Discalimer:
I don't own Percy Jackson OR The Heroes of Olympus. I have cited the first chapter as available on Disney's site and continued my version of 'Mark of Athena' from there.
This is my first fan-fiction.
Mark of Athena
Chapter 1 – Annabeth (A/N: I think)
Until she met the exploding statue, Annabeth thought she was prepared for anything. She paced the deck of the Argo II, checking and double checking the ballistae to make sure they were locked down. She confirmed that the white flag was flying from the mast. She reviewed the plan with the rest of the crew; and the backup plan, and the backup plan for the backup plan. Most importantly, she pulled aside their war-crazed chaperone, Gleeson Hedge, and encouraged him to take the morning off in his cabin watching reruns of a mixed martial arts championship. The last thing they needed, flying a Greek trireme into a potentially hostile Roman camp, was a middle-aged satyr in gym clothes waving a club and yelling "DIE!" Everything seemed to be in order. Even that mysterious chill that she had been feeling since the ship launched seemed to have dissipated. At least for now.
The warship descended from the clouds but Annabeth couldn't stop second guessing herself. What if this was a bad idea? What if the Romans panicked and attacked on sight? The Argo II definitely did not look friendly. Two hundred feet long with a bronze hull, flaming metal dragon for a mast head, mounted repeating crossbows that could fire explosive bolts powerful enough to blast through concrete. Well, it wasn't the most appropriate ride for a meet and greet with the neighbors.
Annabeth had tried to give the Romans a heads up. She'd asked Leo to send one of his special inventions, a holographic scroll, to alert their friends inside their camp. Hopefully the message had gotten through. Leo had wanted to paint a giant message on the bottom of the hull, "Wazzup?" and a smiley face, but Annabeth had vetoed the idea. She wasn't sure the Romans had a sense of humour.
Too late to turn back now. The clouds broke around the hull, revealing the golden green carpet of the Oakland hills below them. Annabeth gripped one of the bronze shields that lined the starboard railing. Her three crewmates took their places.
On the stern quarterdeck, Leo brushed around like a madman, checking his gauges and levers. Most helmsmen would have been satisfied with a pilot's wheel or a rudder. Leo had installed a keyboard monitor aviation controls from a leer jet and dubstep soundboard and the motion control sensors from a Nintendo Wii. He could fire the ship by pulling on the throttle or fire the weapons by sampling an album or raise the sails by shaking his Wii controllers really fast. Even by demigod standards, Leo was seriously ADHD.
Piper paced back and forth behind the main mast, practicing her lines. "Lower your weapons," she murmured, "we just want to talk."
Her charmspeak was so powerful the words flowed over Annabeth, filling her with the desire to drop her dagger and have a nice long chat. For a child of Aphrodite, Piper tried really hard to play down her beauty. Today she was dressed in tattered jeans, worn out sneakers, and a white tank top with pink Hello Kitty designs. Maybe a joke? Though Annabeth really could never tell with Piper. Her choppy brown hair was braided down the right side with an eagle's feather.
And then there was Piper's boyfriend, Jason. He stood at the bow on a raised crossbow platform where the Romans could easily spot him. His knuckles were white on the hilt of his sword. Otherwise he was pretty calm for a guy who was making himself a target. Over his jeans and his orange Camp Half Blood T-shirt, he had donned a toga and a purple cloak, symbols of his old rank as praetor. With his wind ruffled blond hair and his icy blue eyes, he looked ruggedly handsome and in control, just like son of Jupiter should. He'd grown up at Camp Jupiter, so hopefully his familiar face would make the Romans hesitate to blow them out of the sky.
Annabeth tried to fight it, but she didn't completely trust this guy. He acted too perfect, always following the rules, always doing the honorable thing. He even looked too perfect. In the back of her mind, she kept thinking 'maybe this was a trick and he betrayed us. What if we sail into Camp Jupiter and he says, "Hey, Romans! Check out these prisoners and this cool ship I brought you."
Annabeth didn't think he would do that, but still. She couldn't look at him without getting a bitter taste in her mouth. He'd been part of Hera's forced exchange program between the two camps. Without warning, Hera had plucked up Percy Jackson, Annabeth's boyfriend, wiped his memory and sent him to this Roman camp. In exchange, the Greeks got Jason. None of that was Jason's fault, but every time Annabeth looked at him, she remembered how much she missed Percy.
Percy, who might be below them right now.
Oh god. Panic welled up inside her. "I'm a child of Athena," she said to herself, "I have to stick to my plan and not get distracted."
Then she felt it again, that familiar shiver, as if an evil snowman had crept up right behind her and was breathing down her neck. She turned but no one was there. It must be her nerves. Annabeth wished she could pray to her mother for help, but now that was impossible. Not this last month since she'd had a horrible encounter with her mom and had gotten the worst present of her life.
The cold pressed closer. She thought she heard a voice in the wind, laughing. Every muscle in her body tensed. She knew something was about to be terribly wrong. She almost ordered Leo to reverse course. And then, in the valley below, horns sounded.
The explosion almost knocked her overboard. She whirled and found herself eye to eye with an angry statue.
"Unacceptable!" he shrieked.
Apparently he had exploded into existence, right there on the deck. Sulfurous yellow smoke rolled of his shoulders. Cinders popped around his curly hair. From the waist down, he was nothing but a sqare marble pedestal. From the waste up, he was a muscular human figure in a carved toga. "I will not have weapons inside the Pomerian Line" he announced in a fussy teacher voice. "I certainly will not have Greeks!"
"Terminus," he said. "It's me. Jason Grace."
"Oh, I remember you, Jason" Terminus grumbled. "I thought you had better sense than to consort with the enemies of Rome!"
"But they not enemies-"
"That's right," Piper jumped in. "We just want to talk. If we could-"
"Ha!" snapped the statue. "Don't try that charmspeak on me, young lady. And put down that dagger before I slap it out of your hands!"
Piper glanced at her bronze dagger, which she'd apparently forgotten she was holding. "Um... Okay. But how would you slap it? You don't have any arms."
"Impertinence!" There was a sharp POP and a flash of yellow. Piper yelped and dropped the dagger, which was now smoking and sparkling.
"Luckily for you I've just been through a battle," Terminus announced. "If I were at full strength, I would've have blasted this flying monstrosity out of the sky already!"
"Hold up." Leo stepped forward, wagging his Wii controller. "Did you just call my ship a monstrosity? I know you didn't do that."
The idea that Leo might attack the statue with his gaming device was enough to snap Annabeth out of her shcok.
"Let's all calm down." She raised her hands to show she had no weapons. "I take it you're Terminus, the god of boundaries. Jason told me you protect the city of New Rome, Right? I'm Annabeth Chase, Daughter of-"
"Oh, I know who you are" The statue glared at her with its blank white eyes. "A child of Athena, Minerva's Greek form. Scandalous! You Greeks have no sense of decency. We Romans know the proper place for that goddess."
Annabeth clenched her jaw. This statue wasn't making it easy to be diplomatic. "What exactly do you mean, that goddess? And what's so scandalous about-"
"Right!" Jason interrupted. "Anyway, Terminus, we're here on a mission of peace. We'd love permission to land so we can-"
"Impossible!" the god squeaked. "Lay down you weapons and surrender! Leave my city immediately!"
"Which is it?" Leo asked. "Surrender, or leave?"
"Both!" Terminus said. "Surrender, then leave. I am slapping your face for asking such a stupid question, you ridiculous boy! Do you feel that?"
"Wow" Leo studied Terminus with professional interest. "You're wound up pretty tight. You got any gears in there that need loosening? I could take a look"
He exchanged the Wii controller for a screwdriver from his magic tool belt and tapped the statue's pedestal.
"Stop that!" Terminus insisted. Another small explosion made Leo drop his screwdriver "Weapons are not allowed on Roman soil inside the Pomerian Line."
"The what?" Piper asked.
"City limits," Jason translated.
"And this entire ship is a weapon!" Terminus said. "You cannot land"
Down in the valley, the legion reinforcements were half-way to the city. The crowd in the forum was over a hundred strong now. Annabeth scanned the faces and... Oh, gods. she saw him. He was walking toward the ship with his arms around two other kids like they were best buddies - a stout boy with a black buzz cut, and a girl wearing a Roman cavalry helmet. Percy looked so at ease, so happy. He wore a purple cape just like Jason's - the mark of praetor.
Annabeth heart did a gymnastics routine.
"Leo, stop the ship." she ordered.
"What?"
"You heard me. Keep us right where we are."
Leo pulled out his controller and yanked it upward. All ninety oars froze in place. The ship stopped sinking.
"Terminus," Annabeth said, "there's no rule against hovering over New Rome, is there?"
The statue frowned. "Well, no..."
"We can keep the ship aloft," Annabeth said. "We'll use a rope ladder to reach the forum. That way, the ship won't be on Roman soil. Not technically."
The statue seemed to ponder this. Annabeth wondered if he was scratching his chin with imaginary hands.
"I like technicalities," he admitted. "Still..."
"All out weapons will stay aboard the ship," Annabeth promised. "I assume the Romans - even those reinforcements marching toward us - will also have to honor your rules inside the Pomerian Line if you tell them to?"
"Of course!" Terminus said. "Do I look like I tolerate rule breakers?"
"Uh, Annabeth..." Leo said. "You sure this is a good idea?"
She closed her fists to keep them from shaking. That cold feeling was still there. It floated just behind her, and now that Terminus was no longer shouting and causing explosions, she thought she could hear the presence laughing, as if it was delighted by the bad choices she was making.
But Percy was down there... He was so close. She had to reach him.
"It'll be fine," she said. "No one will be armed. We can talk in peace. Terminus will make sure each side obeys the rules." She looked at the marble statue. "Do we have an agreement?"
Terminus sniffed. "I suppose. For now. You may climb down your ladder to New Rome, daughter of Athena. Please try not to destroy my town."