Hello, again. I'm back and super excited for chapter numero uno. This chapter was a bit shorter than originally wanted, but I thought it was a good stopping place.
Oh, and I swear I have the weirdest writing schedule ever. I tried writing this chapter yesterday at 2 in the afternoon and found that I couldn't write a single word. Basically, I just sat there staring at a blank page for 20 minutes. Later, I couldn't sleep so I figured I'd try to write at least something considering I didn't write a single word earlier. And bam! The words are flowing out of my faster than fingers could type. Nothing like sleep deprivation to get those creative juices flowing, I guess. :)
Anyway, happy reading!
Chapter One
Darkness enveloped me, clinging to me like a fresh sheet of perspiration, sending my heart jackhammering in my chest. Unease coiled in my gut as I surveyed my surroundings, striving to find even the smallest gleam of light, but to no avail. The expanse was bathed in complete darkness, as if every crack and crevice had been meticulously sealed. A jolt of fear sent my heart into overdrive, the threat of the unknown slithering over my skin as my eyes failed to adjust to the lightlessness. It was frightening not knowing what was coming or what to expect. I could be in the heart of the lion's den without having the slightest clue that I was only seconds away from death. Although, if my suspicions were correct, death-by-lions shouldn't be an issue, as I was already dead.
A silence more deafening than an entire stadium of roaring fans settled throughout the expanse. I felt as if I'd stuffed my ears with cotton; not even my quick, erratic breaths penetrated my anxiously awaiting eardrums. It seemed as though the variation of vibrating wavelengths that produced sound had been suctioned out of the darkness and been blasted to a secret location that could only ever be reached by breaking the boundaries of the human minds in enclaves and alcoves undiscovered and unattainable.
The quiet put me on edge because now, not one, but two vital senses had been stolen from me, putting me at a great disadvantage for whatever task lied ahead. Luckily, my other senses seemed to be in order, but I didn't see how they'd be useful. Still, I tried anyway.
I stretched my arms out in front of me, swatting at the air wildly, desperately hoping to hit anything that could give me some sense of direction. Unfortunately, I didn't feel anything, aside from idiocy.
Heaving a heavy sigh, I massaged my temples, hoping to fend off the throbbing ache brewing beneath the surface. Too much had happened in such little time; my poor brain couldn't catch up. Not to mention, stress clung to me like an obnoxious babboon, cackling in my ear, its long, spindly fingers biting tender flesh.
"Percy," someone cried, their melodious voice screeching with panic.
I spun around and was nearly blinded by the sudden burst of color that met my eyes. Blinking in rapid succession, I tried to evict the sporadic, colorful spots dotting my vision from behind my eyes. When the blinking flashes finally receded, I returned my focus to the object before me.
Suspended mid-air was what appeared to be a floating threshold-a portal of some sort, it seemed. Shaped in a rounded arch, it was bordered in a white fog that, oddly enough, didn't drift away from the perimeter of the archway. The cloudy mist stayed glued to its spot, as if it had been petrified by Medusa herself. But that wasn't the shocking part. Inside its wide frame, a video played, though with further inspection, I realized it was anything but a measly movie.
Hordes of people surrounded a blond girl, who kneeled before a body. Blue and red lights flashed in the background, sirens drowning out the panicked cries of bystanders and the sobs of the girl. Paramedics rushed to the scene while police officers questioned a burly man, with a thick, bushy beard and a plump, red nose. He gestured wildly back and forth between himself and the stark white semi-truck parked beside him, occasionally tugging at the bill of his Red Sox cap to distract himself from the broken, battered body lying a few feet away. The image zoomed closer, centering its focus on the gray-eyed girl, whom I realized was Annabeth, and the bloody body beside her: me. She leaned over me, running her slender fingers through my hair, rivets of tears streaking down her face and landing silently on my cheeks.
"Why?" She whispered, "why me? Why would you do something like that for me, Perseus Jackson. Why?" She hiccupped. "And why did you have to die because of it? You're a good person, Percy, and I wish I'd gotten the chance to know you better. Deserved the chance to know you better." An anguished sob tore from her throat. "It should have been me." She wiped at her runny nose with the sleeve of her jacket, redness coloring her nose from the friction of the fabric rubbing against her soft skin. "You had your whole life ahead of you; you knew how to live, what it felt like to be alive. Me, I've been dead a long time. You should have let me die; you'd have been doing me a favor." A stray lock of hair fell into my eyes, and she gently brushed it from my face. "It should have been me."
The rest of the scene was a blur. The paramedics loading me in a black bag, zipping the metalic clasp all the way to the top, after prying a sobbing Annabeth away from me. The medical vehicle driving away, and for once, there wasn't a siren piercing through the night. The people dispersing, teary-eyed and sniffling, as they sought out family and friends for comfort after witnessing a tragedy. The doctors and surgeons performing an autopsy on my lifeless form.
But the worst part wasn't watching my body be mutilated or the cold, dead look in my eyes. The worst part by far was when a police officer knocked on an apartment door on the Upper East side of Manhattan. The most amazing woman in the world opened the door, forehead crinkled with confusion and worry laced in her posture. He relayed the transpired events, his voice solemn. When he finished, the woman's lower lip quivered, and tears spilled from her eyes before she collapsed to her knees, griefstricken.
My heart constricted, tightening into an unbearable knot that clenched tighter and tighter with each angonized cry. I wanted to go to her, pull close and hug her until her sorrows vanished.
Eyes red and throat tight with emotion, I watched as my mother pressed her hands over heart and whispered, "My boy. My sweet baby boy," before she was overcome by the ache in her chest and broke down into merciless sobs.
"Mom!" I shouted, charging full-speed toward the shimmering doorway, which portal or not, I was getting to the other side of the damn thing.
The moment I made contact, a static charge lit the air, and I was flung backwards by a powerful force.
For the first time since I'd been here, a loud crackle pierced the noiselessness-the first real noise I'd heard. The smell of burning hair permeated the air, following shortly after, which I quickly realized was coming from the singed hair along my arms and a few tufts in the front that were sporting a small flame. Soot was cemented to my face and arms, coating the exposed skin with ashes. My blue, cotton shirt-my favorite blue, cotton shirt, I might add-was tattered and torn, the oceanic fabric barely hanging on.
Another wail burst from my mother's lips, stripping my shock over the explosion? like a hard slap to the face.
I barely moved an inch, and my body cried out in protest. Pain rippled through me, gliding beneath the surface of my skin like a slithering serpent.
"Damn, that hurts," I howled through clenched teeth as I rubbed the circumference of my swollen ankle. Now, I was no expert in the medical field, but I had a strong feeling it was broken. To make matters worse, tiny yet painful blisters were disseminated about the skin there, burning the flesh with their fiery sting. Obviously, my jeans didn't provide any protection, as they were shredded and frayed in more places than I could count.
"Percy," my mother whispered, her voice catching on the end of my name.
Ignoring the pain lacing through me, I rose to my feet, steadying myself before widening my stance to go for a Round 2.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you."
My head whipped behind me so fast I had a severe case of whiplash, swaying on my feet from the tilting and swirling lingering before my vision. Shaking the dizziness away, I turned my gaze to the voice.
Another portal, nearly identical to one that now stood-er-floated behind me, hung in the air. I braced myself for another heartwrenching video feed, but my eyes only met the glimmering of celestrial light projected through the archway. Someone stood in the threshold, their dark sillohuete masking their face with shadows.
"How valiant of you, Percy Jackson. Willing to suffer the pain of the River Styx for the ones you love." The soft lilt proved the voice was feminine.
River Styx? What river? I glanced around me for any sign of a malicious river that was giddy with joy when encountered with the possibility of launching a teenage boy to what had to be at least fifteen feet in the air. Needless to say, I came up empty and felt a fresh dose of stupidity. Gods, I've got to get out of here. This place is screwing with my brain.
"The dead are not permitted to pass through the portal to the land of the living." With a wave of her hand, iron bars elongated from the top, bottom, and both sides of the archway, meeting in the middle and barricading the doorway. An enormous padlock in the shape of skull and crossbones was bolted into the bars.
"Why did you do that?" I growled.
"I just told you. The dead are not permitted to pass through to the land of the living." Despite what I already assumed, I was still shocked to hear that I was, in fact, dead.
"So, now what?" I bellowed, anger permeating off me like the latest perfume. Rage. You don't have to just look like steam is coming out of your ears; now, you can smell like it, too. "I'm stuck here?"
"Not without options, Perseus."
"Options?" I rose a brow, internally sighing. I hated options because I never could think about my decision logically. Impulsivity always won out, and I'd choose the one that I thought sounded better in the moment without actually analyzing if it was, which is why Nico always beats me at those strategy video games he makes me play. I'm more a man of action whereas Nico is always on the defensive.
"You have a choice to either stay here-" Oh hell-to-the-motherfudging-no. This place was already driving me crazy; I'd hate to see when I lost my mind and resorted to insanity. That's what this endless darkness did to you, it seemed. "or come with me." She waved a hand behind her, gesturing to the golden glow illuminated from within the arch's confines.
Both options were unappealing to me. Stay in the bitter darkness that would eventually drive me mad or follow a strange girl through a strange ray of light to a strange place. An innumerable amount of red flags were going up with both choices.
"Where does that portal go?" I asked, suspicion oozing from my voice like honey, sticky and thick.
She shrugged, an odd sight to see from someone who radiated such power and leadership. I imagined she would have simply forced me through the portal with her weird, magical hands, but it seemed that she was actually giving me a choice. Albeit with no help, that is.
I contemplated my options, although my opinion was horribly biased. I didn't want to stay here. Nuh uh. No way. It was dark and dreary, off-putting without the brilliant gleam of light. Yet, at the same time, I didn't know what to expect by going with the girl. Here, I knew what to expect: eternal darkness. But with her, there was no telling what I'd get myself into.
"Take a leap of faith, Percy." My mother's words rang through my ears, reminding me of times when the words were meant to encourage me. Now, all they did was deflate my spirit further. "Sometimes good things can come from the bad."
She was right, and I knew it. Sometimes good could result from the bad, the ugly. After a storm, there was always a rainbow. After the darkness settled, the sun always rose to restore the light of a new day. After death, there was still life. A life that I was going to make the best of, taking chances no matter how bleak they seem. For mom. Because she'd always told me to take a leap of faith, and here it was. It was about time I listened.
"I choose option #2."
"I assure you, Percy Jackson, your choice will be worthwhile." She held out her hand to me. "Take my hand, and we'll be on our way."
With one last glance back at the other portal behind me, I stepped forward and placed my much larger hand in hers.
Blinding light swallowed me whole, stinging my eyes from the sudden change from constant darkness. Once I was able to fully open my eyes without feeling the stinging irritation, I was rendered speechless by the beauty that stood before me.
An island, an oasis, that rendered and surpassed the beauty of the Love Goddess herself.
"Welcome to Ogygia."
Well, that was pretty depressing, I have to say. With Percy's mom and Annabeth. But don't worry, some happy chappies will be coming later on. Hey, that rhymes. I'm a poet, and I didn't know it. Damn, I'm good! *fist bumps the air* Lol.
I have a feeling that some of you might be thinking that Annabeth kind of overreacted, considering she didn't know Percy all that well. But think of it this way, if you truly believed that you didn't deserve to live, and someone did something like that for you, how would you feel? I know I would feel responsible and maybe even a little traumatized as well, knowing that a life was lost to save you. Especially, thinking that it should have been you, in the first place.
Anyways, hope you liked the chapter! Let me know what you think.
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~TwistedTrident~