mastermind - percy jackson

xiii. the general

"this is a family matter."

"We will never make it" Zoe said. "We are moving too slow. But we cannot leave the Ophiotaurus." Cassandra's feet crunched against the gravel by the waterfront as they ran.

"Mooo," Bessie said. He swam next to Percy as they jogged. They had left the shopping center pier behind and were heading towards the Golden Gate Bridge, which was much farther than they realized. The sun was already dipping in the west.

"I don't get it," Percy said. "Why do we have to get there at sunset?"

"The Hesperides are the nymphs of the sunset," Cassandra said. "We can only enter their garden at sunset. Duh."

"What happens if we miss it?"

"Tomorrow is the winter solstice. If we miss sunset tonight, we would have to wait until tomorrow evening. And by then, the Olympian Council will be over. We must free Lady Artemis tonight." Zoe answered.

"We need a car" Thalia said.

"But what about Bessie?" Percy asked.

Grover stopped in his tracks. "I've got an idea! The Ophiotaurus can appear in different bodies of water, right?"

"We, yeah" Percy said. "I mean, he was in Long Island Sound. Then he just popped into the water at the Hoover Dam. And now he's here."

"So maybe we could coax him back to Long Island Sound," Grover said. "Then Chiron could help us get him back to Olympus."

"But he was following me," Percy said. "If I'm not there, would he know where he's going?"

"Moo," Bessie said forlornly.

"I... I can show him," Grover said. "I'll go with him."

Cassandra raised an eyebrow. Satyrs couldn't swim well with their hooves.

"I'm the only one who can talk to him," Grover said. "It makes sense."

He bent down and said something in Bessie's ear. Bessie shivered, then made a contented, lowing sound.

"The blessing of the Wild" Grover said. "That should help us with safe passage. Percy, pray to your dad, too. See if he will grant us safe passage through the seas."

Cassandra was unsure how they would be able to go from California to Long Island but she knew it was different with monsters.

"Dad" Percy said. "Help us. Get the Ophiotaurus and Grover safely to camp. Protect them at sea."

Cassandra felt like she was about to throw up. "A prayer like that needs a sacrifice" She said. "Something big. Huge even."

Percy thought for a second before shrugging off his coat.

"Percy," Grover said. "Are you sure? That lion skin... that's really helpful. Hercules used it!"

Cassandra's gaze became harsher at the mention of the name and she knew that Percy had realized who the hero was based on the look he had. Like he was deep in thought.

He glanced at Zoe, who was watching the boy carefully. Hercules was the hero who had gotten her disowned. Ruined her life, and never mentioned her.

"If I'm going to survive" Percy said, "it won't be because I've got a lion-skin cloak. I'm not Hercules."

He threw the coat into the bay. It turned into a golden lion skin, flashing in the light. Then, as it began to sink beneath the waves, it seemed to dissolve into sunlight on the water.

Cassandra looked at the boy and smiled. He gave her a goofy grin back and she rolled her eyes, before turning back to the water.

The sea breeze picked up.