TERRIFIED . . . annabeth chase

twelve.

MIDTOWN WAS A war zone. Val flew over little skirmishes everywhere. A giant was ripping up trees in Bryant Park while dryads pelted him with nuts. Outside the Waldorf Astoria, a bronze statue of Benjamin Franklin was whacking a hellhound with a rolled-up newspaper. A trio of Hephaestus campers fought a squad of dracaenae in the middle of Rockefeller Center.

The smoke and noise showed that the real action had moved farther south. Their defenses were collapsing. The enemy was closing in on the Empire State Building. Percy called her name over, and she flew toward him, shaking her head at her distractions.

They did a quick sweep of the surrounding area. The Hunters had set up a defensive line on 37th, just three blocks north of Olympus. To the east on Park Avenue, Jake Mason and some other Hephaestus campers were leading an army of statues against the enemy. To the west, the Demeter cabin and Grover's nature spirits had turned Sixth Avenue into a jungle that was hampering a squadron of Kronos's demigods. The south was clear for now, but the flanks of the enemy army were swinging around. A few more minutes and they'd be totally surrounded.

Val spotted the Aphrodite cabin down below, and winced at Drew's scream that she could hear from up here. The fear around her made the scream valid, and not just that she screamed for fun, because she did that sometimes.

"I'm gonna go help the Aphrodite cabin," Val said, turning to Percy. "Call if you need me?"

"Yeah, sure," Percy said. "Good luck out there."

"I'd wish you it too, but you really don't need it," Val said, before flying down and clapping her hands, killing the monsters in the vicinity.

"Have I ever mentioned how much I love you?" Drew asked her as she slashed with her dagger — shiny and flashy, just like her.

"A lot less than how much I love you," Val grinned at her. "Come on, before I eventually throw up."

The next hour was a blur. She slashed and stabbed with her knives, defending whoever needed it most. She flew around to help wounded people get to safe places.

As the night wore on and the moon got higher, they were backed up foot by foot until they were only a block from the Empire State Building in any direction. Everyone fought. Val flew people inside. She killed whatever she could. She charmspoke monsters to kill their allies.

But it still wasn't enough.

"Hold your lines!" Katie Gardner shouted, somewhere off to Val's right.

The problem was there were too few of them to hold anything. The entrance to Olympus was twenty feet behind Val. A ring of brave demigods, Hunters, and nature spirits guarded the doors. Val used her knives instead, because she was tired, and her powers were depleted.

Behind the enemy troops, a few blocks to the east, a bright light began to shine. Val thought it was the sunrise. Then she realized Kronos was riding toward them on a golden chariot. A dozen Laistrygonian giants bore torches before him. Two Hyperboreans carried his black-and-purple banners. The Titan lord looked fresh and rested, his powers at full strength. He was taking his time advancing.

Annabeth appeared near her. "We have to fall back to the doorway. Hold it at all costs!"

Then Val heard the hunting horn.

It cut through the noise of the battle like a fire alarm. A chorus of horns answered from all around them, echoing off the buildings of Manhattan.

"What the fuck is that?" Drew yelled, looking at Connor.

"Don't look at me," he put his hands up to surrender before she stabbed an empousai in front of him. Idiot.

"Yeah, we didn't do this," Travis agreed.