Percy Jackson, the Son of Olympus: The Sea of Monsters

| Chapter XV || Reunion |

*August 27 XXXX*

***

Percy thought that "monster island" meant it would be scary. It was the sort of cheesy name that an amusement park would give a house of horror or a new, terrifying yet exhilarating ride. He thought that when they docked their stolen pirate ship on the shores of a literal monster island, they'd be swarmed within seconds by beasts - or at the very least, happened upon and attacked in hopes of becoming a late night snack for a hellhound or two.

In reality, it was nothing like that.

After waking the next morning - realizing as his nose wrinkled on its own how bad it smelled belowdeck of a pirate ship that hadn't been used in nearly three hundred years - he got above deck and was pleasantly surprised to see that he was indeed able to steer the ship as he slept, which meant that they were on track and their destination was right in front of them.

Polyphemus' island, where he resided and kept the treasure they sought - the Golden Fleece.

It was a strange-looking island, which, Percy assumed, made it so much easier to recognize. The island rose in high cliffs on either side: two separate pieces that were connected by a single rope bridge. At least, Percy thought he saw a rope bridge. If he squinted really hard, he could make out a thin line between the two mountains, and that was his best guess.

The next weirdest thing about the island was that it was greener than anything he'd ever seen before. It shouldn't be surprising since the Golden Fleece was obviously the reason behind its healthy appearance, but it just seemed so out of place in the Sea of Monsters that Percy had to smack himself to make sure he wasn't dreaming.

Spoiler alert: he wasn't.

Overall, the place didn't really have a glowing neon billboard that said "SOMETHING EVIL LIVES HERE" unless you looked at the steepness of the cliffs and the scraggly little bridge that basically tied the two of them together. Other than that, it was almost straight out of a postcard. For a second, Percy wished that he'd brought a camera to take a picture of it because he knew that not many other people would be able to experience it (without the threat of imminent and agonizing death, that is).

"Annabeth!" he called out as he steered the ship closer, "Land ho!"

She almost materialized next to him. That was how fast she'd gotten up and flew through the doors that led below deck.

Minutes later, they were on shore, bare feet digging into the grainy sand. Percy wished he had shoes, but alas, both of them had lost the shoes on Circe's island, where the spa people didn't see the need for shoes and had immediately ordered them to be taken off.

The next surprising thing he found about the island - after accepting the fact that no monsters would suddenly show up and start trying to eat them - was the lifeboat was the was washed up on the shore slightly ahead of their ship.

Who...? Or more like...how? Because that boat looked eerily familiar. He was frozen in place, but Annabeth wasn't. She, too, must've noticed something about the boat, because she marched up to it instead of just standing there staring, and unlike him, she found something worthwhile.

"Percy! It's Artemis and Tyson!"

Those words snapped him out of it. Artemis. Artemis was okay! And so was Tyson! They'd been separated for so long that he couldn't even believe that they were still alive. He'd been worrying every since the first day and knew how many dangers infested the waters of this part of the ocean.

"Artemis!" were the words that came out of his mouth as he rushed forward. He fell to his knees next to the boat and reached down to pick up the goddess. Even though she was dehydrated, battered, and messy, she was still the most beautiful person he'd ever seen, and he'd never been more delighted to see her.

Soft grumbles came from her cracked lips, and Percy immediately pulled out his emergency water pouch, popping the cap off and holding it to her lips, letting her take a nice, long drink. He brought it along, as always, to use his father's powers, but she needed it far more than he did, and they'd already run out of fresh water rations since boarding the Queen Anne's Revenge.

Looking up, slightly, he saw Annabeth doing the same for Tyson with her own last water packet, who looked only slightly less delirious that Artemis, but still in bad shape. Percy sent the blonde a grateful smile, though he doubted she saw it, as, for some reason, she was avoiding his gaze.

His gratitude was only met with the top of her head, which shone with grease and sweat after the few hours they'd been out of the open ocean with nothing but three-hundred-year-old wooden cots to sleep on and the sun beating down on their scalps. He even thought that, because of the sun, Annabeth's normally honey-blonde hair had lightened several shades.

Finally, when all the water was gone, Percy tossed his empty pouch back around his waist and held Artemis a little higher, so that she was sitting up, propped against the side of the boat.

Her eyes fluttered slightly before opening a sliver. "P-Percy?" Even after all of his water, her voice was still scratchy, just going to show how long she must've gone without water.

"Shh," he soothed, "Don't talk. You need to save your strength." He hugged her close, burying his face in her hair, which was in an even worse condition that Annabeth's. He didn't care, though. He must've looked the same - worse even, seeing as he's been a guinea pig for a while there. Besides, Artemis always looked better than him.

"I thought I'd l-lost you. Wh-when the boat cracked apart, and we were separated, I could think of nothing else but how you would survive out there. I know you're st-strong, but even you have to admit that a goddess without her godly abilities is worse off than a demigod who's lived all his life learning how to stay alive in this kind of world," he said. He was proud to say that he'd only stuttered on a few of his words, the memories painful to look back upon.

"I'm okay..." Artemis managed to say before Percy shushed her again.

"Well, we're back together now, and even though this isn't the location I would've picked, it's a good a place as any," he said. "Now let me take care of you. You must be completely drained."

Artemis didn't answer, but she inclined her head in a single jerky nod, confirming Percy's suspicions. Being a goddess without her powers must've been the worst feeling in the world. As he tried to imagine what it would be like to not have his powers anymore, Percy found himself at a loss. There was no way for him to simulate the feeling of utter helplessness upon himself.

"Come on," he said instead, "Let's get you on the boat. Annabeth," he turned to the daughter of Athena.

She looked up but didn't meet his eyes.

"I'll get Artemis onto the ship and then I'll be right back out to help you with Tyson, okay?"

The blonde nodded and went back to work patching up Tyson's wounds. His soft hands had gained blisters upon blisters from the makeshift oars, leading Percy to believe that the gentle giant had offered to row them all the way to the island while Artemis slept. In return, she must've given him all the food they must've had, as he was obviously more well-fed than Artemis at this point.

That was the last thought that Percy had before he hoisted Artemis over his back and half carried and half dragged her back over to the Queen Anne's Revenge. He never felt more relieved by how heavy she was because that meant she wasn't as malnourished as he worried she'd be.

Getting her onto a bed, Percy amended that he would worry about Polyphemus tomorrow. For now, he would care for his friends. Giving Artemis one last longing glance. Percy left the room and went back out to give Annabeth a helping hand with his baby brother.

***

Published: Saturday, January 20, 2018

~CSP2708~