Sorry for that last cliffhanger! I swear I'm turning into Uncle Rick. I've been busy writing today. Lotta spare time. Here comes the real fun!
One day, I was walking home from school one day with my friends, Elena and Katie. As we passed my brother's apartment building, I noticed that there was something going on in their home. I couldn't tell what it was. All I could see was an occasional bronze flash, a blur as if someone was swinging a sword. All of the sudden, I saw Percy pressed up against the window. I stopped, as did my friends.
"Cheya, is that your brother up there? Is he okay?" Elena asked.
"I—I don't know. How 'bout we go up there and see?" I had a key to the apartment in my pocket. We went up to the door. I unlocked it, and we all went up the stairs together, wielding pencils in front of us, as if that would make any difference.
As we approached the door to Percy's apartment, I heard the growls of something inhuman, something smashing, and someone who sounded distinctly like my brother yelling.
"I've defeated you twice before, who's to say I can't do it again, you overgrown menace! My friends killed your mother, did you know that? Hmm, I see you're missing a horn again. Some lucky half-blood take it off? Good for them. Carrying on the tradition. I won't let you hurt my family!"
"What's going on in there?" Katie whispered.
"Not sure," I replied. I'd never heard Percy sound so angry, so defensive. There was deep, deep pain in his voice. It scared me. I heard him yell in pain.
"Should we go in?" Elena asked.
"Not sure about that, either." Suddenly, the door burst open. We staggered back as a hairy . . . thing threw my brother out the door.
"Percy?" I asked, gasping in disbelief. He lay limp on the floor, bleeding from numerous gashes across his body. He was holding a bronze sword. My friends were speechless.
Overcome by a sudden wave of anger and despair, I grabbed the sword out of his hand. "You want him?" I challenged the creature in front of me. "You're gonna have to come through me."
I yelled like a banshee and charged the monster. It wasn't expecting me. I managed to drive the blade through its chest. The creature dissolved into a pile of sand, which then blew away in a mysterious wind. I dropped the sword in surprise.
"Cheya . . ." Percy moaned. "Water . . ."
Water? Why? He needed emergency help. I took out my phone, and began to dial 911. I was stopped immediately by my brother
"Don't . . . would ask too many questions . . . water . . ."
He needed water? I wasn't really sure why, but I was in no position to argue. I slung off my backpack and grabbed my water bottle, handing it gingerly to him.
Percy took the bottle, twisted off the cap, and doused himself in the contents. Immediately, he looked better. His wounds, miraculously, began to heal. He sat up. My friends, following my lead, took out their water bottles, giving them to him. After a few minutes, he looked almost completely better.
"What—what happened back there?" I asked. "Where's Annabeth and Silena?"
"Old adversary. Annabeth went to pick Silena up from school. Didn't see him coming. Pretty much destroyed my house." He grinned sheepishly. I could almost imagine him as a kid my age. He looked like one of those troublemakers at my school that the teachers hated, but were actually good people once you got to know them.
"How about we take a ride. I need to tell Annabeth about this, and we need to talk," he said to me. "Katie, Elena, come with me. I need to talk to you about something." Percy led us into his apartment, mostly wrecked, and took my friends into another room. When he came out, they seemed pretty drowsy and out of it.
"How about you guys go home, okay?" Percy told them. They nodded sleepily, and walked out the door without another word.
"What did you do to them?" I asked.
"Little Mist. They'll be fine in about half an hour, but they won't remember any of this," he looked me. "Better not to mention anything to them. They'll think you're crazy."
"Mist? What's that?"
"Magical thing. I'll explain in the car." Percy took me downstairs, to his car. We got in.
"Why can't you just do that to me? I'd rather not remember what happened back there." I just wanted everything to be normal again.
"Well I can't do that to my little sister, can I? I'd have a guilty conscience. Well, more than I already have . . ." he trailed off.
"Where are we going?"
"First, to pick up Annabeth and Silena. We'll drop Silena and you at Mom's, then Annabeth and I need to notify an old friend." An old friend? Who? "Can you text Mom that I'm taking you home?"
"Wait. Why can't I come with you? I want to meet this 'old friend' of yours."
"It's too dangerous. Don't worry, you'll be fine with Mom and Paul."
"Fine." I couldn't argue with him. I took out my phone and texted Mom and Dad that Percy was driving me.
We found Annabeth and Silena walking home from Silena's school. Annabeth stopped immediately when she saw us. We pulled over.
"What'd you do wrong this time, Seaweed Brain?" Annabeth had no need for formalities.
"This time it wasn't my fault, I swear!" Percy promised. I got out of the car, and slid in the backseat with Silena. Annabeth got in my old seat, shotgun. I had a feeling that name could take on a whole new meaning if things went wrong.
We sped through the streets of New York, nearing my house. When we got there, Mom was already waiting for us outside.
"Oh, Percy, what happened?" Somehow everyone knew something was wrong. How? Had this happened before?
"Monster attack. Don't worry, everything's find. Cheya here saved me." I got out of the car with Silena. Percy sped off, leaving the acrid smell of burning rubber.
"Let's get Silena inside. Dad'll take care of her. In the mean time, you and I need to talk." Mom seemed really nervous. What was next?