Long chapter, today, find out a little bit more about Kara.
I don't know how long we stood there or how long Zoe cried into my shirt. All I knew was I was cold and didn't want to get wet for a while.
"We, hic, need to find thou shelter, hic," she said the tears finally subsiding.
"No, I'm fine you are dry let us stay here," I tried to keep my teeth from chattering, because the only heat was getting was Zoe's.
She dropped to her knees and back out of my grasps," No let us not waste time," she, then, turned and sprint away into the corn.
"Oh, Nightshade," I sighed and pop the collar of my jacket and stomp my boots, to get the spikes to come out.
I followed Zoe until we, entered Fisher's pumpkin patch. The thing about Fisher is that he keeps to his world of gods and plants. The pumpkins were carved into with scenes of greek heroes dying, Jason being hit by the mast of the ship, Hercules dying in his tunic covered in centaur blood, and Odysseus looking back and seeing his wife disappear.
"They are beautiful, how does he do this," Zoe said picking up the one displaying Hercules death.
She raised it above her head and slammed it down into the ground, she then brushed her hands off, while smiling at me.
"Let's keep going," I said, but not before igniting the one of Jason, I don't favor the ones Hera does.
As we made our way far to into the marsh of pumpkins and mud, the scenes changed from death and defeats for the greeks into the most glorious moments of the demigods, gods, and greeks. The victory of Troy, Artemis in full glory lashing the reins to her chariot, and why does he have that.
I picked one of the largest pumpkins and saw a scene of me," Is that thou in the garden with thee," I turned to see Zoe looking at the pumpkin, as well.
The scene was beautifully carved, the best in the patch, it showed me hanging from a tree with my legs, smiling at Zoe who was on the ground surprised and angry that I had invaded her special grove.
He had all the details right, a bow, with an arrow notched, lying near Zoe, my staff, covered in sap and leaves falling from my hands onto the ground, and the stupid smile that graced my face when I first saw her.
"That was a nice time," I found myself saying out loud, I didn't mean to, but," Why did you give it up," I found myself continuing and hitting myself, because I had asked her a million times and always knew what would happen next.
"Thee couldn't stand it after what happen with thee's sisters and thou," Zoe spoke quietly, but I knew she had said, I had heard it so many times that I memorized it by heart.
I never knew what I had done that night, but I knew what had become of it. Time and time again, I had tried to get Zoe to tell me, but it was like an well kept secret with herself, that sometimes drove her to tears.
"I'm sorry," I said, setting the pumpkin on the ground.
"Let's keep going, thee sees a shack up ahead," she said not meeting my eyes and stalked through the patch up the hill.
"Why must this alway come down to this," we had come a long way from the start of this mess, but the Fates had said something that made me try harder and keep fighting for her and the time had together.
I ran up the hill, trying harder not to step on of the pumpkins, except of Hera and the ones her liked her.
I tripped, falling next to a pumpkin and instantly recoiled at the sight of it. The scene depicted me talking with Gaea in a small room, her holding my chin so she could see my eyes, the fear and confusion they held. The pumpkin also showed just outside the room, Zoe and Artemis ears pressed against the door, listening.
But, two details was changed Zoe's eyes, malicious, cold rage, and wanting shown brightly. A tight lipped smile was on her face and a knife in her hand, but it was at the perfect angle to hit Artemis in the heart.
"Wrong, all wrong, what is this carving," I mumbled, quickly, to myself.
Look at what the future holds if you don't rise to the challenge, betray to her parton and maybe to you if the wrong choice is made. My blood ran cold, I pushed myself off the ground and ran up the hill.
I cleared the hill in ten steps and ran right into Zoe, sending her tumbling into the wall of the shack.
"What's up Nightshade," I said flashing her a smile, hoping the fear wasn't present in my voice, because I knew what was up to her.
"Thou is and there is a blind cyclops in the shack, pull your weapons out," she spoke in a low whisper, knowing full well that the cyclops could hear us.
"Ummm, I lost it and haven't gone to look for it yet," she looked as if she would deck me, she probably would have if I couldn't help her win the fight.
"Take my hunting knife on my belt, let us make this quick," I placed my hand on her waist, slowly pulling out the knife.
We got up slowly, but something caught my eye on the ground, a pumpkin carved in the position we were just in.
"I don't think this is just any cyclops, Zoe, look by your foot," I said pointing the knife at the pumpkin.
"So it does the carvings, not Fisher, but it still could be hostile towards us, and thou is shaking," she said and pulled out her bow, notching an arrow as well.
We walked towards the door, slowly, I counted the steps, seventeen. Zoe held out her hand to push open the door, but I stopped her when I saw the carving on the door. It showed me, with a pair of wings, walking into the shack before us, not armed.
"How," Zoe said to me, out loud.
"Who all is out there, is it the day to meet the winged lady on the door, if it is then please come on in," she, it was a she, had a thick southern accent.
I put the knife in Zoe's sheathe, and pushed open the door, with Zoe trying to pull me back. The room looked a bit bigger than it looked on the outside. It was styled like a New York apartment everything was against the walls with compartments that could hold a bed or something that size. The only piece of furniture that wasn't pushed up into the wall was school desk, one of those metal and wooden ones with four legs. The cyclops was sitting in the chair.
"Welcome, lady with wings to my abode, my name Rhond," she spoke slow and pronounced every syllable with a loud confident voice.
"My name is Kara and this is my friend Zoe, are you blind Rhond," I said staring at her milky, white eye, my shoulder flared with pain as Zoe punched me.
"Please excuse my friend's rudeness, she was lived with rude people," Zoe said and put her bow away.
"No, the meeting has already played through my mind, and beside I do not mind the rudeness, and yes, lady with wings, I am blind it is part of my gift," she stood up, slowly, showing us she was no threat.
"You relate to Apollo, and how long have you been here," I asked her as she moved around her space, with ease.
"He is my father actually, and I have been here since the fall of Troy," she pulled out two towels from a wall pocket and handed them to us.
"Since the fall of Troy, when Kara was born," Zoe still looked a little wary of her, but still took the towel.
"When I first arrived here, I was compelled to carve the winged lady on my door, but I didn't know the reason," she said her accent becoming thick and calming, I wanted to yawn, but I held the urge back.
"Well, I'm here, but I don't have my wings out and usually don't," I said, my wings were special to me and not many people knew about them.
"They will be out, permanently, in a decade or two, trust me, they will save lives," she said patting the air where my wings would have, but strangely I felt her touch them.
I jolted back," How do you know so much about me, I have never seen you."
"Don't fear what I know about you, because I know just as much about your friend," she said and Zoe yawned at that.
She looked tired and half-sleep, I knew my body felt the same," What do you know about her," I almost growled at her, but I knew I shouldn't.
She grabbed my hands, roughly, hers were rough from carving and age, her eye filled with green like the oracle's mist. The raspy voice of the fates entered the air.
The Star Hunter will learn to forgive
The Little Goddess will never age
When the Star Hunter is dead,
Love will bloom as war begins to rage
Time will speak to all
And death will capture both in its web
She released her grip on my hands and backed away,"I know that prophecy, and I'm sorry if I scared you," her voice was back to normal and the green was diminishing from her eye.
Air seemed to refuse to go down to my lungs, no one should know that prophecy, but she did.
"How do you know that, no one knows that, not even Zoe knows that," I yelled, tears rushed down my face, too tired to control my emotions.
"I'm sorry, but you need rest like your friend," the accent washed over me, and this time I let go and yawned, everything was catching up to me.
I felt myself fall to the ground, landed on something soft, and felt something warm near me. I snuggled closer to it, tiring to draw in its heat, and found the scent of pine, dragon, and smoke, Zoe, slowly I lifted my arm and placed it over her waist. Darkness washed over my sense as I fell asleep.
"Finally decided to join me, little goddess," a voice boomed and I sat up to find the source.
The room had changed to a cavern with a red smoke sky and fire burned brightly in it too. I was on a beach of black shattered glass. A pair of greek sandals was standing in front of my face, I looked up to see two golden eyes staring at me.
"How are you Kronos," I said standing up and brushing the shards, embedded in hands, off.
"I'm quite good, actually, even though I'm in Tartarus," he smiled lightly at me.
"You formed or just here in spirit," I said, returning the smile as a pillar of black glass rose up next to me.
"Oh, just in spirit for now," his smiled turned wicked, his eyes showed he know something.
"What do mean for now," I said as I leaned against the pillar.
"What do I mean," he laughed," Nothing you haven't already figure out, but time isn't with me today," he laughed again, harder and longer, enjoying his own pun," I have a proposition for my favorite little half-mortal."
"What do you want from me," I growled at him.
"No need to get touchy Kara, just something simple, join me, that is all," he his smile turned into a sneer.
"No, Kronos, I will never join you," I took a step forward and bared my fangs at him.
"But you haven't heard the benefits for working with me," he looked like a man who really wanted me to take this job.
"N-," I was cut off abruptly by him.
"Her life," was all he said, the amusement was gone from his voice.
"Whose life are we talking about here," I hoped it wasn't who I thought it was.
"Daughter of Atlas turned Hunter of Artemis, your old flame, Zoe Nightshade's life of course," he laughed like it was a joke.
"You wouldn't touch her," I growled, hoping my fear was in it.
"If you take my deal, no I shall not, but if you don't she will be the first death as I rise," he held out his hand waiting for me to shake it, thinking he had me in checkmate.
"My own deal must come into play," his expression turned sour.
"Whatever could it be," he sound exasperated with me, like this had taken longer than he expected it to.
"Zoe is not touched, I don't join you, and," I pulled out a sword, because it was a dream," and you stay in those tiny, little bits you are now," I lunged forward to stab him in the heart, but the dream dissipated.
You have made a bad mistake, little goddess, she will be the first life taking in this war, and I will give her father the pleasure of it.
I woke up to Zoe shaking me," Rhond is going to show us how she carves, she saw something overnight," Zoe sounded well rested and restored of energy.
"That's cool," I rasped, I felt worse than ever.
She was already carve a pumpkin by the time, I was up and staring at her, the scene I had already seen. I leaned against the pillar of glass with a sarcastic expression on my face as Kronos stuck his hand out, wanting me to take.
"Is that thou with Kronos," Zoe whispered, angry spilled over into it.
"Done," Rhond's accent was gone now, almost as if I had be dreaming it," I call it the Winged Lady against Time."
"You were there, weren't you," my voice was low almost unheard.
"I saw it, but I was truly not there, lady with wings, it's my gift, seeing turning moments in the Greek world," she sounded unsure of the gift part, but the one about the pumpkin sounded honest.
"Let us go Zoe, we need to get back to Annabeth and Fisher," I said grabbing her hand and pulling her out of the shack.
"You will only see them once, Rhond," I said was the wings emerged from shoulder blades, the sunlight danced on the metal feathers casting their colors everywhere.
I wrapped my arms around Zoe's waist and gave a hard flap, getting a few feet off the ground, enough to soar down the hill and get on a hot air current, away from her shack.
So guys, you like, you don't like, or just not reading. As always please review and follow.
Question of the day: Who like Minecraft?
Godeleus out
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