The Heroes of Olympus, #3
The Mark of Athena
by Rick Riordan
Contents
XXVII
Overview
Piper and Jason trek across Hercules’s island and find the river god Achelous, whose alluring river-song nearly ensnares them. Achelous recounts his feud with Hercules over Deianira and condemns the sons of Zeus, souring Piper’s confidence. Realizing Hercules sent them to humiliate him, Achelous declares he must stop them and unleashes a crushing wave.
Summary
Piper and Jason bushwhack across a hot, insect-ridden island, searching for the river where they must confront Achelous to meet Hercules’s demand. As the deadline nears, Piper worries about their friends, Nico’s fate, and Hercules’s ominous warning about sons of Zeus.
They discover a swift, shallow river whose song exerts a seductive pull, urging rest and swimming. Piper recognizes the manipulation and confronts the water. Achelous rises from the pool—a blue man-headed bull with a single horn—and, with weary bitterness, engages them.
Piper explains their quest and Hercules’s anger over Hera’s involvement. Achelous, bristling at Jason’s “guidebook,” produces a traditional scroll and recounts his lost betrothal to Deianira, Hercules’s violent past, and Deianira’s tragic end after Nessus’s deceit. He frames it as a cautionary tale about the sons of Zeus, unsettling Piper’s trust in Jason.
Achelous explains that Hercules wants the second horn to humiliate him and claim a new cornucopia. Jason suggests the loss might help Achelous’s imbalance, but the river god insists neither side has a choice.
Declaring he must stop them, Achelous summons the river’s power. The water erupts, and a massive wave crashes over Piper, launching the confrontation.
Who Appears
- Piper McLeanCo-leads the mission; resists the river’s charmspeech, hears Achelous’s tale, doubts stirred about sons of Zeus, then is swept by his attack.
- Jason GraceAccompanies Piper; consults Hercules’s guidebook, proposes taking the horn, and prepares to face Achelous’s assault.
- AchelousRiver god with one horn; laments Deianira, denounces Hercules, refuses surrender, and attacks Piper and Jason with a surge.