2335 words

Raiden P.O.V

I stuffed my blanket back into my rucksack and jumped off the train. We were surrounded by snow-capped mountains scattered with pine trees, and a sign to our right proclaimed that we were in Cloudcroft, New Mexico. We strolled to the town center, searching for anything that might help us.

"Huh," Orion muttered. "Didn't ever think I'd go back to New Mexico."

"Did you come here to crash a car while skiing the first time?" Percy asked.

"Nope. I came here to camp when I was a kid. Anyway, I'm starving. Is there anything to eat around here?"

We glanced around. There were only a few tourist shops, a coffee shop, a grocery store, a school, and some other buildings in the village.

"There's no transportation, either," Thalia grumbled.

"There's a coffee shop, though!" Grover grinned widely. "Let's go there!"

"Yes," Zoë agreed. "Orion, Grover, Raiden, and I shall go into the coffee shop and purchase food. Percy, Bianca, and Thalia shall go to the grocery store."

"Don't tell me what to do," Thalia grumbled, turning away with Percy.

"Let's go!" I sprinted to the coffee shop door while dragging Orion behind me.

"Let us convene in front of the grocery store in fifteen minutes," Zoë called after the other three.

"Jeez, Raiden!" Orion said. "Slow down!"

"I'm hungry!"

"I thought your name was Raiden. Did you change it to Hungry?"

I rolled my eyes but didn't respond. We entered the coffee shop, where only two baristas were working. A few people milled around, sipping coffee or otherwise gazing out the window.

I settled down in a booth by a window. Orion pulled out his credit card. "Do you want anything specific?"

"A lemonade, a croissant, and some kind of muffin."

"Gotcha. Be back in a minute."

I watched him jog up to the counter with Snow at his heels. People stared at the white wolf. I didn't know what the mortals saw Snow as through the Mist, but it appeared to be something irritating judging from the glowers at Orion's back. An older man muttered, "This generation! No respect for others or the rules. I have allergies and that stupid dog is going to trigger them!"

Zoë heard this last statement and scowled at the man. "Thy allergies art not a concern of ours, mortal."

I chuckled and gave her a thumbs-up. "Nice one, Zoë."

I leaned back against the seat and gazed out the window. Snow fell lightly onto the deserted street, but I wasn't really seeing it. We had four days until the Winter Solstice. Four days to find and rescue Ainsley and Artemis and get the goddess back to Olympus for the Council meeting. And to pummel Aidan.

"Plotting your revenge, Raiden Kairos?"

My head jerked up. In front of me stood a man with a pointed black beard, pale skin, and golden eyes. He donned a crimson leather jacket, sable combat boots, and ebony ripped jeans.

My heart pounded in my chest, and I began to hyperventilate. I was rooted to the spot with quaking arms, unable to move. Memories of childhood flashed before my eyes: the screaming; the hitting; the tattooing.

"I wonder who you see, Raiden?" A woman's voice issued from Kronos's mouth.

I pressed myself against the booth cushions, clenching my teeth. I squeezed my eyes shut and opened them again and again, but I didn't awaken from a nightmare. This was reality. I fumbled with my axe as I removed it from its sheathe and then dropped it to the floor. I reached down with my right hand, feeling only air, while my left formed a trembling fist.

"Raiden!" A voice called from across a churning ocean. "I got the...what the Hades are you doing to her? GET AWAY!"

My vision blurred, and everything became an indistinct jumble of colors. Tears streamed down my cheeks as my muscles clenched. I shuddered, and my hand twitched, falling onto the seat beside me.

A figure with black hair appeared, obscuring Kronos from my view. "Raiden!" Hands grabbed my shoulders and shook me roughly. I recoiled and squeezed my eyes shut. "Raiden!" the voice repeated. "It's me! It's okay! That's not Kronos!"

I opened my eyes. "N-not h-him?"

"Yes," the voice said. "It's Nemesis, Goddess of Revenge. Not your father."

I blinked several times, and Orion's white face came into sharper focus. He wiped the tear from my cheek. "It's okay, Raiden; it's okay. You're safe. C'mon." He placed an arm around my shoulder and helped me stand up. My legs trembled, and I lurched forward, but Orion stopped me from face-planting.

"Snow, grab her axe," he said.

On it! She trotted over to the booth, bent down, and seized my weapon in her mouth.

"Orion Theron." Nemesis stepped sideways, blocking our path. "Do you believe my words now?"

Orion pointed his sword at the goddess's throat. "Get out of the way."

"Lady Nemesis," Zoë said, "you are frightening Raiden. Please move."

"I will not, Zoë Nightshade," the goddess replied. "I have an offer for Raiden Kairos that she will not want to miss."

"D-don't w-want y-your o-offer," I mumbled. "Go away."

"What was that?" Nemesis looked at me.

"I said go away!" I met her gaze while my legs quaked. "I don't want you here."

The goddess arched an eyebrow. "I am offering you help, Raiden Kairos. You would do well to accept."

"I'm not accepting your help." I narrowed my eyes. "Now, leave!"

Nemesis recoiled and then retreated a few steps. Her golden pupils were dilated, and sweat the color of ichor had erupted on her face.

"Leave," I commanded. "And don't ever come near me again."

"You will regret this greatly, Raiden Kairos. Your luck will run out soon." The goddess vanished in a tornado of goose feathers.

"Well..." Orion condensed his sword and brushed the feathers out of his hair. "...Nemesis is a bit of a jerk, huh?"

"Yeah," I muttered, another burning sensation starting at the corners of my eyes. "I hate her."

Orion studied my face and then pulled me into a hug. "Hey, it's alright. Kronos isn't here. You're safe."

I embraced him back, and we remained there for what seemed to be an eternity. I shivered in the embrace, and more tears streaked down my cheeks. I wiped them away forcefully and stepped back as Orion released me.

"Better?" he asked, brushing the feathers out off my shoulders.

"Yeah."

"Okay. Let's go meet the others."

Snow trotted up to my side and nudged my hand with her nose. I thanked her and sheathed my axe. The wolf retrieved the fallen pastry bags, and we headed outside to meet Grover and Zoë.

"Raiden, are you okay?" Grover asked, handing me my lemonade.

"I'm fine," I mumbled, accepting the cup. My hands trembled. "I don't wanna talk about it."

We headed over to the grocery store to rendezvous with the other three. Thalia observed me, and her eyebrows furrowed when she registered my wet face. Percy snatched a blueberry muffin out of one of the bags in Orion's hands and started devouring it. Grover was finishing his muffin wrapper when he collapsed to the ground.

"Grover!" Percy rushed forward.

A fresh breeze ruffled my hair, and my nostrils were filled with the scent of the Wild. It smelled of evening campfires with the Hunt and every marshmallow eating contest and snowball fight. But most of all, it smelled like Ainsley. I could see her auburn braid, smile, and silver eyes that hid rage and power. I could almost see her standing in front of me, and I reached out. No, I thought. She's not here, Raiden. You can't reach her here. Still, my heart ached.

"Guys," Thalia said, wrenching me back to reality. "We need to go."

Percy and Thalia each grasped one of Grover's arms and hauled to his feet. "The Wild's blessing," he mumbled. "It's near."

"What's he talking about?" Bianca asked.

"No idea," Orion replied.

We hurried to the edge of town, following the road. As soon as we arrived on the outskirts, two skeleton warriors emerged from behind the trees. They had gray, transparent skin, making their yellow eyes and bones visible. This pair donned New Mexican police uniforms and carried pistols and police batons.

Thalia drew her spear. "Move back."

I pulled out my axe, and we retreated a few steps. No sooner had we stopped, than two more skeletons emerged behind us. I heard whistling behind me, and I spun around. I watched the bullets for a moment.

"Raiden!" Thalia screamed. "What are you doing?"

"Something," I replied.

I willed time to slow. The projectiles slowed and then froze in midair, centimeters from the chest. I hurled my weapon in an arc, slicing through the pair of skeletons with the guns. Nearly half a second later, they started to reform. One of the skeletons behind us chattered into a walkie-talkie in its hand.

"Great!" Orion sliced off the arm of another skeleton. "It's calling its friends! I'm going to torch these guys!" He compacted his sword, and Snow jumped onto his back. He shape-shifted into a dragon and released a blast of flame. Take that!

The pair of skeletons I'd sliced in half were reduced to a pile of ashes. The ashes began to reassemble into bones after a couple of seconds.

"There's no way to beat them!" Thalia bellowed, blasting a skeleton with a bolt of lightning. "They just keep reforming!"

Bianca jabbed a skeleton in the ribcage with her hunting knife, and it collapsed into a pile of ashes. It didn't reform.

"How did thee accomplish that?" Zoë demanded.

"I have no idea," Bianca admitted.

"The blessing of the Wild," Grover muttered.

"What are you talking about, Grover?" Percy knocked a skeleton to the ground as the other two retreated, eyeing Bianca.

A defeaning squeal echoed through the air, and a colossal pig charged onto the road. The boar was thirty feet tall with kayak-sized tusks and a pink nose. Bristly chocolate hair covered its back, and its eyes burned with a primal rage. The boar crashed into the skeleton trio, sending them sailing into the mountainside. Then it spun to face us.

"Spare it!" Grover shouted.

Thalia frowned. "It's a wild, angry pig."

"It's not just any pig," Orion gasped. "It's the Erymanthian Boar!"

"Exactly!" Grover exclaimed. "The boar is a gift, the Wild's blessing!"

"Can we decide what it is later?" Thalia yelled. "This thing is gonna gore us unless we move!"

"Good point!"

The seven of us scattered. The boar charged at Thalia and Percy first; the pair sprinted away in the direction of an old tunnel.

Hey, Porky! Snow barked. Over here!

The pig squealed furiously, spun around, and raced at the wolf. Just before the boar could collide with her, Orion snatched Snow into the air as an eagle.

Raiden! he said. Do your thing!

"Setting it on fire?"

No!

"Scaring the heebie-jeebies out of it?"

Save that for Krono's minions!

"Calming it?"

There you go!

I waved my arms over my head. "Hey, pig! I'm behind you."

The pig whipped around, squealed irately, and charged at me. I raised my hand. The boar skidded to a stop in front of me. I gazed into its eyes, two hazel orbs of primal force. My eyes, two golden orbs of Titanic fury, were reflected in the boar's. It breathed a warm aroma into my face, and I caught a whiff of forests and a glimpse of a time when the world was covered in wilderness. It smelled like home. I slowly moved my hand forward and touched its nose.

"Raiden!" Percy yelled. "What are you doing?"

The boar's tranquility shattered. He whipped around again, his back legs swinging in a wide arc. I jumped backward, narrowly avoiding obtaining a concussion. The pig squealed and rushed at Percy.

The snow on the street erupted. It exploded into an avalanche of white, swirling around the boar's legs. The snow wrapped around the hair and hardened into ice. The boar lurched forward, but the ice prevented it from advancing forward.

Orion dove for the ground and transformed back into a man, staggering a few steps when he touched down. "Everybody get on! This ice isn't gonna hold for more than two minutes!" He was right; already, tiny cracks were forming in the icy restraints.

Percy, Thalia, Zoë, Grover, and Bianca hastened forward. Zoë dashed up its side first, followed by Bianca. She extended a hand to help Thalia up, but the daughter of Zeus just scowled and struggled up by herself. Once Percy and Grover had settled down, Orion addressed me.

"I'm gonna fly," he said. "Do you want to ride with me?"

I frowned. "Yeah, I'll ride with you. Are you sure it's a good idea for you to be flying? You look tired already."

"I'll be fine."

"Okayyy."

Orion rolled his eyes and shape-shifted into an eagle again. Just get on. Snow, let's go.

The wolf jumped up and landed in front of Orion's wing joints. I jogged around to his tail feathers and clambered on, slipping slightly on the glossy feathers.

"How do we steer this thing?" Thalia asked.

"Leave that to me." Grover tossed an apple in front of the pig and started to play a jaunty tune on his pipes.

The fruit was suspended in mid-air in front of the boar, just far enough that encourage the animal to run. The pig snorted and finally cracked the icy restraints. It raced forward, straining to eat the apple. Orion soared into the air, gliding about ten feet above the boar.

"What was Grover talking about?" I muttered. "That whole 'blessing of the Wild' thing?"

I don't know, Orion admitted.

I have an idea of what it might mean, Snow barked.

"What?" I said.

Pan, Snow barked. I think he's returning.