mythlology | Nineteenth Memory: Artemis quest start

Memory: “I Learn How To Grow Zombies” & “I Break A Few Rocketships” & “Grover Gets a Lamborghini”
Regained: Day 103, Odile
Summary: Mr. D lectures, zombies in the Museum of Natural History, the Nemean Lion in the Air and Space Museum, Hobopollo, a Zoe dream.

Percy is flying on Blackjack the pegasus stalking a van. They pause for a bit on top of the Chrysler Building and are about to jump off when grape vines wrap around them. Oh fuck, Dionysus found out Percy ran away from camp.

"I should throw you off this building, minus the flying horse, and see how heroic you sound on the way down."

I balled my fists. I knew I should keep my mouth shut, but Mr. D was about to kill me or haul me back to camp in shame, and I couldn't stand either idea. "Why do you hate me so much? What did I ever do to you?"

Purple flames flickered in his eyes. "You're a hero, boy. I need no other reason."

"I have to go on this quest! I've got to help my friends. That's something you wouldn't understand!" […]

"Did I ever tell you about Ariadne?" Mr. D asked. "Beautiful young princess of Crete? She liked helping her friends, too. In fact, she helped a young hero named Theseus, also a son o0f Poseidon. She gave him a ball of magical yarn that let him find his way out of the Labyrinth.
And do you know how Theseus rewarded her?"

The answer I wanted to give was I don't care! But I didn't figure that would make Mr. D finish his story any faster. "They got married," I said. "Happily ever after. The end."

Mr. D sneered. "Not quite. Theseus said he would marry her. He took her aboard his ship and sailed for Athens. Halfway back, on a little island called Naxos, he… What's the word you mortals use today?… he dumped her. I found her there, you know. Alone. Heartbroken. Crying her eyes out. She had given up everything, left everything she knew behind, to help a dashing young hero who tossed her away like a broken sandal."

"That's wrong," I said. "But that was thousands of years ago. What's that got to do with me?" […]

"My point is you heroes never change. You accuse us gods of being vain. You should look at yourselves. You take what you want, use whoever you have to, and then you betray everyone around you. So you'll excuse me if I have no love for heroes. They are a selfish, ungrateful lot. Ask Ariadne. Or Medea. For that matter, ask Zoe Nightshade."

But despite all that hate, Mr. D lets him go ("The prophecy says at least two of you will die. Perhaps I'll get lucky and you'll be one of them. But mark my words, Son of Poseidon, live or die, you will prove no better than the other heroes.")

So Percy and Blackjack continue until they get to DC and then Percy sends Blackjack home. But someone ominous has been stalking the van, too?! Percy puts on Annabeth’s invisibility hat and follows a guy in a trenchcoat into the Museum of Natural History. Aww shit human guards and monsters and Luke and some tan dude are there. (With a side note that tan dude who is “The General” talks about Luke having a “role to play” in stuff coming up?) Then The General plants some bones in dirt and grows kittens. Then he plants dragon teeth and motherfucking zombies grow. The General tosses a scarf down to them to catch a scent? But that’s not okay with Percy, so he goes to invisibly grab it, except that… then… the skeletons tear a piece of his shirt off and sniff that instead. Oops.

Percy runs into Air and Space after Thalia, Zoe, Grover, and Bianca to warn them. Zoe and Thalia argue about whether Percy can come, but get interrupted by the Nemean Lion showing up. Its hide is impenetrable. The fight sucks. :| Percy throws astronaut food down its throat until it chokes and then Zoe shoots it in the mouth. It leaves a pelt that turns into a coat when Percy puts it on. And then Zoe finally acknowledges that Percy can be the fifth quest member.

They leave the museum but are being stalked by a helicopter. They get in the subway and ride around forever. Bianca has timestream issues related to the DC metro. They ride around and wind up in New Carrolton (okay it’s not canon that they ended up in New Carrolton but it so is) in a railway yard. There is a hobo standing around a drum fire who tells them the train behind them is headed west! Then he disappears and takes his fire with him. Uhhhh.

They get on the train, which is carrying cars. Percy tries climbing in with Thalia. Conversationnnnn. The bad guys want to isolate Thalia from the group so she’ll be alone with the monster. They’re going to San Francisco; that’s where Artemis was heading. The Mountain of Despair is there. Percy has no idea what it is. Percy suddenly realizes Thalia doesn’t get alone with Zoe because the Hunters tried to recruit her once and she didn’t go because of Luke.

"Zoe and I got into a fight. She told me I was being stupid. She said I'd regret my choice. She said Luke would let me down someday."

I watched the sun through the metal curtain. We seemed to be traveling faster each second—shadows flickering like an old movie projector. "That's harsh," I said. "Hard to admit Zoe was right."

"She wasn't right! Luke never let me down. Never."

"We'll have to fight him," I said. "There's no way around it."

Thalia didn't answer.

"You haven't seen him lately," I warned. "I know it's hard to believe, but—"

"I'll do what I have to."

"Even if that means killing him?"

"Do me a favor," she said. "Get out of my car."

I felt so bad for her I didn't argue.

As I was about to leave, she said, "Percy."

When I looked back, her eyes were red, but I couldn't tell if it was from anger or sadness. "Annabeth wanted to join the Hunters, too. Maybe you should think about why."

Before I could respond, she raised the power windows and shut me out.

So Percy goes to crash in a Lamborghini with Grover. He’s afraid to go to sleep because he might have bad dreams. The hobo shows up in his car. It’s Apollo incognito! (Though thanks to LOL CHRONOLOGY AMNESIA GAME Percy has never met Apollo not-incognito.) Apollo tells him dreams tell lots about the future and truth. He’s not really supposed to be helping them, but no one messes with his baby sister.

"But where is Artemis?"

His face darkened. "I know a lot, and I see a lot. But even I don't know that. She's… clouded from me. I don't like it."

"And Annabeth?"

He frowned. "Oh, you mean that girl you lost? Hmm. I don't know."
I tried not to feel mad. I knew the gods had a hard time taking mortals seriously, even half-bloods. We lived such short lives, compared to the gods.

:|

Apollo says to hit up Nereus in San Francisco if they haven’t found the monster by then, refuses to explain their quest prophecy, and then sends Percy to sleep.

Percy dreams about being some ancient Greek dude running around with a girl. Oh fuck that girl is Zoe. And she’s doing something that will get her family to disown her if they found out? And also she is giving the dude a magic weapon that is the same one Percy has even though it looks different!!!

Oh and they get off the train.