Half-Blood High

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                                     Piper

"Piper? Piper are you there?"

"Jason? Where are you? What's going on?"

"Pipes, I need you to listen. I don't have long." Jason's blond hair was matted down with dirt. His sky-blue eyes pierced me like bullets. It made my heart ache to see him like this.

"Jason, where are you?"

He hesitated. "I... I don't really know. Somewhere underground, in the Labyrinth I think. Listen, Kronos is trying to get to this place... I think he called it the Vulcanian Forges. So far, the Labyrinth has been keeping us busy. I think Daedalus is trying to keep him from finding it." There was a crash from behind him. Sparks flew in the dark, and the glint of metal on metal shone in the background.

"You guys need to hurry. Please. I'll try and hold him back until then. Good luck." Jason waved, and he disappeared.

"NO! JASON COME BACK!"

I sat up with a gasp. "Breathe Piper, Breathe." I muttered. "It was only a dream."

I was in my bedroom, moonlight streaming through my window. The clock said it was three forty-four in the morning.

With a sigh, I lay back down, thinking. So Jason was in the Labyrinth with Kronos, who was looking for some sort of forge. I frowned, thinking about him. Something about Jason had seemed oddly... off. Probably just the dream though.

I sighed again. I would tell the others tomorrow. Before I fell asleep again, I whispered:

"Hey, uh... mom. Please protect Jason. Don't let Kronos hurt him, please. I'll wear make up, or shop more, or whatever. Just please keep him safe."

"Please."

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                                   Jason

"Really? That's your plan?"

I stared at Kronos, who, at the moment, had my face. Yeah, I know. It was weird for me too.

I-uh-he smirked.

"Seriously, Do you really think Piper will fall for that?! She's smarter then you think."

Kronos raised my eyebrow. "Oh really. A daughter of Aphrodite with brains. That'll be a first." He laughed dryly. Rude.

"Dude, would you please change your face back to Luke's or something? It's kind of creepy looking at myself."

Kronos rolled my eyes, but my face morphed back into that of Luke Castellan. "You sons of Zeus are so picky. Perhaps I should have grabbed one of the Roman half-bloods. They at least, might not complain so much."

I glared at him. "Hey, this whole kidnapping thing was your idea, not mine."

Kronos didn't answer, but grabbed me by the back of my football jersey, which was now dirty and tattered. With a grunt, he hauled me up and pulled me along.

I would have fought him or something, but he had somehow conjured up shining golden chains that bound my hands and ankles. I could hardly walk without tripping, much less fight.

He pulled me down a dark tunnel, the light of his blade barely illuminating our path. I sent silent prayers to whoever up there was listening that my friends wouldn't fall for his trick.

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                                 Annabeth

"Wait a minute. You saw Jason?"

Leo, Percy and I all stared incredulously at Piper, who blushed at  the sudden attention. "Um, yeah. I did. In a dream." She quickly told us about how Jason had told her that Kronos was looking for something.

"He sounded really urgent. I think we should tell Chiron about what he said."

The three of us nodded in agreement. It was lunch time, so we all quickly grabbed our food and walked to his office. Percy munched on an apple.  In between bites, he asked me: "So, how far do you think they've traveled?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. She said Jason mentioned the Labyrinth was making it hard for them to get to the forges, so I'm guessing not far?"

Percy nodded as Piper knocked on Chiron's door. He opened it, his brown eyes widening in surprise. "Well, this is a surprise. Come in, come in."

We all filed in, and before the door had even closed, Piper launched into an explanation on what she'd dreamed about. Chiron nodded along, stoking his salt-and-pepper beard with the air of an old professor. When Piper finished, he said:

"I see. In that case, we have no time to loose. I'll phone Lupa and have her bring Frank and Hazel. You three still have your weapons, correct?"

Piper, Percy and I nodded.

"Good. When they arrive, we shall take Leo, Frank and Hazel into the Atrium to receive their weapons. While you six take care of that, I will track down Daedalus and inform him of our plight." Chiron nodded to the door.

"But sir," I said as we walked out. "What about fourth and fifth period classes?"

Chiron shook his head. "Not to worry. I'll take care of that. Now go, and prepare yourselves. We have a long day ahead of us."

Percy frowned. "Wait. So you're just going to find this guy who's supposed to be dead and get him to help us? How are you going to manage that?"

Chiron raised an eyebrow. "Why Percy, He is a teacher here at the school."

I gasped. "Seriously? The greatest inventor of all time is here?"

"Try to contain yourself Annabeth," Leo muttered. I glared at him.

Chiron nodded. "Yes indeed. He goes under the name of Quintus."

Percy frowned. "Hey, that's our fencing coach. He doesn't look two-thousand years old."

"He is considered the greatest inventor of all time. He was able to build himself an automaton body to hold his soul when his physical body passed."

Percy nodded. "Oh. So he's a robot. Cool."

Chiron opened his mouth to protest, then closed it. "Ah... Yes. We'll go with that. Now, hurry and put away your backpacks. We will meet you outside the Atrium. Do not, I repeat, do not go in without us." He shot Leo a look that suggested he was the cause of that reminder.

Then, he shut his door, the click of the lock an echoing finality in my ears.
. . .
Thoughts?

Peace ✌️

-SilverQuillsandRoses