{LORELAI}

The battle had exhausted them all.

Jason and Percy had collapsed from sheer exhaustion. Evangeline and Piper were giving water to the sons of Poseidon and Jupiter. Frank and Hazel were arguing out of earshot. Leo was at the helm talking with coach Hedge. Annabeth looked pretty shaken up. And Landon was eating a grilled cheese sandwich.

"No sign of pursuit," Frank said, scowling like he was trying to turn into a bulldog as he and Hazel made their way over.

"Or land," Hazel added.

"That doesn't mean they're gone," Landon took a bite out of his grilled cheese sandwich.

"Did you find the map you wanted?" Leo asked Annabeth.

She nodded. "I'll have to study it," she said. "How far are we from those coordinates?"

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

"No," The daughter of Athena admitted. "Percy?"

The raven-haired boy 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."

"The drug addicts?" Landon asked, finishing his sandwich.

"They are not drug addicts," Annabeth muttered.

Evangeline cleared her throat.

"I don't know what she meant, but..." Percy paused, taking in a deep breath. "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, and he slid down the mast.

"Can we get the ship aloft?" he asked. "If we could fly—"

"That'd be great," Leo said. "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."

"Speak for yourself." Hazel glanced at the evening sun, which was almost to the horizon. "We need to go fast. We've burned another day, and Nico only has three more left."

"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," The Valdez boy 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.

Jason and Percy doubled over, groaning. "Did the world just turn upside down?"

"No, you did." Evangeline rubbed her hand up down the son of Poseidon's back.

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

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

Evangeline helped Percy up, wrapping his arm around her shoulders. "Let's get you to bed."

Percy's head lolled on top of the brunette's. "Awesome," he muttered tiredly. The two of them went below deck with Landon and Annabeth following behind.

Lorelai felt something brush against her hand. She saw Jason's hand reaching for hers as he tried to stand up straight. She stared at the hand then at Piper and Leo, dumbfounded.

She didn't want to think about it but when she'd seen Aphrodite, something about her had reminded Lorelai of Jason. She'd thought it was because they were friends. But back in Charleston something kept telling her she cared about him—romantically.

It had been running through her mind since.

The daughter of Aphrodite took Lorelai's hand, tugging the blonde toward the son of Jupiter. "Lorelai, you take him belowdecks," Piper said.

"Oh," Lorelai muttered. "Leo, you wanna help me?"

"Leo's busy," Piper said. "He has to uh..."

"Fix the light in the hallway," Leo told her, patting his toolbelt.

"The light isn't—never mind." She took Jason's hand and helped him to his cabin, trying to not let him fall face-first on the way there.

Jason flopped onto his bed, groaning as he clutched his head. "Lorelai, everything is spinning,"

"Like a carousel?" She asked, placing his blanket over him. "Because one time I went to a carnival and—"

"Like the inside of a microwave," he said.

"Same thing," she shrugged.

"I don't think so," Jason frowned, his eyes wandered to the flower which had fallen out of her pocket. He picked it up, blinking a few times to focus. "Where'd you get this?"

"When we went to see Aphrodite," Lorelai told him. "I thought I could make a flower crown out of them later."

"Flower crown for who?"

"For Garfield and..." she said. "You and me. I thought we could match."

Jason shook his head, a smile tugging on his lips. "You're such a dork," he whispered. "A cute dork—but still a dork."

Lorelai faltered. Her hand shifted away from him. She felt the blood rushing to her face. "What?" she asked.

Jason's eyes closed. Lorelai watched Jason drift off to sleep, his breathing slowed down and his head lolled back.

She scratched the back of her ear. She tried not to focus on the fluttering feeling in her stomach or the the voice in her head whispering; 'he likes you.' Lorelai spared one last glance at the son of Jupiter.

She reached for the packet of chocolate on his desk. She grabbed a piece, unwrapping it, and popping it into her mouth as she shut the door behind her.

Lorelai had had the best sleep of her life until she was thrown out of her bed and onto the floor.

The ship tilted and she managed to get to her feet, her hand wrapping around the headboard for support. She stumbled out into the hallway, her back against the wall for balance as the ship tilted further.

The others stumbled out of their rooms, looking as surprised as she was. They made their way up the stairs, finding Leo at the helm and Hazel clutching the rigging.

Percy yelled, "What's going—Gah! Shrimpzilla!"

"What?" Evangeline asked.

The monster rammed the ship again. The hull groaned. The oars creaked, unable to move. The monster was at spitting distance, ready to attack them once again.

"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 what?" Lorelai yelled.

"The sonar!" Leo yelled back.

The ship tilted further to starboard. Either the monster was trying to hug them, or 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.

"You were hitting on my sister?" Evangeline yelled.

"He wasn't!" Hazel insisted.

"We can talk about who was hitting on who later!" Landon said, shooting a pointed look at Annabeth. "Percy, go talk to your relative!"

"That thing is not my relative!" Percy yelled.

"Percy, please!" Annabeth said.

The raven-haired boy shook his head, clearly mystified. "Maybe it's just curious about the ship. Maybe—"

The monster's tendrils lashed across the deck so fast they hadn't even had the time to move. One slammed Percy in the chest and sent him crashing into Landon and down the steps. Another wrapped around Lorelai's leg and dragged her toward the railing.

She grabbed one of the rail shields as the monster tightened its grip on her. She kicked at it with her other leg but it was useless.

Her eyes landed on a crate next to Hazel's feet. "Open it!" She yelled.

The daughter of Pluto hesitated. The label read WARNING. DO NOT OPEN. But in Lorelai's case, anything that said 'do not open' meant that you should definitely open it.

Hedge danced through the tentacles with his nimble goat hooves, smashing away with gusto. He bounded toward the helm and took the controls.

The monster pushed against the Argo II. The deck lurched to forty-five degrees. Despite everyone's efforts, the tentacles were just too numerous to fight. They seemed to elongate as much as they wanted. Soon they'd have the Argo II completely entangled. Percy and Landon had disappeared below. The others were fighting for their lives against nose hair.

Lorelai felt her hands heat up against the shield. She tightened her grip with her left hand and used the other, placing it on the tendril and letting the energy seep out onto it. Smoke erupted from between her fingers and the tendril untangled herself from the monster. She scrambled to her feet.

Jason tugged her back as another tentacle swung toward her. He slashed his sword through the tendril, cutting it in half. The more tendrils that grew attacked at them, the Warner girl grabbed Jason's hand—without thinking—she tugged him back. He let out a sharp wince, his arm moved out of her grip.

Lorelai realized she'd grabbed him by the hand which had burnt the tendril. Her powers tended to linger for a few moments longer so she avoided touching anyone to not hurt anyone. A wave of guilt washed over her. "I'm sorry," she moved her hands away from him.

They suddenly rose ten feet, twenty feet, thirty feet above the monster. Lorelai saw the others losing in battle, yelling and slashing at the monster's nose hair.

The daughter of Iris saw Greek fire flying over her head and into the monster's mouth. She heard a muffled explosion and saw a green flash of light inside the giant pink lampshade of the monster's body.

She would've thought it looked pretty had she not been hit with a wall of water.

By the time the sun rose, none of them had slept. Leo, Frank, and Hazel had gone missing. Percy was scouring the seafloor but there was no sign of them. The ship wasn't at risk of sinking, but without Leo, there was no way to repair the things.

But since Annabeth knew a bit about engineering she tackled the controls. She had it popped open as she fixed what had been damaged. "Hand me the wrench," she asked Landon, holding out a hand.

The son of Hermes looked at the various tools in Leo's extra toolbox. He stared at them with a frown, trying to find the wrench. Then, he held up a screwdriver, silently asking if that was it.

A smug smile tugged on the daughter of Athena's lips. "That's funny, the tool doesn't know about tools."

"I am not a tool!"

"Oh, sure,"

They started bickering—or bantering, Lorelai had never been good at reading social cues.

After everyone had returned from their tasks, the demigods paced the deck in silence, staring at the water and hoping for a miracle.

Lorelai frowned as looked out at the water. Then, she saw three giant pink bubbles bursting at the surface of the starboard bow and ejecting the three missing demigods. "There they are!" she yelled.

The three paddled over, and Landon and Percy helped them on board.

Lorelai tackled Leo into a hug. "Miss me?" He laughed.

"Of course, I did," she said.

Piper joined the hug and kissed Leo on the cheek, which surprised him.

"I should go missing more often," He chuckled.

"Where were you?" Piper demanded. "How are you guys alive?"

"Long story," he said. A picnic basket surfaced up behind him. "Want some brownies?"

The three demigods told them about their visit to the sea camp and how they'd met merpeople. Leo confirmed that they were nothing like the little mermaid to which Lorelai had to hide her disappointment.

And Percy was stuck on the same question: "They didn't want to meet me?"

"It wasn't that," Hazel said. "Just...undersea politics, I guess. The merpeople are territorial. The good news is they're taking care of that aquarium in Atlanta. And they'll help protect the Argo II as we cross the Atlantic."

Percy nodded absently. "But they didn't want to meet me?"

Evangeline rolled her eyes. "It's not that big of a deal. Besides, have you ever heard the people of the Underworld asking to meet me?"

"That's because you scare them," Percy muttered.

"What was that?"

"Nothing,"

"We've got other things to worry about," Annabeth said.

"She's right," Hazel said. "After today, Nico has less than two days. The fish centaurs said we have to rescue him. He's essential to the quest somehow."

"He can find the doors of death," Evangeline said. "He knows something about them, I don't know how, but he does."

"We'll save him," Piper said. "We can make it in time. Right, Leo?"

"What?" Leo tore his eyes away from the controls. "Oh, yeah. We should reach the Mediterranean tomorrow morning. Then spend the rest of the day railing to Rome, or flying, if I can get the stabilizer fixed by then..."

Jason suddenly looked like he wanted to throw up. "Which will put us in Rome on the last possible day for Nico. Twenty-four hours to find him—at most."

Percy crossed his legs. "And that's only part of the problem. We have your proph—" Evangeline elbowed him in the ribs.

"We have the Mark of Athena to worry about." She said, looking around for anyone to question what Percy was originally about to say. No one said anything.

Annabeth didn't seem happy with the change of topic. She rested her hand on her backpack, which, since they'd left Charleston, she always seemed to be carrying. The blonde opened the bag and brought out a thin bronze disk with the diameter of a donut. "This the map that I found at Fort Sumter. It's..."

She stopped abruptly, staring at the smooth bronze surface. "It's blank!"

Percy took it and examined both sides. "It wasn't like this earlier?"

"No! I was looking at it in my cabin and..." Annabeth muttered under her breath. "It must be like the Mark of Athena. I can only see it when I'm alone. It won't show itself to other demigods."

"What did it have on it?" Frank asked nervously. "And what is the Mark of Athena? I still don't get it."

Annabeth took the disk from Percy, turning it in the sunlight to see if it would reveal itself at a different angle. It didn't.

"The map was hard to read, but it showed a spot on the Tiber River in Rome. I think that's where my quest starts...the path I've got to take to follow the Mark."

"Maybe that's where you meet the river god Tiberinus," Piper said. "But what is the Mark?"

Annabeth dug into her pocket, bringing forth a silver drachma. "I've been carrying this ever since I saw my mom at Grand Central. It's an Athenian coin."

She passed it around. Lorelai wondered if it would work in a vending machine like regular coins.

"An owl," Leo noted. "Well, that makes sense. I guess the branch is an olive branch? But what's the inscription, AΘE—Area Of Effect?"

"It's alpha, theta, epsilon," Annabeth said. "In Greek, it stands for Of The Athenians...or you could read it as children of Athena. It's sort of the Athenian motto."

"So like SPQR?" Landon asked.

She nodded. "Anyway, the Mark of Athena is an owl, just like that one. It appears in fiery red. I've seen it in my dreams. Then twice at Fort Sumter."

She described what had happened. Lorelai could see it was hard for Annabeth to talk about.

"We should have been there for you," Evangeline said.

"That's the point," Annabeth said. "No one can be there for me. When I get to Rome, I'll have to strike out on my own. Otherwise, the Mark won't appear. I'll have to follow it to...to the source."

Landon shifted his weight from one foot to another, a frown on his face as if he didn't like the thought of that.

Frank took the coin from Leo. He stared at the owl. "The giants' bane stands gold and pale, Won with pain from a woven jail." He looked up at Annabeth. "What is it...this thing at the source?"

Before Annabeth could answer, Jason spoke up.

"A statue," He said. "A statue of Athena. At least...that's my guess."

Piper frowned. "You said you didn't know."

"I don't. But the more I think about it...there's only one artifact that could fit the legend." Jason turned to Annabeth. "I'm sorry. I should have told you everything I've heard, much earlier. But honestly, I was scared. If this legend is true—

"I know," Annabeth said. "I mostly figured it out, and also because Landon told me about it before we went to Charleston."

"You did?" Jason looked at Landon. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I was too busy trying to survive a Chuck Norris movie," Landon said.

"The point is," Annabeth said. "If we manage to save the statue, Greeks and Romans together...Don't you see? It could heal the rift."

"Hold on." Percy made a time-out gesture. "What statue?"

Annabeth slipped the coin back into her pocket. "The Athena Parthenos," she said. "The most famous Greek statue of all time. It was forty feet tall, covered in ivory and gold. It stood in the middle of the Parthenon in Athens."

The ship went silent, except for the waves lapping against the hull.

"Okay, I'll bite," Leo said at last. "What happened to it?"

"It disappeared," Annabeth said.

Leo frowned. "How does a forty-foot-tall statue in the middle of the Parthenon just disappear?"

"That's a good question," said Annabeth. "It's one of the biggest mysteries in history. Some people thought the statue was melted down for its gold, or destroyed by invaders. Athens was sacked several times. Some thought the statue was carried off—"

"By Romans," Jason finished. "At least, that's one theory, and it fits the legend I heard at Camp Jupiter."

"The Romans stole the statue to break the Greeks' spirit. They hid it in some underground shrine in Rome." Landon said.

Jason nodded. "The Roman demigods swore it would never see the light of day. They literally stole Athena, so she could no longer be the symbol of Greek military power. She became Minerva, a much tamer goddess."

"And the children of Athena have been searching for the statue ever since," Annabeth said. "Most don't know about the legend, but in each generation, a few are chosen by the goddess. They're given a coin like mine. They follow the Mark of Athena...a kind of magical trail that links them to the statue...hoping to find the resting place of the Athena Parthenos and get the statue back."

Percy looked surprised. "So if we—I mean you—find this statue...what would we do with it? Could we even move it?"

"And even if we do, how do you plan on dealing with the Romans?" Evangeline asked. "Because I doubt they'll just hand it over."

"I'm not sure," Annabeth admitted. "But if we could save it somehow, it could unite the two camps. It could heal my mother of this hatred she's got tearing her two aspects apart. And maybe...maybe the statue has some sort of power that could help us against the giants."

"And you have to do it all alone?" Lorelai asked.

Annabeth nodded. "I have to go, no matter what, we have to get to Rome."

"This could change everything," Piper said. "It could end thousands of years of hostility. It might be the key to defeating Gaea. But if we can't help you..."

"But what if you can't succeed?" Landon asked.

"I have to," Annabeth squared her shoulders. "The risk is worth it."

"Your own life isn't a risk," The son of Hermes said.

"He's right." Hazel twirled her hair pensively. "But we saw what recovering the golden eagle standard did for the legion. If this statue is the most powerful symbol of Athena ever created—"

"It could kick some serious booty," Leo offered.

"Never say that again," Evangeline said.

"Won through pain from a woven jail," Frank recalled. "Woven, like webs?"

"Or maybe it's a weaver?" The brunette asked although it sounded much like a statement rather than a question. Her eyes were trained on the daughter of Athena. "One of Athena's nemesis is a weaver."

Annabeth's face turned as white as printer paper. Lorelai could practically see the wave of panic and terror washing over the other blonde.

"We'll deal with that when we get to Rome," Piper suggested, her voice was so soft and calming, Lorelai felt her uneasiness fade. "It's going to work out. Annabeth is going to kick some serious booty, too. You'll see."

"Yeah," Percy said. "I learned a long time ago: Never bet against Annabeth."

Everyone still looked uneasy, but Leo managed to shake them out of it. He pushed a button, and a loud blast of steam exploded from Festus's mouth, making everyone jump.

"Well!" He said. "Good pep rally, but there's still a ton of things to fix on this ship before we get to the Mediterranean. Please report to Supreme Commander Leo, for your super fun list of chores!"

During the night they'd somehow ended up at the mouth of the Mediterranean, more specifically at a place called The Rock of Gibraltar.

Annabeth told them about the Pillars of Hercules, but what none of them had expected was to actually find Hercules standing right there.

Jason and Lorelai had been chosen to try and talk to the immortal demigod to get him to let them pass.

Lorelai had been reluctant to the idea. Mostly because she felt guilty about what she'd done during the attack of the Shrimpzilla, and because Jason hadn't been speaking to her since. She was worried he was mad at her for hurting him.

She had tried to make an excuse to stay back by saying she needed to watch Garfield but Annabeth told her Leo would watch the cat in her absence.

Hercules was waiting for them as they walked onto the beach.

He looked a lot like how he'd always been described as. He was well-built, but not too stocky. His ebony hair was close-cropped. He had startling blue eyes like Jason's, but his skin was coppery as if he'd spent the day on a tanning bed.

He looked about twenty, and he had a club, which lay in the sand next to him. It was a five-foot-long polished cylinder of mahogany with a leather handgrip studded in bronze. Coach Hedge would've been extremely jealous.

They approached slowly, careful not to provoke him. He watched them with no particular emotion, as if they were some misshaped rock he'd never noticed before.

"Hi, sir." Lorelai started.

"What's up?" He said.

She had not expected that. "We're just here to talk to you. I'm Lorelai, and uh, this is Jason."

Jason looked at Hercules like he'd been scammed. "Where's your lion skin?" he asked.

"It's ninety degrees out here," he said. "Why would I wear my lion skin? Do you wear a fur coat to the beach?"

"I guess that makes sense," Jason sounded disappointed. "It's just that the pictures always show you with a lion skin."

"This is why you don't believe everything you see in photos," Lorelai whispered.

"She's right," Hercules said. "Being famous isn't as fun as you might think."

"Don't you have movies made about you?" Jason asked. "I thought—"

The god snarled. "Don't get me started with those movies. Gods of Olympus. They never get anything right. Have you seen one about me where I look like me?"

"You do look a little younger than I had imagined," Lorelai admitted.

"Ha! Being immortal helps. But, yes, I wasn't so old when I died. Not by modern standards. I did a lot during my years as a hero...too much, really." His eyes drifted to Jason. "Son of Zeus, eh?"

"Jupiter," Jason corrected.

"Not much difference," the man grumbled. "Dad's annoying in either form. Me? I was called Heracles. Then the Romans came along and named me Hercules. I didn't really change that much, though lately just thinking about it gives me splitting headaches."

The left side of his face twitched. His robes shimmered, momentarily turning white, then back to purple.

"At any rate," Hercules said. "if you're Jupiter's son, you might understand. It's a lot of pressure. Enough is never enough. Eventually, it can make a guy snap."

He turned to Lorelai. "As for you, my dear," he said. "be careful. Sons of Zeus can be...well, never mind."

"Okay..." she said. "But back to our thing, we're here on a quest. And we came to ask you if we can get a green light to pass into the Mediterranean."

Hercules shrugged. "That's why I'm here. After I died, Dad made me the doorkeeper of Olympus. I said, Great! Palace duty! Party all the time! What he didn't mention is that I'd be guarding the doors to the ancient lands, stuck on this island for the rest of eternity. Lots of fun."

He pointed at the pillars rising from the surf. "Stupid columns. Some people claim I created the whole Strait of Gibraltar by shoving mountains apart. Some people say the mountains are the pillars. What a bunch of Augean manure. The pillars are pillars."

"That must be tiring having to clear that up," she said. "So can we pass...?"

The god scratched his fashionable beard. "Well, I have to give you the standard warning about how dangerous the ancient lands are. Not just any demigod can survive the Mare Nostrum. Because of that, I have to give you a quest to complete. Prove your worth, blah, blah, blah. Honestly, I don't make a big deal of it. Usually, I give demigods something simple like a shopping trip, singing a funny song, that sort of thing. After all those labors I had to complete for my evil cousin Eurystheus, well...I don't want to be that guy, you know?"

"Appreciate it," Jason said.

"Hey, no problem," Hercules said. "So anyway, what's your quest?"

"Giants," Jason said. "We're off to Greece to stop them from awakening Gaea."

"Giants," Hercules muttered. "I hate those guys. Back when I was a demigod hero...ah, but never mind. So which god put you up to this—Dad? Athena? Maybe Aphrodite?" he raised an eyebrow at Lorelai. "Or was it Apollo? I wouldn't be surprised if you're one of his kids."

"I'm not," Lorelai shook her head.

"Hera sent us," Jason said. "She brought us together to—"

"Hera." Suddenly Hercules's expression was like the cliff of Gibraltar—a solid unforgiving sheet of stone.

"She's just trying to help," Lorelai started. "Everyone else doesn't like her either. But—"

"But here you are," All the friendliness that had been present in his tone was gone. "Sorry, you two. I don't care how worthy your quest is. I don't do anything that Hera wants. Ever."

Jason looked mystified. "But I thought you made up with her when you became a god."

"Like the girl said," Hercules grumbled. "don't believe everything you see or hear. If you want to pass into the Mediterranean, I'm afraid I've got to give you an extra-hard quest."

"But we're like brothers," Jason protested. "Hera's messed with my life too. I understand—"

"You understand nothing," Hercules said coldly. "My first family: dead. My life wasted on ridiculous quests. My second wife dead, after being tricked into poisoning me and leaving me to a painful demise. And my compensation? I got to become a minor god. Immortal, so I can never forget my pain. Stuck here, as a gatekeeper, a doorman, a...a butler for the Olympians. No, you don't understand. The only god who understands me even a little bit is Dionysus. And at least he invented something useful. I have nothing to show except bad film adaptions of my life."

"I'm sorry about that," Lorelai said. "but if you help us I'll make sure you get a good compensation out of it."

Hercules hesitated. Then his jaw tightened, and he shook his head. "On the opposite side of this island, over those hills, you'll find a river. In the middle of that river lives the old god Achelous."

Hercules waited as if the information was supposed to send them running.

"And...?" Jason raised a brow.

"And," The god said, "I want you to break off his other horn and bring it to me."

"He has horns," Jason said. "Wait...his other horn? What—?"

"Figure it out," Hercules snapped. "Here, this should help."

He said the word help like it meant hurt. From under his robes. Hercules took a small book and tossed it to Lorelai.

She didn't catch it.

She picked it up. The book's glossy cover showed a photographic montage of Greek temples and smiling monsters. The title read: The Hercules Guide to the Mare Nostrum.

"Bring me the horn by sundown," Hercules said. "Just the two of you. No contacting your friends. Your ship will remain where it is. If you succeed, you may pass into the Mediterranean."

"And, uh, what happens if we don't?" Lorelai questioned.

"Well, Achelous will kill you, obviously," Hercules said. "And I will break your ship in half with my bare hands and send your friends to an early grave."

Jason shifted his feet. "Couldn't we just sing a funny song?"

"I'd get going," Hercules said coldly. "Sundown. Or your friends are dead."

"Yay," Lorelai frowned.

They traveled in silence. Swatting away the insects and mosquitos that came their way. Lorelai couldn't help but stare at the bandage around Jason's forearm. He hadn't spoken a single word to her or even tried to, he just kept flipping through the guidebook as they walked through the jungle.

They trudged across a ridge between two hills, and then into another valley.

Lorelai was tempted to send an Iris message to the others but she figured Hercules wouldn't be too happy about that. She could just see Coach Hedge attacking the god and getting everybody else in trouble.

Lorelai looked around at the trees around them, she felt like they were going in circles. She swatted a mosquito away.

"Stop," Jason said suddenly.

She froze. "Why are we stopping?" she whispered, she looked around.

"Listen," he said. Nearby, she could hear water running up ahead. They crept through the trees and found themselves on the bank of a river.

It was maybe about forty feet wide but only a few inches deep, a silver sheet of water racing over a smooth bed of stones. A few yards downstream, the rapids plunged into a dark blue swimming hole.

The cicadas in the trees had gone quiet. No birds were chirping. It was as if the water was giving a lecture and would only allow its own voice. She wished they'd brought Percy along.

The more she listened, the more she found herself wanting to go in. She shook herself. She hated swimming, that was the only reason why she'd joined the track team back at the Wilderness School.

Jason started to sit down on a rock, reaching to take off his shoes. "Hey, no!" She yelled. "Don't do that!"

The son of Jupiter looked at her. "Don't do what?"

"I didn't mean—" she stammered. "I meant the river."

Jason gave her a quizzical look. The river suddenly spoke: Forgive me. Singing is one of the few pleasures I have left.

A figure emerged from the swimming hole as if rising on an elevator like a popstar.

His skin was as blue as the water. His hooves levitated on the river's surface. At the top of his bovine neck was the head of a man with short curly black hair, a beard done in ringlets Ancient Greek style, deep mournful eyes behind bifocal glasses, and a mouth that seemed to be stuck in a permanent pout.

Sprouting from the left side of his head was a single bull's horn—a curved black-and-white one. The lack of a right horn made his head tilt to the left so that he looked like he was trying to get water out of his ear.

"Hello," he said sadly. "Come to kill me, I suppose."

Jason stood slowly. "Um, well—"

Lorelai pursed her lips. "It's just that Hercules—"

"Hercules!" The man sighed. His hooves pawed the water as if ready to charge. "To me, he will always be Heracules. That's his Greek name, you know: the glory of Hera."

"Funny name," Jason said. "Since he hates her."

"Indeed," the man said. "Perhaps that's why he didn't protest when the Romans renamed him Hercules. Of course, that's the name most people know him by...his brand, if you will. Hercules is nothing if not image-conscious."

"You're Achelous?" Jason asked.

The bull-man bent his front legs and lowered his head in a bow. "At your service. River god extraordinaire. Once the spirit of the mightiest river in Greece. Now sentenced to dwell here, on the opposite side of the island from my old enemy. Oh, the gods are cruel! But whether they put so close together to punish me or Hercules, I have never been sure."

"We didn't come here to fight, sir. I'm Lorelai, and this is Jason." She said. "All we need from you is a teensy-tiny favor."

She explained about their quest to the ancient lands to stop the giants from waking Mother Earth. She described how their team of Greeks and Romans had come together, and how Hercules had acted like a child when he found out Hera was behind it.

When she was done, Achelous regarded her as if she were developing a deadly disease. "Ah, my dear...the legends are true, you know. The spirits, the water cannibals."

"Uh..."

"River gods know many things," he said. "Alas, you are focusing on the wrong story. If you made it to Rome, the story of the flood would have served you better."

"What are you talking about?" Lorelai asked.

"Poor thing," the river god sympathized. "Another girl stuck with a son of Zeus."

"Wait a minute," Jason said. "It's Jupiter, actually. And how does that make her a poor thing?"

Achelous ignored him. "My girl, do you know the cause of my fight with Hercules?"

"Deianira?"

"Yes," Achelous heaved a sigh. "And do you know what happened to her?"

"No," she shook her head.

Jason took out his guidebook and began flipping through the pages. "It doesn't really—"

Achelous snorted indignantly. "What is that?"

"Our guidebook," Lorelai blinked.

"That is not a book," Achelous insisted. "Hercules gave you that just to get under my skin, didn't he? He knows I hate those things."

Achelous pawed the water. A scroll shot from the river like a miniature rocket and landed in front of him. He nudged it open with his hooves. The weathered yellow parchment was unfurled, and covered with faded Latin script and elaborate hand-drawn pictures.

"This is a book!" The god said. "Oh, the smell of sheepskin! The elegant feel of the scroll unrolling beneath my hooves. You simply can't duplicate it in something like that."

He nodded indignantly at the book in Jason's hand. "You young folks today and your newfangled gadgets. Bound pages. Little compact squares of text that are not hoof-friendly. That's a bound book, a b-book, if you must. But it's not a traditional book. It'll never replace the good old-fashioned scroll!"

"Um, I'll just put this away now." Jason slipped the guidebook in his back pocket.

The river god seemed to calm down a little. "Now," He said, tapping a picture on his scroll. "This is Deianira."

Lorelai tilted her head to look. The hand-painted portrait was small, but she could tell the woman was very beautiful, with long dark hair, dark eyes, and a playful smile.

"Princess of Calydon," the god said mournfully. "She was promised to me until Hercules butted in. He insisted on combat."

"And he broke off your horn?" Jason guessed.

"Yes," Achelous said. "I could never forgive him for that. Horribly uncomfortable, having only one horn. But the situation was worse for poor Deianira. She could have had a long, happy life married to me."

"A man-headed bull who lives in a lake," Lorelai said.

"Exactly," Achelous agreed. "It seems impossible she would refuse, eh? Instead, she went off with Hercules. She picked the handsome, flashy hero over the good, faithful husband who would have treated her well. What happened next? Well, she should have known. Hercules was much too wrapped up in his own problems to be a good husband. He had already murdered one wife, you know. Hera cursed him, so he flew into a rage and killed his entire family. Horrible business. That's why he had to do those twelve labors as penance."

"So he paid for something Hera did?" Lorelai asked.

The river god shrugged. "The Olympians never seem to pay for their crimes. And Hera has always hated the sons of Zeus...or Jupiter."

He glanced distrustfully at Jason. "At any rate, my poor Deianira had a tragic end. She became jealous of Hercules' many affairs. He gallivanted all over the world, just like his father Zeus, flirting with every woman he met. Finally, Deianira got so desperate she listened to the bad advice. A crafty centaur named Nessus told her that if she wanted Hercules to be faithful forever, she should spread some centaur blood on the inside of Hercules's favorite shirt. Unfortunately, Nessus was lying because he wanted revenge on Hercules. Deianira followed his instructions, but instead of making Hercules a faithful husband—"

"Centaur blood is like acid," Jason said.

"Yes," Achelous said. "Hercules died a painful death. When Deianira realized what she'd done she..." The god drew a line across his neck.

Lorelai rubbed her neck as if the god had drawn a line on her throat. All she could manage was a low and shaky, "Oh."

"And the moral, my dear?" Achelous said. "Beware the sons of Zeus—or Jupiter."

She didn't want to think like that. But she wasn't sure she was doing a good job at hiding her uneasiness. Jason wasn't Hercules. He would never hurt her the way Hercules hurt Deianira. He wouldn't...right?

"That won't happen," Jason spoke up. "I'm nothing like him."

"You say that now, but..." Achelous sighed. "In the end, history always repeats itself."

"Then I'll make sure it doesn't. Fate can be changed."

Achelous sighed, his eyes gazed at Lorelai with a saddened look.

"If you must think this way, then go ahead. I cannot stop you," he told Jason. "But you demigods, you are all born to die. All destined for the same tragic end."

Lorelai was regretting her decision not to sleep in this morning.

"Hercules is a god now," Achelous said. "He married Hebe, the youth goddess, but still he was rarely at home. He dwells here on this island, guarding those silly pillars. He says Zeus makes him do this, but I think he prefers being here to Mount Olympus, nursing his bitterness and mourning his mortal life. My presence reminds him of his failures—especially the woman who finally killed him. And his presence reminds me of poor Deianira, who could have been my wife."

The river god tapped the scroll, which rolled itself up and sank into the water.

"Hercules wants my other horn in order to humiliate me," Achelous said. "Perhaps it would make him feel better about himself, knowing that I'm miserable too. Besides, the horn would become a cornucopia. Good food and drink would flow from it, just as my power causes the river to flow. No doubt Hercules would keep the cornucopia for himself. It would be a tragedy and a waste."

Jason stirred. "Look, I'm sorry, Achelous. Honestly, you've gotten a bum deal. But maybe...well, without the other horn, you might not be so lopsided. It might feel better." He held up his hands. "I don't see that we have many choices. If Hercules doesn't get that horn, he'll kill us and our friends."

"He's right," Achelous said. "You have no choice. Which is why I hope you'll forgive me."

"Forgive you for...not saying goodbye to us?" Lorelai chuckled nervously.

"I have no choice either," the river god said. "I have to stop you."

The river exploded, and a wall of water crashed over Lorelai for the second time in two days.

Lorelai really didn't like swimming.

The current had grabbed her like a fist and pulled her into the deep. She held her breath as the water dragged her deeper and deeper into the river.

She kicked at the water, trying to apply pressure on the fist around her ankle so it let her go. Then suddenly, it yanked her to the surface. She found herself at the center of a whirlpool.

Lorelai gasped for air. She blinked a few times to look for Jason. He flew past her, being pushed back into the current by a curl of water.

"No!" She yelled.

"I'm afraid I can't stop," said the river god, approaching her. "I can't let Hercules have my other horn. It would be mortifying."

"So you want to kill us instead?" Lorelai tried her best to keep herself on the surface as the current grew stronger around her.

Jason clawed his way to the surface again. A miniature storm cloud formed over his head. Thunder boomed.

"None of that, son of Jupiter," Achelous chided. "If you call lightning, you'll just electrocute your friend."

The water pulled Jason under again.

Lorelai went underwater after him but she was pulled back to the surface. "I'll make sure Hercules never gets the horn. Just let us go!"

The water churned where Jason had gone under. She had to do something. "Are you listening?" She shrieked.

Achelous looked down at her through his bifocals. His expression softened. "I see. You would be my Deianira. You would be my bride to compensate for my loss."

"What?" Her eyes widened.

"Oh, I understand," Achelous said. "You were too modest to suggest this in front of your friend. You are right, of course. I would treat you much better than a son of Zeus would. I could make things right after all these centuries. I could not save Deianira, but I could save you."

"Absolutely not!" she shook her head frantically. She could feel her heart beating rapidly against her chest.

"You would have to let your friends die," Achelous continued. "Hercules would be angry, but I can protect you from him. We could be quite happy together. Let's start by letting that Jason fellow drown, eh?"

"No!" She screamed.

The water moved faster around the place where Jason had been. Lorelai made a wiping motion with her hand, a blinding light flashed across Achelous' face, and he cried, out covering his eyes. She closed her fist, and the light surrounded the river. The cool temperature around them began to grow hotter.

Steam began to emerge from the water. The whirlpool around her slowed down. She could feel herself start to sweat from the heat the light around them was causing.

She found her footing on a rock underwater and lunged out of the water.

She grabbed Achelous' hand, using the momentum, she swung her leg over his back and wrapped her right arm around his neck, pulling his head back. She unsheathed her dagger with her other hand and drove it into the horn, severing it.

The river god bellowed in rage. Before he could recover, she stood on his back and vaulted off of him. Clutching the horn tightly against herself, Lorelai rolled onto the bank just as Jason shot out of the water.

Jason broke through the branches of an olive tree and tumbled onto the grass. He struggled to his face, gasping and coughing. He raised his sword, and the dark clouds thickened over the river. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up. A metallic smell filled the air.

The blonde covered her eyes in time as lightning stirred the water into a boiling cauldron, steaming and hissing with electricity. She heard Achelous wail in pain.

She looked at the river, watching as the god dissolved. He looked at her with a look of betrayal, she would've felt bad if he hadn't tried to drown her and Jason.

Lorelai sheathed her dagger. The daughter of Iris backed away from the river, her eyes watching as the water swirled, growing harsher.

"Lorelai," Jason panted, grabbing her hand. "Come on, we gotta go." She gripped his hand tightly, and they ran.

They slowed down until they reached the crest of the hill.

Lorelai caught her breath and straightened. She knew she should focus on how to get back to the ship, but all she could think about was what Achelous had said earlier. The river god had practically told her she was destined to die if she decided to shoot her shot with Jason.

Maybe she was meant to die single and lonely with her cat.

"Lorelai," Jason snapped her attention back onto him.  "You okay?"

"Me? I should be asking you that," she said. "You were underwater for a long time, I thought—I thought you would die."

"But I didn't," he said. "You saved my life."

"No, I didn't." she frowned. "You saved yourself. I couldn't do anything but watch you drown. I'm sorry."

"You did what you could," he said. "You got the horn and got us out of there. I say you did a lot more than I did."

She pursed her lips, her gaze moving from Jason and toward the horizon where the sun was setting. "Are you mad at me for hurting you?"

"Why would you think that?"

"Because you've been avoiding me," she said. "Back at the ship, when we were supposed to be doing chores you went with Piper before I could even ask you to go with me, and you haven't even looked at me since yesterday. The whole trip here you haven't spoken a single word. So, are you mad at me?"

Jason shook his head. "I'm not mad at you,"

"Then why have you been acting so weird?" She demanded. "I've been trying to find the right time to talk to you so I can apologize, but you keep avoiding me. I even made you this stupid apology ring out of flowers," She dug into her pocket, she brought forth a small ring made of a few flowers that were drenched in water. "Well, it's a soggy flower ring now but still."

"You made me an apology ring?" Jason raised an amused brow, a grin threatening his lips.

"This is not funny!" She flustered.

"It is a little bit."

"Did you mean what you said back there?" Lorelai asked. "About how you won't let history repeat itself?"

Jason's eyes softened as they roamed her face. "Lorelai—"

"I don't know if you've noticed but I'm horrible at reading social cues, so this is all confusing me." She said.

"Lorelai—" he tried again, but she was on a roll.

"You know, when we went to Charleston and ran into Aphrodite, she had blue eyes, first I thought it was because I'd always wanted blue eyes, but then for a split second, she had a scar on her lip. So that got me thinking—"

Jason stepped closer to her. "Lorelai if you just—"

"That got me thinking about you." Lorelai continued. "At first, I thought no way, because we're best friends. But I kept thinking about how back at camp you did all these stupid things I asked you to do—like trying to learn ballet and knitting. Then you called me cute, and I figured you must've been really tired. But then, you told Achelous that you would rather change fate than let me die! And that got to me. So did you mean what you said? Because if you didn't then I'm going to feel really, really stupid for thinking that you liked me."

Jason stepped closer to her, his hand moving from his side to her face, brushing back a few strands of her hair. "I meant it," he murmured. "Everything I did and said, I meant all of it. And I do like you, a lot actually."

"Really?" She asked.

"Really." Jason smiled.

He closed the distance between them and kissed her.

------✧------

A/N: You guys, the praying worked I passed my exams.

Now all we have left is the lannabeth kiss which is (not) happening soon.

I'll see you guys on the weekend hopefully.