Sorry for the unexpected hiatus. Now, I'm going to try REAAALLY hard to get this story done before Christmas. Wish me luck!
DISCLAIMER: GUESS THE NAME : IKCR AONRIRD. CLUE: HE OWNS THE CAST AND CREW OF PERCY JACKSON AND THE OLYMPIANS.
A single spotlight was zeroed in on Tyson. He stood still, his tall frame looming over the audience. In his hands were two enormous bronze hammers. For once, the amphitheater was quiet.
Then there was a sound of heavy drums, like tribal music, emanating from the surrounding speakers. Tyson tossed the hammers high into the air, the heads of the hammers glinting in the night sky. When the hammers dropped back into his hands, he began expertly juggling them. The hammers twirled around in fluid motions. Tyson smoothly transferred the hammers between his hands, into the air, across his back, over his head and back into his arms.
The crowd oohed and aahed. A juggling Cyclops was quite an unusual sight.
Suddenly, the hammers ignited, entirely engulfed by cobalt-blue fires that covered Tyson's bare hands. Tyson's routine became more complicated. The hammers were flung higher into the air and spinned faster. Tyson twirled around, causing flaming sapphire wisps to dance around the stage. The watchers gazed silently, entranced by the intricate spectacle.
When Tyson finished with a majestic, fiery flourish, the crowd stood up in unison, applauding wildly. The camera zoomed in on the cheering judges, Adonis, Paris and Andromeda, who were out of their chairs.
"What a spectacular performance from Tyson, son of Poseidon. Looks like we have a standing ovation!" co-host Will Solace exclaimed as Tyson bowed meekly to the enthusiastic crowd, "I have to say, it's well-deserved."
The other host, Travis Stoll nodded. "I agree." Travis approached Tyson and patted him on the back. "Fantastic job Tyson! Hey, if that whole General of the godly Cyclops army thing doesn't work out for you, try joining Cirque du Soleil. I bet they'll hire you in a heartbeat!"
Meanwhile, backstage, Percy Jackson was beaming. He'd seen Tyson beat up fiery metal bulls, lead a massive army against Typhon and challenge an ancient Cyclops with a goat fetish. However, Tyson's juggling performance was, in Percy's opinion, one of Tyson's best achievements. Percy knew that Tyson spent countless hours trying to perfect the routine. It was awesome to see the result of Tyson's many efforts to show off his abilities. Most of all, it was amazing to see Tyson so happy and confident.
"Are you crying?"
Percy turned to see Katie Gardner studying him with curious eyes. For a moment, Percy had forgotten that she was at his side.
"No I'm not," Percy replied while discreetly brushing away a tear.
"So your eyes are always that watery, huh?" Katie said, suppressing a smile.
"Yep. It's, um, a Poseidon kid thing," Percy lied. Outside, the standing ovation continued. Satyrs stomped their hooves and dryads tossed flowers at Tyson.
"Really now? How?" Katie asked, unconvinced.
"Well, you know... Poseidon. The sea god. The sea is full of water. My eyes are full of water. It's only natural."
Katie smirked. "That sounds uncomfortable."
"I'm used to it." Percy racked his brain, hoping to change the subject. "Speaking of uncomfortable-ness-
"Discomfort," corrected Annabeth, who passed by with a gigantic spool of silvery thread in one arm.
"Whatever." Percy rolled his eyes and turned back to Katie. "Your act is next. Are you ready?"
Katie laughed nervously. "I doubt my performance will top Tyson's."
"Hey, don't be like that." Percy patted her back. "An interpretive ballet routine complete with moving plants? That sounds pretty awesome," he complimented.
With a smile, Katie shook her head. "I guess so. But seriously, who can compete with a Cyclops juggling flaming hammers?"
The contestant from the Ares Cabin was very close to getting disqualified.
"JACKSON."
Clarisse stormed into the greenroom. The other demigods in the room suddenly developed an interest in their shoelaces.
After shoving Jake Mason aside, the tall, burly daughter of Ares pointed a menacing finger at Percy.
"You said Aglaea approved of the changes I made to my routine," Clarisse growled, "Well, just about a minute ago, Aglaea almost kicked me out of the competition!"
Percy sighed. "I did say that you should've talked to Aglaea first about the changes. When I said 'stage attendant', I meant someone who helps you with props and stuff, meaning they do not take part in the routine. Otherwise, that will be called an 'assistant'. Assistants - yes, you're allowed to put them in danger. But either way, there's a general rule that you're not allowed to pulverize anyone!"
"B-but," Clarisse stammered, "In Miss Congeniality-"
"-She didn't knock anyone out without permission," Percy reminded.
Clarisse hesitated. "You watched Miss Congeniality?"
"Yes. Yes I did, and it was awesome," Percy replied bluntly, "Besides, you should be glad you're still in the pageant. Now if you excuse me, we have a show to run."
"TEN. NINE. EIGHT. SEVEN. SIX. FIVE. FOUR. THREE. TWO. ONE."
The timer buzzed and Annabeth stopped weaving. In five minutes, the daughter of Athena managed to create a magnificent six-feet-by-six-feet tapestry. The masterpiece depicted Camp Half-Blood - Half-Blood Hill guarded by a snoring Peleus, satyrs playing their panpipes in the strawberry fields, campers jubilantly dining in the mess hall, a Greek trireme facing a sea serpent in the canoe lake, Mrs. O'Leary in the sword arena, the cabins including the new additions, Chiron teaching archery, Apollo kids strumming their guitars and lyres at by the campfire, an unfortunate soul falling off the climbing wall, and Percy flying Blackjack above the forest and beach in the background.
When Annabeth returned backstage, she was beaming.
"That was fantastic!" Percy acclaimed and promptly hugged his girlfriend. "I never knew you could weave like that!"
"It comes with being a child of Athena," Annabeth replied, "Though before, I could never weave anything like that in five minutes!"
"So does this mean that I can ask you to weave stuff for me?" Percy asked.
Annabeth raised an eyebrow. "Like what?"
"I don't know. Shirts, carpets, a nice birthday gift for my mom... I remember someone told me that there are traps that have to be weaved. That'll be awesome for cabin pranks."
Annabeth laughed, "Maybe, Seaweed Brain. Just maybe."
For a few minutes, the two of them simply stood there, happily embracing. The moment was perfect. The amphitheater was decorated beautifully like a winter wonderland with fake snow. Annabeth looked divine in her shimmering, satin dress. Onstage, Calli Rae, the Apollo Cabin contestant was channeling her inner Mariah Carey with a powerful love song, high notes and all.
"You know, you're a pretty good production manager," Annabeth complimented.
Percy chuckled, "Thanks. But if there's ever gonna be a Second Annual Demigod Pageant, you can count me out."
Whoosh. With a strong push along the edges, Thalia sent the wheel spinning. An impossibly young-looking Hunter girl was strapped onto the wheel. The little girl was smiling widely as if being whirled around at a disturbing speed was the best feeling in the world.
The daughter of Zeus sauntered to the other side of the stage, brandishing two gleaming hunting knives. She whipped around and flung both knives at the wheel in unison. The audience clung to the edges of their seats as the knives zoomed through the air and THUMP! embedded themselves on the wheel.
There was a collective exhale through the crowd. Once the crowd realized that the knives missed the Hunter girl, they burst into cheers. Butch, the stage attendant, scurried onstage and removed the knives from the wheel.
Thalia raised her arm. "Ladies and gentlemen. If you may, please hold your attention. This was only a warm-up," she stated with a wicked grin.
Thalia proceeded to throw machetes, stilettos (the knife, not the shoe), harpoons, shurikens and other weapons at the wheel. Nothing that Thalia hurled came even half-inch to the young Hunter girl attached to the rotating wheel.
By the time Thalia took out six-inch stilettos (the shoe, not the knife) to throw, the audience was already on their feet. They either screamed hysterically or chanted her name "THALIA. THALIA."
"Now for the grand finale!" Thalia announced, her blue eyes bright. She took out a Mace canister and out came her favorite weapon, a collapsible Celestial bronze spear. The daughter of Zeus stood as still as a tree, her eyes closed with calm concentration. The wheel continued to spin endlessly. For the first time, the young Hunter assistant's face betrayed a hint of nervousness.
Thunder rumbled overhead and the patch of sky directly above the amphitheater suddenly turned dark grey. The clouds within that patch of sky swirled tumultuously, flashing with stark-white lightning. Audience members jumped in their seats when the amphitheater lights flickered, the air crackling with electricity. Gusts of wind sent people's popcorn and tasty tin cans flying. Onstage, the wheel seemed to spin faster, the young Hunter girl now just a blur. Thalia remained standing in place, radiating power and her spear pointed up at her side. With her windblown black hair and powerful aura, she looked like a powerful goddess.
Thalia raised her spear up high. CRACK! An arc of white lightning violently tore through the air and struck the spear. Blinding sparks jumped out but the majority of the lightning was confined within the spear. Her eyes still closed, Thalia directed her electrified spear at the whirling wheel. The lightning bolt zoomed across the stage and blasted the wheel.
The crowd gasped when the wheel exploded. Some members of the audience, including the pageant judge Andromeda, stood up, hoping to get a better look.
About a minute later, a small figure emerged from the smoke of the annihilated wheel. Almost entirely covered in soot, the young Hunter assistant smiled and waved at the crowd, as if the wheel was merely a ride from an amusement park.
The amphitheater erupted in cheers. Meanwhile on the 600th floor of the Empire State Building, the throne room of the Olympian gods burst into applause. Cheering the loudest of all, was the god of the sky himself, Zeus.
"She's beauty and she's grace! It's the amazing Thalia Grace!" cried Travis amid the adoring screams.
While Thalia basked in the adoration of the audience, Will Solace put his arm around the little Hunter assistant's shoulder.
"Good job kiddo!" Will praised the small girl, "I heard you did this voluntarily, which makes you a very, very brave person. Did you have fun out there?"
The little girl nodded meekly.
Will chuckled. "But getting whirled around like that - I bet I could never stand that. You know what, I think you have one of the strongest stomachs ever!"
The young Hunter smiled shyly. Then she vomited.
While Butch cleaned up the puke with a grimace, the hosts Will Solace and Travis Stoll stood by the judges' table.
"So Paris, what do you think of the contestants so far?" Travis asked.
The ghost of the legendary Trojan spoke into Travis's microphone.
"I can tell you that choosing a winner will be more difficult than the last time I judged a beauty contest," Paris answered.
Will smiled slyly. "Then again, none of the contestants bribed you with unlimited power, knowledge or the most beautiful woman in the world."
Travis laughed. "Well, we can't be too sure about that. Who knows - maybe Katie Gardner promised unlimited cereal."
Backstage, all eyes turned to Katie, who was too busy thinking about one thousand cereal-related torture devices to notice.
Travis continued, "Anyhoo, it's time we inform the audience of how they can get involved in the pageant."
"Voting for the winner of the Audience Choice begins now," Will announced. "Iris Message us at The Demigod Pageant, Camp Half-Blood with your favourite contestant. You can only vote three times. Yes, the three-vote rule applies to gods too."
Travis smiled apologetically. "Sorry folks! Our peeps backstage can only handle so many votes. Now before we commence with part two of the Talent Competition, here is a word from our sponsors."
... And the voting extends to YOU, the readers.
Who do you think should be the winner of the First Annual Demigod Pageant? Please tell me in the reviews! You can PM me your votes too.
I'd love to hear your opinions because well... I haven't decided on a winner yet. So far I'm leaning towards the rock.
However, I cannot guarantee that the most popular choice will be the winner of the entire pageant. I can guarantee that the most popular contestant from this chapter onwards will win the Audience Choice Award.
PSST! The three-vote rule doesn't apply to you readers!
Also, what would be a good third, second and first place prize?
-Spec
(P.S. How do you feel about a Second Annual Demigod Pageant? I'm thinking about including the Roman camp too...)