are you ever seen something like this

Oh gods. Panic welled up inside her. She forced it down. She couldnt afford to get overwhelmed. Im a of Athena she told herself. I have to stick to my plan and not get distracted. She felt it againthat familiar shiver as if a psychotic snowman had crept up behind her and was breathing down her neck. She turned but no one was there. Must be her nerves. Even in a world of gods and monsters Annabeth couldnt believe a new warship would be haunted. The Argo II was well protected. The Celestial bronze shields along the rail were enchanted to ward off monsters and their onboard satyr Coach Hedge would have sniffed out any intruders. Annabeth wished she could pray to her mother for guidance but that wasnt possible now. Not after last month when shed had that horrible encounter with her mom and gotten the worst present of her life. The cold pressed closer. She thought she heard a faint voice in the d laughing. Every muscle in her body tensed. Something was about to go terribly wrong. She almost ordered Leo to reverse course. Then in the valley below horns sounded. The Romans had spotted them. Annabeth thought she knew what to expect. Jason had described Camp Jupiter to her in great detail. Still she had trouble believing her eyes. Ringed by the Oakland Hills the valley was at least twice the size of Camp HalfBlood. A small river snaked around one side and curled toward the center like a capital letter G emptying into a sparkling blue lake. Directly below the ship nestled at the edge of the lake the city of New Rome gleamed in the sunlight. She recognized landmarks Jason had told her aboutthe hippodrome the coliseum the temples and parks the neighborhood of Seven Hills with its ding streets colorful villas and flowering gardens. She saw evidence of the Romans recent battle with an army of monsters. The dome was cracked open on a building she guessed was the Senate House. The forums broad plaza was pitted with craters. Some fountains and statues were in ruins. Dozens of s in togas were streaming out of the Senate House to get a better view of the Argo II. More Romans emerged from the shops and cafÃ©s gawking and pointing as the ship descended.

About half a mile to the west where the horns were blog a Roman fort stood on a hill. It looked just like the illustrations Annabeth had seen in military history bookswith a defensive trench lined with spikes high walls and watchtowers armed with scorpion ballistae. Inside perfect rows of white barracks lined the main roadthe Via Principalis. A column of demigods emerged from the gates their armor and spears glinting as they hurried toward the city. In the midst of their ranks was an actual war elephant. Annabeth wanted to land the Argo II before those troops arrived but the ground was still several hundred feet below. She scanned the crowd hoping to catch a glimpse of Percy. Then something behind her went BOOM The explosion almost knocked her overboard. She whirled and found herself eye to eye with an angry statue. Unacceptable he shrieked. Apparently he had exploded into existence right there on the deck. Sulfurous yellow smoke rolled off his shoulders. Cinders popped around his curly hair. From the waist down he was nothing but a square marble pedestal. From the waist up he was a muscular human figure in a carved toga. I will not have weapons inside the Pomerian Line he announced in a fussy teacher voice. I certainly will not have Greeks Jason shot Annabeth a look that said Ive got this. Terminus he said. Its me. Jason Grace. Oh I remember you Jason Terminus grumbled. I thought you had better sense than to consort with the enemies of Rome But theyre not enemies Thats right Piper jumped in. We just want to talk. If we could Ha snapped the statue. Dont try that charmspeak on me young lady. And put down that dagger before I slap it out of your hands Piper glanced at her bronze dagger which shed apparently forgotten she was holding. Umokay. But how would you slap it You dont have any arms. Impertinence There was a sharp POP and a flash of yellow. Piper yelped and dropped the dagger which was now smoking and sparking. Lucky for you Ive just been through a battle Terminus announced. If I were at full strength I wouldve blasted this flying monstrosity out of the sky already Hold up. Leo stepped forward wagging his Wii