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chapter xi.
( the lightning thief )
❝ the tunnel of love ❞

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      A FEW MINUTES LATER, we were sitting at a booth in a gleaming chrome diner. All around us, families were eating burgers and drinking milkshakes. I stared longingly at the food, my stomach grumbling.

      Finally, the waitress came over. She raised her eyebrows sceptically. "Well?"

      Percy said, "We, um, want to order dinner."

      "You kids have money to pay for it?"

      Grover's lower lip quivered. I feared he would starting bleating, or worse, start to eat the linoleum. To be honest, I was so hungry, I'm pretty sure I would have joined him. Annabeth looked ready to pass out from hunger. Percy looked like he was trying to think up a sob story for the waitress when a rumble shook the whole building: a motorcycle the size of a baby elephant had pulled up to the kerb.

      All conversation in the diner stopped. The motorcycle's headlight glared red. Its gas tank had flames painted on it, and a shotgun holster riveted to either side, complete with shotguns. The seat was leather -- but the leather looked like Caucasian human skin. I shivered at the thought.

      The guy on the bike would've made pro wrestlers run for cover. He was dressed in a red muscle shirt and black jeans and a black leather duster, with a hunting knife strapped to his thigh. He wore red wraparound shades, and he had the cruellest, most brutal face I'd ever seen -- handsome, possibly, but wicked -- with an oily black crewcut and cheeks that were scarred from many, many fights. Despite all of this, I swear that something about him was familiar. I suddenly felt angry, like I wanted to punch Percy five hundred times. The biker seemed to send off this aura of aggression, resentment and bitterness. I then realised who he was, where I had seen that face before. The sneer that seemed to be permanently glued was the same sneer that cabin five all shared.

      He was Ares, the God of War.

      As he walked into the diner, a hot, dry wind blew through the place. All the people rose, as if they were hypnotised, but the biker waved his hand dismissively and they all sat down again. Everybody went back to their conversations. The waitress blinked, as if somebody had just pressed the rewind button on her brain. She asked us again, "You kids have money to pay for it?"

      Ares said, "It's on me." He slid into our booth, which was way too small for him, and crowded Annabeth against the window.

      He looked up at the waitress, who was gaping at him, and said, "Are you still here?"

      He pointed at her, and she stiffened. She turned as if she'd been spun around and marched back towards the kitchen.

      Ares looked to Percy, and gave him a wicked grin. "So you're old Seaweed's kid?"

      Percy's eyes hardened to a glare at the god. "What is it to you?"

      I pursed my lips and flashed the boy a warning. "Percy, this is --"

      Ares raised his hand. "S'okay," he said. "I don't mind a little attitude. Long as you remember who's the boss. You know who I am, little cousin?"

      "You're Clarisse's dad," Percy said, finally realising who he was. "Ares, god of war."

      Ares grinned and took off his shades. Where his eyes should've been, there was only fire, empty sockets glowing with miniature nuclear explosions. "That's right, punk. I heard you broke Clarisse's spear?"

      "She was asking for it."

      "Probably. That's cool. I don't fight my kids' fights, you know? What I'm here for -- I heard you were in town. I got a little proposition for you."

      The waitress came back with heaping trays of food -- cheeseburgers, fries, onion rings, three chocolate shakes and one lime. Ares handed her a few gold drachmas.

      She looked nervously at the coins. "But, these aren't..."

      Ares pulled out his huge knife and started cleaning his fingernails. "Problem, sweet heart?"

      The waitress swallowed, then left with the gold.

      "I'm pretty sure that's not legal," I muttered, my eyes wide. Ares was scary, to be short. He looked like one of those guys who if you said one wrong thing, he'd gut you with his knife. But it was even worse, because he was a god. So instead of gutting you, he'd blast you to smithereens, or turn you into a guinea-pig or something.

      "You can't do that," Percy told Ares. "You can't just threaten people with a knife."

      Ares laughed. "Are you kidding! I love this country. Best place since Sparta. Don't you carry a weapon, punk? You should. Dangerous world out there. Which brings me to my proposition. I need you to do me a favour."

      "What favour could I do a god?"

      "Something a god doesn't have time to do himself. It's nothing much. I left my shield at an abandoned water park here in town. I was going on a little ... date with my girlfriend. We were interrupted. I left my shield behind. I want you to fetch it for me."

      "Why don't you go back and get it yourself?"

      The fire in Ares's eye sockets glowed a little hotter.

      "Why don't I turn you into a prairie dog and run your over with my Harley? Because I don't feel like it. A god is giving you an opportunity to prove yourself, Percy Jackson. Will you prove yourself a coward?" He leaned forward. "Or maybe you only fight when there's a river to dive in, so your daddy can protect you?"

      He was trying to make Percy angry, but I could see he wasn't going to let him.

      "We're not interested," Percy said. "We've already got a quest."

      Ares's gaze hardened. "I know all about your quest, punk. When what item was first stolen. Zeus sent his best out looking for it: Apollo, Athena, Artemis and me, naturally. If I couldn't sniff out a weapon that powerful ..." He licked his lips, as if the very thought of the master bolt made him hungry. "Well ... if I couldn't find it, you got no hope. Nevertheless, I'm trying to give you the benefit of a doubt. Your dad and I go way back. After all, I'm the one who told him my suspicions about old Corpse Breath."

      "You told him Hades stole the bolt?" I blurted out without realising. I didn't know why, but something about that was a little fishy.

      Ares glanced at me. "Sure. Framing somebody to start a war. Oldest trick in the book. I recognised it immediately. In a way, you got me to thank for your little quest."

      "Thanks," Percy grumbled.

      "Hey, I'm a generous guy. Just do my little job, and I'll help you on your way. I'll arrange a ride west for you and your friends."

      "We're doing fine on our own."

      "Yeah, right. No money. No wheels. No clue what you're up against. Help me out, and maybe I'll tell you something you need to know. Something about your mom."

      "My mom?" Percy's eyes lit up for a second.

      Ares grinned. "That got your attention. The water park is a mile west on Delancy. You can't miss it. Look for the Tunnel of Love ride."

      "What interrupted your date?" Percy asked. "Something scare you off?"

      Ares bared his teeth. But there was something off about it. It seemed false, like he was hiding his nerves. "You're lucky you got me, punk, and not one of the other Olympians. They're not as forgiving of rudeness as I am. I'll meet you back here when you're done. Don't disappoint me."

      After that I must have fainted from my hunger, or fallen into a trance, because when I opened my eyes Ares was gone. I might've thought the conversation was a dream, but Annabeth and Grover's expression's told me otherwise.

      "Not good," Grover said. "Ares sought you out, Percy. This is not good."

      Percy stared out the window. The motorcycle had disappeared. I bit my lip and took a nervous sip from my lime milkshake. The cool liquid was a relief in the heat.

      "It's probably some kind of trick," Percy said after a little while. "Forget Ares. Let's just go."

      "We can't," Annabeth said. "Look, I hate Ares as much as anybody, but you don't ignore the gods unless you want serious bad fortune. He wasn't kidding about turning you into a rodent."

      Percy glanced down at his cheeseburger. "Why does he need us?"

      I shrugged. "Maybe it's a problem that needs agility, knowledge and the ability to curse someone to speak in rhymes forever." I chuckled at my friend's faces. "No, but seriously. Ares has strength. That's all he has. Even strength needs to bow down to knowledge sometimes."

      Percy frowned. "Why would you say that? You're a child of Apollo."

      I grinned and opened my mouth but Annabeth jumped in before I could.

      "Don't make her start," she said, and I narrowed my eyes. "Children of Apollo seem to think that their father is the God of Knowledge as well --"

      "Because he is." I butted in. "Your mother may be the goddess of wisdom, but you need to be knowledgeable before you can be wise."

      "Whatever, Bumblebee."

      "Watch it, Wise Girl."

      Percy pursed his lips, "O-o-okay ..." he said slowly, before continuing. "But this water park ... he acted almost scared. What would make a war god run away like that?"

       The joyful banter between me and Annabeth disappeared as soon as he mentioned that, and the two of us glanced nervously at Grover.

      "I'm afraid we'll have to find that out," I finally said.

*

      THE SUN WAS SINKING BEHIND the mountains by the time we had found the water park. Judging from the sign, it had once been called WATERLAND, but now some of the letters were smashed out, so it read WAT R A D.

      The main gate was padlocked and topped with barbed wire. Inside, huge dry waterslides and tubes and pipers curled everywhere, leading to empty pools. Old tickets and advertisements fluttered around the tarmac. With night coming on, the place looked sad and creepy.

      "If Ares brings his girlfriend here for a date," Percy said, staring up at the barbed wire, "I'd hate to see what she looks like."

      "Percy," Annabeth warned. "Be more respectful."

      "Why? I thought you hated Ares."

      "He's still a god. And his girlfriend is very temperamental."

      I snorted. "Mother like children."

      "You don't want to insult her looks," Grover added.

      "Who is she? Echidna?"

      "No," I shook my head. "Aphrodite. Goddess of love."

      "I thought she was married to somebody," Percy frowned. "Hephaestus."

      "What's your point?" Grover asked.

      "Oh," Percy changed the subject. "So, how do we get in?"

      "Maia!" Grover's shoes sprouted wings.

      He flew over the fence, did an unitented somersault in midair, then stumbled to a landing on the opposite side. He disted off his jeans, as if he planned the whole thing. "You guys coming?"

      I rolled my eyes.

      Percy, Annabeth and I had to climb the old-fashioned way, holding down the barbed wire for each other as we crawled over the top.

      The shadows grew long as we walked through the park, checking out the attractions. There was Ankle Biter Island, Head Over Wedgie and Dude, Where's My Swimsuit?

      Oh, and I wonder why they had been closed.

      No monsters came to get us. Nothing made the slightest sound, but I still wasn't on ease.

      We found a souvenir shop that had been left open. Merchandise still lined the shelves: snow globes, pencils, postcards and racks of --

      "Clothes," I said. "Fresh clothes."

      "Yeah," Percy said. "But you can't just --"

      "Watch me."

      I snatched an entire row of stuff from the rack and entered the changing room. After I had changed a few moments later in Waterland flower-print shorts, a big red Waterland T-shirt and commemorative Waterland surf shoes. I slung a Waterland backpack over my shoulder that I had stuffed with useful goodies, and redid my hair in its pony tail, pushing my blonde bangs behind my ears before I stepped out to greet my friends.

      "What the heck," Grover shrugged once they saw me. Soon, all four of us were decked out like walking advertisements for the defunct theme park.

      We continued searching for the Tunnel of Love. I had a feeling as though the whole park was watching us with beady eyes, holding its breath.

      "So," Percy fell in step with me, his hands awkwardly in his pockets, "Ares and Aphrodite, they have a thing going?"

      I arched an eyebrow at him, trying to keep down my amusement. "That's old gossip, Percy," I told him. "Three-thousand-year-old gossip."

      "What about Aphrodite's husband?"

      I shrugged. "Well, you know," I said. "Hephaestus. The blacksmith. He was crippled when he was a baby, thrown off Mount Olympus by Zeus. So he isn't exactly handsome. Cabin Nine are a bit touchy on the subject. He's clever with his hands and all, but Aphrodite isn't into brains and talent, you know?"

      "She likes bikers."

      "Whatever."

      "Hephaestus knows?"

      "Oh sure," I said. "He caught them together once. I mean, like, literally caught them, in a golden nett, and invited all the gods to come and laugh at them. Hephaestus is always trying to embarrass them. That's why they meet in out-of-the-way places, like ..."

      I stopped, looking straight ahead. "Like that."

      In front of us was an empty pool that would've been great for skateboarding. It was at least fifty metres across and shaped like a bowl. Around the rim, a dozen bronze statues of Cupid stood guard with wings spread and bows ready to fire. On the opposite side of us, a tunnel opened up, which I guessed was where the water flowed into when the pool was full. The sign above read: THRILL RIDE O' LOVE: THIS IS NOT YOUR PARENTS' TUNNEL OF LOVE!

      Grover crept towards the edge. "Guys, look."

      Marooned at the bottom of the pool was a pink-and-white two-seater boat with a canopy over the top and little hearts painted all over it. In the left seat, glinting in the fading light, was Ares's shield, a polished circle of bronze.

      "This is too easy," Percy said. "So we just walk down there and get it?"

      Annabeth ran her fingers along the base of the nearest Cupid statue. "There's a Greek letter carved here," she said. "Eta. I wonder ..."

      I frowned. Why did that make my insides churn unpleasantly? It was as though I knew what it meant, and that it was not good, but I couldn't reach it. The reason behind it was on the tip of my tongue too far.

      "Grover," Percy said, "you smell any monsters?"

      He sniffed the wind. "Nothing."

      "Nothing -- like, in-the-Arch-and-you-didn't-smell-Echidna nothing, or really nothing?"

      Grover looked hurt. "I told you, that was underground."

      "Okay, I'm sorry." He took a deep breath. "I'm going down there."

      "I'll go with you," Grover didn't sound so enthusiastic, but I got the feeling he was trying to make up for what had happened in St Louis.

      Annabeth stepped forward. "Me too."

      "No," Percy told them. "I want you to stay up the top with the flying shoes. You're the Red Baron, remember? I'll be counting on you for backup, in case something goes wrong. You too, Annabeth, I want you to help Grover."

      Annabeth nodded while Grover puffed out his chest. "Sure. But what could go wrong?"

      "I don't know. Just a feeling. Claire, come with me --"

      I felt myself growing warm. My heart starting the beat against my rib cage. Was he crazy?! I couldn't go down there, not with him.

      "Are you kidding?" I said to him, my voice unusually high. I didn't understand why I was acting like this. It wasn't as though I had a crush on him and was then asked to go along with him to the Tunnel of Love. At that thought, my stomach churned and my heart beat quickened.

      Oh my gods, stop it! I thought.

      "What's the problem now?" Percy demanded.

      "Me, go with you to the ... the "Thrill Ride of Love"? How embarrassing is that? What if somebody saw me?"

      "Who's going to see you?" Percy was turning red now too. He looked so annoyed. I was too, not just at him, but at myself too. What was the problem? What was wrong with me? I don't even like him that much.

      But he saved your life, a voice said in my head.

      "Fine," Percy told me. "I'll do it myself."

      He then started down the side of the pool. I growled, clenching my fist and followed him, muttering, "Stupid boys, always messing stuff up."

      We reached the boat. The shield was propped on one seat, and next to it was a lady's silk scarf. I huffed and crossed my arms, tapping my foot impatiently. My face was still bright red and I refused to look at Percy, focusing on the mirrors that surrounded the ride. But then Percy picked up the scarf and smiled stupidly. I sighed and snatched it from his grasp and scrunched it into my pocket. "Oh, no you don't. No love magic for you, mister."

      "What?"

      "Just get the shield, Seaweed Brain, and let's get out of here."

      The moment Percy touched the shield, I knew something wasn't right. I glanced to the side of the boat, and I saw another Greek letter. The same on Annabeth had seen on Cupid's statue. Eta: η.

      I looked back at Percy, alarmed. I saw his hand break through something that had been connecting to the dashboard. It looked like a spider web, but I knew better. It was a tripwire.

      "Wait," I said, but I knew it was no use.

     "Too late."

      "There's another Greek letter on the side of the boat. Another Eta. This is a trap."

      Noise erupted all around us, it sounded like a million gears grinding as if the whole pool were turning into one giant machine.

      "Watch out!" Annabeth yelled while Grover shouted, "Guys!"

      Up on the rim, the Cupid statues were drawing their bows into firing position. Before I could even think about jumping for cover, they shot, but not at Percy and I. They fired at each other, the arrows flying over their stone heads across the rim of the pool. Silky cables trailed from the arrows, arcing over the pool and anchoring where they landed to form a huge golden asterisk. My eyes widened when smaller metallic threads started weaving together magically between the main strands, making a net.

      "We have to get out," Percy said, stating the obvious.

       I gave him a look, "Great idea Captain Obvious!" I said sarcastically.

      Percy rolled his eyes before grabbing the shield and we both ran, but going up the slope wasn't as easy as going down.

      "Hurry up!" Annabeth shouted.

      She and Grover were desperately trying to hold open a section of the net for us to escape through, but wherever they touched it, the golden threads started to wrap around their hands.

      The Cupids' heads popped open. Out came multiple video cameras. Spotlights rose up all around the pool, blinding us. A loudspeaker then boomed, "Live to Olympus in one minute ... Fifty-nine seconds, fifty-eight ..."

      I cursed loudly, everything finally coming together. The penny had dropped, "Hephaestus!" I shouted, placing my hands over my eyes in frustration. "Oh my gods, I'm so stupid! You would think ... after all these years spending time with Annabeth ... Eta is 'H'! He made this trap to capture his wife with Ares. The cameras are to broadcast to Olympus live. I told you this was a stupid idea! I knew someone would see us! We're gonna look like absolute fools!"

      We had almost made it to the rum when the row of mirrors opened like hatches and thousands of tiny metallic spiders poured out. By the rim, Annabeth let out a terrified shriek and let go of the net, making it even hard for Grover to keep it open. I myself let out a scared gasp, stumbling away from the mirrors. I may not be a child of Athena, but spiders did creep me out -- especially ones at this amount. With their bronze-gear bodies, spindly legs and pincer mouths, they all came scuttling towards us in a wave of clacking, whirring metal.

       "Spiders!" Annabeth choked. "Sp -- sp -- aaah!"

      When one came dangerously close to me, I screeched and fell back to the ground. Percy had to pull me up and drag me back towards the boat.

      The bronze arachnids came out in millions all around the rim, flooding towards the centre of the pool. They surrounded us, their pincers snapping together menacingly. I thought to myself, snap out of it! They probably weren't programmed to kill us, just bite us so we looked stupid on the cameras. But I then realised, they were meant for gods, and we weren't gods.

      I climbed onto the boat along with Percy, who started to kick away any spiders that swarmed aboard. He yelled at me for help, but I couldn't move, shaking from head to toe. But I managed to get my dagger from my boot, but even then, I didn't fight. I cursed at myself. I was being so stupid. Percy was once again making sure we weren't getting hurt, when all I could do shriek when one started to crawl up my legs and Percy once again would hit it away.

      You're not a child of Athena! Grow up, you have no excuse!

      But no matter how much I tried to tell myself to fight, I still wouldn't move.

      "Thirty, twenty-nine," called the loudspeaker.

      The spiders started spitting out strands of metal thread, trying to tie us down. The strands were easy enough to break at first, but there were so many of them, and the spiders continued to come. Once again, Percy kicked one away from my leg, and its pincers took a chunk out of his new surf shoe.

      Grover hovered above the pool in his flying trainers, trying to pull the net loose, but it wouldn't budge. Poor Annabeth stood paralysed by the rim, her eyes tearful at the sight of the spiders.

      "Fifteen, fourteen," said the loudspeaker.

      "Grover!" Percy yelled suddenly. "Get into the booth! Find the 'on' switch!"

      "But --"

      "Do it!"

       I glanced at Percy, a confused frown on my face. What was he planning? But my thoughts soon disappeared when another spider came my way and I jumped behind Percy, clutching his arm so tightly his skin was turning red.

      "Five, four --"

      Grover looked up at Percy hopelessly, raising his hands. He was letting him know that he had pushed every button, but nothing was happening. That was when Percy closed his eyes and held his hand out -- I knew in an instant what he was doing.

      "Two, one, zero!"

      Water exploded out of the pipes. It roared into the pool, sweeping away the spiders. I felt Percy pull me down to the seat next to him and buckled up my seatbelt just as the tidal wave slammed into our boat, bringing me back to my senses. It rose over the top, whisking away the spiders and dousing us completely, but we didn't capsize. The boat turned, lifted in the flood, and spun in circles around the whirlpool.

      I watched in silent amazement as the water surged through the pool like a storm, short-circuiting some of the spiders, while others smashed against the pool's concrete so hard they burst. For a second, I was completely terrified by the water's power -- Percy's power. And for once, I finally understood what the Gods were so scared about.

      Spotlights glared down at us. The Cupid-cameras were rolling, live to Olympus.

      But I didn't pay attention, my hands gripped the side of the boat, and I felt my stomach twisting and churning. I always hated travelling by sea, and this made me want to throw up. I was stunned that Percy had so much control over the boat that it didn't smash, swerving away from the walls and riding the current. We spun around one last time, the water level almost high enough to shred us against the metal net. Before the nose of the boat dipped down towards the tunnel and we rocketed through into the darkness.

      A scream tore from my throat as we boat shot curls and hugged corners and took forty-five degree plunges past pictures of Romeo and Juliet and much more Valentine Day stuff that I couldn't be bothered to pay attention to.

      Beside me, Percy seemed almost enjoy himself. His black hair whipping back behind his face, his sea-green eyes wide with adrenaline and excitement. As we soared through the tunnel, I couldn't help but shout at him, "I'M GOING TO KILL YOU FOR THIS!"

      Then we shot out of the tunnel, the night air whistling through my hair as the boat barrelled straight towards the exit.

      If the ride had been in working order, we would have sailed off a ramp between the golden Gates of Love and splashed down safely in the exit pool. But the Gates of Love were chained. Two boats had been washed out of the tunnel before us were now piled against the barricade -- one submerged, the other cracked in half.

      "Unfasten your seat belt," Percy yelled at me.

      "Are you crazy?!" I shouted back. "No way!"

      "Unless you want to get smashed to death, which is absolutely fine by me," he strapped Ares's shield to his arm. "We're going to have to jump for it."

      I finally understood his plan. As the boat struck, we could use it as a springboard to jump the gate if we got the right angle. I nodded, taking a tight grip of his hand as the gates got closer.

      "When I say go," Percy said, but I instantly shook my head.

      "No! when I say go!"

      "What?"

      "Physics, duh! Force times the trajectory angle --"

      "Fine!" Percy shouted. "When you say go!"

      I wouldn't have snapped something back if we hadn't been in such a life-death situation. I watched the nearing gates, my eyes narrowed, waiting for the right time. We were almost about to crash when I shouted, "NOW!"

      Crack!

      I had estimated right. As soon as we jumped, I had gotten us the maximum lift.

      But it was too much. Our boat smashed into the pileup and we were thrown into the air, straight over the gates, over the pool, and down towards solid tarmac. I let out another scream before something grabbed me from behind.

      "Ouch!" I yelled.

      It was Grover. In midair, he had grabbed Percy by the shirt, and me painfully, by the arm, and was trying to pull us out of a crash landing, but Percy and I had all the momentum.

      "You're too heavy!" Grover said. "We're going down!"

      We spiralled towards the ground, Grover doing his best to slow the fall.

      We smashed into a photo-board, Grover's head going straight into the hole where tourists would put their faces, pretending to be Noo-Noo the Friendly Whale. Percy and I tumbled to the ground, banged up but thankfully, alive. Ares's shield was still on Percy's arm.

      I heard the sound of feet pounding against earth, and I looked up to see Annabeth sprinting towards us. She looked shaken up, but when she saw me, she pulled me into a bone-crushing hug. I awkwardly patted her back.

      Percy looked back at the Thrill Ride of Love. I glanced back as well to see the water subsiding. Our boat had been smashed to pieces against the gates. A hundred metres away, at the entrance pool, the Cupids were still filming. The statues had swivelled so that their cameras were trained straight on us, the spotlights in our faces.

      "Show's over!" Percy yelled, anger lacing his voice. "Thank you! Goodnight!"

      The Cupids turned back to their original positions. The lights shut off. The park went quiet and dark again, except for the gentle trickle of water into the Thrill Ride of Love's exit pool. I finally let out a breath I hadn't realised I had been holding and pulled out of Annabeth's grasp before thanking Grover for saving our lives.

       Percy was fuming. His hands clenched at his sides, his eyes flashing dangerously. I could almost imagine a tsunami in the glare he had on his face, and I was glad I wasn't on the receiving end. He hefted the shield on his arm and turned to us.

       "We need to have a little talk with Ares."

~~~

a/n: okay so i am SOOO sorry for such a long wait!!! and all the inconvenience and bloody deleting of this chapter more than once!!!! uh, i'm STILL annoyed.