Titan's Curse: His Parentage

NICO POV

"Tell me when it's over," Thalia said. Her eyes were shut tight. The statue was holding on to them so they couldn't fall, but Thalia still clutched its arm like it was the most important thing in the world.

"Everything's fine," Percy promised.

"Are... are we very high?"

Nico looked down. Below them, a range of snowy mountains zipped by. The young demigod was hanging on the statues back since its hands were occupied with Percy and Thalia. Percy stretched out his foot and kicked snow off one of the peaks.

"Nah," Percy said. "Not that high."

"We are in the Sierras.'" Zoe yelled. She and Grover were hanging from the arms of the other statue. "I have hunted here before. At this speed, we should be in San Francisco in a few hours."

"Hey, hey, Frisco!" Their angel said. "Yo, Chuck! We could visit those guys at the Mechanics Monument again! They know how to party!"

"Oh, man," the other angel said. "I am so there!"

"You guys have visited San Francisco?" Percy asked.

"We automatons gotta have some fun once in a while, right?" Their statue said. "Those mechanics took us over to the de Young Museum and introduced us to these marble lady statues, see. And—"

"Hank!" the other statue Chuck cut in. "They're kids, man."

"Oh, right." If bronze statues could blush, Nico swore Hank did. "Back to flying."

They sped up. The mountains fell away into hills, and then they were zipping along over farmland and towns and highways. Nico had wanted to rest for the whole ride but Percy had other plans.

"Hey, Nico?"

"What?" Nico grumbled back, remembering that he was supposed to be angry at the older demigod.

Percy sighed, "How long are you going to stay mad at me?"

Nico tightened his arms around the statue's neck, "As long as it takes."

"You know, you were talking to me fine when we were running away from does skeleton warriors."

Nico glared at the older demigod even when he struggled to find words for his actions. "That is— that's because it's hard to stay mad when you're under pressure."

"Nico, what happened with your sister, it's not Percy's fault." Thalia joined in the conversation even though she kept her eyes closed.

"He let her get killed!"

"But what could you have done, Nico? Even if you begged her not to go, she still would have done it. "

"How would you know? You weren't there!" Nico snapped.

"Because I know what it feels like to be in Bianca's shoes." Thalia said, voice trembling as if she are remembering a painful memory. "But Bianca was able to do the one thing I couldn't do— protect her younger brother. So don't belittle Bianca's sacrifice. She knew her responsibilities as a demigod...and as a sister. Which is more that I can say for myself." She muttered the last part to herself but Nico could still hear her.

Nico had never thought to imagine it in Bianca's view before. Even though Nico had been mad at her, Bianca tried to cross that bridge between them. She had even stupidly stolen that figurine just as a token for peace and a way to apologize to him. If anything, Bianca's death was Nico's fault. He shouldn't have kept holding that grudge for so long. Would she still be alive now if he had forgiven her back in the junkyard?

-0-

PERCY POV

"Thalia," Percy said. "I never knew you had a—"

"It was a long time ago. Please. I don't want to talk about it." Thalia interrupted.

The statue as well as his passengers stayed silent after the exchange. After a few hours of traveling in silence, Percy glanced up at Nico again to see that the boy had fallen asleep behind the statue's back. Percy was worried for a moment that Nico's arms might go lax during his sleep and fall off the statue.

But as if he were reading his mind, Hank said, "Don't worry, the little lad was smart enough to wrap his backpack straps around my neck so that he wouldn't fall off."

"Oh...that's good." Percy replied.

"Stop worrying over the kid, Percy. He'll be fine." Thalia said.

"I know. Everyone keeps telling me that but I just want Nico to trust me again— though I probably don't deserve it."

"Hey!" Thalia snapped. "Stop blaming yourself, Percy. It's over. Bianca made her decision and now we've got to make sure that her death was not in vain when we save Artemis and Annabeth."

"Yeah. Of course, sorry." Percy said.

Thalia sighed. "It's okay. Just remember that carrying that sort of guilt for many years is painful."

Percy sometimes forgot that Thalia had lived five years of her life as a tree, and before that, she had lived on the streets and fought monsters with Annabeth and Luke which was far earlier than Percy did at the age of 12. Percy could only imagine how rough her life had been, add to the fact that she had lost her mom and her younger brother. Annabeth had once said that demigod lives weren't easy and Percy thought Thalia was the perfect example of that.

"You did good back there," Percy told her, trying to erase the awkward atmosphere that followed. "Zeus listened."

It was hard to tell what she was thinking with her eyes closed.

"Maybe," she said. "How did you get away from the skeletons in the generator room, anyway? You said they cornered you."

Percy told her about the weird mortal girl, Rachel Elizabeth Dare, who seemed to be able to see right through the Mist.

"Some mortals are like that," she said. "Nobody knows why."

"Well, the girl was annoying," Percy said. "But I'm glad I didn't vaporize her. That would've been bad."

Thalia nodded. "Must be nice to be a regular mortal." She said that as if she'd given it a lot of thought.

"Where you guys want to land?" Hank asked, waking Nico up from his nap.

Percy looked down and said, "Whoa."

He'd seen San Francisco in pictures before, but never in real life. It was probably the most beautiful city he'd ever seen: kind of like a smaller, cleaner Manhattan, if Manhattan had been surrounded by green hills and fog. There was a huge bay and ships, islands and sailboats, and the Golden Gate Bridge sticking up out of the fog. Percy felt like he should take a picture or something. Greetings from Frisco. Haven't Died Yet. Wish You Were Here.

"There," Zoe suggested. "By the Embarcadero Building."

"Good thinking," Chuck said. "Me and Hank can blend in with the pigeons." Everyone looked at him.

"Kidding," he said. "Sheesh, can't statues have a sense of humor?"

As it turned out, there wasn't much need to blend in. It was early morning and not many people were around. They freaked out a homeless guy on the ferry dock when they landed. He screamed when he saw Hank and Chuck and ran off yelling something about metal angels from Mars.

"It's a good thing we didn't burst to smithereens." Chuck said.

"Yeah, I was almost expecting Big Z to smite us down for carrying not one but two of 'em to his domain."

"Probably because we were flying with his daughter."

"What are you two talking about?" Percy asked. "Why would Zeus be mad at us?"

"Oh, don't take it too personal, kid, Zeus just hates your parents." Chuck said, getting ready to fly off again.

"Wait, why did you say two if Percy's the only—", Grover began saying.

"I'm talkin' about the other shrimp!" The metal angel said his farewell and flew off with his brother to party with their statue friends.

Meanwhile, the group suddenly had concerning matters to handle.

"I knew it!" Zoe said, a smug look on her face.

"Knew what? And what does he mean by Nico—?" But Zoe cut him off. Percy noticed that was happening a lot.

"I've been thinking about it ever since the boy destroyed that skeleton warrior back in Mexico. What he did in Hoover dam only strengthened thy suspicions but now I am completely convinced!"

"But if you just base it off on those two experiences, then the only god it could be is..." Thalia trailed off, catching on. It seemed the revelation left her speechless. Percy would like to get in on the secret himself but nobody seemed keen to say it.

Grover looked as if he had enough as well. "Could someone please just say it already? The suspense is making my knees shake in anxiety." Which was true since they were jingling like he wanted to go pee.

But Nico, who the group had almost forgotten, beat them to it. "It's him isn't it?" He revealed the small figurine he had kept hidden inside his backpack, the same one that caused Bianca Di Angelo to risk her life.

It was Hades, Lord of the Dead.

"Whoa, no way!" Grover exclaimed, face turning pale. He stared at Nico as if he would suddenly attack and bring their souls to the Underworld.

"Di immortales! Even Hades broke his oath?" Thalia cursed.

"What oath?" Nico asked. He was ignored.

"No, I don't think so. He's their dad, but Nico and Bianca have been out of commission ever since World War II." Percy said.

"The Lotus Casino!" Grover said, looking enlightened. "She and Nico were stuck there for decades. They were born before the oath." Then he blinked as if he realized something. "Wow, out of the Big Three, who would have thought that the Lord of the Dead would be the only one faithful to the oath."

Percy and Thalia tried not to look guilty for their father's sins.

"Wait! Time out. What's this oath you guys keep talking about?" Nico grouched at them. The others glanced at one another, as if to ask 'who's going to say it?'.

"He is just a boy. He is too young to understand the burden behind the Great Prophecy." Zoe argued.

"But he's involved now. He's a son of Hades. He might be th—" But Grover was interrupted by Thalia. Percy wondered if his satyr friend felt offended as well.

"Let's just discuss this later. The sun is about to set and we still don't have any clues about the whereabouts of the monster or Annabeth and Atremis. We don't have time to argue and debate about this. I'm sorry Nico but this will have to wait."

Thalia was right. They needed to find Annabeth and Artemis before it was too late and find the monster that Luke was tracking. But the hurt and forlorn look Nico tried to hide from the others made Percy feel like such a pathetic friend. Percy knew perfectly well what Nico was feeling since he had been in the boy's shoes not too long ago.

As the group went on to discuss what they were going to do next, Percy pulled Nico aside.

"Hey, sorry about that. I guess we pretty much got ahead of ourselves and ignored you."

Nico just looked away from him and stayed silent. Right. The kid was "supposed" to be mad at the older demigod but Percy couldn't just let this last forever. Nico had talked to him when they were in Hoover Dam, never mind the fact that they were being chased by a horde of evil skeleton warriors. The truth of the matter was that Nico didn't entirely hate him and Percy disliked it when his friends stayed mad at him. Percy swore that he would take care of Bianca's brother in her stead, even when said brother was currently giving him the cold shoulder.

"Nico," Percy sighed, placing his hands on the shorter boy's shoulders, "I don't know how you want me to apologize but I'll say sorry as many times as you want if it means you'll talk to me again. I know I broke your promise, I won't ever ask from you another, but I need you to trust me when I say that you're not alone in this. The people in the camp and I will be there to help you."

"Why should I believe anything you say?" Nico asked, brown eyes still looking away from him.

"Because I'm your friend, no matter what you think of me, and I want what's best for you. I'm sure Bianca wouldn't want her brother to end up alone and unprotected." Percy thought that Nico might have gone a bit red in the face but when he turned his head to (finally) look at Percy, it was gone.

"You...you still want to be my friend even if I said all those mean things to you?" Nico said in a small, insecure voice that Percy almost wanted to hug the little guy.

Percy smiled comfortingly, "Yeah…I kind of understand what you're going through anyway."

"You lost someone too?" Nico asked.

"Well...in a way. My mom was taken away from me on the night I first entered camp. I was unconscious by the time I crossed the border line so when I woke up the next day and remembered her being crushed by the Minotaur, I just cried."

Nico's eyes were wide with interest as he listened raptly to Percy's story. "How did you...cope with it?"

"Well, I took it really bad to the point where I swore against Hades that I would defeat him for taking my mother. But thankfully, he hadn't killed her yet. I was able to save her when I retrieved something that was stolen from him so in return, he gave me back my mother. The whole quest was actually a lot longer and more painful than that but that was pretty much my main goal— to save my mother. Yet, I learned that we should keep moving on even when someone we love is gone because that person would have wanted us to live a happier life for their sake if not our own."

When Percy was finished, Nico's expression was indescribable. Percy thought he must have jinxed everything again when he recounted his tale about his mother who didn't actually die.

"Nico?" Percy asked when the silence became too long.

Nico seemed to snap out whatever daze he was in and suddenly, he rewarded Percy with a huge grin on his face. Percy blinked then smiled back, happy that he was able to finally lift Nico's mood up after Bianca's death and he resolved then to keep this boy smiling until Nico didn't need Percy to support him anymore.

"Thanks, Percy. That...really helped a lot."

"So...are we friends again?"

Nico looked away but nodded nonetheless and then he yelped when Percy suddenly hugged him. He didn't feel Nico hug him back until the boy tentatively raised his arms to embrace him. It wasn't a strong grip but it was enough for Percy to know that Nico wasn't mad at the older demigod anymore.

When they rejoined the group, Grover sent him a wink and Thalia gave him a knowing smile, seeing that Nico was happier than he'd been in a while. He may not be that innocent, hyperactive kid anymore but at least Nico could finally accept Bianca's death for now and properly mourn her after the quest was done.

With all their lives intact, Percy hoped as he listened to the group discuss their next plan.

Apparently, they were going to use Percy to snatch the tricky Nereus by outfitting the demigod in a ragged flannel shirt, huge jeans, bright red sneakers, and a floppy rainbow hat whilst smelling all other homeless people near the pier. Definitely not their most hygienic or cleanest plan but that's all they got. Percy thought that the others were enjoying his misery as he smelled the homeless people. Even Nico was smiling and laughing along with the others as they watched Percy make a fool of himself and wrestle against a dude that looked like Santa's evil Twin.

At least he's not sulking anymore and that's what counts, Percy thought as he finally subdued Nereus.

Nereus collapsed on the edge of the boat dock. Above them was one of those tourist piers lined with shops, like a mall on water. Nereus was heaving and gasping but Percy was feeling great. He could've gone on all day, but he didn't tell him that. Percy wanted him to feel like he'd put up a good fight.

His friends ran down the steps from the pier.

"You got him!" Zoe said.

"You don't have to sound so amazed," Percy said.

Nereus moaned. "Oh, wonderful. An audience for my humiliation! The normal deal, I suppose? You'll let me go if I answer your question?"

"I've got more than one question," Percy said.

"Only one question per capture! That's the rule."

He looked at his friends with worry. This wasn't good. He needed to find Artemis, and he needed to figure out what the doomsday creature was. He also needed to know if Annabeth was still alive, and how to rescue her. How could Percy ask that all in one question?

A voice inside Percy was screaming Ask about Annabeth! That's what he cared about most. But then he imagined what Annabeth might say. She would never forgive him if he saved her and didn't save Olympus. Zoe would want him to ask about Artemis, but Chiron had told them the monster was even more important.

He sighed. "All right, Nereus. Tell me where to find this terrible mon—"

"Percy!" Nico shouted before Percy could fully say his request.

"What?"

"There's something down here. Look!" Nico was leaning over the pier on his hands and knees and before Percy could warn him to stay back, Grover walked over the edge and gasped in shock. Whatever was down there was obviously alarming.

"MOOOOOOOO!"

Percy looked down as well, and there was his friend the cow serpent, swimming next to the dock. She nudged his shoe and gave him the sad brown eyes.

"Ah, Bessie," Percy said. "Not now."

"Mooo!"

Grover gasped. "He says his name isn't Bessie."

"You can understand her... er, him?"

Grover nodded. "It's a very old form of animal speech. But he says his name is the Ophiotaurus."

"The Ophi-what?"

"It means serpent bull in Greek," Thalia said. "But what's it doing here?"

"What are you kids, elementary? Do even understand what that thing is?" Nereus questioned looking at them with a condescending look. He continued to grumble about uneducated demigods but was quickly ignored.

"Moooooooo!"

"He says Percy is his protector," Grover announced.

"And he's running from the bad people. He says they are close."

"Wait," Zoe said, looking at Percy. "You know this cow?"

Percy was feeling impatient, but he told them the story. It's not easy holding down a smelly god.

Thalia shook her head in disbelief. "And you just forgot to mention this before?"

"Well... yeah." It seemed silly, now that she said it, but things had been happening so fast. Bessie, the Ophiotaurus, seemed like a minor detail.

"I am a fool," Zoe said suddenly. "I know this story!"

"What story?" Nico asked.

"From the War of the Titans," she said. "My... my father told me this tale, thousands of years ago. This is the beast we are looking for."

"Bessie?" I looked down at the bull serpent. "But... he's too cute. He couldn't destroy the world."

Nereus snorted derisively beside him so Percy squeezed his midsection to shut him up.

"That is how we were wrong," Zoe said. "We've been anticipating a huge dangerous monster, but the Ophiotaurus does not bring down the gods that way. He must be sacrificed."

"MMMM," Bessie lowed.

"I don't think he likes the S-word," Grover said.

Nico tried patting Bessie's head to comfort him but the poor thing wouldn't stop trembling.

"Alright, enough with the story telling. Could you just ask your question already so that I can get away from all you misfits?" Nereus demanded, glaring at them and Percy wholly agreed with him. The smell was making his eyes tear up.

"There's only one question to ask now. Where are Artemis and Annabeth being hold captive?" Percy asked.

Nereus rolled his eyes, "Oh please, you had her the whole time in your quest and you still don't know where to go? Pathetic." The god pointed at Zoe as he said this and the rest looked at her in confusion.

"Just tell us where they are and we'll let you go."

"Alright." Nereus shrugged then he grinned wickedly. "They're up there." And while the others were distracted as to where he was pointing, Nereus shifted into an eel and swam away.

"Damn, he got away and he didn't even answer the question properly, that bastard." Percy cursed. "And look at Bessie, he still looks scared. How could anyone hurt this little guy? He's harmless."

Zoe nodded an odd look on her face as she stared at the distance. "But there is power in killing innocence. Terrible power. The Fates ordained a prophecy eons ago, when this creature was born. They said that whoever killed the Ophiotaurus and sacrificed its entrails to fire would have the power to destroy the gods."

"MMMMMM!"

"Um," Grover said. "Maybe we could avoid talking about entrails, too."

Thalia stared at the cow serpent with wonder. "The power to destroy the gods... how? I mean, what would happen?"

"No one knows," Zoe said. "The first time, during the Titan war, the Ophiotaurus was in fact slain by a giant ally of the Titans, but thy father, Zeus, sent an eagle to snatch the entrails away before they could be tossed into the fire. It was a close call. Now, after three thousand years, the Ophiotaurus is reborn."

Thalia sat down on the dock beside Nico. She stretched out her hand. Bessie went right to her. Thalia placed her hand on his head. Bessie shivered.

Thalia's expression bothered Percy. She almost looked... hungry.

"We have to protect him," He told her. "If Luke gets hold of him—"

"Luke wouldn't hesitate," Thalia muttered. "The power to overthrow Olympus. That's... that's huge."

"Yes, it is, my dear," said a man's voice in a heavy French accent. "And it is a power you shall unleash."

The Ophiotaurus made a whimpering sound and submerged. Percy looked up. They'd been so busy talking, they allowed themselves to be ambushed.

Standing behind them, his two-color eyes gleaming wickedly, was Dr. Thorn, the manticore himself.

"This is just pairrr-fect," the manticore gloated.

He was wearing a ratty black trench coat over his Westover Hall uniform, which was torn and stained. His military haircut had grown out spiky and greasy. He hadn't shaved recently, so his face was covered in silver stubble. Basically he didn't look much better than the guys down at the soup kitchen.

However, Nico was staring wide eyed at the monster, standing still as if he were in shock. Percy stood in front of him to protect him from harm.

"Long ago, the gods banished me to Persia," the manticore said. "I was forced to scrounge for food on the edges of the world, hiding in forests, devouring insignificant human farmers for my meals. I never got to fight any great heroes. I was not feared and admired in the old stories! But now that will change. The Titans shall honor me, and I shall feast on the flesh of half-bloods!"

On either side of him stood two armed security guys, some of the mortal mercenaries Percy had seen in D.C. Two more stood on the next boat dock over, just in case they tried to escape that way. There were tourists all around—walking down the waterfront, shopping at the pier above them—but Percy knew that wouldn't stop the manticore from acting.

"Where... where are the skeletons?" Percy asked the manticore.

He sneered. "I do not need those foolish undead! The General thinks I am worthless? He will change his mind when I defeat you myself!"

Percy needed time to think. He had to save Bessie. He could dive into the sea, but how could he make a quick getaway with a five-hundred-pound cow serpent? And what about his friends? And Nico?

"We beat you once before," Percy said.

"Ha! You could barely fight me with a goddess on your side. And, alas... that goddess is preoccupied at the moment. There will be no help for you now."

Zoe notched an arrow and aimed it straight at the manticore's head. The guards on either side of the surrounded demigods raised their guns.

"Wait!" Percy said. "Zoe, don't!"

The manticore smiled. "The boy is right, Zoe Nightshade. Put away your bow. It would be a shame to kill you before you witnessed Thalia's great victory."

"What are you talking about?" Thalia growled. She had her shield and spear ready.

"Surely it is clear," the manticore said. "This is your moment. This is why Lord Kronos brought you back to life. You will sacrifice the Ophiotaurus. You will bring its entrails to the sacred fire on the mountain. You will gain unlimited power. And for your sixteenth birthday, you will overthrow Olympus."

No one spoke. It made terrible sense. Thalia was only two days away from turning sixteen. She was a child of the Big Three. And here was a choice, a terrible choice that could mean the end of the gods. It was just like the prophecy said. Percy wasn't sure if he felt relieved, horrified, or disappointed. He wasn't the prophecy kid after all. Doomsday was happening right now.

But then... Percy glanced behind him at Nico who had gotten over his shock and was now glaring fiercely at the manticore. There was another child of the Big Three in their midst. If Thalia refused and somehow wasn't the child of the prophecy, then they'd come looking for him next since Percy wasn't in hell going to join their side. He would just have to make sure he kept Nico's identity a secret for now.

Percy waited for Thalia to tell the manticore off, but she hesitated. She looked completely stunned.

"You know it is the right choice," the manticore told her. "Your friend Luke recognized it. You shall be reunited with him. You shall rule this world together under the auspices of the Titans. Your father abandoned you, Thalia. He cares nothing for you. And now you shall gain power over him. Crush the Olympians underfoot, as they deserve. Call the beast! It will come to you. Use your spear."

"Thalia," Percy said, "snap out of it!"

She looked at him the same way she had the morning she woke up on Half-Blood Hill, dazed and uncertain. It was almost like she didn't know the other demigod. "I... I don't—"

"Your father helped you," Percy said. "He sent the metal angels. He turned you into a tree to preserve you."

Her hand tightened on the shaft of her spear.

He looked at Grover desperately. Thank the gods, he understood what he needed. The satyr raised his pipes to his mouth and played a quick riff.

The manticore yelled, "Stop him!"

The guards had been targeting Zoe, and before they could figure out that the kid with the pipes was the bigger problem, the wooden planks at their feet sprouted new branches and tangled their legs. Zoe let loose two quick arrows that exploded at their feet in clouds of sulfurous yellow smoke. Fart arrows!

The guards started coughing. The manticore shot spines in the demigod's direction, but they ricocheted off Percy's lion's coat.

"Grover," He said, "tell Bessie to dive deep and stay down!"

"Moooooo!" Grover translated. Percy could only hope that Bessie got the message. "The cow..." Thalia muttered, still in a daze.

"Come on!" He pulled her along and grabbed Nico's wrist at the same time, the others following along behind them as they ran up the stairs to the shopping center on the pier. They dashed around the corner of the nearest store. Percy heard the manticore shouting at his minions, "Get them!" Tourists screamed as the guards shot blindly into the air.

They scrambled to the end of the pier and hid behind a little kiosk filled with souvenir crystals—wind chimes and dream catchers and stuff like that, glittering in the sunlight. There was a water fountain next to them. Down below, a bunch of sea lions were sunning themselves on the rocks. The whole of San Francisco Bay spread out before them: the Golden Gate Bridge, Alcatraz Island, and the green hills and fog beyond that to the north. A picture-perfect moment, except for the fact that they were about to die and the world was going to end.

"Go over the side!" Zoe told Percy. "You can escape in the sea, Percy. Call on thy father for help. Maybe you can save the Ophiotaurus."

She was right, but Percy couldn't do it.

"I won't leave you guys," He said. "We fight together."

"You have to get word to camp!" Grover said. "At least let them know what's going on!"

"If only there was a god that could help us right now." Nico muttered beside him.

Then Percy noticed the crystals making rainbows in the sunlight. There was a drinking fountain next to him...

"Get word to camp, need a god," He muttered. "Good idea."

Percy uncapped Riptide and slashed off the top of the water fountain. Water burst out of the busted pipe and sprayed all over them.

Thalia gasped as the water hit her. The fog seemed to clear from her eyes. "Are you crazy?" she asked.

But Grover understood. He was already fishing around in his pockets for a coin. He threw a golden drachma into the rainbows created by the mist and yelled, "O goddess, accept my offering!"

The mist rippled. Nico gasped in shock at the new magic happening right in front of him.

"Camp Half-Blood!" Percy said.

And there, shimmering in the Mist right next to them, was the last person Percy wanted to see: Mr. D, wearing his leopard-skin jogging suit and rummaging through the refrigerator.

He looked up lazily. "Do you mind?"

"Where's Chiron!" Percy shouted.

"How rude." Mr. D took a swig from a jug of grape juice. "Is that how you say hello?"

"Hello," He amended. "We're about to die! Where's Chiron?"

Mr. D considered that. Percy wanted to scream at him to hurry up, but he knew that wouldn't work. Behind them, footsteps and shouting—the manticore's troops were closing in.

"About to die," Mr. D mused. "How exciting. I'm afraid Chiron isn't here. Would you like me to take a message?"

He looked at his friends. "We're dead."

Thalia gripped her spear. She looked like her old angry self again. "Then we'll die fighting."

"How noble," Mr. D said, stifling a yawn. "So what is the problem, exactly?"

Percy didn't see that it would make any difference, but he told him about the Ophiotaurus. "Mmm." He studied the contents of the fridge. "So that's it. I see."

"You don't even care!" Percy screamed. "You'd just as soon watch us die!"

"Let's see. I think I'm in the mood for pizza tonight." Percy wanted to slash through the rainbow and disconnect, but he didn't have time. The manticore screamed, "There!" And we were surrounded. Two of the guards stood behind him. The other two appeared on the roofs of the pier shops above us. The manticore threw off his coat and transformed into his true self, his lion claws extended and his spiky tail bristling with poison barbs.

"Excellent," he said. He glanced at the apparition in the mist and snorted. "Alone, without any real help. Wonderful."

"You could ask for help," Mr. D murmured to me, as if this were an amusing thought. "You could say please."

When wild boars fly, Percy thought. There was no way Percy was going to die begging a slob like Mr. D, just so he could laugh as they all got gunned down.

Zoe readied her arrows. Grover lifted his pipes. Thalia raised her shield, and Percy noticed a tear running down her cheek.

Suddenly it occurred to him: this had happened to her before. She had been cornered on Half-Blood Hill. She'd willingly given her life for her friends. But this time, she couldn't save them.

How could I let that happen to her?

Percy opened his mouth to say it but then Nico butted in beside him, "Please save us, great god Dionysus! Your powers are so cool, I want to see them for myself. I wish I were your child because I'd love to be called the demigod child of the awesome Dionysus!"

Percy stared at Nico as if he were crazy but the boy just kept grinning and held his admiring gaze with Dionysus'. It wasn't what Percy was going to say since he would never praise Dionysus like that but the compliments might work. Gods were vain and egotistic beings after all.

The manticore grinned. "Spare the daughter of Zeus. She will join us soon enough. Kill the others."

The men raised their guns, and something strange happened. Suddenly there was a rush all around him like all the blood suddenly traveled to his head, and a sound like a huge sigh. The sunlight tinged with purple. He smelled grapes and something more sour—wine.

SNAP!

It was the sound of many minds breaking at the same time. The sound of madness. One guard put his pistol between his teeth like it was a bone and ran around on all fours. Two others dropped their guns and started waltzing with each other. The fourth began doing what looked like an Irish clogging dance. It would have been funny if it hadn't been so terrifying.

"No!" screamed the manticore. "I will deal with you myself!"

His tail bristled, but the planks under his paws erupted into grape vines, which immediately began wrapping around the monster's body, sprouting new leaves and clusters of green baby grapes that ripened in seconds as the manticore shrieked, until he was engulfed in a huge mass of vines, leaves, and full clusters of purple grapes. Finally the grapes stopped shivering, and Percy had a feeling that somewhere inside there, the manticore was no more.

"Well," said Dionysus, closing his refrigerator. "That was fun."

Percy stared at him, horrified. "How could you... How did you—"

"Such gratitude," he muttered. "The mortals will come out of it. Too much explaining to do if I made their condition permanent. I hate writing reports to Father."

He stared resentfully at Thalia. "I hope you learned your lesson, girl. It isn't easy to resist power, is it?"

Thalia blushed as if she were ashamed.

"Mr. D," Grover said in amazement. "You... you saved us."

"Mmm. Don't make me regret it, satyr. Now get going, Percy Jackson. I've bought you a few hours at most."

"The Ophiotaurus," Percy said. "Can you get it to camp?"

Mr. D sniffed. "I do not transport livestock. That's your problem."

"But where do we go?"

Dionysus looked at Zoe. "Oh, I think the huntress knows. You must enter at sunset today, you know, or all is lost. Now good-bye. My pizza is waiting."

"Mr. D," Percy said.

He raised his eyebrow.

"You called me by my right name," Percy said. "You called me Percy Jackson."

"I most certainly did not, Peter Johnson. And you should be thanking that young friend of yours, Chico De Angela. He most certainly knew how to ask a god for help. Now off with you!"

He waved his hand, and his image disappeared in the mist.

All around them, the manticore's minions were still acting completely nuts. One of them had found their friend, the homeless guy, and they were having a serious conversation about metal angels from Mars. Several other guards were harassing the tourists, making animal noises and trying to steal their shoes.

Percy looked at Zoe. "What did he mean... 'You know where to go'?"

Her face was the color of the fog. She pointed across the bay, past the Golden Gate. In the distance, a single mountain rose up above the cloud layer.

"The garden of my sisters," she said. "I must go home."

A/N: HAPPY NEW YEAR!