When I say I was the talk of the camp, I was not exaggerating.
Like, I don't think I have ever been looked at or stared at more in my entire twelve years than I did when it was announced who I was at the campfire and shroud-burning the first day I was at Camp Half-Blood.
Like, while Percy and I were burning our shroud that was oh-so-graciously made by the Ares cabin (it was literally made from an old bed sheet with x-eyed smiley faces on the edges and the word LOSER in the middle), every time I looked up, people were watching my every move like I was some kind of circus act.
I wanted them all to stop, but I couldn't just be mean, so I decided to just smile nicely and join in on all the festivities as best I could.
I was even trying to be kind to Clarisse and her siblings, and they just glared at me and looked like they were planning on murdering me in my sleep.
But OH WELL! They weren't gonna scare me away.
I formally met Dionysus, the god of wine, and he just gave me a disgusted look but nodded in acknowledgment of my existence, "It's not a pleasure to meet you, Sara Evans. Stay out of my hair, and we can all enjoy the rest of our time here."
The guy had been banished to camp for being frisky with Zeus's favorite nymph, so now he was here being our "camp counselor," if you could call him that.
So it was his problem, but I just nodded and walked away, making a face that made Percy snort and Annabeth snicker.
Percy led me to Cabin 3, Poseidon's cabin, and the second I stepped onto the porch of the low, gray stone cabin, all studded with seashells and coral, I felt like I was at home.
It was like it was carved right from the bottom of the ocean.
It smelled like seawater, and my body relaxed at the sight of the glowing abalone walls and the six bunks made of coral with silk sheets.
I was suddenly so tired.
Percy wrapped an arm around my shoulders and said, "Go get cleaned up and then get to bed."
I nodded and headed to the bathroom, where I found a plain black t-shirt and a pair of sea green pajama shorts waiting for me.
I hopped in the shower, rinsing off and washing my hair like seven times before I stepped out of the surprisingly warm water and got dressed in my pajamas. I stumbled out of the bathroom, rubbed my face, and picked an empty bunk just across from Percy's.
He was looking at something on his nightstand when I dropped onto the mattress, curling up without covering myself with the blankets.
I was basically unconscious when my head hit the pillow, and I heard my brother laugh.
The floor creaked just a bit as he moved to my bunk and pulled blankets over me as I curled in on myself more, snuggling into the satin pillows.
"Night, Sal..." He snickered.
"Night, Perc..." I muttered before I literally passed out and surrendered myself to Hypnos.
†††
Camp was my new favorite place on earth.
I spent days learning and expanding my knowledge of the Greek language and Greek history, training with different people in the arena, and spending a ton of time on the lake.
In other words, there was never a dull moment.
Percy, though, had been nearly jumping out of his skin after he got a letter from his mom.
I couldn't get him to tell me what she said, but from the glimmer in his eyes, I could tell he was beyond excited.
So I let him keep his secrets and focused on avoiding being murdered by Clarisse and scheming with the Hermes kids.
Connor and Travis Stoll had decided that I was the coolest demigod to ever walk the planet, thus why we were currently setting firecrackers up outside the Ares cabin, snickering the whole time.
The elf-looking boys (who were not twins, by the way, Travis was older and had a weird knick in his left eyebrow) nodded at me from the edge of the porch, smiling madly, "Do it."
I marched right up to the door, dressed in my jean shorts, bare feet, camp shirt, and messy hair, knocked, and ran.
The door swung open, and chaos reigned.
"ELWAY!!!!!" Clarisse screamed at the top of her lungs as the boys, and I sprinted away, laughing hysterically.
I almost got severe whiplash as Annabeth snagged the back of my shirt and said, "Okay. You're done. Come help me get ready for the Fourth of July picnic."
"But, Annniieeee," I whined like a four-year-old,
"Don't Annniieee me. This is like the seventh time this week."
"It's not my fault Clarisse is a meathead and keeps falling for it."
Annabeth gave me a look that shut me up just before she muttered, "You and your brother are going to be the literal death of me. You guys are literally the same person."
"Nah, he stinks all the time. I don't."
Annabeth shook her head with a smirk, "I mean, you're not wrong."
"I know I'm not."
She did not relinquish her grip on my shirt, probably afraid that I would take off, which was totally valid because I did not wanna be there.
The only moment she did let me go was when a familiar voice called, "Annabeth! Sally!"
Luke Castellan jogged up, chuckling at the sight of Annabeth dragging me across campus, "Did she kill someone?"
"N-n-n—" Annabeth stammered, obviously flustered.
"Not yet," I gave him a cocky grin. "Only sent them to the infirmary."
Luke, with his handsome scarred face, chuckled, "I've heard. Will is so annoyed."
"No, he's not. He loves me; he relishes when I come to see him."
"Yeah, but probably not with injured campers..."
I shrugged, flipping my hair off my shoulders, "Oh well! Sucks to suck."
Luke copied my stance of my arms being crossed across my chest and raised a brow, "It's not their fault that you're a fast learner with a sword and just about every other activity here at camp."
"Well, it's not my fault that they're not on my level."
Luke shook his head, throwing it back with a loud laugh, "You, Sally Elway, are gonna give the world a run for its money someday."
"Already am," I grinned. I looked at a frustrated-looking Annabeth before I grabbed her wrist and said, "Well, we'll see you around, Luke. Adios!"
I dragged Annabeth with me this time, "Come on, Owl-Brain, let's go get this stuff down instead of watching you drool over Luke."
My best friend yanked her wrist out of my grasp and cuffed me in the back of the head, "I was not drooling!"
I rubbed the back of my head, "Then what's that on your chin."
It was safe to say that Annabeth started to chase after me, yelling curses in Greek the whole way to our destination.
I was ogling the sight of the magical fireworks, courtesy of the Hephestus kids, when Grover showed up to give one final goodbye.
He was on his way to try and find Pan, his lifelong dream.
But that didn't mean it didn't suck.
"I'm off," He murmured, all dressed up in the same outfit the first time I saw him. "I just came to say ... well, you know."
I pinched my lips, trying not to cry as I hugged him tightly and whispered, "Thank you for sniffing me out."
He snickered and hugged me tighter than before.
I stepped back, playing with the sand under my bare feet as Percy asked him where he was headed first.
"Kind of a secret," Grover admitted, looking slightly sheepish (hahahah, funny). "I wish you could come with me, guys, but humans and Pan ..."
"We understand," Annabeth reassured him, smiling softly at him. "You got enough tin cans for the trip?"
"Yeah."
And you remembered your reed pipes?"
"Jeez, Annabeth," He grumbled with a fake annoyed face. "You're like an old mama goat." He readjusted his grip on his hiking stick and backpack strap, "Well, wish me luck."
Grover hugged Annabeth and me one more time before clapping Percy on the shoulder before heading into the dunes on the beach.
"Hey, Grover," Percy called, making our satyr friend turn around. "Wherever you're going, I hope they make good enchiladas."
He smirked and disappeared into the woods.
I sighed sadly, "We'll see him again...I know we will..."
My brother didn't look sure, but he nodded with me before we all turned around, settled back onto the picnic blanket, and finished watching the colorful display above the beach.
And from then on, July flew by.
I spent the rest of the summer coming up with strategies for capturing the flag, being annoying with the Stoll brothers, and talking about books with Annabeth on the dock by the lake while Percy whined and complained about us being boring.
Despite having dyslexia and ADHD, I did love literature, and I had been tutored to overcome the learning disability before I ran away. And luckily for me, one of the Athena cabin members was a tutor, and I was able to keep up with my curriculum over the summer.
All of this to say, Annabeth and I bonded over books and myths and legends.
But what we really bonded over was the fact that our capture-the-flag strategies always won. Like no matter how simple or dumb it sounded or how elaborate, we always won.
Chiron had actually, at one point, become suspicious of us cheating at one point, but we didn't; we just won.
She had very quickly become one of my partners-in-crime, us being able to communicate with simple looks across the dining pavilion, talk so fast that no one understood us except each other, and many other secret things that I will not exploit.
Girl code, guys.
The only thing she was at least weird with me about was Luke.
Luke, being the older brother figure he was, decided to take me under his wing when I got here.
Other than Percy, he had literally become like a big brother in the short time I had been at camp.
He helped me get into different classes around camp and had really been helping me with sword fighting.
It did not go well as soon as I got the hang of it because I beat him...every time.
So instead, Percy and I would beat each other up until we abandoned the swords and were just wrestling on the ground or laughing too hard to be safe with the double-edged swords.
But Luke still did everything in his power to help me and hang out with me during the summer.
It was...weird but nice to have someone older than me actually interested in helping me make my life better.
Him and Chiron were two of those people.
Chiron had been calling biweekly meetings with me, asking me how I was adjusting and whatever, but I could tell there was something else bothering him.
I didn't know what, but it was an elephant in the room, and that was coming from a girl who spent afternoons in the room with a centaur playing chess and drinking lemonade.
One of the things we did address though was the fact that I would need to figure out where I was staying.
I could either become a year-round camper like Annabeth or...I could figure out other living arrangements outside of camp.
Honestly, I wouldn't have minded staying all year, but the fact that Percy was going home and Annabeth was also gonna try to go home this year made the idea sound terrible and lonely. Also, I did not wanna have to spend the school year tip-toeing around Mr. D. he already was weird around me; I didn't feel like dealing with that any more than I had to.
So when the last day of camp rolled around, and I still hadn't made any moves to figure out my life, I finally approached Percy and asked him what he thought I should do.
"I can't go home," I told him. "My aunt would literally murder me and bury my body under the house."
Percy's face had split with a smile, and he grabbed the paper from my hands, saying that I needed to report what I was doing by noon or the cleaning harpies would eat my guts or something, and crumpled it up, "You're coming home with me."
At first, I was confused, but then my brows furrowed, and I shook my head, "I could never impose on you and your mom! That would be so—"
"Awesome?" Percy stopped me, his eyes glittering brightly. He placed his hands on my shoulder. "Sal, my mom has spent the last few months getting legal custody of you from your aunt and uncle. They dropped parental custody of you and gave it to my mom. You're coming home with me."
My eyes welled with tears.
Granted, I was a little hurt that my own flesh and blood just willingly and without a fight kicked me to the curb officially, but Sally and Percy Jackson really said, Welcome to the family, and were now giving me a home and a place to stay.
I wrapped my arms around my brother, my face buried into his camp shirt as I whispered, "Okay."
He embraced me tightly, almost cracking my ribs before he let me go and raised a brow, "Race you to the arena?"
"Shouldn't we..." I looked around our cabin. His side is a disaster, and mine is less of a disaster. But there wasn't much to pack up, and everything could be shoved into a backpack from the gift shop. I snorted before shrugging, "We don't have much. LET'S DO THIS!!!"
We made it to the arena, but we didn't jump in like we wanted to.
Why?
Because Luke was there hacking at some battle dummies like they were his worst enemies.
My eyes fell on his blade, and a chill ran up my spine at the sight of the regular steel-looking blade. He was also just drenched in sweat, and I found myself staring at the way he moved with ease. He just murked the dummies and was panting as he turned around swinging again, but his eyes widened at the sight of us staring at him.
"Percy, Sally..." He wheezed a little.
Our faces turned red as my brother stammered, "Um, sorry. We just—"
"It's okay," Luke reassured us, lowering his sword. "Just doing some last-minute practice."
"Those dummies won't be bothering anybody anymore."
The older guy shrugged. "We build new ones every summer."
My eyes fell to his blade, my brows furrowing at the sight of two metals on the edges of the sword.
Luke found me watching his weapon before saying, "Oh, this? New toy. This is Backbiter."
I didn't like the name.
Another chill ran up my spine as I repeated, "Backbiter?"
He turned the blade, so it glinted brightly under the August sun. "One side is celestial bronze. The other is tempered steel. Works on mortals and immortals both."
I could feel Percy tense a little beside me as I recalled what Chiron said about hurting mortals.
You shouldn't.
"Huh..." I muttered, trying to play off my unease. "I didn't know weapons like yours existed..."
"They probably can't," Luke said with a tiny smile. "It's one of a kind." He slid his sword into its scabbard, "Listen, I was going to come looking for you two. What do you say we go down to the woods one last time, look for something to fight?"
Something about his offer felt...wrong?
But I waited for Percy to answer instead.
He even hesitated before asking, "You think it's a good idea? I mean—"
"Aw, come on." Luke coaxed, pulling out a six-pack of Coke and a singular glass bottle of fizzing water. "Drinks are on me."
I didn't really like soda, which was one of the major differences between Percy and me, but Luke must have noticed that because I could see Grapefruit written on the label of the seltzer.
Also, we technically weren't supposed to have mortal stuff at camp, and it would have to be smuggled in my satyrs or something.
So...
This stuff was a treat.
"Sure, why not?" Percy finally said.
The three of us walked to the woods, looking for something to fight, but there was not a monster in sight.
So we settled by a creek in the shade, sipping on our drinks and just basking in the middle of the woods. Percy told me about the night he was claimed and how he broke Clarisse's spear that day at the same creek my feet were dipped in.
I was lying on my back at the moment, staring at the sky through the trees, a small smile on my lips.
"You guys miss being on a quest?" Luke suddenly asked.
"With monsters attacking me every three feet? Are you kidding?" Percy shot back in a sarcastic tone. He was quiet for a second before admitting, "Yeah. I miss it. You?"
I turned my head to Luke to see a shadow fall over his face, and he suddenly looked far older than his nineteen years.
"I've lived at Half-Blood Hill year-round since I was fourteen," He explained to us, "Ever since Thalia ... well, you know. I trained, and trained, and trained. I never got to be a normal teenager out there in the real world. Then they threw me one quest, and when I came back, it was like, 'Okay, ride's over. Have a nice life.'"
He crushed his soda can in his hand and threw it into the creek.
My brows furrowed as I called the creek to give me the can, and I subtly slid it into my pocket.
One of the things I quickly learned while at Camp Half-Blood was that you never litter. The nymphs and naiads had had long rants with me about it while I helped them water different plants around camp.
And let me tell you, I was never a litterer anyways, but their stories of what they had done to littering campers just ignited my cautiousness.
So the sight of Luke littering made my stomach clench as I sat up, pulling my legs to my chest.
"The heck with laurel wreaths," Luke almost growled. "I'm not going to end up like those dusty trophies in the Big House attic."
I stared at him, my face going emotionless, "You make it sound like you're abandoning ship."
He gave me a smile, and my back went rigid at the twisted look it had, "Oh, I'm leaving, all right, Sally. I brought you two down here to say goodbye."
He snapped his fingers, and I moved to a crouch as a small fire burned a hole in the ground at Percy's feet.
A big black scorpion crawled out, and my blood went cold as Luke stopped my brother from pulling out his pen, "I wouldn't. Pit scorpions can jump up to fifteen feet. Its stinger can pierce right through your clothes. You'll be dead in sixty seconds."
"Luke, what—" Percy started. Then his face paled as he stared at the older teen. "You."
I recalled the prophecy, You will be betrayed by one who calls you a friend.
That part had never happened on the quest.
But as Luke stood, the scorpion paying him no heed, I wanted to stab him.
He was the one in the prophecy, the traitor.
"I saw a lot out there in the world, Percy," Luke explained, brushing dirt off his jeans. "Didn't you feel it-the darkness gathering, the monsters growing stronger? Didn't you realize how useless it all is? All the heroics-being pawns of the gods. They should've been overthrown thousands of years ago, but they've hung on, thanks to us half-bloods."
"Luke...you're talking about our parents," Percy tried to talk the guy off the ledge.
He laughed dryly, "That's supposed to make me love them? Their precious 'Western civilization' is a disease, Percy. It's killing the world. The only way to stop it is to burn it to the ground, start over with something more honest."
"You're as crazy as Ares!"
"Ares is a fool. He never realized the true master he was serving. If I had time, Percy, I could explain. But I'm afraid you won't live that long."
The scorpion crawled up my brother's pants leg, and my breath caught in my throat as I wracked my brain to come up with a plan to get rid of the scorpion, take down Luke, and then get both Percy and me out of there.
So, I stalled, my voice sounding way stronger than I felt, "Kronos. That's who you serve."
The world grew darker, and the air turned frigid as Luke turned his eyes to me, "You should be careful with names."
"Kronos got you to steal the master bolt and the helm. He spoke to you in your dreams..." Percy tried to help me with my terribly throughout plan.
Luke watched me carefully despite addressing my brother, "He spoke to you, too, Percy. You should've listened."
"He's brainwashing you, Luke."
"You're wrong. He showed me that my talents are being wasted. You know what my quest was two years ago, Percy? My father, Hermes, wanted me to steal a golden apple from the Garden of the Hesperides and return it to Olympus. After all the training I'd done, that was the best he could think up."
"That's not an easy quest," I retorted, scrambling to keep the monologuing going. "Hercules did it."
"Exactly," Luke snarled. "Where's the glory in repeating what others have done? All the gods know how to do is replay their past. My heart wasn't in it. The dragon in the garden gave me this—" He gestured to his face angrily. "—and when I came back, all I got was pity. I wanted to pull Olympus down stone by stone right then, but I bided my time. I began to dream of Kronos. He convinced me to steal something worthwhile, something no hero had ever had the courage to take. When we went on that winter-solstice field trip, while the other campers were asleep, I snuck into the throne room and took Zeus's master bolt right from his chair. Hades's helm of darkness, too. You wouldn't believe how easy it was. The Olympians are so arrogant; they never dreamed someone would dare steal from them. Their security is horrible. I was halfway across New Jersey before I heard the storms rumbling, and I knew they'd discovered my theft."
The scorpion was sitting on Percy's knee now, and my eyes pricked with frustrated and hopeless tears as my brother asked, "So why didn't you bring the items to Kronos?"
"I ... I got overconfident," Luke admitted, his victorious smile dwindling a little bit. "Zeus sent out his sons and daughters to find the stolen bolt- Artemis, Apollo, my father, Hermes. But it was Ares who caught me. I could have beaten him, but I wasn't careful enough. He disarmed me, took the items of power, threatened to return them to Olympus, and burn me alive. Then Kronos's voice came to me and told me what to say. I put the idea in Ares's head about a great war between the gods. I said all he had to do was hide the items away for a while and watch the others fight. Ares got a wicked gleam in his eyes. I knew he was hooked. He let me go, and I returned to Olympus before anyone noticed my absence." Luke pulled Backbiter from the scabbard at his side, running his thumb down the flat side of the blade..."Afterward, the Lord of the Titans ... h-he punished me with nightmares. I swore not to fail again. Back at Camp Half-Blood, in my dreams, I was told that a second hero would arrive, one who could be tricked into taking the bolt and the helm the rest of the way-from Ares down to Tartarus."
"You summoned the hellhound that night in the forest..." Percy started to put together signs at the beginning of the summer.
"We had to make Chiron think the camp wasn't safe for you, so he would start you on your quest. We had to confirm his fears that Hades was after you. And it worked."
"The flying shoes were cursed," I spoke up again, shuffling on my bare feet. "They were supposed to drag Percy and the backpack into Tartarus."
"And they would have if he'd been wearing them. But you gave them to the satyr, which wasn't part of the plan. Grover messes up everything he touches. He even confused the curse." He glowered at Percy from the corner of his eyes, "You should have died in Tartarus, Percy. But don't worry, I'll leave you with my little friend to set things right."
"Thalia gave her life to save you," Percy said, gritting his teeth as he watched the scorpion on his thigh. "And this is how you repay her?"
"Don't speak of Thalia!" Luke shouted loudly, his voice echoing around us. "The gods let her die! That's one of the many things they will pay for."
"You're being used, Luke," I shot back, frowning deeply. "You and Ares both. Don't listen to Kronos, he's an idiot."
Luke looked at me incredulously, "I've been used? Look at yourself! What has your dad ever done for you? I heard what he called you when you were talking to Annabeth! He doesn't care about you, he's using you! Kronos will rise. You two have only delayed his plans. He will cast the Olympians into Tartarus and drive humanity back to their caves. All except the strongest—the ones who serve him."
I pinched my lips at the salt he just threw in my wounds as I just said, "Call off the bug. If you're so strong, fight us yourself."
Luke's lips tilted up in a twisted smile again, "Nice try, Sally. But I'm not Ares. You can't bait me. My Lord is waiting, and he's got plenty of quests for me to undertake."
"Luke—" Percy tried.
"Goodbye, Percy..." Luke bowed to him tauntingly. "There is a new Golden Age coming. You won't be part of it." Then he turned to me, "Now...to deal with the Wild Card."
My head spun as Percy screamed, "RUN, SALLY!!!"
I was running before my brain caught up to me.
My bare feet rushed over rocks, roots, and other things I didn't have time to think about. My lungs were on fire as I weaved in and out of the trees, trying to get out of the forest and to the Big House.
"HELP!!!" I screamed. "CHIRON!!! ANNABETH!!! HELP!!!!"
I was still too far away, and the trees were too dense for my voice to find anyone in camp's ears.
"PLEASE!!! HEL—"
I didn't see it coming.
Something swung out, hitting me across the forehead and throwing me to the ground.
Pain exploded through my skull as stars filled my vision, and my body ached from the impact of hitting the ground.
The world spun as Luke leaned over me, "I am so sorry, Sal...You could have joined me, but he doesn't want you. He thinks you're too much of a danger..."
"Luke..." I groaned. "Please..."
He pulled me from the ground, his arm wrapped tightly around my waist as he carried me through the woods to only the gods knew where...or where they didn't know.
I started to fight as well as I could, my limbs moving sluggishly, not really responding to what I wanted to do.
"LUKE!" I cried, kicking at him. "LET ME GO!!! PLEASE!!!"
He didn't answer me as there was a dip in the ground.
I swung my elbow at his face, and it caught him in the nose, making him lose his grip just slightly, and it was just enough for me to push myself out of his arms and to the ground on my hands and knees.
I crawled desperately away, my head spinning a little still, "PERCY!!! PERCY!!!"
"Sal, don't make this any harder than it has to be," Luke said, his voice emotionless as he caught me by the back of my camp shirt.
"Luke, please!" I cried, tears streaking down my dirty and sweaty face. "Please!"
He didn't listen to me, just roughly dragged me to an open space, adjusting his grip on my shirt to grab the front of it instead.
I wasn't sure what was happening until my feet were barely scraping the edge of a cliff.
My heart dropped to my toes at the sight of the jagged rocks below me.
Oh, my Gods, he's gonna drop me.
He's gonna kill me.
My breaths became shorter than before, the tears falling down my face, racing down in harsh rivulets.
"L-Luke," I begged. "P-Please! This isn't the-the only option! We-we can stop Kronos! We can t-talk to the gods!" I grabbed at his hand, which held me in the open air. I stared into his sky blue eyes, "Please, Annabeth wouldn't want this...Thalia either..."
He stared hard at me, "Sally, you, of all people, would understand my side of this." He waved his free hand at the sky, "They hate us! They consider you a mistake of nature! So come with me, I'll convince Kronos to spare you, and we will establish our rightful places in the world of gods and half-bloods!"
I shook my head immediately, "No-no-no! I won't! I can't!" I strained to try and find purchase again on the ledge of the crumbling cliff. "Luke, please. I know how it feels to be pushed aside and forgotten. I-I understand! But I also know th-that it can g-get better! B-but you have to work for it! A-and we can do that together!"
Luke looked guilty as he shook his head, "Lo siento, Sally, lo intenté...Adiós."
I'm sorry, Sally, I tried...Goodbye.
The world slowed as he let go of my shirt.
I didn't even have time to scream as gravity took me in his steel grip and dragged me to the ground.
Luke's face was emotionless as I fell, my hands reaching up towards him, praying he would have a change of heart and catch me at the very last second.
He didn't.
He just disappeared, leaving me to my fate.
Pain wracked my body as I hit rocks, the sharp tips cutting everything they touched, and I rolled across the sand on the beach, barely breathing as paralysis and shock overwhelmed me.
I could barely breathe as I stared at the ocean just a few feet away.
The sound of it was too loud in my ears as I gasped for oxygen, agony swelling over me like a rainstorm.
I knew I was bleeding.
I could feel the warm liquid seeping into my clothes and dripping into the sand around me, being soaked up by the earth in large red blotches.
And the splotches started to grow larger and larger until the sand was basically completely soaked red.
I was dying.
Tears fell down my bruised and bloody face as I tried to call out, "H-h-help..."
My voice was barely a whisper, and it made the hopelessness sink deeper into my chest.
No one was around.
This had to be a secluded part of the beach, which was probably why Luke picked it.
My left arm was pinned under my body, so I reached my right arm out towards the water, trying to will it to me.
It barely reached my fingertips as the tide started to roll in.
The water made my body relax as more tears fell down my face.
I was alone.
Again.
I had no one to save me.
No one to hold me.
I. Was. Alone.
My body was too heavy and too in pain to move as a small prayer fell from my lips, "Poseidon...please...if ever cared for me...even in the slightest...please save me..."
My eyes were filling with stars as I heard my name being called and the feeling of water filling my palm.
"Sal! Oh my gods, Chiron!"
Just as arms lifted me from my grave, Chiron's voice murmured, "Oh, child...hold on...please hold on..."
But I couldn't, letting darkness sweep me away.
†††
I woke up to Percy and Chiron talking to my left as I stared up at the ceiling of the sick room in the Big House, a place I had visited many times since arriving at camp.
My body was stiff as I blinked about three times to finish making myself not super dead with sleep.
"Chiron ... your prophecy from the Oracle ... it was about Kronos, wasn't it? Were Sally and I in it? And Annabeth?" My brother was asking.
"Percy, it isn't my place—" Chiron was trying to explain.
"You've been ordered not to talk to us about it, haven't you?"
"You will be a great hero, child. I will do my best to prepare you. But if I'm right about the path ahead of you ..."
Thunder made me flinch as I continued to listen quietly.
"All right!" Chiron shouted, probably at the weird weather outside. "Fine!" He sighed, "The gods have their reasons, Percy. Knowing too much of your future is never a good thing."
"We can't just sit back and do nothing."
"We will not sit back," Chiron promised. "But you and your sister must be careful. Kronos wants you both to come unraveled. He wants your lives disrupted, your thoughts clouded with fear and anger. Do not give him what he wants. Train patiently. Your time will come."
"Assuming we live that long."
"You'll have to trust me, Percy. You will live. Both of you. But first, you both must decide your paths for the coming year. I cannot tell you the right choice...." He said it like he definitely had an opinion. "But you must decide whether to stay at Camp Half-Blood year-round or return to the mortal world for seventh grade and be a summer camper. Think about that. When I get back from Olympus, you must tell me your decision. I'll be back as soon as I can. Argus will watch over both of you. Oh, and, my dear ... whenever you're ready, they're here."
I finally turned my head, spying Annabeth by Percy's bedside, and asked, "Who's here?"
Everyone looked at me, their faces turning into ones of relief, but no one answered.
Chiron, in his enchanted wheelchair form, rolled over, squeezing my hand, "Good to have you back."
By the way, he said that I would assume that I was looking pretty bad when they found me.
I smiled tiredly at him before turning to Annabeth, "What's wrong?"
"Nothing," She shrugged before she placed a glass on Percy's bedside table. "I ... just took your advice about something. You guys... um ... need anything?"
"Yeah. Help me up. I want to go outside." Percy said, pushing himself out of his bed.
"Percy, that isn't a good idea," Annabeth scolded him.
He almost face-planted, but the blonde caught him before he did.
I sighed, pushing myself up as well, and slowly standing up.
I was a little dizzy, but it wasn't as bad as I expected it would be.
Annabeth gave me a harsh look but didn't say anything as we all made our way outside.
My arms were littered with new scars, both large and small, and a little suspicious, but they were all healed and okay, at least.
But my muscles ached as if I had just been in a car accident.
I leaned on the railing of the Big House beside my brother, who looked ready to die, "You looking a little green, Jackson."
He gave me a playful glare, but I could tell he was feeling rough, "I'm fine..."
Dusk was falling over the silent camp, and it was almost eery to stand there looking over the quiet cabins and fields.
"What are you guys going to do?" Annabeth murmured to us.
Percy and I looked at one another, but there was doubt in his eyes now as he muttered, "I don't know."
"I'm going home for the year, Percy..."
I already knew that, but my brother didn't.
"You mean to your dad's?" He asked dumbly.
She pointed to Half-Blood Hill, and I could see a family silhouetted by the setting son; a man, a woman, and two kids.
It had to be Annabeth's family.
"I wrote him a letter when we got back," Annabeth explained, tucking her blonde curls behind her ears. "Just like you suggested, Sal. I told him ... I was sorry. I'd come home for the school year if he still wanted me. He wrote back immediately. We decided ... we'd give it another try."
I grinned tiredly at her, "Wow, Brain Grape, that's gutsy."
She rolled her eyes at me, pursing her lips, "You two won't try anything stupid during the school year, will you? At least ... not without sending me an Iris-message?"
Percy and I smirked in unison, my brother answering, "We won't go looking for trouble. We usually don't have to. 'Specially not Sal. She's enough trouble just breathing."
Normally I would have tackled him or something, but instead, I just gave him an evil look murmuring, "Oh, Perc...You better not sleep tonight."
For the briefest second, my brother's eyes widened, but before he could answer, Annabeth said, "When I get back next summer, we'll hunt down Luke. We'll ask for a quest, but if we don't get approval, we'll sneak off and do it anyway. Agreed?"
"Sounds like a plan worthy of Athena," Percy responded.
She held her hand out to him, and they shook while she murmured, "Take care, Seaweed Brain. Keep your eyes open."
"You too, Wise Girl."
She gave me as tight a hug as she could while threatening, "If you don't IM me, I'm coming to find you, and I'll duct tape you to a chair and make you talk to me."
I just rolled my eyes, "Annabeth, chill the heck out. Of course, I'm gonna Iris-Message you; who else am I gonna complain about Percy to?"
"Hey!" Percy snapped.
We snickered before Percy and I watched Annabeth climb the hill and walk away with her family.
Percy and I stood there for a long while before I whispered, "Are we going or staying?"
He sighed before saying, "Mom will kill me if we stay. She's been preparing all the last two weeks for you to come stay with us in the new apartment."
I smiled fondly before nodding, "Sounds like a plan..."
Percy nudged my shoulder playfully before he looked over at the ocean and said, "We were scared, you know...You looked really bad when we found you..."
I grimaced before I shrugged, "Well, I'm alive. I'm okay. We both are. And now we have a reason to come back next year."
Percy smiled at me and said gently, "I'm glad you're my sister, you know that? You're like...you're like that always calm part of the ocean...Like you just are the chill part, ya know.
"You're not great with metaphors, Perc."
He sighed, "I know."
I snickered, "But I do understand, and I'm glad you're my brother. I couldn't have asked for a better one."
We stared out of the ocean before Percy murmured to no one, "We'll be back next summer. We'll survive until then. After all, we are your kids."
I nodded slowly and added, "And nothing can change that."
Percy squeezed my hand comfortingly, hearing the pain lacing my words before he said, "Wanna go pack?"
"Gods, yes. Let's get out of here. Let's go home."
Introducing...
Mr. D
as David Harbour
Travis and Conner Stoll
as Robert Sheehan (Travis) and Joshua Basset (Conner)
Clarisse La Rue
as Joey King