Apollo Makes an Entrance
"You're late. I need you to do me a favor and take my Hunters… and maybe the campers as well to Chiron's camp," Artemis said, clenching her teeth, clearly annoyed she had to ask her brother for anything.
"For my little sister, anything," Apollo said right away, flashing an excited smile.
Artemis rolled her eyes, clearly not in the mood to argue about who was born first right now, especially since she seemed in a hurry.
Meanwhile, Percy stopped paying attention to the two gods and was already getting ready to continue his journey.
"Percy… is it all over? The danger, I mean," a familiar voice said.
His mother, Sally, approached carefully, looking at the soldiers lying around.
She had stayed somewhere safe because Percy's friends insisted… but it looked like she couldn't hold back any longer after everything suddenly went quiet… and the Mist Percy had summoned had faded.
Before Percy could even say anything to her, the god of the sun, who had been speaking quietly with his sister moments ago, listening to what she asked of him, suddenly appeared right next to her… without anyone noticing.
Now he was kneeling on one knee, one hand extended toward Sally… in a pose that could've come straight out of some dramatic opera. Even his appearance seemed to age a few years, becoming more mature.
"Oh… sublime beauty of oak-toned skin, your charm shines like a thousand suns in the cold darkness of a thousand sorrows. The sweetness of your sighs is the storm within my heart. Might this humble knight be granted the honor of knowing your magnificent name?" Apollo said, using words that felt straight out of the Arthurian age. He even gave a soft smile and shook his head slightly so his hair would move with the wind… a wind that hadn't existed a moment ago, but conveniently appeared just to push his bangs aside.
Sally stood still for a moment, looking at the handsome young man in front of her. Any woman would have been instantly charmed by that kind of beauty. Even a couple of young spear-wielding girls on Percy's side were staring at Apollo… and some of the Hunters too, until Artemis shot them a sharp look that snapped them out of it.
But Apollo had just run into a real opponent.
"Sally Jackson… and I'm sorry, I'm not interested," Sally said with a polite smile, pulling her hand back after Apollo had taken it, then continuing on toward Percy and the others.
Percy looked at his mother for a moment… then at the shameless god.
And even he couldn't hold back the faint amusement inside.
After all, his mom had already had a child with a god… one who, by the way, abandoned her… and now Percy constantly ended up clashing with other divine beings because of everything surrounding him.
So that divine charm that could easily sway anyone… Sally had gotten used to it a long time ago.
"Ahem…," Apollo said, clearing his throat. "So… what did you think of my Victorian poetry? It really touches the heart, right? I hope everyone enjoyed it," he said like nothing had happened. More like he had just been reciting for fun.
Artemis, for a moment, pressed a hand to her forehead.
"Could you just do what I asked? I don't have much time to waste," she said, clearly irritated.
"Of course, of course," Apollo replied quickly, heading back toward the car… though not before glancing at the group.
For a moment, his eyes lingered on Percy… for several seconds. Then, just briefly, his gaze shifted slightly above Percy's head. A movement that wouldn't have meant anything to anyone else… but to Percy, it felt very familiar.
Apollo gave a faint smile and looked back at him, giving him a quick wink… like he had just read his thoughts.
"You still have a long way to go before you can control that power properly… but sometimes seeing the future isn't very fun when you already know what's coming… right?" a voice echoed in Percy's head, unmistakably Apollo's… even though he hadn't opened his mouth.
Percy didn't react, as Apollo turned back toward Artemis once again.
"Well… everyone should get on this thing. It only travels one way… west. If you miss it, you're stuck here. So… who's getting on?" he asked, as the Maserati suddenly turned into a school bus with a snap of Apollo's fingers. At the same time, his gaze moved over the Hunters, the demigods… even Sally, with an easy smile.
The Hunters, at Artemis's insistence, didn't say much and climbed on right away. Bianca helped Nico up, but before she got on, Thalia stopped her for a moment and seemed to say something. Clarisse, right behind Bianca, paused as well, listening in and joining the conversation.
Percy didn't move, so Grover and Malcolm stayed with him, while Sally looked at the bus with interest for a moment… then at the two gods, who seemed to be talking… or rather, Artemis looked like she was warning Apollo to be careful with her Hunters, or better yet, not even speak to them, since she didn't want another incident between a god and one of her Hunters.
Apollo just raised his hands innocently, saying he would be careful not to even look at them… all while keeping that calm smile, which didn't exactly reassure Artemis.
"Well, time's up," he said, cutting off his sister's lecture as he walked toward the bus door, but stopped when he saw that Thalia, Clarisse, and Bianca weren't getting on. "And you three? What are you doing?" he asked, already guessing Percy's group wouldn't be boarding, since they hadn't even stepped closer.
"Thank you, Lord Apollo, but I have a trial to complete. And they agreed to come with me," Thalia said, respectful, but still keeping some distance from the god.
Apollo paused for a moment with a faint smile… one that almost cracked for an instant, before his gaze shifted automatically above their heads. Then he turned almost immediately toward Percy, his expression turning into something that could only be described as amused curiosity.
"Again…," Apollo muttered to himself. "At this rate, I'll lose my job as the god of prophecy," he added, though he seemed even more interested in that future he couldn't see, before waving casually at Percy and the others.
"Nico, behave. I'll be back soon," Bianca said through one of the bus windows, where Nico had leaned out after realizing his sister wasn't coming with them. He didn't look very happy.
"Don't worry. I'll go meet up with the mister. If I follow him, I'll definitely find him," Bianca said, pointing at Percy for a moment, which earned her a completely confused look from him.
Nico, hearing that, seemed a little less upset… even slightly excited, though still not happy about being separated from her.
"Okay, sis. I'll be good and wait for you. But make sure you bring the mister. I'll show him what I learned," Nico said quickly, hugging his magical book tightly to his chest.
Bianca gave her brother a small smile… then turned to Percy with a serious expression.
Percy had no idea what Thalia had told her, but now her team seemed to be her, Bianca, and Clarisse… against Percy's team, which was him, Grover, and Malcolm.
And the mission was still the same… maybe with a few small changes.
Find the Ophiotaurus before Luke.
And the change was… capture Luke and force him to say where Annabeth was.
Though whether both allied teams were on the same page about that last part… was something they'd have to see.