The big day was here. Yep! The Camp-Wide Treasure Hunt was starting in another hour.
Alliances at Camp Half-blood usually lasted well into the year. But this time, there was a big twist. Just this morning, the wood nymphs, who were usually allied with the satyrs (if ever they took part in games), joined the Ares group. The satyrs were fuming and were yet to decide their stance. They could most definitely not compete alone. Many satyrs were off doing their duty at various schools around the country, and the few that were left were hardly enough to form half a team.
So it was no big surprise to Percy when Grover, who was on a work-break, approached him. "Of course, man! We'll teach those nymphs a lesson, won't we?" exclaimed Percy, to which Grover gave a goofy grin and did a fist-bump with Percy. Battle strategies (or should I say, scouring strategies) were discussed, the plans were duly modified and everything was ready.
When Leo announced the briefing for the Hunt, all teams marched in and gathered around. "All right, listen up, teams!", Leo shouted. "We have six groups in all. And six clues before you reach the treasure. There are different sets of clues for each team, but the treasure is the same for everyone. Whichever team reaches it first will be required to bring it back to the Big House, and only then will the team be declared the winner. No team can access another team's clues so do not even begin to think about sabotage. After I blow the whistle now, you can go back to your cabins. In one of them will be your first clue and it will lead to the next and so on. Hephaestus cabin members will be patrolling to keep a check on cheaters, and also, you can approach them if you have any doubts. All clear?"
The teams nodded, grim looks on their faces and got ready to move. Leo blew his whistle and each group sped off towards their own cabin. Percy and Tyson raced to their cabin and dashed in, looking around for the clue. In a minute, they had scanned the entire cabin and they found no sign of a clue. They were about to leave when the fountain in the room squirted water at them. Astonished, Percy turned around, only to get another squirt of water on his face. Tyson raced to the fountain and turned it off. The fish that spouted water was whirring like crazy and as soon as Tyson touched it, it spouted up a piece of parchment. Eagerly, Tyson unrolled it and read it out loud, "What happens when Dirt-Face's blisters burst? P.S. - Don't get crushed... I'm not making your funeral shroud!"
As soon as Tyson read it, the parchment burst into flames and was consumed in a second. Tyson was left staring at his hands. "Well, maybe we won't read the clues out loud next time", said Percy. Just then, the Aphrodite girls walked up to Percy. Piper asked him, "So, where's the clue? Annabeth didn't find it and neither did we, so I'm guessing it was here!" "Yes, it was. But it burnt up as soon as we read it out loud." said Percy. He quickly filled her in on what had happened, and by then, Annabeth had arrived with her brothers and sisters. Tyson shouted out the clue so everyone could hear it. One Athena girl commented, "It doesn't take a brainiac to figure out that Dirt-Face means Gaia, but what about the rest of it?"
"I didn't even know Gaia had blisters. I thought all goddesses had perfect faces", said Malcolm, grinning. "What about the feast of Spes? If Gaia had blisters, they must have surely burst after her plan failed last August." said an Aphrodite girl, shuddering at the thought of blisters and their bursting. Annabeth was thinking hard and Piper looked like a realisation had just hit her. "Dirt-Face doesn't mean Gaia. It means the Earth, since Gaia is basically a word for 'earth'."
"Yes, of course. You're right, Piper! If Dirt-Face means Earth, then blisters must mean..." "Volcanoes!" Percy finished Annabeth's sentence. "And what happens when a volcano bursts? Lava flows out, of course!" Piper was one step ahead, however. "We need to get to the climbing wall, now!" Comprehending nods met Piper's declaration and a minute later, the group was at the lava wall, panting. "I'm climbing", said Tyson. Tyson was resistant to heat and so was Leo. So something made Percy think that the clue would be at a place only Tyson, with his superb heat-resistance, could reach.
Tyson was up the wall in a jiffy. Lava spurted at random paces and intervals, but it didn't bother Tyson. He just kept climbing until he reached the top. "Look around!" prompted Annabeth. In response, Tyson's gaze roved around where he was standing. He fixed it on one spot and then getting down to his knees, he felt around there. "Got it", he declared at last and stood up, flourishing a neatly wrapped up scroll. "Leo must have used the magical cloth Calypso made him", observed Piper and Annabeth nodded.
Tyson climbed down and held out the parchment to Annabeth. She unrolled it and silently read through the message. She glanced up at the rest of them, a look of pure bewilderment on her face. She passed it to Piper and after she had read it, the same expression found itself on her face. "Will you tell me what it is?"asked Percy. "Here, read it yourself", Piper held out the parchment to Percy. He was just about to take it, when it shriveled up and turned to ashes in Piper's outstretched palm.
AUTHOR'S NOTE - Goofball next, or a continuation of the Treasure Hunt?