Chapter 4:

The Quest Begins

~Keller~

For what seemed like the longest time, I sat outside the Hall of the Gods and cried. Me – Raksha Keller – crying? That never happened!

Well, now it was.

"Keller!" a voice called from the entrance to the hall. I looked up to see someone there – not any of my normal people, not even Galen – but goat boy. "That is your name, right?"

I nodded and let my head droop back down onto my knees. "Yes," I said against my legs. "Have you ever had that moment when everything seems like it's going wrong, and there's nothing you can do?" I tilted my tear-stained face up to look at goat boy. "Have you ever felt like the world was crumbling away beneath your feet? Like everything you knew was a lie?"

Goat boy sighed and scratched his head between his horns. "Only twice – once, when I thought my friend Annabeth back there had been killed by a monster that went by the name 'Dr. Thorn.' The second was the time I thought Percy – the other guy in there – was lost or dead. Other than that, I don't really think I've ever experienced that before, no." Nevertheless, he sat down next to me and put a hand on my back. "Hey – it's not your fault. If your friend in there had always been a Daughter of Ares, she was bound to find out soon enough." Suddenly realized that he hadn't introduced himself, he drew his hand back and held it out. "Hey – I'm Grover. Despite what your friend thought in there, I'm a satyr – not a shapeshifter."

I shook his hand before letting it fall back down to my side. "Hi, I'm – oh, wait. I forgot. You already know my name." I looked at him quizzically. "Um, not to sound insensitive or anything, but we just met. Why did you come out here? Why didn't Galen?"

"Galen?" Grover repeated, stroking his goatee – hahahaha. "Oh – right. Your boyfriend, the leopard. He's trying to calm down that tiny little blonde fairy you have with you."

I had to laugh at that. "Iliana's not a fairy – she's a witch. She looks like a fairy, I know, but her powers are crazy beyond anyone's wildest dreams." I explained the whole deal about Iliana being a Wild Power to Grover – and he actually seemed intrigued.

"So . . . the Wild Powers are supposed to hold off the end of the world?" he asked once I'd finished.

I sighed and nodded. "Yep. That was the idea. We're still not sure, though, where the fourth one is, or even if the end of the world is going to come. Theories say December 21, 2012, and that deadline is approaching. If anything, we must find the fourth and final Wild Power to hold off the end of the world and secure that the world is safe for humans to continue living on. If the vampires take over – well, let's just say that it really wouldn't be the best thing in the world."

He was silent for a long time – I thought it was because he was taking everything in that I'd said. When he finally did speak, the words that came out of his mouth were the words I least expected to hear. "You know what, Keller? I like you. You're strong and brave, and you seem pretty fearless – well, in battle, anyway." I laughed a little. "But I think you're perfect for this quest. Percy, Annabeth, and I have been on quests before – but I think you and your friends could seriously help us find what we need to find and return it before Halloween."

I gave him a puzzled look. "And what might that be?"

Grover began explaining exactly what Zeus had told them about the Greek goddess Hecate's missing torches. He explained who Zeus said Iliana was – even though I already knew it perfectly well by now – and helped me understand why it was essential that Iliana go on this quest. "She doesn't seem that fearful, either," Grover continued, "so that's where you and your other friends come in. One of them happens to be a vampire and a Daughter of Ares, so she must be pretty good at fighting. And you and your leopard boyfriend look like you could kick some serious monster butt!"

I smiled. "OK – I think I get it now. I think I can go back inside and face this – it is what we have to do, after all."

Grover smiled and stood up, offering me an arm to help me get to my feet. Then, we both went back into the Hall of the Gods to face the facts.

~Annabeth~

It was a shock seeing Nissa alive again. When I'd first seen her standing in the doorway when Ares claimed her, I'd thought she was just someone that looked a lot like her. I ruled out the possibility of her being a ghost – she never would've been able to endure that! Although Nissa was a vampire now, I hoped – somewhere in my heart – that she was still the same girl that Thalia, Luke, and I had learned to call "big sis."

"How many monsters have you fought?" she asked me after we had broken out of our hug.

I laughed. "Oh, tons! Medusa, anemoi thuelai, hydras, this one monster that called himself Dr. Thorn, Atlas, Gaea . . . I've seen and battled tons!" I paused. "What about you? Er – what do you hunt, these days?"

Now it was her turn to laugh. "Rogue vamps, werewolves, 'shifters, witches . . . you know, whoever doesn't obey the law!"

"So . . . you're, like, a cop with a license to kill?" Percy was suddenly at my side, eager to get a word in to find out some information about my old friend.

"Percy!" I hissed in annoyance.

But Nissa just smiled. "No, it's OK! You could say that, though. We do uphold the laws of the Night World, but we also uphold the laws of Circle Daybreak – so when Night People are out of line, me and my buddies step in and take care of business."

"Cool," was all he said in response. Then, he looked around. "Hey – where'd Grover go?"

"Right here, buddy," Grover announced from the doorway, waving at Percy and I. He was standing with Keller – the panther girl – but he looked like he was still in one piece. "Hey, Zeus!" At the sound of the satyr calling his name, the god turned around. "Keller agrees to go on the quest! She offers the help of the Daughter of Hecate, the Daughter of Ares, the other witch girl, herself, and the leopard boy – er, Galen." All was quiet for a long minute. "When do we start?" Grover finished, breaking the silence.

Ares grinned. "Oh, yeah! That's what I'm talkin' about! Quest time."

Zeus ignored him. "Very well. Young ones," the god addressed us all, "your quest begins now. As I previously stated, you have until midnight on All Hallows Eve to return Hecate's twin torches to her. Good luck, and –"

"Don't die!" Ares laughed.

Nissa rolled her eyes. "Thanks for the awesome advice, Dad." Her voice was dripping with sarcasm.

I couldn't help but laugh.

~Percy~

As we left Olympus, I couldn't help but think of everything that had just taken place. Back at Camp, Rachel (the Oracle) had told us that we would have a "rendezvous with a child of witchcraft" – that obviously meant the Hecate girl, the one the panther had called Iliana. However, Rachel had also prophesized of two "creatures of the wild," along with mentioning "the love of two that would tear the quest apart." The creatures of the wild had to be the panther and the leopard – Keller and Galen – but the only people in love were those two and Annabeth and I. How could our love – when we love those on our own sides – tear the quest apart?

"Hey," Annabeth said as she caught up with me, grabbing my hand. "What's up, Seaweed Brain? You seem kind of . . . distracted."

I tried to tell her that I wasn't, but that quickly failed. I couldn't lie to Annabeth. "I was just thinking about the prophecy – about how parts of it have already come true. We've come across the 'child of witchcraft' and the 'creatures of the wild,' but what about the two whose love is supposed to ruin the entire quest? You don't think it's you and I, do you?"

"No, Percy, I don't think it's us." She squeezed my hand to reassure me, and I squeezed hers back. "But I don't think it's the leopard and the panther either. It's obvious that those two are in love, but they're both on their side – the 'Night World,' or whatever they call it. I think the love the prophecy was describing was a love that will occur during the quest between one of them –" she gestured to the five Night People in front of them "– and one of us." She gestured to herself, Grover, and me.

"I won't let it be me," I said forcefully, holding her hand more tightly. "I wouldn't do that to you."

Annabeth smiled and kissed me quickly before continuing to walk towards the elevator.

"Stop thinking amongst yourselves!" the vampire girl Nissa suddenly burst out. Ahead of us, both Keller and Galen turned to look at her: Galen with confusion, Keller with a scowl.

"Well, excuse us, Nissa," Keller began, and – despite her scowl – her voice was eerily calm. "We don't really expect you to be able to hear us when we communicate through our soulmate connection."

I watched with intense curiosity as Nissa sobered, straightened, and turned away from the eyes of Keller and Galen. I expected her to fire back some smart-aleck remark, but all she said was: "Sorry, Boss," and kept walking.

I was about to ask Annabeth if she'd always been like that when I noticed something odd. Just a minute or two ago, when we'd been talking about the prophecy, Grover had been walking with us. Now, the witch girl – Winfrith, or Winnie, or something – had lagged back from her group and was walking next to Grover, talking to him and laughing. Annabeth felt me tense, and I felt her grey eyes turn towards me. "You OK, Seaweed Brain?"

"I don't know," I murmured. And it was the truth – I didn't know. However, I figured that I had just figured out another piece of the prophecy – and it didn't look good.

As soon as we reached the bronze elevator, the doors slid open, and all eight of us stepped inside. The ride down to the main part of the building was silent – well, except for the annoying elevator music that began playing once we reached the actual floors of the Empire State building.

"You have returned!" the concierge at the desk said when Keller returned the key they'd used to access the elevator's top floor. "Na diaskedásoun sti̱n anazí̱ti̱sí̱ sas!"

"English, please?" Keller asked impatiently.

"Have fun on your quest," Annabeth, Grover, Nissa, and I translated.