A/N: This is my first story. So it's probably going to be rough.
Disclaimer...right?: I own this computer. That typed this story. That's about it.
"Hello dear friends. I have invited you to play a little game with me. You may be wondering where you are or who I am, but none of those answers really matter. Not if you want to survive. The game is simple. Figure out who the murderer is and you live!"
Percy's head was exploding from the inside. He was barely registering the words, the very loud words that were practically being screamed at him. He could hear murmurs of other people around him. Okay, words screamed at not just him. He groaned as he felt a hand grab his forearm.
"Percy! Are you okay?" a blurry Rachel, his best friend, came into view as he opened his eyes.
"What the hell happened to me? I feel like the day after drinking one of Clarisse's Ares bombs. I thought I told you to never let me do that again." Rachel smiled despite the situation. Percy could somehow always keep her calm.
"I don't know what happened. We all just sort of woke up here I guess."
"Who's we?" Percy asked as Rachel helped him sit up. His blurry vision had cleared and now he noticed the other eight people in the room. They seemed to all be in a similar state as he was in.
"Well, well. It seems like everyone is finally awake! Are you ready to play my little game? One of you should already know why you're here. You committed a very terrible crime. And now it's up to your peers to figure out who you are!" A large screen illuminated the room then. The speaker appeared, his face covered by a golden mask shaped like a demon with horns. "Ah, yes! All awake and well. And now you'll see the reason why you are here!"
There was a flicker across the screen and in place of the masked man, a woman appeared. A very dead woman. She was laid out on an autopsy table, her dark hair fanned out, her empty eyes staring blankly at them. But what was more distinctive was the large gash across her throat and another across her stomach. The amount of cuts and bruises was astounding. Her face was bruised but she was still recognizable.
"Reyna." A blonde haired boy had immediately stood at the sight of her. His fists were clenched and anger in his eyes. "What the fuck did you do to her you bastard!"
Percy tried not to look at her but it was like a train wreck where you couldn't look away. There was his childhood friend, someone who he hadn't seen in years. She hadn't changed very much. Her hair still long, her face still angelically beautiful. He had had a crush on her when they were little but after he had moved to New York City they hadn't seen each other since. It was an awful way to meet again.
"Tut, tut. Someone wasn't listening. I didn't do this. One of you did. Don't worry though. I have great faith that you will all figure it out. After all, each and every one of you knew Reyna in some way. You're all connected and you didn't even realize it! Well I suppose that is all for today. Why don't you guys get to know one another. I even have your rooms assigned so no need to fuss! And don't change the assignment. You don't want to start this game off on the wrong foot now do you? Hopefully I didn't put you with the murderer!"
As the screen went blank a door on the far side of the room opened. No one moved to go through. No one even looked away from the screen. Percy could feel Rachel's grip tighten on his arm and he finally looked away. He took her hand in his and tried to give her a reassuring smile and she tried to return one.
"We'll be fine. I won't let anything happen to you, okay? I promise." Percy said and Rachel nodded even though she knew he couldn't possibly keep that promise. She watched enough television shows to know that this wasn't going to end pretty.
"Well I suppose we ought to go through the door." A curly haired boy said. He was below average height and sort of looked like he may still be in high school. Despite the situation, he smiled an easygoing smile. "Perhaps the big burley guy could go first though."
"Like hell. I'm not going to die first." The tall, muscular guy crossed his arms and moved closer to the short girl next to him. She was in a fetal position with her face covered and all that could really be seen was her rather curly mess of hair.
"Well fuck this. If I'm going to die I'd rather die swinging." A rather punk rock looking girl with spiky hair said. All the women in the room seemed to have rather distinctive looking hair. Percy's ADD riddled brain couldn't help but notice the rather strangest of things. Blonde, red, black, curly, spiky, choppy. He had been kidnapped, his childhood friend murdered, and his brain was thinking about hair. He sighed. The spiky haired girl had gone through the door only to return with a scowl on her face.
"Seems like Demon Face was telling the truth. There's bedrooms with names on the doors. I seem to be stuck with whoever the hell Piper is." And then she was gone again, presumably going to her assigned bedroom.
"Great. I'm probably stuck with the psycho murderer." A girl who must be Piper made her way to the door. "If you hear me screaming for my life at least y'all will win."
Slowly the rest of us made our way through the door, the muscular guy picking up the girl beside him and taking her through. Spiky head was right. There were five bedrooms with two names each on the door. Percy walked with Rachel down the hall reading the names as they went. Leo and Hazel. Piper and Thalia. Jason and Calypso. Frank and Rachel. Percy and Annabeth.
"Well at least we are next to each other." There was an argument going on back down the hall but he wasn't really paying much attention. Percy hadn't let go of Rachel's hand and he gripped it tighter as they stood in front of their doors. "If you need anything don't hesitate to get me, okay?"
Rachel nodded and slipped her hand out of his. One last reassuring smile and then her door shut. Percy sighed. This was ridiculous. He knew he shouldn't leave Rachel's side but he didn't want to put her in any more danger. Didn't want to start this so called game on the wrong foot. He took a deep breath and prepared to meet this Annabeth.
The bedroom was rather sparse, only a king sized bed and a small desk and what he hoped was a bathroom behind a side door. The door opened suddenly revealing his new roommate, the wavy haired blonde who looked like she could be a super model. Her eyes were red and watery as if she was trying not to cry and her hands were shaking. She must not have noticed that he was there because she slowly broke down the longer she stood there.
"Are you alright?" Percy broke the silence and the girl jumped. Of course he had to ask a stupid question. "Of course you're not alright. Sorry, stupid question. My name's Percy."
"I know. I read the sign on the door." Her voice was flat and she didn't even look his way.
"Right. Another stupid thing to say." This wasn't really unusual for him. According to Rachel he said stupid things every other sentence. "So…how did you know Reyna?"
"Look I really don't want to talk. I don't want to get to know you or know how we are connected to Reyna. For all I know you're the murderer and for all you know I am. So can we just leave it at that?"
"Sure." Percy moved towards the bed. Whatever that psycho had drugged them with had really took a number on him and he honestly didn't feel like dealing with this new girl anyways. He pulled back the covers taking off the top blanket and grabbing a pillow. He could feel Annabeth's eyes following him as he dropped the pillow on the other side of the bed. "I'll take the floor then."
Percy was out within minutes of laying down. Annabeth could hear his steady breathing but she walked around the bed just to make sure. The guy was completely out. She wondered how he could be so trusting after being told that they were stuck here with someone who had murdered an acquaintance of them all. An acquaintance. That's what she really was to Annabeth. She barely knew this Reyna. All she did was go into the same coffee shop every morning and get the same coffee and occasionally talk to the girl who made said coffee. The girl who was now lying with her throat cut.
She shuddered as the image was still fresh in her mind. She was exhausted but wasn't sure if she should lay down. What if this Percy fellow woke up and killed her in her sleep? The longer she stood, the more her body started to shake. The drugs were still in her system and she couldn't fight it anymore, she couldn't think straight. The bed was soft and inviting and before Annabeth could talk herself out of it she fell into the middle and was out just as fast as Percy.