Inevitable | PJO

Frank

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POV: Frank Zhang

This wasn't going well at all. First I get pulled into the bloodbath, sending arrows at young kids. Then that crazy Reyna girl killed Sherman. Then me, Annabeth and Percy set out at night to go kill more kids. We almost got two, but the boy dragged his little girlfriend away and disappeared off the face of the earth. It hadn't been until the sun came back up that we realised exactly how many caves were in the mountain, and by then we were far away from where they'd been.

Annabeth had caught hold of a girl at about 3 o clocking the morning, a small girl in huge rhinestone glasses who kicked like a small animal. She'd been hidden behind a snowdrift, a fire warming her fingers. Percy had stuck her himself, repeatedly stabbing until she went limp in Annabeth's grip. When the sun had come up, we'd just abandoned the task of finding any more, and set out for our camp again.

Hazel and Reyna had been left at camp to guard the supplies. I hadn't wanted to leave little Hazel with that killer, but there wasn't much I could do. I would be expected to kill her if it came down to it, so I just said nothing.

We'd stomped in to find them talking inside the tent, Reyna teaching Hazel better knife techniques, both of them snacking on a few apples each. The 4 girl looks up at us as we come in, her grip tightening on her knife. I grasp my sword hilt in return. I don't trust that girl.

But as Annabeth and Percy collapse into sleeping bags, Reyna announces that her and Hazel are going to go out and do some surprise scouting. I offer to go with them, but both girls wave it off. It's all I can do to stay put whilst they pack up and noisily leave the tent.

I lie down uncomfortably and try and sleep. But Hazel is my business and I need to look after her.

_____

So when I hear a noise like pure thunder, I bolt out of there and run full-pelt through the snow in the direction of the huge explosion.

I arrive too late, halting in the snow as I stare up, hopeless. I see a huge white bear chomping a girl's hand off, another raking its claws through the guy next to her. Then another girl with little plaits saves her friend, her throat cut in the horrible process. These must be the ones Reyna and Hazel had headed over to.

My allies were trying to hide behind a snowdrift. But as another boy ran by, carrying the girl with sandy hair and one hand, the bears pounded over the top of the mountain and gave chase to them all.

Hazel. She needed to get out of there. Quickly.

But I was much too far away. And the mountain was crumbling.

The last glimpse I had of Hazel was her falling, the snow and ice collapsing inwards and taking her with it.

Hazel Levesque. She's dead.

Annabeth and Percy were running towards me, possibly shouting to tell me to help them, possibly just in anger. The Career pack had never been eliminated this fast, assuming the fast-sprinting Reyna didn't survive. The other two, I could see were heading diagonally. Apparently the boy had noticed that the mountains either side were untouched.

Reyna was just heading forwards, her eyes to the front, the bears never gaining but not falling any further behind either. Snow and ice flew from under her feet, whizzing over her head in dangerously large chunks. She couldn't possibly survive.

Sure enough, the mountain exploded.

The boy and girl were just on the next hill, both flattened to the ground under the hail of ice chunks. Snow flew everywhere, landing around me and the other two. Hazel and Reyna must be buried under there. No-one could save them now.

The bears slowly retreat to behind the new pile of loose ice chunks, their eyes glowing, claws retreating into their massive snowy paws. They mustn't be very complicated, just bred to be killers.

But they killed Hazel. They killed Hazel. Her golden hair and sweet personality is buried under several tons of snow and ice.

Suddenly, all I want to do is hunt down and slice up every one of those bears.

Annabeth is surprisingly gentle about it, leading me back to the tent, pressing a warm flask into my hand. Percy just looks on awkwardly, tapping his foot and keeping watch. The Career pack of this year will forever be seen as a laughing stock. One dead in the bloodbath and two more fallen to mutts only 24 hours later. I don't think it's ever happened before, especially when you count in all the other districts too.

That's... Well, 11 dead yesterday, Hazel, Reyna and the little girl last night as well at least. Some more cannons went off just before Hazel's, so that's maybe about... 15 or 16 out. Only 8 or 9 of us left here.

Annabeth's saying something to Percy now, her hand brushing his like mine and Hazel's did. Her breath rises in mist and mingles into her blonde hair, tangling with Percy's until it fades to invisible. I can't hear what they're saying, but the few noises I can hear are loud. Far too loud.

The last girl Career hands me something else. Not a flask this time, but a water skin. Without thinking, I chug it all down, tasting a sweet sleep drug. I don't fight. Just this time, I let sleep win.

______

The morning after that is cold. Percy and Annabeth are talking again in serious voices. It doesn't bother me. Let them talk.

But they must see my silhouette through the silver tent flap. A dark head and a blonde head poke through, two bodies sit down either side of me. Annabeth takes my hands.

"Frank." She says seriously, swallowing slightly. "Frank..."

But she trails off, unable to carry on.

Percy puts it out bluntly.

"Reyna survived. We think she's hunting us."

My eyes roll back in my head.

Why not Hazel?