Percy and Annabeth spent the time waiting for Jason to wake up as they did the first year they had met. Talking, joking, occasionally arguing, and just being friends. Every once and a while, one of them would check to see if the storm had ceased, or if Jason had woken up.
"This remind you of anything?" Annabeth asked. Percy looked at her, puzzled. "When we first met." She rolled her eyes.
"Oh! Yeah, it kinda does. Except I was fine." Percy responded
"Poor Jason, this must have been a huge shock to him." Annabeth said. Percy felt a twinge of something inside of him, but he couldn't figure out what. "I mean, first an assassination attempt, then almost drowning, then finding out he's an elementalist, then almost drowning again? That's gotta be hard." She continued.
"Speaking of Jason, I'd better go check on him." Percy said. Annabeth waved him off. He swam up. Truth be told, he only wanted a short while away from the beautiful mermaid to sort out his thoughts. Wait, beautiful? Percy never thought of Annabeth as beautiful before. Could what he have been feeling be...jealousy? Percy shook of the thought. It was silly, he and Annabeth where just friends, that's all they ever could be.
"Percy?" Jason croaked pulling Percy out of his thoughts.
"Jason! Good you're up." Percy ducked down again, and called to Annabeth. She quickly swam up.
"Good, you're up." Annabeth said happily.
"Funny, people keep telling me that." Jason said sarcastically.
"Jason, we need you to get control of the winds." Percy wasted no time with words.
"Oh, right." The elementalist sat up and promptly hit his head on the rock. "And how do I do that." He groaned, rubbing his head.
"Well, I'm no expert on wind, but I control the water as if it's an extension of myself." Percy said. "It's kind of like a battle of the wills at first, but as soon as it knows that your will is stronger, control gets easier."
"Just...will it?" Jason asked. He sometimes found it difficult to act without clear orders, and the instructions Percy gave were pretty vague. It wasn't exactly something he could explain, being an elementalist was just something he did, not something he thought about.
Jason took on a look of fierce concentration for a few moments.
"That should do it." He said uncertainly.
"He's right, I can feel it." Annabeth said, then dove down.
"I suppose you need a bubble." Percy sighed. Jason nodded and allowed himself to be pulled into the water. Percy gave him a signal, and instinctively Jason took a deep breath. Percy dragged them both down, and held the water away from Jason's head. Swimming strongly, he followed Annabeth on the route he knew lead to Pearl Cove. They surfaced, and Percy guided Jason over to the rock that he was talking to Annabeth on earlier. She was already there.
"So, we need to think of a plan." Was the first thing that came out of her mouth. Typical Annabeth
"Your right." Jason agreed. "How should we deal with this assassin." Annabeth looked at him like he was crazy.
"Ignore it, obviously. Don't tell anyone. Otherwise, the assassin will know that you are onto them and they won't make another move. Keep an eye out though. I'm talking about you're powers though." The mermaid stated. "We can't train you like Percy, I think people will notice a boy flying through the air. So we need to find a place that no one will notice. Suggestions?" Both Percy and Jason were silent. "Oh come on guys, it can't be that hard, think!"
"The problem," Percy said grimly.
"Is that we are the heirs to two of the most powerful and important powers in this part of the world." Jason finished.
"Someone's modest." Annabeth muttered.
"Come on Annabeth, not everyone is as smart as you." Percy protested. "And it's kind of the truth."
"What we need." Jason muttered. "Is you on land."
"That's not possible." Percy said. Annabeth just looked thoughtful.
"How devastating would a war be." She asked.
"Very. Hundreds, maybe thousands would be lost. The land would be ravaged. People would starve." Jason looked like he could go on.
"Alright. Just sit tight for now. Don't do anything rash. Keep an eye on the cove, and if you don't hear from me in a week, tell whoever is in power about the murder attempt." And with that, Annabeth dove into the surf. Jason looked after her, stunned. Percy was more used to Annabeth's abrupt departures. He could still feel her presence in the water.
"Come on. We should get back. Someone will probably notice that we are missing." Percy dragged Jason to shore. He seemed to be doing a lot of that lately.
The two boys marched up the beach, slipping on the disturbed sand. More than once, they came across a beached sea creature, which Percy insisted they get back into the ocean. Jason was already feeling exhaustion from the storm he generated, so Percy was practically carrying him by the time they reached the castle.
There were many people milling about in the hall. Many of them had come from town or the docks. The occasional wail pierced the air.
"Excuse me." Percy muttered several times as he crossed to the other side.
"It's Prince Perseus." Some people whispered. They didn't recognize Jason.
"Perseus!" Someone bellowed. Someone that sounded very much like his father. Percy winced and turned to face him. He braced himself for a scolding. Instead, he got a tearful hug. "Oh, Percy." Poseidon whispered. Jason had slid to the floor. "I thought you were dead!"
"Dad, I'm fine. Are all these people here because of the storm?" His father didn't reply.
"What were you doing! Why is Jason passed out! What-"
"Dad," Percy interrupted. "There are people here." That seemed to snap him out of it.
"Right." Poseidon cleared his throat. "We'll talk later. Right now, we have a kingdom to run. You better get someone to do something about him." The king nodded towards Jason. A servant overheard him and rushed over. He picked up the Olympian and carried him off without a word. Poseidon headed up to the front of the crowd, where the people were expectantly waiting for something to be done. Percy followed him.
"People of Pacificantas." Poseidon shouted. What little noise there was was silenced. "This was a terrible disaster, and out of season too. Rations will be handed out in an hour or two. If you wish to report a missing person, please see Prince Perseus. He will make a list, then contact you when that person is found. If you live in the town, please move to the right side of the room. Anyone who live within one mile of the docks, on the left. If you have families in other coastal cities, please be patient. You will be notified when they are found." He hesitated. "This isn't the first time this has happened, you all know what to expect. Remain calm, and everything will work out that much smoother." He concluded. Poseidon nodded to Percy, who took up his usual post at a desk that had been brought in during Poseidon's speech.
Two hours later, a scribe took over. Percy was exhausted and his hand was sore from all the writing, but he still had duties. Encouraging people as he went, Percy made his way over to where they were distributing supplies and rations. The line was painfully long, and only a few overwhelmed people were handing out the desperately needed relief. People clamored and fought, trying to get their supplies faster.
"Hey, there's plenty of supplies for everyone. Please, wait your turn. By fighting, you're only making things worse." Percy shouted. Immediately, the people calmed down. Percy spent another hour at the handouts before he felt like passing out. He excused himself, then staggered up to his room for some much needed rest.
Though his body was tired, his mind wasn't. It kept whizzing about, thinking about things that weren't even relevant. But the one thing he couldn't get out of his head was the look that Annabeth had when she went to do whatever she was going to do. It was a look that Percy hoped he would never see on her face. It was a look of fear.
Finally fed up with his mind, Percy rolled out of bed. He walked aimlessly through the halls, and ended up in the throne room.
Poseidon was sprawled on the throne, looking exhausted. As Percy watched, he rubbed his eyes and looked up from the papers he was reading.
"Percy." His father said. "Are you going to tell me where you were."
"Oh. Yeah, um, well you see, Jason was looking for me at the beach when the storm started, which is where I was, and he got swept away by some of the waves. He can't swim, so I had to save him." Percy made up his story on the spot. He prayed that Poseidon would buy it.
Either the king was too tired to notice the lie, or his prayers were answered, Poseidon believed him.
"Hm. Well, he's alright thanks to you." Was all he responded. Clearly dismissed, Percy bowed and exited. Feeling as though he could collapse on the spot, Percy retreated to his room once again. What are you planning Annabeth was his last thought before he fell into a deep slumber.
Hey guys, sorry for the wait. I just couldn't force myself to write. What did you think? I definitely have some ideas for this story *evil laughter*
Tell me what you think, you are all great for reviewing and following. Next update coming next week!