Act I Chapter XXXIII: The Demigods Go on a Field Trip
"That was a lot easier than I expected," Percy commented as he looked at his friends. Luke and Annabeth were walking side by side, and Annabeth looked like she was on a field trip more than a quest to save the world. Granted, she had told them she went on a field trip here before, so maybe she wanted a second dose.
They had gotten a tour with a large group and then just slipped away one by one with signals from Luke. Once the tour group had left them behind, they reunited and made their way into the off-limits cellblock. Annabeth knew how to get there, but once they stepped foot inside, they were on their own.
Granted, it wasn't like the layout was any different. They had left behind a long hall of cells that were rusted, old, and barely maintained to go up rickety stairs to a hallway that looked even worse. The ground was covered in grime and something else that Percy did not want to identify.
"Any idea where it could be?" Percy asked. Luke held up his hand.
"This looks like the lair of a monster," Luke whispered as he looked back at them.
"So close to mortals?" Reyna asked in a soft voice. Percy looked around. There were a few lights on the ceiling that allowed for him to barely make out his surroundings. Not that there was much to make out. His sides were flanked by random cells missing doors, and all the bars looked to be pretty rusted.
Cells littered each side of the hallway. Luke started to lead them down the hall, and Percy's eyes widened as the cells were no longer empty. One cell had a mix match of armor and weapons in it, but each item looked like it had chunks taken out of it by something.
The cell opposite of that was covered in bones that were picked clean. Percy felt his knees go weak. Reyna looked between the cells and suddenly stopped. She motioned to them and grabbed her sword from her side.
Percy made his way closer and saw a cell that had a single item in it: the bust. Was this what they were looking for? Reyna looked around and tried to open the cell. When that didn't work, she slammed the hilt of her sword into where the lock of the cell was.
"What are you doing?" Luke hissed. "If there's a monster, it'll hear us!"
"We have to get it out of here," Reyna argued. Luke quickly shook his head. Reyna ignored him as she hit her sword hilt against the lock one more time. She backed up slightly as the creaky door slowly opened.
Percy studied the bust. It looked to be made of pure marble and also looked really heavy. Reyna placed her hand to the bust, and they all heard a thundering hiss. Percy turned his head and realized it was coming from the opposite end of the hall.
"Hide!" Luke hissed in a whisper. Reyna looked back at the bust. "Leave it for now."
"We can just take it and go," Reyna argued.
"Luke is right," Annabeth butter in. Reyna glared at them but let go of the bust. Luke hurried out of the cell and started to lead them back to the door where they entered from. Annabeth glanced behind them and shouted quietly, "No time!"
Percy almost yelped as he was suddenly shoved into an open cell. He stumbled forward and fell to his knees. Percy hid in the cell as the rest of the demigods filed in. He wanted nothing more than to peek out, but he didn't want to alert the monster.
Percy closed his eyes and listened. He heard the loud thumping of the monster as it made its way down the hall. The thumping suddenly stopped not too far from them. A loud intake of air sounded through the hallway, like the monster was sniffing the air.
"Come out demigods," the monster called. The monster almost sounded like a female, but she had an ancient undertone to her voice. It didn't sound like she was speaking English. Percy still understood her, so was it Ancient Greek?
"Okay," Luke whispered as he turned towards them and pulled out his sword. "We'll kill this monster and take the bust."
Percy nodded and grabbed Riptide. He took the cap off, and his sword sprung to life in his hands. Luke stepped out of the cell to face the monster. Percy took a deep breath; this was it. He followed after his elder.
Percy stared at the monster in front of them, and his sword fell out of his hands. The blade clattered against the ground before disappearing, probably ending up back in his pocket. It didn't matter as he found himself frozen in place by the beast in front of them.
The top of her body almost looked like a normal woman. Almost. She wore bronze armor that was rusted and looked ready to fall apart at any moment, and it didn't look like she had anything else on underneath. Her head was where it started to get terrifying.
Her skin looked like that of a reptile, with the color being a mix of bronze and sea green. Her eyes were lime colored like venom. And her hair? It was made of snakes. Live snakes that snapped at each other and hissed, baring sharp fangs. If it was even possible, her lower half was scarier than the top.
Because the bottom half was a dragon.
Percy felt himself shaking in fear, and that was the only part of him that moved because he was frozen in place. Annabeth had the same terrified look as Percy did. Luke's hand was shaking as he tried to raise his sword in a defensive stance.
The lower body of this beast was black with a white stripe down the back. Her dragon scales were bright and shiny, but it was where the human half and monster half met that made Percy's knees shake. It was almost bubbling, and as it did, it morphed into the heads of different creatures ranging from a tiger to a wolf to a crocodile.
Her legs seemed to be covered in vipers that darted in their direction like they were going to break free and attack. Not to mention the large wings on her back. A tail like that of a scorpion slowly raised over her shoulder, and Percy could see the venom dripping off of it.
"We don't want to destroy you," Luke declared shakenly after a few moments. His voice held the confidence that all of them no doubt lacked.
"W...what is that?" Percy slowly asked. This monster stepped completely out of the cell and turned toward them. She held the bust in one hand, cradling it like a child as she made her way towards them.
"K...Kampê," Annabeth stuttered. Percy looked back at her and watched Annabeth take a deep breath. She gripped her sword to stop her hand from shaking. "I've read about her in myths, but I didn't think she was real."
"Why are there four demigods in my lair then?" Kampê hissed.
"We w-want that bust," Luke answered as fear slipped into his voice. He swallowed painfully, and Percy could see how tense he was. "Give it to us, and we'll l-let you leave here."
"We can't take her head on," Reyna supplied in a low growl. Percy slowly looked back at her. There was no fear in Reyna's eyes: only focus. "One of us needs to grab the bust, and the rest of us have to play distraction."
"What's the plan, then?" Percy asked as his gaze moved to Annabeth.
"If you want the bust, you can have it," Kampê stated. Percy's eyes widened in surprise. He didn't expect it to be that easy. Percy started to look back at the monster, and he saw a blur pass by his eyes, causing him to quickly duck. He felt wind pass him as if something was flying by at an incredible speed.
Percy felt like his world moving in slow motion as he turned to look behind him. Annabeth seemed just as shocked as him and was turning to look at where the bust had gone. Percy turned just in time to see Reyna being spun around from the force of the bust crashing against her. A stream of blood seemed to flow in the air as Reyna was ragdolled to the floor.
"Reyna!" Luke yelled. Annabeth stepped towards Reyna, and Percy heard another sound near his ear, something like a whip cracking. Percy tackled Annabeth out of the way, and the scorpion tail of Kampê destroyed the wall where Annabeth had been standing.
Annabeth shoved Percy away from her. Any protests he had died out as a scimitar slammed into the ground where he had been. Percy jumped to his feet, and Luke yelled, "Grab the bust, Percy! Grab it and go!"
Percy had no intention of leaving his friends to fight this monster, but he did need to get the bust out of there. Could he grab it and toss it out the window? It would get the bust away from the monster, and would Terminus really be mad if he had a few scratches and chipped parts?
Luke screamed a war cry and charged Kampê. Annabeth met Percy's eyes and nodded to him as she made it to her feet and rushed towards the monster. Percy scrambled to his feet and ran towards the bust. After it had slammed into Reyna, it slid down the rest of the hallway and was resting against the wall.
Percy came to a stop next to his fallen friend and tried to look down at her. Luke yelled again, "PERCY GO!"
Percy hated himself, but he focused back on the bust and ran. As he made it to the bust, he slid to a stop and started to pick it up. Percy heard the sound of something massive taking off. His instincts screamed at him. Percy slid the bust away from him and dove in the opposite direction. An explosion sounded near him a moment later.
As Percy rolled onto his back, he stared at the massive hole in the wall from where Kampê had slammed into it like a football player. Looking out the window showed that Kampê was using her wings to fly. She was shaking her head as if trying to reorient herself from the blow. They didn't have much time.
It took a moment for Percy to make it to his feet. He grabbed the bust and glanced behind him. There was a doorway that would lead him to an exit. All he had to do was make it there. His gaze moved back to his friends, and he saw Luke was checking on Annabeth before starting to make his way to Reyna.
Percy lifted the bust. It was heavy in his hands, but his adrenaline was pumping. He turned towards the door and went to dart towards it. A scimitar hit the door before he could even step towards it. Percy froze and then slowly turned around to see Kampê had easily made her way back into the building, and she had Percy trapped in a corner.
"My blade will carve your flesh," Kampê promised. "We'll see how shriveled up you get before you die."
"I like to have my skin clean like everclear," Percy quipped. Kampê sneered at him, and Percy hesitated. Then, he threw the bust at Kampê. The monster swatted it to the hole in the wall with ease. Percy watched as the bust fell out of the building and towards the water surrounding Alcatraz.
Whoops.
Well...
At least he got the bust out of the building.
Percy quickly grabbed Riptide from his pocket and took the cap off. The sword sprang to life in his hands again, just in time to block a scimitar. He saw the tail flying towards him, and Annabeth jumped in between him and the tail, blocking it with her sword.
The second scimitar started to attack them, and Luke joined their side as well. Even with three demigods fighting against two swords and the tail, they were barely able to hold their own. Kampê moved so fast that Percy could barely follow her movements. Her arms seemed to move independently of the rest of her, and her tail kept shooting forward for sneak attacks.
"Reyna, is she okay?" Percy asked as he dodged another attack from the scimitar and rolled away from the tail.
"I don't know!" Luke answered. He was breathing heavily and covered in sweat. "I came to check on you. Now focus!"
Percy glanced at Reyna out of the corner of his eye, and he felt a blade cut through his stomach. The cut wasn't deep, but the agonizing pain that followed a moment later ejected a scream from Percy. He dropped his sword, and the scorpion tail shot straight towards his chest. But Annabeth shoved him away.
Percy fell to his knees and quickly moved his hands towards his stomach. His arms were already shaking, and he felt nauseous. The skin around the wound was starting to burn and bubble. Annabeth stepped in front of him and turned to face him. She pulled him to his feet and tried to pull him out of danger.
The scorpion tail appeared behind Annabeth's back, and Percy found the strength to wrap both arms around her. He jerked her around, and the scorpion tail stabbed through his back. Percy gasped as he felt pain explode and poison be injected into his veins. His knees went weak as he collapsed against Annabeth.
"Percy?" Annabeth asked, fear dictating her voice as she stared at him. Luke cut the scorpion tail off at the tip, and Kampê howled in pain. "Hang on, Percy! Hang on! We'll-"
Annabeth never got to finish her sentence as Kampê slammed into them. Percy could barely keep his eyes open as the two fell out of the building and towards the water. Annabeth yelled in terror and held onto Percy tightly.
Percy wanted to keep his eyes open, but the curtains began to fall as the poison polluted his body. This wasn't how it was supposed to end. Their quest couldn't fail like this. He only hoped that Annabeth would survive the fall and find the bust. Percy's eyes closed against his will, and the crash of the waves in his ears was the last thing he heard.