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Jason dismounted and told Tempest to stay put. <strong>The</strong> three demigods jumped into the pool and ran to the<br />
spire.<br />
Leo frowned. ―Uh, Tía Callida, are you getting shorter?‖<br />
―No, you dolt! <strong>The</strong> earth is claiming me. Hurry!‖<br />
As much as Jason disliked Hera, what he saw inside the cage alarmed him. Not only was Hera sinking,<br />
the ground was rising around her like water in a tank. Liquid rock had already covered her shins. ―<strong>The</strong> giant<br />
wakes!‖ Hera warned. ―You only have seconds!‖<br />
―On it,‖ Leo said. ―Piper, I need your help. Talk to the cage.‖<br />
―What?‖ she said.<br />
―Talk to it. Use everything you‘ve got. Convince Gaea to sleep. Lull her into a daze. Just slow her down,<br />
try to get the tendrils to loosen while I—‖<br />
―Right!‖ Piper cleared her throat and said, ―Hey, Gaea. Nice night, huh? Boy, I‘m tired. How about you?<br />
Ready for some sleep?‖<br />
<strong>The</strong> more she talked, the more confident she sounded. Jason felt his own eyes getting heavy, and he had<br />
to force himself not to focus on her words. It seemed to have some effect on the cage. <strong>The</strong> mud was rising<br />
more slowly. <strong>The</strong> tendrils seemed to soften just a little—becoming more like tree root than rock. Leo pulled a<br />
circular saw out of his tool belt. How it fit in there, Jason had no idea. <strong>The</strong>n Leo looked at the cord and grunted<br />
in frustration. ―I don‘t have anywhere to plug it in!‖<br />
<strong>The</strong> spirit horse Tempest jumped into the pit and whinnied.<br />
―Really?‖ Jason asked.<br />
Tempest dipped his head and trotted over to Leo. Leo looked dubious, but he held up the plug, and a<br />
breeze whisked it into the horse‘s flank. Lighting sparked, connecting with the prongs of the plug, and the<br />
circular saw whirred to life.<br />
―Sweet!‖ Leo grinned. ―Your horse comes with AC outlets!‖<br />
<strong>The</strong>ir good mood didn‘t last long. On the other side of the pool, the giant‘s spire crumbled with a sound<br />
like a tree snapping in half. Its outer sheath of tendrils exploded from the top down, raining stone and wood<br />
shards as the giant shook himself free and climbed out of the earth.<br />
Jason hadn‘t thought anything could be scarier than Enceladus.<br />
He was wrong.<br />
Porphyrion was even taller, and even more ripped. He didn‘t radiate heat, or show any signs of breathing<br />
fire, but there was something more terrible about him—a kind of strength, even magnetism, as if the giant were<br />
so huge and dense he had his own gravitational field.<br />
Like Enceladus, the giant king was humanoid from the waist up, clad in bronze armor, and from the waist<br />
down he had scaly dragon‘s legs; but his skin was the color of lima beans. His hair was green as summer<br />
leaves, braided in long locks and decorated with weapons—daggers, axes, and full-size swords, some of them<br />
bent and bloody—maybe trophies taken from demigods eons before. When the giant opened his eyes, they<br />
were blank white, like polished marble. He took a deep breath.<br />
―Alive!‖ he bellowed. ―Praise to Gaea!‖<br />
Jason made a heroic little whimpering sound he hoped his friends couldn‘t hear. He was very sure no<br />
demigod could solo this guy. Porphyrion could lift mountains. He could crush Jason with one finger.<br />
―Leo,‖ Jason said.<br />
―Huh?‖ Leo‘s mouth was wide open. Even Piper seemed dazed.<br />
―You guys keep working,‖ Jason said. ―Get Hera free!‖<br />
―What are you going to do?‖ Piper asked. ―You can‘t seriously—‖<br />
―Entertain a giant?‖ Jason said. ―I‘ve got no choice.‖<br />
―Excellent!‖ the giant roared as Jason approached. ―An appetizer! Who are you—Hermes? Ares?‖<br />
Jason thought about going with that idea, but something told him not to.<br />
―I‘m Jason Grace,‖ he said. ―Son of Jupiter.‖<br />
Those white eyes bored into him. Behind him, Leo‘s circular saw whirred, and Piper talked to the cage in<br />
soothing tones, trying to keep the fear out of her voice.<br />
Porphyrion threw back his head and laughed. ―Outstanding!‖ He looked up at the cloudy night sky. ―So,<br />
Zeus, you sacrifice a son to me? <strong>The</strong> gesture is appreciated, but it will not save you.‖<br />
<strong>The</strong> sky didn‘t even rumble. No help from above. Jason was on his own.<br />
He dropped his makeshift club. His hands were covered in splinters, but that didn‘t matter now. He had to<br />
buy Leo and Piper some time, and he couldn‘t do that without a proper weapon.<br />
It was time to act a whole lot more confident than he felt.