Chapter 1:Am I Going Insane

Percy speaking

Percy's thoughts

The Voice

All characters are owned by Rick

Chapter 1

Am I Going Insane?

(Percy P.O.V)

"Hey! Wake up! You're going to be late."

"MMM… five more minutes." I mumbled out loud not bothering to listen to the unfamiliar male voice.

"No not five more minutes. You need to get up." The voice said with some slight irritation bleeding through.

"Grover not now." Was my response as I turned over in my bed trying to hide under the sheets.

"Huh, so be it then."

Before I could respond I immediately felt myself flung off my bed and onto the floor. Immediately getting up, "Grover what the…heck? I start only to look around my room seeing that I was the only one in it. Behind me the door opens, and my best friend Grover hobbles through the door with his crutches. He was one of the few if only friend that I had at Yancy academy. He was scrawny, he cried when he got frustrated. Not to mention that he looked like he had been held back several grades because he was the only sixth grader with acne and a wispy beard on his chin. Not to mention that he was crippled on top of all that. He had a muscular disease in his legs that made it look like every step was painful, but that doesn't stop him from somehow managing to beat everyone in school to the cafeteria on enchilada day.

"Yo Perce you up yet we have to… leave… soon? What are you doing on the floor?" he asks with a raised brow.

Trying to save what little self-image that I had still I replied "Uh… push-ups?"

"Wrapped in a blanket? Sureee." He drew out the rest of the sentence as if trying to force the connection. "Anyways you need to get ready cause we'll be leaving for the field trip soon."

Looking back at the clock next to my bed I realize just how late it really is and scramble to get ready.

Now normally I wouldn't care about field trips, whenever I went on one bad thing tend to happen. Like that one time my class and I visited the Saratoga battle field and even though I didn't mean to I blew up our bus with an old revolutionary war cannon. In the fourth grade my old class and I went to Marine world for a behind the scenes tour, and I touched the wrong lever on the catwalk and my entire class took an unplanned swim.

As I pulled over a clean shirt, I hear a faint chuckle in the back of my head while thinking of my past field trips. I look over at Grover to see if he was laughing only to find him waiting for me by the door. "Maybe I'm hearing things." I thought to myself as I got finished getting dressed.

Before leaving the room, I take one last look inside expecting to see who ever I had heard earlier. Seeing no one in the room I shake my head and hurry after Grover, planning on being good and possibly learning something on this field trip.

Line Break

It has been less than half an hour since I left my dorm room this morning and I was already planning on murdering someone. This someone being Nancy Bobofit. A red headed kleptomaniac with crooked yellow teeth.

Nancy was meanwhile tossing pieces of her peanut butter and ketchup sandwich at Grover's head getting stuck in his hair.

"Ugh, peanut butter and ketchup together? That's disgusting."

I didn't bother paying attention to the statement as I was working on controlling my anger. The only reason I hadn't decked her was because the vice principal had threatened me with death by in school suspension. It always happens, whenever something exciting, strange or wrong happens on a field trip I get blamed.

"That's it I'm going to kill her!" I grumbled, gripping the seat in front of me till my knuckles turned white.

Grover tried to calm me down. "It's ok. I like peanut butter." He then dodges another chunk that went his way.

"That's it!" I started to get up only for Grover to pull me back down.

"Are you crazy! Your already on probation." He reminded me "You know that you're the one that will get blamed if something happens. I nodded my head in defeat yet still wishing I had decked her.

Then as Nancy was getting prepared to throw the rest of her sandwich at Grover's head, a car races in front of the bus causing the driver to have to slam on the brakes to avoid a collision. During that time Nancy's head whips forward, faceplanting into the sandwich that she was holding, getting it all over her face and up her nose. Internally I was laughing uncontrollably at her misfortune.

"Small miracles." The voice chuckles

My head whips up scanning around to see who the voice belongs to but have no such luck and sit back down in my seat. Pushing those thoughts out of my head, I think "Maybe today will go fine."

If only I knew of the mess, I'd get myself into later.

Line Break

Mr. Brunner, my Latin teacher, led the museum tour. He was a middle-aged guy in a motorized wheel chair. He had thinning hair and a scruffy beard, and a frayed tweed jacket, which always smelled of coffee for some reason. You wouldn't think that he'd be cool, but he told stories, jokes, and let us play games in class. He also had this awesome collection of Roman armor and weapons, so his class was the only one I didn't sleep in.

He rode in front of the group in his motorized wheelchair, guiding use through the big echoey galleries, past marble statues and glass cases filled with old black and orange pottery.

"Hm. A Caeretan Hydria depicting Hercules slaying the hydra. Pretty shoddy upkeep and the piece itself is second rate pottery at best."

I turn around looking to see where the voice was coming from, only to find no one near me. Curiously a glance at a piece of pottery in a glass case to my left. The plastic card on the case reads 'Caeretan Hydria. Dated: 520-510 b.c'

Taking my gaze away from the piece of art I look around to find that my class is already rounding the corner at the end of the hall. I have to jog back over to them, hoping that none of the teachers notice my absence and decide that I tried to steal some of the art work. Although I wouldn't mind having some stuff like this, it blew my mind that this stuff had survived for two thousand, three thousand years.

I rejoined the group as we gathered around a thirteen-foot-tall stone column with a big sphinx on the top. Mr. Brunner was telling us about how it was a grave marker, a stele for a girl our age. He told us about the carvings on the sides. I was trying to listen to what he had to say, because it was kind of interesting, but everyone around me was talking, and every time I told them to shut up, the other teacher chaperone, Mrs. Dodds, would give me the evil eye.

Mrs. Dodds was this little math teacher from Georgia who always wore a black leather jacket, even though she was fifty years old. She looked mean enough to drive a Harley into your locker. She had come to Yancy halfway through the year, after our last math teacher had a nervous breakdown. From her first day, Mrs. Dodds loved Nancy Bobofit and figured I was a devil spawn. She would point a finger at me and say, "Now Honey," real sweet and I knew I was going to get after school detention for a month. One time, after she'd make me erase answers out of old math workbooks until midnight. I told Grover I didn't think Mrs. Dodds was human. He looked at me, real serious, and said, "Your absolutely right."

Mr. Brunner kept talking about the Greek funeral art.

At the same time the voice decided to make itself known again.

"The man in the pictures name was Phaleras, I think he died around 769 B.C." The voice began talking at the same time as Mr. Brunner.

Then Nancy began to snicker something about the naked guy on the stele, and then I turned around and said, "Will you shut up?" hoping to quiet both so I could listen to Mr. Brunner.

It managed to silence both of them, but it came out louder than I meant it to.

The whole group laughed. Mr. Brunner stopped his story. "Mr. Jackson," he said, "Did you have a comment?"

My face went totally red. I said, "No, sir."

Mr. Brunner pointed to one of the pictures on the stele, "Perhaps you'll tell us what this picture represents?"

I looked at the carving and almost let out a sigh of relief because I actually recognized it. "That's Kronos eating his kids, right?"

"Yes," Mr. Brunner said, obviously not satisfied with the answer.

"Come on." I thought, "I got the right answer."

"Maybe he wants you to elaborate?" The voice speaks up, trying to sound helpful.

"And he did this because…" Mr. Brunner drew out waiting for me to answer.

"Well…" I racked my brain trying to remember. "Kronos was the king god, and—"

"God?" Mr. Brunner asked

"He was a titan." the voice corrected me.

"Titan," I corrected myself. "And… he didn't trust his kids, who were gods. So, um, Kronos ate them, right? But his wife hid baby Zeus and gave Kronos a rock to eat instead."

"I wonder how ugly of a baby he was to be mistaken for a rock?" the voice muttered to itself.

I could feel my lips tug upwards a bit into a smile at the funny thought but pushed it back to finish the explanation.

"And later, when Zeus grew up, he tricked his dad, Kronos, into barfing up his brothers and sisters—"

"Eeww!" said a girl behind me.

"—and so, there was this big fight between the Gods and the Titans," I continued, "and the Gods won."

In an incredulous tone "You just managed to dumb down ten years of war and bloodshed in just a few sentences."

I ignored it. Behind me Nancy Bobofit mumbled to her friend, "Like we're going to use this in real life. Like its going to say on our job applications, 'Please explain why Kronos ate his kids.'"

"And why Mr. Jackson," Mr. Brunner said, "to paraphrase Miss Bobofit's excellent question, does this matter in real life?"

"Busted," Grover muttered

"Shut up." Nancy hissed, her face becoming brighter red than her hair.

At least Nancy got caught too. Mr. Brunner was the only one who ever caught her saying anything wrong. It was like he had radar ears.

I was about to admit that I didn't know the answer when my mouth started to move on its own.

"I think that the stories and myths apply lessons on our morality. That even Gods and heroes are subjected to their flaws and we can learn from their mistakes and better ourselves as well as learn from the ingenuity that these figures possess."

I blink. I don't remember ever sounding so smart. Apparently, Mr. Brunner was also a little caught off guard at my response, but it only lasted a split second before a smile appeared on his face. "That is correct Mr. Jackson, full credit. Now Zeus—"

As Mr. Brunner went on my mind was racing at what just came out of my mouth. I know that that couldn't have been me because it felt like my mouth was moving by itself, that I had no control.

Mr. Brunner broke me back from my musings. "—on that happy note, its time for lunch. Mrs. Dodds, would you lead us back outside?"

The class drifted off, the girls holding their stomachs, the guys pushing each other around acting like doofuses. Grover and I were about to follow when Mr. Brunner said, "Mr. Jackson."

I wondered what he was going to tell me. I told Grover to keep going. Then turned toward Mr. Brunner. "Sir?"

Mr. Brunner had this look that wouldn't let you go—intense brown eyes that could've seemed a thousand years old and had seen everything.

"I am surprised by your answer Mr. Jackson, but I knew you had it in you. Good work. What you learn from your studies here will be of vital importance to you. As such I will only accept the best from you Percy Jackson."

It felt good to be acknowledged by him. Even if I did feel a little guilty about taking credit for something that I didn't do. Mr. Brunner always expected me to be as good as, if not better than everyone else. Despite the fact that I've never made more than a C- in my entire life and had a hard-enough time remembering all of the names and facts, much less spell them correctly. But it still felt good to get his approval. As I was walking out I noticed him taking a long sad look at the stele, like he had been to the girl's funeral.

"He probably has." The voice pipes up after the long bought of silence.

I take a look around trying to find it only to see that I'm still alone. "Great now I guess the voice is in my head. I guess I can add schizophrenia to the list of problems that is my life."

Line Break

The class gathered on the front steps of the museum, where we could watch the foot traffic along Fifth Avenue. Overhead a huge storm was brewing, with clouds blacker than I'd ever seen over the city. I figured maybe it was global warming or something, because weather all across New York state had been weird since Christmas. We'd had massive snowstorms, flooding, wildfires from lightning strikes. I wouldn't have been surprised if there was a hurricane blowing in.

"Meh, it's not that impressive."

At this point I had decided to ignore the voice. After all admitting that there is a voice in my head would be admitting that I was going crazy. Right?

No one else seemed to notice. Some of the guys were pelting the pigeons with crackers. Nancy was busy trying to pickpocket something from a lady's purse, and of course, Mrs. Dodds wasn't seeing a thing. Grover and I sat on the edge by the fountain, away from the others. We thought that maybe if we did that, everybody wouldn't know we were from that school—the school for loser freaks that didn't belong anywhere else.

"What did he want?" Grover asked.

"He wanted to say how well I did."

Grover didn't say anything for a while. I had expected to pat me on the back or say words of encouragement. Instead he said, "Can I have your apple?"

I didn't really want it so I gave it to him.

I watched to endless lines of cares going down Fifth Avenue and thought of my mom's apartment. I hadn't seen her since Christmas. I wanted so badly to just hop in a taxi and head home. She'd hug me and be glad to see me, but disappointed before sending me back to Yancy, telling me to try harder even though this was the sixth school I had attended in six years and I was probably going to be kicked out again.

"Not with that attitude."

Again, ignoring the voice in my head. I turn too see Mr. Brunner parking his wheelchair at the base of the handicapped ramp. He ate celery while reading a paperback novel. A red umbrella stuck up from the back of his chair. This made it look like a motorized café table.

I was about to unwrap my sandwich when Nancy appeared in front of me with her ugly friends- I guess she had gotten tired of stealing from tourists—she dumped the rest of her lunch into Grover's lap.

"Oops." She grinned at me with her crooked teeth. I tried to keep my cool. Just like the school counselor had told me a million times, "Count to ten and breathe in and out."

"Come on deep breathes, she's not worth it. Focus on one thing." The voice says in a soothing tone, trying to calm me down. For once I listen to the voice and focus my anger. But that focus just so happened to be Nancy. I heard a wave in my ears and I blinked.

I couldn't even remember what had happened, only that Nancy's next words snapped me out of my trance.

"Percy pushed me!"

Mrs. Dodds seemed to materialize right next to me.

The other kids were whispering behind me.

"Did you see—"

"The water—"

"…grabbed her."

I had no idea what they were talking about. All that I knew was that I was in trouble… again.

As soon as Mrs. Dodds was sure that Nancy was ok, promising to get her a new shirt from the gift shop etc., etc., Mrs. Dodds turned to me. There was a triumphant fir in her eyes, like I had done something she was waiting for all semester.

"Now, Honey—"

"I know," I grumbled. "A month erasing textbooks."

"What are you doing!? You never guess a punishment that only makes it worse!" The voice said, and I had the strangest sense that it was shaking its head.

It seemed that the voice was right and it wasn't the right thing to say.

"Come with me," Mrs. Dodds said

"Wait!" Grover yelped. "It was me. I pushed her."

"Damn, the kids actually got a back bone. Who knew." The voice said

I stared at him, stunned. I couldn't help but agree with the voice. This was totally out of left field for Grover. Mrs. Dodds usually scared Grover to death.

She glared at him, but I knew he was scared based on how his whiskers trembled.

"I don't think so Mr. Underwood." She said

"But—"

"You. Will. Stay. Here!"

Grover looked at me desperately.

"Its okay, man," I told him. "Thanks for trying."

"Honey," She barked "Now."

Nancy smirked at me. I gave her my best deluxe I'll-kill-you-later stare. Then I turned to Mrs. Dodds, but she wasn't there. She was standing at the museum entrance, way at the top of the large steps, waiting for me impatiently.

When did she get up there so fast?

I have moments like that a lot. Like my brain short circuits or something and the next thing that I know is that I've missed something going on and I'm left staring at a blank space. The counselor told me it was apart of my ADHD acting up and misinterpreting things.

I wasn't so sure.

"You know your right. Your mind is hyper focusing on a specific detail, blocking out all nonessential information."

"What? Really?" I thought back to the voice.

"Oh, great finally you respond. I've been trying to talk to you for a while now." The voice said.

"Oh yeah the imaginary voice in my head is totally real and worth talking to." My thoughts laced with sarcasm.

"Oh, come on you make it sound like I'm asking you to sacrifice souls to me."

"Are you?"

"NO! Why would anyone want that? I'd prefer it if you sacrificed bacon or some Chinese food though."

"Whatever this conversation is over." I said putting a stop to the mental stop to this conversation.

"Fine, fine, but seriously beware Mrs. Dodds she's dangerous and will only bring you trouble."

"Of course, she'll bring me trouble she has it out for me." I think noticing just now that I'm already at the top of the steps following her into the museum.

"Great I did it again." I thought.

Looking at Mrs. Dodds I notice that she has somehow made it to the end of the entrance hall. "Okay," I thought. "I guess I'm going to have to buy Nancy a new shirt from the gift shop."

But that apparently wasn't the plan. I followed her deeper into the museum. When I finally caught up to her, we were back in the Greek and Roman section. The gallery was empty except for us.

Mrs. Dodds stood with her arms crossed in front of a big marble frieze of the Greek gods. She was making this weird noise in her throat, like growling.

Looking at the frieze myself I feel an unexplainable rise of anger towards the figure holding the lightning bolt.

"Woah. Where did that come from?" I thought to myself. Shaking my head, I turn back to Mrs. Dodds. Growing more nervous. I always felt weird being alone with a teacher, especially her. The way she was looking at the frieze, like she wanted to destroy it.

"You've been giving us problems, honey," she said

I did the safe thing. I said, "Yes ma'am."

She tugged on the cuffs of her leather jacket. "Did you really think that you would get away with it?"

The look in her eyes was one of evil. I mean she's a teacher, she's not going to hurt me.

"I'll—I'll try harder ma'am." I said. Though I didn't really believe it myself. Thunder then shook the building. It's like the world knew I was lying.

"We are not fools Percy Jackson." Mrs. Dodds said. "It was only a matter of time before we found out. Confess, and you will suffer less pain." I had no idea what we were talking about. The only things that I could think of were the illegal stash of candy that I was selling out of my dorm room. Or maybe they'd realize that I got my written report on Tom Sawyer from the internet without ever reading the book and were now going to take away my grade. Or worse, they'll make me read the book.

"You are the lowest standard of criminal, you know that right?" The voice says with slight exasperation.

"Shut. Up." I thought

"Well?" she asks

"Ma'am I don't…"

"Your time is up." She hissed

"Oh, watch out for the claws." The voice warns.

"Wait what?"

I looked back to at Mrs. Dodds and the weirdest thing happened. Her eyes began to glow like hot coals. Her fingers stretched, turning into talons. Her jacket melted into large, leathery wings. She wasn't human. She was a shriveled hag with bat wings and claws and a mouth full of yellow fangs. I think the voice was right to avoid the claws.

Then things got even stranger. Mr. Brunner, who was out side the museum a minute ago, shows up with a pen in hand.

"What ho, Percy." He shouted and threw the pen at me.

"Uncap the pen. You'll know what to do."

Then Mrs. Dodds lunged at me. With a yelp I ducked as she flew over me. I felt her talons lash the air near my ear. Grabbing the pen out of the air and uncapping it like the voice said. Only to watch as it turned into a sword—Mr. Brunner's sword, the one he always used on tournament day. Mrs. Dodds turned back to me with a look of murder in her eyes.

My knees were shaking. I could barely hold the sword. "Die honey!" she snarled and flew strait at me. I was terrified, but as she flew towards me it felt like the world was slowing down. I felt something in my body move, as if it was guiding my body in the right direction. The movement felt natural, and I followed through with it swinging the sword. The metal hit her shoulder and passed clean through her body like paper.

Mrs. Dodds exploded in a pile of golden dust. Leaving nothing but the pile on the floor, the smell of sulfur, and the chill of evil in the air, as if those glowing red eyes were still watching me.

I was now alone. With a ballpoint pen in my hand. Mr. Brunner had disappeared. That's it. I'm going insane. Demon math teachers, sword pens, and a voice in my head.

"Yep. Totally going insane." I thought. For once the voice was silent.

As I headed out side I noticed that it was raining. Grover was still by the fountain, using a museum map to block the rain. Nancy was still standing there getting wet from the rain, grumbling to her friends.

When she saw me, she said, "I hope Mrs. Kerr whipped your butt."

"Who?" I replied

"Our teacher, duh"

I blinked. We didn't have a teacher named Mrs. Kerr. I asked Nancy what she was talking about. She just rolled her eyes and walked away. I turned to Grover asking where Mrs. Dodds was. He asked "Who?" But he paused first, and his eyes never met mine, so I thought he was messing with me.

"Not funny man," I told him. "I'm being serious,"

Thunder boomed in the sky

I looked to find Mr. Brunner sitting in the same spot outside the museum, still reading his book under his umbrella. I went over to him. He looked up at me. "Ah that would be my pen. Please remember to bring your own utensils next time Mr. Jackson."

I hadn't even realized I still had it. Handing it back over to him asking, "Sir where is Mrs. Dodds?"

He stared at me blankly. "Who?"

"The other chaperone. Mrs. Dodds. The pre-algebra teacher."

He frowned and sat forward with a concerned look on his face. "Percy, there is no Mrs. Dodds on this trip. As far as I know there has never been a Mrs. Dodds at Yancy academy. Are you alright?"

"Yeah… Yeah. I think that I just need some rest. Its been a long day." I respond turning to leave.

"All right Mr. Jackson. I'll see you back on the bus." He says before preparing to pack up his belongings.

"Maybe I am going insane. That couldn't have happened." I thought trying to reassure myself.

"It did happen. Their lying to you but for good reason. Don't think too badly of them." The voice tried to reason with me.

"Great now I'm taking advice from an imaginary voice in my head. I really am going insane and everyone wants to play a joke on me." I thought to myself.

"No, Grover and Mr. Brunner are the only ones who remember Dodds. But don't bother asking them about it they'll just deny it."

"And how do you know this! Your just an annoying voice in my head. You don't even exist!" I think to myself, my irritation slowly growing.

"I exist Percy, I am very much real. And I can affect the world around you. I caused the bus to suddenly stop, and I guided your sword when you destroyed Dodds remember." The voice says.

"Yeah right that was a fluke. Pure luck." I reason.

"Oh really?" The voice asks. Then a large blast of wind hits me knocking me onto my back. I blink wondering what just happed. Then my body again moves on its own and does a kick up, landing back on my feet. I know I didn't do that. I wasn't I control of my body when it happened and I've never been able to do a kick up before (Believe me I've tried, multiple times.).

"Believe me now?" The voice asks. A tinge of amusement being heard.

"Ok so let's say that I believe you." I say, still wrapping my head around what happened. "What are you, why are you in my head, and who are you?"

"Well kid, answer number one is that I am an ancient being of great power, and don't give me that look," He says cutting off what I was about to say. "I can't tell you more than that or else things may happen sooner than they should. Answer number two is that I have a feeling that you'll do great things in the future, and I'm here to help you get through it. And the last question. Well, my name is…"

"Adamos"