Percy continued to chase Zoe, who drove south like a crazy person, and they were into Maryland before she finally pulled over at a rest stop. Blackjack damn near tumbled out of the sky, he was so tired.

I'll be okay, boss, he panted. Just... just catching my breath. "Stay here," Percy told him. "I'm going to scout." 'Stay here' I can handle. I can do that.

Percy put on Annabeth's cap of invisibility and walked over to the convenience store. It was difficult not to sneak. Percy had to keep reminding myself that nobody could see him. It was hard, too, because he had to remember to get out of people's way so they wouldn't slam into me. Not to mention he kept looking over his shoulder, worried that Mr. D would pop up and drag him back to camp. He was worried about Gohan. He hoped he was okay.

Percy thought he'd go inside and warm up, maybe get a cup of hot chocolate or something. Unfortunately, his whole plan was ruined by Zoe, Thalia, Bianca, and Grover all coming out of the store. Even though he was invisible, Percy ducked.

"Grover, are you sure?" Thalia was saying.

"Well... pretty sure. Ninety-nine percent. Okay, eighty-five percent."

"And you did this with acorns?" Bianca asked, like she couldn't believe it.

Grover looked offended. "It's a time-honored tracking spell. I mean, I'm pretty sure I did it right."

"D.C. is about sixty miles from here," Bianca said. "Nico and I..." She frowned. "We used to live there. That's... that's strange. I'd forgotten."

"I dislike this," Zoe said. "We should go straight west. The prophecy said west."

"Oh, like your tracking skills are better?" Thalia growled.

Zoe stepped toward her. "You challenge my skills, you scullion? You know nothing of being a Hunter!"

"Oh, scullion You're calling me a scullion? What the heck is a scullion?"

"Whoa, you two," Grover said nervously. "Come on. Not again!"

"Grover's right," Bianca said. "D.C. is our best bet."

Zoe didn't look convinced, but she nodded reluctantly. "Very well. Let us keep moving."

"You're going to get us arrested with your psycotic driving," Thalia grumbled. "Not to mention I look closer to sixteen than you do."

"Perhaps," Zoe snapped. "But I have been driving since automobiles were invented. Let us go." They walked off. Once they were gone, Percy stepped out.

"Hey Percy, what's shaking?" Percy almost screamed as he jumped, whirling to see Gohan standing next to him. Gohan simply grinned, clearly enjoying Percy's embarrassment.

"Wait…" Percy patted himself and looked down, just to make sure he was still invisible.

"You can see me?" Gohan snorted before snatching the hat from Percy, causing him to rematerialize.

"No, I guessed. Based on the sound of your breathing. And your ki energy. It's very hard to sense, but we've been near each other for so long I know what you feel like. Oh, and Blackjack is over there." Gohan pointed

"I'm not sure if I should feel violated by that statement." Then, Percy remembered something.

"Hold on! What happened to Mr. D?" Gohan whistled, giving off another one of his goofy grins.

"Last time I saw him, he was lying in a crater in the middle of the street with ichtor leaking out of him like an inflatable pool." Percy gaped.

"Wow. I kinda wish I could have seen that."

"I will not lie, it was soooooo satisfying." Percy shifted.

"But… won't you get kicked out of camp?" Gohan shrugged.

"We'll see what happens when we get there. Annabeth needs us. Nothing else matters." Percy could just feel the determination radiating from Gohan. Why couldn't Percy look that badass when making a statement?

"Come on, let's keep chasing Zoe. Fill me in on the way."

As Gohan and Percy continued south, following the van, Percy wondered whether Zoe had been kidding.

"How old is Zoe, you think? I mean, I don't know exactly when cars were invented, but I figure that was like prehistoric times—back when people watched black-and-white TV and hunted dinosaurs." Percy frowned when Gohan let out a peal of laughter.

"First of all, hunted dinosaurs? Really? There actually are dinosaurs still alive in my universe, and even I know how silly that sounds!" Percy blushed in embarrassment.

"Come on, man." Gohan laughed.

"Sorry, man, but I couldn't help it! You set yourself up for that one."

"ANYWAY… what do you think Mr. D been talking about? What bad experience had Zoe had with heroes?" Gohan pondered that for a minute, flying in a laid-back position.

"You know, I've read a lot of those mythology stories since I first learned about all this. And quite frankly… a lot of those guys were jerks or just got flat out screwed over. Or did the screwing themselves.

As they got closer to Washington, Blackjack started slowing down and dropping altitude. He was breathing heavily.

"Hey Percy, your pegasus doesn't look so good."

"You okay?" Percy asked Blackjack.

"Fine, boss. I could... I could take on an army."

And suddenly Percy felt guilty, because he'd been running the pegasus for half a day, nonstop, trying to keep up with highway traffic and Gohan's flying. Even for a flying horse, that had to be rough.

Don't worry about me, boss! I'm a tough one.

Percy figured he was right, but he also figured Blackjack would run himself into the ground before he complained, and he didn't want that.

"I can carry you, you know!" Gohan called out. Blackjack snorted.

"I'm fine, boss! No need to be carried by a flying monkey!" Percy almost burst out laughing at that reference.

"Wha'd he say?" Gohan asked curiously

Fortunately, the van started to slow down. It crossed the Potomac River into central Washington. Percy noticed that Gohan had an odd expression on his face as they flew into the city.

"What's with you?"

"It's… errr… nothing."

"Set me down there," Percy told Blackjack. "That's close enough."

Blackjack was so tired he didn't complain. He dropped toward the Washington Monument and set him on the grass. Gohan landed next to him, the blue aura around him vanishing in a flash. Of course, no one looked shocked or reacted at the sight of two boys flying in from the sky. The mist sure worked its magic, didn't it?"

The van was only a few blocks away. Zoe had parked at the curb.

Percy looked at Blackjack. "I want you to go back to camp. Get some rest. Graze. I'll be fine."

Blackjack cocked his head skeptically. You sure, boss?

"You've done enough already," Percy said. "I'll be fine. Gohan's with me. And thanks a ton."

A ton of hay, maybe, Blackjack mused. That sounds good. All right, but be careful, boss. I got a feeling they didn't come here to meet anything friendly and handsome like me. Then Blackjack took off, circling twice around the monument before disappearing into the clouds. Percy turned to see Gohan looking up at the Washington Monument.

"What's with you? In awe? I guess you don't have something like this back in your home, huh?"

"Just remembering. I had a… strange experience last time I was here." Percy looked surprised.

"Oh, what were you doing? Visiting?" Gohan shuffled nervously.

"You… could say that."

Percy looked over at the white van. Everybody was getting out. Grover pointed toward one of the big buildings lining the Mall. Thalia nodded, and the four of them trudged off into the cold wind.

Percy started to follow. But then he froze when Gohan grabbed him.

"Percy." He followed Gohan's finger and paled.

A block away, the door of a black sedan opened. A man with gray hair and a military buzz cut got out. He was wearing dark shades and a black overcoat. Now, maybe in Washington, you'd expected guys like that to be everywhere. But it dawned on Percy that he'd seen this same car a couple of times on the highway, going south. It had been following the van.

The guy took out his mobile phone and said something into it. Then he looked around, like he was making sure the coast was clear, and started walking down the Mall in the direction of his friends.

The worst of it was: when he turned toward them, they recognized his face. It was Dr. Thorn, the manticore from Westover Hall. Gohan let out a snarl as blue sparks danced across his chest.

"Thorn… looks like he needs to die twice." Percy gripped Gohan's shoulder.

"Hold on! This is a good thing. If he survived that fall from the cliff, then Annabeth must have too. So she's alive! We need him to lead us to her!" Gohan grumbled in frustration, but nodded.

Thorn kept well back from their friends, careful not to be seen.

Finally, Grover stopped in front of a big building that said NATIONAL AIR AND SPACE MUSEUM. The Smithsonian!

"What's this place?" Gohan whispered.

"The Smithsonian. It's a gigantic museum. You have to have those, right?"

"Yeah, I guess. I just don't remember mine being so… big."

Thalia checked the door. It was open, but there weren't many people going in. Too cold, and school was out of session. They slipped inside.

Dr. Thorn hesitated. Percy wasn't sure why, but he didn't go into the museum. He turned and headed across the Mall.

"Now what?" Percy cursed. Gohan made a split decision.

"You follow him. Put on the hat so he can't see you. I'll follow Thalia and the others, keep my distance." Percy could see just how difficult that was for Gohan to say, given how obvious it was that Gohan wanted to follow Thorn himself. Percy nodded, slipping the hat on and vanishing on the spot, taking off after Thorn.

Thorn crossed the street and climbed the steps of the Museum of Natural History. There was a big sign on the door. At first Percy thought it said CLOSED FOR PIRATE EVENT. Then he realized PIRATE must be PRIVATE.

he followed Dr. Thorn inside, through a huge chamber full of mastodons and dinosaur skeletons. There were voices up ahead, coming from behind a set of closed doors. Two guards stood outside, covered in a kind of black armor. They opened the doors for Thorn, and Percy had to sprint to get inside before they closed them again.

Inside, what Percy saw was so terrible he almost gasped out loud, which probably would've gotten him killed.

He was in a huge round room with a balcony ringing the second level. At least a dozen mortal guards stood on the balcony, plus two monsters—reptilian women with double-snake trunks instead of legs. He'd seen them before. Annabeth had called them Scythian dracaenae.

But that wasn't the worse of it. Standing between the snake women—Percy 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 he could see were his knuckles on the gilded arms of his chair, like a throne. Percy also saw more familiar faces: Amortentia and Abigail, skulking next to the chair. Standing next to them was a third person Percy didn't recognize, largely due to him being completely covered in armor from head to toe. He was a terrifying sight. Completely black, save for the silver and red boar head on his chest. He gripped a massive double ended axe as he glared around, clearly not enjoying being there. In a strange way, he reminded Percy of Ares.

Amortentia giggled as she looked around, winking and waving at the guards, who continuously looked back and grinned at her, making absolute fools of themselves.

"Will you stop fooling around?" the armored man snapped. She glared at him before sniffing loudly and flipping her hair behind her back.

"You're such a spoilsport!"

"Enough." Percy's blood went cold, as did everyone else in the room. The air seemed to go still as a figure completely covered in a cloak strode in. One Percy remembered all too well, even if he couldn't see the figure's face or body. It was Luke's partner. From the Princess Andromeda. Percy instantly remembered the feeling he had experienced back then. Pure terror.

His voice may not have been not as creepy as Kronos's, but it was terrifying in a different way: deeper and stronger, like the earth itself was talking. It filled the whole room even though he wasn't yelling. Just from the tone in his voice, he got his message across. Percy could easily sense the power radiating off him, like he could completely annihilate him without even a twinge of effort. And clearly, everyone else in the room felt the same way. Amortentia backed up, her expression suddenly wary.

"Father." She bowed deeply, along with Abigail and the armored man. Percy almost choked.

"Father?" Amortentia and Abigail were that thing's… children? For a moment, Percy's heart stopped when Luke's partner seemed to look right at him. All he could see were a pair of bright, red eyes. But then, he looked away, and Percy let out a deep sigh of relief.

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."

"I know that, you fool," boomed the man on the chair. He sounded similar to Luke's partner, but his voice seemed to be a bit more on the deeper side. But it was obvious that the two were clearly on a competing plane of dominance. They held themselves the same way and had similar commanding voices.

"But where?" "In the rocket museum." "The Air and Space Museum," Luke corrected irritably. Dr. Thorn glared at Luke. "As you say, sir"

Percy 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 girl with the spiky black hair and the—how do you say—punk clothes and the horrible shield."

"Thalia," 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, save for Luke's partner.

"And the boy?" Luke's partner asked calmly. Thorn looked away. Then, everyone winched as a flurry of black lightning danced over his body

"I won't ask twice." Thorn swallowed before answering.

"No sign of him… sir."

"Which confirms what we were told. He wasn't one of the ones chosen for the quest. Seems that the Hunter's preference for women worked in our favor. What a group of fools." Luke was interrupted when his partner let out a roar of laughter. The room went silent as he laughed, taken aback by his sudden outburst.

"The only fools here are you, if you believe that he didn't come. You don't know him as I do. You humiliated him, Thorn. Furthermore, we have the girl. If there's one thing that I know for certain, he will never abandon his friends. He will do anything to protect them, to save them. Call it his greatest strength and weakness."

"Whatever the case, he's not with them." Luke turned.

"Let me take them," Luke said to the General. "We have more than enough—"

"Patience," the General said. "They'll have their hands full already. I've sent a little playmate to keep them occupied."

"But—"

"Enough, boy, stop your incessant whining." Luke's partner ordered.

"Yes, boy." 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 Percy got his 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. Percy felt as if he were looking at a living statue. It was amazing he could even move.

"You are beyond incompetent." Luke's partner interrupted coldly. The General snorted.

"On that point, abomination, we agree. You have already failed us, Thorn," he said. "But, General—" "No excuses!" Thorn flinched. Percy had thought Thorn was scary when he first saw him in his black uniform at the military academy. But now, standing before the General and Luke's partner, Thorn looked like a silly wannabe soldier. The General was the real deal. He didn't need a uniform. He was a born commander. As was Luke's partner. Both expected to be obeyed without question.

The only question Percy had was whether the two of them could actually lead together, or go for each other's throats at the first opportunity. He seriously hoped for the latter.

"I should throw you into the pits of Tartarus for your incompetence," the General said. "We sent you to capture a child of the three elder gods. A very simple objective."

"And yet," Luke's partner chimed in. "Despite being surrounded by children of the Elder gods, having your pick to choose from… you somehow grabbed the ONLY one who WASN'T a child of the Elder Gods! A scrawny daughter of Athena. You should be embarrassed to even be standing before us now." Thorn's face flushed with rage.

"I will not stand here and be admonished by this… this joke, this abomination! This thing who has no right to co-" Thorn was cut off when a bright purple beam blasted through his chest and burned through the back wall leaving a smoking hole. Everyone in the room flinched as Thron fell to his knees, gasping in pain as smoke rose from the new hole in his chest.

Luke's partner sighed as he lowered his smoking hand.

"Must you be so overdramatic?" the general sighed.

"Hmph. I would have completely vaporized him, but I would prefer not to damage the surrounding architecture and kill everyone in this room." Percy shuddered, his body rigid.

"I think your usefulness has come to an end, Thorn. Any objections, General?"

"None." Thorn let out a bellow of rage as he stood, morphing into his full form. His claws shot out as his tail thrashed behind him.

"You promised me revenge!" Thorn bellowed. "A command of my own!"

"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. The abomination is quite right. I have no use for you anymore." Everyone in the room backed up, not eager to get caught in the middle of what was about to happen.

Thorn's face turned purple with rage. The black armored boy and Abigail stepped forward, their weapons glistening in their hands. But, they stopped cold when Luke's partner raised his hand calmly.

"Enough, hotshots. Let him have his fun." Thorn bellowed before racing towards the cloaked man, unleashing a flurry of slashes. Yet somehow, he wasn't landing a single blow. The cloaked man spun, weaved, and ducked with seemingly little effort, before leaping and landing behind Thorn. He roared as he swung his tail like a club, straight for the man's head. But then…

Percy gaped as Thorn snarled in disbelief. Somehow, the man had caught Thorn's tail, and was clutching the tip between two of his fingers. Thorn grunted as he tried to pull back, but didn't seem to be able to. The man didn't seem strained at all, though admittingly, Percy couldn't see his face.

"Are you done?" Thorn roared in rage as he struggled to free himself.

"Fine. My turn, then." He then gripped the tail and swung it like a whip, sending Thorn flying off his feet, smashing into the ground with a loud CRACK. Thorn shot off the ground and swung at the man, who simply ducked. The man then unleashed a flurry of combos on Thorn, slamming blow after blow on his chest and face, Thorn grunted as he stumbled back, being overwhelmed by a man at least half his size. Finally, he leaped back and plunged his fist into Thorn's stomach, causing him to roar as he doubled over. Dust dripped down the man's arm as he gripped, and then raised. Percy watched in disbelief as he raised Thorn above his head and slammed him into the ground with a loud CRUNCH. Thorn moaned as he curled up on the ground, looking quite feeble.

"Hmph. I expected more." The man mused as he bent over Thorn. Then, Thorn let out a scream of pure agony. Percy watched in horror as the manticore seemed to shrink, convulsing as his limbs shrank and contorted. This wasn't like what usually happened with monsters when they died. Thorn wasn't disintegrating. This was something… worse. The manticore wailed as he shrank, growing smaller and smaller, almost like some sort of a disfigured hairy infant. Then, finally… nothing. Thorn's tattered uniform laid on the ground, unmoving. The man rose from the ground and dusted himself off, as if nothing had happened. An air of silence sat in the room for what seemed like an eternity before the General finally broke it.

"Now, my boy." The General turned to Luke. "The first thing we must do is isolate the half-blood Thalia. The monster we seek will then come to her."

"The Hunters will be difficult to dispose of," Luke said. Hid partner then cleared his throat.

"Do you have something to add?"

"I do. The girls are formidable, yes. But they can still die like anyone else. What the hunters have that makes them so formidable is experience."

"Explain."

"These girls are thousands of years old. They've fought the same enemies time and again. They know the moves of everything you could throw at them. They'll beat whatever monster you threw at them."

"You have a better plan?" "I do." He nodded towards Amotentia and the others.

"Strife. You know what to do." The black armored boy nodded, gripping his axe. The cloaked man gestured to the upper corner, where… something/ stood, covered in shadows. All Percy could see was that it looked humanoid from what he could see. A single shining red line gleamed from where the eyes were supposed to be. It didn't speak. It didn't move. Percy shuddered from where he was hiding.

"I've been working on a new form of fighter. Powerful, ruthless. Completely immune to celestial bronze. And in addition, adaptable."

"Adaptable?" Luke asked.

"Yes. Every moment they fight, increases their knowledge of how to beat their opponents. They study, they calculate. They can't be beaten."

"I will wet my axe with their blood." Strife growled.

"Yes, boy." The general growled.

"You expect us to put our faith in you? As I recall, you failed to secure the Master Bolt after Castellan stole it from Mt. Olympus. Time and time again, you have been outwitted by those demigods." The air was silent as everyone held their breath. The General was seriously doing this after what happened to Thorn? The cloaked man stared calmly at the General before answering.

"They won because I let them. I let them acquire the Golden Fleece last summer, as to ensure Thalia escaped from the tree, which she did. And now the prophecy is within our grasp. Everything I do, I plan ten steps ahead."

"Even so. I do not approve of your methods. An unknown factor may be a good idea, granted, but too much can go wrong."

"A competition, then! My fighters against yours. Whichever defeats the Hunters first shall win. Agreed?" For the first time, the General smiled.

"Agreed. And now, allow me to show you how we will bring the Hunters down."

He pointed to a guard on the ground level. "Do you have the teeth?" One of the guards stumbled forward with a ceramic pot. "Yes, General!" "Plant them," he said.

In the center of the room was a big circle of dirt. Percy 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!"

"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.

The soil began to bubble.

"Soon," the General said, "I will show you soldiers that will make your army from that little boat look insignificant. And make these supposed invincible fighters look like fools!"

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—"

"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—"

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. Percy 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.

Everyone stared at them in disbelief. Luke's partner roared with laughter.

"Oh my, general, I'm very impressed! Although, I do suppose your fighters would win in the cuteness department. We just need to cuddle the Hunters to death!"

Clearly humiliated, 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—"

"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's partner said. "They are unreliable. Fragile."

"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."

"Another hot pad, sir?" a guard asked. "More Tylenol?"

"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."

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.

The General looked up at the balcony. "Quickly, do you have the scent?"

"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 the General had planted. They were nothing like Halloween skeletons, or the kind you might see in cheesy movies. These were growing flesh, 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 Percy, regarding him coldly, and he knew that no cap of invisibility would fool it.

"See! Let us see whose fighters will emerge victorious! And when my fighters will, Lord Kronos will finally see how useless you truly are!"

The snake lady released the scarf and it fluttered down toward the General's hand.

"We shall see, General." And then, Luke's partner looked directly at Percy.

"What do you think, Percy Jackson?" Percy felt a wave of horror wash over his body. He could see him. He knew he was there the entire time.

Percy didn't have time to think. He ran and jumped with all my might, plowing into the warriors and snatching the scarf out of the air.

"What's this?" bellowed the General. Percy landed at the feet of a skeleton warrior, who hissed. "An intruder," the General growled. "One cloaked in darkness. Seal the doors!" "It's Percy Jackson!" Luke yelled. "It has to be."

Percy sprinted for the exit, but was then yanked off his feet. Percy was pulled around and met eyes with the face of evil. Luke's partner frowned as he looked at Percy, who thrashed in his grip. All Percy could see was his eyes, those pair of red orbs that chilled him to his core.

"Hmph. For someone so revered… so fragile. I could kill you right now. Crush you like a little ant. But…" To Percy's absolute disbelief, he dropped him. As he hit the ground, he heard a ripping sound and realized he had taken a chunk out of Percy's sleeve. Luke's partner tossed the sleeve to one of the skeleton warriors. He held the fabric up to his nose, sniffing the scent, and handed it around to his friends. Percy wanted to scream, but he couldn't. Luke's partner laughed.

"Run, Percy Jackson. Make the hunt interesting." Percy did just that.