Miss Quinn

118 ~ The Williamsburg Bridge

The battle had been going on for quite awhile before Emma finally saw Percy and Annabeth flying in on Pegasi. It was well past midnight, dark, and getting cold, but the bridge blazed with light. Cars were burning. Arcs of fire streamed in both directions as flaming arrows and spears sailed through the air.

Percy and Annabeth came in for a low pass, and Emma glanced up at them as she and her siblings retreated. They hid behind cars and sniped at the approaching army, setting off explosive arrows and dropping caltrops in the road, building fiery barricades wherever they could, dragging sleeping drivers out of their cars to get them out of harm's way. But the enemy kept advancing. An entire phalanx of dracaenae marched in the lead, their shields locked together, spear tips bristling over the top. An occasional arrow would connect with their snaky trunks, or a neck, or a chink in their armor, and the unlucky snake woman would disintegrate, but most of the Apollo arrows glanced harmlessly off their shield wall. About a hundred more monsters marched behind them. Emma was faring rather well. She'd reloaded her quiver three times already, but she'd done most of the killing. Connor and Sadie were the ones with the explosive arrows, and they were doing pretty well, too. But Emma knew they'd soon be overtaken.

Hellhounds leaped ahead of the line from time to time. Most were destroyed with arrows, but one got hold of Austin and dragged him away. Emma didn't see what happened to him next. She didn't want to know.

Emma glanced up at the Minotaur, taller than the rest of the monsters, as she dragged a sleeping woman from the driver's seat of her car, then wrapped the woman's daughter into her arms.

From the waist down, he wore standard Greek battle gear—a kilt-like apron of leather and metal flaps, bronze greaves covering his legs, and tightly wrapped leather sandals. His top was all bull—hair and hide and muscle leading to a head so large he should've toppled over just from the weight of his horns. A double-bladed axe was strapped to his back, but he was too impatient to use it. As soon as he saw Percy circling overhead (or sniffed him, more likely, since his eyesight was bad), he bellowed and picked up a white limousine.

"Blackjack, dive!" Percy yelled.

They were at least a hundred feet up, but the limo came sailing toward them, flipping fender over fender like a two-ton boomerang. Annabeth and Porkpie swerved madly to the left, while Blackjack tucked in his wings and plunged. The limo sailed over Percy's head, missing by maybe two inches. It cleared the suspension lines of the bridge and fell toward the East River.

Monsters jeered and shouted, and the Minotaur picked up another car.

Blackjack swooped down behind an overturned school bus, where Connor and Sadie were hiding. Annabeth and Percy leaped off as soon as their pegasi's hooves touched the pavement. Then Blackjack and Porkpie soared into the night sky.

Michael Yew ran up to them, Emma on his heels. Sadie and Connor were still showering the monsters with explosive arrows. Michael had a bandaged cut on his arm. His ferrety face was smeared with soot and his quiver was almost empty, but he was smiling like he was having a great time.

"Glad you could join us," he said. "Where are the other reinforcements?"

"For now, we're it," Percy said.

"Then we're dead," Michael said.

"You still have your flying chariot?" Annabeth asked.

"Nah," Michael said. "Left it at camp. I told Clarisse she could have it. Whatever, you know? Not worth fighting about anymore. But she said it was too late. We'd insulted her honor for the last time or some stupid thing."

"Least you tried," Percy said.

Michael shrugged. "Yeah, well, I called her some names when she said she still wouldn't fight. I doubt that helped. Here come the uglies!"