I scrunched up my nose in disgust as I walked out onto the balcony where Will, Percy, and Annabeth were. To add to the fact that we all reeked from last night's battle, it didn't help facts that the poison was causing Annabeth's arm to create foul smelling pus, permeating through the first bandaged someone had applied.
I winced when I saw the wound as it was much worse than the description in the book. See, in the past, the poison had turned the skin around the wound a nasty shade of green and hadn't gone past the shoulder, but now that shade of green ran the length of Annabeth's arm from her wrist to her collarbone.
"This isn't good," Will muttered, pouring nectar over the wound, causing Annabeth to writhe in pain, gripping Percy's hand so tightly that his fingers had a slight purple tinge to them. He then spread a silver paste over the wound and began singing a hymn to Apollo, hoping that it would help heal the wound.
"What do you mean by that?" Percy asked, unable to mask the panic, and pain, in his voice.
Will winced. "Maybe it's best if you-"
"I'm not leaving, Solace," Percy said with conviction, daring Will to try to kick him out otherwise.
The son of Apollo heaved a resigned sigh. "Don't say I didn't warn you. Andy, do you mind?"
"Of course not."
I shed my armor in favor of latex gloves, handing a pair to Will as well. I swore when I saw the black band tied around Annabeth's shoulder, the skin there an ugly combination of purple and green, making it appear almost brown in color.
"Who put on a tourniquet?" I asked myself, quickly undoing the restraint and letting it fall to the ground, cursing that someone had been so naïve as to do that. When a wound contains poison – like a snake bite, for example – you're not supposed to tie off the area with any attempt at a tourniquet unless you're trying to amputate that person's limb. The poison just sits there and festers, allowing it to destroy the tissue much, much faster.
As we worked, I kept singing hymns to Apollo seeing that my endurance could last longer compared to Will, who had almost passed out after a single hymn. But I knew that the sun god couldn't do much at the moment, probably more concerned with trying to slow down Typhon than worrying over a single demigod's wound when almost everyone else was injured as well. Still, I could try.
After another thirty minutes of nectar pouring, ambrosia feeding, and hymn singing, Will and I slumped to the ground in exhaustion, the poison finally ceasing its spreading. For good measure, I gave Annabeth a few sips of a healing draught I had, making sure that her body could expel the substance as quickly, efficiently, and safely as possible.
"You guys don't look so good," Percy said as he gently stroked Annabeth's hair, making sure none of the blonde curls were on her face. "Do you need me to call someone else for help?"
I struggled onto my feet, stifling a groan, blinking back black spots that danced in my vision. I bent down and helped Will up, who then started to sway on his feet, so I wrapped an arm around his chest to keep him upright.
"We'll be fine," I said, failing to keep the exhaustion out of my voice. Percy gave me a pointed look, one that said he didn't trust a single word that was coming out of my mouth right now. "Listen, I was going to get some shut eye anyways, and I'll drop Will off with Luke to make sure he gets some sleep."
"I like Luke," Will murmured in assent, his eyes already drooping shut, his head tucked against his chest. "Luke is my bestest best friend."
"All right," Percy relented. "If you say so."
"Hey, it was about time we gave you two some privacy anyways." I walked towards the door to the terrace, trying not to drag Will behind me like a ragdoll. "Good night, Percy, Annabeth. I'll see you later."
You know, if I ever have the pleasure of meeting Morpheus, I think I'm going to greet him with a sword to the face.
Seriously, instead of giving me helpful nightmares like the type that most demigods got, he gave me genuine nightmares, ones whose sole purpose was to scare me to death while I slept, causing me to jerk awake with my fist in my mouth to prevent myself from screaming bloody murder and scaring the others.
My wrists were bound with Celestial bronze chains, reminding me of the restraints I'd been forced into during my time of holding the weight of the sky, but instead of having any slack, I was directly pinned to a stone wall, unable to do so much as turn my hands without rubbing my wrists raw. I found my ankles stuck in a similar situation, meaning that I was literally hanging from a wall by just four points on my body, being forced to stay upright lest I wanted to dislocate my shoulders or my hips.
The room I was in only had one source of light: a single torch on the other side of the room, its light extremely faint, appearing more like a figment of my imagination that an actual fire. The air was muggy, reminding me of the Amazon Rainforest, where the humidity made the heat a hundred times worse than it actually was. Beads of sweat began to break out across my face, the temperature steadily increasing the longer I was awake, which made no sense to me as the size of the torch's fire never changed.
I tried using the shadows to help, but the second I did, I bit back a scream of pure agony, the blessed metal making me feel like my insides were on fire and then took a dive into acid. This was like the River Styx all over again, I thought to myself, trying to think of how I could get out of this mess.
Okay, so powers and weapons were completely out of the equation seeing that the former caused an unbearable amount of pain, and the latter wasn't even viable, seeing as where my bracelet was on my wrist was hidden behind the shackle pining me to the wall.
As I kept trying to think of possible escape plans, the room began to shudder, the sound of what I guessed to be large rocks violently crashing to the ground, splitting open from the sheer force of the impact. Then faster than I could blink, the darkness vanished, replaced by the entire room catching fire, as if I'd taken a plunge into the Phlegethon.
Other than my eyes having to adjust, I was unharmed, making me question whether my captor was aware of the fact that I was immune to all types of fire (Thank you, Hestia!). I waited for the fire to die down, revealing the form of a woman in the dirt, her face hidden behind some kind of veil, her eyes practically sewn shut.
Oh, schist.
"So," the woman spoke, her voice powerful enough to shake the earth even though her lips hadn't ever moved, still pressed in the same evilly serene smile that she first appeared with. "You are my granddaughter, the one that my children would love nothing more than to tear you apart."
"What do you want?" I spat, struggling against my restraints, wanting to lash out at this woman in every way possible. She had caused so much damage and destruction – which I was supposed to fix – but now I couldn't help but feel like she'd personally attacked me, especially after I'd grown so close to the people who she'd screwed over the most.
Though her expression remained unchanged, I heard the amusement in her voice when she said, "You're a feisty one, aren't you? The type who would rather fight than run away, who would rather give up her life for those she cares about?"
I ignored the hissing sound that started to fill the room, as if every poisonous gas created underneath the Earth's crust was slowly seeping in, replacing the precious oxygen I still needed to breathe.
"And what if I am?" I asked defiantly, glaring daggers at the dirt woman.
She lunged forward so quickly that I nearly missed it, her crumbling hand tight around my throat, causing me to gasp as I forced down the panic that came alongside asphyxiation. Her nails, which I think were made out of diamonds, dug into my skin, drawing blood – blood which I felt slowly flowing down towards my chest, blood which should've been inside me thanks to the Mark of Achilles. She threw her head back and cackled, a sound much worse than that of my father, showing me how this crazed lady drove her sons to aid in the murder of their father.
"This war with my son is only the beginning, granddaughter," Gaea hissed, giving my throat another tight squeeze as she spoke. "After him, I will join him as queen of the surface world, reclaiming the kingdom that was so unjustly ripped away from me."
"Didn't you decide to go to sleep?" I asked through gasps, somehow still taking in minimal amounts of oxygen even though I was sure Gaea was going to crush my trachea at any moment.
To add insult to injury, she slapped me across the face. "Lies, all lies! I will rule the Earth again with my children!" She tightened her grip even more; black dots began clouding my vision. Even with invincible skin, I could still die of suffocation if I couldn't catch my breath within the next thirty seconds or so.
"Such a shame that you won't be around long enough to see our glorious victory. That is, unless you decide to join me. Become my servant, and you will be granted powers beyond your wildest imagination, peace everlasting to you and all your posterity. What do you say, granddaughter?"
"Burn...in...hell..."
Then I felt my neck snap, and the world went dark.
"You look like crap," Luke told me through a mouthful of chips, holding the bag towards me as an offering.
"Gee, thanks," I said, waving away the chips, still feeling nauseous over last night's nightmare. As a result of that, I was constantly rubbing my neck, checking that my throat was still intact and not crushed like an empty soda can.
"Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, you know," Luke said, once again offering the chips, though this time it seemed like he was trying to force me to eat.
"I'm not hungry."
He frowned and set the chip bag aside. "But you need to eat, Andy. I saw how you fought yesterday, and if you want to perform just as well, your body needs some fuel." He hopped down from the bar – we'd been hanging out at the Plaza's restaurant – and wiped his hands on his torn up jeans. "I can get you something from the corner store, if you don't want to eat vending machine junk."
"Seriously, Luke, I'm fine."
"A yogurt it is then," Luke said with a nod, stopping only to pick up his sword before he ran outside, the sound of his footsteps quickly fading in the distance.
"Be careful," I whispered even though I knew he wouldn't hear me, glancing at the window only to see the rapidly setting sun. My best guess is that we had maybe another hour or two before my father's army would be back, and this time, they'd have reinforcements.
I groaned as I leaned forward in my seat, burying my head in my hands as I heard the sound of people coming into the lobby. I didn't even look up when I felt a wolf brush by my leg, sniffing at my pants for a few seconds before deciding he wasn't interested and moved on.
I know it sounds silly, but my throat still ached from last night. Honestly, I wouldn't have been surprised if I'd woken up with bruises around my neck, but thankfully I hadn't, or else gods knows what the Hunters would've done to the person responsible. Though I'd been forbidden to join the Hunt because of Zeus (he forbade me from ever becoming an immortal a long time ago for some reason...guess he wasn't aware that I didn't need him to do that), I'd spent a lot of time with Artemis's handmaidens, becoming close friends with some of them.
As for their lieutenant, Thalia Grace, well, I hadn't seen her yet, but I knew for a fact that she was here. None of the other Hunters would wear a tiara, black combat boots, and a Death-to-Barbie t-shirt at the same time, the majority of them preferring the traditional hunting attire of silvery camo pants, a black or navy long sleeve shirt, and a parka.
Speaking of Thalia, I saw her talking with Phoebe and Tanya, the three girls huddled over a map of Manhattan, whispering to each other in low voices while one of their falcons dropped off bags of snacks from the vending machine for them to eat. Handy little things, those falcons.
Eventually I stood up, determined to go outside to find Luke. It shouldn't be taking him this long. After all, the corner store was only two blocks away, and Luke was one of the speediest and craft sons of Hermes I'd ever had the pleasure of meeting. The only reason he wouldn't be back yet is if he'd been attacked, or worse, killed.
"What the Hades is that?" Phoebe exclaimed, pointing to the huge white flag towering over street signs, quickly approaching our HQ.
"I don't know," Thalia said through gritted teeth, pulling out her mace canister and giving it a quick shake, her spear taking its place. "But I'm about to go find out."
"I'm going to find Luke," I said, giving the Hunters a nod before heading to the door. "Oh, Thalia, one thing."
"Yeah?"
"Check if this meeting is under truce or not. No need to invoke more damage if it can be avoided."
"Fine," Thalia acquiesced. "But if this guy so much as moves a toe out of line, I'm going to blow him to smithereens."
I smiled at her sentiment and waved goodbye before running out onto the street, taking a hard left, the white flag still visible even though it was easily eight or so miles away from the Plaza. As I made my way to the corner store, I frequently stopped to move mortals aside, wanting to prevent as many casualties as possible. We were so focused on keeping demigods alive that it was hard to remember that there were also mortals we had to take care of during this fight, or else Kronos would kill them all without a single ounce of remorse.
Charming man, my father.
From the moment I laid eyes on the corner store, I knew something was seriously off. Luke and I had dropped by here last night to get some more supplies for the Apollo campers. Honestly, Percy and I were the only ones left who hadn't been hurt. Even Luke was sporting a nasty gash on his thigh, but after some bandages and ambrosia, he was able to walk around normally, albeit there would be a scar.
Anyhow, back to the store. Last night the store had been in perfect condition except for the damaged lock on the front door (you can thank the Stoll brothers for that), but now all the glass was shattered, the shelves were overturned, and the merchandise laid scattered all over the floor. On the wall of the store, in bright red spray paint, was a warning that read: Ssssubmit or Ssssuffer! Seeing all the extra s's, I imagined that it had been a dracaena who had done the tagging, even signing off with a little squiggle, which I guess was supposed to be a snake. I really wasn't sure.
It didn't take me long to summon Epithymia, my boots crunching against the glass with every step I took. "Luke?" I asked softly, my eyes scanning the room for potential threats. "Are you here?"
When I got no reply, I began standing up the shelves, hoping that I'd find Luke underneath one of them. I know that it sounds dark to think like that, but think of it this way: I'd rather find Luke flattened by cat food than killed by a monster.
I was quickly becoming frantic once I reached the final shelves, only to find that Luke wasn't under any of them. I ran behind the counter, checked in the supply closet, and cleared the bathroom, my fear quickly being replaced with anger when I found a message scribbled across the bathroom mirror in what was clearly blood instead of finding Luke.
If you ever want to see your boy toy, the message read, you will meet me at Central Park with the rest of your pathetic friends. I can't wait to see what the Princess is made out of. ~ Hyperion.
"You just signed your death warrant, you creepy bastard," I exclaimed, picking up a fallen piece of piping and smashing the mirror, allowing for the bloody message to wash away in the growing puddle of water on the floor.
"Damn it, Luke," I muttered, running out of the corner store. "I told you to be careful."
That night, we were all at Central Park after one of Thalia's scouts had found that the majority of my father's army made a plan to march through the park to reach the Empire State Building. Off to my right, Percy was talking to Annabeth, his worry clear as day on his face as he kept glancing at her hurt right arm, which was so rigid that I would've thought she had a sling on.
"They're coming!" someone shouted, to which Annabeth responded, "Positions!" causing everyone to move to either side of a huge reservoir, forcing the enemy army to funnel through our lines if they wanted to reach us.
As for me, well, I was standing by the artificial lake, completely decked out in my armor with my Stygian iron hunting knives at my side. There was no way I was going to let the Titan of the east have a chance to use his light against me, not with my weapons, armor, or even the very lake which he would appear from. No, he'd get to learn what happens to those who mess with those I love.
Like I'd expected, Hyperion began charging across the lake. Percy and I rushed out to meet him, and I couldn't help the smugness I felt from the shock on his face. Guess he wasn't used to children being able to run across water.
"Where's Luke?" I shouted, forcing the water to lift me upward as I slashed towards his back, keeping the Titan's attention on me. Good, I thought, dodging his backhand and landing back on the lake's surface. If he paid attention to me, Percy would have an easier time to subdue him.
"So," Hyperion sneered at me, his eyes brighter than staring at the sun. I cast a wave of shadows over my eyes, allowing me to keep meeting his gaze without damaging my vision. "You're the little traitor, the one that held up the sky. And you," he slashed his sword down at Percy, but thankfully, his instincts allowed for him to deflect the blow with Riptide, "You must be the pesky sea brat that trapped Atlas under the sky again."
"It wasn't that hard," Percy said. "You Titans are just about as bright as my gym socks."
Hyperion snarled. "You want bright?"
He erupted into a column of flames brighter than anything even Apollo or Hephaestus could hope to muster, the heat so intense that despite the fact that I was standing in water, sweat drenched me from head to toe.
"Enough of this," I scowled, raising my arms to my side, the lake responding to my command. Percy had pulled his own tidal wave back, and as he quickly approached, I timed my movement with his, allowing for the water to splash Hyperion right in that smug face of his, dousing his light so that it was bearable to look at him.
He burst back onto the surface of the lake, but I wasn't done with him. "I guess you didn't hear me." I had a rope of water lash around his ankles and pulled, forcing Hyperion onto his knees. "WHERE IS LUKE?"
The Titan spat in my face. "You foolish, foolish girl," he laughed, only to be doused yet again with another wave – courtesy of Percy Jackson – causing him to start coughing up algae and leaves. "Did you seriously believe I would keep such a pathetic creature alive?"
"You kept Paul alive," I snarled. "You could've killed him that day at Goode, but you didn't."
"That was you?" Percy shouted, fury shining in his sea green irises.
"Of course it was! Who else would be granted the honor of killing the man who made Perseus Jackson feel like he had a loving father?"
"You sick son of a biscuit," I growled, twirling my knives in my hand. With a single deft movement, I had the water suck Hyperion up and spit him out into the middle of the lake, watching with a sick sort of satisfaction as he struggled to his feet, gasping for breath.
Percy and I rushed forward, but all Hyperion said was, "Enough with your games. We fight on land."
Percy looked like he was about to make a snarky remark, but then Hyperion clapped his hands together, and the both of us were launched backwards about three hundred yards. Percy slammed into the ground, while I had the pleasure of slamming into a tree branch, knocking the thing clean off. Great, now the dryad who lived in that tree would want me dead, too.
I watched as Percy got to his feet, groaning. As for me, I had to roll my arms, cringing at the pulsating feeling in my shoulder from the way I'd landed against the tree. Hey, at least I was invulnerable, so I knew I hadn't broken any bones. A first, I know.
"I really hate it when you Titans do that," Percy growled, lifting his sword up in order to deflect Hyperion's lightning fast blows. I rushed forward, taking Hyperion's flank, making it nearly impossible for the Titan to keep up the ferocity of his attacks.
It wasn't helping him any that a hurricane had formed around us, killing off any light the second he tried to shine. For good measure, I cloaked us in a thick veil of darkness, making sure only to keep it away from Percy's face as well as my own.
I was so concentrated on killing this monster of a Titan that I hadn't even realized when the satyrs began playing on their reeds, causing for thick, gnarled roots to erupt from the ground and bind to Hyperion's legs, lashing together as they wove around his body. Like a haunting melody, the music filled the air. I stopped down at the roots and placed my palms flat against the forming bark, expediting the process a tenfold.
"You cannot imprison me!" Hyperion shouted, his face a mixture of red and gold from how furious he was. "I am Hyperion! I am-"
But before the bark finished closing over his face, I froze time around the two of us, watching him squirm in agony. He sighed in relief, dialing down the harshness of the glow in his eyes. "I knew some sense would come back to you, Princess," he said, sounding way too comfortable for someone who was almost a tree. "Now, help me out of this place, and we can go join up with the others."
Pouring on all my charm (thank you, Aphrodite for those lessons), I gave the Titan a sly smile, batting my eyelashes in a way that had I been able to see myself, I would've been sick. "Of course I'll help you out of this mess, Lord Hyperion. But first, you need to help me."
He nodded as best as he could, what with most of his face now practically a tree. "Anything, Princess. I'll do anything."
I got as close to his face as I dared, bowing my head slightly, my lips mere millimeters from his ears. "WHERE IS LUKE CASTELLAN?" I shouted, taking great joy in watching at how hard he flinched, turning from a once proud Titan to nothing more than a sniveling coward.
"WITH KRONOS!" Hyperion cried, shaking violently from within the tree. "Please, Princess, end this suffering!"
"Oh, but of course. After all, you have kept up your end of the deal. Now let me uphold mine." I allowed time to flow again, pressing my hands back against the bark, hearing the satyrs and campers cheer as the bark finally covered Hyperion's face, which would now be preserved as a screaming tree for possibly centuries. "You did say end your suffering, right?" I said with a smirk, giving the tree one swift kick before stalking off, my bad mood only growing worse when I heard the sound of that stupid Clazmonian Sow.
I'm sorry Luke, I thought to myself as I surged forward into the army, cutting down anything that was a monster while only incapacitating demigods. I'd do my best to help him when I could, but right now, Percy had vanished on Blackjack's back to defeat the flying pig (damn, I can't use the saying "When pigs fly" any more), and we were still a crap ton of campers down from the past two nights' attacks.
I didn't stop until I felt someone tugging on my arm, yelling my name, begging me to stop. "Andy, please," I heard Will plead, gasping when I almost gave him a haircut on accident.
"Will," I gasped, pulling my arms back to my side, sheathing my knives at my thighs. "What are you doing? I could've killed you!"
"I know," Will said in a small voice. "But you needed to stop. Look." He turned me around, showing me the layer of gold dust that now covered the ground. There were no other monsters in sight. "They ran away a while ago, after they saw that you weren't going to stop."
I collapsed to my knees, suddenly feeling all the adrenaline fade from my body. The next thing I knew, I was crying, sobs shaking my body with much more intensity than as if I'd been thrown into freezing cold water.
"Please don't cry," Will begged, wrapping his arms around my shoulders, keeping my hands away from my knives. "It's okay, Andy. They're gone. You're safe."
"Oh, God, Will. He's gone." I tried to compose myself, but any attempts only ended with my crying even harder.
"Who's gone?"
"Luke," I sobbed. "My father has him. He's going to kill him."
Then, the battle having been won, I stomped back to the Plaza Hotel and passed out in the first empty room I found.
Hey guys! So I'm a JC at a summer camp, meaning that I'll have very little to zero internet access.
I'll try to update when possible, but weekly updates will be near impossible. I'll try my best to update maybe once every two weeks, but no promises.
Enjoy your summers!
See you next update!
~RainbowSpark18