Chapter 18 - Hunter

Hunter leaned up against the wall of the building, taking shallow breaths.  All of the memories from his first quest came sweeping back. The pain. The misery. The heartache. Dolos had almost made Hunter’s mind break. He was the reason Kate was dead. He was the reason Kyle got hurt. He was the reason that Orion died. Hunter’s life would be fine if Dolos hadn’t showed up. Hunter thought it was all over after that quest. That he could go back to living his normal life back at camp. Now, that perception was shattered.

“I was so stupid.” He muttered quietly, his back sliding down so he was sitting up against the wall. “I was stupid. To think that I could—No. That makes no sense. How could I have been so stupid?” Philippa sat down next to him and took his hand in hers. On a regular day, he would be smiling and squeezing her hand, but now he couldn’t think straight. He was completely thrown off.

“Hunter, come on.” Philippa said, slipping her arm around his middle. Hunter took a deep breath and tried to calm down a little, but it wasn’t happening. “Deep breaths, Hunter.” She said, rubbing his side. “Hunter, she’s just trying to distract you. You need to focus.” She said quietly. Hunter nodded softly. He knew she was right. She had to be right. She kissed him lightly on the temple and Hunter rubbed his eyes, taking deep breaths. He needed to calm down. He needed to focus. He looked over at Philippa and smiled softly.

“Thank you.” He said quietly. He felt her nudge him a little and Hunter sighed, finally calming down a little. She smiled at him and he already felt more relaxed. She leaned in and kissed him on the lips, leaning into him a little. Hunter responded without thinking, leaning into her, kissing her back. He thought of all the people who could calm him down like that. It was a short list and Philippa was at the very top. Hunter felt Philippa frown a little and Hunter pulled away. “Something wrong?” He asked quietly. She smiled softly and giggled.

“You’re not a very good kisser.” She said, scrunching up her nose a little. Hunter was speechless for a moment before laughing a little. “Sorry.” She said with a giggle.

“Well, it’s not like I’ve had a lot of practice!” He replied, defending himself. He jab her side, making her squirm a little, giggling.

“Hunter. Don’t!” Hunter poked her side again and she giggled again. “Hunter. Stop it.” She said, her expression turning serious. Hunter stopped and blushed a little.

“Sorry.” He said quietly. She stood and straightened her clothes. Hunter looked up at her and sighed. “Shall we get back to camp?” He said quietly. She nodded and helped him up. Hunter brushed his shirt off and discovered the glasses on his collar. “Oh.” He said quietly, taking them off his collar. He placed them on his face and felt them adjust perfectly onto his ears.

“Those look good on you.” Philippa said with a giggle. Hunter smiled and turned to a store window, looking at his reflection.

“Did it actually make me look like a satyr?” He asked, running a hand through his hair. She walked up behind him and looked at her reflection.

“Yeah. Horns and fur and everything. You even had a cute little goatee.” She said with a giggle as she fixed her hair in her reflection. Hunter chuckled and looked in his reflection. He thought Philippa. Hair. Beautiful. Short. Brown hair. He watched as his form shifted and soon he was looking at Philippa standing next to Philippa. She gasped and jumped a little.

“It’s just me.” Hunter said, hearing Philippa’s voice when he spoke. “Whoa. Hello, my name is Philippa Beaumont and my hair is my religion.” He said with a chuckle. Philippa smacked his arm.

“Stop it!” She said, smacking his arm again, a small smile on her face. Hunter stepped back and thought Chiron. Wise. Old. Centaur. Beard. He felt a tugging and soon he was growing taller. He shook his head and looked down at her, hearing a clip clop as his hooves shifted.

“Now, Ms. Beaumont.” He said, in a scolding tone. A tone Hunter had heard many times from Chiron. “Please, keep yourself from hitting the other campers.” She looked at him oddly and Hunter took off the glasses, quickly switching back to Hunter.

“I’ll ask you to not do that again.” She said with a giggle. Hunter put the glasses back on his collar and stepped forward, wrapping his arms around her. “We’re so sparring when we get back to camp.” Hunter laughed and kissed her forehead.

“I can’t wait.” Hunter said with a grin. He laughed and started walking toward the pegasi. Ulysses whinnied and Dixie snorted at their presence. Hunter noticed that Denny’s—no. Apate’s pegasi was gone. It made Hunter wonder if Denny was even real. If Kyle’s story with Denny was real or something placed into his mind by Apate. Then he realized that Will’s group is going to the Alamo. Denny came up with that. What if that was a trick? What is that was all a trick? What if Will was heading into a trap? He started to panic at the possibility. His closest friends were all headed for a trap.

“Hunter, what’s wrong?” Philippa said, looking into his eyes.

“Apate was Denny, right?” Philippa nodded and furrowed her eyebrows at him. “Denny told us about the Alamo. Will and Marina and Kyle could be headed straight for a trap. We need to get back to camp. Now.” He said frantically as he mounted Ulysses. Philippa nodded and hopped onto Dixie’s back. They quickly took off into the sky. They flew east. They weren’t going for precision. They needed speed. Hunter looked back and made sure they were flying away from water. They needed to be back at camp. Hunter was focused on 2 things. The sky ahead and Philippa next to him. He might be losing his best friends at the moment. He couldn’t stand losing Philippa too. He didn’t notice the shadow pass over them. Hunter was lucky he heard it. The heavy flapping of wings. He knew what a Pegasus sounded like. This was bigger.

“Philippa! Move!” He said, before rolling right. A large figure zoomed past them, clipping Ulysses’ wing, causing the horse to let out an angry whinny as he adjusted on the broken wing. Hunter looked over to see Philippa and Dixie unharmed. He looked down and saw the figure turning around to come zooming back up and past that he was bright lights. Vegas. He thought to himself. Hunter drew his bow and fired an arrow at the figure. It easily dodged and Hunter immediately started to worry.

“I would encourage you to give up, kid!” The figure was revealed as a man wearing armor. Hunter recognized him from the dream.

“Prometheus.” He said, notching another arrow and aiming. Prometheus scoffed.

“You don’t learn well. I’m the titan of foresight. I know where that arrow is going before you do.” Hunter looked at what he was riding. It was monstrous. The head of an eagle and the body of a large lion with great wings sticking out the back. Hunter could feel the force of each flap. Hunter quickly fired at the beast and Prometheus dodged. “Stop it. You’re embarrassing yourself. This is your chance to surrender, kid. No hard feelings.” Hunter thought for a second.

“Don’t do it, Hunter!” Philippa shouted. Suddenly a chain shot out from Prometheus’ arm and wrapped around Philippa’s neck. Hunter gasped and notched another arrow, flying closer to the titan.

“Let her go!” He said, pointing the arrow at Prometheus’ face.

“Tsk tsk. Looks like it’s the hard way.”  Suddenly there were loud caws and Hunter looked down to see a cloud of black birds zooming toward them. The chain disappeared from Philippa’s neck, but she was panicking. Hunter drew an arrow and fired into the cloud, hopefully dropping one or two of the Stymphalian birds. Hunter watched as Prometheus zoomed away on the back of his griffin. Hunter cursed and flew next to Philippa.

“Philippa, I need you to calm down. If we get to Vegas, we’ll be safe! Come on!” He shouted before finally getting Philippa to focus a little. She nodded and kicked Dixie, only to hear a loud whinny. Hunter looked and saw Dixie’s leg being pecked at by a Stymphalian bird. Hunter shot it with his bow and then put it away. “Philippa! We need to go!” Hunter said, patting Ulysses as he made the dive with his broken wing.

“Hunter!” Hunter turned around to see Philippa pointing at the birds quickly approaching. Hunter cursed under his breath and turned on Ulysses back.

“Sonic.” He whispered, placing a hand on his quiver. He drew a sonic arrow and fired toward the black swarm of birds. There was a loud scream and Hunter cringed a little, hoping that the arrow would hit one of the birds. There was a loud boom and many of the birds squealed in pain before disappearing in a cloud of dust. “Philippa! Hurry!” He shouted before renewing their dive toward the lights of Las Vegas. They were so close. Hunter felt a sharp pain in his back and cried out. He reached back and grabbed the bird, feeling the razor sharp feathers sink into his hand. He cringed and threw it behind him as he zoomed forward another bird’s beak sank into his arm and another flew right by his head, its wing giving him a gash across his cheek. He heard a scream and looked at Philippa. She was being swarmed by birds too. He suddenly felt a bird slice into the back of his neck. He closed his eyes and sent a silent prayer to Artemis. For everything. For Will and Kyle and Marina. For Philippa. For the gods keeping Typhon trapped in Tartarus. For himself. He didn’t think that Artemis would be listening or even care, but it was worth a shot. Hunter felt another bird fly past him, cutting his other cheek, but as it was turning around it exploded into dust. “What in the…” He landed quickly and slid off, turning toward the sky. The birds seemed to collide into an invisible wall, killing them immediately, their dust blowing away in the wind. Hunter looked toward Philippa who had fainted on the back of Dixie. “Philippa!” He shouted, running over and pulling her off the scratched up and bleeding Dixie.

“Sir, bring her inside. We’ll take care of your pegasi and how about we get you set up in a nice suite. We’ll send our best healers up to attend to both of you.” A man said, taking the reins of Dixie in his hands. Hunter looked at him oddly. How did he know they were pegasi. Hunter looked up at the sign.

“The Lotus Hotel and Casino.” Hunter muttered before looking down at the unconscious Philippa in his arms. He didn’t really have a choice. “Hurry. She’s been hurt badly.” He said to the man as he walked inside the building, hoping she was okay.

Chapter 17 - Hunter

“We’re almost there, I think.” Hunter said as he looked at the quickly advancing West coast. He was a little nervous to go back to the underworld and what made it worse was that he didn’t know what was waiting there. He didn’t know why he had to go there. He just knew he had to go there. He was comforted by Denny and Philippa talking behind him either.  “Hello?! Almost there!” He shouted back, pointing at the water.

“We can see that!” Philippa said indignantly. Hunter sighed and rubbed his face with his hands. Of all the quests he’s been on, so far this was his least favorite. He leisurely swung back on forth on the back of Ulysses trying to calm down a little. He imagined himself turning around and launching an arrow into Denny’s face, feeling relief that he wouldn’t be bothering him anymore. With the bow of Hercules, Denny’s head would probably explode. The poison from the arrows would dissolve his body quickly and then possibly feeding into the pegasi and—“Where are we supposed to be?” Philippa asked, flying up next to him. Hunter shook himself and looked over.

“It’s a tall building. DOA Recording Studios.” He said, descending and then scanning the ground below. He saw the street and pointed. “There.”

“Wait. We’re going to DOA Recording Studios?” Denny said suddenly, looking a little worried. A lot worried actually. “I—We can’t go there.” He said, looking Hunter in the eye. He looked back and didn’t see the small tinge of mischief that he had seen before. He saw actual worry.

“The underworld is scary, but it’s nothing to worry about.” Hunter said carefully. “I’ve been in and out. No sweat.” I needed a god’s help, but no sweat. He thought to himself. “We’ll be fine. Don’t worry about it.”

“No. You don’t understand. I can’t go in there.” Denny insisted. Hunter was about to encourage him, but something in Denny’s voice convinced Hunter that he might be right. That he couldn’t enter the Underworld.

“Why?” Hunter asked cautiously.

“What? What? What do you mean? Why?” Denny asked frantically. Hunter glanced at Philippa.

“Why can’t you enter the Underworld?” Hunter asked, reaching for the Nemean Lion claw holstered at his waist. He was suspicious from the start and this was just reinforcing his suspicions. Denny glanced at Hunter’s hand and then straightened out. Still looking nervous, but not as frantic.

“Never mind. I got confused for a second.” Denny said, flashing a smile to Hunter and Philippa. “Let’s just go. Sounds like fun.” Hunter kept his hand on his knife as they landed on the street much to the chagrin of a nearby sleeping homeless man who proceeded to stand up in a huff, panic for a moment, and then run off. Hunter glanced around and then left Ulysses in an alley nearby.

“Alright. Let’s go in and let me do the talking.” Hunter said with a nod, glaring at Denny who looked like he was about to explode. Hunter walked to the door and grabbed the handle, taking a deep breath. He finally swung it open and stepped inside. Hunter took a quick look around before resting his eyes on Charon who looked up, his glance turning into a vicious glare.

“You!” Charon shouted from his podium, pointing accusingly at Hunter. “I was promised a promotion. I let you through. No promotion. Come here.” Hunter cursed under his breath and hurried to the podium.

“Listen. Just—“ Hunter stopped talking when Charon stopped glaring at Hunter, but let his eyes rest behind him. Hunter turned around and looked at the very nervous looking Denny. Hunter furrowed his brow and looked back at Charon. “What?”

“N-Nothing.” Charon said quietly before clearing his throat. “Umm…oh! My promotion! You lying snake!” He said angrily, turning back at Hunter.

“Listen. It’s on the way.” Hunter said with a convincing nod. “Hades. He uh…last time we were here,” Hunter thought quickly trying to come up with a good lie. “Well, he told us to come back. We went and we talked to him and he was thinking about it, but he said to come back if we really thought you deserved a promotion.” Charon looked at him for a moment and narrowed his eyes.

“Really? I have a hard time believing you.” Charon said quietly. Hunter nodded vehemently.

“Yeah. Absolutely. So here we are. To move you up the corporate ladder. To break through the…whatever it is.”

“Glass ceiling?”

“Yeah. That. And if you don’t believe me,” Hunter reached into his pocket and pulled out the bag of drachmas Will had given him. He loosened the opening an dumped it out onto Charon’s podium, but instead of drachmas, sand dollars fell out. Hunter froze, wondering why Will would do that. Charon suddenly gasped and looked at Hunter in shock.

“What can I help you with?” Charon said, his expression turning polite suddenly. Hunter hesitated a moment before putting all of them back into the bag. Charon frowned a little. “Please, sir. Would you like to ride on the ferry? I would be more than happy to assist you with that.” Hunter chuckled a little and placed three sand dollars on the podium.

“Yes, Charon. I’d like to ride the ferry.” Charon nodded enthusiastically and greedily nabbed the sand dollars.

“Of course, sir. Right this way, sir.” Charon left his podium and opened the elevator for him. Hunter got on and watched as Philippa followed him and then Denny. For some reason Charon was glaring at Denny as he entered. “Interesting company you keep, sir.”

“Do you have a problem with satyrs, too?!” Philippa said angrily. Charon raised an eyebrow.

“Satyr. Huh. No not at all. Funny creatures. Love their music.” Charon said with a nod. The way Charon was treating Denny made Hunter worried. It was almost like they had a history. Denny reluctantly got onto the elevator and Charon started his way down. Hunter took a deep breath and waited for the spot on the ride where the elevator switched to a boat and the suited man named Charon turned into the hooded skeleton named Charon.

Hunter watched as everything changed and glanced at Philippa just to see if she was okay. She looked fine, but that’s not what caught Hunter’s eye. There she was. The lady in the dress from Hunter’s dream. Standing in the place where Denny was with the exact same look of nervousness and anxiety.

“You!” Hunter shouted, pulling his knife from his belt. “I knew it!” She bit back some choice words and then glared at Hunter.

“Look! I’ll explain this all soon, but right now, you have GOT to get me out of here.” She said, looking genuinely worried.

“I could have told you it wouldn’t work.” Charon said, looking at the woman. Hunter raised an eyebrow.

“Tell me what’s going on.” Hunter said, glaring between Charon and the woman, standing in front of Philippa. “Now!”

“That point. Where everything goes from surface to underworld? Well—“ There was a loud groaning and several shouts. Hunter looked off in the distance to see a bright flash of light shoot off and crash into the wall above him. Hunter watched as a man appeared in the light and fall past them.

“That looked like…” Hunter looked over the side of the boat and saw Apollo laying there, struggling to stand up. Hunter looked back at where he came from and saw other flashes of light struggling against a giant cloud of darkness. “Typhon.” He breathed.

“Do you see why we have to get out of here?!” The woman said frantically. Hunter sighed and debated his options. He looked back at Philippa. He couldn’t chance her getting hurt. He didn’t even want to think about her getting hurt. They had to get out.

“Charon, take us back up.” Hunter said quietly. He looked at Charon. “Back up, Charon! Take us back up!” Charon scoffed.

“No can do. Once I’ve started, I can’t just—“ Hunter pulled out the bag of sand dollars again.

“The rest of them if you take us back up, now.”

“Yes, sir.” He said before nodding and causing the boat to turn around in place and start moving back up to the surface. Hunter looked at the woman and grabbed her, putting his knife at her throat.

“Whatever you are, you’re going to answer some questions.” Hunter said firmly. “You’re powerless here in the underworld. Why?”

“Don’t flatter yourself.” She said eerily calmly. “I could outsmart you 5 times over.” She pulled away and turned around. Hunter finally looked at her. There was something familiar about her. It made him angry. “If you’re trying to place me, you’re thinking of my brother.” She said with a nod. Hunter’s eyes widened.

“No…You can’t be. There’s—“

“Dolos. My brother. Allow me to introduce myself. I’m Apate. Goddess of deception, fraud and now trickery and mischief thanks to you. I just like to have a little bit of fun, you know?” Hunter’s fists clenched. He couldn’t believe that this would come back to haunt him still. When he killed Dolos he assumed that he was done with it; that chapter of his life was complete, but now Apate was here.

“Stop, Charon.” Hunter said, pointing his knife at Apate. Charon glared at him before remembering all of the money that was in store. He stopped the ferry and leaned on the stick. “What do you want?” Apate giggled a little.

“Well, revenge sounded nice, but now I just kind of want to screw with you a little.” She said with a wink. She vanished and reappeared behind him. “And no one said I was powerless.” Hunter grabbed Philippa and yanked her next to him. She drew a knife too and took a stance. Apate just giggled.

“Then why did you lose your disguise?” Philippa asked.

“Well, that little switching point shuts off everything for a little while. Stuff that I was using, I can’t use anymore. Not within the confines of this boat.” She said with a sigh. “Sadly, I can’t leave the boat while it’s in midtrip either.”

“Well, then you’re trapped!” Hunter said, taking a step forward.

“Yes, but I can make it worth your while, if you untrap me.” Apate ran a few fingers through her hair and then produced a pair of aviator sunglasses. “You can use these. Here. Try them on.” She said with a friendly smile, holding them out for Hunter to take.

“How do I know this isn’t a trick?” Hunter said, looking at the glasses cautiously. Apate scoffed.

“What’s my end game then? I give you these and you burst into flames. Now, Charon is pissed at me for losing his money and I still can’t leave. Take these sunglasses.” Hunter looked at Philippa asecond before gingerly taking the sunglasses from her. He slipped them on and looked around.

“Cool. Free sunglasses. And Why do I need this?!” Hunter asked, taking them off and holding them. She scoffed and took them from him. She put them on him and sighed.

“Think…satyr.” She said, rolling her eyes. Hunter furrowed his brow a second. Satyr. Satyr. Shortish. No feet. Hooves. Hunter felt a tugging for a moment and then looked down to see hooves instead of feet. “Ta da! Now, get me out of here, please?” Apate said insistently. Hunter took off the sunglasses and put them in the collar of his shirt.

“Charon. Take us up.” Hunter muttered. Charon nodded and the boat started moving back toward the entrance. “You are going to leave. You are not going to bother us again. You’re a goddess and even though the other gods are busy, I’m sure some of them would be less than happy with you making this quest difficult.”

“I totally get why my brother hates you.” She said with a pout. Hunter’s stomach clenched.

“Hates? What do you mean ‘hates?’” Hunter said quietly. “Dolos is dead….” Apate chuckled a little and that’s when the boat turned into an elevator.

“Goodbye, Hunter.” She said with a giggle before vanishing. Hunter froze and didn’t even notice the elevator stopping. Dolos had to be dead. He had caused so much pain for Hunter. He just had to be dead. Hunter’s heart ached and he started shaking a little. After his first quest he had nightmares. Nightmares that Dolos was back and that he was coming for him.

“Hunter, she’s lying.” Philippa said, taking his arm. They walked out of the elevator and out of the building. “She’s the goddess of trickery and deceit and mischief and you just tricked her. Hunter, don’t listen to her. She’s lying.” Hunter took a deep breath and nodded, hoping that his worst nightmares hadn’t come true.

Chapter 16 - Hunter

Hunter rode next to Philippa, keeping an eye on Denny. This whole thing seemed questionable. The combination of Dana’s sudden need to stay at camp. And not to mention his dream. Was Chiron actually Chiron? Was Dana actually Dana? Was Denny actually Denny? Was Philippa actually Philippa? He had no way of knowing. He didn’t know who that woman was and he knew nothing about Denny and know Denny was going with them on a quest. He was being forced to trust Denny. There was no use in making accusations. They had a goal. They had a quest and Denny was there to help them.

Philippa was making small talk with Denny and it looked like they were getting along. She was laughing and he was laughing. It was odd actually. Hunter didn’t want to trust Denny, but if Philippa did then he must be okay, right? Hunter trusted Philippa and he had known her long enough to trust her judgment. He flew a little bit closer and listened in.

“So, why were you chosen to come on the quest?” Philippa asked, sitting casually on Dixie’s back. Denny smiled and shrugged.

“I was bringing in some new kid when the injured came in. Dana needed to stay and so Chiron asked me to take her place.” He glanced back at Hunter for a second with a look that made Hunter worry for a reason. What was it with this satyr? He needed to tell Philippa about his dream. Before this satyr did something bad.

“But why you? Surely, there were other people there.” Hunter asked, coming off a little rudely. Philippa looked at him.

“Hunter…” She said quietly. She nodded toward Denny and mouthed. “Be. Nice.” She put a firm look on her face and Hunter gritted his teeth and grimaced a little.

“It’s okay.” Denny said with a sigh. “Why send a satyr, right? What can they do?” Hunter cursed under his breath.

“No! No. That’s not—“

“It’s okay. I get it.” Denny said, putting his hand up to quiet Hunter’s frantic protesting. “It’s not the first time some demigod has looked down on satyrs. No godly parents. No use. I get it.”

“I’m not a demigod. I’m a hunter.” Hunter said insistently. “Of Artemis, you know?” Philippa looked at him, shaking her head.

“It must be tough being a satyr.” She said softly, putting a comforting hand on Denny’s shoulder. “You’re basically just babysitters for whiny demigods. I’m sorry, Denny. Some people just don’t understand.” She said, shooting a look at Hunter. Hunter opened his mouth to protest, but he sighed and just gave up.

“It is tough, sometimes.” Denny said, looking back at Hunter with that look again. Hunter wasn’t sure what it was. At first he thought it was a looked of anger, but it seemed more…devious. Almost a look of mischief. “I mean, I put all of my time and energy into finding you guys. I do my best and when it’s safe, then I’m just doing my job, but when something goes wrong I should have tried harder and it’s all my fault. You demigods have it easy.” He said sadly.

“Oh, it’s okay, Denny. I’m really glad you’re here with us.” Philippa said with a comforting smile. “We’d probably still be pondering the southern fort thing without you.” She reassured him. Hunter sighed and rolled his eyes.

“We should set down soon. For a break.” Hunter said, ignoring all of the blather coming from Denny.  Hunter sighed as Denny and Philippa kept talking and he started to descend. He did it rather quickly, wanting to be out of earshot of their conversation. It probably wasn’t the wisest thing to do. There was fairly heavy fog and visibility was so low, Hunter wasn’t sure how high up he was. That is, until he almost hit a giant metal beam. “Whoa!” He shouted as it seemingly appeared out of nowhere. Hunter pulled up hard and Ulysses barely dodged. Hunter slowed way down and turned around to see what it was. It was obviously very tall and it was curved at the top. “This is—“

“It’s the St. Louis Arch.” Denny said as he flew up next to Hunter. Hunter scowled at the satyr.

“Know-it-all.” He said under his breath. Philippa smacked his arm and Hunter sighed. “We can set down here in St. Louis. We’ll find something to eat and hopefully not draw too much attention to ourselves.”

“I don’t know…” Denny said with a sigh. Hunter clenched his fists for a second before turning to Denny, opening his mouth to shout or lose his mind, but Philippa stopped him.

“What is it, Denny?” She said, looking at the satyr happily.

“St. Louis. It’s a dangerous city. I mean, things could happen. I’m sure there are monsters or something. We should stop—“

“THIS IS MY QUEST!” Hunter shouted in frustration. He was getting a little sick of Denny. Not because he was second-guessing him. It was a combination of everything. Hunter didn’t like Denny and he could tell there was something up with him. Hunter had never seen Denny until today, but everyone just seems to know him. Hunter knows camp better than anyone. How did he not know this satyr? “We’re landing in St. Louis and that’s final.” He said firmly, taking a deep breath. Denny pulled back a little, looking hurt.

“Hunter, I can’t believe you!” Philippa said, turning to Denny.

“Don’t take the advice of a satyr. I get it.” He said quietly. “What does a satyr know? They’re much too busy screwing things up and chasing naiads.” He sighed and gave a sad look at Philippa before clearing his throat. "Let’s go, then. We’ll take a break in St. Louis. I’m sorry, sir.” He said bitterly. Hunter closed his eyes a moment and was trying to find words to say, but he was just so frustrated all that came out of his mouth was a strange screeching sort of growl. He threw his hands up and then just started descending into St. Louis. 

He landed in some woods near the arch and they tied their pegasi off. Hunter immediately stormed through the woods. He was frustrated with Denny and he was frustrated with Philippa and he didn’t understand why she thought he was being needlessly mean to Denny.

“Hunter! Wait!” Philippa said, running after him. Hunter just kept walking, but he slowed down enough so that she could catch up. Hunter glanced behind to see Denny slowly walking behind, purposefully looking sad. Hunter grimaced and continued walking toward the street. “Hunter, what is wrong with you?” Philippa said in hushed tones.

“Philippa, I…I just don’t like Denny.” Hunter said quietly. She scoffed and smacked his arm.

“That’s obvious at this point!” Hunter looked at her then glanced back again to see Denny shoot him that look again.

“Philippa, there’s something up with Denny. I uh…I had a dream.” He said quietly. He spoke quickly, but he told her all about the dream. The woman. The spiders. Her transforming into Denny.

“What, so Denny is some kind of goddess or shapeshifter or something who can control spiders and walks around naked except for a dress made of spiderwebs?” Philippa said in disbelief. Hunter sighed.

“Look, don’t just…blow me off.” Hunter said with a sigh. “I know, I’m not a demigod, but that doesn’t mean I can’t have dreams that mean something.” He glanced back at Denny who had somehow moved right behind them.

“So, where are we going?” Denny asked, putting his arms around the two of them. “What do you have a taste for?” He said as they emerged onto the street. Hunter stopped and looked around.

“I don’t know. Something fast probably.” He said, glancing around. “There’s a Wendy’s and there’s a Burger King.”

“Burger King. Absolutely.” Denny said, sticking his tongue out in pleasure. “I love me some chicken fries.”

“Burger King, it is.” Philippa said with a smile. Hunter hesitated a moment before taking her hand and leading the group to Burger King.

When they walked into the Burger King, Denny hurried to the line and started waiting. Philippa dragged Hunter to the line and got in behind Denny.

“What’s the holdup?!” Denny said from his spot in the line. “Do you have to kill the cow back there?!”

“Denny, calm down.” Philippa said quietly. Denny turned around angrily and glared at Philippa. He had a look that even made Hunter jump a little. The scowl turned into a smile which was followed by an odd laugh.

“I’m just messing around.” Denny said with a laugh. He punched Hunter lightly in the arm and smiled before turning toward the line again. Hunter glanced at Philippa who glanced at him and they shared a sort of ‘what in Olympus’ name was that?’ kind of look. 3 people later and some grumbling from Denny he finally reached the line.

“Could I have all of your ready chicken fries, please?” Denny said with a sigh. The bracefaced teenager behind the counter blinked for a second before smiling.

“Yessir.” She pressed some buttons on the register. “That’ll be 34.16.” She said with a smile. Denny had been looking off in the distance and finally looked back.

“Oh. I already paid.” He said with a nod. The girl blinked for a second before smiling.

“Yes. My mistake.” Hunter furrowed his brow for a second. He didn’t exactly remember seeing Denny paying, but he had a feeling that he did. He shrugged and stopped worrying about it. The smells of food and seeing all 6 orders of chicken fries come out made Hunter hungry. Starving actually.

“Those look so good.” Philippa said, licking her lips at Denny’s tray of food. “I’ll just get a salad. I feel like a pig.” She said, putting a hand on her stomach. Hunter scoffed.

“You are gorgeous, Philippa.” Hunter said with a smile. She blushed and kissed his cheek. The two of them ordered and soon got their food. They sat down next to Denny who was half done with his chicken fries at this point. Hunter sat down and ate a few fries. “So are you going to eat the cardboard too?” He asked with a chuckle. Denny looked at him oddly.

“Why would I do that?” He asked with a raised eyebrow. Hunter thought for a second.

“Well, I..I saw a satyr eat cardboard once. I thought it was a satyr th—“

“Oh! I got it!” Denny said with a scoff, chicken fry crumbs flying off his small goatee. “All satyrs are the same. Do you happen to have garbage or something? Maybe some lint? I’ll just chomp that down like your living garbage disposal.” He stood up and stormed off to the bathroom, leaving Hunter to be stared at by Philippa and everyone else in the building.  Hunter slouched a little and went back to eating his food.

“He knows that’s not what I meant.” Hunter said quietly before stealing some of Denny’s chicken fries. Philippa slapped his hand, causing him to drop the chicken fries.

“I cannot believe you sometimes…” She said with a scoff as she started eating her salad. Hunter sighed and grumbled quietly as he kept eating. Denny eventually walked back to the table and started eating again.

“I’m sorry. I just can’t stand ignorance.” He said with a pointed look at Hunter. Philippa patted his arm in a comforting way. “It’s okay. It’s okay.” Denny took a look at the remaining food on his tray and shuddered. “I’m not hungry anymore.” He said pushing his tray to the middle of the table. Hunter looked at him and wanted to just hit him. Denny looked at him with anger until winking at him once. Hunter furrowed his brow and was about to shout at him, but Denny spoke first. “This is…I’m gonna be sick.” He said with a sigh before walking back to the bathroom. Hunter stared at the empty chair before turning to Philippa who was glaring at him.

“Philippa, I didn’t do any—“

“You made him throw up!” Philippa said, pointing toward the bathroom. “I had no idea that you could be so terrible. Especially to a poor satyr!” She stood up and looked at him, shaking her head for a moment, before walking toward the bathroom where Denny had disappeared a moment earlier. Hunter looked over at a small family that was staring at him like he was insane. Hunter cleared his throat.

“Our cousin. Denny.” Hunter said quietly. “He thinks he’s half-goat. And has stomach ulcers. And eats cardboard.” Hunter studied the ground for a moment before shrugging toward the family and putting his head down on the table with a thud. He sighed and lifted his head up, putting his head on his hand with his elbow on the table. He lazily put fries in his mouth, eating them, but not really enjoying them. He looked down at the table and grabbed all the food. He stole some chicken fries and wrapped them in a napkin, slipping them into his backpack. He threw the rest of it away and stepped outside to wait for Denny and Philippa. They finally emerged from the restaurant and Hunter saw how close Denny was to Philippa. Hunter knew it was nothing, but it did make him a little jealous.

“Shall we?” Philippa said with a sigh. Hunter shook his head and they started back toward the pegasi.

Chapter 15 - Will

Will took a deep breath as he watched Denny, Philippa, and Hunter fly off. He stared as they disappeared into the distance. Keep them safe, dad. As best you can. He prayed to the sea god. Keep me safe too, dad. Keep Kyle and Marina safe. Keep everyone safe. He sighed, turning to Kyle and Marina. He was glad that Kyle and Marina, not only were able to stay together, but that they were coming with him. Besides Hunter and Penny they were his closest friends. He knew that whatever quest that was coming up wasn’t going to be easy. He needed to stay focused. Now, was not the time to be worrying about Penny. She was strong. She could take care of herself.

Will sighed and crouched down, putting his backpack on the ground in front of him. He nervously searched through it, making sure he had everything he needed. He was also busy trying to convince himself that he needed to double check supplies. In reality, it was an excuse to delay leaving. He checked several times, wishing that he didn’t have to go. He knew that having a god as a parent would help, but that only went so far. Everyone here had godly parents. That didn’t stop people from dying in the war.

“Well, we should leave soon.” Will said, finally breaking the silence that had presented itself. “Let’s meet back here in20 minutes. That okay with you two?” Will said, raising his eyebrows. Kyle and Marina both nodded. Will nodded briefly before turning toward the Big house. He looked back a moment and saw Kyle and Marina holding each other. He sighed and cursed under his breath, feeling terrible for bringing them along. He had seen Kyle’s reaction when Marina got hurt. He had seen Marina’s reaction when Kyle got hurt. It was sad and it was heartbreaking. Two people that cared about each other that much, but were thrown into a situation such as this. Constantly being forced to defend something much bigger than them and constantly being in danger. Will needed to talk to the most important person in his life, right now.

Will took a deep breath as he walked into the infirmary and immediately let his eyes land on Penny. He closed the door quietly out of respect to the sleeping people and walked to Penny’s side. She was sleeping peacefully, unfortunately. Will was hoping that he would get a chance to talk to her, but it just felt good to be by her side. He gingerly took her hand in his and held it as she slept. He prayed to Demeter and he prayed to Apollo and he prayed to his dad. She needed to get better. He sat there for a while. About 10 minutes. He knew that he had to meet Kyle and Marina back at the stables soon. He finally sighed and kissed her hand lightly before leaning over her and kissing her on the lips. She moaned softly and adjusted on the bed, a small smile spreading across her face. Will took a deep breath and walked out, headed back to the stables.

“You ready, Will?” Kyle asked as he walked up. Will nodded and cleared his throat.

“Yeah. I’m ready to go.” He added, looking at the two of them.

“You doing okay?” Marina said quietly. She could obviously tell that something was wrong with Will. It made sense. Will wasn’t trying very hard to hide it.

“I’m fine. Just a little nervous.” He explained quietly. “Well, a lot nervous actually.” He grabbed his bag off the ground and sighed as he threw it onto his arm. He put his hands together and rubbed them. “So,” He started, a nervous smile on his face. “Shall we get this over with?” He said with a chuckle. Kyle and Marina shared a look and then nodded. Will nodded back and headed into the stables, leading Hurricane out and hopping onto the winged horse’s back. Once Kyle and Marina were ready, they took off into the sky.

They flew toward Texas. It was a long flight and Will knew that. He wished that the pegasi could be a mattress or something, so that he could maybe sleep while he flew. It was kind of a dumb wish, but it was nice to think about something other than the quest and the injured Penny back at camp.

“You okay, boss?” Hurricane asked Will, turning back to look at him slightly. Will had almost forgotten that he could communicate with horses.

“Yeah, buddy.” Will replied, patting the horse’s neck. “I’m fine. Just a little tired. Really nervous.” He looked over at Petunia with Kyle and Marina on her back. “How you holding up? Can you make it all the way to San Antonio?” The Pegasus scoffed.

“I may be old, but I’m still the fastest horse in the stables.” He said with a neigh. Hurricane once told Will about the time that Henry Ford had ridden him. “Hank was always a good character. I’m glad he turned into something.” He had said the time he told him the story of hearing ‘Hank’ growing up and being successful. “Even though that Assembly line thing was my idea!” Will smiled softly at the memory and patted him on the neck.

“What about Ulysses? He’s one of the fastest I’ve ever seen.” Will said, trying to get Hurricane worked up. It was always funny to see the old horse go off on some random thing. Hurricane let out a snort and an angry whinny.

“Uly? That stuck up little pony?” Hurricane shouted with a neigh. “Listen, boss. Uly couldn’t fly his way out of a feed sack!” Will laughed and relaxed a little on the back of his horse, feeling glad that he had someone to talk to.

“You up for a break, buddy?” He asked, patting him on the side.

“I can go all day, but if your rear is getting sore we can set down.” Hurricane said, causing Will to roll his eyes a little. He steered over to Kyle and the sleeping Marina.

“Hey.” Will said quietly, not wanting to wake Marina up. “You want to set down for a little while? Stretch our legs and maybe find a bite to eat?” He asked, glancing at Marina who had her arms around Kyle and her face buried into his back. Will smiled softly and looked at Kyle again.

“Yeah. I can feel Marina’s stomach growling from here.” He said with a small chuckle. “I think I see a clearing over there.” He said, pointing down to a small grouping of trees. Will nodded and they started to descend. “Oh. I know where we are.” Kyle said as they descended slowly. “That looks like Churchhill Downs. We’re near Louisville.” He said, pointing toward a big racetrack

“Good. Do you know some place we can get a bite to eat?” Will asked Kyle, looking over at him with a raised eyebrow, not mentioning his grumbling stomach out of embarrassment. Kyle scoffed as they got closer to the ground aiming for the middle of the racetrack.

“There are plenty of places around. I’m sure.” He said, gesturing to the track. It was huge and the buildings were beautiful. It was actually rather convenient considering what they needed was a place to hide a horse. A horse racing track couldn’t be more ideal. They braced themselves and landed gently in the turf, spooking several horses. Will quickly slipped off and looked at the other horses.

“Hello, my lord!” One of them said. “My name is Gerald, but they call Thursdaynightlightning here.” A white horse said, trotting over to him.

“Hello, Gerald. Hey, can you help me with something, by chance?” Will asked, stepping forward toward the horse. “It’s actually kind of two things.”

“Anything, my lord. Ask and you shall receive.” The horse said obediently. Will nodded and patted him on the nose.

“Now, that over there is Hurricane. And that’s Petunia.” He said, pointing to their pegasi. “I want you to keep an eye on them and make sure nobody looks at them too closely okay? Do you understand?” Gerald nodded and let out a snort.

“Of course, sir. Anything, sir.” He said, seemingly bowing to him. “And the other thing, my lord?”

“Right. What’s the best way out of here?” Will asked quietly. Gerald turned toward a tunnel and nodded in that direction.

“Out that way, sir! Leads right to the street.” He said firmly. “Is there anything else I can help you with?” Will shook his head and reached into his pocket, pulling out a sugar cube.

“I know I shouldn’t, but you’ve done well. Here you go.” He said, handing it to Gerald.

“Oh! Why thank you, sir! You’re very generous!” He said as he hungrily ate the cube. Will patted him on the nose and thanked him before turning to Kyle and the very tired looking Marina.

“Alright. Well, let’s go.” He said, pointing to the tunnel Gerald had pointed out. “The pegasi will be good here. Kyle, you lead the way.” Kyle practically carried Marina toward the tunnel and they managed to get out unnoticed. When they were finally on the street, Marina woke up a little bit and started walking with them.

“We should find somewhere fast.” She said groggily. Will and Kyle looked at her oddly. She rolled her eyes and turned a little pink. “I need to use the…ahem. The little girl’s room.” She said with a sigh. Will laughed and nodded.

“Alright. There’s a Strip mall. We can hang around there.” Will said, pointing across the street. They quickly crossed and hurried into a restaurant called Senor Iguanas.

“Hello and welcome to Senor Iguanas.” The hostess said cheerfully. “how many do you have in your party?”

“Where’s the bathroom? Oh and 3 in our party.” Marina said quickly, biting her lip and shifting nervously. The hostess looked at her a little surprised before realizing the urgency of the issue.

“Right down the hallway.” She said with a smile. Marina thanked her before hurrying off down the hallway. Will looked at Kyle who rolled his eyes and the two of them laughed a little as they were lead to their table. Will took a seat and glanced around a little. It seemed pretty ordinary. There were a few kids celebrating a birthday party. A few cooks on break. A few friends having a drink. Will heard a low rumbling noise and turned around to see a green iguana mascot—Or something that looked like it. It had a sombrero and a pair of sunglasses on to match the appearance of the cartoon iguana on the menu. That wasn’t odd within itself, but it seemed that no one was paying any attention to it, but it was paying plenty of attention to them. It was staring right at Kyle and Will with an unfaltering gaze.

“Hey. Hey, Kyle.” Will said, turning back to the table. “Look over my shoulder at the mascot.” Kyle raised an eyebrow and then complied.

“Yeah. What about it?” He asked, turning back and trying not to stare.

“I mean, other than the sombrero and the sunglasses, is there anything weird about it?”

“Much better.” Marina said with a sigh as she sat down. “What are we talking about?” Kyle pulled her in and kissed her cheek.

“The mascot behind Will.” Kyle whispered into her ear. “Will thinks it’s a little cree—Will. It’s moving.” He said, looking at the mascot. Will turned around and looked to see the large iguana standing up and moving toward them. As it got closer it seemed to change. It wasn’t a furry costume. The fabric became smooth, almost scale-like. Will’s eyes widened when snakes started to sneak out from under the sombrero and the legs and tail turned into a giant dragon-like bottom half. He heard the rumbling again and stood up.

“Guys. We have to go.” Will said, gesturing Marina and Kyle to stand. “We have to go now!” He shouted and shoved them toward the door just as the iguana sprouted wings and drew two gruesome swords, dripping with poison. The beast bared its teeth just as Will shot a stream of water from the pitchers on the nearby tables right at its face. He took off after Kyle and Marina.

“What is that thing?!” Kyle shouted, running toward the racetrack to get back to their pegasi. There was screaming and Will looked back to see the monster burst from the ceiling and fly straight for them.

“I think it was Kampê!” Marina shouted at them as they darted toward Churchhill Downs. The rumbling was getting closer and Will turned around in time to see it too close for comfort.

“Duck!” Will shouted and the three of them dropped in the middle of the street. There was a loud crash and the sound of brakes and Will looked up to see Kampê stuck inside a metrobus windshield, arms with sword in hand flailing wildly. “Alright! Time to run!” Will said, standing back up and taking off for the tunnel they had exited through. They entered back inside and ran across the track, carefully dodging horses that were racing at the time. They hopped the railing and the sound of rumbling again caused Will to turn around and see Kampê bursting from the tunnel.

“Hello, my lord!” Gerald said, trotting up to Will. Will looked and found Hurricane.

“I really don’t have time, Gerald. I don’t mean to be rude.” Will said as he hopped onto Hurricane’s back.

“My apologies, my lord! Anything I can do to serve you?” Will glanced at the quickly approaching Kampê and shook his head.

“Just keep up the good work, Gerald! So long!” Will said before taking off into the sky, nearly dodging a swing from the poisonous blades of the monster.

“Alright. Which way to San Antonio?” Kyle said nervously as he flew with Marina’s arms wrapped tightly around his waist. “It would be good if we hurried.”