When we all got to my home, Annabeth looked around before Mom walked out, and we all got into the car.
And each of us had the feeling that something was going to happen.
Mom made sure that we got out of New York fast with the traffic as we all were ready.
Piper had her knife in her hand.
Bianca was playing with her ring.
Nico was playing with a ring of his own.
Alumi had her path knife that glistened with celestial bronze with the light.
Annabeth held onto her knife.
And I tapped Riptide, in pen form, on my leg and ensured Mom had the trident.
Mom tried to talk to us about school, but she felt worried about camp.
"So, Annabeth, how are things with you?" Mom asked her as I looked into the rearview mirror to see Annabeth looking over.
"I'm doing fine, and my Dad and I are fixing our relationship; he's a little confused that I have a fiancé, so I had to explain what happened, and he accepted it. He said that if it's alright, you miss Jackson, that he, my stepmother, and my brothers can come down for Christmas," Annabeht told Mom, who smiled at her.
"I told you, you can call me Sally, dear," Mom told her as Annabeth nodded at her. And yes, I would want to meet your father before your wedding anyway," Mom said as she drove.
And then something strange happened.
Well, strange for us.
A taxi started to drive next to us.
"Hello all, how are you today?" the taxi driver asked as we looked over.
And I saw three ladies sitting in the cab, each with a mop of grizzled hair covering their eyes, with bony hands, and a charcoal-coloured sackcloth dress.
And of the laid held up an eye that looked at me, bloodshot and green.
"Grey Sisters," I said as Mom took in a breath.
"Son of the Sea, we bring you knowledge that you will need," One of them told me.
"Chosen of the Four Elementals, we tell you this: a quest will be called, and while you will not lead it, you will be part of it," a second told me as I nodded.
"Chosen of the Cardinal Four, a choice will be laid before you, but know that you can only take the answer once, and only once, and even if you say no the first time, you will become one," the third sister told me as I looked confused.
I looked at the others as they looked at me, and I did not know what to say, so I turned back to them. " What do I need to know?" I asked them.
"Just these numbers, Fates' Chosen One," the sister near me said as my eyes shot wide. Thirty, thirty-one, seventy-five, twelve, good luck, and we're nearly at camp," she told me before they drove off.
And nearly crashed.
"What do thouse numbers mean?" Piper asked me.
I just shook my head at her as I did not know.
And when we saw camp, it was under attack.
Mom drove us close to camp, and we all jumped out and started running up Half-blood Hill.
I led us up the hill with Undine forming on my right and Hyōrinmaru on my left.
I heard whispering in the air. Mom had throned me something, so I integrated Undine into Riptide and Hyōrinmaru into Frozen Passion as it landed in my hand.
I was the first to crest the hill, and I heard, "Border Patrol to Me!," From Clarisse, who was in front of me.
The camp was in shambles with people fighting bronze bulls the size of elephants.
And I was having none of it, so I let my spirit energy out as it moved through the air as campers turned to me as I charged forward.
And I swear I saw smiles on there as I reached the bull that Clareisse was fighting.
And it knocked her back, sending the spear in her hand flying out of it.
So I wasted zero time moving, pushing my spirit energy to my feet and bolting across the ground.
"Spásimo Kraken," I called out as out of the Over-Soul I created with Undine tentacles of water formed and wrapped around the bull.
Then, with Frozen Passion, which I was using with Hyōrinmaru to create the Over-Soul called Crimson Lotus, I slashed at the water, holding the bull in place.
I looked at Clareiss as the water turned to ice around the bull.
Making it struggle to move. "Can you stand?" I asked her as she nodded, picked up her spear, and looked at me.
Others from the Ares cabin walked up to me as the others turned up, and I could see that Mom was making sure that Tyson could get into camp.
"Orders?" A son of Ares asked me as I looked at the other bulls.
And I had to stop myself from asking why the Hades was I in charge.
"We take them out together, two groups, no splitting the groups up, there are three of them, five of you take with the Hermes and Apollo cabins take out bull two," I gave orders as Tyson came barreling past me and smashed the bull that broke out of the ice while yelling 'Bad Cow' as the group of Ares cabin members nodded and led the two cabins away, "The rest of us will take out Bad cow three," I gave the orders as they nodded at me and we all got to work.
With Bianca next to me, I led the charge again as Nico raised his sword in the air, and skeletons rose out of the ground, holding down Bad Mechanical Cow Three.
Alumi came running past us on all fours, wearing a Celestial Bronze helmet that looked like it had horns on.
And when she hit, she sent the bull onto its back legs.
I heard behind as Annabeth ordered the archers to start firing arrows at the joins within the bull.
Tyson pushed the bull as it fell onto its back, and smoke started to billow out of its joints.
"Heroes together," I called out as we all marched towards the third and final bull; the skeletons walked over and aided us in fighting Bad Mechanical Cow Two.
Our swords, spears, and other weapons quickly took it out of the fight. "Anyone engaged should head to the Apollo cabin straight away," I told everyone before looking at Clarisse. Where is Chiron?" I asked her as she pointed at the big house, and I narrowed my eyes as I saw someone new.
I saw Chiron and Mr D, along with Chipmunk Cheeks.
But there was someone new by the Big House.
Me, Annabeth, Mom, Alumi, Piper, Nico, Bianca, and Tyson walked up the hill. I found beside Chiron, and Mr D was a pale, thin man in a threadbare orange prisoner's jumpsuit. He has blue shadows under his eyes, dirty fingernails, and badly-cut grey hair.
"Percy, everyone, it's good to see you," Chiron said as we walked up. Now, I can you do the camp a favour and rid this foul being from it," he said as he pointed at the man in the jumpsuit.
"Now wait a second, Chiron, I am here my order of my father to make sure that you do not fail, like you did with that tree, and since Lord Dionysus allowed me here, you would be going against him," The man said. Still, Mr D looked at the man before looking at me.
"Perry, can you banish him back to the underworld," Mr D asked me as the man's face turned pale.
I raised a brow at him before looking at Chiron, "Who is he?" I asked.
"Tantalus," Hestia told me and my eyes turned cold.
"Bakudō #63. Sajō Sabaku," I called out as thick glowing yellow ropes wrapped around Tantalus; I clapped my hands three times with the third clap, pointed at Tantalus, and a pure gold chain joined my first spell.
"What are you doing, your going agest the word of my father, the word of Zeus," Tantalus said as I looked at him dead in the eye before I started to speak.
And the words that came out of my mouth were words that no normal man or woman or even the normal demi-god.
This was the first language.
It has no written words about why you can not read my words.
Most people would think I was speaking gibberish.
But to the souls, I was telling them.
No ordering them what they were to be.
Where they were to be.
Tantalus's body started to glow a cyan.
And it was soon joined with more colours.
I could tell who was joining me in ridding this creature from camp, banishing him so he could never return.
Deep blue forCampfather.
Green for Demeter.
Blood red for Ares.
Grey for Athena.
Golden for Apollo.
Orange for Hepestus.
Pink for Aphrodite.
White for Hermes.
Royal purple for Mr D.
And black for Hades.
And when the last words left my mouth with a shout, Tantalus was removed from camp.
And I heard the cheers from the campers, who he already offended.
"Good show, Percy. Now, then, we have some work to do," Chiron said as the camp worked to ensure everyone's safety.
We introduced Piper to her half-siblings.
But what drew our eyes was Thalia's tree.
It looked like it was dying.
"Chiron what is going on?" Annabeth asked as she looked at the tree.
"Luke, he poisoned the tree, and with the poison coming from the pit, Zeus thinks that I needed someone to watch over me, and has released a message saying that Kronos is not rising, even with Enyo, Hades, and your father saying that the pit needs to be watched, but that one will not listen to reason," Chiron said as Alumi walked over to the tree and looked it over.
"I can see if I can message a shaman tripe in Japan and see if they have any knowlage on antidotes for the poison," Aluimi said as Chiron nodded.
"Thank you, but we need to make sure that the tree does not fall," Mr D told us, looking uneasy about the tree.
It was his sister, after all.
"Chiron, a quest has been issued by the Grey Sisters," I told the centaur, who turned to me and nodded. "I have been told I am about of the quest, but I am not the one leading it; that is down to someone else," I informed him, as he did not look happy.
"I see," He muttered as he looked at Mr D, who nodded.
A light above Tyson gained our attention as we looked up, and I could swear that I saw hate from some of the remaining unclaimed.
It seemed that Dad was waiting for this moment.
"Well it seems that the young cyclops will be in cabin three," Chiron said as Tyson turned to him.
"Thank you Mr Pony," He told Chiron as Hestia and Mr D started to laugh at him.
Things started to return to normal soon after, with Tyson working in the forge and me teaching those with swords.
I think I always heard, at least once a lesson, that I was a better teacher than Luke because I did not force people to stand around.
After a few days, Chiron announced something to the camp, "Good afternoon, Heroes. I have some news from you all, and that is the following, a quest has been given by the Grey Sisters, and the directions have been given to Percy," Chiron said as I stood up and walked over to him, "Now he will act as the guide in getting there, but we need someone to take up the mantle, so, agest my better judgement, I will allow a chariot race to be held, and the winner of the race will be the one that will have the quest," He told us all as we looked at each other and whispered went around.
"Now, Cabin 3 can participate if they so wish, but Percy will be going on this quest," Chiron called out as more whispers spread through the crowd. "Good luck in the race," he told us.
At night, I had more dreams of Grover. Sometimes, I just hear snatches of his voice. Once, I heard him say, "It's here."
Another time, "He likes sheep."
Anyway, during the day, I would work with Annabeth on the combined chariot of Cabin 3 and 8.
Agest Annabeth's better judgement, she started to get to know Tyson and rm up to him.
And so, we started to build the chariot between our two cabins.
It was a blue chariot with a shark motif, a trident on the front, and an owl.
I had four black horses, and they were beautiful.
I was the rider, and Annabeth was the fighter.
Tyson was off to the side, looking like a pit crew for F1.
We tested it as Tyson, Cabin 3, and 8 watched, and then we worked together as one massive team.
When we worked, I told Annabeth about the dreams, and her face looked confused. "Are you sure that Grover said, 'He likes sheep'?" she asked me, and I nodded.
Some other Athena kids who heard us added to the ideas after I explained the different dreams. They did not know, so they started talking with each other.
And so, the night before the race, I had another dream of Grover.
In my dream, Grover was wearing a wedding dress.
It didn't fit him very well, and if I remember correctly, it was from one of the ones from the bridal shop he was hiding in.
The gown was too long, and the hem was caked with dried mud. The neckline kept falling off his shoulders, and a tattered veil covered his face.
He was standing in a dank cave, lit only by torches.
There was a cot in one corner and an old-fashioned loom in the other, a length of white cloth half woven on the frame. And he was staring right at me, like I was a TV program.
I mean, from what Hestia told me when that video of me dissing both the pussy and slut went out of Hephaestus TV.
She told me that my Dad laughed so hard that he fell out of his throne.
Anyway, back to Grover.
"Thank the gods!" he yelped as he looked at me. "Can you hear me?" he asked.
I was slow to respond. You see, I was still looking around, taking in the stalactite ceiling, the stench of sheep and goats, and growling, grumbling, and bleating sounds that seemed to echo from behind a refrigerator-sized boulder, which was blocking the room's only exit, as if there were a much larger cavern beyond it.
"Percy?" Grover asked me as I looked back at him. His look was almost pleading. "Please, I don't have the strength at the moment to project any better. Please tell me you can hear me. You have to," he muttered as his eyes drilled into me.
"I hear you," I told him, a look of relief washing over him. "Grover, what's going on?" I asked him, but I was soon interrupted.
From behind the boulder, a monstrous voice yelled out, "Honeypie! Are you done yet?" It asked as I looked back at my best friend, and I saw him flinch.
He called out in falsetto, "Not quite, dearest! A few more days!" Grover yelled.
I raised a brow at him, "What are you on about," I asked.
"Bah! Hasn't it been two weeks yet?" the voice asked, making me even more confused.
"N-no, dearest. Just five days. That leaves twelve more to go," Grover said as I narrowed my eyes as he looked at me before I started to have some things click in my head.
"Is a monster trying to marry you?" I asked Grover, who nodded at me. The monster was silent, maybe trying to do the maths.
He must've been worse at arithmetic than I was, because he said, "All right, but hurry! I want to SEEEEE under that veil, heh-heh-heh."
Grover looked back at me once, "For the love of enchiladas and the great god Pan, Percy, you have to help me! There is no time to explain much! As you can see, I'm stuck in a cave on an island in the sea that is full of monsters, " he told me as I nodded.
"Where is this sea?" I asked him, but he just shrugged at me.
"I don't know. You see, I went to Florida and turned left," he told me, clearly recognizing the confused look on my face.
How do you go to Florida and turn left?
Left is the god's dame sea.
"I know what you must be thinking, but that is what happened. You have to warn them; going there is a trap!" He told me as I nodded at him, "It's possibly why no state has ever returned from this quest. He's a shepherd, Percy! And he has it. Its natural magic is so powerful that it smells just like the great god Pan! The satyrs come here thinking they've found Pan, and they get trapped and eaten by Polyphemus!" Grover told me as I felt a chill with that name.
"My brother?" I asked him as he nodded at me.
"Yes, the Cyclops!" He told me as I saw a sigh of relief.
I think he forgot who I had 'teaching' me.
"Anyway, I almost got away, and I made it to ST Augustine," he told me as I remembered my dream on the last day of school.
"But he followed you and trapped you in a bridal boutique," I said as he nodded at me, "But Grover, what lured you there in the first place?" I asked him.
"The fleece," He told me.
"The fleece, as in the golden fleece, the fleece that has great healing powers, that fleece?" I asked him as he nodded at me. "Then, all the more reason to rescue you. We need that fleece, and can you tell me why I can speak to you in my dream?" I asked him as he smiled sheepishly at me.
Or should it be goatish?
"It's my first empathy link, and that means that I can read your emotions and that we are connected," He told me.
"That's good," I told him as I thought of something, "Grover, is my older, and stupider, brother possibly thinking that you are a female Cyclops?" I asked him, and he nodded, shaking with fear.
"Yes, he wants to marry me," he told me as I nodded at him. I'm in the Sea of Monsters; I don't know where it is; that is all I know," Grover told me.
"And what if my brother get's impation and says he marries you on the spot?" I asked him.
"Well he finds out I am no lady cyclops and then kills me and thanks to this empathy link you would be put in a vegetative state," He told me as I looked at him with a deadpan look as he smiled, "But I know you will find me," He told me as I nodded at him.
Before we could talk more, my older brother yelled out to Grover, "Honeypie! It's dinnertime. Yum, yummy sheep meat!" He told Grover, who whimpered.
"I have to go, sweet dream. Hurry and don't let me die," He told me before the dream was over and I woke up.
And I made sure before the race in the morning I told Chiron.