artemis ; pjo

Right Now

The world around me was warped.

Blurred.

Twisted.

   I felt as if I was removed from what was unfolding before me. Eric's bloodcurdling screams seemed distant. The streams of demons flowing around me felt like I was watching it on a television screen. The elephant sized fire that was growing before me seemed like it was plastic, fake.

   Even the writhing Shadow Lord in front of me seemed far away. He was slowly slipping away, his dark form shrinking smaller and smaller, until all that was left was an echo of his existence. I closed my eyes for a moment, or what felt like a moment. It could have been eternity and I would have only perceived it as a second.

   I barely felt someone's arms slip around my waist. I opened my eyes and tried to turned around to see who it was, but my vision was too blurred. Whoever was holding me carried me out of the marble building. It was empty now, all the demons had disappeared with the Shadow Lord.

   The person who was carrying me must have grown tired, because they collapsed on the ground outside the building. Only then did I regain my senses. Everything became sharp again.

   I was panting on the ground on top of someone. Glancing backwards, I found that someone to be Dan. Everything hit me at once, and I spun my head in both directions frantically. Gabby, Madi, Eric, and Sadie were in a panting heap next to Dan and I. James and Ben were standing over them, their hands on their knees, trying to catch their breath.

   I opened my mouth to say something, though I'm not sure what. Before any sound came out, a column of flames shot through the roof of the throne room, engulfing both the entire room and the air above it. I felt the heat of the powerful flames on my face.

   Quickly, the flames died down, and through the open door of the throne room, the Eternal Fire crackled quietly in its steel bowl. It looked content, and the normality of it almost tricked me into thinking I was just an average girl who was having an average night. A loud, deep roll of thunder knocked me out if that trance.

"Let's go."

   I'm not sure who said it, but everyone got up anyway. No one was in the mood to relive the events that happened, let alone reliving them in the presence of a god. More specifically Zeus, who I assumed was regaining consciousness somewhere on Olympus, hence the thunder.

   Everyone grabbed hands silently, the somber mood draping over us once again. I closed my eyes, this time having no problem focusing in what I needed to do. My necklace grew cold and I felt myself drop off into a void of nothingness.

***

The past two days passed without much thought.

   We shadowtraveled right outside Camp Half-Blood. Chiron and a handful of campers rushed to us. We spent the night in the infirmary, then Chiron asked for a full recount of everything that happened. And why we were two campers short.

   Someone would tell part of the story, and when remembering became too much, someone else would take it from there. Ben told his side, Gabby told her's, I told mine and so on.

   Hermes came too. Apparently Zeus wasn't bothered enough to talk to the saviours of the Flame, but Chiron assured us that Zeus' pride kept him from coming, and that what we did was incredibly important.

They also recovered Megan and MK's bodies. That leaves us where I am now.

   All the campers were sat around an enormous fire. On either side of the fire was a banner. Wrapped in the banners were the bodies of MK and Megan. Tonight we were sending them off, helping them move on.

   Chiron had just finished his speech. He had asked me to say something, and I really wanted to, but what I felt would not be given justice in words.

   Eric approached MK's side of the fire, Sadie approached Megan's. The banners were littered with things other campers had place on it. Megan's purple banner was buried under lavender flowers, along with some of her stuffed animals. MK's olive green banner had ivy crawling up the sides and pictures of her and the other campers gently placed on top.

   Sadie and Eric simultaneously lifted up the bodies wrapped in the banners. Everyone reverently stood up and bowed their heads. The bodies were cast into the fire and flames engulfed them.

   A single tear rolled down Sadie's cheek as she went to rejoin her siblings. Eric, on the other hand, broke down hysterically as he dragged himself back to the Demeter cabin. They all swarmed around him and comforted him as he sat down.

   I remember Eric telling me that MK was the only one who fully understood him. That she was the daughter of the goddess who gave life, and she understood the importance of death. That life can't be beautiful with death. I take a long look at him, surrounded by MK's siblings, and I know that he remembers her words. And that he'll get through this.

   Madi, who I had never thought to be the emotional type, had a small, sad, yet knowing smile on her lips. It perfectly portrayed her sadness, yet also pride in having been friends with the brave MK and Megan.

   From across the fire, I could see that the Iris and Ares cabins were sat next to each other. The usual tension that was stretched between the two cabins like a taut rope was gone, instead replaced with a mutual feeling of respect. On the front two logs, Dan and Gabby held hands.

   Ben was there too, sat beside Chiron. He was to live at camp because he was cast out of Agartha. Even though he hadn't known MK or Megan well, his eyes still shone like he had lost an old friend.

   Then there was me. I sat back down into my seat after taking in the dancing fire. I rested my head on James' shoulder, who gently squeezed my hand in comfort. I gave him a small smile back, happy for his presence.

   From where my head rest, I glanced up at the sky. The moon seemed more big and beautiful than ever tonight, as if it was watching over me like an angel.

Actually, I wondered if my mother was looking over me right now.