Chapter Ten (Don't Shoot the Messenger)

The most cunning con those who aren't wise to their cunning cons.

Percy

I sat patiently on a bench; my eyes closed as I tried my best to zone out the frantic sounds around me.

A shrill screech tore through my concentration, earning my ire as I pinched the bridge of my nose in agitation.

"I take it you aren't too fond of the amusement park, Percy?"

I peeked past my right eyelid, my lone eye enough to identify the dark-haired, splayed with specs of white, God just by his mischievous grin.

"Hermes."

I couldn't see his reaction to my curt reply as my eyes were once again shrouded by the darkness offered by the closure of my eyelids.

I heard the god sigh dramatically as he took a seat at my side.

"It's always amazing to see what the mortals develop for their own amusement."

I felt my face crunch up in a frown.

"Please tell me that pun was unintentional."

His laughter was soothing and soft, a blissful contrast to the heavy grating of the rides and the horrible screaming of the mortals upon them.

"My apologies, I forgot that you lost your sense of humour after the war."

I smirked slightly at his playful jab.

"I've only gained since then, that I can promise you."

I groaned, the sound cutting the god's words short as I sat up, my eyes burning slightly at their re-emergence into the world of light.

"I take it that this trip has much more to do with business than it does with pleasure?"

For the first time since his arrival, I was able to catch a proper glimpse at the wide grin which donned the cunning god's face.

"Ever perceptive these days, are we?"

I grunted a loose affirmation as I used my eyes, now adjusted to the light, to glance at the line of the ride that Chrysilla had just taken Cassandra to.

"I suppose I should cut the pleasantries short then."

I nodded; my eyes continued to strain to find the two girls.

"Yes, please do. If you spend a little less time with me, you may be able to sneak a little more in to meet with your children."

"Hm, so what I heard was indeed true."

The ride to my left clicked into place, a tense wave of anticipation washed over us as the mortals gripped onto their safety harnesses.

"I'm not sure whatever gossip you heard from the mouths of the gods, but I can't imagine why you're stalling for so long."

Hermes chuckled, verbally relenting as he shifted slightly in his seat.

"I need you to go to Michigan to hunt down a particularly crafty Centaur who has it in for me."

I nodded, urging the god on.

"He took a particularly important message that's meant to be seen only by Hades' eyes."

"And what did you do to urge the Centaur to steal from the god of thieves?"

Hermes sighed, passing his hand through his hair.

"I may have slept with his wife a few centuries ago."

The rollercoaster roared downward, its overbearing sound forming an unpleasant mixture with the screams of the mortals on it.

"Seems about right, to be honest."

I turned in time to see a slight frown on his face, smiling at his expense.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"If there wasn't a problem surrounding you gods keeping it in your pants, I'd be pleasantly surprised."

"The more you talk, the more I'm realizing that you're one of those problems."

"And that is just proving my point."

Hermes huffed, his face setting into a deep frown for a few moments.

"You might not know a good joke when you hear it, but your tongue is still as sharp as ever, cousin."

A smile began to stretch his lips as he patted my shoulder gently. We sat in silence for a few moments longer, my eyes returning to their previous task of searching for Chrysilla and Cassandra.

"They should be coming shortly; they just exited their ride."

I hummed softly, a nod accompanying my response.

"I suppose now would be as good a time as ever to go check up on the kids then."

"Ah, Hermes. How long do we have to complete this mission?"

"Mission?" I met his curious gaze with one of my own, "Ah yes, I forgot you had taken up calling quests that."

"Is there a prophecy?"

Hermes smiled mischievously in response.

"I suppose that is a great question." I narrowed my eyes at the god, who simply stood up in response. "No, this is little more than a simple request from a god."

I hummed once again, earning a sigh from Hermes.

"You were so much more energetic when you were younger."

"I was also far more unaware of certain realities."

"True enough."

The god stood silently for another moment, his eyes watching as the rollercoaster once again squeaked to a halt at the top of the incline.

"I'd try to retrieve the scroll before the end of the week. I should warn you that he is highly favoured by many other gods. Their favour saves him from my wrath, but his nature shows me how aggravating mine can be at times."

I nodded.

"Would failing to meet the deadline result in many issues?"

"Possibly a dispute that could potentially lead to an internal war between Zeus and Hades."

"Which could devastate the mortal world, the usual then."

Hermes chuckled.

"Yes, the usual."

The roller coaster began its thunderous descent once more, drawing my attention as the screams refilled my ears.

"Percy!"

I turned to see Cassandra slipping from Chrysilla's hand and sprinting towards me. I glanced towards Hermes, noting the god had vanished before smiling as Cassandra's body collided with mine. I just managed to avoid falling over as the girl jumped off me, bouncing on the spot as she began to retell her experience on the ride.

After a few moments of nodding, despite being unable to keep up with the rapid spewing of excited words, the younger girl uttered a quick farewell before pulling Chrysilla away.

The daughter of Athena turned towards me, her eyes narrowing questioningly at me. My smile widened at her perceptiveness.

I quickly mouthed the words 'new mission', barely seeing her nod before she was lost in the crowds.

I sighed as I was once again left alone with the overbearing sounds of the amusement park. My mind at least had the distraction of wondering what damage Hermes could cause with his children if they ran amok.

The thought put a smile on my face, which was quickly wiped away by the sound of yet another downward trod of the rollercoaster.

The soft sputtering of the fire at the hearth was soothing, its low light shining on the faces who sat around it. The warm glow of the cracking flames matched the exuberant smile that stretched on Cassandra's face as she bounced around in front of me.

"I had so much fun today, Percy!"

I couldn't help the smile which tugged at my lips at the sight of the excited daughter of Tyche.

"I'm glad you enjoyed yourself, Cassie."

"What's that in your hair?"

I turned to see Chrysilla take her seat to my left, her hands quickly beckoning towards Cassie, who was running her fingers through her long brown hair sceptically. A slight frown marred the younger girl's face, she hurriedly skipped to Chrysilla before turning and sitting at her feet. I smiled at the sight as Chrysilla began combing through the brown locks before her, the pair giggling as they began to talk about their day at the amusement park.

It had been a few hours since my encounter with the god of messengers. I had decided to let everyone take their baths at the river and have a few more hours off before alerting them of our newly attained mission. I was fairly certain that they would be made aware of it already by one of Hermes' children, but there was only so much I could do.

"Hey Perce, heard we got a new mission?"

I sighed as I turned to Marc, who had approached, accompanied by Helen and his siblings, Adrastea and Kerwin. Helen stayed close to Marc, taking the seat to his side as Kerwin and Adrastea paused, offering a small greeting in the form of a wave before sitting next to the daughter of Aphrodite and continuing their conversation.

"I knew it was pointless expecting them to keep it quiet."

Marc smiled at me as he patted my shoulder.

"Considering they were the ones behind the whole fiasco of the last mission, I can't really say I'm surprised they let this cat out of the bag."

I nodded at the boy before my response was cut off as another group approached the hearth. Chris, Jerome, Jordon, and Shaquille were laughing boisterously at something. Chris pushed Kerwin's head as they passed the son of Ares and the two quickly started a playful fight.

At least, I hoped it was playful.

They separated after Chris pushed the younger boy back, causing him to stumble slightly. They began to laugh as they dusted themselves before taking their seats, their conversation still slightly louder than it needed to be.

"Boys, am I right?"

I turned to Helen, who had a smile on her face despite her words.

"Can't live with them."

Chrysilla responded, earning a light chuckle from the daughter of Aphrodite.

"Can't live without them?"

Adrian queried as he sat down, his hair still dripping wet from his dip in the river. Chrysilla stared as the water had already soaked the hem of his shirt, rolling her eyes as she retorted.

"I said what I said."

"Well, that's just uncalled for then."

I laughed at the way Adrian sarcastically pouted at his half-sister, snapping my hands, and pulling the water out of his hair and shirt before throwing the orb towards the trees behind me.

"Hey watch it, water boy!"

I turned to see Ajax and Zina approaching, both shifting away from each other as they slowly recomposed themselves from dodging my unintentional attack.

"Sorry, Zina."

"What about me?"

"Well, Zina didn't call me water boy, now did she?"

Ajax grumbled as he walked past me, much to Zina's amusement as she brushed off my mistake calmly.

"I thought it was a pretty cool name."

"That's precisely why it isn't."

Zina replied to Ajax, earning a round of laughter from everyone who heard it, minus the scowling son of Aristaeus.

"Were we the last ones here?"

Zina asked a few moments later, as the laughter began to die down.

"Ah no, we're still missing Katherine, Teucer and Oliver it seems."

The daughter of Bia nodded at Adrian's response as she began to move towards her seat, Ajax following, still grumbling to himself.

"You think they're together?"

I turned to Marc, a mischievous grin spreading on my face.

"Just because you're dating a child of Aphrodite doesn't mean you have to start acting like one, Marc."

The mentioned pair turned red, Marc sputtering as his eyes widened.

"Nice one, Percy!"

I turned to Adrian, giving the boy an air high five as Marc just growled at us.

"Easy there tiger. I don't think they are, to be honest. The energy just isn't right you know?"

I stared at Helen, nodding softly despite having no understanding whatsoever.

"What do you mean by that? Is our energy right?"

I smiled softly at Marc's sudden burst of curiosity as I shook my head at him.

"And done!"

I turned to Chrysilla, who smiled proudly at Cassandra who held her braided hair in front of her eyes, a smile of her own donning her face.

"I love it! It looks pretty, right Percy?"

"Very pretty, Cassie. I guess we do need girls for something after all."

Adrian burst out laughing, while Cassandra stared at me curiously.

I noticed that all the seats were filled and the low chattering of the members of the Vanguard had begun to meld into the ambience of the forest around us. Eager to dance around the response of the, clearly, infuriated daughter of Athena I quickly stood up and clapped my hands.

"Alright, everyone." I paused for a few moments to let the chatter die down, sending a side-eye towards Chrysilla, whose glare promised me that this wasn't the end of it. I bit back my chuckle before refocusing on the rest of the Vanguard, whose attention I now had.

"I hope you all enjoyed the short visit to Six Flags." I paused once more, waiting for a response. They all shared their thoughts, the sounds meshing together into an incoherent symphony which I promptly ignored, understanding their intentions from their bright expressions.

As they began to quiet once again, I continued.

"I'm glad to hear it. As you may already know by now," I stared pointedly at Lily and Crystal, the pair at least having the decency to look apologetic, "While we were there, Hermes appeared with a mission for us. It should be far easier than the last time we were visited by the gods and, if all goes well, it should be nothing more than a simple task to retrieve a stolen message from a Centaur."

A round of groans broke from the Vanguard at the nature of the mission. I gave a smile that belied my true intentions.

"I know it sounds like an errand, but I think it's a good change of pace from the usual training and defending against monster attacks."

"That's a fair point," Marc muttered, intended to be for himself, but his voice got caught in the momentary lull of my words. Despite it being unintentional, it spurred the others to agree with my words as well.

"Well, now that you all know what our assignment is, are there any questions?"

A hush fell over the hearth for a few moments. I saw a few members stare at each other curiously and noticed a few heads shaking. I sighed, turning to retake my seat when a voice cut through the silence.

"Are we all going to go on the mission or are we going to break up into squads?"

I turned, caught in an awkward position as I had already begun to lower myself to the chair. Groaning inwardly, I let the question hang in the air as I refocused on sitting. Once I took my seat, I stared at Crystal who had asked the question.

"Hmm, that's a fair question. I don't think we're ready for that as yet, however, so no. We'll all be going on this mission."

A low muttering broke out and I groaned, this time out loud, much to the amusement of Chrysilla and Marc who heard me.

"Why not?" I turned to see that the owner of the voice was Kerwin, "We've been training so hard with our squads for the last three months!"

"Yeah, I don't see why you'd think we aren't ready yet if I'm being honest." My eyes shifted to Jordon before I heard the voice of Adrian, sounding far more majestic as he came to my aid.

"This problem isn't to do with your training, it's with experience."

"Well, how are we going to get experience by just sitting back and doing nothing?" I baulked at the rebuttal from Chris. I shared a look with Adrian for a moment before I shifted my eyes to Chrysilla, who also seemed to be stumped by the question.

"Wouldn't some of us be sitting back and doing nothing if we split up for the mission? Why should only some of us get that experience instead of us all?" I turned, surprised to see that Jerome had been the one to raise that point.

The question gave rise to another extended pause in the conversation. Chrysilla, however, didn't let the opportunity to seize the moment slip.

"Besides, Hermes issued this mission mainly for his children, and last time I checked, they were in almost every squad." For a brief moment, it seemed as though the debate had been settled as Chris and Jordon began to concede to her point, but Lily was too quick.

"Except your own, which makes sense why you would want us all to be involved in this mission."

Another pause as uncertainty filled the clearing.

"What's the big deal anyway?"

I turned to see Marc; his face slightly reddened as he huffed in annoyance. Helen held his arm, whispering softly as he glared at Lily.

"The big deal is that this makes us having squads redundant!" Lily retorted, slipping closer to the edge of her seat as her voice rose.

"Exactly, if we're just going to rush in as one big unit anyway, why are we training separately most of the time, or having different strategies? How's that going to help us all in the long run?" Crystal supplied, rallying to her half-sister's cause.

Another round of discontent and uncertain words slipped quietly in whispers that slowly coiled into a buzz of excited noise. I let their words build into little arguments, watching carefully as they grew more and more heated.

"Do I need to remind you all of the last time we heeded the words of Hermes' daughters?"

A hush fell over the Vanguard immediately, the painful reminder of the horrendous assault to reclaim Tyche's cornucopia no doubt incited unwanted memories. After some investigating, it was simple for Adrian and Chrysilla to identify Crystal and Lily as the ones responsible for the near failure of the previous mission. I shifted out of my relaxed position in my seat as I let them sink into their remorse and dismay for a moment longer.

"Your words are truly valued, and we do try our best to listen to what you have to say, but there needs to be some level of order," I shifted my narrowed gaze to Lily, waiting until she shifted uncomfortably in her seat before casting the same heavy gaze onto her sister, "and respect given to the decisions made by the elected leaders."

I closed my eyes, taking a deep breath as the intensity of the situation threatened to get a rise, even from me.

"I understand that we could have been more respectful, but what is the point of splitting us up into squads?" Crystal queried again, after a few moments of silence.

"It all ties back into the catastrophic events which occurred on our first mission for Tyche, as I mentioned before. Should something similar to that occur again, but I am amongst those who are captured, who do you follow?"

The daughters of Hermes stared at each other, clearly understanding that they were clearly on the losing side of the argument for the first time. Almost in a desperate act of defiance, Crystal pressed on.

"But what if all the squad leaders are captured? Then what?"

Jerome didn't even let the words fully leave his half-sister's mouth before he retorted, "Then we clearly listen to someone else besides you two."

Laughter cut through the tense atmosphere easily as Crystal's face reddened in humiliation.

"Percy is right. We've established a hierarchy to allow less disruptions or hesitance whenever we're in heated situations." Chrysilla stated easily, using the laughter to let her words seem more palatable.

"And besides," Adrian spoke up, "We all have a second in command in each of our groups."

"If you didn't know about it, then you aren't it."

I stared pointedly at Marc for a moment before smiling at his bluntness.

"I suppose it is as good a time as any, but they are correct. We've begun training second in commands who would be in charge should things reach that point."

I let the words hang for a few more moments, patiently awaiting any more resistance to our statements. When I saw that there would be none, I nodded, more to myself than anything.

"And to answer your last set of questions, Crystal." The girl looked up meekly as I mentioned her name, "The difference in each squad is to ensure diversity. We are Greeks, did you expect us to fight uniformly as the Romans do? No, it doesn't run in our blood. Our cohesion comes from disorienting the enemy, which is even more critical considering we aren't an army, we are simply a Vanguard. A small unit with the purpose of disrupting the monsters from forming and carrying out certain tasks so that lesser prepared demigods don't have to."

"We have sat down and talked about this quite extensively." Adrian added, "It was mentioned that we've been training for three months… It's only been three months! While you've been learning to work as a unit under your leader, we've been figuring out new ways to improve things in training."

"That's right, we learn a little more each day, from each training session and each encounter we have with monsters, and we sit… well they do all the brainstorming, but we talk about it all and figure out how to improve on everything."

Marc's words were met with another silence as the members began to digest everything that had been said.

"I still don't get why we're going to attack as one group though." Jordon bluntly stated. I raised an eyebrow at him before I responded.

"Who said we were going to attack as one group?"

"Well, you…"

"I said we'll all be going on this mission. I said nothing about our squads being joined for it."

"You knew that all along and you let all this arguing happen?"

I shrugged at Chrysilla, who continued to stare at me in disbelief.

"Arguments are sometimes the best place to find and correct misconceptions."

I leaned closer to her, my voice lowering to keep my next words between us.

"If done correctly, of course."

I winked at her as I righted myself on my chair.

"Right," I clapped my hands as I stood up, "I suppose that should be it for this meeting?"

I stared at everyone for a few moments, smiling as they nodded in response before reaching my hand out to Cassandra who jumped up from her seat and rushed to grab a hold of it.

"Well, I'm off to put this beautiful young lady to sleep. I expect you all to be asleep before ten because Shaquille," I paused, staring at the son of Hypnos for confirmation. As he nodded, I returned it and continued, "will be waking you up at five o'clock so we can get an early start for this mission tomorrow."

I turned and began to lead Cassandra away before pausing, unable to withhold my cheeky grin as I turned back to the, still seated, members.

"Oh, report to your squad leaders in the morning."

With a smile still on my face, I led Cassandra to her tent to tuck her in before making my way to my tent, which was next to her own.

I sat quietly in wait.

A gentle breeze passed, rustling some scattered leaves over me as I stayed crouched low to the forest floor.

We had managed to track the Centaur and had been following it for the last hour or two. Our group had been lucky enough to stumble across the creature first, but I had decided to stay in wait for the other groups to ensure that unnecessary casualties could be avoided.

"I still think we should just flat-out rush the Centaur…"

I shifted my gaze slightly, smiling softly at the agitated twitches of the daughter of Ares. Her eyes were trained on the monster, her grip tightening and releasing the hilt of her sword. She noticed my eyes and turned, her body causing the overgrowth of leaves around her to shake slightly.

"No, it's better if we wait. If we wait for the rest of the Vanguard to reach, they can tire out the Centaur and we can swoop in and get the final blow."

I turned to my other side where the voice had come from. Lily lay prone on the forest floor, seemingly more comfortable with the way the roots slowly slithered over her body as they continued to grow more leaves. Despite her constantly growing camouflage, her face was still exposed enough for the mischievous glint in her eyes to shine through as much as it tugged at her lips.

"But what if the Centaur doesn't get tired?"

A soft voice came from beyond Lily. Tassos was even closer to the floor, spotting him was only made possible because I had seen him lie down before he had begun to camouflage us all. Even still, I had to force myself to believe he was truly there.

"Or if it runs away!"

I smiled down at Cassandra, whose voice rose a little too loud causing her to slap her hands on her lips and stare at us apologetically. She sat a few meters in front of me, giddily drawing lines of mud under her eyes as the roots formed a loose dome around her.

"Then we'll learn a little bit more about how it's willing to fight and figure out how to counter it the next time we attack."

The other three stared, dubious at the daughter of Hermes before turning their expectant gazes my way.

"She has a good point. I want to see the other groups in action anyway."

"Is that why we didn't take it on when it was drinking by that river?"

I hummed.

"Partially. It would've been easy enough, but I felt as though it were a trap of some sort."

"One good enough to stop you from swallowing it whole with the water and drowning it?"

I raised an eyebrow at Lily, who tried to shrug against the roots but grunted at the resistance.

"You do realize that Tassos is quite literally making the plants actively cover us and grow more leaves and you're doubting that something or someone is capable of having a counter to my abilities?"

Adrastea huffed.

"Yes, but you're a son of Poseidon, it's a Centaur."

"One that's highly favoured by many gods, if I remember Percy's debriefing right." I nodded at Tassos' words, not entirely sure where he was any more to direct it at him, "Maybe one of the gods would just simply flash him out or it's a water god who would just protect him from the water?"

"Can a minor deity override your control, Percy?"

I chuckled at Adrastea's incredulous reaction.

"I am only half god you know."

The daughter of Ares snorted, as Tassos and I chuckled at her reaction.

A silence fell over us as the Centaur's heavy feet trod against the earth near us.

It had been asleep for the last half an hour. The sun had already been slipping past the horizon, Artemis leading her chariot to take its place when we had begun to settle in this position. It had been a hassle to quietly get our message through Fleecy, but it seemed to do little to alert the half-breed.

After a few more tense moments, we heard what had startled the monster.

Marc's group had burst through the trees on the other side, their weapons drawn as they rushed the Centaur. I sighed, shaking my head at the direct tactics of the son of Ares. Despite his rash display, I couldn't help the smile which pulled at my lips at the navy-blue armour which was trimmed with the colours of their parents. Chris had done a fine job.

"We're supposed to be the heavy hitter group, not them!"

I sighed at the other child of Ares in the group. I shifted slightly, putting the weight more on my left leg as the prolonged crouch began to take its toll on my muscles. I groaned slightly as the roots around me restricted my attempt to fully turn towards Adrastea. After a moment to adjust to the restrictions, I shifted my head as much as I could towards her.

"Every squad is quite evenly balanced actually. They were made so that each squad could, eventually, run independently."

"You're saying that, but this is one Hades of a squad, you have to admit."

I stared at the daughter of Ares, smiling softly as I silently urged her to explain her thought process behind that statement.

"Well, starting small is Cassandra who, while she doesn't fight, can't be hit by anything. Then there is Lily, who is the best archer outside of the Apollo kids here. Quickly followed by Tassos who… well you can quite literally see why he's a powerhouse,"

She pointed at the way thorns had begun to grow from the roots which hugged the boy.

"And then there is me, what I lack in abilities, I make up for in experience and pure combat dominance."

It wasn't a display of arrogance, despite how she had worded it. While she was one of the younger members at fifteen, she was also one of the few who had participated in the wars before. Her experience showed in training sessions as I was the only person capable of beating her in a one-on-one fight.

"And finally, the piece de resistance, Perseus Jackson himself. What's your middle name by that way?" I brushed her off and she shrugged, carrying on regardless, "The demigod who's done it all, seen it all and overcome it all. You alone make our squad the heavy-hitting squad, but the supporting cast puts us way beyond the rest of them. You have to admit that."

I chuckled at the enthusiastic girl, whose brown eyes glistened with glee as she boasted on behalf of our squad.

"I promise you that each squad was perfectly thought out."

I refocused on the ensuing battle, my smile fading slightly as I saw that Marc's group seemed to be struggling against the lone Centaur. The creature continued to prance around; his laughter soft from the distance which stood between us but was emphasized by his dramatization of every taunting act.

"I kind of agree with little big angry over there." Lily stuck her tongue out at Adrastea who was sending her a heated glare. I was about to respond when Tassos' voice cut me off, echoing as though he were everywhere in the forest at once.

"Same. Seems unfair to the others who'll probably die without you around."

"First of all, since when can you do that?" I shifted, tugging at the root as I let myself sit flush against the floor, a breath of relief slipping from my lips as the soothing sensation of my muscles relaxing trailed down my legs.

"Secondly, while the abilities of the individual are an important factor, you still need to consider how well those abilities mesh together. Cassandra is invulnerable but she can't fight yet," the mentioned daughter of Tyche turned to me with a pout on her face. I smiled kindly down at her, waving my hands apologetically and sighing as she huffed and turned around. "You also have to consider Tassos as an archer, seeing as his abilities take such a long time to set up, and are about as practical as him taking a fight up close."

The son of Demeter chuckled at my words but agreed with me.

"In the end, the group is truly composed of two melee fighters, namely Adrastea, and I. With two archers who struggle at melee, requiring our support as a shield wall, and one member who, while impervious to danger, isn't yet a source of one to the enemy."

A hush fell over us as the hearty laugh of the Centaur rang out more clearly through the forest. I turned my attention back towards the fight, my hand slipping into my pocket as I took in the scene before me. Marc had somehow managed to mount the creature, but the horseman seemed tremendously unfazed by the hefty son of Ares atop of him, even as the large boy raised his mighty axe over his head.

The Centaur bucked right as the axe reached the peak of its ascent, the momentum and weight of the weapon throwing the son of Ares off of its back. The Centaur hopped forward a few paces before throwing its hind legs into Marc's stomach. The vicious back kick sent Marc careening into a tree headfirst, leaving the boy in a pool of blood at the base of the splintered tree.

I could feel the tension slip past me and into the rest of my squad. Those who didn't have a grip on their weapons quickly reached for them as the Centaur turned to take advantage of the downed son of Ares.

Before the creature could advance, a small barrage of arrows forced it into an evasive dance. I sighed in relief, raising my hands to call my squad to stand down as Chrysilla and Adrian led theirs into the fray.

While my squad sunk back into their lowered positions, their hands remained on their weapons.

"There is still a point to what Adrastea said."

Tassos' echoey voice rang out once more, startling us all as we looked around aimlessly, much to the amusement of Demeter's son.

"Despite being forced to fight a member down, with you two practically protecting all three of us. You can't exactly dispute the fact that you two are the most experienced demigods in the group, which makes up for where we fall short. Even if the others are more balanced in terms of physical abilities, you two can account for almost an entire squad on your own, never mind if you actually use your abilities, Percy."

I paused for a moment as I stared at the battle. The combined efforts of Chrysilla and Adrian seemed to be effective enough to keep the Centaur at bay, but they seemed to be getting in each other's way. Where Chrysilla wanted to slip back to let her archers shoot, Adrian wanted to press the Centaur. This caused confusion among Adrian's squad, as Kerwin and Shaquille would shy away to avoid being peppered by arrows which never came as Ajax and Jordon tried to avoid hitting their fellow members of the Vanguard.

I sighed, shaking my head as I let my eyes roam the battlefield.

"We don't have a healer."

They all paused for a moment as I drew their attention to where Marc was being treated by Teucer.

"Our archers are the worst at melee. Our melee fighters are the worst at archery or long-ranged combat. Which means that if the fight calls for either or, we are the only group who will be limited in our contribution. Yes, our archers are among the best and our melee fighters are the best, but we aren't the most flexible. Aside from that, we are the only squad without a healer. We cannot afford to take casualties, because if we do, we must wait for another squad. We are the group most at risk of losing someone due to injury."

I slowly rose back to a crouch, my knees groaning as they retook the weight of my body.

"We aren't the strongest squad of the Vanguard; we are actually the weakest because of how, comparatively, unbalanced we are. To make up for these flaws, we compensated with total melee strength and experience. The squads were designed specifically to cover for as many flaws as possible. That's why I said that each group is perfectly balanced. While we don't have a healer, because of the combined experience in our squad, we are less likely to need one. Because Cassandra doesn't need to be protected, Adrastea and I can cover for one archer each. Because our archers are among the best in the camp, Adrastea and I can rely on them to hit the shots to cover for us. Do you get it now?"

"Did you want us all to take this mission because you knew that we still weren't prepared to take it out on our own?"

Lily said after some time, the disorganization of the two active squads was a distracting calamity.

"I was wary of Hermes' words, but I was also aware that we weren't ready on our own. Far less so for if we had to join forces with incompatible squads."

"You guys really thought of everything, didn't you?" Tassos whispered in awe. I nodded, a grim smile forming on my lips as I saw Kerwin clatter into Chris after getting in the way of Oliver's gust of wind.

"Three months is a long time when you have two children of Athena."

"Why are they incompatible?"

Cassandra broke my attention from the pummelling Chrysilla's and Adrian's groups were receiving.

"And what are we waiting for?"

Adrastea added, her agitation clear in her voice.

"We decided that, in battle, we would form two larger groups. Our group with Chrysilla' and Adrian's with Marc's. Or vice versa. Marc and I are a lot better at taking orders than the two stubborn children of Athena are. It's supposed to be a short-term strategy, but no plan ever survives first contact with the enemy. They had no choice but to draw the Centaur's attention here to avoid a death…"

I paused as a sickening crunch reverberated around us. The Centaur was still reared from striking both Adrian and Chrysilla with its front legs. The Centaur darted forward towards Chrysilla, who was holding her left arm, which was bent at an odd angle. It grabbed her by the throat before launching her towards the remaining members who still stood behind her.

"What the fuck is that Centaur made of?" Tassos muttered as we all stared at the scene in shock.

"Half man, half horse," Lily replied on impulse.

Riptide was already uncapped and elongating as I burst free from the roots around me. I felt my power begging to be unleashed as rage began to swirl within me.

"That. We're waiting for that. Kill the fucker!"

My armour came alive, hugging my body as I burst forth from the bushes, a wicked smirk pulling at my lips as two arrows sailed past either of my ears towards the Centaur. The creature spun instantly, grabbing Adrian by his throat, and using his body as a shield. One of the arrows bit into his shoulder and the other embedded itself in his stomach, the boy screaming in agony as the Centaur laughed at his plight.

I felt a feral growl vibrate in my throat as I slid to a stop, ducking as the body of the son of Athena careened through the air over me. Letting the momentum continue, I threw myself into a roll, before springing to my feet between the Centaur and Katherine, who had begun to rush to Adrian's aid. The strong arm of the Centaur clenched as it wrapped around my throat instead of the daughter of Apollo's. Even as the hand tightened around my neck, my wolfish grin stained my face.

The Centaur growled at my defiance before grunting as it tried to heave me off of the floor. I raised both my arms to either side, my voice hoarse as the creature continued to restrict my airflow.

"Is that really the best you've got?"

It stared in shock as I remained firmly planted on the floor despite its best efforts. I spat at the creature's face, causing its grip to loosen for a moment as it struggled to comprehend the audacity and resilience I was displaying, much unlike what it had faced from the rest of the Vanguard to this point.

Confusion splayed across its facial features for a moment. A second later, its eyes shone with recognition and its grip loosened completely. Unfortunately for the Centaur, as its hand was releasing my neck, two arrows struck its forearm. It gasped in shock, but before it could even register the pain, Adrastea's sword carved through its arm a little under its shoulder.

The Centaur scampered back, its left hand pressed against the remaining stump of its right arm, blood flowing freely from between its fingers.

"I wasn't aware that this was your party, Perseus!"

As it uttered my name, I was already jumping back. Riptide splayed the Centaur's blood against the trees as the blade had already taken the creature's front legs.

It fell silently to the floor, its left hand moving from its dismembered arm to brace itself as it hit the ground with a resounding thud.

"The message which belongs to Lord Hermes, Centaur. Give it."

A scroll materialized out of thin air before the Centaur. Its bloodied hand grabbed it as it began to fall before it threw it in my direction. I caught the bloodied scroll, eyeing the creature as its eyes watered, blood beginning to seep from the corners of its tightly closed lips.

"Did you bite your tongue off to stop yourself from screaming?"

The creature nodded as its left hand dropped beneath it in an awkward attempt to support its weight. Its hind legs slowly folded to allow the creature to sit on it, trying to find some comfort in its final moments.

I let my eyes stray from the creature for a moment, my focus instead on where Adrian had been tossed as a weapon at me, after being used as a shield. I nodded softly as I saw that he was already being tended to by Katherine. I took a deep breath, groaning at the sharp pain which lingered from being strangled.

"Your only worth to me alive is now within my possession. I can see that you've already accepted your fate, but there is something that you should remember should you return from the depths of Tartarus."

I paused, rubbing my throat with my free hand as I lowered myself to meet the creature's eyes.

"The only reason you get to die so soon, after all the damage you've done, is because you didn't kill one of my members when you had the chance. I know it, I was watching the entire fight. You only started trying to kill when you did that final front stomp, am I right?"

Its eyes widened at my words, giving a small nod as it lowered its head.

"Don't even think of revenge. The next encounter I won't be sitting in wait. I'll be the first one you meet in battle."

Riptide took its head this time, in one clean arc.

As the monster disintegrated into dust I turned to the Vanguard. There weren't that many members, outside of my squad, who remained standing.

I spotted Kerwin slowly rise to his feet, leaning against his polearm as blood trickled down his bloodied lips. Katherine was the only other conscious member of Adrian's group, the daughter of Apollo sat worriedly over Adrian's body, tending to his wounds despite her limp left arm.

I shook my head for a moment, my eyes trailing back to where Marc had been discarded during the fight. Teucer had helped the boy regain consciousness, but his eyes were still glazed slightly as he stared off into the air, chewing slowly at the piece of ambrosia in his mouth. Teucer gave Helen some quick instructions, the daughter of Aphrodite nodded despite the blood which seeped down her hair, trekking over her beautiful face.

I noticed that Jerome was the only other from Marc's group who was active. He had already begun to check on Jordon who was slowly coming to. After a quick sip of nectar, the son of Apollo shrugged off his companion and forced himself to begin to check on the rest of his squad. He turned to Chrysilla instantly, beginning to move towards her with his widened eyes inspecting her arm. The daughter of Athena shook her head before instructing him to check up on the other members of their squad.

"A singular Centaur almost wiped my Vanguard. Really guys? And you were arguing about taking it on alone?"

My voice carried throughout the area, eliciting a slight pause before everyone resumed their tasks, their heads hanging a little lower. Chrysilla made her way towards me, a small frown on her face as she approached, though it quickly gave way to a relieved expression as I dug a piece of ambrosia out of my pocket.

"Actually Percy. It's slightly more impressive that you took him out practically on your own."

I turned to see Hermes giving me a sheepish grin as he rubbed the back of his neck. I narrowed my eyes at him, tightening my grip on the scroll in my hand as he approached.

"What do you mean by that?"

The god shook his head before sighing.

"That was a minor nature deity. Typically considered several times weaker than a minor god, except he has been blessed by several gods for his assistance over the years."

Riptide was still in my hand, its presence made known to the god as I shifted it slightly in my palm to get a better grip on it.

"I suppose those words were meant to be taken as synonymous with 'highly favoured'?"

Hermes smiled in a placating manner, shifting slightly as he took a slow step towards me.

"Wow Dad, that's pretty low."

Jerome's words were soft, though they were heavily weighted with emotion, and they drew his father's attention to him. The god's smile faded as he saw his son's swollen eye and the few heavy bruises that he sported which were visible outside of his clothing and armour.

He quickly swivelled his head, almost making a show of his clear search for his children. He paused for a moment, his eyes softened, a small smile reappearing as he turned to Lily, who was completely unharmed.

"I thought I had given enough warning, I do apologize. I should get that message delivered, however."

The god's eyes were once again on me, though I could see he was slightly bothered at the sight of Crystal's unconscious form. My eyes shifted from the god and to my blade. I took great pleasure in raising the blade, the tip pointed towards Hermes, as I squinted an eye to assess the blood-soaked weapon.

Hermes sighed, taking another step forward.

"Perseus, it was not my intention for your group to fall into harm's way such as this."

"Then why was your request not blessed, as was our enemy, with sufficient warning?"

I spat back. The air around me grew heavier as I felt my power respond to my emotions. The sudden display seized the atmosphere around us, the tense air wafting heavily to each of my conscious comrades, who immediately began to reach for their weapons.

Hermes responded quickly. His hands raised as he took a small step back. I responded in kind by lowering Riptide and taking a deep breath to ease the sudden release of power.

"Life outside of the camp is filled with much danger, many of which you've already seen. Do not blame the gods for the choice you've made."

"Yet our choices have only seen us in harm's way when they intertwine with the desires of the gods."

My words struck the god as though he had been hit with lightning. He paused for a moment, his arms lowering slightly as he seemed to be either in thought or in communication with other gods.

"I suppose I can offer you all a gift, a reward was in order regardless, but it seems that the gesture would best be suited to maintain our relationship."

I tilted my head, clicking my tongue as I shifted my gaze to Chrysilla. I couldn't resist the smile that pulled at my lips at the sight of her. Her eyes were wild with confusion, but her sole arm had grasped her weapon. Her eyes locked onto mine and she stared at me blankly for a few moments before she realized I was asking for her contribution to the matter. She gave a small nod, her fingers dancing around the hilt of her blade as she nervously shifted her grip on her sword.

I turned back to the god, urging him to continue as I pointed my blade towards Chrysilla and used it to gesture for her to drop her weapon. I heard her sigh in relief, the blade thudding as it hit the ground.

"I can change your tents for you all. I am aware that the camp wasn't able to supply you with tents that allow for comfort, but with my blessing, you will all be gifted apartment-sized tents that are easily compactable. No more need for setting them up or tearing them apart, just a simple push of a button and it's there."

Hermes stared at me expectantly, though his hands were still in the air. I gave a quick glance around me, and my smile widened as I noticed that, while all the injured members had dropped their weapons, my squad still held onto theirs.

"Add in an alarm system and we should be covered."

Hermes hummed for a moment before he shook his head, a frown appearing on his face.

"I'm afraid a sensory alarm would infringe on our limitations to involvement by far too much. It would be as though we were creating a miniature, moveable Camp Half-Blood and the Ancient Laws would never allow it."

"What about walkie-talkies?"

Hermes and I turned towards Lily, who shied immediately under the intensity of our eyes.

"If you can explain it a little better, I may be able to provide such a thing."

Lily nodded, her skin paling a little bit as we continued to stare at her. Noticing her discomfort, I capped Riptide. Hermes noticed this and nodded at me, dropping his hands as the rest of my squad followed my lead. Hermes' conscious daughter took a deep breath before responding.

"It doesn't have to be walkie-talkies exactly, but a similar system where whoever is on guard duty would be able to speak into it and it would send an alert to our tents."

"I wonder if that was why they often missed out on our battles before the mission for Lady Tyche," Chrysilla whispered behind me. I quickly began to remember some tents being soundproof. I almost groaned at the sudden realization. I gave Chrysilla a curt nod, letting her know that we would discuss it later.

"That is a brilliant idea, Lily." The god beamed at his daughter before turning back to me. "Everything should be in order now if I'm not mistaken."

I noticed the way his eyes darted around through the group, searching for someone.

"Kerwin!"

"Yeah boss?"

"The mission is officially over, gather all those able and gather some water from the stream. It's about a hundred meters behind you and to your left."

"On it."

I nodded, turning to Chrysilla slightly.

"Can you organize setting up a temporary recovery camp with the rest?"

The daughter of Athena nodded to me before retrieving her weapon and turning away, barking orders as she did so.

I waited a few moments, watching as the Vanguard slowly churned back to life to complete their assigned tasks before turning back to Hermes. I didn't miss the slight twitch in his eyes as I smiled easily at him

"Yes, I'd say that should cover everything."

I extended the scroll, but I held it firmly even as the god grabbed onto it. He seemed shocked by the action for a moment before he chuckled softly at my pointed look.

"Here you go, Percy."

He handed me a small pouch with his free hand. I grabbed it and called for Cassandra. I quickly tossed the pouch at her, smiling slightly as she jumped to catch it, celebrating slightly when she did, before slipping it into her pocket and running towards Adrastea. As Adrastea grabbed the daughter of Tyche's hand, I released my grip on the scroll.

I immediately relaxed, dusting my hands off as I cracked my neck, groaning at the popping sensation.

"Now that that's out of the way, you're more than welcome to stay and check up on your children."

The god of messengers relaxed considerably, his smile widening.

"Did you know that the Centaur was blessed and used the situation to negotiate?"

I shook my head at him,

"I didn't but I wasn't going to let you get away with it for nothing. Like you said, life out here is tough, you take any chance you get and when there's nothing, sometimes you make something out of it."

Hermes chuckled, patting my shoulder.

"It seems that you're learning to handle us immortals."

I shrugged off his compliment as the god slipped the scroll into his pocket. He stared at how the Vanguard operated for a few moments before turning back to me.

"You've grown a lot already. I figured you'd manage to get the scroll somehow, but I never expected you to kill him. And by yourself at that"

I shook my head slightly.

"I had a lot of help. They wore him down considerably, and my squad crippled him. I just dealt the finishing blows."

"All before a Centaur could make his escape?"

The god's raised eyebrow suggested much more than his words had, but I shrugged it off.

"Will you take my offer to check up on your children, or will you be leaving, Lord Hermes?"

The god sighed dramatically.

"Has Percy grown too old for his Uncle Hermes?"

"Percy has grown wise enough to know that you're only sticking around long enough to see if you can possibly steal the pouch back, Cousin Hermes." I paused, staring as Hermes chuckled sheepishly for the umpteenth time. "Don't forget that my uncles are Hades and your father, Zeus. Comparing yourself to them is quite a statement, don't you think?"

Thunder rumbled overhead as Hermes immediately tensed up.

I took the moment to step away from the god. I eyed him warily as he slowly zoned back into reality and looked around for me for a few moments before deciding to check on his children.

"How's Adrian and Marc?"

Chrysilla sighed as she stopped next to me, her arm was now positioned in a sling, and she was chewing on another piece of ambrosia. She leaned slightly on me for a moment as she finished chewing.

"You're really going to act as if you didn't just negate that oppressive aura of an Olympian as if it was nothing?"

"It doesn't quite have the same weight as a hostile Primordial God, believe it or not."

Chrysilla let out an exaggerated 'Ah', as she pushed herself off of me.

"I forgot you were the fates' favourite plaything this century."

I grunted in response as we made our way towards Adrian.

"We'll talk about it later, but this interaction has made me significantly more wary of taking missions from the gods."

My voice was low, but I didn't trust that it had been low enough. I turned to Chrysilla for a moment, knowing she was about to respond.

"Later. Alright?"

She closed her mouth, staring questioningly for a moment before nodding softly.

A/N: The inexplicable dread and self-doubt is palpable the further we get into this story. I need to find a way to just post and truly say whatever. I'm still a ways off from my best work because I'm young anyway… right?

Anyway, mental crisis aside. I hope this chapter was great, I'm kind of backlogged with chapters at the moment because I've been so indecisive with certain aspects of the story… Hopefully this has nothing to do with weekly uploads… I'll see…

I appreciate all of your reviews so much! They help me fix my mistakes and even plot future stories. I can't wait to see how you all feel about this one.

That's it for this week. Whenever you're reading this, I hope you're having a great day. See you all next time!
-ZedricSOZ