𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐆𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭 𝐖𝐚𝐫¹ -𝐏𝐉𝐎

𝟗

𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗡𝗶𝗻𝗲:
𝘚𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘻𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘢 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘐𝘷𝘺'𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘗𝘦𝘳𝘤𝘺'𝘴 𝘳𝘦𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱

                                                 "Ivy, hun, can I come in?"

Ivy quickly wiped her tears and clear her throat. She quickly picked up her math homework and turned her music in her headphones down . "Um, yeah, yeah. Come in."

Mrs Sammy walked into her room, and, if Ivy was being honest, she liked the woman. She was warm, kind, humble, but she doesn't take anyone's crap. She had a full sleeve of tattoos on her left arm and was in the Army for fifteen years as an engineer. Now, she's a high school math teacher.

She's never pushed, got her into her high school, and has been nothing but welcoming. The biggest, and just about only rule she has is no arguing with James in front of the children.

"We are picking up pizza today. Is there anything you want on it?" Mrs Sammy asked, staying by the doorframe, her eyes looking around her room. It was plain and still looked like a guest room.

Ivy shook her head and glanced at Mrs Sammy, "Just no meat. Other then that, I don't care. I'll eat just about anything."

"Perfect." Mrs Sammy smiled, turning to her and it fell. "Oh, sweetheart, are you okay? Your eyes are as red and puffy as a tomato."

To say Ivy was thrown off by the comparison was an understatement. "What—No. I'm fine."

Mrs Sammy didn't seem convinced but nodded nonetheless with a smile, "Okay, if you say so, but hun, I know I may not be your ma, but I am here for you. I was a teenager once to."

That almost made Ivy feel better, just not in the way she attended. "I appreciate that, Mrs Sammy, but I promise you, you could not understand what I'm going through."

"Boy trouble?"

Ivy laughed, like actually laughed for the first time in a while. Mrs Sammy smiled. "Oh gods, I wish. If anything, it'd be the other way around. I'm the problem."

Mrs Sammy raised her hands, "There is nothing wrong with being the problem. Took your—James five years before I let him keep me. Broke up with him multiple times."

"Really?"

"Oh, yeah. I broke up with him five, maybe six times."

"Why?"

"Wish I could tell you but...I just did. James didn't care, he kept coming back."

Ivy couldn't imagine this. She didn't want to know this about James. It's easier to hate him thinking he's just a bad person. It's easier to hate him then hate her mom, because she can't hate a goddess then same way you can a mortal. But James? He's mortal. He's easier to hate.

"I broke up with my, now ex, boyfriend because my mother told me he'd suffer a horrible fate because of me after nine months of dating. A few weeks later I take a poison knife in the stomach from my best friend who was trying to kill said ex boyfriend. Said best friend dies. The last month, my ex boyfriend, who I still love more then life itself went missing only to find out that he is missing, his crazy aunt kidnapped him and is hiding him because my great aunt wants to kill her grandchildren. So now, I'm looking for said ex boyfriend because we have to go stop said great aunt."

Mrs Sammy stared at her for a moment and nodded, "And this has been happening..."

"Since July. Well, actually, like, since I was thirteen, but with a lot of breaks in between."

"Right...right. Well, uh, I'm going to go get pizza—"

                                                 It sounds creepy, he knows, but he doesn't mean it in a creepy way. It's just...she looks so peaceful when she's asleep. Beautiful, really. You'd never guess this girl had more knives then a human should and could throw them with incredible accuracy.

Percy and Jason sat with their backs against the mast, their heads slumped in exhaustion, Ivy was asleep on his shoulders. Annabeth and Piper were trying to get them to drink some water while Vivi fussed over all three of them.

Hazel and Frank stood, having an argument that involved lots of arm waving and head shaking. Percy was too tired to try and listen to what they were saying.

"I turn away for one moment," Vivi mutters as she looks over Ivy. "She's going to be the death of me."

Me too.

Everybody gathered at the mast once Leo walked in.

Frank scowled like he was trying hard to turn into a bulldog. "No sign of pursuit," he said.

"Or land," Hazel added, looking a little green.

They were in the middle of the open sea, completely on their own, sailing to the Mare Nostrum, where all the scary monsters and nasty giants had come from. The Romans might not follow them, but they couldn't count on any help from Camp Half-Blood, either.

Leo turned to Annabeth. "Did you find the map you wanted?"

She nodded, though she looked pale. Percy wondered what she'd seen at Fort Sumter that could have shaken her up so badly.

"I'll have to study it," she said, as if that was the end of the subject. "How far are we from those coordinates?"

"At top rowing speed, about an hour," Leo said. "Any idea what we're looking for?"

"No," she admitted. "Percy?"

Percy raised his head, even that much effort was exhausting. He felt like following Ivy and just going to sleep. "The Nereid said Chiron's brothers were there, and they'd want to hear about that aquarium in Atlanta. I don't know what she meant, but..." He paused, taking a deep breath. "She also warned me to be careful. Keto, the goddess at the aquarium: she's the mother of sea monsters. She might be stuck in Atlanta, but she can still send her children after us. The Nereid said we should expect an attack."

"Wonderful," Frank muttered.

Jason tried to stand, which wasn't a good idea. Piper grabbed him to keep him from falling over, and he slid back down the mast.

"Can we get the ship aloft?" he asked. "If we could fly—"

"That'd be great," Leo said. "Except Festus tells me the port aerial stabilizer got pulverized when the ship raked against the dock at Fort Sumter."

"We were in a hurry," Annabeth said. "Trying to save you."

"And saving me is a very noble cause," Leo agreed. "I'm just saying, it'll take some time to fix. Until then, we're not flying anywhere."

Percy went to roll his shoulders back before remembering Ivy was asleep on them. "Fine with me. The sea is good."

"Speak for yourself." Hazel glanced at the evening sun, which was almost to the horizon. "We need to go fast. We've burned another day, and Nico only has three more left."

"We can do it," Leo promised. "We can make it to Rome in three days— assuming, you know, nothing unexpected happens."

Frank grunted. "Is there any good news?"

"Actually, yes," Leo said. "According to Festus, our flying table, Buford, made it back safely while we were in Charleston, so those eagles didn't get him. Unfortunately, he lost the laundry bag with your pants."

"Dang it!" Frank barked, which was severe profanity for him.

A wave of nausea and overcame Percy, and he doubled over, which made Ivy groan in her sleep and move her head the other way.

"Did the world just turn upside down?" he asked.

Jason pressed his hands to his head. "Yeah, and it's spinning. Everything is yellow. Is it supposed to be yellow?"

Annabeth and Piper exchanged concerned looks.

"No, it's not," Vivi said snippily but Percy knew she was just concerned. She gets defensive when it comes to then keeping themselves healthy. "You three severely overworked yourselves. Summoning the storms and using Ivy as a lightning rod did not help at all. You three need rest. Now."

Annabeth nodded agreement. "Frank, can you help us get the guys belowdecks?"

Frank glanced at Leo.

"It's fine, man," Leo said. "Just try not to drop them on the way down the stairs."

"Ivy, you can't," Percy let out a groan as Frank helped him to his feet. "She'll freak out if you move her and she doesn't—"

"I know," Annabeth said. "I'll take her down. She'll be fine, go rest."

He did rest, with no nightmares which was a definite plus. He only woke up when he heard a knock on his door.

He's always been a light sleeper, he had to be because of Smelly Gabe. Even after a few years of no longer having to worry about him, he still wakes up to the smallest noises just in case. Just in case a monster attacks and he has to protect his parents. Just in case he somehow came back. Just in case the worst case scenario happens.

Just in case.

Percy got up, his entire body still sore and still groggy as he opened it. He rubbed his eyes and Annabeth was standing in front of him.

"Hm, you're alive."

"No need to sound so disappointed," Percy rolled his eyes but let Annabeth come into the room.

"Vivi sent me to check on you," she explained as she sat down at a small chair that was in the corner of his room. "She's checking on Ivy—Gods your room smells like boy."

"I'm sorry?" Percy looked at her confused. "What did you expect it to smell like?"

Seeing the look on Annabeth's face, the smirk, already he knew what she was going to say. "Wise girl—"

"Ivy's perfume of course."

Percy's head dropped and he rubbed his neck, "You are never going to let me live that down, will you?"

Annabeth had the audacity to laugh, "It was a gag gift, Seaweed brain."

"It smelt nice!"

"And the teddy bear?"

Percy huffed, "You know, I feel great. You can go ahead and leave now..."

Annabeth didn't move, she was looking at a picture of him with Sally and Paul when they got married. It was small, nothing crazy but his mom loved it and was so happy.

"Why are you really here? It's not to check if I'm alive," Percy said, moving to sit down in the floor against his bed.

Annabeth let out a breathe and turned to him, "She was a mess, you know, when you disappear."

"My mom?"

"I—Well yes." Annabeth shook her head. "That's not who I was talking about, though."

"Then who?"

"You're not a complete idiot."

Percy looked up at his ceiling, dropping his head back against his bed. "Annabeth...I don't know what you want me to say."

"If you tell her I said this, I will kill you, okay? But...she really was. She would spend days looking for you, your mom had to force her to sleep and eat or she probably wouldn't have. And she blamed herself, a lot."

Now, he was confused. "Blamed herself? Why? There was no reason to."

Annabeth let out a sigh and looked down at her hands. "The morning she broke up with you. A few hours before that, the night before...Her mom came to her. Eris."

"Who?"

"Goddess of strife, discord, chaos. She's the one that started the Trojan War."

He actually knew that story. "Yeah, she was mad she didn't get invited to a wedding or something so she threw a golden apple in front of Athena, Aphrodite, and Hera."

Makes sense why Aphrodite loves Ivy and Hera hates her.

Annabeth nodded, still looking at her hands. "Apparently her mom told her something. I'm not sure what. She didn't even tell me directly that she met her mom that day but..."

You changed both your fates, caused chaos that no one had in centuries.

But do not assume that means he is safe, after all, you have disappointed me, daughter, more then once.

"My fate," Percy muttered, more to himself then Annabeth. "She told her something about my fate."

Annabeth finally looked at him, surprise evident on her face but Percy continued before she could say anything.

"Why are you telling me this?" Percy asks because he didn't understand it. Why Annabeth was telling him this.

"Because I understand, Ivy," she said. "She was alone her entire life, had no sense of stability, even at camp. Then the two most important people in her life die and betray her, only to redeem himself and die after. Her mom coming into her life when it was already rocky and haunting her. I pushed Vivi away because I figured that she'd leave at some point, so why risk it? But, she's the most stable person in my life and has always been there when I needed her. Even when I pushed her away.

"And you, Percy. You are the only stable thing in her life. Even getting your memories away by a goddess didn't stop you from caring about her. You had to be ripped away from her and even then it didn't work like it was supposed to. Ivy cares about you more then just a boyfriend or someone she loves, Percy, because she does love you. She cares about you as a friend, a person, and Ivy's very protective of the people she cares about because there isn't many."

Ivy cares about you more then a boyfriend or someone she loves. She cares about you as a friend, a person.

Percy let those words be carved into his skin, his heart, his brain. He let them sit there until they were unable to be moved, stuck with him like another body part.

"So what am I supposed to do?" He asked quietly. "I love her."

"I know," Annabeth said softly. "She knows it too. You have to do the only thing you can, talk to her."

He'd have better luck...well, he'd have better luck doing literally anything else.

                                                 "Great," Ivy said in annoyance as she climbed her way to the top deck.

In front of her was a giant shrimp. The thing was the length of their ship. In the moonlight, it looked like a cross between a giant shrimp and a cockroach, with a pink chitinous shell, a flat crayfish tail, and millipede-type legs undulating hypnotically as the monster scraped against the hull of the Argo II.

Its head surfaced last—the slimy pink face of an enormous catfish with glassy dead eyes, a gaping toothless maw, and a forest of tentacles sprouting from each nostril.

Percy yelled, "What's going—Gah! Shrimpzilla!"

Frank ran to Hazel's side. She was clutching the rigging, still dazed from her flashback, but she gestured that she was all right.

The monster rammed the ship again. The hull groaned. Annabeth, Piper, and Jason tumbled to starboard and almost rolled overboard.

Ivy, Vivi, and Percy were barely holding their ground.

"Annie!" Vivi shouted. She went towards her but a tentacle fell right in front of her. Ivy and Percy pulled her towards them.

"How did it get so close?" Annabeth shouted, pulling herself up on one of the rail shields.

"I don't know!" Hedge snarled. He looked around for his bat, which had rolled across the quarterdeck.

"I'm stupid!" Leo scolded himself. "Stupid, stupid! I forgot the sonar!"

The ship tilted farther to starboard. Either the monster was trying to give them a hug, or it was about to capsize them.

"Sonar?" Hedge demanded. "Pan's pipes, Valdez! Maybe if you hadn't been staring into Hazel's eyes, holding hands for so long—"

"What?" Frank yelped.

"It wasn't like that!" Hazel protested.

"Uh, oh," Ivy and Vivi both muttered.

"It doesn't matter!" Piper said. "Jason, can you call some lightning?"

Jason struggled to his feet. "I—" He only managed to shake his head.

Summoning the storm earlier had taken too much out of him.

"Percy!" Annabeth said. "Can you talk to that thing? Do you know what it is?"

The son of the sea god shook his head, clearly mystified. "Maybe it's just curious about the ship. Maybe—"

The monster's tendrils lashed across the deck so fast, no one even had enough time to yell, Look out!

One slammed Percy in the chest and sent him crashing down the steps. Ivy pushed Vivi down, getting hit with the tentacle in the stomach and against the railing. She would have fallen overboard if it wasn't for her reflexes. Another wrapped around Piper's legs and dragged her, screaming, toward the rail. Dozens more tendrils curled around the masts, encircling the crossbows and ripping down the rigging.

"Nose-hair attack!" Hedge snatched up his bat and leaped into action; but his hits just bounced harmlessly off the tendrils.

Jason drew his sword. He tried to free Piper, but he was still weak. His gold blade cut through the tendrils with no problem, but faster than he could sever them, more took their place.

Annabeth unsheathed her dagger. She ran through the forest of tentacles, dodging and stabbing at whatever target she could find. Frank pulled out his bow. He fired over the side at the creature's body, lodging arrows in the chinks of its shell; but that only seemed to annoy the monster. It bellowed, and rocked the ship. The mast creaked like it might snap off.

Ivy was holding onto the railing with one hand, the ocean just waiting to take her. She wasn't sure how much longer she could hold on as it rocked back and forth. Her ribs were definitely bruised, if she was lucky, so reaching to keep hold of the rail was hurting enough. She tried to get her wings out but she was still too exhausted from earlier.

"Ivy!" Vivi shouted, hurrying up and to the side of the railing. She managed to avoid the tentacles and grabbed onto Ivy's hand. She leaned over and held her other hand out.

Just when Ivy gave Vivi her other hand, something grabbed onto her feet. Ivy tried stomping it away, but it wasn't working. Vivi tried pulling her up, but she was stuck. Ivy ripped one hand out of Vivi's and unsheathed a knife, stabbing at the thing that had slimy tentacles around her legs. Ew. So, she decided she'll have to do something stupid.

"Vivi—Fuck! I think I hit myself! V, let go!"

Vivi stared at her in horror. "Are you insane?"

"Depends on who you ask."

The ship rocked again and they saw a huge flame erupt. Ivy used that distraction to let go of Vivi's hand. Vivi noticed just to late and screamed.

"Drop a ladder!" Ivy tried to yell over Vivi's screaming.

As she fell, she sliced at the tentacle wrapped around her leg. It took what felt like hours before she sliced it off, the tentacle falling into water along with her.

Ivy fell into the water with a harsh landing. She held her breathe and fought her way to the surface. When she did, she was face to face with a large snail that had hundreds of tentacles coming out of it's mouth, goo dripping from each one.

Ew! That thing was wrapped around her leg?

Ivy wasted no time taking her earrings out, letting them transform into more ladies before slicing and slicing and slicing the snotty snail. Each tentacle that came near her. Slash. Slash. Slash. It got her a few times. Once across the face, another across the chest, and one more down her arm. She couldn't kill the thing, not to mention the huge disadvantage of almost drowning every twenty seconds from the unstable waters. If she was on land, that'd be completely different, but water? That was Percy's problem, not hers.

Ivy ended up backing against the Argo II, her back against the base of the ship. Every time she sliced off a tentacle, it regrew just seconds later. It felt like literally forever before a ladder was dropped next to her. Unfortunately with the ladder was Percy. A very, very unhappy Percy. He moved the water to force the snail under it before holding out his hand for her to take.

Ivy cringed, "I think I'd rather take my chances with the snail."

"Ivy—I don't know your full name—take my fucking hand."

Yup. The snail was looking a lot better. Drowning seems a lot better, honestly. But, she didn't have a choice so she grabbed Percy's hand and he helped her grab onto the ladder before the two started to climb up. When they got onto the deck, it was an absolute mess and completely chaotic.

Vivi was glaring at her and, honestly, Ivy probably would have jumped off the ship if Percy wasn't standing literally right behind her.

"You—You idiot!" Vivi shouted.

"V—"

"No! You let go of my hand!" Vivi said angrily. It faltered only slightly when Annabeth appeared next to her.

"It was either that, or you get pulled overboard with me," Ivy told her. "That thing was wrapped around my leg so tightly I was getting pulled in half. My ribs hurt enough as it is."

Vivi was furious still, although it had softened, she scanned her up and down as Piper and Jason appeared.

"Ribs are probably bruised, some nectar and you'll be fine. Those cuts need to be cleaned but...You're fine," she mumbled. "Let go of my hand one more time, Ivy, and I will murder you."

"Of course, babes," Ivy raised her arms. "I swear."

Vivi seemed to think it was good enough, sinking into Annabeth, and Ivy looked around. Jason and Percy were obviously exhausted, they all were. Percy was completely avoiding eye contact with her while Piper was looking down at their dagger. The same one Helen of Troy had all those years ago. That dagger made her uneasy.

"Where's the other three?"

That's when Annabeth explained what happened. Leo has thrown Greek fire at the monster. He, Hazel, and Frank fell into the water, the monster soon after.

Afterward, Annabeth, Coach Hedge, Ivy, and Buford the table rushed around repairing things so that the ship wouldn't sink. Percy, despite being exhausted, searched the ocean for their missing friends. Jason, also exhausted, flew around the rigging like a blond Peter Pan, putting out fires from the second green explosion that had lit up the sky just above the mainmast.

By the time the sun rose, none of them had slept. Percy had scoured the seafloor and found nothing. The Argo II was no longer in danger of sinking, though without Leo, they couldn't do full repairs. The ship was capable of sailing, but no one suggested leaving the area—not without their missing friends.

Piper and Annabeth sent a dream vision to Camp Half-Blood, warning Chiron of what had happened with the Romans at Fort Sumter. Annabeth explained her exchange of words with Reyna. Piper relayed the vision from her knife about the SUVs racing north. The kindly centaur's face seemed to age thirty years during the course of their conversation, but he assured them he would see to the defenses of the camp. Tyson, Mrs. O'Leary, and Ella had arrived safely. If necessary, Tyson could summon an army of Cyclopes to the camp's defense, and Ella and Rachel Dare were already comparing prophecies, trying to learn more about what the future held. The job of the seven demigods aboard the Argo II, Chiron reminded them, was to finish the quest and come back safely.

After the Iris-message, the demigods paced the deck in silence, staring at the water and hoping for a miracle.

When it finally came—three giant pink bubbles bursting at the surface off the starboard bow and ejecting Frank, Hazel, and Leo—Piper went a little crazy. She cried out with relief and dove straight into the water.

Ivy had no room to judge. Especially since Percy was still avoiding her eye but stood right next to her as they stared at the water, waiting for a miracle what seemed like hours before. She didn't understand why he was so mad at her.

Once they got the group on board and changed into dry clothes (poor Frank had to borrow a pair of too-small pants from Jason) the crew all gathered on the quarterdeck for a celebratory breakfast—except for Coach Hedge, who grumbled that the atmosphere was getting too cuddly for his tastes and went below to hammer out some dents in the hull. While Leo fussed over his helm controls, Hazel and Frank related the story of the fish-centaurs and their training camp.

"Incredible," Jason said. "These are really good brownies."

"That's your only comment?" Piper demanded.

He looked surprised. "What? I heard the story. Fish-centaurs. Merpeople. Letter of intro to the Tiber River god. Got it. But these brownies—"

"I know," Frank said, his mouth full. "Try them with Esther's peach preserves."

"That," Hazel said, "is incredibly disgusting."

"Pass me the jar, man," Jason said.

Percy, for his part, wanted to hear every detail about the aquatic camp. He kept coming back to one point: "They didn't want to meet me?"

"It wasn't that," Hazel said. "Just...undersea politics, I guess. The merpeople are territorial. The good news is they're taking care of that aquarium in Atlanta.
And they'll help protect the Argo II as we cross the Atlantic."

Percy nodded absently. "But they didn't want to meet me?"

Annabeth swatted his arm. "Come on, Seaweed Brain! We've got other things to worry about."

"Besides, gods suck. When has one every not wanted to kill you."

Annabeth swatted her arm, but where was the lie?

"She's right," Hazel said. "After today, Nico has less than two days. The fish centaurs said we have to rescue him. He's essential to the quest somehow."

She looked around defensively, as if waiting for someone to argue. No one did. Ivy tried not to imagine what Nico di Angelo was feeling, but that's all she could do. Little Nico, stuck in a jar with only two pomegranate seeds left to sustain him, and no idea whether he would be rescued. That, that right there made Ivy want to sob.

"Nico must have information about the Doors of Death," Piper said. "We'll save him, Hazel. We can make it in time. Right, Leo?"

"What?" Leo tore his eyes away from the controls. "Oh, yeah. We should reach the Mediterranean tomorrow morning. Then spend the rest of that day sailing to Rome, or flying, if I can get the stabilizer fixed by then...."

Jason suddenly looked as though his brownie with peach preserves didn't taste so good. "Which will put us in Rome on the last possible day for Nico. Twenty-four hours to find him—at most."

Ivy was beginning to feel nauseous.

Percy crossed his legs. "And that's only part of the problem. There's the Mark of Athena, too."

Annabeth didn't seem happy with the change of topic. She rested her hand on her backpack, which, since they'd left Charleston, she always seemed to have with her. Vivi looked down at the table, beginning to pick at it.

Annabeth opened the bag and brought out a thin bronze disk the diameter of a donut. "This is the map that I found at Fort Sumter. It's..."

She stopped abruptly, staring at the smooth bronze surface. "It's blank!"

Percy took it and examined both sides. "It wasn't like this earlier?"

"No! I was looking at it in my cabin and..." Annabeth muttered under her breath. "It must be like the Mark of Athena. I can only see it when I'm alone. It won't show itself to other demigods."

Frank scooted back like the disk might explode. He had an orange-juice mustache and a brownie-crumb beard.

"That sounds like a—"

"Ivy!" Percy sent her a shut up look. She shut up mostly because it was the first time he looked at her in hours.

"What did it have on it?" Frank asked nervously. "And what is the Mark of Athena? I still don't get it."

Annabeth took the disk from Percy. She turned it in the sunlight, but it remained blank. "The map was hard to read, but it showed a spot on the Tiber River in Rome. I think that's where my quest starts...the path I've got to take to follow the Mark."

"Maybe that's where you meet the river god Tiberinus," Piper said. "But what is the Mark?"

"The coin," Annabeth murmured.

Percy frowned. "What coin?"

Annabeth dug into her pocket and brought out a silver drachma. "I've been carrying this ever since I saw my mom at Grand Central. It's an Athenian coin."

She passed it around.

"You said it was an artifact your dad gave you," Vivi looked at Annabeth slightly offended. Annabeth's cheeks went red and she cleared her throat.

"It's technically an artifact."

Vivi blinked.

"An owl," Leo noted. "Well, that makes sense. I guess the branch is an olive branch? But what's this inscription, ΑΘΕ—Area Of Effect?"

"It's alpha, theta, epsilon," Annabeth said. "In Greek it stands for Of The Athenians...or you could read it as the children of Athena. It's sort of the Athenian motto."

"Like SPQR for the Romans," Piper guessed.

"Gods that's—"

"Ivy."

"Shutting up."

Annabeth agreed with Piper. "Anyway, the Mark of Athena is an owl, just like that one. It appears in fiery red. I've seen it in my dreams. Then twice at Fort Sumter."

She described what had happened at the fort—the voice of Gaea, the spiders in the garrison, the Mark burning them away. Ivy could tell it wasn't easy for her to talk about.

Vivi took Annabeth's hand. "I should have been there for you."

"But that's the point," Annabeth said. "No one can be there for me. When I get to Rome, I'll have to strike out on my own. Otherwise, the Mark won't appear. I'll have to follow it to...to the source."

"So you have to do this quest alone?" Vivi asked, but everyone knew the answer.

Annabeth didn't say anything, just look at her. Ivy watched as the exhausted look passed through Vivi before it was replaced with her comforting one.

Frank took the coin from Leo. He stared at the owl.

"The giants' bane stands gold and pale, Won with pain from a woven jail." He looked up at Annabeth. "What is it...this thing at the source?"

Before Annabeth could answer, Jason spoke up.

"A statue," he said. "A statue of Athena. At least...that's my guess."

Piper frowned. "You said you didn't know."

"I don't. But the more I think about it...there's only one artifact that could fit the legend." He turned to Annabeth. "I'm sorry. I should have told you everything I've heard, much earlier. But honestly, I was scared. If this legend is true—"

"I know," Annabeth said. "I figured it out, Jason. I don't blame you. But if we manage to save the statue, Greek and Romans together...Don't you see? It could heal the rift."

"Hold on." Percy made a time-out gesture. "What statue?"

Annabeth took back the silver coin and slipped it into her pocket. "The Athena Parthenos," she said. "The most famous Greek statue of all time. It was forty feet tall, covered in ivory and gold. It stood in the middle of the Parthenon in Athens."

The ship went silent, except for the waves lapping against the hull.

"Okay, I'll bite," Leo said at last. "What happened to it?"

"It disappeared," Annabeth said.

Leo frowned. "How does a forty-foot-tall statue in the middle of the Parthenon just disappear?"

"That's a good question," Annabeth said. "It's one of the biggest mysteries in history. Some people thought the statue was melted down for its gold, or destroyed by invaders. Athens was sacked a number of times. Some thought the statue was carried off—"

"By Romans," Jason finished. "At least, that's one theory, and it fits the legend I heard at Camp Jupiter. To break the Greeks' spirit, the Romans carted off the Athena Parthenos when they took over the city of Athens. They hid it in an underground shrine in Rome. The Roman demigods swore it would never see the light of day. They literally stole Athena, so she could no longer be the symbol of Greek military power. She became Minerva, a much tamer goddess."

"And the children of Athena have been searching for the statue ever since," Annabeth said. "Most don't know about the legend, but in each generation, a few are chosen by the goddess. They're given a coin like mine. They follow the Mark of Athena...a kind of magical trail that links them to the statue...hoping to find the resting place of the Athena Parthenos and get the statue back."

Ivy watched the two of them. They spoke like a team, without any hostility or blame. The two of them had never really trusted each other. Ivy was close enough to Annabeth to know that, and Ivy didn't blame her one bit. Truthfully, she doesn't trust half the people on the ship with her life. But now...if they could discuss such a huge problem so calmly— the ultimate source of Greek/Roman hatred—maybe there was hope for the two camps, after all.

Percy seemed be having similar thoughts, judging from his surprised expression. "So if we—I mean you—find the statue...what would we do with it? Could we even move it?"

"I'm not sure," Annabeth admitted. "But if we could save it somehow, it could unite the two camps. It could heal my mother of this hatred she's got, tearing her two aspects apart. And maybe...maybe the statue has some sort of power that could help us against the giants."

Ivy couldn't believe the huge responsibility that Annabeth was putting on her shoulders. She had to respect it, especially since she will have to do this suicide mission alone.

"This could change everything," Piper said. "It could end thousands of years of hostility. It might be the key to defeating Gaea. But if we can't help you..."

She didn't finish, but the question seemed to hang in the air: Was saving the statue even possible?

Annabeth squared her shoulders. Ivy knew Annabeth was terrified see could feel it.

"I have to succeed," Annabeth said simply. "The risk is worth it."

Hazel twirled her hair pensively. "I don't like the idea of you risking your life alone, but you're right. We saw what recovering the golden eagle standard did for the Roman legion. If this statue is the most powerful symbol of Athena ever created—"

"It could kick some serious booty," Leo offered.

Hazel frowned. "That wasn't the way I'd put it, but yes."

"Except..." Percy looked over at Annabeth worriedly. "No child of Athena has ever found it."

"I'm with Percy," Vivi spoke, her voice leveled. "Not that I don't think you can do it, Annie, I know better then to underestimate you but...We don't know what's down there. Or what's guarding it. If it's got to do with spiders—"

"Won through pain from a woven jail," Frank recalled. "Woven, like webs?"

Annabeth's face turned as white as printer paper. Ivy suspected that Annabeth knew what awaited her...or at least that she had a very good idea. She was trying to hold down a wave of panic and terror.

Then it hit her, and it seemed to hit Percy and Vivi at the same time. Spiders guarding something important to Athena.

"We'll deal with that when we get to Rome," Piper suggested. "It's going to work out. Annabeth is going to kick some serious booty, too. You'll see."

"Yeah," Percy said. "I learned a long time ago: Never bet against Annabeth."

"Never underestimate Annie," Vivi said softly, but Ivy could see the exhaustion and fear in her eyes.

Annabeth looked at her friends gratefully.

"Look, not to ruin this fun little thing," Ivy interrupted, leaning forward. "But you guys are overlooking something. My mother."

"What about her?" Jason asked.

"She's pouring gas into a fire," Ivy said. "She's making sure that whatever anger that Octavian has towards the Greeks it at full blast along with the others. I doubt that whatever we do to "mend the gods" will help much with the camps. The giants, maybe, but the gods won't help Camp Jupiter or Camp Half-Blood. No matter what, as long as my mom wants chaos and conflict, there will be chaos and conflict.

"And, if there aren't any demigods to help the gods with the giants, they are screwed. Gods get banished or whatever, Gaea will probably get the Titans out of their punishment to be replaced by the gods. Titans will most likely rage war against the giants if you amplify the anger on the right one. The demigods all killed each other because neither side will win if we fight. That right there is millenniums of conflict, bloodshed, and chaos."

"And how exactly do you know this?" asked Piper.

"Because it's what I would do. If I wanted to start a war on this ship? I'd start with Jason and Percy, amplify whatever anger they have and force it towards the other. Then Leo and Frank, amplify the uneasiness and anger between the two. Then Annabeth and Hazel, probably, and Vivi and Piper. It's that simply."

Ivy immediately regretted speaking as she felt everyone's eyes on her, watching her. For a second, Ivy felt like they didn't exactly trust her, and to be fair, she didn't blame them.

"So," Vivi broke the silence. She seemed to be the only one not uneasy. "What do you think we should do?"

Ivy opened her mouth before quickly shutting it.

Poison falls in the endless ditch, Pulling light down at a last minute switch.

An oath to keep with a final breath, And foes bear arms to the Doors of Death.

My daughter, the first mortal to ever—

One good deed does not make up for the rest of your disrespect.

"Me." Ivy spoke so quietly the others barely heard her. "Me. She's punishing me."

"Ivy?" Percy leaned forward to look at her, grabbing her hand and squeezing it gently. "Ivy, what are you talking about?"

"I can get her to stop." Ivy tried to hide the terror from her face.

"No offense, Ivy, but how are you supposed to get your mom to stop? Demigods don't have that much..." Piper didn't have to say what she really meant, Ivy knew.

The gods don't care enough about their children to be able to be distracted by them.

"I know I can," Ivy looked over at Annabeth. "If you get the statue, I can get my mother off our back."

Both shared a small amount of absolute terror between each other, and fear, but that was all. It was only for a second.

"That sounds like a plan."

"I don't like this plan," Vivi said immediately. Percy nodded his head rapidly.

"I'm with Vivi."

"Doesn't matter," Annabeth said, her voice soft as she looked at Vivi. "It's happening."

Judging from their half-eaten breakfasts, the others still felt uneasy; but Leo managed to shake them out of it. He pushed a button, and a loud blast of steam exploded from Festus's mouth, making everyone jump.

"Well!" he said. "Good pep rally, but there's still a ton of things to fix on this ship before we get to the Mediterranean. Please report to Supreme Commander Leo for your superfun list of chores!"

╒═══════✰°
𝘬𝘳𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘬𝘴...
𝘜𝘯𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘵𝘦𝘥
°✰═══════╛

6.6k words
so, the scene i need before i can do the big
argument between percy and ivy is actually like...
still a few chapters away

but but!!!!! we will get to see more angry percy and
ivy next chapter, as well as flustered percy soo...

idk when there is going to be a vivi pov...probably
soon idk. and i haven't decided what i'm going to
have vivi and ivy do while the others are on their
own quest, like frank leo and hazel or annabeth or
jason piper and percy. i kinda wanted them to
do their own thing so if you have any ideas, please
do help me out and lmk them bc i am struggling

also, it's 3 am and i wrote this chapter in ten hours
and stayed up just to get it out bc i lost my ideas
i work the next four days and have school work i
needa do so you may not get an update until like
wednesday or thursday. or maybe this sunday
we shall see

also, annabeth and percy's friendship in this book>>
ivy's and vivi's friendship in this book>>>>>>

love y'all <3 do keep commenting bc i love them
and they give me so much motivation <3