Saving Jason Grace

Hero

"Ow. Ow, ow, ow!" Jason hissed as Melody applied the salve to his forearm.

Melody rolled her eyes and began wrapping the gauze around his forearm, covering the salve-covered wound.

"Oh, suck it up. It doesn't hurt that bad. It just stings."

"What's in that salve, anyway?" Jason asked, flexing his arm gingerly and inspecting the wound.

"A hint of liquid painkiller that absorbs through the skin, a numbing cream, crushed moonlace petals, pinch of gorgons blood from the right side, and a little bit of healing magic credit to the Hecte kids." Melody said absentmindedly, reciting a recipe all children of Apollo knew by heart. A healing remedy so simple, but effective, that it was almost mediocre.

"Well, it hurts like Hades." Jason muttred.

"It's your own fault. Di Immortales, guys and their heroics." Melody said with a lighthearted laugh.

Melody wasn't quite sure what t o think of Jason anymore.

He wasn't just a suicidal, insane boy. He was a hero, though maybe a shattered one.

They were running at a comfortable pace, trying to reach as close as possible to Camp Half-Blood as possible before stopping at dusk.

They reached a fallen tree, and stopped for breath.

Jason was tired, and he was starting to realize that the arching pain in his ribs and chest weren't just soreness or the odd ache. Jason was dying. Slowly and painfully.

But he tried not to show it.

Melody was about to speak, to ask if he needed more nectar and ambrosia, when they heard a dry, scuttling sound.

Jason froze, then cursed breathlessly.

"Scorpion daimons. Nasty creatures, very nasty. Climb the tree over there and shoot them down. I'll distract them." He demanded, then drew out the short sword that had been sheathed at his waist.

Melody stared at the boy who suddenly went from slightly insane to a Roman commander, who's battle instincts were hard-driven into him. In a split second he was a commander, a battle tactician.

Then she climbed the tree and perched in one of the intermedian branches, bowstring drawn taught and arrow ready to fly.

Three scorpion daemons emerged from the bushes, each as big as a small rhino. They had thick, impenetrable red scales and poisoned stingers. Their claws were serrated, and they spit acid.

Jason had immediately jumped at the lead scorpion, and stabbed its glassy black eyes. The scorpion hissed and flung him off.

Jason rolled and landed on his feet, eyes wild with adrenaline and sword at the ready.

Melody let her first volley of four arrows fly.

The arrows all hit their mark, burying themselves in the largest chink in the scorpions armor at its neck.

The first scorpion dissolved, and Melody notched another volley of arrows.

Jason was on the second scorpions back, and he brought his sword down hard in the chink.

The second scorpion dissolved.

Jason used his leverage in height to leap and grip the scorpions scaly neck. The Imperial gold sword clattered from his hands, but his grip still faltered.

Melody let her arrow fly, but the scorpion jerked and she missed.

The scorpion shook Jason off, and he fell to the ground. Melody was pretty sure he fractured his ankle as he hit the ground awkwardly.

Jason rolled as the scorpion spit acid where his head had been, moments ago. The scorpion hissed and swatted him with its serrated claws, and Jason was flung into the base of the tree Melody was in.

He was unconscious, and the scorpion crept forward for the kill.

Melody dropped down in front of Jason and readied her bow.

The scorpion was a mere feet away, and Melody suddenly dropped her bow and put two fingers to her lips and did her best New York taxi cab whistle.

Exept in super-sonic pitch.

The scorpion gave a hissing noise of pain and scuttled backwards, exposing that furiously small chunk in its scales. Melody snatched her bow and fired.

The scorpion crumbled to dust as Melody began treating a very much unconscious and wounded Jason.

Next, Melody moved on to his ankle. It was indeed fractured, but not broken. She splinted it with two flat pieces of wood and some medical tape. Some force-fed Cambodia and nectar began mending the bone.

Jason smiled faintly.

"I'm no hero."

Melody tightened the medical tape, making him wince.

"You are a hero, whether you like it or not." Melody said.

Jason shook his head.

"If I was a hero, I wouldn't be like I am now." Jason said dejectedly.

Melody finished with the tape and sat beside him. She had managed to coerce a warm fire, and it blazed and crackles. She looked at it she spoke.

"Jason, heroes don't always win. They're only human, or half human, in our case. But they always come back and keep trying. They don't give up. That's what makes a hero, a hero." She said quietly.