Percy POV
Thalia pulled an epic rockstar move. She swung her black guitar into the wall. The wood splintered and the strings snapped. Thalia let out her anger like a literal pregnant rockstar.
The others weren't having the same level of success.
It was just so difficult to destroy the things that we loved. My mother gave me my encyclopedia, and I didn't have the heart to rip the pages. So far, only Thalia, Will, and Rachel managed to destroy their items, yet a half-hour had already passed.
"Seaweed Brain," Annabeth whispered. I turned towards her storming eyes. Her face was so expressive with sad emotions. "Um, I'll help you if you help me with this."
I gazed at her extended hand. She was giving me her diary. Annabeth couldn't destroy it herself, but she knew that it had to be destroyed.
I hesitantly took her diary before giving her my encyclopedia. We were quietly sitting on her bed. My muscles were tense as I stared at our books. I couldn't believe that we were doing this.
"We don't have a choice, do we?" I asked quietly.
Annabeth simply shook her head.
"I can't destroy my diary, Percy, and you're having trouble with your book. We can help each other out during this phase even though I regret it so much," Annabeth said.
I nodded as Annabeth took my book and distanced herself from me. Honestly, she had the right idea. I didn't want to see my encyclopedia getting ripped.
I noticed Rachel closely watching my and Annabeth's interaction.
I sighed before opening Annabeth's diary. Her handwriting was neat and organized. I regretfully started to rip the book apart. The pages scattered along the floor. The seal of the diary tore as the book fell apart.
The diary dropped to the floor. The deed was done.
I watched Annabeth slowly rip the pages of my encyclopedia. She cautiously tossed the components of my destroyed book into the trashcan.
"Are you okay, Percy?" Rachel asked softly.
"Yeah, I'm fine, Rachel. It was just a book, right?" I said sadly. My mom gave me that book as a symbol of my love for the ocean and swimming.
"You asked Annabeth to help you with this task. You guys are very close, aren't you?" Rachel asked.
"Yeah, we are," I replied instinctually. Then, I looked at Rachel's face to notice the sadness in her eyes. "Rachel, I'm sorry if that's the wrong thing to say."
"No, it's all right. Annabeth is very nice and intelligent," she whispered.
I sighed before nudging her shoulder comfortingly.
"Rachel, we are all friends. You are one of my best friends here, and we've definitely gotten closer. However, with Wise Girl, it's just different. I feel different with her compared to everyone else in my life," I said genuinely.
Rachel smiled as she looked at my face.
"Your nicknames for each other are so cute. You guys are so cute and strong together. You don't need to explain your feelings to me. I understand. She's very lucky," Rachel responded as her smile only grew.
I smiled back at my friend. This was one of the many reasons why Rachel was such a great and supportive friend. I saw something more in her since the day I met her, and I was correct. Rachel was an amazingly understanding friend.
Honestly, I wasn't completely sure about my feelings for Annabeth. However, I knew that my feelings were strong, deep, and not platonic.
"It's done, Percy," Annabeth told me.
I nodded in approval before walking towards Jason. I didn't want to think about my encyclopedia right now.
"This has to be done, Jason," I expressed quietly. I rubbed his back as Jason pressed the sharp metal against his football. It immediately deflated.
"I'm fine, Perce. It's just a signed football. Thanks though," Jason said.
Thalia came and replaced my spot on Jason's bed. Since Thalia made the revelation that Jason was her little brother, she spent a lot more time with him. It was very sweet actually that something good came out of Elysium kidnapping us.
Annabeth and I still had no clue what personal connection Jason and Thalia held with Elysium. My intuition told me that they were related to someone in Elysium. Beyond that, I had no viable answers.
As time passed, more personal items got destroyed.
However, Luke refused to destroy his watch. Elysium provided him with a vintage watch that looked like a woman's watch. Maybe, it was a family member's watch.
"Luke, this is the only way for you to survive. At the end of the day, it's just a watch. Please destroy it," Piper acknowledged. Piper, Hazel, and Frank were trying to convince Luke to do the right thing. As much as they disapproved of Luke's personality, they didn't want him to die.
I wasn't sure how I felt about Luke refusing to destroy his watch. While he could've been deeply attached to his watch, he needed to destroy it. Everyone else managed to destroy their items. Also, considering Luke was all about survival, his refusal to not pass this phase was quite strange and weird.
It felt like Luke was playing some game.
"I'M NOT DESTROYING IT," Luke exclaimed. "Let them come and get me. I don't care."
Luke stormed towards the door as he waited. Piper and Hazel continued to try and convince him, but it was useless. We only had about two minutes left. Luke stood adamantly in front of the door and waited for the guards.
As soon as the timer hit zero, a dozen guards barged into the room.
I shot to my feet in alarm. Piper and Hazel yelped as they ran back. Half of the guards were aiming their guns at us.
The other six guards were detaining Luke. Luke was fighting back as hard as he can, but there was a hesitation in his actions. It was as if he was only displaying a fight rather than actually fighting for his life. Finally, one guard pulled out a taser and zapped Luke in the neck.
Everyone gasped as Luke crumbled to the floor.
The guard kept tasing Luke with electricity even as he lay on the ground. Luke's body didn't move. His chest wasn't rising and falling. His head was lulled to one side, and his blue eyes were still open.
The guards were quick to drag Luke's body out of Sector 3. Maybe, he wasn't connected to Elysium like I thought he was. After all, the guards just killed Luke in front of our eyes.
I guess that I was wrong about Luke.
Regardless, we lost yet another person, and it was quite upsetting.
...
It was the next day, but everyone was still in shock by Luke's death. They killed him via electricity right in front of us. In my opinion, Luke barely even fought them.
The eleven of us were eating in the cafeteria. The food today was quite bland and ordinary. Or, maybe, it just felt bland in our mouths.
"Guys, I know that we're all shocked, but I think that we have to give Leo's device a shot. We need to at least try and escape," Will said quietly.
"Honestly, I agree. We need to attempt our escape before they discover Leo's device."
"Leo, are you confident about the gadget?" Annabeth asked.
Everyone's attention turned towards Leo. If his technological device worked, we owed him a lot. I couldn't wait to test Leo's skills.
"I am as confident as an engineer using spare parts and zero trial can be. As such, I'd say that I am 62.53% confident," Leo expressed. He tried and failed at lightening the mood.
"That's not very confident," Frank stated flatly.
Leo simply shrugged before silence took over. None of us were that confident, but we did have faith in Leo. If anyone could figure out a technological escape, it was Leo. Besides, we wouldn't get anything from simply waiting around.
Everyone was thinking the same thing.
"Guys, I say that we should go for it. Tonight," Jason said firmly.
We all agreed on the plan. We would sneak out of the bedroom tonight after the lights went out. I was sure that they could still watch us. However, logic dictated that Elysium would be less attentive and secure at night than during the day.
As soon as we finished dinner, we silently started packing a few bags.
According to Nico and Annabeth, we were located in an isolated area of Arkansas. We might need resources during our escape and our hike away from Elysium.
Of course, Nico and Annabeth proposed the idea of packing some resources without mentioning their history with Elysium.
Honestly, I understood their hesitation to tell everyone. We had no clue how anyone would react, especially since group cohesion is important for escape.
Even I reacted poorly after Annabeth's admission, and it took me a few days to adapt.
We didn't have that kind of time now.
Everyone was praying that Leo's device would work, and we would escape. Of course, even if the device worked, it was only the first step. We'd still have to find a hidden and secure way out of Elysium. Then, we'd have to travel through the woods to a safe location. Yup, there were a lot of variables that we couldn't account for.
An hour after the lights went out, we all snuck out of the bedroom. The pool door was (of course) open, so we snuck into the pool room.
I led them to the wall between the two Olympics posters.
Leo immediately stepped in front of me and pressed his device against the wall. A small green light flashed on the device. Leo set up the light to the gadget by using a component of a toy that Frank received.
"Bro, no wonder you spent so many hours staring at this wall," Jason expressed quietly. "You were trying to find a way out."
I nodded as I looked around. Since the lights were off, I couldn't see everyone's faces. Also, shadows were falling and masking everyone's features.
Regardless, everyone seemed hopeful. I was grateful for the people that currently surrounded me. I appreciated each one of them greatly. They all played some sort of important role in our group.
Suddenly, the green light turned red.
Leo froze before looking at the rest of us. His face showed conflicting emotions (like he couldn't believe what happened).
"Leo, is everything all right?" I asked.
"Yeah, um, I just confirmed that the first purpose of my device works. Right across this section of the wall is where the door's electric panel is," Leo informed.
Thalia smiled as she patted Leo's back.
"We're all very proud of you, Leo. Now, it's time to test the important part of your creation. Let's fry the panel and kick this door down," Thalia said firmly.
I smiled at Thalia's enthusiasm. She was rubbing her pregnant belly as she waited for Leo to continue.
Leo turned to the wall and hovered his finger over the button.
We all sucked in a breath as Leo pressed the button.
I was holding my breath for the several seconds that followed. Nothing happened. Absolutely nothing happened. Everyone frowned, and Piper reassuringly rubbed Leo's back.
"It's all right, Leo. It was a long shot anyway," Piper said sadly. Everyone was disappointed, but no one wanted to make Leo feel bad.
Rachel and Will sighed as they turned away from the wall.
Suddenly, the red light on Leo's device turned green again. Leo froze as he retracted the device before turning to the group.
"Guys, I think that it worked. The device is no longer detecting an electric panel at all. I think that I deactivated it," Leo said with a huge smile.
Jason, Frank, and I immediately stepped towards the wall.
We clasped the thin line along the middle of the wall. The doors functioned like elevator doors, which we could pry open now since the doors were disabled.
It was mostly Frank that pushed the doors apart.
The wall creaked and groaned as we pulled it apart.
"Leo, you freaking genius," Thalia exclaimed as she hugged him.
All the girls practically cuddled Leo, and he certainly didn't seem to mind. The smile on his face was huge as he absorbed the compliments.
Meanwhile, Jason and I leaned against the wall doors to keep them open.
I gazed into the dark hallway. It looked like a tunnel of complete darkness. Literally, I couldn't see a few feet in front of me.
"It's a little daunting," Jason expressed as he looked into the hallway. Everyone surrounded the entrance and gulped in nervousness.
"Um, ladies first," I attempted.
The girls started at me flatly before we looked into the dark hallway. No one wanted to go in, but this was our route to escape. I sucked in a breath and stepped forward.
One step changed everything.
LIGHTS FLASHED AROUND US. Yellow light flooded out of the hallway and nearly blinded me. I covered my eyes quickly as did everyone else.
So much for a possible escape, I thought sadly.
When our eyes readjusted, no one was expecting the visual in front of us. The shock was clear on my face. Everyone had similar emotions as we slowly raised our arms to surrender.
The hallway already had several guards positioned. They were standing in an offensive position with their guns raised at our heads. However, the surprising part was the person in the middle.
Luke Castellan was wearing all white (similar to the leaders of Elysium).
He had a pistol aimed directly at my head.
...