章 5: Chapter 5
It was in the late afternoon when Naruto was done with his workload for today, and he was looking forward to a well-deserved lunch. He was sitting at his table when he noticed that Chiron and Mr. D were talking to Percy about something, probably telling him about his quest. He finished his meal and walked towards Chiron and Mr. D to tell them that he was probably going to join the upcoming quest.
"Greetings Mr. D how was your trip to Olympus?" Asked Naruto
"Could have gone better?" said Mr. D, "The tension between Zeus and Poseidon has increased."
"This is bad," said Chiron, "It's only a matter of time before Olympus is torn apart."
"You're right, but you do have to remember that Hestia, Hera, and Demeter can calm the two down."
"Yes, but they can only distract them for so long." Said Chiron
"Then I guess Percy will have to start the quest as soon as possible." Said Naruto
"I couldn't agree more," said Chiron
The look on Percy's face coming out of the attic spoke of terror, the reason for this is was the prophecy that was given;
You shall go west, and face the god who has turned,
You shall find what was stolen, and see it safely returned,
You shall be betrayed by one who calls you a friend,
And you shall fail to save what matters most, in the end.
The ending was what worried Percy the most, failing to save his mother. That was the whole reason why he took the stupid quest in the first place, but it seems that would be possible now.
"Something seems to be troubling you," said Chiron, "Was it the prophecy you were given."
"Yes," said Percy, "I'll retrieve the bolt safely, but It seems that I'll also be betrayed in the end."
"It may seem bleak, but you have to remember that some of the lines have double meanings." Said Chiron, "Did the prophecy say anything else?"
"Just that I'll meet the god that turned," said, Percy
"Well think Percy which god do you think would profit the most if the gods go to war." Said Chiron
"Hades!" Said Percy, but the earth shook as he finished saying that.
"Percy remember, that names have power," said Chiron, "now, you may choose two campers to accompany you on your quest."
"Grover for sure," said Percy, "but the second person is"
"Me," said no one
"Ahhh!" Screamed Percy
"Jez Percy no need to scream," said Annabeth as she appeared between Percy and Chiron
"How did you do that?!" Said,, Percy,
"She has a magic baseball cap that lets her turn invisible," said Naruto as he walked towards the group,
"She usually uses it to gather information and make tactical retreats but that's beside the point, I came to tell you I'm going with you."
"Why?" Asked Chiron, "You know the rules, only three campers per quest."
"My reason is justified," said Naruto, "I need to get to the Underworld and deliver Persephone dress to her."
"I thought you had a business deal with Hermes," said Annabeth, "You make the dresses, and he delivers them."
"Unfortunately our deal is on temporary hold until the bolt is returned," said Naruto, "This is bad as some of my orders are outside the camp."
"How is that bad?" Asked Percy
"Percy, Naruto is one of the biggest contributors to the camp," said Annabeth
"What?" Said a confused Percy
"I help make money for the camp," said Naruto, "don't you know one of the basic principles of Economics, the concept of Supply and Demand. If I can't get the orders out, I can't supply the camp with money as the demand will be unmet."
"Oh, that's bad," said Percy
"Yes that is," said Naruto, "If anything we'll killing two birds with one stone with me going on the quest."
"I can't argue with that," said Chiron, "I guess this will be the first quest with four people."
"Good I'll get my stuff then," said Naruto as went towards his workshop.
The group consisting of Naruto, Annabeth, Grover and Percy decided to meet on the hill to the camp after they packed everything and said their goodbyes as they do not come back. Several campers wished them good luck and to be safe. The hardest to say goodbye was Naruto, mostly from Aphrodite's cabin because they wouldn't let him go. After helping Naruto and looking over their newly acquired scraps, Chiron showed them their transportation.
"This is Argus, he will drive you into New York and drop you off at the Greyhound bus station." Said Chiron
Argus was a tall blond guy that looked like he would fit in with the California surfing scene except for the issue with his eyes, there all over his body.
"Why can't he just drive us the whole way?" Asked Percy
"Two reasons: one he is bound to the camp and two," said Chiron.
"Have you ever been in a cramped van for multiple hours with prepubescent teens." Interrupted Naruto
"Oh," said Percy
"Wait," said Luke as he ran towards them, "before you leave take these. These were a gift from my 'father' and thought that these would be off with you. A quest hasn't been given in years, so kill a few monsters for me."
"Wow, thanks Luke," said Percy, unaware of Annabeth's blush.
After Luke left and out of earshot, Naruto took the shoes from Percy.
"Percy, do you really think a child of the sea, and the supposed lightning bolt, will be allowed in the air. The answer is no; The Big Three really hate it when their brother's children cross into their domains. Why do you think the first son of Zeus was afraid of water?"
"You mean Hercules?" Asked Percy
"Careful where you say that," said Naruto, "He's isn't well liked among the campers. He's the reason the Queen doesn't like demigods and also makes business transactions even harder on me."
"Well, that's interesting," said Percy, "I thought he was well-liked."
"Percy Zeus would never let his prized son be seen in a bad light so he had our mother change the history books so his son would be seen in a good light while putting his wife in the bad light."
Percy was left speechless and just proceed to load his stuff into the truck.
For twenty minutes the van was met with silence, but that changed when they exited Lincoln Tunnel, that's when Percy started to act like a child that saw the city for the first time. He was pointing out all the McDonalds, shopping mall and billboards he could see, it has been awhile since he last saw modern civilization.
"So far so good," said Annabeth as she looked around.
"Oh what's the worst that could happen," said, Percy
"Percy you just possible curse this quest," said Naruto as he continued to knit, "Because you just provoked the fates."
"Why do you hate me," said a now depressed Percy.
"Percy if you remember your Greek history you'd remember that our parents hate each other. It's been that way since the creation of Athens. Both of our parents presented a gift to the people to choose from; Your father presented a hot salt spring, while Annabeth's and my mother presented an olive tree. You could tell who won.
"But what about the chariot didn't they work together on that?" asked Percy
"That was more of a forced partnership" answered Annabeth.
Before Percy could continue the conversation, Argus arrived at the bus station and began to unpack the van. On the mailbox was a poster with a picture of Percy and saying 'Have You Seen This Boy it. Percy quickly ripped the poster up before the others could see it, not knowing that Naruto saw it. After Argus gave the bus tickets to the group and began the trip back to camp.
"So, we have a destination in mind?" asked Naruto
"I was thinking of heading west," said Percy
"Just a general direction," said Annabeth, "That's it."
"Yes, that's about it," said Percy
"You really need to think ahead," said Naruto, "We'll just head towards Los Angeles and just go from there."
"That sounds good," said Annabeth
"I agree," said Grover
As they agreed to this plan, they split into two groups to occupy themselves until the bus could get here. Naruto and Annabeth talked about possible attack patterns, while Percy and Grover played hacky sack.
"How's your latest attack coming?" Asked Annabeth
"It's coming well, but the only problem is concentration." Said Naruto, "I need to have a clearer head, but in the heat of battle that's kind of hard to do."
"Hopefully that issue will be resolved," said Annabeth, "the tensile strength of that attack could save us in a fall or provide restraint for bigger and stronger opponents."
"I agree with you, but until I can use it flawlessly I can only use it sparsely," said Naruto
"Well, hopefully, you won't need to use it on this quest." Said Annabeth
The bus came shortly after, and the group began to put their stuff on the bus. They got on the bus and decided to sit at the back of the back for two reasons; one for protection and two because that is where the air conditioning was the strongest. It was uneventful until they noticed three grandmothers sitting near the front getting on. Each of them had crumpled velvet dresses, lash gloves, and formless orange knit caps.
"I thought you said monsters wouldn't reform for years." Whispered Percy
"I said if you're lucky" replied Annabeth, "You're obviously not."
"Is there a way to escape them?" Asked Percy
"Unfortunately no, all the exits windows have been sealed and there is isn't a back exit." Said Naruto
"They wouldn't attack us with all these people aboard." Said, Percy
"These people wouldn't notice as the mist would mask it." Said Naruto
"What mist?" Asked Percy
"Haven't you read the Iliad, there are multiple references to it." Answered Annabeth
"Get ready because they're coming this way," said Naruto
Seeing the Furies are coming closer she put her invisible cap on Percy so they wouldn't notice him. Percy got up and tried to sneak past the sisters and get to the front of the bus. He had a close call when one of the sisters stopped and smelled around, but he relaxed when she continued to the back. When the bus was in the Lincoln tunnel the Furies decided to strike, gone were their disguises revealing their leathery skin, gargoyle talons, bat-like wings and their whips of fire.
"Where is it! Where is it!" Shouted the Furies
"He isn't here," said Annabeth as the people around them started to panic.
Naruto noticed the confusion, but before he could sort the issue out the bus started to swerve and jerk. Percy in a moment of bravery, or stupidity, he wrestled the wheel out of the driver's hand.
'What is that vlákas (idiot) doing' thought Naruto as tried to hold on, 'He's not only endangering himself but also the lives of these mortals.'
The only bright side of this situation was the conclusion, the driver managed to locate an exit from the highway and onto a rural road. The bus was on a collision course with the Hudson River, but Percy pulled the emergency brake causing the bus to swerve on the asphalt road. When it made a complete stop the bus door was thrown open letting the passengers leave while leaving the group of Demigods room to fight the Furies.
"Give us what we want, and you won't suffer eternal torment" shouted Ms. Dodd.
"You can't have him" yelled Annabeth.
'I don't think it's Percy they want' thought Naruto as he put on a pair of leather gloves.
The Furies made the first move deciding to split the group of four up but an odd thing stuck out, they were leaving Naruto alone. Undenounced to Naruto was the silent agreement between the female deities concerning him. If Naruto were to be harmed the assault would face the wrath of Aphrodite, a punishment no one wants.
Annabeth was fighting close quarters while Grover was supplying long-range fire with tin cans. Percy was doing the best he can with his new sword, Anaklusmos, but his training only consisted of three days of Luke beating. Grover managed to disarm one of them, while Annabeth wrestled the other one to the ground. Grover tried to grab the whip only to discover that it was too hot and was now juggling the whip.
"Everyone get out!" yelled Naruto as he sensed something wrong.
His group managed to hear him and ran out of the bus as quickly as they could. No more than ten seconds later did a bolt of lightning strike the bus, destroying the furies with it.
"Our luggage!" shouted Percy
"My cans!" shouted Grover
"Well looks like we're going on foot from here on," said Naruto
"Look there's one getting away" shouted Annabeth as she pointed towards the sky, only to see the fury split in two.
"Not anymore," said Naruto, "Come on we have quite the distance to make up before we set camp."
Realizing what Naruto said the group turned towards the forest and continued on their quest.
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