Heroes of Olympus - The Blood of Olympus (Discontinued)

Chapter 13 - Nico

Chapter 13 - Nico

"Hold!" Reyna hissed, her arm held before her.

Nico paused on her left, his sword gripped tightly, Coach Hedge on her right, his fingers tapping his baseball bat in anticipation.

They stood on the rocky shores of the English Channel, off the banks of Normandy, the immense stretch of water before them lapping silently on the mid-afternoon breeze. It had been two days since their encounter with Lycaon in the Ardennes Forest, and with Nico gaining more strength as each minute passed, the trio had begun scouting for safe paths to either somehow leap across the vast Atlantic Ocean, or do baby steps over the north side of it - from the British Isles, to Iceland, to Greenland, to Canada, and down into the US.

The Athena Parthenos stood beneath the cliffs off the beach, sheltered by a canopy of granite and coniferous trees.

Nico looked in front of him, the waves washing gently beneath his boots. They had come to an edge where the cliffs touched the water, the other side invisible to their eyes.

The snuffling they heard earlier grew louder, and then came the muffled sound of a man's voice on the other side. It seemed to be using a commanding tone.

"It may just be mortals," Nico cautioned, taking a slow step forward.

"It ain't mortals, kid," Hedge grunted on his other side. "I may be an old geezer of a grandpa goat, by my nose still tells me we aren't dealing with common folk in these parts."

Nico swallowed. "Should we just wait here then?"

The shouting behind the cliffs grew louder. The snuffling became panting. They saw dirt clods and sand being flung out into the water, as if an army of moles had decided to build a temple behind the cliffs. 

Reyna turned to Coach Hedge. "It appears to be some sort of dog, is it not?"

Hedge inhaled. "Yeah, it's a dog. I would know if it was a hell hound or not, though. Doesn't smell like any dog I've ever smelled before."

Reyna nodded. "Keep on the alert."

The man's shouting grew louder, but they could not distinguish his words because of the roar of the waves out in the Channel.

Reyna was about to signal to stay put and wait for action, when suddenly, a large brown hound leaped out from the side of the cliffs. It bounded into the shallows, climbing over the tide pools, and leaping from rock to rock. It looked no bigger than a Great Dane - much bigger than a normal hound dog, but compared to Lycaon, and all the other monsters they'd encountered, this creature was nothing in comparison.

It saw them, locking two black eyes on the half-bloods and Satyr, and let out a monstrous bark. It leaped off the cliffs, and bounded over to them, Nico letting out a cry of alarm. The dog didn't attack though, but circled them curiously, butting their hips, sniffing and licking their shoes and nuzzling Hedge's horns. On all fours, the dog was as tall as Nico's shoulder. It was a massive hound dog had it been the normal pet of a mortal.

But Hedge had already warned the dog was not mortal. Nor was its owner.

As if on cue, the man appeared from behind the cliffs. He held a walking stick, with three hunting rifles, and two bow and arrow sets strapped to his shoulders. He also carried a massive backpack, a belt that looked similar to Leo's tool belt, with all sorts of different gadgets and equipment strapped to his sides. He wore a 'bloke cap' (British term), large round glasses, and his almond mustache and hair turned red in the setting sunlight.

He shouted to the dog, "Oi LAELAPS! Heel girl!"

The dog turned and sprinted back to her master, running around his ankles and bounding over to the rocks on the beach. The man shouted to it again, and the hound ran back to him once more, trotting at his side as the pair made their way over to them.