The Poseidon Girls

Chapter 18 ~ Crashing... Again... (CASS)

I was jerked awake by everyone else screaming. We spiralled through the dark in a free fall, still on Faustus's back, but his hide was cold.
"Not again!" Leo yelled. "You can't fall again!"
"Again?" Katherine asked."
"Festus crashed when we first met you. That's how we ended up there." I explained, barely able to hold on to the falling dragon. His wings flapped once, and I thought Leo had gotten him flying again, but then I started smelling something that I assumed was burning bronze. There was no way this dragon would be able to fly again. I saw the lights from a city below us - just flashes in the dark as we plummeted in circles. We probably only had a few seconds before we crashed.
"Jason!" Leo screamed. "Take the girls and fly out of here!"
"What?"
"We need to lighten the load! I might be able to reboot Festus, but he's carrying too much weight!"
"What about you?" I cried. "If you can't reboot him -"
"I'll be fine," Leo yelled. "Just follow me to the ground. Go!"
"Leo, I can't hold all 4 girls!" Jason said. "Is it okay if Cass stays?"
"Yeah, okay," Leo sounded nervous. Jason told Coral and Katherine to slide off, while he grabbed Piper around her waist. He set up air cushions for Coral and Katherine, then the four of them were off.
"Now," Leo said. "Just you and me and Cass, Festus - and two heavy cages. You can do it, boy!"

Leo talked to his dragon as he worked, Festus falling at terminal velocity. I could see the city lights below us, getting closer and closer. Leo summoned fire in his hand so he could see what he was doing, but the wind kept extinguishing it. Festus groaned - metal creaking inside his neck... I think. He spread his wings, and our fall turned into a steep glide.
"Good!" Leo said. "Come on, big boy. Come on!" We were still flying in way too hot, and the ground was too close. Festus seemed to come back to life, and he flew toward some rich person's mansion with a huge lawn, which looked great for landing on. That's when everything went wrong. As we approached the lawn, spotlights along the fence fixed on us, blinding me. I heard bursts like something firing, the sound of metal being ripped to shreds - and BOOM.
I blacked out.

When I came to my senses, Leo, Coral, Katherine, Jason, and Piper were leaning over me. I was lying in the snow, covered in mud and grease from Festus.
"Where -"
"Lie still." Piper had tears in her eyes. "You and Leo rolled pretty hard when - when Festus crashed."
"W-What happened to him?" I asked.
"He's disintegrated. His limbs, th-they're scattered all across the lawn. His tail's hanging on the fence." Leo told me.
"Oh my gods, Leo, I'm so sorry," I could feel my own eyes tearing up, and I knew it would be much harder for Leo to deal with - he was the one who fixed Festus.
"I-It's fine. Nothing lasts forever, not even the best machines."
"Still sucks when they can't be used anymore, though," Leo nodded, and helped me to stand up.
"Where are we?" Leo asked. "I mean, what city?"
"Omaha, Nebraska," Piper answered. "I saw a billboard as we flew in. But I don't know what the mansion is. We came in right behind you, bus as you were landing, you two, I swear it looked like, I don't know -"
"Lasers," Leo said. He picked up a piece of dragon wreckage and threw it toward the top of the fence. Immediately, a turret popped up from the brick wall and a beam of pure heat incinerated the bronze plating to ashes. Jason whistled.
"Some defence system. How are we even alive?"
"Festus," I answered miserably. "He took the fire. The lasers sliced him up so they didn't focus on you."
"I led led him into a death trap." Leo added.
"Well, since we clearly can't go out, we're going to have to go in. Right?" Katherine suggested.
"Right," Coral agreed. "Let's go."
"Alons-y!" I quoted, and we all headed up to the mansion.

Hello! I'm really really sorry if the title says Meeting King Midas.... it's not changing.... but if it DOESN'T say that, THANK THE GODS!!!!