~Saltwater Gods~ (a PJO fanfic) DISCONTINUED

Chapter one {Percy}

I heard a distant noise - probably my alarm clock. I rolled over as I kept hearing that annoying sound over and over again. "Five more minutes..." I pleaded to no one in particular. Of course, the little chatterbox of a machine wouldn't stop ringing.

I knew I had slept long enough when I heard The exhausted moans of the kids in cabin 4 telling me to get up. I had probably woken up all of camp by then. I imagined Annabeth throwing a fit over the alarm, stomping over and judo-flipping me like she did that one time in New Rome.

Annabeth. That name made me open my eyes wide and jump out of bed in a hurry. She would be in a fuss all day, and I had learned early on that you didn't tick off Annabeth until capture the flag. Speaking of capture the flag, today was Friday.

I was going to go and hang out with my friends, Annabeth, Will, Piper, Leo-. I stopped that thought midway. Leo was still missing. Ever since that stunt he pulled in the Giant War, no one has been able to find him or Festus. My thoughts sank down lower into the sea of depression.

Nico said he felt Leo trying to communicate with him in dreams. He said that Leo could very well still be alive and well, and that he mentioned Calypso. Nico - the poor kid. He'd been through quite a few phases - some more severe than others - but he's doing a lot better now.

I pulled on a sea green sweatshirt with my signature blue jeans. Annabeth liked that outfit because she said it matched my eyes. I usually wear it whenever I can just to please her, watch the smile etch across her face as I get lost in her stormy gray irises.

I grabbed my watch from Tyson and my pen that I kept beside my bed. I walked swiftly out of my cabin after doing a few more things. I saw a boy running from the other side of camp, shouting my name. As he came closer, I noticed it was Nico. "Percy," he said, out of breath. "Look what I have." Nico held out a small bracelet with pearls, seashells, and - were those sea urchine spines?

"What the heck is that?" was all I could think of. The string was made of some green stuff, and the clasp was a little stick inside a ring.
Nico beamed with pride as he showed me his find. "Hermes told me to give it to you. It apparently has some significance because he said it was from your dad." he gingerly placed the jewelry in my hand, careful not to break any of the delicate beading.
His eyes swam with wonder and I wanted him to stay like that. He was way too reserved in his little dungeon of a cabin. The only time I saw him happy was when Hazel came, when he was at his dad's place, or when Frank offered to play mythomagic.
"What was Hermes doing here?" I asked. If you spend a day with his kids, you can pretty much tell the troublemaking was hereditary. The old messenger god didn't bother making deliveries to camp unless they were important. And by important, I mean it usually involved something blowing up in your face.
I accepted the bracelet and tucked it away carefully in my big sweatshirt pocket, trying my best not to mess it up.
"Oh, I don't know. He's probably up to no good with those kids of his," nico replied with a slight smirk planted on his pale face. I ruffled his hair and his hands shot up and tried to tame it. Laughing, we both walked over to the dining pavilion for breakfast.
Since the giant war, Chiron let the remaining heroes from the big quest sit together. "With one exception," I remember him saying. "You don't plot any mischief. I don't need any more Stolls." I laughed inwardly at that memory.
Nico and I separated to different ends of the table, and I sat by Piper, who was already eating her scrambled eggs. She looked up from her meal and smiled warmly at me. I smiled and nodded back.
Only seconds later, I sensed someone sit next to me. "Hey, Seaweed Brain," a familiar voice said.
"Good morning, Wise Girl," I replied playfully. I thought I saw Piper roll her eyes at our flirting. I scoffed at her dramatically and pulled my arm around Annabeth as she sat down.
It wasn't summer yet, so the camp wasn't as packed as it would be. If you looked really far, you could see the snow falling softly outside of the force field.
I grabbed a plate of blueberry pancakes and started digging in. This whole morning thing was really hard on your appetite. I immediately remembered my mom's blue candy from when she would work at that candy shop. I decided I should call her when I get the chance.
I looked up and everyone was just staring at me wolf down my food like I hadn't eaten in days. Annabeth was giving me that motherly scolding look, Piper looked like she was holding in a giggle, and Nico just looked scared as if he thought I might still be hungry and eat him next. I blushed and looked down at my plate, trying not to eat it, too.
Piper let out her laughter, bending over to catch her breath. soon Nico followed, then Annabeth. I knew they weren't laughing at me; they wouldn't do that.
After our little giggle fit, we kept looking at each other, amusement shining like stars in our eyes.
Soon breakfast was over, and we had a free hour to clean and get ready for the day. I strolled up to my cabin, my hands in my pockets. I stood in front of the steps when my hand brushed up against one of the shells on the bracelet. I stopped cold. I had completely forgotten about it.
I looked at my cabin, and then at the expanse of ocean not far from it. I looked back and forth between the two, mentally arguing which one to go to. After a few seconds, I knew what I had to do. I turned around and started making my way towards the ocean. Towards whatever fate awaited me there.