I jumped into the lake, splashing Marine. She scowls as I swam closer to Payton.

"Ari!" Payton beamed. "Glad to see you're taking it easy."

"Yeah." Marine agreed with gritted teeth.

"The lake is awesome!" He said. He grabbed a red, plump, strawberry from a wooden bowl. "Want some?"

I grabbed a handful and wolfed it down. Marine glared at me, as if enjoying fruit was a crime.

"So, Payton," Marine chirped, "How is it on Mount Olympus? It must be ever so amazing to be a hero."

Payton nodded. "Yup. One time, when I was seven, I was cornered by a Hydra and-"

"Um, Payton?" I interrupted. "Don't you think that we better map out where to go after we-"

"Oops." Marine dropped her hair clip into the lake.

"Can you get it for me, Ari?" She said cheerfully.

I dove into the water and sat at the bottom of the lake. I plucked the hair clip from the sandy floor and looked up. A flurry of scaly legs blocked my way out.

And one was oddly neon yellow.

         Marine stared down at me from above the water with a devilish grin. I stuck my hand in the tornado under the lake and it stung. I recoiled my hand and found a long, bloody cut on my arm. Their scales, I realized. They're as sharp as swords. I was completely trapped. If I swam up, I'd by cut up into a million pieces by Marine and her sisters. My lungs felt like they were being pressed on by a centaur. I was losing oxygen. I was running out of time before I became suffocated. My mom's voice rang in my head: Always look at the problem first then solve it.

        I stared at the violent twist of scales and legs. They kinda looked like gears. How one part of it was Marine, the other part was one of her sisters, and so on. I needed something to stop the gears from shifting, though. I looked around the sandy floor as my breath tightened. I was losing options. I grabbed my hair clip and clicked open my sword. Just like a spear, I thought to myself. Throw it just like a spear.

      With all of my remaining strength, I wedged the butt of my sword between the scales. They slowed down.......... And, eventually, stopped. I pushed my way through their legs and swam to the surface of the lake.

I gasped as I breathed in the fresh air.

"Well?" Marine said impatiently, "Did you get my hair clip?"

I glared at her.

"Take it easy, Marine. I felt something wrong in the water while she was down there. Something stirring..........." Payton started.

Marine gulped. "That hair clip was my grandmother's."

She stormed out of the lake with her sisters as her legs dried up, turning back into their smooth, tanned self.

"What was that about?" Payton said, plucking a blackberry from the bowl and placing it in his mouth.

I shook my head. "No idea." I lied.