According to the L.A. news, there was an explosion at the beach that they were just in, it was caused by a kidnapper firing a shogun at a police car. The 'kidnapper' accidentally hit a gas main that ruptured during the earthquake. The kidnapper was 'Ares' and had abducted the three of demi-gods from New York and brought them across the country during the ten days. The best news that neither Percy nor Macaria were considered international criminals, everything from the Greyhound bus in Jersey to the beach was taken care of due to them trying to 'escape their kidnapper'.
The trio was in the police custody and the reporters had explained them the entire story. All they had to do was act tearful and exhausted, which was easy, and pretend to be victimized kids on the camera (which in a way was true, beings victims of the gods). Macaria had pretended to be too traumatized by the incident and hid her face in Percy's shoulders while holding Annabeth's hand.

"All I want," Percy said, choking back his fake tears, "is to see my loving stepfather again. Every time I saw him on TV, calling me a delinquent punk, I knew ... somehow ... we would be okay. And I know he'll want to reward each and every person in this beautiful city of Los Angeles with a free major appliance from his store. Here's the phone number." The police and reporters were moved that they raised money for three tickets on the next plane to New York.

Macaria didn't let go of Percy's and Annabeth's hands as they boarded the plane, the fear of being killed by Zeus like Sally's parents was all she could think about. Takeoff was horrible and every spot of turbulence was as though she had mini heartattacks every second. Neither Percy nor Annabeth were in a better position, unable to unclench their hands from their armrest until they touched down safely at La Guardia. They also clutched her hands until they turned white, a feat that was rather difficult considering her skin was brown. The press was waiting for them outside security, there was a black cloud and Macaria couldn't help but thank her grandmother.

The Mist did it's job and the press ran over towards the frozen yogurt, as they grabbed their bags from baggage claim. Annabeth said goodbye to the siblings as she took a taxi back to Half-Blood Hill to tell Chiron everything that had happened, she protested at first but eventually they were able to persuade her. Macaria and Percy hopped into a taxi and headed into Manhattan. It took only thirty minutes for them to reach the lobby of the Empire State Building.

They must've looked rather pitiful, with tattered clothes, scraped up faces and a lack of sleep for over twenty four hours. Percy walked up to the guard at the front desk and said "Six hundredth floor" as Macaria stood a few feet behind him, drained and tired from social interactions. The guard was reading a huge book with a picture of a wizard on the front, the guard took a moment to look up.

"No such floor, kiddo." The guard said.

"We need an audience with Zeus." Percy said and motioned Macaria forward, taking her hand.

"Sorry?" The guard said with a vacant smile on his face.

"You heard him." Macaria said, agitation lased in her voice.

"No appointment, no audience, kiddo. Lord Zeus doesn't see anyone unannounced." The guard said and Macaria narrowed her eyes.
"Bolt." She said and froze, his face going pale. She put her hand in the bookbag on Percy's back and Macaria guessed he must've been able to see the glow of the bolt because his face went white.

"That isn't." He trailed off.

"It is." Macaria said.

"You want my sister to take it out and-" Percy said but was cut off.

"No! No!" The guard scrambled to his seat and fumbled around his desk, looking for something. Macaria released her hold on the bolt and zipped it back up. The guard handed Percy a key card. "Insert this in the security slot. Make sure nobody else is in the elevator with you… besides your sister of course." He said quickly. They followed his instructions and as the elevator door closed and Percy slipped the key into the slot, the card disappeared and a new button appeared on the console, a red one that said 600.

They waited for a long time and Macaria took it as a chance to tell Percy about what she and Annabeth had been theorizing. Percy and Macaria tried to list some of the counselors but the door slid open. They stepped out and Macaria felt her blood run cold. She rubbed her eyes in shock, blinking multiple times in awe. There was a narrow stone walkway in the middle of the air, below was Manhattan and in front were white marble steps that wound up the spine of a cloud, into the sky. Macaria pinched Percy, receiving an "Ow!" in return, though Percy had the same shocked and bewildered expression she saw sure she had on her face.

From the top of the clouds rose the decapitated peak of a mountain, its summit covered with snow. Clinging to the mountainside were dozens of multi-leveled palaces-a city of mansions-all with white-columned porticos, gilded terraces, and bronze braziers glowing with a thousand fires. Roads wound crazily up to the peak, where the largest palace gleamed against the snow. Precariously perched gardens bloomed with olive trees and rosebushes. There was an open-air market filled with colorful tents, a stone amphitheater built on one side of the mountain, a hippodrome and a coliseum on the other. It was an Ancient Greek city, except it wasn't in ruins. It was new, and clean, and colorful, the way Athens must've looked twenty-five hundred years ago.

Percy took the first step and Macaria released his hand. There were dryads hat were giggling and throwing olives a Percy from their garden, while the rest of them gave Macaria hugs and a rather touchy male dryad (which was rare) held onto her and gave her a long kiss on the cheek which made her flush bright red in exchange. He gave her a wink and she heard the usual chorus of "Princess", but with words such as "lovely, special" and others added towards the title.

There were Hawkers in the market offering to sell them ambrosia-on-a-stick, and a new shield, and a genuine glitter-weave replica of the Golden Fleece, as seen on Hephaestus-TV. There were nine muses, lio, Euterpe, Thalia, Melpomeni, Terpsichore, Erato, Polymnia, Ourania and Calliope, tuning their instruments for a concert in the park while a small crowd gathered satyrs and naiads and young looking teenagers who were probably minor gods and goddesses. Macaria froze as she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned around and saw that Hypnos and Morpheus a few feet behind his father. They looked younger, about teenagers, Morpheus closer to her own age and Hypnos looking more like a young adult.

"Hello, love." Hypnos said and wrapped his arms around her. Macaria tensed up and stared back at him. Morpheus moved over towards the rest of the minor gods and goddesses who were staring at her with interest, only a few of them even glancing at Percy. Percy paused and looked back at her as Hypnos' arms tightened around her. It was obvious that he did not want her going over there, in fact he was against it.

"I'm fine Percy, he won't hurt me." Macaria said and Percy looked at her nervously but nodded. Hypnos pulled her over to some of the muses who started messing with her hair. They were happy to see Hypnos. "Why won't you let me go?"

"Because that would be unwise." A familiar voice said and Macaria looked up to see her father behind them, he aged himself younger, about the same age as his twin. He took a seat beside them and Hypnos placed her between them. "You should've returned with the other halfblood."

"Annabeth?" Macaria asked, though she knew that's who he meant. He stared down at her for a moment and placed an arm around her shoulders, the tension in the air heightened for a second, but every being had frozen into place. There were whispers and her father got up and started walking away, Macaria knew that she must follow him. Eyes watched them as they climbed up the main road, towards the big palace at the peak, which was a reverse from the palace in the Underworld. Macaria couldn't help but feel sympathy for Hades, as the steps led up to a central courtyard and to the throne room. But it wasn't a room, it had massive columns which rose to a domed ceiling, which was gilded with moving constellations. It made Grand Central Station look like a broom closet.

There were twelve thrones, built for being the size of Hades, arranged in an inverted U, just like the cabins at Camp Half-Blood. An enormous fire crackled in the central hearth pit. A figure appeared in front of her father and Macaria stopped to look in awe and fear. She knew immediately who it was, the figure was very tall, imposing and muscular, with long black shoulder-length hair with a gray-and-black neatly trimmed beard. He had electric blue eyes with a serious and proud and handsome face. The air around him was thick as she looked at the god wearing a dark blue pinstriped suit.

The gods spoke a very words to each other and Zeus looked directly at her, she looked back at him, her eyes clashing with his. His eyes were filled with a mixture of emotions that she had often seen in her fathers face as with a blinding flash of lightning, he was gone. She caught eye contact with her father and he held out his hand, which she gladly took quickly running over to grab it. His grip tightened as they walked closer to the thrones, Macaria could see two figures standing there. One much smaller than the other.

"Kronos." She heard Percy said and felt a familiar feeling of dread hit her. "The king of the Titans." The room darkened and the fire dimmed. Macaria saw who Percy was talking to. Poseidon, who was tall and handsome with black hair, a neatly trimmed black beard, a deep tan, and sea-green eyes that were surrounded by sun-crinkles. His hands are also scarred and wore Birkenstocks (leather sandals), khaki Bermuda shorts, a Tommy Bahama shirt with coconuts and parrots all over it, and a cap decorated with fishing lures which says "Neptune's Lucky Fishing Hat." The father-daugther duo waited until their conversation was done and Percy noticed them, Posideon had already realized they were there.

As they moved forward, Macaria and Percy watched as the two gods sized each other. Eventually they stopped staring at each other and Poseidon looked down at her. Percy moved protectively besides her and Poseidon's eyes burned with a kind of pride. "You did well, Persus, Macaria." He paused for a moment and stared at Thanathos. "Do not misunderstand me. Whatever else you do, know that you are mine." Macaria tensed as her Father tightened his grip on her hand.

"She is mine." Thanathos said angrily which Posideon paid no mind to.

"And she remains mine." Posiedon said, pride which she could see in Zeus following in his brother. Posideon decided he had spoken enough with her father and looked onto Percy. "You are a true son of the Sea God."

With that the two gods had vanished, leaving Percy and Macaria alone. "Family, huh?" Percy said trying to lighten the mood.

"Family." Macaria said and they walked back through the city of the gods, hand-in-hand. The conversations had stopped, the muses had paused for their concerts, people, satyrs and naiads all turned towards them, their faces filled with respect and gratitude, as they passed, they knelt. They didn't say anything as they were still in a shock of everything that had happened, they hadn't even realized they were back on the streets of Manhattan.

Percy explained the the taxi, as they road back to their mother's apartment, everything that had transpired. Percy rang the door bell and the door opened, there was Sally Jackson. Smelling like peppermint and licorice, weariness and worry evaporating from her face as soon as she saw their faces.

"Macaria! Percy!" She said happily. "Oh, thank goodness. Oh, my babies." She crushed the air out of them and Macaria felt tears run down her her as she clutched onto the women in who raised her for dear life.

"Mom…" Macaria said tearfully. They stood in the hallway, crying as she ran her hands through her hair. Percy pulled away he explained everything that happened and Sally explained everything on her side. Gabe was still as horrible as Macaria had remembered but the two half-bloods had a choice to make. Percy caught her eyes and Macaria released herself from their mother's hold. She knew what they had to do. And luckily Macaria was on good terms with a few powerful gods, she knew they wouldn't mind helping get rid of him.

"Where will you go?" Their mother asked.

"Half-Blood Hill." They said

"For the summer… or forever?"

"I guess that depends." Percy said, they locked eyes and she kissed both of their foreheads.

"You're heroes." She told them. "You'll be the greatest of them all." As they left their home and Gabe said a nasty remark, the look on their mother's face of stern anger, was enough to remind them that she would be fine.

"The meat loaf is coming right up, dear." She said. "Meat loaf surprise." She winked at them.

"They won't mind?" Percy asked.

"They hate him as much as we do." Macaria said happily.