"Why don't we just take a plane to California?" I ask Percy as we board the train headed for Chicago.
We had left Sally Jackson's place early in the morning. Annabeth had already bought the tickets for the train. I hadn't said anything about it until now.
We find our seats and sit down before Percy answers.
"The sky is in Zeus's territory and he doesn't like me, a Son of Poseidon, being in it."
I nod. I still want to fly, but I understood that they couldn't. Demigod rules.
"So what are we going to do after we get to Chicago?" I ask, my question directed at Annabeth.
Annabeth replies, "There's a rental car service close to the train station. I've called the place and we've got a car. I don't know how far we'll get, and I haven't planned any further than that."
I nod. "Sounds good. Now on to the important question: Can I drive?"
"Oh, can I drive after Noah?" Percy says, his eyes glowing.
Annabeth sighs. "I wish I could say no to both of you, but I can't drive for days straight and we will need to keep going, so yeah, you can drive."
"Whoohoo!"
A muffled voice comes on the speaker saying something along the lines of, "Five minutes until the train leaves."
Sure enough, the train leaves five minutes later. I'm coming for you Leanna.
****
I try to sleep, but I'd gotten so much sleep in the past few days, I wasn't tired. Instead I read Annabeth's A Guide to Learning the Greek Language which she brought for some reason. It's an interesting read, and I know the entire Greek alphabet by the time something happens.
We're just entering Ohio when the chimera boards the train. Okay, we see a chimera, but mortals just see a lady walking a dog. The mist hides big monsters well.
Annabeth is the first to notice. I'm reading her book, so she's just staring at the wall. At first, we all see a lady walking a dog, but Annabeth taps me and Percy on the shoulder.
"Does that dog look odd to you?"
I stop reading and look at the dog in the seat across from us. I stare hard at the dog, and it changes into a hideous lion-snake-goat thing.
"What is it?" I ask.
Percy answers, "It's a chimera. I fought it on the St. Louis bridge. Long story."
"What once came will come again," I quote the prophecy.
I put down the book and slowly pick up the sword laying next to my backpack. I can see Percy has Riptide in his hand and Annabeth has her dagger.
The chimera and the lady (who is probably also some sort of monster) don't attack. They just sit. They don't even look at us.
The train stops. The chimera looks at us. They're going to attack in a train full of people.
"We have to get off," I whisper to Percy and Annabeth. "Right now."
We get up and follow some other people to the front of the train where they disembark. The lady with the chimera follows us.
When only a few people are left on the platform and the train has sped off, the chimera springs, heading straight for Percy.
"We have some unfinished business to do," the lady says.
Percy whacks the chimera with Riptide. Annabeth and I head for the lady.
The lady, Echidna, as Annabeth calls her, is surprisingly agile. She dodges every swipe of my sword, though I am swinging wildly not practiced (like Percy) like I learned in camp training.
Then something happens. A strange feeling spreads through me. It's warm and tingly. I can feel the power that comes with it. It makes me stronger.
I have absolutely no idea where it's coming from. I just let it guide me.
Echidna has a harder time blocking my attacks. I manage to cut her in the arm. She howls with pain. Annabeth takes this opportunity to stab her with her dagger. Echidna goes up in a poof of dust.
Percy is still battling the chimera, and it's not going too well. I jump in and let the power control me. Stab. Block. Parry. Swipe. My sword flashes through the air.
And then I lose it. I feel a sharp pain in my chest. My sword clatters to the ground, and I gasp for air.
Annabeth and Percy rush over to me. The chimera runs away, but I know we'll see it again.
The pain begins to subside, but it comes back in a different form. My adrenaline had been so high, I didn't even notice Echidna had scratched me, leaving a deep wound in my side.
Annabeth hands me a square of ambrosia. I take it, but already everything is getting fuzzy. I've lost too much blood. Blackness envelops me as I fade into unconsciousness.
