Percy Jackson X Male Oc Book #1

Chapter 17

ASH POV
Annabeth loaded us all into the back of a Vegas taxi and said to the driver, "Los Angeles, please." Did she forget we had no money? "That's three hundred miles. For that, you gotta pay up front." Well that's just great. "You accept casino debit cards?" Annabeth asked. He shrugged. "Some of ' em. Same as credit cards. I gotta swipe ' em through first." Annabeth handed him her LotusCash card. He looked at it skeptically. "Swipe it," Annabeth invited. When he did, an infinity sign showed up next to the dollar sign. The cigar fell out of his mouth and he looked at us wide eyed. "Where in Los Angeles... uh, Your Highness?"

"The Santa Monica Pier." Annabeth sat up straighter. She definitely liked that. "Get us there fast, and you can keep the change." The cab's speedometer never dropped under ninety-five the whole way through the Mojave Desert. "Does that mean we have to call your princess Annabeth?" I asked her. She glared at me while the others laughed. Since we had time Percy and I told the others about our dreams. They looked surprised. "The voice asked you to join his side?" Mason asked. I nodded my head. "Did the pit say anything about any items?" Percy asked. "No, he wanted me to join him to get Hecate respect. Why?" "In my dream the thing in the pit said it was waiting for two items," Percy said. "If the master bolt was one, what's the other?" The others looked confused.

"It has to be Kronos." I finally said. "How?" Grover asked. "Remember the story about the war between the titans and the gods. Besides it's no coincidence that in mine and Percy's dreams the voice always comes from the pit." "That does make sense. Didn't Hecate tell you that it wasn't Hades?" Annabeth said. I nodded. I looked out the window to see we passed a sign that said CALIFORNIA STATE LINE, 12 MILES. How did Kronos steal the master bolt? He is chopped up in a pit. He most likely influenced someone. But who?

3RD PERSON
Annabeth tried to boost their spirits but coming with good strategies for getting into the Underworld. But Percy's heart wasn't there nor was Ash's mind. There were just too many unknown factors. The cab sped west. It was sunset when the taxi dropped them off at the beach in Santa Monica. The ground walked down to the edge of the surf. "What now?" Annabeth asked. They stood there in silence until Percy stepped into the surf. "Percy?" Annabeth said. "What are you doing?" Percy kept walking, the water went up to his waste, then his chest. She called after him, "You know how polluted that water is? There're all kinds of toxic-" That's when his head went under.

PERCY POV
I held my breath at first. It was difficult to intentionally inhale water. Finally I couldn't stand it anymore. I gasped. I walked into the shoals. Even though I couldn't see, I somehow knew where everything was. I could sense the rolling texture of the sandbar. I could even see the currents, warm and cold swirling together. I felt something rub against my leg. I looked down sliding beside me was a five-foot-long mako shark. It didn't attack me. I touched the dorsal fin, it butck a little. As if it was telling me to hold on tighter. I grabbed the fin and it took off taking me along. It swam into the darkness before stopping at the edge of a beep cavern. The cavern looked as deep as the Grand Canyon. The surface shimmered maybe a hundred and fifty feet above me. I should have been crushed by the pressure, but I also should not be able to breathe underwater. Then I saw something glimmering in the darkness below. It got bigger and brighter as it came towards me. A woman's voice like my mother's, called: "Percy Jackson."

As she got closer, her shape became clearer. She had flowing black hair, a dress made of green silk. Light flickered around her, and her eyes became distractingly beautiful. I hardly noticed the stallion-sized sea horse she was riding. She dismounted. The sea horse and the mako shark swam off and started to play what looked like tag. The underwater lady smiled at me. "You've come far, Percy Jackson. Well done." After a second I spoke. "You're the woman that spoke to me in the Mississippi River." "Yes, child. I am a Nereid, a spirit of the sea. It was not easy to appear so far upriver, but the naiads, my freshwater cousins, helped sustain my life force. They honor Lord Poseidon, though they do not serve in his court." "And... you serve in Poseidon's court?" She nodded. "It has been many years since a child of the Sea God has been born. We have watched you with great interest."