".. C'mon, c'mon,

With everything falling down around me,

I'd like to believe in all the possibilities.."

- Panic! At the Dico ft. Fun

CHAPTER 8: Separated..

"Surprised?" Reyna was smiling ear to ear at Percy and Piper thought it might have been the saddest thing to see Percy smile back as eager as she did. They were all gathered on the main deck, weapons at the ready and ballista loaded (in Coach Hedge's case). The ship hung meters above the water, parked for now as they dealt with their guests.

Piper lowered her weapon and gave the female praetor a critical eye. She'd heard stories about Percy and Annabeth. How, before they were together, the Aphrodite cabin all made their own bets on how long it'll take for Annabeth to snap and just kiss Percy full on the mouth while she pins him down on the ground during a spar or how long it'll take Percy to finally get the hints Annabeth had been leaving all around him like bread crumbs. Piper was particularly good with emotions and when campers would tell her stories all about the son of Poseidon and the daughter of Athena, how they would vibrate with excitement and frown slightly in sadness, she knew it must've been one of the most hard-won love stories her mother had ever created and she couldn't help but build a little discomfort toward Reyna.

At first, she was mostly worried about Jason and Reyna's old flame. They had a history, Piper could tell. But when they arrived in New Rome, Reyna didn't even glance at Jason. Not once. Percy had her whole, undivided attention. During their stay in the Roman camp, Piper often wondered that maybe Annabeth would've looked like that, eyes adoring her Seaweed Brain (as she had often called her boyfriend, the campers informed her) and lips quirking up slightly as if her smiles were completely involuntary. Maybe Annabeth would've been radiant again, as the campers have told her. Maybe she would stop dragging herself into the ground looking for Percy Jackson.

Maybe.

They were all maybes.

Then her eyes shifted away from the daughter of Bellona. Everyone (except for Percy) was eying the other rider that came with Reyna. His sandy hair was windblown from the ride and his blue eyes were cold, surveying the interior of the ship as if he was criticizing it in his head. More likely he was.

"Good morning, Greeks. Having a nice little breakfast while the world ends?" Octavian sneered.

"What are you doing here?" Percy's gaze shifted to the augur. He sounded cautious and slightly irritated. Piper could relate with that. Aside from the Coach, the legacy of Apollo had tested everyone's patience on the ship.

"We came with warnings." Reyna said, her face turning serious. "Octavian has discovered a lost prophecy that might be able to help this quest."

Octavian nodded but stayed a good distance away from them. "A death prevented by a son of Jupiter. Along with the forge and dove to lead the traitor's capture."

Leo groaned, exasperated. "Don't we ever catch a break?"

"Whose death?" Jason asked.

"And who is this traitor we're suppose to capture?" Piper threw in.

"Why didn't you just send an Iris Message?" Nico asked suspiciously. "Why go through all of the trouble coming here?

Reyna went rigid, her muscles coiling beneath her purple shirt as if she sensed a battle.

"Because Octavian thought it might be better done in person."

Piper and Thalia's eyes narrowed slightly.

"What's the difference between saying it through an Iris Message and saying it in person?" Leo mocked though he was pretty excited of seeing Reyna. Though not quite as excited in seeing Octavian. Nothing personal to the augur but it's just he's very annoying.

Before Reyna could reply, there was a loud thud and Reyna crumpled to the ground. Leo had never been more comically shocked in his entire life. He looked back up to her attacker and Octavian stood there, a snarl etched on his face and a crazy look in his eyes. A sound of metal being unsheathe and Percy advanced with a bronze sword in hand, looking just about ready to murder Octavian.

"What, in Hades, are you doing?" he growled and Leo had to admit, it was menacing. Octavian looked frightened but he was defiant in the face of the enraged son of the sea god out in the sea.

"I'm doing you a favor!" The augur spat.

Just as Percy raised his sword and Octavian brought out his dagger, a deafening roar shook the ship. The demigods looked at the direction of the sea. There was nothing there.

"Percy, what was that?" Hazel asked, her voice tight, her grip tightening around her spatha.

Percy was distracted from impaling Octavian and gazed out into his father's domain. Everything was still and silent. He turned to tell them it was nothing when a sea serpent as tall as a skyscraper burst out of the ocean. As sudden as it appeared, it dove over the ship, back down into the water and came out the other side and repeated as it coiled around the deck of the Argo II.

"It's destroying my ship! My baby!" Leo yelled.

The others immediately went into action, attacking the serpent's scaly form while Thalia dragged Reyna safely away and stood there to guard her, shooting arrows up at the serpent's face. They were trapped in between the monster's body that coiled around the ship. It was too low to crawl under and too high to jump over with an unconscious praetor.

"Percy, talk to it!" Nico suggested.

"Are you insane? I don't speak serpent!" Percy yelled back. Frank threw himself overboard and grew into a giant squid, wrapping itself around the serpent, trying to get it to uncoil from the ship.

"Yes, you can! Tell it to leave us alone!" Nico told him as he drove his stygian blade into the monster's body. It twitched and roared as if annoyed as it tried to sink its fangs into Frank the Giant Squid.

"How am I suppose to do that?" Percy asked.

"It's a creature of the sea, idiot! You're a son of the sea god! Tell it to piss off!" Thalia growled impatiently as she shot arrows at its eyes.

"We're just passing through. We didn't mean to bother you." Piper spoke up. She had her hands stretched out in a peaceful gesture but her charmspeak had faltered. Her voice cracked out of nervousness. The monster's mouth headed straight toward her despite Frank's efforts of stopping it and Jason swooped in to grab her before she became monster chow. They landed somewhere near Leo who manned the helm, yelling profanities and seem to be arguing with Octavian at the same time while the coach manned the ballista, shooting at the beast, careful not to hit Frank. It only seemed to stall the serpent instead of actually hurting it.

The serpent managed to bite the giant squid on its side, blood gushing out and it immediately started shrinking. With the same momentum, the serpent rammed its scaly head against the ballista, missing Coach Hedge by an inch as he jumped out of the way and into the water. Octavian lost his balance and followed after the satyr into the ocean. As soon as Frank was out of the way, the serpent started to squeeze its body around the Argo II, the ship creaking at the pressure.

Jason took Frank's place and few high right in the monster's face. He slashed and blew wind on the serpent but it seemed merely irritated, snapping at him as if he was a fly.

"FRANK!" Percy heard Hazel cry. She dropped her spatha and ran for the edge.

He knew without a doubt she was going to jump after him.

"HAZEL!" Percy yelled after her. Hazel was at the edge when a son of Jupiter landed in an unceremonious and painful heap not far from her. As quick as lightning, the serpent had blocked her path. Hazel screamed.

"JASON! HAZEL!" Piper rushed to help them. When the monster was just about to strike, Piper yelled, "STOP!"

Her power resonated throughout the ship even Leo stopped whatever he was doing and turned to Piper. As quickly as she can, she gathered Jason and Hazel, hooking her arms around each of theirs and dragged them away from the hesitant serpent's mouth.

"Back off, ugly!" Percy yelled as the monster came out of the charmspeak and roared. It was just about to strike down to eat him when an arrow found its mark on the monster's eye. It howled in pain and turned sharply to where Thalia and Reyna were. Thalia seemed to realize that she couldn't carry Reyna out of the way in time and she fired arrows nonstop straight at the beast. Reyna showed no sign of waking up any time soon. Percy cursed Octavian vehemently.

"HEY!" Percy yelled, enraged and panicked. "LEAVE HER ALONE!"

The ocean rose to his call and enveloped the serpent. Percy willed the water to tighten around the serpent and it roared in pain, its body coiling tighter on the ship and its tail flailing in the water.

"Percy, stop! You'll sink this ship along with it!" Nico yelled.

"I can't get the oars to rise! This blasted snake is all over us! Literally!" Leo yelled to the others, gripping a spherical object.

"We have no choice! We have to abandon ship!" Jason yelled back.

Then a battalion of ventis rained down from the heavens and Percy dropped his jaw. They were barely holding up against the serpent and they sure as Hades can't handle wind spirits along with it. The ventis flew in a perfect circle above them like vultures. The wind picked up and a huge hurricane started to form. Not even Jason and Percy could stop the growing storm and help fight off a giant serpent.

With Frank, Coach and Octavian overboard, Thalia shooting arrows in a corner while guarding an unconscious Reyna, Piper and Hazel fending off stray ventis with daggers, Jason and Nico trying to pry the tangled body of the serpent whilst Percy had it pinned with the water. Leo had managed to blow up and despite burning wind spirits in the attempt, he was dragged off into the sky by more, yelling something Percy couldn't hear.

"Leo! They took Leo!" Hazel was screaming. Next to be taken were Nico and Jason. The son of Jupiter let out a gush of wind and the ventis were blown away and they free fell back into the sea. Jason caught Nico just before he hit the water but the serpent's erratic tail rose from the water and flicked them away.

"NO!" Piper cried. The hurricane was picking up fast now and Percy saw no hope in winning back the ship.

"Abandon ship! Swim as far away as you could! We'll find you!" Percy yelled over to Piper and Hazel as he ran over to Thalia and the still an unconscious Reyna. Piper and Hazel obliged and quickly fought their way to the edge and jumped into the sea. The ventis closed in and Percy cried out. A wave rose and washed the three remaining occupants of the Argo II into the sea.

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

This chapter sucks, I know. I wanted to portray how incompatible they are at first as a team and Percy slightly confused and fumbling with his powers. Instead, you get this. Sorry. But there's always room for improvement in the next ones, right? Leave a comment and stuff.

UP NEXT:

The demigods are separated just like Gaea wanted them to be. Truths are revealed, friendships are forged, new alliances are born and more prophecies are yet to come.