As Artemis zipped off to hunt the threat to Olympus, attention returned to her brother, who had a solemn look on his face. Once he realised the focus was on him, his expression shifted into a jolly mask, with the hint of mischief that made the more experienced huntresses recoil slightly. The god addressed Zoë, "So, sweetheart – you heard her, you're going to Camp! Go get the others, and I'll pull up in a couple minutes. Remember not to look until I park, 'kay?" Apollo winked at her, and the lieutenant looked close to pulling out her bow against him until he flashed out with a grin.
Zoë stalked out of the tent, visibly shaking, leaving the tent in a tense silence. Annabeth chose this time to check on her friend Thalia, and the remaining huntresses gradually relaxed, wishing to inquire more information from Bianca about the attack. A hunting horn sounded – likely Zoë's work, and there was somewhat audible whisper-shouting emanating from the medical tent that drew undesired attention from the huntresses.
"If you hadn't been so stupid, he would still be here! Don't go pinning it on him when he saved our lives! Now GET OUT!" At this point a weeping Annabeth emerged, looking shocked in multiple ways, and the eavesdroppers scattered to avoid being found. Despite this somewhat obvious action, the dismayed and upset 'Wise Girl' was distracted to the point where she was oblivious to them.
Suddenly, the sky lightened, causing a burst of warmth to melt the snow and brighten the camp. Several girls panicked briefly, before taking action to ensure no-one looked at the approaching sun car. Nico was tackled to the floor by his sister only seconds before the flaming Maserati Spyder parked, effectively saving the demigod's life. Apollo climbed out of the vehicle, muttered to himself, "I knew there was something I forgot," and snapped his fingers. The Spyder shifted into a shuttle bus, and he ordered everybody to get in. The girls began to load the camp onto the bus, which they achieved with such simplicity that the now walking Thalia began to doubt that there was no magic involved in the process.
After Apollo's failed attempts at subtle flirting and 'helping', the huntresses crammed themselves into the back – Bianca included – leaving her brother and the three remaining campers sitting in an awkward spread near the front. "Who wants to drive?" Apollo grinned, jangling the car keys. Nico and Grover raised their hands, but the Olympian's gaze settled on Thalia. "Daughter of Zeus! Lord of the sky. Perfect."
"Oh, n-no," if it were possible to pale further, she did. "I'm still, uh, sick..."
"Aww, c'mon! You're almost sixteen! That makes you old enough now to drive with a learner's permit!" Thalia shook her head vigorously, and Apollo was about to argue further until Annabeth spoke up,
"Sir, you treated her yourself, you know how bad her situation was – I doubt further trauma would help in any way." Apollo sighed, and Thalia shot a grateful look at the blonde-haired girl.
"I guess I have to drive AGAIN..."
Apollo sat down at the wheel, and hit a series of buttons in a complex order, causing a low rumble and more worried looks from the huntresses. He beckoned Nico over, and as they took off he began to lecture on exactly how 'speed equals heat' and 'this chariot is built on human dreams about the sun', everyone gradually relaxed into a constant rhythm.
Eventually, they approached Long Island which the sun god pointed to. "There! Dead ahead." Nico almost looked relieved, but this was replaced with a terrified gasp from several others as they saw the speed at which they were approaching. Apollo chuckled, and intentionally pitched forward into the canoe lake, scattering several naiads unlucky to be nearby at the time. Thalia looked shaken to her core, while most others seemed barely better as they let go of screams they hadn't been aware they'd been holding. "I wonder if we boiled anyone important...?" Apollo snapped his fingers, and the bus rose to the surface and spat out the huntresses and campers onto the shore, intercepting a rushing Chiron in his wheelchair, accompanied by several cabin leaders who looked groggy and irritated.
"Lord Apollo, may I ask what happened?" the centaur inquired of the still-grinning god.
"Thalia here-" he gestured with his hand, "had her first driving lesson." Thalia still looked terrified, and so his statement was at least somewhat believable. Chiron opted to take Nico to the Big House while Zoë took charge of the girls, who were reluctantly followed to Cabin Eight by Grover. Apollo refused the offer of a drink with Mr. D, at which point several shoulders relaxed and happy sighs were let out. "Take care, sweethearts! Watch out for those prophecies!" He winked at Thalia and Annabeth, and a Maserati Spyder launched itself into the dawn sky.
Annabeth managed to compose herself enough to whisper into Thalia's ear,
"I'm already not missing him," at which both girls cracked up, receiving questioning looks from the campers present. Chiron sent those who were not present on the mission off to breakfast, and wheeled off towards the Big House with Nico having to run to keep up. Thalia opted to visit her cabin before the inevitable meeting, and stumbled when treading into the snow, melted in a previously perfect circle around the crash-landing area. Annabeth headed to the cabins as well, but was so occupied in her thoughts that she ended up outside Cabin Three, which she realised had been a habit of hers whenever she was worried. Tears rose to her stormy eyes, and she sprinted to the Athena Cabin, disappearing inside.
After breakfast, as predicted, Chiron called for a meeting at which all cabin leaders were called. It was brief, and quieter without the intrusions of the missing hero. The conclusion was that despite a lack of campers, the traditional Capture the Flag game would occur, which brought a sadistic grin to the face of Silena Beauregard. Thalia decided to assist in preparations for this event, while most of the remaining campers went through their typical scheduled activities for the day.
Thalia caught Pheobe – recognizable from her previous encounter – attempting to pick a fight with an Ares camper while holding a basketball, and reluctantly prevented serious injuries on either side. She then proceeded to check in on every cabin individually, and despite (mostly) good intentions she found herself in the Poseidon Cabin. She heard water gurgling from a water fountain near to the back of the building, and she knew that it hadn't been there in the summer – a gift from his father, and he wasn't here to see it! Thalia teared up, and tried to complete her rounds as quickly as possible.
Dinner came quickly, but both Thalia and Annabeth were absent much to the confusion and worry of Chiron, who correctly concluded they were simply upset about their lost friend. The sons of Hermes known as the Stoll brothers were attempting to convince Nico di Angelo that poker was a better game than Mythomagic, and Grover was trying to recover from the beating he had received from hanging around the hunters. When night fell, all but the cold Zoë Nightshade was in their cabin, but no-one dared challenge the lieutenant.
Annabeth somehow fell asleep after much tossing and turning, but not to a positive effect. She dreamt of Percy, on a dark hillside, shrouded in a murky fog, with a surprisingly heavy atmosphere – she assumed this meant he was in a cave, but why he was there she could not figure out. Apparently he had the same thoughts, as he cried out,
"Thorn! Where are you? Why did you bring me here?!" He scrambled over a section of broken wall and arrived at the crest of the hill. He saw his former friend, she saw a traitor.
"Luke? What happened?" The son of Hermes was encircled by clouds which seemed to crush him slowly, and he cried out for help.
"They left me here! I-if you don't help me... I'll die!" Perseus was torn, and it looked like he knew what Luke would say if he asked the question all observers knew he was thinking. Finally, he rushed in and took the burden from who he had viewed as a brother. Luke collapsed to the floor, and rolled away. The hero pleaded for help just as the grimy follower of Kronos had before, but to no avail.
"Don't worry, your help is on the way. If she'll respect a man who sacrificed everything for nothing!" Luke forced out a chuckle, but he looked pained and worried. Annabeth jolted upright, and leaped out of bed towards the first cabin where she hoped her friend remained.
"We should go to the Big House PRONTO if what you're saying is true," Thalia advised, and to a certain extent she knew Annabeth would agree with her decision. They woke up Chiron, who asked almost precisely the questions that the daughter of Zeus opted to which Annabeth noted in the back of her whirling mind. Chiron grumbled,
"Visit the Oracle, I advise. Her guidance is always there in times of need. Now let me sleep."
The centaur exited back into his room, where within seconds a heavy snoring was audible. Despite the gravity of the situation, both girls had to stifle a laugh. Once the moment was over, however, Thalia patted Annabeth on the shoulder, who shivered in anticipation of what horror could await her up in the attic. She ascended the staircase, one at a time, and time seemed to slow down.
Nothing could have prepared her for what awaited her in the Oracle's lair.
A young girl – one she recognised as Artemis, which greatly surprised her – was fettered to rocks with celestial bronze chains. Annabeth briefly panicked, but realised it was a vision. A serpentine voice resonated inside her head six lines of verse she wasn't going to forget in a while.
"Five shall go west to the goddess in chains,
The hero to suffer it all in vain,
Campers and Hunters, two never return,
Betrayal and sacrifice, the traitor will burn.
One shall fall by a parent's hand,
The Titan's curse be passed around."
A/N: Heya guys, back again with the third chapter! I hope you liked it, and if you could leave a review as it can only help this story!
Sorry I took so long updating after the first two chapters were on consecutive days - first week of school in the new year on top of mock exam season in my school, so I just took time to transition to working-mode again. On the plus side, this chapter's at least, uh... seven hundred words longer?
What did you guys think of the new prophecy? Hoping that at least some of you will figure out my plan for this story just from this, but suspense would also work. I'm thinking that this chapter's pace is a bit rushed, so if that's a major problem please let me know - I was really trying to get this done as soon as possible.
Thanks for reading! :]