Do you choose your destiny or does your destiny choose you? The Lost Hero often seems uncertain. On the one hand, Rachel the oracle gives forth prophecies, all the characters have magical dreams, and Hera and Gaea and everyone are always telling Leo and Piper and Jason about their destiny and how they'll be part of the seven and save the gods and so forth. But do the destinies really determine their future? Could they refuse their destiny? For example, when Khione asks Leo to join her and be her champion, could he have accepted? Or does the prophecy mean he's got to be one of the good guys so his choices are already predetermined? The book never really addresses these questions. Instead, it fudges—so you get the excitement and mystery of talk about destiny, while still getting the sense that character choices matter.
Questions About Fate and Free Will
- Does erasing Jason's memories give him a new destiny? Does getting a new past give you a new future?
- When Hera talks about fate, is that just a way to excuse the way she manipulates people? Or does she manipulate people in accordance with destiny?
- Can the heroes change their destinies? Do they ever do so?