Chapter 2
Reyna's POV
After she dropped Percy off at the infirmary, she ran back to the forest, tears streaming down her face. During his whole conversation with Lupa, she'd been holding them back. It was just how similar Percy was to Jason. Reyna remembered perfectly when Jason had appeared:
(Flashback)
Reyna, only twelve, hid in the Mansion, cringing every time thunder shook the walls. "It is a storm, girl. It will not hurt you. Go help the patrol." That was one of the nicest things Lupa had ever said to her. The she-wolf held out a paw and helped her up. Reyna picked up a shield, and went outside, andcompelled by some unknown force (probably a god), she declared to the rest of the guards, "I'll talke the west border!" Of course, patrols walked the border all day, protecting against invasions and monsters. The guards looked surprised but let her have the west side.
She stood on the hill for ten minutes until she saw something; it seemed like a dot in the distance. The dot grew larger and split apart, and Reyna realized that it was not one but two things: a monster following a demigod. She was too petrified with cold and fear to say anything, so when the Gorgon pursuing a boy (a very hot boy, for that matter) reached the base of the hill, no other guards could see them.
Masking her fear, she drew her sword, and ran down the hill, ready to slay the monster. But when she got there, she saw that she wasn't needed in this battle. Reyna watched as the boy slammed the Gorgon on the head with a small rock, cutting a gash through his right hand at the same time. Then he ripped a snake from her head and, just before it died, closed its mouth on the monster's neck. Wailing in agony, the Gorgon pulled his right hand to the wound, and then disintegrated. The boy collapsed and would have hit the ground if Reyna hadn't caught him. "Oh no," she breathed. The monster knew both that Gorgon's blood was fatal, and that the boy's hand was cut open already. The Gorgon's blood had gotten into the boy's wound, and now his whole hand was a sickly greenish color. Reyna half-carried, half-dragged the boy up and over the hill to the Mansion, to the infirmary, calling for help as she went. No help came, but she managed to get the boy to the Mansion, where Lupa took over, carrying the unconscious boy on her back upstairs to the infirmary.
That night, Reyna didn't sleep. She was next to the boy's bedside all night, helping the nurse whenever she could. The next morning, when he woke up, she asked him how he was. His reply was gibberish, as if he couldn't form words. She gave him more nectar, and introduced herself. "I'm Jason," he replied.
Then she took him to see Lupa, who vowed to train him herself, something Reyna had never seen her do before in her ten years at Castra Romanorum. After that was over, Reyna brought Jason on a tour of the camp, showing him how the Romans fought, and where he would stay until he was claimed.
In the next three years, the two of them became inseparable. When Jason became a praetor of the first legion, Reyna became his second in command. When they were both fifteen, the two of them officially became a couple.
When they were both sixteen, Jason disappeared.
(End of flashback)
Reyna buried her head in her sweatshirt. She cried for a good half hour before she heard footsteps behind her.
"Reyna?" a quiet, melodic voice called.
She looked up. "Hi, Hazel," she mumbled.
"Are you okay?"
Reyna turned away. As the new leader of the camp, she couldn't afford to show weakness.
"Yes. I'm fine." Her voice hardened.
"Dakota saw you run in here and wondered what was wrong. Gwen made you a cookie," Hazel said, holding out a grayish-brown lump that looked nothing like a cookie and even less appetizing.
"Uh...thanks," said Reyna uncertainly, taking the "cookie."
"Bobby and Dakota said to bring you to the Mansion," Hazel said. "There's a meeting of the cabin leaders today."
Reyna stood up reluctantly, wiped her face on her sweatshirt, and ran out of the forest, leaving Hazel trying to keep up.
When they reached the Mansion, Hazel patted her arm comfortingly (or at least Hazel must have thought it was comforting), and Reyna went inside.
She walked to the parlor, where the cabin leader meetings were always held. Each of the twenty-four counselors had a seat at the long, sleek black table, and Lupa sat at the head.
"I have called this council because we are in danger," said Lupa in Latin, starting the meeting the same way she always did. "Although it is not immediate and the problem will be easily solved, we must address it nonetheless. I have recieved word from Arcus that the Greeks will be invading."
Confused muttering flew throughout the cabin leaders.
"Silence!" Lupa shouted, and everyone instantly shut up. "I know that you have no idea what I am speaking of. So unfortunately, I must explain.
"Thousands of years ago, the Greek empire was the most powerful in the world. They worshipped their gods well, and controlled vast stretches of the earth. Their military forces were weak and barely trained, at least by our standards. And as I am sure you know, the most beautiful woman in the world, Helen of Sparta, was Greek. She fell in love with Paris of Troy, and the two of them began the Trojan war.
"Once the war was over, Aeneas of Troy fled his country and went on to found the great city of Rome. The Romans conquered the Greeks and became the strongest empire in the world, taking more land than Greece had ever owned. We also took over their gods, giving them new names and slightly different personalities. We created gods of our own, such as Janus or Pompona. Since then, as you know, the eternal flame of the Roman gods has been in whatever country is dominant at that time. But after the American Civil war (which was actually a demigod conflict that mortals were dragged into), both the Roman and Greek sides of the gods agreed to wipe the memories of all involved, and if the Greek and Roman half-bloods ever encountered one another on quests, they too would lose any recollection of the incident. It was simply too dangerous for you to know of each others' existence.
"Juno is playing a perilous charade; she has exchanged your praetor, Jason Grace, for Perseus Jackson, the leader of Camp Half-Blood, where Greek demigods go to train. I expect Jackson to be taught to fight as a Roman, as well as how to speak Latin.
"But why?" asked a girl from the Mercury cabin.
Lupa whirled on her. "Do not question me," she snarled. "You are dismissed." Everyone got up and marched, the way they always did around Lupa, out the door.
Reyna debated going back to the forest, but decided to go down to the beach instead. Being a daughter of Neptune, saltwater made her feel better.
Thank the gods, Hazel wasn't waiting for her, so she ran through the ring of cabins, down the sandy stone stairs (try saying that 10 times fast :D), up the beach, and straight into the ocean.
Reyna opened her eyes, and the familiar underwater world greeted her. Mermaids and multicolored fish darted in and out of giant sand castles (lol), and they all waved to her as they passed by.
Suddenly, Reyna heard splashes from the shore, and she spun around angrily to see who had disturbed her.
It was Percy Jackson. He didn't seem to notice Reyna, who watched in horror and awe as Percy lay down on the sand (underwater, duh), his eyes open, and took several deep breaths. He didn't choke or rub his eyes, what Reyna usually saw when people tried to do her "underwater thing." There was only one explanation: Perseus Jackson was a son of Neptune.