To anyone else, the trip to Atlantis would be uneventful, boring even. But to Percy, it was pure nerve wreaking. Rumor had spread throughout the people of Athens, and he got a similar send off as he did in Olympus, which was just embarrassing. He literally wanted to climb into a hole and hide, but there he was, atop Blackjack, the famous stallion, without even a helmet to hide behind, for everyone to ogle at. He would have been relieved to finally get out of the city, except, Amphitrite had other things in mind. The rest of the trip was spent giving him a crash course on how to greet each member of royalty that would be greeting them when they arrived. It was basically the same greeting, but each one had a different preference about the greeting. The hardest part was trying to remember all the names. By the time they finally reached Atlantis, Percy was sure he was going to screw up. Thankfully, word had not reached Atlantis that they had a new prince as no one gave him a second thought as they traveled through the streets. They acknowledged the king and queen, but didn't give him a second look, which actually, was a bit of a relief. Atlantis looked dull compared to Athens, but it also looked strong. Everything was built from sturdy grey rocks locked together. The palace looked more like a fortress. It wasn't fancy like Athens or Olympus', but emphasized more on functionality and strength. The carriage pulled up to the palace steps. The staff was lined up as well as several men dressed in fine clothes that Percy assumed were the royals he had to greet properly. King Poseidon exited the carriage first, then helped Queen Amphitrite down. Queen Amphitrite Looked at Percy, who realized he was to dismount. Percy suddenly realized a serious problem.
Poseidon held out a hand toward Percy and announced, "This is my son and heir, Perseus Jackson. I trust he will be warmly received and aided in anything he may need."
Amphitrite raised an eyebrow at Percy, and he took that as his cue. "It is an honor to meet you all, I look forward to serving Atlantis." He repeated the words Amphitrite had him memorize.
No one responded, but everyone was staring. He was starting to get that uncomfortable feeling again. Poseidon cleared his throat and said, "Well, shall we go in, and give you the grand tour." Poseidon and Amphitrite started to walk up the stairs. Percy looked back at Tyson, worriedly. "Ah, yes. Don't worry about Tyson. George will take care of him."
A young man took off Blackjacks saddlebags. It was the whole of his possessions, and he felt strangely naked with out them as they were taken away. Another young man approached Blackjack, who immediately reared up. Percy immediately intervened. "Woah. Hey, I know that this is all new, but I'm sure it's going to be alright." Blackjack still looked unsatisfied. Percy looked apologetically to Poseidon and Amphitrite "Sorry, but if I don't take him to the stables, he'll throw a fit. He just needs time to adjust. I'll be right back."
The royals began murmuring among themselves. "You won't know the way." Poseidon worried. "You two, go with him." He pointed toward two soldiers.
A bulky young man with a baby face and a short girl stepped forward and saluted, "Yes, sir."
"I'll be fine." Percy muttered as he motioned for the stable boy to lead the way. He suddenly felt like his father was treating him like he was incompetent. The two soldiers, followed at a safe distance behind the stallion. Percy walked beside the stallion, more for companionship than anything else. Once they reached the stables, Percy got Blackjack settled. "Please don't cause any trouble." Percy pleaded with the stallion as he unsaddled him.
"He's so handsome." The young man stared longingly at Blackjack as he held out an apple.
"I suppose." Percy said as he glared at the horse.
Blackjack sniffed at the apple then snorted at it. The young man's face fell.
"Give him time. He was hurt really bad. It takes him a while to warm up to new people. But, I'll give you a tip. Just before our ride in the morning, he likes it when I give him sweets."
"Sweets?!" The young man's face lit up.
"Not too much, and only before his ride, or he'll tear down the stalls."
The boy nodded excitedly. Percy got Blackjack some food, and left him happily munching on oats.
The two soldiers that had been ordered to follow him were still waiting. "Well, lead the way."
They saluted, turned sharply, and began walking back the way they had come. Once he had met back up with Poseidon, Amphitrite and the other royals, the introductions began. Percy struggled to remember names. Most of the time he just smiled and nodded. They did a tour of the palace, which Percy swore was larger than Athen's, but smaller than Olympus, if not the same size. Once the tour was over, dinner was served. It was the longest meal he had ever had. One strange course after another, filled with awkward conversation, mostly about things he had no clue about, until the subject took a turn for the worst, about him.
"So Perseus, who exactly was your mother?" A blond man with a thin frame asked. Percy thought his name was Octaveus, but he wasn't sure.
Percy flushed at the question. "Sally Jackson."
"Oh, right, the cook. She made some delicious desserts." His gaze lingered on Poseidon. Poseidon and Amphitrite looked away uncomfortably. "I'm sure that this is all new to you, having never stepped into a palace before, but feel free to come to me with any questions you may have."
"Sure." Percy said half-heartedly.
"In fact, why don't I show you around the kingdom. I know Poseidon will be eager to groom you into his role, but, he has been away for some time and will busy with matteres of state that urgently needs to be addressed."
"That's a good idea." Poseidon grinned.
"Um, okay." Not that he had much choice at this point."
"Marvelous. You will soon learn why Atlantis is more powerful than Olympus." Octaveus grinned.
Percy was relieved when dinner finally ended. He was led to his room, where two guards stood outside. Now he knew how Annabeth felt. The room was huge. With a large bed against one wall, a wardrobe against another, and a desk against another. A few couches littered the room. Percy spotted his mother's recipe box on the large desk, looking old and dirty compared to all of the other imaculate decorations. The room opened up to a balcony, that looked out over all of Atlantis, and in the distance, the harbor and the sea glittered in the moonlight. It was an amazing sight, and at the moment, extremely intimidating. Percy was just about to change for bed when he heard the unmistakable whinny of Blackjack. He sighed and walked out of the room. He amazingly found his way to the stables to see the young stable hand pleading to someone inside the stables. "No don't! He's the stallion, you can't do that! Prince Perseus said . . ."
"I don't care, want that bastard said. This horse needs a lesson in manners." A gruf, slurred voice growled.
Percy hurried to the stables where to his horror, a fat man who smelt of alcohol raised a whip in his hand. Blackjack reared up. Percy reacted quickly as he drew his sword, cut the whip, and pointed his sword threateningly at the man. The man's eyes widened as he followed the sword's point to Percy's angry face. "What do you think you are doing?"
"That stallion tried to bite me." He tried to sound brave, but with Percy's sword at his throat it sounded like a whimper.
"You have ten seconds to leave before I end you miserable life." Percy growled. The man backed slowly away. "And if you are ever near Blackjack again, I'll follow up on that promise." The man put a hand to his neck before turning and running out of the stables.
"Your highness! I tried to tell him." The stable boy worried.
Percy approached Blackjack, who was still riled up, but began to calm down as Percy stroked his coat. "Hey, it's okay. He's gone. Who was that?" Percy asked the boy.
"Larry. He's in charge of all the Kings stables. I told him that the stallion didn't like people, but he insisted on having a closer look."
"Is he always drunk?" Percy asked.
The boy looked down, but didn't say anything.
Percy sighed. "Next time, notify me immediately if Blackjack is ever upset."
"Yes, your highness." The boy took that as his cue to leave."
"Not the best beginning." Percy stroked Blackjack checking for injuries. He knew his shoulder was still bruised, but now he had a couple of cuts, one across his snout, and one across his front leg. Blackjack snorted in reply. Percy decided against leaving Blackjack for the night, so he fluffed up some extra hay to make a bed and made himself comfortable. Blackjack settled down next to him, and soon Percy's thoughts turned toward Annabeth, wondering if she was alright and if he would ever see her again. He went over their last discussion of finding out how the rivalry began. He would have to make a point of that tomorrow. Percy's last conscious thoughts were remembering the feeling of Annabeth in his arms and solely his even if for just a moment. He wanted that feeling forever.