Rick Riordan
Percy Jackson and the Olympians
63
63
"No!" Thalia screamed.
She'd turned as white as ice. We were at the edge of the bridge. Below, the mountain
dropped away into a snow-filled gorge about seventy feet below.
The boar was right behind us.
"Come on!" I said. "It'll hold our weight, probably."
"I can't!" Thalia yelled. Her eyes were wild with fear.
The boar smashed into the covered tunnel, tearing through at full speed.
"Now!" I yelled at Thalia.
She looked down and swallowed. I swear she was turning green.
I didn't have time to process why. The boar was charging through the tunnel, straight toward
us. Plan B. I tackled Thalia and sent us both sideways off the edge of the bridge, into the side of the
mountain. We slid on Aegis like a snow-board, over rocks and mud and snow, racing downhill. The
boar was less fortunate; it couldn't turn that fast, so all ten tons of the monster charged out onto the
tiny trestle, which buckled under its weight. The boar free-fell into the gorge with a mighty squeal
and landed in a snowdrift with a huge POOOOOF!
Thalia and I skidded to a stop. We were both breathing hard. I was cut up and bleeding.
Thalia had pine needles in her hair. Next to us, the wild boar was squealing and struggling. All I
could see was the bristly tip of its back. It was wedged completely in the snow like Styrofoam
packing. It didn't seem to be hurt, but it wasn't going anywhere, either.
I looked at Thalia. "You're afraid of heights."
Now that we were safely down the mountain, her eyes had their usual angry look. "Don't be
stupid."
"That explains why you freaked out on Apollo's bus. Why you didn't want to talk about it."
She took a deep breath. Then she brushed the pine needles out of her hair. "If you tell
anyone, I swear—"
"No, no," I said. "That's cool. It's just… the daughter of Zeus, the Lord of the Sky, afraid of
heights?"
She was about to knock me into the snow when, above us, Grover's voice called,
"Helloooooo?"
"Down here!" I shouted.
A few minutes later, Zoe, Bianca, and Grover joined us. We stood watching the wild boar
struggle in the snow.
"A blessing of the Wild," Grover said, though he now looked agitated.
"I agree," Zoe said. "We must use it."
"Hold up," Thalia said irritably. She still looked like 1 she'd just lost a fight with a Christmas
tree. "Explain to me why you're so sure this pig is a blessing."
Grover looked over, distracted. "It's our ride west. Do you have any idea how fast this boar
can travel?"
"Fun," I said. "Like… pig cowboys."
Grover nodded. "We need to get aboard. I wish… I wish I had more time to look around. But
it's gone now."
"What's gone?"
Grover didn't seem to hear me. He walked over to the boar and jumped onto its back.
Already the boar was starting to make some headway through the drift. Once it broke free, there'd
be no stopping it. Grover took out his pipes. He started playing a snappy tune and tossed an apple
in front of the boar. The apple floated and spun right above the boar's nose, and the boar went nuts,
straining to get it.
"Automatic steering," Thalia murmured. "Great."
She trudged over and jumped on behind Grover, which still left plenty of room for the rest of
us.
Zoe and Bianca walked toward the boar.
"Wait a second," I said. "Do you two know what Grover is talking about—this wild blessing?"
"Of course," Zoe said. "Did you not feel it in the wind? It was so strong… I never thought I
would sense that presence again."
"What presence?"