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The rush of adrenaline going through him, the power of Nike, his mother. That was the only reason Martyn was still standing. The manticore had appeared out of nowhere, deep inside the forest and had begun running towards the training grounds. It was the first week of summer so Camp was full of inexperienced children, so Martyn had stepped up to the fight on his own, at least until he could get back up. They had traded blows like a dance, the son of Nike working hard to keep the monster’s attention on him instead of the screaming kids behind him, feeling the need to prevail pulsing through his veins, keeping him standing even after the manticore’s claws slashed through his cheek and blood started pouring copiously. He had kept fighting and now he stood over a pile of golden monster dust, staring at the ground turning red under his feet, barely aware of the shouting behind him.
“Martyn!“
It was Scott’s voice, the head of the Aphrodite cabin, Martyn tried to turn around, to tell him he was alright but his legs gave out just in time for Scott to catch him and help him to the ground without smashing his knees.
“Gods! Martyn! Are you- Shit! Help!“
Martyn’s eyes unfocused, the adrenaline crash leaving him weak and trembling. Finally he became aware of the pain in his face as terror settled over him. Still the grim satisfaction of victory flowed through him, maybe the only reason he hadn’t passed out yet. He tried to look into Scott’s eyes, right in front of him, where he was sitting holding his shoulders and ready to catch him if he lost consciousness. They looked afraid. Martyn had always thought they looked pretty, always shining different colours depending on the lighting or his mood. Now they looked almost grey, cloudy and worried.
“Your eyes… Are angry…“
“What? Martyn- What’s going on, can you see me right?“
Scott brought his hand up to hold his face, partially to get a better look into his eyes to see if they had been hit, partially to try to contain the blood that was still gushing from the cuts that had been ripped by the manticore’s claws.
“Your eyes- they are prettier when they aren’t angry.“
“I- Martyn I’m not angry… What are you on about?”
“I- Shit.“
It was then Martyn collapsed fully, into Scott’s arms, who did his best to hold him without making his injuries worse. Fear and worry swirling in his mind and occupying it so that he wouldn't be able to think about Martyn’s words until much later that night. Behind him he could hear the voices of Chiron and the Apollo kids, so for now he just focused on helping how he could. Martyn was okay and they would figure out what he meant when he healed up.