Chapter 3: The Puzzle Pieces All Fit Together, and I Don't Like What It's Showing

I rubbed my face hard, several times, "So what you're telling me is that the gods, the Greek ones, are real."

Grover nodded.

"They're above the Empire State Building, on a giant mountaintop no one can see."

He shrugged, "pretty much"

"And there's this prophecy saying a child of the big three is going to either end the world or save when they're 16."

He frowned, "I really shouldn't have told you that, but yes, that's true."

I leaned back, "well, it explains so much."

"You're taking this moderately well."

I laughed without humor, "I've been able to move water and see monsters since I was three. My brother saw them too, but everyone told him he was just seeing things, so he stopped looking." I sat forward, "But gods? I believe it, but it's so hard to picture."

He nodded, "I know, I've been to Olympus and it's still hard to imagine."

I sighed and looked out the window at a tree. A bird was making a nest.

"So if the gods are real, and you people believe my brother is one of their children, who is our father?"

He shrugged, "we don't know. Has your mother ever told you anything about him?"

"They met on a beach, they spent a summer at Montauk, and he left for work, and got lost at sea. Not dead, just…lost."

"Hmm… it'll be difficult to narrow it down."

"You don't say. There are like, a thousand gods out there. And how do you even know we're Greek?"

He looked up, "What do you mean?"

"Think about. The Romans came along and appropriated the Greek gods, so it stands to reason every Greek god has a Roman counterpart. Percy and I could be Roman. And the Greeks weren't the only religion out there. There were the Norse, the Indians, the Native Americans, the Africans, the Chinese, the Japanese… for all you know my brother and I could be kids of the Monkey King."

Grover blinked.

I shrugged, "My school has a lot of mythology books. I like reading."

"Do the words ever seem to float off the page?"

"No, when I read I basically hallucinate and imagine I'm watching the stories like a movie, or a 3D video."

He scratched his chin, "Weird. But if you go to school, how are you here?"

"The security guards all go to lunch at the same time as the students, and they all eat spaghetti or something similar in a giant pot. So I spiked it with some flavorless melatonin and laxative, disabled them. Then I took some spiked cookies to the headmistress, took care of her. Stole her car and money and decided to come here to visit Percy."

Grover blinked, "I think I know who your father is."

"Who?"

"Hermes. God of tricksters, thieves and travelers."

"I like the idea, but not sure."

He opened his mouth to say something, but the rumble of thousands of feet and voices returning to their rooms interrupted him.

I lept up, grabbed my bag and opened the window, "Listen satyr, put on some pants fast, and don't tell Percy I was here, or anything about what we just talked about."

He nodded, pulling on pants and shoes. I lept out the window to the tree just as the door opened. I slid down the trunk and dashed to the car. Unfortunately a guard stopped me.

"Young lady, what are you doing out here? Students are to return to their rooms."

"Not a student, out of my way."

He made a move to grab me, but I pulled out my pepper spray and dagger I always have, sprayed him in the eyes, and used the pommel to whack him in the back of the neck, knocking him out.

I ran to the car, jumped in, and floored it, racing back to the academy.

As I drove down the highway, my thoughts ran faster than the car. So many things fit together, but nothing made sense. I made my decision.

I turned on the exit to Manhattan. It was time to investigate.

I drove slowly down the streets, rush hour in New York is MURDER. I pulled into the parking lot for the Empire State Building, grabbed my bag and locked the car. I walked up the sidewalk to the large double doors.

I took a deep breath and walked in. the lobby was empty. I checked a tour time plaque, a tour was going on right now, so everyone was busy. I walked up to desk and rang the bell.

The clerk leaned over the desk to look at me, "Where are your parents little one?"

"First off, don't call me little. My mother is busy at work, and I'm here to meet my father. I need to get to the six hundredth floor. I was told you have a key that enables the elevator to go that high. If you would be so kind as to provide me with it, no curses of mine will haunt you."

The man blinked, then laughed, "Sorry kid, but there is no six hundredth floor. Did you escape from a insane asylum or something?"

I growled and lept over the counter, pulling my dagger out and pressing it against his jugular. His eyes went wide and his breath turned shaky.

"My patience grows thin. Give me the key and I won't kill you."

He gulped, opened a drawer, rustled around for a second, and then handed me a key.

"Much obliged."

I walked to the elevator, tossing the key up and down. I pressed the call button, and the door immediately opened. I ut the key in the slot, turned it, and a new button popped up, with 600 on it.

I pressed it, and the elevator started to move. It went upward for what felt like eternity, playing Muzak. Eventually, the elevator dinged and opened.

I stepped out and into Olympus.