by Rick Riordan
I had mixed feelings about this place, but whatever you thought of libraries, there was no denying that this one was sad. Nobody had even bothered to sell or give away the books. The building had just been abandoned. Even the transients or local teenagers who’d broken in over the years didn’t care enough to bother with the books—except to use them as tinder for fires.
In the center of the room, under the ornate domed ceiling, a ten-foot-tall statue stood on a high pedestal.
The figure wore flowing robes. She held an open book in one hand like she was about to recite a poem. Her face was beautiful but stern. Her dark hair fell in ringlets around her face.
I’m sure I’d seen the statue before, but I’d never paid it much attention. Now I realized what it was.
“A Greek goddess?” I asked.
Sam nodded. “The goddess of memory and language: Mnemosyne.”
He pronounced it like Nemo Sign, though as far as I could tell, the goddess had nothing to do with cartoon fish.
“Never heard of her,” I admitted. “She’s not one of the big gods, I guess.”
Sam cleared his throat. “I wouldn’t say things like that.”
“It’s only a statue.”
“It’s a statue of a goddess, and the gods are real. She’s one of the early Titan deities, one of the good Titans. She’s the mother of the Nine Muses who oversee all the arts: music, poetry, dancing, and whatnot. Anyway, libraries are Mnemosyne’s sacred place. Her spirit is strong here. She protects this place.”
I looked around at the ruined furniture and piles of trash. “She’s doing a great job.”
“Seriously, be more respectful.” Sam glanced at the goddess’s face. “Her presence will keep the monsters at bay. At least…it should. We’ll get our supplies together, rest here for the night, and figure out our next move.”
“Our next move…” My heart sank. “So even if we defeat this other lion that’s following us—”
“There will always be more monsters,” Sam said grimly. “Now that they’ve located you, they’ll never stop trying to kill you. You’re a demigod. Your life…well, from here on out, it’ll be hard. But I’ll be with you. You’re not alone.”
I appreciated Sam saying that, but I was starting to process the fact that I couldn’t go home. Not tonight. Maybe not ever. My life had fundamentally changed. I would never be able to go back to anything resembling normal.
Sam approached the base of the statue. He pushed the bronze plaque inscribed with the goddess’s name. The pedestal hissed, and the front part swung open like a refrigerator door.
Inside was a locker almost as tall as I was. I spotted two hiking packs with bedrolls and water bottles. And hanging on the back wall of the cabinet was a sheathed sword with a blue gem glowing faintly on the pommel.
Before I could say anything, a glass window shattered behind me. A lion even bigger than Ms. Roche crashed through and landed only ten feet away.
“There you are.” The lion’s voice was definitely male. His snarling face was wreathed in a shaggy golden mane. His fully extended claws gleamed white. He rose on his haunches, which only made him look scarier. “You destroyed my sister,” he snarled. “Now I will destroy you.”
My lungs deflated like old helium balloons. “Your—your sister? You mean you and Ms. Roche—”
“We are leontes!” the lion bellowed. “The children of Atalanta! We always hunt in pairs. Normally, the female has the honor of the kill, but since you sent her back to Tartarus—”
“Wait.” I was hoping if I bought us a little time, Sam could get us out of this somehow. Maybe one of the packs in the cabinet contained a few hand grenades or possibly a bazooka. “Um, Mr. Lion…sorry, but I always like to know who’s killing me. You said you’re a child of who?”
“Atalanta!” he cried. “The most famous Greek heroine! A glorious hunter. The fastest of runners. She and our father Hippomenes were cursed by that ridiculous love goddess Aphrodite simply because they forgot to make a few sacrifices during their wedding ceremony. Aphrodite changed them into lions! Ever since, we their descendants have prowled the world, looking for revenge. Since we cannot destroy the gods, we destroy their children!”
I was out of magical tree-growing gold coins, so I glanced at Sam, hoping he had found a bazooka. Sadly, he was frozen in terror. He may have been my self-proclaimed protector, but at the moment he was about as helpful as the statue of Nemo Sign.
“Well, Mr. Lion…” My voice sounded as squeaky as Mickey Mouse. “I can tell you’re upset. But, uh, I don’t even know the gods. I didn’t know I was a demigod until like an hour ago—”
“Good!” snarled the lion. “I will destroy you before you learn your powers!”
I looked around frantically. Should I go for the sword? Or try to outwit the lion?
The lion tensed to pounce.
Select a choice:
SWORD
OUTWIT
WARNING! You’re about to spoil a great story by not making a choice! Page back, then click one of the links to advance the story. Otherwise, the next section may not make any sense to you.
“The road,” I said. “It looked like there were a lot of cars up there. We can get someone to help us out.”
“I don’t know…” said Sam. “You’re not, like, great with adults.”
“Thanks for the vote of confidence,” I said, and took off for the road, Sam hot on my heels. His breathing whistled and puffed exactly like a horse or…a goat. So let’s see, I thought. I need to convince someone to let a half-animal, half-man into their car and drive us to an abandoned library. I didn’t feel very good about our chances, but I felt worse about staying in the forest.
We got to the cracked asphalt and stopped, looking into the distance in either direction.
“No cars,” said Sam, his voice tight. He looked back toward the forest.
“Yeah, I see that,” I said.
“Should we go back?” As if in answer to his question, a howl echoed out of the woods and the treetops quivered like something very large was shaking them.
Just when I was thinking I’d made the wrong choice, I spotted a small red dot moving toward us, wavering in the heat reflecting off the road. “There!”
Sam spun around and pumped his fist in the air. “Yes! Okay, look. We probably only have one shot at this, so remember to make eye contact and smile. And don’t mumble. And relax your shoulders. And stand up straight. And don’t shift your weight…”
“I got it!” I said and stepped into the middle of the road, waving my hands in the air, rehearsing what I was going to say. Sam was right to worry. I wasn’t always good at reading people or talking to adults. But I understood the stakes. This time, I had no room for error.
A red convertible came flying toward me, then braked hard, its engine slowing to a low, even idle under a wall of music. The driver revved it and gestured for me to get out of the way.
Instead, I pasted a big smile on my face and walked toward the front of the car. “Hi, sir,” I shouted over the thumping bass, “Thanks for stopping.”
The man, in his early thirties, had stylishly messy brown hair. He was wearing dark aviator sunglasses and a crisp blue button-down rolled up at the sleeves, revealing an expensive-looking wristwatch.
I kept the smile plastered on my face and gestured to Sam as I continued to shout. “My friend and I are just trying to get to the library, and we need some help.”
He reached forward, quieting the music. “Sorry, I’m not from around here and I’m in a hurry. You’ll have to catch another ride.” He put his hand on the gearshift.
“Well, we would just wait for the next car, but we’re trying to…umm…meet my mother. She works there. S-she’s a librarian. And, and she gets really upset when we’re late.” My words were halting and awkward. I sounded like exactly what I was: a liar.
“Then why don’t you call her to pick you up? I don’t have time for this.” His right arm moved, and I heard the gears shift as h
e turned to look over his right shoulder. Another howl echoed from the woods, this time, much closer.
“Please, sir.” I stepped forward. “My friend has a…a hurt leg. And, and…And I’m having a hard time breathing…”
The man smiled. “And, and…And I’m having a hard time getting you to understand that it’s really not my problem.” He reversed the car down the road about ten feet, punched the stereo back on, then pulled around us and sped away, leaving us alone…again.
“Well, that went well,” said Sam, glancing back at the forest. “We can either wait for another car to show up, head back to the bridge, or stay in the woods and try to jump the river. What do you think?”
“I don’t know,” I said, embarrassed by my failure. “Maybe I’m no good at making decisions. You have to help me.”
Sam shook his head. “I don’t know either. It might be too late to go back, so maybe we are better off waiting for another car. But if that goes anything like this just did…we’re lion kibble.” He stared at me, waiting for me to decide.
I thought for a moment.
Select a choice:
ROAD AGAIN
WOODS
BRIDGE
WARNING! You’re about to spoil a great story by not making a choice! Page back, then click one of the links to advance the story. Otherwise, the next section may not make any sense to you.
The leonte uncoiled his limbs like a spring and hurtled through the air. As he did, I turned and leapt toward the locker, hoping to reach the sword. Though I managed to avoid the swiping lion claws, I landed far short of the glowing blade.
I scrambled forward, but the leonte leapt again, landing between me and the locker. He laughed. “Not much of a hero,” he said. “I was expecting more of a challenge.”
He took one leisurely step forward as I looked around frantically for something…anything. But my pockets were empty and there wasn’t even a book or a scrap of paper within arm’s reach. The leonte stood above me, raised one massive paw, and…
…howled in pain, his eyes widening in surprise. He slumped to the ground, revealing Sam, the glowing blade quivering in his hands. I shouted in surprise and Sam quickly tossed me the sword, as if it was a dirty tissue. I scrambled to my feet, pointing the weapon at the leonte’s crumpled form.
“Miserable demigod!” The lion’s fur disintegrated. His limbs crumbled into columns of yellow powder. “You will never succeed! Your quest will not…”
He collapsed into a pile of dust.
For a moment, the library was as silent as…well, a library.
Sam let out a delayed bleat. “Wow! That—that was—”
“Terrifying?” I asked. My hands shook. My legs could barely hold up my weight.
I had officially reached maximum weirdness overload. I wanted to crawl into Sam’s secret storage cabinet, close the door, and cry for a week.
Instead, things just got weirder.
YOU HAVE DONE WELL. A woman’s voice echoed around the abandoned room.
Wind swept through the broken window, ruffling the open books, blowing torn pages across the floor.
Dust motes swirled in a shaft of sunlight, solidifying into the form of a woman. She wore luminous white robes covered in intricate black patterns…words, I realized, as if her clothes were woven from e-reader screens. Dark hair curled around her timeless face. Her eyes bored right through me.
Sam bowed. “Your—Your Greatness. Your Most Well-Read Majesty.”
“Mnemosyne,” I guessed. “The goddess of memory.”
The goddess inclined her head. “And you are the hero I have heard so much about.”
I realized I was pointing my weapon at the goddess, which probably wasn’t a smart idea. I lowered it. “You’ve heard about me?”
“Oh, yes.” Mnemosyne sighed. “I never forget a story, or a name, or a face. Actually, I never forget anything. Being the memory goddess can be quite annoying. I saw this horrible Ben Stiller movie fifteen years ago and I still can’t get the dialogue out of my mind.”
“Uh, okay,” I said. “But getting back to me…”
“Yes,” the goddess agreed. She scanned the ruins of the library. “You did me a service, cleansing this place of the monster’s filth. Once, this was a holy site of learning, reading, and free Internet. Alas, the mortals consider such things of little value. You, my young hero, have many adventures ahead of you. Your quest will be remembered for centuries, written about in many books…assuming, of course, you survive. To aid in your journey, I offer you a gift.” The goddess swept her white robes aside to reveal a small wooden lectern with three items on top of it. “Depending on how well you know yourself, it may help you. Or not. Choose wisely.”
What kind of gifts would a goddess give? I thought. Gold? Frankincense? An iPod? I walked excitedly over to the lectern, but my heart sank when I scanned the items: an old library card, a battered pair of glasses, and a small section of white cloth.
I looked to Sam, but he only nodded encouragingly and echoed her words, “Choose wisely, Zane.”
Very helpful, I thought. I guess he was serious about me making all the decisions.
Slowly, I extended my hand and took the library card.
The goddess nodded and her robes swung forward, enveloping the lectern. “An excellent choice, my young hero,” she said. “I wish you well.”
“Wait!” I gulped. “Do you—do you know who my godly parent is?”
“Ah…” The lines around the goddess’s eyes tightened, almost as if she felt sorry for me. “That you must learn for yourself. I can only set you on the path.”
She turned to Sam. “My young satyr Greenwood, you must lead your friend to Austin. There you will find the answers you seek.”
“Austin, Texas…?” Sam’s face blanched. “But Austin has, um, those special monsters…”
“Yes, it does,” said the goddess. “Your quest will not be easy, but it is necessary.” She looked at me again. “If you would know your true parentage, go to Austin. Seek out the river god Barton. Do not forget me, hero. Rest assured, I will not forget you.”
The goddess dissolved into sunlight.
Sam made a small whimpering noise. “Austin…oh, I still have nightmares about Austin.”
I tried to control my racing heartbeat. I couldn’t quite believe I’d had a conversation with an immortal goddess. “What—what happened to you in Austin? What kind of river god is named Barton? And what are those special monsters you mentioned?”
His lower lip quivered. “I’ll tell you all that when we get closer. I promise. If I have to talk about it now…”
His eyes welled with tears. I realized Sam was even more shaken up about today’s events than I was. So yeah, maybe he knew all about this weird world of gods and monsters. And maybe the gods had assigned him to protect me. But he was still my friend, and I would have to step up and protect him, too.
I looked around at all the scattered books, covered with dust. Mnemosyne had claimed that my deeds would be written about someday, assuming I survived. I didn’t care about being famous. I did care about surviving. If I had to be in a story, I didn’t want the ending to read: And he died painfully.
“It’s going to be all right,” I told Sam. “We’re in this together. I don’t like the idea of staying here overnight, though. How about we get going?”
Sam took a deep breath. “Yeah. It’s a long way to Austin.”
“Then let’s get started.” I grabbed one of the hiking packs and slung it over my shoulder. “Let’s go find out who my godly parent is.”
GO TO AUSTIN
WARNING! You’re about to spoil a great story by not making a choice! Page back, then click one of the links to advance the story. Otherwise, the next section may not make any sense to you.
“A ch-challenge!” I managed to shout, wracking my brain for facts about lions, hoping they would also apply to leontes.
He stopped, the hint of a smile flitting across his massive jowls. “What do you mean,
‘a challenge’?”
“Your sister challenged me with a riddle and promised to let me go if I answered it correctly. I answered it and the gods struck her down.”
The leonte looked around nervously. “You lie.”
Sam sidled closer to me and whispered, “I think you’re thinking of the sphinx.”
“You’re the king of the jungle, aren’t you? Everyone knows kings must be stronger and smarter.”
“That’s true,” said the leonte. “But I am sure my sister did not offer you a challenge. And if she did, you certainly did not outwit her. She was the cleverest daughter of Atalanta.”
“And I suppose you’re the cleverest son?” I tried to remember a riddle—any riddle.
“Of course,” he said, sitting back on his haunches, licking his lips mightily. I heard Sam squeak.
“Then you wouldn’t mind proving it,” I said. “After all, the gods are watching…even Aphrodite.”
The leonte leapt to his feet and growled. “I will accept your challenge. And then I will destroy you, demigod.” He began to pace the room, waiting.
I walked over toward the locker, keeping my back to it and my eyes averted. “I’ll ask you the same riddle your sister asked me. If you answer it correctly, I will kneel and accept my fate. If you fail, you kneel in front of me.”
“Zane,” said Sam, his voice quivering, “what are you doing?”
“Ask it, then,” snarled the leonte.
“Okay,” I said, clearing my throat. “Here is your riddle. Um…
“Hurry,” snarled the leonte. “Ask it just as she did.”
“What is the only thing you can see in the dark?” I blurted out.
“In the dark?” asked the leonte, pacing the room. I edged closer to the closet.
“Yes. In the dark. Exactly as your sister asked me.”