Indigo Eyes

Chapter 53

"Well, get him up!" Thalia said. She had her spear in her hand. She looked behind her as if she were being followed. "We have to get out of here."

"What's new?" Cressida sighed as Zoë and Thalia hauled Grover up and Percy had his hands under her arms as he did the same.

"Run now, talk later," Percy said as she was up and they began bolting as fast as they could go.

They made it to the edge of the town before the first two skeleton warriors appeared. They stepped from the trees on either side of the road. Instead of grey camouflage, they were now wearing blue New Mexico State Police uniforms, but they had the same transparent grey skin and yellow eyes. They drew their handguns.

Thalia tapped her bracelet, Aegis spiralling to life on her arm as Cressida drew her spear. And yet, where the Nemean Lion had feared her shield, the skeleton warriors were unfazed.

Percy drew his own sword, and Zoë and Bianca drew their bows, but they honestly didn't know how their weapons were supposed to defeat guns, especially since Grover kept swooning and leaning on them.

"Back up," Thalia said and they started to – but then they heard the rustling of branches. Two more skeletons appeared on the road behind them. They were surrounded.

"Oh, we are so going to die," Cressida muttered under her breath.

"Don't think negatively," Percy reprimanded out of instinct.

Then one of the warriors raised a cell phone to his mouth and spoke into it. Except he wasn't speaking. He made a clattering, clicking sound, like dry teeth on bone - it was calling for backup.

"I'm going to feel so happy when I take your positive thinking plans and strangle you with them. How's that for positive thinking?" she retorted.

"Could use some work."

"It's near," Grover moaned.

"It's here," Percy said.

"No," he persisted. "The gift. The gift from the Wild."

"Our odds look good. Four of them, five of us. They won't worry about Grover," Thalia insisted.

"Agreed," said Zoë.

"The Wild!" Grover moaned. A warm wind blew through the canyon, rustling the trees but they all kept their eyes on the skeletons.

Percy charged first and Cressida was on his heels. For Annabeth.

ADHD was a wonderous thing - sometimes - and this was one of those times. The world seemed to slow down as the skeletons fired their bullets. While Percy deflected it, Cressida spun her spear so quickly that it looked as if nothing was there and yet, no bullets struck her.

It was easy enough to dismember the skeletons, but as soon as their bones hit the ground did they begin to reform. They'd be drained of energy and wounded before they found a way to dispel the skeletons for good.

They were actually doing pretty well though - at least until two skeletons shot Percy in the back.

"Percy!" Thalia yelled as Cressida let out a scream, and vines erupted from the ground. They swirled like serpents through the air, snatching their guns and crushing them until they were a pile of mangled metal. As Cressida's vines responded to her rage, engaging against the skeletons, it gave the others a small reprieve as Cressida ran for Percy.

The bullets hadn't even pierced his coat because he was sitting up and he appeared unscathed.

"You Barnacle Butt! You absolute idiot! I thought you were dead!" she exclaimed as she dropped to her knees and threw her arms around his neck.