CHAPTER TWENTY
( the princess andromeda )

I WISHED I had paid more attention to Silena Beauregard's pegasi lessons back at camp, since they could've come in handy at this very moment. The hippocampus was easier to handle than a pegasus, so that wasn't a problem, but I couldn't find a non-awkward position to hold on to. When I looked to my side to see how the others were doing, I saw Percy effortlessly riding his hippocampus through the waves without having to hold on. That just wasn't fair: his father was the creator of horses, he had it easy.

I hadn't taken into consideration how big the cruise was until we got close enough to it. Its white hull was approximately ten stories tall, and it was covered with brightly lit balconies and small portholes. Just above the bow line, the ship's name was painted in black letters. It was surprisingly easy for me to read: PRINCESS ANDROMEDA

A huge masthead was attached to the bow – a tall woman in a white chiton, carved for it to look like she was chained to the front of the ship, resembling the old myth. It would've been pretty, but her face was sculpted to be one of absolute terror. I shuddered after staring at the masthead for too long, and couldn't imagine what type of person would want a screaming woman to be the face of a vacation cruise ship.

"How do we get aboard?" Annabeth shouted over the noise of the waves, and the hippocampi seemed to know what we needed. They skimmed along the starboard side of the ship and pulled up next to a service ladder rooted to the side of the hull.

"Ladies first," Percy told us.

I glanced at Annabeth to see which one of us was going to take the lead. She raised an eyebrow and I huffed in response, knowing what she was implying. I slung the duffel bag over my shoulder and reached out for the bottom rung of the ladder. I pulled myself higher onto the ladder, leaving my hippocampus by itself. It whinnied in farewell and I carefully removed a hand from my tight grip on the rung to wave back before it dived underwater. I climbed up the ladder and got a few rungs up before Annabeth and Percy followed after me.

Finally it was just Tyson in the water. His hippocampus was entertaining him with backwards ollies, which made him laugh like the little kid he was. The sound of his laughter was so loud that it echoed through the ship.

"Tyson, shhh!" Percy tried to silence him. "Come on, big guy!"

"Can't we take Rainbow?" he asked with a fading smile.

"Rainbow?"

The hippocampus whinnied at the sound of his new name.

"Um, we have to go," Percy hesitated. "Rainbow. . .well, he can't climb ladders."

Tyson sniffled. "I will miss you, Rainbow!"

This was the main reason I didn't want him to come along. We haven't even spent one full day out of camp, and Tyson was already slowing us down. The hippocampus made a neighing sound, resembling a cry of his own.

"Maybe we'll see him again sometime," Percy suggested.

"Oh, please!" Tyson perked up immediately. "Tomorrow!"

Annabeth and I exchanged a look. Percy made no promises, but convinced Tyson to bid his goodbyes and grab onto the ladder. With a final sad neigh, Rainbow the hippocampus did a backflip and dived back into the sea.

The ladder led to a maintenance deck stacked with yellow lifeboats and bright orange life jackets. There was a pair of locked double doors, which Annabeth managed to open with her knife and a fair amount of cursing in Ancient Greek.

We checked a few corridors and peered over a balcony that led to a central promenade filled with closed shops. As we kept searching through half of the boat, I noticed there was nobody to hide from. Nobody who we had to sneak around for or would point out that we were stowaways. I figured it was because we had arrived at midnight, but I was halfway expecting to come across a person from the crew and saw no one. We walked by at least fifty cabin doors and there was no sound behind any of them.

"It's a ghost ship," Percy murmured.

"No," Tyson shook his head and fiddled with the strap of his duffel bag. "Bad smell."

Annabeth frowned. "I don't smell anything."

"Cyclopes are like satyrs," Percy said. "They can smell monsters. Isn't that right, Tyson?"

He nodded nervously.

"What do you smell, then?" I asked.

"Something bad," Tyson answered.

"Great," Annabeth grumbled. "That clears it up."

We stepped outside on the swimming pool level. There were rows of empty deckchairs and a closed bar with a chain curtain. The water in the pool sloshed from side to side from the boat's movements, the moon's glow reflecting against it. Above us fore and aft were more levels – a climbing wall, a pitch-and-putt golf course, a restaurant – everything that would invite a crowd of guests, but there was no one around.

And yet. . .I couldn't get rid of the feeling of danger in the pit of my stomach. Maybe I was paranoid and the lack of sleep was finally getting to me, but there was something bothering me that I couldn't quite put a name on.

"We need a hiding place," Percy spoke up. "Somewhere safe to sleep."

It was the first idea I agreed to in the entire night.

"Sleep," Annabeth agreed wearily.

We explored a few more corridors until we found an empty suite on the ninth level. The door was suspiciously open, adding fuel to my 'something is wrong' theory. There was a basket of chocolate treats set on the table, an iced-down bottle of sparkling cider on the nightstand and a mint on the pillow with a handwritten note that said: Enjoy your cruise!

I opened the duffel bag Hermes had packed for each of us and noticed that he had thought of everything – extra clothes, toiletries, camp rations such as ambrosia squares and money, both golden drachmas and a stash of cash. What surprised me even more was that he'd even packed my old bow and a quiver filled with arrows, which filled me with relief. Hermes had also stashed Annabeth's invisibility cap in her own duffel bag and an oilcloth with tools and metal parts for Tyson, which uplifted his spirits right away.

"We'll be next door," Annabeth said, gesturing to both her and me. "You guys don't drink or eat anything."

"You think this place is enchanted?"

She frowned. "I don't know. Something isn't right. Just. . .be careful."

I followed Annabeth into our own room and locked the door behind us.

I convinced Annabeth to have the entire bed for herself and let me sleep on the couch, but she protested. She told me that sharing this bed was no different from our sleepovers back at camp and to stop being ridiculous. I fought against it since I doubted that I was going to have a good sleep and wanted her to sleep well, but I couldn't tell her that. Finally, after a while of debating, we both made ourselves comfortable in bed.

I laid there, ready to close my eyes, but I could've sworn I heard voices outside. That couldn't be right. We'd walked all over the ship and had seen nobody.

The lack of rest finally got the best of me and I fell asleep in a couple of minutes. I hoped to at least get a good sleep before the long journey that awaited us, but I was wrong.

I STOOD IN a pitch dark forest, and it would've been entirely difficult to tell where I was if it weren't for the grass rustling against my ankles. I looked both left and right for a clue of where I was, too afraid to move a single inch. As my eyes adjusted to the dark, I was able to recognize the outlines of the trees towering over me. Their shape was too familiar; like I've been here before.

I decided to risk it and take a step forward, the leaves making crunching noises as my shoes stepped over them. I extended a hand in front of me, afraid I might bump into something like a tree trunk, but I forgot to watch where I was walking and almost tripped over a tree branch on the grass.

I looked down to see what almost made me lose my balance, and I froze. Even though it was dark all around me, I could make out the colors of the branches and saw in which spots did the roots break out from the dirt. I knew what this tree looked like even with my eyes closed. Thalia's pine tree.

You think they forgive you, little hero?

That voice. I hadn't heard from it in my dreams ever since last summer. Why was it bothering me again? There was nothing he could gain from appearing in my dreams – at least that's what I tried to convince myself with.

I wasn't sure if he could see me grit my teeth, but I still did. "Shut up."

You can't forgive yourself, who says they do? The chilling voice spoke once again, the sound being like nails on a chalkboard.

"I don't know what you're talking about," I forced myself to answer.

You do, little hero, the voice sneered, the tone angrier than before. You think about it every day, every night.

I heard a rustling noise underneath me, and I looked down to see the pine needles falling from the branches just like the original tree had done when it first got sick. I felt like I was reliving that day all over again, the first time I saw Thalia's tree turn from a beautiful green to an ill yellow. I shook my head on instinct, wanting this to stop.

Pathetic, laughter rumbled through the voice. Her father didn't care about her until she died, what makes you think you won't suffer the same fate, child?

I didn't have an answer to that. I kept thinking to myself; that won't happen, my father loves me, but it sounded silly to think about it. My silence seemed to entertain the voice, since a full laugh – not of joy but filled with malice – echoed in my eardrums.

Don't answer me just yet, the voice returned. When you approach the brink of death, which you'll inevitably do on this journey, you'll realize that the gods, especially your father, won't do anything to save you.

I finally got enough courage to yell out into the abyss, "Leave me alone!"

That terrifying laughter rang in my ears again. You'll see, little hero, you'll see.

I was woken up by a series of incoherent movements on my body, specifically my arm. I tried to blink the sleep away from my eyes to see what was happening, only to see what I thought was a blonde bird's nest hovering over me. That's not right, is it?

My vision cleared and I could now perfectly distinguish Annabeth's figure hovering over me, shaking me awake. She must've noticed I opened my eyes, since her movements stopped. Who needs alarm clocks when you have Annabeth Chase as your best friend?

I pushed myself up on the bed. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," she answered, a conflicted look on her face. I noticed she must've woken up just a few minutes before me, since she was still wearing the same clothes as yesterday. "It's just, I want to get out of here as soon as possible."

"Agree."

Annabeth and I took several minutes to get ready, grabbing the fresh clothes that Hermes had packed on each of our bags. Unfortunately for both of us, the bags didn't come with a hairbrush or comb of some kind, and we couldn't find one in the entirety of our room. I did the best I could to fix both of our hair – remembering the basics of what the Aphrodite cabin taught me – and resulted in me making both of us braids.

Once we were ready, Annabeth walked toward the door that connected our room with Percy's. "Do you think they're awake?"

"Maybe," I shrugged. "Let's just knock, for precaution. Don't want to walk on anything. . .'boy-ish.'"

She nodded after a shudder shook her entire body. Before Annabeth could press her fist against the hardwood door, the sound of a ship's whistle distracted us both, followed by a masculine voice speaking over the intercom. "Good morning, passengers! We'll be at sea all day today. Excellent weather for the poolside mambo party! Don't forget million-dollar bingo in the Kraken Lounge at one o'clock, and for our special guests, disembowelling practice on the Promenade!"

Annabeth and I shared a weirded glance, and then proceeded to knock on the door. There was a beat of silence – from both our end and the other side of the door. Impatiently, Annabeth swung the door open and peeked her head in.

"Disembowelling practice?" she asked out loud.

Once Percy and Tyson got dressed, we wandered out into the ship and were surprised to see other people. A dozen senior citizens were heading to breakfast. A dad was taking his kids to the pool for a morning swim. Crew members in crisp white uniforms strolled the deck, tipping their hats to the passengers.

Nobody seemed to pay us any attention. No one came up to us and asked us who we were. I was relieved, of course, but there was something off about the whole thing.

The family that was on their way to the pool passed us and the dad told his kids, "We are on a cruise. We are having fun."

"Yes," his three kids said in unison, their expressions blank. "We are having a blast. We will swim in the pool."

They wandered off.

"Good morning," a crew member told us, his eyes glazed like in a trance. "We are all enjoying ourselves aboard the Princess Andromeda. Have a nice day." He drifted away.

"I don't like this," I muttered. "This is like the Lotus Casino, the Sequel."

We walked by a cafeteria and saw, you guessed it, our first monster. A hellhound – to be exact – a black mastiff with its front paws leaning on the buffet counter and its muzzle buried in the scrambled eggs. It was no bigger than a grizzly bear so it told me he was one of the young ones. Last time I'd encountered one of them, Percy was nearly killed in the process.

What was even weirder was that a middle-aged couple stood in the buffet queue behind the monster and didn't seem to notice it. They were patiently waiting their turn for the eggs without paying attention to the 600 pound creature in front of them.

"Not hungry any more," Tyson murmured.

Before any of us could reply, a reptilian voice came from down the corridor, dragging the letter 's' as it spoke, "Six more joined yesterday."

Annabeth gestured frantically towards the nearest hiding place, which was the women's room, and the four of us ducked inside. More than one creature slithered past the restroom door, making sounds like sandpaper against the carpet.

"Yes," a second reptilian voice said, speaking in the same way as the other. "He draws them. Soon we will be strong."

The creatures slithered into the cafeteria with a cold hissing that resembled laughter. Annabeth looked back at us. "We have to get out of here."

"You think I want to be in the girls' restroom?"

"You'll live," I told him.

"I mean the ship, Percy! We have to get off the ship."

"Smells bad," Tyson agreed. "And dogs eat all the eggs. Annabeth is right. We must leave the restroom and ship."

It was the first time I agreed with him on something –or that he agreed with something Annabeth said. Percy seemed to notice this too, and could tell we were serious.

Before any of us could move, I heard another voice outside the restroom – one I thought I'd never hear again and made me freeze on the spot. "– only a matter of time. Don't push me, Agrius!"

Luke. No matter how hard I tried, his voice was one I couldn't forget.

"I'm not pushing you!" another guy growled, much more deeper and angrier.  "I'm just saying, if this gamble doesn't pay off –"

"It'll pay off," Luke snapped. "They'll take the bait. Now, come, we've got to get to the admiralty suite and check on the casket."

Their voices carried down the corridor.

Tyson whimpered. "Leave now?"

Annabeth, Percy and I shared a look amongst ourselves, coming to an agreement.

"We can't," Percy told Tyson.

"We have to find out what Luke is up to," Annabeth agreed. "And if possible, we're going to beat him up, bind him in chains and drag him to Mount Olympus."