The Battle of The Labyrinth [Book Four]

Sundown Showdown.

    Back at the ranch house, Tyson, Grover, Annabeth, and Reagan were being hogged tied with thick rope as Geryon whistled happily over a grill. He had an apron on each torso. "Kiss The Chef" was spelled out, one word on each chest. As Eurytion leaned down, tying Reagan up last, she gazed up at him desperately. They were siblings, so why wouldn't he listen to her?

"We're siblings," Reagan began in a gruff voice. "Let me out, please," she pleaded softly.

His eyes flickered to her for a moment, as though considering it. "Can't do, Miss," Eurytion decided. "My boss'll kill you."

    They were dead either way. It wasn't like Reagan didn't really trust Percy, not like when she first met him and thought he was a thief, but because there had been so much to clean up in those stables. How could Percy possibly clean all that up before sundown? She contemplated the situation for a second, weighing her options carefully. As Eurytion grasped her wrists and began to tie them with thick rope that even Tyson was unable to break, Reagan innocently clasped her fingers together. Her fingers laced together, and right as he was about to finish looping the rope around her bound wrists, she managed to slip her enchanted ring off. As it was about to fall off the tip of her finger, it transformed still, as though it knew that she needed it at the moment.

    Even Reagan seemed surprised, as did Eurytion. The large cowhand stumbled back from the intense flame that burned at the tip menacingly, but as the weapon clattered on the ground, the flame diminished immensely. Reagan scrambled to grab at it, and Geryon turned from the grill slowly and knowingly, his eyebrows arched with mild amusement.

"You've got yourself a vicious growl, girl," Geryon said. "But what about your bite?"

She scowled with irritation at his challenge. "Come closer and find out."

    The rancher began to bark with laughter at her response. Which only helped to infuriate the young Demigod even more. Once the laughter died down, the man sighed in content and crossed his long arms over his middle chest, as though debating this option. Then he shrugged lamely and turned back to the grill.

"Kill her, Eurytion."

    Reagan's eyes widened in fear as Eurytion grumbled under his breath and lifted his massive club. How long could she last in a fight against him? As the large man hefted the weapon over his head, she immediately shrunk away defensively, only for him to heave a sigh of exhaustion and rest the club against his shoulder casually again.

"Fight her yourself."

That defiant remark irritated the rancher more then when Reagan challenged him. He slammed the long cooking fork down against the grill and spun around, glaring daggers at the cowhand. "What'd you just say?" he growled.

Eurytion sat down at the picnic table and whistled, calling his dog Orthus back to his side and away from Grover. "I'm tired of doing your dirty work and dying for you," he spat, crossing his arms over his chest and leaning back against the table. "Do it yourself."

That was the most un-Ares thing to say. He'd have been laughed right out of cabin five if any of his half-siblings heard him say that.

Geryon let out a low growl, untying his aprons and tossing them on the ground angrily. "Fine. I'll do it myself. I'll deal with you once this girl is dead!"

    He picked up two knives from the side of the grill and threw them at Reagan in quick succession, and it was difficult to deflect the projectiles with her spear, and so she narrowly dodged the sharp objects desperately. One was inches from her neck, the blade embedding itself in the dirt near Annabeth's head, and she let out muffled screams through the cloth gag in her mouth. Reagan grit her teeth, the spot where the wound once was still burning in complaint to her movements. The flesh was still tender and sore, despite being completely healed. Or perhaps it was the poison damaging the tissue and internal organs.

She hoped not.

    Reagan lunged at Geryon, ducking as he swung a hot two-pronged at her head. As she closed in on him, she stabbed at the middle chest and smiled in triumph as the flaming tip sunk into the center where his heart should be. But he didn't turn into dust like monsters usually did when she stabbed them. The smile quickly flipped into a concerned frown, and Geryon laughed.

"Three chests, three hearts. The perfect backup system!"

    He elbowed her in the shoulder and kicked her back. Why was she so sluggish? Cursing softly under her breath, Reagan forced herself to her feet and rolled her shoulders, keeping a safe distance from him with her enchanted spear between them, urging the flame to grow to help create a barrier. She was panting, clearly out of breath, racking her brain to find some way to kill him. How could she hit all three hearts at once? With a bow? No... She had no skill in archery whatsoever. And she doubted she could magically use a bow now. Reagan paced nervously, glancing at the large grilling fork to his hand, waiting for his next move. But before that could happen, Reagan grinned mischievously then turned on her heels and darted into his house. If the fight went on for too long, her friends may be hurt in the process and she didn't want that. Reagan ran into the living room, shuddering at the sight of all the stuffed animal heads on the wall.

"Run all you want. You're only avoiding the inevitable," Geryon mocked as he followed her into his home, baring his teeth menacingly.

She turned to look at him. "Yeah. Your death."

"All bark, but no bite," he reminded her, pulling two curved swords off the wall.

    As he ran at her and swung both swords simultaneously, Reagan dove under his arms and rolled. Before he could respond in any way, she scrambled to her feet and rose her spear like she was about to throw a football.

"If you're looking out for me, dad, please help me," Reagan prayed in a quiet murmur.

    As she chucked the spear at Geryon right as he was turning, she felt a warm sensation tingle through her spine and arm that was throwing the weapon. The weapon soared through the air, hitting him right in the armpit, but instead of getting stuck there, it pierced through the flesh and kept flying. It went 'thunk', 'thunk', 'thunk' as the weapon hit each heart, passing through each chest. Finally, the spear's blade hit the wall, the bleeding hearts pierced against the wall.

Geryon's eyes went wide, and his swords clattered to the floor as he turned towards her slowly. "But- How-"

    A guttural groan escaped his lips as he vanished into dust, leaving a pair of cowboy boots where he was just standing. The hearts, along with the blood, was gone too, and her spear was back to the shape of a simple ring. Reagan was panting, breathless as the last of the adrenaline pumped through her system.

"Woah," Percy whispered in awe from the doorway, panting from the running he had done to reach the ranch house from the stables.

    Reagan blinked in surprise, jolting back into reality. With unsteady feet, she carried herself across the room and picked up her ring, sliding it onto her finger and clenching her hand into a fist.

"You look different," he commented after a moment of silence.

"I feel different."

She felt warm. This blossoming warmth started in her chest, and even as it faded away, she still felt dizzying euphoria.

Thanks, dad.

Nodding in the general direction where their friends were being kept still, she finally looked over at Percy and sniffed the air curiously. "Hm. I thought you'd smell like-"

"Don't say it," he grumbled with a shudder as the two returned to untie their friends.