"Where's Selina!? Beckendorf!? Talk, Roman!" Clarisse yelled at me while Michael Yew and the Stoll brothers held her back. Chiron stomped his hooves.

"Enough, Clarisse." He said in a stern voice. "Lets not pass judgement on our guest here before hearing her side of the story. Now, everyone gather around."

Clarisse spit at my feet and lumbered off towards her chair. The counselor meeting took place in the basement of what the campers called The Big House. The nine counselors, plus Chiron and I, met around a pool table. Before Clarisse's attempted interrogation of me, I was briefly introduced to all of the head counselors in rapid succession.

Each cabin represented a specific god in the main Patheon and I had already met three of their counselors. There was The Travis Brothers, twin sons of Hermes and head counselors of the cabin eleven. They had brown curly hair and a mischievous look in their brown eyes. Michael Yew, head counselor of cabin seven. Son of Apollo with a Napoleon complex.

But I was quickly introduced to Katie Gardner, daughter of Demeter and head counselor of cabin four. She had long dark hair braided around her head like a crown and dark brown eyes. She glared at the Stoll brothers every chance she could while chewing on a bag of trail mix. I had the displeasure of meeting Clarisse, daughter of Ares and head counselor of cabin five. Clarisse was an imposing figure, with a strong build and short brown hair wrapped in a blood red bandana.

Jake Mason, son of Hephaestus and temporary head counselor of cabin nine. Jake had dirty brown hair and black eyes, dirt and grime covered his face. Apparently, the actual head counselor of cabin nine was a guy named Charles Beckondorf, who had disappeared into the labyrinth in search of Cabin tens head counselor, Selina Beauregard, daughter of the love goddess Aphrodite. Drew Tanaka, a young asian girl with long black hair and eyes took her place. And finally there was Castor Jones, son of Dionysus and head of cabin twelve. He had wild curly blond hair and violet colored eyes. He stared quietly at the pool table, sipping a cup of water.

That left Annabeth, head counselor of cabin six. She sat at the head of the table next to me. Chiron sat off to the side in his wheelchair that he somehow fit his horse half into. The wheelchair came with fake legs too.

Clarisse stabbed her dagger into the pool table at the other end of the table, staring daggers into me. "Talk, now!"

Annabeth sighed. "Clarisse, enough. I have a headache."

Clarisse gave her the finger. "I'm not talking to you, owl head."

Castor sipped some more water. "You wanted to call this meeting, Annabeth."

Jake yawned. "Can I go back to building please?"

Chiron grumbled. "No, Jake. Your second in command to Charles, you must attend this meeting."

Jake grumbled. "Cause I'm older then the others?" His comment reminded me of Luke's rant when we first met. Now that he mentioned it, every counselor in attendance could not have been any older then sixteen, maybe fifteen. 

"Yes!" Clarisse yelled at him. "Now quit whining and focus! We all have a common threat here and its these stupid Romans."

I raised an eyebrow, but before I could respond, Katie spoke first. "Those Romans are causing us a lot of trouble. Three of my cabin mates sustained horrible injuries during Justice's last raid."

The mention of Justice got the attention of everyone in attendance. Including those who had tuned out of the conversation.

I made a time out symbol with my hands, but Drew had other ideas. "Well yeah, but if those losers in cabin nine did there jobs and planted enough land mines....."

Jake stood up. "And your doing what exactly? Polishing your nails and flirting with every guy or girl you see?"

Drew smiled while she polished her nails. "Yes, loser."

Annabeth turned to Chiron. "Justice is still trying to raid us from the Labyrinth's entrance?"

Chiron nodded gravely. "Yes, we have kept them at bay so far, but their forces have yet to relent. I was just on my way to get reinforcements from my brothers down south before both of you woke up."

Clarisse pounded on the table. "And I have been leading that operation in your absence, little miss princess. I said this in our last meeting, we should take the offensive. Clearly miss princess here failed to find Daedalus's workshop, we need to make a direct assault. Those Romans will get the better of us eventually, their far more coordinated then we are."

"I'm not surprised." I finally spoke up, frustrated by the constant bickering. "Based on this meeting, none of you have any self control. Who's in charge here? Do you have a Praetor of your own, like our camp?"

The counselor stared at me and laughed. Annabeth gave me a look that said, "Im sorry about this."

"In charge? What is this, boot camp?" Drew said.

"I'm not sure how you Romans do it," Said one of the stoll brothers, Connor. "But we don't do that here."

"Chiron!" I turned my attention to the old centaur, which, by the way, blew my mind. I was talking to Chiron. THE CHIRON. "Are you in charge here?"

Chiron readjusted himself in his wheelchair. "I am no leader, Reyna. I am a teacher, nothing more. I do not fight my kids- er, my students battles."

The counselors around the table each shot down the idea as well, but it was born from genuine concern for their teacher. The gesture was sweet, until Clarisse ruined it.

"Well if anyone is going to lead this assault, its me." She said, pointing her thumb to her chest.

"On who?" I asked her.

"On you and your stupid camp!" Clarisse shouted.

I slammed my hands on to the pool table and stood up. "I hope your bark is as big as your bite- LET ME GO!" I shouted at the Stoll brothers while they held me back. Katie, Castor and Michael each held Clarisse back.

"Bring it on, Roman scum!" Clarise shouted.

"ENOUGH!" Annabeth shouted, silencing all of us. "Clarisse, back off! Reyna is not a threat to Camp Half-Blood. I swear-"

"You swear on what?" Clarisse quickly asked.

"I swear on the river of styx!" Annabeth shouted.

The temperature in the air changed and thunder boomed in the distant. Everyone, even Clarisse backed off when Annabeth made that statement. I stared at her, shocked she would make such an oath, but Annabeth nodded, her eyes conveying zero doubt.

"She saved me." Annabeth said. "If it wasn't for her, Sphinx and my mo-......... she would have made me kill an innocent person."

One of the Stoll brothers raised an eyebrow. "Wait a minute. Didn't you stab Reyna because she stabbed you? That's what Grover said anyways."

Annabeth smiled dryly. "It was.... planned."

Everyone stared at Annabeth. The two of us locked eyes with each other, knowing full well our intentions when stabbing each other. We had no other option but to sacrifice ourselves in the hopes it would buy time for the others to escape. The plan was to kill each other simultaneously.

Clarisse whistled. "Wow, owl head. I've never seen you so ashamed of a plan you came up with. Let me guess, Sphinx threaten Prissy and the others, so you both had no choice to kill one or the other?"

Chiron leaned forward. "Enough, Clarisse."

"I was just-"

"Enough!" Chiron chided her. "These two girls made an admirable sacrifice. One I'm sure you would have made if those you cared for most were in danger. Now, everyone seated. Let's hear from Reyna, she should be able to provide some context on our Roman brothers and sisters to the west."

We all took our seats and everyone turned their attention to me. I cleared my throat, felling uncomfortable in a room full of strangers. I found myself scooting closer to Annabeth, the only person I had any connection to. 

"Okay, where do you want to start?" I asked them.

****************************

"Wow." Drew said, her eyes beaming. "You live in a city? Like an actual city?"

I shook my head. "Well, I don't live in the city, but its my job-"

"What about the gardens?" Katie asked.

I rubbed the back of my neck. "Uh, There's actually a garden that i love to visit, its called-"

"The war games." Clarisse said. "How many players in a given game?"

"Uh, the whole camp participates, mostly. And-"

"Hey!" Annabeth said. "Lets stay on topic. Someone tried to assassinate Jason, go from there."

"Right." I said. "There was an assassination attempt. Jason was out of commission for a while. Then, while he recovered, someone named Quintus visited the camp via the labyrinth."

"Quintus!" The counselors said in unison, they all turned to Chiron, who looked just as shocked as they did. 

Chiron scratched his beard. "Don't look at me, I don't know anything about this."

"What do you mean, Chiron?" Polux spoke first. "You brought him to the camp in the first place. Before he disappeared."

Annabeth raised her hand. "Disappeared?"

Jake twiddled his thumbs. "Yeah, he disappeared not long after you left for your quest. When Justice's forces tried to raid us again."

Annabeth shook her head, processing the information. Eventually she turned back to me. "So he made his way to your camp. What next?"

I relaxed myself, realizing no one would understand the context of what I was referring to. "We interrogated him. Obviously. He explained he entered via the labyrinth, a blind spot in our defenses. He tried to tell us he came from your camp, but he was prevented from speaking about it further because of powerful magic casted over him."

Chiron raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

I looked at Chiron while he rubbed his beard. "Yes."

Chiron readjusted himself, the eyes of the other campers on him. "Many beings have been prevented from speaking about the Greek and Roman conflict by the gods in Olympus. Including myself."

Annabeth looked at Chiron. "You knew about this camp and never told us?"

Chiron sighed. "Yes my dear. Unfortunately I had no choice in the matter. It was either swear an oath to never speak on the matter again or-"

"Or boom, master bolt to the face courtesy of Lord Zeus himself." Michael Yew finished.

Chiron gave Michael a side eye. "Yes, very well put. Regardless, even if I wanted to speak about the matter, powerful magic was conjured by Hecate herself to prevent the Romans and Greeks from ever knowing about each other. For many years now, since the American Civil War, the Greeks and Romans have operated independently of each other. But it's strange that Quintus would be impacted by the spell as well."

"Why's that?" I asked him.

Chiron shrugged. "Demigods are exempt to this rule. As you all know, demigods are not subject to the same rules as the gods. They can challenge anyone. Man, monster or god. Yes, Hecate's magic can prevent confrontation between the two sides, but once they have become aware of each other, there is no going back. We've had numerous close calls over the years, but this time is clearly different. Quintus should not have been subject to the spell like myself....."

"Well, Quintus was not a demigod at all. Or at least, the version I met." I told him.

Chiron leaned forward. "Version? Elaborate my dear."

"Was?" Annabeth added.

I looked down at the table, feeling everyone's gaze on me. "I...... killed him. Before he died, he was possessed by a...." I glanced at Annabeth. "... By something. Or someone. I'm not sure. He grabbed me by my neck and told me to, 'Give it Back!'. He tried choking me out. Before i...... finished him. He told me to 'Kill the body', to stop him. And-"

I swallowed, trying to ignore the image in my head. "...And I did. But he wasn't a person. He was some kind of automation. A robot, really."

"Whoa, that's insane." Travis said.

"Yeah," Connor added. "Did you keep the body?"

Katie kicked them from underneath the table. "Can't you both read the room? Clearly that wasn't easy for her."

"How do we know she didn't execute him for being one of us?" Clarisse added.

The question hung silently in the air as the other campers contemplated it, but I didn't let it phase me. "I didn't have to tell you if I wanted you to trust me. Its the truth. He nearly killed me."

Katie turned to Clarisse. "Yeah, back off Clarisse, Annabeth has already vouched for her."

Clarisse crossed her arms. "But anyone can be deceived, how do we know she hasn't been lying to Annabeth?"

Annabeth clenched her fist. "Clarisse, we've been down this road already. Reyna, after Quintus was....... dispatched. What happened next?"

I crossed my arms and sat back. "Quintus was able to tell us about the labyrinth. Its power and reach. Just like your camp, our defenses are powerless. We feared the same thing, a raid by Luke and Justices armies to destroy New Rome. So we decided to search for Daedalus's workshop. Its the only lead we had at the time. Jason, Gwen, Bronk and I went on the quest. Or at least, we were supposed to until Jason went in on his own like a moron."

Annabeth smirked. "Yeah, that sounds like him."

Clarisse raised an eyebrow. "You've met this Jason guy, Owl Head."

It was Annabeth's turn to have the spotlight. "Yeah. I got separated from the others not long after entering the labyrinth. I ran into Jason and...... yeah. We survived together for....... I don't even know. It felt like forever. He's Thalia's brother."

I noted how she failed to mention Nico, I wonder what her reasoning was for that. The others blinked, Chiron leaned forward. "Another child of Zeus? That can't be possible. What is his age?"

Annabeth shook her head. "Fifteen and I thought the same thing Chiron. But it gets weirder. He's related to her on the mortal side too. His name is Jason Grace."

Michael snorted. "That's funny. Small world, I guess."

"Not that surprising." Chiron grumbled. "It is Zeus we are talking about. But this will have massive ramification for the Great Prophecy."

Annabeth pulled her dagger out and examined it. "I wouldn't be so sure. Fate is no longer in the Fate's control." 

The Stoll brothers scratched their heads at the same time. "What?" They both asked at the same time.

Annabeth explained her experience with Janus, the Roman god of doorways. She explained how the Fates have lost control since Jason's choice to save Medusa. She confirmed this to the others when the Oracle of Delphi failed to provide her with a Prophecy. 

Chiron rubbed his beard. "How come you held this information from me, Annabeth?"

Annabeth shrugged. "I was...... unsure what it meant. I didn't want to worry you. You already had a lot on your plate with the potential invasion from Luke."

Annabeth turned to me. "Did he really do it? Was Jason actually able to save her? How did he do it?"

I gave her a small smile. "Yeah he did.  He looked Medusa in the eyes. Not by mistake. No one forced him to. It wasn't even in defiance. He just.... believed she was more then just a monster."

The memory was one I looked back on fondly and told them proudly. What made Jason special wasn't his status as the son of Jupiter, but his heart. No one had a bigger heart then Jason. So big in fact that he literally broke the Fates themselves. So now I wasn't sure if I should be proud of him or worried. Maybe he could defeat Justice and her friends with a few hugs and speeches.

"Wow." Drew commented while she filed her nails. "Jason sounds like the real deal. It must make you feel crappy for cutting Medusa's head off and mailing it to the gods, doesn't it, Annabeth?"

Annabeth looked down. "That was Percy's idea. Not mine."

"But you let him." Drew continued.

Michael Yew grabbed the black eight ball on the center of the pool table. "So, the Fates no longer control Fate. So..... What does that mean for us?"

"It means we control our Fates." I said confidently. "We can rewrite our destiny."

"Or else Kronos will do it for us." Annabeth added. 

"But that's all that happened since we've entered the Labyrinth, right Annabeth?" I asked her.

Annabeth nodded, a silent agreement forming between the two of us to discuss certain details we left out later. Such as Nico and her mother Athena. "Yeah, so what about the others? Where's Percy, Grover and Tyson?"

"And Jason, Gwen and Bronk?" I added.

The others shifted uncomfortably, passing nervous glances at Chiron. Chiron cleared his throat. "The others brought you here, of course. The others being Gwen, Bronk, Grover and Tyson. They've re-entered the labyrinth to complete the quest."

"And Jason?" I asked him.

"Percy?" Annabeth added.

Chiron looked at Jake solemnly. "Jake. Can you get the TV over there?"

Jake nodded and rushed over to the TV. It was an old school box TV on a push cart. He pushed it over to us and behind Clarisse, who would not stop staring at me. He grabbed the remote and turned it on.

"Who was watching Barney?" Conner asked.

"Switch to the news channel, Jake." Chiron ordered.

Jake switched to the news channel, right in the middle of a news story. "...Saint Helens has always shown some activity, but nothing of this caliber Steve. The smoke and ash coming from the eruption is immense, forcing local law enforcements to evacuate nearby towns and cities. Numerous flights have been delayed or outright cancelled. Firefighters are already on the scene combatting raging forest fires and....."

Annabeth and I stared at the TV, horrified. Chiron wiped his eyes. "Nothing is confirmed, but we do know this thanks to Gwen. The boys...... they were just as willing to make the same sacrifice as you both."

Annabeth dropped her knife on the table and placed her face in her hands. I pulled out Jason's coin and stared at it.

"No." I said. "No he's.....not gone. He can't be."

I attempted to will the coin back to Jason's pocket, but the coin remained in my hand.

"He can't be." I said again, staring at the coin. The coin remained in my hand. 

"He can't be!" I shrieked. "Your lying!"

"Reyna, my dear-"

"NO!" I shouted at Chiron. "He can't be gone! He still needs to...... I still need to..." 

I was prepared to shout more, until Will Solace interrupted. He rushed into the room, out of breath. "Sorry, everyone . But you all need to see this."

Clarisse stood up. "What's going on?"

Will swallowed nervously. "We have a message from a crazy guy named Max, he wants to talk to someone in charge."

My attention snapped towards Will at the mention of Max. "Max?"

Will nodded. "Yeah. We need to hurry. He has them. Beckondorf and Selina."