*The roar of engines echoed through the abandoned Los Angeles docks long before the monsters arrived.

What had started as one of Dominic Toretto's late-night races had turned into something far stranger. Every electronic device nearby flickered, the air grew heavy, and a glowing crack split the asphalt.

Out of the rift charged three hellhounds.

Street racers scattered in every direction, tires screeching as they tried to escape.

Dom didn't move.

He stepped in front of his crew. "What the hell are those?"

Before anyone could answer, a streak of bronze flashed across the dock.

A teenage boy in battered orange Camp Half-Blood T-shirt launched himself over the hood of Dom's Charger.

Riptide appeared in his hand in a shimmer of celestial bronze.

Percy Jackson landed between the monsters and the racers.

"You guys should probably back up."

The first hellhound lunged.

Percy sidestepped it, driving his sword into its side. The creature dissolved into golden dust. Roman war cries suddenly echoed through the docks.

Jason Grace descended from the sky in a crack of lightning while Thalia Grace landed beside him, spear spinning effortlessly.

Behind them, Clarisse charged headfirst into another monster with enough force to send it crashing through a shipping container.

"About time," Percy called.

"You started without us," Thalia shot back.

Meanwhile, Roman demigods formed defensive positions around the civilians as Reyna barked orders with practiced precision.

The Fast crew stood frozen.

Roman Pearce blinked.

"So... we're fighting demon dogs now?"

Tej adjusted his glasses. "I don't even have a scientific explanation for this."

Ramsey quietly took one step behind Han.

Han simply kept eating chips. "I've seen weirder."

More cracks spread across the pavement. This time, dozens of dracaenae slithered into view, followed by towering cyclopes carrying rusted ship anchors as clubs.

Percy groaned.

"Oh, come on..."

Dom looked over at him.

"Need help?"

Percy glanced at the collection of heavily modified muscle cars.

"...Actually..." A grin slowly spread across his face. "I've got an idea."

Within minutes, celestial bronze weapons were being tossed into trunks, pickup beds, and passenger seats.

Leo Valdez appeared seemingly out of nowhere, already crawling under Dom's Charger.

"Who keeps an engine this beautiful? Don't answer. I love him."

Dom raised an eyebrow.

"You touch it, you own it."

Leo grinned wider.

"Challenge accepted."

As monsters poured across the docks, engines thundered back to life.

The race had become a battle.

Percy surfed across flooded pavement behind Dom's Charger, using waves he summoned from the harbor to launch himself at enemies.

Jason created wind tunnels that boosted the racers' speed.

Thalia drove a black rally car one-handed while hurling lightning into pursuing monsters.

Clarisse somehow mounted the hood of a speeding vehicle just to fight a cyclops with her spear.

Roman wondered aloud how this had become his life.

Han calmly drifted around a charging dracaena while Percy leaped off his roof to finish it*