Daughter of Wine

Annabeth

The new Civil War has begun. 

Leo had somehow escaped his fall unharmed, much to Calli's relief. I see him ducking from portico to portico, blasting fire at the giant eagles swooping down on him. Roman demigod stry to chase him, tripping over piles of cannonballs and dodging tourists, who scream and run in circles. 

Tour guides keep yelling "It's just a reenactment!" Though they don't sound sure. The Mist can only do so much to change what mortals see. 

Calli runs to Leo's aid, as another demigod is quickly catching up to him. 

In the middle of the courtyard, a full-grown elephant, Frank, rampages around the flagpoles, scattering Roman warriors. Jason is about fifty yards away, sword fighting with a pair of Romans. 

I watch as Calli reaches Leo, patting his back affectionately before leaping into the air off of a cannon, summoning her thyrsus mid-jump, and landing in front of the Roman. 

He looks like a stocky centurion, but his lips are stained cherry red, like blood. A wannabe vampire, or maybe a Kool-Aid freak? I suddenly remember when we were being introduced. He's Dakota, Calli's half brother, a son of Bacchus. 

As I watch, Calli battles him, sword against thyrsus. "Sorry about this, bro!" She yells. She vaults over the centurion's head like an acrobat and slams the bottom of her thyrsus into the back of the Roman's head. Dakota crumples. 

"Jason!" I yell, getting his attention as he knocks out the two Romans he was fighting. 

He scans the battlefield, spotting Calli, then me. 

I point toward where the Argo II is docked. "Get the others aboard! Retreat!"

"What about you?" He calls. 

"Don't wait for me!" 

I bolt before he can protest. Calli teleports to my side, already running. 

I have a hard time maneuvering through the mobs of tourists. Who knew so many people want to see Fort Sumter on a sweltering summer day? But I quickly realize the crowds are saving our lives. Without the chaos of all these panicked mortals, the Romans would have already surrounded our outnumbered crew. 

I dodge into a small room that must be part of the garrison and try to steady my breathing. Calli follows behind me, sweating profusely. Her wavy hair has quickly become a tangled mess. 

"I should not have worn black." She gasps. "If I were a Union defender, where would I hide a map?"

I take her question seriously. A lot of the Union defenders had been children of Athena. They hid an important map here. Something they didn't want falling into enemy hands. If I had been one of those demigods, where would I have hidden it?

Suddenly the walls glisten. The air becomes warm. I wonder if I'm hallucinating, but Calli seems to notice it too. She looks around warily. We lock eyes, and are about to run for the exit when the door slams shut. The mortar between the stones blisters. The bubbles pop, and thousands of tiny black spiders swell forth. 

I can't move. My heart seems to have stopped. The spiders blanket the walls, crawling over one another, spreading across the floor and gradually surrounding us. It's impossible, it can't be real. 

Calli examines the spiders warily. She's not afraid of them like I am. Instead, she seems to be examining their behavior. "This is weird." She looks up at me and seems to notice my terrified expression. "Dude, take a breath. I know you hate spiders, but these aren't attacking us, just surrounding us. You can breathe. Do it."