σɾɳιƚԋαʂ (ρʝσ x ɱαʅҽ σƈ)

The Words of a Dead Lord

Percy's POV

After another humiliating drive with Nico on my lap, Theo finally parked at Central Park. We quickly got out of the Mercedes (I still don't believe that Theo actually owns that car) and walked over just north of the pond.

We saw Mrs. O'Leary there. She looked pretty tired as she limped over to a cluster of boulders. She started sniffing around, and I was afraid she might mark her territory.

Nico: It's okay. She just smells the way home.

Percy: Through the rocks?

Nico: The Underworld has two major entrances. You both know the one in L.A.

Theo: DOA Studios. Charon's ferry.

Nico: (nods) Most souls go that way, but there's a smaller path, harder to find. The Door of Orpheus.

Percy: The dude with the harp.

Nico: Dude with the lyre. But yeah, him. He used his music to charm the earth and open a new path into the Underworld. He sang his way right into Hades's palace and almost got away with his wife's soul.

I remembered the story. Orpheus wasn't supposed to look behind him when he was leading his wife back to the world, but of course, he did. It was one of those typical "and-so-they-died/the-end" stories that always made us feel warm and fuzzy.

Percy: So this is the Door of Orpheus. How does it open?

Nico: We need music.

Immediately, Theo took out his iPod and played Smooth Criminal by Michael Jackson. However, nothing happened. This caused Theo to stop the song and pocket his iPod with a frown.

Theo: Shit taste of music.

Nico: It was worth a shot. How's your singing?

Theo: Hell no.

Nico: Percy?

Percy: Um, no. Can't you just, like, tell it to open? You're the son of Hades and all.

Nico: It's not so easy. We need music.

Theo: Does it need a specific genre or something? Because apparently, MJ doesn't work.

Percy: I have a better idea. GROVER!

We waited for a long time. Mrs. O'Leary curled up and took a nap. I could hear the crickets in the woods and an owl hooting. Traffic hummed along Central Park West. Horse hooves clopped down a nearby path, maybe a mounted police patrol. I was sure they'd love to find two kids hanging out in the park at one in the morning.

Nico: It's no good.

But I had a feeling. My empathy link was really tingling for the first time in months, which either meant a whole lot of people had suddenly switched on the Nature Channel, or Grover was close.

I shut my eyes and concentrated.

Percy: Grover.

I knew he was somewhere in the park. Why couldn't I sense his emotions? All I got was a faint hum in the base of my skull.

Percy: Grover.

???: Hmmmmmm

An image came into my head. I saw a giant elm tree deep in the woods, well off the main paths. Gnarled roots laced the ground, making a kind of bed. Lying in it with his arms crossed and his eyes closed was a satyr. At first, I couldn't be sure it was Grover. He was covered in twigs and leaves, like he'd been sleeping there a long time. The roots seemed to be shaping themselves around him, slowly pulling him into the earth.