Apparently, I'm Dead

Chapter Nineteen

DISCLAIMER: I OWN ONLY THE PLOT

PERCY

My last thought before I drop into unconsciousness is why?

Why can't I keep going?

Why do I have to sleep?

Why can't I be a normal human being, or Hades, even a normal demigod?

Why was I separated from Annabeth, and why is it so hard to get back to her, and why couldn't I save her and why do I feel as if even when I do get back to her, I will be incomplete?

Then my eyes close and I fall asleep.

In my dreams, confusing rushes of time sweeps before my eyes. I see Annabeth in Elysium, talking to my old friends, Silena and Beckendorf, with a concerned crease in between her eyebrows. I see Nico talking to Annabeth, both of them worried. I see my Mother, on the floor, sobbing, with Paul embracing her. Something wrenches in my gut, twisting my emotions into something sad and guilty.

I see Alex, throwing a clay jug at a man who might be his father.

I see Sam, blushing furiously as she talks with a man leaning against a counter at a place called Fadlan's Falafel.

I see Magnus, shivering under a bridge as wolves howl in the distance.

I see Mallory, desperately digging her knives into the bottom of a school bus.

I see T.J., charging up a hill where men in Confederate uniforms and guns wait for him.

I see Halfborn, roaring at the sky and whirling through a group of warriors, each of them dying in turn.

I see Blitz, sweat pouring down his face as he frantically hits a piece of metal that's red-hot.

I see Hearth, staring into the depths of a well with a horrified look on his face as water splashes around a hand sinking into the darkness.

Then a voice slithers through my dreams. "Ahh. I've finally found you. The new member of my children's... team."

Hearth and the well fades from my view until I see a man in a Red Sox jersey with scars beneath his mouth and around his lips as if they were sewn together. "Perseus Jackson!" he exclaims delightedly, "How lovely to see you."

He moves forward as if he knows me, but I pull out Riptide and uncap it. "Who are you?" I demand.

His mouth twists, and he looks wary of the Celestial Bronze blade. "Loki, god of Mischief and Lies, at your service."

I slash the blade across his body, and his mouth quirks into a smirk that seems almost familiar. Anaklusmos goes straight through him, as if he's made of air. But when he leans forward to pat me on the shoulder, I can feel his hand. It's like Akhlys all over again.

"Now, now, Percy," he chides me as if I'm a kindergartner. "You shouldn't attack people who are trying to have a civilized conversation with you. Now I have no choice but to defend myself!"

The hand on my shoulder becomes hot. Then it burns me, searing into my skin. A scream bursts its way from my mouth. I'm about to plead with him to stop when I remember who this is. He tried to start the end of the world, Ragnarok, three times. I will not beg him for anything, much less give him the satisfaction of begging him to stop hurting me.

The pain slowly dies away, my vision clears to see Loki looking at me with a smirk on with scarred lips. "That's good. It's always nice to know you have a worthy opponent, even if you know there's no way you're going to lose anyways."

It takes some effort, but I force myself to smile cockily. "Big talk from a god who was already beaten three times in a row. Aren't you in a walnut right now?"

Loki starts to sneer, but it smooths over into a pleasant expression so fast, that if I hadn't had so much experience pissing off immortals, I might have thought I imagined it. "Did you really think I would stay in that infernal nut for long? I have allies, Perseus, allies who are able to get me out of a simple walnut. And now, Ragnarok will begin, and all because you killed my grandchild."

A stab of guilt worms its way into my feelings, but I don't know why. It was a monster, a monster who killed Annabeth! Then I remember more of the stories I've been told about this particular god. His words are powerful tools, and they're almost like charmspeak.

I snarl at him. "Don't use your magic words on me, you Red Sox fan. That snake killed Annabeth, and it deserved everything it got and more. And we're already almost halfway done with what we need to do."

"And what is that?" His voice caresses my ears, much like when Piper decides something really needs to happen. I dig my nails into my hand to knock myself out of the impending trance.

"Why would I tell you?" I spit.

"We're all friends here." His voice snakes into my ears, and I can feel my blood drip onto the floor.

"Uh huh. So you didn't try to start the end of the world multiple times, and if you had succeeded, my friends and I wouldn't have died. I have so much belief right now." I deadpan.

"You are interesting," he whispers right next to my ear. I whirl around, slashing my sword, but it moves right through him again. He just smiles. "You know how to resist those with powerful voices."

I ignore him, and try to focus on waking up before his voice affects me. I know that feeling pain in a dream is a very bad sign, but I have to try.

"Ah! Trying to wake up so soon? But I will miss your company." Loki says, his tone mocking.

My breath seizes with panic as his hand grows hot again. "Wake up!" I cry, "Wake up!"

I jerk upward, the dream clearing from behind my eyes. T.J. is standing right next to my bead, rubbing his forehead. And now that I think about it, my head kind of hurts too. Oops. Must have bonked heads. "Sorry T.J," I croak, my voice hoarse. I grimace. "Could I have some water?"

"What happened?" T.J. yells. "You were screaming!"

"I was...?" I trail off. "Oh no. Oh no, this is bad. Was that real?" I pull down the sleeve of my right arm. There, on my shoulder, is a burn in the shape of a hand. 

PJO/HP-7

or

PJ w/ different godly parent-6

Thanks,

ATOTALMUSICALNERD