𝐒 𝐓 𝐀 𝐑   𝐖 𝐀 𝐑 𝐒   !

⎯ 𝘛 𝘌 𝘕 ⎯

( 𝔱𝔥𝔢 𝔯𝔞𝔦𝔫𝔟𝔬𝔴 𝔤𝔬𝔡𝔡𝔢𝔰𝔰 𝔤𝔢𝔱𝔰 𝔞 𝔧𝔬𝔟 ! )

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯ ⬩❖⬩ ⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

          "𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐅𝐔𝐂𝐊?"

Not once in the decade of her being a demigod had Aurora Jake heard something so . . . so . . . so stupid. Sure, she'd experienced the odd monster here and there, and had meetings with some pretty ridiculous people, but this? Gods, she was sure that Frank was pulling her leg. Dracaenae and Lares and all types of elemental nymphs made sense. Grass babies? Fuck that.

Frank was quick to explain the situation to a very confused Percy and Aurora⎯two dozen angry little men had come from the grass and dragged a screaming Hazel away from him in under a minute. Frank could only stare in astonishment at the creatures, his spear forgotten in his hand as he watched them scurry away, only noting that Hazel was in danger once she had disappeared. Aurora would've been pissed if she didn't feel the same confusion as Frank.

But the more she thought about it, the more it made sense. Not once since docking on the beach had she felt a breeze. Sure, there was the gentle chill that came with being near water, but on the cliff there was no movement. So how had the grass been swaying? 

It also explained why she'd had this feeling of being watched. Originally she'd believed it to be the paranoia of being on solid ground, where Gaea could swallow them up without a second sleepy thought. Turns out her demigod instincts were trying to warn her of the demonic little monsters waiting to snatch them up. If only she'd stuck with Frank and Hazel . . . maybe then she could've stopped this nonsense. 

Yeah, but then you wouldn't have had as much fun. Remember how it felt to laugh with him? About his stupid love for the color blue?

She would've missed out on that small moment with Percy⎯a moment she knew she'd remember. Down by the sea, with just the two of them and the moon above, Aurora had never felt so normal. They'd laughed and joked like they'd known each other for years and years, picking on each other and sharing stories. It was the closest thing to being a normal teenager that Aurora had ever gotten, and she'd loved it. 

It was a little odd to think that she felt so comfortable around someone in such little time. Even after discovering that she and Jason were cousins, it'd still taken roughly a year for her to be completely comfortable around him. But when she was down on the beach, hand in his, she'd felt . . . complete.

A faint blush flooded her cheeks as her heart raced inside her chest. Focus! she shouted. Hazel's missing and there're demonic grass babies just waiting to attack. You can daydream about pretty boy when she's safe and sound!

Steeling herself, Aurora tuned back into the conversation, instantly falling into centurion mode. Her legionnaire was in trouble.  

"Do you know what they could be?" Percy asked, turning to Aurora.

Aurora sifted through her knowledge of Roman monsters, praising herself for listening to her instructor while back at camp. Grass babies . . . where had she heard of them before?

"I think so, but I'm not one hundred percent sure. If I see them, maybe." Percy and Frank nodded, not bothering to ask any questions as they surged forward into the tall grass.

A trail of flattened blades led them deeper into the field, Aurora's eyes scanning the surrounding area for any signs of danger. They tried their best to stay out of the grass, hopping from stone to stone and log to log. Aurora's sword lit up the darkness before them, clashing with the silver of the moon and reflecting an almost ghostly light upon her skin. Gods, she hoped she got there in time.

Luckily, finding Hazel wasn't hard. The closer they got to where her shout had come from, the louder the monsters' voices had grown. They were low and gravelly, shouting to one another about which grains were better. For a moment, Aurora was confused on why, until the species of monster finally clicked. 

Her guess only solidified as they reached the clearing where the chaos was coming from. The grass was much shorter and a large, out of place spire of rock stood tall and proud in the dead center. Hazel stood atop the spire, golden eyes looking down on the creatures who had attacked her.

"Karpoi. Grain spirits of Ceres," Aurora whispered, angered that she had been right. "I hate those things."

"What do you mean?" Frank asked. "They look like harmless little babies."

Aurora shook her head. "That's not what worries me. These things are meant to follow Ceres, making them harmless to demigods. But if they're attacking, that means Gaea is much stronger than we thought." 

Frank gulped. "Well that's not good."

Hazel yelped as the spirits began attempting to climb the rock, surging forward like one big fleshy wave of miniature anger. 

Silently, Frank notched an arrow and took aim, the tip piercing through the chest of the first grain spirit upon release. The creature burst into tiny pieces of Chex Mix that rained down on its brothers, causing silence to fall over the field. Hazel and the other spirits stared in shock, giving the trio of demigods the perfect opportunity to burst into the clearing like bats out of Hades.

Frank shot an arrow through one, causing it to crumble into seeds. Percy slashed Riptide through three other spirits, turning them into individual types of grains. Aurora spun Solstice in her hand and swiped the blade through nearby spirits, causing them to burst into roasted seeds or burnt pieces of breakfast cereal. Hazel eventually jumped down and joined the fight.

Within minutes, the karpoi had been reduced to piles of seeds and various breakfast cereals, some of which were burnt thanks to Aurora's powers. The first began to re-form, but Percy pulled a lighter from his pack and sparked a flame. Aurora held her blazing sword out for good measure.

"Try it," Percy warned. "And Aurora and I will set this whole field on fire. Stay dead. Stay away from us, or the grass gets it!"

This had to be one of the weirdest threats she'd made as of late, and she was sure that if Jason were there, he'd be laughing at their words. Burning the grass? Whatever worked to get those stupid grain spirits away from her and her friends.

Aurora saw Frank wince out of the corner of her eye, like the flame terrified him. She didn't understand why and right now was not the best time to think on it. Hazel shouted, "They'll do it! They're crazy!"

The remnants of the karpoi scattered in the wind. Frank climbed the rock and watched them go.

Percy extinguished the lighter and grinned at Hazel. Aurora let her powers slip from the sword, the blade dimming until it held its normal glow from the bronze and gold mixture.

"Thanks for yelling," Percy said. "We wouldn't have found you otherwise. How'd you hold them off so long?"

Hazel pointed to the rock. "A big pile of schist."

"Excuse me?" Aurora asked, startled

"Guys," Frank called from the top of the rock. "You need to see this."

Percy, Hazel, and Aurora climbed up to join him. As soon as Aurora saw what he was looking at, she inhaled sharply and pressed down on the sun engraving on her sword. It shrunk back into a ring and she slipped it on her finger.

"Percy," Hazel said. "No light! Put up your sword!"

"Schist!" He touched the sword tip, and Riptide shrank back into a pen.

Down below them, and army was on the move. The very same army she had been dreaming of for the past month.

The field dropped into a shallow ravine, where a country road wound north and south. On the opposite side of the road, grassy hills stretched to the horizon, empty of civilization except for one darkened convenience store at the top of the nearest rise.

The whole ravine was full of monsters—column after column marching south, so many and so close, Aurora was amazed they hadn't heard Hazel shouting or their fighting.

She, Frank, Percy, and Hazel crouched against the rock. They watched in disbelief as several dozen large, hairy humanoids passed by, dressed in tattered bits of armor and animal fur. The creatures had six arms each, three sprouting on either side, so they looked like cavemen evolved from insects.

"Gegenes," Hazel whispered. "The Earthborn."

"You've fought them before?" Percy asked.

Hazel shook her head. "Just heard about them in monster class at camp."

It was now more than ever that Aurora was thankful for monster class. While she preferred to learn from experience, knowing the weaknesses and strengths of each monster below her came in handy. Especially when they were clumped together in a group as big as this one. 

"The Earhtborn fought the Argonauts," Aurora said, keeping her voice low. "And those things behind them—"

"Centaurs," Percy said. "But . . . that's not right. Centaurs are good guys."

Frank made a choking sound. "That's not what we were taught at camp. Centaurs are crazy, always getting drunk and killing heroes."

Aurora watched as the horse-men cantered past. They were human from the waist up, palomino from the waist down. They were dressed in barbarian armor of hide and bronze, armed with spears and slings. At first, Aurora thought they were wearing Viking helmets. Then she realized they had actual horns jutting from their shaggy hair.

She noticed Percy's troubled expression and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Hey, not all centaurs are like that. I think these ones may be a different breed. Most don't have horns like a bull."

Percy gave her a thankful smile before gazing farther down the road. Then, his face went slack. "My gods . . . Cyclops."

Aurora turned and sure enough, lumbering after the centaurs was a battalion of one-eyed ogres, both male and female, each about ten feet tall, wearing armor cobbled out of junkyard metal. Six of the monsters were yoked like oxen, pulling a two-story-tall siege tower fitted with a giant scorpion ballista.

Percy pressed the sides of his head. "Cyclops. Centaurs. This is wrong. All wrong."

The monster army was enough to make anyone despair, but Aurora realized something else was going on with Percy. He looked pale and sickly in the moonlight, as if his memories were trying to come back, scrambling his mind in the process. Aurora's natural gift for healing kicked in and she turned to Frank and Hazel.

"We need to get him back to the boat," she said. "The sea will make him feel better."

"No argument," Frank said. "There are too many of them. The camp . . . we have to warn the camp."

"They know," Percy groaned. "Reyna knows."

Seeing the army through visions was one thing, but witnessing it in person . . . Aurora had to fight back the urge to cry. No matter how many meetings they held, or how many preparations they made, there was no way the legion could fight so many monsters. Not when Death was chained and Gaea was in control of who lived and who died. Even with the combined force of the veterans, the legionnaires, and the spirits, the camp would remain outnumbered. Her home was in more danger than she thought.

Swallowing a rather large lump lodged in her throat, the brunette, forced her emotions down. She didn't have time to panic, not when her camp and friends needed her. The four of them would have to make it to and from Alaska in time. Even if it meant using up all of her healing abilities on Percy, she would get them back to the sea and continue their journey.

"Come on," Hazel urged. "Let's . . ."

She stopped. Aurora looked at her in concern before following her gaze toward their biggest problem.

A giant.

When he appeared over the ridge, Aurora couldn't quite believe her eyes. He was taller than the siege tower—thirty feet, at least—with scaly reptilian legs like a Komodo dragon from the waist down and green-blue armor from the waist up. His breastplate was shaped like rows of hungry monstrous faces, their mouths open as if demanding food. His face was human, but his hair was wild and green, like a mop of seaweed. As he turned his head from side to side, snakes dropped from his dreadlocks. Aurora stiffened.

Paralyzing fear washed over her like a rogue wave, drowning her with its intensity. Her heart pounded against her ribs, eyes frozen as she watched each snake fall to the ground. Their beady, reptilian eyes seemed drawn to her position, tongues flicking the air as though they were already tasting her. 

Frank glanced at her, his eyes growing wide when he noted her pale skin and shaking hands. His eyes flickered between the snakes on the ground and Aurora, connecting the pieces with a frustrated sigh. "Oh, gods. Snakes."

Now was not a good time to be a daughter of Apollo.

She could barely register the massive trident being held by the giant—Polybotes. No matter how hard she fought to overcome the fear, the sight of snakes made her unable to move. Curse her dad and his fight with Python. 

"Who is he?" Frank's voice quivered. "That's not—"

"Not Alcyoneus," Hazel said weakly. "One of his brothers, I think."

Aurora swallowed harshly, managing to find her voice. "Polybotes," she whispered. "The anti-Neptune."

If the trident and the seaweed-like hair weren't dead giveaways, then the faint smell of rotting sea that drifted from the giant was another indicator of who he was. Aurora needed to get them to leave. She needed to unfreeze and book it to the boat. It was a wonder how the monsters hadn't sniffed them out yet—four powerful demigods are bound to have a scent strong enough to gain the attention of that many monsters. 

But when she moved to stand on shaking legs, a strong tug in her gut forced her to freeze. Something big was about to happen. Something important.

As the giant got close, a Cyclops woman broke ranks and ran back to speak with him. She was enormous, fat, and horribly ugly, wearing a chain-mail dress like a muumuu—but next to the giant she looked like a child.

She pointed to the closed-up convenience store on top of the nearest hill and muttered something about food. The giant snapped back an answer, as if he was annoyed. The female Cyclops barked an order to her kindred, and three of them followed her up the hill.

When they were halfway to the store, a searing light turned night into day. Luckily, Aurora's eyes were fit to deal with extreme bursts of light, so she was left seeing perfectly fine. Her friends, however, not so much. Below her, the enemy army dissolved into chaos, monsters screaming in pain and outrage.

"Too pretty!" the Cyclopes shrieked. "Burns our eye!"

The store on the hill was encased in a rainbow, closer and brighter than any that Aurora had ever seen. The light was anchored at the store, shooting up into the heavens, bathing the countryside in a weird kaleidoscopic glow. If she wasn't scared shitless by snakes, she would've actually taken the time to appreciate how beautiful it was. 

The lady Cyclops hefted her club and charged at the store. As she hit the rainbow, her body began to steam. She wailed in agony and dropped her club, retreating with multi-colored blisters all over her arms and face.

"Horrible goddess!" she bellowed at the store. "Give us snacks!"

The other monsters went crazy, charging the convenience store, then running away as the rainbow light burned them. Some threw rocks, spears, swords, even pieces of their armor, all of which burned up in flames of pretty colors. Aurora didn't know why so many feared monsters, since they were all pretty stupid for ferocious creatures meant to destroy people.

Finally the giant leader seemed to realize that his troops were throwing away perfectly good equipment.

"Stop!" he roared.

With some difficulty, he managed to shout and push and pummel his troops into submission. When they'd quieted down, he approached the rainbow-shielded store himself and stalked around the borders of the light.

"Goddess!" he shouted. "Come out and surrender!"

No answer from the store. The rainbow continued to shimmer.

The giant raised his trident and net. "I am Polybotes! Kneel before me so I may destroy you quickly."

Apparently, no one in the store was impressed. A tiny dark object came sailing out the window and landed at the giant's feet. Polybotes yelled, "Grenade!"

He covered his face. His troops hit the ground.

When the thing did not explode, Polybotes bent down cautiously and picked it up. He roared in outrage. "A Ding Dong? You dare insult me with a Ding Dong?"

He threw the cake back at the shop, and it vaporized in the light. The monsters got to their feet. Several muttered hungrily, "Ding Dongs? Where Ding Dongs?"

"Let's attack," said the lady Cyclops. " I am hungry. My boys want snacks!"

"No!" Polybotes said. "We're already late. Alcyoneus wants us at the camp in four days' time. You Cyclopes move inexcusably slowly. We have no time for minor goddesses!"

He aimed that last comment at the store, but got no response.

The lady Cyclops growled. "The camp, yes. Vengeance! The orange and purple ones destroyed my home. Now Ma Gasket will destroy theirs! Do you hear me, Leo? Jason? Piper? I come to annihilate you!"

The other Cyclopes bellowed in approval. The rest of the monsters joined in. Aurora felt her blood turn to ice.

"Jason?" She barley managed to get the name out. This Cyclops had fought her cousin and lost, and now she was out for blood. "She fought Jason. He's alive!"

Frank nodded. "Do those other names mean anything to either of you?"

Aurora shook her head with Hazel. She didn't know of a Leo or Piper at Camp Jupiter, and she had been there the longest out of their group. She looked at Percy to see if he knew anyone by that name, and her heart dropped even further. He still looked sickly and dazed. If the names meant anything to him, he was really good at hiding it.

She thought on what the Cyclops had said: Orange and purple ones. Purple—obviously the color of Camp Jupiter. But orange . . . Percy had shown up in a tattered orange shirt. That couldn't be a coincidence.

Below them, the army began to march south again, but the giant Polybotes stood to one side, frowning and sniffing the air. Oh, no.

"Sea god," he muttered. To the quad's horror, he turned in their direction. "I smell sea god."

Percy was still shaking. Aurora put her hand on his shoulder and tried to press him flat against the rock. Warmth surged through her palm as she muttered a hymn to her father, a smile tugging at her lips when Percy took her hand in his own and laced their fingers together. He held onto it like his life depended on it—which it kind of did at the moment—and Aurora gave it a reassuring squeeze, continuing to work her healing magic.

The lady Cyclops Ma Gasket snarled. "Of course you smell sea god! The sea is right over there!"

"More than that," Polybotes insisted. "I was born to destroy Neptune. I can sense . . . " He frowned, turning his head and shaking out a few more snakes. Aurora stiffened again.

"Do we march or sniff the air?" Ma Gasket scolded. "I don't get Ding Dongs, you don't get sea god!"

Polybotes growled. "Very well. March! March!" He took one last look at the rainbow-encased store, then raked his fingers through his hair. He brought out three snakes that seemed larger than the rest, with white markings around their necks. "A gift, goddess! My name, Polybotes, means 'Many-to-Feed!' Here are some hungry mouths for you. See if your store gets many customers with these sentries outside."

He laughed wickedly and threw the snakes into the tall grass on the hillside. Then he marched south, his massive Komodo legs shaking the earth. Gradually, the last column of monsters passed over the hills and disappeared into the night.

Once they were gone, the blinding rainbow shut off like a spotlight. Hazel, Frank, Percy, and Aurora were left alone in the dark, staring across the road at a closed-up convenience store.

"That was different," Frank muttered.

Percy shuddered violently. Seeing that army must've triggered one of his memories, and the fight inside his mind was making him sick. She could sing all the hymns she wanted until she literally burned up, but nothing would actually help until they got to the boat. Sea water would do the trick. It had to.

However, they were faced with a problem. The field she, Frank, and Percy had trekked through to reach Hazel lay between them and the beach, and she was sure the karpoi had already began making their way back. Aurora didn't like the idea of the four of them trudging through the darkness back to the boat with the grain spirits and snakes on the loose. And Percy's condition wasn't making her very confident about them reaching the ocean in time. 

"Let's go up to the store," Aurora decided. "If there's a goddess inside, maybe she can help us."

"Except a bunch of snake things are guarding the hill now," Frank pointed out, sending her a look. "And I have a feeling they won't be happy to see you."

"That, and the burning rainbow might come back," Hazel added.

Aurora worried her lower lip between her teeth as she looked back at Percy. He was shaking like he had hypothermia, his hand gripping onto hers like a life line. He could hardly seem to stand on his own, and she worried that he'd collapse at any second. She'd have to put her extreme fear of snakes aside for the moment. Percy was more important.

"We have to try," Aurora said. "As long as we move fast, those snakes won't be a problem."

Hazel gave her a small smile. Frank nodded grimly. "Well . . . any goddess who throws a Ding Dong at a giant can't be all bad. Let's go."

⎯⎯⎯⎯ ⬩❖⬩ ⎯⎯⎯⎯

Trudging up a hill with a muscular son of Neptune using you as a support system wasn't exactly easy. Aurora had to keep stopping every few feet to readjust him so she could walk better, but she didn't complain. Something was obviously going on with him, and it was in her nature to make sure he was okay.

As they got closer, Aurora felt a twinge of uncertainty. She didn't know if the store would burst into rainbow light and vaporize them like it did for the monsters. Luckily, it didn't. The snakes Polybotes had dropped seemed to have vanished, but she didn't allow herself to relax.

They were twenty yards from the porch when something hissed in the grass behind them. Aurora stiffened, freezing up like a statue.

"Go!" Frank yelled.

It took Hazel tugging on Aurora's other arm to get the girl moving. She adjusted her grip on Percy before taking off up the hill with Hazel leading the way. Behind them, Frank nocked an arrow and shot it toward the grass. A burst of light followed by an enraged hiss spurred her onwards. She kept her eyes locked on the doors of the shop, knowing that if she looked at a single snake, she'd lose it.

And she couldn't lose it when Percy and Hazel were counting on her.

When they reached the porch, they turned to see Frank facing off with the three snakes that Polybotes had dropped from his hair. Aurora's eyes went wide when she saw the steam coming from anything the snakes touched. She felt light-headed and dazed, her skin going pale.

"Frank!" Hazel yelled. "Come on!"

Frank turned and ran toward where the other three were waiting. Hazel helped him onto the porch. All three snakes were circling in the grass, breathing fire and turning the hillside brown with their poisonous touch. They didn't seem able or willing to come closer to the store, but that wasn't much comfort to Aurora. Especially when they hissed angrily at her and attempted to shoot fire her way.

"We'll never get out of here," Frank said miserably.

"Then we'd better go in," Aurora said, pointing to the hand-painted sign over the door: RAINBOW ORGANIC FOODS & LIFESTYLES. She had no clue what it meant, but it sounded better than the flaming poisonous snakes. She opened the door and walked in, Percy leaning on her the entire time.

As they stepped through the door, lights came on. Flute music started up like they'd walked onto a stage. The wide aisles were lined with bins of nuts and dried fruit, baskets of apples, and clothing racks with tie-dyed shirts and gauzy Tinker Bell-type dresses. The ceiling was covered in wind chimes. Along the walls, glass cases displayed crystal balls, geodes, macrame dream catchers, and a bunch of other strange stuff. Incense must have been burning somewhere. It smelled like a bouquet of flowers was on fire.

"Fortune-teller's shop?" Frank wondered.

"Hope not," Hazel muttered.

Percy leaned against Aurora even more. She slipped her hand from his and pulled his arm over her shoulders, her cheeks flushing red as he immediately took her hand once more. 

Even on the verge of passing out he still manages to make my heart flutter.

He truly looked worse than ever, like he'd been hit with a sudden flu. His face glistened with sweat. "Sit down . . ." he muttered. "Maybe water."

"Yeah," Aurora said, her worry growing. "Let's find you a place to rest."

The floorboards creaked under their feet. Aurora helped Percy pass through two Neptune statue fountains.

A girl popped up from behind the granola bins. "Help you?"

Frank lurched backward in surprise, knocking over one of the fountains. A stone Neptune crashed to the floor. The sea god's head rolled off and water spewed out of his neck, spraying a rack of tie-dyed man satchels.

"Sorry!" Frank bent down to clean up the mess. He almost hit the girl with his spear.

"Eep!" she said. "Hold it! It's okay!"

Frank straightened slowly, and Aurora sighed. He looked embarrassed by his actions, Hazel looked mortified, and Percy? Percy turned a sickly shade of green as he stared at the decapitated statue of his dad.

The girl clapped her hands. The fountain dissolved into mist. The water evaporated. She turned to Frank. "Really, it's no problem. Those Neptune fountains are so grumpy-looking, they bum me out."

She reminded Aurora of some of the college kids from New Rome. She was short and muscular, with lace-up boots, cargo shorts, and a bright yellow tee shirt that read R.O.F.L. Rainbow Organic Foods & Lifestyles. She looked young, but her hair was frizzy white, sticking out on either side of her head like the white of a giant fried egg.

And her eyes. Her irises were constantly changing color from gray to black to white and back again.

"Uh . . . sorry about the fountain," Frank said, though it sounded like he had to force the words out. "We were just—"

"Oh, I know!" the girl said. "You want to browse. It's all right. Demigods are welcome. Take your time. You're not like those awful monsters. They just want to use the restroom and never buy anything!"

She snorted. Her eyes flashed with lightning. Aurora's eyes widened a bit in surprise, though she had a feeling as to who she was talking to. Or what.

From the back of the store, a woman's voice called: "Fleecy? Don't scare the customers, now. Bring them here, will you?"

"Your name is Fleecy?" Hazel asked.

Fleecy giggled. "Well, in the language of the nebulae, it's actually—" She made a series of crackling and blowing noises that reminded Aurora of a thunderstorm giving way to a nice cold front. "But you can call me Fleecy."

"Nebulae . . ." Percy muttered in a daze. "Cloud nymphs."

Aurora looked up at Percy with a grin. Fleecy beamed. "Oh, I like this one! Usually no one knows about cloud nymphs. But dear me, he doesn't look so good. Come to the back. My boss wants to meet you. We'll get your friend fixed up."

Fleecy led them through the produce aisle, between rows of eggplants, kiwis, lotus fruit, and pomegranates. At the back of the store, behind a counter with an old-fashioned cash register, stood a middle-aged woman with olive skin, long black hair, rimless glasses, and a tee shirt that read: The Goddess Is Alive! She wore amber necklaces and turquoise rings. She smelled like rose petals.

She looked friendly enough. "Hello!" She leaned over the counter, which was lined with dozens of little statues—waving Chinese cats, meditating Buddhas, Saint Francis bobble heads, and novelty dippy drinking birds with top hats. "So glad you're here. I'm Iris!"

Aurora's eyes widened, excitement bubbling within her. "Not the Iris—the rainbow goddess?"

Iris made a face. "Well, that's my official job, yes. But I don't define myself by my corporate identity. In my spare time, I run this!" She gestured around her proudly. "The R.O.F.L. Co-op—an employee-run cooperative promoting healthy alternative lifestyles and organic foods."

Frank stared at her. "But you throw Ding Dongs at monsters."

Iris looked horrified. "Oh, they're not Ding Dongs." She rummaged under the counter and brought out a package of chocolate-covered cakes that looked exactly like Ding Dongs. "These are gluten-free, no-sugar-added, vitamin-enriched, soy-free, goat-milk-and-seaweed-based cupcake simulations."

"All natural!" Fleecy chimed in.

Aurora's excitement upon meeting one of her favorite goddesses faltered for a moment at the food before her. They didn't sound all that appetizing, but hey! Don't knock it til you try it, right? She just hoped that if she did eat one, she wouldn't end up sick.

"I stand corrected." Frank looked as queasy as Percy.

Iris smiled. "You should try one, Frank. You're lactose intolerant, aren't you?"

"How did you—"

"I know these things. Being the messenger goddess . . . well, I do learn a lot, hearing all the communications from the gods and so on." She tossed the cakes on the counter. "Besides, those monsters should be glad to have some healthy snacks. Always eating junk food and heroes. They're so unenlightened. I couldn't have them tromping through my store, tearing up things and disturbing our feng shui."

Percy leaned against the counter and Aurora. He looked like he was going to throw up all over the goddess's feng shui. "Monsters marching south," he said with difficulty. "Going to destroy our camp. Couldn't you stop them?"

"Oh, I'm strictly nonviolent," Iris said. "I can act in self-defense, but I won't be drawn into any more Olympian aggression, thank you very much. I've been reading about Buddhism. And Taoism. I haven't decided between them."

"But . . ." Hazel looked mystified. "Aren't you a Greek goddess?"

Iris crossed her arms. "Don't try to put me in a box, demigod! I'm not defined by my past."

"Um, okay."

"Iris, could you please help our friend here? I think he's sick." Aurora kept Percy from crumpling to the ground, holding him up. She didn't know what sickness he had, which annoyed her, but she knew it was bad.

Percy reached across the counter with his free arm. For a second, Aurora worried that he wanted the cupcakes. "Iris-message," he said. "Can you send one?"

The daughter of Apollo almost started bouncing on her toes in excitement. "Ooh! I've always wanted to see an Iris-message! I've read about them but I've never attempted one." Frank and Hazel eyed her weirdly and she blushed a deep red. "Sorry. I'm kinda a huge Iris fan."

The goddess beamed at Aurora, making the girl's heart fly. Frank just shook his head. "Okay . . . but what's an Iris-message?"

"It's . . ." Percy faltered. "Isn't that something you do?"

Iris studied Percy more closely. "Interesting. You're from Camp Jupiter, and yet . . . Oh, I see. Juno is up to her tricks."

"What?" Hazel asked.

Iris glanced at her assistant, Fleecy. They seemed to have a silent conversation. Then the goddess pulled a vial from behind the counter and sprayed some honeysuckle-smelling oil around Percy's face. "There, that should balance your chakra. As for Iris-messages—that's an ancient way of communication. The Greeks used it. The Romans never took to it—always relying on their road systems and giant eagles and whatnot. But yes, I imagine . . . Fleecy, could you give it a try?"

"Sure, boss!"

Iris winked at the group. "Don't tell the other gods, but Fleecy handles most of my messages these days. She's wonderful at it, really, and I don't have time to answer all those requests personally. It messes up my wa."

"Your wa?" Frank asked.

"Mmm. Fleecy, why don't you take Percy, Aurora, and Hazel into the back? You can get them something to eat while you arrange their messages. And for Percy . . . yes, memory sickness. I imagine that old Polybotes . . . well, meeting him in a state of amnesia can't be good for a child of P—that is to say, Neptune." Was she just about to say Poseidon? "Fleecy, give him a cup of green tea with organic honey and wheat germ and some of my medicinal powder number five. That should fix him up."

Hazel frowned. "What about Frank?"

Iris turned to Frank. She tilted her head quizzically, almost like she believed that Frank was one of the biggest questions in the room.

"Oh, don't worry," Iris said. "Frank and I have a lot to talk about."

Hazel looked unsure, but Aurora trusted the goddess. "Thank you, Iris! Come on, Hazel."

The three followed after Fleecy into the back room, Percy leaning fully onto the daughter of Apollo as they went. Aurora, while absolutely adoring the rainbow goddess, couldn't help but worry. Would her method of healing work on him? She sure hoped so. She didn't know if they'd be able to finish this quest without him.

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯ ⬩❖⬩ ⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

𝐀 𝐔 𝐓 𝐇 𝐎 𝐑 𝐒   𝐍 𝐎 𝐓 𝐄   !

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯ ⬩❖⬩ ⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

EDIT: Aurora is such a cutie when it comes to her love of Iris! Honestly, who wouldn't love her? And we'll get to see just a bit of interaction between them in the next chapter, I promise!

ORIGINAL:

Okay. Another sweet chapter between Percy, but I think we are halfway through the book all ready. We are getting closer and closer to Alaska, where you will find out why Aurora uses a sword instead of a bow and arrow. Also, there may be a kiss coming up soon, or not. I'm not planning on spoiling anything.

Please continue to comment and vote!

Love you all!

~ a.h.