Okay guys. Sorry about the wait. I am having a bit of a rough spot in my life right now, and updates will slow. On a better note, I have been asked to beta! That is great. Remember guys, review. That is the fuel that keeps me going. Quote of the day, "Curiosity did not kill the cat. Stupidity did, and curiosity was framed." Song i'm listening to Good Directions by Billy Currington. Other fandoms will start to show in about two to three chapters.
The band shifted and a rumbling sound echoed throughout the valley. The band seemed to rotate to the side and flow down the side. It started to accumulate on the ground and it became clear it was some kind of snake. Leo shivered from next to me. "Snakes. Why is it always snakes?" He muttered, just loud enough for it to be heard. Nico grinned at him.
"Look at it this way. It could be worse. It could always be cockroaches..."
Leo waved his hands frantically. "No, no. It's fine. On second thought, I will take the snakes."
"That's what I thought."
The snake slowly uncoiled to his full height. Thankfully, this one had only one head. "I cannot allow you to pass. You do not know the two lessons need for you to pass." His voice sounded surprisingly mellow, it was actually quite rich and deep. "As you seem to be of good heart, I will allow you to pass if you learn one, and then you must pass the other guardian on your own. Otherwise, I am afraid I must fight you off."
Nico drew his sword. "And if we simply fight past you?" He asked, pointing the stygian iron weapon at the beast and raising an eyebrow.
The snake chuckled. "That won't happen young one. If you manage to best me, I will gladly let you pass."
The three quickly huddled. Percy was the one to speak first. "Okay. We don't have time to figure out what he means. We have to fight him. The Argo will be useless in such an enclosed area, so we will fight on foot. Nico, try to summon the dead, then come help me. Leo, throw fireballs and try to make something with your belt. I will take point. Got it?" At the matching nods we darted into action. I ran forward first and drew his attention. He hissed.
"So you fight? It is futile. But so be it!" He exploded forward in a blur of movement. He dodged my first swipe of the blade and knocked my feet out from under me. His tail swung around and slammed into Leo, sending him flying. He drew back at lightning speed and looked at us. "Like I said, you cannot hope to defeat me. I give you one more chance to reconsider your course of action. There is no shame in admitting defeat."
Nico yelled and the few undead he had managed to raise drew their weapons and charged forward. The snake roared aloud. "You cannot beat me! I do not wish to kill you, but you are leaving me with no choice!" He quickly ducked his head and lunged, avoiding the pointy ends of the spears pointed at him before taking a mouthful of bones and then spitting poison at the others. Nico looked at the empty space and then back up.
"Oh come on! That was ridiculous! That like an all time low for them!" Percy stabbed forward, hoping to catch the monster by surprise. It dodged again, showing unnatural speed and agility for something so big. Then Leo used his Archimedes Sphere combined with Nico's power over the earth and collapsed some of the walls on top of the beast. When the dust cleared, there was amound of rock in front of us.
"Oh yeah! Who awesome? Who's awesome?" Leo crowed pumping his fist. Then the pile exploded and rocks shot in all directions. Nico and Leo were both taken by surprise and got hit head on. It was clear they would be no more help for the duration of this fight. Percy was able to hit the dirt in time as he was slightly farther away. He got up and lunged, angry this time, and used his skills to the maximum. He even went to his special combo where he used a knife at the same time, dual wielding. It didn't matter. No matter what he did, the snake was never touched. It was almost like a dance, it was so flexible Percy couldn't hit it. He growled as he tried again and failed, again. "How are you doing this? Nothing has this flexibility." He went to the last resort of throwing his sword and the snake simply ducked and popped back up.
"I literally have no spine young one. I can bend in impossible directions. I am a Cerastes, and you cannot defeat me."
Percy leaped back and studied his opponent. Perseus himself was exhausted while the cerastes had yet to break a sweat. Clearly it was toying with him. Yet it had said it did not want to kill them... Then it hit him. He had given them advice, all the way back at the beginning. What had he said? "There is no shame in admitting defeat." That decided it. He drew Riptide, which had returned to his pocket, and dropped in front of him. "I yield."
The snake blinked, confused. "Pardon?"
"I yield. This is a fight I cannot win. There is no point in continuing to fight."
The snake smiled. "Indeed. You need to pick your battles. There will be battles you cannot win, do not throw your life away for an unachievable reason. That is indeed a lesson many fail to learn and pay the price for. Let us hope you are wiser in the future. As to the other guardian... All the advice I can give you admits to one word. Love." And with that it turned and slithered back into its former position. Then everything was still. Absolutely still.