PJO Hunger Games au

The Black Box

Percy, Grover, and Rachel stared down at the street below.

"Any ideas on what that is?" Grover said.

Percy squinted his eyes, trying to force the object to become something familiar. He shook his head. "I got nothing. Rachel?"

She scowled down at the small black box that had materialized on their street sometime during the night. It had a couple levers sticking out of it. "I don't recognize it," she said, "but I strongly advise we don't go anywhere near it."

"Agreed," Grover said. "Why don't we take today and just rest? We have enough food."
Percy nodded. "Sounds good. I don't like the look of this, but I think it's safer to stay put than try to leave."

They sat on the floor in a circle and passed around strips of jerky.

"How many of us are left?" Grover asked.

Percy counted on his fingers. "Reyna from district 1, both from district 2, both from 4, Rachel from 5, Nico from 6, Piper from 8, both from 9, both from 11, and both from 12."

Rachel raised her eyebrows. "How did you remember all of that?"

"I-uh, I have a good memory."

"You don't say."

"Guys!" Grover said, standing at the window, "the box is gone."

"What!?" Percy and Rachel rushed to window. Sure enough, it was nowhere in sight.

"Well this is great," Rachel said. "Tell me it's just the gamemakers messing with us."

"I hope so," Percy said. But a distant memory tugged at him, something he couldn't quite put a finger on. Something he saw in the games a long time ago. He listened to Grover and Rachel argue, let their voices fade. Then he remembered.

"We have to get of here."

Grover and Rachel turned to him. "What?"

Percy sprang into action, grabbing his pack. "We have to get out of here! That thing we saw down there is a detonator. Which sets something off. What that is I don't know, but I don't plan on sticking around to find out."
Grover and Rachel joined him.

"You mean... like a bomb?" Rachel said.

"Yeah, yeah or something," Percy said. "Do we have everything?"

Grover gave the room a quick once-over. "Yes."

"Then let's move."

They sprinted down the stairs, taking two at a time. Percy threw himself over the landings, cursing himself for not recognizing it earlier. And for choosing such a high floor to sleep on.

They made it to the second floor before the rumbling started.

"Go, go, go!" yelled Percy as the building shook, making his legs feel like jelly.

They stumbled down the last flight of stairs and out the door before the blast hit. Percy was hurled off his feet as a wave of pure heat blasted him forward with a bone rattling boom. His mouth tasted like ash as he rolled onto his back to see the damage. His ears rang as he stared up at waves of fire rolling out the window, at the broken glass raining down around him. The building wouldn't last long. Even now it was starting to move, though that may have just been his brain.
Percy forced himself to get up and move, but he could barely stand. His feet refused to cooperate with his brain, but after a few steps it got easier. His allies were behind him, but he could barely get himself away, he would be no help to them. As they staggered away, Percy felt, rather than heard, the building collapse.

He was thrown to the ground again as shrapnel rained around him. All he could do was cover his head and pray as the wave of dust rolled over him.

After what seemed like an eternity, Percy raised his head. He coughed out a mouthful of dust and tried to take in his surroundings. Debris covered the road; beams, sheetrock, glass, a large support beam lay an inch from Percy's foot. Everything was covered in a fine layer of dust. Arms reached down and grabbed him, helped him stand. Grover. But it didn't look like Grover. It looked like Grover's ghost turned white with dust. He might have said something but Percy wasn't sure. His ribs and head ached, each breath sent a wave of fire up his sternum. They staggered away from the crash site, stumbling and tripping over debris. Percy knew they had to hurry, the whole arena probably heard that, but he couldn't make himself go any faster.

He tripped over something and landed on his hands and knees, clearing a bit of dust. In the clearing was hair. Red hair. Percy gasped and stumbled backwards. He cleared the dust around that area and sure enough, he was staring at the lifeless body of Rachel Elizabeth Dare.

He covered his mouth and rocked back and forth. The beam that crushed her chest, the blood that leaked out of her mouth and congealed with the dust, the dull green eyes that stared back at his. Percy might have stayed there all day if Grover hadn't got him in his feet.

"It's her," he whispered, voice barely a croak.

"I know," Grover said, Percy was starting hear a little better. "But we have to go."

Leaning on each other, the boys staggered away from the building, through the debris, away from their dead ally.