cacoethes |PERCY JACKSON| [book 2]

VIII

RIDING THE HIPPOCAMPUS WAS PRETTY EASY. They zipped along with the wind in their faces, speeding through the waves so smooth and steady that they hardly needed to hold on at all.

As they got closer to the cruise ship, they realized just how huge it was. Selena felt as though she were looking up at a building in Manhattan. The white hull was at least ten stories tall, topped with another dozen levels of decks with brightly lit balconies and portholes. The ship's name was painted just above the bowline in black letters, lit with a spotlight. It took her a few seconds to decipher it: PRINCESS ANDROMEDA

Attached to the bow was a huge masthead-a three-story-tall woman wearing a white Greek chiton, sculpted to look as if she were chained to the front of the ship. She was young and beautiful, with flowing black hair, but her expression was one of absolute terror. Why anybody would want a screaming princess on the front of their vacation ship, Selena had no idea.

Selena remembered the myth about Andromeda and how she had been chained to a rock by her own parents as a sacrifice to a sea monster. Perseus had saved her just in time and turned the sea monster to stone using the head of Medusa. 

That Perseus always won. The original Perseus was one of the only heroes in the Greek myths who got a happy ending. The others died-betrayed, mauled, mutilated, poisoned, or cursed by the Gods. 

And now she was stuck with the other Perseus. The one who always got into trouble.

"How do we get aboard?" Annabeth shouted over the noise of the waves, but the hippocampi seemed to know what they needed. They skimmed along the starboard side of the ship, riding easily through its huge wake, and pulled up next to a service ladder riveted to the side of the hull.

"You first," Selena told Annabeth.

She slung her duffel bag over her shoulder and grabbed the bottom rung. Once she'd hoisted herself onto the ladder, her hippocampus whinnied a farewell and dove under-water.

Annabeth began to climb. Selena let her get a few rungs up, then followed her. Next was Percy and, finally, it was just Tyson in the water. His hippocampus was treating him to 360 aerials and backward ollies, and Tyson was laughing so hysterically, the sound echoed up the side of the ship.

"Tyson, shhh!" Percy said. "Come on, big guy!"

"Can't we take Rainbow?" he asked, his smile fading.

Percy stared at him. "Rainbow?" The hippocampus whinnied as if he liked his new name. "Um, we have to go. Rainbow ... Well, he can't climb ladders."

Tyson sniffled. He buried his face in the hippocampus's mane. "I will miss you, Rainbow!" The hippocampus made a neighing sound that seemed like crying.

"Maybe we'll see him again sometime," Percy suggested.

"Oh, please!" Tyson said, perking up immediately. "Tomorrow!"

Percy didn't make any promises, but he finally convinced Tyson to say his farewells and grab hold of the ladder. With a final sad whinny, Rainbow the hippocampus did a back-flip and dove into the sea.

The ladder led to a maintenance deck stacked with yellow lifeboats. There was a set of locked double doors, which Annabeth managed to pry open with her knife and a fair amount of cursing in Ancient Greek.

They figured that they would have to sneak around, being stowaways and all, but after checking a few corridors and peering over a balcony into a huge central promenade lined with closed shops, they began to realize there was nobody to hide from. Sure, it was the middle of the night, but they walked half the length of the boat and met no one. The four passed forty or fifty cabin doors and heard no sound behind any of them.

"It's a ghost ship," Percy murmured.

"No," Tyson said, fiddling with the strap of his duffel bag. "Bad smell."

Annabeth frowned. "I don't smell anything."

"Cyclopes are like satyrs," Selena replied, "They can smell monsters. Isn't that right, Tyson?"

He nodded nervously. Now that they were away from Camp Half-Blood, the Mist had distorted his face again. Selena could create the illusion that he had two eyes but saved her energy for when they were in public.

"Okay," Annabeth said. "So what exactly do you smell?"

"Something bad," Tyson answered.

"Great," Annabeth grumbled. "That clears it up."

They came outside on the swimming pool level. There were rows of empty deck chairs and a bar closed off with a chain curtain. The water in the pool glowed eerily, sloshing back and forth from the motion of the ship.

Above them were more levels. A climbing wall, a putt-putt golf course, a revolving restaurant, but no sign of life.  And yet ... Percy sensed something familiar. Something dangerous. He had the feeling that if he wasn't so tired and burned out on adrenaline from our long night, he might be able to put a name to what was wrong.

"We need a hiding place," He sighed, "Somewhere safe to sleep."

"Sleep," Annabeth agreed wearily.

They explored a few more corridors until they found an empty suite on the ninth level. The door was open, which struck them as weird. There was a basket of chocolate goodies on the table, an iced-down bottle of sparkling cider on the nightstand, and a mint on the pillow with a hand-written note that said: 'Enjoy your cruise!'

They opened the three duffel bags for the first time and found that Hermes really had thought of everything. Extra clothes, toiletries, camp rations, a Ziploc bag full of cash, a leather pouch full of golden drachmas. He'd even managed to pack Tyson's oilcloth with his tools and metal bits, and Annabeth's cap of invisibility, and Selena's Polaroid camera, which made them feel a lot better.

"We'll be next door," Annabeth told Percy "You guys don't drink or eat anything."

"You think this place is enchanted?" Percy asked,

She frowned. "I don't know. Something isn't right. Just... Be careful."