Chapter Twenty-Eight

Percy leaped at the Emperor and ripped him off the shocked Annabeth. Triton rolled on the floor and angrily got up to punch Percy. Percy easily ducked and punched the royal in the gut, sending him to the floor. Then he began kicking him, leaving him unconscious. For a moment, he though about killing the vile man, but he restrained himself. Not only was killing an unarmed man dishonorable, but Annabeth needed him now.

Percy quickly turned to face Annabeth, her silver dress hanging off one shoulder, the other torn off. "Are you okay?" he asked gently.

She surged forward, embracing him and crying into his chest.

"Shh, it's going to be alright," he whispered, stroking her hair. "You're safe with me."

Her crying slowed and she relaxed into his gentle embrace. She stared up at his beautiful green eyes. "I love you Percy," she whispered.

He smiled softly and kissed her. "I love you too Annabeth." He held her for another moment, comforting her, trying to rid her of the memory of what had just happened.

"Annabeth, we need to leave," he said urgently.

Annabeth nodded silently and followed him out of the room. They were going to leave the East Wing when Annabeth remembered Piper. "Percy, we need to get my sister."

He nodded and they quickly entered Piper's room. Annabeth hurried to the bed and awoke her sister with a shake. "Hurry Piper. Pack your things, we're leaving immediately." She snatched the dagger under her pillow and Piper sleepily, but quickly got her precious items together.

Percy turned to leave the room when Annabeth opened the door to the hidden passage in Piper's bedroom. "Smart thinking Wise Girl," Percy said with a grin.

"I didn't get the name for nothing did I?" she smiled over shoulder, plunging into the torch lit corridor. The trio made it onto the streets and Percy tried to understand where they were. "Annabeth, which direction is the hypogeum from here?" he asked.

Annabeth pointed and the three hurried off in that direction. For a moment, Percy thought they were home free, that is until the Praetorians appeared out of the shadows, in their arms, his four friends.

"Are you serious?" he yelled at the sky.

"Percy, stop yelling at the sky and do something!" Thalia yelled before a guard gagged her.

"I'm sorry Thals, but Percy won't be doing anything here except dying," Triton said, stepping out of from behind a Praetorian.

"Hey, I thought you were still drooling on the floor," Percy taunted.

Triton's nostrils flared. "How dare you? I am your Emperor-"

"Who actually isn't supposed to be Emperor," Percy interrupted. "Technically, I am the oldest son of Marcus Poseidon, bastard child or not."

"Yet you are not a royal! You're a homeless slave with a cowardly, slutty family!"

"Shut up! My family was better and braver than you'll ever be you slimy worm!"

Meanwhile the whole of the Praetorian guard and Percy' friends watched the two half-brothers throw insults at each other.

"Guards, arrest this man for treason against the crown. He and his friends, as well as the Chases are to be held in my personal gladiator dungeons," Triton commanded.


Percy and his friends sat alone in their cells. A match had been ordered. The seven against ten men in an arena of tigers. Percy clutched his hair. How could he have done this? Not only are his friends in trouble, but he had brought Annabeth and Piper into this. He looked up and stared at the blonde in the cell across from him. Her princess curls tumbled down her shoulders as she leaned against the wall, arms folded over her chest.

"I'm sorry Annabeth," Percy said.

The grey eyed girl looked over at him. "Why?"

"For getting you into this mess, you and Piper. You shouldn't have to fight in the arena. This is my fault," Percy explained sadly.

Annabeth resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Percy looked like a kicked puppy. "Percy, did you ever stop to think that maybe, Piper and I could fight?"

Percy looked up. "Uh…"

Annabeth smirked. "And that's why you're the Seaweed Brain and I'm the Wise Girl."

"Wisely said Wise Girl," Percy said with a grin.


Jason dreamed about having Piper in his arms. Even in the dream, her hair still smelled amazing and her eyes still a vibrant ever-changing mixture of colors. Sun leaked into the corridors of the gladiator confines and Jason realized that his dream was reality. He awoke to the sight of brown hair spread across his chest as he leaned against the wall, the girl he loved in his arms. He smiled in content and didn't bother to question it, just wanting to enjoy the moment. A few minutes later, a shift in position alerted him to the awakening of his lover.

"Morning Pipes," he grinned.

"Good morning Jason," she yawned, a sleepy smile on her lips. Jason leaned forward and pecked her on the lips in greeting. She happily responded with a kiss of her own, a warm, loving kiss that Jason could get lost in. When they broke away, Jason began to wonder. "Say Pipes, how exactly did you get in here?"

"Oh, I asked the guard," she answered simply.

"And he listened to you?" he asked in surprise.

"I can be very persuasive."

"Remind not to get on your bad side."

Piper chuckled and kissed him again, and the two spent their morning like that until the cell doors were opened for breakfast.


Percy gripped Annabeth's hand. No matter what, he wasn't going to lose her. The seven stood behind the gates that led into the Colosseum. Somehow the weapons from the night they had been captured had been kept and brought into the armory, where Percy happily reunited with his favorite sword and Annabeth with her trusty dagger.

He leaned down to the blonde. "Stay close to me," he whispered into her ear.

"Afraid Seaweed Brain?" Annabeth asked with a confident smirk.

You have no idea, he thought but he chose to keep silent. Better for her to be confident and prosper and than to be afraid and hesitate.

Roars could be heard through the gate, both human and animal. The announcer had already announced the ten gladiators from the regular confines.

"And to add to this special battle, Caesar is pleased to give you his personal gladiators lead by Perseus!" the speaker bellowed.

The crowd cheered at Percy's name and the gate lifted. Percy quickly took the time for marching to the middle as a chance to assess his surroundings. There were 3 tigers, two on the north and south parts of the Colosseum, and another on the west. On his right was the west tiger and on his left, the north tiger. Across from him, the seven enemy gladiators had the south tiger on their left and no tiger on their right. They had the advantage. Most likely they would try to force Percy and his friends to fight on their right.

He turned to Annabeth, who also looked like she was analyzing the situation. "I have an idea," she said, but before she could tell him, she was interrupted by the announcer.

"We also have a guest of Caesar, a general of Dacia, former general of Gaul, General Nakamura!" Percy glanced up into the royal box and indeed the second cohort centurion, er, general, was standing next to Triton.

"Now, let us reveal the names of our competitors of Caesar!" the announcer boomed. Percy and his friends were uniformly lined up and the crowd turned to look at the proud warriors. "Starting from the right, Perseus Romulus Jackson Poseidon!" The crowd roared and Percy blinked in surprise. They had added his father's name. "Annabeth Minerva Chase!" The crowd quieted in surprise. A noble in the arena? "Piper Minerva Chase!" The silence continued. "Nico Pluto Jackson Poseidon!" That was new one. This boy was Percy's brother? "Luke Mercury Castellan!" Also a new one. The blonde had been unknown to the crowd. "Thalia Jupiter Poseidon!" Gasps erupted from the crowd. A member of the royal family fighting amongst gladiators? "Jason Jupiter Poseidon!" Even more gasps. The boy was the prince! Why were all these noble people fighting in the Colosseum. There answer was given.

Triton stepped forward. "My people, you wonder why such important people are fighting as slaves. The answer is simple. Treason against Rome and the Emperor. Each one has been accused of attempting to assassinate me or helping to assassinate me. Let this be known citizens! Rome cannot stand on the backs of traitors, therefore, this is what happens to those that dare to destroy Rome!" Triton said, pointing at the seven.

The crowd was in shock. Half was for Caesar and yet many supported Perseus. Silence ensued. "Do not let this trouble you citizens. Enjoy the match. Here in the Colosseum, we are one," Caesar said.

Still silence ensued until a gladiator across from Percy charged. Then all Hades let loose. The crowd roared in approval and Percy and his friends readied for the charge.

"Percy," Annabeth said.

"Yeah?"

"It's about my plan," she said.

"Shoot."

"We need to get on their right flank, force them to the tiger. We can trap them," she explained. Percy nodded and quickly relayed the instructions to the other five and the seven charged.

Sword met sword and Percy pushed. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Luke, Jason, and Nico forming a shield wall as Thalia and Annabeth duel fought. For nobility, they fought well. Percy ducked out of the lock with his opponent and stabbed the man in the gut, running towards the girls. "We need to force them to the tigers!" Annabeth yelled over the clanging of metal on metal.

Percy quickly grabbed a fallen shield and handed it to Annabeth. "Go join them," he ordered, and he took off towards Thalia who was struggling against a large man.

"Hey tubby!" he yelled. He momentarily caught the man's attention, giving Thalia enough opportunity to stab the man with her spear. "Thanks Perce."

Meanwhile, the shield wall was falling apart. Jason and Nico struggled to keep their shields up as the 6 enemies bashed against them, Annabeth and Luke fighting off the gladiators on the flanks.

Percy and Thalia raced to the shield wall. "Percy, give me a boost," Thalia yelled, throwing him her shield as they neared their friends. Percy ran in front of Thalia and stood with his back to his friends, readying the shield as Thalia ran toward him. Then she jumped and at the moment that Thalia's feet touch the shield, Percy thrust upward, launching her into the air and over and behind the enemies. At landfall, Thalia whirled and speared a man, and with him still impaled, speared another man. "Anyone want a shish-ka-bob?" she grinned.

Percy grinned and leaped over the enemy, using an enemy head for a boost. He landed next to Thalia and smiled. "Sorry Thals, I'm not into cannibalism," he said as he engaged tall gladiator.

Thalia shrugged. "More for me then," she said, throwing the two men off her spear and into another gladiator. Luke and Nico double teamed a rather large gladiator while Annabeth her own, leaving Jason fighting a gladiator with Piper as cover. The blonde girl ducked, slashed, and slid around her opponent, getting in a slash whenever she could. But it became too much when Nico went down. Luke was left to fight the giant of a man and Thalia missed a thrust to the gut of her gladiator, causing her to be disarmed and open to a slash to the arm. Thalia was down too. Piper hurried to help her friend and was almost skewered through had Jason not deflected the blade in time. He quickly killed the man and went back to his own gladiator.

Annabeth finished off her gladiator and charged at another gladiator who was creeping up behind Jason. She quickly slit his throat, sending a spray of blood into the air. Jason hurried to defeat his gladiator but the man was fast, deflecting all of his thrusts. Then a loud roar was heard and Annabeth knew her plan had worked. A flash of orange and black and Jason's gladiator was no more. Annabeth smirked and went to help Luke while Jason charged at the rear of the giant.

Percy fought quickly, his a blade a bronze blur. He gritted his teeth. The gladiator was forcing him towards the tiger. A clanking of chains alerted him to the beast and a roar let loose as Percy quickly stepped to the side. The gladiator managed to dodge the feline and charged at Percy. His sword was raised as if he was going to strike Percy's side but he feinted and raised his sword above his head. Percy's eyes widened and he thrust his sword forward and into the gut of his enemy, but not before being knocked to the ground. The clanking of chains and the bloody body above was swallowed in the maw of the animal.

He quickly rolled to the side before the tiger could leap at him too. Then another clanking of chains and a shout. The next thing he knew, a blur of orange and black was heading towards his friends from the north. "No!" he shouted. He sprinted to his friends where Annabeth, Luke, and Jason had just finished off the giant as Piper attended to Thalia and Nico. They wouldn't see the tiger. "TIGER!" he screamed before leaping over his friends, sword out, straight at the mouth of the beast. He caught it in midair and the two rolled, Percy's grip on the sword never loosening. They came to a stop and all was frozen. The tiger lay still on top of the man. The crowd was silent.

Annabeth's eyes widened in horror. "Percy!" she screamed, racing towards the mound of orange and black. She struggled to pull the beast off him, but its body was too heavy. She sobbed in desperation and pulled at the mass of fur and only when her friends arrived did they manage to lift the beast. The crowd was on its feet, waiting in suspense for the outcome. As the beast was removed, any could see that Riptide was stuck deep in its maw, the blade puncturing the back of its throat. Percy had caught it mid roar. But Annabeth didn't care about that right now. Percy's eyes were closed and his arms were bloody. She rested her head on his chest, searching for a heartbeat.

His chest jolted as he gasped. Annabeth immediately lifted her head to see a groaning Percy, alive. He opened his eyes. "That hurt."

Annabeth's eyes filled with tears. "Hurt? Percy, you jumped at a leaping TIGER! You could have DIED! Geez, when did you turn suicidal Seaweed Brain?!" she screamed, in between sobs.

Percy grinned sheepishly. "Uh…"

Annabeth's eyes turned into a look of rage. "What were you thinking? If you had died-"

"Annabeth you do realize all of Rome's looking at us right now, right?" Percy pointed out.

"I don't frickin' care!" she dissolved into sobs and Percy held her tight, whispering reassuring words in her ear.

As soon as Annabeth was calm, Percy was filled with rage. Triton was the one behind this. The tigers, the fight, all these deaths. Nico and Thalia were wounded for the Emperor's sick game. Men were killed as Triton smiled. He stood up and retrieved his sword, pointing it at the royal box.

"Triton!" he bellowed. The crowd and Triton turned to face the enraged gladiator. "I will not be a pawn in your game anymore brother. My father, the true emperor of Rome asked of me a wish on his death bed. It will be fulfilled. You who sit in your box, eating grapes in leisure as men die for amusement, you who selfishly and cruelly murdered my family, I challenge you o great Caesar. I challenge you to a duel. Fight me, or remain the coward you are!"

All heads turned to Caesar and Percy smirked. There was no backing out now, which is why he wasn't surprised when he heard Triton's answer: "I accept."

Author's Note: Yep, this story is coming to an end soon. It was fun while it lasted. Hey, do you want Percy to die at the end like in the movie, or do you want him to live? I'm not posting again until I get enough answers. I'm sirius (black). HARRY POTTER REFERENCE! In case you didn't notice. Anyway, thanks for reading and reviewing. Again, not posting until I have the answer so PLEASE REVIEW!