Once our stomachs had been sufficiently filled with godly food (chocolate, rumored to be poop of the gods), we left the restaurant and started our trip to the indicated section of city circled by Hera. Aquila, being the smart one, navigated the map for us and led us down a series of blocks until we had cramps from the food we'd just eaten.
It was two o'clock by the time we reached the area marked, and we had been silent the entire time until Archer said, "I just don't get it, guys."
"What, Archer?" I said, grateful for a conversation. Aquila, who would usually take this as an opportunity to act annoyed at him, was too busy squinting at the map to pay any attention.
"How is Zeus such a ladies' man?"
Hector shrugged. "He's king of the gods."
"He has a beard," Archer said. "Beards are not even in! Ladies don't even like beards."
"You sound like a son of Aphrodite," I scoffed.
"Well," he argued, kicking a pebble on the street, "do you think I'd actually look good with a beard?"
"I wouldn't think you looked good, beard or no beard." I scanned over the buildings, sensing for activity.
"Ow," Archer said, and winced. "Ow, ow, ow…"
"Truth hurts, Sunshine," I sighed.
"Well, that's not fair." Archer sent me a glare that looked too baby seal-like to be taken seriously. "You'd still think Hector was hot if he had a beard. This is favoritism! Come see the violence inherited in the system!"
"I would not!" I sputtered.
"Oh, please." Archer rolled his eyes. "I feel like the Aphrodite kid of the group. You guys are always playing eye-hockey, touching each other…"
"I don't like hockey," Hector murmured.
I wasn't even sure why my face was burning. It's not like what Archer said was true. I mean, Hector's looks were plenty… appealing. Okay, extremely appealing. Well, you know, tallness, the curly hair, the bright eyes, fit body, what didn't technically count as good-looking? But we'd always been friends. Friends, not even close to more. That would be… weird.
"Stop being an idiot, Archer. You're not an Aphrodite kid, so don't try to play one," I told him sharply.
"Yeah, she's right, Archer," Aquila said vaguely from ahead of us, not even looking up.
Archer frowned. "Do you even know what we're discussing?"
"No," she admitted, turning the map to the side. "But I do know that you're an idiot."
I decided to step in to avoid the surely upcoming event of one of them ripping out the other's spine and beating them with it, and said, "Anyone sensing godly aura yet?"
Hector seemed relieved at my change of the subject and said instantly, "Maybe. Something to the upper left?"
I nodded, taking point and marching over to the building that he had indicated, a little white house with a picket fence and a flourishing garden. Biting my lip, I looked the place up and down. If this was the right location, great. If not, we were about to randomly barge in to some poor person's house.
Well, desperate, 'only way I'm ever going to live again' and 'the world will crumble without the success of this quest' times come with desperate measures. Therefore, I strode right up there and knocked on the door.
After a whole minute of waiting, I knocked again. And again. And aga-
"Let's just go in, Clio," Hector said.
I tugged on the knob. "It's locked."
Hector glared at me, reminding me that he was a son of Hermes.
"Oh, right," I said, and backed away to let him at it.
All he needed was few seconds and a paper clip, and we were in. Archer's bow was drawn, Hector's daggers…
I could definitely feel that we were in the right house by now, with the powerful 'bow down before me' aura lingering around the place. The only problem that we came to was the fact that when we got through the entrance way, a Sphinx was blocking our path.
We stopped short, Aquila now whipping out her weapon as well. I just stared. The Sphinx, a winged lion with the face of a beautiful woman, did not attack, but simply smiled at us, pawing and prowling back and forth, keeping us out. Perhaps she could be reasoned with.
"Lower your weapons," I said.
Aquila gaped at me. "But Clio-"
"I said lower your weapons," I cut her off, and then turned to the Sphinx. "Hello. What are you doing here?"
She purred. "I do as I usually do. I guard, little demigods."
"Erm, can we go by?" I asked hopefully.
"I think you know how it goes," she said. "You answer my riddle, you may pass. Don't answer it, you may walk away. Get it wrong, and you die."
I sighed. "Yeah, alright. Riddle, please?"
A wicked sort of smile played across her lips. "I am the beginning of sorrow, and the end of sickness. You cannot express happiness without me, yet I am in the midst of crosses. I am always in risk, yet never in danger. You may find me in the sun, but I am never out of darkness."
Archer's mouth was hanging open, Hector simply looked irritated, and Aquila, obviously, was thinking, muttering to herself, "Beginning of sorrow… end of sickness? Could be, no, that can't be right…"
The truth is, we were all just waiting for her. We didn't have to wait long.
Aquila blinked quickly after only a few seconds, then began to laugh. "Oh, that's too easy."
"What is it?" I murmured.
She stared the Sphinx straight in the eye. "The letter 's'."
The Sphinx just smiled, and walked away.
"Nice one, Aquila!" Archer cheered, hugging her hard to annoy her. But the daughter of Athena only sighed, as if she was too tired to make him stop.
"Let's go, guys. He's probably right around here, as he set up a Sphinx to guard him. Not his smartest move," I said to them, starting forward with Hector.
Sure enough, the first bedroom we crept to, we heard voices:
"Perhaps we can go out to eat tonight? Then I can take you around town, then come back here…"
The woman said something and Hector maimed barfing. Stifling a laugh, I peeked around the door just enough to see Zeus and some curvy blonde sitting together, murmuring sweet nothings and crap. Having seen and heard enough, I motioned to them that it was time to high tail it.
As we crept out, I secretly agreed with Archer; beards were not in or attractive.
I was contemplating this until Aquila gasped and I looked up. A small terrier had just trotted into the room, and had stopped dead upon seeing us. It was when he started barking like nuts that I decided that terriers were evil as well.
Purest evil when thunder rolled and a booming voice from the hall called out, "DEMIGODS!"
We all shared a look, a look that clearly said a large combination of colorful metaphors and then one word that made even more sense.
Run.
Lightning cackled above us as we took off full speed, running and not exactly knowing where we were running to, other than away. Can you run from lightning and the king of the gods? Well, between imminent doom and a laughable chance, I'll take the chance every time.
Of course, running always gets faster when something is chasing you, so, naturally, just to give us a work out, Zeus decided to have a temper tantrum so that when we looked over our shoulders next, our eyes were greeted with the sight of a towering, scaly hydra and a swarm of harpies.
As you can imagine, this made my day.
Adrenaline is great stuff, because I didn't feel the stitch in my side, I didn't feel my legs aching, but my mind did focus in on my surroundings; we'd reached the beach, and Hector was shouting my name as he jumped and pushed me over, acid spray shooting over our heads as we hit the sand hard.
When my vision cleared, Hector was shakily holding a red-stained hand to his side, his shirt was torn and steaming, and over us loomed the hydra, his seven great, ugly heads hissing, rearing back and ready to strike.
Though they were pitiful last words, I said weakly, "I blame the terrier," and held my sword up in above of us.
Good afternoon, strawberries!
No, I don't know what's with the 'strawberries' thing. I don't like strawberries either... But I like you guys!
And again, take a few seconds of your day to leave a review! I love anything you have to say, and whenever anyone leaves something, I admit to making a happy little 'yeep!' noise and jumping around... Please with a llama on top? (No, I don't hate llamas. I love llamas...)
Okay! Exams over! But... family member graduation party to work on today and tomorrow, spending time with cousins Sunday, and summer school already on Monday... Ew. I'm really glad that I got this out, though, because I miss writing it. Not a very long chapter, but do ya like it? What's gonna happen? Did anyone find the Monty Python reference?
May the force be with you, :)
~LoneStorm
