Yes, guest reviewer, I deleted some chapters... for reasons. My gut personally keeps telling me that I should remove it from the story and I just go with what it tells me to.
Disclaimer: I own nothing. Thank you 8Ball3 for beta-ing!
~0~
Percy Follows Ray's Habit
~0~
The morning brought no promise of a new day. It just felt like any other typical day, and if anything, Ray believed that this particular morning only carried a foreboding sensation with it. Chirping birds and sleepy growls of monsters accompanied every morning in camp, and this was no different. Perhaps it was just himself, knowing what must be done today.
No, not must. What was forced to be done today.
Ray didn't sit down and enjoy this admittedly beautiful morning. After he opened his eyes and seeing that somehow he still woke up first despite sleeping in later, he ruffled a sleeping Percy's hair and went to the mess hall, seeking to eat there before the fires were lit. Stalker had tagged along, and he absentmindedly fed him chunks of a sausage, his mind still buffering while wandering off at the same time.
He had seen a bundled up figure on the bed near Cabin 3's door before he left, and remembering last night's conversation, Ray decided to just leave Thalia alone. She was a late waker, to be fair, and often gets cranky when someone woke her up.
When Ray returned from his breakfast was when the activity started rising. When Cabin 3 came into sight, he saw Percy running off in a hurry, holding bathroom equipments and some clothes. A few other campers emerged from their cabins, some immediately going to the mess hall and some to the bathrooms.
Ray knew there was work waiting for him that day. He should be making plans as well. And even knowing that, he couldn't bring himself to do anything. He just sat back down on his bed and stared at his crow friend, his brain still hadn't woken up completely. If he strained his ear, he could hear Thalia's almost silent snoring underneath the covers, still stuck in dreamland.
The door creaked open, and Percy entered. His brother looked a bit surprised seeing him here, then his face morphed into… into a serious expression.
Ray immediately knew that his plans and soon-to-be plans for that day were thrown out of the window.
"Ray," Percy said seriously, "I want you to come with me on my quest."
And he was right.
~0~
To be completely honest, he had no idea he was doing the right thing. After hearing the prophecy that literally slithered out of the Oracle's mouth, Percy wouldn't want his brother to be anywhere near him, just in case.
But thinking about it further, bringing Ray with him just in case was actually a pretty good idea.
"Not that I'm against this idea," said brother spoke up a bit hesitantly. "But why do you want me to go? If I remember correctly, you were pretty adamant I don't go."
Percy winced slightly. "Yeah, sorry I shouted at you. But at the time, I wasn't thinking about… uh, the long-term plan."
A confused raised eyebrow. "Long-term plan?"
"Just in case I fail," he whispered, half-explaining, half-pleading. "Your teacher said that the guy in charge of everything wants you in arm's reach all the time until the weapon is found. If I fail but you're not here, he'll have trouble… trouble killing you."
Percy stumbled a bit in the last part, gulping before he said the k word. He was still trying to wrap his head around this fact, even then. He knew his brother lived a very dangerous life, more so than other half-bloods, but to be actually threatened by the very same faction he worked with just because he was blamed as a culprit of a crime he didn't do?
It was way beyond stupid, and right now Percy became worried if Ray was doing the right thing, working for the gods. It didn't seem very rewarding, seeing their current situation. If anything, it was the other way around completely.
He realized why he was able to think this long without his brother noticing. Ray had gone silent, staring at him and thinking himself.
"…Why are you that worried for me, Percy?" his older brother finally asked.
"Do you really have to ask that?" he said exasperatedly. "Seeing that this is my first quest, I'm worried I'll fail. And the worst thing is, if I do fail, you'll the one who'll… who'll get hurt."
For some reason, Ray still didn't look convinced. No, in fact, his brother narrowed his eyes at him. Ray was suspicious of something.
"My Mentor didn't say anything weird to you, did she?" Ray asked, frowning.
"Uh, no, I don't think so," Percy replied honestly, a bit confused and alarmed when his brother could somewhat see it.
This wasn't purely his plan.
The truth was, he had a dream last night. Athena came to him, and explained the entire long-term plan on this, as she had put it.
"I will not imply anything," she had said, "So if you somehow feel insulted by what I said, do not take it personally."
She went on and said that Zeus was currently unstable. Saying the god was angry would be a massive understatement, and she was worried that he may do a nasty surprise and execute Ray just because he felt like doing it. Athena admitted she doubted it would happen, seeing Poseidon would know, but she wouldn't take any chances.
So she told him about her plan. He'd have to bring Ray as far away as he could from the camp, and in the Keepers' RV if possible (whatever that is), since the vehicle was able to camouflage itself from whatever it wanted. After that, get the Master Bolt, but if he fails to find it before the summer solstice, just try and get away from Olympus' eyes as long as possible, while keep searching for the weapon of mass destruction to mend things up.
Percy immediately liked that plan. After all that Ray did for him, it was only fair that he did everything he could to keep his brother safe.
In the current world, Ray hummed, observing him. "Is that so?"
Sighing, he tried another tactic. "Look Ray. I care about you a lot, okay? I don't want you to… die if I fail to find the stupid thing. And what if I find it and return only to find you… to find you dead? I don't… I don't want to lose you."
Ray took it hook, line, and sinker. It really was a great idea, to stutter a bit around 'die' and 'death' and other fun words. He felt bad for mentally manipulating his brother like this, but this was for his own good. If Ray ever hears the last line of the prophecy…
Percy immediately realized something.
Holy crap, was this how Ray feels when tricking people? Oh, man, it felt terrible. Since when did his brother become so manipulative?
"Aw, Percy," Ray practically cooed, smiling softly. "I didn't know you care so much about me."
"Y-yeah, I do," he stammered out, a bit flustered. "And, well, because of that, I want you to come with me. Also, if our positions were reversed, I know you'd do the exact same thing as I do, Ray."
"Yeah…" the mirth on Ray's face died out, turning grim. "Seeing the circumstances, yeah, I would. Where are you going anyway, Percy? The west isn't small, you know. Or do you already have an idea?"
"Yep. But not here." Percy threw in another bait. "I have no clue for a method of transportation, though. Annabeth said going on a plane wouldn't be a good idea."
His brother smirked, and he knew Ray just took the bait. "I got that covered. Seeing as this is a secret, I'm assuming my man Argus will drive you first. Well, then I'll be in the Greyhound station. I know which station he'll be going to. I'll see you there. First, I need to make some discussions."
Percy nodded, and Ray stood up from his bed and went over to the door. Stalker immediately woke up and flew across the room, landing on Ray's shoulder. But before his brother managed to open the door, in a fit of emotions, he called out loudly. "Wait!"
His older brother paused and turned back. "Yes?"
He stared at his brother, suddenly feeling stumped as he tried to remember what he wanted to say. "I… Thanks. For… for trusting me, Ray. I won't fail you."
Ray smiled and shook his head. "You're doing this to save my butt, Percy. I'm the one who should be thanking you. Also, one last thing. Thalia's sleeping here, and she had a rough night. Don't bug her, alright? See ya."
Percy smiled at the door, despite the terrifying feeling inside him. Only when Ray was gone did he let the smile disappear, turning into a frown. That last line… no matter what happens, he'd make sure the last line of the prophecy doesn't come true. He mentally swore to the River of Styx.
He picked up his bag, already filled with various stuff like money and toiletries, and walked outside. He didn't even glance to the bundled up person on the bed near the door. He passed the mostly still silent camp, the sun barely rising from its slumber. Mist covered the entire place, making the already cold air extra cold.
Annabeth, being the oh so diligent daughter of Athena that she was, stood on the hill, readily prepared and already waiting near Luke's tree. She had a backpack too, and a pair of sheaths on her waist- one for a sword, and one shorter, for a dagger. She greeted him with a nod, which he returned.
Neither of them spoke to each other, for a while. With the city still in its early morning stages, he could still hear various bugs and monsters from the nearby forest. Far away, the towering skyscrapers of New York loomed, several blocks of their windows glowing so others knew the people inside were already awake in this ungodly hour.
He glanced at Annabeth. She was looking at something down below the hill. He followed her gaze and saw several but small groups of teenagers slowly climbing up.
Something else caught his attention though, and quickly too.
A pair of large iron bulls, their shiny metal body glinting even in the early dim sunlight, followed the groups from behind. They were easily as big as a large car- the friggin things were probably the size of an SUV. From this distance, he couldn't see them properly, yet he could make out shapes on one of the iron bull's back.
One of them had a pretty big turret on its back. The other, though, had these… small figures, pretty much riding the bull. At the distance, he could only see them as blurry dots, but even from here, Percy could hear the laughter of children.
Annabeth glanced at him and read his extremely confused expression. "Those are automatons- robots, I guess you can say. The Keepers created them a year ago, by implementing ideas from multiple blueprints."
"Whoa," was all he could say. Ray got robot bull soldiers? Could he ride one? Could he try shooting with one?
This made a grin show up on Annabeth's face. "Yeah. 'Whoa' is right."
"Wait." He realized something. "Where were they yesterday?"
"It's difficult charging them, not to mention maintaining them," she explained. "Ray wanted to get a pair of nuclear reactors for them, but obviously it's a bit hard getting them. For now though, their solar energy will have to be enough."
His brain went blank when she mentioned Ray wanted literal nuclear reactors, though it lasted barely a second. "Like, using solar panels?"
"Yep. And nowadays, it's not easy finding sunlight, so that's why it isn't easy using them, in turn."
"Huh." He fully turned to her. "How come you know so much about them?"
Annabeth raised her chin up slightly, a spark of pride burning proudly in her grey eyes. "I helped built them."
"Really?" he stared at her, stunned. Quickly enough, he grinned. "That's epic!"
She lowered her head now, blushing slightly. "Thanks, but uh… well, Marcus and my brother did most of the work. Though, yeah, I helped."
"Man, that's cool." Percy looked down the hill again, seeing them- were those the Athena kids Ray was talking about yesterday?- continue their climb. Closer, now he could clearly see those were kids on the turretless bull. "I probably won't even begin to understand how they work."
"Don't sell yourself out, Percy," Annabeth said, pulling out her dagger and inspected it. "You're not that dumb."
"Is that a compliment I hear?" he asked cheekily, grinning slightly.
He got a smack in return- something he only laughed at. Inwardly, he was thinking when should he bring up the fact that his brother was going with them. In the end, he decided to wait for Grover, seeing as the guy was his best friend.
The second last line of the prophecy echoed in his head. You shall be betrayed by one who calls you friend.
Shut the hell up, he told it, annoyed.
"Good morning Annabeth, Percy," a familiar voice greeted, as the owner finally reached the hill. "I know it's none of my business, but I'm a bit curious as to why the two of you are here, alone, away from camp early in the morning."
Annabeth turned murderous as she flipped her dagger to a reverse-hold. "Save your implications to yourself, Malcolm."
Malcolm grinned, while behind him the other Athena kids- and… were those Aphrodite kids?- entered the camp. "I wasn't implying anything. I was just curious."
"Your curiosity will be my excuse when I break your ankle."
The son of Athena raised his hands in surrender, but a small smile didn't leave his face. "Okay okay, but seriously, what are you doing?"
"Just a quest," Percy interjected, face a bit warm. By the gods, it's been forever since he was teased by being together with a girl. He wasn't looking forward to feeling it again. "We're waiting for Grover. And Chiron, I guess."
The air of jokingness around Malcolm immediately disappeared, replaced by seriousness. His voice lowered to a whisper. "A quest? Is something wrong?"
"Oh, nothing much, just…" Percy shared a glance at Annabeth. Should he tell the truth? Not like it mattered anyway, Athena said yesterday that the thievery had been made public, but for some reason he didn't feel like the one telling it. "Uh… just ask Chiron."
"Secret quest, got it." Malcolm nodded. Something caught his eyes. "Oh, and Grover's here. Good luck, all of you. I won't bother you."
"Thanks," Percy said. "We'll need it."
Annabeth rolled her eyes, flipping her dagger again and fluidly put it back in its sheath. "Sure, thanks."
"What's up, guys?" Grover greeted, approaching. A huge bag was slung over his shoulder, and for some reason his hair was tidied up neatly- as much as Percy could see under that beanie hat, anyway. The satyr held a reed pipe in his hands. "Sorry a bit late, my mom forced me to pack… a lot of things."
"Don't worry Grover," Annabeth assured him, smiling. "It was us who were early."
Percy didn't say anything. He just grinned and held up a fist, which Grover grinningly returned. Annabeth just repositioned her backpack straps, making herself comfortable. Malcolm smiled and excused himself, saying he had to talk to Percival. The other Athena kids and the Aphrodites had reached the hill and started going back to their respective cabins, carrying their bags.
The kids whined when the older kids told them to get off the bull, but they did what they were told. Percy guessed as a final goodbye, the iron bull exhaled strongly, blowing off the kids' hairs. They all giggled and started patting the bull's head. It wasn't long before they were all gone too. The bulls lumbered together slowly into the forest, and Percy guessed they returned back to the Keepers' HQ.
And then Chiron arrived, the sound of him galloping easily giving him away. By then, the sun rose slightly more, lightning the landscape equally slightly more. The morning mist had dissipated by then.
"Good morning, children," he greeted warmly, though his tone turned somber a bit. "I see you are prepared to go on your quest."
The three of them nodded resolutely.
"Excellent. Nothing is holding you back now. Though I must admit… it is rather vexing how only I see you go."
None of them said a thing. Grover saw this and probably decided he should go first. "Well, I don't know about you guys, but my mom just gave me enough kisses to last for an entire lifetime. I'm kinda glad she's not here, or otherwise it's going to be two lifetimes."
This made them laugh slightly. Soon Annabeth sighed.
When they turned to her, she shifted a foot, face reddening. "My brother already… bid me goodbye."
"Why is your face red?" Grover asked, confused.
"Ugh, it was embarrassing." Annabeth groaned slightly, but Percy could detect a hint of fondness. "Percival really likes hugs, but this morning… I think he was being dramatic. I think I saw a tear or two."
Hearing that, Percy and Grover stared at each other, stunned and honestly not quite believing what she said. Percival, Annabeth's terrifying bro? Was she even talking about the same Percival?
"He has his moments," Chiron said knowingly. "But in truth, I was more referring to your brother, Percy. Where is Ray?"
Annabeth and Grover turned to Percy, questions on their faces.
The hair on the back of his neck rose and his heartbeat quickened, as he thought of a lie. "He… already said goodbye, this morning. I just… never told him where we're going. 'Sides, he's busy."
"Too busy just for this?" Annabeth frowned.
He shrugged. "Like I said, he has no idea where we're going. He just thinks we're going randomly somewhere into the west. It's fine, really."
Chiron sighed. "If you say so, lad. Just don't take it to heart, if what you say is true. Argus can drive you to the Greyhound station, but after that, you're alone."
The three of them nodded again. Then Annabeth added, "See you later, Chiron."
"See you later too, lass."
With that, they turned around and strode down the hill, determination filling them with every step they took. Percy glared at the sky, and if he was alone and his family didn't raise him that well, he'd probably do a rude gesture at said sky.
Good luck hurting my brother now, asshole, was his angry thought.
~0~
He really wanted to tell them, but he couldn't. Not when Argus was still there.
The ride back to Manhattan was mostly silent, as in nobody inside was talking except the radio, which had a song on. Percy smiled slightly, remembering that was one of his favorite songs.
'There ain't no rest for the wicked,' the radio sang, 'Moooney don't grow on treees…'
"I got bills to pay, I got mouths to feed," Annabeth quietly sang. "And ain't nothing in this world for freee…"
Grover grinned and continued, "I know I can't slow down, I can't hold back, though you know, I wish I could…"
"Oh no there ain't no rest for the wicked…" Percy sang as he smiled, finishing this part of the song. "Until we clooose our eyeees for gooood."
That Caged the Elephant's song accompanied them through their trek back to Manhattan. He watched every fast food chain they came across, every vehicle they passed and passed them, every building standing proudly on the ground.
He was a bit weirded out, though relieved, that no monster popped up this far into the journey, but he didn't say anything about it. The way his luck worked, he'd might as well jinxed them all into oblivion.
Soon, they entered the Greyhound station somewhere in Upper East Side, and by then it had started to rain. Argus accompanied them through the process of getting their tickets, and Percy felt a little bad when they used the money even though they wouldn't even be using the tickets. He didn't see anything that'd resemble an RV, so he could only guess that Ray wasn't there yet.
After that though, Argus finally left, and Percy immediately whirled in on his friends. "Okay, new plan guys, we won't be using the Greyhound bus."
Both of them blinked. "What?"
"You heard me." He grimaced. "We need to get out of New York without being seen, and if we use the bus, he will see us."
"He?" Annabeth furrowed her eyebrows. "He who?"
"Hee hoo haa," Grover snickered. He got punched in return. "Ow."
"Guy upstairs." Percy looked around, searching for any sign of his brother, but still found nothing. This just made his heart beat even faster, making him even more nervous. "Ray's going to be taking us to Los Angeles."
"Ray?" Annabeth repeated, very confused. "What's Ray doing here?"
He sighed irritatedly. "Don't you get it? He's going to come with us on our quest."
"What?!" Annabeth almost shouted. "Why?!"
"Because he's in big trouble, Annabeth!" he almost shouted back. Nope, they weren't having a shouting match. Not at all. Okay, maybe a little bit. "Didn't you hear it yesterday? Ray's under threat of execution! And you already how unstable that prick king is up there! I can't leave him alone like this! I won't!"
People started staring at them, but he couldn't bring himself to care about it. He wasn't in the mood to argue that time, and for goodness' sake he didn't want to be involved in one.
Annabeth however, seemed to care a bit about stares, since she lowered her tone into an angry whisper. "This is our quest, Percy. Our chance to prove ourselves. I won't be babied by an adult in this opportunity- not. A. Chance. In hell."
"Ours, or yours?" he hissed back. "I don't care about this stupid quest, and I certainly don't give a damn about 'proving myself' or whatever bullshit. And quite frankly, I don't care about what you think. I'll go alone if I have to."
Where the heck was Ray? A growling of engines momentarily turned his attention away, but he just scowled when he saw a random SUV entering the station.
"Uh, guys?" Grover held up his hands, slowly approaching them. "Er… please calm down. Don't fight."
Both of them glared at him, and he shrunk away.
They turned their attention back to each other.
"You're not even a proper son of Poseidon," Annabeth spat. "You're just a baby of Poseidon. You can never get stopped being rescued by your oh dear big brother. Little baby Percy can't even do anything by himself, and your brother always needs to be the hero of the day."
The SUV's rumbling became louder. He wanted to snap and tell it to go away, but that would just be stupid.
"Call me whatever the hell you want, Annabeth," he growled, "A little baby, a kid who can never do anything right, who always screws things up over and over again."
A surge of cold air hit his back, but he didn't turn back. Not yet.
"But right now, I'm doing this to protect my brother. And I don't care about what you say."
He didn't need to say anything else, and he really didn't want to hear anything else. He finally turned around, and found the SUV wasn't there anymore. The Mist had melted off of it, revealing its true form to them.
A pitch black RV stood where the car once was. Its rims were black, its paintjob was black, heck, even the windows were tinted black. On its side was a symbol- a complicated yet familiar symbol. A white heater shield as the outline, plus a pair of blue snakes with red wings encircling a black upside-down trident. The trident wasn't there before.
But, as seeing nobody else seemed to see it, another layer of Mist must've been working.
The window rolled down and revealed his brother, who raised an eyebrow.
"What are you waiting for?" Ray asked as Stalker squawked somewhere inside. "Get in."
~0~
Percy told his brother to just go to New Jersey for now. Ray nodded, and off they went. Annabeth went first to the back of the RV. Grover gave him a conflicted look- a really weird mixture of relief and annoyance- then claimed the table in the middle of the vehicle, which left him with the passenger's seat.
The inside was, in a way, fancy. Heck, even Stalker had his own house, propped up above the weapons wall, where the bird was currently inside. On one hand, whoever designed it clearly thought of 'home' in mind, but the image of home was shattered by the other… equipments inside.
The seats were like couches, their material rough like carpet but warm. The tables were polished wood, shining and reflecting off the lamps' light. There were bird perching spots on various places, one of them being on the central command. Really, the interior didn't look cheap, and if anything, the inside looked like an expensive house.
Which was what Percy would've thought, except the owner of the expensive house was an undercover military dude or something.
Really, there were panels with buttons and monitors everywhere. On the table where people should be eating- boom, there are some buttons there. The middle in between the driver and the passenger's seat- boom, more buttons. In the back- boom, a part of the room with many buttons and screens. And not to mention the various weapons hanging around… the RV really had it real with the military theme.
He would adore it more, if it wasn't for his friends' and his own foul moods.
"I'm guessing something's wrong between you and your pals," Ray said, glancing at him.
Percy sighed, sinking deeper into his comfortable chair.
"Yes it is, then." Ray focused back on the road. "Feel like telling me what it is?"
He looked at his brother for a moment, the urge to spill his emotions coming up.
"…No," he said, turning back to the road. "No, it's fine. I can handle it."
Ultimately, he decided not to. Ray would feel bad if he knew the reason they were like this, sulking in different parts of the RV. Besides, Percy knew he could handle it, he just… wasn't able yet.
"If you say so," Ray said, flicking the turn signal and turned the wheel. " I'm here if you need me. It'd probably take around… oh, half an hour or so until we reach NJ. I still don't get why you want to go there, though. Really, that place-"
Percy tuned his brother's rant out, and tried thinking of something to say to his friends.
Look, truth to be told, he really was glad they were with him. He was half-expecting Annabeth to just knee him in the stomach and leave him alone, but her decision to go with him and his brother along almost made him smile, if the thought of her being upset at him didn't invade immediately.
Grover wasn't different. He still remembered the guy saying that this was his second chance's second chance, and if he did well by himself, he'd be proud to hold his new Searcher's license. Percy was hoping (and, not gonna lie, a teeny-weeny itty-bitty expecting) him to come along with them, and of course he was glad that Grover did.
But this terrible foul mood infecting the ride was making everyone sulk, except his brother who focused on driving.
Half an hour until they reach New Jersey. Percy shifted in his seat, and stood up. He got time.
He went to Grover first, since the satyr was less likely to stab him on sight, and, well, way easier to talk to.
Grover sat alone in the middle part, looking bored out of his mind as he nibbled on a can. His bag was sitting beside him, propped up against the wall. Even the shiny buttons on the table before him didn't seem to interest the guy at all- which really just showed how Grover was way less impulsive than he was. If Percy was there, he'd start mashing them all to heck… if he wasn't this upset.
Percy sat on the seat across Grover. "Hey man."
"Hey too, man." Grover nodded.
He offered Grover a small, weak smile. "You mad, bro?"
Grover snorted. "Not really, no. Annabeth's the one who's really pissed."
"Yeah." He grimaced, thinking about that… though, a smidge of relief entered Percy's veins at Grover's answer. "I'll talk to her later."
Grover nodded again and continued nibbling on his aluminum snack. "Maybe when she's cooled down. You probably won't survive if you talk to her now."
He cracked a grin. "Whatever, man. But… now I'm curious. Has she never did anything important enough or something?"
"Important?"
"Yeah. She said that this is her chance to quote-unquote; 'prove herself'. Considering the fact that she helped built those robot bulls, you'd think she went on some dangerous quests or stuff."
"Huh." Grover looked down to his can. "I don't know for sure, actually… she never said much about that kind of stuff. She only liked to talk about helping make things."
"Things?"
"Oh yeah. I don't know if you know, but she helped build a number of stuff. See those things?"
Grover pointed to some small pods that would fit in his hand, hanging on the weapons wall.
"She told me she learned how to make them, and so she helped making more of them. I dunno if I remember right, but those are scouts. They're like… robot bugs, which the Keepers use to scout a place they just encountered. Or, well, at least that's what Annabeth said to me."
Percy just hummed in response, looking at those shiny metallic pods, that he was sure were made from the same material as those bulls. Man, now he really understood he needed his friends' help to find the Bolt.
He sighed, and turned to Grover. "Grover, be honest with me. What do you really feel?"
"Honestly?" Grover chuckled humorlessly. "I'm relieved. Honestly, I never expected us to succeed- uh, no offense."
"None taken." Ain't gonna lie, he knew he actually felt that way too.
"Yeah… but yeah, seeing our destination, our goal, and our… condition- you being a Big Three kid and Annabeth being pretty strong herself…" Grover took a deep breath. "I didn't think things are gonna go well. So… honestly? I'm relieved your brother's here. A bit annoyed, sure, but still a bit glad. He knows what he's doing."
He stared at Grover, not sure what to say.
"You're probably thinking I'm a friggin coward right now." Grover sighed, nibbling on his can again. "And I won't blame you for-"
"You finish that sentence Imma throw one of those bugs at you. The fact that you're already here means you're probably braver than most of the people I know, so don't you dare start saying you're a coward or some other nonsense."
Grover just hummed. Seeing this reaction, Percy sighed.
"Don't worry about it, Grover. You're way braver than you think you are, alright?"
"Hmm."
"Also, one last thing. How does it feel?"
Grover glanced up, confused. "Feel?"
"Uh, I mean taste."
"Taste?" Grover repeated, just still confused. He munched again, the cracking sound made him sound like he was eating chips. Recognition filled his eyes. "Oh, uh… it's bland. I just like the texture."
"Huh. What, does it feel like chips or something?"
"In a way. Bit tougher, though."
Percy nodded a few times, his lower lip curling up in that weird way people do when they hear something impressive yet at the same weird. He glanced to the back of the RV, but only to see Annabeth sharpening her dagger aggressively while scowling, so he decided that maybe he could talk to her later.
He turned back to Grover. "Well, I'll leave you alone for now. Thanks, G-Man."
"Er… you're welcome?" Grover replied, confused. "You know I don't mind your company, Percy. Or the company you bring with you."
That reply just made him smile. "I know, but I need to actually think about what I'll say to Annabeth. You and I, on the other hand… we flow easily, brutha."
Grover clapped and pointed at him with both hands. "Brutha."
Percy immediately returned the gesture. "Brutha."
Both of them snickered at that, then Percy returned back to the passenger's seat, proud of himself for mending his complications with his best man, and glad it worked so well. He knew confronting Annabeth wouldn't be that easy.
"It went well?" Ray asked.
"With Grover? Heck yeah. With Annabeth? Not… yet."
Ray hummed, and just as Percy opened his mouth to speak further, Stalker popped his head out of his small home and squawked loudly. The RV immediately jolted forward. Thankfully he was already in his seat, so with nothing more than undignified yelp, he was thrown deeper into his chair. A pair of yells came from deeper in the RV.
"Sorry," Ray said, clearly not that sorry. Stalker landed on a perch on the center console. "But yay, we finally get our first company."
His older brother pressed a button, and a screen lowered from a compartment on the roof- it showed a pair of dark shapes flying in the sky, and by how they were getting slightly larger and larger, Percy could tell those things were chasing them.
"Annabeth, dear?" Ray raised his voice. "Can you please deploy the turret?"
"Yes, Ray!" Like a soldier, she solidly replied somewhere in the back.
As Ray drove the RV faster, a lot of other vehicles on the road angrily honked at them (and not a few drivers made rude gestures). Percy glanced at the monitor again, trying to discern just what exactly were chasing them.
He could definitely see wings, with a somewhat humanoid figure, and a long tail… no, wait, not a tail. He narrowed his eyes, focusing on those long silhouettes of somethings. Those things weren't connected to the monsters' back ends. No, they were… being held.
"Whips?" he guessed out loud, a bit confused. "Are those things carrying whips?"
"Good eyes, bucko." Ray grinned at him. "Yep, it seems that they're carrying whips. And do you know what flying monsters carry whips?"
"Fury!" Grover yelled.
Beep! Beep! Beep!
"Oh crap." Percy paled. "Mrs. Grelod."
"No, Fury, right next to us!" Grover shouted.
Percy whipped his head around to the side of the RV, and his heart sunk to his stomach when the leathery demonic face that haunted his dreams snarled at him, right behind the window.
At the time, he may or may had not screamed in a way that may or may not be able to be described as a high-pitched girly shriek, that Ray later may or may not endlessly tease him about it.
The Fury punched his window, and the glass cracked. The monster hissed and flew back up again. Right as she did, the alarm died away, leaving them in that panicked state alone.
"Turret deployed!" Annabeth informed.
"Very good." Ray put one of his hands higher on the steering wheel, and the other pressing a button on the center console. "Let's take care of them, then. Deploying second-tier Mist-wall."
There was a muffled pap-pap-pap from somewhere above them, and Percy guessed that was the turret at work, shooting at the Furies. He glanced at the monitor again, and saw trails of bright light soaring into the sky. One of the Furies got hit, and she immediately dispersed out of existence.
The other two Furies flew madly in dives and rolls, desperately evading the bullets. Soon however, it was clear that they slowly got the hang of it, and they flew closer.
"Annabeth, switch to burst mode," Ray ordered without taking his eyes off the road.
"Yes sir!"
The bullets' pattern turned different, into short but wide bursts of bullets. One of the Furies screwed up and got shot. The last one… heck, Percy could feel the glare through the monitor. She dove through the bullets like a bullet herself, heading straight into the RV.
"Tunnel," Ray growled. "Annabeth, disarrange the turret."
"Yes, sir."
Not even a few seconds passed, and the entire RV turned dark as they entered the tunnel. And barely a second later, the interior lit up again, as a lamp beneath the car floor turned on.
Beep! Beep! Beep!
"Why's the alarm going off again?" Grover anxiously asked.
"Contact!" Annabeth yelled.
"Activating perimeter defense system," Ray said, pressing a different button.
There was a blue flash that illuminated everything, and then a loud zap that came from behind the RV. The alarm stopped alarming.
"The Fury is stunned and knocked down, but not out," Annabeth warned. "I'll redeploy the turret after we- oh, nevermind, she got ran over by a car."
Ray grunted proudly, and Percy had a feeling his brother was grinning. "Heh, that's what they all get for messing with Big Harley. She's nothing less than a fast tank."
"You all okay?" Percy called out, looking back inside.
Annabeth cracked her knuckles as she smirked. "Never been better."
Grover shakily held up a tin can, in what Percy thought was a pitiful cheer. "Ehehehehehe."
He smiled, sitting back down on his seat. He was just glad this entire path didn't seem bad at all, if they had this RV with them. No wonder why Athena wanted them to go with this, Big Harley was the boss. He thought of something.
"'Big Harley'?" Percy repeated, smirking as his rapidly beating heart slowly calmed down.
"Hey, I wasn't the one who named her." Ray defended himself. "If I did, I'd name her… I'd name her..."
Ray went silent, thinking to himself. The RV became brighter as they had finally exited the tunnel, showing them they were now on a freeway surrounded by trees. The underboard lamps turned off as natural light claimed back its duty. Stalker ruffled his feathers, uncaring.
"Shadowtruck?" Percy grinned at his brother. "Darkbringer?"
"Those are edgy but cool names," Ray admitted. "But I'm saving 'em when I get actual tanks. Hmm… I'd probably name the RV something like… hmm… Salvationer."
"Salvationer?"
"We- and by that I mean us Keepers- use this beautiful vehicle to gather up demigods on our weekly search. This thing has bulletproof armor, an awesome gun turret, three-tiers of different Mist intensity, plus like you just see that perimeter defense system... so I'd call her the Salvationer."
"Is that even a word?" Percy wondered.
Ray narrowed his eyes. "I'll make it a word."
Percy grinned, but then it faltered when he remembered where Athena told him to go. "Hey, Ray… you know any abandoned freeways around here?"
Ray blinked at him. "Say what?"
"There's something there." Percy tried his best not to fidget uncomfortably under Ray's gaze. "Something important… I had a, uh, a dream."
"And did it specifically said an abandoned freeway in New Jersey?"
"It was… implied. Just trust me, alright?"
"Freeway in New Jersey sounds just a tad bit specific, Perce." Ray grinned at him, clearly amused. "But sure bruh, I trust thee. It's not far from here."
"Thanks." He nodded, stomach doing terrible flip-flops when he did those half-truth things to his brother- he really really didn't understand how Ray could do it on the daily. "We'll just be there for an address."
"Aight, you got it boss."
At the very least Athena already told him to expect a dangerous monster. The goddess only made it worse when she later said that this monster would only be a walk in the park compared to what awaited him on his journey to Los Angeles.
~0~
"I'm not the only one who feels that this place is ominous, right?" Grover asked, worried.
"What did your dream say about this again, Percy?" Annabeth asked sharply and formally, which meant they weren't still that cool.
The long warehouse before them alone wouldn't be enough to set off any internal alarms, but the creepy statues surrounding it definitely were. Percy stared at the bright red cursive neon hanging above the entrance, trying not to imagine what kind of bloodthirsty monstrosity was waiting for them. Dozens of statues from all shapes and sizes- animals or humans- pretty much just littered the place. Maybe the monster liked statues or something?
"Well… it just said that we'll find out where to go next in there," he explained, grimacing a bit. "I dunno what I'm expecting, honestly."
Annabeth huffed as she stood between the passenger's seat and the driver's seat, looking aside and quietly muttering, "Well that's helpful."
"I still want to go in there with you, though," Ray said, drumming his fingers on the steering wheel. "You sure you three want to do this alone?"
"We're sure, Ray," Percy assured him. He then grinned slightly. "If you forgot, this is still my quest, you know. What I say goes."
"We can take care whatever it is in our way," Annabeth said offhandedly.
"Uh, I sure hope so," Grover piped in anxiously. "But I still feel way safer in here. Can I stay here?"
"Nice try, goat boy," Annabeth dryly said, amused.
"Aww…"
To ease Grover, Percy gave him a pair of thumbs up. "We'll be fine, G-man. We're just gonna sneak in, find the address- whatever it is we're searching for- and get out before anyone notices. Let's go."
Grover sighed. "Okay, okay, I'm not that scared."
"Wait, before you go… Annabeth, take some comm devices in the third drawer to your left." Annabeth immediately did what she was told. "You still remember how to calibrate them?"
"Yup, Ray."
"Great. Just in case, if you need some heavy artillery or a mobile tank, contact me and I'll run over the statues to reach you."
Annabeth smiled slightly, as if she forgot she was upset. "Of course. Let's go, guys."
Ray smiled as well- his brother was still worried, Percy could tell, but he hid it slightly- at them as they stepped out of the RV and into the chill air of New Jersey. "Good luck then ki- er, you three. I'll stay back and gather the bullets that were used."
Percy took a deep breath, taking a look around as the RV went back and turned around, heading into the thick forest surrounding the empty freeway. The three of them stared at the long warehouse more for a while, as if steeling their resolves. Only then did he fully grasped what his brother had said.
"Wait, how would he gather-?"
"Well," Annabeth said, clearly not in the mood for explaining things, her smile already turning into a neutral frown as she pocketed the small earpieces like Percival and his brother wore, clearly not intending on using them at all. "Shall we?"
~0~
Ray pressed a button on what used to be the RV's delicacy counter. A small monitor next to it turned on, briefly showing the, at last, complete Keepers logo before showing the main interface. He pressed another button, then one other, until finally the words appeared on the screen; 'Recollecting bullets…'
He turned to the hollowed stove and watched as the used Celestial Bronze bullets teleported above it, only to immediately drop down, filling the empty RV with a barrage of clinking metal. He regarded the bullets, seeing that some were dented, some were burnt. But he had faith that all of them were there, since Marcus' stuff never failed before, and he doubted the guy would fail him later.
Ray leaned back as the machine did its work. Lady Athena and he had discussed the matter of showing mortals materials such as Celestial Bronze after one of their lessons, and in the end, both of them agreed that the Mist would cover up anything related to Greek divinity's higher power, including divine materials. Still, while the Mist can easily slip through the human mind, human machinery were a bit more… finicky. There was also another thing, about whether or not human hands can pick up divine material weapons- a theory he had tested only to found various results- which made direct human contact still easy to control, but still, scanners and their equivalents were a bit harder to trick.
So, to further secure the already highly-secure security Mist measures, Marcus engraved their turrets' bullets with homeward technological runes. No matter what would happen to them, the bullets will always return home. Range wasn't a problem, according to Bryant's own words.
A short, loud 'beep!' not unlike the sound a microwave would make focused him back to the bullets. The return had stopped, and now those Celestial Bronze piled up in front of him. He pressed another button, and the pile of bullets was lowered as a hatch opened up beneath them, transferring them to another part of the RV specifically built for storage. Marcus would be able to recycle them for more use.
Ray snorted. Environmentally-friendly bullets… that was a sentence often uttered when referencing Keepers' bullets, and it still made him chuckle from time to time. When the hollowed out stove was hollow once more, he pressed another button that would automatically reload the turret with available bullets.
After that was done, he turned the machine off and wandered back to the driver's area, observing the long warehouse where his brother's merry band had gone to.
He stared at it, concern growing more when he realized he really had no idea what that place was. Frowning, he pressed a button next to the wiper stick. At the same time, a small monitor lowered from the roof and a part of the dashboard rolled over, revealing a qwerty keyboard.
He typed in the necessary commands, and waited. The results of what he searched for popped up, and he sarcastically cheered.
"Frigging yay," Ray muttered. The Aunty Em's Emporium business in front of him didn't exist in any database. So either this was a monster's nest or an illegal business place… man, Percy really knew how to find trouble.
Groaning/sighing, he ran a hand down his face as the monitor and keyboard hid away again. Percy was going to cause his heart some medical problems in the future, he was sure of it.
Ah, Percy, Percy, Percy… his brother really something else. Why was Percy being so… vague about this? Of course, Ray trusted his brother's word above all else, so had faith his brother didn't outright lie to him, but something about his actions was just fishy.
Something wasn't right about this. Scowling, Ray sat down on the driver's seat, put on his seatbelt, and turned the engine on. Screw this, he was going to just drive through the goddamn wall. Something just didn't sit well with him, and helping Percy and his friends would do wonders for his stress.
He turned the transmission stick, lifted the handbrake, and pressed on the gas pedal.
Ray furrowed his eyebrows when he noticed that the car wasn't moving at all. Odd, he could freely press the pedal, and he could also hear the tires on the back rotating… yet the RV wasn't moving.
Wait a second, how the heck could he hear the tires rota-?
~0~
"Er, thank you, ma'am," Percy said awkwardly, his right hand anxiously messing around with Riptide's pen form. "But we're still full. We just had breakfast before we left."
The weird woman who managed the statuary was setting off multiple alarms in his head, but he still couldn't be sure that this was the monster Athena warned him about. Maybe the monster was hiding as a statue and the lady was just plain senile, that could happen, right?
Now, how could he find that address…? And if he could, avoid the monster as he did?
"Oh, but breakfast hours had passed so long ago," the veiled old woman said sadly and sympathetically. "Don't tell me you're not hungry?"
"No, we're not, ma'am," Annabeth said, and when he glanced at her he could see that she had put a hand on the hilt of her sword. "We… well, we just came here to…"
"We came here because we thought that the statues looked cool," Percy finished when it was obvious that Annabeth couldn't think of a reason why three kids came out of nowhere into the middle of nowhere. "You're… you're a great statue maker, ma'am."
Grover was staring at a satyr statue nearby, his face scrunching in focus as his eyes narrowed at it.
The woman smiled. "Thank you, dear, how nice of you to say that. But alas, there are flaws on some of them. Not all of them are perfect."
Percy and Annabeth just nodded. The woman took a step back, her face somewhat softening.
"Please wait here while I bring the burgers and sodas," she told them, as she turned around and walked deeper into the warehouse. "Oh, visitors, after so long!"
He couldn't help it- the way she so happily said the last part made him smile slightly as well. Grover walked over to them after she left, looking troubled.
"Weird," Grover muttered. "The satyr looks so much like Uncle Ferdinand, it's uncanny. Honestly guys, I don't think it's a coincidence that my smell is blocked here… what do you think?"
"Honestly? I think she's a monster." Annabeth pulled out her sword, a normal Celestial Bronze one, not something like Percival's adamantine sword. "Looking at the statues surrounding us… I think she's Med- …she's one of the Gorgon sisters."
Medusa. The amusement on Percy's face immediately disappeared. Crud.
"Fun." Grover sighed. "So I guess we can't look at her in the face, huh? Oh, poor Uncle Ferdin- wait. Do you hear that?"
Annabeth raised an eyebrow. "Hear what?"
"Like… like a whistling or somethi-?"
Percy's eyes widened when Ray's RV came crashing into the warehouse with a loud crash from above, bursting through the wall like it was paper.