“He’s right,” Gwen said from the second row. “I, for one, trust Percy’s word. Greek or not, he restored the honor of the legion. You saw him on the battlefield last night. Would anyone here say he is not a true hero of Rome?”
Nobody argued. A few nodded in agreement.
Reyna stood. Percy watched her anxiously. Her opinion could change everything—for better or worse.
“You claim this is a combined quest,” she said. “You claim Juno intends for us to work with this—this other group, Camp
Half-Blood. Yet the Greeks have been our enemies for eons.
They are known for their deceptions.”
“Maybe so,” Percy said. “But enemies can become friends. A week ago, would you have thought Romans and Amazons would be fighting side by side?”
Queen Hylla laughed. “He’s got a point.”
“The demigods of Camp Half-Blood have already been working with Camp Jupiter,” Percy said. “We just didn’t realize it. During the Titan War last summer, while you were attacking Mount Othrys, we were defending Mount Olympus in Manhattan. I fought Kronos myself.”
Reyna backed up, almost tripping over her toga. “You… what?”
“I know it’s hard to believe,” Percy said. “But I think I’ve earned your trust. I’m on your side. Hazel and Frank—I’m sure they’re meant to go with me on this quest. The other four are on their way from Camp Half-Blood right now. One of them is Jason Grace, your old praetor.”
“Oh, come on!” Octavian shouted. “He’s making things up, now.”
Reyna frowned. “It is a lot to believe. Jason is coming back with a bunch of Greek demigods? You say they’re going to appear in the sky in a heavily armed warship, but we shouldn’t be worried.”
“Yes.” Percy looked over the rows of nervous, doubtful spectators. “Just let them land. Hear them out. Jason will backup everything I’m telling you. I swear it on my life.”
“On your life?” Octavian looked meaningfully at the senate. “We will remember that, if this turns out to be a trick.”
Right on cue, a messenger rushed into the Senate House, gasping as if he’d run all the way from camp. “Praetors! I’m sorry to interrupt, but our scouts report—”
“Ship!” Tyson said happily, pointing at the hole in the ceiling. “Yay!
Sure enough, a Greek warship appeared out of the clouds, about a half a mile away, descending toward the Senate House. As it got closer, Percy could see bronze shields glinting along the sides, billowing sails, and a familiar-looking figurehead shaped like a metal dragon. On the tallest mast, a big white flag of truce snapped in the wind.