The Prince of the Pit: Lightning Thief

Chapter 6: The Arch

I woke up in the same position I fell asleep. Annabeth made a fire, and was eating some snacks. Grover was petting a pink poodle. "Morning," I said, and stretched my stiff body.

I scooted over to the fire, warming up. Annabeth nodded in acknowledgment. The poodle growled at me. "Yeah, I know," Grover told it. I grabbed a bag of chips, and started eating. I tipped a nonexistent hat to the dog.

"We found a way west," Annabeth said. I gave her a look to continue. "There's an Amtrak station," Annabeth answered, nodding her head to some tracks. "I got some money, but I doubt I have enough for 3 going west," I said.

"That's where Gladiola comes in," Grover answered. "He ran away from home, and his owners are offering a cash reward for his return." I nearly choked on my food. "Him?!" I nearly shouted.

I looked at the dog in sympathy. "And he's fine with returning to his home?" I asked. "As a favor, yes," Grover replied.

"Well, its best we get going. We have until the Solstice," I said. And off we went. Although, we only had enough money to Denver.

Time Skip:

The St. Louis Arch was giant. Annabeth kept sprouting facts, but I zoned out. We had a hour layover, until we moved to Denver, and Annabeth wanted to see the top.

We couldn't let her go alone, so we were stuck in a tight elevator, with a 3 person family, a park ranger, us, and a woman with her talkative chihuahua.

"No parents?" She asked. "Acrophobia, let us go," I answered. She nodded in understanding. As we were checking out the top, Annabeth yapped as much as the dog.

When it was time to go, I was left up with the Ranger, and the Chihuahua Woman. The dog kept yapping at me, and started foaming at the mouth.

"Not now, sonny," the woman chided. He growled, much louder than I expected. The woman sighed. "If you insist." She rolled up her sleeves to reveal scales.

The Chihuahua grew into a Lion, with the front half of a goat protruding from the neck, and a Python for a tail. "I get the pleasure of meeting Echidna and her Chimera? I feel so lucky," I said sarcastically.

"You should, Perseus Jackson. Zeus has never let us after a Demigod as powerful as you," Echidna said, sliding up to the Chimera.

"You might want to know something, The Minotaur ran away, once he got close," I said. Echidna made a confused look. "I have a hidden scent, concealed by Poseidon's," I added.

The Chimera stepped forward, and placed its nose on my head. When it took in a whiff, I physically moved. The beast yelped, and ran behind Echidna, like a frightened kitten.

"Nothing in the known universe could cause my son to run like that. Who are you?" Echidna asked, fear slightly evident in her tone. "I wish I knew," I answered. She spun on me, as I immediately lobbed her head off with Riptide.

She faded into dust. The Chimera ran into a corner of the viewing platform. "Leave," I ordered it, glaring. It shivered, and took off. I don't know where, or how it left, but it disappeared in a shadow.

I walked over to the ranger, and just pressed the button once. After a few minutes, the elevator arrived, and we started the slow descent. "That was a crazy ordeal, wasn't it?" I stated, chuckling dryly. The ranger just stared at me like I was insane.

As we left, the ranger ran away, and I went looking for my quest mates. "Ready to go?" Annabeth asked. "Yep, I'm ready to go," I answered. We got back to the tram just as it was departing.

Time Skip:

We walked into a diner, and took a booth. We were grimy, and dirty, but who cares. So long as we had money, we could eat. A waitress walked over, staring suspiciously at us as we ordered.

"Right, do you have money?" She asked. A biker, who sat behind me, leaned over. "They're with me. I'll pay," he said. He had a black leather jacket, and black shades. He had a buff body, and scars along him.

"What do you want?" I asked. "I'm offering a side quest, Demigods. Retrieve my shield, and I'll get you a ride west," he said. I sighed. The Request of a God. Perfect. "Thank you, Ares. We'd be happy to...help," I answered through clenched teeth.

He grinned and disappeared in the next second. Annabeth and Grover started getting up to leave. "What are you doing? Eat first, then we do it," I said. They shrugged and sat back down.

We got our food, and a filled out check appeared as we left. True to his word, eh, I thought. We walked for a bit, letting fate guide us. We arrived at a rundown, abandoned 'WATERLAND' water park.

I grabbed the gate, and shook it. The chains locking it up just jiggled. "Great. Who wants to do help us get in?" I asked. I turned, and they were starring at me weirdly. No, not me, my hands. I looked down, but they looked normal and fine.

I turned back to the gate, and where I held the bars were melted metal. "I think you found an ability," Grover sarcastically said. "Really? I wonder what it could be?" I answered, just as sarcastic.

I grabbed the lock, and imagined my hands heating up. I didn't feel a thing, not like my Ocean abilities. Then, steam seeped out from my hands, and the lock melted into my hand like play-do.

I moved the chain away, and opened the gate. "Spread out, shout if you find something," I ordered. Grover went left, Annabeth went right, and I went down center.

We met back up at a large pool, called Tunnel of Love. A small boat laid at the bottom, with a bronze shield and a pink scarf in it. "What caused Ares to leave behind his shield? Or cause Aphrodite to leave behind her scarf?" I asked.

"Something scared them away?" Grover asked, trembling. There were 8 large Cupid statues, aiming bows for the entrance. I stared at the eyes, and a glint of light caught my eye. Bronze?

"I think, this was a trap. Who ruins the dates of Ares and Aphrodite? A lot?" I asked. They thought about it, and Annabeth answered in a second. "Hephaestus." "Correct. This is a trap set by Hephaestus. Meaning there has to be a trigger point. Fan out for it," I said. Grover went for the statues, and Annabeth went for the boat. I went for the view obstructed control room.

"I found the Symbol Eta here!" Grover called, pointing on a statue's base. I nodded, and started checking the panel. While I worked, I made sure that the Water was turned on, just in case.

I didn't find anything, so I went back out. Annabeth would have some trouble getting out, especially with the prize. Despite the embarrassment of going into the Tunnel of Love ride, I went down. "Need some help?" I asked.

She nodded, and we hauled up the shield, triggering the trap. The Cupid statues turned, and fired at each other, creating a net. Some mechanical spiders then crawled out, coming for us. I knew what was coming, and covered my ears in time.

Annabeth shrieked, and scrambled away from the robots. I sighed, and reached out my senses. The pipes started groaning, and water shot out. I pulled Annabeth into the boat, taking a seat myself, as we were propelled into the tunnel.