Sorry for the long wait between chapters. I've been out of town most of the past few weeks, only back for a day or two at a time. But here it is: Chapter 12
The First Nome was completely different than what Percy had expected, not that he knew what to expect at all. He had been thinking something along the lines of a bunch of tents in the desert, or maybe something like one of the cities in Prince of Persia. A giant underground cavern brimming with people and all signs of life including water weren't what he expected at all.
"You didn't tell me there was an underground river here," said Percy softly to Carter. He was in a disguise that Bast must have stolen for him and consisted of a nondescript, homespun shirt and pants.
Carter's disguise was much like Percy's, but contained a burnoose to help hide his face. Carter had done something with their normal clothes, stashed them in his Duat locker, which as far as Percy could tell was a pocket in the air. He just hoped the other boy could get them out again when they needed them, because he didn't want to be stuck wearing such ugly threads any longer than he had to be.
"I forgot," Carter told him. "I was worrying about other things."
"A river is good," said Percy. "I can use a river."
"We also might be able to use it to escape," said Carter. "I know the spell makes you sick but it probably is the fastest way out of here."
"Unless Nico can shadow travel us."
"Don't count on that," cautioned Carter. "We don't know what sort of state we'll find them in."
"Nico's too valuable for them to risk killing."
"Or escaping," said Carter. "If it was me, I'd sedate him."
He was right, Percy knew, but didn't want to admit it. But as much as he didn't want to be subject to the river spell again, he was more concerned about putting Nico through it. What if he'd only survived it because he had the Curse of Achilles? What if it somehow unbalanced whatever powers Nico was managing to keep in alignment inside of himself and destroyed him? What if it left him curled up and crying in pain like just about every other freaky Egyptian thing seemed to be doing to him?
They followed Bast, who wove her way through the crowd in her cat shape. She led them over a bridge but Percy paused midway across.
"There are fish in here."
"Tiger fish," said Carter, softly. "They're like piranhas but bigger. Maybe you should rethink using the river in your strategy.
Son of the sea god! Son of the sea god!
It seemed that tiger fish liked Percy just as much as regular fish liked him.
"Or maybe it's exactly what we need," said Percy then sent his thoughts to the fish. Hey guys? What's up?
Son of the sea god!
He's talking to us!
Someone answer him!
Hi!
Hi!
Hi!
He asked us a question!
He asked what is up.
The surface! The surface of the water is up!
"What are you doing?" asked Carter.
"Making some new friends."
Friends! He wants to be friends!
The son of the sea god wants to be our friend!
"Percy . . . are you sure that's a good idea?"
Percy nodded. "Sure it is. These guys are nice."
He thinks we're nice!
The son of the sea god thinks we're nice!
"Did you miss the part where I said they're like piranhas?" asked Carter, looking pale.
"Carter," Percy told him, "trust me. These guys are nothing like piranhas. In fact, I'm pretty sure these guys would put piranhas to shame."
Yes! We would!
Piranhas ain't got nothing on us!
What's a piranha?
Who cares? We're better than them!
Carter looked down at the tiger fish fearfully then sighed. "What are you planning to do?"
"I'm going to raise the water level," Percy told him. "Flood this place. That should be a good enough distraction, don't you think? And it'll give my new friends here a chance to eat. They look a little underfed and there was plenty of delicious looking meat cooking in the open air market."
"But won't they go after people?" asked Carter.
"Why would they go after people when they can get nice cooked meat?"
Yeah, who'd want to eat people?
Cooked meat!
The son of the sea god is giving us access to cooked meat!
That was surprisingly simple, Percy thought to himself then projected to his new friends. Hang on for a few minutes, guys. I just need to find out where my cousin is before I raise the water. He's not feeling good so I've come to take him home.
The son of the sea god's such a nice guy.
Why are all the good ones demigods?
Even if the son of the sea god was a fish, he'd like me better.
Would not!
"Mrrrouw!" Bast had returned to the bridge to see what the hold-up was, but it became apparent that she could understand what the tiger fish were saying when her spine arched and all her hair started to stand on end.
"Sorry," Percy told her, but really wasn't very sorry. Getting wet was a small price to pay for getting Nico and Sadie back. "Can you show me where they're keeping my cousin?" he asked, even though Bast was in the process of doing that already. He wanted the fish to have more information. "I'm kind of worried about him, and worried that someone might try to stop me from taking him home."
Someone's trying to stop the son of the sea god?
Who do they think they are?
We'll stop them from stopping him!
Don't worry son of the sea god. If anyone tries to stop you taking your cousin home-
Bite! Bite! Bite!
Thanks guys, Percy telepathed to them then continued on after Bast.
"So," said Carter after they were off the bridge, "you can talk to fish?"
The building where Nico and Sadie were being held was conveniently quite close to the river. Not right off the bank or anything, but close enough that Percy was able to control it from right in front of the building.
"If we're going to be working together, maybe I should learn some water spells," said Carter.
"That might be helpful," admitted Percy as he felt for the power of the river. "Too bad none of my demigod friends are capable of learning anything of the sort."
"Nico should be able to learn whatever Sadie and I can learn," pointed out Carter.
"Huh, good point, but I need quiet for a minute. This is going to take some concentration."
"Okay. Sorry."
Percy closed his eyes and pulled at the river's source. Or maybe not the direct source, but at the water that was in reserve, waiting to come through. A hard yank and a major adjustment to the water pressure and boom! Suddenly the river was overflowing.
People screamed and started running frantically, trying to get out of the way. They spoke panickedly in languages that Percy wasn't familiar with, and so he couldn't understand them, but he was pretty sure that at least one person mentioned his new friends the tiger fish.
Within a mere half minute the water level had risen twenty feet past the banks of the river and was rising higher with every second. He redirected a thick beam of it and used it to blast down the doors to the building where Nico and Sadie were being held, and also blast down the shabti guards who stood in front of those doors. The artificial people broke apart under the water pressure. Percy was glad that the House of Life was relying so heavily on those quasi-automaton things as their guards. It meant that he wouldn't have to risk hurting as many real people breaking Nico and Sadie out.
Percy, Carter, and Bast stormed into the building, Bast in human shape again. They cut down shabti after shabti inside the halls and didn't come across a single human.
"You two go downstairs," ordered Bast once they found the staircase. "That's where they're most likely to have Sadie and Nico. I'll clear out anymore shabti that are up here, and hold off any magicians."
Percy nodded and immediately charged down the stairs, taking them two at a time.
"Be careful, Bast," said Carter before following.
Percy turned several more shabti into dust, rounded a corner, and then –
WHAM!
What felt like a metal pipe, or maybe a baseball bat, slammed into the side of his head, hard enough to smash a cantaloupe. Never before had he been so glad to be invulnerable. If he wasn't, he was pretty sure his skull and brains would resemble a watermelon after being dropped off a four story balcony.
"Ohmygod!" said Sadie, horrified to realize she'd just brained her ally. "Percy, I'm –"
"Oh, hi Percy," said Nico, wearing a smile that was pure evil, even on his angel's face. He spoke casually, as though they'd just run into each other in a grocery store, or some common hangout. "What's going on?"
"Sadie! Are you okay?" Carter shoved past Percy, unaware of what just happened.
Sadie stepped back, panicking, like she was afraid of physical contact. "I'm fine, Carter! Gosh, don't get so dramatic about it."
"Are you okay, Nico?" asked Percy, shelving the metal pipe incident, at least for the moment. He gave his cousin a cursory inspection. Nico looked pale, as always, and there were dark circles under his eyes, like he was tired. But there was also that spark of good humor in his eyes. It was obvious that he'd been worn down, but he hadn't been broken.
"I'm okay," Nico told him. He stepped around Sadie and Carter to stand closer to his cousin. "Let's just get out of here Percy," he said, a little bit of desperation creeping into his voice. "I want to go home."
Percy wasn't sure where Nico meant when he said 'home' but he nodded anyway. "We're going home," he promised, grabbing his cousin by the shoulder and steering him back toward the stairs.
Of course, it was a lot easier to say they were going than to actually get there. They met more opposition after joining up with Bast, on their way out of the building. Several magicians had come running. Sadie and Carter jumped to the forefront to trade spells with them. Percy kept Nico shielded behind him and used his hydrokinetic powers to control all the water that was conveniently everywhere now. He swamped the magicians, knocking them off their feet and breaking their concentration, then he gave the current an extra boost so that it swept their weapons away from them.
"Get the boat!" he shouted at Carter.
"I'm working on it!" replied Carter. "It's not as easy as it looks, especially since this isn't where the river's really supposed to be."
"Going somewhere, pet?" asked a familiar voice from above them.
Immediately, they all looked up, to the roof of the building beside the one they'd just busted out of, and saw Aziza the sadistic psychopath leering down at them, or more specifically, at Nico. Out the corner of his eye, Percy saw Nico go even paler at the sight of his nemesis.
"Back off!" Percy shouted at her. "We're leaving. I'm taking my cousin home, and if you try to stop us you're going to regret it."
"You're not going anywhere," growled Aziza. She pointed her staff at them and said a few words that Percy couldn't understand. Hieroglyphics glowed around her, and a giant snake appeared out of thin air and flew right at Percy.
He moved forward to meet it, sword first, and lopped off its head then sidestepped its flying carcass. "Is that all you've got?" he asked.
"Not even close, you foolish demigod," crowed Aziza. "Who do you think you're fighting?"
"A crazy kidnapping hag who started this whole mess in the first place!" Percy told her. "It's thanks to you that Hades is about to declare war on the House of Life you know."
"Liar!"
"What, you think Hades is about to declare war on you because he's bored?" demanded Percy. "You attacked and almost killed his son, and it's only thanks to these two that you didn't kill him." Percy motioned toward Sadie and Carter. "They took him and hid him from you, a little too well, since Hades couldn't find him either and thought he'd been kidnapped, but instead of sending someone to try to work things out peacefully you decided to kidnap him for real! You brought this on yourself!"
Fury had been building in Percy as he yelled at Aziza, finally getting a chance to voice what he thought about her, and put the blame for this whole mess where it belonged. If Aziza hadn't been such a sadistic bitch, if she and her friend hadn't woken up and decided to go kill a couple of kids they disagreed with in Central Park, none of them would be in this mess now. It was their fault that Nico had almost died, and that now the world had to deal with another doomsday prophecy that was starting to shape up.
With a scream, Percy sent a wall of water, at least forty feet high, slamming down on Aziza, knocking her from her rooftop perch, down into the overflowing river.
The son of the sea god is mad!
He's mad at that woman!
She's trying to stop the son of the sea god taking his cousin home!
Get her!
Bite! Bite! Bite! Bite! Bite!
Tiger fish swarmed Aziza and her shrill screams echoed throughout the First Nome.
"Got it!"
Percy turned to see Carter, standing in the waist-deep water, holding the boat he'd summoned steady while Sadie climbed into it. Bast was already in it, looking banefully at the water. She was already soaked and none too happy about it.
"Let's go," he told his cousin and turned to Nico. He frowned, seeing that Nico appeared frozen, just staring at Aziza who was thrashing in the water, trying to fend off Percy's friends the tiger fish. "Nico! Come on!"
Nico started then looked at Percy blankly.
"We're leaving!" Percy grabbed him by one arm and half drug the shell-shocked boy to the boat. Sadie and Bast reached over the side and helped pull him in. Percy and Carter both jumped in as well. "Alright, Mr. Wizard, get us out of here," Percy said to Carter. He braced himself as Carter began working his magic and everything started to go blurry that wasn't inside the boat. Nausea started to set in for the demigod, and he figured that he was probably turning green again.
"Percy?" asked Nico in a small voice.
"It's okay, Nico," said Percy, figuring that his cousin was being affected the same way that he was. "It'll pass."
Thick trees, like in a jungle, and pink river dolphins blinked in and out around the boat, then the scene seemed to melt into what looked like a rice paddy, then finally, the familiar hustle and bustle of New York City.
"Percy!" said Nico urgently.
"It's alright, it's almost over," croaked Percy. "You'll be alright. I promise."
"It's not me that I'm worried about!" said Nico. "You look like you're going to puke!"
Percy looked slowly at his cousin and was mildly surprised to see that Nico didn't look any worse now than he had when he'd gotten into the boat.
"Are you . . . sea-sick?" asked Nico hesitantly.
"Not sea-sick," Percy told him, burying his face in one hand. "Magic-sick. You don't have it?"
"Uh uh."
"How is that possible?" wondered Percy.
"You're sure you're not just sea-sick?"
"I'm the son of the sea god!" said Percy, very annoyed now. "I don't get sea-sick!"
"Motion-sick then?"
"No," said Percy. "I'm pretty sure that it's from their screwed up Egyptian magic, combined with the fact that I'm a demigod. Or at least I would be sure, if you were affected the same way . . ."
Nico cocked his head to one side as though he was listening to someone. "Anubis thinks you're probably right," he said seconds later. "He just thinks that I've adapted to the Egyptian magic inside of me now, which is why I'm not affected."
Percy tried to glare at his cousin, especially at the mischievous look in his eyes, but it was hard to both glare and keep himself from throwing up.
"The son of the sea god gets sea-sick," cackled Sadie, safely at the other end of the boat. "That's rich."
"Both of you shut up," Percy told them, feeling even more miserable. The moment Carter pulled the boat up to the bank, near the Kanes' mansion, he rolled out of it and onto the sidewalk, and closed his eyes, trying to fight off that sickening feeling.
Something icy cold pressed against both of his temples and cheeks. He cracked his eyes open and saw Nico looking at him, seemingly upside down. The boy knelt above Percy's head and framed Percy's face with his hands.
"Coldness helps sometimes," said Nico by way of explanation. He looked a little bit embarrassed but didn't pull away. "When you're feeling sick. Having something cold on your circulation points . . . And everyone says my hands are as cold as death . . ."
Strange as it seemed, the iciness actually did help. Almost immediately Percy began to feel better.
"Thanks, Nico," he said a minute later, as Nico's cold touch chased away the last of the magic-sickness. "That's a lot better." He sat up and Nico withdrew his hands. "Where did you learn that?" he asked, curious. "Putting something cold on circulation points?"
Nico opened his mouth to answer, then his face went blank. "I don't remember," he muttered.
"It kind of sounds like a mom thing to say," Percy told him and watched his cousin's reaction carefully.
"Maybe . . ." Nico looked confused. Not upset or frustrated, but maybe a little sad.
Percy was hesitant to say anything about it yet, but there were times when he had the feeling that Nico's Lethe washed memories weren't as far gone as they'd all assumed they were. Every now and then there would be some little thing that made him wonder if more had been left in Nico's memory than there should have been, like the way he started speaking Italian when he was tired, or cursing in Italian when he was enraged . . . and the way he'd recognized his mother's face that time when he, Percy, and Thalia were retrieving the Sword of Hades. It was only speculation, though, and he didn't want to give Nico false hope yet, but he intended to keep an eye on this and see what came of it.
"Well, it works," said Percy, to distract Nico from his missing memories. "Thank you, Nico."
Nico's mouth twisted wryly. "I should probably be the one thanking you."
"Yes, yes, very touching," said Sadie, "but it would probably be a good idea to get inside and fix the wards before our House of Life friends descend upon us again, and try to re-kidnap you."
"Is this really the best place to be?" asked Percy as he stood up, accepting the hand Nico offered to help him. "They'll look for you here."
Carter frowned. "We have nowhere else to go."
"Actually, we do," Percy told them.
Nico looked anxious. "I don't think taking them to Camp Half-blood's a good idea, Percy. Even if they can get past the defenses and don't get pwned, there's still –"
"I actually wasn't talking about Camp Half-blood," Percy told them.
Sadie was surprised how readily Mrs. Jackson, or Sally as she insisted on being called, opened her home to the three kids and the cat that her son brought home. They all looked like they'd been drug through a gutter, with their clothes stained from blood, dust and river water, their hair still damp, all of them dragging their feet with every step.
"Friends from camp?" she asked as they all collapsed into chairs around the kitchen table.
"Not exactly," answered Percy. "Mom, meet Sadie Kane and Carter Kane. They're . . . not demigods. They're Egyptian magicians."
Sadie was a bit surprised that Sally didn't even bat an eye or look the slightest bit curious to learn Sadie and Carter had the same last name. She wondered if that confusion would come later, when Sally learned the Kanes were full siblings, not cousins like she probably suspected, or maybe half-siblings like she was probably used to, from Percy's demigod friends.
"Nice to meet you."
"You too," said Sadie. "Bloody lovely."
"Sadie," hissed Carter. "Be polite."
"I was."
"Nico, are you alright?" Sally moved to the smallest of their group and put a hand against his forehead in a very motherly way.
"Mom," said Percy, "you know he doesn't have a fever."
"Of course I know." Sally moved behind Nico and put her hands on his shoulders in a kind of protective manner. "And you know that it doesn't matter. I'll treat my nephew the same way I'd treat any little boy I thought might be ill."
Sadie smirked at the look that crossed Nico's face, like he didn't know whether to be touched or terrified or both. She decided to help him out a bit by directing Sally's attention away from him. "Actually, Percy was the one who got sea-sick on the way back to New York. You might want to check him out."
Sally looked alarmed. "Sea-sick?"
"No, I was not sea-sick," growled Percy. "Their Egyptian magic just made me a little nauseous, that's all."
"He almost puked all over Nico," said Sadie helpfully.
"No he didn't," said Carter. "Stop exaggerating, Sadie."
"You know that I'm fine, Mom," said Percy, trying to fend off his mother's forehead attack on him. "You know I am. I'm invincible, remember? Mom, stop it . . ."
"You're not invincible," said Sally. "Don't start thinking like that, Percy."
Percy flushed. "I won't, I didn't mean it like that. I meant I'm almost completely, physically invulnerable. I'm not sick and I don't have a fever."
It took a few moments to assuage Sally, and Sadie had to wonder just what they were talking about. Obviously there was a story behind Percy thinking he was invincible. In time she could probably get it out of Nico, or if not him, she could probably wheedle Anubis into picking it out of his brain and telling her, but there'd be time for that later.
"Well, I'm glad you're home," said Sally at last. "Does this mean that everything's all right now?"
"Er, not exactly . . ." the four of them exchanged glances. "We still have a few things to take care of," Percy told his Mom. "It will all be alright soon."
Sadie hoped that meant Percy had a plan. In fact, she actually thought that he must, because he sounded so convincing, and she didn't take him for being a good liar. It wasn't until after enjoying the meal that Mrs. Jackson served them, then retreating into Percy's room to talk that she learned otherwise.
"Well, Nico," said Percy, "we're running out of time. Since I don't think it's even possible to separate you and Anubis at this point, or at least not on this time frame, we're going to have to go with your crazy plan."
"You didn't come up with a plan?" demanded Sadie. "Your plan is to have your cousin come up with a plan?"
"I don't think you'll want to use my plan," said Nico. "It's . . . not a good plan."
"Neither was our trip to the Styx, but that turned out well enough in the end."
"You went to the River Styx?" asked Carter.
Percy nodded. "If we live through the week, I'll tell you about it."
"Did you ride the ferry?" Carter wanted to know. "Did you have to pay those coins?"
"Brother? Focus, please," said Sadie. "It's potentially the end of the world we're discussing here. Less tangents."
"Nico," said Percy, "your plan is all we've got. None of the rest of us has a clue what to do or how to fool Hades."
Nico shook his head. "You're not going to like it. You're going to think that it's crazy."
"I'm sure I will," said Percy, "but I trust you. If you think it could work then we might as well give it a shot. It's the only chance we've got now."
Sadie watched, bemused, as Nico mouthed the word 'trust' at his cousin, with a bug-eyed look on his face. She glanced at Percy just in time to see the older teen nod, then back at Nico in time to see him sit up a bit straighter, suddenly looking nervous.
Then Nico began to explain his plan, and Sadie realized why he looked so nervous. His plan was possibly the most ridiculous thing she'd ever heard. Apparently Percy agreed.
"Nico," he said, "I'm sorry, but I take it back. That is completely insane."
"I know," said Nico morosely. "But like you said, it might be the only chance we've got now. I wouldn't have even said anything about it if there was another option, but there's not."
And he was right. The deadline was close. Too close. And Sadie couldn't think of anything that they could possibly do to stop Hades from going on a rampage. Anything except what Nico proposed.
With a groan, she closed her eyes and muttered, "We're all going to die."
Next Chapter: Nico's plan is revealed, and you too will probably think that he's crazy. I'll get it posted as soon as I can. I also need to work on my Artemis Fowl fic that's been on hiatus most of the summer . . . but I realized that I get too confused working on 2 long stories at the same time, and since more people are reading and reviewing this one, I'm giving it priority.