SAFE . . . reyna ramirez-arellano

96 - sing song

BRIAR WASN'T SURPRISED when the snake people arrived.

She'd been thinking about her encounter with Sciron the bandit, when she'd stood on the deck of the Argo II after escaping a gigantic Destructo-Turtle and made the mistake of saying, "We're safe."

Instantly an arrow had hit the mainmast, an inch in front of her nose.

Briar learned a valuable lesson from that: never assume you're safe, unless you're with Reyna, and never, ever tempt the Fates by announcing that you think you're safe.

So when the ship docked at the harbor in Piraeus, on the outskirts of Athens, Briar resisted the urge to breathe a sigh of relief. Sure, they had finally reached their destination. Somewhere nearby – past those rows of cruise ships, past those hills crowded with buildings – they would find the Acropolis. Today, one way or another, their journey would end.

But that didn't mean she could relax. Any moment, a nasty surprise might come flying out of nowhere.

As it turned out, the surprise was three dudes with snake tails instead of legs.

Briar was on watch while her friends geared up for combat – checking their weapons and armor, loading the ballistae and catapults. She spotted the snake guys slithering along the docks, winding through crowds of mortal tourists who paid them no attention.

"Snakes! Big snakes!" Briar yelped, jumping away from the railing.

Reyna immediately rushed over to her side, preventing her from backing away more. Annabeth and Percy also came over.

"Oh, great," Percy said. "Dracaenae."

Annabeth narrowed her eyes. "I don't think so. At least not like any I've seen. Dracaenae have two serpent trunks for legs. These guys just have one."

"You're right," Percy said. "These look more human on top, too. Not all scaly and green and stuff. So do we talk or fight?"

Briar was tempted to say fight. She hated snakes. In fact, she hated most animals, especially after that turtle incident. She had a vague memory of a Cherokee story Piper had told her in the past — something about squirrel meat and snakes.

Weirdly, the snake in the lead reminded Briar of her dad. The snake man held his head high. His face was chiselled and bronze, his eyes black as basalt, his curly dark hair glistening with oil. His upper body rippled with muscles, covered only by a Greek chlamys – a white wool cloak loosely wrapped and pinned at the shoulder. From the waist down, his body was one giant serpent trunk – about eight feet of green tail undulating behind him as he moved.

In one hand he carried a staff topped with a glowing green jewel. In his other, he carried a platter covered with a silver dome, like a main course for a fancy dinner.

The two guys behind him appeared to be guards. They wore bronze breastplates and elaborate helmets topped with horsehair bristles. Their spears were tipped with green stone points. Their oval shields were emblazoned with a large Greek letter K – kappa.

They stopped a few yards from the Argo II. The leader looked up and studied the demigods. His expression was intense but inscrutable. He might have been angry or worried or terribly in need of a restroom.

"Permission to come aboard." His rasping voice also made Briar think of her dad. Only this snake had way darker skin and dark, long hair.

"Who are you?" Reyna asked.

He turned to her. "I am Kekrops, the first and eternal king of Athens. I would welcome you to my city." He held up the covered platter. "Also, I brought a Bundt cake."