Indigo Eyes

Chapter 89

"Annabeth!" Percy called before an invisible hand covered her mouth.

"Shhh!" Annabeth said. You want to get us killed?!"

Percy found her head and pulled her cap off as she shimmered into existence.

"What's your problem?" Annabeth asked.

"Monsters. Telkhines. I bought us some time but there are probably more coming. The big ones," Cressida panted before Percy added in a few more details about the orientation class.

"So that's what they are. Telkhines. I should've known. And they're making...we'll look," Annabeth said as they peeked over the cauldron.

In the centre of the platform stood four sea demons, but these were fully grown, at least two and a half metres tall. Their black skin glistened in the firelight as they worked, sparks flying as they took turns hammering on a long piece of glowing hot metal.

"The blade is almost complete," one said. "It needs another cooling in blood to fuse the metals."

"Aye," a second said. "It shall be even sharper than before."

"What is that?" Percy whispered.

Annabeth shook her head. "They keep talking about fusing metals. I wonder –"

"They were talking about the greatest Titan weapon," Percy said. "And they... they said they made my father's trident."

"The scythe," Cressida breathed and Annabeth nodded.

"The telkhines betrayed the gods," Annabeth said. "They were practising dark magic. I don't know what, exactly, but Zeus banished them to Tartarus."

"With Kronos."

She nodded. "We have to get out –"

And the door to the classroom exploded as the young telkhines came pouring out, the instructor behind him, seeming to have gotten them under control after announcing that the assignment was cancelled.

"Put your cap back on. Both of you go. Get out!" Percy urged.

"What?!" Annabeth shrieked. "No! We are not leaving you!"

And Percy turned to Cressida who he knew was the one that would need the most convincing. "I've got a plan. I'll distract him. You can use the metal spider – maybe it'll lead you back to Hephaestus. You have to tell him what's going on."

"No! NO! You don't get to do this! Your plans suck! And this will get you killed!" she shouted back. "Let me help you -"

He knew she was probably right, that he wouldn't survive the completely asinine plan he came up with - which was to improvise the hell out of it. He couldn't let either of them get hurt, especially not Cressida. Especially not when she had a whole world to explore after being at camp for so long, when she had brothers and a father waiting for her, when he promised that he'd never let anything happen to her not just for her father and brothers, but for himself. And if there was anything that he wanted to do before he died...

He kissed her.

It wasn't as long as their first kiss, but it was just as magical and heart-stopping, if not more. Because Percy tried to prepare himself for what kissing her felt like but there wasn't any preparation in the world that could stop the butterflies in his stomach.

And when he forced himself to pull away, his hand was on her cheek as her startled indigo eyes stared up at him - he didn't realise how much he loved that colour until now. "If you stayed, I wouldn't get the chance to one-up you," he grinned and her bottom lip trembled before Annabeth grabbed her hand.

"We gotta go! Now! Be careful, Seaweed Brain," Annabeth called as she started to pull Cressida away.

"No! Percy!" she protested, her braid flapping wildly as her head turned from Annabeth to Percy and back again. "Fish Face! PERCY!"

And Annabeth dragged her around the corner of the tunnel and out of sight. And that was the last time she saw Percy for a while.