I still couldn't believe this was happening.
We had settled in a grass plain. Multiple fires were lit, our wagons were parked a stable distance away, and people were dancing to the music some of our new men were playing. We had just captured lady Hecate's manor, and had 100's of new men, along with tons of food and water, which we had desperately needed.
I sat on the back of a wagon, a glass of wine in my hand. I'd barely had wine before, and the taste was still strange to me. I watched the dancers jealously, wishing I was holding Annabeth against me like Travis was with Katie.
Luke was sitting next to me, also sipping wine. I wondered if there was a girl he wished he was dancing with.
"Let me go," I heard someone say from behind me.
I turned to face the princess, who was sitting in the cell the wagon contained. It was one of Dionysus' specially built ones, for containing slaves.
"You know I'm not going to do that, Princess Thalia," I said tiredly. I know it's kind of weird that I sat on the wagon that contained a prisoner, but she knew Annabeth. If I caught her in a good mood, we'd talk about her.
She rolled her eyes and slumped against the bars of the cell. Her hands were tied with chains instead of rope, because she had chewed her way through the rope that used to bind her. Princess Thalia was a lot of things, but undetermined was not one of them.
"When my father finds you," She hissed. "He will make you watch as we burn your men, before ripping you limb for limb."
I turned to give Luke my here we go again look, because this was a usual thing she did, but he was staring at Thalia with a strange look in his eyes, and didn't seem to want to look away.
I took another sip of my wine. Our other prisoners were in other wagons, and I observed them. Dionysus, his wife and son, Hecate, her husband and son. I was still pissed off at the fact we had lost Castor. The first thing he'll do is tell the king, and that's the last thing I want.
I looked up at the stars, wondering if Annabeth was looking at them, too. She was all I ever thought about now.
"Do you honestly think that you will be successful?"
The music stopped, and the dancers let go of their partners. We all turned to Lady Hecate, who had just bellowed those words.
"An army of slaves," She laughed. "Against the night of Rome. You'll all be dead in a year."
Her words cracked through the air like a whip, revealing everyone's deepest fear. I could sense the unease, especially in my new men.
"You're right, we are just an army of slaves," I hoped off my wagon and made my way to her's. "Against the might of Rome."
I could see her smile, thinking she'd won. As if she could dampen my mood.
"But what do the men of Rome fight for?" I asked. "Honour? Money? Power?"
Everyone's attention was on me now.
"Do you know what we fight for?" I asked. "Love. Freedom. Life. And when you compare that to what the Romans fight for..."
I grinned. "...well, the Romans are nothing."
My words were met with a loud cheer, and Hecate's smile melted like hot wax.
"We are an army of slaves!" Travis shouted, pumping his fist in the air. "And we have our king!"
"Percy, king of the slaves!" Katie shouted, clasping his hand in hers.
Others started saying it too, until it became a mantra.
"King of the slaves! King of the slaves! King of the slaves!"