Jɪɴx ➪ 𝙡. 𝙫𝙖𝙡𝙙𝙚𝙯

"What about the Cars?"

chapter twenty-two; "What about the Cars?"

LEO MANNED the helm. 

He focused on getting them down safely without crushing any of the demigods on the ground. Quickly, he and the others rushed off of the Argo to meet their friends half way. 

"You're alive!" Percy said. "The giants said you were captured. What happened?"

Leo shrugged. "Oh, just another brilliant plan by Leo Valdez. You'd be amazed what you can do with an Archimedes sphere, a girl who can sense stuff underground, another who can apparently sense power- whatever that means- and a weasel."

Jinx shot him a glare. She had already made it clear that she would not be helping him out in any of his 'mechanical business' just because she figured she can sense power sources.

"I was the weasel," Frank said glumly.

"A great weasel at that." Jinx gave him a pat on the back. 

"Basically," Leo explained, "I activated a hydraulic screw, one that Jinx felt was a good power source that wouldn't blow up on us,  with the Archimedes device—which is going to be awesome once I install it in the ship, by the way. Hazel sensed the easiest path to drill to the surface. We made a tunnel big enough for a weasel, and Frank climbed up with a simple transmitter that I slapped together. After that, it was just a matter of hacking into Coach Hedge's favorite satellite channels and telling him to bring the ship around to rescue us. After he got us, finding you was easy, thanks to that godly light show at the Colosseum." He nudged Jinx, "and she helped stalling for time at the end. That's how we got here faster than later." 

Percy nodded, "Where's Annabeth?"

Leo winced. "Yeah, about that...she's still in trouble, we think. Hurt, broken leg, maybe—at least according to this vision Gaea shown us. Rescuing her is our next stop."

Leo didn't even try to feel what Percy was thinking at this moment. He knew it was hard on him. 

"Tell me about the vision," he said. "Tell me everything."

The floor shook. The wooden planks began to disappear, spilling sand into the pits of the hypogeum below.

"Let's talk on board," Hazel suggested. "We'd better take off while we still can."

They sailed out of the Colosseum and veered south over the rooftops of Rome. 

All around the Piazza del Colosseo, traffic had come to a standstill. A crowd of mortals had gathered, probably wondering about the strange lights and sounds that had come from the ruins.  The city looked the same as before. No one seemed to notice the huge Greek trireme rising into the sky.

The demigods gathered around the helm. Jason bandaged Piper's sprained shoulder while Hazel sat at the stern, feeding Nico ambrosia. Jinx stood a little far off, giving him whatever space she thought he needed.

Nico could barely lift his head. His voice was so quiet, Hazel had to lean in whenever he spoke.

Frank and Leo recounted what had happened in the room with the Archimedes spheres, and the visions Gaea had shown them in the bronze mirror, Jinx occasionally muttering her own add-ons. They quickly decided that their best lead for finding Annabeth was the cryptic advice Bacchus had provided: the Emmanuel Building, whatever that was. Frank started typing at the helm's computer while Leo tapped furiously at his controls, muttering, "Emmanuel Building. Emmanuel Building." Coach Hedge tried to help by wrestling with an upside-down street map of Rome.

Percy knelt next to Jason and Piper. "How's the shoulder?"

Piper smiled. "It'll heal. Both of you did great."

Jason elbowed Percy. "Not a bad team, you and me."

"Better than jousting in a Kansas cornfield," Percy agreed. He then turned to look at her, noticing her quietness and stillness. "Is something wrong?"