A/N: We'd like to thank Shrewbuddy20. She helped me(Zoe) write the prophecy for this chapter.
We landed in camp--trampling some strawberry plats in the process—around 7:00 a.m. Thalia had crashed sometime during the two hour ride, and I was pretty groggy, so Artemis helped first me and then Thalia get across the field and volleyball court to the Big House.
"Good luck, Perseus, and Thalia. If you fail, well, let's just say it won't be pretty."
I looked away as she showed her true form and disappeared, her chariot as well. Thalia, beside me, did the same. After a bright flash I turned back around. The camp looked peaceful in the early morning light, but I wasn't fooled. Campers would be getting up any minute now. In fact, I wouldn't be to surprised if some were already up and wandering around, waiting for breakfast or something.
"I guess we should knock, huh?" I asked, still too sleepy to really process that this was Sarcastic Thalia I was talking to.
"Oh, but didn't you know? Chiron installed a doorbell over the school year, only, it's invisible, so people can't use it."
"Really?"
"Of course not you idiot! Do you seriously think that I've been at camp all year to know that Chiron installed a magical doorbell that's for decoration only?"
Normally I would have yelled back at her, but something Thalia said had caught my attention. "What do you mean, you weren't at camp during the school year?"
Thalia rolled her eyes. "Seaweed Brain, the gods turned me nineteen last winter so I wouldn't be the prophecy kid, remember?"
"Yeah, I still don't get why you didn't join the Hunt but it's your lif--"
"Shut up! You asked me a question, and I'm trying to answer it. Do you think you could manage to be quite long enough for me to answer you?"
"Oh, yeah........ Sorry." I really wasn't, but I did want to know why Thalia hadn't been at camp this past winter.
"Well, anyway," Thalia rolled her eyes before continuing. "Being nineteen I can own property and stuff, so I bought a car and have been helping the satyrs find new demigods and Titan spies since."
I'll admit, that made me jealous. After all, Thalia had been driving around the country rescuing half-bloods and depleting Kronos's followers while I sat in school eight days a week and tried not to fall asleep! I mean really, who's got the better job, really? Cause unless you're Annabeth, who likes studying?
"You're so lucky!"
"Oh yeah," Thalia's eyes rolled yet again, it's kinda freaky watching her doing that. It makes me feel seasick, and I don't even get seasick! "I get to wander the country dealing with little kids who don't understand a word I'm saying because 'the Greek gods don't exist!' and killing half-bloods because Luke's threatened them with death if they don't do his biding, doesn't that sound fun?"
"What's with you?"
"What ever do you mean, Perseus?"
I gritted my teeth. My dear cousin knows I hate when people call me Perseus. For me, its like, either my mom's about to strangle me because I did something highly dangerous. Or some monster is about to try and kill me. And when she's mad, Thalia is a cross between the two. But still, being my stupid, 'Seaweed Brain' self, I answered her.
"I don't know, you've been very touchy since Luke smoked."
"Smoked?"
"Yeah, you know, when he left. With Zoë I mean."
"How could I forget? I was only unconscious!"
"See!"
"See what?!" I really do need to learn to keep my mouth shut.
"You're so touchy! Every time I mention Luke you go crazy! Its like you're turning into Annabeth or something!"
"I'm turning into Annabeth? What's that suppose to mean?!" Thalia looked genuinely confused, so I decided to answer.
"Well, you know, she's in love with him. I don't get why, I mean, he's a traitor! But she doesn't get that, she's always telling me how great he is and stuff, its one hundred percent annoying!"
"Hmm. Interesting."
"Think about it though, how can she still love him? He's arrogant, a traitor, deceitful, a lying--"
She punched me. And not Annabeth style, the kind that hurts a little but doesn't leave a mark. This hurt. And to boot, I got a huge electric shock along with the impact of Thalia's fist meeting my chest. I toppled onto the porch, clutching my chest, sure she'd broken at lest one of my ribs.
"Did it ever occur to you that you didn't know Luke before he was a traitor? That Annabeth knew a Luke different then the one you know? Did you ever stop and think that I'm everything he is? Or did you perhaps over look that he is after all, human, not a one dimentional comic-book villain?"
"What do you mean, you're just like him!?" It hurt to talk, to breath even, but if Thalia was a traitor I had to know.
"You've told me countless times that I'm arrogant or had you forgotten? I've always been deceitful and told lies. Do you really think I was 'fine' last year after Mt. Tam? As for being a traitor, that's a matter of opinion. You think Luke's a traitor for betraying the gods? What do you he thinks I am?
His savoir? I traveled with him for almost three years and Annabeth traveled with us for two of those. We're his family and now we're trying to kill him! What do you think he thinks we are? Heroes?"
"What a mouth full." Was all I managed before everything went black.
I woke up in the Big House's sick room. Thalia was lying on a bed across the room. She looked like she was fidgeting with her bracelet, but given the exchange we'd had earlier I decided not to ask.
Chiron trotted in a moment later. He was carrying two glasses filled with a golden liquid I knew was nectar.
"Here you go." He handed Thalia a glass, being Thalia she couldn't just take though, no that of course would have been to easy.
"I'm fine Chiron really. There's important stuff I need to be doing, and sitting here bored out of my mind isn't one of them!" She tried to get out of bed, but Chiron gently but firmly pushed her back down.
"You need to rest."
Before Thalia could protest or electrocute Chiron, I butted in, deciding the best way to convince him would be to get straight to the point.
"Chiron, we need a quest."
"And why would that be?"
"Luke's got Zoë!" I exclaimed.
"Out of many reasons, Artemis told us to get one." Thalia supplied.
Chiron sighed, "Well, if the goddess of the Hunt says you must, then I suppose you must. Percy, alert the other camp counselors, tell them to gather for an emergency meeting in ten minutes. Thalia, why don't you go change before the meeting, I didn't think you'd appreciate the son of
Apollo on duty to do that for you."
Thalia blushed, "Erm, no, I wouldn't have. In fact, I'd probably have fried him by now. I'll be back in ten!" She was up and running faster then I'd thought possible, she must've been really bored.
I exited the Big House and started towards the cabins. I had notified all the cabin leaders before I headed back to the Big House. Some had been easier to convince than others. Silena Beauregard, leader of the Aphrodite cabin, complained that it was 'way way to early for a meeting, why can't we wait a few hours?' She'd also been wearing pajamas. Annabeth, however, actually found me and told me she'd be at the Big House for the meeting, and how she knew about the emergency meeting. I can only guess.
Once I wrapped up my round of cabin alerting, I headed back to the Big House. Annabeth was talking to Chiron in the corner, and Thalia was painting her nails black at the ping-pong table. I dropped down next to her. She was at least over our earlier fight enough to move her combat
clad feet to her other side so they weren't in my face.
It was five minutes before all the cabin leaders were assembled. Silena arrived last and was forced to sit behind Thalia feet. Thalia didn't offer to move them and Silena was too busy giving Thalia odd looks—probably about her choice of nail polish color-- to protest.
Chiron, being Chiron, started off the meeting on a happy note, "The Hunters of Artemis need our help. Their lieutenant, Zoë Nightshade has been kidnapped."
"Why should we help them? They wouldn't help us." Travis -- or was it Connor?-- Stoll said.
"We will help them, Travis," I said, slamming my hand on the table for emphasis.
"Why do you care so much about this Percy?" Conner questions.
"Well, because its-" I faltered, the only reason I could think of was my fatal flaw, but advertising my fatal flaw to the world probably wasn't the greatest of ideas.
Chiron saves me from having to explain.
"Percy will lead this quest. Anymore questions? If not, Percy, you may go to the attic and receive your prophecy."
There was silence, I took that to mean that nobody had any questions. So I got up and made my way up the stairs and into the attic.
"What must I do to help Zoë?" I ignored all the stuff surrounding the
mummy, I was use to it by now.
The familiar green mist quickly filled the room. Slithering like snakes around the mummy, over the walls, trophies, other collectibles and of course, me. The picture had only one person, and I couldn't tell who they were. A black mist studded with silver danced across them, the most I got
was a flicker of a shimmering face. And then I stopped paying attention to the figure itself, because whoever it was, they started to chant.
Two shall journey without success,
Another will help to complete the quest.
The hunter they seek a choice she must face,
A ship they must board and leave not a trace.
Betrayed by one they thought was a friend,
Two heroes shall fight, and one will meet end.
The mist disappeared into the mummy's mouth and it was silent once again. I knew the mummy was finished, so I made my way back down to the rec. room, trying to puzzle out the prophecy as I walked.
Once I'd reached the ping-pong table I plopped back down in my chair, still thinking about the prophecy. After a few minutes people started shifting around in their sits impatiently, until finally, Chiron asked me to repeat the prophecy.
"Two shall journey without success," I started.
"Well, that's easy," Annabeth interrupted from her corner of the world, in other words, the area of the table she'd staked out as her own, " You and someone else will go out looking for Zoë but you won't succeed.
"Another will help to complete the quest."
"Someone else will help you on your quest and you will complete the quest, but who could it be?"
I sighed and continued, silently wondering if Annabeth knew everything.
"The hunter they seek a choice she must face."
Annabeth rolled her eyes like that line was completely obvious, and nobody else commented so I figured they thought so too.
"A ship they must board and leave not a trace."
"That's probably the Princess Andromeda. 'Leave not a trace' means that you'll have to sneak on board unseen."
"Thank you, Annabeth," I remarked sarcastically, "Now can I finish?" She rolled her eyes again and nodded. Boy, if she does much more eye rolling she'll turn into Thalia! And frankly, one Thalia is more then enough for me to try and handle, two would be unmanageable.
"Betrayed by one they thought was a friend. Two hero's shall fight and one will meet end." I concluded wondering to myself why prophecies never had happy endings.
"Percy, who will you pick as your companion on this quest. It sounds like two of you will set out, then later someone else will join you." Chiron swept the table with his eyes, probably doing a mental pros and cons list for each camper.
"I choose Thalia, that is, if you think you're well enough for a quest." I turned to her, hoping she'd understand that I was trying to make up for what ever I did to upset her earlier.
"Of course, Cuz. I'm always up for a quest. And 'sides, I've got to kill Luke slowly and painfully, remember." Annabeth's eyes widened, I felt a wave of anger surge through me before I remembered what Thalia had said about Luke not always having been a bad guy.
"Um, yeah. So Chiron, when can we leave?" I waited with batted breath for his verdict, I was eager to start, but wasn't sure if Chiron would deem us healthy enough.
"If Mr. D gives his permission, Percy and Thalia, you will leave first thing in the morning." From the look on her face, I was pretty sure Thalia was just as relieved by his answer as I was.
