They had decided to stick to the coast-line on their journey back to Athens. Somewhere near Thebes, Annabeth's carriage randomly shook to a stop. "What's going on?" She asked, turning to Thalia, as if she'd have the answers.
"No idea." Thalia replied, her face showing her confusion and irritation.
Annabeth and Thalia alighted their carriage and tried to see the problem.
"Bandits!" Annabeth gasped, suddenly grateful that she had dressed more like a commoner on King Apollo's advice.
"Oh, the blonde one's pretty." The bandits' leader exclaimed. "Maybe we'll just borrow her for a while. The black-haired one, too." His laugh was dry and rough, like the sands they were standing on.
One bandit then attempted to grasp Annabeth's forearm to force her to their leader. Luckily, Annabeth had learned simple attacks from unwanted attentions from her mother. She escaped his grasp and quickly ran to hide in some bushes, along with Thalia and a few other maidservants. Her menservants started fighting, with fists or dropped swords.
Suddenly, an arrow hit the bandits' second-in-command. The man fell quickly, and a slave quickly proclaimed him dead. Heads waved around, trying to find the archer responsible, when the ground suddenly shook as a large ship docked nearby.
"Bandits." A strong, angry voice shouted out. "Drop your weapons and leave this area. The Tide Walker commands it."
Quickly, all of the bandits dropped all of their weapons and scattered - all except the snarling leader, who was held by a few of Annabeth's manservants. Annabeth and Thalia looked at each other, amazed by their luck.