Rage of a Demigod
AN: Hello there, my dear readers. Once again I give you a new chapter of Rage of a Demigod, and this one longer than the last one. Hope you enjoy!
Now to reviews.
Gamelover41592: Considering they've been to the actual Hell, I'm not sure about that.
Ol Faithful: Thank you.
jaffa3: I'm glad you're on board. No pun intended.
Smaug666: Thanks!
RedHood001: Well, I honestly think that Blackbeard was underutilized in the series. I mean, you'd think that someone like bloody Blackbeard would be a bigger deal, especially since he is a demigod.
And I think that if they just brought Percy and the others to the place where Marcus is would a bit too soon.
15 I HATE Pirates!
How long were they rowing? Honestly, Percy couldn't tell. It could have been minutes; it could have been hours or even days. The room they were in was dark but illuminated by several lanterns, and he didn't have a good look outside to tell. All that he knew was that his arms felt really sore. The constant pushing and pulling, the sound of wood creaking, the feeling of muscles aching, not to mention the bloody metal belt around his stomach didn't make things any easier.
And he was really starting to hate the sound of drums.
A crack of a whip soon followed, the sound followed by a grunt as Thomas struck another slave. That was the pirate's thing. If you 'slack off' even a little bit, then you can expect to be struck with a whip. Sometimes it seemed he just did it out of his own amusement and just used slacking off as an excuse.
Percy's back began to sting as he remembered how he also got some lashes as well. He looked at Annabeth, who received two new lashes since the last time, but she still looked determined as she kept rowing. Zoe wasn't spared from this either, as two lash marks were seen on her back, with her own shirt ruined as well.
Every time they were hurt, Percy's anger would rise. While he didn't like killing, he was very much motivated to make an exception.
He looked over to the other slaves, seeing how they were struggling as well. While the rowing did work up a sweat, they were dripping with it even more than he was. The women were the ones who especially struggled, with how they weren't really built for such a physically demanding task. Percy swore they were about to pass out.
The feeling was seemingly correct as he saw that two rows in front of him, a woman suddenly collapsed unto the oar. The woman beside her and one of the few men in the same row looked at her worriedly.
"Miriam, wake up!" the other woman said as she nudged her friend's shoulder. "Come on, you can't just… Miriam?"
"What's going on here?!" Thomas yelled as he saw the unconscious woman on the oar. The others heard the commotion but didn't dare to stop what they were doing. He walked over before giving another lash, but Miriam didn't respond. Curious, he got closer and kneeled down before grabbing Miriam by the long locks of her dark hair and pulling her back, giving him a closer look at her face.
The slaves beside her couldn't help but look in horror as Thomas examined her, seeing her unmoving facial features.
"She's dead," Thomas said nonchalantly before pushing her back on the oar. "Jim, keep at it. I'll get someone to throw her overboard." With that, he left through the caged door, leaving behind a woman in tears who continued rowing, with her and the other slave knowing they couldn't stop unless they wanted to get punished.
All three heroes glared at the retreating man, disgusted by how he treated the now-deceased woman like an inconvenient bag of garbage. These people… they truly were monsters. And this obviously wasn't the first time something like that happened, it was easy to tell.
Percy turned to Zoe. "How long?" he simply asked.
"Not yet," the former Huntress quietly answered. "We still need to wait."
"I don't think I can wait any longer."
"That's unfortunate because thou will need to, regardless of thy feelings… or anyone's feelings."
Percy knew she was as much as disgusted with what was happening, likely even more so, but she had a cooler head than he did so she was a better tactical mind. Though that's probably not saying much considering he himself wasn't the one for tactics.
The door opened again, revealing Thomas and another pirate who held a hammer and a metal wedge. The pirate then hammered out the pin that held the chain, took the chain out of the belt before grabbing Miriam and putting her on the floor. The chain was then secured back soon after, and the pirate held the dead girl over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes and walked out.
"Don't worry, you two," Thomas said to the two left on the oar. "I'm sure we'll find someone else to take the empty spot." They looked down dejectedly as he said that. "But until then…" He swung his whip and hit the two, forcing them to once again move the oars.
'Keep calm, keep calm,' Percy repeated in his head. To see all of this going on without acting was… it just didn't feel right to him despite the strategizing. Sometimes he wished he wasn't so impulsive, it made him very impatient. But he needed to stay put, he needed to wait.
But one thing he swore to himself. He would free everyone in here, and he would stop these pirates.
Deep blue eyes stared at the aquarium tank that held several sharks, all of who gathered to watch the young man in front of the tank. A frown etched his handsome face as he watched.
"Surface people," he muttered as he ran his fingers along the glass, the sharks' heads following the direction they were moving. "Thinking they can experience the majesties of the ocean by trapping some creatures and plants behind glass." The young man chuckled. "What a laughable notion."
The young man was pretty tall, broad-shouldered, with long black hair adorning his back. He was dressed in a sea-blue short-sleeved shirt and green trousers. He also wore earrings in the shape of seashells.
He knew from personal experience all the wonders the ocean waters held. He saw its creatures, he could name most if not all plants beneath the waves and found things there that many people on the surface would kill to have.
Whatever they had in these aquariums, it was barely scratching the surface, for the lack of a better word. He almost felt sorry for them, to never truly be able to experience true undersea beauty.
"I wouldn't expect to see someone of your caliber here," a new voice said causing him to turn. "I thought the heir of Poseidon would find these places insulting."
Triton, the heir of Poseidon and prince of Atlantis only gave a small frown as he saw who it was. It was a woman with a long mane of black hair and brown eyes, her skin an unnaturally pale, a factor that didn't detract from her beauty. She wore a white dress that gave a good emphasis on her wonderful figure and a silver circlet on her head.
He recognized her as Khione, daughter of Boreas the North Wind and the goddess of the snow.
"I also wouldn't expect someone from the north to visit this place," Trion said. "To what do I owe the pleasure of your company?"
Khione smiled. "Oh, I was just in the neighborhood and I noticed that you were here, your Majesty, so I thought the two of us should have a chat."
Triton put his hand up and the sharks in the tank dispersed. Regardless of their circumstances, they were creatures of the sea, they had to obey. "And what do you want to talk about, lady Khione?"
Khione walked up to Triton, her hands on her hips. "The winds tell many things, and I heard the news of another son of Poseidon. He seems to have gained a heroic reputation in recent times."
Triton's frown deepened. "I'd rather not talk about my father's bastard."
"Your Majesty, if you could bear with it for a little while I'm sure you'd like what I have to say," she said, making Triton curious so he gave her a nod. "As you know, I also have a father and a very foolish one. So trust me when I say understand your position." Khione then began circling around the prince. "This new demigod is becoming a new talk of the town, and no doubt gained Poseidon's attention, more than you did." She saw him stiffen when she said that. "I see I was right."
"And what is your point?" Triton asked through his gritted teeth. Despite hating it, what she said was true. In recent years, his father Poseidon talked more and more about the accomplishments of his new spawn, the one Perseus Jackson.
And those talks… infuriated Triton, seeing the pride his father had for the demigod, one that he had never shown to Triton, his own full-blooded legitimate son, and heir. He may not have met the demigod yet but Percy Jackson became a name he hated to hear.
Hearing the prince's knuckles crack, Khione continued. "I have brought something that might help you." She then brought her hand up before a flash of light appeared and a silver cylindrical container was now in her hand.
Triton grabbed the container and examined it. It wasn't big, his hand wrapping around it easily enough, but he felt what exactly was that it held inside. "Why give me this?"
"Let's just say that, if you open it, it will serve as a good distraction," she said before putting her hands behind her back. "Though, a distraction for what? I can't help you there; you must be creative on that part."
He gave her a quizzical look. "What do you gain out of this? I don't believe this is a simple favor."
"Simple favor, no, but a simple exchange. I do you a favor, and you do me a favor in the future," she said before walking up to him and putting a hand on his pectoral muscle. "I'm sure that won't be a problem."
"For some reason, I doubt that you were just 'in the neighborhood'."
Khione stood up on her toes, her face really close to Triton's as a smile formed on her. "What does it matter? It's for our own mutual benefit in the end. Are you saying you wouldn't do the same?"
Silence prevailed for a few moments as Triton's eyes stared at Khione's before his face broke out in a grin. "Lady Khione, I think I may be falling in love," Triton said as his hand gently touched her own.
The snow goddess gained blush from his forwardness, her pale cheeks making it even more noticeable. "O-oh, how flattering, my prince," she said before moving away much to Triton's disappointment. "I'm sure when the time comes you'll repay me, and then we'll get to know each other very well. But until then, your Majesty, you will have to excuse me."
A frosty breeze appeared as Khione turned into snowflakes, leaving Triton alone in the blue light of the aquarium. He then once again looked at the container that Khione had given him, and smiled at the opportunities this could present.
The prince of Atlantis planned to get his father into a right state of mind, one way or another.
"Please, help her!" a younger Marcus pleaded on his knees as he was surrounded by fire, two huge eyes looking at him.
"There is a price to be paid," the voice came from the direction of the eyes as their gaze narrowed.
The scene changed to Marcus screaming as two searing hot chains wrapped around his arms.
"I have a task for you," the voice said.
What followed next was a mash-up of scenes, one where Marcus was attacked by a draconic head and another where he climbed a huge mountain, then being stormed by harpies, swimming underwater with a huge serpent attacking, and many more. The whole time the phrase 'I have a task for you' repeated itself.
The scene changed yet again where Marcus was surrounded by demigods, who suffered the wrath of the Blades of Chaos, while the phrase 'I have a task for you' repeated itself again. With one last swing of his blades, Marcus looked down and dropped on his knees, his blades falling unceremoniously with him.
Then the chains rose up, pulling Marcus' arms in separate directions as large yellow crystal formed around him. The crystal was then grabbed a large hand and held up in front of a giant man, dressed in dark red armor, with flaming eyes, hair, and beard.
"You disappoint me, my Spartan," the giant said as the crystal was crushed in his hands.
The whole world then started shaking.
Percy's eyes fluttered open as he began waking up, and he felt his body being shaken by someone.
"Hey, Seaweed Brain, wake up." Percy groaned as he heard the voice of Annabeth before seeing the demigoddess look at him intently. "Now is not the time to sleep," she said in a hushed tone. "Come on, Zoe and I came up with a plan."
Percy now almost became wide awake as he rose from the oar he was leaning on before. He looked around and saw that the other slaves were also asleep. After a few more torturous hours of rowing, they were finally allowed to stop and take a nap. Even the pirates knew that they couldn't work all day long, especially with rowing such heavy oars.
He then saw Zoe whispering something into another slave's ear, and the slave nodded her head before she and her companions slowly and silently began waking up their fellow slaves. On the other side, Jake also seemed to have got the message before he began waking up the others as well.
The reason for such quietness was became obvious as Percy saw Jim was there, but luckily for them, he was also asleep, with his head resting on the drum as he snored.
"I am glad to see thee awake, Percy Jackson," Zoe said quietly after she saw Percy was awake.
"What's the plan?" Percy asked.
"Take Anaklusmos out," Zoe said and Percy quickly complied by uncapping the pen that he took out from his pocket, turning it into a bronze sword. "Listen, there is a pin on thine side of the row, and I need thee to slowly cut away the wood around it."
"And do it as slowly and quietly as you can," Annabeth whispered. "We don't need our pirate waking up."
Percy gave a nod, glad to see Annabeth acting normal despite all the abuse she suffered, before turning to the pin that held the chain. He slowly drove the tip into the wood, cutting into it like a hot knife through butter.
He bit his lip nervously as he moved his sword around, cutting through the wood while also making sure that the metal of his blade didn't clang with the chain. He moved the sword in a circular motion around the pin, switching hands when it came to moving Riptide underneath the chain. When the circular motion was complete, Percy moved his sword away before pulling on the chain.
Annabeth, Zoe, and Percy smiled as the pin was pulled out, with it still being stuck inside the piece of wood that Percy carved out.
"We should get up, all at once, slowly," Annabeth said as the two nodded before the trio slowly stood up on their feet.
Zoe was the first to get out of the row, all three of them holding onto the chain so they didn't make any noise. The tension was so bad they began to sweat as they occasionally looked over their sleeping guardian. The fact that they also had the gazes of the other slaves didn't really help in easing the tension.
Once the trio stepped out, a groaning sound was heard from Jim making them freeze in place. They looked at the sleeping pirate in shock as they saw him move, one of the women almost yelped before Jake quickly snapped her mouth shut.
Jim moved his head for a bit, readjusting it on his arms before the snoring sound continued, making everyone feel relieved.
"Now, thou need to slowly carve away at the wood around and inside the pin," Zoe whispered.
"Got it," said Percy with a nod. He then pointed the sword at the wood before quickly piercing through, and after several more thrusts, almost half of the pin was out. Percy smiled as he was about to thrust one more time but was quickly caught by Zoe.
"That's enough," Zoe said. "Now put the sword inside the pin so we can pry it off."
"You two do that, I'll make sure it doesn't make too much noise," Annabeth said before leaning into a crouch and putting her hands below the pin.
Percy then put the tip of his sword into the gap of the pin and held the handle tightly with both arms. The former Huntress then put her own arms on Percy's which made the demigod blush slightly, not really expecting such a personal contact from Zoe of all people.
"Now push."
The two of them then put some strength into it and pushed the sword handle forward, which made the sword tip push the pin slowly out. Once the pin was fully dislodged, Annabeth quickly grabbed it before it could fall on the floor along with the chain before slowly putting it down.
They smiled at the job well done, with the slaves giving them some silent praise which in Jake's case included a grin and thumbs up. The chain that held them was then slowly pulled out of the rings on their belts.
Zoe then grabbed the chain and wrapped some of it around her hands. She then glared at the sleeping pirate. Her feet moved forward, as silently as the wild beasts she hunted over the centuries. She then slowly moved behind him, everyone eager looking with wide eyes at what she seemed to be doing.
Zoe then kicked Jim on the side making him jolt up in surprise, but he didn't utter a sound as Zoe quickly wrapped the chain around the man's neck and began squeezing. Jim's eyes widened at what was happening and he quickly went to grab the chains to pry them off. He tried to rise but Zoe then pulled him to the side, forcing him on a knee.
With grit teeth and tensed muscles, Zoe continued squeezing the man who was desperately moving and trashing around, letting out a few small gasps. But soon the trashing stopped, his eyes rolled to the back of his head before his eyes fell limply to his sides. Zoe unwrapped the chains from his neck and let Jim's dead body fall on the floor.
While the rest of the slaves were shocked, they couldn't say that they felt sorry for the pirate, who was just as guilty as everyone else for their suffering.
Zoe dropped the chains on the floor before searching Jim's corpse and quickly finding the keys which she put into the lock of her belt and turned, opening the belt and putting it on the floor. She then took the weapons he had, a sword, a dagger, and a pistol before hurrying over to her fellow team members.
"Take these," Zoe said as she handed them the sword and the pistol. "It will protect thee as best as they can for a little while." Percy grabbed the sword and gave it a few swings, and it definitely felt different using a cutlass instead of a xiphos but it will do. Annabeth took the pistol, and she would usually marvel at such a functional historic weapon, but considering the situation they were in, she had to focus.
"You free the other slaves, I'll scout ahead and try to find more weapons," Zoe said as she moved to the metal door, the newly acquired knife still in her hand since she also needed a weapon, and unlocked the doors with the key before tossing it to Annabeth.
The blond demigoddess quickly went to the other slaves and began unlocking their belts, much to their happiness while Percy gave Zoe a thumbs up to which she responded in kind before quickly leaving.
Zoe moved stealthily through the halls of the ship, usually taking cover behind a pillar or some barrels just in case. She extra careful when she approached the sleeping barracks, where she heard a bunch of snores.
She saw the door leading to the surface and slowly walked up, making sure there wasn't anyone who could see her. Her head reached out, feeling the breeze of the night sky that she missed with how much time she was down there, and she looked around but found nobody on the deck. Her eyebrow rose in confusion as she was sure there would at least be someone there.
After moving on the deck, she saw the front part of the ship and over the foremast, still nobody. Then she moved on the stairs leading to the captain's quarters and the quarterdeck, still no guards.
This made no sense. Sure, they were probably confident that the slaves had no meaning to escape, but this was the Sea of Monsters for gods' sakes. You would think that they would at least how someone on the lookout for monsters.
That is unless… Yes, that had to be it. There was no way they would have lasted so long here by being so careless. They must have had a way of repelling monsters from their ship. What that was, Zoe had no idea, but that was the only explanation.
She then noticed a light coming from the captain's quarters, as if something was burning there. Letting her curiosity get the better of her, she silently approached the window that was on the doors leading into the room and peeked inside.
What Zoe saw shocked her. Inside was Blackbeard himself, wide awake, his back turned to her, and in front of him was a fiery shape that seemed in the shape of a face. The fire consisted of eyes, a mouth, a beard, and long hair.
"So, father, I was able to catch myself two more demigods, and a girl who I think is a part of the Hunters of Artemis. She was armed with their weapons but she was too old."
Zoe's eyes widened. That was Ares?! That wasn't good. Not good at all!
"Ah, so I see," the deep growly came from the fiery head. "Would those demigods by any chance be named Percy Jackson and Annabeth Chase?"
Blackbeard thought about it for a moment. "Well, I'm not sure about their last names, but I do know they are named Percy and Annabeth. I heard them called as such back on Circe's Island."
"Then it would appear that my plan is being discovered," Ares said. "There are too many eyes on me right now. You need to get rid of them. Quickly. I can't let them interfere."
"Very well, father."
Ares' eyes then seemed to move, and they seemed to be looking at… Zoe!
Ares chuckled. "It would seem that you have a rat listening in, son."
"What?!" Blackbeard exclaimed before turning around.
Zeo gasped loudly and quickly bolted away, running back down. She was spotted, and she needed to act fast!
On the way, she came across a barrel that filled with spare swords, which made her smile since now they had weapons to arm themselves. She grabbed as many swords as she could carry, before quickly running to the slave block.
"Wake up, you sea dogs! Someone escaped!" the voice of Blackbeard could be heard as the bells rang
She quickly returned back to the slave block and saw that almost all of the slaves have been freed. All of them looking around as they heard the sound of bells. Zoe then threw the swords on the ground.
"Quickly, arm thyselves! We have been discovered!"
The slaves went into panic mode before they reached for the weapons. There wasn't enough to arm even half of them, but it was still better than nothing. After picking up the weapons, Zoe pointed towards the exit where they quickly ran, with Percy and Annabeth right behind her.
Just as they reached the doors to the upper deck, they were set upon by the now awake pirates who came at them armed with swords. But despite their bigger experience, the slaves were more numerous than them which boosted the slave's confidence.
With a battle yell, the slaves and the pirates met in a clash, steel against steel. The huge mass of slaves forced the pirates back, leading the fight to the upper deck.
Zoe then pushed through and stabbed one of the pirates in the chest. While she was skilled with a knife she missed her bow and arrows.
Percy was able to fight off several of them with his swordsmanship skills, and Annabeth actually found Thomas among the pirates and used her pistol to shoot him in the arm, after which he ended up falling down. The two then looked at each other with smiles on their faces.
The other slaves weren't as skilled in swordsmanship, with the exception of Jake and a few others, but they were also helped by the unarmed slaves who were able to restrain some of the pirates.
Percy looked up and saw Blackbeard looking down from the quarterdeck, his hands squeezing the wooden railing as he saw his men fight the slaves.
"Here, Annabeth!" Percy said as he handed Annabeth his saber who took it in slight surprise before he uncapped Riptide.
"What are you doing, Percy?!" Annabeth asked.
"To the root of the problem!"
Blackbeard looked down in anger. A mutiny was the last thing he needed right now. Deciding to go himself he walked down to the stairs, cutlass in hand and his fingers on his pistol. But the moment his foot hit the deck, he stopped as he felt a sword up against his back.
"Going somewhere?" Percy asked as he slightly pushed the blade, digging it into Blackbeard's coat.
Blackbeard raised his hands. "So, you have me hostage. What will you do now?"
"Tell your crew to surrender! Now!" Percy demanded.
"And what if I don't?"
"I think the outcome is quite obvious."
After a bit of silence, Blackbeard began chuckling before turning his head to meet Percy's gaze. "Oh, you little boy. You think you can intimidate me with empty threats?" Blackbeard asked which made Percy confused. "I've seen many people over the years I've been a pirate. I've seen so many faces that I can immediately tell what type of people they are. And in your case, a killer is not what you are. Sure, killing monsters is one thing, but you've never directly taken a human life, have you?"
Percy bit his lip. It was true, he has never taken another human life, and he wasn't planning on taking Blackbeard's, only wanting to force him to surrender. But he decided to press on.
"Are you sure you want to take that chance?" Percy asked as he slowly pushed the blade forward, hoping Blackbeard would buy his bluff.
"Even if I don't…" Blackbeard said before suddenly lunging himself forward, making Percy slightly stumble as he moved in the direction of his thrusting. Blackbeard then fell on his hands and kicked back, using Percy's momentum against him and hitting him straight in the chest, forcing the young demigod back and almost making him fall. "…this isn't the first time I've been in this situation!"
Blackbeard then charged at Percy with his cutlass, which Percy quickly blocked with Riptide. Blackbeard then sent several more slashes at Percy, all of which were blocked but some came close, almost too close.
Percy ducked under a swing and moved away from the pirate. But Blackbeard wasn't about to make this any easier and once again attacked Percy who was once again forced on the defensive. Percy then climbed up the stairs to the quarterdeck with Blackbeard following.
"You are good, boy!" Blackbeard said. "But I fought in more duels than you probably ever will! And I won every single one!"
Blackbeard was once again on the offensive, thinking this fight already won, but then Percy surprised him by parrying his thrust before returning a thrust of his own, forcing the pirate to back away.
"Ever heard of the phrase 'first time for everything'?" Percy asked.
Blackbeard snarled and reengaged their sword duel.
The fight on the deck was intense, with neither pirates nor the slaves getting the proper advantage, but with someone like Zoe with them, it seemed that the slaves may get their chance after all.
Annabeth was busy fending off a pirate, her sword training at Camp Half-blood keeping her in the game, but Jake suddenly came and stabbed the pirate in the leg, making him scream out in pain before he collapsed.
Jake then gave her a smile and a wink, to which Annabeth smiled back. Looking at where Percy was at she saw him engaged in a duel with Blackbeard. And it didn't seem to go well.
"Oh, no," she said before quickly running over to help.
Percy was forced backward again by Blackbeard, but after seeing an opening Percy went for a thrust only for Blackbeard to catch Riptide in a bind and twisting the sword away before delivering a nasty punch to Percy's face, making him fall down and Riptide to fall out of his hand.
Blackbeard went to stab Percy but the demigod moved, though not quickly enough as the tip of the cutlass pierced him through the leg, making Percy scream in pain.
"I told you, boy. You were good, but not good enough to beat me," Blackbeard taunted.
"PERCY!" Annabeth yelled as she saw Percy getting stabbed and immediately rushed at Blackbeard.
Blackbeard then turned to her, deflecting her sword strike before cutting her on the arm making her yelp, and then cutting her on the leg, making her fall down as the sword dropped from her hand. He then began walking towards her, with Annabeth moving back in fear as Blackbeard took out his pistol. Then Annabeth stopped as she felt her back hit something hard, and turned to see that it was the mast.
"You are more trouble than you're worth," Blackbeard said as he pointed the pistol at her, making Annabeth close her eyes, hoping this would be quick.
A shot rang, but Annabeth felt no pain. She opened her eyes and saw that Blackbeard did indeed shoot the bullet, only it wasn't aimed at her but someone to his side. Looking there, her eyes widened as she saw Jake there, a bullet hole in his chest then soon began bleeding. He no doubt came to help, but Blackbeard got him first.
The sword fell out of Jake's hand as he groaned before falling down the stairs. Seeing this, Percy looked angry and quickly picked up Riptide.
With a smile, Blackbeard blew out the smoke coming from the barrel. "Stupid boy," he said before turning back to Annabeth. "Now, where were- UGH!"
Annabeth looked in shock as she saw a sword pierce through Blackbeard's chest. Behind him, she saw that it was Percy with his Riptide, rage present in his face. Blackbeard himself looked back, seeing the boy he thought didn't have the guts to kill him just now run him through.
Percy pulled out the sword out of Blackbeard, who quickly went to cover his wound with his hand. The pirate turned around, blood spewing from his mouth as he barely held his cutlass in hand. He grunted in pain, making several drunken steps backward.
Percy moved forward with Riptide, ignoring the pain in his bleeding leg. Blackbeard looked in fear as the boy closed in and made several fumbling steps backward. His back then hit the rail, making him lose his balance as he fell back, falling over the rail and into the waters below with a loud splash.
Letting out several ragged breaths, Percy then groaned as he felt the pain in his leg come back, forcing him on his knee. He then looked at his girlfriend. "A-are you alright, A-Annabeth?"
"P-Percy," Annabeth stammered out, still in shock over what happened. She then shook her head and rose, her hand covering the wound on her leg. "I'm fine Percy, but are you alright?" she asked as she approached the kneeling demigod.
"I'll manage," he said before groaning as the wound pulsed.
Meanwhile, at the battle, Zoe pierced another man through the head, making him fall down. This left very few pirates, and while the slaves suffered casualties, they were still more numerous. One of the pirates saw what happening with their captain and called to his comrades, making them see Blackbeard fall into the water.
The slaves saw it too and yelled in excitement as they saw the cruel man fall to his death. When the rest of the pirates came to their senses, they dropped their swords before raising their arms in surrender.
"Tie them up," Zoe said, causing several of the slaves to get some rope while the other ones with weapons had them pointed threateningly at the pirates. The rest of the pirates were soon tied up, and Zoe saw Percy and Annabeth already down from the quarterdeck, with Percy hanging on to Annabeth for support.
Jake laid at the bottom of the stairs, his hands covering the bullet wound that was bleeding profusely. He let out several coughs, spilling more blood from his mouth. His vision was blurry, but he was able to make out the shapes of Percy and Annabeth as they leaned down.
"Sorry, guys," Jake said before coughing some more. "The bastard got me good."
Percy then kneeled and took Jake's hand. "Don't talk. We'll get you some help. I promise."
Jake chuckled before shaking his head. "It won't work and you know it. I'm making it, I know," he said before letting out several more coughs that spilled blood. "I am truly sorry for abandoning the camp. Only later did I realize how much it meant to me. I hope that I least redeemed myself in some way by fighting by your side tonight."
"Jake, please," Annabeth said with a tear running down her eye.
"My only regret is… that I didn't die at the camp, surrounded… by my friends and family that took care of me for… a long time." He squeezed Percy's hand. "You are the true heroes. Ones that the camp needs right… now if they want to survive, and I can't help but feel proud to have fought with you."
Jake's eyes slowly closed.
"So go now," he said. "For Camp… Half… blood."
The squeeze on Percy's hand lessened until it was no longer gripping, and Jake's eyes completely closed. Annabeth and Percy wiped their tears. This wasn't fair. Jake only wanted to redeem himself and fight alongside the friends he hurt by leaving, but the chance to see his home was forever taken by a cursed pirate.
"'Tis a shame," Zoe said as she approached the scene. "At least he died fighting, and not in shackles of a slave."
Zoe then took out a water cup and gave it to Percy. Knowing what she intended, Percy grabbed the cup and poured the water into the stab wound. It began healing immediately and Percy quickly stood up, though somewhat wobbly since he could still feel the pain.
The demigods, the former Huntress, and the former slaves soon gathered the bodies of their fallen comrades, which luckily weren't many but the loss was still felt. These people fought for their freedom, and while they got it in the end, they would never truly experience it.
Many mourned over their fallen friends as they saw them lying there motionless. Truly no victory came without a cost.
After searching the captain's cabin, Percy, Annabeth, and Zoe found their packs and their weapons, with Annabeth eating some ambrosia and drinking nectar to heal her wounds.
"We need to get going as fast as we can," Zoe then abruptly said. "I heard Blackbeard talk to Ares, and the god of war saw me. He knows we're here."
Percy's and Annabeth's eyes widened at that. "So Ares is coming here?!" Annabeth asked.
"No, he said that he had too many eyes on him, which gives at least some time but who knows how long that will last."
"So what now?" Percy asked.
Zoe then turned to the slaves. "Listen to me, thou should take the ship and sail away from the Sea of Monsters! Do not worry, the ship is protected by an enchantment, which why it wasn't attacked by monsters." They looked happy to hear that, seeing another step towards freedom. "Do any of thee know how to sail?" A few hands were raised. "Very well then. We'll sail the ship to the nearest island where Percy, Annabeth, and myself will be dropped off along with our boat. After that, thou take the ship and sail to thine freedom."
The former slaves cheered while several pirates grumbled. Percy and Annabeth smiled at the speech.
Annabeth then looked among the bodies of the dead pirates and saw that Thomas was among them. She bit her lip, realizing that she may have accidentally shot him in an artery which caused him to bleed out.
"What is it, Annabeth?" Percy asked after putting a comforting hand on her shoulder.
The demigoddess smiled at his concern. "It's nothing, really."
Percy gave her a nod with a smile. "Well then, we better continue this quest."
"Yeah, we'd better."
AN: And that's it for now, my dear readers! Now I'm sure you're disappointed that the pirate thing ended so soon, but I didn't want to extend it for too long. And sorry if Jake didn't get too much character development so his death may not have hit as it could have.
But anyway, I implore you to go and check out my stories. They are very worth your time. And please leave a review, they are great motivators.
See you next time!