The snake-haired ladies were starting to annoy Percy.
They should have died three days ago when he dropped a crate of bowling balls on them at the Napa Bargain Mart. They should have died two days ago when he ran over them with a police car in Martinez. They definitely should have died this morning when he cut off their heads in Tilden Park. Percy stopped trying to kill them all together after they refused to die when he ripped them apart with his teeth in broad daylight on the quad at UC Berkley.
But they just kept reforming, like giant, evil dust bunnies.
The most annoying part, at least, at the moment, with them screaming at him, was that he couldn't understand a word they were saying.
"Come back, shark boy!"
"Yes, let us kill you properly!"
"I can't understand you!" he shouted desperately, scrambling up the hill.
"Gibberish won't save you this time, boy."
Percy couldn't do this anymore; amnesia and immortal monsters were too much to handle.
He yelled and another blast of water materialized out of nowhere and knocked the evil snake ladies backwards.
Right, then there were the powers he couldn't control. He'd discovered that last one when the snake ladies had chased him through a library. He couldn't decide who scared him more, the snake ladies or the furious librarian probably yelling at him about all the ruined books.
Because again, Percy couldn't understand a word that anyone was saying.
At the very least, it appeared that the snake ladies couldn't kill him either. To go along with his freakishly strong teeth, his skin was way stronger than any human's should be, as if it were iron and not human flesh.
He knew he needed somewhere to hide. At this rate, he'd collapse from exhaustion and no matter how un-killable he seemed, he was sure the snake ladies would find a way to kill him.
But where to hide?
To the west, the San Francisco Bay glittered in a slivery haze. The view gave Percy a certain sense of sadness that he only got when he thought of the one name he remembered from his past:
Annabeth
The wolf, Lupa, had promised him that if he completed his journey, he'd meet her again soon. So he knew, that even if the sea was drawing him in like a magnet, he couldn't go to it.
"Where are you, demigod scum?"
The snake ladies had just appeared over the clifftop when Percy dissolved into water and flowed down the hill.
"Holy Hera!" he shouted when he reformed at the bottom.
"Actually, it's Juno here."
Percy looked to his left. There, on the side of the highway was an old hippie lady.
"You can understand me?" Percy asked the hippie lady.
"My Japanese is a little rusty," the hippie admitted, "But yes, I can understand you."
The earth rumbled underneath them. A couple of cars smashed into each other, and a hoard of people emerged from the cars, shouting angrily about earthquakes.
"I'd cut that out, if I were you," the hippie warned him, "The mortals quite like this highway."
"I can't!" he said hopelessly, "I don't know how!"
"Hmm," said the old woman, "Well then, I suppose you could take the tunnel. Go to Camp."
She pointed at the entrance to the tunnel. A young, dark-skinned girl and a big, burly asian boy, both armed to the teeth, flanked the entrance, "I'm sure they can help you remember how to control your powers."
Percy looked doubtful. The word camp sounded so familiar; he was sure he came from one. But… "What's the catch?"
The old woman lifted the trash bag she was wearing to show her feet, covered in blisters and oozing sores, "Carry me there; I can't walk myself."
"Any other options?" he asked queasily.
"You could go to the ocean," the old hippie said simply, "Your father's realm would shield you from the monsters. You'll be able to watch Gaea's rising from the relative safety of the ocean. The gorgons would be content with attacking me and letting you go."
"Will I get my memory back if I go to this camp?"
"Eventually," the old woman mused, "But in the process, you'll learn pain like you've never known before. You'll lose the Mark of Achilles, but you'll get your best chance at finding your friends and family."
Percy glanced at the tunnel, then back at the snake ladies running at them, "Fine, get on."