A/N: Surprise! Here's an extra chapter for you guys for the holidays! I just want to thank all of you for all of the continued support throughout my stories. Each year spent on this website has been even better than the last, and that's all thanks to you guys. Here's to a new year, and even more stories for the best readers on Fanfiction!


IV: The Fog Flight

Annabeth looked throughout the captain's room as she tried to remain cool-headed. The last thing she needed to do was jeopardize Jackson, then it would be both of their heads. His quarters were plain, other than a few clearly valuable objects that stood out as gifts or otherwise stolen trophies that he had taken for himself. The captain sat behind his desk, slowly downing his drink. He glanced at Annabeth occasionally, a hungry glint in his eyes.

It made her skin crawl.

She wanted to plunge a knife through his head. Kill him for taking her away from her home, destroying any hope of leading any type of regular life. She gritted her teeth at the thought, glancing over to the captain. He was still staring intently at her, as if he was entertained by her mere presence. Annabeth, as much as she wanted it to stop, knew that it wouldn't. So, in order to fight back the urge to kill him, she swallowed her pride. She needed to distract him, so that Jackson could carry out the escape without any interruptions.

"What is it?" Annabeth piped in the most innocent voice she could muster.

He shook his head slightly as she asked this, as if he had been shaken from his daze of ogling over her in his state of perversion.

"Oh, nothing," He answered, leaning back in his chair, "Something was just...perturbing to me."

She batted her eyelashes a few times, forcing a puzzled expression. Even still, she was curious to hear what the captain had to say. A grin slowly sprouted on his face,

"I just suppose I expected you to have more resilience, is all. Just yesterday you were spitting in my face, and now..."

Annabeth didn't think his sickening smirk could have grown any larger.

"Here you are. Normally my girls last at least a few days before they give in."

"So it's a problem that I'm here?"

He shook his head, "Oh, no. Not at all."

She continued the act, despite the fact that her patience was already thinning. But she leaned back in her chair, glancing up at the ceiling as she continued to flutter her eyelashes,

"I suppose I just saw the reasoning in your offer sooner than those other girls."

"Hmm," Captain Roi grunted, taking another sip of his drink.

As he looked into his glass, she glanced over. Worry occupied her mind. He was obviously suspicious of her, or at the very least, uninterested. Annabeth knew she needed to try something else, something that would prolong his attention. After some hesitancy, she rose from her seat, setting one knee on the edge of his desk.

"I suppose I want to say that I'm sorry," She leaned forward slightly, holding onto the table as she crawled on top of it, "It was unfair of me to treat you the way I did yesterday."

As he redirected his attention again, she snatched up the soiled front of his shirt, pulling him closer.

"I know now that you're only trying to take care of my well-being."

He nodded, bringing his hand up as he ran it through her hair. The action made her want to lop his filthy hand off,

"Yes," He rasped, tucking her hair over her ear, "Yes. You weren't free back in that awful place, living with your father. You were his prisoner, a caged animal. I realized that the moment I first saw you. But it was only now that I could save you."

Captain Roi stroked a finger across her cheek.

"That's why I looted his store-room, made him think someone else had, so that I could take you with me."

His words brought her blood to a simmer.

"You bastard. What did you just say?" She demanded under her voice, furious.

Her grip on his shirt tightened, as he boomed with laughter.

"I knew it," He howled, "That, all of it, was an act!"

Annabeth gasped slightly, as she realized she had ruined her distraction tactic. But her shock quickly wore off, as she narrowed her eyes at the crowing captain. She clenched a fist, before smashing it into his cheek. He fell backwards, toppling onto the floor in his seat. In her rage, she lunged on top of him, ignoring the pain building in her hand. She tried to attack him once more.

Roi snatched her hand, before back-handing her with his empty one. She fell backwards onto the floor, as he rose. He breathed loudly, pressing a hand on the reddening spot on his cheek.

"You-" He growled, "Bitch!"

He snatched something up from the table, before aiming it just mere inches from her head: His pistol.

"Jackson!" Roi bellowed, "Jackson, get in here!"

There was a small interval of time, and he didn't appear. Annabeth gripped the rug underneath her. Where was Jackson? She instantly imagined the worst case scenario-He had already left, leaving her to face her inevitable death.

"Jackson! If you aren't in this room in the next ten seconds-"

But the door swung open, and she nearly cried out when Jackson appeared. He looked shaken up somewhat, his shirt was disheveled, his hair in every which way, as sweat dripped from his face.

"Sir?"

"Get her tied up again! I would deal with her now, if it wasn't for the fact that I don't want to have her brains on the carpet. Now-"

"Captain!" A voice cried from outside.

Jackson's face drained of any color, as they all looked in the direction of the door. There were uneven footsteps coming in the direction of Roi's quarters. Someone stumbled towards the door, holding his bloodied head,

"Sir," He managed, leaning against the door-frame, "Jackson, he-"

There was a sharp bang that hammered in Annabeth's ears. Smoke curled from the gun that had seemingly appeared in Jackson's hand. The crew member that had been standing in the door crumpled to the ground. Captain Roi stared at Jackson, his eyes wide as he stepped away from him by a few paces,

"What the hell do you think you're doing?"

Jackson charged the captain, before smashing the butt of his pistol into the side of his head. Roi, as he stumbled back, was kicked swiftly into the wall. He glared at Annabeth, breathing heavily,

"Get up."

When she remained still, he ran towards her, pulling her from the ground,

"I said get up!"

Jackson latched onto her arm, practically dragging her out of the room. She looked back, and saw that Captain Roi was already struggling to his feet as he gripped his head. And as they walked through the doorway, and over the man laying in it, she heard a weak groan escape him. He led her across the deck,

"Pick up your feet, damn it!"

As he gripped her arm, he brandished his unloaded pistol. Jackson quickly whirled around at the sound of stampeding feet, still holding her in his clutches. His forearm was stretched across her chest area at that point, with his hand grasping her shoulder. The entire crew had encircled them, muskets, pistols, and swords trained on both of them. There were extra clicking noises here and there, as the men primed their weapons. Some of them stepped away, as Captain Roi made his way to the front. He touched the heel of his hand on the wound Perseus had given him,

"Well, Jackson. You were certainly the last person I would ever expect to commit mutiny."

His tone was a humorous one, sarcastic, even. So, perhaps he was suspicious of everyone on board. Or maybe Jackson had attempted to escape before. A multitude of thoughts ran through her head, but she trained her focus back on the task at hand.

Annabeth winced as she felt something cold press against her temple. Captain Roi stared on, as the sea of guns steadied their aims.

"I'm leaving," He announced, his voice calm, "And if any of you try to stop me, I'll put a bullet through her head."

The crew waited for their orders to fire, but none came as the captain remained silent. Only the three of them knew that Jackson didn't have a bullet in that gun, but Roi said nothing, and instead looked on with an amused expression.

"So," He finally spoke, "You want to leave, eh? Very well."

His men faltered slightly, looking at the captain. His expression darkened,

"But as soon as you're off this ship, I will hunt you down. Your life belongs to me, your life is to be spent serving me. You're at my disposal! And once I find you, along with the girl, I will kill you both! But before I do, I will make you wish you hadn't run. So by all means, run. Because I will find you, I'll do anything-anything, to make you suffer!"

The gun dug deeper as Percy said one final statement of defiance against the captain,

"Mark my words, Roi, if you think I'll go down without a fight, you're mistaken."

Annabeth felt herself pushed harshly by Jackson, as she fell overboard. She plummeted towards the water, and she took in a sharp breath of air just as she hit the water. She clenched her eyes shut, flailing her arms through the water. Seconds later, there was a splash above her, before she felt herself being pulled upwards through the warm water.

Annabeth's head raised above the water as she gasped for breath. She was inches away from the row-boat, and she held on for dear life before she could submerge again. Jackson appeared alongside her, grabbing her collar as he hoisted her up. Annabeth scrambled into the boat. He followed closely behind, shielding his head as a symphony of gun-shots exploded above them. Jackson took up the oars, as he started to paddle as fast as he could.

"Keep your head down!" He shouted over another round of shots, "They aren't sharpshooters, and the guns may not be the most accurate, but there is such thing as a lucky shot!"

Jackson continued to row, paddling them away from the looming ship. Annabeth, looked towards it, as the moon gave off a bright back-drop. But as they got farther and farther away, the ship slowly grew obscured as fog collected around them and camouflaged it. Finally, it had vanished from their sight. She released a sigh of breath,

"I wouldn't ease up that quickly," He muttered, followed by a grunt as he pushed the oars again, "They can't chase us yet, there's too much fog. And even when it does clear, Captain Roi will wait. Wait until enough time has passed for us to make it to the shore. And then, he'll hunt us like dogs, just like he said."

Annabeth looked over at him, "That's preposterous. Why not just go after us now, crush us under the weight of his own ship?"

"Because he's a sick bastard," Jackson answered simply.

She looked in the direction of where she had last seen the vessel, slightly paranoid. Annabeth looked over at Jackson's silhouette, as he occupied himself in steering the small boat. They cut through the calm water with ease, gliding through it.

"So," Annabeth muttered, squinting into the darkness, "Why did you want to leave, anyway?"

He didn't reply.

She huffed, "Look, considering we're going to be in this boat together for at least the rest of the night, the least you could do is-"

"We're here."

As he said this, the small boat's jaunty movements ceased. It remained moving, but it was a lot more smoother as a simultaneous gritty grinding noise sounded beneath the boat. She felt Jackson climb out as he wandered in the darkness.

"Wait a minute!" She called, following after him.

Annabeth followed closely behind him, practically tripping over her feet as they trekked through the sand. She could hear waves crashing against the rocks lining the shore, and against the eroded walls that made up caves. Finally, Jackson lit a lantern, holding it above his head. He led the way, tossing a small bag onto his shoulder. Jackson was leading them away from the shore,

"We'll stay at the edge of the jungle for a few hours, get some rest. Then we'll move on."

"We?" She echoed, "What makes you think I'm staying with you?"

"Nothing at all."

Annabeth scowled at him, walking faster to make his pace, "Exactly. And that's why by morning, I'll be gone, and I'll be returning home."

The faint trace of a grin appeared on his face, but he didn't add any reasoning as to why one did grow. Annabeth bit her lip, her scowl growing in intensity. Jackson noticed this, and promptly rolled his eyes.

"God, girl, is that the only expression you know?"

"Stop calling me girl!" She demanded, "I have a name, you know."

"I'm aware of that," He lifted up the lantern, scanning the approaching jungle, "But I don't want to become any more acquainted with you than I already have."

"Like I said, then, I'll be on my way tomorrow."

Jackson shook his head, "I'm afraid that isn't an option."

"Oh? And you're going to stop me from leaving?"

"Yes," He answered, reaching the borders of the jungle.

Annabeth, however, had stopped in her tracks, processing his words in partial shock. She blinked a few times, jarring herself as she scoffed,

"And why, exactly, won't you let me leave? If you dislike me so much, why not just let me go?"

Jackson sat, resting his back against a rock with leisure. He folded his arms across his lap as he shut his eyes.

"Well, for one, you have no idea whatsoever how to find your way back home. Secondly, there's the near-inevitable chance that if you try to return home, which you won't, that the captain will find you. When that happens, he will do horrible, unspeakable things to you in order to find out where I am. And considering you are a frail girl, I'm sure he would discover me easily with your knowledge."

"Well," She growled in response to his last comment, "I may be a frail girl, according to you, but that doesn't mean I can't out-run you."

"Please," Jackson mumbled, "Spare me the lack of breath."

Annabeth looked out across the shore, the stretch of flat land beckoning her. And as much as she wanted to run away, run home, she knew she couldn't. Much to her dismay, Jackson was right. After a moment of staring longingly at the beach, she edged the jungle, sitting across from Jackson with her back against a tree. And with her new-found freedom, it felt ten times better than sleeping against a mast.


She woke to Jackson's voice,

"Wake up!" He hissed.

Annabeth blinked the sleep out of her eyes, trying to ignore the sweat on her forehead from the muggy jungle air. She looked at him, as he jabbed a finger towards the ocean. She squinted towards it, as the glittering lights of a looming ship reflected onto the water. The sky was a dim color, but Annabeth knew that day was approaching.

"Is that-" She whispered.

Jackson nodded, rising quickly. He scooped up his bag, throwing it onto his shoulder. Annabeth spotted his pistol nearby, laying on the ground. And while he had his back turned, she scooped it up, hiding it behind her back. He snatched up the lantern, blowing its life out,

"We can suffice traveling without this for now."

She nodded silently.

"Now let's get out of here. Captain Roi won't waste anytime getting onto shore, and we don't want to be here when he lands."

He jogged along, glancing in the direction of the ominous ship. Annabeth stayed close, trying to keep a brisk pace. She kept the gun beside her leg, keeping it from sight in case Jackson realized he had left it behind-Or thought he had, anyway. Annabeth wasn't certain why she had picked it up. After all, as Jackson had told her, she had no hope of getting home, implying the only way to do so was with his help.

Then again, he had never exactly specified how she was supposed to get home otherwise. What if he wasn't going to bring her home? Was he planning on double-crossing her along the way? Selling or trading her? After all, he was a pirate, a slimy thief. Did someone like that ever transition from that lifestyle?

She stared at the back of Jackson's head, listening to his faint panting. Annabeth gripped the gun aggressively. After all that had happened, after all that she had been through in the matter of a few days, she knew she was a long way from trusting anyone. Jackson faltered slightly, shaking his head,

"Wait a minute," He rasped, "We have to go back!"

"Why?" Annabeth demanded, acting as though she were clueless.

"I left my gun behind. Damn it, that's the only one I brought with me! Bastard, it was right there, too, right by my..."

Jackson stopped completely.

"Wait a minute," He muttered, but before he could fully turn, she battered him against the back of his head with the pistol.

Jackson fell to the ground, groaning when his face hit the sand. Annabeth took a few paces away from him, dropping the gun. She looked at his fallen body.

Suddenly, he lifted his face out of the sand, spitting.

"You better start running now, girl. You might find that Captain Roi has more mercy at this point than I do."

She broke into full sprint, glancing back at him when she had put a few yards behind her. Jackson was already rising, stumbling around a few times. Annabeth ran faster, before leaping into the thick canopy of the jungle, and disappearing inside it.


A/N: Again, happy holidays, everyone! I'll see you guys Saturday!

Until then,
Leaded-Pegasus