CHAPTER LXXXIX:How Did I End Up Here?

I sat looking at the first question, this test wasn't even original. Hecate took a copy of the finals from a demigod basics class. The first question was extremely easy, what is Apollo's Roman name. The answer was, quite simply, he didn't have one. The Romans didn't give Apollo a new name like the other gods. Hecate was Trivia, Hestia was Vesta, and Demeter was Ceres. I didn't know if the Romans never got to him, decided renaming his sister was enough, or if they kept his name because of the Oracle. I sighed and wrote down my answer.

The next question was simple as well. What legion doesn't require this phrase, REQUIESCAT IN PACE, to be engraved or embossed on a soldiers armor or weapon. The answer was, ironically, Pluto's Guard. Pluto's Guard, instead, welded drachmas into their armor or weapons. They considered themselves defenders of the dead, and they believed if they failed in their job there would be no resting in peace. Thus, the phrase wasn't incorporated into Pluto's legion.

I kept going answering the next few questions, all of which were easy. The questions were simple translations and name changes. All of which were burned into my memory since I was nine. At my school you had to have all of Greek Mythology, including modern myths, memorized by nine years old so you could take demigod basics final at ten. That was the age the school suggested for taking the test, some kids took it at younger ages while others took it when applying for the legions.

Question twelve caught me off guard a bit, does Minerva have a legion? The answer was yes, but it has hidden. Only children of Athena knew of the legion, and I didn't know if I should answer as I had when I took the test, I had answered no because she wasn't a war goddess, but Hecate may have changed the answer due to recent circumstances. I answered yes, and could see Hecate smiling.

"It's always been a trick question, no matter what you answer it'll be correct," Hecate said.

I looked up briefly, "Thank you, Lady Hecate."

I went back to my test quickly and moved through the question. It was mainly legion basics, and story details at this point. It was mostly stuff along the lines of, what is Vulcan's Collectors job? The answer was that they collected artifacts that were left by the gods, whether the gods were Greek or Nordic or Japanese, Vulcan's collectors would grab the artifacts and vault them until the right demigods showed up. A couple of artifacts that always escaped the collection team were Excalibur, The 'Holy' Lance, The sword of Theseus, Perseus' sandals, and Cerberus' chain.

The artifacts in question were very elusive, they never stayed in one place long. The sword of Theseus was originally found by the Romans, and it had the left guard, both guards were replaced by the Minotaur's horns, snapped off. The next time it was found, it was in Egypt. It was held under guard by the Egyptian gods, then it traded hands again and found its way to England. The last time the swords location was recorded, it had found it's way back to its home. No one knows where it went except Theseus, since he's tied to the sword, but some believe the sword found its way to the original Forge of Hephaestus. Then again, if rumors were true, Vulcan's Collectors would've found it there.

Perseus' sandals were lost after Hermès got them back. The God of Travel lost it in a trading box, the box then switched hands a few dozen times. The tale was that if you had it the box, Hermès would have no choice but to make your empire, or kingdom, prosper until you lost the box. Athena knew that it was true, and made sure Romulus got his hands on it. The box was supposedly left in Rome after the empire fell, as legends say it was buried with Remus. However, no one, besides the Roman Emperors, knew where he was buried. It was a state secret that was kept close to the chest.

The last artifact was lost in Tartarus, we knew the location but not how to get it. The chain was to keep Cerberus in check, or rather it was, over the years Cerberus has been trained to stay put. Hades trained Cerberus for years turning him from a terrifying creature that was birthed from Typhon to a, typically sweet, puppy dog.

I moved away from the thoughts and kept answering questions on my test. I finally got to the last six questions twenty-five, twenty-six, twenty-seven, twenty-eight, twenty-nine, and thirty. Twenty-five was asking which battle King Leonidas died in, that was easy, Leo died at The Battle of Thermopylae in 480 BC. Leo was brave, still is, but bravery didn't spare his life. I wondered if Leonidas was a demigod, it would explain a decent bit. Every time I asked Leo about it though he would just smile and say, another time kiddo. Gods Leo frustrated me sometimes.

Question twenty-six, name a famous demigod besides the ones in popular Greek and Roman stories. So Odysseus, Achilles, Theseus, and Orpheus were out immediately. That just left some demigods hidden in history. One demigod that couldn't leave my mind was Alexander The Great, especially since I kicked his ass, the amazing Son of Athena that led a very successful conquest over the course of his life.

Question twenty-seventy and twenty eight, when did the last Nordic god vanish and why. That question always confused me, the Greeks and Romans shouldn't know this. I guess it was to make demigods more diversified in their knowledge. I put down my answer for twenty-seven, April 26th 1986. As for the why, well, they witnessed one to many human tragedies. The Vladimir I. Lenin Nuclear Power Plant disaster was the final straw for Odin. The Nordic gods witnessed so many wars and tragedies that they chose to vanish.

The next question was twenty-nine, name three Egyptian gods. That was easy since there was a demigod who was named after an Egyptian god. Set, The God of Disorder and Violence. The next god I knew was Bastet, The Goddess of Protection. The cat goddess of Egyptian mythology. I still needed a third god, this question stumped me a lot worse when I was a kid. The next god I put down was Ra, The Sun and Creator God. Those three were the only ones I really knew besides Osiris and Isis. Even then, I hardly knew what they were the gods of.

I got to the last question and my heart stopped. Question thirty, what is the last prophecy the gods received. That was on the original test, but it was supposed to be a trick. Thinking about it know, it was probably made to find the Oracle since the name was never disclosed. I wrote down my answer quickly, The Prophecy of the Eight Pillars.