The Giant

I woke up, like every other school day, at seven o'clock sharp. I rolled out of bed and went into my bathroom to get ready. As I stared at my reflection, messy black hair and tired ocean blue eyes, I couldn't help but grin as a thought occurred to me. Today was the last day of school. That meant the beginning to my freedom. Well, my freedom for two months, at least. I turned on my shower, then undressed and stepped in. I cleaned myself and spent a few minutes, which weren't needed, in the shower to plan out my awesome summer with my two best friends, the Wyatt twins. Once I was done planning my summer, I stepped out of the shower and wrapped a towel around my waist. I rushed to my room and got dressed in black basketball shorts and a red tee shirt. I slipped on my red converse and ran down the stairs, leaving my longish hair to dry.

God, I sure needed a hair cut. When I reached my kitchen, I wasn't surprised to find my twin best friends at the table eating off of plates my mother must have made them. This has been going on for years. They're practically her sons just as much as I am. I grinned at them and sat down in my chair, eating a piece of bacon.

"So, are you excited?" Jason asks, shoveling a spoonful of eggs into his mouth.

"Well, duh. It's summer. Who wouldn't be excited?" I ask, finishing my piece of bacon.

"Jake." He answers, shooting a look of amusement at his brother.

"Shut up. It's your fault! You were suppose to be the one tee-peeing the school and I was suppose to egg it. Of course, that's how it worked but when you got caught, you pretended to be me!" Jacob grumbles, talking about how he and his brother were caught during their little trick.

"So? That's one of the perks of having a twin, Jacob." Jason smiles.

I roll my eyes and hold up my hands. I, unlike the twins, was an only child and it bothered me when they did things like this. Of course, they're like brothers but it's not the same as having someone with the same blood as you.

"Guys, come on, we'll be late for school." I groan, standing up. It was already 7:45 and my mom would be ready to drop us off in a few minutes.

"Alright, we'll shut up. For now." Jacob says.

I don't bother taking my backpack with me to the car. I open the passenger side door and get in, shutting it right after. The twins climb in the back and soon my mom is out of the house and in the driver's side seat. I look nothing like my mom. She has blonde hair and brown eyes, plus she's pretty short. I'm only 5'8 and I'm taller than her. I've never known my dad but she says I look just like him, especially when I laugh. She usually cries when she tells me stories about him and that just makes me hate him. I hate seeing my mom cry and I hate knowing that I look just like the man that causes her this pain. She says she loves him, though, but I know it still hurts her. My friends don't see it, but I know she's not truly happy.

Blocked out of the world by my own thoughts, I hadn't noticed we'd made it to school. The twins and I get out and we say good-bye to my mom. We walk into the school and go to our homeroom. When I walk in, I notice that our teacher isn't here and we have a sub. He's very buff and big.I decide not to pay too much attention to it and I take my seat. Jase, Jake and I decide to do what everyone else is doing and talk. We don't talk as loud as the other kids around us which is why it surprises me to hear the substitute call our names.

"Tyler, Jason and Jacob, may I speak with you outside?" He asks. I see a faint shimmer in him but I ignore it. The twins and I stand and walk outside. The substitute, Mr. Wrek, closes the door behind us.

"Mr.-" Jason begins but is cut off.

"No need to explain, demigod. A mere detention would have been a reward compared to the fate you shall receive now." He says, and as I stare harder at him, he turns bigger and uglier.

The twins must have seen it, too, because they back away. I decide to do what they're doing because it seems like the smart thing to do in this situation.

"Wh-what are you?" I ask, shocked that I could even speak.

"He's a Giant, of course." A voice says behind me.

I turn to find a tall boy, maybe a year or two older than me, standing straight with a sword in his hand. He has blonde hair and dark blue eyes that stare down the Giant.

"Who are you?" I ask, staring at the sword.

"I'm Brandon Jones. Just like the three of you, I'm a demigod. We all have special powers. But, I can explain that later." He says, stepping between us and the Giant.

"But-"

"Just shut up, kid, and let me help you."

I don't argue with him. Brandon raises his sword to slash the Giant but it dodges, bringing it hand to swipe him into a wall. He dodges and tries to slash at the creature again. The monster slams him into a wall with force that should have knocked him out. But it didn't. He looks at us with anger in his eyes.

"What are you three idiots doing standing there? Run!" He yells.

We don't waste time arguing with him. We dash out of the school building and into the back, where the playground is. I turn just in time to see the Giant behind us. As he emerges from the building, Brandon jumps out behind him. He stays in the air, floating. He's actually floating. I watch in amazement as flies toward the Giant and suddenly, lightning forms in the air. It all strikes at the Giant. The Giant erupts into golden dust and Brandon lands onto the ground on his feet. He sheaths his sword and turns to us.

"Come with me." He instructs.

"What? No." Jacob protests.

"Look, idiots. I could stand here and force you to come with me or you can come the easy way. You think the three of you are the only people I have to rescue today? I just found out I have a sister and she just turned thirteen two days ago. She could be getting attacked, too, and I need to get her just like I got you all." He glares.

I look at the twins and nod. He needs to save his sister, that's understandable. The twins sigh but they follow my lead when I walk behind Brandon. Brandon leads us from the school yard into the street and pulls out a golden coin.

"Stêthi 'Ô hárma diabolês." he says, tossing the coin high into the air.

"What? Are you crazy? Why would-" the words die on Jason's mouth as a speeding taxi halts to a stop in front of Brandon. The thing is, the taxi looks like it's made of smoke. Brandon turns to us and motions for us to get in.

We all slide in and he slides in after us. Three women, one holding an actual eyeball, occupy the front of the taxi. It felt weird, because I thought we would slip right through the taxi.

"What is this? Who are they? Where are we going?" I ask, all at once.

"This is the Gray Sister's taxi. They are the Gray Sisters and we're going to Camp Half-blood so I can get transportation to my sister."

"Um, alright. Well, where are the seat belts?" Jason asks, holding black chains.

Brandon chuckles.

"You're holding them."

I open my mouth to speak, but the taxi is speeding down the road.

Stêthi 'Ô hárma diabolês- The magical words used to summon the Gray Sisters' taxi, which is the fastest way to Camp Half-Blood.