Chapter 35: Sanctuary

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After a short time, the retreating party burst into a valley. "Head towards the fort!" the guy ordered. "We'll cover you!" Not wasting any time, they sprinted towards Camp Jupiter as the girl blew a horn that was at her side and the invading war party burst through the tunnel.

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Percy, Thalia, and Clara were standing in the barracks still when they heard a horn echoing three short bursts outside. Percy immediately rushed towards the door, leaving the girls to chase after him. "What's going on? Thalia called as Percy ran towards the gate where the fifth cohort was assembling.

"Intruders have breached the tunnel!" Percy called back as he ran up to Hazel. "What's the situation?" he asked her.

Hazel seemed surprised to see Percy, but quickly composed herself. "Elise and Trevor have sounded the Alarm. We have a group of fifteen plus a centaur that they seem to be covering, while a party of about two dozen has just exited the tunnel and is chasing after them," she informed. "They all seem to be Greek, based off of the orange shirts."

"Then what are we waiting for?" Percy questioned.

"Nothing," Hazel grinned. "Cohortem ante. Tempore duplo!" she ordered as the gates were thrown open. Immediately, the fifth cohort set off in a jog towards the tunnel to aid their brethren. Percy, Thalia, and Clara ran after them, intent on helping.

"Chiron!" Percy exclaimed as he ran up to the retreating group, who had stopped when the fifth cohort had run past to engage Annabeth's minions. "What are you doing here?"

"Camp Half-Blood is lost," Chiron said sadly. "The combined efforts of Annabeth, Piper, and Jason have made sure of that."

Percy frowned at this. "Well, crap," he said. "Well, I'll catch you later, I'm going to go help with the invaders."

"Until then, Percy!" Chiron called as Percy ran off towards the fifth cohort.

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"We've got them now!" Sherman crowed as they ran down the hill after the traitors. "They'll never make it inside in time!" However, the hunting party faltered as the gates of Camp Jupiter opened, over a hundred demigods in formation marching towards them.

"What do we do, we can't fight that!" an Apollo boy called out in a panic.

"Grab the straggler!" Sherman ordered, pointing towards Andromeda who had stumbled and was currently being helped up by one of the pesky Roman guards. "Then retreat!" With a battle cry, the group rushed forward to complete their leader's orders.

Violet started to follow, but stopped. "This isn't right," the teen muttered. "She's just a kid." She continued to follow, but a walk. Violet intended to turn herself in to the Romans, even if it meant imprisonment.

Sherman was getting nervous, the Romans were faster than he had anticipated, plus he had noticed the silver figures chasing after them. If the Hunters of Artemis got involved, that was the end of it all. "Retreat!" he called, having no intention of being captured by the Romans today. Immediately, the group from Camp Half-Blood turned on their heel and ran back towards the tunnel, grateful that they were able to get out of there.

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The fifth cohort, along with Percy, Thalia, and Clara, came to a stop beside Elise and Trevor. Insults were thrown by the Romans as the last Greek disappeared into the tunnel. They seemed anxious though, the cohort clearly wanted to hunt them down and bring them back to New Rome to stand trial. "Let them go," Percy called. "We'll never catch them with a group this size.

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