A/N: What's that? Percy's chivalrous ass is still fucked up from being poisoned? Mori runs the pharmaceutical industry and supplies ingredients through a monopoly to aspiring witches across the board? Laila is squatting in Samson's home and refuses to leave? Bianca's an adorable little girl who just wants people to be happy? Yes, that's what's happening.
With Annabeth, spring 2011
"Oh gods this place literally smells," I say holding my nose shut with my fingers, "How the hell do people cope living here?"
"They don't, this place is literally awful. Everyone hates it here, that's why they're awful to everyone here. I stopped by here one time for a concert with Mori, saw a man make a grown cyclops cry. You'd think monsters are the worst things here, but really it's just the general attitude of mortals here that somehow is worse then anything else!"
"Chicagoans are a different class of monster entirely, no wonder Mom always tells us to avoid this place entirely."
"Agreed. Even the darkest denizens of Tartarus are wary to come here."
Our crew arrived in Chicago not long ago, Percy's been suffering in our room the entire journey with only me and a reluctant lamia to watch over him. After learning some more from Laila about the magic ingredient industry, we've found out the company known as Gauldur International makes its headquarters in the downtown bay area.
Mori uses the company as a front for her to buy magic ingredient farms across the US and bring them under her command, giving her a monopoly over the potion making business entirely. Any competition is swiftly destroyed either through financial means or just straight up murder, meaning anything and everything must go through her.
It's why during the wars potions were in such a limited supply to the camps, and even years before that. Our enemy was controlling a vital resource the whole time and I know of many demigods who could've been saved from death had the potions available.
Samson pulls the van into the parking lot of a massive glass building. I take in the architecture as we pass by it and I can only whistle appreciatively at the beauty of it. Solid steel framing, massive tinted windows that provide privacy but just a tiny glimpse into the building itself, a modern sleekness and curve to the building only new projects from the past ten years can have, and a small army of lightly armed security forces.
Okay… so the last one is the only one I should really be worried about, but I mean come on!? I've been blessed with a love for architecture, and this place is the cutting edge of modern design and sleekness!
Our van comes to a halt in a farther away parking space and facing the building, giving us a good view of the place as a whole.
Samson and Bianca wait patiently as I bring out my laptop and connect myself into the buildings wifi, accessing their computer network with a program Samson had wrote that should allow me to scan all of their connections with a simple search feature and bring me back keywords that I'm looking for.
Good thing Samson knows how to code computers, but I'm still greatly surprised since he learned about coding when he was young in the 60's!
"Samson, how in the world is the program working?! Not to drag you down, but coding surely has changed over the past fifty years?"
He shrugs his shoulders, "It's not super different now then it was back then, a smart enough person can make it work well enough. Besides, I was tutored by Margaret Hamilton as a birthday present from Mother before the moon landing. I tell you what, she was way ahead of everyone at NASA when it comes to computer genius!"
"Wait, people have landed on the moon?" Bianca asks, her eyes wide in disbelief, "Oh no, Artemis is surely mad about that!"
"She's probably furious since the name for the project was called 'Apollo'."
Bianca smiles and starts chuckling, likely imagining how many jokes Apollo has made to Artemis about the whole thing. Gods I can hear him in my ear already, cracking jokes about him 'finally nailing the moon' before she kicks him in the balls and storms away.
I'm surprised by how effective Samson's program is, a simple connection is all it needs to scan the entire network of wireless connected devices in the entire building. It's almost like using Google, except it brings back searches from files connected to the internet I'm connected to only.
After a minute or two of searching I find what I'm looking for. I use my computers built in printer and print out a copy of the building schematics, hidden rooms and all displayed on the paper for any would be robber to see.
I take the giant sheet of paper and bring it into the parlor room, placing it down on the dining table and scanning over the paper. My brother and Bianca come around my sides and help me search for any of the storage rooms listed that would house magical components.
Bianca points her finger at a room four levels down in the basement, "Is this it right here?"
Samson and I scan over the room and read the fine print label, "That's it, good eye Bianca!"
She blushes at Samson's praise and shyly waves us off, trying to play it cool.
I trace my fingers from the storage room and imagine the journey through the building to it. I unfortunately count no less then twenty obstacles in our way that we might not be able to fight our way through without some of us dying.
Now I wonder… I trace my fingers along the side and follow the ventilation system back to the outside building. Only a couple problems, and those ones are just unscrewing a few things and being very quiet.
Therein lies a problem with this plan. Samson and I can't fit through the vents.
Samson and I meet each other's eyes, both of us coming to the same conclusion as we look down at Bianca who fidgets nervously in her seat.
"…What?"
"Annabeth, we can't, I won't allow it!"
"Percy's life is on the line! If we don't get these things, he'll die of a fever before we can reach camp!"
"She's just a child, unskilled and still learning! For heavens sake I've only been able to train her a couple times throughout the nights!"
"Samson, she's the only one. Bianca's a Daughter of Hades, you need to have faith in her!"
"These aren't some brainless monsters, they're human beings with minds sharper then most things we've ever fought! Add to that is them likely being controlled or otherwise influenced by Mori's magic, they won't hesitate to gun her down!"
"ENOUGH!" Samson and I flinch and stumble a little, the ground shaking faintly beneath our feet as Bianca's scream seemed to seep her powers out.
We turn to her as she glares at us, her arms are crossed, and her face is filled with stony determination. I feel my heart sink slightly as I remember so many demigods her age with the same looking rushing off against the Titan hordes.
"I can do this, I will do this! Percy's sick and this is the only way we can make him better! He's my friend, I'll do whatever it takes to make him okay again!"
Samson's face hardens as he meets her eyes, both of them staring at each other with a shine to their eyes saying, 'I won't back down'.
After a tense minute of glaring, Samson huffs and motions Bianca forward. She complies, and he puts his hand on her forehead. Her eyes widen in surprise and she stumbles back, massaging her forehead and groaning in discomfort.
"Ah geez, what in the world did you do?!"
"I linked us telepathically, it's the only way I can guide you and ensure you have some proper help inside there."
"Wait, isn't that the things Satyr's do? Artemis said they can form bonds with people."
"Not quite, that's empathy. They share emotions with their connected, allowing them to have a deeper understanding of one another. What I did is something different called telepathy. That means I can speak into your mind and should the need arise control your actions personally. I did something similar with a lamia I knew a while ago. I don't like using this on people, but this is a desperate situation."
I can't help but feel uneasy about this power of Samson's, it brings back all the uncomfortable memories of my time being possessed by Mori. It's an incredible violation of privacy, but I understand why he's using this ability here and now.
Bianca's just a girl, young and inexperienced. We can't go in there with her, but it makes my uneasiness falter knowing she'll have Samson as guidance.
I take my Yankees cap and hand it to her, Samson's eyes widen lightly when he sees it.
"Huh, so that's where it went."
"You've seen this before?"
"Only for a bit, it actually belonged to that freaky Hunter I was telling you about a while ago. After she died I took the cap from her, but I thought it was lost after I died."
Bianca gasps and looks at her big bro-I mean Samson with worry, "Oh my gosh you died?!"
He shrugs his shoulders, "I got better."
Anyways, I bring everyone's attention back to the schematics and make sure Bianca is up to speed on the plan and knows her duties inside perfectly.
"You're going to be alone Bianca, but we'll guide you from the van here. Samson and I will do what we can from my laptop, but you can't rely on us to get you through. At the end of this, it's all up to you."
A bead of sweat drips down her face and she bites her lip nervously, drumming against the wood with her fingers as she mentally prepares herself for this solo task. Samson and I stare at her neutrally, both of us unhappy with the situation but still ready to guide her the whole way through.
She looks back at us, eyes filled with renewed resolve, "I can do it."
Simple words and a simple sentence, but the emotion and steely courage behind her words holds a great amount of meaning and worth.
She's ready.
"Excellent, then you're going to need tools," Samson says, he grabs a duffle bag full of stuff and plops it on the table, "A good demigod is a smart one. I have here everything you'll need to get in and out without being sighted."
He opens the bag and pulls out a small yet elegantly designed leather quiver full of arrows, "This here is an enchanted quiver, the arrows inside replenish after you remove one in a matter of moments. Each has a different colored fletching and effect. The bag here contains all the tools for the job and other emergency supplies should you need to apply first aid. Annabeth's cap here can turn you invisible. Absolutely do not lose it, it's your greatest tool and the only thing protecting your identity from the cameras."
Bianca takes everything into her arms and slings the duffle bag and quiver over her shoulder. Samson drops to one knee and holds her shoulders, a reassuring smile on his face, "I have faith in you, you'll be fine. After all, you're a child of Hades, if there's any demigod in this world that can pull off a heist like this it's you"
She gives him a quivering smile and latches her arms around Samson, pulling him into the biggest hug her tiny arms can muster. He freezes for a second, but eventually returns with a hug of his own.
They depart, and he ruffles her hair for good measure. She swipes at his hands but keeps a happy grin the entire time.
Oh gods, I think my hearts going to melt. Last time I saw a di Angelo this happy was when we first met Nico back at their old school, back when he was a wide-eyed youth obsessed with Mythomagic.
"Alright Bianca, it's your time to shine."
With Bianca, spring 2011
"Alright Bianca, it's your time to shine."
You're damn right it is, and no stupid golden robot man is taking this victory away from me! I'm Bianca di Angelo, I've got this!
Anyways… ah shoot I think I'm in over my head.
Big bro Samson and Annabeth are really nice, they have so much confidence in me to steal everything from the big building over there.
Still, I can't help but be crazy nervous about it! I mean, I have no skill in combat at all yet! Sam's been training me for a couple days when he isn't busy driving, and Annabeth has been teaching me a bunch too!
But I haven't actually fought a real monster in forever! Last time I had Artemis's blessing to make up for my lack of training but even then, that didn't really help me at all. Everything from here on is all me, and I can't say I have the same confidence my friends have in me.
You shouldn't underestimate yourself, your parentage grants you many boons. Luck's always going to be on your side.
Oh my gosh what was that?!
Telepathy remember? It's me, Samson.
R-right, mind powers and stuff. Gods that's going to be difficult to get used to. Anyways it's go time. I put Annabeth's hat on and it turns me invisible completely. I make my way through Samson's home while they prepare that weird flat gadget thing to help me travel through the building.
It's about midday outside right now, no clouds and the sun's warm and beautiful. If big bro Percy wasn't dying horribly it would be perfect for a picnic right about now!
Maybe we can go on one after we save him?
Focus Bianca. Go around the back of the building where the trucks are, there's construction on that side so climb up it and get to the roof.
Crap, I forgot he's still in my brain! I pick up my pace and run quietly towards the spot Sam is guiding me to. Thankfully he taught me how to be sneaky, the new 'sneakers' he bought me are so much easier to run in then my old loafers!
I peek my head around the corner and look at the construction site, there's no one around. Slowly I step towards the metal scaffolding that climbs up the side of the thirteen-story building. I find the ladders that wind up the construction sections and quickly make my way up.
A few minutes climb I find myself up on the tall roof, giant boxes and building fans whir up here, but the wind is even louder.
Look to your left, the big box right there is broken so the fan isn't working. Take that bronze pocketknife from your pocket and press the middle button when you place it against the screws on the middle panel.
Bronze pocket knife, got it! I take Annabeth's cap off so I can see everything again and start digging through the bag I brought with me. A minute's search I find the doohickey and take it out. It's a bronze Swiss Army Knife looking thing, only there's several buttons on the one side of it.
I follow Sam's instructions and use it on the screws, little robotic arms pop out of the tool and undo the screws at blinding speeds! The last four screws come out and I slide the panel off, revealing a chute that bends and goes straight down into the building.
Remember, use the black arrow. It's enchanted with a rope that's as long as you'll ever need it. Stab it into the ground and it'll stick, then use the same tool and press the bottom most button.
Okay, black arrow and bottom button. I stab the arrow into the ground and take the small rope attached to the back and toss it down the chute. The rope expands magically out of the rope until it stops. That's ready, now the button on my thing.
I press the button and yelp as the metal tool suddenly shifts and expands, growing out and covering my arm like a metal robotic arm sleeve. I gape at it for a few seconds before shaking my head free of the distraction and grabbing the rope.
Slowly I lower myself down the chute and yelp again when I feel the arm whir as motors in it latch onto the rope and slide me down quicker.
Don't fight the glove, it's an automatic invention I made for espionage stuff like this. It's a good shield and makes the arm it covers ten times as strong alongside other features. It'll stop you at the bottom of the vent, from there take your left and go straight until I tell you to stop.
Super robot arm with awesome features? Now that's cool. The motor quietly slides me along down the vent, the heat's kind of uncomfortable but I ignore it as for several minutes I swiftly glide down.
It's super dark down here, but I don't feel uncomfortable at all actually. Heck, even though I know it's dark I can somehow see with almost no difficulty at all!
My feet hit the bottom of the shaft and the metal glove lets go of the rope. I take the left and start crawling through the vent, being small enough that I can crawl through with little difficulty but still small enough that I can't turn around.
I continue forward for a really long time, the vent being super stuffy and crazy hot the whole way. Thankfully Samson gave me something called a 'tie dye shirt'. It's super colorful and fun, and I kind of like it actually!
Nico and I have always worn dark colors, so it's nice to have something more bright and cheery. I hope he's okay wherever he is, I really want to see him again! I miss… I miss my little doofus brother!
Keep your mind focused Bianca, distractions get you killed. Take the next right, it'll lead to a drop down so be careful.
Right, mission first, reunions later! I take the right and see the drop he mentioned. It doesn't go far, barely a foot. There's a cover on the bottom of it, through the slit openings I can see bright white tiled floors and the voice of a man and a woman.
"I can't believe the boss! We're already working overtime, and he wants even more out of us! Rushing with potions and magic ingredients like this is a disaster waiting to happen. Remember Reggie? He rushed with that green fire in the jar and it exploded and took out half a dozen staff! Gods the stench from that was awful, it's been weeks and it still smells!"
"Oh quit whining and just do what the boss says! The last guy that tried complaining to the boss ended up being transferred to Site A! You've heard the rumors, transfers become testers. I'm not trying my luck on that!"
"Yeah, yeah, let's just get back to work. We've been fooling around in here for too long, I don't want the boss to cut my balls of because he caught us fucking!"
I hear footsteps followed by a door opening and closing, an electronic clicking sound echoing from the room. I wait a few moments incase someone else comes… it's clear.
With a grunt I grab the vent slits with the robot hand and yank it up, the metal groaning as I tear it free and draw it into the vent. I slip down to the floor and make out my surroundings. It's a big room completely full of filing cabinets.
Go through that door right there and head left. Follow the hallway to the end and take a left again and the first right after. That should lead to the store room.
Easy enough. I open the door a little and peek through the crack, there's a single security guard snoozing off on a foldout chair at the end of the grey walled hallway.
I open the door and quickly slip through, closing the door as quietly behind me as I can. The door closes with a soft click, but the electronic lock beeps loudly after it locks itself.
The guard flinches in his chair and groggily blinks his eyes as he looks out around the hallway. Crap, I think I've been locked out!
Don't panic, just continue with the mission. We can get a keycard after the stuff, there should be some you can swipe from a passing worker. Remember what Annabeth taught you about slight of hand, you'll be fine.
Y-yep, I'll be- I'll be fine, no worries at all Ha ha! Okay, back to sneaking. A few minutes of navigating the hallways and I'm at the door I need. I jiggle the handle and curse. Dammit, it's locked!
More voices down the hallway. I fit the hat on more snug and sneak towards the voices, it's the man from before discussing some weird science mumbo jumbo with another guy. Both are dressed in big white lab coats, lanyards with an id card hanging from their belts.
They're distracted, so sneak up behind the one man and grab it. They won't notice a thing so long as you're careful.
Slowly I sneak up behind the man from before, my footsteps as silent as a mouse. I snatch the lanyard from his belt and make my way back to the door as quickly as I can.
I hold the card to the door and it beeps and clicks unlocked, I open the door and shuffle inside.
Rows and rows of large crates line the room in shelves, like a miniature warehouse. I follow the labels on the shelves and count my way towards each item in alphabetical order.
It takes me a minute to navigate the huge room, but I find all of the ingredients Laila asked for and stuff them into my bag. Thankfully the Drakon dung and Centaur Hoof are in sealed containers, I don't think I could stomach being trapped in a hot vent with smelly stuff!
Good job Bianca, now get out of there! Annabeth's found a hidden alarm's been triggered in the vent just now!
Shit okay time to go! I toss the bag over my shoulder and race to the door, throwing it open and almost sprinting towards the room I came in through. Thankfully none of the patrolling guards can see me thanks to the hat, but I'm forced to stop often as they'll surely hear me if I'm not careful!
After many tense minutes and close calls, I finally end up back at the door I came in through! I sigh in relief and place the card against the lock. It clicks open and I head inside.
I barely have the time to gasp and prepare myself as a heavy fist slams straight into my face.