Okay, so reviews have been slim to none so I'm thinking if I don't get any reviews for this chapter, I just won't continue. Sorry guys, but if you can't make the little effort it takes to tell me whether or not you're still interested, I can't make the effort it takes to keep the story going. Anyway, on a lighter side, I have some pretty cool ideas of where the story is going so keep in tuned and please review.
After the game, Nora came to tell me that I did a great job and that the loss wasn't my fault. I didn't care. I knew I shouldn't have blamed myself, but my competitive nature had wanted nothing more than to win and I had failed.
When it came time to go to sleep, I slept with the Hermes cabin. Nora and the rest of them were more than welcoming about my stay, and I couldn't help but feel happy for the first time in long while.
Of course, the following morning, things began to go downhill. We all ate breakfast. Once again, I sat at the Hermes table while Pierce sat with his friends at Athena. Afterward, everyone had chores or what not to do, but Pierce and I were forced to go back to training with Percy. Being the two newest Campers and Camp Half-Blood, we were apparently considered the weakest and most likely to get murdered on the first attempt. Thanks for the confidence boost, guys.
Percy, of course, wouldn't provide any form of compliment to my fighting. Actually, he barely showed any emotion at all as his sword continue to rebound off of mine until he threw a blow strong enough to knock the weapon from my hand. Pierce continued to try out different weapons, none of which seemed to fare well with him.
"What's the point of this if we're not getting any better?" I asked. Pierce was holding a sword awkwardly. swinging it at a dummies head and missing by a good four or five inches.
"On the contrary, Mara, you're improving by a lot," Percy replied. "You're brother, on the other hand..." Percy lowered his voice so Pierce couldn't hear him. "There really isn't any hope for him."
I couldn't help but laugh. In school, Pierce, being the smart one, was always the one to be applauded by all of the teachers for being an overachiever. It was nice to know that someone finally realized that I could be better than him at something.
"Can we do something else?" Pierce asked, dropping his sword to the ground. "This sucks."
"If you can't even carry a sword, how do you expect to fight off a monster?" Percy asked.
"He doesn't," I replied. "He's planning to run away screaming like a little girl and leave me to clean up the mess like always."
Pierce glared at me, and I smirked.
"Alright, you guys can take a break," Percy said, sighing and running a hand through his hair. "Once you come back, we get serious."
I wasn't sure how I felt about that. He was already kicking my butt, and the last thing I wanted was to look like even more of a pathetic fighter.
Pierce and I ate lunch with the rest of the campers. I returned to my seat next to Nora at the Hermes table, and everyone acted as if they had been expecting me.
Once we were finished eating, I went to find my brother. Half way there, however, I was stopped by Cal. "Hey," he said, smiling brightly at me.
I pushed passed him, wanting nothing more than to get away and find Pierce. "Mara," he said, reaching out and grabbing my arm. "Look, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to embarrass or insult you."
"You didn't," I snapped, thinking in my mind that it had been my fault anyway. "It's just a stupid game. It doesn't matter."
"Okay, good," Cal said, allowing me to take a few more steps before he stopped me again. "So, um, maybe we can hang out some time?"
"I don't think so," I said. When I stopped to look at him, I couldn't help melting a little.
"I know we got off on the wrong foot, but I was hoping maybe we could be friends," Cal replied, smiling again. He had a nice smile, but I forced the thought out of my head, not wanting to talk to him. "I mean, I don't see why not, right?"
"Wrong," I said. "Sorry, but I don't like to talk to annoying, desperate losers."
Cal stared at me for a moment, and I took my chance to get away.
When I met up with Pierce, he began a long rant about how great the Athena kids are. He told me about how smart and creative they were, and that they were also skilled in battle and just about everything else. I did my best to ignore him. I wasn't completely sure as to why I had been mean to Cal, but I didn't completely regret it either. There was something about him that I didn't like, something that told me to stay away.
We picked up practices where we had left off. Once again, Percy effortlessly kicked my butt. After a few attempts, I threw my sword to the ground and gave up. "This is hopeless. I'm never going to be able to beat you!"
"Especially not if you give up," Percy said. I stared at him. "I want you to try using a different weapon this time."
"I've already used all of the swords," I mumbled.
"Not all of them," he said, handing me the sword in his hand. I took it, weighing it in my hands. Unlike the other swords, it felt much more comfortable where it rested.
"You're giving me your sword?" I asked.
"Well, since you can't seem to do much with anything else, I figure it's worth a try," Percy said, picking up my fallen sword and taking up a fighting stance. "You ready?"
I held the sword in my hand, waiting for him to take the first swing. When he struck at me, I found my arm shooting out just in time to parry his attacks. Unlike the other weapons I had used, this one didn't weigh me down or fly out further than I had wanted. It moved perfectly with me, almost like an extension of my arm.
The fight continued for a few moments. As Percy lunged, I forced my sword upward, knocking the weapon from his hand and watching as it skidded across the floor.
"Good job," Percy mumbled. "Now try again."
