I own nothing! Enjoy the story!

Last Time: Before anyone could start to read, though, Destiny stood up. "Okay people! I have to leave for a while but you should keep reading. I should be back in a few chapters!" and with that she vanished.

Now:

Everyone looked surprised, but Thalia shook it off and started the chapter.

10 I RUIN A PERFECTLY GOOD BUS

Percy, Annabeth, and Grover looked a little nervous when they heard the title but everyone else laughed it off, except for the younger ones who were also nervous.

It didn't take me long to pack. I decided to leave the Minotaur horn in my cabin, which left me only an extra change of clothes and a toothbrush to stuff in a backpack Grover had found for me.

Percy still looked a little down about the fact that he was going an this quest to try and bring his mom back from the dead.

The camp store loaned me one hundred dollars in mortal money and twenty golden drachmas. These coins were as big as Girl Scout cookies and had images of various Greek gods stamped on one side and the Empire State Building on the other.

"Of course! Because everyone needs golden Girl Scout cookies with them at all times." Leo making everyone laugh.

The ancient mortal drachmas had been silver, Chiron told us, but Olympians never used less than pure gold. Chiron said the coins might come in handy for non-mortal transactions-whatever that meant. He gave Annabeth and me each a canteen of nectar and a Ziploc bag full of ambrosia squares, to be used only in emergencies, if we were seriously hurt. It was god food, Chiron reminded us. It would cure us of almost any injury, but it was lethal to mortals. Too much of it would make a half-blood very, very feverish. An overdose would burn us up, literally.

Leo smirked, "But Percy! I already am on fire!" and with that he lit up his nose and all ten of his fingers, while grinning like a maniac. This surprised and startled many of the younger readers as they had no idea Leo could do this and Leo in particular was surprised he let his secret be spread around. But those who knew him just rolled their eyes and laughed at the gods who were trying to piece it together, and Hephaestus was just laughing at everyone's faces.

Annabeth was bringing her magic Yankees cap, which she told me had been a twelfth-birthday present from her mom. She carried a book on famous classical architecture, written in Ancient Greek, to read when she got bored, and a long bronze knife, hidden in her shirt sleeve. I was sure the knife would get us busted the first time we went through a metal detector.

Leo had since extinguished himself, and couldn't help but ask, "Did it?" Percy shrugged. "Don't know. Never went through a metal detector."

Grover wore his fake feet and his pants to pass as human. He wore a green rasta-style cap, because when it rained his curly hair flattened and you could just see the tips of his horns. His bright orange backpack was full of scrap metal and apples to snack on. In his pocket was a set of reed pipes his daddy goat had carved for him, even though he only knew two songs: Mozart's Piano Concerto no. 12 and Hilary Duff's "So Yesterday," both of which sounded pretty bad on reed pipes.

Grover complained, that no they didn't sound bad on reed pipes, and proceeded to demonstrate. Which in turn caused Athena to create a sledge hammer and threaten to destroy the reed pipes if he didn't shut up.

We waved good-bye to the other campers, took one last look at the strawberry fields, the ocean, and the Big House, then hiked up Half-Blood Hill to the tall pine tree that used to be Thalia, daughter of Zeus.

Thalia glared at Percy for continuing to add that last bit whenever he spoke of her. Percy hid behind Mrs. O'Leary so that Thalia didn't kill him

Chiron was waiting for us in his wheelchair. Next to him stood the surfer dude I'd seen when I was recovering in the sick room. According to Grover, the guy was the camp's head of security. He supposedly had eyes all over his body so he could never be surprised. Today, though, he was wearing a chauffeur's uniform, so I could only see extra peepers on his hands, face and neck.

"This is Argus," Chiron told me. "He will drive you into the city, and, er, well, keep an eye on things."

It took a few seconds before Apollo started grinning like an idiot and started making horrible puns, and Artemis to smack him upside the head telling him to shut it.

I heard footsteps behind us.

Luke came running up the hill, carrying a pair of basketball shoes

"Hey!" he panted. "Glad I caught you."

Annabeth blushed, the way she always did when Luke was around.

Athena rolled her eyes but didn't say anything, at least she wasn't with the son of Poseidon that would be truly horrible. (A.N./ I don't think I ever specifically said that Percy and Annabeth were dating, just implied it. Please tell me if I am wrong and I will change this part as soon as possible.)

"Just wanted to say good luck," Luke told me. "And I thought ... um, maybe you could use these."

He handed me the sneakers, which looked pretty normal. They even smelled kind of normal.

"And what does that smell like?" Aphrodite asked a little disgusted. As one both Percy's said, "Sweat, stinky cheese, and a hint of mold." Aphrodite's face turned a little green and excused herself to go puke. Percy had a wicked grin on his face, and Percy was smirking, everyone else followed Aphrodite's example.

Luke said, "Maia!"

White bird's wings sprouted out of the heels, startling me so much, I dropped them. The shoes flapped around on the ground until the wings folded up and disappeared.

"Awesome!" Grover said.

Luke smiled. "Those served me well when I was on my quest. Gift from Dad. Of course, I don't use them much these days..." His expression turned sad.

I didn't know what to say. It was cool enough that Luke had come to say good-bye. I'd been afraid he might resent me for getting so much attention the last few days. But here he was giving me a magic gift... It made me blush almost as much as Annabeth.

There was a sudden sound of someone getting punched.

"Hey, man," I said. "Thanks."

"Listen, Percy ..." Luke looked uncomfortable. "A lot of hopes are riding on you. So just ... kill some monsters for me, okay?"

We shook hands. Luke patted Grover's head between his horns, then gave a good-bye hug to Annabeth, who looked like she might pass out.

After Luke was gone, I told her, "You're hyperventilating."

"Am not."

"You let him capture the flag instead of you, didn't you?"

"Oh ... why do I want to go anywhere with you, Percy?"

The others from the future opened their mouths, to say exactly why Annabeth went anywhere with Percy, but at a glare from Percy and Annabeth they closed them

She stomped down the other side of the hill, where a white SUV waited on the shoulder of the road. Argus followed, jingling his car keys.

I picked up the flying shoes and had a sudden bad feeling. I looked at Chiron. "I won't be able to use these, will I?"

He shook his head. "Luke meant well, Percy. But taking to the air ... that would not be wise for you."

Zeus glared at the boy, "You had better not enter my territory." Percy was scared, but Percy just smirked.

I nodded, disappointed, but then I got an idea. "Hey, Grover. You want a magic item?"

For reasons not yet understood to anyone except for Percy, Annabeth, Hermes, and Luke, Luke visibly relaxed knowing that Percy never wore those flying shoes.

His eyes lit up. "Me?"

Pretty soon we'd laced the sneakers over his fake feet, and the world's first flying goat boy was ready for launch.

The younger kids started laughing at the mental image.

"Maia!" he shouted

He got off the ground okay, but then fell over sideways so his backpack dragged through the grass. The winged shoes kept bucking up and down like tiny broncos.

"Practice," Chiron called after him. "You just need practice!"

"Aaaaa!" Grover went flying sideways down the hill like a possessed lawn mower, heading toward the van.

Now everyone was laughing. It took twenty minutes before everyone was calm again.

Before I could follow, Chiron caught my arm. "I should have trained you better, Percy," he said. "If only I had more time. Hercules, Jason-they all got more training.

Jason, Piper, Thalia, and Percy all growled at the name Hercules.

"That's okay. I just wish-"

I stopped myself because I was about to sound like a brat. I was wishing my dad had given me a cool magic item to help on the quest, something as good as Luke's flying shoes, or Annabeth's invisible cap.

"What am I thinking?" Chiron cried. "I can't let you get away without this."

"Without what?" All of the gods asked, and Percy just smirked and held Riptide in his pocket.

He pulled a pen from his coat pocket and handed it to me. It was an ordinary disposable ballpoint, black ink, removable cap. Probably cost thirty cents.

Percy got excited, and turned to Percy, "Is that what I think it is?" Percy's only answer was to twirl his pen around. No one else had put it together yet.

"Gee," I said. "Thanks."

"Percy, that's a gift from your father. I've kept it for years, not knowing you were who I was waiting for. But the prophecy is clear to me now. You are the one."

I remembered the field trip to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, when I'd vaporized Mrs. Dodds. Chiron had thrown me a pen that turned into a sword. Could this be ... ?

Now everyone else had caught on and those who knew Percy were smiling, they had always wanted to know how he got Riptide.

I took off the cap, and the pen grew longer and heavier in my hand. In half a second, I held a shimmering bronze sword with a double-edged blade, a leather-wrapped grip, and a flat hilt riveted with gold studs. It was the first weapon that actually felt balanced in my hand.

"The sword has a long and tragic history that we need not go into," Chiron told me. "Its name is Anaklusmos."

Thalia, Percy, Nico, and Annabeth all flinched at the long and tragic history part.

"'Riptide,'" I translated, surprised the Ancient Greek came so easily.

Annabeth just sighed. There really was no hope for this boy was there?

"Use it only for emergencies," Chiron said, "and only against monsters. No hero should harm mortals unless absolutely necessary, of course, but this sword wouldn't harm them in any case."

I looked at the wickedly sharp blade. "What do you mean it wouldn't harm mortals? How could it not?"

"The sword is celestial bronze. Forged by the Cyclopes, tempered in the heart of Mount Etna, cooled in the River Lethe. It's deadly to monsters, to any creature from the Underworld, provided they don't kill you first. But the blade will pass through mortals like an illusion. They simply are not important enough for the blade to kill.

Rachel and Rachel both said at the same time, "Wow. Glad to know I'm important."

And I should warn you: as a demigod, you can be killed by either celestial or normal weapons. You are twice as vulnerable."

"Good to know." Leo said, like he hadn't heard it all before, he had.

"Good to know."

"Now recap the pen."

I touched the pen cap to the sword tip and instantly Riptide shrank to a ballpoint pen again. I tucked it in my pocket, a little nervous, because I was famous for losing pens at school.

Both Percy's sighed, they just have terrible luck with pens.

"You can't," Chiron said.

Everyone backed away from the book while Leo said, "Chiron is a mind reader!" Everyone just looked freaked out so no one responded.

"Can't what?"

"Lose the pen," he said. "It is enchanted. It will always reappear in your pocket. Try it."

I was wary, but I threw the pen as far as I could down the hill and watched it disappear in the grass. "It may take a few moments," Chiron told me. "Now check your pocket."

Sure enough, the pen was there.

Percy looked surprised. "That's extremely cool."

"Okay, that's extremely cool," I admitted. "But what if a mortal sees me pulling out a sword?"

All of the younger kids laughed at the parallels.

Chiron smiled. "Mist is a powerful thing, Percy."

"Mist?"

"Yes. Read The Iliad.

Everyone who knew Percy started laughing, picturing him actually reading a book/poem.

It's full of references to the stuff. Whenever divine or monstrous elements mix with the mortal world, they generate Mist, which obscures the vision of humans. You will see things just as they are, being a half-blood, but humans will interpret things quite differently. Remarkable, really, the lengths to which humans will go to fit things into their version of reality."

I put Riptide back in my pocket.

For the first time, the quest felt real.

Annabeth smacked Percy upside the head, "Only just now!? Not back when the Oracle was giving a prophecy?!" Annabeth laughed at how her younger self was acting, while Percy pouted about the younger Annabeth hitting his younger self up side the head.

I was actually leaving Half-Blood Hill. I was heading west with no adult supervision, no backup plan, not even a cell phone. (Chiron said cell phones were traceable by monsters; if we used one, it would be worse than sending up a flare.) I had no weapon stronger than a sword to fight off monsters and reach the Land of the Dead.

Leo couldn't help it, "So a normal quest then?" But wisely shut up when he saw that Poseidon looked like he was going to murder him.

"Chiron ..." I said. "When you say the gods are immortal... I mean, there was a time before them, right?"

"Yes of course there were. Thank the Fates." Poseidon said while glaring at his brother. "I don't think I'd be able to take his dramatics if not." Hades finished. All the other gods were trying to conceal their smiles, even Hera!, while Zeus sputtered angrily.

"Four ages before them, actually. The Time of the Titans was the Fourth Age, sometimes called the Golden Age, which is definitely a misnomer. This, the time of Western civilization and the rule of Zeus, is the Fifth Age."

"So what was it like ... before the gods?"

All of the elder gods looked grim, "You really don't want to know." Hestia said, remembering growing up in her father's stomach.

Chiron pursed his lips. "Even I am not old enough to remember that, child, but I know it was a time of darkness and savagery for mortals. Kronos, the lord of the Titans, called his reign the Golden Age because men lived innocent and free of all knowledge. But that was mere propaganda. The Titan king cared nothing for your kind except as appetizers or a source of cheap entertainment. It was only in the early reign of Lord Zeus, when Prometheus the good Titan brought fire to mankind, that your species began to progress, and even then Prometheus was branded a radical thinker. Zeus punished him severely, as you may recall. Of course, eventually the gods warmed to humans, and Western civilization was born."

Hera and Artemis snorted, "Yes warmed after they discovered how pretty humans could be." Artemis said, with no small amount of disdain for the male gods in the room, she didn't even bother trying to reprimand Aphrodite. She was the goddess of love not much you could do to stop her. But that never stopped Hera from trying.

"But the gods can't die now, right? I mean, as long as Western civilization is alive, they're alive. So ... even if I failed, nothing could happen so bad it would mess up every-thing, right?"

Thalia looked at Percy and said, "You? Go on a quest that if messed up wouldn't ruin everything?" She snorted. "Not a chance Kelp for Brains." Thalia, Nico, Jason, and Hazel all started laughing at their cousin, because if you couldn't laugh at family, who could you laugh at? And it wasn't long before Percy joined them too.

It amazed Percy that he had friends, no family, that cared for him this much besides his mom. Although it did worry both Percy and Poseidon that he would apparently be going on a lot of, dangerous, quests.

Chiron gave me a melancholy smile. "No one knows how long the Age of the West will last, Percy. The gods are immortal, yes. But then, so were the Titans. They still exist, locked away in their various prisons, forced to endure endless pain and punishment, reduced in power, but still very much alive. May the Fates forbid that the gods should ever suffer such a doom, or that we should ever return to the darkness and chaos of the past. All we can do, child, is follow our destiny."

Many people were beginning to draw conclusions about their hostess.

"Our destiny ... assuming we know what that is."

Nico snorted, "Oh but where's the fun in that?" he said sarcastically, Bianca was devastated to see how her little brother, apparently, turned out.

"Relax," Chiron told me. "Keep a clear head. And remember, you may be about to prevent the biggest war in human history."

"Chiron needs to learn how to give a pep talk."

"Relax," I said. "I'm very relaxed."

When I got to the bottom of the hill, I looked back. Under the pine tree that used to be Thalia, daughter of Zeus, Chiron was now standing in full horseman form, holding his bow high in salute.

Thalia growled, "Keep referring to me like that and I'll zap you." Percy just smirked.

Just your typical summer-camp send-off by your typical centaur.

"You sound insane." Leo told Percy, who just laughed.

Argus drove us out of the countryside and into western Long Island. It felt weird to be on a highway again, Annabeth and Grover sitting next to me as if we were nor-mal carpoolers. After two weeks at Half-Blood Hill, the real world seemed like a fantasy. I found myself staring at every McDonald's, every kid in the back of his parents' car, every billboard and shopping mall.

The rest of the Seven started laughing their buts off.

"So far so good," I told Annabeth. "Ten miles and not a single monster."

There were many mumbles of 'idiot' and 'you just jinxed it' around the room and the gods looked surprised that they all seemed so certain they would be attacked.

She gave me an irritated look. "It's bad luck to talk that way, seaweed brain."

"Remind me again-why do you hate me so much?"

"I don't hate you."

"She loves you! OW! Annabeth!"

"Could've fooled me."

She folded her cap of invisibility. "Look ... we're just not supposed to get along, okay? Our parents are rivals."

"Why?"

She sighed. "How many reasons do you want? One time my mom caught Poseidon with his girlfriend in Athena's temple, which is hugely disrespectful. Another time, Athena and Poseidon competed to be the patron god for the city of Athens. Your dad created some stupid saltwater spring for his gift. My mom created the olive tree. The people saw that her gift was better, so they named the city after her."

"They must really like olives."

Athena rolled her eyes, and a few people began to snicker.

"Oh, forget it."

A couple went from snickering to giggling.

"Now, if she'd invented pizza-that I could understand."

Everyone, but Athena was giggling.

"I said, forget it!"

'At least my daughter is standing up for me.' Athena thought even as a small smile formed on her face.

In the front seat, Argus smiled. He didn't say anything, but one blue eye on the back of his neck winked at me.

Now everyone, and I do mean everyone, just burst out laughing.

Traffic slowed us down in Queens. By the time we got into Manhattan it was sunset and starting to rain.

Argus dropped us at the Greyhound Station on the Upper East Side, not far from my mom and Gabe's apartment. Taped to a mailbox was a soggy flyer with my picture on it: HAVE YOU SEEN THIS BOY?

I ripped it down before Annabeth and Grover could notice.

Annabeth looked at Percy sadly, "We noticed."

Argus unloaded our bags, made sure we got our bus tickets, then drove away, the eye on the back of his hand opening to watch us as he pulled out of the parking lot.

I thought about how close I was to my old apartment. On a normal day, my mom would be home from the candy store by now. Smelly Gabe was probably up there right now, playing poker, not even missing her.

With almost sudden results at the mention of the man's name, everyone turned an evil eye on their resident punching bag. Everyone was willing to pause the book to take a crack at the human, who in their opinion barely qualified as human.

First Poseidon, who drowned him then, with the help of Zeus, electrocuted him.

Then Aphrodite, who packed a seriously wicked punch despite being the goddess of love.

After her went, Percy, Annabeth, Nico, Thalia, Jason, Hazel, Leo, Frank, and Piper all went after him.

After the demigods got done, the rest of the Olympians took turns beating him up.

When they were finished they continued to read.

Grover shouldered his backpack. He gazed down the street in the direction I was looking. "You want to know why she married him, Percy?"

Leo looked around and asked, "Does this count as mind reading?" What he got in response was to wait and find out.

I stared at him. "Were you reading my mind or some-thing?"

"Just your emotions." He shrugged. "Guess I forgot to tell you satyrs can do that. You were thinking about your mom and your step-dad, right?"

"It is mind reading!"

I nodded, wondering what else Grover might've forgotten to tell me.

"Your mom married Gabe for you," Grover told me. "You call him 'Smelly,' but you've got no idea. The guy has this aura... Yuck. I can smell him from here. I can smell traces of him on you, and you haven't been near him for a week."

"Ew ew ew ew ew!" Aphrodite squealed, everyone else nodded along, wondering how many showers it would take to get the smell off after being near him for so long.

"Thanks," I said. "Where's the nearest shower?"

"You should be grateful, Percy.

"Nope. Still grossed out."

Your stepfather smells so repulsively human he could mask the presence of any demigod. As soon as I took a whiff inside his Camaro, I knew: Gabe has been covering your scent for years. If you hadn't lived with him every summer, you probably would've been found by monsters a long time ago. Your mom stayed with him to protect you. She was a smart lady. She must've loved you a lot to put up with that guy-if that makes you feel any better."

"Uh no. Honestly it just makes me want to punch him again." Percy said, glaring at Gabe, who was still recovering from the epic bashing he just got.

It didn't, but I forced myself not to show it. I'll see her again, I thought. She isn't gone.

I wondered if Grover could still read my emotions, mixed up as they were. I was glad he and Annabeth were with me, but I felt guilty that I hadn't been straight with them. I hadn't told them the real reason I'd said yes to this crazy quest.

Annabeth looked at Percy and said, "Just from this book, of course we knew the real reason you accepted the quest."

The truth was, I didn't care about retrieving Zeus's lightning bolt,

"INSOLENT MORTAL!" Zeus bellowed, Percy looked horrified, while Percy hardly looked surprised and simply said, "It's true."

or saving the world, or even helping my father out of trouble. The more I thought about it, I resented Poseidon for never visiting me, never helping my mom, never even sending a lousy child-support check. He'd only claimed me because he needed a job done.

Poseidon flinched, and all of the demigods sent their parents pointed looks, making the other gods flinch as well.

All I cared about was my mom. Hades had taken her unfairly, and Hades was going to give her back.

"Little mortal life is never fair, do not be surprised when I ignore you completely." Hades said, to both Percy's. To the gods astonishment, they both answered, "Nothing will stop me from saving the ones I care about. Not even a god." The younger demigods were surprised Percy, who had been freaking out every time a god looked at him, was now openly glaring at them daring anyone of them to challenge what he just said.

You will be betrayed by one who calls you a friend, the Oracle whispered in my mind. You will fail to save what matters most in the end.

Shut up, I told it.

Leo and Leo burst out laughing.

The rain kept coming down.

We got restless waiting for the bus and decided to play some Hacky Sack with one of Grover's apples. Annabeth was unbelievable. She could bounce the apple off her knee, her elbow, her shoulder, whatever. I wasn't too bad myself.

The game ended when I tossed the apple toward Grover and it got too close to his mouth. In one mega goat bite, our Hacky Sack disappeared-core, stem, and all.

Everyone started laughing.

Grover blushed. He tried to apologize, but Annabeth and I were too busy cracking up.

Now they were laughing even harder.

Finally the bus came. As we stood in line to board, Grover started looking around, sniffing the air like he smelled his favorite school cafeteria delicacy-enchiladas.

"What is it?" I asked.

"I don't know," he said tensely. "Maybe it's nothing."

"Grover you're with Percy, there's no way in Hades that it's nothing." Thalia said, forgetting they were reading a book.

But I could tell it wasn't nothing. I started looking over my shoulder, too.

I was relieved when we finally got on board and found seats together in the back of the bus. We stowed our back-packs. Annabeth kept slapping her Yankees cap nervously against her thigh.

As the last passengers got on, Annabeth clamped her hand onto my knee. "Percy."

Poseidon was starting to get nervous again, what else could possibly attack his son?! Echidna?!

An old lady had just boarded the bus. She wore a crumpled velvet dress, lace gloves, and a shapeless orange-knit hat that shadowed her face, and she carried a big paisley purse. When she tilted her head up, her black eyes glittered, and my heart skipped a beat.

And suddenly Poseidon went from terrified to trying to strangle his brother. "You sent a fury after my son?! Again?!" It took the combined efforts of Apollo, Ares, Hephaestus and Artemis to get him back to his seat.

It was Mrs. Dodds. Older, more withered, but definitely the same evil face.

I scrunched down in my seat.

Behind her came two more old ladies: one in a green hat, one in a purple hat. Otherwise they looked exactly like Mrs. Dodds-same gnarled hands, paisley handbags, wrinkled velvet dresses. Triplet demon grandmothers.

Poseidon didn't bother to attack him this time, he knew the result would be the same, instead he glared at Hades with a death glare that made Hades glad he was lord of the dead.

They sat in the front row, right behind the driver. The two on the aisle crossed their legs over the walkway, making an X. It was casual enough, but it sent a clear message: nobody leaves.

The bus pulled out of the station, and we headed through the slick streets of Manhattan. "She didn't stay dead long," I said, trying to keep my voice from quivering. "I thought you said they could be dispelled for a lifetime."

"I said if you're lucky." Annabeth said with a slight tremor in her voice. "You're obviously not."

"I said if you're lucky," Annabeth said. "You're obviously not."

They were all too nervous to laugh about the parallels.

"All three of them," Grover whimpered. "Di immortales!"

"It's okay," Annabeth said, obviously thinking hard. "The Furies. The three worst monsters from the Underworld. No problem. No problem. We'll just slip out the windows."

In a surprisingly cheerful voice Percy said, "Nope!"

"They don't open," Grover moaned.

"A back exit?" she suggested.

"You wish."

There wasn't one. Even if there had been, it wouldn't have helped. By that time, we were on Ninth Avenue, heading for the Lincoln Tunnel.

"They won't attack us with witnesses around," I said. "Will they?"

Annabeth just shook her head. Was it wrong for her to assume that the boy had figured it out by now?!

"Mortals don't have good eyes," Annabeth reminded me. "Their brains can only process what they see through the Mist."

"They'll see three old ladies killing us, won't they?"

Hermes shrugged, "Eh, 50/50."

She thought about it. "Hard to say. But we can't count on mortals for help. Maybe an emergency exit in the roof ... ?"

"Sorry try again." Percy replied yet again, causing Annabeth to punch him.

We hit the Lincoln Tunnel, and the bus went dark except for the running lights down the aisle. It was eerily quiet without the sound of the rain.

Mrs. Dodds got up. In a flat voice, as if she'd rehearsed it, she announced to the whole bus: "I need to use the restroom."

"So do I," said the second sister.

"So do I," said the third sister.

"And no one finds that creepy?!"

They all started coming down the aisle.

"I've got it," Annabeth said. "Percy, take my hat."

Everyone waits for Percy's rejection statement, but are met with silence. They all look at him, "What? This is the plan we go with."

"What?"

"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."

"I'm surprised you agreed to this Percy." Leo says shocked. Percy replies, "Just wait for it."

"But you guys-"

"There's an outside chance they might not notice us," Annabeth said. "You're a son of one of the Big Three. Your smell might be overpowering."

"I can't just leave you."

"That sounds a little more like you."

"Don't worry about us," Grover said. "Go!"

My hands trembled. I felt like a coward, but I took the Yankees cap and put it on.

When I looked down, my body wasn't there anymore.

I started creeping up the aisle. I managed to get up ten rows, then duck into an empty seat just as the Furies walked past.

Three words passed through everyone's mind, 'Moment of truth.'

Mrs. Dodds stopped, sniffing, and looked straight at me. My heart was pounding.

Apparently she didn't see anything. She and her sisters kept going.

I was free. I made it to the front of the bus. We were almost through the Lincoln Tunnel now. I was about to press the emergency stop button when I heard hideous wailing from the back row.

The old ladies were not old ladies anymore. Their faces were still the same-I guess those couldn't get any uglier- but their bodies had shriveled into leathery brown hag bodies with bat's wings and hands and feet like gargoyle claws. Their handbags had turned into fiery whips.

"You do know you don't have to give us every detail, don't you!?" Nico said, shivering next to his sister.

The Furies surrounded Grover and Annabeth, lashing their whips, hissing: "Where is it? Where?"

The other people on the bus were screaming, cowering in their seats. They saw something, all right.

"But who knows what."

"He's not here!" Annabeth yelled. "He's gone!"

The Furies raised their whips.

Annabeth drew her bronze knife. Grover grabbed a tin can from his snack bag and prepared to throw it.

What I did next was so impulsive and dangerous I should've been named ADHD poster child of the year.

"Now that really sounds like you."

The bus driver was distracted, trying to see what was going on in his rearview mirror.

Still invisible, I grabbed the wheel from him and jerked it to the left. Everybody howled as they were thrown to the right, and I heard what I hoped was the sound of three Furies smashing against the windows.

Annabeth laughed, "It was! Now that I'm not dead it's one of the funniest things I've ever seen!"

"Hey!" the driver yelled. "Hey-whoa!"

We wrestled for the wheel. The bus slammed against the side of the tunnel, grinding metal, throwing sparks a mile behind us.

We careened out of the Lincoln Tunnel and back into the rainstorm, people and monsters tossed around the bus, cars plowed aside like bowling pins.

Somehow the driver found an exit. We shot off the highway, through half a dozen traffic lights, and ended up barreling down one of those New Jersey rural roads where you can't believe there's so much nothing right across the river from New York. There were woods to our left, the Hudson River to our right, and the driver seemed to be veering toward the river.

"That's great! You'll live!" Poseidon said, and was immediately smacked by two other gods: Athena and Dionysus. "And what about Annabeth/Grover!"

Another great idea: I hit the emergency brake.

"Good."

The bus wailed, spun a full circle on the wet asphalt, and crashed into the trees. The emergency lights came on. The door flew open. The bus driver was the first one out,

"Aren't they supposed to be the last ones out?" Artemis asked incredulously. Percy nodded, and Artemis huffed. Men.

the passengers yelling as they stampeded after him. I stepped into the driver's seat and let them pass.

The Furies regained their balance. They lashed their whips at Annabeth while she waved her knife and yelled in Ancient Greek, telling them to back off. Grover threw tin cans.

I looked at the open doorway. I was free to go, but I couldn't leave my friends. I took off the invisible cap. "Hey!"

"And there's the Percy we know and love!" Leo shouted.

The Furies turned, baring their yellow fangs at me, and the exit suddenly seemed like an excellent idea. Mrs. Dodds stalked up the aisle, just as she used to do in class, about to deliver my F- math test.

Athena looked horrified at the concept of an F on any kind of test.

Every time she flicked her whip, red flames danced along the barbed leather.

Her two ugly sisters hopped on top of the seats on either side of her and crawled toward me like huge nasty lizards.

"Perseus Jackson," Mrs. Dodds said, in an accent that was definitely from somewhere farther south than Georgia. "You have offended the gods. You shall die."

"You know I think that's the first time a monster or god had said that to me." Percy said making Poseidon pale and ask how many times he has been told that. Percy shrugged and said, "At this moment I can't even remember how many have said that." This didn't help Poseidon much.

"I liked you better as a math teacher," I told her.

She growled.

Annabeth and Grover moved up behind the Furies cautiously, looking for an opening.

I took the ballpoint pen out of my pocket and uncapped it. Riptide elongated into a shimmering double-edged sword.

The Furies hesitated.

Mrs. Dodds had felt Riptide's blade before. She obviously didn't like seeing it again.

"Well I really like seeing it again!"

"Submit now," she hissed. "And you will not suffer eternal torment."

"Hey! That's the first time I was told that too!"

"Nice try," I told her.

"Percy, look out!" Annabeth cried.

Mrs. Dodds lashed her whip around my sword hand while the Furies on the either side lunged at me.

My hand felt like it was wrapped in molten lead, but I managed not to drop Riptide. I stuck the Fury on the left with its hilt, sending her toppling backward into a seat. I turned and sliced the Fury on the right. As soon as the blade connected with her neck, she screamed and exploded into dust.

"Wait, wait, wait. Am I supposed to believe that this is the second time you've gone up against the Fury's and both times you've had almost no experience?" Frank asked, and when Percy nodded, Frank morphed into a cat and laid on Hazel's lap, while glaring at Percy. The people from the future just rolled their eyes, everyone else freaked out, especially Frank.

Annabeth got Mrs. Dodds in a wrestler's hold and yanked her backward while Grover ripped the whip out of her hands.

"Ow!" he yelled. "Ow! Hot! Hot!"

The Fury I'd hilt-slammed came at me again, talons ready, but I swung Riptide and she broke open like a piñata.

"Two down! One to go!"

Mrs. Dodds was trying to get Annabeth off her back. She kicked, clawed, hissed and bit, but Annabeth held on while Grover got Mrs. Dodds's legs tied up in her own whip. Finally they both shoved her backward into the aisle. Mrs. Dodds tried to get up, but she didn't have room to flap her bat wings, so she kept falling down.

"Zeus will destroy you!" she promised. "Hades will have your soul!"

"Braccas meas vescimini!" I yelled.

Jason, Hazel, Frank along with Jason, Hazel and Frank all laughed.

I wasn't sure where the Latin came from. I think it meant "Eat my pants!"

Through their laughing the Romans managed to nod, that yes that is what it means.

Thunder shook the bus. The hair rose on the back of my neck.

Poseidon glared at Zeus.

"Get out!" Annabeth yelled at me. "Now!" I didn't need any encouragement.

We rushed outside and found the other passengers wandering around in a daze, arguing with the driver, or running around in circles yelling, "We're going to die!" A Hawaiian-shirted tourist with a camera snapped my photograph before I could recap my sword.

"Our bags!" Grover realized. "We left our-"

BOOOOOM!

"Are you just trying to kill my son?" Poseidon growled out.

The windows of the bus exploded as the passengers ran for cover. Lightning shredded a huge crater in the roof, but an angry wail from inside told me Mrs. Dodds was not yet dead.

"How is she still not dead!?"

"Run!" Annabeth said. "She's calling for reinforcements! We have to get out of here!"

We plunged into the woods as the rain poured down, the bus in flames behind us, and nothing but darkness ahead.

Thalia sighed and handed the book to Percy, who just sighed, remembering what would happen in the next chapter.

I'm alive! I am so sorry at how long this took! But I hope you enjoyed!

Happy Holidays!

See ya next time!