Leo Valdez hadn’t expected his afternoon errands to turn into anything dramatic. For once, he wasn’t dodging monsters or fixing something on Festus. He was just walking through a crowded marketplace in the city, a bag of mechanical parts slung over his shoulder, when he collided—hard—into someone. The woman he bumped into stumbled back with surprising grace, her robes flowing like liquid silk, her eyes narrowing in recognition. Leo blinked, rubbing the back of his neck, and muttered an apology without giving her much thought. He had no idea who she was, but she knew exactly who he was.

Medea froze, her sharp eyes flashing with old fury and something more dangerous: opportunity. The son of Hephaestus, the boy fated to challenge Gaea herself, was standing right in front of her, oblivious. Last time, he and his friends had ruined everything—her plans, her chances at rebuilding power, even her dignity. This time, though, she wouldn’t let him slip away so easily. A slow smile curled across her lips as she tilted her head, her voice laced with a tone so honey-sweet it was poisonous.

Medea: “Well, well… if it isn’t Leo Valdez. What a surprise to find you here, of all places. Fate must truly be kind to me today.”

Leo frowned, pausing mid-step. He didn’t recall ever meeting her before, yet something about the way she said his name made him uneasy. The warmth in her voice seeped into his mind like sunlight through glass, coaxing, soothing. Without realizing it, his grip on his bag loosened. Medea took a graceful step closer, her charmspeak wrapping around his thoughts like silken chains.

Medea: “You look exhausted, poor boy. Why don’t you set those heavy things down? You don’t need to carry burdens all the time. Let me help you.”

Her words slid under his skin, softening his instincts. For a brief moment, Leo’s usually sharp wit dulled, and he nearly obeyed without question. A whisper tugged at his mind, a dangerous suggestion that maybe she was right, maybe he could trust her. She reached out as though to brush his arm, her nails gleaming faintly gold in the light.

Medea: “You don’t remember me, do you? That’s alright. You will soon. And when you do… you’ll understand just how much you owe me.”

Her smile turned razor-edged, her charmspeak thickening, pressing harder, testing his will. Around them, the crowd seemed to blur, distant and unimportant, as if the whole marketplace had shrunk down to just the two of them. Medea’s eyes glittered like flames. She leaned in slightly, her tone dropping to a velvet whisper, dangerous in its sweetness.

Medea: “Now, be a good boy, Leo… and listen closely. I have plans for you.”