Chapter 4; Logistics

Percy and Annabeth were getting ready to tell people their news. It was a lot harder than they might have thought. The hardest challenge was telling Piper and Jason that they were leaving, since they had grown especially close over the last few years. They were like brothers and sisters to each other. It was going to be so hard to leave them. They had come up with a plan to convince the other couple to join them, but if they decided to remain at Camp Half-Blood, then that would be that. They weren't going to base their entire lives on their friends, no matter how close they were. Percy and Annabeth wouldn't want them to, anyway.

The hard discussion came 3 days after they had decided to move to New Rome. They had spent some time staying in the city, getting a feel of the place. So often, a place can look great on paper, but prove to be truly hellish to live in. But that wasn't the case whatsoever. They fell in love with the city. It was everything they wanted. They were absolutely certain that they were making the right decision.

Once they came back to Camp Half-Blood, they realized how hard it would be to tell their best friends that they were leaving. So, they started coming up with a plan. In the end, they decided to go with the direct, brutal approach. If they came with them, great. If not... well then that was it. They decided to bring it up at dinner when they would all be together.

Dinner time came, and Percy and Annabeth steeled their nerves. They knew that they were in for a tough conversation. But it needed to happen. They made their way to the pavilion and Percy hung back for a second while Annabeth sat down at the table. It just then occurred to him that he had totally forgotten something. Or rather, someone. He was moving halfway across the country, and he hadn't even thought about his brother. His own brother. He felt a wave of guilt. He didn't have very much family in the world, and he was ignoring what little he had left. He looked around and found Jack sitting at the Poseidon table, looking lonely. He had a few friends in camp, but there was no one that he really connected with. Percy and Annabeth had been at camp Jupiter for a while, so he had probably been quite lonely in that time.

Percy walked over to him and invited him over to the camp's central table. They pulled up an extra chair for him. There were plenty of empty seats available for him, but he never used them whenever he sat with them. It was a thing of respect. Each of those chairs was dedicated to a member of their group who had sacrificed so much for their world. Jack was a nice kid, with a good heart, but he hadn't earned his own seat at that table, nor had he earned the right to sit at anyone else's chair. Percy had explained that to him when he had first arrived, and he had understood right away.

They all sat down and started eating. Percy and Annabeth knew they were going to bring it up towards the end of the night so that they could have at least one more dinner with their friends before they told them they were leaving. Eventually, the time came and they had to have the talk.

Percy and Annabeth shared a look to say that they were ready to begin. Percy decided to lead, clearing his throat to get everyone's attention.

"Hey, guys? 'Beth and I kinda have some news."

Jason, Piper, and Jack turned to look at him. Percy took a deep breath to steel himself and shared another glance with Annabeth. She nodded at him reassuringly. Ordinarily, she would have complained about the nickname and made him, or anyone else who used it, swear to never say it again. But she was far too focused on trying to get through the upcoming conversation to even notice that he had called her that.

"Well, lately we've been thinking about our future together, and we decided that... Well, it isn't necessarily here at camp."

Jack blinked at them. He obviously knew about Camp Jupiter, but he had never seen it himself. He had never witnessed firsthand, just how beautiful it was, or just how perfect it was for older demigods. At Camp Half-Blood, older demigods had to leave and face their odds in the outside world without the protective borders of Camp. Most of them died within the first 6 months. The strongest ones lasted a year, maybe. The smartest ones could maybe manage 18 months. But that was it. That had been the reality for their kind for so long. It was extremely depressing to think about, but it was a fact. But the recent war, for all of the bad it had caused, had provided the demigods of Camp Half-Blood the opportunity to live past their 20s.

But Jack didn't really know any of that. He didn't understand it. He couldn't. The simple fact was that he was too young to really get it. He was still a kid pretty much and he had been raised in the mortal world for the most part, where the average lifespan was 80 or so years. 80, not 20. He couldn't wrap his head around the fate of 99% of Greek demigods, so he couldn't really see the appeal in a place like Camp Jupiter. He just saw it as 'Camp Half-Blood, but for Romans". He didn't understand how revolutionary it truly was for them. So hearing that his two idols were leaving, for no apparent reason as far as he was concerned, was confusing.

But Jason and Piper knew better. They totally understood why they were leaving. Jason had grown up at Camp Jupiter and knew firsthand how great New Rome was. The only reason he was even at Camp Half-Blood, was because Piper wanted to stay and help train the newer generation of Greek demigods.

"That being said," Percy continued, "It would mean a lot to us if you two would join us. Of course, we would totally get it if you would rather stay, but it would be great to have you there with us."

"Yeah," Annabeth took over, "We would completely understand, but it would be nice. Percy said that as a former praetor, he gets a villa in the city, so I'm sure the same goes for Jason. But anyway, we aren't expecting an answer right now, you guys should really talk it over yourselves."

Jason and Piper shared a look before Jason spoke up.

"First of all, I'm really happy for you guys. I think you both would do super well in New Rome, and I just know that you would be really happy there. Believe it or not, but Piper and I have actually been talking about something kinda similar. We weren't exactly sure how to bring it up with you guys, and we were gonna wait until after you two got married, but yeah. I guess we would need to work out a new training regimen for the campers, but we could work it out."

Piper was grinning ear to ear. She was glad that she and her fiancee would get to move to a wonderful place, and still keep their best friends. Her only reservation about moving to New Rome with Jason had been that they would need to leave Percy and Annabeth behind, and she had even started coming up with a plan to convince them. In the end, things were going to work out perfectly, regardless.

Then, Jack spoke up. He hadn't said a word so far, still trying to process what was happening.

"What about me?" he said.

Percy felt another surge of guilt. He didn't want to leave his brother behind, but he knew he had to.

"Well buddy, I'm sorry, but you have to stay here. For another few years at least." Percy replied.

"What? Why?" Jack sounded pretty upset by now.

"Because you're Greek. This is the best place for you. Camp Jupiter still isn't the best place for a Greek demigod to come up. The styles of the two camps are pretty distinct, and you're naturally inclined to go with the Greek side of things. It wouldn't be a good idea for you to go to Camp Jupiter, trust me."

"But you're going!"

"We're going to New Rome, not Camp Jupiter. There's a difference. We've all finished our training, we know all that any camp could ever teach us. You're basically just starting out, you still have a lot to learn and this is the best place for you to do it."

"So, what? You're just gonna leave me and never look back?" Jack sounded really hurt.

"No, of course not! Just because we're leaving, doesn't mean that we're never gonna come back. Annabeth and I are gonna go to college in the city, but I'm sure we'll be back here whenever we have time off. We would never want to leave you."

"Well, that's exactly what you're doing!" he was yelling now.

Annabeth decided to take over. She and Jack had gotten quite close since he had arrived at camp. She hadn't really had much of a choice in the matter, seeing as how he was virtually always around Percy. Or at least, he had been. She had come to see him almost like another brother. He pretty much was. And soon would be, once Percy and Annabeth got married.

"Sweetie, we aren't leaving you," she said soothingly, "We're just moving on. But like your brother said, we'll be back here all the time."

She reached over to him and tried to hold his hand, but he snatched it away. Percy became aware that all of the water in glasses across the room was starting to shake. He wasn't doing it, and there was only one other person in the area who had control over water to any degree. He looked at Jack and saw him shaking slightly, imperceptible to most people, but Percy was able to pick up on it. His eyes were giving off the slightest glow. Clearly, Jack was relatively powerful, but Percy was far more so. Next to his younger brother, Percy was like a god. So, he reached out with his own powers and broke his brother's control over it. It was easy. Not just because Jack was far less powerful than him, but also because he hadn't even realized what he'd been doing.

"Jack, "Percy said firmly, "You're acting like a child now. Stop it."

Jack whipped around to face his brother. He looked furious. Their eyes met and the contrast was blatant. Jack looked murderous, while Percy looked cold and calm. Percy had never seen his brother act so petulantly. They held each other's gaze for a while before Jack turned around and stormed off. Percy made to get up and follow him when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned around to check who it was and saw that it was Annabeth.

"Let him cool down, "she said, "He'll come back when he's ready.

Percy was hesitant to agree, but in the end, he sat back down.

"Sorry about that," he said to the table. They all just waved him off. They understood.

"So, shall we discuss the training arrangement for the camp?" Jason asked.

"I think that's a good idea," Annabeth replied.

Percy and Piper nodded silently in agreement. Jason and Annabeth were far more business-like than Percy and Piper. They were all a little bit disorientated after what had just happened with Jack, but Annabeth and Jason were more ready to push through the awkwardness and carry on. Percy needed another minute before he could join them, and Piper was worried about her brother in all but blood. She looked at him nervously, but he just shot her a small smile and manipulated the water in her glass to make a little smiley face, which made her giggle slightly.

They began discussing the arrangements for camp, and after a minute had gone by, Percy and Piper joined the conversation. There was a lot to talk about. There were so many details that needed to be worked out. It took them several hours, and they migrated from the Pavilion to the beach after a while, but eventually, they had everything figured out.

After the war, the main members of the 7 had sat down to discuss their futures. After a lot of debate, they had decided that the best course of action, was that they spent their time training the next generation of demigods at both camps, with a mix of both styles - Greek and Roman - to bring together the best of both worlds, quite literally. So, Frank and Hazel had gone to Camp Jupiter to train the Romans, having been exposed to the Greek styles more than enough throughout the quest. Jason had come over to Camp Half-Blood to train the Greeks with the Roman styles, as well as to be with Piper. Percy and Annabeth had decided to stay where they were because they were already extremely well-known throughout their camp, so the campers took their word as gospel and knew not to mess with them. The Greek couple also took the occasional journey to Camp Jupiter to teach seminars to the instructors, and the Roman campers.

The results were extremely positive. The improvements made to the Greek campers were blatant and plentiful. They were much more efficient and disciplined while retaining that charm and unpredictability that had always been their strength. Best of both. And the results at the Roman camp were very similar. They had learned to go with the flow far more. The Romans' biggest strength and their biggest weakness, had always been the same exact thing. Their planning. They were truly world-class tacticians, but they could often get far too set in one particular course of action, and become unable to adapt in the moment, should the need arise. Their extreme planning prowess had led to their greatest victories and their most crushing defeats. However, the influence of the Greeks helped them loosen up a little bit while retaining their penchant for excellent organization. Best of Both.

Percy and Annabeth had known that their move away from camp would make the training regiment for the Greeks take a hit, but they were going to leave them in excellent hands. They were planning to approach Clarisse LaRue to take up training for Camp Half-Blood. They knew that the daughter of Ares could be slightly set in the ways of the Greeks, but she had fought in both wars, just like Percy and Annabeth had. She had spent very little time with the Romans though, so they would need to expose her to their ways a little bit before she could take up training for the camp. They were planning to bring her to Camp Jupiter to show her how the Romans operated and point out what she could integrate back at Camp Half-Blood. They knew she would likely be unwilling to take anything from the Romans at first - most were, due to the centuries of bad blood between them - but she was a true veteran and had seen firsthand where the Greeks had been vulnerable during the battles of the last two wars. She would see reason eventually, and would adopt some of the Romans' ways and integrate them into the Greeks'.

But they couldn't leave the training of the entire camp, to just one person. Jason and Piper had agreed to move to New Rome with them, and the four of them made up the bulk of the instructors that Camp Half-Blood had to offer. It was simply too much for one person. Any one person.

So, they were also planning to approach Connor and Travis, as well as Will from the Apollo cabin. They figured that they would also need to be taken to Camp Jupiter to see how the Romans operated, but they would come around to the Romans' way of doing things, much faster than Clarisse. They were far less stubborn than the daughter of Ares.

That would leave 4 people in charge of training, which was the same as the current establishment. Workable.

But there was one more matter to be addressed. A more diplomatic one. There were currently two diplomatic positions to be held within the Greek camp. One that would work as an envoy between the Greek camp, and the Roman camp. And 1 that would work as an envoy between the Greek camp, and the Gods. Currently, both positions were filled by 2 people. Percy and Annabeth.

Percy made a great bridge between the two camps, and while Jason would have made a great second, he was from Camp Jupiter, so he couldn't represent Camp Half-Blood because he wouldn't be seen as objective. Nor could he be an envoy for Camp Jupiter to Camp Half-Blood, because he lived at Camp Half-Blood and again, wouldn't be seen as objective. Jason was fine with that since he had more than enough to keep him busy. So, the responsibility fell to Annabeth to be the second envoy to Camp Jupiter. It was a position that was absolutely vital. The two camps were on pretty good terms as it was, but there would always be a slight edge between them. There was bound to be, after hundreds of years of animosity between them.

They were also the envoys between the Greeks and the Gods. Percy's passionate advocacy for his people was perfectly tempered with Annabeth's logic and rationale. He would spur Annabeth into action when she wanted to be more cautious, and she would calm him down when he got too worked up. They were the perfect duo in front of the gods. This role was also absolutely vital. The second Titan War had been caused by the Gods' neglect of their own children. It had led to a build-up of hate towards them, which led them straight into the 'welcoming' arms of the Titan lord.

They went back and forth, trying to come up with their successors. Eventually, after much debate, they came up with two names that they were all very happy with. Katie Gardner and Lou Ellen. They were both very logical, calm, and rational. Ellen had been through the Giant War, while Katie had been through both, so they would have an interesting outlook on things. And they were on good enough terms that they would be friendly with each other, without blindly agreeing with one another.

By the time they were sure that the camp would be in good hands without them, they were all pretty tired. But they didn't let that deter them. They left camp together and went down to a bar in the area that they had been to several times before. It was a pretty decent place that didn't ask questions about IDs and things like that. They didn't go there too often, but every now and then, the mood struck.

They arrived 20 minutes later and sat down at one of the tables. Percy and Jason volunteered to get the drinks from the bar, while the girls stayed at the table and chatted. The two boys made their way to the bar and caught the bartender's attention. They managed to order a Cosmo for Piper, a Manhattan for Annabeth, a beer for Jason, and a Gin and Tonic for Percy. While they were waiting for their drinks, they were reminded why they didn't venture out into the mortal world too often.

Because half of their DNA came from literal Gods, demigods were, by mortal standards, gorgeous. This had varying degrees of course. Aphrodite's children looked like angels even compared to other demigods, and children of Hephaestus were barely decent, most of the time. But Percy and Jason were sons of Poseidon and Zeus respectively. They were pretty damn good-looking by demigod standards, so when compared with most mortals, they themselves looked like Gods. Annabeth was a daughter of Athena, so she had a glow about her, but it was very subtle. Someone could stare at her for hours and be transfixed without knowing why. And Piper was a daughter of the Goddess of love and beauty. She was utterly stunning. Not that Percy ever saw her that way. She was basically a sister to him.

Typically, they didn't really mind looking the way they did. But when they came to a mortal bar, where the alcohol ran free and inhibitions were checked at the door, they began to feel very uncomfortable. Even while the boys were waiting for their drinks, they were approached by a sea of women, each of them blatantly flirting with them. It was such a pain in the ass, especially when all they wanted was to get their drinks and go back to their girlfriends. Their girlfriends who, Percy was willing to bet his right arm, were going through the exact same thing as them. There was probably a swarm of guys around them trying desperately to talk to them. Neither of the boys was worried about it though. They knew their girlfriends were more than capable of handling themselves after everything they had been through. Especially against mortals.

There was one particularly aggressive blonde who was determined to take Percy home with her.

"C'mon baby, let me buy you a drink!" she was yelling. She probably didn't know she was yelling though. She was pretty drunk.

"Thanks for the offer, but I've already paid for my drink. My girlfriend's too." he tried to hint back at her.

She either didn't catch on or didn't care. Her level of intoxication; either was possible.

"Then let's just skip the drinks and go back to my place. I live really close!"

Percy sighed internally. He looked over his shoulder at Jason and saw that he was occupied with a redhead that was practically draped over his shoulder. No help from him then. Jason had enough on his plate. Just then, he had an idea.

"You know, I'd love that sweetheart, I really would. But I'm afraid I can't," he said as if he was sad about it.

"And why can't you?" she asked indignantly.

"Well you see, I'm gay," he told her, expecting her to immediately back off.

But he had never been that lucky. Her only response was to grin, and wrap her entire body around his arm so that the bottom of his wrist was pressing against her inner thighs. She leaned in and whispered into his ear.

"One night with me, and I'll change your mind."

Percy was starting to get frustrated. He wanted to not be rude, but enough was enough. He was about to give the woman a piece of his mind when he had another idea. If it didn't work, then he would lay into her. So to speak.

"Look, I don't like telling people this, but I feel like I owe it to you, you know?" he said, as if they had some sort of relationship, "When I say that I can't, I mean that literally. You see, I had a bit of an accident a few years ago, and... Well, let's just say that... It doesn't work."

Her eyes widened, as she stared at him in shock. Her hand came up to cover her mouth.

"Oh my God!" she half-whispered, half-yelled, "What happened?"

"Boat propeller, "he told her as seriously as he could manage, "I fell overboard one day, and the propeller just slashed right through it. I haven't felt anything down there since."

"Oh no... That's so sad. Alright, I'll see you around I guess." she said, as she went away, probably to look for another victim. One with working parts.

Percy turned around to face Jason, who had apparently finished shooing away his redhead. He was standing there, facing him, smirking. It seemed, he had heard that last part.

"Shut up, Grace!" Percy told his cousin/brother.

Jason just laughed but didn't say anything.

"What did you tell yours?" Percy asked curiously.

"I told her that I was into bestiality. That got rid of her pretty quick." Jason told him, chuckling.

Percy howled at the thought. Finally, their drinks came and they carried them back to their table. They arrived just in time to hear Annabeth tell a guy that she had syphilis, and Piper telling some goon that she was into pegging. The guys that were trying to work them, vanished into thin air, like cartoons. Percy and Jason laughed and sat down, handing their girlfriends their drinks.

The rest of the evening went by pretty well. Every time they had to get up for drinks, they had a list of excuses ready to go. That cut down the effort they put into rejecting whoever came onto them. They could just get their drinks in peace for the most part, as word started to spread throughout the bar about the dude with the malfunctioning equipment and his friend that liked to fuck animals. At the same time, the girls got a little bit more peace and quiet when word got out about the syphilitic blonde and her friend with the strap-on. The demigods found all that to be extremely funny and gave no shits about how the mortals saw them or thought about them. They just weren't relevant to their lives.

That left the group of 4 to enjoy their night. The entire evening went by, in a flurry of laughter and drinks. There were several toasts to their new lives in New Rome. They talked about how much fun they would have, and the parties they would attend. According to Jason, who had claimed to have snuck into several college parties when he'd been younger, they were legendary. The rest of the group was dubious, but they were willing to go with him on it.

Eventually, they needed to get some sleep. They were pretty damn tired, and they had a long day ahead of them. They would need to speak to Clarisse, Connor, Travis, Will, Katie, and Lou about filling their positions. Once they had agreed, they would need to take them to Camp Jupiter, and show them what they needed to integrate into the Greek training regimen. It would be hard work, but they needed to do it.

The group stumbled their way back to camp, before going their separate ways. Jason and Piper headed to the Zeus cabin, and Percy and Annabeth went to the Poseidon cabin. When they got inside, Percy checked his brother's bunk but found it empty. He wasn't totally sure where he was, but they would figure it out later.

The couple took advantage of the empty cabin, and fell asleep an hour later, feeling perfectly happy and contented. As things stood, their lives together were perfect. And things could only get better from there.