Author's Note:
Just wanted to say a huge thank you for over 4,000 views!
Cheers!
justapercyjacksonfan
Chapter 8
Ian examined the map. Bri had kindly forgotten to take it with her. It was barely light outside, but they had managed to get a fire going to cook some breakfast. That finished, they were now attempting to decide on where they were going. "Our goal for today is to pass Little Rock, unless anyone has any ideas for public transportation."
Caleb shrugged. "I mean, there is a bus route."
"But we want to save our money for food. The walking will be uncomfortable, but we don't have a time limit. We just need to get to the next pillar." Jess countered.
"We can walk." Jo finished. "At least if-"
"When." Caleb corrected
"When we get attacked again, we'll already be on our feet."
Ian rolled his eyes. "Yes, that's a benefit now. Alright. Everyone packed?"
There was a chorus of affirmatives.
"Perfect. Caleb, put out the fire, Jo, Jess, help me with hiding the fact we were ever here."
"If you would wait a moment." A new voice asked.
Caleb was startled. The voice was feminine, yet it was not his sister's, nor was it Jess'. It came from a young girl wearing a brown dress and shawl. Her eyes reflected the flames - no her eyes were flames - as she stoked the fire with her bare hands.
The four demigods went into battle mode in an instant. Jess' knives were in her hands, Ian stood ready to induce madness, Caleb had a hand on his staff, and Jo had drawn her dagger, the bow being too far away.
"I mean you no harm. I have information regarding the fifth."
That didn't make them any less on edge. "Who are you?" Ian questioned.
Caleb shot him a glance, before returning his eyes to the intruder. She smiled. The more Caleb studied her, the more he noticed that her face, while maybe that of an eight year old, betrayed a knowledge much more wise. Almost ancient. Which probably meant this was either a monster, or a goddess. Neither of which were something Caleb wanted to see early in the morning, considering the last goddess he met had only refrained from turning him into a jackalope because he was part of a quest, and every monster he'd met had wanted to dismember him.
"Lower your weapons. Ian Malark, I'm surprised. Out of all of you, I thought you'd know who I am. Did your mother teach you nothing of me? I thought I was her favorite."
Another glance at Ian confirmed his shock and...fear? Anger? Sorrow? Maybe a mixture of all three? Caleb couldn't tell.
"Lady Hestia?" Ian guessed.
She nodded approvingly, holding a palm open displaying a holographic symbol of a fire. "The very same. And as I said, I have information about the fifth."
"Bri?" Jo asked. "You know where she is?"
"Yes, child. They are being held captive. You need to make your way to Oklahoma City."
Jess narrowed her eyes. "That is on the way. Is that where she is?"
"It's where she will be. I can't help much more than I already have. But to get them back, you need to get to Oklahoma City. Once you receive the note, you'll understand. One more thing -"
She turned her gaze directly towards Ian. "Child of madness, learn the art of illusions. Out of all the talents of the Mist, it will be easiest for you to learn, aside from madness. It is paramount to your success."
"Lady Hestia, why do I need to -"
She sighed. "I wish I could help you further, children. But even I can only push fate so far. Demigods really have more power over it than us. Your actions decide which way to push the world. We are at something of a balance. Will you push us toward Chaos or order?"
With a last sad smile, her form dissolved smoke and blended into the fire.
"That wasn't vague at all." Jess muttered. "Hand me the map, Ian."
He complied. "This isn't as bad as it sounds. If we can get close to the Arkansas/Oklahoma border by tonight, we might be able to get there by tomorrow night. Then we wait for whatever note, and get Bri back, which will at least make Jo stop complaining."
Caleb took the map from her. "You want us to travel 150 miles in 24 hours?"
"Why not?" she asked. "Average speed for humans is 3 or 4 miles an hour. We're demigods, so our endurance is probably heightened. I'm betting we can easily hit 5 or 6, 7 if we push ourselves, 8 if we run. In 24 hours, we can go about 150 miles."
Jo laughed. "Okay, Miss Calculator, but that implies that we'd be going 24 hours of straight walking. What about sleeping? Or eating? Or bathroom breaks?"
Jess huffed. "Fine. 2 days to get to the border. Then how far from there to Oklahoma City?"
Jo grabbed the map from her brother. "240 miles. Worse. Going off of that, It would take us 3 more days. Of just straight walking or running. We'd be exhausted, so whoever is holding Bri captive would have a serious advantage."
Jess took the map back. "I know. We might need to find some sort of transportation. As much as I want to save money, the tent the Hunter's gave us supplies us with produce and clean water. We wouldn't starve unless we lose it."
Ian sighed, grabbing the map back, and folding it up. "Fine. Let's walk to the border. Once we get to the next city, we can try and find a bus, or train or something. Caleb, now you can put out the fire. We have a lot of walking in our future."
Caleb nodded. "You can say that again."
Jo hit him with a cheshire grin. "We have a lot of walking in our future."
Caleb huffed, and punched her lightly on the arm. "Josephine, I swear, I will kill you when this quest is over."
She stuck her tongue out. "Non, vous ne le ferez pas. Je sais toujours que tu aimes Jess, tu te souviens?"
Caleb sighed. How was he going to get that leverage away from her?
Author's Note:
French translation: No you won't. I still know you like Jess, remember?
Shoutout time!
weirdhead had a bunch of reviews this week, so here we go!
I sort of agree with you. I mean, Percy is 67, but he still can sword fight. But that doesn't mean they're invincible, ya'know?
That was exactly what I was thinking of when I wrote that!
Sorry you don't like the hunters - when I first read the books, they were like, my favorite part. (maybe because when I first read them, I was a ten year old girl, and they were basically saying, you can have actual power if you join us…) But every time I reread it, I just notice how cult-y it is. I still like it, and I like that Uncle Rick didn't abandon it. I like the way Thalia leads it later, making it more welcoming. Artemis herself is always pretty cold though.
That's a really good point! I guess good thing we have the Percy we know and love. Rule 63 of the internet I guess.
Thank you so much, and thank you for following the story!
One last thing, if you like one-shots, Fic-mas is coming soon! Find out more on my profile or on my other story, Percy Jackson One-Shots!
Have a lovely day!
justapercyjacksonfan
