Chapter 2:The Quest and the Feud

As I ran to the big house I thought, I've done a lot of running today, but its to be expected I had a new prophecy to tell Chiron. When I made it to the house and after a few minutes to catch my breath I went inside to find Chiron.

"Chiron" I yelled as I entered the house.

"In here" I heard Chiron yell from the kitchen.

As I entered the kitchen I noticed Mr. D sitting at the kitchen table playing pinochle with Chiron.

"Hello, Mr. Johnson, what are you doing here?" Mr. D said with his typical apathetic tone.

"I need to talk to Chiron and for the thousandth time my name is Jackson not Johnson!" I said angrily.

"Whatever, Chiron we can finish this game later I'll go and check on my grape vines, its almost harvest time. Try not to get into any trouble Peter!" Mr. D said sarcastically as he walked out the door.

I told Chiron the prophecy that I received from Rachel. I could tell that he was concerned.

"Percy, I agree that the first part of the prophecy is about a quest that you must take alone. I know that you are concerned about going on a quest alone but there must be a reason. Prophecies must be followed, especially when they are this detailed." Chiron said concerned.

"I know, but its just that I've never been on a quest by myself before, it makes me nervous." I said with more concern in my voice than I wanted to show.

"Percy, you will do fine, I have faith in you my boy, you defeated Kronos didn't you?" Chiron said trying to be supportive.

"Yes, but I had my friends to help" I said nervously.

"Percy, relax I know you will do fine, keep your wits about you and be calm in the face of battle and you will do well." Chiron said encouragingly.

"Thank you for the support Chiron, but I have one question, what is the void?"

Chiron looked uncomfortable for a moment and then he said, "The void was a legend even in ancient times, but it was usually thought to be in an area of extreme heat, with a lack of moisture, in other words a desert. Typically a desert of extreme conditions completely out of the ordinary"

"Any idea where the void might be today, I assume its somewhere either within or near the United States just like the Bermuda Triangle or the gateway to Hades in Hollywood." I said feeling a little overwhelmed by how uncomfortable Chiron sounded.

Chiron looked at me for a moment, then he cleared his throat and said, "There is one person who might know, she has studied the legend of the void for a very long time."

"Chiron, who is she and where can I find her" I said anxiously.

Chiron looked at me in that uncomfortable way again and then said, "The good new is that I will contact her for you and I will have her meet you at camp. The bad news Percy, is that you already know her, its Athena!"

I about fell over when he said it was Athena, my ADHD went into over drive, I couldn't stop thinking about Annabeth and how her mother didn't approve of us, I could not stop envisioning the piercing gaze of Athena. I guess my glazed over expression and my lifeless face were obvious because Chiron said, "Percy it will be o.k., Athena will help you no matter how she feels about you, don't worry. You need to focus and concentrate, your going on this quest alone and you need to remain alert and coherent."

"Chiron, I know I will do my best" I said half-heartedly.

"Good, you need to go pack for your quest, you will leave tomorrow. I will contact the Olympian council and inform them of the prophecy and your quest. I will let you know when Athena arrives to see you." Chiron said motioning for me to leave.

I stepped out of the big house and began to walk toward my cabin. As I walked I noticed a few campers up and about. As I reached my cabin I looked down by the lake and noticed a man in a hawaiian shirt. It was my dad, Poseidon, lord of the seas. I ran straight to the beach to meet my dad, I was sure he must of know about the prophecy and the quest.

"Hello son, how are you?" he said.

"Fine, until this morning, I guess you heard about the prophecy." I said emphatically.

"Calm down son, Chiron and I have faith in you. Yes, I know about the prophecy and your quest. I wanted to talk to you before Athena." he said with concern in his voice.

"O.K. dad, thanks for the support, but why do you want to talk to me before Athena does?" I said with a little more concern in my voice than his.

"Percy, I know about you and Annabeth, I know how you feel about her and I have a pretty good idea how she feels about you. I know this because Athena is concerned and she gave me an earful at the council meeting today. I do not have a problem with Annabeth, if you like her then I'll support you, but Athena can be vindictive and a down right witch when she wants to be. Please be careful and do not upset her, I do not want her to hurt you."

"Dad, I love Annabeth, I'm sorry if this concerns you, I will be careful around Athena, but she dislikes me because of the terrible things that you have done to her." I said in a very aggravated tone.

"Percy, she has caused more pain to me than any other god and I will not allow you to turn this back on me. She is the one to blame, not me." My dad said angrily.

"Dad, how can beating you in the competition for Athens compare to having sex in her temple with one of her priestesses?" I said with disbelief in my voice.

My dad was really angry now, I noticed huge waves slamming the lake and the shaking of the earth under my feet. "Perseus Jackson, I will not accept that tone in your voice." My dad said, clearly very angry.

"Dad, please calm down, I do not want you to be mad, but I need to understand this three thousand year old feud between you two. Please help me understand." I pleaded with my dad.

"Alright son, I'm sorry for losing my temper, let me explain. Three thousand years ago I had a demigod son who fell in love with Athena herself. She was in love with him, deeply, this was before she took the oath with Artemis. I know this because at the time, Athena and I were very close, actually she was my favorite niece. We worked together to help Athens and actually the port city to Athens was named after me. Athena and my son were in love and as Aphrodite would say, it was true love. Athena, however, doubted how she could love a mortal and she broke my sons heart by telling him that she didn't love him anymore. This destroyed my son and he killed himself. She killed my son and I will never forgive her. Now do you see what I mean, she is the goddess of wisdom, she has no heart and I will not let her hurt you as well. Please be careful my son." My dad told me this story with more emotion and anger in his voice than I had ever heard before. I now understood why he hated Athena so much.

"Dad, I'm sorry I didn't know, I promise you I will be careful." I said as I wrapped my arms around him in a big hug. He hugged me back and I could feel his anger fade.

"I have to go son, be careful on your quest and I will be watching as much as I can. I love you son, goodbye." When he finished he began to glow, I averted my eyes as my dad changed into his god form and vanished. I walked back to my cabin and went inside to pack.

An hour later Chiron entered my cabin to tell me that Athena had arrived and would be waiting for me down by the lake. After Chiron left I walked down to the lake to meet my dad's biggest enemy. There she was, she had the same gray eyes as Annabeth but they looked cold and piercing, like she was sizing me up. As I reached her I said, "Lady Athena, thank you for meeting with me and agreeing to help with the quest." She looked at me sternly and said, "I do not like you and I do not approve of your relationship with my daughter. Annabeth cares for you and I will not hurt her by destroying you but if you hurt her there will be no place to hide from my wrath."

I know I probably shouldn't have said anything but sometimes I talk before I think, I guess it could be the ADHD. "My dad told me that you were his favorite niece a long time ago. He also told me why he hates you now."

I think that was the last thing she expected me to say because she said, "What! What did he say?"

"He said that three thousand years ago that he had a demigod son that loved you and you broke his heart. He also said that his son killed himself because of what you did. That is why he hates you." I tried to make my voice convey all of the pain that my father expressed to me.

Her reaction is not what I expected, her face paled and her eyes grew wide. I think what I told her was a complete surprise. Whatever her reaction meant, she recomposed herself quickly and said,

"Yes, your father was my favorite uncle and we were close for hundreds of years before his treachery began. I never had feelings for a son of Poseidon, your father lies" She said this in a tone that even I could pick up on. I didn't quite believe her though, as she would not look directly in my eyes when she said it, much the same way Annabeth does when she is trying to avoid something.

"Let's discuss the void!" I said trying to change the subject and hopefully end this conversation as soon as possible.

"The location of the void in ancient times was unknown, primarily because it moved around and was not always located in a desert. Today, however, the location of the void is fairly predictable although no one knows the specific location." Athena said with just a hint of relief in her voice.

"What is the void?" I said.

"The void was the location where Kronos and his siblings destroyed their father Oranos. The energy that was released when Oranos was destroyed created the void. The void is a rip in the fabric of time and space. Thats all anyone really knows." Athena said.

"Where can I find it" I finally said.

Athena looked at me, a smile crept across her face and then she started to glow, I closed my eyes as soon as I could. Before she transformed into her god form and disappeared she said, " Try Death Valley."

Death Valley, this quest just gets better and better I thought, why do these things always happen to me?