Chapter Two
Macy Mitchell
Macy felt like she could finally relax and not have to worry about breaking up a fight. When the four of them arrived at the beach to eat lunch, the whole thing was just awkward. Clearly, Will knew as well as she did that Summer was about to fall head over heels for this new guy, and he obviously wasn't too happy. If Macy didn't know him any better, she might have assumed that he was jealous of the attention Jasper received from Summer, but she knew there was nothing but platonic feelings of protectiveness.
She could be wrong, but she usually wasn't.
The awkward atmosphere slowly subsided as Jasper began to actually talk and share information. Although he definitely avoided the subject of his father, the new camper shared stories of his life before Camp Halfblood that had even Will smiling.
Macy wasn't stupid. There was definitely something weird about Jasper's background, but most likely it wasn't anything threatening. Just a troubled past that he probably doesn't want to share with the whole camp.
"And that was how I got to New York. Pretty crazy how I managed to find the camp, but I made it here eventually." Jasper concluded another tale, shooting Macy a smile as she was brought out of her daydream by his words. It wasn't that Jasper was boring, but Macy had a short attention span when came to anything that wasn't doing. Talking was cool and all, but she preferred action.
Summer practically hung on Jasper's every word. Macy didn't understand what her best friend found so fascinating about a small run in with a minor monster, but then again, Summer had never fought a monster outside of the forest surrounding Camp Halfblood. Will's sour look had returned as Summer and Jasper launched into another conversation. Macy took the chance to steal Will's attention, motioning him over to sit beside her.
"Jealous much?" She smirked. Will rolled his eyes, but the corners of his mouth turned up a little as she teased him.
"I admit, he's not as bad as I assumed. I still don't really trust him, but he hasn't done anything bad so far." He shrugged, glancing over at the other two.
"Maybe you'll get a chance to fight him again. You know, assert your dominance and all that other stuff. Especially since he took you down right away this morning."
Will was not amused when Macy brought up their fight earlier. "I wasn't really warmed up, that's all."
Macy's smirk turned into a frown as she thought back to this morning. "Seriously, you can't just randomly fight people out of jealousy. Neither of you had on armor or anything, it was stupid and dangerous."
The son of Hermes couldn't keep the smile off his face as Macy attempted to lecture him on safety.
"You sound like Zach," Will teased her, knowing it would get under her skin. "Talking about rules and safety."
Macy launched herself at Will, hating how he compared her to Zach. Zach Maxwell was the representation of a stuck up, goody-two-shoes demigod who ruined everything. Because she wasn't trying to actually hurt him, Will was able to move out of the way easily, twisting his lanky body so Macy sailed harmlessly past him.
"One more word from you and I'll dunk you in the ocean." She warned. Her eyes were teasing, but she was actually completely serious. Will tactfully kept his mouth shut, but sent Macy a wink that she ignored.
Summer cut into their conversation with a huge smile, lighting up her eyes and highlighting her pretty features. "I was just telling Jasper about capture the flag."
Macy nodded, flashing the slightly confused Jasper her signature smirk. "Tomorrow is Ares, Apollo, Demeter, and Hermes against the rest of the cabins."
"So we're all on the same team?" Jasper asked with a smile that seemed unnatural on his cold and calculating face. Macy was beginning to see why Will was so put off at first, and she shivered as he turned his gaze to her.
Summer's grin grew bigger as she came to the same conclusion as Jasper. "Oh, I didn't even think of that!" The blonde quickly glanced at the watch on her wrist and Macy craned her neck to see the time as well.
"I better get going. I'm teaching the younger campers' archery class in ten." She sighed, shooting the three others an apologetic look.
"I'm coming with you," Will flashed his usually charismatic grin, and Macy fought the urge to smile back. "You probably need as much help as you can get." The pair said their goodbyes, laughing as they turned their backs to us.
Jasper turned to Macy, offering a hand to help her get up. She took it to be polite, but regretted it as soon as she felt how cold his hand was.
"Summer told me you're quite the fighter," Jasper raised an eyebrow. "I look forward to seeing you in action tomorrow."
Her lips curled into a cruel smirk as she imagined herself standing over her 'arch nemesis' Zach from the Zeus cabin, glaring at her as she grinned, triumphant. Summer would say she was getting a bit carried away, but she hadn't had a chance to beat him in so long and she couldn't wait until tomorrow.
"Look for the camper holding the flag," she hinted, referring to herself. Her sneaky smile made an appearance and she wiggled her fingers at Jasper before leaving him standing alone by the beach.
Zach Maxwell
"So what's the deal with him, Chiron?" Zach pestered the centaur again, leaning forward in his chair. Chiron continued to shuffle papers at his desk his back to the curious boy in his office in an attempt to ignore him.
"How many times do I have to tell you, I have no more information than you do about Jasper." The edge to Chiron's voice did not dissuade Zach, and he continued on with an eager look.
"You say that he claims Hermes came to him. How can you believe that? It doesn't make any sense!"
A ghost of a smile came across Chiron's lips as he stared down at the papers shuffled across his desk. "Funny, that's exactly what his new half-brother said."
Zach rolled his eyes, standing up and taking a step closer toward Chiron. "Who, Will? I don't blame him for being suspicious too. I'm sure he's terribly jealous that his dad decided to visit one son but not the rest."
Chiron turned around, his face weary. "He's clearly a demi-god, Zach. Are you suggesting I throw him out of camp?"
"No! I just…" The son of Zeus trailed off, unsure of what point he was trying to make. "I promise to keep an eye on him."
Chiron nodded in response, a sign of dismissal. "Go help the others prepare for Capture the Flag. I'll be there soon."
Zach stood up; the legs of his chair scraped along the wooden floor as he forcefully pushed it back. The screen slammed behind him as he left, a bit harder than necessary, and he instantly felt bad. He had no right to be angry with Chiron-it was just his stupid need for order that fueled his desire to watch closely over the new camper.
"Macy!" Zach called out to the daughter of Ares, pushing through the crowd of campers gathered around in battle armor. "Is your team ready to be pulverized?"
It was tradition that Zach and Macy acted as Captains for their respective sides. On the rarity that they were on the same team, they ended up fighting anyway, so Chiron usually made sure the Zeus and Ares cabins were on opposing sides.
Her full lips turned into her signature smirk, and Zach found himself smirking back. Her cat-like eyes held a sort of crazed glare, but Zach wouldn't back down. She was a firecracker, for sure, and the best female fighter at camp, but it was nothing he couldn't handle. Besides, it was fun to see her all wound up before a match. He stood right in front of her, peering down at the 5'3'' girl glaring up at him.
"Oh, please. With the Hermes cabin on my side, you'll be lucky to last half an hour." She retorted, her eyebrows dipping lower as her glare intensified. At this remark, Will strutted over to join the conversation, a mischievous look in his eyes that made Zach a tad nervous to see what he had up his sleeve.
"She's right, you know. You may have the Athena cabin on your side, but don't count on an easy victory." His smooth voice carried on the argument in amusement.
"Hold on a second," The head counselor of the Athena cabin stepped in, decked out head to toe in armor. "Don't count us out just yet." Shannon took off her helmet to reveal her messy bob and light eyes. She seemed serious, as always, but Zach knew it was friendly banter. Although he couldn't say the same for Macy, who appeared as if she might blow any minute. He may have been exaggerating a little bit, but she clearly didn't understand the meaning of a friendly game of capture the flag.
Will slung an arm around Shannon and whispered something in her ear, causing her to roll her eyes and shove him backward. He staggered a bit before goofily saluting Macy and heading off to assemble his cabin. Shannon followed soon after, strapping on her helmet and grabbing a sword.
"Can't wait until it comes down to just you and me." Macy winks before gracefully slipping away, twirling knives between her fingers. Zach groaned inwardly, knowing it would be a hard fight if she was in possession of her knives. He hated to admit it, but she was lethal with the weapon and never missed. Thankfully she wouldn't be aiming to kill.
The campers split into their teams, each going to their side of the river. Zach made the game plan, leaving little room to argue. He sent the few children from the Poseidon cabin to the boundary line as first defense, knowing the river would greatly help their cause. The children of Athena were split up, some on offense and some on defense. Zach himself joined the defensive team, mostly because he knew Macy would be on the offensive. He looked forward to fighting her and showing her who was really the best at camp.
Once Chiron blew the horn signaling the start of the game, Zach began to doubt his decision. He forgot that Macy was the stealthiest out of all the Ares kids, and he wouldn't be surprised if she already passed him and was on her way to the flag.
Ten minutes and two captured opponents later, Zach slipped quietly between the trees, searching for movement in the darkening woods. His foot snapped a twig and he inwardly cursed, freezing his movements until he was positive no one else was around.
In his peripheral vision he spotted a flash of something dark, and his green eyes widened. He jumped out from behind a tree, his sword drawn, and came face to face with big brown eyes and a smirk.
A knife sailed centimeters past his head and embedded into the tree behind him. Without meaning to he took a step backwards in surprise. Her other knife was gripped firmly in her hand, but after assessing the situation, Zach wasn't too afraid. She couldn't do anything else with her knives besides spook him, because otherwise she would seriously injure him and be put on dish duty for a month.
Macy pulled off her helmet, shaking out her long ponytail. "I probably could have snuck past you, but I figured you were looking for a fight. Good thing I was too."
She lunged forward first, almost surprising him with her ferocity until he remember that this was Macy after all. He stepped to the left, hoping her momentum would carry her past him, but she anticipated this and swung out her fist, nailing him in the jaw.
His face was thrown back and he backed up. Macy gave him a few seconds to recover before throwing herself forward again. This time, Zach was ready. He grabbed her fist and twisted her arm behind her back, causing her to fall against him in shock. He forgot about her other hand, though, and by the time he saw the flash of silver it was too late.
The tip of her knife scraped across his cheek. His own weapon swooped through the air, knocking the knife out of her hand. The daughter of Ares used his distraction to yank herself away from him, somehow gracefully twisting away on the uneven forest floor. Not meaning to be outdone, Zach stuck out his leg and swooped her feet out from underneath her. Macy tumbled to the ground, and Zach fell on top of her.
For a second, they were both dazed, but Macy recovered first and flipped herself on top. Most of dark her hair had come out of its ponytail and a trickle of blood trailed down her chin from her lip. He wasn't exactly sure when she cut up her face, but he was sure his own face wasn't much better. Zach could feel the warm blood smeared across his cheek and the sting of the cut, but he had had much worse.
Right as he was about to flip himself back on top, Macy's weight was suddenly thrown off of him. Her small yet muscular body was yanked backward and she yelped in surprise. Clearly she wasn't expecting another camper to come in between their fight, and neither was he. The camper who grabbed her sent her flying into a nearby tree, and she connected with it with a sickening crack.
"What the hell, dude?" Zach stood up, angrily pushing back the bulky son of Hecate who threw Macy against the tree. Judging by the amused smirk on his face, he thought it would be funny to send the other team's best fighter unconscious. Zach pushed him hard again, his anger taking over.
"It's not my fault she wasn't wearing a helmet!" The boy retorted, throwing his hands up.
"I don't care if you're on my team, she could be seriously hurt." His own words dawned on him, and he turned to Macy. She was slumped against the ground, her eyes closed and a huge gash across her forehead. "Go get Chiron and an Apollo kid and tell them to meet me back at the infirmary." The Hecate kid took off, realizing he didn't want to get on the bad side of the son of Zeus. The latter peeled off his armor, not wanting it weighing him down anymore.
Zach picked up Macy, grimacing as her head banged against his chest and smeared blood all over his t shirt. She would probably hate him even more if she found out he carried her back to camp, but he didn't dislike her that much that he would let her lie there on the ground until someone else came along. Promising himself that he would never speak of this again, he turned away from the battle and towards the camp.