Annabeth

"Lord Percy." The merman guard bowed his torso to Percy.

We had reached the edge of the merpeople city, which I figured out had the name of Atargatis after questioning Percy. There were great walls protecting the city, and making hid from onlookers. The wall was made of beautiful coral, multicolored fish darting in and out around the anemones and underwater plants placed in parts of the coral. I saw more than one shark swimming around, but they looked to be peaceful.

The dark ocean around us was foggy, and I couldn't see very far. Every once in a while, I could see dark figures floating and swimming, but they didn't stay in my vision for long. I was guessing they were more mermen standing guard.

Percy nodded back to the bowing merman, "It's good to see you again, Captain Adrian. And there's no need to bow, I'm not Poseidon or a god," Percy added with a good natured grin. The merman looked back up at Percy and smiled.

"I thought you wouldn't remember me, Lord Percy," the merman said, grinning. I saw that he was a younger looking merman, around my age. Unlike Shar's mermen, he didn't look like a ravage beast. His hair wasn't thick, knotted strands, but loose, long brown locks that flowed peacefully in the water. He didn't have grey skin, but tanned muscular skin, and his tail was long and slender. A broadsword was attached at his hip, and two more across his back. He had no armor on, but I bet he was good enough at swordplay he didn't need armor.

He was handsome, in an outlandish way. Nothing like the mermen I've experimented with before. He was the stark opposite of Shar's men.

"Why wouldn't I? You were, like, my best friend when I lived with my father for those years!" Percy exclaimed. He parted the bubble he and I were in, stepping out. It was like he was walking on solid ground as he went over to the mermen. They embraced like long-lost brothers. "And seriously, Adrian. What's with the 'Lord Percy'? Has my name changed as well as you? Look at you, I barely recognized you. And guard of the main entrance, huh? You must be getting really good." Percy held Adrian at arm length, examining him. He clucked his tongue. "You may look like you know more, but I bet I could still beat you in a sword fight."

Adrian scoffed, "Please. Still? I beat you last time we fought."

"Hey," Percy defended, "I was, what, nine?"

"So was I."

"Touchè," Percy replied, smiling. The merman smiled back, then he looked at me. I saw his green eyes. They were vividly bright green, astonishing, but nothing compared to Percy's, if I had any say in it.

He studied me for a moment, me still being in the sphere of oxygen, then his eyes widened. "A daughter of Athena, I'm guessing? You have a lot of guts, bringing her here, Perce."

I frowned, about to retort, but Percy beat me to it, "She's fine. All children aren't like their parents, and I trust Annabeth with my life. She's a good friend, she won't do anything. Her name's Annabeth. Annabeth Chase."

Adrian lowered his eyebrows, considering me for a moment. Then he shrugged, "If Percy trusts you, then I do too. It's good to meet you, Annabeth."

"You too," I replied, smiling at him. "Sorry to rush, but we have a few friends up on shore who are waiting, and we are also kind of in a hurry."

Percy nodded in affirmation, "Yes. We need to meet with Lord Caspion, if you don't mind. We have a few things to discuss."

"Sure thing," Adrian said. He turned around and waved at an unseen person. Apparently that was the signal for them to open the gates. I couldn't see anything before that looked to be an entrance, but sure enough, the coral in front of us cracked open, two slabs spreading out to create a large entrance to a tunnel in the coral. The tunnel was lit by greek fire, which could still burn underwater. It had a sand bottom, and coral walls and ceiling. It went on for a few yards, then curved to the left, and that's as far as I could see.

"I'll escort you," the merman said, beckoning us forward.

"Shouldn't you stay at your post?" Percy asked, frowning.

Adrian shook his head, "I'll call over another guard. And besides, I want to. Haven't seen or talked with you for a long time."

"Alright," Percy said, lifting a shoulder. "Let's go."

Adrian bobbed his head, then turned and started heading into the tunnel, his graceful tail propelling him forward with ease. I caught Percy's attention, gesturing for him to come inside the bubble. I had some questions. He followed my direction, then raised his eyebrow when he stood by me, waiting for me to ask him something.

"So how do you know Adrian?" I started.

Percy shrugged, "When I would come and visit my father, I would always visit Adrian, too. He was a good friend that lived at my father's palace for a long time. He helped me a lot with my training, and when he moved to Atargatis, I was devastated. I haven't seen him since he moved."

I nodded, taking in the information. "Okay, and why does he look so..." I paused, searching for the right word, "Normal?"

"Well, there are two types of merpeople," Percy explained. "There's kinds like Adrian, who are basically normal humans with fish tails. Then apparently, a mermaid got, uh, cuddly with a shark or something, maybe it was a octopus. Anyways, they had a kid, don't ask me how, and merpeople like Shar were made. They were more vicious and sadistic. Adrian and his kind are nicer, though."

Adrian, ahead of us, sighed. "I'm taking you had a run-in with Shar, Annabeth?"

I grimaced, "Something like that."

"I feel for you. Recently, Shar and his followers have been a right nuisance to us merpeople from Atargatis," Adrian said. He saw Percy take in a breath to ask what kind of nuisances, and he stopped him with a hand. "Not that bad of things, just every once in a while a few of his mermen will come and raid a part of Atargatis, or even some other mermen village that isn't as large and they couldn't defend themselves. Caspion has been dispatching forces among the small settlements, and we are doing okay so far in keeping everyone safe. But who knows how long that will last."

"That was my next question," I said. "Who's Caspion? I'm kind of gathering that he's the leader here, but I thought they would all look up to Poseidon or something."

Percy elaborated for me. "Well, their big leader is Poseidon, but Poseidon needed someone to oversee the mermen society. At first he chose Triton, one of his other sons, to do it. But then Triton became a general in Poseidon's army, so Caspion got elected. He's basically the overseer of all the mermen towns." I nodded, soaking in the information I was receiving. I had never even known that there were merpeople in the depths of the ocean. Athenians just didn't get that involved with a lot of things concerning the sea. Many of the residents in Athens didn't even fish, afraid that Poseidon would drown their boats or poison their catch of the day.

I had never been afraid of the ocean, however. It was weird, and I kept it to myself out of fear that someone will think I'm weird, or Athena would reprimand me or something. But instead of finding it scary, I always found the sea soothing, with the constant waves lapping at the shore, the seagulls gliding smoothly over the water, the deep color of the ocean that reflected the sunsets and sunrises each day.

We didn't travel along the tunnel for too long. Soon enough, we reached another gate, yet this one you could see, and it didn't look like it was meant to hold anybody back. It was a celestial bronze gate, and carved into it were pictures of mermen, Poseidon, creatures of the sea, all done with spectacular detail. I couldn't help but admire the time that must have been put into making it. Percy looked over at my amazed look and smiled.

I glanced at him, "What, Seaweed Brain?"

"Nothing, Wise Girl. Just enjoying the view," he replied easily. He said it quietly, though, and I was left wondering what he meant. He wasn't looking at the gate, or even what was beyond the gate. He was looking at me when he said that. I narrowed my eyes at him, causing his smile to split into a grin. I sighed, rolling my eyes and facing forward as the gates split open. Adrian looked over his shoulder at us and smiled.

"I hope you enjoy the swim to the main building, Miss Chase."

I certainly did.

We went through what you would call a street, yet it was like the main current instead. Coral reefs were everywhere, each one seeming to be more beautiful than the last. I was pretty sure I went the whole journey with my mouth hung open. It was beautiful. Percy explained that the houses were just caves in the coral. Merpeople swam past and waved, some stared at me, but I just waved and smiled, and their faces broke out into a grin and they waved back. I was struck by how friend they were. The young merpeople were adorable, with multicolored hair and big eyes, wide smiles and flitting tails. A couple young girls swam up to Percy, handing him something. They looked at me, and I watched them. One of them smiled widely, and I returned the gesture. Percy looked at me, then entered into the bubble. He had exited before to talk to a mermen he had recognized, then he just traveled along.

The merpeople treated him like a prince at first, but when he pulled them up from their bows and hugged a lot of them, talking to them as if they were his best friends, they relaxed. He still was a popular figure, though. When he waved a group of mermaids, they blushed and giggled, waving shyly back. I frowned, not being able to help the bit of jealousy that was flowing through my body. But when Percy turned back to me with those amazing green eyes and smiled at me, I forgot all about it.

He popped himself into the sphere of air and held out his hand. I put mine under it and he dropped a delicate necklace into it. I pulled my hand back to examine it. It was a dazzling piece of jewelry. The shells were different breathtaking colors, and each one had a special design on them. Swirls, polka-dots, helixes, and all of the like. They were strung on what looked to be braided, silver string. It was gorgeous.

"They made it for you," Percy said, making me look at him. "As a welcome gift."

I turned my head, looking for the small girls who had given me such pretty gift. They were a few yards behind us now. I grinned at them, mouthing "thank you", gesturing to the necklace in my palm. They had been watching me, and upon seeing my gratitude, their dainty faces broke out into wide grins, and they waved energetically back at me.

"They all like you, and think you're really pretty," Percy said, smiling.

I rolled my eyes, and Adrian said, "Well, I can't blame them." I blushed. Hey, Adrian was actually really handsome, and he basically just said I was pretty. Try not to blush in my position.

I noticed a building on our left, and I pointed at it. "What's that building?"

Adrian followed my finger, then explained. "That's our weaponry storage. But just a week ago, one of Shar's raids happened, and he stole most of our weapons. We are trying to make more, but we can't do it fast enough."

"And that one?" I asked.

"That's where the seahorses and hippocampi are kept."

"So it's like a stable for them?" I exclaimed in wonder. "That's amazing!" He smiled at my admiration, launching into stories of how hippocampi aren't used for steed, for the mermen didn't need to ride. They were more like friends to them. He started to describe his hippocampus, and I listened with interest, laughing as he told stories of what he and his hippocampus had done. He looked please that he could make me laugh.

I saw Percy frowning in our direction as I laughed again at a joke Adrian told, then he spoke. "Well, you're quite the charmer, Adrian. I bet you have a whole line of mermaids just begging for you to become theirs." He tried to say it light-heartedly, but I heard an underlying hardness in his tone.

"No, actually. Not right now," Adrian said with a chuckle. Although he stopped telling jokes and stories. I glanced at Percy, and he was biting his lip and looking down at his feet. I shuffled my own feet, uncomfortable in the silence.

Gods, this just got awkward. I was grateful when Adrian claimed we were at the main building.

The building just looked like a glass dome, with the colors of the coral and water reflecting off the glass to create a multitude of colors refracted back at the water. Inside there were more guards, and merpeople were milling about as well. It was like a town center. In the middle of the dome sat a handsome throne made of coral. No one was seated on it, though.

We entered through the big double doors that were guarded as well. The guards nodded to Adrian and half-bowed in Percy's direction. Once we reached inside, the conversation in the building stopped. They stared at Percy and me.

Many started bowing, but Percy protested, "No, stop. I'm just another son of Poseidon, I'm not Poseidon. I should be bowing to you all, your race has been longer than me most definitely," he joked. There was laughter, and the tension in the air snapped. Conversation resumed. Glances were sent in our direction, but nothing else major happened.

"Where's Caspion?" Percy asked Adrian.

Before Adrian could reply, however, someone with a deep voice answered behind us. "I'm right right. It's good to see you, Perseus." Percy turned around, me following suit. Behind us stood a huge mermen. His hair was the color of a bluish silver, and it reached his hips. It flowed around his body like gentle wisps of smoke in the air. He had a muscular upper body, and a strong tail that was deep green with shells attached at the end. His eyes were bright blue, like Thalia's. They were powerful, but kind. He looked around his fifties, but his eyes portrayed a wisdom that seemed have experienced centuries.

Percy smiled, bowing his head deeply. "Lord Caspion. Always a pleasure." Caspion smiled, revealing even white teeth. His eyes flitted to me, and instead of seeing suspicion as to why a daughter of Athena would be in the ocean, they seemed to grow kinder.

"Welcome, daughter of Athena, to Atargatis," he said in his deep, resonating voice. "I hope my kin have treated you fairly."

I bowed my head as Percy head, "Yes, my Lord, they have."

"Oh, come come," I heard him say. "No bowing and 'my Lords' here. My name is Caspion. I have reasons to assume you two came here for a reason."

"Yes, sir," Percy stated. "We seek to ask you of something."

Caspion bobbed his head, indicating him to continue. Percy gathered his thoughts, then started from the beginning. He explain how he met me, and how Luke had attempted to assassinate me. Then the Forbiddance Law was passed, and after that, he told him about his quest to find Luke and figure out his motives. He told him about how I was called the "Siren" and that Luke was planning on taking the world in a way that we didn't know about, and then he went on about entering the War Games and how Poseidon had faintly been able to contact him, telling him where Luke was headed and that I was kidnapped. Percy rescued me, then we learned about the spy in Percy's group of Questers. He told him about more recent events, the fight that we just had with Actaeon and his hunting dogs, and then he stopped.

Caspion was nodded slowly, fingering his chin. "And what does this have to do with the merpeople?"

"Well, first," Percy said, "I was wondering if you have had any contact with Poseidon lately."

"No, but we usually don't unless there is an emergency," Caspion informed him.

Percy nodded, frowning. Then he said, "I know this is a big favor to ask of me, but we need more fighters. Luke is on an island, and he probably has forces in the water that will prevent us from attacking the island. He might even have Shar and his followers with him. We are badly outnumbered, but with your help... we could pull through this." Percy ended with a hopeful tone, watching Caspion carefully.

The leader of Atargatis was staring distantly and thoughtfully at the glass walls. The merpeople around us had stopped talking again, and had listened to Percy's tale. They waited for Caspion's answer almost as anxiously as Percy and I did. Please, let him help us, I prayed silently.

Caspion exhaled deeply, swimming smoothly over to his throne and taking a seat. He resumed stroking his chin, still not answering.

Percy opened his mouth, then closed it again. Then Percy said, "You- you don't have to. There's certainly nothing I would be able to give you, and I understand if you don't want to take the forces away from the towns you have them posted at, I understa-"

"No, no it's not that," Caspion said, interrupting Percy. "We'll help, definitely. This fight concerns us. I doubt if this Luke character wins he will be as nice to us as Lord Poseidon." My heart rose up hopefully, and I could see it growing Percy's eyes as well.

"So, you will help?" Percy asked cautiously.

"Ye-es," Caspion said slowly, "But..."

I waited, and Percy urged him on. "But?"

Caspion sighed, "You see, Shar just raided Atargatis, taking most of our weapons. We are making more, but we don't have you have a hundred extra celestial bronze weapons that we could use, then you'll have a weaponless army of mermen at your service. We wouldn't be able to do much."

Well, that sent my hopes plummeting. Celestial bronze was hard enough to come by as it is. A hundred weapons was just unthinkable. Percy's shoulders visibly drooped, and his mouth formed a silent "oh." Adrian was biting his lip, no doubt looking for a solution. I tried to think as well. There had to be something we could do. I tapped the hilt of my dagger nervously.

My dagger.

I had gotten that from the hidden passageways beneath Athena's temple. In a room full of daggers.

"I've got it!" I almost yelled excitedly. Percy looked over at me, anxious.

"Annabeth," he said, "how can you have it? Do you have a stash of weapons somewhere?" He sounded doubtful.

"Yes! Yes, I do!"

Percy frowned. I couldn't help the smile that was growing on my face. We could still do this!

"Remembered the passageways underneath my mom's temple?" Without waiting for a reply, I kept talking. "Well, there's countless rooms that are attached to the corridor, and I haven't explored them all yet, but there was a room where I saw found my dagger that I have right now, and there were at least fifty other daggers in there as well! I bet we could find another room with more weapons, but even if we couldn't, there are probably more than fifty in the room so we could at least arm quite a few mermen! And if we go back to get them, then we could get Thalia and Piper, too!"

Percy was quiet for a moment, then he grinned so widely I thought it probably hurt his face. He rushed up to me and gave me a huge hug, lifting me off my feet.

"Annabeth, you're a genius!" He proclaimed.

I laughed, "Oh, put me down, Seaweed Brain." But I didn't say I wasn't enjoying the hug.

He laughed in relief, and a sparkle lit up in his eyes. Caspion smiled, and Adrian whooped as well.

"If you will bring the weapons by tomorrow, then I will gather up the mermen and have them ready," Caspion said.

"Tomorrow. We'll have to leave right away. Thank you, Lord Caspion. We are in your debt," Percy said, smiling gratefully at Caspion.