Whether it was luck or not, Annabeth was not returned to the clearing at the edge of the camp. Instead, Nakamura tightened the leather around her wrists and left her alone in Kronos's tent. She was not given a blanket and the ground was cold and hard, but she knew she would not be sleeping anyway.

Even when Kronos had drawn a curtain around his cot and the camp grew quieter, Annabeth sat anxiously in the corner of the tent.

At some point, she nodded off. The last thing she remembered was sitting rigidly straight before her chin dropped to her chest and she jolted awake. A second later, she fell asleep again, only to be woken up by someone grabbing her.

With a gasp, Annabeth's eyes flew open to see Kronos pulling her to her feet. It took her a moment to realise he was speaking to Nakamura and not her.

"—until we arrive."

"And the camp, my lord?"

Annabeth's eyes flitted between them, trying to catch onto what was happening.

"They'll burn it down, no doubt," Kronos hissed. He shoved Annabeth at Nakamura and told him, "Let them think they won."

Stumbling beside Nakamura, Annabeth tried to understand what was going on. As soon as they ducked out of Kronos's tent, however, it became obvious.

All around them, soldiers shouted and ran by in formations. Several were quickly disassembling tents and even though the sun had barely risen, Annabeth knew it was an attack. An attack that had been so sudden and so early in the morning that Kronos's camp had not been fully prepared for it. Percy had used the element of surprise even when they had been expected.

"Let me go," Annabeth snarled, thrusting her elbow into Nakamura's chest. It had the desired effect as his grip on her loosened and she managed to slip free.

"Hey!"

Annabeth ran. Grabbing her skirt with her bound wrists, she ran in the direction of the sea without looking back to see whether Nakamura was following her or not.

Her ankle screamed with every step and her chest burned, but she didn't slow down. The further she ran from the centre of the camp, the more determined she became. She could see Athenian soldiers now and had to duck in order to avoid being hit by a sword, but she didn't stop. Couldn't stop.

"Annabeth!"

She spun in the direction of the voice, coming face to face with Percy. The sight of him almost made her cry.

"Percy." In one step, she was in front of him, dropping her skirt and grabbing desperately at his tunic.

"Hey, hey, it's okay." He gently reached forward with one hand and cupped her cheek, pressing a firm kiss to her brow. "You're okay now."

His hand dropped from her face to untie the leather around her wrists. As soon as it fell to the ground, Annabeth threw her arms around her shoulders and clung to him. Around them, soldiers continued to pour into the camp but Annabeth couldn't remember the last time she'd felt so at ease.

"I missed you," she whispered, squeezing him tighter and closing her eyes. She was vaguely aware of the fact that she was shaking.

"I missed you too." His voice cracked and Annabeth's gut twisted, but she didn't let him go. "Are you alright?"

He pulled away from her and panic rose in her chest. Frantically, she reached for his arms and didn't let him pull away.

"Don't go," she gasped, pulling him back to her. "Don't."

Dropping his sword, Percy wrapped both of his arms around her. "I'm not going anywhere."

He pressed a warm kiss to a spot under her jaw and her eyelids fluttered. She almost melted in his arms right then, but something caught her attention.

In her joy at seeing Percy, she had forgotten about Nakamura. She had thought she'd lost him somewhere in the crowd of soldiers, but he had found her and, behind Percy's back, he was gaining on them quickly.

There was a flash of silver as Nakamura raised his hand and lunged towards them.

In a wild panic, Annabeth pulled away from Percy and shoved him aside. Nakamura's knife tore through her shoulder a split second later and she stumbled backwards. Her ankle crumpled underneath her and Nakamura went sprawling into the dirt. His knife fell to the side and when he tried to reach for it, Percy was suddenly standing over him with his sword in hand.

"Nobody touches her," he snarled. He pressed the tip of his sword to Nakamura's throat.

With his back to her, Annabeth couldn't see Percy's face, but Nakamura's was white.

His hands shook as he raised them slowly. "Forgive me, Your Highness."

Annabeth didn't hear Percy's reply as Jason was at her side all too suddenly. She jumped at his appearance but was grateful nonetheless.

"Here, take this," he said, handing her a white cloth. He pressed it against her bleeding shoulder and she hissed in pain, but he didn't pull back. "We have a doctor on the ship," he promised.

"But Percy―"

Her eyes flickered over to where Percy was still looming over Nakamura and he turned towards her at his name.

"Go with Jason," he told her. His eyes hardened when he glanced at his friend. "He'll get someone to help."

"Kronos is in the tent at the center," Annabeth told him quickly. "He should be your priority."

"What about him?" Percy asked, glaring at Nakamura. "He stabbed you."

Annabeth's head was beginning to spin despite Jason trying to stop the bleeding. "I can't―can't think right now, Percy. Just take care of Kronos."

Worry flashed across Percy's face, but Annabeth's head was spinning too much for her to focus on him for much longer.

Beside her, Jason's words were muddled and distorted. She saw Percy nod, heard someone shout, and then she was being moved. Through squinted eyes, she watched as someone pulled Nakamura from the ground and bound his wrists before she had to close her eyes to blink. When she opened them, she was no longer in the camp.

With a groan, Annabeth tried to gather her bearings but came up short. She didn't recognise the room around her and the blond man hovering over her was unfamiliar. If her eyes hadn't caught on Jason standing nearby, she would have panicked.

"Oh good!" the blond said warmly. "You're awake. Welcome aboard the Argo, Your Highness."

"Huh?" was all Annabeth could manage.

Unperturbed, the blond doctor told her, "I stitched up your shoulder and took care of that ankle for you. I also put some cream on your wrists to help soothe the blisters. Is there anywhere else I should look?"

Annabeth blinked, still disoriented and confused.

"Percy?" she asked hopefully.

"Still ashore," the man said soothingly. "He'll be back soon, though. While I'm here, are there any other injuries I should be aware of?"

Her gaze flickered around the room but the man waited patiently for her to answer. When she didn't, Jason stepped forward.

"Annabeth," he murmured, "Will can help. Your ankle and wrists, are those the only other injuries you have?"

"My ribs," Annabeth said. Her fingers twitched, but she didn't lift her hand. "I got hit."

Jason stepped back and the blond man, Will, reappeared.

"Tell me more," he said, pressing very gently on the bruised area.

Annabeth hissed at the contact and Will frowned.

"How hard were you hit?" he asked carefully. "Does it hurt to breathe?"

When Annabeth nodded, Will sent Jason out of the room. Although he paused, he left shortly after and Will carefully undid Annabeth's dress. He pulled a blanket over her legs before pulling the hem of her skirt up enough that he could examine the dark coloring around her ribs.

"Gods, Your Highness," he muttered, reaching for a small bag at his side. "You sure got into one hell of a fight."

Annabeth smiled and Will grinned in return before his face settled back into an unpleased line.

"I'll have to check for any fractures," he told her, his hands hovering over the bruises. "Bear with me and I'll sneak you some extra herbs for the pain."

With a nod, Annabeth braced herself as he began to gently press along her ribcage. Gods, she hoped whatever he gave her for the pain would be worth it.