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chapter v
(the lighting theif)
ariana is given a quest
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ARIANA DID NOT LET PERCY'S PARENTAGE HINDER THEIR GROWING FRIENDSHIP. Unlike Annabeth who acted like a different person around the boy, Ariana stayed by his side. She knew what it was like to be judged because who her father was, and she knew Percy was going through something similar.
But other campers steered clear of Percy as much as possible. Cabin eleven was too nervous to have sword class with him after what he'd done to the Ares folks in the woods, so his lessons with Luke became one-on-one.
Annabeth still taught him Greek in the mornings with Ariana, but she seemed distracted. Every time Percy said something, she scowled at him, as if he'd just poked her between the eyes.
After lessons, she would walk away muttering to herself: "Quest ... Poseidon? ... Dirty rotten ... Got to make a plan ..."
Even Clarisse kept her distance, though her venomous looks made it clear she wanted to kill Percy for breaking her magic spear.
Everyone was talking about the Hellhound. Never to Percy's face, and they had stopped doing it around Ariana after she snapped at some Ares campers. The attack had scared everybody. It sent two messages: one, that Percy was the son of the Sea God; and two, monsters would stop at nothing to kill him. They could even invade a camp that had always been considered safe.
ONE NIGHT, she had her most confusing dream yet.
She was standing on a beach in a storm. The wind blew her hair in her face, even when she tucked it behind her ears.
There was a city behind her. Not New York. The sprawl was different: buildings spread farther apart, palm trees and low hills in the distance.
The weirdest part of the dream was the familiar black messy hair standing in front of her. He watched two men fighting, about a hundred yards down the surf. They looked like TV wrestlers, muscular, with beards and long hair. Both wore flowing Greek tunics, one trimmed in blue, the other in green.
"Percy?" Ariana called, and he turned around, his eyes wide in surprise when he spotted her."
"Ariana? Why are you in my head?"
"Why are you in mine?"
She ran towards him with difficulty, as the wind was pushing her back with force. She finally reached him.
"We could be having the same dream. But how does that work?"
Before he could answer, lightning flashed across the sky, and the clouds rumbled and grew dark.
Ariana's faze snapped back to the fighting men. They grappled with each other, wrestled, kicked and head-butted, and every time they connected, lightning flashed, the sky grew darker, and the wind rose.
They both tried to stop the fighting. But the harder they ran, the more the wind blew them back, until she was running in place, her heels digging uselessly in the sand.
Over the roar of the storm, she could hear the blue-robed one yelling at the green-robed one, "Give it back! Give it back!"
Like a kid fighting over a toy.
The waves got bigger, crashing into the beach, spraying them with salt.
Percy yelled, "Stop it! Stop fighting!"
The ground shook. Laughter came from somewhere under the earth, and a voice so deep and evil it turned Ariana's blood to ice. She grabbed Percy's and, to remind herself she wasn't there alone.
"Come down, little heroes," the voice crooned. "Come down!"
The sand split beneath them, opening up a crevice straight down to the center of the earth. Ariana's feet slipped, and dark-ness swallowed them.
She woke up with a gasp. She was still in bed in cabin six. Her clock told her it was morning, but it was dark outside, and thunder rolled across the hills. A storm was brewing. She hadn't dreamed that.
But how was Percy in her dream?
She heard someone knocking heavily on the door. Zach, who was closest to the door, yelled, "Go away!"
"I need to talk to Ariana," came Annabeth's reply.
Ariana got a pillow in the face. It came from Zach's direction.
"One minute," she yelled, pulling on her clothes. She tied the laces of her shoes and hurried out the door.
"Everything okay?" Ariana asked.
Annabeth grinned. "Chiron and Mr D want to see us. I think it's a quest!"
Ariana's eyes widened. Annabeth had wanted a quest for years, and had promised if an opportunity came up, she would force Chiron to bring Ariana with her.
"Wait-really?" Ariana asked. If Annabeth was pranking her-
"Yes really! Come on, we can't be late."
Annabeth grabbed her arm and began pulling her towards the Big House, practically skipping. Annabeth has been waiting for years simply for an opportunity to go in a quest. Ariana had wanted just as much Annabeth up until she got into Hogwarts. She had her fair share of the 'real world'- and it sucked.
That didn't mean she didn't still want to go on a quest.
Over Long Island Sound, the sky looked like ink soup coming to a boil. A hazy curtain of rain was coming in their direction. It never rained in camp, as Mr D controlled the weather. Storms just passed around them. Bad weather always does.
But this storm ... this one was huge.
Ariana pointed up. "Should we be concerned?"
Annabeth frowned. "It'll pass. It always does."
But she didn't sound sure.
At the volleyball pit, the kids from Apollo's cabin were playing a morning game against the satyrs. Dionysus's twins were walking around in the strawberry fields, making the plants grow. Everybody was going about their normal business, but they looked tense. They kept their eyes on the storm.
Her and Annabeth walked up to the front porch of the Big House. Dionysus sat at the pinochle table in his tiger-striped Hawaiian shirt with his Diet Coke, just as he always wore. Chiron sat across the table in his fake wheel-chair. They were playing against invisible opponents--two sets of cards hovering in the air.
"Ah, Annabeth. Ariana," said Chiron, "would you like to play?"
"I'm terrible," said Ariana, "Mr D could beat me with his eyes closed." The god huffed, accepting the compliment. Ariana had always tried to stay on his good side. He was a powerful god when he decided to act, and he could be very dangerous when angry.
"Why did you summon us here?" asked Annabeth, not wasting any time. She was bouncing on the balls of her feet, not able to stand still.
Chiron placed his card face down, a twinkle in his eyes. "You've both always wanted a quest, and now you have a chance."
Ariana and Annabeth looked at each other, grins growing on their faces. "Really? With who?"
"I can see them coming now," Chiron replied, looking behind them. Ariana turned to where he was looking, and frowned. Percy and Grover were walking up towards the Big House, both looking petrified.
"Him?" Annabeth spat. "He's an idiot! He'll just mess it up!"
"I agree with Annie Bell," said Mr D. "The boy would be better off dead."
Chiron forced a smile, trying not to throttle the god. "We've discussed this, Mr D."
The gold rolled his eyes, but didn't speak again.
Ariana bit her lip. "Chiron, are you sure this is a good idea? While I wouldn't call Percy an idiot, he's new to this. He could get himself, and others killed. I'm not sure this is the best decision."
Chiron smiled warmly at the girl. "That is why you and Annabeth will be going with him. You'll be able to show him the ropes."
"So we're babysitting?" Ariana asked.
Annabeth looked behind her. "We should hide," she whispered, grabbing Ariana's arm.
"Why?"
Annabeth shrugged. "It'll be fun!"
Ariana looked at Chiron, but he raised and eyebrow, as if to say – why not?
"Hide!"
Easy for her to say, she could stick on a cap and disappear. Ariana felt a hand wrapped around her arm and pull her out of sight behind a pillar.
Percy and Grover walked up to the porch of the big house.
"Well, well," Mr. D said without looking up. "Our little celebrity."
Percy waited.
"Come closer," Mr. D said. "And don't expect me to kowtow to you, mortal, just because old Barnacle-Beard is your father."
A net of lightning flashed across the clouds. Thunder shook the windows of the house.
"Blah, blah, blah," Dionysus said.
Chiron feigned interest in his pinochle cards. Grover cowered by the railing, his hooves clopping back and forth.
"If I had my way," Dionysus said, "I would cause your molecules to erupt in flames. We'd sweep up the ashes and be done with a lot of trouble. But Chiron seems to feel this would be against my mission at this cursed camp: to keep you little brats safe from harm."
"Spontaneous combustionis a form of harm, Mr. D," Chiron put in.
"Nonsense," Dionysus said. "Boy wouldn't feel a thing. Nevertheless, I've agreed to restrain myself I'm thinking of turning you into a dolphin instead, sending you back to your father."
"Mr. D—" Chiron warned.
"Oh, all right," Dionysus relented. "There's one more option. But it's deadly foolishness." Dionysus rose, and the invisible players' cards dropped to the table. "I'm off to Olympus for the emergency meeting. If the boy is still here when I get back, I'll turn him into an Atlantic bottlenose. Do you understand? And Perseus Jackson, if you're at all smart, you'll see that's a much more sensible choice than what Chiron feels you must do."
Dionysus picked up a playing card, twisted it, and it became a plastic rectangle. A
security pass.
He snapped his fingers.
The air seemed to fold and bend around him. He became a hologram, then a wind, then he was gone, leaving only the smell of fresh-pressed grapes lingering behind.
Chiron smiled at Percy, but he looked tired and strained. "Sit, Percy, please. And Grover."
They did.
Chiron laid his cards on the table, a winning hand he hadn't gotten to use.
"Tell me, Percy," he said. "What did you make of the hellhound?"
Ariana listened intently from her position.
"It scared me," Percy said. "If you hadn't shot it, I'd be dead."
"You'll meet worse, Percy. Far worse, before you're done."
Percy frowned. "Done ... with what?"
"Your quest, of course. Will you accept it?"
Percu glanced at Grover, who was crossing his fingers.
"Um, sir," Percy said quietly, "you haven't told me what it is yet."
Chiron grimaced. "Well, that's the hard part, the details."
Thunder rumbled across the valley. The storm clouds had now reached the edge of the beach. As far as Ariana could see, the sky and the sea were boiling together.
"Poseidon and Zeus," Percy said. "They're fighting over something valuable ... something that was stolen, aren't they?"
Chiron and Grover exchanged looks. Ariana smiled. Not an idiot.
Chiron sat forward in his wheelchair. "How did you know that?"
Percy blushed. "The weather since Christmas has been weird, like the sea and the sky are fighting. Then I talked to Ari, and she'd overheard something about a theft. And ... I've also been having these dreams."
"I knew it," Grover said.
"Hush, satyr," Chiron ordered.
"But it is his quest!" Grover's eyes were bright with excitement. "It must be!"
"Only the Oracle can determine." Chiron stroked his bristly beard. "Nevertheless, Percy, you are correct. Your father and Zeus are having their worst quarrel in centuries. They are fighting over something valuable that was stolen. To be precise: a lightning bolt."
Percy laughed nervously. "A what?"
"Do not take this lightly," Chiron warned. "I'm not talking about some tinfoil-covered zigzag you'd see in a second-grade play. I'm talking about a two-foot-long cylinder of high-grade celestial bronze, capped on both ends with god-level explosives."
"Oh."
"Zeus's master bolt," Chiron said, getting worked up now. "The symbol of his power, from which all other light-ning bolts are patterned. The first weapon made by the Cyclopes for the war against the Titans, the bolt that sheered the top off Mount Etna and hurled Kronos from his throne; the master bolt, which packs enough power to make mortal hydrogen bombs look like firecrackers."
"And it's missing?"
"Stolen," Chiron said.
"By who?"
"By whom," Chiron corrected. Once a teacher, always a teacher. "By you."
Percy's mouth fell open, and Ariana frowned.
"At least"—Chiron held up a hand—"that's what Zeus thinks. During the winter solstice, at the last council of the gods, Zeus and Poseidon had an argument. The usual nonsense: 'Mother Rhea always liked you best,' Air disasters are more spectacular than sea disasters,' et cetera. Afterward, Zeus realized his master bolt was missing, taken from the throne room under his very nose. He immediately blamed Poseidon. Now, a god cannot usurp another god's symbol of power directly—that is forbidden by the most ancient of divine laws. But Zeus believes your father convinced a human hero to take it."
"But I didn't—"
"Patience and listen, child," Chiron said. "Zeus has good reason to be suspicious. The forges of the Cyclopes are under the ocean, which gives Poseidon some influence over the makers of his brother's lightning. Zeus believes Poseidon has taken the master bolt, and is now secretly having the Cyclopes build an arsenal of illegal copies, which might be used to topple Zeus from his throne. The only thing Zeus wasn't sure about was which hero Poseidon used to steal the bolt. Now Poseidon has openly claimed you as his son. You were in New York over the winter holidays. You could easily have snuck into Olympus. Zeus believes he has found his thief."
"But I've never even been to Olympus! Zeus is crazy!"
Ariana glanced nervously at the sky. The clouds didn't seem to be parting around us, like they usually would. They were rolling straight over their valley, sealing them in like a coffin lid.
"Er, Percy ...?" Grover said. "We don't use the c -word to describe the Lord of the Sky."
"Perhaps paranoid," Chiron suggested. "Then again, Poseidon has tried to unseat Zeus before. I believe that was question thirty-eight on your final exam...." He looked at Percy expectingly.
"Something about a golden net?" Percy guessed. "Poseidon and Hera and a few other gods ... they, like, trapped Zeus and wouldn't let him out until he promised to be a better ruler, right?"
"Correct," Chiron said. "And Zeus has never trusted Poseidon since. Of course, Poseidon denies stealing the master bolt. He took great offense at the accusation. The two have been arguing back and forth for months, threaten-ing war. And now, you've come along—the proverbial last straw."
"But I'm just a kid!"
"Percy," Grover cut in, "if you were Zeus, and you already thought your brother was plotting to overthrow you, then your brother suddenly admitted he had broken the sacred oath he took after World War II, that he's fathered a new mortal hero who might be used as a weapon against you.... Wouldn't that put a twist in your toga?"
"But I didn't do anything. Poseidon—my dad—he didn't really have this master bolt stolen, did he?"
Chiron sighed. "Most thinking observers would agree that thievery is not Poseidon's style. But the Sea God is too proud to try convincing Zeus of that. Zeus has demanded that Poseidon return the bolt by the summer solstice. That's June twenty-first, ten days from now. Poseidon wants an apology for being called a thief by the same date. I hoped that diplomacy might prevail, that Hera or Demeter or Hestia would make the two brothers see sense. But your arrival has inflamed Zeus's temper. Now neither god will back down. Unless someone intervenes, unless the master bolt is found and returned to Zeus before the solstice, there will be war. And do you know what a full-fledged war would look like, Percy?"
"Bad?" Percy guessed.
"Imagine the world in chaos. Nature at war with itself. Olympians forced to choose sides between Zeus and Poseidon. Destruction. Carnage. Millions dead. Western civilization turned into a battleground so big it will make the Trojan War look like a water-balloon fight."
"Bad," Percy repeated, and Ariana resisted cutting in with a sarcastic comment.
"And you, Percy Jackson, would be the first to feel Zeus's wrath."
It started to rain. Volleyball players stopped their game and stared in stunned silence at the sky. In the five year Ariana had been at camp, the weather barriers had never failed- not once.
"So I have to find the stupid bolt," Percy said. "And return it to Zeus."
"What better peace offering," Chiron said, "than to have the son of Poseidon return Zeus's property?"
"If Poseidon doesn't have it, where is the thing?"
Ariana was wondering the same thing.
"I believe I know." Chiron's expression was grim. "Part of a prophecy I had years ago ... well, some of the lines make sense to me, now. But before I can say more, you must officially take up the quest. You must seek the counsel of the Oracle."
"Why can't you tell me where the bolt is beforehand?"
"Because if I did, you would be too afraid to accept the challenge."
Percy swallowed. "Good reason."
"You agree then?"
Ariana felt Annabeth tense beside her. Percy looked at Grover, who nodded encouragingly.
"All right," Percy said. "It's better than being turned into a dolphin."
Ariana couldn't help but grin. They were finally getting their quest.
"Then it's time you consulted the Oracle," Chiron said. "Go upstairs, Percy Jackson, to the attic. When you come back down, assuming you're still sane, we will talk more."
PERCY CAME BACK DOWN about ten minutes later, still sane. Out of everyone there, Grover was the most nervous, as he knew Percy the best. Ariana and Annabeth were playing slaps to pass the time.
When Percy's footsteps echoed down the hall, both girls darted back to their hiding spots.
"Well?" Chiron asked him.
Percy slumped into a chair at the pinochle table. "She said I would retrieve what was stolen."
Grover sat forward, chewing excitedly on the remains of a Diet Coke can. "That's great!"
"What did the Oracle say exactly?" Chiron pressed. "This is important."
Percy took a shaky breath. "She . .. she said I would go west and face a god who had turned. I would retrieve what was stolen and see it safely returned."
"I knew it," Grover said.
Chiron didn't look satisfied. "Anything else?"
"No," Percy finally said. "That's about it."
He was lying, and Ariana knew it.
Chiron studied Percy's face. "Very well, Percy. But know this: the Oracle's words often have double meanings. Don't dwell on them too much. The truth is not always clear until events come to pass."
"Okay," Percy said, anxious to change topics. "So where do I go? Who's this god in the west?"
"Ah, think, Percy," Chiron said. "If Zeus and Poseidon weaken each other in a war, who stands to gain?"
"Somebody else who wants to take over?" he guessed.
"Yes, quite. Someone who harbours a grudge, who has been unhappy with his lot since the world was divided eons ago, whose kingdom would grow powerful with the deaths of millions. Someone who hates his brothers for forcing him into an oath to have no more children, an oath that both of them have now broken."
"Hades."
Chiron nodded. "The Lord of the Dead is the only possibility."
A scrap of aluminum dribbled out of Grover's mouth. "Whoa, wait. Wh-what?"
"A Fury came after Percy," Chiron reminded him. "She watched the young man until she was sure of his identity, then tried to kill him. Furies obey only one lord: Hades."
"Yes, but—but Hades hates all heroes," Grover protested. "Especially if he has found out Percy is a son of Poseidon... ."
"A hellhound got into the forest," Chiron continued. "Those can only be summoned from the Fields of Punishment, and it had to be summoned by someone within the camp. Hades must have a spy here. He must suspect Poseidon will try to use Percy to clear his name. Hades would very much like to kill this young half-blood before he can take on the quest."
"Great," Percy muttered. "That's two major gods who want to kill me."
"But a quest to ..." Grover swallowed. "I mean, couldn't the master bolt be in some place like Maine? Maine's very nice this time of year."
Ariana cracked a smile.
"Hades sent a minion to steal the master bolt," Chiron insisted. "He hid it in the Underworld, knowing full well that Zeus would blame Poseidon. I don't pretend to under-stand the Lord of the Dead's motives perfectly, or why he chose this time to start a war, but one thing is certain. Percy must go to the Underworld, find the master bolt, and reveal the truth."
Grover was trembling. He'd started eating pinochle cards like potato chips.
"Look, if we know it's Hades," Percy told Chiron, finally returning from wherever his mund had taken him, "why can't we just tell the other gods? Zeus or Poseidon could go down to the Underworld and bust some heads."
"Suspecting and knowing are not the same," Chiron said. "Besides, even if the other gods suspect Hades—and I imagine Poseidon does—they couldn't retrieve the bolt them-selves. Gods cannot cross each other's territories except by invitation. That is another ancient rule. Heroes, on the other hand, have certain privileges. They can go anywhere, challenge anyone, as long as they're bold enough and strongcenough to do it. No god can be held responsible for a hero's actions. Why do you think the gods always operate through humans?"
"You're saying I'm being used."
"I'm saying it's no accident Poseidon has claimed you now. It's a very risky gamble, but he's in a desperate situation. He needs you."
Resent, gratefulness, happiness and anger all flashed across Percy's face, and Ariana knew why. Poseidon had ignored him for twelve years. Now suddenly he needed Percy.
He looked at Chiron. "You've known I was Poseidon's son all along, haven't you?"
"I had my suspicions. As I said ... I've spoken to the Oracle, too."
Ariana got the feeling there was a lot he wasn't telling them about his prophecy, but she decided she couldn't worry about that right now. Focus on one problem at a time.
"So let me get this straight," Percy said. "I'm supposed go to the Underworld and confront the Lord of the Dead."
"Check," Chiron said.
"Find the most powerful weapon in the universe."
"Check."
"And get it back to Olympus before the summer solstice, in ten days."
"That's about right."
Percy looked at Grover, who gulped down the ace of hearts.
"Did I mention that Maine is very nice this time of year?" he asked weakly.
"You don't have to go," Percy told him. "I can't ask that of you."
"Oh ..." He shifted his hooves. "No ... it's just that satyrs and underground places ... well..."
He took a deep breath, then stood, brushing the shredded cards and aluminium bits off his T-shirt. "You saved my life, Percy. If ... if you're serious about wanting me along, I won't let you down."
"All the way, G-man." Percy turned to Chiron. "So where do we go? The Oracle just said to go west."
"The entrance to the Underworld is always in the west. It moves from age to age, just like Olympus. Right now, of course, it's in America."
"Where?"
Chiron looked surprised. "I thought that would be obvious enough. The entrance to the Underworld is in Los Angeles."
"Oh," Percy said. "Naturally. So we just get on a plane—"
"No!" Grover shrieked. "Percy, what are you thinking? Have you ever been on a plane in your life?"
Percy shook my head, looking embarrassed.
"Percy, think," Chiron said. "You are the son of the Sea God. Your father's bitterest rival is Zeus, Lord of the Sky. Your mother knew better than to trust you in an airplane. You would be in Zeus's domain. You would never come down again alive."
Overhead, lightning crackled. Thunder boomed.
"Okay," Percy said. "So, I'll travel overland."
"That's right," Chiron said. "Usually, only two companions may accompany you. Any more would expose you to too many monsters. However, I was told you must bring another. Grover is one. The other two have already volunteered, if you will accept their help."
"Gee," Percy said, Ariana rolling her eyes at his feigned surprise. "Who else would be stupid enough to volunteer for a quest like this?"
The air shimmered behind Chiron. Annabeth became visible, stuffing her Yankees cap into her back pocket. Ariana stepped out behind her. Percy smiled at her, looking relieved that she was going.
"I've been waiting a long time for a quest, seaweed brain," Annabeth said. "Athena is no fan of Poseidon, but if you're going to save the world, I'm the best person to keep you from messing up."
"And I'll keeping the two of you from murdering each other," Ariana added. "Also, I'm pretty good in a fight."
"If you do say so yourself," Percy said. "I suppose you have a plan, Ria?"
"When do I not?"
Percy shrugged. "Most of the time."
"Do you want our help or not?" Annabeth cut it.
"A four," Percy said. "That'll work."
"Excellent," Chiron said. "This afternoon, we can take you as far as the bus terminal in Manhattan. After that, you are on your own."
Lightning flashed. Rain poured down on the meadows that were never supposed to have violent weather.
"No time to waste," Chiron said. "I think you should all get packing."
𝐆𝐀𝐁𝐁𝐈𝐄 𝐒𝐏𝐄𝐀𝐊𝐒
heyyyy, it'd been a while!
Good news! I have loads of chapters pre-written do i will publish a chapter twice a week.
I wrote this listening to Encanto- that music should not be so relatable. Are you Mirabel, Isabella or Luisa?
See ya!