claimed |PERCY JACKSON| [book 5]

XII

GROVER WAS HAVING A SNACK IN THE LIVING ROOM. He was dressed for battle in an armored shirt made from tree bark and twist ties, with his wooden cudgel and his reed pipes hanging from his belt.

The Demeter cabin had whipped up a whole buffet in the hotel kitchens—everything from pizza to pineapple ice cream. Unfortunately, Grover was eating the furniture. He'd already chewed the stuffing off a fancy chair and was now gnawing the armrest.

"Dude," Percy called out, "we're only borrowing this place."

"Blah-ha-ha!" He had stuffing all over his face. "Sorry, Percy. It's just . . . Louis the Sixteenth furniture. Delicious. Plus I always eat furniture when I get—"

"When you get nervous," Percy crossed his arms, "Yeah, I know. So what's up?"

He clopped on his hooves. "I heard about Annabeth. Is she...?"

"She's going to be fine. She's resting." Selena interrupted,

Grover took a deep breath. "That's good. I've mobilized most of the nature spirits in the city—well, the ones that will listen to me, anyway." He rubbed his forehead. "I had no idea acorns could hurt so much. Anyway, we're helping out as much as we can."

He told the two about the skirmishes they'd seen. Mostly they'd been covering uptown, where they didn't have enough demigods. Hellhounds had appeared in all sorts of places, shadow-travelling inside their lines, and the dryads and satyrs had been fighting them off. A young dragon had appeared in Harlem, and a dozen wood nymphs died before the monster was finally defeated.

As Grover talked, Thalia entered the room with two of her lieutenants. She nodded to them grimly, went outside to check on Annabeth, and came back in. She listened while Grover completed his report—the details getting worse and worse.

"We lost twenty satyrs against some giants at Fort Washington," he said, his voice trembling. "Almost half my kinsmen. River spirits drowned the giants in the end, but . . ."

Thalia shouldered her bow. "Percy, Kronos's forces are still gathering at every bridge and tunnel. And Kronos isn't the only Titan. One of my Hunters spotted a huge man in golden armor mustering an army on the Jersey shore. I'm not sure who he is, but he radiates power like only a Titan or god."

"Great," Percy sighed, "Any good news?"

Thalia shrugged. "We've sealed off the subway tunnels into Manhattan. My best trappers took care of it. Also, it seems like the enemy is waiting for tonight to attack. I think Luke"—she caught herself—"I mean Kronos needs time to regenerate after each fight. He's still not comfortable with his new form. It's taking a lot of his power to slow time around the city."

Grover nodded. "Most of his forces are more powerful at night, too. But they'll be back after sundown."

Percy tried to think clearly. "Okay. Any word from the gods?"