I'll Protect You (Original Version)

Have a little more faith in my survival skills, people.

Dedicated to AngelinaScuffle for the absolutely lovely banner on the side feature Percy Jackson and Annabeth Chase (the drawing is actually by viria who is an amazing artist online!). Go Percabeth--in honor of Rick Riordan's House of Hades release on the eighth!

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Our brief moment of relief vanished quickly when Alec slumped in our arms.

The three of us were gawking at the burning mansion until I felt a drop of pressure against my body. I looked down to Alec, whose eyes were shut, mouth slightly open. His skin was as white as snow, his lips red like blood.

I knew I wasn't supposed to be thinking funny thoughts, but dang--Alec was like a real life Snow White.

"Alec?" I called out, my voice hoarse. Alec didn't show any signs of hearing my voice. My fingers trailed down to his wound. Blood was leaking out from the bandaging I had made, covering him with a dark scarlet that was too gruesome to even look at without feeling queasy.

Logan knelt down, laying Alec on the wet grass as Logan checked Alec's pulse. My eyes watched Logan as his golden eyes narrowed in concentration. After a few seconds, Logan exhaled and sat back.

"There's a pulse. It's really faint, but it's there. We need to get him to a hospital right now," Logan urged. I nodded and attempted to stand up when my ankle gave out. A cry of anger and pain escaped me as I collapsed next to Alec, gasping in more pain when I fell on the arm I had damaged from breaking the door. I remembered that I had sprained my ankle from falling out of the window.

Or did I break it? I couldn't tell the difference at the moment.

That's when I heard the calls of our names. I looked up, my eyes squinting through the rainfall to see two figures sprinting towards us three. Soon, I realized it was Slater and Zen who had showed up, drenched in the rain like all of us, out of breath with worry straining their expressions.

"What's going on?" Zen asked first, his eyes flickering from Alec to me. "Is Alec..."

"We need to get him out of here," I said. "I don't know if he can last much longer with his wound."

Slater nodded sharply and knelt besides Alec. He placed Alec's limp arms around his shoulders before picking Alec up like he was a ragged doll, not an eighteen-year-old boy. Then, Slater began to run as fast as he could.

"Are you okay?" Zen asked, looking at me with worried eyes. "You look horrible."
                   I felt like it as well. Zen looked pretty bad himself, and I felt guilty for dragging him into this mess. He sported a black eye, and there was a nasty cut on the corner of his lips that was oozing blood. His clothes were torn and blotched with blood.

"How are we going to get out of here? We need to get Alec to hospital fast," I said with a tone of utmost urgency.
              "Elijah used the tracking devices to bring reinforcements. They have a helicopter that'll take him to the nearest hospital pronto. Come on--we saw cars on the way before we came after you guys." 

I nodded in agreement. "You go first," I said. "I sprained my ankle, so if I don't make it in time, I want you with Alec to help keep him alive. He's the priority right now--not me."

Zen hesistated, biting his bottom lip. I narrowed my eyes. "Go!" I shouted. "You need to keep him alive!"
Zen heaved a heavy breath, casted one last worried look at me, and then ran back towards the direction he came from. Soon, he was becoming a distant figure joining a mass crowd up ahead.

"Here," Logan offered, "I can carry you."
        I shook my head. I swung one arm over his shoulder and lifted my right ankle. "I can walk." Logan was injured as well, and I would bet my life that they had beaten him during his kidnapping. There was no way I was going to let him carry me when his arms were probably so sore and bruised.