David opened his eyes to find his short off and torso wrapped in bandages. Groaning he manage to get himself upright albeit very painfully. He rubbed the part of his chest where the tree trunk hit his chest. David frowned that was the first monster that had gotten the best of him so far. Then again, the calydonian boar was basically the 'attack dog' for the Goddess of the Hunt.
Still, it would have been embarrassing if he had died. David Roosevelt, son of Zeus, murdered by a pig. He almost laughed but the pain it caused prevented him from doing it.
The tent flap opened, and David saw a familiar face, "glad to see you're awake."
David smiled, "good to see you too old friend."
Robin took a knee and placed a hand on his shoulder, "how are you feeling?"
David frowned, "like I got hit by a train."
Robin hmphed, "I'll say, by all rights you should be dead. Either you are extremely lucky, or the children of Zeus are more resilient than I believed. Considering how long I've been around, I've met many of his children, so that's saying something."
"Robin," David said slowly, "if you say I'm the second coming of Hercules I will crush your teeth into dust."
Robin cocked an eyebrow in amusement, "not a fan?"
David frowned, "I'd just prefer to make my own mark instead of being in the shadow of my siblings."
Robin shrugged, "Fair enough, but considering the legacy of Hercules and Perseus that will be difficult to do."
"Yes," David said slowly, "yes it will." Changing the subject, David asked about the others, "Are the others, okay?"
Robin nodded, "they have a few bruises and cuts, but you seemed to have gotten the worse of it."
"Better me than them I suppose," David replied grimly rubbing his chest. He sighed deeply, "How long was I out?"
"About five days," Robin said, "but with more ambrosia and nectar you'll be as good as new with another day or two of rest."
David nodded, as the tent flap opened again, and Pamela entered. "Is he awake?" She asked before seeing David sitting up.
David smirked, "well I'm not in a body cast drinking through a straw. So, I believe so."
"David" She cried dropping to her knew in front of him. "When you passed out, I thought you... I mean I was worried that..." David smiled and put a finger to her lips, "I'm sorry if I worried you. But Robin says I'll be alright."
Pamela shook her head, "you saved me, I would have... if you hadn't... well what I mean is, thank you."
David smiled, "you're welcome. But if you should thank anyone it's Robin, he slew the boar." He turned to his mentor, "lucky for us you were around."
Robin shook his head, "not luck, I've been hunting that thing for a week. I used to be able to hunt him but as time went on, the boar has started to avoid me, whenever I'm around."
'So, the boar has been learning,' David thought. 'Thousands of years of being hunted by multiple demigods, no wonder he was so tough to take down.'
Pamela handed him a water bottle, which David took gratefully, after taking a good long swig, he handed the bottle back."
"So how is your first quest going," Robin asked.
David frowned, "I definitely need more training."
Robin shook his head, "the fact that you were able to hold on as long as you did without bows is impressive."
"Still," David insisted, "I was unable to take it down, I can't always rely on you to bail me out every time."
Robin scratched his chin, "true, a son of Zeus should be able to stand on his own two feet, but there is nothing wrong with accepting help every once in a while."
David nodded in acceptance and decided to get some fresh air. After getting dressed, David headed out of the tent. Outside he saw Robin sparing with Helena, while the other three watched. When Cora noticed him, she scooted over so he could sit down.
"How is she doing?" David asked knowing who was winning.
Cora nodded in approval. "Not bad, considering her youth, size and lack of experience. Though considering it's Robin she's fighting, defeat is guaranteed."
Indeed, Helena was growing frustrated as she viciously attacked. Robin deftly blocked her attacks it was clear he barely had to try against her. Helena to her credit didn't back down and was able to dodge when Robin went on the offensive. Her nimbler body hopped and flipped around and over Robin's staff much to his approval.
"Did your father teach you?" He asked.
"Yeah," Helena nodded, "how did you know?"
Robin grinned, "I taught your father." Hearing her take a misstep at this news, Robin whirled around, tripping Helena's legs and causing her to fall on her back. She tried to grab her weapon, but robin placed a foot on her forearm and his staff pressed against her throat. Knowing she had been beaten, Helena opened her hands in surrender and the Huntsman released her.
Helena got up, picked up her weapons and sat back down next to Pamela, Cora patted her on the back "Well done Helena, you lasted longer this time."
Robin nodded, "Hoss taught her well, maybe you can make an amazon out of her in no time."
David noted the familiarity in with she spoke of him "So you two know each other?"
Cora nodded, "Robin comes to us every now and then. Sometimes too he helps with a monster but usually he's helping to escort rogue hunters of Artemis to our camps. Half of our ranks are filled due to his help."
"That must make the goddess and her hunters angry."
Cora nodded, "very, but fortunately Lady Bellona protects us, even the Goddess of the Hunt is no match for her in a fist fight."
David looked concerned, "have you fought in the past."
Cora shrugged, "ohh every now and then we get into a skirmish or two. Over this and our male companions. Fortunately, no one is killed, despite our differences we do work together to fight our common enemies."
"Monsters?"
"And wicked men, though the hunters have a tendency to overreact whenever men are around. shapeshifting any that look at them the wrong way."
"I met them once," Helena replied. "Their leader tried to recruit me into their ranks."
"A temperamental individual," Cora admitted. "But a decent woman to have my back whether it's during a hunt or in a fight," she added. "She not so bad once you get to know her."
"I doubt either of us can stay that long," Gabriel japed gesturing towards himself and David, "especially him." He gaze now on David.
David sighed, "let me guess, my father?"
Cora shook her head, "Herc."
David frowned, "wonderful, one more powerful being to despise my existence." A thought occurred to him. "Did, did he..." he couldn't bring himself to say the word for fea that his brother decided to follow their father's example in his more...violent tendencies."
Cora shook her head, "no nothing that bad, but he did hurt her that much is certain."
David scowled, "perhaps I should have a word with him if he ever cross paths."
Gabriel chuckled, "you? Take on Hercules. He'll kill you with his thumb."
'Somebody has to take a stand." David replied.
After resting for two more days, David was finally well enough to travel, and the group continued their journey in earnest finally exiting the forest. About a day later they reached Jacksonville.
"Searching the river will be difficult enough," David noted. "But what if the ship in under water? How will we get to it? More importantly, how will we transport the gold?
"My father has a vessel waiting for us," Cora replied. "As for the location, father sent a squad of Atlanteans to find it."
"That should make our job easier," Gabriel sighed in relief, "I don't relish spending the rest of my life searching this damned river for them.
The vessel in question turned out to be a tugboat at Port 32. It resembled the Cape Romain, but it had a water cannon in the front and a crane in the back with a diving bell. At the helm was a map with a dot marking the location. Cora took the helm and David commandeered the water cannon. Despite this being in the water especially this deep made him nervous. The Demigods sailed down river to Doctors Lake.
They tried the deeper parts since had CSS Texas sunk someplace shallower somebody would have noticed. Using a viewing bucket Cora searched until she saw some strange camouflage. Taking off their armour Cora and Gabriel took a dive using the bell while the rest stayed behind to guard the boat and operate the crane.
Slipping in through an open gunport, Coral snaked through the ruined decks of the ship until she got to the lower part and found a large stash of crates. Using the crane, Gabe and Cora were able to pull the crates up one by one unto the boat until they got them all. Once the last crate was loaded They pried open one of them to reveal the stash inside dozens of bars of Imperial Gold enough to equip Camp Jupiter many times over.
Gabriel's eyes shined at the sight and turned to Cora, "You did it," he said as he and Cora hugged tightly.
"We did it," Cora corrected him, "though all things considered this was easy."
Hearing this caused David to frown, "hmm, too easy perhaps."
This silenced everyone and a wave of unease washed over them. While the journey was full of perils the recovery of the gold had been a walk in the park and any demigod who had done this knows that Quests were never this simple.
Taking the helm, Cora immediately set the boat out as fast as it could go. As they did Gabriel put his armour back on and readied his weapons, once he did, he took the wheel so Cora could do the same. By the time they were all ready, they had made it out of the lake when something struck the boat's port side rocking it violently. another hit struck the starboard rocking it again. The Demigods looked over the side to try and see what was going on. Then, the river began to churn, and the boat began to shake against the rapidly forming waves. The water to the starboard side exploded and from it emerged the largest monster David had seen so far. The thing was as big as a skyscraper and if David had to make a comparison its length rivalled the height of the Chrystler Building.
A large head looked down and spotted the boat and demigods with its massive eyes. Its serpentine body was massive and that was just the part of the body that had risen from the river not including the rest of it down under. The mountainous back was lined with spines and fins with a pair of flippers towards the frons and ending with a tail fin that splashed the water creating large waves. The sharp snout opened to let out a deafening roar revealing triple rows of teeth with some barbed and curved back while others were straight, sharp and longer than David was tall.
"Cetus Trojas," Gabriel snarled.
Cora leaped forward and turned to David, "you three get the boat to safety, we will handle this beast."
David shook his head, "no, we're staying we can help."
Gabriel put a hand on David's shoulder, "we appreciate your help, but if this quest is going to mean anything it has to be us."
David sighed, as much as he wanted to aid them, he knew that if they got help from the Greek demigods the success of the quest may not be recognized, so he reluctantly agreed.
Cora dived into the water and a few moments later shot up on a waterspout so that she now level with the monster's head and began slashing and thrusting at it with her trident. While she distracted it Gabriel ran up and jumped onto the monsters back spatha drawn.
As the romans fought the monster. David steered the tug to the nearby shore at pineapple point. They got out as they surveyed the fight from the shoreline.
"Do you think they'll be okay?" Pamela asked worried.
David frowned, "that's the biggest monster we've faced. But as the son of war and the daughter of the sea, I wouldn't bet against them."
"I wish we could help them," Helena scowled. I don't like the idea of just sitting here hoping for the best."
David nodded; he hated being helpless like this but then again, he can't always be there to hold everyone's hand.
"Uhh...guys," Pamela stammered. "I don't think we need to worry about just sitting back."
A rustling behind them caused David ana Helena to turn around to see a large group of Scythian Dracaena surrounding them armed to the teeth. David rolled his eyes as he and the girls drew their weapons, "these bitches again"
"You ssssshall pay for sssslaying our sssissssters, sssson of Zeussss." Their leader hissed.
"Ooohhh, noooo I'm ssshhhaking in my sssshhhhoessss," David replied mocking their manner of speech."
The leader shrieked in anger and with a cry her followers charged the three. Pamela called up vines ensnaring the dracaena while David let rained a torrent of lightning on them while Helena engaged the leader as she was charging David. Despite being outnumbered, the demigod's powers combined with their honed skills were able to eliminate most of the monsters. Seeing that the fight was lost, the leader knocked Helena back before fleeing. David chased after her while Pamela and Helena stayed to deal with the remaining Dracaena.
David chased the leader farther inland than he intended. By the time he caught up with her he had already gone a mile from the shore. He raised his left hand sending a bolt of lightning into her back causing her to stumble and fall. He leaped into the air and with his staff raised above his head plunged it into her head piercing the ground below. She dissolved into dust and David picked up his prize. He was about to turn back when a voice growled from the side. "David Roosevelt."
David turned to see a giant standing before him. He was about 20-feet tall from what David could tell. With cherry red skin and rust coloured hair fixed into dreadlocks. He wore a tunics made of numerous sheep hides crudely stitched together over green leather. His face and the parts of him were not covered revealed innumerable scars. His legs David noted were reptilian in nature and in his hand was a bone coloured lance taller than the giant was with a head the size of a weaver's beam.
Expecting a fight David raised his staff but the giant responded by lowering his weapon. Though that could be due th the major height difference between them, the Giant spoke once more, "I see it now, you are definitely her son."
"What's it to you?" David demanded keeping his guard up.
The Giant raised his hand, "peace, son of Zeus, I came to talk and try and reason with you, to try and prevent you from making a mistake."
"And what would that be?" David wondered.
"You cannot trust your mother, she is using you, leading you down a path you shouldn't. Whatever it is it won't end well for you or those you care about."
"Oh really?" David leaned against his staff in amusement, "And what makes you such an expert on my mother and her motives."
"Because I know her," the giant replied. "Oh, sure she'll act as warm and caring a mother that anyone could ask for. But if you don't go along with her wishes, she will turn her back on you like any other Olympian." The Giant bowed his head, "I know this better than most and for eons she had made me suffer for the choice I made.
David rolled his eyes, "you're crying in the rain pal. If there's supposed to be a contest between who's the better parent, I can assure you mother is winning so far."
The Giant sighed, "she's using you, David. Whatever differences you have with your father. You are nothing more than a tool for your mother's schemes."
"And pray tell, what are her schemes?" David asked bemused. "Besides her wanting to awake."
"To overthrow your father."
"Well, she better take a number and get in line," David scoffed.
"Please David," the giant begged, "You don't know what you're doing."
"I also don't know you; you say I can't trust my mother, yet you expect me to trust you." He smirked.
The giant frowned, "if I told you who I was, you may be less willing to trust me."
"Well that hardly helps your case." David scoffed. "My mother wants to awaken, and I intend to help her. But if my father or any Olympian tries to interfere, then I will fight them, come monster, giant or god."
The giant bowed his head, "as you wish. If I cannot stop you, then I have no choice but to warn Zeus of the danger."
David watched the giant turned to leave when a voice said in his head, "you must stop him, If Zeus get the slightest inkling that you're a threat he will kill you or even throw you into Tartarus." David looked back at the Giant walking away and his eyes narrowed, recognizing the truth behind those words. "Use the staff your Nana gave you," the voice continued.
David traded his celestial bronze staff for the one made of Adamantine. Activating it, he then took to the sky flying after the running giant. He raised his hands at the Giant jogging away and released a bolt of lightning at the giant's back, knocking him to the ground as David flew over to him. "I'm sorry too, but I can't let you do that."
The giant raised his finger, "Don't be foolish boy, I cannot be killed like the monsters you have fought."
David shrugged, "then I won't kill you." He said simply. He then lunged forward and before the giant had a chance to react, with a swipe he slashed the Giant's arm, creating a large gash and causing him to scream. he looked at the wound and seemed surprised when it didn't heal.
"You...you cut me," The giant exclaimed in shock, "but how?" He looked at the weapon in David's hand and closed his eyes, "Father, mother, why do you forsake me so." He now glared at David with his lance raised. "So be it."
David lunged forward but this time the giant was putting all his focus on the fight. He deflected David's swipe and batted the boy away with the butt of his lance, sending him tumbling through the ground and into a nearby tree.
Groaning from the pain David struggled to his feet, as the Giant charged him lance raised and once again went on the attack. The two exchanged blows and received wounds as they clashed with David thrusting and slashing while occasionally attacking with lightning as a distraction while the giant was able to deflect most of David's blows with his lance while being bombarded with lightning as well as using the wind to blow dirt into his face to disorient him.
The Giant's thrusts were fine and showed skill that was practiced and honed over many years. It was only David's ability to fly that prevented him from getting impaled. That didn't prevent the giant from getting in several hits in leaving David's chest with several flesh wounds Getting an idea, David charged forward. Due to his opponent's size, David aimed for his reptilian legs. The Giant saw what he was doing and moved to stop him. Dodging a thrust to his torso which resulted in a deep cut to his side David landed and with a swipe, he cut the giant on his left calf. With a cry the Giant dropped to one knee, breaking his defensive stance. With the Giant's defense broken, David leaped up over the giant's shoulder and slashed the wrist of the arm holding the lance cutting the tendons and causing the Giant to lose his grip on his weapon. Flying back a distance David shot forward and kicked the giant as hard as he could right between the eyes, causing him fall hard on his back unconscious.
David landed on the Giant's chest. and walked to tards the head. The giant's mouth was open and turning the head upright, he reached in the with a swipe of his blade, sliced off the giant's tongue.
This woke the giant up and shot upright as David leaped off of him. The giant screamed in pain as he clutched his mouth as blood poured out. David pocketed the bloody organ and turned to the giant. "I need silence from you."
That is when he heard clapping behind him. "Well done, David!" David turned to see two faces he hadn't seen in a while.
"Otis, Ephialtes, what brings you here?" David asked surprised to see Nana's farmhands.
"Well Nana heard this one had escaped incarceration and sent us to retrieve him," Otis growled looking at the wounded giant with disdain. David noted that the twins were now as least twice the size of the giant he had fought. He had known they were big, but he figured they must have been behind a mist before.
Ephialtes grabbed the smaller giant by the throat and lifted him up. "Be thankful this is all he did to you, he snarled, "you deserve far more for breaking our mother's heart."
The Giant spat a mouthful of blood in Ephialtes face which earned him a punch to the gut by Otis. "Let's bring him back where he belongs," Otis replied and with a nod from his brother He dragged the giant away, as David spoke up, "how long were you watching me?"
Otis turned to David with a smirk, "long enough to know you didn't need help. With a wink Otis turned and followed his brother David watched them revert back to a more normal size as the mist took hold. With that, David turned and headed back to the river. When David arrived, he saw that Cora and Gabriel had returned and the girls were patching them up. Cora was covered head to toe in slime but other than that she seemed relatively unharmed.
The two of them looked at each other and they didn't need to say a word to know that the other was thinking the exact same thing.
'What happened to you?'
'You will not believe what I've been through tonight.'
