Heir of a Titan - Book 2 PJO

Chapter 27: I Witness My Own Birth

Mrs. O'Leary was the only one happy about the sleeping city.

Percy and I found her pigging out at an overturned hot dog stand while the owner was curled up on the sidewalk, sucking his thumb.

Argus was waiting for us with his hundred eyes wide open. He didn't say anything. He never does. I guess that's because he has an eyeball on his tongue. But his face made it clear he was freaking out. 

Percy quickly told him what we'd learned in Olympus, and how the gods would not be riding to the rescue. Argus rolled his eyes in disgust, which looked pretty psychedelic since it made his whole body swirl. I felt that eye roll deep in my soul. 

"You'd better get back to camp," I told him. "Guard it as best you can."

He pointed at me and raised his eyebrow quizzically. I had taught him some ASL, seeing as he never talked, and now he had an easier time communicating. He still didn't do too much, the eyeballs on his hands were hard to not watch. But I got what he was saying. 

"I'm staying," I signed. "Percy and I have a world to save. Or destroy."

Argus nodded, like this answer satisfied him. 

"Hey, Argus?" 

He turned every eyeball to me, it made me shiver. The knife twisted again as I took a deep breath and got ready to give him my message. I pulled out a pen from my pocket and a piece of paper. "Can you give this to Raph?" 

Argus raised the eyebrows of his many eyes. 

"When you get back to camp, tell Raph it's over. He can keep his pride. I choose my family. And friends." 

I quickly scribbled a note to the guy who I loved, who I took a curse for, for the guy I thought would always have my back. I wiped my tears as I folded the paper and handed the paper to Argus. He slid it into his pocket with a nod. His eyes looked sad, but every single eye morphed into anger on my behalf. He signed sadly and then nodded.

"Thank you." I signed. I turned to Percy. "I'm going to call my Sight up, see what I can see..." 

He nodded and I turned and sat in the doorway of the Empire state building. Will and Kayla stood beside me, like my personal guards. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, and then thought; Awake the Flame within.

The air rippled in front of me,  I was in the Central Park Zoo, then zooming down East 60th, past Bloomingdale's, then turning on Third Avenue. FDR Drive, looking across the river at Lighthouse Park. 

Nope, scan a bigger area. I zoomed myself out.

Long Island Sound near La Guardia. A fleet of a dozen speedboats raced through the dark water toward Manhattan. Each boat was packed with demigods in full Greek armor. At the back of the lead boat, a purple banner emblazoned with a black scythe flapped in the night wind. I'd never seen that design before, but it wasn't hard to figure out: the battle flag of Kronos.

 The scene shifted as I quickly scrolled through the slide show in front of me; I slowed down when I saw the south to the harbor. A Staten Island Ferry was plowing through the waves near Ellis Island. The deck was crowded with dracaenae and a whole pack of hellhounds. Swimming in front of the ship was a pod of marine mammals. At first I thought they were dolphins. Then I saw their doglike faces and the swords strapped to their waists, and I realized they were telkhines- sea demons.

I shifted the scene again: the Jersey shore, right at the entrance to the Lincoln Tunnel. A hundred assorted monsters were marching past the lanes of stopped traffic: giants with clubs, rogue Cyclopes, a few fire-spitting dragons, and just to rub it in, a World War II-era Sherman tank, pushing cars out of its way as it rumbled into the tunnel.