I desperately scanned the horizon, searching for a way out and just as my lungs started to scream for air a geyser erupted.

I crawled towards it determinedly, drenching my face in the water, washing away the smoke.

I struggled to my feet. I found the source of the geyser–an irrigation pipe–and turned the water on Apollo.

The water disrupted the smoke, letting Apollo get away. Nearby, our two gaseous enemies re-formed as dripping wet corpses, their yellow eyes glowing with annoyance.

Meg yelled again. This time I understood her words. "GET DOWN!"

I stared at her, wondering if I had misheard, just as frozen blackened fruit of the harvest started to levitate.

Apollo and I hit the ground as peaches shot around the orchard, ricocheting off trees like eight balls, ripping through the nosoi's cadaverous bodies. If I were standing up, I would have been killed, but Meg simply stood there, unfazed and unhurt, as frozen dead fruit zinged around her.

All three nosoi collapsed, riddled with holes. Every piece of fruit dropped to the ground.

I looked up.

"Whah jus happened?"

Ugh. I didn't escape from the clutches of sickness completely.

"I don't know," Apollo said, unhelpfully. "Meg, is it safe?"

She was staring in amazement at the carnage of fruit, mangled corpses, and broken tree limbs. "I—I'm not sure."

"How'd you do thah?" I snuffled. If my suspicions were correct, she'd be snuggling in Cabin 4 tonight.

Meg looked horrified. "I didn't! I just knew it would happen."

I just nodded quietly, remembering the time I exploded the toilets.

One of the cadavers began to stir. It got up, wobbling on its heavily perforated legs.

"But you did doooo it," the spirit growled. "Yooou are strong, child."

The other two corpses rose.

"Not strong enough," said the second nosos. "We will finish you now."

The third spirit bared his rotten teeth. "Your guardian would be sooooo disappointed."

Guardian? Did he mean Apollo?

Meg looked as if she'd been punched in the gut. Her face paled. Her arms trembled. She stamped her foot and yelled, "NO!"

More peaches swirled into the air. This time the fruit blurred together in a fructose dust devil, until standing in front of Meg was a creature like a pudgy human toddler wearing only a linen diaper. Protruding from his back were wings made of leafy branches. His babyish face might have been cute except for the glowing green eyes and pointy fangs. The creature snarled and snapped at the air.

"Oh, no," I shook my head."I hate these things."

The three nosoi also did not look pleased. They edged away from the snarling baby.

"Wh-what is it?" Meg asked.

I nodded my head. Classic demigod response. She'd definitely be in Cabin 4 before the day was over.

"It's a grain spirit," Apollo said, his voice trembling. "I've never seen a peach karpos before, but if it's as vicious as other types…"

The peach baby turned toward the nosoi and for a split second I thought that would team up and turn against us.

The middle corpse, the one with the peach in his forehead, inched backward. "Do not interfere," he warned the karpos. "We will not allooow–"

The peach baby launched himself at the nosos and bit his head off.

Literally. The karpos's fanged mouth unhinged, expanding to an unbelievable circumference, then closed around the cadaver's head, and chomped it off in one bite.

In a few seconds, the nosos had been torn to shreds and devoured.

The other two nosoi started to inch backwards, but the karpos crouched and sprang. He landed on the second corpse and proceeded to rip it into plague-flavored Cream of Wheat.

The last spirit dissolved into glittering smoke and tried to fly away, but the peach baby spread his leafy wings and launched himself in pursuit. He opened his mouth and inhaled the sickness, snapping and swallowing until every wisp of smoke was gone.

He landed in front of Meg and belched. His green eyes gleamed. He did not appear even slightly sick, which I guess wasn't surprising, since human diseases don't infect fruit trees. Instead, even after eating three whole nosoi, the little fellow looked hungry.

He howled and beat his small chest. "Peaches!"

Slowly, I raised my sword. "Meg, don move," I snuffled. "I'm gonna–"

"No!" she said. "Don't hurt him."

She put her hand tentatively on the creature's curly head. "You saved us," she told the karpos. "Thank you."

I lowered my sword and my mind was filled of the time I had refused to let anyone kill Bessie. The grain spirit hugged Meg's leg and glared at us as if daring us to approach.

"Peaches," he growled.

"He likes you," I noted. "Um…why?"

"I don't know," Meg said. "Honestly, I didn't summon him!"

"Well, whatever the case," Apollo said, "we owe the karpos our lives. This brings to mind an expression I coined ages ago: A peach a day keeps the plague spirits away!"

I sneezed. "I thought it was apples and doctors."

The karpos hissed.

"Or peaches," I said. "Peaches work too."

"Peaches," agreed the karpos.

I wiped my nose. "Not criticizing, but why is he grooting?"

Meg frowned. "Grooting?"

"Yeah, like thah character in the movie…only saying one thing over and over."

"I'm afraid I haven't seen that movie," Apollo said. "But this karpos does seem to have a very…targeted vocabulary."

"Maybe Peaches is his name." Meg stroked the karpos's curly brown hair, which elicited a demonic purring from the creature's throat. "That's what I'll call him."

"Whoa, you are not adopting thah–"

I sneezed and another irrigation pipe exploded behind him, sending up a row of tiny geysers. "Ugh. Sick."

"You're lucky," Apollo said. "Your trick with the water diluted the spirit's power. Instead of getting a deadly illness, you got a head cold."

"I hate head colds." I said. "Neither of you got sick?"

Meg shook her head.

"I have an excellent constitution," Apollo said. "No doubt that's what saved me."

"And the fact thah I hosed the smoke off of you," I said.

"Well, yes."

I stared at him expectantly.

"Ah…thank you," he said.

I nodded. "No problem."

Apollo visibly relaxed.

"Can we go now?" Meg asked.

"An excellent idea," Apollo said. "Though I'm afraid Percy is in no condition–"

"I can drive you the rest of the way," I said. "If we can get my car out from between those trees…"

I stared at my car trying to figure out a way to get it out but then a police cruiser pulling over on the side of the road. The cruiser's roof lights flashed on.

"Aw, Hades no…"

"Great," I muttered. "If they tow the Prius, I'm dead. My mom and Paul need thah car."

"Go talk to the officers," Apollo said. "You won't be any use to us anyway in your current state."

"Yeah, we'll be fine," Meg said. "You said the camp is right over those hills?"

"Right, but…" I scowled. It was impossible to think straight through the effects of my cold. "Most people enter camp from the east, where Half-Blood Hill is. The western border is wilder–hills and woods, all heavily enchanted. If you're not careful, you can get lost…." I sneezed again. "I'm still not even sure Apollo can get in if he's fully mortal."

"I'll get in." Apollo said, biting his lip.

The police car's doors opened.

"Go," he said. "We'll find our way through the woods. You explain to the police that you're sick and you lost control of the car. They'll go easy on you."

I laughed. "Yeah. Cops love me almost as much as teachers do." I glanced at Meg. "You sure you're okay with the baby fruit demon?"

Peaches growled.

"All good," Meg promised. "Go home. Rest. Get lots of fluids."

My mouth twitched. "You're telling a son of Poseidon to get lots of fluids? Okay, just try to survive until the weekend, will you? I'll come to camp and check on you guys if I can. Be careful and—CHOOOO!"

Growling under my breath, I put Riptide in my pocket and trudged down the hill, sneezing and sniffling.

Just before I reached the officers, I turned and watched Apollo and Meg walk away.

"Stay safe," I whispered to the wind.