Score for Leo Valdez

Chapter 26- Lamia Part 1

LEO P.O.V

It took me a while to realize that the engine was broken. Even then, there was no way I could have saved Acacia. I remember the axe drilling itself into her arm, she screamed and pulled it out. She called my name. Yet I couldn't save her. Not even when she plummeted to the ground. I bury my hands in my head, wiping the grease across my face and hiding the tears. I felt a warm hand on my shoulder.

'It's okay.' Summer says gently 'The least we can do is look for her.'

'Yes, let's land on one of the roofs.' Thalia agrees

'This is his fault! He built this ship! Acacia fell 50 feet from the ground. She's as good as dead.' Ash exclaims rather loudly. 

'It's not his fault.' Summer says gently

It is my fault.

'We're wasting time!' Bristle says 'Let's look for her.'

'Yeah.' I murmur as I walk over to Festus. 'Can you set us on that red roof buddy?' 

* * *

The dove circles above us. Every now and then it would swoop down to pinch my skin. I almost begged Thalia to kill it. 

We walk down the busy street packed with mortals. All pushing and shoving. 

Thalia stops raises her bow and arrow. 

'Monsters.' She whispers. 

Summer does the same

'The scent is very strong.' She agrees

'I wonder how the Amazons are doing on the Argo II.' I say

'Calm down fire-boy, it's not like they're tearing it apart.'

'Yeah...'

Suddenly a loud hissing sound echos through the street.

'Did anyone else hear that?' I ask

'What?' Summer says, looking around.

'A snake, I think...'

We kept walking till we reached an old abandoned house.

'In here.' Summer urges.

The door creaked open, the floor boards groaned with exhaustion. The air was misty and foul. 

'I ssssee we have a vissitor.' The door slams shut and the light bulbs burn out.

'Step out monster!' Thalia yells, pointing her arrows.

A woman steps, no, she slithers out. Her eye sockets were hollow and empty, her face was uneven and she had two long razor fangs hanging from her mouth. The bottom half of her was a snake's tail, long and scaly. At the end of it dangled an unconscious, strange creature.

'Acacia!' I realize.

'Ssshe isss sstill alive, Leo Valdez.' I flinch, how does she know my name?

'Who are you?' Thalia demands

'Child of Zeusss... Thalia Grace.' The snake woman slithers over to her.

'Don't touch her!' Summer demands

The snake woman crackles a terrifying laugh.

'Who are you?' Summer whispers, as if she was afraid of knowing.

'You don't know me?' The serpent hisses, slightly amused. 'Well, I know you, Summer Slighwing.'

'How-?'

'I am Lamia.' She hisses 'Half serpent, half woman.'

Yeah, we figured.

'Now I remember!' Thalia exclaims, 'You killed your own children!'

'No! Hera cursssed me! Ssshe killed my children because Zeusss loved me! Ssshe drove me insane and turned me into-- thisss.' She gessturess towards her tail. 'I was once beautiful and charming, now, I am cursssed to eat the children of otherssss. Ssso, you can sssay goodbye to Acacia Frissskwing.' She lifts Acacia up and dangles her above her huge jaws. 

Up until then, it hadn't even occurred to me that I didn't know her last name. Friskwing... Where have I heard that before? I mentally slap myself. Acacia was dying and I was thinking about last names. 

'Where are your eyes?' I yell. It was a stupid question to ask, but it got her attention. Lamia lowers Acacia and drops her onto the ground, head first. Lamia opens out her palms to reveal two green eyes. 

'Hera cassst a ssspell on me,' She hisses in agony 'I could not open my eyesss. All I sssaw were visssions of my dead children, it drove me insssane, the pain was so unbearable that I almost wished to die. Then Zeusss, he gave me the gift to remove my eyesss, and with this gift came the power of prophecy.'

'So you knew we'd be here.' Thalia sums up.

'Yess indeed. Now, you will have to die.' And with one quick slash, we were all hanging from her tail. Her tight grip was unbearable.

'Let us go!' Summer screams as she wriggles around. Thalia tries to reach her arrows, but it's no use. Air becomes insufficient and my vision dances with black spots.

I close my eyes and suppress all my willpower to call on flames. Lamia shrieks and drops us. 

'Go go go!' I yell. Thalia and Summer rush over to get Acacia, but Lamia spits poison over their skin. I pull a sword out of my magical belt and swing it at her head. She dodges and slithers towards me with her gigantic talons. I raise my sword, but she unarms me with a swipe of her scaly tail. Her poisonous talons are aimed at my face and she approaches with incredible speed. I close my eyes to accept death, but suddenly, a loud feminine scream pierces my ears. I open my eyes and stare in disbelief. 

I wasn't hurt. Not even scratched.

But lying on the ground, in a pool of blood, was Summer Slighwing's dead body. 

I decided to end on this... Sorry :P 

The next part will still be on Leo's P.O.V