𝙄𝙉𝙁𝙇𝘼𝙈𝙀𝘿; heroes of olympus

til death do us part

ERITH JAY
AS SOON AS GAEA ACHIEVED LIFTOFF, the ground solidified.

Demigods stopped sinking, though many were still buried up to their waists. Sadly, the monsters seemed to be digging themselves out more quickly. They charged the Greek and Roman ranks, taking advantage of the demigods' disorganization.

Jason and Erith grabbed Piper. Just as they were about to take off, Percy yelled, "Wait! Frank can fly the rest of us up there! We can all―"

"No, man," Jason said. "They need you here. There's still an army to defeat. Besides, the prophecy―"

"He's right." Frank gripped Percy's arm. "You have to let them do this, Percy. It's like Annabeth's quest in Rome. Or Hazel at the Doors of Death. This part can only be them."

Percy's eyes found Erith's, and with a jolt she realized he was waiting for her to decision. He would stay, but only if she agreed with Jason and Frank.

"Trust me," she mouthed. His eyes softened.

"Come back," he mouthed back. Then he turned, Annabeth at his side, as a flood of monsters swept over the Greek forces. 

Frank and Hazel turned to Jason, Piper, and Erith. They raised their arms in a salute, then ran off to regroup the legion.

Jason, Piper, and Erith spiraled upward on the wind.

"Do you have to cure?" Piper asked Erith. She nodded, but if everything worked out in her favor, they wouldn't need the cure.

"I've lost my godforsaken sword," Jason growled. Veins were popping in his neck with the effort to keep the three of them aloft. Erith squeezed his hand.

He could do it. He had to. It was the final thing she would ask of him.

As they ascended, Jason gathered the wind and the clouds around them. The sky responded with frightening speed. Soon they were in the eye of a maelstrom. Lightning burned Erith's eyes. Thunder made her teeth vibrate.

Directly above them, Festus grappled with the earth goddess. Gaea kept disintegrating, trying to trickle back to the ground, but the winds kept her aloft. Festus sprayed her with flames, which seemed to force her into solid form. Meanwhile, from Festus's back, Leo blasted the goddess with flames of his own and hurled insults. "Potty Sludge! Dirt Face! THIS IS FOR MY MOTHER, ESPERANZA VALDEZ!"

His whole body was wreathed in fire. Rain hung in the stormy air, but it only sizzled and steamed around him.

Jason zoomed toward them.

Gaea turned into loose white sand, but Jason summoned a squadron of venti who churned around her, constraining her in a cocoon of wind. Erith didn't know how he was doing it while he kept both herself and Piper aloft, but she didn't dare question him.

Gaea fought back. When she wasn't disintegrating, she lashed out with shrapnel blasts of stone and soil that Jason deflected with wind. His body was trembling with exertion.

But Erith knew he had to keep at it. They couldn't let Gaea touch the ground. That was the key.

Long ago, Ouranos the sky god had been tricked down to the earth by Gaea and the Titans. They'd held him on the ground so he couldn't escape and, with his powers weakened from being so far from his home territory, they'd been able to cut him apart.