Hi guys!

Bad, bad bad news: after a big drama exam and TWO upcoming maths ones, all my time has been spent revising and not writing, I'm so sorry! (Insert violins playing here)

It is with regret that I have to inform you from now on there will be only weekly updates...

...please don't hate me...

:(

But on the plus side, more fight scenes!

Yay!

-Silverhand9028

Leon's POV

Lilly and Veronica walked behind the tree for a conversation.

Twang: I turned to see Toby plucking the strings of Summer's guitar.

"Don't," warned Tom, "Summer hates people touching her guitar!"

"Oooh, Mr Protective!" Toby giggled, "are you and Summer an item, eh?"

Tom glared at him. "Toby: you're funny, but if you overstep the line, I swear..."

"But you're not denying it!"

"We're not an item!"
"But do you want to be one?"

Lilly and Veronica suddenly tore out of the trees.

"What is it?" I asked, reaching for my sword which was currently resting against a log.

A silence echoed through the woods. I overhead a snippet of Summer and Samantha's conversation: "We'd be honoured, really Summer. You're a fine archer."

"It sounds exciting, sure, but..."
"Amy, your half-sister, told you, didn't she? It's the best decision I ever made, to join the Hunt."

"It's not that it won't be amazing, just..."

"She wants to join the Hunters?" gasped Tom.

Only a little too loud.

Samantha turned round, her brown hair swishing round her pointed slender face.

Summer shuffled around to face us, her freckled face tickled with a pink blush. Her blue eyes swivelled round us in turn.

"Yes, she does," Samantha informed us. "She'd like to join the Hunt and aid Artemis and myself-"

"Summer... I..." Veronica walked forward. The crunch of her boots on the dried leaves and twigs beneath was the only sound.

Summer turned to Samantha. "Look, about your offer.."

"Yes?" Sam smiled happily, like Summer was a new friend she had been waiting an age to meet.

"I... look, it sounds awesome, but Veronica... Lilly..."
"You don't want to leave them? Well, Veronica would make an excellent young huntress. And Lilly... if she wants to, I'm sure we could-"
"No. I'm sorry Samantha. But Leon, Toby..." her cloudless eyes rested on us. "Tom... I can't."
"I see..." Samantha looked genuinely disappointed. Lilly smiled sympathetically.

"Well, you can still take us to Artemis' crack, right?" she asked.

"Yeah sure. It's this way."

Summer began to pack away her guitar, glaring at Toby who had just dropped her electric tuner in the mud.

Suddenly, a blood-curdling laugh echoed through the forest, and heavy stomping footsteps followed soon after...

Cyclopes.

We saw them before they saw us, although that wasn't hard. Their milky eyes were bloodshot and looked pretty damn useless. We heard about four of them, clambering through the trees and yelling out threats to us.

"Cursed demigods!" one hollered, as it burst into the clearing.

It had a white t-shirt and ripped jeans, with boots that must have been a size 50! (A/N in English sizes, that is!). He held a huge club in one hand.

"Run!" screamed Veronica. I noticed the beast's one eye looked really bad, so hopefully it wouldn't see us.

"Hide!" I told them.

Toby and I turned and leapt behind an oak tree, Summer dropped behind the log and nocked an arrow to her bow. Veronica, Samantha and Lilly sprinted to another tree. Tom, who was in the middle of the clearing and not by a tree, dropped to the floor, then put his hood up and hoped that his black sweats and brown hoody would serve as camouflage. Another cyclops lumbered in, wearing a black gym top and shorts. It wielded a similar club, and a heavy-looking shield.

"Where are those demigods?" it growled. It's voice was deeper, more hate-filled and murderous.

Two more kicked aside a sapling tree, entering the clearing. I saw Lilly swallow beside me as she silently unsheathed her knife.

"The hunter girl said they were here..." one rasped, smashing it's gloved fists together.

I saw Samantha's eyes widen. Lilly glared and muttered under her breath. I couldn't hear her, but I guessed what she said.

Magenta.

"Did demi-go's leave dis?" the biggest, ugliest, and clearly stupidest one muttered.

He approached Summer's guitar. I saw Summer draw her breath. That guitar was her prized possession.

The one who had spoken first started sniffing.

"I smell demigods... here..." he approached the hiding place of the three girls.

Lilly looked sick. I was only a few metres away. If I could just...

"AAAAGHH!" the one who was near the girls screeched in pain. I saw Veronica standing behind him, drawing a cut along his leg.

"Demigo'! Me kill demigo's! AAAGGHHH!" the big ugly roared, turning towards his injured friend, then promptly ran into a tree.

Veronica was joined by Lilly who kept the huge cyclops at bay with her knife, then squealed as the beast retaliated.

I felt my Ares instincts kick in. War tactics... battle ideas...

I turned to Toby, who had his sword ready in his hand.

"Go!" I yelled.

As we thundered out of the trees, I spied Summer shoot an arrow at the cyclops who had come dangerously close to touching her guitar. Samantha had a killer look in her eyes as she targeted one who hung at the back.

Her arrow missed by an inch, which I found odd. I would've thought she was an amazing archer. But I had more important things to worry about. For example, the large ugly one-eyed stupid one.

"Me kill you demigo'! Me eat your bones! Oooh... two! Me eat both of your bones! Me love eating demigo's! Especially when me boil your blood and roast the kidne-"

I would love to hear the rest of 'How to Cook your own Demigod' but me and Toby put a stop to it. I threw my sword: not easy when it's a huge double-handed thing but it caught the cyclops in the knee.

"Get a branch!" I roared, above the sounds of Veronica's blade clashing with the first cyclops.

Toby didn't object. He yanked a branch of a tree and handed it to me. I ran at the toppled-over giant, as he roared in pain, trying to remove the sword in his leg.

I rammed the branch as hard as I damn well could, leaves and all, into the cyclops' eye. Toby's pretty squeamish about blood and eyes, so the two together was quite a sight, even for me.

But he still leapt at the beast and thrust his sword into the beast's back. It exploded into millions of dusty particles. Gross.

I saw the girls doing a good job. Summer drew back her bowstring and closed her eye to get her aim right. The arrow struck the cyclops' shield, as it ducked back. Samantha aided her as they launched a second volley of arrows. Samantha's struck the shield, one bouncing off the sword of the beast which was drawn up in a defensive stance I recognised vaguely: perhaps just my war instincts. Summer's arrow caught the little finger, as the giant was hopping around trying to avoid being hit.

I saw Lilly throwing her knife so it caught the sunlight. The big, stupid cyclops saw the silver sparkle as rays reflected off, causing a mosaic of reflected light on the forest floor.

The cyclops looked at the light patterns intently, the distractions working. As the knife fell into the shade and hit a tree trunk, the patterns vanished. The stupid one looked up dismayed. Too late. He just saw Veronica strike, then exploded into dust.

"Good distraction!" grinned Veronica. She ran to me and Toby. We were battling the quiet one who Samantha had first shot, although she had then switched to the one who had almost touched the guitar.

The beast had a spear, and he stabbed with it at me. I felt my war instincts flood through me as I ducked and rolled to the side. The giant remained unfazed, as he brought the weapon around in an arc. Lilly dropped to the floor and just dodged the point. The cyclops brought his weapon up again, preparing to spear Toby, who was readying a defensive pose.

Suddenly, another cyclops stumbled towards us backwards. I saw he was screaming, and I noticed an arrow in his eye.

Samantha and Summer advanced, their bows drawn, We made a circle around the two cyclopes.

Veronica's eyes widened. She glanced across at me, and mouthed: "Get an opening for me!"
I nodded an affirmative. "Toby, Lilly," I instructed, "distraction!"
Lilly's knife was still in a tree trunk, but she picked up a knife from the stupid one. It was like a sword for her, as she and Toby slid in. They struck at it's legs, as the beast roared in horror.

I grinned: an opening!
I yelled: "Veronica! GO!"
As Summer and Samantha pushed their opponent back with arrows.

Toby and Lilly kept theirs at bay too.

Veronica leapt onto the beast's arched leg, then sliced.

"AAAAAAAAARGHH!"

A sliced-up bloody eye fell to the ground. Veronica jumped down. I swept in and grabbed Lilly, as Veronica hauled Toby away. Summer skirted round the edge of the cyclops with an arrow in it's eye.

As she shot it, the cyclops turned. Summer and Samantha cleared. Two blinded cyclopes were facing each other, thinking that demigods were where the other cyclops was.

Lilly, who hadn't really got the plan until now and just followed the orders, grinned as she realised our aim.

The two cyclopes smashed their weapons down on each other with vigour.

Victory!
I grinned as two more explosions of dust filled the clearing.

But suddenly, Summer let out a a gasp of horror.

In the clash of battle, we had all not noticed one vital thing...

"Where's Tom?" she gasped.

Weekly updates: sorry!

I will try but again I can't promise.