The Demigod Grand Prix: Chapter 9



Ramona Waverly

Accidental Karaoke

IX

"Ooooh, I'm so tired of this."

That was the best possible way Ramona could word her anger. After being counted out at the beginning of the race, swearing not to use any of her advanced powers to be fair, and then sitting back and watching as everyone passed by-

Enough was enough.

The top of the car was retracted - it hadn't rained since perky-and-quirky Victoria Millers started yelling at He Who Is Big And Powerful - and after a few hours cruouched onto the hard earthen seats she was done playing nice. After some gently placed speed bumps, the other cars were in view. It was a matter of speed.

"Y-You guys should.....uh," Ramona tried, one hand resting shakily on the wheel, the other gripping the windshield tightly. "M....move out of my way! Wouldn't want to hurt any of you."

Surprisingly, the Hermes driver was dead ahead, pulling second to last. She turned and cocked her head, arms easily resting on the wheel.

"Try me." The amount of confidence in her voice was....enthralling. There'd been a few demigods in the race that Ramona would kill to know, and Emily was one of them. She sucked in a deep breath and nodded.

"F....fine. See if I care." And slammed the brake.

Emily was surprised, but continued ahead, pushing out and passing the driver in front of her - Aphrodite, maybe? Gods, who could tell from back there.

And with a burst of pride, Ramona slammed the gas and stood upright as best she could, locking the steering wheel. This was dangerously fast, if the lowly daughter of She-Who-Harvests-And-Nags couldn't pull this stunt off, she'd be out of the race.

....And maybe out of this life.

But she was in it for Demeter. No matter how naggy she was.

As soon as the taillights of a car came into view, she made a grabbing motion with her right hand and raised it quickly, smiling as the earth just ahead rose and crackled into some sort of ramp.

And as she hit the incline, she looked to the sky and hoped her mother would see. Or at least protect her from shattering her bones on impact.

Cars passed underway. A red motorcycle, a silver ferrari, a sweet limo. Fantastic.

And there was Emily again, looking up, smiling.

Her hand moved about in the car, Ramona noticed through her window. What was she planning?

Ramona's pleasant sky high was crushed as something shout out of the fancy Hermes car - no, two somethings - shaped like snakes. They obviously sensed the enchanted vinework and decided for a more primal approach, they knocked her right out of the sky.

The force of having two god snakes upon her head wasn't too bad, more like a small headache than anything, but the crack of Ramona's jaw as she slammed down onto the car under was nearly deafening. Her tongue was bitten and bleeding, dribbling down her mouth in plump bursts of scarlet. Disgusting.

At the same time, the driver underneath her squealed with delight, followed by....One Direction. Ramona smiled despite her small injury and was temporarily pulled away from the race.

She created a small bump in the track and felt the car underneath her jump slightly, all the while slamming against the opposite door of the car in order to dismount.

"Hey," she shouted up at the singing driver. "Is that One Direction?"

"Yup!" The driver responded cheerfully. The chorus repeated, and Ramona found herself accidentally joining in.

"AND WE DANCED ALL NIGHT TO THE BEST SONG EVER!" The other driver laughed while she sang, loudly and even slightly off key. Ramona was no better.

"WE KNEW EVERY LINE NOW I CAN'T REMEMBER!" In an embarrassingly harmonized duet of stupid pop boybands and their stupid songs.

When the chorus reached its end only the other driver was singing. Ramona was formulating another plan to get ahead even if this karaoke was fun - maybe after the race, she and this girl could try out for 'American Idol' or something. Could be fun.

"I think it went oh, oh, oh...."

They turned a corner, still in a dead tie.

"I think it went yeah, yeah, yeah...."

Ramona took a deep and gingerly raised her hand in front of the van.

"I think it goes-" The girl's singing was interrupted as a small stone bank erupted out of the track, stopping its tires. The driver slammed forward, bumping her head on the wheel, but quickly looked up and began to laugh.

"I'm gonna get you!!" She screamed delightedly, honking her horn

The last time Ramona looked back, a huge chunk of cow poop slammed straight into the vines - which was actually good, because cow poop was in fact an excellent fertilizer. Bio-cars had their use after all.