𝐌𝐎𝐔𝐑𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐅𝐋𝐎𝐖𝐄𝐑𝐒 [pjo]

three; as the world falls down

━━━as the world falls down

.・゜゜・───・゜゜・．

"Think she's okay?" Cal slid closer to Percy, nudging him with her shoulder.

    Percy shrugged, his shoulders tense. His burger was finished, his plate cleared, and he looked pale.
    "Yeah, she is." He muttered, and Cal scoffed. He turned to stare at her, and she arched an eyebrow in return. His stare returned blank.

    "Gods. You boys are all the same." She muttered, scooting away from him and off the bench.

    "Wait! What does that mean?"

    Percy looked so cute with his brow furrowed and his eyes squinted and curious that Cal cooed under her breath. She reached out and pushed back some of his windswept hair.

    "It means boys are really, really oblivious, Seaweed."

He shrugged at her, and Cal shook her head. "Annie's nervous, Percy, and can you blame her? We have a life here, a different one, and you--you've changed."

"Well, so have you!" Percy objected.

Callahan smiled "You're really cute, you know that?"

His brow furrowed even more and Callahan laughed. She tipped her head back, the sun landing on her face, and her laughter spilled from her throat. Percy stared at her and the smooth column of her neck.

"What?" He asked, his lips lifted at the corners.

She shook her head, still smiling, and grabbed his hand. "Let's go check on Wise Girl, yeah?"

The ground shook, and light flashed in the corner of Cal's eyes. Her heart beat faster.  The Argo II loomed above them, and another volley of flaming spears.

Cal's stomach rolled, and she moved back, away from Percy, "Oh, gods." she whispered.

Percy stood across from her, his face stricken. "Cal--"

"We need to go, Percy. Now." She grabbed his arm and tugged him away. They ran through the crowds of screaming Romans, lares, and fawns, ducking and dodging them all. Frank and Hazel met them in front of a fountain, and Cal dodged a swipe from an angry Roman.

"Dammit, asshole, we're on your side!" She screamed, and someone yelled 'BULLSHIT' back. She dodged a flying, flaming apple.

The four of them back into the fountain, and Percy started using the water to repel their opponents.

Annie broke through the crowd, her eyes wild. She spotted the two of them and she ran forward, running and dodging everyone in her way.

"Cal! Percy!" She yelled, "We have to get out of here!"

Above them, Octavian was climbing down the rope ladder, his robes in tatters and covered in soot. "The Greek! He fired on the camp!"

Gods, Callahan wanted to skewer the pathetic bastard. Her chest felt ice cold and fragile. Beside her, Annie yelled back up to Octavian, 'You're lying! Leo would never!"
    "I was just there!" He shrieked back, and Cal clenched her jaw, "I saw it with my own eyes."

She looked around and realized that no matter what she did, things weren't going to end well. They were outnumbered, a hundred to one, and nothing would convince the Romans that they did nothing wrong. Not with Octavian whispering, well, screaming, in their ear.

"Percy." Annie yelled, "We need to go now."

He nodded, "Hazel, Frank, you need to make a decision. Are you coming?"

Hazel swallowed, and looked terrified. "Of course we are, but you'll never make it to the ship unless we buy you some time."

"How?" Annabeth asked.

Hazel whistled. Instantly a blur of beige shot across the forum. Arion materialized next to the fountain. He reared whinnying and scattering the mob. Hazel climbed on his back like she'd been born to ride. Strapped to the horse's saddle was a Roman cavalry sword.

Hazel unsheathed her golden blade. "Send me an Iris-message when you're safely away, and we'll rendezvous," she said. "Arion, ride!"

The horse zipped through the crowd with incredible speed, pushing back Romans and causing mass panic.

Cal's heart jumped into her throat. Maybe they could make it out of here in one piece. Then, from halfway across the forum, she heard Jason shouting.

"Romans!" he cried. "Please!"

He and Piper were being pelted with plates and stones. Jason tried to shield Piper, but a brick caught him above the eye. He crumpled, and the crowd surged forward.

"Get back!" Piper screamed. Her charmspeak rolled over the mob, making them hesitate, but Annabeth knew the effect wouldn't last. Percy and she couldn't possibly reach them in time to help.

"Frank," Percy said, "it's up to you. Can you help them?"

"Oh, gods," he murmured. "Okay, sure. Just get up the ropes. Now."

Percy, Annabeth, and Callahan lunged for the ladder. Octavian was still clinging to the bottom, but Percy yanked him off and threw him into the mob. Callahan barked out a nervous laugh.

The three of them started to climb the ladder, arrows whistling by, and an explosion racked them. Below them, a roar sounded.

Romans screamed and scattered as a full-sized dragon charged through the forum—a beast even scarier than the bronze dragon figurehead on the Argo II. It had rough gray skin like a Komodo lizard's and leathery bat wings. Arrows and rocks bounced harmlessly off its hide as it lumbered toward Piper and Jason, grabbed them with its front claws, and vaulted into the air.

"Is that..." Annabeth asked from above her, and Percy nodded.

"Yeah...Frank's got some pretty great talents."

Annabeth scoffed, "Understatement!"

"Guys! Keep climbing!" Callahan yelled from above them, and they resumed their frantic race.

They climbed past all the broken oars and landed on the deck. It was covered in pockmarks, full of burns and broken bits. The ship itself was listing to the side, and one of the sails was ripped. Callahan swallowed.

Leo was standing at one of the Ballistae, firing into the mob below. Her stomach dropped.

"Leo!" Annabeth screamed, "What are you doing?"
    "Destroy them." Leo sounded almost like a Dalek. "Destroy them all." He went back to reload the ballista, put Percy lunged and tackled him to the ground. His head knocked hard against the floor, and he went out like a light.

"Annie?" Cal yelled, frantic. "Can you get us out of here?"

Annie swallowed and nodded as the gray dragon landed on the boat and dropped Piper and Jason onto the floor, both of them unmoving."

"Annabeth!" Percy yelled, and she started and ran to the helm. She took a glance around the millions of controls, grabbed the steering wheel and yanked up.

The boat tilted at a stomach-rolling, vertigo-inducing angle, and they soared into the sky.

━━━as the world falls down

.・゜゜・───・゜゜・．