The Heroes of Olympus, #2
The Son of Neptune
by Rick Riordan
Contents
XVII Hazel
Overview
At sea, Hazel battles seasickness while Percy glimpses fragments of his past and Annabeth. Nico departs to the Underworld to help Hades and seek the Doors of Death. Hazel then relives her Alaskan past: under Gaea’s coercion, she raised Alcyoneus until her mother regained will. Choosing defiance, Hazel collapses the island, dying with her mother and delaying the giant’s rise.
Summary
Hazel, Percy, and Frank pilot the dinghy Pax out of San Francisco Bay. Hazel suffers severe seasickness and sees a homeless man among sea lions pointing at Percy, unsettling him. Percy, watching the shoreline, admits the city feels familiar and that he was once searching for his girlfriend, Annabeth.
Before departure, Nico di Angelo privately told Hazel he must return to the Underworld to help their father and to track escaping souls, hoping to find the Doors of Death. He warns Hazel her blackouts may worsen near Alaska. Hazel fears freeing Thanatos will send her back to the dead, but Nico urges caution and vanishes into shadows.
As they pass Mount Tam, Percy broods over past battles. Thinking of looming deadlines, Hazel slips into a blackout—revisiting Alaska, where she and her mother lived in hardship. Controlled by Gaea’s Voice, Marie forced Hazel to raise treasures and, eventually, a spire forming Alcyoneus from gold, oil, and diamonds on a hidden island.
On the final night, a raven declares it is “the last night.” In the island’s warm cavern, Marie briefly regains her will and confesses her greedy wish for Pluto’s riches cursed Hazel’s powers, letting Gaea control them. Gaea reveals her plan: while gods divide in World War II, Alcyoneus will rise in Alaska, raise monsters, and destroy Olympus.
Gaea demands Marie’s willing sacrifice to awaken the giant. Refusing to live with that guilt, Hazel draws on Pluto’s realm, unleashing a torrent of riches that destabilizes the spire. As the cavern collapses and oil floods, Hazel and her mother embrace. They die together, destroying the island and delaying Alcyoneus’s rise.
Who Appears
- Hazel LevesqueStruggles with seasickness; recalls Alaska past; rejects Gaea by collapsing the island, dying with her mother to delay Alcyoneus.
- Percy JacksonSteers the Pax; senses familiarity with San Francisco; recalls searching for Annabeth.
- Nico di AngeloWarns Hazel about blackouts; departs to the Underworld to aid Hades and track the Doors of Death.
- Frank ZhangNew centurion, supportive of Hazel; offers food as she battles seasickness.
- Marie LevesqueHazel’s mother; once ruled by Gaea’s Voice; confesses greedy wish; regains will and dies with Hazel to thwart Gaea.
- GaeaManipulates Marie and Hazel to raise Alcyoneus; reveals plan to exploit wartime division among the gods.
- AlcyoneusGaea’s eldest giant forming in Alaska; his awakening is delayed when Hazel collapses the island.