Chapter 4 - I Fight a Bull Man
4636 Words
Quote of the chapter ~
"I believe there's a hero in all of us,
that keeps us honest,
Gives us strength,
Makes us noble,
And finally allows us to die with pride.
Even though sometimes we have to be steady,
And give up the thing we want most.
Even our dreams."
~ Aunt May (Spider-Man)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CHAPTER FOUR - I FIGHT A BULL MAN
Selene POV
When we got off the Greyhound, Grover made a beeline for the restrooms. I wasn't surprised by that, because in the book Percy had said something about Grover's bladder working up when he was nervous. What I was surprised by was Percy grabbing my hand and tugging me away from the station.
"Percy, what are you doing? Grover's going to be out in a second."
Percy stopped and faced me. "I'm getting us out of here. Are you going to tell me that you weren't the least bit terrified? Grover was looking at us like we were going to kneel over and die in the next hour." He said. "C'mon, the taxi can drop you off at your house before it takes me home."
I tugged my hand away from his and shook my head. "I have to stay here with Grover. I don't know where my home is, or even of they are still chasing me. My sister is in England so I can't go to her." I said. Percy opened his mouth to say something, but I cut him off. "Go, be with your mom. This is how it has to happen. Good luck, and enjoy the Beach!" I winked at him. He blinked in confusion, but chose to ignore it.
I knew that I was being eerily cryptic, and probably wasn't helping the situation, but Percy didn't object. Maybe he heard the seriousness in my voice, or maybe he read my serious expression. He hailed the next taxi and got inside. He spared one final glance at me before closing the door. "I don't know what's going on, but stay safe." Then the door slammed and the taxi peeled out of the station.
As soon as he left, I snorted. As if. "The Fates won't leave me alone for the rest of my miserable life, will they." I muttered under my breath.
I sat on the curb and waited for Grover. When he finally emerged from the restroom a few minutes later, he found me, alone, silent tears running down my face, my head swirling with the knowledge that if Percy found out that I knew about what fate would befall Sally, he would never forgive me.
"Selene, what happned? Where's Percy? What's going on? Why are you crying?" Grover fired questions at me like an artillery g*n. I just shook my head and stood up, wiping my wet face with the back of my hand.
"That's not important right now. As for Percy, he went to see his mom," I said. Grover stared at me with bewilderment, like he couldn't belive I let Percy go just like that. "It had to happen like that. I can't tell you much, because I swore to Chiron that I wouldn't, but Percy is in dnger. And we have to follow him." I waved down a taxi, and Grover unfroze.
"I know he's in danger, but why would you just let him go if you knew he was, too?" He demanded. "Di Immortales, Av. He needs our help!"
I snapped my head towards him, eyes blazing. "I know that, you think that I don't? This is what is meant to happen! He has to go to Montauk with his mom. I told you, I can't say much about what I know, but I can tell you that if we don't get there by Midnight tonight, both Percy and his mom are going to die."
Ok, maybe that was a little too much. The blood drained from Grover's face, and his hands started shaking. He whistled as loud as he could. Soon enough, we were in a cab, heading towards Montauk beach.
*
During the ride, we had plenty of time to talk. Except, I couldn't talk about anything. My tounge would twist up every time Grover asked about what was going happen, and my oath to Mr. Brunner was keeping me from saying anything else.
Grover wasn't very happy with me. He kept glaring in my direction. He obviously blame me for letting Percy go.
"Grover, I told you, I couldn't have stopped him. And I couldn't have gone with him either, or you would have spent all night looking for him." I said, though I don't think my words reassured him.
"How do you even know about all of this? Oh, wait, I forgot, you can't tell me."
I sighed. "Grover, I swore on the River Styx that I wouldn't tell you, or Percy, anything until we are safe at camp," Grover's eyes went wide, and his jaw dropped.
"I'll stop asking you then," he squeaked out. His knee kept bouncing in anticipation, and he was looking at the drivers seat, a hungry gleam in his eye.
"I don't think you're going to want to eat that," I whispered. His head whipped towards me. He opened his mouth, probably to ask how I knew he what he was going to do, but he thought about it a little while longer, then just sighed in defeat.
Suddenly, the taxi screeched to a stop. Grover and I banged our heads against the front seat. "Hey, what's the big deal?" I demanded.
The taxi driver looked back towards us. "The road's closed, darlin'," he said. "Storm's pickin' up."
Grover fished some grubby-looking cash out of his shirt pocket. "We'll walk. Keep the change."
The driver shrugged, not bothering to ask why we would trudge around on the beach in a brewing hurricane. I guess he'd seen weirder things, being a New York cab driver.
We watched the taxi driver over the last hill, when a roar sounded behind us. We froze, and slowly turned around. A few hundred yards behind us, a massive humanoid figure loomed over the sand dunes. I gulped. I hoped that I wouldn't have to meet him. Oh, who am I kidding, of course I would have to. With my luck, I would meet Kronos next. I will meet him soon of course, but still!
I turned to Grover. "Run!"
*
We found the cabin as a c***k of lightning lit up the sky. Grover and I started to bang on the door. "Percy, Sally? Open the door, we need to get out of here!" I yelled.
The door was flung open by a pretty lady with dark brown hair and beautiful kaleidoscopic eyes. I tried not to smile. I had always wanted to meet Sally Jackson, and of course, I just had to meet her in the worst circumstance. Percy was behind her, still wearing his Pajamas, eyes wide, staring at Grover's legs. While we were running, he somehow must have gotten his fake feet and his jeans off. His hooves clip-clopped nervously on the cabin's deck.
"Searching all night," Grover gasped. "What were you thinking?"
Sally turned towards her son. "Percy what happened at school? What didn't you tell me?" But Percy remained silent, still looking up and down Grover, like he had never seen him before.
I took this as an opportunity to keep my cover up. "O Zue kai alloi theoi!" I yelled. "It's right behind us! You didn't tell her?" Even though I knew that he didn't.
Grover did a double take. "I was going to say that," he mumbled.
I spared him a fleeting smile as I watched Mrs. Jackson round on our friend once more. "Percy. Tell me now!"
Percy mumbled something incoherently, but we got the gist of what he was saying. Sally grabbed her purse, and Percy's rain jacket and shoved him outside. "Get to the car. All three of you. Go!"
Grover didn't need to be told twice. He trotted towards the Camaro as fast as his goat legs could take him. I gripped Percy's wrist, my hair plastered against my face from the rain. "C'mon, we have to leave now."
*
The car zoomed down the country roads. Every time lightning flashed, I could see Percy glance in the review mirror, looking at Grover as if he was an Alien. His expressions were almost comical, but I couldn't bring myself to laugh, or even smile.
Percy cleared his throat. "So, you two and my mom... know eack other?"
Grover's pupils dilated, turning into slits. "Not exactly," he said. "I mean we've never met in person. But she knew that I was watcing you. And she didn't know about Selene."
"Um... what are you, exactly?"
Grover waved the question aside. "That doesn't matter right now."
"It doesn't matter? It doesn't matter? From the waist down my best friend is a donkey-"
Grover bleated, his face contorted with offence. "Goat!"
Percy blinked. "What?"
"He's a goat from the waist down, Percy. Not a donkey, a goat," I deadpanned.
Percy looked at me with wild eyes. "And what are you, a sheep?"
I rolled my eyes. "Please. I'm like you. At least, I think I am." Not true. I'm a wizard, not that Percy or Grover know that.
"Like me? What-" but he got cut off by Grover sniffing indignantly.
"Donkey. Ba-ha-ha! There are styrs who would trample you underhoof for such an insult!" Grover crossed his arms, still slightly miffed about Percy's comment.
"Woah. Wait. Styrs. You mean like... Mr. Brunner's myths?"
"Were those ol ladies at the fruit stand a myth, Percy? Was Mrs. Dodds, or that thing chasing us a myth?" Grover asked our shaking friend.
"So you adimt that there was a Mrs. Dodds! Selene and I were right!"
"Of course, you were! You can't just hallucinate deamon Math teachers!"
"Then why-"
"The less you knew, the fewer monsters you would attract," Grover said. "I don't know how Selene managed to survive for so long, maybe it was because you were the bigger target, so your scent masked hers," They both looked at me but, I just shrugged. I obviously knew how. I wasn't even from this universe. Maybe my magic shielded me? Grover continued. "We put the mist over the humans' eyes. We hoped you thought of the encounter as a hallucination, but it was no good. The damege was done. You started to realize who - or rather what you are. No thanks to 'lene, here," he added as an afterthought, and I elbowed him in the ribs.
"Who I - wait a minute, what do you mean?"
A deafening roar sounded behind us. He was getting closer. That wasn't helping my mood.
"Percy," Sally began, "There's too much to explain an not enough time to do so. We have to get you and Selene to safety."
My chest felt warmer. Even in this kind of situation, she thought of me as well as her son. It got me thinking: What would happned if my parents hadn't died in that car crash? Would we have been one big happy family, or would we fight a lot? What was my mom like? Was she cheerful or moody? What was my dad like? Who was my adoptive parent?
Percy's voice jarred me out of my thoughts. "Safety from what? Who's after us?"
"Oh, nobody much," Grover said, his arms still crossed. "Just the Lord of the Dead and his blood-thirstiest minions."
"Grover!"
"Sorry, Mrs. Jackson. Could you drive faster, please?"
I started to hyperventilate. All of a sudden, the direness of the situation came crashing down on me. I was in this book, and not only were the monsters after Percy, they were after me, too. And there was a good chance that I wouldn't make it out alive. My fate wasn't written down on paper, like Percy's.
Grover noticed my panic, and tried to calm me down, but I waved him off. I swallowed my fear as best as I could. I could not afford to break down now.
"Where are we going," Percy asked.
"The summer camp I told you about." Sally's voice was tight; she was just as scared as the rest of us, but she couldn't let it show, just like me. "The place your father wanted to send you."
"The place you didn't want me to go. And what does 'lene have to do with this? It's not like we have the same father," Then he whirled around. "We don't have the same father, do we?"
I shook my head. "No, that I know for certain."
"Please dear," Mrs. Jackson said, ignoring our mini conversation. "This is hard enough. Try to understand. You and Selene are in danger."
"Because some old ladies cut yarn."
I smacked the heel of my palm against my forehead. I never imagined him sounding so clueless when I read the book.
"Those weren't old ladies," Grover said, impatiently. "Those were the Fates. Do you know what that means - the fact that they appeared in front of you? They only do that when you're about to... when someone is about to die."
"Woah. You said 'you'."
"No I didn't, I said 'someone'."
"You meant 'you'. As in me."
I meant you, like 'someone'. Not you, you."
"Boys!" I shouted.
Sally swerved the car around out enemy. Part of me hoped that we would lose him ijn the store, but I knew better. He bellowed in frustration, a deep rumble that I felt in my stomach.
"What was that?" Percy asked.
"We're alomst there," Sally pleaded. "Just another mile. Please, please, please."
I could alomost see the gears in Percy's head reeling. He turned to speak to Grover.
I gasped, my eyes widning ten-fold. I forgort about this part. I managed to throw my arm around Grover, before the lightning struck. The car was blown off the road, and onto the side-walk.
A scream rippled from my mouth, an octave higher than I had ever managed before. My left arm felt like it was on fire. My legs got crushed from underneath Percy's seat. My eyesight turned red from the pain.
The car skidded to a stop. I heard Percy's voice in front o me, but it was muffled, like he was speaking underwater. "Ow."
"Percy! Selene!" I heard Mrs. Jackson shout.
"I'm okay..."
My vision was going in and out. I took a shaky breath. "Grover, Selene!" There was his voice again, but he sounded like he was shouting across a football field.
Finally, after what felt like hours, my eyes refocused. Percy was staring at me. He had a small cut on his forehead, that was a trickle of blood down his temple, but other than that, he looked fine.
I wasn't so lucky. I couldn't move my legs, as they were trapped under Percy's seat. My arm was worse. In an attempt to keep Grove from getting a whiplash, my arm was snapped at the elbow, and I could tell that I had dislocated my shoulder. I tried to move it, so I could cradle it against my body, but it felt like it was being flayed by a hundred knives.
"Selene, oh gods, your arm! What do I do?" Percy's voice was cracking with fear, and anxiety.
I swallowed down a wave of nausea. "Get Grover out of here,"
He bent over at the waist, blood trickling out from his mouth. I managed to pull one of my legs free from the front seat, and I lightly kicked Grover's leg. "Food," He moaned. I sighed in relief. I didn't know if me trying to save him would have altered what happned.
"Percy," Mrs. Jackson said. "We have to..."
Oh no.
Blinded by pain, I forgot all about our pursuer. I tried to turn my head to see how far he was, but my neck was stiff with the whiplash I had received from the car crash.
Percy audibly swallowed. "Who is-"
I wrenched my leg from underneath his seat, and bit my tounge to keep from crying out in pain. "No time. Get out, now!"
Percy looked at me as I tried to kick open my door. "Why?"
"Percy," His mother said, her voice steely calm. "Listen to Selene. Get out of the car."
I blocked out the rest of their conversation as I tried to pry my door open. Finally, I heard the click of a door opening. "I got it!"
I pulled Grover to my side with my good arm, but it felt like I was carrying a dozen sandbags on my shoulders.
I heard the last part of Percy and his mother's conversation. "Mom! I am not leaving you. Help me with Grover, Selene isn't in any shape to carry him." Percy threw himself against his door, which swung outward. He pulled mine open, and dragged Grover out of the car, me following not so far behind. Sally came up behind us, throwing Grover's other arm over her shoulder. I took up the rear.
Percy kept glancing behind him. Every time he did, I told him to look forward and keep running. If we slowed down too much, the monster would overpower us.
"That's-" Percy began.
"Pasiphaë's son." I managed to choke out.
Despite our situation, Sally Jackson looked at me, her eyes shining with pride. Then her expression turned grim. "I wish I'd known how badly they'd want to kill you."
"But he's the Min-"
"Don't say his name," She warned. "Names have power."
I looked up at the pine tree towering above me. If we were in any other situation, I would have stopped to admire it. It was the size of a Times Square Christmas Pine, the needles thick and dark green, dripping from the rain. but we weren't in a diffrent situation. The borders of the camp were the only thing that could protect us, but they were too far away. We'd never make it. The monster slowed, and started sniffing the air.
"Food?" Grover mumbled out.
"Shh!" I furiously whispered, trying to get him to remain quiet.
"Mom what's he doing? Dosen't he see us?" Percy asked curiously.
"His sight and hearing are terrible," Sally replied. "He goes by smell. But he'll figure out where we are soon enough."
The Minotaur roared again. He picked up the car, and threw it down the road. It made a few hundred yards, before the gas exploded, and the Camero went up in flames. I almost laughed. Not one scratch, Gabe had said to Percy.
Oops.
"Percy, Selene," Mrs. Jackson said. "When he sees us, he'll charge. Wait till the last second, then jump out of the way - directly sideways. He can't change directions very well once he's charging. Do you understand?"
"Honestly Mrs. Jackson, I don't know if I can." I moaned, wincing in pain. My legs felt like lead, and I was sure that I had broken one of my ankled badly. My left arm was going numb with pain.
"You can, and you will." Her voice was stern, commanding, yet laced with concern. How does she do that? She was radiating a strong motherly aura, and I felt extremely safe and happy.
"How do you know all of this?" Percy demanded.
"I've been worried about an attack for a long time. I should've expected this. I was selfish keeping you near me fro such a long time. If only I sent you to camp..."
Keeping me near you? But-"
Percy didn't get to finish his sentence. The monster bellowed with rage, and charged straight at us.
I took Grover's arm, the one Percy was holding. "Go!" I screamed at him. "He might not know that I am here, he's only after you!"
Sally nodded. "Separate! Remember what I said."
With (a lot of) her help, Sally and I pulled Grover away from the battlefield. The rain made it hard to see (even though it gave me energy, and I could feel my wounds closing), but I could vaguely make out Percy's figure jumping out of the way as the Minotaur barrelled his way. The Minotaur lost its footing for a split second, and then turned towards us, his eyes filled with pure rage, and hate. I think he knows that I'm here.
My mind slowed down. I just happned to glance at the twin rings the Fates had given me. Me eyes lit up, and I could practically see the lightbulb light up on top of my head. It was a long shot, but if I could save Mrs. Jackson, then it would be worth it. Percy was not going to lose his mother, not if I could help it.
I popped my left hand back in it's socket and whimpered. I started cursing in a different language, switching beween Greek and Latin. "Stercore! Skatá! Skatá! Álli mitéra tou Hades kítrino rigé mávra esóroucha! Im 'iens ut occidere te stultus minotaur! O Ágios patéras tou rigé tou Poseidóna, dýsosmos, ble esóroucha! Et insanus mater pinguis foetida gignat! Sas ypóschomai na sas dóso énan argó, epódyno thánato! Im 'iens ut occidere te, adducere te ab inferis et occidere vos! Ow ow ow ow ow ow ow! Theoí tou Olýmpou, pou vláptoun san ton Tártaro! Anóito téras, anóito aftokínito, ilíthios Días! Messing me athóous demigods pou den sas enochloúsan! Pigaínete sta korákia!" That hurt like hell. In a few seconds, the rain did it's magic and healed my arm.
The monster was right on top of me by now. I heard a strangled "Selene!" but I couldn't tell who it was from, Percy or his mother.
I quickly twisted my rings, and they morphed into the beautifully carved hunting knives I had seen in my dream. I smiled, and willed them to light up with Greek fire. I got a good grip on the knives, and started hacking and slashing at the Minotaur. He tried to block my strikes, with no such avail. By the time I was done, he had multiple cuts and scratched littered all over his ugly body, and one of his horns was lying on the ground, his body on literal fire. Greek Fire, to be exact. I smirked in satisfaction. He gave out a roar, and started dissolving, turning into golden dust. I turned to Mrs. Jackson. "Go now!" I screamed at her.
Her eyes went impossibly wide. "Selene look out!"
I turned around just in time to see a meaty hand come across my vision. The monster backhanded me so hard, I flew ten feet in the air, and hit my back on Thalia's Pine Tree. My vision went completely black. I could hear a battle raging around me, but I was blind.
"No!" I heard Percy yell.
I choked down a sob. I hadn't saved her after all. All I did was delay the inevitable. I had just lost the only mother - no parent figure I had. Even though I knew she was gone temporarily, I felt tellible. The guilt was already weighing me down. I could hear the dying roar of the monster, as he took Sally back to the Underworld.
Percy was trying to shout over the rain, calling me, but it was as if my ears were plugged. My eyesight was slowly coming back to me, but everything was impossibly blury. I could just about make out some blurry shapes.
His blurry face appeared in front of me, his eyes were red and puffy, and there were tear steaks on his face. He was crying, I probably was too. But he managed to carry Grover over his shoulder. "C'mon 'lene. We have to go,"
I nodded, but my bosy still felt sluggish. I still somehow managed to haul myself to my feet, and wrap Grover's arm around my good shoulder. My other one was still healing, and I decided not to test my luck. Together, Percy and I stumbled across the property line and down the hill, making our way towards the big, sky blue farmhouse.
We collapsed on the front porch. Percy's eyes were already closing. I looked up and saw my Latin teacher, and a pretty blonde girl. Despite the pain, I smiled. "Annabeth..." I whispered happily. This wasn't quite how I expected to meet my role model for about, eight years, give or take, but hey, it was better than nothing.
She gasped, and looked back and forth between me and Percy. "They're the ones. They must be." They?
"Silence Annabeth," Mr. Brunner, also known as Chiron said. "They're still conscious. Bring them inside, Selene needs immediate attention.
***
Wow! That was a pretty intense chapter, huh? Of course it had to have been.
I had a little writers block about how I had to write Percy and Selene's fight with the Minotaur, but after a little thought I decided to make Selene do most of the work, cause, well she's the main character, after all. In the next chapter she will probably get claimed, but no promises. Basically what happned in the end, when she blacked out was -
A. Sally was taken to the Underworld.
B. The Minotaur grabbed Sally at the last second, when he was bursting into golden dust.
C. Sally disappeared in a flash of golden light, and in all the gold dust, Percy thought she was dead.
The end. Well I decided to add a little of 'Selene action' as I like to call it, in this chapter. She used one of her enchanted items! Please comment on what you think about the weapons I made for her.
Translations -
O zeu kai alloi theoi - Zeus and the other gods (Greek)
Stercore - s**t (Latin)
Skatá - s**t (Greek)
Skatá - s**t (Greek)
Álli mitéra tou Hades kítrino rigé mávra esóroucha - Holy mother of Hades yellow striped, pitch black underpants (Greek)
Maledicite vobis, vos stultus minotaur - Curse you, you stupid Minotaur (Latin)
O Ágios patéras tou rigé tou Poseidóna, dýsosmos, ble esóroucha - Holy father of Poseidon's striped blue underpants (Greek)
Et insanus mater pinguis foetida gignat - You stupid son of a Buffalo (Latin)
Im 'iens ut occidere te, adducere te ab inferis et occidere vos - I'm going to kill you, bring you back from the underworld and murder you again (Latin)
Sas ypóschomai na sas dóso énan argó, epódyno thánato - I promise you to give you a slow, painful death (Greek)
Theoí tou Olýmpou, pou vláptoun san ton Tártaro! Anóito téras, anóito aftokínito, ilíthios Días! Messing me athóous demigods pou den sas enochloúsan! Pigaínete sta korákia! - Gods of Olympus, that hurt like Tartarus! Stupid monster, stupid car, stupid Zues! Messing with innocent demigods that haven't bothered you! Go to the crows! (Greek)
Soooo those are the translations. No major cursing, just a little.
Mandatory Disclaimer:
I do not own Percy Jackson, nor am I affiliated with his books or his storyline. All rights go to Uncle Rick, who continues to be my number one author (till now). I do however own Selene Aetos and her related plotlines, so if anyone tries to take her, I will make you Mrs. O' Leary's dog biscuit :)
Also, PLEASE remember to vote for this chapter and leave a comment. I love all of you guys! Thanks for reading my (crappy) story.
Question: Who do you think Selene's godly parent is? And no, my friends that I already told will NOT comment. Right? Right.
Don't forget to tell me what you think. Is there anything I can improve in my story? I love reading your comments!
Please vote, comment and share my story if you liked it.
xoxo, Zoe_Nightshade_
- Writer
