I didn't make a big deal about it, but I did have a major flaw in the first three chapters. I'm currently re-reading The Last Olympian, and I noticed that the whole war takes place in August. Percy said so himself. So I just changed the date and made training longer. Nothing that will hinder from what you read. I only added a few sentences.

I felt really Camp Half-Blood-y today with my Camp Half-Blood shirt, shorts, and my converse on, so I felt it'd be appropriate to write a new chapter. :D

Disclaimer: The Last Olympian belongs to Rick Riordan.

Chapter 4

Inquiries of Friends

The explosion that sounded and shook the camp roughly an hour after sending our brave warrior off was un-nerving. A huge cloud of smoke followed by a light show of green flames was said to be seen from the Big House. A few kids actually saw the explosion happen. A majority of the camp saw the aftermath.

I took my bow in the forest and didn't see anything. I sure felt it though.

Even after three weeks, I still couldn't wrap my head around what was going on. One minute I was enjoying my summer with my best friend, excited and nervous about high school and simple teenage drama that girls always make into huge deals. The next, I'm literally fighting for my life training almost 24/7 for a war that I had no clue about nor even felt a part of. I considered running away a few times during the passing weeks, but chickened out every time I found the nerve to pack my bag. I didn't want to end up on the Titan side or dead, so camp really was my best option.

I wasn't too happy with my option though.

I shot arrow after arrow at the same tree for an hour and a half. Ready. Aim. Fire. Collect arrows. Repeat. I was never good with words, so venting on the tree was the best way for me to express myself.

It wasn't until Phoebe found me that I noticed my fingers were blistering. I've never shot so many arrows in such short time. My calluses were still forming and I kept ripping open my healing wounds.

"Frustrated?" Phoebe patiently sat down next to me, curiously watch as I shot arrow after arrow.

"Just a bit," I muttered.

"Confused." I loosened my arm and glanced down at her. She had a ghost of a smile on her face, knowing her inquiries and statements were the hammer to the nail.

"Scared. Unsure. A deer in the headlights." Her eyes lightened and darkened as she spoke each word. Her eyes widened a moment and she turned her head away quickly, as blush rapidly filling her cheeks.

"What was that?" I asked. Now that I finally got to know her better, I noticed that depending on how long she was staring at someone, her eyes would change color. It was usually only a shade lighter or darker. Once I swore her eyes turned green like Jace's when she was looking at him, but she turned her head away so fast I just thought it a trick of the light. Now in the dim forest, I wasn't so sure.

She sighed heavily, another thing I noticed she did a great deal. She opened her mouth but didn't say anything.

Phoebe was cautious. She was careful. She always thought before she said or did anything. She was gentle too, a mother-like figure. She wasn't pushy though. It was enough encouragement. She was also the only one who could put Jace in his place. He'd be his show off-y, cocky, sports-competition man he is and she's say something so calm and sharp, he'd shut up. She's one of those people who is so nice to everyone, but she could slip something offensive or mean with that sweet demeanor of her's that you wouldn't even notice she insulted you because she said it so pleasantly. It wasn't a southern-belle kind though. It was genuine. Besides, Jace was the only one she really insulted.

"It's a… talent I have," she said slowly.

"Changing your eye color?" I asked skeptically.

Her blush deepened and she closed her eyes. "No, it's…" She scrunched her eyebrows. "Do you know who the goddess Psyche is?"

I racked my brain and came up empty. "The goddess of psychics?" I asked stupidly.

She opened her eyes and smiled. "Not even close. She's the goddess of the soul." Her eyes got misty and her gaze moved over my shoulder. "She caught my father's attention just by sitting and reading in the library every day. It took him forever to ask her out on a date." She chuckled and shook her head. "He's quite an awkward man and clueless about women despite having a PhD in psychology. Nine months later, I arrived on his doorstep in glowing, silver crib. You get the idea."

I slung my bow over my shoulder and sat down. I nodded for her to continue. "There are only a few people who know my… predicament. It's not that I'm the 'chosen one' from the prophecy," she said when I widened my eyes, "But it has to do with my mother." She held up one hand. "Only five know. Jace, Chiron, Mr. D, Tempest," she sighed and gave an uncharacteristic eye roll, "and my father. My mother doesn't count because she, uh, 'blessed' me with the gift. Psyche is the goddess of the soul."

"And that means…?"

"Well," she said quietly, "I can see people's souls."

I didn't quite how to react. "What?"

"The soul." She pointed at my chest. "It resides there. They say the eyes are a window to the soul. For me, that rings true. I can also see auras, which are an outwardly expression of the soul. They change colors, but generally remain the same. Yours for the most part is an orangey-yellow." She covered her mouth quickly. "Sorry."

The shock on my face must've scared her, but I smiled widely. "Don't be. It just startled me, but generally I think it's really cool." I looked at her eagerly. "What else can you tell me?"

"I can't."

"Sure you can!" I said brightly. "I'm giving you permission, aren't I?"

Her smile was half-hearted. "Yes, but it's… more complicated than that."

"What?"

She looked up at me and sighed.

"I already said too much." She held up her hand and an additional finger. "Now six know. Maggie, you cannot tell anyone this. I am begging you. If this gets out and Kronos finds out, I could become a very powerful weapon."

"Why?" This confused me.

"What is the soul?" she asked me, her eyes cast downward.

Holy Styx. "Everything a person is. Secrets, personality, everything."

She hunched over a bit more, ashamed or embarrassed, I wasn't sure. "If I look long enough, yes. I'd know someone's whole history. I know too much about people already. It's not something I can turn on and off. It's constant. Holding conversations with people is difficult. Going out in public is worse." She shuddered and took a deep breath, calming down. "You cannot tell anyone."

"I promise."

"You have to swear on the River Styx."

"What?"

She briefly explained the seriousness of swearing on the Styx and I caught my breath. She was serious. Not that I blamed her, but I'm not the best secret keeper. Why she told me this, I am still not sure.

"I swear on the River Styx."

Thunder boomed across the sky and the deal was sealed.

:::^:::

A fight broke out later in the afternoon. It was not pretty, but I did find this once mildly entertaining because this time there was a twist besides the typical curses and weapon throwing.

It started at the volleyball courts. Ollie, Walrus, and I were in the strawberry fields when it began. The Apollo Cabin was currently in use of the courts and a group of Ares boys came over demanding they had ownership of it.

"We had it first." The one Apollo boy said.

"And we led the raid," An Ares boy yelled angrily. After yelling a few more insults, a two Ares kids attacked an Apollo boy.

"IT'S OURS! WE LED THE RAID! GIVE IT BACK!" Yelling was accompanied with repeated assaults. The other Apollo boys pulled them off and shoved them away.

"NO! WE HAVE IT! IT'S OURS!" Hollered the Apollo boy that was assaulted by the two Ares boys.

The next minute was a hard core staring contest until an Apollo boy yelled, "Archers! Grab your bows!"

An Ares boy with a bloody nose called, "Get the Ares Cabin ready!" he looked back at the Apollo boys. "If it's a war you want, it's a war you'll get."

"Get the chariot" It suddenly became a race as the two cabins ran back to their cabins to gather weapons and troops.

Ollie sighed and went back to picking the berries, muttering something about "unnecessary battles." A flash of light from one of the Apollo boys caught my eye. He was holding a musical instrument that looked like a miniature harp. He wore a devilishly evil smile and casually strolled to the cabins where the main battle took place.

"I think I want to check this one out," I said to Ollie.

He gave me an are-you-kidding-me-these-strawberries-won't-pick-themselves look before turning back to his work. "Whatever suits your fancy." He muttered something else I didn't hear, but I walked away, too interested in this new turn of events to care. I jogged across the bridge and to the cabins. Just as I reached the outskirts of Cabin One, my ears were greeted with the most hideous sound I have ever heard. I couldn't help but fall to the ground, shivers running up and down my spine, my ears crying for mercy as I closed my eyes and begged the gods for the terrible noise to stop. I cupped my hands over my ears and was finally able to stand up.

It was the kid with the harp thing. He calmly stood on top of the Apollo Cabin, smiling and strumming away at the horrible instrument. The kids in the other cabins yelled and complained at the kid to stop it, but he kept playing. I shoved my fingers in my ears, easing the noise a little bit. An Ares girl launched a javelin at him, but missed by a hair. All the Apollo boys suddenly did not seem to be the threat. It was the boy with the harp who was their new target.

"THAT'S ERIC!" I jumped in surprise and turned to find Tempest happily observing the war. She had earplugs in her ears and sipped from a McDonald's extra large plastic cup. I didn't want to know how she got it.

"I DON'T LIKE THAT INSTRAMENT," I yelled back.

"IT'S CALLED A LYRE. ACTUALLY, IT'S THE FAOUL LYRA! THE FOUL LYRE. GREAT FOR THE PERSON WHO HAS IT, BAD FOR EVERYONE ELSE." She yelled. "LET'S GO TO THE HERMES CABIN! THE DOOR WILL BLOCK THE SOUND BETTER!"

"Better" was the word for it because the ear-splitting sound was still audible. Tempest ran over to her bunk and pulled out a large tin bucket full of popcorn. The other Hermes kids who were taking shelter from the battle looked at her quizzically, but didn't say anything.

I wish I could say that the battle was eventful, but in reality it was a painful struggle. Apollo and Ares kids tried to fight, but the music—if you could call it that—was too loud and painful. A beautiful chariot manned by two of the Apollo boys shot up in the sky and landed on top of the Apollo Cabin to join Eric the Lyre Player. A few more spears were aimed at the boys but they dodged them. One of the kids in the chariot yelled and Eric stopped playing that dreaded instrument.

"I swear if that goes off one more time," The cabin leader from Ares threatened. Before anyone had a say, Eric threw the lyre in the air and clapped his hands, the magical instrument disappearing in a flash. The boy closest to the chariot tossed Eric an electric guitar and the other Apollo boy a microphone. He took out a bass guitar from the chariot and then three boys grinned wickedly.

"ONE! TWO! ONE, TWO, THREE, FOUR!" And the three boys began playing the worst song I have ever heard. Everything was off. It even caused the Ares and Apollo kids both to go out of whack and lose concentration. Playing terribly to win a battle was the most entertaining thing I saw during my time here.

The fight finally was ended half an hour later. A Dionysus kid had come out of his cabin, complaining that he could not get to sleep with all the noise (the windows in that cabin are super glued open thanks to a prank the Hermes kids pulled a few years ago. From what I heard, they don't mind it much anymore) and grapes started growing everywhere, wrapping themselves around some of the campers legs and angrily growing up the sides of the Apollo and Ares Cabins. Two of the Demeter kids ran out and helped the grapes grow. Cabin Seven finally agreed to stop fighting and the two cabins called a truce.

I couldn't stop laughing. So far, this fight was the silliest of all.

Dinner between the two cabins was tense. Everyone else tried to relax, but no one really could stop thinking about Beckendorf or Percy; the Apollo and Ares kids couldn't stop glaring at each other.

I honestly didn't know what to feel. Phoebe nailed it earlier on today, but all these feelings jumbled and merged to form a blob. I just went with the motions. I just didn't know.

There were only two people who sympathized with me: Phoebe because she always knows, and Tempest of all people. I still did not know her well, but she hung around Jace and Phoebe a lot. There were three things about her that I could sum up: unafraid of anything, spirited as a horse, and zany. From what I've heard from the other campers, she's is an excellent swordswoman, but she uses lamps, marshmallows, and other random objects instead of the proper weapons. All of them are celestial bronze, but it is still really odd.

Apollo lead a really good sing-a-long at the fire that night even though the flames were only six inches high and steel grey, occasionally flickering a deep red to reflect the anger the Ares Cabin was feeling. I left a bit early, not really in the mood for singing. I headed back to the Hermes Cabin and found myself alone.

I don't know how long I was laying in my bunk staring at the ceiling.

"You okay?"

I shifted to my left and my blue eyes met a pair of brown-green eyes. She cocked her head to the side, her wild coppery hair shifting with her movement.

"Hey, Tempest," I said in a tone that I didn't mean to sound so melancholy.

"You didn't answer my question."

I sighed and ruffled my dark brown hair. "I don't know. I just don't know how to feel about all this."

"It really is an all you can eat buffet, isn't it?" she asked. "Not only are you handed everything, but you have to eat it too. You don't have to be so down about it though."

"I just don't understand why now!" I said, clearly frustrated. "Why this moment in time? Why not next year!"

"If you honestly think the Fates work that way," she lifted an eyebrow and poked my shoulder, "you are sadly mistaken."

I sat up and invited Tempest to sit on the bed. She made a huge spectacle of it, using the lower bunk next to my bed to flip and land cross-legged across from me. My mouth dropped open.

"If you that's cool," she said, a weird smile on her face, "you should see the stuff I can do with my pegasus, Twister. He's a cool dude, but has a wicked temper."

"You talk like the horse is a human," I said.

"He's not human, but he may as well be. He constantly complains about how messy the stables and other creatures are."

I blinked, not sure I heard that right. "The horse… told you?"

She looked at me like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Duh. I'm a kid of Desponia," she jabbed her chest with her thumb like she was important. "Well, not officially. She hasn't claimed me yet, but I've done my research and I'm 98.3½ percent certain!"

"Uh huh," I said skeptically.

"It's true! That silly goat-boy you hang around with agrees with me. Since I was seven I could talk to horses. Desponia is the goddess of horses. It all adds up."

I guess it did sound like pretty good evidence, but you never know. Her mother could be a different minor goddess. I couldn't think of any at the time, but many gods are guardians of different things.

Tempest was waving her hand in front of my face. "Hello? Anyone home? Does Maggie live here? Or did she leave and take a field trip to her brain? I think she did."

I knocked her hand out of my face and gave her a you-seriously-did-that look.

"What about you?"

It was the second time this topic was brought up. I know Phoebe knows I've had those visions. She never brings it up, but the way she looks at me sometimes I just know. I still couldn't bring myself to say anything.

"Nope."

"So you've no idea who you're parent it?"

I shook my head.

"Even with your badass archery skills?"

That struck a though. Archery.

"There are two possible gods with that," Tempest continued. "Hermes and Apollo. I highly doubt Apollo though. He only has sons. Not that he's sexist, it's just he's known for mostly having sons. Just check the local library and it says it there in the books."

I nodded my head, but still didn't feel certain that I was a child of Hermes. I never felt the need to play a trick or steal something.

"I don't really need to think about that right now," I said. "I have bigger problems. Like trying to figure out how to survive a war." I sighed heavily and slumped back. Tempest affectionately patted my head.

"Goodnight kiddo. I doubt it, but sweet dreams!" She hopped off the bed and galloped out the door, slamming it shut behind her.

My dreams were far from sweet.

First I saw my mom looking at a picture of me from last year. It was when I broke my arm, so my lime green cast was proudly held up. My mom's eyes were shiny from crying.

"Oh, Maggie," she said. "I hope you're okay."

The dream shifted and I was in the Underworld, at least I thought I was with all the dead people around. A boy of about twelve was pleading with a man garbed in black. He radiated darkness and power. Their words were muffled and faded, so I didn't know what anyone was saying.

Everything faded into darkness and there was a sudden spotlight on a girl with golden hair and eyes that matched. They changed in the light though when she turned around, shifting to light blue then returning to gold.

"You're turn will be coming soon," she said, looking directly at me. "You'll be up to bat."

I woke with an uneasy feeling that I've seen her before, but I couldn't place my finger on where. It didn't matter anyway. I forgot about her by mid-afternoon when a huge group of campers rushed to the beach.

Percy returned.

The thing about Apollo is true. I did my research so I wouldn't sound like a moron. I also have the book next to me to consult. :D

Over and out,

Mahersal