Chapter 36: Battle Plans

"We're talking about how I'm going to steal you from Annabeth," Piper joked.

"Wait, what?" Both Percy and Jason said alarmed.

"Jason you're sweet but Percy, that right there…that's boyfriend material."

"Hey, I like him with his head uninflated," Annabeth told her.

"Maybe I'll inflate it a little so I can have him."

"They're joking right?" Percy asked Jason.

"I'm pretty sure, yeah."

"Seriously though," Sadie told Annabeth. "The second you break up with him, if it ever happens, it's going to be a battlefield."

"I really don't understand, what's the big deal?" Percy asked.

"You see dear younger cousin," Thalia told him with a grin. "The thing about girls they like when a guy isn't afraid of emotions and he's there when they need them. When he doesn't push their emotions away but lets them be valid and you've been pretty good."

"Oh," Percy said. To him it was simple. It was like trying to make his mom feel better when she'd had a hard day back when Gabe was still with them.

"Well all of you can back off, he's mine," Annabeth said grabbing Percy's arm possessively.

Percy turned back to the horses. Nico still hadn't gotten on the Pegasus. It was backing up from him. It turned to Percy and complained he smelled like dead people.

"I told you animals don't like me," Nico said.

"They just needed to get used to your smell," Percy argued.

"Sure," Nico drawled.

Blackjack said hey, come on to Porkpie. Lots of demigods smell weird. It wasn't their fault. Blackjack hesitated and said he didn't mean him, boss.

"I should be offended."

"I love that horse."

Nico said to go without him. He didn't want to go back to that camp anyway. Percy said they needed his help. He folded his arms and scowled.

"Sorry," Nico said. "I didn't realize how bratty that seemed."

"It's fine."

Annabeth put her hands on his shoulder and said Nico, please. His expression softened and he said all right. For her. But he wasn't staying.

"That's why everyone thought you liked Annabeth," Jason realized.

"What?" cackled Alex.

"I wasn't coming because I didn't want to be near Percy," Nico told her.

"Hey!"

"You know what I meant."

Percy raised an eyebrow at Annabeth and she stuck her tongue out at him.

"Mature," Magnus told her.

"Yes. I am."

The scene changed and they were in the middle of the cabin area as the Pegasi flew away and were met by Chiron, Silenus, and several Apollo campers. Percy was finishing talking about Kronos rising. Chiron didn't look surprised. He said he feared as much. They had to hurry. Hopefully, they slowed down the Titan lord but his army would still be coming through and they'd be anxious for blood. Most of their defenders were already in place. He told them to come.

"I figured because there wasn't any destruction, the battle hadn't started yet. Still not sure how you got there in time," Blitz said.

"Honestly no clue. I just managed to slow down Kronos. I guess that was enough," Percy shrugged.

Silenus demanded they wait a moment. What about the search for Pan? Grover was almost three weeks overdue! His searcher's license was revoked.

"He doesn't need it. He's the only one that found anything anyway," Juniper said with a humph.

"Dam Juniper," Thalia held out her hand for a fist bump. "Now go up and tell that to the old goats face."

"Can they even do that?" Frank asked him.

"If they all vote on it yeah," Grover agreed.

"Not fair," Hearth signed at him.

"It wasn't."

Grover took a deep breath. He stood up straight and looked Silenus in the eye. He said searcher's licenses didn't matter anymore. The great god Pan was dead. He'd passed on and left his spirit.

"Never mind," Thalia said. "Grover took care of it."

"Way to go, man," Walt told him.

Silenus's face turned red and he yelled what. He yelled sacrilege and lies. He said he'd have Grover exiled for talking like that.

"I get if he doesn't want to believe that Pan died," Leo said. "But the guy needs to shut up."

"Agreed," Percy said.

Percy said it was true. They were all there when he died. All of them. Silenus said impossible. They were all liars! Nature destroyers.

"If Percy and the others all said so they should know it's true," said Hazel.

"They didn't want to believe it," Reyna told her.

Chiron looked at Grover and said they'd speak of this later. Silenus yelled they'd speak of this now. They had to deal with this. Chiron cut in and said his camp was under attack. The matter of Pan waited two thousand years. He feared it would have to wait a bit longer that is if they were still there this evening. Chiron gripped his bow and went towards the woods leaving the rest of them exchanging glances before following.

"I love Chiron," Percy said.

"Chiron is the best," Annabeth agreed.

They arrived at the clearing and everyone was there in full battle armor. Around the entrance to the Labyrinth were traps of razor wire, pits with pots of Greek fire and rows of sharpened sticks. Beckendorf was readying two catapults the size of trucks aimed at Zeus's fist.

Leo whistled. "Nice. I have a few more ideas but I guess they didn't have that much time."

"Not a lot," Will agreed. "We had a lot more before the Giant War and that fight."

The Ares cabin was right behind the wooden stakes. They were marching in phalanx formation doing drills. Clarisse called orders which her campers followed. Campers from the Apollo and Hermes cabins were scattered in the woods in the woods most of them with bows and several with other weapons. There were several in the trees as well. The dryads also lingered armed with bows and the satyrs with wooden cudgels and shields of rough tree bark.

"I actually haven't seen the nature spirits fight," Piper frowned.

"We couldn't really in the giant war," Grover said. "Not the way we did here."

Annabeth immediately ran up to the Athena cabin and the command tent. There was a gray banner with an owl fluttering outside the tent. Argus stood guard at the front. Several Aphrodite campers ran around straightening armor and the horsehair plumes. Dionysus's sons were running around with water bottles and juice boxes.

"Not bad," Carter said.

"I mean there are some more useful things to do than running around straightening the hair on the helmets," Magnus told him.

"Are you kidding?" Percy asked. "You've never fought with one of those things on. The hair gets tangled and in your face. The Aphrodite kids somehow keep it from ever falling for several hours. And they always get the armor just right."

"Most of my siblings can't fight," agreed Piper. "But they know a lot of good tricks to help."

Next to Percy, a mutter came from Chiron that wasn't enough. Percy who'd looked so hopeful seconds ago started to frown.

"How did you manage?" Reyna asked him.

"Same way I always do. With my friends," Percy said.

"We have a knack for making them," agreed Grover.

Grover was talking to Juniper on the edge of the clearing. Green tears fell on her face as she gripped both his hands and listened to his story about Pan. Tyson with a nod from Percy walked to the Hephaestus kids and put together the defenses. He piled boulders by the catapults. Chiron looked around and said for Percy to stay with him. When the fighting begins he wanted him to wait until they knew what they were dealing with. Percy would be sent where they needed the most reinforcements.

"So basically Percy is all of your back-ups," Sadie said with an eyebrow raise.

"No," Percy said.

"A lot of the time," Annabeth interjected, "Yes."

Percy said he saw Kronos. He looked straight into his eyes. It was Luke but it wasn't.

"See? He's avoiding the fact he knows he's supposed to be the person fighting this and winning," Thalia said.

"Stop it! I'd encountered a lot of traumatic events and I was processing!"

"Uh-huh."

Chiron ran his fingers along the bowstring and said Kronos had golden eyes he guessed. And his presence seemed to turn time to liquid.

"So it was him. He's actually in Luke's body," Frank said with wide eyes.

"I thought your gods couldn't do that," Carter asked.

"No. We can't."

"And the actual body wouldn't be able to stand it," Walt said. "I mean maybe it's different with demigods but most the time with mortals it just doesn't…"

"No. Demigods can withstand it," Percy told him. "I'm not sure how long for but they can. It's not the same exact thing as what happened with Luke but it's somewhat similar. I guess that's what happens when you let the god actually take control of your body."

"I think," Walt said. Anubis seemed to believe so at the least.

Percy nodded and asked how he could take over a mortal body. Chiron said he didn't know. The gods had assumed the shapes of mortals but to actually become one and merge yourself… he didn't know how it could be done without Luke's form turning to ashes.

"So why can our gods do it?" Sadie asked.

"I do not know," Zia frowned.

"I mean you're not supposed to host a god if you're not the blood of the pharaohs either," Carter said. "But I don't think Zia is and neither is Percy. So the question is what makes the gods different. Who can host them and for how long?"

"Let's not try and test it," Annabeth interrupted.

"No. But we can see if anyone knows."

Percy said Kronos had said his body had been prepared.

"What does that mean?" Jaz asked shuddering.

"It doesn't sound good."

"It's not fun," Percy muttered under his breath.

Chiron said he shuddered to think what that meant. But perhaps it limited Kronos's power while he was confined to a human form. It bound him together but it also restricted him.

"So how much more powerful is he without the—"

"You can't even imagine," Percy interrupted Jason. "Worse than any of the other titans. That's for sure."

Percy said to Chiron, if he leads the attack— Chiron interrupted and said he didn't think so. He would sense it if he coming. He'd probably planned it but when Percy pulled down the throne on top of him it set him back. That is with the help of Nico who Chiron said reproachfully was the son of Hades.

"Thanks again," Nico said.

"I just wanted to make sure you weren't hurt by the gods or Kronos," Percy told him. "It could have started the same mess that happened with both mine and Thalia's claimings all over again."

Percy started to apologize to Chiron. He said he knew he should have told him and started to say something else before Chiron raised his hand to stop him and said he understood why he did it. He felt responsible and wanted to protect him. Then he said but if they wanted to survive this was they had to trust each other. He said they must then the ground rumbled. Everyone stopped and Clarisse yelled for everyone to lock shields.

"I guess that's the end of that conversation," said Leo.

"For now," Percy muttered.

"I don't think that's what you should focus on," Piper told him pointing in front of them.