Indigo Eyes

Chapter 104

The giants came first, carrying shields made from flattened cars and clubs that were tree trunks with rusty spikes on the end. And all it took was one giant to send a dozen Ares campers flying like rag dolls.

"Fire!" Beckendorf yelled. The catapults swung into action. Two boulders hurtled towards the giants. One deflected off a car shield with hardly a dent, but the other caught a Laistrygonian in the chest, and the giant went down. Apollo's archers fired a volley, dozens of arrows sticking in the thick armour of the giants like porcupine quills. Several found chinks in armour, and some of the giants vaporized at the touch of celestial bronze. But just when it looked like the Laistrygonians were about to get overwhelmed, the next wave surged out of the maze: thirty, maybe forty dracaenae in full battle armour, wielding spears and nets. They dispersed in all directions. Some hit the traps the Hephaestus cabin had laid. One got stuck on the spikes and became an easy target for archers. Another triggered a trip wire, and pots of Greek fire exploded into green flames, engulfing several of the snake women. But many more kept coming.

Argus and Athena's warriors rushed forward to meet them, Annabeth having to fight with a sword this time as Tyson rode on a giant's shoulders, hitting its head with a bronze shield.

Chiron calmly aimed arrow after arrow, taking down a monster with every shot. But more enemies just kept climbing out of the maze. Finally, a hellhound – not Mrs O'Leary – leapt out of the tunnel and barrelled straight towards the satyrs.

And Percy charged into the fray.

And when Kampê finally burst from the maze, Cabin Twelve, the children of Dionysus, plunged into battle.

"Stand! Do not run from her! Fight!" Tyson called before he was pounced on by a hellhound and Percy and Annabeth found each other, saying their goodbyes as they watched Cabin Twelve fight like a perfectly oiled, deadly machine.

They felled several dracaenae and demigods to get to the dragon lady that had smashed the Athena command tent to bits. And Cressida's brothers grew vines to tie down the creature as Cressida herself tangled with the scimitars Kampê wielded.

Her spear kept the weapons at bay as she dodged drops of acid and her brothers tried to find a kill shot before the vines broke and they had to readjust and try and tie Kampê down again before she flew off. And when Cressida was knocked to the ground, Pollux took her place, and then Castor and the cycle repeated itself as the creature roared at them, different animals appearing on her waist.

All three of them had been knocked down, sprawled in various positions on the ground when a wall of darkness slammed into Kampê and Mrs O'Leary was standing over them as she snarled.

"Good girl!" said a familiar voice. Daedalus was fighting his way out of the Labyrinth, slashing down enemies left and right as he made his way towards us. Next to him was someone else – a familiar giant, much taller than the Laistrygonians, with a hundred rippling arms, each holding a huge chunk of rock.

"Briares!" Tyson cried in wonder.

"Hail, little brother!" Briares bellowed. "Stand firm!"

And as Mrs O'Leary leapt out of the way, the Hundred-handed One launched a volley of boulders at Kampê. The rocks seemed to enlarge as they left Briares's hands. There were so many, it looked like half the earth had learned to fly.

Where Kampê had stood a moment before was a mountain of boulders, almost as tall as Zeus's Fist. The only sign that the monster had ever existed were two green sword points sticking through the cracks.

A cheer went up from the campers, but their enemies weren't done yet. One of the dracaenae yelled, "Ssssslay them! Kill them all or Kronossss will flay you alive!"