Miss Quinn

55 ~ The Golden Fleece

"I got Nobody!" Polyphemus gloated.

Emma, Percy, Clarisse, and Grover crept to the cave entrance and saw the Cyclops, grinning wickedly, holding up empty air. The monster shook his fist, and a baseball cap fluttered to the ground. There was Annabeth, hanging upside down by her legs.

"Hah!" the Cyclops said. "Nasty invisible girl! Already got feisty one for wife. Means you gotta be grilled with mango chutney!"

Annabeth struggled, but she looked dazed. She had a nasty cut on her forehead. Her eyes were glassy.

"Emma and I'll rush him," Percy whispered to Clarisse. "Our ship is around the back of the island. You and Grover—"

"No way," Clarisse and Grover said at the same time. Clarisse had armed herself with a highly collectible rams-horn spear from the Cyclops's cave. Grover had found a sheep's thigh bone, which he didn't look too happy about, but he was gripping it like a club, ready to attack.

"We'll take him together," Clarisse growled.

"Yeah," Grover said. Then he blinked, like he couldn't believe he'd just agreed with Clarisse about something.

"All right," Percy said. "Attack plan Macedonia."

Emma nodded with Clarisse and Grover. They'd all taken the same training courses at Camp Half-Blood. They knew what he was talking about. They would sneak around either side and attack the Cyclops from the flanks while Percy held his attention in the front.

Percy hefted his sword and shouted, "Hey, Ugly!"

The giant whirled toward him. "Another one? Who are you?"

Emma pushed Grover ahead of her as they snuck around to the side.

"Put down my friend. I'm the one who insulted you." Percy said.

"You are Nobody?"

"That's right, you smelly bucket of nose drool!" It didn't sound quite as good as Annabeth's insults, but it seemed to get the Cyclops's attention. "I'm Nobody and I'm proud of it! Now, put her down and get over here. I want to stab your eye out again."

"RAAAR!" he bellowed.

The good news: he dropped Annabeth. The bad news: he dropped her head-first onto the rocks, where she lay motionless as a rag doll. The other bad news: Polyphemus barreled toward Percy, a thousand smelly pounds of Cyclops that he would have to fight with a very small sword.

"For Pan!" Grover rushed in from the right. He threw his sheep bone, which bounced harmlessly off the monster's forehead. Emma ran after him, and slashed a deep cut along the Cyclops's arm.

Clarisse ran in from the left and set her spear against the ground just in time for the Cyclops to step on it. He wailed in pain, and Clarisse dove out of the way to avoid getting trampled. But the Cyclops just plucked out the shaft like a large splinter and kept advancing on Percy.

He moved in with Riptide. The monster made a grab for Percy. He rolled aside and stabbed Polyphemus in the thigh.

"Get Annabeth!" Percy yelled in Emma and Grover's direction. They rushed over to her, Emma stopped to pick up Annabeth's invisibility cap.

Clarisse and Percy tried to keep Polyphemus distracted. Clarisse was brave. She charged the Cyclops again and again. He pounded the ground, stomped at her, grabbed at her, but she was too quick. And as soon as she made an attack, Percy followed up by stabbing the monster in the toe or the ankle or the hand.