"It's not like I'm dying or anything," groaned Percy as he sat up uncomfortably against the remains of the ship's hull.

"You could've died though! Seaweed Brain!" Annabeth chided, slapping a Band-Aid on his arm.

Percy glanced at Piper, who was hugging her knees while she leaned against a partially crushed tree across from them. "You good?"

"No," the daughter of Aphrodite answered honestly, "I want to be out there looking for Leo. We all heard that scream."

"And I already told you-" started Annabeth.

"It's a Cyclops." answered the other two in unison.

"But do Frank and Hazel know that?" Piper protested, "And that means the Cyclops heard Leo at some point since our crash! Is Leo okay? For all we know he already killed him and is now luring our friends into a trap!" Tears flooded her eyes as her voice rose angrily. "We have to do something!"

Annabeth brushed a stray curl from her face, allowing a sigh to escape her lips. "Fine. Let's go look. We can't travel far, because I don't want Percy out of earshot."

Percy rolled his eyes, "I'm fine, Wise Girl."

They all knew he would be in time, but for now his voice was still a little shaky, and if any tough monsters - like, say, a Cyclops - came along, he'd be toast.

Piper nodded in affirmation, accepting the compromise. She fiddled with her dagger's handle, while it rested in its sheath on her belt. Along with Annabeth, they started trekking away from the wreck.

"Can I call for Leo?" Piper said in a hushed voice. It would certainly make it easier to find him. But what if it just attracted a monster's attention.

"Sure. We can't afford this to be a stealth mission. The sooner we get Leo and the others and can get out of here, the better."

"LEOOOOOOO!" Piper screeched at the top of her lungs, "WHERE ARE YOUUUUU!"

The sound was faint, but she recognized the tired, high-pitched voice of their repair boy anywhere.

"Pipes? Where are you?"

It came from up ahead- behind a mountain of brush and debris.

The girls wasted no time climbing up the pile and were met with a panting, exhausted Leo.

"Oh my gods! Leo!" Piper squealed, barreling down to meet him, while he paused, staring bewildered at them.

"H-how did you… There's a Cyclops! What happened? Where's my ship? Is Festus okay?" his voice cracked on the last question. The metal dragon creation had been his companion throughout the adventure. The thought of Festus being gone forever shattered his heart.

To overwhelmed with relief to reply, Piper began to hug Leo, gasping as he flinched away and cried out in pain.

"You're hurt!?" she panicked, backing away several steps and realizing how wounded he was.

"Duh," Leo said, grimacing as he tried not to look at his completely busted arm.

"You're HURT." Annabeth emphasized, already pulling some spare ambrosia from her pocket as she rushed down to help him. "Badly."

Leo held out his good, left hand to stop her, "I already took too much nectar. C-can't have any more."

"Okay… Have you found Hazel, Frank, and Jason yet?" inquired the daughter of Athena, a little concerned for Leo's well being, but there was nothing they could do right now.

"Not yet. I wonder if the Cyclops tricked them. Because if they decided to go after it-"

Leo winced a bit as a wave of pain washed over his shoulder.

"The adrenaline's probably wearing off," Annabeth explained, "Let's get you back to the wreck and you can rest."

He nodded tiredly, letting Piper and Annabeth walk him back toward the ruins of his prized ship - the Argo II.


Thanks everybody for being patient for this chapter! 33