𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐖𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐘-𝐎𝐍𝐄
𝒅𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒓 𝒊𝒔 𝒏𝒆𝒂𝒓
❛ they both shared the presence
of doomsday, in two entirely
different ways ❜
𝐃𝐀𝐍𝐆𝐄𝐑 𝐈𝐒 𝐍𝐄𝐀𝐑, 𝕬urora Stark was no fool. Whatever happened in camp while she was with her father was drastic, you could feel the linger of danger in the air the further you made your way inside the camp. So much so, she clutched onto Annabeth who had one of her best friends arms slung over her shoulder to help her walk.
Every step was a wince, Every breath was a gasp of pain, and every blink felt like pressure was being applied behind her eyes. Her body corrupted with an ache she had no idea where it originated.
"You scared me," Annabeth spoke. Not sparing a single glance to her friend with her jaw clenched like she was scared to frown.
Aurora knew she was scared to frown.
"You dropped, Aurora! In the middle of a battle!" She tightened her grip on her best friend. Enticing another wince from the Daughter of Aphrodite. "The Colchis bull didn't touch you. Instead, something else happened."
Aurora frowned, "What did you see?"
"I—I don't know, Rory," her eyes were stormy like she was beating herself up over the lack of an answer. "But it protected you. Protected us."
Aurora briefly closed her eyes and sighed, "Oh no."
Annabeth turned to look at her. Her gray eyes analyzing her in a way she never had before, like she was a math equation desperately waiting to be solved.
"You're not telling me something, Why?" She quizzed.
Aurora tensed up at the accusation. Her mind wandered back to the familiar figure in her dreams, the individual who was always in the same spot, patiently listening to whatever the young girl was ranting about that said day.
Nathaniel was now a common presence in her life, a formidable one at that as she'd spend time with him about the same as she'd spend with her own father. But, as much as she appreciated his comforting presence . . . his origin story and how she was able to see him were still shrouded in darkness.
And, oh, did Aurora swear she would uncover what lay beneath the cloud.
And as much as she wanted to tell her friends and siblings about it, she couldn't. Not with the lack of information, and not while the entire world was on their shoulders.
She pursed her lips and sighed, "It's a hypothesis," she said noticing the way Annabeth's eyes flared in disappointment at the response. "Brainiac, you know how I feel about hypothesis'. Without the correct amount of evidence—"
"They can lead to a wrong outcome," Annabeth finished with a scoff. "I get it."
Aurora winced, "Brainiac—"
Before Aurora could finish her sentence, Annabeth nudged her head in the direction of camp and all of Aurora's words of apologies died in her throat. The air of danger growing more prominent than ever.
The Big House was still there with its blue gabled roof and its wrap-around porch. The strawberry fields still baked in the sun. The same white-columned Greek buildings were scattered around the valley-the amphitheater, the combat arena, the dining pavilion overlooking Long Island Sound. And nestled between the woods and the creek were the same cabins-a crazy assortment of twelve buildings, each representing a different Olympian god.
The air of danger reminded Aurora of the shroud of darkness she was looking to uncover, but it was much different here at camp. You could tell something was wrong. Instead of playing volleyball in the sandpit, counselors and satyrs were stockpiling weapons in the tool shed that had a bold : STARK INDUSTRIES logo on the side. Dryads armed with bows and arrows talked nervously at the edge of the woods.
The forest looked sickly, the grass in the meadow was pale yellow, and the fire marks on Half-Blood Hill stood out like ugly scars. Aurora's eyes hardened in stone, a fury of rage building up in her chest as she took in the damage.
As they made their way to the Big House, Aurora recognized a lot of kids from last summer. Nobody stopped to talk. Nobody said, "Welcome back." Or stopped to gape at the daughter of Anthony Stark. Instead they glanced at her and did double-takes when they saw Tyson, but most just walked grimly past and carried on with their duties-running messages, toting swords to sharpen on the grinding wheels.
The camp felt like a military school. None of that mattered to Tyson. He was absolutely fascinated by everything he saw. Aurora found his excitement amusing, the only bright thing to occur while in their journey was his delighted expression.
"Whasthat!" he gasped.
"The stables for pegasi," Percy said. "The winged horses."
"Whasthat!"
"Um . . . those are the toilets."
"Whasthat!"
"The cabins for the campers. If they don't know who your Olympian parent is, they put you in the Hermes cabin-that brown one over there-until you're determined. Then, once they know, they put you in your dad or mom's group."
He looked at Percy in awe and no matter how upset Aurora was she managed to crack a smile. "You . . . have a cabin?" He questioned.
"Number three." Percy pointed to a low gray building made of sea stone. The same building now deemed Percy and Aurora's hanging spot when they needed a breather from the world around them.
"You live with friends in the cabin?"
"No. No, just me." Percy frowned.
When they got to the Big House, they found Chiron in his apartment, listening to his favorite 1960s lounge music while he packed his saddlebags.
As soon as they saw him, Tyson froze. "Pony!" he cried in total rapture.
Chiron turned, looking offended. "I beg your pardon?"
Annabeth carefully handed Aurora to Percy and ran to hug Chiron. "Chiron, what's happening? You're not . . . leaving?" Her voice was shaky. Chiron was like a second father to her.
Chiron ruffled Annabeth's hair and gave them a kindly smile. "Hello, children," his eyes landed on Aurora's slumped frame next to Percy and his smile fell. "Aurora, What's wrong, child?"
Aurora sent the man a small wave followed by a wince. "Hey, Chiron," she stated glumly.
"She needs help Chiron," Percy began his arm tightening around her. "Something . . . weird happened at Half-Blood Hill. Something we can't explained. It moved too fast for any of us to see."
"What did it do?"
Tyson piped up, "Made bad bull go boom!"
Percy nodded and shrugged, "Made bad bull go boom!"
Chiron took a hard look at Aurora and sighed. His eyes were already wary, but the moment his mind . . . clicked on an idea, they saddened some more.
"Come, child," he told her. "We'll continue this conversation on our way to the infirmary."
"Is she going to be okay, Chiron?"
Aurora waved the boy off, "I'll be fine, ocean eyes," she looked up at Chiron, her own eyes now sad. "What Clarisse said about them firing you? Is it true? Centaurs can get fired? That's a thing?"
Chiron's eyes glinted with dark humor, "Ah, well, someone had to take the blame. Lord Zeus was most upset. The tree he'd created from the spirit of his daughter, poisoned! Mr. D had to punish someone."
"Beside himself, you mean," Percy growled.
Aurora scoffed, "As if he actually does anything useful around camp."
Percy nodded, "Didn't he cut off your meal privileges for two days last year for almost shooting him with your thruster?"
Aurora narrowed her eyes, " . . . Yes, your point being?"
"Nothing, just an observation."
"But this is crazy!" Annabeth cried interrupting the two. "Chiron, you couldn't have had anything to do with poisoning Thalia's tree!"
"Nevertheless," Chiron sighed, "some in Olympus do not trust me now, under the circumstances."
"What circumstances?" Aurora questioned. What possible circumstance could there be to his current situation, surely, even for the gods' sake they would take Chiron's golden track record for account . . . right?
Nonetheless, Chiron's face darkened. He stuffed a Latin-English dictionary into his saddlebag while the Frank Sinatra music oozed from his boom box.
Tyson was still staring at Chiron in amazement. He whimpered like he wanted to pat Chiron's flank but was afraid to come closer. "Pony?"
Chiron sniffed, "My dear young Cyclops! I am a centaur."
"Chiron," Percy said. "What about the tree? What happened?"
He shook his head sadly. "The poison used on Thalia's pine is something from the Underworld, Percy. Some venom even I have never seen. It must have come from a monster quite deep in the pits of Tartarus."
"Then we know who's responsible. Kro-"
Aurora winced at the mention of the Titan.
"Do not invoke the titan lord's name, Percy. Especially not here, not now."
"But last summer he tried to cause a civil war in Olympus! This has to be his idea. He'd get Luke to do it, that traitor."
"Perhaps," Chiron said. "But I fear I am being held responsible because I did not prevent it and I can not cure it. The tree has only a few weeks of life left unless . . ."
"Unless what?" Annabeth asked.
"No," Chiron said. "A foolish thought. The whole valley is feeling the shock of the poison. The magical borders are deteriorating. The camp itself is dying. Only one source of magic would be strong enough to reverse the poison, and it was lost centuries ago."
Aurora frowned, "We have to do something, Chiron. You can't leave and Thalia's tree can't die. What is the source of magic?"
"Aurora's right! We can find it!"
Chiron closed his saddlebag. He pressed the stop button on his boom box. Then he turned and rested his hand on Percy's shoulder, looking him straight in the eyes. "Percy, you must promise me that you will not act rashly. I told your mother I did not want you to come here at all this summer. It's much too dangerous. But now that you are here, stay here. Train hard. Learn to fight. But do not leave."
"Why?" Percy asked. "I want to do something! I can't just let the borders fail. The whole camp will be-"
"Overrun by monsters," Chiron said. "Yes, I fear so. But you must not let yourself be baited into hasty action! This could be a trap of the titan lord. Remember last summer! He almost took your life."
Annabeth was trying hard not to cry. Chiron brushed a tear from her cheek. "Stay with Percy, children," he told both Aurora and Annabeth. "Keep him safe. The prophecy-remember it!"
Annabeth glanced at Aurora and nodded. Her face washing with determination, "W-We will."
"Um . . . " Percy said. "Would this be the super-dangerous prophecy that has me in it, but the gods have forbidden you to tell me about?"
Nobody answered.
"Right," Percy muttered. "Just checking."
"Chiron . . ." Annabeth said. "You told me the gods made you immortal only so long as you were needed to train heroes. If they dismiss you from camp-"
"Swear you will do your best to keep Percy and Aurora from danger," he insisted. "Swear upon the river Styx."
Aurora furrowed her eyebrows, "What?" she frowned. "Why me?"
It's not like she needed a protector, the role was practically full at the moment.
"I-I swear it upon the River Styx," Annabeth said.
Thunder rumbled outside.
"Why would I need to be protected?" Aurora pointed at herself. "Percy destroys things more than I do."
Chiron gave Aurora a hard look, "The story of Elysium, child. Learn it, memorize it, and do not forget it," he placed a hand on her shoulder. "It'll reveal the answers you're looking for."
Elysium. The place heroes go after death, How could the young girl be connected to it?
"Have you met him?"
Aurora's eyes turned wide.
"Met who?" Percy questioned glancing in between the two. "Who's the him we're talking about?"
Annabeth's eyes hardened as she scanned Aurora's face, "The secret she's been keeping."
Percy's eyes turned sad, like waves longing to stay planted on the shore, "You're keeping a secret from . . . us?"
Aurora dropped her head and cursed under breath. She tilted her head up at Chiron, a knowing glint already present in the centaurs eye, "Nathaniel."
Chiron took in her face and nodded grimly. "You must listen to him, Aurora. He only wants to help you, and when the time comes, you must be ready."
Aurora shook her head. Everything was growing overwhelming, like every time she was able to stand on shaky ground, a violent jerk sent her sprawling back to the asphalt ⎯ adding to the never-ending bruises and cuts littered throughout her wounding body.
"Chiron-"
"Swear that you will always listen to Nathaniel"
"Chiron, what's going on? Nathaniel hardly tel-"
"Swear upon the River Styx"
Aurora stared at him for a couple of seconds and finally nodded. "I swear it upon the River Styx."
"Very well," Chiron said. He seemed to relax just a little. "Perhaps my name will be cleared and I shall return. Until then, I go to visit my wild kinsmen in the Everglades. It's possible they know of some cure for the poisoned tree that I have forgotten. In any event, I will stay in exile until this matter is resolved . . . one way or another." Annabeth stifled a sob. Chiron patted her shoulder awkwardly. "There, now, child. I must entrust your safety to Mr. D and the new activities director. We must hope . . . well, perhaps they won't destroy the camp quite as quickly as I fear."
"Who is this Tantalus guy, anyway?" Percy demanded. "Where does he get off taking your job?"
A conch horn blew across the valley. Aurora hadn't realized how late it was. It was time for the campers to assemble for dinner.
"Go," Chiron said. "You will meet him at the pavilion. I will contact your mother, Percy, and let her know you're safe. No doubt she'll be worried by now. I will do the same with your father, Aurora. Just remember my warning! You are in grave danger. Do not think for a moment that the titan lord has forgotten you!"
With that, he clopped out of the apartment and down the hall, Tyson calling after him, "Pony! Don't go!"
Tyson started bawling almost as bad as Annabeth whom was currently in the arms of Aurora (no matter how angry Annabeth was with Aurora, she'd never be too angry) who was biting her bottom lip so hard, she was moments away from tasting blood. Percy tried to tell them that things would be okay, but he even looked like he didn't believe it.
Annabeth abruptly pulled away from Aurora and wiped her eyes, "Who's Nathaniel?"
Aurora inhaled a sharp breath. She was hoping they wouldn't ask about the man in her dreams, I mean, How do you explain to your best friends of a man waiting for you in your dreams waiting for you to be born so he can be your so-called protector? There has to be a way to explain it far easier than she was believing.
Still, the color drained from her face and she stammered, "I⎯Well, he⎯"
She took a deep breath . . . Screw it.
"From my dreams," she began glancing between the two. "Nathaniel's from my dreams, says he's been waiting for me to be born for the past millennia to be my so-called protector."
Silence.
Aurora looked at them, trying desperately to gauge a reaction, but was stumped. Annabeth's eyebrows were furrowed and Percy's eyes looked, well . . . shocked.
"What happened in Half-Blood Hill," Percy pointed out. "That was him?"
"I suppose so . . ."
"You don't know?!"
"I haven't had a chance to ask him!"
"Elysium," Annabeth interjected. "Chiron mentioned Elysium, has Nathaniel mentioned it too?"
"No, he-"
'I'm from a land far more beautiful than you can ever imagine'
Her head shot up as her mind whirled miles per minute, the mind of her father manifesting as a piece of the never-ending puzzle connected. It wasn't a lot, per se, but it was enough for her to work with, enough for her to finally begin destroying that cloud of mystery.
She turned on the heels of her feet and began walking briskly (or as fast as she could go with her body still in pain) to her cabin.
"Where are you going?" Annabeth called out to her.
"To take a nap!"
Pushing past campers who were either staring at her wide-eyed or grumbling under their breath, Aurora thundered to her cabin more than ecstatic to see it in one piece. The flowers in front of the porch were in full bloom, their petals enhancing the aesthetic of her humble abode. The usual scent of Lavender filling her nose and washing over her senses, easing her rapid mine for just a moment before it was sent into haywire again.
As she ventured into her room, she hurriedly yanked all of her blueprints from her corkboard disregarding them completely. Right next to her it was her whiteboard, full of unanswered equations and messy handwriting. She disregarded that too by erasing it completely and in one swift movement wrote: ELYSIUM
"Okay," she breathed as she looked at the boards. "Let's see what this is about."
Maybe it was her previous exhaustion or the pain she'd ignored because of the spike in adrenaline/excitement at the newfound piece of information but the minute her head hit her bed, it was lights out.
In her new world, the stars blinked down at her with curiosity wondering what their old friend could be worked up about. The purple iris' tickled her bare feet as she turned to face the familiar gigantic cave before her.
"Nate!" she called. Her voice carrying in the wind.
The familiar set of eyes suddenly made an appearance, first with fire at their forefront, but immediately softened when they took notice of the girl.
"Child," he greeted. "You had me worried. How are your injuries?"
Aurora frowned as her hand subconsciously landed over her side, where she had landed mere moments before. The pain was gone, no ache transferred from her world to this one. In a way she was relieved, the excruciating pain she had previously undergone was no where to be felt nor did it linger.
"Could be better," she shrugged. "So, I'm guessing it was you."
The set of eyes stared at her for a moment, "Yes, I'm your protector, Am I not?"
She pursed her lips in frustration, "You knew you could posses my body, right? Is there something else you aren't telling me?"
He took a deep breath, "I never knew I was able to . . . posses your body. I-I was just worried for your safety, Child."
"Then what's your connection to Elysium?"
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Nathaniel huffed out a laugh, "I see you've done your research. Chiron informed you, I presume?"
"Didn't know you both knew of each other?"
"More like . . . acquaintances, my dove."
"So?" Aurora continued. "Elysium?"
Thunder continued to rumble despite no storm brewing.
Nathaniel sighed, "I'm bound by word to not reveal anything, until it's time. But Elysium was my own spot for tranquility."
Aurora's mind jumbled, tranquility?
The dream grew hazy, an alarm for what was to come, but before she could ask anything else his voice echoed through her head.
"Be careful, darling dove. If push comes to shove, I'll be there."
Nate didn't need to know how much that meant to her, to have (almost) like a guardian angel looking out for you, and she surely wasn't going to tell him.
Hey, babes! Great to be back!
thoughts? Comments? Concerns?
❛ allure me. ❜ ༢ ͎۪۫ ༊*·˚ ╱
❪ the prodigy, 𝒂𝒕𝒕𝒂𝒄𝒉𝒆𝒅 book. ❫
༢ ͎۪۫ ༊ ❛ ©CELESTIALAPHRODITE 2023. ❜ ¨. ༢ ͎۪۫ ｡𖤐
❪ 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟑 ❫ ©CELESTIALAPHRODITE, 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒓𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒔 𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒆𝒅.