Chapter Fourteen
Percy awoke to someone shaking his shoulder. He had taken so many naps on the journey, falling asleep from the sheer boredom.
His ears were filled with the shouts of people. He couldn't see where they were due to the tarp surrounding the cart because of a rainstorm earlier on the journey.
He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. "Where are we?" he asked no one in particular.
Thalia, Luke, and Nico were lifting one part of the tarp, peeking out beyond the cart bars. Percy crawled over to them looked out. The streets were filled with people. He could see white buildings from his limited view but that was all. He sat back down, leaning against the cart wall. About 20 minutes later, the cart came to a stop. "Out!" he heard a guard yell.
Percy filed out of the cart and jumped off. He looked up and was amazed at what he saw. He was standing before one of the most incredible things he had ever seen. The Roman Colosseum. It towered above the streets, the sun shining on the walls of Rome's pride. A statue of Mars stood before the gate and as he was lead to a side door within the colosseum, he saw Chiron kiss the feet of the Roman god of war.
His vision darkened as they were lead underground through the hypogeum of the colosseum to the gladiator cells just outside the arena. The only light came from the torches that lined the corridors. From above, Percy could hear the roar of the crowd as gladiators sliced and hacked at each other, fighting for survival.
That might be me tomorrow, he thought.
Eventually, the group arrived to their cells. Percy sat down on the cot and began fiddling with the strands of string that had fallen away from the rest of the cot.
He layed down and stared at the ceiling, thinking about tomorrow. If he did fight, they would be watching him. She would be watching him. The Emperor and Piper. Annabeth.
He felt the corner of his mouth turn up in a small lopsided grin at the thought of her. Holding her in his arms the night the Emperor had died, it stirred something inside him. He judged that this might be attraction. She most certainly beautiful enough. Thoughts about how he would play with her bouncy princess curls if he had another chance to meet her filled his head before he drifted off to yet another, sleep.
Luke worried. For Thalia.
He knew she could fight, there was no doubt about that. But still, thoughts of what could happen to her in the arena, now that they were here, in the heart of the Empire, filled his mind. His stomach clenched as he thought about what would happen if she died amidst the cheers of the crowd.
Finally he couldn't stand it anymore. He crawled over to the corner of the opening to his cell.
"Thalia," he whispered. It was night, any loudness would wake the others and attract the guards.
He began to think she was asleep until he was answered with a quiet, "Luke?"
"You okay?"
Thalia was confused. Why would Luke care so much about her well being that he would get up in the middle of the night just to ask her if she was okay? Then again, she had been awake thinking about her friends and the possibility of losing them to the colosseum, a particular blonde filling her thoughts the most.
"Yeah, tired," she said back.
Luke felt bad for keeping her up. "Oh sorry, I didn't mean to wake you." She heard him shuffling away before she called, "No, it's okay. Don't go. I couldn't sleep."
Luke shuffled back to his spot by the door. They sat in silence for a moment before Luke spoke up. "So, here we are, the great Roman Colosseum huh?"
"Yeah, great for what? Killing people for the amusement of a mob?" Thalia replied bitterly.
"I heard you could stay alive, even if you're defeated," Luke pointed out.
"What good would that be? You're dishonored if you have to get your butt saved by the turn of the Emperor's thumb."
"Hey, don't underestimate the power of a thumb."
Thalia chuckled. "I'll make a note of that."
The two sat in a comfortable silence until they drifted off to sleep.
Nico writhed on his cot. His head was full of nightmares.
Images filled his mind. Images of the day the Imperials came.
Dream
"Nico get up!"
Nico grumbled into his pillow. "Go away!"
"Nico if you don't come out here right now I'm going to tell Mom about that girl you have a crush on!"
Nico paled and immediately jumped out of bed. "I'm up, I'm up!"
He quickly got dressed and ran to the door, opening it to find his 18 year old sister standing there, impatiently tapping her foot.
"Mom needs you to help Paul in the fields. Triptolemus is coming tomorrow to buy some of the grapes."
"Hello to you too Bianca."
She rolled her eyes and smiled. "Just get out there and get some grapes."
Nico ran to the kitchen to see his mother kneading bread, her apron covered in flour. "Hello mother," he said cheerily.
She smiled at him. "Good morning Nico. Go help your father in the fields will you?"
"Yes mother," Nico said, kissing her cheek on the way out.
2 hours later, the sun was high in the sky and Nico was sweaty from working. He wiped the sweat off his brow and glanced around. Wispy clouds glided across the blue sky and the air had developed a haze. His attention was drawn to a dust cloud rising up in the north on the road. As it grew closer, Nico heard a faint rumbling. The dust cloud continued down the hill to the drive and Nico could see from the golden eagle rising above the hedges that lined the drive that Imperial guards had arrived.
Nico was confused. Did something happen to Percy?
His confusion was replaced by horror when he saw his house go up in flames.
The next hour was a blur. Screams, shouts. Fire. Crosses. At one point he had run toward the house, attempting to save his family. He could remember the horror he felt when he saw his mother and Bianca's bodies being ravaged by the soldiers while his stepfather watched from his place on a cross.
He had wanted to help but a part of him told him not to. At the time he felt it was cowardice, especially when he saw his family being burned on crosses, their screams piercing the air.
But he never left, not until the guards had left and he emerged from his hiding place to mourn at the feet of his family.
He had cried and cried, his tears eventually running dry. Then he left. He climbed a tree to sleep in case slave traders came but then something horrible happened.
Nico was terrified. From his tree he could see three white wisps emerge from his family's corpses. They began drifting down the hill to him. As they got closer he could see they were his family, only different. Their faces were hollow, their eyes sunken. Their bodies were emaciated as they crept toward him.
"Nico," they called.
They began climbing up the tree. Nico's eyes widened in horror. They chanted over and over again as they climbed. "Nico, Nico, why did you leave us? Why did you let us burn?"
"But I didn't leave you!" he screamed back and they closed in closer and closer until-
End of Dream
Nico woke up with a jolt, a silent scream in his mouth. He began to tear up. He decided he couldn't go back to sleep. Not when that day haunted him.
Author's Note: And there you go! They're in Rome. A little Luke and Thalia, Percy's fantasies, Nico's nightmares, all coolness. At least I hope it is. That's why need you guys to review! Please do so. Thank you to those who have and thanks for reading!