Chapter 16

Authors note:

I got the ideas for this chapter from a guest reviewer so I just want to that whoever gave me this helpful idea thanks. I hope you all like the story.

Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson nor any of its characters, I just own my own character Antheia/Alyssa.

After walking around for a few minutes, they were all seated in a booth in a gleaming chrome diner. All around them, families were eating dinner and drinking malts and sodas.

Finally a waitress came over. She raised her eyebrow skeptically. "Well?"

Percy said, "We, um, want to order dinner."

"You kids got money to pay for that?"

Grover's lip quivered. Alyssa and Annabeth both looked ready to pass out from hunger.

Before Percy could come up with a sob story, a rumble shook the whole building; a motorcycle the size of a baby elephant had pulled up to the curb.

All conversation in the diner stopped. The guy on the bike would've made pro wrestlers run for Mama. He was dressed in a red muscle shirt and black jeans and a black leather duster, with a hunting knife strapped to his thigh. He wore red wraparound shades, and he had the most cruelest, most brutal face they'd ever seem-handsome, but wicked-with an oily black crew cut and cheeks that were scarred from many, many fights.

As be walked into the diner, a hot, dry wind blew through the place. All the people rose, as if they were hypnotized, but the biker waved his hand and they say down.

He walked over and slid into the booth, squishing Annabeth and Grover up against the window.

He told the waitress the food was on him and shooed her away.

The biker looked at Percy. He couldn't see his eyes behind the red shades, but bad feelings started boiling in his stomach.

The biker gave him a wicked grin. "So you're old Seaweeds kid, huh?"

Percy should have been surprised, but he was feeling too angry. "What's it to you?"

Annabeth's flashed him a warning. "Percy, this is-"

The biker raised his hand. "I don't mind a little attitude as long as you remember who's boss."

Percy suddenly felt something click. "You're Clarisses dad, Ares, god of war."

Ares grinned and took his shades off. "I'm here because I have a little proposition for you.

The waitress came back with heaping trays of food: cheeseburgers, large shakes, fries, and onion rings.

She left as quickly as she came, obviously terrified of Ares.

Percy turned back to Ares. "What favor can I do for a god?"

Ares pulled out his wicked long hunting knife and started cleaning his fingernails. "I left my shield at an abandoned water park and I need you to go get."

"Why don't you get it yourself," Percy scoffed.

The fire in Ares eye sockets glowed a little hotter.

Alyssa put her hand on Percy's shoulder and said, "Percy, don't be rude. We can go get the shield and be back within the hour. It's not like we have anything else to do."

Ares kept cleaning his fingernails. "Ya, Perseus, I would listen to your little lady friend. I can arrange a ride for you-"

He stopped speaking when he looked up and saw Alyssa. His mouth hung open in amazement, his hunting knife clattered to the ground. Alyssa looked alarmed, wondering why Ares was looking at her like that.

"Now what's your name, little lamb?" Ares asked almost sweetly, his eyes still lite up.

"Alyssa..." She answered timidly.

He gave her a smile, his face looked almost hypnotized. "It's a shame. I was hoping your name was something else."

Alyssa felt her cheeks grow warm. "Well, actually-"

"We're doing fine on our own." Percy interrupted.

Ares turned and almost growled, his eyes lighting up in fire again. "Yeah right. No money. No wheels. No clue what your up against. Help me out, and maybe I'll tell you something you need to know. Something about your mom."

"My mom?"

Ares grinned. "Now that got your attention. The water park is a mile west on Delancy. You can't miss it."

He turned to Alyssa one more time and gave her another smile. "Nice to meet you, little lamb." Before snapped his fingers and disappearing.

"Not good," Grover said. "Ares sought you out, Percy. This is not good."

Annabeth crossed her arms. "What I want to know is his favoritism with Alyssa. Do you know him or something?"

Alyssa sat still, almost like she was in a trance. "Little lamb.." She said to herself. The name brought back faint pictures in her mind. Playfully wrestling with a man, almost like an uncle or brother and beating him because he let her before she would jump on his back and he would race her around a beautiful garden while she screamed with delight.

She was shaken from her thought by Percy's rough hand.

"Alyssa, hello? We've decided to go to the water park. Turns out we can't refuse a proposition from a god, and I'm also a little curious to what he knows about mom."

Alyssa's eyes lite up. "We need to find out about mom."

Annabeth and Grover were exchanging nervous glances.

"Then what are we waiting for?" Percy said before grabbing his small backpack and heading out with the rest scurrying after him.

-:-

Meanwhile on Olympus, Zeus and Poseidon were in yet another fight about the lightning bolt.

"I'm sick and tired of your games, brother. Give me back my bolt, now!"

"Listen, brother. For the millionth time, I don't have it!"

Hera sat lazily in her chair, watching the two fight. That's basically all they did these days. She misses her little girl so much, her bright and bubbly Antheia. She looked over at Apollo who was looking as glum as ever, his hair scraggly and his shirt wrinkled. He was sitting on the ground at the base of a giant oak tree holding a small rose, twisting it between his fingers as a small tear escapes his eyes. It was the rose Antheia gave him the day she was taken. Her sweet voice still rang in his ears as he remembered her telling him what she did that day.

Artemis was shooting arrows at a random target plastered on the tree. She hated seeing her brother like this, but she knew that nothing could bring the old him back except for the little girl she had grown to love so much.

Hephaestus had just gotten back from his forge in the Labriyth. He watched as his wife looked at herself in a small reflecting pool and he rolled his eyes before hobbling over to Zeus.

Hermes was off delivering a message to Calypso and Demeter was visiting her daughter down in the underworld.

Athena was talking to the two fighting brothers, trying to calm them down.

"Please, let's be rational. War is not the answer."

Zeus turned to her, rage filling his blue eyes. "Don't you dare talk to me. If Poseidon has the nerve to break the treaty and have his son steal my bolt, he'd better expect to get a war."

Poseidon sneered behind him. "Like you didn't break the treaty, dearest brother. Thalia is a tree because of you."

Zeus roared and turned back to Poseidon. "Your lucky I haven't turned you pathetic son into a particle of dust. The only reason he's still alive is because I want to kill him in person!"

Suddenly, Ares appeared in the middle of Olympus, more excitement in his face than he had had in ten years.

He walked over to Zeus and Poseidon and slapped them upon the head. "Listen you two butterballs. Your never gonna believe what happened!"

Zeus and Poseidon turned and glared at him.

"What is so important, Ares that you had to come interrupt us in an important meeting."

Ares rolled his eyes. "Some meeting... Anyway, Hephaestus can you get your camera that you put at the water park filming. I'm sure you're all gonna want to see this."

He walked over and picked up Apollo as if he were a baby and carried him over to the large plasma screen they had. Hephaestus was messing with some wires, arranging so they saw the right channel. Numbers came on the screen and it began to count down from sixty.

The other gods piled over grumbling, not caring about whatever Ares cared to show them, it was probably gonna be someone getting tortured.

The numbers counted down until it hit five seconds, four, three, two, one..

The screen came to life and the image of two people stuck in a boat wrapped in golden netting with thousands of spiders crawling over them before water gushed out I'd the side of the ride sending them hurtling through the tunnel towards a gate.

Artemis rolled her eyes. "Why is this so important, Ares? Honestly, you come up with the strangest things...

"Look!" He shouted, pointing at a new person that just walked into the cameras view. She had long chestnut hair that came to her waist with a tall slender body. She started running towards the gate and lifted up her hands and vines started magically weaving together to form some kind of net that caught Percy and the girl so they didn't crash.

The gods all gasped as she turned around and they saw her face.

"It can't be.." Poseidon said, his eyes glued to the screen.

Apollo looked up from the rose to see the most beautiful person he had ever seen. Her face radiated with joy and happiness and the way she smiled seemed to light up the whole room. She had something hanging around her neck. Apollo leaned closer, hoping to see what it was.

It couldn't be... His face for the first time in ten years formed a smile.

"It's Antheia!" He shouted, jumping up. Hera felt tears in her eyes.

"My baby, my little baby girl.." Zeus said, the words almost foreign to him now.

Antheia looked up at the camera as Percy raced over next to her and shouted, "Shows over! Thank you! Good night!" And the tv went blank.

"No!" Apollo roared, running and throwing his hands on the silent tv.

"Do you know what this means?" Athena said from the background. "Little Antheia is finally coming home."

Everyone felt their hearts burst, overwhelmed with joy and happiness that they were deprived of for the last ten, miserable years.

"Wait a minute.." A raspy voice came from the back.

The gods turned around to see the three Fates standing there, looking as ancient as ever.

Zeus rushed over to them. "Please tell me my daughter can come back now."

The old lady held sadness in her face. "I'm afraid she can't come back until she remembers. The shock of not knowing would overwhelm and consume her. She needs to remember her past on her own before she can come back."

Zeus looked down. "So close..." He whispered, his hands closing in fists.

Hera came running up and comfortingly rubbed his shoulder. "Zeus, think on the positive side. She already knows she has powers and the ten years are almost up. She'll be coming home very soon. I promise."

Zeus nodded in understanding. Apollo looked down at the rose in his hand.

"Antheia's finally coming home." Joy filled his face and outside, the sun seemed to brighten. All the gods in fact seemed to brighten, for the first time in ten years they weren't sad anymore.

Word quickly spread around to all of Olympus that Antheia had been spotted and was coming home soon and for the first time in ten years... There was hope and happiness again.

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