Chapter 14, Act I - The Furies and Auntie M.

I was about halfway through the food book when we got to the bus station. I kept on reading, while the other three played hacky sack with an apple. I bit back a comment about how technically they're now all married to each other, according to an old Greek tradition.

Fortunately, I quickly forgot when they all started laughing. I glanced up, and smiled. Grover ate the apple whole, core and all. Gods, he's one hungry goat.

We boarded the bus a while later, and I frowned. Really, how did this pass any tests from wherever these get approved? The windows are sealed, there's no back or top exit, either. That's a huge safety violation.

They started to stow their backpacks, but I stopped them. "Guys, maybe it'd be safer if I kept them. I have spatial magic, remember? I can keep our stuff safer than this bus can. I mean, seriously, look at how many safety violations this bus makes by simply existing." I said, gesturing around. Percy shrugged, and passed me his bag.

After I put his bag away, Annabeth reluctantly passed her bag, a little less trusting of it, which is honestly fair. It's hard to trust something you don't understand, you know? Grover passed his bag along, and I promised to pass him tin cans if he wanted a snack.

As the last passengers boarded, Annabeth clamped her hand on Percy's knee, whispering his name urgently. "Look." She gestured subtly towards the last three passengers. I frowned, recognizing Alecto. Funny, because Alecto should be aware that Percy doesn't have the items they're searching for. Grover, surely, could've vouched for his presence at Yancy the whole time.

They started whispering urgently amongst each other, and I brought out a dagger I kept. I wasn't necessarily great at using them, as opposed to my usage of a bow, but I didn't want to be swinging around a massive sword in a bus full of people, even if they wouldn't get hurt from it.

I kept an eye on the Furies the whole time, trying to plan on a way to persuade them to stop their assault on us. We hit the Lincoln Tunnel, and Annabeth shoved her invisibility cap into Percy's hands. "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." She urged.

At Percy's protests, Annabeth shot him down. "There's an outside chance they won't notice us. You're a son of the Big Three. Your smell might be overpowering." She reasoned. "I can't just leave you." He tried. "Don't worry about us, Percy. You saw how I handled Alecto before. If you don't trust Annabeth, trust me. Go." I urged.

He put on the cap and went up the aisle. Alecto looked right at where I knew he was hiding, but passed him by. She knew he was there, but I think she knew he wasn't carrying what they wanted, somehow. Weird, because she didn't use whatever sense she's using there back at the museum.

They arrived at our row, and in their true forms. "Where is it?" They screeched. "Where?" Alecto demanded, looking straight at me. I stood to face her. "Alecto, Megaera, Tisiphone, with all due respect, we're on a quest looking for the bolt. If you're looking for the bolt, we don't know where it is. Our Oracle instructed us to go west. We are not your enemies, and rather, your allies in this."

At Alecto's narrowing eyes, distrust and malice shining, I dropped something that got their attention. "Fine. If that won't convince you, then let me tell you something. I know your master is missing something, too. Something important. Otherwise he wouldn't be sending you three. He'd be sending other, less important minions. Tell us what's going on, and we may be able to help."

Annabeth and Grover gave me shocked looks, but I kept my eyes trained on Alecto. She stayed silent for a moment, before responding. "You tell the truth, demigod. Hades is missing his Helm, and he suspected the same as Zeus. The spawn of Poseidon stole it, and is using you." She said, turning to Percy. "Alecto." I said warningly.

She turned to me. "Poseidon is not to blame. What does he stand to gain? He gains nothing from war, or from his brother's symbols of power. He doesn't wish for power, he wishes for equal respect among the council. Alecto, I pose this question to you. Who would stand to gain from a war among the Big Three? You have been to Tartarus recently. You know who I speak of." I posed to her.

She snarled, but returned to her biker granny disguise. "You make sense, Hecate spawn. We will return to Hades, inform him of this. Report to him once you are in Los Angeles, and he will... update, your quest." Alecto and her sisters turned, and she pushed the emergency break, making us lurch forward. I groaned, and Alecto snapped her fingers, the Mist clouding the eyes of the mortal witnesses.

"Panic, little mortals. There is a fire!" She shouted. She gave me a smirk, and she left the bus as the people clamored to get off the bus. I felt the hairs stand up on the back of my neck. "You guys! We need to go!" I shouted. I pushed people out of the way with aerokinesis, and got us out of there.

Moments after we left, lightning struck the bus, and it exploded. There were screams, and I paled. There were so many mortals on that bus, and while some made it out, a significant amount were still on the bus when lightning struck. I heard a click! When I glanced over to the origin of the sound, I saw someone taking a picture of us.

Right, I forgot. Percy's the subject of a nationwide manhunt because of Gabe, and all these events compiled together.

I grabbed Percy's hand, Annabeth grabbing Grover, and we ran into the forest.

Grover was shivering and braying. "All three Kindly Ones. All at once." As he said it, Annabeth turned to me. "How did you know all that? How did you handle that so well?" She demanded. I glanced at her. "I can't tell you how I knew as much as I did, due to an oath on the Styx, though I do assure you, Hades is not an enemy, but an ally, in these times." I lied.

I never took a Styx oath to withhold information, but I wish to have a truce between Kronos and myself for now. I knew I was already walking a dangerous line, but that counted as protecting Percy. The three Furies are dangerous, and all of us were at risk if that escalated.

"Niko, I trust you, but I don't trust your methods. You're hiding something huge from us. Hades is missing his Helm? Why wouldn't he say anything? This changes the course of our quest dramatically! There's no way he isn't the enemy here! He has to be." She shouted.

"He wouldn't say anything because the council historically has done minimal for him. Why would they care if his Helm was missing? He is an ally. The only wrongs he has committed here was sending the Furies and the Minotaur after Percy." I insisted. She huffed. "This isn't over yet, Niko." She warned.

"I need to know what you're hiding." She told me. "Maybe you'll know, some day. But that's not today." We settled into silence after that. She started talking with Percy, only getting interrupted by Grover playing his reed pipes.

It, frankly, sounded like an owl was being tortured. Percy was about to walk into a tree, so I held my hand out, stopping him. "Maybe stay behind me, guys. Hecate is a goddess who draws power from the night, I remind you. Night vision shouldn't even surprise you at this point." I pointed it out to them. Percy laughed in disbelief.

"That's so unfair that you get so many powers." He complained. "Percy, think how malleable water is. Steam, ice, rain, and that's only extensions of one of Poseidon's domains. He also has powers over the earth itself. You can cause earthquakes, Percy. If anyone has too many powers, it's you, even if you haven't discovered them yet, especially so if you consider that most, if not all, living organisms have some amount of water in them." I argued.

He made a dissatisfied noise, but shut up after that. Not long after, I caught a stench of food, and I felt us walk through some kind of barrier. I narrowed my eyes, and sent an observe at the invisible area, confirming my suspicions. This was a monster's hideout, and they had some kind of magic to lure people in with food.

It wasn't long before I saw it. I paled. I almost forgot they encountered this place. In red, cursive letters, almost torture for demigods to read, was Aunty Em's Garden Gnome Emporium. I sighed. I knew I could summon food for them, but they needed to face her. "Guys, I'm getting a bad feeling. I'll stand watch. You three can go in." I told them, climbing up and stationing myself on a tree, out of sight.

The three of them went in, and I just learned the skill book to shadow travel, and I summoned myself a grilled cheese, with a coke. As soon as I finished, the trio came out with the monster, disguised under a veil. I dropped down, reaching out my magic to act as my eyes, so I didn't have to look directly while facing this monster.

Annabeth saw what I was doing from behind the back of the monster, and she shut her eyes, too, realizing who this was. "Percy." She tried to warn him. "Something's wrong."

"Wrong?" The woman asked, reaching up to undo her veil. "Not at all, dear. I have such noble company tonight. What could be wrong?" She asked Annabeth. I could feel magic in her words. That couldn't be right, though. In no myths did she have charmspeak.

"That is Uncle Ferdinand!" Grover gasped, pointing at the statue of a satyr. "Look away from her!" Annabeth called out, pushing Percy and Grover down as she donned her cap.

Medusa finally unwrapped her veil, and lifted her disguise. Frankly, I'm mildly scarred from looking at her through only my magic alone. But I knew I had to spectate, and protect Percy. Medusa lashed out as Grover flew by with the shoes Luke gave Percy, hitting her with a stick.

Percy was passed a green gazing ball by Annabeth. She started blabbing about math things that make sight through it distorted, and Percy quickly shushed her. Percy uncapped Riptide, and I nocked an arrow of light in my bow, aiming at where my magic pinpointed her.

I knew I could only fire to kill under the circumstance that Percy falters or fails. Medusa was about to lunge at a crashing Grover, and I was about to shoot, but Percy shouted to get her attention.

Percy advanced on her, eyes trained on the gazing ball. The gorgon tried persuading Percy to stop, to no avail. Medusa lunged, and Percy swung his sword, cutting off her head, like his namesake once did. Her head dropped, and I wrapped it quickly in her veil, dropping it in my inventory. I'd love to let Percy do what he wants with Medusa's head, and it was rightfully his, but I had a plan.

"I'm taking the head for safekeeping. I can't risk anyone getting petrified." I told them. While that was true, it wasn't the whole truth.

"Why didn't the head evaporate?" Percy asked. "It's a spoil of war. Like the Minotaur horn. Once you sever it, it becomes a spoil of war, for you to keep and use as you wish." I informed him.

Grover groaned, getting up from where he crashed. Percy clapped him on the back. "The Red Baron. Good job, man." Percy said, smiling. Grover managed a grin. "That really was not fun, though. Well, the hitting-her-with-a-stick part was, the crashing part? Not so much." He said, snatching his flying shoes out of the air, and reequipping them.

I nodded at Percy in approval, and we walked into the warehouse together. "You knew it was Medusa's lair, didn't you?" Annabeth asked. I hesitantly nodded. "Why didn't you warn us?" I carefully thought up an answer.

"The Fates have a rather linear idea of how things should go. I interfered by living to the point I did. I'm not supposed to be here, and this was a fight for the three of you to take, not me. I don't wish to interfere in the plans of the Fates, if I can help it, though if I am given the opportunity to intercede, I'll take it." I tried to explain.

"But how are you here, then, if the Fates don't want you alive?" She asked. It occurred to me then and there why the Fates didn't interfere when I came to this world. "Because," I said, pausing my scavenging to look up at her.

"I don't have a string."