MAIN TITLE: The Keeper of Fate
WARNINGS: See first chapter for warnings.
NOTES: Thanks to KittyKat, angel2u, wolveshill, Fangisnotmyfirstname, bookluver100, WinterDreamers.x, DuckInTheHat, Neela4232, Apollo06, mysticoriginals and FallenAngel10086 for reviewing this chapter!
In response to Apollo06's review: The reason Dess hates Artemis will be explored later in the story. For now all I'm going to say is it has to do with Dess' beliefs/morals/values/whatever, Artemis never didn't anything to harm Dess personally, and Dess is being too harsh and judging Artemis without looking at all the facts.
DISCLAIMER: I don't own the PJO series. Rick Riordan does.
Chapter 16: We Find Out Luke's Evil Master Plan
"You sure she's not going to wake up?" It's a whispered question, but it in the silence of the quickly approaching dawn it sounds like a battle cry.
"Dead sure. That girl could sleep through an explosion." I respond a little more quietly, but the effect is the same. Damn. This isn't going to work if they hear us coming.
"Really?" Thalia asks, her hushed voice taking on a tone of surprise. "I always thought that was a child of Hypnos thing."
"It is."
I'm itching to end this conversation and get up from where I'm crouching beneath the windowsill of cabin ten. Now, normally if you don't want to be heard, the last place you want to be is directly under the window. But we want to make sure everyone's asleep, so this is the best we can do without actually going into the cabin.
"So Cheryl's just the exception?"
"…Okay, you caught me." I make a face, unsure if telling her the truth is really a good idea. "She's actually a really light sleeper–when she hasn't unknowingly ingested sleeping pills."
Thalia opens her mouth and then closes it, apparently too appalled to speak.
"…Don't look at me like that," I gripe. "I promise I didn't give her an unhealthy amount."
"So you only gave her the regular dosage?" Thalia asks suspiciously.
"Well, no," I admit. "She's a half-blood. I had to give her double for it to have any effect on her whatsoever. But I swear on the River Styx that it won't do her any harm."
I squirm uncomfortably under Thalia's hard stare. Eventually she just sighs and rolls her eyes. "All right, I believe you. Now let's shut up and get to work."
We exit the cabin not five minutes later, still half gagging from the overwhelming scent of perfume. Honestly, those Barbie wannabes use so much it's literally vomit inducing, as is the overall orderliness of the entire cabin. I mean, they colour-code everything–their clothes, their bed sheets, their furniture– It's absolutely nauseating.
I'm so glad I'm out of there. Though if I want to film Cheryl's reaction to finding a mess of red hair on her pillow when she wakes up (which should be in an hour or two; those sleeping pills only last so long, after all), I'll have to enter the Aphrodite cabin again. I managed to convince Thalia that she should go in and record it for me, but then she pointed out that it won't be the same as actually watching Cheryl freak out.
Sigh. I hate it when she's right. Only I can't tell her that, because we've only just started pulling pranks together again, and I don't want to rock the boat. Yeah, Thalia finally got over what happened. Which is good, you know, 'cause we've only got like a week and a few days left before summer ends. Thalia's going to some all girls' school in the city with Annabeth, so I won't see her–them–again until Christmas at the earliest.
I, of course, will be staying at camp all year. Like I always do. You know, this whole 'camp twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, fifty-two weeks a year' thing is getting really old really fast. Maybe I should tag along with Gareth and the others when they get their apartment?
On second thought, that's a horrible idea. They wouldn't want to live with me. And I sure as Hades wouldn't want to live when them. I mean, they're all guys. Which automatically means they're all slobs. …Wait, I take that back. Not all guys are messy. Heck, I'm probably messier than Gareth, Xavier, and Elliot combined.
Whatever. I still don't want to live when them. Which means I'm stuck here. For forever. Until I die. It's funny, though. I never minded the thought of staying here for the rest of my life so much when I was with Luke…
Anyways, the point is, Thalia forgave me and we're finally pranking again. We're actually using the prank I wanted to pull weeks and weeks ago when Clarisse first brought back the Golden Fleece. You know, the one where we put the wig on Cheryl's pillow and she wakes up, sees it, and thinks she's been scalped? …You don't remember? You need to learn to pay attention (which is a load of bull coming from me, but whatever).
"I'm going to head back to my cabin, 'kay? It'll be a while before Cheryl wakes up so I might as well get some sleep in the meantime."
Thalia yawns. "Yeah, that's probably a good idea. I'll see you in a while."
"Yeah. See you."
We part ways, going to our respective cabins to get some rest before all hell breaks loose.
When I thought of this prank, I always pictured Cheryl's reaction to be something like a hurricane of hysteria. And Cheryl certainly doesn't disappoint. By the time Thalia and I realize she's woken up and make our way to cabin ten, the daughter of Aphrodite is running around screaming like a chicken with it's head cut off (except that chickens can't really scream even when their heads are firmly attached to the rest of their body). The best part is that she's pulling at her hair the entire time, and yet she never realizes that the fact that there's hair to pull means she isn't bald.
The problem is that Cheryl eventually calms down (after several of her siblings kindly reassure her that she isn't bald) and figures out that Thalia and I are the ones responsible for the blood red wig on her pillow. This might be because we're standing in the doorway, me holding up Katie Gardner's video camera while Thalia is pointing at Cheryl, both of us laughing uncontrollably.
The second that Cheryl turns to us with murder in her eyes, we book it. I run even faster than I did at that capture the flag game. I run so fast that pretty soon Cheryl is out of sight. When I reach the Big House I pause to catch my breath. In the back of my mind it occurs to me that I don't even remember jumping over the river on my way here. Heck, I don't even remember deciding to go the Big House at all.
Once my lungs have stopped burning I recall that Thalia was also being chased by Cheryl. Crap. What if they catch her and give her a makeover? She'll kill me. But I can't go back for her, 'cause then I'd get a makeover, too.
Maybe I should take loyalty lessons from Percy. I can just imagine that: "All right, person who's name I don't know, welcome to 'How to be a decent friend and not abandon people in their time of need 101'. For our first lesson we will be doing trust exercises; you're going to let yourself fall and I'm not going to catch you. By doing this you will learn how much it sucks when people fail you and you will therefore be less inclined to fail people..."
Okay, so he wouldn't actually talk like that. I doubt he even knows what the word 'inclined' means. And I've never heard him say the word 'therefore' before (though that could be because I never talk to him).
For a while I amuse myself with the idea of Percy handing out quizzes in to his imaginary class. "Now remember class, this quiz is worth eighty percent of your final grade, so try not to bomb it, okay?
"First question: You have a dream about your male friend running for his life from a Cyclops while wearing a wedding dress. You: A) laugh your head off and decide not to take the dream seriously; B) keep an entirely straight face and tell the dream version of your friend that you really think he could've done better, and then decide not to take the dream seriously; C) take the dream very seriously and rush off to save your friend with the help of your two sidekicks (AKA your brain and your brother); or D)…"
Yeah, my mind is a messed up place. Which is why it shouldn't surprise you that if I actually had to take that quiz, I would choose option A. Seriously, when Annabeth told me a couple of weeks ago about the dream Percy had about Grover and Polyphemus and the wedding shop, I burst out laughing, even though I knew that Grover had been in real danger.
Well, I guess that means I would fail Jackson's crash course in reliability.
Just as I think this a hand grabs my arm. Before I even have time to turn a sarcastic voice behind me is speaking: "Thanks, Dess, for being such a good friend and running off without making sure I'm okay."
"Sorry," I say sheepishly. "I sort of forgot about you. You know, kind of busy running for my life?" I attempt a smile.
Thalia glares back. Electricity is flickering across her palms and since her hand is still on my arm, mild shocks are running up and down my skin. Mild, but they hurt just a little. I guess I deserve that.
"Look, I really am sorry, okay?"
"Uh, not okay. But I will temporarily refrain from electrocuting you because Cheryl is probably going to catch up to us soon, and if we're still here…"
"Oh, Styx, you're right. What do we do?" I panic.
"Let's try the door to the Big House. We can make up some lame excuse for why we're there."
I relax. That's a good plan. Cheryl won't bother checking the farmhouse. She doesn't like going in there because she's afraid she might run into Mr. D.
We hurry up the porch steps, deciding that there's no point in trying to sneak in. I reach for the door handle. Please don't be locked. My hand closes around it. Please don't be locked. I pull on it. Please don't be–oh, wait. It's opening. Thank the gods–except for Dionysus, and Apollo, and Artemis, and Aphrodite.
I pry the door open all the way. Thalia steps over the threshold and I follow. The door clicks shut behind us as we glance around the (thankfully) empty room. Chiron is probably teaching some kid archery, and Mr. D…well, I don't really care where he is, as long as he's not here.
"So we just have to sit back and wait until Cheryl passes by, and then we can leave," Thalia concludes.
But of course, that's not how it happens.
We take turns crouching behind the door, occasionally opening in and popping our heads out to see if Cheryl is around. After about five minutes of this, when it's Thalia's turn to be lookout, I get bored. Like, really bored. I move my foot in circles, watching the amethysts on my anklet glint whenever they catch the sunlight streaming through the small gaps in the window blinds.
When I finally can't take it anymore, I wander down the hallway. Probably not the smartest thing to do, 'cause I'll be in a lot of trouble if someone catches me, but I wouldn't really be me if I didn't do something incredibly stupid every so often.
As I reach the stairs I recall what I saw when I went to retrieve Mr. D's twins. I haven't really thought about it since, but now that I'm actually in the Big House, I feel an overwhelming urge to poke around and find out who that boy that Clarisse and Chiron were carrying was.
Then I remember that brief second when I felt someone watching. I hesitate with my foot on the bottom step of the stairs. Whoever that boy was, he's probably up on one of the upper floors. But the farther up I go, the closer I am to the attic–and to the Oracle.
"Dess!" Thalia hisses, coming up behind me. "What are you doing?"
"Nothing, I was just–" I freeze as I hear a shout from below.
We walk around to the stairs leading down to the basement. I can just barely hear someone scream "How dare you!" Thalia and I exchange a startled glance. That was Clarisse's voice.
Without stopping to think, I charge down the stairs, leaving Thalia no choice but to follow.
The last thing I expect to see upon bursting unceremoniously into the basement is Clarisse about to be strangled by vines while Mr. D cackles and Chiron tries to reason with the wine god.
But that's what's happening when Thalia and I reach the bottom of the stairs. Our simultaneous gasps instantly catch everyone's attentions. Dionysus is so taken aback by our sudden appearance that he stops cackling and loses his focus. The vines that were previously suffocating Clarisse loosen their grip and she breaks free. Far from looking grateful, she simply glares at us. Chiron, however, looks extremely relieved.
Mr. D surprise quickly fades. "What are you brats doing here?" He demands.
"We heard people shouting, sir, and we decided to investigate," Thalia says.
Chiron raises an eyebrow. A stern look is replacing the relief on his face. "You heard us shouting from all the way outside?"
I cough slightly. "Well, no. We were sort of, uh, avoiding Cheryl. She's a bit–annoyed with us at the moment, and we value our lives, and this was the only place to hide, so…"
"I see." Chiron doesn't look too impressed with my explanation. But he doesn't say anything more about it. Instead he turns to Dionysus and says, "Perhaps I could sort out this matter while you return to your pinochle tournament?"
For a second the wine god just glares at Chiron. Then he says sulkily, "Very well, Chiron. You had better deal with this properly. None of this 'sympathy' garbage."
Clarisse rolls her eyes and sneers at Mr. D's back as he exits the basement. Then she turns back to Thalia and me, fury written all over her face.
I inch towards the stairs, at the same time saying. "So, uh, obviously we were interrupting a very important conversation here, so we'll just be goin–"
"You will not be going anywhere," Chiron says firmly. "I had hoped that I would not have to involve you in this matter, Dess. But it is clear to me now that there is no avoiding the will of the Fates."
My skin crawls at the mention of the trio that I once thought was purely mythological. What the Hades is the old horse man talking about? I open my mouth to voice my question, but Clarisse beats me to it.
"What the Hades are you talking about? What does she have to do with–" Clarisse cuts off abruptly and then continues, "This is none of her business. Why would we involve her in all of this?"
"Because we have no choice," Chiron replies. His face is grim. "My dear, you have no idea of the dangers that lay ahead. You cannot hope to undertake this perilous journey alone."
"Then I won't go alone. I'll go with someone else."
"Who would you suggest?" the centaur questions, looking very much like he already knows the answer.
Clarisse gives Thalia an appraising look and then, turning back to Chiron, points at the baffled daughter of Zeus and says, "Her."
Thalia's confusion gives way to irritation. "I'm standing right here. And so is Dess. Don't you think you should explain what's going on before you volunteer us for any 'perilous journeys'?"
"You're quite right." Chiron nods. "Let us discuss this upstairs."
I can see there's no point in arguing, and Thalia and Clarisse recognize this, too. We trudge back up the stairs one by one, Chiron in the lead. It's a good thing he's in centaur form. Halfway up the steps I hesitate. Clarisse is supposed to be right behind me, but she's not. I glance over my shoulder.
Clarisse is bending down to talk to someone. I guess that it's the boy they brought in before. I still can't see who he is. I take a step closer. Thalia realizes I'm not following her and she turns, which makes Chiron realize that she's not following him. He looks incredibly alarmed as I take another step towards Clarisse.
"Desdemona, come up here at once."
I don't respond to the use of my full name or his whispered command. Instead I continue to move closer to the daughter of Ares and the boy who is curled up into and a ball. He's wrapped up in a thick, woolen blanket, but he's shivering like crazy. He rocks back and forth, muttering words I can't here under his breath. I still can't see his face.
"It's okay," Clarisse murmurs, her voice taking on the same tone that she uses when comforting an upset Isabel.
"No, please, Mary, you can't leave me," he speaks a little louder. Did he just call her Mary? "Please don't leave me; I don't want to be alone in this place."
"No, it's okay, I'll be right back, I promise. And you're not in that place anymore," she says, and I realize that the boy doesn't know where he is. "You'll never have to go back in there, I swear."
Thalia reaches forward to pull me back. I shrug her hand off my shoulder and take one final step towards the boy. I have to know who he is. I'm not sure why, but I have to know.
Clarisse gets to her feet and turns. She freezes when she sees we're all still here. The boy grabs her arm and looks up at her, and I see his face for the first time.
No wonder Chiron has been keeping his presence a secret. If there's one thing the campers here hate more than cannibals, it's traitors.
I stare at the boy who looks like he's lost his mind. As complicated as life was before, things are going to be a lot worse with Chris Rodriguez at camp.
Five minutes later, the four of us are seated around the Ping-Pong table in the rec room. Chiron, who is back in wheelchair form, signals to Clarisse that she should start explaining.
She takes a deep breath. "I left camp early to visit my mother. I needed a break from everything that's been happening." She pauses, and Thalia and I both nod understandingly. "My mom took me on a trip through the desert–it's just something we do. We like to test our endurance, to push our limits. We were planning to stay out there for a few weeks. But then we found Chris. We couldn't figure out how he got there–"
"What do you mean, 'how he got there'?" I interrupt. "He walked there. Or he drove or something."
Clarisse shakes her head. "No. You don't understand. It was blazing hot outside. Chris was wearing his armour. And he had no food or water with him. He didn't even have a map. People don't just wander through the desert with no supplies and no way out."
"All right. So did you figure out how he got there, then?"
Clarisse grimaces. For the first time since I met her three years ago, she looks afraid. "I think so."
"How–" Thalia begins.
The daughter of Ares cuts her off. "I'm getting to that. So we found Chris, but he was in really rough shape. We took him back to my mom's house and we tried to find out what happened. But he wouldn't–or couldn't–tell us. He kept babbling on about certain things–something about a maze and an arena–and string. He mentioned string a lot. I didn't know what to do, so I called Chiron."
She looks at the centaur. He recognizes his cue and takes up the story. "You know the next part. I set off right away. If you remember, Dess, I told you I was making a 'house call'." He chuckles slightly.
"You also told me that you would 'tell me when the time comes'," I remind him.
The humour in his expression drains away. "Ah, yes. I'll get to that later. Back to the story–I traveled to Arizona and tried to get more information out of Chris Rodriguez. He did not tell me much more than he told Clarisse, but I have seen enough in my lifetime that I was able to connect the pieces."
"And?" I ask impatiently. "What is this all about?"
He looks me directly in the eye. "The Labyrinth."
My blood freezes in my veins.
"As in the huge underground maze? The one Daedalus built?" Thalia asks, her face pale.
"The very same."
"But I still don't understand," I complain. "What was he doing in there? I thought that place was so confusing it drove people insane! Why would anyone willingly go in there?"
"That's the point." Clarisse laughs bitterly. "He didn't go in willingly. He was ordered to."
"Ordered to…by who?"
I answer Thalia's question before Clarisse can, or before Chiron can point out that it's supposed to be 'whom' and not 'who'.
"By Luke."
Thalia lets out a shocked breath. "So that boy down there…he works for Luke?"
"He didn't know what he was getting himself into," Clarisse snaps defensively. "He didn't realize that Luke is a twisted, evil, psychotic–"
Thalia is on her feet in two seconds flat. "He is not!"
"Oh, really? He's not evil? Someone who forces people to do something that could potentially drive them insane just so they can get what they want isn't evil?" Clarisse snarls, and Thalia has no retort.
I don't have one either. But I do have a question. "But what does he want? What could he possibly gain by weakening his army by sending his soldiers off to their deaths?"
"A very good question, my dear. I have been asking myself that for weeks. And I have come to a horrific conclusion."
"And that conclusion is?" I urge the centaur to continue.
He smiles bleakly. "Luke is sending his men into the Labyrinth because he wishes to find a way to navigate it. If he does manage to fulfill this goal, he will be able to move his forces across the country faster than he could by water or by air.
"But there is another reason that he wishes to learn the secrets of a Labyrinth. This camp is protected by the pine tree. But the Labyrinth has a mind of its own. The barrier created by the tree does not exist there. Luke knew this camp very well. He knew the forest, perhaps even better than I did. And it is entirely possible that he found an entrance to the Labyrinth within this camp's borders that I did not even know existed."
Thalia weakly collapses back into her seat. I run a shaking hand through my hair.
I swallow hard. "So, if there was an entrance he knew about, and if he found a way to navigate the maze, then he could attack the camp."
"Yes," Chiron says softly.
"But there must be something we can do about it!" Thalia insists.
"There is. Chris mentioned string. We believe he meant Ariadne's string. You know the story, I presume?" Thalia and I both nod, so Chiron continues, "We believe Luke is searching for the string. If he finds it, he will have a guaranteed way to move through the Labyrinth. So our task is clear. We must prevent him from finding the string. Ideally, we must find it ourselves before he does."
"So…you're saying someone would have to go into the Labyrinth. That's the journey you were talking about. You want Clarisse to go into the maze," I realize.
"I do not want anyone to go into the maze," Chiron says, and I can see he's telling the truth. "But we have little choice."
"Is that really the only option? If we found the entrance and destroyed it, that would stop the invasion," Thalia reasons.
Clarisse shakes her head. "I tried that in Phoenix. Used a wrecking ball. The stupid entrance just moved over a bit."
"But–but there's a possibility that there isn't an entrance within the camp's boundaries right?" I half plead.
"There is that possibility," Chiron agrees. "But we cannot take the chance. Whether there is an entrance here or not, Luke is exploring the Labyrinth. His reasons cannot be good. We need someone to venture into the maze and search for clues as to what Luke is after, and information on where the string is. Clarisse has volunteered for this quest. But she cannot hope to go alone." He looks at me.
"So that's what you meant," Thalia says, looking at Clarisse. "You want me to go with you. You need my help."
Clarisse glares for a second, but then she just scowls at her feet and admits, "Yes." She looks back at Thalia. "So will you come?"
"Well," Thalia grins slowly, "it is the best way to get out of going to that boarding school with all those snotty rich girls. Count me in."
"Wait a second," I protest. "If we don't even know if there's an entrance in camp, much less where it is than how are you guys going to get into the Labyrinth?"
"We searched for entrances on the way back to camp," Clarisse explains. "We found a couple in Manhattan. I remember where they are."
Chiron sighs uneasily. "I've told you many times, my dear, that it is too risky. Luke has spies everywhere. He will figure out where you are going. And believe me, he will not allow you to journey into the Labyrinth. What you need," he adds loudly before Clarisse can protest, "is a way to travel to Manhattan and find an entrance without being discovered by the enemy."
"There is no way," Clarisse complains. "So we should just go ahead with the original plan. Thalia and I will–"
"I do not wish for you to take Thalia with you."
Thalia frowns at the centaur. "Why? I'm a better fighter than anyone in this camp. Who could you possibly send in my place?"
Clarisse's face tightens. I think back to what Chiron said, about how he had no choice but to involve me, and suddenly I'm fighting the urge to throw up.
"Dess," he says quietly, but he's not really answering Thalia's question. He's speaking to me, asking me if I'm ready. Which I'm not. At all. I can't go into that maze. I just can't.
"Dess," Thalia repeats incredulously. "You want to send Dess into the Labyrinth instead of me? Why?"
But I already know the answer. "Because with the way things stand now, you're the prophecy kid. Monsters will be attracted to your scent. With you there, it would only be a matter of time before Luke found out. He'd probably kidnap you or something. He'd try to brainwash you into joining his side."
"I wouldn't–" Thalia begins heatedly.
"I know that," I cut her off. "But he wouldn't just let you skip away after you said no. I doubt he'd kill you, but he certainly wouldn't allow you to go free."
Clarisse frowns. I can tell she hasn't considered this. "Fine," she says. "So Thalia can't go. I'll find someone else. But you're not going in there, Dess."
I'm perfectly fine with that, but Chiron apparently isn't. "She is your only option."
"Why?" Clarisse asks bluntly. "Why are you so determined that she goes on this quest? What help could she possibly be?"
That stings a little. Actually, to be honest, that hurts a lot. But surprisingly, I have an answer for this, too. "I can help you on the quest. I can get you into Manhattan without Luke ever realizing you've left camp."
"How?"
I glance around at their faces. Thalia seems honestly disappointed. I think she was looking forward to going on an adventure. Chiron looks half satisfied and half pained. If there was any way that he could go into the Labyrinth instead of us, I know he would. Clarisse looks upset. Why is she so against this? Has she always thought I'm completely useless, or has she just started thinking this now?
Either way, her insistence that I can't help makes me angry. So angry that I decide to reveal my cabin's number one secret.
"By using the Hephaestus tunnels."
Author's Note: No flashback this chapter because I wanted to get the plot moving. I know that Clarisse actually goes into the Labyrinth alone, but technically no one ever specifically tells Percy that, so I can pretend.
Reviews are appreciated.