I love this chapter so much- Percy gets to really shine, she's a sarcastic little shit and we love that for her. Also- I love how it ended- you'll see.
Replies:
Undeath9087: Don't worry, it won't last long, and I think it's actually pretty fun. We all love Percy's sass.
Guest: Oh there are definite perks- as shown in this chapter, as for her reunion with them, well you'll see. It'll be explosive though.
Percy wasn't sure how long she'd been tied up- Desjardin's had used some enchanted rope that would stop her from using magic to bind her to the chair, so even when the spell had worn off she was still trapped- and he'd kept pushing her for answers, Percy had just sat glowering at him for what felt like a lifetime until the magicians who had been chasing after Carter and Sadie returned- Desjardin's had left the room then and Percy looked around, her eyes narrowing as she tried to think of a way out- she couldn't use magic- she didn't have her khopesh- it wasn't like she could reach into the Duat for it.
She was truly stuck- it was well beyond annoying.
So she sat, desperately trying to think of some way to escape- she wasn't sure how long Desjardin's was gone for, but she was getting very uncomfortable by the time he returned- her head was pounding from where she'd bashed it on the floor, and her arms were rubbed raw from the ropes that had been tied just that bit too tight.
The look on the mans face was stormy to say the least, and he prowled towards her, looking like he would very much enjoy tearing her to shreds. "You will tell me where they are going or you will suffer greatly."
"No." Percy put on her best brave face and raised an eyebrow at the other Magician, "You'd think you're the one who banged your head not me- do you have like, memory issues 'cause I think a goldfish has a better memory than you if you keep forgetting that I keep saying no-" Percy didn't get to finish what she was saying because the back of Desjardin's hand hit her face hard, her head snapped to the side, the cracking sound of it loud in the relative quiet of the library- Percy's face felt hot- throbbing almost from the force of the blow- and she could taste blood.
"You will stop with your jokes and sarcasm child. I take no pleasure in this but the situation is serious. They must be apprehended and dealt with. Godlings cannot be allowed to live- but if you tell me what they are planning I will pardon you child- you're a skilled magician I am sure that if you learn the err-" and Desjardins head snapped backwards, a horrified look on his face as a glob of bloody saliva dripped down his cheek from just below his eye, right where Percy had aimed it.
"Hitting a nine year old, real brave. You're a real man huh?"
He pressed his lips together into a thin line, "You have no magic now girl- this defiance is foolish in the extreme you must realise that- you're nothing." he sneered the words- and Percy felt something stirring in the back of her mind.
You may not have magic, but you do have something else little Half-blood.
And Percy had to force herself not to grin when she thought that- it would have been painful if she did so she didn't want to grin anyways.
And she closed her eyes, focusing as hard as she could- ignoring Desjardins voice as he tried to provoke her into responding- and it took her several minutes but soon she could feel the water in the house- flowing through pipes- the very plumbing itself- and she let herself smirk slightly as she opened her eyes. "Desjardins?"
"What?" the man leaned forward, "What girl, will you tell me now?"
"I think you're gonna need a plumber." and then the whole house shook as the water burst from all of the pipes, Desjardins stumbled at the force of the shaking, his eyes going wide.
"What have you done?!"
And there was the rushing roaring sound of water beneath them, and Percy rocked her chair forward before pushing backwards, forcing it off balance- and she was very proud of the fact that she didn't cry out when her head once again crashed into the ground- and the chair itself shattered at the rough landing, which gave Percy room to move, scrambling to her feet, even as the roaring of the water got louder and Desjardins surged towards her, grabbing the front of her linen shirt.
"What have you done? How?!"
"I'm good at water." Percy gave a bloody smirk- and then the water was crashing through the hall leading to the library, exploding through the doors and smashing into the two magicians- but where Desjardins was knocked off his feet and tossed into the chaotic flow of the water Percy wasn't, it rushed over her and she could feel the pain in her head and face fading away as she managed to squirm her way out of the ropes and surge through the water, it was pushing Desjardins away from her, making sure he couldn't follow as she made it out of the library and into the hall.
She didn't even falter, rushing down the wet stairs, nearly tripping in her haste as she sprinted through the building- the only real problem was the fact that Percy didn't know her way around but she knew that her best chance was to get to the bottom floor of the mansion so she focused on following the stairs until she burst into an entrance hall, and that was soaked through, the whole house was a real state.
Percy was not even remotely sorry for that as she sprinted towards the door, shoulder barging it open and staggering outside- there were a few magicians out there- but they'd all been panicking over the noise and the ground shaking so they weren't exactly ready for a nine year old bursting through the door- and by the time they pulled themselves together enough to try and take off after her the water was gushing out from behind her and knocking them all over as she willed it- and she ran, she sprinted away from the house, her heart pounding in her chest as she just ran, sprinting up to the wrought iron fence- which was shut. Okay. Okay Percy knew better than to panic, she could do this she could get out of this- she focused as she ran, closing her eyes tightly and picturing a hawk- she wasn't wrapped in the ropes now anymore- and then she was transforming, and she opened her eyes as she flapped her wings, soaring into the air, letting out a victorious shriek as she did- leaving the stunned soaking magicians far below her.
She didn't stop until she was a good distance away, gliding downwards when she saw the river Seine again, landing on a bridge over the river and turning back, stumbling slightly when she did- she might not have felt tired before but it was starting to hit her now.
She wasn't sure if it was from the use of her demigodly powers or if it was overuse of her magic but she gripped the edge of the bridge to steady herself, biting her lip hard as she leaned over and looked down at the water of the river.
Carter, Sadie and Bast were gone. They'd escaped- and she was happy about that. She really was- but what was she supposed to do? She had no clue where they'd go next- oh she knew their final destination but she had no clue where they'd have escaped too, what route they'd take to get there.
So what was the best plan?
Percy pressed her lips together, mind racing as she considered things before she took a deep breath.
Her first priority would be getting out of Paris.
She wasn't great at portals but- Percy nodded to herself, thrusting her hand into the duat- she'd almost definitely be tired after this but she knew how to do it- she pulled out her wand, crouching down and slowly drawing a glowing hieroglyph with her wand- a familiar one. A boat, just like Amos had drawn what felt like a lifetime ago in London- and Percy almost sobbed when she saw a reed
boat bobbling gently in the water below her.
It was smaller than the one they'd used then of course- but that wasn't a problem since it was only her- and she didn't even hesitate, leaping over the edge of the bridge and dropping into the cold water- Percy let out a bubble of laughter as she sunk into it, before she burst upwards through the surface, hauling herself onto her boat as she willed herself dry, and she relaxed in the glow of the warm torches even as she willed the boat to move- and she she felt the dizzying wave of tiredness even as the boat surged forward with a shocking speed, the lights of Paris burred and then Percy was surrounded by the thick fog that she knew meant she was travelling through the duat. Percy staggered to her feet, she didn't feel wobbly because of the sailing but from sheer overwhelming exhaustion- and then after what felt like a lifetime but was probably not any longer than half an hour or so the boat suddenly slowed.
The noises stopped and the fog dissipated- and Percy let out a slow breath as she stared at familiar surroundings.
She hadn't been sure where she even wanted to go but clearly the boat had followed some deep instinctual desire because Percy could see the Chrysler building and the Empire State Building in the distance.
She was on the East River, sailing up it as they passed right under the Williamsburg Bridge.
And when the boat glided to a stop next to a small dock on the Brooklyn side of the river Percy looked past the industrial yard, straight up towards Brooklyn House- it looked like a wreck, burned out- but at least it was some kind of shelter for an hour while Percy figured out what she was going to do next.
So she moved towards the metal steps that would lead up to the building, each step made her feel more drained, more heavy and Percy found her head drooping, she had to focus on where she was putting her feet so that she didn't fall- of course that wasn't that helpful because her vision was going kind of fuzzy.
It seemed the water had only been a temporary fix- the day had been long even if it wasn't that far into the day- and it had been terrifying and stressful, Percy honestly felt even worse than she had after the British museum.
Thankfully she hadn't made it up too many steps when her foot slipped and she went tumbling down them- though she still groaned as she blinked up at the rather cloudy looking sky above her when she rolled onto her back after the fall.
Honestly her whole body was aching. This sucked- she was on her own, there was no one to help her, she was alone and she was weak and there was nothing she could do- she couldn't protect Sadie and Carter, she couldn't save their dad or Amos- she felt hot tears spilling out despite her best efforts. She was a failure- she'd failed her dad, she'd failed Carter she'd failed Sadie she'd failed everyone.
And then she heard footsteps, pounding down the metal stairs- she didn't bother to lift her head, it was probably Khufu- and as much as she liked the monkey she wasn't exactly in the mood to explain what had happened to him.
Then she heard a voice- a familiar voice.
"PERCY! Percy! Percy my baby-" and Percy's head snapped up and she pushed herself up onto her elbows, her gaze focusing on the woman rapidly descending the steps.
Mom. It was her mom! Percy managed to get to her feet, the tears coming much faster suddenly, and then Sally was at the bottom of the metal stairs, her arms wrapping tightly around Percy, and Percy gripped her moms shirt, sobbing loudly as she pressed her face into the woman's chest.
"Mom- mommy I-"
"It's okay baby." Sally's voice was familiar, soothing, though it was slightly hoarse, "It's going to be okay baby mommy's here. You're safe now. Where's Carter and Sadie?"
"T-they-" Percy let out a choked little sob, "We were in Paris- we- we got separated and I don't know where they are, I was stuck in Paris but I summoned a boat and I came here and- and I don't know where they are and I promised, I promised I'd protect them mommy I promised daddy-"
"Hey- hey now-" Sally pressed her lips to the top of Percy's head, "Breath baby. It's going to be just fine I promise you." her fingers soothed through Percy's hair, "We're going to find Sadie and Carter and everything is going to be fine. We'll find them sweetie. I swear to you we'll find them."