Sea Angels

~5~

Nico awoke in a room that he'd never seen before. Turquoise blue walls greeted him, and the trimming was a magnificent sea foam green. There was four marble pillars in the corners of the room, all glistening like a polished pearl. His sheets were unnaturally soft, also a sea green color. He could hear the bubbling of water, and when he looked up, he saw clear tubes with fish freely swimming through them. Some tried banging against the glass for Nico's attention, but there was no sound. 

In the corner of the room was a little alcove that emitted a soft blue light, and he could partially see a fountain with polished marble around the perimeter. It gleamed silver and gold despite the blue light the water was giving off. Nico could tell that the waters must be imbued with some kind of godly magic.

When Nico looked out the huge window beside the white vanity and saw the beach, he finished deducing where he was. He was in Poseidon's palace. But why? Last Nico remembered he was in the hospital with Paul and Percy watching Sally sleep. Maybe he had fallen asleep? But that still didn't explain why he was on Olympus, in his uncle's palace no less. He hoped he hadn't done anything wrong to anger Poseidon, but he didn't remember saying anything to offend the sea god.

Nico found the door to the bathroom inside his room, and his jaw dropped. Everything was white marble, but the walls were accurately painted of what beneath the surface of the ocean looks like, not to mention the amenities were above Nico's expectations. The soaker bathtub was huge! Big enough to fit at least three campers in all at once! The shower wasn't a normal one, no, water came out in a gentle waterfall, but still had enough pressure to make Nico feel squeaky clean when he stepped out.

He doubted Poseidon would have left him any clothes, but he was proven wrong when he stepped out of the shower with a towel around his waist and there was a clean pair of clothes left. Poseidon must've known Nico better than he thought, because his uncle left him a black shirt with a skeleton in the middle, black jeans, his black Converse, and his leather aviator jacket, which was fully repaired from any holes or rips it used to have. He even found his skeleton ring next to the clothes, which he had forgotten to put on yesterday during his conversation with Sally.

Finishing drying his hair, Nico left the bathroom, only to find Poseidon waiting for him in the room. The god wasn't facing his direction, instead looking out towards the sea, and his foot was tapping rhythmically to a random tune as he waited for Nico.

Nico cleared his throat, and Poseidon turned around, smiling at his nephew. "Morning, Lord Poseidon."

Poseidon waved the title off. "You're free to call me Poseidon or even Uncle, if you wish. I'm not my brothers. So, how'd you sleep?"

"That's the best sleep I've had in a long time," Nico admitted, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. "No dreams came, so that's always a good thing. Might I ask why I'm here? Wasn't I with Sally in the hospital?"

"Ah, yes, the reason you slept over. Your father summoned a council meeting last night, and he was saying that someone knocked you out against your will. After a bit of bickering, we managed to placate him on the terms that you'd tell us the truth today. Zeus gave your father the option to either take you to his palace or stay with Apollo, but Hades said he wanted me to take you in for the night. That brings us up to speed."

Nico raised an eyebrow. "Dad called a council centered on me? As much as I'm flattered, I don't think that was necessary. I was fine with sleeping in a hospital chair, uncomfortable as it is."

"There was one other reason," said Poseidon, "but you'll be told later. Come, you shouldn't attend a council meeting on an empty stomach. I learned that the hard way."

Nico's stomach growled, making him blush. "Thank you."

"No problem. The kitchen's this way. Anything in particular you want?"