Mia's first choice: Run to the elevator without looking back at the evil princess.
Her second choice: attack the weird princess now, because she was sure a fight was coming. The way the lady's face glowed when she'd heard Jason's name had been bad enough. Now Her Highness was smiling like nothing had happened, and Jason and Leo didn't seem to think anything was wrong.
The princess gestured toward the cosmetics counter. "Shall we start with the potions?"
"Cool," Jason said.
"Guys," Piper interrupted, "―we're here to get the storm spirits and Coach Hedge. If this—princess—is really our friend—"
"Oh, I'm better than a friend, my dear," Her Highness said. "I'm a saleswoman." Her diamonds sparkled, and her eyes glittered like a snake's—cold and dark. "Don't worry. We'll work our way down to the first floor, eh?"
Leo nodded eagerly. "Sure, yeah! We're safe here." He grabbed Mia's hand."That sounds okay. Right, Piper? Mia?"
Mia did her best to stare daggers at him: No, it is not okay!
"Of course it's okay." Her Highness put her hands on Leo's and Jason's shoulders and steered them toward the cosmetics. "Come along, boys."
Mia and Piper didn't have much choice except to follow.
Mia always hated department stores—mostly because she had been dragged to so many by Annabeth. From trying to help her cope with Luke's death, to picking out a dress for a date with Percy. It has always been in dressing room to dressing room, and Mia never having enough money to afford any of them. She was going to have her father's finances once she turned eighteen, and she wasn't at that age yet.
Anyway, she wasn't thrilled to be back in a department store—especially one run by a crazy princess who glowed in the dark.
"And here," the princess said, "is the finest assortment of magical mixtures anywhere."
The counter was crammed with bubbling beakers and smoking vials on tripods. Lining the display shelves were crystal flasks—some shaped like swans or honey bear dispensers. The liquids inside were every color,
from glowing white to polka-dotted. And the smells—ugh! Some were pleasant, like fresh-baked cookies or roses, but they were mixed with the scents of burning tires, skunk spray, and gym lockers.
The princess pointed to a blooded vial—a simple test tube with a cork stopper. "This one will heal any disease."
"Even cancer?" Leo asked. "Leprosy? Hangnails?"
"Any disease, sweet boy. And this vial"—she pointed to a swan-shaped container with blue liquid inside—"will kill you very painfully."
"Awesome," Jason said. His voice sounded dazed and sleepy.
"Jason," Piper said. "We've got a job to do. Remember?"
Piper tried to put power into her words, to snap him out of his trance with charmspeak, but her voice sounded shaky even to her. Mia also grabbed Leo's hand, and gave him a first-class smile.
"Yeah, come on, babe." Mia said to Leo, trying to get him out of this trance. "We can head back.. and finally have some alone time. Just me and you."
She winked, and Leo hesitated. But Jason grunted.
"Job to do," Jason muttered. "Sure. But shopping first, okay?"
The princess beamed at him. "Then we have potions for resisting fire—"
"Got that covered," Leo said.
"Indeed?" The princess studied Leo's face more closely. "You don't appear to be wearing my trademark sunscreen …but no matter. We also have potions that cause blindness, insanity, sleep, or—"
"Wait." Piper was still staring at the red vial. "Could that potion cure lost memory?"
Mia shook her head, and the princess narrowed her eyes. "Possibly. Yes. Quite possibly. Why, my dear? Have you forgotten something important?"
Piper tried to keep her expression neutral, and Mia glared at Piper.
"How much?" Piper asked.
The princess got a faraway look in her eyes. "Well, now … The price is always tricky. I love helping people. Honestly, I do. And I always keep my bargains, but sometimes people try to cheat me."
Her gaze drifted to Jason. "Once, for instance, I met a handsome young man who wanted a treasure from my father's kingdom. We made a bargain, and I promised to help him steal it."
"From your own dad?" Jason still looked half in a trance, but the idea seemed to bother him.
"Oh, don't worry," the princess said. "I demanded a high price. The young man had to take me away with him. He was quite good-looking, dashing, strong …" She looked at Piper and Mia. "I'm sure, my dears, you both understand how one might be attracted to such a hero, and want to help him."
Mia blushed, but she had to focus. She also found the princess's story disturbingly familiar. Pieces of old myths she'd read with her dad started coming together, but this woman couldn't be the one she was thinking of.
"At any rate," Her Highness continued, "my hero had to do many impossible tasks, and I'm not bragging when I say he couldn't have done them without me. I betrayed my own family to win the hero his prize. And still he cheated me of my payment."
"Cheated?" Jason frowned, as if trying to remember something important.
"That's messed up," Leo said.
Her Highness patted his cheek affectionately, while Piper tried to hold Mia away from attacking the princess for touching Leo. "I'm sure you don't need to worry, Leo. You seem honest. You would always pay a fair price, wouldn't you?"
Leo nodded. "What were we buying again? I'll take two."
Piper broke in for Mia's sake: "So, the vial, Your Highness—how much?"
The princess assessed Piper's clothes, her face, her posture, as if putting a price tag on one slightly used demigod.
"Would you give anything for it, my dear?" the princess asked. "I sense that you would."
Charmspeak has never worked on Mia. But she can tell it's working for Piper. Mia kicked Piper in the shin, and Piper seemed to have woken up.
Piper summoned all her willpower. "No, I won't pay any price. But a fair price, maybe."
Mia tried to use some charmspeak without letting the princess know, "After that, we need to leave. Right, guys?"
Just for a moment, her words seemed to have some effect. The boys looked confused.
"Leave?" Jason said.
"You mean … after shopping?" Leo asked.
Mia wanted to scream, but the princess tilted her head, examining Piper and Mia with newfound respect.
"Impressive," the princess said. "Not many people could resist my suggestions. Are you a child of Aphrodite, my dear? Ah, yes—I should have seen it. No matter. Perhaps we should shop a while longer before you decide what to buy, eh?"
"But the vial—"
"Now, boys." She turned to Jason and Leo. Her voice was so much more powerful than Mia's, so full of confidence, Mia didn't stand a chance. "Would you like to see more?"
"Sure," Jason said.
"Okay," Leo said. Mia wanted to kick Leo's leg, but the Princess just smiled.
"Excellent," the princess said. "You'll need all the help you can get if you're to make it to the Bay Area."
Mia concentrated on a dagger. Once it appeared in her hand, Mia's fingers adjusted around them.
"The Bay Area?" Piper said. "Why the Bay Area?"
The princess smiled. "Well, that's where they'll die, isn't it?"
Then she led them toward the escalators, Jason and Leo still looking excited to shop. Piper and Mia cornered the princess as Jason and Leo went off to check out the living fur coats.
"You want them shopping for their deaths?" Piper demanded.
"Mmm." The princess blew dust off a display case of swords. "I'm a seer, my dear. I know your little secret. But we don't want to dwell on that, do we? The boys are having such fun."
Mia glared at Piper, "Time to tell me."
Mia and Piper turned to the boys. Leo laughed as he tried on a hat that seemed to be made from enchanted raccoon fur. Its ringed tail twitched, and its little legs wiggled frantically as Leo walked. Jason was ogling the men's sportswear. Mia's heart ache when she heard Leo's laugh.. but since when were boys interested in shopping for clothes? A definite sign they were under an evil spell.
Piper glared at the princess. "Who are you?"
"I told you, my dear. I'm the Princess of Colchis."
"Where's Colchis?"
The princess's expression turned a little sad. "Where was Colchis, you mean. My father ruled the far shores of the Black Sea, as far to the east as a Greek ship could sail in those days. But Colchis is no more—lost eons ago."
"Eons?" Mia asked. She remember something she read.. but that was in an old book. "How old are you?"
The princess laughed. "A lady should avoid asking or answering that question. Let's just say the, ah, immigration process to enter your country took quite a while. My patron finally brought me through. She made all this possible."
The princess swept her hand around the department store.
Mia's mouth tasted like metal. "Your patron …"
"Oh, yes. She doesn't bring just anyone through, mind you—only those who have special talents, such as me. And really, she insists on so little—a store entrance that must be underground so she can, ah, monitor my clientele; and a favor now and then. In exchange for a new life? Really, it was the best bargain I'd made in centuries."
Run, Mia thought. We have to get out of here. Every woman for herself.
But before she could even turn her thoughts into words, Jason called, "Hey, check it out!"
From a rack labeled distressed clothing, he held up a purple T-shirt like the one he'd worn on the school field trip—except this shirt looked as if it had been clawed by tigers.
Jason frowned. "Why does this look so familiar?"
"Jason, it's like yours," Piper said. "Now we really have to leave." But she wasn't sure he could even hear her anymore through the princess's enchantment.
"Nonsense," the princess said. "The boys aren't done, are they? And yes, my dear. Those shirts are very popular—tradeins from previous customers. It suits you."
Leo picked up an orange Camp Half-Blood tee with a hole through the middle, as if it had been hit by a javelin. Mia's heart ache.
"Damn you." Mia told the Princess. What if that's Percy's shirt?
Next to that was a dented bronze breastplate pitted with corrosion—acid, maybe?—and a Roman toga slashed to pieces and stained with something that looked disturbingly like dried blood.
"Your Highness," Piper said, trying to control her nerves. "Why don't you tell the boys how you betrayed your family? I'm sure they'd like to hear that story."
Her words didn't have any effect on the princess, but the boys turned, suddenly interested.
"More story?" Leo asked.
"I like more story!" Jason agreed.
The princess flashed Piper an irritated look. "Oh, one will do strange things for love, Piper. You should know that. I fell for that young hero, in fact, because your mother Aphrodite had me under a spell. If it wasn't for her—but I can't hold a grudge against a goddess, can I?"
The princess's tone made her meaning clear: I can take it out on their daughters.
"But that hero took you with him when he fled Colchis." Piper remembered. "Didn't he, Your Highness? He married you just as he promised."
The look in the princess's eyes made Piper want to apologize, but she didn't back down.
"At first," Her Highness admitted, "―it seemed he would keep his word. But even after I helped him steal my father's treasure, he still needed my help. As we fled, my brother's fleet came after us. His warships overtook us. He would have destroyed us, but I convinced my brother to come aboard our ship first and talk under a flag of truce. He trusted me."
"And you killed your own brother," Mia said, the horrible story all coming back to her, along with a name—an infamous name that began with the letter M.
"What?" Jason stirred. For a moment he looked almost like himself. "Killed your own—"
"No," the princess snapped. "Those stories are lies. It was my new husband and his men who killed my brother, though they couldn't have done it without my deception. They threw his body into the sea, and the pursuing fleet had to stop and search for it so they could give my brother a proper burial. This gave us time to get away. All this, I did for my husband. And he forgot our bargain. He betrayed me in the end."
Jason still looked uncomfortable. "What did he do?"
The princess held the sliced-up toga against Jason's chest, as if measuring him for an assassination. "Don't you know the story, my boy? You of all people should. You were named for him."
"Jason," Piper said. "The original Jason. But then you're —you should be dead!"
The princess smiled. "As I said, a new life in a new country. Certainly I made mistakes. I turned my back on my own people. I was called a traitor, a thief, a liar, a murderess. But I acted out of love." She turned to the boys and gave them a pitiful look, batting her eyelashes. Piper could feel the sorcery washing over them, taking control more firmly than ever.
"Wouldn't you do the same for someone you loved, my dears?"
"Oh, sure," Jason said, turning to Piper.
"Okay," Leo said, grabbing Mia's hand.
"Guys!" Piper ground her teeth in frustration.
Mia grabbed Leo's face, and tried to use charmspeak to snap him out of it, "Don't you see who she is? Don't you—"
"Let's continue, shall we?" the princess said breezily. "I believe you wanted to talk about a price for the storm spirits—and your satyr."
Leo got distracted on the second floor with the appliances.
"No way," he said. "Is that an armored forge?"
Before Piper could stop him, he hopped off the escalator and ran over to a big oval oven that looked like a barbecue on steroids.
When they caught up with him, the princess said, "You have good taste. This is-"
"The H-2000, designed by Hephaestus himself." Mia said, "Hot enough to melt Celestial bronze or Imperial gold."
Jason flinched as if he recognized that term. "Imperial gold?"
The princess nodded. "Yes, my dear. Like that weapon so cleverly concealed in your pocket. To be properly forged, Imperial gold had to be consecrated in the Temple of Jupiter on Capitoline Hill in Rome. Quite a powerful and rare metal, but like the Roman emperors, quite volatile. Be sure never to break that blade…"
She smiled pleasantly. "Rome was after my time, of course, but I do hear stories. And now over here—this golden throne is one of my finest luxury items. Hephaestus made it as a punishment for his mother, Hera. Sit in it and you'll be immediately trapped."
Leo apparently took this as an order. He began walking toward it in a trance.
"Leo, don't!" Mia warned.
He blinked. "How much for both?"
"Oh, the seat I could let you have for five great deeds. The forge, seven years of servitude. And for only a bit of your strength—" She led Leo into the appliance section, giving him prices on various items.
Mia was about t run towards Leo, when Piper grabbed Mia's hand.
"No, Jason first." Piper said. Mia glared at her.
"This is not all about your boyfriend!" Mia hissed, "Leo is a human too!"
Piper ignored her, and slapped Jason.
"Ow," he muttered sleepily. "What was that for?"
"Snap out of it!" Piper hissed.
"What do you mean?"
Mia rolled her eyes, "She's charmspeaking you. Can't you feel it?"
He knit his eyebrows. "She seems okay."
"She's not okay! She shouldn't even be alive! She was married to Jason—the other Jason—three thousand years ago. Remember what Boreas said—something about the souls no longer being confined to Hades? It's not just monsters who can't stay dead. She's come back from the Underworld!"
Jason shook his head uneasily. "She's not a ghost."
"No, she's worse! She's—"
"Children." The princess was back with Leo in tow. "If you please, we will now see what you came for. That is what you want, yes?"
Mia had to choke back a scream. She was tempted to pull out her dagger and take on this witch herself, but she didn't like her chances—not in the middle of Her Highness's department store while her friends were under a spell. Mia couldn't even be sure they'd take her side in a fight. She had to figure out a better plan.
They took the escalator down to the base of the fountain. For the first time, Piper noticed two large bronze sundials—each about the size of a trampoline—inlaid on the marble tile floor to the north and south of the fountain. The gilded oversize canary cages stood to the east and west, and the farthest one held the storm spirits. They were so densely packed, spinning around like a super-concentrated tornado, that Mia couldn't tell how many there were—dozens, at least.
"Hey," Leo said, "Coach Hedge looks okay!"
They ran to the nearest canary cage. The old satyr seemed to have been petrified at the moment he was sucked into the sky above the Grand Canyon. He was frozen mid-shout, his club raised over his head like he was ordering the gym class to drop and give him fifty. His curly hair stuck up at odd angles. If Piper just concentrated on certain details—the bright orange polo shirt, the wispy goatee, the whistle around his neck—she could imagine Coach Hedge as his good old annoying self.
"Yes," the princess said. "I always keep my wares in good condition. We can certainly barter for the storm spirits and the satyr. A package deal. If we come to terms, I'll even throw in the vial of healing potion, and you can go in peace." She gave Mia a shrewd look. "That's better than starting unpleasantness, isn't it, dear?"
Before Mia can say something stupid, Piper grabbed her sister's hand, "We can negotiate."
"Totally!" Leo agreed. "Name your price."
"Leo!" Mia snapped.
The princess chuckled. "Name my price? Perhaps not the best haggling strategy, my boy, but at least you know a thing's value. Freedom is very valuable indeed. You would ask me to release this satyr, who attacked my storm winds—"
"Who attacked us," Piper interjected.
Her Highness shrugged. "As I said, my patron asks me for small favors from time to time. Sending the storm spirits to abduct you—that was one. I assure you it was nothing personal. And no harm done, as you came here, in the end, of your own free will! At any rate, you want the satyr freed, and you want my storm spirits—who are very valuable servants, by the way—so you can hand them over to that tyrant Aeolus. Doesn't seem quite fair, does it? The price will be high."
Mia could see that her friends were ready to offer anything, promise anything. Before they could speak, Piper played her last card.
"You're Medea," she said. "You helped the original Jason steal the Golden Fleece. You're one of the most evil villains in Greek mythology. Jason, Leo—don't trust her."
Mia could tell Piper put all the intensity she could gather into those words. She was utterly sincere, and it seemed to have some effect. Jason stepped away from the sorceress.
Leo scratched his head and looked around like he was coming out of a dream.
"What are we doing, again?"
"Boys!" The princess spread her hands in a welcoming gesture. Her diamond jewelry glittered, and her painted fingers curled like blood-tipped claws. "It's true, I'm Medea. But I'm so misunderstood. Oh, girls, you don't know what it was like for women in the old days. We had no power, no leverage. Often we couldn't even choose our own husbands. But I was different. I chose my own destiny by becoming a sorceress. Is that so wrong? I made a pact with Jason: my help to win the fleece, in exchange for his love. A fair deal. He became a famous hero! Without me, he would've died unknown on the shores of Colchis."
Jason —Piper's Jason— scowled. "Then … you really did die three thousand years ago? You came back from the Underworld?"
"Death no longer holds me, young hero," Medea said. "Thanks to my patron, I am flesh and blood again."
"You … re-formed?" Leo blinked. "Like a monster?"
Medea spread her fingers, and steam hissed from her nails, like water splashed on hot iron. "You have no idea what's happening, do you, my dears? It is so much worse than a stirring of monsters from Tartarus. My patron knows that giants and monsters are not her greatest servants. I am mortal. I learn from my mistakes. And now-"
"Guys," Piper said. "The original Jason left Medea because she was crazy and bloodthirsty."
"Lies!" Medea said.
Mia crossed her arms, "On the way back from Colchis, Jason's ship landed at another kingdom, and Jason agreed to dump Medea and marry the king's daughter."
"After I bore him two children!" Medea said. "Still he broke his promise! I ask you, was that right?"
Jason and Leo dutifully shook their heads, but Mia wasn't through.
"It may not have been right," she said, "but neither was Medea's revenge. She murdered her own children to get back at Jason. She poisoned his new wife and fled the kingdom."
Medea snarled. "An invention to ruin my reputation! The people of the Corinth—that unruly mob—killed my children and drove me out. Jason did nothing to protect me. He robbed me of everything. So yes, I sneaked back into the palace and poisoned his lovely new bride. It was only fair—a suitable price."
"You're insane," Piper said.
"I am the victim!" Medea wailed. "I died with my dreams shattered, but no longer. I know now not to trust heroes. When they come asking for treasures, they will pay a heavy price. Especially when the one asking has the name of Jason!"
The fountain turned bright red. Mia and Piper drew her daggers, but their hands was shaking almost too badly to hold it.
"Jason, Leo—it's time to go. Now." Mia said.
"Before you've closed the deal?" Medea asked. "What of your quest, boys? And my price is so easy. Did you know this fountain is magic? If a dead man were to be thrown into it, even if he was chopped to pieces, he would pop back out fully formed—stronger and more powerful than ever."
"Seriously?" Leo asked.
"Leo, she's lying," Mia begged. "She did that trick with somebody before—a king, I think. She convinced his daughters to cut him to pieces so he could come out of the water young and healthy again, but it just killed him!"
"Ridiculous," Medea said, and Mia could hear the power charged in every syllable. "Leo, Jason—my price is so simple. Why don't you two fight? If you get injured, or even killed, no problem. We'll just throw you into the fountain and you'll be better than ever. You do want to fight, don't you? You resent each other!"
"Guys, no!" Piper said. But they were already glaring at each other, as if it was just dawning on them how they really felt.
Piper had never felt more helpless. Now she understood what real sorcery looked like. She'd always thought magic meant wands and fireballs, but this was worse. Medea didn't just rely on poisons and potions. Her most potent weapon was her voice.
Leo scowled. "Jason's always the star. He always gets the attention and takes me for granted."
"You're annoying, Leo." Jason said. "You never take anything seriously. You can't even fix a dragon."
"Stop!" Piper an Mia pleaded, but both drew weapons—Jason his gold sword, and Leo a hammer from his tool belt.
"Let them go, girls." Medea urged. "I'm doing you a favor. Let it happen now, and it will make your choice so much easier. Enceladus will be pleased. You could have your father back today!"
Medea's charmspeak didn't work on her, but the sorceress still had a persuasive voice. Mia could see Piper hesitated, but Mia shakes her head.
"No, Pipes." Mia said, grabbing her sister's hand, "Don't listen to her."
Piper paused, but then realized something, "You work for Enceladus."
Medea laughed. "Serve a giant? No. But we all serve the same greater cause—a patron you cannot begin to challenge. Walk away, child of Aphrodite. This does not have to be your death, too. Save yourself, and your father can go free."
Leo and Jason were still facing off, ready to fight, but they looked unsteady and confused—waiting for another order. Part of them had to be resisting, Mia hoped. This went completely against their nature.
"Listen to me, girl." Medea plucked a diamond off her bracelet and threw it into a spray of water from the fountain. As it passed through the multicolored light, Medea said, "O Iris, goddess of the rainbow, show me the office of Tristan McLean."
The mist shimmered, and Piper saw her father's study. Sitting behind his desk, talking on the phone, was her dad's assistant, Jane, in her dark business suit, her hair swirled in a tight bun.
"Hello, Jane," Medea said.
Jane hung up the phone calmly. "How can I help you, ma'am? Hello, Piper."
"You—" Piper was so angry she could hardly talk.
"Yes, child," Medea said. "Your father's assistant. Quite easy to manipulate. An organized mind for a mortal, but incredibly weak."
Mia had no idea what was happening, but Jane, the assistant smile. "Thank you, ma'am."
"Don't mention it," Medea said. "I just wanted to congratulate you, Jane. Getting Mr. McLean to leave town so suddenly, take his jet to Oakland without alerting the press or the police—well done! No one seems to know where he's gone. And telling him his daughter's life was on the line—that was a nice touch to get his cooperation."
"Yes," Jane agreed in a bland tone, as if she were sleepwalking. "He was quite cooperative when he believed Piper was in danger."
Piper looked down at her dagger. Mia sighed, and dropped up her blade, pointing it swiftly at the Princess, waiting for the right moment to attack.
"I may have new orders for you, Jane." Medea said. "If the girl cooperates, it may be time for Mr. McLean to come home. Would you arrange a suitable cover story for his absence, just in case? And I imagine the poor man will need some time in a psychiatric hospital."
"Yes, ma'am. I will stand by."
The image faded, and Medea turned to Piper. "There, you see?"
"You lured my dad into a trap," Piper said. "You helped the giant—"
"Oh, please, dear. You'll work yourself into a fit! I've been preparing for this war for years, even before I was brought back to life. I'm a seer, as I said. I can tell the future as well as your little oracle. Years ago, still suffering in the Fields of Punishment, I had a vision of the seven in your so-called Great Prophecy. I saw your friend Leo here, and saw that he would be an important enemy someday. I stirred the consciousness of my patron, gave her this information, and she managed to wake just a little—just enough to visit him."
"Leo's mother," Mia said, and she began to speak in Spanih. "Leo escucha esto! Ella ayudó a matar a tu madre!" Leo hear this! she helped kill your mother!
"Uh-huh," Leo mumbled, in a daze. He frowned at his hammer. "So … I just attack Jason? That's okay?"
"Perfectly safe," Medea promised. "And Jason, strike him hard. Show me you are worthy of your namesake."
"No!" Piper ordered. "Jason, Leo—she's tricking you. Put down your weapons."
The sorceress rolled her eyes. "Please, girl. You're no match for me. I trained with my aunt, the immortal Circe. I can drive men mad or heal them with my voice. What hope do these puny young heroes have against me? Now, boys, kill each other!"
"Jason, Leo, listen to me." Mia put all of her emotion into her voice. For a long time, she'd been trying to control herself and not show weakness, but now she poured everything into her words—her fear, her desperation, her anger. She knew she might be signing her dad's death warrant, but she cared too much about her friends to let them hurt each other. "Medea is charming you. It's part of her magic. You are best friends. Don't fight each other. Fight her!"
They hesitated, and Piper could feel the spell shatter.
Jason blinked. "Leo, was I just about to stab you?"
"Something about my mother … ?" Leo frowned, then turned toward Medea. "You … you're working for Dirt Woman. You sent her to the machine shop." He lifted his arm. "Lady, I got a three-pound hammer with your name on it."
"Bah!" Medea sneered. "I'll simply collect payment another way."
She pressed one of the mosaic tiles on the floor, and the building rumbled. Jason swung his sword at Medea, but she dissolved into smoke and reappeared at the base of the escalator.
"You're slow, hero!" She laughed. "Take your frustration out on my pets!"
Before Jason could go after her, the giant bronze sundials at either end of the fountain swung open. Two snarling gold beasts—flesh-and-blood winged dragons—crawled out from the pits below. Each was the size of a camper van, maybe not large compared to Festus, but large enough.
"So that's what's in the kennels." Leo said meekly.
The dragons spread their wings and hissed. Mia could feel the heat coming off their glittering skin. One turned his angry orange eyes on her.
"Don't look them in the eye!" Mia warned, remembering one of her books, "They'll paralyze you."
"Indeed!" Medea was leisurely riding the escalator up, leaning against the handrail as she watched the fun. "These two dears have been with me a long time—sun dragons, you know, gifts from my grandfather Helios. They pulled my chariot when I left Corinth, and now they will be your destruction. Ta-ta!"
The dragons lunged. Leo and Jason charged to intercept. Mia was amazed how fearlessly the boys attacked—working like a team who had trained together for years, when she has trouble fighting with Percy when they knew each other most of their lives.
Medea was almost to the second floor, where she'd be able to choose from a wide assortment of deadly appliances.
"Oh, no, you don't," Piper growled, and the girls took off after her.
When Medea spotted Mia, she started climbing in earnest. She was quick for a three-thousand-year-old lady. Mia climbed at top speed, taking the steps three at a time, and still she couldn't catch her. Medea didn't stop at floor two. She hopped the next escalator and continued to ascend.
The potions, Mia thought. Of course that's what she would go for. She was famous for potions.
Down below, Piper heard the battle raging. Leo was blowing his safety whistle, and Jason was yelling to keep the dragons' attention. Mia didn't dare look to see were Piper was—not while she was running with a dagger in her hand. She could just see herself tripping and stabbing herself in the nose. That would be super heroic.
She grabbed a shield from an armored manikin on floor three and continued to climb. She thought of Chiron, and Uncle Dionysus. She imagined what they would say if they saw her not catching up to a old great-great-great-grandma.
She reached the top floor, breathing hard, but she was too late. Medea had reached the potions counter.
The sorceress grabbed a swan-shaped vial—the blue one that caused painful death— and Mia thought she was a goner. Mia closed her eyes, but Piper threw her shield.
Medea turned triumphantly just in time to get hit in the chest by a fifty-pound metal Frisbee. She stumbled backward, crashing over the counter, breaking vials and knocking down shelves. When the sorceress stood from the wreckage, her dress was stained a dozen different colors. Many of the stains were smoldering and glowing.
"Fool!" Medea wailed. "Do you have any idea what so many potions will do when mixed?"
"Kill you?" Piper said hopefully.
The carpet began to steam around Medea's feet. She coughed, and her face contorted in pain—or was she faking?
Below, Leo called, "Jason, help!"
Mia, since Piper had the Princess handled, looked back and almost sobbed in despair. One of the dragons had Leo pinned to the floor. It was baring its fangs, ready to snap. Jason was all the way across the room battling the other dragon, much too far away to assist.
"You've doomed us all!" Medea screamed to Piper. Smoke was rolling across the carpet as the stain spread, throwing sparks and setting fires in the clothing racks. "You have only seconds before this concoction consumes everything and destroys the building. There's no time—"
CRASH! The stained glass ceiling splintered in a rain of multicolored shards, and Festus the bronze dragon dropped into the department store. He hurtled into the fray, snatching up a sun dragon in each claw. Only now did Piper appreciate just how big and strong their metal friend was.
"Fetus!" Mia said, excitedly.
"That's my boy!" Leo yelled.
Festus flew halfway up the atrium, then hurled the sun dragons into the pits they'd come from. Leo raced to the fountain and pressed the marble tile, closing the sundials. They shuddered as the dragons banged against them, trying to get out, but for the moment they were contained. Medea cursed in some ancient language. The whole fourth floor was on fire now. The air filled with noxious gas. Even with the roof open, Mia could feel the heat intensifying. She backed up to the edge of the railing, keeping her dagger pointed toward Medea.
"I will not be abandoned again!" The sorceress knelt and snatched up the red healing potion, which had somehow survived the crash. "You want your boyfriend's memory restored? Mia, you want to have your boyfriend, Luke, back? Take me with you!"
Mia stared at the women in shock. How could she know about Luke, when that was one of her secrets that only Percy, Annabeth, Grover, Hermes, and Nico knows? Mia looks back. The bronze dragon flapped his mighty wings, snatched the two cages with the satyr and the storm spirits in his claws, and began to ascend.
The building rumbled. Fire and the smoke curled up the walls, melting the railings, turning the air to acid.
"You'll never survive your quest without me!" Medea growled. "Your boy hero will stay ignorant forever, and your father will die. Take me with you!"
For one heartbeat, Mia was tempted. To have Luke back.. that sounds perfect. Almost too perfect. Then she saw Medea's grim smile. The sorceress was confident in her powers of persuasion, confident that she could always make a deal, always escape and win in the end.
"Not today, witch." Piper said.
"Bye!" Mia said, as the girls jumped over the side. She plummeted for only a second before Leo caught her, hauling her aboard the dragon. She heard Medea screaming in rage as they soared through the broken roof and over downtown Chicago. Then the department store exploded behind them.
Mia kept looking back. She haft-expected to see those nasty sun dragons toting a flying chariot with a screaming magical saleswoman throwing potions, but nothing followed them.
She steered the dragon toward the southwest. She was sitting on Leo's lap, just this once. Leo was smelling her hair, happily kissing her head randomly. Mia told him to sod off, but she was secretly happy that he wasn't died. Eventually, the smoke from the burning department store faded in the distance, but Mia didn't relax until the suburbs of Chicago gave way to snowy fields, and the sun began to set.
"Good job, Festus." Mia patted the dragon's metal hide. "You did awesome."
The dragon shuddered. Gears popped and clicked in his neck.
Leo frowned. "I'll give you a tune-up next time we land. You've earned some motor oil and Tabasco sauce."
Festus whirled his teeth, but even that sounded weak. He flew at a steady pace, his great wings angling to catch the wind, but he was carrying a heavy load. Two cages in his claws plus three people on his back—the more Leo thought about it, the more worried he got. Even metal dragons had limits.
"Leo." Piper patted his shoulder. "You feeling okay?"
"Yeah … not bad for a brainwashed zombie. Thanks for saving us back there, beauty queen, princesa. If you hadn't talked me out of that spell—"
"Don't worry about it," Piper said.
"And don't call me that." Mia said, grabbing into the reins harder.
"Okay, baby." Leo said. Mia whacked his head, and Leo laughed, but his laugh died quickly.
"We're going to have to put down soon." Mia warned her friends.
Leo nods, "Couple more hours, maybe, to make sure Medea's not following us. I don't think Festus can fly much longer than that."
"Yeah," Piper agreed. "Coach Hedge probably wants to get out of his canary cage, too. Question is—where are we going?"
"Couch Hedge... I need to start calling him that." Mia smiled, "Anyways, we're going to the Bay Area."
"Didn't Medea say something about Oakland?" Leo asked.
Piper didn't respond for so long. Mia wondered if he'd said something wrong.
"Piper's dad," Jason put in. "Something's happened to your dad, right? He got lured into some kind of trap."
Piper let out a shaky breath. "Look, Medea said you would both die in the Bay Area. And besides … even if we went there, the Bay Area is huge! First we need to find Aeolus and drop off the storm spirits. Boreas said Aeolus was the only one who could tell us exactly where to go."
Leo grunted. "So how do we find Aeolus?"
Jason leaned forward. "You mean you don't see it?" He pointed ahead of them, but ia didn't see anything except clouds and the lights of a few towns glowing in the dusk.
"What?" Mia asked. "That … whatever it is,"
Jason said. "In the air."
Leo glanced back. Piper looked just as confused as he was.
"Right," Mia said, sternly. "Could you be more specific on the whatever-it-is' part? Don't give us just a "that."
"Like a vapor trail," Jason said. "Except it's glowing. Really faint, but it's definitely there. We've been following it since Chicago, so I figured you saw it."
Leo shook his head. "Maybe Festus can sense it. You think Aeolus made it?"
"Well, it's a magic trail in the wind," Jason said. "Aeolus is the wind god. I think he knows we've got prisoners for him. He's telling us where to fly."
"Or it's another trap," Piper said.
Her tone worried Mia. She didn't just sound nervous. She sounded broken with despair, like they'd already sealed their fate, and like it was her fault.
"Pipes, you all right?" Leo asked.
"Don't call me that."
"Okay, fine. You don't like any of the names I make up for you. But if your dad's in trouble and we can help—"
"You can't," she said, her voice getting shakier. "Look, I'm tired. If you don't mind …"
She leaned back against Jason and closed her eyes.
Leo grabbed Mia's shoulder's and made them less stiff.
"You're nervous." Leo said, holding the reins. "First time sitting on someone's lap?"
Mia rolled her eyes. "Ha ha ha. No, just thinking."
They flew in silence for a while. Festus seemed to know where he was going.
"Catch a few Z's," Jason said to Leo and Mia. "It's cool, I'll will drive."
"Nah, I'm okay—"
"Same, here."
"Leo, Mia." Jason said, "―you guys are not machines. Besides, I'm the only one who can see the vapor trail. I'll make sure we stay on course."
Mia's eyes started to close on their own. Leo said "All right. Maybe just …"
Leo didn't finish the sentence before slumping forward and resting his head on Mia's back. Mia closed her eyes, and slumped forward on Fetus's back.
In her dream, Mia felt like she was walking barefoot in grass. The air smelled nice, and this warm feelings filled her. She never felt like this.. unless she is near-
"Hello, honey!" Aphrodite said, as Mia's eyes opened.
"Mother?" Mia said. She looked around. She was in a beautiful field, with flowers. She was sitting down on a throne, but her feet touched the ground.
"Yes! Me!" Aphrodite said, excitedly, "I saw who you fell asleep with!"
Mia groaned, "And now you're stalking my love life?"
"You like him!" Aphrodite squealed, "I was coming to tell you a Prophecy, but that can wait! Ares has been asking for you, and of course that's when I began to look around for you. That Nico kid, I think he's bisexual, but that's okay, of course! I'm proud of your best friend-"
"Wait, prophecy?" Mia asked. Aphrodite nods.
"Yeah, that Rachel Dare girl made a Prophecy, and I think Chiron (he's a dear, of course) called it the Prophecy of Mia Sanchez/Jackson."
"Tell me it." Mia urged. Aphrodite laughed.
"Feisty, Mummy's proud." Aphrodite said.
"As the heroes walks, Mia Jackson will be with.
Helping the son of the god of blacksmith.
Mia Jackson will fall in love.
But there is someone the seven has to get rid of.
But her heart dies.
And comes back alive, with someone new.
Who will he chose? Her or you?"
Aphrodite clapped excitedly, "Son of Hephaestus! And we know who that is-"
"Leo." Mia groaned, slapping her face with her hand. "But.. he likes alot of other girls. But.. I am the only one he actually likes... you know what I mean?"
Aphrodite began to whisper, "I can't tell you what happens.. but I can tell you this. It all works out in the end."
Mia looks at her mom in horror. Her mother giggles, and waves.
"Bye bye!" Aphrodite said. Then Mia snapped awake to Jason and Piper screaming.