Versus Manticore – Part 1
"What's so funny, brat?" Dr. Thorn, headmaster of Westover, asked. He now stood in his true form, none other than a manticore, staring at Clarisse with his heterochromatic eyes.
"That you're about to take a one-way trip to Tartarus… and you don't even realize it," Clarisse said, gripping her spear with both hands despite her injured shoulder, taking a fighting stance.
"Yeah? And you're the one sending me there, trash?" Thorn replied, his voice dripping with mockery and disdain.
"No. But I'll leave you injured enough so that guy doesn't get too arrogant," she answered, meeting his gaze without flinching.
Thorn's expression turned openly contemptuous as a leonine growl escaped his throat, his fury rising at the way she dismissed him.
"Every demigod I've faced in the past was just as arrogant as you… and every single one fell to my claws."
"Are you done talking? Because I don't have all day," Clarisse cut in, her tone bored.
That only made him angrier.
Without another word, Thorn raised his massive scorpion tail from behind the mist, bringing it over his shoulder as a black spike at the tip locked onto Clarisse.
Psss—
It shot forward instantly, moving so fast it was barely visible.
Clarisse ducked without hesitation as the spike skimmed past her head, then sprinted forward, pushing her legs to their limit.
Thorn adjusted his tail to aim again, but before he could fire—
An arrow flew straight toward his face.
He tilted his head aside, dodging it, though the arrow still left a shallow cut across his cheek. His expression darkened as he turned toward Bianca, who was already drawing another arrow.
That moment of distraction was enough.
Clarisse closed the distance instantly and struck, thrusting her spear straight for his neck.
But Thorn reacted just as fast, his lion-like claws snapping up and deflecting the spear. Sparks flew on impact, as if his claws were made of solid metal.
Instead of panicking, Clarisse smirked.
In the next instant, a surge of electricity burst from the tip of her spear.
"Graaah!" Thorn roared as the shock burned through his hands, the smell of scorched fur rising into the air. Still, he managed to shove the spear upward before his massive tail whipped forward, aiming to pierce Clarisse's chest.
But she had already moved, rolling across the ground to evade.
Thorn growled in frustration and stepped forward, ready to strike again—
Only to feel something grab him.
He looked down.
Two skeletal hands, black with a violet aura, had burst from the ground, gripping his legs tightly.
Tss tss tss—
The sharp sound of something cutting through the air reached him, and he saw three arrows flying toward him in perfect alignment.
"Grooowww!" Thorn roared as he ducked under the first arrow, tearing the skeletal hands apart with his claws. Then he leapt aside with surprising agility, avoiding the other two.
Without hesitation, he raised his tail and fired another black spike, this time straight at Bianca.
Bianca wasn't nearly as experienced yet. She had only recently started learning the bow, and most of her practice had been simple aim.
She barely had time to react as the spike rushed straight toward her chest.
But just before it hit—
A black skeletal figure with a violet aura, lacking legs, appeared floating in front of her. It took the hit directly, exploding into dust but blocking the attack completely.
Bianca turned toward her brother.
Nico stood there, holding his book in one hand, while in the other, a faint violet mist swirled open. Another skeleton had appeared behind him, summoned from the same book… a Mistborn.
"Thanks, Nico," Bianca said with a smile.
Nico looked proud for a brief moment.
Meanwhile, Thorn's expression grew darker with every interruption. Seeing Nico's strange magic, he quickly marked him as more dangerous than the others… and far more valuable for the general.
His tail shifted, locking onto Nico.
But before he could fire—
A spear appeared at his side, just inches from piercing his carotid.
"Looks like you're forgetting someone," Clarisse said, lunging in with lethal intent.
Once again, Thorn deflected the strike with his claws. The moment they made contact, sparks of electricity crackled through them, numbing his hands and forcing another irritated roar from his throat.
Clarisse didn't press the attack. She jumped back immediately, creating distance again.
And in the next instant, another arrow shot toward him from Bianca, followed by one of Nico's Mistborn.
"You arrogant brats!" Dr. Thorn roared as he swatted the arrow aside with his hand and shredded the Mistborn with his claws before launching himself straight at Clarisse.
His tail rose behind him, firing spikes at incredible speed, forcing Clarisse to sprint at full force, dodging as they struck the ground just behind her feet. She leapt to the side as a dozen spikes buried themselves where she had been a moment before.
Only for Thorn to be interrupted by another Mistborn that lunged at him, trying to slash him with its bony fingers, sharp as daggers.
Thorn swung his tail and smashed it apart in a single hit, turning it into dust.
Using that same motion, he blocked two arrows aimed at him. They struck his tail with a metallic clang, barely leaving a mark.
The manticore didn't slow down.
He closed the distance to Clarisse in an instant, deflecting her next spear strike, enduring the electricity with one hand before grabbing her by the throat with the other.
Then his tail lifted—
and fired a spike at point-blank range into her stomach.
The pain made her drop her spear instantly.
"Aaagh!" Clarisse screamed, her voice breaking from the shock.
"Oh no!" Bianca shouted as she immediately nocked arrow after arrow, firing them in rapid succession, all aimed directly at Thorn.
He barely turned.
Then, with ease, he lifted Clarisse and used her as a shield.
Three arrows drove into her back.
Bianca froze, her face going pale, her hand trembling on the bow.
"Clarisse!" she cried, realizing her own arrows had struck her friend.
"Ha… ha ha ha…" Thorn laughed, tossing Clarisse aside, her body consumed by pain, before leaping straight toward Bianca, who stood there in shock.
A Mistborn appeared in front of her to protect her—
but to Thorn, it was nothing.
With a simple motion, his claws crushed its skull, while his tail snapped forward at point-blank range, launching another black spike straight into Bianca's stomach.
"Aaah!" Bianca screamed, collapsing from the pain. She had never been injured like that before. The poison took effect almost immediately, even faster on her due to her lower resistance, dropping her to her knees.
"Sister!" Nico shouted, raising his hand again, trying to summon another skeleton. But each summon drained him further, his already pale face growing even more drained.
Another Mistborn appeared behind him—
only to be pierced instantly by a black spike, exploding into dust as the manticore walked toward him, mocking, almost satisfied at the idea of bringing such a specimen back to his general.
"Don't worry, Di Angelo… this won't be painful. For me," Dr. Thorn said, his voice filled with twisted excitement as his tail rose again, another spike forming at the tip.
"Nico…" Bianca whispered weakly, her voice strained with pain, while Clarisse couldn't even speak, overwhelmed by the agony of the spikes and arrows embedded in her body, trying to stand without strength. The poison was spreading through her as well.
Thorn didn't say anything else.
The spike fired.
It cut through the air in a black flash, heading straight for Nico's chest.
Time seemed to slow.
Nico watched it come, unable to summon anything else.
Then—
something yanked him back by the back of his neck.
For a split second, a memory flashed.
Someone had grabbed him like that before… back when he was trapped somewhere he couldn't escape…
before he was saved.
Nico turned instantly, his eyes lighting up—
But it wasn't the same man as before.
This one was younger… and, compared to him, almost looked a little dumb.
Still, his gaze was sharp as it landed on Nico for a brief moment, giving him a faint, reassuring smile—
before casually catching the black spike with his other hand.
As time snapped back to normal, Nico dropped to the ground, staring in shock at the back of the boy who had just saved him.
"Looks like I made it just in time," he said, glancing around briefly. His eyes landed on Clarisse, who had tried to stand to protect the youngest, but the moment she saw him arrive, all the strength left her body, collapsing to the ground, half-covered in blood.
"You're late, Seaweed Brain," Clarisse muttered, though the way her body relaxed made it clear she was relieved.
"Sorry. We ran into some soldiers on the way. I came ahead when I felt someone needed saving," Percy said, a hint of teasing in his tone before his gaze locked onto Thorn. "Let's end this quickly so Grover can patch you up," he added, pulling out a black sword and a bronze one from the bag at his waist.
Meanwhile, Nico remained frozen in place, staring at Percy, his eyes shining as he watched him.