Remember That You Will Die [Heroes of Olympus] | ON HOLD

eight

The skies barely lit in a yellow and blue escapade, but Frank was experiencing the noon sun anyways. There was nothing much to see, with the world still in slumber. The centurion would be tucked in his own barrack too if his father had not knocked him out of dreamland. The patron god of war tells him he must speak with his legacy at the edge of a sunrise. Frank did not know he meant this literally, but at least Mars was not cryptic and coy to give him a headache this early. "I'm confused why father asked me to speak with you. He said to speak with his legacy, I mean we all know you are one but..." And he wasn't one to be without tact, his grandmother would've fainted at his words. But blame it on the early rise.

Twilight said vampires have the skin of diamonds, glittering for the attention of the sun. And he knew that was not true because firstly vampires were written off to burn. Frank had read the storybooks (benefits of not being dyslexic) and watched the films, and he was sure about that characteristic. Secondly, there was no such thing as a vampire in this monster-infested world. Yes, there were many who craved blood and life. He could not count anymore how many were gifted the speed to hunt prey, best victims were demigods according to many beasts. But the Canadian boy supposes Alek was the closest manifestation to Edward in a way. His features glimmered under the sun, but unlike diamonds of blinding fiction, it was soft halos. Take that Edward Cullen, Frank knows someone who glows under the sunlight who is very much real. "I believe my sister glows much more in the moonlight being a hunter of Artemis." So maybe Frank should wake his tact from its nap. His words were unrestrained without it, and embarrassing thoughts became embarrassing moments. His flustered self had red-tinted cheeks, and lips pressed to an unsure smile. A sign Alek noticed and had him continue to spare the boy a few seconds to collect himself from that adorable blubber. "But so to speak, I am who your father is referring to. My mother is his daughter, and the sunrise is when I am at the prime of presence."

He heard from his grandmother about the Benedictus family. A line descent from the Trojan War's aftermath, and one to produce the most loyal legionnaires. There were many talents in that tree of ancestry, the only one to defeat their own, she would say. And ever since then, he'd read up on it. See stories of fire wielders, persuasive commanders, undefeatable strategists, and many more powers within one family. But to know that they were closer in divine blood, had Frank gain a bit more courage and confidence. Alek's mother was a child of Mars, and she didn't disappoint the family name or her father himself. And maybe one day, Frank would do just that. Forget the honor of being written in history, being enough to defend and protect his home and the people in his heart was the main goal.

Only if Frank knew much more about the woman he shared a father with. Yet, he did not speak about it out loud, so it was not the moment's discussion. Another topic had to be in conversation first. A lesson Frank never would've thought Alek to ask advice from him about. "I have heard of the fire you risked, and I think I need to learn the lesson of sacrifice from you." Sacrifice? True, his stick burned out to free Death because it was the right thing to do. It was painful to see his lifeline burn before his very eyes to release the only fair thing in the world. But someone had to do it, and it was Frank. It was his decision to make, and he chose what was right even when it carried many sacrifices. "You want to learn from me about sacrifice?"