Ergo, the Ogre

Levi was more freaked-out than he was hurt.

Chimeras* were outfitted with thick, tough hides that were difficult to penetrate. Those four arrows probably felt like a scratch to him. Levi’s issue was an aversion to the sight of blood — especially his own.

What happened was this: One of the kids on Mount Olympus, Reginald, was taking an archery class. This kid’s aim was beyond remarkable, but unfortunately, he didn’t hear very well. So, when Apollo asked him to ‘try to hit the bullseye’, Reginald thought he had said ‘try to hit Levi.’ Before Apollo could stop him, he’d shot four arrows into Levi. He was about to shoot a fifth when Apollo throttled him. As an aside, this incident ended Apollo’s time as an archery instructor. Zeus immediately put him on hiatus and replaced him with Artemis, Apollo’s twin sister, who was more patient and not quite as violent. As for Reginald, he was quickly fitted for hearing aids.

For the first time in his life, Levi was thrilled to have a snake for a tail. He used to hate it because interfered with his being a chick magnet. As if having a lion’s head and a goat’s body, isn’t challenging enough; who wants to date someone with a snake attached to his ass‽

To Levi’s delight it, his tail was already yanking out the arrows. Afterward, Levi went for a swim to freshen up and wash away the blood. As he relaxed in the water, he went over the day’s events in his mind.

Levi realized how fortunate he was to be blessed with a tail that had his back.

* Chimera [kahy-meer–uh] A unique being commonly represented with a lion’s head, a goat’s body, and a serpent’s tail or anything created by taking parts or aspects of different kinds of things and combining them.