Thalia joins the quest

We finally stopped at a gas station to take a break Bianca and Grover when in and Ze was about to go in when she saw I wasn't fallowing "Percy are thee coming?" she asked and I shook my head "No, I just want to think for a moment" I said he nodded "I'll get you something inside" she said and I nodded "Thanks Ze" I said and she nodded and went inside. I looked around, ever since we left I felt like someone was fallowing us, and I didn't know who. That's when I heard footsteps going around me. I grabbed the arm and heard a "Hay!" and I knew it was Thalia, I dragged her to the back before taking the hat off and I saw her glaring at me "What was that for?" she asked "well I had to talk to you without the other's knowing, didn't I?" I asked and she thought for a moment then nodded "Fine I'll give that to you" she said and I nodded. Then she signed "Sorry it's just I had a rough trip" she said "what happen?" I asked "We'll first I managed to sneak out of the camp, and done ask me how" she said and I nodded "then I managed to hotwire a car and fallow you, but before you guys went any further Mr. D found me" she said "Wait Mr. D, why would he care if you fallowed us?" I asked "Because he wanted to let me know that all hero's are disappointing and that we cause a lot of misery to a lot of people" she said and I looked down. I remembered Ze telling me a long time ago a hero who brook her heart…if I remember it was Hercules. I nodded "Lesson Percy I know Zoë is like a sister to you but could you not tell her I'm here, I know I can help" she said and I nodded "Of course Thalia besides Zoë is my sister but sometimes I have to favor my cousin" I said smiling and she returned it. Then we heard Ze "Percy come on it is time to go!" she called "Coming Ze" I said then turned to Thalia "Put Annabeth's hat back on you can get in after Bianca in the back I'll stall Grover for a moment, think you can get in that time?" I asked and she smiled "In my sleep seaweed brain" she said and I nodded. I waited for her to put on the hat and we walked to the van, "You ok?" Ze asked and I nodded "Just making sure no one was fallowing us" I said and she nodded "Here I got thee a hot chocolate" she said handing me a cup "Thanks Ze" I said and she nodded and went to the driver seat. When I got to the other side I saw Bianca go in so I stopped Grover "Hey Grover quick question" I said and he stopped and looked at me "Sure what is it?" he asked "Do you- do you think will find them?" I asked and nodded "Absolutely, we'll find them in no time" he said and I nodded "Thanks G-man I needed to hear that" I said he nodded hopping in. I hope Thalia was inside then I sat on my seat and we continued.

The next time we stopped it was at some mall. I looked to my right and saw someone that I didn't expect, Mr. Torn, if he was hear then that mean my dream was right and Annabeth and mom were being held hostage. Once in Grover lead us to the museum. I heard footsteps leavening and I knew Thalia was most likely fallowing Mr. Thorn. Once inside I told Ze that I wanted to check something out "No we must stay together as a group Percy" she said and I nodded "I know but I just want to see something, please Ze I won't be gone long" I pleaded and she looked down then signed "Fine, but be careful and come straight back…got it" she said and I nodded "Got it" I said before going back to the mall and fallowed were I heard Thalia walked off two. After a few minutes I heard breathing coming from nowhere "Thalia" I whispered and I felt a hand on my mouth "Shhh" she said before I felt her push me near the door where I saw Mr. Thorn, two Scythian dracaenae, I was shocked to see that there were even normal people here. But that wasn't the worse of it. Standing between the snake women - I could swear he was looking straight down at me - was my old enemy Luke. He looked terrible. His skin was pale and his blond hair looked almost gray, as if he'd aged ten years in just a few months. The angry light in his eyes was still there, and so was the scar down the side of his face, where a dragon had once scratched him. But the scar was now ugly red, as though it had recently been reopened.

Next to him, sitting down so that the shadows covered him, was another man. All I could see were his knuckles on the gilded arms of his chair, like a throne. "Well?" asked the man in the chair. His voice was just like the one I'd heard in my dream - not as creepy as Kronos's, but deeper and stronger, like the earth itself was talking. It filled the whole room even though he wasn't yelling. Dr. Thorn took off his shades. His two-colored eyes, brown and blue, glittered with excitement. He made a stiff bow, then spoke in his weird French accent: "They are here, General" he said "I know that, you fool," boomed the man. "But where?" the man asked "In the rocket museum" Thorn said "The Air and Space Museum," Luke corrected irritably. Dr. Thorn glared at Luke. "As you say, sir" I got the feeling Thorn would just as soon impale Luke with one of his spikes as call him sir "How many?" Luke asked. Thorn pretended not to hear "How many?" the General demanded. "Four, General," Thorn said. "The satyr, Grover Underwood. And the boy with sea green eyes the one with irritable hearing" Thorn said and I smiled I felt Thalia whispered to me "I'm going closer" she said and I nodded "Fine but be careful" I whispered back I didn't see it but I knew she nodded.

"Percy," Luke said. "And two other girls - Hunters. One wears a silver circlet." "That one I know," the General growled. Everyone in the room shifted uncomfortably. "Let me take them," Luke said to the General. "We have more than enough - "the general cut him off "Patience," the General said."They'll have their hands full already. I've sent a little playmate to keep them occupied" he said and I didn't like the sound of it "But -" Luke was about to say but was cut off again "We cannot risk you, my boy" he said "Yes, boy," Dr. Thorn said with a cruel smile. "You are much too fragile to risk. Let me finish them off." "No." The General rose from his chair, and I got my first look at him. He was tall and muscular, with light brown skin and slicked-back dark hair. He wore an expensive brown silk suit like the guys on Wall Street wear, but you'd never mistake this dude for a broker. He had a brutal face, huge shoulders, and hands that could snap a flagpole in half. His eyes were like stone. I felt as if I were looking at a living statue. It was amazing he could even move. That's when I figured out who he was…it was Atlas the titan in charge of holding the sky.

"You have already failed me, Thorn," he said "But, General -" Atlas interrupted him "No excuses!" Thorn flinched. I'd thought Thorn was intimidating when I first saw him in his black uniform at the military academy. But now, standing before Atlas, Thorn looked like a silly wannabe soldier. Atlas was the real deal. He didn't need a uniform. He was a born commander. He "I should throw you into the pits of Tartarus for your incompetence," the General said. "I send you to capture a child of the three elder gods, and you bring me a scrawny daughter of Athena" he said "But you promised me revenge.'" Thorn protested. "A command of my own!" he said "I am Lord Kronos's senior commander," the General said. "And I will choose lieutenants who get me results! It was only thanks to Luke that we salvaged our plan at all. Now get out of my sight, Thorn, until I find some other menial task for you." Thorn's face turned purple with rage. I thought he was going to start frothing at the mouth or shooting spines, but he just bowed awkwardly and left the room.

"Now, my boy." The General turned to Luke. "Do you truly believe that the half-blood Thalia is here, If she not then our plans are ruined, we cannot depend on the son of the sea he was raised by the gods he would never betray them" he said 'you got that right, and neither would Thalia' I said in my head "I'm certain General, Annabeth is like her little sister she will come and try and save her" Luke said and I could hear sadness in his voice and I didn't know why. Then he spook again "The Hunters will be difficult to dispose of," Luke said. "Zoe Nightshade - "
"Do not speak her name!" Atlas snapped
Luke swallowed. "S - Sorry, General. I just-" The General silenced him with a wave of his hand "Let me show you, my boy, how we will bring the Hunters down." He pointed to a guard on the ground level. "Do you have the teeth?" The guy stumbled forward with a ceramic pot. "Yes, General!" he said "Plant them," he said. In the center of the room was a big circle of dirt, where I guess a dinosaur exhibit was supposed to go. I watched nervously as the guard took sharp white teeth out of the pot and pushed them into the soil. He smoothed them over while the General smiled coldly.

The guard stepped back from the dirt and wiped his hands. "Ready, General!" he said "Excellent! Water them, and we will let them scent their prey." The guard picked up a little tin watering can with daisies painted on it, which was kind of bizarre, because what he poured out wasn't water. It was dark red liquid, and I got the feeling it wasn't Hawaiian Punch. The soil began to bubble. "Soon," the General said, "I will show you, Luke, soldiers that will make your army from that little boat look insignificant." Luke clenched his fists. "I've spent a year training my forces! When the Princess Andromeda arrives at the mountain, they'll be the best-" Luke didn't finish "Ha.'" the General said. "I don't deny your troops will make a fine honor guard for Lord Kronos. And you, of course, will have a role to play - " I thought Luke turned paler when the General said that "-but under my leadership, the forces of Lord Kronos will increase a hundredfold. We will be unstoppable. Behold my ultimate killing machines." The soil erupted. I stepped back nervously. In each spot where a tooth had been planted, a creature was struggling out of the dirt. The first of them said:

"Mew?"

It was a kitten. A little orange tabby with stripes like a tiger. Then another appeared, until there were a dozen, rolling around and playing in the dirt. I didn't know about Thalia but I was trying so hard not to laugh. Everyone stared at them in disbelief. The General roared, "What is this? Cute cuddly kittens? Where did you find those teeth?" The guard who'd brought the teeth cowered in fear. "From the exhibit, sir! Just like you said. The saber-toothed tiger-" he said "No, you idiot! I said the tyrannosaurus! Gather up those... those infernal fuzzy little beasts and take them outside. And never let me see your face again." The terrified guard dropped his watering can. He gathered up the kittens and scampered out of the room. "You" The General pointed to another guard. "Get me the right teeth. NOW!" The new guard ran off to carry out his orders. "Imbeciles,' muttered the General "This is why I don't use mortals," Luke said."They are unreliable" he said "They are weak-minded, easily bought, and violent," the General said. "I love them." A minute later, the guard hustled into the room with his hands full of large pointy teeth "Excellent," the General said. He climbed onto the balcony railing and jumped down, twenty feet. Where he landed, the marble floor cracked under his leather shoes. He stood, wincing, and rubbed his shoulders. "Curse my stiff neck" he said "Another hot pad, sir?" a guard asked. "More Tylenol?" he said "No! It will pass." The General brushed off his silk suit, then snatched up the teeth. "I shall do this myself." He held up one of the teeth and smiled. "Dinosaur teeth - ha! Those foolish mortals don't even know when they have dragon teeth in their possession. And not just any dragon teeth. These come from the ancient Sybaris herself! They shall do nicely."

I didn't know what those were; I guess I do have a question for Aunt Athena when school starts. He planted them in the dirt, twelve in all. Then he scooped up the watering can. He sprinkled the soil with red liquid, tossed the can away, and held his arms out wide. Rise! The dirt trembled. A single, skeletal hand shot out of the ground, grasping at the air. Atlas looked up at the balcony. "Quickly, do you have the scent?" he asked "Yesssss, lord," one of the snake ladies said. She took out a sash of silvery fabric, like the kind the Hunters wore "Excellent," the General said. "Once my warriors catch its scent, they will pursue its owner relentlessly. Nothing can stop them, no weapons known to half-blood or Hunter. They will tear the Hunters and their allies to shreds. Toss it here!" As he said that, skeletons erupted from the ground. There were twelve of them, one for each tooth Atlas had planted. They were nothing like Halloween skeletons, or the kind you might see in cheesy movies. These were growing flesh as I watched, turning into men, but men with dull gray skin, yellow eyes, and modern clothes - gray muscle shirts, camo pants, and combat boots. If you didn't look too closely, you could almost believe they were human, but their flesh was transparent and their bones shimmered underneath, like X-ray images.

One of them looked straight at something in front of him and I had a bad felling it was Thalia, regarding her coldly, and I knew that no cap of invisibility would fool it. The snake lady released the scarf and it fluttered down toward Atlas hand. As soon as he gave it to the warriors, they would hunt Zoe and the others until they were extinct. Then I saw and invisible force plowing into the warriors and snatching the scarf out of the air "What's this?" bellowed the General. Thalia landed at the feet of a skeleton warrior, who hissed "An intruder," the General growled. "One cloaked in darkness. Seal the doors!" Atlas said "It's Percy Jackson!" Luke yelled. "It has to be" oh sure everyone always assumes it's me even when it's not. I felt a hand grab my arm and pull me away from the door. After a while Thalia took off the hat and I saw her sleeve was torn "Thalia your sleeve" I said "I know, just keep running" she said as we both ran back to the museum.
Once inside we went up stares where Thalia literally bump into Grover and Ze and Bianca were pointing arrows at her. When Ze realized it was Thalia she frowned "You, how dare you show thy face here" she demanded then looked at me for an explanation "Lesson Zoë I came here because I wanted to help and besides we have bigger problems them me being here" Thalia said. While they were talking I heard something from behind us, I turned around to see something I really didn't want to see…the Nemean Lion "Ze!" I said and she looked to where I was looking at and both her and Bianca got there bow's ready, Grover got his pipes and Thalia took out her spear and shield. I would have taken my weapon out to if it weren't for the fact my hands still need one more hour to heal.

The Nemean lion jumped down and parents started screaming and little kids just said "Kitty!" I didn't even what to know what they see. It came closer to us Thalia and Grover managed to duck behind the stairs and Ze and Bianca jumped up, I on the other hand had to jump on the exhibits "Percy!" Everyone yelled as I saw the Nemean Lion was fallowing me.

I managed to jump on another one but my bad luck kicked in, the wires that kept it from falling were week. Once the Nemean Lion jumped on it the wire snapped and we both fell to the grown "Percy!"I heard Ze shout before I was hit the grown. I managed to jump of it before it completely crashed and I landed on the shirt rack in the gift shop, but I had another problem I twisted my ankle. I looked up to see freeze dried food and that's when I had an idea. Despite my ankle hurting like crazy I got up and started taking some of the freeze dried food and went back out.

The others were still fighting the lion "Hey!" I called out and it turned to me and started coming closer. When it roared I throw one of the packages into its mouth and it began to cough up like it wanted to throw out a fur ball. It glared at me and roared again and this time I throw three packages and then it opened its mouth wider "Ze, Bianca aim for its mouth!" I shouted and then two arrows went into its mouth and it started dissolving.

Everyone came over towards me and Ze checked for injuries "I'm fine Ze" I said "Are you sure, you took a big fall" she said "Yes I'm fin-" I didn't finished because I fell to the floor "Percy!" Grover cried going to me "What is wrong?" Ze asked, well demanded more like it "It's my ankle I twisted it when I jumped off the exhibit" I said and she helped me up "We will heal it when we get somewhere else" Ze said "Well the van's out" Bianca said and we all turned to see skeleton worriers coming towards us "I'll lead them away there after me" Thalia said but Ze shook her head "No you are coming with us, I do not like it but you are the fifth member and we are not leaving anyone behind" she said as Grover picked up the lions pelt and we left.