Prisoner

    "SOLACE!" Percy bellowed, running into the tent with his black hair even more messy than usual. One of his cheeks was bleeding and the left strap of his armor hung crookedly off his shoulder, bronze clasp glinting in the dim light of the army tent. "I need you out on the field right now, Will!"

Will looked up from bandaging Travis Stoll's arm, where a deep slash oozed purple liquid. Katie Gardner hovered nervously over his shoulder, speaking quickly into a walkie-talkie. "No, Miranda, the vine spikes go over the barricade facing OUT!" she muttered, rolling her green eyes and throwing a worried glance toward Travis.

Will finished the bandage, tore it off with his teeth, and stood up. He gestured to Katie and she immediately took his place, gripping Travis's hand tightly in her free one. Will wondered briefly if he should be worried about the fact that she was now yelling something into her walkie-talkie about Venus flytraps and the Ares squad, but quickly decided that, judging from the look Percy was wearing, he had more important things to worry about.

Will blinked the sleepiness out of his bright blue eyes and looked at Percy, who had an expression on his face now that was something of a combination of terror, rage, and loss.

"Aphrodite's adolescent acne," Will cursed, grabbing one of his emergency kits and rushing toward Percy, worn flip-flops nearly tripping him up. Percy grabbed his arm and ran out the door without another word, panting, the desperation with which he clung to Will enough to tell him all he needed to know. "It's Annabeth again, isn't it?" he asked.

Percy just gripped his arm tighter and Will was sprinting now, running with his emergency kit bouncing against his leg. In his peripheral vision, he could see that Percy's deep-green eyes were clouded like the sea in a storm.

They ran past green explosions of Greek fire, past their own forces fighting against black-armored enemy troops. Will heard a yell of pain from the battlefield and he turned, fighting against Percy's grip for a moment to find its source.

Then he saw her, and he saw what was happening.

Annabeth was bent over on the sidelines of the maelstrom of bodies, clutching her thigh in one hand, fending off a dracaena with the other. Piper McLean stood at her back, dark braids flying as she shouted at the monsters and brandished her dagger. She supported Annabeth with one arm, but it was obvious that both girls were flagging, every movement a little more sluggish than the last.

Will and Percy ran towards them, dodging monsters and people in black chain mail. Riptide flew through the air and Will whistled shrilly at monsters that got too close, and they soon reached the place where the two girls were fighting.

Percy and Annabeth exchanged a look, then Percy gave Will a glance and gestured to the girls. The dark-haired boy stepped in front of the group to defend them all, and Will went to work on Annabeth's leg, methodical motions honed to perfection by years of tough, bloody practice.

He had just tied off the last bandage when Percy shouted, "Retreat! We can't hold them!" Will glanced up sharply to see that demigods were fleeing the fields all around them as the monsters advanced. He urged Piper and Annabeth to their feet, and began to follow them, shouting for Percy to catch up. The other boy ran past him, catching up to both exhausted girls and half-carrying them towards the distant fort, where Will could see that Katie's plan had worked. The sharp rows of spiky vines on the outside of the walls would thwart any enemies attempting to scale them. All Will had to do was run fast and he'd be safe.

Unfortunately, the slender, lanky boy and his heavy medical bag weren't exactly fit for physical exertion, and his breath began to come faster.