A/N: There were two updates today. This one and Chapter six. Please read the previous chapter before this short 4k filler.

Hello guys. Again, I apologize for the terrible version of Chapter six I posted before. It has been fixed now, though. As usual, don't forget to point out any mistake I made. Leave a comment, review, vote or kudos. Thank you.

"There's a copter tailing us!"

LUKE exhaled, urging his feet to go faster. The skeleton warriors from before were nowhere to be seen but he was still feeling uneasy. He didn't believe they had lost them. His skin was tingling. Adrenaline pumped through his veins and he risked a glance behind him.

There were two helicopters, coming straight for them. He could hear the sounds of machine guns being fired from the vessel. He was honestly surprised none of them had been hit yet. But still, the mortal mercenaries were getting closer. They wouldn't be able to escape in time. And running was extra hard for him—He had been tossed out of the fight in the museum like a rag doll by the lion. He'd broken a rib and his ankle had been smashed against one of the capsules. Although Grover had given him some ambrosia and nectar, walking hurt like hell. Luke's gaze travelled to Thalia. She looked oddly calm about the situation. His lips curled downwards into a frown, mind drifting off to the battle against the Nemean Lion. That spire of earth which had saved Thalia…he knew exactly what that meant.

Perseus was there, with them. And Thalia had allowed him to come along. Resisting the urge to groan, Luke looked away from his best friend. He still didn't understand why she trusted him. He could be working with the Titans. He could be purposely trying to get them to The Plains of Perseus so he could be free. He wasn't trustworthy. Luke didn't understand why Thalia couldn't see that.

But what's done is done, Luke, he thought. No need to let it bother you. He's here now. There's nothing you can do.

Luke skidded to a stop when they got to the spot Zoë had parked the Delphi Strawberry Services van. His hand reached out to open the back door, but Thalia's voice made him halt.

"They know the van," She stated. "We have to ditch it."

He sighed. Chiron was so going to kill them. But she was right. The Titan's copter would keep coming after them even if they got into the van. And the D.C. traffic would definitely slow them down.

"The station," Grover spoke up suddenly. "We can lose them with the trains."

"He's right," Phoebe panted, wiping sweat off her brow. 'Let's go."

Zoë Nightshade didn't argue. They shot down the road and Luke found himself thanking every god in existence that they had decided to park so close to the station. He could hear the chopper coming up behind them and he clenched his jaw when he heard another series of firing.

He was surprised the military hadn't shot down their pursuers yet. But they probably thought it was one of their own. Or maybe the man who had sent the skeleton warriors after them—The General—had manipulated the mist to stop them. The questers raced through the station entrance, found their way to the ticket booth and purchased five tickets. Luke didn't even bother to find out where they were headed. The five of them piled into the train which was ready to go.

He only relaxed when he found his seat. He was next to Grover and the satyr collapsed in his seat immediately he located it. The sounds from the chopper faded and got more distant. He leaned back in his seat, shutting his eyes. His feet were killing him, his ankle was burning.

Luke resisted the urge to have more of the godly food. Too much of it could kill him and he wasn't prepared to die until Annabeth was safe and the Titans were beaten.

He could only hope they would succeed.

XMX

"Luke! We have to move now."

The son of Hermes groaned, eyes flickering open. And then he yelped, leaping back in shock. A dagger impaled the back of the seat he'd been in before, coming out at the other side. Luke's gaze travelled across the entire carriage and he cursed, drawing his sword from its sheath.

As usual, it was unbalanced. But it was the best one Camp had gotten for him, so he'd have to manage. Luke gritted his teeth. How in the name of Hermes' helmet had he kept on sleeping during a battle? Muttering a string of cuss words in greek, he ran forward and skidded to a stop next to Thalia.

"Ah, sleeping beauty," Thalia chuckled dryly while ducking from another throwing knife. "How nice of you to join us."

Luke ignored her comment. He wasn't sure he could handle jokes at that moment. "What's going on? What are those…things?" He dodged a wild slash from a sword. A silver arrow sailed past his ear, lodging into the throat of one of the owners of the weapon which had almost got him.

"I don't know," Thalia huffed, pulling her electrically charged spear out of a monster's torso. "They attacked the train when we got out of Washington. The mortals run off for other carriages. I don't know what the heck they saw but they were spooked."

Of course they would be spooked, Luke thought. It was literally a battalion of dog-headed men, coming from every corner of the carriage. He sidestepped another hack from a random sword and stuck his weapon into the chest of another of their attackers. He spun in a slight circle, his sword arm swinging and lopped a head off. From his left, he heard the sound of a reed pipe and knew Grover was performing his satyr magic.

His eyes caught sight of a blur of silver, weaving through the dog-men hybrids and bringing about three of them to their demise every five seconds. He could make out the glow of a silver tiara and two silver hunting knives and knew immediately that it was Zoë.

That meant Phoebe was the one shooting the arrows. Luke ducked low, his foot shooting out and swept one of the monsters off their feet. Panting, he leapt up, stabbing his sword through it.

"Watch out!"

The son of Hermes glanced up suddenly and his eyes widened to the size of saucers. He dove aside to avoid the sharp claws of the hybrid which had crept upon him. Cursing, Luke began to back away as the frothing fangs of the dog head barred. It started to advance but then stopped, then exploded into golden dust. Thalia spun her spear in her hands, before slamming the non-business end into the head of one of the dog-men.

"Thanks," He reached out to grab Thalia's outstretched hand.

"No problem," She grinned. "Now please, wake up properly before I shock you to Tartarus. Get your head into the game."

Rolling his eyes, he allowed her to haul him up. "Where's your Titan friend? Can't he swallow them up with the earth or something?" He asked, brow creased.

"I don't know where he is now," Thalia answered, rolling her eyes at him once again. It seemed to be a hobby of hers now. At the same time, she ran her spear through one of the monsters which were coming up behind him. "And no, he can't do that, you idiot. We're off the ground."

"Oh, I forgot that," Luke chuckled. His eyes narrowed and he stabbed forward, narrowly avoiding impaling his best friend in the gut. His sword pierced through the stomach of the monster creeping up behind her and it made a horrendous sound which he guessed was barking, before exploding into dust and sulphur.

"Would you two please stop flirting?" The distaste leaking out of Phoebe's voice made Luke snicker. The daughter of Apollo came up next to them, her fingers nocking and releasing arrows so fast they were just a blur.

Thalia rolled her eyes at the huntress' words but was smiling good-naturedly. Luke slashed upwards, slicing open the throat of a monster as Grover appeared next to him. Zoë Nightshade ploughed through the monster ranks, knives slicing and dicing anything which got in her path and leaving a trail of monster dust behind her. Soon, she was standing next to Thalia, poised to strike.

Luke smiled in satisfaction as the five of them created a circle and fought off the monsters. This was how their team was supposed to be. He felt like a proud father, staring at his children who were working with each other instead of arguing.

"We must leave the train," Zoë's voice cut through his musings. "We shall be overrun any second now by the cynocephali."

Ah, so that was their name.

"For once I'm actually going to agree with her," Thalia yelled over.

"I can hear another train coming," Grover spoke. "We can switch."

"I agree with Goat boy, let's go for the exit," Phoebe pushed her way forward, her bow clearing a path through the monsters. She went first, then Grover, then Thalia. Zoë went after her, then finally Luke. They pushed their way through the packed train carriage, and Phoebe threw the door open.

Luke could feel a presence behind him and he was a bit surprised none of cynocephali had attacked him yet. Then he realized that Perseus was keeping them at bay. He was helping them escape. Although Luke couldn't see him, his suspicions were confirmed when one of the monsters exploded. He heard the sound of another train coming up.

He looked up, biting his bottom lip. Phoebe and Grover had already jumped out of the door. He watched as Thalia went next. Luke cursed when noticing one of the monsters barreling towards him. On instinct, his sword arm shot out to cut it down but suddenly the cynocephali exploded into a shower of golden dust.

"Thanks, man," Luke yelled at the air. He turned back to the door to find Zoë sailing through and landing with grace into the open door of another passenger train.

"Come on!" He heard Thalia's voice come from the other side of the railway. Luke glanced back, at the monsters which were approaching. The train he was on was going to make a turn. He took in a deep breath.

And then he turned to the entrance, ran and jumped.

-X-

THALIA groaned when they got off the second train. There was a bandage wrapped around her arm, where one of the cynocephali had managed to land a hit. Luke, Grover and the hunters were by her side as they piled out of the train and into the snow. Thankfully they hadn't been attacked on the second train and she had managed to get about an hour of shut-eye. But they were well off course. Instead of heading west, the train they had taken had sent them south. Their deadline was drawing closer and for the first time since they started the quest, Thalia felt they weren't going to rescue the twin gods and Annabeth in time.

The train had stopped at an industrial area—a sort of railway yard with warehouses, trains and railways. It was snowing when they finally got out and Thalia momentarily regretted leaving the Nemean Lion pelt behind. She was feeling so cold.

"We'd better check for any trains headed west," Grover suggested, rubbing his palms together. "Then we might be able to hitchhike."

"Yeah, I agree," Luke's teeth were gritted, trying to prevent them from chattering. He'd landed on his ankle again when he had jumped and his limp was worse. The ambrosia and nectar Thalia had force-fed him seemed to be working though.

Zoë nodded, a signal for them to move.

Thalia shoved her hands into her pockets, trying to keep them warm. She felt someone come up next to her and turned to glance at Percy. He didn't seem to be bothered by the cold but he was lost in thought and his eyes were far away. Thalia nudged him slightly with her arm.

"What's with the look?"

He blinked, a bit startled from the sudden movement, and turned to her. "It's nothing. I was just…thinking."

Thalia nodded, deciding not to pry. He had been acting weird since the museum. She silently wished she had telepathic powers so she could be able to tell was running through his mind. Her gaze shifted to the trains which were lined up in the railway yard. All of them were empty and layers upon layers of dust. Thalia guessed they hadn't moved in a while. They were getting nowhere. If they didn't find a train soon, she was sure they would all die of hypothermia.

Perseus' voice broke through her thoughts, making her turn to him. "Look, there's a train going west." Thalia's eyes followed his arm, which was pointing at one of the freight trains. There was no snow falling on it (which was supposed to be impossible because it was snowing) and it looked relatively new. One of the doors were opened and Thalia spotted a row of sleek cars in it. The side of the train had some huge words written on it but she was too far away to make them out. In front of her, next to Grover, Luke had stopped and seemed to be staring at someone leaning on the train. Thalia's mind drifted back to the lines of the prophecy.

The Banes of Olympus shows the trail.

She turned back to the others. "Hey, I think I found us a ride."

"That's great," Phoebe licked her lips, which were already turning blue. "Come on, let's go."

-X-

PERSEUS leaned back in his seat next to Thalia in front of the car. It was his first time sitting in one of the mortal vehicles and he had to say, he was impressed. Prometheus' creations had come a long way. He didn't know what type of car it was but he didn't care. It was comfortable. And that was all that mattered.

His mind drifted off to his meeting with Atlas and that insufferable goddess, the spartoi coming after them and his agreement to lead Thalia and Luke away from the others. Looking at the daughter of Zeus seated next to him, he couldn't help but feel a bit guilty. And then he cursed at himself for feeling guilty. The goddess was right. His stay on Ogygia and too much time to reflect on his thoughts had made him weak. But if the Titans managed to turn Thalia, that would be good. And Luke would pull out his sword and Perseus would finally be free.

But how would they react when they found out he had been using them?

Sighing, he shut his eyes. He didn't need to bother about that now. He would cross that bridge when he got there.

His eyes fluttered open after a few seconds. The Titan of The Earth played with his fingers in restlessness. He could hear the train chugging down the railway. It was a new and foreign sound to him. But it helped calm him down.

"What's on your mind?" Thalia's voice broke through his reverie. He turned to face her, forcing on a smile. "You've been on edge since the Nemean Lion."

"It's nothing, why do you ask?"

"I know a disturbed human being when I see one, Percy," she rolled her eyes. "I'm not an idiot, you know."

His lips curved upwards into a smile. "That's where you're wrong, Thalia. I'm not a human being."

"Oh, I keep forgetting," The sarcasm dripping from her voice made him snort. The Titan turned, unable to wipe the smile off his face.

"But seriously though," Thalia spoke again. "What's bothering you?"

"It's just…we're heading to Othrys. I don't know how to feel about that," He lied through his teeth. "Both The General and Lelantos are both going to be there."

"You don't have to come if you don't want to, you know," Thalia bit her lip, patting his arm empathetically.

"Oh no," he laughed. "I want to help you." He looked away, unable to hide the guilt in his eyes. He had never felt like that before. He couldn't understand it.

Perseus watched from the window of the car as Zoë Nightshade got into one of the empty vehicles. The afternoon sun shone through the side of the train and the titan glanced at Thalia. She was staring intently at Zoë, a mixture of a glare and a frown etched on her face.

"Why do you look like you want to kill Artemis' lieutenant right now?" He piped, trying to lighten the mood.

"Oh, I do? Sorry I didn't realize that." Thalia fiddled with the hem of her leather jacket. There was a silence in the car for a few heartbeats and then she continued. "We just…don't get along. She tried to recruit me to join the hunters a long time ago. I refused."

"Why, though?" He tilted his head to the side. "You could have been semi-immortal. Surely that was a great deal." He couldn't understand her. From Apollo's stories, the hunters only died in battle. No sickness, no aging. How could a mortal have enough willpower to decline that?

"I would have had to leave Luke behind," Thalia said, looking out of the window. "And Annabeth." She added.

He remained silent and Thalia went on. "Zoë and I argued. She said some…things."

"You should talk to her," Perseus advised, voice soft. "You all can only work together if you both sort out your differences."

"Since when did I hire you to be my therapist?" Thalia scoffed.

"I don't know what a therapist is, but it sounds interesting. I'll take the job."

He smiled when she chuckled. Thalia pushed open the door of their car and walked out. "I'm going to do as you said. Just hope I don't kill her before nightfall."

"Yes, that would be very bad." Perseus laughed, throwing his head back on the seat and shutting his eyes. He could hear Thalia walking away from the car and he exhaled. It was bad enough that he had to betray her. Now he was getting attached too.

He just hoped he would be able to do the deed when the time came.

-X-

LUKE blinked, unfazed as the air around him solidified and the man appeared in the seat next to him. He rested his arm on the window of the sleek black Lamborghini and examined the immortal silently. He wore a black suit but he had dark curly hair, an impish grin, with bright mischievous blue eyes. Luke instantly guessed who it was.

"Luke," Hermes greeted his son, his voice soft.

"I've been waiting for almost thirty minutes," Luke glanced away from him. "What took you so long?'

"How did you know I would be coming?"

"I saw the name of the train," He rolled his eyes. "And I saw you. Unlike popular belief, I'm not stupid. I know you created the train to take us west, Hermes."

He sighed when seeing his father wince. He knew why. He never called him Dad. Not after what had happened to his mother. Not after he had left him alone to deal with her. Hermes' grip on his cell phone tightened but he forced on a smile. "Don't say my name, please. Zeus has forbidden all of us from interfering and I don't think my disguise is doing any good. Olympus has gotten boring without Apollo and Artemis bickering, to be honest. My pranks don't even get the desired results because Apollo isn't there."

Luke snorted. "Just tell me why you're here," He licked his bottom lip. "Can you help us or not?"

"I'm already helping you," His father stated. His smile was genuine now and his eyes were twinkling. "The train shall take you across the country. At speeds you would never have thought possible."

Luke nodded his thanks and spoke. "So, the monster Artemis was hunting," he paused for effect. "Do you know what it is? Do you know what the banes of Olympus are?"

"You were right in your deduction at the counsellors meeting. Perseus is one of them. He's still on Ogygia though, so I don't understand how exactly that works."

Luke decided not to mention that he was probably in a Mercedes Benz with Thalia, listening to Green Day. He huffed in frustration. He didn't understand Thalia's closeness to the Titan. Hermes went on, "As for the second one, seek out Nereus, the old man of the sea, when you get to San Francisco. See, he knows things. He might tell you what the prophecy is referring to."

Luke nodded again. "Thank you." He leaned back in his seat, shutting his eyes. If what Hermes said was true, they were already halfway across America. They would reach their destination soon…and they would have to pass through the plains of Perseus to get to the Mountain of Despair. He sighed. He didn't want something like what happened in that dream to happen again.

"Look, son," Hermes' voice made his open his eyes. The god seemed to have read his mind. "I know it's hard. I know you're conflicted. But don't worry," He paused. "I know you're going to make the right decision when the time comes."

Luke smiled, this time genuinely. "That means a lot."

"Get some sleep," Hermes reached out hesitantly and squeezed his arm. "I'll see you soon."

Luke watched on as the god of messengers and thieves disappeared into mist. He knew his father was trying. He knew Hermes wanted to reconcile. He looked at the passenger seat sadly.

"Goodbye, dad."

-X-

ZOË looked up when the door to her automobile swung open. Expecting to see Phoebe, her lips parted in surprise when the daughter of Zeus sat next to her.

"What is thee doing here?" Zoë questioned, eyes narrowed.

"Relax, Nightshade," Thalia rolled her eyes. "I'm not going to try anything." She paused, exhaling. "I wanted to talk."

Zoë found herself relaxing at Thalia's words. She was still suspicious and didn't believe she hadn't come to argue but she wasn't going to provoke her. "Well?"

"I want to call a temporary truce," Thalia looked Zoë in the eye and the hunter could tell she was serious. "No more fighting, no more bickering. At least until the quest is over."

Zoë blinked in surprise. She felt a bit overwhelmed at the sudden suggestion from someone who hated her so passionately. But Thalia was right. They would only be able to defeat him if they co-existed.

"Fine," She nodded to the daughter of Zeus after a few seconds of silence. "No more fighting."

-X-

The girl placed both hands behind her, standing straight. She was aware of her mother watching from the doorway and she could feel the presence of the king of Titans all around her. She licked her lips in anticipation, trying not to let her nervousness show.

The air in front of her shimmered and a figure formed from the mist. His eyes widened, more in surprise at being there than in shock at seeing her. Then his green orbs hardened. His gaze travelled across the entire room again and the girl sent a cold smile in his direction when it came to settle on her.

"Hello, Perseus."

He turned to her, his lips pursed. "You work for the Titans." It was more of a statement than a question but she nodded anyway.

"Are they on their way?" She queried.

It took him a few seconds to answer because his forest green orbs were fixed on the sarcophagus in the room. Finally, he replied. "Yes. They are. The spartoi have not reached us yet, though. I shall attempt to separate Thalia and Luke from the others when they do."

"Good," The girl tried not to wince at the mention of the two demigods. "Lord Kronos is pleased with your service. Make sure you do not fail."

His face was set in determination and he scoffed, "I won't fail. I never have and I don't intend to."

The girl turned away from him as he faded into mist and dust. Her mother made her way into the room, eyes shining with pleasure. It was time to head back to Othrys. Time to meet Lelantos and The General. Oh, and the other goddess too.

It was time for Kronos to go home.

A/N: I'm sorry for the short chapter. Thank you for reading and do tell me what you think.

-TripleHomicide.