I do not own Percy Jackson nor Heroes of Olympus, they belong to Rick Riordan.


Chapter Nine - Carlos

Okay, maybe that was an exaggeration.

But he literally fell out of the tree and landed in front of them. A hiking backpack, maybe a bit smaller than theirs, fell on top, hitting on his head and making him grunt.

Alyx and Carlos looked at each other. She stood, going over and kneeling in front of him.

"Are you alright?" She asked. He lifted his head, his eyes electric blue. He had golden blond hair with a black streak running through it, and he could tell it wasn't dyed. His skin was pretty pale, almost white, and he had freckles on his cheeks and nose. He stared at Alyx for a moment, and then a trail of blood ran down his face from his nose. She raised an eyebrow. He winced and stood, wiping his nose and sniffing.

"Sorry." He pulled out a tissue and put it to his nose, sighing. "Insult to injury. Sorry for falling on top of you guys." Alyx laughed and waved.

"It's okay." She said. "Um, what were you doing in a tree?" He scratched his head.

"I woke up there."

"What?" Carlos asked. "You woke up in a tree?"

"Yeah." He looked down, shuffling his feet. "The last thing I remember was my mom telling me I had to flee and then I was knocked out." Alyx frowned, clearly disturbed by that.

"What's your name?"

"Liam."

"Nice to meet you. This is Carlos and I'm Alyx." Liam nodded at them.

"Sorry for uh… Heh, intruding." He scratched his head shyly.

"It's okay, again." She patted his arm. "Where are you heading to?"

"Alyx," Carlos hissed, jumping up and grabbing her arm. "You barely know the guy, why are you asking him that?"

"Um…" She raised an eyebrow. "You're the one who took me to your home."

"That's a totally different reason!"

"East." Liam said awkwardly, looking uncomfortable at their argument.

"Oh? We're heading east too."

"Alyx!" She grabbed his arm and pulled him aside, lowering her voice to a whisper.

"Look, the power radiating off of him is insane." He raised an eyebrow. He did feel something in the air but he just thought that was Alyx. "Besides, look." He glanced to where her thumb was pointing. Liam was dressed in all black. A black leather biker's jacket, a shirt that said Imagine Dragons, jeans and black hunting boots. Straps with throwing knives were around his thighs, a belt with a holster on the back with a hunting knife was around his waist. He pursed his lips.

"Your point?"

"He might be in good shape. He's built like a hunter and has weapons." He wrinkled his nose but watched her stand up straight. "So, Liam." He looked at her curiously.

"Yeah?"

"Are you a demigod?"

"Yeah."

"Cool!" She gave a thumbs up. "Wanna come along with us?" Before Liam could give his answer, Carlos grabbed her arm and pulled her aside again.

"What are you doing?"

"Look, your parents gave us an extra earring and train tickets, and they told me that there might be another demigod joining us. I think he's the one." He frowned deeply.

"Fine…"

"What do you say?" Alyx asked him. Liam blushed, scratching his head.

"Sure… I mean, if you don't mid a twenty-two year old."

"Y-You're twenty-two?" Carlos choked out, grabbing Alyx's hoodie.

"Yeah."

"Wow." Alyx said. "Cool! Now we have an adult here." He tilted his head.

"What do you mean? How old are you two?"

"I'm seventeen."

"And I don't know. I only know my name." Alyx said, lifting up her pack and pulling it on. "So you're with us?" Liam bent down and picked his up, nodding. His nosebleed had stopped and he looked happy that he'd found some people to go on this trip with. Carlos picked up his, mumbling under his breath and pulling it on.


They took a cab to the train station, Alyx and Liam chatting up a storm. From what he got out of it, Liam was from Alberta, Canada and had lived in a resort town with his mom when suddenly he needed to come down here.

"What about your dad?" Carlos asked. Liam looked at his shoes. They currently sat on a bench, waiting for their train to arrive.

"Um… I never knew my dad. He died before my mom even found out she was pregnant with me."

"Oh." They said simultaneously.

"Amtrak train to Denver will arrive in five minutes." They waited, and the train pulled in. They were checked for weapons (thankfully the throwing knives made it past) and were led to a train car.

"This is a four bed and one bath car. I hope you like it, and let me know if you need anything." Alyx nodded.

"Thank you." The woman smiled and left. Alyx twirling the key in her fingers then opened the door. The room was a very nice size. It had two bunk beds, plush bunk beds at that, a door leading to a bathroom and a four seat table.

"Wow." Liam muttered. Wow was right. The walls were a sky blue, the floor tile, the comforter's on the beds a pretty teal. Alyx called the bottom bunk on the right, Liam doing the same. He put his bag on his bed and then pulled off his sweater, Alyx doing the same. Liam's eyes widened at the tattoos and scars, his face turning pink.

"Wow." He said again. "Where'd you get those?" Alyx shrugged, lifting her right arm and running her fingers through her hair to smooth it down, her SPQR tattoo showing. Liam pulled off his jacket, laying it on top of his backpack. His arms were extremely ripped, nice biceps and forearms, barely fitting into the sleeves of his shirt.

Alyx whistled. "Archer arms, that's for sure." He blushed.

"You can tell just by looking at me?"

"Oh yeah." She pinched Carlos's butt, making him yelp and jump away. "This one has a runner's body, but he doesn't put much effort into it."

"Hey!" Liam chuckled and slipped his hand into his pocket, pulling out a cube shaped item. Carlos raised his eyebrow as he tossed it to Alyx. She caught it, and as soon as it touched her skin, it transformed.

It sprouted into a sleek, dark grey bow, equipped with a scope and gorgeous gear, it was the definition for hunting.

"Oh my…" Alyx said, looking at it.

"It's beautiful." Carlos said. "My dad would love this!" He watched as Alyx tried it out, pulling it back.

"Wow, this is so nice. Better than some I've seen." Liam smiled and blushed, scratching his neck.

"Well, it's sort of a gift from my mom. It's magic, so it can transform into that cube, perfect for traveling. Watch, let me see." He extended his hand and she handed it back. A quiver appeared on his back as soon as he touched it. "The arrows are different types and are magic enhanced, so I never run out of them." She bounced with excitement.

"What kind of arrows?"

"Explosive, sulfurous, foam-"

"Foam?" He asked.

"Yeah. It's this chemical that explodes when it hits the ground and keeps your opponent in place."

"Cool…" He said, his eyes wide with admiration.

"What else?"

"Fire, ice, um…" He scratched his head. "I can make lightning arrows."

"Lightning arrows?" They said, tilting their heads in sync. He nodded, putting his three fingers on the draw. There was a cackling and an arrow of lightning, real lightning, appeared in the place of an arrow.

"Cool!" Alyx said. "Your bow is kind of like my sword!" The lightning vanished and he tilted his head.

"Sword?" She pulled out Riptide and uncapped it. His eyes widened and he nearly choked but kept his surprise at bay.

"Wow." He said. The bow and quiver disappeared, and he shoved the cube into his pocket. Carlos pouted.

"My weapons don't do that!" He crossed his arms. Alyx laughed, capping Riptide and patting his head. "Freaking giants…" He mumbled. Liam was maybe 6'0'', because he seemed a bit taller than Alyx. They sat down at the table.

"So where did you grow up?" Alyx asked.

"It's a small resort town in Alberta. Oh the scenery is just gorgeous." He sighed dreamily. "It's called Banff." Carlos wrinkled his nose, but not in disgust, more in confusion than anything else.

"Baff?" He asked, confused.

"Banff." Alyx corrected. "It's a beautiful town. I've seen pictures." She sighed. "Oh I would love to go there someday when I get my memory back."

"You have amnesia?" Liam asked, his eyes widening.

"Yeah." Alyx sighed. "I don't know how, but I woke up in this forest and managed to get to the city." She patted her cheek, pouting. "I wish I could remember…" She pouted once more and laid her chin on the table.

"So how come you're going to the east coast?" Carlos asked, leaning back in his chair.

"To Camp Half-Blood."


To Be Continued...


Okay, this has been on my mind recently and it's making me sad. I may sound whiny and crap, but I really am disappointed in these two stories. I was scared of continuing Guardians of the Nation because I wasn't getting the views I thought I would get, and got sad, that's why I went on such a long hiatus during those weeks. I felt really disappointed and was actually thinking of restarting.

If there is something that you don't like, don't be a ghost and view it and then leave. It really bugs me and gets to my mind. Reviews, good reviews, make my day and make me happy that my work is appreciated. I feel like my smuts are more appreciated than these stories.

Please, if you like/dislike this story, don't be a ghost.