Heroes of Olympus - The Blood of Olympus (Discontinued)

Chapter 28 - Jason

Chapter 28 - Jason

Jason hated dreams. All they did was diminish his spirits and leave him in an empty shell filled with only his own fear and dread. Some say that the dream is the heart's greatest desire, like said in those cliché Disney movies. Jason didn't think so. If all he dreamed about was Gaea overpowering human civilization and destroying all that he loved, then he assumed he must be turning evil and desiring to go join the earth mother's cause.

Even Piper's presence beside him - though comforting - did nothing to chase away the dreams that night. Jason was exhausted; the entire day was one great battle, and all he wanted to do was sleep. And of course, the second he crashed on his bed, he dreamed that he was standing on the Field of Mars, where the war games of Camp Jupiter normally took place. He expected to see the engineers milling around, taking down old forts, and re-building strongholds for upcoming activities, but the fields were barren and still.

Jason looked up, suddenly alarmed by his own presence.

It was deathly quiet.

He turned a 360, looking all around him. No one was there. He was all alone. The sun was hidden behind a blanket of grey clouds, a strong breeze whipping through his clothes.

Suddenly, a low rumbling sound began to grow over the horizon, the tremor reaching his feet. Jason drew his sword, the gold shade of his Gladius dull in the grey light. The rumbling grew louder, and the shaking grew stronger. Jason looked around wildly. What is going on?

Then came the sound of a skyscraper imploding. Jason whipped around. Over the roof tops of Camp Jupiter, towards the Hills of Berkeley, the ground suddenly gave way, falling into a black abyss that lead to utter nothing. The border of imploding ground stretched to both sides without end, the earth hungrily creeping its way towards Camp Jupiter, towards the Field of Mars, towards Jason.

Jason stared, his knees frozen in fear, as far off in the distance, the entire city of Oakland completely toppled, its massive office buildings crumbling into nothing, being sucked into the earth, taking hundreds of innocent mortals within its endless tide. And that's when he heard the laughter. It was very faint, barely audible, but he heard it. Venomous, evil laughter cackling high above the screaming of the mortals as they fell into the eternal blackness.

And the whip cracked.

Jason turned, dropping his sword, hearing it thud into the parched dirt, and sprinted in the opposite direction toward the far ends of the Field of Mars. He tried to summon the winds to fly away, but the air had gone completely still. It was as if his own domain... the winds themselves had turned against him. The shaking was almost unbearable now. Behind him, the roaring of the crumbling earth was louder than a hundred sonic booms. The laughter continued, growing louder over the darkening skies.

Wild with terror, Jason glanced over his shoulder, and watched as the evil tide reached Camp Jupiter, the entire city falling forward into the massive chasm, the Field of Mars directly in its path.

Dad, help me! Jason prayed. His feet kicked up great clouds of dust as he made a wild dash towards absolutely nothing, his face drenched in sweat, his only thought bent on escaping the earth. But how could one escape Earth?

"Jason!" a voice said.

Jason looked to his left. There was no one there. Had he imagined it?

"Jason!" the voice called again.

It was too late if anyone was trying to rescue him. They would be swallowed by Gaea's wrath as well. His hope was gone. The earth had reached him. He looked behind him once more as he ran, and saw the entire abyss approaching at a rapid pace, its depths swirling with eternal blackness.