SAFE || percy jackson

1.0

Percy deflected one with his sword. The other impaled itself in the picnic table an inch from Eurytion's hand. Percy went on the attack. Geryon parried his first strike with a pair of red-hot tongs and lunged at Percy's face with a barbecue fork. When Geryon tried to lung at Percy again, Percy was able to stab him in his middle chest.

"Aghhh!" He crumpled to his knees. Percy waited for him to disintegrate, the way monsters usually do. But instead he just grimaced and started to stand up. The wound in his chef's apron started to heal.

"Nice try, sonny," he said. "Thing is, I have three hearts. The perfect backup system."

He tipped over the barbecue, and coals spilled everywhere. One landed next to Annabeth's face, and she let out a muffled scream. Tyson strained against his bonds, but even his strength wasn't enough to break them.

Next, he jabbed Geryon in the left chest, but he only laughed. It was no good. Percy might as well have been sticking a sword in a teddy bear for all the reaction Geryon showed. Three hearts. The perfect backup system. Percy ran back to the house.

"Coward!" he cried. "Come back and die right!"

The living room walls were decorated with a bunch of gruesome hunting trophies—stuffed deer and dragon heads, a gun case, a sword display, and a bow with a quiver. Geryon threw his barbecue fork, and it thudded into the wall right next to Percy's head. Geryon drew two swords from the wall display.

"Your head's gonna go right there, Jackson! Next to the grizzly bear!" 

Percy dropped Riptide and grabbed the bow off the wall. He was the worst archery shot in the world, but he had no choice. He couldn't win this fight with a sword. Percy prayed to Artemis and Apollo, the twin archers, hoping they might take pity on him for once.

'Please, guys. Just one shot. Please.' Percy notched an arrow.

Geryon laughed. "You fool! One arrow is no better than one sword." He raised his swords and charged. Percy dove sideways. Before he could turn, Percy shot his arrow into the side of his right chest.

THUMP, THUMP, THUMP, as the arrow passed clean through each of Geryon's chests and flew out his left side, embedding itself in the forehead of the grizzly bear trophy. Geryon dropped his swords.

He turned and stared at Percy. "You can't shoot. They told me you couldn't..." His face turned a sickly shade of green. He collapsed to his knees and began crumbling into sand, until all that was left were three cooking aprons and an oversized pair of cowboy boots.

Percy walked over and untied his friends. Eurytion didn't try to stop him.

"What about Elise?" questioned Percy.

Eurytion was pointing to a now unconscious Elise in the corner. "She'll wake up in a few."

Percy stoked up the barbecue and threw the food into the flames as a burnt offering for Artemis and Apollo. He looked at Elise before talking to the group.

"Thanks, guys," Percy said. "I owe you one." The sky thundered in the distance, so he figured maybe the burgers smelled okay.

"Yay for Percy!" Tyson said.

"Can we tie up this cowherd now?" Nico asked.

"Yeah!" Grover agreed. "And that dog almost killed me!" Percy looked at Eurytion, who still was sitting relaxed at the picnic table. Orthus had both his heads on the cowherd's knees.

"How long will it take Geryon to re-form?" Percy questioned. Eurytion shrugged.

"Hundred years? He's not one of those fast re-formers, thank the gods. You've done me a favor."

"You said you'd died for him before," he remembered. "How?"

"I've worked for that creep for thousands of years. Started as a regular half-blood, but I chose immortality when my dad offered it. Worst mistake I ever made. Now I'm stuck here at this ranch. I can't leave. I can't quit. I just tend the cows and fight Geryon's fights. We're kinda tied together."

"Maybe you can change things," suggested Percy. 

Eurytion narrowed his eyes. "How?"

"Be nice to the animals. Take care of them. Stop selling them for food. And stop dealing with the Titans."

Eurytion thought about that. "That'd be all right."

"Get the animals on your side, and they'll help you. Once Geryon gets back, maybe he'll be working for you this time."

Eurytion grinned. "Now, that I could live with."

"You won't try to stop us leaving?"

"Shoot, no."

Annabeth rubbed her bruised wrists. She was still looking at Eurytion suspiciously. "Your boss said somebody paid for our safe passage. Who?"

The cowherd shrugged. "Maybe he was just saying that to fool you."

"What about the Titans?" Percy asked. "Did you Iris-message them about Nico yet?"

"Nope. Geryon was waiting until after the barbecue. They don't know about him." Nico as glaring at Percy. Percy doubted he would agree to come with us. On the other hand, the group couldn't just let him roam around on his own.

"You could stay here until we're done with our quest," Percy told him. "It would be safe."

"Safe?" Nico said. "What do you care if I'm safe? You got my sister killed!"

"Nico," Annabeth said carefully, "that wasn't Percy's fault. And Geryon wasn't lying about Kronos wanting to capture you. If he knew who you were, he'd do anything to get you on his side."

"I'm not on anyone's side. And I'm not afraid."

"You should be," Annabeth said. "Your sister wouldn't want—"

"If you cared for my sister, you'd help me bring her back!"

"A soul for a soul?" Percy inquired.

"Yes!"

"But if you didn't want my soul—"

"I'm not explaining anything to you!" Nico blinked tears out of his eyes. "And I will bring her back."

"Bianca wouldn't want to be brought back," Percy said softly.

"Not like that."

"You didn't know her!" he shouted. "How do you know what she'd want?"

"You mustn't need yell."

-

-

-

----------

COMMENT. VOTE. SHARE WITH OTHER FRIENDS.

I think I've gotten good with updating.