A/N
This story is for whovian-halfbloods, who owns Elspeth Isis. I hope I did a good job for you! Elspeth was a little tricky to write about.
I might as well put a little warning: this has character injuries, and kind of a dark theme. Anyone over 10 can read it with no problem:)
Also, this is the first one I wrote in first person. Tell me what you think!
I hope you enjoy!
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I can't believe I'm stuck with these idiots, I thought for the hundredth time today. I stared moodily around the Hermes cabin as the campers inside ran around loudly, stealing each other's things, setting up traps, and generally annoying everyone possible.
You could probably assume that I would feel at home in the chaos, being a daughter of Mania, the goddess of madness. After a year at camp and living with the children of Hermes, I should feel accustomed to it, but I don't.
I feel restless.
I was already making quiet mischief around the cabin without the other demigods knowing; making Jennifer think that McKayla had stolen her hairbrush, making Jeffery think that he had already changed into his daily outfit even though he was wearing pajamas, and causing little distractions while I stole small necessary items, like toothpaste and left shoes.
Being a child of Mania, I have learned to use my special gifts. I can get inside people's minds, and make them see or hear things that aren't really there. Illusions are a specialty of mine. Think you can trust your senses? Think again. I usually get in trouble when I create big illusions, so most of the time I have to settle for making little mischief.
But little mischief gets boring very quickly. I need chaos! Not stupid chaos, like Travis and Connor Stoll running around the cabin spraying silly string, chaos like...
I smiled very slowly, as the wonderful idea started to formulate in my mind. I immediately stopped all the other illusions I was maintaining; Jennifer, McKayla, and Jeffery snapped back to normal.
I zeroed in on the Stoll brothers and had to stifle a giggle. They had no idea what was coming...
"Hey, Travis, Connor!" I yelled at them, and they turned to face me. We had never really gotten along, heck, I've never really gotten along with anyone, but they answered me cheerfully.
"S'up, kid?" Travis asked. My lips pursed in annoyance. Being 13 did not make me a kid. Whatever.
I quickly wiped the frown off my face and changed it into a sweet smile.
"D'you guys wanna take a walk with me?" I asked, using my most innocent voice.
"Uh, not really..." Connor started to answer, then trailed off. His eyes glazed over as he stared into my amethyst eyes. He slowly changed his tone, as he said, "What was I saying? Of course we'll come, if that's what you want."
"Very much so," I nodded, satisfied. "Come with me."
I led the mystified boys out of the cabin and started walking briskly in the cool air.
"Where are we going?" one of the guys asked. I didn't bother to check who, since I didn't really care, but I answered them anyway.
"The arena."
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When we reached the arena, for some reason I was getting very tired. I looked at the Stoll brothers, who both had blank expressions on their faces, and I realized why. It's harder to create illusions on multiple people, and this was going to be a really big illusion. I decided that I only needed one of them to be under my influence, and dropped my power from Travis.
He blinked a few times then looked around. "How did I get here?"
I walked to the weapons shed, but found it locked. No problem for me, I had learned a few tricks from the Hermes kids, and being a daughter of Chaos helped too. I picked the padlock in 3 seconds flat, and the shed fell open. I selected two very sharp swords, and went back to the Stolls.
"One for you and one for you," I said, placing a weapon in each brothers' hand.
Travis gave me a confused look. "What're these for?"
"Connor knows, don't you Connor?" I said, turning to the younger Stoll. I quickly conjured up some intense false memories, which I planted in his mind: Last summer, during the Titan war, Travis shaking Connor's shoulders trying to convince him to change sides; Then Travis standing beside Kronos on the Williamsburg bridge; Travis attempting to stab Percy in the back but hitting Annabeth instead; Travis viciously sword-fighting other campers; and just an hour ago, Travis stumbling back into camp, begging forgiveness.
Of course, none of that is true. I just want them to fight. Oh, this was going to be fun- brother against brother; one a loyal camper, the other a "traitor."
Connor's eyes widened as he looked at his bewildered brother. "H-how could you?" he demanded, at which Travis took a step back.
"Huh?" The older Stoll asked, getting a little nervous at his little brother's tone.
"How could you betray us?!" Connor shouted now, his grip tightening on the hilt of his sword.
I smiled and took a step back, not wanting to be in the way when Connor finally lashed out. I slowly fed him some more fake memories and images: now, in Connor's mind, Travis sported a scythe tattoo on his forearm- the symbol of Kronos. He also had a scar on his right cheek, and Connor "remembered" that it had been given to him by one of his siblings, before they were struck down by Travis.
I could tell that Connor was outraged. Any moment now, the real entertainment would begin...
"I hate you!" Connor shouted, and stabbed at his brother with his sword.
Travis barely blocked the blow in time, and he looked shocked. "Con, what's gotten into you? It's me, Travis!"
"I know who you are, traitor!" Connor yelled again, taking a swipe at Travis. This time, whether from shock or from Travis not being as skilled a swordsman as his brother, Connor landed a small blow.
His sword cut Travis just above his right hand, which caused the older Stoll to cry out and jump away.
"Connor!" Travis yelled, now angry. Perfect. "What the heck do you think you're doing?"
"I could ask you the same question!" Connor spat back. "Why are you even here? Who said you were allowed back here?"
Travis's voice softened a little. "Please, bro, I don't know what you're talking about! What's the matter with you?"
Connor didn't answer. Instead, he lunged forward, stabbing at his brother's chest. Travis desperately kept parrying and dodging, but had yet to go on the offensive.
I started to get a little annoyed with Travis. Why won't he fight back? Come on! Maybe if Connor attacked him a little more...
I intensified Connor's illusions. Now, Travis's form flickered in and out, so sometimes it looked like him and sometimes it looked like a monster. Not any monster in particular, I was feeling too lazy to conjure up an actual mythological monster. No, it was just a dark, hulking shape, with long claws, red eyes, and sharp teeth.
Connor gasped and fell to his knees, clutching his head. Oops. Maybe I shouldn't have done that. Some people have a high tolerance for getting their brain messed up; others don't. I suppose I might have taken it too far with Connor... Oh well. Nothing I can do now.
Actually, I could just stop screwing with his mind, and he would go back to normal... Nawh.
Travis rushed to his brother's side, looking panicked. "Connor! Con, what's wrong?"
Connor looked up at his big brother and let out a small whimper, then shook his head and shut his eyes tightly, scrambling away.
"Connor, what's the matter? Bro, you're really scaring me!" Travis pleaded.
I delved into the madness of Connor's mind once again. It was like walking down a hallway in a funhouse, but it was full of disjointed memories; some fuzzy, some clear, all of them involving Travis. His mind had morphed the random monster I had made into something truly terrifying, and even I winced at his image. I couldn't begin to describe it, but let me try. Do you remember that one really scary dream you had as a little kid? The nightmare that you can barely remember, you just know it was dark, scary, and you were alone, but maybe you can remember the creature that was there. It had glowing red eyes, didn't it?
Anyway, that fearsome monster in Connor's mind was only part of his problem. He was torn between wanting to go back to normal and pull a prank on someone, and wanting to kill his brother- no, the traitor!
I withdrew from his mind, extremely impressed with myself. I haven't made such a good illusion in a long time, the last one I can remember... Well, it didn't end well. I didn't mean for my granddad to get hurt, but the next thing I knew, I was at his funeral.
Oh well.
Don't get me wrong, I loved my granddad. But it was kind of a win-win for me, because I got to leave Scotland and come to Camp Half-Blood, which I've always wanted to do. Although, his death might have had something to do with the fact that my mother is also the goddess of death. Wow, that just occurred to me. Cool.
By now, you probably think I'm heartless, don't you? I'm not heartless, I just think that when earth gets too calm and orderly, someone needs to come along and mess things up, big time. I'm not evil, I'm misunderstood.
But isn't that what they all say?
Maybe I am crazy.
Except I'm not.
I am the daughter of insanity itself.
I realized I was spacing out, so I turned my attention back to the fight. Travis is still trying to get close to Connor, and Connor is looking very frustrated. He's breathing heavily and trying to sort out fact from fiction in his own mind. His normally green eyes have a hint of amethyst in them- that's the mark of Mania showing through, and his hair is shimmering and wavering like mine- also the mark of Mania.
"Connor, calm down," Travis said soothingly. He had dropped his sword a few feet away, but Connor was still clinging to his.
Connor's eyes opened wide as his eyes couldn't decide if they were seeing a threatening monster or his best friend. His survival instincts kicked on though, and he reached up and punched Travis square on the jaw.
Connor stood up quickly like a cornered animal, and ran towards Travis, tackling him around his waist. Travis looked terrified as he pushed his brother off of him. He ran over to grab his sword again, scraping his knees as he ducked under Connor's sword.
This is crazy. Why am I doing this? I think to myself, my conscience poking out for a breath of fresh air. Oh yeah, because this is crazy, I grinned. I shoved my conscience back into it's dark hole.
For the next several minutes, Connor attacked his brother viciously, and even though Travis was trying to block and parry, he was definitely getting tired, and his tiredness was translating into more and more injuries for him.
His shirt and jeans had numerous small cuts and slashes, and he was bleeding from each one. He didn't seem to notice though, as his main focus was trying to get Connor to see reason.
"No, Connor, please, put the sword down!" Travis begged again, but by now Connor couldn't hear him. He could barely even see him, because now what he saw was mainly the monster, which flickered into a fuzzy Travis every now and then.
They were in a standoff position now, the brothers locking eyes, circling each other.
Then, Travis did the dumbest thing imaginable, and I face-palmed myself for him.
"Connor, stop. I'm not going to hurt you." Travis then dropped his sword and held his hands in the air, and took a step forward.
You can only imagine what Connor saw. He saw the monster throw down a basilisk, then rear up on its hind legs and raise its claws to rake through him. Connor did what any sensible demigod would do in that situation.
He stabbed the monster in the stomach.
Travis gasped sharply as Connor yanked the sword out of his abdomen. For a split second, Connor saw his injured brother fall to the ground, but the image was soon replaced with one of a partially slain monster.
Travis was clutching his stomach, gasping for breath, as Connor stood over him, still gripping his sword tightly.
"C-c-Connor, n-no," Travis managed to stammer, as his brother slowly raised his sword.
Now, again, don't get me wrong. It's not like I hate Travis or Connor. I admit, I should have done something about now. I also admit that letting Travis get stabbed may have been going too far. But at that time, I was so caught up in the moment that I just didn't think to move.
Luckily, someone else did.
An arrow came flying from the door of the arena, and it hit Connor's sword blade with such force, it knocked it halfway across the room.
I whipped my head around to see Chiron, holding a bow, and with him were a few Apollo campers, all looking shocked at the scene. Chiron seemed to realize what was happening as soon as he saw Connor's unusually psychedelic curly orange hair and green eyes.
He looked at me, outraged.
"Elspeth Isis, stop your trickery this instant!" he ordered in a powerful voice.
Yes, I was scared of Chiron, so of course I immediately lifted the illusion from Connor, though I was sad to do so. It was the best one I've ever conjured. Hmph. I guess now I can study it's aftereffects.
I watched Connor closely, as the Apollo demigods ran to help Travis. Connor blinked a few times, then slowly looked around the room. I couldn't tell whether or not he remembered what just happened until he looked at Travis, still bleeding, on the ground, then looked at his bloodstained blade.
He gasped and dropped his sword as if he had been burned, then staggered backwards until he slammed into the wall. He slid down the wall, clutching his head, shaking, and whimpering words that I couldn't make out. Interesting. I think he might be hyperventilating.
Then he starts sobbing.
I take in a shallow, sharp breath, because for some reason, Connor's first sob pierced me like his sword.
Remember that analogy I gave you about the nightmare you had as a kid? Well, here's another one like it.
Have you ever heard a child cry because they lost their favorite stuffed animal? It's one of the saddest sounds in the world- the kid feels alone without their Teddy bear, maybe they feel guilty because they left poor Teddy all alone somewhere they shouldn't have, and the kid is most of all sad, because they miss that toy like there's no tomorrow.
It sounds broken.
Connor sounds broken.
Now I'm in shock. I broke my plaything. I accidentally untwisted the string from around the yo-yo's center, and when I let it fly from my hand the wooden part spiraled into the ground and snapped in half.
I'm still analyzing Connor, because it's like watching a train wreck- you just can't peel your eyes away. I've lifted my illusions, but his own are taking over. I can just see it- he's confused and terrified and overwhelmed, and he's rifling through every single one of his memories, trying to sort out the lies from the truths.
This is the closest to guilty I have ever felt in my entire life. I wish I didn't always have to need things to be messy, why can't I just let the universe keep it's room clean from time to time? What's wrong with me?
I snap back to reality as I hear both Stoll brothers gasping for air. I shut my eyes as tightly as I can and pray to all the gods I know that the boys will be alright. Please...
I open my eyes again and see the ragged rivers flowing down Connor's cheeks, and hear him choking on his sobs. He's shaking violently, and struggling to breathe.
I can't do this. I'm done. I've learned my lesson.
I think Chiron can sense this as he approaches me, maybe some of the shock and horror even shows on my face.
"Elspeth," he states, and my name is it's own sentence. I don't have the energy to come back with a sarcastic remark. I just nod, feeling a lump in my throat, and I follow Chiron as he leads me towards the door. We're probably going to the Big House for a talk.
I pass Travis first, and I force myself to look at him. I feel so sick. There's a pool of blood forming around him, and he's not moving. He's ghostly pale, and the four Apollo children that are supposed to be good at healing look overwhelmed.
We pass Connor next, who is still hyperventilating, shaking, and sobbing. As they try and get him to lie down, he curls into a tight ball. I hear a demigod say something about him going into shock.
I'm going to have to make this right somehow.
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I was right. I did get a lecture from Chiron, but I won't bore you with the details. Basically, he said no more toying with people. It's dangerous, you hurt people, blah blah blah. I promised I wouldn't, and I even crossed my heart to let him know I was sincere. Pshh.
A week has passed since "the incident," and this morning I heard that Travis is going to be okay, and he's getting out of the hospital ward. So hey, no harm no foul- right?
Apparently wrong. The Hermes kids hate me so much now that I have to stay with Nico in the Hades cabin until they build me my own. He's no fun to mess with- my illusions don't affect him for some reason.
Therefore, I spend the next week looking for another target. I would have already struck my target, but I kept remembering one thing.
Connor.
He's still in the medical ward, even though Travis got out yesterday. He's still broken. I hear Apollo himself is going to come visit us later today to try and fix him. Rumor has it, if Apollo can't heal him, then Hermes is going to have to come down. Maybe to say goodbye?
I guess I do feel a little bad about that.
But who am I kidding? I can't be good forever. I see Percy and his sister Elizabeth on one side of the lake, splashing around. I suddenly got another very good idea.
I start to build up my new illusion, but then I stop when I sense someone staring at me.
Slowly, I turned around to see Chiron looking at me very sternly several yards away. I give him a sweet grin, and make a big show of crossing my heart, symbolizing the promise I made to him about being good.
Of course, I also crossed my fingers.
I turned back to the Poseidon siblings and smirked.
Did he honestly think I meant it when I said I'd stop screwing things up?
Probably not, since he's Chiron.
Here's the lesson I wanna teach you, kiddies: don't make promises you have no intention of keeping, and if you do, make sure you keep your fingers crossed so you don't get in trouble.
Of course, you're only in trouble if you get caught...
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But wait a minute. I feel another pair of eyes staring at me. My focus broke, and I turned again to face the interruption.
My breath caught in my throat.
Travis.
He's sitting on the top of a hill, not too far away from me. He's looking at me, and I can just tell his eyes are filled with pain.
Something strange happened.
I felt a tear roll gently down my cheek.
Why was he so sad? More importantly, why am I so sad? Actually, even I'm not that naive. He misses his brother. I get it.I GET IT! Okay? Guilt doesn't bode well with me- my fatal flaw is apathy for goodness sakes! And if you need a quick English lesson- "apathy" is total indifference. I can't take this. I cannot.
I can't have fun with him right there. I'm going to take a break from this. No more ruining things for a while.
There's a time and place for everything.
Now is not the time.
Here is not the place.
Some things should not be destroyed.
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A/N
So, how was it? Should I go back to the third person style, or did you like this? And how was the whole theme, did I do the daughter of Mania justice?
Anyway, here's some shameless self-promotion: I'm going to post a very short oneshot about Annabeth soon, so check it out!:)
Also, due to the overwhelming amount of submissions I've received, if your character doesn't have an interesting story to tell, I will either move them back or write a very short story, unless inspiration strikes me! Keep submitting though- if you have an interesting character they will get their story done quicker! I will keep doing ALL submissions as long as they follow the guidelines:)
SUBMIT MORE BOYS!
You have a better chance of getting your story quicker if you write a good Characters to Interact With ad How section, or give them an interesting history. If you don't, you're probably going to get a very short oneshot.
So in conclusion, please REVIEW, follow, or favorite this story or me:)
Thanks for reading!:) This story has gotten over 1,500 views!:O Love you all!:)
Xoxoxo,
EmMarie