Aliana stared out the window of the train as the landscape rushed passed them. She rested her chin on her palm, her elbow supported by the slim windowsill.
The moon was high in the sky.
Aliana glanced over her shoulder at the others, who slept peacefully in their seats. Sometimes she wished sleep could come so easily to her. When she turned back to the window, she jumped. She thought she'd seen a dark, monstrous form standing just outside the window, but it only lasted an instant. Maybe she was more tired than she felt. Eventually, the constant stream of trees lulled her to sleep.
She opened her eyes, but nothing changed. Everything was just... black. She took a step forward and almost tumbled into a pit. She stumbled back.
No, she thought, not again.
"Back so soon?" The voice asked knowingly from the pit.
She glared at the black emptiness. "Why do you even try anymore? You know my answer."
He chuckled. "I know what you think your answer is." A dark tendril lashed out, snapping inches from her head. "I intend to change it."
She masked her fear as best she could. "Good luck with that." She replied sarcastically.
"Your false confidence is no longer amusing." He sounded annoyed. "I'll give you a simple choice. If you don't join me, I will destroy everything you care about."
She scoffed. "Your threat is empty. There's nothing left that I care about."
Something that sounded like a train whistle echoed out of the shadows.
His next words sounded smug. "I beg to differ."
The train whistled again and she felt someone shaking her.
"Aliana?" Annabeth's voice called her out of her restless sleep.
Aliana gasped and sat up.
Annabeth flinched back. "Sorry. We're almost to St. Louis."
Aliana nodded and looked out the window. It was fairly late in the morning.
"Was it another nightmare?" The concern in Annabeth's voice was surprising.
Aliana sighed. "Yeah."
"Are you ready to tell me what they're about?" Annabeth prodded.
Aliana stared out the window, silently.
Annabeth sighed. "I'll take that as a no."
A voice sounded over the intercom. "Now approaching St. Louis. Everyone off."
They walked off the train and made for the St. Louis arch. Annabeth was raving about the architectural wonder.
Aliana lagged behind them in her own little world. Sure, the arch was impressive, but it was nothing to write home about, not that she had a home. She stared at the trio in front of her. They were almost there. They had made it so far. It was weird to think that they had all started off kind of hating each other. And now...
She suddenly realized that they had entered an elevator to the top of the arch. They rode with a woman carrying a chihuahua in a little bag.
Aliana crossed her arms and stepped away from the dog. She had seen rats bigger than that. She preferred rats.
The elevator dinged as it reached the apex of the arch.
They walked out.
Annabeth immediately ran over to the viewing windows and gazed out at the view before turning back inward and marveling at the structure of the monument.
Aliana leaned against the wall and watched the people wandering around the arch.
Soon, everyone was making their way to the elevator to leave. The arch was closing. They had to get back to the train.
Annabeth and Grover got on, but there was no more room.
"We'll get off." Annabeth offered.
"No." Percy held. "Go. We'll take the next one."
Annabeth nodded and the door closed.
Aliana and Percy waited for the next elevator. They were alone with a security guard, a mother and son, and the lady with the chihuahua.
Aliana gazed out the window at the sprawling city. Everything was so different here. She hadn't been outside of camp for so long... it was refreshing.
Percy was talking to the chihuahua lady. Something was off about her.
Suddenly, her dog grew, morphing and growing into... Aliana's heart stopped. A Chimera.
The massive creature had the head of a lion, the body of a goat, and a serpent for a tail. It growled angrily at Percy.
Aliana was too shocked to react, until the monster released a hot stream of fire that melted a hole in the floor of the arch. She drew her poisonous dagger and charged the beast.
"You're not taking him too!" She ducked the writhing snake tail and slashed at its back leg.
It flinched aside, the blade barely grazing its furry coat, and smacked Aliana aside with its muscular forepaw.
She slammed harshly against the wall, the windows cracking against the force of the collision. She collapsed to the floor unconscious.
As the world faded back into focus, Aliana pushed herself to her all-fours. Her gaze settled on the furry mass standing before the black-haired boy backed up to a hole in the floor.
Rippling muscles flexed beneath the Chimera's thick hide. It breathed in deeply, ready to blast the son of Poseidon with a jet of flames.
"Percy!" Suddenly, the voices threat surged back into her mind 'I'll destroy everything you care about.'
For a split second, Percy locked eyes with her before he stepped back and dropped through the whole in the floor.
"No!" Aliana lunged to her feet, dagger clutched tightly in her trembling fist.
The Chimera turned on her.
She slid on her knees underneath the beast and drove the knife as deep into its side as she could.
The creature let out a deafening screech somewhere between a lion's roar and the braying of a goat. It jerked, wrenching the dagger free of its flesh.
Aliana rolled back onto her feet. "Enjoy the taste of your own medicine."
The woman who had carried the monster cried out in distress as the Chimera disintegrated into golden dust. "What have you done?!"
Aliana glared at the woman. "Oh get over it. It's not like it's dead." She gripped her knife and stepped towards the disgusting woman. "You on the other hand." She lunged forward and plunged her knife into the woman's stomach. "See you in hell." She twisted the knife.
The woman gasped and vanished in a cloud of shimmering particles.
Aliana stumbled back, panting. She rushed over to the hole in the floor. To her relief, the Mississippi flowed several hundred feet below. If anyone could survive that fall, it was Percy.