(A/N: Here we go. One more chapter.. and then next is the part you've all been waiting for.)
The next day, Calypso made us a magical raft for us to sail back home on. Once I woke up in the middle of the night, I slept until morning, and then made Percy swear on the River Styx that he would get the Gods to promise to free Calypso. Because look, as much as she was a titaness, she didn't deserve to be kept on this island like a prisoner. She deserved freedom.
I wanted Kayla, sure, but that didn't stop me from wanting to help right the wrongs that others had been dealt as a consequence of their actions. Calypso's imprisonment on Ogygia definitely felt the bill as one of those wrongs. So in a sense, you can't really blame me for wanting to help right that wrong. Not all gods are idiots, but when it comes to the Olympians, ignorance, lack of empathy plus lack of caring and forgetfulness run deep in this family. Calypso, camp, and that traitor Luke - they had all been victims of those things one way or another. Had the Gods been better people, none of this would ever have happened.
Luke knew that full well. Yet, he chose to betray us. There was no doubt in my mind that it was Kronos who corrupted him into doing so. I was sure of it. I still was pissed off by Luke betraying us.
I will admit, I didn't look upon Luke as favorably as many of the other campers did. He did do some nice things for me, but I wouldn't consider us as friends, more like acquaintances if I were to be honest. He rarely saw much of me, especially after I got my Whitworth rifle. Speaking of this gun, I might get around to telling you the story of how I got this weapon once this war is done with. Maybe, just maybe.
Anyways, because of that, I think it was much easier for me to accept the betrayal of Luke than most of the other campers when he nearly killed Percy with that pit scorpion. I don't have any regrets about swearing that if I ever came across the bastard, I would not hesitate to put a bullet through the traitor's head. I still don't have any regrets about that even now, honestly.
You betray the gods, you pay the price. That's how it works around these parts.
Either way, getting back to Camp Half Blood would mean that we were one step closer to that goal.
So it was that after me and Percy had put on our other clothes, got all our gear, and had made final preparations to leave, that we stepped on to the raft. Percy said a few words to Calypso, but I wasn't paying attention to what they said. I had a certain redhead on my mind.
Okay.. look.. I was a little bit pissed off at Hephaestus for not telling Kayla, my siblings, and camp that me and Percy were still alive. Like, can you even blame me for such a thing? I wasn't the one who got the two of us into this mess to even begin with, Percy had. I was just collateral damage to put it bluntly. At least, that's what I saw myself as to be honest. How the hell was I supposed to know that Percy would blow up and get us here in the first place? So why did I have to suffer and have my friends - and the girl that was going to become my girlfriend one way or another - believe that we were dead? It was some Grade A Bullshit, if you ask me.
Enough of that, though. Point is, I was solely focused on Kayla.
"Camp. Take us home to Camp Half Blood.." Percy spoke, snapping me from my thoughts, and then the boat began to move. At it did so, aside from Kayla, I had one other thought. Calypso, I swear to you, if the Gods don't free you if they agree to Percy's request, then I'm going to make sure that someone comes along that does free you from that island. I swear it on the River Styx.
Little did I realize what that would mean for me down the road..
- — - — - — - — -
As we drifted through the sea, towards home, towards Camp Half Blood, I'm pretty sure Percy and I's thoughts were both focused on the same thing. Would Camp still be okay when we got back?
I'm pretty sure that the worst case scenario for me right now would be coming back to camp only to find Luke's forces slaughtering the family I had left. I couldn't bear to see that. I had no idea what Percy's worst case scenario for this would be, but I was inclined to think that it would be probably something similar. Speaking of Percy, looking at him, his blonde hair seemed to glow as bright as the sun out here on the sea.
I must have been staring at Percy for too long though, because his voice snapped me out of my train of thought. "You okay Colton?" he asked me, out of concern. I simply nodded, while the sound of the ocean could be heard all around the raft the two of us were on.
"You seemed distant back at Ogygia.. and also what was with you blacking out when Hephaestus was talking last night?" he asked me, and I had half a mind to scream out to him then and there that I was in love with Kayla. But I didn't, because this idiot on the boat with me had Annabeth crushing head over heels for him and even after she had kissed him square on the lips in Hephaestus' forge, this dumb fuck was still oblivious as ever. Like dear god, someone hit this guy with the kitchen sink or something.
"How do you think it feels to be told that the people you care think you're dead because none of the gods ever thought to tell them that you're okay? How do you think it feels Percy?" I asked back. Percy pondered that for a moment.
"I'd simply surprise them when they are hosting a funeral for me to show them I'm not dead.." he replied, and I again had half a mind to strangle the poor fuck with my bare hands right here and now.
"Of course. You chose that answer because you're a child of the big three.. you don't know what it's like having more than one sibling in your cabin at the same time.." I snapped back. "You think Clarisse and my siblings are okay right now? Huh, do you?"
"No.." he said back.
"Then why you'd go with that answer then, idiot?" I asked him. "How emotional do you think they are going to be that we are alive? How emotional do you think Annabeth is going to be to see you alive?"
"I don't know.. maybe as much as a friend?" Percy said.
I lost it.
"PERCY JACKSON, SHE KISSED YOU ON THE LIPS IN HEPHAESTUS' FORGE! IT MAY HAVE BEEN BECAUSE SHE DIDN'T WANT YOU TO DIE, BUT IT'S ALSO BECAUSE SHE SEES YOU AS MORE THAN A FRIEND, YOU IDIOT!" I hollered.
"Wait.. does she see me as more than a friend?" he asked. God, this guy was clueless beyond hope.
"Figure it out yourself, dumb dumb.." I told him.
"Hey!" He snapped back. "I'm not a dumb dumb! And you're one to talk, given you got Kayla crushing all over you!"
That's it. I'm telling him how I really feel about her. No butts about it.
"So? At least I've recognized now that I'm in love with her.." I told him, and he looked at me like I had grown two heads.
"What?" he asked, confused. "What did you just say?"
"You heard me, water boy.." I said. "The reason why I blacked out while Hephaestus was talking was because I realized that I have fallen in love with Kayla Knowles. That's the reason why I'm even trying to put up with you on this trip home. I'M IN LOVE WITH HER, AND GOD DAMN IT, I'M COMING HOME TO ADMIT MY FEELINGS FOR HER, COME HELL OR HIGH WATER!"
Percy just chuckled. "Took you long enough to see it.. everyone at camp was betting whether you and her would hook up this summer, including me.." he said back, and I held back from pushing him off the boat, for more than one reason.
Because of course.. of course Percy fucking Jackson would be making bets on my love life. What a small world this was.
"Well.. once we get back to camp, all of you are about to get your wish. You happy about that, oblivious-man?" I said to him, smirking.
"What's that supposed to mean?" He said to me.
I simply shrugged, crossed my arms, and continued to smirk. "You know full well what it means, Jackson. You might as well be just as clueless as I was.." I said, turning around. He bombarded me with requests to explain myself, but I didn't say anything. I just thought of Kayla, Clarisse, my siblings, camp, and Annabeth. Especially Annabeth this time around.
Annabeth Chase, I thought to myself. You might have picked the world's most dense and oblivious person to fall in love with. If you ever succeed in getting him to feel the same way for you, I say congrats. No betting on it for me, just congrats.
And yeah, it was true. I didn't even bet on when Percy and Annabeth would maybe hook up. I simply was trying to make it happen by getting Percy to get over the dense hump that is his brain and recognize that he's in love with Annabeth. Apparently, he was not quite there yet.
- — - — - — - — -
It was about late-afternoon, I was guessing, by the time we got back to Camp Half Blood. The raft arrived on the shores, and both me and Percy jumped out onto the shore, and stopped dead in our tracks.
Everything was quiet, way too quiet. I didn't like it one bit. "Seems Hephaestus wasn't kidding.." Percy muttered next to me. "They do think we are dead."
"No shit, Sherlock.." I snapped back at him. Percy ignored me and pushed on towards the cabins. I followed him, hoping that I would find Kayla there.
Much to my own frustration, I didn't. The cabins were deserted completely, and the archery range looked empty too. "Where is everyone?" Percy asked, and that's when I smelled something.
Smoke.
"Hey uh.. Percy.." I said, and Percy looked at me. "You smell smoke?"
Percy sniffed the air for a couple of seconds, and then he nodded. "Yeah.. I do.." he said back, before the two of us started glancing around, trying to find out exactly where it was coming from.
It wasn't long before we found the source. The amphitheater.
My heart filled up with a sense of worry. I hope they aren't doing what I think they're doing, I thought to myself as Percy and I moved in the direction of the amphitheater.
We stopped dead in our tracks near it when we heard sniffles and then Chiron saying, "-after so many days, I believe our prayers have gone unanswered. We must accept the worst, but some campers would like to speak."
We quickened our pace, as Clarisse said some words about me and Percy. We crept around to the back of the amphitheater, up the slope of the ridge that led to Half Blood Hill, using the forest to conceal ourselves from view. How we made up there without anyone hearing me, I will never know.
"...so, yeah. He was a great friend. My best friend, and one of the best siblings I ever had. I think we'll all miss him."
My heart broke just looking at the scene as the two of us stood in the tree line at the back of the amphitheater. It was exactly as I had feared. They were doing a funeral ceremony for both of us.
Clarisse had tears in her eyes and was trying not to break down completely as she walked back to her seat on stage after giving those words. She down in her seat, and on her left was Annabeth and on her right was.. Kayla.
I wanted to cry, to scream, to let her I was okay.. but the sight of her in all black, head down, her sobs audible from where me and Percy were.. just froze me in place. I wanted to punch Hephaestus in the face right now, I really did. Even she did look like the beautiful fashion and archery queen as she was in that outfit, it still broke my heart to see her like this.
Annabeth got up and made her way to where Clarisse had stood.
"Percy Jackson, son of Poseidon, was a brave hero.. as was Colton Reynolds, son of Ares.." Chiron stated. "One of them accepting to go on a quest with young Annabeth here was a dangerous thing to do - as we all know - but.. I bare some of the responsibility here too.. by sending Colton down there into the labyrinth too. But both have not returned, so we can only assume that both are dead. So I have asked Annabeth here to say the final words."
Annabeth was shaking horribly, that much was evident. Percy and I stepped forward, standing at the back of the crowd. No one was even looking at us still. She took a deep breath and turned to the campers.
"Percy was probably the bravest friend I ever had. Colton was the next bravest, after Clarisse of course.." she started.
I smiled at that.
"He.."
Her eyes traveled blindly around the crowd, and landed on the two of us. She froze when she saw both us, and she looked like she had seen a ghost.
"..THEY'RE RIGHT THERE!"