Linked Demigods (HIATUS)

Chapter 4: The Kids

A/N: Before we begin, I just noticed that this story was 8th in 'Linked' (21/1/2022) and for that I'm pretty proud, especially for a story as new as this. Anyway, we shall continue our journey!

~~

Time's POV

I saw Ares at the parking lot, and gently nudged Percy to move along. Luckily, he was striding quickly towards Ares, a look of anger on his face.

"Well, well." Ares said. "You're smarter than I thought. At least with your supervisor,"

Percy didn't seem to be hearing him. "You knew it was a trap. You tried to trick us."

I put a hand on Percy's shoulder. "That's alright now."

I took out the shield. "Here, Ares."

I tossed it to him. Ares grabbed it, spinning it in midair. I watched as it became a vest.

"See that truck?" Ares pointed. "That's your ride. Takes you straight to L.A., with one stop in Vegas."

He snapped his fingers, and the back door opened. He also handed a blue backpack to Percy.

Before Percy could snap at him, I cut in.

"Thanks, Ares. Though I don't follow all this Greek stuff, sure I'll believe it exists now. Come along, guys,"

Percy demanded information on his mother. I listened quietly as it all went on. After, we all went aboard.

~~~

It stank. Literally. My only comfort is that it'll probably end soon. Percy uncapped Riptide and it showed everything inside. Poor, poor animals.

I put on the Mask of Truth to understand them. They were all suffering. I took it off again, not willing to hear it right now. Wild would've done something. Even though he hunted, he always liked animals.

I didn't know that much, but from what it looked like, the food was all wrong. Especially from what the animals told me. It was all a mess. I would've done something, but the engine started and I was forced to sit down. I made myself semi-comfy in a corner with everyone else.

When everything became more steady, I consoled the animals and we got to work fixing things. The only thing we couldn't was the...gum in the zebra's mane. Yeah, that's what. they called it. We all snacked on this thing called Oreos- it was amazing. Maybe I could get Malon to make some-

Malon.

Oh, I missed her so much.

I huddled into a ball more, but forced myself to stay strong. I had to. If I didn't, who would? I was so lost in my thoughts I let the other's talking wash over me, though listening so that I knew what the conversation was about.

~~~

I woke everyone up the moment the truck stopped.

"They might be coming to check on the animals," Grover agreed. "We gotta hide."

I nodded, putting on my stone mask. Annabeth put on her cap, and Grover and Percy hid in the shadows. 

The animals were all free. We quickly kept on moving throughout. I have to admit, I was a bit dazed in the heat. Unfortunately, we made a couple wrong turns, and ended up at the Lotus Hotel and Casino. 

We were welcomed inside, though I was suspicious. I was the oldest looking, so I said that I was in charge and we needed a place to stay for a while.

I handled most of the other things, but it started to seem a little too perfect. The gaming machines, the handled bill.  Though it might've been a mistake.

While the kids played, I went to exploration. As I went around, I saw a room. The door was open, and two kids were inside.

The first was a girl with brown hair, olive skin, and black eyes. She looked at me.

"Hi?" she tried.

The second was a boy who looked up when she spoke. He had shaggy, messy black hair and the same olive skin. 

"Who are you?" he asked.

"Just uh...someone who dropped by," I answered. "Can you tell me about this place?"

For the next couple of hours, we talked. They were just kids. When I left, I promised that we were friends.

When I came downstairs, Percy came up to me. He said that these people were all from the past, and this place was a trap. We gathered everyone (Annabeth with much difficulty) and we left the hotel.

When the guy came around, I told him that we had to go. We quickly rushed out of the area before we could be tricked again. When I looked around, it still looked afternoon, but the weather had changed.

Ares's backpack was over Percy's shoulder, which was weird. Didn't he throw it out in the room? Strange. There was a newspaper stand, so we could figure out what date it was.

"June 20th," I read.

"One day left," Grover bleated. "One day!"

"I have a plan." Annabeth answered.