The Truths Spoken In The Sea Of Lies

Life is a game where checkmate may not be the end

Rhea's gaze descends,

Chess pieces poised, life's grand game,

Fate's course altered now.

***

The camp was empty.

Most half-bloods only trained during the summer. Just the year-rounders would be here—the ones who didn't have homes to go to or would get attacked by monsters too much if they left.

But there didn't even seem to be many of them, either.

Charles Beckendorf from the Hephaestus cabin stoking the forge outside the camp armoury.

The Stoll brothers, Travis, and Connor, from the Hermes cabin, were picking the lock on the camp store.

A few kids from the Ares cabin were having a snowball fight with the wood nymphs at the edge of the forest.

The Big House was decorated with strings of red and yellow fireballs that warmed the porch but didn't seem to catch anything on fire. Inside, flames crackled in the hearth. The air smelled like hot chocolate. Mr. D, the camp director, and Chiron were playing a quiet game of cards in the parlour.

Chiron's brown beard was shaggier for the winter. His curly hair had grown a little longer. He wasn't posing as a teacher this year. He wore a fuzzy sweater with a hoofprint design on it, and he had a blanket on his lap that almost hid his wheelchair completely.

He smiled when he saw us. "Rhea! Thalia! Ah, and this must be—"

"Nico di Angelo," Rhea said. "He and his sister are half-bloods."

Chiron breathed a sigh of relief. "You succeeded, then."

Thalia looked awkward. "Well..."

His smile melted. "What's wrong? And where is Annabeth?"

"Oh, dear," Mr. D said in a bored voice, "Not another one lost."

Mr. D, but he was wearing a neon orange leopard-skin warm-up suit and his purple running shoes. (Like Mr. D had ever run a day in his immortal life.) A golden laurel wreath was tilted sideways on his curly black hair, which must've meant he'd won the last hand of cards.

"What do you mean?" Thalia asked. "Who else is lost?"

Just then, Grover trotted into the room, grinning like crazy. He had a black eye and red lines on his face that looked like a slap mark. "The Hunters are all moved in!"

"What did he do." Aidoneus raised an eyebrow.

"Eh, being a stalker with hooves." Rhea said.

Chiron frowned. "The Hunters, eh? I see we have much to talk about." He glanced at Nico. "Grover, perhaps you should take our young friend to the den and show him our orientation film."

"But... Oh, right. Yes, sir."

"Orientation film?" Nico asked. "Is it G or PG? 'cause Bianca is kinda strict—"

"It's PG-13," Grover said.

"Cool!" Nico happily followed him out of the room.

"The orientation film is bullshit with how bad it's done." Rhea mumbled in a very quiet voice she was surprised when even Chiron didn't hear her.