Silence followed Lupa's request. Percy knew immediately that he would lead the quest. He was annoyed at how this monster had come from nowhere, grabbed one of the only people who actually accepted him at the camp, destroyed his cabin, and caused so much damage. There was no way that Percy would stand for that.

"Of course I will Lupa," Percy answered. His statement was met with cheering and hissing. Percy didn't need to know which cabin was not supporting him. The Mars' cabin was furious.

"Why does he get a quest?" Jack shouted, "he hasn't even been here a week."

"Because I deem it necessary," Lupa growled. "The attack tonight has clearly been against the Son of the Sea God. He is no longer safe here, nor shall we be safe if he continues to reside with us. I do not want you endangering my students." The last sentence was direct to Percy, who nodded meekly at the fierce wolf. "So once again I will ask you Perseus Jackson; do you accept the quest you have been offered?"

"I do," Percy resolutely announced. There was no cheering, no sound at all. This quest was not a happy one; but which ones ever are?

Lupa nodded. Percy thought that he saw a gleam of approval in her eye, but it vanished so quickly that he wasn't sure it was ever there.

"You shall journey to the Oracle where upon, if by the gods, you shall be given a quest, you shall return to this clearing in which you will then reveal what the Oracle has proclaimed," Lupa ordered him gravely. Percy could feel the tension in the air. He went to walk towards the Oracle, but he realized he did not know where exactly where she was located. And the mood was too tense to ask such a seemingly stupid question.

There was a pregnant pause while Percy decided what he should do. Lupa seemed to notice his hesitation. With a flick of her tail and a nod of her head a flame danced in the air.

"The flame will lead you on your journey to the Oracle," Lupa explained. "You are dismissed Perseus Jackson."

Percy nodded, resisted the urge to bow because of Lupa's extremely formal tone, and began to follow the flame.

The entire camp was silent. Percy avoided looking into people's eyes as he passed them. The flame flickered and danced in front of him. He followed it, and the students parted before it; their solemn eyes following his every move. It was quite unnerving.

The walk seemed endless. Percy dredged up from somewhere in his memory someone telling him to come back and explain the quest if his was still sane or something like that. He was feeling very cheerful. But he knew he had to do it. Cam didn't deserve to get hurt, like so many others he knew did. The one person very vivid in his mind was a small dark-haired boy. The one who reminded him of Lilly. He got hurt because of him. Percy just didn't know how. And Percy's firm resolve to save Cam and keep him from harm propelled him to where the Oracle lived.

Only thinking about it now, Percy wondered what the Oracle looked like. He had two images in his mind. The first was of a crazy red-head, while the other was a creepy mummy who dressed like a hippie. Was this Roman Oracle a mummy as well? Percy reverently hoped that it wasn't.

The flame led him past the Main House to the Oracle's cabin. I looked exactly the same as the other cabins, but somehow seemed more mysterious. Percy walked up the cabin steps and knocked on the door. The flame went out.

"Enter Perseus Jackson."

[][][][][][][][][]

This cannot be happening. This cannot be happening. This cannot be happening. This cannot be happening. Lilith repeated these words to herself over and over, wanting to believe that if she said them enough times that everything would go back to normal. There would be no smoking cabins, no crying girls, and no stoic boys. No grave Lupa.

Percy had just left, following the flame Lupa had conjured, a resolute look in his eye.

The she-wolf was regarding all of her students with a mother's eye. She wasn't open about it, but she truly cared for each other the demigods that passed through her school. Currently, she was going over them with a mother's careful eye; trying to see if any of them were hurt.

The problem was they demigods were hurt; just not physically. Sure they were beat up and bruised from capture the flag, but that wasn't the pain they were feeling. Everyone's pain was emotional. One of their classmates was gone. Taken. Kidnapped. And by a storm spirit no less!

Lilly sighed. Everything was a mess. Only a few minutes ago she had watched Pat and Ailish triumphantly cross the border and win the game. Now she was standing next to Reyna; the girl had silent tears running down her cheek. And the normally orderly Roman Legion School was in shambles. No one knew how to aptly respond to the chaos that had just occurred.

She needed to do something. She needed to fix this. But she knew she couldn't. It was out of her hands; only Percy's quest could help the school now.

Lilly leaned against a tree and looked around her. Clumps of girls stood together, nervous and sobbing slightly. Some of them sat on the floor, leaning against one another as tears trickled down their faces. The boys sat in quiet and glum groups, often looking up to the sky and then shaking their heads in disbelief.

Hannah was comforting a younger girl, allowing the child to sob into her shirt. She patted her back and whispered encouraging words. The Head of Minerva Cabin, Bridget, was trying to reassure her younger siblings as well. Reyna and Hazel were sitting with Kody and wiping their eyes.

Lilly's gaze fell upon the Mercury Cabin. All of the children of Mercury were together in a group, some sitting, some stand, all of them crying. Pat was comforting Ailish, while Gwen was trying to console Bobby. Brian was the most heart-wrenching to look at. He sat on the ground, his knees up and his head between his hands. He was visibly crying, something he never did. Lilly's heart ached. She knew why he was upset; Cam, besides being his younger brother, was extremely special to Brian. It was, after all, Brian who had found Cam when the boy was five or so. After Brian, at age thirteen, had saved the young child from an Empusa who was going to kill him. Cam had followed him around ever since. Even with the age difference, the two were practically inseparable. Brian would be beating himself up over losing Cam.

Lilly sighed. She would definitely not be the best person to talk, but she could not just stand there and watch Brian blame himself. Steeling her nerves, she gathered her courage and walked over to Brian. She quietly sat down next to him and awkwardly placed her hand on his back. He barely flinched at her touch. Slightly reassured, Lilly rubbed his back, hoping to clam him. She honestly had no idea what she was doing; she had never comforted anyone before, nor had she ever felt to need to. But Gwen was always comforting people, and she usually rubbed their back or arm or shoulder or something to help them calm down. Lilly thought so anyway.

Whatever she was doing seemed to help a little. Brian stopped sobbing uncontrollably and spoke. Lilly had to strain her ears to make out exactly what he was saying though, because his head still rested in his hands.

"—it's all my fault," he whispered. "My fault." He whispered it again and again, as if that would somehow bring Cam back.

"No, it's not," Lilly reassured him. She kept whispering encouraging things and trying to convey that it wasn't his fault that Cam was gone. After a long awhile, Brian finally lifted his head out of his hands. As he looked at her, he seemed slightly taken aback.

"Lilly?" he huskily asked, uncertain.

"Yeah," she replied quietly back, "it's me."

Brian smiled. "Thanks."

[][][][][][][][][]

Hearing the call command to enter, Percy pushed open the door and stepped over the threshold into the Oracle's home. He wasn't sure what he was expecting, but this definitely wasn't it. Instead of a mummy or a teenage girl, a seven year old girl stood in front of him. She walked over to a cushioned stool and motioned for him to sit in the chair across from her. Percy obliged.

Sitting in the chair and looking into the girl's eyes, Percy was unnerved. The eyes of this young child looked worn and weary. To wise for such a young face, the brown-hair girl's deep brown eyes felt as if they were searching deep into his soul.

"My name is Delia and I am the most sacred and trusted Oracle of the god Phoebus Apollo, ruler of the Sun, god of music, poetry, and prophecy. Speak seeker, and ask," the girl announced. Even her voice did not sound like a seven year old was speaking.

Clearing his throat, Percy spoke, strongly resisting the urge to ask about his destiny. "What is my quest?"

"Retreat to the East to the waters with no salt,

the greatest of them all will reveal a hidden vault.

An entrance to seek the one you will find,

a hidden friend to help you out of a bind.

Opposed by she who despises you,

return guiding the lost one with you."

A pause followed her words while Percy tried to digest all that had been said. Delia closed her eyes and reopened them.

"I believe you should head back now Perseus Jackson," she advised. "Lupa and the others await news."

Percy nodded, murmured a thanks, and departed the cabin. Time to deliver the news and the prophecy.

Sorry for the wait, thanks for everything!

Once again, prophecy all me; let me know what you think!

Please review! Thanks all! :)