Child of Zeus {Interactive Story} (PJO/HOO/TOA)

THIRTEEN: Fillip, the Friendly Motel Guy

It was seven in the morning on Friday now, including today we only had five days (the fifth being the solstice) to get the Pithos, and this quest was getting harder than I thought.

Right off the bat, Johnny insisted that we call Chiron and let him know that he was only partially right about Epimetheus being the culprit, and then ask him for help. I was mostly reluctant on terms that this was my quest and I wanted to solve the problems myself and lead us to victory, but at the moment I didn't have any solutions. I pointed out that I didn't know Chiron's phone number as I lifted the landline phone on the desk from the reciever.

Johnny had never been so fast to slap something from my hands and replace it.

"What?" I asked, flabbergasted.

"You didn't tell her about phones?" Diana hissed at my pale-faced satyr.

"It slipped my mind! I'm sorry!" Johnny said, turning to me. "Look, monsters can track phones, alright? It's like your scent, how they pick up on that, too. Any kind of technology that uses the internet or a phone lets them track you - haven't you ever wondered why your parents never let you use the computer?"

I shrugged. "I thought they were being overprotective. I'm sorry...But how do we call Chiron without a phone?"

"Iris message." Diana explained. "Follow me."

~

The three of us squished into the bathroom was too much for me, so I stayed at the door while Johnny and Diana turned on the shower and swiveled the adjustable light to point at the running water.

"See the rainbow? That's important when Iris messaging." Diana continued, fishing a drachma out of her pocket. "Then you say: Oh Iris, goddess of the Rainbow, please accept my offering. And name the person and place you want to contact." She threw the drachma in and followed her own instructions, adding "Chiron, Camp Half-Blood, New York." at the end.

I didn't really expect anything to happen; I wasn't sure how this worked, but the drachma had disappeared and Johnny smiled like it had gone right. Then, suddenly, the outline of the centaur appeared in the water and focused, Chiron seemingly in wheelchair form on the porch in front of the big house, watching the camp around him I couldn't see.

"Chiron!" I called. Startled, he turned to face us, and his more-tired-than-normal face with bags under his wise eyes brightened if only momentarily.

"You've found the Pithos? Are you on your way to Olympus now to return it?"

The hope in his voice almost made me want to cry, because I didn't want to have to break the news to him. When I did, he deflated like a balloon, and we told him everything that happened.

"We don't have enough money to get plane tickets, we can't drive, catch a bus, or ride a train to Russia...How do we get there?" Johnny inquired finally. "We need help."

But Chiron's face was now brimming with something resembling the opposite of hope; despair.

"I don't know what to tell you. I would send the pegasi but not only would that take too long, they've been refusing to leave the sanctuary of their stables. We should have given you more money, maybe then you could afford a plane ticket and we wouldn't be in this mess." Doubt was flooding into his voice, but I suddenly felt elated.

"Stop your moping, Chiron, because I just remembered that there's someone ready to help us, who can get us to Russia in time for the solstice. The next time I see you, it'll be face-to-face and back at camp. Diana, you can end the call now."

But she and Chiron both looked like they had more to say on the matter and wanted very much to keep each other on the line. Luckily for me, Johnny was my best friend and the idea had reached his mind, too. He slashed his hand in front of the water and the image disappeared. Diana had her arms crossed, staring at us both expectantly.