Of Blood and Darkness

Thunder of god

The cab they booked could not take them all the way to the top. It made lurching, grinding sounds as it climbed the mountain road, and halfway up they found the ranger's station closed, a chain blocking the way.

"Far as I can go," the cabbie said. "You sure about this? Gonna be a long walk back, and my car's acting funny. I can't wait for you."

"We're sure." Leo was the first one out. He had a bad feeling about what was wrong with the cab, and when he looked down he saw he was right. The wheels were sinking into the road like it was made of quicksand.

The road was hard-packed dirt. No reason at all it should have been soft, but already Leo's shoes were starting to sink. Gaea was messing with them.

Valen paid the cabbie with his card after he got out, and noticed how the earth was acting. "We'll be fine, you can leave." He said, and the driver didn't argue. Soon all they could see was his dust trail.

The view from the mountain was pretty amazing. The whole inland valley around Mount Diablo was a patchwork of towns—grids of tree-lined streets and nice middle-class suburbs, shops, and schools.

"That's Concord," Jason said, pointing to the north. "Walnut Creek below us. To the south, Danville, past those hills. And that way ..."

He pointed west, where a ridge of golden hills held back a layer of fog, like the rim of a bowl. "That's the Berkeley Hills. The East Bay. Past that, San Francisco."

"Jason?" Piper touched his arm. "You remember something? You've been here?"

"Yes...no." He gave her an anguished look. "It just seems important."

"Like a safe place, a second home?" Valen asked. Jason nodded uncertainly.

"That's Titan land." Coach Hedge nodded toward the west. "Bad place, Jason. Trust me, this is as close to 'Frisco as we want to get."

Valen narrowed his eyes, The Roman Camp, He thought, Jason could be remembering where it was.

"Hey, guys," Leo suddenly said, looking down at his feet. "Let's keep moving."

Their footwear had started sinking in the earth.

"Gaea is stronger here," Hedge grumbled. He popped his hooves free from his shoes, then handed the shoes to Leo. "Keep those for me, Valdez. They're nice."

Leo snorted. "Yes, sir, Coach. Would you like them polished?"

"That's varsity thinking, Valdez." Hedge nodded approvingly. "But first, we'd better hike up this mountain while we still can."

"How do we know where the giant is?" Piper asked.

Jason pointed toward the peak. Drifting across the summit was a plume of smoke. In the distance something was burning.

"Smoke equals fire," Jason said. "We'd better hurry."

"This feels like cheating," Valen said as they neared the peak of the mountain. He had begun levitating moments after they took off, it was a lot easier than walking in the tar like earth.

"Come down and walk like the rest of us, coward." Leo joked.

Jason shushed them as he crouched behind a wall of rock. He gestured for the others to do the same. Valen touched down beside him with all the grace of a cat. Leo crawled up next to him. Piper had to pull Coach Hedge down.

"I don't want to get my outfit dirty!" Hedge complained.

"Shhh!" Piper said.

Reluctantly, the satyr knelt.