WORLDS BEYOND ( pjo )

𝐯𝐢𝐢𝐢: mind pollution

Kia was stunned when she first saw the goddess.

As Janus was only a moment away from getting Annabeth to make a decision she would likely regret, a brilliant bout of light flooded the room. It was enchanting and celestial, the way the light shed over them like a blanket of diamonds and gold.

Janus shielded his eyes, along with the rest of the questers.

The light started fading, and out emerged a breathtakingly beautiful woman, regality shining from every inch of her.  She stood by the fountain, with her graceful self holding up the posture of someone who was in complete control and knew it, her oak-coloured tresses plaited neatly with gold ribbons tied in exquisite patterns. A simple white dress she wore shimmered beneath the light like the capturing of water on an oil-painted canvas, similar to the iridescence of Kia's ring.

Kia swiped her thumb over the ring without thought, finding momentary solace in the action.

"Janus," the woman said like a reprimanding mother, "are we causing trouble again?"

"N-no, milady!" Janus's right face stammered, face red and blazing.

"Yes!" the left face said.

"Shut up!" said the right face.

"Excuse me?"

"Not you, milady! I was talking to myself."

"I see," the lady said with an grain of amusement. "You know very well your visit is premature. The girl's time has not yet come. So I give you a choice: leave these heroes to me, or I shall turn you into a door and break you down."

"What kind of door?" the left face asked stupidly. Was he asking for a literal death wish?

"Shut up!" the right face said, seemingly the smarter of the two.

"Because French doors are nice. Lots of natural light."

"Shut up!" the right face wailed miserably. Kia kind of felt bad if he was going to die because of the left face. "Not you, milady! Of course I'll leave. I was just having a bit of fun. Doing my job. Offering choices."

"Causing indecision," the woman corrected piercingly. "Now be gone!"

The left face muttered something beneath his breath and then he raised his silver key, inserted it into a pocket in the air, and disappeared.

The woman turned to Kia and her friends, eyes alit with a power Kia had never felt before, except for maybe last winter in Olympus. It was so overwhelming that it made Kia want to bow to her in greeting, understanding that this woman was the true face of royalty. Still, somehow, Kia felt this woman wouldn't be as much trouble as Janus yet.

She smiled at them. Kia couldn't understand how a smile could be so cold and warm at the same time. "You must be hungry. Sit with me and talk."

With a flick of her wrist, the Roman fountain started to erupt with water, clean and blue, the mist being sprayed in the air to create small rainbows if one looked at them in the right moment. A marble table lined with a red silk cloth appeared in front of them, silver platters of sandwiches and other munchies and drinks laden.

"Who..." Percy hesitated. "Who are you?"

"I am Hera." The lady's smile widened a bit. "Queen of Heaven."

Kia remembered Hera, of course. The queen of the gods was definitely not missable, even amongst all of the other supremely magnetic deities. Each of them had their own alluring aura, something that felt like a dare: Come see if you dare. Hera was no different.