· 。ﾟ *. 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 THREE , ───── ❛assuming you're still sane❜
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𝙋𝙀𝙍𝘾𝙔
"IF I HAD my way," Dionysus said, "I would cause your molecules to erupt in flames. We'd sweep up the ashes and be done with a lot of trouble. But Chiron seems to feel this would be against my mission at this cursed camp: to keep you little brats safe from harm."
"Spontaneous combustion is a form of harm, Mr. D," Chiron put in.
"Nonsense," Dionysus said. "Boy wouldn't feel a thing. Nevertheless, I've agreed to restrain myself I'm thinking of turning you into a dolphin instead, sending you back to your father."
"Mr. D-" Chiron warned.
"Oh, all right," Dionysus relented. "There's one more option. But it's deadly foolishness."
Dionysus rose, and the invisible players' cards dropped to the table. "I'm off to Olympus for the emergency meeting. If the boy is still here when I get back, I'll turn him into an Atlantic bottlenose. Do you understand? And Perseus Jackson, if you're at all smart, you'll see that's a much more sensible choice than what Chiron feels you must do." Dionysus picked up a playing card, twisted it, and it became a plastic rectangle. A credit card? No. A security pass. He snapped his fingers.The air seemed to fold and bend around him. He became a hologram, then a wind, then he was gone, leaving only the smell of fresh-pressed grapes lingering behind.
Chiron smiled at Percy, but he looked tired and strained. "Sit, Percy, please. And Grover."
They did. Chiron laid his cards on the table, a winning hand he hadn't gotten to use. "Tell me, Percy," he said. "Are you ready to go on your quest?
"What?" said Percy
"Your quest, of course. Will you accept it?"
Percy glanced at Grover, who was crossing his fingers."Um, sir," he said, "you haven't told me what it is yet." Chiron grimaced.
"Well, that's the hard part, the details." Thunder rumbled across the valley. The storm clouds had now reached the edge of the beach. As far as Percy could see, the sky and the sea were boiling together.
"Poseidon and Zeus," Percy said. "They're fighting over something valuable ... something that was stolen, aren't they?"
Chiron and Grover exchanged looks. Chiron sat forward in his wheelchair. "How did you know that?" Percy's face felt hot. He wished he hadn't opened his big mouth. "The weather since Christmas has been weird, like the sea and the sky are fighting. Then I talked to Lyra, and she'd overheard something about a theft. And ... I've also been having these dreams."
