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The emperor’s head was still on his shoulders, no signs of it ever having been broken. Which made sense in the weird logic of this dream. Without Jason here to smash it, the bust would still be in one piece. Nico’s memories of this day poured over him, a waterfall of images and sensations that he had kept locked deep in his mind.
One of them rose to the surface.
Jason, grabbing Nico and lifting him in the air while they chased down Favonius, the strange winged man who had been buying an ice-cream cone in Dalmatia. Things had seemed so much simpler then. When you saw a wind god buying ice cream, you chased him.When anyone tried to touch you, you lashed out. Nico had always hated being touched. As soon as Jason set him down that day, Nico had barked,Don’t ever grab me again.
Now, staring at that unnerving bust of Diocletian, Nico wished for nothing more than to feel Jason Grace’s protective arms around him.
But Jason wasn’t here.
Behind Nico, a different voice said, ‘Are you ready?’
Nico spun once more, and there, leaning against one of the columns, stood Favonius, the Roman god of the West Wind. He was dressed exactly as he had been that day: a red tank top over an aggravatingly bright set of Bermuda shorts and huarache sandals.
‘You,’Nico snarled. ‘Get out of my dreams.’
‘Oh, Nico,’ said Favonius, shaking his head. ‘If only it were that easy.’
‘Nothing is easy for me,’ Nico said. ‘I’ve come to expect that.’
‘Then you know I have to take you to see someone.’
There was no joy in the god’s face, none of the excitement or eagerness that Nico had seen last summer.
Favonius lookedscared.
‘Please,no,’ Nico began.
‘You have to fix it, Nico.’
Nico’s heart hammered even harder against his ribs. What came next in the real world had been … well, truly one of the worst things Nico had ever been through, which was saying a lot for him. He’d had to endure Cupid, who was no adorable little winged cherub. The intense, intimidating god of desire had forced Nico to confess his crush on Percy Jacksonin front ofJason, all so they could acquire the sceptre.
The ordeal had proved vital to winning the war against Gaia.
It had also torn a wound in Nico that still hadn’t healed.
‘Whatever this is,’ said Nico, ‘I get the message. I need to listen. Iamlistening. So I don’t need to go through this again.’
‘You have to talk to him,’ said Favonius. ‘But not for the reason you think.’
Nico tried to steady his breathing. He forced himself to ask, ‘Will Jason be there?’
He wasn’t sure which answer would be more painful: yes or no.
The god’s expression darkened. ‘No, Nico. He’s gone.’ Then he added softly, almost to himself, ‘They’ll all be gone eventually.’
Without another word, Favonius dissolved into a swirl of dust and sunlight. The wind wrapped around Nico and lifted him off the floor. Even in a dream, Nicohatedthis sensation, like his entire body was being torn to atoms. They zipped through the smallest cracks in the church windows, then raced across the Croatian countryside without regard for gravity or mass or his stomach. All Nico’s thoughts and feelings collided with one another, vying to exist simultaneously in his mind. He hadliterallyfallen apart into a mess of emotions.
At least I am #OnBrand in my dreams, he thought. Then: Will wouldhatethat joke.
The wind deposited him on a hill overlooking the ruins of Salona. Put back together again, Nico’s thin body trembled with nausea. He felt like he had Sisyphus in his throat, eternally pushing his stone up the steep incline. ‘Ugh,’ he coughed. ‘That feeling is just as bad in a dream.’
Favonius’s disembodied laughter floated around him. ‘Look at you, still thinking this is a dream. You aresocute when you’re delusional, Nico di Angelo!’
Nico really,reallyhated being called cute. He had no time for retorts, though. The wind faded, and Favonius was gone.
Nico scanned the ruins. They looked exactly as they had before:crumbling, decaying shells of buildings, moss-covered lines of stone – a once-great Roman city reduced to a field of rocks. Nicostillwasn’t impressed. He’d seen too many ruins just like these over the years, reminders of how quickly mortal creation could turn to rubble.
He raised his hands. ‘Let’s get on with it, then! Cupid, I’m here!’
