𝓓𝓮𝓵𝓲𝓬𝓪𝓽𝓮

𝑿𝑿𝑿𝑰𝑽...𝑨 𝑪𝒚𝒍𝒐𝒄𝒑𝒆𝒔 𝑻𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒆𝒂𝒕 𝒎𝒆

"ʙᴜᴛ ᴡᴇ ᴄᴀɴɴᴏᴛ ꜱɪᴍᴘʟʏ ꜱɪᴛ ᴀɴᴅ ꜱᴛᴀʀᴇ ᴀᴛ ᴏᴜʀ ᴡᴏᴜɴᴅꜱ ꜰᴏʀᴇᴠᴇʀ"
-ʜᴀʀᴜᴋɪ ᴍᴜʀᴀᴋᴀᴍɪ

𖥔 ݁ ˖ ⭑
‧₊˚ ⋅ જ⁀➴๋࣭ ⭑๋࣭ ⭑

I ran out and shouted, "You stupid oaf! Over here!" I wobbled slightly on my left foot, trying to keep my balance.

Polyphemus smirked, and I gripped the dagger tightly, smiling back at him as he charged towards me. I began doing as many flips backwards as I could manage, narrowly avoiding his grasp each time he tried to catch me with one of his massive hands.

"Get back here! Stop moving!" he whined, but I just laughed, though I could feel my ankle beginning to give in. I wasn't going to last much longer.

"No! I want you to keep trying!" he growled, but my ankle finally gave out. I buckled to the ground in pain, my ankle swollen inside my boot. I winced and gasped as Polyphemus laughed, looming over me.

His big, gross hand reached down for me, and I panicked, trying to slither away. But he picked me up tightly in his grip. I groaned, unable to use my arms to stab him with the dagger. Instead, I let it go and shouted, "Get away from me!"

Polyphemus just laughed, holding me even tighter. "Extra food for nice dinner," he said.

Knowing I was going to regret my next action, I bit his hand. He groaned in pain as I kept gnawing at him, trying to break the skin. He tasted awful, and I desperately needed to brush my teeth at that moment.

"Hey, ugly!" someone shouted. I turned my head, and the cyclops saw Percy on the ground.

"Why don't you pick on somebody your own size, idiot!" Percy shouted. I screamed, "No, Percy!"

But he ignored me. I saw Clarisse and Grover, both in defensive stances, clutching their weapons tightly. Just as the cyclops was about to charge, he let out a scream of pain, and I crashed hard onto the ground. It felt like every bone in my body shattered in that moment. The impact was so intense, I couldn't even guess how many feet I had fallen.

I winced in pain, catching a glimpse of Annabeth jabbing her dagger into the cyclops' foot. She gave me a quick smile before vanishing again, leaving the cyclops clutching his foot and moaning, "My foot! My foot!" Percy, Clarisse, and Grover seized the opportunity and charged at him.

My body felt weak, and I truly thought I might faint. I lay on the ground, clutching my body instead of just my ankle. I heard muffled yelling, higher-pitched, possibly Clarisse or Annabeth, but I couldn't be certain.

My vision blurred, and I wasn't sure if I was hallucinating, but the ring my mother gave me and the necklace around my neck seemed to glow a bright red.

A rush of adrenaline surged through me, and I stood up. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Grover carrying Annabeth across the rope bridge. It wasn't her first choice, given the man-eating sheep on the other side, but it was better than staying on this side of the chasm.