It's a bit of a shock to see Piper riding in on a pitch-black pegasus with Jason and Percy, both unconscious. After getting Blackjack into the stables, Frank and I meet up with the rest of the crew at the dining table to discuss what happened. Frank is beside me, eating a burrito. Beside him is Leo, and at one head of the table is Theo. On her other side is Piper with Jason, then Percy is across from me, and Annabeth takes the other head of the table.
Piper explains what happened at Topeka 32. Their conversation with Bacchus, the trap sprung by Gaea, the eidolons that have possessed the boys.
"Of course!" Theo slaps the table, which startles Frank so much he drops his burrito. "That's what happened to Leo too."
"So it wasn't my fault." Leo exhales. "I didn't start World War Three. I just got possessed by an evil spirit. That's a relief!"
"But the Romans don't know that." Annabeth interjects. "And why would they take our word for it?"
"We could contact Reyna." Jason suggests. "She would believe us." He turns to Piper. "You could convince her, Pipes, I know you could."
I can't help but wince. The only reason Reyna would believe Jason is because she very obviously has feelings for him. Theo gives Piper a sympathetic "boys are so clueless" look.
"I could try." Piper tries. "But Octavian is the one we have to worry about. In my dagger blade, I saw him taking control of the Roman crowd. I'm not sure Reyna can stop him."
Jason's expression darkens, but I can't help but nod in agreement. Frank does the same.
"She's right." Frank speaks from beside me. "This afternoon when we were scouting, we saw eagles again. They were a long way off, but closing fast. Octavian is on the warpath."
I grimace. "This is exactly the sort of opportunity Octavian has always wanted. He'll try to seize power. If Reyna objects, he'll say she's soft on the Greeks. As for those eagles, it's like they could smell us."
"They can." Jason nods. "Roman eagles can hunt demigods by their magical scent even better than monsters can. This ship might conceal us somewhat, but not completely. Not from them."
Leo drums his fingers. "Great. I should have installed a smokescreen that makes the ship smell like a giant chicken nugget. Remind me to invent that, next time."
I frown. "What is a chicken nugget?"
"Oh, man..." Leo shakes his head in amazement. "That's right, you've missed the last like, seventy years. Well, my apprentice, a chicken nugget-"
"Doesn't matter." Annabeth interrupts. "The point is, we'll have a hard time explaining the truth to the Romans. Even if they believe us-"
"You're right." Theo leans forwards thoughtfully. "We should just keep going. Once we're over the Atlantic, we'll be safe. At least, from the legion."
Jason looks so bummed. Theo flits her eyes between Leo and I, just for a moment. I look away from her quickly. I'm dating frank, and he's great. I'm just so caught off guard about Leo looking like Sammy. I mean, before I died, sammy and I were best friends. And he had been... special to me. Sometimes, I look at Leo, and I see Sammy. It's hard to control my emotions in those sorts of situations. I don't think that means I want to date Leo. But I do get jealous when I see him looking at her the way Sammy used to look at me.
"How can you be sure?" Piper asks. "Why wouldn't they follow us?"
Theo shakes her head. "You heard Reyna talking about the ancient lands. They're much too dangerous."
"Plus, Roman demigods have been forbidden to go there for generations." Jason adds. "Even Octavian couldn't get around that rule."
Frank swallows a bite of his burrito as if it has turned to cardboard in his mouth. I don't feel much better. "So, if we go there..."
