THIRD INTALLMENT
DIVINE
CHAPTER 3
CENTRAL PARK, NEW YORK
10:05 PM
Thalia trudged through the bushes of the park, determinedly trying to catch up with Luke. The moon shown brilliantly in the sky above, casting its glow unto the trees of the thick forest. She heard Luke muttering angrily to himself as his steps quickened. "Luke!" Thalia exclaimed exasperatedly, she was beginning to get annoyed by Luke's tirade. "What do you want from me Thalia?!" He shouted with a sort of manic desperation as he spun on his heels to face her. Thalia, who didn't expect the sudden action, flinched slightly before composing herself once again. "Luke-"she began, "I don't know what to do anymore" he interjected dejectedly. He broke down completely and fell to his knees on the hard forest floor, his body shaking with tears. The sound of his cries filled the silence in the forest. Thalia gazed at him completely mortified, she had never seen such weakness in Luke before. She knelt by him and gently placed a hand on his shaking back. Luke stiffened slightly before relaxing once more, not entirely used to the friendly contact. "Remember the story you told me about the Minoan farmer" she said in the gentlest voice she could muster. "Thalia, what-'' he began to ask, "Shhh" she whispered quietly, "Just listen" she whispered soothingly, while stroking his back. "There once lived a good farmer. Every day he woke up at the crack of dawn, kissed his wife and children gently on their heads, picked up his hoe and walked the winding path to his farm." She said, "He would do this every single day, during every time and season, and after every farm day, he would sacrifice the best of his produce to the gods. Because of this, the Olympians loved him and blessed him with favorable weather for his crops and feed for his cattle, but one goddess did not like this farmer, for he would always kill her pets, ferocious cats, on his way to his farm. She would revive them each day, only for him to kill them the very next." She intoned quietly, "The goddess, finally fed up with this, cursed his land, his crops and his cattle with powerful divine magic that even the gods could not undo." "Despite this, the farmer would wake up every morning and till the land, plant his crops, sacrifice his best to the gods and leave." She paused, glancing at Luke, whose tears had finally subsided, she spoke up again, "The gods, fascinated with his persistence, begged the goddess on his behalf to lift the curse. The goddess, also moved by his sheer will, lifted the curse and blessed Panthoras the farmer even more. She named her cats panthers, in honor of this great farmer and his nigh supernatural determination." Thalia finished. There was a brief silence before Luke asked weakly, "What is the point of this story Thalia?" Thalia responded, "You told me this story once when I felt hopeless and broken inside" she said as she smiled weakly down at him, "It's what drives me to wake up and fight to survive every day" she said solemnly, "And now I tell it to you, in hopes that it will encourage you too." She ended. Luke sniffled and chuckled quietly, "Look at me, bawling my eyes out like a baby" he chuckled humorlessly. "We all need an outlet sometimes, it's what makes us human." Thalia said gently. "So what makes us demigods?'" he asked, "Our sheer fucking will" Thalia answered grinning. Just as soon she said that, an incredibly loud and malicious laughter filled the air. "Beautiful story, godling" a voice bellowed from the darkness of the forest and out of the shadows came an 8 foot tall giant, clad in scarred Ancient Greek armor over a tattered black T shirt, that seemed several sizes too small for him. What really made the creature stand out was not his armor, or the wickedly sharp sword he held in his hand, it was the large eye he had right in the center of his head which seemed to gleam with malevolent intent. He was a Lesser Cyclops, the younger cousins of the three great Cyclops that forged the weapons of the gods, except, it seemed that he had defected from the gods' side. "Aww, don't look so morose I don't bite" he paused, "not without cooking you first!" he exclaimed as he let out a horrible laugh "Mother said not to talk to the food." A nasally voice whined. "Maraxes!" the first one shouted as a slightly shorter, equally ugly Cyclops walked out from behind them. Thalia and Luke both jumped into a battle stance, backs facing each other, both equally surprised that the Cyclops had snuck up on them so easily. "Mother won't care about what she doesn't know!" shouted the first Cyclops. "Well I'll tell her" Maraxes whined, "And stop using my old name, I'm Bonecrusher now!" he exclaimed joyfully. The first Cyclops growled menacingly under his breath. "Fine!" he shouted, "Let's get them tied up already, we wouldn't want to keep Mother waiting." He finished while approaching the demigod pair. "What do we do Luke?" Thalia whispered frantically to Luke, "We fight, as always." He said firmly. Just as they were about to charge the Cyclops, a large net, the size of a car suddenly appeared and covered them. "Did I not tell you not to play with the food?!" A gruff female voice shouted. An even larger female Cyclops emerged from the trees, holding the loose ends of the net. She whacked the side of the other Cyclops' head angrily while Bonecrusher laughed in the background. "I told him Ma" he said gleefully, "Shut it!" she exclaimed, "take the net and tie it, and you" she said, pointing at the other Cyclops that was still rubbing his head in agony, "When he's done, take the food home, we'll be eating demigod stew tonight." She said, grinning sadistically down at the trapped demigods. Annabeth poked at the fire with the stick, watching, almost mesmerized by the glowing coals in the fire. She was still processing all that Grover had just told her. It seemed too good to be true, a demigod able to live through this hellish life and go to college, get a job, get married and have kids. Surely it wasn't true, not in this cruel world, but Grover didn't have any reason to lie to her, and even if he did, she had always had the uncanny ability to see through people's lies, it must be part of her Athena powers. Grover lifted his head his head sharply, and looked intently into the darkness of the forest. His nose twitched uncontrollably, almost like a squirrel sniffing its food. "What's wrong?" Annabeth asked worriedly. Grover did not respond and instead continued sniffing the air, his eyes closed and his face contorted with worry and concentration. "Grover!" Annabeth shouted. His eyes snapped open "Cyclops" he whispered, completely horrified. All the color drained from Annabeth as she scrambled to her feet. "Oh no Thalia and Luke!" she cried out in despair. She and Grover rushed into the bushes clutching their respective weapons, Annabeth a gleaming bronze dagger and Grover, a thick wooden club. They reached the site early enough to see the three Cyclops retreating, with Thalia and Luke in a net over the shoulder of the last one. "Oh no no no no" Grover whispered, the panic he felt apparent on his face. "Grover calm down" Annabeth said urgently. "We need to find a way to rescue them" she said as she held her chin in contemplation. She reached out and pulled Grover as she began to walk in the direction if the retreating Cyclops. Grover was surprised by the seven-year-old child and even more astonished by the bravery she showed in deciding to follow the terrifying trio of monsters. Most seven-year-olds would be screaming their heads off, not maintaining the level of composure this girl had. They followed the trio ahead as stealthily as they could and the arguing among them made it easier for them to sneakily follow them. At some point in their argument, the Cyclops carrying the demigods lifted the net high above his head. Thalia seemed nauseated by being lifted so high above the ground. "Quit squabbling!" the largest of the three Cyclops exclaimed. "Gods sometimes I don't know why He decided to free you guys from the pit." She muttered. Finally, after more than 20 minutes of walking, the trio came up to an abandoned warehouse at the edge of the park. Annabeth stopped and motioned for Grover to stop too. "Why are we stopping?" Grover asked frantically. "We can't just barge, we'd be killed. I have a plan." she said, oddly victorious in such a perilous situation. She walked up to a cluster of linden trees and plucked a large number of leaves. "Here" she said, thrusting a handful of leaves into Grover hands. "What?" Grover asked, incredulous, Annabeth paid him no mind and began rubbing the leaves all over her body. "Just hurry Grover" she sighed out. She noticed that Grover was still looking at her like she was mad. "These are linden leaves, strong scents, it'll mask our scents from the Cyclops" Annabeth said. "Oh, that's smart" Grover admitted. After they were done rubbing the leaves on their bodies. Annabeth approached the ground floor windows and asked Grover to boost her in through the window. "Why not the front door?" Grover asked. "Some Cyclops are able to perform powerful magic, they use it to make their weapons and guard their forges, it would be unwise to use the front door." She explained. She grunted in effort while pulling herself into the warehouse. She then turned to help Grover into the building, which was useless as Grover was able to climb into the warehouse and did so with surprising ease. "I am a satyr you know" he commented, when Annabeth gave him a look of astonishment. "Whatever, come on let's go" Annabeth ordered. "Aren't you just a kid?" Grover asked under his breath", "Who died and put you in charge?" he grumbled but followed nonetheless. Slowly but surely, Grover and Annabeth crept through the building's dark halls and made their way to a light that seemed to be emanating from the center of the warehouse. As they drew nearer, they began to hear voices over a loudly crackling fire. Annabeth suddenly stopped, she turned around and looked at Grover saying, "I need you to be bait." She said. "What?" Grover said, "If you think I'll leave you alone with these beasties, you're crazy." Grover whispered in argument. "I'll be fine" Annabeth said dismissively. "You're a child, Annabeth, I'm supposed to be your protector.'" He argued. "No you're not" Annabeth argued back. "What?!" Grover asked again, "Grover, I might be seven, but I'm not stupid" she said. "The first time we met you said something, you told us you had been sent after a powerful demigod, When Luke and Thalia got hurt, you mentioned that you had enough ambrosia and nectar for one person." Annabeth said confidently. "You were sent for only Thalia." She said matter-of-factly, "Luke and I are excess baggage, live or die, your mission is complete, let me do this." She ended. Grover looked at her amazed, he then chuckled, "Like a true Athena child, go on" he said somberly. "So I need you to distract the Cyclops, they'll chase after you and the mother will stay behind to watch over Thalia and Luke." She said promptly. "See that chandelier?" she asked. They both glanced at the low hanging chandelier at the ceiling of the building. "Looks like Celestial Bronze" Grover said, "Exactly" Annabeth said, the chain link is weak, my dagger should break it, that'll deal with the mother." Annabeth said. "Alright" Grover said, laying a hand on her shoulder," Be careful." He said. Annabeth nodded firmly. Grover rushed off into the room and approached the Cyclops cautiously. He then cried out, "Hey! Umm……. I'm kinda new to this area, and I got lost and I'm wondering if you could give me some directions." He stammered out. "What's this?" asked Bonecrusher, "Looks like a mortal, oh another one for the feast mother?" his brother said. "Have at him if you want" she grumbled back a reply absentmindedly, while stirring broth in a ridiculously large pot. Thalia and Luke were tied back to back with thick ropes and were hanging right over the pot. Their weapons lay on the ground a few feet from the pot. The brother Cyclops began approaching Grover, slowly pulling out weapons. "Hey guys, ummm I don't want any trouble." Grover said in a panic-filled voice. The two Cyclops chuckled darkly as they continued to approach Grover. Grover let out a loud scream, oddly sounding like a bleat and took off running. The two Cyclops grinned as they run after him. The plan was working so far. Annabeth climbed up the steps silently, trying to avoid making any noise. The mother Cyclops suddenly spoke up without taking her eyes off the broth. "I know you're here, daughter of Athena." She said. "Nice attempt with the leaves, but unfortunately for you I can still smell your demigod stench." She growled out the last part. She stopped stirring and let the huge ladle rest in the pot while she wiped her hands clean with a rug the size of a duvet. "You see unlike my sons, my senses were not dulled by the years in Tartarus." She continued. The very name of the pit sent shivers down Annabeth's spine. "They are sharp as ever and I can smell right through the fragrance of the linden leaves." She said, as she slowly turned her head and smiled directly at where Annabeth hid in the shadows. "Gotcha" she said victoriously, before her face contorted with rage and she swung a huge axe, which seemed to appear from nowhere, in Annabeth's direction. Annabeth quickly rolled to the left, silently thanking the gods for her supernatural reflexes. "Annabeth!" Thalia screamed as she finally saw Annabeth, Luke was unconscious by her side. "Come out child!" the Cyclops roared, "Come and face your destiny!" she finished as she swung the battle axe once more in her direction. Annabeth quickly glanced at the thick rope that was fastened at on end to a large garage-like door at the lower level of the room they were in, and suddenly had an idea. She jumped down the steps and came up standing with roll, she had to quickly roll to the sided as the axe came down towards her immediately she landed. The other end of the rope lay at the other side of the room and Annabeth began to run towards it. The axe-wielding chased after her with thunderous steps. "Your running is futile!" she bellowed, as she slowly caught up to Annabeth. Annabeth grabbed the loose end of the rope, spun around and right as the Cyclops came upon her, she dove in between her legs, round the right leg and run away again. The Cyclops growled frustrated, as she begun to chase Annabeth again. Annabeth repeated this multiple times until at the end the cyclops legs were completely wrapped in ropes, right under the chandelier. She then run towards the huge door and pressed a button on the wall it. The door groaned as it swung upwards, pulling the very heavy Cyclops along with it. "Curse you Athena child!" the Cyclops shouted. "Kleise to stoma sou" Annabeth screamed in reply, before flinging her knife with dead accuracy to the weak chain link of the Celestial bronze chandelier just like Thalia taught her. The Cyclops could only watch as the chandelier impaled her, killing her instantly. Thalia managed to free her left hand much struggling and shouted to Annabeth to throw her weapon at her. Annabeth gripped Thalia's spear which had returned to its mace canister for and flung it at Thalia who caught it. As soon as it landed in her palm, it transformed into an about six foot tall ornate spear. Thalia used it to cut through the ropes to free Luke and herself. After the managing to get down, avoiding a fall into the pot, she grabbed Annabeth in a hug before she could even peak. "Thank you" she whispered repeatedly. "Wake up sleepy head." Thalia said, giving Luke's unconscious form a light shock making him jolt into consciousness. "You have got to stop doing that." Luke groaned out "Hey it works." Thalia replied, grinning ear to ear. Before any other words could be spoken, Grover run into the room screaming his head off. Two Cyclops, with lots of scrapes all over their body and leaves in their hair, barreled after Grover. "Stay back Grover, we got this" Thalia said, "We have?" Luke said still groggy, fiddling with his sword. "Of course elf-ears" Thalia quipped, before facing the incoming Cyclops, Luke at her side. "Mother!!" Bonecrusher wailed in agony "You'll pay for this." His brother growled out. As the Cyclops charged. Thalia summoned twin bolts of lightning that blasted through the already weak roof and struck the Cyclops. They both immediately fell to the ground dead, joining their mother in Tartarus. "Well that was too easy." Luke commented. The three demigods all turned to Grover simultaneously, who smiled abashedly. "Well I might have filled them up with 10 gallons worth of plant poison" he said before collapsing "Wait how?" Thalia commented. "Not the time Thalia." Luke said as he knelt down by Grover and lay a hand on his forehead "He's burning up, he must've used a lot of his power to weaken them." Luke said. Together, the y supported the surprisingly heavy satyr out of the warehouse and into the forest.