plague bringer - a heroes of olympus insert

𝗑𝗂𝗑. 𝖽𝖾𝗆𝗂𝗀𝗈𝖽 𝗌𝗁𝗈𝗐 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗍𝖾𝗅𝗅

If there was one thing that Aria knew, it's that distracting yourself is a very effective way of fixating on all of your problems.

She, Annabeth, Coach Hedge, and Buford the table rushed around repairing things so that the ship wouldn't sink. Although she didn't know how to fix everything, she remembered a solid amount of stuff from when she helped Leo with building the ship. Percy, despite being exhausted, searched the ocean for their missing friends. Jason, also exhausted, flew around the rigging like a blond Peter Pan, putting out fires from the second green explosion that had lit up the sky just above the mainmast. As for Piper, she was trying to locate Leo, Hazel, and Frank using her dagger. Her face was in a grimace, and Aria couldn't blame her. She wasn't feeling much better either.

By the time the sun rose, none of them had slept. Percy had scoured the seafloor and found nothing. The Argo II was no longer in danger of sinking, though without Leo they couldn't do full repairs. The ship was capable of sailing, but no one suggested leaving the area—not without their missing friends.

Piper, Aria, and Annabeth sent a dream vision to Camp Half-Blood, warning Chiron of what had happened with the Romans at Fort Sumter. Annabeth explained her exchange of words with Reyna. Piper relayed the vision from her knife about the SUVs racing north. The kindly centaur's face seemed to age thirty years during the course of their conversation, but he assured them he would see to the defenses of the camp. Tyson, Mrs. O'Leary, and Ella had arrived safely. If necessary, Tyson could summon an army of Cyclopes to the camp's defense, and Ella and Rachel Dare were already comparing prophecies, trying to learn more about what the future held. The job of the eight demigods aboard the Argo II, Chiron reminded them, was to finish the quest and come back safely. After the Iris-message, the demigods paced the deck in silence, staring at the water and hoping for a miracle.

When it finally came—three giant pink bubbles bursting at the surface off the starboard bow and ejecting Frank, Hazel, and Leo—Aria felt herself melt with relief. "Oh thank the gods!" She smiled. They were okay, for now at least, and everything was fine.

Piper cried out with relief at the sight of them and dove straight into the water. Aria couldn't help but laugh at the sight. She paddled over to Leo and kissed him on the cheek, which kind of surprised him.

"Miss me?" Leo laughed.

Piper was suddenly furious. "Where were you? How are you guys alive?"

"Long story," he said. A picnic basket bobbed to the surface next to him. "Want a brownie?"

Once they got on board and changed into dry clothes (poor Frank had to borrow a pair of too-small pants from Jason) the crew all gathered on the quarterdeck for a celebratory breakfast—except for Coach Hedge, who grumbled that the atmosphere was getting too cuddly for his tastes and went below to hammer out some dents in the hull.

While Leo fussed over his helm controls, Hazel and Frank related the story of the fish-centaurs and their training camp.

"Incredible," Jason said. "These are really good brownies."

"That's your only comment?" Piper demanded.

He looked surprised. "What? I heard the story. Fish-centaurs. Merpeople. Letter of intro to the Tiber River god. Got it. But these brownies..."

"I know," Frank said, his mouth full. "Try them with Esther's peach preserves."

"That," Hazel said, "is incredibly disgusting."

"And a crime to brownies everywhere," Aria agreed.

"Pass me the jar, man," Jason said.

Hazel, Aria, and Piper exchanged a look of total exasperation. Boys.