Act II Chapter I: "I'd like to see him try and beat my record."

Percy closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. The smell of pinewood and smoke filled his nostrils. He exhaled the fumes as he opened his eyes. To his left, Will was counting his arrows and carefully putting them in his quiver. Luke was sitting on a rock and sharpening his sword.

None of them wore their armor, but they did have it packed away in their bags. Luke commented that he wasn't sure if they were going to be around a lot of mortals, but they needed to do their best to blend in. It was a good thing that Percy had a sword that turned into a pen.

While Luke said they needed to blend in, he still had his sword hanging from his belt. Will had his bow hanging from his shoulder, and he adjusted it to be over his chest. As they got closer to their destination, they would have to hide their weapons in their bags or try to rely on the Mist.

Percy moved his gaze across their small camp. The other adventuring group was near the fire, with Clarisse in the middle of kicking it out. Reyna stood next to her and was looking over at Terminus and Lupa. The two were talking at a corner of the camp.

Annabeth was sitting near the fire and had a large book in her hands. Tucked into the book was a map. Clarisse stomped on the last ember and turned toward Annabeth. She said something to her, and Annabeth rolled her eyes before closing the book.

"Are you three ready?" Chiron questioned as he approached them. Percy turned toward the Centaur and nodded.

"Where are we going exactly?" Luke asked.

"A Pac-Man convention," Chiron answered. Luke opened his mouth, then froze. Will stiffened at the announcement. There was something so human about it, and Percy choked on a small laugh. Will looked at him in concern.

"A Pac-Man convention?" Luke repeated incredulously. He raised an eyebrow as his arms crossed.

"Like the video game?" Will asked.

"Yes," Chiron confirmed. Percy couldn't keep the smile from infecting his face. All he could imagine was this Greek god, who may or may not have lost his way like the others, gravitating towards a video game where a circle man ate ghosts. He went to Pac-Man conventions to... discuss? Play? Hang out with other mortals?

"But, it's a monster's lair. Right?" Luke asked.

"No," Chiron said with a sad smile. "When Camp Half-Blood was destroyed, Lord Dionysus and I returned to find it in ashes. He was quiet as we searched for any survivors. I thought he would be happy that the place he had been exiled to was destroyed, but he seemed sullen. He told me to look for survivors beyond New York, and he would stay near the camp in case someone went there."

"Why was Dionysus exiled to Camp Half-Blood?" Will asked.

"It was a punishment for some of his activities," Chiron revealed as he avoided actually answering them. "He also could not drink alcohol, so he settled on Diet Coke as his beverage of choice. After Lord Zeus disappeared, that restriction seemed to lift. I found Lord Dionysus keeping an eye on Camp Half-Blood from a bar.

"He spoke to me the first two times I visited. The third..." Chiron trailed off as his eyes grew misty. He swallowed painfully. "He didn't speak to me after that. Didn't acknowledge me when I visited. Just stared off into the distance.

"The bar eventually added an arcade. At first, Lord Dionysus paid no attention to the machines there. He just looked at the corner like it held all of the answers. At some point, he tried out the games. When Pac-Man was released, it was all the rage. I believe he owns every high score in the arcade, just under different names."

"I'd like to see him try and beat my record," Percy bragged playfully.

"Has Dionysus ever acknowledged you?" Luke asked as he brushed past Percy's comment. "Or even recognized you?"

"I'm not sure," Chiron admitted. "He never spoke to me when I spoke to him. There was this twinkle in his eyes, though."

"We probably don't need our weapons then," Will commented. "Unless people really got crazy about Pac-Man."

"Have your weapons near at all times," Chiron warned. "This may be a place where many mortals gather, but monsters are masters at blending in with mortals."

"We'll be careful," Luke promised. He looked at the other two. "Are you both ready?"

"I am," Percy answered. He glanced at Chiron. "Where's the convention at?"

"And are you sure it's not a tournament or a new game coming out?" Will questioned. "I've heard of a lot of people gathering for that in hopes they'll see a record broken. Or to watch pro players go at it. But, a convention?"

"I went to one last year," Chiron admitted.

"That's why you were gone for two weeks?" Luke asked in surprise. Chiron gave him a sheepish look. "Did you see Dionysus there?"

"I did. Playing Pac-Man."

"Does the convention move every year?" Luke questioned. Chiron nodded. "Huh. So, Dionysus has at least enough sense to know where the convention is moving to. Is he that obsessed with it?"

"Lord Dionysus does not have a tether," Chiron began. "Zeus has his wife Hera. Artemis has her Hunt. Even goddesses like Persephone or Athena have pursuits that bring them back to their normal selves sometimes. It keeps them from completely fading. Lord Dionysus did not have something like that, so he latched onto Pac-Man."

"Could be worse," Percy commented. Luke nodded his agreement. "So when we show up, we just have to tell him we're with you. He'll come with us?"

"I don't think so," Chiron replied. A frown touched Percy's face, and Luke scowled at hearing the answer.

"What's the point of doing this then?" Luke demanded as he threw his hands up. "Why are we looking for a god that won't come back here? You said we need a director, but what about Lupa?"

Percy snorted, and Luke turned to glare at him. All Percy could do was give an apologetic look, and out of the corner of his eye, he saw that Will had covered his face with his hand and used a cough to disguise his reaction.

"As I said, there was Lord Dionysus' punishment. He hated it here, but we must find a way to convince him to return. We need an Olympian with us if we plan on finding the rest of the gods."

"There's no guarantee that Dionysus is even going to be at this stupid convention. We don't even know if he'll be there in the head or lost like all the other gods, and if he is all right in the head, we don't even know if he will come back with us. What is the point!?"

"Luke," Chiron began. Luke turned on his heel and stormed away. A sigh left Chiron.

"Should I try talking to him?" Percy began. He watched Luke storm up the hill, and it didn't take long for Annabeth to follow after him.

"No," Chiron replied. "He needs time to calm down. Promise me that the two of you will stay safe on this quest and stay focused on finding Dionysus and bringing him back here."

"We will," Percy promised. Will nodded his agreement and seemed to have a question on the tip of his tongue. Chiron looked at him and made a prompting motion with his hand.

"What if we can't convince Dionysus? What do we do then?" Will asked.

"Come back here," Chiron answered. "We'll figure out something after that. The most important thing is making sure that Dionysus is not lost like the others."

"Chiron, we are going to find Dionysus and bring him back here," Percy promised.

"And, I'll make sure you have a camp to bring him back to," Chiron swore. "Now, be safe."