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Part one. Chapter seven.

An exorcism ? Coming right up !

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Piper couldn't explain how she knew.

Stories of phantoms and tortured souls had always freaked her out. Her dad used to joke about Grandpa Tom's Cherokee legends from back on the rez, but even at home in their big Malibu mansion, looking out over the Pacific, whenever her dad recounted the ghost stories for her, she could never get them out of her head.

Cherokee spirits were always restless. They often lost their way to the Land of the Dead, or stayed behind with the living out of sheer stubbornness. Sometimes they didn't even realize they were dead.

The more Piper learned about being a demigod, the more convinced she was that Cherokee legends and Greek myths weren't so different. These eidolons acted a lot like the spirits in her dad's stories.

Piper had a gut sense they were still present, simply because no one had told them to go away.

When she was done explaining, the others looked at her uncomfortably. Up on deck, Hedge sang something that sounded like 'In the Navy' while Blackjack stomped his hooves, whinnying in protest.

Finally Hazel exhaled. "Piper is right."

"She is ?" Aris pulled an unimpressed face which made Piper fume. What was it with this girl ?

"How can you be sure ?" Annabeth asked.

"I've met eidolons," Hazel said. "In the Underworld, when I was...you know."

Dead.

Piper had forgotten that Hazel was a second-timer. In her own way, Hazel too was a ghost reborn.

"So..." Frank rubbed his hand across his buzz-cut hair as if some ghosts might have invaded his scalp. "You think these things are lurking on the ship, or—"

"Possibly lurking inside some of us," Piper said. "We don't know."

Jason clenched his fist. "If that's true—"

"We have to take steps," Piper said. "I think I can do this."

"You've got to be kidding me," Aris scoffed, rolling her eyes.

"What ?" Percy looked at the dark haired girl "What are we doing ?"

"It's a fucking exorcism."

"Just listen, okay ?" Piper took a deep breath, trying to remove her aggravation towards this girl. "Everybody listen."

Piper met their eyes, one person at a time.

"Eidolons," she said, using her charmspeak, "raise your hands."

There was tense silence.

Leo laughed nervously. "Did you really think that was going to—?"

His voice died. His face went slack. He raised his hand.

Aris, Jason and Percy did the same. Their eyes had turned glassy and gold. Hazel caught her breath. Between Aris and Leo, Frank scrambled out of his chair and put his back against the wall.

"Oh, gods." Annabeth looked at Piper imploringly. "Can you cure them ?"

Piper wanted to whimper and hide under the table, but she had to help Jason. She couldn't believe she'd held hands with...No, she refused to think about it.

She focused on Leo because he was the least intimidating.

"Are there more of you on this ship ?" she asked.

"No," Leo said in a hollow voice. "The Earth Mother sent four. The strongest, the best. We will live again."

"Not here, you won't," Piper growled. "All four of you, listen carefully."

Aris, Jason and Percy turned toward her. Those gold eyes were unnerving, but seeing all three boys like that fueled Piper's anger.

"You will leave those bodies," she commanded.

"No," Percy said.

Aris gave that same cold, mirthless laugh she had on the highway. "We must live."

Frank fumbled for his bow. "Mars Almighty, that's creepy ! Get out of here, spirits ! Leave our friends alone!"

Leo turned toward him. "You cannot command us, child of war. Your own life is fragile. Your soul could burn at any moment."

Piper wasn't sure what that meant, but Frank staggered like he'd been punched in the gut. He drew an arrow, his hands shaking. "I—I've faced down worse things than you. If you want a fight—"

"Frank, don't." Hazel rose.

Next to her, Jason drew his sword.

"Stop !" Piper ordered, but her voice quavered. She was rapidly losing faith in her plan. She'd made the eidolons appear, but what now ? If she couldn't persuade them to leave, any bloodshed would be her fault. In the back of her mind, she could almost hear Gaea laughing.

"Listen to Piper." Hazel pointed at Jason's sword. The gold blade seemed to grow heavy in his hand. It clunked to the table and Jason sank back into his chair.

Percy growled in a very un-Percy-like way. "Daughter of Pluto, you may control gems and metals."

"But you do not control the dead." Aris sounded amused as a gruesome smirk pulled her lips. She placed her elbows on the table and cupped her face. "Interesting....She likes you. This body. She doesn't like many people."

That was a surprise. Something about Aris' eidolon was different. Maybe she was the boss. Or maybe due to her past, Aris was less resistant to the possession.

"Listen, eidolons," Hazel said sternly, "you do not belong here. I may not command you, but Piper does. Obey her."

She turned toward Piper, her expression clear : Try again. You can do this.

Piper mustered all her courage. She looked straight at Jason—straight into the eyes of the thing that was controlling him. "You will leave those bodies," Piper repeated, even more forcefully.

Jason's face tightened. His forehead beaded with sweat. "We—we will leave these bodies."

"You will vow on the River Styx never to return to this ship," Piper continued, "and never to possess any member of this crew."

Leo and Percy both hissed in protest. Aris was smirking like she knew something Piper didn't.

"You will promise on the River Styx," Piper insisted.

A moment of tension—she could feel their wills fighting against hers. Then all four eidolons spoke in unison : "We promise on the River Styx."

"You are dead," Piper said.

"We are dead," they agreed.

"Now, leave."

All of them slumped forward. Percy fell face-first into his pizza.

"Percy !" Annabeth grabbed him.

Piper and Hazel caught Jason's arms as he slipped out of his chair.

Frank went to catch Aris before she hit her head against the wood which meant that when Leo fell toward Frank, he wasn't there to intercept him. Leo hit the floor.

"Ow !" he groaned.

"Ari ?" Frank said gently.

Aris just leaned into him letting out a shaky breath. This was probably the most vulnerable Piper had seen her since they got on this ship.

"Are you all right ?" Hazel asked.

Leo pulled himself up. He had a piece of spaghetti in the shape of a 3 stuck to his forehead. "Did it work ?"

"It worked," Piper said, feeling pretty sure she was right. "I don't think they'll be back."

Jason blinked. "Does that mean I can stop getting head injuries now ?"

Piper laughed, exhaling all her nervousness. "Come on, Lightning Boy. Let's get you some fresh air."

🖤💔🖤

Piper and Jason walked back and forth along the deck. Jason was still wobbly, so Piper encouraged him to wrap his arm around her for support.

Leo stood at the helm, conferring with Festus through the intercom ; he knew from experience to give Jason and Piper some space. Since the satellite TV was up again, Coach Hedge was in his cabin happily catching up on his mixed martial arts cage matches. Percy's pegasus Blackjack had flown off somewhere. The other demigods were settling in for the night. Piper had seen Frank helping Aris who seemed particularly shaken about something. She hadn't missed the worried glance Jason had shot in the other girl's direction when they parted.

The Argo II raced east, cruising several hundred feet above the ground. Below them small towns passed by like lit-up islands in a dark sea of prairie.

Piper remembered last winter, flying Festus the dragon over the city of Quebec. She had never seen anything so beautiful, or felt so happy to have Jason's arms around her—but this was even better.

The night was warm. The ship sailed along more smoothly than a dragon. Best of all, they were flying away from Camp Jupiter as fast as they possibly could. No matter how dangerous the ancient lands were, Piper couldn't wait to get there. She hoped Jason was right that the Romans wouldn't follow them across the Atlantic.

Jason stopped amidships and leaned against the rail. The moonlight turned his blond hair silver.

"Thanks, Pipes," he said. "You saved me again."

He put his arm around her waist. She thought about the day they'd fallen into the Grand Canyon—the first time she'd learned that Jason could control the air. He'd held her so tightly, she could feel his heartbeat. Then they'd stopped falling and floated in midair. Best. Boyfriend. Ever.

She wanted to kiss him now, but something held her back.

"I don't know how Percy and the others are going to feel about me now that I've basically become a shaman who exorcises spirits."

"It'll be fine," Jason laughed. "They know you saved the day."

Piper smiled too before mentioning, "You could have killed him. Or Aris."

Jason's smile faded. "That wasn't me."

"But I almost let you," Piper said. "When Gaea said I had to choose, I hesitated and..."

She blinked, cursing herself for crying.

"Don't be so hard on yourself," Jason said. "You saved all of us."

"But if two of our crew really have to die, a boy and a girl—"

"I don't accept that. We're going to stop Gaea. All eight of us are going to come back alive. I promise you."

Piper wished that he hadn't promised. The word only reminded her of the Prophecy of Eight : an oath to keep with a final breath.

Please, she thought, wondering if her mom, the goddess of love, could hear her. Don't let it be Jason's final breath. If love means anything, don't take him away.

As soon as she had made the wish, she felt guilty. How could she stand to see Annabeth in that kind of pain if Percy died ? How could she live with herself if any of the eight demigods died ? Already, each of them had endured so much. Even two of the new Roman kids, Hazel and Frank, whom Piper barely knew, felt like kin. And Aris...well she might not like her, but she was her sister. At Camp Jupiter, Percy had recounted their trip to Alaska, which sounded as harrowing as anything Piper had experienced. And from the way Hazel and Frank tried to help during the exorcism, she could tell they were brave, good people. And they both seemed to care about Aris quite a lot. If those two sweet and brave people cared about her, she couldn't be all bad.

"The legend that Annabeth mentioned," she said, "about the Mark of Athena...why didn't you want to talk about it ?"

She was afraid Jason might shut her out, but he just lowered his head like he'd been expecting the question. "Pipes, I don't know what's true and what's not. That legend...it could be really dangerous."

"For who ?"

"All of us," he said grimly. "The story goes that the Romans stole something important from the Greeks, back in ancient times, when the Romans conquered the Greeks' cities."

Piper waited, but Jason seemed lost in thought.

"What did they steal ?" she asked.

"I don't know," he said. "I'm not sure anyone in the legion has ever known. But according to the story, this thing was taken away to Rome and hidden there. The children of Athena, Greek demigods, have hated us ever since. They've always stirred up their brethren against the Romans. Like I said, I don't know how much of that is true—"

"But why not just tell Annabeth ?" Piper asked. "She's not going to suddenly hate you."

He seemed to have trouble focusing on her. "I hope not. But the legend says that the children of Athena have been searching for this thing for millennia. Every generation, a few are chosen by the goddess to find it. Apparently, they're led to Rome by some sign...the Mark of Athena."

"If Annabeth is one of those searchers...we should help her."

Jason hesitated. "Maybe. When we get closer to Rome, I'll tell her what little I know. Honest. But the story, at least the way I heard it—it claims that if the Greeks ever found what was stolen, they'd never forgive us. They'd destroy the legion and Rome, once and for all. After what Nemesis told Leo, about Rome's being destroyed five days from now..."

Piper studied Jason's face. He was, without a doubt, the bravest person she'd ever known, but she realized he was afraid. This legend—the idea that it might tear apart their group and level a city—absolutely terrified him.

Piper wondered what could have been stolen from the Greeks that would be so important. She couldn't imagine anything that would make Annabeth suddenly turn vengeful.

Then again, Piper couldn't imagine choosing one demigod's life over another, and today on that deserted road, just for a moment, Gaea had almost tempted her....

"Does Aris know ?" Piper found herself asking, looking down.

"I mean, she knows the story. She was the one who told me when we were kids. She was always the history expert. But I doubt even she knows what exactly was stolen. I would ask her but she doesn't really want to see me."

"Oh."

"I'm sorry, by the way," Jason said.

Piper wiped the last tear from her face. "Sorry for what ? It was the eidolon who attacked—"

"Not about that." The little scar on Jason's upper lip seemed to glow white in the moonlight. She'd always loved that scar. The imperfection made his face much more interesting.

"I was stupid to keep arguing with Aris," he said. "I wasn't thinking. She just....she's so frustrating."

"Oh." Piper looked up at the clouds and wondered if her mother, Aphrodite, was somehow influencing him. His apology seemed too good to be true.

But don't stop, she thought. "Really, it's okay."

"It's just...even if I had no one else, I had Aris. She was my best friend," Jason said, "and then she was gone. And when she came back...."

"She wasn't the same," Piper finished.

Jason scoffed slightly, a mirthless smile on his lips. "No, she wasn't."

"How did you two...um....end up sleeping together ?"

"There was always something there," Jason shrugged. "We both felt it. It usually got worse when we were arguing which was all the time after she came back to Camp. One day, she annoyed me so much I just wanted her to stop talking. So I did the first thing I could think of to shut her up : I kissed her. One thing led to another and next thing I knew, she was in my bed every other night. But Piper, there were no feelings involved. It was just sex. In a way, I think we were both using each other to get rid of whatever frustration and stress we had."

Piper didn't know how much of that she believed. Maybe he thought there were no feelings involved but Jason seemed pretty damn attached to someone he didn't have feelings for. She kept thinking about the eidolon on the highway, smirking at her as she straddled Jason's hips.

They do not want to love each other. But mark my words, Piper McLean...Aristea Mallory and Jason Grace are written in destiny. Apollo himself predicted their tragedy. Venus mourned it from the day her daughter was born.

"I think I might hate her," Piper admitted. Jason furrowed his eyebrows, tilting his head in confusion as he looked her straight in the eyes. "You were sleeping together, Jason. You might think there weren't any feelings but...I see how riled up you get when she's around."

"Because I miss her. Not, the girl I was sleeping with," he hastily added. "I miss my best friend. I miss the girl who I would rant to about everything and nothing. I used to do that with Reyna after Aris left but....it was never the same. Aris and I have history. She's known me since I was seven. But Piper, I promise you, there is nothing going on between us. Not anymore."

Piper felt like he was going to add something to that statement but thought better of it.

Piper held his hand. She managed a smile, but she was thinking: Another promise. An oath to keep with a final breath.

She tried to put those thoughts out of her mind. He said it multiple times, there was nothing going on between him and Aris. They weren't even friends anymore. He was her boyfriend. Piper knew she should just enjoy this quiet moment with Jason. But as she looked over the side of the ship, she couldn't help remembering how much the prairie at night looked like dark water—like the drowning room she'd seen in the blade of her knife.

Pari Speaks !

Kind of hate this. And this is a very tiny chapter compared to most in this book but I just wanted to get the exorcism done and figured, let's include Piper being an insecure bitch and explain a teeny tiny bit of Jason and Aris' past. Now that that part is over, we can move on to Aris' POV again in the next chapter where she will be extra bitchy ! Can't wait !

Also, Arson are so The Way I Loved You coded from Jason's POV. I mean, look at the bridge and last chorus :

"She can't see the smile I'm faking
And my heart's not breaking
'Cause I'm not feeling anything at all
And you were wild and crazy
Just so frustrating, intoxicating, complicated
Got away by some mistake and now
I miss screaming and fighting and kissing in the rain
It's 2 a.m. and I'm cursing your name
I'm so in love that I acted insane
And that's the way I loved you
Breaking down and coming undone
It's a roller coaster kind of rush
And I never knew I could feel that much
And that's the way I loved you"

It just works.

Anyways, see you !

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