Percy's POV

As we returned to our base a few hours later, we immediately unpacked the pillar and put in into the ground near our campfire.

It was literally steaming.

"Percy, my dad's figured out we took it. He's activated the self-destruct mode," Nico warned.

I looked around. Everyone looked anxious and worried.

"Our friends are in there." My neck snapped towards Nico. "Nico, are you willing to enter the prism with me, and save Beckendorf and other friends we might have?" He thought for a second.

"I'll do it, Perce."

I clapped him on the shoulder. "This might hurt." I pressed my hand on the side of the crystal and was sucked into the prism once more.

"Nico?" He rolled over from his place on the ground and groaned.

"What?"

"Memorize this place. These are the doors to exit. Find whoever you can and bring them here. If this is collapsing and I'm not here, you'll need to open the doors yourself." I told him the key.

We both bolted off in different directions. I followed the path I used when I was first inside the prism.

"Beckendorf!" I rounded a corner and bumped into a large African American. "Beckendorf!"

"Who are you?" He asked in a gruff voice.

"It's me, Percy." His eyes widened. He started to ask a question, but I interrupted him, "I was changed into an elf on an adventure of mine, I'll tell you all about it, but this place is falling apart and I'm trying to get everyone I know out of here. Do you know anybody else in here?"

"Follow me. I know where Silena is." Silena's in here? I thought. We ran through halls and courtyards. If this prism wasn't falling apart, I would very much have enjoyed to look around.

We entered a room on the side of a hall, scaring the woman inside. "Charlie! You scared me. Who's this?"

"It's Percy, Silena. He says the prism is collapsing, and he's trying to save us." She leapt to her feet.

"Do I need to grab anything?" she asked.

"The only things that will hold are the things on your body," I answered. She looked around sadly.

"Let's go." We left the room.

"Beckendorf, do you know anyone else here?"

"No, it was just us. I know nobody else," he answered.

"Then let's get out of here." We maneuvered our way through falling debris and rubble back to the portal where Nico was waiting with two girls.

"Perce! I didn't know if you were gonna make it. I found Bianca and Zoë here," a loud rumble and the sound of falling debris interrupted him, "Let's get out of here!" I recited the key and shielded my eyes from the brightness as it covered us and sent us out of the prism.

I grunted as I was pushed forward by the many people coming out of the prism. Bianca was the last person to leave, the prism melting faster than she could fully exit, leaving her right leg trapped in the prism.

"Ah! Nico! Help me!" She screamed.

"Perce! I don't know what to do!" Nico started panicking.

"Rule number seven: stay calm and don't panic. Now, Annabeth, cast a spell of protection on Bianca. Beckendorf, Silena, Zoë, you three just move back a couple steps so we can work." I looked around. "Thalia, come here."

"Yes?"

"Hold on to Bianca's arms while I cast a spell of undoing on the prism. Eragon, Murtagh, Arya, join minds with me so we can do this safely.

As our minds melded, I thought so everyone could hear, Are we ready? They all mentally nodded. As I spoke the words of the spell undoing, I was suddenly aware of how much power it was taking from us. A few more moments of this, and we'd all be dead.

Sensing our distress, Alexō and the other dragons joined their minds with us and added their strength to ours. The prism started knitting itself back together just enough so that Bianca's leg slipped out and she and Thalia fell to the ground. I dropped the spell, feeling more drained than I had in a long time. The prism melted the rest of the way, leaving a pile of molten rock in our camp yard.

"Ow . . ." Bianca was gripping her leg, moaning in pain. Her leg was torn to shreds, a byproduct of getting it trapped in the failing prism. Alexō added his strength to mine, and we worked a spell that healed her leg. "Ah, it itches," she complained.

"It itches because Percy is using magic to speed up the natural process of healing within your leg."

"All done," I said. Bianca sat up and examined her leg.

"How'd you do that?" I showed her the hand bearing my gedwëy ignasia. She took it in her hand. "What is this?"

I motioned to my old friends. "You guys might want to listen to this." And with them listening, I explained the concept of Dragon Riders, their duties, and the marvelous things they've been able to do. "And I want for you guys to become them."

Zoe was the first to speak. "Thou want us, to become Riders of dragons?"

"I do, yes." I paused so I could examine each of their faces. "Do you accept?" Almost immediately they all accepted.

I took them all to the building which held the eggs and Eldunarí. After making sure that they wouldn't be able to see the latter, I took them in one at a time. Bianca went first, at the plead of Nico. She ran her hand over the eggs, pausing for a second at each one. She stopped at a black one.

"I feel something," she said. I looked out with my mind and found the egg was hatching. As the egg hatched and Bianca became a Rider of her new black dragon, which I kinda thought was funny because of her heritage. Beckendorf went next. A red egg that resembled fire hatched for him. As I got Zoë, she asked, "Do you pick your dragon?"

"No, your dragon picks you. Some of these eggs had been waiting for thousands of years, and when their Rider comes, they hatch and everything is better." She nodded and began the process. After two runs through, no egg had hatched. "I'm sorry, Zoë –" I was about to say more when I silver egg wobbled and fell off the shelf, revealing an abnormally thin dragon with wings that were way too big for any normal hatchling.

"Is that mine?" Zoë inquired. I nodded. A huge smile broke out across her face as she went over to touch it. The dragon reared its head for a moment, making sure she was its Rider, then firmly pressed its little head against her palm. After I carried her and her new dragon out, the last person to go was Silena.

She followed me in and ran her hands over the eggs. As her hands landed on a gold egg, I could hear her mumbling, "Please don't be gold." I guess she jinxed it. The gold egg started wobbling then a crack appeared on it. A little head popped through the shell, and looked at Silena. The rest of the shell cracked and Silena backed away.

"No, Percy. Why gold?" I remembered Kronos' eyes, that same terrifying gold. This dragon might be reminding her of her days as the spy.

"Silena, look at it, it's not going to turn into him, okay? Just touch it, it'll change your mind." She hesitantly reached forward, and the dragon touched her hand with its tiny nose.

I cleaned up all the egg shell remains and carried Silena and her gold dragon outside.

/^\

Later that night, Nico and I were sitting by a fire, watching the new riders sleep.

"You did it, Perce. You brought people back to life."

"Just like you did, Nico." He nodded solemnly. A thought crossed my mind. "Have you been to the Roman camp?"

"Yes, I have. There I'm known as the ambassador of Pluto."

"That camp's symbol wouldn't have to do anything with S.P.Q.R., would it?"

"That is exactly what it is." He looked at me strangely. "How did you know that?" I thought for a moment. I could have lied and told him all my hanging out with Annabeth taught me, but I decided to tell him the truth.

I looked around to make sure nobody was watching or listening. Just to be safe, I cast a spell to ward off eavesdroppers. "Nico, I am going to tell you something I haven't told anyone else."

"Does Eragon and the others know this?"

"They were there when I discovered them. Follow me." We silently made our way to my house, as to not wake anybody up. "You can sit down on the bed." Nico nodded and sat on the edge of my bed. I pulled out a key and unlocked my dresser drawer. Inside were the four scrolls, with the two S.P.Q.R and the Omega. I sat down next to him.

"Last time I tried to open these, my mother spoke to me and told me not to. I think I know enough now that I'll be able to." For the first time, I noticed that one of the Roman scrolls and one of the Greek scrolls had something in common, a skull besides the residing symbol.

"What does that mean, Perce?" I thought for a moment.

"I think it means current or dead, like the past or something." I set that one down and opened the Omega without a skull. As I opened it, inside was a list of names that I did not recognize.

"Do you know any other these names, Nico?" Nico looked at it, then looked at me like I was stupid.

"Dude, it's empty. There's no names on here."

"Yes, there is! Here, hold it." As I let go and he started to hold it, the names disappeared.

"Perce, you were right –"

"So were you," I added. We both looked at each other and said one word, "Magic."

"So whoever holds it is the only one who can see it?" Nico asked.

"I guess so. Let's try both holding it." As I grabbed part of it, the words came back into view. "Can you still see them?" I asked.

"Yeah, you?"

"I can. Do you recognize any of these names?"

Nico scanned the list, "No, oh wait – look here Percy." He pointed to a name down the list.

"What? No. It can't be."

"It is Percy. I think this is a list of future Dragon Riders."

"So Rachel is going to become one? I don't believe that," I said.

"Did you think dragons only chose demigods?" He had me there. Up until now, I had. I guess I was wrong. "What does the one with the skull say?" he asked.

I grabbed it and opened it, allowing him to hold part of it so we could both see.

At the top of the list were names I never thought I'd see:

Silena Beauregard

Zoë Nightshade

Charles Beckendorf

Bianca di Angelo

"Nico," I paused. "This shows all the current and dead Riders."