Altered Destinies

Gods and Their Favors

Ch. 12

Annabeth and Katie watched in horror as a door slammed down blocking them off from their other two companions. Annabeth ran to the door trying to find a way to open it while Katie just sat there in shock as they were cut off from the two most skilled fighters on the quest leaving her with only Annabeth who, while smart, was not nearly as skilled a fighter as Percy and Zoe.

"Arghhh… damn it." Annabeth cursed angrily.

"What do we do now?" Katie asked.

Annabeth slumped against the door as her mind raced with different plans and ideas. After a minute she sighed, "We don't really have any other options than to go down the other tunnel and hope to meet up with them later."

Katie looked unsure for a moment before nodding her head. There was no use in worrying about something that obviously couldn't be changed.

Together, Annabeth and Katie turned down the right tunnel with no idea how they would find their way back to the two members of the quest that were supposed to lead them. The duo walked for several hours, the makeup of the tunnels switching from more modern, to Greek styled, then to Roman, as well as other eras of time.

"Have people been adding to the Labyrinth over all these centuries?" Katie asked.

Annabeth shook her head, "I don't think so. The original Labyrinth was underneath Crete. The only way it would be here in the United States is if it moved along with the gods, meaning everywhere the gods go, the Labyrinth follows. There is some kind of magic at work and I assume that when the Labyrinth moves, it grow and adopts the characteristics of where it's located."

Katie nodded slowly as she looked at her watch, "No that it really matters down here but it's almost 10p.m. Do you want to stop for the night and pick it back up in the morning?"

Annabeth paused before nodding slowly, "Yeah I guess now is as good a time as any."

Katie nodded as she set her backpack down and pulled out some cereal bars, "Sorry this is all I have for food. My mom doesn't put a lot of variety into her magical gifts. We'll never run out of food but I'm afraid the most variety we're going to get is different brands of cereal bars."

Annabeth shrugged, "It's better than going without. I figured Percy would just take care of our food; so thank the gods you had a backup plan."

Katie smiled and tossed her a bar, "Yeah but I like cereal as much as the next person but my mom is a little over the top. The only person who even comes close to her is Percy but maybe that's why she loves him so much."

Annabeth smiled at the mention of Percy, "I wish Percy was here."

Katie looked at Annabeth a little sadly, "You like him don't you?"

Annabeth's eyes widened before she sighed and shrugged, "What's not to like? He's brave, handsome, smart, powerful, and the most skilled fighter I've ever met. I mean he went toe to toe with Atlas for a while before he took to sky for Artemis so she could fight him."

Katie nodded, "You know he loves Zoe right?"

Annabeth's eyes flashed with anger, "They're only friends. She's too caught up in her old life as a hunter to even notice."

Katie sat down as she thought about what to say to Annabeth, "Maybe you're right but I think she has feelings for him too but won't admit it to herself."

Annabeth smiled, "I guess it will be her loss then won't it?

Katie looked at Annabeth a little strangely, "But why would you want to be with him if he's in love with Zoe?"