Golden Green

Ch. 3

Percy Jackson and the Olympians belong to Rick Riordan. All credit to him.

Running across Ohio, Pennsylvania, and the top of New Jersey slaying monsters in back allies and forests without help from Fidi was like a massive training session, working me back into my combat days. It helped me practice using my shield as a decapitating device for Lastrigonians when thrown. The shield made me feel invincible sometimes when I understood how to use it to its best abilities and got comfortable with it.

I didn't use my spear against many monsters in fear of it being damaged when I used it to block if my shield arm was busy. When I did use it the weight of it as a giant tree behind every hit dusted monsters immediately if the three bronze blades didn't poof them before.

I used my sword the most and could only polish up and refresh my memory of my sword lessons with the troops which still felt like only a few days ago. After falling back into my sword play habits fighting monsters became the easiest it ever was when I got my footing and could fight defensively.

Fidi and I were air drying ourselves on the docks in between shiny white boats after an illegal late night swim across the upper bay. Policemen were yelling at us when we leapt from the railings in New Jersey.

"Let's not stick around for them to get their water police friends to detain us," I said to Fidi, wrapping my wet flannel shirt around my head to dry. "Are you rested enough to run us up the rest of the way north?" Fidi rolled his long head on his shoulders and took a glance around for any witnesses so he could grow into a massive bus-long snake.

I hopped on and secured myself on Fidi's back, tapping on his neck to tell him I was as ready as I could be for the wild ride. The whistle of a police officer was like the starting que in a race for Fidi when he took off slithering in hard zig zagging motion through the deck, up the wooden steps, and into a back alley in the darkness of the dead of night and out of view of the open walkways.

Even before the sun peaked, the rough ride carried us to the beginning of the street named Farm Road that would connect us to our destination. When we reached the street, Fidi didn't dip into the thick of the trees like when we did before on any road but instead kept slithering full speed right down the road, not concerned about any mortals possibly appearing.

Two red lights were shining in front of us and Fidi was going so fast that we would have passed the lights, until a furious hurricane kicked up out of the blue and a blinding bolt of lightning stuck down the car. The bolt sent the automobile spiraling on the road.

"Stop, Fidi, let's help them," I said, leaping off the serpent. Covering my eyes from the whipping winds, I dropped the duffle bag. I turned back to Fidi with his head pointed upward and flicking his forked tongue in and out of his mouth tasting the air. Fidi's eyes narrowed into slits and locked eyes with me, danger and worry heavy in his eyes. Fidi shot to my side and bit the flipped vehicle.

"No, don't attack it! There are people in there!" I yelled, trying to pry off the snake until I realized it was tearing off a door for the people to crawl out. Fidi threw the door across the street and turned his back to us, on guard like he always was when a monster was lurking nearby.

"Hurry out of your car quickly, please!" I said, almost yelling for the people so they could get away from the scene and I could fight any monsters that appeared without having to explain what they saw in the mist. "Watch out you two, there is a lot of glass," said a small hairy boy slinking out of the car to other people, but when he got his waist out I recognized what he was from his even hairier goat legs.

"You are a satyr," I said, pleased to see another nature spirit even in our dangerous situation. "What are you doing here?" I asked, grabbing a smaller hand of a boy and helping him out of the damaged car. The boy looked near my age with pitch black hair and stunning sea green eyes even in the dim light of the dying stormy night.