His Return

20. The Blueprint

"To be a soldier, you must maintain composure at ease"
Tupac Shakur

Chapter 20: The Blueprint

Camp Half Blood,
Long Island, United States of America
House of Perseus
Day After Funeral, 5:00 AM

••••

It was unclear whether he hadn't noticed them or simply refused to acknowledge their presence, but never once did he break focus from his papers as they entered the room.

His state of serenity was unlike they had ever seen him in the past weeks, his wife holding and rubbing circles into his left hand as he held a black inked pen in the other, looking at the papers and writing relevant notes into the books that laid open on the shining wooden surface. Reading glasses were fixed onto the bridge of his nose, making him look wiser and more matured, his red eyes glowing against the clear of the spectacles.

He radiated an overall sense of calmness.
No impulsive movements. No threats made with a knife pressed against your throat.
Just peaceful.
Quiet.

At either side of the large table sat Hephaestus, Hestia and Hades, reviewing the many organized piles of statistical documents before them, thoroughly going over the codes, numbers and lengthy passages that occupied the word congested pages.

The demigods couldn't decide on whether they should take a seat, or await an order from one of the five people that sat at the table, providing that Perseus knew they were here already.

It was after all precisely 5 in the morning; the distinct time to which they were supposed to arrive, so maybe the five were so caught up into their work that they had completely put behind any recollection of a meeting today, especially not at this hour in the morning.

They came to the conclusion that they should wait, wanting to avoid any conflicts that may occur if they interrupted the five in their busy state, instead using the time to examine the details of the large room, taking in the beauty and elegance of every feature and design that made it unique, yet so familiar.

Flawless chandeliers hung from the ceiling, it's magnificent light making the black and white marble walls glitter beautifully, the spotless bronze floors complementing wonderfully with the illumination of brightly glowing torches.

Every corner was guarded by a skeleton clothed standard gear, wearing only light armor over their uniforms but wielding automatic firearms, glistening daggers hanging from the belts around their waists. None of the undead soldiers bothered the demigods, leaving them to do as they pleased, yet the eyes that belonged to the hollow sockets never once looked away from them, following every slight and single movement they made.

Annabeth decided that the place reminded her of Hades' palace in the underworld. The throne room to be exact. Of course she could never forget her first quest, to which she shared with Percy and Grover, where they were required to enter the underworld to retrieve Zeus's bolt, almost having lost their lives several times in the process. Truly, the only things that set the two places apart was that this room was morally flat, while the Death God's chamber had stairs, a throne, and it was much larger despite the vast size of this one.

She could vaguely hear hushed exchanges of words amongst the people at the table, talking about what seemed to be routes and modes of transportation, for what reason she knew nothing of, but through the whispers, she could only manage to make out two things; Montauk Pier and the North Atlantic Ocean. 

The two points were close, but Annabeth couldn't find a reason as to why it would be important. She didn't want for him to know that she was eavesdropping... or at least trying to, but still she figured that she'd ask him about it later if he hadn't gotten to it before her.