You know, sometimes I wished that the myths and fiction I read in school could be real. It sounded like a great idea, to escape what we call reality and just go on a magical adventure where you can ride unicorns and slay dragons. But, not anymore, I wish that my life was anything but what I read in school. Why? You'll find out, but first, allow me to introduce myself.
I'm Nyome Urania Walker, but I prefer Nyome or Walker, call me by my middle name and you'll see a side of me you'll never forget.
I'm 16 years old and a sophmore at this Private School called The Spence School. It's my third school I've been to, and I planned on keeping it that way.
Why did I move to different schools?
I'm not troubled per say, I just got unlucky...especially during summer field trips. Just to give you an example, the last school I attended had a trip to Long Island and we had to stay over at a hotel overnight before going back. Let's just say, there was a creeper, the cops were involved, and I have no idea how I snuck past the chaperones without being seen.
I have a lot of problems though, and it's not surprising to know that about me when you look at me, my track and medical record, and my family. My track record is pretty obvious, as for my medical record..well...I was diagnosed with ADHD and Dyslexia at a very young age. Christopher, my Dad, got me the medication for my ADHD but I had to suffer my Dyslexia on my own. Then around 3 years ago I was diagnosed with Insomnia. I literally sleep an hour or two hours tops every night, which is why I have these permanent dark circles under my eyes. A bunch of shrinks and doctors tried to find the cause of my insomnia, but they came up with nothing and I couldn't help them either. For some weird reason, I'm just super energized at night and I'm just tired during the day. I joke around with Clyde, my best and only friend, that I'm supposed to be nocturnal.
I dress differently too. I wear my beloved Batman hoodie twenty-four/ seven/three-sixty-five, even in the summer. You know that painful feeling you get when your foot falls asleep and it's starting to wake up? Yeah, that's what I feel when the sunlight touches my skin. That's why I wear my hoodie, to conceal as much skin as I can. The only skin that gets touched by the sun is whatever is exposed from my ripped black leggings and my face. The sunlight also bothers my eyes so I wear sunglasses all the time, I even got a doctor's note that said I could because some of my teachers would give me a hard time about it.
And my family? Well, I already told you about Christopher. No, he's my biological Dad, but I call him by his first name because we aren't close anymore. If you met us when I was little, I would call him "Daddy" and "Dad." But as I grew older, his nightclub started to take up all his time and after he gained his fortunes, we just called each other by name. He doesn't really pay attention to me unless it's my birthday or if the school called him about my terrible grades and the fights I've been in. You're probably wondering about my mom. I never really knew her and whenever I asked, Christopher told me that she died after she gave birth to me. All I have about her is a faint memory of a smile, a warm embrace, and this silver bracelet I got as a gift for my twelfth birthday. The bracelet is cool though, it's one of those bracelets that has a ring attached to it. Attached to the ring is a onyx gem that's cut to look like a crescent moon and it's wicked. I never take it off...but I did once to shower and let me tell you, I never felt so exposed and defenseless. So now I keep it on my left wrist all the time and the silver doesn't even tarnish, which makes everything easier for me.
Okay, now you know enough about me to at least get through this part of my story. Clyde and I were sitting in my car, following the bus to get to Coney Island. Why is going to an ancient amusement park important to education? It's not, The Spence School has its good standing students attend this field trip every year in May to "unwind" from the school year. I just barely managed to pass with a C+ in all my classes, which was hard as hell to get because my Dyslexia sucks. Why are we in my car and not on the bus? Well, I'm on probation with the teachers, so that means if I start anything, whether it be raise my voice or sock a dude in the face, then I'm getting sent home. Since I have my license and my own a car, I decided to just drive myself home to make it convenient for everyone. Clyde didn't want me to be alone in my car, and he didn't want to deal with the assholes on the bus for making fun of his funny limp due to some sort of muscular disease in his legs, so he decided to ride with me and jam out to my tunes on my IPod. Also, he always wears this dark gray beanie and he hates that teachers give him a hard time about it, never said why he had to wear the beaning though. When Clyde finished his air drum solo, I felt his eyes on me.
"What's up Nyome?" He asked. Clyde has this weird ability of reading my emotions, it's kinda freaky.
I stopped the car at a red light and faced him, taking in his concerned expression. I can't just deny that I don't have something on my mind, so I just told him the truth. "I don't know," I answered with a shrug, "I just have this bad feeling."
"Yeah? You'll be fine, it's probably just your nerves. You are on probation, Nyome, that's some pressure right there for ya to behave."
I scoffed. "If anyone picks on you, I won't hesitate to sock them in the face."
"Nyoooommmeeee they're not worth it!" Clyde whined...which kinda sounded like a whimper-bleat...it's hard to describe though.
"They have no right to bully you!" I jumped when a car honked at me and I quickly caught up to the bus, "When those assholes have a problem with you, they have a problem with me. Mama bear will always protect her cubs."
He laughed. "Alright Mama bear."
We joked around until we found a parking spot at Coney Island. My bad feeling was getting worse and since I stopped taking my medication for my ADHD, I was very noticeably edgy and twitchy. Clyde must have had a bad feeling too because when he climbed out my gray 2015 Mitsubishi Outlander (I love this car, thank god Christopher got it for my birthday), he paled and started to look absolutely frightened.
"Clyde, you alright?" I asked him, quickly getting out of my car.
"Yeah! I'm fine!" He quickly answered, awkwardly laughing.
He's such a terrible liar. Even if he kept a straight face, he would look guilty after he lied to you. But I let it go and we continued on our way and got on a few rides. Call me paranoid, but I was constantly looking over my shoulder and on guard in between rides. I noticed that all of the chaperones were spread out, I've always seen a teacher around whenever I looked. They were betting that I would mess up while I was on probation, gee, thanks a lot. I thought teachers were supposed to believe in students.
"Um, Nyome, I think we should go to our checkpoint spot," Clyde announced, suddenly stopping.
I stop and raised my eyebrow. "Um, I think it's a little too early for that." I checked the time on my IPod to see that it was 11:30. We're supposed to be at the checkpoint spot at 2 o'clock. "Yeah."
I looked up to see that Clyde was staring at something like he was looking Death in the face. I followed his gaze to see three pretty attractive looking women staring at us, well me specifically, from a distance. And it wasn't that regular staring I usually get, it was those creepy predator stares you see stalkers give in a cop show or something. My gut feeling made me feel like my stomach fell to the ground.
Clyde grabbed my wrist and started dragging me away. "Hey Nyome I'll let you punch someone in the face if it means we can get the hell out of here," He said.
I tugged my wrist out of his grip. "Woah! Hold up! First you tell me to behave and now you want me to fail my probation so we can leave? What's going on?" I demanded, stopping him and forcing him to look me in the eye.
"I'll tell you-"
"What's the matter hun?" A woman's voice purred.
I turned around to see the three women surrounding us. How the hell did they get here so fast? "Nothing, we're just talking," I answered, getting in front of Clyde.
The one to my right, a black hair, dark-eyed woman stepped closer. "Doesn't look like that to me, halfling."
"Nyome, let's go!" Clyde whispered in my ear.
"Oh! I just remembered! We have to go check-in with one of our professors! Excuse me ladies, but my friend here will have a panic attack if we don't-" I grabbed Clyde's hand and tried to get around the brunette woman in front of me, the one who spoke first.
"You won't get out of this one alive godling," the third woman hissed, "Now, give it to us."
I turned and saw that woman, a brunette with storm gray eyes, start to have feathers appear on her body. "I don't know what you're talking about, nor do I have what you want," I started to say and I saw as the others started to grow feathers, "So….Bye!" I shoved the black-haired woman out of the way and dragged Clyde behind me as I sprinted.
"Nyome! They're on our tails!" Clyde screamed as we weaved through the crowd.
"Ya think?! What the hell are they?!" I demanded, shoving a little kid out of my way (Normally I wouldn't do that but in this situation, but I didn't have the time to wait for the kid to move) and parkoured over the exit gate.
I heard screeching above us, and I instinctively put my right arm over my head. I hissed when talons grazed my arm through the sleeve of my hoodie, and I quickly unlocked my car.
"Harpies! They're Harpies and they're after your head!" Clyde explained as he jumped into my car, me quickly following suit, "Now drive!"
"I can't just speed out of here! Are you crazy?!" I screamed as I backed out as quickly as I could, almost hitting a few people.
"The police is the last of your worries! Ocypete, Aello, and Celaeno will kill you before you get arrested!" I heard him give a panicked beat, like a goat. "I should've known they would've targeted you! Chiron warned me about them being out and about! Now you're arm is hurt and we're being chased!"
"Wait, what?! You knew this would happen?! Explain yourself Clyde!"
"I will! Left! Turn left!"
Something, or someone apparently, landed on the hood of my car and started to scratch at it. "Godling you won't get away!" One of the things screeched.
"THEY'RE RUINING MY CAR! CLYDE I'M GOING TO FUCKING KILL YOU!" I screamed, taking a sharp left in an attempted to shake them off of my car.
"I'm sorry!" Clyde apologized and he screamed some more directions.
I glanced over to him to see him taking off his pants. "NOW IS NOT THE TIME TO UNDRESS CLYDE! I DON'T WANT TO SEE YOUR NAKED-"
"Calm down! I'm a satyr! I have fur so you won't see anything!"
"YOU'RE HALF-GOAT?!" I thank myself for trying so hard in Mythology class. "YOU HAVE A SHIT TON OF EXPLAINING TO DO CLYDE SANDERS!"
I heard metal groaning and my heart sunk to my feet. I looked up to see that the hood of my beloved car getting torn off.
"Ahahahahahahahaha! We have you now godling!"
The women just became bronze birds with heads of human women. Just when this day couldn't get any more freakier.
"I got you!" Clyde yelled and he tossed his pants at the storm-gray-eyed Harpy who was in the middle of the trip holding the torn hood.
She screeched as they hit her face, causing her to spaz and hit the other two harpies with her wings. I never thought that I would see the day where a pair of pants helped us in a fight.
"Holy shit," I muttered.
"Step on it Nyome!" Clyde ordered, "We have to get to Camp Half-Blood before they catch up with us!"
I never have driven so fast in my life before.
"WHAT THE FUCK IS CAMP HALF-BLOOD?" Oh! Swearing from me is a tell-tale sign that I'm pissed, I don't usually use terrible swears like this.
"It's a summer camp for demigods! I'm a Keeper there! So I bring demigods to camp so they can be trained and safe!" Clyde explained.
"WHAT?"
Another screech and out of the corner of my eye, I saw Clyde throw his beanie. It was no use, one of them swooped down at us, their talons just barely missing my shoulder thanks to me flinching last minute.
"You think your pants could stop Aello?!"
"No! We thought they would compliment her feathers!" I snapped back sarcastically, swerving my car to avoid another diving Harpie.
"You can't dodge me, godling! I'm Ocypete, the swift-flying! What I did to your arm is only a nick compared to what my talons can do to your face!"
"Nyome!" Clyde yelled, "Let me take the wheel!"
"What? No!" I yelled, swerving my car to avoid the stormy-eyed Harpy, Aello I think was her name. "You're the reason why my car lost its hood! YOU'LL FUCK IT UP EVEN MORE!"
The black-haired chick, now Harpie, cackled. "Mortals and their material things! She worries about her car over her life!"
"I know Celaeno!" Ocypete cackled as she agreed. "Her death will be most satisfying!"
"Bla-ah-ah-ah! Nyome! You need two hands to fight them off! Your ring on your bracelet! Your Dad told me that it was a gift from your Mom right? Press the moon!"
"WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?" I screamed at Clyde, facing him to give my best glare.
He pushed me off of my wheel and quickly grabbed it and started steering, climbing over me (I got a mouthful of his goat fur and it tasted nasty) to get to the driver's seat. "JUST DO IT!"
"FINE SHIA LABEOUF!" I squirmed away from him, avoiding getting touched in the face with his goat tail (I don't trust goat butts, I used to volunteer at a petting zoo and I got stuck with pooper scooper duty) and pressed the onyx gem that made the crescent moon.
I thought I could prove Clyde wrong but I definitely didn't expect my entire bracelet to turn into a whip made out of a pure black metal with a leather grip and a crescent moon at the base of the grip to appear in my left hand. I stood on the passenger seat, staring at my weapon.
"NOW KILL THEM!" Clyde yelled as he swerved the car to avoid dives from all three of the Harpies.
"HOW THE FUCK DO I DO THAT?!" I screamed, grabbing on what remained of the top of my car to keep myself from falling. I hissed when the torn metal cut my free hand but I put my whip in my more dominant hand anyway. My left hand can't do shit.
"DON'T THINK ABOUT IT, JUST FOLLOW YOUR INSTINCTS!"
"Now die!" Aello squaked as she dove for me, her brass talons at the ready to gouge out my eyes or something.
I didn't even think twice about it, my right hand brandished my whip at her, wrapping it around her taloned feet. I used my whip to throw her to the street, ripping her feet off in the process. I flicked my wrist, having my whip strick her through the head. I watched as she crumbled into chunks of sand and a gold anomaly entered my whip.
"Holy...I just killed a Harpie," I gasped and snapped my head to the other two Harpies as they gave despaired caws.
"You'll pay for killing my sister! Have a taste of Celaeno, the Dark's talons!" Caleano wailed and when she was close enough in her dive, I had my whip wrap around her neck and tore her head clean off. Celaeno crumbled to sand and my whip absorbed another gold anomaly, the same way as Aello.
"Woah!" I called out when Clyde had us drive up a hill at top speed. Without warning. Oh Clyde will have a taste of my fury as soon as we reach this stupid Camp Half-Blood.
"Celaeno! Aello!" Ocypete sobbed and she hissed at me through her tears. "Just you wait godling! I will exact my revenge another day!" Then she flew away, a wailing and cawing mess.
I dropped my whip and I sat down and pulled Clyde out of the driver seat and I quickly took my position as driver back. "You are so gonna get it Cyde!" I seethed.
"Brakes! We passed the tree! Brake! Brake!" Clyde ordered.
"Buckle up buttercup!" I threw my seatbelt on (yeah I know I didn't have my seatbelt on the entire time, sue me), and I quickly made sure Clyde (I saw his horns and wow, that's why he always wore that beanie) before slamming my foot on the brake, jerking my steering wheel to the right. The car did a few 360s before finally skidding to a halt. "You okay Clyde?" I asked, loosening my death grip on my steering wheel and unbuckling.
"Yeah, but you're hurt," Clyde responded, "Hold on, I'll help you out. You better put your whip away."
I quickly snagged my whip with my left hand (my right arm and hand felt like they were on fire and it hurt) and pressed the crescent moon on the grip, it would make sense that the crescent moon would turn it on and off. The whip coiled itself around my middle finger and wrist and glowed silver, turning back into my ring and bracelet. I saw a crowd of teenagers, preteen and late teens alike, gather around my car along with a middle-aged man, whoops, centaur. Clyde opened my door and I groaned when he grabbed my arms to give me support as he helped me out.
"Don't touch my car," I snapped at a few kids and apparently I looked scary enough to have them flinch away.
"Easy Nyome," Clyde sighed as he helped me walk.
My vision blurred, I guess from the huge amount of blood I lost during this battle (the entire interior of my car is covered in my blood) and the edges started turning black. Before I knew it, I blacked out while Mr. Centaur was giving out orders.
