¹𝐂𝐑𝐔𝐄𝐋 𝐒𝐔𝐌𝐌𝐄𝐑 ━ 𝗽. 𝗷𝗮𝗰𝗸𝘀𝗼𝗻

033

⋆ ˚｡⋆ʚ 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐑𝐓𝐘-𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐄 ɞ⋆ ˚｡⋆
─── ❛ dressed in gold ❜ ───

"I GOT NOBODY" polyphemus gloated.

percy and the others crept to the cave entrance and saw the cyclops, grinning wickedly, holding up empty air, his other hand was also holding something that seemed like a ball of hair, but percy knew it was isabella. he's choking her! the monster shook his fist, and a baseball cap fluttered to the ground. there was annabeth, hanging upside down by her legs.

"hah!" the cyclops said. "nasty invisible girl! i already got a wife. means you gotta be grilled with mango chutney!"

annabeth struggled, but she looked dazed. her eyes were glassy.

"i'll rush him," percy whispered to clarisse. "our ship is around the back of the island. you and grover—"

"no way," they said at the same time. clarisse had armed herself with a highly collectible ram's-horn spear from the cyclops's cave. grover had found a sheep's thigh bone, which he didn't look too happy about, but he was gripping it like a club, ready to attack.

"we'll take him together," clarisse growled.

"yeah," grover said. then he blinked like he couldn't believe he'd just agreed with clarisse about something.

"all right," the boy said. "attack plan macedonia."

they nodded. they'd all taken the same training courses at camp half-blood. they knew what he was talking about. they would sneak around either side and attack the cyclops from the flanks while percy held his attention in the front. probably what this meant was that they'd all die instead of just percy, but he was grateful for the help.

he hefted his sword and shouted, "hey, ugly!"

the giant whirled toward him. "another one? who are you?"

"put down my friends. i'm the one who insulted you."

"you are nobody?"

"that's right, you smelly bucket of nose drool!" isabella wanted to laugh. i really need to teach him how to curse. "i'm nobody and i'm proud of it! now, put them down and get over here. i want to stab your eye out again."

"raaar!" he bellowed.

the good news: he dropped isabella. the bad news: he dropped her headfirst onto the rocks, where she lay motionless as a rag doll.
annabeth got lucky, she got dropped much closer to the ground, only breaking some bones.

the other bad news: polyphemus barreled toward percy, a thousand smelly pounds of cyclops that he would have to fight with a very small sword.

"for pan!" grover rushed in from the right. he threw his sheep bone, which bounced harmlessly off the monster's forehead. clarisse ran in from the left and set her spear against the ground just in time for the cyclops to step on it. he wailed in pain, and clarisse dove out of the way to avoid getting trampled. but the cyclops just plucked out the shaft like a large splinter and kept advancing on percy.

he moved in with riptide.

the monster made a grab for him. he rolled aside and stabbed him in the thigh.