Chapter 1
Living on the streets of New York is not as bad as it sounds, especially when you have three goddesses looking after you. At first, I didn't want them to look after me but they helped a lot. Athena and Artemis became like older sisters to me. Artemis even asked me to become a Hunter. I declined because I didn't want to give up love. Athena told me all about the Greek myths. I knew only some because where I came from not all of them existed...yet. Aphrodite was more of a mom to me. I didn't want her to be but she didn't care about what I wanted. I got used to her and I heard all about what was going on at Mount Olympus. I visited Olympus once and I will never do it again. It's a long story.
I've been on the streets for ten years. Artemis was the first to find me. Athena followed Artemis once and found me a month later. Aphrodite came around the same time as Athena. All three of them were amazing to me. Even Aphrodite was nice to me.
I would never say this out loud but Artemis was always my favorite. Something about the way she acted around me was different from everyone else. I think it's because I am a legacy of Apollo. She found me first and showed me how things worked in New York. My favorite thing to do with her was spar. Athena would sometimes join if she wasn't busy teaching me a bunch of stuff. The best part of having Aphrodite visit was new clothes and gossip. She made it her responsibility to make sure I didn't look homeless, even though I was. She told me that I had a beauty waiting to be revealed. I didn't know what she was talking about because I had a scar running along the right side of my face.
About a year after living in New York, I heard about a boy named Percy Jackson. He was about my age and had amazing sea-green eyes. I only saw him once and he didn't see me. For the next five years, all the news I heard about was about him. He was the son of Poseidon. He brought back Zeus' master bolt. He defeated the titan, Kronos. My favorite part was when Aphrodite told me that he was dating Annabeth, a daughter of Athena. Artemis and I started laughing. Even I know that Athena and Poseidon are enemies. Athena got mad at us but I didn't care.
There was a period of time when the goddesses wouldn't visit. I thought they had some godly business but they were gone for too long. I learned that it was because of a war against Gaea. Guess who was in it, Percy Jackson and Annabeth.
When Artemis finally saw me again, she was different. She told me what happened with Gaea and Apollo's punishment. At first glance, it looked like Artemis hated him but how could she truly hate her twin brother? Apollo was eventually brought back to Olympus and everything was back to normal.
Over the years, the three goddesses grew apart from me. I learned to truly live on my own. That's when Chase came. Chase was different from other boys. Then he left. All I could do was cry. Life was never the same. Aphrodite came back. I blamed her for Chase.
Now that you know about my life with the goddesses, it's time for when my journey started.
It's been a year since Chase left. One of the last things Artemis said to me was, "If you're ever in trouble, find Long Island and look for Percy Jackson." Then she left. That was almost three years ago. I haven't had any trouble besides the occasional monster, but it was nothing I couldn't handle. Today was unusual. I was making my way down the familiar New York streets when I saw someone following me. I didn't recognize them. They were kind of short and were dressed in all black. I had to get them into a place where I could confront them alone. I ran ahead and turned the corner. I turned again into an alley right as they turned the corner.
"Hey, who are you?" I asked the stranger who was following me.
They turned towards my voice and saw me. I took out my dagger. It was an enchanted dagger that could turn into any weapon with a simple thought. It was given to me by Artemis and Athena.
The stranger started walking towards me and I stood, ready to face them. My dagger changed into a sword. Then they disappeared. I lowered my sword, unsure of where they went. I felt a hand go over my mouth and a knife pressing against my back.
They must not have expected such a hard fight because flipping them was too easy. I grabbed the arm near my face and flipped them over my head. Their back landed hard on the floor. I heard them groan but they started getting up. Before they could move any further. I put my sword to their throat and pulled their hood back. It revealed a boy who looked about a couple of years younger than me. He looked unnaturally pale. He also had a black sword that scared me. I didn't know him at all. Why was he following me?
I must've taken too long because he pushed my sword away and got up. He brought out his sword which looked deadlier in his hands. I lifted my sword again. I attacked first. I aimed for his gut. He blocked my first strike but wasn't as lucky with my second. He jumped back but I still managed to pierce his skin. I advanced again. He anticipated my move and blocked my sword and kicked my gut. I moved back, surprised. Most don't get a good hit like that at me. He kept going. He tried using his knife to get an advantage. I could tell that he was not strong with his left. That was an even bigger disadvantage because it left his weaker side exposed. He fought hard but I fought harder. I finished by sweeping his legs and he fell to the floor. I stepped on his hand and he let go of his sword. I had him right where I wanted but I couldn't kill him. The way he fought was unusual like he didn't want to kill me. I put my foot to his chest to keep him down. He pushed it away and disappeared again. That was getting annoying
I heard someone behind me and I turned around. The boy stood there and said, "I don't want to hurt you. I volunteered to bring you to Camp, that was a mistake." Now I was interested, I wanted to know what camp he was talking about. "What camp and how did you know about me?"
"Grover smelled you. He's a satyr. He would've come but Juniper needed him and no one else wanted to go," he said.
He looked tired and leaned against the wall. I wasn't sure what to do or even say to him. I should've killed him while he was still recovering but I couldn't do it. The camp he was talking about seemed interesting. I was about to ask him about it when he yelled, "Look out!" and pointed behind me.
I turned around in time to see a boar attacking me. It was unusually large and looked like it could tear me to pieces. I knew was it was immediately. It was the boar that Artemis sent to destroy Kalydons when they dishonored her. I was stunned. If it was Artemis's then why was it attacking me? The boar was very close but the boy tackled me out of the way. The boar crashed into a wall. It didn't look hurt at all and just turned in my direction and charged again. This time I was ready. I changed my weapon to a bow and shot arrows at it. That didn't do much either. The arrows bounced harmlessly off of the monster's thick hide. That left close combat. I'd rather take it down from a distance but that was not possible. It was still charging at me and I charged as well. From the corner of my eye, I saw the boy lying on the floor, a small pool of blood next to him. He needed help but I needed to get rid of the boar first. When I got close enough, I slide under the massive boar and ended up behind it. It took a while for it to recover but it turned around. It charged again. Just in time, I jumped onto it and it crashed into a wall. It started to try to shake me off but I stayed on. When I steadied myself I changed my weapon to a sword and plunged it down the boar's neck. The boar stopped and I thought it was dead but I was wrong. The boar was extremely mad now. It shook me off and I fell to the floor. My sword was still stuck in the boar so I was defenseless.
I thought all hope was lost, that this was the end for me. I got up and tried to get back on the boar but it was too fast. It knocked me into the air and I fell down to the floor again. When I landed, I heard a sickening crunch and screamed in pain. I looked down and saw my leg twisted weirdly. I put a hand to the back of my head and saw blood. My vision was slightly blurry and I felt tired. I got up. I was an Amazon. I was not going to let a boar take me down.
With the last of my strength, I climbed onto the boar and grabbed my sword. I guess the boar was hurt from my earlier attacked because he started falling. I brought my sword down again into his skull and the boar fell. I rolled off and lied on the floor. I was exhausted and couldn't continue moving. I hoped someone would at least find the boy and help him. The last thing I saw was a boy was black hair and sea-green eyes and a girl next to him with blonde hair and grey, stormy eyes, Percy Jackson and Annabeth Chase.
I woke up in a hospital bed. I tried getting up but was met with a sharp pain in my head. I didn't see them before but I realized there was someone next to me. They saw me awake and told me something but I couldn't hear. I was scared that I had lost my hearing but it slowly came back. The person taking care of me was a tall blonde boy with blue eyes. 'Son of Apollo,' I thought. I started surveying my surroundings. It looked almost like a hospital but it was too loud outside for the building to be a hospital. The boy was almost my age and wasn't wearing a uniform so that just confirmed my suspicion that I wasn't in a hospital. I realized the boy was talking again, "Hello, my name's Will. What's yours?"
Normally I would tell a stranger my name but he seemed like wanted to help not hurt so I said, "Aristomache." He looked at me but before he could say anything I said, "Yes, I was named after the Artisomache in history books." He murmured something that I could not hear and continued in a louder voice, "I have to go care for my boyfriend but if you need anything just call me, I'll be in the room next door." He got up and left. I couldn't sleep so I spent most of my time thinking of what I should do next. Should I get out of this place or stay? What happened to the boy? Did Percy Jackson bring me here and why? I had so many questions and hardly any answers. It wasn't long before Will came back. He fed me some Ambrosia and Nectar and started asking me questions.
"Do you know where you are?"
"No."
"How was Nico injured?"
"He was hit by the boar when trying to me out of the way." I figured the boy who was following me earlier was Nico.
"What's the last thing you remember?"
"Killing the boar and then a view of Percy Jackson and Annabeth Chase."
He looked up from his notes and said, "How do you know Percy and Annabeth? They didn't recognize you and I know Annabeth would if she met you."
I silently cursed myself for being a fool. They might think I was spying on them. I didn't know what to say so I said the truth, most of it. "I heard about them while living on the streets. When you can see through the Mist it's hard to miss the giant fight against the Titans and then Gaea."
He must've believed me and continued writing things down. He stopped asking questions so I asked, "How long was I out?" He looked up again and said, "Three days." I looked down at my leg and it looked fine, almost like I never broke it. Will saw me looking at my leg and told me about what Ambrosia and Nectar do but I already knew. Athena told me about it and gave me a supply of it. I pretended like I didn't know and even asked some questions so I didn't cause too much suspicion. Will stayed for another two hours and left again. I was feeling tired so I slept.
The next morning I was out of the Infirmary and went to meet a centaur named Chiron. I heard about him in myths so what was he doing here. Will guided me to a building and told me Chiron was inside. I walked in and saw him, as well as Percy, Annabeth, and a girl with full armor glaring at me. They were gathered around a pool table, which I thought was unusual. I sat down in an empty chair and stared at Annabeth. She looked a lot like Athena. She had the same stormy eyes and wore the same confidence. I noticed a ring around her finger. I wonder what Athena would think of her daughter marrying a son of Poseidon. I let a small smile come to my face. The other girl and Chiron were arguing, something about capture the flag. Percy and Annabeth were talking about someone named Grover and his son. I wasn't going to interrupt any conversations so I just sat there.
Chiron finally noticed me and stopped talking to the other girl. He got up and announced, "This is Aristomache. I called this meeting so because there is something unusual going on with Racheal and I believe she has something to do with it." Everyone stared at me. He got to the point really quickly and I didn't know how to answer. I had a feeling that Annabeth wouldn't exactly be happy to hear that I know her mom better than she does so I came up with a story but it still had some truth. I said, "I am a legacy of Apollo. I have been living on the streets for ten years because both of my parents were killed in a car crash. I don't have any other family and I didn't go into foster care. My weapon was passed down my family. I heard about Percy and Annabeth while on the streets."
Annabeth met my eyes. I stared down her grey eyes. She suspected I was hiding something but I couldn't let her see that. The girl arguing with Chiron earlier spoke up and asked me, "Can you fight?" Percy gave her a look and said, "Really, Clarisse. She just single-handedly brought down a giant boar and you're asking her if she can fight."
Clarisse stood up and started a silent staring contest with Percy. Chiron eyed both of them and said, "We can't let our situation bring us against each other." Percy looked away and Clarisse smiled. Annabeth rolled her eyes and asked to talk to Chiron privately. As soon as they left the room, Clarisse and Percy stood up again, hurling insults at each other. They were like Artemis and Apollo.
I felt a dagger appear by my side. My eyes grew in worry. My dagger only appeared when I wanted them to or if I was in danger. I yelled at Clarisse and Percy, "We're under attack!" Immediately after the words left my mouth, Nico came bursting into the room, shouting, "We're under attack!" So now Clarisse and Percy pay attention. Nico continued saying, "There is a giant snake, crab, and scorpion that just came into Camp." Everyone ran over to where a bunch of cabins was located. Each one was decorated differently, probably one for each Olympian. The giant snake and scorpion were believable but a giant crab. I had trouble picturing that before it just came down right in front of me. Behind me I could hear horse hooves, Chiron's I think.
All three monsters stood at the center of the area. The campers attacked but nothing seemed to be hurting them. I changed my dagger into a bow and shot three arrows. All of them hit their target, embedding themselves, one into each monster. Before anyone else could stop me, I charged. I aimed for the snake first. Another arrow stuck out of the snake's body. I ran around it and shot another two arrows. All found their target. I shot all of my arrows, most hitting their target. My weapon changed into a spear and I threw as hard as I could. It hit the snake's eye. The snake fell and crumbled to dust. The scorpion was nowhere to be seen. I heard Annabeth shout, "Behind you!" I turned right at the tail came down to strike. The force was so strong that I fell. I quickly rolled out of the way and picked up my spear. It changed once again into a sword. The other campers gave up trying to fight it and everyone watched me fight.
The scorpion changed direction and tried stabbing me again. I moved out of the way and ran behind it. The beast started turning around but it was too slow. A disadvantage of being giant. In one clean swing of my sword, the scorpion's tail fell. It shrieked in agony. I was going to finish the job when a claw grabbed me. I had forgotten about the crab. It held me in its pincers, I struggled but it was useless. I heard something crack and felt a pain in my chest. My arms were pinned to my side and no one else could harm the crab. I saw Percy running towards the crab. He swung one of its legs clean of and the crab dropped me. I got up before it could pick me up again. So now only Percy and I could harm them. The scorpion recovered and grew another tail. Percy went for the scorpion which left me with the crab. I changed my sword into a spear again and threw it as hard as I could. I aimed for the crab's head but missed and it bounced off the hard shell. The crab's only weak spot was the bottom. The crab moved with lightning speed and slapped me into a wall. It wasted no time and started running after me. I got up and sprinted to get my spear. The crab was right on my tail. I yelled to Percy, "Get the scorpion to attack the crab's shell!" He nodded and started leading the scorpion to the crab. He jumped on the crab's shell and the scorpion struck. Percy jumped off in time and the scorpion's poison killed the crab. The crab crumpled to dust.
The scorpion turned to me and Percy. We turned to each other, nodded, and charged. Percy kept it occupied and I slide underneath it. My spear was once again a sword and I raised it into the belly of the monster. The Celestial Bronze broke through the Scorpion's skin and killed it. I got up behind the scorpion and saw it disappear into dust. I turned to Percy to thank him when he collapsed. I caught him before he hit the floor. Annabeth screamed, "Percy!" and ran to us. I put my finger to his neck to check for a pulse.
Nothing.
Hey! I hope you like the beginning of my new story. Please leave a review if you like the story and want to know what happens next.
- The Author
