Zeus' Choice (A Percy Jackson Fan fiction)

Chapter 19 - You Can't What Now?

Jenia’s P.O.V.

I let out a loud, relieved sigh. That was a big fight!

As my muscles ache with exhaustion, I think about the strange things that have been happening since this quest started. Well, stranger than the normal strange demigods are used to. Because no matter how good we are doing so far, I can’t help but worry that we’ve come across quite an awful lot of Russian monsters. The werewolf dudes, Zmey Gorinich the three-headed-dragon, and not to mention the somewhat-Russian folk story God – Leshy. It’s been a long time since I met any Russian monsters, let alone encountered them in this part of the world.

I subconsciously rub my temples as I try to make sense of all this. What is the purpose of calling them Russian monsters if they cannot stay in Russia? Before I can come up with a proper answer, Rose steps in front of me.

“So… now can you explain how in the name of Poseidon this dragon, and his other now-disintegrated mates, can talk?” she urges me for an explanation. Nico glances in our direction, curious to hear the answer.

“Er…Well…” I scratch the back of my head. “You see… the monsters are a bit different there in Russia. Most of them can only speak their mother tongue, but who knows? Maybe they recently took English classes.”

Rose is not satisfied with my answer. Nico simply closes his eyes in frustration.

“Okay, I don’t know! The only thing I know about them is that they are much more sinister and brutal than the ones here in America, which is saying a lot. This is one of the reasons why I came to Camp Half Blood.” I say, throwing my hands up in the air.

“Where else would you go if not camp?” Rose asks. I try to maintain a poker face. Thankfully, she shakes her head and glances at the one-headed dragon in captive. “Never mind. Do you know how to fly this thing?”

“Aye-aye, capt’n!” I cheer, causing Nico to flinch as Rose lights up with a smile.

We quickly gather our belongings and stand next to the dragon, which has given up on escaping and finally accepted his fate as our ride. I put down my backpack and search through it for a rope. Rose starts to giggle and mutters something about ‘Magical Bag of Supplies’.

“Aha! Found it!” I cry.

The hank of a rope, about one inch wide, appears in my hand. I mentally count back from five, waiting for an imminent sarcastic remark from Nico.

Five…four…three…two…

“Are you sure that this rope, which you probably bought from a supermarket, will hold a fire-breathing dragon?” he smirks.

I roll my eyes at him. “First of all, they are not from a supermarket. In fact, they are from the Hephaestus cabin. Second of all, they are the same type of ropes that Hephaestus himself used to catch his mother, Hera. So yeah, if they can hold a Goddess, I am pretty sure they can a dragon.”

Nico silently nods and steps aside. What a pessimist… I push that thought aside because now I have more important matters to deal with. Once I harness the dragon with the rope, I start speaking.

“Listen to me carefully, гадюка ты летающая (you flying serpent), we are now gonna free you from the stone thingy. If you want to live, you will do exactly what we say. Fail to do so, Nico, can you please show our prisoner what we do to those who defy our orders?” I wink at him.

Nico looks confused at first, but thankfully snaps out of it soon. Getting the message, he pulls out his sword. Its menacing dark opal surface radiates coolness and fear. With a battle cry, Nico runs at a tree and slashes a thick branch off without breaking a sweat.