CHAPTER NINE:
APOLLO KNOCKS ME OUT

We were crossing the Potomac when we spotted the helicopter. It was a sleek, black military model just like the one wed seen at Westover Hall. And it was coming straight towards us.

"They know the van," Percy said. "We have to ditch it."

Zoe swerved into the fast lane. The helicopter was gaining.

"Maybe the military will shoot it down," Grover said hopefully.

"The military probably thinks it's one of theirs," Percy said. "How can the General use mortals, anyway?'

"Mercenaries," Zoe said bitterly. "It is distasteful, but many mortals will fight for any cause as long as they are paid."

"But don't these mortals see who they're working for?" I asked. "Don't they notice all the monsters around them?"

Zoe shook her head. "I do not know how much they see through the Mist. I doubt it would matter to them if they knew the truth. Sometimes mortals can be more horrible than monsters."

The helicopter kept coming, making a lot better time than we were through D.C. traffic.

Thalia closed her eyes and prayed hard. "Hey, Dad. A lightning bolt would be nice about now. Please?" But the sky stayed gray and snowy. No sign of a helpful thunderstorm.

It almost made me sad. Almost.

I looked over to Aella, who sat with her hands folded together and her eyes sealed shut. She had said something about slowing them down earlier, but I was exactly sure what she meant by that.

"There!" Bianca said. "That parking lot!"

"We'll be trapped," Zoe said.

"Trust me," Bianca said.

Zoe shot across two lanes of traffic and into a mall parking lot on the south bank of the river. We left the van and followed Bianca down some steps.

"Subway entrance," Bianca said. "Let's go south. Alexandria."

"Anything," Thalia agreed.

We bought tickets and got through the turnstiles, looking behind us for any signs of pursuit. A few minutes later we were sately aboard a southbound train, riding away from D.C.

As our train came above ground, we could see the helicopter circling the parking lot, but it
didn't come after us.

Grover let out a sigh. "Nice job, Bianca, thinking of the subway."

Bianca looked pleased. "Yeah, well. I saw that station when Nico and I came through last summer. I remember being really surprised to see it, because it wasn't here when we used to live in DC"

Grover frowned. "New? But that station looked really old."

"I guess," Bianca said. "But trust me, when we lived here as little kids, there was no subway."

Percy and I shared a look.

Thalia sat forward. "Wait a minute. No subway at all?"

Bianca nodded.

Now, I knew nothing about D.C., but I didn't see how their whole subway system could be less than twelve years old. I guess everyone else was thinking the same thing, because they looked pretty confused.

"Bianca," Zoe said. "How long ago..." Her voice faltered. The sound of the helicopter was getting louder again.

"We need to change trains," I said. "Next station."

Over the next half hour, all we thought about was getting away safely. We changed trains twice. I had no idea where we were going, but after a while we lost the helicopter.

Unfortunately, when we finally got off the train we found ourselves at the end of the line, in an industrial area with nothing but warehouses and railway tracks. And snow. Lots of snow. It seemed much colder here. I felt like I was going to die of hypothermia.

We wandered through the railway yard, thinking there might be another passenger train somewhere, but there were just rows and rows of freight cars, most of which were covered in snow, like they hadn't moved in years.

A homeless guy was standing at a trash-can fire. We must've looked pretty pathetic, because he gave us a toothless grin and said, "Y'all need to get warmed up? Come on over!"

We huddled around his fire, Thalia's teeth were chattering. She said, "Well this is g-g-g-great."

"My hooves are frozen," Grover complained.

"Feet," Percy corrected, for the sake of the homeless guy.

"Maybe we should contact camp," Bianca said. "Chiron-"

"No," Zoe said. "They cannot help us anymore. We must finish this quest ourselves."

I gazed miserably around the rail yard. Somewhere, far to the west, Annabeth was in danger. Artemis was in chains. A doomsday monster was on the loose. And we were stuck on the outskirts of D.C., sharing a homeless persons fire.

"You know," the homeless man said, "you're never completely without friends." His face was grimy and his beard tangled, but his expression seemed kindly. "You kids need a tain going west?"

"Yes, sir," I said. "You know of any?"

He pointed one greasy hand.

Suddenly I noticed a freight train, gleaming and free of snow. It was one of those automobile-carrier trains, with steel mesh curtains and a triple-deck of cars inside. The side of the freight train said SUN WEST LINE.

"That's...convenient," Thalia said. "Thanks, uh..." She turned to the homeless guy, but he was gone. The trash can in front of us was cold and empty, as if he'd taken the flames with him.

"That was weird" Aella and I said in sync. I tried not to laugh at how shocked she was. I seem to do that a lot.

An hour later we were rumbling west. There was no problem about who would drive now. because we all got our own luxury car. Zoe and Bianca were crashed out in a Lexus on the top deck. Grover was playing race car driver behind the wheel of a Lamborghini. And Thalia had hot-wired the radio in a black Mercedes SLK so she could pick up the alt-rock stations from D.C.

      "I thought you hated green" I nearly jumped out of my seat. I hadn't even noticed Aella enter the car. I spun around to face her in the backseat. I didn't even register what she said until she pointed towards my new bracelet.

      "Oh that" I looked down at the bracelet Estella gave to me "Estella gave it to me for 'good luck'" I put air quotes around the words 'good luck'. I spun all the way around so I was now sitting backwards in the driver seat.

      "Where did she get it from" Aella asked reaching forwards to touch it.

      I shrugged "She said she got it from Cara" I said.

      "Explains the green" Aella nearly laughed. Aellas smile dropped a second later and she pulled her hand away from the bracelet.

      "What" I asked, immediately noticing her frown.

      "Nothing—it's just—" she looked up at me, looking into my eyes as if there was a whole world I was missing. Then she shook her head, letting it drop "nothing"

      It went silent for a moment, but my eyes never fell from hers. There were a million things I wanted to say to her while I had the courage to, but only one was able to roll off my tongue "why did you come?" I asked. She looked back up. "I mean I get why Percy came, he wants to find Annabeth and—is that it for you, are you here to find her too? I mean I know you too haven't been the closest in the past few years, but before that" I stopped talking when she looked back into my eyes. I became completely flustered and I hated it—but also loved it. It's hard to explain.

      She lightly nodded "I mean"—her eyes dropped maybe an inch for barely a second—"yeah, Annabeth. Among other things." She looked down to her ring.

      It was always kinda funny—and a little cute—to me that Aella couldn't seem to keep her eyes in one spot, but right now it was kinda frustrating. I wanted her to look at me.

      "What other things?" I asked. She looked up again.

      She quietly hummed "you." Fiddling with her fingers in her lap.

      "Me?" I asked, hoping I heard what I had just thought I heard.

      She just nodded.

      "You came for me" I could feel the smile as it formed on my lips.

      Then she smiled and shrugged "I couldn't let you get into trouble alone"

      I could have stared into her eyes forever, dreaming of all the possibilities I had in this current moment, but of course, Percy the party pooper swung the door open and yelled "hey!" Louder then probably necessary.

      We both turned to the boy with wide eyes "why so loud" I asked placing a hand over my ear.

      "Dramatic effect" he said as he sat down in the passenger seat. Once he noticed Aella in the backseat he waved—kinda awkwardly.

Now that I think about it, I'm not sure that they have ever had a proper conversation, at least, without me.

      "Of course" I rolled my eyes, leaning my back against the steering wheel.

      "What are you two chit-chatting about" he asked as if he were a 12 year old little girl looking for PE gossip.

      "Nothing" I shrugged, flashing my eyes over to Aella for a millisecond.

      Percy gave me a suspicious look for a minute before humming "sure" as if he didn't believe me.

      "We were shit-talking you" I corrected myself with a lie.

      Percy shrugged "wouldn't be the first time" that made me kinda laugh.

      Aella let out a sigh "we'll" she smacked her lips together "I'm gonna go crash in a different car" she said sliding towards the door "see you in the morning—or—whatever" and then she was gone.

      She was gone maybe a minute before Percy spun towards me, with a strange look on his face. "So what were you really talking about"

      I rolled my eyes "nothing important"

      Now he rolled his eyes. "Nothing important" he mimicked.

      "Don't be an ass" I groaned turning back to face forwards in the drivers seat.

      "Oh come on" he sighed throwing his arms in the air.

      I wasn't exactly lying. To him it would be nothing. Maybe—to me—It meant the world, maybe it meant everything I lived for. But to him, it meant nothing. Also I really didn't know how to explain how she just ripped out my heart, gave it a kiss, and put it back, good as new.

      Percy went quiet and began to space out at the sunset. I had no idea what he was thinking of, but I had a few guesses.

      I curled my feet up to my chest. At first I wanted to close my eyes, but my fear of being drowned again stopped me from doing so.

      I remember every single one of those dreams. It always felt like it was really happening. For a long time after my first summer at camp, I would wake up in the middle of the night, practically gasping for air.

      I had always been scared I was getting a glimpse of my future. That one day I would be trapped in a box that was slowly filling, or in a hole as the rain poured down filling it, or that someone would hold me under 3 feet of water until I stopped breathing.

      And at some point I was scared of thinking about it thinking that thinking about it would make it come true. Thinking that if I kept thinking about it someone would read my mind and know exactly how to scare me.

      So instead of closing my eyes, I just sat there. I'm complete silence.

      "Oh, don't be afraid of dreams," a voice said right next to me.

      I practically leaped out of my seat, gasping so loud I was scared I almost woke up Grover in the car beside us.

      I looked behind me. Somehow, the homeless guy from the rail yard was sitting in the shotgun seat. His jeans were so worn out they were almost white. His coat was ripped, with stuffing coming out. He looked kind of like a teddy bear that had been run over by a truck.

      "If it weren't for dreams," he said, "I wouldn't know half the things I know about the future. They're better than Olympus tabloids." He cleared his throat, then held up his hands dramatically:

"Dreams like a podcast,
Downloading truth in my ears.
They tell me cool stuff"

      I groaned, knowing exactly who it was now.

      "Apollo?" Percy and I guessed at the same time. I figured nobody else could make a haiku that bad.

      He put his finger to his lips. "I'm incognito. Call me Fred."

      I snorted

      "A god named Fred?"

      "Eh, well...Zeus insists on certain rules. Hands off, when there's a human quest. Even when something really major is wrong. But nobody messes with my baby sister. Nobody. I figure you would understand."

      He glanced between me and Percy.

      "Can you help us, then?" Percy asked, almost ignoring the gods comment.

      "Shhh. I already have. Haven't you been looking outside?"

      "The train. How fast are we moving?" Percy asked trying to look outside.

      Apollo chuckled. "Fast enough. Unfortunately, we're running out of time. It's almost sunset. But I imagine we'll get you across a good chunk of America, at least."

      "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 roll my eyes. I knew the gods had a hard time taking mortals seriously, even half-bloods. We lived such short lives, compared to the gods.

      "What about the monster Artemis was seeking?" Percy asked. "Do you know what it is?"

      "No," Apollo said. "But there is one who might. If you haven't yet found the monster when you reach San Francisco, seek out Nereus, the Old Man of the Sea. He has a long memory and a sharp eye. He has the gift of knowledge sometimes kept obscure from my Oracle."

      "But it's your Oracle," Percy protested. "Can't you tell us what the prophecy means?"

      Apollo sighed. "You might as well ask an artist to explain his art, or ask a poet to explain his poem. It defeats the purpose. The meaning is only clear through the search."

      "In other words, you don't know."

      "It doesn't matter" I said "the prophecy was clearly wrong, have you counted the amount of people on this quest. There's seven, not six—like your oracle said."

      Apollo clicked his teeth " or are there?" He asked. Percy and I shared a confused look causing the good to roll his eyes and I believe mumbled "stupid half-bloods" under his breath "as much as I hate to admit it, my oracles usually make one common mistake" I almost gasped. Did he just admit to being wrong about something.

      "What could the great-almighty-god apollo possibly get wrong" I said in a fake shocked voice.

      He rolled his eyes again "not me. The oracles" he was quick to pass the blame. "But, sometimes" he made sure to point out the 'sometimes' "they mix up twins and count them as one person" he pointed between me and Percy "you two are twins. Are you not"

      "Last time I checked we were" I said. Apollo sent me a glare.

      "You do realize I'm a god right" he asked. Keeping his glare.

      I looked him up and down, not even trying to hide my disappointment "and you sure look like one" he almost looked offended at what I said.

      "You know"—he pointed his, almost completely brown with dirt, finger in my face—"if you didn't have such an important prophecy tied to you, I would melt you right now"

      I gave him a fake enthusiastic smile "promise!"

       Apollo checked his watch. "Ah, look at the time! I have to run. I doubt I can risk helping you again, mortals, but remember what I said! Get some sleep! And when you return, I expect a good haiku about your journey!" He made sure to make mortals sound like the biggest insult.

      I wanted to protest that I wasn't tired and I'd never made up a haiku in my life, but Apollo snapped his fingers, and the next thing I knew I was closing my eyes. The last thing I felt before I dosed off was my head smacking into Percy's.

      The next time I opened my eyes I wasn't sure where I was, but I was knee deep in water. It wasn't raining and there was nothing around for miles. Knowing my past experiences in dreams, I had a bad feeling for what was about to happen.

      Until I saw someone.

      He was maybe 50 feet away, with his back turned to me. From what I could tell her was probably my age (I'm guessing from his height) he was skinny, but not too skinny, he clearly had some muscle, but mainly on his arms.

      He was blond. That I was sure of. His hair was so light it was almost completely white. I'm not sure I've ever seen someone with such light hair (Besides the children of Athena).

      He was wearing a purple shirt and a pair of jeans. So normal clothes.

      I took a step forwards, unknowingly making a sound. The boy spun around so fast I almost jumped back in shock.

      He looked just as confused to see me as I was him. I could see his eyes now. They were much like mine—very light blue—only while mine were more blue like the ocean, his were more the blue of electricity.

      He almost looked familiar—as if I had met him before, but I was sure where.

      He had said something. I wasn't sure what it was, his voice seemed distorted. He said it again and this time it was a little clearer, but I still didn't know what he had said.

      Before I got the change to ask my body lurched forwards and I was suddenly sitting back in the drivers seat of a car I didn't own.

      "Guys," grover said. "It's morning. The train's stopped. Come on!"

      "I think you drooled on my hair" I said placing my hand on the back of my head.

      "I think I ate some of your hair" Percy said as he spit something out.

      "Ew" I practically gagged as I stepped out of the car.

      I tried to shake off my drowsiness. Aella, Thalia, Zoe, and Bianca had already rolled up the
metal curtains. Outside were snowy mountains dotted with vine trees. the sun rising red between two peaks.

      "Ah" I groaned "great, snow"

AUTHOR TALKS!!
Debating on making bonus chapters at the end of the book solely to show Aellas POV because the bracelet scenes happens to be one of my favorite Raella scenes and you don't even know why. Also kinda felt like a poet writing that part.