DETECTIVE FILES. File 1 (Published under PSICOM)

CHAPTER 25: CAMP OLYMPUS (Pandora)

Chapter 25: Camp Olympus (Pandora)

Madilim na nang nakolekta ng ibang section ang lahat ng mga stickers. Tuwang-tuwa ang section A nang in-announce na kami ang nanalo.

"Hey, how did you decode the hint in your stickers?", tanong ni Gray sa akin.

"Ah, iyon? It's simple. The first hint was Golden Apple and we can associate that with Aphrodite. Remember the myth about the judgment of Paris? That's my basis. Nakita ko ang sticker sa taas ng puno."

"What? Umakyat ka ng puno?", he asked in amusement. Nakangiting tumango lang ako sa kanya. "They're out of their minds! Why put the sticker up on the tree?"

"Kaya nga kailangan daw ng strength and intellect."

He just smirked. He's not into climbing trees, eh? "Oh tapos?"

"Then the next hint I've got is a mathematical formula. I can still remember it. It goes like
a² - b² - (a+b)×2 a is an even number, b is an odd number while (a+b)×2 is an even number, where the sum of (a+b) is the same number it was when "a" has a longer tail and b is rotated 180° clockwise. Base sa clue na binigay, the a written in italicized letter and extend its tail looks like a number 9. Gayundin ang b, if rotated, it looks like 9. At first I thought I would use the Pythagorean theorem pero hindi pala. Hindi naman kailangan ng striktong paggamit sa mga math principles. I divided 9 into 2 numbers in which one is even and the other is odd. I come up with 4 and 5. If we square 4, we will get 16. And 5² is 25. (a+b)×2 is (4+5)×2 and we will get 18. So the numbers will be 16-25-18. If we substitute it with the alphabet, 16 is P", nagbilang si Gray sa alpabeth gamit ang kamay niya.

"Ah, now I got it. 16 is P, then 25 is Y and 18 is R, so you've got the word PYR, which is the Greek word for fire. And since kasama sa 12 Olympians ang god of fire na si Hephaestus, you think you've got the right deduction", wika niya at nakangiting tumango ako.

"Exactly! So I went to the place where palaging may apoy, sa may compost pit right? They always burn the garbages there and since it was surrounded by metal, I figured out na tama talaga ako since Hephaestus is the god of fire and metalworkings", I said at napatango ito.

"And what's the next hint you've got?"

"The next hint was no challenge at all, just a picture of lightbulb and a tooth."

"It's Athena then", he said.

"Yeah, and I found the sticker on Athena High student's tent", wika ko.

"And the other?"

I smiled widely. "Another piece of cake! It was date. March 19-April 21."

"Then it's Ares. That's the first zodiac right? Aries which pronounced the same as Ares, the god of war. Wait, since the zodiac Aries is symbolized by the ram, don't tell me the next hinted place ay sa pastolan ng mga kambing?"

Lumawak ang ngiti ko. "Bingo!" He just made a face. "The next hint was just a letter C but the way towards there has many trap. Nabitin pa nga ako ng patiwarik."

Nagulat ito at hinarap ako. "What? Patiwarik? How did you manage to save yourself?"

"There was another rope so I grabbed it at hinila ang sarili ko paakyat upang makaupo sa sanga", paliwanag ko.

"I can't imagine. If the hint is C, then it must be Poseidon, the god of the sea. Don't tell me the next sticker is on the shore?", nakataas ang isang kilay niya.

"You got it right", wika ko at nalukot ang mukha nito.

"So lame. Mukhang naubosan na sila ng magandang ideya. But the shore is far", wika nito. Yeah he's right. Malayo nga ang baybayin. "So, the next one?"