Chapter 14:
"Lady Mikari, is this structure ok for Hestia? I'm afraid that something will burn and the building will collapse." Zoe asked as she handed a blueprint to an upside-down Mikari who was building Apollo's little 3 story house.
"Let me see…Mikari said as she hammered in a nail with one hand while holding the blueprint with the other, "You could substitute this part with steel and that part with copper so it holds this part over here and there."
"I see, thank you, I need to go to Leo to see if we can collect some of that in the mines below." Zoe said and walked away.
"Um…hi?" a timid voice asked nervously and Mikari turned to see a boy about the same age as Percy.
"What do you need? You are not part of this area are you?" Mikari asked.
"Um, I'm from Camp Half-Blood, I sorta…ran away. My name is Malcolm." Malcolm said and held out a hand to Mikari who stared at him suspiciously before shaking his hand.
Mikari took a large breath and screamed in a high pitched voice, "PERCY COME HERE FOR A SECOND!"
Malcolm winced at the sound and Percy appeared in an instant, "Yeah? Oh…hey Malcolm…"
"Malcolm is from your camp right? Take care of him and tell me if he should stay or not. I'm busy right now and you're on break for 3 hours anyways." Mikari requested.
"Oh, sweet, ok, I'll report to you in 3 hours or sooner then Lady Mikari." Percy said, making sure to add the Lady which got him a wrench to the stomach.
"Just go Jackson." Mikari growled making sure Percy knew she was serious by using his last name.
"Yes yes." Percy said and dragged Malcolm away from the angry girl.
"Percy, what's going on? Who's she? Where are we? Is the others here too? What's going on? What happened at camp?" Malcolm asked rapidly.
"We're building house, she's Mikari Flare, we're in the forest dummy, the others are here too, I already answered that question, and I don't know." Percy said just as fast nonchalantly.
Malcolm looked sheepish that he accidentally asked the same question twice, "Oh."
Percy laughed it off before stopping and taking a bracelet off a pedestal next to the barrier, "No worries, hold on, wear this really quick."
Malcolm slipped it on in confusion, "Percy wha-" Malcolm yelped when he looked up and saw Percy in his face with a dead serious look, "Malcolm, can I trust you?"
"Y-Yeah." Malcolm stuttered.
"Why did you come here?" Percy asked.
"Because ever since you left camp Danny, Annabeth, and Piper was practically ruling over camp and I hated it there and I decide that if you guys came out here and survived then maybe I can join you." Malcolm said.
Percy relaxed with a bright smile, "Good! And of course we'd let you join us! Now take off that bracelet before you die from it."
"What?!" Malcolm yelped and hastily took off the bracelet and practically threw it on the pedestal before glaring at Percy who was laughing at him.
"Ok now! You have to take the oath before I show you around; I'll inform Mikari about you coming in." Percy said.
"Oath?" Malcolm asked questionly.
"Yup." Percy said cheerfully and repeated what Mikari said to him before in a calm tone and afterwards so did Malcolm.
"Ok! Come in! Come in!" Percy said excitingly as he motioned for Malcolm to come over.
"Come in?" Malcolm asked in confusion, that part looked exactly the same so go into where?"
"You'll see once you come in!" Percy said and Malcolm didn't know what to do except step forward to see a community of sorts.
"Whoa…what is this?" Malcolm asked in a whisper but Percy heard it anyways and said with a huge smile, "Welcome to what I dub, 'Wonderland of Confusion'!"
Malcolm couldn't help but deadpan at Percy's naming sense, "Wonderland of Confusion. Really Percy?"
"Yes!" Percy said, "Like it?"
Malcolm face palmed, "Percy, that's horrible."
Percy deflated before popping right back up, "Well let's show you around and then maybe you'll get it."
"Sure?" Malcolm said like a question before he was promptly pulled off with Percy chattering away, he was relieved that Percy seemed to be happier here, hopefully he would be too.
"Oh! Percy!" a man called out and walked over to the two, "Can you tell Mikari that the radish harvest is successful and that we already stored them for her? I need to go take care of Mrs. Wineca's twin babies since they left to feed the animals."
"I will Jaron! Hope you have fun watching over those troublemakers." Percy said with amusement in his eyes.
The two looked at him and Malcolm's eyes widened in recognition, "Dad?"
The man's eyes widened in recognition also, "Mal…colm?"