The Shadow Summoner | Book Three - PJO Universe

fifteen

DONT LET APOLLO DRIVE

They emerged from the shipping container just in time to get dive-bombed. A raven swooped past Reyna and bit a chunk out of her hair.

"OW!" she yelled. "All right, that's it. Hold this."

She shoved the glass jar into Apollo's hands, then readied her sword. A second raven came within range and she slashed it out of the sky.

Meg's twin blades whirled, Vitamixing another bird into a black cloud. That left only thirty or forty more bloodthirsty hang gliders of doom swarming the tower.

Anger swelled in Ariana. She decided she was done with the ravens' bitterness. Her shadows surrounded her, and she allowed them to attack.

Apollo secured the glass jar in hand his backpack. Then he unslung the bow from his shoulder.

"Scram or die!" He yelled at the birds. "You get one warning!"

The ravens cawed and croaked with derision. One dove at Apollo and got an arrow between the eyes. It spiraled downward, shedding a funnel cloud of feathers.

He picked another target and shot it down. Then a third. And a fourth. The ravens' caws became cries of alarm.

They widened their circle, probably thinking they could get out of range. Apollo proved them wrong. He kept shooting until ten were dead. Then a dozen.

"I brought extra arrows today!" Apollo shouted. "Who wants the next one?"

At last, the birds got the message. With a few parting screeches-probably unprintable comments about his parentage-they broke off their assault and flew north toward Marin County.

"Nice work," Meg told him, retracting her blades.

Ariana allowed her shadows to disappear. "I'm surprised at you, Sunshine."

The best Apollo could manage was a nod and some wheezing. Beads of sweat froze on his forehead.

"Oh, gods." Reyna stared in the direction the flock had gone, her fingers absently exploring her scalp where the raven had snapped off a hunk of her hair.

"It'll grow back," Apollo said.

Ariana cringed at the sight. "I can hit you up with my hair dresser. She's remarkable."

"What? No, not my hair. Look!"

She pointed to the Golden Gate Bridge. They must have been inside the shipping container much longer than they'd realized.

The sun sat low in the western sky. The daytime full moon had risen above Mount Tamalpais. The afternoon heat had burned away all the fog, giving us a perfect view of the white fleet-fifty beautiful yachts in V formation- gliding leisurely past Point Bonita Lighthouse at the edge of the Marin Headlands, making their way toward the bridge.

Once past it, they would have smooth sailing into the San Francisco Bay.

Ariana's mouth tasted like god dust. "How long do we have?"

Reyna checked her watch. "The vappae are taking their time, but even at the rate they're sailing, they'll be in position to fire on the camp by sunset. Maybe two hours?"

"How long will it take for us to reach camp?" Apollo asked.

"In Friday afternoon traffic?" Reyna calculated. "A little more than two hours. Ariana, can you shadow travel us?"

Shaking her head, Ariana felt ultimately helpless. "After turning into a shadow dragon? I'm surprised I could even summon shadows just then."

From one of her gardening-belt pouches, Meg pulled a fistful of seeds. "I guess we'd better hurry, then."