The ride into town was horrible. Annabeth and Percy argued a lot on the way there. Percy didn't seem to understand why Annabeth hated him, so when she told him she didn't and it was because Athena didn't get on with Poseidon, he got even more confused.
"But Acacia doesn't even pretend to hate me and our parents are about to go to war," he said, frowning in confusion. Annabeth groaned loudly and hung her head in exasperation. "What? I'm right!"
"It's a little different Percy," I told him wearily.
"How?" he asked. "My dad offended Athena, right? And Zeus thinks he's stolen his Master Bolt. How much more offended could he be?"
I thought about it for a moment, barely managing to stifle a laugh, before shaking my head and shrugged. Annabeth glowered, folding her arms over her chest impatiently. "Drop it," she warned. Percy blinked, opening his mouth to argue. He closed it quickly when her jaw locked.
I tried not to laugh at them, twisting in my seat to stare out of the window with a sudden sense of impending doom. I was very aware that I was outside the safety of Camp Half-Blood. There, I could train as much as I wanted and not worry about getting killed. Now, not only did I have to worry about monsters, but the gods were trying to kill me too. Well, they weren't trying to kill me as such – apart from maybe Hera – but there was a high chance that they would kill me, accidently or not.
Argus, the head of security at camp who had driven us into Manhattan, dropped us by the side of the road and handed us each our backpacks, Sasha hanging around my feet protectively. I shouldered mine, staring around anxiously. My eyes hovered over the corner of the street for a moment, but I shook myself. I couldn't let myself get paranoid, not with everything else going on.
We hung around the bus stop for awhile. The others talked and messed about a bit. Sasha never deterred from my side. Annabeth kept looking at me worriedly, and I couldn't stop myself scanning the streets. I couldn't get my head around it, and I was trying as hard as I could. I tried to think about how each of the gods would test me, but the thoughts made me weak at the knees. I couldn't let myself get like that.
The bus pulled up a few minutes later. I took a deep breath and climbed on board after Grover. My eyes found the same corner again and I was sure the shadows moved slightly. Again, I shook myself and pulled myself to the back of the bus. I slid into the seat between Percy and Grover, slumping in the chair and lowering my head.
"Are you okay?" Percy asked carefully.
I glanced at him and smiled wryly. "You're the one under the microscope here, Percy." He didn't say anything, staring at my expectantly. I sighed. "No, Percy. I'm not okay." Taking a deep breath, I leant my head back and closed my eyes. The bus jerked into movement, taking us deeper into the city. For awhile, all four of us were quiet, each consumed with our own thoughts.
I felt the bus halt at the next stop and instinctively opened my eyes. I stared out the window, turning in my seat to scan the area around us. Nothing jumped out at me and I couldn't see anything wrong, so I ignored the anxious shifting in my chest and tilted my head back to close my eyes. Seconds later however, Annabeth was nudging Percy into my shoulder.
"Look," she muttered, eyes fixed down at the end of the bus. I followed her gaze and cursed under my breath. Three old ladies were climbing onto the bus, their eyes locked on Percy. For a moment, I frowned in confusion. They looked oddly familiar. As one of them looked up to meet my gaze, it clicked and my stomach dropped. It was Miss Ingis. Her eyes stayed glued to mine, and something flickered in my memory.
"Uh-oh," I gulped, shifting slightly and reaching for the knife in my boot.
Percy's face paled. "What?"
"They're the Fu- Kindly Ones," I hissed under my breath, and Miss Ingis's eyes flashed.
"Yeah?" Percy said. "It's not good, but we've dealt with it before."
I scoffed weakly, shaking my head. "Not what I meant. You see the one in the middle? That's Tisiphone, meaning vengeful destruction. I – err – might have irritated her a few years back."
His eyes widened. "You remember?"
"Focus, Percy!" I snapped, smacking his arm gently. "She really, really doesn't like me."
"Is there anything out there that does?" he gawped. I pursed my lips and shrugged awkwardly.
"That's it!" Annabeth suddenly breathed. "Percy, take this!" She held out her cap, her eyes showing only a little disgust. He frowned, but I let out a small yelp as the Furies started up the aisle, their eyes on us.
"Do it," I rushed. "Do as she says."
"Put it on and get off the bus," she ordered. "You have to find the Bolt."
He blinked, glancing at the rest of us. "What about you three?"
Annabeth met my gaze, nodding determinedly. "You have to find the Bolt," she repeated. "And then you have to deliver it to Zeus. Not me, not Acacia, not Grover. If you don't do it personally, Zeus and Poseidon will go to war. We can't let that happen. Now go, before I change my mind."
Percy's eyes widened again, but he gulped hard and pulled her Yankees cap on, disappearing from view.
I took a deep breath, trying not to meet Miss Ingis – or rather, Tisiphone – in the eyes. "Ready?" I asked Annabeth out of the corner of my mouth. She pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes slightly, then nodded once. At my feet, Sasha snarled in warning.
Sighing heavily, I hauled myself to my feet alongside Annabeth and Grover. He was clutching a scrap bit of metal, and Annabeth had her hand wrapped tightly around the hilt of her knife. Without thinking, I raised a hand and prized my locket open, with bow armed in seconds. Silently, I lifted it and pointed it at Tisiphone's head.
She hissed, causing Sasha to bark loudly. "Where is it?" Tisiphone spat.
I tensed as I realised she was talking about Zeus's Master Bolt. "We don't have it," Annabeth frowned from beside me.
"Do not lie to me, Daughter of Athena!" she snarled. Annabeth tensed, and I shuffled in front of her subconsciously. Tisiphone glared at me, her eyes flashing with a familiar hatred. "Daughter of Zeus . . . you alone shall be allowed to live."
My stomach dropped through the ground, and my heart thudded dully. The sound of Grover's nervous bleat and Annabeth's gasped came from somewhere too far away.
My grip on the bow and arrow doubled, and the string tensed as I drew it back tighter. "Why?" I demanded with a scowl. "Why would you leave me? You tried to kill me."
Another hiss slipped Tisiphone's lips, and Sasha dropped to the ground, her teeth bared as though she was preparing to pounce. "Lord Hades wishes to see you complete your task," the Fury told me through clenched teeth.
I double took, lowering my bow in surprise. Annabeth dragged me back, glowering at the Fury with such anger, I was surprised the monsters could stand their ground. Tisiphone and her sisters cackled loudly, and one of the other passengers on the bus shushed her irritably. I wasn't entirely sure what the mortals on board could see, but I knew it couldn't have been particularly terrifying.
"Why would Hades want me to-" The words caught in my throat, and suddenly, I kinda hoped Hera killed me first.
Tisiphone glowered. "That does not concern you. Sit back down like a good girl. We have business with the other two."
My jaw locked and I pushed past Annabeth again, ignoring her reluctance. "Well you're going to have to kill me to get to them."
The ground suddenly shook, and the bus rocked awkwardly on its tires. The mortals gasped, clutching the sides of the chairs in a vain attempt to keep themselves steady. For a second, Tisiphone hesitated, glancing between Annabeth, Grover and me. But her eyes flashed as she locked onto my determined expression. Without anymore warning, all three of them bolted forward.
As they moved, their bodies changed. Their eyes glowed like barbecue coals. Their fingers stretched, turning into talons. Their jackets melted into large, leathery wings. They looked like hags with bat wings, claws and a mouth full of yellow fangs. Suddenly, their handbags turned into fiery whips.
Mortals screamed. They jumped to their feet and scrambled in terror to the front of the bus, but the Furies completely ignored them. Instead, they headed straight for us. My grip on my bow and arrow doubled and I raised it again threateningly. Before I could act though, the bus jerked to the right.
All three of us stumbled to the left. On instinct, I dropped my bow and arrow and latched a hand around the nearest seat, catching Annabeth with my free hand. The three Furies smashed into the windows as the outside of the bus scrapped down one side of the Lincoln Tunnel.
"ACACIA!" Annabeth screamed. I turned, just in time to see something fly through the air, right for my head. With a yelp, I let go and let myself fly back, my feet skidding back as I tried to stabilise myself. I stumbled to the floor as something missed my head by millimetres. My eyes caught sight of it for a brief moment. I couldn't tell what it was exactly, but it was certainly out of place. And I was pretty sure the Furies hadn't thrown it.
"Oh gods," I breathed, scrambling back in panic as another object flew past me. It was circular, almost like a bomb. Oddly, there was a peacock feather printed on its surface. Suddenly, I remembered that the same symbol was printed on Hera's cabin at Camp Half-Blood.
Annabeth must have seen it too, because her eyes widened in fright. "The Furies!" I yelled at her. "Go!"
"Ac-"
"NOW!"
She skidded away before I could argue with her anymore. Unfortunately, three against one wasn't working well, and Grover wasn't much help. I was pretty sure he'd eaten his piece of metal. The moment Tisiphone realised I was in trouble, she cackled loudly and took her chance, bolting toward me.
"This thing can hold a grudge," I moaned under my breath, reaching over and snatching the arrow I'd dropped off the floor. The bow was nowhere in sight. Shifting in between two of the chairs, I dropped myself down to the ground, wrapping my spare hand around the closest seat to keep me steady.
As expected, Tisiphone fell for it. Shrieking in delight, she leapt toward me, racing across the seats and lunging for my throat. Twisting slightly, I brought the arrow up into her chest, her claws inches away from my neck. With wide, accusing eyes and a yelp, she exploded into a cloud of dust. Without waiting for something else to try and kill me, I staggered to my feet, dropping the arrow again.
"ACACIA, DOWN!" Annabeth yelled, and another bomb flew through the air at me. I dropped to the ground, just as the brakes hit on the bus. I felt myself jerk down to the front of the bus, right at the second Fury. From previous experience, I figured it was Megaera, or rather, Meg from the hotel. I was very aware as I moved that there was no way to stop what was about to happen, but out of nowhere, Sasha leapt through the air and collided heavily with the Fury. Meg over-powered her easily, and just as she clambered back to her feet, a bronze sword sliced straight through the beast.
Percy snatched the Yankees Cap off his head. "This is a brilliant start," he commented dryly.
"Percy, down!" I yelped, snatching a handful of his shirt and dragging him to the ground as another bomb whistled through the air.
"That's it," he grumbled. "Annabeth! Grover! We're getting off!"
Thunder rumbled, and for a moment, nothing happened. Then the last Fury, Alecto, shrieked at the top of her lungs and another bomb launched through the air.
"Sasha, go with them," I ordered, a wild idea flashing through my mind.
She whined in her throat as I stumbled to my feet, taking out one of the swords resting at my hip. My lady, is that a wise idea? I can-
"Sasha, out!" I ordered, and she shuffled down the bus with Annabeth and Grover. Percy hesitated, watching me cautiously. "Out of the way, Percy."
"Acacia, this is-"
Something flashed behind him, and without thinking, I kicked his chest hard, sending him crashing to the ground as another bomb flew straight at me. Mumbling a quick prayer to my father, I swung my sword like a baseball bat right where Percy's head had been. The flat side slammed into the bomb and sent it flying toward the Fury.
It hit the monster in the face and the second it did, it blew up in a cloud of green flames. My eyes widened in horror, my mind showing me a quick image of that thing hitting me. How lovely. The Fury exploded in yellow dust.
"Well, thanks for the help Hera," I mumbled under my breath, and thunder rumbled the bus.
"Enough winding gods up," Percy grumbled, snatching my wrist and dragging me toward the door.
We staggered to the ground outside, Percy's hands still wrapped tightly around my wrist in a mixture of restraint and concern. Annabeth and Grover were immediately at our sides, huddling together and leading the way through the crowds.
"The faster we get out of here, the better," Annabeth muttered with a shudder.
"You mean between a psycho goddess and a Kindly One, both of them with a very irritating grudge against Acacia?" Percy sneered sarcastically. "What's the rush?"
"Oh, just shut up, Percy," she groaned back. Sasha whined at my feet, but I just urged her on and followed behind, heading straight toward a thick line of trees.
The mortals surrounding us were still panicking. Some were still screaming, and running around like headless chickens. Others were shouting for help, pointing at the bus with wide eyes and pale expressions. My lips pursed as I glanced back at it, but Percy's hand tightened and we sped up slightly, slipping into the mass of trees.
Just as I began to get claustrophobic, thunder rippled in our ears. The four of us faltered on instinct, turning back to stare at the bus in dread. Lightning flickered across the sky, and without warning, it crashed down on the bus, hitting it dead centre. It exploded with a thunderous bang and a force so strong, mortals screamed and fell over, and even we stumbled as it reached us.
"We should get moving," Percy muttered.
"Quickly," I agreed with a gulp, slipping my wrist out of his hold and leading the way through the trees.