Waking up to someone crying was already bad enough, but it was ten times worse when that person was Hazel Levesque.
When Leo opened his eyes, he found himself sitting in the ship's Mess Hall, surrounded by his six friends.
Percy was pacing back and forth. He reminded Leo of a caged tiger. His posture was tense as if he were ready for a fight and his expression was stony-faced. It was hard to picture that this was the same Percy Jackson he had been laughing with a couple minutes ago. How did he go from being so laid-back to this?
Tartarus... Leo frowned. He looked over at the others.
Piper and Jason were huddled together, occasionally muttering something to each other. The son of Jupiter had his arm wrapped around her and Piper was leaning into him for comfort. Both seemed to have their minds on other things.
Annabeth was sitting down, leaning heavily on the table. She had rings under her eyes and her hair was barely staying together in her ponytail. She was giving her plate a scowl as if it was responsible for her problems. Leo felt his heart clench. He wondered when was the last time she went to sleep and if she did, how often was she woken up by nightmares?
Frank and Hazel were sitting next to him, with Hazel being in the middle. Frank looked like he was close to tears, but he tried to keep a brave face on as he rubbed soothing circles into Hazel's free hand.
Hazel's other hand was squeezing a wad of tissue. She was hiccupping, crying, and sniffling, all at the same time. If it wasn't for her deep gasps, Leo would've been worried she wasn't breathing. Her cheeks and nose were red. Her gold eyes were puffy and bloodshot. Leo winced at how distraught she looked.
What happened? Leo wanted to ask, but found himself unable to speak.
Hazel coughed. Frank let go of her hand and was now rubbing her back.
"It's okay, take your time." he said softly. He quickly wiped away a stray tear from his cheek. "We'll wait 'til you're ready..."
It took a while, but Hazel finally calmed down enough to explain the situation.
"We were on the deck, talking about sparkling vampires," she sniffled. "When Nemesis came and said that Leo needed to repay her for using the fortune cookie-"
Percy turned to her.
"Fortune cookie?" he frowned.
"It was supposed to help him when he was in a situation he couldn't solve, but for a price." Hazel tearfully explained. She grabbed another tissue and dabbed her eyes. On the table, the silverware were being pulled toward her, as if she had some kind of gravitational force. "I don't know why he opened it, though. He didn't tell me. All I know is that after she told him it was time to pay, there was a bright light, and they were gone."
Hazel furiously blinked back tears. "I can't believe he would vanish again. This is the second time we lost him."
I'm right here! Leo tried to yell, but remained silent.
She dropped her tissues on the table and brushed her hair back. "I can't sense him, so he isn't dead."
That seemed to relax the others.
"We'll find him." Frank promised. "He couldn't have gotten too far."
"I'm not worried about finding him," Hazel said, placing her hand on her cheek. "I'm worried about what Nemesis will do to him. She made her own son give up an eye! Who knows what kind of torture she's doing to poor Leo..."
Percy winced. The mood in the Mess Hall seemed to get darker.
Leo wished he could tell everyone not to worry about him.
Jason rubbed his tattoo and heaved a heavy sigh.
"Maybe we could land and search for him?" he suggested. "Or try to ask one of the gods? Hephaestus might not be in the best condition, but he could help."
"Maybe..." Annabeth agreed, still glaring at her plate. "It's worth a shot. I can't imagine where she would take him..."
Percy was pacing around the room again when he suddenly stopped. He looked at the live footage of Camp Half-Blood with a mixture of confusion and realization.
"Annabeth..." he said, still staring at the footage. The Stoll brothers were trying to hotwire the van and failing. "When's the first time you met Leo?"
The others frowned in confusion.
Annabeth furrowed her eyebrows.
"I met him at the Grand Can-" she froze, her eyes widening in surprise. She blinked multiple times before she shook her head. "No, wait..." She rubbed her temples. "I-I met him on Mount Olympus... We just beat the Titans. You denied godhood and made the gods promise to claim their kids... And suddenly, a bright light came and there was Leo..."
She narrowed her eyes, trying to concentrate. "But that's not what happened... We went-"
Annabeth winced, letting out a sharp cry. She lost her sense of balance and fell out of her chair.
Percy tried to run to her side, only to crumple on the ground.
The other demigods leapt on their feet. Leo tried to do the same, but was stuck to his chair.
He was helpless to do anything but watch as his friends rushed to the couple.
"What's happening?!" Piper exclaimed, grabbing Percy's shoulder.
The son of Poseidon was clutching his head and groaning in pain.
"My memories are changing..." he managed to ground out. "I'm remembering Leo on Olympus reading our thoughts..."
Despite feeling like his head was going to explode, Percy glanced at Annabeth and managed a smile.
"You think my lips taste salty?"
"Shut up!" she snapped, squeezing her eyes shut.
The couple yelled as they felt the pain suddenly spike.
"We should take them to the Infirmary." Jason said. The other three quickly nodded in agreement.
Jason and Frank hefted Percy over their shoulders, Piper and Hazel did the same for Annabeth. They were about to leave the Mess Hall, when suddenly the ship began to blur and sway like the whole thing was a mirage.
"Oh my gods..." Piper said nervously.
"What did Leo do?!" Frank exclaimed, eyes darting around the room.
The demigods backed into the table. The footage on the walls started to change. One minute it was showing Miranda Gardener yelling at the Stolls, the next they showed Nemesis sneering at them.
"Sorry to interrupt!" the goddess taunted. She was looking past the six and right into Leo's eyes. "But you've still got some reading to be catching up to!"
She snapped her fingers. The world trembled. Colors clashed. The last thing he heard before he blacked out was his friends screaming.
----------
Leo sprung up, panting for breath. Heart beating a mile a minute, he frantically looked around the room, searching for his friends.
"Woah!" a voice gasped. Leo's head snapped toward it.
Will was crouched next to him, hands up in surrender. Apollo (in his human size) was by Will's side, eyeing the son of Hephaestus with concern.
Leo was still panting, but he relaxed when he recognized them.
"Are you okay? Did you have a nightmare?" Apollo gently asked.
"Demigod dream." he responded breathlessly, actually taking in his surroundings. He was still in the throne room, only sitting up on a cot with a thin blanket. The room was empty except the three of them.
"Where-" Leo stopped and swallowed. "Where is everyone?"
"Taking a break." Will said. "We decided to wait for you to wake up."
"Oh." the son of Hephaestus brushed his hair back, hand trembling as he did so.
"You said you had a demigod dream?" Apollo pressed. "What was it about?"
Leo grimaced. The last thing he wanted to do was talk about it, but at the same time, he needed to get this off his chest now.
"Bring the others in first." he replied, hands still shaking. He needed something to do. Leo sat on the side of the cot and started retying his shoelace. "It's better if I tell everyone at the same time."
Apollo nodded and went to get the others, his size growing bigger each step he took.
It didn't take long for the group to rush back.
They all looked like they had something they wanted to say to him (no doubt a lecture on better sleeping habits), but seeing the far-off look on his face, the readers decided to hold themselves back.
"How are you feeling?" Hephaestus asked, once everyone was seated.
"Fine." Leo said automatically. He got off the cot and started pacing back and forth, beating out flames on his arms. The others stiffened as they watched him move around so suddenly. A few warily followed his movements, bodies tensed like they were getting ready to catch him if he fell unconscious again.
He probably should've sat back down to ease their worries, but he felt too angsty to be still right now. His friends were in trouble and he just watched. He couldn't even tell them that he was there. It was common to not be able to do anything in a demigod dream, but it didn't stop him from feeling so worthless.
Walking in a circle, Leo told the others about his dream. As he recounted the events, the readers looked sad by the six's situation but, much to his shock, unsurprised.
"We are trying to change the future." Annabeth reminded him. It was jarring to see her look so lively after his dream. "This was bound to happen sometime."
"I guess..." Leo scuffed the ground. "But I thought this was going to be an instant change, I didn't know it was going to be a gradual thing."
With a grimace, he wondered if Nemesis had something to do with that. She had found a way to send him back in the past after all, she might've also did something to make the timeline altering as miserable as possible for everyone.
Sounds like something she would do. Leo thought, feeling a pang of guilt. I should have never opened that fortune cookie. Everyone's suffering and it's my fault.
It was one thing to be reading his thoughts, but it was another to let his friends go through something like that.
Seeing his pained expression, Annabeth was quick to assure him.
"Leo, they're going to be fine." she said. "The only reason they're scared is because they don't know what's going on. They're not in any real danger."
"You're hurt." Leo told her.
"Only because we're remembering things." Percy stepped in. He gave Leo a strained grin. "It's no big deal, we're tougher than we look."
The son of Hephaestus was still hesitant.
"I dunno... Maybe we should stop doing this."
"It's too late to stop at this point, the changes have already begun." Hestia told him. "The best thing we can do is keep reading."
Leo wanted to argue. He wanted to insist that they send him back to his time period or better yet, pull out a few things and start making a device that'll let him speak to his friends. But the more he thought over what they said, the more he realized that the readers were right.
Even if he did manage to go into the future, he wouldn't be much of a help. Nemesis would just send him back anyway. Trying to contact them with a device wouldn't useful either. What was he supposed to say that they couldn't figure out already? He'd probably make them worry about him even more.
Right now, there were a couple things he could do that would really help: Finish the books and find the ingredients for the Physician's Cure.
He'd just have to trust that his friends could handle the trippy timeline.
Leo took a deep breath and nodded in agreement. He sat back down with the others.
After a moment of silence, Nyssa spoke up.
"I'll read the next chapter."
She picked up the book where Will dropped it and began to read.
"Piper IX," Nyssa began.
The faster we read this, the sooner the timeline stops altering. Leo told himself. He fidgeted around. He wished he could be looking up the Physician's Cure while they were reading, but he couldn't bring any more attention on himself than he already did. He was still getting a few concerned looks, especially from Will and Hephaestus.
You fall unconscious once, and now you're suddenly made of glass. he resisted the urge to roll his eyes.
Piper didn't want to use the knife.
Members of Cabin Ten winced.
Thinking back to the images of Tristan McLean chained to a post, Aphrodite shuddered. What did she see this time?
She wrung her hands, already hating the answer.
But sitting in Jason's cabin, waiting for him to wake up, she felt alone and helpless.
Thalia winced. He's still sleeping?
Jason's face was so pale, he might've been dead.
Com'on Jay, wake up. the daughter of Zeus thought impatiently. If you can survive looking at an immortal, you can handle getting hit by a brick.
She remembered the awful sound of that brick hitting his forehead
"Don't remind me." Thalia said with a wince.
—an injury that had happened only because he'd tried to shield her from the Romans.
"Don't blame yourself over it. You're not the one who threw that brick." Thalia huffed. They better hope I don't find out who they are.
...Piper couldn't be sure he would be okay when he woke up. What if he'd lost his memories again—but this time, his memories of her?
"The same thing can't happen again." Thalia frowned and turned to Will. "Right?"
He shifted uncomfortably. "I mean... it could... But I don't think it will."
Thalia's frown deepened.
"I'm sure he'll be fine." the son of Apollo tried to assure. "They've already given him ambrosia and nectar."
That would be the cruelest trick the gods had played on her yet, and they'd played some pretty cruel tricks.
"You're telling me!" Leo said, shooting the ceiling a dirty look.There's a difference between punishment and torture, Nemesis!
Grumbling under his breath, he went through his tool belt.
She heard Gleeson Hedge in his room next door, humming a military song—"Stars and Stripes Forever," maybe?...He wasn't a bad chaperone, but he was definitely the most warlike old goat Piper had ever met.
I don't think I'll ever meet another satyr who likes to fight as much as Coach Hedge. Grover thought.
"He's one of a kind." Clarisse said with a grin.
... A few weeks ago, Hedge had asked his girlfriend, Mellie, to take charge of the McLean household so he could come along to help with this quest.
Coach Hedge had tried to make it sound like returning to Camp Half-Blood had been all his idea, but Piper suspected there was more to it. The last few weeks, whenever Piper called home, her dad and Mellie had asked her what was wrong. Maybe something in her voice had tipped them off.
"Her father probably sent Coach Hedge back to camp to make sure Piper was okay." Hestia said.
Leo played with a tape measurer.
Piper couldn't share the visions she'd seen. They were too disturbing.
Aphrodite and the other readers stiffened.
"How can this quest get any worse?" Annabeth grimaced.
...But he could still tell when she was upset, and she was pretty sure her dad had encouraged Coach to look out for her.
She shouldn't draw her blade. It would only make her feel worse.
Finally the temptation was too great. She unsheathed Katoptris.
There was tension in the air.
The readers held their breaths as they waited to hear what was in the reflection.
...light rippled across the metal. She saw a crowd of Roman demigods gathered in the forum. The blond scarecrow-looking kid, Octavian, was speaking to the mob, shaking his fist. Piper couldn't hear him, but the gist was obvious: We need to kill those Greeks!
I can't believe the Romans actually take this guy seriously. Clarisse snorted.
"How inspiring." Apollo rolled his eyes. "He's the descendent of the god of poetry, and that's it?"
"That's what Piper summed up." Artemis reminded. "He could've been saying a whole speech."
"Still..." the god said, not looking impressed.
"Why is everybody always out to kill us? Can't we just talk it out over some blue candy and work together for once?" Percy groaned.
"Life's not that easy." Poseidon said with a sigh.
Reyna, the praetor, stood to one side, her face tight with suppressed emotion. Bitterness? Anger? Piper wasn't sure.
"At least Reyna doesn't look happy about it." Annabeth said. There has to be a way we can work past this.
She'd been prepared to hate Reyna, but she couldn't. During the feast in the forum, Piper had admired the way Reyna kept her feelings in check.
"Yeah, she's not as bad as I thought she would be..." Lacy mused. "I thought she was going to accuse Piper for stealing Jason or something. But she didn't even talk to her."
"It's not like they had enough time to." Leo said with a frown.
Reyna had sized up Piper and Jason's relationship right away. As a daughter of Aphrodite, Piper could tell stuff like that. Yet Reyna had stayed polite and in control. She'd put her camp's needs ahead of her emotions. She'd given the Greeks a fair chance...right up until the Argo II had started destroying her city.
Leo winced.
...Maybe Reyna wasn't so bad, but it didn't matter now. They'd messed up the chance for peace. Piper's power of persuasion had, for once, done absolutely no good.
Aphrodite frowned at that.
"It's nobody's fault." Annabeth said firmly, glancing at Leo as she said this. "We'll fix this."
...Piper had never wanted to make friends with the Romans.
Athena nodded her head in approval. As you should.
The demigods blinked in surprise, even Leo looked shocked by this revelation.
"What?" Lacy said, shoulders slumping in disappointment. "Did she think it wouldn't work?"
"No, it has to be something else." Leo defended with a frown. Probably has something to do with Jason's memories...
She was too worried about losing Jason to his old life.
Leo sighed. Yup.
Most of the demigods still didn't look to happy, but chose to let it go. They hadn't been too eager with the idea of working with the Romans either.
...Now Jason was hurt. The ship had been almost destroyed. And according to her dagger, that crazy teddy-bear-strangling kid, Octavian, was whipping the Romans into a war frenzy.
A few people sighed.
"It's already bad enough they want to have a war against the Greeks, why did they have him be the leader?" Apollo grumbled.
The scene in her blade shifted. There was a rapid series of images she'd seen before, but she still didn't understand them:
Annabeth leaned forward.
Jason riding into battle on horseback, his eyes gold instead of blue;
Thalia frowned. "Gold? Is that because of the reflection? Or something else?"
"I don't know..." Annabeth said. "The last time his eyes turned gold, was when Piper brought him back to life. But I don't think the same thing's happening here."
She played with the college ring on her necklace. Doesn't sound like he's possessed. Leo's eyes were glazed, not gold...
Annabeth didn't have time to ponder on the description, she was forced to move on as Nyssa continued reading.
a woman in an old-fashioned Southern belle dress, standing in an oceanside park with palm trees;
Annabeth resisted the urge to sigh. That's it? Com'on Piper, can you give us more details? I know the images are going by fast, but that woman could've been anyone.
a bull with the face of a bearded man, rising out of a river;
The demigods frowned in confusion.
"A bull with the face of a bearded man?" Travis repeated. "Is that some kind of riddle?"
"Could be a minotaur." Percy suggested.
"But what's it doing in the water?" Chris asked.
The son of Poseidon shrugged. "I dunno... Taking a bath?"
and two giants in matching yellow togas, hoisting a rope on a pulley system, lifting a large bronze vase out of a pit.
Why them? Dionysus rolled his eyes in annoyance. Now those brats are going to want my help.
The god of wine scowled and buried his face in his magazine.
Really? Them? Ares shuddered. His mind flashed back to the months he spent trapped in that cramped space.
Seeing her boyfriend's face pale, Aphrodite rested her head on his shoulder and gave his hand a comforting pat. "It's okay. I'm sure you're not in there, it has to be somebody else."
"Yeah..." he breathed, biting his lip. He noticed the others, particularly Clarisse, staring at him. The god sat up straighter and puffed out his chest. "Yeah! Of course it's not me! If they ever tried to capture me again, I'd rip their throats out!"
"Oh my!" the goddess gasped, humoring him. "But won't that be hard? There's two of them!"
"Please," Ares said dismissively. "They're just a couple of School Drama Club rejects, the only reason they caught me the first time was because I was caught off guard. Even if they tried to put me in a jar, I'd just shatter it with these."
The god flexed his arm.
Aphrodite giggled and felt his muscles.
Hephaestus gave the two a heated glare.
The other gods just rolled their eyes at the two's antics.
"You're welcome, by the way." Hermes said sarcastically.
Then came the worst vision:
"There's more?" Chris groaned.
she saw herself with Jason and Percy, standing waist-deep in water at the bottom of a dark circular chamber, like a giant well.
Percy frowned.
Poseidon grimaced. Why does the worst vision have to involve my son?
Ghostly shapes moved through the water as it rose rapidly.
What are those supposed to be? Annabeth wondered. Monsters? Or are they ghosts like the eidolons?
Piper clawed at the walls, trying to escape, but there was nowhere to go. The water reached their chests.
The readers tensed.
Jason was pulled under.
Just a vision. Thalia reminded herself, forcing her body to relax.
Percy stumbled and disappeared.
Poseidon's body went rigid.
Annabeth's breath hitched.
"I'll be fine." Percy assured them. "Whatever it is, I can handle it. The water's my element."
How could a child of the sea god drown?
Percy nervously laughed. "I can't. It's basically impossible."
Piper didn't know, but she watched herself in the vision, alone and thrashing in the dark, until the water rose over her head.
Aphrodite shuddered.
"Is the vision over yet?" Lacy whimpered.
...She forced herself to look at the blade again.
This time, she saw an empty highway cutting between fields of wheat and sunflowers.
The readers relaxed, but exchanged confused looks.
A mileage marker read: TOPEKA 32. On the shoulder of the road stood a man in khaki shorts and a purple camp shirt. His face was lost in the shadow of a broad hat, the brim wreathed in leafy vines. He held up a silver goblet and beckoned to Piper.
Dionysus dropped his magazine and clutched his head in pain.
Great! Of course they'd come to him for help! the god thought sarcastically, grinding his teeth together.
"I guess we know who it is." Percy muttered to Annabeth, watching the god of wine try to maintain his form.
"Yup." she agreed with a sigh. I can't believe we actually have to turn to him for help.
Somehow she knew he was offering her some sort of gift—a cure, or an antidote.
Annabeth blinked in confusion. A cure for what? Why would we need that?
"Hey," Jason croaked.
"Thank the gods," Thalia sighed with relief. Any longer and I would've thought he was in a coma.
Piper was so startled she dropped the knife. "You're awake!"
"Don't sound so surprised." Jason touched his bandaged head and frowned. "What...what happened? I remember the explosions, and—"
"It's probably better you don't know. Unless you know the name of who threw that brick." Thalia scowled. Her fingers were itching to notch her bow.
"You remember who I am?"
Jason tried to laugh, but it turned into a painful wince. "Last I checked, you were my awesome girlfriend Piper. Unless something has changed since I was out?"
"Aaaawww!" the girls from Cabin Ten cooed.
Aphrodite giggled.
"Smooth one, Jay." Thalia playfully rolled her eyes.
...She helped him sit up and gave him some nectar to sip while she brought him up to speed...
Moments later, Leo and Hazel stumbled to a stop in the doorway, carrying a large sheet of hammered bronze between them.
"Gods of Olympus." Piper stared at Leo. "What happened to you?"
"Nothing much, nearly got mauled by killer fan girls. Ya'know, the usual." Leo casually replied, pulling the measuring tape out of its container before letting go.
The tape zoomed back in its rightful place.
"Don't even joke about that." Hephaestus frowned.
..."Long story," he said. "Others back?"
"Not yet," Piper said.
Annabeth and Percy frowned.
"What's taking us so long?" the son of Poseidon said. "We were just getting tar."
"And Leo and Hazel were just getting Celestial bronze." Annabeth reminded. "Who knows what kind of trouble we ran into."
She sighed. "I just hope we make it back in time."
Leo cursed. Then he noticed Jason sitting up, and his face brightened. "Hey, man! Glad you're better. I'll be in the engine room."
He ran off with the sheet of bronze, leaving Hazel in the doorway.
"You're not even going to tell them about what happened with Narcissus?" Connor whined.
"I tell them later." Leo told him.
...On the deck above, something went THUMP, as if a heavy creature had landed. Annabeth and Percy came running down the hall.
"Finally." Annabeth sighed with relief.
Percy was toting a steaming five-gallon plastic bucket that smelled horrible. Annabeth had a patch of black sticky stuff in her hair.
The daughter of Athena winced. That was going to be a pain to get out.
...Frank stumbled up behind them, which made the hallway pretty jam-packed with demigods. Frank had a big smear of the black sludge down his face.
A few readers winced.
"I hope that didn't burn." Hestia said sympathetically.
"Ran into some tar monsters," Annabeth said.
"Seriously? We can't even get materials without running into monsters." Percy groaned.
"We'll save you the search and make sure the ship's stocked with building materials." Nyssa promised.
"Maybe we can put the extra materials in where the stables supposed to go?" Jake considered.
"Hey, Jason, glad you're awake. Hazel, where's Leo?"
She pointed down. "Engine room."
Suddenly the entire ship listed to port. The demigods stumbled. Percy almost spilled his bucket of tar.
The readers tensed.
"What is that?" Katie asked.
They turned to Leo, who sheepishly smiled back.
"The killer fan girls." he said, rubbing the back of his neck.
"Perfect. At least they're not the tar monsters." Annabeth grumbled.
...The three of them ran off, leaving Hazel at the cabin door. The ship listed again, and Hazel hugged her stomach like she was going to be sick.
"She gets seasick." Nico explained when the others looked confused.
Will winced sympathetically. "That's rough."
"I'll just..." She swallowed, pointed weakly down the passageway, and ran off.
Jason and Piper stayed below as the ship rocked back and forth. For a hero, Piper felt pretty useless.
The readers and Leo frowned at this.
"I mean there wasn't much you had to do. We had the situation under control." the son of Hephaestus said.
Waves crashed against the hull as angry voices came from above deck—Percy shouting, Coach Hedge yelling at the lake. Festus the figurehead breathed fire several times. Down the hall, Hazel moaned miserably in her cabin.
"Hang in there." Nico muttered.
...After what seemed like hours, the engine began to hum. The oars creaked and groaned, and Piper felt the ship lift into the air.
A couple people sighed with relief.
"Is the ship fixed?" Lacy asked.
"Not yet, I still need to do more repairs on the ship." Leo said.
The demigods resisted the urge to groan in complaint.
...Finally Leo emerged from the engine room. He was caked in sweat, lime dust, and tar. His T-shirt looked like it had been caught in an escalator and chewed to shreds. The TEAM LEO on his chest now read: AM LEO. But he grinned like a madman and announced that they were safely under way.
"Meeting in the mess hall, one hour," he said. "Crazy day, huh?"
"Underestimate of the year." Annabeth said. The quest just started and everything's already a mess...
After everyone had cleaned up, Coach Hedge took the helm and the demigods gathered below for dinner. It was the first time they'd all sat down together—just the seven of them. Maybe their presence should've reassured Piper, but seeing all of them in one place only reminded her that the Prophecy of Seven was unfolding at last...They were under way, with a bunch of angry Romans behind them and the ancient lands ahead. The giants would be waiting. Gaea was rising. And unless they succeeded in this quest, the world would be destroyed.
"No big deal. We've dealt with something like this before. Only smaller." Percy tried to say lightheartedly.
His comment was met with uneasy smiles and unimpressed glances.
The others must've felt it too. The tension in the mess hall was like an electrical storm brewing, which was totally possible, considering Percy's and Jason's powers. In an awkward moment, the two boys tried to sit in the same chair at the head of the table. Sparks literally flew from Jason's hands. After a brief silent standoff, like they were both thinking, Seriously, dude?,
"Oh my gods, are you serious? You guys are really fighting over a chair?" Thalia said. Pinching the bridge of her nose, she let out a sigh.
"I don't know why." Percy frowned. "I don't usually fight over little things like that..."
"It's common for children of Zeus (or in this case, Jupiter) and Poseidon to have some form of rivalry." Annabeth said, crossing her arms. "I had a feeling this was going to happen, but I didn't think it would be over something so dumb."
"They usually have these little macho contests, but they don't go beyond this." Leo told them.
Thalia rolled her eyes. "Great, there's going to be more pointless arguments. What do you guys fight about next? Who eats the last pancake? Who deals the finishing blow on the monster? Who leaves the Mess Hall first?"
"Whatever it is, I'm probably going to have to break it up..." Annabeth rolled her eyes. The things I do to save the world... I just hope these fights aren't too frequent...
they ceded the chair to Annabeth and sat at opposite sides of the table.
"Yup." Annabeth said, looking unsurprised.
"Figures, it'd end up like that." Thalia grinned.
The crew compared notes on what had happened in Salt Lake City, but even Leo's ridiculous story about how he tricked Narcissus wasn't enough to cheer up the group.
"Really?" Connor said, eyes wide in surprise. "That would've cheered me up."
"Sometimes you have to be there to really enjoy it." Leo said with a shrug.
"So where to now?" Leo asked with a mouthful of pizza. "I did a quick repair job to get us out of the lake, but there's still a lot of damage. We should really put down again and fix things right before we head across the Atlantic."
"Well, Piper's vision mentioned Topeka. We can stop there and look for Mr. D while Leo does repairs." Annabeth suggested.
"Sounds good." Percy nodded.
Percy was eating a piece of pie, which for some reason was completely blue—filling, crust, even the whipped cream.
Poseidon smiled fondly at his son.
With a confused frown, Leo turned to Percy.
"I never asked. Why do you eat blue food? I get that it's your favorite color, but my favorite's red and you don't see me eating only red food."
"It reminds me of home." Percy explained. "Mom would always bake me blue cookies or get me blue candy from her old job. At this point it's a running joke between us."
"Oh." Leo said, unsure what to think about this revelation. He was expecting some kind of silly answer like 'it tastes better' or something frustrating like 'why not?' He was not prepared to know something so personal. It was almost overwhelming.
He shifted uncomfortably, unsure what to say next. Should he try to share his own personal story? But what would he say? Thankfully he didn't have to say anything, Percy just smiled and turned his attention back to the book.
"We need to put some distance between us and Camp Jupiter," he said. "Frank spotted some eagles over Salt Lake City. We figure the Romans aren't far behind us."
"There has to be some way you can throw them off your trail..." Will frowned. "Maybe you can make some kind of diversion or something."
Leo smirked at that. "Maybe."
That didn't improve the mood around the table. Piper didn't want to say anything, but she felt obliged...and a little guilty. "I don't suppose we should go back and try to reason with the Romans? Maybe—maybe I didn't try hard enough with the charmspeak."
Aphrodite and Cabin Ten frowned.
"There was nothing you can do." Annabeth said. "The Romans wouldn't have trusted us if we tried using charmspeak in the first place."
"Reyna would've probably saw it as a trick." Nico said.
Jason took her hand. "It wasn't your fault, Pipes. Or Leo's," he added quickly. "Whatever happened, it was Gaea's doing, to drive the two camps apart."
[Piper]... "Maybe if we could explain that, though—"
"You can't without proof." Nico sighed. "Besides, the Romans are too bent of payback to take any form of evidence as real anyways."
"We really blew it this time." Percy grimaced.
"Gaea messed things up." Annabeth firmly reminded. "We did the best we could do in the situation. Besides, we can fix the problem now."
"With no proof?" Annabeth asked. "And no idea what really happened? I appreciate what you're saying, Piper. I don't want the Romans on our bad side, but until we understand what Gaea's up to, going back is suicide."
"She's right," Hazel said. She still looked a little queasy from seasickness, but she was trying to eat a few saltine crackers. The rim of her plate was embedded with rubies, and Piper was pretty sure they hadn't been there at the beginning of the meal.
"How is everybody so calm about that?" Travis said in awe. "If they weren't cursed, I would've already tried to sneak that in my back pocket."
"Of course you would." Katie rolled her eyes. "Only you'd be dumb enough to try to sneak a plate inside your back pocket."
His ears turning red, Travis glared at her.
"You knew what I meant!" he hissed.
As the two started bickering, Nyssa just read over them as if no one was speaking.
...She thought about the visions she'd seen in her knife: Jason with golden eyes; the bull with the human head;
"That sounds so weird... What kind of monster would that be? It sounds like a minotaur, but the human head keeps throwing me off..." Annabeth muttered.
the two giants in yellow togas hoisting a bronze jar from a pit. Worst of all, she remembered herself drowning in black water.
Aphrodite shivered.
Piper had always liked the water. She had good memories of surfing with her dad. But since she'd started seeing that vision in Katoptris, she'd been thinking more and more of an old Cherokee story her granddad used to tell to keep her away from the river near his cabin. He told her the Cherokees believed in good water spirits, like the naiads of the Greeks; but they also believed in evil water spirits, the water cannibals, who hunted mortals with invisible arrows and were especially fond of drowning small children.
"What a happy thought..." Nyssa said sarcastically with a grimace.
"The whatever's in the water isn't going to hurt us. I'll... I'll do something about it." Percy said as confidently as he could.
"You're right," she decided. "We have to keep going. Not just because of the Romans. We have to hurry."
Hazel nodded. "Nemesis said we have only six days until Nico dies and Rome is destroyed."
Nico let out a shaky sigh.
Hades gave his son a concerned glance.
Will bit his lip.
Jason frowned. "You mean Rome Rome, not New Rome?"
"Obviously." Clarisse rolled her eyes.
..."Why six days?" Percy wondered. "And how are they going to destroy Rome?"
"Let's hope we don't find out." Zeus said.
..."There's more," she said. "I've been seeing some things in my knife."
The big kid, Frank, froze with a forkful of spaghetti halfway to his mouth. "Things such as... ?"
"They don't really make sense," Piper said, "just garbled images, but I saw two giants, dressed alike. Maybe twins."
"Twins, like in Ella's prophecy," Annabeth said. "If we could figure out those lines, it might help."
"Right!" Annabeth exclaimed, kicking herself for not remembering sooner. Seriously? How could I forget something so important!
"Wisdom's daughter walks alone," Percy said. "The Mark of Athena burns through Rome. Annabeth, that's got to mean you. Juno told me...well, she said you had a hard task ahead of you in Rome. She said she doubted you could do it.
Annabeth scowled. There was a fire in her eyes that made Percy feel nervous. Oh she does, does she? Well, I'll just prove her wrong!
"Probably shouldn't have said that." he muttered under his breath. Seriously, what was I thinking? Did I forget how Annabeth feels about Hera?
But I know she's wrong."
"Of course she is." Annabeth said, giving the goddess a glare. "I will follow the Mark of Athena, and be successful."
Hera scoffed.
"Fool, you don't even know what you're looking for." she sneered. "I almost pity you. You're on a suicide mission, yet you're determined to do it just to prove me wrong."
The goddess let out a small laugh. "Your pride will truly be your downfall!"
"We'll see about that!" Annabeth huffed. "My mother chose me for a reason, she must think I have what it takes."
Athena smiled. "Yes, I do. You will prove everyone wrong, follow the mark. Avenge me!"
Her daughter hesitated at that, seemingly just remembering what she was agreeing to do.
"Annabeth," Percy muttered to her. "Do you really think you can do it?"
Trying not to look as uneasy as she felt, she shrugged. "I'll be fine. I have to do it anyway. If I bring back whatever Mother's talking about, she'll go back to normal. It might even fix the rift between Greeks and Romans."
"You're right." Percy frowned. "But I still don't like it." Especially that opening line: 'Wisdom's daughter walks alone'...
Annabeth took a long breath. "Reyna was about to tell me something right before the ship fired on us. She said there was an old legend among the Roman praetors—something that had to do with Athena. She said it might be the reason Greeks and Romans could never get along."
..."Nemesis mentioned something similar," Leo said. "She talked about an old score that had to be settled—"
"The one thing that might bring the gods' two natures into harmony," Hazel recalled. "'An old wrong finally avenged.'"
Finally. Athena thought in agreement.
Percy drew a frowny face in his blue whipped cream. "I was only a praetor for about two hours. Jason, you ever hear a legend like that?"
Jason was still holding Piper's hand. His fingers had turned clammy.
Annabeth frowned. What's he so nervous about?
"I...uh, I'm not sure," he said. "I'll give it some thought."
The daughter of Athena narrowed her eyes. Why would he be lying? Aren't we a team?
She tried to push away the feelings of doubt.
Thalia gave the book a disapproving frown. Jay, if you know something that might help. Say it.
Percy narrowed his eyes. "You're not sure?"
Jason didn't respond. Piper wanted to ask him what was wrong. She could tell he didn't want to discuss this old legend. She caught his eye, and he pleaded silently, Later.
I hope he doesn't tell that to just Piper. Annabeth thought with a flare of annoyance.
Hazel broke the silence. "What about the other lines?" She turned her ruby-encrusted plate. "Twins snuff out the angel's breath, Who holds the key to endless death."
"Angel's breath..." Annabeth thought back to the jar and the twins. That must be what this line was referring to, right? But that would mean that the person inside of it would be...
Her eyes widened, she turned to the son of Hades.
Having a feeling what she was thinking, Nico grimaced back.
"You think I'm the one inside the jar?" he guessed.
"I think so..." Annabeth confirmed. "It's the only place I can think of where they would put you."
"But why would they do it?" Will worriedly frowned. "And wouldn't he suffocate in there?"
"I have six days left, they must be doing something to keep me alive. Probably because they want their bait fresh..." the son of Hades sighed. This has the words 'trap' written all over it.
"Don't say that!" Will looked horrified.
"We'll save you before it's too late." Percy swore.
I think it is already too late. Nico thought grimly. He couldn't help but think of the words 'snuff out'. What if he died before the six days were over? He was slowly suffocating after all...
Nico bit his lip.
"Giants' bane stands gold and pale," Frank added, "Won through pain from a woven jail."
"Giants' bane," Leo said. "Anything that's a giants' bane is good for us, right? That's probably what we need to find.
"But what is it and where do we find it?" Annabeth frowned. "We know it's in some kind of 'woven jail', but that doesn't clear up much."
If it can help the gods get their schizophrenic act together, that's good."
Percy nodded. "We can't kill the giants without the help of the gods."
Jason turned to Frank and Hazel. "I thought you guys killed that one giant in Alaska without a god's help, just the two of you."
"Alcyoneus was a special case," Frank said. "He was only immortal in the territory where he was reborn—Alaska. But not in Canada. I wish I could kill all the giants by dragging them across the border from Alaska into Canada, but..." He shrugged. "Percy's right, we'll need the gods."
Piper gazed at the walls. She really wished Leo hadn't enchanted them with images of Camp Half-Blood. It was like a doorway to home that she could never go through.
She watched the hearth of Hestia burning in the middle of the green as the cabins turned off their lights for curfew. She wondered how the Roman demigods, Frank and Hazel, felt about those images.
"They're probably surprised with how small we are..." Mitchell remarked. I still can't believe they have an entire city...
They'd never even been to Camp Half-Blood. Did it seem alien to them, or unfair that Camp Jupiter wasn't represented? Did it make them miss their own home?
Leo frowned. "I didn't think about that. I thought they would be interested to see what Camp Half-Blood looks like."
The other lines of the prophecy turned in Piper's mind. What was a woven jail? How could twins snuff out an angel's breath? The key to endless death didn't sound very cheerful, either.
"So..." Leo pushed his chair away from the table. "First things first, I guess. We'll have to put down in the morning to finish repairs."
"Someplace close to a city," Annabeth suggested, "in case we need supplies. But somewhere out of the way, so the Romans will have trouble finding us. Any ideas?"
No one spoke. Piper remembered her vision in the knife: the strange man in purple, holding out a goblet and beckoning to her. He'd been standing in front of a sign that read TOPEKA 32.
"Well," she ventured, "how do you guys feel about Kansas?"
"Finished." Nyssa said.
"I'll read next," Phoebe said, taking the book.
"Piper X,"