σɾɳιƚԋαʂ (ρʝσ x ɱαʅҽ σƈ)

I Get Some Help from Granddad

Percy: But Grover found it. "He went looking for Pan and he found the Fleece instead because they both radiate nature magic. It makes sense, Annabeth. We can rescue him and save the camp at the same time. It's perfect!

Theo: A little too perfect, don't you think?

I remembered last summer, how Kronos had manipulated our quest. He'd almost fooled us into helping him start a war that would've destroyed Western Civilization.

Percy: What choice do we have? Are you going to help me rescue Grover or not?

Annabeth glanced at Tyson, who'd lost interest in our conversation and was happily making toy boats out of cups and spoons in the lava.

Annabeth: Percy, Theo, we'll have to fight a Cyclops. Polyphemus, the worst of the Cyclopes. And there's only one place his island could be. The Sea of Monsters.

Percy: Where's that?

Annabeth looked at him like the dumbass he is.

Annabeth: The Sea of Monsters. The same sea Odysseus sailed through, and Jason, and Aeneas, and all the others.

Percy: In the Mediterranean?

Theo: Well, yes, but actually no.

Percy: (sarcastically) Another straight answer. Thanks.

Annabeth: Theo's right. Look, Percy, the Sea of Monsters is the sea all heroes sail through on their adventures. It used to be in the Mediterranean, yes. But like everything else, it shifts locations as the West's center of power shifts.

Percy: Like Mount Olympus being above the Empire State Building, and Hades being under Los Angeles.

Annabeth: Right.

Percy: But a whole sea full of monsters—how could you hide something like that? Wouldn't the mortals notice weird things happening...like, ships getting eaten and stuff?

Annabeth: Of course, they notice. They don't understand, but they know something is strange about that part of the ocean. The Sea of Monsters is off the east coast of the U.S. now, just northeast of Florida. The mortals even have a name for it.

Percy: The Bermuda Triangle.

Annabeth: Exactly.

Percy: Okay ... so at least we know where to look.

Theo: Percy, we're talking about at least a million square miles of monster-infested waters. Searching for one tiny island in the middle of all that—

Percy: Hey, I'm the son of the sea god. This is my home turf. How hard can it be?

Theo: Nothing good has ever followed the phrase, "How hard can it be?"

Annabeth: We'll have to talk to Tantalus, get approval for a quest. He'll say no.

Percy: Not if we tell him tonight at the campfire in front of everybody. The whole camp will hear. They'll pressure him. He won't be able to refuse.

Theo: Even if he did approve, he's not gonna let us of all people do it. He hates us.

Percy: We're the ones who'll give him the information. He'll be stupid not to.

Annabeth: Maybe...We'd better get these dishes done. Hand me the lava spray gun, will you?

Timeskip
Percy's POV