Warning: Contains abuse, self-harm, swearing, monsters, secret societies, death, memory loss, Hecate, twins, and a whole lot of stuff that PJO forgot to mention.
Sam
"Life from now on is not going to be easy," Gillian and Freak had admitted a few minutes before. And then, a weird goat-human hybrid ("A satyr," Like the one named Grover in my dreams.) asked Gillian for help, so she left.
I was nervous.
This place... The changes in my life in general, they made me nervous.
I self consciously tucked my hair behind my ears, and traced the scars along my wrist. All my life, it seemed I'd been waiting.
Waiting for the world to change or something, but I guess I never really thought... Well, I never thought anything would actually happen.
I never thought I'd wake up every morning having to fight to live. Usually, I was fighting against myself, but now it was different. There were real monsters, not just the ones in my head. I had a funny feeling in my stomach, like I'd just gotten on a rollercoaster, the fear and anticipation running wild.
The boy who called himself Freak was studying me.
"Is something wrong?" I asked him, squirming under his stare. He seemed to radiate tragedy.
Freak: Mutters,"Nothing, it's just... your life aura. You seem so alive from here but you're almost..."
He trailed off and reached out to touch me.
"Uh," I shifted. I was pretty sure it wasn't normal to try and touch people as a greeting or something, but I wasn't sure. My exposure to other kids was really very limited.
He seemed to snap back into reality.
"Right," He was blushing. "So, how about I show you around camp?"
"Uh, yeah."
Freak stood up and stretched, and then said,"Follow me."
It was nearing sunset. Almost a whole day since I left my home in northern California. I wondered if my mom and dad were missing me, but that seemed unlikely. The only time I interacted with Mother was when she was pleading with me to understand that she had to stay with him, to "keep him sane".
And my dad. I loved him to death, but he frightened me. Father cannot control Harold. I almost understood Mother's reasoning. Would Harold take over if she left? I wondered, had Harold already taken over?
Most of the time, Father avoided us because of his gnawing guilt, which was easy in our big house in the middle of the woods, far away from civilization. Or so it always felt, but if you walked for a few minutes you would arrive at a cliff overlooking the foggy San Francisco.
Freak: "C'mon. This way."he said, beckoning me to follow him onto the beach.
I frowned, looking over my shoulder at the welcoming U shape of cabins, all brightly lit except for maybe four or five. None of which I'd be staying in.
My eyes were drawn to a long and low cabin, one that looked like it was transported straight from Hawaii. Cabin number three. All the lights were off. It looked as if it hadn't been touched in years. Campers passed by laughing, but didn't pay the empty cabin any mind. Old news, to them.
I'm not sure why this bothered me. But I felt.. I felt like someone should be in cabin three.
"Freak, wait." I called, "Who lives in cabin three?"
Without looking over his shoulder, he shouted, "No one."
"Not even..."
Freak stopped abruptly, "Not even who?" His voice is rigid.
"I-I don't know. I just felt like.."
Freak turned to face me. He had a funny look on his face, like a mad scientist might look before finishing Frankenstein. "Who?"
I pursed my lips. "Someone named... Is there anyone here named Percy?"
His expression melted away into a blank stare. "Never heard of anyone named Percy, not since Zeus's kid."
"Zeus's kid?"
"Yeah," said Freak. "Like in the myths."
Oh.
"Oh. Well.. Anyone named Annabeth or Luke?"
"Honestly, I'm usually underground. I don't really know camp people."
Maybe he wasn't the most reliable source.
I rushed to him and grabbed his arm, "But you'd know if there was a son of Poseidon right?" I didn't know why this was so important to me.
He got that funny look again. "Yeah. Oh, yeah. We'd know. We'd all know... Now, follow me."
I followed Freak.
"Why do you let people call you Freak? Ah!" We were nearing the base of the cliffs. Now, the beach has disappeared. We were balancing on pointy, slimy rocks. While he managed not to slip, I almost fell face first into the cold winter water.
Freak scoffed. "It's not so much I let them, as I told them to."
"But why?"
"It's easier." He grunted in effort as he leapt to an especially slippery rock.
I got quiet for a moment. "How? How is it easier?"
Freak looked over his shoulder, dark eyes bubbling like he could boil me alive. I almost believed he could.
"Nunnuv your business," He snapped. It seemed he wasn't as friendly as I assumed. Maybe I'm just too curious. My face reddened as he turned away, and I was wishing with everything I had that I'd just kept my mouth shut.
There was silence as we hopped from rock to rock. Finally, we arrived at a crack in the ridge that I hadn't noticed before. It wasn't very big, only a little wider than Freak. He waited for me to catch up with him, and then grabbed my hand.
It didn't seem like Freak thought it was a big deal, but I couldn't help blushing from head to toe. No one really touched me, not since I was really little.
Instead of talking, he led me through the cave. Unlike the one in California or wherever we were, this cave was comfortable. It didn't seem like the darkness was ominous, more like a snug blanket keeping us safe from harm.
After a couple minutes of walking hand in hand through the pitch black (surprisingly we only ran into a wall once), the cave opened up into what seemed like a lobby. Freak put his hand to the wall.
"Welcome." Said a robotic woman's voice, echoing through the chamber. He then brought my hand up and pressed it flat to the cold cave wall.
There was a whirring sound from somewhere beneath the stone.
"Guest Access?" The robot woman's voice echoed softly, sounding very motherly, almost like she really cared about us.
Freak said,"Granted. Set up the new user table in the control room, please."
"Your wish is my command, sir. That's what I was made for."
"Thanks, Shirley."
The cave wall slid to the left quietly, and suddenly I saw a high-ceilinged room, walls made of obsidian and plush purple couches scattered around.
Freak released my hand and grinned at me.
"Welcome, to the Underground!" He gestured animatedly to the room around him. There were several doors leading out of it.
"This is the lobby! We have some of our meetings here, when the count is especially high. Usually, though, we use one of the more heavily protected rooms."
"Wow," I muttered softly. "This place is amazing."
Freak smiled even more. "Yeah, it is, isn't it? But hey. There are still rules. C'mon, sit down." He fell onto a rich purple couch and patted the space next to him.
I entered the room. It was surprisingly warm and comfortable.
Sitting next to Freak, I asked, "Why don't other campers live underground? Why do they have to live in the cabins up there?"
He shrugged,"We're not really campers. Um, we've had a lot of names over the years. But recently, we've kind of been calling ourselves the Guardians. That's what we've been doing lately. Guarding the super powerful demigods. I mean, we do whatever is needed of us. And see, you're powerful but not in the way that normal demigods are. See, you have this power to mold into darkness wherever you are: You can disappear, basically. Like a ninja, kind of. Haha."
"That seriously explains a lot." I replied, thinking about my guidance counselor and the broom closet.
"Ha. Usually, there are more Guardians around but... well, we're short staffed lately. There have been many.. Accidents."
That sentence chilled my bones, but I decided I'd have to ask him about the accidents another time. Right now, I really didn't want to know."Wait, but how am I supposed to guard powerful demigods? I mean. I don't know how to fight."
Freak nodded. "You're not an official Guardian, yet. You're, like, in the cadet stage. We have to train you, and that takes about three months at the most. And then you'll be a Beta."
I nearly grinned. Something weird was happening in my stomach. An emotion I hadn't felt in awhile. I was kind happy. I felt like I'd escaped my nightmares.
Freaked smiled.
"Oh! One rule." He dug a paper out of his pocket. It was crumpled into a little ball, but somehow, he managed to delicately unravel it without ripping it.
He handed me the paper.
On it was a picture. A sign.
"What's this?" I asked.
"Sign of the labyrinth. I know you don't know a lot about Greek stuff, yet. We'll teach you, but the labyrinth is this whole network of tunnels and stuff underground. It's dangerous to get lost in, and I really wouldn't suggest entering any doors around here with this-" He pointed to the insignia. "-on it. Sign of Daedalus, the maker of the labyrinth. Anyway, don't go in there. It either kills you or drives you crazy. Either way, you're never the same. Technically, this whole lab is in part of the labyrinth, but it's one of the few sections that don't change location. Still. Avoid the doors, and avoid your death."
He said death the way someone might say 'icecream'.
I shuddered, wondering how much crazier this labyrinth could make me.
"That sounds.. Horrible." I admitted, my excitement dampening a little.
Freak shrugged. "It is. You know that cave we were in yesterday? You had walked far enough in the reach the labyrinth. If Gillian didn't go in there to get you, you'd most likely be dead by now."
"I'm sorry." I said. I'm sorry I didn't stop walking. I could've saved you a lot of trouble by just dying.
He waved away my apology. "Don't be sorry, I mean. Hah. I'm the one who kind of 'kidnapped' you. And then almost got you killed with those monsters..."
I frowned. "What monsters?"
Freak looked towards one of the doors, which was tall and arched. "I'll tell you later," he said, "But for now, you should get some sleep."
I nodded, realizing how tired I was.
Freak spoke, "Come."
So I did.
He led me to the tall arched door, and put his hand on it like how he opened the cave wall. We didn't run into any other Guardians on the way.
After a couple of hallways, we reached some ornately carved oak stairs. He led me up them. There were four more doors, two on each side of the new corridor.
He pointed to the last one on the left.
"Your room."
I raised my eyebrows and pointed to myself. "Mine?"
He nodded, "Yeah, check."
I cautiously opened the door and gasped.
The room was huge and everything I'd ever wanted. In one corner, there was a spiral staircase.
"Where does that lead to?" I asked.
"Your bed area."
It was like a small apartment.
A flat screen TV, a squashy purple couch like in the lobby, a fridge and kitchen center. The bathroom even had a jacuzzi.
At some point, I opened a door and squealed because there was a library in my apartment thingy majigger. And it was all mine.
"Wow," I breathed, "This is amazing. Are you sure this is mine?"
"Oh, definitely. Everyone's room is unique. It changes with their taste. Sometimes, it gets annoying but usually it's really gratifying."
I pointed to the floor to ceiling windows in the back of the room, overlooking the cliffs. The pavilion and amphitheater were probably only 100 to 150 feet away.
"How do those work? Can't someone tell there's a building up here?"
Freak shook his head. "Hecate is the creator of this whole society. She performed magic, and now the buildings that reach over the top of the cliff are invisible. So basically, you can see out but there's no way anyone can see in."
I grinned. "I like this more than home."
He raised his eyebrows, "More than home? Don't you miss your parents."
I let myself collapse on the couch. It seemed like Gillian had known about my home life to some extent, so I didn't know why Freak didn't. "Not really."
Freak sat down next to me. "Why not?"
I looked at him. "It's kind of a sensitive topic," I said quietly.
He nodded. "No problem," Freak stood to leave. "Sleep. I'll wake you up tomorrow. Since Gillian's off doing who-knows-what, I'm now your guide and teacher. You're tough, too. I don't think Gill could handle you. If you need me, I'll be down in the lobby, programming you into the system."
Freak winked, and then left, closing the door behind him.
I climbed up the spiral staircase, and slid open my closet. Again, I laughed to myself. My family had always had money, but this was beyond my wildest dreams. I never usually got cool stuff. My parents were the type to spend half their fortune on a carpet, and then yell at me for wanting to spend more than twenty dollars on a pair of pants.
Yawning, I slid on my new pajama pants and a t-shirt that read, "Keep Looking," with a little magnifying glass on it.
Then, I slipped beneath my heavy comforter and closed my eyes. For the first time in two days, I felt restful. Almost immediately, I slipped into a black, dreamless sleep.
