In my dream, I was in a lemonade stand by the side of a road. It wasn't a busy hour though, so there were no customers, just three old ladies sitting in rocking chairs in the shade of a maple tree, knitting the biggest pair of socks I'd ever seen.

I mean these socks were the size of sweaters, but they were clearly socks. The lady on the right knitted one of them. The lady on the left knitted the other. The lady in the middle held an enormous basket of electric-blue yarn.

All three women looked ancient, with pale faces wrinkled like fruit leather, silver hair tied back in white bandannas, bony arms sticking out of bleached cotton dresses.

The weirdest thing was, they seemed to be looking right at me.

"You should never have interfered, Nona!" one moaned. "You caused a pre-emptive switch. This son of Poseidon should have gone to the Greeks, but now he is in Rome!"

"Oh shut it," said another, who I assumed was Nona. "What is done cannot be undone."

"But who knows what could happen now— you may have pre-empted the rise of Gaia as well!" she wailed. "If both her and Kronos rise together, I will be….not good," she muttered, as the middle one drew out a pair of long gold and silver scissors and snipped a thread.

Somewhere, I heard a distant scream.

"You. Perseus."

The one with the scissors looked at me through her beady eyes. "You have a lot of work ahead of you."

I tried to reply, but I couldn't open my mouth.

The three of them were quiet after that. I imagined they were thinking about something important— because I had no idea who they were, but I had a sinking feeling that they were really important people. Like, not in the Neighborhood-Watch-Committee way, more like the I CONTROL YOUR DESTINY way.

The lady spoke up again.

"The prophecy has been issued. Be ready."

Then she went back to knitting, before the one on her right spoke up.

I thought she was going to give me some more information on the prophecy. She said, "Dude! It's like three days! Get up!"

I blinked.

The room I was in looked like a World War II hospital. The walls was painted that shade of white you saw in old chick-flicks. The not-exactly-white, but where you knew it was meant for business purposes. The ceiling was cracked—mosaic or something, I think.

I turned my head to the right and left.

I was in a small room, with a single door that looked out. An IV drip was attached to my right hand, while to my left was a small wooden table with some type of horn on it. Something told me I should know what it was—but everything was fuzzy and my head was still reeling from the bright lights.

"Finally! I told you to get up, didn't I?"

I looked up to see a scrawny kid with wispy yellow hair and blue eyes. He had a slightly crazed look about him—which reminded me of the old ladies I'd seen in my dream.

"You're the Minotaur killer?"

"What?" I tried to speak, but my mouth was so dry that all that came up was, "Gaak?"

Blondie rolled his eyes and handed me a glass of water.

As I drank it, he continued. "I'm Octavian Aelius. Member of the First cohort and future Pontifex Maximus of Camp Jupiter!"

I wasn't sure what Pointy Max was, but I nodded. He continued.

"You're Percy, right? Son of Neptune? Slayed the Minotaur? Rather stupid for a Roman?"

I frowned at the last one, but nodded. My tongue was still stuck to the roof of my mouth.

"Great, I suppose we'll have to deal with you. What say you we form an alliance of sorts?"

"More water," I croaked.

He sighed and refilled my glass from a nearby dispenser.

As he handed it back to me, I noticed that his hands had a distinct tattoo on them. The same words that I'd seen before— SPQR. Then three stripes, and a harp.

He must have noticed me staring, because he smirked.

"That's my legionnaire tattoo. You get it once you stop being a probatio— though you probably don't know what that is. Anyway, I don't have much time—"

The door burst open.

Anahita, Eleanor and Haniel burst in.

"OCTAVIAN! WHAT DID WE TELL YOU?"

"GET OUT!"

This Octagon dude must not be on good terms with the fifth cohort, I thought, or maybe he's just a prick.

"Now, now, there's no need to be testy," Octavian got up and raised his palms up like he was trying to surrender. "I was just…getting to know Percy. Right, Percy?" he asked.

I had no idea what was going on. I just nodded.

But Haniel and Anahita were having none of it. They looked at each other, before nodding. Anahita spoke up.

"Get out, now."

Octavian's eyes narrowed, and his smile turned cruel.

"That's rather a stretch, coming from a probatio of the fifth cohort, isn't it?"

Anahita's lips tightened, like she was slightly scared and that Octavian had a point.

Either that or she was doing some kind of jaw exercise.

I honestly had no idea what was going on. I just woke up here.

Octavian took a step towards them. His friendly demeanor had vanished, and in its place was a more aggressive, violent, crazed look.

I'd seen that look before— mostly on monsters when they were trying to decide the best way to kill me.

"In fact, why don't the three of y'all leave. And I outrank you; that's an order."

I honestly didn't want to be left alone with this weird crazy small man, and I begged Eleanor with my eyes, shaking my head slightly.

Haniel sighed, before placing a hand on Anahita's shoulder.

"He's right, 'Ita."

If looks could kill— Octavian would be dead, three times over.

"He does outrank us," he sighed, "so we better leave…for now."

I shook my head, hoping that they'd stay, but Eleanor just smiled sadly. She mouthed something that sounded like "I like tofu" which confused me even more.

(She later told me that it was 'get well soon')

Just then I heard someone bang the door open and my ears screamed in protest at the intrusion.

"WHAT HO! NEW LEGIONNAIRE I PRESUME?"

"Dakota!"

Three voices sounded cheerful. One sounded upset. I didn't say anything— I was still in that place you are when you just awake from a long nap but aren't fully awake and are just taking time to process everything.

I'd switched from water to a Capri-sun that I took sips from now.

Apparently those were the only two options. At least, this was lemon flavored.

Sure enough though, the Centurion of the Fifth had popped in, purple eyes, black hair and all. He was grinning as he looked at me.

"Say Octavian, give us a minute will ya. This is fifth cohort bonding time!"

Octavian ground his teeth.

"Sure thing, Centurion," he replied, testily.

He glanced at me. "We will meet later."

I flipped him off as he left. I don't think he saw it, but the others did. Haniel grinned and mimed kicking him as his back was turned.

Then they all looked at me.

"Percy!"

"So the daring swordsman returns, eh?"

"Glad to have you back in the land of the living!"

"You idiotic moron!"

Eleanor jumped onto the bed and gave me a hug, while Anahita and Haniel took turns punching me and then giving me one. Dakota just smiled in the back like a proud father.

"You're a damn good swordsman. The Fifth will have a good centurion when I leave."

I blinked.

"What?"

"Percy," Anahita explained. "Do you remember what happened? The night you fought the Minotaur?"

Have you ever heard about how a single word or phrase can trigger a ton of memories that come back, all together?

Yeah. That happened.

All of a sudden, my head began to spin.

I began to see images of dark, rolling hills and a monster running down them. I saw a girl with black hair and brown eyes; I saw some other lady decked our in really cool armor and weapons that looked like they could take down an entire country. I saw the river Tiber below me, as well as a few flashes of popcorn and Super Bowl commercials.

My head reeled, as everything flooded back.

Literally.

"Ugh," I gasped. "How long have I been out?"

"Three days, give or take."

"Give or take what?"

"A few hours?"

I frowned. Three days?

"You see, Percy," Eleanor explained. "Some god had blessed you that night you fought the Minotaur— you had over exceeded you physical capability. You'd just ran a good distance first, created a minor storm, sparred Dakota and then again ran across the entire length of Camp. You heart should have given up a while ago, only that the blessing of the god, or goddess, prevented that. Nursing you back to health, well, took some time."

Ah, great. Not even fourteen years and I already had three near-death experiences.

Somehow, I knew I'd have a lot more of them in the future.

"Thanks, guys," I smiled weakly. Then I narrowed my eyes. "What about the guards— and the other girl that was with them. How are they?"

"They're fine," Dakota replied. "Although, you must know. That girl— her name's Reyna, and she's like really good with weapons. Like scary good. When you were passed out, we had her combat trials at the Colosseum, and she beat everyone except Marcus. She's in the first cohort."

I tried not to roll my eyes at that. Really.

I knew what it meant to leave the arena to save that girl—Regina? Reya? Reyna?— but honestly did she HAVE to go to the FIRST cohort?

And if she could— then did that mean I would have been able to as well?

Dakota must have seen my expression though, because he came up and placed a hand on my shoulder.

"I know what you're thinking. Sure, maybe you'd have gotten to the first cohort. But have you considered what would have happened if you did? Reyna would probably not have made it to Camp— and she's a cool person, I'm glad she did. You saved her life, Percy."

I sighed, and nodded.

"It's not like I regret it," I stammered. "I-I-I just…Ugh!"

I covered my head in my hands. "I had one chance to prove to the legion that I was more than just my godly parentage. That I had something to offer that could help— and I don't even have that now!"

"Well, if it helps," Anahita spoke up, "most people think very highly of what you did. Reyna couldn't stop talking about it either. Said you looked straight like a god coming to save her."

My eyes shot up. I turned towards her. "Really?"

"They also said you were pretty stupid, made bad decisions and were too skinny for a hero."

I cracked a smile. "There's the Camp Jupiter I love."

We all laughed, and chose to just enjoy the moment. Because I realized that, while I may have had legionnaires in the first cohort, here, I had friends. And I'd take this over that any day.

New Rome was beautiful at night.

Since I'd just gotten into the legion, my friends had offered to take me on a trip to New Rome. Just to see the city as a whole. But deep down, I knew that they were just trying to cheer me up. As if they were saying, we ain't the first, but the fifth cohort can be pretty fun too!

They'd had to call it a night early though. Unlike me, they had their regular legionnaire training tomorrow. I had one more day of skipping them— because I'd nearly died three days back.

So after a couple of "See you's" and more "Don't get lost on the way back!"s that I wanted to remember, I decided to explore New Rome myself.

Mostly because I was hungry.

It was nothing like I expected.

I thought it would be like San Francisco. A million apartments crammed together, with cars running all over the streets and people protesting everything from Climate change to NBA Mascot rights.

This was…different.

And better than anything I could imagine.

Ancient columns stood tall, looking all serious and official, and I would have thought I was actually in Ancient Rome itself if half of them didn't have spray painted Medusa heads. There were also neon signs and a surprising number of shops that didn't seem like they'd accept drachmas considering the things they sold. The architecture was all grand and stuff, like a bunch of marble threw a party and forgot to invite the other rocks. Pillars rose like fancy toothpicks, arches curved in extreme fashions and aqueducts did their water-moving thing, looking like they were fresh out of a history book, but with better plumbing.

I honestly didn't know if the architects of New Rome were just trying to create the most impressive work known to mankind or if they were drunk. Haniel told me that Romans had a sport called Extreme Architecture, and that was why New Rome was the way it was.

That made sense too.

I stopped by a cafe, and considered buying a drink, when I overheard a couple of demigods debating the most efficient way to fight a hydra. One even had set up a PPT for it, and was showing it to the others on her laptop. The other was performing…some sort of interpretive dance?

The PPT demigod saw me though, and blushed. I would too, if someone saw my PPT on '10 ways to kill a Hydra (You'll love #5!)'

Of course, that meant everyone around her had to turn around see what happened, which was why I decided to quickly run past that section and continue looking around.

My stomach growled in annoyance.

Coffee wouldn't have been that filling anyway.

Shops lined every street I turned into, their windows glowing with tempting displays.

Boutiques with armor that looked impenetrable, coffee shops serving drinks strong enough to wake the dead (100% refund if your dead uncle didn't come back to life), and cafes with snacks so good they could probably make monsters reconsider their life choices.

I stopped at a street corner, watching a group of demigods attempt to recreate the chariot scene from Ben-Hur using shopping carts. Demigods milled around everywhere, looking as if they'd just stepped out of a demigod fashion magazine – the latest in half-blood couture. A son of Mars named Jeff Green rocked a gladiator sandal and skinny jeans combo, while another girl from the first cohort—I think her name was Sasha Warren— sported a celestial bronze charm bracelet that screamed 'I slayed a monster and all I got was this fabulous jewelry.'

I don't usually notice the night sky, especially not when I'm in the City, because the pollution around it and the million night lights means I can barely see any stars anyway.

But in New Rome, it was different.

I could see the stars. Like, all of them.

It was a masterpiece, a twinkling canvas painted by the gods themselves. The stars sparkled like glitter thrown around the sky by some ancient god. I even spotted a constellation that suspiciously resembled Jupiter flipping someone the bird.

I decided to buy a small croissant from a nearby shop— I couldn't really afford anything else— and continued walking.

I finally made it to a small corner that continued down to a pebbled path where several benches were set up on a beach, overlooking the lake. Lights dotted the sand, while fairy lights hung from trees, and hidden speakers from a hotel nearby played smooth jazz. The air was a mix of campfire smoke and someone's failed attempt at making cookies. It felt like home, in a weird demigod kind of way.

I could see several boats in the lake, ranging from small canoes to a single decently-sized cruise ship. And I could have sworn I saw Pegasi in the sky.

The atmosphere around me was just as charged as the city of New Rome. To my right, a Lare had set up a small stand where he performed some stand up comedy— I noticed quite a few demigods around it. On my left, a trio of demigods practiced a harmonious rendition of "Sweet Child o' Mine" on lyres, and the eventually result was a mixture of poor jokes and random lyrics from famous Guns n Roses songs.

Eventually though I found myself gazing at the view of Camp Jupiter, its reflection shimmering over the lake. The Camp looked so peaceful at night. From this distance, I could barely make out the walls and the lanterns lining the towers.

Far beyond, towards the horizon, I could see the hills that surrounded the Camp, giving us a sense of protection and safety— though I learned soon enough that the Camp was dangerous in itself.

I sighed, but then forced myself to look on the bright side. Lupa always told me to focus on improvements, rather than excuses. She told me making lists of the things I was good at and grateful for would always be better than complaining.

So I decided to make a list.

I just finished listing the first five things I was grateful for (most of them were related to food) when I was interrupted.

"Mind if I sit with you?"

The girl asking it looked like she was a couple months younger than me—how I came to that conclusion, I don't know. She had long black hair and tanned skin. Her eyes were deep brown and her face had a regal look to it. She was dressed in the standard purple tee and jeans, but somehow she managed to make it look more stylish than I ever could.

Basically, she was really pretty, in a natural way.

"Uh, sure?" I asked. It wasn't often that random beautiful strangers approached me, so I assumed she had a boyfriend or something she wanted to watch the stars with. Or maybe do some other couple activity I had no idea about.

"Do you want me to get off or—?"

She shook her head, before sitting next to me. Close up, I could see a small scar along her forearm. Her arms were built and muscular, like she did track and field or something.

She looked at me.

"You are Percy Jackson, correct?"

I nodded.

"Well then, I guess I just wanted to thank you. That's pretty much it— though I have a question."

I frowned.

"Thank me for what?"

She gave me a confused smile.

"You don't remember? You helped me with the Minotaur situation."

My eyes widened.

"You're the new demigod! Reyna!"

I must have shouted the last part though, because she clasped her hands over my mouth quickly.

"I would appreciate some privacy. But yes, I am."

I nodded. "Cool. You're, uh, welcome and all that. That's all you wanted to say?"

While a part of me was relieved this confusing girl was leaving, another part of me was sad to see her go. I'd met so few people in Camp, which meant that there were few people who were willing to actually talk to me and look past the whole Son of Neptune thing. Most of them— well the few I'd seen in the short time I'd been at Camp anyway— either completely stayed away from me because they were scared I'd accidentally blow up the Camp if I sneezed, or were just friends because they were looking for ways to use me to their advantage.

Reyna was…neither. She was confusing, at the very least. I couldn't figure her out. Everything about her was well-guarded, for some reason. The way she spoke. Her movements. Her smile. Everything was calculated and precise.

She reminded me of the air hostesses I saw on ads on TV. All polite and smiling like robots.

Reyna bit her lip, and I could see her deciding whether or not to continue a conversation with me. She messed with her hair, looking around nervously. Her eyes were drawn to the stand-up comedian, and I followed her gaze.

If she didn't want to talk, I wouldn't force her. I knew better than that. So the two of us just decided to sit together in silence and pay attention to the Lare to our right.

We listened to his jokes for a few minutes. I personally thought they sucked, but Reyna cracked a smile at a few. I didn't understand those though, because the Lare had gone deep into Greek history for those jokes.

Then all of a sudden, she looked at me. It was scary because her eyes were suddenly so clear and intense.

"Why are you such an idiot?"

I blinked. "Excuse me?"

"Sorry—that came out wrong. I heard that—that you left your chance to progress past the fifth cohort just to come out and help me. How did you know?"

Oh. This conversation.

I shrugged. "I just had this gut feeling. And Lupa taught me to take those feelings very seriously, because as a demigod those things are really helpful. Like a spidey-sense, if you know what I mean?"

She just stared at me.

How could she know about ancient Greek heroes like Hercules and whatever but not know who Spiderman was?

I sighed and continued. "And, well, there was a messenger who reached the Colosseum, but there wasn't really time for me to get help. So I had to."

She nodded. "That was very noble of you. Quite stupid, but definitely noble. I will remember this, and will return the favor first chance I can."

She nodded at me, and then got up to leave.

I grabbed her hand to stop her, but then she judo-flipped me and threw me over her shoulder into the ground.

Black spots danced in my vision, and I groaned.

Third time in two days. This definitely had to be a new record.

I heard the Lare screech onto his microphone in the background.

"OOH! A lover's spat!"

He then proceeded to crack a couple of jokes about love…or something. I didn't really listen though.

"Sorry!" Reyna bent down to lend me a hand, her ears red. "It's just a reflex from…childhood."

I groaned and got up on my elbows. "What kind of childhood gives you that kind of reflexes?"

She looked down. "I'd…rather not talk about it. Once again, I am sorry, but please, don't try to grab me again like that. I-I don't know what I'd do—"

I nodded. I was definitely going to make sure to stay away from her.

Then suddenly, her attitude changed. One moment she was all kind and worried and the next, she went back to close and guarded.

"Why did you grab me?" she asked, her eyes narrowing.

For some reason, her gaze really unsettled me. Her eyes were beautiful, dark brown and like pools of the night sky—but they were dark, in the sense that she looked like someone who had seen a lot. And been through a lot.

"I just wanted to tell you, you don't have to repay me or anything, dude. We're cool."

She frowned. "Are you sure about that? A favor from me is something I feel many would find rather profitable. I am a rather adept warrior— as you might know, given who my mother is."

"Your mother is who now?"

She nodded to herself. "So you don't know— she is Bellona; goddess of war, destruction and devastation, the twin sister of Mars."

I blinked.

"So you, uh, like fight cool and break stuff?" was my only response.

Finally, she cracked a smile.

"Yes, I fight cool and break stuff," her eyes looked up. "Fighting is all I've known for most of my life," she added, softly.

I got back up to my feet. My head was still ringing a bit from the hit, but I'd managed to not break anything else.

"Well, like I said, you don't owe me anything. We're cool—just, promise to be friends, yeah?" I winced, hoping I didn't sound like a try-hard.

She smiled. "You're weird. Do you actually not know how Romans are supposed to negotiate? Didn't Lupa teach you?"

I blushed. "I was, uh, more inclined to the…practical classes."

She snorted. "I figured. At any rate, it was nice to meet you, Percy Jackson. I'll see you around. And," she added, her eyes softening, "thanks. I appreciate what you said."

"Anytime," I smiled. "Just, eh, try not to judo flip me again?"

She laughed, and my heart went into a cheerleading routine.

"I'll keep that in mind, Percy. I'll see you around."

She left, and I didn't stare at her— well not for that long.

It was just that even the way she walked…something was off. She walked like she was always on alert for an attack, her muscles were all tight and rigid, ready for action at any moment. She walked like a panther— all feline grace and poise, but equally ready to shred someone to pieces.

I winced.

There was something different about her. But I wasn't able to place what it was. And I had no idea if it was good news or bad.

Either way, it was getting late. And I had to head back to Camp.

Of course, that night I had a dream again. Only, it was less like a fancy musical, and more like a direct visitation.

From a god.

I was standing in the middle of a huge cornfield, overlooking the ocean. All around me, golden ears of corn swayed in the wind, and the air smelt of warm summers and good harvests.

A woman slowly walked up to me. She radiated power, and I instantly knew that she was a goddess.

Lupa had taught me how to approach this situation in Demigod Dreams Etiquette Class LC.

I bowed and waited until she had decided to speak to me.

"Son of Neptune, do you recognize me?"

I looked up.

The goddess's eyes were yellow and harsh, like the summer sun. Her hair was golden and had a crown of corns on it. She had corn ear-rings too, and her toga had all sorts of vegetables etched onto it. She looked like a really pretty grandmother, the type who'd pester you to eat cereal and vegetables to grow strong. Only, she had none of the grandmotherly love but all of the grandmotherly craziness.

I was trying to figure out who the supreme deity of eating your veggies was, but she'd fortunately gotten bored and decided to cut to the chase.

"I see the sea spawn are as slow as ever. I am Ceres, though you may not even know who I am yet. Never mind, in any case, all I have to say to you is this— my child from the Fifth cohort must assist you. And be quick, for if you fail, Olympus will fall. For as far as winter's cold grip stretches, thus far will the power of the gods recede."

Her eyes suddenly widened and the sun suddenly hid behind a cloud.

I heard a distant whistle. Just a few notes, but it sounded dark and ominous. Like despair and dread and death.

A cold breeze blew past me, making me shiver.

Ceres stiffened, before apparently taking a deep breath to calm herself.

"He approaches. I must leave; remember, Percy— your allies may sometimes be from the most unexpected of places."

Then she disappeared, and the corn all around me began to sway. The air turned cold, and a harsh biting wind blew from the North. The moment it blew over the corn, everything shriveled and turned to dust that was scattered away.

I had two thoughts:

That was terrible advice, I didn't understand any of it What being was so powerful they would scare a Olympian god? And— and why did I have to meet it? How come I didn't have the power to teleport out of my own dream?

I'd do anything to have a regular fire-breathing bunny chasing me dream. Or even the stupid one where I lost my pants in the middle of school.

But I couldn't do anything, and instead just looked around me.

In a few seconds, the entire plains became nothing more than a barren wasteland, full of black dust and ash.

I began to shiver as the cold wind continued to blow, and ice began to slowly form on the land.

I heard a distant peal of laughter, and turned around, my blood freezing at the sight before me.

A giant figure glared at me. It was roughly 10 feet tall, with an elaborate black armor and a single diamond blazing in the breastplate. Its eyes were blue-white and as cold as a glacier. Its hair and beard were the same color and cut in a military style.

The being wore a helmet shaped like a bear's head, and wielded a massive sword the size of a surfboard, which radiated more cold that I could ever imagine something to possess. His face, though marked by a number of battle scars, would have been quite handsome if he wasn't so terrifying.

He glanced at me, and laughed.

"So this is my opponent? Pah! No man shall defeat me—and yet, you are welcome to try; I must confess however, I did expect more. You are rather the, well, unassuming specimen. Though perhaps your fortitude lies elsewhere. Only time will tell."

His smile turned positively evil, and I could feel the blood in my veins freeze as I slowly began to turn into a statue of ice, even as he continued laughing.

"Enjoy your life little hero," the being whispered. "Whatever you have left of it, that is."

He thrust his sword towards me, and I broke into a million pieces.

A/N: reviews are appreciated! Especially let me know your thoughts on the story and your opinion on the writing; where do you think things are headed?