𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐞𝐧. ℎ𝑢𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝐴𝑟𝑡𝑒𝑚𝑖𝑠
𝙻𝙾𝚁𝙽𝙰 𝚆𝙾𝙺𝙴 up cold and shivering.
She'd had the worst dream about an old guy with donkey ears chasing her around and shouting, You're it!
"Oh, god." Her teeth chattered. "That old bastard turned me to gold!"
"You're okay now." Jason leaned over and tucked a warm blanket around her, but she still felt as cold as a Boread.
She blinked, trying to figure out where they were. Next to her, a campfire blazed, turning the air sharp with smoke. Firelight flickered against rock walls. They were in a shallow cave, but it didn't offer much protection. Outside, the wind howled. Snow blew sideways. It might've been day or night. The storm made it too dark to tell.
"L-L-Leo? P-Pi-" Lorna managed.
"Present and un-gold-ified." Leo and Piper were also wrapped in blankets. He didn't look great, but better than Lorna felt. "We got the precious metal treatment too," he said. "But we came out of it faster. Dunno why. We had to dunk you in the river to get you back completely. Tried to dry you off, but ... it's really, really cold."
Lorna shivered. "I don't usually get wet."
"You've got hypothermia," Jason said. "We risked as much nectar as we could. Coach Hedge did a little nature magic- "
"Sports medicine." The coach's ugly face loomed over her. "Kind of a hobby of mine. Your breath might smell like wild mushrooms and Gatorade for a few days, but it'll pass. You probably won't die. Probably."
"Thanks," Lorna said weakly. "How did you beat Midas?"
Jason told her the story, putting most of it down to luck.
The coach snorted. "Kid's being modest. You should've seen him. Hi-yah! Slice! Boom with the lightning!"
"Coach, you didn't even see it," Jason said. "You were outside eating the lawn."
But the satyr was just warming up. "Then I came in with my club, and we dominated that room. Afterward, I told him, 'Kid, I'm proud of you! If you could just work on your upper body strength- '"
"Coach," said Jason.
"Yeah?"
"Shut up, please."
"Sure." The coach sat down at the fire and started chewing his cudgel.
Jason put his hand on Lorna's forehead and checked her temperature. "Leo, can you stoke the fire?"
"On it." Leo summoned a baseball-sized clump of flames and lobbed it into the campfire.
"I still can't believe you have fire magic," Piper said.
"Oh," Jason added. "Leo is a fire user. He warmed up really quickly and set himself on fire when he woke up."
"I know," Lorna said. "Where are we?" She picked up a stone from the floor and placed it in her bag.
"Pikes Peak," Jason said. "Colorado."
"But that's, what- five hundred miles from Omaha?"
"Something like that," Jason agreed. "I harnessed the storm spirits to bring us this far. They didn't like it- went a little faster than I wanted, almost crashed us into the mountainside before I could get them back in the bag. I'm not going to be trying that again."
"Why are we here?"
Piper sniffed. "That's what I asked him."
Jason gazed into the storm as if watching for something. "That glittery wind trail we saw yesterday? It was still in the sky, though it had faded a lot. I followed it until I couldn't see it anymore. Then- honestly I'm not sure. I just felt like this was the right place to stop."
"'Course it is." Coach Hedge spit out some cudgel splinters. "Aeolus's floating palace should be anchored above us, right at the peak. This is one of his favorite spots to dock."
"Maybe that was it." Jason knit his eyebrows. "I don't know. Something else, too ..."
"The Hunters were heading west," Piper remembered. "Do you think they're around here?"
Jason rubbed his forearm as if the tattoos were bothering him. "I don't see how anyone could survive on the mountain right now. The storm's pretty bad. It's already the evening before the solstice, but we didn't have much choice except to wait out the storm here. We had to give you some time to rest before we tried moving."
He didn't need to convince her. The wind howling outside the cave scared her, and she couldn't stop shivering.
"We have to get you warm." Jason sat next to her and held out his arms a little awkwardly. "Uh, you mind if I ..."
"I suppose." Lorna tried to sound nonchalant.
He put his arms around her and held her. It was weird to be touched so intimately by a boy. Sure she had cuddled with Percy during movie nights but Lorna barely knew Jason. Nonetheless, she felt comfortable in his embrace.
Lorna looked up to see Piper's reaction, expecting her to be angry, but Piper just played with her dagger, unbothered by Lorna and Jason.
They scooted closer to the fire. Coach Hedge chewed on his club and spit splinters into the fire.
Leo broke out some cooking supplies and started frying burger patties on an iron skillet. "So, guys, long as you're cuddled up for story time ... something I've been meaning to tell you. On the way to Omaha, I had this dream. Kinda hard to understand with the static and the Wheel of Fortune breaking in- "
"Wheel of Fortune?" Piper assumed Leo was kidding, but when he looked up from his burgers, his expression was deadly serious.
"The thing is," he said, "my dad Hephaestus talked to me."
Leo told them about his dream. In the firelight, with the wind howling, the story was even creepier. Lorna could imagine the static-filled voice of the god warning about giants who were the sons of Tartarus, and about Leo losing some friends along the way.
She tried to concentrate on something good: Jason's arms around her, the warmth slowly spreading into her body, but she was truly terrified.
"I don't understand." Piper said. "If demigods and gods have to work together to kill the giants, why would the gods stay silent? If they need us- "
"Ha," said Coach Hedge. "The gods hate needing humans. They like to be needed by humans, but not the other way around. Things will have to get a whole lot worse before Zeus admits he made a mistake closing Olympus."
"Coach," Piper said, "that was almost an intelligent comment."
Hedge huffed. "What? I'm intelligent! I'm not surprised you cupcakes haven't heard of the Giant War. The gods don't like to talk about it. Bad PR to admit you needed mortals to help beat an enemy. That's just embarrassing."
"There's more, though," Jason said. "When I dreamed about Hera in her cage, she said Zeus was acting unusually paranoid. And Hera- she said she went to those ruins because a voice had been speaking in her head. What if someone's influencing the gods, like Medea influenced us?"
Lorna shuddered. She'd had a similar thought- that some force they couldn't see was manipulating things behind the scenes, helping the giants. Maybe the same force was keeping Enceladus informed about their movements, and had even knocked their dragon out of the sky over Detroit. Perhaps sleeping Dirt Woman, or another servant of hers ...
Leo set hamburger buns on the skillet to toast. "Yeah, Hephaestus said something similar, like Zeus was acting weirder than usual. But what bothered me was the stuff my dad didn't say. Like a couple of times he was talking about the demigods, and how he had so many kids and all. I don't know. He acted like getting the greatest demigods together was going to be almost impossible- like Hera was trying, but it was a really stupid thing to do, and there was some secret Hephaestus wasn't supposed to tell me."
Jason shifted. Lorna could feel the tension in his arms.
"Chiron was the same way back at camp," he said. "He mentioned a sacred oath not to discuss- something. Coach, you know anything about that?"
"Nah. I'm just a satyr. They don't tell us the juicy stuff. Especially an old- " He stopped himself.
"An old guy like you?" Piper asked. "But you're not that old, are you?"
"Hundred and six," the coach muttered.
Leo coughed. "Say what?"
"Satyrs age twice as fast as humans." Lorna explained. "Besides, Gleeson- Coach made some enemies on the Council of Cloven Elders."
"They started saying I was getting unpredictable. Too violent. Can you imagine?" Coach exclaimed.
"Not at all," Lorna said.
Coach scowled. "Yeah, then finally we get a good war going with the Titans, and do they put me on the front lines? No! They send me as far away as possible- the Canadian frontier, can you believe it? Then after the war, they put me out to pasture. The Wilderness School. Bah! Like I'm too old to be helpful just because I like playing offense. All those flower-pickers on the Council- talking about nature."
"I thought satyrs liked nature," Piper ventured.
"Shoot, I love nature," Hedge said. "Nature means big things killing and eating little things! And when you're a- you know- vertically challenged satyr like me, you get in good shape, you carry a big stick, and you don't take nothing from no one! That's nature." Hedge snorted indignantly. "Flower-pickers. Anyway, I hope you got something vegetarian cooking, Valdez. I don't do flesh."
"Yeah, Coach. Don't eat your cudgel. I got some tofu patties here. Piper's a vegetarian too. I'll throw them on in a second."
The smell of frying burgers filled the air.
Lying by the fire, with Jason holding her, Lorna's conscience felt like a hot bullet slowing working its way toward her heart. Percy was missing, probably in grave danger, and here she was, cuddling with a boy.
Leo put tofu patties on the skillet.
Gradually, Lorna started to feel warmer. She stopped shivering and settled against Jason's chest. Leo handed out the food.
"I don't want to hide anything from you guys anymore." Piper said.
They looked at Piper with their mouths full of burger.
"Three nights before the Grand Canyon trip," she said, "I had a dream vision- a giant, telling me my father had been taken hostage. He told me I had to cooperate, or my dad would be killed."
The flames crackled.
Finally Jason said, "Enceladus? You mentioned that name before."
Coach Hedge whistled. "Big giant. Breathes fire. Not somebody I'd want barbecuing my daddy goat."
Jason gave him a shut up look. "Piper, go on. What happened next?"
"I- I tried to reach my dad, but all I got was his personal assistant, and she told me not to worry. But, to get my dad back, I had to sabotage this quest. I didn't realize it would be the four of us. Then after we started the quest, Enceladus sent me another warning: He told me he wanted you three dead. He wants me to lead you to a mountain. I don't know exactly which one, but it's in the Bay Area- I could see the Golden Gate Bridge from the summit. I have to be there by noon on the solstice, tomorrow. An exchange."
Lorna scooted next to her and put her arm around her. "God, Piper. I'm so sorry."
Leo nodded. "No kidding. You've been carrying this around for a week? Piper, we could help you."
She glared at them. "Why don't you yell at me or something? I was ordered to kill you!"
"Aw, come on," Jason said. "You've saved us on this quest. I'd put my life in your hands any day."
"Same," Leo said. "Can I have a hug too?"
"You don't get it!" Piper said. "I've probably just killed my dad, telling you this."
"I doubt it." Lorna said. "He hasn't gotten what he wants yet, so he still needs your dad for leverage. He'll wait until the deadline passes, see if you show up. He wants you to divert the quest to this mountain, right?"
Piper nodded uncertainly.
"So that means Hera is being kept somewhere else," Lorna reasoned. "And she has to be saved by the same day. So you have to choose- rescue your dad, or rescue Hera. If you go after Hera, then Enceladus takes care of your dad. Besides, Enceladus would never let you go even if you cooperated. You're obviously one of the eight in the Great Prophecy. All of us are."
"So we have no choice," Piper said miserably. "We have to save Hera, or the giant king gets unleashed. That's our quest. The world depends on it. And Enceladus seems to have ways of watching me. He isn't stupid. He'll know if we change course and go the wrong way. He'll kill my dad."
"He's not going to kill your dad," Leo said. "We'll save him."
"We don't have time!" Piper cried. "Besides, it's a trap."
"We're your friends, beauty queen," Leo said. "We're not going to let your dad die. We just gotta figure out a plan."
Coach Hedge grumbled. "Would help if we knew where this mountain was. Maybe Aeolus can tell you that. The Bay Area has a bad reputation for demigods. Old home of the Titans, Mount Othrys, sits over Mount Tam, where Atlas holds up the sky. Hey, Jackson. Did you really hold up the sky?"
Lorna really didn't want to reply but she did. "Yeah."
"You, what?" Jason asked.
"It's whatever. Annabeth did too. I hope that's not the mountain you saw." Lorna asked Piper.
"I don't think so. This was inland."
Jason frowned at the fire, like he was trying to remember something. "Bad reputation ... that doesn't seem right. The Bay Area ..."
"You think you've been there?" Lorna asked.
"I ..." He looked like he was almost on the edge of a breakthrough. Then the anguish came back into his eyes. "I don't know. What happened to Mount Othrys?"
Hedge took another bite of paper and burger. "Well, Kronos built a new palace there last summer. Big nasty place, was going to be the headquarters for his new kingdom and all. Weren't any battles there, though. Kronos marched on Manhattan, tried to take Olympus. If I remember right, he left some other Titans in charge of his palace, but after Kronos got defeated in Manhattan, the whole palace just crumbled on its own."
"No," Jason said.
Everyone looked at him.
"What do you mean, 'No'?" Leo asked.
"That's not what happened. I-" He tensed, looking toward the cave entrance. "Did you hear that?"
For a second, nothing. Then Lorna heard it: howls piercing the night.
"Wolves," Piper said. "They sound close."
Jason rose and summoned his sword. Leo, Coach Hedge and Piper got to their feet too. Lorna tried, but black spots danced before her eyes.
"Stay there," Jason told her. "We'll protect you."
"I can protect myself." Lorna said.
"Surely not." Jason said.
She gritted her teeth. She hated feeling helpless. She didn't want anyone to protect her. Stupid hypothermia. She wanted to be on her feet, with Tremor in her hand. Then, just outside the firelight at the entrance of the cave, she saw a pair of red eyes glowing in dark.
Okay, she thought. Maybe a little protection is fine.
More wolves edged into the firelight- black beasts bigger than Great Danes, with ice and snow caked on their fur. Their fangs gleamed, and their glowing red eyes looked disturbingly intelligent. The wolf in front was almost as tall as a horse, his mouth stained as if he'd just made a fresh kill.
Then Jason stepped forward and said something in Latin. Lorna didn't think a dead language would have much effect on wild animals, but the alpha wolf curled his lip. The fur stood up along his spine. One of his lieutenants tried to advance, but the alpha wolf snapped at his ear. Then all of the wolves backed into the dark.
"Dude, I gotta study Latin." Leo's hammer shook in his hand. "What'd you say, Jason?"
Hedge cursed. "Whatever it was, it wasn't enough. Look."
The wolves were coming back, but the alpha wolf wasn't with them. They didn't attack. They waited- at least a dozen now, in a rough semicircle just outside the firelight, blocking the cave exit. The coach hefted his club. "Here's the plan. I'll kill them all, and you guys escape."
"Coach, they'll rip you apart," Piper said.
"Nah, I'm good."
"Good. But ripped to pieces." Lorna quoted her friend Grover.
Then Lorna saw the silhouette of a man coming through the storm, wading through the wolf pack.
"Stick together," Jason said. "They respect a pack. And Hedge, no crazy stuff. We're not leaving you or anyone else behind."
Lorna got a lump in her throat. She was the weak link in their "pack" right now. No doubt the wolves could smell her fear. She might as well be wearing a sign that said free lunch. The wolves parted, and the man stepped into the firelight. His hair was greasy and ragged, the color of fireplace soot, topped with a crown of what looked like finger bones. His robes were tattered fur- wolf, rabbit, raccoon, deer, and several others Lorna couldn't identify. The furs didn't look cured, and from the smell, they weren't very fresh. His frame was lithe and muscular, like a distance runner's. But the most horrible thing was his face. His thin pale skin was pulled tight over his skull. His teeth were sharpened like fangs. His eyes glowed bright red like his wolves'—and they fixed on Jason with absolute hatred.
"Ecce," he said, "filli Romani."
"Speak English, wolf man!" Hedge bellowed.
The wolf man snarled. "Tell your faun to mind his tongue, son of Rome. Or he'll be my first snack."
Lorna remembered that faun was the Roman name for satyr. Not exactly helpful information. Now, if she could remember who this wolf guy was in Greek mythology, and how to defeat him, that she could use. The wolf man studied their little group. His nostrils twitched.
"So it's true," he mused. "A child of Aphrodite. A son of Hephaestus. The famous daughter of Poseidon. A faun. And a child of Rome, of Lord Jupiter, no less. All together, without killing each other. How interesting."
"You were told about us?" Jason asked. "By whom?"
The man snarled- perhaps a laugh, perhaps a challenge. "Oh, we've been patrolling for you all across the west, demigod, hoping we'd be the first to find you. The giant king will reward me well when he rises. I am Lycaon, king of the wolves. And my pack is hungry."
The wolves snarled in the darkness. Out of the corner of her eye, Lorna saw Leo put up his hammer and slip something else from his tool belt- a glass bottle full of clear liquid. Lorna racked her brain trying to place the wolf guy's name. She knew she'd heard it before, but she couldn't remember details. Lycaon glared at Jason's sword. He moved to each side as if looking for an opening, but Jason's blade moved with him.
"Leave," Jason ordered. "There's no food for you here."
"Unless you want tofu burgers," Leo offered.
Lycaon bared his fangs. Apparently he wasn't a tofu fan.
"If I had my way," Lycaon said with regret, "I'd kill you first, son of Jupiter. Your father made me what I am. I was the powerful mortal king of Arcadia, with fifty fine sons, and Zeus slew them all with his lightning bolts."
"Ha," Coach Hedge said. "For good reason!"
Jason glanced over his shoulder. "Coach, you know this clown?"
"I do," Piper answered.
"Lycaon invited Zeus to dinner," she said. "But the king wasn't sure it was really Zeus. So to test his powers, Lycaon tried to feed him human flesh. Zeus got outraged- "
"And killed my sons!" Lycaon howled.
The wolves behind him howled too.
"So Zeus turned him into a wolf," Piper said. "They call... they call werewolves lycanthropes, named after him, the first werewolf."
"The king of wolves," Coach Hedge finished. "An immortal, smelly, vicious mutt."
Lycaon growled. "I will tear you apart, faun!"
"Oh, you want some goat, buddy? 'Cause I'll give you goat. "
"Stop it," Jason said. "Lycaon, you said you wanted to kill me first, but...?"
"Sadly, Child of Rome, you are spoken for. Since this one" —he waggled his claws at Piper—"has failed to kill you, you are to be delivered alive to the Wolf House. One of my compatriots has asked for the honor of killing you herself."
"Who?" Jason said.
The wolf king snickered. "Oh, a great admirer of yours. Apparently, you made quite an impression on her. She will take care of you soon enough, and really I cannot complain. Spilling your blood at the Wolf House should mark my new territory quite well. Lupa will think twice about challenging my pack."
Lorna's heart tried to jump out of her chest. She didn't understand everything Lycaon had said, but a woman who wanted to kill Jason? Medea, she thought. Somehow, she must've survived the explosion. Lorna struggled to her feet. Spots danced before her eyes again. The cave seemed to spin.
"You're going to leave now," Piper said, "before we destroy you."
Lycaon's red eyes crinkled with humor. "A brave try, girl. I admire that. Perhaps I'll make your end quick. Only the son of Jupiter is needed alive. The rest of you, I'm afraid, are dinner."
At that moment, Lorna knew she was going to die. But at least she'd die on her feet, fighting.
Jason took a step forward. "You're not killing anyone, wolf man. Not without going through me."
Lycaon howled and extended his claws. Jason slashed at him, but his golden sword passed straight through as if the wolf king wasn't there. Lycaon laughed.
"Gold, bronze, steel- none of these are any good against my wolves, son of Jupiter."
"Silver!" Lorna cried. "Aren't werewolves hurt by silver?"
"We don't have any silver!" Jason said.
Wolves leaped into the firelight.
Hedge charged forward with an elated "Woot!"
But Leo struck first. He threw his glass bottle and it shattered on the ground, splattering liquid all over the wolves - the unmistakable smell of gasoline. He shot a burst of fire at the puddle, and a wall of flames erupted. Wolves yelped and retreated. Several caught fire and had to run back into the snow. Even Lycaon looked uneasily at the barrier of flames now separating his wolves from the demigods.
"Aw, c'mon," Coach Hedge complained. "I can't hit them if they're way over there."
Every time a wolf came closer, Leo shot a new wave of fire from his hands, but each effort seemed to make him a little more tired, and the gasoline was already dying down.
"I can't summon any more gas!" Leo warned. Then his face turned red. "Wow, that came out wrong. I mean the burning kind. Gonna take the tool belt a while to recharge. What you got, man?"
"Nothing," Jason said. "Not even a weapon that works."
"Lightning?" Lorna asked.
Jason concentrated, but nothing happened. "I think the snowstorm is interfering, or something."
"Unleash the venti!" Piper said.
"Then we'll have nothing to give Aeolus," Jason said. "We'll have come all this way for nothing."
Lycaon laughed. "I can smell your fear. A few more minutes of life, heroes. Pray to whatever gods you wish. Zeus did not grant me mercy, and you will have none from me."
The flames began to sputter out. Jason cursed and dropped his sword. He crouched like he was ready to go hand-to-hand. Leo pulled his hammer out of his pack. Piper raised her dagger. Lorna got Tremor out. Coach Hedge hefted his club, and he was the only one who looked excited about dying.
Then a ripping sound cut through the wind- like a piece of tearing cardboard. A long stick sprouted from the neck of the nearest wolf- the shaft of a silver arrow.
The wolf writhed and fell, melting into a puddle of shadow.
More arrows. More wolves fell.
The pack broke in confusion. An arrow flashed toward Lycaon, but the wolf king caught it in midair. Then he yelled in pain. When he dropped the arrow, it left a charred, smoking gash across his palm. Another arrow caught him in the shoulder, and the wolf king staggered.
"Curse them!" Lycaon yelled.
He growled at his pack, and the wolves turned and ran. Lycaon fixed Jason with those glowing red eyes.
"This isn't over, boy." The wolf king disappeared into the night.
Seconds later, Piper heard more wolves baying, but the sound was different- less threatening, more like hunting dogs on the scent. A smaller white wolf burst into the cave, followed by two more.
Hedge said, "Kill it?"
"No!" Lorna said. "Wait. The arrows, they- "
The wolves tilted their heads and studied the campers with huge golden eyes.
A heartbeat later, their masters appeared: a troop of hunters in white-and-gray winter camouflage, at least half a dozen.
All of them carried bows, with quivers of glowing silver arrows on their backs. Their faces were covered with parka hoods, but clearly they were all girls. One, a little taller than the rest, crouched in the firelight and snatched up the arrow that had wounded Lycaon's hand.
"So close." She turned to her companions. "Phoebe, stay with me. Watch the entrance. The rest of you, follow Lycaon. We can't lose him now. I'll catch up with you."
The other hunters mumbled agreement and disappeared, heading after Lycaon's pack.
The girl in white turned toward them, her face still hidden in her parka hood. "We've been following that demon's trail for over a week. Is everyone all right? No one got bit?"
"Thalia!" Lorna exclaimed.
She pulled down her parka hood. Her hair was spiky black, with a silver tiara across her brow. Her face had a super-healthy glow to it, as if she were a little more than human, and her eyes were brilliant blue. They hugged for a while and asked each other about Percy's whereabouts.
"New campers? On a quest already?" Thalia looked behind Lorna.
"Thalia." Jason stepped forward, his voice trembling. "I'm Jason, your brother."
Lorna looked between Jason and Thalia confused.
For a minute, Jason and Thalia faced each other, stunned. Then Thalia rushed forward and hugged him. "My gods! She told me you were dead!"
She gripped Jason's face and seemed to be examining everything about it. "Thank Artemis, it is you. That little scar on your lip- you tried to eat a stapler when you were two!"
Leo laughed. "Seriously?"
"Thanks for the blackmail material." Lorna added.
Hedge nodded like he approved of Jason's taste. "Staplers- excellent source of iron."
"W-wait," Jason stammered. "Who told you I was dead? What happened?"
At the cave entrance, one of the white wolves barked. Thalia looked back at the wolf and nodded, but she kept her hands on Jason's face, like she was afraid he might vanish. "My wolf is telling me I don't have much time, and she's right. But we have to talk. Let's sit."
Lorna did better than that. She collapsed. She would've cracked her head on the cave floor if Hedge hadn't caught her. Thalia rushed over. "What's wrong? Ah- never mind. I see. Hypothermia."
Then she looked at Piper. "Your ankle." She frowned at the satyr. "Don't you know nature healing"
Hedge scoffed. "Why do you think she looks this good? Can't you smell the Gatorade?"
Thalia looked at Leo for the first time.
"You and the satyr," Thalia ordered, "take the girls to my friend at the entrance. Phoebe's an excellent healer."
"No. I just need water." Lorna insisted.
Thalia gave her a look and Lorna didn't argue.
"It's cold out there!" Hedge said. "I'll freeze my horns off."
"Come on, Hedge. These two need time to talk." Leo said.
"Humph. Fine," the satyr muttered. "Didn't even get to brain anybody."
Hedge carried Lorna toward the entrance while she fought against him.
Leo was about to follow when Jason called, "Actually, man, could you, um, stick around?"
Leo grinned. "Sticking around is my specialty."
𝙿𝙷𝙾𝙴𝙱𝙴 𝙷𝙰𝙳 set up this silver tent pavilion thing right outside the cave. Inside was a kerosene heater keeping them toasty warm and a bunch of comfy throw pillows. Piper and Lorna were decked out in a new parka, gloves, and camo pants like a Hunter. Piper, Lorna, Hedge and Phoebe were kicking back, drinking hot chocolate.
"So, this is a hunter's life, huh? Seems fun." Piper said.
"Oh yeah. I was tempted to join them. A bunch of immortal girls sounded so fun. But. . . I didn't. I couldn't. Because of the prophecy. And Percy and I, we had to stick together." Lorna looked down at her feet.
"Hey, we'll find him." Piper reassured.
"And we'll get your father back. I promise."
Piper looked around longingly.
"Hey," Lorna said gently. "You could join the hunters. After this whole prophecy of the Eight is over. It's worth joining, and I'm sure they'd want someone like you. Unless... unless you and Jason... um... hunters can't have any romantic relationships. So if you and Jason-"
"Oh! Oh no, that's- we're- " Piper took a deep breath. "I had fake memories of Jason and Annabeth helped me realise that. At first I didn't believe it because I thought I was in love with him. But the more I observe him, and the more I listen to him, I realise that the image of Jason I have in my memories is nothing like the real Jason. The real Jason is more annoying."
"He's not annoying," Lorna said.
"Not to you," Piper said. "Because you're able to rebut his stupid remarks, but Leo and I, we can't. You and Jason," Piper shook her head. "You two are different."
"Oh, no way," Leo said, bursting into the tent. "We've been sitting in a cave and you get the luxury tent? Somebody give me hypothermia. I want hot chocolate and a parka!"
Phoebe sniffed. "Boys," she said, like it was the worst insult she could think of.
"It's all right, Phoebe," Thalia said. "They'll need extra coats. And I think we can spare some chocolate."
Phoebe grumbled, but soon Leo and Jason were also dressed in silvery winter clothes that were incredibly lightweight and warm.
"Cheers!" said Coach Hedge. He crunched down his plastic thermos cup.
"That cannot be good for your intestines," Leo said.
Thalia patted Piper on the back. "You up for moving?"
Piper nodded. "Thanks to Phoebe, yeah. You guys are really good at this wilderness survival thing. I feel like I could run ten miles."
"Hey, I could run ten miles too," Leo volunteered. "Let's hit it."
Naturally, Thalia ignored him. It took Phoebe exactly six seconds to break camp, which Leo could not believe. The tent self-collapsed into a square the size of a pack of chewing gum. Leo wanted to ask her for the blueprints, but they didn't have time. Thalia ran uphill through the snow, hugging a tiny little path on the side of the mountain. Coach Hedge leaped around like a happy mountain goat, coaxing them on like he used to do on track days at school.
"Come on, Valdez! Pick up the pace! Let's chant. I've got a girl in Kalamazoo- "
"Let's not," Thalia snapped.
So they ran in silence. Leo was so lost in his thoughts he slammed into Lorna and nearly sent them both down the side of the mountain the hard way. Fortunately, Lorna was light on her feet. She steadied them both, then pointed up.
"That," Leo choked, "is a really large rock."
They stood near the summit of Pikes Peak. Below them the world was blanketed in clouds. The air was so thin, Lorna could hardly breathe. Night had set in, but a full moon shone and the stars were incredible. Stretching out to the north and south, peaks of other mountains rose from the clouds like islands- or teeth.
But the real show was above them. Hovering in the sky, about a quarter mile away, was a massive free-floating island of glowing purple stone. It was hard to judge its size, but Lorna figured it was at least as wide as a football stadium and just as tall.
The sides were rugged cliffs, riddled with caves, and every once in a while a gust of wind burst out with a sound like a pipe organ blast. At the top of the rock, brass walls ringed some kind of a fortress. The only thing connecting Pikes Peak to the floating island was a narrow bridge of ice that glistened in the moonlight.
Then Lorna realized the bridge wasn't exactly ice, because it wasn't solid. As the winds changed direction, the bridge snaked around- blurring and thinning, in some places even breaking into a dotted line like the vapor trail of a plane.
"We're not seriously crossing that," Leo said.
Thalia shrugged. "I'm not a big fan of heights, I'll admit. But if you want to get to Aeolus's fortress, this is the only way."
"Dam it! I swear to Poseidon, all I do in quest is fall. Gateway arch. Princess Andromeda. Erymanthian Boar, Zues' fist." Lorna grumbled.
"Dam?" Thalia asked as the two broke out in laughter.
"Okay, weirdos. Is the fortress always hanging there?" Piper asked. "How can people not notice it sitting on top of Pikes Peak?"
"The Mist," Thalia said. "Still, mortals do notice it indirectly. Some days, Pikes Peak looks purple. People say it's a trick of the light, but actually it's the color of Aeolus's palace, reflecting off the mountain face."
"It's enormous," Jason said.
Thalia laughed. "You should see Olympus, little brother."
"You're serious? You've been there?"
Thalia and Lorna grimaced as if it wasn't a good memory. "We should go across in two different groups. The bridge is fragile."
"That's reassuring," Leo said. "Jason, can't you just fly us up there?"
Thalia laughed. Then she seemed to realize Leo's question wasn't a joke. "Wait ... Jason, you can fly?"
Jason gazed up at the floating fortress. "Well, sort of. More like I can control the winds. But the winds up here are so strong, I'm not sure I'd want to try. Thalia, you mean ... you can't fly?"
For a second, Thalia looked genuinely afraid. Then she got her expression under control.
"Truthfully," she said, "I've never tried. Might be better if we stuck to the bridge."
Coach Hedge tapped the ice vapor trail with his hoof, then jumped onto the bridge. Amazingly, it held his weight. "Easy! I'll go first. Piper, Lorna, come on, girls. I'll give you a hand."
"No, that's okay," Lorna started to say, but the coach grabbed her hand and dragged her up the bridge. Lorna grabbed Piper's hand just in time to bring her up. When they were about halfway, the bridge still seemed to be holding them just fine.
"Coach, you don't just drag someone up a bridge that is going to break." Lorna chided.
"Says you." Piper said. "You did the same."
"Did not." Lorna joked.
Lorna looked behind and saw that the boys had stopped in their tracks. They were talking to Thalia and Lorna strained to listen. When they finally reached the floating island, Lorna immediately turned and saw Leo falling, but Jason grabbed his coat and pulled him to safety.
The two of them scrambled up the bridge as it melted.
"Oh crap. Did Leo melt the bridge?" Lorna said.
Leo and Jason climbed for their lives, the ice vapor thinning under their feet. Several times, Jason grabbed Leo and used the winds to keep them aloft. When they reached the floating island, Piper and Lorna pulled them aboard just as the last of the vapor bridge vanished.
They stood gasping for breath at the base of a stone stairway chiseled into the side of the cliff, leading up to the fortress. Lorna looked back down. The top of Pikes Peak floated below them in a sea of clouds, but there was no sign of Thalia. And Leo had just burned their only exit.
"What happened?" Piper demanded. "Leo, why are your clothes smoking?"
"I got a little heated," he gasped.
"A little?" Lorna asked.
"Maybe a lot. Sorry, Jason. Honest. I didn't- "
"It's all right," Jason said, but his expression was grim. "We've got less than twenty-four hours to rescue a goddess and Piper's dad. Let's go see the king of the winds."