The Heroes of Olympus, #2
The Son of Neptune
by Rick Riordan
Contents
XXXIX Percy
Overview
Gryphons seize Percy after the train wreck, forcing the trio to draw the monsters away from mortals. Discovering gryphon nests, Percy leverages their golden eggs while Hazel weaponizes nearby gold to distract the flock. They hide beneath a Hyperborean giant, whose freezing breath immobilizes the gryphons, allowing a narrow escape.
Summary
As the derailed train screeches and panicked tourists scatter, a gryphon carries Percy skyward. Frank shoots it down, and Percy crashes into a snowbank, rejoining Hazel and Frank amid a swarm of re-forming gryphons. Frank’s spartus shields mortals, but Frank’s magic spear has spent its last charge.
The trio pulls the fight away from the tracks into a frozen marsh. Exhaustion sets in as the gryphons try to capture rather than kill them. Percy stumbles into a nest filled with gold, legion relics, and two golden eggs, realizing the monsters’ fixation and suspecting Alcyoneus directs them.
Standing in the nest, Percy threatens an egg to hold the gryphons at bay. Spotting a nearby Hyperborean giant, he forms a plan. At his signal, Hazel sends gold and eggs from multiple nests skyward, scattering the flock; Percy, Hazel, and Frank sprint toward the giant.
They hide beneath the giant as the gryphons swarm him. Irritated, the giant unleashes icy breath that flash-freezes the flock and ices the marsh. While the giant toys with a frozen trophy, the trio slips away. Percy explains he’s seen Hyperborean cold breath before and urges haste before the gryphons thaw.
Who Appears
- Percy JacksonCaptured by a gryphon, devises the nest-and-giant plan, and leads the escape.
- Hazel LevesqueIdentifies gryphons and their gold obsession; launches gold and eggs to distract the flock.
- Frank ZhangShoots down gryphons, expends his spear’s last charge earlier, protects mortals, and follows Percy’s plan.
- Hyperborean giantUnwitting refuge; freezes attacking gryphons with icy breath, enabling the trio’s escape.
- GryphonsPack-hunting monsters obsessed with gold; try to capture demigods, then are frozen by the giant.
- Frank’s spartusGlowing skeleton warrior that shields mortals near the wrecked train.