The Beast of the Sea~Chapter 9

I was frozen in place as I saw the watery figure lunge at me, but I was pushed out of the way just before I was all washed up. Joe on the other hand was washed up in a huge wave that pushed him back several yards. It was then that the watery figure turned back toward me to most likely drown me or something like that. I raised my sword in defense, but I was still very tired from fighting Thresh and now Joe was couching up water. His body seemed to be sparking with electricity, but he looked more like my table fan did after I spilled some water on the motor, that is to say he was shorted out.

“How are you feeling?” I called to him as he seemed to get the last of the water out of his mouth.

“Despite the salty taste in my mouth, I’ll live,” he called back and tried to get to his feet, but he seemed exhausted as well. Most likely from the fight with the two Poseidon campers. He started to move toward the watery lady, but her arm extended into a kind of whip which hit his midsection and he was sent flying backward into the grass. He didn’t look injured, but at the same time he wasn’t moving very much and I was worried about him.

“My time grows short Earth wielder,” the water figure said and her other arm also extended to a whip like object that matched the first one. Both arms shot past me, which knocked me off guard. They then proceeded to circle around me and wrapped me up like a pair of snakes getting ready for their meal. “Now you will listen!”

“Hey guys, I got the flag,” someone said from behind me and I turned my head just enough to see Shizune running toward the creek line with a few of the Hephaestus campers dropping smoke bombs and the other Athena campers fighting off a few defenders. It didn’t take Shizune long however to see what was going on by the creek. “What the heck is going on here?!”

This outburst seemed to distract the watery woman currently squeezing the air out of me and I felt the water loosen. All at once the watery figure began to scream in pain as it looked like her body was being pulled from several directions.

“Release me!” she yelled, but I couldn’t tell what was pulling at her, as nothing seemed to be touching her. Regardless, the large water whips let me go and I fell to the ground, watching as the figure began to thrash around.

“Not until you’re gone,” said an older woman. She held a spear in her hand and seemed to be concentrating as she held her other hand toward the water being. She then closed her open palm into a fist and pulled it back, as if she was pulling at a rope or something. However, it worked as one of the arm like whips detached from the water being and splashed harmlessly on the ground. She then pointed the spear directly at the beings chest and it looked like it was starting to freeze. As the ice began to encase her entire body, she struggled to face me.

“I’ll be waiting in the Sea of Monster,” she said before the ice completely covered her head. The woman with the spear then flung it forward into the ice sculpture and it shattered into a million pieces. There was a dead silence for a long while until Shizune ran over to me and placed the flag on the ground.

“Ash, you ok?” Shizune asked as she looked me over for any kind of injuries. A minute later, one of the kids from the Apollo cabin was looking me over and told me I’d be fine after a good night’s sleep. I looked over and another healer was currently singing a hymn to Joseph while getting him into a sitting position. He got to his feet a few seconds later, even if he was a bit shaky at first. I got to my feet too and Shizune kept asking if I was fine, most likely because she would feel bad if one of her teammates got hurt on her watch.

“I’ll be fine,” I told her and I looked at the older woman that had saved me. “She did all the hard work. Who is that anyway?”

“Good to see you again El,” Joseph said as he walked over to her, putting his weapon away. “It has been a long time.”

“Ya it has been awhile. Have you gotten shorter by any chance?” she asked him, and while he was obviously annoyed, she was trying to hold in her laughter.

“You know full well what happened!” Joseph half shouted at her, but this only served to humor her more.

“I know, I read the report when you got back. But you left as soon as you got back so I didn’t have a chance to see you,” she said, finally calming down. “I don’t think I’ve had this much fun since that time at the castle and all those bombs.”

“Don’t remind me,” he joked back. Even if they two looked almost thirty years apart, they way they joked around made me realize they were really close.

“Um…” I interrupted as I walked up to the person that Joseph called El. They both turned around and looked at me. “Thanks for the save.”

“Hey no problem,” she smiled and placed her hand on Joseph’s head. “Back when I was on missions and quests all the time, I’d be saving this guy over here all the time.”

“I seem to remember it differently,” Joseph said as he brushed her hand away from his head, but he seemed to at least be smiling. Just then Chiron ran out to the middle of the field by the creek and took note of the growing number of demigods. He examined the scene and took in a breath.

“Yes, well it seems that the Athena cabin has won the flag this week. However, due to certain circumstances, I’m calling a meeting of the Camp Councilors. Please meet me in the Rec Room in exactly one hour,” Chiron said, but didn’t wait for any kind of response as he instantly rode off back toward the Big House.

“Come on Joe,” El said as she wrapped an arm around his shoulder. “This could be fun.”

Fun wasn’t the word I would have used, but I placed my sword back into my pocket and started heading for my cabin to drop off my armor and head for the Rec Room. Things were once again starting to get interesting.