That night, Percy dreamt.
It was dark- not pitch black darkness, but the kind felt when you step outside at night and your eyes haven't adjusted. A physical, close darkness.
Even without the ability to see, Percy could tell he was in Camp Half-Blood. From the smell of the lingering campfire smoke to the gentle hum of crickets, Percy could feel the presence of his home all around him. His heart hurt with homesickness.
Suddenly, a loud and desperate bleating filled the air.
"PER-R-RCY!"
Percy broke out in a grin and shouted back, "GROVER!"
"PER-R-RCY!" The exclamation was followed by the sound of grass crunching underfoot- or underhoof, in Grover's case- as Percy's best friend sprinted closer.
Squinting, Percy called out, "Grover, where are you? I can't-" And in a flash of flames, the campfire relit itself and illuminated Grover and Percy, who stood with only ten yards between them.
"Oh, Percy!" Grover began sprinting again, arms wide, and Percy met him halfway with a tight hug.
"Thank the gods, Grover," Percy grinned, laughing in relief. He hadn't realized just how much he'd missed his best friend over the past couple of days. "I don't think I could have handled anymore nightmares in my life right now."
Grover pulled back, hands still gripping Percy's shoulders as if he could disappear at any moment- which, considering Percy's recent abduction-by-Hera, was not unlikely. Grover's rasta cap was nowhere to be seen, his brown curls wild with leftover bedhead and sleepshirt rumpled from a restless night. "Percy, please come back in one piece. We can't lose you, not again."
Percy put his hands on Grover's. "It's not me I'm worried about. The Camp is in danger, and at this point I've done everything I can to prevent this war, but- Grover, it's gonna be bad. Real bad."
Taking a step back, Grover gestured at the Big House. "We've called in reinforcements, just as you suggested. The Hunters of Artemis are camping by the strawberry fields, and a good portion of Camp Jupiter's legions are staying in the Big House. Frank's come back to help, too."
Percy nodded, his lips pressed together in a tight line. On one hand, he was glad that Frank came to help. He'd be a huge asset and would benefit the demigods greatly. On the other hand, Frank was now in the line of fire.
"I saw Vinomi today, Grover. He- oh gods, he's one of the most gruesome beings I've ever seen in my life." Percy ran a hand anxiously through his dark hair. "I've been to Tartarus, and he still makes the Top Five Worst Things I've Ever Seen list."
Grover gulped, wringing his hands nervously. "I-I-I know about Vinomi. I've heard the stories."
Percy shook his head. "This is insane, this whole situation is so, so out of control. I don't-"
"Hey, Percy," Grover sighed with a sad smile. He pulled his best friend in for another hug. Ever since Percy returned from the quest in the Mediterranean and Gaea had been defeated, Grover hugged Percy approximately three times a day. "Making up for lost time," he always said. "It's gonna end up alright. Besides," Grover gave Percy sarcastic finger guns. "You're usually about to die; it's just another day in the life of demigod."
Percy laughed once before the dream version of Camp Half-Blood began to blur, fading away until everything looked foggy. Panic gripped Percy's heart; he knew what awaited him in the morning. "Grover, stay safe, okay? Don't," Percy swallowed. "Don't come near me until after the fight."
"Percy-"
"Grover, promise me that. And tell Anna-"
The dream vanished too soon.
Needless to say, Percy's morning was indeed less than delightful. Sandro had gruffly shook him awake; his back ached from sleeping on Sandro's makeshift client's table, and his hands were shackled in front of him not five minutes after opening his eyes.
"We overslept," Sandro muttered in his ear, knife pressed to Percy's back as they headed to the uppermost deck. "Time to get back in to character."
Percy huffed out a laugh, "Trust me, that knife is convincing enough. No need for acting on my part." He joked, but inside his stomach felt like a sailing knot, all twisted and pulled tight as if it would never come undone. The S.S. Tartarus had dropped anchor half a mile from Camp Half Blood's shore, and in the distance Percy could see demigods milling about on the hills and on the beach, small silver and bronze specks amidst the greenery. The pang of homesickness was not unexpected but still took his breath away. Gods, he missed Camp. He missed waking up beside Annabeth in Cabin Three (they couldn't sleep in the Athena Cabin without inordinate amounts of heckling and the abuse of, admittedly, clever innuendos). He missed Grover. He missed sparring with Jason and joking with Piper. He missed the visits to and from Camp Jupiter, and he missed Frank and Hazel's smiles. He even missed Nico and his permanent scowl, although its intensity had significantly dropped since he and Will became a couple.
A dark blur in the clouds above caught Percy's eye.
"What the," Percy muttered, and when the blur ducked out of the clouds again, Percy immediately recognized it as Blackjack soaring overhead.
Blackjack! Percy called out mentally. Blackjack, what are you doing here?
Saving you, Boss! The pegasus bleated back, dark wings swirling the clouds around him as he hovered above the ship.
Blackjack, I appreciate it, really, but this is not the time. If you come down here you will get killed.
Boss, you think I'd let myself get caught? How long have you been away? Did you forget how amazing I am? I'm like a bolt of lightning- no offense to you, Boss, I know about Zeus and Poseidon being rivals, but there's not a fast ocean thing I-
Percy stifled a laugh. Hold on for one second there, buddy. Glancing around on deck, Percy surveyed his surroundings. He stood in the middle of the silvery deck, monsters of all shapes and sizes standing at the ready in their cracked and mutilated armor. Bonoas stood at the back of the crowd, blue skin blending in to the unfairly cheerful sky. Aralus was picking his teeth with a dracanae's sword, and Forterae was staring him down from across the ship. The air was charged with tension, and Percy's hair stood on end like it did when Thalia was about to electrocute him.
Panic raced through his veins, however, when he saw Vinomi approaching in gloves with the dreaded Stygian Iron chain and shackle from the day before. Once Percy had that awful thing around him again, it'd all be over. But, if Blackjack could get here first…
Blackjack! Percy silently yelled, glancing back up at the sky. If we're going to act, we've got to do it fast! You see that ridiculously large monster holding the black chain?
Oh yeah, not a guy I want to go near, Boss.
If you can get to me before he does, we can get out of here- but you have to go as fast you can.
As fast I can, Boss?
Yes, as fast as you can!
Blackjack circled once more before diving towards the ship. Percy's heart rate accelerated, hope filling his chest once again. He braced himself, hand hovering over his pocket and eyes trained at the sky. He took a second to glance at Forterae, and that's when things went wrong.
Forterae noticed.
She caught on.
The purple giantess followed Percy's gaze towards the sky and spotted the black pegasus racing towards the S. S. Tartarus, and her expression darkened. She opened her mouth to sound the alarm.
BLACKJACK, IT'S NOW OR NEVER!
"STOP THAT PEGASUS!" Forterae boomed, reaching for her sword. Blackjack swooped next to Percy in that same instant, and Percy grabbed ahold of his back as best he could with the handcuffs still on and was pulled straight up into the sky. Hauling himself fully onto Blackjack's back, they went speeding upwards- completely vertical. The wind whipped Percy's hair away from his face, stinging his skin and billowing his black shirt, but Percy didn't notice any of it; the adrenaline was roaring too loud in his ears. He looked back down, leaning away from Blackjack to see between his beating wings.
The deck of the S. S. Tartarus was awash in chaos. Monsters chucked spears at the sky, and some arrows went whizzing by them too close for comfort. Vinomi, though, was ominously still, eye trained on the escaping duo. He reached behind himself and unclasped something from his belt- a whip. Oh gods, Percy thought. Vinomi moved with a grace Percy would have thought impossible for a being so large, cracking the whip above his gruesome head with a sound like cannon fire. The sudden crack frightened Blackjack, who instinctively bucked a bit. Percy tried to wrap his arms around Blackjack's neck, but couldn't with the shackles binding his hands together.
"Buddy, you're okay, but we need-" Percy didn't get to finish. The leather of Vinomi's whip came sailing through the air, and the sound it made when it snapped against Blackjack was one that would haunt Percy's nightmares for years to come.
Blackjack reared back and brayed in shock and pain, dropping a couple yards in the sky before righting himself- but it was too late. Percy was thrown off of his pegasus' back, tumbling through the clouds disoriented and afraid. He could feel Blackjack's distress and agony, feelings so strong they clouded his own mind. Water; I need the ocean. Percy tried to reach out to Long Island Sound, to have the water cushion his fall, but something- or someone- intercepted his descent with bruising rigor. Kampê held Percy in her animalistic claws, the heads at her belt snapping and biting at his face.
"Let me go!" Percy shrieked, managing to uncap Riptide with his bound hands. Kampê knocked the sword out of his hands and growled, spit from her own mouth and from those at her waist spraying Percy's face. She chucked him back on deck, where Vinomi stood waiting with a smug smirk on his face. He wasted no time in shackling Percy in the Stygian Iron clasp, securely imprisoning the demigod in its draining grip. Percy stuttered out a gasp, the cold from the metal as shocking as its immediate effect.
"Every day I think about killing you," Vinomi began, yanking Percy by the chain so that he was uncomfortably close to the giant's scarred face, "I just remind myself how much better it will be to watch you suffer as you massacre your own friends and family."
Vinomi chucked Percy to the ground, and Sandro stomped over to reposition himself as Percy's assigned guard. "What the hell was that?" the Cyclops snarled. "We had a strategy for this, and you just had to go and pull that stunt?"
Percy glared icily at Sandro. "I hadn't planned on Blackjack showing up, but I wasn't going to pass up the opportunity."
"You idiot," Sandro sneered. "We have a partnership here, a plan that you have just wonderfully screwed up. Vinomi will never consider a truce with a prisoner who repeatedly tries to escape."
Percy tried to keep his temper down- he'd caused enough of a scene, and the Stygian Iron clasp was already draining his energy. "My pegasus just risked his life for me, so I'm sorry if I'm having a little trouble sympathizing with you at the moment." Percy searched the sky for Blackjack, but he couldn't see his steed anywhere. "I just hope he gets help. He's hurt badly." Sandro's anger subsided for a moment, and he took a deep breath. As Percy looked at the sky, hair blown about by the wind and worry etched all over his face, Sandro decided to back off. If he were in the demigod's position, he too would've taken every chance to escape. No matter their plans for the future, the demigod was still a prisoner right now- a frightened and tired prisoner.
"Percy, I'm-"
Percy Jackson's eyes went wide and he sucked in a pained breath. Sandro took a step back. He hadn't even noticed Bonoas approaching them, and the blue giant had his grimy hand wrapped around a familiar pink syringe that was presently plunged into Percy's back. Sandro made eye contact with Kelly in the crowd; the empousa nodded confidently. They didn't know exactly what, but something this time would be different.
Percy couldn't think anything other than Oh gods once the Hyde has been shot into his back. Maybe Ow ow ow as well. So, Percy couldn't think anything other than Oh gods, ow ow ow when the Hyde entered his system. It felt...different than last time. It burned, for one thing. That wasn't fun. And something about it made his mind cloudy. As his consciousness slowly started to slip away, Percy mumbled a soft, "Oh," and collapsed onto the deck.
––––––––––––––
The last time Percy woke up after being injected with the Hyde serum, he was tucked in a cozy bed underneath a fuzzy blanket. This time, he woke up feeling groggy, lightweight, and soaking wet. It was almost like he was floating, and sound was muted, and when he opened his eyes the world looked-
Percy gasped and let out a burst of bubbles. He was underwater.
He was underwater!
Smiling like a maniac, Percy reached out to connect with his surroundings- and instead felt a surge of agony. The Stygian Iron was blocking him from the water, preventing him from uniting with it as he usually did. Being so close to the water but unable to connect hurt, pinching his nerves and clawing at his mind. He could see the fish and sense the currents, but he couldn't interact. He couldn't hear the fish thinking. He couldn't control the currents' path. He couldn't do anything. He couldn't even keep himself dry, although he was able to breath- chalk it up to sheer survival instincts overpowering the shackle. The oppression from the Stygian Iron on his mind and body hurt. Oh gods, it hurt so much.
He felt a tug, and his mind, albeit struggling, focused back on the situation at hand. The watery landscape was murky to say the least, with weak shafts of sunlight barely breaking up the monochromatic world of dull, greenish-blue. Looking down at his feet, Percy watched the sand shift under each step, sifting and drifting around his wet shoes and socks. Percy curled his toes in discomfort- damp socks were something that Percy hadn't experienced in a blissfully long period of time, and he was less than thrilled to be trudging along the bottom of Long Island Sound with them now.
Percy was unsure of how much time had passed between the shot of Hyde and him waking up on the ocean floor, but it was long enough for someone- most likely Kelli with Sandro's aid- to have dressed him in his bronze armor from the Headquarters. Head to toe, he was decked out in Kelli's creation, unfortunately prepped for battle. Despite the water's muffling of sound, Percy could hear his trident-emblazoned chestplate mutedly clanking against the Stygian Iron clasp with each pained breath.
He wondered what he looked like to the others, dressed like this. Percy remembered seeing himself in Kelli's workshop mirror, orange eyes blazing under the shadow of his black-plumed helmet. Well, Percy backtracked, probably pink eyes now. Glancing up from his soaked shoes and sandy surroundings, Percy analyzed his current position.
The long Stygian chain attached tightly to Percy's shackled torso floated in front of him, being yanked by an angry Aralus who no doubt was pissed that he was assigned Babysitter Duty. Aralus' red skin looked closer to maroon under the water, his black armor lacking any shine and his expression lacking any joy. He and Percy seemed to be bringing up the rear of the army, meaning everyone else marched ahead of them in uniformed ranks.
It appeared that the giants had rewritten their battle plans after the unexpected loss of Callisthenes, Hectamedes, and the other giants back at the Headquarters. Rather than approach the Camp from all fronts, the giants had dropped back to storm from the beach as one unified attack. Personally, Percy found that plan a little flimsy, but he sure as hell wasn't going to bring that up. Besides, there was a high chance that there was more to the plan that Percy was not aware of- he wasn't exactly in the giants' highest graces at the moment. Percy scanned the ranks of soldiers in front of him, seeing what looked like hundreds of monsters all slowly shoving through the water and up the gradually sloping sand towards the beach of Camp Half Blood. Dracanae, Laistragonians, Empousai, Cyclops, Telekhines, you name it. Everyone was there. A dragon-esque beast was swimming above Percy, its shadow a looming darkness over the army. Kampê was further ahead, her thick legs propelling her through the water much too quickly for Percy's comfort. He figured that the Stymphalian Birds were flying above the sea, much better suited for air travel and small enough to not entirely give away the element of surprise that Percy assumed the giants were relying on. The S. S. Tartarus anchored on the horizon was definitely going to hinder that tactic, but hey, Percy figured, maybe they're just in it for the drama of having all the monsters creep out of the ocean like a never-ending stream of evil. Lovely.
Bonoas and Forterae were two blue and purple pillars leading the front, a huge spear in Bonoas' blue hand and a cat-of-nine-tails whip in Forterae's deep purple fist. Her black, matted hair full of weapon shards floating behind her like a dark furry carcass. Percy couldn't get a good feel for Bonoas' attitude from this far back, but even with the distance between them Forterae's walk reeked of confidence.
Where's Vinomi? Percy wondered, looking around now with more intensity. He tried squinting through the ocean's nondescript waters, but he couldn't make out any spined and indescribably foreboding silhouettes in the area. Closing his eyes, Percy attempted to mentally call out to any fish nearby and ask them to scout, but the second he put an ounce of effort into his mental call, the Stygian iron clanged out an intense vibration in his mind. Percy yelped, hands flying to his helmet-clad head. Nope, Percy grimaced. That's not gonna work. Aralus shot him an annoyed glance, tugged on the chain with extra gusto, and started to turn back around as Percy called out:
"Hey, just curious: how is everyone breathing underwater?" As he spoke, Percy set out a hand on the sandy ground and sat, letting himself be dragged along by Aralus. If he was going to be forced against his will to fight, he shouldn't have to walk himself to the battle. "I mean, I know for a fact I'm not the one helping them out down here- both because I physically can't and because I don't want to."
Aralus' shoulders heaved along with his heavy, irritated sigh. "Gods, you must be the most irksome piece of demigod scum alive. I do not understand your worth."
Percy blinked, then scoffed under his breath, "Geez, sorry I asked." He leaned back on the shackle, stuck his legs out, and crossed his ankles, feigning ease and facing backwards as Aralus continued to drag his body across the sand. The view was sort of pretty when your vision wasn't swamped with monsters.
A good two minutes passed before Aralus finally replied, "If you must know, Dr. Derideo brewed a potion that allows for a limited ability to breathe underwater. It lasts for one period of time in the sea; once we breach the surface, the potion wears off."
Percy whistled, crossing his arms beneath his head. "Impressive."
"Quite," Aralus mused. "It's almost a shame we killed him."
Percy choked on his gasp, grabbing his shackle and twisting to look at Aralus. "You what?"
Aralus eyed him over his armored shoulder. "What, are you surprised? He was nothing but a weak human that we no longer needed. He served his purpose."
"He had a life, though! A family, probably- sure, a most likely disturbed and creepy family, but still! You had no right to kill him after he did nothing but help you."
"You think I actually care about the puny life of a mortal? I can hardly bring myself to give damn about your miserable life, and you are key to this whole operation! His life meant nothing. 'Tis but a tally mark on my list of kills," Aralus smirked.
Percy's mouth hung open in shock. He turned back to face behind the army again, legs leaving two shallow trenches in his path as he limply sat on the fact that crazy Dr. Derideo was dead. It felt like a rash, stupid decision. What if they needed more Hyde? How could they have killed him on a whim like that?
"I believe Vinomi discovered his case of Hyde disturbed this morning- out of place by a couple inches or puddles of water suspiciously near it, something or other- and he blamed Derideo," Aralus added as an afterthought. "That was a contributing factor. I think Vinomi was overreacting, since we were on a boat that shifts and leaks, but I am regretfully not in charge."
Percy's heart dropped into his stomach. Oh gods. We got Dr. Derideo killed.
That could have been us.
"PREPARE TO BREACH THE SURFACE," Forterae called out suddenly, and Percy scrambled to his feet. The army came to a stumbling halt, everyone's momentum in the water making it difficult to stop in unison. Aralus jerked Percy's chain, wrenching the demigod over to Aralus' side. The sudden pull knocked the wind out of Percy, leaving him to scramble up again next to the red giant, panting and clutching his chest.
The water's surface was about five feet above Forterae's head, meaning it was almost twenty above Percy's. He could hear the lapping of the sea, feel the tide sweeping him and the monsters in a steady sway. Everything screamed "Home," but Percy couldn't bask in its comfort. His heart was beating faster by the minute, dread weighing down his feet and misery tugging at his heart. He wasn't ready for this.
The army parted before him and Aralus, leaving a straight path up the sloping sands to the beach above. With a shove, he and Aralus drudged their way upwards. Percy's hand danced over his pocket, itching to unsheath Riptide but knowing that as soon as he saw a camper, Riptide would become an unwanted weapon of destruction. In a desperate last ditch attempt at stopping himself, Percy grabbed the pen in his pocket and dropped it onto the sand, leaving it behind. He could only pray it'd stay away from him long enough to stall his attacks.
Every step was agony. Percy didn't want to be here. He didn't want to be doing this. He wanted this to be a dream. A long, terrifyingly realistic dream, but a dream nonetheless. But, Percy knew couldn't escape now. This was happening, whether he liked it or not.
Looking up to the shallows, the water's surface only about ten feet above his head now, Percy could faintly make out the shapes of a couple campers waiting for their arrival. A sudden burst of rage ripped its way through Percy's body, making him shudder and snarl.
Percy snapped his eyes shut, breathing heavily. "Please," he whispered. "Oh gods, please help." Just the sight of the demigods' outlines had triggered the Hyde. Percy had to keep his eyes shut. For the safety of the Camp, his eyes would not open again.
Of course, the life of Percy Jackson was never that simple.
Percy heard Aralus break the surface with a splash, and soon enough so did he. The water ran down his face, his hair flattened against his forehead. He spit out the water from his lips, wiping at his eyes but not opening them. Even without the ability to see, Percy could tell he was in Camp Half-Blood. He was bombarded with the smells and sounds of his home: strawberries, pine, smoke, birds chirping, campers talking, distant nymphs in the forest giggling.
He couldn't see them, but Percy felt the presence of a whole heck of a lot of demigods at the beach. Aralus pulled on Percy's chain, dragging him closer to the giant's side once more. Gods, Percy hated this. Standing there, shackled and dressed in the armor of the enemy, he was humiliated and anxiety-ridden, which was a sucky combination to say the least.
He could hear more monsters breaching the water behind him, their armor clashing and echoing around the Camp as a hush fell over the demigods. More and more of the army climbed onto the sands of the beach; Percy could hear the beating wings of the Stymphalian Birds overhead, hovering like vultures waiting for their prey to die. The ground shook when Bonoas and Forterae strode up to stand by their brother. Gathered at the edge of Camp Half-Blood, the crew of the S. S. Tartarus eyed the battlefield before them. The only thing holding them back was the giant, invisible force field that protected the camp.
Percy wanted to call out, to shout, "Run!", to do something. Maybe he could stab Aralus and sprint away? No, he was still attached at the waist to the Stygian chain. Maybe Nico would open up the earth and swallow the army straight to the Underworld? No, Percy grimaced. A huge move like that would leave the son of Hades either exhausted or, quite frankly, dead, and the Camp would lose a necessary player. Maybe Percy could gouge out his eyes, that way he'd never actually see a demigod? Ah, but if he did that, he would severely hinder his ability to help the Camp fight back. Percy liked to think he'd be able to fight sightlessly, but he knew it could only get him so far. Unfortunately, echolocation did not fall under his list of supernatural abilities.
For now, he was stuck.
"Demigods, satyrs, nymphs, and assorted warriors of Camp Half-Blood," boomed Forterae, deep voice ringing out over the fields and hills, "we have come to destroy everything you love."
If Percy's eyes had been open, he would have rolled them. What a drama queen, he thought to himself.
"We are tired of this eternal war waged between us and you vermin, and at long last there will be one, final victor to end it all: us. If you have any last words, now's the time to speak them."
"War is not the only way to end this," a familiar female voice spoke out from only a couple feet in front of Percy, loud and clear above the general hum of nervous demigods. "We are willing to discuss a peaceful termination to this collective rivalry, and since I don't plan on listening to any more close-minded monologues today, I suggest you accept our offer."
Gods, Annabeth always did have such a way with words.
"You have no way in to our camp," she continued, "without a demigod's permission, and you sure as hell aren't going to get it from any of us. Even if you were able to get Percy to let you in, he'd grow weak after about a dozen entries- one demigod can only do so much. It'd be a waste of your time and mine."
"I'll let you in on a secret," Percy piped up, nudging Aralus' leg with his elbow, "she's always right."
"Shut up," Aralus snarled, "you don't get to speak."
"Um, I beg to differ," Percy continued, crossing his arms. "This is my camp, and I know for a fact that one demigod can't let in the hundreds of monsters you've brought with you. I hate to disappoint- no, actually, I take that back, I'm ecstatic to be able to disappoint you- but I can't take you any further than this beach right here." He shrugged. "Sorry."
Out of all the responses he was expecting, he wasn't prepared to hear Forterae laugh. "You complete and utter fools. Do you really believe I would plan my entire operation around one inconsequential idiot?"
Percy heard an interrupting cough from somewhere to his left. "Bringing this back to what we said earlier," the voice of Jason intervened, "what do you think about a treaty? Between demigods and monsterkind?"
"Why," chuckled Forterae, "would I consider that when I have already won?"
Gasps rang out across Camp Half-Blood as something thunderous sounded out from the other side of Camp. Shouting and shrieking, campers armed themselves and kicked themselves into overdrive.
"What the hell is happening?" Percy yelled, hoping someone could hear him over the roaring panic. Far away, he could hear leaves rustling as if in a hurricane, but he could feel no wind. A pained howl ripped through the air, and more frenzied shouts sounded. The tumultuous camp instilled a deep-set panic in Percy as he stood, completely helpless.
From very close by, Annabeth called back, "Somebody huge, disgusting, and looking like downright nightmare fuel just dug his taloned hand into the dirt near Thalia's tree."
Percy cursed. "Vinomi."
Annabeth blanched. "As in, Vinomi the Venomous and Merciless?"
"Yup, one and the same," Percy frowned. As realization set in, his heart skipped a beat. "Oh gods, is he-"
"Killing Peleus, poisoning Thalia's tree through its roots, and chucking the Golden Fleece into the woods? Yes, the answer is horribly yes."
Percy's jaw dropped. Okay, he hadn't seen that one coming. "Okay, okay, what do I do?" Percy asked Annabeth, anxious to get in and fight. A vicious tug backwards knocked Percy to the ground as Aralus wound of the Stygian Iron and unshackled Percy. "Oh, my gods," Percy breathed in relief as he lay on his back, an odd feeling to have amidst the chaos, but still greatly appreciated. He could breathe again. The presence of the ocean came flooding back into his system, clearing his headache and heightening his senses.
His reprieve was short-lived, however, as Aralus picked Percy up and shoved him forward.
"The barrier has been compromised- attack!" the giant hollered, and as hordes of monsters pushed past, Percy stayed standing still.
"What is wrong with you? Look at the demig-" Aralus stopped short, peering down at Percy's face. "Open your damn eyes!"
"Like hell I will!" Percy yelled, trying to back away but getting knocked over immediately by what he assumed was a telekhine. He felt two hands wrap around his right arm and pull him to his feet. "Thanks, Annabeth," he breathed, eyes still squeezed shut.
"Anytime, Seaweed Brai- duck to your left!"
Percy dove to his left, rolling into a side somersault and then back up on to his feet. He heard a heavy hand slam down where he had been a second ago. "I've had enough of your inane-"
"Percy, on the ground!" He dropped to his stomach as he felt something whoosh overhead. This time, Percy felt the rumble of hooves and rolled to his right, narrowly avoiding getting trampled by a rogue pegasus.
"On your le- PERCY!" Annabeth shrieked, her voice coming from way too high above Percy.
"I've got your little girlfriend," Aralus sneered, a maniac twang sneaking into his voice. "Open your damn eyes or I'll slit her THROAT!"
"Shit," Percy whispered, instinctively reaching for Riptide and finding an empty pocket. His mind was so focused on Annabeth that he didn't hear the demigod and monster fighting behind him. He didn't notice how close they were getting. He didn't hear Connor Stoll shout, "Side kick!" He did feel a monster slam into his back, though, sending Percy spiraling to the ground once more. He did faceplant into the sand.
He did open his eyes.
The world was blurry for a second, but it cleared up quick enough for Percy to look up and see Aralus' red, meaty hand grasping Annabeth far too tight, her dangling legs kicking uselessly underneath. He watched as she fidgeted in his fist, fingers reaching for her trusty knife, and she managed to jam it into his fingers hard enough to make Aralus release her. She dropped to the ground, landing a little awkwardly but well enough to maintain a fighting stance. Her knife still in Aralus' finger, she looked into Percy's glowing eyes with no defense.
Percy became a vessel of fury, eyebrows furrowed and fists formed, and the next thing anyone knew, a six foot wall of water slammed into the battlefield.
HA HA! YES! A NEW CHAPTER! 5.4K!
I'm already working on the next one, too! Whew, how nice it is to finally give y'all another segment. It's officially battle time! The next chapter will, supposedly, be the Longest Chapter I've Ever Written™, so buckle up buddies.
As tensions get higher, these demigods will be using some PG-13 language mixed in with their usual Greek Curses (bc sometimes "Di Immortales" doesn't cut it when you're getting stabbed) so if that's not your thing, be aware.
As always, THANK YOU FOR THE CONTINUED SUPPORT! I am SO lucky to have you all still commenting and following after all these years (yIKES, the sad part is that it has been years). I read every single comment, sometimes over and over again b/c y'all can be so so kind, so please know that your words are HIGHLY HIGHLY APPRECIATED!
See you soon!
-8DemigodRunner8