How Fates Can Twist

Chapter 6

Annabeth's POV

They had reached Portland by the next morning. The boat had been a sturdy ride, thanks to Percy's help. Now the three demigods were heading into the city to find any clues as to where their quest may be heading.

Annabeth expected Percy to either disappear again or stay on the water till they returned. To her surprise, he asked if he could go with them.

"Sure," Hazel had responded, though Annabeth could tell that both her and Frank were wary of this stranger tagging along. She had similar concerns. During the boat ride, she had reminded herself that just because Percy helped her a few times doesn't mean he's trustworthy. Sure, he had said that they were friends before, but that all could all be a lie made up by an enemy to break down her walls of defense. She would not let herself be tricked like that.

"Those don't look like regular pigeons," Frank noted as they turned a corner and the street opened up to a courtyard filled with food trucks and large, ugly birds.

"Harpies," Annabeth said. "Half-human, half-bird. They usually symbolize destruction, particularly those of storm winds."

"So we want to avoid them, right?" Frank asked.

Annabeth said nothing. She looked at Hazel and knew that she was thinking the same thing: where there are monsters, there's something worth fighting them for.

But before either of them could make a move, a wrangled voice began shouting at them from the courtyard.

"You, there! Come help me fend these beasts off!"

A gangly old man was looking at them, his eyes white as if he was blind, his body hunched over a picnic table.

"They'll take it all! Help me!"

None of the questers moved. They watched as two harpies flew in and attempted to grab some wrappers that were scattered over the table, but the man smacked their beaks away.

"I know what it is you seek. Thanatos, isn't it?"

That caught Annabeth's attention. They had been told to look for death, and Thanatos was the god of it. This could be the clue they needed.

The man knew he had struck something. He yelled towards them again while fending off another harpy.

"Kill these beasts and I'll tell you where he is! I swear on the styx!"

Annabeth wanted to believe that it could work that easily, that she could kill a few birds and get straight-forward instructions on how to complete the quest. But she knew things never worked that way for demigods.

She walked up to the man and stopped a few feet from the table that had food wrappers strayed around it, far enough away that the harpy wings wouldn't smack her as they dove.

"What's your name?" she asked. A simple enough question.

"Hah!" He laughed as if it was silly. "I'm Phineus of Thrace, the Great Seer! Now kill these beasts, girl."

Annabeth knew this man's story. Phineus had been given the gift of prophecy, which resulted in Zeus blinding him and trapping him on an island. But that had happened thousands of years ago in ancient Greece. How was he in Portland, Oregon, in the twenty-first century? Something must've been seriously wrong with Death.

Hazel tugged on Annabeth's elbow, pulling her close.

"We can't kill these harpies. Look at them, they're just trying to survive," Hazel whispered.

She looked closely at the winged creatures. The ones that stayed still enough for her to examine were gaunt and losing feathers, some even shaking, as if they hadn't eaten in weeks.

She turned back to face Phineus, who was still standing guard over the table. The table covered in food items. He was the one starving the harpies.

"What other deal are you willing to make?" Annabeth spoke to the man, funneling as much confidence into her voice as possible. "Surely there's something you want more than for us to kill these mangy birds."

"Don't go making suggestions to me, girl. I'm the one who has the much needed information to give, after all. I'm the one in charge here," Phineus replied, an unpleasant smile spreading across his face.

It was true. They didn't have any leverage here. The only other thing Annabeth could think of that would be of interest to Phineus was his sight, but they couldn't offer that to him.

Unless they could.

Annabeth suddenly remembered the gorgon's blood they had been given by Mars. One vial could cure any curse, while the other vial would kill you instantly. If she could convince Phineus to wager for a cure to his blindness, she could get the information out of him. Of course, one of them would have to put their lives on the line to get him to do it.

Percy nudged her in the side, speaking up for the first time since they'd arrived. His eyebrows were scrunched together in worry, as if he could tell just what she was planning and just how dangerous it would be.

"I know what you're thinking. Please don't take that risk. There has to be another way-"

"There isn't," she cut him off. "And I know what I'm doing."

Percy tried to speak to her again, but she turned her attention back to the blind man.

"Phineus," Annabeth yelled. "I have an offer that you may be interested in. I have two vials of gorgon blood. If you accept, you will write the location of Thanatos on a note and we would each drink one. If the powers that be are on your side, your vision will be returned to you, I will die, and you can keep the information to yourself. If they are on my side, you will die and I will get the location. Deal?"

Phineus pondered the offer for a moment as he shooed away another harpy. Then he laughed a cruel laugh.

"You have no clue about the powers that be. The Earth has brought me back and promised me life, but if you still wish to partake in the challenge, so be it."

"Great," Annabeth replied, pulling the vials out of her backpack and setting them on the table. The two sat facing each other, Phineus staring at her with a nasty grin on his face. She pulled out a piece of paper and pen, and he wrote down the location as promised.

"Annabeth!" Percy whispered from behind her in a worried tone.

She ignored him. Instead, she grabbed the vial closest to her and brought it to her lips, hoping the gods wouldn't abandon her now.