The Fate of Olympus | Reynabeth [✓]

23. Memphis, TN

Annabeth received an Iris Message (technically they were Fleecy messages, but Annabeth still thought the IM joke was fun) from Percy. Apparently Apollo had been stripped of his godly powers as punishment for letting Octavian start a civil war between demigods. He and a trash-hurling demigod had just wound up at Percy's mom's apartment. Apollo's mortal name, apparently, was Lester Papadopoulos, which definitely was part of his punishment.

After Annabeth finished the call with Percy, Reyna said, "I forgot how nice it is to see him around."

Annabeth nodded.

Reyna said, "So you and Percy have been dating for a long time."

"Yeah."

"But you like me, don't you Annabeth?"

"Yeah."

"I like you too."

Annabeth wasn't sure what to say. 

Reyna and Annabeth stood in an empty parking lot. There was a steady trickle of tourists heading in one particular direction. It looked like mortals were moving toward a garden.

A gust of wind blew in an easterly direction. It blew Annabeth's loose hair into her eyes and mouth. She pulled her hair away from her face.

She fidgeted with her hair until she remembered that Reyna had braided it for her.

Annabeth became aware that their clothes, which were appropriate for the cool Boston temperatures, were a little inappropriate for the hot, humid weather in Tennessee.

"Let's find out where the tourists are going," said Reyna. She walked off without Annabeth.

Annabeth trotted until she caught up to Reyna. They followed a small group of excited-looking middle-aged women who had planned their adult life around whatever was in Memphis, Tennessee.

Their little group entered the estate grounds. Annabeth recognized the central building immediately as Elvis Presley's estate, a colonial revival with two stone lions and a symmetric facade framed by columns. The lions were probably automatons, Annabeth thought.

Usually Graceland, Elvis's estate, was full of tourists, but there were only a handful today.

The inside of the house had been converted into a museum. Annabeth noticed that there was a lot of mortal security. Guards were spotted near most doors, dotting the perimeter. A mortal security worker let his German shepherd sniff tourists' bags.

"Even the mortals can sense there's something going on." Reyna's voice quivered.

A group of mortal soldiers passed them by. Reyna and Annabeth dropped their gaze. Annabeth stared at her right hand and flexed her stiff wrist.

"What's with the increased security?" asked Annabeth, even though she was pretty sure Reyna didn't know the answer either. "Are they reacting to us?"

They followed a tour group deeper into the museum and generally didn't make eye contact with the guards. Something about it felt like inviting danger. Anyway, seeing all of Elvis's old stuff would probably be an interesting experience if Annabeth knew anything about Elvis.

"How is going indoors supposed to help us?" Reyna demanded as tourists gaped at Elvis Presley's belongings. "We're supposed to figure out what happened to the Egyptian sun god."

"There must be a clue here somewhere. We just heard about Apollo's loss of divinity. Now we're at Elvis's old place. That can't be a coincidence."

"Yes it can," said Reyna.

Something was wrong. Annabeth could feel it.

They looked up. All the tourists were gone. The guards, however, had multiplied. There were about six of them. They stared with red eyes as they blocked all the exits.