Penny Ranger and the Lightning Thief

Chaptet XXXIII: We Bribe the Ferryman of the Dead

In all honesty, I had no idea how nobody knew where the entrance to the Underworld was. The building wasn't exactly hidden. But then again, I suppose hiding in plain sight is what the Mist is for. But there it was in Valencia Boulevard, the writing 'DOA RECORDING STUDIOS' etched in gold upon black marble on the front of the building. Below it was another sign that said 'NO SOLICITORS. NO LOITERING. NO LIVING.'.

For a place that was literally the entrance to death, it was actually pretty crowded. There was a big security guard sitting behind a desk watching over the crowd.

"Okay. You remember the plan." Percy said, turning to us.

"The plan. Yeah. I love the plan." Grover gulped.

"What happens if the plan doesn't work?" Annabeth asked.

"Don't think negative."

"Right. We're entering the Land of the Dead, and I shouldn't think negative."

Percy's mood darkened immediately, as he took the four pearls out of his pocket and stared at them. I elbowed her side and glared at her. Percy was already under enough stress. He didn't need us adding more on top. Besides, it's not like we had a better plan.

She returned my glare before she looked over at Percy. Her glare softened as she noticed his worry. She glanced back at me and quickly apologized with her eyes before turning back to Percy.

"I'm sorry, Percy." she said, putting a hand on his shoulder.
"You're right, we'll make it. It'll be fine."

She nudged Grover.

"Oh, right! We got this far. We'll find the Master Bolt and save your mom. No problem."

"We're with you 'till the end of the line, Percy." I assured.

Percy gave us a grateful smile and put the pearls back in his pocket.

"Let's whup some Underworld butt."

We proceeded to walk into the lobby of the Underworld. The place was packed with people. Some were sitting on black chairs, others were standing there and others were pacing around. If you just glanced at them they looked perfectly normal, but if you really focused on them they began to look transparent. The whole place was filled with the spirits of the dead. The thought sent shivers down my spine.

The security guard watching over the spirits stood on a sort of raised podium, making his already tall frame even taller. He had dark skin and bleached blond hair. His eyes were hidden behind a pair of tortoise shell glasses and he was dressed in a fine silk suit. There was a silver name tag with a black rose pinned above it that I couldn't read, but it was pretty obvious who this guy was.

"Your name is Chiron?" Percy asked in confusion after trying to read the name tag.

Wow. How was he this dense? The guy was clearly not a centaur. And how could he not know about Charon? He was known even outside Greek Mythology!

The man in question leaned over the desk to get a better look at Percy and gave him a cold smile.

"What a precious young lad. Tell me, mate, do I look like a centaur?"

"N-no."

"Sir." Charon added.

"Sir."

He took the name tag off and showed it to Percy, pointing to each letter individually.

"Can you read this, mate? It says C-H-A-R-O-N. Say it with me: CARE-ON."

"Charon."

"Amazing! Now: Mr. Charon."