~TIME SKIP - SEA OF MONSTERS~
Thalia and I had a wonderful time on Helix, exploring the city, meeting the citizens, and going on a few dates here and there. I even met the army, and learned I am to command them in the final battle. The very thought made my hair stand on edge.
Thalia got along wonderfully with my Father, and she loved the city itself. The city, nicknamed 'the city of golden stars', was a sprawling mass of houses, businesses, and other sources of entertainment. Every few feet, the building style changed, making it so you could find modern style houses next to ancient greek. Everyone was quite polite, and very welcoming.
I also recently asked my Father about my Achilles curse, and he informed me that I could remove it, keep it, or upgrade it in the River Chaos. The River Chaos, named after my Father, is very similar to the River Styx, but much more painful. Though excruciating, the pay-off is high, as you are given invulnerability, keener senses, and higher strength and agility.
Unfortunately, a year had now passed, and we must return to Earth. I loved to spend time with Thalia, but I was also quite excited to see all of our friends, Bianca, Artemis, even Annabeth.
I sat in bed, pondering this, as I stared at Thalia's head laying on my chest. I brushed my hand through her silky black hair, causing her to stir.
I smiled at her sudden movement, "Morning, Sparky."
She hummed in response, "Already? I feel like my brain went through a blender."
I laughed, but was cut short by the noise of the intercom. "May the prince and princess please report to Chaos' office. Thank you." I could hear the laugh in Seth's voice as he referred to us by our 'nicknames'.
I sighed, "Some day, hopefully soon, I'm gonna kill that idiot."
Thalia laughed as she dragged me from the bed, "We can kill him later. Right now, your Father wants to see us."
I nodded, pulling myself from the warm embrace of the pillows. We made ;ight conversation as we readied ourselves for the day, focusing on our friends back home, and other such topics.
We eventually neared the office doors, and I knocked. A faint "Come in." could be heard, so I pushed open the doors and entered.
It was a fairly large office, painted galaxy, with an accent wall coated in bookshelves. The desk was to the right, with a chair on either side. Upon the desk there lay a vase of white roses, as well as several books and papers. There was a fire place opposite the desk, surrounded by two couches, each big enough to fit two. Like the cabin at camp, everything was a shade of black, grey, purple, and in this case, brown. A few accents here and there were painted a beautiful galaxy.
I shook my head, clearing my thoughts. "You called, Father?" I called to my father.
He looked up from his book, and his ace broke into a smile, "Perseus, Thalia! Yes, I wanted to inform you that summer is nearing, and it is nearly time to return to camp. The same basic things shall happen, but I don't want you on this quest, Perseus. Send one of the Chaos soldiers, maybe Clarisse, and instead you shall be given a quest by Hades. He needs you to venture to Tartarus to deal with a few monster problems he has been experiencing."
I nodded in understanding, and turned to Thalia, "Ready, Sparky?"
She grinned, "Ready as I'll ever be, kelp-head."
As we disappeared, Chaos called his parting words, "Good luck, Perseus! I'll be watching if you need anything!"
With a final fick of my wrist, we appeared at the hill's summit in Camp Half-Blood. In the distance, I could hear the horn sound, causing the campers to spill from their activities to run to the hill. At the front of our little welcoming committee, I could see Chiron, with Annabeth and Nick on either side of him.
Annabeth caught sight of Thalia, and their locked. "Thalia? You, you're really here?" Annabeth's astonishment was not hidden as she called to her best friend.
Thalia only grinned, "Hey, Beth. How've you-" She was abruptly cut off by the bear hug Annabeth pulled her into, and she wasted no time in returning the hug.
Upon breaking free of the hug, Annabeth began interrogating Thalia, "Where have you been? And how are you here, and why now? Why-" Thalia cut her off with a laugh.
"Percy saved me, so I've been training with him on Helix, since I woke up at the end of summer last year." Thalia replied, shrugging. "Honestly, not an exciting story."
She stepped back to my side, and I placed my arm around her waist. Annabeth saw this, and grinned smugly at Thalia. I laughed, wondering what Annabeth would do with this blackmail.
Thalia glared playfully, before turning to me. "Can we go to the cabin, now? I want to get a proper look at it!" She requested, already dragging my arm behind her. She paused, before grabbing Annabeth's hand to take her along.
We stepped through the door, and the sound of Annabeth's impressed gasp filled the empty cabin. "It's beautiful!" I nodded in response.
"Chiron will be here soon, he is going to tell us the details for our quest." I said, turning to Thalia.
Annabeth perked at my mention of a quest, "A quest? What do you need to do?"
I smiled at her, "That's what we're about to find out."
We spent the time giving Annabeth a tour of the cabin, in exaggerated detail. As I was getting through the size dimensions of the gold-plated premium refrigerator, a knock interrupted my speech. We rushed to the door, racing to be the first to open it.
I arrived at the door seconds before Annabeth, and opened it to find Chiron, patiently waiting for us. "Chiron!" I yelped, "We were just getting ready to head to the big house!"
He laughed, "Yes, I can see that. And Perseus? Please bring Miss Thalia to the meeting. I have a feeling it's important."
I mock saluted, "Yes, sir!" Dropping my hand, I grinned. "Anything else?"
He shook his head, "Fifteen minutes. Don't be late." He rounded the corner, then was gone.
I turned to the two girls behind me, and grinned, "Race you." It only took those two words to break the three of us into a frenzy of running and pushing, as we quickly made our way to the big house.
I arrived seconds after Thalia, as she had quite unfairly pushed me seconds before. Annabeth appeared behind me, gasping wildly. She looked up, and the three of us turned to the door. I nodded to Thalia, signaling to open the door. The room inside was in absolute mayhem, each counselor shouting to be heard, or generally doing their own thing. I rolled my eyes at the mess, and flicked my wrist summoning three thrones on the end of the table. I sat in the center, with Thalia on my right, and Annabeth on my left.
Soon enough, Chiron pounded his hooved against the hardwood floor, calling for silence. "Campers! We are here to discuss the impending problem, Thalia's tree has been poisoned, causing the magic borders to fail. We need suggestions to either replace or repair them."
There was a silence as everyone turned to Annabeth, causing her ears to turn pink. I laughed, "Come on wise-girl, any suggestions?" She glared at the nickname, but nodded.
"We could try searching for the golden fleece. It is said to have magical healing properties beyond anything imaginable." She offered quitely.
I nodded, "Anything in your books about its' location?"
She gulped, "They say it's on an island in the Sea of Monsters."
Chiron broke the following silence with a quick nod, "Yes, this might work. It will require a quest, however." He turned to me expectantly.
"I apologize, Chiron. I have a quest for him elsewhere." A voice from behind Chiron made everyone jump. We turned to see an iris-message, projecting Hades' face, hovering above the table.
"What sort of quest, Uncle?" I asked politely.
Chiron sent me a warning look, but was surprised to hear Hades reply without hesitation. "I need some help with a few escapee monsters in the Underworld and Tartarus." Que the dramatic gasps of horror from the campers. "They have been causing trouble lately, and I need you to track the down, and subdue them."
I nodded in understanding, but wasn't given the chance to reply, as Nick sharply cut in. "What am I hearing? You want Percy, of all people, to help get rid of powerful monsters? Why him, when I'm clearly much better!"
Hades turned to him, an evil look in his eye. "Silence, boy! You dare question my nephew's ability, when you yourself fainted before Alecto? Do you not feel any embarrassment? Because your Father most definitely does."
I laughed at Nick, who was shying away from the table, too ashamed to reply. "I accept your quest, Uncle." I replied, still staring at Nick.
He nodded, "I shall send you a map with the proper locations, soon. Good luck, Nephew."
I then turned to Chiron, "I'm sorry, but I can't lead the quest. Perhaps Luke, or Clarisse?"
He nodded, "Clarisse, who shall you bring with you?"
She didn't hesitate, "Annabeth, Chris?" She turned to the two, questioning their decision.
Annabeth looked stunned, "Why us? Everyone else has so much more experience!"
Clarisse laughed, "You've been on a quest, and besides, I need your smarts. Chris can be the moral support." I laughed, as did the rest of the campers.
Chiron only nodded, but added his own thoughts, "Perhaps you should take Nick along. He is a son of Poseidon, and has an affinity with water. It might be a wise decision to consider."
I think Chiron only wanted Nick to be gone for some time, most likely so he could have a break from the egotistical demigod.
Clarisse rolled her eyes, turning to Nick, "You better contribute, or I will personally feed you to Cerberus!" He nodded swiftly, not daring to hesitate.
"It is settled then! Please return to your duties, and questers, please begin preparation." Chiron called, rather loudly.
As everyone dismissed, I grabbed Annabeth and Thalia by the hand, and dragged them off to prepare. This was going to be an exciting week.