madness and ecstasy // leo valdez

- jetty jumping off the Grand Canyon-

The storm above the now panicking students swirled around, gaining speed, until it resembled a hurricane. Kids screamed and ran for the building. The wisps from the now hurricane snatched away their belongings, which it would not be returning anytime soon. Jason skidded across the slick floor, while Teqi grabbed the railings of the walkway, fiddling with something in her other hand.

Leo lost his balance. Apparently, he was light enough to be dragged back by the wind, and he almost toppled over the railing, but Jason grabbed his jacket and pulled him back. Teqi reached over and held his other arm, keeping them balanced as another gust of wind pushed them back violently.

"Go, go, go!" said Coach Hedge.

Piper and Dylan the toothpaste commercial guy were holding the huge glass doors open, herding the other people inside. Piper was calling to the other kids confidently, herding them inside. Jason, Leo, Teqi, and Coach stumbled toward them, but it was like running through quicksand, not that Teqi knew what that was like. The wind seemed to fight them, pushing them backwards, and their efforts turned out meaningless in the end.

Dylan and Piper pushed one more kid inside, then lost their grip on the doors. They slammed shut, closing off the skywalk, and stranding them outside in the freak tornado that nearly tore Leo's army jacket from his body.

Piper tugged at the handles. Inside, the kids pounded on the glass desperately, but the doors seemed to be stuck shut. "Dylan, help!" Piper shouted; her voice nearly lost in the wind.

Dylan just stood there with an idiotic grin, his amazingly white teeth showing maniacally. Teqi groaned internally. She'd never liked this guy. "Sorry, Piper," Dylan said. "I'm done helping."

He flicked his wrist, like he was swatting away bugs, and Piper flew backward, slamming into the doors and sliding to the skywalk deck. She was the bug.

"Piper!" Jason tried to charge forward, but the wind was against him, and Coach Hedge pushed him back. Teqi held the back of his jacket with surprising force and stepped in front of him. "Coach, Teqi," Jason said, "let me go!"

"Jason, Leo, stay behind me," the coach ordered. "This is our fight. I should've known that was our monster."

"I called it, I don't like his teeth." Teqi muttered.

"What?" Leo demanded. A rogue worksheet slapped him in the face, but he swatted it away. "What monster?"

The coach's cap blew off and sticking up above his curly hair were two bumps—like the knots cartoon characters get when they're bonked on the head. Coach Hedge lifted his baseball bat—but it wasn't a regular bat anymore. Somehow it had changed into a crudely shaped tree-branch club, with twigs and leaves still attached.

Dylan gave him that psycho happy smile and clapped his hands. "Oh, come on, Coach. Let the boy attack me! After all, you're getting too old for this. Isn't that why they retired you to this stupid school? I've been on your team the entire season, and you didn't even know. You're losing your nose, grandpa. You gonna hide behind some random demigod? She's not even an Ares or Demeter! What's she going to do?"

Teqi zipped her pocket shut and held her knives, three sharp blades of midnight black that were scratched up all over from previous fights. Leo's eyes widened, "what the fuck?"

Then he floated upwards and was thrown by an invisible force into the side of the Grand Canyon. He gripped onto a ledge desperately and seemed to forget about Teqi's knives. Coach swore, and glared at Teqi, "You look after these two while I get your boyfriend. See if Jason can help, I have a feeling this guy's bringing friends."