The island was a grave, a grave that Kathy would most likely be lowered into at some point in the future. The wind didn't blow and the leaves didn't rustle as she picked her way down the path, rubbing at the bracelet on her wrist every so often to make sure that it was still working. She hadn't dissolved into water or sea foam yet, so that was a good sign. She tried to keep her breathing even and her movements relaxed, but it was difficult, considering how her heart was jackhammering away against her ribcage.
She caught glimpses of basilisks peering at her through the trees, their glowing yellow eyes following her as she passed and their crests fluttering as they kept a close watch. She tried not to seem suspicious, because even though Polybotes had granted her free range of the island and had insisted that the basilisks wouldn't bother her, she still didn't trust these snakes to not kill her. She'd grown to become somewhat of a housemaid and companion to Polybotes since Percy was rescued, and even though she was treated much nicer than she'd been with the Archbishop, she was still a slave.
As she walked, Kathy's mind began to wander to the day that Percy had been taken back by his friends. She'd watched in awe as the demigods of the Great Prophecy burst through the trees, their eyes blazing with such hate that Kathy wondered if she'd crumble to dust if her gaze s locked with theirs. In that moment, Kathy had realized just how monsters felt when facing down these demigods; there was a voice in her head, one that had yelled loud and clear once she'd seen the first glint of the Celestial Bronze swords in the demigods' hands, "YOU'RE GOING TO DIE." It had rattled her, thinking back on it; she'd been so close to being killed that she wondered if it was a blessing or a curse that she'd survived; she would be free at last and her sisters would be safe from Polybotes, but then again, Kathy wondered whether or not she'd go to the Fields of Punishment for serving a giant and…whatever the Archbishop was. It was that question, that wondering whether she'd go to Punishment or not, that had ultimately spurred her out on this walk.
She'd been on incredibly high alert since the demigods had left with their friend, considering the fact that she'd been the one to send the Iris message to Camp Half-Blood, and every sudden sound scared her nearly out of her skin these days. Polybotes and the Archbishop hadn't caught on as far as Kathy knew, and they were either blissfully ignorant or were waiting for a chance to skewer Kathy on a pike. She was leaning more towards the latter, considering just how many secrets that the two monsters knew about the naiad, and if they somehow hadn't found out already, then they would find out. It was only a matter of time before they confronted her and deemed her guilty, and that meant that Kathy had to get out of there as fast as possible. She didn't care if she died trying to escape; she could only hope that her change of heart and her final moments spent trying to get away from her captors would land her in Asphodel rather than Punishment.
Finally, the trees and shrubbery began to thin out and bleed into sand as Kathy emerged onto the beach, her stomach beginning to do flip-flops as she became even more exposed with every step from the tree line. Her fear was almost tangible, and her breath had begun to saw in and out of her lungs some time during the first few paces from cover. What if Polybotes and the Archbishop had been following her? What if she'd been so focused on trying to form a plan that she hadn't noticed them tailing her? She turned and glanced over her shoulder, as if she would see the silhouettes of monsters hiding in the shadows, but there was nothing but leaves and grass and bushes.
Kathy attempted to calm herself down, taking deep, heaving breaths and trying to steady her racing heart. She slowly paced back and forth, running her hands through her hair as she struggled to devise an escape strategy that wouldn't end with her being torn to bits, though she wasn't much of a strategist to begin with. She'd just been a regular naiad with a regular family, living in a regular home under the sea, though all of that had been ripped away from her during the Second Giant War, when Porphyrion's troops had seized Kathy's town. The naiad had just been the one unlucky enough to be the one chosen by him to be forced into slavery, and when Porphyrion had been defeated, Kathy's service had been passed to the Archbishop. She hadn't seen her sisters or her parents since then, but if what the Archbishop and Polybotes were saying was true, then her sisters were being held captive and her parents were dead. She'd had no choice but to follow his ever order, in case what they were saying was correct and every misstep meant her sisters would suffer.
She ground her toes into the sand, worrying at her bottom lip with her teeth as Oceanus's huge body arced from the water as he swam past, the spines razor sharp and the white scales gleaming in the sunlight. He was the only thing stopping her…on top of the Sea of Monsters…and the fact that she had no idea where she had to go. Needless to say, there were many obstacles, so many that even the mere thought of escape was completely and utterly ridiculous. Even if she did somehow manage to dodge Oceanus, the Sea of Monsters was vast, and Kathy could swim for years without getting out of it, and she felt so helpless she thought she might break down and cry.
She waited for as long as she dared; she'd been calculating how long it took Oceanus to completely circle the island and had confirmed that at the thirty minute mark the huge serpent would be at the other end of the island. This island wasn't that large, though, and Kathy estimated that she had about five minutes to leap into the surf and swim away before Oceanus drew near enough to hear the disruption in the water and be alerted by it. She was close enough to the water for her dissolving into water vapor not to be an issue, and with trembling fingers she tossed the bracelet into the sand in case it had a tracking device in it.
She took a deep breath and began to run into the waves, her clothes growing soggy and weighing her down as she sloshed farther and farther out to sea, and with a deep breath she leapt into the water, feeling her legs fuse and morph into her much-missed tail. Her gills emerged from her neck, having fused into her skin so she could breathe air, and the water rushed into them, soothing Kathy's frayed nerves as she truly felt at home. This water was feral, though- it was water that wasn't controlled by Poseidon- and she began to propel herself away from the island as she heard the telltale sound of Oceanus moving through the water, though it was distant. She prayed he hadn't heard her.
She swam faster than she'd ever done before.
-Ω-
"Good job, Nico!" Percy cheered as Nico wiped the sweat off of his brow, grinning like a fool as Will slowly rose to his feet and dusted himself off, grumbling about fairness. The two of them fist-bumped as the son of Apollo limped over, his brow furrowed and the corners of his lips downturned. "You too, Will."
"You're just saying that to be nice," Will snapped fiercely, "Nico kicked my ass and you know it. There's no possible way that I could've done a good job." Percy only grinned lopsidedly and shrugged, which seemed to make the blond-haired boy even more irritated. As Nico fiddled with the ripped sleeves of his Camp Half-Blood T-shirt, Will collected all of his arrows (which were, thankfully, blunt) and stowed them away in his quiver while putting away the wooden practice sword Nico had been using; even though they were trained professionals, or as close to professionals as demigods could get, Chiron only allowed real weapons in the training arena under his supervision, and had even been adamant about making sure that the demigods of the Great Prophecy didn't carry their weapons around. They did it anyway.
Percy handed Will his quiver full of real arrows and gave Nico his sword back, holding it gingerly in his hands. Even though the demigod had long since gotten used to being near and holding weapons, Nico's sword still clearly unnerved him, and the son of Hades didn't know whether to feel glad or guilty, though he really didn't have time to think about it as Jason trudged into the arena with a group of giddy younger campers on his heels.
"Out," he grunted, gesturing over his shoulder with his thumb. "I gotta teach a lesson."
"As you wish, Mr. Grumpy," Percy scoffed, but his green eyes sparkled as he and Jason gave each other a bro hug before going their separate ways.
"As one of the two residential homosexuals in this friend group, that was really gay," Nico snorted as they trudged up the path and towards the cabins. Percy seemed offended, and he turned to Will for support, but the son of Apollo only pursed his lips and nodded grimly. "What do you think we should do? I mean, I've got to give a lesson on the Underworld at five, but before then I thought we could just hang out in the Hades cabin." Though Nico was addressing both of them, his eyes were trained on Will, and Percy really didn't feel like being the third wheel for a week in a row. There was a rule that a boy and a girl couldn't be alone in a cabin, but Will and Nico, on top of the fact that the Hades cabin had only one resident when Hazel was at Camp Jupiter, could fuck whenever they wanted. Judging from the looks they were giving each other, Percy decided it was time to bid farewell.
"You two go have your fun," Percy snickered, and the couple promptly ignored him as Nico practically dragged Will into the Hades cabin, much to the disgusted looks of the campers around them. The son of Poseidon smiled to himself and made his way over to his cabin, slipping inside to evade the heat. Summer had rolled around once more, and not for one moment did Percy enjoy the fact that he'd missed an entire year of school; during that time, Percy would've given anything to just sit and be bored in a desk. New Rome's college stated that his year of absence wouldn't affect his enrollment or scholarship, considering the fact that almost everyone knew that that during the school year Percy had been in the clutches of Polybotes or going through serious rehabilitation. He hadn't been allowed out of Camp Half-Blood until Chiron, Mr. D, and the Apollo cabin gave the OK, and when he'd finally managed to get their approval, he'd gone out with his friends to see his mom.
Needless to say, Sally and Paul were overjoyed that Percy was okay, and the son of Poseidon was glad that nobody had given them the full details of what had happened. To them, Percy had simply been held captive in a cell before everyone rescued him. They didn't know of the torture, and Percy was determined to keep it that way. Instead of visiting, Poseidon had Iris-messaged Percy to ask how he was doing, apologizing for the fact that he was too busy trying to figure out how to defeat Polybotes to come and talk in person.
Percy sighed and plopped down onto his bunk, running his fingers through his hair and sighing. Before, he'd never been able to be alone with his thoughts without thinking of his time with Polybotes, and even though that was still the case, his hands didn't tremble and he didn't start hyperventilating. He found that he was…healing. It was a wonderful thing to feel, after so many months of his life being consumed by fear.
"Mind if I join you in your little brooding session?" Percy was nearly scared out of his skin as Annabeth poked her head around the door, grinning broadly as her grey eyes twinkled. She was beautiful, her skin tanned from the summer months and her curly blonde hair done up in a messy ponytail, and she swaggered over to plop down on the bed next to Percy, leaning against him. "Whatcha thinking about?"
Percy didn't reply, and Annabeth's easygoing expression turned solemn. She didn't speak, but rather twined her fingers through Percy's and gave a reassuring squeeze. They talked for a while, and then Annabeth said something funny that lifted the son of Poseidon's spirits considerably. Percy smiled softly and kissed her cheek, making her blush, and suddenly the look she was giving Percy turned sultry as she worried her lower lip in between her teeth. She leaned in and caught Percy's lips in a kiss, and any thoughts of Polybotes spiraled down the drain as the demigod's brain power completely flat-lined, leaving him unable to think of anything else but Annabeth's mouth on his. He reached his hand up to cup her cheek, and she scooted closer so that her front was pressed against Percy's side, their legs tangling together.
They would've gone further, but suddenly a deafening boom ripped through the silence, and the windows rattled a bit at the sound.
"What was that?" Annabeth hissed. Percy shrugged helplessly, leaving them unable to do anything but go and find out. The two slipped out of the Poseidon cabin, ignoring the accusatory glances from the other campers, and jogged over towards where other demigods were beginning to congregate.
"What the hell is going on?!" Percy demanded to no one in particular as he shouldered his way through the anxious demigods that were clustering together, the babble of many voices making it difficult to concentrate on much of anything. "What was that sound?!"
"I don't know," Chiron replied as he trotted over, his tail lashing back and forth as he worried at the strap on his quiver. His eyes scanned the horizon, where the ocean glittered like thousands of diamonds in the sunlight. "It's unlike anything I've ever witnessed before."
"It's a titan!" one girl from the Aphrodite cabin cried as she clutched onto her friend's arm, tears streaming down her cheeks, "It's going to kill us all!"
"Festus might just be rowdy," supplied a Hecate camper hesitantly, wringing her hands together. "He gets like that sometimes when Calypso and Leo haven't been paying attention to him."
"But what if Calypso and Leo are dead? What if there was an explosion in Bunker Nine and they didn't make it out?" wailed a son of Hephaestus.
"We're right here! We're fine!" Calypso called as she and Leo jogged towards them, the two of them most likely having been at the forge, judging from all of the soot on Leo's overalls. The talking somehow became louder, and it grew hard for Percy to even hear himself think over the cacophony. He decided that he'd had enough.
"Everyone shut up and listen to Chiron!" the son of Poseidon bellowed, sounding nothing like the meek and abused victim he'd been but a few weeks prior. The entire group fell silent as they responded to the authority in Percy's voice, though their anxiety was almost tangible as it permeated the air, the campfire having turned a nervous purple color. Chiron dipped his head in acknowledgement towards Percy, and unslung his bow from his shoulder as he regarded the assembled group of campers.
"We are unsure what may have caused this, and I'm trying to get a hold of Dionysus right now to see if he has any ideas on what could be happening, but the Iris cabin has concluded that there is a force that is preventing us from contacting anyone via Iris message," the centaur explained, his hooves pawing at the ground in his concern. He raised his hand for silence as a chorus of worried murmurs broke out amongst the campers. "I can assure you that, if it is a monster, our barriers will hold."
"How are you so confident?" challenged an Apollo camper from the back. "Powerful things don't seem to be affected by the barrier at all. Remember Gaea and what happened to Percy?" The son of Poseidon withered under the scrutiny a bit as all eyes turned to him, and Annabeth put a reassuring hand on his shoulder, though her eyes sparkled with suppressed worry. "How can we be positive that the Golden Fleece will protect us?"
"We can't be sure," Chiron bit through clenched teeth, white-knuckling the grip on his bow. "In the meantime, it would be best if we, instead of worrying, got into our battle positions." No one moved, and Chiron rolled his eyes, rubbing the side of his face. "Do I have to spell it out for you? Get to your battle stations! Go on!" Immediately the camp was bustling with activity as campers nearly trampled each other to get to the armory and the Ares cabin, where sons and daughters of the war god were already bringing out the heavy artillery and the barbed wire. The younger campers were herded into the infirmary, where the Apollo campers were preparing for the worst, and the campfire blazed a jittery green. Percy and Annabeth followed the crowd of demigods to the shed that was the armory, and luckily they'd expanded it considerably since Percy's first year; there was plenty of armor to go around, and those who didn't have weapons of their own borrowed from the vast arsenal.
Percy hadn't remembered uncapping Riptide, but the leaf-shaped blade was gleaming in his hand, and he loved the comforting weight of it in his palm. He'd thought he'd lost it at Polybotes's and had been heartbroken, however when the jeans that Percy had been wearing proved to be inaccessible, the pen had chosen to reappear in the pocket of another set of pants. Needless to say, he'd been beyond grateful that he hadn't lost his precious sword.
"You look a little sick, Perce. You okay?" Jason inquired, coming up next to him with Piper, Leo, Calypso, and Nico on his heels. If only Reyna, Hazel, and Frank weren't at Camp Jupiter and Will wasn't preoccupied with the infirmary; then the entire gang would be back together.
"I-I'm fine," Percy murmured, sounding most certainly not fine. He tried to ignore Annabeth's incredibly concerned expression out of the corner of his eye, instead opting to fiddle with the straps on his Celestial Bronze breastplate.
"What do you guys think is happening?" Nico questioned, running his fingers along the flat of his Stygian Iron blade.
"No clue, but it can't be anything good," Piper stated firmly, twirling Katropis in her fingers. It was a seemingly nonchalant action, but from the way the daughter of Aphrodite's fingers trembled and her eyes shone with her unease, it was clearly a nervous tick.
"I could get Festus, but he's back in Bunker Nine," Leo suggested, his eyes alight with hope and anticipation, "Perhaps I could scout out the area a little on his back, make sure it's not a major issue." The son of Hephaestus was desperately attempting to keep his tone lighthearted, as if it was obviously nothing to worry about, but he was chewing relentlessly on his bottom lip and wouldn't stop picking at his tool belt.
"That's a terrible idea," Jason deadpanned, pushing his glasses farther up on his nose. "You could get shot out of the sky and we'd have no way to rescue you."
Leo was just about to open his mouth to argue when Chiron's voice rang out to them, "Just because you're demigods of the Great Prophecy doesn't mean you can be slackers!"
"Good luck, guys," Jason said hurriedly, and with that the son of Zeus was jogging off to his battle station, and everyone bid each other farewell before following Jason's lead. Percy and Annabeth were stationed together, since they wouldn't have it any other way, and the position just so happened to be by the beach so that Percy could use his powers more easily.
It was a nice spot, and Percy took a seat on one of the many large rocks that were strewn about before the terrain bled into sand. The sound of the ocean waves lapping at the shore and the tang of salt and brine on the breeze soothed his fraying nerves, and his allowed his eyes to slip closed as he took a deep breath of the fresh ocean air. It felt like home here, and even though he'd been too scared to even go near the water up until a few weeks ago, he was finally at ease. The leaves in the trees rustled and the branches swayed hypnotically, trapped in a dance to music that only they could hear.
"You lied to Jason," Annabeth murmured as she took a seat next to Percy on the rock, her words breaking the serene silence that had settled over everything. "When you said that you're fine. You're not."
There was a long pause as Percy took incredibly interest in his shoes, and Annabeth seemed more than willing to wait for an answer, her expectant look out of the corner of Percy's vision making sweat bead on his forehead.
After a while, Percy admitted, "You're right, I'm not fine."
"Then maybe you should sit this one out," Annabeth advised, "You're still healing, you know." Her words held no scorn, unlike what others may believe; she wasn't trying to baby Percy and keep him sheltered from the world after what had happened, she was simply concerned for him as his first true battle rolled around. Percy hadn't seen a monster since his time with Polybotes, and he didn't know whether the sight of one of Tartarus's big baddies would trigger a panic attack or not; he hadn't been able to bring himself to go into the woods yet, and everyone had been more than willing to let the son of Poseidon ease himself into it.
"Do you think I could really sit this one out?" Percy scoffed, trying not to sound too incredulous and failing. "I'm not an invalid; I can fight now. I'm functioning. Just because I went through a rough patch doesn't mean I can't do whatever it takes to defend this camp."
"That's not what I'm saying," Annabeth retorted, sighing. "I'm saying that you shouldn't push yourself too much. I wanted your first encounter with a monster to be with one from the woods. At least with monsters from the woods you don't have to really worry about it killing you; those monsters are easily defeated if you're with a group that has your back. But if your first encounter with a monster is with an out of control, dangerous creature sent by Polybotes or Oceanus to possibly capture you, then I'm afraid it might damage your head a little."
"It'll be fine," Percy insisted, though he sounded as if he was trying to convince himself. "I'll be fine. It's probably nothing big, like Leo said."
"We'll see," was all Annabeth answered.
They waited, keeping watch of the surrounding area as sentries. Percy no longer was restless when it came to sitting around, and he felt content to just watch the ocean. Gulls called overhead, and grasses swayed lazily in the breeze, the sound of the waves crashing comforting to say the least. Occasionally he would steal glances at Annabeth when he thought the daughter of Athena wasn't looking, though he was caught staring more times than not. After a while, though, Percy's mind realized that there was nothing of interest to pay attention to, and Percy's mind began to wander to darker places as he failed to become occupied with something.
The whip tearing his back to ribbons.
Electrical charges making him jerk and judder.
A club bludgeoning his body over and over.
"Percy, you're as pale as a ghost. Whatever you're starting to think about, stop thinking it." Annabeth's words were what kept Percy from plunging any deeper into his reveries, and he concentrated on the comforting hand on his arm rather than the phantom pains that wracked him like the echoes of something long past. "Maybe we should get back to the cabins. We've been waiting for a while. It's probably nothing." Percy nodded, swallowing thickly, and the two were just about to head back when suddenly the water, which had been a crisp navy before, began to churn and become acid green.
Percy let out a shuddering exhale as a horrifyingly familiar head rose from the water-turned-poison, then a torso clad in armor, and then a pair of scaly, reptilian legs. Percy felt himself shutting down as Polybotes rolled his shoulders and cracked his neck, grinning like the cat that got the canary. Mutedly, he could hear the faint shouts of campers in the distance as they saw Polybotes's head over the trees, as well as Annabeth's desperate cries as she shook Percy's shoulder, begging the son of Poseidon to respond, but he was frozen, his eyes trained on the exact same beast he'd hoped he'd never see again.
"Oh my god, Percy, come on we have to go!" Annabeth ordered, but Percy could only watch as Polybotes opened one of his hands and out of it fell a small, limp figure. The demigod promptly threw up as Kathy's body connected with the sand, her neck bent at an odd angle and her throat slit. The corpse dissolved into water soon after it touched the ground, soaking into the sand and disappearing. There wasn't even anything to bury. Annabeth patted Percy's back, whispering consoling words as his sides heaved and his throat burned from the acid as he chucked his guts onto the ground. The daughter of Athena tried to bring him into the cover of the trees; Polybotes had yet to spot them, and the tree line was right there. They could very easily hide, but Percy's chest felt like stone, weighing him down and gluing his feet to the sand. Kathy hadn't deserved it. She hadn't done anything wrong, not that Percy knew of. She'd just been one of the unlucky ones.
"Percy, please," Annabeth whispered as Polybotes took a single, huge step out of the surf and onto the beach, his glowing eyes searching and lighting up as they fell on what must've been Camp Half-Blood's armies charging towards him. Those two words were what ripped Percy from his stupor, and he cast one last glance over his shoulder at the spot where Kathy's body had once been, before saying:
"Annabeth, you can't let him take me." He clutched Annabeth's shoulders tightly. "Please don't let them take me."
"I won't Percy, I won't-" The son of Poseidon cut her off before she could say any more.
"I know you won't, but if something happens I need…" his voice broke, and he rubbed at his eyes. "I can't go back there. I don't want to become a broken shell again. A curled up piece of trash just lying around and praying for death."
"What are you saying?" Annabeth demanded, but the look of dread on her face suggested that she knew where this was going. There was a lengthy pause where only the sound of Polybotes shuffling this way and that in the sand could be heard.
"If it comes down to it, I need you to kill me," Percy finally said, and Annabeth's hand clamped over her mouth, though not before she let out a bitter, disbelieving laugh. "I know it sounds cheesy and cliché. It is. Totally. But I can't go back to Polybotes and be…be tortured slowly until my mind shatters. I can't go through that again, and I won't."
"You can't ask me to do that," Annabeth hissed, tears streaming down her cheeks. "You can't just ask me to kill you."
Percy found his expression growing hard. "Fine. If you won't do it, I will."
Before the daughter of Athena could respond, Percy was darting off into the woods, and she had no choice but to follow, hot on his heels.
They ran as fast as their legs could carry them, chopping and hacking at any foliage in their way as they dashed towards the campers. They were all clustered together, their eyes widening, and Percy realized, with shock, that they'd never seen a giant before. The people on the beach who hadn't already been a part of the Seven had only been able to see Polybotes from a distance, and even then the giant hadn't scaled up to his full height. Not counting Gaea, the giants had never been to Camp Half-Blood, much less attacked it, and now these poor demigods were being faced with one of their biggest challenges yet.
"Is that who I think it is?" Leo squeaked as he regarded the thin slice of Polybotes's forehead that could be seen over the trees. He went as white as a sheet as Percy and Annabeth nodded in unison, and his hair began to smoke in his nervousness. Calypso seemed stoic, but her eyes betrayed her anxiety. After Leo had rescued her from Ogygia, she had become mortal in a sense; she'd lost all of her powers upon leaving the island, however, being the daughter of Atlas, she'd still been able to get through Camp Half-Blood's borders.
"Guys, we need a god if we're going to defeat this guy," Nico stated, fiddling with his weapon. "And right now Mr. D is MIA, so things aren't looking too good."
"Well, if Percy's dad was so occupied with trying to defeat Polybotes, then he'd probably know if he was near the camp, right?" Piper asked hopefully, fiddling with her braid. "I don't see Aristotle anywhere. Maybe he's going to get Poseidon and he'll come with his sea army."
"I can only hope so," Annabeth replied grimly.
The conversation was interrupted by the sound of Polybotes's heavy footsteps approaching, and the demigods scattered like ants, screaming and crying in their terror, despite Chiron's shouted orders to stick together. Polybotes shoved the trees out of the way, his eyes alight with a murderous gleam and basilisks slipping free of his dreadlocks, the poisonous snake creatures immediately slithering after the stampeding and terrified demigods.
"Fire!" cried Nyssa, and Polybotes let out a shocked grunt as a ball of fire connected with his head. The giant staggered back, clutching his forehead and scowling, but other than that he wasn't the least bit fazed.
"Now, now, there's no need for that!" Polybotes bellowed, breaking through the trees and taking out the catapults with a single swipe of his hand. The demigods shrieked and dove to the side as the explosives were set off, blowing the catapults to splinters that sailed through the air and became imbedded into anyone unfortunate enough to be close by. Percy felt completely useless; he couldn't use his powers since Polybotes was the anti-Poseidon and would turn any wave that Percy hurled at him into poison, and Percy was too frozen by fear to actually fight and confront him.
It dissolved into chaos after that. Arrows shot from the bows of Apollo campers stationed on the rock climbing wall rained down upon Polybotes, burrowing into his arms and head. Some of them detonated or caught aflame, charring or blowing off chunks of skin, but even so, they were still mere pinpricks to him. Eventually, the arrows fell uselessly to the ground as the giant's skin closed up, and Percy's stomach sank as the true weight of the situation hit him like a freight train; they were helpless without the aid of a god, and if his dad or someone else didn't arrive in time, both he and everyone else were all as good as dead. The pandemonium continued on as the braver of the demigods darted this way and that around the giant's feet, ripping up the skin under his scales with their weapons and generally being an all-around inconvenience. Mrs. O'Leary charged into battle, and though Tyson was absent, too busy tending to his duties as the general of Poseidon's Cyclops armies, the hellhound was plenty fine by herself as she tore apart basilisks with ease, aided by skeletal specters that Nico commanded from a distance.
Jason was flying around Polybotes's head, summoning lightning whenever his strength recharged in order to distract the giant from the demigods at his feet. Piper refrained from calling out orders in charmspeak, in case Polybotes wasn't the only one affected by the words; if kids also followed Piper's orders as well as the giant, they could become seriously endangered. The wreckage from the catapults blazed, and Percy could feel the heat from it all the way from his spot crouched in the trees with Annabeth, to the point where he was pretty sure his eyebrows had singed off. He felt like a coward, but he couldn't bring himself to step out in the open as his breath sawed in and out of his lungs. He feared he'd start to hyperventilate, but Annabeth was still there with him, keeping him calm.
"You should really be out there with them," he murmured . "Don't bother with me, I'll be okay." Annabeth didn't seem too convinced, but still she kissed him goodbye and plunged into the heat of battle with her drakon tooth sword drawn, leaving Percy alone with the scenes of torture flickering on the insides of his eyelids, plaguing him whenever he dared to close his eyes.
He hated standing aside and just watching the slaughter, though thankfully most, if not all, of the casualties were basilisks. Percy's hands shook uncontrollably as he crouched in the bushes, and he found himself crying silently as he stared at Polybotes's face, contorted in rage and sick delight as he ripped trees from their roots and hurled them at Percy's friends. He rocked back and forth, his breathing ragged as he tucked his head in between his knees and tried to calm down, but to no avail.
"STOP!" Percy was pretty sure that his blood turned to ice in his veins as Polybotes raised his voice, and the only thing he could think about was the agony he would feel after the giant would raise his voice. "I WISH TO BARGAIN WITH YOU DEMIGODS, SO IF WE COULD SIT AND TALK LIKE CIVILIZED CREATURES, THAT WOULD BE HELPFUL." The fighting ceased. Even the basilisks broke away from their battles with demigods and slithered over to Polybotes, curling languidly by his gigantic feet.
"No, don't listen to him," Percy meant to yell, but his voice came out as a nearly inaudible rasp. He was on his knees and felt incredibly woozy, as if he were going to keel over and collapse onto his side, and he was having trouble keeping his vision from blurring. The giant knelt down, crushing a few basilisks in the process, and his eyes raked over the group of assembled demigods, his austereness melting into an unnerving sneer. A ways from the group, Jason touched down, his sword drawn and his movements wary.
"What do you want, Polybotes?" Chiron demanded, trotting over with ease despite the fact that a huge burn from basilisk acid marred his flank, looking incredibly painful even from a distance.
"I want to barter with you and your pathetic campers, old horse," the giant requested politely, but his voice was sickly sweet.
"We don't barter with the likes of you," Chiron responded firmly, holding his bow in a white-knuckled grip, and Percy's nerves eased at the centaur's words, though his heart sank right after was Polybotes continued:
"Don't act so high and mighty, Chiron. I believe we can make a deal of sorts if we can get past our differences," Polybotes chided, and Percy shivered at the mockery in his tone, a mockery he'd heard a thousand times as he was taunted and beaten. "I'm just going to be straight with you here. You have something of mine, and I want it back. If you give it to me, then I'll be on my merry way and will never bother a single demigod every again. I swear it on the River Styx." Thunder rumbled overhead, making the crowd of demigods shift uneasily, and Percy sat a little straighter; if he claimed that he wasn't interested he'd be lying big time.
"We have something of yours…?" For the first time, Chiron sounded hesitant.
"Indeed you do," Polybotes confirmed. "And that something is Perseus Jackson." Everyone fell silent, and Percy was pretty sure he was going to pass out. "What? It's not like the deal is outlandish."
"How is that not outlandish?!" Annabeth demanded, and Polybotes's face took on an expression of clear amusement.
"Where is the boy now? I can only assume he's hiding under a rock somewhere," Polybotes pointed out, and even though the giant wasn't wrong in the least, the comment still made Percy's blood boil, though not for one moment did he consider giving in and revealing himself. The moment Polybotes's gaze fell on him would be the moment that Percy would break down and weep; he didn't think he could be under that horrible gaze again without losing control of himself at the influx of horrible memories. "The boy's useless. I bet he hasn't even encountered a monster yet, has he? Too busy hiding under the bed to get his act together."
"That boy went through some serious trauma at your hand, Polybotes," Chiron growled, his tail lashing back and forth. "He is, was, healing, but now you've come along and soiled it. He has every right to be hiding right now."
"Well that's a shame," Polybotes remarked, mock pouting. "If you give him over, you'll be saving the lives of many, many demigods for centuries to come. I won't bother them. I won't even look in their direction. I swore it before, do you really think I'd lie now?" Murmurs began to ripple through the crowd, and Percy knew that they were hesitant to turn down this offer. Even he, a person who'd been tortured mercilessly by Polybotes, saw the sense in making the deal. What's one stupid and broken kid in the grand scheme of things? His fatal flaw was getting the best of him, but he knew that his suicidal loyalty was a gift in this situation. If he just walked out and gave himself up, Annabeth and Leo and Calypso and Jason and Piper and Nico and Will and Hazel and Frank and Reyna and everyone else would be safe from Polybotes. He could always end it himself before he and Polybotes arrived back at the island.
No one would have to suffer the same fate as Percy did; it would be one sacrifice and then it would be over. Giving himself over meant that every demigod would be safe from the giant, and the son of Poseidon found himself rising to his feet, feeling numb all over as his heart turned to stone and his hands balled into fists at his sides. If worse came to worst, he would drive the sword through his chest.
Clutching Riptide like a lifeline, he slowly emerged from hiding and shuffled out of the tree line, and he hoped that Polybotes was too large to see just how badly he was trembling. Everyone turned and parted as he approached, whispering amongst themselves, but Percy just looked straight ahead and kept walking, even as he saw Chiron grimacing and Annabeth crying silently out of the corner of his eye. This was the right thing to do. It would keep everyone safe. Polybotes's smile was absolutely wicked, and Percy felt as if he would shake right out of his skin as he looked the giant square in the eye.
"Swear it again," he demanded, trying to sound strong, but his voice quivered slightly. "Swear that you will never hurt or bring harm to a single demigod for as long as you walk this earth. You'll have me and that should be good enough for you."
"Percy, no!" Annabeth cried, and she had to be restrained by several demigods as she desperately tried to shove her way over to her boyfriend. He hoped he would be able to kiss her goodbye and tell her he loved her one last time; he wasn't going back with Polybotes, not as long as he was sane, and he prepared himself to die. He looked down at Riptide, recalling the line of the first Great Prophecy he'd encountered:
A hero's soul, cursed blade shall reap…
Maybe it didn't just apply to Luke and Backbiter. Every single hero who'd wielded Riptide had died tragically or suffered a terrible fate. What made Percy any different? I'm sorry, he told it. I'm so sorry.
"Percy!" Annabeth cried again, and the son of Poseidon couldn't look at her, in case he chicken out of his decision. He told himself that there was no other way. He told himself that this would be the best fate.
No other campers objected despite the fact that they all wore matching expressions of guilt and sorrow. They didn't want to do this. None of them wanted to. But if it meant saving many lives for years to come, it would all be worth it. The rest of the Seven who were present were weeping, and Nico clutched Will's shirt and buried his face into the blond's shoulder.
Polybotes's smile broadened. "I swear on the River Styx that I will never hurt or bring harm to a single demigod for as long as I walk this earth, aside from you, of course," Polybotes vowed, and once more, thunder rumbled.
"Then I'm all yours," Percy murmured, though his eyes were glassy.
"You see, that's the issue," Polybotes began slowly, and Percy managed to become even more rigid. Would his servitude start now? Would he have to kneel and be humiliated in front of all these campers, ordered to do tricks like a dog? Polybotes didn't seem to have that in mind, though. "I'm not the one who's going to be keeping you this time."
"W-w-what do you mean?" Percy stammered, and he tried to tune out the sound of Annabeth sobbing behind him.
"I mean that there's someone else who should be arriving to come pick you up," Polybotes scoffed, and his eyes sparkled with glee, not unlike a hunter who'd stumbled upon a bear caught in a trap. "He should be arriving any minute."
As if on cue, a huge black raven flew over the trees, cackling. It circled overhead for a few laps before descending with an easy grace onto a nearby rock.
"Aristotle!" Jason exclaimed, his eyes alight with hope. "Did you get Poseidon?"
"Silence, you foolish boy," Aristotle growled, only it wasn't the rough, croaking voice of the venerable bird that came out of the raven's mouth. It was the Archbishop's voice. "I am in an incredibly bad mood since the death of one of my servants, and wish to have a replacement as soon as possible. I assume Percy is ready?"
"As he'll ever be," the giant chuckled, nudging Percy forwards with a huge hand when the demigod started to back up.
"Aristotle, what's going on?" Piper demanded, packing as much charmspeak into her voice as possible, but the bird only laughed darkly.
"There was never an Aristotle. Percy's pathetic father sent the real Aristotle to watch over you, but sadly he didn't make the trip. I decided I would be a fit replacement. It was me. It was always me."
"And who are you?" Chiron demanded, an arrow cocked in his bow and aimed right at the bird.
"I think it would be best if I just showed you." Between one blink and the next, the comforting bird was gone, replaced by an all too familiar figure.
The Archbishop regarded Percy as if the demigod was a piece of dog shit that had found its way onto the bottom of his new shoes, but his eyes betrayed just how excited he was. "It seems you and Polybotes have come to an agreement, and I'd prefer it if we were on our way as soon as possible. Unlike Polybotes, I have yet to try out this new chew toy." Percy hesitated, clearly reluctant. He hadn't agreed to this; this horrible creature was ten times worse than Polybotes, and on top of that, he was unfamiliar. Percy knew Polybotes; his likes and dislikes, what made him proud and what made him furious, and it had taken a long time for him to learn. During those times of not knowing about the giant, Percy had been in constant agony. He hadn't known what Polybotes expected of him or what the demigod should avoid doing to keep from getting beaten, and he didn't want to go through something like that again. Only, it seemed like it was going to be inevitable. He knew it was time.
And then Riptide abruptly flew out of his hand and skidded to a stop by Polybotes, who picked it up and examined it between his gigantic fingers. Percy's heart began to thunder in his chest as he turned to the Archbishop, who gave the son of Poseidon a pitying look. "Don't think I didn't see the look in your eyes, sea brat. We can't have you killing yourself, now can we? That would ruin all the fun."
"Shut the fuck up!" Percy yelled, clenching his hands into trembling fists. "Just shut up!"
"Ooh, he's rowdy. I'll have to train it out of him, then," the Archbishop snarled. Percy turned to glance at Annabeth, intending it just to be for a moment, and found her with Chiron's bow in her hands, an arrow aimed straight at Percy's heart. He could see the tears leaking from her eyes and the way the bow shook as she tried to keep her trembling to a minimum. The only thing he could do was give her a soft nod.
There was nothing to it, then.
Percy heard it, the small whisper of an arrow propelled forwards by a bowstring, on top of the sound of a conch horn being blown and the Cyclops battle cry, "PEANUT BUTTER!" before everything went dark.
Before he completely faded away, his last thought was I love you, Wise Girl. And then he was gone.
-Ω-
"And that, Abby, is why Daddy can't run marathons anymore," Percy announced to his teenaged daughter, who was too preoccupied with her second box of tissues to pay much attention.
"You never ran marathons in the first place," Annabeth scoffed, her hand running over his chest to rest on the scar right next to his heart. Had the arrow landed any closer, Percy would've been dead. "And many parts of that story were over exaggerated, so there's not much to worry about." Her tone turned serious as her sharp eyes locked with her daughter's red-rimmed ones. "But know that your father has been through a lot. This isn't just why he can't run marathons. It's why he has trouble looking people in the eye and sometimes gets scared when it's cloudy at the beach. Not a word of this should be spoken to your friends, do you hear?"
"I promise," Abby sniffled, miming zipping her lips closed. "Nobody will know but me." She sat on the couch for a few more minutes, wiping at her eyes, and Percy and Annabeth exchanged a look.
"C'mere," the son of Poseidon grunted, holding out his arms, which his daughter eagerly fell into.
And in that moment, everything was perfect.
END
-Ω-
(A/N) And there you have it! Sorry about the long update, but it took a long time to write and perfect this. I hope you all enjoyed Save Me and that you leave a review for your final thoughts.
Disclaimer: THE CHARACTERS ARE RICKS, THE PLOT BELONGS TO THE WONDERFUL CHRISTMASCOOKIE26