Azymondias
Permanently Exhausted Pigeon
I never asked to be a half-blood.
If your reading this then your probably normal. Gods I envy you; I would give anything to be normal; to be able to go where I wanted without fear. Monsters are the worst; giant basketball players some taller then a house to human sized half snake half human cheerleaders.
Monsters suck. Period.
My name is Kiya; and I'm a half-blood. I live in the wilds; I camp in the woods, bathe in the river, that kind of thing. I tend to stay away from people; mainly cause I'm a danger to them, and they don't even know it. I use to go to school until I exploded half the chem lab, don't ask, just know no one died. But since then I keep away, for everyones safety.
Things changed on a Wednesday. Don't ask me why it was a wednesday; just was, maybe the Gods thought hump day was important. But I had snuck into a rest stop; I normally don't steal but my knife had broken off the hinge and wouldn't close right so making a hunting trap or fishing was out of the question. Rule 9 for survival: Never be without a knife. Anyways, I was desperate and I stole a bag of chips from a display. It was a quick movement from me looking at the bag of cheetos to it in my backpack. I heard a small cough behind me; and inwardly groaned as I prepared to put the bag back on the shelf and I turned around.
I didn't expect to see a boy standing there; and was even more confused at the getup he was wearing. Shredded red shirt under a thin green jacket; tattered jeans covering his legs, converse sneakers, but what intrigued me more was his face. Tanned skin riddled with freckles, dark hair, with a cut splitting his right eyebrow in half, and black eyes. Now the black eyes might of been a shadow, I wouldn't know in the dim light of the gift shop. He looked at me and I stared back, and he nodded towards the door.
Now you might be thinking Kiya you just talked about monsters! What if he is one?! But something told me he wasn't a gut feeling I guess. I followed him to the woods my hand in my pocket curling around a key I had found. If things went south I could stab him in the eye, buy a few seconds. But he led me to a fire; with a tent nearby. "Alright spill. Who are you?" I demanded and he looked at me. His dark eyes somehow seeming darker in the firelight.
"Είμαι απλά φίλος." The boy said and my brain instantly translated. "A friend; that speaks Greek." I said slowly and he smiled. "So you're...like me?" I asked slowly and he frowned walking towards the fire. "No." He said after a moment, his back to me. "Im not like you." He said calmly as I stared at him. Before I could speak again a twig snapped and in a flash he was turned around a glowing bronze knife in his hands.
He stepped forward pushing me behind him as a large dog-like creature stepped out of the woods snarling. He lunged as did the dog, in a flash of bronze the dog was a pile of ash, and the blade was gone. "What was that?!" I asked and he scowled stamping the fire out as he grabbed my hand. "We need to go. Hellhounds sometimes travel in packs." He said and I pulled away. "Who are you?" I asked and he sighed again. "Call me Ty." He said and I nodded. "Ty." I agreed and he turned and motioned for me to follow.
We trekked all night. No rest for the weary; until we reached a road. "The hill." He said pointing and I could see a sign for some strawberry patch nearby. It was hard to read with my dyslexia. "We head for the hill; got it?" I nodded. I had passed this sign before; it was about six miles from the rest stop. We headed for the hill; dawn was just starting to light the world as we heard more howls in the distance. "Go!" Ty said as he broke into a run; I wasn't too far behind. However when we got to the sign he kept running but something stopped me. I fell just before the sign as if I ran into a wall warm blood flowing down my face as I seemed to of broke my nose.
"Ty!" I screamed as he stared at me confused. The howls grew closer I ripped off the sleeve of my black shirt using it as a tissue to staunch the blood from my nose as I saw more of those dog-things. Hellhounds. They were at the top of the hill mere yards away, I had nothing to defend myself with. I feared Ty had left, abandoned me to whatever wall was between us. Before I could think of a plan Ty was behind me. "I son of Hephaetus vouch for Kiya and allow her into camp!" Thunder rumbled across the sky and I fell backwards into Ty who caught me. "Your safe now." He promised and it was true. The hounds threw themselves at the wall but couldn't touch us.
But one question lingered.
What was this camp; and why couldn't I enter it without Tys permission?
If your reading this then your probably normal. Gods I envy you; I would give anything to be normal; to be able to go where I wanted without fear. Monsters are the worst; giant basketball players some taller then a house to human sized half snake half human cheerleaders.
Monsters suck. Period.
My name is Kiya; and I'm a half-blood. I live in the wilds; I camp in the woods, bathe in the river, that kind of thing. I tend to stay away from people; mainly cause I'm a danger to them, and they don't even know it. I use to go to school until I exploded half the chem lab, don't ask, just know no one died. But since then I keep away, for everyones safety.
Things changed on a Wednesday. Don't ask me why it was a wednesday; just was, maybe the Gods thought hump day was important. But I had snuck into a rest stop; I normally don't steal but my knife had broken off the hinge and wouldn't close right so making a hunting trap or fishing was out of the question. Rule 9 for survival: Never be without a knife. Anyways, I was desperate and I stole a bag of chips from a display. It was a quick movement from me looking at the bag of cheetos to it in my backpack. I heard a small cough behind me; and inwardly groaned as I prepared to put the bag back on the shelf and I turned around.
I didn't expect to see a boy standing there; and was even more confused at the getup he was wearing. Shredded red shirt under a thin green jacket; tattered jeans covering his legs, converse sneakers, but what intrigued me more was his face. Tanned skin riddled with freckles, dark hair, with a cut splitting his right eyebrow in half, and black eyes. Now the black eyes might of been a shadow, I wouldn't know in the dim light of the gift shop. He looked at me and I stared back, and he nodded towards the door.
Now you might be thinking Kiya you just talked about monsters! What if he is one?! But something told me he wasn't a gut feeling I guess. I followed him to the woods my hand in my pocket curling around a key I had found. If things went south I could stab him in the eye, buy a few seconds. But he led me to a fire; with a tent nearby. "Alright spill. Who are you?" I demanded and he looked at me. His dark eyes somehow seeming darker in the firelight.
"Είμαι απλά φίλος." The boy said and my brain instantly translated. "A friend; that speaks Greek." I said slowly and he smiled. "So you're...like me?" I asked slowly and he frowned walking towards the fire. "No." He said after a moment, his back to me. "Im not like you." He said calmly as I stared at him. Before I could speak again a twig snapped and in a flash he was turned around a glowing bronze knife in his hands.
He stepped forward pushing me behind him as a large dog-like creature stepped out of the woods snarling. He lunged as did the dog, in a flash of bronze the dog was a pile of ash, and the blade was gone. "What was that?!" I asked and he scowled stamping the fire out as he grabbed my hand. "We need to go. Hellhounds sometimes travel in packs." He said and I pulled away. "Who are you?" I asked and he sighed again. "Call me Ty." He said and I nodded. "Ty." I agreed and he turned and motioned for me to follow.
We trekked all night. No rest for the weary; until we reached a road. "The hill." He said pointing and I could see a sign for some strawberry patch nearby. It was hard to read with my dyslexia. "We head for the hill; got it?" I nodded. I had passed this sign before; it was about six miles from the rest stop. We headed for the hill; dawn was just starting to light the world as we heard more howls in the distance. "Go!" Ty said as he broke into a run; I wasn't too far behind. However when we got to the sign he kept running but something stopped me. I fell just before the sign as if I ran into a wall warm blood flowing down my face as I seemed to of broke my nose.
"Ty!" I screamed as he stared at me confused. The howls grew closer I ripped off the sleeve of my black shirt using it as a tissue to staunch the blood from my nose as I saw more of those dog-things. Hellhounds. They were at the top of the hill mere yards away, I had nothing to defend myself with. I feared Ty had left, abandoned me to whatever wall was between us. Before I could think of a plan Ty was behind me. "I son of Hephaetus vouch for Kiya and allow her into camp!" Thunder rumbled across the sky and I fell backwards into Ty who caught me. "Your safe now." He promised and it was true. The hounds threw themselves at the wall but couldn't touch us.
But one question lingered.
What was this camp; and why couldn't I enter it without Tys permission?
Kiyas breaths caught in her throat. Ty helped her to her feet and pulled her away from the wall. "What's going on?" She asked her eyes glancing at Ty whose dark features seemed even darker as they walked; he seemed almost angry. At her? At the hellhounds? She wasn't sure. "Ty!" She said exasperated and he snapped out of his trance, the anger washing away as he looked at her. "I'm sorry." He said stopping to face her, the wall long gone as they were now among the trees; the sounds of children playing and people shouting coming from beyond the trees but for now Kiya was only interested in one thing. Information. "Kiya; I can't..." He sighed and leaned against a nearby tree. "There are things you need to know." He said and Kiya stared at him, as if to say yeah! Duh! But the words never left her lips.
"Remember the stories you use to hear in school or watch in movies? How the Greek Gods Were alive and would sometimes live among the mortals?" He asked and Kiya mutely nodded not sure what to say. "They're real; they are as real as we are; as real as these trees; as real as the air we breathe and the water we drink." He said looking at Kiya studying her reaction. "You're...kidding right?" Kiya asked slowly, stepping back and gathering her thoughts. "You're telling me that Gods are real." She said with a snort. "What's your proof then?" She demanded and Ty pulled out a small bag of crackers opening it to hand one to me. "Eat that." He said as he put the bag away before pulling a small chain, fingering the metal plates on it. "Well, I could show you my knife but that's not much for proof." Ty said and Kiya stared at the chain in his hand. Blinking she realized they weren't plates on the chain but tags. "You were military?" She was confused as he looked her age.
"Nah. I keep these to...remember, it's a long story I don't want to relive." Ty shoved the chain and tags back in his pocket. "When I get stressed out they help remind me to calm down." He said and looked at the cracker in Kiya's hand. "You need to eat." He said pointedly. "Can't have you keep that nosebleed." He said and I looked at the cracker, my stomach churning my mind racing by Ty's words. How can a cracker help me? She thought then sighed and broke the cracker in half, something telling her not to eat the whole thing at once, even though the cracker was as long as her pinky, so not very big to start with. Under Ty's watchful eyes she ate the half of the cracker and sighed as for a moment it tasted like the barbeque she once managed to get from some picnic pretending to be related to someone there, a welcomed treat, but after she finished her stomach started souring again her body felt as if it was summer instead of almost winter, she felt nauseated.
"Ty." Kiya slid down the tree holding her stomach. "What did you feed me?" She asked as she shuddered, resisting the urge to pull her shirt off; she was too hot, and her stomach was doing flips inside her. "What's going on?" Ty asked nervously, rushing over to Kiya and picking up the other half a cracker she dropped, taking a small bite from it. "It's not bad." He muttered to himself and he looked at Kiya before taking off down the hill. Kiya cursed to herself; Ty had gotten her sick and now was leaving her. She tried to focus on something, anything, she saw a bird resting on a branch and stared at it. "Blue, Red, Black." She muttered focusing on the colors of the bird but it wasn't enough, she shuddered again as she looked down the hill. "Ty come back." She whispered to no one, putting her head on her knees and wrapping her arms around her legs.
"Remember the stories you use to hear in school or watch in movies? How the Greek Gods Were alive and would sometimes live among the mortals?" He asked and Kiya mutely nodded not sure what to say. "They're real; they are as real as we are; as real as these trees; as real as the air we breathe and the water we drink." He said looking at Kiya studying her reaction. "You're...kidding right?" Kiya asked slowly, stepping back and gathering her thoughts. "You're telling me that Gods are real." She said with a snort. "What's your proof then?" She demanded and Ty pulled out a small bag of crackers opening it to hand one to me. "Eat that." He said as he put the bag away before pulling a small chain, fingering the metal plates on it. "Well, I could show you my knife but that's not much for proof." Ty said and Kiya stared at the chain in his hand. Blinking she realized they weren't plates on the chain but tags. "You were military?" She was confused as he looked her age.
"Nah. I keep these to...remember, it's a long story I don't want to relive." Ty shoved the chain and tags back in his pocket. "When I get stressed out they help remind me to calm down." He said and looked at the cracker in Kiya's hand. "You need to eat." He said pointedly. "Can't have you keep that nosebleed." He said and I looked at the cracker, my stomach churning my mind racing by Ty's words. How can a cracker help me? She thought then sighed and broke the cracker in half, something telling her not to eat the whole thing at once, even though the cracker was as long as her pinky, so not very big to start with. Under Ty's watchful eyes she ate the half of the cracker and sighed as for a moment it tasted like the barbeque she once managed to get from some picnic pretending to be related to someone there, a welcomed treat, but after she finished her stomach started souring again her body felt as if it was summer instead of almost winter, she felt nauseated.
"Ty." Kiya slid down the tree holding her stomach. "What did you feed me?" She asked as she shuddered, resisting the urge to pull her shirt off; she was too hot, and her stomach was doing flips inside her. "What's going on?" Ty asked nervously, rushing over to Kiya and picking up the other half a cracker she dropped, taking a small bite from it. "It's not bad." He muttered to himself and he looked at Kiya before taking off down the hill. Kiya cursed to herself; Ty had gotten her sick and now was leaving her. She tried to focus on something, anything, she saw a bird resting on a branch and stared at it. "Blue, Red, Black." She muttered focusing on the colors of the bird but it wasn't enough, she shuddered again as she looked down the hill. "Ty come back." She whispered to no one, putting her head on her knees and wrapping her arms around her legs.
Kiya wasn't sure how long it had been, minutes? Hours? She knew she was sick; whatever Ty had given her made her sick. She also knew she couldn't sit around doing nothing, she had to get up and move, before something found her, if those monsters could appear outside the walls then maybe they could find a way inside too. She took a deep breath before forcing herself to stand on shaky legs, she leaned against the tree behind her before taking a few steps forward she had to get away, the sounds around her were loud, the laughs and screams, the sound of metal against metal. She wasn't sure what was going on but it made her head pound. She stumbled again falling to the ground, her hands jetting forward to catch herself and she hissed as skin scraped against hard dirt and rocks. She sat down looking at her hands which were now red and the palms were raw and small scrapes started shedding blood, she shook her hands trying to ease the pain as a new sound entered her ears. Hoofsteps.
She looked around before seeing something move in the trees, something heading towards her. She scrambled backwards, her hand curling around a fallen branch and she hefted it using it at first to help her stand and then holding it as a bat, above her shoulder ready to swing as the hoofsteps came closer. She waited, moments ticked by then the thing was visible, in the dark of the forest she saw something odd. A man riding a horse. No wait that wasn't right the man would have been sitting where the head was. As it drew near she saw it more clearly, a half-man, half horse, he was a few yards away but as he drew closer she prepared to swing, she closed her eyes out of fear, she didn't like this, her rolling stomach twisted in knots making her feel even worse as the steps grew ever closer before she got tired of waiting, tired of being sick and scared, she swung the branch as hard as she could and fell from the recoil as it hit something.
When she opened her eyes she saw the branch in the half-man half-horses hand. "Miss Kiya I do not take kindly to being attacked when I am only here to help." The creature said and Kiya studied him more closely. He looked like a middle-aged man from the waist up, with thinning brown hair, bushy brows and brown eyes. Waist down he reminded Kiya of a stallion she saw once, pure white with a bit of grey around the hooves. "Who are you?" She asked frowning as she was too tired to do more than just talk, all the energy she had went into that swing and she still was reeling from whatever Ty had fed her. "I am Chiron, trainer of Heros here at Camp Half-Blood, your friend Ty sent me, but I see you managed to recoup some of your strength." Chiron rummaged in a bag he had tied around his waist. "Here drink this." He said and Kiya grabbed the bottle. She studied it and it looked like red gatorade, she looked up at Chiron. "It's simply a healing potion I had made by the Hecate kids." He said and Kiya was to tired to argue she twisted the cap off and was delighted to find the drink did taste like gatorade.
After the bottle was empty Kiya felt better, the burning in her body was gone and she felt as if she had all the energy of a marathon runner. "Kiya, tell me what do you know of the gods?" Chiron asked, looking at her. "Well I know the basics, how they rose to power after their father ate them, how Athena sprung from Zeus's skull. I know they're real, this half-blood business, it means half-god half-mortal right?" She asked looking at Chiron. "Yes, it does." He agreed.
She looked around before seeing something move in the trees, something heading towards her. She scrambled backwards, her hand curling around a fallen branch and she hefted it using it at first to help her stand and then holding it as a bat, above her shoulder ready to swing as the hoofsteps came closer. She waited, moments ticked by then the thing was visible, in the dark of the forest she saw something odd. A man riding a horse. No wait that wasn't right the man would have been sitting where the head was. As it drew near she saw it more clearly, a half-man, half horse, he was a few yards away but as he drew closer she prepared to swing, she closed her eyes out of fear, she didn't like this, her rolling stomach twisted in knots making her feel even worse as the steps grew ever closer before she got tired of waiting, tired of being sick and scared, she swung the branch as hard as she could and fell from the recoil as it hit something.
When she opened her eyes she saw the branch in the half-man half-horses hand. "Miss Kiya I do not take kindly to being attacked when I am only here to help." The creature said and Kiya studied him more closely. He looked like a middle-aged man from the waist up, with thinning brown hair, bushy brows and brown eyes. Waist down he reminded Kiya of a stallion she saw once, pure white with a bit of grey around the hooves. "Who are you?" She asked frowning as she was too tired to do more than just talk, all the energy she had went into that swing and she still was reeling from whatever Ty had fed her. "I am Chiron, trainer of Heros here at Camp Half-Blood, your friend Ty sent me, but I see you managed to recoup some of your strength." Chiron rummaged in a bag he had tied around his waist. "Here drink this." He said and Kiya grabbed the bottle. She studied it and it looked like red gatorade, she looked up at Chiron. "It's simply a healing potion I had made by the Hecate kids." He said and Kiya was to tired to argue she twisted the cap off and was delighted to find the drink did taste like gatorade.
After the bottle was empty Kiya felt better, the burning in her body was gone and she felt as if she had all the energy of a marathon runner. "Kiya, tell me what do you know of the gods?" Chiron asked, looking at her. "Well I know the basics, how they rose to power after their father ate them, how Athena sprung from Zeus's skull. I know they're real, this half-blood business, it means half-god half-mortal right?" She asked looking at Chiron. "Yes, it does." He agreed.
"So where am I?" Kiya asked bluntly and Chiron smiled at her, she could sense sadness, as if the centaur was pained with the knowledge. "Camp half-blood." He said walking forward putting a hand on Kiyas shoulder. "Come along there is much to discuss." Kiya frowned but let Chiron lead her to the camp. Cabins were spaced around the camp from a shabby looking brown shack with a visibly full room of kids to one of the more pristine ones with a gold bolt above the door. "Every God from the minor to major has a cabin here." Chiron said, waving a hand out to the cabins for emphasis. "So I have a godly parent?" She asked and Chiron was quiet for a moment. "You are a half-blood." He said not quite directly answering her question.
"Well if my dad's a God I'd like to know which one." Kiya said and Chiron looked at her. "The Gods are...mysterious. They often don't reveal who they are, what they want, or their desires, but if they'll send a sign if they want to claim you." Kiya snorted. "A sign?" She asked bitterly. "You have to be patient." Chiron said gingerly. Kiyas eyes flashed with anger as her hands balled into fists. "My dads...got a lot to answer for Chiron. He was never around. He let my mom kick me out. I never got to do anything with him! I missed out on birthdays, trips, my mom could of used help with bills, helped me with homework, I don't mean to sound bratty but my dad could of been around more!" She said and Chiron stepped back. Almost as if he was afraid she would explode.
Kiya sighed and looked at Chiron. "I'm sorry." She said softly. "Its not your fault." She said as a boy she didn't recognize ran up. His sandy blonde hair nearly covering his eyes. Kiya found it interesting one was blue while the other was green. "Ah Michael please escort Kiya to the Hermes cabin." Chiron said as someone yelled something from the large house Kiya somehow failed to notice while looking at the cabins. "Yes sir!" Michael said grabbing Kiyas hand nearly dragging her. " Tough first day?" He asked as they were out of earshot of Chiron. Kiya nodded and Michael smiled apologetically. "I get it. Its hard, things aren't easy for kids like us." Michael let go of Kiya and looked at the cabin they headed towards.
Kiya stopped at the door and looked towards Michael. "Whose cabin is this?" She asked and Michael laughed. "Well this is the Hermes cabin. We take in anyone who hasn't been claimed yet." He added as he opened the door kids running about it was amazing. It looked small from the outside but it was pretty spacious inside. "Maybe later we can test your skills out, find what your good at so we can get your parent to send you your sign to be claimed." He said, leading her to an empty bunk a neon orange shirt with a black pegasus sat folded neatly on the pillow. "All yours." He said to Kiya. Kiya grabbed the shirt and ducked into the bathroom to change.
She stared at the orange shirt twisting and turning to see different angles. "My sign." She muttered and turned away from the mirror. "Like any god would claim me." She spat before walking out back into the cabin. She made a few polite waves and walled out. She wanted to be alone. This was all too much for her. Wandering around the camp led her to see so much more. They had a stable with winged horses, an archery pit, an amphitheater, Kiya was amazed this was all tucked away here. She couldn't wait to explore more but heard commotion behind her and saw kids enmass heading towards somewhere. Michael waved at her from the crowd and she sighed walking over. "Dinner!" He said giddily as she was roped into walking beside him as he threw an arm around her shoulders.
"Well if my dad's a God I'd like to know which one." Kiya said and Chiron looked at her. "The Gods are...mysterious. They often don't reveal who they are, what they want, or their desires, but if they'll send a sign if they want to claim you." Kiya snorted. "A sign?" She asked bitterly. "You have to be patient." Chiron said gingerly. Kiyas eyes flashed with anger as her hands balled into fists. "My dads...got a lot to answer for Chiron. He was never around. He let my mom kick me out. I never got to do anything with him! I missed out on birthdays, trips, my mom could of used help with bills, helped me with homework, I don't mean to sound bratty but my dad could of been around more!" She said and Chiron stepped back. Almost as if he was afraid she would explode.
Kiya sighed and looked at Chiron. "I'm sorry." She said softly. "Its not your fault." She said as a boy she didn't recognize ran up. His sandy blonde hair nearly covering his eyes. Kiya found it interesting one was blue while the other was green. "Ah Michael please escort Kiya to the Hermes cabin." Chiron said as someone yelled something from the large house Kiya somehow failed to notice while looking at the cabins. "Yes sir!" Michael said grabbing Kiyas hand nearly dragging her. " Tough first day?" He asked as they were out of earshot of Chiron. Kiya nodded and Michael smiled apologetically. "I get it. Its hard, things aren't easy for kids like us." Michael let go of Kiya and looked at the cabin they headed towards.
Kiya stopped at the door and looked towards Michael. "Whose cabin is this?" She asked and Michael laughed. "Well this is the Hermes cabin. We take in anyone who hasn't been claimed yet." He added as he opened the door kids running about it was amazing. It looked small from the outside but it was pretty spacious inside. "Maybe later we can test your skills out, find what your good at so we can get your parent to send you your sign to be claimed." He said, leading her to an empty bunk a neon orange shirt with a black pegasus sat folded neatly on the pillow. "All yours." He said to Kiya. Kiya grabbed the shirt and ducked into the bathroom to change.
She stared at the orange shirt twisting and turning to see different angles. "My sign." She muttered and turned away from the mirror. "Like any god would claim me." She spat before walking out back into the cabin. She made a few polite waves and walled out. She wanted to be alone. This was all too much for her. Wandering around the camp led her to see so much more. They had a stable with winged horses, an archery pit, an amphitheater, Kiya was amazed this was all tucked away here. She couldn't wait to explore more but heard commotion behind her and saw kids enmass heading towards somewhere. Michael waved at her from the crowd and she sighed walking over. "Dinner!" He said giddily as she was roped into walking beside him as he threw an arm around her shoulders.
Kiya hated dinner. It was so loud and crowded at the pavilion. She saw kids get up and toss food into the fire and snorted. "Waste of food if you ask me." She scoffs and Michael grinned prodding her. "Bad enough our parents are omniscient but we gotta appreciate them." He said but he didn't seem too angry about it. "Fact of life. We are the heroes, we take quests but they get the praise and glory." He sighed and Kiya raised an eyebrow. "Listen Kiya, its not that I hate being a demi-god, Gods know I love it. I hate that we don't get recognition. We don't get praise or anything. If your lucky you get a gift, but sometimes not even that helps." Michael got up and walked over to the fire throwing some of his food in. Kiya frowned. If the Gods really cared wouldn't they show it? We are their kids after all. She thought then shook her head.
She stood up and walked over to the fire her thoughts weren't clear and she ran into someone. "Watch it!" She jumped back at the voice as the camper turned around. "Hey Ty!" She said and Ty looked at her, his expression unreadable. "Kiya, how are you?" He asked and she looked at the fire. "Fine I guess waiting for my sign." She said and swore she heard a snort from Ty. "Sometimes a sign never comes." He said somewhat coldly. "Ty are you okay?" She asked and Ty stared at her as if studying her. "Demi-gods sometimes get dreams. And as of late mine have been awful. I haven't slept well for the last couple of days." He admitted and Kiya nodded apologetically. "Yeah sometimes bad dreams suck." She admitted. Ty raised an eyebrow and she sighed. "Since the hell-hound incident I can't really sleep. I know it was only two days ago but I keep having flashes of the hellhounds surrounding a tree." Kiya admitted and Ty nodded. "Well I mean the magic barrier is focused around Thalia's tree." Ty said as the two finished at the brazier and headed back towards their tables. "Thalia's tree?" Ty shrugged. "That's what I heard it be called. That big tree by the arch that leads to camp."
Kiya watched as Ty returned to the Hephestus table and she went back to the Hermes table finishing dinner quietly only giving polite small smiles when spoken to as her mind raced. I wonder why it's called Thalia's tree? Are the monsters drawn to it? She wondered; once dinner was over she was more than glad to return to the cabin. She just wanted to sleep; she was tired. However as she went to bed her dreams had other plans. She closed her eyes only to open them again in a grassy field; she was standing by the tree; she could hear the bane of dogs and yet as far as she looked there were no signs of any animal nearby; she heard something move behind her and turned around, freezing in place as she saw what it was. A large wolf-like creature as tall as a small shed with pitch black fur and glowing red eyes stared at her, growling. She stumbled back falling as her hands instinctively curled around something small and metallic, she looked and saw it was a pocket knife. Oh great maybe I can paper-cut it to death! She thought sarcastically as she opened the knife the hell-hound stepping closer as she scooted back. She saw a button on the side, which was odd as it was a folding knife so it shouldn't have anything like a button release, but she pressed it, her knife elongating into a silvery-bronze sword, the hell-hound stepping back in surprise.
"Get back you-" She wasn't sure what to taunt the hell-hound with but it grew tired of waiting and swung a paw at her, with almost instinctive reflexes she jumped to the side and swung her sword the hound yelping in pain as she cut its paw off, it made a desperate lunge at her with its remaining legs and another swing and Kiya was being covered in dust, monster dust. She looked at the sword and pressed the button again; returning it to the folding knife she first found. She looked around but saw that the hill had faded. She was just walking in darkness, she was nervous but heard a small voice, she turned and saw two kids, one with dark hair, sea-green eyes and an orange shirt with torn blue jeans. The kid looked eleven, and was talking to an older kid, sandy blonde hair, blue eyes, but a scar, the jagged purple scar ran from one of the blonde teens eyes to his chin, the two were talking but Kiya couldn't make out any words. She walked towards the apparition but it stayed out of her hearing, and out of her reach, as she felt herself waking up she saw the sandy-haired teen turn towards her at first looking distant but she swore at the last moment before she woke up he was looking right at her.
She stood up and walked over to the fire her thoughts weren't clear and she ran into someone. "Watch it!" She jumped back at the voice as the camper turned around. "Hey Ty!" She said and Ty looked at her, his expression unreadable. "Kiya, how are you?" He asked and she looked at the fire. "Fine I guess waiting for my sign." She said and swore she heard a snort from Ty. "Sometimes a sign never comes." He said somewhat coldly. "Ty are you okay?" She asked and Ty stared at her as if studying her. "Demi-gods sometimes get dreams. And as of late mine have been awful. I haven't slept well for the last couple of days." He admitted and Kiya nodded apologetically. "Yeah sometimes bad dreams suck." She admitted. Ty raised an eyebrow and she sighed. "Since the hell-hound incident I can't really sleep. I know it was only two days ago but I keep having flashes of the hellhounds surrounding a tree." Kiya admitted and Ty nodded. "Well I mean the magic barrier is focused around Thalia's tree." Ty said as the two finished at the brazier and headed back towards their tables. "Thalia's tree?" Ty shrugged. "That's what I heard it be called. That big tree by the arch that leads to camp."
Kiya watched as Ty returned to the Hephestus table and she went back to the Hermes table finishing dinner quietly only giving polite small smiles when spoken to as her mind raced. I wonder why it's called Thalia's tree? Are the monsters drawn to it? She wondered; once dinner was over she was more than glad to return to the cabin. She just wanted to sleep; she was tired. However as she went to bed her dreams had other plans. She closed her eyes only to open them again in a grassy field; she was standing by the tree; she could hear the bane of dogs and yet as far as she looked there were no signs of any animal nearby; she heard something move behind her and turned around, freezing in place as she saw what it was. A large wolf-like creature as tall as a small shed with pitch black fur and glowing red eyes stared at her, growling. She stumbled back falling as her hands instinctively curled around something small and metallic, she looked and saw it was a pocket knife. Oh great maybe I can paper-cut it to death! She thought sarcastically as she opened the knife the hell-hound stepping closer as she scooted back. She saw a button on the side, which was odd as it was a folding knife so it shouldn't have anything like a button release, but she pressed it, her knife elongating into a silvery-bronze sword, the hell-hound stepping back in surprise.
"Get back you-" She wasn't sure what to taunt the hell-hound with but it grew tired of waiting and swung a paw at her, with almost instinctive reflexes she jumped to the side and swung her sword the hound yelping in pain as she cut its paw off, it made a desperate lunge at her with its remaining legs and another swing and Kiya was being covered in dust, monster dust. She looked at the sword and pressed the button again; returning it to the folding knife she first found. She looked around but saw that the hill had faded. She was just walking in darkness, she was nervous but heard a small voice, she turned and saw two kids, one with dark hair, sea-green eyes and an orange shirt with torn blue jeans. The kid looked eleven, and was talking to an older kid, sandy blonde hair, blue eyes, but a scar, the jagged purple scar ran from one of the blonde teens eyes to his chin, the two were talking but Kiya couldn't make out any words. She walked towards the apparition but it stayed out of her hearing, and out of her reach, as she felt herself waking up she saw the sandy-haired teen turn towards her at first looking distant but she swore at the last moment before she woke up he was looking right at her.
This chapter is dedicated to my friend Mika who inspired me to write again. May Hecate send you many a blessing my friend.
Kiya was tired; and hated that she was awoken by a dream to find an envelope under her pillow. A schedule; archery, pegasi riding, canoeing, sword training, among other activities. She sighed and got up getting dressed in new clothes that were left at the foot of her bed. She headed out of the cabin walking towards the archery pit when she stopped seeing a small girl poking at something in the fire, a small twisted, melted shard of metal. "Hey wha-" The girl looked at her and Kiya was a bit unsettled at first by the kids' fire-red eyes but then after a moment, calm washing over her. "You can sit beside me." The kid said patting the ground beside where she was and Kiya walked forward sitting down beside the girl. "What are you doing?" She asked and the girl frowned. "As much as the fire burns, marks of the past remain." Kiya raised an eyebrow. "What?" she asked confused and the girl sighed sitting back.
"The past is not something to fear, yet something to learn from." The girl said looking at Kiya. "You must learn this, because when the time comes it will decide who you follow." Kiya looked at the fire. "You seem to be able to see the future." She noted and the girl smiled. "I am simply keeper of the hearth, where hope is strongest, as it is the hope to return home that keeps mortals going." Kiya wanted to say more but the girl raised a hand. "You are special, even if you do not know it yet, you have much on your shoulders, and I urge that when things get tough you return to the hearth, where you can rest and take a break." The girl got up and started walking away, Kiya jumped up and turned around but the girl was gone.
She looked around but frowned; she noted that the sun was a few paces from where it was, and wondered how long she had sat with the girl before whatever spell had broken. She headed towards the archery pit again she might as well start on something in the camp before people noticed she never did anything. She headed into the archery pit and grabbed a bow and arrow, just intending to walk around pretending as she didn't much care for archery and the bow felt heavy and awkward when she noticed a teen, he was about her height if not taller, brown curly hair, and a jacket on with some arcanic runes on it, she watched as the boy said something and then the arrow he released turned into three arrows each hitting the target at different points. "Good job Aaron!" A camper said walking over and Aaron turned around handing his bow off to another camper.
Aaron froze when he and Kiya locked eyes, and Kiya could feel something come from Aaron, a spell? A ward? She wasn't sure but she knew something was wrong. Aaron turned and started walking out of the pit and Kiya knew she had to follow. "Hey wait up!" She called setting her bow down and racing after Aaron but just like the girl from the hearth as soon as Kiya thought she caught up they had vanished. She thought for a moment and then remembered something from school. Hecate was the goddess of magicians, and it would give her a chance to thank the Hecate kids for making the potion that saved her from...whatever Ty had fed her a few days ago.
Kiya hated it but she had to ask directions, in her defense the camp was huge, and not at all shaped or laid out like a normal summer camp. Then again what could she expect from a camp that serviced people with immortal parents. She finally found the cabin, stones marked with runes made up pillars and the walls; the doors had innate silver runes on them as well. Kiya was almost afraid to even walk up to the cabin. She felt like knocking on the door would turn her into a hamster or something worse. But she mustered up the courage and stepped towards the door giving it a few hard knocks before she heard movement inside, the person opening the door was none other than the one from the archery pit. "Hey Aaron." She said smiling politely.
Kiya was tired; and hated that she was awoken by a dream to find an envelope under her pillow. A schedule; archery, pegasi riding, canoeing, sword training, among other activities. She sighed and got up getting dressed in new clothes that were left at the foot of her bed. She headed out of the cabin walking towards the archery pit when she stopped seeing a small girl poking at something in the fire, a small twisted, melted shard of metal. "Hey wha-" The girl looked at her and Kiya was a bit unsettled at first by the kids' fire-red eyes but then after a moment, calm washing over her. "You can sit beside me." The kid said patting the ground beside where she was and Kiya walked forward sitting down beside the girl. "What are you doing?" She asked and the girl frowned. "As much as the fire burns, marks of the past remain." Kiya raised an eyebrow. "What?" she asked confused and the girl sighed sitting back.
"The past is not something to fear, yet something to learn from." The girl said looking at Kiya. "You must learn this, because when the time comes it will decide who you follow." Kiya looked at the fire. "You seem to be able to see the future." She noted and the girl smiled. "I am simply keeper of the hearth, where hope is strongest, as it is the hope to return home that keeps mortals going." Kiya wanted to say more but the girl raised a hand. "You are special, even if you do not know it yet, you have much on your shoulders, and I urge that when things get tough you return to the hearth, where you can rest and take a break." The girl got up and started walking away, Kiya jumped up and turned around but the girl was gone.
She looked around but frowned; she noted that the sun was a few paces from where it was, and wondered how long she had sat with the girl before whatever spell had broken. She headed towards the archery pit again she might as well start on something in the camp before people noticed she never did anything. She headed into the archery pit and grabbed a bow and arrow, just intending to walk around pretending as she didn't much care for archery and the bow felt heavy and awkward when she noticed a teen, he was about her height if not taller, brown curly hair, and a jacket on with some arcanic runes on it, she watched as the boy said something and then the arrow he released turned into three arrows each hitting the target at different points. "Good job Aaron!" A camper said walking over and Aaron turned around handing his bow off to another camper.
Aaron froze when he and Kiya locked eyes, and Kiya could feel something come from Aaron, a spell? A ward? She wasn't sure but she knew something was wrong. Aaron turned and started walking out of the pit and Kiya knew she had to follow. "Hey wait up!" She called setting her bow down and racing after Aaron but just like the girl from the hearth as soon as Kiya thought she caught up they had vanished. She thought for a moment and then remembered something from school. Hecate was the goddess of magicians, and it would give her a chance to thank the Hecate kids for making the potion that saved her from...whatever Ty had fed her a few days ago.
Kiya hated it but she had to ask directions, in her defense the camp was huge, and not at all shaped or laid out like a normal summer camp. Then again what could she expect from a camp that serviced people with immortal parents. She finally found the cabin, stones marked with runes made up pillars and the walls; the doors had innate silver runes on them as well. Kiya was almost afraid to even walk up to the cabin. She felt like knocking on the door would turn her into a hamster or something worse. But she mustered up the courage and stepped towards the door giving it a few hard knocks before she heard movement inside, the person opening the door was none other than the one from the archery pit. "Hey Aaron." She said smiling politely.
"Uh. Hi?" Aaron said, blinking, confused. It wasn't often that people actually outed him out because well, he wasn't normal, at least not for camp half-blood.
"I wanted to thank you, for the potion you made." Aaron tilted his head. "What potion?" He asked, then thought for a moment.
"You must be the camper Chiron mentioned, the one allergic to godly food." Kiya inwardly groaned. "Did Chiron tell everyone at camp?" She huffed and Aaron shook his head. "Nah, just me since I'm learning healing magic, so I can help campers out in case Apollo kids are busy or its not dire enough for godly food."
Kiya nodded and turned her head slightly to look past him seeing there was no one else in the cabin. "Are you the only child of Hecate?" She asked Aaron snort trying to hide a laugh.
"Hecate kids aren't born, they're chosen, we are the Acolytes of Hecate." He said but Kiya saw him twitch nervously, was he lying? She racked her brain and tried to remember if Hecate was an eternal virgin goddess or not but couldn't remember. "So you're the only one then?"
Aaron nodded and waved his hand to the empty cabin. "For now, I'm sure there will be more when the time comes." He said with a shrug. "But for now it's just me. So the potion did work then?" He asked and Kiya nodded. "Yeah really well. I thought that cracker was going to kill me."
"Ambrosia." Aaron corrected. "You know, like in the stories." Kiya nodded. "But it's easier calling it a cracker, plus I'm sure it confuses less people outside the borders of camp." Aaron smiled and nodded. "Yeah we don't want to confuse the mortals." He said and Kiya thought when he said mortals she could sense something in his voice, sadness? Anger? She wasn't sure.
"Well anyway, I just wanted to say thank you; I'm not sure what would have happened to me if your potion hadn't worked." Aaron nodded and tilted his head. "Well if it's any consolation you have to have some kind of divine blood, my potions are made for minor demi-god injuries. And uh, Chiron told me you had some issues with the barrier." Kiya rolled her eyes mentally reminding herself to have a chat with Chiron about how much of her information was shared with others. But she also knew Chiron must've told Aaron because of her situation but it was still uncomfortable that someone knew more about her then she'd like.
"Well, is there anything else I can help you with?" Aaron asked breaking Kiyas' train of thought. "Oh uh, no sorry, I just got distracted." Kiya said, clearing her throat as she stepped back. "Nice meeting you Aaron." Aaron gave a polite nod.
"Yes it was nice meeting you too Kiya." He said as Kiya turned away and headed back towards the hermes cabin. She had a lot on her mind and wanted a distraction. She headed over to the lake, not wanting to follow the schedule the camp had given her as nothing had interested her at this point, not even the pegasi interested her. She sat on the lakeside, her hand weaving through the grass, as she stared at the water, she didn't know how long she sat there until she heard footsteps.
"Hey what's with the weeds Kiya?" The voice said and Kiya startled, turning around and looking up at the voice, then down at her hand where a large patch of weeds were wrapped around her hand.
"I uh, actually have no idea." She said pulling her hand out of the tangle, as soon as she did though the weeds quickly browned and shrivelled.
"Hey, think you can do just any plant or weeds?" Ty asked, sitting down next to Kiya. "I'm not sure." Kiya said looking at the lake.
"Well I wanted to talk to you." Ty said with a sigh. "I brought you into camp, the least I can do is tell you I'm leaving." Kiyas' eyes widened and she turned to Ty.
"What do you mean?" Ty smirked and nudged Kiya playfully. "I'm not going to be around anymore." He said looking at the sun, the sky a bright orange as it was setting, he sighed and raised a leg resting a hand on his knee. "I'm...I...I've been given a quest, its a dumb one, go to some giants lair and get some celestial bronze, stupid I know but the camp needs it."
Kiya frowned. "I could go with you!" She protested and he chuckled. "Nah, because I don't plan on doing it." He said.
"But the Gods-" Tys' hands clenched into fists.
"The Gods don't care!" He said, his eyes wide, his face turning to Kiya. "I've been here since I was a kid, I did everything they ever asked, yeah I did. And for what?" He spat grabbing a stone and tossing it into the lake.
"I'll go to the giant's lair, but not to get the metal, to prove I can kill a giant, that's got to be worth something, a son of Hephaestus actually taking on a monster rather than quietly working in the forges." He stood brushing off his pants with his hands.
"I wanted to give you something, a weapon, to remember me by." He said reaching into his pocket, a small red folding knife sitting on the palm, Kiyas small gasp as she recognized it.
"It's my gift to you; I stole it from the Big House; guess it's something powerful if they confiscated it." He said and Kiya took it, the familiar feeling of it in her hand from the dream as she flicked her wrist extending the small folding knives blade but pushing the button to reveal the silvery bronze sword. She stared at it then pressed the button again and closed the knife. She raced forward and hugged Ty who hesitated at first then returned the hug.
"Thank you." She said softly, and stepped back. Ty smiled and nodded. "Listen, the Gods, aren't always there. So sometimes we have to fill the gaps. I know it's hard but be strong, you'll get your sign and I know you will." Ty said as he headed off towards Kiya would guess it would be the border she wanted to follow but knew it would draw more attention. She looked at the lake and then at the knife in her hand. She knew that would have to be her secret, she wouldn't use it in camp especially if it was confiscated. She pocketed her knife and headed back to her cabin for some well deserved rest.
"I wanted to thank you, for the potion you made." Aaron tilted his head. "What potion?" He asked, then thought for a moment.
"You must be the camper Chiron mentioned, the one allergic to godly food." Kiya inwardly groaned. "Did Chiron tell everyone at camp?" She huffed and Aaron shook his head. "Nah, just me since I'm learning healing magic, so I can help campers out in case Apollo kids are busy or its not dire enough for godly food."
Kiya nodded and turned her head slightly to look past him seeing there was no one else in the cabin. "Are you the only child of Hecate?" She asked Aaron snort trying to hide a laugh.
"Hecate kids aren't born, they're chosen, we are the Acolytes of Hecate." He said but Kiya saw him twitch nervously, was he lying? She racked her brain and tried to remember if Hecate was an eternal virgin goddess or not but couldn't remember. "So you're the only one then?"
Aaron nodded and waved his hand to the empty cabin. "For now, I'm sure there will be more when the time comes." He said with a shrug. "But for now it's just me. So the potion did work then?" He asked and Kiya nodded. "Yeah really well. I thought that cracker was going to kill me."
"Ambrosia." Aaron corrected. "You know, like in the stories." Kiya nodded. "But it's easier calling it a cracker, plus I'm sure it confuses less people outside the borders of camp." Aaron smiled and nodded. "Yeah we don't want to confuse the mortals." He said and Kiya thought when he said mortals she could sense something in his voice, sadness? Anger? She wasn't sure.
"Well anyway, I just wanted to say thank you; I'm not sure what would have happened to me if your potion hadn't worked." Aaron nodded and tilted his head. "Well if it's any consolation you have to have some kind of divine blood, my potions are made for minor demi-god injuries. And uh, Chiron told me you had some issues with the barrier." Kiya rolled her eyes mentally reminding herself to have a chat with Chiron about how much of her information was shared with others. But she also knew Chiron must've told Aaron because of her situation but it was still uncomfortable that someone knew more about her then she'd like.
"Well, is there anything else I can help you with?" Aaron asked breaking Kiyas' train of thought. "Oh uh, no sorry, I just got distracted." Kiya said, clearing her throat as she stepped back. "Nice meeting you Aaron." Aaron gave a polite nod.
"Yes it was nice meeting you too Kiya." He said as Kiya turned away and headed back towards the hermes cabin. She had a lot on her mind and wanted a distraction. She headed over to the lake, not wanting to follow the schedule the camp had given her as nothing had interested her at this point, not even the pegasi interested her. She sat on the lakeside, her hand weaving through the grass, as she stared at the water, she didn't know how long she sat there until she heard footsteps.
"Hey what's with the weeds Kiya?" The voice said and Kiya startled, turning around and looking up at the voice, then down at her hand where a large patch of weeds were wrapped around her hand.
"I uh, actually have no idea." She said pulling her hand out of the tangle, as soon as she did though the weeds quickly browned and shrivelled.
"Hey, think you can do just any plant or weeds?" Ty asked, sitting down next to Kiya. "I'm not sure." Kiya said looking at the lake.
"Well I wanted to talk to you." Ty said with a sigh. "I brought you into camp, the least I can do is tell you I'm leaving." Kiyas' eyes widened and she turned to Ty.
"What do you mean?" Ty smirked and nudged Kiya playfully. "I'm not going to be around anymore." He said looking at the sun, the sky a bright orange as it was setting, he sighed and raised a leg resting a hand on his knee. "I'm...I...I've been given a quest, its a dumb one, go to some giants lair and get some celestial bronze, stupid I know but the camp needs it."
Kiya frowned. "I could go with you!" She protested and he chuckled. "Nah, because I don't plan on doing it." He said.
"But the Gods-" Tys' hands clenched into fists.
"The Gods don't care!" He said, his eyes wide, his face turning to Kiya. "I've been here since I was a kid, I did everything they ever asked, yeah I did. And for what?" He spat grabbing a stone and tossing it into the lake.
"I'll go to the giant's lair, but not to get the metal, to prove I can kill a giant, that's got to be worth something, a son of Hephaestus actually taking on a monster rather than quietly working in the forges." He stood brushing off his pants with his hands.
"I wanted to give you something, a weapon, to remember me by." He said reaching into his pocket, a small red folding knife sitting on the palm, Kiyas small gasp as she recognized it.
"It's my gift to you; I stole it from the Big House; guess it's something powerful if they confiscated it." He said and Kiya took it, the familiar feeling of it in her hand from the dream as she flicked her wrist extending the small folding knives blade but pushing the button to reveal the silvery bronze sword. She stared at it then pressed the button again and closed the knife. She raced forward and hugged Ty who hesitated at first then returned the hug.
"Thank you." She said softly, and stepped back. Ty smiled and nodded. "Listen, the Gods, aren't always there. So sometimes we have to fill the gaps. I know it's hard but be strong, you'll get your sign and I know you will." Ty said as he headed off towards Kiya would guess it would be the border she wanted to follow but knew it would draw more attention. She looked at the lake and then at the knife in her hand. She knew that would have to be her secret, she wouldn't use it in camp especially if it was confiscated. She pocketed her knife and headed back to her cabin for some well deserved rest.
TW: Brief mentions of parental abuse, alcoholism, and mental disorders, skip this chapter if any of that upsets you!
It had been a long week for Kiya; when Ty left she threw herself into training, in hopes maybe she would get a quest, a small part of her even hoped she would get a sign, so she knew where she belonged, but a week came and went and no matter how hard Kiya trained there was nothing, no quest, no Gods claimed her, and she was getting frustrated. One night after a long training session in the arena she fell asleep in one of the medical cots they kept in there in case they were needed, and she was way too tired to walk all the way across camp to cabin eleven. At first her dreams were non-existent, just her wandering in a void of nothing, but she froze when she heard a voice.
The voice was faint, as if far off but when Kiya turned around she saw the boy from her dream a while back, the blonde haired boy with the scar on his face. She watched as he trained with his sword, cutting down the training dummies and practicing moves that Kiya knew would take years for her to even attempt to practice. She watched as he talked to himself but the words were faint. She cleared her throat and called out in a shaky voice.
"Hello?" She said as the vision around the boy faded but he remained in the void, staring at her. "You can see me?" He asked and Kiya nodded.
"Yeah I've seen you before." She admitted and the boy huffed in surprise a smile crossing his face.
"So that's why..." He said to himself, running a hand through his hair as he looked at Kiya.
"I'm Luke." He said holding out his hand, Kiya studied it as if examining for any dangers but after a moment took his hand in hers and shook it. "Kiya." She said.
Luke let go of her hand and stared at the void. "Well it's your dream, maybe you can make it nicer?" Kiya tilted her head and nodded.
"I can try." She said honestly as she closed her eyes focusing on a place around camp, the lakeside. She looked at Luke who seemed a bit frazzled after she made the void look like the lake.
"Something wrong Luke?" Kiya asked and Luke sighed. "No, no its nothing it's just... been years since I've seen the lake at camp." Luke said and Kiya frowned. "What do you mean?" Luke looked at Kiya and then at the lake.
"You're unclaimed, aren't you?" He said and Kiya nodded. "Yeah, I stay at cabin eleven." "Do they mention me?" He asked his voice soft, and pain laced the words as he spoke. "I've not heard of any kid named Luke from the cabin, why what's going on?"
Luke headed towards the lakeside kneeling at the edge. "I made some bad choices." He said with a sigh. "I did something terrible, I'm not surprised I've been struck from history. I was angry, at the gods, at my mother, at the world." He reached out with a hand and gently touched the surface of the water the ripples distorting his reflection. Kiya tilted her head. She actually felt the pain in her own chest, the pain of betraying friends and family, of being betrayed in kind. "I made bad choices too, but it doesn't make you a bad person." She said sitting beside him.
"Luke, you want to hear about betrayal, my mother use to drink, a lot, and would beat me almost daily for little things, like not coming home from school on time, even if the bus was late, or sitting in her line of sight while she was watching t.v, she wasn't a mother, and when I was old enough I ran away." Kiya admitted and looked at the water. She sighed closing her eyes, it was hard for her to open up but something was telling her to, something was telling her that she could trust Luke. Luke smiled and sighed.
"My mother wasn't much worse. She was clear-sighted, she could see through the mist for what the world was. She tried to become the camp's new oracle, and it destroyed her, she was never the same after that, screaming about how I was going to die, and about my father Hermes. I never understood it at the time but now, now that things have fallen into place, I know what she meant, I know what she was going on about, but back then, I ran away too, I couldn't be around her."
"Luke are you...?" Kiya asked, trying to be sensitive but Luke just chuckled. "I think I am, but maybe I'm something in-between. Neither here nor there kind of thing." He said as he looked at the horizon, the sun starting to rise from dawn into morning.
"Your waking up." He said nuding Kiya. "Go on, I'll see you around." He said as Kiya turned towards him. "Wait Luke I have so many questions, if your not dead, and you were a real person how are you here? How am I able to talk to you? And who was that other boy with the black hair?" She asked and Luke frowned at the last question before looking away as Kiya's eyes grew heavy, she closed them, for just a moment, before opening them to find herself back at the arena, she sat up from the cot and stared at her feet. She wasn't sure at all what had just happened but she knew she had to see Luke again, he had answers.
It had been a long week for Kiya; when Ty left she threw herself into training, in hopes maybe she would get a quest, a small part of her even hoped she would get a sign, so she knew where she belonged, but a week came and went and no matter how hard Kiya trained there was nothing, no quest, no Gods claimed her, and she was getting frustrated. One night after a long training session in the arena she fell asleep in one of the medical cots they kept in there in case they were needed, and she was way too tired to walk all the way across camp to cabin eleven. At first her dreams were non-existent, just her wandering in a void of nothing, but she froze when she heard a voice.
The voice was faint, as if far off but when Kiya turned around she saw the boy from her dream a while back, the blonde haired boy with the scar on his face. She watched as he trained with his sword, cutting down the training dummies and practicing moves that Kiya knew would take years for her to even attempt to practice. She watched as he talked to himself but the words were faint. She cleared her throat and called out in a shaky voice.
"Hello?" She said as the vision around the boy faded but he remained in the void, staring at her. "You can see me?" He asked and Kiya nodded.
"Yeah I've seen you before." She admitted and the boy huffed in surprise a smile crossing his face.
"So that's why..." He said to himself, running a hand through his hair as he looked at Kiya.
"I'm Luke." He said holding out his hand, Kiya studied it as if examining for any dangers but after a moment took his hand in hers and shook it. "Kiya." She said.
Luke let go of her hand and stared at the void. "Well it's your dream, maybe you can make it nicer?" Kiya tilted her head and nodded.
"I can try." She said honestly as she closed her eyes focusing on a place around camp, the lakeside. She looked at Luke who seemed a bit frazzled after she made the void look like the lake.
"Something wrong Luke?" Kiya asked and Luke sighed. "No, no its nothing it's just... been years since I've seen the lake at camp." Luke said and Kiya frowned. "What do you mean?" Luke looked at Kiya and then at the lake.
"You're unclaimed, aren't you?" He said and Kiya nodded. "Yeah, I stay at cabin eleven." "Do they mention me?" He asked his voice soft, and pain laced the words as he spoke. "I've not heard of any kid named Luke from the cabin, why what's going on?"
Luke headed towards the lakeside kneeling at the edge. "I made some bad choices." He said with a sigh. "I did something terrible, I'm not surprised I've been struck from history. I was angry, at the gods, at my mother, at the world." He reached out with a hand and gently touched the surface of the water the ripples distorting his reflection. Kiya tilted her head. She actually felt the pain in her own chest, the pain of betraying friends and family, of being betrayed in kind. "I made bad choices too, but it doesn't make you a bad person." She said sitting beside him.
"Luke, you want to hear about betrayal, my mother use to drink, a lot, and would beat me almost daily for little things, like not coming home from school on time, even if the bus was late, or sitting in her line of sight while she was watching t.v, she wasn't a mother, and when I was old enough I ran away." Kiya admitted and looked at the water. She sighed closing her eyes, it was hard for her to open up but something was telling her to, something was telling her that she could trust Luke. Luke smiled and sighed.
"My mother wasn't much worse. She was clear-sighted, she could see through the mist for what the world was. She tried to become the camp's new oracle, and it destroyed her, she was never the same after that, screaming about how I was going to die, and about my father Hermes. I never understood it at the time but now, now that things have fallen into place, I know what she meant, I know what she was going on about, but back then, I ran away too, I couldn't be around her."
"Luke are you...?" Kiya asked, trying to be sensitive but Luke just chuckled. "I think I am, but maybe I'm something in-between. Neither here nor there kind of thing." He said as he looked at the horizon, the sun starting to rise from dawn into morning.
"Your waking up." He said nuding Kiya. "Go on, I'll see you around." He said as Kiya turned towards him. "Wait Luke I have so many questions, if your not dead, and you were a real person how are you here? How am I able to talk to you? And who was that other boy with the black hair?" She asked and Luke frowned at the last question before looking away as Kiya's eyes grew heavy, she closed them, for just a moment, before opening them to find herself back at the arena, she sat up from the cot and stared at her feet. She wasn't sure at all what had just happened but she knew she had to see Luke again, he had answers.
Kiya woke up looking around the arena, she saw a few campers training but none paid much attention to her, she assumed this was because it might be a common occurrence for naps in the arena, to be expected with the physical exertion weaponry practice could be. She huffed and got up, instinctively tucking her knife in her pocket, she headed out towards camp, she was intrigued by all the campers, they looked so happy, so carefree, and it made her mad. Did they not understand that the Gods watched them for fun? That the Gods just sent them on quests because they want to watch their kids do something for the amusement?
"Hey Kiya!" A voice said, cutting across Kiya's thoughts as she froze ready to reach for her sword as she recognized the voice and internally rolled her eyes.
"Michael!" She said, throwing a fake smile on her face to avoid being labeled as angry. Michael walked up to her grinning.
"You didn't come back to the cabin last night, where were you?" He asked and Kiya huffed. "I fell asleep after training in the arena all day." She said and Michael nodded.
"Listen, you need to come back to the cabin at night, just in case something happens, I mean your-well you don't even know your powers yet." Kiya turned and stared at Michael. "What is that supposed to mean." She asked and Michael stepped back. His hands in front of him as if Kiya was going to attack him. Kiya rolled her eyes and turned to leave when Michael stepped forward.
"Ty's gone." He said and Kiya whipped back around her eyes flickering with emotions. "What?" She said through gritted teeth and Michael stared back at her.
"Ty left, you can't go after him, he probably joined other half-bloods that defected, based on what I read the last Olympian war tore the camp apart." Michael lowered his hands and sighed. "You haven't been the same since he left, your mopey, not around the other campers, last time you slept in the cabin you kept muttering Luke in your sleep." He said crossing his arms and Kiya frowned.
"Luke is none of your business, he's not a camper here. He's someone I know from the outside." Kiya said lying but throwing as much conviction her voice could manage into each word. "You need to back off, you're not my dad, you're not Chiron, you are just another camper, probably a claimed one right?"
Michael tilted his head. "Like me or not I am head of the Hermes cabin, it's my job to keep my cabin-mates safe!" He said and in one swift motion, Kiya was armed, her sword in her hand extended and she stepped forward, she felt a ripple through the earth and Michael yelped as plants grew around his legs and in speed of the moment, Kiya had rushed forward in anger swinging her sword and before she knew it, her blow was blocked by his spear.
Kiya stepped back, the strange feeling gone and she saw Michael cut the grass immobilizing him with his speartip. "Who is your parent, you had to have been claimed." He said and Kiya shook her head. "I am unclaimed." Kiya said sternly, holding her sword in a defensive position. She watched as Michael eyed her, and he collapsed his spear, it turned into a small bar, which he returned to a piercing that Kiya never noticed near the top of his ear.
Michael turned away heading back towards the cabins when he stopped and looked over his shoulder. "I want to see you at the campfire tonight, or I will tell Chiron of our fight."
He said and Kiya rolled her eyes and stormed off. She headed back towards the lake, the one place she felt normal, like no one cared about her or what she did. She sat there looking at the water, thinking of the last two times at the lake. Ty, gods, Kiya hated how he left, did he really hate the gods that much? He introduced her to this world, of heroes and villains of creatures and monsters, and he left her because he was angry at the gods. And Luke, she felt a link with him, he was easy to talk to, he reminded her of herself, she sighed and leaned back on her hands as she got lost in thought.
She heard footsteps and turned around seeing horse legs before looking up. "Chiron." She said as she turned around and stood up. "Miss Kiya." Chiron said looking at her. "Michael had told me you hadn't returned to the cabin, and he went to look for you." Kiya frowned and shrugged.
"He found me." She said dismissively. "Found me and we talked." "With weapons?" Kiya huffed. "Thats a bad thing?" She asked innocently and Chiron looked at her with a disappointed expression on his face. "Fine it's a bad thing." She said and walked past Chiron. "Not apologizing." She said and Chiron quickly blocked her path.
"Kiya fighting among us isn't the answer. We are all family here." He said and Kiya snorted rolling her eyes. " I am not a part of this family, no sign, remember?" She said with a small chuckle in her voice. Chiron sighed and flicked his tail. "Kiya the gods are difficult, all half-bloods need to know that, their parents care in their own way." He said, putting a hand on her shoulder.
"We are family, even the unclaimed. You need to keep that in mind if you need anything your cabin, even I am there for you." Chiron said and Kiya sighed. "It's fine Chiron I'll see you at the campfire." Kiya said, shaking Chirons hand off her and walking off.
"Hey Kiya!" A voice said, cutting across Kiya's thoughts as she froze ready to reach for her sword as she recognized the voice and internally rolled her eyes.
"Michael!" She said, throwing a fake smile on her face to avoid being labeled as angry. Michael walked up to her grinning.
"You didn't come back to the cabin last night, where were you?" He asked and Kiya huffed. "I fell asleep after training in the arena all day." She said and Michael nodded.
"Listen, you need to come back to the cabin at night, just in case something happens, I mean your-well you don't even know your powers yet." Kiya turned and stared at Michael. "What is that supposed to mean." She asked and Michael stepped back. His hands in front of him as if Kiya was going to attack him. Kiya rolled her eyes and turned to leave when Michael stepped forward.
"Ty's gone." He said and Kiya whipped back around her eyes flickering with emotions. "What?" She said through gritted teeth and Michael stared back at her.
"Ty left, you can't go after him, he probably joined other half-bloods that defected, based on what I read the last Olympian war tore the camp apart." Michael lowered his hands and sighed. "You haven't been the same since he left, your mopey, not around the other campers, last time you slept in the cabin you kept muttering Luke in your sleep." He said crossing his arms and Kiya frowned.
"Luke is none of your business, he's not a camper here. He's someone I know from the outside." Kiya said lying but throwing as much conviction her voice could manage into each word. "You need to back off, you're not my dad, you're not Chiron, you are just another camper, probably a claimed one right?"
Michael tilted his head. "Like me or not I am head of the Hermes cabin, it's my job to keep my cabin-mates safe!" He said and in one swift motion, Kiya was armed, her sword in her hand extended and she stepped forward, she felt a ripple through the earth and Michael yelped as plants grew around his legs and in speed of the moment, Kiya had rushed forward in anger swinging her sword and before she knew it, her blow was blocked by his spear.
Kiya stepped back, the strange feeling gone and she saw Michael cut the grass immobilizing him with his speartip. "Who is your parent, you had to have been claimed." He said and Kiya shook her head. "I am unclaimed." Kiya said sternly, holding her sword in a defensive position. She watched as Michael eyed her, and he collapsed his spear, it turned into a small bar, which he returned to a piercing that Kiya never noticed near the top of his ear.
Michael turned away heading back towards the cabins when he stopped and looked over his shoulder. "I want to see you at the campfire tonight, or I will tell Chiron of our fight."
He said and Kiya rolled her eyes and stormed off. She headed back towards the lake, the one place she felt normal, like no one cared about her or what she did. She sat there looking at the water, thinking of the last two times at the lake. Ty, gods, Kiya hated how he left, did he really hate the gods that much? He introduced her to this world, of heroes and villains of creatures and monsters, and he left her because he was angry at the gods. And Luke, she felt a link with him, he was easy to talk to, he reminded her of herself, she sighed and leaned back on her hands as she got lost in thought.
She heard footsteps and turned around seeing horse legs before looking up. "Chiron." She said as she turned around and stood up. "Miss Kiya." Chiron said looking at her. "Michael had told me you hadn't returned to the cabin, and he went to look for you." Kiya frowned and shrugged.
"He found me." She said dismissively. "Found me and we talked." "With weapons?" Kiya huffed. "Thats a bad thing?" She asked innocently and Chiron looked at her with a disappointed expression on his face. "Fine it's a bad thing." She said and walked past Chiron. "Not apologizing." She said and Chiron quickly blocked her path.
"Kiya fighting among us isn't the answer. We are all family here." He said and Kiya snorted rolling her eyes. " I am not a part of this family, no sign, remember?" She said with a small chuckle in her voice. Chiron sighed and flicked his tail. "Kiya the gods are difficult, all half-bloods need to know that, their parents care in their own way." He said, putting a hand on her shoulder.
"We are family, even the unclaimed. You need to keep that in mind if you need anything your cabin, even I am there for you." Chiron said and Kiya sighed. "It's fine Chiron I'll see you at the campfire." Kiya said, shaking Chirons hand off her and walking off.
The day rolled on, Kiya for once followed the schedule she was given, it was after lunch so she went to the pegasi stable, she never actually got on one, but she spent her time brushing a tan and black pegasi that actually let her near, the others skittering about, seeming to avoid her touch. She sighed as she heard chatter as she realized it was late, people were putting the pegasi in stables. She patted her pegasus's shoulder leading him into a stable as she followed the crowd. She was tired and wanted to go back to the cabin, Michael's threat was null as Chiron already knew of the fight so she could skip the campfire but something told her to go.
Dinner was uneventful, even the chatter of her cabinmates fell on deaf ears. Kiya was thinking, of the fight with Michael, how the earth responded to her emotions and kept Michael from running, she could have killed the other camper. She could have—Kiya shook her head clearing her thoughts. She wasn't a killer. That was one thing she could draw a line on. She wasn't a monster. She heard chatter as a red-haired girl Kiya never saw before entered the clearing. She wore a green shirt and blue jeans and mutters of Oracle and other titles circled the campfire.
"I would like to announce that next week at the full moon we will be having our monthly capture the flag!" Chiron said breaking the silence as Kiya realized the silence was her own, she wasn't paying attention and Chiron was staring at her, and when they locked eyes he turned away. "I hope everyone has trained hard and is ready for the challenge." He added and campers responded with acknowledgement, cheers, and yells of excitement.
Kiya smiled as she actually found herself excited, a real battle, or as real as she could expect, they'd at least be allowed to use weapons. She felt something behind her and turned to see the red-haired girl staring at her. She was tired of being stared at and reached for her sword but the girl looked away, and Kiya pulled her hand back away from her weapon. Paranoid, thats what she was being, paranoid, the oracle was probably trying to figure out if they've met before.
Soon the campers started going separate ways, some going to cabins, others going to the arena or the lake, Kiya and a few stragglers stayed around the campfire. The red-haired girl sat down next to Kiya and she nearly jumped back.
"Name's Rachel." The girl said and Kiya studied the fire with earnest trying to avoid talking to the girl. "You're in cabin eleven." The girl said and Kiya inwardly sighed and nodded. "Yes I am." She muttered finally and the girl nodded. "You're angry, at the camp, I can tell." Kiya looked at Rachel confused. "I'm mad?" She asked and Rachel nodded.
Kiya thought about it, and realized she was mad, but she wasn't sure it was at the camp. "I'm—" Kiya cleared her throat and spoke again. "I'm fine. Don't worry about me." She said finally standing up. Chiron walked up to the two girls his gaze on Rachel.
"Have you—" He asked nodding and Rachel shook her head. "Not yet, but I'm sure if Delphi had news I would share." She said and stood up. "Hey Kiya, walk with me back to my cave?" She asked and Kiya wanted to say no but Chiron's gaze made her stop and nod. "Sure why not." She said looking at Chiron.
Chiron nodded and stepped back allowing the two to leave. Kiya was really confused as to why Chiron wanted her to walk with Rachel. Was he hoping she broke down and spilled her guts to the oracle? Oracle-what even did that mean? Questions raced in her mind but she held her tongue keeping silent. She walked with the girl along the path that led up to the ridge that marked the eastern edge of the camp, it wasn't big but Kiya, even from the fire could see the cave lit in the distance. They had gotten about half-way when Rachel doubled over and Kiya lunged forward catching the girl before she could hit the ground.
"Hey, Rachel are you okay?" Kiya asked the older girl and Rachel turned to face her; Kiya nearly dropped her when she saw her eyes were glowing. Then Rachel's mouth opened and her voice sounded echoed as if multiple Rachels were talking at once.
A forgotten vow made fresh
When ancient blood returns to flesh
To prove the Gods their judgement wrong
By son, by flame and by a curse cast long
Time nearly forgotten in its stead
A choice of one to bring hope or dread.
Kiya stared in confusion at the girl. "What was that?" She asked as Rachel went limp in her arms. "Hey!" She yelled as loud as she could. A few people she didn't recognize ran out of the cave towards her, a few taking Rachel from her.
"What was that?!" She shouted as hoovesteps were heard. "What happened?" Chiron's voice said and Kiya turned around. Chrion's face was twisted with unreadable emotions, confusion, sadness, and Kiya wasn't sure what else. He put a hand on Kiya's shoulder and turned her away from the cave walking with her back towards the campfire.
"Rachel is our Oracle, she shares prophecies given by the Gods to us." He explained bluntly. "She gave you a prophecy." He said and Kiya nodded not sure what to say. Chiron sighed and rubbed his temple with a hand. "That means that the quest is yours."
Kiya stepped back. "No!" She said putting her hands up. "I'm not taking a quest for the Gods, what have they done for me?!" She asked, crossing her arms. "I'm not even claimed!" She huffed and Chiron sighed. "Maybe this quest is what your parent needs; to show you your abilities before being claimed." Kiya frowned and shook her head. She sighed and stuck her hand in her pocket, her fingers dancing over the knife Ty had given her. Not sure what to say or do just lost in thought.
Dinner was uneventful, even the chatter of her cabinmates fell on deaf ears. Kiya was thinking, of the fight with Michael, how the earth responded to her emotions and kept Michael from running, she could have killed the other camper. She could have—Kiya shook her head clearing her thoughts. She wasn't a killer. That was one thing she could draw a line on. She wasn't a monster. She heard chatter as a red-haired girl Kiya never saw before entered the clearing. She wore a green shirt and blue jeans and mutters of Oracle and other titles circled the campfire.
"I would like to announce that next week at the full moon we will be having our monthly capture the flag!" Chiron said breaking the silence as Kiya realized the silence was her own, she wasn't paying attention and Chiron was staring at her, and when they locked eyes he turned away. "I hope everyone has trained hard and is ready for the challenge." He added and campers responded with acknowledgement, cheers, and yells of excitement.
Kiya smiled as she actually found herself excited, a real battle, or as real as she could expect, they'd at least be allowed to use weapons. She felt something behind her and turned to see the red-haired girl staring at her. She was tired of being stared at and reached for her sword but the girl looked away, and Kiya pulled her hand back away from her weapon. Paranoid, thats what she was being, paranoid, the oracle was probably trying to figure out if they've met before.
Soon the campers started going separate ways, some going to cabins, others going to the arena or the lake, Kiya and a few stragglers stayed around the campfire. The red-haired girl sat down next to Kiya and she nearly jumped back.
"Name's Rachel." The girl said and Kiya studied the fire with earnest trying to avoid talking to the girl. "You're in cabin eleven." The girl said and Kiya inwardly sighed and nodded. "Yes I am." She muttered finally and the girl nodded. "You're angry, at the camp, I can tell." Kiya looked at Rachel confused. "I'm mad?" She asked and Rachel nodded.
Kiya thought about it, and realized she was mad, but she wasn't sure it was at the camp. "I'm—" Kiya cleared her throat and spoke again. "I'm fine. Don't worry about me." She said finally standing up. Chiron walked up to the two girls his gaze on Rachel.
"Have you—" He asked nodding and Rachel shook her head. "Not yet, but I'm sure if Delphi had news I would share." She said and stood up. "Hey Kiya, walk with me back to my cave?" She asked and Kiya wanted to say no but Chiron's gaze made her stop and nod. "Sure why not." She said looking at Chiron.
Chiron nodded and stepped back allowing the two to leave. Kiya was really confused as to why Chiron wanted her to walk with Rachel. Was he hoping she broke down and spilled her guts to the oracle? Oracle-what even did that mean? Questions raced in her mind but she held her tongue keeping silent. She walked with the girl along the path that led up to the ridge that marked the eastern edge of the camp, it wasn't big but Kiya, even from the fire could see the cave lit in the distance. They had gotten about half-way when Rachel doubled over and Kiya lunged forward catching the girl before she could hit the ground.
"Hey, Rachel are you okay?" Kiya asked the older girl and Rachel turned to face her; Kiya nearly dropped her when she saw her eyes were glowing. Then Rachel's mouth opened and her voice sounded echoed as if multiple Rachels were talking at once.
A forgotten vow made fresh
When ancient blood returns to flesh
To prove the Gods their judgement wrong
By son, by flame and by a curse cast long
Time nearly forgotten in its stead
A choice of one to bring hope or dread.
Kiya stared in confusion at the girl. "What was that?" She asked as Rachel went limp in her arms. "Hey!" She yelled as loud as she could. A few people she didn't recognize ran out of the cave towards her, a few taking Rachel from her.
"What was that?!" She shouted as hoovesteps were heard. "What happened?" Chiron's voice said and Kiya turned around. Chrion's face was twisted with unreadable emotions, confusion, sadness, and Kiya wasn't sure what else. He put a hand on Kiya's shoulder and turned her away from the cave walking with her back towards the campfire.
"Rachel is our Oracle, she shares prophecies given by the Gods to us." He explained bluntly. "She gave you a prophecy." He said and Kiya nodded not sure what to say. Chiron sighed and rubbed his temple with a hand. "That means that the quest is yours."
Kiya stepped back. "No!" She said putting her hands up. "I'm not taking a quest for the Gods, what have they done for me?!" She asked, crossing her arms. "I'm not even claimed!" She huffed and Chiron sighed. "Maybe this quest is what your parent needs; to show you your abilities before being claimed." Kiya frowned and shook her head. She sighed and stuck her hand in her pocket, her fingers dancing over the knife Ty had given her. Not sure what to say or do just lost in thought.
Kiya was sitting in the Hermes cabin listening to the quiet chatter of her cabin-mates. "So..." One camper said sitting down next to her making Kiya grumble with annoyance. "I heard at the meeting of the cabin heads that you're refusing a quest." Kiya grit her teeth and held her tongue. Just because Michael was the head of Cabin 11 meant nothing to her, she wasn't a child of Hermes so she refused to speak or even acknowledge the other camper.
"One has to wonder though....." Michael said tilting his head. "What the Oracle meant with her words. A forgotten vow, ancient blood returning to flesh..." Kiyas face relaxed for a moment as she realized she did wonder, why those words, an ancient blood? Maybe a hint at who she was? She knew she was some semblance of demi-god but obviously not greek. She shook her head returning to her stoic face. "Don't care." She grunted finally. Michael smirked and Kiya could see it out of the corner of her eye. "You do care." He said softly.
"You wouldn't be as angry if you didn't care. Ty...you...Luke..." Michael sighed and leaned back on his hands staring at the bunk above them. "You hate the Gods, and I can never figure out why, look at us, we are better than any mortal. We're stronger, faster, smarter, and yet you want to toss those gifts away. And I'm not sure why." Kiya froze when Michael mentioned Luke. He was erased from history for his crimes, though what they were was unknown to her. Michael stood up with a huff. "We noticed you act more like Luke then anyone since him." Michael said and crossed his arms. "I only hope you end up a hero like him, I would hate for the camp to meet you in battle."
With that thinly veiled threat Michael walked off leaving Kiya alone, where she slumped back into bed laying down, pulling the cover over her head her mind racing with too many thoughts, she feared she would never go to sleep. Surprising herself when she felt the lull of sleep washing over her.
She let it take her, eyes closed as she sighed before opening them again to find herself in the center of camp. But it wasn't the camp she was use to; the forest hadn't been cleared to make room for more cabins, there were only thirteen visible then the Big House and the other various camp activities. She watched as a sandy-blonde haired girl chased after a dark-haired boy the two of them yelling something about toilets before she felt a hand on her shoulder and turned to see..."Luke." She said smiling. "Hey Kiya." He said returning her smile as he nodded towards cabin eleven, it was empty.
"This was the day we did capture the flag, where we found out Percy was a son of Poseidon." Kiya turned facing the third cabin, she recognized it from the current camp. "Poseidon, so he's powerful." Luke nodded. "He broke a curse with just one action, when if anyone else did it, they would've failed." He admitted going inside the bunk and sitting down on an empty bed. Kiya followed and sat in a chair facing the bunk. "What did you do?" She asked not wasting time. Luke sighed and stared as campers returned to the camp; for once it wasn't a dream Kiya could control but she noticed that campers were ignorant to the two of them, as if they weren't there.
"This camp." Luke said looking at the campers around them. "Its a safe space for us, for Demi-Gods." Luke sighed and waved a hand the campers, cabin, fading as the lakeside formed and Kiya was back where her and Luke first talked. "I was a fool." Luke said turning and Kiya turned to face where he looked at, she could see him arguing with the dark haired boy. "Percy." Luke said softly and Kiya felt something in the pit of her stomach, a pull as she watched them argue. She watched as the memory Luke summoned a monster, looked like a small scorpion.
"Don't talk about Thalia!" Lukes shouting drew her attention back to the two boys versus the monster that had appeared. Kiya found herself instinctively reaching for her weapon but Lukes hand gripped her wrist stopping her. "Its a memory, it won't do anything to you." He muttered. Kiya pulled her hand back as she missed the rest of the argument and watched as the past Luke vanished and Percy fought the scorpion and fell, trying to heal at the water only for nymphs to drag him away.
"I stole from the gods, I tried to use their weapons to start a war I knew nothing about." Luke admitted. He looked at his hands as they shook with nervousness. He waved his hand as they materialized by the past Luke who was staring at the sign for Camp, his beaded necklace gone from his neck, casted aside in the dirt. "I've been here since I was a kid, I did everything they ever asked, yeah I did and for what?" Lukes eyes flashed with anger and Kiya could see Ty for a moment, Luke and Ty held the same resentment for the gods. Luke slashed at the sign with anger only managing to add a new nick in the stone archway. "I'll do anything to make sure the Gods fall." He promised as the memory faded Kiya turned to face Luke, as his eyes studied her for a moment. "Your quest...." He started to say but Kiya raised a hand stopping him from speaking.
"I'm not taking some stupid quest." She said and Luke gave a small smile. "You must." He said his voice wavering. "Your parent..." Kiya stiffened as he said that before he flashed. "Wait I don't want to wake up!" She said trying to grab luke but he became intangible. "I can't tell you." He said looking at Kiya pain and sadness in his eyes. "But promise me. You'll take the quest, don't be like me, or the other demi-gods that have turned. You can make a difference for the forsaken half-bloods. The ones that go unclaimed because of their parents, even with their oath to Styx." Luke flickered again and Kiya watched as the dream started to falter. She heard a voice and turned around to see a small light, she took a step forward towards it but felt herself falling as if whatever floor was below her vanished, she jolted awake almost hitting her head on the underside of the bunk.
"Luke!" She cried out, rubbing sleep from her eyes and looking around. The cabin was empty, and she couldn't hear the screams of kids running around training, playing, messing with the pegasi, it was far too quiet. Kiya jumped to her feet racing out of the cabin as she looked around to see the camp in ruins, cabins torn down till nothing remained, campers bodies lying bloodied on the fields. "Kiya." A deep gravelly voice spoke and she turned around only to have a moment to raise her arms before a sword was brought down towards her.
"One has to wonder though....." Michael said tilting his head. "What the Oracle meant with her words. A forgotten vow, ancient blood returning to flesh..." Kiyas face relaxed for a moment as she realized she did wonder, why those words, an ancient blood? Maybe a hint at who she was? She knew she was some semblance of demi-god but obviously not greek. She shook her head returning to her stoic face. "Don't care." She grunted finally. Michael smirked and Kiya could see it out of the corner of her eye. "You do care." He said softly.
"You wouldn't be as angry if you didn't care. Ty...you...Luke..." Michael sighed and leaned back on his hands staring at the bunk above them. "You hate the Gods, and I can never figure out why, look at us, we are better than any mortal. We're stronger, faster, smarter, and yet you want to toss those gifts away. And I'm not sure why." Kiya froze when Michael mentioned Luke. He was erased from history for his crimes, though what they were was unknown to her. Michael stood up with a huff. "We noticed you act more like Luke then anyone since him." Michael said and crossed his arms. "I only hope you end up a hero like him, I would hate for the camp to meet you in battle."
With that thinly veiled threat Michael walked off leaving Kiya alone, where she slumped back into bed laying down, pulling the cover over her head her mind racing with too many thoughts, she feared she would never go to sleep. Surprising herself when she felt the lull of sleep washing over her.
She let it take her, eyes closed as she sighed before opening them again to find herself in the center of camp. But it wasn't the camp she was use to; the forest hadn't been cleared to make room for more cabins, there were only thirteen visible then the Big House and the other various camp activities. She watched as a sandy-blonde haired girl chased after a dark-haired boy the two of them yelling something about toilets before she felt a hand on her shoulder and turned to see..."Luke." She said smiling. "Hey Kiya." He said returning her smile as he nodded towards cabin eleven, it was empty.
"This was the day we did capture the flag, where we found out Percy was a son of Poseidon." Kiya turned facing the third cabin, she recognized it from the current camp. "Poseidon, so he's powerful." Luke nodded. "He broke a curse with just one action, when if anyone else did it, they would've failed." He admitted going inside the bunk and sitting down on an empty bed. Kiya followed and sat in a chair facing the bunk. "What did you do?" She asked not wasting time. Luke sighed and stared as campers returned to the camp; for once it wasn't a dream Kiya could control but she noticed that campers were ignorant to the two of them, as if they weren't there.
"This camp." Luke said looking at the campers around them. "Its a safe space for us, for Demi-Gods." Luke sighed and waved a hand the campers, cabin, fading as the lakeside formed and Kiya was back where her and Luke first talked. "I was a fool." Luke said turning and Kiya turned to face where he looked at, she could see him arguing with the dark haired boy. "Percy." Luke said softly and Kiya felt something in the pit of her stomach, a pull as she watched them argue. She watched as the memory Luke summoned a monster, looked like a small scorpion.
"Don't talk about Thalia!" Lukes shouting drew her attention back to the two boys versus the monster that had appeared. Kiya found herself instinctively reaching for her weapon but Lukes hand gripped her wrist stopping her. "Its a memory, it won't do anything to you." He muttered. Kiya pulled her hand back as she missed the rest of the argument and watched as the past Luke vanished and Percy fought the scorpion and fell, trying to heal at the water only for nymphs to drag him away.
"I stole from the gods, I tried to use their weapons to start a war I knew nothing about." Luke admitted. He looked at his hands as they shook with nervousness. He waved his hand as they materialized by the past Luke who was staring at the sign for Camp, his beaded necklace gone from his neck, casted aside in the dirt. "I've been here since I was a kid, I did everything they ever asked, yeah I did and for what?" Lukes eyes flashed with anger and Kiya could see Ty for a moment, Luke and Ty held the same resentment for the gods. Luke slashed at the sign with anger only managing to add a new nick in the stone archway. "I'll do anything to make sure the Gods fall." He promised as the memory faded Kiya turned to face Luke, as his eyes studied her for a moment. "Your quest...." He started to say but Kiya raised a hand stopping him from speaking.
"I'm not taking some stupid quest." She said and Luke gave a small smile. "You must." He said his voice wavering. "Your parent..." Kiya stiffened as he said that before he flashed. "Wait I don't want to wake up!" She said trying to grab luke but he became intangible. "I can't tell you." He said looking at Kiya pain and sadness in his eyes. "But promise me. You'll take the quest, don't be like me, or the other demi-gods that have turned. You can make a difference for the forsaken half-bloods. The ones that go unclaimed because of their parents, even with their oath to Styx." Luke flickered again and Kiya watched as the dream started to falter. She heard a voice and turned around to see a small light, she took a step forward towards it but felt herself falling as if whatever floor was below her vanished, she jolted awake almost hitting her head on the underside of the bunk.
"Luke!" She cried out, rubbing sleep from her eyes and looking around. The cabin was empty, and she couldn't hear the screams of kids running around training, playing, messing with the pegasi, it was far too quiet. Kiya jumped to her feet racing out of the cabin as she looked around to see the camp in ruins, cabins torn down till nothing remained, campers bodies lying bloodied on the fields. "Kiya." A deep gravelly voice spoke and she turned around only to have a moment to raise her arms before a sword was brought down towards her.
Thats all I have so far
