Sinners (PJO/HoO)(Lukercy/Perluke)

I. Part Nine ~Δ

Percy Jackson / Omega Epsilon 's POV

The explosion simply felt as if I were under a large blanket; really warm, but unharmed. After the bus had went up in flames, I teleported myself outside of it, right in front of the right-hand side, glass crunching under my feet. I faintly heard my name being cried, from someone that sounded painfully like Luke, when I finally saw them near the woods.

Grover and Annabeth were holding Luke, who was attempting to get free, desperate tears shining in his eyes. It seemed he saw me, however, as he broke free with a cry of "Percy!"

Next thing I knew, Luke was embracing me, his head resting on my shoulder and his body shaking, before he relaxed (I had a feeling it was because his soul recognized my aura).

"Luke?" I questioned, shock coursing through my veins, before I hesitantly placed my hands on his back, which seemed to soothe him.

"Thank the gods," he murmured, sighing with what I could only assume was relief. "I thought you were dead."

Warmth began to spread from my chest, and my yearning for my mate only grew. I pulled away, hardly noticing my lips had pulled up in the soft smile I always reserved for Alpha. "It will take more than just a silly little explosion to kill me," I teased lightly.

"Percy, I'm glad you're alive and all, but we need to get going before more monsters come," Annabeth said, ruining the moment.

A sigh escaped my lips, and I paused for a moment, considering my options. It would be best to do as she said, lest we meet something even more horrifying than the Furies.

I turned into the woods, footsteps behind me letting me know that my companions were following. The rain poured down like mad, the bus in flames behind us and nothing but darkness ahead.

***

We continued to walk along the New Jersey riverbank, the glow of New York City making the night sky yellow behind us. Grover was shivering and bleating, his big goat eyes turned slit-pupiled and full of terror.

"Three Kindly Ones. All three at once," he murmured.

"We'll face much worse than that," I commented, staring straight ahead.

"Our stuff was back there," Luke muttered. "The money, food, clothes... everything."

I grinned. "No it wasn't," I said, pulling all of the bags out from the shadows, dropping them at our feet. "I made sure to hide them when Luke announced he had felt a cold aura. In my experience, when those that can sense auras feel a cold one, it usually means monsters are nearby."

"You got them?" Annabeth asked in shock.

"Of course," I scoffed. "You may have a plan, but so do I. My plan, however, is much better than yours."

"Wait," Grover interrupted, turning to stare at Luke. "Since when could you sense auras?"

Luke shrugged. "I don't know. About a few days after Percy arrived at Camp, I realized I could when I felt what his aura was like."

"And what is it like?" Annabeth quizzed, obviously interested in this newfound ability; although I thought I saw a hint of jealousy in her eyes.

He paused to think. "Warm and peaceful," he stated, his voice wistful. "Familiar, powerful... Sort of like a warm summer's day."

I cleared my throat, my face aflame. "We should get moving," I muttered.

Everyone grabbed their respective bags and we continued walking in silence.

Eventually, we reached the edge of the woods. A bright neon sign lit up a road and what looked like stone statues sitting in front of an old building. Across the road was a closed-down gas station, next to it a billboard for a 1990s movie (in Earth years, of course).