Chaos 2/2
Percy tilted his head slightly to the side as a fireball shot past his cheek before exploding behind him in a burst of flames.
He ducked at the same time he moved his sword, and what looked like a hellhound that had leapt toward him turned into dust before it could even touch him.
An arrow flew straight toward his face in that moment, but Percy simply caught it with his hand right in front of him. He spun it between his fingers before throwing it with force directly at the neck of the Laestrygon who had been preparing another projectile.
When it struck his neck, the monster grabbed his throat, letting out a muffled sound before turning into dust.
For a moment the archer froze in surprise, staring at where the Laestrygon had been. Then he raised his bow again.
But he aimed at the spot where Percy had been standing.
And Percy was no longer there.
The archer looked around just in time to notice Percy standing right beside him, his expression cold.
A punch straight to the face was the last thing he saw before he was sent flying into a drinks bar that shattered under the impact.
Percy looked around.
A small mound of dust slowly drifting in the wind. Several unconscious demigods on the floor. Only one of them was still standing, completely frozen in shock, staring at him with a mixture of panic, surprise, and confusion.
Percy began walking toward him slowly.
"Wait. Wait, wait," the demigod said quickly, completely terrified.
Unlike the others, who wore half armor or even full Greek armor, this one was dressed in an elegant suit. Jacket, fitted shirt, and a neatly folded handkerchief in his breast pocket.
His hair was perfectly styled, like some kind of public figure. He even seemed to be wearing a little makeup.
He was fairly handsome.
But he also looked extremely cowardly.
Percy stopped in front of him, because he definitely didn't look like a fighter.
"You're looking for Luke, right? I saw you on the island. I have to say, that power was incredible. I didn't know the son of Poseidon could control ice too. I'm honestly fascinated by you. I'm your fan," the young man said quickly, offering a conciliatory smile.
Percy's gaze didn't soften as he stared at him.
He still couldn't speak much. His vocal cords hadn't fully recovered yet, so his silence made him seem even colder and more dangerous than usual.
"Ahem… I'm Eiden, by the way. Son of Aphrodite. It's a pleasure to meet you in person," the young man said carefully.
"I'm not like those guys who attack someone who could obviously destroy us without thinking first. So how about we relax a little and talk this out? Maybe I could invite you for a drink."
Percy watched him for a moment.
His brow frowned slightly, but his expression seemed to relax at the boy's words.
"I know—"
Before he could finish, Percy suddenly moved his arm and punched him straight in the face.
It was a simple hit, almost like a slap.
But it was enough to knock Eiden unconscious.
Percy shook his head slightly, as if clearing some kind of spell from his mind. Then he looked down at Eiden with mild annoyance and searched through his clothes until he found a golden card.
He took it and kept walking.
But suddenly the sound of horses neighing caught his attention, along with a few voices nearby that sounded suspiciously like insults.
…
Meanwhile, Clarisse entered through a different section of the ship, taking advantage of the fact that Percy had clearly drawn everyone's attention.
And that was exactly what had happened.
She could hear hurried footsteps moving away as several demigods grabbed weapons and ran toward the explosion.
Clarisse hid for a moment.
There was no need to fight people who hadn't even noticed she was there.
But before she continued forward, she saw a group of five or six demigods who weren't heading toward the battle.
Instead, they were walking in another direction, fairly relaxed, chatting among themselves.
When Clarisse heard the phrase "daughter of Athena," she stopped for a moment.
She glanced toward where the other warriors had gone to confront what was almost certainly Percy.
Then she looked at the backs of the others.
And turned to follow them.
"Obviously this is Zeus's doing. He forced Iris to shut down her network. He must've realized we were using it for our plans," one of them said.
"But wouldn't that hurt his own side too?" another asked.
"So what? We're talking about Zeus. He doesn't even care about his own. If more of them die, he'll probably be even happier," the first replied with a mocking laugh.
"Shhh," a third said immediately, glancing nervously toward the ceiling.
"Could you not say his name? We don't want a lightning bolt dropping on us."
"Stop being such a coward. We have the Titans on our side. We don't have to fear Zeus or our parents anymore. Their reign will end soon when Kronos awakens," another said excitedly.
"And we'll prove we're not afraid by using the daughter of Athena to show we're ready to kill the traitors who still support those disgusting beings," the first added, his voice filled with bloodthirst.
"Yes," the others said before quickening their pace.
Clarisse, after hearing that, followed them quickly.
She knew perfectly well who they were talking about.
Annabeth.
…
Grover was standing next to a van in a nearby parking lot, trying to look completely inconspicuous while looking around and greeting the people who passed by.
The people, confused by the boy's nervous wave, looked at him for a moment.
Then kept walking without giving it much thought.
Suddenly, the van started.
Tyson poked his head out from beneath the dashboard.
"It's ready," he said with a smile while putting away his tools.
"Great. We should move it before the owner notices," Grover said quickly as he moved toward the passenger seat.
"Uh… but… I don't know how to drive," Tyson said.
"Neither do I," Grover replied with complete calm.
Tyson blinked.
"Then maybe Percy knows how."
"No. No. Bad idea. Very bad idea," Grover said immediately, shaking his head as if his life depended on it.
"So now what? We only had one mission and we're already failing spectacularly."
"What if we call someone wiser… more powerful… someone who could help us?" Tyson said while thinking about it calmly.
Grover looked at him in surprise, his eyes wide.
Tyson nodded.
…
Meanwhile, at the Jackson house, Sally, with a mixture of exhaustion and mild irritation on her face, set a box full of dangerous weapons and faintly glowing bottles of strange liquids on the dining table.
Then she opened the fridge.
For a moment she stared at the large amount of meat stored inside.
Her expression turned serious.
She had absolutely no idea what kind of meat any of it was.
And she didn't want to know.
So she pulled over a trash bin.
And threw all the meat inside.
She shook her head with a sigh just as the doorbell rang.
Sally walked toward the door while wiping her hands. But at that exact moment the phone also started ringing.
So she picked it up while opening the door.
On the other side stood a delivery man holding a package.
"Sorry, my pen ran out of ink. If you had one I could borrow, that would really help," the man said with an awkward smile.
Sally nodded.
"One moment, please."
She took the package while searching for a pen, but first answered the phone.
"Hello?"
She paused slightly.
"Tyson? What's wrong? Are you okay?" she asked, her brow faintly furrowed.
"Oh, yeah. Everything's fine. Did you get my letter?" Tyson replied cheerfully from a gas station, using the shop's phone while Grover leaned beside him trying to listen.
"Yes. The dagger you sent is very beautiful. But you really should stop mailing dangerous things. The last one almost exploded when it arrived here," Sally said while looking at the package she had just received.
Judging by the sound it made when she lightly shook it…
it seemed to be another thing Tyson had sent.
The delivery man, who was still waiting for the signature, widened his eyes when he heard that. He looked at Sally first…
then at the package he had just delivered.
He nervously waved the paper in his hand for her to sign.
Sally gave him a small gesture asking for patience while she kept looking for a pen.
"Did something happen at camp that you had to call? I thought there weren't any phones there," she said.
"Oh, no. Everything's fine at camp. Percy said the master ended up guarding everyone for some reason, so it might be the safest place in the world right now," Tyson said with a smile.
"Miraak is at the camp? Well… that explains why I haven't seen him for a while. He never stays far from Percy or you," Sally said with a faint smile.
"Ah… well… yes… about that…" Tyson said more and more slowly.
"Could you maybe get us some transportation… to the camp?"
His voice sounded almost tiny, as if he feared angering the only woman who could stand up to his master without blinking.
"What?" Sally said as her smile vanished completely.
"Give me that," Grover said, grabbing the phone from Tyson.
"Hi, Sally."
The moment Sally heard Grover's voice, her expression became much more serious.
At the same time, she had handed the package back to the delivery man so he could hold it.
The man took it extremely carefully, as if someone had just handed him a bomb, freezing in place.
"Grover. What are you doing there? Weren't you supposed to be on the other side of the world?" Sally said.
"Oh… yeah. I was… but I just got back. And the camp organized a trip to… come pick me up," Grover improvised quickly.
Sally let out a long sigh before cutting him off.
"Grover. I've been the mother of a demigod for thirteen years. A Cyclops for one. And their master, who can destroy a city with a single shout. You'd better tell me what's going on."
Her tone was completely serious now.
The delivery man, who had been hearing all of this, turned pale.
As if he had just realized he was standing in front of either a dangerous lunatic…
or maybe a terrorist.
Sally finally found a pen in a drawer near the door.
She quickly signed the paper while the delivery man stared at her with growing panic in his eyes.
Then she handed the package back.
The man took it.
And ran away as fast as he could.
"I'll be there right away," Sally said before hanging up.
She grabbed the keys from the key holder.
But before leaving, she returned, opened the box she had received, and found a brand new dagger inside.
She took it.
And walked out of the house.
"Leave the kids unsupervised…" she muttered irritably before slamming the door behind her.