i. set free

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THE LAST THING THEA REMEMBERS IS TURNING WITH HER SWORD IN HAND AND BARELY HAVING TIME TO GASP WHEN SHE REGISTERS THE EYES OF MEDUSA. Medusa had been only ten feet away, eyes narrowed, yet surprised, as if she had seen something that she couldn't seem to comprehend. Thea had no time to run, she could only let out a half-gasp before she felt herself turn to stone.

It feels like an eternity when her body finally crashes into the dirt floor below her. It takes only three seconds for her mind to start working again, and she scrambles backward until her back hits a statue and knocks it over. With wide eyes, she grabs her sword and gets onto her feet in a second flat as she swings it in a panicked arc.

"Woah—that statue's alive!"

"Yeah, Grover, I can see that!"

Thea looks between the three people standing only a few feet from her, instantly analyzing everything she can about them, down to one of their weak legs. A satyr, with brown fur, a rasta hat, and discarded reed pipes. A girl with braids, a bright orange CHB shirt, a dagger, and a scratch on her cheek--daughter of Athena, she has steely grey eyes, even if they're mostly overridden by the brown. A boy, rather scrawny and pale, holding a long sword that he can't seem to handle properly--son of Poseidon, there's the sea green eyes she's studied.

She can take them. The satyr will be easy, though the winged shoes might be difficult, and the boy is good, but inexperienced. The girl's going to be the issue. She holds herself with a certain confidence, as if she knows everything she can. Thea doesn't doubt she does, too.

"Who are you?" the daughter of Athena questions. "How did you do that?"

"I—I don't know." Her eyes narrow as she holds her sword, ready to strike. "You're from Camp Half-Blood, aren't you? You all have their shirt."

"Yeah, Camp Half-Blood," the boy says. "Are you from there?"

"No." Thea feels anger in her chest, she isn't sure where it comes from, but it's almost blinding. "Where's Medusa?"

"Here," the girl says, holding up a black cloth with something heavy inside, something that drips green liquid. Medusa's head, Thea dully concludes.

"Oh. Good." She isn't sure what to do, but her mind supplies stabbing them. "Hand it over."

"The head?" the boy says. "No way. You're not getting that, I killed her."

"And she turned me to stone," Thea says with a grim smile as she points her sword tip at the head. "So, hand it over, or I'll take it myself."

"Not happening," the girl says. "It's ours."

"Wait!" the satyr interjects, throwing his hands up desperately. "She's a demigod, too. She might understand if we tell her why we're here."

"We're looking for Zeus' master bolt," the son of Poseidon says, much to the girl's distaste. "We ran across Medusa on accident, and, well, it didn't go too well. Why are you here?"

"I was . . . I was trying to get to Camp Half-Blood," Thea relents. "I didn't make it, as you can tell. Medusa caught me by surprise when I was walking through the woods, before this building was--wait, what year is it?"

"2005."

Thea's eyes widen and her sword droops slightly. "It's—it's 2005?"

"Yeah," the boy says, seeming uneasy, "how long have you been, uh, stoned?"

"Three years," she sighs in shock. "It's been three years. Three whole years."

The girl kicks the boy in the ankle, clearly conveying a message, and the satyr pitches in.

"You're going to Camp Half-Blood, right?" the satyr says. His eyes keep flicking nervously over to her sword. "We can take you there."

"Grover--"

"We can take you there," 'Grover' says. "Just lower the sword."

"I'm not gonna stab you." Thea sheaths her sword. "I just--this is a lot. I need time to think."

"How did you come back?" the girl asks, her dagger still in hand. "Who's your godly parent?"

Thea shrugs. "No clue, he never told my mother. That's why I was going to Camp Half-Blood, to find out who they are."

"You have to come with us."

"And why would I do that?"

"Because one of us managed to wake you up," she says, but it's obvious she's not telling the full truth. "That's important. I think it has to do with our quest."

"Why would it?"

"Because we're looking for Zeus' master bolt," she explains. "A weapon that could destroy entire countries. If it isn't found, it will cause a war between the gods."

"And you think I have something to do with it? I've been . . . stoned for years."

"No, I'm saying your father might. I think they set you free because we were here."

Thea blinks. "Alright, I'll go. But I'm not helping any of you."

The girl nods. "Okay. My name's Annabeth."

"Thea," she says. "My name's Thea."