Indigo Eyes

Chapter 34

"We can finish this discussion after we win," Annabeth said as Chiron prepared to start the race.

"Oh, we're going to win," Cressida agreed as the centaur blew the starting signal and the race began.

Just as she did the first time Cressida grew a wall of vines in front of the other competitor's chariots, but this time they were prepared for it, some of them.

The Ares cabin had spikes attached to the front of their chariot, designed to plough them down after their horses trampled them, Hephaestus just pressed a button and burned them down with flamethrowers they had attached to theirs. Hermes had this contraption that sliced the vines to shreds for them. While Apollo and Percy simply had to cut them down.

Cressida and Annabeth were already on the second turn by the time Percy hit the first, the girl fighting, spear on sword with fighter, Jake, from the Hephaestus cabin.

"Sorry, Cressida, Annabeth," Beckendorf said as he slammed the side of his chariot into theirs.

"We're sorry too," Cressida said as she held up a glass sphere with a familiar liquid inside. And she rolled it under their chariot. "Go! Go!" she urged Annabeth who didn't only lash the reigns again, but moved their chariot as far from the Hephaestus one as she could without flying off the track.

And they watched as the two boys jumped from their chariot before it exploded with Greek fire as the glass sphere got in their wheel.

Clarisse was still in the back as she fought the Hermes chariot which left Cressida and Annabeth, Apollo, and Percy for the win. 

So, she sought to take away some of their competition. 

Picking up a crossbow, Cressida aimed at the Apollo chariot. She aimed but their chariot went over a fairly big rock as the arrow missed its target, the wires supposed to tangle their tires being knocked easily from the air.

"Gonna have to do better than that to take out the children of the god of archery!" called out, Will Solace.

"Tear 'em limb from limb!" Pollux screamed, the veins in his neck pulsing as he roared over the rest of the crowd.

"You messed with the wrong cabin!" Castor added as they watched their sister and Annabeth complete the first lap.

"Is this better?!" came Clarisse's gruff voice as she came from the back and started fighting with Will, his driver struggling to keep the chariot straight as the Ares one banged into theirs, that was not gonna be pretty if they rounded the next corner like that.

And Percy urged his horses to go faster as he aimed what looked like a spear with a flat disc attached to the end, throwing it as Cressida was reloading her crossbow.

He hit her, smack bang in the chest knocking her into Annabeth who stumbled as their horses became skittish and their chariot wobbled, Cressida barely being able to grab onto the railing to keep herself from falling off like her crossbow did.

And that only roused a horde of boos from both the Dionysus and Athena cabins.

"That was a dirty move, Jackass!" Pollux shouted.

"Kill him dead, little sister!" Castor yelled.

Though it would be easy to just grow vines to knock them over and win, Cressida wanted to make it hurt and her vines wouldn't do that.

As Cressida struggled to get her balance back, she'd managed to prevent the blunt javelin that Percy threw from falling, wedging it under her foot before she was able to pick it up again. But where Percy ducked as she threw it, she wasn't aiming for him.

Cressida took out the Ares driver, sending him flying over the side of the chariot which then went rearing off the track, Clarisse cursing like a sailor as she was taken out of the race after she'd beaten Apollo and was gaining on Percy.

Cressida then twirled her staff in her hands. "Just you and me, Jackson!" she taunted.

"Bring it on, Grape Girl!"

And the crowd was on the edge of their seats as Percy and Cressida began to fight, sword on staff. Cressida copped a slash to her arm and Percy took a hit to his face. There were no dirty tricks, no foul moves. This was just a plain old who is better competition.

"Hold on!" Annabeth yelled as they rounded the last corner both of their chariots turning on one wheel as Cressida flopped over the edge, half in her chariot and half on Percy's, the boy holding her arm to make sure she didn't fall off out of habit.

Home stretch.

The second both their chariots were back on two wheels, the two demigods were back at it as their drivers spurred their horses forward. Percy didn't even get a chance to activate his shield again with how much Cressida kept him on defence.

No one expected it was going to end in a tie, but then again, they supposed it was the only way it could end as both of them crossed the finish line, no one able to tell if one was in front of the other or not. Though, if you asked Mr D, he'd say his daughter won and he wouldn't even remember any other chariot near them.

Once their chariots were pulled to a stop, they were mobbed. Cressida was squeezed by her brothers as the crowd chanted their names, but it was Annabeth who spoke up. "Hold up! Listen! It wasn't just us!" The crowd didn't want to be quiet, but Annabeth made herself heard: "We couldn't have done it without somebody else! We wouldn't be here to win this race or have been able to save Grover or anything! We owe our lives to Tyson, Percy's..."

"Brother!" Percy bellowed into the silence. "Tyson, my baby brother."

Tyson blushed as the crowd cheered and Annabeth pushed Cressida towards Percy. After hearing about the first kiss, Annabeth knew that she probably wouldn't have a problem with a second one - especially since what Percy just did was definitely kiss worthy and there was no way in Tartarus Annabeth was kissing him.

Cressida stuck her tongue out at the blonde before turning to Percy. And despite the murderous looks from the entire Dionysus cabin, including Dionysus himself, Cressida planted another kiss on his cheek and on Tyson's as the crowd's roaring got louder.

The Athena cabin hoisted Annabeth, Percy and Tyson onto their shoulders while Cressida's brothers grabbed her, keeping her far from Percy as they carried them towards the winner's platform where Chiron was waiting to bestow the laurel wreaths.

They won.