Artemis assured them that dawn was coming, but one couldn't tell that from looking at the sky. It was colder and darker and snowier than ever.

The air was completely still as the Hunters stood in a large circle. For obvious reasons, Gohan, Percy and Nico stood several meters away on a small hill, though they could still see. Thalia, as she was a girl, was allowed to stand much closer, while Bianca stood among her new comrades. The circle was wide enough that there was considerable space at the center.

At its center, the body of the dead Hunter laid, covered in a gleaming silver shroud, not unlike the ones from Camp. It almost seemed to shimmer in the bright light.

No one spoke as Artemis took several steps forward from the circle, until she stood at the covered head of the girl.

"Aldrina. You were one of my most faithful servants, and served me loyally for many centuries. You never wavered or faltered in your oath, and died a warrior's death. Now, you rest. May the judges deem you worthy and pass into Elysium, to join our fallen sisters." Then, the body burst into a brilliant fire that danced fifty feet into the sky. Zoe then stepped forward with an arrow in her hand and thrust the tip into the flame. The other Hunters then each repeated this, until finishing with Bianca. In unison, they nocked their arrows and turned towards the cliff. Then, they all released in unison, sending up a rain of orange that for the briefest moment, lit up the dark sky, before fading into the darkness.

"That was more… dramatic than the Camp's version." Percy commented. Gohan frowned as he stroked his chin, as he if he was stroking a beard.

"Percy… I think we've seen something that very few outsiders, and by that I mean boys, have been allowed to see. Times like these… just watch. Don't speak. These girls are already pretty testy. I really don't want to start a fight. I'm too tired for that."

Before the pyre had even faded out, the Hunters broke camp as quickly as they'd set it up. The two boys stood shivering in the snow (unlike the Hunters, who didn't seem to feel at all uncomfortable), and Artemis stared into the east like she was expecting something. Bianca sat off to one side, talking with Nico. Gohan could tell from his gloomy face that she was explaining her decision to join the Hunt. Percy couldn't help thinking how selfish it was of her, abandoning her brother like that. He glanced at Gohan, and shuddered at the numb, angry expression on his face. Percy had a very confident feeling that Gohan was thinking the same thing, although he would never say it out loud. Personally, Percy preferred calm and brooding Gohan to angry Gohan.

Up on the hill, Westover Hall's windows were completely lightless.

"You know, I wonder if they'll notice that the di Angelos and Dr. Thorn are missing yet. With my luck, the only name Mrs. Gottschalk will remember is "Percy Jackson," and then I'll be the subject of a nationwide manhunt... again." Gohan snickered at that, causing Percy to smile in relief.

Thalia and Grover came up and huddled around them, anxious to hear what had happened in their audience with the goddess.

When Percy told them, Grover turned pale. "The last time the Hunters visited camp, it didn't go well."

"How'd they even show up here?" Percy wondered. "I mean, they just appeared out of nowhere."

"And Bianca joined them," Thalia said, disgusted. "It's all Zoe's fault. That stuck-up, no good—"

"Who can blame her?" Grover said. "Eternity with Artemis?" He heaved a big sigh.

Thalia rolled her eyes. "You satyrs. You're all in love with Artemis. Don't you get that she'll never love you back?"

"But she's so... into nature," Grover swooned. "You're nuts," said Thalia. "Nuts and berries," Grover said dreamily. "Yeah." Gohan shivered as he pulled his coat tighter.

"I don't think I've ever seen you shiver before." Percy said.

"Try getting shot in the back with three arrows." Gohan countered as he walked down the hill. Finally the sky began to lighten. Artemis muttered, "About time. He's so-o-o lazy during the winter."

"You're, um, waiting for sunrise?" Percy asked, having caught up with Gohan.

"For my brother. Yes."

Percy knew the legends about Apollo—or sometimes Helios—driving a big sun chariot across the sky. But Percy also knew that the sun was really a star about a zillion miles away. He'd gotten used to some of the Greek myths being true, but still... he didn't see how Apollo could drive the sun.

"It's not exactly as you think," Artemis said, like she was reading his mind. "Oh, okay." I started to relax. "So, it's not like he'll be pulling up in a—" There was a sudden burst of light on the horizon. A blast of warmth. "Don't look," Artemis advised. "Not until he parks." Gohan cocked his head in confusion.

"Parks?

Gohan noticed Percy avert his eyes, and saw that the other kids were doing the same. Gohan covered his eyes. The light and warmth intensified until his coat felt like it was melting off. Then suddenly the light died.

Gohan looked. And was surprised by the sight. It was a car. A bright red car. Well, that's all Gohan could tell. He wasn't a car guy. It was so impressive it glowed. Then he realized it was glowing because the metal was hot. The snow had melted around the Maserati in a perfect circle.

The driver got out, smiling. He looked about seventeen or eighteen. He looked a little like Luke, but not really. This guy had the same sandy hair and outdoorsy good looks. But it wasn't Luke. This guy was taller, with no scar on his face like Luke's. His smile was brighter and more playful. (Luke didn't do much more than scowl and sneer these days.) The Maserati driver wore jeans and loafers and a sleeveless T-shirt.

"Wow," Thalia muttered. "Apollo is hot."

"He's the sun god," Percy said.

"That's not what I meant." Gohan wasn't sure if he should be disturbed by that comment. After all, wasn't Apollo her nephew? Or, was he her brother? Trying to figure out god-relations were confusing.

"Little sister!" Apollo called. If his teeth were any whiter he could've blinded us without the sun car. "What's up? You never call. You never write. I was getting worried!"

Artemis sighed. "I'm fine, Apollo. And I am not your little sister." "Hey, I was born first." "We're twins! How many millennia do we have to argue—"

"So what's up?" he interrupted, his eyes falling on the pyre. "Got the girls with you, I see. As well as… what happened here?" he asked, his eyes suddenly full of concern.

Artemis gritted her teeth. "A worthy end for a great hunter. I need a favor. I have some hunting to do, alone. I need you to take my companions to Camp Half-Blood." Apollo seemed to accept this, as he didn't press the issue further.

"Sure, sis!" Then he raised his hands in a stop everything gesture. "I feel a haiku coming on."

The Hunters all groaned. Apparently they'd met Apollo before. He cleared his throat and held up one hand dramatically.

"Green grass breaks through snow. Artemis pleads for my help.I am so cool."

He grinned at everyone, waiting for applause. "That last line was only four syllables," Artemis said. Apollo frowned. "Was it?" "Yes. What about I am so big-headed?" "No, no, that's six syllables. Hmm." He started muttering to himself.

Zoe Nightshade turned. "Lord Apollo has been going through this haiku phase ever since he visited Japan. 'Tis not as bad as the time he visited Limerick. If I'd had to hear one more poem that started with, There once was a goddess from Sparta—"

"I've got it!" Apollo announced. "I am so awesome. That's five syllables!" He bowed, looking very pleased with himself.

"And now, sis. Transportation for the Hunters, you say? Good timing. I was just about ready to roll."

"These demigods will also need a ride," Artemis said. "Some of Chiron's campers."

"No problem!" Apollo checked them out. Then, his eyes fell on Gohan.

"Wait a second! You're that Otherworlder, aren't you? The guy who saved Zeus' Master Bolt and beat up Ares?" Gohan nodded. Apollo grinned as he shimmered.

"I've heard all about you! Though, you do look like you've seen better days. Let me give you a pick-me-up" Apollo then placed a hand on Gohan's shoulder. A second later, his eyes widened as he felt a sudden surge of warmth and power rush through him. His wounds seemed to knit themselves shut and his cuts vanished. Gohan roared as he thrust his hands in the air.

"WOOOOOO!" A brilliant burst of golden light erupted from Gohan, briefly blinding everyone in the immediate vicinity. When it faded, Gohan was in his SSJ form, shimmering gold as his hair stood up. The Hunters backed up, both wary and surprised. Gohan had a habit of doing that to people.

"COOOOLL!" Nico squealed with wide eyes. Artemis frowned while Apollo laughed.

"You look better! After all, I am God of Medicine, after all. I gotta admit, I dig the look! Everyone wants to copy the Apollo style! I totally feel another Haiku coming on!" The hunters groaned.

"Apollo, please. I must get going." Apollo rolled his eyes as he looked at Thalia.

She blushed. "Hi, Lord Apollo."

"Zeus's girl, yes?" she nodded.

"Right! Makes you my half sister. Used to be a tree, didn't you? Glad you're back. I hate it when pretty girls turn into trees. Man, I remember one time—"

"Brother," Artemis said. "Seriously. You should get going."

"Oh, right." Then he looked at Percy, and his eyes narrowed. "Percy Jackson?"

"Yeah. I mean... yes, sir."

Apollo studied him, but he didn't say anything, which he found a little creepy.

"Well!" he said at last. "We'd better load up, huh? Ride only goes one way—west. And if you miss it, you miss it."

Percy looked at the Maserati, which would seat two people max. There were about twenty of them.

"Cool car," Nico said.

"Thanks, kid," Apollo said.

"But how will we all fit?"

"Oh." Apollo seemed to notice the problem for the first time. "Well, yeah. I hate to change out of sports-car mode, but I suppose..."

He took out his car keys and beeped the security alarm button. Chirp, chirp.

For a moment, the car glowed brightly again. When the glare died, the Maserati had been replaced by one of those Turtle Top shuttle buses.

"Right," he said. "Everybody in."

Zoe ordered the Hunters to start loading. She picked up her camping pack, and Apollo said, "Here, sweetheart. Let me get that."

Zoe recoiled. Her eyes flashed murderously. "Brother," Artemis chided. "You do not help my Hunters. You do not look at, talk to, or flirt with my Hunters. And you do not call them sweetheart." Apollo spread his hands. "Sorry. I forgot. Hey, sis, where are you off to, anyway?" "Hunting," Artemis said. "It's none of your business." Apollo frowned, stepping closer to Artemis.

"You think I'm an idiot? I know about that fake version of me you just fought." Artemis gritted her teeth.

"I thought you were going to stop reading people's minds." Apollo shrugged as the Hunters began loading into the car.

"I saw the concern. You think you're the only one who's noticed what's going on lately? I've seen what's happened lately. The arrival of the Otherworlder, the return of the Egyptian gods, Zeus' daughter being resurrected? Believe me, I do not like sharing with those sandy puff-ups." Artemis snorted.

"I have larger concerns than the Egyptians, brother. This Otherworlder… I don't like it. After all the time? This is an omen. I'm going to hunt a dangerous beast. But first, I'm going to check the Pathway." A look of shock came over Apollo's face.

"Have you lost your mind? That place is forbidden, even to us! If… he sees you?! If Zeus finds out!" Artemis shook her head.

"He won't. Have you forgotten who I am?" Apollo chuckled at that.

"Just drop them off, Apollo. And no messing around!"

"No, no! I never mess around."

Artemis rolled her eyes, then walked back over to the Hunters. "I will see you by winter solstice. Zoe, you are in charge of the Hunters. Do well. Do as I would do."

Zoe straightened. "Yes, my lady."

Artemis knelt and touched the ground as if looking for tracks. When she rose, she looked troubled. "So much danger. The beast must be found." She took off and raced into the forest, quickly melting away into the trees.

Then, to Percy's confusion, Gohan started walking away from the van.

"Wait, where are you going? Aren't you coming with us?" Percy asked, racing up to his friend.

"I'll catch up with you guys at Camp. There's something I need to do first." Percy goggled at him.

"What? Seriously?" Gohan nodded, the golden aura around him flickering.

"I got caught off-guard. I need to make sure it doesn't happen again. And there's someone I think can help us." Then, without any warning, Gohan blasted off the ground, rocketing into the sky, quickly fading into the distance, leaving a very baffled Percy.

"Seriously?" Percy roared. Grover and Thalia stared at him.

"Where's he going?" she demanded. Percy threw his arms up in frustration.

"He wouldn't say! He never tells me anything!"

Apollo turned and grinned, jangling the car keys on his finger. "So," he said. "Who wants to drive?"

The Hunters piled into the van. They all crammed into the back so they'd be as far away as possible from Apollo and the rest of the highly infectious males, Bianca sat with them, leaving her little brother to hang in the front with Percy and Grover, but Nico didn't seem to mind.

"This is so cool!" Nico said, jumping up and down in the driver's seat. "Is this really the sun? I thought Helios and Selene were the sun and moon gods. How come sometimes it's them and sometimes it's you and Artemis?"

"Downsizing," Apollo said. "The Romans started it. They couldn't afford all those temple sacrifices, so they laid off Helios and Selene and folded their duties into our job descriptions. My sis got the moon. I got the sun. It was pretty annoying at first, but at least I got this cool car."

"But how does it work?" Nico asked. "I thought the sun was a big fiery ball of gas!"

Apollo chuckled and ruffled Nico's hair. "That rumor probably got started because Artemis used to call me a big fiery ball of gas. Seriously, kid, it depends on whether you're talking astronomy or philosophy. You want to talk astronomy? Bah, what fun is that? You want to talk about how humans think about the sun? Ah, now that's more interesting. They've got a lot riding on the sun... er, so to speak. It keeps them warm, grows their crops, powers engines, makes everything look, well, sunnier. This chariot is built out of human dreams about the sun, kid. It's as old as Western Civilization. Every day, it drives across the sky from east to west, lighting up all those puny little mortal lives. The chariot is a manifestation of the sun's power, the way mortals perceive it. Make sense?"

Nico shook his head. "No." "Well then, just think of it as a really powerful, really dangerous solar car." "Can I drive?" "No. Too young."

"Oo! Oo!" Grover raised his hand. "Mm, no," Apollo said. "Too furry." He looked past Percy and focused on Thalia. "Daughter of Zeus!" he said. "Lord of the sky. Perfect." "Oh, no." Thalia shook her head. "No, thanks." "C'mon," Apollo said. "How old are you?" Thalia hesitated. "I don't know."

It was sad, but true. She'd been turned into a tree when she was twelve, but that had been seven years ago. So she should be nineteen, if you went by years. But she still felt like she was twelve, and if you looked at her, she seemed somewhere in between. The best Chiron could figure, she had kept aging while in tree form, but much more slowly.

Apollo tapped his finger to his lips. "You're fifteen, almost sixteen."

"How do you know that?"

"Hey, I'm the god of prophecy. I know stuff. You'll turn sixteen in about a week."

"That's my birthday! December twenty-second."

"Which means you're old enough now to drive with a learner's permit!"

Thalia shifted her feet nervously. "Uh—"

"I know what you're going to say," Apollo said. "You don't deserve an honor like driving the sun chariot."

"That's not what I was going to say."

"Don't sweat it! Maine to Long Island is a really short trip, and don't worry about what happened to the last kid I trained. You're Zeus's daughter. He's not going to blast you out of the sky. Least I can do since you don't have a piece of the Master Bolt like that Otherworlder kid." Percy mentally moaned. Why, just why, did he have to say that? Thalia looked incredulous.

Apollo laughed good-naturedly. No one else joined him.

Thalia tried to protest, but Apollo was absolutely not going to take "no" for an answer. He hit a button on the dashboard, and a sign popped up along the top of the windshield. Percy had to read it backward (which, for a dyslexic, really isn't that different than reading forward). He was pretty sure it said WARNING: STUDENT DRIVER.

"Take it away!" Apollo told Thalia. "You're gonna be a natural!"

"Speed equals heat," Apollo advised. "So start slowly, and make sure you've got good altitude before you really open her up."

Thalia gripped the wheel so tight her knuckles turned white. She looked like she was going to be sick.

"What's wrong?" Percy asked her.

"Nothing," she said shakily. "N-nothing is wrong."

She pulled back on the wheel. It tilted, and the bus lurched upward so fast Percy fell back and crashed against something soft.

"Ow" Grover said.

"Sorry."

"Slower!" Apollo said.

"Sorry!" Thalia said. "I've got it under control!"

Percy managed to get to his feet. Looking out the window, he saw a smoking ring of trees from the clearing where they'd taken off.

"Thalia," Percy said, "lighten up on the accelerator."

"I've got it, Percy," she said, gritting her teeth. But she kept it floored.

"Loosen up," he told her.

"I'm loose!" Thalia said. She was so stiff she looked like she was made out of plywood.

"We need to veer south for Long Island," Apollo said. "Hang a left."

Thalia jerked the wheel and again threw Percy into Grover, who yelped.

"The other left," Apollo suggested.

Percy made the mistake of looking out the window again. They were at airplane height now— so high the sky was starting to look black.

"Ah..." Apollo said, and Percy got the feeling he was forcing himself to sound calm. "A little lower, sweetheart. Cape Cod is freezing over."

Thalia tilted the wheel. Her face was chalk white, her forehead beaded with sweat. Something was definitely wrong. Percy had never seen her like this. Not even when she tried to steal Gohan's sword.

The bus pitched down and somebody screamed. Maybe it was Percy. Now they were heading straight toward the Atlantic Ocean at a thousand miles an hour, the New England coastline off to their right. And it was getting hot in the bus.

Apollo had been thrown somewhere in the back of the bus, but he started climbing up the rows of seats.

"Take the wheel!" Grover begged him.

"No worries," Apollo said. He looked plenty worried. "She just has to learn to— WHOA!"

Down below them was a little snow-covered New England town. At least, it used to be snow-covered. The snow melted off the trees and the roofs and the lawns. The white steeple on a church turned brown and started to smolder. Little plumes of smoke, like birthday candles, were popping up all over the town. Trees and rooftops were catching fire.

"Pull up!" Percy yelled.

There was a wild light in Thalia's eyes. She yanked back on the wheel. As they zoomed up, he could see through the back window that the fires in the town were being snuffed out by the sudden blast of cold.

"There!" Apollo pointed. "Long Island, dead ahead. Let's slow down, dear. 'Dead' is only an expression."

Thalia was thundering toward the coastline of northern Long Island. There was Camp Half-Blood: the valley, the woods, the beach. He could see the dining pavilion and cabins and the amphitheater.

"I'm under control," Thalia muttered. "I'm under control." They were only a few hundred yards away now. "Brake," Apollo said. "I can do this."

"BRAKE!"

Thalia slammed her foot on the brake, and the sun bus pitched forward at a forty-five- degree angle, slamming into the Camp Half-Blood canoe lake with a huge FLOOOOOOSH! Steam billowed up, sending several frightened naiads scrambling out of the water with half- woven wicker baskets.

The bus bobbed to the surface, along with a couple of capsized, half-melted canoes.

"Well," said Apollo with a brave smile. "You were right, my dear. You had everything under control! Let's go see if we boiled anyone important, shall we?"

Meanwhile, back at Westover Hall, the air was silent as the sun shone over the cliff. Already, a new wave of snow was covering the melted and scarred earth. Then, the silence was interrupted by strange sounds, ones of almost a machine-like nature. The sound of branches breaking echoed through the air as a new figure emerged from the forest. From a normal person's perspective, it looked like something out of a movie: a humanoid figure, completely covered in a bright silver metallic armor, with pulsing blue lines all across its body. Its head was covered as well, save for a large X on the front, which served as its visor. A grumble emerged from the figure, an expression of annoyance and frustration. Then, several loud beeps erupted, causing it to look up to see a bright silver orb float down in front of it, hovering right at eye level. The figure held out its arm, allowing for a panel to flip open on its wrist. A cable shot from the orb, plugging itself into the figure's arm. Several new pulsing noises began. The figure shook its head, before finally speaking in a deep, metallic voice.

"Hmph. Unfortunate. Very unfortunate. It's worse than I thought. Continue tracking and recording process 14456A." The cable retracted, rushing back inside the orb. Then, the figure pressed a button on its right arm, causing what looked like several metal balls to emerge, floating in the air alongside the first. They let out a flurry of beeping noises, which the figure returned. Then, they shot into the air, flying in different directions.

Gohan continued to fly, passing over towns and cities until finally, the city of Manhattan came into view. He always marveled at the sheer scope of the city, of course noting the rumbling in the sky from the Empire State Building. But, that wasn't where he was going. He flew over the city, passing over to the river to Brooklyn. Once he saw what he was looking for, he stopped and shot down, landing in, from the outside eye, a large scrapyard full of empty warehouses and scrap. But, he knew better. Gohan strode forward, until he stopped in front of a large set of doors, raising his hand. He paused for a moment, but then knocked, his fist making several loud pounding noises. He shifted, waiting nervously for a moment as his face flushed. Then, he heard a familiar voice.

"Shut up! I've got it!" Then, the door flew open, and Gohan found himself staring at a familiar face, one he hadn't seen in a year. A pretty young girl, with fair skin, deep blue eyes, and caramel blonde hair that was streaked blue today. Those same eyes widened in surprise and recognition.

"Gohan? What the heck are you doing here? And why do you look like shit?" Sadie Kane asked with a baffled expression on her face. Gohan grinned nervously as he ruffled his hair, which was still in SSJ form.

"Ummm… hi Sadie. Can I talk to you quick? I kinda need a favor."