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Rider On The Storm

Chapter 1: Into This World, I'm Thrown


Darkness surrounded him.

Pressure, there was so much pressure between where he was suspended in the icy cold of the ocean and the surface above. There was more weight, pressure, and force below him. Yet beneath all of that was the never-ending darkness. Up above, flashes of blue surprised him.

How did he get here?

Vicious needles encased his body from his toes to his head. He felt like he was drifting in the Arctic, towards his eventual demise. He saw a bright flash of blue, then heard an ear-piercing rumble. 300,000,000 Volts of electricity dispersed in the ocean. Percy twisted in the water, he wanted to scream. Electricity shook and flowed around his body. What happened?

The last thing he remembered was Manhattan. He defeated Kronos and was beneath Zeus' feet bowing to the King of the Gods. Now, he was beneath the seas. In the middle of a raging storm, by the looks, sounds, the jolts of electricity flowing through the churning dark black waves. He needed to do something, but all thoughts escaped his mind.

Did Father send him here? No, that wasn't likely, but it… maybe, but maybe not. More blue flashes appeared in Percy's vision. Amazing fractals of blue, white, and yellow flew from the bolts of lightning upon impact with the surface of the ocean. He felt his strength coming back and his senses heightened. Godly ichor flowed in his blood, it was the blood of the gods, and his father Poseidon gave him an advantage most wouldn't have in this kind of situation. While in the ocean, his strength and power were heightened, and even in the cold salty depths of the ocean he felt comfort.

He kicked his legs and threw his arms up and down. A rushing spout of water formed from below him, it kept growing, and he powered more and more energy into it. His eyes glowed a light blue until he felt the waterspout form. When it touched the very bottom of the kelpy oceanic gabbro crust, he flew.

Percy flew out of the ocean like a cannonball flying over the horizon. The air smelled salty. He was alive, free, and right by an ironclad frigate that was badly damaged. Percy's eyes stopped glowing and the waterspout quickly died as hundreds of bolts of lightning flew around him. Smoke rose from the chimneys of the black ironclad frigate. It looked steam and coal-powered like an archaic specimen from a time long ago.

Men dressed in red and black samurai armor were pointing at a struggling man who was on top of the vessel's tower. They were pointing at the man with long… spears and pikes? Percy fell back to the ocean as the frigate sailed closer to him in the water. The dark waves were fifteen feet high, with many crashing into each other.

Percy saw the ship and started swimming and diving faster toward the strange and still functional steamship. The boat had weird sharp edges on the mast and sides of the craft. It didn't look American or anything he could recall from the history books. He may have been a son of Poseidon, but right now, riding this awful storm he could care less about the ocean.

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Lightning crashed into Prince Zuko's ironclad Fire Nation Frigate. It was a small ship that had a capacity of 60 Fire Nation warriors, but only 30 unfortunate souls decided to follow him to the ends of the Earth to find the Avatar. Prince Zuko saw the helmsman slip from the top of the tower. He instinctively shouted, "The Helmsman!"

"Prince Zuko, be careful!" Iroh shouted back as he watched his nephew rush to ladders leading up to the tower of his vessel.

Zuko ran and rushed up the ladder. Rain slapped his body from all sides as he clung to the bars twenty-five feet in the air. While this was happening a giant yellow and gold bolt of lightning crashed down from the heavens into Iroh who quickly redirected the bolt back into the ocean.

The helmsman slipped from the top of the tower, but Zuko caught him by the wrist at the last second. His most trusted lieutenant gazed back at him in shock and appreciation. His soldiers looked at this stoic face in amazement. Zuko, the disgraced Prince of Fire Lord Ozai had saved the helmsman. Zuko slowly brought his party back down to the deck of the ship. Uncle Iroh came to clap his nephew on the back only for them both to freeze. Over the horizon, they saw the Avatar soaring through giant waves. Avatar Aang and his friends were flying on their damned six-leg flying bison. Zuko looked conflicted as he shouted, "The Avatar!"

"What do you wanna do sir!" Lieutenant Jee said.

"Let them go," Zuko ordered, much to the surprise of the crew. "We need to get this ship to safety."

"Then we must head directly into the eye of the storm!" Uncle Iroh advised, causing the helmsman and the ship's captain to scramble back to the operation room.

The entire crew looked like they had won the lottery. Every man on the deck clapped and silently cheered with smiles and hardy laughs. Zuko knew chasing after that little bastard in this hurricane was a suicide mission. Zuko grimaced and closed his eyes, he couldn't watch the Avatar fly away with his honor.

A boy fired out of the ocean against the waves. Taking him out of these thoughts.

"Uncle Iroh! Did you see that!" Zuko shouted, he ran to the left side of the deck, his pale hands on the metal railing. His dark black ponytail flew from side to side in the strong wind as he ran towards the mysterious object.

"Prince Zuko, what is wrong?" Iroh asked, he was cold and wet from the rain and very much worried for his nephews' safety.

Before anyone who was left on deck could react. A giant twenty-foot wave crashed against their vessel dumping tens of thousands of gallons onto the deck. As the water slowly flowed out of the deck a strange mass of dark green kelp, seaweed, and various other sea creatures was left at the center of the deck. Prince Zuko and Iroh both looked at the mass of oceanic fauna confused. A tanned hand shot into the air from the mass of dark green seaweed.

"Uncle, what is that?" Zuko pondered as he watched the mass move crawl and groan on the deck. Since when did seaweed groan?

Underneath the mass of seaweed was a very tanned boy, he looked no older than sixteen with a strong jawline and vibrant sea-green eyes. He looked strong like a bodybuilder from Omashu. Percy Jackson started removing the seaweed from his face and body causing more confusion among those watching him. Puddles of rainwater flowed from his jet-black hair after brushing it aside. He instantly shook his head and every single drop of water evaporated leaving his hair disheveled and swept to one side like he had just taken a stroll from the beach. Right as he removed the last bit of seaweed stuck to his torso, he felt five long razor-shaped pike heads touching his body on all sides. The soldiers looked on edge and they watched him carefully.

Percy Jackson wasn't sure what he was supposed to say or think in this sort of situation. He awkwardly smiled with shiny white teeth. He didn't want to fight these strange samurai-armored people. Annabeth once said that even strength must bow to wisdom sometimes… but he couldn't think of anything wise to say.

"Hello, nice to meet you! I am Iroh, and this is my nephew, Prince Zuko!" Uncle Iroh excitedly said to Percy. "Welcome aboard, let's get you inside and out of this storm."

"Well, uh, thank you so much! I was just surfing and got caught in this storm!" Percy blurted out much to the soldiers' satisfaction. Many nodded their heads and murmured in agreement. Iroh shoved the spears and pikes away while pulling Zuko towards Percy.

"So, Mister, uh what's your name?" Iroh asked while in between Zuko and Percy.

"Percy Jackson."

Both teens stood face to face in the storm. Percy peered into Prince Zuko's golden eyes only to flinch from a bright blue flash. Percy saw a sickly bright red and pink burn mark across the left side of Zuko's face. For a prince, Zuko looked like a villain in a horror movie, and his eyes reminded Percy of Anakin Skywalker in the Star Wars prequels. Despite all these uneasy thoughts, Percy stretched out his right hand towards Zuko. Prince Zuko shook his hand, and the prince said somewhat venomously, "Welcome aboard."

Everyone took that as a cue to go below deck, away from the vicious hurricane winds. Percy entered the frigate hold with an uneasy smile. He wasn't sure if he landed in some weird, strange country somewhere in the Pacific Ocean or was sent back in time. All he could hope was that he could get some answers and refuge. A sharp bronze ballpoint pen stabbed his side, Percy smiled, as he pulled out the pen from his soaked jeans pocket. Only to shove it, before any of his hosts saw Riptide.

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Percy got dressed in a clean and dry pair of Prince Zuko's clothes. He quickly learned this ship belonged to the Fire Nation, and his hosts seemed very nice given they discovered him in the middle of a hurricane. Prince Zuko didn't say a word as he looked away from Percy changing behind a dark wall made of paper. He was wearing dark black slacks made of wool and a well-made maroon long-sleeve shirt. Zuko silently handed him a leather weapons pouch and a leather belt for his slacks. Percy awkwardly smiled and said, "Thank you so much for everything, Prince Zuko! It's not every day you are rescued by royalty."

"Just call me Zuko, I'm hardly a prince anymore," Zuko solemnly replied with a hardened face. "Welcome to the Fire Nation."

"Wow, uh, where is the Fire Nation? Is it like some sort of new country or something?" Percy asked, he really wished he paid more attention during World History, his freshman year of high school.

"New country! We've been around for thousands of years. The Fire Nation is the strongest military and economic power in the world," Zuko answered slightly harshly as if he were speaking to an idiot. "Are you an Earth Kingdom peasant or something?"

"Earth Kingdom? Where is that?"

"What do you take me for a fool!"

"Ah, no, I just am… I'm stupid, I literally don't know anything. I mean it sounds hard to believe but I just woke up in the middle of this storm. I have literally no idea what the Fire Nation or the Earth Kingdom is," Percy sincerely said, causing Zuko to calm down, but the prince's yellow eyes gazed into his as he would attack at any second.

Percy took a step back. His bare feet were still cold on the hard metal floor of Prince Zuko's bedchamber. Zuko reminded him of Niko Di Angelo, a son of Hades, and a dear friend and ally. Nico helped Percy navigate the realm of Hades and he even helped Percy gain the curse of Achilles. It made him think, did he still have it? He wasn't sure if he wanted to find out. After all, while below the ocean, he felt cold and was in pain from his toes to his head.

"Are you dressed?"

"Yes."

"Good, then we will meet my uncle in the Gallery," Zuko said chillingly as if they were going to meet the Grim Reaper.

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The hallways of the Fire Nation frigate were dimly lit with red lights shining down along the walls of the corridor. Prince Zuko huffed and walked with a strange fury in front of Percy. He led the way into the main gallery. Inside the Gallery were many treasures and objects on metal shelves with the most interesting being a monkey with bright red gems for eyes. There were many novelty and priceless artifacts from around the world inside the gallery with several Fire Nation soldiers playing instruments by a roaring fireplace.

Iroh was sipping some delicious-smelling Jasmine tea at a long table. Percy had a better look at this Uncle Iroh who had well-trimmed grey hair that went down his cheeks and chin into a very well-maintained goatee. He was very chubby, yet also looked strong and he had a happy smile. The old chubby man looked happier as he took a sip, before saying enthusiastically, "If it isn't Prince Zuko and… our guest!"

"My name is Percy Jackson, but you can call me Percy for short," Percy said this in the hope that Uncle Iroh would remember his name, but he knew old people like Mr. D always messed everything up.

"Oh, that is a very interesting name, are you from the colonies?" Iroh asked with an accusing stare. "You look like you might be the son of a great warrior from Omashu."

"Uh, I'm neither, I'm just Percy," Percy said with very red cheeks.

The soldiers playing the tsungi horn and flutes stopped. An awkward silence filled the gallery, and all eyes were once again on Percy who felt his cheeks turning hotter than magma. Percy shifted his weight from one heel to the other. He probably should have said he was from a Fire Nation colony, but that was too late now.

"Hmm, you seem like a good reliable type," Iroh happily said his eyes beaming at Zuko's. "We could always use more members for our crew. After all my nephew Prince Zuko is on an important mission to find the Avatar."

"Avatar? Are you talking about those blue people in that James Cameron movie?" Percy asked, he knew that it was a popular global phenomenon when it came out. He was betting they had seen it, jeweled monkey in the gallery and crowned prince of the Fire Nation. Surely, they had seen it.

"What's a movie and what's James Cameron?" Iroh whispered into his nephew's ear.

"Hell, would I know," Zuko whispered back, they both looked back at Percy with odd smiles.

Zuko narrowed his eyes. He remembered seeing this stranger's hair become dry almost instantly. He had to be a bender. He quickly started to think, Percy or whoever this guy's name came shortly after the Avatar flew by on his sky bison. Either he was a bender or something else, but luckily, he seemed nice and trusting.

"You don't know who the Avatar is?" Iroh said rhetorically, he scratched his long grey beard and then looked at Zuko. "Hmm, this is very strange indeed, I shall teach you about everything that is going on. Once we get out of this storm and safely make port. Then you can decide if you want to be part of our crew."

"I accept," Percy said before looking down at his dirtied feet. "We must be in the eye of the hurricane!"

"We are?" Iroh asked confused by the stranger's odd statement.

Both Prince Zuko and Uncle Iroh looked at each other confused. Percy turned his head and saw a large map of the world and he gazed at it in interest. He got up and walked over to it. His eyes widened and his heart sank. This didn't look like Earth, he still felt connected to Poseidon, yet the ocean and the hurricane felt odd.

"No, this can't be. No, no, no, this is impossible." Percy uttered this under his breath, but he couldn't believe what he saw.

"What is wrong with you?" Zuko asked.

"A lot," Percy said, unable to look anyone in the eyes. He stood petrified in front of the world map for several minutes. Zuko stood next to Percy's side for those few minutes. The prince looked slightly concerned but then huffed to march back to the top of the ship with his uncle.

Percy looked at the world map one last time before marching up to the top of the ship. The dimly lit hallways felt cold and depressing. Maybe they looked that way because of his mood. He was in a new world. Did Zeus and the Olympians send him here? After saving Manhattan and Olympus from the hordes of Kronos, this was his reward.

Banished. Did they banish him? The last thing he remembered was declining Zeus' offer to become immortal. His throat became thick, and his eyes started to grow weak. Annabeth, Grover, Nico Di Angelo, Clarisse, his mom…

Percy opened the hold door to the outside world. The waters were calm. A giant funnel of sunshine was up above, and Percy couldn't help but smile. They were in the eye of a hurricane. He saw Prince Zuko and Iroh near the edge of the deck. Both were smiling as they looked surrounding walls of the storm.

"Uncle I am sorry," Zuko said with a smile.

"It's alright Prince Zuko. We are safe now."

"I don't know about that uncle. I have a bad feeling about this new guy. He came to us in the middle of the storm, right after we spotted the Avatar flying east." Zuko leaned over into his uncle's ear and whispered, "I think he might be a bender."

"Zuko, right now we need more allies. For years, we have been trying to find the Avatar by ourselves. The Avatar has his friends and maybe this stranger could be useful. Besides talking strangely, he seems like the type who would like tea," Iroh said this then turned around. He jumped back and smiled awkwardly and quickly said, "Oh, if it isn't our guest!"

"Thank you both so much for saving me," Percy said with a smile.

The sunlight grew around the three men. Their frigate sailed north towards the Fire Nation colonies. There was much for them to discuss. Iroh watched his nephew and Percy chatting and laughing at each other's jokes and insults. His smile grew wider, he couldn't help but think how well his nephew was maturing and maybe this Percy Jackson could be a good influence.