The Unknown Guardian

| Chapter 9 || Attacked |

Chapter Nine

Attacked

*Third Person Point of View*

Just as Annabeth was beginning her combat class, everyone suddenly went silent. Nothing but the clanging of metal could be heard. It was as if a hush had fallen over nature itself. Annabeth looked up from her students, seeing that dark clouds were quickly accumulating over their heads. That never happened. Something was wrong.

In the distance, she and the young demigods could hear the rustle of armour and weapons. They heard the pounding footsteps of an army. A close army. They heard battle cries and roars as well, and everything became clear. Something was very wrong.

The enemy was approaching and they were not prepared. Annabeth immediately took action. "Everyone to your battle positions! Grab your weapons! Strap on your armor!" she ordered. She then turned to a son of Apollo and said: "Aaron, take the untrained demigods to the bunker and keep them there. If they get caught up in the battle, they will die."

The seasoned demigod nodded and began leading the younger and untrained demigods to the underground bunker. They had only just recently built it when they'd heard the news about their new foe. With so many demigods, they'd decided to have a safe house to protect the young ones and the demigods that had yet to be trained.

The camp was in chaos. The demigods－some in armour, some not－were running everywhere, scrambling to get to their posts and battalions. If they couldn't get ready in time, they'd never hold off the monsters wishing to invade their home.

Just as the monsters were coming over the hill, the demigods were ready. Upon seeing the faces of the children they hated, the monsters all let out their unique battle cries and charged. The demigods charged as well, raising their weapons, ready to defend their home.

Annabeth fought strategically and was the one shouting orders to her fellow demigods. With her leadership, they were winning. As she called to a squadron of Ares campers, she silently prayed for the guardians to show up and aid them in the defence. Camp Half-Blood could not－and would not - fall. Not while she was around.

***

Camp Jupiter was in a similar situation. It was the second attack that week, but luckily, the number of opposing monsters was less than the previous battle. They charged into the fray, their training having not faltered, and quickly disposed of many of the monsters' footsoldiers.

The stronger monsters, however, were not as easily slain. They felled many demigods, and the unlucky children were left to bleed out in the grass of the fields of Mars. Time could be spared for them.

Reyna was in the center of the masses, fighting with more ferocity than she ever had before. She prayed to the gods to send their guardians to protect them,but she knew not to rely on them. If they could not be saved by the guardians, they'd have to protect themselves and their brothers and sisters.

All around her, she could hear the clanging of metal on claws, and the roars of both triumph and defeat. She trembled at the thought of her brothers and sisters in arms falling to the enemy, but she couldn't let herself think about it. She had to focus on what was right in front of her. She had to send more monsters back to where they came from. Back to Tartarus. Alas, it seemed that with every monster she disintegrated, two more would take its place.

***

On Olympus, the gods watched in horror as their children fought for their lives. Zeus was especially conflicted, as the gods in front of him were constantly switching between their Greek and Roman forms, both begging to send the guardians to either camp.

Finally, he came up with a plan. "Olympians!" he began. "Half of you send your guardians to the Greek camp, and the other half, to the Romans. I am sending Aikaterine to the Greeks to aid my son, Jason. Apollo, Athena, Aphrodite, Poseidon and Athena, send your guardians to the Greeks as well." He then turned into his Jupiter form. "Meanwhile, Vulcan, Mars, Bacchus, Mercury, Pluto, and Ceres, send your guardians to defend the Roman Camp."

The Olympians nodded and each turned to their guardians, sending them to the respective camps.

Turning back to Zeus, he smiled sadly. "I only wish that we could help them ourselves," he said wistfully. "Alas, the ancient laws forbid us from interfering with the affairs of mortals. As there are only monsters in the armies, we cannot help our children. Only if there is an opposing immortal."

"Father?" he heard.

Turning, he spotted Artemis standing near the door.

"Yes Artemis?" he asked. He was quite confused as to why she was visiting him in the throne room. It was also a surprise to him that she was speaking to him at all; even if Percy was back, she and the others still hadn't forgiven him for what he had done.

"Father, I have news to report. Earlier today, my camp was attacked by Télionix. Percy managed to defeat him, but now Percy is in a bad way. He is okay physically, but mentally, I fear that his mind cannot take any more strain. He is pushing himself too far," she told him.

"Oh?" her father asked.

"Since coming back, he's been...different. He is closed off from us. With Thalia, he seems more relaxed, but still..." Her concern for Percy was clear in her voice. "I fear that one of the only worthy men of this earth has been broken."

Zeus leaned back in his throne, his eyebrows furrowing. "I see. Daughter, you know that I am truly sorry for what I have done. If I could take back my actions, I would. Alas, I am not my father so I cannot change the past. Hopefully, good will come out of this. We just need to give him time. Percy is back. I am sure that it's a good sign. The great being may have saved him from having his soul destroyed, but Percy chose to become a guardian. That meant that he still cared. I'm certain that the old Percy is still inside, hidden deep within your guardian's heart."

Artemis gave a sad smile. Her father usually didn't know what to say to make her feel better, but his words calmed her rampant mind slightly. "Thank you...father. You're probably right."

She turned to leave, but Zeus suddenly remembered, "Artemis, wait!"

"Yes, father?"

"Both demigod camps are under attack. The rest of the gods are bound by ancient laws, but you, my daughter, are not. Please aid either of the camps to defend against the monsters who threaten them," he said.

Artemis nodded. "My hunters and I shall leave for Camp Half-Blood at once. It is the closest to our current campsite."

***

Word Count: 1136

Average Words Per Chapter: 1943

Word Total: 17,486

Posted: Saturday, October 22nd, 2016

Edited and Re-Posted: Sunday, October 23rd, 2016

~CSP2708~

*Dylan_Walts*