𝕋𝕙𝕖 𝔾𝕣𝕖𝕒𝕥 𝕎𝕒𝕣||HoO

𝐗𝐗𝐈𝐈

MAISIE CHEWED on a square of ambrosia as they rode up the mountain in a taxi. She hoped he would be able to take them all the way up to the top, but the cab made lurching, grinding sounds as it climbed the mountain road, and halfway up they found the ranger's station closed, a chain blocking the way.

"Far as I can go," the cabbie said. "You sure about this? Gonna be a long walk back," he gave Maisie a concerned look that clearly meant he didn't think she'd be able to make it back down the mountain, "and my car's acting funny. I can't wait for you."

"We're sure," Leo said, getting out of the car.

The rest of them got out of the car, and Maisie noticed the wheels were sinking into the road like it was made of quicksand. Not fast - just enough to make the driver think he had a transmission problem or something - but Maisie knew otherwise.

The road was hard-packed dirt, so there was no reason the ground would have been soft, but Maisie's shoes were already starting to sink into the ground, similar to when she had dreamed of Gaea. The goddess was messing with them.

Leo paid the driver, and then he sped off. Soon all they could see was his dust trail.

The view from the mountain was pretty amazing. The whole inland valley around Mound Diablo was a patchwork of towns - grids of tree-lined streets and nice middle-class suburbs, shops, and schools. 

"That's Concord," Jason said, pointing to the north. "Walnut Creek below us. To the south, Danville, past those hills. And that way..." he pointed west, where a ridge of golden hills held back a layer of  fog, like the rim of a bowl. "That's the Berkeley Hills. The East Bay. Past that, San Francisco."

"Jason?" Piper touched his arm. "You remember something? You've been here?"

"Yes...no," he gave her an anguished look. "It just seems important."

"That's Titan land," Coach Hedge nodded toward the west. "Bad place, Jason. Trust me, this is as close to 'Frisco as we want to get."

But Jason looked toward the foggy basin with such longing Maisie felt uneasy. Why did Jason seem so connected with that place - a place that was full of monsters and bad magic? There was definitely that didn't add up.

"Hey, guys," Leo said, snapping Maisie out of her thoughts. "Let's keep moving."

Maisie went to take a step, and found her shoes were almost completely submerged in dirt.

"Gaea is stronger here," Hedge grumbled. He took off his shoes, then handed the shoes to Leo. "Keep those for me, Valdez. They're nice."

Leo snorted, "Yes, sir, Coach. Would you like them polished?"

"That's varsity thinking, Valdez," Hedge nodded approvingly. "But first, we'd better hike up this mountain while we still can."

"How do we know where the giant is?" Piper asked.

Jason pointed toward the peak. Drifting across the summit was a plume of smoke. From a distance, Maisie had thought it was just a cloud, but it wasn't. Something was burning.

"Smoke equals fire," Jason said. "We'd better hurry."

Maisie wished she could say she was able to make her way up the mountain without help, but that was far from the truth. Piper and Jason switched off practically carrying her up the mountain. She wished that it could have been a bit cooler, but no. California had to be 70 degrees even in winter.

By the time they made it to the crest of the mountain, they were all sweating and dirty. Maisie looked like she was about to pass out. Dark circles had deepened under her eyes and stood out against her very pale skin. Piper handed Maisie a small square of nectar, and the daughter of Apollo gratefully took it. It didn't do much.

Jason crouched behind a wall of rock. He gestured for the others to do the same. Maisie practically collapsed next to him. Piper had to pull Coach Hedge down.

"I don't want my outfit dirty!" Hedge complained.

"Shhh!" Piper said.

Reluctantly, the satyr knelt.

Just over the ridge where they were hiding, in the shadow of the mountain's final crest, was a forested depression about the size of a football field, where the giant Enceladus had set up camp.

Trees had been cut down to make a towering purple bonfire. The outer rim of the clearing was littered with extra logs and construction equipment. Why a giant needed construction equipment, Maisie didn't know. She didn't see how it could fit in any of them. 

The giant Enceladus was so large, so horrible, Maisie wanted to look away. He was thirty feet tall - easily as tall as the treetops. If he turned around he would have spotted them, but he seemed intent on the purple bonfire, circling it and chanting under his breath. From the waist up, the giant appeared humanoid, his muscular chest clad in bronze armor, decorated with flame designs. His arms were completely ripped. His skin was bronze but sooty with ash. His face was crudely shaped, like a half-finished sculpture, but his eyes glowed white, and his hair was matted in shaggy dreadlocks down to his shoulders, braided with bones.

From the waist down, he was even more terrifying. His legs were scaly green, with claws instead of feet - like the forelegs of a dragon. In his hand, Enceladus held a spear the size of a flagpole. Every so often he dipped its tip in the fire, turning the metal molten red.

"Okay," Coach Hedge whispered. "Here's the plan-"

Leo elbowed him, "You're not charging him alone!"

"Aw, c'mon."

Piper choked back a sob, "Look."

Just visible on the other side of the bonfire was a man tied to a post. His head slumped like he was unconscious, so Maisie couldn't see his face, but she didn't know who else it would be.

"Dad," Piper said.

Maisie felt dizzy, and crouched back behind the ledge. She leaned her head against the rock. She hated dying. She was supposed to be the experienced demigod on this quest, but she was barely any help compared to everyone else.

"There's four of us," Hedge whispered urgently. "And only one of him."

"Five," Maisie corrected. She clenched jaw to keep from crying out in pain as her side began to scream in pain.

"Uh, yeah, five," Hedge gave Maisie a concerned look.

"Did you miss the fact that he's thirty feet tall?" Leo asked. 

"Okay," Hedge said. "So you, me, and Jason distract him. Piper sneaks around and frees her dad."

"What about me?" Maisie spoke up.

"Uhm, you'll stay here and shoot him with your bow if he gets too close to noticing Piper."

Maisie didn't point out how she couldn't shoot her bow without reopening her wound. She just was glad to help.

Everyone turned to Jason.

"What?" he asked. "I'm not the leader."

"Yes," Piper said. "You are."

They hadn't really discussed it, but no one disagreed, not even Hedge. Jason was a natural leader, so he was the natural choice.

"I hate to say it," Jason sighed, "but Coach Hedge is right. A distraction is Piper's best chance."

Not a good chance. Not even a survivable chance. Just their best chance.

Maisie wanted to come up with a better plan, but they couldn't sit there all day and talk about it. It had to be close to a noon, plus Maisie had already sunk two inches into the dirt.

"Let's boogie," Leo spoke up, his gaze on the construction equipment like he had an idea. "Before I come to my senses."