a halfblood's dream

˗ˏˋ꒰ 🏖 ꒱

ع˖⁺ ☁⋆ ୭ 🕊.⋆｡⋆༶⋆˙⊹

PERCY DIDN'T REMEMBER FALLING asleep, but he remembered the dream.

The girl - Andromeda - was kneeling on the floor, her whole body trembling as she struggled under the weight of a pile of boulders. Even in the dim light, Percy knew that she could run out of strength any second, and the pile of boulders would tumble onto her, crushing her under their weight.

" How is our little songbird? " A male voice boomed. But it wasn't Kronos. Percy would remember his voice for the rest of his life; it was raspy and metallic, like knives grating across stones. But this voice was deeper and lower, almost like a bass guitar. It made the ground vibrate and dust fall from the ceiling.

Luke Castellan emerged from the darkness, running towards Andromeda as he held two fingers to her neck. "She's fading," Luke replied, looking towards the first voice. "We must hurry."

Scoffing, Percy clenched his fist. What a hypocrite.  As if the traitor really cared about what would happen to her.

" Well, " The voice hummed mock-thoughtfully. " I should save my little songbird... "

A meaty hand pushed Artemis forward, towards Andromeda, her body bruised and battered, her hand and feet bound with celestial bronze chains as she bled ichor from wounds on her body.

" You heard the boy, "The voice mused. " Would you save the little songbird, or let her die? "

"No," Andromeda piped up weakly, lifting her head slightly, giving Percy the shock of his life.

The girl's face was a pale gray, originally lively and bright eyes now dull and bloodshot, as they narrowed slightly at Artemis. Her bones jutted out harshly from her body, the shadows bouncing across her figure making her seem all the more malnourished. It was hard to believe that she had only been captured for one day.

"You need to save your strength," Andromeda spoke firmly. "For when your Hunters arrive for you." She groaned slightly, and that was when Percy noticed the blood dripping from her palms onto the ground. "I can hold it for a while more."

Artemis' eyes flashed in sorrow and respect. "Your will is strong, young one," She murmured, hobbling over to sit in front of the halfblood. Surprisingly, neither Luke nor the voice stopped her. "However, if you continue to hold this weight any longer, you will perish." She turned towards Luke, her eyes grave. "Free my hands." She stated, her head held high in authority.

Luke brought out his sword, Backbiter. It gleamed menacingly in the darkness as he brought it down on the goddess' handcuffs, breaking them with a clean snap.

Artemis quickly held the rocks, just in time, as Andromeda finally passed out, her eyes rolling to the back of her skull as she collapsed onto the ground.

Luke stepped forward slightly, an indescribable look in his eyes. When the man in the shadows said nothing, he speedwalked towards the girl unconscious on the floor, gently carrying the girl bridal style as he walked away.

" Ensure my little songbird does not escape her cage, "The man called out, making the blonde halt in his steps. " And that she has everything she needs. "

Luke nodded, although the shadows shielded Percy's vision of his face. "Yes, General." 

The boy halted outside a large bird cage, quickly entering as he carefully laid her onto the bed. Staring at the peaceful expression on her face as she slept, he gently brushed a strand of hair away from her face, freezing as the girl snuggled closer into his palm. Pulling away harshly, though careful not to wake her, he snapped his fingers and two demigods appeared, one holding a first-aid kit of sorts and another with a basket-full of food.

The son of Poseidon watched silently as Luke walked out of the cage, away into the darkness.

A wind swirled behind Percy, and he turned around, shrieking as he saw an almost transparent form of Andromeda grinning at him.

"Hi!" She chirped, sitting at the edge of the bed as she watched a demigod carefully tend to the wounds on her physical body.

"W-what." He stuttered, backing away slowly from the ghost.

Andromeda scoffed lightly, playfully punching the boy on his arm. "Oh relax!" She laughed. "I'm still alive," She squinted at herself. "I think."

Annoyance bubbled in his body, as he held his head in one hand. "Why did you jump on Thorn's back?" He grew in annoyance. "You could've gotten yourself killed!"

"Because, genius." She shrugged. "If I didn't, Wise Girl would've been the one kidnapped."

"How would you know?" He shot back, fists clenched. " It's not like you're some..." He trailed off, remembering what she had told him.

"Did you know you were going to get kidnapped?" He finally asked. "Was that why you engraved those words into your... dog tag?" The annoyance seemed to multiply tenfold. her!"

Andromeda scoffed, knocking his skull mockingly. "Well, you've finally got it!" She drawled, not answering his question, receiving a glare from the sea-green eyed boy. "Aren't you clever." She hummed, her ghost-like spirit drawing back to her body like a vacuum, which had stirred slightly, making the demigod tending to her draw back slightly, almost in fear.

Her last words echoed through his mind as his vision began to blur. He was slowly gathering consciousness. The last thing he heard was the booming voice of the General, though muffled, before he woke up with a start in Cabin Two.

𝐀𝐔𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐑'𝐒 𝐍𝐎𝐓𝐄 ▬▬▬ wow im on an updating spree wheee enjoy while it lasts 😈 percy thinks andromeda is being extremely stupid like,  obvi there's another way to save annabeth and  not get yourself kidnapped???  i headcanon that andy just wants to meet atlas 🫥