▬▬▬ CHAPTER TWENTY ONE ▬▬▬

GUYS 😫

Started watching Squid Game and Alice in Borderland, and uh... Jun-Ho and Niragi are making me feel some things 🥴🥴🥴

I'm hella tempted to write a fic about Niragi but the idea I have is kinda similar to Essan's dynamic (but worse cuz you know, it's Niragi)... Plus, I wanna focus on this series so yeah... If I start one, it'd probably be stuck in my drafts 😅

I don't know when I'll update Steresis again cuz my mind's literally just full of Alice in Borderland ideas and I can't get it out 💀💀💀 I think I'll try writing that Niragi fic just to get it all out of my head, that way I can finally focus on this series

ESMERELDA HADN'T BEEN ABLE TO take a tea cake. She tried to reach out for one, but Ethan yanked her up from her seat and started dragging her towards the dock with everyone else.

"I'll make you some tea cakes when we get back to the ship," he promised her, not liking to see her so sad.

She beamed at him.

"You're the best!" She complimented.

"Now is not the time!" Annabeth snapped as they finally made it to the dock.

Unfortunately, that was as far as they could go.

Halfway across the dock, three giant eagles descended in front of them. Each deposited a Roman commando in purple and denim with glittering gold armor, sword, and shield. The eagles flew away, and the Roman in the middle, who was scrawnier than the others, raised his visor.

"Oh gods, not you again," Ethan groaned.

"Surrender to Rome!" Octavian shrieked.

Hazel drew her cavalry sword and grumbled, "Fat chance, Octavian."

Piper raised her hands in a placating gesture. "Octavian, what happened at camp was a setup. We can explain."

"Can't hear you!" Octavian yelled. "Wax in our ears—standard procedure when battling evil sirens. Now, throw down your weapons and turn around slowly so I can bind your hands. Your executions are already prepared and this time, I won't let any of you mess it up like that damned Trivia rat!"

Esmerelda tensed up. "Are you talking about Étienne? What did you do to my brother?!"

"Still can't hear you!"

Esmerelda used the sonorus charm on herself and hollered, "WHAT THE FUCK DID YOU DO TO MY BROTHER?!"

Everyone in the nearby vicinity winced.

"I'M GOING TO IGNORE YOU!" Octavian hollered back. "NOW DROP YOUR WEAPONS!"

"STOP FUCKING SCREAMING!" Ethan (ironically) screamed. He stepped forward to kill him, not at all deterred by the two other bulkier Roman warriors.

Annabeth shot an arm out to stop him.

"Wait," she muttered.

"WELL?" Octavian demanded loudly. His two friends brandished their swords.

Then, very slowly, using only two fingers, Annabeth drew her dagger. Instead of dropping it, she tossed it as far as she could into the water.

Octavian made a squeaking sound. "What was that for? I didn't say toss it! That could've been evidence. Or spoils of war!"

Annabeth tried for a dumb-blonde smile, like: Oh, silly me. Nobody who knew her would have been fooled. But Octavian seemed to buy it. He huffed in exasperation.

"You other four..." He pointed his blade at Ethan and the other girls. "Put your weapons on the dock. No funny bus—"

All around the Romans, Charleston Harbor erupted like a Las Vegas fountain putting on a show. When the wall of seawater subsided, the three Romans were in the bay, spluttering and frantically trying to stay afloat in their armor. Percy stood on the dock, holding Annabeth's dagger.

"You dropped this," he said, totally poker-faced.

Annabeth threw her arms around him. "I love you!"

Ethan scoffed at the public display of affection. "Hypocrite."

"Guys," Hazel interrupted. She had a little smile on her face. "We need to hurry."

Down in the water, Octavian yelled, "Get me out of here! I'll kill you!"

"Tempting," Percy called down.

"What?" Octavian shouted. He was holding on to one of his guards, who was having trouble keeping them both afloat.

"Nothing!" Percy shouted back. "Let's go, guys."

Hazel frowned. "We can't let them drown, can we?"

"Sure we can! It's easy! We just have to leave them there!" Esmerelda said brightly. She was still pissed off at the fact that Octavian had done something to her brother. What was it he had said? Something about an actual execution that he supposedly messed up?

"Simple as that," Ethan added, giving Hazel a reassuring look.

Hazel was left horrified.

"Or," Percy cut in. "We can be decent people and not let them drown. Don't worry Hazel, I've got the water circulating around their feet. As soon as we're out of range, I'll spit them ashore."

"Oh thank gods," she breathed out in relief.

Ethan huffed.

They climbed aboard the Argo II, and Annabeth ran to the helm. "Piper, get below. Use the sink in the galley for an Iris-message. Warn Jason to get back here!"

Piper, still red-eyed from her meeting with her mom, nodded and raced off as if the name 'Jason' was all she needed to hear to rejuvenate herself.

"Hazel, go find Coach Hedge and tell him to get his furry hindquarters on deck!"

"Right!"

"Essie, shoot down the eagles! Ethan, make sure none of the Romans get onto the ship!"

"Got it!"

"Yeah, fine, whatever."

"And Percy—you and I need to get this ship to Fort Sumter."

Percy nodded and ran to the mast while Annabeth took the helm.

Almost instantly, he managed to take control over the full-sized sailing ships before with only his willpower. Ropes flew on their own; releasing the dock ties, weighing the anchor. The sails unfurled and caught the wind. Meanwhile Annabeth fired the engine. The oars extended with a sound like machine-gun fire, and the Argo II turned from the dock, heading for the island in the distance.

There were three eagles circling over them, each carrying a Roman soldier. What was worrying was the fact that they were archers, raining arrows down on them. One of them nearly got Percy on the shoulder while he was trying to control the ship, another almost hit Ethan, and then Annabeth and so forth.

"Essie!" Ethan motioned above.

"I know!" She shouted back, flicking a hand up and redirecting the arrows back at them.

Esmerelda wasn't really into hurting animals and all that, so she struck the archers down instead, aiming for the little gaps between their armor. She didn't hear their cries of alarm, but she did hear their panicked yelps as they fell into the sea.

Some had the misfortune to land on the ship... and were immediately tossed overboard like trash by a very annoyed Ethan.

There were other eagles who joined the scene, but the Romans riding them must have seen what Esmerelda did to the others because they made no attempt to attack or land on the ship. Instead, at least a dozen of flew in formation toward Fort Sumter. If each of them carried a Roman demigod... that was a lot of enemies.

Coach Hedge came pounding up the stairs with Hazel at his hooves.

"Where are they?" He demanded. "Who do I kill?"

"The Romans!" Ethan barked.

"No killing!" Annabeth ordered. "Just defend the ship!"

"But they interrupted a Chuck Norris movie!" Coach cried out. 

Piper emerged from below. "Got a message through to Jason. Kind of fuzzy, but he's already on his way. He should be—oh! There!"

Soaring over the city, heading in their direction, was a giant bald eagle, unlike the golden Roman birds.

"Frank!" Hazel exclaimed.

Leo was holding on to the eagle's feet, and even from the ship, everyone could hear him screaming and cursing.

Behind them flew Jason, riding the wind.

"Never seen Jason fly before," Percy grumbled. "He looks like a blond Superman."

"This isn't the time!" Piper scolded him. "Look, they're in trouble!"

Sure enough, the Roman flying chariot had descended from a cloud and was diving straight toward them. Jason and Frank veered out of the way, pulling up to avoid getting trampled by the pegasi. The charioteers fired their bows. Arrows whistled under Leo's feet, which led to more screaming and cursing. Jason and Frank were forced to overshoot the Argo II and fly toward Fort Sumter.

"I'll get 'em!" Yelled Coach Hedge.

Esmerelda thought he was talking about rescuing Jason, Leo, and Frank, but apparently not. He spun the port ballista and fired. A flaming spear rocketed toward the chariot.

It exploded over the heads of the pegasi and threw them into a panic. Unfortunately it also singed Frank's wings and sent him spiraling out of control. Leo slipped from his grasp. The chariot shot toward Fort Sumter, slamming into Jason.

This is a disaster, Esmerelda gawked.

She didn't think it would be possible for it to get anything worse than that, but the Fates must be really enjoying themselves.

Jason, obviously dazed and in pain, lunged for Leo, caught him, then struggled to gain altitude. He only managed to slow their fall. They disappeared behind the ramparts of the fort. Frank tumbled after them. Then the chariot dropped somewhere inside and hit with a bone-shattering CRACK! One broken wheel spun into the air.

"Coach!" Piper screamed.

"What?" Hedge demanded. "That was just a warning shot!"

Annabeth gunned the engines. The hull shuddered as they picked up speed. The docks of the island were only a hundred yards away now, but a dozen more eagles were soaring overhead, each carrying a Roman demigod in its claws.

The Argo II's crew would be outnumbered at least three to one.

"Percy," Annabeth said. "We're going to come in hard. I need you to control the water so we don't smash into the docks. Once we're there, you're going to have to hold off the attackers. The rest of you help him guard the ship."

"But—Jason!" Piper said.

"Frank and Leo!" Hazel added.

"We'll go look for them," Ethan offered, glancing over at Esmerelda who nodded in agreement.

"I'll come with you," Annabeth said. "I've got to figure out where the map is. And I'm pretty sure I'm the only one who can do that."

"The fort is crawling with Romans," Percy warned. "You guys'll have to fight your way through, find our friends—assuming they're okay—find this map, and get everybody back alive. Think you can handle it?"

Ethan gave him a flat look. "I wouldn't have bothered to offer if I knew it was pointless, dude."

Esmerelda grabbed a hold of his and Annabeth's arms. "I'll Mist travel us to the fort. Annabeth, will you be fine looking for the map on your own?"

"I can do it. You make sure to find the boys." She replied.

Esmerelda nodded and held on to them tight. In the next second, they were surrounded by a bunch of screaming Romans (with a hint of panicking tourists).

"Woah," Annabeth wobbled a bit, not quite used to Mist traveling.

"You okay?" Esmerelda asked in concern.

It took her a few seconds to shake it off.

"I'm fine," she said, brandishing her knife. "I'll get the map. Meet you guys on the ship!"

They separated after that. Well, Annabeth separated. Ethan and Esmerelda stayed together for... obvious reasons.

"I see Leo!" Esmerelda yelled out, pointing ahead.

He had somehow escaped his fall unharmed. She could see him ducking from portico to portico, blasting fire at the giant eagles swooping down on him. Roman demigods tried to chase him, tripping over piles of cannonballs and dodging tourists, who screamed and ran in circles.

"Come on," Ethan urged. He whipped out his sword and began slashing at any Roman that came at their way.

Esmerelda brandished Glimmer too. She would've opted for magic since it would've been easier to take down multiple enemies at a time, but there were way too many mortals running amok. She wasn't going to risk accidentally hurting one of them.

As they sprinted, she could hear tour guides yelling, "It's just a reenactment!" Though they didn't sound sure. The Mist could only do so much to change what mortals saw and it didn't help that she was too busy to try and make them see something better.

In the middle of the courtyard, a full-grown elephant—could that be Frank?—rampaged around the flagpoles, scattering Roman warriors.

"Frank! Annabeth wants us back on the ship!" Esmerelda called out to him.

He responded by letting out a... whatever noise it was that elephants made.

Jason stood about fifty yards away, sword-fighting with Dakota, son of Bacchus. His lips were stained cherry red, a clear indication that he drank some pre-battle Kool Aid.

Jason yelled, "Sorry about this, Dakota!"

He vaulted straight over the centurion's head like an acrobat and slammed the hilt of his gladius into the back of the Roman's head. Dakota crumpled.

"JASON!" Esmerelda used the sonorus charm to enhance her volume.

He nearly shot up ten feet into the air.

"Essie?! Ethan?!"

"Annabeth's calling for a retreat! Go help Percy defend the ship! We're gonna get Leo!"

"Understood!" He soared up in the air and headed straight for the ship.

Two down, one more to go.

But getting to Leo was a lot harder than she thought. It wasn't easy trying to maneuver through the mob of tourists. Charleston was a hot place, and it got even hot during the summer. Why would so many people want to visit a hot place during the hottest season?

"Hold on, lemme just—" she muttered under her breath, enchanting themselves with a cooling charm.

"Thanks," Ethan breathed, shoving past an elderly lady.

"It's so crowded here," she complained.

"This is good for us," he told her. "If these tourists weren't here, the Romans would've surrounded us within seconds."

Right. He had a point. As he always did.

"Traitors!" Someone suddenly screamed.

A flurry of Roman soldiers came at their way, their weapons drawn. They shoved their way through tourists and upon finally reaching them, attacked.

Esmerelda brought up her labrys to block the array of swords that came down on her and pushed them back before slicing at their legs to keep them down.

Then, just for shits and giggles, she cast the tarantallegra spell on them and bit back a laugh as they started dancing uncontrollably, bleeding at the legs. 

"See?" One of the tour guides pointed at their way. "Just a reenactment! They're even doing a dance number for us!"

A whole swarm of tourists surrounded the dancing boys to snap pictures and videos. They definitely weren't going to be jumping back into the fight for a while.

CRACK!

Esmerelda turned her attention to Ethan, who was using Nemesis' whip. He was striking his opponents through the opened gaps of their armor, wrapping his whip around their limbs and throwing them around, and even using it to throw them into trash cans.

He struck down each and every enemy demigod with enough precision that kept him from fatally lashing at any of the nearby mortals.

"Wow! He's such a good performer!" One of the tourists exclaimed.

A Roman soldier tried to stab him in the back from behind, but Ethan whirled around instantly and raised his sword, cutting through the enemy's shoulder.

"That looks so realistic!" Another tourist clapped her hands in awe.

He stabbed another one in the leg.

"Look at all that blood, mommy!" A child pointed.

Esmerelda winced. Oh no. Poor sweetheart. At least he didn't think the blood was real.

Once the last of the Romans were defeated (with Esmerelda's attackers still dancing erratically in the center of a tourist crowd and Ethan's attackers all knocked out on the ground and groaning), they ran for the porticos.

Leo was still on top of them, somehow not losing his balance even with all the spears being thrown his way.

"A fire performer!" The children cheered.

"Uh, yup!" Leo said nervously. "That's totally what I am!" He said as he pelted Roman soldiers with lethal fireballs.

"Leo!" Esmerelda called out to him.

Leo responded by accidentally throwing a fireball at her.

She dove to the side. "Wha—seriously?!"

"Leo!" Ethan growled.

"Sorry!" He yelped. "Thought you were the bad guys! Where's everyone?!"

"On the ship! Annabeth's getting the map. She wants us all to retreat so get your ass over there!"

"Yes sir!" He shot one last fireball before jumping off, earning ooh's and ahh's from the mortals.

"Do a flip!" Someone shouted.

"Sorry! No can do! Show's over everyone! You can follow me on TikTok though, my username's—"

"—LEO!"

"Bye!"

The three of them ran for the docks, which was already swarming with Romans. They were advancing for the Argo II, but a miniature storm had gathered over their heads. Though the day was clear all around them, thunder rumbled, and lightning flashed above the Romans. Rain and wind pushed them back.

"That must be Jason and Percy!" Leo exclaimed.

And he was right. They managed to shove their way through the crowd and got onto the ship.

On the deck of the Argo II, Percy and Jason stood together, their swords crossed. They were working as one, summoning the sky and the sea to do their bidding. Water and wind churned together. Waves heaved against the ramparts and lightning flashed. Giant eagles were knocked out of the sky. Wreckage of the flying chariot burned in the water, and Coach Hedge swung a mounted crossbow, taking potshots at the Roman birds as they flew overhead.

Esmerelda went for the edge and thrust a hand out. An arc of green magic shot out from her palm, knocking the Romans down like dominoes.

It kept them at bay, but only momentarily. They got back up, some even managed to push through the storm Percy and Jason created.

"Destroy the boardwalk!" Ethan suggested.

"But Annabeth still isn't in here!"

"We'll find a way to get her, just destroy the boardwalk!"

Esmerelda turned her attention back to the docks. She concentrated on the boardwalks the swarm was standing on. Suddenly, her eyes glowed green, as did the wooden boards underneath the army.

She curled a finger up in a beckoning motion and the boardwalk obeyed, breaking apart with ease and spreading out like a trap door, leaving the Romans to fall down straight into the water.

Beyond it, a familiar voice shrieked over the wind: "Kill them! Kill them all!"

She looked forward and inwardly groaned.

Octavian had survived his swim in the harbor. He crouched behind his guards, screaming encouragement at the other Roman demigods as they struggled to find a way to reach the ship now the boardwalk had been destroyed.

Esmerelda felt her blood boil underneath her skin, and she didn't hesitate to shoot an arm out, sending the pieces of wood flying at his direction. He let out a high scream and ducked behind the closest shield-wielding demigod.

She Mist traveled behind him and grabbed him by the back of his shirt, yanking him up into a standing position. She pushed him against her chest and brought a glowing hand dangerously close to his throat.

The Roman demigods aimed their weapons at her.

"Stop it!" She ordered, stepping back. "Put your weapons down or I'll kill him. You can say goodbye to your precious augur."

She could feel him gulp.

"Do as she says!" He barked.

They lowered their weapons, watching her warily.

"My brother," she began, her voice hard. "What happened to him? You mentioned an execution. What did you do?"

"We arrested him for treason," Octavian answered, sounding scared and amused at the same time. "And he was to be scheduled for an execution on his next day. Unfortunately, he managed to get away. Not to worry though. We sent a group to track him down and kill him on sight. It's only a matter of time until he's caught."

Esmerelda's mouth dropped in horror, and then came the rage. She let out an angry cry, grabbing him by the throat and throwing him back, but not before hurling a ball of crackling green magic at his chest. He was thrown back even farther, crashing through a gray brick wall. Bricks crashed over him, and the mound of debris stayed still.

"ATTACK!" Someone ordered, and the Romans descended on her.

She brought her hands up as if she was surrendering herself, but that wasn't at all what she was doing.

Immobulus, she thought, blue streaks of life escaping from her palms and washing over everyone. Each and everyone soldier stiffened, unable to move. She could see their eyes darting around in panic, but she flicked her hands to the side and the crowd was parted like the Red Sea for her, moved around by a green force.

She rushed through the path they created, running towards the broken boardwalk. She could see Ethan on gangplank, his hand outstretched for her. She lunged up and grabbed it and he pulled her in.

"What happened?" He asked her.

"It's Étienne, he's—" She spotted Annabeth running for the ship. "I'll explain later."

With the Romans still immobilized, Annabeth was able to cross through them and jump in with Piper's help.

"Go!" Annabeth screamed. "Go, go, go!"

The engines rumbled beneath her. The oars churned. Jason changed the course of the wind, and Percy called up a massive wave, which lifted the ship higher than the fort's walls and pushed it out to sea. By the time the Argo II reached top speed, Fort Sumter was only a blot in the distance, and they were racing across the waves toward the ancient lands.

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Jason and Percy were still controlling the winds to help them escape, and it took them some time for the storm to disperse. Leo was having some trouble keeping the ship in one piece, but he was handling it well.

It seemed like forever, but finally the sea calmed and the winds died. During that time, Ethan managed to bake a whole batch of tea cakes for Esmerelda just like he promised. He was even feeding them to her since she was too tired to move around (that, and her head hurt and the painkillers had yet to kick in).

She sat on the floor with her back against the mast with Ethan crouched in front of her with the platter of tea cakes. Jason and Percy sat with her, their heads slumped in exhaustion.

Jason lifted his head up weakly at the smell of food.

"Hey... uh, can I have some?" He asked hopefully.

"No," Ethan denied.

"What about me?" Percy gave him puppy eyes.

"You can starve."

The boys hung their heads in defeat.

"Favoritism," one of them muttered.

"Sorry," Esmerelda said as she munched on a tea cake. "I'd offer you some, but there aren't much left."

"There's literally nine more left on the plate." Percy pointed out.

"Well yeah, but they're all for me."

Ethan shot them a smug look before turning his attention to Hazel and Frank when he heard voices raise. They had been arguing for a while now, waving their arms around and shaking their heads constantly. Ethan would've stepped in, but he doubted it was anything bad. Besides, he needed to feed Esmerelda the tea cakes.

The argument stopped abruptly when Leo came onto the deck. Everybody gathered at the mast.

"No sign of pursuit," Frank said, scowling.

"Or land," Hazel added.

Esmerelda would've looked at the horizon, but her eyes felt strained and her head was pounding. All she knew was that they were in the middle of the open sea, completely on their own, sailing to the Mare Nostrum, where all the scary monsters and nasty giants had come from. The Romans might not follow them, but they couldn't count on any help from Camp Half-Blood, either.

Leo turned to Annabeth. "Did you find the map you wanted?"

She nodded, though she looked pale. Whatever happened at Fort Sumter must have shaken her up badly.

"I'll have to study it," she said, as if that was the end of the subject. "How far are we from those coordinates?"

"At top rowing speed, about an hour," Leo answered. "Any idea what we're looking for?"

"No," she admitted. "Percy?"

Percy raised his head. His green eyes were bloodshot and droopy. "The Nereid said Chiron's brothers were there, and they'd want to hear about that aquarium in Atlanta. I don't know what she meant, but..." He paused, like he'd used up all his energy saying that much. "She also warned me to be careful. Keto, the goddess at the aquarium: she's the mother of sea monsters. She might be stuck in Atlanta, but she can still send her children after us. The Nereid said we should expect an attack."

"Wonderful," Frank muttered.

Jason tried to stand, which wasn't a good idea. Piper grabbed him to keep him from falling over, but he shuddered at her touch and tried to do some weird shimmy move to get away from her. Ethan had to yank him back down on the floor and, out of begrudging pity, gave him a tea cake.

"Here," he muttered, shoving a tea cake into his mouth.

"Thanks," Jason said through a full mouth.

Percy stared at Esmerelda pleadingly.

"Oh fine," she sighed. "You can have one."

Ethan rolled his eye and shoved a tea cake in his mouth too.

"Can we get the ship aloft?" Jason asked while chewing. "If we could fly—"

"—That'd be great," Leo interrupted. "Except Festus tells me the port aerial stabilizer got pulverized when the ship raked against the dock at Fort Sumter."

"We were in a hurry," Annabeth said. "Trying to save you."

"And saving me is a very noble cause," Leo agreed. "I'm just saying, it'll take some time to fix. Until then, we're not flying anywhere."

Percy flexed his shoulders and winced. "Fine with me. The sea is good."

"But we're running out of time," Ethan said harshly. "Nico's got three more days left to live."

"Can we make it in time?" Esmerelda asked worriedly.

"We can do it," Leo promised. "We can make it to Rome in three days—assuming, you know, nothing unexpected happens."

Frank grunted. "Is there any good news?"

"Actually, yes," Leo said. "According to Festus, our flying table, Buford, made it back safely while we were in Charleston, so those eagles didn't get him. Unfortunately, he lost the laundry bag with your pants."

"Dang it!" Frank barked, which was probably severe profanity for him. He seemed like the type to use 'golly gee' and 'gosh darn' as curse words.

"Don't worry," Esmerelda said, reaching out for another tea cake. "I'll just duplicate Ethan's clothes and enchant them to fit you. He has a very good sense of style, so you'll look great!"

Frank turned white as he stole a glance at the aforementioned boy. "No—I mean, uh, Ethan probably wouldn't, uh, well—"

"—Yeah sure," Ethan shrugged. "Fine by me."

Frank's eyes widened. "Really?!"

"Can you guys stop talking so loudly?" Percy whined before Ethan could answer. "I'm dying."

Jason pressed his hands to his head. "Yeah, and the world's spinning. Everything is yellow. Is it supposed to be yellow?"

"The painkillers aren't working either," Esmerelda pouted. "But the tea cakes make me feel better..."

"The painkillers aren't working because you took them on an empty stomach. You only started eating now, so they'll kick in soon," Ethan soothed, placing a cold pack over her forehead.

Annabeth and Piper exchanged concerned looks.

"Summoning that storm really sapped your strength," Piper told the boys. "You've got to rest."

"Essie, you too," Hazel added. "You used a lot of magic against a lot of people."

"I'll rest," she promised with a nod. "After I'm done with my tea cakes. You want some?"

"Um... no thanks."

"Frank, can you help us get them below decks?" Annabeth asked.

Frank glanced at Leo, no doubt reluctant to leave him alone with Hazel.

"It's fine, man," Leo said. "Just try not to drop them on the way down the stairs."

Frank walked over and picked up Jason with ease while the girls heaved up Percy. Ethan gave Esmerelda a piggyback ride while she held on to the plate. He took her straight to their shared room where they proceeded to finish up the rest of the tea cakes.

"So," Ethan began after wiping his mouth clean with a napkin. "What happened down there? With Octavian?"

She laid herself down on the bed, feeling full and, even better, refreshed now that the painkillers were finally working.

"He told me about Étienne," she said as he slid inside the sheets with her. "You remember when Percy, Jason, and Piper told us that Étienne helped them escape from Camp Jupiter?"

"Yeah? Did he get into trouble?" It wouldn't surprise him considering how strict and traditional the Romans seemed to be.

She nodded, her face falling further. "Octavian sentenced him to an execution. He—he managed to get away, but he said that he had people hunting him down. They're going to kill him the second they see him."

She could remember her mother's words to her back in the Underworld: Watch out for him, Hecate had said. His future is hazy to me. I cannot see much of it.

What if that was because he didn't have much of a future? Because the Romans Octavian sent after him had found and killed him?

Her blood turned cold.

She had already failed to protect Nico—her son was currently stuck inside some stupid jar, running out of air, and relying on seeds to keep him alive. And now? Now her little brother had just escaped his own execution set by his own camp—his own home—and he was on the run, at risk of being killed on sight.

She wanted to save them both. She wanted to Mist travel straight to Italy to save her son and scour the Earth to go do the same for Étienne. But she knew she stood no chance against the twin giants and whatever other monsters Gaea stationed in Rome, and she didn't even know where to start with searching for Étienne.

Ethan's warm body pressing against hers caused her to snap out of her dark thoughts.

"Hey," he said softly, his finger gently stroking her cheek. "I can see by the look on your face that you're scared out of your mind. Your breathing's getting heavier too. Breathe with me."

She hadn't realized he had been right until she heard her own breathing pattern. It was louder than usual, and faster too. She grabbed the hand that had been caressing her and followed his instructions until she was feeling better.

"Thank you," she murmured.

"Everything's going to be okay," he promised her. "But we need to take care of one problem after another. Étienne's annoyingly strong, he can handle a few people hunting him down with no problem."

(In fact, he was pretty sure Étienne would kill them without even breaking a sweat.)

"Nico needs our help the most," he continued, brushing a few strands of hair away from her face. "So we gotta focus on him first. Étienne can take care of himself."

She tried to get herself to relax, to simply just melt into her bed and duvet, but Hecate's words kept echoing in her head and so did that horrible nightmare of Nico.

"I... I need to go to sleep," she muttered to herself, wanting to stop thinking of all those awful things.

Ethan nodded in understanding and pulled the comforter up to keep themselves warm.

"Okay," he whispered. "I'll be here when you wake up, okay? I love you."

The upper corners of her lips lifted up into a smile. "I love you too."

He wrapped an arm around her and brought her close. She kissed him on the lips, murmured another 'I love you', and finally went fell asleep.

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Unfortunately, the sleep didn't even last long.

The ship's bell pierced through the night sky. That got them to wake up.

The ship tilted sideways. The couple toppled out of bed and that was when they really woke up.

"What," Ethan seethed, throwing the duvet off of their heads. "The FUCK was that?!"

"I think we're being under attack!" Esmerelda fretted, trying to get up into a standing position.

The room was leaning and almost everything had fallen sideways. The bookshelf toppled over and all their books fell off, the couch and chairs slid to the other side of the room, and all of their breakables had... well, broke.

They were easy to fix of course with some magic, but still. What the fuck was going on?

It took the two of them forever to try and get to the door. They had to dig their nails into the little gaps between the floorboards and crawl forward since Ethan didn't want her to overexert herself by Mist traveling again.

By the time they got out of their room, everyone else managed to get into the hallway too.

"Are we under attack?" Jason asked, pressed against the wall.

"I'm not hearing any tortured screaming," Ethan grunted, trying to keep himself balanced.

"Let's just go check it out," Percy said, already crawling up the staircase. He pushed through the door. "Leo and the others are still up— Gah! Shrimpzilla!"

Everyone looked at each other in bewilderment.

What?!

After that, the rest managed to climb up the stairs and tumble out of the doors.

Esmerelda's jaw dropped at what she saw. "Oh my gods."

She saw it. The monster in the water, right under the ship.

The thing was the length of their ship. In the moonlight, it looked like a cross between a giant shrimp and a cockroach, with a pink chitinous shell, a flat crayfish tail, and millipede-type legs undulating hypnotically as the monster scraped against the hull of the Argo II.

Its head surfaced last—the slimy pink face of an enormous catfish with glassy dead eyes, a gaping toothless maw, and a forest of tentacles sprouting from each nostril, making it look like a really bushy nose beard.

Frank ran to Hazel's side. She was clutching the rigging, still dazed from her flashback, but she gestured that she was all right.

The monster rammed the ship again. The hull groaned, and Esmerelda tumbled to starboard and almost rolled overboard.

"How the fuck do we kill that thing?!" Ethan looked uncharacteristically bewildered. "Jason, do you think you can fry it?"

"Heck no!" Jason sputtered. "That thing's huge! Plus I can barely conjure up any sparks right now! The battle back at Fort Sumter took out a lot from me!"

"Percy?" Esmerelda tried. "Maybe, uh, you can tell it that we come in peace? And to not eat us?"

"Something tells me this thing's not in a listening mood," Percy winced as the monster rammed the ship a third time.

"How did it get so close?" Annabeth shouted, pulling herself up on one of the rail shields.

"I don't know!" Hedge snarled. He looked around for his bat, which had rolled across the quarterdeck.

"I'm stupid!" Leo scolded himself. "Stupid, stupid! I forgot the sonar!"

The ship tilted farther to starboard. Either the monster was trying to give them a hug, or it was about to capsize them.

"Sonar?" Hedge demanded. "Pan's pipes, Valdez! Maybe if you hadn't been staring into Hazel's eyes, holding hands for so long—"

"—What?" Frank yelped.

"It wasn't like that!" Hazel protested.

"WATCH OUT!" Esmerelda suddenly shrieked. She saw the monster bring up it's tendrils, but her warning came too late. They lashed across the deck too quickly, and one slammed Percy in the chest and sent crashing down the steps. Another wrapped around Piper's legs and dragged her, screaming toward the rail. A dozen more tendrils curled around the masts, encircling the crossbows and ripping down the rigging.

"Nose-hair attack!" Hedge snatched up his bat and leaped into action; but his hits just bounced harmlessly off the tendrils.

Jason drew his sword. He tried to free Piper who was the closest to him, but he was still weak. His gold blade cut through the tendrils with no problem, but faster than he could sever them, more took their place.

Esmerelda came to his aid, slicing through them with the severing charm only for another one to wrap around her leg. It yanked and she fell, feeling her body slid closer to the edge. She just barely managed to severe that until another one came her way.

SHLICK!

Ethan sliced through it with ease.

"Thanks," she breathed out.

He helped her up and she looked around. It wasn't looking so good. They were completely engulfed in a forest full of tentacles, left to dodge and stab whatever targets they could find. She could see Frank firing arrows at the side of the creature's body, lodging arrows in the chinks of its shell; but that only seemed to annoy the monster. It bellowed, and rocked the ship. The mast creaked like it might snap off.

Esmerelda brought her hands up, casting the freezing charm to mobilize the tendrils. It worked, for a few seconds, with everyone hacking away as many tendrils as they could but the spell broke.

"Argh!" Esmerelda let out a small cry, stumbling back when she felt the remaining tendrils brutally shatter through her spell.

The monster pushed against the Argo II, obviously angry with her attempts to immobilize it. The deck lurched to forty-five degrees. Despite everyone's efforts, the tentacles were just too numerous to fight. They seemed able to elongate as much as they wanted. Soon they'd have the Argo II completely entangled. Percy hadn't appeared from below. The others were fighting for their lives against nose hair.

Then Frank went next. A tentacle slammed into him, knocking him overboard.

"FRANK!" Leo screamed.

"This isn't good!" Ethan shouted from behind her. They were fighting back to back, covering each other's weaknesses and slashing any tendril that came at them. "We can't keep cutting these things forever! We're not even hurting whatever monster this thing is!"

"I don't know what else to do!" Esmerelda informed him regretfully. "I don't know a spell strong enough for this! Well, there's Fiendfyre, but I'd kill everyone on accident and I don't even know if it would affect this monster!"

"We need to flee! Is the ship even moving?" Piper demanded.

"Coach is trying to get us out of here, but this thing's got itself wrapped around us," Annabeth answered. "We have to—"

"—LEO! HAZEL!" Jason suddenly shouted, looking above.

Esmerelda dared to look up. She could barely see through all the tentacles swarming her vision, but through the gaps she could spy Hazel and Leo being raised over the ship, restrained by tentacles.

Unfortunately, she had been looking up for too long.

Immediately her arms were pressed at her sides and a tendril was squeezing her tightly before lifting her up into the air.

"Essie!" She heard Ethan shout.

She looked down, terror written all over her face. Ethan and Jason worked together to save her. Jason cupped his hands together and Ethan used it as a springboard, jumping higher into the air. He sliced through the tendril and the two of them dropped to the floor.

"Are you okay?" He breathed out.

"Yeah," she grunted, pushing herself up. "Gods, that was—NO!"

A tendril sneaked up on him from behind before lunging forward and wrapping itself around his neck, choking him. He dropped his sword out of shock, his hands instinctively trying to pull the tendril away in order to breath.

Esmerelda summoned her fallen labrys, shouting his name as he was dragged away.

"ETHAN! NO!" She chased after him, but the monster finally pulled him overboard and into the water.

She reached the railing and tried to jump over it, but arms wrapped around from behind and pulled away.

"STOP!" She thrashed. "LET GO OF ME! ETHAN!"

"You can't!" Jason screamed in her ear. "Stop it, Essie! It's too late, I'm sorry!"

She dug her nails into his arms, trying to break free, but he just held her tighter and pulled her farther and farther away from the railing.

And then not even a second later, the monster blew up. Green flames of Greek fire entered her vision and the monster let go of the ship, it's tentacles sinking down with it.

Everyone ran to the railings, their eyes planted on the water.

But Frank, Hazel, Leo, and Ethan never resurfaced.

— author's note —

Ok so someone just told me that Wattpad has a MUTING OPTION?!?!? It's basically blocking someone right? This is so amazing! I've mostly just been blocking the harassers on Quotev (if reporting them doesn't work), but now I can't wait to do that here on Wattpad 😍

According to the website, muting someone prevents them from commenting on my story, messaging me (I'm so happy about this part), posting in my announcement page, going into my profile, etc.

NOW DON'T WORRY! I'm not gonna go on some crazy muting frenzy. I'm only muting those who:

- Harass me by constantly messaging/commenting me hate or demands as if that's going to accomplish anything.

- Are misogynists. It's only happened once (thank god) but this dude basically said that I was turning Essie into "a slut" and that they couldn't read it anymore because of it. I was like what??? The sluttiest person in this series is Ethan not Essie wtf??? Anyways, the rest of their message made it glaringly obvious to me that they hated women so yeah.

- Use their religion to justify their homophobia, racism, misogyny, etc. Some people hated that I put Linny in here and kept Nico gay because 'it was against their religion' smh, just say you're homophobic and go.

- Disregard my rules and warnings. I've put up multiple explicit warnings about a variety of things already and I'm sick of people constantly disregarding it. I've warned you about the dark romance, Piper, Snape (I didn't really make a warning, but he's so OBVIOUSLY abusive so stop defending him), toxic relationships, Regulus, etc. Do not get angry at me for how I write my books and stop asking me to change things for you after all the goddamn warnings and statements I put up.

And yeah! Since I'll be busy baking some stuff, I'll get to muting those people later 😃 I cannot wait to be free of them 🥳

Octavian explaining to the Romans why he thought it was a good idea to piss off another Trivia/Hecate kid after what happened the last time he did that:

From espielouloudi:

From kyoukibell: