Okay, guys, I suck. I'm sorry! And this chapter is PATHETICALLY SHORT, but I was gonna do a good one but was forcibly roped into 'family night' and stayed up late so I could at least get SOMETHING uploaded.

And, uh, I use some italian here. But it may not be accurate cuz I just used a translator app on my phone, and some letters are supposed to have an accent thingy or whatever and I didn't feel like putting in the effort to get those. So, if for some reason, italians are reading this, I am not claiming that my italian is correct.

Awesome. We cleared that out of the way.

I'll update GOOD tomorrow! I swear! Sorry guys! I suck!

Disclaimer:...

You guys should listen to Evanescence. She kicks ass. Such a pretty voice. It's hauntingly smooth, but yet it's a HARD ROCK band, but if you're not into hard rock, look up they're songs 'My Immortal' 'Lost in Paradise' and 'Hello'. Those are the slower songs by them I own, and they are beautiful! They're amazing, guys!

Now, I am going to bed, y'all! Peace!

READ ON!

Camp Jupiter? My first thought: Gargantuan. My second: Barren.

The volunteer (read: victim) group was Alexa, Zeke, Zack, a couple of Athena kids, and myself. The Roman Camp was vast and grand, but desolate, deserted.

"Not what I pictured." Zeke muttered.

I resisted the urge to punch him. "Yeah? Our Camp would look like shit too if we were at war, you judgemental prick."

He glared. "Everyone was thinking it."

I smiled coldly. "And you were the only one idiotic and callous enough to say it."

"Hush." Alexa snapped. "Bicker like school children later, but right now, we need to find someone. Anyone, a this gods forsaken camp."

"If gods have forsaken us, we're all damned, I guess, aren't we?" A voice said to our left. We turned.

He was a scruffy kid, dishevelled, dirty blond hair with a tan complexion and toned muscles. Obviously a fighter, obviously a demigod. "Who the Pluto are you?"

Alexa opened her mouth, but no words came out.

I answered for her. "Camp Half-Blood."

He looked us up and down. "The graecus, huh?" He rolled his eyes. "Lode agli dei, perche siamo salvati." Praise to the gods, for we are saved. That's what he said. Much sarcasm intended.

"Se si lodando gli dei ti hanna gia perso," I replied in perfect latin. If you are praising the gods than you have already lost. "Questa battaglia deve essere vinta da guerrieri, da combattenti, non gli del. Hanno abbandonato tutti noi. Condannato noi, e se stessi." This battle shall be won by warriors, by fighters, not the gods. They have forsaken us all. Condemned us, and themselves as well.

My fellow campers shifted uneasily. The Roman's mouth quirked in a smile. "Allora che motivo abbiamo di comattere?" Then what reason have we to fight?

"Questo e il nostro mondo pure. Gli errori del non ci costera la nostra esistenza." This world is ours as well. The gods errors will not cost us our existence.

"E la loro esistenza?" And their existence.

I shrugged. "Un pacchetto purtroppo." A package deal unfortunately.

He laughed. "O si e molto coraggioso o molto stupido." You are either very brave or very stupid.

I smiled. "Andiamo con coraggio." Let us go with brave.

He laughed again. "You speak Italian, graecus."

"As do you, romano." The rest of my camp was staring at me in awe, but ignored them. For once, I felt in control of the situation.

"Where did you learn? Or rather, how?"

"My father taught me, as did my mother."

"Oh?" I had peaked his interest. "And who would they be?"

I held my head a little higher. "Percy Jackson and Annabeth Chase."

He nodded, as if this made sense. "Ah. Now I understand."

"Who are you?"

He narrowed his eyes. It didn't slip my mind that 'graecus' was also used to mean 'outsider' or 'enemy'. "Aaron Clark, call me Clark. Son of Mars."

"Mars. The war god. Shouldn't you be fighting in the war?"

He rolled his eyes. "That's what I said, but some had to stay back to hold the fort, or whatever. Why're you guys here?"

"We heard you're losing." I stated bluntly.

Alexa grabbed my arm, "Lena!" She hissed.

Clark held up a hand to stop her. "No, she's right. We're getting our asses handed to us on a platter and this is a war we can't afford to lose. You're hunter friends showed up the other day. Helped a little. Guess you could say we're being killed at a slower pace. Not sure if that's better, but, hey," he shrugged, as if to say 'what can you do?'

"We got a couple hundred good fighters here."

"Won't matter." Clark said harshly. "Only one can kill it and no one has succeeded yet, obviously."

"I know." I told him, as I took a step forward. "I'm the one that can kill it. I know I am." This time it was Zack who grabbed my wrist and hissed my name.

Clark narrowed his eyes again. "Why should I trust you?"

I stared him in the eyes. They were dark brown and desperate. He wanted this camp to be saved, but he didn't want to get his hopes up. I related.

"Quale opzione ti rimane?"

What option do you have left?

He didn't respond. I continued. "You can not trust me, and you can die, or you can trust me and probably die, but have a sliver of a chance at surviving. Your choice, dude."

He nodded, slowly, reluctantly. "You better be serious, graecus."

"Deadly." I reassured, though perhaps choose bad wording because my response caused him to flinch.

"That sounds about right," he muttered, then shook his head to snap himself out of whatever. "Come on. We can give you a map of the battle ground, and give you a better picture of what you're facing. Though, right now, I can tell you it's your own personal hell twisted into a weapon against you. It's not fun stuff."

"I gathered." I told him curtly.

Again, he nodded as if he understood. "Shame you had to visit camp now. When we're not at war, it's a beautiful thing." This time, he looked me in the eyes. "It's worth saving, you know. It really is."

"I believe you. I believe, in some twisted way, everything about the western civilization is worth saving."