The action is here, as promised! Now, I must warn you, since there are quite a few more characters than in the original Little Mermaid film, the final battle will include said fewer more characters. (And by a few more I mean like ten people soooo yeah, that's fun.) So if changes from the original film bother you…. You've been warned. Sorry not sorry.
Also… I've put off editing and uploading this chapter for so long that the world has kinda been thrown into chaos. I hope everyone out there is staying safe and healthy! Please take care of each other by practicing healthy habits (whether it be washing your hands or social distancing for a bit).
Me personally… (I don't really like to share personal info on here, but I want to let people know they're not alone.) My first year of college is now cut short socially and physically. We've transitioned online and I'm out of my dorm room and back home. I'm happy I'm with my family, but at the same time, I'm so sad that it's gotten this bad. Please stay safe 3
2 chapters after this one :D Enjoy.
Chapter 18
"Percy!" Annabeth shouted. She leaned on the railing, knowing it was useless. He was gone. She let out a frustrated groan. There were still a million questions flying through her head. But there wasn't any time to sit around and get answers. She had to follow her instincts and make fast decisions.
She turned away from the water and ran toward the doors that led to the lower decks, not bothering to glance at her shocked friends.
Piper was the first to realize the Princess was moving. "Where are you going?"
"To get out of this stupid dress," Annabeth answered. "I suggest you all do the same."
The others exchanged glances. Reyna grinned and followed her downstairs.
In the water, Percy continued to struggle. His shirt had been torn off as he entered the water- much like his pants that were ripped to shreds when he got his tail back. If circumstances were different, he would have been thrilled to be back in his home territory. But being in Gaea's clutches- quite literally- was not allowing him any enjoyment.
"Poor little Prince." Gaea's voice held no sympathy as she pulled him along in the water. They were almost the rocky bottom. "It's not you I'm after," she said. "I have a much bigger fish to-"
"Gaea, STOP!"
A new voice echoed across the ocean, piercing Percy's body like an arrow. For a split second, disbelief flowed over him. There was no way Chiron had brought his dad so fast. But floating in front of him and Gaea was none other than King Poseidon himself. His face was set in a terrifying stare- his eyes flashed across the pair.
His trident was glowing yellow, poised directly at Gaea's chest, ready to obliterate her into a million pieces. At his tail, Chiron stood on the rocks, his staff raised in the same position as the trident. Behind them were Ella, Tyson, Juniper, and Mellie. The latter carried a large bag full of objects Percy couldn't quite make out.
Gaea wasn't phased for a second. She laughed and swam closer to his dad. "Why, King Poseidon," she traced her fingers along the end of the trident, showing no signs of fear. "How are you?"
Poseidon wasn't in the mood for small talk. He shook the trident and jabbed it in her face. "Let him go."
She swatted back with her free arm and pulled Percy closer to her. "Not a chance, Poseidon, he's mine!" One of her tentacles slithered up in the water and produced a golden scroll. Poseidon stared at it with furrowed eyebrows, not understanding what she was trying to say.
Gaea reveled in his confusion. She passed Percy off to Kronos, who wrapped his tail around his arms and bound them behind his back. "We made a deal," she explained.
The scroll was the exact same one Percy had signed a few nights ago. His name was still sprawled on the bottom, and he briefly told himself he'd never risk signing anything ever again. The scroll's magic produced a bright glow under the water that forced him to squint to see his father.
As he struggled against Kronos' thick tail, his heart fell in his chest. There was no going back from this. The proof was right in front of his dad. He couldn't deny his situation, but he could try to explain himself. He desperately called out from the side, "Father, I'm sorry! I- I didn't mean to! I didn't know-!"
Poseidon showed no sign that he was listening. His icy face would have been enough to make anyone cower in fear. He extended his arm and pointed at the scroll with his trident. He blasted Gaea back in a flash of light, slamming her against nearby rocks. But she wasn't injured.
He quickly stopped his attack, realizing it wasn't working. Gaea gave a cackle, holding down the scroll. A victorious grin dominated her face. "You see? The contract is legal. Binding and completely unbreakable…" Poseidon stared down at his trident in disbelief. He was powerless against her. He couldn't protect his son.
Gaea continued to talk, swimming back up to him. She jabbed the end of the scroll into his chest. "Even for you." She looked up, as if a brilliant idea had decided to form in her head. Percy had the feeling it had already been there. "Of course… I always was a girl with an eye for a bargain." She laced her fingers together and looked at Percy. "The son of the great Sea King is a very precious commodity."
She sent the scroll hurling toward the Prince. Kronos let him go as it swirled around him, trapping him in a vortex of golden water. He gasped as he started shrinking down to the seafloor, his body beginning to morph for the second time that evening. He realized in horror that he was turning into one of the creatures in her cave- a blob of flesh that had its essence stripped from its body. He reached his arms up, trying to grasp at something- anything. But the current continued to pull him down.
His friends and family made to reach out to him, but Gaea quickly stilled their motions. "BUT!" She drew her arm back, rapping her fingers against her chin. "I might be willing to make an exchange…" She moved behind Poseidon and tapped his crown with one of her tentacles. "For someone even better."
Above the water, Annabeth emerged from below deck wearing a stormy blue tunic (quite similar to Reyna's purple one). She jumped into a lifeboat hanging off the side of the ship, quickly lowering herself into the water before anyone could stop her.
Her friends ran to the railing and looked down. Will couldn't believe she was acting so rashly. He cupped his hands- now free of formal white gloves- over his mouth. "Annabeth- what are you doing?!"
Annabeth rowed away from the wedding ship. "Will, I lost him once. I'm not gonna lose him again!"
Piper stood frozen next to Will, also wearing a tunic (she couldn't believe they made those in raspberry pink). "Wow… that's really sweet."
Reyna rolled her eyes and climbed into the other lifeboat hanging from the ship. "Let's go. They'll need our help. Hedge, steer the ship back to land, get the guests to safety. This is going to get dangerous."
"Now, hold on a second." Hedge looked between the three of them. "You can't go around giving me orders. As the adult here, I should be-"
"Godspeed, Coach!" Reyna let the boat fall into the water.
Hedge's jaw hit the deck. "Did she just-?!"
Hazel waved at them from the railing, ignoring her mentor. "Good luck! I wish I could help, but I just don't-" A wave hit the side of the ship with a powerful push. Hazel lost her balance and somersaulted over the railing into the lifeboat with her friends. She groaned and tried to push herself into a sitting position. "Ugh… I really don't feel good."
Will helped her sit up. "Hazel! Are you okay? Does anything hurt?"
"Do you want the long answer or the short one…"
Underneath their boat, Atlantica's warriors in training sped toward the glow of Gaea's magic.
"I can't believe this is happening," Nico was saying. "How did we lose track of him so fast?"
"They have to be over here," Calypso said, mostly to reassure herself. "There's nowhere else they could have gone."
Thalia quickly shushed them and ducked behind a pile of rocks blocking their view of the light source. The group peaked over to look at the scene. Gaea was holding up her contract and Kronos hovered over her shoulder, Percy shrinking smaller and smaller in a whirl of light. Poseidon was staring at Gaea with a stone face, a million thoughts likely running through his mind. Chiron sat at his tail. Mellie had her arms out, holding Juniper, Ella, and Tyson back from the magic.
Frank noticed the bag slung over her shoulder. "Wait…" He squinted down. "Are those… our weapons?"
Jason grinned. "Perfect."
Grover followed their gaze. "Should we go over and get them?"
"No," Nico answered. "We need to wait for an opening. We need to get them without being seen by Gaea."
The Sea Witch chose this moment to start speaking, breaking whatever thought process was traveling through Poseidon's head. "Now- do we have a deal?"
The King stared at the contract in front of him. His mind was made up. His son's safety was his first priority. He closed his eyes, soaking in what would possibly be his last moment as a merman. He pointed his trident at the scroll, but this time instead of trying to destroy it, the beam of light replaced Percy's name at the bottom with Poseidon's.
Gaea gave a curt laugh. "Ha! It's done then!"
Percy was suddenly growing at a rapid rate, returning to his normal size as the whirlpool of light moved to take over Poseidon's body. "No," Percy spoke. "Oh- no, no!" Gaea gave a louder, more sinister laugh as Poseidon shrunk to the bottom of the ocean, his body changing to match the brown creatures in her skeletal sea cave.
No one noticed Annabeth's boat hovering above their spot.
The glowing subsided, revealing a very small, very solemn piece of what used to be the King of Atlantica. Chiron's face dropped in despair as he stared at the creature. "Your majesty…"
Percy stared at his changed father in shock as Tyson choked on a sob from the side. "... Daddy?"
Gaea paid them no mind. "At last…" She reached down for the two items left behind from the King's transformation- his crown and his trident. She placed the crown perfectly on her head, its edge sitting right along her gray hairline, before picking up the weapon. "It's mine." She started laughing again, biting her bottom lip in excitement.
Percy quickly gathered his bearings. He stared up at her through furious eyes. "You…" He launched himself through the water, not caring that he was weaponless. "You monster!" He grabbed at her neck before being thrown to the floor by one of her tentacles.
The trident glowed as Gaea aimed it at his chest. "Don't fool with me, you little brat! Contract or no, I'll- ARGH!" She grabbed her upper arm, her skin sliced by a harpoon thrown from above. All heads turned and looked up.
Annabeth was floating below the water's surface, her face set in a determined stare. Gaea clenched her teeth. "Why, you little fool!"
"Annabeth!" Percy shouted. He tried to swim up but was quickly held back by Gaea's tentacles. "Annabeth look out!"
Gaea pointed at the Princess, shooting Kronos a look. "After her!"
Annabeth turned and made for her lifeboat, the green eel hot on her trail. She reached the boat and pushed her upper body out of the water, inhaling a deep breath. Dread overcame her as she felt Kronos' body wrap around her legs and waist, pulling her back into the water. She kicked and flailed as she tried to shake him off, but his grip was too strong. Panic flooded her body.
Thalia set her face at the sight. Forget waiting for an opportunity for their weapons. Someone needed their help. "Come on!" she encouraged the others. They traveled up and attacked the eel with their bare hands and tails, slapping and scratching and punching where they could.
Mellie gasped from the seafloor. "Kids?!"
The eel quickly let go of Annabeth and moved out of the way, not wanting to be beaten to death by a bunch of teenagers. Percy's friends grabbed her and tried making for the surface.
Gaea aimed the trident at Annabeth. "Say goodbye to your sweetheart," she sneered. The weapon glowed with power, ready to blast Annabeth and the others to smithereens. But Gaea, caught up in the moment, relaxed her hold on Percy. He jumped up and yanked on her hair, pulling her body back, causing the beam of light to miss its intended target.
Instead, it hit Kronos, sending electric pulses through his body before he exploded into a thousand tiny fragments (that, strangely, resembled items Gaea would have locked in her cabinets for potions). The Sea Witch gasped in horror and held out her hands, letting her guard down completely, allowing Percy to slip away. "My baby!" She stared at the fragments as they floated down into her palms. "My poor little poopsie."
She glared up at the Princess, who was quickly being joined by Percy. She groaned in anger and willed the trident to glow again. She released a cloud of ink that quickly covered the bottom of the ocean in darkness. The trident's power coursed through her body. She used it to grow in size, getting larger and larger by the second.
Chiron and Mellie were momentarily frozen with fear. Would any amount of training be able to beat her? The odds had grown so tremendously against them, they weren't sure if such a thing was possible.
Then Tyson grabbed Mellie's elbow. "What do we do?" he asked. His voice was nervous.
The mermaid locked eyes with the crab. They made a silent pact to protect the kids and give them the best chance of winning. Chiron led the Prince, Ella, and Juniper away from Gaea while Mellie swam up to hand over the bag of weapons to the warriors.
At the surface, the teens emerged with Annabeth. She coughed and spun around in the water, the night sky giving her limited visibility. She called out, "Percy!" She knew there were others. She saw them. Felt them help her to the surface. But his name was the only one she knew, and quite frankly was the only one she cared about.
"Annabeth!" Percy quickly moved to her side and grabbed her arms, steadying her in the water. "Listen to me, you have to-"
"Kids!"
Mellie surfaced, her giant bag still on her shoulder. "Listen," she said. "We don't have much time. Now that Gaea has the trident, you're the only ones who can stop her." She started pulling their weapons out of her bag- Frank's bow, Nico's sword, Thalia's spear. "I would tell you to leave and let the adults handle it, but this was all we could bring rushing out of the palace. We didn't have time to rally the soldiers." She placed Percy's sword belt in his hands. "I would help you, but-"
"Go find the wedding ship," Thalia quickly ordered. "Get Chiron and the others. Follow it. You'll be safe with that group."
"I can take you there," Grover offered. He looked eager to move, and Percy had the sinking feeling it had to do with Juniper being nearby. He had no doubt Grover was worried about her well-being just as much as Percy was about Annabeth's. "It's not like I'm much of a fighter, anyway." It was a sudden (and quite frankly weak) excuse, but Mellie took it. "Come on- this way."
He pushed her away from the group, but she looked back before disappearing below the water. It was that concerned, motherly look that could cross her face. One that made the warriors feel guilty whenever they caused it. "Be safe."
And then they were gone.
Percy turned his attention back to Annabeth after strapping Riptide around his waist. He pushed her wet hair out of her face. "Annabeth, you've gotta get away from here. Don't worry about us-"
She cut him off sternly. "No." She shook her head. "No- I won't leave you."
He opened his mouth to retaliate, to tell her to forget about him, to forget about all of them, but the world shook beneath their bodies. The water started glowing again, the brightness increasing at an alarming rate. Annabeth wrapped her arms around Percy, partly because she was terrified of whatever was strong enough to move the ocean, and partly because she wanted to hold him close. To keep him steady in the stormy waves. To never let go again.
A large object abruptly rammed into them from below, elevating them out of the water. The giant crown on Gaea's head carried them up as the others backed away in the waves. They attempted to call out to them, but all sound was consumed by Gaea's monstrous, now-unnaturally-deep, evil cackle.
Percy quickly reached over the newly wedged space between him and Annabeth and took her hand. They shared a quick glance. Jump now, or they'll be too high to survive the fall.
They launched themselves off Gaea's giant head and landed in the water, not far from the others. They quickly bunched up as a group, Percy and Annabeth's arms around each other again. Everyone gazed up into Gaea's mad eyes.
She had grown to a size no smaller than the palace- hundreds of times her normal height. Her tentacles breached the water like whales. Her purple skin glowed indigo in the dark night, the bright trident the only thing allowing them to make out her outline and features.
She flashed them a crazed grin. "You pitiful, insignificant fools!"
One of her tentacles started to come down on the group. "Look out!" Jason yelled. They scattered.
The tentacle crashed down, disrupting the surface of the ocean and causing water to spray several stories into the air. Gaea waved the trident around in circles above her head, summoning clouds that released flashes of lightning, illuminating the scene. "Now I am the ruler of all the ocean!" she bellowed. The seas had turned rougher than the night of Annabeth's birthday party. "The waves obey my every whim!"
Percy's grip on Annabeth had loosened through all the commotion. It only took one powerful wave with a relentless gust of wind- and she was out of his reach. "Annabeth!" Her name left his lips, but he knew she'd barely be able to hear him. She screamed as she was thrown backward, forced under the surface yet again.
The others weren't having better luck. Thalia had been separated from the group, surfacing on the other side of Gaea. She searched for an opening for an attack, trying not to get the breath knocked out of her while dodging the giant tentacles. Frank, Jason, and Nico somehow ended up right next to the lifeboat carrying the other humans.
Nico's back hit the boat, causing him to emit a startled yelp. He quickly turned around and met Will's eyes, which were freakishly bright in the stormy weather. He clutched a hand to his chest, taking in deep breaths. "Oh my gods, Will. We have to stop meeting like this."
Will would have smiled if he didn't think his life was about to end. "Are you okay? What's going on?"
"Gaea's taken the crown and the trident from Poseidon," Frank said, swimming up to the edge of the boat. "It's not looking good, but if any of you have weapons that you're good with-" One of Gaea's tentacles came crashing down next to the small boat.
In an unbelievable leap, Reyna sprang out of the violently rocking vessel and landed on the slick surface. She glanced back at the others drifting farther away, drawing her sword. Nico shared her determined stare. He turned back to the humans. "I'll go help her." Then, as a second thought, "Don't die." Hazel responded with a miserable moan. Nico motioned for Reyna to move up the tentacle- her running on top and him swimming along underneath.
Piper made to get out of the boat too, but Jason stopped her. "Woah- Piper, don't!"
"Why? I want to help-"
"The distance is too far to jump now. You'll hurt yourself." He turned to Frank. "Take them back to land- you have the long-distance weapon, you can defend them as you get farther away."
"But, Jason-"
"No." He looked at her. "I can't risk you getting hurt." The words left his mouth he realized it. His ears turned red as he tried to cover himself. "Any of you. If we can get you out of here, we'll do it." Another thick tentacle crashed nearby. "Okay- Frank, you know what to do." He stared at them for a split second longer before returning under the water and moving closer to Gaea.
Frank grabbed the boat's ropes and started pulling them away from the Sea Witch. He counted who was left and quickly faltered. "Wait." He stared at them. "If the three of you are here… And Reyna and Annabeth are out in the water… then where's Leo?"
As if on cue, a roar loud enough to match the thunder echoed across the sky. Festus the Dragon came zooming past the lifeboat, heading straight towards Gaea's back. Leo tried to squint through the rain to scan the water below him. "Any sign of her?" he asked Festus. A series of clicks and whirrs was his answer. After a moment, Leo pointed to a spot further away from the chaos. "There!"
Calypso had just surfaced from a barrage of giant waves that had pushed her away from her intended target. She barely had time to comprehend her new location when Leo swooped out of the sky and picked her up out of the water. "Ah! Leo!" She gripped the boy for dear life, refusing to look at how high they were flying. "What are you doing?!"
"Bringing you closer to the action, what do you think?" He smirked as Festus made a U-turn, charging toward Gaea again. "I'll drop you off at a nice spot where you can stab this lady a million times with the dagger that is currently very close to my body, and Festus and I will spray her with fire to stop her from using that trident." He pointed at Calypso, "That is, assuming her using the trident is a bad thing."
The mermaid stared at him through the sheets of rain, wondering how this could possibly be her life. "You are both irritatingly smart and incredibly crazy."
"Why, thank you."
Gaea started moving before they got to her. She lowered the pointed end of the trident into the water. "The sea and all its spoils," her voice boomed across the waves, consuming the space that wasn't filled with rain and thunder, "bow to my power!" She rotated the weapon around, creating a commanding current that spun endless gallons of water around and around. It grew in size and stretched to the bottom of the ocean, exposing several eroded rock formations. She willed it to build its strength, expanding into an enormous whirlpool.
Half buried on the seafloor, several shipwrecks shuttered under the force of the new current. Their weathered wood planks shook, coming loose where they were wedged in the sand. They started to drift up, the circular current carrying them higher and higher to the surface. One by one, they breached the water and circled the battleground.
Percy quickly moved out of their paths. He found one of the newly exposed rocks and clung to it, knowing that if he tried to leave the edge of the circle he'd likely be shredded to pieces. He suddenly regretted his earlier wish to be able to explore shipwrecks again. He tried to spot Annabeth through the chaos. The trident had left a trail of light in the water when it created the whirlpool, allowing him to pick out figures among the risen ship graveyard.
He saw Annabeth at the surface, trying to swim away from the powerful current. A ship quickly caught up to her and caused a wave to consume her body. Percy's knuckles turned white on the rock. "Annabeth…"
Under the water, Thalia had also been sucked in. The mermaid weaved between the debris and ships, searching for a way out. Then she nearly swam straight into the Princess. Annabeth had been grappling at the ropes under the ship that'd overcome her, trying to get a grip and pull herself out of the water. Thalia quickly realized what she was doing and helped her get a steady hold on the vessel. She pushed on Annabeth's back while she pulled her body out of the water.
Annabeth made an attempt to flick her hair out of her face. Despite it being pulled back in a ponytail, several strands fell in front of her eyes. She looked down at Thalia in the water. "Thank you."
Thalia gave her a thumbs up before ducking back under the surface. Annabeth turned her attention to the large vessel she was attached to and started climbing. She pulled herself over the rail and rolled onto the deck. She stood up and tried to gather her bearings. Suddenly, she found herself wishing she had more time to take in the history of the ship. But her duty to protect her friends and her people came first. She started for the steering wheel.
Gaea didn't notice her movements. She was focused on Percy, who still clung to his rock for dear life, praying none of the ships would steer into his hiding spot.
Leo urged Festus to speed up. He quickly scanned the waves around Gaea, trying to find the best spot for Calypso to do damage and not get herself hurt. The mermaid beat him to it.
"There." She pointed to the base of the closest tentacle. "I can hit up more surface area if I go to a spot where two tentacles connect."
He was hesitant, but Leo obliged. He dipped down and felt Calypso loosen her grip on him. He looked her in the eyes, their figures illuminated by the trident's glow. "Be careful."
She matched his smirk from earlier, but for a brief moment, something soft flashed across her face. "That's what I was going to tell you."
Then she leaped off the dragon, plunging into the water. Leo turned his head to look at the scene. He was at Gaea's back, so she didn't have eyes on him. Reyna was running up one of the tentacles, Nico in the water beside her. At the tentacle next to Calypso's, Jason zipped around with extreme precision. Leo watched as he moved along the flailing limb. His swimming was exactly what a merman warrior's should have been. But something was off.
Each time the tentacle got close, he moved out of the way at the last second. As if he were trying not to get too close but still was. And when he slashed at it, his aim only seemed halfway there. Leo thought it looked like he was trying to hit something that was farther away than he anticipated. Like he was having a hard time seeing what he was trying to fight…
A spark when off in Leo's brain, but it had to wait. Gaea had started her next move.
The Sea Witch aimed the trident at Percy's body, ready to send a beam to end him permanently, when Festus flew higher up and blasted her back with fire. The sudden shock of heat caused Gaea to flinch, blasting the rock Percy was on instead of the merman. He was thrown off and tumbled down through the water, landing roughly on the bottom of the ocean.
He forced himself up on his elbows, his arms shaking. He looked up through the whirlpool, Gaea's face visibly furious that she'd been attacked. He could barely make out flashes of light that were too yellow to be lightning. It had to be Leo and Festus. He reached to draw his sword, but realized there was no use. He was too far down to attack. He hoped everyone else was close enough to make a difference.
As Leo attacked from the sky, Calypso, Reyna, Jason, and Nico slashed at Gaea's tentacles. Each time one was struck with their weapons, it flinched and tried to chase them away. Reyna's stamina was tested as she tried to hold on and fight the surface she was standing on. Nico followed Reyna's path and attacked as best he could, hoping he was making a difference. Jason sliced, almost blindly, at every piece of Gaea that came his way. Calypso stabbed at the underside of the tentacles.
Frank notched an arrow and shot at the tentacles any time one started to come too close to the boat. When he first started, his aim was off. And Will noticed. "Are you okay, Frank?"
He looked back at Will. "Yeah, I just- it's different, not shooting through the water. It's easier, actually, but I keep-" he fired, hitting Gaea higher than intended. Not bad, but not where he wanted. "I keep anticipating more tension, but shooting through the air doesn't require as much force." He fired again, finally hitting his intended mark. He continued pulling the humans away from the battle.
Hazel nearly made Frank drop the ropes when she managed to wheeze out a thought. "You're good at it." She squinted at him through the rain. "If you stayed above the water and trained with our guards, you'd have the best aim. Even better than Will."
Frank stared back at her for a long moment, briefly forgetting about what was going on around them. He had to force himself to fully understand what she'd just said. "Um…" He shook his head, looking away from her and facing Will. "You can use a bow?"
"I, uh…" He shrugged. "I've dabbled. Right now, I wish I'd brought one to the wedding instead of an emergency medical kit."
A loud explosion echoed behind them.
Piper wiped the rain out of her eyes. "Um, maybe we should talk about this later."
"Right." Frank turned away from Gaea, dread returning to fill his stomach. "Watch my back. I'm gonna get us out of here."
A few hundred feet away, Annabeth continued to run across the deck of the unsunken ship. She was forced to wade through water every time a giant wave came crashing over the side. But she pushed on, eventually reaching the wheel. From her view, there was no denying it.
The ship had a broken, jagged bowsprit. Just what she needed. She gave the wheel a vicious yank, praying that it would still work. Then the ship started turning.
Yes.
Gaea still failed to notice Annabeth's actions. She swatted Festus away with one of her tentacles before aiming her glowing trident down at Percy, making another attempt to eliminate the Prince. She fired a blast, forcing Percy to roll over to dodge her attack. Gaea pressed her lips together and willed the trident to glow again.
Piper and Will (unlike Gaea) didn't fail to notice their enemy's actions. "He's in trouble," Piper stated. She started rummaging around in the boat. "Will- where do they keep the emergency harpoons?"
"Wait, Pipes, just let Frank-"
"Found it!" She lifted it up, holding the shaft with both hands. She sat up on her knees and aimed at the closest tentacle. "If these penetrate as deep as they're supposed to…" She fired the weapon.
They watched as it hit its mark, causing Gaea to flinch and miss her target again. She gave a frustrated grunt. "You think you and your little friends can stop me?" She gave an evil cackle, aiming at Percy again.
Annabeth managed to steer the ship closer. She angled the broken bowsprit at Gaea, the whirlpool's current and the gusting wind propelling the ship at high speed.
Almost there.
Gaea raised the trident, grinning viciously down at the trapped Prince. "So much for true love!"
Annabeth gave the wheel one last yank, and the bowsprit ran straight through Gaea's torso. The Sea Witch gave a blood-curdling scream as the boat impaled her. Every fiber of her body felt as if it had been lit on fire. Her tentacles curled up in pain. Her eyes grew wide before rolling back into her head.
Reyna leaped into the water as the tentacles wrapped themselves around Annabeth's boat. The Princess sprinted to the far end, away from Gaea, and jumped into the water, nearly avoiding being crushed to death by the tangled mess of appendages. The merpeople that had been attacking the Sea Witch hurried away from her writhing body.
The storm started to fizzle out, its remaining energy sent back down into the trident that summoned it, electrifying Gaea's weakened body. She slumped over the ship and sank down into the ocean, where her essence drained away and her body dissolved into a clump of seafoam and bubbles.
The whirlpool lost its strength and released Percy from his temporary prison. He hurried to the surface.
From the shore, Mellie, Hedge, Chiron, and the rest of Atlantica's royal family and staff watched as the remnants of evil disappeared into the ocean. All that was left was a cloud of billowing smoke rising into the air like a defeated inferno. It reeked of charred flesh and fish.
Now free of tentacle threats, Frank continued to pull the boat of humans toward land. He was quickly joined by Jason and Nico, the latter concerned yet relieved to see Hazel alive but on the brink of passing out from severe seasickness.
Calypso and Thalia had regrouped and found Annabeth and Reyna in the water. They flagged Leo down to carry the girls back to shore on Festus. Then they followed the others to safety.
Do y'all know… how COMPLEX writing this chapter was? I had to make a LIST of what I needed to cover in it. I'm talking bullet points for my bullet points.
Geez, I hope all that work paid off.
Anyway, again, the world is in chaos right now, so I truly hope all of you are doing well! Please stay safe and healthy! I'm sending my best wishes! 3
~Reader4ever1
