Daughters of Poseidon; The Powers Within #Wattys2014

Chapter 26 ~ A leap of faith

Bree P.O.V

I thought i'd smelled something fishy (and it wasn't me, Cai or Percy). When that woman had stepped into the lift, it hadn't seemed right. The way the guard hadn't noticed her, or that even that i hadn't noticed her until her pet growled. I felt a little bit guilty. Out of the group, me or Grover should have recognised the smell of Monster, and since Grover was still recovering, i should have recognised it earlier. But there was no turning back now. The snake woman laughed. It was a truly horrible. And that wasn't because you could smell her breath from several feet away. Ironically, her chihuahua burst into a massive lion. Other animals were inside it's fur, but i wasn't looking to closely at them. It's tail thrashed around in the form of a snake.

" Little demigods. They told me you would be a threat, not entertainment. The expressions  on your faces are truly satisfying." Her forked tongue flicked between her teeth. 

Cai's necklace sprung into a life size bow and quiver of arrows. Percy took a pen out of his pocket. I was going to ask if he planned to write an F- on her face before he clicked it and it turned into a sword. Annabeth took out his dagger. Grover took out his reed pipes. I nearly laughed at that one. Then i realized that i needed a weapon. I knew that i had knives in my jacket, but i needed something more long distance reaching. I remembered that day at camp, when i'd won sword fighting over that guy Luke (I still hadn't figured out how i'd done that). I'd had a sword then. I recalled swiping my arm where my tattoo was, and muttering the name 'Akantha'. I did that now. The tattoo on my arm glowed, and metal burst from my arm, forming as a fully grown trident. I slammed it on the ground, and it changed into a sword. Again, i had no time to appreciate it. The snake woman hissed.

" It sickens me. None of you know who i am."

" Your Echidna, mother of all monsters." Shot Annabeth.

" And i trust you know who my son here is."

Annabeth looked at the lion monster " He's the Chimera."

Echidna smiled. I heard a scream behind me. A mortal family were cowering in a corner of the large open spaced balcony/room. I didn't know what the hell they saw through the mist (magic that conceals what is really happening to mortals).

" Annabeth, Grover, protect mortals, get them back down the arch and away from here!" I yelled.

" But..." Annabeth protested.

I gave her a look that i hope looked like 'now'. She glared at me, and grabbed Grover by the arm, i heard them ushering people down the lift and gong down with them.

" What are you planning, daughter of Poseidon? You could call your hellhound, but would he fight against me?" Echidna hissed.

That was true. If i called Argyros, would he fight for me (being bonded to me) or fight for Echidna (her being his mother. I decided i didn't want to risk it. A hellhound, monster, and mother of monsters fighting against three fourteen year old's that are not entirely trained. Not a fair fight.

" No, we're fighting three on two."

" Don't you mean, three on one?" She smiled.

" What?"

" Well, as much as i can fight, i think the Chimera can handle you three just fine on his own." She smiled coldly and melted into the shadows. " Kill, Sonny." She ordered the monster.

Stupid reptilian kebab. I was gonna whip her monsters but. Breanna style.

" Cai, background defence!" I yelled. Cai immediately ran behind me and Percy, three arrows already in place on her bow. 

" Percy, take the main attack, i'll try and figure out a way to kill this thing!"

Percy hadn't fought with me and Cai at all, but he still went along with it. I guess he had no choice. The Chimera watched me as i edged around me. I might be able to fight with a sword and stuff, but i had never been in a group fight against an actual real monster. Strategy was not my strong point. At all. The monster sensed this. It kept it's eyes set on me. Until Percy jabbed it's neck with his sword. I thought he'd done it, but the monster just growled. It's attention was now on Percy.

I moved around it. The ail would have been a weak point if it wasn't for the snake, and the  monster had already shown that it's skin was hard to break. The head was an option, but i didn't think i could just go up and say " Hey, can i jab your face?"

No, there was no way that this monster was going down through any weapon we had. And there was no way i was using logic to outwit this monster. So that meant i was going to have to use my surroundings to break this freak.

The monster screeched, it turned and i saw an arrow poking out of it's eye. It seemed that Cai had found a good target. I suddenly had an idea.

" Cai, blind it!" I yelled.

" What do you think i'm doing?!" Was the reply i got.

" Percy, carry on distracting it!"

" Ooff!" I took that as a yes. 

All i had to do was cut off this snake tail, and bring me, Cai, and Percy to the edge of the balcony. And get the monster to follow. I maneuvered around the Chimera, until i was facing it's snake tail. I hissed at me, as if to say " Don't you dare."

" Sorry my slippery friend, you ain't staying in this fight any longer."

It lunged at me. I dodged, dodged and dodged some more. I slashed occasionally. But i needed the snake to be quicker than me. The snake lunged forward a final time, grabbing my sword, pulling it away and throwing it in a corner. It hissed triumphantly.

I smiled inside. This was exactly what i wanted. The snake had let it's guard down, thinking it had won. That was when i whipped out a dagger, and sliced it's head of. The Chimera screeched in pain, but as i guessed, it was going to take more tha a tail trim to kill this monster.

" Percy, Cai, to me!" 

The two of them ran over to me. I noticed that both of the Chimeras eyes were bleeding heavily. Cai had done her job well. 

But the monster could still smell us. It stopped howling, and sniffed. 

" Cai, Percy, you ready to jump?"

" To what?!!!!" Yelled Cai.

" We need to wait until the last second to jump. The monster will run towards us, and hopefully, tople over the edge. There's the Mississippi river below us, we'll land in that. The water will save us, but the Chimera will become a greace spot on the water."

They had no chance to question the plan, the beast ran towards us.

" Jump in three, two... ONE!!!"

I grabbed Cai's hand, she grabbed Percy's hand. We jumped over the bars. Plummeting to our would be deaths.

I felt the wind rush in my ears, heard the roar of fury as the Chimera fell off the edge after us. I dared to glance back. It was thrashing around wildly. 

I wished i could fly. Suddenly a fast wind smacked through me and Cai's fingers, our hands pulled apart. I would love to say that i was brave about this, but being blown off course was terrifying. 

I screamed all the way down from there.

" NOT COOL MAN, NOT COOL!!!!!!!!!!"

I couldn't see the river, i was way too far of course. I realised that this would be how i would die. A new demigod, plummeting to her death. 

Then my surroundings shimmered. I was now plummeting towards open water. Near an island.