My mom tore through the night. She was going at least thirty miles over the speed limit, heedless of the wing buffeting the car, the rain lashing against the windshield, the oppressive darkness closing in on us. I couldn't see anything outside, and I knew she couldn't possibly be able to either, but she never took her foot off the gas.
I rubbed my arms, trying to lessen the electricity sparking over it in rivulets. The burning salt rubbed at me, digging into wounds I didn't have. I decided that being able to sense magic was more of a curse than a blessing. I wanted the feelings to go away .
Lightning flashed in the sky and over my skin, a boom rattled the windows and my bones. The energy blazed over and through me.
I forced the sensations to the back of my mind and demanded answers.
I knew the sea, it was a second home to me, but the land… clearly I was missing stuff.
"You and my mom know each?" I asked Grover lightly.
Grover's eyes flicked to the rearview mirror, searching for something despite there being nothing (and it being impossible to see anything). "Not exactly… I mean, we've never met in person. But she knew I was watching you."
I blinked slowly, my mom knew he was spying on me?
"Watching… me?
"Keeping tabs on you, making sure you were okay- but I wasn't faking being your friend," he added quickly, turning to look at me earnestly. "I am your friend."
I had my doubts. I wasn't sure how I felt about him keeping tabs on me while "being my friend". Why was he doing that? And why was he feeding Mr. Brunner information? Who was Mr. Brunner? Why was my mom okay with this?
Did she want to- want to send me away?
I swallowed and studied the floor for a long moment. I was out of my depth here and I- I didn't know what was going on. This was nothing like what I knew of the sea.
My eyes caught on Grover's legs.
"So you're a satyr?" I asked, wondering at his furry legs.
He let out a sharp, throaty, " Blaa-ha-ha ! Yes, I'm a satyr."
I nodded slowly, "Got it."
I jerked when the weird bellowing noise rose up again from somewhere behind us, closer than before.
Whoever or whatever was chasing was still on our trail, and gaining.
"Percy," my mom said. "There's too much to explain and not enough time. We have to get you to safety."
We weren't doing anything in the car! Surely they had time to explain what was going on .
"Safety from what ? Who's after me?"
Obviously there were the normal monsters but this didn't seem-
"Oh, nobody much," Grover said, sounding miffed. "Just the Lord of the Dead and a few of his blood-thirstiest minions."
"Grover!"
…
What.
Why was Hades-
There was Ms. Dodds but she-
She mentioned a theft.
…
Uh oh.
"Sorry, Mrs. Jackson. Could you drive faster, please?"
I tried to understand what this meant for me. Triton would know, Triton would be able to explain it in a way that made sense. He always knew how to make something understandable for me.
Why was I being blamed for a theft? Was it a theft of something of Hades'? Was he after be because of it?
Pontus I didn't know how this worked, not here. In the sea I would know what to do. I wished for the sea.
My mom made a hard left, swerving us with an almost audible screech onto a narrower road. We raced past darkened farmhouses and wooded hills and I caught a glimpse of a PICK YOUR OWN STRAWBERRIES sign on white picket fences.
"Where are we going?" I asked.
"The summer camp I told you about." My mom said, her voice tight. "The place your father wanted to send you."
The place she didn't want to send me. The place Triton said to avoid. The place mom said I might never be able to leave.
Was this unavoidable? Was I going to see my mom again?
"The place you- you didn't want me to go?"
"Please, dear," my mom begged. "This is hard enough. Try to understand. You're in danger."
"Why? Because of Ms. Dodds?"
"Because the Fates cut a string! Those old ladies from the fruit stand! Do you know what it means—the fact that they appeared in front of you? They only do that when you're about to… when someone's about to die."
I gaped.
The Fates??
That explained… everything about Them but-
"The Fates did-" Mom faltered. I heard her let out a shaky breath. "It's all going to be okay. We just need to get you to camp. You're going to be okay."
I swallowed. She didn't sound like she actually believed that.
Grover said you .
Did that mean I was going to die?
I rubbed the crackling electricity on my arms, taking slow breaths. It would be fine.
I wasn't going to die.
I was going to be okay.
I nearly fell over in my seat as mom yanked the wheel hard to the right, a figure visible for an instant as we whipped past.
What was- what was that ? Was that what had been chasing us? How did it get in front-
"We're almost there," my mom muttered. "Another mile. Please. Please. Please."
I twisted my bracelet, fingering the trident charm. I wanted us to get to this camp, I wanted us to get to safety. Maybe I could get answers then too.
If we had to fight- well I knew how to, but I wasn't sure… the terrors of the myths- I did alright against the Erinyes, but she didn't seem to be trying hard and that was just instinct. I didn't know how I would handle something else that-
My breath froze as my skin s c o r c h e d . And then the world exploded.
I was weightless, then being crushed, fried, and hosed down all at once. I burned down to my bones, an ache throbbing through my joints. My skin crackled and sparked and popped with residual power.
I breathed, more choked on air, coughing as I peeled my forehead off the back of the driver's seat.
"Ow," I wheezed.
That did not manage to encompass everything I was feeling.
"Percy!" my mom shouted.
How did she have the strength to scream?
"I'm- I'm o-kay," I managed to croak out.
My hands shook, my head was pounding, my body b u r n e d. I grabbed for my bag, fumbling with the zipper, hands trembling as I tore through my things for my waterskin. I shook my head, then winced and held my head still. I yanked out my waterskin, wishing I had the time to drown myself in it's waters, to heal, but instead hooked it over my shoulder and threw my bags on my back.
They dug into my scorched skin, setting it ablaze. Even without that my bones throbbed, my eyes stung, my head pounded.
I dragged in another shaky breath as what happened clicked.
That was lightning.
The car had been struck by lightning.
Hades didn't control lightning.
Zeus controlled lightning.
Zeus hit the car with lightning?
An accident?
An attack?
I blinked and shook my head, wincing once more and stopping.
A groan beside me drew my attention, Grover was there. Grover wasn't moving. Grover was still- he was very still- that was blood- he was bleeding- he couldn't be bleeding he wasn't allowed to be bleeding bleeding was bad it was bad it wasn't a good thing it it it-
"Food," he groaned.
I coughed, slumping. He was okay. He was alive.
"Percy," my mom said. "We have to…" Her voice faltered, he eyes focused behind me.
I twisted, hissing at the blaze skittering over my stomach. There was nothing out there, no reason for mom to-
Lightning flashed, a blaze lighting up the rain-soaked night. A figure lumbered towards us on the shoulder of the road. My skin crawled with the single glimpse I got before it vanished with a boom of thunder.
I couldn't tell if that was a sensation, a warning, or the storm.
Lightning flashed once more, chased by a roar of thunder as the figure raised its head, horns held high and framing the next flash of lightning.
What was that?
"Who is—" I started.
"Percy," my mom said, deadly serious. "Get out of the car."
She threw herself against the driver's-side door, but it didn't even budge.
I glanced around, frowning. The ceiling had a sizzling hole, burning my eyes just to look at. Our doors were jammed in the mud.
"Climb out the passenger's side!" My mom told me. "Percy—you have to run. Do you see that big tree?"
I shook my head, winced, and turned to look. The darkness swallowed anything there.
"Wha-"
Lightning arced across the heavens, illuminating a tree standing tall on the tippy top of the nearest hill. Lightning seemed to trace its boughs, seemed to frame it in loving arms. Thunder boomed and it was gone once more.
My skin crackled with the rumble, the storm growing in fury. Salt exacerbated the blaze, yet soothed the ache.
"That's the property line," mom said. "Get over that hill and you'll see a big farmhouse down in the valley. Run and don't look back. Yell for help. Don't stop until you reach the door."
I nodded, winced, stopped, then realized something.
"Mom- mom, you're coming too."
I was not leaving her here. I wasn't leaving her in a burning car with a terror walking towards her. I tried to focus, tried to piece it together. It had horns.
What had horns?
Cows did.
So did demons.
No wait, demons weren't real.
I didn't know what had horns.
Mom looked at me, eyes watering, face pale.
"Percy, you must go, I can't-"
"No!" I shouted. I breathed once, drew myself together. "You are coming with me. I- I need-" my gaze landed on Grover "-I need help carrying Grover!"
"Food!" Grover moaned helpfully.
I could hear the being coming towards us, a grunting snorting noise faintly audible through the pounding rain.
Mom brushed a wet strand from her face, "He doesn't want us . He wants you . And I can't cross the property line-"
"No you-"
"We don't have time, Percy. Go. Please."
I burned inside and out. I wasn't- I wasn't leaving my mom. I wasn't leaving one of the only people I had. She was my mom . Maybe we'd kept secrets from each other but- but-
I only had her, her and Triton. I wasn't losing her. I wasn't- I wasn't leaving her here.
And I was mad .
Mad at mom for asking me to leave her.
Mad at mom for not telling me things.
Mad at Grover for lying to me.
Mad at Triton for not being here.
Mad at my Metua for not helping her.
Mad at myself, for not telling her.
Mad at the lumbering creature for coming after us on our vacation.
I wanted Triton here, I wanted my mom to solve the problem, I wanted to curl up with my mom at home knowing everything would be okay.
I wanted them to survive.
I wanted them to be safe.
I wanted to be safe.
I wasn't leaving them here.
I climbed across Grover and pushed the door open, rain pouring down on me.
"We're going together. Come on."
"I told you–"
"Mom!" I interrupted, anger burning in me, lightning burning my skin. "Help me with Grover, I'm not- I'm not leaving you."
I didn't wait for her to answer, just scrambled outside and nearly fell into the mud. I steadied myself on the door of the car, waterskin banging my side as I pulled Grover out from the car. He was surprisingly light, but I still wouldn't have been able to carry him far without mom's help.
Together we draped Grover's arms over our shoulders and started stumbling uphill through wet waist-high grass.
The rain got in my eyes, soaking us through before we'd even left the car. I pulled for my power, raised my hand, and through the blaze and crackle and rubbing salt I pushed . Mom stumbled as the rain arced over our head, giving us an umbrella of water.
With our vision clear and a distance from the car, I looked back.
Without the mud coated rearview I got my first good look at the terror hunting us.
It was massive, muscles bulging along it's seven foot tall body. It lumbered forward in only bright white underwear (a fashion disaster). Soaked brown fur was matted on it's chest due to the rain, but it didn't seem to have much fur on its legs.
It's head was a thing of nightmares. A bull's head, if the bull was all muscle and sharpened it's black-and-white horns till they were capable of stabbing through steel. The large snout seemed to sniff the air.
I knew this creature. Everyone knew this creature. Mr. Brunner barely had to talk about it because everyone knew it .
I stared, my heart in my throat.
"That's—"
"Pasiphae's son," mom said. "I wish I'd known how badly they want to kill you."
I blinked, distracted some from the terror before me. Pasiphae? Who was she again? Well, probably the Minotaur's mom but-
Weird way to talk about him.
"That's the Min—"
"Don't say his name," she warned, "Names have power."
Did they? I didn't think they did, not in the sea at least. Maybe that was a land thing. Mom knew land things apparently, I wished I knew land things.
She moved forward once more, tugging me and Grover along. I glanced behind me as we stumbled up the hill, watching as the Minotaur hunched over Gabe's car.
It was… looking in the windows? Or more like snuffling, nuzzling? They- he? Was a bull. Did they have a good sense of smell?
"Food?" Grover moaned.
"Shh," I hissed.
His smell was probably good, animals had good senses of smell (at least on land). Would the rain get in the way? Water washed scents away right?
As if on cue, the Minotaur bellowed in rage, my hair standing on end and an itch crawling down my spine. He picked up Gabe's Camaro by the torn roof, the chassis creaking and groaned as he raised the car over his head.
With a powerful heave he threw it down the road.
I gaped as it crashed down the road, skidding a few few, then exploding with an ear-rattling boom !
Not a scratch , I remembered Gabe saying.
I grinned, Oops.
"Percy," my mom said. "When he sees us, he'll charge. Wait until the last second, then jump out of the way—directly sideways. He can't change directions well once he's charging. Do you understand?"
I blinked, turning to her, "How- how do you know this?"
I knew a lot about the sea through my lessons, but not just- not just casually. How did she-
"I've been worried about an attack for a long time. I should have expected this. I was selfish, keeping you near me."
I frowned, "Keep me with you wasn't selfish!"
She was my mom , if anyone had the right to keep me close it was her! And Triton didn't want me at camp either.
Another bellow of rage itched down my spine and I looked back to see the bull-man starting uphill.
He'd smelled us.
The oak was only a few more yards away, dancing with electricity I could feel but not see. My skin crackled all the more, echoing the storm above us with every flash of light and boom of thunder. Salt rubbed my legs as I stumbled up the steep hill, Grover's weight dragging us down.
I was glad, in part, for the rain. I wasn't able to catch all of it above us, and beyond that we were already soaked through. It kickstarted my healing, and yet it wasn't nearly the speed I was used to. I wondered at the blaze of power in the rain, wondered at the way it defied the familiar soothe of water.
Mom pulled Grover more on herself, our gazes drawn on the Minotaur who was nearing rapidly. I released Grover and swallowed hard.
"Go, Percy! Separate! Remember what I said."
I trusted my mom to know what to do, so despite the fact that I was lost in the rain with a bull charging at me, I gritted my teeth and sprinted to the left as my mom went right.
I'd definitely need to research land mythos more.
I turned to find the Minotaur, only to see it nearly on top of me.
My body itched, digging under my skin and into my bones. I wanted to throw up, I wanted to scream, I wanted to run.
I stayed still and faced the Minotaur.
Rotten meat filled the air, fear twisted my stomach. I'd never faced something head on like this. The empousa was raw terror and panic. The Erinyes was all instinct and luck. This was different. This was facing down a beast only defeated with the aid of the Gods in the myths.
This was the Minotaur.
His head lowered, razor-sharp horns aimed straight at my chest.
The moment was too slow, the moment was too fast, I couldn't run, I had to run, I needed to wait, I needed to act.
I swallowed my fear, steadied my breath, and waited.
There was no outrunning this beast, this terror of the Labyrinth. I could only trust in my mom's word, and trust in Triton's training.
The Minotaur was upon me and I took a leap of faith.
My body screamed as I hit the ground and scrambled back up, a hiss escaping at the burn and ache and rubbing salt that throbbed through my body. I forced myself to stand, forced myself to blink the tears of pain and terror back, and dragged in a breath.
The Minotaur bellowed in anger, my ears rung, it turned as I did.
But not towards me.
My gaze followed its own, landing on my mom.
I stumbled forward, wincing at the burn. My body begged me to stop, to rest, to lay down and sleep, but my mom-
I scrabbled for my bracelet, scrabbled for the trident charm even as tears burned my eyes and my fingers spasmed.
My mom had set Grover down in the grass by the top of the hill. I could see a valley beyond the crest of the hill, through the tears and rain and darkness. Lights of a farmhouse shown yellow in the night, only half a mile away.
She should've run down. She should've gotten help. She should've gotten to safety .
But she turned away from the hill top and started back down.
The trident charm seemed missing, my fingers unable to catch on it. I stepped, stumbled, lunged forward, reaching instead for the water, the rain, the waterskin on my hip. I reached for the sea and the storm and anything anything at all that would listen.
Something slipped into my grasp.
The Minotaur charged.
I tugged, yanked at my power, at the storm, and the rain in the sky and on the ground.
The Minotaur charged.
"Mom!"
Whatever I called for, whatever answered me, didn't reach the Minotaur. It wavered in the boom of thunder, it flinched from the rotten meat.
"Run, Percy!" she called. "I can't go any father. Run!"
I leapt, lunged, collapsed forward, throwing my hand out and y a n k i n g . The rain obeyed like a misbehaving areriar, flitting forward in a slice of water and ice and the sting of death that was far too dull to cut.
The Minotaur charged.
I screamed.
She tried to do as she told me, she tried to dodge . She tried to step aside, to slip out of its reach, but the Minotaur had learned from me. His hand shot out and grabbed her neck.
Rain pounded down on him, the roar of the storm louder than my own screams. My mom struggled, kicking her feet out and pounding his arms with her fists.
None of it mattered.
"MOM!"
She caught my eyes, managing to choke out one last word: "Go!"
The Minotaur closed his fists around her neck.
Darkness closed in on me, fire rippled over my skin, in my chest, my mind blanking as she dissolved into a shimmering golden form.
Light flashed and thunder boomed and my mom-
My mom was gone.
"NO!"
My voice and my control broke.
My anger chilled me to the bone, the heat of storm and the fire and the tree sliding off the ice that caked my skin and mind.
I reached for the rain and demanded it.
You're my storm , I declared. Listen to me .
The rain sang to me the song of the ocean.
The Minotaur was leaning over Grover, crouched at the top of the hill. He snuffled his hair, as if deciding if he was a good target.
That was enough.
No one else would be gold. Not today. Not even Grover.
I raised my hand and screamed. Wordless, angry, broken.
The Minotaur paused, but did not lift its head. I yelled at it, demanded its attention just as Triton told me.
"Did you lose your eyesight along with your head when Theseus came for you?" I sneered. "Even a sea urchin can tell the difference between a Half-Blood and a Satyr!"
The Minotaur, a terror that had brought Athens to its knees, a terror killed with the aid of the Gods, turned to me. He shook his meaty fists at me with a bellow, black eyes gleaming cruelly. I found them an insult to black eyes.
His bellow ended and I snarled back, glaring with all my might as I backed up to the oak tree behind me.
Electricity sparked through its needles and above it in a protective arc. I steadied myself, readying for the fight to come.
My fingers, still shaking but now confident, flicked over the lid of my waterskin before sliding over my bracelet to settle on the trident charm.
The Minotaur charged.
I took a deep breath, thinking a prayer to Poseidon, to protect me against this foe born of the sea and defeated by His son once before.
The Minotaur bore down on me, hands out to either side to prevent me from fleeing.
A shame that that wasn't my plan this time.
The Minotaur charged at me and I whipped my hand and the ocean around, freezing it in an instant so that a whip of ice and water and salt slammed into the Minotaur, his head lowered at the last second. Ice shattered with his horns, the pieces tumbling to the ground.
The Minotaur roared, my ears ached, my hand raised.
I brought it down with the sea and storm and the lash of water coiled around its muzzle, yanked to the side with a slice of my hand.
The Minotaur staggered, growling and snarling.
I finally pulled the trident charm, the bronze tips glowing in the rain. I fell into a familiar stance, one drilled into me through the months of practicing under Triton. One hand out for the water, one hand steady for the trident.
I yanked the water whip, formed of rain and ocean, and lunged forward.
The Minotaur roared as my trident slipped through its ribs and chest with a squelch.
My knees buckled, rebelling against the movement I'd made and I stumbled back, pulling my trident out as well.
The Minotaur clawed at its side, eyes wide and wild.
And slowly it tumbled, not all at once, but in pieces. It dissolved, crumbling away in chunks of golden sand that tumbled to the ground bit by bit.
A familiar burn slid over my skin, chasing away the ice that held me together as the sand was washed away by the storm.
Within seconds the Minotaur had crumbled away.
The roar of the storm faded with the last of the sand, salt and scorching lightning slipping away in rough movements and crackling jumps.
Crackling arcs still danced over my skin, dancing from the tree's needles like curious minnows.
I held myself up with my trident, blinking back tears of grief and pain. All my energy was gone, all that was left was grief and fear and pain. My head ached, my bones throbbed, my body blazed. I trembled, be it from grief or pain or both I couldn't say.
My mom was gone.
The Minotaur was gone.
They'd vanished in gold and burning power.
I wanted to lie down and cry. I wanted to go home. I wanted to go to the ocean. I wanted my mom. I wanted Triton.
I wanted my mom.
"Food!" Grover moaned.
I dragged in a breath, dragged up the tiniest vestiges of strength, and turned to face him.
He was still here, for whatever that was worth. I needed to get him to safety.
My trident turned back into a charm easily, though without the support my knees wanted to stop working. I forced myself to stand, to ignore the ache, and stumbled to Grover.
I blinked at the weight on my back, recognizing after a moment that it was my backpack and duffle, with my waterskin at my side.
It was also leaking water.
That wasn't good.
I needed to put the lid on.
That was…
That was probably important.
The cord connecting the lid to it was a life saver.
My head spun and my fingers shook as I plugged it shut once more, and I decided to open it again to dump some water on myself. The water poured over me as an elixir of life and my body breathed a sigh of relief.
Then promptly demanded I collapse right there and sleep.
I ignored its demands, ignored the pain, and pent down to hook an arm under Grover.
Hauling him up took more energy than I cared to admit, and balancing him over my shoulder was an exercise in patience and strength.
Once I'd managed the trip down the hill, towards the yellow lights and the promise of safety, began.
My head was hurting, and the water in my eyes could no longer be blamed on the rain. I wanted to stop, I wanted to rest, my head ached and my body ached and everything ached and burned and blazed and throbbed and-
I wanted mom.
I wanted Triton.
I wanted mom.
I held tight to Grover as my breath stuttered and tears slipped down my checks. I dragged him towards the soft light in the night as I choked on my grief and pain.
I couldn't have let him go if I'd had to right then. I wasn't letting anyone else go.
I collapsed at last, my knees saying no more, onto the wooden porch of the house. My vision was darkening, shadows drifting across my sight with the spinning ceiling fan above me. Electric arcs danced over my skin and whispered safety and danger in turn. Something familiar settled over me.
Two faces appeared, a familiar-looking beared man and a pretty girl, her blond hair curled like a princess'.
"He's the one," the girl said. "He must be."
"Silence, Annabeth," the man said. "He's still conscious. Bring him inside."
The last thing I felt as I passed out was the feeling of the ocean, pulsing from the conch shell charm on my bracelet.
OO OO OO OO
Triton POV
The ocean was in turmoil.
First Metu was accused of theft. And then Zeus threatened war.
War was a lot of work .
I had to contact allies all over the ocean, arrange defenses, make sure the mer were trained, ensure the young and old were safe, and so so much more.
The ocean had not been at war in some time, and preparing for it was difficult.
I longed to contact Persi, to speak with him, to check in on him. I cared for this little brother, he was my little brother and I wanted him to be safe.
Metu did not dare look at him, didn't dare ensure he was trained or guarded, and thus it was my responsibility. Yet now I dared not do so either.
Persi was in danger, and should those of the land or sky or underneath learn of him he would be in far more danger.
He already attracted danger like nothing I'd ever seen before, I didn't dare add to it. I empathized more with my Metu then, in having to stay away from one I cared for so much.
I wished this war would stop. It was pointless, Metu had not stolen from Zeus. If Zeus had bothered to find evidence then we would not have this issue.
I wanted to be able to see Persi once more, I wanted to speak with him once more. I didn't even dare use Iris Messages for fear of Iris informing Zeus.
Iris always sided with Zeus in a conflict.
And this was war, I had to treat it as such.
Alas, avoiding seeking out Persi did not seem to prevent him from seeking out trouble.
The conch brooch I wore, the one connected directly to Persi's charm to allow me to be aware of his health, blazed.
Burns, a mild concussion, a sprained ankle- were those electrical burns-
I flickered, my chest tight. Electrical burns.
Severe electrical burns.
There was only one likely cause for that, particularly with the sea preparing for war against the sky.
I took a steadying, if pointless, breath.
I couldn't leave, though I could spread my presence. If I went to Persi now and it wasn't Zeus then I would reveal him. If I went to him now and it was Zeus it could cause Zeus to see it as confirmation. In addition, those here would likely notice if I did deem it necessary to split myself beyond the ocean.
This meeting was vital to the war. The negotiations on who would give what aid and what recompense would be given was extremely important.
I couldn't leave.
This was my duty.
But Persi was burning because of electricity and Zeus was blaming Metu for a theft and Persi was covered in electrical burns .
Zeus had found him.
Zeus might not have found him.
Persi could die.
I would know if he would.
Persi could still use the pearl, I'd given it to him for that purpose. As long as he was conscious he could-
The charm let me know that he was no longer conscious.
Areo.
Areo areo areo .
Bad burns, a concussion, a sprained ankle, breathing issues, lost consciousness. He needed medical attention.
I wished I'd watched him closer. How did Zeus find him? What caused the injuries?
My brother was weak, was injured, was possibly dying because he was mortal and oh so delicate and I couldn't go to him. Not then.
The sea was already going to war. I couldn't cause more conflict, not with the sky for swimming in, not with the sea for slipping away.
I answered a question from one of the representatives and signaled one of the others to speak. I wished all the while I could leave.
My smile was held in place through years of practice, an eternity of experience. I was the Prince, my own loyalties would always come second in the face of the Ocean.
It didn't matter if it broke me to sit here and not rush to his side.
He would be okay.
He would last long enough for me to finish this meeting, even if I had to make greater concessions than would be preferred to end it shorter.
And when I was able to reach him… whoever hurt him would pay.
Persi was my little brother, and nothing harmed mine.