His musing were left unanswered as he felt his body punch through the thick clouds, bathing him in a wet and cool mist. Mere seconds later he was out and yet fell into another, the process repeating itself several times as the sound of wind was replaced with bellows of thunder and hissing rain.
Then finally he fell through the last cloud, the chorus of rain and occasional boom of thunder after a flash of lightning being his only company as his eyes opened yet again.
He could feel the ground getting closer by the second as he slowly shifted again, his stance straighter with his legs directly beneath him as his gaze looked down. Even with the storming clouds, thick rain, and dark gloom he could make out familiar forests and a distant city beyond but it was the hills, forest, and coast beneath him that really took his attention as the minutes passed by.
The ground was getting even closer, so close in fact that he would soon hit a skyscraper should there be one but still he didn't react. He was getting so close should any mortal or monster look up, they would clearly see him. Then, from what could have been mere moments before he crashed into the Earth, his wings stretched with a thunderous clap.
The wind billowed around him with a pulse of pressure that shook the very ground beneath him as the rain was pushed away for but a second, the closest trees swaying dangerously. However it was only a moment before it passed as the rain fell upon him again, leaving the winged deity to float effortlessly even as the downpour continued around him as he took in his surroundings.
"Of all the places to land," he mused softly as he took in the familiar and once welcoming sight of Camp Half-Blood.
He floated a dozen feet or so above the very hill he traversed his first time here, the sight of his battle against the Minotaur and the true beginning of his adventures as a demigod. His eyes found the iconic tree marking the barrier once isolating and protecting this demigod sanctuary.
But no more.
Gone was the barrier and its protections, the camp left as bear to the elements as Thalia's Pine now that the Golden Fleece and Peleus had been moved to Mount Cartier during their declaration of War.
Once it was an ever-constant summer, the grounds covered in lush greenery and the scent of wild strawberries being grown in the surrounding fields along with the clangs of metal working and training in the background. The constant shouts of dozens to hundreds of demigods spending time perfecting their crafts, learning and passing on their skills, or simply enjoying their holidays.
Now it all lay empty, the drone of the rain covering what would be an unnatural silence. His eyes looked on, unbothered by the rain or shadows as he took it all in. The Big House at alone atop another hill, the windows dark and the porch untouched. The armory and arenas left quiet off in the distance.
His eyes fell as he let himself fall the last dozen feet until he landed with a muffled splash before he began to walk towards the very center of the camp, his eyes catching small cracks and trenches from Rhea's 'attack'. Some trees were felled and merely left as they were, most of the nymphs having retreated deep into the surrounding forests or to new areas entirely.
He only gave a passing glance to the amphitheater, seeing the cracked sections of seats and broken fire-pit, the last logs used spilled over and off. His gaze then moved to the collection of buildings and the large hearth built into the center of them all, his eyes dulling in sadness as he walked up to it. The sight of his wife's empty hearth, the logs within long since extinguished and cold as the bowl of the hearth filled with rain.
He then looked around, noting some of the changes made to the cabins ever since he left over ten years ago. A few notable additions for once unrecognized minor gods were a given but some cabins also looked like they'd been expanded to fit the newer flux of demigods. Some of the cabins looked broken though, either completely or partially swallowed by the earth and many overrun with weeds and vines unknown to the area.
One glance over his shoulder to one of the leading cabins told him all he needed to know about the cabin he once called his second home. Nothing but turned soil was left. No plants, no marks, no traces of Poseidon ever having a claim here. Kind and compassionate by nature she may be but when Rhea wanted to, she could be as vindictive as the best of them.
Granted the cabin next to it was proof that Rhea wasn't the only one capable of the emotion given that Zeus and Hera's cabins were blown up from the center, the charring left on the marble leaving little doubt as to how that happened. The irony of a bolt of lightning destroying his own cabin must have stung the paranoid bastard like nothing else.
He could easily imagine Thalia's self-satisfied smile as she did it.
The thought got a snort out of him as his gaze moved on, noting how most of the other cabins were left alone save for the Ares and Artemis cabins. The Ares cabin was partially buried and a wall broken in from a rather large tree falling on it while Artemis' cabin looked to have been shaken to the point fractures lined the walls and part of the roof caved in.
However when his eyes settled on a particular cabin with a primary color of grey, he paused. He slowly looked over the banner left over the door, the once proud symbol of Athena bogged down by the unrelenting rain. For a moment he couldn't help but picture the goddess, her eyes losing their luster as tears came unbidden and her cries of loss echoing in his head.
He could imagine what the goddess must be like now and that was considering her learning of Cloelia's condition. His fist clenched at the thought of the godling, an innocent child that had nothing to do with this, lying on what could be her deathbed. Taking a deep breath and then giving a slow exhale as the temperatures around him dropped, he started walking towards the cabin.
The moment he got to the door he gently took the handle and turned it, unsurprised to find it unlocked, before opening it and looking in. The sight only brought a pang to his heart. He'd been in here many times before during his years of quests and to simply visit his late ex. The controlled chaos of the Athena Cabin had carried a certain charm to it, the walls coated in pictures, plans, and blueprints, all manner of small weapons collected on the far wall, and of course, the little space dedicated to each bed and the personalization of the owners.
Now it was merely chaos left in the wake of abandonment. The walls were mostly bare with only the oldest and faded maps left, the small armory stripped clean, and what was saddest of all to him, the abandoned items left to the beds. Clothes was tossed about, some picture frames and little mementos left either forgotten or simply left with no time to spare.
He slowly walked in, his black-flamed eyes taking it in as his breathe misted over with every exhaled, the sound of water droplets falling off him and onto the dusted floors echoing with him. He paused as he looked at a small frame left on the edge of a bed, the glass fogged over the image. Gently wiping his finger across it, the picture of a smiling blonde boy, probably in his upper teens giving a piggy-back ride to a more familiar blonde little girl.
'The last one left from that group of Hunters,' he thought before picking up the frame and turning it over to find two names. 'Lola and her brother Allen.' Idly taking a step as he still looked at the picture, he was surprised to hear a small squeak as he stepped on something. Glancing down he saw a small stuffed bunny plushy, the toy seemingly looking up in his direction. Kneeling down to pick it up he took a moment to admire the clear skill used to make it.
The seams were even and tight knit, the cloth used showing the wear after years of use still being in good condition, and even a few repair jobs made to look like colorful additions to the mostly white plushy. He could practically feel the affection and care that went into making this but also in the way it was well taken care of and precious to the receiver.
One check of the back left foot showed a little tag with the inscription 'For Lola'.
A soft sigh escaped him as he stood straight again, looking around the cabin as shadows started to gather and merge around pictures and other items left about the cabin. With but a thought said items started to sink into the shadows, to be kept safe until he hopefully had a chance to return them to their owners. Another two portals opened near his hands as he deposited the picture and plushy away before he felt a shift in the shadows just outside the cabin.
He slowly turned as the soft steps came as the door opened to reveal none other than Raven, his daughter's icy blue eyes glowing within the gloom of the cabin.
"Papa…" she murmured softly as she approached him.
...
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