Silva packed his bag as his school had ended yesterday and he was about to leave for a small trip.
He could have left for camp today but decided to wait because it would give enough time for Luke to poison Thalia's tree. And if he was present in the camp during that time, he won't be able to let it happen as everyone knows about his ability to monitor the entire camp.
Only a few people know that its connected to the trees, but the rest of the campers know that nothing can happen in the camp surroundings as it was under his monitoring.
Silva wanted Thalia to come back, and he did not want to do something that will jeopardise it, so he decided to complete one of the objectives that he had been planning for some time.
He took out his phone and checked out a picture that his sellers had sent him a few hours ago. It was nothing but a simple antique armband with a few amber decorations. It did not have too many designs as the crafter only focussed on feasibility and functionality of the armband.
But what made this armband important to Silva was its origin. It was an heirloom from a family that had migrated from Egypt to United states a long time ago.
They are currently going through some difficulty that required them to get some money, so they decided to sell their heirloom which to the current generation was nothing more than a fancy decoration.
Silva had told Rachel about his need to find an Egyptian artifact related to archery once when he was discussing the pantheons with her. And she had discovered about this armband from her friends in the arts group she was acquainted with and then she contacted Silva about it.
Silva was interested as the armband was actually an armguard used by Egyptian archers. It looked like an armband because the Egyptians had aimed at functionality when they created it. They only provided protection at the places where the arrow's string was most likely to strike. But Silva did not care about that. What he wanted to know was whether or not that armband can give him the boost that Percy, Annabeth, Carter and Sadie got in the crown of Ptolemy.
"Alright, so you'll be out for the rest of the summer I suppose" Rachel commented as she watched Silva pack his bags.
"It takes me three days to reach their home and another four days to reach camp from there and after that I will be gone for the entire summer" Silva replied and then paused "Want any souvenirs?"
Rachel's eyes widened at that "What do you mean souvenir? Does your camp have a shop or something?" she asked and seeing Silva nod, she realised he was not kidding.
"Wait, what kind of stuff are there?" she asked.
"There is normal camp stuff that they sell like t shirts and thermal underwear. There are also a few weapons and alchemical potions" Silva paused "And no, you are not getting any weapons"
"Awww" Rachel groaned in disappointment.
"Plus, there are strawberries and other fruits made by the Dionysus cabin and the wood nymphs. Way better than any thing you can find in the market, no matter how much money you have.
Dionysus's aura makes them better than anything else" Silva said when he finally closed his bag.
"All right, then bring be back some fruits, a set of paint if you can find it and a few of those camp t shirts. I like their design, plus they are super comfy" Rachel said which made Silva realise something.
"So, when you said you have no idea when my t shirts went?" Silva started, but Rachel immediately became interested in the plants outside the house.
Silva sighed and just accepted the facts and decided to move on.
"Alright, I'll be at my on arts camp for half the summer and the rest I will spend on a few stuff I have to work on" Rachel said while Silva boarded the bus.
"The last time you spray painted every one of your father's trucks. What the are you planning now?" Silva asked, as he was slightly curious.
"It's a surprise, you get newspapers don't you, you might find it in the news" Rachel replied with a smile while waving him goodbye.
Silva offered a silent prayer for Rachel's dad. He had never met him, but he knew that guy was going to be in a world of pain.
Within three days, Silva reached the decided place without any problems. He was supposed to meet an old woman, the oldest of their family who held the armband that he wanted.
It was a park and according to the message, he was supposed to find the woman sitting in the centremost bench in the park. It did not take him long to find her there, feeding the birds using the seeds in a small bag.
Silva went and sat next to her, waiting for her to finish what she was doing.
After a few minutes, she started speaking.
"The armband was the last thing I had when my family ran away from Egypt. When the evil god's minions started attacking every family with connection to ancient Egypt, my father thought that it was the only way" she suddenly spoke revealing that she was knowledgeable about the hidden side of the world. But Silva did not flinch as he had sensed that she was not normal.
"When I saw you enter the park, I sensed that you were the same but from a different part of that side" she then turned towards him "I have listened to some warnings my father told me once, about how western gods must never mingle with the Egyptian ones"
She took out the armband from the bag by her side.
"But right now I am an old woman who just wants enough money for my family to live in peace. I only hope that I am not making a mistake" she said as she passed the armband to Silva.
As soon as Silva held it, he knew it was not ordinary. But now was not the time to inspect its abilities.
He took out a written check and handed it to her. His plans in stocks had worked well enough for him to get a considerable sum due to which he was able to easily afford the armband.
"This…this is more than we had agreed" the woman said seeing the numbers in the check.
"I would have given you the original amount if it was a normal antique, but this was exactly what I was looking for, and its value is higher" he then stood up to go back but he replied to the woman's anxiety.
"And don't worry, I promise I will only use it to protect my own family" Silva said as he began going back, leaving an old woman with a belief that she had not made a mistake.
A/N- hope you like it.