Leo sighed as he looked over the chunks of metal that had once been the Argo II. He glanced over at Buford, who had puffs of smoke coming out of the vent on his side.
"This was all that was salvageable." Leo told him. "Those hellhounds certainly did a good job." He knelt down and started to sift through the rubble and pull out bits and pieces that would be useful for the new ship. Soon enough, he started to find the golden metal scraps that he had dreaded seeing. "Oh Festus," he murmured, "You put up one heck of a fight, didn't you buddy?" He turned to Buford and said, "Keep these safe for me, I might find a use for them later. Then he proceeded to place the pieces into into the table's drawer. "Well, this ship isn't going to build itself, I'd better get started.
After about three hours of work, Leo had finished the frame of the ship and was about to begin work on the stern when he felt a sharp tap on the shoulder. He whirled around, ready to fight whatever monster had made the unfortunate decision to bother him. But as he looked around for a telekine or an empousa, all he saw was a disgruntled looking girl sprawled out on the ground. But this wasn't just any girl; this was Reyna, daughter of Bellona, Praetor of the Twelfth Legion, and the latest of Leo's crushes on girls that were way out of his league.
"Oh, Reyna! I'm so sorry!" Leo apologized as he offered to help the Praetor up.
"It's fine." Reyna replied refusing Leo's outstretched hand. She stood up and dusted off her toga. "I just came to see how the shipbuilding was going.
"It's going well, I guess." Leo said solemnly.
"I'm sorry about the Argo II, Leo. I know how important it was to you." Reyna said, seeing the sadness in his eyes as he looked at the ships remains.
"Aw, it's alright. If it hadn't been destroyed, we all would've died. Anyway, my new ship will be even better! I'm thinking automatic soda machines and a video game arcade." Leo said as he flashed what he hoped was a charming smile.
At this, the corners of Reyna's mouth slightly curled upward.
Hey, maybe I still have a chance, Leo thought.
"Let me see the blueprints." Reyna said as she snatched them from Leo's hands.
"Wait!" Leo spoke as she looked over the designs. "I'm not sure if-"
"These look really good. But the name, The Leyna, I think I've heard it before. Does it mean what I think it means?" She asked, raising her eyebrow at Leo.
At her words, Leo blushed a deep crimson. "Well you see.. I, um, I... it was stupid... I'm sorry..."
Reyna handed him the blueprints and kissed him on the cheek- effectively stopping his rambling. She straightened her toga and turned around, leaving Leo just standing there with mouth hanging wide open. Then she started to walk away, calling over her shoulder, "It's alright Leo, I ship it!