More exposition, more character building. Don't worry, there will be more action in the next chapter.

One of my objectives of this fic is to flesh out side characters and answer questions I had after reading the Percy Jackson books.

Like for example, who were Jason and Reyna's precursors, and what happened to them?

The Wake

Chiron gave me until the campfire that night to prepare for the quest.

The first thing I did was talk to Kayla. I told her all about my quest, my dream and the prophecy, and asked for advice. Kayla was one of the older and more experienced campers, having been part of Apollo's journey to restore the Grove of Dodona and having fought at the Battle at the Tower of Nero.

"The sleeping god? Maybe Kronos is returning?" She said "Regardless, that's likely something you'll find out. Another thing, the Praetor's bane? Maybe there was a Roman quest to the same location?"

"Nothing I've ever heard of," said Austin, another one of my siblings and a senior camper.

"Your rifle should come in handy. That laser Harley put on it is a bit over the top, though" Kayla said.

"Yeah, that dryad he blinded was quite a mouthful. She thought we did it!" Austin Laughed.

"Maybe that's the point?" I suggested "What if I need to blind someone?"

"Point taken." Kayla said. "You mentioned your dream centered on two men. You might have to fight mortals." Kayla holds up a M14 magazine, loaded with conventional ammunition. "I hope you won't need to use this." She drops it in my bag.

"Make sure to pack plenty of Ambrosia and nectar" Austin said

"I know," I said. Kayla and Austin were essentially the parents of the Apollo cabin. They were a little overprotective of us.

"Don't forget water. You don't want to be dehydrated" Kayla said, dropping a bottle of water into my bag"

"You did well at capture the flag last night. You got this!" Austin said. "Come back to us in one piece, got it?."

"I will," I said. I wasn't really sure, though. I stood up, walking towards the door.

"One last thing, Camden," Kayla said, "If you want any of us to accompany you, we will be happy to." She hands me a piece of paper with a phone number written on it. "Call that number and we will sweep in with our chariot, arrows blazing"

"We have your back, always," Austin said.

Harley was waiting outside.
"You'regoingonaquest?" He said very quickly, obviously excited.

"Yes," I told him. "had a bit too much coffee this morning?"

"Nope!" he said "This is all natural! Anyways, I'm coming, right?"

"Are you sure you want to come? It's gonna be really dangerous. I have no idea-

"I LIVE for danger!" He said that a little too loud, and some other campers looked our way. Then they continued on with their lives, as this was normal Harley behavior.

"Fair enough. You can come." I was going to get him to come anyway. Anyone who can improvise an explosive out of a lightbulb is someone you want to bring on a quest.

"Hell yeah! I've been waiting for this! I got this stash of goodies saved up for if I ever went on a quest!" He runs back to his cabin.

As for the third person, I wasn't quite sure. There was always Kayla or Austin, but I kind of wanted someone with a more unique set of skills. Maybe someone from the Hermes cabin? They're good runners, relatively good duelists, and general jacks of all trades. Or, maybe somebody from the Ares cabin? I thought back to the last game of capture the flag, where an Ares kid had sent one of my siblings, Cara, to the clinic after putting a Javelin through her chest. One of his siblings had also thrown my rifle into the lake. Nope, too bloodthirsty, too much testosterone. I was nervous, I had no idea what I was going to face. I needed a well balanced team, but I didn't know many people who I could trust.

Austin Elected to sit right next to me.

"Do you have your third?" He whispered to me.

"Not yet" I whispered back

"Try the Athena cabin"

"I don't know anyone from the Athena cabin"

Suddenly I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned around to see one of the Nike campers, Vittoria. Like the rest of the Nike cabin, she had dark hair and shining golden eyes. The Nike campers were..annoying, to say the least. They were extremely competitive, had almost as much testosterone as the Ares cabin, and were some of the most physically fit campers. Vittoria was the daughter of some fencing champion from Italy. Her primary weapon was a rapier, and she was one of the best duelists in camp since the likes of Percy Jackson or Luke Castellan.

I don't think she liked me much, which might've had something to do with the nasty bruise I left on her chest from a rubber bullet the day prior at capture the flag.

"I heard about a quest. I want in." She said, crossing her arms. Her expression looked slightly crazy, like she was going to disembowel me if I said no.

"What quest?" Austin said.

"You're a bad liar, Austin" She looked at me. "You're leading it. Neither you nor Harley are particularly good duelists. Or fighters in general."

I felt anger swelling in my chest. I don't know what this girl was getting at. She thought insulting me was going to get her on my quest?
"I'd like to remind you of the bruise on your chest fro-"

"Can you do that without a rifle?" She said, interrupting me.

"Uh-"
"Didn't think so. You Apollo kids aren't much good without weapons. What happens when they're gone? Or you run out of ammunition? Then what?"

"I have a Bayonet" I said

"And have you trained with a spear?" She asked

"What does that have to do-"

"Exactly my point. A rifle with a bayonet is essentially a spear. You don't even understand that. You have no clue what you are doing."

At that point, I was starting to get extremely angry. I stood up, but then Austin grabbed my arm. "Don't pick a fight. It isn't worth it." He whispered to me.

"Think about it." Vittora said, and she went back to her table.

She had a point. I was good with projectile weapons, music, and poetry. I wasn't exactly experienced with fighting monsters. I had never been on a quest. I thought back to my dream. The man with no eyes and the fish-like man, Abbot. Who were they? What the hell were we going up against?

You know how when you are dreading something coming to pass, time passes far more quickly? That's how the rest of the day was. Campfire time came far sooner than I would have liked.

I had only told a couple people about the quest. However, word has still spread around camp. All eyes were on me as I sat down on a log bench.

"As many of you have heard, there will be a quest, and Apollo camper Camden Winchester will be leading it. Rachel, will you do me a favor and recite the prophecy?

"Alrighty" Rachel said

"Three shall go to the town of perpetual rain

To the house where morality has no reign

Campers bear witness to Praetor's bane

Retrieve the fallen in Virtue's Name

Combined Half-blood and Shield prevail

Wicked efforts of man and Scaled ones fail

And thus humanity obtain reprise

But fail to stop the Sleeping God's rise"

Nervous murmurs broke out throughout the campers. Chiron cleared his throat, and the crowd fell silent. "Camden, tell them about the dream which provoked this."

So I did.

The Athena Counsellor, Malcolm, was the only speak up. "Describe the Fish man, the one called Abbot."

"He was obviously human, but his face looked a little too..deformed. Beady eyes, bald, wide lips. He had these weird marks on his neck, like some sort of scar" I said, recalling my dream.

"A merman?" He asked. I had never seen a merman, but I'm pretty sure Abbot wasn't one.

"I don't think so. He was human."

Malcolm furrowed his brow. "I can't recall anything like that. It might not be Greek at all. Also, Chiron, did Camp Jupiter ever send a quest to Massachusetts?"

"Not that I know of. Anything in the region would've been one of our quests" Chiron scratched his chin. "Roman quests rarely went past the Appalachians."

More nervous murmurs went through the campers. I felt it myself. Was this another threat like Kronos, or Gaea? Lily Mora from the Demeter Cabin spoke up, her voice quivering slightly. "Who is the sleeping god? Is it Gaea?"

"I doubt it. It takes many years for the essence of a god to reform after being scattered as Gaea's was. As of now, we cannot be sure. One of the objectives of this quest is to ascertain who this god is." Chiron looks toward me, and I give him a nervous nod.

One of the Ares campers pipes up, the same one who threw my rifle in the lake. "Shouldn't we send someone a little more experienced?"

I was outraged. Yes, I was afraid. However, this was my quest, and I wasn't about to let this cockbite take it from me. I stood up, ready to give him a piece of my mind, but Vittora, the Nike camper from dinner, beat me to the punch.

"Exactly. I will come on the quest. I will ensure that Camden and his second camper succeed."

She looked directly at me, silently daring me to challenge her. I felt angry, but at the same time, she was a damn good fighter. I figured she might be a good person to have on board. Also, she was kinda scary. I decided not to challenge her.

"Alright. But I will choose the third camper." I said. "Harley, I want you to join me."

Harley beamed, standing up with pride. "I honorably accept!"

"So it is decided." Chiron said. "Pack your bags and prepare yourself, campers. You will depart tomorrow morning. We will arrange transportation."

When I got back to the Apollo cabin, I was barraged with dozens of questions at once from my siblings.

"Settle down, settle down!" Kayla said, standing up on a chair. The room fell silent. "I know you all have questions for Camden, but what's more important is that he gets a good night's sleep for tomorrow."

"Do him a favor and don't disturb him." Austin added.

I figured it didn't make much of a difference. I doubted I would be able to get much sleep anyways. I was far too nervous. I would've preferred just to start the quest then and there.

I laid in my bed, staring at the ceiling. I soon lost track of time. Eventually, I stood up and walked outside. I looked at the stars, thinking about what I was going to face. What did the prophecy mean? Who was the sleeping god? Who was this strange group? Why me?

I heard a voice from behind me. "Can't sleep?" I turned around to see Vittora. She had been sweating, and her rapier was attached to her belt.

"Training?" I asked.

"Yes. We need to be as ready as possible for tomorrow. Fill me in, everything you know." She demanded.

"I said everything I knew at the campfire."

"Damn it. So we're virtually blind? You need to sleep. Maybe you'll get more dreams."

"That's not exactly encouraging. That dream wasn't exactly pleasant!" I was starting to get frustrated.

"It could provide valuable intel."
She had a point. I sighed, and started walking back to my cabin.

"One last thing." She said, "I apologize for my tone at Dinner. I was rude."

I gave her a sideways look. "You think? Condescending, maybe?"

Her expression hardened. I walked back into the Apollo cabin, back to my bed.

I managed to fall asleep, eventually. Unfortunately for me, Vittora was right. My Dream began in a well-decorated office, lit by candlelight. The wallpaper was the same as the map room from my first vision, so I figured it was the same place. The walls were covered in paintings of men who looked sort of like Abbot, with the same weird features. Sitting at the desk was Black Eyes from my first dream. Standing across from him was a woman with her back turned to me.

"Are you certain they will come, Father?" The woman asked.

"Of course. Their oracle has issued a prophecy. They are to arrive tomorrow."

"Can you confirm that they are the same group? You do remember-"

"Do not fear, my child. We are prepared. Remember, we all have a role to play in His vision."

"What does Father Dagon want with them anyway? I think they're-"

Black Eyes notices me. "Silence, my Daughter. We have visitors."

The woman turns around to look at me. Her eyes looked relatively normal, if not a little large. She had dark, shoulder-length hair and was wearing a black trench coat.

The Father claps. "Welcome Back, Demigod!" He says, flashing the same creepy smile. "I assume you will be joining us soon. My beautiful daughter, Asenath, will meet you upon arrival. She will serve as your guide."

Asenath (the fuck kind of name is Asenath?) curtsies.

"You must by now understand that this is no normal dream. I am sure you are quite confused. I will allow you to ask one question before…returning you."

I probably should've thought of a smart question, like "Who the hell are you?" or "What do you want with us?". Instead, I blurted out "What the hell is wrong with your eyes?"

"A fair question. I'm sure you know I am no mere man. My eyes are indicative of the improvements my benefactors have provided me."

That didn't exactly answer my question. Before I could say any more, the father stood up from his chair. "Enough of that! I anticipate meeting you in person with great excitement!"

Once again, I woke up in a pool of sweat.