Guys! Hello! I'm back with Chapter 20. Apologies if it took a bit long but this is by far the biggest one to date - 10,500 words (help).

Hope you guys had a good holidays as well as watching the new Disney PJO show

Anyways, here we are again, right where we left off. Enjoy.

CHAPTER 20: THAT HURT

A shadow moved through the flames, advancing slowly like a cold breeze. The tongues of green flame swirled around the dark figure as if he was untouchable. I summoned as much strength as I could in my legs, begging them to get up as my body still tried to recover from the massive shock of the explosion. My eyes worked hard to steady themselves as everything felt like a haze of blurry heat. I tried looking for my friends, but the green fire ignited everything it touched as it took over the deck. I tightly gripped my shield and held onto the knife as my only form of defense. The fire and smoke made it difficult to gather my breath as each inhale pained my lungs.

The only thing I could clearly see was the warrior approaching me, the sounds of the tip of his spear occasionally grazing against the tarmac cut through to my ears. The harrowing song went on and on as he got closer and closer. For the first time in a battle, I felt genuine fear.

I turned to the only voice I could. "Dienekes! What's the move, man?"

There was no response. At first I thought maybe I just couldn't hear him, so I tried again.

"D!" I shouted out loud this time. "I need your help…"

But the voice of my ancestor had seemingly vanished.

What's going on!? Where is that old spartan when I–

I grasped for the spartan pendant that hung around my neck. The very one that has protected my family for generations. The same one that Mom gave me before she left. There was only one issue… it wasn't there.

Shit! I must have lost it during the explosion. This is bad.

"I must admit, you're an interesting one." Hearing his voice again sent a small shock down my nervous system. I had forgotten how captivating it was, yet somehow terrifying. "Our paths continue to cross. As to why, only the Fates can know."

I stood on my legs, trying to stop them from shaking whilst willing my arms to lift themselves. The figure continued approaching, his voice as clear as ever despite the chaos surrounding us.

"Who are you!?" I mustered, raising my shield as best as I could as I instinctively inched backwards.

What sounded like a chuckle escaped him. I watched as the ever growing flames reflected and flickered off the dark metal that protected his body. "As intriguing as you are, I am afraid you stand in the way of progress."

I immediately stopped, sensing what was to come. I braced myself, brandishing the knife alongside my shield as I locked in on the dark figure. Whoever this person was, Chiron said that a fight should be the last of our options. I don't think I have much choice now.

"Good." Even though I couldn't see his face, there was a flicker of excitement in his response.

Despite how calm he spoke, I could sense an emotion underneath it all. It was a feeling I was all too familiar with, that feeling of rage. Whoever this person was, carried an unbridled amount of anger deep within him, enough that even I was able to sense it. And yet his words and movements came out in such a composed and trained manner.

I summoned as much power as I could in my voice. "Yeah, well, you're standing in myway, so I'm not sure how this is going to work out for you."

"Arrogance…" the man replied, "... a hero's bravery."

I channeled that same feeling of anger I previously felt throughout my entire body until my limbs felt as warm as the flames around me, and my vision turned a hue of red as I faced down my opponent. Thankfully everything still felt manageable, even without Dienekes to help me control it. Let's see how long that lasts. Preventing myself from getting back into a corner, I lunged first, swinging my shield at his face. Despite that slight boost from my rage, my body still wasn't fast enough as the warrior evaded it like nothing. I quickly followed up with my knife, coming out from behind my shield so as to surprise him but again, no contact. I desperately tried landing hits but it was almost like he was dancing around me, moving side-to-side as if I had the speed of a snail.

My knife sliced thin air.

"Again," he mocked.

My shield strike missed.

"Slow."

I struck again, but unsure of where to connect.

"Never hesitate."

I tried grabbing him.

"Sloppy."

With each miss, the anger coursing through me built up. In one massive strike, I channeled an abundance of that rage into my arm as I went for a direct punch, using the edge of my shield to his chest. This strike was much faster and stronger. Expecting to do some damage that time, all I heard was a massive clang of metal as my blow was stopped dead in its tracks. Using the handle of his spear, holding it with only one hand, he managed to block my punch with almost minimal effort.

He chuckled. "Arrogant."

And with one push he managed to send me stumbling back, taking me a few seconds to regain my footing. But before I could I even think, he went on the offensive. Fending him off was almost like trying to shield yourself from a cyclone. The tip of his spear slammed into my shield with such force that I nearly tripped on my backfoot. He spun his spear at all the right moments that left no space to breathe in between his strikes. I desperately tried to keep up with his movements but it was like watching an artist thriving in his environment. I myself was shocked that I managed to barely just block his attacks but I wasn't even sure if he was actually trying or just toying with me. I could feel myself getting closer to the edge of the deck as his attacks were relentless, pushing me back inch by inch like a predator trapping its prey.

I did what I could to regain some control of the battle. Finding the right moment, I tried a quick thrust with my knife, hoping to catch him off guard. But it was almost like he was waiting for it. In an instant he dodged the attack and locked my elbow in place with his arm as a sharp pain ran up to my shoulder. The knife clattered on the ground.

"A shame. I expected more." He shifted his arm in a way that made my elbow bend in an extremely unnatural position.

The pain was unbearable, as a guttural scream came from my throat. The shield naturally reverted back into the bracer as I tried swinging with my only free arm but like all of my attacks so far, it did nothing. I felt so helpless. I kept on doing what I could to break free, punching wildly, going as far as my instincts would take me. The man moved closer, keeping my arm locked in place. The sun was no longer in the sky as the clouds merged. I felt my world around me beginning to turn dark as his imposing figure was overwhelming. For the first time I could see his eyes through the slits of his helmet. Dark and striking, his eyes looked cold and any semblance of light had faded. I could still sense the brooding anger underneath it all. He inflicted another cry of pain before kicking me to the ground as I felt the side of my head hit the cold stone of the deck. A sudden cold sensation took over as I found myself lying along the edge of the ship, the waves of water below me crashing against the steel hull. Drops of rain began to drizzle from above.

He kicked my knife towards me, without saying a word, like he was waiting. I picked it up, my right arm was still in pain but I had to fight through it. He watched as I slowly stood up, trying to regain as much energy as I could as my back was to the ocean down below. This time, I hesitated, unsure of whether I should attack, unsure of whether I wanted to. Dienekes wasn't here to guide me and I could actually say that I was scared. But I knew that I couldn't let it end here. There was still so much I had to do, things I can't leave unfinished. I harnessed that feeling, bracing myself one more time as another surge of anger spiked through me. I charged, shield first hoping he would take the bait. When he went to swipe my shield to the side, I would switch my position at the last moment to land a hit on him whilst he was open. The moment arrived, I stepped to the side but just enough to close the distance. He had left his upper body open when he tried to parry my charge. It was looking good, I saw the opportunity. I came down with my knife with as much deadly precision I could. For a brief second, I thought I could deter him but just as the tip of my blade was about to graze his armor, he simply stopped my arm with his own. His reaction time was so fast I was wondering if he knew my strategy all along.

Grabbing a hold of my arm, he glared at me, letting out another sinister chuckle. He knocked me back and swept the legs from under me. Once again, I was nearing the edge of the deck.

"I must say, that was quite clever." He twirled his spear, stepping right into my space. "But you'll have to do better than that."

I tried getting up but he thrusted his spear into my thigh, causing me to scream in pain as blood began drippin down my leg. This was the most helpless I had ever felt. No matter what the challenge, I always thought I could fight back but this just seemed like it was hopeless from the start. It was embarrassing and I felt like a failure.

Was this it? Is this how it's going to end? No!Itcan't.

The rain hit my face as he stood over me, only slightly washing away the blood that stained the head of his spear.

"You have spirit, and a warrior's one at that," his words uttered from underneath his helmet. "It's the one thing the Gods always seem to underestimate. Sometimes the will of one man is enough to take on a storm."

I have to get up.

"You picked the wrong side," he said as he began to lift his spear.

"So I've been told," I grunted, pushing myself off the ground as hard as I could but he planted his foot down on my chest, knocking the wind out. Then he planted his other foot on my shield arm, preventing me from defending myself. I went to slash at his leg with my knife but he just knocked the blade out of my hand, landing just out of arm's reach.

This is not the end. This is not– I will not–

I continued to resist, using every ounce of what I had left, fighting back, refusing to give up. Words kept cycling through my head, 'there's still so much to do', 'I can't die', 'I can't fail'. I even started punching at his legs, kicking my feet, fighting through the pain, screaming at him in a rage as my body grew warmer despite the rain and the wind. I was running on survival instinct and pure anger. But no matter what I did, his foot didn't move. He pressed the cold blade of his spear against my neck as I gritted my teeth, glaring at him like I wanted to rip his head off. I probably did.

The man laughed. "A warrior's spirit indeed… consider yourself lucky; a quick death is an honor that not many receive, an honor I shall give you."

No… no… no!

I looked around. There was no one else, except the rain and the continuous burning of green flames. This all felt so slow yet so fast.

"Don't do this!" I exclaimed, a hint of fear overtaking the rage.

"It's a shame to die young," he said, "but… we all did."

His last words pulled my mind out for a bit.

'We all did'... what does he mean by that?

Then I saw him ready his spear, causing my mind and body to kick into overdrive. A last attempt in order to survive. It was all I could do. My mind refused to accept what was happening. I refused to accept it. I don't know what people feel in moments like this. Whether it's fear, relief or nothing. I mean, I felt scared but not for myself. I felt scared for everything that I would leave behind, the things and the people I wanted to protect. Birch, Mom, my friends. I don't know how to properly react in this situation. All I do know, is that despite the fear, the pain, the shock - one thing beats all of that… the rage.

Despite what anyone else might do in this situation, I kept on fighting. I grasped for the knife that was only an inch out of reach. The knife that my friend– my brother, gifted to me. Despite the black and gold spear looming over me, I stretched my arm as far as it could towards the hilt of the knife. My elbow was still in pain but it didn't matter. I was not letting it end here. Everything shifted into slow-motion. I could see his spear-arm raised in the air. The droplets of water hit my face as I begged my body to endure. I could feel the knife slowly slipping closer and closer towards my fingers.

Just a little more…

My vision locked onto the knife, but I kept pushing. No matter how much pain I was going through or the pressure that kept me in place, I fought through it all, forcing my shoulder out of its socket if I had to. Then it was like everything fell into place, before I knew it I could feel my fingers wrapped around the sturdy handle of the knife. I looked up to see the spear already beginning its way down towards my neck. It was all so surreal, like I was watching a movie. I only hoped that the credits wouldn't start playing. Things felt even slower than before. The knife was in my hand, the spear was coming down and anger was still the one thing driving it all. I didn't even know how I was going to stop it, I was just going to keep fighting.

And then a new sensation entered the fray. It was like a split second shockwave that my body felt as it lay on the ground. I couldn't tell if it came from my body or from the ship. Then a voice appeared amidst the anger, and it wasn't Dienekes. In fact, I think I heard it once before when I fought Trish.

The voice said, 'you call that a weapon?'.

That was it, and I was back staring up at the spear with the knife in my hand. All of that somehow happened in such a small fraction of time. But it didn't matter, this was probably my last chance. I had no formulated plan, no perfectly executed maneuver, all I had was the motivation to fight. Out of pure nature, I struck upwards with my knife, hoping it would connect with something and stopping the spear that would soon impale me. My knife moved up as the spear came down. I let out a roar so loud that it was probably heard by everyone on the deck as I struck with my knife. However, there was only one slight issue with that sentence because, all of a sudden, there was no longer an army combat knife in my hand but a near 8ft long spear that had somehow managed to stick itself into the shoulder of my adversary.

The next moments happened much faster than the last few, as he stepped back in sudden surprise, letting out a genuine shock of pain. To be honest I was more surprised than him. I stood back up and held in my hand a 7-8ft long spear, its shaft was a dark brown, almost identical to that of the combat knife I was just holding. What really tied it all together was the extremely unique celestial bronze spearhead with its slightly curved edge and a serrated blade, only to realize that it was pretty much the exact same as the knife blade, made slightly different to better fit the functions and shape of a spear. Then it all clicked together.

This is my knife but somehow turned into a spear? That voice I heard earlier… maybe that's how. I guess I should be pretty accustomed to magic and the supernatural by now but I truly wasn't expecting this. But hey, I'm not one to turn down an upgrade.

The rain was getting heavier but I could feel my breath returning to me at an energizing rate. Back on my feet, a rush of strength came back to me in tandem with my rage-fuelled instincts. I rotated my wrist, getting a feel for my new weapon. With a slight flourish I could feel its perfect balance, the way it was naturally accustomed to my hand. I looked to the warrior in black, who clutched his shoulder and for the first time seemed hesitant but that quickly turned into amusement.

I summoned my spartan shield and stomped the end of my spear on the ground.

Dramatic? Sure. It just felt like the right thing to do.

"I'm not done yet," I said. I could still feel the pain in my leg and arm but the fury burning inside took care of it, like a warm blanket.

The warrior eagerly shifted his stance, ready to attack. "Intriguing indeed."

We were immediately locked into combat. He was still better than I was, but I managed to keep up with him this time. The spear and shield helped tremendously in keeping a distance and my hit towards his shoulder from earlier has definitely made a difference in his speed. But this guy continued fighting like a pro, arguably the best I've ever seen. Part of me almost admired it. During the fight he managed to get close, stepping into the space where my spear was too long in order for me to properly strike. He didn't have a shield, so he was able to maneuver with it more gracefully at multiple distances. I didn't even think about it, I just swung down with my weapon not expecting too much but turns out it was more than enough. Somewhere in between all of that, my hand had miraculously been holding a sword instead of a spear, drastically changing the results of that exchange. The warrior managed to block the sudden change and our weapons clashed. Capitalizing on his stunned reaction, I pushed him back using my boot, once again creating a sizable gap between us.

It was strange, I didn't even feel the difference in my hand as my spear transformed into a sword. This sword was something of its own as well. If anything it looked more like an oversized version of the combat knife. The end of the handle curved slightly inward, wrapping past my pinky finger. The blade was celestial bronze, maintaining a shape similar to the combat knife but with more emphasis on the one-sided curve of the blade, like a machete. And it still had the serrated teeth near its midsection. My knowledge told me that this sword works both in form and function as a Kopis. Unlike the more standard double-edged swords found at camp, like a Xiphos, the Kopis was a single-edged blade used in the Ancient World more suited for hacking and slashing. It was a weapon widely used back then, but most notably, it was a weapon utilized by the Spartans. I didn't know what or who was helping me, but I'm not complaining.

I'm sure D would get a kick out of this. Which reminds me, I need to find my necklace.

The warrior didn't seem that entertained anymore and I could sense his anger growing, making its way towards the surface. But nothing indicated to me that he was about to lose it. No, he seems too clever for that.

"I see you have your tricks," he said.

"Nothing wrong with a little flair," I replied, a little bit of cockiness getting in the way.

"'The strong wield swords, the clever wield tricks and the great wield both. We simply play with what we are given'. I was told that once."

"Well, I appreciate the lesson."

The warrior charged forward again, this time with a huge burst of speed. I swung at him with my sword but he knocked it to the side and hammered his spearhead into my shield with a loud bang. He hit it with so much force that I felt it all the way up into my shoulder. Then he reared back and slammed into it again, even stronger this time preventing me from making any form of counter. Third time he struck and I had to brace along with my sword hand against the back of my shield, otherwise he would have broken through my defense and stabbed me right through the chest. Again, things were not starting to look good, as he pushed his spear deeper and deeper, forcing his way past my shield block. The sheer force prevented me from doing anything else other than to hold the defense. The shield actually began to creak under the pressure. I could already start to feel it slipping as the struggle in my arms grew more intense but I pushed back as much as I could.

"There it is," his voice rattled through the helmet. "That's the spirit."

My backfoot was starting to slide. The wet ground was making it even harder to gain traction. I wasn't sure how long I could keep this up.

Thankfully, it wouldn't be for too long as suddenly a loud crack echoed through the air, cutting through the rain as I was instantly relieved of the immense pressure. Another crack ripped the air which I was now able to recognise as the rounds of a shotgun going off. The first shot seemed to have missed, hitting the ground at our feet, causing the both of us to separate as the warrior hastily retreated a few steps away from me. The second shot managed to graze his armor but it was far from accurate. I located where the shots were coming from and saw Emile, limping his way from a nearby plane. Almost half his hoodie was burnt off and he had some ash marks on his face, in addition to the small amounts of blood leaking from his forehead. The white bandages that surrounded his entire right arm were exposed and some of the strips started peeling off around his forearm. It seemed like he took a good brunt of the greek fire explosion. He was still standing but he's definitely seen better days. And for once, I could honestly say I was happy to see the big guy.

Emile continued firing shots at him but the distance was too great for any real hits to connect. The warrior was quick to evade each shot too. The son of Hephaestus didn't look like he was trying to get perfectly accurate shots, just enough to scare him off, so far it was working. However, if my math was right, Emile was about to run out of shells before having to reload another batch. Another two more shots went off until there was a pause and Emile quickly started grabbing for one of the pouches strapped along his body, but I knew just how fast our opponent was. He began immediately sprinting towards Emile, prompting me to desperately chase after him. I don't doubt Emile could hold his own, but in his current state, with nothing but a shotgun to defend himself, I knew what would happen if I didn't intervene. I sped up as much as I could but one of my legs was still feeling the results of being stabbed in the thigh. I couldn't keep up. I saw Emile struggle to speed up his reloading arm, looking like some part of it took a hit from the blast as well. And the warrior was closing in at an alarming rate.

It was about to get terribly close until a streak of movement stopped the warrior in his tracks. At first I didn't notice it, but then after hearing a familiar set of hurried footsteps, the daughter of Hermes circled around him and went for another piercing strike with her rapier. If there was anyone that I thought had the potential of outpacing the fighter, it was Val. The surprise blurry of attacks kept him busy for now, whilst I regrouped with Emile.

"You alright?" I asked, looking closely at his condition. I noticed the viscous burn marks that covered his entire forearm, which would usually have been masked by the bandages. "Hey, dude, that doesn't–"

"They're old," he quickly interrupted. "I'm fine. I just saved you, remember?"

Part of me wanted to ask him how he got them, because it was honestly a surprise to see that severe amount of scarring, especially on someone who I assumed was used to being around flames. But now was not the time, so I dropped the subject in my mind.

"Thanks," was all I managed to say.

"Oh good, slick, you made it."

Saddling up beside us was none other than Flip, who looked fairly unscathed from the whole thing, except for the end of his jacket being slightly singed.

"Sonofabitch," I smiled, greeting my friend. "What took you guys so long?"

"Apologies, Arthur. When the blast hit, everything got a little woozy. Some of the other demigod's managed to break free but Nico's holding them off for now. And Marshall… we don't know where he is."

"What!? We lost the merchant?"

"Look, it's probably fine. I doubt he'd have just left."

I didn't like the uncertainty of it all. We actually were on the right track but now the whole thing has been derailed. I can only hope that guy doesn't just abandon us. He still has a job to do.

Flip then saw the figure that Val was currently fending off. "Who's that?"

"That's the mystery man I was talking about," I replied.

"Capture the Flag?"

I nodded.

"Was he the one… singing?" Emile said.

"I think so," I answered. "This wasn't the first time I heard it. Look, this guy's dangerous. We have to go."

"Come on, there's four of us–"

Just as Emile said that, Val came rolling towards us at our feet, a few holes punctured in her vest but thankfully no severe wounds. Flip ran to her side and helped her on her feet.

"Okay," Val groaned. "Who the fuck is that guy?"

We all watched as the warrior took his time approaching us in a cold and calculating manner. The tip of his spear drifted along the ground as small sparks began erupting from the metal. At that moment, a thought dawned on me, and it wasn't a nice one. The rain continued pouring, drenching our clothes but failing to extinguish any of the flames that consumed the deck.

"He's here to stop us," I said. "And I don't know if we can stop him."

Those words seemed to change the mood for the rest of them, as I bet we all started frantically coming up with our next moves. If we run, he'll just probably catch us. If we try to take him down head on, I doubt all of us would make it out alive. It was a scary thought, seeing any of my compatriots fall. I made sure to block it out of my mind. Out of the four of us, I noticed that Flip began scanning everything around him. He was onto something.

"Alright, buddy, now's the time for a plan," I told him.

"Give me a second."

The warrior was getting closer, looking at us like we were food.

I readied my shield. "Come on, plan-guy, let's go."

He ignored me.

"Yeah, Ganzorig, let's continue gawking at what's around us," Val joined in, mockingly. "Planes… planes… cargo… and even more planes!"

"Holy shit, you guys are annoying–" he stopped himself, then his face lit up like a lightbulb. "Holy shit Val, you're a genius."

"I am…? I mean, yes, of course I am," she shrugged, almost a little flustered at the remark.

Flip started right away. "Arthur, Val, you keep the scary-singing man busy. Emile you're with me.

"Wait, what are you doing?"

"Just trust me."

The both of us were a little skeptical but by now we knew there was no getting in the way of the son of Tyche's process. We were just going to have to trust him. Flip gave me a nod and he, along with Emile, ran off rambling to each other about what they were going to do. That left Val and I behind to fight the warrior who had managed to school us like nobody else has.

This is going to be fun.

"Nice sword," she commented.

I gripped the handle tight, imagining it to be a spear as it extended and formed into the appropriate shape. "What? This sword?"

She smirked, rolling her eyes. "Show-off."

Val and I have fought together before, a lot of it was through training. We gradually got used to how we moved, the intervals between our attacks, our patterns. Two on one did make it easier on us, but we were still having to put in nearly 100% just to match him. We had the overwhelming force, yet he had the skill to know just how to deal with each one of our attacks. A few hits of ours landed but they only managed to damage bits of his armor whilst he remained mostly unharmed. I faced him full-on, switching between spear and sword strikes, interchanging the weapons so as to keep him on his toes. Val would strike from various angles forcing him to have to cover all sides, and the two of us would cover for each other making sure there were no gaps in our attacks. The two of us were in tandem, and I could start to feel we were pushing him back, even if only for a moment. And somehow, he fought like this was training for him, enjoying every second of it. He hadn't said a word, just the occasional grunt.

The both of us were wondering how longer this was going to take. Then, after a few more moments of fighting (and deathly close calls), we heard a very familiar voice cry out. It momentarily caused all three of us to pause the fighting, as we saw Flip, standing out in the open with nothing but one of his daggers in his hand. The greek fire had completely wrecked the planes around him, one was barely hanging off the side of the deck. He began shouting taunts at the warrior which is literally the last thing he should be doing. If only what he said wasn't so vulgar then maybe I'd have the stomach to repeat it.

"Is this a part of the plan?" Val whispered in this temporary ceasefire.

"Probably, right?" I replied, showing that I was just as confused as she was.

"And I thought you were taught your manners," the warrior spoke as he looked towards us.

Flip continued his berating with whatever air was left in his lungs, leaving us more and more confused.

"I suppose if no one has, then I will."

Ignoring the two of us completely, the warrior dashed towards Flip, prompting us to desperately follow. We didn't know what in the Hades our friend was thinking but if his idea was just to piss the guy off then maybe he should rethink his position as the 'planner'. As I got closer, I noticed something peculiar about where Flip was standing; laid out in front of him was a wide spread of cargo netting. Flip stopped taunting, as he just stood there, seemingly waiting for the warrior to strike him. I saw him pull out his signature platinum coin and give it the highest flick I've witnessed before perfectly snatching out of the air with his hand. The warrior was way too close for comfort now but I think that's just what Flip was waiting for. At the exact moment the warrior stepped onto the cargo netting at Flip's feet, Flip yelled 'Emile!' and something tugged at the netting to the left. The warrior's spear looked like it was just about to connect with Flip's throat until the sudden pull of the netting below him caused him to lose his footing and forced him off-balance.

Then, Flip yelled, "now!"

Flip was the first to move. He threw his dagger, and the other from his jacket preventing the warrior from regaining his footing. He tried escaping towards the left but Emile, wielding his shotgun like a baseball bat, came out of nowhere and smacked the warrior across the side of the helmet. I watched as the warrior, trying to move around in the netting, got one of his feet stuck almost causing him to trip over. Now I understood what Flip's plan was. I saw the warrior trying to get out in the direction I was but I had gotten there in time, running up with the front of my shield and pushing him back into the center as his spear dropped out of his hand. The more he moved around, the more the bottom of his legs got caught in the cargo net. I gave the signal to Val for one final blow. I knelt down as she ran up behind me springing off my shoulder and dropping kicking the warrior as he fell to the net-covered ground. Val was able to gracefully step out of it without getting stuck.

"Wrap him up!" Flip ordered.

The four of us immediately took the ends of the cargo net as the warrior began to get up, and threw it over him until his whole body was encased by the netting. The warrior began to roar and yell in frustration which only made the tangling around him worse. He managed to get a hold of the spear that was caught in the netting with him but his hand was in too awkward of a position to get any stabs off. Val didn't hesitate to give him a sharp kick to the torso.

Then Flip barked another order, "Arthur, Emile! The plane!"

At first I didn't know what he was talking about but thanks to Emile's quick direction, I noticed that one of the ends of the cargo net had a line that was tied to the plane that looked like it was about to fall off the deck. One of its wings was gone as tongues of green flame flickered on top of the cockpit. One of its wheels was already hanging off the side of the ship, it only needed a slight push with force and it was bound to go rolling off.

This is crazy… but I liked it.

Emile and I ran to the plane whilst the other two made sure the warrior didn't escape. Once we got there, the both of us found the best spots to exert the most amount of force. Then, as a son of Ares and a son of Hephaestus, we gave it as much strength as we could muster. It was a difficult start but eventually we started hearing the scraping against the floor. I turned around, pushing even harder with my legs with my back up against the plane.

"Ay, you mata usi! Are you even pushing!?" Emile shouted at me.

"I am! Are you!?"

I could feel the metal vibrations through my bones, my muscles screamed and burned as the two of us desperately moved the plane just an inch enough for it to roll off on its own. I got a good view of what was happening with the others, and I could see one of the arms already free. But we were almost there. By the time he was a third of the way out, on the count of three, Emile and I used our combined strength in one final push. It was a great stress on our body, followed by a sudden release as we heard the loud steel creaks against the deck. For a split-second, the plane was airborne until causing a great big crash through the water below us.

Thank gods we didn't push it off the pier-side of the ship.

The line of rope spun wildly before straightening out as the tension dragged along the cargo net, and the dark warrior with it. We all watched as the warrior was pulled off the deck and over the edge, as he let out one final echoing cry filled with anger, enough to give me shivers. But it was over, at least for now. We still have to get off this ship– temple technically. The four of us regrouped with Nico who seemed to have dealt with the other demigods.

"I only stopped them temporarily," he said, a little out of breath. "But we need to go."

"I've been saying that!" I respond in frustration.

We began pathing our way back to the entrance where we came from. From there, we only had to run by a few dozen exhibits and levels to get out of this place. Not to mention I don't really know how securely my 'dad' tightened up the place.

What if there were more birds? Or maybe other animals? Like lions or something.

Instinctively, I grabbed at my pendant only to be reminded that it was no longer there. I stopped running.

"Guys, wait!" I yelled, halting everyone's hurry. "I can't leave. I– I lost something."

The four of them just looked at me all confused.

"It's my necklace," I elaborated. "It's important, I just need to find it."

"I thought you just said we had to go?" Flip questioned.

"How important?" Val asked.

"I just– I just need to find it."

My mind was conflicted. There was no way I could find it amidst all the burning planes and green flame. And they were right, the longer we stay, the smaller our window of escape becomes. But I can't accept that I would just lose it like that. It's my family heirloom. My mom gave it to me to protect me. It was her gift. She entrusted it to me.

I was frozen, my legs didn't know what to do. "I… I don't–"

I felt so uncertain, so indecisive.

What matters more?I mean, D… I can't just forget about him.

"Hey!" a voice barked in the distance.

It was the other group of demigods that attacked us. Looks like they got out of whatever was holding them and were now coming straight towards us. I think I saw one of them rip a skeleton hand off of their shin.

"Yep, time's up," Nico said as the rest began to move.

Val placed a hand on my shoulder before moving with the rest, "sorry, man."

I couldn't believe it. The choice was to either keep everyone behind, most likely killing us all, just for me. Or to abandon my most valuable possession. I took a deep breath.

I'm sorry, Mom. I hope you'll understand.

I made a promise to myself that I would find it again, even if it meant coming back here. I clenched my fist at the thought of another failure but I moved on, just focusing on getting out of here alive at first.

With the exit in sight, we all shared a sigh of relief that we could finally get out of here. The other demigods were still well behind us and we had no more mysterious or unexpected opponent's/monsters to deal with. Additionally, we spotted another figure waiting for us; the merchant I was so worried would have ditched us during this whole scuffle. He walked up to us, wearing his brown leather jacket, completing the grizzled-biker look, with an expression of slight annoyance that cracked through his dark, rugged beard.

"You guys owe me a new pack." He frowned, holding up a cigarette box with its top-half completely charred before throwing it to the side.

"Dude, you know we're underaged right?" Flip replied.

Marshall mumbled something under his breath before addressing us. "Let's go."

We were finally so close to our way out of here, only a few steps further. Then, breaking our sense of relief, we all heard what sounded like a whip of the wind, so sharp as if a blade cut through the air. And with a loud boom against the ground, landing right in front of us, standing between us and the door was the dark warrior. He rose from his braced landing position, meeting us at eye-level with a sinister glare. We didn't even see him. It was like he just jumped from out of nowhere.

The warrior chuckled. "I see Chiron taught you well…"

In one quick motion, he lifted his spear and threw at such a fast rate that it took me a second to identify where it landed. I felt a pause in both the time and space around me before I realized what just happened. I was in silent shock and so was everyone else. Lying cold on the floor, a black spear sticking out of his chest, was Marshall. His body was still. I couldn't believe it. The one person we did all of this for. The one thing we needed to progress. Snubbed out in an instant.

"...but he didn't teach you everything."

Val was the first to break out of the shock. She charged at the warrior, only to be single-handedly disarmed and immobilized. I reacted out of impulse, bolting towards him with my spear but the same thing happened. Using only his fists, he took us down one-by-one, striking at points of our body we didn't even know existed. Whatever he did, the moment my body hit the ground I found it difficult to move. Everything was going wrong. The only one left standing was Flip, he readied his daggers as the warrior slowly approached him. But as I watched him from the ground, I noticed something different about my friend. Something new. It was the way he looked, the way he stood.

"Go ahead," the warrior said, as he got closer to him, " save your friends."

But Flip didn't move, it was almost like he couldn't make a decision. Slowly he began to lower his daggers, taking a slight step back.

"Unless…" The warrior was almost face-to-face with him now. There was a moment between the two I couldn't see. Then the warrior scoffed. "...of course. There's always one."

By this point, the other demigods had caught up to us as they now encircled our group. We were completely vulnerable and Flip, for some reason, wasn't doing anything. The warrior moved over to the body of the merchant and yanked his spear out, leaving Marshall's body to lie there.

"They're all yours," he said to the other demigods. "And next time, try not to waste my time with your incompetence."

The demigods grumbled in response but still paved a gap in order for him to move through.

"Where are you going?" Trish called out.

"Your leader knows what I want," he replied. "I'll be waiting."

And just like that he was gone. I couldn't see where he went as I still struggled to get up from off the ground. He knew just how to strike us, how to play us. And in the end, he took away the one thing we made all this effort for. My mind was processing more than it could handle right now, on top of struggling to move.

Still, my aching limbs and joints just refused to listen to me. I looked around for a way out of this, but all of us seemed to be in the same position. Even Nico was still trying to recover. The only one left was Flip but… he was gone. Or at least I couldn't see where he was. My emotions started getting mixed up.

I didn't want to say he abandoned us but then… where did he go?

I could hear the other demigods closing in on us. Trish's maniacal laughter went off as it looked like things couldn't get any worse.

"You guys are so screwed," one of them said.

I still couldn't move like I wanted to. Some feeling was coming back but I doubt they'd come back in time for me to defend myself. Emile tried to reach for his shotgun until it got kicked away by the demigod standing over him. They then kicked him in the stomach as he let out a gasp of pain. Val tried getting up as well but she got struck across the face by one of them. I clenched my fist, pounding it against the ground, an uncontrollable amount of anger began to swell.

Trish walked over to me. "This time, I'm going to make sure you stay dead."

I began to see her arm rise up above me whilst I desperately begged my body to move. No matter what was about to happen, my mind was not giving up. I pushed and pushed until I couldn't any longer. I raise my torso off the ground only for her to push me back down.

"Fuck you!" I cried out but was only met with that same laughter.

I resisted and fought, watching the others do the same. I still wasn't giving up.

"Ow."

…

Everyone stopped. Even Trish and her maddening joy had ceased for a moment. It seemed we were all confused and curious about the unknown voice that made a noise just then. At first I thought it was nothing, an 'ow' throughout all of this didn't seem completely out of place. Nothing in the atmosphere changed. But then a figure stood up from the ground. I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me but then he spoke.

"That hurt."

To everybody's surprise, the man, who we all thought was dead, picked himself off the ground and dusted a bit of dirt off his leather jacket. A minute ago, he was lying lifeless on the ground with a spear embedded into his chest and now he was acting like he accidentally tripped. I took Trish's hesitation as a chance to get up on one knee and do my best to help up the others but we were all still in awe of what was happening.

We looked upon the merchant who was breathing heavily, veins growing on the side of his neck like they were about to burst. Other than a little hole in his black shirt, exposing the dog tags underneath, he looked completely fine. In fact, he looked pissed.

"What the–" one of the demigod's muttered whilst another went straight in.

Using his celestial bronze sword, he slashed at Marshall, each hit across the chest slicing through his shirt and pushing him back, but he was still standing. Rearing back for a massive thrust and with a loud yell of exertion the demigod impaled their sword through his stomach. I cringed, expecting another gruesome death but Marshall just stood there, staring at the demigod with a murderous expression. We watched in amazement as the wounds all across Marshall's body began to heal almost instantaneously, the blood seeping inwards as the only remaining marks were the cuts in his shirt.

The demigod's eyes grew wide. "What in the gods' name are you?"

Marshall pulled the demigod in by the collar. "Ask them yourself."

It was quick but I just managed to catch it; Marshall pulled out a small blade from one of the sleeves of his leather jacket and slammed his fist into the abdomen of the demigod. The demigod let out a gasp of air before slumping to the ground as blood stained his shirt. Part of me didn't know how to feel, but the demigod was still breathing. I noticed a knifehead sticking out in between Marshall's knuckles in the form of a push dagger.

The Merchant looked at me with a face showing a unique form of anger. "Go."

Then he turned back towards the other demigods as panic began growing on their faces.

"Now…" He winced as he pulled out the sword, making a weird fleshy *shing* sound before he let it drop to the ground. "Unless you want to wake up in the hospital like your friend here, I suggest you happily make your exit off this ship."

There was silence until Trish shouted, "Fuckin' freak!"

"Trish, no!"

The other demigods tried to stop her but she had already pulled out a pistol she must have kept behind her back. She managed to pump a few rounds into Marshall which seemed to have the same effect as the celestial bronze sword.

She had a gun!?

He groaned in pain as the bullets slowly left his flesh, bouncing off the ground. "Goddammit."

…what the fuck…

They all stood there, stunned as Marshall growled underneath his breath. Letting out a terrifying roar, he pounced on them, fighting like a feral animal with essentially nothing but his bare hands and a small blade. Watching them try to fend him off was definitely a sight. For a moment, the rest of us had no idea what to do until we heard a metal door creak behind us, where Flip had finally reappeared. He held the door open and beckoned us to get inside. The first thing I thought was 'finally! There he is!' and I wanted to grab him and interrogate the hell out of him but now was probably not the best time. I quickly sprung back into action mode. I helped the others get up as we all fought through our individual pain and ran straight for the exit. I took one last look back at the deck. I saw Marshall, a man we just met, holding back a group of demigods all by himself. We still needed him to find the Silk Road, but a part of me felt like he was going to be just fine.

The five of us bolted through the entire U.S.S Intrepid and all its exhibits until we finally reached the lobby entrance in which we came in. Seems like all the other museum-goers had the same idea as the whole ship was emptied out. We saw firetrucks and a few patrol cars rock up as they began to direct people away from the supposed danger. Probably in response to the obvious explosion that occurred on deck. I naturally put away my shield and weapon so we wouldn't get weird looks only to remember that these people probably see things differently than us. I'll never really understand how this Mist stuff works.

Nico somehow knew the perfect way to navigate the crowds so as to not garner unwanted attention. We simply just followed his lead. Once we were in the clear and back on city-ground, we gave ourselves a moment to breathe after all that just happened.

"Okay…" Val spoke through a huff of air, "...what in the actual fuck was that?"

Nico took a deep breath. "Life."

He wasn't entirely wrong.

Val began rolling out questions like a coked up journalist. "What's their problem? Who in the Hades was that dude that kicked all of our butts? Why did she have a gun? Why do you have a gun!?"

"Hey," Emile retaliated. "Thousands of years of weapon development and you think we're all just going to keep using swords and bows?"

Val slowly nodded as she leaned forward on her knees, out of breath and too exhausted to keep talking.

"You've got a point though," Emile continued.

I stood up straight as I looked back at the Intrepid. "Those were the same people that took Birch, the same people working with Melinoe."

Emile spat out a wad of saliva. He didn't say anything, but he didn't have to. I already knew what he was feeling.

"Well, I guess now we know what we're dealing with," Flip said. "They were trying to stop us from getting to the Silk Road. They knew our plan."

"If they're trying to stop us, it means we're on the right track," Nico concluded.

I stared at Flip, a thought running through my mind.

"Right, it took all of our combined effort to take down that one guy and he still managed to outplay us. I've never seen anything like it."

Flip agreed with Val. "Yeah, shit, that was bad."

"I don't wanna get crazy here," Emile started, "but if I'm not mistaken he was using the Spear of Achilles. I'd recognise that design anywhere."

"That's what was stolen from Chiron's office," I said as we all began to put the pieces together.

There was a moment of disbelief between all of us. None of it sounded it right. The spear, the armor, his appearance, the way he spoke and fought. We all knew of the tale and legend of the greatest warrior in Greece but to think we might have just come across it in person… there's no way…

"It's possible," Nico began like he was reading my mind. "With all that's going with Gaea and the Doors of Death. Who knows what will pop out."

About 50% of that made sense to me but the others seemed to have understood.

Nico scratched at his head. "Still, from what I've heard, he doesn't seem the type to be doing… well, any of this. It's a bit too out of left field."

Flip groaned. "I suppose we know why Chiron was so freaked out about it."

"Hey, where were you?" I blurted out the question after it had been stuck in my mind since it happened.

My friend gave me a suspicious look. "What?"

"Where were you? When we got taken out, you were there but then you weren't. Where'd you go?"

I was getting a little aggressive in my tone. I didn't want to be, but I wasn't a fan of how things turned out and the fact that my friend was a no-show when it felt like we needed him. Flip hesitated with his answer and simultaneously, we all waited in silence as the others began to remember his sudden absence as well.

"What does it matter?" he answered. "We all got out… and– and plus I went ahead to clear the exit for us."

"He said something to you," I continued.

His voice got more defensive "What? Look, slick, we just need to get out of here, get the Merchant and proceed with our mission, alright?"

"Flip?" Val asked but not in any condescending or mocking way like she usually would. It sounded genuine.

A bit of his composure started to falter. "I… I was–"

This tense moment was short-lived as we heard a disturbing scream coming from the entrance of the museum where we had just left. We all shot our heads around to see, limping through the doors, clothes that looked like they'd been through a blender and clutching her arm as blood dripped down her sleeve, looking as chaotic as ever. Trish lifted her bleeding arm holding one of her daggers at the end of it. On her face was a messed up looking smile.

"Ugh, her," Val stepped out first, grabbing the hairpin from her hair.

I reached for my combat knife, ready to take either its spear or sword form.

Emile just seemed surprised. "Holy Hephaestus, how is she still standing?"

"You!" she screeched. "You think this is over?"

With each limp, she got closer, occasionally chuckling to herself, her blade pointed directly at us. But walking up behind her, however, a stalking and imposing figure loomed. It had the face of a man who looked fed up with everything. We all knew what was coming and we all lowered our guards. Trish continued her rambling.

"I'm gonna– you're so– you motherfu–"

Her insults were cut mid-sentence as a tight grip wrapped around her wrist. With a slight twist her dagger fell to the ground and she was completely disarmed. Marshall, the 'indifferent-but-honestly-quite-terrifying' Merchant, grumbled something to her that immediately caused her whole demeanor to change. Then he just left her there, speechless, and began walking towards us. There was only silence from Trish, until she bursted out and started cursing at the air and everything around her (especially us). But she made no moves towards us. Marshall strolled right up to us, various holes and rips scattered all over his clothing but there was not a single wound or drop of blood. He seemed steady, and the burning animalistic fury I sensed from him before had died down drastically.

Val added another question to her growing list. "Okay now, who are you?"

"The guy who just saved your asses."

"Bro, we saw you get stabbed– twice and then shot multiple times… how?" Emile asked.

"You're the children of gods, you tell me."

Out of the five of us, Flip seemed to have hit the realization first. "You're a half-blood."

Marshall shrugged. "You guys aren't meant to know that but… yeah."

"But you're old."

"Thanks," he said in response to Val's comment.

"It's not super common, but it happens," Nico added. "There's some even older."

Something about what he said made Marshall let out a little chuckle.

Val shook her head like it was in a pinball machine. "Still doesn't explain how you're NOT dead."

"An answer, if you really want one, I can give later," Marshall responded. "Otherwise, I suggest we get moving."

He gestured to the increasing number of emergency services responding to the scene at the museum and Trish who was still throwing quite the temper tantrum amidst it all. The rest of us began to move as I took one last look at the chaos we left behind. I looked over at Marshall, as he scanned the horizon with furrowed eyebrows and a stern mouth.

"What did you do to them?" I asked him, slightly disrupting his… brooding?

Even though they were our enemy, and had no remorse in killing us, the thought of dead demigods, kids like us, didn't sit right with me.

He kept the stoic look on his face. "I told her; 'fight and bleed out or don't fight and probably get out of this alive'."

"Uhuh."

I assume that meant he didn't kill them, or at least didn't want to. He's given them every chance to avoid a result like that. At least that's how I understood it.

"Why did you help us?" I went on, curious about the change of heart, considering he pretty much stayed out of it at the start.

He looked at me for a moment, reading my face before walking up to me and pulling something out of pocket. I nearly jumped on the spot upon seeing my pendant, wrapped around his fingers as he stretched out his arm to show it to me.

"Where'd you get this?" he asked.

I immediately went to grab it from him but then he pulled back at the last second. "Hey!"

A new shade of seriousness covered his face. "You didn't answer my question."

A little bewildered and uncertain, I answered him. "It belongs to my family... my mom gave it to me."

He paused, like he was creating the next question in his head. "What was your name again, kid?"

"Arthur. Arthur Pride."

I saw a hint of something in his eyes. It was almost like he zoned out for a bit. I couldn't tell but whatever it was, he seemed to soften just a little bit. He then kept his arm out, prompting me to hastily grab it out of his grasp. I pulled the thing over my head and around my neck and felt an instant sense of warmth as the necklace was returned to its usual spot.

Oh, I'm gonna have to catch up D on a lot of things

"Take care of it," he said, in a level tone.

Weird…

I gathered there was some extra meaning behind that. I'll have to talk to him about it later. But It was strange seeing him switch between calm, nonchalant, and acting like he doesn't care for a ferocious machine when he fights. This Marshall guy continues to peak my interest.

"Thank you," I said to him, putting as much gratitude as I could in my words.

Marshall simply nodded and grunted in response, the same way Dienekes would.

"Hey, I think we should rest," Flip said to the rest of the group.

We all agreed but Marshall simply brushed past everyone as he started marching ahead of us. "You can rest at the Silk Road. Come on."