The Wind's Solemn Requiem - Percy Jackson

Chapter VII

Chapter VII

Nico clutched his trusty sword, the Stygian Iron giving him an ominous presence on the battlefield. He swung the blade, creating a large arc of shadow, felling a monster in front of him. The situation wasn't faring too good, nor bad. It was going decently. They were holding off the horde, but they didn't know how far they could go until they eventually would lose ground.

Some monsters were nigh unkillable that even they had trouble killing. But that was a small percentage of the monster army. Monsters of midnight black scales with red eyes that seemed to remain undefeated on the battlefield. The brunt of the monster army however was made up of normal monsters. Hellhounds and all.

The monsters were relentless in their assault, pushing the demigods to their limits never before reached. If they wanted to see the light of tomorrow, they had to give it their all.

Nico forced himself to move, barely avoiding a stray arrow that whizzed past his ear and impaling the monster behind him that was sneakily trying to ambush him.

The battlefield was unsurprisingly pure and utter chaos. In each direction you faced, you could hear the sound of death and battle. The clang of iron to iron resonated through his skull, seeming to entrance him in a daze. He could hear the painful cries of his fellow demigods as they received wound after wound until some would eventually succumb to a monster. It was horrible. 

He could hear a screeching as a bat-like monster came swooping in and grabbing a camper right in front of him and flying him to altitudes he couldn't even dare imagine.

Along with the never-ending horde of normal monsters. They also had to deal with giant monsters that towered over the trees, swinging their club with the force of a speeding truck. Things weren't looking too bright.

He could hear the thwack of multiple bow strings behind him as all around him he could hear the whizzing of dozens upon dozens of arrows.  The volley of arrows landed right in front of him, an arrow impaling the monster straight through the heart. Each volley would kill off a sizable amount of their army. Yet for every monster that died, it seemed another would take its place and then some. Their numbers were too numerous to count.

The demigod army stood steadfast, holding the front lines, desperate for the monsters to not take any ground. They knew if they retreated, it was downhill from there. Yet the monsters did not care for their resolve as they trudged through the onslaught that the demigods rained upon the battlefield, inching closer and closer to Camp Half-Blood.

Nico gritted his teeth as frustration slowly bubbled within him, clutching his sword and lunging towards a nearby hellhound, plunging his sword through its head.

"I have to admit, this isn't looking too good," Will admitted, grabbing his bow and firing an arrow. His Apollo inherited skills showing as the projectile struck down bat-like creature mid-air that tried to abduct Nico.

Nico, who was out of breath, nodded in agreement. "We can't hold the line for long. Sooner or later we need to retreat and regroup."

"I'd suggest now is the best of times, don't you think?" Will suggested, grabbing his backup sword through gritted teeth and stabbing a monster straight through the face.

Nico balled his fists, clutching his sword and swinging in a wide arc, bringing with it the death of dozens of monsters. "Not yet."