RED ¹ / Percy Jackson !

72

"HOOVER DAM," THALIA SAID.  "It's huge."

They stood at the river's edge, looking up at a curve of concrete that loomed between the cliffs. People were walking along the top of the dam. They were so tiny they looked like fleas. 

 The naiads had left with a lot of grumbling—not in words anyone could understand, but it was obvious they hated this dam blocking up their nice river. Their canoes floated back downstream, swirling in the wake from the dam's discharge vents.

"Seven hundred feet tall," Percy said. "Built in the 1930s." 

"It was built in just 5 years during the great depression." Viviene said.

 "Five million cubic acres of water," Thalia said.

 Grover sighed. "Largest construction project in the United States." 

 Zoe stared at them. "How do you know all that?"

"Annabeth," Percy said. "She liked architecture." 

 "She was nuts about monuments," Thalia said. 

 "Spouted facts all the time."  Viviene said, grabbing Percy's hand and biting back tears. "So annoying." 

 "I wish she were here," Percy said sadly.

The others nodded. Zoe was still looking at them strangely, but Viviene didn't care. It seemed like cruel fate that they'd come to Hoover Dam, one of Annabeth's personal favorites, and she wasn't here to see it. 

"We should go up there," Viviene said. "For her sake. Just to say we've been." 

 "You are mad," Zoe decided. "But that's where the road is." She pointed to a huge parking garage next to the top of the dam. "And so, sightseeing it is."

***

They had to walk for almost an hour before we found a path that led up to the road. It came up on the east side of the river. Then they straggled back toward the dam. It was cold and windy on top. On one side, a big lake spread out, ringed by barren desert mountains. On the other side, the dam dropped away like the world's most dangerous skateboard ramp, down to the river seven hundred feet below, and water that churned from the dam's vents.

Thalia walked in the middle of the road, far away from the edges. Grover kept sniffing the wind and looking nervous. He didn't say anything, but Viviene knew he smelled monsters. 

"How close are they?" Percy asked him. 

 He shook his head. "Maybe not close. The wind on the dam, the desert all around us... the scent can probably carry for miles. But it's coming from several directions. I don't like that."

Viviene didn't either. It was already Wednesday, only two days until winter solstice, and they still had a long way to go. They didn't need any more monsters.

"There's a snack bar in the visitor center," Thalia said.

"You've been here before?" Percy asked.

 "Once. To see the guardians." She pointed to the far end of the dam. Carved into the side of the cliff was a little plaza with two big bronze statues. They looked kind of like Oscar statues with wings.