You shook me all night long (4)

Both teenagers looked at him in disbelief, unable to believe what he was telling them. Quickly, disbelief then gave way to anger. Thalia approached Percy and stood in front of him menacingly.

"What did you just say," she asked in a dangerous voice, her eyes flashing with restrained anger. Percy held her gaze without flinching.

"Or do you want me to draw you a picture so you can draw it?"

Thalia clenched her fists in fury, causing her knuckles to turn white from the force.

"We just want a place to stay until our friend recovers sufficiently...."

"I have already told you that I don't care. I don't want you here."

If looks could kill, Percy would be buried ten feet under the floor because of the death stare Thalia threw at him.

"Then the answer is simple," said Thalia, "I'll beat you up and throw you out on the street."

"I'd like to see you try," replied Percy defiantly, "I don't care if you're a girl, I'll kick your cute ass."

Maybe Percy was hallucinating, but for a second he could have sworn he saw a flash of electricity in the girl's eyes. She quickly retracted her arm and threw a punch in the direction of Percy's face. He stepped aside at the last second and, taking advantage of the girl moving forward due to the momentum of the punch, Percy slammed the sole of his foot into her butt. The girl went crashing into the church pews, kicking up the dust of the place.

"I told you I'd kick your ass."

Thalia quickly stood up in a fury. Her face was red from the anger she felt, and her clothes were covered in dust.

"I'll kill you, you bastard," she shouted.

"Thalia, stop!" Luke exclaimed, "Don't attack him."

"But this fucker kicked me. In the ass!"

"You attacked first, so don't complain."

Thalia grumbled for a few moments and lowered her arms.

-This is the worst. What the hell did Amalthea want to lead us to this place," she muttered under her breath.

Percy raised an eyebrow, curious about the young teenager's words. Had someone brought them here? Did anyone know he lived in this place? That was not a good sign. Usually if someone knew of his existence it was because they wanted to kill him, it had always been that way.

"Who is Amalthea," he asked.

If it was some kind of monster, he had to be cautious.

"Oh, it's a magic goat that squirts Pepsi out of its udders," said Luke, waving his hands as if it didn't matter. Percy watched them closely with a poker face, blinked for a few seconds and finally said:

"Are you two on drugs?"

They both looked at him offended by that statement.

Thalia was about to say something to him, but stopped when she heard the sound of a trap door opening. Those present turned their gaze towards the place where the sound came from and observed a little girl emerge from the same place where Percy had come out earlier.

"Percy... Are you all right?" she asked, shyly.

The two teenagers were stunned to see the girl who looked no older than eleven. She was wearing old, worn-out jeans, along with a sweatshirt that covered most of her body and almost reached her knees. Her long brown hair was loose and unkempt. Her honey-colored eyes, adorned eternally in a worried expression, looked out at those present.

"A... A girl?" asked Luke.

"Sammy! I told you not to go out unless I tell you to!"

Percy quickly walked over to her and placed her behind him protectively.

"But I heard talk of monsters and then the chairs being pushed. I thought those black dogs had found us again and I got worried."

"Wait, black dogs?" Thalia asked, puzzled. "Do you see them too?"

Sammy nodded shyly and hid behind Percy.

"Are they demigods too, or are they just mortals who can see through the fog," asked Luke.

' Demigods? ' Percy thought ' Fog? What the hell is he talking about?'

"That doesn't matter now," said Thalia, then looked at Percy, "You have a little girl with you, you should understand our situation. Our friend is sick and suffering and you don't want to help us. You are a hypocrite."

"I'm not a hypocrite," said Percy, "But if you want a reason why I won't help you, it's simple; I don't trust you. You come to this place, threaten me, and claim to be able to see monsters and magical goats that secrete Pepsi from their udders. Why should I help you?"

"Because you see monsters too! Or at least, she does," said Thalia, pointing at Sammy.

"Well, that's all the more reason not to help you. If you say you see the same things we see, you will know how dangerous they are. And that they are always in a group looking for us, following us. If we are a large group, it will be easier for them to find us."

"Then if we get rid of you two we can keep this place."

At that statement, Percy clenched his fists tightly. He felt something familiar begin to course through his veins, making his body tremble slightly. He knew that feeling well, he had felt it countless times, but he had learned to control it.

He pulled out his knife that was hidden behind his back and pointed it firmly at Thalia.

"If you dare lay a finger on Sammy... I'll kill you!" said Percy, in a voice as cold as ice, laden with real menace.

Both teenagers were surprised by such a statement. Tension reigned in the atmosphere, and silence flooded those present. The only audible sound was the winds crashing against the walls. It was in that moment of tension that Luke was able to recognize something.

"You're hurt," he said, pointing to Percy's blood-stained shoulder, "You said you see monsters too, were you hurt by them?"

Percy watched Luke closely, trying to see his intentions. Detecting no ill intent, he relaxed a bit and lowered the knife. But he still kept his wits about him, not trusting his partner to be any more reasonable. The fact that she was looking at him with an urge to kick his ass was a clear sign of that.

"Yes, but this one was different from the ones we normally see," said Percy, lightly rubbing his injured shoulder, "I've never seen a creature like this before."

Thalia's frown relaxed slightly at his words.

"What kind of monster was he," she asked.

Percy looked at her suspiciously. Of the two teenagers, Thalia seemed the more dangerous and it wasn't because of her bad girl looks, it was because of her eyes. They radiated something that made Percy uncomfortable and caused him not to let his guard down around her.

"He was big, at least six feet tall," said Percy. "He looked like a rugby player addicted to steroids. He didn't talk, he just grunted like an animal. And he had what appeared to be a pair of horns on his head. It was one of those horns that caused this for me" he finished, pointing to his injured shoulder.

Both teens looked worried and somewhat frightened after hearing that. Thalia's arm holding her spray can was shaking slightly.

"Did you... Did you kill him," she asked hopefully. Percy shook his head bitterly.

"No, I couldn't do it. We were attacked by a pack of hellhounds and Sammy was in danger. I only got to stab him in the eye before I escaped from there... and then some."

That was hours ago.

The information fell on them like a bucket of cold water to those present. Thalia and Luke understood Percy, after all, they had been through the same thing countless times. It was at that moment that they wondered if Percy was just like them, if he was also a demigod.

"That's why I want you to leave," said Percy in a low tone.

" What?" said Thalia and Luke in unison.

"If that thing is still alive, it will come for me. They've always been able to find us by our scent, and once they pick it up, they never stop until they find us."

"So... You say you're worried about us," Thalia asked, doubtful of her own words.

"No," Percy answered flatly, "But at least you've been warned."