Death and Shadows

Ch.1 Black and Black

A/N. Hello people and welcome to my first PJO fanfiction! Hope you all enjoy it! Just a reminder, this takes place a little before the beginning of the Battle of the Labyrinth. I am very excited to write this story, and have it play out. This goes without saying, but please do not copy my work, story, or ideas and play them off as your own. Don't be that person. Comment please and vote! Let's see how his goes. -Anna

I was doing it again. Running. This time, I was running away from the police in New York. Last month I was in Pennsylvania. I had just reached my destination and I was already causing trouble. I felt like I had been running for years, but really it had only been a couple months. But back to my dilemma, I was sprinting through the crowded sidewalks with two officers following me. I chuckled silently to myself as I pulled my new item tighter around me: a new black bomber jacket.

I've been traveling from Chicago to New York for quite a while now, stealing from stores, living in different places when I needed to rest, and trying not to get caught by the cops. It's not easy, but in some ways it's fun and exhilarating to be on the run, traveling everywhere, and seeing sights. I was going to New York, hoping that the Big Apple could be big enough to hide me.

Focusing on where I was running, I turned a corner and saw a nearby alleyway. I quickly slipped into it, and pressed my back against a wall. The cops ran right past the alleyway and I smirked. Works every time. I waited a few moments to make sure no more officers were coming, then walked out into the bustling New York streets, acting like I was just another normal person in the crowd.

Well, as normal as you could look with a loaded backpack and eyes that shifted around everywhere, as if I were looking out for more than just cops. Which I was. I tried my best to make it look like I was walking home.

Home. That word almost seemed foreign to me. I had been on the run for so long, I almost forgot what it was like to have a home. Then again, my own home wasn't very, well, homey...

The hot summer weather cooled down a little as the sun started to set. I walked on towards an old abandoned warehouse that looked like no one had been in there for a long time. I easily broke the rusted metal lock and pushed open one of the big, metal doors. The place was about as big as a gymnasium, and had a few broken wood boxes scattered in places. It smelled like rotting wood, and the floor was cold and made of concrete. Perfect.

I made my way to the middle of the warehouse, slung off my backpack, and zipped it open. I started to take out the stuff I had taken, and looked at what I had: a small blanket, flashlight, pocket lighter, a bag of beef jerky, a few granola bars, and two water bottles.

I knew I would need to get a new lighter and batteries for my flashlight. The light from the broken windows was getting dim, and I wanted to get them while it was dark out. No one would be coming here, so I left my stuff, and exited the warehouse. Even as the sun was setting, the streets were still crowded with pedestrians and cars. That's why I wanted to get to New York; the streets were always busy and they made perfect getaways.

Strolling along the sidewalk, I looked at the stores for one that would have what I needed. As I walked near a dark, long alleyway, I heard a snake like hiss coming from it. I stopped at the entrance of the alleyway, and looked into it uneasily. I'm not a New Yorker, but I was pretty sure that the alleyways shouldn't have snake like hisses coming from them. Unless it's a very big rat.

My curiosity won over my logic, and I slowly walked into the alleyway. A few feet in, I heard a scream of agony, and I ran forward. Once I saw the monster, I pressed myself against a wall, and peaked out around the corner. A dracaena was hovering over a boy that looked about my age. From what I could see, he had shaggy black hair and pale skin,.

He wore an aviator's jacket that looked several sizes too big for him, over a black shirt and black jeans. The boy shakily held up a black sword at the monster, but it just hissed gleefully. He's a half-blood too, like me, and he was about to be eaten by a monster. I couldn't let that happen.

I straightened up and started to transform. My back tingled with relief as my black wings appeared from my out of my back. They were big enough to wrap around my body fully if I tucked my legs into my chest. I pressed my twin rings' gems together- one on each hand on my middle fingers. Twin greek parazonium, Stygian iron daggers with silver hilts and an onyx jewel on the top of the hilts appeared in my hands.

My wings spread and I flew towards the monster, knocking it away from the boy.

~Nico's POV~

Stupid dracaena. I had just wanted to find a place to stay for the night, and I just so happened to find a monster in the only decent alleyway. I had been all over New York, looking for a way to bring Bianca back. So far, not much. I've looked in books in the local library, researching how people in Greek mythology brought people back from the dead.

I had an idea, but I needed to rest. I had been practicing my powers, but it was hard and tiring. Once I found the alleyway, I was about to settle down when a dracaena slithered in. I tried to fight it off with my sword, but I was too weak from using my powers. The monster was able to smack me back into the wall of the alleyway.

I was starting to black out from the impact. With my last of my strength, I raised my sword for defense. The dracaena hovered over me, and hissed gleefully. Suddenly, the monster was knocked aside by a black mass. Right before I blacked out, I saw a girl with big black wings on her back, and was wielding daggers that were raised above the monster.

A/N. So yay! First chapter is done! What do you guys think? Hope this chapter wasn't too confusing and sorry it was so short with no dialogue. Since Percy Jackson is getting it's own show on Disney Plus, I thought this was the best time to revisit one of my favorite series, and finally publish a story. I have been planning this story for a long time, so I'm very excited for you all to read it. For the daggers, I obviously couldn't find a good picture for an accurate representation of them, so look up greek parazonium daggers and just imagine silver handles with a onyx gem at the top of the handle and a black blade. As for her rings, it's obviously the picture at the top of the chapter. Comment please and vote! Let me know what you all think! Thank you all for reading! Bye! -Anna