Annabeth's POV
Annabeth wanted to hate New Rome. But as an aspiring architect, she couldn't help admiring the terraced gardens, the fountains and temples, the winding cobblestone streets and gleaming white villas.
After the Titan War last summer, she'd gotten her dream job of redesigning the palaces of Mount Olympus. Now, walking through this miniature city, she kept thinking, I should have made a dome like that. I love the way those columns lead into that courtyard.
Whoever designed New Rome had clearly poured a lot of time and love into the project. "We have the best architects and builders in the world," Reyna said, as if reading her thoughts.
"Rome always did, in the ancient times. Many demigods stay on to live here after their time in the legion. They go to our university. They settle down to raise families. Percy and (Y/N) both seemed interested in this fact."
Annabeth wondered what that meant. She must have scowled more fiercely than she realized, because Reyna laughed. "You're a warrior, all right," the praetor said. "You've got fire in your eyes." "Sorry."
Annabeth tried to tone down the glare. Zoe, however, did not, "Why is it you have pulled us aside?" She asked, her tone venomous, but Reyna acted as though the tone of Zoe's voice didn't bother her at all.
"In time, I promise." She said, and then turned her head to Annabeth, "There is no need to apologize, I'm the daughter of Bellona." "Roman goddess of war?" Reyna nodded. She turned and whistled like she was hailing a cab.
A moment later, two metal dogs raced toward them—automaton greyhounds, one silver and one gold. They brushed against Reyna's legs and regarded Annabeth with glistening ruby eyes. "My pets," Reyna explained. "Aurum and Argentum. You don't mind if they walk with us?"
Again, Annabeth got the feeling it wasn't really a request. She noted that the greyhounds had teeth like steel arrowheads. Maybe weapons weren't allowed inside the city, but Reyna's pets could still tear her to pieces if they chose.
Annabeth looked at Zoe, who she noted had not removed her enchanted circlet. Besides that, there was the fact she was literally being shadowed, Annabeth relaxed as she remembered she wasn't as defenseless against the dogs as she thought. "After you."
Reyna led them to an outdoor café, where the waiter clearly knew her. He smiled and handed her a to-go cup, then offered one to Annabeth and Zoe. "Would you like some?" Reyna asked. "They make wonderful hot chocolate. Not really a Roman drink—"
"But chocolate is universal," Annabeth said. "Exactly." It was a warm June afternoon, but Annabeth accepted the cup with thanks. Zoe did not partake, explaining that she was having some trouble with her nerves right now, and it was best not to chance it. Annabeth agreed.
(Y/N)'s POV
Going on a tour with Octavian was about as fun as you could imagine, the auger was hardly the best or most invested guest on the Argo II. Even as Leo led them to the vessel, he complained about having to be escorted by the 'enemy.'
"Beware Greeks bearing gifts-" He would mutter, as an olive branch of sorts, (Y/N) tried to be friendly towards the augur. "Oh, don't worry Octavian." He said cheerfully, "If I see any big wooden horses with giggling coming from it, I'll let you know."
"That was how they invaded Troy, not Rome you twit." Octavian said harshly, (Y/N) sighed, "It's called a joke, you tw-" (Y/N)!" Suddenly he was tackled from behind, something wrapping around his shoulders and neck.
"Mornin' Jules." He said, patting the child's head as she grinned toothily, peeking over his head, "Hello Octavian" She said, "Hello Julia. What brings you here?" He said curtly in reply. She shrugged, "Wanted to see the boat."
He nodded, "Yes, I agree, we should inspect it." He said, "It might be dangerous-" "Terminus said it was okay though. Not dangerous." Julia interrupted. "He told me to watch you though." She said, pointing at Octavian.
He seemed offended, "Why am I his biggest concern right now?" He asked, his voice becoming a little bit shrill, "You might pull up the grass again." She said, Octavian barely held back his anger, as he glared at (Y/N). "Is. That. So?"
"Yeahuh." Julia nodded. "Makes sense to me." (Y/N) said as he tried to hold back his laughter. "Who were those people that were on the magic boat?" "My friends from where I live," (Y/N) said, Julia seemed confused, "But you live here silly. Everyone does."
"Before I got here, I lived somewhere else, those people were my friends, they came to get me and bring Jason back, you remember Jason?" She nodded, "I wanted to be him when I grow up." She said absentmindedly, placing her chin on (Y/N)'s head.
"Who are your friends?" She asked curiously, "Well, Jason of course, but as for the others, starting off, there's that kid over there, he's called Leo." He gestured, the son of Hephaestus smiled at her, "Sup little dude" She waved at him in return.
"There's also Piper, she's a daughter of Aphrodite-" "Who?" (Y/N) looked to Octavian for support, "Venus." He said tiredly. "Yeah, that one. Then there's Zoe, she's Percy's girlfriend-" "And who is her godly parent?" Octavian said cunningly.
"Dunno." (Y/N) shrugged, causing Julia to giggle as she bounced along on his shoulders. "Finally, there is Annabeth, my wonderful girlfriend, who is a daughter of Athena and is-" "Oh my gods. (Y/N)! You have a girlfriend too!"
"Yes, I do." He said plainly, Julia's eyes went as wide as saucers, she looked at Octavian in shock as if to double check she had heard the answer correctly, "You don't have to act so surprised Jules."
He looked up at her to see that Julia had pulled away from him, crossing her arms and just crossing her legs around his shoulders as she pouted, "I don't like her." She said bitterly. Octavian and (Y/N) shared a glance.
For once, their expressions matched, both showing a knowing smirk. "Julia, you haven't met her-" "Don't care-" The girl said, cutting him off, then she gasped as if she was realizing something. She looked down at (Y/N) like he might explode.
"Do you...kiss...her?" She whispered, scandalized by the thought. (Y/N) nodded, "Occasionally, only if she lets me though." "EWWW!" Julia screeched. "That's gross! Do you LOVE her?" "Yes, very much." He said calmly, Julia huffed.
He begun to fear the rage of the small child, only able to escape it because he was saved by the bell. "Here she is! My wonderful Argo II" Leo interrupted. "Yes, we can see that Leo." (Y/N) said, looking up at the towering vessel.
"WOW!" Julia said, thoughts of an incoming tantrum rushing from her head as she marveled at what she called, 'the big boat.' "Can I fly it?" She asked, "Maybe later." Leo, Octavian and (Y/N) said at the same time.
"Why is it a girl?" She asked, trying to crane her neck as if she could find out why if she looked in the right spot. "All ships are referred to as typically female pronouns. It's an old tradition" Octavian said.
"It relates to the idea of a female figure such as a mother or goddess guiding and protecting a ship and crew." He said knowledgably, smiling at the girl. "Oh." Julia said, it was clear the meaning went over her head.
She was too distracted by the vessel. "Why does it have a mouth? Does it eat things?" "That's a figurehead, it's name is Festus." Leo explained, "Is it a girl?" "No, it's a dragon." Leo smirked, holding onto the rope leading to the ship.
"All aboard the spankin' hot war machine, Uncle Leo's grand tour is about to start." "Is there prizes at the end?" Julia whispered, "I doubt it Julia, but I'll tell you what." Octavian said, looking at the girl.
"Here." He passed her a handful of toffees. "Me and (Y/N) are going to check out the ship and make sure it's safe." He ruffled her hair. "But you're going to have to stay here okay?" He said gently.
Julia's brow furrowed, tears pricked her eyes, "But I want to-" "I know, I know, but it's my job to keep you safe, we don't want you getting hurt do we?" Of course, Octavian had to ruin the one nice thing he had ever done by doing something sneaky right afterwards. "But-"
"Please, I insist." He said with a sly smile, as the onlookers gaped at them, in their eyes, he was being protective of the girl, thrusting himself into a dangerous scenario to spare her, but in reality, (Y/N) suspected he just didn't want to deal with Julia's questioning.
(Y/N) plucked the girl from his shoulders. "You can come on the next tour with me, promise." He said as he placed her down gently, she was still frowning as she stuffed her face with toffee candies.
"Don't wanna-" She said through a garbled mouth of sweets. "I wanna fly." She said, Octavian laughed and walked over to the rope. (Y/N) sighed, regretting ever taking her flying. "Fine. Once everything is settled and after I see my girlfriend, I will take you flying."
Julia made a jealous 'humph' sound and kicked (Y/N) in the shin before walking off. As he hopped on one foot, he decided he shouldn't have added the girlfriend part. He climbed the rope ladder after the pain faded away. "So about that pirate hat?-"
Annabeth's POV
The three of them walked on, Reyna's gold and silver dogs roaming nearby. "In our camp," Reyna said, "Athena is Minerva. Are you familiar with how her Roman form is different?"
Annabeth hadn't really considered it before. She remembered the way Terminus had called Athena that goddess, as if she were scandalous. Octavian had acted like Annabeth's very existence was an insult. "I take it Minerva isn't...uh, quite as respected here?"
Reyna blew steam from her cup. "We respect Minerva. She's the goddess of crafts and wisdom...but she isn't really a goddess of war. Not for Romans. She's also a maiden goddess, like Diana...the one you call Artemis."
Zoe made a scoffing sound that she poorly disguised as a cough. Annabeth gave her a look, "You won't find any children of Minerva here. The idea that Minerva would have children—frankly, it's a little shocking to us."
"Oh." Annabeth felt her face flush. She didn't want to get into the details of Athena's children—how they were born straight from the mind of the goddess, just as Athena herself had sprung from the head of Zeus.
Talking about that always made Annabeth feel self-conscious, like she was some sort of freak. People usually asked her whether or not she had a belly button, since she had been born magically. Of course she had a belly button.
She couldn't explain how. She didn't really want to know. "I understand that you Greeks don't see things the same way," Reyna continued. "But Romans take vows of maidenhood very seriously."
" The Vestal Virgins, for instance...if they broke their vows and fell in love with anyone, they would be buried alive. So the idea that a maiden goddess would have children—" Zoe seemed to choke on air following that comment.
Reyna paused, "Got it." Annabeth's hot chocolate suddenly tasted like dust. No wonder the Romans had been giving her strange looks. "I'm not supposed to exist. And even if your camp had children of Minerva—"
"They wouldn't be like you," Reyna said. "They might be craftsmen, artists, maybe advisers, but not warriors. Not leaders of dangerous quests." Annabeth started to object that she wasn't the leader of the quest.
Not officially. But she wondered if her friends on the Argo II would agree. The past few days, they had been looking to her for orders—even Jason, who could have pulled rank as the son of Jupiter, and Coach Hedge, who didn't take orders from anyone.
"There's more." Reyna snapped her fingers, and her golden dog, Aurum, trotted over. The praetor stroked his ears. "The oath of a hunter of Artemis is not one so easily broken, and not after what, two thousand years?"
Zoe's face flushed of all color, "So to see Zoe Nightshade of all people, descending from that warship, as you can imagine, was quite a shock to us." "You know of me?" Reyna nodded, "Yes, we know of you."
"A warrior preserved in the stars is not one so easily forgotten, whether you are a Greek or Roman. Even Lady Diana spoke your praises, and I believe our camp had dealings with you in the long past."
"During the Civil war. I remember." Zoe spoke plainly, "I was forbidden from speaking of it by my lady." Reyna nodded. "It is funny, that you return to us now. You see, you are not the only one to deal with us in the past, and return to us now-"
"(Y/N)" Annabeth said, Reyna nodded. "We have records of him visiting the camp, hunting down monsters. One day he left and never came back, the past Praetors thought him dead." Annabeth frowned, the manticore that almost killed him, she remembered he was sheltered from Rome after that.
"-They were surprised to find, years later, rumors that he was still alive." She sighed, "He was branded a coward, an outcast, he was banished for neglecting his duties to Rome." Annabeth frowned at her.
It was clear the gaze made Reyna uncomfortable, confirmed by when she said "It was not my decision, I didn't even live here at the time. I was the one to reverse the ruling, I called him back because I had use of his skillset." "So generous of you." Annabeth replied.
"Generosity was not my concern. Survival on the other hand..." Reyna trailed off, "Believe me, I was as reluctant to find him as you were to lose him, we have a...strained past." "What do you mean?" Annabeth said curiously.
"Later. It is not my past we should be concerned with right now, but instead, the past you have spoken of." Zoe sighed heftily, "And people complain that I speak oddly..." She commented, Reyna laughed.
"Apologies my new friends, I thought the air of mystery might have lightened the mood a fraction, I suppose now is not the time. I speak of the prophecy you recited, regarding the eighth child."
"It is one of our oldest, some speculate, maybe the first. Though I don't think that is true. It was recited by the first Pythia. Before Rome became what it was back then, or what it is today." Zoe nodded.
"That was who we saw in the vision of prophecy, she recited the words, hand in hand with our..." Annabeth looked at Zoe, who paused and corrected herself, not wanting to bring Rachel into this. "She recited the prophecy to us." Reyna frowned.
"Interesting, I find it curious that a prophecy that we have held for generations is only now being recited anew for you. It is as if-" "-The gods wanted to tell us that it was important." Annabeth finished for her. She nodded in response, looking pensive.
"It is my first time hearing it in it's entirety." "You've had the prophecy for that long and you still haven't memorized it?" Annabeth said, it slipped out her mouth, a comment that sounded like something her boyfriend would say.
Reyna smirked, "I haven't had the chance." "Because of the loss of the Sybaline Books?" Zoe hazarded a well educated guess. They didn't realize quite how deep this all went until Reyna responded.
"Yes and no. Why is it true the texts of the books were lost to Rome long ago, naturally, some remained, some pages resurfaced, were reinterpreted or have come to pass, in the case of that prophecy in particular however, the history was much more...violent. It was destroyed."
"It was lost to us yes, but not like the others in the book, it wasn't lost to time, it was hunted down, destroyed maliciously by someone, around 20 years ago, by a demigod that was never found. They slipped through our grasp and haven't returned since."
Her eyes traced to Zoe. "To our knowledge." "You accuse me of these crimes?" Zoe said, her fist's balling, she took a step towards Reyna, and the metal dog began to growl. Annabeth froze, anticipating an attack from either side.
As Annabeth's eyes searched around her for any possible makeshift weapons, Reyna calmed the situation, and her jewel encrusted puppy. "No, of course not. I apologise, it is just, the person slipped through our defences in a single night. Burning that prophecy alone, walking past items much more valuable to any thief."
"To do that, one would have to be incredibly skilled, such as a hunter of Artemis-" She then looked to Annabeth. "Or incredibly knowledgeable, like a daughter of Athena." "You think a Greek did it? To hide it from you?" Zoe said.
"Yes, it is a small...project of mine. I have always been fascinated by the incident, from the moment I heard of it. I simply wondered if either of you could shed some light on the culprit?" Reyna said, hopefulness making her tone rise.
They both shook their heads, but Annabeth's mind was already connecting a few dots in the time period, and whom the prophecy concerned, she had a pretty solid guess as to who the mystery Greek was when Reyna broke the tension by yelling "Drat!"
Her face lightened a little, "Oh well, what's the point, call it off, war it is..." She said, when they looked at her, aghast, she sighed and rubbed the head of her dog, "Kidding...Hylla said I need to work on my humour, again, not the time."
"Moving on, the past is the past, I am here because I want to look at the future. The harpy Ella...it was a prophecy she spoke. We all know that, don't we?" Annabeth swallowed. Something about Aurum's ruby eyes made her uneasy.
She had heard that dogs could smell fear, even detect changes in a human's breathing and heartbeat. She didn't know if that applied to magical metal dogs, but she decided it would be better to tell the truth.
"It sounded like a prophecy," she admitted. "But I've never met Ella before today, and I've never heard those lines exactly." "I have," Reyna murmured. "At least some of them—" A few yards away, the silver dog barked.
A group of children spilled out of a nearby alleyway and gathered around Argentum, petting the dog and laughing, unfazed by its razorsharp teeth. "We should move on," Reyna said.
(Y/N)'s POV
After they climbed the rope ladder towards the deck, and (Y/N) got himself outfitted with the best paper pirate hat in the known world, they continued, "How do I look?" (Y/N) asked Octavian. "It suits you." He replied dryly.
As Octavian sighed deeply, Leo began his tour speak. "Welcome to the Argo II, the biggest, baddest, sky ship ever built in the history of the Hephaestus cabin." He gestured around like a flight attendant.
"200 feet long or 61 meters if you are so inclined. The ship is filled end to end with just about everything you could need. My main man Festus is acting as our handsome figurehead." He said, pointing to the flaming mouth of a dragon on the front of the ship.
"Dope." (Y/N) commented, Octavian rolled his eyes. As you can imagine, two ADHD riddled demigods and one Octavian, did not make for the most linear tour. Leo first showed them The cabins for each of the seven and Hedge, as well as some spare, used for Zoe, and (Y/N).
As they passed Hedge's room, (Y/N) wanted to knock and say hello, but when they passed by and heard the ending fight of Bloodsport playing, and (Y/N) remembered the peculiar satyrs affinity for violence, he decided perhaps Hedge wasn't the best person to rep the Greeks.
Then, after a twenty second tour Leo got excited. Naturally segueing from the living conditions, to the exact opposite. He took immense pride in showing them the ship's main weapons, two repeating crossbows that can fire explosive bolts powerful enough to 'blast through concrete.'
"Or any unguarded defenses." Octavian commented, Leo gave him some side eye, but didn't comment. Which was unlike him, and should have been the first clue something was amiss. The second came shortly after.
"I actually got this idea from (Y/N)." Leo said, showing some secondary weapons. Kept below deck. Mounted to the four corners were what looked like four sentry guns. "Based it off that sweet piece of tech hanging in the Hypnos cabin." He explained.
It looked like someone had taken a car mounted machine gun and decided to drill it into the floor of the ship, each a six barreled behemoth of a gun with barrels that looked mean and imposing, around a two inches wide.
About three feet tall, pointing out the bottom of the ship like a pirate ship's canons. They were overlooked the skyline of New Rome. "They fire these things." Leo held out a green orb no bigger than a marble.
"Greek fire, explode on impact." He said proudly. "What is it with you and fire?" "Hey, if it ain't broke...well then I probably made it, but what I'm saying is, it works, and we had the stuff readily available, I just capitalized on it with these babies."
"And yet you claim to be unarmed?" Octavian said, as if he wanted to run off and tell a teacher. Leo snapped back, "We are! They've been deactivated. Just ask your statue buddy. They haven't even been used yet."
He was right, the barrels were pointed directly at the floor, as if they were waiting to be turned on, Leo showed them that the guns only arched in a 45 degree angle, they were too heavy to be maneuvered any other way.
"They were just in case we had to defend the bottom of the ship-" "Or attack any fleeing soldiers." Octavian muttered. (Y/N) was too busy drooling over the weapons. He could see the influence of the grenade launcher in them.
"-Forget the pistol, gimme one of these things." (Y/N) said ignoring their squabble, trying to hold one. Leo shook his head, "No can do I'm afraid, they only work from the ships console, if you tried to take one off, it'd just be scrap metal, magic's the only thing that makes them work."
(Y/N) took note of the fact the guns barrel wasn't supported by the tripod it rested on and only floated above the joint that was meant to connect them, as if it were floating in zero gravity. He pointed to the markings on the floor surrounding the weapons. "See, magic."
Leo seemed downtrodden by that fact, like he'd want nothing more than to have an explosive, death dealing minigun to play around with, but wanted one made of gears and parts, not glyphs and incantations.
"Can I see my room?" (Y/N) asked after they were done with that display, to distract Leo. "I'd rather not." Octavian said, "Can you instead show us more of this vessel's capabilities? In the name of transparency." (Y/N) frowned at him.
Leo instead showed them where the ship's power comes from, "Is that what I-" "Yep." Leo said passing by it as Octavian just looked confused and worried, "Keeping secrets are we Greek? Not very transparent of-" He spat before (Y/N) just pushed him into one of the bathrooms.
The engine room on the second and lowest deck, which also houses the sickbay, storage and stables. "Why do you need stables?" Leo shrugged, "Pegasi." (Y/N) accepted that answer, moving on.
As Leo showed them the flight controls, (Y/N) regarded the Wii Controllers. "Can I play tennis? or Bowling?" He asked. "Only if you want to crash through the senate house." Leo sighed. Pressing in a disk tray of a Wii that had popped out.
"What are you doing?" Octavian asked. "Nothing. Just some calibrations." Leo said, though his voice had an edge to it as he fiddled with a few more controls. They thought nothing of it. Just nerves, though they both felt chills run down their backs.
Leo went on to explain some more obscure parts of the ship, "That over there is the mess hall, we modelled it after camp half blood." "Oh, I must see this." Octavian said, suddenly high spirited, as if he expected to find the mess hall was a secret bunker.
"Nope. Moving on." (Y/N) said, dragging the augur away, as Leo explained "The lounge has cupboards lined with magic cups and plates from Camp Half-Blood, which fills up with whatever food or drink you want on command."
"What, you don't have the spirits to accommodate you?" Octavian asked, both Leo and (Y/N) shook their heads, and Octavian smiled, as if he felt superior to them for this fact alone. "There is also a magical ice chest with canned drinks." "Sweet." (Y/N) said, grabbing some soda.
"Want one?" He asked Octavian, who declined, no doubt to avoid being poisoned. (Y/N) laughed at him, taking a sip of his own drink, before throwing one to Octavian anyway. "Careful, don't shake it, I think this drink is laced with Nitroglycerin." He warned as they continued.
"-There's magic circle Annabeth used to catch up" (Y/N) said, pointing to a small circle made of what looked like salt, that was sitting eerily, but certainly out of place, at one end of the ship. "Magic circle? Since when did we use those?" (Y/N) commented.
"Ask that creepy Hecate chick." Leo said as Octavian paled, as if he expected Greeks to jump out at him, and then slowly, one by one emerge, and somehow overtake the heavily fortified city beneath them in an orderly line.
(Y/N) was more concerned with the circumstances of it being here. "Wait, what do you mean 'catch up?' She didn't leave camp with you guys?" He asked, "That's for her to kill you over, and me to laugh about." Leo said, waving it off.
Leo continued to show off his baby the magical trireme, though there wasn't much else to show, one sail and a few banks of oars. It was a big flying ship, made of wood, metal, magic and mechanics. Also, if you believed Octavian. Ill intent.
"What are the oars for?" (Y/N) asked as they passed the stationary sticks, he began imagining Piper, Jason and Zoe rowing through a sea of clouds as Leo yelled "Heave. Ho!" In a megaphone, and Annabeth steered the ship.
"It's designed to travel over air and sea, just in case." Leo said. "So it can attack from multiple different fronts I'd imagine?" Octavian said, "No, so we don't fall out the sky and drown. It rows itself."
Leo began to frown, "Are you making fun of my ship!" (Y/N) looked at the augur too, tired of his negative comments. "Yeah Octavian, I mean, I'd like to see them try to sail up the Little Tiber on this thing. It's not like you wouldn't see them-Woah!"
He caught hold of Leo's arm as the boy raised a wrench above his head, almost as if he were about to throw it at Octavian, or club him over the head with it if (Y/N) hadn't reacted. The hairs on (Y/N)'s neck stood up. "Careful kid."
Leo stepped forward, his hand gripping the wrench tightly, while (Y/N) didn't like Octavian, and might have enjoyed what happened next, he still intervened, knowing peace was more important, "Cool it Leo, nobody's making fun of your ship."
Leo's eyes flashed dangerously, and he said, "Right." Before storming off to the next attraction. "As for you." (Y/N) wheeled on the Augur. "Stop antagonizing people, I know what you're trying to do-" "What do you mean, I only aim for peace, it was the Greek who looked ready to-"
(Y/N) barged into Octavian, grabbing him by the scruff, "You're right, a Greek is ready to." Octavian, to his credit, in (Y/N)'s mind at least, did try to defend himself, attempting to shove (Y/N) away. Spouting a few Latin curses.
"Octavian, I've been wrestling kids ten times stronger than you since before high school." The augur bit his lip, veins in his forehead bulging in anger. He knew he couldn't overpower (Y/N). "Aren't you tough. Attacking a-" Octavian sneered. "Shut up. This is the part where you LISTEN."
(Y/N) glared at him, "Tensions are high, unfamiliar people in your city, fears of war being whispered, I get it, but you keep trying to make them higher, which is only going to get people hurt. Most of all you."
"The Greeks are here in peace, we are trying to establish friendly relations, I promise you. If you try and deny Rome that for spite, well, you aren't nearly the man I thought you were Octavian," The augur remained silent.
"Spite is in no way a good reason to spark a war. Look, I know you don't like me, and I know you don't trust all this, but please, keep an open mind. I know you love this city, your job is to keep Rome safe. Act like it! Or I'll throw you overboard right now, consequences be damned."
(Y/N) only realized afterward that this may have been a much easier attempt at intimidation if he wasn't wearing a paper pirate hat atop his head, so at the time, he just snarled "We clear?" "Crystal." The augur said through gritted teeth.
"Atta boy." (Y/N) pulled away, smiling. "You guys go finish the tour, I'm going to empty my bunk and haul everything over here. Shouldn't be long." He said as he shadow travelled away from the ship.
Annabeth's POV
They wound their way up the hill. The greyhounds followed, leaving the children behind. Annabeth kept glancing at Reyna's face. A vague memory started tugging at her—the way Reyna brushed her hair behind her ear, the silver ring she wore with the torch and sword design.
"We've met before," Annabeth ventured. "You were younger, I think." Reyna gave her a dry smile. "Very good. I wondered if (Y/N) had somehow reported my identity back to you, it is a pleasant surprise that you figured it out alone."
"Percy didn't remember me. Of course you spoke mostly with my older sister Hylla, who is now queen of the Amazons. She left just this morning, before you arrived. At any rate, when we last met, I was a mere handmaiden in the house of Circe."
"Circe..." Annabeth remembered her trip to the island of the sorceress. She'd been thirteen. (Y/N), Percy and her had washed ashore from the Sea of Monsters. Hylla had welcomed them. She had helped Annabeth get cleaned up and given her a beautiful new dress and a complete makeover.
Then Circe had made her sales pitch: if Annabeth stayed on the island, she could have magical training and incredible power. Annabeth had been tempted, maybe just a little, until she realized the place was a trap, both (Y/N) and Percy had been turned into rodents.
That last part seemed funny afterward; but at the time, it had been terrifying. As for Reyna...she'd been one of the servants who had combed Annabeth's hair. "You..." Annabeth said in amazement. "And Hylla is queen of the Amazons? How did you two—?"
"Long story," Reyna said. "But I remember you well. You were brave. I'd never seen anyone refuse Circe's hospitality, much less outwit her. It's no wonder (Y/N) cares for you. He has done nothing but sing your praises since your arrival."
"Though since I'm sure you know how that day ended, I assume you understand why I did not put much stock in his opinion. Like I said, our past is strained." Her voice was wistful. Annabeth thought it might be safer not to respond.
They reached the top of the hill, where a terrace overlooked the entire valley. "This is my favorite spot," Reyna said. "The Garden of Bacchus." Grapevine trellises made a canopy overhead. Bees buzzed through honeysuckle and jasmine, which filled the afternoon air with a dizzying mix of perfumes.
In the middle of the terrace stood a statue of Bacchus in a sort of ballet position, wearing nothing but a loincloth, his cheeks puffed out and lips pursed, spouting water into a fountain. Despite her worries, Annabeth almost laughed.
She knew the god in his Greek form, Dionysus—or Mr. D, as they called him back at Camp Half Blood. Seeing their cranky old camp director immortalized in stone, wearing a diaper and spewing water from his mouth, made her feel a little better.
Reyna stopped at the edge of the terrace. The view was worth the climb. The whole city spread out below them like a 3-D mosaic. To the south, beyond the lake, a cluster of temples perched on a hill.
To the north, an aqueduct marched toward the Berkeley Hills. Work crews were repairing a broken section, probably damaged in the recent battle. "I wanted to hear it from you," Reyna said. "The two of you."
Annabeth turned. "Hear what from me?" "The truth," Reyna said. "Convince me that I'm not making a mistake by trusting you. Tell me about yourself. Tell me about Camp Half-Blood. Your friend Piper has sorcery in her words."
"I spent enough time with Circe to know charmspeak when I hear it. I can't trust what she says. And Jason... well, he has changed. He seems distant, no longer quite Roman." The hurt in her voice was as sharp as broken glass.
Annabeth wondered if she had sounded that way, when Zoe walked up to Reyna, and for the first time, let her gaurd down, placing a hand on the Praetor's shoulder, there was a single moment when the three understood one another.
Zoe and Annabeth both spent all those months searching for Percy. All those months looking for answers, and in the end, they both got what they wanted, (Y/N) was returned to Annabeth and Zoe found her boyfriend.
Reyna had no one. She was responsible for running an entire camp all by herself. Annabeth could sense that Reyna wanted Jason to love her. But he had disappeared, only to come back with a new girlfriend.
Meanwhile, Percy had risen to praetor, but he had rebuffed Reyna too. Now Zoe had come to take him away. Reyna would be left alone again, shouldering a job meant for two people. When Annabeth had arrived at Camp Jupiter, she'd been prepared to negotiate with Reyna or even fight her if needed. She hadn't been prepared to feel sorry for her.
She kept that feeling hidden. Reyna didn't strike her as someone who would appreciate pity. Instead, she told Reyna about her own life. She talked about her dad and stepmom and her two stepbrothers in San Francisco, and how she had felt like an outsider in her own family.
She talked about how she had run away when she was only seven, finding her friends Luke and Thalia and making her way to Camp Half-Blood on Long Island. She described the camp and her years growing up there.
Zoe explained that she had lived a long life, so she wouldn't bore them with the ins and outs, but she did describe some of her lowest moments, the betrayal of Heracles, her failure to stand up to her father, or protect Artemis from him.
She described the moment of her death, and the fear she had upon returning, having lost what she thought was her only connection to the world through the Hunters. She talked about meeting Percy and the adventures they'd had together.
She talked about how it was him, the people of camp half blood, and their outlook on life that pushed her forward, and now even with a mortal life, she wouldn't want to change anything.
Reyna was a good listener. Annabeth was tempted to tell her about more recent problems: her fight with her mom, the gift of the silver coin, and the nightmares she'd been having—about an old fear so paralyzing, she'd almost decided that she couldn't go on this quest. But she couldn't bring herself to open up quite that much.
When Annabeth and Zoe were done talking, Reyna gazed over New Rome. Her metal greyhounds sniffed around the garden, snapping at bees in the honeysuckle. Finally Reyna pointed to the cluster of temples on the distant hill.
"The small red building," she said, "there on the northern side? That's the temple of my mother, Bellona." Reyna turned toward Annabeth. "Unlike your mother, Bellona has no Greek equivalent. She is fully, truly Roman. She's the goddess of protecting the homeland."
Annabeth said nothing. She knew very little about the Roman goddess. She wished she had studied up, but Latin never came as easily to her as Greek. Down below, the hull of the Argo II gleamed as it floated over the forum, like some massive bronze party balloon.
"When the Romans go to war," Reyna continued, "we first visit the Temple of Bellona. Inside is a symbolic patch of ground that represents enemy soil. We throw a spear into that ground, indicating that we are now at war."
"You see, Romans have always believed that offense is the best defense. In ancient times, whenever our ancestors felt threatened by their neighbors, they would invade to protect themselves."
"They conquered everyone around them," Annabeth said. "Carthage, the Gauls—" "And the Greeks." Reyna let that comment hang. "My point, Annabeth, is that it isn't Rome's nature to cooperate with other powers."
"Every time Greek and Roman demigods have met, we've fought. Conflicts between our two sides have started some of the most horrible wars in human history—especially civil wars." Her eyes glanced to Zoe.
"It doesn't have to be that way," Annabeth said. "We've got to work together, or Gaea will destroy us both." "I agree," Reyna said. "But is cooperation possible? What if Juno's plan is flawed? Even goddesses can make mistakes."
Annabeth waited for Reyna to get struck by lightning or turned into a peacock. Nothing happened. Unfortunately, Annabeth shared Reyna's doubts. Hera did make mistakes. Annabeth had had nothing but trouble from that overbearing goddess.
"I don't trust the goddess," Annabeth admitted. "But I do trust my friends. This isn't a trick, Reyna. We can work together." Reyna finished her cup of chocolate. She set the cup on the terrace railing and gazed over the valley as if imagining battle lines.
"I believe you mean it," she said. "But if you go to the ancient lands, especially Rome itself, there is something you should know about your mother." Annabeth's shoulders tensed. "My—my mother?"
"When I lived on Circe's island," Reyna said, "we had many visitors. Once, perhaps a year before you arrived, a young man washed ashore. He was half mad from thirst and heat. He'd been drifting at sea for days. His words didn't make much sense, but he said he was a son of Athena."
Reyna paused as if waiting for a reaction. Annabeth had no idea who the boy might have been. She wasn't aware of any other Athena kids who'd gone on a quest in the Sea of Monsters, but still she felt a sense of dread.
The light filtering through the grapevines made shadows writhe across the ground like a swarm of bugs. "What happened to this demigod?" she asked. Reyna waved her hand as if the question was trivial.
"Circe turned him into a guinea pig, of course. He made quite a crazy little rodent. But before that, he kept raving about his failed quest. He claimed that he'd gone to Rome, following the Mark of Athena."
Annabeth grabbed the railing to keep her balance. "Yes," Reyna said, seeing her discomfort. "He kept muttering about wisdom's child, the Mark of Athena, and the giants' bane standing pale and gold."
"The same lines Ella was just reciting. But you say that you've never heard them before today?" "Not—not the way Ella said them." Annabeth's voice was weak. She wasn't lying. She'd never heard that prophecy, but her mother had charged her with following the Mark of Athena;
As she thought about the coin in her pocket, a horrible suspicion began taking root in her mind. She remembered her mother's scathing words. She thought about the strange nightmares she'd been having lately. "Did this demigod—did he explain his quest?"
Reyna shook her head. "At the time, I had no idea what he was talking about. Much later, when I became praetor of Camp Jupiter, I began to suspect." "Suspect...what?" "There is an old legend that the praetors of Camp Jupiter have passed down through the centuries."
"If it's true, it may explain why our two groups of demigods have never been able to work together. It may be the cause of our animosity. Until this old score is finally settled" so the legend goes, Romans and Greeks will never be at peace. And the legend centers on Athena—"
A shrill sound pierced the air. Light flashed in the corner of Annabeth's eye. She turned in time to see an explosion blast a new crater in the forum. A burning couch tumbled through the air. Demigods scattered in panic.
"Giants?" Annabeth reached for her dagger, which of course wasn't there. "I thought their army was defeated!" "It isn't the giants." Reyna's eyes seethed with rage. "You've betrayed our trust." "What? No!"
As soon as she said it, the Argo II launched a second volley. Its port ballista fired a massive spear wreathed in Greek fire, which sailed straight through the broken dome of the Senate House and exploded inside, lighting up the building like a jacko'-lantern.
The turrets appeared from the hull like sinister green eyes and rained down orbs of flame onto the crowds beneath it. If anyone had been in there... "Gods, no." A wave of nausea almost made Annabeth's knees buckle.
"Reyna, it isn't possible. We'd never do this!" The metal dogs ran to their mistress's side. They snarled at Annabeth but paced uncertainly, as if reluctant to attack. "You're telling the truth," Reyna judged. "Perhaps you were not aware of this treachery, but someone must pay."
"Bloodshed," Reyna said. "We have to stop it!" "Hurry!" Zoe said, already sprinting away. As she followed Annabeth had a horrible feeling this might be the last time Reyna and she ever acted in agreement, but together they ran down the hill.
If weapons had been allowed in the city, Annabeth's friends would have already been dead. The Roman demigods in the forum had coalesced into an angry mob. Some threw plates, food, and rocks at the Argo II, which was pointless, as most of the stuff fell back into the crowd.
Several dozen Romans had surrounded Piper and Jason, who were trying to calm them without much luck. Piper's charmspeak was useless against so many screaming, angry demigods. Jason's forehead was bleeding.
His purple cloak had been ripped to shreds. He kept pleading, "I'm on your side!" but his orange Camp Half-Blood T-shirt didn't help matters—nor did the warship overhead, firing flaming spears into New Rome.
One landed nearby and blasted a toga shop to rubble. "Pluto's pauldrons," Reyna cursed. "Look." Armed legionnaires were hurrying toward the forum. Two artillery crews had set up catapults just outside the Pomerian Line and were preparing to fire at the Argo II.
"That'll just make things worse," Annabeth said. "I hate my job," Reyna growled. She rushed off toward the legionnaires, her dogs at her side. "(Y/N)," Annabeth thought, scanning the forum desperately. "Where are you?"
(Y/N)'s POV
Down in the forum, chaos was spreading. Crowds were pushing and shoving. Fistfights were breaking out. (Y/N) emerged from his quarters with the fifth cohort, and was stunned to see the Greek warship bombing the city.
He couldn't believe his eyes. It was like a terrible dream, if he hadn't been so concerned with the people's safety, he might have pinched himself. "No, gods please no..." He said quietly as he dropped all his possessions and ran for the ship.
As he approached the chaotic scene, he could almost hear Leo in his ear, "Greek fire, explode on impact." As (Y/N) watched the ground beneath the vessel blaze green, as another spear shot into the air and destroyed more of the senate house.
That sparked the thought in him, that maybe, Octavian wasn't as honourable as (Y/N) thought, maybe the warning he had given the augur earlier had been the final straw, perhaps the man had staged all this.
It was the only way he could process this, the only way he could fathom something like this coming to pass, his friends would never do this, the Greeks would never do this. He remembered Octavian's warning about Greeks, and for a single moment, feared it was well founded.
He shook the thought away and moved on, the first thing he had to do was stop this, whatever it was, his first instinct was to focus on the ship and shadow travel to it, but he never had the opportunity.
He was cracked over the back of his head with what he only later learned was the leg of a pool table that had been smashed through by a spear from thee Argo II. He turned around groggily to see the angry roman mob.
Wheeling on his attacker, (Y/N) seized the weapon free of the boys hands and threw it point blank so it bounced off his forehead, big mistake. Like a volatile compound, that was the spark the mob needed, just like that, (Y/N) had the rest of cohort five boys rushing at him.
But he didn't have the strength or the time to deal with them right now so he retrieved the stick from his feet a said "Sorry guys."
A shadow began to swallow the floor beneath them and the remaining cohort soldiers fell halfway through the floor.
"Don't worry it'll spit you out when I leave. I promise you guys the Greeks didn't do this. Trust me" and before they could protest he shadow travelled away.
Annabeth's POV
Two Romans tried to grab her. She ducked past them, plunging into the crowd. As if the angry Romans, burning couches, and exploding buildings weren't confusing enough, hundreds of purple ghosts drifted through the forum, passing straight through the demigods' bodies and wailing incoherently.
The fauns had also taken advantage of the chaos. They swarmed the dining tables, grabbing food, plates, and cups. One trotted by Annabeth with his arms full of tacos and an entire pineapple between his teeth.
A statue of Terminus exploded into being, right in front of Annabeth. He yelled at her in Latin, no doubt calling her a liar and a rule breaker; but she pushed the statue over and kept running. "PERCY!" Zoe roared over the crowds.
They spotted Percy. He and his friends, Hazel and Frank, were standing in the middle of a fountain as Percy repelled the angry Romans with blasts of water. Percy's toga was in tatters, but he looked unhurt.
Zoe called to him as another explosion rocked the forum. This time the flash of light was directly overhead. One of the Roman catapults had fired, and the Argo II groaned and tilted sideways, flames bubbling over its bronze-plated hull.
Annabeth noticed a figure clinging desperately to the rope ladder, trying to climb down. It was Octavian, his robes steaming and his face black with soot. However he was prevented from descending by the ring of Greek fire the turrets had caused surrounding the ship.
Annabeth knew she had to act fast. Over by the fountain, Percy blasted the Roman mob with more water. Annabeth ran toward him, ducking a Roman fist and a flying plate of sandwiches. "Zoe! Annabeth!" Percy called. "What—?" "I don't know!" she yelled.
"Douse the flames!" She pointed to the ring of fire. "It's Greek fire, water won't help!" He said, she grit her teeth. Her head pounding as she tried to think of what to do. Luckily the statue seemed to find the flames bothersome, and Terminus sent them away in a puff of smoke.
"We are under attack!" cried a voice from above. Octavian had reached the bottom of the ladder. "The Greeks have fired on us! Your boy Leo has trained his weapons on Rome!" Annabeth's chest filled with liquid hydrogen. She felt like she might shatter into a million frozen pieces.
"You're lying," she said. "Leo would never—" "I was just there!" Octavian shrieked. "I saw it with my own eyes!" The Argo II returned fire. Legionnaires in the field scattered as one of their catapults was blasted to splinters. "You see?" Octavian screamed.
"Romans, kill the invaders!" Annabeth growled in frustration. There was no time for anyone to figure out the truth. The crew from Camp Half-Blood was outnumbered a hundred to one, and even if Octavian had managed to stage some sort of trick (which she thought likely), they'd never be able to convince the Romans before they were overrun and killed.
"We have to leave," she told Percy. "Now." He nodded grimly. "Hazel, Frank, you've got to make a choice. Are you coming?" Hazel looked terrified, but she donned her cavalry helmet. "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. A majestic horse 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. Annabeth felt a glimmer of hope. Maybe they could make it out of here alive. 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.
Suddenly something appeared between them, (Y/N), holding what looked like a bloody stick. "Flamma!" He yelled, which Annabeth first thought was a kind of threat, until a huge hulking spirit appeared by his side, though there were too many romans for it to make much difference.
The giant of a man was engulfed by the mob and soon faded away. Annabeth watched as her boyfriend tried desperately to protect Piper and Jason
The Romans were not deterred and his effort to stop them failed. He tried to hold them back only to be pelted in the head with rocks and collapse
"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?" Annabeth didn't understand how Frank could do that all by himself, but he swallowed nervously. "Oh, gods," he murmured. "Okay, sure. Just get up the ropes. Now."
Percy and Annabeth lunged for the ladder. Octavian was still clinging to the bottom, but Percy yanked him off and threw him into the mob. They began to climb as armed legionnaires flooded into the forum.
Arrows whistled past Annabeth's head. An explosion almost knocked her off the ladder. Halfway up, she heard a roar below and glanced down. 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 couldn't even put the thought into words. "Frank," Percy confirmed, a few feet above her. "He has a few special talents." "Understatement," Annabeth muttered. "Keep climbing!"
Without the dragon and Hazel's horse to distract the archers, they never would have made it up the ladder; but finally they climbed past a row of broken aerial oars and onto the deck. The rigging was on fire.
The foresail was ripped down the middle, and the ship listed badly to starboard. There was no sign of Coach Hedge, but Leo stood amidships, calmly reloading the ballista. Annabeth's gut twisted with horror.
"Leo!" she screamed. "What are you doing?" "Destroy them..." He faced Annabeth. His eyes were glazed. His movements were like a robot's. "Destroy them all." He turned back to the ballista, but Percy tackled him.
Zoe set to work trying to turn off any of the weapons on the ship and get them airborne as Leo's head hit the deck hard, and his eyes rolled up so that only the whites showed.
"I can't stop them! They must be destroyed!" She said running over to the weapons as the gray dragon soared into view.
It circled the ship once and landed at the bow, depositing (Y/N), Jason and Piper, who both collapsed. Forgetting herself, Annabeth ran to (Y/N)'s side, he awoke with a start. He got up and ran to the side of the ship, looking around.
Suddenly he was rooted to the spot, as if struck by lightning or given the eyes by Medusa, Annabeth thought he must have been overwhelmed by the sight of the city and the damage it had sustained.
She tried to shake him, "We have to go, or they'll kill us." She said calmly, he looked at her as if he had only just noticed her, panic in his voice, "Julia." was the only word he said, Annabeth watched him in confusion as he turned around and sprinted off, leaping from the side of the ship.
"(Y/N)!" Annabeth screamed. She had come to expect him to plummet, though it was equally as bamboozling to see him take off with wings he shouldn't have had, into a city being bombed. "Go!" Percy yelled. "Get us out of here!" With a shock, Annabeth realized he was talking to her.
She ran for the helm. She made the mistake of glancing over the rail and saw armed legionnaires closing ranks in the forum, preparing flaming arrows. Hazel spurred Arion, and they raced out of the city with a mob chasing after them.
More catapults were being wheeled into range. All along the Pomerian Line, the statues of Terminus were glowing purple, as if building up energy for some kind of attack. Annabeth looked over the controls. She cursed Leo for making them so complicated.
No time for fancy maneuvers, but she did know one basic command: Up. She grabbed the aviation throttle and yanked it straight back. The ship groaned. The bow tilted up at a horrifying angle. The mooring lines snapped, and the Argo II shot into the clouds.