I 021. I

𝑮𝒍𝒐𝒓𝒚 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑮𝒐𝒓𝒆

❝ pilot ❞

     BORROWING THE HELICOPTER WAS EASY. Getting Piper's dad on board was not.

Piper needed only a few words through Leo's improvised bullhorn to convince the pilot to land on the mountain. The Park Service copter was big enough for medical evacuations or search's because rescue, and when Piper told the very nice ranger pilot lady that it would be a great idea to fly them to the Oakland Airport, she readily agreed.

"No," Piper's dad muttered, as they picked him up off the ground. "Piper, what—there were monsters—there were monsters—"

Ariadne helped hold the man down while Coach Hedge gathered their supplies. Fortunately, Hedge had put his pants and shoes back on, so Piper didn't have to explain the goat legs.

Piper looked heartbroken at the sight of her dad pushed beyond the breaking point, crying like a little boy.

"It'll be okay, Dad," she said, making her voice as soothing as possible. Charmspeaking her own father was the only way. "These people are my friends. We're going to help you. You're safe now."

He blinked, and looked up at helicopter rotors. "Blades. They had a machine with so many blades. They had six arms..."

When they got him to the bay doors, the pilot came over to help. "What's wrong with him?" she asked.

"Smoke inhalation," Jason suggested. "Or heat exhaustion."

"We should get him to a hospital," the pilot said.

"It's okay," Piper said. "The airport is good."

"Yeah, the airport is good," the pilot agreed immediately. Then she frowned, as if uncertain why she'd changed her mind. "Isn't he Tristan McLean, the movie star?"

"No," Piper said. "He only looks like him. Forget it."

"Yeah," the pilot said. "Only looks like him. I—" She blinked, confused. "I forgot what I was saying. Let's get going."

Jason raised his eyebrows at Piper, obviously impressed, but Piper looked miserable.

Finally they got Tristan on board, and the helicopter took off. The pilot kept getting questions over her radio, asking her where she was going, but she ignored them. They veered away from the burning mountain and headed toward the Berkeley Hills.

"Piper." Her dad grasped her hand and held on like he was afraid he'd fall. "It's you? They told me—they told me you would die. They said...horrible things would happen."

"It's me, Dad." It took all her willpower not cry. "Everything's going to be okay."

"They were monsters," he said. "Real monsters. Earth spirits, right out of Grandpa Tom's stories—and the Earth Mother was angry with me. And the giant, Tsul'kälû, breathing fire—" He focused on Piper again, his eyes like broken glass, reflecting a crazy kind of light. "They said you were a demigod. Your mother was..."

"Aphrodite," Piper said. "Goddess of love."

"I—I—" He took a shaky breath, then seemed to forget how to exhale.

Piper's friends were careful not to watch. Leo fiddled with a lug nut from his tool belt. Jason gazed at the valley below—the roads backing up as mortals stopped their cars and gawked at the burning mountain. Gleeson chewed on the stub of his carnation, and for once the satyr didn't look in the mood to yell or boast.

Ariadne focused on her thoughts, looking out the window while fiddling with her necklace. They were so close to Hera. So close to finding where Percy had gone, where the goddess was holding him hostage.

"Ariadne."

The same voice from camp. It clung to the back of her mind, like a sinister feeling creeping through her bones.

"Look at what you've done."

Fire raged across the mountain top. Her vines were slowly retreating back to earth, and the half broken rock was clear as day with the large sixty foot pit in the middle.

Had she really done all that?

"Yes, my dear, you have. The gods have been silencing you for too long. Your sword harnessed your abilities, and with it, you. The Olympians have been using you for too long. Join me, and you can gain a taste of freedom, a world without the gods. You and Percy Jackson can finally live without another war."

Tempting. Lunacy was really just a way for her to have a grip on her powers, but now that it was gone, the blade and hilt fizzling into the sky, who knows what would happen if she let loose. She could hurt everyone she loved and cared about.

A world without war to spend it with Percy was a dream. It would be a dream, because she would never do it. Gods or not, they needed to keep civilization together, and the giants would do nothing of that sort. They would never live freely or truthfully without fear.

"Let me go, lady," Ariadne muttered to herself, hoping her friends couldn't hear. "I'm never joining you."

The voice hissed in her head, leading onto a massive headache, one that made her wince harshly. "You are a fool, Daughter of the Vines. With this world, you shall fall, and Olympus will end with you—only you. I will ensure that you are the one who delivered the final blow. Your beloved Percy will never be safe."

Her eyes blazed at the ground below. "Touch him, or anyone else I love, and I will ensure that I deliver the final blow to you, sending you back to Tartarus and force you into a sleep for the rest of eternity."

Mount Diablo shook.

"Now—get out of my head."

Her headache passed, and the mountain rested calmly. She focused on Piper and her father.

Piper held his hand, speaking to him about the small things—her time at the Wilderness School, her cabin at Camp Half-Blood. She told him how Coach Hedge ate carnations and got knocked on his butt on Mount Diablo, how Leo had tamed a dragon, and how Jason had made wolves back down by talking in Latin. Her friends smiled reluctantly as she recounted their adventures. Her dad seemed to relax as she talks, but he didn't smile.

As they passed over the hills into the East Bay, Jason tended. He leaned so far out the doorway Piper was afraid he'd fall.

He pointed. "What is that?"

Ariadne looked down, but there wasn't anything interesting—just hills, woods, houses, little roads snaking through the canyons. A highway cut through a tunnel in the hills, connecting the East Bay with the inland towns.

"Where?" Piper asked.

"That road," he said. "The one that goes through the hills."

Piper picked up the com helmet the pilot had given her and relayed the question over the radio. The answer wasn't very exciting.

"She says it's Highway 24," Piper reported. "That's the Caldecott Tunnel. Why?"

Jason stared intently at the tunnel entrance, but he said nothing. It disappeared from view as they flew over downtown Oakland, but Jason still stared into the distance, his expression almost as unsettled as Piper's dad's.

"Monster," her dad said, a year tracing his cheek. "I live in a world of monsters."

Ariadne gulped down her emotions.

Air traffic control didn't want to let an unscheduled helicopter land at the Oakland Airport—until Piper got on the radio. Then it turned out to be no problem.

They unloaded on the tarmac, and everyone looked at Piper.

"What now?" Jason asked her.

"First thing," she said. "I—I have to get my dad home. I'm sorry, guys."

Their faces fell.

"Oh," Leo said. "I mean, absolutely. He needs you right now. We can take it from here."

"Pipes, no." Her dad had been sitting in the helicopter doorway, a blanket around his shoulders. But he stumbled to his feet. "You have a mission. A quest. I can't—"

"I'll take care of him," said Coach Hedge.

Piper stared at him. The satyr was the last person they'd expected to offer. "You?" she asked.

"I'm a protector," Gleeson said. "That's my job, not fighting."

He sounded a little crestfallen.

Then Hedge straightened, and set his jaw. "Of course, I'm good at fighting, too." He glared at them all, daring them to argue.

"Yes," Jason said.

"Terrifying," Leo agreed.

The coach grunted. "But I'm a protector, and I can do this. Your dad's right, Piper. You need to carry on with the quest."

"But..." Piper's eyes stung, as if she were back in the forest fire. "Dad..."

He held out his arms, and she hugged him. He felt frail. He was trembling.

"Let's give them a minute," Jason said.

Ariadne nodded. She placed a hesitant hand on his shoulder. "Mr. McLean, I..." Her eyes weighed heavily, she could see his shoulder tense at her light touch. "I hope this helps."

Her hands fluttered from his shoulder to his temple. His own irises widened at the sight of hers glowing just a bit more, before his shoulders relaxed, a purple haze following her hand while she dropped it.

She led the pilot away. Her friends followed.

Jason glanced down at her. "I thought you said you couldn't cure madness?"

"I can't."

Hedge and the flight attendant got Piper's dad on his sleek white Gulf-stream that had taxied next to the helicopter. Then Hedge came down one last time to say his good hues. He gave Piper a hug and glared at Jason and Leo. "You cupcakes take care of this girl, you hear? Or I'm gonna make you do push ups."

"You got it, Coach," Leo said, a smile tugging at his mouth.

"No push ups," Jason promised.

Ariadne gave Hedge a smile. "Take care of him, Coach."

"I got this, Phoenix," he assured her. "Make sure these kids don't get into any more trouble."

"You're asking the wrong person.

Trotting up the stairs, he lost one shoe, and his hood was visible for just a second. The flight attendants's eyes widened, but she looked away and pretended nothing was wrong. Ariadne figured she'd probably seen stranger things, working for Tristan McLean.

When the plane began heading down the runaway, Piper started to cry. Before she knew it, Jason was hugging her, and Leo stood uncomfortably nearby, pulling Kleenex out of his tool belt. Ariadne gave her a sympathetic smile.

"Your dad's in good hands," Jason said. "You did amazing."

She sobbed into his shirt.

"Thank you, guys," Piper said. "I—0

Then, right next to Jason, the air began to shimmer. Ariadne knew that anywhere. It was an Iris message. An image appeared in the air—a dark haired girl in silver winter camouflage, holding a bow.

Jason stumbled back in surprise. "Thalia!"

"Thank the gods," said The Hunter. The scene behind her was hard to make out, but Ariadne heard yelling, metal clashing on metal, and explosions.

"We've found her," Thalia said. "Where are you?"

"Oakland," he said. "Where are you?"

"The Wolf House! Oakland is good; you're not too far. We're holding off the giant's minions, but we can't hold them forever. Get here before sunset, or it's all over."

"Then it's not too late?" Piper cried. Thalia's expression quickly dampened.

"Not yet," Thalia said. "But Jason—it's worse than I realized. Porphyrion is rising. Hurry."

"But where is the Wolf House?" he pleaded.

"Our last trip," Thalia said, her image starting to flicker. "The park. Jack London. Remember?"

Jason looked like he'd been shot. He tottered, his face pale, and the Iris message disappeared.

"Bro, you all right?" Leo asked. "You know where she is?"

"Yes," Jason said. "Sonoma Valley. Not far. Not by air."

Piper turned to the ranger pilot, who'd been watching all this with an increasingly puzzled expression.

"Ma'am," Piper said, with her best smile. "You don't mind helping us one more time, do you?"

"I don't mind," the pilot agreed.

"No, we can't take a mortal into battle," Ariadne said. "It's too dangerous." She turned to Leo. "Do you think you could fly this thing?"

"Um..." Leo's expression wasn't that reassuring. But then he put his hand on the side of the helicopter, concentrating hard, as if listening to the machine.

"Bell 412HP utility helicopter," Leo said. "Composite four blade main router, cruising speed twenty-two knots, service ceiling twenty-thousand feet. The tank is near full. Sure, I can fly it."

Piper smiled at the ranger again. "You don't have a problem with an under aged unlicensed kid borrowing your copter, do you? We'll return it."

"I—" The pilot nearly choked on the words, but she got them out: "I don't have a problem with that."

Leo grinned. "Hop in, kids. Uncle Leo's gonna take you for a ride."

Oh, she was so going to die before her seventeenth birthday.

authors note:

Filler chapter basically

My cat is being needy so attention is needed

Love you guys!