The Hidden Follower

32.

The world turned upside down, and it felt a lot like shadow traveling.

When Delta could see again, she was back at camp, in the dining pavilion, in the middle of dinner. They were standing on the Aphrodite cabin's table, and Piper had one foot in Drew's pizza. Sixty campers rose at once, gawking at them in astonishment.

Whatever Hera had done to shoot them across the country, it wasn't good for the stomach. Leo jumped off the table, ran to the nearest bronze brazier, and threw up in it—gods, Delta's father was lucky he didn't have to get that as an offering.

"Jason?" Chiron trotted forward. No doubt the old centaur had seen thousands of years' worth of weird stuff, but even he looked totally flabbergasted. "What—How—?"

The Aphrodite campers stared up at Piper with their mouths open. Piper figured she must look awful.

"Hi," she said, as casually as she could. "We're back."

~~~•~~~

    The next day Leo had brought Delta, Piper, Jason, the whole Hephaestus cabin, and Chiron down to the bunker nine entrance. He was so jumpy it was like when he was four again. Delta grabbed his shoulders to steady him, "You're fine Leo, just relax a bit." She said.

    Leo turned to the group and smiled nervously. "Here we go."

    He looked back at Delta, his eyes with worry in them, she smiled at him and he willed his hand to catch fire, and set it against the door.

   His cabinmates gasped.

    "Leo!" Nyssa cried. "You're a fire user!"

"Yeah, thanks," he said. "I know." Delta laughed at interaction.

    Jake, who was out of his body cast but still on crutches, said, "Holy Hephaestus. That means—it's so rare that—"

   The massive stone door swung open, and everyone's mouth dropped but Leo's and Delta's. Leo's flaming hand seemed insignificant now. Even Piper and Jason looked stunned, and they'd seen enough amazing things lately.

   Only Chiron didn't look surprised. The centaur knit his bushy eyebrows and stroked his beard, as if the group was about to walk through a minefield.

   That seemed to make Leo even more nervous but he stood up straight and gestured to the bunker.

"Welcome to Bunker Nine," he said, "C'mon in."

   The group was silent as they toured the facility. Everything was just as Leo had left it—giant machines, worktables, old maps and schematics. Only one thing had changed. Festus's head was sitting on the central table, still battered and scorched from his final crash in Omaha.

   Leo went over to it, a bitter taste in his mouth, and stroked the dragon's forehead. "I'm sorry, Festus. But I won't forget you."

    Jason put a hand on Leo's shoulder. "Hephaestus brought it here for you?"

    Leo nodded.

    "But you can't repair him," Jason guessed.

    "No way," Leo said. "But the head is going to be reused. Festus will be going with us."

    Piper came over and frowned. "What do you mean?"

    Before Leo could answer, Nyssa cried out, "Guys, look at this!"

    She was standing at one of the worktables, flipping through a sketchbook—diagrams for hundreds of different machines and weapons.

    "I've never seen anything like these," Nyssa said. "There are more amazing ideas here than in Daedalus's workshop. It would take a century just to prototype them all."