Yay! My second chapter, as promised! Hope you like! :)
Percy's POV:
I am walking by Hazel down the streets of downtown Rome when the feeling hits me. It is as a huge pang of pain smacks my head, out of nowhere, leaving my brain spinning. I blinked hard, shook my head- anything to make the feeling stop.
And then when I blinked for the third time, instead of seeing concrete and stone buildings, I saw ice. I blink again. Yes, I was looking at ice, stretching as high and wide as I could see. A strong feeling of sadness and fear gripped at my chest, making my knees buckle.
I caught a blur of beach blonde locks out of the corner of my eyes, and I frown. "Annabeth?" I whisper, clutching at my head.
Her voice is a gurgle, like if she was talking to me several feet under water. "Percy? Where are you?" The last word is sharp, like she was talking to my ear.
I blink again. Then a smile curls at my lips.
Of course!
"Annabeth? I'm in Rome, where are you?" I say urgently.
"I don't know," she admits rather sharply. My gut knots. She is angry, obviously. Does she even want me to rescue her? Of course she does, I answer myself, but doubt poked from the back of my head.
"Don't worry," I say reassuringly, "I'll find you."
"Sure, I'll just wait here with my good buddy Gaea," she snaps irritably.
My eyes widen. "Gaea's got you?" I mumble, panic coursing through me. I am walking all of my friends into a trap!
Annabeth responds something I do not understand. Her voice is growing distant, until it is completely gone. "Annabeth!" I shout.
I look up to find Leo standing over me, looking worried. "Uh, you okay, dude?" he says cautiously. "You were kinda just calling the sidewalk 'Annabeth'."
I rise and look at all of my friends' faces. They mirrored Leo's. "I'm fine," I say, but they do not relax. "I have forgotten that I have an empathy link with Annabeth and Grover. I can see and hear whatever they do, if they will it."
Leo scowls. "Well, you could've used that a long time ago!"
I purse my lips. "Like I said, I forgot." I say, frowning.
"Well, the point is, that you got in contact with Annabeth, I suppose." Hazel steps in, turning to me.
I look at her. "Yes," I respond, and Piper frowns. "Do you know where she is then? Did you talk some sense to her? Did she tell you why she ran away?" she asks.
"No, she doesn't know where she is," I say, my voice shaking, "Because Gaea has her."
Everyone gasps.
"Gaea?" Frank says, confused. "Oh, you mean Terra?" he finishes panicky.
I nod. Frank's eyes nervously flicker from Hazel to me. "Terra?" he whispers into her ear. "We'll get killed! None of us brought proper weapons to defeat her, not even close!"
I take in a sharp breath. Frank is right. "Listen, dusk is falling, why don't we rest at a hotel, and think this through tomorrow morning?" I suggest, and no one hesitates. With Piper's charmspeak, we booked a room at the corner of the street, and we all collapse on our beds, tired.
Everyone falls asleep instantly.
I wake in the middle of the night panting. Sweat drenched my brows, and my heart thudded against my chest so loud, I was afraid my friends would wake up.
I dreamed about Gaea, a slob of earth, dirt, and mud in the shape of a woman, with black endless pits for eyes, and razor sharp teeth. She had no hair, and when she moved, the ground rumbled.
She was torturing a blonde girl, with tanned skin and a neon orange t-shirt. Annabeth arched her back in pain, wailing, as endless ice and snow fell on her, making her skin turn light blue with frostbite.
I tried to scream, run, and do something. But I couldn't. I was paralyzed in place. My feet seemed to weigh a thousand tons and made of iron. So I just watched Annabeth slowly die of hyperthermia, right before my eyes.
I sit up, clasping at my aching back. The hard and cold carpet made my back stiffen. A light blanket was wrapped around my waist, and I listened to the soft sounds of Piper's breathing, and Frank's snoring. Leo rustled his blankets changing his sleeping position for the thousandth time. He mumbled something about "Tia Callida…"- whatever that was.
Hazel stirred in her sleep too, muttering, "I'm sorry, Annabeth, I should've told you…"
I freeze. Told her what? I am standing now, peering over the four bodies of my friends. Piper was on one of the two beds, of course, and Hazel on the other.
Leo is on the ground, like me, and there is a rouge pillow lying next to Leo's body- Frank's pillow. I notice he's crawled into bed with Hazel, his arm wrapped around her waist protectively. He snores quietly, and Hazel has stopped muttering in her sleep, her breathing steady and monotone.
The image makes me smile sadly. I was happy for my friends, but my chest ached for someone to hug like that. A brilliant smile flashes across my brain, followed by dark straight hair and a firm, commanding voice.
"Be careful okay?"
I smile again.
My eyes wander across the room, and I sigh. I can't let my friends walk into this. They'll die, and I just can't bare all that guilt again, like Beckendorf and all those deaths in the Battle of Manhattan.
I close my eyes, as the heavy feeling of lead constricts my heart and throat, making my breaths stagger. I shake my head, trying to clear the feeling away. But of course, it never goes away, just retreats to the darkness.
I open my eyes again and look at my friends one last time. Then I turn and pack my backpack, and sling it across my shoulder. My eyes flicker to the ceiling and murmur, "Take care of them, okay? Lead them back home, and protect them along the way." I clench my teeth, and mutter, "Just this once, listen, and do it. Just this once."
With that, I turn and open the room's door as quietly as I can, shutting it as equally quiet. And I walk down the endless stairs, and across the lobby. I open the double doors, and step into the fresh morning air. The city of Rome was already buzzing, and I start walking.
After a few blocks, and when I'm sure I cannot be followed, I find the nearest bench and sit down. I try to focus on connecting my thoughts on Annabeth. And something clicked.
And I knew exactly where she was.
Review!
P.S. Does anyone know for a fact that Percy has an empathy link with Annabeth? I know for a fact that he does to Grover, but I don't know about Annabeth. If not, I don't care, this is FanFiction after all, and I can add stuff to the story. But, I was just curious. Anyway, thanks for reading either way!
-The TimeMachine
