THEY APPEARED ON the hillside overlooking the river acheron. the sun was just rising, making the water glitter and the clouds glow orange. the cool morning air smelled of honeysuckle.

karina breathed in the scenery like a breath of fresh air— taking in the mosaic red and orange sky as it slowly faded into daylight. the colors of the sky reflected onto her skin, making her face glow as she gazed into the open sky.

percy watched her with adoration as she stared dazedly into the rising sky— admiring how calm and beautiful she looked in this moment. her skin was glowing, and her eyes were illuminated by the slowly brightening sun— making them almost shine as well. her hair was slowly billowing behind her, and he noticed that it had been cut resonantly shorter than how it was before— and he seemed to catch a glimpse of a small strand of hair that was contrasting to her normal golden brown locks. his eyes also caught onto a small scar that was tracing down her right cheekbone— it was faint, but he noticed it. and he knew that it hadn't been there before he left.

but, he decided not to mention any of that, knowing that he has all the time in the world to ask her about his time away from her. all that mattered to him in this moment was that she was here beside him— living and breathing. just has he had dreamed of for the past few weeks.

"hey," he murmured, just loud enough for the two of them to hear.

karina turned to him, her full attention focused purely on the sound of his voice. but, before she had time to say anything, she felt a pair of lips attach themselves to her's— and her mind was instantly swept away from any coherent thoughts.

karina's soft, and inviting lips were a stark contrast to percy's burnt and chapped ones, but she considered this kiss once of the best ones they have shared. it was full of earning, and slight desperation— both of them having wished for this moment together for so long, and now finally having it. their lips molded together like art, both seeming to fit perfectly against each other's, leaving both demigods in a muddled state of mind.

they both felt their minds slip away as the kiss continued, one of percy's hands holding the base of her jaw, and top of her neck, while the other rested firmly against her waist. karina's hands were both placed tightly on either side of his jaw, her fingers whispering along the edges of his hair.

percy pulled away first, their foreheads still touching. his heart was beating fast and his face was burning slightly— though, he wasn't sure if it was from his sunburn or karina. "gods, i missed doing that."

karina laughed quietly as she traced her finger over his jawline. "i forgot how good of a kisser you were."

percy pulled away with a fained look of offense shown on his face. "how could you forgot such a thing?"

karina shrugged, an amused smile tugging at her lips. "guess i've been too preoccupied with all my other side men to remember."

percy narrowed his eyes at her. "i bet none of them were as good as me, though."

karina pretended to contemplate her answer. "well . . . "

percy's face turned even more offended, and she couldn't help but let a deep laugh escape her. "i'm kidding! i'm kidding! you are the best kisser out of all my side hustles, percy."

"good," he said, but he still sported a small pout as they turned back to the others, who were just now beginning to stir.

leo staggered backward. "you know . . . i think i'll sit down."

he collapsed. the others joined him, along with percy and karina, who leisurely strolled over and sat down. the argo II still floated over the river a few hundred yards away. karina knew that they should signal coach hedge and tell him they were alive. had they been in the temple all night? or several nights? but at that moment, the group was too tired to do anything except sit and relax and marvel at the fact that they were okay.

they began to exchange stories.

frank explained what had happened with the ghostly legion and the army of monsters— how nico had used the scepter of diocletian, and how bravely karina, jason, and piper fought.

"frank is being modest," jason said. "he controlled the entire legion. you should've seen him. "oh, by the way . . . " jason glanced at percy, who had begun to twist karina's hair through his fingers. "i resigned my office, gave frank a field promotion to praetor. unless you want to contest that ruling."

percy grinned. "no argument there."

"praetor?" hazel stared at frank.

"haz, your boyfriend was a badass," karina elaborated with a grin, and she saw frank blush.

he shrugged uncomfortably. "well . . . yeah. i know it seems weird."

she tried to throw her arms around him, the winced as she remembered her busted ribs. she settled for kissing him. "it seems perfect."

leo clapped frank on the shoulder. "way to go, zhang. now you can order octavian to fall on his sword."

"please do," karina begged. "i once made him stand on a table and sing opera during lunch a few months ago— the best moment of my life."

jason frowned. "why did i have to miss that?"

karina snorted and leaned over to pat his shoulder. "don't worry, sparky. i will teach frank how you and i used to torture him back in the day."

"it's all very tempting," frank agreed. he turned apprehensively to percy. "but, you guys . . . tartarus has to be the real story. what happened down there? how did you . . . "

karina felt percy visibly stiffen at the mention, and she grabbed his hand softly, giving it a squeeze.

he squeezed back, taking a deep breath. "we'll tell you the story," percy promised. "but not yet, okay? i'm not ready to remember that place."

"no," annabeth agreed. "right now . . . " she gazed toward the river and faltered. "uh, i think our ride is coming."

karina turned. the argo II veered to port, its aerial oars in motion, its sails catching the wind. festus's head glinted in the sunlight. even from a distance, karina could hear him creaking and clanking in jubilation.

"that's my boy!" leo yelled.

as the ship got closer, karina saw coach hedge standing at the prow.

"about time!" the coach yelled down. he was doing his best to scowl, but his eyes gleamed as if maybe, just maybe, he was happy to see them. "what took you so long, cupcakes? you kept your visitor and tiger waiting!"

"visitor?" hazel murmured.

"tiger?" karina peaked up.

at the rail next to coach hedge, a dark-haired girl appeared wearing a purple cloak, her face so covered with spot and bloody scratches that karina didn't recognize her.

reyna had arrived.

suddenly, she heard a howl come from the ship, and standing right beside reyna, was a large, white and black striped tiger, its paws up against the rail— making the tiger about four heads taller than reyna.

karina felt a grin crawl onto her face. "caelius," she whispered.

KARINA COULDN'T STOP caelius in time before he was leaping across the hillside, bounding at her at inhuman speed, and was instantly throwing her to the ground— its paws securing themselves around her shoulder blades as he licked her face and purred uncontrollably— too caught up in excitement to even realize anything else happening around him.

"caelius!" karina beamed, reaching up from her trapped spot on the ground to scratch her tiger's head, which was about twice the size of her own. "how are you, buddy?"

caelius growled like a baby, and nuzzled his face into her crook of her neck, completely laying down on the side of her, letting the upper half of his body lay across her as she struggled to breathe.

she wheezed out a laugh, and attempted to sit up, but slowly failed as she remembered that caelius weighed about the same as a freight train. "baby, i missed you too. but— i can't breathe."

caelius let out an irritated growl, but nonetheless complied and slinked his body off of her's, rolling down onto his back in the grass— twisting and turning his body around in the soft dirt— and karina watched with a smile.

"how did you even get here?" karina mumbled to herself, but caelius must've heard, because he sat up and nudged his head at reyna, who was staring off into the distance— red and teary-eyed.

karina noticed, and began to make her way over toward her— but reyna had known, and she turned to her before she could even make it close enough to touching distance.

"reyna . . . " karina breathed out, ultimately feeling her heart clench at the sight of her best friend.

"karina," reyna responded formerly, but she wasn't buying it. karina could see the relief and sadness in her eyes as she locked her stare on to her, and so karina knew that she was glad to see her to.

karina wasted no time in walking forward and pulling reyna into a tight hug, wrapping her arms securely around her as she breathed in the scent of white jasmine and sweat. reyna soon realized that she couldn't hide it anymore, and completely let loose in karina's embrace, wrapping herself tight against her as she rested her head on her shoulder.

they stayed like that for a long moment, and in the back, karina could hear the faint sound of jason yelling, "hey, buddy!" and then the sound of him thumping onto the ground as caelius pounced on him. jason had always been one of caelius's favorites— for reasons karina would never know— but they always had some weird alpha male connection that she found to be quite weird. but, she never questioned it.

reyna pulled away first, letting her eyes scan over karina calculatingly, as if noticing how much she had changed in the span of a couple of months.

"you look . . . " reyna trailed off.

"different?" karina asked with a tired chuckle. "yeah, i know."

reyna was about to respond, but her eyes trailed from karina's face to behind her as leo's new mechanical hoist system had lowered the statue onto the hillside with surprising ease. now the forty-foot tall goddess gazed serenely over the river archeron, her gold dress like molten metal in the sun.

her and reyna had made their way over their when she said. "incredible."

she was still red-eyed from crying. she'd explained how along the journey to the argo II, scipio had collapsed, overwhelmed by poisoned claw marks from a gryphon attack the night before. reyna had to put the horse out of its misery with her golden knife, turning the pegasus into dust that scattered in the sweet-smelling greek air. that is what had caused her to call caelius to her rescue. she had ridden him the rest of the way to her destination— after telling him how karina needed her help, knowing that he'd only respond if his owner needed him.

the praetor circled the athena parthenos. "it looks newly made."

"yeah," leo said. "we brushed off the cobwebs, used a little windex. it wasn't hard."

the argo II hovered just overhead. with festus keeping watch for threats on the radar, the entire crew had decided to eat lunch on the hillside while they discussed what to do. after the last few weeks— karina figured they'd earned a good meal together.

"hey, reyna," annabeth called. "have some food. join us."

the praetor glanced over, her dark eyebrows furrowed, as if join us didn't quite compute. karina had seen reyna without her armor before— but no one else had. it was on board the ship, being repaired by buford the wonder table. she wore a pair of jeans and a purple camp jupiter t-shirt and looked almost like a normal teenager— except for the knife at her belt and that guarded expression, like she was ready for an attack from any direction.

"all right," she said finally.

they scooted over to make room for her in the circle. she sat cross legged in between karina and annabeth, picked up a cheese sandwich, and nibbled at the edge.

karina sat leaned back against percy's chest, her legs tangled with his as she reclined her body back onto his. his hands rested comfortably against her thighs anytime he wasn't completely shoving his face with food— making karina lurch away from him with a unsurprised look on her face.

but, percy had also noticed as he was eating, that karina hadn't touched a single piece of food since they'd sat down. he'd even caught her staring pointedly at the food, as if the thought of it disgusted her. he didn't know when the last time she ate was, but he figured that it hadn't been soon enough. he didn't say anything about it, though. he just rubbed his thumbs over the smooth skin of her thighs soothingly, trying to relax her.

caelius laid right beside karina, his head resting on her legs as he snoozed— obviously exhausted from the huge meal that the crew had fed him. she scratched his head thoughtfully, feeling him pur contentedly against her leg, rolling further onto her body. the sound was as loud as a tractor— given the size of him was about triple the normal size of a tiger— making everything he did bigger and louder.

"your tiger snores," leo pointed out, throwing a fry at caelius's face, who opened his mouth and ate the fry without even opening his eyes— which made leo's face light up with a manic grin— as if he were already formulating ideas on what tricks caelius and him could do.

"that's why he sleeps in the stables," karina said, patting his head.

"so," reyna said, getting back to the point. "frank zhang . . . praetor."

frank shifted, wiping crumbs from his chin. "well, yeah. field promotion."

"to lead a different legion," reyna noted. "a legion of ghosts."

hazel put her arm protectively through frank's. after an hour in sick bay, they both looked a lot better; but karina could tell they weren't sure what to think about their old boss from camp jupiter dropping in for lunch.

"reyna," jason said. "you should've seen him."

"he was amazing," piper agreed.

"complete warrior," karina added, pursing her lips seriously.

"frank is a leader," hazel insisted. "he makes a great praetor."

reyna's eyes stayed on frank, like she was trying to guess his weight. "i believe you," she said. "i approve."

karina smiled. reyna was softening up.

frank blinked. "you do?"

reyna smiled dryly. "a son of mars, the hero who helped to bring back the eagle of the legion . . . i can work with a demigod like that. i'm just wondering how to convince the twelfth fulminata."

frank scowled. "yeah. i've been wondering the same thing."

karina noticed percy staring at frank, and she knew that he was still processing how much frank had changed. a "growth spurt" was putting it mildly. he was at least three inches taller, less pudgy, and more bulky, like a linebacker. his face looked sturdier, his jawline more rugged. it was as if frank had turned into a bull and then back to human, but he'd kept some of the bullishness.

"the legion will listen to you, reyna," frank said. "you made it here alone, across the ancient lands."

reyna chewed her sandwich as if it were cardboard. "in doing so, i broke the laws of the legion."

"caesar broke the law when he crossed the rubicon," frank said. "great leaders have to think outside the box sometimes."

she shook her head. "i'm not caesar. after finding jason and karina's note in diocletian's palace, tracking you down was easy. i only did what i thought was necessary."

percy smiled, pulling karina further back into his chest. "reyna, you're too modest. flying halfway across the world by yourself to answer annabeth's plea, because you knew it was our best chance for peace? that's pretty fucking heroic."

reyna shrugged. "says the demigod who fell into tartarus and found his way back."

karina's mind involuntarily flashed back to her dangling in the edge of the chasm, gripping on to percy's hand as if it were his lifeline— which, at the time, it really was. she felt her stomach become even more upset, and she completely dismissed the option of eating from her mind— her appetite completely gone.

this didn't go unnoticed by the crew. percy and reyna both could see how uncomfortable karina got when reyna mentioned that. percy felt her body stiffen, and she had stopped breathing for a moment— her breath caught in her throat. reyna had seen how her expression became pained, and her eyes glossed over in the way that they always did when she was remembering something tragic.

percy said nothing, he merely wrapped his arms tighter around her body, placing a small kiss to her temple, trying to ease his girlfriend's mind that he was safe— and that she could relax.

"he had help," annabeth agreed.

"oh, obviously," reyna said. "without you, i doubt percy could find his way out of a paper bag."

"true," karina and annabeth said in sync.

"hey!" percy complained.

the others started laughing, but percy didn't mind. it felt good to see them smile. hell, just being in the mortal world felt good, breathing un-poisonous air, enjoying actual sunshine on his back, and being wrapped around the girl that he loved.

leo pulled a tiny screwdriver from his tool belt. he stabbed a chocolate-covered strawberry and passed it to coach hedge. then he pulled out another screwdriver and speared a second strawberry for himself.

"so. the twenty-million-peso question," leo said. "we got this slightly used forty-foot-fall statue of athena. what do we do with it?"

reyna squinted at the athena parthenos. "as fine as it looks on this hill, i didn't come all this way to admire it. according to annabeth, it must be returned to camp half-blood by a roman leader. do i understand correctly?"

annabeth nodded. "i had a dream down in . . . you know, tartarus. i was on half-blood hill, and athena's voice said, i must stand here. the roman must bring me.

percy stared at the statue uneasily. he'd never had the best relationship with annabeth's mom. he kept expecting big mama statue to come alive and chew him out for getting her daughter into so much trouble— or maybe just step on him without a word.

"it makes sense," nico said.

percy flinched. it almost sounded like nico had read his mind and was agreeing that athena should step on him.

the son of hades sat at the other end of the circle, eating nothing but half a pomegranate, the fruit of the underworld. karina wondered if that was nico's idea of a joke.

"the statue is a powerful symbol," nico said. "a roman returning it to the greeks . . . that could heal the historic rift, maybe even heal the gods of their spilt personalities."

coach hedge swallowed his strawberry along with half the screwdriver. "now, hold on. i like peace as much as the next satyr— "

"you hate peace," leo said.

"the point is, valdez, we're only— what, a few days from athens? we got an army of giants waiting for us there. we went to all the trouble of saving this statue— "

"i went to most of the trouble," annabeth reminded him.

"— because that prophecy called it the giants' bane," the coach continued. "so why aren't we taking it to athens with us? it's obviously our secret weapon." he eyed the athena parthenos. "it looks like a ballistic missile to me. maybe if valdez strapped some engines to it— "

piper cleared her throat. "uh, great idea, coach, but a lot of us have bad dreams and visions of gaea rising at camp half-blood . . . "

she unsheathed her dagger katoptris and set it on her plate. at the moment, the blade showed nothing expect sky, but looking at it made karina uncomfortable.

"since we got back to the ship," piper said. "i've been seeing some bad stuff in the knife. the roman legion is almost within striking distance of camp half-blood. they're gathering reinforcement: spirits, eagles, wolves."

"octavian," reyna growled. "i told him to wait."

"when we take over command," frank suggested. "our first order of business should be to load octavian into the nearest catapult and fire him as far away as possible."

"agreed," reyna said. "but for now— "

"hey!" karina protested. "i told you that we should do that months ago and you told me to piss off— "

"he's intent on war," annabeth interrupted. "he'll have it, unless we stop him."

piper turned the blade of her knife. "unfortunately, that's not the worst of it. i saw images of a possible future— the camp in flames, roman and greek demigods lying dead. and gaea . . . " her voice failed her.

"so reyna takes the statue," percy said. "and we continue on to athens."

leo shrugged. "cool with me. but, uh, a few pesky logical problems. we got what— two weeks until that roman feast day when gaea is supposed to rise?"

"the feast of spes," jason said. "that's on the first of august. today is— "

"july eighteenth," frank offered. "so, yeah, from tomorrow, exactly fourteen days."

hazel winced. "it took us eighteen days to get from rome to here— a trip that should've only taken two or three days."

"so, given our usual luck," leo said. "maybe we have enough time to get the argo II to athens, find the giants, and stop them from waking gaea. maybe. but how is reyna supposed to get this massive statue back to camp half-blood before the greeks and romans put each other through the blender? she doesn't even have her pegasus anymore. uh, sorry— "

"fine," reyna snapped. she might be treating them like allies rather than enemies, but karina could tell reyna still had a not-so-soft spot for leo, probably because he'd blown up half the forum in new rome.

she took a deep breath. "unfortunately, leo is correct. i don't see how i can transport something so large. i was assuming— well, i was hoping you all would have an answer."

"the labyrinth," hazel said. "i— i mean, if pasiphaë really has reopened it, and i think she has . . . " she looked at percy apprehensively. "we'll, you said the labyrinth could take you anywhere. so maybe— "

"no." percy and annabeth spoke in unison.

"not to shoot you down, hazel," percy said. "it's just . . . "

he trailed off, thinking in silence for a moment.

"for one thing," he said, "the passages in the labyrinth are way too small for the athena parthenos. there's no chance you could take it down there— "

"and even if the maze is reopening," annabeth continued. "we don't know what it might be like now. it was dangerous enough before, under daedalus's control, and he wasn't evil. if pasiphaë has remade the labyrinth the way she wanted . . . " she shook her head. "hazel, maybe your underground senses would guide reyna through, but no one else would stand a chance. and we need you here. besides, if you got lost down there— "

"you're right," hazel said glumly. "never mind."

reyna cast her eyes around the group. "other ideas?"

"i could go," frank offered, not sounding very happy about it. "if i'm a praetor, i should go. maybe we could rig some sort of sled, or— "

"no, frank zhang." reyna gave him a weary smile. "i hope we will work side by side in the future, but for now your place is with the crew of this ship. you are one of the eight of the prophecy."

"i'm not," nico said.

everybody stopped eating. karina stared across the circle at nico, trying to decide if he was joking.

hazel set down her fork. "nico— "

"i'll go with reyna," he said. "i can transport the statue with shadow-travel."

"uh . . . " percy raised his hand. "i mean, i know you just got all nine of us to the surface, and that was awesome. but a year ago you said transporting yourself was dangerous and unpredictable. a couple of times you ended up in china. transporting a forty-foot statue and two people halfway across the world— "

"i've changed since i came back from tartarus." nico's eyes glittered with anger— more intensely than percy understood.

"nico," jason intervened. "we're not questioning your power. we just want to make sure you don't kill yourself trying."

"i can do it," he insisted. "i'll make short jumps— a few hundred miles each time. it's true, after each jump i won't be in my shape to fend off monsters. i'll need reyna to defend me and the statue."

reyna had an excellent poker face. she studied the group, scanning their faces, but betraying none of her own thoughts. "any objections?"

no one spoke.

"very well," she said, with a finality of a judge. if she had a gavel, karina suspected she would have banged it. "i see no better option. but there will be many monster attacks. i would feel better taking a third person. that's the optimal number for a quest."

"um . . . " karina said hesitantly. "i could go? nico and i could take turned transporting the statue with our teleportation skills— "

"no." a chorus of voices rang out, completely shutting her up.

"you're not leaving me," percy said. "not after i just got you back."

karina sighed, turning to him. "i know, perc', but if that's the only way— "

"coach hedge," frank blurted.

percy stared at him. "uh, what, frank?"

"the coach is the best choice," frank said. "the only choice. he's a good fighter. he's a certified protector. he'll get the job done."

"a faun," reyna said, and karina slapped her knee, giving her a harmless glare. her friends stared in amazement as reyna didn't as much as move at karina's actions— knowing that if it had been anyone else other than her, they would've had a knife pressed against their throat.

"satyr!" barked the coach. "and, yeah, i'll go. besides, when you get to camp half-blood, you'll need somebody with connections and diplomatic skill to keep the greeks from attacking you. just let me go make a call— er, i mean, get my baseball bat."

he got up and shot frank an unspoken message that karina couldn't quite read. despite the fact that he'd just been volunteered for a likely suicide mission, the coach looked grateful. he jogged off toward the ship's ladder, tapping his hooves together like an excited kid.

nico rose. "i should go, too. and rest before the first passage. we'll meet at the statue at sunset."

once he was gone, hazel frowned. "he's acting strangely. i'm not sure he's thinking this through."

"he's not," karina said softly, shaking her head.

"he'll be okay," jason said.

"i hope you're right." she passed her hand over the ground. diamonds broke the surface— a glittering milky way of stones. "we're at another crossroads. the athena parthenos goes west. the argo II goes east. i hope we chose correctly."

karina wished she could say something encouraging, but she felt unsettled. despite all they'd been through and all the battles they'd won, they still seemed no closer to defeating gaea. sure, they'd released thanatos. they'd closed the doors of death. at least now they could kill monsters and make them stay in tartarus for a while. but the giants were back— all the giants.

"one thing bothers me," percy said. "if the feast of spes is in two weeks, and gaea needs the blood of two demigods to wake— what did clytius call it? the blood of olympus?— then aren't we doing exactly what gaea wants, heading to athens? if we don't go, and she can't sacrifice any of us, doesn't that mean she can't wake up fully?"

annabeth shook her head. "percy, prophecies can work both ways," she said. "if we don't go, we may lose our best and only chance to stop her. athens is where our battle lies. we can't avoid it. besides, trying to thwart prophecies never works. gaea could capture us somewhere else, or spill the blood of some other demigods."

karina groaned. "stop being so intellectual, please."

"yeah, you're right," percy said. "i don't like it, but you're right."

the mood of the group became as gloomy as it could ever be, until piper broke the tension.

"well!" she sheathed her blade and patted her cornucopia. "good picnic. who wants desert?"

KARINA LAID FLAT against her bed, staring up at the metal ceiling of her room as she waited for percy to finish showering— she had insisted that he bathed before even stepping one foot onto her bed. she didn't even have to hesitate to say that he reeked. percy had retaliated by trying to throw himself on to her bed, but he seemed to have forgotten how strong his girlfriend was, and she gripped the back of his shirt before he landed on the bed, and basically threw him into her bathroom, locking the door behind him.

as she stared at her ceiling, her mind got lost in her own train of thoughts— dozens of different thoughts and feelings rushing through her mind at a mile a minute, and she couldn't make them stop.

she groaned in frustration, rolling over to her side as she pressed her hands against her forehead, her eyes squeezed shut. she sometimes wished that there could be an off button attached to her brain— and she could shut it up whenever she wanted to. maybe that would also shut dirt face up too, who had been on her mind constantly since she'd escaped the house of hades.

she barely registered the sound of percy exiting the bathroom, and padding across her room until she felt a pair of hands slowly remove her own hands from her face, and she saw the smiling form of percy jackson standing over her— drops of water falling onto her face from his loose strands of hair that fell over his forehead, and his bare chest, which was still dripping with water.

"percy," karina complained, wiping the water off of her forehead. "you're getting water on me."

percy chuckled, leaning down to press a kiss onto her nose. "i mean, i did just take a shower."

"thank the gods," karina mumbled, giving him a disgusted look. "percy, you smelt like absolute crap."

percy rolled his eyes, sitting down beside her. "i'm sorry they didn't have a luxury spa in the middle of hell, karina."

she couldn't help but laugh quietly at the dark humor of his joke, and she sat up, looking at him with a smile.

karina's smile slowly began to fade as her eyes dropped down, trailing over the newly formed cuts and bruises that littered percy's exposed body, her breath catching at the sight of the dark splotches that rose all over his lower abdomen and arms, her heart clenching at the sight. there were claw marks that streaked along his left bicep, and dozens of smaller scratches scattered across his body.

"oh, percy . . . " karina said, her voice filled with sadness as she ran the tips of her fingers gently over the claw marks on his chest, and percy watched her with a look that she couldn't quite figure out.

"hold on," she muttered to herself, and quickly made her way to the bathroom, rummaging through the cabinets for something. she came back a few moments later— and small wooden box with golden vines imprinted along the front of it, and percy watched her carefully as she sat back down in front of him— the box in her lap.

"what is that?" percy asked as she opened the box, revealing a plethora of herbal remedies and plant-based medicines.

"it's kind of like my own personal first aid kit," karina said with a small smile, taking out a small tube of a dark green mixture that percy had no idea what it consisted of.

despite this, percy felt his heart grow warm. "did you make these yourself?"

karina felt her face grow warm, meddling with something inside the box so she didn't seem too flustered. "yeah," she said quietly with a smile. "when i was younger, i used to help the children of apollo in the infirmary whenever i had extra time. and whenever it was empty, they would help me make these special medicines— with their gifted powers of medicine and knowledge, and my gifts with plants— we made some pretty cool things."

percy smiled, and scooted closer to karina, slowly closing down the space between them. "so, what's that one do?" he pointed to the small tube that was in her hand.

"it helps reduce inflammation in scratches," karina explained. "the cuts on your chest are from claws, so they became inflamed around the entry wounds, see— " she proceeded to trace her finger across the marks, and percy wasn't very focused on the knowledge that karina was releasing from her mouth— more distracted by the feeling of her hands on his body. "so this will help to prevent infection."

percy blinked, and absentmindedly shook his head. "reduces flaming. prevents infection. got it."

karina quietly laughed his choice of words, and proceeded to put a small amount of medicine on her finger. she slowly rubbed the ointment over his scars, and percy felt a cooling sensation come over the injured area as it was applied.

percy let out a deep sigh at the relief the cream gave him. "that feels way better."

karina just smiled as she finished up applying the medicine to his chest, and then brought out a small glass bottle of some sort of liquid from the box— essential oil, maybe?

percy studied his girlfriend quizzically as she grabbed his wrist, gently turning his palm upward and applying a small amount of the essential oil onto the back of his wrist.

"rub your wrists together," karina instructed as the sweet smell of fresh lavender clouded his senses.

percy complied and curiously rubbed his wrists against each other, slowly feeling his mind clear as he continued to breathe in the soft fragrance.

"what does this do?" percy asked as karina began to place to medicine back in the box and set it to the side, scooting herself even closer to him.

"it just calms your senses," karina said, pressing a sweet kiss to the corner of his lips. "since i made it myself, it's a little stronger than what mortals sell. mine actually has calming properties infused into it."

"i can tell," percy said, and he felt as if every muscle in his body had loosened, and he was no longer sore. "i feel very relaxed." he sent her a lazy smile, and karina felt her heart race. that smile drove her crazy.

"i'm glad i could help," she teased, and percy's lazy smile just widened.

"but, you know what else would make me feel a lot better," percy began, slowly leaning his face closer to karina's, his smile never fading. "is if you kissed me."

karina gave him a playful smile, her eyes not leaving his. "haven't i already done enough for you?"

percy's felt his mind slowly begin to slip as he stared into the galaxies that were karina's eyes. they were such a complex mix of green and gold, and he found it hard to look away once he started admiring them. he found small specks of gold would scatter from the main pool of gold in the center of her iris, making her eyes even more spectral and beautiful than percy could even begin to explain. and the soft, calming green that consisted of her original eye color was so comforting and gentle, percy knew that one look from those eyes had him pinned down completely.

"i think a little more caring for wouldn't hurt," percy responded with a smile, his eyes still distracted solely on the mantra of color's in karina's eyes.

karina ran her hands along his bare shoulders, feeling his muscles flex under her touch, and she as well found herself becoming lost in the lustful look that percy jackson was admiring her with.

she leaned in and pressed a soft kiss against his lips, feeling herself turn into jelly at the infatuating feeling that she got whenever she kissed percy.

percy's hands slowly and mindfully drifted over and across karina's body, letting himself take in every inch of her that he'd been deprived of for so long. he wanted to savior every opportunity he had to take in what was his— because he never knew when he would have another chance to do it.

percy pulled karina flush against his body, pressing up chest to chest against each other as karina slipped a hand into his half-damp hair, pulling softly on his soft, raven black hair.

she knew how much he loved that.

she felt his hands tighten its grip on her body as she tugged loosely on his hair, and a deep rumble was buried into his chest— and karina almost smirked into the kiss, knowing that he was holding back a sound of pleasure.

as she continued to run her hand through his hair, karina's other hand was preoccupied with tracing down the chiseled curves of percy's stomach, letting her fingers trace along his hard, muscle toned abs. she knew that percy found enjoyment in feeling her run her hands along his body— so she continued to let it run all around the lengths of his upper body, letting her touch affect every move that he made.

percy slowly deepened the kiss, the atmosphere in the room becoming more serious, and less playful. his hands slipped smoothly under the loose fabric of karina's shirt, and he felt her shiver under his touch as he ran his hands over the soft, smooth skin of her waist. his teeth dragged along karina's red, and slightly swollen bottom lip, beckoning her to part her lips so that he could explore deeper within her.

she obliged, and she let out a sound that she wasn't too proud of as she felt percy's mouth completely take over her's— tasting and taking it in, in ways he never had done before. because of this, her hands involuntarily gripped tighter on the sleek strands of percy's hair, pulling and tugging with more force— and he finally released a small, but extremely attractive sound of enjoyment at the feeling.

they both were so inadequately, relentlessly caught up within each other's small, and fully affective touches, that they hardly processed anything around them. they didn't care that they were in the calm before the storm— knowing that the next day would bring forth more troubles and danger that the two of them couldn't even begin to think about.

but, none of it mattered right now. right now, all they needed was each other.

percy's hands gripped the ends of her t-shirt, and he released his lips from her's. "is this okay?"

karina felt as is she could cry at how caring how sounded— his eyes shining with patience as he made sure that she was okay with continuing.

"yes," she said softly, kissing him. "it's okay."

he smiled at her as he slowly began to slide the loose fabric of her shirt off of her body, leaving her in only a white lace bra— and percy felt his breath get caught in his throat at the sight of her scarred, and shamelessly beautiful body. the sight of her took his brain made it feel like it was being piled into mush— his mind too wrapped around how incredibly and unconditionally stunning karina was.

he had never actually thought about how toned karina must've been— even though he had been fully aware of how much work and physical effort she put into her body to be as strong as she was. his eyes moved all over her body, gazing at how how she had a small showing of abs exposed on her lower stomach, and toned lines from working out blessed her skin— making percy have to stop and stare. his eyes fluttered nervously around her upper chest, but as he glanced around her body, and up at her face, he caught glimpses of her perfection— and it completely took the air out of him.

"you're beautiful," percy breathed out, staring up at her as karina smiled with a bright blush coated on her cheeks— obviously not used to anyone but herself seeing her body in ways like this.

his fingers trailed along the multiple scars that radiated beauty all across her body. there were dozens of small nicks and faded cuts, but it was the healed, white, jagged scar that traced from the beginning of her armpit to the top of her collarbone that caught his attention— a memory of when she held onto him and annabeth from falling into the chasm— a reminder of her sacrifice.

his lips began to slowly move back up to her lips, and along the side of her jaw, and her jawline, peppering small, butterfly kisses across it as he slowly made his way down.

karina titled her head to the side so that percy could have better access to where he was kissing, and her hands now held tightly onto the strong muscle of percy's shoulders, feeling the flexing that he was involuntarily doing as he moved his hands along the smooth skin of karina's body.

she felt her eyes flutter shut as percy's lips made contact with the soft, but slightly cut up and scratched skin of her neck and collarbone— the part of her body now being fully exposed to him. she continued to run her hands along the tops of his shoulders and side of his neck, playing with the ends of his hair again as she sighed in a blissful state.

"so pretty," he mumbled against her skin, sending goosebumps through her body. "so fucking pretty."

karina smiled at the hazed words that escaped percy's lips as he continued to kiss her skin— and she realized just how lucky she was to have a man like him in her life.

his lips began to trace down the scar that was inflicted upon her upper body, the one that had most recently healed. the one that caused her the most pain— making karina's heart squeeze at how sensual he was— making her feel so good about her biggest insecurities, making her feel like the highest women in the world.

percy began to experiment with what karina liked, and what she didn't. he noticed that she liked when his hands rubbed up and down against her hips, as if he were caressing them. he saw that she enjoyed whenever ran his thumb over the base of her neck, because he felt her shift slight on top of him, kissing him harder. and he especially noticed that she liked when he kissed, and softly nipped at the tanned and scarred skin just above her collarbone— as he heard her let out a soft sound of pleasure at the feeling.

he thought he might completely shut down at the sound.

"fuck," he whispered against her skin, kissing it again with more reprieve, moving his lips back up towards her lips, where she was staring down at him with a dazed expression shown on her face, both of their breathing becoming irregular.

"i love you, rina," percy mumbled breathlessly
against her lips, his eyes half closed as he was caught up in his own lustful daze. "so much."

karina smiled into the kiss, and pulled back slightly so that she could speak. "i love you, too. always."

percy's eyes twinkled with adoration and he reached a hand up hold the base of her jaw as he placed their lips back against each other's, his thumb rubbing over the base of her throat as he felt her press deeper against him, her lips feeling so soft and pleasurable against his own, that she couldn't help but try and get closer.

percy's breath caught in his throat at the sudden pressure, and he pulled away with a shuddered sound of something that he couldn't even point out.

he swallowed hardly. "watch your hips, rina."

karina's eyebrows furrowed in confusion, not knowing what he was talking about. but when she began to feel something pressing against her, she suddenly gasped— slapping a hand against her mouth.

it took percy a moment to realize that she wasn't holding her mouth because of shock— she was trying to hold in laughter.

"hey!" percy whined as he saw karina start to laugh. "i can't help it!"

karina struggled to breathe, her laughing becoming almost uncontrollable. "s— sorry, i just— " she could barely speak a full sentence before she was bursting back into another fit of giggles.

"it's not funny!" percy complained, but a small laugh escaped him as he said that— contradicting his words.

"it's kind of funny," karina said with a big smile on her face— her cheeks red from laughing so much.

"yeah, it's funny to you," percy said with a slight pout. "because you're the one that caused it!"

karina laughed again, and pressed her forehead against his, smiling deeply at the sight of percy's embarrassed face. "i'm sorry, baby. do you want some help with it?"

percy's eyes widened, and he blinked a few times— not sure that he had heard her correctly. "w— what?"

karina paused for a moment, as if finally realizing what had actually just came out of her mouth.

"i said," karina began to repeat slowly, her playful voice slowly dropping as she regained her wits. her hand began to slowly slide down his toned body, tracing the curves of his abs teasingly. "do you want some help with it?"

percy couldn't speak, and he felt his heart hammering in through his chest as he imagined the things karina could do to him in a matter of seconds— and he felt himself grow tighter at the mere thought of it.

"i— uh," percy stuttered out, unable to form a single coherent thought. he mentally kicked himself. really, percy? you decide you can't speak now?

he could tell karina was holding in another laugh, but her facial expression went against her actions as her hand began to slowly slide over his pants, her fingers toying with the waistband of percy's sweatpants— driving him completely insane.

percy seemed to finally get his mind together, because he nodded quite enthusiastically, swallowing hardly. "y— yes, yeah. i do. a lot."

karina smiled at him, and despite her confident expression— she was basically shitting bricks. she'd never done anything more with make out with someone before— and most of that had been with percy. so, she had no earthly idea where this sudden boldness was coming from— but it was too late to back out now.

and with that, before any of them could be swept into another wave of danger and destruction, they allowed themselves to enjoy each other for once. they deserved to deserve each other. they both knew how much was at stake for both of them after today, and they knew they might never have another chance to be alone so intimately together again— so, for once, they finally did something for themselves.

STARING AT THE sunset was one thing— but staring at it as you know that the world isn't as beautiful as sunsets like these make it out to be— that's a whole another thing.

that's how karina felt as she watched from the top mast as nico tied ropes around the pedestal of the athena parthenos over on the top of the hill— with percy strolling up to him.

after a few minutes, she knew that she had to go say goodbye— knowing that nico, reyna, and coach hedge will be leaving soon. so, she got down from her signature spot and made her way over to the hill to join them. she took percy's hand, which she could tell made him feel better about something him and nico had previously talked about.

she walked forward and wrapped her arms around nico. "good luck, death boy."

nico didn't hug her back, but he didn't push her away, either. "yeah," he told her, looking at her in the eyes. "you too, okay? don't do anything stupid."

karina scoffed. "now when have i ever done that?"

nico rolled his eyes, but she could've sworn she saw a smile flashed over his face. "i'm serious, nina. i don't want the next time i see you to be in the underworld."

karina nodded in agreement. "yeah— i'd rather not go back there yet."

a minute later, reyna and coach hedge arrived in full armor with packs over their shoulders— caelius trailing behind them with more supplies. reyna looked grim and ready for combat. coach hedge grinned like he was expecting a surprise party.

reyna gave annabeth a hug, who had also joined them. "we will succeed," she promised.

"i know you will," annabeth said.

reyna then walked over to karina and engulfed her in the most comforting hug she has ever given her.

"stay safe," reyna whispered in the ear, and karina nodded, swallowing down the nerves that she felt.

"always," karina said back, and leaned away to pat her cheek. "go shoot octavian to the moon for me."

reyna rolled her eyes, but a small smile was present on her face as she turned away to give caelius a hug— who had been whining and groaning for his turn to hug reyna.

coach hedge shouldered his baseball bat. "yeah, don't worry. i'm going to get to camp and see my baby! uh, i mean i'm going to get this baby to camp!" he patted the leg of the athena parthenos.

"all right," said nico. "grab the ropes, please. here we go."

reyna and hedge took hold. the air darkened. the athena parthenos collapsed into its own shadow and disappeare, along with its three escorts.

after that, the argo II sailed after nightfall.

they veered southwest until they reached the coast, then splashed down in the ionian sea. karina could tell that percy was relieved to feel the waves beneath him again.

it would have been a shorter trip to athens over land, but after the crew's experience with mountain spirits in italy, they'd decided not to fly over gaea's territory any more than they had to. they would sail around the greek mainland, following the routes that greek heroes had taken in ancient times.

karina and percy stood at the starboard rail, and percy closed his eyes, sensing the currents beneath them. karina laid her head on his shoulder, wrapping her arms around his bicep— and percy found her warmth reassuring.

"i can't get that place out of my head, karina," percy whispered, leaning his head on hers.

"i know." karina said, her voice fragile. "we'll make gaea pay. we have to beat her."

they stared into the night sky, and she wondered where nico, reyna, and hedge were now, and how long it would take them to make it to camp half-blood— assuming they survived. she imagined the romans— her family— drawing up battle lines right now, encircling camp half-blood.

fourteen days to reach athens. then one way or another, the war would be decided.

over in the bow, leo whistled happily as he tinkered with festus's mechanical brain, muttering something about a crystal and an astrolabe. amidships, piper and hazel practiced their swordplay, gold and bronze ringing in the night. jason and frank stood at the helm, talking in low tones— maybe telling stories of the legion, or sharing thoughts on being praetor.

"we've got a good crew," percy said. "if i have to sail to my death— "

"you're not dying on me, fish face," karina said. "remember? never separated again. and after we get home . . . "

"what?" percy asked.

she kissed him. "ask me again, once we defeat gaea."

he smiled, happy to have something to look forward to. "whatever you say."

as they sailed farther from the coast, the sky darkened and more stars came out.

percy studied the constellations— the ones karina had taught him about.

"bob says hello," he told the stars.

the argo II sailed into the night.

8492 words

ok that's as much smut as y'all are gonna get rn okay🤣 i think i'm incapable of writing any more  ,, at least right now

house of hades is finished !!! that was quite a book wasn't it LOL (i'm sorry ik i rlly put y'all through it) ANWAYS! blood of olympus is the last book and im literally ☹️☹️😐😐 like wtf i started this book yesterday.

BUT I HOPE YALL ENJOYED AND I'LL SEE U IN BLOOD OF OLYMPUS!! (but get ur tissues ready lol)