𝐁𝐀𝐂𝐊 𝐓𝐎 𝐃𝐄𝐂𝐄𝐌𝐁𝐄𝐑 - jason grace ¹

viii. eyes go cold

VIII.      VIOLET   !
⋆ ★
eyes go cold

            Violet didn't believe Butch until she saw the dragon with her own eyes. But she didn't expect to see Leo, sitting atop a giant bronze death machine and grinning like a lunatic. Even before he landed, the camp alarm rang in her ear as a conch horn blew.

At the scene, archers had their bows lowered and the warriors backed away, keeping their spears and swords ready. They made a loose wide ring around the metal monster. Other demigods hid behind their cabin doors or peeped out the windows. Nobody seemed anxious to get close.

The dragon was huge. It glistened in the morning sun like a living penny sculpture- different shades of copper and bronze— a six-foot-long serpent with steel talons and drill-bit teeth and glowing ruby eyes. It had bat-shaped wings twice its length that unfurled like metallic sails, making a sound like coins cascading out of a slot machine every time they flapped.

"God," Jason ran his hands through his hair while they saw the metal dragon next to Violet.

The dragon reared its head and shot a column of fire into the sky. Campers scrambled away and hefted their weapons, but Leo slid calmly off the dragon's back. He held up his hands like he was surrendering, except he still had that crazy grin on his face.

"People of Earth, I come in peace!" he shouted. He looked like he'd been rolling around in the campfire. His army coat and his face were smeared with soot. His hands were grease-stained, and he wore a new tool belt around his waist. His eyes were bloodshot. His curl hair was so oily it stuck up in porcupine quills, and he smelled strangely of Tabasco sauce. But he looked absolutely delighted, like a kid on his birthday. "Festus is just saying hello!"

"That thing is dangerous!" an Ares girl shouted, brandishing her spear. "Kill it now!"

"Stand down!" Jason's order surprised Violet. He pushed through the crowd, followed by her and that girl from the Hephaestus cabin, Nyssa. Jason gazed up at the dragon and shook his head in amazement. "Leo, what have you done?"

"Found a ride!" Leo beamed. "You said I could go on the quest if I got you a ride. Well, I got you a class— A metallic flying bad boy! Festus can take us anywhere!"

"It—has wings," Nyssa stammered. Her jaw looked like it might drop off her face.

"Yeah!" Leo said. *I found them and reattached them."

"But it never had wings. Where did you find them?"

Leo hesitated, and Violet could tell he was hiding
something.

"In . . . the woods," he said. "Repaired his circuits, too, mostly, so no more problems with him going haywire.

"Mostly?" Nyssa asked.

The dragon's head twitched. It tilted to one side and a stream of black liquid, maybe oil, hopefully just oil, poured out of its ear, all over Leo.

"Just a few kinks to work out," Leo said.

"But how did you survive . . . ?" Nyssa was still staring at the creature in awe. "I mean, the fire breath . . "

"I'm quick," Leo said. "And lucky. Now, am I on this quest, or what?"

Jason scratched his head. "You named him Festus? You know that in Latin, 'festus' means 'happy? You want us to ride off to save the world on Happy the Dragon?"

The dragon twitched and shuddered and flapped his wings.

"That's a yes, bro!" Leo said. "Now, um, I'd really suggest we get going, guys. I already picked up some supplies in the— um, in the woods. And all these people with weapons are making Festus nervous."