Immediately after Jason called out for the scepter, undead zombies began to pull themselves up from the cracked earth and chasm.
Just from looking at all of them, Percy could tell that the undead were most likely demigods. Just from their ADHD.
No matter. They were all Roman legionnaires. And that meant they knew when to lock in and follow orders.
"Ad Signa, Legion, lock shields!" he snapped, watching in grim satisfaction as they formed ranks, locking their shields to create a wall between him and Jason, and the monsters.
"Pila tollite," Percy shouted, continuing with a "Pila jactate, Redi!" after the zombies readied their pilum, throwing it to thin out the flood and then returning to position.
"Percute!" He ordered, having them advance so they could reach the rest of the demigods.
He and Jason fought side by side, leading the zombie legionnaires to wipe out the monsters and reach the other half of the crew. The two demigods exchanged a look, before Percy began the process of summoning a mini-hurricane Jason added his own thunder and lightning to. They fought in the eye of the storm, together.
Through the chaos of the battle, Percy saw the group of empousai seemingly shouting the commands.
With an incline of his head, Jason saw what he was referring to, and his cousin then turned to Piper. Within a minute, the enemy ranks devolved into further chaos, as the empousai were too busy fighting to bother commanding their troops.
"Across?" he asked Jason, referring to the other side of the chasm brimming with fresh monsters. "They're weak on their left flank."
Jason nodded, as they as one were lifted by wind and water to the other side of the chasm, their thundering hurricane following behind them. The son of Jupiter then lifted a few undead to their side.
"di Angelo we need more numbers!" Percy called out, watching as Nico nodded in acknowledgment and raised more purple undead.
He shared a grin with Jason. "Time to turn this tide."
The rest of the battle was a blur after that. All he knew was that he was fighting side by side with Jason, hacking and slashing their way through the horde of monsters. He let instinct guide his movements, as he distantly observed the battle, noting that the other demigods were holding their own on the other side, until it was over.
Percy faced the undead legionnaires. They wouldn't be staying for very long now that the fight was over. "Legion!" he barked out. "I thank you for your return to service. You all fought well. You may now rest. Dismissed."
They all crumbled into bones and armor, until those dissolved into dust as well.
He turned towards the rest of the demigods. "Well that was fun," he commented, smirking at their relieved faces. "Now come on," he said, looking towards the tunnel that Hazel and Leo had gone down.
By the time they got there, the fight was practically already over. Percy could see Hazel, standing in a cloud of silver mist. Collapsed, but safe in the mist were Leo, Bianca, and gods-
"Annabeth," he breathed out, ignoring the shadowed giant, rushing over to his childhood friend's side. He checked her pulse, releasing the breath he hadn't been aware that he'd been holding, relieved to feel a beat, albeit a weak one.
Glancing at the fight, he could tell that it was being handled properly. Percy turned his attention back to both Bianca and Annabeth, ignoring Leo after he saw him weakly sitting up, watching the fight.
Percy pulled out his ambrosia bag and nectar flask, gently feeding both Annabeth and Bianca. As he was checking on Bianca, he heard a weak groan behind him.
Carefully setting Bianca back down on the floor, he turned back to Annabeth, who was struggling to sit up.
"Woah there Beth," he laughed as he rushed back and scooted back over to her. "Careful. Here, have some more ambrosia. I couldn't really give you that much before you woke up."
"Percy," Annabeth breathed out, sitting up properly with Percy's hand at her back holding her steady. "You got my message. You came."
"Not like I had anything better to do," he drily remarked, handing her a piece of ambrosia. "But of course I came. Once I knew that there was an option of peace…"
Annabeth took the ambrosia, shoving it into her mouth. "Ha. Tastes like dust," she remarked.
"What did it taste like before?" he curiously asked, tilting his head to the side in inquiry.
"Your mom's blue cookies," Annabeth laughed, reaching for his hand. He met her halfway. "It's been so long since I've had them."
"Not as long as me," Percy protested. "I think I'd kill for one of her cookies right now."
"Camp is close to New York City. I… you said you were going to lead the Legion to Camp. Did you not visit Sally?" Annabeth questioned.
Percy looked away from her piercing gray eyes, feeling as if they were looking into his soul. "No. From what you said, I didn't know if I could face her."
"She's your Mom, Seaweed Brain. Don't be such an idiot. Of course she wants to see you again," Annabeth scolded, gripping his hand tighter.
Percy weakly laughed. "I'm leading a few hundred demigods to attack a place that, from what I've heard, she probably cares about. She would've asked what I was doing in New York. I don't think I could have answered her."
"The Legion, will they attack?" Annabeth questioned.
"I left them as they were camping right out side of Camp Half-Blood. Reyna still has them under control. I told you a month. She'll follow my word," he reassured her. "But…" his mood grew grim. "That is a hard deadline. Once that month is up, the legion will attack."
Annabeth's gaze darkened. "I see. There will be casualties, but we'll win."
"I wouldn't count on that, Beth," Percy bitterly laughed.
"Bi!" the two of them heard, turning just in time to see an ecstatic Nico rush into his older sister's waiting arms.
"Nico," Bianca breathed. "I'm so proud of you, you know? You led them here."
"Of course I did!" he retorted. "I promised, didn't I?"
The fight was evidently over. Percy looked over to see the rest of the Seven heading over to them. Standing, he extended a hand down to Annabeth. She took it and he pulled her up. Her face had a bit more color, and Annabeth's strength seemed to be slowly returning.
"Annabeth!" Piper exclaimed, throwing her arms around her. "You're alright!"
Percy watched his old friend smile weakly from Piper's arms.
Their reunion was interrupted by the ceiling rumbling. Percy could see the cracks spreading.
"We have to leave," he interrupted. "This place is going to collapse."
Hazel stepped forward. "We can shadow travel. There are three children of Hades and Pluto here. We'll be able to carry everyone."
Percy nodded. "Alright everyone, gather around!" he shouted. The group of them formed a haphazard circle, linking hands. Hazel, Bianca, and Nico were spread out evenly in the group. He nodded at Hazel, and the crumbling House of Hades faded away into the hillside next to the Acheron River.