'•' The Sea of Monsters '•'

1 :: Cruise Ship of Death

Published: September 10, 2021
Edited: July 20, 2022
'•'

The clean clothes felt prickly and chaffing against my freshly washed skin. Despite vigorous scrubbing my hands still bore a red tint from the splatter of demigod blood. I swallowed the lump in my throat and kept walking along the running track.

The running track was my favorite part of the cruise ship because it was the closest I could get to the sea without jumping in. The track was also always devoid of monsters and mostly avoided by the dazed mortals I saw around the ship.

I clenched my fists as I sped up my walking. To Luke it hadn't seemed like a big deal but this was the first one who's name I hadn't known. The first demigod who I hadn't whispered reassurances to as I swung Whirpool. The tall blonde girl was the first kill I had done without question. The stain of her blood on my fists made me feel dirty and unclean, despite my hair still dripping onto my back from the shower I had taken. The sea spray  that hit my face felt like tiny bullets peppering my cheeks.

Suddenly I felt like throwing up. How could what I was doing be right. I was killing and maiming and following the person who wanted to destroy all civilization, just to relay some information to Camp Half-Blood. Suddenly the open air of the track felt suffocating and oppressive.

I turned quickly on my heel and walked swiftly back through the automatic doors into the main deck.

The place resembled a small town square, with open restraunts and jewelry stores swarming with mortals and monsters alike. I ignored the sparkling stores and the tantalizing smell of food and instead headed towards the elevators lined at the far end of the deck.

I passed a few harpies, five hellhounds and two demigods before I saw the first mortal family of the day. It was two women, a small boy and a baby.

"We are on a cruise, we are having fun." They all chorused. 

I should have been used to them by now but the mortals caused a lump to rise in my throat every time. I sped up my walk and tried to steady myself as the nausea got worse. To survive as a spy you have to hide your feelings and expressions, over the past year, I had gotten to the point where I could change my entire expression at the drop of a hat.

I reached the end of the Promenade and clicked the 'down' button on the elevator. The middle elevator arrived first and the heavy doors slid open with a soft 'ding'. Thank the gods the elevator was empty as I lunged in and jabbed the button labeled 'E'. Engine.

A soft melody played from overhead bit it was drowned out by the pounding in my ears. I felt like I was going to be swept away in the torrent if emotions that had suddenly swept through my body. My vision was cloudy as I gasped for air. The suddenness of the panic attack only made it feel worse, as thought someone had suddenly pressed a pillow over my face.

Finally the elevator doors slid open and I stumbled into the boiler room, still gasping. This was the only place on the ship that didn't have cameras. I turned the corner and wriggled into my usual crawl space behind the water purifier and one of the larger pipes.

Then I fumbled for my trident bracelet and tapped it three times in quick succession. It hummed quietly before a full color image of my brother popped up in the air before me. Percy's expression was unreadable at first but then he noticed me and his eyes lit up.  Then his face morphed into worry as he noticed me shaking and grasping at my shirt with blood stained hands.

"Neridia!? Neri!" He called worriedly. His familiar voice grounded me and I took a deep breath. I took a few more moments to control my breathing and push back the intrusive thoughts that had threatened to control me before I spoke.