Percy leaned back on the bench, his grin widening as he recounted the memory to the group of wide-eyed campers. “So, there we were, smack in the middle of this massive quest, running on like three hours of sleep and adrenaline. Zoë, who was all serious and formal, told us we should stop at the ‘dam snack bar.’ Grover, naturally, couldn’t let that one go. He started with ‘dam french fries,’ and before we knew it, Thalia and I had joined in. Dam restrooms, dam water fountains, dam T-shirts—we were losing it. Poor Zoë just stood there, staring at us like we’d all lost our minds.”

The campers chuckled, already imagining the scene. Percy’s smile faded just a little, his tone shifting. “But that’s the thing about quests. One minute you’re laughing your head off, and the next, something happens to remind you what you’re up against. We didn’t even get to enjoy the dam jokes for long before I heard this noise—something big and not exactly friendly. Turned out, we weren’t the only ones at the dam that day. And let me tell you, fighting monsters in a national landmark? Not as fun as it sounds.”