Chapter 5

We were definitely breaking some sort of speed limit. Ever since Adamos got my mom, Grover and me in the car my mom's been tearing through the dark and empty country roads like a mad woman. I could hear the winds roar through the closed windows, and rain was beating down on the windshield of the Camaro. I doubt my mom could see more than ten feet in front of her, but she never took her foot off the pedal.

Flashes of lightning lit up the sky, providing light for me to get a good look at Grover's legs. My best friend was a walking shag carpet, and the smell only reminded me of one of those kindergarten class trips to the petting zoo.

"So, you and my mom know each other?" I say, trying to break the tense silence.

Grover's eyes were busy scanning out the windows and the rear-view mirror, looking for something. "Not exactly." He said. "I mean, we've never met in person. But she knew I was watching you."

"Like a stalker?

"No! Like a guardian. I was keeping tabs on you, making sure you were ok. But I wasn't faking being your friend. I am your friend." He said earnestly.

"That sounds like something a stalker would say."

"Ha, Percy's first stalker is a barnyard animal!"

"Quiet you."

"No, I'm a seeker, not a stalker. We satyrs are tasked with finding demigods and protecting them from monsters while taking them to camp." Grover explains.

"So, Mrs. Dodds was a monster!"

"That's like one of the least important things to discuss right now."

"Hey this is a matter of principle."

"Well of course she was." Grover says drawing me back to our conversation. Having two conversations at the same time was starting to give me a headache.

"And your best plan was to let me think I was going mad with paranoia?" I asked like it was one of the stupidest decisions ever. Because to me it really was.

"No, the less you knew, the fewer monsters you would attract. We put Mist over the human's eyes. We hoped you'd think the Kindly One was a hallucination. But it was no good. You were beginning to realize who you were."

"So, you wanted to just ignore the fact that I was already attacked by a monster and just hope that I wouldn't attract any more. Because that's a pretty shitty plan."

"Percy, language!" my mom scolded. "And we don't have time to explain everything, we need to get you to safety first."

"Sorry." I mutter. I think I'm picking up a few of Adamos's habits and they're not all good.

Behind us the loud bellowing noise rose up. It was much closer than before.

"Ok what is that, and why is it chasing us?" I half shout.

"Loud and deep vocals. Not a roar which crosses out half the list. No magical powers detected meaning it's a purely physically type bar some unknown abilities that it could possess." Adamos begins muttering in my head like he's trying to solve a riddle.

"Oh, nobody much," Grover said, nervously. "Just the Lord of the Dead and a few of his blood thirstiest minions." That comment didn't reassure me in the slightest.

"Grover!"

"Sorry, Mrs. Jackson. Could you drive faster please?"

"Well shit."

"What? What's wrong."

"I think I know what's chasing us and I gotta say they really pulled all the stops to get you."

"What is it!?"

"Based on what I can sense, I am believe we are being chased by the minotaur."

"The mino—" My mouth automatically closes before I can whisper out the rest of the word.

"Ok Percy, I know your still new to all this but please refrain from saying their names out loud, it'll only draw them to you."

I feel control of my mouth return to me, but I keep it shut because I was a bit afraid of accidentally saying a name and summoning another monster.

Then my mom made a hard left off the road. We swerved onto a narrower road and raced past dark farmhouses, hills, and signs that had FRESH PRODUCE painted on them.

"Ok where is this summer camp exactly?"

"It's close." My mom's voice was tight. She was pushing back her fears so as to not worry me. "You'll be safe there."

"Wait what about y—"

"Percy please," my mom begged. "This is hard enough as it is."

"Percy this monster is mainly after you so your mother should be fine."

"But why me? What did I do?"

"That's difficult to explain at the moment and best done at a later time when we aren't being chased by a large bipedal cow." He says but as I was about to retort my mom turned the wheel hard to the right, avoiding something. I catch a glimpse at the large dark shape now disappearing behind us in the storm.

"Ok, what was that!?" I ask.

"Were almost there," My mom says completely ignoring my question. "Another mile. Please. Please. Please."

I couldn't see a few feet outside the windshield, but I found myself leaning forward, as if something was drawing me forward.

"That feeling means that were close to camp. We're almost there."

My anticipation only grew when I heard that. We were almost to this 'haven' and we'd be safe. I look outside only to see nothing but darkness and rain. I was about to ask how close we were when I felt the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. Next thing I know my control was taken by Adamos.

"SHIT!" Adamos yells out in my voice. He reaches forward to the steering wheel surprising my mom and quickly jerks it to the side as a blinding flash, and a bone rattling boom go off and the area next to our car explodes. The blast blows out our back tire causing us to swerve more.

The next thing I know I'm feeling weightless, crushed, rolled down a large hill and fried all at the same time.

I peel my forehead off the back of the headrest, seeing I have control again I mutter "Ow."

"Thanks for saving us back there, but what was that?"

"That was lightning. Some one seems to be in a bitchy mood today." Adamos growls in my mind.

I crawl out of the side door of the car, trying to shake off the daze and pain from what I then see is the car being in a ditch. The right side of the trunk was a charred and shredded mess from where the lightning hit. Otherwise everything else was fine, though I didn't know how we would get the car out of the ditch. I look to see where we were on the road and see a large smoking crater. Now I was extra glad Adamos saved us. The lightning would have torn our car apart.

"Percy!" I hear my mom call out from the driver's seat.

"I'm ok" I call back. I turn back to the backseat of the car and see an unconscious lump on the opposite side of me.

"Grover!" I shout crawling over the seat to get to him. When I get a closer look, he was slumped over with blood trickling out of his mouth. I begin shaking him hoping to get him to wake up.

"Take one of the larger pieces of glass and hold it up to his mouth or nose." Adamos instructs and I reach down and pick up a palm sized piece of glass from the floor. I hold it in front of his mouth and see condensation forming on the piece of glass.

"He's alive." He says and I feel a wave of relief flow through me. My best friend didn't die.

Then Grover groaned "Food," and I could only chuckle at him.

"Seriously? Huh, idiot." Adamos said in an exasperated tone and I feel him shake his head.

I chose to ignore the comment and start to pull Grover out of the car when I hear my mom behind me.

"Percy," my mother said, "we have to…" Her voice falters as she looks down the road.

I look in the same direction. A flash of lightning illuminates a large figure lumbering toward us on the shoulder of the road. The very sight of it made my skin crawl. The dark silhouette was larger than any lineman you'd see at a football game. His formed kept changing, going from what seemed like a large blanket covering his head to a bull's head.

"Is that—"

"Percy," my mom said in a deadly serious tone. "Get out of the car." I look at her. "Percy—you have to run. Do you see that big tree?"

"The what?" only to get lightning in response as it illuminates a silhouette of a large tree sitting atop the nearest hill.

"That's the property line," My mom said. "Get over the hill and you'll see a big farmhouse down in the valley. Run to it and don't look back. Don't stop till you reach the door and call for help."

"Your coming to." I said with determination in my voice. She just gave me a sad look, like the look she has when talking about my dad.

"Percy she can't she's not—"

"NO!" I shout cutting him off. "You are coming with me. Help me carry Grover." I say while pulling Grover out of the wrecked car.

Grover just began moaning about food louder now.

The minotaur begins to slowly walk towards us. His form now solidifying as it comes out clearly now. I begin to hear the snorting and grunts that are coming from it now.

"He doesn't want us," my mother told me "He wants you. Besides I can't cross the property line."

"But…"

"We don't have time Percy. Go. Please."

I was now getting madder. Mad at being lied to for so long, and now mad at my mom for wanting me to abandon her. At the same time the minotaur was still lumbering towards where we were.

"Percy it's best if we just leave them, we can—"

"No! I'm not abandoning her. I'm not leaving her with that!" I stubbornly argue back to him.

"Fine! You want to be like that. Go ahead. But when I save your ass, I'm telling you how much you screwed up."

Finishing that short argument, I look into my mom's eyes. "Mom, I'm not leaving you. Help me with Grover." Not giving her any time to argue back I duck under one of Grover's arms and drag him over to my mom. He was actually lighter than I thought, but still to heavy to carry him to the hill alone. My mom relents, and drapes Grover's other arm over her shoulder and we start walking through the tall grass and to the top of the hill.

Glancing back, I got my first good look at the minotaur. He had to be taller than seven feet, his arms and legs were masses of bulging muscle. Far larger than any body builders. It was as if some one stuffed baseballs into thick veiny sleeves of skin. He was virtually naked except for a pair of underwear he was wearing. They were bright white fruit of the looms—what was keeping me (but not Adamos) from laughing at the sight was his upper bodily appearance. A mass of course brown hair started at the belly button and began to get thicker as it went up to his shoulders. The neck was a mass of pure bulging muscles and fur that lead to his head. The snout was as long as my arm, with a brass ring hanging out of his nose, cruel black eyes and enormous black and white horns that seemed unnaturally sharp.

I just stared at the minotaur. "Pasiphae's son," I hear my mom say. "I wish I'd known how badly they wanted to kill you."

"Percy, get ready to use my spear." Adamos instructs in a serious tone. And I feel the band on my wrist pulse as if it knows it's ready to be used.

I look at the pine tree that was still too far away—at least a hundred yards uphill. Then I look back to the minotaur, who was hunched over our wrecked car looking—or at least sniffing and nuzzling—through the windows. I wondered how he didn't notice us when we were only fifty yards away.

"The minotaur has terrible eyesight. Both from its father the bull and that it lived in the dark labyrinth. It relies on smell to hunt."

Grover then moaned "Food."

"Shut him up quickly or he'll spot us." Adamos hisses in my head. In response I clamp my hand over Grover's mouth.

"We have to go he'll figure out where we are soon enough." My mom said. As if on que the minotaur bellows in rage and picked up the Camaro by the roof, the chassis groaning. Raising the car over his head with strength that didn't seem possible it threw the car down the road. As the car hit the asphalt it slid a few meters before exploding. Most likely the gas tank ruptured, and the sparks set it alight.

"Not a scratch." I hear Gabe say in my head. I smirk at the wreckage.

"Percy," my mom said. "When he sees us, he'll charge. Wait until the last second, then jump out of the way—directly sideways. He can't change directions very well once he's charging. Do you understand?"

"Yeah, but how do you know all this."

"I've been worried about an attack for a long time. I should have expected this. I was selfish for keeping you near me."

I was about to speak when Adamos took control of my mouth—he's been taking over a lot today.

"There's nothing wrong with wanting to keep your loved ones closest to you. We're here now so we'll just have to deal with it now rather than earlier or later." He says before giving over control again.

My mother thinks about the statement and nods her head in agreement. He was right. There was no changing the past, we just have to deal with this now.

The minotaur turns his head in our direction and bellows in rage and starts to charge up the hill.

He'd found us.

We were still trying to get to the tree. It was only a few yards away, but the slope was getting slicker and Grover was starting to weigh us down. The minotaur was closing in and was about to be on top of us.

My mom shifts most of Grover's weight to her. "Go, Percy! Separate! Remember what I said."

I didn't want to leave her, but I could feel that it was the right decision—and our only chance. I saw it staring me down with its beady black eyes. I could smell rotting meat coming off the thing.

It lowered its head in its charge, the sharp horns pointed at my chest.

The fear in my stomach made me want to run, but that wasn't an option. I knew that I couldn't outrun the thing. So, I held my ground.

"On my mark…NOW!"

Following his lead, I jump to the side as the bull barreled past like a freight train, then roared in frustration before turning. But not towards me this time, towards my mom who was setting Grover on the grass off to the side.

We'd made it to the top of the hill, but we were far from safe. Down I could see a valley and the lights of a farmhouse glowed through the rain. But it was half a mile away and the minotaur was with us now. There was no way I could get help in time.

The minotaur grunted as it began to kick the ground. He kept an eye on my mom, who was going downhill slowly and towards the road to draw it away from Grover.

"Run Percy!" She yelled. "I can't go any farther. Run!"

"Percy the spear! Use my spear!" Adamos kept telling me but I couldn't hear him. I was frozen in fear as the monster charged at her. She tried to sidestep, like she said to do, but the monster learned from the last time. His hand shot out and he had her by the neck. She struggled, kicked and pummeled as she was held in the air.

"MOM!"

"She looked at me through teared eyes and choked out one word: "Go!"

Then with a loud roar the minotaur closed his fist around my mom's neck, and she dissolved before my eyes. A blinding flash of light, and then she was simply… gone.

Then everything came back into the focus and Adamos shouted into my mind.

"THE SPEAR!"

I grit my teeth, anger replaced my fear in that moment. I felt strength in my limbs—the of strength I had when facing Mrs. Dodds. I ripped that metal band off my wrist, and it elongated to a beautiful spear.

The haft of the spear was a wrapped in a pitch-black grip. The butt of the spear was slightly large like a pommel at the end of a hilt of a sword as if it was meant to be swung as such and was a silvery white color. The socket that connected the blade and the haft was the same silver color. The blade made up a foot and a half of the six-foot spear. It was shaped like a dual sided blade that connected to a small sharp crescent at the socket. It was like a trident with the two outside blades being much smaller than the middle blade.

The minotaur was starting to walk towards where Grover was. He was going to kill Grover to. And I couldn't let that happen

I yelled at the minotaur. "Hey ground beef!" hoping to get its attention. The beast turned to me with hate in its eyes, clearly not liking the insult. Its attention was on me and it began to charge. I felt Adamos correct my stance and grip on the spear as the minotaur charged forth. At the last moment I jumped out of the way. The minotaur shot his hand out at me, but I was expecting that as I twist in mid air and slash with the dual sided blade of the spear cutting a gash in the monsters arm, causing it to bring it's hand back with a cry of pain. I land in a roll and immediately get back into a stance and thrust the spear into the back if its leg as it tries to slow down from its charge to turn around. A wild swing of its arms comes towards me and I jump back putting some distance between us.

I begin to circle it trying to put it's back to Grover and put myself onto the high ground.

"Fell the earth beneath you Percy. The unstoppable and constant power. I'll help you direct it, but you must use it. Draw on my power that's available to you." Adamos says. I try to do what he says but I don't sense anything, until something in my gut begins to pull and I feel vibrations beneath my feet.

"What the?" I almost stop moving.

"That's it Percy! Now focus it on him!"

I feel the pull and the vibrations. I feel the earth shifting underneath my feet as I focus on the minotaur and try to move the earth how I want it. The ground begins to tremble underneath the monster's feet causing it to stop, then a blunt spire of earth shoots out and slams into the minotaur's side hard, knocking it off balance and to stumble. I feel exhaustion from using Adamos's powers, but I brush it to the side.

I use that moment to rush him. I raise the spear and diagonally slash, leaving a large gash across the minotaur's chest. Its bellows are cut short as at the end of the slash I feel Adamos guide my hands into a different grip and with grit teeth I swing the blunt end of the spear in an uppercut at the monster's jaw. There was a loud crack as it happens, and I swear I saw a few teeth fly out of the monster's mouth.

I don't let up and let my instincts take over: slash, dodge, thrust, club, dodge and so on until the minotaur is covered in cuts and blood. Then a wild swing comes out and I try to block only to be knocked away by his much greater strength. I instinctively roll with it, landing on my side and rolling away before getting back up. My ribs are on fire as I breath.

"You have 4 bruised ribs and two minor fractures and bruising on your left arm." Adamas informs me.

The minotaur looks at me with pure hate in its eyes and begins to charge. I'm barely standing, and I don't know if I can dodge out of the way.

"Throw the spear!"

"WHAT!"

"Don't think just throw!"

I feel him putting me in a throwing position as the minotaur barrels towards me. I go with it as I have nothing left to lose, and my body tenses as I'm in position. Time slows down as I pull back my arm and release the spear at the minotaur. The spear rockets out of my hand in a streak of light. I see its eyes widen as it tries to turn, but its to late. Though off target the spear strikes the monster on the right shoulder and explodes in a blast of pure destructive force. I, who was a few meters away, got hit by the force and was knocked off my feet. I land on my back and the back of my head hits a rock that was laying on the ground. It feels like my skull was splitting open and my teeth were rattling. I remember seeing the minotaur thrown through the air violently.

I lay there for a few seconds before trying to move. I groan as I get up, my head in a lot of pain, but I push it aside as I stand. A faint warmth is felt in the core of my body.

"I'm healing you Percy, but it could take some time."

"Whatever, it just feels good. But you could have warned me first." I mutter out loud.

"There wasn't enough time to explain." I feel him shrug in my head.

I hear movement down towards the base of the hill. I look and I can't believe it. The minotaur was still alive. It was missing its entire right arm, covered in gashes and cuts, its left leg was broken in the wrong direction, there were burns across its face and chest, and it was missing a horn, but it was none the less alive.

"You've gotta be kidding me!"

My anger was building again. "Why won't it just die!" I thought. Then Adamos moves my arm and holds it out. A split second later the spear flies back into my hand, still looking perfect, but then it begins to shrink to two feet long. The spear is now a long dagger that's used single handedly.

I walk over to the minotaur as it tries to get up, Adamos's spear in one hand and my other arm clutching my ribs. I stop in front of it and it looks at me with hate in its eyes. Anger envelops me as I removed my hand from my ribs and grab its remaining horn. I use it as a grip and plunge the blade under its jaw and into its skull. I then put my foot on the minotaur's chest and pull with all my might. I think of how it took my mother from me, how she disappeared in a flash of light. My adrenaline flooding me like high octane fuel for my muscles. The lightning and thunder were going off around me. A few seconds later there's a snap and a gurgle and the body disappears into gold dust. I'm left standing there, exhausted, aching, and emotionally drained. In my hand is the other horn of the minotaur, and the spear seems to have returned to a band on my wrist. I was bleeding in a few places, but the rain was washing most of it away.

"Did—did I just do that?" I think in disbelief.

"Well I was helping you out a bit, but yeah little bro you just killed the minotaur."

What I said next summarized how I felt about the accomplishment.

"Oh." Adamos just chuckles at my reaction.

I begin to walk towards Grover. Not even noticing that the rain is dyeing down quickly. The thunder was still rumbling but now it was off in the distance. The events were finally coming down on me. The anger faded away, and my head felt like it was splitting open, my limbs were trembling, every breath felt like it was on fire, but Grover was just over there, he needed my help.

"Just a bit further Percy. You're almost there" Adamos encourages me, and was still slowly healing my injuries, which were starting to feel better.

I drape Grover over my shoulder and slowly make my way into the valley. I could hear Adamos still encouraging me, but it was faint, and many other sounds were already being drowned out. I felt horrible that my mother was gone, but I had Grover and I had to get him to safety.

The last thing I remember was collapsing on a wooden porch, looking at a ceiling fan above me. Moths were flying around in the yellow light, and I could see the familiar features of a bearded man, and an unknown girl with blonde hair curled like a princess.

They both looked down at me, and the girl said, "He's the one. He must be."

"Silence Annabeth," the man said. "He's still conscious. Bring him inside."

Then everything fades to black.