This Dark Night ― Percy Jackson & Annabeth Chase¹

―xv. party time

THERE WAS SILENCE IN THE AFTERMATH. Naomi had been so focused on her fight with Hyperion, so zoned in on taking him down that she'd forgotten all about the Titan's forces.

It didn't matter, though—they'd been just as focused on her, on watching their Titan general fall to a teenage girl.

Hyperion was nothing but dust now, which blew away in the faint breeze that followed. Naomi watched, wondering if she was meant to feel grief. Was it wrong that she didn't? Or was it just?

A hand touched hers. "Nay."

Annabeth was beside her, studying her with wide eyes.

Another hand touched her shoulder. She looked to see Percy on her other side, watching her, expression worried. She didn't understand why until he said quietly, "Your arm."

Naomi looked down. The burn on her arm from Hyperion's flames was an angry, dark red, already blistering, but as the three of them watched, shadows coiled around the wound. They wouldn't heal her, she knew, but the darkness was a welcome cold on the feverish, burned skin.

Before Naomi could even start to regather her wits, Kronos unleashed his surprise.

"REEEET!"

The squeal echoed through upper Manhattan. Demigods and monsters alike froze in terror.

"Why does that sound like—" Grover looked panicked. "It can't be!"

It took a moment for Naomi's adrenaline-flooded brain to catch up (ironic, right?). Then she remembered: two years ago, they'd gotten a "gift" from Pan—a huge boar that carried them across the Southwest (after trying and failing to kill them). The boar had a similar squeal, but what they were hearing now was higher pitched, shriller.

"REEEEEET!" A huge pink creature soared over the reservoir—a Thanksgiving Day Parade nightmare blimp with wings.

"A sow!" Annabeth cried. "Take cover!"

Demigods scattered as the winged pig swooped down. Her wings were pink like a flamingo's, which matched her skin perfectly, but it was hard to think of the creature as cute when her hooves slammed into the ground, barely missing one of Annabeth's siblings. The pig stomped and tore down half an acre of trees, belching a cloud of noxious gas. Then it took off again, circling around for another strike.

"Don't tell me that thing is from Greek mythology," Percy complained.

"Afraid so," Annabeth said. "The Clazmonian Sow. It terrorized Greek towns back in the day."

"Let me guess," Percy said. "Hercules beat it."

"Nope," Annabeth said. "As far as I know, no hero has ever beaten it."

"Perfect," he muttered.

The Titans' army was recovering from its shock. They must've realized the pig wasn't after them.

The campers only had a few seconds before the Titans' forces were ready to fight, and the demigods and satyrs were still in a panic. Every time the sow belched, Grover's nature spirits yelped and faded back into their trees.

"That pig has to go." Percy grabbed a grappling hook from one of Annabeth's siblings. "I'll take care of it. You guys hold the rest of the enemy. Push them back!"

"But, Percy," Grover said, "what if we can't?"

Percy studied the battlefield, looking conflicted. "Retreat if you need to," he said. "Just slow them down. I'll be back as soon as I can."

❊

Naomi wasn't sure how it was possible, but things went from terrible to absolutely dreadful.