Unlikely Heroes

Chapter 2: Running Through The Night

I stare in disbelief at her. This couldn't be true. I'm not some time traveler. "I thought you were smart. I'm not some time traveler! That'd make me... seventy-seven! And I am definitely not that old," I say to her in a dismissive tone.

"Don't insult my intelligence! This is the year 2000!" she says, grabs me by the shirt and drags me with her. Annabeth is surprisingly strong, or I am just weak. I think I certainly ticked her off.

For minutes, we walk in the rain. I am staring in shock and awe around me. There are so many cars, even at night. Buildings have weird designs. And the clothes of the few people I see... Annabeth stops in the front of a shop and points, rather irritated, inside. "See? I am right!"

I look through the window into the closed shop. It seems to be a sort of bookshop, selling all kinds of books and... calendars. In big bold numbers, it says 2000 on all the calendars. "I'm sorry..." I say in a soft tone and walk away with my head hung low and a deep frown on my face.

"What is it now?" Annabeth asks with frustration as she stops me. I turn to look at her with watery eyes. "What is it now?! Figure it out yourself, Wise Girl," I say frustrated and with an angry tone. She frowns before realization hit her. "Oh..."

"It's nice, huh. Welcome to the year 2000! And, oh yeah, your mother is probably dead. Sorry about that, enjoy the future! I saw her leave, and I never saw her come back, Annabeth!" I say as I roughly remove her hand from my shoulder.

I walk a small distance to a wooden bench and plop down, letting the rain hit me. My mind is clouded by rampant thoughts and guilt. There are too many things I never said or did for my mother. Probably never going to get the chance now. Minutes go by as I stare at the stone pavement.

Suddenly, I do not feel the rain anymore. I look up and see an umbrella that shelters me from the rain. "Sorry... That wasn't very kind of me," I hear Annabeth say from my left.

"I thought you didn't have any money on you. Did you steal it?" I ask, turning to her as she holds up an umbrella to cover us both from the rain. "No! I bought it in the night shop over there," she says and points to a shop across the street. "Oh, and with what money?"

"Yours, sorry for not asking." I wave the apology away. "It's fine," I take a deep breath, "Did we win? Did my mother at least die for something good?"

"You mean the war? Yeah, we won. I think it made the world better. You know, she may still be alive. There're still plenty of veterans alive," she says. I sigh again and look around the street. What are the chances? I am alive in the future. If she is still alive, she must be one of the oldest people alive. "Maybe, you're right... Say, what month is it?" I ask her. "August. Why do you ask?"

I look at two persons dressed as some kind of monster. A lot of fur and monstrous features are put into the costume. I point to them. "Did they change the date of Halloween? They got some excellent costumes." Annabeth frowns as she looks at who I am pointing to. She visibly pales as she sees them.

"We need to go! Right now," she says, her voice laced with anxiety and fear. "Uhm, but..." I try to say, but Annabeth is already pushing me to get up. "Please, Alexandra. Just trust me," she says, keeping a weary eye on the monster people. "Fine, but you better explain it later." Annabeth nods vigorously and starts to run while holding my hand. I follow her as she guides me.

From behind us, we here a howl. "They're really into it, aren't they?" I say as we run. "They aren't people! They are monsters! Real ones!"

I frown in confusion and look behind us. My eyes grow wide as I see them running after us on four legs, making growling noises. A bit of foam leave their mouths. Their eyes are an evil red color. "What the...!" I say in shock. One starts to prepare to jump at Annabeth, when it does, I pull Annabeth to me as I run into a side street. She looked horrified as she saw the beast land viciously on the spot she stood on.

We run through the winding alleyway in the hope to escape the beasts. "Why are they after us?!" I ask her. "I don't know!" I groan from the effort as I try to keep running. This is the longest I have run in my life. "You made me believe you knew everything!" I answer back. "Just keep running!"

Unfortunately, fortune wasn't smiling on us. We reached a dead end. A brick wall stands in our way. "Goddammit!" I curse before turning to the monsters. They growl viciously at us as if we're a tasty snack. I push Annabeth behind me protectively. At least they will have to get through me first, and... if I die, I'll see mother again.

One of them jumps from its spot towards me. I hold up my arms instinctively to protect me, waiting for the pain... but it never came. I only felt something bounce off me. What? I hesitantly open my eyes and to my shock, a black shield made of darkness is suddenly attached to my left arm. It looks like one of those Greek hoplite shields. Ripples go through it as the monster was bounced off it.

"How'd you do that?!" Annabeth asks as she looks with wide eyes at me. "I don't know! But I'm not complaining!" The two large furry monsters start to growl even louder, clearly angry at the failed attempt. Then, out of nowhere, a flash of lighting is seen behind them. Both me and Annabeth close our eyes to protect them from the blinding light.

The monster dogs make wining noises out of pain, which end soon in silence. As I look to see what happened, I am met by two figures. One male and one female. The female has eyes that contain a storm, black hair, and overall a bit of a rocker girl look due to the dark clothing choice.

The male person on the other hand has blond hair, a kind smile and blue eye. His face shows a rather impish look, as if he likes to prank people on many occasions. "You two okay?" He asks.

"Uh, yeah, we're okay. Thanks for the rescue," I say to them. "What were they?" I ask them. The monsters are gone, not even their body remains. What is happening?!

"Monsters. They hunt Demigods, like me or Thalia, here. And you two, it seems," he explains. "Holy cow, we're what?! This is one strange fucking night..." I say as I rub my face. It seems my shield is also gone.

"Yup, to be more specific. We mean the Greek Gods of Ancient Greece. Have you not noticed you could read Greek or speak it fluently? That you have trouble reading English?" Thalia says as she leans on some bronze spear. "Yeah, I did," Annabeth says from behind me, her head slightly peaking out. She is still clutching my shirt with her hands. "I mean... I can read English well enough... but yeah, me too."

"Lucky you. Well, we should keep moving. With this many Demigods, more are bound to come," Thalia says. The man smiles a little at Annabeth. He pulls out a bronze knife. "Hey there, I'm Luke. You're scared of being helpless, right? That you could not protect yourself? Or your friend? Here, this will help you. It's the only type of weapon that could harm them. Celestial Bronze. But you won't have to worry, I'll... always be there for you like a brother," he says with a smile, holding the dagger out for her.

A soft smile forms on her lips as she takes the dagger. "Thank you," she says politely. I give her a small squeeze as support and look to my rescuers. "Got anywhere to go?" I ask. Luke stands back up as he nods. "Yes, follow us. I assure you, I'll make sure you stay alive."

We start to quickly get away from the alley to a safer spot. Close to half an hour, we switch between running and fast walking. Eventually, we start to walk at a leisurely pace. Thalia and Luke walk in front of us, while I walk with Annabeth. Most of the time, she has been holding my hand. I am rather happy that she trusts me.

"Alexandra?" Annabeth says to get my attention. "Hmm?"

"Thank you. For saving me, and protecting me back in the alley. That meant a lot to me," she says, squeezing my hand softly. I smile. "Don't mention it. We're in this together, Wise Girl," I take off my necklace with the ring. "I promise, Annabeth. We may have come together by chance, luck, or whatever. But I will keep you safe while you keep me safe. Deal?"

She smiles at me. "Deal." I chuckle and put the necklace around her neck. "Good. Keep it safe for me, alright?" Annabeth nods and we continue walking into the night with our two new-found friends.