A Son From Lands Unknown (PJO x Male Reader)

Threading the Monstrous Needle

Ares balled his fists. (Y/N) kept a smirk on his face, but his head was swimming with possibilities, most of them bad. The entire interaction hinged on Ares being smart enough to avoid risking picking a fight with a larger Pantheon, though (Y/N) wasn't certain the god of war was even that tactically minded.

Suddenly, (Y/N) felt the air get knocked out of him, courtesy of a punch to the gut from Ares. He doubled over in pain, not expecting Ares to actually be stupid enough to follow through. "You may be Greed's kid," Ares hissed, "but that don't mean nothin' on the battlefield, trash heap. So, what's stopping me from killing you now?"

"The fact that the power it would take to kill me the easy way for you would also kill your best shot at glory," (Y/N) wheezed, "and the hard way would take far too long for someone of your status. After all, don't you have a President to bother?"

Ares grit his teeth before turning away, prompting (Y/N) to cover his eyes. It was good timing, too, as Ares had disappeared in a flash of light. The son of Mammon slowly rose to his feet, still holding his gut. Clarisse turned to him, a slight look of thanks on her face, though she was too proud to actually say it.

"C'mon," she said. "We need to get up top, see where we are."

"Aye aye, cap'n."

The two went up the steps to the top deck, unsure of their exact location in the water. Thankfully, it would be answered as soon as they arrived. Clarisse grabbed a pair of binoculars from a zombie officer and peered through them at the sea ahead of them.

"At last," she said. "Captain, full steam ahead!" (Y/N) wasn't quite sure what she saw, but if she saw something, then (Y/N) would trust her. If he squinted, he could just make out a couple of dark fuzzy splotches in the distance. As they approached, though, (Y/N) felt his stomach sink. The sound of what he could only assume was Charybdis got louder and louder, a horrible wet roar like the galaxy's biggest toilet being flushed. Every time Charybdis inhaled, the ship shuddered and lurched forward. Every time she exhaled, they rose in the water and were buffeted by ten-foot waves.

Percy tried to time the whirlpool. As near as he could figure, it took Charybdis about three minutes to suck up and destroy everything within a half-mile radius. To avoid her, they would have to skirt right next to Scylla's cliffs. And as bad as Scylla might be, those cliffs were looking awfully nice to the son of Poseidon.

Undead soldiers calmly went about their business on the spar deck, as if nothing was happening. (Y/N) was trying to look that way as well, but his white-knuckled grip on the railing betrayed him. He could hear Annabeth and Percy whispering about something, but he couldn't quite make out what it was. He saw Percy close his eyes and reach out to control the water, but the strain on the son of Poseidon's face showed exactly how much trouble he was having. (Y/N) decided to walk over and see what exactly was going on.

"We need a backup plan," Annabeth said. "This isn't going to work."

"Annabeth's right," Tyson said, approaching them as well. "Engine's no good."

"What do you mean?" (Y/N) asked, calling attention to himself.

"Pressure. Pistons need fixing."

"Shit," (Y/N) hissed, annoyed. "I'll let Clarisse know." He was about to walk away when Charibdis sucked in with a mighty roar. The ship lurched forward and (Y/N) was nearly thrown from his feet. They were already in the whirlpool.

"Full reverse!" Clarisse screamed above the noise. The sea churned around them, waves crashing over the deck. The iron plating was now so hot that it steamed. "Get us within firing range! Make ready starboard cannons!"

Dead Confederates rushed back and forth. The propeller ground into reverse, trying to slow the ship, but they kept sliding toward the center of the vortex.