Chapter 20

                                    

                                          
Chapter 20
                          
The dream
                          
	LEO KEPT LOOKING BACK. HE HALF EXPECTED to see those nasty sun dragons toting a flying chariot with a screaming magical saleswoman throwing potions, but nothing followed them.
                          
	He steered the dragon toward the southwest. Eventually, the smoke from the burning department store faded in the distance, but Leo didn't relax until the suburbs of Chicago gave way to snowy fields, and the sun began to set.
                          
 "Good job, Festus." He patted the dragon's metal hide. "You did awesome."
                          
The dragon shuddered. Gears popped and clicked in his neck. 
                          
Vivian frowned. She didn't like those noises. If the control disk was failing again—No, hopefully it was something minor. Something she and Leo could fix.
                          
"We'll give you a tune-up next time we land," Vivian promised. "You've earned some motor oil and Tabasco sauce." 
                          
Festus whirled his teeth, but even that sounded weak. He flew at a steady pace, his great wings angling to catch the wind, but he was carrying a heavy load. Two cages in his claws plus three people on his back—the more Vivian thought about it, the more worried she got. Even metal dragons had limits. 
                          
"Leo." Vivian patted his shoulder. "Are you feeling okay?"
                          
"Yeah ... not bad for a brainwashed zombie." He hoped he didn't look as embarrassed as he felt. "Thanks for saving us back there, beauty queen and lil' mermaid. If you guys hadn't talked me out of that spell—"
                          
"Don't worry about it," Piper said.
                          
But Leo worried a lot. He felt terrible about how easily Medea had set him against his best friend. And those feelings hadn't come from nowhere—his resentment of the way Jason always got the spotlight and didn't really seem to need him. Leo did feel that way sometimes, even if he wasn't proud of it.
                          
What bothered him more was the news about his mom. Medea had seen the future down in the Underworld. That was how her patron, the woman in the black earthen robes, had come to the machine shop seven years ago to scare him, ruin his life. That's how his mother had died—because of something Leo might do someday. So in a weird way, even if his fire powers weren't to blame, Mom's death was still his fault. 
                          
When they had left Medea in that exploding store, Leo had felt a little too good. He hoped she wouldn't make it out, and would go right back to the Fields of Punishment, where she belonged. Those feelings didn't make him proud, either.
                          
And if souls were coming back from the Underworld ...was it possible Leo's mom could be brought back? 
                          
"I know what you are thinking and, yes, but it's a bad idea," Vivian whispered into his ear.
                          
Leo didn't know how she knew but he didn't say anything. 
                          
"When Percy thought his mother died, he was given a quest to get the master lightning bolt. The only reason he did it was to get his mom back. But turns out that Sally—Percy's mom wasn't dead, she was taken by Hades. Your mom will go to Elysium, thinking any other way will make up nuts. Trust me."
                          
Leo nodded.
                          
"We're going to have to put down soon," he warned his friends. "Couple more hours, maybe, to make sure Medea's not following us. I don't think Festus can fly much longer than that."
                          
"Yeah," Piper agreed. "Coach Hedge probably wants to get out of his canary cage, too. Question is—where are we going?"
                          
"The Bay Area," Leo guessed. His memories of the department store were fuzzy, but he seemed to remember hearing that. "Didn't Medea say something about Oakland?"