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Danny has extended family. But today he discovers it’s big.
He’s never seen half these people in his life. There’s Aunt Alicia with Mom at the buffet table. A couple of cousins wrestling at the bow. His Dad and uncle are having a fudge eating competition somewhere. But why are there thirty people here? Where did they come from?
Maybe it’s because his parents are the ones hosting the reunion this year, and instead of city homes or suburban farms, it’s held on the Fenton Family Mer Assault Yacht. Or the FFMAY, as Tucker calls it.
But it’s not their usual FFMAY. Their usual FFMAY is a Frankenstein of inventions twisted into a vessel that functions against all odds. It’s currently sitting in storage.
FFMAY 2.0 is an upgrade – sleek and shiny and twice as big, with engines thrice as strong and grandeur that went from nah to woah.
It’s also sponsored by Vlad Masters.
“The labs are so advanced,” Maddie gasped when the Fentons first explored their gift, “and the weapons vault, there’s so much space!”
Jack was sold the minute he found the fudge machine. Jazz looked impressed, staring up at the three decks, the floor to ceiling windows, even the damn automatic door that ran on facial recognition software.
A pale blue light scanned the faces of an astonished Jazz and her sulking brother. The door slid open with a whish! “I heard the map room has a ton of books,” she said as she stepped through. “We’re really lucky to have a billionaire as our family friend.”
“But it’s Vlad,” Danny complained. The door shut in his face.
So while Danny doesn’t doubt these people on the yacht are related to him in some distant way, he also doesn’t doubt two things: 1) They only came because it smells like rich people money, and 2) Plasmius is going to show his blobfish mug within the next couple hours. He skulks at a corner of the highest deck with his arms crossed and an impressive scowl.
The breeze tussles his hair, bringing with it the scent of salt water. The ocean glitters, calm and inviting, and Danny wants nothing more than take a dive. But he feels like he’s just waiting for the other shoe to drop.
When Tucker calls him on the Fenton phones to keep him company, he whines to his best friend about the woes of having an archenemy.
The techno-geek isn’t having it.
“You can’t keep worrying like this, dude, or your hair’s gonna go gray even in human form. Go talk to people, play a game on your phone, eat a muffin! Speaking of muffins, can you save me some from the buffet?”
“I don’t know. Mom was trying out her new recipe,” Danny says, sighing. He braces his elbows on the railings as he scans the sea. He feels tired. “Some of the muffins turned into a bunch of colors. I don’t even know if they’re safe to eat.”
“Really?” a new voice says.
Danny jumps, swiveling around. An older boy in a T-shirt and ragged jeans frowns at him, holding a blue, half-eaten muffin in a hand. “But this one’s really good.”
“Oh.” Danny wracks his brain for a memory of this person. It turns up blank. “It does?”
The guy smiles crookedly. He’s tall, with messy black hair and a handsome face. Looks about sixteen, though Danny can’t place his ethnicity. Despite his friendly demeanor, the teen’s stormy green eyes hold power.
Danny’s unnerved. Is he a distant cousin? Adopted child? Someone’s half-brother?
Tucker’s voice next to his ear asks what’s up.
“I’ll call you later,” Danny says in a low voice, turning off the comm link.
“Sorry, I didn’t realize you were talking to someone.” The older teen frowns. His gaze pins Danny in place. “Are you the Phantom?”
“Wha-” Danny catches himself. “Ha-ha, Phantom? No, not- not sure what you’re talking about. No.”
The two stare at each other. Danny stamps down the panic crawling up his throat, but the other teen raises his hands, palms out. He’s still holding the muffin. “Hey, it’s okay. I didn’t expect to see you here. I’m-”
Something slams into the yacht.
The vessel lurches, tossing the guy backwards. Danny catches himself against the railings before the yacht rocks back into position, sending a wave splashing down onto the lower decks. Screams ring the air as people topple like bowling pins against the floors. Around them, liquids slosh and plates crash.
“I knew it.” Danny searches for the attacker in the water that’s now choppy with waves. The hull of the starboard is smoking but intact. The other teen appears next to him, scanning the scene. Danny keeps a wary eye on him.
Suddenly, a column of water bursts out of the sea. It unravels and parts, like curtains on a stage, revealing a green-skinned man whose torso melts into tentacles as long as the yacht. His singular red eye flicks to the two teenagers on the yacht, narrowing when they land on Danny.
“Phantom!” he roars.
“I don’t recognize this monster,” mystery guy says.
Danny grits his teeth. “Why would you know about monsters?”
“I come in the name of Lord Plasmius!” said monster continues to shout. “Heed my challenge to a mighty duel, or this vessel and its land-dwellers will face my wrath!”
Right on cue, a dozen grappling hooks shoot out from the ocean surface like canons, descending and hooking their claws onto the railings of the first deck. Their ropes pull taut, then to Danny’s horror, the whole yacht begins to tilt. Two of the guests on the second deck lose their bearings, and with shouts they tumble over the railing, falling into the sea.
Heart in his throat, Danny recognizes one of them. “Aunt Alicia!”
The woman could handle herself, he knew, but not against whatever else was beneath the waves, on the other end of the hooks. And there was the other person who fell in. He steps up to the railings, prepared to dive in after them, when a blast nearly crashes into him. Looking high and mighty in the air and palms still glowing with power, octopus man snarls, revealing sharp teeth.
“Will the famous creature of this sea refuse me?”
“You get them,” the other teen commands suddenly, green eyes hard. “I’ll show this guy the real meaning of creature of the sea.”
“What?”
He pulls out something from his jeans pocket. Danny realizes it’s a pen and the guy pops the cap off. In a swift moment, he’s pointing a long, bronze sword at octopus man.
Danny gapes. “Who are you?”
“Percy Jackson.” He grins, then he yells at the monster, “Hey slime-ball, why don’t you challenge me to a duel!”
Octopus man’s eye flickers to him. Danny sees his hands powering up, the tentacles beginning to twist in agitation, the water around him bubbling in reflection of his rage.
Danny doesn’t want to rely on a stranger, but there’s no time. So Danny takes the risk and leaps over the edge of the yacht, willing the transformation to take hold as he plunges into the water.
Whoever Percy Jackson is, Danny will have to trust him for today.