The Ascendance of Darkness (Percy Jackson Twin fanfic)

Eight Years Later

Today was rough, guys. I literally just wrote over twenty pages of US History notes, a synthesis essay for English, and did forty Algebra 2 homework questions. This chapter is the only good thing in my life.

Eight Years Later

There must have been millions of them, skittering across the ground, their eyes red, and their minds thirsting for blood. It was just the two of them, back to back in their small fort, with only the feeble walls to protect them. His hair was plastered to his face with sweat, and her hair was a tangled mess, falling into her face.

His voice was desperate. "It's too small. There's no way out. We're trapped. Please, I don't like this."

She clung to his arm, her breath coming too quickly, and in a similar state. "Come on, we have to at least get rid of them. I'm scared."

He hardened at her voice. "Then that's what we do," he said, gripping the hilt of his sword tighter, "I'll lead. You watch my back."

Her eyes narrow in kind. "I'll protect you," she promised, "We protect each other."

He pushed through the door, which was already straining with the pressure of the monsters and swung the blade with little regard for technique or aim.

Still, he felt better. The open air was much more comfortable. His eyes closed and his mouth opened, letting out a series of screams as he kept on swinging.

Thwack

"Ryker," his father yelled over his screaming, "What are you doing?"

The boy's eyes opened. Their living room was a mess, their pillow fort in tatters and his wooden sword caught in his father's hands, which were red from the impact.

Milli peeked out from behind him, a similar sword in her hand. She pointed it at the ground, where the monsters ran around in a frenzy. "Spiders."

The man's eyes softened. "Ah. Here, this will work better." He grabbed the fly swatter from the top of their mantle quickly disposed of the creatures.

She let out a breath of relief, brushing her blonde hair out of her eyes. "I'm sorry that fort was a little small, Ryker," she said, "But dad says we can't use our bed pillows anymore."

"Let's make a deal," Ryker offered, his sea green eyes sparkling, "I don't let the spiders get you, and you don't let me get stuck in small spaces like that."

She wrapped her pinky around his. "Deal."

He grabbed her by the wrist, dragging her to the door. "Now come on, I want to go to the ocean before dinner."

They were only eight, but their parents trusted them to go out by themselves. They lived on a small private property on an island off of Hawaii. From the beach they could see a neighboring island complete with a town and school district, but both children were homeschooled by Milli's father.

Ryker grabbed his board and sat down in the sand next to his best friend. He didn't surf because that was just the Hawaiian stereotype. He liked to surf because of the irreplaceable feeling of the spray in his face, the wind in his hair, and the freedom that came with being in the middle of the ocean.

"Why do you think we live away from them?" Ryker asked. "Why do you think we go over there to play with everyone else and then come back here and everyone else stays there?"

Milli only shrugged. "Because this is where our houses are. What if we lived over there and my house wasn't right next to your house? What if you couldn't climb through the window at night to play sword fight without falling on your butt? Or maybe you would let someone else climb through the window? I don't think I would like that. Boys are yucky."