LOVE THE WAY YOU LIE . . . hoo

XXVI.

MIA WASN'T SURPRISED when the snake people arrived.

When the ship docked at the harbor in Piraeus, on the outskirts of Athens, she stared out at the horizon. Somewhere nearby — past those rows of cruise ships, past those hills crowded with buildings — they would find the Acropolis. Today, one way or another, their journey would end.

But that didn't mean she could relax. Any moment, a nasty surprise might come flying out of nowhere.

As it turned out, the surprise was three dudes with snake tails instead of legs.

Mia and Piper were on watch while the rest of the crew geared up for combat — checking their weapons and armor, loading the ballistae and catapults. She spotted the snake guys slithering along the docks, winding through crowds of mortal tourists who paid them no attention.

"Um . . . Annabeth?" Piper called. Mia resisted the urge to roll her eyes.

Annabeth and Percy came to their sides.

"Oh, great," Percy said. "Dracaenae."

Annabeth narrowed her eyes. "I don't think so. At least not like any I've seen. Dracaenae have two serpent trunks for legs. These guys just have one."

"You're right," Percy said. "These look more human on top, too. Not all scaly and green and stuff. So do we talk or fight?"

Mia was tempted to say fight. She liked fighting things. Fighting things was good.

The snake man in the lead held his head high. His face was chiselled and bronze, his eyes black as basalt, his curly dark hair glistening with oil. His upper body rippled with muscles, covered only by a Greek chlamys — a white wool cloak loosely wrapped and pinned at the shoulder. From the waist down, his body was one giant serpent trunk — about eight feet of green tail undulating behind him as he moved.

In one hand he carried a staff topped with a glowing green jewel. In his other, he carried a platter covered with a silver dome, like a main course for a fancy dinner.

The two guys behind him appeared to be guards. They wore bronze breastplates and elaborate helmets topped with horsehair bristles. Their spears were tipped with green stone points. Their oval shields were emblazoned with a large Greek letter K — kappa.

They stopped a few yards from the Argo II. The leader looked up and studied the demigods. His expression was intense but inscrutable. He might have been angry or worried or terribly in need of a restroom.

"Permission to come aboard." His voice was strangely raspy. Mia knew from experience that raspy voices weren't a good thing in this economy.

"Who are you?" Piper asked.

He fixed his dark eyes on her. "I am Kekrops, the first and eternal king of Athens. I would welcome you to my city." He held up the covered platter. "Also, I brought a Bundt cake."

Mia glanced at her friends. "A trick?"

"Probably," Annabeth said.

"At least he brought dessert." Percy smiled down at the snake guys. "Welcome aboard!"

Kekrops agreed to leave his guards above deck with Buford the table, who ordered them to drop and give him twenty push-ups. The guards seemed to take this as a challenge.

Meanwhile, the king of Athens was invited to the mess hall for a 'get to know you' meeting.

"Please take a seat," Jason offered.

Kekrops wrinkled his nose. "Snake people do not sit."

"Please remain standing," Leo said. He cut the cake and stuffed a piece in his mouth before Mia could warn him it might be poisoned, or inedible for mortals, or just plain bad.