"Hi! I'm Lou Ellen Blackstone, nice to meet you!" The bubbly girl in front of Bianca said. Her black hair bounced as she shook Bianca's hand vigorously. Her green eyes glowed with delight.
"Uh, Bianca di Angelo," She introduced herself.
"I'm Lee Fletcher," The blond boy said from behind Lou Ellen. He looked so tired and sickly that Bianca expected him to fall over any second now. "You already know the Stolls, right?"
She nodded. The brothers waved at her and she patted her pockets in response. Everything was still there. Travis' pick-pocketing lessons had put her on edge.
The taller brother looked around. "Where's Percy? I thought he was bringing you?"
"He's getting supplies from his cabin." Bianca wished she still had her hat. All this staring was making her fidgety.
"Hey, did we always have that motor home?" Lou Ellen pointed at the truck-like vehicle with windows and a door where the shipping container usually was. Argus, who almost gave Bianca a heart attack when his entire body blinked at the same time, was inspecting it from all directions. It wasn't difficult for him.
"Nah," Lee shook his head. "It's always just been the white van, but those Hunters beat us to it. This is definitely new."
"It's got snow tires too," Connor said. He was leaning down examining the wheels. "We usually don't do rescue missions during winter. Our rides aren't equipped for it."
Bianca knit her eyebrows. "Wait, how did Percy get to Westover?"
"Don't know. But it wasn't Argus, he was watching those—" One of the eyes on Argus' neck whirled towards Connor. "I meant he was watching over the Camp! Yep, he's our security chief after all!"
Argus grunted. He opened the side door and climbed inside. The son of Hermes let out a nervous chuckle. "You know, I get the feeling he doesn't like us, Travis."
His brother nodded. "Yeah, not sure why."
Lou Ellen raised an eyebrow. "Your dad killed him."
"What's that got to do with us?"
"You do cause most of the trouble at camp," Lee muttered. "How do you even get caught? Aren't Hermes kids supposed to be sneaky?"
"Well it's not like we inherited everything," Connor sighed. "Sure, we're a little better at sneaking about, but it's not the same for everyone. Want to break into a bank safe or steal the clothes off of someone's back? Travis and I can do both. Stealth and lies? That was Luke."
A look of guilt fell over Lee's face. Bianca kept hearing mentions of the guy but didn't feel confident enough to ask, it seemed like a sore subject. Lee coughed. "Sorry, I see your point. It's the same with us. Will can shoot a bow, but healing is his real talent. Michael's a good shot too, but noise is where it's at. Austin is music and Kayla's our archery expert."
"What about you, Chatterbox?" Lou Ellen was looking in her direction. "What's your thing?"
"Are you talking about me?" Bianca asked.
"Yeah, who else would it be? What can you do?"
Bianca took a second to think about it. She didn't talk a lot, did she? She also didn't have any real standout talents or abilities. Well, there was that one thing. "I can make pretty good pancakes." Blueberry with chocolate chips. They were her pride and joy.
"Oh, yeah, she's unclaimed," Travis said to Lou Ellen. "No idea which god it is."
"Really? That's unfortunate."
"Although, I think we can rule out Hermes. She's not very good at sleight of hand."
Bianca frowned. Mildly offended by Travis' comment, but also there was that word: unclaimed. It bothered her. "What does that mean, being unclaimed?"
Travis smiled sadly as he explained. "Exactly what it says on the tin. Your godly parent hasn't acknowledged you. Usually, when a new kid comes to Camp, there's a little holographic symbol of their parent over their head."
"But sometimes, the newbies get nothing. They're unclaimed or undetermined," Connor said. "Sometimes it takes a bit of time and others never get anything."
"That isn't right," Bianca muttered. So what? She and Nico were just… unwanted? Their mom or dad just couldn't be bothered to realize that they existed?
"They're not allowed to see us either," Lee added. "Talking to us directly is forbidden. Spending time with us is also a big no-no. You know, all the things a normal parent does."
"There are some loopholes," Travis said. "They can technically talk to other demigods that aren't their kids. So if they want to give or tell us something, they either call my dad to do a delivery or have a half-blood send a message on their behalf."
"But that's if your parent is an Olympian," Lou Ellen twirled a knife absentmindedly in her left hand. "Children of 'minor gods' don't get cabins or anything. At least Hermes is willing to let us stay at his."
The conversation died down after that. They stood awkwardly waiting for Argus to finish his examination. Eventually, the silhouette of a hunched over mass appeared from camp. It approached them slowly as it stumbled and gasped with each step.
Travis squinted. "Is that?"
"Yup," Connor confirmed.
Percy Jackson made his way over carrying too many backpacks over his shoulders and a jug of orange juice tied with one of the adjustment straps by the neck. "Hey… sorry that I'm—give me a sec will you?" He took in deep gulps of air as he leaned against the RV for support.
"I didn't think it'd be this much," Lee said as he helped Percy up. "Did you have all of this lying around?"
"No, um, it just got delivered," Percy said nervously. He glanced at Argus' form in the window of the motor home.
"You ordered six backpacks, enough for all of us, and filled them with supplies?" Lee questioned. "And it got through the Camp's border?"
"Same day delivery?"
Argus opened the door to the motor home and gave them a thumbs up. He gestured at them to get in as he made his way over to the driver's seat.
The inside was comfortable and quite spacious. It had ceiling lights and an air conditioning unit. There was a sink and kitchen area next to a large table. A full-sized double-door refrigerator sat next to a tower of soda can cases. There were several leather couches in the living area and bunk beds in the back.
They quickly caught Lou and Bianca up to speed on the rest of the prophecy as Argus started up the engine. Bianca wasn't a fan of any of it, it wasn't very promising. And Lou seemed to lose some of her energy regarding the witch's part. But there seemed to be a more pressing matter for the boys.
"Dude, what's with the orange juice?" Lee asked. Percy had given him the backpack with the jug tied to it. The son of Apollo did not seem amused.
"Uh, isn't it good for when you're sick?" Percy fumbled for an explanation.
Bianca thought about it. "I think that's right. Or at least I've been making Nico drink it every time he's gotten ill. He always gets better."
"If he drinks it every time, then, of course, it's going to seem like it works," Lee sighed as he poured himself a glass. "Well, why not?"
He downed it in one gulp.
"Feeling better?" Percy asked.
Blood trickled from Lee's nose like rivers of red paint.
"No," He said calmly. Lee rose from his seat and walked over to the sink. The retching noise was followed by a stream of black blood and regurgitated orange juice.
Lou Ellen scrambled for the jug and frantically turned it towards the nutritional label. "Shit! It isn't in Greek. Uh, let's see… serving size: one sip. Negative calories? Ten percent orange juice, um, ninety percent… sunlight?"
"Is that a good thing?" Percy asked nervously.
"No! He just overdosed on solar radiation!"
The sound of running water came as Lee turned the sink on. He wiped the blood from his face and washed his hands clean. The Apollo counselor shivered as he tried to steady himself on the counter. "Actually, after all that, I feel great. But I'm not going to take another sip of this anytime soon—what are you staring at?"
"You're glowing," Bianca deadpanned. He was indeed giving off a faint golden shine. Color had seemingly returned to him, giving the older boy a much healthier shade. If it wasn't for the fact that he looked like a glowstick, he seemed fine.
Lee frowned as he looked at his arms. "That happens sometimes. But where did you get this, Percy? This isn't normal, I'm pretty sure mortals would get disintegrated drinking this."
"It came with the backpacks?"
"Yeah, about those," Travis said from one of the couches. "These are magic, they've got like some space-warping enchantment on them. It's holding way too much otherwise. Also, what the fuck kind of supplies do you have in your cabin?" He held up a small silver canister with a metal ring and trigger sticking out the top. "This is tear gas. There's like twenty of these things in here."
Three sets of eyes turned towards Percy. He squirmed underneath their gaze. "There was a yard sale?"
"Did you also get this from the sale too?" Connor asked. He lifted up a black gas mask with a front-facing filter. "Take us next time! You live next to ex-swat or something?"
Bianca frowned. She unzipped her backpack. There was a gas mask for her, fifty or so emergency ration bars, a ballistic vest, generic logo-free clothing, other sealed containers, and were those… Bianca pulled out ten sets of passports and IDs with fake names and different nationalities. Her picture appeared on them the moment her fingers touched the surface. This was highly illegal.
The others were also conducting their own search.
Lee grasped a bundle of bronze arrows with cylindrical tips that glowed orange in the center. He looked at Percy. "Explosive arrows? You can't even shoot forwards, let alone straight."
Travis took out a large folded map. "Hmm, it's got our current location in real-time. We're in Rhodes Island right now."
Connor was holding a police badge in one hand and a crumpled uniform in the other. "We've had enough run-ins with the cops to know that these are legit."
Lou Ellen held up a small sphere of glass that was clasped shut by bronze lattices. A green flame flickered sinisterly inside. "Not that I'm complaining, you never know when you need Greek fire but are you a domestic terrorist?"
Percy stood abruptly, his face red and flustered, and walked to the other side of the table and leaned over in a manner that blocked Argus' sight in the rear-view mirror. He pulled a notepad and pencil from his bag and scribbled something hastily. He laid it out on the table.
I got these from Hermes. Keep quiet about it in front of Argus.
Travis, Connor, Lee, and Lou Ellen all let out the same response: "Oh."
Somehow the nectar and ambrosia supplies, the literal food of the gods, were the most normal thing in the packs.
"That explains why half the things there would put us on a watch-list." Lee leaned back in his seat. "But enough about that, let's talk strategy. How are we going to work together? I know how to fight next to my brothers and sisters, but CTF isn't really the same as questing."
The group settled into a discussion of their strengths and fighting styles. Percy was the front line fighter. Lee and Bianca were the archers. Travis, Connor, and Lou Ellen would play more flexible roles. But Bianca wasn't paying that much attention.
A small dark shadow had caught her eye. It darted around the RV like a spirit comprised of smoke. None of the others seemed to notice it. The creature settled on the tower of soda cases, giving Bianca a clear look at its appearance.
It was a moth.
The insect was a muddy brown with pale yellow streaks on its lower wings. A skull pattern on its back stared back at her. It was like a bumblebee born from the pits of hell. It turned towards her and seemed to fix its big black eyes on her with an eerie human-like intelligence.
It flapped its wings and melted into darkness, leaving no trace of its existence.
Bianca's mouth filled with the sickeningly sweet taste of honey and rotten flesh.
Their ride had been going smoothly all the way until Massachusetts.
Monsters didn't attack them. There wasn't traffic or even other cars on the road. It seemed like everyone was weathering the blizzard in their homes. They were in Boston when their chauffeur decided on an emergency stop. Percy was thrown out of his seat as Argus slammed on the brakes.
He groaned as he got up. "Dude, what the heck?"
The security chief grunted and pointed out the window.
In front of him was a flooded neighborhood. The streetlights illuminated a slurry of ice and muddy water that crashed halfway up to the doors of the houses. If the motor home wasn't on a higher incline, they would've been up to their chests in water.
"Think you can clear a path?" Lee asked as he surveyed the scene.
"Sure," Percy focused on the water. He wanted it to move, to recede, to part and give them room to move past. He felt the familiar tugging sensation in his stomach whenever he commanded the liquid, but it didn't obey. A wave of force washed over him and Percy hit the floor again as if the water had slapped him for even considering bossing it around.
"Are you okay?" Bianca asked as she reached out a hand to help him up.
"That's never happened before," Percy muttered. There was always a certain ease with controlling water, but this felt like his powers had been overridden.
"Well, looks like we're gonna have to go on foot," Travis complained. "Man, it's gonna be freezing.
"Nope," Lee said. "No way. We'll die from hypothermia before we even reach Maine."
"Good point, Sunshine," Lou Ellen agreed. Their leader raised a confused eyebrow, but the girl ignored him. She dug around her backpack. "I think I saw a… yup, here we go."
Lou Ellen pulled out an air pump and a lump of material. It was a bundle of bright blue plastic folded over itself a dozen times. As she started straightening it out, Percy made out the shape of an inflatable raft.
"So, you guys gonna help, or am I doing all the work?" She asked. Argus opened the door and water sloshed just below the opening.
Percy sighed as he stepped into the water to keep the raft straight. He wasn't wet, so at least his powers weren't completely defective, but the cold still made him shiver a bit. The rest of the group took turns pumping and soon the raft was large enough to fit ten people. He felt the vessel bob and dip a bit as his friends boarded.
"Yo, Percy, you going to drag this thing?" Connor held out a rope to him. "We don't have oars or anything."
Great. He was the pack mule. "Looks like it. I charge per mile, by the way, so don't get too comfortable."
"Bye, Argus!" Lou Ellen waved at the head of security as he put the RV in reverse and drove back to Camp. Percy grunted as he started pulling the raft along. He hoped they found a new form of transportation soon or that his power started working again.
"What the hell happened here?" Lee asked as they made progress through the town. The water level kept rising as Percy guided the raft. It rose up to the first story of some buildings and grew more violent the closer they got to the harbor.
"Is your dad mad at you or something?" Travis looked at him. "Maybe, he's teaching you a lesson with all this?"
"I didn't get him anything for Father's Day," Percy admitted. His relationship with Poseidon was still rocky. Being told by his father that Percy shouldn't have been born wasn't a great introduction. Not being told he had a little brother and suddenly sending him to school with Percy was also not the best decision. But in some ways, he believed that his dad cared, even if it was distant.
"Yeah, we don't either," Connor said. "It's kinda hard to get something for a god. Especially when your dad owns stocks in most companies. Like what doesn't he have?"
"I just burn a cheap card from CVS during dinner," Lee said. "I get everyone to sign it and write a poem if they feel like it."
Percy decided to file that idea away for later. Maybe his dad would write back, even if the chances were slim. A little recognition would be nice, something to prove that he wasn't just a god's mistake.
His train of thought of interrupted by Lee's shouting,"Stop!"
Percy peered over to where the counselor was looking.
In front of them was a woman in a green dress in the middle of the flooded street. She stood roughly two stories tall and her skin and hair were as pale as porcelain. She radiated light and power as the waves swirled around her like sharks.
This was a goddess.
The woman was screaming at a man in an orange jumpsuit on top of a mostly sunken Amazon warehouse.
"You insolent little wretch!" She hissed. Her eyes were solid white and glowed like neutron stars. "Hand over my package before I reduce this city to rubble!"
"Miss, please leave our facility," The man spoke into a megaphone. He was rather calm for someone staring down a goddess. The Mist must've been working overtime. "We are currently closed due to inclement weather. All deliveries will resume once normal operations begin again."
"Unbelievable!" The deity threw her arms up into the air and their raft shook as the water surged upwards. "I ordered it weeks ago! I paid for same-day delivery and you have failed to fulfill your end of the agreement! If it weren't for my father's meddling, your worthless business wouldn't be afloat!"
Percy wanted to blurt out that most of the building was underwater, but now did not seem like the time to get involved.
"I am sorry to hear that, miss. Please contact our customer support, either by phone, email, or our mobile app. They will be able to resolve your issue in a timely manner."
"Are you asking that I bargain with lowly mortals?" Her voice vibrated and hummed with power. Percy felt the unmistakable aura of bloodlust overwhelm him. He started desperately pulling the raft away from the scene, he didn't want to stick around for the aftermath. "I've had enough! So be it, enjoy the last seconds of your miserable—Hey! Where are you going?"
The mortal had turned around and entered a stairwell down into the lower portions of the building. The goddess stood there in disbelief at the irreverence of the human who had been there a moment before. The water bubbled and Percy felt the temperature rise as it began to boil.
"Well, that's what you get when you order from Amazon," Travis said sagely.
"Can't rely on them," Connor agreed.
The goddess snapped her head towards them and locked her luminescent eyes towards the raft.
"You guys just had to say something," Percy muttered.
The raft lurched forward as the goddess made a beckoning motion with her finger. Percy held on as it skipped along the surface like stone. He heard screaming and shouting as his friends grabbed onto the straps to keep from going overboard. Eventually, they came to a halt in front of the goddess.
A shadow passed over them as the goddess' hand reached down.
Percy gulped as she picked him up by the hood of his coat.
"It's you," She said disdainfully.
"Um, yep, it's me," he swallowed nervously. He didn't know who this goddess was, but she seemed to know him and she didn't appear to be a big fan. "Could you put me down?"
A film of water appeared around him, trapping him in a hovering bubble.
"Not exactly what I had in mind." Percy pushed against the surface with his hand. It was as firm as steel. He tried to use his powers to undo it but the bubble only got smaller. It seemed like he found the source of the disturbance.
"Stop that," The goddess said. "You should at least have the decency to listen before struggling for your life."
Percy, you know her?" Bianca asked. She fidgeted nervously with her bowstring.
"Nope," He said from his prison of water.
The goddess snarled at his response. "Well, what was I expecting? A worthless human doesn't cower before me. Why should I expect my own brother to even recognize me?"
He was going to need to have a talk with Poseidon the next time they met. That was now a brother and sister that he didn't know about until he ran into them. Percy was going to need to research more about his extended family when they got back to camp. Or at least, if he lived because his newly met sister was intent on crushing him.
The bubble constricted further. Percy's started panicking as his arms and legs started straining against the condensing sphere. "Wait, wait! I do know you, I just couldn't tell with how dark it is!" Percy did not recognize her, but at least the squeezing stopped.
"Then who, pray tell, am I?" She grabbed the bubble between both her hands and stared at him expectantly.
Percy racked his brain thinking of all the minor deities he could remember. Of course! There was one daughter of Poseidon he read about a long time ago when Chiron was disguised as Mr. Brunner.
"Rhodos," Percy said with absolute certainty. That was the patron goddess of the island of Rhodes and the consort of Helios, the original sun god. For once, Percy was glad he studied for a quiz in school.
His relief was quickly shattered.
"Wrong sister!" The goddess hissed. The sound reverberated in his ears and throughout his entire body. His bones shook like tuning forks. "Kymopoleia! Goddess of violent storms! Deadly seas!" The bubble began closing in again. "How about I grind your bones to dust? Maybe then you'll remember—"
"Oh, hey, you're the top hero for blue mill decks!" Lou Ellen said animatedly. She pulled out a very familiar looking statue. Percy mentally kicked himself for being such an idiot. Kymopoleia was the Mythomagic figure he didn't recognize yesterday. It was nearly identical to the one he borrowed from Nico the day before, except Lou Ellen's was more used and scratched up. "Could you sign this for me?"
Kymopoleia stared at the small metal statue in the girl's hand. "This is of me?"
The goddess let go of Percy's very cramped and very claustrophobic bubble and shrunk down to the size of a normal human. She stood on the surface of the water as she took the statue from Lou Ellen. Her eyes narrowed as she examined it. "The craftsmanship is cheap and the resemblance is faint at best. However, it is nice to be revered, even if the effort is lacking."
"Well, mortals don't know what you look like," Lou Ellen said. She was far too cheery and casual in front of the goddess who had just almost squashed him like a grape.
"You play Mythomagic?" Percy croaked.
"Yeah, Connor gives me the extra booster packs and figures since no one ever buys them."
"Wait, you give those things out? Why did you make me pay for them?" He rotated sideways in this prison so he could look Connor in the eyes.
"Couldn't let the opportunity pass," He shrugged. The son of Hermes didn't even have the slightest ounce of shame. "Chiron thinks they'll get some campers to study about Greek myths, but no one but that Nico kid would waste money on them. Technically, it was your money, so thank you for your patronage."
Bianca winced at the mention of Nico's spending habits. She sent Percy an apologetic look.
"Uh, Kym?" Percy asked nervously.
"What is it, brother?" She said dismissively.
"Could you let me out?"
"I could," Kym made no move to do so and instead summoned a sharpie to sign the base of Lou Ellen's statue. "For you, my worshiper."
"Thank you so much!" The daughter of Hecate exclaimed as she took it back. She didn't seem to notice that she'd just been confused for a cultist.
Lee shuffled awkwardly at the exchange. "Can you please release our friend? We're on a quest and would greatly appreciate it if you would let us pass. And maybe the people of Boston would prefer their city with less… flooding."
"Nonsense," Kym laughed. "The Amazons will never learn to fear me if I relented."
Travis and Connor both nodded in agreement.
"They deserve it," Travis said.
"Completely unreliable," Connor crossed his arms. "This is why you buy from the Hermes Express."
"Yes, I usually order from messenger boy," Kym muttered. "But Triton insisted that the Amazons would deliver it on the same day. What an absolute fool."
Bianca frowned. "Do you mean Amazons like the tribe of warrior women?"
"Yes, they've started dabbling in delivery," Kym said. "They're quite poor at it. If I could, I'd ransack their territory and leave nothing but the whispers of my name."
Then her eyes brightened and she gave a smile that was too wide and sharp. She looked across the raft at all of Percy's friends. Percy could hear the gears turning in her head like a killing machine come to life. "Perhaps you lot could be of use after all." The goddess gave them an unsettling smile.
"Pardon?" Lee asked.
"The Amazons are favored by dull-witted war gods," Kym explained. "They prevent me from entering myself. But demigods can roam wherever you like. Take whatever you like. Do this and you may take my brother once your task is complete."
Percy didn't appreciate being a bargaining chip.
"We're sort of on a time crunch and—"
"Deal," Travis interrupted Lee's negotiation attempt.
"Dude, you can't just decide on that! We need to—"
Percy heard the clanging of metal as he watched Travis cock the pistol from earlier that morning.
"It's about time they learned a lesson," Connor said. He spun the chamber of a revolver. Percy found a slight comfort inside the bubble all of a sudden.
"Whoa, hold on now, there are people that work there!" Lee argued. "Mortals. Human beings. You can't just go in and kill them!"
"We're using rubber bullets," Travis said nonchalantly. "They'll just be in a lot of pain."
"I would appreciate it if you shot the mortal who walked away from me," Kym requested. Her tone made it seem like a reasonable request. "Preferable an area that would inflict the most damage."
"Shoot the mortal. Kill the Amazons. No problem." Connor nodded.
Percy thought this entire plan was problematic. "Guys! Think about what you're about to do!"
Travis paused. He holstered his weapon. "Shit. You're right. Sorry, Percy. We got a bit heated there, we almost made a huge mistake."
Percy breathed a sigh of relief. He just needed the goddess to drop him and maybe they could avoid murder. "It's alright, we just gotta use our heads and—"
"What's your order number, ma'am?" Travis asked. "We can't just break in without knowing what we're looking for."
Connor nodded along. "Yeah, is it fragile? We'll need to be extra careful if it is."
Percy sighed and gave up on convincing them. He tried to find a comfortable way to sit in the bubble He had a feeling he was going to be waiting here for a while. Maybe he and Kym could get to know each other.
The plan was simple or at least Travis thought it was.
Find the target. Steal the target. Blow up the building as they left.
Except Lee insisted that they don't kill any Amazons, no matter how much they deserved it. The guy was just too kindhearted. He didn't understand the evil of Amazon's attempt to create a monopoly in the online marketplace. That was also why he didn't know about blowing up the building.
"Guys, promise me you won't kill anyone," Lee insisted.
"Yeah, yeah," Travis said noncommittally. "I hear you. Lou Ellen, you think you could shroud us in the Mist?"
The dark-haired girl nodded. "Yeah, no problem! Are we doing plan A, B, or Z?"
"Z," Connor said. Travis nodded along with his brother. Plan A involved hydra eggs and they had none. Plan B needed Percy as a distraction and he was spending time with his sister. Plan Z however, required a lot of Greek fire. They had plenty.
"Wait what plans?" Bianca asked. Right, they hadn't gone over it with people outside of Hermes cabin. Percy didn't even know he was needed for one of them.
"Uh, just watch our backs and try not to bump into anyone, the spell wears off on contact with someone not shrouded." Travis and his brother learned that the hard way when they ran into Katie holding half of her cabin's roof.
Travis scouted the stairwell where the mortal had gone down. The building didn't have any cameras on the roof, but he could feel the hum of the security system below them the closer he got to the door. He put his hand on the doorknob and he felt the pins move without any resistance as the lock opened for him.
"Easy enough," He said. "Lou, your turn."
"Got it," She waved her hand, and a heavy fog surrounded each of them. It wasn't thick enough to obscure their vision, but it did tickle his nose a little.
"This isn't exactly stealthy," Lee muttered.
"They won't notice or hear us," Lou Ellen smiled. "Besides, you're still glowing, Sunshine."
"Please stop calling me that."
Travis took point with his brother as they went down the stairs. The others followed behind. It opened out into a single-floor warehouse with stacks of cardboard bosses and white shipping envelopes. There were several cages with pegasi, hellhounds, and other mythical creatures in them around the edges of the room. Glass displays dotted the aisles with various artifacts.
The vibration of energy got stronger as he started to pinpoint the location of the cameras. They were spaced evenly above them at equal distances. It was like a net of wires hung over their heads. It's a shame that cameras don't work against magic.
There were a few women in black jumpsuits walking around inspecting orders and shipment information. Travis assumed they were Amazons, although he couldn't rule out strange work uniforms. There were much more workers in orange garbs and upon closer inspection, metal collars around their necks. None of the employees paid their group any mind.
Across the room from them was a door that had been cemented shut. The submerged town outside the windows made it seem like they were in a submarine rather than a building. Travis approved of Kym's vendetta. Percy's sister was pretty cool from what he gathered. She hated the Amazons, which automatically made her a respectable goddess.
"Right, so her order should be here somewhere," Connor said. He was currently reading off the string of numbers that Kym had given them. "Lou, can you set up the distraction?"
The girl saluted as she swerved out of the way of a mortal worker. Travis squinted. Nope, not the guy they were looking for.
"Why would we need a distraction?" Bianca asked. "I thought we're just grabbing Kym's stuff and going?"
"It's always good to have a backup, you never know when things might go sideways." Travis was only partially lying. Yes, it could be a distraction, but Lou Ellen was actually setting up a series of magic explosives. Plan Z was always her favorite.
They split off into pairs for their search. Travis was with Lee and Connor was with Bianca. They figured that those two would need help as they never participated in a heist before.
Lee took the opportunity to conduct an interrogation.
"Travis, be real with me, why did you guys want to come along?" Lee asked him as they looked over a pile of trampolines and beanbag chairs. None of them were addressed to the goddess. "I mean, you guys could've waited it out at Camp. It wasn't Hermes who got taken."
"What? We can't have a little fun?" He tried to deflect the question. "Who doesn't want to go on an adventure?"
"We both know that isn't it," Lee crossed his arms. Shit, did he inherit the lie detector? "I just want to know, it's not like you guys to risk your necks. I'll keep it between us."
Travis sighed. "You're the oldest in your cabin, right? Do your siblings fight a lot?"
"Yeah, of course."
"How do you get them to stop?"
"Where are you going with this?" Lee asked.
"Just answer the question."
"Well, I just sit them down and meditate. Sometimes Michael blows a fuse over Will cleaning his things and moving them around without telling him. Kayla and Austin can get into arguments over music genres. It isn't perfect, but they usually find common ground if they start talking about it."
"Well, what if they never tried to work things out?" Travis muttered. "What if they didn't consider anybody else and just did whatever they wanted?"
Lee's eyes softened. "It's not just about Luke is it?"
"No," He admitted. "When you spend time with people… you learn to care about them. Did you know that Chris had a crush on Clarisse? That Ethan's favorite food was shrimp tempura? Alabaster didn't eat the green jelly beans. I know just as much about them as I do Cecil or Julia. And they… just left. No goodbye or anything."
"But you don't hold it against them, do you?" Lee asked.
"No, Connor and I, we just didn't get it. Was it that bad in the Cabin? Was the little family we had going on not enough?"
It stung. It hurt way more than Luke's betrayal. His older brother had always been reserved. The smile never reached his eyes. But the dozens of people who just left didn't even bother to explain themselves. It was like any friendship between them and Hermes cabin was expendable.
The son of Apollo patted him on the shoulder. "I get it now. Nine, huh? I'm sure some of them aren't too stubborn."
They moved onto the next aisle which was lined with weapons, both mortal and magical. The shelves were lined with crossbows, a rock in a sock, slingshots, swords, and pretty much anything else that could be used lethally. This was also the section with the most glass displays.
He passed one with two gleaming bronze daggers with a dangerous serrated edge. It was labeled as the blades of Atalanta. A little tablet was installed onto the case where a buy-it-now option was available.
"No way right?" Lee asked in shock. "Those can't be real."
"I don't know," Travis admitted. Even the Hermes Express catalogs didn't sell the weapons of ancient heroes. Not that he'd ever say that aloud. "I wouldn't put it past them to do some grave robbing."
They passed another display and Lee stopped abruptly in front of it. He stared at a black bow with golden engravings. It had a quiver made of celestial bronze and some sort of crystal. The arrows rested in a pool of deep green liquid that smoked and bubbled inside the bottom of the quiver.
"That's hydra venom," Lee said in awe.
"How do you know that?" That wasn't exactly an easy substance to come across, especially under Argus' watchful gaze. Travis was impressed by the guy's knowledge.
"You know how we talked about powers earlier and how sometimes we're stronger with certain aspects? Well, mine is poison and disease." Lee revealed.
"Damn, we need to get you on board with some of our ideas," Travis said. "So, it's just a quiver full of venom?"
"No," Lee shook his head. "This is the bow of Heracles."
Travis frowned. There was only one legend he could recall about that weapon. "Didn't this kill…"
"Yeah, Chiron, that's how dangerous this is," Lee said in a soft hush. "It's so painful that even Chiron couldn't endure it. He chose to die, to give up his immortality, rather than live with it."
Right. The centaur had only been allowed to live again in order to train demigods. The old man had always been kind to them like they were all his children. He seemed so immovable. Travis couldn't imagine him weak and powerless. However, there was another issue at hand.
Travis did not like how the tablet said: Only 1 left in stock - order soon. He wasn't going to let this go to the wrong buyer. He reached his hand out to unlock the case. "Well, let's nip this problem in the bud."
"Wait, it might trigger something!"
"Don't worry," Travis said confidently. "I've done this a million times."
He couldn't feel anything linking the bow to the security system. This should be a piece of cake. His fingers brushed against the glass and an alarm sounded throughout the warehouse.
Well, that was embarrassing. Travis thought to himself. Lee gave him a look that screamed 'I told you so.'
"Change of plans," He decided as he reached for his sword. He slammed it into the display. "Smash and grab!"
"So, you have any hobbies?" Percy asked from his bubble.
He tried desperately to make small talk. The others had only been gone for five minutes and he was already going stir-crazy. Even if his sister tried to kill him, at least a conversation would be better than the boredom.
"I enjoy long rampages on the beach," Kym replied with genuine sincerity. She was reclining on a couch that she fashioned out of water. Percy wasn't sure it was too comfortable but he was really envious right now.
"You mean walks, right?"
"No, rampages is the correct word. Unless your mortal tongue has changed once again. Perhaps annihilations would be more appropriate?"
Not the best of starts.
"Never mind. Any pets?"
"No, you're too much work. I'd forget to feed you."
Percy found that concerning because he really didn't want to live in this bubble for the rest of his life. Also, he was a person, with rights and basic human needs. But it didn't seem like Kym would understand those concepts.
"Favorite… color?" He couldn't go wrong asking that, could he?
"Pale blue." She said.
That was a good sign. Percy loved blue! It was such a good color. "I know right? Blue's just so—"
"Especially the shade closest to a drowned body," Kym added.
Percy wanted to slam his head into a wall.
"Uh, do you like boats?" Percy hoped, no, he prayed that she had a more peaceful side.
"Oh! They are simply wonderful," Kym giggled. It was an oddly innocent noise, like a little girl who found something amusing.
He smiled. Finally, he was getting somewhere. "Awesome, me too! Last summer, I got to sail Blackbeard's ship, it got crushed, though."
"It must've been exhilarating," Kym nodded. "I haven't been allowed such destruction in ages."
Percy blinked. "What?"
"The way they break apart," His sister explained. Her pale eyes glimmered with joyful cruelty. "Their fragments have just enough buoyancy for mortals to cling onto, it gives them a sliver of hope." Kym's smile widened and it sent shivers down Percy's spine. "I greatly enjoy crushing that hope."
"Oh, uh, yeah, that's what I thought you meant," It wasn't what he thought she meant at all. Percy tried to pivot the conversation somewhere else. Anywhere else. "Are there any other siblings I don't know about?"
Kymopoleia's smile transformed into a scowl. "Why? Already sick of me, brother? Do you wish to spend time with them instead? Typical, no one ever wants me around."
"What? No, never!" Percy tried to appease her. He much preferred her when she wasn't angry. He also liked being able to move, even if it was just rolling around. "What's there not to like? I'm sure they just haven't given you a chance. I mean, after you stopped trying to kill me, I've come to appreciate your, uh, quirks?" Percy did not actually appreciate her homicidal tendencies or her temper. He suspected that it would make spending time with her hazardous to his health.
"At least you have an appreciation for the finer things in life," Kym muttered. "Father has changed and not for the better."
"Oh, so he used to be nicer?"
"No, he used to drown cities and sink as many fleets as he wanted." His sister said wistfully. "I used to have so much fun. But now he takes his anger out on that island, what do mortals call it? Japan? It doesn't matter, he won't even let me create a storm there. Says I'll go too far, ridiculous, I'd only sink it for a week."
"People can't breathe underwater," Percy said. It was an unfortunate flaw in human beings. They were very susceptible to drowning.
"So?"
"Um, I'm sure dad cares about you." Percy wasn't convinced. Poseidon was barely in his life. How long had he been fighting with Kymopoleia? How many missed birthday parties was that? Percy shuddered at the math he'd need to do to calculate it.
"Really?" Kym's white eyes bore into him. "And how are you so certain? What does his demigod bastard see that I do not?"
"First of all, that was rude," Percy said. The goddess was not the slightest bit apologetic. "Second, have you tried to talk to him, maybe he's just bad at explaining himself. I found out about our brother Tyson recently and dad didn't even give me a heads up that he was a cyclops. But he reached out to him and now they're hanging out in Atlantis together."
"Oh, so he favors a cyclops over his own immortal daughter does he?" The water thrashed violently as Kym's voice began climbing in octaves.
Percy realized that was the wrong example. He tried another question. "When's the last time you've spoken to each other?"
Her eyes flashed dangerously. Hatred and rage danced across those white voids. Kymopoleia snarled and Percy felt every fiber of his being telling him to run. It was a real shame he couldn't.
"When he sold me off to marriage like some kind of object!" His sister screamed.
Oh, that was… heavy.
"I—I don't know what to say to that." Percy didn't mean to dig up family drama but it was already too late. "Is he that bad? Your husband, I mean."
"I wouldn't know," Kym hissed. "I never showed up to the wedding."
That information did not surprise him. "Maybe you should give them a chance? He could be nice."
"Why should I honor a vow made without my consent?" His sister sighed. "Tell me something, do you enjoy your watery cage? Do you like being robbed of choice? Your freedom?"
"Not really," Percy was really tired of being stuck in the fetal position.
"That is a fragment of the insult that father has dealt to me," Kym growled. "A trophy, a prize, a pretty little doll to hang off of Briares' hundred arms. That is all that I am to our dear father. It matters not what I desire, because all that he needs me to be is an offering to a loyal dog. And unfortunately for him, I have no intention of being a decoration. Observe!"
A pillar of water erupted next to her.
Kym stuck her hand in and snatched out a paper scroll. She unfurled it dramatically with a flick of her wrist. Golden script flowed across the surface like twisting rivers of ichor.
It was a petition requesting her divorce from Briares. Percy presumed that was her husband, he also didn't recognize which mythological figure he was. However, the only name written on it was Kym's and it was a rather short list of complaints.
Actually, it wasn't much of a list, because there was only one bulleted reason: He is ugly and I hate him.
"Sign here," Kym smiled brightly as she held up a quill pen and inkwell to his face.
Before he could say or do anything, a series of explosions roared from within the Amazon building.
Percy watched helplessly as green flames sprouted from the submerged entrance, shattering the windows and tearing the walls apart. The infernal blaze continued to burn, even as the water rushed in. It went on for minutes until his friends finally ran out from the stairwell as a writhing mass of serpentine heads busted out after them. Connor held tightly to a rectangular package as he yelled, "I was wrong! I was wrong! Hydras aren't funny at all!"
Preview:
Lou Ellen was pretty sure it was her fault that everything went wrong.
She had been a bit… overzealous with Plan Z and, well, wasn't paying attention.
It had been an accident, of course. She didn't mean to be standing in their way. But all it took was an Amazon tripping over her to break her concealment spell.
She stared at the two women pointing swords at her. They stared at the bottle of Greek fire in her hand. And then they saw the chalk runes and markings that connected along the wall to numerous other bottles.
It put her in a rather sticky situation that wasn't easy to explain.
"Sorry, I just started working here today, you guys wouldn't happen to know where the bathroom is, would you?"
Lou Ellen got the feeling they didn't believe her when one of them raised a walkie-talkie and spoke something into it.
An alarm sounded.
She hurled the bottle at the wall and ran away as emerald flames ignited the chalk in a chain reaction.
