The Twins of the Sea- A change in the past-

Chapter 33

Grover gave each of us a hug and he stopped in front of me and Percy.
"We have made it! But you have to convince them! They can't do it!"

"Do what?" We asked simultaneously.

"Heroes," Artemis called.

The goddess slid down from her throne and turned to human size, a young auburnhaired girl, perfectly at ease in the midst of the giant Olympians. She walked toward us, her  silver robes shimmering. There was no emotion in her face. She seemed to walk in a column  of moonlight.

"The Council has been informed of your deeds," Artemis told us. "They know that  Mount Othrys is rising in the West. They know of Atlas's attempt for freedom, and the  gathering armies of Kronos. We have voted to act."  There was some mumbling and shuffling among the gods, as if they weren't all happy
with this plan, but nobody protested.

"At my Lord Zeus's command," Artemis said, "my brother Apollo and I shall hunt the  most powerful monsters, seeking to strike them down before they can join the Titans' cause.  Lady Athena shall personally check on the other Titans to make sure they do not escape their  various prisons. Lord Poseidon has been given permission to unleash his full fury on the  cruise ship Princess Andromeda and send it to the bottom of the sea. And as for you, my  heroes…"

She turned to face the other immortals. "These half-bloods have done Olympus a great service. Would any here deny that?"

She looked around at the assembled gods, meeting their faces individually. Zeus in his  dark pin-striped suit, his black beard neatly trimmed, and his eyes sparking with energy. Next  to him sat a beautiful woman with silver hair braided over one shoulder and a dress that  shimmered colors like peacock feathers. The Lady Hera. On the other side of Zeus was Poseidon, Hephaestus,  Hermes, Apollo, Dionysus, Ares and on Hera's side were Demeter,  Athena and Aphrodite.

"I gotta say"—Apollo broke the silence—"these kids did okay." He cleared his throat and began to recite: "Heroes win laurels—"

"Um, yes, first class," Hermes interrupted, like he was anxious to avoid Apollo's poetry. "All in favor of not disintegrating them?"

A few tentative hands went up—Demeter, Aphrodite.

"Wait just a minute," Ares growled. He pointed at Thalia, Percy and me. "These three are  dangerous. It'd be much safer, while we've got them here—" 

"Ares," Poseidon interrupted, "they are worthy heroes. We will not blast my children to bits." Now we're your children? Although... It felt kinda nice to be recognized.

"Nor my daughter," Zeus grumbled. "She has done well."

The goddess Athena cleared her throat and sat forward. "I am proud of my daughter as well. But there is a security risk here with the other three."

"Mother!" Annabeth said. "How can you—"  Athena cut her off with a calm but firm look.

"It is unfortunate that my father, Zeus, and  my uncle, Poseidon, chose to break their oath not to have more children. Only Hades kept his  word, a fact that I find ironic. As we know from the Great Prophecy, children of the three  elder gods… such as Thalia, Andy and Percy… are dangerous. As thickheaded as he is, Ares has a  point."

"Right!" Ares said. "Hey, wait a minute. Who you callin'—"  He started to get up, but a grape vine grew around his waist like a seat belt and pulled him back down.

"Oh, please, Ares," Dionysus sighed. "Save the fighting for later."  Ares cursed and ripped away the vine.

"You're one to talk, you old drunk. You seriously want to protect these brats?"