A/N: This chapter is a bit shorter. Sorry it's been so long since I uploaded, computer was broken. Please read and review! Thanks!
Chapter 4:
"Father." I said, giving him a slight nod as my three friends backed away a little bit. He gave me a stern look.
"Haven't seen me in three years and all you have to say is 'father'? And what the hell happened to you? You been in a fight already?" He didn't wait for my answer before continuing, "Come here son, and give your old man a hug." He chuckled as he held out his arms. I stayed right where I was. I wasn't about to show affection to a father who never cared about me.
"What do you want?"
"A father has to want something to visit his own kid?"
"You always have before. You never come for just a visit. You're not that kind of God."
"Well fine, smartass. I came to wish you a happy sixteenth birthday. Quite an achievement for a young demigod. I do not wish anything of you, son. I come bearing a gift."
"Oh really?" I said with a smirk; his smirk, "Gone a little soft have you Ares. Bringing gifts to your kids now. Boy do I feel special." I said, faking enthusiasm. I knew I had to be careful about what I said to the Gods, but being in his presence made me a little more angry than usual. Ares had that effect on people.
"Watch it kid. Here," He handed me a black backpack, decorated with a skull and flames.
"A backpack? You came all the way down from Olympus to give your sixteen year old son a backpack that looks like it's for 6 year-olds? Wow maybe I should go home and give it to my little brother James, he would love this." Man I was laying the sarcasm on thick. If I didn't watch it, Ares was gonna blow me to smithereens.
"Okay kid, one more remark and your never gonna see the light of day again. And you can forget about anymore magical gifts coming your way. This bag can morph. Make it a backpack or make it a necklace, I could care less. But this is a magical backpack. In a time of need it will supply you with what you need. Whether it's a weapon, or survival gear. It can also hold anything you need to put in it without running out of room. It is very valuable, and I trust you with it. You know, none of my other kids would dare stand up to me. But you don't care do you? Well, I should go. Take care, son, and try not to get yourself killed." And with that he turned and walked away, slowly dissolving into the air until there was nothing left. I stood there for a minute, staring at the spot where he had disappeared.
"Hmm, he was nicer than usual, don't you think." I stated, turning towards my friends. They stared at me like I was crazy, or like my head was on fire, which it might have been. "What?" I asked, a little meaner than I meant to.
"Kyle, you can't talk to a God like that, even your father. If Ares had lost his cool for even a second, you would have been incinerated before you could say 'Help'." Grace said. You could tell she was scared for me. Her eyes were heavy with worry and fear, like she thought that Ares would appear out of nowhere and strike me down.
"I'm sorry, but he just makes me so, errrggg. I don't know what to say to him other than being sarcastic. It's just his presence. A little help would have been nice, Dylan." I glared at Dylan. He looked back with an apologetic look on his face. Dylan has the powers to control emotions, a very rare power for anyone, even a child of Aphrodite. Aphrodite kids could sometimes charmspeak, which is a rare power to pretty much talk people into doing whatever you want, which is kind of similar to Dylan's power, but no one else that we know can do what he can do. He was unique, like me.
"Sorry. I was just... um... surprised by Ares showing up just to give you that bag. Sorry bro." Dylan looked away, but I could tell he felt bad about not helping me out.
"It's not Dylan's fault Kyle. You know that he was intimidated. You know how Ares makes people feel." Olivia walked up to Dylan and grabbed his hand. I started to feel bad for hurting his feelings. I knew it wasn't his fault; it was my father's.
"Sorry Dylan. You know how... difficult I can be. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings. You know what Ares can do to your emotions, you can feel the anger he plants in people's minds."
"It's okay Kyle. Let's just go do something. Does Chiron know you're here?" Dylan said, taking his white V-neck out of his back pocket and pulling it on. I could tell he was anxious to get as far away from the topic of Ares as possible.
"No. I better go check in with him. Meet you guys at the volleyball court?" I said picking up the weightless backpack.
"Yeah." Dylan and Olivia said in unison as they turned to walk down to the court. Grace stayed where she was, still looking at me in a worried way, wondering if I was okay after the events that had just unfolded.
"I haven't checked in yet either, I'll come with you. And while we're at it, we should definitely get that knee looked at." She dropped her gaze and walked past me, grabbing my arm and pulling me toward the big, two-story blue house that stood in the middle of camp.