A/N: Hello. So I recently unpublished this chapter because of a slight problem. But it's fixed now. Please tell me what you think about the chapter now. Just a heads up, I will be going on a 6 month hiatus when December ends. Also, initially, I was supposed to write a new book with ZelotArchon but he had to pull out due to work. Nevertheless, Excidium Troiae has finally been published. Do check it out. Also, a special thanks to dwarvess for reading and editing all my mistakes in all our chapters. As usual, don't forget to vote, comment, review and leave a kudos.
I'm going to start by replying to the reviews (which caused me to rewrite this chapter) from some of my readers on .
Adamcoyne:
I do like the story so far it's very good. One thing I will say though is why did Perseus seem afraid of Atlás? He didn't seem to stick up for himself at all. Surely a Titan that almost defeated the entire Olympian council is only second to Kronos if even that right?
Also I'm making my guess for the traitors. Aphrodite and Athens.
Reply: Thank you for this review. I'm not going to say anything about the traitors though. Trying to keep up the suspense. For the part about Atlas I do not know what came over me. Again, I apologize for the sloppy writing. Thanks for drawing this to my attention.
Yesse2362:
have actually to plot things that bother me.
First is that you change Zoe's old language from old to new.
And the other problem is that it was said Perseus could defeat all 6 major olympians if he wanted to do he would be stronger than atlas.
Not that much but still that he wouldn't either let himself be put himself by that stupid goddess nor the Titan of strength, they aren't strong enough for that.
Also immortals are cocky.
Percys character aside the gods and Titans are at least confident because they know they are better and stronger than mortals.
Same goes for the monsters, it's obvious that they fear the Titans etcétera and wouldn't dare attack them so they attack eg the demigods instead.
Otherwise I enjoyed the chapter but I hope you maybe change a bit like for example the monsters that come after em or something.
Bye
Yesse
Reply: Thanks for also pointing this out to me. I get so confused when writing in 'thou' and 'thee' format. I'm going to correct that in this new rendition of this chapter. Also, I am going to try to edit the part about Atlas and try to make Perseus have that confidence other immortals have.
Six Foot Assassin:
This Percy almost killed the Olympians? He seems completely useless, weak and afraid of everything. You have no idea what you are doing.
Reply: This one hit hard. It's what caused me to write this chapter once again. Yes, I do not know what I am doing. I just write it as I go. There is no excuse for my sloppy and messed up work and I am going to try to make this chapter clearer and less confusing. Thank you for your review and I hope you stay for more chapters.
Anyway, enjoy the story!
LUKE tried to hold back his breakfast as Zoë drove. The son of Hermes groaned as the lieutenant of Artemis took a sharp curve. She was driving past the speed limit and Luke was surprised they hadn't been pulled up yet.
"Can we stop?" Thalia said what they had all been thinking.
"No," Zoe replied without taking her eyes off the road.
"What do you mean no?" Luke bit his lip to stop himself from exploding on her. "You might not be tired from sitting too long, but we are."
He could literally 'feel' Zoe roll her eyes. "We just got to Maryland. We have a long way to go. We shall not be stopping for anything."
"Do you want me to puke all over you?' Luke questioned, arching an eyebrow.
"He looks serious," Grover said nervously, inching away from Luke. "You'd better pull over."
From the passenger seat, the bigger huntress, Phoebe groaned. "We have to rescue our lady. You should never have come along. You just slow us down."
"You need our help to do that you b-"
"Thalia," Luke cut her off with a pointed look. "No swearing. Kids are reading this book."
"Could you please stop smashing the fourth wall?" Grover questioned.
"I'm going to get sick all over the van," Luke warned, ignoring the satyr.
"Okay, everyone shut up," Phoebe yelled.
He smiled in satisfaction when Zoë's feet slammed onto the brakes. She turned to glower at them from the front, and Luke rolled his eyes at her. "Is that supposed to scare us? Well, it isn't working." Luke let out a breath in annoyance. They were supposed to be a team but they just kept on arguing over and over. How were they supposed to rescue Artemis and Apollo if they couldn't even co-exist while driving?
"Thou would do well to remain quiet, boy. Five minutes," Zoë snapped. "Thou hath five minutes. How do the mortals say it, Phoebe? Right, Make it quick."
Luke literally flew out of the white camp van. His eyes moved in a circle once again at the semi-immortal hunter of Artemis' words. If he was asked to count how many times he had rolled his eyes that day he knew he wouldn't be able to. And it wasn't even noon yet. Thalia and Grover were on his tail. They all needed some respite from the Delphi Strawberry Service van. They had been travelling for about four hours and they were all fatigued. Luke walked away from the vehicle lazily, letting the wind energize him. He took in gulps of fresh air, stretching his limbs. Examining his surroundings, he didn't notice Thalia come up next to him.
"Nice move you pulled back there," His friend had a smirk playing on her lips. Her eyes twinkled and the son of Hermes felt a sudden warmth fill him at her voice.
"I wasn't joking, you know," he chuckled. "I would have thrown up all over Zoë if she hadn't stopped that van."
Thalia laughed and he smiled slightly at the sound. It was always refreshing to see her crack up.
"Hey, guys," Grover appeared at his other side. "There's a convenience store up ahead. Can we go in? I could seriously use some cans right now."
"Sure," Thalia shrugged. "We could get some food. There's none in the van."
"But Zoë said—"
"Screw Zoë," Thalia rolled her eyes. "Let's go in."
Luke sighed. They never listened to him. After Annabeth, he was the only one of them who had his head screwed on right. Thalia and Grover moved forward. Luke shook his head, jogging after them.
-X-
GROVER narrowed his eyes as he examined the convenience store. Thalia and Luke were busy flirting at a vending machine a few feet away from him. He shook his head, trying to clear his thoughts. The satyr didn't understand why he felt on edge.
"What's wrong, G-man?"
He looked up suddenly to see Luke, his left eyebrow cocked. His questioning gaze made Grover want to chew some cans. "Nothing. It's just…I've been feeling a bit…weirded out since we left Camp. We're supposed to follow Artemis' trail, right?"
Luke nodded uncertainly. Grover barely noticed Thalia next to him, her expression equally puzzled.
The satyr sighed, rubbing his temples. "Never mind me, I'm going to scout out for some tin."
"Uh, okay?" Thalia piped, sounding unsure.
Grover watched them go back to flirting, and left, heading towards another section of the store.
The man appeared out of nowhere and the half-goat boy blinked in shock when he bumped into him. He tipped backwards, his open backpack swinging off his shoulder as he fell onto his podex. Grover scrambled up hurriedly, backing away from the mortal man. The dude was wearing a long brown trench coat, with a top hat to match.
"I'm sorry I-"
The satyr was cut off when the man looked up. His breath caught in his throat. Those dark eyes, the sinister smile. He would never forget them. Grover took two more steps back. Whoever he was, this guy wasn't mortal.
The man's lips stretched into a wide grin, white teeth flashing. He turned away from Grover without speaking a word and began widening the distance between him and the satyr. Soon, he disappeared down the aisle.
Grover's lips parted in shock. They had to get out. He took a step towards his backpack and then froze, a surprised expression forming on his face. Five acorns had fallen out of his bag.
Five acorns had created an ancient pattern on the ground.
Five acorns had shown him where they needed to go.
-X-
ZOË Nightshade shook her head adamantly. From across her, Thalia threw her hands up in a groan. Luke Castellan pinched the bridge of his nose in annoyance and the satyr sighed.
"We are not going to Washington," Phoebe spoke up for her. "We're travelling directly west."
"Why are you the ones calling the shots on this quest?" Thalia growled, her hands curling into fists.
"Because this quest is to rescue out Lady and her annoying brother. We did not force thee to come along, Thalia. Thou hast chosen to join us. And thou would do well to remember that." Zoë's face contorted into a glare directed at the daughter of Zeus she disliked more than any she had met.
"Look here, we're supposed to be a team," The son of Hermes started.
"No one asked for your opinion, boy," Phoebe hissed out.
Luke's face darkened and his hands moved to his side, where a sword was sheathed. "Call me boy one last time and I'm going to slice your throat open."
Zoë's eyes widened. This was not how their quest was supposed to go. Shaking her head, she stepped forward, placing a hand in front of Luke to stop him. Then she turned to Phoebe, motioning to her to step back.
"We are supposed to work together here," Zoë spoke. "Phoebe, stop riling them up every chance thee gets. Castellan, do not draw thy sword if thou values thy life. Thalia, we are not going to Washington. End of story."
Thalia's nostrils flared in anger and she took a menacing step forward. "It's an ancient tracking spell you vlacas. It showed Grover the path Artemis took. And that's what we're supposed to do. Follow her path."
"Yes, I agree with Thalia," Luke Castellan composed himself. "At least hear him out."
Zoë turned to share a glance with her sister-in-arms, who shook her head. Sighing, she turned back to the satyr boy, who had remained silent throughout the whole argument. He had a distant look in his eyes and it seemed as if his mind was far away.
"What dost thou think?" Zoë spoke, addressing him.
He blinked, turning to focus on her. "We have to go to Washington. I don't know why, but Artemis went through there. I think she was following one of the monsters from the prophecy. We might be able to find one of the Banes of Olympus there."
Thalia folded her arms, her gaze expectant.
Luke ran a hand through his hair in frustration.
Phoebe bit her lip, a look of defeat crossing her features. She looked up, nodding to Zoë.
"Okay, then," She spoke. "We go to Washington."
-X-
THALIA groaned as they piled out of the car two hours later. Travelling sixty miles from Maryland to D.C. was exhausting. The tension in the bus was thick and she had been squirming in her seat for most of the drive. The argument in Maryland was still fresh in her mind. She didn't understand the hunters. Her hatred for Artemis' handmaidens was growing. They just didn't want to acknowledge that they weren't right all the time.
Zoë and Phoebe wanted to go directly west. Grover had used a satyr tracking spell and advised that they head through to Washington D.C. Thalia and Luke were prepared to go with whatever Grover had said. They trusted him. The campers and hunters had crossed swords. Thalia didn't know why Zoë and Phoebe had changed their minds but she wasn't going to question them. They had set off with Zoë still driving (which she had to admit irked her out a bit) and now, here they were. They had crossed the Potomac River and had made their way to central Washington, following Grover's satyr senses. Zoë parked the van near a random train station.
"What now?" Phoebe grunted, glaring at them.
Thalia watched as the satyr glanced around warily. His nose twitched and he pointed to their left. 'There. The Smithsonian."
"I do not approve of this," Zoë pursed her lips. "The prophecy said to head west. That is where we must be going."
"I thought we were past this?' Luke groaned. "We argued already in Maryland. No need to be at each other's throats here too. And we're in Washington now, what do you want us to do? Turn back?"
"Yes—"
"Let's just do things Grover's way, for now," Luke tilted his head to the side, cutting Phoebe off. "If we don't find anything of interest, we leave."
"Yeah, I agree," Thalia piped. "Come on."
She took a step forward, motioning for Luke and Grover to do the same, and began making her way to The Smithsonian, not bothering to check if the two hunters of Artemis were following.
-X-
PERSEUS blinked once, then twice. He shook his head to clear the dizziness which threatened to make him fall over at any moment. His brow furrowed as he took in his surroundings. Green grass, trees, mortals. There was some sort of really tall…nail-like thing in front of him and he had to force himself not to step away from it in surprise and shock. He'd never seen anything like it before.
His head moved to the left, trying to figure out where he was and his feet pawed on the ground in alertness. Perseus' hand moved down, and he couldn't help but feel reassured when finding the knife he had strapped to his thigh before. It was still there. That was good. It meant he would be able to take things along with him when he fell asleep.
Suddenly he froze. He had to force blink several times to check if he was seeing right. A huge car opened up a few feet away from him. It wasn't the mortal machine which caught his attention. It was the man who had stepped out of it. The man wearing the black overcoat plodded out of the car. He was flanked by two men in black overalls. Probably mortals being paid to guard him. He had heard of that from Apollo. They were called mercenaries.
Perseus shut his eyes tight. It had to be a trick of the light. There was no way he could be off the mountain already.
But he had been released from under the sky. It made sense he would leave Othrys. But why would he come here? Perseus shook his head once again to clear his thoughts. His mind played back to the night before, when he had made his…decision. He had thought he knew where he stood. But he had been confused. Something — or rather, someone – had been filling his head with all sorts of doubts after he had risen that morning.
He pinched the bridge of his nose. He had to see what Atlas was up to. The titan of the earth took a step forward. He watched as The General began making his way towards one of the huge buildings around them.
Perseus began following, his footsteps quick, his breathing quiet. Thorn had been able to see him. He was on the Titan's side. That meant most of Kronos' allies would be able to see him too. He broke into a jog, tailing the Titan as he crossed the street and made his way to another building.
His eyes narrowed when The General pushed open the doors. The questions resurfaced. Perseus observed him silently, wondering why he was in the mortal world and what he was going to do in the huge building. He was confused, and he was a bit dazed from suddenly appearing in the mortal world. But he had to find out what Atlas was doing in the company of Prometheus' creation.
Perseus faintly wondered where Thalia and Luke were, and how the quest was going.
When he got to the door, he paused, taking in a deep gulp of air and trying to make things seem clearer in his head. Would they be able to see him? Maybe, maybe not. But there was only one way to find out. He would finally be reunited with one of his own. One of the Titans. His eyes flickered over to the sign on the door. He didn't read English but he was pretty sure it said the building was closed. Sighing, he reached out with his hand. Perseus pushed open the door to the building and marched inside.
XMX
The Titan of The Earth composed himself as he marched through the open doors. He let out a breath he hadn't realized he had been holding and waited for The General to take his seat. He had thought he wouldn't be able to move through the doors.
Examining his surroundings, he walked away from the doorway but then froze. Atlas' eyes flicked over to him, stopping on his figure. Perseus met his hard gaze with one of his own. At that moment he knew Atlas could see him too. But he didn't know how to feel about that. He didn't know why but he didn't want to be seen. At least, not yet. Finally, his nephew's dark and merciless orbs looked away from him as the doors swung open once again. He bit his lip, realizing he had once looked exactly like that—his eyes had once held the same level of malice.
His gaze moved to the doors and he tried to see who had come through them after him. His lips curled downwards in distaste, a frown appearing on his face. He felt his hands moving to his dagger; he knew Thorn worked for the titans but he didn't trust him.
"Easy there," A voice purred from behind him. Perseus felt fingers wrap around his bicep. His gaze shifted to the nails on his arm, and then back to the person who had appeared out of nowhere. "Wouldn't want you to attack one of our own, now would we, Percy?"
His eyes hardened at the nickname Thalia used on him and he pulled away from the woman. "What are you doing here?' His voice was filled with venom. Of all the people, he didn't expect her to go against Zeus and the council of gods. "You betrayed Olympus too."
The woman swooshed forward, brushing her hair out of her eyes. She made her way to Atlas' side. "But of course. What have they ever done for me?"
"They're your family—"
"Are they?" The woman's voice was sharp.
Perseus snorted. "If you're trying to intimidate me, it isn't working."
"Your time on Ogygia has made you weak," She sneered. "Since when did you care about family?"
Perseus frowned. "I will not have you speak to me that way, goddess." The harshness of his voice made her recoil a little but she quickly regained her composure.
"I'm going to speak to you any way I please, Perseus."
He shook his head, a cold grin spreading across his face. "Are you?" Perseus made a small gesture with his hand and he felt the earth rise to his command. A slab of rock formed into a spear with a sharp edge. He tilted his head to the side, aiming his new weapon for her.
Immortals liked to show off their power. They thought of themselves as stronger than any other beings. The Titans and their allies only gave respect to those with power and influence. And that was exactly what he was going to show he had. He was ruthless to his enemies; he didn't care that she was on The Titan's side now. She had been a foe once. And she was annoying the hell out of him now, like she always did when she visited his Island. He smirked in satisfaction when the woman backed away. His hand dropped to the ground and so did his spear. The son of Gaea turned away from her to address all the other occupants of the room. "I'm going to assume you can all see me?"
"Yes, we can," The voice carried a heavy French accent and Perseus turned to face the monster who had come into the room after him.
He bobbed his head in a nod of greeting directed at Dr Thorn and then turned to the General. Atlas sat in the shadows, his arms resting on the gilded armrests of the chair. It reminded him somewhat of a throne.
Perseus' eyes met those of The Titan of Endurance, and he said, "What are you doing here?"
Atlas' tilted his head to the side, his gaze not wavering. His reply to Perseus made him want to punch his nephew in the face. "I would not believe it when I was told. It is true, then. You are…small."
He clenched his fists. "Just because I look younger than I am doesn't mean I can't drive a few spires of rock through your chest. Now, answer my question, Atlas."
When The General spoke, Perseus bit his lip. "Well, they are here."
It took him a few seconds to realize he was referring to the questers. His gaze hardened; he remained silent, not trusting himself to speak. The goddess by Atlas' side sent a lazy smile in his direction but her eyes were hard and vindictive. He smiled back coldly in her direction, flicking his wrists slightly. Nothing happened because he wasn't exercising control over the earth but all the same, the woman flinched. Perseus turned his attention back to the previous holder of the sky. "What do you plan to do to them?"
"Why did you stop Thorn from capturing the prophecy child?" Atlas barked in reply.
"You mean Thalia?' He arched an eyebrow. "I don't know."
He heard the goddess scoff. The titan of the earth pinched the bridge of his nose in annoyance. "So do you want to answer my question, Atlas? What are you doing in the mortal world? And why did you draw me here?" He wasn't stupid. He knew The Titans were behind him travelling in dreams. His nephew had purposely led him to the room they were in now.
"I think you already know the answer to that, Perseus," Atlas answered. "Swear your allegiance to Lord Kronos. And deal with the demigods of Camp Half-Blood."
He paused. He wasn't ready to swear any allegiance to anyone. "I have no interest in this war, Nephew. I wish to remain neutral."
"Rubbish," The goddess snarled.
"Let me finish the demigods off, General—"
Atlas held up a hand, cutting Thorn off. "No. You have already failed me once, and proved your incompetence in doing so. You are not even worthy to carry out the duties of my scullion."
His lips pulled up in a small smile and Perseus couldn't help the feeling of satisfaction which engulfed him. Atlas waved once, a signal for Thorn to get out of his sight. And then his gaze shifted back to Perseus.
"Now, Uncle," he began. "What is this talk of staying neutral?"
"It means I'm not going to fight for anyone," he answered, shaking his head. "In case you didn't understand, let me break it down for you. I don't want to fight the Olympians anymore, I don't want to fight The Titans for the Olympians. I'm going to sit on the fence and watch you two clash and then shamelessly enjoy my peace while its happening."
"I don't think you understand," The goddess' lips curled into a smirk. "You have no choice in the matter. Lord Kronos has asked for your service. And you shall give it."
"Okay, I think I'm going to kill her," He took a menacing step forward, jaws clenched. The woman backed away further from him. Perseus stopped, satisfied. He turned to continue his conversation with Atlas.
He frowned in distaste when finding the son of Iapetus nodding in agreement to what the Olympian said. The Titan of strength spoke, his voice clear and loud. "The first thing we must do is separate the daughter of Zeus and the son of Hermes from the others. Once we have them both, the monster we seek — your pet — shall come to them."
Perseus realized what Atlas meant. They needed Thalia to turn. They needed his pet for a sacrifice. And Luke…they needed Luke to free him. He wasn't going to lie, It was an enticing offer. They could free him.
"But what about the hunters?" He asked. "Zoë-"
His lips sealed shut, a small smirk playing on his lips when Atlas' eyes flared with anger. It was always amusing to see him like this. "Do not speak her name!"
Perseus rolled his eyes. "I'm going to speak her name whenever I want, Atlas. She betrayed you. Get over it. As I was saying, the hunters will not allow those two to slip through their fingers easily." He knew his nephew was probably angry. But did he care? No. Shutting his eyes, he leaned on one of the pillars.
His eyelids flew open and he was met with the smiling face of the Traitor Olympian. This woman just didn't know when to back down. "Oh, the hunters will not be a problem, Perseus," she smiled evilly. "We have already thought of a way to…dispose of them."
He couldn't help but feel queasy suddenly. 'What do you mean?"
"Plant them," Atlas motioned to the woman with his hands.
Smiling, she moved forward, snapping her fingers. Perseus cocked an eyebrow when the dinosaur teeth appeared out of nowhere, in the ground. The goddess snapped her fingers once again and a watering can appeared in her hands. Instantly he knew what was going on. His brow creased when the woman tipped the can and the red blood poured out, onto the teeth. And then she spread her hands out in satisfaction, the can disappearing from her grasp.
"Rise."
The ground began to shake. The earth trembled. Perseus felt a wave of darkness, travelling through his domain. A single skeletal hand shot out of the ground. His mind recollected the name of the skeletal warriors. They hadn't been seen or used since the first Titan war, and then during the time of Cadmus and Jason the Argonaut. But they were here now. After eons, The Spartoi had awoken.
"Quick," Atlas barked. 'The scent."
One of the mortals scurried forward, clutching a piece of silver cloth. With a start, Perseus realized he was holding part of a hunter's silver chiton.
"Once the spartoi catch the scent, they'll pursue its owner until they are caught, and dead," His voice was hollow; his eyes were wide. From his seat, Atlas nodded. The mercenary tossed the piece of cloth onto the ground.
Immediately it made contact with the earth, the skeleton warriors exploded from the floor. There were twelve of them, one for each tooth the Olympian goddess had planted. They looked like mortal men, but with dull grey skin, yellow eyes, and modern clothes—boots, and the other mortal clothes he didn't understand. Their skin shimmered and were transparent and their eyes were hollow and empty.
Their gazes were fixed on the piece of cloth on the ground.
Perseus forced himself to look away from them, his attention going on Atlas again.
"So, what do you say? You want your freedom, don't you? The gods will never allow Luke Castellan to pull out the sword. But we will. We don't know why you decided to defend Thalia Grace in Maine but Kronos is willing to overlook that. All you need to do is separate Thalia and the boy from the others, and then lead them to Othrys."
His green eyes met Atlas' dark ones. His thoughts drifted off and he was quiet for a few heartbeats. Their offer was alluring. He would gain freedom, something he had always longed for. He licked his lips. And then he gave his answer.
"Okay. I'll do it."
-X-
THALIA froze when she heard the growl.
"No one move," Phoebe's voice was quiet and had an edge of fear in it.
Thalia ignored her, turning around slowly, her hand moving to her silver bracelet on her wrist. It was the size of a pick-up truck, with silver claws and bright golden fur. It opened its maw in a loud roar and Thalia could have sworn she heard Grover whimper.
"The Nemean Lion. Don't move, Thalia."
She let out a small yelp of surprise when a hand grabbed her arm. The grip was firm and she turned her head to the side to see who it was. "Percy," her voice was a low whisper. "You're here."
Thalia's brow furrowed when he simply nodded. His eyes were dark and his expression was serious. Brooding.
"Okay, guys," Luke's voice made her turn away from her Titan friend. "On the count of three, we separate. We can confuse it that way and then take it down."
Thalia nodded, her eyes flickering over to Percy's hand, which was still on her shoulder. "You can let go of my now, Perseus."
He flinched from the use of his full name, although Thalia couldn't have figured out why if her life depended on it. Perseus blushed, letting go of her hand and taking a step back.
Thalia cocked an eyebrow. He was acting weird. Very weird. Pushing that thought to the back of her head, She reached into her pocket, pulling out her canister of mace and threw it into the sky. Her bronze spear fell back into her hands and she smiled, using her free hand to tap her bracelet. Her shield, Aegis, formed out of the silver ornament and slipped into a battle stance.
She heard the sound of a sword being unsheathed and knew that Luke was also getting ready.
"One."
Thalia tensed.
"Two."
Her sharp eyes caught Percy drawing a small dagger from his thigh as the beast prepared to pounce.
"Three."
She jumped out of the way as the lion pounced. Arrows sailed past her and she could hear Grover play a tune on his reed pipes. She was aware of the mortals screaming and diving for cover. She didn't know what they saw but whatever it was, it couldn't be good. Thalia turned and saw Zoe and Phoebe scrambling up one on the spaceship things. Their hands were moving so fast she couldn't see them properly. Their arrows were a blur of silver and although they were coming in their numbers, they were still not enough; they all shattered on the monster's fur.
The Nemean Lion roared and Thalia found herself frozen in her spot. She was paralyzed with apprehension. Luke appeared out of nowhere, his sword raised above his head. He stabbed downward, intending to pierce through the beast's foot. Thalia felt her blood chill when the lion's paw shot out, slamming into Luke and sending him flying.
And then she moved. She jumped forward, her spear raised. Grover played another jingle on his pipes and a few vines crawled towards the lion. It growled, its claws slashing through the satyr's magic and tensed to pounce for Grover. The daughter of Zeus launched herself forward, placing herself between the beast of ancient times and her friend. She raised her shield, making the lion cower at the sight of Medusa. Thalia let loose a roar. "Get back!" Her spear shot forward and the lion widened the distance between them, growling at her shield.
"Grover, move."
Her eyes never left the Lion but She heard the satyr scramble away from her. Thalia discerned another growl enumerate from deep inside the Lion of Nemea. Her eyes caught sight of the muscles in the beast's leg tensing.
It was going to pounce.
She stood, frozen as the Nemean Lion roared and leapt off the ground. Her eyes widened. It was going to kill her. Suddenly she felt the earth tremble. And then the ground in front of her exploded. A slab of rock shot out of the earth and the lion slammed into it. She turned. Percy stood behind her, his expression hard, one hand stretched out.
He had saved her. Again.
An arrow whizzed past her head. The piece of rock fell back onto the earth and the Lion jumped out once again. It was pouncing for her again. She was frozen. The beast's maw opened and suddenly a dagger whizzed past her ear. Thalia blinked as the piece of weaponry sailed through the lion's open mouth and into its throat.
The Nemean Lion went limp and dropped down from the air. Thalia blinked as it started retching. The mouth. Its weakness was its mouth.
She turned swiftly, moving away from the beast. Thalia jogged over to one of the capsules, where Zoë and Phoebe stood, with a dazed Grover by their side. "The mouth. Shoot the arrows into its mouth. We can kill it that way."
"Where did that slab of rock come from?" Phoebe questioned, eyes narrowed.
"That doesn't matter right now." Thalia turned to see Luke limping over to them. "Do as she says. Kill that thing before it starts hurting the mortals."
She could feel the hunter's questioning gazes on her but she ignored them, instead sending Luke a small nod of appreciation. Her gaze travelled to the Lion, which was still retching while Percy watched on.
"Grover, get Luke some ambrosia," Thalia barked. "I'll draw the lion here. Zoë, Phoebe, you take it down."
Thalia ran back to her spot from before and shouted. 'Hey, Kitty! Over here!"
"What are you doing?' She felt Percy come up next to her.
"Just watch."
She backpedalled as the monster roared and jumped for her once again, retching forgotten, mouth open. Thalia concentrated and smirked when she smelt the ozone in the air.
"Now!"
First, it was two arrows. Then four. Then six. She roared, calling down a huge blast of lightning. The bolt blasted through the roof, slamming into the Lion. Thalia watched with sick fascination as the monster thrashed wildly. Then it stopped and fell to the ground. The lion was dead.
She blinked as the mythological beast shimmered. Thalia looked on as the lion seemed to shrink. Soon, it was replaced by an overcoat made out of something which she guessed was the lion's golden fur.
Around her, Alarms blared and mortals were screaming. The sounds seemed distant. They seemed far-away. She moved forward, her hands gingerly picking up the Nemean Lion fur coat. She didn't do fur coats. Lips curling in distaste, she dropped it back onto the ground.
"That was…interesting," Percy piped.
"I know," Thalia said brushing her hand through her hair. Then she turned to Percy, her brow furrowed. 'When did you get here, though?"
"I—"
"We have to leave!" Zoë's voice floated over to her. "Come on!'
Thalia pursed her lips, asking Percy another question. 'Are you coming with us?"
"Of course," He replied smoothly. "We'd better go now, though. I think Zoë just spotted the Spartoi which The General sent after you all."
She didn't have time to process what he had just said, because he had reached out for her once again. His fingers curled around her wrist, sending a spark of electricity shooting up her arm. Thalia blinked once, then twice at the contact. "Come on," Percy mumbled. She nodded numbly, and let him lead her back to the others.
"Zoë—"
The hunter of Artemis cut Thalia off. "We have to leave immediately. No arguments."
"Zoë, listen," Thalia snapped. "There's someone called The General here and he's sent some things called Spartoi after us."
Thalia took note of the girl's suddenly pale face.
"I know," Zoë replied, trying not to make her voice betray her fear. "I can see them."
Thalia turned, suddenly feeling sick. Through the glass walls of the museum, she could see the group of aforementioned things walking across the lawn of the mall. Grey translucent men in grey camouflage outfits. Thalia shuddered. The eyes…they all seemed to be staring right at her.
"Now, if thou doesn't want to get dismembered and suffer a gruesome death-by-skeleton, thou shall come with me. Immediately."
A/N: Hey, so this was the edited version of this chapter. Tell me what you think.
Also, here's a short poll.
-Do you guys want Riptide to make an appearance in this story?
- Who should use Soul Reaper? Percy or Luke.
Thanks for reading,
TripleHomicide.