1st Place in the Percy Jackson Wattys 2018
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'"So it's settled then." Zeus said, "In order to solidify our truce with Nyx Apollo will marry Nyx's demigod daughter Ariadne."'
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Ariadne lived in hell. Not the figurative type of hell-she really lived i...
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Something moved up ahead and I drew my sword.
"We will surround it," Bob whispered, "Each of you take a flank."
We circled around and I held up a hand and counted down, 1, 2, 3. Then we sprung.
"Wait!" Annabeth said, looking at the creature, it was a tiny kitten. Annabeth picked it up and cuddled it. The kitten squirmed out of Annabeth's grip and rubbed against Bob's boots.
"Somebody likes you Bob!" Percy laughed.
"It must be a good monster," Bob looked up, "isn't it?"
The kitten shimmered and it became a ghostly skeleton, as if it had stepped behind an X-ray machine. Then it shimmered back into a regular kitten.
"Oh man, I know that kitten, it's one of the ones from the Smithsonian," Percy knitted his eyebrows.
"How did it get here?" Annabeth asked.
Percy shrugged.
"It's cute," Bob grinned as the kitten sniffed his ear, "I will name him Small Bob. He is a good monster."
No one said anything and then we continued moving.
A long time passed until I felt it starting to get darker.
"Something is moving above us," Annabeth said in a hushed tone, "Gather up."
The others did so, but I seemed to hit an invisible wall, I thumped my fist on it but it was impenetrable.
The others didn't seem to notice that I was no longer with them, they were too focused on the things in the trees.
Then I realised where we were. I had led my friends straight to the Arai.
They were children of Nyx. Somehow they had worked out that I am to and were stopping me getting in the line of fire.
I pounded my fist on the wall and shouted at my friends to come back, but it was too late.
The Arai swooped down from the trees.
"What do you want?" Annabeth demanded.
To curse you of course! To destroy you a thousand times in the name of Mother Night! The Arai said in their unified voice that reminded me of the borg collective in the Star Trek films Apollo had made me watch.
"DON'T KILL THEM!" I screamed as I continued to pound my fist on the invisible wall, "THEY'LL KILL YOU IF YOU KILL THEM!"
Percy glanced in my direction, "Only a thousand times?" He said as he turned his attention back on my sisters, "Oh, good..."
The aria began to close in. There was nothing I could do to help them. But I tried.
I watched as fighting broke out. Then I shook myself. This wall couldn't be impenetrable. Everything ever created had a single point of failure.
I ran at the wall, but that just made my shoulder hurt. Punched the wall, but that just made my fist hurt. I glared at the wall, but that did nothing. I shouted at the wall, but that also did nothing.
At last I realised I only had one option left. I shadow travelled.
I'm in a good mood so here's a Tuesday chapter! Remember to vote, comment and check out the bonus chapter of The Exchange that I have just published! ~Em xx
