Chapter five
(Thea ≠ good at time management)
. ---- . .-
Piper was out of sight early in the morning, long before Thea was fully conscious of the fact that she had even been there, but the daughter of love and beauty was not out of mind for even a single second.
Then again, it had to be at least an hour between Piper leaving her cabin until Thea managed to drag herself out of bed and change into a pair of ripped jeans and a camp shirt. She noticed Piper's sweater lying on her chair, and deciding that she would probably want it back, Thea tied it around her waist.
The second she stepped up from under deck, she was attacked by the bright sun. She squinted, her hand coming up as to shield her eyes from the light, and it seemed she was just in time as well.
She saw Piper standing to the side eating a bagel and moved towards her - as if it was a reflex. The daughter of Aphrodite gave her a smile and handed her a pancake stored in a napkin. It wasn't the first time they had been in this routine - Thea waking late and Piper grabbing her something to eat just to make sure she didn't forget.
She met Jason's gaze across the deck, a teasing smirk on his face as if he knew something she didn't, but it was quickly shrugged off.
"So!" Annabeth plucked the bagel out of Piper's hand and took a bite, adding some of the camp jokes to the tense Argo II air. "Here we are. What's the plan?"
"I want to check out the highway," Piper said. "Find the sign that says Topeka 32."
Leo spun his Wii controller in a circle, and the sails lowered themselves. "We shouldn't be far," he said. "Festus and I calculated the landing as best we could. What do you expect to find at the mile marker?"
Piper explained what she'd seen in the knife - the man in purple with a goblet.
"Purple shirt?" Jason asked. "Vines on his hat? Sounds like Bacchus."
"Dionysus," Percy muttered. "If we came all the way to Kansas to see Mr D-"
"He's quite funny, really," said Thea. "Hands out free drinks - non-alcoholic of course."
Percy looked genuinely offended for a second. "Since when? I haven't gotten anything."
The brunette shrugged. "Sucks to be disliked, I guess."
"Don't worry, Bacchus isn't so bad," Jason said. "I don't like his followers much ..."
Thea was forever grateful she didn't join that trip.
"But the god himself is okay," Jason continued. "I did him a favour once up in the wine country."
Percy looked appalled. "Whatever, man. Maybe he's better on the Roman side. But why would he be hanging around in Kansas? Didn't Zeus order the gods to cease all contact with mortals?"
Frank grunted. The big guy was wearing a blue tracksuit this morning, like he was ready to go for a jog in the sunflowers.
"The gods haven't been very good at following that order," he noted. "Besides, if the gods have gone schizophrenic like Hazel said-"
"And Leo said," added Leo.
Frank scowled at him. "Then who knows what's going on with the Olympians? Could be some pretty bad stuff out there."
"Sounds dangerous!" Leo agreed cheerfully. "Well... you guys have fun. I've got to finish repairs on the hull. Coach Hedge is gonna work on the broken crossbows. And, uh, Annabeth - I could really use your help. You're the only other person who even sort of understands engineering."
Annabeth looked apologetically at Percy. "He's right. I should stay and help."
"I'll come back to you." He kissed her on the cheek. "Promise."
They acted so easily with each other that Thea could almost see where Nico's anger was born. All her life, she had wished for something as simple as that - a love that could last. At one point she thought she had it too. But now, close to a year after Lilith died, she was questioning whether it was just the war that bound them together and not anything as pure as what Annabeth and Percy had.
Lilith was a friend, if anything. A great friend, but thinking about her before had only brought grief - an emotion she had mistaken for heartbreak.
Frank slid his bow off his shoulder and propped it against the rail. "I think I should turn into a crow or something and fly around, keep an eye out for Roman eagles."
"Why a crow?" Leo asked. "Man, if you can turn into a dragon, why don't you just turn into a dragon every time? That's the coolest."
Frank's face looked like it was being infused with cranberry juice. "That's like asking why you don't bench-press your maximum weight every time you lift. Because it's hard and you'd hurt yourself. Turning into a dragon isn't easy."
"Oh." Leo nodded. "I wouldn't know. I don't lift weights."
"Yeah. Well, maybe you should consider it, Mr-"
Hazel stepped between them. "I'll help you, Frank," she said, shooting Leo an evil look. "I can summon Arion and scout around below."
Now, Thea would love to act out now, to tell them all to fix their issues elsewhere so that they could move from the sky, but she would be lying if she said it wasn't mildly entertaining.
"Sure," Frank said, still glaring at Leo. "Yeah, thanks."
Hazel turned to Percy. "Just be careful when you go out there. Lots of fields, lots of crops. Could be karpoi on the loose."
"Karpoi?" Piper asked.
"Grain spirits," Hazel said. "You don't want to meet them."
"I'll take your word for it," muttered Thea, finishing her pancake and giving Hedge the napkin.
"That leaves four of us to check on the mile marker," Percy said. "Me, Thea, Jason, Piper. I'm not psyched about seeing Mr D again. That guy is a pain - to me at least." He looked over at the daughter of Hades. "But, Jason, if you're on better terms with him -"
"Yeah," Jason said. "If we find him, I'lI talk to him. Piper, it's your vision. You should take the lead."
Piper shivered, a barely noticeable motion, but Thea saw, and she unconsciously moved a little closer, as if her daughter of death aura would go against itself and comfort instead of the opposite.
"Of course," she said, trying to sound upbeat. "Let's find the highway."
Leo had said they were close. His idea of 'close' needed some work. After trudging half a mile through hot fields, getting bitten by mosquitoes and whacked in the face with scratchy sunflowers, they finally reached the road. An old billboard for Bubba's Gas 'n' Grub indicated they were still forty miles from the first Topeka exit.
"Correct my maths," Percy said, "but doesn't that mean we have eight miles to walk?"
Jason peered both ways down the deserted road.
He looked better today, thanks to the magical healing of ambrosia and nectar. His colour was back to normal, and the scar on his forehead had almost vanished. The new gladius that Hera had given him last winter hung at his belt.
In Thea's opinion, he looked quite ridiculous.
"No cars ..." he said. "But I guess we wouldn't want to hitchhike."
"No," Piper agreed, gazing nervously down the highway. "We've already spent too much time going overland. The earth is Gaia's territory."
"I think your boyfriend needs a new calculator or something; maybe a dictionary," Thea said, sending Jason a nasty look - as if it was his fault.
The blond's face turned into a tomato.
"Leo is not my boyfriend, what in Hades are you talking about."
"Considering I know Hades pretty well, I'd say you're reacting very weirdly to my joke. Got anything to share with the class, Grace?"
He was quick to get his words under control. "Says you, Atalanta."
"I don't got nothing to hide." Thea gave him an innocent look.
"Are they always like this?" Asked Percy.
Piper nodded, scowling at Jason. "Every minute of every day."
The son of Jupiter raised his hands in defence before an idea suddenly entered his thick skull. "I can call a friend for a ride."
Percy raised his eyebrows. "Oh, yeah? Me, too. Let's see whose friend gets here first."
Jason whistled. Thea knew what he was doing, and she very much did not like it. At some point she had decided that Tempest was her least favourite horse creature ever. The electricity sparking off of him reminded her too much of Zeus, and she did not like Zeus at all. Storms still made her uneasy after the sudden death of her mother.
Percy simply closed his eyes and concentrated.
Thunder crackled in the clear sky, and Thea was quick to move the furthest away from the blond.
Jason smiled. "Soon."
"Too late." Percy pointed east, where a black winged shape was spiralling towards them. If asked, Thea would never tell the truth, but Blackjack was probably her favourite pegasus. Maybe it was because he didn't shy away from her, or maybe it was just because he ate Marielle's doughnut once and she found that funny.
"A black pegasus?" Piper said. "Never seen one like that."
The winged stallion came in for a landing. He trotted over to Percy and nuzzled his face, then turned his head inquisitively towards Piper and Jason.
"Blackjack," Percy said, "this is Piper and Jason. They're friends."
The horse nickered, looking over at Thea.
"Uh, maybe later," Percy answered. "I don't think Demlien is anywhere around, no."
"What does Blackjack want?" Piper asked.
"Doughnuts," Percy said. "Always doughnuts. He can carry all four of us if -"
"If anything, I can just use the shadows," suggested Thea. She didn't want to exhaust Blackjack.
"Not happening." Piper grabbed a hold of her hand, as if Thea would disappear did she not keep her there.
But she didn't have to. Suddenly the air turned cold. Thea's ears popped. About fifty yards away, a miniature cyclone three storeys tall tore across the tops of the sunflowers like a scene from The Wizard of Oz. It touched down on the road next to Jason and took the form of a horse - a misty steed with lightning flickering through its body.
"Tempest," Jason said, grinning broadly. "Long time, my friend."
The storm spirit reared and whinnied. Blackjack backed up skittishly, and Thea had never related more to a mythological creature.
"Easy, boy," Percy said. "He's a friend, too." He gave Jason an impressed look. "Nice ride, Grace."
Jason shrugged. "I made friends with him during our fight at the Wolf House. He's a free spirit, literally, but once in a while he agrees to help me."
Percy and Jason climbed on their respective horses.
Thea looked between them, waiting for Piper to get the first choice, when the son of Poseidon reached out a hand. Well, no reason to fight it. She happily climbed the pegasus.
"Figured you're not on good terms with uncle thunder either," he said.
"Never have, never will be," Thea agreed.
Blackjack soared into the air, tempest racing down below. In no time, they arrived at the thirty-two-mile marker. Blackjack landed. Both horses pawed the tarmac. Neither looked pleased to have stopped so suddenly, just when they'd found their stride.
Blackjack whinnied.
"You're right," Percy said. "No sign of the wine dude."
"Bad call," mumbled Thea.
"I beg your pardon?" said a voice from the fields.
The wheat parted, and the man from PIper's vision stepped into view.
He wore a wide-brimmed hat wreathed in grapevines, a purple short-sleeved shirt, khaki shorts and Birkenstocks with white socks. He looked maybe thirty, with a slight potbelly, like a frat boy who hadn't yet realised college was over. Till this day, Thea could still not realise why anyone would choose to look like that.
"Did someone just call me the wine dude?" he asked in a lazy drawl. "It's Bacchus, please. Or Mr Bacchus. Or Lord Bacchus. Or, sometimes, Oh-My-Gods-Please-Don't-Kill-Me, Lord Bacchus."
Percy urged Blackjack forward, though the pegasus didn't seem happy about it.
"You look different," Percy told the god. "Skinnier. Your hair is longer. And your shirt isn't so loud."
"And you don't look like you want to kill us all," Thea added.
The wine god squinted up at them. "What in blazes are you talking about? Who are you, and where is Ceres?"
"Uh ... what series?"
"I've heard the Harry Potter one is good."
"I think he means Ceres," Jason said. "The goddess of agriculture. You'd call her Demeter."
He nodded respectfully to the god. "Lord Bacchus, do you remember me? I helped you with that missing leopard in Sonoma."
Bacchus scratched his stubbly chin. "Ah ... yes. John Green."
Thea would definitely use that one in the future.
"Jason Grace."
"Whatever," the god said. "Did Ceres send you, then?"
"No, Lord Bacchus," Jason said. "Were you expecting to meet her here?"
The god snorted. "Well, I didn't come to Kansas to party, my boy. Ceres asked me here for a council of war. What with Gaia rising, the crops are withering. Droughts are spreading. The karpoi are in revolt. Even my grapes aren't safe. Ceres wanted a united front in the plant war."
"The plant war," Percy said. "You're going to arm all the little grapes with tiny assault rifles?"
The god narrowed his eyes. "Have we met?"
"At Camp Half-Blood," Percy said, "I know you as Mr D - Dionysus."
"Agh!" Bacchus winced and pressed his hands to his temples. For a moment, his image flickered. Thea could see the god she was more used to - the one who handed her free Colas whenever he saw her. He was different from Bacchus - fatter, dumpier, in a much louder, leopard-patterned shirt.
Then Bacchus returned to being Bacchus. "Stop that!" he demanded. "Stop thinking about me in Greek!"
Percy blinked. "Uh, but -"
"Do you have any idea how hard it is to stay focused? Splitting headaches all the time! I never know what I'm doing or where I'm going! Constantly grumpy!"
"That sounds pretty normal for you," Percy said.
The god's nostrils flared. One of the grape leaves on his hat burst into flame. "If we know each other from that other camp, it's a wonder I haven't already turned you into a dolphin."
"It was discussed," Percy assured him. "I think you were just too lazy to do it."
Thea slipped off Blackjack's back. "What he means to say is that you don't think he's worth the attention that would take." She gave the son of Poseidon a look - hoping he would understand to be quiet.
Piper was off Tempest and at her side in seconds. "Lord Bacchus, we are sorry to trouble you, my lord," she told the god, "but actually we came here to get your advice. Please, we need your wisdom."
"Or... we felt you had the potential to help a quest to save yourself," said Thea, knowing fully well the wine god - greek or roman - didn't have much stored wisdom that they needed.
But Piper used her most agreeable tone, pouring respect into her charmspeak, and by that he managed to ignore her. The god frowned, but the purple glow faded in his eyes. "You're well-spoken, girl. Advice, eh? Very well. I would avoid karaoke. Really, theme parties in general are out. In these austere times, people are looking for a simple, low key affair, with locally produced organic snacks and-"
"Not about parties," Piper interrupted. "Although that's incredibly useful advice, Lord Bacchus. We were hoping you'd help us on our quest, as Thea said."
She explained about the Argo II and their voyage to stop the giants from awakening Gaia. She told him what Nemesis had said: that in six days, Rome would be destroyed. She described the vision reflected in her knife, where Bacchus offered her a silver goblet.
"Silver goblet?" The god didn't sound very excited. He grabbed a Diet Pepsi from nowhere and popped the top of the can.
"You drink Diet Coke," Thea and Percy said in sync, high fiving.
"I don't know what you're talking about," Bacchus snapped. "As to this vision of the goblet, young lady, I have nothing for you to drink unless you want a Pepsi. Jupiter has put me under strict orders to avoid giving wine to minors. Bothersome, but there you have it. As for the giants, I know them well. I fought in the first Giant War, you know."
"Do you have Cola?"
"You can fight?"
The wine god snarled. His Diet Pepsi transformed into a five-foot staff wreathed in ivy, topped with a pinecone.
"A thyrsus!" Piper said, trying her best to keep Percy (and Thea) alive. "Oh, what a mighty weapon!"
"Indeed," Bacchus agreed. "I'm glad someone in your group is smart. The pinecone is a fearsome tool of destruction! I was a demigod myself in the first Giant War, you know. The son of Jupiter!" Jason flinched. Probably he wasn't thrilled to be reminded that the Wine Dude was technically his big brother.
Bacchus swung his staff through the air, though his potbelly almost threw him off balance. "Of course that was long before I invented wine and became an immortal. I fought side by side with the gods and some other demigod... Harry Cleese, I think."
"Heracles?" Piper suggested politely.
"Whatever," Bacchus said. "Anyway, I killed the giant Ephialtes and his brother Otis. Horrible boors, those two. Pinecone in the face for both of them!"
Thea felt Piper stiffen up next to her, and their hands interlocked. She wasn't sure who took who's hand, but she found she didn't mind.
"Lord Bacchus," she said calmly, though there was an underlying nervousness to it. "Those two giants, Ephialtes and Otis ... would they happen to be twins?"
"Hmm?" The god seemed distracted by his thyrsus-swinging, but he nodded. "Yes, twins. That's right."
Piper turned to Jason, and the two seemed to share a brain cell. Tough luck for Jason, as he now had none left.
"That's why we're here," Piper told the god. "You're part of our quest!"
Bacchus frowned. "I'm sorry, my girl. I'm not a demigod any more. I don't do quests."
"But giants can only be killed by heroes and gods working together," she insisted. "You're a god now, and the two giants we have to fight are Ephialtes and Otis. I think... I think they're waiting for us in Rome. They're going to destroy the city somehow. The silver goblet I saw in my vision - maybe it's meant as a symbol for your help. You have to help us kill the giants!"
Bacchus glared at her, and Thea got ready for a fight. Whatever happened, Piper would get away unharmed.
"My girl," he said coldly, "I don't have to do anything. Besides, I only help those who give me proper tribute, which no one has managed to do in many, many centuries."
Blackjack whinnied uneasily. Thea didn't quite like the sound of "tribute". She remembered Piper telling her about the maenads, the crazed followers of Bacchus, who would tear up nonbelievers with their bare hands. And that was when they were in a good mood.
Percy voiced the question that the others were too scared to ask. "What kind of tribute?"
Bacchus waved his hand dismissively. "Nothing you could handle, insolent Greek. But I will give you some free advice, since this girl does have some manners. Seek out Gaia's son, Phorcys. He always hated his mother, not that I can blame him. He didn't have much use for his siblings, the twins, either. You'll find him in the city they named after that heroine - Atalanta."
Piper and Jason looked at her.
Thea rolled her eyes. "You mean Atlanta?"
"That's the one."
"But this Phorcys," Jason said. "Is he a giant? A Titan?"
Bacchus laughed. "Neither. Seek out the salt water."
"Salt water..." Percy said. "In Atlanta?"
"Yes," Bacchus said. "Are you hard of hearing? If anyone can give you insight on Gaia and the twins, it's Phoreys. Just watch out for him."
"What do you mean?" Jason asked.
The god glanced at the sun, which had climbed almost to high noon. "It's unlike Ceres to be late, unless she sensed something dangerous in this area. Or ..."
The god's face suddenly went slack. "Or a trap. Well, I must be going! And if I were you I'd do the same!"
"Lord Bacchus, wait!" Jason protested.
The god shimmered and disappeared with a sound like a soda-can top being popped.
The wind rustled through the sunflowers. The horses paced in agitation. Despite the dry, hot day, Thea shivered. A cold feeling... Annabeth and Leo had both described a cold feeling. Maybe bringing Piper's sweater wasn't that bad of an idea after all.
"Bacchus is right," Piper said. "We need to leave."
"Too late," said a sleepy voice, humming through the fields all around them and resonating in the ground at Thea's feet. She hated that voice. That voice that haunted her sleepless nights and the dreams of memories she'd rather suppress.
Percy and Jason drew their swords. Beside her, Piper tensed up, while Thea was quick to get her own sword. The power of Gaea was suddenly everywhere. The sunflowers turned to look at them. The wheat bent towards them like a million scythes.
"Welcome to my party," Gaea murmured. Her voice reminded Thea of the pit; but not her journey through it, but it made her believe that maybe she was missing something. Gaea's voice told her of a missing memory she didn't even know was missing.
What had Bacchus said?
The goddess mocked.
"For my snacks, I need only two: the blood of a female demigod and the blood of a male. Piper, my dear; choose which hero will die with you or Atalanta."
"Gaea!" Jason yelled. "Stop hiding in the wheat. Show yourself!"
"Such bravado," Gaea hissed. "But the other one, Percy Jackson, also has appeal. Choose, Piper McLean, or I will."
"Don't you have better things to do?" Thea asked. "Like... stopping those companies from taking down the forests or something that isn't killing children." Her sword was held steady, but her senses were tugging at her mind, as if hinting there was something wrong.
"Now, be kind, Atalanta Goldaxe. Their time will come eventually, long after your death." Thea could picture an innocent smile on the goddess' face. "Now, Piper McLean. I don't have all day."
"You're insane!" Piper shouted, her hand leaving Thea's "I'm not choosing anything for you!"
Suddenly Jason gasped. He sat up straight in his saddle.
"Jason!" Piper cried. "What's wrong-?"
He looked down at her, his expression deadly calm. His eyes were no longer blue. They glowed solid gold. Thea should have known. She should have known that with the doors of death they would be having trouble with the dead that had been escaped. But she hadn't expected it to be used against them the way they would be used in stories.
"Percy?" The daughter of Hades dragged Piper away from Tempest, already suspecting he was gone as well. As suspected, Percy galloped away from them. He stopped thirty feet down the road and wheeled his pegasus around. He raised his sword and pointed the tip towards Jason.
"One will die," Percy said, but the voice wasn't his. It was deep and hollow, like someone whispering from inside the barrel of a cannon. That must have been what happened to Leo as well. How had she not noticed? How had she not felt it? Dead spirits they were... they were her thing. It was the one power that did not exhaust her to use, only tired her. It was the one thing that she did better than Nico (he controlled skeletons better), and yet she had not seen this coming.
"I will choose," Jason answered, in the same hollow voice.
"No!" Piper yelled, but her charmspeak had no control this time. All around them, the fields crackled and hissed, laughing in Gaea's voice as Percy and Jason charged at each other, their weapons ready.
A/N
Okay, so like... I'm very bad at updating often, but I just suck at time management and I've got 9826816737 powerpoints to make (lies, it's three, but it was five last week so it almost adds up)
Anyway, "annoying" me for more does atually work, believe it or not.
By the way, Maisie Peter's "truth is" is so very Thea coded in like... two books time