After reaching dry land, they stumbled down the beach. Andromeda adjusted the backpack, feeling the weight from Zeus' Master Bolt inside.
"I don't believe it," Annabeth said. "We went all this way -"
"It was a trick." Andromeda said. "A strategy worthy of Athena."
"Hey." The Daughter of Athena warned.
"She didn't mean it that way." Jakob said with a shake of his head. His eyes narrowed as he looked down towards the beach. "And there's the bastard behind all of this."
Ares was already waiting for them, in his black leather duster and his sunglasses, an aluminum baseball bat propped on his shoulder. His motorcycle rumbled beside him, its headlights turning the sand red.
"Hey, kids," Ares said, looking genuinely pleased to see them. "You were supposed to die."
A small beam of lightning struck one of his motorcycle's headlights, shattering it to pieces.
Ares' eye twitched and he shot a furious glare at Jakob who smirked at him before the Son of Thor got serious. "You framed us."
"Well, Poseidon's brat was meant to be the one blamed, but with you around... Zeus naturally believed you had something to do with the theft as well, given the hostilities behind our two kinds." Ares said with a casual shrug. "Besides, I didn't actually grab and take the Helm or the Master Bolt. Gods taking each others symbol of power - that's a big no-no. But you're not the only heroes in the world who can run errands."
"Who did you use? Clarisse? She was there at the winter solstice," Andromeda said to the God of War.
"No to sneak around the Olympian throne room and steal the Master Bolt and the Helm of Darkness... one would have to be invisible." Mimir mused, causing Annabeth's eyes to widen in shock. "Or be a really great thief."
"So one of Hermes' kids, perhaps." Jakob grunted, his mind turning to the one Hermes kid that made him tense as if expecting an attack at times. He didn't have proof it was him so he didn't say so.
The idea seemed to amuse Ares.
"Doesn't matter. The point is, kiddies, you're impeding on the war effort. See, original plan was for Poseidon's brat to go and die in the Underworld, then Old Seaweed will be mad at Hades for killing her. Corpse Breath will have Zeus's master bolt, so Zeus'll get even angrier with him. But now, I was thinking Poseidon's brat still dies, and the Son of Thor is made out to be in league with Hades, which will direct Poseidon's anger, and Zeus' naturally for having his Master Bolt. And Hades is still looking for this…"
From his pocket he took out a ski cap - the kind bank robbers wear - and placed it between the handlebars of his bike. Immediately, the cap transformed into an elaborate bronze war helmet.
"The Helm of Darkness," Grover gasped.
"Exactly," Ares said. "Now where was I? Oh yeah, Hades will be mad at both Zeus and Poseidon, because he doesn't know who took this. Pretty soon, we got a nice little three-way slugfest going."
"Well, that's not going to happen, Ares." Jakob said as he stepped forward.
"Why do this?! They're your family!" Annabeth protested.
Ares shrugged. "Best kind of war. Always the bloodiest. Nothing like watching your relatives fight, I always say."
"You're as bloodthirsty and a piece of shit as Thor and Heimdall...respectively." Mimir spat with disgust.
Ares frowned. "You best shut that head of yours up, Aesir. Or I'll ensure it stays dead."
"What, can't handle the truth?" Jakob asked tauntingly, getting a growl from the God of War.
"You're really starting to piss me off, brat. You should be lucky I don't strike you down where you stand." Ares warned.
"What, afraid of challenging a twelve-year-old kid? That's so sad. God of War my ass." Jakob smirked.
Ares growled, a hazy blood-red aura dancing around his figure. The fire in his eyes was intense. "Big talk from a pathetic little mortal running from his family."
"Big words for a guy with little to no wit at all," Jakob fired back, not fazed at Ares' remark.
"You gave me the backpack in Denver," Andromeda said, taking over the conversation. "The master bolt was in there the whole time."
"Yes and no," Ares said, who was still glaring at Jakob. Jakob just glared back. "It's probably too complicated for your little mortal brain to follow, but the backpack is the master bolt's sheath, just morphed a bit. The bolt is connected to it, sort of like that sword you got, kid. It always returns to your pocket, right?"
Andromeda wasn't sure how he knew that, but since she's seen Riptide in action, it was safe to say Ares probably knew anything about a weapon due to being the war god.
"Anyway," Ares continued, "I tinkered with the magic a bit, so the bolt would only return to the sheath once you reached the Underworld. You get close to Hades… Bingo, you got mail. If you died along the way - no loss. I still had the weapon."
"But why not just keep the master bolt for yourself?" Andromeda asked questioningly. "Why send it to Hades?"
Ares got a twitch in his jaw. For a moment, it was almost as if he were listening to another voice, deep inside his head. "Why didn't I… yeah… with that kind of firepower…"
He held the trance for one second… two seconds…
Andromeda and Jakob exchanged a look, the Son of Thor frowning as he watched Ares. Something was going on.
Ares's face cleared. "I didn't want the trouble. Better to have you caught red-handed, holding the thing."
"You're lying," Andromeda argued, a smirk coming to her face. "Sending the bolt to the Underworld wasn't your idea, was it?"
"Of course it was!" Smoke drifted up from Ares' sunglasses, as if they were about to catch fire.
"You didn't order the theft," Andromeda guessed. "Someone else sent a hero to steal the two items. Then, when Zeus sent you to hunt him down, you caught the thief. But you didn't turn him him. Something convinced you to let him go. You kept the items until another hero could come along and complete the delivery. That thing in the pit is ordering you around."
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