The Daughter of Artemis ψ Percy Jackson

Fighting Fate

The humidity was what had killed me first. As soon as I had gotten off the train, a thick wall of steamy air took all the breath from my lungs and made me wonder if it was possible to drown outside of water. Pulling my hair up into a tight pony tail, I shouldered my backpack with a determined step to my walk.

Penny was here some where, and even if she was no longer in Texas, she had been for a small amount of time.

The streets were hot and the pavement only reflected the sun making everything ten times hotter, I didn't know how these poor people could live here when it was like a sauna. I had found a little stand that sold maps of Austin, Texas and went inside.

"Hello there! Anything I can help you with?" A teenage boy called behind the counter of the small shop while furiously thrusting the buttons on his Nintendo DS. Looking around the shop, I saw a new map of the city and snatched it off the shelf, quickly shoving it into my bag while he was distracted.

Once it was securely hidden, I sighed and walked up to the counter, laying my torso on it, it was really cold and felt nice. "Yeah actually, do you think you can help me?"

"Y-Yeah, what do you need?" He stuttered, shoving his wire-rimmed glasses further up his sweaty face. I think I was making him nervous, and it was probably because of how close I was to him.

Smirking, I looked around the shop and sighed once again. "I'm looking for a building? It's called Training and Holding? Do you know anything about it?"

His face paled and he frowned at me, closing his gameboy. "Yes, I do actually. You don't want to go there, it's a mob hangout."

I chuckled and rolled my eyes, yeah right, like my little sister was involved in the mob. "No, really. Where is it?"

He got up from his seat and slammed his hands on the counter to get his point across. "Look lady, I don't know what you are playing at, but Training & Holding is bad news. It's a fighting ring mostly, but the mob runs it and you don't have any business there unless you too are part of the mob." His face was burning red and he looked pissed off, maybe now would be a good time to leave.

Slowly, I backed away from him and lifted my hands. "Look, I didn't mean anything by it. I'm just a tourist looking for her uncle, okay?" I lied smoothly.

He sat back down in his chair and picked up his DS once more. "Cool, sorry about blowing up on you. The Mob has been a lot of trouble to my family and we are just trying to sty out of it."

Leaving the stand, I pulled the map out of my bag. I'd find this place without his help. If the Mob really was involved - which I highly doubted - I would drag my sister out of there quicker than she could blink. But then again, I knew nothing about this Training & Holding place... if a mortal got the idea that the Mob was in control of it, who knew what really was.

It took me an hour to walk from the shop to the street where Training & Holding was on, I'd gotten lost a few times and had to back track. I was soaked in sweat from head to foot and I knew that my face was probably bright red to match. This heat was killing me.

I knew which building it was the second I laid eyes on it. Tall and boxy, it towered high in the sky, made of glass windows and slightly menacing. Training & Holding looked like a futuristic blimp in this other-wise modernized town. It looked out of place here.

Wiping some sweat off my brow, I walked up to the big double doors of the entrance and pushed, but they wouldn't budge.

"Password?" A dark-skinned body guard called from his seat inside the cool, air-conditioned lobby. "You have to know the password to get in."

I growled, I had come this far! I couldn't let some stupid five-year old password stop me now. "I don't know the password, but maybe you can help me?"

"If you don't know the password, you have to leave, miss." He sighed, flipping through his magazine with a bored look on his face.

"No! I have come too far to turn back now!" I yelled through the doors at him and tried to yank open the doors furiously, but they still wouldn't budge the glass and metal still remained in place.

The man sighed and leaned into a walkie-talkie that was stuck on his shoulder. "I need security to the main entrance, we've got a 9-0-4." The talkie buzzed with an okay and he gave me a weary look. "Miss, I'd just back away if I were you, security is on it's way."

Within a couple of seconds, three men in black suits were surrounding me and asking me to leave the premises. "What?" I was shocked at how badly everything was going. So this is what it is like to fight fate? I can't just give into it! "Hell no, I've been to far!" I screamed at no one in particular, refusing to let go of the door. "No you can't!" I yelled, kicking as the security guards roughly tried prying me away from the doors.

I was breaking down, screaming and furiously biting, spitting, and kicking the men who were getting me away from the building. In the heat I could feel my sweaty hands starting to slip away from the door, causing my heart to break. "No! Please! Please." I cried out, defeated. The man inside was giving me a pitying look and a wary eye, but he couldn't do anything.

The three men finally separated me from the door causing me to cry out one last time. "No! Penelope! I'm sorry!" I insides clenched horribly, it was all my fault! How was I to know she'd survived?! "I'm sorry Penny!"

At these words, the sound of metal on metal filled my ears and a cool breeze waved over me. "That's enough, you three!" A deep voice filled my ears with authority and anger. "She knows the password- let her go at once."

Three pairs of arms immediately dropped me, sending me sprawling onto the hard concrete, hitting my head. Hissing, I cursed them and slowly picked myself off the floor, feeling someone gingerly helping me.

Slowly, I lifted my eyes and was met with my own. "Dad?" My heart soared at his appearance, but also was crushed, maybe it was not such a good idea to fight against fate. But maybe, you can never really fight fate, maybe I just think I am.

Hey all! I know this is a day late :( Sorry, so it's dedicated to CoolMorningForever because they wouldn't let me forget!

Sorry it's so short though, I have been getting my inspiration back you guys!! But it's taking some time to get it in order :DD So hopefully it will come back with a vengance!

Next update will be sunday!

xoxo JESS