Disclaimer

I do not own or intend to take credit for Percy Jackson and the universe that Rick Riordan has built around him.

Chapter 2: Who Let the Dogs Out?

I never thought I would say this, but I really miss the Wolf House.

After passing Lupa's final test, she told me to follow my instincts and travel south. There I would find a place where I would be safe. Even though I knew little about where I was going, safety sounded pretty good.

I don't know why the dogs were chasing me, but they were all over me since I left the Wolf House. You'd think that after spending a few days with canines, I'd be used to them. After running from these beasts, the wolves seemed like cute little puppies. The hellhounds stood as tall as I am and were a whole lot meaner. I discovered the pair in an alley in Redding. I managed to get away, but it hasn't been easy.

I managed to climb into the bed of a pickup truck and hitched a ride south. It had been probably a few hours until we hit a traffic jam, although I couldn't tell due to the lack of a sun. When we came to a stop, I looked to my right and could see the city of San Francisco spread out below. I could only imagine how beautiful it would've been to see the fog roll in from the bay in the morning sunlight. The driver of the truck managed to get us back moving forward. There was a tunnel about a mile ahead of us, and for some reason it felt important to me. I planned to ditch my ride once we reached it. It didn't end up working out that way.

I saw a couple of familiar shapes coming up behind us. The bigger of the hellhounds, whom I dubbed Fluffy, pushed cars out of his way as he rushed through the traffic. The smaller dog, whom I named Spot due to a red spot on his left flank (which I really hoped wasn't dried blood), jumped on top of the stopped cars in its pursuit. I had no clue what the mortals thought they were seeing, but I was pretty terrified. Fearing that I had nowhere else to run, I grabbed a shovel prepared for another performance.

Spot reached my truck first. He leaped right into the bed with me. He nearly bit me in half, but I managed to push him out with the handle of my shovel. It was a small victory, but I appreciated the breathing room. I didn't end up holding my perch for very long. Fluffy put all of his weight into the passenger side door, flipping the truck over. I managed to jump out, but the driver wasn't so lucky. He was an average looking guy who was just trying to keep living through the hell that was taking over the world. It broke my heart to see him lying in the flipped vehicle, knocked out cold, after all he had done for me. I had to help him.

Throwing the caution that I felt for the dogs into the wind, I ran to the man's door. The crumpled door was jammed closed. I wasn't able to open it myself. I jammed the head of my shovel in the door, hoping I could use it as a crowbar. Before I could try it out, I took a glimpse to my left and saw Fluffy barreling towards me. Before I braced myself in preparation of getting flipped like a truck, a blessed mortal ran his mustang right in to the hellhound, and it exploded in a cloud of golden dust.

My excitement died down when I saw the dark shape of Spot jump right through the remains of his dead pal. I had no time to avoid the blow. Spot barreled right into me, sending me flying ten feet across the freeway. My vision of the dark sky grew darker when my head hit the pavement. I mustered up enough strength to roll over. I saw that Spot's impact had managed to get the door off of the truck. I saw the faint figure of the man running from the scene, and it made my trauma worth it.

The remaining hellhound slowly walked towards me as if to taunt me. I tried to get up and run, but the pain in my head was overwhelming. Even though I was about to die, at least I managed to save the man in the truck. I was at peace. Through the spots in my vision, I saw the shape of another dog running towards the scene. I thought that that was impossible because I saw Fluffy die, but I was beyond the point where I could be surprised. I didn't see much of a difference between dying by the maw of one hellhound or two.

Things actually began to surprise me when the second hellhound attacked Spot. I wasn't sure if I was supposed to be thankful or terrified of the new dog. If nothing else, my end was put off for a few moments. The new dog took a bite out of Spot's neck and spit out golden dust. The highway began to spin as the beast walked towards me. Before I could decide what to think, I slipped into unconsciousness.

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