anger under control.

  ‘Enough,’ she said. ‘Let’s go.’

  They crossed a lane of forklift traffic, navigated a maze of conveyor belts and ducked under a row of robotic arms that were packing up boxes.

  Most of the merchandise looked pretty ordinary: books, electronics, baby diapers. But against one wall sat a war chariot with a big barcode on the side. Hanging from the yoke was a sign that read: ONLY ONE LEFT IN STOCK. ORDER SOON! (MORE ON THE WAY)

  Finally they entered a smaller cavern that looked like a combination loading zone and throne room. The walls were lined with metal shelves six storeys high, decorated with war banners, painted shields and the stuffed heads of dragons, hydras, giant lions and wild boars. Standing guard along either side were dozens of forklifts modified for war. 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. Hazel couldn’t believe what she was seeing – black mastiffs, giant eagles, a lion-eagle hybrid that must’ve been a gryphon and a red ant the size of a compact car.

  She watched in horror as a forklift zipped into the room, picked up a cage with a beautiful white pegasus and sped away while the horse whinnied in protest.

  ‘What are you doing to that poor animal?’ Hazel demanded.

  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.’

  At the end of the warehouse was a dais constructed from pallets of books: stacks of vampire novels, walls of James Patterson thrillers and a throne made from about a thousand copies of something called The Five Habits of Highly Aggressive Women.

  At the base of the steps, several Amazons in camouflage were having a heated argument while a young woman – Queen Hylla, Hazel assumed – watched and listened from her throne.

  Hylla was in her twenties, lithe and lean as a tiger. She wore a black leather jumpsuit and black boots. She had no crown, but round her waist was a strange belt made of interlocking gold links, like the pattern of a labyrinth. Hazel couldn’t believe how much she looked like Reyna – a little older, perhaps, but with 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 most deserved death.

  Kinzie took one look at the argument and grunted with distaste. ‘Otrera’s agents, spreading their lies.’

  ‘What?’ Frank asked.

  Then Hazel stopped so abruptly that the guards behind her stumbled. A few feet from the queen’s throne, two Amazons guarded a cage. Inside was a beautiful horse – not the winged kind, but a majestic and powerful stallion with a honey-coloured coat and a black mane. His fierce brown eyes regarded Hazel, and she could swear he looked impatient, as if thinking: About time you got here.

  ‘It’s him,’ Hazel murmured.

  ‘Him, who?’ Percy asked.

  Kinzie scowled in annoyance, but when she saw where Hazel was looking, her expression softened. ‘Ah, yes. Beautiful, isn’t he?’

  Hazel blinked to make sure she wasn’t hallucinating. It was the same horse she’d chased in Alaska. She was sure of it … but that was impossible. No horse could live that long.

  ‘Is he …’ Hazel could hardly control her voice. ‘Is he for sale?’

  The guards all laughed.

  ‘That’s Arion,’ Kinzie said patiently, as if she understood Hazel’s fascination. ‘He’s a royal treasure of the Amazons – to be claimed only by our most courageous warrior, if you believe the prophecy.’

  ‘Prophecy?’ Hazel asked.

  Kinzie’s expression became pained, almost embarrassed. ‘Never mind. But, no, he’s not for sale.’

  ‘Then why is he in a cage?’

  Kinzie grimaced. ‘Because … he is difficult.’

  Right on cue, the horse slammed his head against the cage door. The metal bars shuddered, and the guards retreated nervously.

  Hazel wanted to free that horse. She wanted it more than anything she had ever wanted before. But Percy, Frank and a dozen Amazon guards were staring at her, so she tried to mask her emotions. ‘Just asking,’ she managed. ‘Let’s see the queen.’

  The argument at the front of the room grew louder. Finally the queen noticed Hazel’s group approaching, and she snapped, ‘Enough!’

  The arguing Amazons shut up immediately. The queen waved them aside and beckoned Kinzie forward.

  Kinzie shoved Hazel and her friends towards the throne. ‘My queen, these demigods -’

  The queen shot to her feet. ‘You!’

  She glared at Percy Jackson with murderous rage.

  Percy muttered something in Ancient Greek that Hazel was pretty sure the nuns at St Agnes wouldn’t have liked.

  ‘Clipboard,’ he said. ‘Spa. Pirates.’

  This made no sense to Hazel, but the queen nodded. She stepped down from her dais of best sellers 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,’ Frank said 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 perfect white 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?’

  ‘We’ve come in peace,’ Hazel insisted. ‘What did Percy do?’

  ‘Peace?’ The queen raised her eyebrows at Hazel. ‘What did he do? This male destroyed Circe’s school of magic!’

  ‘Circe turned me into a guinea pig!’ Percy protested.

  ‘No excuses!’ Hylla said. ‘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. ‘That’s right. I was there with Annabeth.’

  ‘You released our captives – Blackbeard and his pirates.’ She turned to Hazel. ‘Have you ever been 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 to California where we -’ She hesitated as if the memory was painful. ‘Where my sister and I parted ways.’

  She stepped towards Percy until they were nose to nose. She ran her dagger under his chin. ‘Of course, I survived and prospered. I have risen to be queen of the Amazons. So perhaps I should thank you.’

  ‘You’re welcome,’ Percy said.

  The queen dug her knife in a little deeper. ‘Never mind. I think I’ll kill you.’

  ‘Wait!’ Hazel yelped. ‘Reyna sent us! Your sister! Look at the ring on his necklace.’

  Hylla frowned. She lowered her knife to Percy’s necklace until the point rested on the silver ring. The colour drained from her face.

  ‘Explain this.’ She glared at Hazel. ‘Quickly.’

  Hazel tried. She described Camp Jupiter. She told the Amazons about Reyna being their praetor, and the army of monsters that was marching south. She told them about their quest to free Thanatos in Alaska.

  As Hazel talked, another group of Amazons entered the room. One was taller and older than the rest, with plaited silver hair and fine silk robes like a Roman matron. The other Amazons made way for her, treating her with such respect that Hazel wondered if she was Hylla’s mother – until she noticed how Hylla and the older woman stared daggers at each other.

  ‘So we need your help,’ Hazel finished her story. ‘Reyna needs your help.’

  Hylla gripped Percy’s leather cord and 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?’ the woman asked. ‘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 any more.’

  The older woman spread her hands and made 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! 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 looked at the assembled Amazons, who were standing very still, as if they’d 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!’

  Hazel held her breath. The Amazons looked back and forth between Hylla and Otrera, watching for any sign of weakness.

  ‘I will pass judgement,’ Hylla said in an icy tone, ‘once I have all the facts. That is how I rule – by reason, not fear. First, I will talk with this one.’ She jabbed a finger towards Hazel. ‘It is my duty to hear out a female warrior before I sentence her or her allies to death. That is the Amazon way. Or have your years in the Underworld muddled your memory, Otrera?’

  The older woman sneered, but she 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 Gaia, and our glorious future with her, come with me!’

  About half the Amazons followed her out of the room. Kinzie snorted with disgust, then she and her guards hauled Percy and Frank away.

  Soon Hylla and Hazel were alone except for the queen’s personal guards. At Hylla’s signal, even they moved out of earshot.

  The queen turned towards Hazel. Her anger dissolved, and Hazel saw desperation in her eyes. The queen looked like one of her caged animals being whisked off on a conveyor belt.

  ‘We must talk,’ Hylla said. ‘We don’t have much time. By midnight, I will most likely be dead.’

  XXXI

  Hazel

  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.’