The rain fell in torrents as the twelve year old made her way across the muddy land, her boots sloshing and wet. Once in a while, lightning dropped out of the sky like tipped over buckets of liquid electricity. The girl shivered, chilled to the bone by the icy droplets that had penetrated her hunting jacket, running down her skin like fingers of snow. She was too scared and panicked to even will herself to stay dry.
She suspected that it was Khione, trying to punish her for her father's broken oath. This is how it works, the voice of her stepmother spoke in her mind; a memory of old. The child bears the ancestor's curse.
She heard soft footfalls behind her, accompanied by the clanking of metal on metal. Combat boots, she thought, and definitely full body armor.
Her training kicked in, and she began running calculations in her mind, assessing the person's position, and approximate weight and height. From the heavy thudding of footsteps and the looming shadow created by moonlight on the slick ground, she could gather that it was a grown man.
The demigod's breathing quickened, and she considered taking flight, but she knew she could never outrun the man, especially because of the thick aura surrounding him, pulling her twelve year old self in towards himself.
Sucking in her breath through her teeth, she turned to look the man in the eye. And froze.
The raindrops and icy wind seemed warm compared to the chill the man's eyes sent down her spine. They were pitch black, as dark as Nyx, and looking into them; she could see remains of destroyed cities, mutilated bodies, broken hearts and lost dreams. His hair was a faded silver color, peeking out from under his black helmet. His armor was the same color, and from the mist rolling off it in waves, she could tell that it was Stygian Iron.
He grinned down at her. "So, how's it going, little demigod? You should not have run away. Now you will deal with me."
She scrambled back, but slipped in the mud and fell on her back, feeling the air knocked out of her lungs.
The Titan (clearly) laughed and pulled out a silvery blade from its sheath. In his big, baseball glove hands it looked almost dainty, but she knew it must be at least a meter long. She gulped.
"This blade is called Coronal Platinum, little girl, the first and last of its kind." He ran his fingers along the flat of the blade.
She was shivering hard now.
He placed the tip of the sword at her neck. "And while we speak, the little son of Poseidon fights a hopeless battle against the prisoner of Minos…the Minotaur. And when he dies, and he will, Olympus will tear itself apart, the sky and the sea at war. I will cherish its moments of annihilation." He took a long breath. "And you are a wildcard, girl. So I will have to kill you."
"Who-who are you?" she managed.
His laugh was like buildings cracking. "Of course. Do you not recognize me? I am Perses, son of Krios and Eurybia. The titan of destruction himself will destroy you!"
She was crying by now, each breath ragged and uneven. "L-leave me alone!"
He smiled cruelly at her, and dragged the blade lightly across her face. "And you will lose your family, your life and your world."
Her throat closed up in panic.
"This blade is named Kasfluctus…it speaks of an earthquake, your own father's weapon of obliteration. But," he leaned down and sneered at her. "he will soon be gone too."
She screamed. The ground seemed to respond to her emotions, the rain coming down harder, and the earth cracked open under the startled Titan, who dropped his sword. "Wh-what is this?"
"LEAVE ME ALONE!" she screamed, and the earth trembled and fissures spread out from the crack, swallowing Perses up.
The rain turned into a storm, and she was left alone, screaming and crying on the ground, which opened up underneath her…
"NO!" Alex screamed and jerked upright on her bunk bed. One hand was fisted into the bed sheet, the other clutching Shockwave. She was drenched in sweat and tears, and she tasted blood in her mouth from biting the inside of it.
She released the sheet from her grasp and ran her fingers through her long hair. Her breathing was heavy and untimed.
"Hey."
She started and turned towards the side from where the gentle voice had come. Of course, she was in the Poseidon cabin, and she was not alone.
Percy stood next to her bed, looking at her with a worried, small, frown. "Are you okay?"
Alex nodded. "Just…a nightmare."
It was her second night in the cabin. Yesterday, she'd been claimed, but the night had been spent in cold silence between her and Percy. He was definitely irritated at having a half sister.
Today, in the morning, Adonis Lane, son of Eros had arrived at camp. Strange; she had not been informed about this.
Percy nodded, reassured. "Yeah, it's a common thing for us demigods. And for a child of the Big Three…"
His gaze fell upon the pen in her hand. "What's that?"
Alex followed his eyes to Shockwave. "Oh, this? This is…" she racked her brain for an excuse. She wasn't going to tell him all about it. "I got it from my mother."
Percy looked unconvinced. He pulled out a similar-looking pen from his pocket. No; the exact same pen, except it was tinted bronze. "I have this."
Alex stared at it. It was impossible. She'd known that he had a signature sword, but this was too similar to her own. "Can I see?" she asked in a hoarse whisper.
He looked a little surprised, but held it out to her. She uncapped it, like she did with Shockwave. It turned into the exact same Greek blade, except it was bronze. Percy raised an eyebrow. "Cool, huh?"
In answer, Alex held up her own pen and uncapped it, turning it into the platinum version of his own sword.
Percy's eyes widened. "What the-"
"I know." She handed him his blade. "What do you call it?"
"Anaklusmos. Riptide. And you?"
"Shockwave."
"Does it have a Greek name?"
Alex looked at him in the eye, her sea-green eyes meeting his.
"Kasfluctus."
Line Break
The next morning at breakfast, Malcolm noticed with amusement that the Poseidon Half-siblings were actually sitting together, where the previous day they'd sat at opposite ends of the table.
His eyes travelled around, and stopped at Adonis. He was sitting at the Aphrodite table, as an Eros cabin had not been built. Chiron had told him to stay at Aphrodite temporarily, and if he felt extremely uncomfortable, to report to him. In the meantime, he would think about what to do about Adonis's…situation.
Breakfast was a casual affair, about thirty or so campers. The four kids at Aphrodite (Adonis excluded) chatted amongst themselves, giggling about the latest camp gossip. Three Ares kids laughed and fist-bumped each other. At Malcolm's own table, two girls discussed an outspread war map. A lone demigod at Hecate was levitating at her seat. Will, Nico, and the new seventeen-year-old Liam Raven talked quietly at Apollo.
As soon as everyone finished eating, Chiron stomped his hooves against the grounds, bringing the demigods to attention. He cleared his throat.
"Campers! I have important news." Now he had their undivided attention. "Though the communication systems are still mysteriously unequipped, I have received word from Camp Jupiter. Our prophetess, Rachel Dare, will be arriving with information not fit to be shared over messages. She should be arriving…" He checked his watch. "…about now."
There was silence for a few moments. Then, it was disturbed by the unmistakable sound of rotating chopper blades. A helicopter was seen landing somewhere in the woods, and some time later, Rachel, flanked by a blond boy, emerged.
There was some cheering as they came, and Percy got up excitedly. "Marcus!"
The boy nodded at him, but his face was grave. They duo approached the breakfast area and Rachel addressed the demigods. "Hello, everyone. This is Centurion Marcus. And…" she took a deep breath. "I have news."
So do we, Malcolm thought.
Chiron nodded and gestured at them to sit at the stone benches for the camp director and visitors. "Welcome, child. It's a pleasure to have you here, centurion."
Rachel nodded tensely. "As you all know, I had decided to spend time at Camp Jupiter in an attempt to recreate some old prophecies with the aid of Ella, who has somehow memorized the Sibylline Books. And, unfortunately, we recovered something."
There was a confused silence from the demigods, and the Roman Centurion's face had turned stony.
"What is it?" Percy asked in a hushed whisper.
Rachel looked at him, her expression sad.
"We have a prophecy."