𝐃𝐄𝐉𝐀 𝐕𝐔 • Percy Jackson.

II-10

       HE SAW IT EARLIER, A FEROCIOUS SNAKE-LIKE CREATURE HISSING. It was in his visions from the ship, the blurry ones, that grew cleared in this exact moment. The monster had multiple necks – at least seven, each topped with a hissing reptilian head. Its skin was leathery, and under each neck it wore a plastic bib that read: I’M A MONSTER DOUGHNUT KID!

He noticed Percy took out his pen, but before he could uncap it, he grabbed his hand. A silent gesture of not yet. They waited. It felt like eternity as the Hydra stood a meter away sniffing the ground and trees as if on the hunt. Hunt for them. Amani shook his head, he mouthed to Annabeth, "it's going to find us." She only looked at him strangely, but it wasn't long until two of the hydra's heads started ripping apart the yellow duffel bags. It went to their campsite and was following their scent.

Tyson was trembling. He stepped back, Amani's eyes widened and he instinctively went to grab his arm. "Don't!" He managed to grab Tyson and pull him back, but immediately after he covered his mouth.  Instanesouly, all seven heads turned towards them and hissed. "Scatter!" Annabeth yelled. She dived to the right. Percy rolled to the left.

One of the Hydra heads spat an arc of green liquid that shot past Percy's shoulder and splashed against an elm. The trunk smoked and began to disintegrate. The whole tree toppled straight towards Tyson, who still hadn’t moved, petrified by the monster that was now right in front of him. "Tyson!" Percy shouted, but Amani dragged himself and the cyclops out the way. It was fast enough that when the Hydra lunged the tree crashed on top of its two heads.

The Hydra stumbled backwards, yanking its heads free and wailing in outrage at the fallen tree. All seven heads shot acid, and the elm melted into a steaming pool of muck. "Move!" Percy said to both Tyson and Amani before running to one side and uncapping Riptide, hoping to draw the Monster's attention. As soon as Percy's glowing blade appeared, the Hydra whipped towards it with all its heads, hissing and baring its teeth.

One of the heads snapped at Percy experimentally. Without thinking, he swung his sword. "Don't swing!" Amani shouted while Annabeth yelled "no!" Too late.

Percy sliced the Hydra’s head clean off. It rolled away into the grass, leaving a flailing stump, which immediately stopped bleeding and began to swell like a balloon. In a matter of seconds the wounded neck split into two necks, each of which grew a full-size head. Now they were looking at an eight-headed Hydra. "Percy!" Annabeth scolded. "You just opened another Monster Doughnut shop somewhere!" She said with a frown. " No wonder why my mom doesn't let me buy from fast food franchises." Amani muttered.

Percy dodged a spray of acid. "I’m about to die and you’re worried about that? How do we kill it?"

"Fire!" Annabeth said. "We have to have fire!" Only problem; there was none. Amani brought out his sword, distracting one of the heads, Annabeth doing the same. They both parried its teeth with their weapons, he didn't look at Annabeth before his mouth opened and said, "Annabeth check your right side!" All he heard was annabeth yelp before he heard a , "thanks–ah!" When he looked back she was still knocked into the muck.

"No hitting my friends!" Tyson charged in, putting himself between the Hydra and Annabeth. As Annabeth got to her feet, Tyson started smashing at the monster heads with his fists. But even Tyson couldn’t fend off the Hydra forever.

They kept itching backwards, dodging acid splashes (the sides of his shirt were melting!), and deflecting the snapping heads without trying to cut them off.

It was useless.

They were only prolonging something that everyone believed was set in fate.

There was a faint sound that reached Amani's ears– a chug-chug-chug. It grew stronger until it blared into their ears and the riverbank shook. "What’s that noise?" Annabeth shouted, keeping her eyes on the Hydra. "Steam engine," Tyson said.