Wow! Thanks for the reviews! My thanks go to: kyoko minion, redlox2, SmartAndProudOfIt, Eleos, twihard135gleek264, Somebody, Smartas* Asian, and percylover3579! Also thanks to people that alerted and put my story on favorites! (And put me in their favorite author section!) Okay, well, now I have some responds to reviews.
SmartAndProudOfIt: Yea, I hate all the tests. However, I'm sure that I did well on them. I took the social studies on Wednesday, and I know I got a 100. My teacher told me! Sorry I'm saying all this to you… lol.
Eleos: I know, testing sucks. Thanks for the luck! Wow! I can't believe that you talked to Rick Riordan! That's amazing! Congrats! :D
Twihard135gleek264: I don't have any other PJO, twilight, or harry potter fanfics. I will be writing another PJO once I finish TSON, though.
Somebody: Thanks for the luck!
Percylover3579: Yup, I will bring Percabeth soon! Don't worry; I also hate Percy/Rachel. I will also have Jason/Piper. Lol, I'll be your friend!
That's all I have to say. The last chapter was one of my favorites to write! Even though it took me four hours for such a short thing, it was worth it! Please know that I did do lots of research… teehee! On with the story. There will be lots o' action.
P.S., Reyna was going to be a daughter of Minerva, but I already had two characters children of Minerva, including one of Riordan's characters. (Hazel). And if you didn't understand that, then it's not important. So I made Reyna a daughter of Aphrodite, or in this case, Venus. (However, I did enjoy writing the girly Reyna moments!)
Funny Moment That Happened In My Life! Lol! So, I went to this gifted E.L.A. (also known as English) program Thursday during school. And guess what we did? LISTENED TO 'I'M A BARBIE GIRL!' and saw the music video on youtube! It was hilarious! Anyways…
P.P.S., I'm sorry it took me forever to write this chapter! Oh, and I also accomplished my first all nighter! Yay! But now I'm tired…
Disclaimer: I don't own PJO! But, I do own Brandon and Lauryn. (And Angelica).
Chapter 19: When Will It End?
Reyna's POV
"Oh. Em. Gee!" I screamed.
"What's wrong this time?" Lauryn sighed.
"I… I-"
"Spit it out!" the not-so-nice Lauryn spat.
"Broke a nail!" I sobbed.
Brandon raised a quizzical eyebrow. "So… you're saying that you screamed just 'cause of your little nail?"
"Yes! I just painted it! The design was so-" I started, until Brandon started cracking up. I gaped at him. "What?"
Brandon just kept laughing.
Sighing, Lauryn spoke, "Come on guys. We have to get back on track. We've been walking for thirty minutes, and hardly made any progress."
It was true. We've been walking for thirty minutes, looking for an airport, taxi, anything, – with no progress. Thirty minutes may seem short. But when you've got three kids with ADHD, it's a living nightmare.
"You're right. Now let's backtrack. The prophecy said to go to Long Island, and from there, find the strawberry fields… whatever that means," Brandon told us.
"Yes. Hence the looking for a transportation device…" Lauryn said oh-so-matter-of-factly.
I sighed. This really was getting nowhere.
"Hey! Look over there!" Brandon exclaimed while pointing over near some trees. "There must be some kind of forest!"
"Well, there's no point in not going there. We're practically lost, anyways," Lauryn pointed out.
I sighed, for the umpteenth time today. After all, it wasn't that comfortable when you're walking in heels.
Lauryn stopped dead in her tracks.
"What's wrong, Lauryn?" Brandon questioned.
"Shh! Hear that?" she responded, walking further into the tree-filled forest.
We waited. I didn't hear anything, and I don't think Brandon did either. We just shrugged and kept walking.
However, we didn't make it that far. 20 seconds later, Lauryn told us to shut up.
I listened intently, only to hear nothing. Glancing at Lauryn, her face was scrunched up in thought.
Swish!
I spun around, hearing an odd rustling noise.
"What was that?" Brandon asked Lauryn.
"How am I supposed to know?" Lauryn snapped, obviously in a snooty mood today.
"Well, being a child of-"
"Don't answer that."
"Guys, there it is again! Listen!" I broke them up harshly.
Sure enough, the rustling noise arrived. But this time, a girl sprouted. I mean literally. She came right from the Earth.
"Hello," the odd girl greeted. She was really pretty. Her long chestnut hair cascaded in waves down her back. She had big brown eyes, and her clothing seemed to be… nature. She wore leaves, flowers, etc.
"Who are you?" asked Lauryn, showing no sign of fear.
"My question is, who are you? And why are you walking in my forest?" she asked sweetly.
"We're-" Brandon started, but received Lauryn's glare.
"I asked you first," Lauryn snapped.
The girl smiled. "I'm Azalea, just like the plant. I'm a land nymph, to be exact. Now, tell me who you are and why you are here." Azalea probably knew that we were demigods, since she told us she was a land nymph.
Lauryn hesitated. She probably thought land nymphs weren't all that dangerous, since she proceeded to talk. "I'm Lauryn. That's Brandon over there," she said pointing to Brandon, "and that's Reyna." She gestured towards me.
"Very nice. But you didn't answer my other question. Why are you here?" Azalea pressed.
"We were just looking for transportation, when we stumbled across your forest," Lauryn announced bravely, careful not to give anything away.
Azalea smiled. "May I ask where you are going?"
"Long Island," Brandon spilled before Lauryn could glare at him.
"I see," Azalea began. "I suppose I could help you… If you could do something for me."
"Woah there, sister. How would you help us in the first place?" I asked her sassily.
"I could send you over to Manhattan, and you would be on your own from there. However, in order to help me, you would spread the word on helping the planet. The Earth's temperature is rising. Just imagine, the poor little polar bears becoming extinct because of global warming!" she explained.
I was a little surprised. I mean, she was a land nymph, but she came across as a little snooty at first. Now she's showing her caring side.
Brandon grinned, "Sounds like a done deal!"
"Great. Now, come over here," Azalea gestured to a little spot in her forest. Lauryn, Brandon, and I all walked over.
"So how does this work?" I asked her.
"I will summon a ground tube. You will travel downward until you reach Manhattan. It's simple enough," Azalea gave us her cheerful smile. "I hope you get there safely! Do not forget to spread the word!"
Before we could thank her, a huge black hole appeared right under our feet. Before we knew it, we were plummeting down the tube as fast as Jupiter's lightning bolt.
"Ow!" Brandon shouted as Lauryn accidentally kicked his back when she was sliding down the hole.
"Sorry! Maybe you should move a little faster!" Lauryn yelled over the loud noise of our so called death.
Suddenly, a little light appeared further down. The faster we traveled, the bigger it got. "Look! There's a light!" I shouted, craving the sun.
"No duh, Sherlock!" shouted Brandon. Someone's in a bad mood…
In no time, Lauryn, Brandon, and I flew out of the hole. We tumbled around the busy streets of Manhattan, until we finally got a grip of ourselves.
Lauryn coughed, "Wow. That was a total adrenaline rush!"
"Tell me about it," Brandon shouted, still adjusting to the noise level. A couple people stared at us weirdly. That was when I looked down at my clothes. I screamed, "Oh Em Gee!" For the second time that day.
"Oh my gods! What's wrong now, Reyna?" Lauryn asked me.
My clothes. They were caked in dirt. "M-my clothes!"
Brandon stifled a laugh. "Yea, that's what ground traveling does to ya."
"Come on guys. Reyna, we'll get you new clothes later. But right now, we've got a quest to finish," Lauryn piped up. She then put her hand out in mid air, and Brandon soon put his hand on top of hers. "I'm in," he said. Lauryn looked hopefully at me. Sighing, I said, "Let's do this for Venus." I placed my hand on top of the others.
"Everyone lift their arms up on three," Lauryn said.
"One! Two-" Lauryn began, but Brandon already raised his arm.
"That's not how it works! You lift on three!" I yelled.
"Gods! Sorry! I forgot!" Brandon said. I was confused now…
"Okay… One, Two-" Lauryn began again, but Brandon lifted his arm. Again.
"Oh, r-right… on three," Brandon stuttered.
"Okay, this isn't working! Come on, let's just finish this dang quest!" Lauryn shouted. She could be really mean when she's mad.
"But, we have to get to Long Island. Any ideas on how we will arrive there?" Brandon asked.
"I was thinking we could go by train. It wouldn't cost too much; and we could get to Long Island in about an hour," Lauryn spoke.
I pondered that for a moment. I had my disagreements, but I couldn't think of anything better. "Alright, sounds fair."
Lauryn smiled. "Great. Let's go find the train station…"
We began walking down the busy streets. After what seemed like an hour, Brandon decided he would ask someone where the train station was.
"Excuse me, sir? Do you happen to know where the nearest train station is?" Brandon politely asked a man.
"Go 'round the corner, make a right, then a left, then another right, and a left. Or is that a right… no, left," The man smiled.
"Umm, thanks," Lauryn said, trying to decipher the man's words.
We followed his directions. Sure enough, there was a train station. It looked deserted. There were only a couple of people: the train driver and his assistants.
"Welcome aboard! Please enjoy the ride. It will take about an hour," the driver announced after we paid.
After twenty minutes, I was beginning to get extremely bored and antsy. Blame it on the ADHD.
"I'm hungry!" Brandon whined for the fiftieth time.
"BRANDON! WE GET IT!" Lauryn cried.
"Can't they give us food or something?" he whined again.
I sighed, "I'll go ask the driver if there's any food we can get. But I doubt there'd be any food on this train!"
Brandon grinned crazily as I trailed to the driver's room – whatever that's called.
"Hello! What can I do for you today?" one of the driver's assistants asked in a bored tone. She was probably obligated to be nice to the passengers.
"Um, I was wondering if we could get any food," I asked politely.
"Sorry, we don't-" the woman was interrupted by the voice of the train driver.
"It's fine, Susie. I can take care of their hunger issue," the man smiled venomously. He had wild eyes, pointy teeth, and hairy arms. It almost looked-
"Yes sir!" 'Susie' had a nervous look.
"Go sit back down, I will get you and your friends some food," the driver smiled.
I thanked him and walked back to my seat. There was something off about the driver…
"So, where's the food?" Brandon asked.
"Um, the driver should be bringing it soon. He kinda-" I began, but the train driver came in with huge gourmet meals. There was turkey, soda, mashed potatoes, stuffing, and more!
"Here's your food!" the man spoke in his rough, deep, voice.
"We don't need that much, thanks, though," Lauryn spoke, with a slight shiver. Good, I wasn't the only one who had the creeps.
Brandon glared at Lauryn.
"No, my pleasure. Got to get some meat on those bones!" the man laughed. It looked like… drool…. was coming out of his mouth.
"No, really. We'll be there soon anyways," I said nervously.
"Does anyone want the food? I made it all for you kids," he smiled.
No one budged.
Brandon was heavily sweating, "I do."
"What?" Lauryn screeched.
"Great! Come with me into the dining room," he smiled evilly. Something's definitely wrong.
Brandon got up and followed the man into his so called 'dining room'.
"Do you think we should follow?" I asked Lauryn.
She nodded, "He doesn't seem very normal. I suspect a monster. Get your spear ready."
"Got it," I told her. I know, I know. You're thinking 'Why does a Venus girl have a spear?' Well, this was the only item that came in designer pink. Oh, it's also pretty handy.
Lauryn and I inched towards the dining room, to follow Brandon. When we got there, we peeked through the door. Brandon was stuffing his face, while the driver/monster was nowhere in sight. A few moments later, the driver came back. He had a rope…
"Enjoying that?" the man snarled.
"Oh, yes! I was so hungry!" Brandon grinned.
"I know how you feel," the man smiled.
"What do you mean?"
"Could you grab the stuffing over there?" the man said pointing somewhere, "I'm hungry."
"Sure," Brandon burped. He got up and grabbed the stuffing tray.
But the man was quicker than Brandon. He pulled out this golden axe, and wacked Brandon in the head with stick part of the axe. Brandon fell down, unconscious.
The man laughed, "Time for dinner!"
I glanced beside me, expecting to face Lauryn. It was then I heard her voice, "Not so fast!"
Lauryn was standing in front of the monster, who had recently grown eight feet tall.
"More for me!" he grinned, staring down at Lauryn.
What had she just gotten herself into?
That was pretty long. I was going to keep it going, but I am really tired… so much for all nighters. Anyways, what monster is the train driver? Tell me your guess in a review! Or don't tell me your guess… whatever you prefer. People who guess right will be mentioned! Not that I don't mention all my reviewers as it is…