The Race for the Shield

After days of driving and monster fighting, the three demigods arrived in Great Falls, Montana. Kris' car was practically frankenstiened and shouldn't have made it as far as they did but Jake is an excellent mechanic. Kris pulled off into a public parking lot and turned the car off. There was no way that car was starting again. Looks like they will be doing some car shopping while they were in Montana. "Well, welcome to Great Falls guys." Kris was in desperate need of a shower and new clothes. She was covered in scratches and cuts and the nearby river tempted her to just jump in, but she didn't. Kris looked to the other two. "Let's get going. I wanna find this shield quick so I can go get a new car."

((We need to figure out how we are bringing the titan team in on this...))

Wes snapped awake and groaned in post-nap confusion, "Whut? Mmm..." She stretched in her seat and wiped a bit of drool off of her cheek before unbuckling. She grabbed her half-finished can of Dew and swigged some as she focused herself. It wasn't easy, as she'd suffered a head shot from one of those monster attacks not long ago. She opened the door and hopped out, immediately wishing she hadn't. She stumbled from dizziness and winced from pain in her knee, where she'd treated another wound. Walking was going to be fun. "Okay, so, any idea where we go from here?"

(Geeze, impish Jake is back.... I've been playing as the Smuggler too long on TOR... nah...)

"LAND!" Jake jumped out of the car and laid flat on the ground melodramatically. "Oh, Solid, non-moving ground, I missed you so much..."
He was stiff and sore himself, but no point in letting it ruin the mood, right? He sat up.
"We go get food." He replied immediately. "No point in trying to solve ancient mysteries on an empty stomach, right?"

"Agreed," Kris nodded and looked around. She spotted a burger joint close by. "There... food..." She grabbed her back pack and slung it over her shoulder. "Let's go!"

"Food," Wes repeated under her breath. She turned around to grab her bag and pulled it on. Part of her reasoned that there was a slim chance she would need it, but really she was so lightheaded at the moment that she was just copying Kris. She started walking in a daze towards the burger joint Kris pointed out, which was across a street with moving traffic.

(Lol, something I've been doing more and more in Atlanta...)

In a classic New Yorker fashion, Jake darted straight across the road. Why wait for a crosswalk? He was hungry!
"Come on, slow pokes!"


(You know, it just occured to me that we're in Great Falls. "Heavy Traffic" is a relative term..)

Kris followed, holding her hand over her tummy cause it was growling. She looked around and saw how there was barely any cars around. As a joke, Kris looked at Wes, "Hey Wes, don't get run over by a car." She laughed and finished crossing the street.

Wes got hit by a car.
Wes was halfway across when Kris made that comment, and she jerked as if she just realized what she was doing. Her eyes widened with surprise, and she stumbled backwards. Regaining her balance, she looked down the road to see it vacant. She gave a sigh of relief and took a few steps before a speeder made her jump back, her heart beating hard. She winced in pain from the jump. Once she settled down, she decided to ignore her knee and run the rest of the way.

"You know, that was a joke. Not a challenge to actually get hit." Jake said, frowning as Wes approached. He pulled a ziplock out of his pocket and broke off a piece of ambrosia. "You seem like you need some more of this...." Wes hadn't had that much yet, and even though she was an Apollo kid... he wasn't exactly confident she didn't need some food and rest.

Kris looked at her partners and thought to herself about the nonsense that they had put themselves through on the way here. "We are definitely gonna have to find a spot for a nap. Driving for so long makes me tired." She rubber her eyes and walked into the burger joint. There wasn't that many people inside. Kris figured it was normal considering that there weren't that many people on the streets. "Alright, what to eat..."

Wes put a hand on her head, "Nap...sounds good." It was as if she was oblivious to the fact that she'd been napping the whole car ride. She took the piece of ambrosia from Jake and nibbled on it. She waited for someone else to order, so she could just order the same thing. As if dyslexia didn't make reading the signs hard enough, now she was dizzy.

"Well. I want three double cheeseburger meals. Large." Jake decided, not really ordering yet. Being a ravenous, teenage guy... he could totally eat all of that. Though about the money part of it.... Jake wondered if they still had those Lotis Casino cards... or at least the one he rigged up before.

"Okay well in that case, I am gonna make it easy on these people and just get us all double cheeseburger meals." Kris walked up to the counter and ordered seven large double cheeseburger meals, three for Jake, and two each for Wes and herself. Out of her back pocket, Kris pulled out the very useful Lotus Card that they acquired years back. Free money? Very useful... With in minutes their food was ready and Kris grabbed it and then sat down at a table. "Eat up guys, we have a lot ahead of us."

Wes sat down next to her and hoisted her bad leg up on a spare chair. She started picking at the burger, which tasted strange after ambrosia. "So, guys..." Her mixed up mind couldn't think of anything to say for small talk.

Jake glanced up at Wes. "Yes?" He asked with a mouth full of cheeseburger. It tasted amazing to eat after fighting monsters and riding for ages.

Kris picked at her fries. She was starving but she was too tired to eat. She looked at Wes waiting for her to finish her sentence, but figured that wasn't going to happen. "Anywho... we need to find somewhere to rest and I prefer not in a tree. Even though a tree sounds comfy and would make a good vantage point." Anything sounded good to rest in to her. She could sleep in an ant hill and wouldn't even care. Kris picked up one of her burgers and managed to eat it in 4 bites.

"Ah tfree?" Jake scoffed with his mouth still stuffed with burger fries and coke. He swallowed. "Good luck finding one in Montana." He said with a grin. "You might find a pine or aspen or something, but they aren't good sleeping trees."

He took another hearty bite. "This place is mostly grass and hills. Nothing's gonna sneak up on us here."


(Jake just jinxed it.)

Wes swallowed a bite of burger, "That's what you said last time, and that didn't turn out so well." Actually, that seemed to happen to them a lot. "We have a Lotus Casino card, why not a hotel or something?"

"Ooh a hotel would be nice except I didn't see one close by." Kris took a sip of her drink and looked at Jake. "Jake, ya think you can figure out where the nearest hotel, motel, inn, or bed and breakfast is from here?"

Jake shrugged. "Yah, it shouldn't be too hard. We'd just have to head further into the main part of town." He pulled out his iPod brought up google maps. He slid it across the table to Kris and went back to eating.

"Cool," Wes said with a mouth full of burger. She swallowed it and added, "It doesn't matter where we go so long as it's has a non-smoking room available. Continental breakfast would be nice too."

Kris looked at the iPod and found a good hotel not too far from where they were. That was good considering Wes was a partial cripple and they were all tired and they had no car at the moment. "Found one. It's not too far from here. And when I say that I mean we still need to get a taxi cause I am too tired too walk."

Jake cracked a grin at the thought.
"Just don't tell the guy he can keep the change." He said with a giggle, trying to imagine how that'd work out exactly with a Lotis Casino Card.

"That would be one rich taxi driver." Kris let out a little chuckle and finished off the rest of her food. "Let's get going guys. I really need a nap."

Jake quickly scarfed down the burger he had been working on and grabbed the last bag for later.
"Well, let's go! I want to check out the town." He said, collecting the trash to toss.