CursEd

Awakening

Kaylee awoke with her face in the sand, her hair swirling around her face.

The last thing she remembered she'd been at her mother's house under the sea. She sat up suddenly, her eyes trapping the scene around her. She was on a beach under the surf, the crystal water stirring just a few feet above her head.

Her jeans were rolled up at the ankles and torn at the knees, her shirt a faded camp t-shirt. She wasn't wearing any shoes, her feet were scraped up and her head was throbbing. It was like there was a rock implanted where her spine morphed into her neck. She rubbed her hand back there just to check. It was smooth skin with just a little tangle of hair flowing around.

A wave came in, pushing her towards the beach lightly before tugging her gently back.

"Dad?" she asked, sending her thoughts throughout the ocean. There was no response.

Digging her toes into the sand she slowly rose from her spot and started walking towards where the surf was breaking. It wasn't long before her head broke the surface and she was able to see where she was.

The sand was white in contrast to the crystal water, palm trees lining the edge of the shore. It seemed like a small cove with mist easing in alongside the tide. It looked like a small island paradise save for the dark form of someone lying face down a few feet in front of her.

Splashing through the surf she made it to the body and flipped it.

"Markus?" She demanded, her hands running over his face. He was pale, his body cold and his eyes shut. He was grungy, his face prickly with unkempt stubble and his lips chapped. The coat and jeans he was wearing were soaked through to skin and covered in mud. There were dark purple bruises around his neck and wrists.

"MARKUS!"

Feeling for a pulse there was nothing so she started CPR, dragging the water with her as she counted. She wrapped his wrists and neck in sea foam, thinking healing thoughts and praying. After forty pumps and two breaths, his eyes shot open and he threw up a bucket worth of dirt, water, and something green.

"Markus?" Kaylee asked. "What happened? Did you follow me?"

It took him a few more moments to compose himself, his body shaking with shivers until his eyes found her. His gaze widened and he reached up to rub his eyes a few times. She assumed it was because he had almost just died, but then he pulled her into a giant hug.

"Thank the gods, you're alive," he said, pressing her farther against his chest.

"Thank them that you're alive," she countered, pulling away. "You were dead just a minute ago."

His brow furrowed. "We were in the forest..."

"Yeah, and then I ran off to see my mother," Kaylee said. "She supposedly gave me a spell to find Percy." She observed herself like there would be a marking there confirming what she'd just said. "But I don't feel any different, really. Well, except for a massive headache." She chuckled.

He blinked.

"Kay...do you know where you are?" he asked.

She thought about it, the water brushing against her toes told her exactly where but it didn't seem to compute with what she knew. When she'd been at her mother's she had been in the Atlantic, and this was most definitely the Pacific.

"I don't," she started, looking around. "Did we find Percy?"

She saw some impatience and almost anger flash across Markus' face just before he stood up.