Disclaimer: Percy Jackson belongs to Rick Riordan and Avatar belongs to Nickelodeon Animation Studio, as well as any other element of any other work, creation that appears, credits to whomever it may apply.
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Well, we already saw the thoughts of an annoyed, reluctant, exasperated and resigned to his crazy luck when he arrived in another realm/dimension of the planet (the 4 nations of the Avatar world), with the last 2 chapters going through the "depressed" phase so to speak and in this one he is basically coming out of it, showing the changing temperament of the sea
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Percy Jackson's Diary/Log
Entry 4, My First Catch
Date: September 13, 2023, if I'm not mistaken and this place moves with the same calendar... and time
My dear diary with which I avoid going crazy, the river stretches out before me like a lonely ribbon of blue that winds through a landscape that ranges from earthy browns to the vibrant greens of a slightly swampy border area. The air is heavy with moisture, and the sounds of wild creatures are a constant hum in the background.
No matter which way I look at it, it's completely different from the bustling streets of New York, or even the disciplined chaos of a Navy SEAL training camp.
Either way, I suppose I shouldn't be surprised that fishing comes naturally to me as the son of Poseidon, the lord of the seas, and blah blah, so here I am, feeling more at home hanging a crudely designed fishing rod over the water than on a sweltering bus in summer.
I had never fished in my life, at least not before I arrived in this dimension forgotten by the gods. But here I am, moving my hands with an instinctive grace, casting the line with an innate ease. Maybe it's the water, the ancient lineage that calls me, whispering through my veins like a forgotten lullaby. I feel like I've done it thousands of times before, as if it's woven into the very fabric of my being.
The makeshift fishing rod itself is a testament to my adaptability, or perhaps just a convenient demonstration of divine intervention. A sturdy branch, devoid of leaves and sharp at the end, a piece of thick vine that acts as a line and a piece of brightly colored cloth that serves as bait. I found it all in the span of an hour, as if the river itself had arranged it for me.
It's a strange feeling, all this. The world itself, the strange animals that seem fused together, and the familiar feeling of the ocean I slowly approach. It's like a weird, beautiful painting that went wrong... But it has its own strange charm.
Except for the feeling of being completely alone and that time I tried to sleep... The result was the strangest dreams of what looked like a strange and huge 6-legged bison fighting a small lemur, both dressed as some kind of samurai.
Strange... I know... But going back to the fish I catch, they are also... Rare... and interesting...
Like everything else here, they're a confusing mix of familiarity and weirdness, they are... a strange mixture of species, like a strange aquatic chimera. A koi with piranha fins, a trout with catfish scales. I remember another that looked like an angelfish, but had the fins of a clownfish. A fish with the body of a trout and the head of a catfish, scales the color of jade, fins like silk ribbons. Another, long and eel-like, with the iridescent glow of a koi and the sharp teeth of a piranha.
It's enough to make a demigod question his sanity. At least, for me, fish do not seem to have the same intelligence as those that inhabit the oceans, seas, rivers and lakes of my dimension. It is an immense relief that they are unable to speak like the fish of the Earth. There are no sudden telepathic conversations about your existential fear or the state of kelp forests. Simply... they are fish.
It's a welcome change, honestly, because my peace of mind is somewhat fragile from time to time, and I don't need another conversation with a particularly poetic bass about the nature of reality.
However, I can feel their emotions, their fear, their hunger, or even a feeling of curiosity. It's like telepathy, but only in one sense, they feel me, but I can't hear coherent thoughts or any signs of intelligence that I'm used to with aquatic life. It's a strange psychic connection, as if I were a radio tuned to a station that only broadcasts background noise.
Here! It's just... nothing... They're fish... And they don't seem to have the same kind of connection with me either.
Honestly, it's a small relief. Considering the other things I've stumbled upon, the lack of telepathy with fish is a welcome change that alleviates any kind of guilt while making dinner. But also a constant reminder that this is not Kansas.
In addition to the fused fish, I have also seen other creatures being added to the strange list of animals: birds with feathers as stained glass, a deer with elk antlers and zebra stripes, a squirrel with a fox's furry tail and huge rabbit ears. I don't really understand what's going on with this land, it's like it's a weird experiment, a genetic cocktail gone wrong.
Not that it's surprising. It's a different dimension... or so I think and hope. It's not Earth and I can't expect it to be normal.
Still, despite the strangeness, the river calls to me, it is a constant, a familiar thread in a world woven of confusion. The water calls me, the promise of the ocean is a whisper in the wind... good in my mind, and with each cast of my line, with each flash of colored scales, I feel a little calmer. I feel a little more connected to this strange and so natural, so untouched place.
Maybe it's not so bad. It's definitely different from the chaos of a battlefield or even the quiet grind of a naval base. But it is... peaceful, in its own way. The river is constant and the sea is getting closer and closer.
Maybe this is what I need... a strange and momentary vacation away from the madness of the divine world...
But I know it won't last, this is not my home, so I'll continue on this path, this lonely journey down the river. But for now, the rhythmic casting of my line, the feel of the water, the strange symphony of the fish and the river is enough to keep me relaxed.
I'm Percy Jackson, son of Poseidon, and even in a world that doesn't make any sense, I'll find a way to navigate its waters. And maybe, just maybe, this will help me be less crazy than I already am... or maybe not.
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