This Cold Year ― Percy Jackson & Annabeth Chase²

―xvi. prison breakout

"FORGET ABOUT ESCAPE," Hylla said. "Of course, we'd respect you for trying. But we'd have to kill you."

Hazel gulped. "Thanks for the warning."

Hylla shrugged. "The least I can do. I believe you come in peace. I believe Reyna sent you."

"But you won't help?"

The queen studied the necklace she'd taken from Percy, looking up briefly to compare it to Naomi's. "It's complicated," she said. "Amazons have always had a rocky relationship with other demigods—especially male demigods. We fought for King Priam in the Trojan War, but Achilles killed our queen, Penthesilea. Years before that, Hercules stole Queen Hippolyta's belt—this belt I'm wearing. It took us centuries to recover it. Long before that, at the very beginning of the Amazon nation, a hero named Bellerophon killed our first queen, Otrera."

"You mean the lady—"

"—who just left, yes. Otrera, our first queen, daughter of Ares."

"Mars?"

Hylla made a sour face. "No, definitely Ares. Otrera lived long before Rome, in a time when all demigods were Greek. Unfortunately, some of our warriors still prefer the old ways. Children of Ares... they are always the worst."

"The old ways..." Hazel looked at Naomi, then back at Hylla. "You mean, the Amazons are a mix of Greek and Roman?"

Hylla hummed an affirmative. "I'm sure your friend here could tell you a bit about it, once her memories return."

Naomi's eyebrows rose. "Huh?"

Hylla continued to examine the necklace—the clay beads, the probatio tablet. She slipped Reyna's silver ring off the cord and put it on her own finger. "I suppose they don't teach you about that at Camp Jupiter. The gods have many aspects. Mars, Ares. Pluto, Hades. Being immortal, they tend to accumulate personalities. They are Greek, Roman, American—a combination of all the cultures they've influenced over the eons. Do you understand?"

"I—I'm not sure," Hazel admitted. "Are all Amazons demigods?"

The queen spread her hands. "We all have some immortal blood, but many of my warriors are descended from demigods. Some have been Amazons for countless generations. Others are children of minor gods. Kinzie, the one who brought you here, is the daughter of a nymph. Ah—here she is now."

Kinzie approached the queen and bowed. "The prisoners are safely locked away," she reported. "But..."

"Yes?" the queen asked.

Kinzie swallowed like she had a bad taste in her mouth. "Otrera made sure her followers are guarding the cells. I'm sorry, my queen."

Hylla pursed her lips. "No matter. Stay with us, Kinzie. We were just talking about our, ah, situation."

"Otrera," Hazel guessed. "Gaea brought her back from the dead to throw you Amazons into civil war."

The queen exhaled. "If that was her plan, it is working. Otrera is a legend among our people. She plans to take back the throne and lead us to war against the Romans. Many of my sisters will follow her."

"Not all," Kinzie grumbled.

"But Otrera is a spirit!" Hazel said. "She isn't even—"

"Real?" The queen studied Hazel carefully. "I worked with the sorceress Circe for many years. I know a returned soul when I see one. When did you die, Hazel—Nineteen-twenty? Nineteen-thirty?"

"Nineteen forty-two," Hazel said. "But—but I wasn't sent by Gaea. I came back to stop her. This is my second chance."

"Your second chance..." Hylla gazed at the rows of battle forklifts, now empty. "I know about second chances." She looked at Naomi. "You and your friend, that Percy Jackson boy—you destroyed my old life. I suppose you wouldn't recognize me, though, even with your memories. I was a glorified secretary, an accursed Barbie doll."