Annabeth woke up with the crystal clear feeling that something was right.

She felt the back pressed against hers, warm and breathing, and smiled. She wished she could just lay there forever, but she knew. They had to finish this. She had to get her boyfriend back.

The worries and fears still lingered in her like flickering shadows waiting to drag her down. What if Percy came out of this different, or changed? What if this latest interference was what finally pushed him to far? She'd have liked to stay up reading some more, but as soon as Percy had settled asleep she'd been right behind him, even as her mind lingered on Luke. She knew why Percy had seemed quiet, maybe a tad resentful of her yesterday, and it meant the world to her he hadn't pushed her away and slammed the door in her face as she lay on the ocean floor now, replaying her own quest over and over in her head without the aide of his memories.

One too many wrong assumptions on her part had started them off, of course.

The truths at the end of those tunnels still didn't sit right with her some days. Nico finding his sister only for a goodbye. Tyson had found Brairies, only for him to run away. Grover found Pan, but had to let him go. Percy found an incredible power within that almost destroyed him and scared him to abandon everything. She had found Daedalus, only to find he wasn't the savior she needed. They all found truth about the person they admired, known and dreamed most only to find them wrong.

Then it was her turn to accept the truth too. The memories Hestia had given Percy only reinforced that she needed to give her own past a good hard look.

Admitting that she had been wrong about her hero wasn't something she ever thought she could do. It's not easy when one's role model turned out to have a fundamental flaw in their character. It is often worse to lose the idea of them than to lose them to death. She now needed to accept the truth about Luke. She never knew him, only the version of her hero she'd met that first day. She made him her everything without completely knowing him and holding on it for a long time.

She'd held on to the past and lived in the present while planning everything for the future.

And lose a love...to worse than death.

Now that it finally came down to it, the truth that she'd avoided all along didn't hurt as much as she'd feared it would as she rolled over and gently placed her hand on Percy's arm. He slept on, even as he leaned back some and muttered where the sun had gone. She squeezed gently as she began to sit up and his muttering increased while the drool kept his face glued well to the pillow.

She was tempted to let him have his rest and go around to see if the others were awake, she had a feeling she was one of the first ones up, but the second her eyes went to the door, her nails sunk into her boyfriend's arm in protest. She didn't care she told herself it was paranoia, all she felt was the instant fear gripping her tight until she looked back down, and began vigorously shaking him awake.

...

There wasn't much commotion and fanfare as breakfast was had and they all settled in, Percy more eagerly than anyone to hopefully, finally, finish this once and for all. His life at least. He'd feel guilty later they'd have to start all over again when they got to Jason's and it was another long slog of nonsense.

Alex came in last, Magnus noticed as he fiddled with a kabab stick as a very horrible toothpick. She was adjusting a dark pink, full-sleeved popcorn shirt that showed off her midriff, running her hands around in joy over the material as her floor-length green skirt billowed around with a long slit up one side clean up to her hip, showing hints of the pink and green chucks beneath. She yawned her proper pronouns to the others while finishing pulling her hair into a twist on top of her head.

Thalia hadn't let herself be distracted from the important things though. Teasing Percy. "Your mom would be so disappointed in you!" She grinned at him as she read the new title, instantly distracting him and of course causing nothing but interruptions. "You're better than that young man, you can make real friends by sharing common interests."

"How much do I have to pay you to go away?" Percy rolled his eyes.

"You could never afford it," she snorted. "Rachel couldn't afford it!"

"The real friends are the ones you're stuck with along the way," Will snorted.

"Stuck like horse glue," Alex snickered, "do you think Blackjack would be offended by that or love it?"

"Depends entirely on who he's stuck to I'd guess," Percy sighed.

"You, obviously," Alex rolled her eyes while Annabeth swatted at her to get her to start already.

Mrs. O'Leary was the only one happy about the sleeping city.

"Dogs are just like that," Annabeth agreed with joy. "I remember one time I failed my spelling test and I got my dog to jump around with me when I made it a fake A."

Percy grinned at the idea of a five-year-old Annabeth in clothes that fit her, jumping around her furniture with a Doberman twice the size of her barking and bouncing along every step. "What was your dog's name?" He asked, pleased beyond words he could finally ask her something like that casually instead of hoping Magnus would know. Percy had a feeling even if he did, he wouldn't be happy sharing, with his obvious aversion to all dog-shaped things.

"Frostine," Annabeth grinned. "I used to play Candyland with her. She was Queen of the Ice Cream Sea, and my dog's eyes were that shade of blue. Plus, we all know raspberry is the best flavor."

Percy threw his head back and laughed at the painted picture, causing a ripple of the others to join in.

Percy wanted to ask what had happened to her, but Thalia had a sense that's why he leaned forward and seemed eager to continue the conversation, and Thalia started reading loudly to avoid that sad conclusion. Her stepmother had insisted the dog needed to be given up when she became pregnant. It was one of many times Annabeth had sat on her lap and fought back tears she didn't have to anymore as she played with the other homeless teenager's mutts.

... pigging out on a hotdog stand while the owner was sleeping, sucking his thumb.

"Argus was clearly doing a great job," Jason snorted.

"I told him to watch her," Percy shrugged without concern. "As long as he was watching her eat, I guess he's technically still doing his job."

...his face made it clear he was freaking out.

"I would be too," Jason nodded. It was always a cautious, often stressful feeling to move around when others were asleep. He couldn't imagine fighting a whole war around that.

"What about the airport?" Magnus frowned. "And helicopters? I'm surprised you didn't hear those crashlanding by getting to close to Olympus or the pilots falling asleep at the wheel too."

"Hopefully like the cars they just, sunk to the ground nice and slow," but Percy was guessing at best, more than a few fenderbenders had been in sight. In fact the idea made his head hurt quite a lot what he was missing-

Annabeth gave him a little nudge. Just a gentle pressure and release, enough he looked around at her with the same quiet worry in his eyes she was so sorry to see every time.

He smiled at her though. Taking just that breath to appreciate the silence that spoke for them both of being there together before Thalia hastily read on.

... Argus rolled his eyes, which looked psychedelic making his whole body swirl.

"Cool," Alex grinned. "Hey doc, which drugs do I take to make everyone look like that."

"None," Will frowned at her in concern. "Please do not ingest random things Alex."

"Killjoy," she huffed.

'Better than asking which god would curse her eyes to see that,' Magnus kept the thought to himself lest he set it upon Alex's brain.

..."I'm staying," I said. Argus nodded, like this answer satisfied him.

"That was never in question," Thalia rolled her eyes. "He probably wanted to know what you planned on doing."

"Something crazy I'm sure," Percy shrugged.

"Well that went without saying," she snorted.

He looked at Annabeth and drew a circle in the air with his finger.

"To infinite and beyond?" Will scratched at the back of his neck, feeling weird for still being sort of out of the loop even this late in the game, but it's not as if every cabin had run every strategy by him while he'd been doing inventory on how much supplies they had.

..."Whoa," I said. "A video shield."

"I was never really joking about you taking over the planet," Alex told Annabeth. "Now it's just one step closer to being true."

"That is a seriously overpowered thing that would have been nice to have all this time," Magnus said, "but I'm guessing the CIA's going to show up here in a second and confiscate it too, so," he trailed off with a deeply concerned look that his cousin might be on a few watch lists right along with Percy.

"I didn't have Deadulus's laptop all this time," Annabeth reminded. "And, um, well, Beckendorf had a few mistakes before he got it working right. That thing that might have exploded camp if he didn't keep an eye on it, yeah, good chance it was a prototype of this."

... You can see any target, as long as natural light is touching it."

"You have a gods eye view," Jason savored the words on his tongue. Words that felt powerful right down to his core, it made him feel lightheaded for a moment.

"I wonder if we can use it to spy on Hollywood, see what the next blockbuster is shooting today," Percy grinned, before he oofed as Annabeth elbowed him. "But yeah, Kronos too, obviously importante'," he finished with a strange, bad Spanish accent at the end.

... The image zoomed and spun at first, so I got motion sickness just watching it.

Thalia turned verdant at the mere idea and knew she'd never be very good at using this thing.

...Connor grinned at his brother. "... everyone is asleep. You thinking what I'm thinking?"

Percy threw back his head with laughter he'd tried his very hardest to suppress at the time, so they knew at least he was thinking what Connor was thinking.

"Connor!" Katie Gardner scolded. She sounded like her mother, Demeter.

"Isn't it so fascinating and impressive how we can emulate our parents, oftentimes when spending no significant development around them," Jason said in a whistful kind of voice, obviously a thought bubble that had been in his head long before this. It popped quite suddenly as he glanced at Thalia, and then grimaced at the idea of Beryl and Zeus/ Jupiter/ if he thought about it to long it gave him a splitting migraine because all he could pull together was Mrs. O'Leary but he knew that wasn't right!

"Not so much," Alex's tone was mild, but Magnus heard the stony anger layering beneath. He watched her for a few extra moments and saw with her hair pulled up like that, there was something on the back of her neck. He would have leaned in to get a closer look if it wouldn't have been super obvious.

"This is serious. You are not going to loot a candy store in the middle of a war!"

"Both sentences could coexist," Percy told her with a tragic frown. He'd only restrained himself at the time telling her because of responsibility and leadership and whatever.

"Oh I'm sure they did," Nico rolled his eyes. Hermes might have broken out of his murdery/ sad funk over Luke to praise those two for their priorities.

"Sorry," Connor muttered, but he didn't sound very ashamed.

"Yeah, I got that too," Annabeth sighed, making them all chuckle she was as aware as anybody no scolding had stalled many hands.

..."Thank you, Argus. Hopefully we'll see you back at camp, someday."

"Because that's not ominous at all," Thalia frowned at her. Obviously it was a dire situation, but that was just bleak.

"Ominous is what I voted Percy and Annabeth name their firstborn," Will smirked.

Percy choked on air and might have exploded on a blush while Annabeth gave him A Look that kept him silent for a bit as Thalia kept going.

...I hoped that meant Sure I do! And not, Do you have more hot dogs?

"Both?" Alex of course had to play up the previous joke.

"Both," Magnus all to happily agreed.

"Both!" The two cheered before snickering.

...Mrs. O'Leary gave me a sloppy wet kiss, which seemed kind of unnecessary.

"Entirely disagree," Will gave Percy a grin. Percy didn't have nearly as strong a look as Annabeth to keep him shut up, but he wished he did as Will continued, "and I'm sure it all depends who the kiss is from too."

"Will," Annabeth sounded more exasperated than stern while Percy tried to strangle his own chagrin. "Stop teasing him."

"Well you're no fun," Will huffed before flashing a grin same as her.

"And it's not going to happen Annabeth, he's been free game this whole time," Thalia shrugged.

"I know," she sighed. Mostly she was just jealous still she wasn't here for it all.

... "When did you learn about magic?" ... "I don't spend all my time on my wardrobe."

"Only like, fifty percent," Thalia nodded seriously.

"Imagine how dangerous this girl would be if she wore sweatpants one day," Alex snorted.

Magnus was still lagging a few sentences backwards wondering about the intricacies of this magic spell. Would he have fallen asleep? He assumed he wasn't strictly mortal anymore, but he didn't assume he was half Greek either.

... Annabeth shifted the scene south to the harbor...

"Who got the short straws of coming via water?" Thalia looked pained at these pawns. It's like Kronos wasn't even trying.

"Or he's trying to make it so Percy can't be everywhere at once," Jason said shrewdly. While Percy went down to deal with two simultaneous attacks, the rest of Camp would have to fight without him.

... Sherman tank, pushing cars out of its way as it rumbled into the tunnel.

"Why does everyone get a tank besides me?" Percy sighed. "We should at least get something as cool. Like monkeys on horses, or the gargoyles coming to help. I'll take dinosaurs with machine guns!"

"Ninja Turtles to the rescue, Spiderman!" Alex agreed with enthusiasm. "There's so many awesome guys based out of New York, and Percy's all you guys got!"

Percy looked around in annoyance even when Alex agreed with him it felt like a slight.

"Well now you're just asking for to much Percy," Jason said with a faint smile. "Would have been better off asking for another sand dollar."

... cars were moving at one mile per hour. Birds flew overhead in slow motion.

"Wow," Alex murmured. The idea did not sit well with her that the gods could combine their might and do this to the whole world if they ever wished. The kind of power that needed to be reminded every once in a while they could be toppled. Also one of the reasons she liked Percy so much.

..."I don't know." Annabeth sounded really frustrated. She hated not knowing.

"Can you even imagine a time before Google though," Annabeth sounded just as annoyed now. "All those great experts expected to figure everything out because they were the first in untested waters, and half of them probably figured it out without their lives being threatened."

Percy agreed she was one of the greats who had managed that and just nodded he almost understood the idea. Being the only child of the Big Three around camp was as close as he could imagine.

... "Like flies in amber," Jake Mason murmured.

Magnus was really worried for one second that if one more person even made a vague Jurassic Park reference they really were going to get a T-Rex in this, but he waved that off as just pessimistic thinking.

Annabeth nodded. "We shouldn't expect any help coming in."

Maybe not from the way she expected, but how about up? Nico thought to himself with a faint smile. He really hoped when they got to that part Percy wouldn't start freaking out about the zombie apocalypse and see him as a threat too, even for a second.

... There were forty of us. And we were alone.

Percy and his friends had always been alone on nearly every quest they traveled, relying only on themselves and the occasional godly intervention. The weight of that didn't hit as hard on Annabeth as it might have some of the other campers as she'd looked to Percy, addressing them all. She'd been lucky, in one sense, having more experience than some of those guys older than her.

..."We're going to hold Manhattan."... "Um, Percy, Manhattan is huge."

Annabeth swallowed the traitorous, painful knot in her throat as she wondered if Silena was pointing that out to discourage them. If she'd wanted them to surrender to Luke's side without a fight.

If Silena had thought they'd consider that for even a second, she'd been more delusional than Annabeth herself in her youth.

... cut off entrances to the island." "They have boats," Michael Yew pointed out.

"You have a Percy," Magnus snorted. He'd been flinging them around in here like plankton without even trying. He had complete confidence Percy could snap his fingers and deal with those boats.

The problem would arise when he looked at the kids on those boats, and how willing he'd be to disarm them. Nobody was going to sit around and tell Percy what the right answer to that was going to be.

Percy grinned in thanks. He did have a pretty good gut feeling that went well enough, which was always a good omen. They probably didn't have many of those left.

...Suddenly I understood Athena's advice: Remember the rivers.

"She was, warning you to guard from all sides?" Alex raised a brow. It seemed obvious advice to her, not something a wisdom goddess would fill the need to emphasize. She couldn't think Percy was That Dumb, or that her own daughter wouldn't consider such things.

Percy no longer had that sand dollar in place, but he ran his hand curiously over his beaded necklace all the same.

"I'll take care of the boats," I said. Michael frowned. "How?"

"I can't believe he questioned that," Thalia scoffed.

"I don't think he was around that day I threatened to throw a river at you," Percy grinned as he glanced at Will, who nodded in silent agreement. Percy turned back to Thalia to fast to see his smile slipping away. "I'm sure some of the guys around there think what we can do gets exaggerated," Percy's grin was tinged with an adrenaline rush fueled by the end. His nerves were almost tingling with excitement. He was ready, he was excited to hear about the chaos he'd bring on these monsters who threatened his home.

...Michael, take Apollo's cabin to the Williamsburg Bridge.

Will would bet one of his kidneys Micheal had been proud to be the first cabin named. That his older brother had puffed up his chest and grinned that same maniac smile Percy just had at being the first option to come to Percy's mind. He couldn't be mad, he couldn't even hold onto as much sadness as he knew would come soon enough when the results were plastered all over that page in blood. He just managed a proud smile for his siblings too for that moment.

...And no stopping for pillaging!" "Awwww!" the whole Hermes cabin complained.

"Percy just being a complete killjoy aside," Alex chuckled, "can we rewind back to the part where you decided to split that entire cabin in half?" She knew there were more kids in there than the others, but it still surprised her there were enough to split forces like that.

She only remembered as the comment left her mouth though that the unclaimed kids would have been in that category too. Any child that might have gone with any other cabin, or just not known where to go period also would have fallen in line with them. Gods, wouldn't that be a mess of a feeling? Loki had given her exactly two good things, an identity she could choose to ignore, and her shapeshifting. To not have that as she fought for her life was not an idea she easily pondered.

..."No delays," I said. "Well, the perfume thing, if you think it'll work."

"I'm impressed you knew that was a perfume," Annabeth admitted, the brand hadn't rung any of her bells.

"Well I didn't assume they were sniffing purses," Percy shrugged.

Six Aphrodite girls kissed me on the cheek in excitement.

"Like, all at once in a flash mob, or did they form a line?" Thalia asked in mild concern if Annabeth had started stabbing her own troops before Silena got the chance.

"They formed a line," Percy frowned, "I should have charged them, one of them got way to close to my mouth."

"Drew's always wanted her chance," Annabeth grumbled.

"I'm over here offended for the Hermes kids!" Alex was still snickering. "You just gave this lot permission to go raiding their favorite store, but a few innocent water balloons filled with greek fire go missing and you're going to disaprove?"

"Depends how relevant that thieving is," Percy rolled his eyes. "No monsters going to blink at having a nice watch chucked in their face unless Tyson made it."

"I'm sure Rollex will get right on that design flaw," Alex chuckled.

...We've got a score to settle. For Beckendorf!" The whole cabin roared in approval.

Percy was flooded with the same sense of admiration as when he first saw that, those boys and girls who hadn't even hesitated to dive into what had gotten his friend killed by following his lead. He wondered if Nico were there, would he be so cavalier about following one of Percy's plans? Or would he be frowning in disapproval and trying to come up with his own ideas that would get him thrown in another cell under Hades's palace. He almost couldn't blame him as Bianca's ghost shimmered to mind right alongside Beckendorf's. How many more were going to join after today?

...Clarisse wasn't here. The whole Ares cabin, curse them, was sitting back at camp.

"She's not even there and she's out here ruining your day," Nico nodded.

"Girl strives for perfection at everything I guess," Percy scowled. He wasn't even sure how she would have responded upon being there. While she'd handed over the reigns to Annabeth without question during that quest, and she'd mellowed out quite a lot since dating Chris who also wasn't there, he just had that feeling like she would not have gone along quietly with wherever he assigned her cabin without some remark.

"We'll take that," Annabeth stepped in, saving me from an embarrassing silence.

"Woman's great at many a things, but that's definitely what she's best at," Magnus snorted.

Annabeth grinned with pride and gave her cousin a grateful nod while Percy didn't bother arguing the point. He'd just assumed Annabeth would be by his side during the battle, delegating her siblings hadn't even crossed his mind.

... Hold that position. I'll go with Percy," she said.

"You really shouldn't be wasting your breath right now guys, there's going to be enough trees torn down over in the battery tunnel in a second," Jason snorted.

Annabeth gave him a little smirk and promised, "I'll plant a few extra seeds when we get home to make up for it."

..."No detours, you two." There were some giggles, but I decided to let it pass.

"Somebody get this guy a safety vest, he'll make a great crosswalk guard one day," Will nodded at him.

"That was you, wasn't it?" Percy frowned in vague recognition of the voice before puberty made it crack.

"No," Will blinked innocently, a look that Percy couldn't quite decide how much he believed.

..."Keep in touch with cell phones." "We don't have cell phones," Silena protested.

Annabeth's brain still couldn't seem to stop itself overanalyzing everything she'd said and done. Had she not wanted to keep communication open? Why would she draw attention to herself at the idea? Silena was one of the few at camp that did have a cell phone and everyone knew it, she and Beckendorf had gotten a plan together for her birthday.

Though now that she thought about it, Annabeth hadn't seen it recently. She wondered if she'd tried to flush the thing away after the explosion.

...pick up a random phone and call. Use it, drop it, then borrow another...make it harder for the monsters to zero in on you."

Jason didn't, considering monsters were going to be crawling literally all over the city in moments, but he wasn't going to argue the point. He held his tongue and would not be the one to take away a second of hope.

..."No, you can't keep it," I said. "Aw, man."

"You might as well go over and stomp on him already Percy, ruining this boy's day," Alex chuckled.

"I'm sure you and the Stolls will make me regret my morals someday," Percy rolled his eyes.

...A tank and a hundred monsters were marching through that tunnel, and I'd positioned our forces everywhere else.

"The obvious strategic move, they'll never see that coming," Thalia laughed. She'd clearly gotten there at the perfect time to also save his butt. She and Annabeth could make matching shirts out of that one day.

...I'd never been happier to hear anyone in my life.

"Yes!" Thalia cheered by doing an actual fist pump before jabbing a finger at Annabeth, her fingers still crackling with unused power. "Take that you little nerd! I'd never get him to admit that out loud!"

"Yeah, yeah," Percy twirled his wrist around in mock agreement. "Thalia saves the day again, another story at eleven about gas prices going up, change the channel already."

"Well it's no fun if you agree Percy," Thalia huffed while Percy smirked that had not only been the point, but Annabeth could stop muttering about her sister calling her a nerd again.

...A pack of white timber wolves around their feet, hunting falcons on their arms.

"Thalia's back," Alex said pointedly in case anybody missed that. Though if somebody was actually sleeping in here it really was on them.

"And she didn't even threaten to shoot any of us, it was a great day," Will rolled his eyes.

... skull earrings, and Death to Barbie T-shirt ...Barbie with an arrow through its head.

"No, no, now Thalia's back," Percy snorted.

"Yes, thank you for picking me out of the crowd I was in front of, your genius levels of perception go unmatched once again," Thalia scoffed.

...The daughter of Zeus grinned. "The Hunters of Artemis, reporting for duty."

Jason grinned. He was still kind of, sort of hurt Thalia had never told him what she suspected the truth to be about even a sliver of where he came from, but that didn't stop his glow of pride that this was his sister. A badass with a title like that she didn't even need to back it up, rallying in for the backup Percy had always needed in times like this.

Thalia saw that grin and smiled hesitantly back. Even knowing she'd messed up, she didn't know how she'd go back and fix it, but it was a nice feeling for a second that they could still move forward.

...they didn't shoot any of us, which for them was a pretty warm welcome.

"We were even invited back to Camp for showing such restraint," Thalia grinned in agreement.

"Spoiler alert Camp still exists I guess," Percy rubbed at his temple but still smiled anyways as he repressed a shiver. Gods he wished this day was over with already, he was so sick of having a constant headache over things that should have felt as natural as the rainfall.

...long story. I bet my adventures were more dangerous than yours, Jackson."

"Still willing to hedge that bet?" Percy smirked.

"You spent a few weeks in the Labyrinth, don't get me started on my months," Thalia nodded. "What exactly are you willing to cough up?"

Percy opened his mouth, the two absolutely would have started sitting around gambling money neither of them probably even had until Annabeth got their attention in fond exasperation.

..."After this is over: cheeseburgers and fries at that hotel on West 57th."

"What is it with you two and cheeseburgers?" Jason chuckled, still sounding a little awkward, but also leaning forward eagerly in his seat to be included. "Other food groups exist you know."

"And they can all go on a good cheeseburger," Percy nodded as if he'd agreed.

"Putting two things between a bun doesn't make a cheeseburger Percy," Thalia rolled her eyes. "I crave meat and cheese!"

"Sure it does," Percy was winding up for another fight already and Annabeth looked ready to pull her hair out. "Had this chicken parmesan leftovers the other night I put between two brioche buns," he paused and gave a chef's kiss. "Master Italian Burger."

"Can I disagree?" Nico frowned.

"Chicken makes it a chicken sandwich not a burger you bottom feeder! And if you put marinara anywhere near me without cheese sticks I'll smother you," Thalia huffed.

"Okay food police," Magnus laughed, "you two are making me hungry already and we've just started."

Jason and Nico exchanged exasperated looks they'd been accidentally ignored in those two over there, but had a quick muttered conversation to resolve this by making them give a cook off later. They could argue over a grill all they liked as long as they got to reap the rewards.

... I had a feeling the Lincoln Tunnel would be safe for now.

"Just a feeling, a hunch really, a barely flickering lightbulb," Thalia nodded sagely as she tapped the side of Percy's head.

He swatted her away and called her a few things that would have made Aegis cringe.

...I tried not to feel like this was the last time I'd ever see them all together.

"Well thanks Percy, now we're all thinking that," Alex said with an awkward smile. She'd never even met those kids and she knew they weren't all going to make it to the next camp bonfire.

Her tone wasn't light, exactly, she wasn't making fun of Percy, she was just being a smartass. Like she would have been had she actually been there and knew same as him that would be the last thing they'd hear from her.

...Fight bravely, and we will win." I raised Riptide and shouted, "FOR OLYMPUS!"

"Nice speech," Annabeth placed her hand on his shoulder.

He waited for her to follow that up with, 'for a seaweed brain' or something, but when she didn't he sat up straight in his seat. He put his hand over hers and wondered if this was how Zeus felt all the time being on top of the world.

...the cheer died quickly in the silence of ten million sleeping New Yorkers.

Percy had never been a fan of silence. Sitting around waiting in hard plastic chairs for the teacher or principal to come yell at him. The disappointed silence when even his mother couldn't say a nice thing about why he'd been expelled this time. The long, absent silences when Annabeth either couldn't, or wouldn't talk to him.

This silence felt deeper. He already knew a predator was waiting in the next shadow for them all. The cheer from his friends followed by the deep, ear piercing night was like something right out of a horror film, and he was walking right into the final act. He glanced at Annabeth and worried with a deep fear he couldn't wait to shake how they made it out of this.

...would've had our pick of cars, but they were all wedged in bumper-to-bumper traffic.

Annabeth frowned that felt like some kind of metaphor in there for her past if she'd ever had the whim to draw one. This section of Percy's life had started with him and Rachel cruising down an open stretch of beach without a care in the world. Her? She got to pass her dream car of a 1967 Chevy Impala, it's fender in ruins, she hadn't even gotten a chance to look at the hood! While she and Percy were racing to end another world ending disaster. Again.

...maybe Morpheus had the power to put engines to sleep as well.

"That, hurts my brain," Magnus said, each word clearly a pain.

"We really haven't had any major instances of the gods toying with our machinery," Alex agreed, tapping her chin in fascination. "Hephaestus obviously benefits from it, but hasn't interfered with it has he?"

"I imagine they all have mixed feelings about each new thing invented," Annabeth grinned. Hermes was probably offended at the idea of ATM's because it made thieving just a bit harder. Zeus had probably made global warming increase by accident he'd be so happy about a lightbulb being invented. She'd tried asking her mom on an Olympus field trip once how she felt about the sowing machine and she'd given her a look of such mixed emotions she'd felt the need to hide under her cap before waiting around for an answer.

...With any luck, I'd be able to return his scooter... because the city would be destroyed.

"You get credit for the consideration though," Will still said in delight the thought even crossed his mind. Connor and Travis probably would have tried to smuggle that into their backpack in parts.

"Where did you even learn to ride a Vespa?" Magnus asked rather than imagining his cousin clinging to Percy's back on it. "I didn't question you on Ares's motorcycle-"

"What? When?!"- Annabeth tried to interrupt.

"- because, godly machine, whatever, intuitive, but this?"

"Same deal as a motorcycle man, like you said. Just, hold down the lever thingy, twist the twisty part, and it goes," Percy shrugged.

"Lever thingy?" Annabeth groaned, for now distracted from her cousin not able to shut his trap about a mission Clarisse wouldn't want her to know about. "It's called a clutch Percy! Gods seaweed brain, how did you not get us killed?"

"I don't need to know the names of all the parts to get from A to Z Wise Girl," Percy rolled his eyes.

"It's A to B, gods," she groaned.

Percy had never struggled to see the family resemblance here and was actually amused it seemed to be growing more pronounced the longer they were around each other again.

I drove with Annabeth behind me holding on to my waist.

Alex could not let that one pass without a wolf whistle, of course, but Percy didn't care. Everybody in the room might as well have fallen asleep around him as he smiled at the memory of how warm she'd been as she'd held on without hesitation and put the helmet on while glaring at him as she buckled it up. He'd heard her grumbling about this model's gas intake and how she wished she had time to make modifications all the way down the street.

...as if New York had turned into a giant electronic aviary.

"Never get tired of your visuals Perce," Nico said with a grin.

"I'd say any time, but I'm not going to lie, I'm looking forward to every one of you getting out of my head," Percy shrugged.

... turned out there was no baby, just a sleeping poodle. We parked it safely and kept on.

The acts of general kindness did surprise them. Will felt like hugging the pair. They were in the middle of bracing for a war and still taking the time to show why they'd won, how everybody had come together at the end without even realizing they were doing it.

... a writing quill in one hand and a big metal sheet of parchment in the other.

Alex narrowed her eyes and had a nice long rant about Abraham Lincoln ready to go if anybody gave her half a chance. The president that made her believe in politics and voting and how a good deed could still be layered with bad history.

"Why do we care about," I squinted at the name on the pedestal. "William H. Steward?"

"That's why Mr. D called me that one time," Will popped the side of his head. "I never knew he was calling me someone famous!"

"Will, I worry about you," Nico looked at him strangely for somehow managing to remember all the variations of his name the god had called him.

"That's nice," he chuckled.

...a New York governor. Minor demigod, son of Hebe, I think. That's not important.

"Bet it was important to him," Jason frowned. That was probably the most notoriety a child of Hebe had ever gotten. Percy probably didn't even know who Juventas was.

..."Don't tell me he's an automaton," I said.

"Where did you get that idea from?" Magnus asked in instant dread while Nico swallowed a new pit of disgust. He probably had his own collection of kidney stones by now from the heavy feeling in him every time they were mentioned around here.

"The way she looked at it, you'll learn that expression quick," Percy sighed. Her gray eyes lit with excitement to examine something, the weariness and way she angled herself to draw her knife at a moment's notice. Like approaching a wild animal raised by people. She might have a good idea what she was doing, but didn't assume it was harmless.

...Daedalus planted them here just in case he needed an army."

"Why?" Magnus's voice cracked with pain as he said that right from his soul.

"I was thinking the same thing," Percy agreed way to casually after a statement like that.

"To attack Olympus or defend it?" Annabeth shrugged. "Either one.

"That's not a shrugging kind of statement Annabeth!" Magnus yelped.

"I'm sorry Magnus," Annabeth said it like she actually meant it too.

"Don't feel to bad," Thalia shook her head as she grinned at Magnus's familiar look of constipation. "He freaks out like that over everything."

"I think hearing the smartest guy alive ever made an army for an ambiguous reason is worthy of some freaking out!" He protested.

"Yeah, but like, also, eh," Percy shrugged. "We have bigger things to worry about."

"No! No eh!" Magnus couldn't hold a scowl, he was to tired of dealing with this.

"Our little fruit cake, always keeping us in perspective of what normal people should freak out over," Alex helpfully added while Magnus looked at her in tragic betrayal because he couldn't deny a word of that while his cousin was still smiling a happier look than he'd ever dreamed she'd have with the miserable life he'd been hearing of her; so he decided to let it go too.

..."Uh-huh," I said. We'd had our share of bad experiences with them.

"I'd like it on record I'm on Magnus's side here with the particular shrugging off of what you're doing," Nico raised his hand.

"Duly noted," Thalia nodded her head fairly like the good child of a leader she sometimes acknowledged she was. "Any other objections before we move on to what happened, opinions be damned?"

Silence was her answer, and Nico and Magnus exchanged looks at being trapped in here with this group of nut jobs.

"You're seriously thinking about activating it?"

"I never question if Annabeth is seriously thinking about anything," Will admitted. "If the idea crosses her mind I just assume she's willing to do it."

"That's terrifying," Percy finally said like the situation called for, and all because he could now never again assume Annabeth didn't have a plan rolled up her sleeve to over-analyze the menu in food section groups.

... Annabeth said. "Hello, William."

"Bill," I suggested.

"Bill, oh, shut up," Annabeth told me.

"See if I ever try to help you again," Percy grinned.

"Yes, I'll wait with bated breath in fear of that day," she nodded.

... There had to be hundreds, maybe thousands.

"No, no, no, no," Magnus seemed stuck on a loop like that until Alex patted his shoulder, breaking him out enough to splutter, "this is how apocalypses get started!"

"Kind of already in one," Percy shrugged. "End of days, reaping of souls on the horizon, etc."

Magnus looked mildly apologetic, but not enough to actually say he was sorry his cousin was creating one while the other was in progress. Was he the only one who noticed she'd yet to mention how to turn them back off?!

... where the Hudson and East Rivers came together and emptied into the bay. 

"Wait here," I told Annabeth.

"As opposed to waiting in some other cliche location for her lost lover to return that isn't a beach?" Alex shook her head at Percy. "For shame, why would you ruin such banality?"

"Alex," Percy spluttered in pain.

Annabeth tossed her hair over her shoulder and sniffed, "I'm no one's damsel, thank you."

"Fair enough," Alex bobbed her head in agreement while Percy was glad to skip past whatever the heck had just happened.

...unless you can breathe underwater?" She sighed. "You are so annoying sometimes."

"Only sometimes?" Percy asked with mild hope in his voice. That sounded better than her thinking him a coward at all times.

"Like the times he doesn't offer to make water cacoons for you?" Jason agreed it felt like Percy wasn't trying his hardest here, he'd throw a fit too.

"Yes, like those," Annabeth gestured impatiently at him while frowning at Percy. He knew she hated to be left out.

Percy gave Jason a dislikeable look. He had enough to concentrate on without splitting his attention.

"Like when I'm right?

"Yes, every damn time you're right," Annabeth sighed.

Thalia snorted, hard, as she tried to keep reading around the joke she had no idea she'd just made. More like every dam time.

...I'm all invincible and stuff." Annabeth didn't look convinced.

Percy tried not to feel to hurt. He'd feel the same way if she walked off and left him behind to handle something. He knew they worked better together.

... I don't want anything to happen to you. I mean, because we need you for the battle."

"You are strictly used as a weapon only, no other traits applicable," Alex said in a crappy robot voice.

"Yes, creator," Percy almost managed to say with a blank face and monotone voice before they broke out laughing.

...the water still probably makes you have mutant children when you grow up.

Thalia made a few grumbling complaints about human pollution Percy couldn't blame her for. He didn't have to be attached to some nature god to feel the same. Being immune to the water was probably the only thing that saved him from floating in a pool of muck and trash. It was disgusting, and just kind of sad to see something connected to Pan that was barely visible for what it should be.

... "I heard you guys are so polluted you're embarrassed to show your faces. Is that true?"

"I just heard it live," Jason sighed, making sure the others didn't miss it. "It didn't even cross his mind to say hey, mind having a chat guys? Nope, just straight to the insults!"

Percy mock-cleaned out his ears and looked around. "Sorry sparky, you say something?"

"Don't waste insults you were clearly saving up for Thalia, that's just lazy Percy," Jason rolled his eyes.

"Thank you for answering your own interruption," Percy nodded like nothing had happened as he watched Thalia.

... the East is more toxic, but the Hudson smells worse. Or is it the other way around?"

"Definitely the other way around," Alex added in helpfully as if she had a clue what she was talking about. "In some meanings, Hudson means Son of Hudd, and that just sounds like a gross profession." Percy had already known full well who his second pick would be next time he needed to tick off a god, but it was still nice to have it confirmed in moments like this as he nodded his thanks.

... these were New York river gods. I figured their instinct would be to get in my face.

"It always fascinates me how Percy knows so perfectly well everything about New York but generally doesn't act anything like I think they would," Will said.

"Don't stereotype my civilians," Percy said in a posh kind of voice like he was ruler of New York. Possibly including the gods? Will knew he was overthinking a goofy joke, but he couldn't help it.

...looked disturbingly like a telkhine.

...chain-mail coat made of bottle caps and plastic six-pack holders.

"Nope, nope, nope, nope," Magnus seemed all geared up and ready to get stuck in that loop again. For some reason Percy pissing off nature gods still seemed to surprise him. Or maybe it was just the description of a homeless person at the bottom of a river. Annabeth would assume the latter.

She spoke in a calm, soothing voice, "I always love the variety of how the gods make themselves appear however they want. It's so, unique, like a reflection of mortals and how we all look different."

"I don't think they'd like that take very much," Magnus looked around at his cousin with an amused smile, breaking him out of his funk at least. "Most of them don't seem to like us much, I can't imagine why," he concluded with a significant look at Percy.

Annabeth just gave him a sad smile he seemed to be lumping himself into 'their' category, as if his life were already doomed.

..."Are you trying to get yourself killed, kid? Or are you just extra stupid?"

"Actually neither, for once," Thalia chuckled.

Percy looked around at her why she couldn't ever give him something that wasn't a backhanded compliment?

..."Or what? You'll throw another garbage barge at me?"

"Another?" Magnus sighed, already knowing he was alone in that and still wondering anyways how many disasters were blamed on gods just having pissing contests with each other.

..."The kid's right," East snarled. "Let's both kill him, then we'll fight each other."

"Have I mentioned how glad I am you just think I'm annoying when I'm right?" Percy sighed. He'd been pretty sure this would be their reaction and was still a little put out they'd decided to kill him over just trying to get their attention.

"You should mention it more," Annabeth said helpfully.

...a chunk of glass hit my chest and should've killed me, but shattered against me.

Annabeth rubbed at her chest and glared at Percy. She didn't care that even without that curse he likely would have been fine, healing before he even came back to the surface. She didn't even care that rationally, it was just a joke as Jason made a very obvious checkmark on an imaginary peace of paper and Percy laughed it off.

She still wanted to strangle him for nearly dying on her. Again.

The two river gods stared at me.

"Son of Poseidon?" East asked.

I nodded.

"Did he think you were down there talking to him with a really good snorkel?" Will snorted.

"I don't think that kind of thing occurs to gods much," Jason shrugged. Man did he feel luckier every day Oceanus seemed to have some sense of who was down here.

..."We could electrocute him," Hudson mused. "If I could just find some jumper cables—"

"Always appreciate cultivating that creative side," Alex chuckled.

"Don't worry, jumper cables were already on the list," Thalia promised Percy their growing list of items to be kept away from Alex in all emergencies was steadily growing in pages.

..."Why should we?" Hudson grumbled. "So they invade Olympus. What do we care?"

Nico still remembered Hera's awful words stinging right underneath his skin. She'd claimed her family was safe. Yet her family didn't seem to give much of a ghosts fart about her. He was sure if he shoved this paragraph up her nose she'd just turn him into a butterfly or something next, but the idea was still pretty tempting to make her hear how her words made others feel.

"Because I can pay you." I took out the sand dollar my father had given me for my birthday.

Magnus opened his mouth, raising one finger with a very confused face.

The river gods' eyes widened.

'Answers that question,' he shrugged and dropped his hand. He wouldn't assume other water godly beings would care much, but he listened curiously for the explanation.

... "That sand dollar's mine, unless you want me to let all those ships cross the Hudson."

"Is that all friendship costs these days?" Will asked with a tragic face. "One whole sand dollar?"

"And what should the common, going rate be? According to you?" Nico grinned. His dad would hopefully loan him the money this time if he said it wasn't helping that Son of Posideon.

Will contemplated it for a second before deciding, "gosh, at least a whole nickel."

Causing a good laugh around the whole room that was sorely needed.

...A ripple of fresh water spread from the break, as if pollution were being dissolved.

It wasn't a great explanation, Magnus was still internally grumbling. Posideon was more powerful, obviously, got that, but the implication here was still that he might have the power to fix this and just, wasn't? With a measly dollar of sand at his disposal! Magnus's head still kind of hurt, but he felt like he'd already used up his quota for being 'adorably annoying' for the day and they'd only just had breakfast an hour ago.

...Hudson snapped his fingers. "Bunch of hellhounds just took a dive."

"Don't love the implication here he can just, murder sea creatures," Magnus couldn't stop himself making a face and saying anyways.

"Same," Nico tucked his coat tighter around himself. "I'm also back wondering what a council of all the sea gods would look like and there just aren't enough Percy's to even make that go well without a war."

Percy sighed and glared at the ceiling. What on earth had possessed his dad and Oceanus and any god to think that putting a bunch of ADHD kids the task of reading these in any sane length of time would go well was not in his frame of understanding.

..."They always think that'll save them, don't they?" They both laughed, dissolving away.

Back on the shore,

Thalia couldn't finish that without a little wince though as she glanced at Percy too but chose to keep her thoughts to herself. It disturbed her a bit though, that killing those half-bloods hadn't even been a blip on Percy's mind, that he'd had no hesitation in telling the gods to destroy those vessels and they had without mercy. Percy toeing the line of godhood was not something she'd ever wanted to hear about up close, but this was just one of many decisions that he'd have to shirk off as he waged into the worst.

Annabeth was talking on her phone, but hung up as soon as she saw me looking shaken.

"Can't have one decent moment of something just plain good happening," Will lamented as he shifted around in his spot in more agitation than Nico had ever felt from him.

Will hoped that Percy had spent time jumping from bridge to bridge, helping out for pages and other side quests and adventures before he circled back to where Micheal was. He'd know, the entire time in the back of his mind what was waiting anyways, but he'd still like to leave his brother alive even in memory as long as he could get away with.

...Percy, the monster leading the enemy, it's the Minotaur."

"Dun, dun, dun?" Alex snorted in surprise.

"Not a cliffhanger I'd ever expect to get much attention," Thalia chuckled too as she got up to hand the book to Nico.

"You slayed that thing when you had no clue what you were doing," Magnus tried to chuckle in levity. "This will be nothing!"

Nico took the book without even looking at Thalia as Will tensed so tight beside him like a good poke would snap him in half.