Altered Destinies

Back to the Labyrinth

Percy nodded as he stood and turned to Nico, "Go find Bianca and come to breakfast. I'll make sure to see you guys before we leave again."

Nico nodded and ran off to find his sister while Percy turned back to Artemis.

"I take it you have brought us a clear-sighted mortal hunter?" He asked.

Artemis nodded, "Yes, and I assume you will make sure she returns to me safely?"

Percy nodded, "Of course Lady Artemis."

Artemis nodded before she smirked at him, "You've got Olympus in an uproar Perseus. My father wanted to throw you into Tartarus for awakening Typhon."

Percy frowned, "It's not like I meant to. I was just trying to survive."

Artemis nodded, "I understand. Most of the council opposed the idea of punishing you. Demeter and Poseidon even threatened war with Zeus if he tried to harm you."

Percy's eyes widened, "I guess I really am her favorite grandchild." He said, choosing to ignore the part about Poseidon.

Artemis nodded, "Yes she is rather protective of you. Now let's meet up with the others, you must depart soon."

Percy followed the goddess to the dining pavilion where Katie, Annabeth, Zoe and a huntress were all sitting at the Artemis table, apparently waiting for Percy.

"Nice of you to show up, boy." The hunter hissed at him.

Percy just ignored her while Katie looked ready to smack to immortal preteen.

"Enough Rachel," Artemis said sternly. "I told you Perseus is to be treated with respect. He has done a lot for me as well as Zoe. Disrespect towards him will be like disrespect towards me."

Rachel's eyes widened before she bowed her head, "My apologies my lady."

Artemis nodded, "No worries Rachel but you have nothing to worry about. Just consider Perseus one of the girls." She said, her face shifting into a smirk.

Rachel and the other three girls burst into laughter while Percy just shook his head, "I wasn't aware you were a comedian Lady Artemis. I thought you left the jokes to your older brother Apollo."

Artemis' eyes widened before she scowled, "I see my insufferable twin has already been a bad influence on you."

Percy just gave her a cheeky grin which made Artemis' scowl fade and chuckle a bit, "You're lucky Jackson, very lucky."

Once Percy had eaten a quick breakfast and said his goodbyes to Nico and Bianca, the group set off into the Labyrinth again, this time following the red-headed huntress Rachel. She and Zoe walked in the lead as Percy, Annabeth and Katie trailed behind. Katie and Annabeth explained about their journey into the Labyrinth, their encounter with the Sphinx and there eventual escape through an exit that dropped them off in the basement of Mile High Stadium in Denver.

As they walked, Percy noticed Annabeth brushing against him a lot as they walked. Katie rolled her eyes at Annabeth's feeble attempts to garner his attention while Zoe scowled every time she would see them when she turned around. Percy for his part was slowly catching on to Annabeth's intentions and was suddenly rather uncomfortable with the whole situation. He knew how he felt about Annabeth and while she was a great friend, his heart already belonged to someone else, even if he wouldn't admit it to her.

The group traveled for a few hours before Percy sensed something ahead of them.

"Stop!" He whispered, freezing his four companions in their tracks.