The sun had just barely started to rise in the little gym that Nancy and Zeke had settled in for the night, the sun would lightly hit Nancy's face and Zeke would feel their feline guest starting to lick his face. A loud meow would come from it trying to wake up the two children of Apollo. They could hear the sounds of a police siren going off, other than that it was pretty quiet the two of them could try and summon Apollo if they wanted to.
Ezekiel's face started to twitch under the licking of the cat. He startled a little when he heard the meow. Ezekiel opened his eyes to see green eyes and smiled.
"Morning sunshine." He sat up and stretched. He looked over at Nancy.
"Nanc, you up?"Nancy was a light sleeper. She hadn't always been that way - when she had been a kid, she used to be able to sleep through anything. But now, the slightest noise was enough to make her stir. She woke to a louder than necessary sound - the strange cat that had accompanied them the night before meowing.
"Mmhmmm," Nancy answered her brother. She got up to her feet, feeling a little stiff. It was never fun sleeping in the clothes she had worn the day before, but she was somewhat used to it at this point. She'd been on enough quests for New Rome.
"Sun's rising, it's now or never," Nancy then said.
She didn't look
excited by any means to talk to their father. Her last interaction with Apollo had been one of the better ones, but there was still a lot of hurt there. Nancy blamed him for the worst aspects of her life. She blamed him for her curse, for what had happened in
that place, and for a number of other misfortunes that weren't as big as those two. But still, they needed a ride. They'd missed the train - intentionally, but they had missed it all the same.
Nancy closed her eyes. She held out a hand to Zeke, if he wanted to take it, and she prayed to their father.
"Hey, Dad? If you're listening, your favorite children need a ride. Life or death emergency. It's Nancy, by the way - and Zeke - in case you already forgot who we are."The cat continued to rub against Nancy's legs while Joanie was eyeing the cat like it was her next meal while looking over at Nancy expectantly if it was some food. As if on queue there was a bright light through some of the windows that were in the gym and the two of them would feel the heat of the sun briefly as the chariot could be spotted briefly through the windows as well as it came to a stop at the front entrance of the gym. Then the door was quickly opened and Apollo entered the gym looking at the two of them and smiled as the cat stared at the god letting out a little hiss. "How are my two favorite children doing and you called for me?" Apollo asked as he made his way over to Nancy and Zeke giving them both a hug.
Ezekiel smiled a little at the offered hand. He rested his hand on Nancy's, giving it a light squeeze. Zeke didn't rely on Apollo much or ask him for much, but he prayed alongside Nancy that he would listen this time. Shortly after Nancy finished talking, the sun shifted to fill the gym. Ezekiel shielded his eyes but saw the chariot. His heart started to pound his chest with anticipation. What he wasn't expecting was his father giving them each a hug.
"Uh, hey, dad... Thanks for coming. We were wondering if we could get a ride to the Lotus Hotel. And maybe a few pointers on how to survive it." Zeke squeezed Nancy's hand in reassurance when he mentioned the hotel. He wanted to remind her that he was here and that she could lean on him if she needed the extra strength.
Just a few words were enough to invert Nancy's mood. She had been calm, cool, and collected. The mention of the place - and their request to be taken there in the Sun Chariot, which meant they'd get there within just a few short hours (if it even took that long)... It sent her reeling. She knew all of this, logically. She had been the one to make this plan. But it didn't change the outcome. Her stomach felt like it was trying to squeeze itself up through her throat, all while wrestling her lungs. Her vocal cords felt like they were about to snap, her kidneys explode, and her heart shatter.
Later on, she wouldn't be proud of what she did next. It was a defense mechanism. But it didn't make it right.
"I'd love to hear some pointers from you on the place. Maybe you have some on how to notice when your daughter is trapped there? No? Nothing coming to mind?" Nancy spat at their father, her temper inflamed. It was easier to be angry than scared.
Apollo looked at Nancy for a moment as she seemed to be angry at him for some reason, he looked sad for a moment when she brought up what had happened to her. "If I had known you were there years ago I would have helped you and taken you out of there as soon as I could." Apollo said sounding sad for a moment before speaking again.
"Due to what had happened to you in there last time you shouldn't have any issues with the Hotel like last time, just don't eat the lotuses that they give you, you'll have to make sure that the others stay focused in there as well to." Apollo said as he looked down at the cat and smiled as he reached down to gently pet it, and the cat started to purr slightly. "But I can get you to Vegas no problem." He said as he made his way towards the sun chariot which looked like a very expensive and fancy looking super car waving for his two children to follow him.
Ezekiel swallowed a lump in his throat when Nancy spoke. If words could hurt, he definitely felt like the venom in them would have done Apollo in, but other than a slight discomfort, their father didn't really react. At least it didn't seem that way to him. How could he have not known? He was a god wasn't he? And don't eat the flowers? What kind of class B answer was that? That was fucking obvious and they already knew that. Ezekiel's hand in Nancy's clenched a bit. His own anger radiated through him, but he didn't say anything. Sure, he could defend his sister, but this wasn't his pain to vocalize. He had his own bone to pick with Apollo and this wasn't it.
He wanted to ask about the doors and the giants and how they were going to survive, but for now he waited. His hand stayed in Nancy's, following her lead.
Nancy stared her father down, her gaze a challenge. If Apollo were a mighty god, then he would've known she was in the Lotus Hotel. If he didn't know, then he was a pathetic god. Given that she knew his strength and power, the former had to be true. The conclusion she had drawn - the one that she believed, deep down in her heart - was that Apollo only cared about her when it was convenient. They were on a quest that would help save the world, therefore, he came. If she had cried out in terror in the midst of the night - if That Night had happened again - would he come?
She didn't think he would.
"Yeah, no issues at all," Nancy said coldly.
"I'm so glad to know that the attempted rape is going to work out in the gods' favor." She wasn't accusing Apollo of knowing that was going to happen, so that way they'd have a demigod who could navigate the Hotel when they needed one. But she also wasn't
not accusing him of that. She let go of Zeke's hand and crossed her arms, physically signaling her emotional walls and boundaries rising back up. It helped to hide the fact that her body was shaking.
Apollo stared at his two children for a moment getting the feeling that they were mad at him for something as he snapped his fingers slightly as the chariot transformed into a sedan so that one of them could sit in the back of the chariot. He then turned to Nancy looking sad for a moment, he did feel sorry about that night if he had seen that happening to her he would have been there sooner to help her. "Nancy I regret not being there sooner for you when you were younger if I had seen that happening I would have been there before it happened." He told her as he motioned for the two to get into the chariot. He then stopped for a moment as he started to dig into his pocket and pulled out a vial and handed it towards Nancy.
"By the way this is for your friend's condition, my sister had some help with it. It's a treatment for her so she won't be forced to turn on the full moon, i'm still working on it for you." Apollo told Nancy as he climbed into the chariot.
Ezekiel looked between his father and sister. The standoff was intense, but Apollo was trying. Ezekiel bent down and grabbed his pack.
"You weren't there for her, dad, and you weren't there for me. Hell, I don't think you've been there for any of your kids, but you can do something now. What are we walking into with the doors of death? Supposedly we need a god to kill the giants and get to Thanatos." Ezekiel made the decision to sit in the front passenger seat. He looked down at the cat, smiling.
"Come along, Sunshine," he cooed and held the door open for the cat. It jumped up, seemingly happy with the decision.
Nancy was shaking, physically and emotionally. She took the vial carefully and held onto it tightly, recrossing her arms. The chariot had transformed, becoming an ordinary car. Zeke seemed to be rather attached to the cat, which was fine with Nancy - it didn't seem to be a monster. She got into the back seat with Joanie. She knew that they needed an answer to Zeke's question. She knew that was what they needed to focus on. But the trembling words escaped from her lips anyways.
"Why didn't you see? You're a god," Nancy asked, figuratively laying her cards on the table.
Apollo looked at Zeke for a moment and sighed slightly. "You already know the laws we are limited in the lives of mortals and with our children created by good ol pops himself." Apollo told him as he looked at his daughter. "I don't know the Fates maybe or it's the hotel itself." Apollo said as he started up the chariot and smiled at the little cat as it went over and jumped onto his lap and gently started to pet it. "And you already have a god with your group." Apollo said referring to Alexios clearly.
A prickling sensation moved up Zeke's arms when Nancy spoke again. He shifted carefully in his seat, buckling up and looked from Apollo to the cat then out the window. The hotel having some sort of block over it made sense. How else where the lotus eaters able to get away with so much over the years. However, Zeke didn't think Nancy wanted to hear that.
More importantly, Apollo gave Ezekiel absolutely no useful information when it came to their quest. Zeke snorted at the mention of Alexios, and crossed his arms.
"You mean the god I punched in the face because he's a dick who's betrothed to my boyfriend? Oh ya, I'm sure he will be super helpful."Nancy's anger wasn't calmed by Apollo's words. In her rage, she wanted to curse the gods. She wanted to vow that she would tear Olympus down, brick by brick. She wanted to cry that if the gods were not all-powerful, that they could not See all, then she would prove it to be so. The men who had assaulted her were long dead. She had killed them. But the gods were still here. As was the Hotel. Instead, Nancy remained silent in the back seat. Her hands were clenched into fists and her knuckles were white. She almost wished that Apollo had been angry with her, that he had screamed so that way her anger could rise and rise and rise - but yelling at him, when he was just trying to be the perfect father, it didn't satisfy her anger.
"I know what Aphrodite is doing, and she always likes to meddle in people's love lives, but he will help you that I do know he will." Apollo said as the Sun Chariot quickly flew into the air, and started to travel across the country to where they needed to go. He then parked the chariot in front of a hotel. "Your little friend there will be the key to getting through the Doors of Death and on the other side, just follow it and it'll help you and the rest of your friends." Apollo said as he dug into his pocket and pulled out a wad of human currency. "You won't have any problems with monsters this will pay for your room and board here until the rest of the group comes." He told the two of them.
Ezekiel wasn't sure how to take that information. He would help but at what cost to his relationship with Demetri? They arrived in Vegas in record time. Zeke didn't think he'd be able to travel normally after this. Apollo gave him some more information and some money. Ezekiel had never seen so much money before. He half listened to his father, intrigued that the cat would be their guide. He would need to get the cat some food.
"Um, okay.... Thanks for the ride and stuff." Zeke smiled slightly at his dad, very aware of Nancy's presence in the back. He grabbed his bag and let the cat jump out of the car before he waited for Nancy.
Nancy hopped out of the chariot. She didn't say a word to her father. She just nodded slightly. It was strange, being back in Las Vegas. She hadn't been back here in years - not since the Legion rescued her from the Hotel. Her blood felt like it was both boiling and freezing. She didn't want to be here longer than she had to. She didn't want to sit inside another hotel, a place that would feel very much the same. She didn't want to be a demigod.
Apollo got out of the chariot and approached his daughter she had been pretty quiet, he knew that he hadn't been the best father that he could be to all of his children and if he could he would have been there for all of them, he wanted to try and comfort her more but he wasn't sure if she would explode on him or not. "You'll be alright in there I know you are strong just watch over your brother while you are in there." He said as he looked at Zeke. "You two take care of each other and the others in there." Apollo told him.
