The quest consisted of Zoe, Percy, Thalia, Annabeth, and Grover, which thoroughly confused the Son of Hades.
"I thought there were supposed to be three Hunters and two Campers," Percy commented. They sat in the Camp Half Blood van. Zoe drove, despite not looking quite sixteen. Percy sat in the passenger seat, and the other three were in the back.
"I decided on two Hunters in the end. However… Phoebe was not well this morning. She was unable to come along."
"Did the Stolls do something to that shirt they gave her?" Annabeth asked suspiciously.
Zoe sighed. "Centaur blood," she said grimly.
"Those idiots!" Annabeth barked. "It's like they're trying to get castrated!"
"Rest assured, Daughter of Athena." Percy thought Zoe was going to say something kind, for some reason. Her next words ruined that idea. "The Hunters are much more creative in their punishments."
Thalia snorted. "Yeah, 'cause that's what we're worried about," she muttered sarcastically. Being in the same van as the Lieutenant of the Hunt was slowly wearing down her nerves. It was only because Annabeth and Grover, and Percy, to an extent, were there that she was able to keep from flying off the handle.
"So you chose me to replace her?"
"No, I chose you to replace that fool satyr. It was pure coincidence that I discovered Phoebe's illness too late to make another change to the quest roster."
"Hey!" Grover cried indignantly, but was silenced by Thalia jabbing an elbow into his side.
"Don't yell in my ear, Goat Boy," she grunted, crossing her arms moodily. Annabeth laid a calming hand on the Daughter of Zeus' shoulder, and it seemed to work, somewhat. At the very least, the smell of ozone faded. Percy pulled out his phone and a pair of headphones, plugging himself in and leaning back in his seat. It was going to be a long ride.
They stopped in a convenience store in Maryland. At some point, when Percy wasn't paying attention, Grover had performed some sort of tracking spell involving acorns. Apparently, it had pointed them to D.C, though Percy wasn't quite sure exactly why they had to follow the bane of Olympus, when they could very well have gone straight west to Mount Othrys, where he and Zoe knew Artemis was trapped.
The Lieutenant had the same thoughts, because she said, "I dislike this. We should go straight west. The prophecy said west."
"Oh, sorry, I didn't know your tracking skills were better," Thalia drawled, scowling at the Huntress.
Zoe sent the girl a harsh glare. "You challenge my skills, you scullion? You know nothing of being a Hunter!"
"Scullion? You're calling me a scullion? Annabeth, what does that even mean?" It was hard to be indignant when you didn't know what someone was insulting you with. Annabeth rolled her eyes.
"It's a servant who works in the kitchen. They're mostly incompetent, though, so they get assigned the most basic tasks, the ones that can't possibly be messed up." She sounded like she was bored of the constant arguing, not that Percy could blame her. He was so lucky he'd had the forethought to bring headphones. "Anyways, Grover's right. D.C's the only lead we have right now, so it's our best bet at the moment."
Zoe opened her mouth to argue, but Percy nudged her shoulder with his. "Perhaps we ought to trust the satyr. He is the one who found the Golden Fleece, and four children of the Eldest Gods. He is not incompetent." Grover beamed at the Son of Hades.
The Daughter of Atlas glared for a moment, before relenting. "Very well. We will go to D.C."
The teens quickly filed into the convenience store, splitting up and grabbing whatever snacks they pleased. Percy offered to pay, pulling a black credit card from his back pocket, which nearly caused the cashier to have a heart attack, despite only being in his mid-twenties.
"A perk of Father's position," he said by way of explanation when his quest mates stared at him for too long. They seemed to get it after that. Percy walked out with a plastic bag full of Monster energy drinks in one hand, sipping from an open can held in the other. Zoe looked at it quizzically.
"What is that drink?" she asked. Percy paused mid-step, staring at her in bewilderment.
"I forget that the Hunters live in the wild," he murmured, shaking his head. "It is a cocktail of caffeine, designed to help one stay awake."
"Is that not what coffee is for?" Zoe asked. Percy shrugged.
"Some people have different tastes. I prefer the sourness of energy drinks over bitter coffee."
Zoe didn't seem to get it. "May I try some?" she asked. Percy debated whether or not he wanted to relinquish even a drop of his precious caffeine, before deciding it wasn't that big of a deal. He had eight more in the bag. He passed her the can- lemonade flavored- and she took a hesitant swig. Immediately, her face screwed up into a grimace. "That- that is horrible," she choked out. She smacked her lips a few times, and a few seconds later, went back for a second sip. Percy swiped the can from her hands before she could.
"Excuse me? You insult my drink, then try to take more? Have you no shame?" he asked indignantly.
"It has… An interesting aftertaste. It is oddly compelling."
"Indeed," Percy agreed, glaring at her over the brim of the can. Zoe rolled her eyes.
"You are so immature," she muttered. Percy, in a fit of childishness, stuck his tongue out at her. The Huntress ignored him, walking around the van to slide into the driver's seat.
Grover's acorn tracking spell pointed them towards the Smithsonian's Air and Space Museum. It was a cold day, so not many people were here to view the exhibits, so the group slipped in quietly and wandered around for a bit. Percy had only noticed Annabeth was gone when she came sprinting up a ramp, slamming right into Thalia. The girls went sprawling, though they could only see Thalia at first. Annabeth became visible when she pulled a Yankees cap off her head, which Percy thought was interesting.
"Luke- here!" she gasped, panting as if she'd run a marathon.
"Woah, Annie!" Thalia said, climbing to her feet and pulling the blonde up with her. She placed her hands on Annabeth's arms to steady her. "Calm down. What do you mean, Luke's here?"
"I saw him getting out of a car, so I followed him! He was in the Museum of Natural History, with a bunch of other monsters, and some guy they called the General."
"The General is here?" Zoe asked sharply.
"Yeah! I dunno who he is, but he's definitely powerful. He said he's the one in charge of the Titan's army- he was even ordering Luke around. He did this weird thing where he planted teeth from the ancient dragon, Sybaris, into the ground, and these freaky skeleton things grew after he watered them with blood."
Percy sucked in air through his teeth. "Spartoi," he seethed, a dark corona of power pulsing around him. The others pulled away, startled by his sudden rage. He took a moment to reign in his aura, then immediately stretched out his death sense. It picked up a dozen signatures which registered as completely dead, but they were moving towards the quest members far too fast for them to be anything other than the reanimated skeletons. He turned on his heel and began purposefully striding down the ramp leading to the observation deck, only to stop when someone grabbed his arm. He whirled around and slapped Zoe's arm aside. "Do not interfere, Lieutenant. This is an internal affair of the Underworld."
"Perseus, Spartoi are abominations that put the most horrible monsters of Tartarus to shame! You will not be able to handle them alone!"
Percy stepped closer to her, using his extra three inches of height to loom over her menacingly. "You. Will. Not. Interfere."
Zoe squared her shoulders and closed the distance between them, until they were standing nose to nose. "And you will not order me around. I answer only to Lady Artemis- not a foolish boy."
Percy scoffed, turning away from her. "Do as you please," he snarled, spinning on his heel and coming face-to-face with the Nemean Lion. The massive cat was larger than the van they'd driven here in, and much, much furrier. A growl rumbled in the back of its throat, and it licked its jowls in anticipation. Percy, unfazed, stomped his foot on the ground. A pillar of marble shot up, slamming into the lion's underside. Though it didn't do any damage, the column fulfilled its intended purpose of winding the cat. While its mouth was open in shock and pain, a spike of darkness rose like a stalagmite, stabbing through the roof of its mouth and giving the Nemean Lion an impromptu lobotomy. Without even a meow of pain, the monster disintegrated into dust, and Percy sprinted through the cloud of gold, trampling over the pelt that lay on the floor.
His quest mates stood frozen, unable to comprehend what had just happened.
"Was… Was that the Nemean Lion?" Annabeth asked weakly.
"I think it was," Thalia replied, just as numb. Grover just bleated in belated terror, pupils narrowed to horizontal slits like an actual goat.
Zoe was the first to regain her mental faculties, due to her extensive experience hunting powerful beasts. "Come, we must make sure he does not do anything foolish." She picked up the lion's pelt on her way past, slinging it over her shoulder and holding back a shudder . As distasteful as it was, the spoils of war were not hers to decide the fate of. She would give it to Perseus when she found him, though what good it would do him, with his invulnerable skin, she did not know.
Percy met the Spartoi at the entrance to the Air and Space Museum, and received a bullet to the head for his troubles. The Son of Hades stumbled back a step, rubbing his throbbing forehead. He grabbed his Stygian Iron sword from the sheath on his back and lunged at the nearest skeleton. It happened to be the one that had shot him. His sword cleaved clean through its exposed spinal cord, and it was engulfed in black flames, burning until nothing remained. Gunshots rang through the air as four of the remaining Spartoi fired at Percy, while the other seven advanced, shining batons brandished. They were impersonating police officers, for some reason, which would explain the choice of weaponry.
Bullets slammed into Percy's limbs, although with his single-minded focus, he was able to ignore the concussive force. A skeleton slammed its club into the demigod's head, but he took the hit without flinching. The weapon broke against his invincible skin, and Percy stabbed his sword through its skull. The abomination burned to ashes, just like the one before it. This time, three Spartoi attacked at the same time, but to no avail. Their batons all shattered, leaving them defenseless as Percy cut through them with a single sweeping blow. By this point, the Spartoi with guns had run out of bullets, and it seemed that they were rethinking their approach.
Whatever they decided, Percy was forced to take his eyes off them as five of the monsters jumped at him, dragging him down in a dogpile and swiping at them with their bony hands. In the wild flailing that ensued, his blade scratched one, making it burst into flames, before two of them grabbed his sword arm, pinning it to the ground. The other two began wailing on his face, ignoring how their hands broke and reformed with every blow.
Growling angrily, Percy surrounded himself in black flames, consuming the four undead horrors. Within moments, the weight holding him down- bones were surprisingly heavy- vanished, turned to ash on the wind, and Percy rose to his feet.
He saw the grenade too late.
Zoe and her quest mates reached the entrance to the Air and Space Museum just in time for a violent explosion to knock them to the floor, rocking the entire building. Chips of marble stung the Huntress' skin, and the heat washed over her like a tidal wave. She rolled to her feet, eyes watering from the smoke assaulting them.
"Holy shit!" Thalia shouted, struggling to push herself upright. "Was that Percy!?"
"Only one way to find out," Annabeth said grimly, rushing into the cloud of smog. Zoe followed suit, her sight immediately vanishing. She stepped in a crater after a few steps, almost twisting her ankle. A strange clattering sound was heard, and instincts honed by centuries at Lady Artemis' side screamed for her to move. She twisted the side, narrowly dodging the hammerblow from a baton. By this point, the smoke had dissipated enough for her to see her attacker. With its translucent gray skin and bleached-white skull glaring at her with dark, empty sockets, the Spartoi cut an ominous figure. Its jaw clattered together, as if it were attempting to talk, and it lunged at her, baton swinging straight for her head. Zoe ducked underneath, grabbing the skeleton's outstretched arm and rolling it over her back. She slammed the monster into the shattered ground so hard its arm popped out of its joint. However, the instant she dropped the limb, it gravitated back to the main body, slotting itself back in its rightful place. Her maneuver didn't seem to do anything more than anger her opponent.
Fast as lightning, Zoe grabbed the hunting daggers strapped to her thighs, ripping them from their sheaths and crossing them to catch the next blow. It was surprisingly strong, considering the Spartoi had no actual muscle, and Zoe grunted in effort, shunting the attack to the side. She snapped out a kick, sending the skeleton flying backwards, and she used the precious free space to evaluate the situation.
Now that the smoke had cleared, she could see a crater around five yards wide on the front steps of the museum. Shrapnel littered the ground, and a few nearby windows were shattered. Annabeth and Grover had Percy's arms slung over their shoulders, dragging the unconscious Son of Hades to the van, while Thalia held off a Spartoi in single combat. Zoe was a bit confused; the Daughter of Athena had said there were twelve Spartoi, but only two were here now. Had Perseus managed to destroy ten of them in the time it took to reach him? Zoe shook her head in dumbfounded amazement, resolving to ask him about it when he awoke. For now, they had to leave. If the General was nearby, there was no doubt the explosion had caught his attention. Either a legion of monsters or, gods forbid, Atlas himself, was coming to investigate.
Summoning her bow, Zoe nocked an arrow and shot it at one of the Spartoi's forehead, then the other. The silver tips imbedded into their skulls, the momentum behind the projectile ripping it from their spines and sending their heads flying away. The bodies fell like puppets whose strings had been severed, but it was only a temporary solution. Eventually, the cursed beings would put themselves back together. However, Zoe was only attempting to buy them time, so it was good enough for now. She stowed away her bow and followed her quest mates to the van.
The helicopter was an issue. It followed them doggedly, and no matter how hard she tried, Zoe couldn't lose it. Eventually, Annabeth suggested they ditch the van, and take the subway. It was faster, and since it went underground, it would be harder to track. Agreeing, she pulled over into the parking lot of a mall. Grover had managed to wake Perseus up with a combination of nature magic and nectar, but the Son of Hades had to lean heavily against his cousin to keep up with them, bleary eyes struggling to stay open.
It took a bit of manipulating the Mist to get the man on shift to allow them to purchase tickets without too many questions, and they used Perseus' credit card to pay. A few minutes later, they were in a secluded car towards the back, heading south towards Alexandria, Virginia.
Annabeth was the first to break the tense silence. "How are they able to use mortals like that?" she asked.
"Mercenaries," Zoe said distastefully. "Many mortals will fight for any cause, so long as they are paid for it."
"But don't they notice that they're working with monsters?" Thalia asked skeptically. "The Mist isn't always effective."
"Sometimes, mortals can be worse than monsters." The conversation ended on that grim note, and the four were quiet for the remainder of the ride. Percy lay sprawled across the seats, sleeping fitfully. Occasionally, he twitched, face scrunching up into a pained expression, before he would relax once more. If he was having a nightmare, it didn't seem particularly horrid, so nobody saw fit to wake him.
As they pulled into Alexandria's station, Grover perked up, ears wiggling. "I can hear the chopper," he informed his quest mates, panicked. Zoe knew that satyrs had incredibly sensitive hearing, so she didn't doubt him.
"We must switch trains. Hopefully, they will lose track of us."
It took two changes, but eventually, Grover was no longer able to pick up the sound of helicopter blades tearing through the air. The satyr sagged against his seat in relief, looking ready to pass out after being on high alert for the past half-hour. Thalia also relaxed a bit. She kept her eyes open, but was no longer tense, ready to leap into action at a moment's notice. Zoe and Annabeth remained wound up like springs. Perseus was slumped against Thalia, head resting on her shoulder, sound asleep.
Zoe somewhat pitied him. She'd heard that, in exchange for enhanced combat prowess, the Curse of Achilles drained the energy of the holder at an incredible rate, resulting in them needing to sleep much more than the average demigod. However, if her two days at Camp Half-Blood were any indication, it seemed that he was frequently tortured by dreams, leaving him unable to sleep through the night. Then, he'd killed the Nemean Lion- the pelt of which she now wore, for lack of a better place to keep it- destroyed ten indestructible (as far as she knew) warriors, and took an explosion of unknown origin to the face. He deserved a bit of rest.
Unfortunately, he wasn't allowed to get it quite yet. The train reached the end of the line, and the group was forced to get off in an industrial sector, with rusted warehouses and abandoned railways. They wandered through the trainyard, Thalia and Annabeth almost having to drag Perseus along. He walked as if drunk, head lolling this way and that, dark eyes glazed with exhaustion.
That is not to say he was alone. The other quest members were about ready to drop, coming down from the adrenaline high, and to top it all off, the wind had picked, chilling their bones through their thick coats. Zoe was slightly better off, due to the lion fur coat, which had transformed into a long, golden-colored duster, but she still rubbed her arms to bring some warmth to them.
Eventually, they stumbled across a homeless man standing in front of a trash can fire. The man smiled at them, revealing his half-toothless gums. "Y'all need to get warmed up?" he asked jovially. "C'mon over!"
The teens huddled around the fire, placing Percy and Grover on either side of the homeless man so that the girls wouldn't have to be near him. He smelled absolutely rancid. Zoe kept Perseus' left arm wrapped around her shoulders, but without someone supporting his right side, he began falling forward. The homeless man grabbed Perseus' arm, and Zoe could've sworn she saw a flicker of golden light. However, it vanished so quickly, she passed it off as a trick of her fatigued mind. Apparently, something did happen, though, since Perseus straightened up, suddenly alert. He gasped at the sensation of being flooded with energy.
"Thank you…" he said to the homeless man, who grinned through his tangled beard.
"Fred," the man said, filling in his name. Perseus nodded.
"Thank you, Fred."
"Anytime, kiddie," Fred replied cheerfully. "What brings you young'uns out here? Lookin' fer a train west?"
Zoe narrowed her eyes suspiciously. Before she could ask who Fred really was, Grover piped up. "Yeah, we are. Would you happen to know any?" Fred pointed, and Zoe looked over. Suddenly, there was a train, which most definitely was not there before. It was a freight train, with a steel mesh that allowed Zoe to see three decks of cars through it. The side of the train said Sun West Lines.
"That's… Convenient," Thalia said lamely. "Thanks… Fred?" When she turned to the man, he was gone without a trace. There weren't even footprints in the snow.
Annabeth and Thalia took over a Mercedes SLK, which soon began vibrating after Thalia hotwired it and turned up the radio. Grover trotted over to a Lamborghini with stars in his eyes. Percy slipped into the driver's seat of a midnight purple Ford Mustang. The interior was made of soft leather, which felt rather nice. He leaned the seat back, simply relaxing for now, thoughts wandering. He entertained the thought of taking a much-needed nap, before quickly dismissing the notion. Even though Fred had somehow replaced his exhaustion with boundless energy, his mind was still sluggish. Right now, though, he didn't want to deal with the nightmares.
"Oh, don't be afraid of dreams." Percy glanced over. A homeless man was now sitting in his car. Fred. Or rather…
"Lord Apollo," Percy greeted tiredly. The god smiled at him.
"Call me Fred, kid. Zeus insists on certain rules when it comes to interfering with the quests of half-bloods. That is; don't. Unfortunately for him, my sister's in trouble, and no set of dusty old rules is gonna stop me!" he proclaimed proudly.
"She hates you."
Apollo deflated. "Trust me, kid, I know. I'm surprised you managed to pick up on it, though, considering you've only seen us interacting once."
"It was not difficult, considering Father looks at me the same way. I also happen to understand why you go to such extents for her."
"Family first," Apollo stated grimly. Percy could only nod in agreement, making Apollo smile wanly. "Seems like you and I are more alike than anyone would know, Perseus Jackson."
"Except I don't act like a fool," Percy pointed out amusedly. Apollo rolled his eyes.
"What, am I supposed to act all emo like you? I'm the Sun God! I gotta be all bright and happy and sunshine-y, ya know?" Apollo sighed. "Even if I never feel like that anymore," he mumbled morosely. "Prophecies don't stop at a buncha words spit out by my Oracle. I get visions all the time, of a world in peril, like Tartarus has risen to the surface. It's… Not awesome."
"I can imagine," Percy muttered.
The Sun God shook his head, snapping himself out of his funk. "Anyways, enough about me! I came to help you kids. You might've noticed the train?"
"Sun West Lines is not exactly subtle, Lord Apollo."
"Drop the Lord business, kid. I'm not super stuffy like the rest of 'em."
"Then, Apollo."
The immortal nodded in satisfaction. "Well, I've about used up my time here. Zeus is starting to get suspicious as to where I am, since I've hidden myself from his radar while I'm here. I probably won't be able to show up again. For now, you must sleep, Perseus Jackson. Sleep, and see."
The God of Prophecies pressed his index finger to Percy's forehead, heat emanating from the point of contact, making Percy fall deep into Morpheus' realm.
He was fighting, swinging his Stygian Iron sword as fast as he could. Quick though he was, he just couldn't keep up with his opponent, who was using a spear taller than the demigod, whirling it around like a windmill and attacking with both ends, something only a true master of the art could do. Each blow he blocked rattled his bones, and the few that managed to get through fractured bone, almost ignoring his invincible skin.
Percy went for a feint, starting with an underhand spin, only to whirl to the side and attempt to bisect his foe horizontally. However, his opponent, shrouded in shadows, simply stepped back a pace, allowing the sword to whistle through the air harmlessly, before swinging his javelin like a baseball bat. The blunt end of the spear caught Percy in the ribs, cracking many of them, and sending the Son of Hades flying.
Percy rolled to his feet, but was almost sent back to the ground when an enormous weight slammed down on his shoulders. He was forced to drop his weapon and press his hands flat against the darkness above him. He fell to a knee, straining so hard it felt like his veins were going to explode. Whatever burden he was carrying, he needed to find a way out, or he would soon perish.
He was fighting someone else, now, though Percy somehow knew it wasn't that long after his previous battle. His body screamed in agony with every movement, and some of the hair that fluttered into his vision was gray. Again, he was facing an opponent with a polearm, but this time, their figure was clearly visible.
Why was he battling Thanatos?
The God of Death whipped his scythe around, and Percy ducked, the blade trimming a few millimeters off his mostly-black hair. After the scythe passed by, Percy leaped up, jabbing his sword towards Thanatos' face, but the god simply tilted his head to the side, easily avoiding it. A palm was planted on Percy's chest, shoving him back so hard he rolled, and came up kneeling. By then, his opponent had changed once more. Now, the Lord of the Underworld was brandishing Death's scythe.
Father! Percy attempted to scream, but his body suddenly wouldn't cooperate. All he could do was watch as Hades approached, a cruel smirk on his face, and swung the scythe.
Percy woke with a strangled gasp. He sat up ramrod straight, clutching at his throat, feeling for a wide, bloody gash. He slumped backwards in relief when his fingers only passed over smooth skin.
"Perseus?" The Son of Hades jolted in surprise, head whipping to the side and locking gazes with Zoe.
"...Lieutenant," he muttered, relaxing once more. "Is there something you needed?"
"I came to ensure you were well. You were hit with an explosion during the fight with the Spartoi." His eyes flashed at the mention of the abominations.
"I am fine," he said quietly. He snapped his fingers, and a black flame appeared in the palm of his hands, quickly flickering through images only seen by him. "The Fields of Punishment are in an uproar. When this quest is over, I must return to Erebus," he murmured, closing his hand to snuff out the fire.
"What?" Zoe asked, confused. "Why would there be turmoil there, of all places?"
"The souls tethered to the Spartoi were taken from the Fields- criminals freed from their suffering, even if only temporarily. It seems that seeing a few of their compatriots manage to escape, by their own devices or not, has emboldened the rest. Charon will be able to prevent a full-on rebellion, but Father is far too busy to be bothered with such trivial matters."
Zoe frowned. "More important than damned souls escaping the punishments they deserve?"
"He does run the entirety of the Underworld," Percy reminded her. "The Fields of Punishment are but one facet, and with Kronos stirring, the entrances to Tartarus are more active than ever. Father must monitor them to make sure none of the more vile monsters escape. If, by chance, they do, he must inform Olympus as soon as possible."
"And what of the Di Angelos? Will they not assist you?"
Percy shook his head. "As I've told you, the Fields of Punishment are under my jurisdiction. Unless the situation was truly drastic, Father would not allow them to interfere, as they would have other duties to attend to. Also, they are not simply not prepared to deal with any of the issues that may arise. They only found out about their divine heritage a few days ago. They are likely still coming to terms with it."
Zoe nodded slowly. "I… See," she said. And truly, she did. She understood the basic concept, but she that did not mean she had to like it. "Is that why the news of the Spartoi angered you so?"
"It is," Percy admitted. "They may be in the mortal world now, but they were originally from the Fields, and as such, it is my responsibility to return them. Unfortunately, I was unable to destroy the last two."
"It is still impressive," Zoe argued, "To have fought and overcome ten of them as quickly as you did." Percy remained silent, and Zoe was not sure what else to say, so she slipped off the brown duster, placing it in his lap.
"...What is this?" he asked, staring at the jacket suspiciously.
"The pelt of the Nemean Lion. As the one who killed it, it is yours."
Percy scoffed and tossed it back. "What use would I have for it? I have the Curse of Achilles."
"You could use it to cover your weak point," Zoe suggested, throwing the jacket at his face. He peeled it off his head, giving her an annoyed glare.
"It's not in a place that the pelt would reach," he said, batting her hands aside with one arm and draping the duster over her own hair, thoroughly messing it up and displacing her tiara. Percy grabbed her wrists, ensuring she wouldn't be able to retaliate, forcing her to shake her head side-to-side and hope the pelt slid off. It did, eventually, and she did not seem amused. Percy, however, grinned cheekily, quite entertained. "Keep it," he insisted. "If we are to fight Atlas, you will be the one who needs it most."
Zoe huffed, making a futile attempt to free her hands. Unfortunately, Percy's grip was too strong, and she gave up after a few moments. She puffed the hair out of her face, resigned. "As you wish," Zoe said moodily. Percy smirked triumphantly and released her, which was a mistake. The second his hands were down by his side, Zoe struck. She grabbed both ends of the jacket and wrapped it around his face, both obscuring his vision and yanking his head to the side. Whatever curses he yelled out were muffled by the fur. His hands flailed in a barely controlled manner, scrabbling for a grip on his bindings. Unfortunately, Zoe continuously twisted it about, making it difficult.
So, he switched tactics and went for his attacker, instead. She was completely unprepared for his hands to latch onto her sides, fingers wiggling mercilessly and eliciting a startled shriek from the Hunter.
"S-Stop!" she shouted breathlessly, giggling against her will.
"Release me first!" Percy demanded viciously. Zoe stubbornly tightened her grip on the coat, only for it to almost immediately weaken as the Son of Hades shifted his aim down a few inches, finding her most sensitive spot. Eventually, the need for air became too great, and Zoe had to release Percy, hands whipping down to grab his wrists. The jacket slipped off his head, but he didn't relent. He kept pushing forward with all his strength, as Zoe did her absolute best to keep him at bay. The two stayed in a deadlock for several seconds, before some unspoken cue made them both let go of each other at the same time. They leaned back in their seats, breathing slightly heavily.
"You come into my car," Percy groused, "And attack me? Have you no shame, Lieutenant?"
Said Lieutenant was hugging her torso, eying him warily. "What do you call what you did to me? I have castrated men for less." Percy rolled his eyes.
"Get out," he muttered, waving towards the door halfheartedly. Zoe huffed.
"I have told you before, and I will tell you again; I do not take orders from a mere boy."
"This mere boy is likely one of the few people in the world that knows you are incredibly ticklish, and also happens to not be afraid to use that knowledge against you. Again."
She leaned away from him instinctively, bristling. She remained silent after that, though. She also, Percy noticed, did not leave. He didn't quite know if he should be happy about that.