A Quest of Eight; A Heroes of Olympus Fanfiction

Bad Times in Bologna

Y/n's POV

"Duck!" Leo shouted as him, Frank, Jason, and I reached the deck. 

I hit the floor just as a small explosion went off behind me. I don't know what kind of grenade had gone off, but once I was on the floor, my limbs were practically numb. My head was pounding, and the ringing in my ears didn't help. It took all of my strength to roll over, and once I had, I glanced up to find one of the dwarves staring down at me. He then showed off the prize he'd just stolen. My trident necklace. My sword. I tried to reach out and grab him, but I didn't didn't have much mobility. It took a few seconds, but finally, I was able to stand up. Frank was passed out on the floor, but Jason and Leo were already on their feet.

"You feeling good enough to give Y/n and I a lift?" Leo asked 

"Yeah," Jason replied. 

"Good," I breathe out. "Because we've got some dwarfs to catch."

............................................

The three of us touched down in a piazza lined with white marble buildings and a few cafes. The surrounding streets were crowded with bikes and other vehicles, but the square we had landed in was quite empty. Jason had his golden sword with him, but Leo and I were empty handed when it came to weapons, so it looked like we'd have to use our powers if it came down to it.

"Where to?" Jason questioned and looked around. 

"Well, I don't know. Let me pull my dwarf-tracking GPS out of my tool belt...Oh, wait! I don't have a dwarf-tracking GPS. Or my toolbelt!" Leo exclaimed.

"Fine," Jason grumbled and gestured across the piazza. "I think the ballista fired the first dwarf in that direction, so lets start there." We walked down the next street, which was filled with clothing shops and restaurants, and the whole time, my hand kept itching to my neck where my necklace should have been. I hadn't been paying too much attention, but when we reached a smaller piazza, Jason grabbed my attention. "Check it out."

I looked up, expecting to see some beautiful scenery, or perhaps even the dwarfs, but it was quite the opposite. In fact, it was something I had never wanted to see. Ever. Looming over us in the center of the piazza was a large fountain with statue of Neptune on top of it. And he was buck-naked.

"Holy Hephaestus!" I yelp and avert my eyes. "Why in Zeus' name would you make me look at that?"

"Sorry," Jason apologized.

"Is his, you know, really that big?" Leo inquired. "Or did the sculptor do that on purpose? Cause now I'm feeling the tiniest bit self-conscious."

"Why are you looking?! Stop it," I demand.

"I can't help it," Leo countered. "My eyes are just drawn to it."

"Dad, next time I see you, we're gonna have a chat about stuff like this," I say. Both Jason and Leo stifled a laugh, but I'm guessing neither of them wanted to see my dad naked either.

"Do you think it's some kind of clue?" Leo wondered. 

Jason shrugged. "There are statues of the gods all over Italy. I'd just feel better if we ran across Jupiter. Or Minerva. Anybody but Neptune, really." 

"Harsh much, Jason? I'm standing right here," I alert him.

"I don't mean it like that. I'd just rather it be of a god or goddess who can help us find these dwarves," Jason defended. "Neptune wouldn't really be much help in this situation."

"I'm gonna check it out," Leo declared and hopped into the bone-dry fountain before feeling around the base of the statue. "It's mechanical. Maybe a doorway to the dwarfs' secret lair?"