Adore

Chapter Six

   Capture the Flag Chaos.

For the next few days, I had settled into a routine. Every morning, I'd get Ancient Greek lessons from a child of Athena, Malcolm. Actually, it was supposed to be Annabeth, but Chiron decided that Malcolm would be better seeing as the whole Camp was aware of her intense dislike, well, maybe hatred, for me. Seriously, it wasn't really my fault that Luke and I seemingly hit it on straight away. And Malcolm was Cabin Six's (Athena's Cabin) sort of second-in-command, so Chiron wisely let him teach me. Anyways, Malcolm had us reading Homer, and it was really good to brush up on my mythology seeing as I'm living in their world now. And wow. Reading Ancient Greek was almost easier than reading regular English. Malcolm said that it's because our brains were hardwired for the language. COOL.

After Malcolm and I would separate, I'd rotate the whole camp, looking for something I was good at. Chiron had suggested that I take on archery first, saying that he'd personally try to teach me. Well, that certainly went well. I had to apologize to him because he had to detangle a stray arrow from his tail, which I had absolutely no idea how it got there. I also had to apologize to the others who were practicing on the range, seeing as my arrows would always find inopportune moments to distract them when they were letting theirs fly. And yet, instead of being angry at me, they just laughed and asked if I could come back and do my kind of archery, since it was helping them sharpen their own senses. Seeing as almost every person there was blonde and blue-eyed, a sure mark of Apollo, I just shrugged and grinned bashfully, making some of the girls squeal and some guys to smile at me. I just laughed and shook my head as I left to find another thing to do.

Next, I tried foot racing. Not one of my brightest ideas. The instructors were Dryads, so naturally, they developed a style that would have all marathon runners gaping at them. I mean, with gods constantly at their heels, would it really be that surprising? I told the instructors this and they just laughed, confirming my suspicions.

Wrestling? No can do. I'm man enough to admit to myself that I'd probably be flattened by any of Clarisse's siblings, not to mention Clarisse herself. Though, to be honest, I think Clarisse took it easy on me when I tried it. And to think I only tried it 'coz Clarisse was the one on the mat. And, sure enough, only seconds passed before I found myself lying on my back. Though, the funny thing was, even though I knew that she wasn't the type to be, well, nice, she offered her hand to me. I smiled and took it. When I was fully standing though, every single one of her siblings was scrutinizing me, looking for something. Well, after a moment of uncomfortable staring, one by one, they all started to smile at me, giving me thumbs ups. Huh? Clarisse just laughed and told me that I'm not bad, just not on Ares' kids' level. I took that as a huge compliment.

Honestly, the only thing I didn't completely botch up was canoeing. It just seemed natural to me. Well, that and Luke would constantly be with me whenever I would be attending. And I don't buy his 'I'm-just-here-by-complete-accident' excuse, even if he kept using it for Zeus knows how many times already.

Of course, this had Aphrodite in my head almost every night. She and I would talk for a bit about what happened in the day, and what had happened in my love life she was currently writing the plot to. I swear, if I didn't know any better, I'd say she was doing this so she could be closer to a demigod. Yeah. She told me about the Ancient Laws and that no god, or Olympian, could directly come close to any of their kids. It had been ordained by the fates themselves, so none of them could really get around it without serious consequences to their kids, seeing as they were immortal and would have been spared. So, they just stayed away. She told me that as far as she knew, she was the only one to have thought of what she was doing as a loophole, so, at current, she was the only one who was conversing with me.

'And I'm getting lonely, Percy dear. Ares is just so irritating these days. I really don't know what to do. I mean, there really isn't anyone I could speak to here. Artemis is still obsessed with being young and free, Athena is with her books, Demeter is always ranting about cereal, and Hera is still fuming about Zeus' latest attempt to procreate with a Dryad. I considered Hestia, but for some reason, she's always down there at Camp,' the Goddess of Beauty complained lightly. I mentally laughed a little, but at the same time feeling sorry for this severely misunderstood goddess. Really now. Most people, heck, even my mom told me that all Aphrodite wants to do is to pair up interesting mortals, kinda like Romeo and Juliet. They just don't see this intellectual side of her.

'My Lady, what if you find someone else to talk to? Maybe there's someone who could make the time to talk to you?' I suggested. I mean, it isn't as if everyone is busy with something to ignore her, right?

'I suppose I could talk to Hephaestus. Maybe he'll be able to see past the face and see me,' she said, her tone a little bit hopeful. She told me that she rejected Hephaestus in the first place because of petty revenge on Zeus for not even having the decency of informing her that she was to be married. She didn't actually have anything against the God of Blacksmiths.

'If anyone can understand you, my Lady, it would be Lord Hephaestus.' I noddingly approved mentally. She just giggled a little and bid me goodnight, her presence slowly vanishing from my mind.

Due to this, I found myself constantly offering to her, Lady Hestia and Lord Hermes. When Luke asked me why I was doing so, especially for Aphrodite because she has her own kids, I just shrugged and said that I may have judged her unfairly from the start, and that this was my way of slowly making it up to her. And the sudden rush of warmth that enveloped me when I said that meant that she heard and appreciated what I was doing. As for Lady Hestia, I said that I'll always offer her sacrifices because for me, she's the most important goddess of all. Luke looked at me for a long moment before shaking his head and dragging me back to the table to eat.

This had been my routine, and so far, I find that I really don't want it to change. I made friends with a lot of people, mainly in Cabin Eleven. Of course, the 'Twins' would be considered as. Travis and Connor really have the talent in making me laugh, at what Travis' hobby was (pissing off a certain Daughter of Demeter) and Connor teasing him that he was only doing that to get her to look at him, which I certainly think is true. And the moment they told me their surnames were 'Stoll', I had laughed so hard I had tears in my eyes. Amazingly enough, they didn't understand what was so funny. I'm also pretty close to Ethan Nakamura, mainly, at first, though, because Luke was close to him. He was one of the unclaimed kids in our cabin. He had black hair and grey eyes, so that immediately ruled out any of the Olympians. He said that his father was mortal, so his mother was the one who was a goddess. He was witty and sarcastic, and was oftentimes the one who would reign in the Twins when they get too rowdy. He was often times considered as the second-in-command in Cabin Eleven. Then, I also made friends with others, like Will Solace, a Son of Apollo. Apparently, he was the one to cure me when I first got here. He had the typical blond hair and blue eyes all of the Children of Apollo sported. His healing of me had gotten their cabin councilor, Lee Fletcher, to take notice of him, so both he and another one of his siblings, Michael Yew, were being coached by Lee in the art of healing. Another one would be Silena Beauregard, a black-haired, blue-eyed Daughter of Aphrodite. She was the cabin councilor of Cabin Ten. She was the only one in her cabin that didn't remind me of a pompous supermodel that thought she was the most beautiful girl in the world. I mean, sure, she still had the tendency to corner me and force me into wearing something she thought would be nice on me, but still, she reminded me of the nightly talks Lady Aphrodite and I had. She's definitely a gem. Well, counting Clarisse, Luke, Grover and Malcolm into my close group of friends, I'd say I'm pretty happy about my life as it was.

Though, I'm pretty sure that almost all of the campers were watching me, trying to see who my father is. And I'm pretty sure I wasn't giving them an easy time. I think Chiron had figured it out, with the way he's watching me with those knowing eyes, but like Mr. D., he didn't think it fit to inform anyone else of his suspicions. Malcolm had it the worst though. He told me that he was constantly dodging Annabeth's pointed questions about me and my parentage. He said that the cabin was slowly but surely getting irritated with the girl. Though, I really couldn't do anything about that. Even Luke and I still hadn't figured out whose child I am, though Luke would constantly look at me when he catches sight of the lake.

Thursday afternoon, three days after I had woken up, I had my first sword fighting lesson with Cabin Eleven. Actually, before the lesson itself, Chiron had called me aside and given me back the magic pen I had used in killing Mrs. Dodds and the Minotaur. I was actually very surprised when he gave me that, and tried to give it back. He just laughed and said that it was mine, his eyes twinkling like someone sprayed glitter on them. I just shook my head and caught up with Luke, who was waiting for me.

When Luke asked me if I had a blade I could use, well, I just smiled and told him he'd see later. He smirked and told me that I'd better be sure because the instructor wouldn't be making it easy for me. When I looked at him pointedly, he just laughed and sauntered away. Evil, evil bastard.

As we gathered around the big circular arena, Luke separated from me and stood at the front, sending a smirk along my direction. I just sighed and glared at him for being a melodramatic arse. I uncapped the pen discreetly, and pretended I got the sword from the weapons arrayed at the table. Luke took one look at my sword and eyed the collection, his brows furrowed. Ha! That'll teach him.

We started with basic stabbing and slashing, using some straw-stuffed dummies in Greek armor. By the end, everyone was staring at my dummy, because it was completely and utterly mutilated. I just laughed nervously, thinking that if I told them I had envisioned Luke in front of me, they'd just start the catcalls again. Luke just laughed and had us moving to practicing in pairs. And since I was the newbie, Luke said he'd be my partner. Well, that really reassured me, if he wasn't sporting that evil grin.

Travis (I finally figured out he's taller than Connor by a few inches) just shook his head and mock whispered, "Goodluck, Perce. Luke's probably the best swordsman camp has seen in the last three hundred years." Connor bopped him on the head, and said, "i***t. All Percy has to do is strut a little and poor Luke will be so distracted, any monster could get him." This, accompanied by a wink, had the people close to us laughing wholeheartedly.

Unfortunately for Connor, Luke heard his comment. "Next lesson Connor, you'll be with me." I joined in the laughter as Connor looked horrified at the prospect.

As I stood before Luke, he eyed my sword again. "No can do, Casanova. No revealing my secrets." I said as he eyed me with a questioning look. Luke just shook his head and donned the evil grin again. Uh-oh.

Luke was an excellent instructor. He showed us how to thrust, parry and all of the basics, to my poor body's expense. I was really, really sure that I'd end up black and blue all over because he'd whap me with the flat side of his blade whenever I'd give out an opening, which, to him, was always. By the time he called a break, my t-shirt was stuck to me like glue, and many guys were apparently starting to notice. And was it really my fault that I was hitting puberty much, much earlier?

"Zeus' beard, Percy! For a twelve year old, you're smokin'!" Connor wolf-whistled. Travis nodded, eyes very wide. Well, until two hands smacked the two on their heads. "Behave." Ethan pointedly looked at them, making them avert their gaze and start whistling innocently. Ethan just shook his head and tossed me a spare t-shirt, one of his eyebrows raised. I laughed and nodded, heading towards a more secluded part of the arena to change. Honestly, Ethan acted like a protective big brother towards me, and I really, really like it. He'd even reign in Luke if he started to act like Connor and Travis too much.

When I returned, the line for the drinks cooler was gone, so I grabbed a cup full and drank. I splashed my face with some and immediately, my body felt like I had just taken a nice relaxing shower. I straightened and went towards Luke again, who took one look at me and nodded, though he looked like he was slightly disappointed. Huh?

"Okay, everybody circle up!" Luke ordered. "If Percy doesn't mind, I want to give you a little demo." Uh-oh. I really don't like the sound of that. They all circled around the two of us. Travis and Connor were nudging each other, suppressing snickers, while Ethan was shaking his head, exasperated. The others were in the same boat. He told everybody he was going to demonstrate a disarming technique: how to twist the enemy's blade with the flat of your own sword so that he had no choice but to drop his weapon. Oh dear.

"No laughing guys. This is hard. If one of you laughs, you'll be my next dummy- err, partner nest lesson. Alright?" He demonstrated the technique slowly, and thus, my blade clanged to the ground.

"Okay. Now, we try it real time. Ready, Perce?" I nodded, picking up my sword and getting into a stance. And Luke began. Now, I knew that I was sort of a natural with this magic sword, but our spar was just getting ridiculous. Travis said Luke was the best swordsman in camp, but how in Hades' name could I keep up with him? ! Luke saw this and grinned, not the usual 'I'm teasing you' grin. No, this grin said 'I'm getting excited about our fight' grin. I KNEW I had to end the fight right there and then, especially because the refreshed feeling I got was slowly but surely leaking out of me.

I figured now would be the best time. So I tried it. And holy Zeus, I just disarmed the best swordsman in camp! And, the kicker was I had the tip of my blade just grazing his chest. WHAT HAPPENED?

The others were silent, gaping at us. "Was that supposed to happen?" I asked timidly. I really couldn't believe I did that. Luke was giving me this thousand mega-watt smile and retrieved his sword form the ground. "Perce, do that again!"

"Err, I'm really not sure I could." I stared at my sword, wondering where in Hades' name I got the strength and the skill to pull that off. "Come on, Perce! Just one more." Well, if he insists.

The moment our swords clashed, I frowned. I was suddenly left feeling dry and uncomfortable. Though, I put up a pretty good resistance and managed to fight him off for a few minutes before he managed to disarm me. Luke was frowning at my sword, his eyebrows furrowed in concentration.

"Uh, what was that?" Travis asked, his eyes darting from Luke to me. Connor said nothing, his mouth still slack. Ethan just smirked. "That, Travis, is the birth of competition."

After that, Luke wouldn't stop hounding me for answers, answers that I couldn't give him. It lasted for one whole day. Though, when I finally said that I felt reenergized when I drank and splashed water on my face, he looked at me like he was on the verge of completing a complicated puzzle. Though, thankfully, before he could question me again, Grover called me over. I went over to him, waving back at Luke and yelling that I'll be back before dinner. The Son of Hermes just smiled and waved, already turning to the direction of the cabin.

And so, Grover and I found ourselves sitting at the lake, watching the Naiads weaving baskets underwater.

"I haven't seen you around after meals, Hircum. What's up?" He sighed and picked on the fur of his legs. "I'm just fine, Mare." I raised an eyebrow, completely not believing him. "Yeah. I do look miserable, don't I?" I just stared at him silently, not needing to say anything.

He sighed as he leaned back on his hands, staring up at the blue sky above. "Mare, what would you do if you have an impossible dream?" "An impossible dream?" He nodded, still looking up. I thought about it a little before answering, a small smirk on my face. "I'd just force myself to go beyond my limits so that the circumstances surrounding it won't be impossible anymore." He shifted so he could stare at me, his eyes wide. I just smirked at him, my eyes dancing with mischief and confidence. He then snorted and shook his head. "You're spending too much time with Luke, Mare."

I smiled at him, grateful that I was able to lift his spirits up, even by just a little. He seemed to understand me as he smiled softly at me, thanking me. He then proceeded to tell me why he was seen so little lately. Apparently, his protection of me was a second chance at proving himself to Mr. D about being good enough for a Searcher's License. A License was needed for a satyr to be able to venture out into the world in search for Pan. But then, the circumstances of our entry into camp complicated things a bit.

"Let me get this straight. I need to complete a quest, with you accompanying me, so that Mr. D would give you your License?" I raised an eyebrow at that. That sounded simple enough. Grover got one look at my expression and began to shake his head frantically. "It's not that easy, Mare. We don't really know what the Oracle would prophesy about when you actually go on one. And, it'll be dangerous, Mare."

I smiled at him, thankful for his concern. "Hircum, I know about the quests in this place. Just know that whether it's dangerous or not, I'll be taking you with me. Ok?" Grover looked at me, teary-eyed. "You're the best friend a satyr could ever have, Mare." "Anytime."

I was curious about the first chance he got from Mr. D, but I figured it would be too insensitive to ask him straight out how he failed, so when we separated, I went in search for Chiron, hoping that he'd have some of the answers for the questions buzzing inside my head.

I found him, as usual, in the archery range, coaching the kids there. But when he saw me, he smiled and unpeeled himself from the tree he was leaning on and approached me. "Percy, do you have something to ask?"

I looked at him straight in the eye. "Chiron, I know this is kind of personal, but could you tell me what happened to Grover's first chance at getting a license? I could've asked him, but I figured it still must be a sore point for him." Chiron looked surprised, but it quickly melted into a smile.

"Ah. So he's told you he wants a Searcher's License?" I nodded, relieved that Chiron won't tell me off. "I see. Shall we take a walk, Percy? The fields are wonderful to look at today." I nodded, and we were off.

Apparently, Grover's first chance was helping get to camp a Daughter of Zeus, and her companions. I almost tripped when I heard that. Weren't the Big Three, Zeus, Poseidon and Hades, f*******n to sire any more demigods? Chiron looked surprised that I knew about that, but forged on. He explained that Zeus broke the pact some seventeen years ago for a TV starlet named Susan Grace, and they had a child, Thalia. And, since they all swore on the River Styx, Zeus put his daughter into a really tight spot. Hades had been furious that his youngest brother broke the pact, so he sent off every available monster from his realm to torment the girl. Grover was charged with protecting her and bringing her safely to camp, but apparently, she picked up two more demigods along the way, making their scents easier to follow. So, he had a hard time protecting them and at the same time trying to lose the monsters at their heels. When they got to the hill, Thalia had enough. He ordered Grover to go on ahead while she defended against every single monster that had followed them. Seeing as they had all three Furies and hellhounds of every size following them, Grover refused adamantly, but Thalia wouldn't hear any complains. So, Grover was forced to escort the two remaining demigods to safety while Thalia fought. Though, she was overwhelmed quickly. As she was dying, though, Zeus turned her into a large pine. And from that day, her spirit inside the pine was the thing that was protecting the whole camp from monsters.

"So, you see, Mr. D wasn't very keen on giving Grover a second chance, but he was given the mission of protecting you as his second chance. And, well, with the unorthodox way of you carrying him to camp, Mr. D is highly doubtful of his role in protecting you." Holy Zeus, poor Grover. I never thought he'd have lived the last five years in guilt because of what he did. That cemented my decision. If I had a quest, I'd take Grover with me. Chiron smiled at seeing my face. "Grover has found a gem of a friend in you, Percy. Don't let each other down."

That night after dinner, there was a lot more excitement than usual. It was time for Capture the Flag.

When the conch horn sounded, the plates were cleared away, and Annabeth, Malcolm and one of their siblings quickly stood up and disappeared. Moments later, they reappeared holding a ten foot silk gray banner with a barn owl above an olive tree painted onto the middle. This was followed by Clarisse and her siblings carrying in a ten foot silk red banner with a b****y spear and a boar's head in the middle.

"Ares and Athena always lead Capture the Flag?" I hollered at Luke, seeing as the whole mess hall was filled with the roars and cheers of every camper. "Not always. But it's always the most fun when they're in charge, right?" Luke smiled cheekily at me. I just laughed and nodded. "So, whose side are we on?"

"Well, we made a temporary alliance with Athena, so we're getting the flag from Ares tonight." I blinked, surprised. Luke just laughed when he saw my gesture. "Of course, if we win, one of the privileges we agreed upon was that Annabeth would stop acting like a spoiled brat towards you." I just shook my head, exasperated. Who else but Luke would ever think of a stipulation like that?

The teams were Athena with Hermes and Apollo, and Ares with the rest. Oh dear Poseidon. How are we supposed to go against Ares and Hephaestus together? Who the heck was in charge of recruiting anyways? Size isn't everything! Sure, arrows are handy and all, but we're wearing armor! And our cabin doesn't have the strength in outfighting even one of Ares' kids! WHO THE HECK WAS CRAZY ENOUGH TO DO THIS?

Chiron hammered his hoof on the marble floor, gaining the attention of everyone. "Heroes! You know the rules. The creek is the boundary line. The entire forest is fair game. All magic items are allowed. The banner must be prominently displayed, and have no more than two guards. Prisoners may be disarmed, but may not be bound or gagged. No killing or maiming is allowed. I will serve as referee and battlefield medic. Arm yourselves!" The tables were suddenly filled with the weapons and shields from the armory.

"Are we supposed to have a shield?" I looked at the things distastefully. I knew my own strength that I definitely knew I won't be able to heft one of those without being seriously slowed down. Luke took one look at me, and shook his head frantically. "Do you want to get beaten up? Just get the sword you've been using yesterday, and one of the helmets, and you're set. You're coming with me, ok?" He said as he gave me one, while putting one on his head in the process. The helmets had blue plumes on top, to separate us from Ares' team who had red plumes. I got the magic pen from my jeans pocket and uncapped it discreetly, the pen turning into a blade seconds later. I was ready.

"Blue Team, to the south!" Annabeth shouted, her knife raised high. We cheered and started marching towards the southern part of the woods, the red team taunting us as they went towards the north. Luke nudged me a little to get my attention. When I looked at him, he jabbed his finger towards the edge of the forest. I nodded, getting his meaning.

It was a warm, sticky night. My armor was really uncomfortable as I raced behind Luke towards the spot he pointed out earlier. Turns out, there was a suitable hiding place there seeing as the underbrush was really thick. We huddled down and hid, waiting.

"What are we going to do?" I whispered. My muscles were already tense from anticipation. Luke grinned at me, his eyes glinting mischievously. "How about we get the glory, Mademoiselle?" I was surprised. "You sure we could do it?" "Definitely." He smirked at me, challenging me. Well, two could play it that game. "Fine by me."

Far away, the conch horn blew, and my thoughts became muddled as Luke and I raced across the forest as silently as possible. Adrenaline pumped through my veins as we crossed friendly territory into enemy territory. I heard metal clanging against metal all around us. It seems like our allies were keeping our road clean. We finally stumbled through a clearing that had five Ares soldiers, judging by their sizes, guarding their banner. Luke smirked at me and nodded, then shot through the underbrush to face the five alone. I waited until he managed to incapacitate three kids, and then shot through the underbrush to sprint towards one of the two that were still fighting. After a well placed thrust of my sword hilt onto the back of my opponent's neck, I looked over to Luke to see him already taking down the banner.

As we ran back to the border, I couldn't help but notice there was something growling at us, something following us, and it certainly wasn't a camper. Luke must've noticed as well, because he grabbed my unoccupied hand with the hand holding the banner and ran faster, dragging me along.

As we were getting closer to the border, we heard angry shouts and the next thing we knew, there were five Hephaestus soldiers chasing after us. Seeing this, Luke whistled a high-pitched sound, and four of our allies suddenly appeared behind us, heading off the gaining opponents. As we converged upon the border and crossed towards friendly territory, I noticed that there were five Ares soldiers, one of them being Clarisse, at the edge of the creek, fighting what looks like Annabeth. One of them was holding on to a Yankees cap, and Annabeth was desperately trying to get it back. Though, when they noticed that we were already holding their banner, they abandoned Annabeth and still tried to block us, but it was too late. We stepped onto friendly territory, and our side exploded into cheers as the red banner was immediately colored silver, and the b****y spear and boar's head was replaced by a massive caduceus, Hermes' symbol. Everybody in our team hefted Luke and I on their shoulders, ecstatic. Then, Chiron emerged out from the woods and blew the conch horn. WE WON!

Luke and I were let down at the edge of the crowd, and were about to join in the celebration, but hands suddenly yanked us away from the crowd. I noticed Ethan eyeing us like he wanted to intervene, but Luke shook his head. He nodded, but her still kept shooting us glances. When I turned to look at whoever pulled us, Annabeth was glaring at us, fuming. "Luke, I thought I told you that she was supposed to be on border patrol! I almost got electrocuted by Clarisse's stupid spear!" She was right, seeing as she looked worse for wear.

I looked at Luke, surprised. Why didn't he send me on border patrol like they planned? Luke looked stern as he gazed at Annabeth steadily, which made the blonde girl lose her glare and fidget uncomfortably. "I didn't send her to border patrol because I know you, Annabeth. You'd most likely leave her all alone to fend for herself against Clarisse and her siblings. You know she's a newbie, therefore, you're counting on her getting hurt. So, I talked to Malcolm and came up with this alternative plan. We knew you'd be angry at her enough that you'd want to watch her getting beat up, so you'd be close by. So, Malcolm said I should take Percy with me, just in case. It seems we were right. Annabeth, what's happening to you? You never were like this when it was just us three."

Annabeth, at this point, had redonned her glare, but this time, it was trained solely on Luke. "Of course not! Thalia was my older sister! And you Luke! You were supposed to stay faithful to her! Or-!" she cut herself off at the last minute, though I was uncomfortably aware that she must have been planning to say "Or fall in love with me!" I felt sorry for the girl so I tried to approach her and tell her that I wasn't trying to steal Luke from her, but the moment my hand touched her shoulder, she whirled around and backhanded me, hard. I stumbled back, stopping myself just in time so I didn't splash onto the creek. I looked towards the two and Luke was glaring now, one of his hands gripping the arm of the hand Annabeth used to slap me.

"Annabeth, what in Hermes' name is wrong with you? !" Luke said angrily, his hand still gripping Annabeth's even though it was clear that the girl was trying to pull herself away from him. I tried to tell him that it was okay, no harm done, but a howl had suddenly ripped through the forest, stopping their fight and the celebration of the others. Chiron was suddenly shouting in Ancient Greek. "Stand ready! My bow!" Luke released Annabeth's arm and raised his sword, instantly aware.

There on the rocks just above us was a black hound the size of a rhino, with lava-red eyes and fangs like daggers. The kicker? It was glaring straight at me. Luke yelled, snapping everyone out of their startled states. "Percy, RUN!" He tried to beat the thing to me, but it was too fast. It leaped over Luke and Annabeth, and as it hit me, I stumbled backwards, splashing onto the creek. I felt its razor sharp claws, ripping through my metal armor like it was paper, and slicing me in the abdominal part of my body. I thought I was a goner. But then, there were several sounds of arrows being released, and the arrows found their target on the monster's neck. It fell onto its side with a splash, dead.

And suddenly, I was confronted by Luke's worried face, checking me if I was still alive. I felt someone cover me with something silver, dimly recognizing Ethan's worried gaze. My mind also hazily registered that Will was running towards us, with Travis, Connor and Silena in tow. Chiron trotted, following them, his face unusually grim.

"Di immortales, Chiron! What's a Hellhound doing inside of camp? !" Silena said as she stopped where the centaur was standing while Travis and Connor jumped onto the creek to see if I was alright. Luke was still hovering over me, and Ethan was glancing around, his grip on his sword tight.

"Someone summoned it." Clarisse's gruff voice penetrated my shocked state. I blinked and noticed that she was close to Annabeth, who, to my surprise, was looking at me with frightened eyes.

Will jumped into the creek too, and stopped right in front of me, intending to heal me, though he gasped when he saw my wounds. Confused, I looked down, only to gape as the deep slashes were rapidly shrinking, healing at an abnormal rate. His reaction prompted everyone to refocus on me, also gaping at the miraculous rate my wounds are healing. As we watched, the deep gashes disappeared, leaving no evidence, even a scar.

And suddenly, Luke had extended a hand, challenging me to stand on my own. I nodded, and stood up, only to realize that while I was feeling a little sore, I wasn't feeling the pain that would usually accompany those big gashes that the monster inflicted on me. And suddenly, everyone gasped again, looking at something above my head. When I turned to look, although it was already fading, I could still make out the hologram of a three-tipped spear, a trident, covered in green light. Oh gods.

All around me, every camper, even Chiron, had gone down on one knee. Luke, Ethan, Travis and Connor were kneeling on the creek, their eyes looking straight at me in concern and panic.

"It is determined. Poseidon. Earthshaker, Stormbringer, Father of Horses. Hail, Persis Jackson, Daughter of the Sea God."