My feet pounded against the shallows, kicking up clouds of sand and seashells in the watery foam. About a football field away, a dark structure stood out against the white sand in the moonlight, the sea extending desperately for it but never quite reaching it. I pulled the lifeboat I'd taken from the ship behind me, dragging it through the push and pull of the waves.

Luke had wanted to come, but I'd insisted on going by myself. He'd thought it a strange demand, given that I asked for Chris, a near stranger to me, to meet me here. I guess I was just hoping to get some alone time before he showed up.

The cabin was derelict and weathered from the freak storms that had been popping up around the Northeast this summer. The door was wide open, revealing a black interior.

The memory of my mom and goat-legged Grover pushing me out the door that night resurfaced. I remembered how the wind howled and carried the spine-chilling roar of the Minotaur on its gusts. I don't think I'd ever been so freaked out in my life, not even when Mrs. Dodds had transformed into a bat-like demon and tried to disembowel me. That, at least, hadn't seemed too far out of the ordinary for her.

I tried the light switch, but the room remained shrouded in darkness, the only light coming from the moon filtering in through the windows and door.

The storms had done a number on the place. Scattered haphazardly around the room were the belongings we'd been forced to leave behind. I stumbled around for a little, tripping over broken furniture until I found the day bag I'd packed for our trip. There were a couple pairs of clothes in it, but they were damp and smelled like a swamp, so I left them in there.

I took a step backward and heard something crack underneath my feet. Curious, I bent down and picked up a wooden picture frame, spiderweb fractures now obscuring the photo underneath. Between that and the darkness, it was difficult to make out what the picture was, but after a few moments of straining my eyes, I realized it was my mom. Somehow, I'd never noticed this picture before. She was standing on the beach and smiling, wearing a beautiful blue dress that caught the wind and revealed her rounded figure. She was pregnant.

It must have been sunset, because the shadow of the cameraman extended all the way out into the ocean. It was then that I knew I was looking at a picture of my parents, maybe just weeks before I was born.

I don't know why, but the thought of the all-powerful god of the sea trying to figure out how to operate a camera made me chuckle. A single drop landed on the frame and mingled with the cracks as I stared at my mom's loving gaze. She looked so happy.

How could things have ended the way they did?

I quickly wiped away at my eyes when I heard footsteps coming up the cabin stairs. A light knock sounded on the door frame.

"Um, hello?" a voice called uncertainly into the cabin. "It's Chris. Silena told me to come here."

"Be right there," I said.

I took a moment to collect myself and carefully stowed the broken picture in my bag. Taking one last look at the storm-ravaged cabin that used to be my favorite place in the world, I turned and made my way out the door.

Chris was leaning against the only section of the railing that wasn't broken. Now that I was seeing him in person, I found that I did recognize him. As Luke had said, he was one of the undetermined campers who slept on the floor in the Hermes cabin. He was a Hispanic kid about my age, but way bigger and more muscular. He wore an orange Camp Half-Blood t-shirt, but the sleeves and part of the sides had been ripped off, making it look more like a tank top. The guy looked like he could give Tyson a run for his money in a strongman competition.

"Percy," he greeted me. His eyes glanced over my shoulder. "Is Luke here?"

I shook my head. "He's back on the ship. It's just me. I'm assuming Silena told you everything."

Chris's face hardened, and he nodded. "She did. And I'm ready to join you. I'm through with sleeping in an overcrowded cabin waiting for my father to notice me. I want to do something fun, you know? I want to see the world."

I nodded in understanding. It was a dream virtually every demigod shared, but so few ever saw it come true. "Then you'll fit right in," I said. "Come with me."

I descended the cabin steps, our newest recruit falling in behind me. It wasn't until I reached the bottom that I noticed the figure standing in the water. Even through the darkness, I knew who it was instantly. My heart crept up into my throat as I eyed the glowing bronze trident clenched tightly in my father's fist. He stood there, still as a statue, watching us approach. The lifeboat I'd taken here rested in the sand several feet to his side. Our path had been cut off.

For a moment, I couldn't see the Princess Andromeda in the water, and I almost had a panic attack. Had Poseidon already sunk the ship while I'd been in the cabin? But that couldn't be true. It had only been about half a mile off the coast. I would've heard if it was being attacked, and wreckage would be washing up on shore by now.

But then the amulet against my chest grew warm, and the ship shimmered into existence exactly where I'd left it. Mist magic, I thought. Hecate must have draped a thick layer of it over the ship to hide it from Poseidon.

I froze, holding up a hand to stop Chris. He nearly bumped into me, but then I heard him inhale sharply.

"That's…" he trailed off. The fear in his voice was palpable. I didn't blame him. Poseidon was just as unpredictable as a storm at sea.

"You should get out of here," I told him. "It's me he wants, not you."

"You're actually going to face him? Are you nuts?"

"He's my father. And a god. It's not like I can just run away."

"He'll bring you to Zeus. You'll be branded a traitor and killed."

My heart hammered in my chest, but I knew I didn't have much of a choice. Poseidon wouldn't let me just walk away from him. "Probably," I said. "If you somehow manage to join up with Luke, let him know what happened. And tell him that I'm sorry for leaving again."

My feet were already carrying me forward before Chris could say anything else. Poseidon's face was illuminated slightly by the green energy emanating from his trident's tips. He regarded me impassively as I made my way into the water. The waves rolled against my shins.

I nervously wiped my palms against my shorts, blood roaring in my ears. You know that phrase that teenagers always say when they're about to get into trouble? 'My parents are gonna kill me if they find out about this.' Well, it might have been a bit more literal in my case.

I stopped a few yards away, close enough to easily converse with him but just out of trident-stabbing range. "Father," I greeted him.

Poseidon waited as if expecting me to kneel. When no such action was forthcoming, he glanced towards the cabin where I left Chris.

"You dishonor your mother's memory by bringing your rebellious friends here. Did she not teach you anything about respect?"

My fists clenched. I wanted to point out that Poseidon hadn't exactly shown much "respect" to the cabin, either, if the storm damage was anything to go by, but I held my tongue. He was trying to get a rise out of me. I remembered how I'd turned into an emotional wreck the last time we were face to face, and how I'd nearly lost my temper with him. I remembered well that unpleasant feeling of being stuck in a microwave when his godly power flared on Olympus. Now, we were in his element where he was ten times more dangerous. I couldn't afford to piss him off. I had gotten lucky during my fight with Ares. I wouldn't have the same advantage battling the god of the sea in his own turf.

"Why are you here?" I asked, trying but failing to keep my voice even.

"Isn't it obvious? I have come to talk some sense into my son. What is this foolishness I've heard about you serving my father?"

So he knew. I supposed that should've been a given. Chiron or Mr. D likely informed Zeus the moment they'd gotten the report from the tree nymphs that we were gone, and of course my father would be the first to receive Zeus's fury.

I had to word my response carefully. The Princess Andromeda may have been hidden for now, but Poseidon had to know that it was nearby, and there was no doubt he had enough power in his trident to make the USS Maine explosion look like a firecracker. As long as he was here, the Princess Andromeda was in danger. I glanced over at the ship, its lights reflecting off the rolling waves. Why weren't they moving? Luke must've not known what was going on. And even if he did, I wasn't so sure the ship was even fast enough to get away.

I took a sideways glance back at the cabin. Chris was no longer there. Either he'd gone inside the cabin or he'd done the smart thing and ran away. "You know, we were right here at this cabin when the Minotaur started chasing us," I said. "I'm sure Mom must have prayed to you for help, but you didn't protect us."

Poseidon's lips curled downwards. "We've been over this already. Us gods cannot interfere with the lives of mortals. Such divine intervention is against the Ancient Laws that Zeus had us swear to."

I crossed my arms, not buying it. Zeus threatened to kill me. Ares tried to kill me. Hades kidnapped and murdered my mom. If those weren't all examples of divine intervention, I didn't know what was. It just didn't add up. "Aren't you interfering right now?" I asked dubiously.

Poseidon's eyes narrowed at me, but then he sighed, his grip on his trident relaxing. "Technically, yes, I am. Ever since you were born, I've been doing my utmost to follow the promises I've made. I knew that one day, the Styx would have its revenge on me for breaking my oath to father no children."

"The day Mom died," I said.

"Mm. I knew my punishment would come, but not when. I dreaded that day for years, and I feared that breaking yet another oath and interacting with you directly would only make it worse. That is why I never came to visit you, never protected you. The more I intervened in your life, the worse I'd be making it for you. But now, I fear I have no other choice. Your actions are far too reckless, and it seems that my relatives do not care to abide by the laws we swore to uphold. Zeus has demanded you be brought before him dead or alive."

Great. So the gods weren't playing by the rules anymore, if they ever really were. Divine intervention no longer held any meaning. Leave it to Zeus to break a law that he created. My body was tense now, my hand slowly travelling towards my pocket. "Let me guess. You're here to bring me to him."

Poseidon's eyebrows raised. "Hmm? Oh no, much the opposite. I'm here to hide you from him. You must come live with me in my palace beneath the sea."

Any false bravado I had as I squared off with Poseidon disappeared in that instance. My feet faltered, and I felt so off-balance that I was certain the next wave would knock me down.

"...What?" I asked, my voice coming out more as a gasp than a question.

"It is the only place that you'll be safe from my brother. His best trackers will be on the hunt for you. If you stay on the surface, it is only a matter of time until you are found and dragged to Olympus. You may have been found innocent of stealing the bolt, but he has never been known to be merciful a second time. Better that you come with me. Of course, we will have to have some words about your… erm, dubious familial allegiances, but the important thing is you'll be out of danger the time being."

I took a step back. This was wrong. This was all wrong. Poseidon had never cared about me. I had always just been a mistake to him. All my life, I had been hoping and praying that one day, he'd show up on our apartment doorstep and introduce himself. Even just a birthday card in the mail would've made me feel better.

But now that we've met and I decided I wanted nothing to do with him anymore, he suddenly appears and wants to be in my life? He wants me to come live with him? That… that wasn't fair. The worst part of the whole situation was that part of me wanted to accept. Some buried little piece of me secretly wanted to follow Poseidon into the depths of the ocean where the other gods and titans wouldn't be able to find me, where I'd be able to live without the pressure of the Great Prophecy on my back. But that couldn't happen.

"No," I said, my voice barely loud enough to carry over the crashing waves.

A single brow raised on Poseidon's forehead. "What did you say?"

"I said, no!" I hadn't meant to raise my voice, so the volume surprised me just as much as it did my father. "I'm not coming with you. I... I can't." I steeled myself for what I was about to say next. "Don't you get it? I'm not on your side anymore. I've renounced the gods and sworn my allegiance to Kronos."

"Don't be foolish, boy—"

"I've sworn it on the River Styx."

Thunder clapped across the shore, rolling over the ocean like a tidal wave. As it faded away, silence replaced it. The sea became motionless. The air was still. Then—

"You've done WHAT?!"

Poseidon's voice struck my ears like a hammer on an anvil. The ocean pounded the shores. Gusts of wind whipped sand around the beach like a sandstorm. The waves buffeted me, and it was all I could do to remain standing. Poseidon's trident had flared up with some kind of green energy, revealing on his face a portrait of rage so terrifying that it rivaled Medusa's gaze. I couldn't move or think.

Poseidon swept his trident in an arc in front of him, and time slowed. I was in the air, the water blasting me backwards in slow motion. I blinked, trying to right myself, but my body felt like it was falling through quicksand. I landed hard on the beach, the air escaping my lungs as the world began moving normally again. Poseidon slogged forward as I rolled over and attempted to spit the sand out of my mouth. Suddenly, he was standing over me, and I threw an arm up to defend myself from the next blow. None came.

"Of all the foolish, reckless, stupid things you could have done, you swore an oath on the Styx?" he asked incredulously. "Haven't you learned how dangerous such a vow is? A son should not repeat his father's mistakes. Did your mother's death teach you nothing?" he asked incredulously. His chest heaved and his body trembled with anger. The raw power he gave off radiated intensely against my skin.

Regaining my breath, I propped myself up in the sand and glared at him. "Believe me, I know better than most," I shot back, "thanks to you. Tell me, did the Great Prophecy even cross your mind when you decided to break your oath?"

Around me, the waves pounding at the shore began to subside, and the furious winds died down. My father stared down at me, stunned.

"Did you know I would die at sixteen when you decided to have me?" I pressed on. The god of the seas remained silent, pain and shock growing more and more evident on his face.

"Yeah, that's right. I know all about the Great Prophecy now," I explained. "It was the first thing Kronos told me after I pledged myself to him. Something as life-changing as that… How could everyone keep that from me? How could you keep that from me?"

Poseidon swallowed. "I… Chiron was going to tell you when you were ready."

I almost laughed, it was such a predictable answer. "And when, exactly, would that be? Next year? The day I turn sixteen? Or maybe never?"

"When you were mature enough to accept any outcome of the prophecy, including, perhaps, your death."

For a moment, neither of us said a word. Only the sounds of the beach broke our silence. Slowly, I stood and brushed the sand off of my clothes.

"I'm going to make a choice to preserve or raze Olympus when I turn sixteen." I met Poseidon's gaze once more. "Maybe you should have considered that when you decided to push me away and keep me in the dark."

Poseidon's eyes darkened as if a storm had covered them. "You dare threaten us? Think about what you are saying, Perseus. Whatever you think us Olympians are, the titan king is ten times worse."

I shook my head. "You're lying. He promised to bring prosperity to humanity."

"He speaks in half-truths and riddles, then. You must be discerning about what you choose to believe. My father isn't called The Crooked One for nothing."

"I'll choose to believe whatever I want to. Every god I've met so far has either tried to kill me or use me as a pawn. Kronos is the only one who has shown me any respect or kindness. I'd side with him over you any day of the week."

We held each other's gaze as the impact of my words sunk in. I meant them, too. It didn't matter that my father had finally grown a spine and wanted to protect me. It was far more likely that he simply wanted to gain a bargaining chip against his brother rather than having any motivation to save me, and it didn't seem that he was about to extend his oh-so-gracious offer to Tyson, either. I wondered if he'd even know who I was talking about if I brought him up. No, it was far too little, and far too late for that. I watched his face as it ran through a gamut of emotions before it finally settled on grief, as if I were already dead to him.

He looked to be trying to swallow a lump in his throat. "It seems you cannot be swayed," he said forlornly. "Alas, it is too late anyways. The Styx will hold you to your oath, and if you break it… well, there are things worse than death. Perhaps it would be more merciful to bring you before my brother after all."

I crossed my arms. "And then what? I'd be executed and you'd go back to not having kids again? Do you really think that'll work better the second time?" I knew that every word I said was just digging my grave another inch deeper, but for some reason I couldn't stop myself. If there's anything I learned from my quest this summer, it's that prophecies don't work like that. It's not some hedge that you can keep trimming down whenever it gets overgrown. No matter how much you try to control it, it'll come true eventually. Perhaps it won't happen for another few years, or a few centuries, but eventually a child of the elder gods will reach sixteen, and the events they tried to delay will be worse for it. That's how it went in all the stories.

In one fluid motion, Poseidon hefted his trident and levelled it at me. I tensed. "Do not presume to understand the Fates, boy. We Olympians have reigned for millenia and survived every trial thrown our way. This too shall pass."

Riptide was in my hands, its soft glow paling in comparison to the energy given off by the trident. I knew I didn't stand a chance against my father, not with my level of training. I couldn't even lift up a pool of water. Poseidon could command the entire sea. But that didn't mean I'd go down without a fight.

I was so fixed on Poseidon as he prepared himself to blast me that I didn't even notice the looming shadow in the water growing closer and closer. Now, if you've never heard a cruise ship horn from up close before, imagine sticking your head straight into the bell of a tuba and having a tone-deaf Superman blow into it with all their might, and you might be able to begin to imagine how loud this horn was. Pairing that with the horrifying visage of Princess Andromeda's figurehead piercing its way out of the darkness, I must've jumped six feet into the air as the blast reverberated across the beach.

The bad news was that I temporarily couldn't hear anything. The good news was that Poseidon's attention was no longer on me, but rather on the million-ton chunk of floating metal that was now barrelling up the shallows towards us at speeds that shouldn't have been achievable by a cruise ship.

I prepared myself to run (though I knew there was no hope that I'd be able to get out of the way in time) when a glowing rift of red/black energy appeared next to me and expanded. A portal. I wasted no time in throwing myself through it.

The next thing I knew, I was on the floor of the navigation room, a black labrador happily licking my face. Shooing the dog away, I looked up to see Luke at the helm of the ship, a crazed look on his face. Hecate was sitting off to the side in a bolted down chair, holding onto its arms for dear life. The crystal apparatus she'd been working on was once more in pieces at her feet. Her ferret's head was poking out of her robe, the hairs on its head standing on end.

"Percy, you made it!" came an excited voice, and I had to do a double take when I saw Chris holding out a hand to me.

"Chris? How—"

"Everybody grab onto something!" Luke yelled with maniacal glee.

Chris pulled his hand back before I could take it and dived for the first solid thing he could find, leaving me stranded in the middle of the floor.

Suddenly, the entire ship shook and decelerated instantly, and I tumbled forward directly into the navigation console where my back collided with a SMACK. The dog wasn't far behind and smashed into me from the front, knocking the air out of my lungs for the second time that night. I was going to be very surprised if I didn't have any bruised ribs after this.

After a few seconds, the ship ground to a halt, leaving the room quiet except for the creaks and groans of the hull. After a few seconds of stunned silence, a voice crackled inside Luke's walkie-talkie.

"We hit him!" It was Tyson. "Meanie Poseidon got run over!"

Luke let out a big sigh and picked up his radio. "10-4, good buddy. Over and out."

He set down the walkie-talkie, but it crackled to life again. "I am your buddy?" Tyson's giddy voice carried through the room.

Ignoring him, Luke turned to me, a sideways smirk on his face. "Bet your glad you made me stay behind, aren't you?"

Hecate shot to her feet, face red as a tomato. She advanced on Luke, whose smile slowly turned into a look of fear. "Are you insane?!" she shrieked, and once again, I could see three faces instead of one. Three pairs of eyes narrowed dangerously at Luke.. "You could've killed everyone in here! And who knows how much damage you've done to the ship?"

Luke raised his arms to defend himself. "Relax!" he said placatingly. "It's fine, everything's fine. I mean, probably. Midas told me this ship was built to be able to withstand attacks from the deadliest sea monsters. I'm sure scraping up against the shore didn't damage it too much."

Tyson's voice carried through the walkie-talkie once more. "Captain, fire in engine room!"

He gave Hecate a sheepish grin as he stepped out from underneath her withering gaze. He grabbed the radio and growled, "Well, then put it out!" before angrily slamming it back onto the table. He gazed down at the beach through the large windows of the room.

"You'd better hope that Cyclops works quickly," Hecate said. "Poseidon is powerful. A hit such as this won't keep him down forever."

"He just got pancaked by a cruise liner," Luke retorted. "If a blow like that doesn't buy us enough time to escape, then we were doomed from the start."

The dog was beginning to make itself comfortable in my lap when I interjected. "Um, so can someone fill me in on what exactly just happened?"

Hecate's eyes narrowed at me, and I was reminded just how uncomfortable her gaze made me. "We were hoping you'd be able to tell us that, young hero. Why, exactly, was your father there?"

You would have had to be deaf not to hear the suspicion in her voice. Luke glanced between the two of us curiously, and I was suddenly aware of what my encounter with Poseidon on the beach may have looked like to the titaness, especially since I'd insisted on going alone.

"This was my mother's cabin," I explained quickly. "It's where she and Poseidon first met. I… I should've anticipated that he would be here, but I swear I didn't set this up."

She continued to regard me coldly, her overbearing presence making me feel like I was being scrutinized by an entire jury. After a moment, though, the tension fell from her expression and she sighed. "I sense you are telling the truth. I felt something was wrong mere moments after you left the ship. I mentioned this to Luke, and he opened up a portal to the beach. Through it stepped this one." She gestured toward Chris, who was leaning against the elevator door frame now, looking a bit queasy.

"I told them what was happening," he said, holding a hand to his stomach. "How you had gone to confront Poseidon. I told Luke what you'd asked me to tell him, and then he got this weird glint in his eye, and, well… you know the rest."

I gulped, remembering how my stomach had nearly crawled into my throat as the cruise ship steamrolled towards me.

"Those portals are really handy," I said to Luke.

"Yeah, well, Hermes is the god of travellers, so I guess that's one thing I can thank my dad for."

A tremor shook the ship, and the four of us looked at each other nervously. The dog's head lifted from my leg and tilted to the side. Luke pressed the button on the radio. "Er, Tyson? Was that you?"

A couple seconds passed before he answered. "No. Still putting fire out. Almost done."

A second tremor rattled the hull. Then a third. We were being pushed down the beach, inch by inch.

"Poseidon," Hecate breathed. "He's trying to push the ship off of him."

"He's already regained consciousness?" Luke asked incredulously. Chris looked like he was going to be sick.

"Fire is gone! Engine ready!" said the radio.

Luke pulled down on a lever and pressed some buttons on the navigation console. "Full reverse!" he shouted.

The ship groaned to life, the section still in the water straining to back away from the beach.

"Come on, come on, faster!" He smashed his fist onto the console, and surprisingly, the ship seemed to pick up speed.

Soon enough we had reversed out of the shallows and were back in the open sea. I shoved the dog off my lap, eliciting an indignant whine, before standing and making my way over to Luke, hoping against hope that Poseidon was too weakened by the blow to pursue us. Luke was staring out the window at something on the beach. I sidled up next to him and followed his gaze, and my heart fell.

Down on the beach, so small that he seemed like an ant, my father sat amongst the wreckage of what used to be my mom's cabin, the waves rushing to fill the indent the ship had left behind.

I sat down against the wall and unzipped my bag, staring at the broken picture I took from the cabin, the very last thing I had of my mom.

Not gonna lie, this chapter was kind of hard to write. I knew I wanted Percy to confront Poseidon, just to show there was no going back now, but their conversation feels like it came off as a bad soap opera. Oh well. I hope you enjoyed Luke's brief descent into madness.