Bonds

Jack's Hunt Begins

Jack gulped as he watched the chaos unfold on screen. This is bad...

The king of the giants had snuck into an O.S.I. base in Ventum using a cloak made out from numerous Helms of Darkness and went about unhindered and undetected as he sabotaged various weapons and machines. He did not know what exactly Porphyrion did whenever he removed his cloak to mess with the mechanical systems, but by the gasps of his brother and Annabeth he could tell it was bad. Every few seconds the images would shift to various monsters carrying on their daily routines, moving crates, polishing their weapons, and even just chatting with one another, only to have their skulls crushed or guts impaled by spear of the unseen giant.

"Father..." he heard the Mist-made image of Periboia whisper as she watched her parent crush an unsuspecting telekhine underfoot.

Jack felt bad for the giantess. Periboia had been the first giant to willingly join New Tartarus after the rebellion and had been a big help to when it came to erecting the early structures that would one day become part of the cities. A lot of the peoples of New Tartarus had held a grudge against her what she, her father, and uncles had done, but she eventually overcame their doubts and had even became a senator during their absence. Now he worried that when word got out about the attack that she would lose the respect she had earned. It's not her fault her father is a bad guy! A child should not be judged by the temperament of the parents! The Nemean lion cubs turned out nothing like their parents!

The images before him changed to that of a cavernous room filled with even more machines that he couldn't hope to name. While he couldn't see the giant king, he could see Koios leaning over a suspended walkway, surrounded by an absurd number of armed guards. The titan seemed to be addressing someone, but the sound was muffled as it was recorded from a distance. Before he could ask what the suit-wearing titan was saying, Porphyrion's ugly face filled the image.

"I have been waiting patiently for your return, false gods," the giant growled. "Tartarus shall be free once more and it shall be you who takes his place! Your cities will burn, and the natural order will be restored! Make no mistake: I am coming for you!" He then turned away and heaved one of the multi-wheeled machines over his head and tossed into the air before redonning his cloak. There were several explosions, followed by screaming, and then the giant king's voice could be heard shouting, "come with me if you want to live!"

"So... he finally reappeared," the image of Brontes laughed as the main projector turned off.

"It would appear that way," Periboia sighed, rubbing her fingers against her temples.

"And you're sure he's never contacted you before?" Knight asked from his place next to Annabeth on the couch. His brother for once paying more attention to something other than the daughter of Athena. "Or has given you a way to contact him?"

The image of the giantess shook her head. "As I explained before, the only time my father approached me was a few years after the rebellion. He tried to get me to join his cause, but I refused. After that, he refused to believe I was of my own sound mind and promised he would "free me" before he vanished." Periboia shook her head again and sighed. "Father... Father is stubborn. He refuses to believe that anyone can rule other than himself. He believes that giants are superior to all others..."

"There's a word for that," the imagine of Steropes grunted before taking a sip from a coconut glass with a tiny pink umbrella.

"Rhymes with bassist," Brontes scoffed as his Celestial Bronze hand turned into a stringed instrument.

"That's neither here nor there," Eurybia said, the titaness scowling at the two elder cyclopes. "What matters is whether or not we can find him." The images of the two-dozen or so senators echoed her sentiments. "No offense Periboia, but we need to stop him now before he attacks civilians. Triumvirate only knows what kind of weapons he's been taking all these years..."