Sunburn- phoebus apollo

--xii. they have a dam problem

A/N: sorry for the lack of updates. I had like zero motivation. :(

"HOOVER DAM," Thalia said. "It's huge."

They stood at the edge of a river, looking up at a curve of concrete that loomed between the cliffs. People were walking along the top of it, and they looked so tiny they resembled fleas.

The naiads that Rhea and Percy had spoken to had let with a lot of grumbling--not in words they could understand, but it was obvious they hated this dam blocking up their nice river. The canoes that had taken them here floated back downstream, swirling in the wake from the dam's discharge vents.

"Seven hundred feet tall," Rhea said. "Built in the 1930s."

"Five million cubic acres of water," Thalia added.

Graver sighed. "Largest construction project in the United States."

Zoe stared at them like they all grew six heads. "How do you know all that?"

"Annabeth," Percy said. "She liked architecture."

"She was nuts about monuments," Thalia said.

"Spouted facts all the time." Grover sniffled. "So annoying."

"I wish she were here," Rhea said.

The others nodded. Zoe was still looking at them strangely, but Rhea didn't care. It seemed like cruel fate that they had come to Hoover Dam, one of Annabeth's personal favorites, and she wasn't here to see it.

"We should go up there," Percy suggested. "For her sake. Just to say we've been."

"You are mad," Zoe decided. "But that's where the road is." She pointed to a huge parking garage next to the top of the dam. "And so, sightseeing it is."

They had to walk for almost an hour before they found a path that led up to the road. It came up on the east side of the river. Then they straggled back toward the dam. It was cold and windy on top. On one side, a big lake spread out, ringed by barren desert mountains. On the other side, the dam dropped away like the world's most dangerous skateboard ramp, down to the river seven hundred feet below, and water that churned from the dam's vents.

Thalia walked in the middle of the road, far away from the edges. Grover kept sniffing the wind and looking nervous. He didn't say anything, but Rhea knew he smelled monsters.

"How close are they?" Percy asked him, like he had the same trail of thought she did.

He shook his head. "Maybe not close. The wind on the dam, the desert all around us...the scent can probably carry for miles. But it's coming from several directions. I don't like that."

Rhea didn't either. It was already Wednesday, only two days until winter solstice, and they still had a long way to go. They didn't need any more monsters.

"There's a snack bar in the visitor center," Thalia said.

"You've been here before?" Percy asked.

"Once. To see the guardians." Thaila  pointed to the far end of the dam. Carved into the side of the cliff was a little plaza with two big bronze statues. They looked kind of like Oscar statues with wings.

"They were dedicated to Zeus when the dam was built," Thalia said. "A gift from Athena."

Tourists were clustered all around them. They seemed to be looking at the statues' feet.

"What the hell are they doing?" Rhea asked in bewilderment.

"Rubbing the toes," Thalia said. "They think it's good luck."