Chapter Thirteen

"Come with me, young man," said somebody who seemed to appear out of nowhere. He grabbed the seventeen-year-old boy by the wrist and dragged him through the streets.

"What's your name?" asked the man.

"Uh," said the boy. What had they called him here? "Andrew."

"We're going to take you back to your family," said the man. "Shame on you for running away."

"Um, sorry."

Eventually they came back to a Capitol house the one where he had previously lived.

Three people came running up to him. He was going to live with them forever.

Even after just a day, Katia was going insane.

She couldn't do it. She could build a campsite, she could hunt for food, she could build a fire, but she just could live without human life. Fifty years! She could probably survive for fifty more years on her own before she was too old. Gods! All on her own!

And she had a son. A son that she would never meet. Sure she had met him when he was born, obviously, and he had kind of been there for nine months, but that really didn't count.

Somehow, she had to get back to Panem. She had to find her son, to make things right with him. He was probably an immortal child, linked with her own immortality.

Gods! Thought Katia. He must have lost his immortality. Poor kid.

He's got to be, like, 300 years old by now. Hardly a kid.

"The only thing we can do is wait around for her to die," said Annabeth.

"If she really is a huntress, then that will take a long time," said Percy.

"She will, eventually."

"Could we talk to her in a dream?"

"Only if she was an oracle."

"Do you think she could be an oracle?"

"Possibly." Annabeth sighed. "But I really have no idea how."

"Ask Persephone."

"Ok, fine, I'll ask her." She pulled out a small cell phone and dialed a number.

"Hello?" Annabeth said when Persephone picked up.

"Hey, it's Annabeth," she said. "We were just wondering how we speak to the living in dreams. Yeah, we know it can only be done with oracles. What do you mean, there aren't any? The Huntresses? They're all oracles? All right, tell me how to talk to them, then…" she motioned for Percy to get her a paper and a pen. "Un-huh… Uh-huh… Uh-huh… got it. Thanks."

She turned off the phone and looked at the piece of paper.

"We have to know their location, sort of," she said.

"I think I can help there," said Percy. "They would most likely be in the Capitol."

"Where is the middle of the Capitol? Do you know the coordinates?"

"I think it would be about 40º north and 115º west." How had he known that?"

"Then we have to have their full name," said Annabeth. "At least, first and last."

"Alexandra Chase Jackson."

"Next, she needs to be asleep."

"All right."

"And we need a connection."

"We're connected by blood, aren't we?"

"Let's hope that's enough."

"Should we start, then?"

"How can we know if it's night or day?"

"I've still got a watch," said Percy. "It runs overworld time."

They checked the watch. It said 12:00.

"12 noon or 12 midnight?" asked Anna Beth.

"Let's hope it's midnight." Percy glanced around. "Should we start?"

"We should hold hand," said Annabeth. "And close our eyes."

They held hands and closed their eyes.

"OK. First, picture the coordinates."

Percy and Annabeth pictured the coordinates. They pictured the Capitol… a clothing shop… a jewelry store… a dark sky… streetlamps. The picture grew depth and detail. They could both see things in their heads that they had never seen before.

"Now think of her name," said Annabeth.

Percy said her name over and over in his had. He could feel Annabeth doing the same.

A picture of their daughter began to form in their heads. Beautiful blonde hair, green eyes… she was sleeping in a room full of girls. She was clutching a bow in her hand and had a sheath of arrows slung over her back.

"Enter her dreams," said Annabeth. They felt the pull of the psychic's dreamscape, and they drew nearer to the bright white light.

They were standing on a hill with a pine tree on it.

"Half-Blood hill," said Percy.

Angeles was sitting underneath a pine tree, reading a book.

"Alexandra?" said Annabeth softly.

Angeles looked up. "Mom? Is it really you?"

"It's really me, dear. It's not just a dream." They ran towards each other and hugged.

Angeles saw Percy and broke from her mother's grip. "Dad."

"Alexandra. I'm so sorry I died."

"It's not your fault, dad."

"Alexandra," said Annabeth. "We wanted to let you know we love you, and we always will. Do you think if you died right now, you would go to Elysium?"

"Well, the only way I would die would be if I got kicked out of the huntresses, and whatever I do to get myself kicked out would pretty much forfeit any chance I had of going to Elysium."

"When you die," said Percy, "We'll go wherever you do."

"Is this real?" asked Angeles. "Or did I dream it?"

Suddenly the dreamscape started to fade. Percy and Annabeth opened their eyes, which ha become closed again, and found themselves back where they were.

Angeles woke up back with the huntresses, who were on a train.

"Would you be mad if I left the huntresses?" she asked Artemis.

Artemis scowled. "Some boy?"

"No, it's not a boy. I just kind of need to be with my family. This world is in pretty bad shape."

"You got a dream visit, then?"

"Yes. My parents."

"I understand. You can leave, if you want to."

"Thanks." Angeles opened the side door of the train, and stepped out into a Capitol city. She sniffed the air. It smelled good.

She walked the streets with a long, confident stride. It was the walk of somebody with a purpose, somebody that was wise beyond the years they appeared to be, maybe even wise beyond the years she actually was. This was the walk of a huntress.

You're not a huntress anymore, said a voice in the back of her head.

I'm still a huntress, she told it. Just a little freelance now.

"I can't believe it," said Coin. "There is no victor."

"I think it's time to wage war on them."

"We need the districts."

"We should bomb the Capitol first. The districts will join us."

"We are outnumbered."

"We have the twelve districts! Do you think they would fight for a controlling tyrannical government? We only need to bomb them once. The Capitol is a fragile place."

"Fine. One bomb from unknown origin should scare them."