𝐒 𝐓 𝐀 𝐑   𝐖 𝐀 𝐑 𝐒   !

⎯ 𝘍 𝘐 𝘍 𝘛 𝘌 𝘌 𝘕 ⎯

( 𝔯𝔢𝔳𝔢𝔩𝔞𝔱𝔦𝔬𝔫𝔰 ! )

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯ ⬩❖⬩ ⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

          𝐀𝐔𝐑𝐎𝐑𝐀 𝐖𝐀𝐒 𝐄𝐂𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐂 𝐖𝐇𝐄𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐖𝐇𝐄𝐄𝐋𝐒 𝐅𝐄𝐋𝐋 𝐎𝐅𝐅.

She'd spent most of the ride holding onto the chariot with a white-knuckled grip, her back pressed to Percy's chest as he used his free arm to keep her steady. Her unoccupied hand had been on Frank's back, rubbing it as the poor boy threw up over the side, his face a sickly shade of green. If Aurora hadn't been weakened from Seattle, she would've eased his stomach. But doing so would cause her to burst into flames, so she was left with comforting words.

Ella wasn't helpful whatsoever. She kept muttering: "Seven hundred and fifty miles per hour. Eight hundred. Eight hundred and three. Fast. Very fast."

The horse sped north across Puget Sound, zooming past islands and fishing boats and very surprised pods of whales (Aurora had laughed when one shot water at Percy when they passed them out of anger.) The landscape ahead looked much different from Seattle—beaches and forests and hills covered in flowers.

The horse rocketed onto dry land. He followed Highway 99 north, running so fast, the cars seemed to be standing still. Finally, just as they were getting close to a city—Vancouver, according to Frank—the wheels began to smoke.

"Hazel!" Frank yelled. "We're breaking up!"

Ironic, Aurora found herself thinking. I always pictured Hazel breaking up with Frank, not the other way around.

He hadn't meant them, but Aurora needed something funny to think about to distract her from the terrifying slow down that Arion pulled. They crossed the Ironworks bridge into North Vancouver, and the chariot started to rattle dangerously. Aurora felt Percy hold her tighter as she hid her face in his neck. At last Arion stopped at the top of a wooden hill. He snorted with satisfaction, as if to say, That's how we run, fools. The smoking chariot collapsed, spilling Aurora, Percy, Frank, and Ella onto the wet, mossy ground.

Aurora groaned. Luckily Percy had maneuvered so he had cushioned her fall, but it still hurt. They'd laid on the ground for a solid count of ten before standing to unhitch Arion from the chariot. Ella fluttered around in dizzy circles, bonking into the trees and muttering, "Tree. Tree. Tree."

Only Hazel seemed unaffected by the ride. Grinning with pleasure, she slid off the horse's back. "That was fun!"

"Yeah." Frank did not look good. "So much fun."

Arion whinnied.

"He says he needs to eat," Percy translated.

Aurora scoffed. "No wonder. He probably burned about six million calories."

Hazel studied the ground at her feet and frowned. "I'm not sensing any gold around here . . . Don't worry, Arion. I'll find you some. In the meantime, why don't you go graze? We'll meet you—"

The horse zipped off, leaving a trail of steam in his wake.

Hazel knit her eyebrows. "Do you think he'll come back?"

"I don't know," Percy said. "He seems kind of . . ."

"Spirited?" Aurora suggested, and Percy nodded in agreement.

The group started salvaging supplies from the chariot wreckage. There had been a few boxes of random Amazon merchandise in the front, and Ella shrieked with delight when she found a shipment of books. She snatched up a copy of The Birds of North America, fluttered to the nearest branch, and began scratching through the pages so fast, Aurora wasn't sure if she was reading or shredding.

The daughter of Apollo had grinned upon finding a box of first-aid supplies—ambrosia, nectar, bandages, ointment, and even a suture kit. She'd put as much supplies in her bag as she could, having a feeling that they'd be needing it in the coming days. And while her healing powers could do a lot, she couldn't rely on them entirely.

When she stood, she took in their surroundings. According to Frank, they were somewhere in Canada, a place that Aurora never thought she'd visit. Not that she didn't want to, it was just not at the top of her list. 

To the south, across Vancouver Harbor, the downtown skyline gleamed red in the sunset. To the north, the hills and rainforests of Lynn Canyon Park snaked between subdivisions of North Vancouver until they gave way to the wilderness.

"I'm practically home," Frank said. "My grandmother's house is right over there."

Hazel squinted. "How far?"

"Just over the river and through the woods."

Aurora laughed and Percy raised an eyebrow. "Seriously? To Grandmother's house we go?"

Frank cleared his throat. "Yeah, anyway."

Hazel clasped her hands in prayer. "Frank, please tell me she'll let us spend the night. I know we're on a deadline, but we've got to rest, right? And Arion saved us some time. Maybe we could get an actual cooked meal?"

"And a hot shower?" Percy pleaded.

Aurora studied Frank's face. His expression was screwed into something like worry and . . . embarrassment? Now that she was thinking about it, Frank had never mentioned his grandmother much. Aside from a few comments here and there, Aurora knew little to nothing about Frank's family. What if he and his grandmother didn't get along well? Or what if she was really sick and Frank didn't want them to see her like that?

She placed a hand on his shoulder. "We don't have to if you're not comfortable with it, Frank. We can set up camp with the wreckage and make do with what we have."

But Frank shook his head. Despite his pale complexion and the look in his eyes that made it seem like he'd seen a ghost, he smiled at them with some semblance of confidence.

"It's worth a try," he said. "To Grandmother's house we go."

⎯⎯⎯⎯ ⬩❖⬩ ⎯⎯⎯⎯

If it wasn't for Percy, Frank would have walked right into the ogres' camp. The son of Neptune—Poseidon, possibly—pulled him back before Frank could get them spotted.

The guys crouched next to Aurora, Hazel, and Ella behind a fallen log and peered into the clearing.

"Bad," Ella murmured. "This is bad for harpies."

It was fully dark now. Around a blazing campfire sat half a dozen shaggy-haired humanoids. Standing up, they probably would've been eight feet tall—tiny compared to the giant Polybotes or even the Cyclopes they'd seen in California, but that didn't make them any less scary. They wore only knee-length surfer shorts. Their skin was sun stroked red—covered with tattoos of dragons, hearts, and bikini-clad women. Hanging from a spit over the fire was a skinned animal, maybe a boar, and the ogres were tearing off chunks of meat with their clawlike fingernails, laughing and talking as they ate, baring pointy teeth. Next to the ogres sat several mesh bags filled with bronze spheres like cannonballs. The spheres must have been hot, because they steamed in the cool evening air.

Two hundred yards beyond the clearing, Aurora could see the lights of Frank's house glowing through the trees. They were so close. All they had to do was make it around this camp and get to the house, but she didn't know if there were more camps or just this one.

"What are these things?" Frank whispered.

"Canadians," Percy and Aurora said together, sending each other wide-eyed looks of surprise when they did.

Frank leaned away from them. "Excuse me?"

"Uh, no offense," Percy said. "That's what Annabeth called them when I fought them before. She said they lived in the north, in Canada."

"She's right." Aurora ignored the slight twinge of jealousy that followed the mention of Annabeth. She had no right to be upset that Percy was remembering the people important to him, nor was she allowed to be hurt if Percy did have a girlfriend. "Jason and I fought them once, a couple years before he was named praetor. Normally they live around here, but they will sometimes travel to the states."

"Yeah, well," Frank grumbled. "We're in Canada. I'm Canadian. But I've never seen those things before."

Ella plucked a feather from her wings and turned it in her fingers. "Laistrygonians," she said. "Cannibals. Northern giants. Sasquatch legend. Yep, yep. They're not birds. Not birds of North America."

"That's what they're called," Percy agreed. "Laistry—uh, whatever Ella said."

Frank scowled at the giants. "They could be mistaken for Bigfoot. Maybe that's where the legend came from. Ella, you're pretty smart."

"Ella is smart," she agreed. She shyly offered Frank her feather, and Aurora smiled softly.

"Oh . . . thanks." He stuck the feather in his pocket, then noticed Hazel was glaring at him. "What?"

Aurora bit back a laugh. Oh, they were so obvious and adorable. Percy was trying to hold back his laughter beside her, the two of them watching the potential couple with smiles.

"Nothing," Hazel said. She turned to Percy. "So your memory is coming back? Do you remember how you beat these guys?"

"Sort of," Percy said. "It's still fuzzy. I think I had help. We killed then with Celestial bronze, but that was before . . . you know."

"Before Death got kidnapped," Aurora said. "So now, they might not die at all."

Percy nodded. "Those bronze cannonballs . . . those are bad news. I think we used some of them against the giants. They catch fire and blow up."

Frank reached toward his coat pocket but stopped, as though he had just remembered something. "If we cause any explosions," he said. "The ogres at the other camps will come running. I think they've surrounded the house, which means there could be fifty or sixty of these guys in the woods."

"So it's a trap." Hazel looked at Frank with concern. "What about your grandmother? We've got to help her."

Aurora looked at Frank to see him turn a sickly shade of white in the firelight. He was worried. Aurora could feel it coming off of him in waves. Worry for his grandmother. Worry for his friends. She wanted to help him, but there wasn't a healing hymn or spell for worry. Otherwise Aurora would have used it months ago.

"We need a distraction," he decided. "If we can draw this group into the woods, we might sneak through without alerting the others."

"I wish Arion was here," Hazel said. "I could get the ogres to chase me."

Frank slipped his spear off his back. "I've got another idea."

It looked like Frank was debating something. Aurora was worried he wanted to charge out and take on the giants by himself. If that was his plan, Frank was crazier than Phineas. And Phineas was a complete whack job to believe anything their group of four said.

"Frank, you can't charge out there!" Hazel said. "That's suicide!"

"I'm not charging," Frank said. "I've got a friend. Just . . . nobody scream, okay?"

Before Aurora could ask what he meant by that, he jabbed the spear into the ground, and the point broke off.

"Oops," Ella said. "No spear point. Nope, nope."

The ground trembled. A skeletal hand broke through the surface. Percy fumbled for his sword, Hazel made a sound like a cat with a hairball, and Aurora felt her hands begin to heat up. Ella disappeared and rematerialized at the top of the nearest tree.

"It's okay," Frank promised. "He's under control."

The skeleton crawled out of the ground. It had translucent gray skin covering its bones, golden yellow eyes staring at the group. It was dressed in camouflage and had a gun at its side, and Aurora felt sick just looking at the thing. 

The brunette stumbled backwards as though she'd been pushed, a memory slamming full-force into the silver wall of light that it felt as though her head was going to explode. Images of that black-haired boy, metal angels, and skeletal warriors passed behind her eyes, the smears of color making her stomach churn nauseatingly. 

"Whoa," Percy said, catching her around the waist to help stabilize her. "You okay, Rory? You look a little pale."

She swallowed thickly, feeling her blood chill within her veins. She'd seen this kind of monster before, but she couldn't fully remember when and why. The constant fight between her blocked memories and that silver light was making her queasy, and she almost gave in to the thought of crumpling to the ground. 

But she couldn't. Her friends needed her. She could fall to the curse of memory sickness or whatever when they were safely within Frank's house. But for now, she needed to toughen up and put all her internal problems to the side. So, with a deep intake of breath, Aurora nodded and forced her legs to stop shaking. 

"I—I'm fine," she said, swallowing hard. "I'm fine."

Percy stared at her for a moment before nodding slowly. She could see it in his eyes that he didn't believe her, but she appreciated him dropping the subject for now. He looked at the creature. "Frank, that's a spartus. A skeleton warrior. They're evil. They're killers. They're—"

"I know," Frank said bitterly. "But it's a gift from Mars. Right now that's all I've got. Okay, Gray. Your orders: attack that group of ogres. Lead them off to the west, causing a diversion so we can—"

Unfortunately, Gray lost interest after the word "ogres." Maybe he only understood simple sentences. He charged toward the ogres' campfire.

"Wait!" Frank said, but it was too late. Gray pulled two of his own ribs from his shirt and ran around the fire, stabbing the ogres in the back with such blinding speed they didn't even have time to yell. Six extremely surprised-looking Laistrygonians fell sideways like a circle of dominoes and crumbled to dust.

Gray stomped around, kicking their ashes apart as they tried to re-form. When he seemed satisfied that they weren't coming back, Gray stood at attention, saluted smartly in Frank's direction, and sank into the forest floor.

Percy stared at Frank. "How—"

"No Laistrygonians." Ella fluttered down and landed next to them. "Six minus six is zero. Spears are good for subtraction. Yep."

Hazel looked at Frank as if he'd turned into a zombie skeleton himself. Aurora felt like she didn't look much better. Her head was pounding with each attempt the memories made to resurface. Her fingertips felt numb and her legs were still wobbly, her steps uneasy. She was sure she looked as white as a sheet, her skin sticky with sweat. 

If memories could only really be taken by gods, which one had stolen hers? And why? What had she done to deserve the erasing of this specific memory, and why was it now trying to come back? 

Percy sent her another concerned look that she forced a slipping smile to. Frank glared down at the broken tip of his spear. "Let's go," he said. "My grandmother might be in trouble."

With that, the group made their way through the camp and the woods, stopping at the front porch of Frank's grandmother's house. As Aurora had feared, a loose ring of campfires glowed in the woods, completely surrounding the property, but the house itself was untouched.

Wind chimes jangled in the night breezes. A wicker chair sat empty, facing the road. Lights shone through the downstairs windows, but no one rung the doorbell. Whether Frank was afraid to wake his grandmother or attract unwanted attention from the monsters surrounding the house, Aurora didn't know.

Instead, Frank picked up a stone elephant by the door—a tiny duplicate of the elephant statue from Portland. There was a key tucked under its foot.

He hesitated at the door.

"What's wrong?" Percy asked.

Frank remained silent. He looked to be stuck inside his thoughts. Aurora knew how dangerous that could be for a demigod. His complexion hadn't gotten better and he looked worse for ware, like he was living all of his worst memories through again.

"Frank?" Hazel asked.

"Ella is nervous," the harpy muttered from her perch on the railing. "The elephant—the elephant is looking at Ella."

"It'll be fine." Franks hand was shaking almost as much as Aurora was. "Just stay together."

Inside, the house smelled closed-up and musty. They examined the living room, the dining room, the kitchen. Dirty dishes were stacked in the sink, which told Aurora that there wouldn't be a likely chance of a home cooked meal unless she made one herself. She knew how to cook, but she wasn't sure how much the others would like her food.

In the parlor, Buddha statues and Taoist immortals grinned at them like psycho clowns. Aurora remembered Iris, the rainbow goddess, who'd been dabbling in Buddhism and Taoism. She figured one visit to this creepy old house would cure her of that.

Large porcelain vases were strung with cobwebs. Something about all of this—the piled dirty dishes and the lack of welcoming aromas and the cobwebs—didn't seem right.

"Is that—"

"Yeah," Frank said, answering Hazel's question. "That's it."

"That's what?" Percy asked.

Aurora was just as confused as he was. Hazel's expression was sympathetic, but that just made Aurora even more confused than she originally was.

"It's the fireplace," Frank told her and Percy, which made Aurora want to whack him upside the head. "Come on. Let's check upstairs."

The steps creaked under their feet. Aurora leaned on Percy the whole way, using him as a human crutch to keep her from tumbling down the stairs. The son of Neptune didn't seem to mind, sending her worried looks every few seconds and running his thumb over her side soothingly. She had to admit that it was helping to ease her headache.

They came to a stop by a room filled with pictures of who Aurora assumed to be Frank when he was younger. Beside him stood a woman in uniform that had to be his mother, the resemblance between them uncanny. Along with the pictures were a bunch of spelling bee awards that Aurora was no doubt jealous of. She'd take lactose intolerance over the inability to read any day.

"Your mother?" Hazel asked gently. "She's beautiful."

Frank didn't answer. They checked the other bedrooms. There were only two more, both empty. A dim light flickered under the last door, which Aurora guessed was Frank's grandmother's room.

Frank knocked quietly. No one answered. He pushed open her door. An old lady lay in bed, looking gaunt and frail, her white hair spread around her face like a basilisks crown. A single candle burned on the nightstand. Aurora felt sorrow seep into her bones. She could feel that the woman's time was coming up. She was sick, and she wasn't getting better. Aurora wished she could do something, but in her current state, she couldn't even help herself.

"Mars," Frank said.

Aurora looked at him with wide eyes. "W—what?"

"Frank?" Hazel asked. "What do you mean, Mars? Is your grandmother . . . is she okay?"

Frank glanced at them. "You don't see him?"

"See who?" Percy asked, holding onto Aurora's waist tighter as she leaned into him more, her legs threatening to give way. "Mars? Where?"

Frank clenched his fists. "Guys, it's . . . it's nothing. Listen, why don't you take the middle bedrooms?"

"Roof," Ella said. "Roofs are good for harpies."

"Sure," Frank said in a daze. "There's probably food in the kitchen. Would you give me a few minutes alone with my grandmother? I think she—"

His voice broke, and Aurora's eyes softened.

Hazel laid her hand on his arm. "Of course, Frank. Come on, Ella, Percy, Aurora."

"Come downstairs when you're done, okay? I'll cook us something to eat." Aurora gave him a small smile. "You know, after I deal with this stupid memory stuff."

Frank nodded in appreciation, making her heart warm. Even on the verge of passing out, she'd do anything for her friends.

Percy helped Aurora to one of the middle bedrooms, Hazel going to the other. As soon as Aurora reached the bed, she collapsed onto it, nearly taking Percy with her. Her entire body hurt and all she wanted to do was close her eyes, but something told her that wouldn't be the smartest idea. She was drained from all the magic she had done that day, and from memory sickness.

"Hey, hey!" Percy softly tapped her cheek, giving her a smile. She smiled up at him weakly, taking in the way he looked in the dim light from the candles in the room and the moon shining through the window.

For a moment, she thought she was in Elysium with whatever the Roman equivalent of an angel was. Percy looked ethereal in the moonlight, his dark hair hanging over his forehead and his eyes shining brightly. She could see the oceans within his irises, and they were so beautiful. His smile was lopsided despite his concern, and his skin had this god-like glow around it. She didn't know if she was hallucinating from sickness or if this was how he always looked in the moonlight.

"Hi." Percy chuckled softly, brushing a few strands of hair from her face. He pressed the back of his hand to her forehead and sighed. "What?"

"Nothing. I think you've just got a bad case of memory sickness." His eyes swam with thoughts. "I wonder why, though."

She sighed as she fought to sit up, opting to lean against the headboard rather than flat on her back. Her legs curled in towards her chest as she patted the empty spot beside her, inviting Percy to sit down. He did so, their shoulders brushing as they stared at the wall opposite them.

Aurora still didn't understand why she felt the way she did for him. She didn't understand her immediate trust in him, nor her constant need to be around him. But she knew that her instincts were always right. They'd never once led her astray. So with them currently screaming at her to be honest, she opened her mouth and spilled everything.

"Dreams are . . . well, they're never normal for demigods," Aurora started, chuckling softly. "Constantly filled with visions and nightmares for the past. I'm sure you've experienced quite a few demigod dreams by now."

Percy nodded. "Too many to count."

She assumed so. "Dreams for me are a bit different. With dad being the god of prophecy, I'm cursed to see bits and pieces of the future each time I close my eyes. And I'm used to this. I've learned to deal with it and use it to my advantage. It's not as scary as it used to be, you know?"

"Still, it can't be all that fun." Percy's hand reached for her own, their fingers locking together. "Is that what's causing this?"

Aurora shook her head. "At first, I thought so. Now . . ." She let out a breath, preparing herself. "This past month I've been having these . . . well, I guess you could call them dreams, but I'm not too sure of that now. They're more like a glimpse into a past I can't remember, if I'm being honest. They're always the same—a younger me battling alongside a group of people whose faces are blurred out. Sometimes I'm able to make out more about them, other times they're just shadows. But recently one of them has become more discernable. It's a boy, tan and tall, with dark hair and a bronze sword."

She heard Percy suck in a sharp breath beside her, his hand tightening in her own. 

"Whenever I would wake up and try to remember these dreams, this wall of silver light would pop up and stop me. No matter how hard I would try, those memories wouldn't beat the light. But tonight, when I saw that spartus, a few images managed to slip through—that boy, metallic angel statues, and that monster. I've seen them somewhere before, and I've fought them before, but I just can't figure out when and where. That silver wall . . . it's like—"

"A god or goddess is keeping you from remembering." Percy sounded so certain. Of course he'd know, he was going through the same thing. He was silent for a moment, and Aurora wondered what was going through his head. "Since meeting you, I've been having similar dreams. I'd be fighting an enemy, and at my side there'd be this girl. Black hair, a gold and bronze sword, and sky-blue eyes. Eyes like . . ."

His eyes went wide, jaw going slack. Aurora's heart hammered within her chest as she tried to figure out what he was thinking. Why would he cut himself off like that? Why was he staring at her like she had two heads? 

"What?" Aurora asked.

"I think—Rory, I think we've met before." Her heart dropped into her stomach. What? "I know it seems impossible, but listen. We're both dreaming about similar situations, and each time we'd try and remember them, a wall of silver light would stop us. That can't be a coincidence."

Aurora blinked rapidly. "But how? You've never been to Camp before. I would remember."

Percy's eyes were bright with thought. "My memories are still a little fuzzy, but I think I went on a quest with a few of my friends in search of Annabeth. We . . . we'd come to California from the Hoover Dam by metal angel statues and been attacked by a group of spartus upon landing." His grip on her hand tightened the deeper he traveled into his mind. "We were outnumbered when a girl came and saved us. She'd said she was sent to check on the activity on Mount Tam and offered to help us with Annabeth . . ."

The memories hit her like a semi. When she was thirteen, Reyna and Jason had sent her to scout Mount Tam during the winter. The storms above the mountain had been concerning, and the leaders wanted to know if that's where the Titans would set up their base of operations. Aurora had agreed to the quest without second thought and headed for downtown San Francisco. 

She'd helped a group battle monsters by the docks—a girl with electric eyes much like Jason's, a girl with a silver bow and circlet, a faun wearing a Rasta cap, and a teen with messy black hair and sea green eyes. Percy. 

Aurora had saved Percy and his friends, then aided them in rescuing their friend atop Mount Tam. She'd battled the titan Atlas and held the sky up with Percy while the goddess Diana—Artemis—tricked Atlas into taking up his burden once more. She'd rescued Annabeth—a sweet girl, now that she thought about it—and said goodbye to a Huntress at Chrissy Field. And when it was all said and done, she'd allowed Diana to wipe her mind and send her back to Camp Jupiter.

The silver streak of hair made sense, now. She'd always wondered how she'd gotten it, and now she knew.

Her mouth went dry and she blinked rapidly. "Oh, gods. You're—you're right." Her voice was a whisper, her mind still spiraling. "We fought on Mount Tam together before Diana—Artemis, sorry—sent me back to camp. That's why you were familiar to me! That's why I wasn't surprised to find out you were a Greek demigod, not a Roman."

Percy's eyes widened. "You know?" Aurora nodded. "How long?"

"Since the night Frank and Hazel blacked out together." Aurora shrugged, suddenly feeling better now that she had come to terms with everything. That wall of impenetrable silver disappeared as the memories took their rightful spots, easing her pain. "I've known deep down. There were so many things strange about you when you showed up, and I put them all together. It wasn't that hard, actually. I'm a little insulted that you thought it would take me longer."

Percy rolled his eyes with a chuckle. "You are amazing, Rory. Really." Aurora felt her cheeks burned red, her lips tugging up in a smile. "Promise not to tell Hazel and Frank? At least, not until this quest is over. I don't want any of us distracted while we free Thanatos."

Aurora gave his hand a squeeze. "I promise." Her stomach then rumbled and she laughed. "You hungry? I kinda promised I'd make everyone something to eat and I've been craving Italian since the start of this damn quest."

"That sounds heavenly right now," Percy admitted, the two of them standing from the bed. 

Aurora grinned. "Good."

⎯⎯⎯⎯ ⬩❖⬩ ⎯⎯⎯⎯

She had never showered so quickly in her entire life.

Aurora and Percy had been rudely awoken to the sound of giants approaching the house. It took them less than twenty minutes to shower, change, and prepare themselves for battle. While she'd cooked the night before, Hazel had tossed their clothes into the washer and dryer, leaving them with a fresh feeling in the morning.

But none of them had the chance to appreciate the feeling because of the stupid giants.

The trio of demigods had taken to the roof of the Zhang Mansion, using whatever means necessary to battle the giants that surrounded the house. Percy had a garden hose in his hand and was blasting the cannonballs with water while Aurora blinded the giants with sunlight and melted their cannonballs with blasts of heat.

Hazel was walking the widow's walk between the two attic gables when Frank finally showed up with Ella, looking freshly showered and dressed.

"Morning," Percy said grimly. "Beautiful day, huh?"

When Hazel spotted Frank, her eyes flashed with concern. "Are you okay? Why are you smiling?"

"Oh, uh, nothing," he said. Aurora and Percy shared a teasing look. "Thanks for breakfast. And the clothes. And . . . not hating me."

Hazel looked baffled. "Why would I hate you?"

Aurora decided to tune out their conversation and move over to where Percy was. They worked on keeping the giants at bay, allowing the two demigods to talk and hash things out. They tuned back in when Hazel finished telling him that she was impressed by him.

"You were . . . impressed . . . by me?" He asked, bewildered.

Percy laughed. "Dude, it was pretty amazing."

Aurora nodded. "Badass, Zhang. Badass."

"Honest?" Frank asked.

"Honest," Hazel promised. "But right now, we have other problems to worry about. Okay?"

She gestured at the army of Laistrygonians, who were getting increasingly bold, shuffling closer and closer to the house.

Percy readied the garden hose. "I've got one more trick up my sleeve. Your lawn has a sprinkler system. I can blow it up and cause some confusion down there, but that'll destroy your water pressure. No pressure, no hose, and those cannonballs are going to plow right into the house."

"And I can't keep melting those Celestial bronze cannonballs. I'll run out of power eventually, and that won't be good for anyone." Aurora shot another blast of light at the giants, keeping them at bay.

Frank was quiet for a moment while he thought. His eyes lit up. "Guys, I've got an escape plan." He told them about the plane waiting for them at the airfield, and his grandmother's note for the pilot. "He's a legion veteran. He'll help us."

"But Arion's not back," Hazel said. "And what about your grandmother? We can't just leave her."

Frank choked back a sob. "Maybe—maybe Arion will find us. As for my grandmother . . . she was pretty clear. She said she'd be okay."

Aurora didn't think that was the truth, but she didn't say that.

"There's another problem," Percy said. "I'm not good with air travel. It's dangerous for a son of Neptune."

"You'll have to risk it . . . and so will I," Frank said. "By the way, we're related."

Percy almost stumbled off the roof. "What?"

Frank spoke fast. "Periclymenus. Ancestor on my mom's side. Argonaut. Grandson of Poseidon."

Hazel's mouth fell open. "You're a—a descendant of Neptune? Frank, that's—"

"Crazy? Yeah. And there's this ability my family has, supposedly. But I don't know how to use it. If I can't figure it out—"

Another massive cheer went up from the Laistrygonians. Aurora noticed they were staring up at Frank, pointing and waving at him.

"Zhang!" they yelled. "Zhang!"

Hazel stepped closer to Frank. "They keep doing that. Why are they yelling your name?"

"Never mind," Frank said. "Listen, we've got to protect Ella, take her with us."

"Of course," Aurora said. "The poor thing needs our help."

"No," Frank said. "I mean yes, but it's not just that. She recited a prophecy downstairs. I think . . . I think it was about this quest."

He told them the bits of the prophecy that Ella had told him, and Aurora felt her heart drop. She looked at Percy, and she felt worry flood through her veins. A son of Neptune drowning? That sounded impossible.

Percy's jaw tightened. "I don't know how a son of Neptune can drown. I can breathe underwater. But the crown of the legion—"

"That's got to be the eagle," Aurora said.

Percy nodded. "And Ella recited something like this once before, in Portland—a line from the old Great Prophecy."

"The what?" Frank asked.

"Tell you later." Percy turned his garden hose and shot another cannonball out of the sky.

It exploded in an orange fireball. The giants clapped with appreciation and yelled, "Pretty! Pretty!"

"The thing is," Frank said. "Ella remembers everything she reads. She said something about the page being burned, like she'd read a damaged text of prophecies."

Hazel's eyes widened. "Burned books of prophecy? You don't think—but that's impossible!"

"The books Octavian wanted, back at camp?" Percy guessed.

Hazel looked at Aurora, and she guessed it was because she was a daughter of the god of prophecies. "The lost Sibylline books that outlined the entire destiny of Rome. Dammit! If Ella actually read a copy somehow, and memorized it—"

"Then she's the most valuable harpy in the world," Frank said. "No wonder Phineas wanted to capture her."

"Frank Zhang!" a giant shouted from below. He was bigger than the rest, wearing a lion's cape like a Roman standard bearer and a plastic bib with a lobster on it. "Come down, son of Mars! We've been waiting for you. Come, be our honored guest!"

Hazel gripped Frank's arm. "Why do I get the feeling that 'honored guest' means the same thing as 'dinner'?"

Frank looked at Percy. "Can you drive?"

"Sure. Why?"

"Grandmother's car is in the garage. It's an old Cadillac. The thing is like a tank. If you can get it started—"

"We still have to break through a line of giants," Hazel said.

"The sprinkler system," Aurora said. "Use it as a distraction."

"Exactly," Frank said. "I'll buy you as much time as I can. Get Ella, and get in the car. I'll try to meet you in the garage, but don't wait for me."

Percy frowned. "Frank—"

"Give us your answer, Frank Zhang!" the giant yelled up. "Come down, and we will spare the others—your friends, your poor old granny. We only want you!"

"They're lying," Percy muttered.

"Yeah, I got that," Frank agreed. "Go!"

They ran for the ladder. Hazel went down first, Aurora following, with Percy coming down last with Ella. They ran through the house and out the front door until they reached the garage. Frank wasn't lying when he said that his grandmother's car was a tank. The thing was huge.

Percy got in the driver's seat with Aurora in the passenger's and Hazel with Ella in the back. Percy twisted the keys that were in the ignition and the car roared to life. They didn't even wait for the garage door to open fully before Percy backed out of the garage and turned so they were facing the road.

Suddenly, the house lit on fire and Frank came running. Aurora stuck her head out of the window. "Get in!"

Frank dove in the back seat next to Hazel and Ella, who was muttering, "Yikes. Yikes. Yikes."

Percy gunned the engine. Giants ran to intercept, but Percy shouted at the top of his lungs, and the irrigation system exploded. A hundred geysers shot into the air along with clods of dirt, pieces of pipe, and very heavy sprinkler heads.

The Cadillac was going about forty when they hit the first giant. By the time the other monsters overcame their confusion, the Cadillac was half a mile down the road. Flaming cannonballs burst behind them.

They drove through the woods and headed north.

"About three miles!" Frank said. "You can't miss it!"

Behind them, more explosions ripped through the forest. Smoke boiled into the sky.

"How fast can Laistrygonians run?" Hazel asked.

"Let's not find out," Percy said.

The gates of the airfield appeared before them—only a few hundred yards away. A private jet idled on the runway. Its stairs were down.

The Cadillac hit a pothole and went airborne. Aurora gripped the seat belt with wide eyes. When the wheels touched the ground, Percy floored the brakes, and they swerved to a stop just inside the gates.

Frank climbed out and drew his bow. "Get to the plane! They're coming!"

The Laistrygonians were closing in with alarming speed. The first line of giants burst out of the woods and barreled toward the airfield—five hundred yards away, four hundred yards . . .

Percy, Aurora, and Hazel managed to get Ella out of the Cadillac, but as soon as the harpy saw the airplane, she began to shriek.

"N—n—no!" she yelped. "Fly with wings! N—n—no airplanes!"

"It's okay," Hazel promised. "We'll protect you!"

Ella made a horrible, painful wail like she was being burned.

Percy held up his hands in exasperation. "What do we do? We can't force her."

"No," Frank agreed. The giants were three hundred yards away now.

"She's too valuable to leave behind," Hazel said. Then she winced at her own words. "Gods, I'm sorry, Ella. I sound as bad as Phineas. You're a living thing, not a treasure."

"No planes. N—n—no planes." Ella was hyperventilating.

The giants were almost throwing distance.

Aurora had an idea. "I've got it. Ella, can you hide in the woods? Will you be safe from the giants?"

"Hide," she agreed. "Safe. Hiding is good for harpies. Ella is quick. And small. And fast."

"Okay," Aurora said. "Just stay around this area."

Percy nodded. "I can send a friend to meet you and take you to Camp Jupiter."

Frank unslung his bow and nocked an arrow. "A friend?"

Percy waved his hand in a tell you later gesture. "Ella, would you like that? Would you like my friend to take you to Camp Jupiter and show you our home?"

"Camp," Ella muttered. Then in Latin: "'Wisdom's daughter walks alone, the Mark of Athena burns through Rome.'"

"Uh, right," Percy said. "That sounds important, but we can talk about that later. You'll be safe at camp. All the books and food you want."

"No planes," she insisted.

"No planes," Percy agreed.

"Ella will hide now." Just like that, she was gone—a red streak disappearing into the woods.

"I'll miss her," Hazel said sadly.

"We'll see her again," Percy promised, but he frowned uneasily, as if he were really troubled by the last bit of the prophecy—the thing about Athena.

Aurora couldn't help but feel on edge at the mention of Rome. Ella hadn't said New Rome, she had said Rome, as in Rome Rome. Rome, Italy. A place that Aurora swore she would never return to.

An explosion sent the airfield's gate spinning into the air.

Frank tossed his grandmother's letter to Percy. "Show that to the pilot! Show him your letter from Reyna too! We've got to take off now."

Percy nodded. He, Hazel, and Aurora ran for the plane. Aurora got on first, followed by Hazel and Percy. The son of Poseidon showed the letters to the pilot who immediately told them to take a seat and get ready for take off. The jet's engines roared to life and Aurora took the aisle seat beside Percy, the boy immediately taking her hand as nerves coursed through their bodies.

"Frank!" Hazel shrieked. "Come on!"

Frank ran. He got on the plane just as the stairs began to rise. The pilot must have understood the situation just fine. There was no safety announcement, no pre-flight drink, and no waiting for clearance. He pushed the throttle, and the plane shot down the runway, Percy's grip tightening on Aurora's hand. Another blast ripped through the runway behind them, but then they were in the air, Aurora rubbing her thumb soothingly over the back of Percy's hand to calm him down.

She didn't dare look down, not wanting to see the after effects of their battle with the giants. She leaned back in her chair and held Percy's hand tightly, her nerves frayed.

The plane banked to the left.

Over the intercom, the pilot's voice said, "Senatus Populusque Romanus, my friends. Welcome aboard. Next stop: Anchorage, Alaska."

Aurora exhaled and relaxed, sharing a look with Percy.

They were almost there.

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯ ⬩❖⬩ ⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

𝐀 𝐔 𝐓 𝐇 𝐎 𝐑 𝐒   𝐍 𝐎 𝐓 𝐄   !

⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯ ⬩❖⬩ ⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯⎯

A lot happened in this chapter. Aurora and Percy found out that they knew each other before the whole situation they are in now. Aurora had helped free Artemis and Annabeth and battled Atlas and Luke when she was fourteen with Percy and Thalia and Zoe. I wanted to add this so she would know Annabeth a little bit before she meets the blonde. Also for a bit of further connection between the two.

Also, you found out a bit more about Aurora's past. She has been to Rome before, and something happened there. You'll find out what it is in a couple chapters when they reach Alaska. Which is in the next chapter!

Please continue to comment and vote!

I love you all!

~ a.h.