Daughter Of Lightning - Book 2 (A Percy Jackson x OC fanfic)

CHAPTER 30

(Percy's POV)

“One on one,” I challenged Luke. “What are you afraid of?”

Luke curled his lip. The soldiers who were about to kill us hesitated, waiting for his order.

Before he could say anything, Agrius, the bear-man, burst onto the deck leading a flying horse.

It was the first pure-black pegasus I’d ever seen, with giant raven like wings.

The pegasus mare bucked & whinnied. I could understand her thoughts. She was calling Agrius & Luke some names so bad Chiron would’ve washed her muzzle out with saddle soap.

“Sir!” Agrius called, dodging a pegasus hoof. “Your steed is ready!”

Luke kept his eyes on me.

“I told you last summer, Percy,” he said. “You can’t bait me into a fight.”

“You keep avoiding one,” I noticed. “Scared your warriors will see you get whipped?”

Luke glanced at his men, & he saw I’d trapped him. If he backed down now, he would look weak. If he fought me, he’d lose valuable time chasing after Clarisse.

For my part, the best I could hope for was to distract him, giving my friends a chance to escape. If anybody could think of a plan to get them out of there, Annabeth could. On the downside, I knew how good Luke was at sword- fighting.

“I’ll kill you quickly,” he decided, & raised his weapon. Backbiter was a foot longer than my own sword.

Its blade glinted with an evil gray & gold light where the human steel had been melded with celestial bronze. I could almost feel the blade fight against itself, like two opposite magnets bound together.

I didn’t know how the blade had been made, but I sensed a tragedy. Someone had died in the process. Luke whistled to one of his men, who threw him a round leather-&-bronze shield.

He grinned at me wickedly.

“Luke,” Annabeth said, “at least give him a shield.”

“Sorry, Annabeth,” he said. “You bring your own equipment to this party.”

The shield was a problem. Fighting two-handed with just a sword gives you more power, but fighting one-handed with a shield gives you better defense & versatility. There are more moves, more options, more ways to kill.

I thought back to Chiron, who’d told me to stay at camp no matter what, & learn to fight. Now I was going to pay for not listening to him.

Luke lunged & almost killed me on the first try. His sword went under my arm, slashing through my shirt & grazing my ribs.

I jumped back, then counterattacked with Riptide, but Luke slammed my blade away with his shield.

“My, Percy,” Luke chided. “You’re out of practice.”

He came at me again with a swipe to the head. I parried, returned with a thrust.

He sidestepped easily.

The cut on my ribs stung. My heart was racing. When Luke lunged again, I jumped backward into the swimming pool & felt a surge of strength. I spun underwater, creating a funnel cloud, & blasted out of the deep end, straight at Luke’s face.

The force of the water knocked him down, spluttering & blinded.

But before I could strike, he rolled aside & was on his feet.

I attacked & sliced off the edge of his shield, but that didn’t even faze him.

He dropped to a crouch & jabbed at my legs. Suddenly my thigh was on fire, with a pain so intense I collapsed.