The portal spat us out, and we tumbled through the air for a heart-stopping second—me clutching Percy's hand, our packs and weapons clattering around us—before slamming into the dirt and entering a sun-dappled clearing. I groaned, spitting out leaves as Percy rolled off me with a muffled "Oof," our supplies scattered around the clearing. Scrambling up, I yanked my dagger from its sheath, scanning the dense forest encircling us. There was a small lake glittering nearby with a shadowy cave mouth yawning off to the side. Percy was already on his feet, Riptide uncapped and gleaming, but before we could glance back, the portal snapped shut with a crack like thunder, leaving nothing but swirling mist that faded into the empty air.
"Great, Hecate's express delivery service strikes again," he muttered, brushing dirt from his jeans while I inventoried our gear—armor intact, ambrosia secure, a hunter's pack—thanks Artemis—but no signs of civilization anywhere. We quickly surveyed our surroundings again before heading to the entrance of the cave, which was darker than the river Styx, and we prepared for whatever dangers lay ahead.
Inside the cave, it looked like an antechamber to the underworld, probably to Elysium, rocks framing the sides where faint sunlight filtered in, dappling the main chamber with slivers of life—moss clinging to damp walls, tiny ferns unfurling in pockets of unexpected glow from bioluminescent(Had to look that one up!) fungi pulsing softly overhead. Percy flicked on his flashlight from the Hunter's bag, and we stepped inside the cave, the air turning cool and earthy, thick with the drip of water echoing from unseen branches snaking off like a labyrinth, reminding me way too much of Daedalus' maze.
"Smart move, Wise Girl," Percy said as I pulled a piece of chalk from my pack and scratched a bold '1' on the wall at the first offshoot, marking our path. I shrugged, tracing the archway's natural curves.
"Common sense, Seaweed Brain. Caves like this eat the unprepared—it's also what we would've done in the Maze, if it wasn't ever-changing." Percy visibly shuddered at the reminder.
We ventured into the marked branch, the light fading fast into a suffocating dark where life felt strangled—bare stone slick with moisture, just the scuttle of unseen critters and a stale chill that raised the hairs on my neck. Percy gripped Riptide, shaking almost, the reminder of Tartarus too clear in our minds, when a skittering sound made me freeze: a spider the size of my fist dropped from the ceiling. I panicked, standing completely in shock, while Percy willed a burst of water to blast it against the wall.
"Thanks, Percy," I sighed in relief, checking the ceiling again.
"Reminds me of that time in the maze," he grumbled, wiping some dirt from his shoe. "Nice job not freaking out by the way."
"I was most definitely panicking inside." At that, he laughed, and we ventured onward.
Half an hour of weaving through twisting passages left us dusty and alert, the natural rock giving way to chiseled walls—made by something not quite human, based on the designs. I was just about to suggest we switch directions when the hissing of something sounded: I looked down and saw we stepped on pressure plates, causing a curtain of poison fumes to fall upon us, to which Percy just in time managed to maneuver it away from us. We were both horrified at the trap, visions of Tartarus emerging to the forefront.
"Come on, Annabeth," Percy said, escaping the memories first. "It's okay, you're safe now, I'm here, we're okay." I finally calmed down, grateful for him at my side.
We treaded more carefully now, encountering swinging blades that whooshed past our ears as I yanked him down, and a pit yawned open underfoot, spikes glinting below—I grabbed a nearby rock to test its depth, we waited for several minutes before a faint "clack" reached our ears.
"Maybe we should go back," Percy suggested. I was inclined to agree with him; however, something kept nagging at me.
"Whatever is at the end of this has to be pretty important to be so heavily protected, right?" He nodded in agreement. "Soo... if it's so important and possibly powerful, maybe we can use it to win this war and get home quicker." His eyes light up with understanding, and we ventured yet again, onward with renewed vigor.
Heart pounding, we pressed on, my brain trying to systematically find the next traps, Percy's instincts dodging the rest. Fifteen minutes later, the tunnel widened into a vast chamber, humid air heavy with ancient magic that hummed against my skin like a prophecy waiting to drop. Percy squinted at two oval-shaped "rocks" nestled on a stone pedestal, veined in sapphire and gray stone, faintly warm to the touch.
"Great," he exclaimed, sounding exasperated, "Who would go all their way to make these traps and stuff to hide some stupid rocks!" He started poking one, maybe in hopes that it would do something. I knelt closer, tracing the smooth(unnaturally so) and cold surface, noting the veins of white that passed through both the blue and gray rocks.
The realization hit me like a cannon. "Eggs Percy, Eggs! Maybe even dragon eggs!"He pranced around excitedly, doing a little jig before stopping.
"Why is this so good again?" he asked.
"It's because there are dragons!"
"Mhm, so what happens if they eat us?"
"They'll be too small to eat us, " I reasoned, picking up the gray one and motioning for Percy to grab the other.
We held them in our arms, the weight both thrilling and terrifying—like carrying Olympus's future in a backpack. Backtracking took only 30 minutes, and we had come back to the main entrance cave, glad to be out of the tunnel.
We set up camp quickly, putting the eggs and their mysteries aside for a second: assembling the Hunters' tent in no time, and heading inside, glad for the extra room it provided. We set about making dinner. Percy grabbed some fish and water while I got some seasonings and a pot from the kitchen to make some soup. (Think of the Hunters' tents as the ones like Harry Potter, where they are super big on the inside.)
"Think these will hatch into mature dragons or an animal version of Leo?" Percy joked, but he glanced suspiciously at the eggs. I leaned against him, waiting for the day to close as we ate a small dinner. "Hopefully just dragons. We all know one Leo is too much for the world to handle." We chuckled about that and sat side by side, enjoying one another's company.
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