It's been about half an hour since I accepted being the fourth member to retrieve the masterbolt. Chiron advises us to leave as soon as possible. He told us the quest in the morning and expected us to prepare our belongings by four in the afternoon. Which leaves me five hours to prepare. I grabbed my backpack in the Hermes cabin, which only contained the minotaur horn.
I obviously needed to pack more. I went to the camp store. I was given a few drachma, golden coins used for currency in this place, though cash could work too. Too bad I'm broke, though. I was able to purchase several bottles of water and two EpiPens for emergencies.
I'm not allergic to anything, but I know that those could be useful. Then I headed to the kitchen, where the dryads usually hang out to cook dinner for the campers. They raised a brow when I asked if I could borrow their kitchen as well as ingredients, but they allowed me. I rinsed my hands and cooked a couple of meals, and placed them in a small plastic container. There were three of them, each of which contained a healthy meal that restores energy.
Just in case we need extra food on the quest. As I exited the kitchen, about to head to the forge to get myself some daggers, before Luke dragged me to our usual secluded spot in the forest.
"So, you're really going, huh?" Luke said, bringing the metal baseball bat to his shoulder.
"Yeah."
"It's going to be dangerous, you know?"
"Yeah, obviously."
Luke frowns, then shakes his head with a sigh. "Here, use this instead of your sword."
He tossed me the metal bat, which I barely caught. I looked at it and back to Luke, and he was serious.
"A bat, really?"
Luke shrugged. "Well, it's going to be better than your current sword."
"How do you figure that?"
"Think, Clay," He said, tapping his temple. "You can't wield celestial bronze; the only way you can destroy their physical forms. Unless you have the strength of a god, any steel blade or mortal weapon won't cut it, literally."
Dang it, Luke's right. I don't have any super strength on my side, unlike the demigods, and even then, they still need to rely on their weapons to get the job done. Essentially, when it comes to monsters, my sword may be more useful than a pebble against a truck.
"Then what's the point of the bat? I doubt it's any better than my sword."
Luke smirks, shaking his head, like I said something rather foolish. "Ah, but my dear apprentice, a baseball bat is better than your gladius. While you can't kill or destroy a monster's physical form without celestial bronze, it doesn't mean you can hurt it through other means. Think of monsters as... Superman."
"That's the example you use for monsters?"
"Quiet, you! Anyways, Superman is vulnerable to kryptonite, just like how monsters are vulnerable to celestial bronze. And just like Superman, he could also be harmed by other things; it might not be as effective as kryptonite, but if you know what you're doing, you could stun them enough to cause a distraction, so Percy or Annabeth could deal the killing blow."
"I see..."
I bit my lip. So I'm just supporting, huh? I may have been training for only a week, but I worked my butt off, to know that all my effort just makes me a supporter rubbed me the wrong way. There is no helping it, huh.
Luke must have noticed my sour expression as he put a hand to my hair.
"Listen, don't worry about it. I know you can be useful. Heck, when I was travelling with Thalia, I lost my sword and had to use a golf club for a while."
"Really?"
"Yeah. But I won't sugarcoat it. In this quest, you'll be facing a difficult challenge. Percy is strong because he's a son of Poseidon, Annabeth is smart and has tons of battle experience, and Grover can be helpful when the situation calls for it. You, on the other hand..."
"I know, a mortal," I said bitterly, tired of being reminded every ten seconds that I wasn't a son of a god like Percy or Luke.
Still, it doesn't mean they should treat me like a baby. I'd rather have Clarisse's malice than whatever pity party is trying to do.
"No, inexperience and not much natural talent. You may be a mortal kid, but you've got to be the toughest one I've met. You could probably give an adult man a run for their money with only a week's worth of training." He rubs my hair again. "I'm not trying to discourage you, all I'm saying is, are you willing to face monsters that even the most experienced demigods struggle with? There is no shame in running away."
I paused at his words. In truth, he was correct. I am worried and deathly afraid that I'm going out there in the world, knowing the monsters I've seen in my entire life are indeed true and could harm me. But I remembered the helplessness I felt when I faced the minotaur, then the satisfaction of beating two demigod campers on my own. All these feelings clashed, then mixed, and created the desire to see this through. No matter what I face in the world.
"I'll still do it, I want to prove to myself and everyone that I'm more than just an average mortal, that I'm not useless."
Luke raised a brow. "So, you're not doing this to save the world."
"That's just the bonus. What I really want is for everybody here to acknowledge me."
Luke analyzed my face before he stepped back, putting his fist to his hip. He chuckles before giving me a proud grin.
"I'm lucky to find someone like you. You're crazy, but I guess if you want to survive the world crafted by the Olympian gods, you have to be a little crazy. Alright then, get going."
I nodded, he gave me a playful salute before taking my gladius to his care and left whistling. I swung the metal baseball to give it a few practice swings. It's a good bit heavier and a bit bigger than my sword. Some slick sword moves, like certain parrying and counterstrikes, Luke taught me will be unavailable. Despite being both a hunk of metal, they are very different.
I took a deep breath, dropping my backpack before I started getting used to my new weapon.
***
It was time. Me, Percy, Annabeth and Grover stepped forward, walking to the large pine tree. This turned out to be Thalia Grace's tree, which reinforced the barriers at camp, making even powerful monsters unable to enter camp without permission. The camp store handed me the same starter kit they always gave quest kids:
a crisp $100 bill in mortal cash and twenty golden drachmas. Apparently, I was told they'd come in handy for... "non-mortal transactions."
Which probably means we could use it to bargain with a god or something like that. Chiron also gave Percy and Annabeth a couple of decently sized vials of nectar and a Ziploc of ambrosia. Chiron warns us only for emergencies. It will heal their wounds, but because they are half-mortal, too much of it would make them burst into flames and die. And of course, I can't even lick it, because unlike demigods who could take a moderate dose, I would just explode from a nibble.
That means, when I'm injured, I stay injured. No magical water to heal any wounds. I did purchase some bandages and wraps from the store for myself. Percy didn't pack much, only an extra change of clothes and a toothbrush. Seriously, he's about to go on a dangerous quest that could decide the fates of countless lives.
And he just brought clothes and a toothbrush. I was tempted to beat him with my baseball bat. Annabeth packed better. A book, because of course she's bringing that long bronze knife hidden in her shirt sleeve, though I don't know why she needs to hide it since it's invisible to mortals other than me. And finally, she was bringing the magical cap that turns her invisible, pretty useful, unlike somebody who is just bringing a toothbrush.
Grover looked... Well, Grover. He had his fake feet on straight, mortal jeans, and a green beanie to cover the top of his horns. His backpack bulged with scrap metal and apples, his idea of trail mix. In his pocket were his reed pipes. Still better than brush man.
Chiron waited for us beside the tree, sitting in his wheelchair form. Standing next to him was the "surfer dude" I'd glimpsed in the infirmary—except today he was dressed like someone's weirdly intense limo driver. Argus, camp security chief. The guy really did have eyes everywhere: peeking from his cheeks, blinking on the backs of his hands, even watching us from the side of his neck. His whole thing was... unsettling.
"Argus will take you into the city," Chiron explained. "And keep an eye on things."
...I get it.
"Wait, hold up!"
We turned to see Luke, jogging to us. He was holding a pair of sneakers in one hand, while the other was a green leather jacket. He was breathing hard, blond hair sticking to his forehead. I could see out of the corner of my eye, Annabeth was blushing, which made me snort. She turned to me with a harsh glare; her grey eyes were like a storm that promised pain if I didn't shut my mouth.
I pursed my lip, but held it shut.
"Glad I caught you," Luke told Percy. He held out the sneakers. "Figured these might help."
They looked like normal basketball shoes.
"I already have my shoes, but thanks, Luke?" Percy says as he takes them.
Luke grinned, "Maia!"
Suddenly, white wings burst from the heels, flapping like startled pigeons. Percy yelped and dropped them, and the shoes fluttered on the dirt path like they wanted to take off on their own before the wings folded and vanished again.
Grover practically vibrated with excitement. "Dude, those are awesome."
Luke smiled, but there was something sad behind it. "They were a gift from my dad, though I don't have much for them nowadays."
"Hey... thanks, man," Percy said.
Luke nodded. "There's a lot of hope riding on you. Do me a favour and knock a few monsters out for me, okay?"
He then turns to me and throws the leather jacket at my face.
"Hey!" I say, removing the jacket from my face before glaring at him. "What was that for!?"
"It's a jacket, could be useful."
Percy raised a brow. "A jacket? In June?"
Luke shrugged, "It'll offer a bit of protection."
"Is it magical at least?"
"Nope, but it's made out of thick leather. It's no armour, but it'll give you a tiny resistance to cutting and blunt damage."
I looked at the jacket. Dark green has two chest pocket zippers on the chest area. On the back was a white omega symbol.
"It was my old jacket when I was travelling with Thalia." I flinched, as in the corner of my eye, Annabeth was looking at the jacket with nostalgia.
"Are you sure you want to give it to me?"
"Yeah, I don't need it anymore."
I stared at Luke for the longest time before I dropped my bat and went back to put the jacket on. It was surprisingly comfortable. I looked at Luke, and we grinned before we shook hands.
"Thanks, thanks for everything."
"You're welcome."
Luke then shifted his gaze to Annabeth. I also turned to her only to see her frowning. Probably jealous. Luke sensed it, and with a mischievous grin, he dropped to one knee and spoke in a dramatic voice.
"As for the Lady Chase, I offer thy lips."
Annabeth flushed and shoved him. "No thanks!" She said, walking away, to the SUV where it was parked on the shoulder of the road.
Argus walked after her, jiggling his car keys. Luke chuckles before giving us one last word of good luck and jogging away. While I was admiring my new jacket, I noticed Percy had a hesitant expression on his face, like he was asked to eat a large amount of vegetables.
"What's up?" I asked.
"I won't be able to use these, will I?"
Chiron sighed, slow and heavy.
"Luke meant well, Percy. But taking to the air... that would not be wise for you."
I was about to ask, but then I remembered Zeus was petty as heck, and would kill Percy for even daring to jump in the air a little over three feet. He then turned to me and gestured for me to take it, which I refused. They look cool on paper, but I have a feeling they're more trouble than they are worth, and I would probably just crash.
Hey, Grover. You want a magic item?"
Grover's eyes sparkled as he'd just been handed the key to a candy store. "Me?"
Next thing I knew, Percy and I were helping him lace the sneakers over his fake human feet. The shoes looked ridiculous over the furry satyr's legs, but Grover was grinning as he'd just unlocked a new DLC for life.
"Maia!" he shouted.
The shoes activated immediately, flapping hard enough to kick up a mini dust storm. Grover lifted off the ground—success!—before tipping sideways. His overloaded backpack smacked the grass like an anchor, and the shoes bucked wildly like furious little broncos.
"Practice!" Chiron called. "You just need practice!"
"AAAAAA!" Grover screeched as he shot sideways down the hill, zig-zagging like a possessed lawn mower aimed directly at the van. Before we could follow him, Chiron stopped us.
"I should have trained you better, Percy," he said quietly. "If only I had more time. Hercules... Jason... they all got more training. You, as well as Clay, I should have taught you more."
He sighed, rubbing his temples. "What am I thinking? I can't let you get away without this."
He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out... a pen.
A regular pen. The cheap kind you accidentally steal from a bank. He placed it in Percy's hand like it was a holy relic, and I blinked, wondering if I was missing something.
Percy looked at it the same way I did. "Gee," he said dryly.
"Thanks."
But Chiron shook his head, all dramatic and serious. "Percy, that's a gift from your father. I've kept it for years, not knowing you were the one I was waiting for."
A gift from Poseidon... in pen form? I wanted to laugh, but knowing this camp, it would probably explode or sprout legs. Percy uncapped it—and the thing extended in his hand. Metal unfolded like it had been waiting centuries to breathe. In a blink, a full celestial bronze xiphos sword gleamed in the sunlight.
Wait, is this the same pen and sword that made Mrs. Dodds get turned into dust? I looked at Percy and the sword. Suddenly, my metal baseball bat felt like a metal scrap compared to the blade Percy's wielding. Like, what the heck, I want to have a magical weapon that is also a pen!
"The sword has a long and tragic history. Its name is Anaklusmos."
"Riptide," Percy translated. The Ancient Greek just flowed out of him effortlessly, as he slowly swung the sword, testing it out.
Show-off.
Chiron rested a hand on Percy's shoulder. "Use it only for emergencies. Only against monsters. It won't harm mortals, even if you strike them. It's simply... passes through."
I watched as Percy recapped the pen—carefully, as it might bite him. With a shoop, it shrank back into a regular ballpoint. He tucked it into his pocket, looking nervous. Given how many pencils I'd watched him lose at school, I didn't blame him.
"You can't," Chiron said.
Percy blinked. "Can't what?"
"Lose the pen. It is enchanted."
Chiron told him to try it, so Percy yeeted the pen down the hill with all the enthusiasm of someone disposing of cursed laundry.
Three seconds later?
"Check your pocket."
And lo and behold, it's right there. Yeah, why don't you tell my bat that it's absolutely worthless and uncool, compared to Percy's new sword: Riptide. Like, man, I want one! But a part of me wants to build my own instead. When the fanfare of Percy's sword dissolves, Percy and I were looking nervous as we stared past Thalia's tree. Where a wild world full of monsters and danger lurks. I took a deep breath and, not even waiting for Percy, I took a step forward as we officially started our quest to retrieve Zeus's masterbolt.