AN: I was really bored while in school, and suddenly an idea popped into my head. Unfortunately I had to wait three days before I could write it down. And then I got sick because I was running around outside with only a Camp Half-Blood t-shirt, playing Hide-and-Seek. So, it's a bit delayed. I also have a new fish since Walter died and Bob was lonely. His name is Rainbow ;). Another reason for this delay is because I got addicted to another fandom…
Anyway, I've got a question. Does anybody know if Clovis is already at camp in this story?
One of my reviewers, Juxshoa, asked me if I am going to change the original story by keeping Luke at camp. My answer to that is that it depends on if there are more people out there who want Luke to stay at camp. So please review your thoughts on this.
And lastly, here's the shout-out to Diamond Pearls for translating: Dit typ ik als bewijs, google vertalen zou nooit een correcte zin in het Nederlands kunnen maken…
The answer was: Typing this as proof, Google translate would never be able to make a correct sentence in Dutch""
Disclaimer: All rights belong to Rick Riordan.
Chapter 6
"I've gathered you all here to ask for a favor." Luke started the meeting. He had asked some of his closest friends to go to Zeus' Fist at 5 o'clock. He had yet to tell them why. He looked around satisfied that everyone had showed up. "I would really appreciate it if you could ask everyone you know about someone with powers over dreams."
His friends looked confused, except for Silena. "Do we get to know why?" Alabaster asked him a little suspicious. Ethan agreed.
He shook his head. "Not yet. You'll have to trust me on this one."
"Do we get something in return?" Travis questioned.
"Yes," Luke had already expected that they would ask him that. "I will owe you something. Not too big, of course. For example, letting you of the hook for a prank you pulled."
"I'll do it." Annabeth told him, loyal as ever.
"So will I." Not so surprisingly, Silena said, she knew why he needed the information after all.
He smiled in thanks.
"We'll help you too, just imagine what we could get away with if you owe us." Connor said while grinning manically.
Luke rolled his eyes, a little worried about what will come from being indebted to them. It will be worth it, he reminded himself.
"I'll see what I can do." Chris answered shortly. Luke nodded in understanding at his half-brother. He didn't really have much reason to do it, but he is his friend so he will try.
"I'm in!" Alabaster decided, earning some weird looks for his enthusiasm. "What? It's not like I've any other plans. And of course it will come in handy if our cabin leader owes me one."
"He's got a point there." Ethan thoughtfully said. "Alright, I'll help."
Luke sighed in relief that all his friends would help. Well, not all his friends, but the ones he trusted most.
Line Break
The minute Luke opened his eyes he knew that something was different. The colors he saw were a little odd, and he couldn't see far because heavy mist blocked his sight. From what he could see, he was still in New York. The streets were as crowded as usual, and again, he couldn't find Percy.
He started walking, surprised that he could feel it when others bumped into him. A flash lighted the whole sky up, and almost immediately the sound of thunder shook the ground. It had also started to rain, though the mortals didn't seem to notice it at all. Luke turned around to see if Percy was somewhere behind him, but got blinded by the rain.
He pushed a way through all the people, trying to find somewhere dry. Before he could find one, a black creature ran past him and jumped over a car. He hastily turned around to follow it, knowing for sure that it was headed for Percy. Luke soon realized that he wasn't going to keep up, yet he kept running. Another flash of light, and this time he saw that it was near the Empire State Building that came in his limited sight.
This dream was utterly confusing, but he had to find Percy. Brushing his by now completely soaked blond hair out of his face he kept running until he heard a scream from somewhere on his right. He changed directions and followed the sound.
"Percy?" He shouted, forgetting that it was just a dream. Another black creature came out of nowhere and crossed the road, this time Luke was able to recognize it as a hellhound. He instinctively reached for his sword, not minding the fact that he didn't have it before.
Again, he followed the monster, but what he didn't expect was to be hit from behind with a baseball bat. Luke's head hit the pavement hard, and he had to force himself to stand up again. When he did, he saw two cyclops smiling cruelly at him, one of them holding the baseball bat. The other cyclops didn't have a weapon, but was intimidating nonetheless.
Fortunately, Luke had enough experience with fighting monsters. Unfortunately, he didn't exactly have time for this, especially if the cyclops just kept standing there, not knowing what to do next. He rolled his eyes and quickly stabbed the weaponless one, stepping back to not get hit by the other one. Luke slashed at the hand holding the baseball bat, and the cyclops screamed in pain. He let the baseball bat drop, but was now very angry. He was joined by the first cyclops, who had miraculously not turned to dust yet.
One of them jumped at him and he dodged it by diving to the left. He once again landed on the ground. He rolled over to stand up and stabbed the one who had tried to tackle him in the head. It vaporized.
The other cyclops had picked up the baseball bat and swung it at his head. Luke ducked in time, but couldn't avoid the second blow aimed for his chest. Not wanting to see the stone ground up close again, he grabbed a hold of the baseball bat, not letting go of his sword. The cyclops didn't like it, but was strong enough to hold him in the air while swinging wildly against walls.
Luke started to doubt his decision to grab on because the wall wasn't much softer than the ground.
He tried to hold on with just one arm while he extended his sword arm. The cyclops was out of reach, except for his arm. But Luke knew that if he slashed at the arm, he would fall and the cyclops could easily kill him just by standing in him. So unless he could kill the monster even before he hit the ground, his sword was useless. Thinking fast, he took a big risk. He waited for his opportunity to come, and it came after another few walls. The monster raised him higher than before and Luke sprung into action. He sliced at the cyclops' arm and again he dropped the baseball bat with a scream. This time though, Luke was also falling. While being in mid-air he swung his sword at the head of the cyclops, decapitating it. The cyclops disintegrated into golden dust and Luke fell on the ground, landing not so smoothly on his ass.
He wanted to sit there for a while, still dizzy from his fight, but he had yet to find Percy. Was he being attacked by hellhounds? His blood ran cold at that thought. He had to go. Now. He forced himself to get up and run. Thunder struck not so far from him and his instincts told him to go to the place of impact.
He heard a voice screaming out in pain, followed by the loud howl of a hellhound. He ran even faster, determined to get there in time. Luke zigzagged trough dark alleys, until he reached an open space. In the middle of it was a dark human silhouette being chased by two enormous black dogs. If he paid close enough attention he could've seen one of the two dogs limping a bit, as if the human had put on a fight.
Without thinking twice he jumped in between the boy and the hellhounds. He took the first hellhound by surprise and quickly finished it of before turning to the second hellhound. The hellhound wasted no time and leaped at him, slime dripping out between his sharp teeth.
Luke took a stance, but apparently didn't need to. The hellhound jumped over him, still targeting Percy. He turned around, and for the second time formed a plan that involved grabbing on and not letting go. He jumped up with his hands reaching for the hellhound, almost missing the end of the hellhound's tail.
"Run, Percy!" Luke shouted while pulling himself higher up the hellhound. Percy obeyed and the hellhound chased after him, all the while making weird jumps like a rodeo bull.
This time though, Luke couldn't stay on without letting go of his sword. The sword fell out of his hand and hit the concrete with a clanging sound. He bit back another curse as he just lost his only weapon.
Meanwhile, Percy was getting tired. He was panting heavily and the only thing that kept him going was the rain. Without the storm he would've been dead already, but he wouldn't mind it if the thunder stopped. It had almost hit him three times when he was running away for the hellhounds. And then suddenly an unknown boy appeared and slaughtered one of the two monsters with a bronze sword. A sword that now lay somewhere on the ground.
Percy looked over his shoulder and spotted the sword, the only problem was the huge monster with glowing red eyes. However, he knew that the sword was the only thing that could save him and/or the boy on top of the beast. So he took the risk and tried something very stupid, but others would also call it heroic if they would ever find out about it. He slowed his running pace down to jogging.
"No! Keep running!" Luke yelled at him, cursing himself for not being able to help. Unless he jumped of the hellhound and retrieved his sword, he couldn't kill the monster. And if he did decide to jump, then there was no guarantee that he would gat the chance to come close to the hellhound again. Not to forget that he would once again fall on the ground, at an even higher speed than before.
But Percy just made the choice for him. The hellhound sensed his victory when he saw his prey slowing down. He jumped up with all the intentions to land on Percy. Surprising both Luke and the hellhound, Percy turned around and ran right at the hellhound who still hung in the air from his jump. He ran for his life, literally, and somehow managed to get beneath the hellhound, barely missing the hind legs as he brushed the tail away so he could continue his sprint. The hellhound landed on the ground, but was too slow in turning around, giving Percy the opportunity to get a head start.
Percy went for the sword, Luke realized. He had to bite back a grin at the boy, knowing that Percy was still in danger. But he was sort of proud of him, even though Luke had absolutely nothing to do with Percy's achievement.
Percy picked up Luke's sword and turned around. To both his and Luke's amazement, he held the sword like a natural. "Come here, doggie." Percy taunted the hellhound, all his previous fear suddenly gone and replaced by bravery.
Luke watched in awe as a nine-year-old single handedly slayed a hellhound. Coincidentally, the storm clouds disappeared. The rain didn't stop, but wasn't as bad as before. Luke got pulled out of his daze as he like so many times before fell on the ground, instead of concrete though, it was grass. It was without doubt the best landing of the night.
"Are you okay?" A concerned voice asked him. Percy had let go of the sword and was now kneeling at Luke's side.
"Yeah," He coughed and sat up. "I'm alright. How about you?" Percy held out his arms in answer, Luke searched Percy for wounds, expecting to find many of them. To his surprise Percy didn't even have a single scratch on him. And when he looked at himself, neither did he.
"Who are you?" Percy asked him, his hand gripping Luke's sword tighter, not sure if he should give it back to this stranger.
"I'm Luke."
Percy frowned. "I'm Percy, but you already knew that. How?"
It took him a moment to understand his question. "Oh, right." How did he say this without sounding like a creep? "Well, to be honest with you, I've been dreaming of you."
"I'm not gay." Percy blurted out, before blushing. "I mean, I'm flattered and all, but I don't even know you."
Luke blinked confused before realizing how it must have sounded to Percy. He groaned. "That came out wrong. I didn't mean it that way, and for the record, you're too young for me."
"But you are gay? Cause if you are, it's cool, really." Percy reassured him while sitting himself down next to Luke.
"What? No, I… that's not what-" He sighed. "Look, my sexuality doesn't matter right now. What I meant was that you suddenly showed up in my dreams, I think that I saw some things from your past."
"You've been time traveling in your sleep?"
"Er, no. At least, I don't think so. I saw you and your mother. And also your stepfather and a school trip with sharks." Luke tried to explain it as quick as possible, but it felt like he was missing some huge details.
"Huh, that's funny." Percy muttered to himself, not knowing that Luke could hear him.
"What is?" Seeing that Percy didn't understand the question he elaborated. "What is funny?"
"Oh, it's just that I also had a dream about my school trip to Marine World."
"You did?"
Percy nodded. Luke digested that information, so Percy had the same dreams as he did? Maybe that meant that if Percy had a dream that wasn't about a past experience, that Luke would also see that.
"How did you know I was in trouble?" Percy asked him curiously, by now trusting him enough to hand him his sword back.
"I followed the hellhound. But I had already been looking for you." Luke explained.
"Why? Hellhound?" Percy asked, but his second question got ignored.
"Because-" Luke cut himself of and his breath caught in his throat.
He was looking for Percy because this was a dream. This was a dream. This was a weird dream, with weird colors and mist, but still a dream. And Percy could see him.
"Luke?"
The weather had also been a big hint, and of course the suddenly appearing things like his sword and the grass. What kind of dream is this? Normally if he had a dream and was about to get hurt, he would wake up. This time he didn't. And Percy could see him.
"Hello? Are you sure that you're okay?" Percy put a hand on his shoulder and shook him lightly.
Luke ignored him, still lost in thought. Did that mean that if he told Percy about camp, that he would still remember it when he woke up?
"Percy, do you always remember your dreams?" He asked.
"Not really, but does it matter?" Percy frowned not seeing the importance of his question.
"Yes, it does matter."
"Well, most of the time I know what I dreamed about, but not the details. Sometimes I can recall everything. Though, strange enough, at the moment I know everything I dreamed of. Just like if it had happened in real life." Percy answered thoughtfully.
Like real life. Percy thinks that this is really happening.
"Percy, you're dreaming this. Maybe it was supposed to be a nightmare with monsters, but I guess that I messed that up." The words were out of his mouth before he even believed in them. But actually, it would be a good explanation. Thunder and monsters, the perfect nightmare for a son of Poseidon. Speaking of that, should he tell Percy about the gods?
"What? You're crazy, do I look like I'm sleeping?" Percy argued, not believing Luke at all. It was then that Luke decided that he had told Percy enough for one night. And if Percy was right about remembering all his dreams when being in another dream, then he could also tell him tomorrow.
"If you weren't asleep, I wouldn't be here." Luke reasoned.
Percy bit his lip. "How come I see you for the first time?"
Luke shrugged. "Well, I think this dream is different. It's not one of your memories, is it?"
He shook his head. Luke was a bit relieved that Percy didn't fight a hellhound in real life. "Maybe you can't see me in your memories because I wasn't there. But this isn't your memory so… now you can see me."
Percy nodded after a while of thinking it over. It sounded logical to him. "Okay, but why are you here? Not that I'm not grateful for it, but why did you start dreaming about me?"
Again, Luke shrugged. "I don't know."
Percy sighed. "And what now?"
"I don't know, I guess we can just talk."
"I can do that." I noticed, Luke mentally rolled his eyes. He noticed that the circle of mist around the field appeared thicker than before. Was it coming closer?
"Let's ask each other things. What's your last name?" Percy asked him.
Luke silently groaned, is he really going to play twenty questions? "Castellan. Yours?"
"Jackson." The way Percy said it sounded like he was proud of it. Then Luke remembered, Sally Jackson, of course Percy was also named Jackson. "Where did you get your sword?"
He winced. It was the second question, and already he had to either tell him about camp, or lie about his sword. "I… how about I answer this tomorrow?"
Percy stubbornly shook his head. "Who says that I can see you tomorrow? Maybe it's another kind of dream."
"Then I'll tell you in the dream after, but not now." Luke looked out over the grass, refusing to answer. Was it just him, or was the mist slowly creeping closer to them?
"My turn to ask a question." Luke cut of Percy's complaint. "What will happen once the mist reaches us?"
Percy frowned at him. "What mist?"
"The mist that is now surrounding us at not even 3 foot away." Luke raised an eyebrow, trying to stay calm. It's just mist, it wouldn't hurt them.
"Luke, I don't see any mist." Percy said in confusion and a bit worried about Luke's wellbeing.
"Well, I do. And it's now even closer." 2 foot. He stood up with his sword loosely in his hand, not sure if he needed it.
"Percy, you really can't see it?" He asked to be sure. He thought that maybe if Percy can't see it, it's not really part of the dream. But then what is it?
Percy shook his head helplessly. "I have no idea what you're talking about."
"Alright then, guess there's only one way to find out what it is." Luke bravely took a step into the unknown mist, and when he was inside it he couldn't see anything except for white.
This wasn't mist, this was the end of the dream, he realized. So Percy can't know when his dream will end, but Luke can. And maybe he could step into the mist even before the ending. Not like he would want to leave Percy, but it couldn't hurt to try it out once.
Line Break
When he woke up, his sword was gone. Luke was a bit disappointed that he didn't know who keeps sending him the dreams yet, but he had his friends working on it. His friends… maybe there was still a reason to stay at camp.
AN: So… I'm sorry that there wasn't much about Luke at camp, but the dream extra long to make up for it.
Is Clovis already at camp? I really need to know that for next chapter. And if no one knows I will just have to decide for myself what would be better in this story.