บท 57: DA : Chapter 57: New Home III
( With Rhea )
"So this is it?"
Rhea looked over her shoulder to Thalia as the pair continued to walk through a large clearing as a cool wind blew, the evergreens swaying slightly.
"Yep, we are making home here," she replied as she returned her attention to the clearing before her and scanning the flat land going on for miles in every direction.
"But Canada?" Thalia asked as she stepped up beside Rhea.
"What's wrong with Canada?" Rhea retorted with a raised eyebrow.
"Nothing just," Thalia paused as she searched for words. "I don't know. Why not Quebec or something like that. We are in the middle of Ontario with nothing for over a hundred miles in any direction."
"That's true but it's a perfectly strategic location," she replied easily. "We are out in the wilderness which is my turf now, Canada has more and longer nights along with the cold meaning Percy will always have the advantage here but in the summer Jason will, and it's too far for the Olympians to have influence making it risky for them to even think about attacking us themselves."
"Won't stop them from sending armies," Thalia retorted but Rhea only grinned.
"Armies marching hundreds miles of wild terrain and at the mercy of the elements and wild animals along with any defenses we form. By all means, let them attack," she said before focusing on the land before her. "Now give me some silence please."
Thalia snorted in a reply but Rhea ignored it before she focused on the earth beneath her. She could feel the hum of life and power beneath her feet, both from the ground itself and the wildlife surrounding them.
She could make out millions of little vibrations and movement made from the smallest animals and humans in the closest settlement to the very shift of the tectonic plates responding to her whim.
Then, as she slowly raised one hand the earth around them shook as the life around her seemed to hold still with baited breath. A massive fissure rivaling some of the largest canyons started to form in front of her before a mountain started to jut out of the divided earth.
She maintained her focus all the while suppressing a smirk at the sight of Thalia beside her, the younger goddess looking on, god-smacked as the maintain grew before them and taking up the entire clearing and beyond.
Rhea felt a few beads of sweat forming on her brow as she felt the earth around them tremble and move to allow the whole mountain to reveal itself, some parts of the rock faces blackened and scorched but there was nothing to be done about it.
After all … she was raising this mountain from the very plains of Tartarus. After nearly an hour the whole mountain stood before them making them crane their heads up to even try to see the top.
Rhea took another breath before she focused on the mountain while raising her hands together as if holding it before tearing them apart.
At her motion entire chunks of rock were violently torn off the mountain face and sides with billowing clouds of dust and gravel.
Thalia waved her hand making a powerful gust to remove all the dust only to be stunned again at what was now revealed. Hidden by the exterior rock as a protective shell now removed, Thalia could see a winding path reminiscent of a snake curled up and leading from them up to the mountain top.
As wide as a three lane highway and with a gentle incline before the very top seemed to run into a dead end 2/3s of the mountain.
"Come on," Rhea said as she willed her wings to appear before jumping and with a powerful beat, rose high into the sky.
Thalia tailed her quick enough and soon they were several thousand feet in the air facing the mountain face, the end of the path a ways under them.
"Why does the path stop into the mountain face?" Thalia asked but only got a sly smile from Rhea as a response.
"This is why," Rhea answered as she waved her hand and like a broken egg, the top of the mountain cracked.
It rumbled for a while as it fell open and off the mountain top, the sight only getting Rhea to smile more while Thalia had a far more extreme reaction.
"No fucking way!" she shouted as her eyes glowed more in excitement.
"Way," Rhea snickered.
Now revealed to the world was a city nearly double the size of Olympus. With a grand archway at the top of the path, a city of marble and obsidian seemed to glow in the night.
The buildings were built much like the designs of Anglo-Saxon Europe but given archways and columns reminiscent of Greek times.
The roadways were illuminated by solid light lamp posts as the paths curled in and up. The city had three divisions separated by a raise in elevation and a marking archway with a gate. The lowest and largest seemed to have the most space with few homes and large storages for all kinds of supplies next to obviously free expanses of land meant for farming.
Rhea even noted a large barracks built not too far from the main entrance, just far enough to not seem imposing over the entrance but close enough that any soldier could reach the gates in a few minutes and from the larger observations towers along the roof, a ballista could easily be aimed at the entrance too.
The next level in was built for residential districts and shops with multi-level buildings and raised pathways to reach higher buildings. Higher archways and paths on the roofs of some buildings also stood out as paths for soldiers and check points with the occasional watch tower for sentries.
Lastly on the top level were simple temples but rather than built with designs to represent any one of their loyal gods or the protogenoi themselves, they remained mostly blank.
Rhea knew that later one each temple would be converted later on and possibly more added to create a physical link for each new god allying with them.
Then, right in the center was the largest temple with several separate wings and even a tower topped with an observatory and garden in a large courtyard to the back. Rhea scanned over every inch as she hovered forward in the direction of the main temple.
"What is all this?" Thalia asked in awe beside her as the pair moved on.
"A parting gift left by Nyx and the others," Rhea answered as she looked at Thalia. "It was her idea and she made it in secret with the other previous protogenoi for us. Our own city to protect and care for … though I think we'll need to decorate a little more."
"And how did you know about it?" Thalia asked her curiously as she moved in front of Rhea and flew backwards without pause.
"Tartarus showed me the day after we formed the new council," she replied easily.
"And the main temple? Is that where we'll live?" Thalia asked while jerking her thumb backwards.
"No," Rhea replied while shaking her head. "Think of it as the official HQ for our council. Our throne room and several offices are located there for us to receive reports and requesting needing our attention."
"Then where do we live?" Thalia asked with a frown.
"Don't you own the Palace of the Skies now?" Rhea retorted making Thalia blush in slight embarrassment.
"Yeah … I guess I do," she replied sheepishly but it only made Rhea giggle.
"Don't worry about it. There is more to it but all I can say for now is that our personal home was built by Ouranus and a certain gentleman but we won't get it until a few more things are done.
So don't go worrying about anything, we'll all be living together even though some of us will have our own separate spaces such as you with your palace and Percy owning the House of Night."
"Cool," Thalia hummed before the pair finally arrived over the temple before Thalia whistled. "Those are some big ass chairs," she muttered while looking through a large window into the throne room and spotting the thrones, each measuring around five stories tall.
"Well what did you expect?" Rhea asked while eyeing Thalia. "Our godly height is thirty meters."
"I feel like we will accidently step on people every now and then," Thalia chuckled darkly before adding. "Makes you wonder what they would do if they saw our divine forms."
"Well aside from the fact that anything short of a god would be vaporized for just standing too close, let alone looking at us, and the fact that we'd each be as tall as Typhoon, I suggest you don't go assuming it," Rhea chided before adding.
"Remember what Tartarus told us. Lady Chaos made a strict ruling that no primordial may assume their divine form on a mortal realm so unless in your palace or Tartarus, stick to godly or mortal form."
"I know," Thalia said while raising her hands in surrender.
The pair then descended until they arrived at the courtyard, the soft grass cushioning them as a cool breeze swept over the mountain. Thalia followed Rhea as she walked forward to a large pond with a stone walkway laying over the still water to a little island in the center.
"This is it," Rhea said as she stopped at the border of the pond.
"Here looks good as any," Thalia agreed before a sudden burst of heat drew their attention behind them to see a large portal of fire.
"Perfect timing," Rhea muttered as Ladon, with a surprisingly new coloration, stepped through with the Tree of Golden Apples held firmly within some of the coils of his neck.
The dragon didn't mind them as he moved on a ways and deposited the tree gently down and laid down beside it while now turning his heads to look at them.
"I'm actually surprised Hestia could do it," Thalia said as she looked at the dragon curiously but made no move to approach.
"Hey, Lady of Dragons and all that," Rhea said with a smile while feeling a swelling of pride over her daughter. "Now I think we need to wait a few more minutes for Percy to be in place."
"I hope he hurries," Thalia grumbled.
"What's the hurry, its not like you're doing anything right now," Rhea said as she crossed her arms and looked at the younger goddess.
"I know … it's just that I'm antsy okay," Thalia replied. "I haven't been on Earth for years and I can't help feeling like a fight could start at any moment."
"Thalia, the gods would be committing suicide if they attacked us here directly," Rhea reminded her.
"True …" Thalia sighed as she tried to relax before another flash of flames drew their attention to see Hestia having arrived as well.
"Hey there sweetie," Rhea greets warmly as Hestia approached before giving her a quick hug and then looking around.
"This looks nice," Hestia said while gesturing to the far walls of the courtyard made of marble and obsidian with a few solid light lamps around.
"Wait, you knew about this whole city!?" Thalia asked incredulously. "I only found out a few minutes ago."
"Well you were too excited and ran off to check in on your Palace when Tartarus showed a few of us. No worries though, Andromeda is still in the dark since she joined you," Hestia replied with a little snicker at the end.
"Great," Thalia huffed while throwing her hands up in the air making both the other goddesses giggle at her.
"So how long do you think?" Rhea asked Hestia.
"It shouldn't take long," Hestia replied with a shrug before looking at Ladon.
Rhea could have sworn the dragon was giving Hestia the closest thing it could to the puppy dog eyes with wagging tail and all, practically begging for her attention.
"It's odd that I find him slightly cute like that," Thalia muttered as she looked at the dragon as well.
"Want to pet him?" Hestia asked excitedly.
"Won't his scales scrape us though and poison us?" Thalia asked as she eyed the dragon warily.
"Nope," Hestia chirped. "I made some changes to him when he became my sacred animal so I took away the poison from his blood and saliva."
"What did you change it too then?" Rhea asked curiously as the three goddesses walked closer to the dragon.
"His blood is now hot and acidic enough to melt even Celestial bronze in a few minutes while he can breathe fire now, even Greek fire if you really piss him off," Hestia replied nonchalantly.
"I pity the idiot that tries to pick a fight with him," Rhea said as they got close enough to pet some of his heads. She marveled at how warm and smooth his scales felt now as the dragon purred contently making the ground shake slightly around them.
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Don't forget to throw some power Stones, to keep the story going.
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