They Fight the Mother of Monsters

The Gateway Arch in Denver was about a mile from the train station. Late in the day the lines to get in weren't that long. They threaded their way through the incredible underground museum, looking at covered wagons and other stuff from the 1800s. It wasn't all that thrilling to be honest, at least not for Percy or Grover, who was yawning and sighing more than usual, but Annabeth kept telling them interesting facts about how the Arch was built, Albert was listening to her words with mild enthusiasm, he likes museums and art too, but he couldn't bring himself to relax at all.

Grover kept passing him and Percy some jelly beans he purchased before. Annabeth didn't seem bothered by the fact that they weren't as interested as her, probably because she was a bit too deep in her little world to notice their lack of excitement.

Percy kept looking around, though, at the other people in line. "You smell anything?" He murmured to Grover.

The young satyr took his nose out of the jelly bean bag long enough to sniff. "Underground," he said distastefully. "Underground air always smells like monsters. Probably doesn't mean anything, right?"

"We should be ready, anyways," Albert interjected. "I think it definitely means something."

 Percy was frowning as if he felt something was wrong with the place. Albert didn't feel anything particularly bad about the place yet, but he knew about the monsters.

"Guys," Percy finally said. "You know the gods' symbols of power?"

Annabeth had been in the middle of reading about the construction equipment used to build the Arch, but she looked over. "Yeah?"

"Well, Hade—!"

Grover cleared his throat interrupting him with a warning tone, "We're in a public place. . . . You mean, our friend downstairs, right?"

"Um, right, whatever" The boy replied with a face. "Our friend way downstairs. Doesn't he have a hat like Annabeth's?"

"You mean the Helm of Darkness?" Annabeth asked looking a bit impressed. "Yeah, that's his symbol of power, like the guy upstairs master bold, and the beach gay trident. I saw it next to his seat during the winter solstice council meeting. He didn't hide the fact that he was not happy being there at all, he had a grumpy expression the entire time."

"He was there?" Percy asked this time very surprised. "Why would he be there?"

Annabeth hummed in understanding as she guessed the reason why Percy looked so surprised and explained. "It's the only time he's allowed to visit Olympus—the darkest day of the year. But his helm is a lot more powerful than my invisibility hat if what I've heard is true. . . ."

"I forgot about that part, about the solstice meaning I mean," Albert mused out loud and continued. "It used to be a big thing for many civilizations across history. It is believed that on the solstice, the moon gives birth to the sun. In Greek mythology, Leto, the Titaness Goddess of Childbirth, gave birth to the bright, shining God Apollo. I don't know if this is the truth though."

"Leto? A Titaness?" Percy pressed for more. "I never heard of her before."

Albert hummed, she isn't exactly popular he guessed, "Leto was-is- I don't know, huh, a Titaness, you know? The daughter of Coeus and Phoebe. Titans. A cousin to the twelve Olympian gods, to your dad at least."

"Thanks..." Percy said with a smile smile, "What about the other thing?"

"The Helm of Darkness, allows him to become darkness..., it's complicated to explain," Grover joined the talk, "He can melt into shadow or pass through walls. He can't be touched, or seen, or heard, not even by the other gods. And he can radiate fear so intense it can drive you insane or stop your heart altogether." He then asked, "Why do you think all rational creatures fear the dark?"

"Not all," Albert said as he shook his head. "There are creatures who thrive in the darkness."

"But then . . . how do we know he's not here right now, watching us?" Percy asked with a frown of worry.

Annabeth and Grover exchanged looks. Albert made a face and turned to face one of the pieces exposed in one of the walls.

"We don't," Grover said.

"We can't know, simple as that," The girl shrugged.

"Thanks, that makes me feel a lot better," Percy sarcastically stated. "Got any blue jelly beans left?"

When the four of them saw the tiny little elevator car we were going to ride to the top of the Arch. Percy looked extremely uncomfortable. He probably hates confined places, saying to them they make him nuts.

The Sea doesn't like to be restrained, Albert thought to himself. 

When he saw this big fat lady and her dog, a Chihuahua with a rhinestone collar. Albert felt like he was gonna go insane. Why was the Mist like that? A fat lady and a Chihuahua? Please! Just by standing next to her. He hurried the others to hurry up, without giving much of an explanation. The fat lady stood at the entrance looking annoyed at the building. 

When they started going up, inside the Arch. He felt awful. He'd never been in an elevator that went in a curve, and my stomach wasn't too happy about it, nor were the other boys.

"Guys, I have something to tell you... bad news" He suddenly said.

"What now?" Percy asked in alarm.

"Monsters..." Grover guessed with a worried tone.

"We are okay, right, Annabeth?" The boy asked, and the girl looked surprised.

Noticing the weird exchange of looks, Percy impatiently asked, "What is going on?"

"No monster can enter this place," Annabeth explained, before shooting Albert a suspicious glance. "It's my mother's temple."

Percy looked relieved and also as if he realized something, "Oh... that's why I felt so weird here. Your mother doesn't like my dad and I am in her temple."

"Anyways, we can talk about this later," Albert interrupted them. "We need to make a plan, this isn't going to be easy. Those things aren't gonna go anywhere while they know we're here."

"They?!"

Just as they arrived at the top of the Arch, the observation deck reminded me of a tin can with carpeting but it was still very different. Rows of tiny windows looked out over the city on one side and the river on the other. The view was okay. They were the only people there.

"What do you know?" Annabeth asked incisively. "You know something we don't, don't you? What is it?"

Something they don't? Oh, he knew so much more than... Albert thought. He thought for a moment and replied, "Yes, I know who and what they are... the monsters. I can't explain why though, but it will be best for everyone if you take me seriously."

"Who are they?" Percy quickly asked.

"Did anyone of you notice the fat lady with the chihuahua from before?" He asked.

"She was smiling sweetly at us!" Grover exclaimed in horror. "I saw her!"

"What about them?" Annabeth asked in impatience.

"They... they are dangerous," The boy said in a serious tone, he was in his battle mode. "The Chihuahua is just the Mist, that thing is no Chihuahua. It's the Chimera and the fat lady... I guess I can say it is its mother."

"What's a Chimera?" Percy asked in confusion.

"No way..." Grover gasped in horror. "Why is she here?!"

"Who is this she?" Percy asked again.

"Her name is Echidna..." Annabeth said absentmindedly as her distinct grey eyes moved fast as if she were in the middle of a brainstorm for survival. 

"Echidna?" Percy repeated cluelessly.

"Echidna is also known as the Mother of Monsters, Jackson," Albert explained in a neutral tone. "And the Chimera is a powerful monster often described as the offspring of Echidna. Hidden by the Mist is her true form, a half-woman, half-snake creature known to have given birth to so many monsters."

Grover quickly added, "The Chimera had the body of a lion, the head of a goat on its back, and a serpent for a tail. It was a hybrid creature with elements of different animals, making it a symbol of chaos and the unnatural. It even breathes fire! I like animals, Percy, but I don't like that thing at all."

"These monsters..." The black-haired boy said in a small voice. "They are after me, right? Maybe... maybe if you guys run away, she can focus on me."

"Hah! Fat chance, we are leaving you behind," Albert's pale pink-colored eyes were stern as he sharply said, "We are here on a quest, Jackson. I don't even wanna hear a world of self-pity from you right now. What we can do is plan a way to defeat those two."

"We are not leaving, Percy!" Grover said looking angry. "Stop saying that!" He then turned to the other boy and asked, "How can we survive that? Annabeth, any ideas?"

The girl groaned in frustration, "No... I need more time."

Albert thought about this moment for a long time while he was coming here, it was the privilege of foreknowledge. He had imagined this fight going a lot of ways, but the truth is that direct confrontation with those two was basically a suicide mission. 

"If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles, "Albert recited. It felt like the right thing to say to calm their nerves.

"Did you really just quote Sun Tzu?" The girl asked as she let out a weird laugh, "This is so annoying... I am at my mother's temple, the goddess of wisdom, and I am panicking while you seem calm. This is so frustrating."

"Who the hell is Sun Tzu?" Percy quietly questioned poking Grover.

Grover also raised his hands in defeat. "I don't know, man. I am just a satyr!"

"He was a Chinese military strategist, philosopher, and author who lived during the Eastern Zhou period of ancient China, though the historical accuracy of his existence is debated among scholars," Albert briefly summarized. "Sun Tzu is best known for his work "The Art of War", aka, my grandfather's favorite book." He then turned to the now quiet blond girl, "Do you know what else he said?"

Annabeth looked at him and for a moment there was silence, she tentatively spoke, "All warfare is based on deception?"

"Precisely!" He replied feeling oddly proud of her. "Back at Medusa's lair, none of us could fight her properly so we had to improvise. We are gonna do the same thing now."

"We will need to divide the group into two groups," The girl stated as she finally understood what he was getting at. 

"Divided?" Grover asked in surprise. "Why?"

"Because we can't fight them together," Percy said, he sounded more calm now. 

"Yes," The brown-haired boy said as he fixed his hair in a ponytail, and crossed his arms around his chest, "Jackson and Grover, you two are gonna be group A. Your target will be the Chimera. Me and Annabeth will be group B, we will face Echidna." 

"Why though, isn't she stronger? It's too dangerous," He protested. "You and Annabeth will be in danger. I don't like this at all!"

"He is right. I need to be this way," The girl quickly and seriously agreed, but facing the boy's defiant look she took a deep breath and explained, "Because you are the best option to fight the Chimera, Albert wants you to take the fight to the river and Grover can help you with the flying shoes," She turned to the other demigod, "Am I wrong?"

"You are right," He nodded with a thoughtful expression, "That monster breathes fire and Jackson will be strongest in the water. After all, he is the son of the Sea God. He will need Grover's help because that thing can probably run very fast."

Percy let out an unhappy groan, but he could argue with their logic. Grover merely nodded as if he understood what his role was and he was determined to make it work.

"What about you guys, how can you defeat that Echidna lady?" Percy asked, the emotions in his voice were way too strong.

"You should focus on your part of the plan, Seaweed Brain," The girl tentatively tried, "We will manage."

"This plan only works if we can trust each other," Albert stated with a playful smirk. "We aren't playing here, Jackson. I appreciate your worry and care, but although she doesn't always look like it, Annabeth is quite clever."

"You had to ruin the moment, didn't you?" The girl glared at him.

"What about you though?" Percy suddenly said, staring directly at the boy. "Her mother is a Goddess of War and everything, I get. But about you?"

This question was unexpected and it caught Albert off guard. Why was this brat worried about him? They weren't even friends. It was quite disconcerting and it made him feel weird. He shook his head and averted his gaze, "You should worry about yourself. I can handle my part just fine. Now, let's all prepare and make sure we win."

...

After more or less an hour of bickering, arguing, panicking, and second-guessings, the group finally got into a plan that all four of them were more or less confident, which was in itself an overstatement of the situation.

Percy was sweating buckets and had this anxious look on his face, looking reluctant to follow the plan, but facing Albert's reassuring gaze he begrudgingly took a deep breath and nodded that he was ready. Grover was fidgeting like crazy, opening and closing his fists to calm himself. Annabeth was better than the other boys at hiding her insecurity, her grey eyes were stony and more serious than ever before, and she was oddly quiet, she shot them a final look before putting on her invisibility cap and disappearing in front of them.

Albert made sure to look confident from beginning to end. He felt a deep sense of responsibility to make the whole thing work and was willing to go very far to make sure that each of them was sorted into the best possible position on the plan. From what he could remember, they never defeated Echidna in the memories he gained from the dream.

The entire thing was different from their current situation, but it was better for them to face Echidna and the Chimera, which he realized on the train was following them for a while, the lion-like monster he and Percy had seen before. At least coming to the Gateway Ark would give them the time to plan and prepare for it, if she got them anywhere else it would have been terrible.

"Everyone remembers the plan?" He asked again quietly as they walked towards the exit, where the monster would be waiting for them.

Grover hummed in accordance but was so anxious he did not say a word, almost as of he was scared his voice would crack in front of the others and decounce his fears. Albert feared the same in a way.

"I still don't like it," Percy retorted but did not face him. 

"Well, Jackson," The boy neutrally said, "We have the advantage of surprise, we have to grab the opportunities we got. And the plan begins in 3...2...1!"

Just as the three boys pretended not to notice the fat lady and her small dog, and continued walking as if nothing was happening. It took the monster less than five minutes to quickly get in their way. The fat lady smiled sweetly at them, barely concealing her irritation. The Chihuahua was very little, but the dog was also growling at them.

"Well, son," the fat lady sighed. "Looks like they aren't complete cowards. I thought they were never coming down from that hateful place.."

 Percy had a priceless expression, looking clueless between the boys and the lady, "Um, did that old lady just call that Chihuahua your son, maybe she escaped a mental hospital?" His tone turned concerned as he carefully added, "Huh, do you need help, ma'am? My mom said that we should always help old people because some of them have dementia and stuff."

Albert was looking at him in mild surprise and let out a small smile at the corner of his mouth. Jackson really does have a natural talent to piss people off, he thought. Judging by the twitching eye of the lady, he had definitely struck a nerve.

"What an impertinent brat we have here, sweetheart," The fat lady corrected with an annoyed tone. "Not a Chihuahua, a Chimera! It's an easy mistake to make these days, unfortunately."

"C-C-Chimera?!" Grover gasped in shock. "Impossible!"

Percy quickly got into a fighting stance, but his arrogant look did not change. He was following the plan better than Albert expected.

The fat lady laughed out loud in delight at their reactions, and rolled up her denim sleeves, revealing that the skin of her arms was scaly and green. When she smiled, they saw that her teeth turned into sharp fangs. The pupils of her blue eyes turned sideways slits like that of reptiles. The lower half of her body changed into that of a large and muscular dark green snake, looking powerful and dangerous... monstrous.

The Chihuahua, a noisy pest, barked louder and louder, and with each bark, the thing grew at a jarring speed. First to the size of a Doberman, then to the biggest lion anyone has ever seen. The bark became a roar.

"The Mist is lifting..." Albert absentmindedly commented as he watched the transformations occurring in real-time, barely believing his eyes. 

The Chimera was now so tall that it towered over any of the boys easily. It had the head of a particularly ferocious lion with a thick blood-caked mane, the body and hooves of a giant goat, and a serpent for a tail that seemed to have a life of its own, a ten-foot-long diamondback growing right out of its shaggy behind. The rhinestone dog collar still hung around its neck, and the plate-sized dog tag was now easy to read: CHIMERA—RABID, FIRE-BREATHING, POISONOUS—IF FOUND, PLEASE CALL TARTARUS—EXT. 954.

Percy immediately uncapped his pan and summoned Riptide to his hands. Albert on the other hand quickly unsheathed Silena's dagger and felt the world around them fade away, as each minute he focused more into the confrontation. They were more or less ten meters away from the Chimera's bloody maw, and they intuitively knew that as soon as I moved, the creature would lunge. The adrenaline was rushed into their systems in the face of such a dire situation.

The snake lady made a loud hissing noise that might've been laughter, her real laughter. "Be honored, Percy Jackson. This is a rare opportunity for all of us. Lord Zeus rarely allows me to test a hero with one of my precious broods... For I am the Mother of Monsters, the terrible Echidna!"

So dramatic, Albert mentally sneered. It doesn't look good on her as it did on him or his friends. 

All Echidna got as an answer to her great dramatic introduction was Percy's mocking voice: "What a stupid name...Isn't that a kind of anteater?"

Albert fought off a laugh, but he failed to conceal it, earning a nasty glare from the thing.

Echidna howled in fury, her reptilian face turning brown and green with rage. "I hate it when people say that! I hate Australia! Naming that ridiculous animal after me. For that, Percy Jackson, my son shall destroy you! Show that brat no mercy, dear."

The Chimera almost immediately charged, its lion teeth gnashing. Albert managed to leap aside and dodge the beast. Grover quickly yelled 'Maia!' grabbing Percy and flying up. The three of them exchanged final looks before they started to move towards the river.

"Coward!" Echidna screamed, "Shameful! Annoying! Go get him, my precious, after him!"

The Chimera started to run after the boys as soon as it got the command. As soon as it went after Percy, Albert got ready. Now his fight begins.

...

Echidna barely acknowledged Albert's existence, instead, she loudly complained in her creepy hissing voice, I backed into the hole in the wall. The Chimera advanced, growling, smoke curling from its lips. The snake lady, Echidna, cackled. "They don't make heroes like they used to, eh? In my time it would be inconceivable for a demigod of the Big Three to run away like that!" She then smirked, "Whatever, I will see that impertinent bastard done for today!"

Albert couldn't let her go after them, so he quickly laughed and cackled maniacally. Looking at the huge menacing monster-lady like she was the best and most hilarious joke in the world. Instantly, her smirk was gone and was replaced by a scowl.

"Why are you laughing at, twerp?!" She yelled. "Did you lose your mind witnessing my mighty presence? Many did in the past I will let you know! Back when my children terrorized the world and made mortals and immortals tremble!"

"I am sorry, ma'am, but..." He replied still chuckling, "It's just very funny."

"What is so funny?!" She roared. "How far has this world fallen? I am being mocked by a no-name little bastard who is nothing more than cannon fodder, hah! You dare disrespect me?!"

"No, no, no, that's not why, my lady, not at all!" Albert quickly explained trying to appease her fury. "I would never disrespect such a great being as yourself, you must not know, but I have helped monsters before!" 

This boot liking seemed to have worked as the serpentine eyes of Echidna were less furious and more intrigued, still, her despise at his every existence was palpable. Albert's mission was simple, he had to buy time and keep her attention on him.

"What do you mean by that, brat? No demigod would help a child of mine!" Echidna asked as her huge body started to slowly slither towards the boy, who tactfully moved away, "Explain yourself, pest! Do not dare to lie to me!"

"Lie?" Albert echoed in fake surprise, "Never, I indeed helped your precious brood, ma'am. Have you ever heard of Medusa?"

"How could I not?!" Echidna said with her voice dripping with venom and disdain, "Another insult of the gods... How dare they make that hateful creature so similar to the great me?! Can you believe that? For ages, I had to endure being compared to that thing! They both look like snakes, they said. I was the first! I am older than that failure of a copy. What about that thing? Quickly!""

Albert almost rolled his eyes, so vain, she was. He then nodded his head vehemently in agreement, careful not to outright lie since it was possible that the hag-monster-mommy could dietetic his lie, "I agree with you, ma'am. I have met her before you know? She served us food, but she suddenly turned on us, saying she wanted to add her to her collection. She had so many monsters there, so many. Dozens... no! Hundreds, no, no, she had thousands! All turned into stone forever, impossible to even return to Tartarus and be reborn in the abyss as it is intended!"

Echidna roared in fury and grief, her hissing voice crying loud enough to make the boy cover his ears, "How dare she?! Tell you killed her, brat!"

"Oh," He replied with a bright smile, "She is just a copy, ma'am. She was weak, but she had that annoying trick to hinder me and my companions, but she won't be returning to this realm for a while now."

"Great!" She said, as she looked at him in reluctant admiration, "Seems like at least one of your kind has good taste! Unlike that impertinent brat! Does he not know who I am? I am famous too!"

Albert was already tired of keeping this bullshit for longer, but he got no choice, he had to do more boot-liking until its time. He then continued, this time, he started to use his Charmspeak slowly, increasing the potency, "Oh, but of course, you are not a simple cursed mortal. I decided to do what I could to free all the spirits sealed in stone, my companions too. We did it and your children are now back in Tartarus and soon they will be able to meet their mother again."

"Impossible!" She exclaimed. "Athena would never have agreed to undo that pest's doings. She is a prideful goddess that one."

"Oh, but soon when your great children return from the pit, they will inform you too!" He argued, "Lady Athena had her reasons to allow the transformation and the release of the spirits. I admire you in a way ma'am."

Echidna was looking at him with an unreadable expression, "Oh... I see, and why is that I wonder?"

"You are the mother of monsters!" Albert stated as if this was a great thing, "A being who gave birth to mighty children. Consort of the legendary Typhoon, greater even if we think about it with care. An elder being who should be respected."

"Yes, yes, yes! Respect, I do deserve respect, finally someone gives the respect I deserve!" Echidna slowly approached him until, suddenly without warning she lunged at him before he could react. The unreadable look changed into that of mild disdain and maybe boredom, as she grabbed Albert with one swift motion by the neck, raising him up to the ground, glaring at him, and expecting him as if he was a particularly endearing, "I did not felt lies in your words... interesting, you do respect me in a strange way for a demigod, but not enough it seems... how dare a fly like you try to charmspeak me?!" 

Albert now painfully regretted his decision to do that, he got too cocky and now he was being held by the neck by Echidna's powerful humanoid hand, sharp black nails poking against the skin of his neck as if daring him to fight back. Albert felt a new kinda of despair he had never felt before.

I can die here, he thought. I can die here in the middle of nowhere, away from his family. He started to struggle to breathe as her grip tightened around his neck. The monster laughed in delight, she was enjoying this. Oh, he fucking hated her. He respected power and he could acknowledge that, but if by a miracle he survives this, he would kill the bitch himself! He cursed in all the languages he knew in his mind.

Tears started to roll down his face as he felt weaker and weaker. Albert was scared like never before.

Suddenly, he heard a faint whistle like that of a bird, and his eyes widened. She did it! She had found it! All the hate and power he could summon, all the humiliation, all the insecurity, all the will to live, all the longing for home, all his defiance, all his will to dominate. He wanted to put the nasty monster in its place forever.

"Cough, cough..." He struggles to breathe.

"Oh-ho..." Echidna laughed again, releasing her grip a little allowing him to breathe. "What an amusing little bug you are, pity I have to get rid of you now. You see I have a mission to complete and my boy must be done by now! I shall allow you to at least say who you are before meeting your end on my hands, twerp. After all, you did say some true things about the great me!"

 "My name is...cough...Albert Alexander Gomes, the son of Aphrodite, the Goddess of Love!" As the boy yelled in fury, his eyes started to ignite in a bright pink glow, and each word reverberated in the Mist as if his worlds were moving the Mist itself. " Listen to me Echidna, you are nothing! Stand still! Heed my words, mother of monsters, obey me! "

"You dare to" Before she could finish her words, the monster twitched and her serpentine slit eyes started to dilate. "This is wrong! How-? Impossible!"

Thud!

The short and abrupt sound echoed in his ears, suddenly it felt like his world had gone completely silent. Albert noticed that Echidna was staring in shock at something in the middle of her chest. The tip of an arrow was the familiar sight of one of his celestial bronze arrows, a gift he gained from his mother. The arrow had pierced the chest of Echidna from behind and impaled the monster in the heart.

"No...how? How dare you?!" Echidna roared as her head moved in every direction, desperately looking for the culprit. 

Her hands started to turn into dust and Albert fell to the ground, gasping desperately for air. The boy's heart was racing, he quickly glanced at the slowly disintegrating monster.

"Show yourself you coward!" The monster shrieked as her other hand started to disintegrate. "No! I cannot be defeated by children! I cannot-!"

The monster's voice was abruptly interrupted as a dagger hit her in the neck, she looked at the glowing eyes of Albert in disbelief, unable to say another word. He had thrown Silena's dagger at that creature's hateful throat, unwilling to hear another world. Suddenly, he fell to his knees, from her side, a girl appeared out of nowhere with the familiar bow of Paris of Troy in her hands, her grey eyes looked at him in worry as she quickly hurried to help him out. Her shiny golden hair was being blown by the wind as she held him up on the ground, looking as Silena's dagger and his arrow fell on the ground with metallic sounds.

"Are you okay?" The girl asked in shock. "I am sorry, I took too long. I-I tried to find her weakness as you said, but she looked so strong and she charged so suddenly I-I am sorry."

"Shut up, nerd... cough!" Albert playfully said as he felt more tears streaming down his face and his vision blacking out, he struggled to keep himself aware looking at the frantic girl,"... you did great, Annabeth. Thank you... Now I will take...a nap."

Without much more, Albert collapsed. Quietly praying that Percy and Grover would succeed too in a less dangerous way. For now, he was going to rest. He deserved it after almost dying because he was careless.