CHAPTER ONE

Leo Valdez POV

They were soaring, Calypso on his back, shrieking in delight, arms locked around Leo's waist. She leaned forward against his warm back and shivered as wind blasted into her face and caused her caramel hair to fly out behind her. Clutching him tightly, she pressed her lips against his right ear.

"I love you Leo Valdez," she whispered. "I love you, I love you."

She hadn't expected Leo to hear her, her murmurs drowning out with the howling wind, but Leo heard her, and grinned, his chest swelling, and laughed nervously.

"I love you sunshine. I love you more than love itself." Leo wasn't the type to just throw those words around, but he meant it. Oh gods, he meant it. He was completely and utterly infatuated.

Festus creaked underneath them, and faltered, momentarily dropping and swerving to the side, before regaining balance.

"Man, you ain't gonna last are you Festus?" Leo muttered. "Sorry sunshine, I'm gonna have to land somewhere soon. Gotta repair him, before he goes hurling us to our deaths."

Leo should have known better than to jinx it, because as soon as the words left his mouth, Festus jerked to the side and sent Leo and Calypso into a freefall.

"HOLY MOTHER OF ZEUS!" Leo screamed as he fell, desperately clutching the air. "CALYPSO!"

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Man, that girl knew how to do soprano. Her arms and legs were flailing uselessly around her, her eyes wild as the racing air forced tears out of them. Leo reached out his arm and grabbed hers, thinking I rescue her, then I fall to my death. Thanks a lot fates. Leo would have given anything to smack those stupid grannies with his five pound mallet.

Then… WHOOOOOOOOOOOOOSH!

Festus managed to capture Leo in one of his claws and flew back upwards, jerking Leo and Calypso's arm with him. Calypso groaned in pain, and Leo whipped his head around to look at her. Her caramel hair was flying behind her, and even grimacing in pain, Leo thought she was beautiful.

"I think I just dislocated my arm."

Leo pulled Calypso up to get a better hold of her, and she winced and yelped in pain.

"I'm sorry," he said to her. "I didn't mean to grab your arm back there. We'll land, and I'll try to get your arm sorted out." Whimpering, Calypso nodded and buried her face into the crook of Leo's neck.

~O_O~O_O~O_O~O_O~O_O~O_O~O_O~O_O~O_O~O_O~O_O~O_O~O_O~O_O~O_O~O_O~O_O~O_O~O_O~O_O~O_O~O_O~O_O~O_O~O_O~O_O~O_O~O_O~O_

Festus landed not long after. Leo stepped out of Festus' clutch and gently laid Calypso onto the ground, before looking around.

"Wow," he muttered. "This looks like a hurricane ran through it.

"Not a hurricane," Calypso told him from where she was attempting to sit up without moving her arm around too much, wincing when she did. "Typhoon. I remember seeing this place."

Confused, Leo turned her way again.

"I thought you haven't been off your island in like a gajillion years ago. How can you remember this place?"

"Lord Hephaestus actually. He came to my island to talk to Perc…"she caught herself. "Er, he came and showed us what had happened when Percy caused an explosion that woke Typhoon. If I remember correctly, this place is called…"

"Mt St Helens," Leo finished for her. "Annabeth told me this story on the Argo II. She and Percy were sent here on an errand for my father. They were finding out what happened to ONE OF HIS FORGES! CALYPSO! ONE OF MY FATHER'S FORGES IS HERE!"

"What?" she said, probably confused about why he was so worked up.

"Annabeth said this place was infested with some sort of creature. Can't remember. Wasn't really paying attention."

"Leo…" Calypso muttered, rising to her feet, but Leo didn't register. He was too busy rambling.

"Telephones? Tele… Telegrams? I dunno something like that.

Telekhines, a new voice answered in a raspy voice that made Calypso wince.

"Yeah, that's it, but that's not the point, forge means metal, metal means… wait who said that?"

Too late, he realised…

Laughter erupted from behind Leo, and he turned around. What he saw shocked him. He was expecting something horrible, something that made him go weak at the knees, a body as terrifying as its voice, but what he faced were… dog mermaids?

So this is the hero of Olympus, it stated, walking, or rather wiggling towards Leo. You have caused us much trouble youngling. Personally, I don't see what the fuss it all ab…

Leo burst out laughing. The telekhine stopped in its tracks, taken aback.

What are you…?

"You look stupid," Leo stated. "What are you supposed to be? You're like a mix of 'The Little Mermaid' and '101 Dalmatians'. With a little bit of 'The Frog Prince' maybe. Its frickin' hilarious man."

The telekhine blinked.

"Leo…" Calypso warned him from behind.

Its nostrils enlarged to twice the size. Shock was replaced with anger.

YOU DARE?! I WILL HAVE YOUR SKULL CRUSHED A THOUSAND TIMES IN THE NAME OF MOTHER… SPLAT!

Leo scrambled back as a boulder fell right where the telekhine was standing was a boulder about the size of Leo, which is to say not too big. Nevertheless, the monster exploded into yellow dust underneath. Leo leaned forward to examine better.

"Crushed huh?" Leo muttered. "Interesting choice of words."

"Friends!"

Leo looked up and saw Tyson sprinting up the mountain with Percy's hellhound Mrs O'Leary bounding after him.

"Tyson! Hey man!"

Tyson rammed into Leo, and all the air was knocked out of his lungs at once. Mrs O'Leary settled for licking his face and wagging his tail, which Calypso had to dodge. Leo stood, straightened his shirt and tried to look dignified. He glanced at Calypso and flashed a grin before turning to Tyson.

"Leo! Yay! You are alive! Jason said that Gaea killed you dead!"

Leo blinked.

"Uhh, I did." he said it more like a question, but Tyson didn't hear him.

"Friends need help? Lord Hephaestus told me to come here to help."

"Hephaestus told you what?"

"Yes, he said: Go to the jail of Typhoon and return the lost heroes." Tyson told Leo, with a perfect imitation of Hephaestus' raspy, booming voice. It creeped Leo out.

"We aren't lost, we are just…"

"Stranded," Calypso stepped in. "Plus the malfunctioning dragon."

"Pretty. Pretty girl," Tyson told her. She blushed, and Leo kissed her cheek.

"Tyson, this is Calypso. Calypso, Tyson, Percy's…"

"Brother. I know. Percy has told me stories. You were lost in the Labyrinth right?"

"We were not lost," he grumbled, "Just went the wrong way."

"Uh huh."

"You are Calypso. Yes Percy has told me stories too! You got angry in Tartarus."

"I… I got angry in Tartarus? I'm not… I think you have mistaken me, young cyclops. I haven't seen Tartarus before."

Leo cleared his throat to get their attention.

"What he means is that when Annabeth and Percy fell into Tartarus…"

"PERCY FELL INTO TARTARUS?!"

Leo tried not to be bothered about how Calypso only mentioned Percy's name.

"Well… yeah… anyway, they met some Arai or something and one way or another, Annabeth got the curse you gave or something. I dunno. Something about abandoning or jealousy?

"What? I…" her expression became dark. "What have I done?"

"It's cool, they survived. I mean they can survive anything. I'm sure Percy and Annabeth won't hold it against you. They're not the type to hold a grudge."

Calypso nodded, but she still looked guilt stricken. He decided to change the subject, hoping Calypso would forget about it.

"Come on Tyson. Help me find some celestial bronze. I need to repair my dragon. The sooner we do that, and the sooner we can fix Calypso's arm and leave."

"I brought ambrosia," Tyson grinned proudly, showing off his yellow teeth. "You can have it. Fix your arm."

Leo knelt down beside her, laying her down.

"I hope it works. You're not a halfblood."

"God, Titan, does it matter?"

"But you're immortal. Would it work?"

"One way to find out." Calypso ripped a corner of the godly food and popped it into her mouth. Her arm socket popped back into place a moment after, and she started with a painful yelp. She winced and brought her knee up to where Leo least appreciated it.

"OWWWWWWWW!" Leo screamed in a very unmanly way.

"Sorry," she murmured, cautiously moving her arm.

"Why me?" he squeaked. "First Piper! Now you! Curse you fates!"

"Oh you poor baby."

Leo grinned. Alright then soldiers! Celestial bronze! Let's hop to it!