The Sea's Serpent

The Commander

AN: WOOOOHOOOOO!!!

Time: The Titan's Curse

The Erymanthian Boar had just dropped them off in Arizona.

Bianca looked at Zöe. The quest consisted of her, Zöe, Annabeth, Thalia, and that....arrogant boy, who had sneaked out of Camp to come to join them. To say Zöe had been angry and disgusted was seriously understating it. It was only after Zöe had held him in a choke-hold, and he had passed out, did he stop making advances at the girls.

Bianca stood beside Zöe as she surveyed the area. To the side, Thalia sat on a rock, sharpening her spear on a whetting stone she had found out of nowhere. Annabeth was trying to awaken the unconscious son of Poseidon. The satyr, Grover, had joined them for a while, but had broken off again when he sensed Pan.

Zöe gave the binoculars to Bianca. "We proceed forward." She said, keeping it short.

By that time, Theseus had awoken. Thalia had left the whetting stone behind as she trudged beside Zöe and Bianca at the head of the group, making small talk with the two. Behind them, Theseus and Annabeth were walking slowly, and all the while, the daughter of Apollo was scolding the son of Poseidon.

The place was a barren desert. Nothing but dust and sand for miles around. In such a situation, visibility was low. Strong winds buffeted the questers as they continued their trek. Zöe had wrapped her parka around her head to form a makeshift veil to keep the dust out, and Bianca had followed suit. There was not a tree nor a bush in sight. All they had was some dry, brown leaves on the ground from some underground plants or miss of some kind.

"So...." Thalia broke the silence. "Who is this Perseus guy? Your Lady Artemis seems to fear him." From behind them, Annabeth shouted at Theseus, though her voice was muffled by the wind.

Zöe didn't respond for some time. "He's...the Commander." She replied vaguely, making Thalia raise her eyebrow. She looked at Bianca pleadingly, hoping that the Hunt's lieutenant would listen to a fellow Hunter.

Bianca took the hint, and said, "Come on, Zöe, please say something. He even gave me this." She lifted the locket which she had kept close to her heart.

Zöe glanced at her out of the corner of her eye. "If he gave you that, you better watch out. It'll save your life." She said, making the two frustrated.

"Just who is he?!" Thalia shouted at her, frustrated. "Even some of the Hunters didn't seem to know him!" She argued.

Zöe remained silent. She stopped suddenly, making her two companions stop and look at her weirdly. The lieutenant pointed at a pillar, and said. "From here, starts the Junkyard of the Gods." She read out the inscription on the pillar. "Be careful, and don't take anything." She warned her fellow questers.

"Let's wait for Annabeth and Theseus before we proceed forward," Thalia suggested, and sat down on a rock. She hummed slightly, tapping her foot with the rhythm. Bianca sat down on the ground, and drew her knees to her chest, looking around. Zöe leant against the pillar, drawing out her hunting knife, and examining it.

Finally, Zöe spoke. "Perseus...." Everyone fell silent at the word. "Almost nobody nowadays knows of him. Who led Olympus to victory in the Gigantomachy?" She asked Thalia.

Thalia looked stunned for a moment. "Ares." She replied after a bit.

Zöe chuckled. "Perseus commanded the Olympian armies to victory. I was there. I was the one to finally kill Gaea." She said, making the others' eyes widen.