"Leaving without so much as a goodbye?" Ryker was forced to suppress a sigh of annoyance as he turned around to regard Artemis and his mother as they seemingly materialized out of nothing behind him. They wore different expressions though the undercurrent of tension was clear in both of them. Artemis was looking at him with what he guessed was pride while his mother was gazing at him with motherly concern. Both expressions gave Ryker pause, but he did not show the hesitation.
"Thought that it would be best to leave without anyone knowing." Ryker shrugged. "I suppose that would be too much to hope for with you two around."
"Absolutely." Artemis nodded. "My blessing lets me know where all my Hunters are at all times."
"Are you quite sure that you wish to go alone?" Cybele asked, worriedly. "This will not be easy… I would prefer it if you had someone to watch your back."
"I'm fine." Ryker said coolly, crossing his arms and staring at them. "I'll be back with Jason in no time at all."
"The route to Mount Orthys is fraught with monsters and danger." Artemis warned him. Even at night Artemis's natural glow illuminated the trees around her well enough for even a normal human to see fairly well. For Ryker, who had spent the last hour adjusting his eyes to the gloom, her presence was nearly blinding. "My map will give you the safest path, but you will still be in danger. Now that both Atlas and Orion have failed to kill you it is entirely possible that you will face an even more dangerous threat."
That brought a wicked smile to Ryker's face. "Good," He said eagerly. "Let them come. The more that I kill now is the less that I have to face later."
"And what about when you meet something that even you can't beat?" Cybele demanded, taking an angry pace forward. "Not everything in this world can be beaten simply through battle. What happens when you face something that simply cannot be killed?"
"Then I guess I will be the one to die." Ryker said after considering the implications of such a fight. His words had been well calculated and they had the desired effect. His mother looked at him in horror and he grinned back at her, pleased that he had managed to keep her from some sentimental speech. Though he was pleased that he had managed to keep from being preached to, he found that he was upset with himself for causing his mother to worry even further. But he strengthened his resolve and turned back around to face the forest. He raised a hand in farewell as he melted into the forest, leaving the two goddesses standing there. When he was well and clear of the Camp's boundaries he began to run. His eyes easily picked apart the gloom and he was able to make his way through the forest with great ease, without running across a single monster. He ran all night until the beginnings of dawn were peeking over the horizon.
He slowed to a walk and shrugged off his bag, pulling out the map that Artemis had given him. It wasn't like other maps he had seen, in fact Ryker quickly realized that it was not a map at all, the little square that she had given him did not unfold. Instead a bright silver arrow appeared in the air above the little metal square and pointed its head at a point slightly diagonal to the path that Ryker had been taking. He frowned and stared at the arrow in a silent question, but the silver figure quickly disappeared as more rays of light peeked over the horizon. Ryker placed the compass back in his bag and pulled it back over his shoulders. He could already hear the sounds of cars in the direction that the silver arrow had pointed him towards, and the thought of going to a city filled him with dread. Too many people in such a close proximity made him more on-edge than he already was.
Sure as rain, when Ryker cleared the forest he was presented with a view of large buildings that seemed to touch the very sky. He frowned slightly, uncertain as to where he was. Before he had left he had consulted with Chiron about how far Mount Orthys was. According to the old centaur even running at the pace that Ryker and the Hunters were able to set it would take him the better part of a five days to make it there. Ryker might have been fast, but he was nowhere near as fast as it would require to surmount a distance such as that. He pulled his bow from around his shoulder and patted the quiver where his arrows were resting over his right shoulder. Well, let's see what is here. If this wasn't the final destination, Ryker was certain that Artemis had sent him here for a different purpose. What that purpose might have been however, Ryker did not have a single clue.
He was still not entirely sure what this Mist was, even with Silver's quick explanation of the magical substance, but it seemed to be doing its job. Humans barely noticed him as he moved among him with his bow clutched in his hand. In fact, they seemed eager to be out of his way though they did not show any signs of fear or worry. The smells and sounds of the city were nearly overwhelming to Ryker's senses, sensitive as they were. His mind struggled to process every single sound and smell, or to at least focus on one so that he could lose focus on the others. He half-stumbled, half-walked his way through the streets, desperate to figure out what was so important about this city. He had just passed by a rather loud shop filled with cars when Ryker paused, his senses instantly on overdrive. He had just picked up a scent that was both familiar and foreign. He sniffed the air again, drawing a peculiar look from passerby, before turning to face the rather loud building with a glare. He had only met Atlas very briefly, but he had memorized his scent after Ryker had shredded his throat. The Titan was one of the few prey that could make the claim that they had actually escaped Ryker. He was not like to forget such a scent. Ryker drew an arrow from his quiver and quickly nocked it to his bow, advancing through the building's large entrance whilst scanning for any sign of movement. With all the noise from within Ryker had expected to see someone fairly quickly. Oddly enough the source of the noise seemed to be from an odd looking table that was actually moving of its own accord, various instruments extending from its sides as it evidently went about tinkering with the car. Ryker slowly replaced the arrow in the quiver and slung his bow over his shoulder, moving to get a closer look at the moving table. He summoned his claws out of sheer caution, though he wasn't sure if he was being too wary or not. The table seemed to give him no notice when he crouched down beside it for a closer look. Ryker glanced down at his claws and back to the table in slight confusion. The little machine seemed to be made out of the same metal that his gloves were. Ryker reached forward to touch the table out of curiosity when a small shimmering figure popped up on the table and shouted, "HEY! CUT THAT OUT!"
Out of sheer shock and surprise, Ryker lashed out at the table. The poor thing flew across the garage and crashed against the wall, clanking and whirring in a way that almost made Ryker take pity on it. The little shimmering figure, which he now recognized as a satyr, appeared again and glared at Ryker. "PUT THAT DOWN!" It shouted, thoroughly vexing Ryker.
"What's going on in here?" A voice that was not the table demanded as a tan-skinned scrawny boy dashed into the room with Ryker. He took in the broken wreck that was his table and turned on Ryker in outrage. "Did you break Buford Two-Point-Oh? Why would you do that!?"
Ryker's eyes narrowed and he fell into a crouch. This kid smelled like Atlas, though the scent was odd. Almost as though the scent was attached to him rather than coming from him. "Whoa, easy!" He held up his hands when he spotted Ryker's claws. "Easy there Wolverine, let's not slice-and-dice me okay?"
"Who are you?" Ryker demanded, not rising from his couch. "Why do you smell like Atlas?"
"Whoa man," The scrawny boy seemed offended now. "I get that I might get a little sweaty here, but I do not smell that bad. No need for insults, we just met. We can insult each other later."
"What about Atlas?" A second, feminine voice inquired. A girl strode into the room, confidence exuding from her with every step. She glanced at Ryker and then to his claws before looking back to the broken table. Her brow furrowed as a frown creased her face. "And who broke Buford?"
"He did!" The scrawny demigod fumed. "And he said he smelled me."
"You do smell." The girl said fairly, smiling slightly at the tan-skinned boy. "And you have grease in your hair. Again. What am I to do with you?"
"I am really hoping that the answer involves a movie and-." The boy began.
"You." Ryker's eyes were malevolent as they beheld the female. It was instantly clear to him that she was the one that Atlas's smell was coming from. Now that she was so close there was no doubt. It was heavily diluted, mixing with a very sweet yet slightly bitter smell. The grease on her clothing did not do much to assist Ryker's olfactory senses either. "You smell like Atlas."
"How do you know my father?" The girl asked, her voice deadly serious.
"Father." Ryker repeated, a slow grin spreading across his face. He flexed his hands and coiled his legs underneath him to strike. "Good. Maybe if I kill you Atlas will come to try and avenge you."
"I doubt it." Ryker had to give this girl credit. She did not waver even slightly when he had told her of his intention to end her. "My father hates me almost as much as he hates the Olympians. He would probably thank you for killing me. I take it that you aren't exactly friends with him either."
"Who are you?" Ryker asked warily, not rising from his ready stance. This girl made him wary, and now that he took a moment to notice it the boy smelled of fire.
"Well, I am Leo Valdez." The boy puffed out his chest as though the name should mean something to Ryker. He was quickly deflated when Ryker sent him back a blank, impassive stare. "Seriously? The awesome-sauce demigod that took out Gaea? Bad-boy supreme? Mechanical Genius? Are none of these ringing a bell?"
"No." While Leo's peculiar attitude was interesting, and sort of annoying, it was his female companion that Ryker was truly interested in. She was not mortal, of that much Ryker was absolutely certain. "You. Who are you?"
"My name is Calypso." She told him, returning the glare that she was being given. "As I said, Atlas is my father. If I smell sort of like him I suppose that is an unavoidable consequence of genetics, is it not?"
"Pups often do take a scent similar to their parents." Ryker admitted grudgingly.
"How do you know about my father?" Calypso demanded, placing one hand on her hip and glaring at Ryker. The sheer venom in her stare was enough to actually cause Ryker to tense up again.
Leo winced at the stare and shook his head. "Don't argue with her." He warned Ryker, looking warily at his companion. "It's impossible to win. She always gets the last word."
"I met your father right after I tried to tear his throat out." Ryker decided to try to scare her through sheer bloodlust and sent her a hungry grin. The expression faltered when she only glared further at him. What is with her? He demanded silently. His scare-tactics had never been rendered so useless.
"You traveled to Mount Orthys just to fight my father?" She asked coolly, crossing her arms now.
"I fought him at Camp Half-Blood." Ryker answered, frowning. He had not given the words any thought, but they seemed to carry a special significance to Calypso and Leo. "Something wrong?"
"Atlas should be, like, holding the world up." Leo glanced at the roof of his garage as though checking to see if it was going to fall. "And I don't see the sky fallin'. Which means either you are lying-" Ryker snarled at the implication. "Or Atlas got replaced by some other poor dude."
"A demigod by the name of Jason Grace has been captured and is now being forced to carry the weight of the world." Ryker told them, already growing bored of the conversation. He had only entered the building on the chance that Atlas would be there. Now that he knew that the Titan was not there, he no longer had a reason to be there. He had been looking towards the street outside when he suddenly felt two rough hands grab hold of his arms. "What do you think you are doing?" Ryker asked slowly, very slowly turning his head back to face Leo.
"You said Jason got grabbed?!" Leo demanded, giving Ryker a slight shake. "Jason Grace? Son of Jupiter? Really crappy sense of humor? Dates a little daughter of Aphrodite?"
"I don't know what 'dating' is." Ryker grabbed Leo's hands and very firmly removed them from his arms. The claws on his fingers cut into Leo's skin, but the boy barely seemed to notice. "But yes. Jason Grace. Son of Jupiter. Brother to Thalia. I've been sent to retrieve him."
Leo and Calypso exchanged a look and then turned back to Ryker, both of them exuding resolve. "We're coming too." Leo declared.
Ryker sighed. "No. You aren't."
