𝑻𝑶𝑮𝑬𝑻𝑯𝑬𝑹 ⁽ᵖᵉʳᶜʸ ʲᵃᶜᵏˢᵒⁿ ˣ ᵒᶜ⁾

𝙄 𝙖𝙢 𝙨𝙤 𝙥𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙙 𝙤𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪

LANA

A coast guard boat picked them up, but they were too busy to wonder how three kids in street clothes had gotten out into the middle of the bay. There was a disaster to mop up in Los Angeles.

They dropped them off at the Santa Monica Pier with towels around their shoulders and water bottles before they sped off to save more people.

Their clothes were sopping wet, even Percy,
who had to will the ocean to douse him in its salty waters.

Lana's teeth were chattering against one another from the cold. It didn't help that there was a small breeze in the air either. She hugged the towel tighter around her shoulders.

Percy noticed how cold she was and took off his towel before draping it around her small frame. She was surprised by his gesture.

"It's okay, Percy," she began to shrug it off her shoulders to return it to him.

"No, it's okay. I'll be fine. I'm the Son of Poseidon. I'll dry off easier than you guys will." Lana smiled thankfully at him before hugging the towel tighter.

She didn't notice it, but he smiled at her.

After reaching dry land, they stumbled down the beach, watching the city burn against a beautiful sunrise.

"I can't believe I didn't see it." Lana began to speak. "I just - I should've known. Ares doesn't just randomly do things. And asking us to get his shield in exchange for a ride to Vegas? I'm should've seen the signs. There was no way he would've just helped us out of the kindness of his heart."

"It was a trick." Percy said.

"We went through all this shit for nothing." Lana groaned, twisting her hair to remove the salty water. She looked at Percy with sadden eyes. "Your mom."

He looked away from her.

She stepped forward and grasped his arm tightly. "I really was willing to stay down there in exchange for her." Her grip loosened and her hand soon fell back to her side. "You need her more than me right now."

Percy grasped Lana's had, her eyes immediately connecting with his. "I appreciate you sacrificing yourself for her, but what I need right now is you." He smiled. "I know we'll figure something out to save her, but we have a quest to finish first."

Lana nodded her head, a small smile of her own building on her face.

"The prophecy was right," Percy said, turning to look at both of his friends. "'You shall go west and face the god who has turned.' But it wasn't Hades. Hades didn't want war among the Big Three. Someone else pulled off the theft. Someone stole Zeus's master bolt, Hades's helm, and framed me because I'm Poseidon's kid. Poseidon will get blamed by both sides. By sundown today, there will be a three-way war. And I'll have caused it."