The Unclaimed

Chapter 24: A dracaena know more about my dad than I do

   As we got closer to the village that was under attack, I started to feel sick to my stomach. It wasn't that blood bothered me, at least it didn't both me a whole lot. The issue was the sense of prior innocence and serenity that I got  from the village. These villagers were normal mortals, they were innocent. None of them were fighting back, at least with weapons that could affect the monsters. When I reached the middle of the village, I froze. I looked from side to side, trying to out where my assistance was needed most. I spotted a pack of hellhounds terrorizing a group of adults on the east side of the village on the opposite side three cyclops were attacking both people and houses. Monsters were everywhere; some of them I recognized, some of them I did not. I was about to race of towards the cyclops when I heard a semi-quiet shriek.
   I spun around on the balls of my feet and had just enough time to see a dracaena dragging a young boy into a building. The boy had a terrified look on his face and shared a striking resemblance to Michael. I knew it wasn't him; neither Chiron or any of his Hermes siblings would have let him leave camp. But the look on his face was identical to the one Michael had two years ago when he was attacked by the hellhound. Despite knowing it wasn't Michael, I still had a strong protective urge take over me. I sprinted after the duo. As I got close to the building I could make out screams and sobs that were clearly coming from this kid.
   I burst through the door, my bow at the ready; an arrow was already notched. The room that I was in was dimly lit. I was grateful for this; Thalia's warning to keep our faces hidden had just come back to me. Without lowering my bow, I looked from side to side. The building was one level high but I could see the entrances to at least two other rooms from where I was standing. This was where it would get tricky, every decision I could make had its problems attached to it. The longer I stayed where I was, the more likely it became that the little boy would be killed. If I left to get back up then he would also be killed. I have a 50-50 chance of picking the wrong room and having the dracaena be able to stab me in the back if I made the wrong choice. I tried to speed up my thought process but I couldn't figure out what my best option would be.
   Deciding that there was no good option and that standing here was just going to lead to the definite death of the boy, I slowly concocted a plan. Looking to the side, I saw a table that held a book. I reached out for it, got it in my hands, and threw it through one of the entrances. Hopeful that the dracaena or boy would jump in shock. I heard nothing. Next I tried opening the door and slamming for it. Again there was nothing. Getting irritated with dracaena for whatever game she was playing, I finally shouted,
   "You and I both know that you do not care about the boy you are holding hostage right now." Before anything else could happen I said something else that sounded smart in my head (but was probably not a smart thing to say.) "Send him to me unharmed and just fight me one-on-one. I swear on the river Styx that I will not call for help.  It will just be you versus me. After all that's what you sent here for, wasn't it." For a moment there was nothing. No sound, good or bad. But then I heard soft quiet footsteps and after stepping through the doorway, the little boy appeared. I ducked my face down so he could not see me as well. The look on his face confused me; he did not see oblivious to what was going on. There was a maturity in his look that made me think that he was either a demigod or a mortal who could see through the mist.
   "Leave now and run," I said quietly when he got close to me. "Do not talk to anyone or anything. Get as far away from here as you can." He looked like he wanted to object but I shook my head and motioned for him to leave. As soon as he was out of the house I heard slow clapping coming from behind me. Quickly turning around, my bow up and ready to fire if needed, I found the dracaena staring at me. While I wanted to believe that I could beat her with ease, I had actually never fought one before. There were mentioned frequently at camp but I had never see one. I tried to keep by unease hidden.
   "My boss was right" whenever she said the letter S, it came out like a hiss. "You are kind but that is what makes you weak. Your protective instincts, the part of you that you think makes you special, is what shall bring your downfall. The fates have already foretold your death." I shook my head at her; she had to be lying. Someone, someone would have told me if that was true. I nearly froze if I realized something, what if that was what Michael had found out in Chiron's office the other day. I tried to tell myself that it couldn't be that. I almost forgot that the dracaena was there until I saw her slither closer.
   "That's a lie," I said coldly. "And even if it isn't, fate can always change." She laughed at me and slithered even closer.
   "You don't actually believe that," I had expected her to slither closer but instead she stopped and just stared. She appeared to be inspecting me. "Why from the looks of it you ought to be glad that you're meant to die at such a young age. You have been betrayed by those you thought you could trust, unwanted at the place where you hoped you would be safe, and you've been forgotten by the one you've dedicated your life to protecting." I was about to release the arrow just so I wouldn't have to hear her any longer when she said the one thing that could keep her alive (at least for a short bit longer) "Why ever your father said, well perhaps I shouldn't tell you what he said. You might try and change your fate and I wouldn't want that. You're supposed to die in a beautiful and painful manner." She laughed with joy. Every ounce of me screamed that this had to be a trap. That I needed to shoot her now before she told me more lies. And then that I needed to run. All my instincts told me to flee, to run and be free. To forget about my quest and try to live a normal life. But I couldn't do either. I was, happily, bound to serve Artemis forever. And as much as I knew I should shoot her, if I was wrong about what she said being a trap, then I could lose valuable information.
   "What do you know about my father?" I questioned. "What did he say? You better tell me or else you'll be back in Hades realm before you even know what happened." She smirked, she could tell that she had me hooked. I cursed myself for showing such emotion, emotion that could be used against me. But I didn't focus on my error, because I couldn't change it now.
   "Your father is a strong god," that didn't clear anything up for me; all the gods were obviously powerful. "Many view him as cold and distant but that is not always true. As for what your father has said, well he has actually said quite a lot about you. But never publicly, he acts oblivious to your existence when the other gods are around." My heart seemed to stop. The only thing that explained her description of his behavior was that he was ashamed of me or that I was a mistake in his eyes. But whether he cared about me or not, I needed to know who he was.
   "Who is he?" I snarled. The desperation in my voice was clear but I no longer cared. All that mattered to me was getting my answers. Instead of responding, she slowly reached to her side and pulled out a small but lethal dagger. I stared at her, my bow was still put in front of me. She smirked. The without breaking eye contact with me, she stabbed herself in the side with the dagger until it's blade was fully concealed in her scaly flesh. Her sight of vision did not fail to leave my face, which I'm sure had a mixture of emotions present on it, until she could no longer see. I sank to my knees; my answers had been in my line of vision and then slipped through my fingers.