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Previously: "Donuts!" Tyson said bursting into the hut, carrying a box of powdered donuts.

I could feel my eyes widen. "Where did you get those? We are in the middle of the wilderness!"

"Fifty feet! Monster Donut shop just over the hill."

Monster Donut shop? Did Luke find us already?

"This is bad." I said voicing my thoughts.

We were all crouching around a tree peeking out at the MONSTER DONUT shop ten feet in front of us. The shop looked very new and clean for being in the middle of the forest, it had brightly lit windows, a parking lot, and another road leading further into the woods. It looked as if there was only one monster employee on duty, he was reading a Monster Daily magazine.

"This shouldn't be here, this is wrong." I whispered to the others.

"What? It's a donut shop." Percy asked.

You are so thick headed Seaweed Brain. I thought. "Shhh! You don't want him to hear you!"

"Why are we whispering? Tyson went in there and bought a dozen doughnuts, nothing happened to him."

"Percy! He's a monster."

"C'mon Annabeth! Monster Donut does not always mean monsters. We have them in New York, it's a chain."

"A chain." I agreed, thinking. "Don't you think it's a little strange one popped up after you told Tyson to go get donuts, in the middle of the woods?" Percy was silent I could tell he was thinking. "It could be a nest." I explained.

"A nest for what?"

"Have you ever wondered how franchise stores pop up so quickly? One day there isn't anything then boom there is a new coffee shop or something."

"Umm... no. I never thought about it." Percy said staring at the MONSTER DONUT.

"Percy some chains multiply so quickly because they are connected to the life of a monster. In the 1950's some children of Hermes figured it out. They breed-"

Then I heard it, it was a low scraping noise. Quietly sneaking up behind us was hydra, I could hear it's belly grinding against the grass.

"Breed what?" Percy asked.

"No sudden moves." I said slowly. "Turn around slowly."

Percy turned around just as the Hydra appeared from the forest. The Hydra was around rhino size with seven hissing heads. It wore a plastic bib that said: I'm a Monster Donut kid!

Percy reached into his jean pocket and pulled out Riptide. I looked at him and sent him a do-not-open-that-pen-or-I-will-hurt-you look.

I hope Percy got the message. Most monsters have horrible eyesight. It is a possibility that the Hydra might walk right by us. If Percy clicked his ballpoint pen, Riptide, the sword's bronze glow would give us away.

We continued sitting still and waiting. If I reached out one of my arms right now I could touch the Hydra. It seemed to be sniffing the ground to see if it could find one of us demigods. A wet, slobbery, yellow piece of canvas fell on top of my sneaker. In my head I screamed and cursed Hydra's. I looked up and saw above me was two Hydra heads eating one of our yellow canvas duffel bags. This Hydra had already been to our camp and was following our scent. We needed to move.

Tyson, Percy, and I all scooted back. Tyson stepped back on a twig. The twig snapped loudly and all seven heads turned towards us and hissed.

"Scatter!" I yelled diving to my right.

Percy understood and rolled to my left. Tyson stood still frozen in shock. One of the Hydra heads shot an arc of green acid at Percy nearly missing his shoulder, he moved out of the way and the acid hit an elm tree behind him. The elm tree started to fall right towards Tyson.

I was frozen and couldn't move, I had never seen anyone squashed before and wasn't planning to anytime soon.

"Tyson!" Percy yelled, diving towards him. Percy tackled Tyson over just as the Hydra lunged. The elm tree hit the Hydra in two of it's heads, and it hissed in protest. "Move!" Percy told Tyson. He pulled out Riptide to distract the Hydra.

"Tyson come over here!" I yelled getting out my knife.

The Hydra shot acid at Percy again, he stepped out of the way and did the natural thing, he chopped off one of the Hydra heads. Now instead of a seven headed Hydra, it was a nine headed Hydra.

"Percy! You just opened another Monster Donut shop somewhere!"

He dodged another blast of acid and yelled back: "I am about to die and you are worried about that? How do I kill this thing?"

I thought for a second how did Hercules kill this thing?...Fire!

"Fire! We need to use fire!" I yelled moving to Percy's left trying to distract one of the heads.

I was fighting with one of the heads when another one came and hit me in the gut. I flew five feet away into the muck by the river. I landed on the small of my back and rolled. That is definitely going to bruise I thought getting up and wiping the muck off of me.

"No hurting my friends!" Tyson yelled, putting himself between the Hydra and me. We are not friends Tyson! I yelled at him in my mind.

Tyson started smashing the Hydra heads with his fists distracting most of them.

We were losing ground, if we didn't get help soon one of us would mess up and we would Hydra food.

Then I heard a chugging noise in the woods. Please tell me that's not another monster.

"What is that?" I yelled while rolling under Hydra acid.

"Steam engine." Tyson replied still smashing Hydra heads.

"What?" Percy asked as he ducked under acid.

On the river behind us a boat appeared. A familiar voice shouted "There! Get ready the thirty-two pounder!"

"They are too close my lady." A gruff male voice responded.

"Darn heros! Full steam ahead."

"Aye aye my lady."

"Fire at will Captain!"

Fire at will? Oh no!

"Hit the dirt!" I yelled dropping down. Percy and Tyson hit the ground just as an earth shattering BOOM sounded above us echoing. I saw a flash of light and then smoke. The Hydra was hit by a cannonball and exploded, all over us. It rained down green slimy monster guts.

"Gross!" I screamed. I had actually tried to look nice today, like Percy could tell now. Poor me, I was covered in muck and monster slime.

"Steamship!" Tyson yelled randomly.

Percy stood up coughing up gunpowder smoke. He walked over and offered a hand. I took it and he pulled me up, squeezing my hand before he let go. I blushed and look at the strange ship chugging our way. It rode lower in the river then most ships, it's deck was made of iron. In the middle of the ship was the commanding office. The sides of the ship had slats for the cannons that peeked out. A flag stood on the very top, it was a boar with a blood red spear in a field. The Ares flag I thought to myself. A strange flag for a strange ship. Surrounding the deck were zombie soldiers, with gray uniforms and faces that only covered half their skulls.

It made sense now, this ship was an ironclad. Used in the Civil War in 1859 sent to the Confederates by the French. It took me awhile with my dyslexia, but I finally deciphered the name, the ship was called The USS Birmingham.

On the stern of the ship was Clarisse, in full battle armor standing next to the smoking cannon that almost took our heads off.

"Losers! I suppose I should rescue you, come aboard." She sneered.

:0 that was one of our longest chapters yet! Yay!

***Review Challenge: What is your least favorite character in all the series?***

It's kind of a hard question, but I think my least favorite character would have to be Luke. In the beginning I liked him, but when he tried to kill Percy I didn't like him after that. How could he betray Annabeth and Thalia?