The Sea and the Sky

Chapter 10:

AN/ Yay! I finally managed to put out another chapter. Sorry for the excruciatingly long wait!

Fang POV:

Silence stretched out over the hill. Percy had frozen, his blue eye cold as ice. His mouth had opened slightly, as if he wanted to say something but couldn't get the words to form. I stared at Max. We had been searching for so long now, I could barely believe this was real. Maybe those monsters had finally caught up with us and this was our after-death hallucination. I wanted nothing more than to run and wrap my arms around her and tell her just how sorry I was, but something was stopping me. Max looked so different and was practically radiating power. She had looked so happy before. Somehow I had always imagined that she would be hunkered down somewhere wallowing in misery, but this was clearly not the case. "Max?" I weakly echoed Gazzy. I felt myself moving forward.

Suddenly, the air became choked with power. My mouth flopped open as Max's eyes began to glow gold. The wind picked up and blew furiously around her head, and her golden hair drifted around her like a halo. The Flock and I just stood there, stunned. Had Max evolved new powers or something? I was broken out of my thoughts by Max's angry voice. "What are you doing here?" She growled. Nudge took the opportunity to speak.

"W-we were looking for you…..but then all these scary monsters started attacking us…." She trailed off as Max's golden glow spread to the rest of her body. "How dare you come here! You weren't even looking for me, were you?! You just want a free place to stay! Haven't you already hurt me enough already?!" I started feeling sick, and the world began to spin around me. A migraine split through my head, and all I could see was the golden light washing off of Max.

Abruptly, the world came crashing back down around me. I blinked a few times and the migraine receded into the back of my head. It was then that I realized I was kneeling on the ground. I could feel a liquid running down my lip and brought a shaky hand to wipe it away. As I drew my hand away, I saw the rusty red that signified blood. I felt a sickening feeling welling up in the pit of my stomach. What had just happened? I struggled to my feet, swaying a little. I saw the rest of the Flock do the same. The glow that had been radiating off of Max was nowhere to be seen. I looked up to where she had been standing, and what I saw made my breath catch in my throat.

Percy had wrapped his arms around Max, and she had buried her face in his shoulder. She was shaking a little, and I could hear small sobs coming from her. Percy ran his fingers through her hair and mumbled quietly in her ear. I felt unprecedented rage after seeing this. It should be me over there comforting her, not this Percy. He looked like a dumb surfer dude anyway. Why would Max want anything to do with someone like him?

After a while, Max pulled herself away from him. She cast one more glare at us, then turned back to Percy. "I'm going to our cabin Perce." My heart stopped as she said our cabin. Wait, maybe all the kids here just shared cabins. I mean, it was called Camp Half Blood. From what I knew, kids shared cabins at a camp. This thought calmed me down a little, and I focused on what Max was saying. "We have no choice but to give them shelter, since they were obviously running from monsters." Percy nodded slightly. "I can show them around while you go relax a little." Percy said, his voice rolling like the waves off a beach. Max nodded hesitantly. "Thanks Perce." Then she did something that made me see red with anger.

She leaned into Percy on her tiptoes and gave him a kiss. On the lips. "I'll see you in a bit Surfer Boy." She mumbled, and then turned to walk away. "Wait, Max." Percy said quietly. She turned back around to face him. At this point the two of them were completely ignoring us. Percy's eyes became slightly apologetic. "You know they'll have to stay in the mutant cabin, right?" He asked softly. Max smiled bitterly. "I know. I guess I'll be staying in our cabin from now on then." She said, and a small smile played across Percy's lips. "Alright. See you in a bit, Birdie." I fully expected Percy to be punched. I was extremely annoyed when Max did nothing but smile. "Bye Seaweed Brain." She said, before vanishing in a cloud of gold. What. The. Hell.

Percy turned to us and sighed. As soon as hi eyes landed on us, they once again turned as clear as ice. "Might as well get this over with." He mumbled. He started walking back up the hill, and gestured for us to follow him. "Come on. I'll show you around." We trailed after him. Soon, we came to an archway. I assume it said Camp Half Blood, but the letters were all in some other language. Percy saw us staring at the arch and smirked. "You all have a lot to lean." And with that, he stepped into camp.

Line Break-

Fang POV:

Percy led us up the hill to a surprisingly normal looking farmhouse. Glancing back at us, he gestured to it. "This is the Big House. It's where all the camp councilors meet." We all nodded, processing the information being given to us. Percy led us farther through the camp. He showed us an archery range, a lake where several people were canoeing, and a dining pavilion that strangely, had no roof. We were winding our way through the rest of camp, when we stopped at a relatively large building. "These are the stables." Percy said, with no small hint of pride in his voice. He waved his hand, and the doors swung open. Were all the doors in this place on a motion sensor or something?

We walked into the dimly lit barn. My heart cringed when I saw the horses all in their stables. I knew what it was like to be caged…..wait, did those horses have wings?! I whirled around to face Percy as the rest of the Flock also realized that there was something off with all the animals in the barn. Percy chuckled as he saw us all drop into a fighting stance. "Relax. All these horses were born this way, completely natural." He raised an eyebrow at us until we reluctantly eased out of fighting position. I still remained tense though. You could never be too safe.

"If these horses are like this naturally, then will you please tell me what the hell is going on here?" I growled. Percy's eyes flashed, but he gestured for us to follow him out the door. He led us to a small area in about the middle of camp. There were a few benches, and he waved for us to sit down. Once we were all seated, Percy began talking.

"This place." He started, waving at the surrounding camp. "Is called Camp Half-Blood for a reason." I looked at him, confused. I was about to ask him what he meant by that, when Iggy beat me to it. "Does this mean that this is a place for mutants? Beause we're always looking for a safe haven…" Percy cut him off. "No, this isn't a camp for mutants, but you're close." With that he stood up and began walking away. I took this as a queue to follow him, and so I started off of his tail. The Flock followed in my wake.

We reached an area of camp that I hadn't seen before. Cabins of all kinds were arranged in a horseshoe formation, and some were placed sporadically outside the arc. What really caught my attention, though, was the fact that all the cabins were so completely different. One was held up by a huge tree, the walls supported by its branches. One was a pale blue and the walls seemed to ripple like the surface of the ocean. Another was painted a deep red and was covered in barbed wire and various weapons. One in the center was completely made of marble and a moving façade of lightning was constantly crackling on its surface.

I stared in awe at these works of architecture. There seemed to be something familiar about the greyish cabin….. I was broken out of my thoughts by Nudge's voice. "These cabins all signify a Greek god, right?" She squeaked, sure she'd figured out the mystery. Percy nodded, a small smile twisting at the corners of his mouth. "Spot on…." He trailed off, not sure of her name. "Nudge!" She squealed happily. At the mention of her name, Percy's eyes grew cold again, and it felt like a hand of ice had gripped my heart. "Right." Percy continued. "But, these cabins are so much more than tributes to the gods." I noticed his voice changed, as if he was about to impart us with some great secret.

After a few seconds, I grew impatient. "Well?" I asked, and it came out rougher than I had meant it to. Percy glared at me, and the frost returned. He walked towards the blue cabin, and we followed him. Up closer, the building was even more beautiful. The surface was flecked with so many shades of blue, and was sparkling and rippling like the ocean. A trident was hanging over the porch, and statues of winged and finned horses guarded the entrance. I wracked my brain for the name of the Greek god of the ocean. Finally, I reached my answer. This must be the cabin for Poseidon.

Percy finally turned back to us. "As I said, these cabins are so much more than a simple tribute to the gods." He paused as if to gather strength. He took a breath and continued. "They shelter their mortal children from harm." I took us a second to realize what he had just said, and when we did it was loud. "What?!" The Flock all screeched. Percy started talking again, almost absentmindedly. "Well, it houses the former god's children, as none of the new ones have had any kids yet, at least not that I know of….." He trailed off when he saw the looks on our faces.

I couldn't believe it. We had somehow made our way to a crazy house, no worse, a crazy camp, and Max was here too. Was that what happened? Did she crack and get sent to a mental facility? I glared at Percy "Do you honestly expect us to believe a word of what you're saying, you crazy bastard?" At this, Percy's eyes grew dark and, like the ocean during a storm. Power radiated off of him, and the Flock and I were forced to step back. The dizzying sensation from earlier came rushing back. Percy pulled himself up to his full height and glared at us with a look that left me feeling like I ought to have been dead. Percy growled at us, his voice low and menacing. "I hope you believe it, because you're standing in the presence of the God of the Oceans."

AN/ So the Flock has managed to piss off Percy. I don't think their first day at camp is going so well, do you? What will it take to make those bird-brains realize that they're standing in the presence of a god?