Unlikely Heroes

Chapter 31: A Show For The Gods

"Percy, you could at least have stayed under the radar. People filmed you, and now you are on the news! And not in a good way," Annabeth says with a sigh.

"I was attacked! What do you expect from me? Cut me some slack this one time, Annabeth," Percy counters, gesturing with his arms to calm Annabeth down.

"It doesn't matter. We're far away from Saint Louis now. The new-found attention is probably only in Saint Louis. I am more worried about my empty stomach. If only there is an enchiladas' restaurant..." Grover says and ends with a wishful sigh.

We have ended up near Denver. It was apparently the last stop of our train. Our tickets were only able to get us this far, and even if we tried staying in the train, we would have been kicked out. That wouldn't be good now Percy is famous on the television. So, we found ourselves walking on the road towards Los Angeles. We wouldn't make it on foot,

"We need to find a ride to Los Angeles. If we continue on foot, we will not make it. Any ideas?" I ask around. Percy thinks, but struggles to find an answer. The same goes for Grover. To be honest, I was pinning my hope on Annabeth to figure something out.

"I am a bit too hungry to think of a plan... Can we eat somewhere and discuss it there? The diner over there, maybe?" Annabeth asks, pointing to a diner at the side of the road. "Sure, why not?"

It was your typical diner you could find almost anywhere in the U.S. The ecstatic reminded me of long ago. Sometimes I wonder how so little could change over the years. Although, why fix it if it ain't broke? It wouldn't surprise me if the menus are also very much the same in this place.

When we sat down, we looked through the menu that is placed on the table. It is just as I thought. Much of the same items are on the menu. Perhaps a bit more modern, but that's about it, really. "Do we actually have enough money to pay for this?" I ask. Grover, Annabeth, and I turn to look at Percy. He is the one that is carrying the money.

Percy places the menu back down as a deep sigh leaves him. "Not enough... I feel like a homeless person, not a hero!" He groans out. "I guess it is all part of the experience..." I mumble out.

We were about to leave our booth, but stop as we hear the loud noises of a motorcycle. The person that sits on it is broad shouldered, strong looking, and has an appearance of a bully in my opinion. His clothing mostly consists of leather in a dark color and sunglasses. One thing I am certain of is that this is no ordinary person. It is a god, his aura gives it away. And he seems to be not hiding it. This is the God of War. Ares.

"What is Ares doing here?" Annabeth asks as she watches Ares walking towards the diner. "It seems he is here for us, by the looks of it. But I have no idea why, though," Grover says.

Our gazes follow Ares as he walks in a confident pace and slight swagger to the diner. It is as if he own the place. One could almost say he is the head of a large crime family due to how he presents himself and the gaze he sends to other people. I wouldn't be surprised if he tried something of the case. Just to cause a war between crime families.

"Hey punks, I got a quest for you four. Need something done, and you're perfect for the job. First, I want to eat something. Hey lady, we want to order!" Ares says as he makes himself comfortable in the booth.

His weapon, a shotgun, is placed in between Annabeth and himself. Annabeth scoots a little closer to me in response. The woman, that is definitely weary of Ares, comes towards us. "W-what will it be?" She asks.

We soon ordered our meals and the waitress practically fast walks away from him. I have a feeling he does not make friends easily, maybe with the kind that have the same interest. Perhaps he does a lot of things within the military? The U. S. is rather active in that regard. As the woman walks away, he turns to look at us again.