'Uh, sorry. But is it ok if I take a turn?" Hermes scratched the back of his head as he sheepishly looked at Hestia's resident Renard.
It must have taken a lot of guts for someone as shy as her to speak up. Even more impressive is that she'd be willing to do so, knowing that she'd have to be doing a live reading in front of some of the most famous Adventurers in Orairo, not to mention their Gods.
And honestly, if it had been any other time, he would have let her.
But after that last chapter..
Percy was going to be sleeping in the Hermes Cabin.
Now, Percy wasn't his child, no matter how hot he thought Sally was. That meant that, sooner or later, he was going to be moving out and heading over to Cabin 3. Which means that these next few chapters are going to be very important, at least for him.
Whose ever those kids were, they carried his name. And if nothing else, Hermes felt a need to personally read about them.
These were kids that could have been, and Hermes wanted to see how they made their Old-man-from-another-dimension proud.
"U-Uh, Oh! Y-Yes, Hermes-sama. I-Its fine." The renard cuttley stuttering over her words.
Giving her his patented Rougish smirk, Hermes ignored Hestia's territorial hiss as he graciously took the book from her hands.
Sitting back down, Hermes took his beautiful captain's usual glare of disgust like a champ as he opened and read the title.
"My Dinner Goes Up in Smoke."
Hermes blinked.
Well, if that didn't sound a little morbid…
Word of the bathroom incident spread immediately. Wherever I went, campers pointed at me and murmured something about toilet water. Or maybe they were just staring at Annabeth,
"Aw, man, I wouldn't want to be him right now." Welf chuckled as he shook his head. Getting an angry tour from a girl was never fun.
He should know. When he first joined the Hephaestus Familia, Hephaestus-sama had told him to get Tsubaki to give him a tour of the forges.
Just his luck, though, when he found her, she had been cleaning out her personal forge and had not been paying attention when he inadvertently snuck up on her.
She still did it, of course. But the entire time Welf felt as if he was walking on a tight-rope made of spider silk as his then Captain dragged him through the entire Familia holdings covered in soot and ash.
She'd been so mad that day. And even though she's never brought it up, Welf was sure that she still hadn't forgiven him.
Sneaking a glance at her, Welf's eyes met her one eye. That one single eye, seemingly alight with a dark fire, took hold of Welf's soul. Whipping his eyes back to the black wall as fast as he could, Welf felt a river of sweat pour down his back.
Nope, she hadn't forgiven him at all.
"Him? What about Annabeth? Look at her." Lefiya cried. Horrified at seeing someone covered in that filth and still being forced to walk around in public without at least a towel to clean themselves.
If that had been her, she might as well have died right there.
Lefiya clutched her fist to her chest as tears welled in her eyes.
Annabeth was so brave.
"Man, she must reek." Gerath absently muttered.
"She does." Bete growled through his pinched nose.
The tour rounded through a few areas. The forges, the arts center and the climbing wall, which actually consisted of two facing walls that shook violently, dropped boulders, sprayed lava, and clashed together if you didn't get to the top fast enough.
"Ooo, ooo, that looks fun!" Tiona shouted. Running over to her sister, she pointed at the image and pulled on her sister's arm.
"Can we get something like that, please! Please!"
But Tione wasn't one to be swayed. After years of being her older sister's minder, she knew how to handle this. The same way any women handled a child.
"No." Speak plainly and clearly, even as you crush their little hearts.
Tione shook her arm out of Tiona's grasp. Crossing her arms, she looked away from her sister's pleading eyes. Even going so far as to shut her own eyes so that she couldn't see Tiona's dreaded puppy eyes.
"You'd get bored with it within a week and never use it again."
"Nuh-uh I promise." Tiona collapsed to her knees as she grabbed Tione's legs.
But Tione wouldn't break. Plus were would they even get such a thing, much less pay for it. No, it's better for everyone if she shut this down immediately.
"No Tiona."
Aww, you guys never let me have fun." Crossing her arms, Tioan huffed as she sulcked on the ground.
Percy tried to apologies saying that it hadn't been his fault but he didn't even know if he believed that. I didn't understand how. But the toilets had responded to me. I had become one with the plumbing. "You need to talk to the Oracle," Annabeth said. "Who?" "Not who. What. The Oracle. I'll ask Chiron."
"An Oracle?" May asked.
"Unique mortals that have the unique gift of Prophecy." Ouranos explained plainly. The knowledge of them wasn't hidden, just not brought up, as no one really cared.
"They can see the future basically." Hestia clarified when some people still didn't get it. Sighing, Hestia remembered the first time an oracle had been found.
And hadn't that been a crazy day.
It had been just like any other mundane eternity in Tenkia when suddenly all the Gods went nuts. Saying that there were mortals listening in on them or that mortals were polluting fate.
When some of the Supreme Gods looked into it they realized that some mortals had a sliver of connection to fate. Just like the Gods of Prophecy, they could peer into the inner workings of fate.
At first, everyone had been concerned about what this meant for the future, but when they looked into it, they realized they had nothing to worry about. Because it didn't matter what they saw, they still couldn't change the future.
It took a few more hundred years, and some careful monitoring, before many of the Gods lost interest and everything went back to normal.
"Yeah, but don't think that means that you can change the future. Fate allows them to witness the Past, Present, and Future, but only parts of it. Any Prophecy they do give is always in the form of riddles or signs meant to confuse and entrap you. The future can be shifted yes, but don't think that'll go down without a fight." Loki warned.
Percy looked at the water, wishing for someone to help him, though he hadn't expected any to show up, so my heart skipped a beat when I noticed two teenage girls sitting cross-legged at the base of the pier, about twenty feet below. They smiled and waved as if I were a long-lost friend. I didn't know what else to do. I waved back.
"Hermes chuckled perversely. "Ho, ho, ho. Who are these lovely ladies."
"Hermes-sama." Asif sighed.
"Naiads? They look different than the ones that we have back on Genkia." Finn noted
"Yeah, ours look more like fish people than those bints Nya."
"Anya, behave." Syr giggled.
"Don't encourage them," Annabeth warned. "Naiads are terrible flirts." "Naiads," I repeated, feeling completely overwhelmed. "That's it. I want to go home now." Annabeth frowned. "Don't you get it, Percy? You are home. This is the only safe place on earth for kids like us."
Bete scoffed. "Wimp"
Referia sighed.
There just was not any point in wasting precious brain function in trying to change Bete's mind. She knew about his trauma and how his little weak vs. strong mentality was just a way for him to protect people from experiencing the same thing.
She knew, that he most of all viewed himself as weak. And that most of all, he wished that he could have been stronger when it mattered most.
It is just sometimes, he really makes it hard to be around.
But then again..
Riferia hid her giggles as she watched Tiona's drink sail through the air towards Bete's head.
"HEY! TIONA!!"
As his Familia, it is their job to make sure that the worst bits get hammered down.
Taking a napkin, Riveria handed it to Bete to clean up.
And help him stand back up when he needs it.
Annabeth tried to explain to Percy what they were, but he didn't seem to understand it. And when she plainly spelled it out to him, that he was the son of a God he still denied it. But her words made him think. About all the things that had happened to him. Strange things, when he was mad or scared, things that he couldn't explain. Percy's eyes widened. Did…did this mean he was a wizard? (Little joke at the end, last few sentences aren't really in the book…. should have been, would have been funny)
"He's finally getting it." Welf sighed.
"About time." Lili rolled her eyes.
"No, I think he's suspected for a while now, he just didn't want to believe it." Yamato said.
"But if all the kids here are half-gods—" "Demigods," Annabeth said. "That's the official term. Or half-bloods."Percy tried to ask about her dad, but that didn't seem to make her happy. "I haven't seen him since I was very small. He teaches American history." "He's human." "What? You assume it has to be a male god who finds a human female attractive? How sexist is that?"
"Yeah, Percy, what female Gods can't spread their legs either?"
"Hah, Loki-sama." Riviera covered her eyes.
"What? There's nothing wrong with it, we do it all the time. Hell sometimes with each other."
"Loki!"
"I really don't get you mortals sometimes, such innocent lives you carry out. Maybe it has something to do with your short lifespans. Let me tell you, after a few million sex just becomes another form transaction, it doesn't mean anything. Well, unless you want it to." Freya hid a speck of blush as she looked away from Bell.
Loki nodded with her.
"Yeah, what she said. I mean, I hated Istar, like really hated her. But even I can't deny that that piece of trash Goddess had some meat on her bones, and pretty spry in bed as well."
Hestia lips curled. "Disgusting! Gross! Filthy Goddesses!"
How could these beings call themselves Goddesses even as they debase the name with their unholy language….At the very least, such talks should be held in private accompaed my shared glasses of wine.
But certainly not in front of Bel-their children.
"I know what you mean Hestia. They really lower everyone's expectations of what a Goddess should be." Hephaestus sighed.
Loki narrowed her eyes at Hephasestus before suddenly breaking out her signature Lokitm smirk.
"Oh, don't you try and act all innocent, Hephaestus. We might not be as pure as little-miss-hoyl-flame over there, but I distinctly remember all the times when the two of us-"
"AAAHHHH! Shut Up! Shut Up!" Jumping to her feat Hephaestus's face lit up liek her personal forge.
But she wasn't given any reprieve, as even Freya joined in the fun.
Prentending to be sad, Freya covered her mouth and looked away, hiding the grin beneath her hand.
"I agree, Hephaestus, you can't throw all those times that we've been togeth-"
"I SAID SHUT UP!! CLOSE THOSE LYING LIPS THIS INSTANT!!"
Sitting their Welf watched wide-eyed as his former Goddess lept across the room and somehow got both Loki and Freya in a headlock chocking them until they stopped talking.
Leaping to their feat members of both Familias went to try and pull Hepheastus off but it was difficult without also hurting her, something no one wanted to do. Though it did seem that the Loki Familia wasn't trying as hard as Ottar, but that might have just been a trick of the light.
Eventaulyl though they were able to get the Goddesses separated and calmed down. Hephaestus finally went back to her seat after a few harsh whispers, and everything went back to normal.
Welf swallowed. He hadn't known that Hephasestus-sama had been so, Welf felt himself blush, experienced.
"Who's your mom, then?" "Cabin six." "Meaning?" Annabeth straightened. "Athena. Goddess of wisdom and battle."
"I knew it! I knew she looked familiar." Hestia shouted.
"It's her eyes. Athena has the same grey eyes." Loki said.
"And just as intense as well." Freya agreed.
"Yeah, total- wait, hold on. Athena's kid?!" Hephaestus sat up. Something about that phrase didn't sit right.
Hermes eyes shot up.
"...Holy shit, you're right! How the hell did that happen?"
"A better question is whether Athena is as hot as ours?"
"Loki-sama." Reveria felt her headache coming back. Why was it that she put as her Goddess's minder, and not someone else.
"What, I'm just asking." Loki pouted.
"Who is Athena, Hestia-sama?" Bell asked.
"And why is it such a big deal that she had a kid?" Ryuu followed up.
"U-Uh, well, Athena is-" Hestia blushed a little.
The main reason why she knew about Athena wasn't the sort of thing that she liked bringing up in front of others, but thankfully, Hephastsut stepped up.
"Athena, like Annebeth said, is a Wisdom Goddess. And one of the smarter ones at that."
"Particularly, her Wisdom is geared more towards Strategy and Reasoning than it is Discovery. In fact, her Wisdom on warfare is great that she conquered an entire kingdom down here on Genkai with only an owl, a chariot, and twenty-five peasants that she picked up along the way." Ouranos explained.
"From what I hear, her initial plan only accounted for the owl, the rest were just add-ons that she made room for later on." Hermes smirked.
"Really?" Bell's eyes lit up.
That sounded so cool. Like the hero stories his Grranpa used to tell him, where the heroes went on long journeys, meeting new friends along the way who somehow always joined their parties as they left.
"Yep, in fact, I hear that still rules there to this day, over there on the other side of the Elfs forest. Turned the entire kingdom into a college of learning open to anyone willing to learn." Hermes said.
"The scholars who graduate from her college are especially coveted as they say that having at least one as your advisor will set you on a path of success." Asfi added.
"...Ok, but then why were you all so surprised that Athena-sama had a child?" Lili asked
"Oh, that's because she's one of the three virgin Goddesses, up there with Artemis and our little Hestia." Loki laughed.
"Really?" Syr asked.
Hesti scowled. That's what she didn't want talked about, especially by Loki.
"Don't call me little. But yes, Athena herself has said that she's sworn off all manner of men, and women, when it comes to those like Loki."
"Hey."
"But it really is a surprise to hear that this one didn't." Hestia looked up in thought.
Why hadn't this Athena taken her vow?
"Maybe that's just one of the differences here." Bell suggested.
"Maybe."Hestia conceded. They might never know the real reason, but it still seemed weird to her.
Okay, I thought. Percy wondered about his dad, but Annabeth said that probably no one knew. Percy believed that his mom knew. When they talked about the undetermined things got sad."The gods are busy. They have a lot of kids and they don't always . . . Well, sometimes they don't care about us, Percy. They ignore us."
The room was quiet for a moment. Until finally Hestia whispered.
"That's not right." A silent tear slid down her cheek.
All those children back at the Hermes Cabin. All the ones that knew that they had a family right there, not even dozens of feet away, and they couldn't be with them.
Just thrown aside, waiting for a sign from someone that should care, but didn't.
That wasn't a family. That was a prison.
"God's don't act like that, they shouldn't. They should love their children." Hestia said.
"They have a gift. One that I-that we can't have. And they slander it." Freya grit her teeth. What she wouldn't give, what she wouldn't destroy and rip asunder as long as she could hold a babe of her very own.
And they throw their's away.
"Idiots." Hermes shook his head.
Loki spat on the floor.
"Jackasses is more like it. Hestia is right. We love our children, even if they didn't come from us, we still treat them as family. What's their excuse?"
I thought about some of the kids I'd seen in the Hermes cabin, teenagers who looked sullen and depressed,same as the rich kids from his school. That wasn't right, Gods should be better. "It depends," Annabeth said. "Some campers only stay the summer. If you're a child of Aphrodite or Demeter, you're probably not a real powerful force.
"OOO, that's gotta sting." Gareth chuckled. He hadn't met this Aphrodidte but he knew Demeter, and she definitely didn't feel like a minor Goddess.
"What the hell does she, "not a real powerful force" Demeter herself is a High Goddess able to affect the seasons and harvest of the mortal world, and Aphrodite, she's the Supreme Goddess of love, higher than even Ishtar and even Freya over there." Loki said.
"But do their children carry that same power?" Finn wondered. "We know that as Demigods they're already more powerful than regular people, but just how do they measure up to their parents?"
Annabeth told him that the camp was the only safe space for them. Monsters couldn't get in, not unless they were summoned. "Why would anybody want to summon a monster?" "Practice fights. Practical jokes." "Practical jokes?"
"Sick practical joke guy, setting a monster on your friends." Gareth shook his head.
"Yea-Hey, wait. Didn't you guys do that to me? You put a hellhound in my room!" Tione shouted.
"Oh, please, that was a tiny one." Tiona waved her off, it had meant to be a gift for her birthday, but she apparently hadn't liked it.
Plus, she didn't know what her sisters deal was anyway, it's not like the little thing could have hurt her, that damn thing was barely bigger than a puppy.
"It destroyed my room. All of my clothes were on the floor. It burned my favorite pair of panties."
"...I still think it was funny."
"...." Tione narrowed her eyes at her sister.
"....." Tiona's narrowed back.
"GHuk"
Finn sighed. You know, an Amazon leaping across the floor to choke out her sister with her own two hands might have been something a normal Captain would have put a stop to, but after the fifth time of seeing the exact same thing happen, he learned that it was better to let them go at it.
After a couple of years, he's learned to just ignore it. So, ignoring the obvious case of sibling abuse behind him, Finn instead decides to focus on something else.
Like the fact that the Demigods were prisoners.
It hadn't been out right said, but it was easily pieced together with what Annabeth said. Just like their worl Monsters and Mortals were largely kept separate. One above the earth and one below it in the Dungeon.
Except there it was reversed. Now it was the Adventurers living in the dungeon while the Monsters lived on Earth.
That kind of world unsettled him. And it was only made worse that these were children trapped in their bubble.
One, that he feared may very well pop someday.
"The point is, the borders are sealed to keep mortals and monsters out. From the outside, mortals look into the valley and see nothing unusual, just a strawberry farm." "So . . . you're a year-rounder?"
"Why would you ask that?" Lumionre's eyebrows rose. Hadn't anyone taught this boy any tact or manners?
"Yeah, seems kind of personal. Like asking someone how long you've been in prison." May agreed. Honestly, it was almost as bad as asking why an Adventure had a scar. You just didn't do that sort of thing.
Annabeth nodded. She showed off her Camp necklace wit clay bead for every year she'd been here. Apparently, she'd shown up when she was seven. Percy tried to ask why so young but Annabeth shut that down quickly
"So young, and already trapped behind walls." Freya sighed.
"Why do you think she got there so young, I mean, Percy was able to go his whole life without attacks." Lefiya asked.
"I don't know, she might have been living near a monster hotspot or something for all we know." Bete said.
Deciding to change the subject, Percy then decided to ask about the Solstice business. Annabeth explained that she and a few other campers had been to Olympus atop the Empire State Building during the winter Solstice, but something had happened. Something that she hoped Peryc would know about. She thought that he could help her, Athena wasn't choosy who she worked with, well, except Ares or Poseidon.
"Olympus?" Hestia tilted her head. What was that supposed to be?
"I'm guessing it's like our Denatus, a place where the Gods come together to vote and talk abotu vaisur topics." Hephaestus suggested.
"The same palace where they hand out soul-crushing names to our children,"Hestia mumbled.
"So whatever happened to Zeus's Bolt, it happened on the Winter Solstice," Finn said
"And on the day when all Gods would be present too." Riveria added.
"Whoever did that must have been very stupid, or very skilled. Taking a God's weapon of Power right under the nose of the whole Pantheon." Ryuu said.
"Well, if nothing else, we got one Mystery solved." Hephaestus crossed her arms as she leaned back.
"What's that Hephaestus-sama?" Tsubaki asked.
"We now know whose Percy's father is."
Everyone blinked. How had she gotten that?
Hermes tapped his chin, thinking about it. It took him a second, but he finally got it.
"Ah, yes Posedion. She said it so fast I almost missed it for a second."
A few of the Gods awed in understanding as they pieced it together.
"So I'm guessing Poseidon is a God of the Sea." Finn asked.
Loki nodded her head.
"Yes, but also one of Storms and Earthquakes."
It was actually something that started a rivalry between him and many Thunder Gods, though most of the time it was Zeus.
See Poseidon was a God of the Storms, which meant, inaverdtanly he also had a Domain over Thunder. Which in itself wasn't that big of a deal, many Gods had overlapping Domains, why should this one matter?
The problem was, was that Posedion liked to brag that even as a Lower Domain of his, his Thunder was stronger than all the others. That, of course, set a few Gods of,f and it led to a bitter rivalry between them ever since.
Freya stared wistfully into her glass of wine.
"It's too bad, I was already imagining how cute their kids would be, but knowing their parents…"
"Yeah, I don't see that ever happening." Hermes chuckled.
"What's wrong with Athena and Poseidon." Bell asked Hestia.
"Nothing really, they just hate each other." Hestia shrugged her shoulders, as if to say what could you do about it.
Thankfully Ouranos explained.
"It's there pesonalites. Athena is always so strict and oriented, while Poseidon is more of the jokester sort."
"They just can't stand being in the same room as each other." Loki said.
I could smell barbecue smoke coming from somewhere nearby. Annabeth must've heard my stomach growl. She told me to go on, she'd catch me later. I left her on the pier, tracing her finger across the rail as if drawing a battle plan.
"She is, I can tell. In fact its seems to be a fairly decent plan for one so young." Freya praised.
"I think I can see what you mean, Freya. A little simple and direct, but it's fine for children." Loki looked closer as she added her thoughts.
Finn leaned over to whisper.
"I keep on forgetting, Freya is also a Goddess of War."
"It's part of the reason she never lost a War Game before, even back when she didn't have that Borz propping her up." Gareth said.
Back at cabin eleven, everybody was talking and horsing around, waiting for dinner. Luke came over and sat next to Percy. "Found you a sleeping bag," he said. "And here, I stole you some toiletries from the camp store." I couldn't tell if he was kidding about the stealing part. I said, "Thanks." "No prob."
There he is, Hermes thought, and already a chip off the old mountain. Stealing for friends.
Now all he's gotta do is steal something from Percy.
Can't be a thief if you're just giving stuff away after all, payment for service rendered and all that.
"He shouldn't need a sleeping bag, he should have his own bed." Hestia grumbled.
"Don't be prissy, it's not like he's having to sleep outside. And besides, toughing it out does the little squirts some good." Loki rolled her eyes. Sometimes she wondered if Hestia even knew the definition of toughing it out.
"The problem is, is that they shouldn't have to be toughing it out unless they have too, not because their Godly parents are too lazy to send a simple sign."
Everyone went quiet.
The Hermes Cabin was full. No, it wasn't full, it was bursting.
There were too many kids and not enough space. For goodness sake, one kid was forced to sleep under a bunk bed. And speaking of the beds, they weren't any better. How could they be when the space was being shared by three people!
At least the kids on the floor had a sliver of wiggle room. With boards on the beds to prevent people from rolling over, everyone on the beds were pushed together until they were almost fusing.
Hermes frowned. You know, at first he was flattered, maybe even a little smug. After all, it was his cabin that took care of these wayward souls. It was his generosity, his Domian, that sheltered them when even their parents didn't want them.
But looking at this, well it made it seem as if his generosity had been turned into a dumping ground.
"Family should not be like this." Hestia reiterated.
Luke sat next to me, pushed his back against the wall. "Tough first day?" "I don't belong here," I said. "I don't even believe in gods." Luke just chuckled. "So your dad is Hermes?" I asked. He pulled a switchblade out of his back pocket, and for a second I thought he was going to gut me,
A few of the Gods twitched at hearing Percy say that he didn't believe in them. They knew that he was just lashing out but still.
To hear that someone didn't believe in them, well it was unheard of. Everyone knew about the Gods. They could feel them when they walked past and reveled in the gift of their Falna. But to hear that they weren't believed in, that they were unknown…
A few gasps escaped when they saw Luke pull out a knife. No one really thought he'd attack Percy with it, and yet. The look on his face unsettled them.
but he just scraped the mud off the sole of his sandal. "Yeah. Hermes." "The wing-footed messenger guy." "That's him. Messengers. Medicine. Travelers, merchants, thieves. Anybody who uses the roads. That's why you're here, enjoying cabin eleven's hospitality. Hermes isn't picky about who he sponsors."
A sigh of relief sounded out when they saw that Luke was only cleaning his show.
Tione snorted. "Oh, real classy."
Boys, always being messy, no matter which world it was.
As an Amazon, she should be the last person worried about a little mess, but she was. Can't people do that outside, away from the spot where she just broomed!
And the knife, who uses a knife to clean the bottom of their shoe! Those things are important and, should be, kept sharp.
What happens if you stab yourself or your sandal or, heaven forbid, ruin your knife!
The point is, knives are important and expensive if it's a good one, so respect it.
I figured Luke didn't mean to call me a nobody. He just had a lot on his mind. "You ever meet your dad?" I asked. "Once." I waited, thinking that if he wanted to tell me, he'd tell me. Apparently, he didn't. I wondered if the story had anything to do with how he got his scar.
"WHAT! NO!" Hermes jumped ot his feet. "I'd never!"
The thought of hurting his own child, of anything that was his, grated him to his very soul.
"Hermes, calm down." Ouranos commanded. "No one here thinks that your other half did that."
"Yeah its just a young boy's wondering thought, it doesn't mean anything." Loki said.
"Y-Yes, thank you. I'm sorry." Hermes sat back down. "It's just…the thought.."
"We know." Ouranos said.
Luke looked up and managed a smile. "Don't worry about it, Percy. The campers here, they're mostly good people. After all, we're extended family, right? We take care of each other." Percy smiled, then he asked."Clarisse, from Ares, was joking about me being 'Big Three' material. Then Annabeth . . . twice, she said I might be 'the one.' She said I should talk to the Oracle. What was that all about?"
"That's what we want to know." Finn tapped his fingers. Big Three…what could that mean?
Obviously, it was important, something to do about the solstice. Or better yet, someone who can do something about what happened during the Solstice.
The only thing that Finn could guess it could be was a prophecy.
Something probably having to do with three people. Important people. Maybe leaders of some sort.
And for some reason, Annabeth was the only one searching for them. No one else has asked or been seen concerned at all about finding these, supposed, Big Three.
Finn narrowed his eyes. The only question was, whether or not it was for a nefarious reason.
Luke folded his knife. "I hate prophecies." "What do you mean?" Luke said that his last quest messed up and no one else wanted to take one. Annabeth was the only one that did, but Chiron had apparently told her to wait for a prophesied person to take her on a quest, and now she thinks everyone that stumbles through the border was the one.
"What the hell are the Garens of the Heperides? And what went wrong?" Welf asked.
"It obviously where Luke-sama got the scare." Lili noted.
"No, I think it's more than that." Ryuu narrowed her eyes. "He's said that he ruined quests for everyone because of his mistake. I think their quests are like our dungeon dives, special tasks for Familias to take. Only they have an oracle behind the scenes directing them. But something happened this last time, Luke failed the quest."
"And it was bad enough that they forbade anyone else from taking a quest?" Loki said.
"Maybe, though I think what really happened is that the rest of the campers saw how bad quests can be and collectively decided not to take another one." Finn said.
"What? So one bad dive and these Demigods went their pants and tremble behind a magical bubble? What the Hell?" Bete scoffed.
How many bad dives had they undergone, how many friends and colleagues had they lost? Now one kid gets a big scar, and suddenly all these big bad Demigods become chicken shit?
"Bete their children." Lefiya tried to say, but Bete just growled.
"No, there's supposed to be something better. Stronger, not these weak little shits."
"Aren't we the weak ones though?" Ais looked down.
"Huh?" Bete turned with a snarl on his face. How dare she call him weak? He might like her, but not even a God could call him weak and get away with it.
Thankfully, Finn cut in before he could get into Ais's face.
"We go into the Dungoen. Hundreds strong, with support and a visible way to retreat. It's not always easy, but everyone knows that if you can make it out of the Dungeon, then you're safe, the monsters won't follow you. But they don't have that." Finn looked around at everyone, at all the Adventures that knew that he was talking about.
"There's what, like 1-200 kids there, barely any over the age of 18 from what I saw. Most of them only 12 to 16. And the rest are younger than that."Finn sighed. "I don't know how they organize these quests there. How many go with them, what they carry, or even if their Gods can help them. All I know is that if they leave that border behind, they'll be swarmed by monsters. And the further they get from it, the less of a chance they can make it back."
The room got quiet. Finally, the reality of their world was settling in. On the surface, it seemed like Humans ruled the world. But more and more it was looking like that wasn't the case.
Finally, Hermes said something.
"My- I mean Luke, was their strongest. Or at the very least most experienced, and even he barely made it back."
"Wow, hearing that makes it seem like Annabeth is the crazy one. Begging for a quest with all that hangin over them." Tiona said.
Bete humpghed, to him that wasn't crazy. That was the drive that was needed to be strong. And they were holding her back.
Walking towards the eating area Percy noticed a few more Cabins, one of them glowed as the sun went down. A few other girls came out of the woods— and when I say out of the woods, I mean straight out of the woods. I saw one girl, about nine or ten years old, melt from the side of a maple tree and come skipping up the hill.
"Huh? I wonder whose that Silver cabin belongs to?" Haruhime asked.
"Well…The cabins glowing in the moonlight, a lot of the nature spirits seem to be huddled around their and they don't have any children. Who else thinks it's Artemis? Anyone?" Hermes raised her hand.
"Put your hand down, Hermes, even itty-bitty over their figued it out."
"Humph, anyway, we've figured out that this Greek Panteon consists of Zeus, Hera, Poseidon, Hades, Aphrodite, Demeter, Dionysus, Hermes, me, Ares, Athena, Apollo, and now Artemis. Are we missing anyone else?" Hermes asked.
"It looks like there's one more cabin, Cabin 9, and it seems to be built for a crafting God, but other than that, I have no idea." Hestia noted.
Over to the side, Hephasestus silently sweated. She had a feeling whose cabin that was, but she didn't want to say anything unless she was sure. And…a part of her was scared to find out.
Loki counted in her head.
"Hold on…There are only 12 cabins, and you counted 14 Gods, what the hell?"
"Hold on your right. I don't know which cabins Dionysus or Athena's, but there's clearly not one for Hades or Hesita." Hermes noticed.
"So I'm not one of their Gods? Then what am I doing there?" Hestia asked.
"And if he's not part of the Pantheon, then what is Hades doing sending his tortures after Poseidon's son?" Freya asked.
Each cabin had its own table, covered in white cloth trimmed in purple. Four of the tables were empty, but Cabin Eleven's was way overcrowded. I had to squeeze onto the edge of a bench with half my butt hanging off. I saw Grover sitting at table twelve with Mr. D, a few satyrs, and a couple of plump blond boys who looked just like Mr. D.
"What? They can't afford to have, like, two or three tables for them? Hermes Cabin has to squeeze in even when they eat?" Tiona threw her hands up in the air.
"Look at Dionuys's table, it's not even filled with his children. Most of them are Satyrs, can't some of the obvious not Hermes kids go sit there? Or anywhere else were theres room?" Mama Mia asked.
Annabeth sat at table six with a bunch of serious-looking athletic kids, all with her gray eyes and honey-blond hair. Clarisse sat behind me at Ares's table. She'd apparently gotten over being hosed down, because she was laughing and belching right alongside her friends.
"Look, see." Gareth pointed at Annabeth and Clarise at their tables. "If all Demigods share the same look/vibe, then shouldn't it be fairly obvious who's children they are?"
"Yeah, it should be."Finn looked over every table. "Somethings not right."
"What is it?"Riveria asked.
Standing up, Finn went over to the Black wall.
"Look at the kids at the Hermes table. Now, if we are all in agreement that Demigods share a glaringly obvious connection to one another, then, out of the 14 Gods that we know of, there should be at most eight different "styles" of kids. And yet I count way more."
"What?" Loki sat up.
Finn started pointing out a few kids.
"Look, right there. The two kids at the end, the three on the left separated. There are five spotted around, another two in the middle, and a couple of outliers that don't resemble anyone."
Looking at the kids that Finn singled out, everyone started noticing some similarities. Such as red hair, purple eyes, and even the shapes of their noses. All things that point to some of them being related, but not to any of the other tables.
"Hold on, what are you trying to say?" Hestia asked.
"I'm saying, that, ignoring the few in Hermes that clearly belong with their siblings in other Cabins, most of those kids don't seem to have a cabin at all associated with their Godly parent. I-I don't know, but I think there's more than the 14 Gods that we know of in this Pantheon."
"To the gods!" Everybody else raised their glasses. "To the gods!" Wood nymphs came forward with platters of food: grapes, apples, strawberries, cheese, fresh bread, and yes, barbecue! My glass was empty, but Luke said, "Speak to it. Whatever you want—nonalcoholic, of course." I said, "Cherry Coke." The glass was filled with sparkling caramel liquid. Then I had an idea. "Blue Cherry Coke." The soda turned a violent shade of cobalt.
"Shit, why can't we have something like that?" Lunoire asked
"Cause without the use of an obscene amount of magic, the only way to do something similar is with a God's power, and we, unlike them, are unable to do such a thing down here on Genkia." Freya said
"Also, because it'd drive us out of business." Mama Mia sated dryly
"That too." Freya nodded.
I took a cautious sip. Perfect. I drank a toast to my mother. She's not gone, I told myself. Not permanently, anyway. She's in the Underworld. And if that's a real place, then someday . . .
The mood went sour.
They all felt what Percy was thinking. And if given the chance, many of them don't know if they'd be able to resist the temptation to try.
Ais certainly wouldn't. Already her nails were digging into her palms as she imagined… just, having the hope that Percy had.
But she didn't. Even as uneducated as she was, even she knew that in their world, such a thought was only a child's fantasy.
They all knew this, and they also knew that the path that Percy was imagining was nothing but a trap loaded with heartache and tragedy.
They just couldn't find it in themselves to speak out against it.
Luke handed Percy a steak, but just as he was about to eat, he noticed that everyone was heading to the big pyre in the middle. When he asked Luk,e he explained that it was an offering to the Gods, as they liked the smell.
"..What?" Syr tilted her head.
"You're kidding." His look warned me not to take this lightly, but I couldn't help wondering why an immortal, all-powerful being would like the smell of burning food.
"Nya That's what we're saying." Chloe said.
"There's no way that's true." May said.
"And even if it was, they're asking for their children, to offer their food to them, when they don't even need to eat?" Hestia grit out.
"Man, the more I hear how they treat their children, the more I want to sock these Gods right in the face." Loki covered her eyes with her hands.
Luke offered his to Hermes, and when it was Percy's turn, he didn't know. Finally, he just said to whoever and threw in some of his steak. When he smelled the smoke, he actually realized that it didn't smell of smoke at all, but of food.
"I..I mean, it smells nice." Bell nervously chuckled as he rubbed the back of his head.
"But it's still his food! They're the ones that need it, not the Gods!" Hestia screamed.
When everybody had returned to their seats and finished eating their meals, Chiron pounded his hoof again for our attention. Mr. D got up with a huge sigh. "Yes, I suppose I'd better say hello to all you brats.
"At the very least." Mama Mia rolled her eyes. "In fact, I think it's part of something called your job."
"God damn, I don't know if we got off good or worse with our smarmy asshole. On one hand, ours is a smug prick, on the other, at least ours carries some class." Loki sighed.
"I think they're just spending too much time drinking," Hermes said.
"Hold on, I thought his punishment was that he couldn't drink. Doesn't that mean he's sober right now" Finn asked.
"Yeah…I wonder what kind of hangover you get after being sober for the first time in a few thousand years." Loki laughed, man, she wouldn't want to be him right about now. Probably the reason for his sunny deposition, he's hungover.
"Personally," Mr. D continued, "I couldn't care less, but congratulations. Also, I should tell you that we have a new camper today. Peter Johnson." Chiron murmured something. "Er, Percy Jackson," Mr. D corrected. "That's right. Hurrah, and all that. Now run along to your silly campfire. Go on." Everybody cheered. We all headed down toward the amphitheater, where Apollo's cabin led a sing-along.
"Come on, he didn't even get his name right." Yamato grumbled.
"Was he just not listening when they met?" Haruhime asked.
"Nah, I think that he just doesn't give a fuck." Welf shrugged.
Hestia frowned a little when Apollo was brought up, but even she knew that his singing was good.
"That makes sense, that Bright bastard was always the best at signing." She said.
"Say what you will about that idiot, his voice could raise the sun." Loki joked.
After the signing and the marshmallows, Pery actually felt a little happy. And when he lay down on the hard floor, surrounded by snoring and the occasional midnight gas, he felt that things were getting better. When I closed my eyes, I fell asleep instantly. That was my first day at Camp Half-Blood. I wish I'd known how briefly I would get to enjoy my new home.
"What the hell kind of ending was that?" Hermes stared wide-eyed at the page.
He thought that they were leaving off a good note, and then he gets this! Now everyone is going to think that his chapter was bad, even though they got to see all of his children in it.
"Certainly a mood killer."Hephaestus said.
Hermes sighed.
"Ahh, ok, who's next?"
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Hey, little Author's note here.
Just wanting to let everyone know that I have posted a new story called A Jackalope's Journey, a My Hero Fanfic with an Oc with what I think is an interesting Quirk, with more intended for later chapters. Check it out
That story will hopefully have shorter update,s as I will be putting out shorter chapters for that story
On that note, I would like to say something about my updates.
People are constantly messaging me, asking for newer or quicker updates. And while I can take pride in people liking my work, some messages have been less than polite, with one even cussing me out, sort of demanding that I update more.
I'm sure that not a lot of people like the once-a-month thing. I know I get frustrated over long waits for new chapters, but the long waits are not only a factor of my own work life, but also of the quality.
I'm probably not putting out diamond-tier stuff, but I'd like to think that it's better than most of the stories on here and on other sites. As I try not to only flesh out the characters between interactions but also add some minor worldbuilding as well as my own form of comedy and even add excerpts from the original source material
Now, if I wanted to just finish this fanfic in under a month, I could do a lot of things that other React fics are doing. No exerts, nor talking, or "just have the characters react, show a surprised face at a few lines, and be done.
What I'm trying to say is that this writing is something of a lighthearted thing for me to do, and I will keep doing it. But I don't want to be cussed out or insulted because I'm not keeping up with someone else schedule
That's it, just me venting a little, I guess. See you next month, and check out A Jackalope's Journey and Magic and Chaos, my other books.