////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\ ~*Chapter 7 up*~

by **Ninja_Yoshi** Sun Aug 15, 2010 4:41 am

PATIENCE MY CHILDREN

by **Ninja_Yoshi** Sun Aug 15, 2010 6:20 pm

MIYU
Believe me, I didn't ask for this.
None of us did.
It started when my mom took me, my twin and my elder brother to a mysterious camp on Long Island. I lived in downtown Manhattan, so not that far away.
She left us on a hill, next to a huge pine tree with a gold sheepskin hanging off it. I did a double take. Sheepskin? Great. We'd probably landed in prank central.
(It is a summer camp, after all.)
We waved goodbye to Mom and trudged down the slope. Through some strawberry fields was a huge blue farmhouse. I mean, huge. It had at least four stories. There were four people standing on the porch. Well, three. The fourth sat in a wheelchair.
Three guys, one girl. The girl had blonde hair in curls. Her eyes were a creepy, stormy gray. The kid next to her
(really close to her, actually)
had black hair and green eyes. It instantly reminded me of the ocean.
(Snap back to reality, oh, there goes gravity.)
I stumbled on the porch, almost conking my head. Blondie gave me the evil eye.
I held up my hand, knowing that my twin would help me. And she did.
The man beside them was pudgy, had black curly hair, and a red nose. He was the kind of guy who could tell you the exact price of a bottle of a fifty-year old wine from memory. Huh. A wino.
The man in the wheelchair had brown unruly hair and beard, giving him that 'I've-been-there' look.
The wino spoke. "Welcome to Camp Half-Blood and all that garbage. Whatever."
The ocean-boy
(who was about my age, seventeen)
nudged him.
Wino threw him a murderous glance and told us, "This is Camp Half-Blood," and went back into the house.
"Camp.... Half-Blood?"
"Yes," Blondie told me coldly. "Half-Blood. We'll show you the orientation video."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

We walked out of the room.
"Well," Sayano said, speaking at last. "This explains how you guys caught that playground bully on fire in second grade."
We both
(but we already knew why, none of this was really surprising to me)
simultaneously flinched. We'd gotten expelled then. We'd gotten expelled from every school we ever went to.
Alice opened her mouth to make a snide remark, but Wheelchair Guy came out to meet us. Only he wasn't in a wheelchair. He was...
"A centaur?!" Alice shrieked. "No way!"
My stomach turned. I had always felt uneasy around horses. There was nothing to explain that, either.
Centaur Guy sighed. "Yes, way. My name is Chiron."
I raised eyebrows quizzically. "Like, the Chiron?" I'd heard Charon gripe about this guy so much it surprised me he was cool so far.
He nodded, as if he got this question a lot.
I shrugged. "That's cool."
He looked at me oddly and said, "You shall be staying in Cabin Eleven, Hermes, until you're determined."
"Uh... determined?"
Right on cue, a holographic sun appeared above my brother's head.
"Apollo," Chiron said. "God of the sun, music and prophecies. You are determined."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

We weren't determined. Alice and I were staying in the Hermes cabin just as Chiron had said. We slept on the floor with about six other undetermineds. They were claimed a few days later. A regular came from the "Big House," as the campers called it, saying, "Mr. D said we're doing capture the flag tonight!"
The cabin cheered. Alice and I exchanged looks. We had always been brutal opponents in PE, always picked first for teams. We'd gotten kicked out of school in seventh grade because a flaming dodgeball burnt down a wall. We didn't know how it caught on fire. It just did.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Athena and Ares led, and the teams were divided as such: Athena's team consister of Apollo, Hermes,
(the biggest cabins)
Poseidon
(who was just ocean-boy, Percy)
and Demeter. Ares had the leftovers. We put on all of our battle-armor, and helms with blue plumes. Ares had red.
Blondie
(Annabeth, daughter of Athena)
divided us into sections, twenty-four of them.
(For each letter of the alphabet.)
The Omega squad consisted of her, Percy, Alice and me.
(The two newbies.)
We were were battle/flag duty. I chuckled and drew an omega on my sister's cheek with my finger. A trail of ash was left behind, making football streaks. In awe, I repeated it on her other cheek and Percy. It worked. I scribbled the letter quickly on Annabeth's cheek, and she tried to wipe it off. Nothing happened. Laughing, Alice drew on my face.
"Good to go," I said.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

We stealthily entered enemy territory, flanked by Apollo kids. Sayano was with them, and grinned stupidly at us. Then he smacked into a tree. I smiled sweetly. His group, Kappa, split off to follow some Hephaestus kids after that. We were alone, until we sighted the flag, surrounded by three Ares kids.
(But of course they were ten feet away. It's rules.)
Annabeth gave us a look that said stay here and replaced her helm with a Yankees cap. She disappeared. Alice was shocked, but Percy's expression was clear; she did this a lot.
The three of us waited
(I could still see the shadows moving)
until Annabeth was visible again. She was behind the three uglies, and started making faces. She returned the cap to her head.
We stifled our laughter as the flag vanished, a sure sign it had been captured. Just to tease the Ares folks, she took off her hat about halfway to us, no longer invisible. Sure enough, the reds chased her. We took the flag and sprinted towards the creek, which was boundary.
Annabeth shrieked, "Percy! The water!" and the whole creek rose up, and doused the reds. Alice and I crossed the border. All of Athena's team cheered.
Chiron came out of nowhere, I kid you not, nowhere, and announced blue the winners.
The flag changed color right before our eyes. It turned black, with a hellhound and a helm on it. All the campers gasped Apparently, this was not what the Hermes flag looked like.
Everyone stared above our heads at the holographic helmets that had appeared. The whole camp knelt.
"Hades," Chiron said. "Hail, Miyu and Alice Oshibonni, twin daughters of the Lord of the Dead."
I resisted the urge to say "Duh!"

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

We didn't even have a cabin. Oh, there was one, but it wasn't complete. The Hephaestus children and our half-brother Nico were in the process of making it. Meanwhile, we shared a cabin with Percy. Apparently, Percy had asked his father, and Poseidon, while grudgingly, agreed. Percy, being the only Cabin Three kid, was heaed counselor and we had to listen to him. He told stories about Thalia, daughter of Zues, and Grover, who'd we'd met, and his relationship to Annabeth. He blushed and stopped a few times, but we weaseled it out of him.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Later at dinner, no one even spoke to us, except Percy and Annabeth. And Annabeth didn't really talk to me, she just glared.
We scraped part of our meal into the fire, and Percy said in my ear, "For the gods. They like the smell."
I stared. "The... smell?" I wondered how the gods liked the scent of burning food. I watched Percy, and he murmured, "Poseidon." Oh. We were supposed to offer it to our Olympic parent. I wasn't sure I wanted to, but Percy nudged me, and so I shoved part of my meal off my plate into the fire. I mumbled "Hades," as quietly as I could. Expecting the smoke to go up, it surprised me when it went down, seeping into the ground.
Thank you, child, a voice said in my mind. It's been a while since I've had an offering.
I almost dropped my plate, and run back to the table. It's not like I had never talked to my dad. But he had never spoken in my mind before. Alice came over, face a mirror of my own. Percy sauntered back, a smile on his face. "That was interesting."
"SHUT UP, PERCY!!!!!" Alice and I screamed at the same time. The everyone stared, completely silent.
Everyone except Annabeth. Her eyes, narrowed, were full of anger. I hadn't a clue why. Percy was seemingly pleading with her silently, mouthing words.
Ah. I sank down on the bench, turning beet red, my sister doing the same. Suddenly the right side of our heads caught on fire. Just the top, and only our hair. Alice screamed and I began beating my head. Percy shouted, "Water!" at his cup and doused us. We started coughing and sputtering, cold water dripping of our noses.
Abruptly it disappeared, and a warm feeling spread throughout me. I looked up, seeing my brother with his hand flung out in our direction. That jerk. He was using his power!
I stood up and stomped out of the mess hall. Tears sprung to my eyes, and I wiped them away angrily. I did not want my head to catch on fire again.
Coming to a stand-still, I gazed around the camp. I spotted an eight or nine year-old girl poking the fire. I'd never met her before, but I knew exactly who she was.
"Lady Hestia," I said, walking over and bowing.
She smiled and continued stoking the embers.
"I have a feeling you cause this," she stated, gesturing at the pit.
"The fire reflects the feelings of the campers here. I have seen it as tall as the trees and pink, when Aphrodite visited, and I have seen it disappear when great losses were suffered. You have made the heroes here uneasy, so it is small and gray."
It was gray. I had noticed before.
Don't ask me why I did it, but I held my hand out, palm towards the pitiful fire. It roared and sprang upward, taller than the trees and bright blue.
"Hades' daughter, you truly are a valuable asset to this camp," Hestia said, waving her hand. The fire died down, but it was still huge. She turned back to me, her eyes shining in the light, reminding me of home.
"Truly."
Then I fainted.

by **Miss Alice the Ninja** Mon Aug 30, 2010 11:31 pm

(You should totally update this. : D)

by **Ninja_Yoshi** Tue Aug 31, 2010 4:41 am

PERCY
Smiles washed over the crowd staring at the door, and soon every single person, including me, was grinning like an idiot. Every single person but little black-haired-black-eyed Alice. She clutched at her stomach, and it looked like she was going to hurl. I pointed at her cup and said, "Sprite."
I pushed the goblet toward her and told her to drink.
She did, her hand shaking.
Annabeth slid into my side, and casually put her arm around my shoulders. I snaked mine around her waist.
Sorry Dad, Lady Athena, I said in my mind.
Whatever, two other voices boomed, one distinctly female and the other male. I caught a faint hmph! from Athena, and I grinned even wider.
"What's wrong with Alice?" Annabeth mumbled in my ear.
Suddenly, I didn't feel as giddy, and Alice slumped over sideways.
Annabeth and I ran around the table and supported her with our shoulders.
We lugged her all the way to the edge of the lake. Annabeth didn't know it, but I had a plan.
I focused on the water, making it rise and turn to a fine mist.
"Got a drachma?"
Annabeth flipped me the coin, and I tossed it into the rainbow.
"O Goddess, accept my offering. Hades, the Underworld!"
The rainbow trembled and revealed Hades sitting at a table playing with a Newton's Cradle. Standing next to him was a guy who looked like... well, Newton. Who, if I'm right was a child of Athena.
The familiar tugging in my stomach worsened, and I put a foot in the water.
"Lord Hades! Uncle!" I called.
He jumped about a foot. "What?!"
"Hi." I waved.
He growled and narrowed his eyes. "What do you want, Barnacle Boy? I don't have your mom this time, someone else does."
I thought for a moment. "No one has my mom."
(except Paul)
"Oh. Well, then why'd you call?"
Inhaling deeply, I told him, "I've got one of you daughters unconscious here."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"WHICH ONE?!? WHAT DID YOU DO TO HER?!?" Hades bellowed.
Newton flinched at every word, and the ground shook. LA probably just had a super-bad earthquake. At 4:00 in the afternoon.
"It's Alice, and I didn't do it!" Anger flared inside me. Just because everything else was my fault doesn't mean this was!
"Lord Hades?" Annabeth squeaked, uncharacteristically nervous. "I think her sister did it."
"What?" I hissed in her ear. "How?"
"The fire," she whispered back.
Of course! The fire showed the feelings of the campers. The Oshibonnis had control over fire. Miyu was the reason the whole camp looked like they were stoned.
"Uncle, I'd like to take her underwater for a while, to heal her and get her away from the other demigods," I said, my voice falsely confident.
"Isaac, you may go," Hades told Newton. Newton gathered his things and sped out of the throne room.
"Now, what are you saying? You gonna take her to Barnacle Beard's palace?" A rumble shook the space. "Oh, put a thermal sock in it!" He shouted at the roof.
"No, I intend to take her to mine," I answered calmly.
Hades laughed harshly. "Yours? Yours? Fine! That's cool with me! Take her to your palace, Kelp Brain!" He waved a hand through the image and the mist dissapated. I grabbed Annabeth's hand and we waded into the surf like so may other times before.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Alice and Annabeth got slightly damp. I stayed perfectly dry. As usual.
Now, just to clarify things, my underwater palace is not a palace. It's more like... I don't want to say mansion, but that's essentially what it is. Three stories and all that. I built it right after the war, and Annabeth laid out all the blueprints for me. We had it done in four days, thanks to the naiads. Annabeth and I had been going there a few times a week ever since the Bubble Incident. Heh. You know about the Bubble Incident. If the two of us ever disappeared together, everyone usually knew we were here. Or in the forest. Mostly here. But no one could come down and get us, because they couldn't breathe underwater.
Anyway, I had asked my dad to maintain the structure so the waves and animals couldn't cause it to collapse. Mostly because it was a pain in the butt to build in the first place. I'm not doing it ever again.
We took Alice to a room on the first floor that had a special ward to keep good air inside its walls. It was decked out all girly, mostly because it was Annabeth's room. Okay, it wasn't girly, like an Aphrodite kid had decorated it, but it definitely had a watchemacallit, a feminine touch or whatever. I hadn't had anything to do with it. This was all Annabeth's doing. There was a desk in the corner, a mess of papers and broken pencils. Her cheeks turned pink and she mumbled something about cleaning it up before Alice woke up.
We laid her on the bed, and headed out. For the first time in a year, there was an awkward silence. Her grip on my hand tightened.
Maybe she was nervous about drowning. The only way she could breathe down here was being in her room, in a bubble, or touching me. (She set a boundary of hands only.) It was still difficult, because the air seemed thin in the water.
"Do you want me to make a bubble?" I asked gently.
"Yeah." Her voice had a weird tone.
Uh-oh. I am definitely not the brightest crayon in the box when it comes to girls. I had a feeling this had to do with the arrival of the Oshibonni twins.
I created a bubbled around both of us. We had found out the hard way that the bubble around her head is annoying.
"Do you love me?" she asked miserably, which was most certainly not like her.
"Of course I do," I said gently, hugging her. Thank goodness we were still the same height this summer. Her head thunked against my shoulder, hard.
It was awkward once again.
I didn't know exactly what to do, but I got the gist.
I stroked her blonde curls, hoping she wouldn't punch me. Instead, she just murmured, "I love you too, Percy."
I let out a small sigh of relief.
After several minutes of just standing there, I let go of her and led her to a kelp couch. I tried to sit normally, but Annabeth wouldn't have any of that. She just about shoved me down so I was sprawled on the couch. She wormed under my arms so I was once again holding her, this was so unlike Annabeth I was shocked speechless.
I had a sudden brainwave that would probably get me strangled.
"Annabeth," I began slowly, "you aren't.... jealous, are you?"
She was silent, for a few moments.
"Annabeth."
"I don't know, Percy. A little, I guess. I just..." She wouldn't look at me. "I'm just wondering if Aphrodite is messing with us again."
I pulled her even closer. "What do you mean?" Again, I felt like one of Apollo's sacred cows-- slow, dumb, and bright red.
"Ever since we got out of the Sea of Monsters, important people-- girls, to be exact-- have somehow found you. I was-- I was worried, Percy. Thalia, well, she was more powerful than me, and I thought, well, I thought--" She faltered, as if she couldn't bring herself to say it.
"You were afraid I would pick her over you."
She nodded. "Then she became a Hunter, and I relaxed. After that, it was Rachel. I figured you would rather have a normal mortal girlfriend.
"For a while there, I thought you'd chosen her, instead of me. I cried myself to sleep every night. It scared my cabin, and my family. Then Rachel became the Oracle."
I smiled. "And I chose you."
She couldn't but grin a little bit. But it disappeared.
"Now, the Oshibonni twins are here, and they're daughters of Hades. More powerful than me. And they're both seventeen, unlike Thalia, who was a year and a half older than you."
Something clicked in my brain.
"They're seventeen?"
Annabeth nodded.
"When's their birthday?" I asked tightly.
"April first." Annabeth's eyes widened. "Oh, gods."
"Should we wait?"
"Yes, we really should."
We both nodded.
"And Annabeth?"
"Hmm?" She turned to look at me.
"I love you." I kissed her.
Instantly my brain felt like mush.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

We must've fallen asleep, because I was having one of my sucky demigod dreams.
I was standing in Hades' throne room, right in between Hades' and Persephone's thrones. In front of me stood Nico and.... Luke.
He looked different from the last time I saw him. Mostly because last time I saw him, he was covered in blood and burns.
Nico was talking to his father. "--second chance." He looked right at me, and then to my left. I looked too, and there stood Annabeth. She noticed me. I held a finger to my lips. She nodded, and turned back to Luke. her eyes glistened.
Jealousy erupted in my chest.
Hades spoke. "Nico, you know that's impossible. He must try for rebirth, and then he won't have memories of his past life."
Luke stayed silent. He looked nervous.
"Talk to Daedalus," Nico suggested. "He can use an automaton once. Then he can set things right with everyone." He looked at Annabeth and me. "Annabeth, Percy, Hermes, and the rest of the gods."
For a scary second, I though he was talking to us.
Hades sighed. "Nico, it's against ancient laws. You know that."
"Once he's done, he can return here, and stay in Elysium." Then he muttered, "I don't know why he wanted to leave in the first place."
"M-m-my lord Hades," Luke stammered. "I just... There's things that I never told some people that I should've."
The lord of the dead sighed again. "When I get punished for this, you two are toast."
If it wasn't such a serious subject, I would have busted up laughing. Hades, trying to sound like a modern teenager.
Hades looked at Luke, then shifted his gaze to his son. "Child, go find Daedulus. I believe he's working on an Elysium overpass."
That dream dissolved, and I woke up suddenly.
Annabeth gasped.
I quickly put a bubble around us again. I guess it didn't matter, since she was practically laying on top of me.
"Did you... did you..."
"Yeah," I said. "Luke,"
There was silence. Then Annabeth's phone chirped.
I internally groaned. "Who is it?"
She checked the display. "Travis."
She flipped it open, and put it on speaker. "Hello?"
We got surprisingly good reception for being in the middle of the lake.
"What's wrong with your voice?" Travis asked.
"Doesn't matter."
"Whatever. Where the Hades are you? And where's Percy?"
"Percy's with me."
"Oh. Well then, I know where you are."
"I'm right here, Travis," I said loudly.
"I know that, Percy."
"What time is it?" I growled.
"Just before lunch," Travis answered.
"Di Immortales!" Annabeth said. "Did we really sleep that long?"
"Did you really sleep?" Travis mused.
I reached over and shut the phone.
"We should head back."
I nodded. "We have to--
"Talk to Chiron," we said in unison.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Alice slept like the dead. Go figure. It took at least ten minutes to wake her up.
She kept muttering, "Tell Dad I don't wanna walk Cerberus...."
And at one point, she said, "Past the point of no return..."
I looked at Annabeth. She shrugged. "Phantom of the Opera."
Finally we decided just to drag her ashore.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

All the senior counselors were standin on the dock. When we arrived, we pushed Alice up. The others grabbed her and hauled her onto the dock. I tried to help Annabeth by supporting the small of her back, but I missed.
She got my hand and pulled me up. Stepping in close, she whispered, "I'll get you back."
Travis and Conor Stoll had identical grins on their aces. I glared.
Katie Gardner handed Annabeth a towel. Since she let go of me, she was soaked.
"Chiron," I said, looking up at my teacher, "Annabeth and I need to talk to you. Now."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

We told Chiron about our freaky joint dream.
The other counselors remained silent, only exchanging glances.
Alice was still snore/mumbling.
Chiron stroked his beard. "This is deeply troubling."
"We can give him Hades in the cabin," Connor said.
"Oh, you remember the T-shirt we gave that Hunter?" Travis reminisced.
"Yes, and because of that, Thalia is the only Hunter who still likes you. Not that they liked you in the first place," Katie Gardner commented.
"Thalia is the only Hunter that ever liked any of us," Jake Mason added.
"We need Thalia here," Annabeth said.
"If Luke's really coming back, we owe it to her to at least tell her," I said.
"But if she comes, so will the Hunters," Travis whined.
Clarisse, who had been silent the whoe time, spoke up. "That will give us the chance to beat them in capture the flag."
"But last time we played capture the flag with the Hunters, Percy and Thalia almost killed each other," Nico, who had also been silent, piped in.
Annabeth looked at me.
"Uh, and the Oracle took a zombie walk," Nico finished hurriedly.
"The Oracle is human now. She'll be playing on our team," I snapped. The kid had practically tossed me under a bus. Annabeth would want to know why Thalia and I tried to kill each other over a game of capture the flag, and why she hadn't heard about it until now.
"Why are we worrying about capture the flag?" I asked angrily. "Shouldn't we be worried about what Luke coming back would mean?"
"Percy is right," Chiron said carefully. "The Fates snipped a life cord. This throws everything out of balance. If he comes back, someone else may die."
I stared at Nico, who shrugged.
"He said he wanted to talk. That shouldn't take long. Then he'll go back."
"Annabeth, what do you think?" Chiron's voice was gentle.
"He should stay dead." Her's was harsh and full of emotion.
She stormed off, dropping her towel.
They all looked at me.
"Fine, I'll follow an angry girl whose mother just happens to be the goddess of war strategy."
I followed Annabeth.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I checked the Athena cabin. No Annabeth.
I checked my cabin. No Annabeth.
Ampitheatre. Dining pavilion. Meadow. I even peered inside the Hermes cabin.
No Annabeth.
As a last resort, I went into the Big House. A lot of rooms were filled with wounded or sick campers including, I noticed, Miyu Oshibonni.
As I progressed farther on, I was aware that there was faint crying coming from above. I climbed the attic stairs.
What had once been home to an old, creepy mummy was now nothing but a dusty museum of demigod quests and battles. Lately, Annabeth and I had been revisiting places where we had had battles over the last five years, to check for-- well, we're not sure, exactly. The only things we had found so far were tiny metallic spiders, and a Hydra head. We also got Medusa's severed noggin from my mother. All of these things were labelled, and then put on shelves. When we were clearing out the Oracle-ish stuff, Grover joked about how the three of us should have a glass cabinet to ourselves.
But now, back in the corner, where some of the oldest and dustiest artifacts were kept, came the steady noise of a crying girl.
At least she wasn't mad.
(Those could be angry tears)
A younger me
(probably the one I was up until the war for Olympus)
would have backed away slowly, then bolted.
I didn't now.
"Percy?"
I smiled to myself and walked over.
"How did you know?"
"The trap door opened."
I felt like a moron. "Oh. Yeah."
For a moment, I thought I heard a giggle. Then it was gone.
"It's so hot up here."
"Then why are you up here, goofball?" I asked.
She didn't answer. Instead, her phone beeped into the silence.
It was obviously a text, because she just stared at the screen.
Suddenly she looked up, her face momentarily blissful.
"Rachel's here!"

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

On the way out of the house, we check on Miyu.
There was no change.
Since we had checked, we took off for Hlaf-Blood Hill.
Standing under Thalia's tree (but far enough away from Peleus the guard dragon), we could see Rachel pulling one, two... three big suitcases out of the white camp van. Knowing her, two out of the three probably were filled with easels, paint sets, and every color of Sharpie imaginable.
We ran down the hill to help her.
"Percy! Annabeth! Hi!" She dropped a suitcase on her foot. "Ow!"
It took Annabeth and me together to lift it.
"It's got wheels," Rachel said, trying not to laugh.
"Thanks for mentioning that," I muttered. "I could have run your foot over."
Annabeth elbowed me.
"Come on! Don't tell me it never crossed your mind."
I knew for a fact it did.
Each of us took a handle, and rolled to Rachel's cabin.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

It's unfair how cool Rachel's cabin was. But, I guess when you knew Apollo on a personal level, you get hooked up.
On the outside the cabin was a deep purple that shimmered green and black in the sunlight. It read ORACLE above the door in Ancient Greek.
Inside-- oh my gods, it was awesome. It was divided in half by purple curtains, the front was standard Oracle-yness. A three-legged stool, all that jazz.
"Mm. I've got to talk to Apollo about putting a back on the tripod. It's murder on my shoulders and neck," Rachel mumbled.
We continued to the back of the cabin. Behind the curtain, it looked a lot like Rachel's loft bedroom in New York. The only difference was size.
There was a few easels already set up, with covered paintings occupying them. She also had arcade games in the corner. Pac-Man, Whack-A-Dionysus, and Olympian Pinball to name a few. (Whack-A-Dionysus is my favorite.)
As the suitcases rolled to a stop, Rachel pulled the sheets off the forgotten paintings.
The first was Blackjack, his wings extended straight up.
The second was Apollo. Oookay.
The third was Annabeth and me. We were holding hands and kissing.
We turned toward Rachel, identical stunned expressions.
"I draw images I can't get out of my mind," she muttered sheepishly.
"Nice to know you think of us often." Annabeth's voice was full of uncertainty.
My gaze shifted to her, and she gave me a look only Annabeth could. The way she sighed told me we would have to talk more later, about Luke.
And talking about Luke opened a whole new box of hurt.
I decided to talk to her later.
"Hey, Rachel, we're going to IM Thalia because--"
"Luke's coming back," Rachel nodded. "I had a vision."
"What was it like?"
Suddenly, rachel doubled over.
Oh, no.
When she straightened, her eyes were bright, electric green.
"A hero of war returns from the dead
Another hero's heart fills with dread
Five half-bloods will set out on the quest
In order to save all of the rest
One wrong choice, and you're setting up for a fail
Doomed foever to the land of fiery hail."
She crumpled and we caught her.
Shaking her head, she asked, "What'd I say?"
Annabeth repeated the prophecy.
I thought. "Well, that seems pretty straightforward. No tricks this time."
"Percy!" Annabeth sounded exasperated. "'One wrong choice and you're setting up for a fail'? We do one little thing wrong, and we're going to die!" She must have seen the look on my face, because she added, "Come on. How many other lands of fiery hail do you know? It has to be the Underworld."
Have I ever mentioned how much I hate it when she's got a point?
"Can you guys discuss it at war counsel? If you don't call an emergency meeting, I will." Rachel held a palm to her forehead.
"Rachel," Annabeth sighed, "we have a lot to talk about at war counsel."
Oh goody.

by **Shadow Ninja** Tue Aug 31, 2010 5:06 am

Not to sound to pushy but when is there going to be more?

by **Ninja_Yoshi** Tue Aug 31, 2010 5:27 am

[Do you see how small the print is and how long the post is?]

by **Shadow Ninja** Tue Aug 31, 2010 5:38 am

OOC: Noooo....*shakes head*

by **Ninja_Yoshi** Tue Aug 31, 2010 5:41 am

[There might not be more for a while.]

by **Shadow Ninja** Tue Aug 31, 2010 5:45 am

OOC: Are you allowed to be on? 'Cause the last time that I talked to you, you were only allowed to be on for 15 mintues.

by **Ninja_Yoshi** Tue Aug 31, 2010 5:50 am

[I might be for a little while longer. My mom's not home.]

by **Shadow Ninja** Tue Aug 31, 2010 5:50 am

OOC: Ahhh...I see...so what did you do this time to make her mad at you?

by **Ninja_Yoshi** Tue Aug 31, 2010 5:53 am

[Why do you automatically assume she's mad?
Do you mind sharing?
She's at a Girl Scout Meeting.]

by **Shadow Ninja** Tue Aug 31, 2010 5:55 am

OOC: 'Cause you said that you were grounded...I was wondering way...

by **Ninja_Yoshi** Tue Aug 31, 2010 6:17 am

[I'm not grounded. That was for a day.]

by **Cheaka Higarashi** Tue Aug 31, 2010 7:43 am

{This is really good!!!!!!!!!! I enjoy reading it!!! Plus, good job on the prophecy!!!!!!!!}

by **Ninja_Yoshi** Wed Sep 01, 2010 7:50 pm

[Really? The prophecy was so lame, it was lamer than Annabeth's bipolar attitude with Percy.]

by **Cheaka Higarashi** Wed Sep 01, 2010 9:07 pm

{lol, i loved it!!!!!!}

by **Ninja_Yoshi** Thu Sep 02, 2010 5:25 pm

[O-O]

by **Ninja_Yoshi** Sun Sep 05, 2010 7:40 pm

[I'm going to update this when I finish Alice's chapter.]

by **Ninja_Yoshi** Tue Sep 07, 2010 9:54 pm

ALICE
First sensation: heat. Where? My face. It was steadily retreating and coming back. Oscillating heater fan? No. There was no whire that came with a motor and fan blades. Warm summer breeze? No. There was no sun on my face, and I wasn't in the shade.
I opened my eyes, to see my sister's closed ones.
Ah. It was her breathing. Her breath was sweet, smelling of apple cider with honey.
"I wanna know... have you ever seen the rain... coming down... on a sunny day?"
We're both chronic sleep-singers.
"Miyu." I shook her shoulder. "Miyu."
"You, make, me, feel like I'm living a, teenage dream..."
I hit her shoulder, shoving with my mind as well.
"It's a death wish!" she said wildly, sitting up. She had crazy-eyes.
"Never say 'who's there'," I whispered back, gripping her wrists.
"Jesse?"
I blinked. "Who's Jesse?"
She blinked back. "Oh. Onii~Sama. Just a spirit I met on the Isles of the Blest. The first two times he died he was murdered."
I stared at her. "How'd you get onto the Isles of the Blest?"
She shrugged. "I bribed Persephone."
"With what?"
"Moonlace that Calypso gave me."
"How'd you get to Ogygia?"
"I shadow-traveled."
I flopped back against the pillow. "I really don't know what to do with you, Onii~Sama."
After a silence, she asked, "Can I have the rest of your nectar?"
I whipped my head back and forth. "No. You'll burn up."
Sitting back up, I downed the rest of my nectar.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"What do you mean, three days? Nico, don't you lie to us!" Miyu was getting herself worked up.
"I'm not! You've been out for three days!"
We were standing in our totally wicked newly finished cabin. It was black, which seemed to be our theme color.
It seemed to me like every god or goddess had a color.
Anyway, Nico, Miyu, and I were standing in the middle of the cabin. Actually, I was sitting in a green beanbag chair. But still.
And what's the perfect way to break in a new cabin?
A great big family argument, that's what.
"I've never slept for three days straight!"
"It wasn't straight," Nico retaliated. "Percy and I woke you up to give you nectar and ambrosia."
"Minor details!" Miyu shouted.
"Quit yelling at Nico," i told my twin.
"Yes, please quit yelling at Nico," Nico mumbled.
Suddenly, a hunting horn sounded outside. Alice and I exchanged confused looks, but Nico said, "The Hunters of Artemis," with a tone that should've been used to say Fields of Punishment or Dad's gym socks.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

There was at least thirty-five, and only one was friendly.
My first thought: I was looking into a mirror that took off two years with blue eyes.
Then I noticed differences. A splash of freckles across her cheeks, tanner, stronger, and larger eyes,
I was seventy-five percent sure I was staring into the lightning-blue eyes of my cousin, Thalia, daughter of Zues, immortal liuetenant of Artemis, the most powerful half-blood of the century.
Second thought: I hope to Zues she's friendly.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Thalia gave hugs to a few: Percy, Annabeth, Grover, and Nico.
As she did this, the other Hunters looked away.
I knew about these girls. Dad had complained about how our half-sister had joined, then been killed by a defective Talos statue. He also said that if enough girls joined, the world population would slowly deplete, because they were man-haters.
So why was Thalia hugging Percy, Nico, and Grover?
Finally Thalia came to a stop before Miyu and me.
"Daughters of Hades?" she asked smiling.
We nodded.
"You hang out with this bukcet of kelp?" She jerked a thumb at Percy.
"Hey!" He said indignantly.
Another nod.
She laughed. "This is the part where I try to convince you to ditch him and come with me."
Then she surprised us with hugs.
"Welcome to the ever chaotic family of the childen of the Big Three."
She adjusted her silver circlet. "Formalities set aside, we'll be getting settled in the cabin now."
As she left, she gave us a wink.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Percy should be captain."
"Annabeth should!"
I leaned over to Nico. "I though this was war counsel," I whispered in his ear.
"So did I," he murmured in return.
"Co-captain," a freckly, red-headed girl said, obviously bored.
"Thank you, Rachel," Chiron said. "We should discuss more, ah, pressing matters. Rachel has made a prophecy."
"I hate prophecies," Thalia muttered.
"What was it?" Clarisse
(daughter of Ares)
asked.
Annabeth recited it.
"Luke?" Thalia sat forward.
Percy and Annabeth nodded.
"Who should go?" Travis Stoll asked.
"Percy and Annabeth, of course," Jessica Armani
(daughter of Aphrodite)
said matter-of-factly.
"And Thalia," Katie Gardner suggested. "Even though she's a Hunter she's still a half-blood."
"That's three," Chiron noted.
Thalia turned to my twin and me.
"You're coming."
"Us?" Miyu squeaked.
"Yes. We have to go to the Underworld. You should be able to get us in safely."
"So can Nico!" Miyu protested.
Nico said, "You guys are olders."
Brat.
"It's decided! You'll leave in the morning," Chiron announced, before Miyu could strangle Nico. "Right now, you have to focus on capture the flag."
Suddenly Redhead Rachel flinched.
"You'll lose someone. It's inevitable."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Capture the flag, again.
Somehow it seemed unfair, a hundred or so campers against thirty-eight Hunters.
"Don't let them fool you into feeling sympathetic," Percy said to me, as if reading my mind. "They cheat."
"We do not!" Thalia yelled from the huddle of Hunters.
"How do you know?" Percy shouted back. "You've never played on that side before!"
"So?"
Shaking his head and smiling, Percy adjusted my armor straps.
I saw Annabeth glare.
Chiron trotted out. "You all know the rules. No intentional maiming, and absolutely no killing. Hunters, west woods, campers, east. The flag must be clearly visible, and guards must be ten feet away. Magic items are allowed. Creek is boundary. I'll serve as referee and medic. Go!"
We ran into the woods, cheering.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I caught up with Annabeth.
"What do you want me to do?"
"Guard the flag," she said shortly.
"Okay." Glad to know I was wanted. As I ran with the flag bearers, I though about what it would be like to be a Hunter of Artemis.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

There were four guards, not including me. Sayano and one of his cabinmates were in trees on either side of the flag, quivers full. Nico and Redhead Rachel were on either side of me, swords drawn and at the ready.
While they had totally wicked swords, Nico's three feet of uber sharp Stygian iron, Rachel's celestial bronze with emeralds along the hilt, I had one of the lame unbalanced camp ones. As I gripped the leather-wrapped handle, I couldn't help but wish I hadn't left my Egyptian hunting knives in the Underworld. Each a foot long with two ten-inch curved prongs, made of pure celestial bronze, there were freaking aweseome. (A better visual would be in The Mummy Returns flashback scene.)
"Hey," I heard Sayano call down. "Put these in." He tossed us all earplugs.
The others did so without question, but I asked, "Why?"
He grinned. "Sonic arrows. Gift from Dad."
"Why?"
"Because they use fart arrows," Nico said.
I took off my helmet and put the earplugs in, wishing I had a clothespin for my nose.
Then we waited. And waited. And... wait for it... waited.
Finally there was crashing in the tree. It was loud, because I could hear it throught the plugs.
Thalia and another Hunter came into view, fending off Jessica Armani and Clarisse.
Sayano notched an arrow. When he let fly, it hit the ground and exploded. The Hunter fell to her knees, clutching her ears. Jessica and Clarisse apparently had plugs, but it seemed Thalia did too. She knocked her own arrow, but when it hit the ground and exploded, a yellow sulfur cloud covered everything.
"Ugh!" I said when the stench hit my nose. The two girls pursuing Thalia did the same.
She was coming towards me.
Oh, no.
She slung her bow across her back, and drew out a can of Mace.
(what?)
But the can extended into a spear, a spear that crackled with electricity. She also slapped a bracelet on her wrist, and that spiraled into a shield with the face of the Gorgon pressed into the surface.
Gods, she was scary.
I did my best to look frightening as my sword met her spear above our heads. I'm pretty sure my expression was one of manic determination.
That was when I set my sword ablaze (accidentally). My manic determination was replaced with a manic grin as big as Ares' ego.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

I never wavered, but the same could not be said for Thalia. Her arm wobbled once, and she stumbled, leading to me unintentionally slashing a rip in her silvery-black skinny-jean-clad thigh with my flaming weapon. She gasped, then shock fell away, and anger stepped up. She flung her arm sideways, bringing her electric spear across my cheek.
My head whipped around, spraying red droplets of demigod blood on the flag. Pain bloomed on my face, and I cried out.
As we fought on, I heard someone scream, "Jake, run!" and lated, "Alice! Thalia! Stop!"
If they waned us to quit, why didn't they get into the fight and disarm one of us?
For that, I had no answer.

by **Ninja_Yoshi** Thu Sep 09, 2010 5:08 am

THIRD PERSON
Campers and Hunters alike gathered around the ring of fire surrounding Thalia and Alice.
"Nico!" Percy shouted. "The fire!"
"I can't do anything," Nico shouted back. "She's too powerful!"
Percy made a wave and attempted to douse the flames. Nothing happened.
Annabeth pulled on Percy's sleeve. "Only Thalia can stop her," she said.
"Thalia!" Percy yelled desperately.
Raising her shield to Alice's sword, Thalia's head turned towards Annabeth and Percy.

by **Ninja_Yoshi** Fri Sep 10, 2010 1:24 am

THALIA
Somebody called my name. I turned my head, raising Aegis. It was Percy. Next to him was Annabeth, and next to her was Jake Mason, holding our flag. The game was over, but I was still battling my cousin.
In my momentary distraction, Alice's flaming sword broke my spear in half and cut a gash in my breastplate deep enough to cut flesh.
I uttered a sort of pained, strangled scream as I fell to the ground, my head inches from the ring of fire.
"Alice!" I shrieked into the deadly forest quiet of the evening.
ALICE
Thalia's scream brought me back to earth. The flames surrounding us and the ones on my sword went out, leaving the weapong red-hot and burning my hands. I let go of it and dropped to my hands and knees next to Thalia.
"Oh my gods, Thalia, I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry, I'm so SORRY-" My words turned to sobs.
THALIA
She started crying, shouting over and over, "I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry!"
Blood and tears fell incessantly onto my armor. She had a gash on the length of her cheek.
I touched her cheek gently. "Did I do that?" I asked.
"It doesn't matter, I hurt you, I hurt you, I HURT you!"
Suddenly Annabeth and Percy were there, and Percy pulled Alice away. She buried her head in his shoulder and started absolutely bawling. It hurt just to listen.
Annabeth helped me up. It seemed that Alice had reopened the scar on my thigh, and it burned like poison. Using Annabeth as a crutch, I limped up to the Big House.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The extents of the damage were large. We had burned everything withing a seven-foot radius, which angered the nymphs like you wouldn't believe. The flames on Alice's sword seemed to be poisonous, which turned my wounds a pretty color of turquoise. (I ended up making Annabeth treat my coloful slashes instead of Chiron, because no man, not even a three-thousand year old centaur, was allowed to see me without proper clothing.) Alice's brother Sayano gave us a silvery salve to apply, and the hymn to go with it. As we applied it to my chest wound, I remarked, "You know, I really never had any interest in seeing part of my own ribcage," because the cut ran deep from my left shoulder to the bottom of my sternum. Annabeth shook her head. "Only you and Percy would make a knuckleheaded joke like that after you got sliced up by a sword on fire."
"We're awesome like that."
Alice camed to visit, her hands and cheeks bandaged, tears in her eyes. "Thalia, I-"
I interrupted. "Quit apologizing. I cut your face open, didn't I?"
"I need a shrink," she said miserably. "I shouldn't have gone cray like that. I'm horrible." Her tears spilled over, landing in the cut on my chest.
I gasped. It hurt, worse than the poison. A hundred times worse. It seared, and I screamed.
"Thalia!" Annabeth said. Her voice was shocked.
"What?" I growled, clenching my teeth.
"The cut! It's gone!"
"What? No way!"
She removed the bandage on my leg, and let Alice cry on me. The pain wasn't as bad, but I still shrieked.
The door flew open. "Thalia?"
I moaned. "Percy go away."
Annabeth took him by the elbow out of the room.

by Sponsored content

////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~

$////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~ Empty$ ////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\ ~Chapter 7 up~

$////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~ Empty$ Re: ////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~

$////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~ Empty$ Re: ////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~

$////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~ Empty$ Re: ////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~

$////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~ Empty$ Re: ////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~

$////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~ Empty$ Re: ////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~

$////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~ Empty$ Re: ////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~

$////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~ Empty$ Re: ////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~

$////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~ Empty$ Re: ////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~

$////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~ Empty$ Re: ////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~

$////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~ Empty$ Re: ////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~

$////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~ Empty$ Re: ////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~

$////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~ Empty$ Re: ////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~

$////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~ Empty$ Re: ////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~

$////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~ Empty$ Re: ////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~

$////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~ Empty$ Re: ////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~

$////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~ Empty$ Re: ////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~

$////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~ Empty$ Re: ////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~

$////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~ Empty$ Re: ////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~

$////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~ Empty$ Re: ////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~

$////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~ Empty$ Re: ////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~

$////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~ Empty$ Re: ////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~

$////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~ Empty$ Re: ////Percy Jackson: The Aftermath//// \\\\Camp Half-Blood: The Broken Pact\\\\ ~Chapter 7 up~