☾ The Child of Artemis ☾

13. My Dreams are Crushed

          We took a taxi to the Manhattan airport. I wasn't so used to sitting still with a seatbelt on. Once we arrived, Faith purchased tickets to Las Vegas with golden coins with Grecian symbols on it. I think those are called "drachmas." We went to a security checkpoint to check the things we packed. The checkpoint was full of coppers. I always dreamed of being a copper when I grew up. I'd get a cool badge, fight robbers and people who committed crimes, give speeders tickets, and incarcerate people.

          There were buckets to put your things in and the buckets full of things went through a box scanner thingy. (I don't know how to explain that!) I put my bow and arrows on the bucket. The bucket goes through the scanner and so do I. The scanner I go through is shaped like a doorway. A copper beckons me to his side. "Why do you have a bow and arrows, young man?"

          "They're important, sir."

          "You cannot bring weapons past security."

         "Why?"

         "It's for safety reasons."

         "I promise I won't use 'em for bad! I use my bow and arrows for self-defense!"

          "Are these carry-on items?"

         "What do you mean?"

          "Are you going to bring them on the plane, to your seat?"

          "Yes! They are always carry-on."

          "We do not allow carry-on weapons."

          Dang. Maybe being a copper when I grew up was a bad idea. "Sorry, sir. I had no idea."

          I hung my head in shame. Faith sorted it out. "Officer, he's a first-timer. He's never flown on a plane. I have space to put the bow and arrows in my bag. It is not a carry-on."

          "I promise I won't use my bow and arrows for bad, mister copper, sir."

          The copper sighed. "Okay. Where are your parents? I have to talk to them."

          Faith and I paused. "Um..."

         A blonde woman put her hand on Hunter's shoulder. "I'm their mom."

          A black haired guy put his hand on di Angelo's shoulder. "I'm their dad. Forget you saw anything."

          The guy sprayed water with a water gun on all of the coppers and led us all away. Once we were past security, Faith and I gasped. "Hades and Athena," she marveled at them. "The water you sprayed was water from the River Lethe."

          "Indeed," Hades confirmed, "but do not tell the mortals."

          Hades and Athena disappeared. We all ran away as fast as we could. We waited for the plane, then boarded. Hunter and di Angelo sat next to each other across from Faith and me. "Why are we going to Las Vegas?" I asked.

          " 'Cause we were in Nevada for the quest to get my dad's trident. I mostly picked a random place to go."

          "What are we even doing on this quest?"

          "You're the quest leader, genius! The quest was assigned to you."

         "I don't know how to find my mum!"

         "Okay. You, Hunter, and Nico di Angelo will all be in disguise and we'll ask to shadow the Hunters of Artemis."

         "Are we disguising as girls?!"

          "Yes, it's kind of like Mulan, but reversed. Boys disguise themselves as girls to join Artemis's army."

          "Oh. How will we do that?"

          "You're the easiest to disguise. You have the longest hair out of all of us here, even though it's still boy's length, and you wear animal hide skirts. Artemis might favor you out of all the people in this quest."

          "I guess. Pants are nasty."

          "I disagree with your statement. Hunter and Nico di Angelo will have to do more advanced disguising than you, though."

          I smiled. "Good luck to them."

          I took a nap the rest of the flight. Hunter woke me up when we arrived. We ran out of the plane, then out of the airport. "We need to find a place to stay," Faith remarked. "We'll walk around for now, and stop if we find anywhere."

          We walked for hours, and hours, and hours, and hours. Finally, we stopped when Faith yelled, "Hey, that place looks fun!"

          She dashes inside. Nico di Angelo mutters, "I think I chicken out."

           Hunter says, "If you want to go back, we can."

          Those two chooks "shadow travel" away. I stand outside, looking at the moon, then read the glowing, neon sign. I wonder if Faith knew this was the Lotus Hotel and Casino.