{Percy}
Percy was afraid he'd said too much. Maybe he'd scared her with his big dreams of the future. She was usually the one with the plans. Percy cursed himself silently.
As long as he'd known Annabeth, he still felt like he understood so little about her. Even after they'd been dating several months, their relationship had always felt new and delicate, like a glass sculpture. He was terrified of doing something wrong and breaking it.
"I'm sorry," he said. "I just... I had to think of that to keep going. To give me hope. Forget I mentioned—"
"No!" she said. "No, Percy. Gods, that's so sweet. It's just... we may have burned that bridge. If we can't repair things with the Romans—well, the two sets of demigods have never gotten along. That's why the gods kept us separate. I don't know if we could ever belong there."
Percy didn't want to argue, but he couldn't let go of the hope. It felt important—not just for Annabeth and him, but for all the other demigods. It had to be possible to belong in two different worlds at once. After all, that's what being a demigod was all about—not quite belonging in the mortal world or on Mount Olympus, but trying to make peace with both sides of their nature.
Unfortunately, that got him thinking about the gods, the war they were facing, and his dream about the twins Ephialtes and Otis.
"I was having a nightmare when you woke me up," he admitted. He told Annabeth what he'd seen.
Even the most troubling parts didn't seem to surprise her. She shook her head sadly when he described Nico's imprisonment in the bronze jar. She got an angry glint in her eyes when he told her about the giants planning some sort of Rome-destroying extravaganza that would include their painful deaths as the opening event.
"Nico is the bait," she murmured. "Gaea's forces must have captured him somehow. But we don't know exactly where they're holding him."
"Somewhere in Rome," Percy said. "Somewhere underground. They made it sound like Nico still had a few days to live, but I don't see how he could hold out so long with no oxygen."
"Five more days, according to Nemesis," Annabeth said. "The Kalends of July. At least the deadline makes sense now."
"What's a Kalends?"
Annabeth smirked, like she was pleased they were back in their old familiar pattern—Percy being ignorant, she herself explaining stuff. "It's just the Roman term for the first of the month. That's where we get the word calendar. But how can Nico survive that long? We should talk to Hazel and Kiara."
"Now?"
She hesitated. "No. It can wait until morning. I don't want to hit them with this news in the middle of the night."
"The giants mentioned a statue," Percy recalled. "And something about a talented friend who was guarding it. Whoever this friend was, she scared Otis. Anyone who can scare a giant..."
Annabeth gazed down at a highway snaking through dark hills. "Percy, have you seen Poseidon lately? Or had any kind of sign from him?"
He shook his head. "Not since... Wow. I guess I haven't thought about it. Not since the end of the Titan War. I saw him at Camp Half-Blood, but that was last August." A sense of dread settled over him. "Why? Have you seen Athena?"
She didn't meet his eyes. "A few weeks ago," she admitted. "It... it wasn't good. She didn't seem like herself. Maybe it's the Greek/Roman schizophrenia that Nemesis described. I'm not sure. She said some hurtful things. She said I had failed her."
"Failed her?" Percy wasn't sure he'd heard her right. Annabeth was the perfect demigod child. She was everything a daughter of Athena should be. "How could you ever—?"
"I don't know," she said miserably. "On top of that, I've been having nightmares of my own. They don't make as much sense as yours."
Percy waited, but Annabeth didn't share any more details. He wanted to make her feel better and tell her it would be okay, but he knew he couldn't. He wanted to fix everything for both of them so they could have a happy ending. After all these years, even the cruelest gods would have to admit they deserved it.
But he had a gut feeling that there was nothing he could do to help Annabeth this time, other than simply be there. Wisdom's daughter walks alone. He felt as trapped and helpless as when he'd sunk into the muskeg.
Annabeth managed a faint smile. "Some romantic evening, huh? No more bad things until the morning." She kissed him again. "We'll figure everything out. I've got you back. For now, that's all that matters."
"Right," Percy said. "No more talk about Gaea rising, Nico being held hostage, the world ending, the giants—"
"Shut up, Seaweed Brain," she ordered. "Just hold me for a while."
They sat together cuddling, enjoying each other's warmth. Before Percy knew it, the drone of the ship's engine, the dim light, and the comfortable feeling of being with Annabeth made his eyes heavy, and he drifted to sleep.
When he woke, daylight was coming through the glass floor, and a boy's voice said, "Oh... You are in so much trouble."
Percy had seen Frank surrounded by cannibal ogres, facing down an unkillable giant, and even unleashing Thanatos, the god of death. But he'd never seen Frank look as terrified as he did now, finding the two of them passed out in the stables.
"What...?" Percy rubbed his eyes. "Oh, we just fell asleep."
Frank swallowed. He was dressed in running shoes, dark cargo pants, and a Vancouver Winter Olympics T-shirt with his Roman centurion badge pinned to the neck (which seemed either sad or hopeful to Percy, now that they were renegades). Frank averted his eyes as if the sight of them together might burn him.
"Everyone thinks you've been kidnapped," he said. "We've been scouring the ship. When Coach Hedge finds out—oh, gods, you've been here all night?"
"Frank!" Annabeth's ears were as red as strawberries. "We just came down here to talk. We fell asleep. Accidentally. That's it."
"Kissed a couple of times," Percy said.
Annabeth glared at him. "Not helping!"
"We'd better..." Frank pointed to the stable doors. "Uh, we're supposed to meet for breakfast. Would you explain what you did—I mean didn't do? I mean... I really don't want that faun—I mean satyr—to kill me." Frank ran.
When everyone finally gathered in the mess hall, it wasn't quite as bad as Frank had feared. Jason and Piper were mostly relieved. Leo couldn't stop grinning and muttering, "Classic. Classic." Kiara was smiling faintly, but her eyes were tinged pink as if she had been crying. Only Hazel seemed scandalized, maybe because she was from the 1940s. She kept fanning her face and wouldn't meet Percy's eyes.
Naturally, Coach Hedge went ballistic; but Percy found it hard to take the satyr seriously since he was barely five feet tall.
"Never in my life!" Coach bellowed, waving his bat and knocking over a plate of apples. "Against the rules! Irresponsible!"
"Coach," Annabeth said, "it was an accident. We were talking, and we fell asleep."
"Besides," Percy said, "you're starting to sound like Terminus."
Hedge narrowed his eyes. "Is that an insult, Jackson? 'Cause I'll—I'll terminus you, buddy!"
Percy tried not to laugh. "It won't happen again, Coach. I promise. Now, don't we have other things to discuss?"
Hedge fumed. "Fine! But I'm watching you, Jackson. And you, Annabeth Chase, I thought you had more sense—"
Jason cleared his throat. "So grab some food, everybody. Let's get started."
The meeting was like a war council with donuts. Then again, back at Camp Half-Blood they used to have their most serious discussions around the Ping-Pong table in the rec room with crackers and Cheez Whiz, so Percy felt right at home.
He told them about his dream—the twin giants planning a reception for them in an underground parking lot with rocket launchers; Nico di Angelo trapped in a bronze jar, slowly dying from asphyxiation with pomegranate seeds at his feet.
Hazel choked back a sob. "Nico... Oh, gods. The seeds."
"You know what they are?" Annabeth asked.
Kiara nodded. Her face had gone white as snow. "He showed them to us once. They're from our stepmother's garden."
"Your step... oh," Percy said. "You mean Persephone."
Percy had met the wife of Hades once. She hadn't been exactly warm and sunny. He had also been to her Underworld garden—a creepy place full of crystal trees and flowers that bloomed blood red and ghost white.
"The seeds are a last-resort food," Hazel said. Percy could tell she was nervous, because all the silverware on the table was starting to move toward her. "Only children of Hades can eat them. Nico always kept some in case he got stuck somewhere. But if he's really imprisoned—"
"The giants are trying to lure us," Annabeth said. "They're assuming we'll try to rescue him."
"Well, they're right!" Hazel looked around the table, her confidence apparently crumbling. "Won't we?"
Kiara put a hand on her sister's hand. Percy had never seen Kiara act gentle with anyone before. "Of course we will." Then she turned and glared at everyone around the table one by one. "Right?" She sounded more like she was daring the others to disagree.
"Yes!" Coach Hedge yelled with a mouthful of napkins. "It'll involve fighting, right?"
"Hazel, of course we'll help him," Frank said. "But how long do we have before... uh, I mean, how long can Nico hold out?"
"One seed a day," Hazel said miserably. "That's if he puts himself in a death trance."
"A death trance?" Annabeth scowled. "That doesn't sound fun."
"It keeps him from consuming all his air," Kiara said. "Like hibernation, or a coma. One seed can sustain him one day, barely."
"And he has five seeds left," Percy said. "That's five days, including today. The giants must have planned it that way, so we'd have to arrive by July first. Assuming Nico is hidden somewhere in Rome—"
"That's not much time," Piper summed up. She put her hand on Hazel's shoulder. "We'll find him. At least we know what the lines of the prophecy mean now. 'Twins snuff out the angel's breath, who holds the key to endless death.' Your brother's last name: di Angelo. Angelo is Italian for 'angel.'"
"Oh, gods," Hazel muttered. "Nico..."
Percy stared at his jelly donut. He had a rocky history with Nico di Angelo. The guy had once tricked him into visiting Hades's palace, and Percy had ended up in a cell. But most of the time, Nico sided with the good guys. He certainly didn't deserve slow suffocation in a bronze jar, and Percy couldn't stand seeing Hazel in pain. Kiara was good at hiding it but Percy could see that she was silently panicking on the inside.
"We'll rescue him," he promised them both. "We have to. The prophecy says he holds the key to endless death."
"That's right," Piper said encouragingly. "Hazel, your brother went searching for the Doors of Death in the Underworld, right? He must've found them."
"He can tell us where the doors are," Percy said, "and how to close them."
Hazel took a deep breath. "Yes. Good." Kiara rubbed Hazel's back.
"Uh..." Leo shifted in his chair. "One thing. The giants are expecting us to do this, right? So we're walking into a trap?"
Hazel looked at Leo like he'd made a rude gesture. "We have no choice!"
"Don't get me wrong, Hazel. It's just that your brother, Nico... he knew about both camps, right?"
"Well, yes," Hazel said.
"He's been going back and forth," Leo said, "and he didn't tell either side."
Jason sat forward, his expression grim. "You're wondering if we can trust the guy. So am I."
Hazel shot to her feet. "I don't believe this. He's my brother. He brought me back from the Underworld, and you don't want to help him?"
Frank put his hand on her shoulder. "Nobody's saying that." He glared at Leo. "Nobody had
better be saying that."
Leo blinked. "Look, guys. All I mean is—"
"Hazel," Jason said. "Leo is raising a fair point. I remember Nico from Camp Jupiter. Now I find out he also visited Camp Half-Blood. That does strike me as... well, a little shady. Do we really know where his loyalties lie? We just have to be careful."
Kiara shot to her feet. "Jason, I can't believe you're saying this right now." Her black eyes were glaring at Jason dangerously. "This is exactly what the whole legion did to me when—" She stopped suddenly and stomped out of the mess hall.
Hazel's arms shook. A silver platter zoomed toward her and hit the wall to her left, splattering scrambled eggs. "You... the great Jason Grace... the praetor I looked up to. You were supposed to be so fair, such a good leader. And now you..." Hazel stomped her foot and stormed out of the mess hall after her sister.
"Hazel!" Leo called after her. "Ah, jeez. I should—"
"You've done enough," Frank growled. He got up to follow her, but Piper gestured for him to wait.
"Give her time," Piper advised. Then she frowned at Leo and Jason. "You guys, that was pretty cold. You know it takes a lot to anger Kiara, and she was basically at the verge of tears."
Jason looked shocked. "Cold? I'm just being cautious!"
"Their brother is dying," Piper said.
"I'll go talk to them," Frank insisted
"No," Piper said. "Let them cool down first. Trust me on this. I'll go check on the two of them in a few minutes."
"But..." Frank huffed like an irritated bear. "Fine. I'll wait."
From up above came a whirring sound like a large drill.
"That's Festus," Leo said. "I've got him on autopilot, but we must be nearing Atlanta. I'll have to get up there... uh, assuming we know where to land."
Everyone turned to Percy.
Jason raised an eyebrow. "You're Captain Salt Water. Any ideas from the expert?"
Was that resentment in his voice? Percy wondered if Jason was secretly miffed about the duel in Kansas. Jason had joked about it, but Percy figured that they both harbored a little grudge. You couldn't put two demigods in a fight and not have them wonder who was stronger.
"I'm not sure," he admitted. "Somewhere central, high up so we can get a good view of the city. Maybe a park with some woods? We don't want to land a warship in the middle of downtown. I doubt even the Mist could cover up something that huge."
Leo nodded. "On it." He raced for the stairs.
Frank settled back in his chair uneasily. Percy felt bad for him. On the trip to Alaska, he had watched Hazel and Frank grow close. He knew how protective Frank felt toward her. He also noticed the baleful look Frank was giving Leo. He decided it might be a good idea to get Frank off the ship for a while.
"When we land, I'll scout around in Atlanta," Percy said. "Frank, I could use your help."
"You mean turn into a dragon again? Honestly, Percy, I don't want to spend the whole quest being everyone's flying taxi."
"No," Percy said. "I want you with me because you've got the blood of Poseidon. Maybe you can help me figure out where to find salt water. Besides, you're good in a fight."
That seemed to make Frank feel a little better. "Sure. I guess."
"Great," Percy said. "We should take one more. Annabeth—"
"Oh, no!" Coach Hedge barked. "Young lady, you are grounded."
Annabeth stared at him like he was speaking a foreign language. "Excuse me?"
"You and Jackson are not going anywhere together!" Hedge insisted. He glared at Percy, daring him to mouth off. "I'll go with Frank and Mr. Sneaky Jackson. The rest of you guard the ship and make sure Annabeth doesn't break any more rules!"
Wonderful, Percy thought. A boys' day out with Frank and a bloodthirsty satyr, to find salt water in a landlocked city.
"This," he said, "is going to be so much fun."