The Lost Souls

The Vice Principal Gets a Missle Launcher

Bianca Di'Angelo felt absolutely useless.

When Kronos has trained her and the others to fight they had been told to ignore the captive and go in for the kill. No matter who it was.

The group went along with it because if one of them died it would have been a blessing to escape.

But this was Nico.

The reason she went through it in the first place.

So she has her daggers prepared to be used at the first chance.

"Don't worry," Percy whispers to her. "I already have Annabeth getting Thalia and Grover."

"And if Nico is dead before they get here," Bianca comments.

The two look to Nico who is being held by Dr. Thorn.

"There is a clearing up ahead," Dr. Thorn states. "We will summon your ride."

The group finally reached the clearing and Bianca remembered the cliff side.

Annabeth has to fall off if it.

Dr. Thorn shoves Bianca and Percy over to the cliff. Percy stumbled, but Bianca grabbed the back of his shirt before he tumbled off of the cliff.

"Thanks," Percy mumbled.

"Annabeth has to fall off of the cliff," Bianca comments. "Not you."

After Dr. Thorn calls for the ride on his walkie talkie he looked back at the group.

"Unfortunately," Dr. Thorn begins, "you are wanted alive, if possible. Otherwise you would already be dead."

Bianca starts to look at the options.

One, she and Percy could grab Nico and she could shadow travel them away.

But that required Percy to know about the plan.

Two, she, Nico and Percy could run and jump off of the cliff.

But that required her to trust Percy.

Three, they could wait for Thalia, Annabeth and Grover.

That was the best bet.

Suddenly an invisible force ripped Nico out of Dr. Thorn's arms and threw him at us.

Bianca was the first to stand back up.

She ran to Thalia.

"Shadows and lightning," Thalia proposed.

"Can't kill it remember," Bianca comments making her Chinese Ring Daggers appear. "Annabeth, keep Nico down." Bianca glances at the helicopter heading their way. "Thalia take down the helicopter, or at least delay it."

Percy and Bianca activated their shields.

"Where did you get a shield," Percy asked.

"My stepmother blessed it and gave it to me," Bianca replied as she shields the group from his spikes. "And the hunters should arrive . . . now."

Then the clear piercing sound of the hunting horn blowing in the woods.

Dr. Thorn froze.

"No," Dr. Thorn said. "It cannot be-"

His sentence was cut short when something shot past Percy like a streak of moonlight. A glowing silver arrow had been shot into Dr. Thorn's shoulder.

He staggered backwards, wailing in agony.

"Curse you," Thorn cried. He unleashed spikes, dozens of them, into the woods where the arrows had come from.

Then the spikes disappeared into the shadows only to reappear and fly into him.

"Nice one," Thalia commented.

"I didn't know you could do that," Nico exclaimed.

"Well, you can," Bianca replied. "I'm just not going to teach you how."

The hunters came from the woods. They advanced on the manticore with determined expressions.

"The Hunters," Annabeth cried, mimicking her past reaction.

"Oh wonderful," Thalia and Bianca groaned.

"Permission to kill, my lady," Zoë asked Artemis.

Dr Thorn wailed. "This is not fair! Direct interference! It is against the Ancient Laws."

"Not so," Artemis said. "The hunting of all wild beasts is within my sphere. And you, foul creature, are a wild beast." She looked at Zoë. "Zoë, permission granted."

Dr. Thorn growled. "If I cannot have these alive, I shall have them dead!"

He lunged at Bianca, Thalia and Percy, knowing they were three children of the three main gods.

"No," Annabeth yelled, and she charged Dr. Thorn.

"Get back, half-blood!" Zoë said. "Get out of the line of fire!"

But Annabeth leaped onto the monster's back and drove her knife into his mane. The manticore howled, turning in circles with his tail flailing as Annabeth held on for dear life.

"Fire," Zoë ordered.

"No!" Percy screamed.

But the hunters let their arrows fly. The first caught the manticore in its neck. Another in its chest. The manticore staggered backward, wailing, "This is not the end, Huntress! You shall pay!"

And before anyone could react, the monster, with Annabeth still on its back, leaped over the cliff and tumbled into the darkness.

"Annabeth!" Percy yelled.

He started to run after her, but our enemies weren't done with us. There was a snap-snap-snap from the helicopter-the sound of gunfire.

Thalia threw her hand out and lightning hit the helicopter.

It started to crash down towards the group and Bianca threw her hand out and it dissolved into shadows.

"Where did it go," Grover asks.

"Somewhere in the Bermuda Triangle," Bianca smiles.

Thalia laughs as Grover pales.

The Hunters advanced on the group.

Zoë stopped short when she saw Thalia. "You," she said with distaste.

"Zoë Nightshade," Thalia began. "Perfect timing as usual."

Zoë scabbed the rest of them. "Four half-bloods and a satyr, my lady."

"Yes," the younger girl said. "Some of Chiron's campers, I see."

"Annabeth," Percy yelled. "You have to let us save her."

Artemis turned toward Percy. "I'm sorry, Percy Jackson, but your friend is beyond help."

Percy tried to struggle to his feet, but Thalia and Bianca pushed him back down.

"You can't just hurl yourself off of a cliff," Bianca comments.

"Watch me," Percy growls.

Bianca touches her ruby necklace and then proceeds to hit Percy on the head with the flat of her sword knocking him unconscious.

Nico and Grover look at her in shock as she returns her sword to a necklace and her daggers to her rings.

"Stygian Iron," Artemis comments. "An interesting choice."

"Gift from my father," Bianca smiles. "And a shield from my stepmother."

"Who," Artemis questions.

"Bianca is a daughter of Hades," Thalia informs.

Bianca smirks.