The Sea // pjo

Chapter Fourteen // Cannibal Sheep Make Great Disguises

    The air was sweet as we made our way to the shore.

    I was honestly caught off guard by how beautiful everything was; definitely not the monster-esque island I had pictured.

    "The Fleece..." Annabeth's voice pulled my attention from the flowers that grew along the shore.

    I could feel the power before I saw it, and I asked, "If we take it away, does the island just like perish or something?"

    Annabeth gave me a look that said, Haven't I taught you anything? before she said, "It'll fade. Go back to what it would be normally, whatever that is."

    Percy and I looked at one another, and I could tell he felt guilty, but we both knew this was our only choice to save Thalia's tree.

    When I spotted the sheep, I snorted at the size of them–they were almost as big as hippos at the zoo.

    Just past them was a path that led up into the hills and near the edge of the canyon was a familiar tree that I had seen in my dreams with Percy.

    And on the branch, glittering in gold, was the Fleece.

    "This is too easy," Percy murmured suddenly. "We could just hike up there and take it?"

    Annabeth narrowed her eyes, "There's supposed to be a guardian. A dragon or..."

    "Oh, deer," I said.

    Annabeth gave me a weird look, "What did you call me?"

    I rolled my eyes, "DEER. As in Bambi?"

    I pointed at the deer that had emerged from the bushes and had entered the meadow.

    Just as my brother and best friend turned to look, the sheep bleated once and rushed the animal.

    My jaw dropped as after a flurry of fur and grass filled the air, the sheep moved away, and where the deer had been was just a pile of clean bones.

    "Oh, dear," I muttered. "That's unfortunate."

    We all looked at one another, and Annabeth said, "They're like piranhas."

    "Piranhas with wool. How will we—" Percy started to ask when Annabeth gasped, grabbing his arm and pointing across the way, "LOOK!"

    My eyes followed where she pointed down the beach, and a sigh of relief fell from my lips.

    On the beach was the other lifeboat from the CSS Birmingham.

    I was super glad that I used the lava climbing wall as a way to decompress. We took the lifeboat to the edges of the rocks after docking the ship, deciding to climb up the cliff.

    Annabeth and I went up ahead of Percy, being the better climbers.

    But that didn't stop us from almost dying like eight times.

    At one point, Percy and I accidentally grabbed for the same hand-hold, sending us to dangle by one hand from a ledge that was like fifty feet above the rocky surf. When we went back to grab a new hand-hold, we were careful to give each other space. Then like, a minute later, Percy got a mouthful of what sneaker tasted like when Annabeth slipped on a patch of moss.

    "Sorry," She murmured down to my brother.

    "S'okay," Percy grunted, although I could tell he was annoyed.

    By the time I thought I was going to die, my arms and legs in general feeling like they were about to fall off, we made it to the top of the ledge.