CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN:
FIRST TO BURN

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KIT DIDN'T HESITATE TO crush Leo's mouth against his as soon as he'd flopped onto the deck like a fish out of water. His chest rose and fell with exhausted gasps for air but he didn't seem to mind the lack of oxygen when he knotted his fingers in the ends of Kit's hair and melted into his touch.

"You're an idiot," Kit mumbled, grabbing Leo's hands and yanking him to his feet.

Leo groaned and rubbed his shoulder (no doubt, his and Jason's crash landing would leave a few bruises) but his grin was one of sheer exhaustion bordering on delirium. "Where do you want me, oh Captain my Captain?"

It took Kit a second to realise he was still standing behind the controls. "Right here, please."

His relieved sigh was fleeting as Leo quickly got back to work like he'd never left. "Damn, Christopher. You've got no idea how to fly a boat, do you?"

Kit rolled his eyes. "Oddly enough, they don't teach us how to fly warships at Camp Half-Blood."

He heard his name from across the deck and, after one last check for injuries on Leo's body, he went in search of the girls. Piper was trying and failing to raise her voice above the chanting Romans. Hazel aimed a bow at anyone who got too close but seemed hesitant to shoot her former comrades. When Kit wormed his way between them, he took one look at the crowded docks and held out a hand to Hazel.

"Give," he said.

She all but shoved the weapon at him, retreating to give him more room as he aimed the bow and fired. He wasn't sure where his shots landed -- archery was not his area of expertise -- but the occasional smattering of blood and pained cries indicated that he was doing something. Whenever someone managed to get close enough to grab onto the ship's rails, they would either hear Piper's charmspeak and forget what they were doing or find themselves on the receiving end of Kit's boot stomping on their fingers.

Either way, they kept the crowd at bay long enough for Jason and Frank to join them, then Jason and Percy teamed up, wind and water working in unison. With crossed swords, they summoned each of their domains to do their bidding. Waves heaved against the ramparts, spilling over the deck and washing the Romans into the harbour. Lightning flashed and knocked the giant eagles out of the sky, but Annabeth was yet to return.

"Kill them!" an ear-splitting voice rose above the Romans' jeers.

Octavian.

"How did he escape?" Kit huffed, aiming the bow at his shoulder.

He let the arrow fly, pumping his fist in the air and cheering when Octavian stumbled back wailing. The crowd around him careened out of the way but some failed to move in time and went tumbling onto the ground with him. Piper shook her head when Kit sent her a beaming grin.

"You enjoyed that too much."

Kit shrugged. "Hell yeah I did."

He managed to pin Octavian's other shoulder. His eyes glinted devilishly beneath the dimming sun. Just as his supply of arrows was getting low, Annabeth appeared in the crowd. The wind that battered against the Romans didn't seem to affect her, allowing her to sprint unopposed through their lines.

"Leo," Kit called. Without having to look, he knew he had the other boy's attention. "Get us out of here!"

Annabeth made a leap for the deck. Kit and Piper grabbed one hand each, hauling her overboard right as the Argo II's engines rumbled and the oars started to churn. By the time the ship reached its top speed, Fort Sumter and the Romans were only a dot on the horizon, and they were racing across the ocean towards the ancient lands where the Romans could no longer follow.

"I got him," Kit declared to Leo who was caught between sailing the ship, trying to keep it in one piece and fixing each of the buttons Kit had disrupted in his attempt to navigate them.

"Who?" Leo's brows knitted into a frown.

"Octavian," he hefted his bow in explanation.

The corner of his mouth curled in a brief smirk. "Oh, proud of you, babe."

Kit sat back and watched Leo do his thing. Once she'd calmed down enough to form sentences, Annabeth joined them, yelling against the roar of the wind, "Percy says he talked to a Nereid in Charleston Harbour."

"Good for him," Leo yelled back, barely glancing her way.

Annabeth rolled her eyes. "The Nereid said we should seek help from Chiron's brothers."

"The Party Ponies?" Kit questioned curiously.

Annabeth popped her shoulders in a shrug. "Not sure but I've got coordinates. Can you input latitude and longitude in this thing?"

Now, this made Leo pause. He levelled her with a deadpan stare. "I can input star charts and order you a smoothie if you want. Of course I can do latitude and longitude!"

Annabeth ignored him, repeating the numbers she'd committed to memory. Kit leaned in for a better look as a red dot popped up on the bronze display screen. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think the Party Ponies live in the middle of the Atlantic."

"Unless they have a yacht," Leo snorted.

Annabeth's eyelids fluttered from exhaustion. "Just hold the ship together until we get further from Charleston. Jason and Percy are going to keep up the winds."

"Is that why we're screaming at each other right now?" Kit remarked.

An eternity later, the sea stopped churning and the winds died. Kit's ears were ringing in the sudden silence. He rubbed the side of his head and turned to Leo.

"Leo," he said. "Dude."

"Yeah?"

"You can let go of the wheel now. It's been two hours."

But Leo's knuckles were bone-white and frozen. "I can't unclench my hands..."

With a softness that contrasted the pent-up frustration he inflicted on Octavian, he pried Leo's fingers from the steering system, tracing his thumb across the calloused palm of his hand. He grazed his lips across his knuckles then hid their intertwined hands in his pocket. Leo clung to him as Kit waved Coach Hedge over.

"Take over," he instructed. "We're going downstairs."

Hedge pointed a finger at them, narrowing his beady eyes. "No funny business."

"Just watch for monsters," Leo told him. "And be careful with the damaged stabiliser, and--"

"I've got it covered," Hedge shoved in front of him to grab onto the wheel. "Now go away, the both of you!"

Kit started to lead Leo towards the stairs but they were stopped by Piper calling out their names.

"So close," Kit sighed but he changed direction and joined the others at the opposite end of the deck.

Percy and Jason were sitting with their backs against the mast, so exhausted they could barely keep their eyes open let alone drink from the cups of water that Annabeth and Piper had to hold to their mouths. Meanwhile, Hazel and Frank stood just out of earshot, glaring at each other and shouting with lots of arm waving and head shaking, but they both went silent when they realised Kit and Leo had front row seats to the show. With flushed cheeks, Hazel left Frank standing alone, casting a shadow of emotion Kit couldn't even begin to comprehend across Frank's face.

"No sign of pursuit," each word he muttered with contempt.

"Or land," Hazel added, curling her arms around her stomach.

She wasn't wrong.

Kit squinted into the horizon. For miles, the deep blue depths of the ocean spanned to the ends of the earth. There was something loud about the silence as it echoed between the sea and sky, caught with nowhere else to go. Each noise -- the faint hum of the wind now that Jason was no longer commanding it, the creak of the wooden oars, the distant chatter of some kind of bird (or maybe it was a monster, it would be just their luck that they escaped one enemy only to crash into another) -- everything sounded trapped, like the dome of the sky was a fishbowl and they were nothing more than a tadpole in the food chain.

"Did you find the map you wanted, Annabeth?" Leo asked.

She nodded, drawing her lower lip between her teeth. "I'll have to study it. How far are we from those coordinates?"

"At top rowing speed? About an hour," he said. "Any idea what we're looking for?"

"No," she admitted, then turned to the boy she was kneeling in front of. "Percy?"

He raised his head, dragging a hand through the tousled strands of hair hanging in front of his eyes. The typically milky white sclera was covered in a spiderweb of burst blood vessels. "The Nereid said Chiron's brothers were there and they'd want to hear about that aquarium in Atlanta. I don't know what she meant, but she also warned me to be careful." He inhaled sharply, desperate for as much air as possible to expand his lungs. "Keto, the Goddess at the aquarium, she's the mother of sea monsters. She might be stuck in Atlanta but she can still send her children after us. The Nereid said we should expect an attack."

"Wonderful," Frank mumbled.

"This Nereid didn't happen to give us a date or a time for when Kate and Porky strike back?" Kit wondered. Percy jerked his head from side to side, squeezing his eyes shut from the effort it took. "Oh, even better. It'll be a nice surprise."

Jason tried and failed to stand then, his knees buckling beneath the weight of his body. He slid back down the mast with Piper's hands gripping his shoulders. Over her shoulder, he sought out the worried gaze of Leo.

"Can we get the ship aloft? If we could fly..."

"That would be great," Leo agreed. "Except Festus tells me that the port aerial stabiliser got pulverised when the ship raked against the dock at Fort Sumter."

"We were in a hurry," Annabeth retorted. "Trying to save you."

"I really don't know what else you should expect from us," added Kit, his biceps bulging as he crossed his arms.

"Look, saving me is a very noble cause," said Leo, making the two of them roll their eyes. "I'm just saying that it'll take me some time to fix. Until then, we're not flying anywhere."

"Fine with me," Percy said. "The sea is good."

For now.

"Speak for yourself," Hazel muttered. "We need to go fast. We've burned another day and Nico only has three more left."

Oh shit, Kit thought. He couldn't lie, he'd forgotten all about Nico in the chaos of meeting Aphrodite and confronting Octavian with his band of merry soldiers. He wasn't about to admit that to Hazel, however.

"We can do it," Leo promised her. "We can make it to Rome in three days -- assuming, you know, nothing unexpected happens."

"Let's aim for two just to be on the safe side," Kit said.

Frank grunted. "Is there any good news?"

"Actually, yes," Leo said, and Kit's eyebrows shot up. This, he'd like to hear. "According to Festus, our flying table, Buford, made it back safely while we were in Charleston, so those eagles didn't get him. Unfortunately, he lost the laundry bag with your pants, Frank. But he did get another pair of leather boots for you, Kit."

"Dang it!" Frank cried, which Kit figured was probably severe profanity for his brother.

No doubt Frank would've cursed Leo some more -- busting out the golly gees and the gosh darns -- but Percy just had to interrupt by doubling over in severe agony. What a sook.

"Did the world just turn upside down?"

Jason covered his face with his hands. "Yeah, and it's spinning. Everything is yellow. Is it supposed to be yellow?"

Kit's nose scrunched up. "Did you overexert yourselves or knock back a bottle of tequila?"

"Summoning that storm must have really sapped your strength," Piper said as she combed her fingers through the curly hairs at the base of Jason's neck. "You've got to rest."

Annabeth's nod was one of agreement. "Frank, Kit, can you help us get the guys below deck?"

Frank glanced at Leo, making Kit do the same. He didn't want to leave him alone, knowing that while he wasn't as burnt out as Jason and Percy, he was still wrecked from two hours of steering. But Leo waved them both off cheerily.

"It's fine," he said, smacking a kiss on Kit's cheek for good measure. "Just try not to drop them on the way down the stairs."

"In that case, Frank, you should help Annabeth with Percy," Kit decided.

Extracting himself from Leo, he crossed the distance to Piper and Jason. Piper stood back so he could hook his elbows under Jason's armpits, hauling the blonde boy onto his feet in spite of every pained protest.

"Lead the way, Piper," Kit grunted, and the three of them shuffled down the stairs. As soon as they'd reached Jason's cabin, he dropped the boy onto his bed. Kit looked him over with knitted brows. "You've been working out, Superman?"

"How could you tell?" was Jason's dry response muffled by the pillow pressed against his face.

Piper chuckled, patting Kit on the arm. "Thanks for your help, Kit. You can go back to your boyfriend now if you want to."

One of Jason's eyes pried open to appraise him. "So you and Leo are official, huh? When did that happen?"

Kit scoffed. "You're supposed to be resting."

"You can tell me the details as a bedtime story," he said without missing a beat. "Come on, sit next to me. Promise I don't bite."

Kit fought back his instinctual shit-stirring response of 'I do' and perched on the end of the bed. Piper snorted, knocking her shoulder against his as she curled up beside him, her back propped against the metal bedpost. "Kit, we're your friends, remember? Friends tell each other this stuff."

Which was how Kit found himself spilling his guts to the two of them. Jason snoozed through most of it but occasionally interjected with the appropriate reactions -- an 'oh really?' here and a 'no way!' there -- that somehow managed to ease the knots in Kit's bunched shoulders. It was nice knowing that the inside of his head wasn't an entirely irrational place, that his problems, while heavier than what most regular people would face on the daily, were relatable for his friends who each carried their own burdens.

Before he knew it, nearly an hour had passed and Kit had kicked off his boots to cross his legs on the mattress.

Piper regarded him with a soft curve of her lips. "Should we paint each other's nails and braid our hair now?"

He scoffed, dropping his socked feet to the ground. "Okay, the moment's over. Thanks a lot, Piper."

"Going to check on Leo now, are you?"

"Oh, fuck you," he scoffed over his shoulder as he swung open the door. Piper answered with a laugh, Jason with a throaty noise that could've been a snore.

Kit decided to check Leo's dorm but frowned when he found it empty. He took the stairs two at a time, wondering if he'd find his boyfriend had stolen the wheel back from Hedge. It wouldn't surprise him. He was just deciding he'd drag Leo back to his own dorm with or without his permission, and then the ship rocked to the side. The hallway echoed with the piercing wail of an alarm followed by the sound of the ship's warning bells. He scrambled up the rest of the stairs, bursting into the sunset with his sword raised. Vaguely, he realised he'd forgotten his boots in Jason's room.

"Fuck it," he said, then threw himself into another round of chaos.

Beneath the dark smear of water, their latest enemy emerged with its toothless mouth open wide. It was a mutinous thing, what Kit imagined would be the product of a giant shrimp and a cockroach doing the dirty. Its shell was fleshy pink, curving in a protective layer around several millipede-type legs that scraped against the hull of the Argo II like nails on a chalkboard. Its flat tail swept through the water, sending waves lapping over the edge that spilled right across Kit's feet. He grimaced, momentarily distracted by the disgusting feeling of his socks clinging to his feet like a second layer of skin, then this thing's head fully emerged from the ocean. Glassy dead eyes, a forest of tentacles sprouting from each nostril. Kit had seen some ugly monsters but this had to be one of the worst.

"Look at its nostrils," he exclaimed. "You reckon there's bats in there?"

"Now's not the time to debate how big his nostrils are!" Hedge roared, spit flying from his mouth. "Valdez, for the love of the Gods, take the wheel so I can get my baseball bat!"

"A bat's not going to help," Leo said but he didn't protest as he distanced himself from Hazel -- who clung to the rigging with trembling fists -- and approached the helm.

The others stumbled up the stairs in a mess of limbs, each having various reactions of terror, horror and disgust. Piper's expression mirrored Kit's, her nose scrunching up. Percy yelled something about 'shrimpzilla' while Frank rushed to Hazel's side, curling a protective arm around her waste just as Shrimpzilla rammed the side of the ship again.

(It seemed Kit's comment about his nostrils wasn't appreciated. Or maybe he didn't like Percy's nickname for him. Either way, he wasn't impressed and he was making it known. Now the hems of Kit's pants were wet too! Just great.)

"How did it get so close?" Annabeth shouted.

"I don't know," Hedge huffed, yet to find his baseball bat.

"I'm stupid," Leo remarked as his hands flew across the controls. He pressed several buttons then cursed when nothing happened. "Stupid, stupid! I forgot the sonar!"

Shrimpzilla let out a wail and shifted again. The ship leaned farther to starboard. Kit latched onto the nearest person, which just so happened to be Percy, struggling to keep himself upright. Hedge's hooves flailed beneath him. His own nostrils flared with fury.

"Sonar? Pan's pipes, Valdez! Maybe if you hadn't been staring into Hazel's eyes, holding hands for so long."

"What?" Frank yelped.

Kit's nails dug crescent-moon shapes into the skin of Percy's forearm. "Excuse me?"

"It wasn't like that," Hazel protested, glancing between the two of them, but Kit only had eyes for Leo, who suddenly seemed to see right through him.

Piper interrupted with a shake of her head. "It doesn't matter! Jason, do you think you can call down some lightning?"

Jason swayed on his feet. He only managed to shake his head. Percy wasn't any better, especially when Kit was hanging off him like the nymphs who made up the groupies of Narcissus. "Maybe it's just curious about the ship."

"Then it can be curious from a distance," Kit huffed, gritting his teeth. "Why does it need to get up close and personal?"

Before Percy could retort, the monster's nostril hair lashed out across the deck and slammed into the both of them. Kit instinctively dropped his sword as the left side of his ribcage cracked against the ground. The monster swept them down the stairs like dust then retreated for its next attack, but Kit only heard its aftermath from beneath Percy's back.

"Jackson," he slapped a fist on the groaning boy's shoulder. "Can't breathe -- not kidding -- get your ass -- off me!"

Percy mumbled something incoherent in response and rolled over, clutching the back of his head where a welt the size of Kit's fist had started to raise. Kit carefully pressed his fingers against his ribs, wheezing from the rush of pain that stabbed down to the bone. The world spun when he crawled to his feet. He fought through the deep cold that spread down his neck into his spine, emerging back onto the deck. He found Annabeth dodging and stabbing at whatever target she could find. Frank had pulled out his bow. He fired over the side at Shrimpzilla's shell but this only seemed to annoy the monster.

When the next tentacle swept across the deck, Kit grabbed the nearest weapon. Hedge's bat in hand, he slammed it down hard enough that inky blood splattered across his face. The tentacle retreated, then seconds later a new one replaced it, and so the cycle continued until Kit was on the brink of passing out.

"Frank!" He heard the sound of Leo's voice calling nearby and attempted to fight his way towards it. "Buy us some time! Can you turn into a shark or something?"

Kit didn't hear Frank's reply but he did hear Hazel screaming. Peering over the edge of the ship, Kit's eyes widened when he realised Frank had been swept overboard, landing motionless a few metres away from Shrimpzilla's gaping mouth. Thankfully, the monster was more focused on bellowing than having a snack, but Kit didn't hesitate to swing one leg over the edge of the railing followed by the other. The smack of cold water did nothing to help the agony of a rib he was almost positive he'd broken but every thoughts of his own pain went out the window when he swam the few metres towards Frank and found him face down.

"Hey!" He slapped a hand against the other boy's cheek, spraying water out of his slackened mouth. "Come on, big guy, you're too heavy for me to swim you back to the ladder."

But he could hold him upright, propping his head on his shoulder so he could breathe, so that was what he did. Back up on the deck, their friends continued to scream and fight. He heard someone shout his name and Frank's (it was just nice to be included!) then what sounded like... Leo and Hazel? One of Shrimpzilla's tentacles had swung into the air, carrying the shapes of two people. Kit couldn't make out who with only the dim moon illuminating the shadows of the sky, but he did see the eerie green flicker of Greek fire that went straight down the monster's throat.

With a roar from Shrimpzilla that had Kit's head pounding, he sank into the depths of the ocean, dragging everything in his vicinity down with him. Kit cried out as waves the size of the ship washed over him and Frank, but he had no time to think of what waited for him. He sank into the darkness with nowhere to go but down.

Burning once again.