Sorry for the late update. Life has been pretty busy. I'm full of stress, I'm about to go BOOM! I hate college! Papers, papers, papers... and more papers! Why do I even put up with college? I can just go out to the world and have my own adventure, instead of being stuck inside classrooms with teachers and professors that suck! HATE HATE HATE HATE HATE... HATE!!! Sorry for ranting. I'm just trying to cool off.
Anyway, this chapter is a bit short. I kinda just rushed it. I'll try to clean it up when I finally get a hold of myself.
DISCLAIMER: I do not own anything. Not even my own life! Gods! So annoying!
Chapter 7: A plan worthy of Athena.
A loud howl shattered the silent night. Nico hastily woke up. I glanced at Thalia. Her eyes widened, and I noticed something deep within them. Fear.
We all stood up as something leapt into the cargo right in between Nico and us. It was a timber wolf, with balanced shades of white and black fur. It was only half the size of Mrs. O'Leary but looked a lot deadlier. It had red eyes, but not just any bloodshot eyes. They were literally red, like glowing christmas bulbs. As I stared into its eyes, I can feel myself tremble as I saw visions of my worst fears.
"What is that?" I asked my voice quivering.
Thalia muttered, "Laelaps."
I kept my gaze on its fangs to avoid getting paralyzed at the sight of its eyes; not the turn-you-to-stone Medusa-type of paralysis nor the oh-my-gods-that-big-snake-is-going-to-eat-me Drakon-type of paralysis, but the holy-Zeus-I-can-see-myself-running-around-naked type of paralysis. That's not exactly my worst fear, but you get the point.
It kept snarling at me, waiting for any sudden movements. I remained very still, readying my hand to draw Riptide if it suddenly attacks. Finally, it barked and lunged at me. I ducked as I drew Riptide and slashed sideways, hoping it would disintegrate. Oh, Styx! It had invulnerable fur like the Nemean Lion, so it just got hit by the flat of my blade and crashed against the wall.
My ADHD helped my senses work overtime. I analyzed everything in my surroundings. The door was five feet away to the right, but jumping out would only cause it to chase us on ground. And that's a terrible idea, knowing that it's faster than us. Then I finally saw it. Above the crates behind Nico was a vent on the roof.
"Cover me!" I shouted as I ran towards the crates. I saw Thalia draw her hunting knives out of the corner of my eye. Nico charged pass me with his Stygian sword as I started to climb. The crates were a bit high and were far apart but it was a lot easier than wall climbing at camp. I heard Thalia scream as she crashed against the wall.
I started to mutter a prayer when I finally reached the top of the crates. "Please, be open. Please, be open." And just like that, I pushed the vent and it opened. I made a silent promise to thank the gods if we made it out of this.
I looked back just in time as Nico smashed into the crates. I didn't need to insult Lealaps. As soon as he saw me, he jumped up, and with just one leap, he reached the top of the crates. I scrambled out through the vent as he tried to bite my foot off.
"Nice try, Wolfy. Why are you a wolf anyway? Shouldn't you be like, a hyena instead? You look like an Evil Clown with those dopey red eyes! You'd definitely be better in laughing than hunting." I actually felt good with my insult, though my sense of self-respect didn't last long. Laelaps burst through the roof leaving a big hole. I jumped on to the next cargo and started running. After jumping on a couple of more cargos, I heard Thalia and Nico shout behind me. I turned around just in time as Laelaps jumped at me. I used Riptide to catch his bite, hoping it would rip open his mouth. But instead he just bit the sword and pushed me down on my back. Great. His mouth is invulnerable, too.
I tried to kick Lealaps off of me but he was bigger and heavier. He used his weight to pin me down as he used his mouth to push my sword right in front of my face. I was running out of options. I yelled, "Help!" Just then, an arrow hit the roof a few inches away from my face. "Hey!"
"Sorry!" I heard Thalia shout. I may be invulnerable, but that doesn't mean they can just keep hitting and not worry about me. Oh, wait. Actually, they can.
Laelaps eventually realized he's about to be surrounded, so he snatched my sword out of my hands and threw it to the side. It slid down the train, but that wasn't any of my worries, knowing it will just come back to my pocket any second. He got off of me and charged Thalia and Nico. I quickly got up and held his tail. I summoned all my strength and pulled him back, just in time for Thalia and Nico to kick him off the train. He trashed and twirled on the ground, but it only bought us a few seconds. Soon, he will be back on his feet. There was no stopping Laelaps.
"Look!" Nico said pointing behind me. I turned, and about five miles away was a tunnel. I knew then what to do.
"Nico, I need some skeletons to distract him for a while."
He nodded and lifted his sword in the air. A dark hole appeared right in front of us as he mumbled in Ancient Greek. Five skeletons emerged just in time when Laelaps got back on the train.
"Go, and take cover," I told them. "I'll distract him."
"But-" Thalia started.
"Just go! I know what to do. Trust me," I said cutting her off. I did hope I know what I was doing, but we had no other choice.
She nodded. "Don't do anything crazy." My plan isn't crazy. Okay, maybe a little insane. But hey, at least I had an idea.
I watched them open a vent on the next cargo and go down. I turned back to Laelaps. The skeletons, or more like bones, were scattered. What dog doesn't like bones? Apparently Laelaps. The skeletons were nothing to him but it gave me just enough time. I started to walk backwards slowly as he approached. I felt Riptide back in my pocket, but I didn't need it now. I need to appear defenseless.
"Come here, Wolfy." Just as I planned, he lunged at me. And like everything was rehearsed, I dropped down on my back and held my feet in the air just in time as he got on me. I kicked him sidewards as we entered the tunnel. It was pure darkness inside the tunnel but I saw his glowing red eyes bounce in the dark, like two fireflies flying wildly. I heard him whimper as he fell off the train and trash against the bearings. I wanted to congratulate myself for actually having a plan that worked. But I knew it wasn't enough to stop him. The least is it will take some time for him to recover. We may have a couple of days at the most.
After exiting the tunnel, I went back to our previous cargo to get our bags then I went to check on Thalia and Nico. The cargo they were in was full of crates and there was hardly any space to stay. We sat by the vent because it was the only source of light.
"So?" Nico asked.
"He's gone. For now," I answered truthfully. I didn't actually know what happened, but I was sure the damage done would take him days to recover.
"What did you do?" Thalia asked. I told them my stunt and how I pulled it off. They were actually surprised I managed to think of something like that.
"Looks like Annabeth has been rubbing off on you," she teased. I forced a smile. Annabeth's voice was echoing in my head. A plan worthy of Athena. The thought of her made my heart clench. I miss her.
"You both should rest. I'll take watch," Nico said. I wanted to argue but I just nodded. He probably wants to cherish the darkness for all it's worth.
I sat down next to Thalia. At first it was hard to see, but now that we were in the dark, she glowed with a faint silvery aura around her- the blessing of Artemis. Her gaze was straight into the dark and that meant she was deep in her thoughts.
"What's wrong?" I asked.
She was silent for a few minutes before answering. "Lealaps. He's-he's not supposed to have red eyes."
"What do you mean?"
"Lady Artemis usually tells us stories about her hunts in the past. She mentioned Laelaps quite often because he was the perfect hunting companion. But when she described Laeaps," she paused for a while, shaking her head, "He's supposed to have bright silver eyes, like shining stars. Not those red glowing ones."
"Then, maybe, that wasn't Laelaps."
"Did you see your worst fears when you looked him in the eyes?"
"Uh, yeah." The thought of seeing my loved ones die in those scary red eyes made me shiver.
"Then that was definitelyhim. Something is clearly wrong."
"Well, duh," I said as a matter-of-factly. I tried to put sarcasm in my voice but it came out very wrong.
She glared at me with her electrifying blue eyes. They were probably as bad as Laelaps eyes, if not worse. I didn't tell her that, and I definitely didn't want to mess with her. I raised my hands in the air as a sign of peace.
She was about to speak but instead let out a yawn, obviously a sign of exhaustion. Even I was getting more tired by the second. I haven't gotten enough sleep yet and my invulnerability was draining all the strength left in me.
I sighed, "We'll try to find out what's going on. You should rest." I pat her shoulder and she winced. Her crash against the wall must have given her a bruise. I grabbed an ambrosia square from my backpack and handed it to her, "Here."
"Thanks," she mumbled as she stuffed the god-food in her mouth. "You get some sleep, too."
I nodded and used my backpack as a pillow. But before I fell asleep, I remembered my promise. Thank you.
I was too worn out this time, I didn't even have a dream. It was just pure darkness and gloom.
"Percy!" Nico practically yelled in my ear.
I opened my eyes and my reflexes responded for me, I whacked him in the head. "What in Tartarus is wrong with you?" I complained while rubbing my ear.
"I was just trying to wake you up," he grumbled.
"Trying to wake me up? More like trying to make me deaf."
Thalia stuck her head in the open vent. "Stop whining you two. Come on, Kelp Face. We need to get going."
"Good morning to you, too," I muttered.
The train was still moving, and it made me wonder why we need to get going. I peeked through the vent where Thalia was seated. It was still a little dark out. "What time is it?"
"About five," she answered.
"In the morning? It's just been a few hours. Why are we getting off?"
"We're already in Illinois."
"But that's impossible. That-" I didn't continue. If we were moving this fast, it only meant one thing. We're being helped by a god, or gods.
I went up and Nico followed suit. The train looked like it was moving at a normal speed, but the burst of wind meant otherwise.
"So, how exactly are we going to-" but before I could finish, Thalia notched an arrow with a cord and shot it to a tree a few yards ahead. She jumped off and swung towards the woods.
"Great," I muttered. I turned to Nico. "How about-" and again before I could finish, he melted with the shadow and appeared next to Thalia. They smiled and waved.
"Some friends," I grumbled. There was no other way for me to get off but to jump. I swung my backpack behind me and made sure it covered the soft spot on my back. I sighed and jumped off. As I hit the ground I rolled to sustain my momentum, but I still ended up twirling and tumbling around. I should've broken all my bones. Being invulnerable sure has its perks.
I tried to stand up but ended up falling face down on the ground. Thalia and Nico came running towards me, laughing. They helped me up as I put my hand on my head. I still felt a little dazed from turning and turning.
"Thanks," I mumbled.
"You should've seen your self," Nico cackled.
"Ha-ha," I mocked as I tried to compose myself. "So, where exactly are we?"
"Somewhere south of Illinois," Thalia answered. It made me wonder how she was aware of that, but I didn't dare ask. She probably already knew her way around the country from running away and being a hunter.
"We should head to-" I stopped as I heard someone call me.
"Percy!"
AN: Sorry if the chapter is a bit messed up. I, myself, am pretty much messed up, too. I don't have time to clean it up. But I do have time to rant some more. And like I said, I hate life! Ugh!
If you wish to help cheer me up, review!
