The Great Huntress

Chapter 8- M.O.M. (Mother of Monsters)

There was silence. Only the sound of thunder cracks could be heard. The mist was thick (the natural kind). My eyes tried to search for any sign of an attack.

“Heroes-sssss” a hissing voice said. We all turned and saw a lady a few feet away from us. She had a beautiful face and torso, almost like the nymphs in the forests. She smiled at us but it was different smile. It was a smile of someone who wants to kill you.

“Who are you?” I demanded.

The woman hissed. As she was getting closer, I noticed that she was getting taller and bigger. The mist was growing thin, and I could see through the woman. She had wings at her back. I looked down at her body and was surprised to find that half of it is a serpent’s tail. We all looked at her, wide-eyed. I suddenly felt terrified. My knees began to shake. I never felt this way about a monster before.

“Oh…no…” Neona said under her breath.

“W-w—what?” I stammered.

“Were not dealing with just a monster….” Neona murmured.

Annabeth shook her head. I could feel that she was terrified too. “I-it’s THEmonster.” She whispered.

“Echidna.” Alex said.

The hissing of the monster grew louder. “Hello Heroes—sss!” she smiled her evil smile that gave me chills down my back.

Echidna was Typhon’s mate. She bore Cerberus, the Nemean Lion, the Hydra, and the other most terrifying monsters that ever lived. Unlike Typhon, she wasn’t punished by the gods. Zeus let Echidna and her children to live as a challenge to future heroes. She was defeated once, by Argus. Yes… our very own one hundred-eyed security guard at Camp. And he had done it when she was asleep.

I knew we were dead meat! There is no way we could defeat her. It was easy enough to fight monsters… but to fight the MOTHER OF ALL MONSTERS…. We need a miracle!

Echidna glanced at each of us. She stopped her gaze at Alex who was glaring at her.

“Ah… the sss-son of Zeus. The traitor!” the monster yelled.

I looked at Alex, confused. He didn’t look at me; he didn’t stop glaring at the monster either.

“Why are you here Echidna?” Alex growled.

“I was sent here by the Lord of Time of course. To eliminate ANYONE who tries to mess with his plans.”

“We’ve already done that a few months ago!” Percy yelled.

Echidna narrowed her eyes. I examined her… She had fair cheeks and beautiful eyes. But none of it mattered because from the waist-down, she had a huge snake tail; and it was very disturbing to look at.

“Ah…the son of the sea god. I have heard of your ‘not so’ big victory.”

“What do you mean ‘not so’?” Annabeth asked.

“For a daughter of the wisdom goddess, you’re pretty dumb!” Echidna said.

Annabeth’s eyes narrowed, and I could see her face turn red with anger. She didn’t like being associated with the “D” word. It was a total insult to her.

“You did NOT defeat the Lord of Time!” thunder roared from the sky. “You simply delayed his plans.” The monster said as she played with her long hair.

“Why are you here? You NEVER left your cave. You usually let your children do the dirty work for you.” Neona said.

“I told you, I was sent by the Lord of Time. And don’t worry… if you’re lucky, you WILL meet my children.” She gave us an evil grin; which made me shiver. Uh…no thanks, I thought.