Hera opened the book and read aloud the title.
"The bus wasn't that great in actuality." Annabeth said to Percy and Grover.
"So, I guess Percy's luck decided to go bad." Thalia says to Annabeth.
"You would be right." Annabeth told her smiling.
"Are you done talking?" Hera asked the two demigods, sneering.
"We are now. Please read on, Queen Hera." Annabeth said glaring at the Queen.
"Thank you." Hera says primly and begins to read the chapter.
(It didn't take me long to pack. I decided to leave the Minotaur horn in my cabin, which left me only an extra change of clothes and a toothbrush to stuff in a backpack Grover had found for me. The camp store loaned me one hundred dollars in mortal money and twenty golden drachmas. These coins were as big as Girl Scout cookies and had images of various Greek gods stamped on one side and the Empire State Building on the other. The ancient mortal drachmas had been silver, Chiron told us, but Olympians never used less than pure gold. Chiron said the coins might come in handy for nonmortal transactions – whatever that meant. )
"You went on a quest pretty much unprepared." Poseidon said shocked.
"I mean, we weren't unprepared. We just didn't expect a lot of what happened to happen." Percy said smiling at his dad nervously.
(He gave Annabeth and me each a flask of nectar and an airtight bag full of ambrosia squares, to be used only in emergencies, if we were seriously hurt. It was god food, Chiron reminded us. It would cure us of almost any injury, but it was lethal to mortals. Too much of it would make a half-blood very, very feverish. An overdose would burn us up, literally. )
The Gods nodded.
(Annabeth was bringing her magic Yankees cap, which she told me had been a twelfth-birthday present from her mom. She carried a book on famous classical architecture, written in Ancient Greek, to read when she got bored, and a long bronze knife, hidden in her shirt sleeve. I was sure the knife would get us busted the first time we went through a metal detector. )
"The Mist covers the blades." Athena told the demigods in case some didn't know.
Leo and Piper nodded being the newest to the camp.
"Why did you bring a book, Annie?" Thalia asked Annabeth.
"Like Percy said we didn't expect what happen to happen and I hadn't left the camp in five years at this point." Annabeth explained, "I also didn't know Percy's luck yet."
"Fair enough." Thalia said nodding.
(Grover wore his fake feet and his trousers to pass as human. He wore a green rasta-style cap, because when it rained his curly hair flattened and you could just see the tips of his horns. His bright orange backpack was full of scrap metal and apples to snack on. In his pocket was a set of reed pipes his daddy goat had carved for him, even though he only knew two songs: Mozart's Piano Concerto no. 12 and Hilary Duff's 'So Yesterday', both of which sounded pretty bad on reed pipes. )
"I know more than that now." Grover said to Percy, "And I'm much better at the pipes."
"I know. Now, you turn Titans into trees." Percy praised him.
The Gods wondered how Grover had met a Titan and was able to turn him into a tree.
(We waved goodbye to the other campers, took one last look at the strawberry fields, the ocean and the Big House, then hiked up Half-Blood Hill to the tall pine tree that used to be Thalia, daughter of Zeus. )
"Why do you keep bringing me up?" Thalia asked Percy.
"I don't know. Your tree was just to big to ignore." Percy told her, shrugging.
(Chiron was waiting for us in his wheelchair. Next to him stood the surfer dude I'd seen when I was recovering in the sick room. According to Grover, the guy was the camp's head of security. He supposedly had eyes all over his body so he could never be surprised. Today, though, he was wearing a chauffeur's uniform, so I could only see extra peepers on his hands, face and neck. 'This is Argus,' Chiron told me. 'He will drive you into the city, and, er, well, keep an eye on things.' )
As Hera read about her son a smile grew on her face.
"Did he really just make that joke?" Chris asked the three.
"Yup." the three said.
(I heard footsteps behind us. Luke came running up the hill, carrying a pair of basketball shoes. 'Hey!' he panted. 'Glad I caught you.' Annabeth blushed, the way she always did when Luke was around. 'Just wanted to say good luck,' Luke told me. 'And I thought… um, maybe you could use these.' He handed me the sneakers, which looked pretty normal. They even smelled kind of normal. )
"Do you smell all shoes you get?" Gwen asked Percy.
"Well, no but I don't want to wear someone's smelly shoes. Also for the fact, he is a son of Hermes and they like their jokes." Percy explained to her.
(Luke said, 'Maia!' White bird's wings sprouted out of the heels, startling me so much, I dropped them. The shoes flapped around on the ground until the wings folded up and disappeared. 'Awesome!' Grover said. )
"Not awesome. At all." Grover muttered only loud enough to be heard by Annabeth and Percy.
(Luke smiled. 'Those served me well when I was on my quest. Gift from Dad. Of course, I don't use them much these days…' His expression turned sad. I didn't know what to say. It was cool enough that Luke had come to say goodbye. I'd been afraid he might resent me for getting so much attention the last few days. But here he was giving me a magic gift… It made me blush almost as much as Annabeth. )
"Really?" Nico asked Percy exasperated, "You too?"
Percy blushed as he sank into his seat.
Annabeth chuckling, tells Percy, "And you talk about how I act around him."
"It's not the same." Percy said pouting.
('Hey, man,' I said. 'Thanks.' 'Listen, Percy…' Luke looked uncomfortable. 'A lot of hopes are riding on you. So just… kill some monsters for me, okay?' We shook hands. Luke patted Grover's head between his horns, then gave a goodbye hug to Annabeth, who looked like she might pass out. After Luke was gone, I told her, 'You're hyperventilating.' 'Am not.' 'You let him capture the flag instead of you, didn't you?' 'Oh… why do I want to go anywhere with you, Percy?' )
"It begins!" Katie called out.
"What? What begins?" Hazel asked.
"Oh, just the beginning of the best partnership in the history of partnerships."Rachel tells her.
"Percabeth is what we call them." Grover says to Gwen.
Annabeth and Percy blush.
(She stomped down the other side of the hill, where a white SUV waited on the shoulder of the road. Argus followed, jingling his car keys. I picked up the flying shoes and had a sudden bad feeling. I looked at Chiron. 'I won't be able to use these, will I?' )
"I will strike you down." Zeus says staring at Percy, deadpanned.
Percy nods his head nervously.
(He shook his head. 'Luke meant well, Percy. But taking to the air… that would not be wise for you.' I nodded, disappointed, but then I got an idea. 'Hey, Grover. You want a magic item?' )
Grover grimaced.
Hermes saw this and wonder why he didn't like the shoes.
(His eyes lit up. 'Me?' Pretty soon we'd laced the sneakers over his fake feet, and the world's first flying goat boy was ready for launch. 'Maia!' he shouted. He got off the ground okay, but then fell over sideways so his backpack dragged through the grass. The winged shoes kept bucking up and down like tiny broncos. 'Practice,' Chiron called after him. 'You just need practice!' 'Aaaaa!' Grover went flying sideways down the hill like a possessed lawn mower, heading towards the van. )
Everyone burst out in laughter at that mental image.
"Really, man?" Grover asked Percy.
"Percy, I love your descriptions." Leo said while bent in half from laughter.
"Same." the other demigods and some Gods said.
(Before I could follow, Chiron caught my arm. 'I should have trained you better, Percy,' he said. 'If only I had more time. Hercules, Jason – they all got more training.' )
"Yup, they did and I got two weeks or so." Percy said shrugging.
Poseidon worried about his son going on his first quest with barely any training and so far no weapon. He wondered how Percy was still here alive.
('That's okay. I just wish –' I stopped myself because I was about to sound like a brat. I was wishing my dad had given me a cool magic item to help on the quest, something as good as Luke's flying shoes, or Annabeth's invisible cap. )
"You wouldn't have sounded like a brat. You don't even have a weapon yet. It's the least I could have done, given you a weapon." Poseidon told his son, who smiled back at him.
('What am I thinking?' Chiron cried. 'I can't let you get away without this.' He pulled a pen from his coat pocket and handed it to me. It was an ordinary disposable ballpoint, black ink, removable cap. Probably cost thirty cents. 'Gee,' I said. 'Thanks.' 'Percy, that's a gift from your father. I've kept it for years, not knowing you were who I was waiting for. But the prophecy is clear to me now. You are the one.' )
All the Gods perked up wondering which of the prophecies Chiron was talking about.
(I remembered the field trip to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, when I'd vaporized Mrs Dodds. Chiron had thrown me a pen that turned into a sword. Could this be…? I took off the cap, and the pen grew longer and heavier in my hand. In half a second, I held a shimmering bronze sword with a double-edged blade, a leather wrapped grip and a flat hilt riveted with gold studs. It was the first weapon that actually felt balanced in my hand. 'The sword has a long and tragic history that we need not go into,' Chiron told me. 'Its name is Anaklusmos.' )
Poseidon smiled as he heard his son get a sword that will work for him.
Artemis leaned forward, knowing that she was familiar with the name of the sword but not quite remembering where she had heard it.
('"Riptide",' I translated, surprised the Ancient Greek came so easily. 'Use it only for emergencies,' Chiron said, 'and only against monsters. No hero should harm mortals unless absolutely necessary, of course, but this sword wouldn't harm them in any case.' )
"I guess you forgot that, huh." Rachel said to Percy, who blushed.
"I didn't mean to!" Percy told her. "You scared me."
"I scared the big, bad son of Poseidon." Rachel said teasing him. "Me. A mortal."
Percy rolled his eyes at her.
Everyone else wondered about the story behind that conversation but went back to reading after a few seconds of silence.
(I looked at the wickedly sharp blade. 'What do you mean it wouldn't harm mortals? How could it not?' 'The sword is celestial bronze. Forged by the Cyclopes, tempered in the heart of Mount Etna, cooled in the River Lethe. It's deadly to monsters, to any creature from the Underworld, provided they don't kill you first. But the blade will pass through mortals like an illusion. They simply are not important enough for the blade to kill. And I should warn you: as a demigod, you can be killed by either celestial or normal weapons. You are twice as vulnerable.' 'Good to know.' 'Now recap the pen.' I touched the pen cap to the sword tip and instantly Riptide shrank to a ballpoint pen again. I tucked it in my pocket, a little nervous, because I was famous for losing pens at school. )
"Can it be used as a pen?" Leo asked Percy.
Percy looked thoughtful, "I don't know. I've never tried as it turns into a sword the moment the cap is off." Percy brings out Riptide in its pen form and uncaps it.
"You could try putting the cap to the top of the handle." Annabeth suggests to him.
Percy follows Annabeth's instructions and watches as it turns into a pen.
"Quick! I need paper." Percy said, looking around for some.
Hermes summons some and gives it to Percy, who starts writing with his sword-turned pen.
"Yes! It can be used as a pen." Percy told Leo grinning. "Great idea. I would've never thought of that."
Percy and Leo share a high-five.
('You can't,' Chiron said. 'Can't what?' 'Lose the pen,' he said. 'It is enchanted. It will always reappear in your pocket. Try it.' I was wary, but I threw the pen as far as I could down the hill and watched it disappear in the grass. 'It may take a few moments,' Chiron told me. 'Now check your pocket.' Sure enough, the pen was there.)
Artemis suddenly remembered where she had heard of Riptide. Her lieutenant Zoe, and how she was kicked out of her home. 'Let's just hope this boy is better than him.' She thought to herself.
('Okay, that's extremely cool,' I admitted. 'But what if a mortal sees me pulling out a sword?' Chiron smiled. 'Mist is a powerful thing, Percy.' 'Mist?' 'Yes. Read The Iliad. It's full of references to the stuff. Whenever divine or monstrous elements mix with the mortal world, they generate Mist, which obscures the vision of humans. You will see things just as they are, being a half blood, but humans will interpret things quite differently. Remarkable, really, the lengths to which humans will go to fit things into their version of reality.' I put Riptide back in my pocket. )
"That's true." Dakota said in agreement, sipping his Kool-aid.
Everyone nodded along knowing that mortals will believe almost anything.
(For the first time, the quest felt real. I was actually leaving Half-Blood Hill. I was heading west with no adult supervision, no backup plan, not even a cell phone. (Chiron said cell phones were traceable by monsters; if we used one, it would be worse than sending up a flare.) I had no weapon stronger than a sword to fight off monsters and reach the Land of the Dead. )
"Somehow, that's kind of all we needed except some essentials." Percy said shrugging.
"And what were you missing?" Poseidon asked Percy, dreading his answer.
"Food, and money." Percy told him.
"But you were given money with the pack. Both mortal and Greek." Jason points out.
Percy just shrugged.
('Chiron…' I said. 'When you say the gods are immortal… I mean, there was a time before them, right?' 'Four ages before them, actually. The Time of the Titans was the Fourth Age, sometimes called the Golden Age, which is definitely a misnomer. This, the time of Western civilization and the rule of Zeus, is the Fifth Age'. 'So what was it like… before the gods?' )
"Horrible." all the Gods who were around at that point in time said.
(Chiron pursed his lips. 'Even I am not old enough to remember that, child, but I know it was a time of darkness and savagery for mortals. Kronos, the lord of the Titans, called his reign the Golden Age because men lived innocent and free of all knowledge. But that was mere propaganda. The Titan king cared nothing for your kind except as appetizers or a source of cheap entertainment. It was only in the early reign of Lord Zeus, when Prometheus the good Titan brought fire to mankind, that your species began to progress, and even then Prometheus was branded a radical thinker. Zeus punished him severely, as you may recall. Of course, eventually the gods warmed to humans, and Western civilization was born.' 'But the gods can't die now, right? I mean, as long as Western civilization is alive, they're alive. So… even if I failed, nothing could happen so bad it would mess up everything, right?' )
"Not quite." Poseidon said.
"Yeah, It doesn't quite work that way." Apollo says to the demigods.
(Chiron gave me a melancholy smile. 'No one knows how long the Age of the West will last, Percy. The gods are immortal, yes. But then, so were the Titans. They still exist, locked away in their various prisons, forced to endure endless pain and punishment, reduced in power, but still very much alive. May the Fates forbid that the gods should ever suffer such a doom, or that we should ever return to the darkness and chaos of the past. All we can do, child, is follow our destiny.' 'Our destiny… assuming we know what that is.' 'Relax,' Chiron told me. 'Keep a clear head. And remember, you may be about to prevent the biggest war in human history.')
"No pressure or anything." Frank said rhetorically.
('Relax,' I said. 'I'm very relaxed.' When I got to the bottom of the hill, I looked back. Under the pine tree that used to be Thalia, daughter of Zeus, Chiron was now standing in full horse-man form, holding his bow high in salute. Just your typical summer-camp send-off by your typical centaur. )
"That's typical?" Gwen asked.
"It is if you are Greek." Jason told her.
(Argus drove us out of the countryside and into western Long Island. It felt weird to be on a highway again, Annabeth and Grover sitting next to me as if we were normal carpoolers. After two weeks at Half-Blood Hill, the real world seemed like a fantasy. I found myself staring at every McDonald's, every kid in the back of his parents' car, every billboard and shopping mall. 'So far so good,' I told Annabeth. 'Ten miles and not a single monster.' )
"You just jinxed yourself." Travis pointed out.
"Yup." Grover, Annabeth, and Percy said.
Poseidon just facepalmed.
(She gave me an irritated look. 'It's bad luck to talk that way, seaweed brain.' 'Remind me again – why do you hate me so much?' 'I don't hate you.' 'Could've fooled me.' She folded her cap of invisibility. 'Look… we're just not supposed to get along, okay? Our parents are rivals.' 'Why?' She sighed. 'How many reasons do you want? One time my mom caught Poseidon with his girlfriend in Athena's temple, which is hugely disrespectful. Another time, Athena and Poseidon competed to be the patron god for the city of Athens. Your dad created some stupid saltwater spring for his gift. My mom created the olive tree. The people saw that her gift was better, so they named the city after her.' )
"Ok for one, she was not my girlfriend. She could have been if I hadn't noticed how crazy she was. I hid in your mother's temple hoping to hide but all that happened was me trying to get away and her trying to force herself on me." Poseidon began explaining, "Secondly, that city was originally my city before it was hers and they could have used those springs for drinking fountains when they figured out how to separate the salt from it."
"It's okay, Lord Poseidon. I don't obviously still hold the same ideas as twelve-year-old me." Annabeth says to Poseidon.
"No, I think I had to get that off my chest because I'm getting sick of hearing it. Even if your mother won't believe me." Poseidon tells her, looking to Athena.
Athena looked like she didn't believe a word out of his mouth about the incidents.
('They must really like olives.' 'Oh, forget it.' 'Now, if she'd invented pizza – that I could understand.' 'I said, forget it!' In the front seat, Argus smiled. He didn't say anything, but one blue eye on the back of his neck winked at me.)
"Even Argus knew what was going on." the Stroll brothers both pointed out. "You two were so obvious."
(Traffic slowed us down in Queens. By the time we got into Manhattan it was sunset and starting to rain. Argus dropped us at the Greyhound Station on the Upper East Side, not far from my mom and Gabe's apartment. Taped to a mailbox was a soggy flyer with my picture on it: HAVE YOU SEEN THIS BOY? I ripped it down before Annabeth and Grover could notice. )
"We noticed. We just didn't say anything." Grover told Percy.
"Of course you did." Percy grumbled.
(Argus unloaded our bags, made sure we got our bus tickets, then drove away, the eye on the back of his hand opening to watch us as he pulled out of the parking lot. I thought about how close I was to my old apartment. On a normal day, my mom would be home from the candy store by now. Smelly Gabe was probably up there right now, playing poker, not even missing her. )
Nearly everyone except a few growled at the mention of Gabe.
(Grover shouldered his backpack. He gazed down the street in the direction I was looking. 'You want to know why she married him, Percy?' I stared at him. 'Were you reading my mind or something?' 'Just your emotions.' He shrugged. 'Guess I forgot to tell you satyrs can do that. You were thinking about your mom and your stepdad, right?' I nodded, wondering what else Grover might've forgotten to tell me. 'Your mom married Gabe for you,' Grover told me. 'You call him "Smelly", but you've got no idea. The guy has this aura… Yuck. I can smell him from here. I can smell traces of him on you, and you haven't been near him for a fortnight.' )
"Truly, such a smart woman." Athena praised Sally.
('Thanks,' I said. 'Where's the nearest shower?' )
Several demigods and Gods laughed.
"I love your wit." Apollo told Percy.
('You should be grateful, Percy. Your stepfather smells so repulsively human he could mask the presence of any demigod. As soon as I took a whiff inside his Camaro, I knew: Gabe has been covering your scent for years. If you hadn't lived with him every summer, you probably would've been found by monsters a long time ago. Your mom stayed with him to protect you. She was a smart lady. She must've loved you a lot to put up with that guy – if that makes you feel any better.' It didn't, but I forced myself not to show it. I'll see her again, I thought. She isn't gone. I wondered if Grover could still read my emotions, mixed up as they were. I was glad he and Annabeth were with me, but I felt guilty that I hadn't been straight with them. I hadn't told them the real reason I'd said yes to this crazy quest. )
"I'm pretty sure we both knew the real reason." Annabeth said to Percy. "And it's not like the two of us didn't join you for our own goals. Me wanting to leave camp cause of cabin fever."
"Me cause I needed to get a searchers license." Grover added.
(The truth was, I didn't care about retrieving Zeus's lightning bolt, or saving the world, or even helping my father out of trouble. The more I thought about it, I resented Poseidon for never visiting me, never helping my mom, never even sending a lousy child-support cheque. He'd only claimed me because he needed a job done. )
"I don't feel like that anymore." Percy told his dad.
"Do all of you feel that way?" Demeter asked the demigods.
The demigods in question all looked at anything that wasn't a God, answering the question without answering.
Zeus continued to glare at the demigods for not caring about his bolt.
(All I cared about was my mom. Hades had taken her unfairly, and Hades was going to give her back. You will be betrayed by one who calls you a friend, the Oracle whispered in my mind. You will fail to save what matters most in the end.Shut up, I told it. )
"First sign of insanity is you talking to yourself." Will joked to Percy, who rolled his eyes.
(The rain kept coming down. We got restless waiting for the bus and decided to play some Hacky Sack with one of Grover's apples. Annabeth was unbelievable. She could bounce the apple off her knee, her elbow, her shoulder, whatever. I wasn't too bad myself. The game ended when I tossed the apple towards Grover and it got too close to his mouth. In one mega goat bite, our Hacky Sack disappeared – core, stem and all. Grover blushed. He tried to apologize, but Annabeth and I were too busy cracking up. )
"I got distracted." Grover said blushing.
Percy and Annabeth were chuckling, remembering that event.
(Finally the bus came. As we stood in line to board, Grover started looking around, sniffing the air like he smelled his favourite school cafeteria delicacy – enchiladas. 'What is it?' I asked. 'I don't know,' he said tensely. 'Maybe it's nothing.' )
"First lesson of questing; always listen to your satyr or monster friend who smells better than you." Percy said to the ones not used to quest.
"That's right. They usually are able to smell if a monster is around." Annabeth added.
Leo, Piper, Frank, and Hazel nodded. It seemed even the other Romans were listening as they don't usually or ever work with non-humans or go on quests that often.
(But I could tell it wasn't nothing. I started looking over my shoulder, too. I was relieved when we finally got on board and found seats together in the back of the bus. We stowed our backpacks. )
"Second lesson of questing; always keep your bag and or possessions on you." Percy told them.
"You never know when you need to make a quick getaway." Grover added this time.
(Annabeth kept slapping her Yankees cap nervously against her thigh. As the last passengers got on, Annabeth clamped her hand onto my knee. 'Percy.' An old lady had just boarded the bus. She wore a crumpled velvet dress, lace gloves and a shapeless orange-knit hat that shadowed her face, and she carried a big paisley purse. When she tilted her head up, her black eyes glittered, and my heart skipped a beat. )
"Oh no. Who is it?"Hazel asked.
(It was Mrs Dodds. Older, more withered, but definitely the same evil face. I scrunched down in my seat. Behind her came two more old ladies: one in a green hat, one in a purple hat. Otherwise they looked exactly like Mrs Dodds – same gnarled hands, paisley handbags, wrinkled velvet dresses. Triplet demon grandmothers. )
Nico had started laughing now.
"I can't wait to tell them that you called them that." Nico told Percy.
"Don't give them more reason to hate me." Percy said glaring at Nico.
Nico just continued to laugh.
(They sat in the front row, right behind the driver. The two on the aisle crossed their legs over the walkway, making an X. It was casual enough, but it sent a clear message: nobody leaves. The bus pulled out of the station, and we headed through the slick streets of Manhattan. 'She didn't stay dead long,' I said, trying to keep my voice from quivering. 'I thought you said they could be dispelled for a lifetime.' 'I said if you're lucky,' Annabeth said. 'You're obviously not.' )
"Percy's luck really is the worst and best around." Annabeth said grimacing.
"The amount of crap he can land himself in and then somehow get out of is ridiculous."Clarisse adds.
The Gods wonder just how much trouble one demigod could get into.
Meanwhile, Frank and Hazel were once again wondering if they would be able to survive a quest with Percy.
('All three of them,' Grover whimpered. 'Di immortales!' 'It's okay,' Annabeth said, obviously thinking hard. 'The Furies. The three worst monsters from the Underworld. No problem. No problem. We'll just slip out the windows.' 'They don't open,' Grover moaned. 'A back exit?' she suggested. There wasn't one. )
"What kind of bus doesn't have an emergency back door?" Leo asked angrily.
"This one apparently." Hephaestus said to his son.
(Even if there had been, it wouldn't have helped. By that time, we were on Ninth Avenue, heading for the Lincoln Tunnel. 'They won't attack us with witnesses around,' I said. 'Will they?' 'Mortals don't have good eyes,' Annabeth reminded me. 'Their brains can only process what they see through the Mist.' 'They'll see three old ladies killing us, won't they?' )
"That would be hilarious." Ares cackled.
(She thought about it. 'Hard to say. But we can't count on mortals for help. Maybe an emergency exit in the roof…?' We hit the Lincoln Tunnel, and the bus went dark except for the running lights down the aisle. It was eerily quiet without the sound of the rain. Mrs Dodds got up. In a flat voice, as if she'd rehearsed it, she announced to the whole bus: 'I need to use the restroom.' 'So do I,' said the second sister. 'So do I,' said the third sister. They all started coming down the aisle. 'I've got it,' Annabeth said. 'Percy, take my hat.' 'What?' 'You're the one they want. Turn invisible and go up the aisle. Let them pass you. Maybe you can get to the front and get away.' )
"He won't leave you." Athena muttered.
('But you guys –' 'There's an outside chance they might not notice us,' Annabeth said. 'You're a son of one of the Big Three. Your smell might be overpowering.' 'I can't just leave you.' 'Don't worry about us,' Grover said. 'Go!' My hands trembled. I felt like a coward, but I took the Yankees cap and put it on. When I looked down, my body wasn't there any more. )
"That thing must be so useful." Piper said to Annabeth.
"Oh, it is." Annabeth told her, grinning."
(I started creeping up the aisle. I managed to get up ten rows, then duck into an empty seat just as the Furies walked past. Mrs Dodds stopped, sniffing, and looked straight at me. My heart was pounding. Apparently she didn't see anything. She and her sisters kept going. I was free. I made it to the front of the bus. We were almost through the Lincoln Tunnel now. I was about to press the emergency stop button when I heard hideous wailing from the back row. )
"Oh Gods, what now?" Gwen asked.
(The old ladies were not old ladies any more. Their faces were still the same – I guess those couldn't get any uglier – but their bodies had shrivelled into leathery brown hag bodies with bat's wings and hands and feet like gargoyle claws. Their handbags had turned into fiery whips. The Furies surrounded Grover and Annabeth, lashing their whips, hissing: 'Where is it? Where?' )
The Gods sat up wondering if they heard wrong.
"Why are they calling my son, it?" Poseidon asked.
"I don't think they are." Athena answered him.
"Then, what are they looking for?" Poseidon asked again.
"My bolt since it's missing." Zeus said to them.
"No, that's not what they are searching for. Why would they question the ones searching for it as well." Athena says.
(The other people on the bus were screaming, cowering in their seats. They saw something, all right. 'He's not here!' Annabeth yelled. 'He's gone!' The Furies raised their whips. Annabeth drew her bronze knife. Grover grabbed a tin can from his snack bag and prepared to throw it. )
"Seriously?" Nico asks Grover, who blushed.
"It was the first thing I grabbed." Grover told him.
(What I did next was so impulsive and dangerous I should've been named ADHD poster child of the year. )
"Oh Gods, this is gonna suck then." Thalia said groaning.
(The bus driver was distracted, trying to see what was going on in his rearview mirror. Still invisible, I grabbed the wheel from him and jerked it to the left. Everybody howled as they were thrown to the right, and I heard what I hoped was the sound of three Furies smashing against the windows. )
"It was." Annabeth told Percy, who fist pumped the air.
('Hey!' the driver yelled. 'Hey – whoa!' We wrestled for the wheel. The bus slammed against the side of the tunnel, grinding metal, throwing sparks a mile behind us. We careened out of the Lincoln Tunnel and back into the rainstorm, people and monsters tossed around the bus, cars ploughed aside like bowling pins. Somehow the driver found an exit. We shot off the highway, through half a dozen traffic lights, and ended up barrelling down one of those New Jersey rural roads where you can't believe there's so much nothing right across the river from New York. There were woods to our left, the Hudson River to our right and the driver seemed to be veering towards the river. Another great idea: I hit the emergency brake. )
"I think if I wasn't a God. I would be having a slight panic attack." Poseidon said to nobody, his face pale.
"It gets worse as the years go on." Nico piped up.
Percy smacked his arm.
Poseidon's face paled a little more and he fell back on his throne.
(The bus wailed, spun a full circle on the wet tar and crashed into the trees. The emergency lights came on. The door flew open. The bus driver was the first one out, the passengers yelling as they stampeded after him. I stepped into the driver's seat and let them pass. The Furies regained their balance. They lashed their whips at Annabeth while she waved her knife and yelled in Ancient Greek, telling them to back off. Grover threw tin cans. )
"You're doing great guys." Thalia said through her laughter.
"Thanks." Percy said sarcastically.
While Grover and Annabeth rolled their eyes at the daughter of Zeus.
(I looked at the open doorway. I was free to go, but I couldn't leave my friends. I took off the invisible cap. 'Hey!' The Furies turned, baring their yellow fangs at me, and the exit suddenly sounded like an excellent idea. Mrs Dodds stalked up the aisle, just as she used to do in class, about to deliver my F- maths test. Every time she flicked her whip, red flames danced along the barbed leather. )
"That gives me an idea." Leo muttered to himself, drawing on the pieces of paper that Hermes had summoned earlier.
(Her two ugly sisters hopped on top of the seats on either side of her and crawled towards me like huge nasty lizards. 'Perseus Jackson,' Mrs Dodds said, in an accent that was definitely from somewhere further south than Georgia. 'You have offended the gods. You shall die.' 'I liked you better as a maths teacher,' I told her. )
"You said that to her face?"Nico asked Percy.
"I'm sure I've said worse to her." Percy shrugged.
(She growled. Annabeth and Grover moved up behind the Furies cautiously, looking for an opening. I took the ballpoint pen out of my pocket and uncapped it. Riptide elongated into a shimmering double-edged sword. The Furies hesitated. Mrs Dodds had felt Riptide's blade before. She obviously didn't like seeing it again. )
"No monster likes seeing Riptide these days cause it means they are facing Percy." Conner tells the room.
"It's true if they don't recognize Percy then they recognize the blade and try to run." Travis adds on.
('Submit now,' she hissed. 'And you will not suffer eternal torment.' 'Nice try,' I told her. 'Percy, look out!' Annabeth cried. Mrs Dodds lashed her whip around my sword hand while the Furies on the either side lunged at me. My hand felt like it was wrapped in molten lead, but I managed not to drop Riptide. I struck the Fury on the left with its hilt, sending her toppling backwards into a seat. I turned and sliced the Fury on the right. As soon as the blade connected with her neck, she screamed and exploded into dust. Annabeth got Mrs Dodds in a wrestler's hold and yanked her backwards while Grover ripped the whip out of her hands. 'Ow!' he yelled. 'Ow! Hot! Hot!' The Fury I'd hilt-slammed came at me again, talons ready, but I swung Riptide and she broke open like a piñata. )
"Wow, you've only been introduced to the Greek world about two weeks ago and already you've killed all three furies with little trouble." Ares said to Percy, who was shocked Ares had praised him, sort of. "I'm slightly impressed."
Percy and several other demigods that know what happen later; shared a look knowing he won't be impressed for long.
(Mrs Dodds was trying to get Annabeth off her back. She kicked, clawed, hissed and bit, but Annabeth held on while Grover got Mrs Dodds's legs tied up in her own whip. Finally they both shoved her backwards into the aisle. Mrs Dodds tried to get up, but she didn't have room to flap her bat wings, so she kept falling down. 'Zeus will destroy you!' she promised. 'Hades will have your soul!' 'Braccas meas vescimini!' I yelled. I wasn't sure where the Latin came from. I think it meant 'Eat my pants!' )
"It did." Reyna told Percy.
"Seriously? Since when did you speak Latin?" Annabeth asked Percy.
"I took Latin classes when I was at school. I must have picked up some of it." Percy said to her.
"I mean, you seem to speak it well at Camp Jupiter." Frank adds in.
The Gods trade looks, knowing it shouldn't be easy to speak Latin, unlike Greek which took a few days to pick up.
(Thunder shook the bus. The hair rose on the back of my neck. 'Get out!' Annabeth yelled at me. 'Now!' I didn't need any encouragement. We rushed outside and found the other passengers wandering around in a daze, arguing with the driver, or running around in circles yelling, 'We're going to die!' A Hawaiian-shirted tourist with a camera snapped my photograph before I could recap my sword. )
"You did not do what I think you did." Thalia says to her father.
"He better not of." Poseidon growls out.
"Their bags are still on the bus." Athena points out.
('Our bags!' Grover realized. 'We left our –' BOOOOOM! The windows of the bus exploded as the passengers ran for cover. Lightning shredded a huge crater in the roof, but an angry wail from inside told me Mrs Dodds was not yet dead. )
"Are you serious, brother?!" Poseidon yells at Zeus. "They are trying to get your bolt back and you repaid them by destroying their transportation and their supplies."
"That was a bad move, brother." Hestia said to Zeus, looking disappointed in him.
Zeus sulks on his throne.
"This is why you keep your bag on you at all times." Percy tells the other demigods. "You never know when a God might decide to mess with you or you get attacked."
The others nod in shock.
('Run!' Annabeth said. 'She's calling for reinforcements! We have to get out of here!' We plunged into the woods as the rain poured down, the bus in flames behind us and nothing but darkness ahead. )
"I assume that was the ending as it was ominous as crap." Apollo said.
"You would assume correctly." Hera said to him.
"Gods, what crappy way to start a quest." Hazel says to herself with only Frank hearing her.
"I hope ours doesn't start like that." Frank says to her.
Hazel nods her head, hoping nothing like that happens.
"I think it's time to decompress and the demigods to head off to dinner and do whatever they'd like before bed." Hestia said to the other Gods.
Zeus nods and says, "Back here at the same time as this morning."
The demigods nod and head out to as Hestia said decompress from old memories that had been brought up.
The Gods stare at each other wondering where Zeus's bolt is and what the furies searching for.