Hello to all you dedicated readers/reviewers! And no, I haven't died, I've been really super busy with math homework and such. Also, I believe that most of you know this by now but… James Patterson is ending the Maximum Ride series next year! This is causing me to go through my midlife crisis, like, 30 years early! (I'm only 14!) Also, in case you didn't know already, the first 23 chapters of ANGEL are on max-dan-wiz. And no, I'm not going to post them like I did with the first 8 chapters. That's just too much of a pain. I'm not going to give away any spoilers, but let me just say that I almost had to do some soul-searching. Check out the link of my profile.

Also, many of you are concerned about the prophecy delivered in the last chapter and how "four shall die" or something like that. I'm not going to give away any spoilers, but I will remind you of what Chiron said in TLF. "Prophecies have double meanings" or something like that. Trust me, there's a lot more to this story than meets the eye.

Sorry for the uber long A/N, but I had to clear that up.

Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own Maximum Ride or any of it's related characters. Or Percy Jackson. They all belong to Misters James Patterson and Rick Riordan, the best authors EVER.

Chapter 11: Let the Quest Begin

MPOV

Dawn. I'm pretty sure I've said this before, but people who think that the coming dawn brings hope need to get their brains checked.

I stuffed some extra clothes into my backpack, trying to ignore Ella's pleads for me not to go.

Much to my relief, we had convinced Total to stay at camp while we went on our quest. Ella and Lucas had promised to take care of him while we were gone. The last thing I need to worry about was a high-maintenanced talking dog while I was out to save the world.

"Before you go, at least IM Mom!" Ella pleaded.

I looked at her and raised my eyebrows. "'IM?'"

"Iris message," she answered. She pulled out a gold coin. "Just to let her know that you're safe."

I glanced between the coin and Ella. Her eyes were determined, and I knew she wouldn't give up so easily.

I sighed and took the coin. "Fine." Then I looked at her. "Uh… How do I Iris message?"

Ella huffed and snatched the coin back from me. "Come on."

She dragged me to the Big House, to the game room. She tossed a cup of water onto the nacho cheese maker, and steam billowed up.

"Oh, goddess of the rainbow," Ella said. "Accept my offering."

Then, she tossed the coin into the mist, where it disappeared.

"Dr. Valencia Martinez," she said. "Kingman, Arizona."

I inhaled sharply as an image appeared in the mist. It was Mom. She was in her office at the vet clinic.

"Mom!" I said.

She looked up and seemed to notice the mist. "Max! Ella!"

"Hi, Mom!" Ella said. "Guess what your other daughter is doing?"

Mom's eyes got big. "I swear, Maximum Ride, if you and Fang have been—"

I blushed bright red and said, "Whoa! No, no, no! It's nothing like that!"

Mom looked noticeably relieved. "Oh. Well… Thank goodness."

Ella rolled her eyes. "What I meant was: Max is at camp with the flock."

Mom took a deep breath. "I knew this would happen. I take it you know who your real father is?"

I nodded. "Yeah. He's a real nice guy."

Mom smiled. "Good. Now, what was it that you wanted to tell me?"

Ella and I exchanged looks. "Um…" I began. "Mom… I'm going on a… I'm sort of going on a quest."

"What for?" she asked.

"To save the world," I answered simply.

Mom sat, deep in thought, for a long time. "All right. I don't see what I can do to stop you. After all, it is your choice."

I let out a sigh of relief. I knew that Mom wouldn't stop me. She would just be worried that I'd get seriously hurt or something. One of the many reasons why my mom is so freaking awesome. "Thanks."

Her expression turned stern. "But I want you to promise me something."

"Sure."

"Keep yourself safe," she said. "Don't get yourself killed."

I laughed. "Mom, I've faced death and danger pretty much every day for my whole life. This won't be any different."

"You've never faced a sword, Max. Or monsters."

I thought. "Well, I did fight a dragon the other day. And during capture the flag I did fight Fang with a sword."

She rolled her eyes. "You know what I mean."

I nodded. "All right. I promise that I'll try not to get killed."

Mom smiled. "And please come back all in one piece."

I nodded, turning serious. "I will. And I promise to do the same for the flock."

Mom nodded. "Now get going, my little heroes."

Ella and I smiled. "Bye, Mom," we said in unison.

Mom waved her hand in front of the image, and the mist disappeared.

"Well," I said. "It's time we get back to the cabin."

This is a line break.

The flock and Dylan gathered on Half-Blood Hill at six' o'clock sharp. Argus, who was camp security and had, from what Ella and Lucas told me, one-hundred eyes, was waiting by a white van. Dylan didn't have wings, so Argus would drive us to New York City.

Ella hugged me goodbye. "Try not to get yourself killed," she whispered.

"I promised Mom, and I'll promise you," I said.

We pulled apart and smiled sadly. She walked over to Iggy to say her goodbyes.

I walked over to Lucas and hugged him. Sure he wasn't my full brother, but he was a good friend nonetheless.

"Try not to do anything stupid," he said.

I laughed. "I wouldn't be me if I didn't."

The others said goodbye to their friends and half-siblings.

Chiron motioned for me to come over. He was in his wheelchair form, for reasons that I didn't know. He looked tired and gaunt. I knew he was thousands of years old, but just two days ago he'd looked young and healthy. Now he looked like he was starting to go grey around the edges.

"Maximum," he said. "I want you to remember something: Monsters and immortals are only able to be hurt by celestial bronze or any magical weapon. Regular weapons cannot hurt them. Mortals, on the other hand, cannot be harmed by magical weapons. But demigods, they have the best of both worlds. They can be harmed by both regular and magical weapons."

I thought about this. "Gee," I said. "Thanks." Great. Not only did I have to save the world, but I had to save it with twice the vulnerability of a normal person.

Chiron smiled at me. "I know of your concerns, Maximum. But try not to focus on that. Focus on the matter at hand."

I nodded, making my expression determined.

"Also," he said. "Remember that prophecies often have double meanings. Do not dwell in the future, Max. Think about what you are doing right here. Right now."

"Max!" Nudge called. "C'mon!"

I looked back at her and said, "I'll be right there." I looked at Chiron. "Thank you, Chiron, for that."

He smiled. "No thanks is necessary. Now get going."

I ran down the hill and hopped into the van next to Fang. I gripped his hand tightly in mine.

Our quest had now begun.

And so the real plot begins!

Shout outs, since I didn't get to do them before: Crazy about books13 (my BFF from MMS. Check out her profile. She's awesome!)and Gabby (the anonymous reviewer with the same name as one of my characters in this story).

Please, please, please review! Anonymous reviews are welcome as always and so is constructive criticism! But no flames please! I wouldn't go review your story saying, "You suck, go get a life." So please don't do it to me!

Peace, Love, Happiness, and Maximum Ride.

-A$h