Chapter Twenty Seven - On the Road Again

Ares was standing next to his parked motorcycle as we exited the park, seemingly waiting for us.

"Well, if it isn't the conquering heroes?" I wanted to wipe that smug look off his face so badly, but thankfully I was able to restrain myself. Barely. "I knew that ugly old bastard had something planned. Gotta say, it's much more hilarious from this side of things. You got my shield?"

"You led us into a trap," I said.

"Yeah, and you got yourselves out of it," the god retorted. "What of it?"

"You owe us," I said, the heat rising around me causing the moisture on the ground to begin evaporating.

"Yeah, yeah. Give me my shield and you'll have your ride," Ares said, unimpressed by my show. "As we agreed."

"That was the agreement," I nodded. "But that doesn't factor in hazard pay."

"Penny what are you doing?" Annabeth hissed.

"Making sure we get what we're owed," I said. "That asshole sent us into a trap with no heads up. Far as I'm concerned, that means our agreement was made in bad faith." I turned back to Ares, "You need to make it right, or we walk."

"You wont get far," Ares warned.

"Won't have to," I said, holding up his shield with one hand and pulling out a stack of drachma from my pocket with the other. "One prayer to the god of deliveries and I'll have this sent off to my dad to be melted down for scrap. I think he'd be a little amused by the idea, personally."

"You can't just take a god's symbol!" Grover bleated.

"You're already on the hook for the bolt," Andromeda reminded me.

"Yeah, so if I am going to die, it'll be for something I actually did," I looked back to the glowering god. "What's it going to be?"

"Tch," he clicked his tongue. "Alright, punk. I'll give you some fresh supplies and an extra bag for it all." As he spoke, a blue nylon backpack appeared in his hand which he then tossed to the ground at my feet. "Hell, I may not like your attitude, but I respect it. Some of my own kids could learn a thing or two, so I'll be nice and throw in a little something extra."

"What's that?" I asked warily as I picked up the backpack. Checking inside, it was packed with a fresh set of clothes for all of us, some cash, and a pack of double stuffed Oreo cookies.

"It's about your mother," Ares said. "She ain't dead."

"What are you talking about?" My head jerked up. I wanted to shout, but found I could barely breathe. What did he mean she wasn't dead? Percy told me he'd seen it happen in front of him. She'd been choked into dust by the minotaur before he had avenged her.

"That night on the hill? Mortals don't turn into dust when they die. She was taken alive."

"Why?" I asked. "Who?"

"The why is easy," the god smirked. "She's a hostage. Simple tactics, you take somebody to control somebody else."

"I'm not being controlled," I said.

"Sure, you're not," he said with a smirk. "As for the who? Well, you can figure that out for yourself if you're smart enough."

"You're pretty smug, for a guy who runs from Cupid statues." I was beyond done with his cocky attitude. For all I knew, he was jerking me around for his own amusement.

"Your ride is waiting down the street at the gas station. Big truck, can't miss it. Guaranteed to take you straight to L.A. with one trip in Vegas," behind his sunglasses, fire glowed. I felt a hot wind in my hair. "We'll meet again, Penelope Jackson. Next time you're in a fight, watch your back."

He hopped on his bike and peeled off, kicking gravel up in his wake. I flipped him off as he vanished around a corner.

"That wasn't very smart," Annabeth said. "Taunting a god like that. Especially that god."

"He's an asshole," I said defensively, but I could see her point. Now that I wasn't being affected by his aura of rage, I could think clearly.

"Hey guys," Grover said. "I hate to interrupt, but..."

"Yeah," Andromeda nodded. "We should get moving. I have a feeling our ride wont be waiting forever."

"You have got to be kidding me," I said, staring at the big truck parked at the gas station. The eighteen-wheeler had a sign on the back reverse-printed white on black, a good combination for dyslexia: KINDNESS INTERNATIONAL: HUMANE ZOO TRANSPORT. WARNING: LIVE WILD ANIMALS.

"Looks like the lock is open on the back," Annabeth said. "Of course he'd make us ride in the box. You just had to provoke him."

"He was being an asshole!" I said defensively.

"If we're taking the zoo express," Grover said, "we need to hurry."

He gestured to the gas station window. At the register, two customers were paying their check. Both of them men wearing identical black coveralls, with a white logo on their backs that matched the one on the KINDNESS INTERNATIONAL truck.

I didn't like it, but we had no better option. Besides, I'd seen more than enough of this place already. We hurriedly climbed in the back of the big rig, closing the doors behind us. The first thing that hit me was the smell. It was like the world's biggest pan of kitty litter. The trailer was pitch black inside, so I lit a small flame in my hand, casting a flickering light over a very sad scene. Sitting in a row of filthy metal cages were three of the most pathetic zoo animals I'd ever beheld: a zebra, a male albino lion, and some weird antelope thing I didn't know the name for.

Someone had thrown the lion a sack of turnips, which he obviously didn't want to eat. The zebra and the antelope had each gotten a Styrofoam tray of greasy hamburger meat. The zebra's mane was matted with chewing gum, like somebody had been spitting on it in their spare time. The antelope had a stupid silver birthday balloon tied to one of his horns that read OVER THE HILL!

"God damn it, Eddie!" A man's voice said. It sounded slightly muffled despite presumably being just on the other side of the doors . "I thought you said the back was locked?"

"It was!" Eddie said. "Maybe if you weren't such a cheap ass, you could have got a lock that actually stays latched, Maurice."

"Oh, I'm the cheap ass? Alright, give me back that Big Chug."

Their argument faded as they walked off, and a few moments later we felt the truck begin to move. That was when I realized Grover was shaking.

"Grover...? Are you alright?"

"This is what passes for kindness?!" He sounded like he was seconds away from murder. "I should take my reed pipes and shove them..."

"Whoa, whoa," I said. "I get it, man. The situation sucks big time. But we can't do anything about it here. Not yet."

"Besides, I think you're spooking the herd," Annabeth said.

Sure enough, the animals that had seemed docile at first glance started to grow more agitated with Grover's mood. Seeing that, he took a few calming breaths. Andromeda had pushed herself into the corner furthest away from the animal's enclosures, trying to make herself seem as small as possible.

"Sorry," he said, after a minute. "Sorry. I just... This is wrong!"

"Yeah," I agreed. "And I promise, when we get out of here, I'm going to find out those guys' names and give them to Artemis. I think the girls wouldn't mind a Most Dangerous Game situation in this case."

"We should still do something for them," Grover said.

Annabeth and I shared a look, and with Grover's help, we moved to do what we could. I grabbed the meat from the herbivore's cages and used it to bribe the turnips away from the lion. Thankfully, he preferred the easier prey over me, and I was able to grab the bag without trouble. Meanwhile, Annabeth worked on cutting the balloon off the antelope's horn. We decided that with the truck bouncing around so much, it was probably not safe to try to trim the bubblegum out of the zebra's mane. After that, we decided to try to get some sleep. It had been a long day, and while the moldy bags of feed weren't the most comfortable thing in the world, they did help keep us from bouncing around too much in the trailer.

I found myself pushed against the wall and held in place by a half-naked teenager.

"Um," I gulped. "Hello...?"

"This isn't funny!" the girl snapped, her electric blue eyes glinting dangerously. "Give me back my clothes, now."

"Look, Dream Girl..."

"My name is Thalia," she snapped.

"Right, Thalia," I corrected. "Sorry. Look, I don't know how."

"Just do whatever it is you did before, but in reverse," she said. "I really don't enjoy hanging around in just my underwear."

What had I done before? I forced myself to remember the first dream I'd had with her. Something about a test? Oh, right! I'd been thinking about the classic embarrassing dream cliche of taking a test in my underwear.

"I said in reverse!" Thalia groaned, and I realized I'd banished my own clothes. Again.

"Alright, alright," I said. "I think I've got it now. Let's see..."

Unfortunately, right at that point I felt the all-too-familiar sensation of my stomach climbing into my throat as I plunged into the dark depths of whatever this dream world was made of. I could hear Thalia screaming herself hoarse in anger above me. Sorry, dream girl. It's not like I have any control over this ride.

Yes, the exchange went well, I see. I was back in the same dark cavern as before, only now I could see the spirits of the dead drifting around me. Unseen in the pit, the monstrous thing was speaking, but this time it wasn't addressing me. The numbing power of its voice seemed directed somewhere else.

And she suspects nothing? it asked.

Another voice, one I almost recognized, answered at my shoulder, "Nothing, my lord. She is as ignorant as the rest."

I looked over, but no one was there. The speaker was invisible.

Deception upon deception, the thing in the pit mused aloud. Excellent.

"Truly, my lord," said the voice next to me, "you are well-named the Crooked One. But was it really necessary? I could have brought you what I stole directly..."

You? the dark voice scoffed dismissively. You have already shown your limits. You would have failed me completely had I not intervened.

"But, my lord..."

Peace, little servant. Our six months have bought us much. Zeus's anger has grown. Poseidon has played his most desperate card, dragging Hephaestus down with him. Now we shall use it against them. Shortly you shall have the reward you wish, and your revenge. As soon as both items are delivered into my hands... but wait. She is here.

"What?" The invisible servant suddenly sounded tense. "You summoned her, my lord?"

No. The full force of the powerful being's attention was now pouring over me, freezing me in place. Blast her... She is too wild, too unpredictable. The child brought herself hither.

"Impossible!" the servant cried.

For a weakling such as you, perhaps, the voice snarled. Then its cold power turned back on me. bSo... you wish to dream of your quest, young half-blood? Then I will oblige.

The scene changed. I was standing in a vast throne room with black marble walls and bronze floors. The empty, horrid throne was made from human bones fused together. Standing at the foot of the dais was my mother, frozen in shimmering golden light, her arms outstretched.

I tried to step toward her, but my legs wouldn't move. I reached for her, only to realize that my hands were withering to bones. Grinning skeletons in Greek armor crowded around me, draping me with silk robes, wreathing my head with laurels that smoked with poison, burning into my scalp.

The evil voice began to laugh, Hail, the conquering hero!

"Penny?"

My eyes snapped open, activating my Aura sight and casting the dark interior of the trailer into black and white. Grover, a pale yellow to my Sight, was leaning over me with a look of concern on his face.

"What?" I asked, glancing around for any possible threat and seeing none. Even the lion seemed content to remain curled up in his cage. "What's going on?"

"Sorry," he said. "It's just... You were talking in your sleep."

"I was?"

"Y-you said 'Thalia'," Grover said, his voice hitching slightly.

"Oh," I blushed. "I did?"

"Yeah," he said. "I'd ask how you knew the name, but... I guess it makes sense that you'd be thinking about her when I'm around, huh?"

"What do you mean?"

"You know the name of the girl. Do you know the story?"

"I know she died helping a couple other kids over the hill," I said. "Nobody really goes into much more detail than that."

"I was her protector," Grover said. "I was supposed to bring her to the camp. Her and two others. We... We got turned around. I got confused, and I led us into a number of traps that a more experienced Protector probably could have avoided. By the time we made it to the camp, we'd attracted an army of monsters.

"My job was to get her over the hill, but she insisted that I get her friends over first. She was the more powerful demigod, after all. A daughter of Zeus. She stayed behind to buy us time, and she paid for it with her life." I pretended not to see his eyes misting over with tears, and he blinked a couple of times to clear them. "That was when Zeus showed up. As she died, he turned his daughter's body into a pine tree and used the power of her sacrifice to strengthen the borders around the camp so that even in death, she could still protect everyone."

"None of that is your fault," I said.

"But it was! It was my job to make sure she was safe. It was my job to buy her time to escape. But, I ran. I was useless then, and even after all this time I'm still the world's most useless satyr."

"Don't say that," I argued. "You got not only a child of one of the Big Three to the camp, you also got two others safely across the hill. And that was with an army of monsters on your heels! Then, you go and get another Big Three kid - my brother - safely to the camp as well. How many other satyrs around have done as much?"

"Both times someone died," Grover said.

"You heard Ares. If he's to be believed, then my mom is still alive. You've got an eighty percent track record. That's not a failure. If anything, it's a solid 'B'."

"More like a B minus," Grover said.

"Still not a failing grade," I grinned. "Besides, when we finish this quest, your average will skyrocket."

"Do you really believe I'm not a failure?"

"I wouldn't have asked you along if I did," I said, and I meant it.

"Thanks," he said. "Really."

Just then I felt the truck pull to a stop. I reached over and shook Andromeda awake while Grover did the same for Annabeth. To both their credit, they were instantly aware and ready. I could hear footsteps approaching around the back of the trailer. Grover moved over to the animal cages and began unlocking them, bleating at the pathetic trio in goat-speak.

"Well, look at that," Maurice said, rattling the lock on the door. "The lock stayed latched all night after I closed it. Guess it was you that fucked up, after all."

"Aw, give it a rest," Eddie grumbled. "Come on, we gotta unload the cargo and be on our way."

"Yeah, yeah."

The lock was released and the doors opened, and for a moment nobody moved. I guess Dumb and Dumber weren't expecting a cargo of teenage stowaways in the back of their truck. Before they could recover from their shock, Grover ran forward and kicked the guy in front right in his chest, sending him collapsing to the ground.

"Bail!" Andromeda shouted.

We didn't need to be told twice. Between the door opening and Grover's martial arts debut, the three wild animals were more than ready to make their own escape - and we were still in the way! We jumped clear of the truck just before the animals. To his credit, the other guy didn't try to stop us - though that may have been partly due to the roaring lion running right at him. Already, people were turning to see what the commotion was about. I guess this was a bit different from the usual Vegas weird.

"We need to get off the streets," Annabeth said.

"But where do we go?" Andromeda asked.

"There!" I pointed, my eyes glowing with my Sight. The place was obviously connected to the gods in some manner given the strong aura it was putting off, so I figured we'd have a decent chance of hiding out there until the heat died down outside.

"Welcome to the Lotus Hotel and Casino," the doorman said as we entered. "Go on up to the front desk for your room key. The bill's already taken care of. No extra charges, no tips. Oh, and here are your complimentary Lotus Cash cards. They work in the restaurants and on all the games and rides."

"Um, but..." I started to say, but the noise outside seemed to be growing louder.

"Thank you," Annabeth said, grabbing the green plastic cards and handing them out to Grover, Andromeda and me. "Come on."

Oh well, I guess it couldn't hurt to play a few games while we waited for things to calm down.