44 In Our Favorite Pirate Ship (2/2)

//Probably the shortest chapter I've ever written. 3 more today. Also, the next 5 or so chapters will be without Chion present. It's by design.

Also, I need some money. The more I make, the more I can spam chapters freely. If you can give me your spare change, even a dollar, I can rapid fire these chapters, even up to 4 a day. So Here's some other links.

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$Sh4dowDrev

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@CarloWatlee

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Patre0n.com/ShadowDrev

Goal: $0/$420

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BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The thundering sounds of tentacles slapping bare marble filled the area, the whole island shaking in response to the Krakens repeated lashes. The beasts cries were becoming more and more prevalent as the seconds past, basically giving the trio a countdown until the otherworldly creature fully breached the surface. If Annabeth and the rest failed to get off the island before the Kraken spotted them, then they wouldn't be going anywhere anytime soon. Even if it was solely focused on Chion, they were still demigods at the end of the day and were therefore susceptible to its attention. It would only take a well placed swipe of its appendage to have then sleeping with the fishes.

Clak! Clak! Clak!

The three of them ran over the wooden docks, heading for the pirate ship they had seen on the way in.

"Let's go!! Autumn. You know how the vessel works, right? Can you get us moving?" Annabeth flicked open the compass and gave it a once over. For some reason, though, the compass didn't seem to point in any particular direction, merely spinning around in circles. "We need to get as far away from here as possible!! Any direction works."

"We need to raise the anchor first," the black-haired girl replied, rushing onto the deck. "I'll need your help to do that. I can't do it by myself. Gather around the capstan."

"The heck is a capstan??" Luke questioned as he clambered onto the ship. "I just untied us from the port."

Without giving an answer, Autumn hurried to one of the masts near the front of the ship. Situated near it was an oddly shaped barrel-like contraption with holes located near the top of it. Resting on the floor next to it were five thick wooden poles. Quickly, Autumn picked up the poles and began wedging them into the slots one by one, assuring they were each snug before moving onto the next one. Though Annabeth was confused at first, she quickly caught on to what the new demigod was doing and rushed over after shoving the Compass into her pocket. Even if she wasn't accustomed to pirate vessels, she could at least understand that it was a turning mechanism for the anchor.

"Luke, over here." Annabeth glanced back as she took a spot on one of the poles. "You're probably going to be doing most of the work here."

"Right." The blonde immediately hurried over and took his own spot. "Ready whenever you are."

For the next minute or so, the three individuals gave it their all in turning the mechanism, pulling the anchor up little by little with extreme efforts. Annabeth could feel her muscles straining to keep up with the other two, even with the adrenaline coursing through her body, but she didn't let up. It was already a miracle that the three of them were able to move it at all, let alone actually hoisting it up from the ocean. She only had to hold out until they finished the job.

"Okay, that.....should be.....enough," Autumn said, her voice coming out in strained breaths. "I'm gonna lock it in place. You two hold it for a second."

Clink!

For the briefest of moments, the wheel became far heavier than before. Then it went slack.

"Difficult part isn't done yet," Autumn said. "We have a few more things to do. "Let's keep it moving. This ship hasn't seen action in centuries so we have to work harder to get it moving."

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

Annabeth briefly glanced back towards where they had just come from. Even despite the trees and everything covering the island, the young girl could just make out the sliver of something rising above the treeline and was slowly growing bigger little by little. Their time was running out. Autumn quickly fed them each direction and pointed to where she needed them. Readjusting the sails, checking the ropes, securing the deck, and a slew of other tasks that would've been much quicker if they had a few more people aboard. Pirate ships were definitely made to be guided by more than three people, but even so, they had to make do with what was available to them. After about ten minutes, they were ready to fully set sail.

"Are we gonna wait for Chion?" Luke asked.

"We don't have the time." Annabeth grit her teeth. "We're moving out."

"Aye, Captain," Autumn said, taking root at the ships steering wheel. The ship was already leaving the harbor. "Let's put some distance from this hellhole."

"What about the Fleece?"

"What about the Fleece?" Autumn asked, speaking over the slowly fading sounds of the Krakens temper tantrum. "You mean the Golden Fleece? Like the one from Jason and the Argonauts?"

"You know of it?"

"Isn't it lost?"

Annabeth frowned immediately. That was all it took for her to know that the item they had been seeking hadn't been there since the very start. They had unknowingly been wasting their time from the jump. It was frustrating, but, as Chion would say, they had to keep moving forward.

"It's lost, but we figured it was on your island." Annabeth once again whipped out the compass from her pocket, as if looking at it again would somehow fix it. "Our friend led us to your island with this compass. I'm certain that we can locate it if we use the compass again."

"Why didn't you just use it while you were on the island?" Autumn questioned.

"Only Chion can answer that one," Luke said, tightening one of the ropes to the sails. "He had the compass with him the entire time, even gave it a name. Sparrows Compass, named after the worst pirate I've ever heard of."

"Nows not the time for references," Annabeth snapped as she gazed at the Compass.

"Says the one who didn't even attend movie night," Luke said with a shake of his head. "After all the trouble we went through to get the approval from Mr D and Chiron. Such a pity."

"I'd hate to ruin your siblings' dispute, but you guys are gonna have to fill me on what in the name of Hecate THAT is."

Both Luke and Annabeth halted their brief back and forth and glanced towards Autumn, of whom was pointing in the direction of the island.

The temperature had dropped rapidly, something the daughter of Athena hadn't noticed until that exact moment, causing a shiver to run down her spine and goosebumps to crawl across her skin. She could even see her warm breath in the afternoon air. But even so, such a change was trivial in comparison to what lay before her.

The island, C.C's Spa and Resort had transformed into an all-out blizzard, complete with blistering winds and swirling snow. The Kraken had fully emerged from the watery depths, a huge entity that seemed akin to a skyscraper despite the distance they had put between them. Frozen fluff whipped around, obscuring everything on the island, drowning everything in a winter wonderland, keeping Annabeth and company from looking through it.

(("Is he....giving us cover?")) Annabeth gaped slightly as she walked to the back end of the ship. (("He's blocking us from the Krakens view."))

Without a word aloud, the girl slammed a fist onto the ships railing, tears of anger and frustration welling up in her eyes. The thoughts and emotions she had tried so hard to stifle roaring to the surface.

(("DAMN IT!!! DAMN IT!! DAMN IT!")) Annabeth struck the railing over and over again. (("You USELESS piece of garbage!! You're supposed to be the leader!! The strategist!! All you could do was turn tail and run??!! Some friend you are!!"))

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"You CAN and you WILL leave me. It's only a matter of time until it shows its actual body. If you wait, it'll be too late!! It's after me, so just GO!!"

It's your quest, Owl Head. Make everyone proud."

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"How am I supposed to make everyone proud if you aren't here," Annabeth muttered, wiping the tears. "Damn Brain Freeze."

"That's pretty simple." Luke put a hand on her shoulder as he walked unto the back deck. "It means he believes you have what it takes to MAKE everyone proud. It also means that he doesn't plan on dying to a mere Kraken."

"But-"

"Do you really think Chion sent us off without his own plans?" Luke pulled Annabeth into a hug. "That motherfucker is probably the smartest and most powerful demigod I've ever met. Just take a look at Circe's island. If anything, you should be more worried about the Kraken. That bastard will make that overgrown squid into frozen sashimi or an overgrown popsicle. We have nothing to worry about. We even left the SS Overland to him. There's nothing to fret over. Doubt Typhoon could kill that bastard."

Annabeth leaned into Luke's embrace. "Sashimi doesn't have squid in it."

"Au contraire, my friend." Luke grinned. "Squid sashimi is a thing. I've had it before."

"What the heck is sashimi?" Autumn asked, glancing back from her spot at the helm. "Some kind of pasta of something?"

(("I guess Japanese cuisine wasnt a part of her curriculum,")) Annabeth thought to herself as she gathered herself, eventually pulling away from her blonde friend. (("Come to think of it, we rushed out so quickly, we don't even know who we brought along with us."))

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