Jason had almost forgotten how much effort went into preparing for a war campaign. He had to make sure the Legion would have enough food; that their weapons would stay in good shape, which meant he had to hire blacksmiths from New Rome to travel with them; the Legion had to undergo even harsher training to prepare them for war; and Jason had to come to terms with the fact that he was attacking Camp Half-Blood.

Of course, Camp Jupiter was his home. He had grown up there and knew –deep in his bones, or perhaps his soul –that he truly belonged in the harsh military camp for Roman demigods and legacies.

Still, Camp Half-Blood had taken him in when he had had no memories. The relaxed summer camp for Greeks gave him a safe place to sort out his memories until he could finally remember everything about his past. But more than that, Camp Half-Blood had given him the option of being a different person. He hadn't been held down by his title of 'Son of Jupiter' or 'Saving Grace of Rome' or 'Ruthless Praetor of the Legion' or any of the other countless titles he had at Camp Jupiter. He could be Jason Grace, friendly son of Zeus. He could be the blonde amnesiac who saved Hera, Queen of the Gods.

Yet, there was something about his fame in New Rome which called to him. He reveled in the attention, as much as he pretended not to do so. As the son of Jupiter, everyone in the Legion respected him. They looked up to him and most of their gazes were filled with awe when they looked at him. As horribly wrong as it sounded, Jason reveled in the esteem and power he held in New Rome and Camp Jupiter. He honestly couldn't imagine going somewhere in which he wouldn't have that level of power now that he remembered having it in the first place.

"Praetor Jason." Centurion Michael Kahale of the First Cohort said as he entered the principia. "I have an update on the supplies for the Legion."

"Report, Centurion." Jason commanded. He found himself reveling in the power he had over the other campers. Over everyone except Reyna, that is. Reyna would always be able to tie with if not defeat him.

"Most of the spirits have agreed to accompany us to New York to help us with food and water supplies. But they'll need other ingredients which must be transported. And they want to be paid extra."

Jason nodded. "Reyna is already securing transportation for both the Legion and such supplies. I'll come up with a way to pay the spirits extra as well as cover the costs of the campaign. Dismissed, Centurion."

Michael Kahale hesitated. "Jason, where's Reyna? It's not good for morale for her not to be here as we're preparing for war."

Jason sighed. "She's securing transportation from her sister, Hylla. She'll be back by dinner." Michael nodded. "But keep this quiet. The last thing we need are for any snakes to try to turn the Legion against Reyna for negotiating with the Amazons."

"Of course, Praetor. I will keep this with the upmost discretion."

Jason nodded. "Good. Dismissed, Centurion."

Kahale nodded and exited the principia. Jason ran a hand through his blonde hair as he calculated the numbers one more time. As with the last several times he had added everything up, he got a different answer. Not for the first time, Jason cursed never going to school before joining the Legion. Lupa had taught him to be strong and how to survive and how to lead. She hadn't taught him how to read, write, add, or subtract. A few of the legionnaires in the Fifth Cohort had taught him how to read and write as a kid. When he became praetor, Reyna had begun teaching him how to add and subtract when she realized that he didn't know how. Still, he wasn't very good at it. He'd only had a month or two of sparse math lessons before he was taken by Juno and sent to Camp Half-Blood. And now, Reyna wasn't here to help him add up the numbers.

"Ugh." He groaned as he began adding everything up again. "This is impossible." Finally, he set the numbers down. He could ask someone else to add them up under the pretense that he was busy with other matters –which wasn't a lie, since he was busy with other preparations for the campaign.

Before he could leave the principia to find someone else to add up the numbers for him, the heavy wooden doors opened. Jason snapped his head up to watch the person. It was Gwen, and she had a large smile on her face. Her green eyes and blonde hair looked the same as ever, and Jason grinned at the sight of her.

"Good morning, Praetor Jason." She said formally. "I thought that you might need help since Reyna's gone."

Jason frowned. "How do you know that Reyna's gone?" he asked.

"She instructed Terminus to help keep peace in New Rome while she was gone. She also asked him to help you out if he deemed it necessary. So Terminus asked me to come help you out."

Jason nodded and smiled in relief. "Thanks for coming, Gwen. Can you add up some numbers for me while I read through some reports?" he asked.

"Of course." Gwen pulled up a chair from the side of the room and grabbed the sheets of numbers in her hand. Jason returned his attention to the reports of able veterans who had volunteered to join the campaign. Once he was finished looking through most of the reports and selecting which veterans he wanted to come with them, he wrote the number of veterans down for Gwen to add to the number of soldiers at their command.

"That's 220 soldiers, Jason." Gwen said. "What do you think?"

"That should be enough, I think. What are your thoughts, Senator?" he asked as he stared at Gwen.

She blinked her green eyes. "It ought to be enough, but I think you should have a reserve force prepared in case something goes wrong."

Jason nodded thoughtfully. "I think that you're right, Gwen. I'll go through the list of rejected veterans for a reserve force. Fifty soldiers should be enough for the reserve force."

"Whatever you think is best, Praetor." Gwen replied. "Is there anything else you need me to do?"

Jason nodded. "Can you go to these veterans," he handed her the stack of veterans accepted to join the main force of the Legion, "and tell them that they've been enlisted into active duty for the campaign. Tell them to report to the Field of Mars for Cohort training every day at seven."

Gwen nodded. "Of course. And the veterans for the reserve force?"

"I'm still going through that." Jason replied. "Thanks for your help, Gwen."

She smiled brightly. "No problem, Jason." She stood up and walked towards the door. "Just be careful, okay? And take care of yourself." She paused again. "I don't think we could handle losing you again."

"We?" Jason asked.

She nodded. "Everyone, honestly. The whole Legion and a lot of New Rome. But more specifically, there are quite a few of us. Me, Bobby, Dakota, Octavian, and Reyna. I know that Octavian's not the same guy that we grew up with and pulled pranks on Third and Fourth Cohort with, but we still grew up with him. In a way, he's still family."

Jason leaned forward against the table. "I've been meaning to ask, what happened to change Octavian so much?"

Gwen sighed. "I think that the auguries got to him. You know how he was always terrified of what he saw. I think that it just finally drove him crazy. Plus losing you, one of his best friends, certainly didn't help."

"Thanks for telling me, Gwen. Now get going, I have to finish more of this before Reyna gets back. Otherwise she'll kick my podex."

Gwen laughed. "No problem, Jase. I'll get going, now. As entertaining as watching Reyna kick your podex is, I wouldn't want to come between you and your work."

Jason laughed. "Thanks for the vote of confidence, Gwen."

His old friend left the principia and walked towards New Rome. Jason, however, was stuck reviewing the files of veterans living in New Rome to come up with the numbers for their reserve force. But such was the life of a praetor.

Hey guys! Thanks for reading so far, please review and tell me your thoughts. Have a nice day/night!
~Nerd