Chapter 5

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Percy

Percy remembered this place. It was the aquarium in Atlanta that used to be run by Phorcys and Keto, sea deities that captured mythical creatures and drugged them to entertain paying audiences. After defeating Gaea, Percy had come back and freed all of the creatures like he said he would, so why was he here? What were the Fates trying to show him?

The place was deserted, like Percy expected it to be. Phorcys and Keto were not happy when Percy, Frank, Tyson, and a few dozen other members of Poseidon's army had shown up and destroyed their operation. The mortal part of the aquarium had unfortunately not escaped unscathed either, so the entire building was abandoned. The tanks were empty, dust covered the windows, tables, and chairs. In the middle of the big room that had temporarily become a tank to hold Percy and Frank, Phorcys and Keto huddled together. They were wearing dark cloaks, very different from the aquarium-worker outfits they'd had on when Percy first met them, but Phorcys still looked a bit like a crab with his bowed legs and outstretched hands.

Whispers floated towards Percy, their familiar voices making his skin crawl. Nevertheless, he knew there was a reason he was seeing this, so he moved towards them.

"—make our move now! We must have our revenge!" Phorcys was saying.

"Patience," another voice hissed. Percy couldn't tell where it was coming from, who it was, what gender they were, but the voice sounded familiar. "The time will come. You instructed me to gather more information and allies, that is what I am doing. Soon, we will have them right where we want them, and more power on our side."

"But why them?" Keto asked.

Percy crept closer, but he still couldn't tell who they were talking to. Phorcys and Keto were looking at the ground in front of them, where a tiny puddle of water sat. It seemed to glow, but Percy couldn't tell why.

"I have extracted pieces of the future from the Fates. They will gain mortal allies, we will need mortals of our own to combat them. Besides, I couldn't resist after learning their name," the voice said. If Percy could see the person it belonged to, he would have bet everything he owned that they were smirking.

Phorcys sighed. "But—"

He stopped abruptly, straightening his back. Phorcys turned and stared directly at Percy with those strange milky-blue eyes, one higher than the other. His Fifty-Shades-of-Green skin and greasy, wiry hair made Percy's stomach roll.

"He's here," Phorcys growled.

Keto whipped around and Percy stumbled backwards, reaching for Riptide which was nowhere to be found. Keto bared her teeth and launched herself at him, and suddenly Percy was falling.

Falling, falling, down the pit that led into Tartarus, but this time Annabeth was gone.


Percy bolted upright, breathing heavily with sweat clinging to his skin and shouting, "Annabeth!"

Something moved beside him and he scrambled for Riptide on his nightstand, and then sighed in relief when Annabeth said groggily, "Percy?"

Annabeth flicked on Percy's bedside lamp, making him close his eyes for a moment at the blinding sting of the light. Annabeth rubbed Percy's shoulder, regardless of the perspiration. "Was it about Jason?"

Percy slowed his breathing and shook his head, leaning back against his pillows. Annabeth tucked herself into his side, pulling the covers of his bed up to her chin. He could see how tired she was by her drooping eyelids and messy hair, yet she still looked up at him with concern as if none of that mattered. He knew he shouldn't wait to tell her until the morning, but he needed a moment to compose himself. He hadn't had a demigod dream that vivid for months.

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