Leonidas drew his sword immediately, aiming the point of the blade at the cyclops who towered over us. The cave barely fit around him, his shoulders confined by stone walls that fit him perfectly. My hand instinctively reached for my revolver as Andromeda raised her hands up, they still shook as she held them out infront of her. Polyphemus held a club, dirty with a grey sludgy substance that stained the floor beneath him.
"My men! How did you get past them brute!" Leonidas shouted, stepping forward.
"I didn't have too, mortals are beneath me!" Polyphemus shouted back, mimicking Leonidas' voice perfectly.
"The Many-Voiced one, Polyphemus. No longer the child Odysseus ran into, but a full grown murderer," Andromeda responded, hate lining her voice.
"It was not murder! They broke into my home!" Polyphemus roared.
"They sought sanctuary! They sought sanctuary and were slaughtered! You denied them Xenia under their protecter Zeus Xenios! Pater would be ashamed of you, Polyphemus!" I shouted, stepping forward holding my palm flat at my side.
"What do you know of MY Pater's will! Tell me what you know of The Earth Shaker, tell me about The God of The Oceans, tell me what you know of Poseidon's will!" Polyphemus roared, stepping forward.
"I know that if he had truly seen what you had done to Odysseus and his crew he would've killed you, I know he is ashamed of his actions that he has done to the mortals on your behalf, and I know this because I am his daughter. I am Sara Pearl, Daughter of Poseidon, and I AM our Pater's will," I replied, lifting my wrist up and splashing the offering of wine into Polyphemus' eye.
He roared and swung wildly hitting the wall, almost hitting my head off like a golf ball on a tee. I ran forward, sliding under him and bolting out of the cave.
"Sara! Sara has blinded me!" Polyphemus held his eye, turning to the sound of my footsteps.
"And I'm over here!" I drew the pistol from my hip and fired once in air. "I'm the one who follows The Path of Outis, and by the time the night is over you will fear the divine retribution you should have received all those years ago!"
I ran down the marching trail we followed to get to the cave, hearing the heavy thud of footsteps behind me. I turned around and saw Polyphemus running towards me, club dragging at his side. Great, I thought to myself, I'm chasing a giant back to camp with no plan. I looked around for anything to grab and make sharp turns, but before I could a flare fired from the caves direction. The bright red illuminated the forest around me in a bright, taillight red, color that was almost blinding. Then came the whistles, followed by loud explosions that almost shook me off my feet. That crazy bastard Leonidas called a mortar strike, I looked around as bright fires sprouted around me like paint on a tree canvas.
The whistles continued as I got the camp in sight, the trenches covered in a thick veil of smoke as mortars continued firing. I kept running as a loud explosion rang through my ear, throwing me to the side like a baseball. My body ached all over, pain pulsing through my veins.
"Atticus! Atticus!" I heard someone shout.
"Coming Isokrates!" I shouted back, getting back on my feet. My pistol still in my hand miraculously, as I felt warm liquid run down my face.
Polyphemus stood in front of me, his eye red but still functional "Ah, I understand now. You're cursed, I knew I smelt the mark of the dead god."
"Shut. Up." I said through gritted teeth.
"Why, Atticus! I can see through your lives girl. Sara Pearl, Daughter of Poseidon, you will live one more," Polyphemus raised his club.
"Leave her alone, bastard!" Leonidas shouted.
Polyphemus's head shifted towards Leonidas voice as a spear slammed into his eye and flew from the back of his skull. The big brute fell on his knee, dropping his club. I could feel the vibrations of the cyclops falling dead in the ground like a mini earthquake, I stared at him as he fell dead on his side.
"Outis sends his regards, Polyphemus," Andromeda said, walking over. "You know it takes awhile for you to gather your courage, but you get there."
"It's my first real adventure," Leonidas muttered. "Sara, are you okay?"
I nodded slowly and fell back against the tree as my legs gave out, my hair heavy with blood. I holstered my revolver and looked up, I was losing my senses and my mind. I blinked and my surroundings turned into the battlefield of Athens, my best friend was holding his hand out to me.
"Atticus! We need to move! We're overrun, we need to go back and get your brother! We need to get Zeno!" Isokrates shouted at me, moving his hand closer to me.
"You're right Isokrates, Athens stands another day but so de we," I said, grabbing Isokrates' hand.
I came back to in the shelled forest, Leonidas holding me close as my body pressed against his. My head hurt, my body hurt, and I wanted to go home. I wanted my pater, I wanted to see my sharks and meditate in my aquarium. I knew I couldn't though, The Senators who put their entire career on the line to send me out here would kill me.
"Sara? Are you ok?" Leonidas asked, picking me up gently.
"Yes….I just need some rest…." I said, my eyes threatening to close already.
"Well stay awake for a little longer, let's get you looked at," Andromeda came into my line of sight. "You took quite a hit from that Mortar, and an even harder hit from the tree."
"Ok….ok…" I smiled as much as I could, drifting off into unconsciousness.
The darkness overtook my vision as I was suddenly shook awake, I woke up on a small bed with Leonidas sitting on a chair next to me in the medic tent. We weren't sure we would need it, but demigods have been proven wrong before. My mouth was desert dry, and my body felt horrid. I slowly sat up, looking at Leonidas.
"Hey…..what happened?" I asked, holding me head and feeling damp bandages.
Leonidas shot up and immediately came to my side, "You um…..you were hit by a mortar, and the shrapnel sliced you up pretty good. Then you received a concussion from the tree you got thrown into, as well as a massive head injury." Leonidas gripped the side of the bed, "I thought…..We thought you weren't going to make it, even with the ambrosia."
"That explains quite a bit actually," I sighed, gently laying my hand on top of Leonidas'. "Don't worry, it'll take a lot more than that to kill me. I'm The Daughter of Poseidon, now can you go grab Andromeda for me? I need to talk to her about something."
"Right," Leonidas smiled, and walked towards the exit of the medical tent. "And Sara? Who's Isokrates? You called his name when I picked you up."
"He's no one Leonidas, just someone I ran across in my travel," I said, unsure of how good I was lying.
Leonidas nodded and walked out, his posture stiff. I laid back down and took a deep breath, my hands at my sides and my head still hurting like hell. I thought long and hard about the visions I started to see, the vision in Athens getting helped up by Isokrates and even hearing his voice. Was I going insane?
I heard the tent flap open as I closed my eyes, "Atticus, we must depart for Athens now."