章節 18: Ares and Talks of War
Fortunately or not, the War God was waiting for them in the diner parking lot.
"Well, well," Ares said in mild surprise. "You didn't get yourself killed."
"You knew it was a trap," Percy retorted resentfully. "We could have died there!"
Ares shamelessly shot the young boy a wicked grin and scoffed in disdain, "Bet that crippled blacksmith was surprised when he netted a couple of stupid kids. You looked good on TV."
"Isn't he your brother?" Albert couldn't help but ask.
"So what?" The God asked in genuine confusion, "He is your mother's husband too, what about it? Technically, Seaweed Boy here is my cousin, does it look like I care? Does it look like my father would care about it? Do you think you're the first demigods to exist? We are Gods, you can't begin to understand it. You brats have no idea how this family works."
Suddenly, Percy shoved his shield at him, "You're a jerk."
Annabeth and Grover caught their breath. Albert was nervous too, but he couldn't help but agree with Percy, and deep down he wished he could beat the guy up, but doing it at this point was a lost cause. Deep down he pitied the Ares kids back at Camp, even Clarisse, most of them are hard to deal with, but some are truly and genuinely nice people.
What sucked was the fact that all of them knew Ares was speaking the truth as it was, they were mortals and Gods were beyond their understanding, which sucked even more when their lives are directly impacted by their actions and inactions. Does his mother truly care about him or his half-siblings? She was the Love Goddess, but what was love for her? This was all too depressing to think about.
Ares grabbed the shield and spun it in the air like pizza dough. His shield changed form at a visible pace, melting into a bulletproof vest. He slung it across his back casually. He merely ignored Percy's outburst as if he was a silly thing, not even bothering to notice.
"See that truck over there?" Ares pointed to an eighteen-wheeler parked across the street from the diner. "That's your ride. Take you straight to L.A., with one stop in Vegas."
There was an eighteen-wheeler that had a sign on the back, which Albert could read without struggle for some reason he didn't know. It was written in a reverse-printed white on black, a good combination for the others to understand: KINDNESS INTERNATIONAL: HUMANE ZOO TRANSPORT. WARNING: LIVE WILD ANIMALS.
Percy said in disbelief, "You're kidding."
Ares merely snapped his fingers, Albert felt something change around him, it was faint, but he did. The back door of the truck was magically unlatched. "Free ride west, punks. Stop complaining. And here's a little something for doing the job properly."
The jerk slung a blue nylon backpack off his handlebars and tossed it to Percy. Inside were fresh clothes for all four of us, twenty bucks in cash, a pouch full of golden drachmas, and a bag of Double Stuf Oreos. How thoughtful of him, Albert sarcastically thought.
Percy said, "I don't want your lousy—"
"Thank you, Lord Ares," Grover interrupted, giving me his best red alert warning look. "Thanks a lot. A lot, sir."
Percy gritted his teeth at that in resentment. He probably realized it could be a deadly insult to refuse something from a god, but he didn't want anything that Ares had touched, he failed to hide his thoughts as his sea-green eyes, looked displeased at the gifts. Reluctantly, he slung the backpack over his shoulder. At this point, he must have known that all this anger (most of it, at least) was being caused by the war god's presence, but he was still itching to punch the guy, denoted by his trembling fist.
Ares reminded me of every bully, none of them liked bullies. Percy especially, had a special place for them in his hate list. He looked back at the diner, which had only a couple of customers now. The waitress who'd served them dinner before was watching nervously out the window like she was afraid Ares might hurt them. She dragged the cook out from the kitchen to watch with worry in her eyes.
Great, Albert thought. Unwanted attention, all because of the scary jerk.
"You owe me one more thing," Percy suddenly told Ares, trying to keep my voice level. "You promised me information about my mother before."
"You sure you can handle the news?" Ares as he kick-started his motorcycle. "She's not dead."
Percy was so mad, he felt numb, "I knew that, is that all you got?"
"Oh, no you didn't," Ares said in a smug tone, " You suspected it. It's different. I am giving you a fact. I mean she was taken away from the Minotaur before she could die. She was turned into a shower of gold, right? That's metamorphosis. Not death. She's being kept in the Underworld."
"Kept..." Percy echoed, "Do you know why?"
"You need to study war, punk," The War God said and he meant it, "Hostages, of course. You take somebody to control somebody else."
"Nobody's controlling me," Percy stated firmly in defiance.
Ares laughed loudly looking at the boy with something that resembled pity, "Oh yeah? See you around, kid."
Percy balled up his fists and said, "You're pretty smug, Lord Ares, for a guy who runs from Cupid statues."
Behind the War God red sunglasses, the fire glowed. There was the strong hot wind blowing their hair. "We'll meet again, Percy Jackson. Next time you're in a fight, watch your back."
"Wait, sir!" Albert suddenly exclaimed as he remembered something, the War God shot him an inquisitive and impatient look. Albert took Aphrodite's Scarf from one of his pockets, it was surprisingly dry after all the water hassle from before, but Albert was staring directly at the guy, fearless for a reason he didn't truly know, "Here. It wasn't part of the quest, but we found it there. Will you return it to her?"
Ares looked at Albert up and down, there was a silent pause where the God shifted his gaze between the pink scarf and the boy. Eventually, he clicked his tongue and rudely grabbed the scarf off the other's hand. Ares revved his Harley, then roared off down Delancy Street.
Annabeth said, "That was not smart, Percy. It was too dangerous too"
"I don't care," Percy snapped back, but not in hostility.
"You should care," Albert interjected, this time he faced Percy sternly, "Best scenario he would transform you into a random animal. What use do we have for you in that state? What does your mother have?" He stopped as he got a surprised and guilty reaction from the other boy, "I don't like that guy very much either, none of us do. Who would welcome War with open arms and silly smiles? That God might be very difficult to endure, but at least he doesn't lie or sugarcoat things. What he said before... we all know it's true... we are not the same... many like us came before. Most of them ended in tragedy. "
"You don't want a god as your enemy," Annabeth added with a much somber tone, "Especially not that god."
"I'm sorry, ok?" Percy said reluctantly. "I get it now."
"Hey, guys," Grover said. "I hate to interrupt, but..."
Grover pointed toward the diner. At the register, the last two customers were paying their checks, two men in identical black coveralls, with a white logo on their backs that matched the one on the KINDNESS INTERNATIONAL truck.
"If we're taking the zoo express," Grover said, "we need to hurry."
They ran across the street and climbed in the back of the big rig, closing the doors behind us. The first thing that hit them was the nasty smell of the animals in the cages, wet fur or fathers along with the stench of urine and all sorts of poop. It was like the world's biggest pan of kitty litter. A nightmare for a sensitive nose.
The trailer was dark inside until Percy uncapped Anaklusmos. The blade cast a faint bronze light over a very sad scene that made all of them frown simultaneously. Sitting in a row of filthy metal cages were some of the most tragic zoo animals Albert had seen, he had never really ever been to a zoo himself, he refused every time and his family wasn't keen on having him throw tantrums at this sort of place demanding them to do something about it. There was a zebra, a young male albino lion, an older lioness, and a couple of antelopes.
"African Fauna..." He said loudly in cold anger, "Impresioned in metal cages, transported like common objects to be exhibited for human entertainment and some dollars for the rest of their lives. How distasteful."
Nobody had wanted to get close enough to the lion or the lioness, but the poor things were visibly uncomfortable pacing around on soiled blankets, in a space way too small for them, panting from the stuffy heat of the trailer. They had flies buzzing around their red irritated eyes.
"This is human kindness?" Grover yelled in rage. "Humane zoo transport? That's it?"
Grover probably would've gone right back outside to beat up the truckers with his bare fists, and honest to god, they would've helped him, but just then the truck's engine roared to life, the trailer started shaking, and we were forced to sit down or fall down. All four of them experience a weird sense of anger, but the satyr is the most affected.
They huddled in the corner on some mildewed feed sacks, doing what they could to ignore the smell the heat, and the flies. Grover talked to the animals in a series of goat bleats and animalistic noises, but the animals just stared at him sadly without replying. Annabeth was in favor of breaking the cages and freeing them on the spot, but Percy pointed out it wouldn't do much good until the truck stopped moving. Albert backed his point, much to his displeasure. Secretly plotting revenge for these animals when the time comes.
The black-haired demigod found a water jug and refilled their bowls, then used Anaklusmos to drag the mismatched food out of their cages. Percy decided to feed them.
Grover gently calmed the antelope down, while Annabeth used her knife to cut the balloon off his horn. She openly said she wanted to cut the gum out of the zebra's mane, too, but it was decided that would be too risky with the truck bumping around. They told Grover to promise the animals we'd help them more in the morning, then we settled in for the night.
Albert made sure to say that he was gonna do something for them too. Ethics be damned. He would talk those guys into helping all of them.
Grover curled up on a turnip sack; Annabeth opened the bag of Double Stuf Oreos Ares had given to them and nibbled on one halfheartedly; Percy tried to cheer them up by concentrating on the fact that they were halfway to Los Angeles. Halfway to their destination. It was only June 14. The solstice wasn't until the twenty-first so they theoretically would make it in plenty of time.
On the other hand, I had no idea what to expect next. The gods kept toying with me. At least Hephaestus had the decency to be honest about it—he'd put up cameras and advertised me as entertainment. But even when the cameras weren't rolling, I had a feeling my quest was being watched. I was a source of amusement for the gods.
"Hey," Annabeth said, "I'm sorry for freaking out back at the water park, Percy."
The boy was surprised at her sudden apology, he just, said, "That's okay."
"It's just..." The girl shuddered. "What you did was dangerous..." She then shot Albert a warning glare, as if begging him to say something too, "Right... Albert?"
Percy glanced over at the boy, he looked like a kicked puppy thrown out of the house on a rainy cold night. Apologetic and regretful, while pitiful altogether.
"Right..." He finally conceded, "Sorry for being so harsh too."
"It's fine, you're right," The boy hurriedly explained. "I shouldn't have been so reckless."
"Back then all I could think about was how much that guy was annoying and I resented you for giving him what he wanted with his petty provocations," Albert explained further, feeling a sense of responsibility. "I was worried about you, Jackson. I am not mad anymore, just to let you know."
Annabeth smiled in relief and gave Albert a thumbs up, Grover let out a loud sigh of relief too. Percy Jackson did something that made the other boy feel rather disconcerted, he just stared at him with an intense look for what felt like a small eternity.
"We're a team, remember?" He asked.
"Well, isn't it obvious?" Albert replied in annoyance, before turning away and pretending some parts of this exchange did not happen. He focused on the fact that soon he would have to go to a dangerous place for someone like him.
Annabeth pulled apart an Oreo and handed Percy a half. "In the Iris Message . . . did Luke really say nothing?"
The boy munched on the cookie. The conversation via rainbow had bothered him all evening and Albert could tell, mostly because of his suspicious interventions that would inevitably raise questions. "Luke said you and he go way back. He also said Grover wouldn't fail this time. Nobody would turn into a pine tree again."
In the dim bronze light of the magical sword, it was hard to read the expressions of the girl and the satyr. Grover let out a mournful bray.
"I should've told you the truth from the beginning." Grover's voice trembled. "I thought if you knew what a failure I was, you wouldn't want me along..."
"You were the satyr who tried to rescue Thalia, the daughter of Zeus," Percy stated matter-of-factly.
Grover nodded glumly with a sad hum that was out of character for his carefree and relaxed attitude. It was sad to see him sad. He was the kind of person that Albert called 'Good', like objectively good. He knew that very few people were like that in this world, even before he ever discovered the truth about the nature of his heritage, back when he was really young.
He used to listen to his grandfather's stories and how he used to say to him that he was not a good person, he said that those were very very rare. Like his grandmother. People like that when left without protection are the ones who usually get hurt. The ones who remain good despite their hurts are even stronger, but they are also the most tragic in a way.
Albert knew from a very young age that he wasn't a good person. He never aspired to be good in that sense. He wanted to be capable, not good.
"And the other two half-bloods Thalia befriended, the ones who got safely to camp.." Percy said as he looked at Annabeth. "That was you and Luke."
The girl put down her Oreo, uneaten. "Like you said, Percy, a seven-year-old half-blood wouldn't have made it very far alone. Athena guided me toward help. Back then Thalia was only twelve. Luke was fourteen. They'd both run away from home, just like me. They were happy to take me with them... They were . . . amazing monster fighters, even without training they were good. We traveled north from Virginia without any real plans, fending off monsters for about two weeks before Grover found us."
"My duty was to escort Thalia to camp," Grover said while sniffling, he was crying. "Only Thalia. My orders had been strict ones from Chiron: don't do anything that would slow down the rescue, he told me. We knew Hades was after her, see, but I-I just couldn't leave Luke and Annabeth by themselves on their own, they were so young... I thought . . . I thought I could lead all three of them to safety. It was my fault the Kindly Ones caught up with us. I froze. I got scared on the way back to camp and took some wrong turns. If I'd just been a little quicker . . ."
"Stop it," Annabeth said. "No one blames you, Grover! Thalia didn't blame you either."
"She sacrificed herself to save us," he said miserably. "Her death was my fault! The Council of Cloven Elders said so!."
"Did you Hades was after her?" Albert asked in mild surprise. "He sent the Furies-yes, that's what I will call them-we have been calling them that to their faces before it makes no sense to call the Kindly Ones anymore."
"Yeah," Grover said. "They wanted her, they wanted Thalia."
"Because you wouldn't leave two other half-bloods behind?" Percy said. "That's not fair."
"Percy's right," Annabeth said. "I wouldn't be here today if it weren't for you, Grover. Neither would Luke. We don't care what the council says."
"Is that why you two were so quick to point fingers at him when Percy got the prophecy?" Albert asked, but he already knew the answer. "The King broke his oath by siring a Forbidden Child, but just for being born? It sounds fishy, there is more at play here."
"You're defending him again!" Annabeth said in shock and betrayal, "You just heard what he did, how can you defend him?"
"Guys don't fight..." Grover pleaded.
"I am not defending him..." Albert said staring at the girl directly, "What he did does not have excuses, Annabeth. What I am saying is that I believe he didn't go for Thalia simply because she was a Forbidden Child, everybody knows he wasn't happy about the oath. I believe there is more to why that happened to your friend."
"Don't talk about what you don't know!" The girl exclaimed. "Even if you are right... It doesn't change anything. Not for me. Not for Grover. Not for Luke. Do us a favor and shut up."
"Annabeth. Albert. You can't fight, not now." Percy said in worry. "Please."
"She is right..." The brown-haired boy turned away and said, "I crossed the line and overstepped my boundaries. I wasn't there when they were attacked. I don't know their pain. I should have made little of it. For that, I apologize."
Grover kept sniffling in the dark and let out a depressing laugh. "It's just my luck. I'm the lamest satyr ever, and I find the two most powerful half-bloods of the century, Thalia and Percy. A recipe for disaster."
"You're not lame," Annabeth insisted. "You've got more courage than any satyr I've ever met. Name one other who would dare go to the Underworld. Percy must be really glad you're here right now."
"Yeah," Percy said quickly replied. "It's not luck that you found Thalia and me, Grover. You've got the biggest heart of any satyr ever. You're a natural searcher. That's why you'll be the one who finds Pan!"
After a long and tense silence, they heard a deep, satisfied sigh. They waited for Grover to say something, but his breathing only got heavier. When the sound turned to snoring, they realized he'd fallen asleep. He had actually cried himself to sleep.
"How does he do that?" Percy marveled, but there was a small smile on his face.
"I don't know," Annabeth said. "But that was really a nice thing you told him."
"I meant it."
Albert pretended he wasn't there. For a minute he wished he wasn't. This quest was only making him sympathize with Luke. Annabeth didn't know, Grover didn't know, Percy didn't know, but he did. He knew why Hades attacked Thalia. It was retaliation. Zeus took something from him first. Hades had to wallow in his misery until a random opportunity to get back at his brother appeared.
In times like this, Albert didn't know what to do with himself at all.
They rode in silence for a few miles, bumping around on the feed sacks every now and then. Annabeth rubbed her necklace like she was thinking deep, strategic thoughts.
"That pine tree bead," Percy suddenly said. "Is that from your first year?"
The girl looked at it. She hadn't realized what she was doing. Albert couldn't help but feel guilty, he should have kept his mouth shut before. If what she suffered had happened to him, he would have worked day and night to find a way to kill the monsters permanently and soon the gods too. He was just lucky to have been born and raised away from this nightmare of a life surrounded by love and privilege. Otherwise, if thigs had been different, he would be something probably worse than Luke.
"Yeah," she said. "Every August, the counselors pick the most important event of the summer, and they paint it on that year's beads. I've got Thalia's pine tree, a Greek trireme on fire, a centaur in a prom dress—now that was a weird summer. . . ."
"And the college ring is your father's?"
"That's none of your—" She stopped herself. "Yeah. Yeah, it is."
"You don't have to tell me."
"No . . . it's okay." She took a shaky breath. "My dad sent it to me folded up in a letter, two summers ago. The ring was, like, his main keepsake from Athena. He wouldn't have gotten through his doctoral program at Harvard without her. . . . That's a long story. Anyway, he said he wanted me to have it. He apologized for being a jerk and said he loved me and missed me. He wanted me to come home and live with him."
"That doesn't sound so bad," Percy tried awkwardly, unsure of what to say to that.
"Yeah, well . . . the problem was, I believed him. I tried to go home for that school year, but my stepmom was the same as ever. She didn't want her kids put in danger by living with a freak. Monsters attacked. We argued. Monsters attacked. We argued. I didn't even make it through winter break. I called Chiron and came right back to Camp Half-Blood."
Well, that's messed up, Alberth thought to himself. Annabeth was still just a kid, but her stepmother had the right to care for her children's security, what can she do against monsters? The situation is shit either way.
"You think you'll ever try living with your dad again?"
Annabeth stated plainly, "Please. I'm not into self-inflicted pain."
"You shouldn't give up," the boy told her. "You should write him a letter or something. There must be a way, right?"
"Thanks for the advice," Her voice turned cold, "but my father's made his choice about who he wants to live with."
Albert was once again wondering if Wisdom was truly what he thought it was. Annabeth didn't seem wise most of the time, her mother even less. He 'wisely' decided to remain quiet and pretend he wasn't there. Why couldn't things be easy for them?
They passed another few miles of oppressive silence.
"So if the gods fight," Percy said after fidgeting and as if this atmosphere was unbearable to him, "will things line up the way they did with the Trojan War? Will it be Athena versus Poseidon?"
Annabeth put her head against the backpack Ares had given us and closed her eyes. "I don't know what my mom will do. I just know I'll fight next to you."
"Then you will against your siblings?" Albert couldn't help but ask. "Athena declared for Zeus."
"What? Why?" Annabeth asked in shock, looking at them in confusion until clarity took over her face. "Luke said something? Why didn't you say anything? You don't trust me?"
"I-I... I don't know what to do..." Percy said in defeat. "I am scared of this war."
"No, I asked him not to say anything," Albert explained.
"Why did you do that?" The girl looked at him in confusion and hurt. "You don't trust me?"
"Don't give me that when I already trusted you with my life. I did it because you are too emotional," He said in a cold and collected tone. "Don't give that look, Annbeth. It's not a lie if you already knew how things were gonna go. Jackson probably doesn't realize just how bad this war could get. You, on the other hand, know better than the rest of us. Athena would never side with Poseidon, she is too prideful for that. You know that better than us, don't you?" He asked sternly, "You know our parents won't give a shit if this war means that we would have to fight and maybe kill each other. No matter if it's a friend or if we grew up together at Camp. War isn't about who is wrong and who is right. It's about who remains. Can you say you will fight on Percy's side?"
Annabeth looked at him for a long while, almost as if her life depended on it. However, after some time she cursed out loud in Ancient Greek, she looked between him and Percy and suddenly said. "Yes, I can. Because you guys are my friends. Any more stupid questions?"
"No," He said with a small smile. "I don't."
Soon enough, they fell asleep. Albert stayed up, and he didn't feel tired. Not physically at least. He needed to make sure this war didn't happen. He must protect the ones he cares about. This war between the Olympians will never come to be. Not on his watch. He glanced at the backpack Ares had given Percy before, he could faintly feel the powerful thing hidden inside. The Mist was warped around the bag. A ward of sorts, he knew in his guts.
Ares had done what he expected him to and that was enough for now.
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