The true effects

Chapter 6

Leigh

~~~

Percy lends me some leather elbow and knee guards for the obstacle tower.  I put on a CHB shirt and a pair of blue worn in jeans.  Percy decides to become a hair dresser and attempts to put my hair up on a bun but it comes out more as a floppy pancake on top of my head.  "Oh, um..."  He pokes it.

I look in the mirror.  "It's ok.  You need practice."  I fix it into a ponytail instead.

He smiles at me.  "I'll be cheering for you."

I nudge him.  "You better." 

He smiles and escorts me to the amphitheater where a tall tower is set up. 

On the first levle, we need to scale some rope laders that are being swung around in a circle and manage not to get hit by the rotating metal bars.  Second level,  we need to climb a rope then balance on a thin beam to reach the pegs that will help us climb to the next level, all while avoiding more rotating metal bars.  Third level, once we are finished climbing up the pegs, which we are able to either push in or pull out, there are monkey bars we need to swing across to get to the platform where one small, square hole is cut into the last platform above.  Once through that hole, we can finally grab the golden laurels that sit on a granite pedestal.

Percy whistles.  "Good luck."  He pushes me towards the other demigods I will be competing against.  Clarisse spots me and pushes through the crowd. 

"Another Posiedon kid." She towers over me.  "Didn't your brother warn you?  I crush Posiedon kids, especially ones like you who barely know how to fight."  She pokes me in the chest. 

I reflexively grab her wrist.  "I'm sure Percy told you I've changed and I am going to kick your ass."  I drop her wrist. 

Clarisse growls.  "We'll see." 

"All demigods line up!" I recognize Connor's voice over the loudspeakers.

Clarisse comes and lines up beside me, crouching in preparation to run.  I do the same.  A gong sounds and we take off at a run.  I make it to the tower before Clarisse, I am much faster than her.  The demigods watching cheer for their cabins and Chiron, Mr. D, Hecate and Terminus the statue-god-guy watch from a comfy looking box seat.  I grab the first rope ladder I see and start to climb it.  Climbing a rope ladder in movement is not as easy as it looks.  Clarisse climbs the one across from me.  She sneers as she sees me climbing.  I duck under a metal and and jump over another one as I run to one of the four ropes to climb to the next level.  

I hear a metalic sound as a metal bar collides with someone's face and grimmace.  That sounded like it hurt. 

"You hear that, Kain?" Clarisse yells over the cheers.  "That will you soon enough!"

I laugh as I hoist myself up the rope.  "You can only dream Clarisse!"  I pull myself up onto the thin steel beam. 

"Don't want to let your fear of hights kick in now, do you Kain?"  Clarisse yells as she pulls herself up onto the beam to my left. 

"If only I had fears!" I retort and run across the beam.  I leap over a high metal bar. 

"Don't fall!" Clarisse yells gruffly from behind me. 

"I won't!"  I jump over another metal bar and jump to the first peg.  I start to climb then feel the peg under my left foot dissapear.  I dangle there for a moment and grapple for control.

"Told you I wouldn't make it easy on you!" Clarisse yells from beneath me. 

I ignore her this time and use my upper boddy strength to pull myself up on the other pegs.  I start climbing faster and hear more people below me screaming as the fall off the tower and the metalic sound of the metal arms smashing into them. 

I pull myself up onto the the wooden platform and grab the first monkey bar.  I swing across the first two and then halfway betwee the next two when I feel something grab onto my shirt. 

"Not so fast!" Clarisse says with a labored breath.  "I am dreaming of tearing you appart!"

I drive my foot up backwards and it collides with Clarisse's chest.  She lets go of the back if my shirt and I start swinging from bar to bar again.  

Once on the other side, I run to the small wooden square and pull myself up. 

Once on the top, I realise how far up I am.  I can see Leo and my friends cheering for me down in the stands.  Without wasting time, I sprint to the marble pedestal and grab the golden laurels.  I hoist them up over my head and the crowd erupts into cheers.  I make sure I make eye contact with Hecate and Chiron, shaking the laurels above my head.  I can't help the smug smile that creeps into my face.  I slide down one of the wires leading from the top of the tower to the ground.

As soon as my feet touch the ground, I am swarmed by demigods.  I feel a little overwhelmed but forced a smile. 

I beat Clarisse.  But I was more pround of the fact I just won and rubbed it in the two people that doubted me the most faces.

Percy and my friends run towards me, still cheering.  Percy wraps me in a bear hug.  "You did it!"  He squeezes the air out of my lungs.

I laugh.  "I know!" 

Percy puts me down and Leo imediatly kisses me.  "I knew you could do it sweetheart!"

I hug him and over his shoulder I see Nico wink at me.  I smile at him. 

Then a cold wind blows over the amphitheater. A swirl of black mist appears in front of me and Hecate materializes in it.  She walks calmly towards me.  "Congratulations, Leora."  Her voice is much to calm for me to feel comfortable.  "I would say you should learn to develop those skills as a god, but you have already made your point.

"Of course I did. I am never going to become a god." I cross my arms and attempt to look smug.

"Well," Hecate isn't fazed by my sass.  "We will just have to kill you."

And she dissapears the same way she appeared.