Chapter 14 Chapter Fourteen: I Became a Famous Criminal

I really want to tell you about my mental journey when I fell, such as having some new understanding of life or learning to face death with a smile. But actually?My only thought at the time was: ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah! The Mississippi River came toward me at full speed like a train.The wind was blowing so hard that I could barely breathe as minarets, skyscrapers, and bridges flashed by before disappearing. Next up: Plop!Puff puff-- There was a bubble of white before my eyes, and I sank into the darkness.I will definitely fall into the mud dozens of meters deep and be lost forever.

I wasn't hurt when I crashed into the water though.Now I sink slowly, and the bubbles flow gently between my fingers.I landed peacefully on the river bed as a catfish the size of my stepfather roamed past into the darkness.Swirling around me were clumps of muck and disgusting trash, bottles, old shoes, plastic bags, etc. At this point, I discovered a few things: First, I wasn't being pressed into a muffin, or roasted, or even feeling the venom of the Camilla bubbling through my veins.I am alive and doing well. The second thing: I wasn't wet, I could feel the coolness of the water, and I could see the fire go out on the clothes, but when I touched the clothes, I found it was completely dry.

I looked at the trash floating around and grabbed an old lighter. No way, I thought. I flicked the lighter lightly, sparked, and then a thin flame appeared, at the bottom of the Mississippi River. I grabbed a soggy hamburger wrapper from the stream, and it dried instantly, with no trouble igniting it.Then I let it go, and the flames crackled the paper.Strange. But the weirdest thing happened to me.I was breathing, and although I was underwater, I was breathing normally as if I were on land. I stood up, thighs deep in the mud, my feet were wobbly and my hands were shaking.Logically, I should have died, but I didn't, which was like, um, a miracle.I imagined a woman's voice, sounding a bit like my mother's, saying to me, "Percy, what did you say?"

"Hmm...thank you." Talking underwater felt like a record, and I sounded like a child much older than me. "Thank you... Dad." There was no answer, just black trash flowing downstream, giant catfish gliding by.Far above, the setting sun over the river turned everything the color of butterscotch. Why did Poseidon want to save me?The more I think about it, the more ashamed I become.Therefore, I was just lucky the first few times. I have no chance of winning against things like Camilla.Those poor souls in the vault may have been roasted, I can't protect them, I'm no hero.Maybe I should stay here with the catfish and join the bottom foragers.

Shua!Shua!Shua!A boat's oars churned above my head, sending the silt flying in all directions. There, less than two meters in front of me, my sword was half buried in the mud, with the gleaming bronze hilt sticking out above. I heard the woman's voice again, and she said, "Percy, take that sword, your father trusts you." This time, I knew the voice wasn't in my head, it wasn't something I imagined, her voice seemed It came from all directions, spreading like ripples through the water, like the sonar of a dolphin. "Where are you?" I yelled. At this time, I saw her in the dark, it was a female figure with the same color as the water, and it was the elf of the river floating above the sword.She has long, wavy hair, and I can barely see her eyes, which are green like mine.

As if something was stuck in my throat again, I said, "Mom?" "No, boy, I'm a messenger, but your mother's fate is not so hopeless, go to Santa Monica beach." "what?" "It's your father's wish. Before you go to the underworld, you have to go to Santa Monica. Percy, please, I can't stay long, this river is too dirty, it's bad for me." "But..." I'm sure this woman is my mother, or a phantom of my mother. "Who...how did you..." I have so many questions to ask, but all the words are stuck in my throat.

"Warrior, I can't stay any longer," said the woman.She reached out, and I felt the water caress my cheek like a kiss. "You've got to go to Santa Monica! And, Percy, don't trust gifts..." Her voice faded away. "Gift?" I asked, "What gift? Wait!" She tried to continue, but the voice disappeared, and her image dissolved.If it was my mother, I lost her again. I feel like I'm drowning, but the problem is, there's no way I'm drowning. "Your father trusted you," she said. She calls me a warrior... I guess that doesn't mean catfish.

I walked towards the Wave Sword with difficulty and grabbed the hilt.The Camilla is probably still there with its fat snake mother waiting to kill me.And, mortal cops would be there, trying to figure out who fell through the hole in the arch.If they found me, they would be puzzled. I covered the sword and put the ballpoint pen in my pocket. "Thank you, Dad," I said again into the dark water. Then I pedaled up through the silt and swam toward the surface. I went ashore with a drifting McDonald's burger. A street away, all the St. Louis ambulances lined up around the archway.The police helicopter circled above, and the crowd was as large as Times Square on New Year's Eve.

A little girl said, "Mom! That boy came out of the river." "It's fine, honey," said her mother, craned her neck to watch the ambulance. "But he did it!" "That's fine, honey." A lady reporter was speaking to the camera: "As far as we know, this incident may not be a terrorist attack, but this is only a very preliminary investigation. As you can see, the damage is very serious. We are trying to find survivors, Ask them about the scene of the person who witnessed the falling arch." There are survivors, I am quite relieved, maybe the elevator man and the family are safe, hope Annabeth and Grover are okay.

I tried my best to push through the crowd and watched the situation in the police cordon. "...a teenager," another Mr. reporter is broadcasting: "Channel Five learned from the surveillance footage that a teenager went berserk in the observation deck, and then this strange explosion happened for no apparent reason. John, this is too Unbelievable, but this is the latest we have so far. Repeat, no one has died so far...” I turned away, trying to keep my head down, and I had to make a long detour outside the police cordon, because there were uniformed police officers and journalists everywhere.

Just when I almost gave up on finding Annabeth and Grover, a familiar voice bleated: "Percy!" I turned around and Grover gave me a bear hug, more like a sheep hug."We thought you were going to meet Hades this way!" he said. Annabeth stood behind him, trying to look angry, but she seemed relieved to see me. "We really can't leave you alone for more than five minutes! What the hell happened?" "Just fall." "Percy! From a height of one hundred and ninety meters?" A policeman behind us yelled: "Get out of the way!" The crowd parted, and two ambulance workers rushed out, pushing the woman on the stretcher onto it.I recognized her immediately, she was the mother of the little boy on the observation deck.She's saying, "Also, there was a big dog, a huge chihuahua that breathed fire..." "It's all right ma'am," the paramedic said. "Calm down, your family is safe, and the medication is about to start taking effect." "I'm not crazy! A boy jumped out of the hole and the monster disappeared." That's when she saw me. "There he is! It's the boy!" I turned quickly and pulled Annabeth and Grover into the crowd. "What happened?" Annabeth demanded. "Is she talking about the Chihuahua in the elevator?" I told them what had happened, about Camila, Echina, my high-diving operation, and the underwater lady. "Wow," Grover said. "We have to take you to Santa Monica! You can't ignore your dad's call." Before Annabeth could answer, we passed another reporter who was confirming the news, and what he said made me almost freeze.He said: "Percy Jackson. Yes, damn it. Channel Twelve has learned that the boy who may have caused the big explosion is the same man who was wanted for the serious bus accident in New Jersey three days ago. Also, it is said that This boy is moving west, show the audience this picture of Percy Jackson." We ducked around the news van and slipped into the alley. "First," I told Grover, "we have to get out of this town!" Somehow, we were unrecognized all the way back to the Amtrak station, and we caught the train just before we were due to leave for Denver.As night fell, the train started heading west while the lights of the police cars flickered on the St. Louis skyline behind us.