The Silver Archer 2️⃣ (Percy Jackson)

15. We Steal a Red Vespa

Adira

Percy and I would've had our pick of cars, but they were all wedged in bumper-to-bumper traffic.

None of the engines were running, which was weird. It seemed the drivers had had time to turn off the ignition before they got too sleepy. Or maybe Morpheus had the power to put engines to sleep as well. Most of the drivers had apparently tried to pull to the curb when they felt themselves passing out, but still the streets were too clogged to navigate.

Finally we found an unconscious courier leaning against a brick wall, still straddling his red Vespa.

We dragged him off the scooter and laid him on the sidewalk.

With any luck, we'd be able to bring his scooter back. If we didn't, it would hardly matter, because the city would be destroyed.

I hesitated for a second, as Percy got on with no problem at all. "Scared, princess?" he mocked at me.

I stuttered, "No... just the last time I got on a vehicle such as this, I was driving away from a psychotic man-teen."

Without any question, he grabbed me by the waist, pushing me behind him.

Percy drove with me behind him, holding on to his waist. We zigzagged down Broadway with our
engine buzzing through the eerie calm. The only sounds were occasional cell phones ringing—like they were calling out to each other, as if New York had turned into a giant electronic aviary.

Our progress was slow. Every so often we'd come across pedestrians who'd fallen asleep right in front of a car, and we'd move them just to be safe. Once we stopped to extinguish a pretzel vendor's cart that had caught on fire. It was easy, since I calmed down the fire, eventually extinguishing it. A few minutes later we had to rescue a baby carriage that was rolling aimlessly down the street. It turned out there was no baby in it—just somebody's sleeping poodle. We parked it safely in a doorway and kept riding.

We were passing Madison Square Park when I said, "Pull over."

We stopped in the middle of East 23rd. I immediately jumped off and ran toward the park. I stared at the bronze statue on a red marble pedestal. I'd probably passed it a million times but never really looked at it.

The dude was sitting in a chair with his legs crossed. He wore an old-fashioned suit—Abraham Lincoln style—with a bow tie and long coattails and stuff. A bunch of bronze books were piled under his chair. He held a writing quill in one hand and a big metal sheet of parchment in the other.

"Why do we care about . . ." Percy squinted at the name on the pedestal. "William H. Steward?"

"Seward," I corrected. "He was a New York governor. Minor demigod—son of Hebe, according to Annabeth. But that's not important. It's the statue I care about."

I climbed on a park bench and examined the base of the statue.

"Don't tell me he's an automaton," Percy said.

I smiled. "Turns out most of the statues in the city are automatons. Daedalus planted them here just in case he needed an army."

"How do you know?" Percy asked.

"Annabeth Chase is my best friend, Seaweed Brain. I'm stuck with listening to her for the rest of my goddamn life."

"Did he want the automatons to attack Olympus or defend it?"

I shrugged. "Either one. That was plan twenty-three. He could activate one statue and it would start activating its brethren all over the city, until there was an army. It's dangerous, though. You know how unpredictable automatons are. Annabeth wrote many notes in my notebook, along with me doing a little research when I'm alone."

"Uh-huh," Percy said. "Babe, you're seriously thinking about activating it?"

"I have Annabeth's Daedalus notes," I said. "I think I can . . . Ah, here we go."

I pressed the tip of Seward's boot, and the statue stood up, its quill and paper ready.

"What's he going to do?" Percy muttered. "Take a memo?"

"Shh," I quietly said. "Hello, William."

"Bill," Percy suggested.

"Bill . . . Oh, shut up," I told him. The statue tilted its head, looking at us with blank metal eyes.

I cleared my throat. "Hello, Governor Seward. Command sequence: Daedalus Twenty-three. Defend Manhattan. Begin Activation."

Seward jumped off his pedestal. He hit the ground so hard his shoes cracked the sidewalk. Then he went clanking off toward the east.

"He's probably going to wake up Confucius," I guessed.

"What?" Percy said.

"Another statue, on Division. Something Annabeth told me. The point is, they'll keep waking each other up until they're all activated."

"And then?"

"Hopefully, they defend Manhattan."

"Do they know that we're not the enemy?"

"I think so."

"That's reassuring."

I thought about all the bronze statues in the parks, plazas, and buildings of New York. There had to be hundreds, thousands.

Then a ball of green light exploded in the evening sky. Greek fire, somewhere over the East River.

"We have to hurry," Percy said. He grabbed my hand, pulling me at the fingers and we ran for the Vespa.

⚔️

We parked outside Battery Park, at the lower tip of Manhattan where the Hudson and East Rivers came together and emptied into the bay.

"Wait here," Percy told me.

"Babe, you shouldn't go alone."

"Well, unless you can breathe underwater . . ."

I growled. "I can turn into a fish, remember? Heck, I could be a mermaid. Even a- HEY!"

Percy tore off the necklace, the one that allowed me to transform. He tied it around his wrist before I could retaliate. "I can still turn into an animal, Seaweed Brain!"

"But, you don't have control over which one out of thousands. Good luck with that, Adi," he said at me.

I groaned. "You're so annoying sometimes."

"Like when I'm right? Trust me, baby, I'll be fine. I've got the curse of Achilles now. I'll all invincible and stuff."

I wasn't convinced. I honestly couldn't believe he took on that wretched curse. "Just be careful. I don't want anything to happen to you. I mean, because we need you for the battle."

He grinned. "Back in a flash."

He walked closer to me, pulling my chin closer to his face. He pressed his lips on mine, before whispering something. "I love you," he said. "If I somehow survive this, my cabin. You and me. Alone."

I smiled, blushing. I nodded. "I love you too."

He clambered down the shoreline and waded into the water.

⚔️

When Percy got back on the beach, I was talking on my phone, but I hung up as soon as I saw him. My arms were shaking and I tried to contain them. Of course, it didn't work. It never did.

"It worked," he told me. "The rivers are safe."

"Good," I said. "Because we've got other problems. Michael Yew just called. Another army is marching over the Williamsburg Bridge. The Apollo cabin needs help. And Perce, the monster leading the enemy... It's Phillip."

Percy's jaw dropped.

"And beside him, it's the Minotaur."