The Semideus

Chapter 2

MASTER

He patted my shoulder before running away. Akmang sisigaw na sana ako ng "Wait!" pero sobrang bilis niyang tumakbo. Gideon? Master? Sino naman ang gustong tingnan ako? May nakakakilala ba sa'kin dito?

I heard a hiss of a snake. Napapikit ako nang mariin bago tumingin sa baba. What the Olympus! Ang daming ahas! Just kidding, dalawa lang naman. Tumayo ako sa malaking bato na malapit sa'kin. My peripheral vision caught the color of their eyes. Bloody hell, Red!

Ang alam ko kapag pula ang mata ng ahas, maaari kang maging bato kapag nagtagpo ang tingin niyo. Gosh! Baka nga itong bato na kinatatayuan ko ay dating tao?! Trying to avoid my gaze, I threw the dagger aimlessly at the snakes.

Oh my Gods, sumala pa nga naman.

Dahan-dahan naman akong bumaba sa bato. Bakit ba naman kailangan kong patayin ang mga ahas na 'yon kung puwede naman akong tumakas, hindi ba? So, as fast as I could, I ran. I glanced over my shoulder and... what the Olympus! Sinusundan ako ng mga ahas.

I shrieked when I bumped into something. A hand scooped my waist, and my feet were already up from the ground. Isang tela naman ang tumakip sa'king mga mata. Hindi ko tuloy nakita kung sino ang bumuhat sa'kin. My hands were pressed onto his muscular chest so that I couldn't remove the cloth. Hinawakan din naman ng lalaki ang ulo ko para hindi 'yon makagalaw. He slightly caressed it.

My feet landed to something. I heard a deep voice speak, "Got rid of it, Gid?" Gid? Is he speaking to Gideon? 'Yong nagpakilala sa'kin kanina lang?

The man, Gid, chuckled. "Yes, master! Ano? Bakit ayaw mo ipakita mukha mo sa kaniya? Pa-mysterious type ka?" I calculated kung gaano siya kalayo mula rito, at hindi naman ganoong kalayo. Hindi ko na rin narinig ang mga ahas.

"Shut up, Gideon. If it's done, let's go."

"Sus, duda ako na aalis na tayo." Gideon let out a laugh. "Hug mo muna dali."

I felt the chest of the man holding me rise as he heaved a deep sigh. He was the master that Gideon was pertaining to? Sino naman 'to?

Naramdaman kong lumapit ang bibig niya sa tainga ko. I felt his breath tickle my ears, ghad! "Go back. You won't find Athena here. Or better go back to the mortal world." What? Why should I?

Naramdaman kong unti-unting bumitaw sa'kin ang lalaki. Narinig kong tumakbo palayo si Gideon, at nang tuluyan akong makawala sa hawak n'ong 'Master,' tinanggal ko na ang tela.

My eyebrows made a furrow when I saw no one. Bigla nalang silang nawala sa paningin ko. That fast. Who were they? I looked below and saw that the snakes were burnt... Huh? Paano naman nasunog 'yon? Did that man, Gideon, do it?

I looked around. They saved me, so they were watching me. Luh, stalker! Sino ba 'yon? Though, thankful naman ako na sinagip nila ako, there's just this big question mark on my head.

I jumped from the rock. I looked up the tree when I heard a hoot of an owl. Pinanliitan ko 'yon ng mata. Nakatingin 'yon sakin at bigla niyang tinagilid ang ulo niya na tila kinakausap ako.

"What's up!" I greeted.

He let out a hoot again. Tumingin siya sa likod niya, back to the open field. I tried figuring out what he meant, so I made a guess. "You're telling me to go back there?" I asked the owl. Once more, he let out a hoot. I take that as a 'yes.'

Akmang maglalakad na ako pabalik sa field nang may nagpalipad ng isang arrow sa gilid ko. I gasped as an initial reaction before looking from the arrow's direction just to see the little huntress sitting on a tree. Seryoso ang tingin n'ya sa'kin.

"S'an ka pupunta?" tanong niya.

Uhm, pake mo po? Just kidding! "Back to the field," I said. Tinanguan naman niya ako bilang tugon.

"You look familiar. Are you a demigod?" tanong niya sa'kin. Umiling naman ako.

"Really?" she asked once again. Ay! Ang kulit!

"No," I firmly said.

She shrugged then jumped from the tree. "Gusto mong makapasa?" tanong niya. Luh, syempre! What kind of question is that?

Hindi pa ako nakakasagot ay bigla niya akong sinakal. My back was pressed onto her front body. "Then, try." Sinipa niya naman ngayon ang likod ko. Napaubo ako sa lakas ng sipa niya, at napasubsob pa nga ako sa lupa.

"What the—" hindi ko pa ulit natatapos ang sasabihin ko nang bigla siyang tumakbo palayo. Inuunahan niya ba ako? Oh! First fifty nga lang pala ang makakapasa! Mabilis akong tumayo at sinundan siya.

I tried to run as fast as her, but damn she's fast! Gan'on ba talaga kapag na-train ng Diyosa?

"Aw!" Napadaing ako nang bigla akong matalisod. She stopped running and looked back at me. I thought I saw the worry in her eyes. But then, ngumisi siya at binagalan ang takbo papunta sa field.

I stood up again, though I noticed my bleeding knee. Puminit ako ng tela mula sa damit ko, at mabilis na binenda 'yon sa sugat. Sinubukan kong tumakbo ulit, pero mas maingat na. I gritted my teeth to at least lessen the pain of the wound. Nawala sa paningin ko si little huntress.

Finally, nakalabas ako ng woods. May ilan akong nakitang mga nakahandusay sa open field. Lahat sila'y may mga tama ng arrow kung saan-saang parte. I looked at the little huntress. Nakangisi siya. She's shooting all that comes out from the forest!

Lumingon siya sa'kin. She smiled. What the Olympus? Ang bilis magbago ng mood niya!

"Ang tagal mo. I had to wound these innocent mortals to reserve a place for you," she said. Napaawang ang labi ko, she did what?

I watched her enter a small circular platform. Tinawag niya ako, "Hey! Baka maunahan ka pa ng iba! Lampa ka naman ata."

My eyes shut repeatedly. Is this the same person who kicked my back? Mabagal akong naglakad papunta roon. I saw how the platform glowed with gold color until bigla siyang nawala. Nanlaki ang mata, luh! Nasa'n na s'ya?

Tumingin ako sa platform nang makalapit ako. I saw an engraved letter of A. Then, I suddenly remembered Athena's note. Kinuha ko 'yon mula sa bulsa ko at ipinagkumpara ang dalawa.

Find me. Only the first 50
to find me will pass.
—A.

Parehas sila ng istilo! This must be what Athena meant.

Mabilis akong umapak r'on bago pa ako mapigilan o maunahan ng iba. The gold symbols around the letter glowed. Naramdaman kong humihiwalay na sa'kin ang sarili kong enerhiya— like I'm being transferred or teleported to a new place.

Pinikit ko ang mga mata ko nang maramdamang nilamon na ako ng liwanag.The only thing in my head right now was that I passed once again. I'm close to fulfilling my goal.

The Semideus
by lostmortals
Plagiarism is a crime.

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