LEO'S POV

"Promise," I hissed.

"Fine!" Coach Hedge exclaimed. "I promise not to steer us into the nearest military base."

Reluctantly, I ceded the helm to Coach Hedge and sat at the dining table with everyone else. Piper explained all the craziness that had happened back at Topeka 32 - a conversation with Bacchus, a trap sprung by Gaea, and something called eidolons that possessed Percy and Jason.

"Of course!" Hazel slapped the table, which startled Frank so much, he dropped his burrito. "That's what happened to Leo, too!"

"So it wasn't our fault." I exhaled. "We didn't start World War Three. I just got possessed by an evil spirit. That's a relief!"

"But the Romans don't know that." Peri muttered, crossing her arms.

"And they won't believe us either." Annabeth added.

"We could contact Reyna," Jason suggested. "She would believe us." He looked at Piper with a hopeful gleam in his eyes. "You could convince her, Pipes. I know you could."

I saw the pained look on Piper's face and cringed.

Jason can be really stupid sometimes. Piper really didn't need to hear about Jason's ex whatever she was to him - especially not right now.

"I could try," Piper said halfheartedly. "But Octavian is the one we have to worry about. In my dagger blade, I saw him taking control of the Roman crowd. I'm not sure Reyna can stop him."

Peri growled beside me. "Octavian. . . that prick. I can't believe he can be such a total-"

"Easy girl," Annabeth soothed.

"Piper's right," Frank said. "This afternoon when we were scouting, we saw eagles again." He briefed everyone on his and Hazel's trip, and the tension in the room rose to a boiling.

"Octavian is on the warpath." Hazel grimaced. "This is exactly the sort of opportunity Octavian has always wanted. He'll try to seize power. If Reyna objects, he'll say she's soft on the Greeks. As for those eagles. . . it's like they can smell us."

"They can," Jason said. "Roman eagles can hunt demigods by their magical scent even better than monsters can. This ship might conceal us somewhat, but not completely - not from them."

I drummed my fingers on the table. "Great. I should have installed a smoke screen that makes the ship smell like a chicken nugget. Remind me to invent that next time."

Hazel frowned. "What is a chicken nugget?"

Peri's eyes widened. "What?! You don't know what a - oh!" She snapped her fingers as she remembered. "That's right. You're from the past."

I shook my head in amazement. "Damn, Hazel. You've missed the last - what? - seventy years. Well, my apprentice, a chicken nugget-"

"Doesn't matter," Annabeth interrupted. "The point is, we'll have a hard time explaining the truth to the Romans. Even if they believe us-"

"You're right." Jason leaned forward. "We should just keep going. Once we're over the Atlantic, we'll be safe - at least from the legion."

Peri nodded. "Oh yeah. They're scared shitless about crossing the Mediterranean. They won't be following us if we make it there."

Frank swallowed a bit of burrito like it had turned to cardboard in his mouth. "So, if we go there. . ."

"We'll be outlaws as well as traitors," Jason confirmed. "Any Roman demigod would have the right to kill us on sight. But I wouldn't worry about that. They're all assuming we'll die in the Mediterranean - the Mare Nostrum."

"You, sir," Percy pointed his pizza slice at Jason, "are a ray of sunshine."

Jason didn't argue. Everyone stared at their plates, suddenly losing their appetites in the mess of problems hanging over us. Well, everyone except for Percy. He continued to devour what was his fourth slice of pizza.

"So let's plan ahead," Percy suggested, "and make sure we don't die. Mr. D - Bacchus - Ugh, do I have to call him Mr. B now? Anyway, he mentioned the twins in Ella's prophecy. Two giants. Otis and, uh, something that started with an F?"

"Ephialtes," Jason said.

"Two giants, like Piper saw in her blade. . ." Annabeth ran her finger along the rim of her cup. "I remember a story about twin giants. They tried to reach Mount Olympus by piling up a bunch of mountains."

Frank nearly choked. "Well that's great. Giants who can use mountains like building blocks."

"Well, come on, they're obviously not that smart." Peri said. "I mean, what kind of shitty plan is that? Stacking mountains? Like, you're a freaking giant for crying out loud. How about you grow a pair of kintamas and march right up to the Empire State building. Didn't you guys say there was an elevator to take you right up there? And another thing-"

I clamped my hand onto Peri's mouth. "Hush, child. You're ranting." I gestured towards the others. "Please, continue."

"She wants two of us," Piper murmured suddenly, and all eyes fell on her. She squirmed under the scrutiny of seven pairs of eyes.

"Today on the highway," she said, "Gaea told me that she needed the blood of only two demigods - one female, one male. She asked me to choose which boy would die out of Percy and Jason.

Jason squeezed her hand. "But neither of us died. You saved us."

"I know. It's just. . . why would she want that?"

A thought occurred to me suddenly, and I whistled softly. "Guys, remember at the Wolf House? Everyone's favorite ice bitch, Khione? She talked about spilling Jason's blood, how it would taint the place for generations. Bitch was all kinds of cray, but what if demigod blood has some kind of power?"

"Oh. . . " Percy set down his third pizza slice. He leaned back and stared at nothing, as if the horse kick to his head had just now registered.

"Percy?" Annabeth gripped his arm.

"Oh, bad," he muttered. "Bad. Bad." He looked across the table at Frank and Hazel. "You guys remember Polybotes?"

"The giant who invaded Camp Jupiter," Hazel said. "The anti-Poseidon you whacked in the head with a Terminus statue. Yes, I think I remember."

"I had a dream," Percy said, "when we were flying to Alaska. Polybotes was talking to the gorgons, and he said - he said he wanted to take me prisoner, not killed. He said: 'I want that one chained at my feet, so I can kill him when the time is ripe. His blood shall water the stones of Mount Olympus and wake Earth Mother!'"

For a second, I wondered if the room's temperature controls were broken, because I couldn't stop shaking.

Piper stared down into her lap. "You think the giants would use our blood. . . the blood of two of us-"

"I don't know," Percy said. "But until we figure it out, I suggest we all avoid getting captured."

Jason grunted. "That I agree with."

Annabeth sighed. "It's getting late. We should all get some sleep."

"Wait," Piper said.

Once more, everyone was looking at her. She looked like there was a lump in her throat the size of a marble. She closed her eyes tightly, almost forcing herself to speak.

"There's one last thing," she said. "The eidolons - the possessing spirits. They're still here, in this room."