Chapter 21: "Hey! Scale Butt!"
"Can't kill him now, can you?" Norman whispered against my ear.
"Such a pity," I said dryly as Python continued to uncoil from the crack in the hill. I felt the fear slowly spreading throughout my body as I started to think of all the things that could go wrong with the plan.
"You wouldn't have been able to anyway."
"Pardon?"
"The arrow that Apollo used was a solid gold arrow made by giants."
I glanced over at Max, looking at the normal arrows in his quiver. "I really don't think it matters."
"Suit yourself, Sol."
Python finally finished uncoiling himself. He was as thick and tall as a one thousand year old redwood tree. I looked at Max, who seemed fairly calm given what he was about to do. Python turned his cruel red eyes on me with the equivalent of a smirk on his ugly, scaly face. I swear, if he tried any more of those "you are my child, Sssssoleil" mind games on me, I would stab myself with Norman's knife before Norman even got the chance to do it himself.
Python flicked his tongue, causing the grass all over the field to die and a building at the end of the street to blow up. Python shot down the hill, the ground turning black and smoky wherever his body passed. I peeked down at my burn, which was now bright red. Python slithered nearby, just barely five feet away. He smelled like a combination of sewage, blood, ashes, and rotting flesh. I bit my lip to keep from gagging. He went in a full circle around Norman and I. How is it that even though he had a knife to my throat, Norman's presence was comforting? I guess I am more screwed up than I originally thought I was.
"You know," Python hissed, "thisss boy begged me to command my army. He sssaid he idolized me. He only arrived thisss morning, but he hassss proven to be mossst helpful. I jussst might let him pledge allegiance to me for eternity."
"Thank you, sir," Norman said gratefully.
"You're disgusting," I spat at Norman.
"And you're a ssstupid little girl!" Python screeched in his sickening voice. He rushed back up the hill quicker than I was expecting, taking no more than a couple seconds. "Do you dare to challenge me? Ha! You can't! Your father did the firssst time and sssucceeded, but the sssecond time…" He burped contently. I could already see the hole in the O-zone getting two times bigger. "And you can't even essscape your captor. Poor, poor daughter of Apollo."
"Hey!" Max suddenly yelled at Python. "Hey, Scate Butt!"
Python swerved indignantly to face Max, who had already taken his aim. I prayed to all the gods on my side that this would work, that Max would shoot straight. Python flew toward Max at an alarming rate. Max shot.
And missed.