Sea Green Eyes

The Chalice of the Gods - Part Three

Imagine all the cheesiest entertainment centres from the 1990s got together and had a food baby. That was Hebe Jeebies. Rows of Skee-Ball machines stood ready for action. A dozen Dance Dance Revolution platforms blinked and flashed, inviting people to boogie. Aisles with every arcade game you could ever hear of, and dozens that you'd never heard of, lined the vast, dimly lit warehouse, making the whole place a glowing labyrinth - which was not a term that the four of them used lightly. In the distance, there was a candy station with fill-your-own-bag dispensers and huge bins of sweet colourful stuff. It was a stomachache waiting to happen. On the other side of the warehouse was a cafeteria with picnic tables and a stage where robotic iguanas played musical instruments. There was a ball pit the size of a house, a climbing structure that looked like a giant hamster habitat, a bumper car course, and a ticket exchange station with oversized stuffed animals for prizes. The whole place smelled of pizza, pretzels, and industrial cleaner. And it was packed with families.

"I get it now," said Annabeth, shivering. "This place does give me the heebie-jeebies."

"I've been here a few times." Grover's expression was a combination of anxiety and hunger . . . which, come to think of it, was his usual expression. "I've never found the other end of the place."

Cressida's jaw dropped and for good reason. She gripped Percy's hand tighter. "So, you're telling me that you brought us in this...Lotus Casino - Labyrinth hybrid, with no clue what we're facing, no backup and no clue where to find what we're looking for?!"

"Yep," Grover bleated nervously.

"Talk about every damn quest of our entire life," Cressida huffed.

"OH! I'm getting the Lotus Casino vibes now," Percy commented. "You know, like low-rent Lotus Casino, but still-"

"Seaweed Brain, at least try and keep up," Annabeth said tiredly.

"It's not a trap," Grover insisted. "At least, I've never had any trouble leaving. These families . . . they come and go. They don't seem to be stuck in time."

He did have a point. None of them spotted any people with bell-bottoms or 1950s haircuts, which was definitely a good sign. They even watched several families walk out of the building with no problem.

"Then...what's the catch?" Annabeth asked. "There's always a catch."

"I don't know," Grover admitted. "I usually just get liquorice and leave. I keep a low profile."

"And you're sure Hebe is here?" Percy questioned,

"No, but . . ." Grover wriggled his shoulders. "You know that feeling you get when there's a god around and you can't see them, but you kind of feel like there's a swarm of dung beetles on the back of your neck?"

"Not exactly . . ." Percy answered.

"No," Cressida said bluntly.

"Also," said Annabeth, "dung beetles is oddly specific."

Grover brushed the metaphorical poop bugs off his neck. "Anyway, I've got that feeling now. We could ask the staff if Hebe's around. If we can find someone."

They began moving into the arcade, Percy and Cressida's grip on each other iron-tight as they kept their other hands ready to draw their weapons if need be.

"Oh, my gods," Annabeth said after a time. "Stackers. I haven't played that since..." Her thoughts seemed to drift away. She'd been at Camp Half-Blood since she was seven years old, so she must have been reliving a really early memory. It made sense to me that she would like a game where you had to place one block on top of another. She was all about building and architecture.