𝐖𝐀𝐑 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐈𝐃𝐄𝐒 | percy jackson

war games

"Listen Blondie, just because I defended you yesterday, does not mean we are friends."

...

Ciarda pulled on her blue armour over the orange shirt she sported. Her helmet caved over her face, hiding most of it apart from the piercing stare which could instil fear into anyone who dared look her in the eye. She'd send them running. 

Sharpening her sword with an axe, metal pinged off as it got hotter from friction. Her Ares leathers bound her knuckles. 

The sword was a gift from her father, forged out of gold by Hephaestus. It was a piece of Achilles' infamous armour, handed to Ciarda by her father as a tell of the battles she had ahead. 

"You are our father's daughter," Edward's steely voice echoed from behind Ciarda. Scared by the sudden voice, a separate dagger buried itself into the ground by his feet. Edward didn't flinch but instead cocked his head. A small smile played on his lips. 

Edward's hair was buzzed and bleached, contrasting his dark skin. Beige beads wrangled his wrists and neck. He lacked the tattoos of his brothers; however, he stood out even more - with ice-blue eyes and bulging muscles.

"What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be helping the children with their armour? Capture the Flag is about to begin, remember? Camp-wide mock warfare?" 

"You know she is sorry," Edward, the most sensible of all the Ares children, told her. Ciarda straightened and sighed- Clarisse had gotten Edward to do her humbling dirty work. 

"You remember what happened last time two of the Ares demigods got into an argument," Edward warned. Half the camp ended up on fire and two Campers nearly died. 

Ciarda turned away from him, her grudges were notorious. He stepped forward, helping buckle up the leathers on her shoulders. "She tried to hurt him so I couldn't have my quest. She ruined our trust over jealousy. I would never have done that to her," Ciarda mumbled. 

"It isn't just a quest. Your legacy was brought to you by the Oracle. A prophecy. Clarisse can't take that from you. Chiron can't stop you. And not even our father can ignore that." 

Ciarda pivoted, staring at him with her doe eyes. "Talk to her after the game, just.. promise me you'll talk it over." 

When Ciarda nodded, Edward let go, patting her armour down and walking towards the sunny training grounds where newer demigods were practising. 

...

A conch shell blew, causing all the Campers to turn towards Chiron. He stood on a large slab of rock, above all of them. "Demigods, it is time." He brought out his pocket watch with a mischievous smile. 

"The first team to capture the opposing flag and cross the river will be the victor," Chiron explained to the newer demigods. "As always, there will be no maiming and no killing." 

Everyone's eyes moved to Clarisse, the teenager in fully decked armour. She held the electric spear her father had given her - the one possession she held dear to her heart. It thrummed and buzzed with the tension in the air.

She looked to the opposite side of the river, the blue half of camp - led by Annabeth. Dark eyes locked onto one another, Clarisse's pleading for forgiveness whereas Ciarda's were as cold as stone. 

"Any magical items that you may possess may be permitted as well," Chiron's rules echoed through the forest, louder than the tumbling waterfall. Eyes glided to Ciarda as the singing of Achilles' sword bounded around the forest. One blow and their armour would shatter. 

Percy looked down at his pen anxiously, making Luke and Ciarda glance at each other. The two had been friends since the day she helped them pass the treeline. 

When furies blundered through the forest in the dark, rain and stars watching the confused demigods clamber through brambles and moss. Luke knew what Percy was going through - he'd been in the same position all those years ago. With Annabeth and Thalia, Luke couldn't make his way to Camp Half-Blood without attracting all kinds of monsters. 

In his attempt to protect both Athena's daughter and a Forbidden Child, he realised they were all going to die. Annabeth's arm was broken and blood smeared Thalia's face. They were weak. 

And then, amid the lightning and thunder, a girl - with wet hair and a singing blade - appeared. She had attacked the furies with all her might, a fight even he couldn't reenact. But she was only a child. She wasn't strong enough. And Thalia had paid the price. 

"It's okay," Luke whispered to Percy who looked down at his pen, "Let it rip." "I don't even know what my job is yet. I might not need a sword," Percy attempted to blow the hair out of his face from under his helmet. 

"Every camper that is not injured must play. Every prisoner may be disarmed but not bound or gagged. Let the games begin!" Chiron finished his rules. 

Ciarda cracked a smile when the conch shell blew. The sound of war began.