From the moment they took off, Persephone wanted to turn back. Her unsettled feeling grew the further they got from Camp Half-Blood, almost like a chill down the back of her spine.

Everyone was off doing their own thing. Coach Hedge, their Satyr guide, was in his cabin and watching reruns of mixed martial arts championships, thanks to Annabeth's input. The last thing to group needed, sailing into a potentially hostile camp, was a middle-aged satyr in gym clothes, brandishing a club and yelling 'Die!' at anything and everything that moved.

Annabeth herself had kept busy, pacing the deck of the Argo II and double- sometimes triple- checking anything she could. Persephone knew how nervous the daughter of Athena was, her mind laying out every single possibility and outcome. Not to mention, she was seeing her boyfriend for the first time in months.

Piper had kept herself busy, relaying her lines to herself as she paced back and forth between the mainmast and ballistae. Her charmspeak had gotten stronger over the months, Persephone finding it incredibly hard to block out, and that was with tips from Piper on how to not listen to her charmspeak. She knew Piper felt the pressure, calming an entire camp of Roman demigods seemed like a task, but Persephone hoped it didn't come to that.

Jason, Piper's boyfriend (yes, it was official), stood at the bow on the raised crossbow platform. He was easily visible for the Romans to see, a sort of 'Hey, don't shoot us please!' sign. His demeaner came across as calm and relaxed, but his white knuckles gave away his own nerves. He clenched his fist tight around his golden sword, so much so that Persephone wondered what would break first, the handle or his hand.

Leo was rushing around like a madman, up on the quarterdeck, checking his gauges and wrestling levers. When she'd first envisioned the finished look of the Argo II, Persephone thought there would be a captain's wheel. That, she realised quickly, was foolish to believe when Leo was the captain. He'd also installed a keyboard, monitor, aviation controls from a Learjet, a dubstep soundboard and motion control sensors from a Nintendo Wii. He could turn the ship by pulling on the throttle, fire weapons by sampling an album or raise sails by shaking his Wii controllers really fast. It took Persephone a while to understand everything, and even then, she'd make small mistakes.

Persephone, herself, was up front, standing next to Festus' head. She'd found comfort in talking to him, alone. He would listen to her when no one else could. When Festus was a dragon, during their first quest before he'd gotten destroyed, Persephone adored him, but she hadn't gotten to bond with him as well as Leo had. Through his whirrs and clicks, she'd started to learn morse code, now able to begin to understand simple phrases from the bronze dragon head. She sighed to herself, trying to calm her nerves, seeing Festus' eyes focused on her. She smiled and patted his snout.

Their decent through the clouds brought her nerves back up, and then some, chest tightening slightly. Somewhere below them was the Roman camp; Camp Jupiter. And in that camp was Percy Jackson, son of Poseidon, and one half of the exchange Hera had conducted.

Persephone shivered as the same chill ran down the back of her neck, again. But when she turned, no one was there. She really was just psyching herself out.

She truly hoped the Romans didn't blast their ship out of the sky. Leo had originally wanted to paint 'WASSUP?' with a smiley face on the bottom of their warship, but Annabeth had a few choice words to say about that, so that was quickly scrapped.

A giggle sounded faintly in the wind. Now, she was a daughter of Hades, so surely, she could sense if their ship was being haunted, right? She opened her mouth to say something to the others when horns sounded in the valley below them. The Romans had spotted them. This was it. No going back.

Jason had made sure to include as much detail as possible, when describing what Camp Jupiter looked like. Though, Persephone realised just how awe-striking it actually was. Ringed by the Oakland Hills, the valley was at least twice the size of Camp Half-Blood. A small river snaked around one side and curled towards the centre like a capital 'G', emptying into a sparkling blue lake.

Directly underneath their ship, nestled at the edge of the lake, the city of New Rome gleamed in the sunlight. She recognised landmarks, pinpointing them thanks to Jason's descriptions, despite never being to the camp; the hippodrome, the coliseum, the temples and parks, the neighbourhood of Seven Hills with its winding streets, colourful villas, and flowering gardens.

It was surely a sight to behold. Even with the mess from the Roman's recent battle with an army of monsters. The dome was cracked open on a building she guessed was the Senate House. The forum's broad plaza was pitted with craters. Some statues and fountains were completely destroyed.

Dozens of kids in togas were streaming out of the Senate House to get a better look at the Argo II. Even more Romans emerged from the shops and cafés, gawking and pointing as the ship descended.

About half a mile west, where the horns were blowing, a Roman fort stood on a hill. It had a defensive trench lined with spikes, high walls and watchtowers armed with scorpion ballistae. Inside, perfect rows of white barracks lined the main road- the Via Principalis.

A column of demigods emerged from the gates, their armour and spears glinting as they hurried towards the city. What shocked Persephone the most, was the elephant in the midst of their ranks.

They were still several hundred meters away from landing, and she was sure the elephant and its gang would arrive before they touched down, which didn't settle any anxiety Persephone had.

An explosion sounded behind her, on deck, and nearly sent her flying off the ship, had she not grabbed hold of Festus.

"Unacceptable!"