Rick Riordan
The Sea Monsters - 02
"What are you doing?" the monster demanded.
"Nothing!" Grover said in his falsetto voice. "Just weaving my bridal train, as you can see."
The Cyclops stuck one hand into the room and groped around until he found the loom. He
pawed at the cloth. "It hasn't gotten any longer!"
"Oh, um, yes it has, dearest. See? I've added at least an inch."
"Too many delays!" the monster bellowed. Then he sniffed the air. "You smell good! Like
goats!"
"Oh." Grover forced a weak giggle. "Do you like it? It's Eau de Chevre. I wore it just for you."
"Mmmm!" The Cyclops bared his pointed teeth. "Good enough to eat!"
"Oh, you're such a flirt!"
"No more delays!"
"But dear, I'm not done!"
"Tomorrow!"
"No, no. Ten more days."
"Five!"
"Oh, well, seven then. If you insist."
"Seven! That is less than five, right?"
"Certainly. Oh yes."
The monster grumbled, still not happy with his deal, but he left Grover to his weaving and
rolled the boulder back into place.
Grover closed his eyes and took a shaky breath, trying to calm his nerves.
"Hurry, Percy," he muttered. "Please, please, please!"
* * *
I woke to a ship's whistle and a voice on the intercom— some guy with an Australian accent
who sounded way too happy.
"Good morning, passengers! We'll be at sea all day today. Excellent weather for the poolside
mambo party! Don't forget million-dollar bingo in the Kraken Lounge at one o'clock, and for our
special guests, disemboweling practice on the Promenade!"
I sat up in bed. "What did he say?"
Tyson groaned, still half asleep. He was lying facedown on the couch, his feet so far over the
edge they were in the bathroom. "The happy man said ... bowling practice?"
I hoped he was right, but then there was an urgent knock on the suite's interior door.
Annabeth stuck her head in—her blond hair in a rat's nest. "Disemboweling practice?"
Once we were all dressed, we ventured out into the ship and were surprised to see other
people. A dozen senior citizens were heading to breakfast. A dad was taking his kids to the pool for
a morning swim. Crew members in crisp white uniforms strolled the deck, tipping their hats to the
passengers.
Nobody asked who we were. Nobody paid us much attention. But there was something
wrong.
As the family of swimmers passed us, the dad told his kids: "We are on a cruise. We are
having fun."
"Yes," his three kids said in unison, their expressions blank. "We are having a blast. We will
swim in the pool."
They wandered off.
"Good morning," a crew member told us, his eyes glazed. "We are all enjoying ourselves
aboard the Princess Andromeda. Have a nice day." He drifted away.
"Percy, this is weird," Annabeth whispered. "They're all in some kind of trance."
Then we passed a cafeteria and saw our first monster. It was a hellhound—a black mastiff
with its front paws up on the buffet line and its muzzle buried in the scrambled eggs. It must've been
young, because it was small compared to most—no bigger than a grizzly bear. Still, my blood turned
cold. I'd almost gotten killed by one of those before.
The weird thing was: a middle-aged couple was standing in the buffet line right behind the
devil dog, patiently waiting their turn for the eggs. They didn't seem to notice anything out of the
ordinary.
"Not hungry anymore," Tyson murmured.
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