WHO: Nine and Reyna WHAT: Arrival WHEN: Arrival WHERE Outside the town WARNINGS: Nine’s mouth and attitude, I’m sure STATUS: Closed/Complete
When Nine had seen Five stop them from killing Setrakus Ra, he’d been blinded by rage. The next thing he knew, he’d knocked the guy to the ground and was in the process of pounding his face in. Sure, the traitor bastard was getting a punch in here and there, but Nine was so furious that he didn’t even feel them. He would later, no doubt, but for now, all that mattered was smashing this asshole’s face so badly that his fucking mother wouldn’t recognize him. How dare he! Not only had he earned their trust and then betrayed them, but he’d killed Eight in cold blood. Eight! The gentlest of them, probably, with the possible exception of Marina. He’d only been trying to save him, to break it up…
A surge of fresh grief, mixed with guilt, mixed with anger surged in Nine, and he raised his fist, shaking with rage. But when he brought his fist down, it was into solid steel. Nine shrieked in pain and fury, but was thrown off enough that Five was able to best him for once, and Nine found himself on his back. He screamed, enough that he knew he’d be sore tomorrow, and raised his hand to blast him off with his telekinesis. But when he opened his eyes…
What the fuck?
He looked up at a clear sky. There was a slight breeze, but that was the only sound. He wasn’t in the city anymore. Holy shit, what was going on? He propped himself up a little on his elbows, still too stunned to stand. He was in a residential area, nothing like where he’d been just a few minutes before. He could feel the future bruises around his eye, and the blood dripping down his lip, so he hadn’t been dreaming.
“What the hell is this bullshit?” he asked the sky, or anyone around to hear, before collapsing back onto the ground and covering his face with his hands. Was this some goddamned vision? Or had that traitor prick developed a new Legacy?
He let out a furious groan as he lay there on the soft grass.
“This is such BULLSHIT!”
*** When Reyna suddenly found herself suspended in mid-air, her first thought was, Not again. And then gravity took hold and she was falling.
She had no idea how she’d ended up there. She’d been flying on a pegasus, yes, but that had been several hours ago. They’d since landed in a field outside of Indianapolis, and she’d gone into town to get some food for herself and Guido. She’d just stepped out of the grocery store when she found herself stepping out into nothingness, and now she was hurtling through the sky, this time with no Son of Hades to grab hold of and Shadow Travel their way to safety.
She just managed to process that there were trees coming up to meet her when they just did that. She tucked herself in to minimize the damage they’d do to her, but she still went crashing through them, bouncing from branch to branch, breaking some along the way, getting scratched and tangled. She finally tumbled through, and found herself landing - not on hard ground or even soft grass, but on someone.
“Oof,” she gasped as she toppled on top of him, arms and legs tangling with his.
The apples she’d bought for Guido tumbled down around them, one of them hitting the back of her head.
***
Nine had his eyes closed, and so didn’t see the girl falling out of the sky towards him. Didn’t notice her until a split second before, not even giving him time to react until wham, she was smashing right into him. Normally, Nine wouldn’t mind a pretty girl laying on top of him, her legs tangled with his. But this...well. Oof was a good way to put it.
He pushed her off, scrambling to a sitting position, trying to catch the breath that had been knocked out of him. He raised his hands in a defensive posture, ready to use his telekinesis if she tried to attack him again.
“Who the hell are you?” he growled.
*** Reyna, too, had scrambled back, uncaring of the scratches and bruises she'd gotten on the way down. She'd had worse before. She'd fought with worse before. And judging from the suspicion and hostility radiating from the man she'd just fallen on top of, she might need to.
Despite being the daughter of a war goddess, she didn't go for her dagger immediately. Physical confrontations were all and fine, but they weren't the first avenue to take.
"I am Reyna," she told him. Warily, she got to her feet. "What is this place?"
*** Well, they weren’t the first avenue for Reyna, anyway. Nine’s mind didn’t quite work that way. He glared at her, his entire body poised to fight this girl who’d attacked him by falling out of the freaking sky. Half of him was screaming at him to deck her, while the other half was checking her out. Not bad, even with the scrapes and scratches. Didn’t mean anything, though, he wasn’t sexist enough to have any policy not to hit girls. He’d hit them just fine if they deserved it. Although if somehow falling on top of him was an accident, then she wouldn’t deserve it.
After she backed off, though, he stood and put his hands in his pockets, but his eyes were still on her, following her every mood.
“I don’t know where we are,” he shrugged. “I was busting some jerk’s face, and then the next thing I know, I’m here, on the ground, and you’re using me as a damned landing strip.”
He didn’t offer her his name. What did he tell her? Stanley? He hated that name, and Stanley Worthington was long dead. Nine? Nope, no way. Not until he found out what she knew about the Mogadorians.
*** His belligerence reminded her somewhat of the children of Mars, but he didn't strike her as a demigod. He was certainly not Roman; that long hair of his was not regulation and would've had him on latrine duty until he'd cut it.
So why was he here? And why was she? There was no one around to give answers, no kind of clue. Was this a test from the gods? A Quest?
"There must be a reason why we're here," she said, more to herself than to him. She absently brushed the leaves and twigs from her clothes - her cloak was untouched and had probably protected her from the worst of the injuries - and looked around. There was no path to follow, but there was a hill. If she got to higher ground, she might be able to get the lay of the land. She hadn't been able to get any information while she'd been falling.
Ignoring the man she'd fallen on top of, she shook out her cloak and started to walk.
***
“Hey!” he called after her, a bit put out that she’d just fall on top of him and walk off like that. After nearly crushing him, she owed him more than that, didn’t she?? Plus, he was more than a little weirded out himself and she was the only person he’d met here so far.
“Hey!” he called again, catching up to her and grabbing her arm; not roughly, perhaps, but not particularly gently, either. “Where you are you going? We have no freaking idea where we are, or if the Mogs have somehow brought us here? Or whether death is lurking around that corner,” he said, his eyes aflame.
“Now wait a damned minute and tell me who you are, Reyna.”
*** No one touched Reyna without permission, unless they were trying to kill her. And since Reyna hadn’t given him permission to touch her, her instincts kicked in.
Even as he was talking, she was whirling around, using the momentum to drive her elbow into his sternum. She hadn’t brought out her dagger yet - she wasn’t in the habit of killing non-monsters - but he’d just gone from obnoxious stranger to potential threat.
“Don’t touch me,” she snapped. “I have already told you who I am. You haven’t done the same, but that’s of no importance to me. I’m going to find out where we are. Don’t get in my way.”
*** Nine didn’t expect that, but he reacted - almost - as quickly as she did. Not quickly enough to avoid getting the air knocked out of him - again - but enough that he was able to grab her arm and twist it behind her, his Loric strength holding it in place.
He wasn’t going to seriously hurt her - not unless she proved she deserved it, which she hadn’t yet - but he’d be damned if he was just going to let her hit him like that.
“Reyna” he scoffed, “Means nothing to me. Tell me who you are and who sent you. Do you work for the Mogadorians?!”
*** That was the second time he'd mentioned these Mogadorians, but Reyna had never heard of them. She had an extensive knowledge of Roman monsters, and these weren't amongst them.
That wasn't her primary problem, though. No, that would be the fact that the boy she’d just elbowed now had her arm behind her back. There was enough steely strength behind it to indicate that he could do some harm if she resisted, so she decided to go with discretion being the better part of valour for the moment.
“I have no idea who they are, or how I got there,” she said through gritted teeth, as she subtly tested his grip on her. It was strong, but not tight; she had some room to work with. “One moment I was getting groceries; the next I was falling in the air.”
***
Hmm. She seemed to have arrived here in much the same way he had. Or so she said. Nine wasn’t the most trusting person in the world, especially after how Five had ambushed them. But then, he wasn’t just going to hurt an innocent person, either. If that’s what she was.
“And landing on me,” he said, raising an eyebrow at her. It seemed rather...coincidental to him, that of all the places she could have landed, she had landed directly on top of him. Seemed rather...planned, really.
He tightened his grip on her arm. “And who are you, Reyna? Name? Rank?”
*** Reyna was done talking without getting answers of her own, however. As he tightened his grip, she abruptly shifted her weight down and back, using the momentum to flip him over her back and onto the ground. While he still had her arm, she’d managed to pull her dagger with her free hand, and pointed it at him.
“Who in Tartarus are you? What are the Mogadorians?”
***
Nine landed on the ground with a thud, the air temporarily knocked out of him. Again. He clenched his teeth as he looked up at her. “Okay, I’m seriously getting pissed now.” He raised a hand, and used his telekinesis to pull the knife from her hands and slam it into the nearest tree, the tip embedding at least half an inch into the trunk.
“Why the hell should I tell you who I am? So you can go tell your Mog bosses that you know where I am? Huh? Tell them I’m not stupid enough to fall for their girly trick again, no matter how pretty she is.”
*** Reyna gasped as her dagger went flying. She’d suspected that this man wasn’t entirely human from the casual strength he’d used to hold her, but telekinesis was a power she hadn’t seen before - except from Titans.
But it couldn’t be. She couldn’t be fighting one now, or else she’d be dead already. What in the name of Rome was he, then?
“I have no idea who these ‘Mogs’ are,” she informed him, not even registering the fact that he’d called her pretty. “And I have no interest in who you are aside from the fact that you are getting in my way.”
***
“Getting in your way?” he laughed, humorlessly. “You’re the one who fell out of the sky and practically crushed me!” Getting in her way, like hell.
He grabbed her arm and twisted, just enough to get her to let him up, then got quickly to his feet, taking a defensive posture, ready to attack at any moment.
“If you’re not working for the Mogs, then who are you, huh?”
*** It was a good thing he’d let go of her as soon as he got to his feet, because Reyna had been ready to slam him back down to the ground. As it were, she took a defensive posture as well, her brown eyes sparking. She didn’t exactly have a quick temper, but this guy here was definitely pushing it.
“I am Reyna, Daughter of Bellona, Praetor of the Twelfth Legion Fulminata,” she said, lifting her chin proudly. “I don’t know of your Mogs, and I have no interest in them. I am only interested in finding a way home.”
***
“Roman?” he scoffed. “Rome fell. A long time ago. Sorry to burst your bubble, sweetheart. You might find a Ceasar salad around if you look hard enough.” He rolled his eyes at her, his dark amusement obvious.
But she really didn’t seem to know who the Mogs were. Which was, of course, a good thing. He didn’t relax though, because Emma had fooled him too. He wouldn’t be fooled twice.
“And...how do you plan to find a way home?”
*** Reyna's eyes narrowed dangerously. True, most people weren't aware that Rome's spirited lived on, but for this...this long-haired barbarian to make fun of Caesar himself?
"Don't talk about things you know nothing about, fool," she snapped. "And I have no desire to tell you anything about my plans. Leave me be. You will not find your Mogs with me."
***
Ahh, so he’d struck a nerve, had he. He grinned, and crossed his arms across his chest.
“Yeah, maybe I wasn’t the best student ever, but that’s one thing I do know, Reyna. There is no Rome. It fell. Apparently ‘cause Roman brothers and sisters were so hot for each other. Is that the way it is for you? Because I mean, if you’ve got a sister, I really wouldn’t mind watching.”
*** All right, that did it. Reyna had been willing to let him go, but it was becoming clear that he wasn't going to let her go in peace unless she stopped him. And she couldn't let this insult to Rome go.
She reached into her hair to take out her hair pin, and almost as soon as she did so, it turned into a spear. "Since you don't know when to shut your mouth, let me do it for you."
***
Well, that was cool. He’d never seen a spear made out of a hair pin before. Nifty.
“Oh, are you? People have tried to do that before. Lots of people, actually. Makes me tink I have a big mouth. Which is hurtful, you know. I’m just bleeding inside.”
He kept his eye on the spear, his eyes locked and deadly, but that didn’t keep him from teasing her.
“Did you know that spear makes you look hot? Like, seriously hot.”
*** What an incredibly arrogant, smug fool! Reyna couldn't believe just how angry he was making her. Not even Octavian had had the power to make her want to stab him so much.
"Shut up," she ordered, and she leapt upon him.
***
But it wasn’t going to be that easy. Nine avoided her attack, practically blurring as he moved at super-speed, coming up behind her. He didn’t have a weapon, but that didn’t bother him. Sandor had trained him well, and he was strong and fit and didn’t need weapons to kick some major ass.
Behind her, he grabbed hold of her and bodyslammed her to the ground, grinning as he bent over her.
“I like you like this, too.”
*** Gods, but he was fast. Reyna had never encountered anyone with his abilities before, but that didn't mean she was just going to give up.
She swiftly reached up and grabbed his neck, using his bent over position to throw him off balance and onto the ground.
***
Ugh! He hit the ground hard, the breath knocked out of him again. But he grinned nonetheless, and got to his feet, altering gravity as he ran up the nearest tree, flipping himself over behind her.
“NIce moves, sweetheart.”
***
And yet again he came out with another skill she'd never seen. Reyna stared at him, having gotten to her feet and retrieved the spear. "What are you?" she demanded. "You're not a monster nor a half blood."
*** He raised an eyebrow. “A monster? Uh, nope. That would be the mogs. Or their beasts. And what the hell’s a half-blood?” Sounded like something from those Harry Potter books he’d read as a kid.
Shoving his hands in his pockets, he gave her a trademark arrogant grin.
“I’m awesome is what I am.”
He almost told her, because more and more he didn’t believe that she was actually a mog. But he wasn’t going to give away all of his secrets just yet.
***
"You're an arrogant ass," Reyna told him flatly. Yes, she's fallen on him, but that had been hardly her choice. If she'd had a choice, she'd rather land on a thorned bush or even bedrock than on him. Now he seemed to be taking his revenge by annoying her to death.
"And you're wasting my time. If you insist on standing here fighting whoever comes your way, that's your issue. Don't stop me from what I want to do."
***
Nine raised an eyebrow and his smile faded. He didn’t mind being called an arrogant ass, in fact, he’d been called one more times than he could recall and found it amusing, if anything.
But the last part pissed him off. He wasn’t wasting anyone’s time. He didn’t waste time.
“And what is that exactly?” he hissed. “What is it that you want to do? What have you figured out? How to get home? Because if you have, please, share it!”
He crossed his arms, blocking her path.
“And wherever you’re going, I’m coming with you.”
Because he hadn’t met anyone yet in this place, and he needed to do something.
*** "How am I supposed to figure anything out when you're standing in my way?" Reyna retorted. This guy was completely insufferable!
"I'm trying to get to the top of the hill to get a sense of my surroundings, and you are keeping me back at every turn. Are you doing it on purpose?"
That might be it. Maybe he was a monster after all, and he had been out here to keep whichever unfortunate hero to come along from leaving.
*** “On purpose?” He made a bit of a face, his eyes flashing. “You think I’m the one in the way? So far as I know, you’re the one who kidnapped me and brought me here against my will. So don’t talk to me about waylaying you.”
He looked at her, his eyes searching and hostile. She didn’t look like a Mog, but who knew? They were coming up with new tech every day.
“I’m - “ He paused. “Stanley.” He didn’t like that name, but he needed to offer something, and he wasn’t about to tell her his number. Not yet.
*** "If I wanted to kidnap you, you wouldn't be walking and talking," Reyna scoffed. And just as her name hadn't meant anything to him, his didn't mean anything to her either. She caught that hesitation, though, and it made her think that the name he’d given her wasn’t his real one - although she didn’t understand why he’d choose Stanley as a pseudonym. “And why would I even want to kidnap you? Aside from those...powers, you have not shown yourself to be useful at all.”
***
Not useful! That made him bristle and glare at her with pure anger. He was very useful. He was the best fighter of all of them, and the only one who could -
He took a deep breath. It was no good letting her get under his skin.
“And you have? How? I mean, other than being a snotty bitch?”
*** Snotty bitch? Of all the things Reyna had ever been called, snotty had never been one of them. At least not to her face. She prided herself on being a good leader and an accessible one, and even if Jason was seen as the friendlier one -
Jason. How she wished he was here. Or Annabeth. Or even Piper. Anyone but this guy.
She glared at him, dark eyes sparking in temper, but she, too, reined herself back. Of course she hadn't done anything. He'd stopped her, insulted her and then attacked her! How was she supposed to get anything done?
She wasn't going to explain herself to him, though. He wasn't worth it, and she had always been more the type to show rather than tell.
"I was going to get to higher ground to get the lay of the land before you stopped me," she said pointedly. "And if you are truly concerned about finding a way back, you will let me do so. There may be something around that could help."
***
“Yeah, but that doesn’t mean you’re going to know how to use it,” he said, in a tone that made it sound like he would. “So, how about this. We go together. And if I don’t see you turning me into the Mogs, I won’t kick your ass again.”
Right, sounded like a good deal to him.
*** Reyna grit her teeth. She really wanted nothing to do with him, but infuriatingly, his powers outmatched hers. She'd have to play along until she could lose him.
"Fine. Don't get in my way, and I won't feed you to the crows."
*** “See, I knew you liked me. Girls can’t resist me.”
Yeah, he was pushing it. He knew that. But wasn’t life all about pushing your limits?
*** Reyna glowered at him. How in Hades did anyone manage to be so obnoxious? Even Octavian wasn't this aggravating.
"And be quiet," she added. "Or you're taking a one-way trip down the hill."