LoSP Ch.64: Setting the Board

PERCY POV

"Hey, Percy," A bleat cut through the silent pavilion, and I turned to see Grover running toward me, pebbles scattering under his hooves. "Wait up!"

"What's up?" I asked as he skidded to a halt next to me, sending gravel bouncing across my shoes. "Did the nature spirits tell you something new?"

"The Nymphs and other Satyrs?" Grover frowned and shook his head. "Oh, no. I already told you about what they reported to me before the meeting. No new developments on that front, sorry. But I have no new reports, which means they're still there and haven't moved, which is good news. Even if they did, though, we would know."

"That's good." I hummed. "So, what's the matter? You look worried. Is the quest bothering you? I mean, I know we might be walking into a trap, but I will protect all of us as much as I can. I will figure a way out."

"I know. And yes, it does scare me, but not as much as it should." He said, and I raised an eyebrow at him. "We've done crazy things before, and this is just another crazy quest, nothing more. Heck, we're still on Earth, with proper land and trees, instead of going to crazy places as we did before."

I smiled. "We're still fighting gods and Titans to the death."

Grover shrugged. "We've faced them before, with fewer members than we have now. And again, our quests before this were about going into enemy territory. The Underworld, the Sea of Monsters, Mount Othrys, which is the literal stronghold of Titans, where we fought the General of Titans himself. And let's not forget the Labyrinth, where the rest of us went only months before this. Comparably, this is a cakewalk. We're planning things out properly and taking down Titans one or two at a time instead of facing whatever fate tosses at us."

"That… is true." I blew out a small chuckle, grinning at him. "We've done some pretty crazy stuff, haven't we, G-man?"

"We have," Grover's mirth faded a little. "But that's not what I'm here to talk about. I'm here to talk about… well, you."

"What about me?" I gestured to him to walk alongside me as I made my way toward my cabin, walking past the few campers who were playing volleyball.

"Well," Grover hesitated, looking around to see if he was out of people's earshot. "I have been… noticing things. About you and… I am scared for you."

"Scared, why?"

"Um, you see, we Satyrs can feel other people's emotions, despite how well guarded they are," Grover mumbled. "Some can even sense outright lies from the power."

"I see. What are you getting at, Grover?"

Grover grasped my arm, and we stopped, his brown eyes boring into me. "Percy... I've noticed that your feelings go haywire whenever we mention Artemis." I felt my heart drop, my body stiffening. Grover noticed, and his eyes narrowed. "Percy, whenever someone, including you, brings Artemis up, I get the same feeling as I got when I was in Aphrodite's presence. The same feeling I get whenever I see Silena and Charles. The same feeling I got with your mom and Paul." His voice dropped. "Percy, you cannot fall in love with Artemis."

"I can't?"

"Percy, she's a Maiden Goddess. She is the Maiden Goddess!" Grover burst out, before looking around furtively. "I get why you think she's awesome and all, but for the sake of Olympus, you cannot fall for her. If she knows, gods knows what she'll do with you! She has killed men for merely laying eyes on her huntresses. Percy, if you lust after her and she gets the wind of it… She'll turn you into some critter and have her wolves hunt you down."

"She won't," I told him.

"Percy, she will not challenge you to a fight, but straight up curse you, turning you into something before you even know it." Grover stressed. "She's the goddess of the hunt and not a warrior goddess. She'll never fight fair if it comes down to it. Heck, she's so much like you in that regard, but with four thousand years of experience." He grabbed my shoulder. "Percy, please. After all you have done, do you really want to lose your life for a stupid crush?"

I felt a slight irritation bubble in my chest. "Grover, it is not a stupid crush. Artemis and I—"

"Are friends, yes, sure. I know." He waved me off. "But there's no saying what she'll have to do if she knows that you're lusting after her. She might've to protect her honor and… that is not a fight that you will win completely. She's an Olympian, and she is the huntress. Friendship with her will not be enough! She'll hunt you for eternity if she wishes to."

"But she doesn't!" I barked before sighing, smothering the urge to just squash the conversation. "Grover, listen to me. What I am going to tell you… I haven't told anyone else. You're right, in saying that I have feelings for Artemis. Very strong feelings, and… yes, I have had a slight crush on her since I first saw her. Or at least, pretty heavy admiration."

"And that's dangerous. Mortals, especially demigods, aren't meant to fall in love with gods, Percy. Heck, I've never heard of a demigod having a relationship with a god. Mortals, yes. But those relationships usually end in a demigod and a broken heart." He muttered, meeting my eyes with his worried brown ones. "Percy, any attraction to gods, especially Artemis, isn't going to end well."

"Well, I disagree," I said. "Artemis and I… well, there's no roundabout way to put this, so, here it is. Artemis and I are a thing." At Grover's blank, uncomprehending look, I sighed. "We're dating, Grover. For the past three months, almost, as it so happens. It'll be three months this weekend."

"…What? When… When did this even happen?" Grover stammered. "How did this happen?"

"It happened on my birthday. Well, technically, a little after my birthday, officially," I said. "We started going out after and have been dating ever since. Only Apollo knows. And probably Aphrodite, cause it is kind of her department to know, but I cannot be one-hundred percent sure."

"Wait, so you've been with Artemis since we started training for this quest?" Grover blinked.

"Yes."

"And… after the fight with Perses. Did… was she… was she in your room?"

"She did come to see me," I said quickly, deciding not to mention her spending the night with me, even if it was just plain sleeping and nothing more. "Nothing happened between us... Well, except for a little kissing. But that's it."

"Right." Grover took a deep breath. "Well, I had come to warn you, but this was not how I saw it going." He gave me a little grin. "Congrats, buddy. You're a lucky bloke. Damn lucky at that."

"I know." I smiled, feeling the ghost of Artemis' lips against mine, her sparkling silver eyes flashing in my mind. "I know."

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The afternoon sun shimmered across the vast lake, the water sparkling as I stared across its length, squinting at the faint figures that moved on the other side.

"I can't see anything," Nico complained, craning his neck. "It is just water."

Grover shook his head uneasily. "I can smell a lot of monsters in the distance. A lot of monsters. It is worse than the Labyrinth. And I can make out the camps." He sniffed the air. "And a Titan, probably. Or a god. They smell of… they smell like cloud nymphs do, but a lot more powerful."

"Cloud nymphs? Seriously?" Bianca scoffed, turning to Thalia. "Cloud nymphs are a thing?"

"Yes. They're real airheads, and no, don't ask." Thalia said briskly. "Percy, I could fly up and closer to get a better look. Annabeth could lend me her cap…"

"The monsters would smell you if you got too near." Grover chewed on a blade of grass that he plucked. "Heck, I'd be surprised that they haven't sensed us already. Here we have four children of the Big Three and two children of the more powerful Olympians. We should usually go about alerting every monster within a hundred miles of our position. How have we not been ambushed?"

"A mist trick Artemis taught us," Thalia said, and I smothered a smile as butterflies fluttered in my stomach. "We call it shrouding, and we use it every day so monsters don't sense us, even if we are like ten feet away. We taught Clarisse, and Bianca does it for Nico. It isn't that hard once you learn it."

"What about—" Grover turned to me. "Never mind. Of course, she taught you too."

"And more. Zoe says that Artemis hasn't taught anyone as much in ages as she has taught Percy, once you consider that he cannot shoot an arrow straight." Thalia snorted. "Which is weird as fuck to be honest."

"Not as weird, all things considered," Grover murmured. "She has an unbelievably good reason to teach him, after all."

"She's talking about the fact that I cannot shoot an arrow straight," I said, giving Grover a brief glare.

"Oh, archery. That's what's weird. I thought she was talking about— you know— the other thing being true and Artemis teaching you because of that." Grover looked around, stumbling over his words as he wilted under my glare. "But wait. If she is— you know— why can't you still shoot an arrow straight? I thought she would've helped considering… well, the thing."

"What thing?" Thalia demanded, looking between us.

"That she has been teaching me all sorts of unique things, including stuff she doesn't teach you guys," I said. "Godly, divine magic. Kind of things that only gods can usually do. She theorized that I can only do it too because I have a lot of power. She was right in some measure. I could do the basic things, but failed at the complicated stuff."

"Oh. And she could teach you the power of gods, but not basic archery." Thalia sighed. "You really are a kelp head."

"She believes I'm cursed but cannot divine more about it." I shrugged, turning as I heard my car's door open. "What have you got, Clarisse?"

Clarisse hefted her hoplon as she stepped out, its bronze glint shining across the gravel below

"The car says there are about seven hundred monsters in the camp and two Titans. It recognized one as well, the female whom we anticipated." Clarisse gave us an imploring look, and we all nodded. "So, more or less what we had anticipated. A problem is that there is a monster in the water too, on their side of the shore. Your car identified it as a 'probable' species of ancient sea serpent."

I frowned. "This is a freshwater lake. A big lake, but still, freshwater. Sea serpents don't go into fresh water unless they have no other choice. And those things are hard to leave with no other choice."

"I think not liking your water unsalted is going to cut it with the Titans." Clarisse snorted. "The serpent's placed in a strategic position to specifically prevent or slow down an attack from the waterfront, which would be the easiest place to mount an offensive for this camp. A naval offensive, something which you, son of Poseidon, would be great at."

"That surprisingly made a lot of sense," Nico muttered. "But we don't have a boat."

"We don't need one. I'll handle the sea serpent." I rolled my eyes at him. "But we'll need a proper plan and timing if we want to take advantage of the element of surprise. I would usually burn the whole place— I have a convenient forge too to do it."

"You could turn it into a huge-ass grenade if you do it right," Thalia suggested. "Explode the forge, and the debris would tear through a good chunk of the monster army. The fire is just an added bonus."

Clarisse grinned a bloodthirsty smile. "I like this plan, Sparky."

"It isn't a bad plan. But I am not sure I can do it that easily. The forge may contain the blast, which would be a bummer."

"Owl Head would know. She's into weird architecture stuff." Clarisse glanced up at the trees, where Annabeth sat, a pair of binoculars pressed to her eyes. "And I'm guessing she's handling the planning part anyway. It is kinda her thing."

"It is." I nodded. "We can initiate a Panic too, if things go south. Get rid of the monsters by causing a stampede amongst them. It won't work on the Titans, who are our target." I glanced at Grover. "Pan taught you that, right?"

"The Panic can't be learned exactly." Grover frowned. "I know the notes, and by itself, it can scare away a handful of monsters. But the real stuff? It's a blessing of the wild. I'd have to pray to Pan for it."

"I am sure Pan won't refuse to do that. In fact, pray right now and tell him that I'll sacrifice a sea serpent to him, whether or not it is needed." I waved my arm at the water. "Zeus has permitted all the gods to help us the best they can. And an ancient sea serpent should be a sacrifice enough to satisfy the Ancient Laws."

Grover gave me a nod and trotted away, settling under the tree on which Annabeth was perched.

"What's he doing now?" Nico asked. "And should we ask Annabeth for… whatever she's doing? I mean, she's been up there for like, the past half hour."

"They both have this process," Thalia explained before I could. "Annabeth, since she isn't under pressure, is basically calculating every escape, every path of attack, every ambush, and everything that can happen. Percy believes this can be a trap, so she'll be extra thorough." She glanced at me. "As for Grover? He's connecting to the wild. It is something that Pan taught him."

Clarisse frowned. "I thought that's what the music was for."

"Apparently not. I heard Pan explaining it in one of Grover's lessons, but as far as I understood it, it is like the powers we get from Artemis when we ourselves are in the wild. We connect to it, we become one with it, and it makes everything easier. Satyrs have that power too— Grover especially, since Pan blessed him."

I tuned them out as they devolved into a speculation session— the wonders of demigod ADHD, shifting my attention to the resident god in my head.

'Alexander, what can you feel? Any indication of a trap?' I asked.

#As far as I can tell, there aren't any obvious ones. No illusions, no gods hiding in the bushes, nothing more than the mist hiding this camp from mortals.# Alexander hummed. #But my senses are limited by yours too. And yours aren't attuned to decipher the more sophisticated spells that Hecate might lay.#

'I should've killed her.' I grumbled.

#You did try your best to skewer her. But I doubt that she'd be doing anything again, at least directly. Hecate is slippery and operates more in the shadows than in the light.# Alexander said. #Had she not dealt with the disc in the beginning, she would've been dead. She won't get into a direct fight with you.#

'But she can still help those who are. I need you to teach me how to detect magic at work.'

#We… do not have time for that. It takes active and proper magical training to get anywhere beyond where you currently are. And I am nowhere near qualified to do that. I know nothing but the basics of magic. Bare-bones. If you want to ask someone, go to the demigods in your camp. You can go to Chiron or Artemis too. Or better yet, Hera.#

My mind struck at one single word. 'Artemis knows magic?'

#She would know more than I do. She likely would've gotten a daughter of Hecate in her hunt at some point or other.# Alexander replied. #And trained them. Same as Chiron. Hera is the only one on the Council who can truly do magic. But Hecate's another game, even for her. Magic isn't Hera's domain.#

'Right. So it is likely futile.' I sighed.

#Sorry, kid. Grover might learn it the fastest, but detecting something Hecate's done and unraveling it quietly yet swiftly enough? It is out of any of your league. You would need someone like Medea or a well-trained witch to do it. Or a god who could just will it away after detecting it.#

I paused 'Could you have? Can you?'

#Had I been here in person? Maybe. A big maybe. But through you, acting passively? No.#

I shook my head, catching movement from the corner of my eye as Annabeth leaped down from the tree, startling Grover, who bleated loudly in fright. She muttered an apology and moved toward us, cracking her fingers and flexing them.

"I have a plan," she declared. "But before that, what have you all come up with?"

"Why does that matter?" Nico asked. "You have made the plan."

Annabeth sighed. "Just tell me."

"Two plans. An exploding forge and a Panic. Our plans are to take them by surprise, killing most monsters before they even knew that they were under attack." I told her. "The Titans can be dealt with later. They cannot attack us till we attack them anyway, nor can they escape."

"Yeah, there's a problem with that," Annabeth said. "They can escape unless we get the anti-teleportation device into their camp before the attack starts. It has a limited range."

I inclined my head. "So, what's your solution?"

"It is a four-pronged attack. First, Grover wears my cap and sneaks into their camp with the device. The monsters will not smell him even if he passes under their noses because he's a Satyr. And he can easily make it through the trees and small bridges to get there."

"Can't someone else do that 'sneaking into enemy lines' part?" Grover bleated, looking between all of us. "I mean the hunt always sneaks up on their prey unnoticed, doesn't it? Can't you do it?"

Annabeth bit her lip. "It is an open camp, Grover. Also, while we shroud ourselves well, if we get too close, they will probably sniff us out since there's no other demigod in the camp. Had it been Princess Andromeda, I would've done it personally. I can still do it, but there's a risk."

"What about me?" I asked. "If I am discovered, I can fight my way out."

"Percy, they will sniff you out the most easily of any of us. Even shrouding works till a certain limit. Same with the rest of you. Grover doesn't have a scent, being a Satyr. Though if he doesn't want to do it, I can. Amongst us, my scent is the weakest— I asked."

"Whom?" Nico blurted.

"One of the cyclopes working in the camp's forge. They were sent by Poseidon and live in the forges." Annabeth waved him off. "Also, Grover, as you planned before I came in, you can initiate a Panic if you're caught. And you don't have to go into the camp, really. Just beyond the treeline at the side edges would be good enough. And don't worry, you'll have a backup in the form of Bianca." She looked at the girl in question. "She won't go all the way, but she'll stay close enough. Not to mention, Clarisse will be there as aerial support."

Clarisse grinned. "I'm guessing I'll be in Percy's flying car with all the lovely stuff? Sweet."

"Yep. Go crazy. Blast them to hell once the attack starts. Keep moving, though." Annabeth turned to Thalia. "And you stay in the sky with Thalia, who would be up there with you, just in case this turns out to be a trap."

Thalia raised an eyebrow. "How's putting me on the side helpful?"

"Because you'd be fresh and untouched if it turns into a trap. Once all the variables are in play, you come down, raining lightning. But that's not all." Annabeth said. "You're a prong by yourself. You'll be initiating the attack, actually, with one of those special arrows Artemis gifted us with. Your special arrow."

Thalia's eyes lit up. "I almost forgot about those." She paused. "But mine is one of a kind. We don't get that back."

"Seven hundred monsters. You could wipe out a third of them in one shot, if not more."

"Excuse me." I interrupted. "What arrow are we talking about?"

"Artemis gave Thalia a special arrow— the rain of lightning. It was her gift for killing Aura and making Artemis proud, even if she gave it to her after this quest was issued." Annabeth's gray eyes gleamed. "It only uses the equivalent of a bolt of lightning and rains it down like a hundred strikes. It is a divine arrow made by Artemis for Thalia."

Grover turned to me and opened his mouth, but I glared at him and he shut it with a click.

Annabeth gave us a weird look before continuing. "The Fourth prong is the rest of us. There's a sea monster, I heard. So, we'll be going underwater with Percy in the lead. I have breathing devices for myself and Nico in Clarisse's car. We dive in, we emerge out while Percy kills the monster, and we make our way to the Titans. Once we're there, well, normal tactics to take them down, as the situation is. No point in making multiple plans."

"Because we aren't going to end up following it anyway?" Bianca asked, glancing at me.

"Plans go to trash sooner than later. On-field strategy matters more in fights like these," I said. "First contact can be the only thing planned. Rest is a rough sketch anyway."

"Percy's great at improvisation." Annabeth shrugged. "And I've long since learned that the only times that a plan survives intact from start to end is in a classroom. Things go sideways, especially on a battlefield. And it is not one single monster with a visible weakness that we could plan the whole thing before going in anyway."

Clarisse nodded. "True. Also, am I just supposed to blow up monsters from the sky?"

"In case it is a trap, we would need someone good enough to turn the tables," Annabeth answered. "Now, I'm sure the Titans will account for you two. But having you two fresh and ready, tilts the deck in our favor, especially if you're armed with an arsenal of modern weaponry. And a plausible way of escape where the Titans won't be capable of following."

"Flying away. Aerial extraction." Clarisse folded her arms. "Could work if it is a really dangerous trap."

"Assess the situation before acting," Annabeth added. "We have Percy on the ground with Bianca and Nico. Grover and I too, but we are their backup. If it is a trap, the situation will turn tough. I cannot see a visible trap right now, but they would likely bring out a few titans or some horrible monster to play. Maybe a giant robot or something. We don't know."

"If things get rough, we retreat," I said. "Live to fight another day. Or, well, deal with them when they come to attack Olympus in a few months." I paused. "Bianca, Nico, you guys won't be capable of teleporting once you're in the field. Shadow travel— one of your main abilities will be impossible to use."

"Lady Athena trained us for that, too. We know how to fight without them." Nico drew his sword. "Just give the word."

"Good," I said. "Annabeth, tell us whatever particular instruction you have for each one of us. And everyone, get whatever you need. Clarisse, make sure you don't hit us, alright?"

Clarisse grinned. "Will try, Kelpy."

"Best I'll get," I muttered. "Let's begin preparations. We'll attack within the hour."

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AND… DONE! Hope you all liked the chapter!

So, yes, the pieces are set, and the plan is in motion. And I can say with utmost confidence (and from the reviews of those who've read it already), the next four chapters are going to be a banger amongst bangers. The coming sub-arc is one of my best writings thus far, and I look forward to you all reading it.

To go to the next chapter: Ch.65 Plan of Attack

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