Praetor's legacy

Chapter 23

Camp Half-Blood was preparing for war. Some of their own had been lost, and now was the time to strike. Anger coursed through all of their veins, adrenaline pumped through their systems, sweat flowed down their bodies.

They were training, and they weren't going to stop until they had won.

Peleus was the first to notice the unmoving bodies at the bottom of Half-Blood Hill. Steam came from his nostrils and fire rose into the air like a flare. All who saw the signal ran. They all met right next to Thalia's Tree. Holding weapons and anything else they could bring, the campers peered through the darkness and shadow. Bodies were in a row, just laying there, their arms crossed as if they were being laid to rest.

The campers cautiously made their way down the hill. Their eyes never stopped moving. The branch swaying in the wind, back to the bodies, the leaves flying in the wind, back to the bodies, the shadow near the base of a tree, back to the bodies. This could have been a trap. Monsters could surround them at any moment. They weren't safe.

Apollo campers approached the bodies. It seemed that the bodies had been dead for awhile. Cold to the touch, the campers grabbed the bodies and moved them so they could see the faces. Gasps and screams of agony were heard all the way through camp.

These were campers. All ten were children of minor gods who had gone missing a few months back. They seemed to have been kidnapped during school hours and police reports were filed. The campers knew that these kidnappings weren't coincidental. They were a sign of the oncoming war. Their own campers were being targeted. Only one person could have been responsible. Gaea.

There had still been hope that the campers would find their way back to Camp Half-Blood alive. Hope was gone. This was a message from Gaea and her accomplices.

This was a declaration of war.

Percy Jackson stood in front of the campers of Camp Half-Blood. The bodies of the campers lay behind him, their cloths already lying over them. They were folded as if they were blankets, folded back away from the faces of the bodies. Percy held a lit torch and began the process of lighting the cloths. He spoke their names reverently and covered their faces with the cloths as he passed them and lit their cloth on fire.

Smoke rose to the Heavens. Tears landed on the ground.

Training began the next day.

Not a single camper was sitting in their cabin. The archery range was full and there was a waiting list to get in. The rock wall was covered with sweaty bodies climbing and dodging lava. The swordfighting arena was filled with angry campers taking their anger out on the dummies.

All were determined to succeed.

All were determined to avenge all the campers that had ever been killed and left unavenged.

All were determined to win.

Percy began his quest the next day.

Jason had returned to Camp Half-Blood cautiously. He kept his head down and tried not to make eye contact with anyone. Everyone had already heard about the angry spirit possessing him, but Jason still thought that everyone hated him.

Percy, Jason, Piper, Leo, Hazel, Frank, and Annabeth stood at the starboard bow of the Argo II. Reyna stood on the ground, holding Aidan and staring up at the bronze war machine carrying the heroes of the world. She watched as the Argo flew away at an alarming pace.

Aidan began to cry. Reyna also began to cry.

All hope was resting on them now.

Percy had been on many quests in his life. None compared to this one. There were six other people he had to take care of instead of the usual two. He still had nightmares about Bianca dying and him not able to do anything. He cared about these people and he'd probably break in two if any single one of them got killed. The world was depending on them defeating Earth itself. By water and air was the only way to fight.

Percy had left camp in near shambles. Everyone was working until they became sick. No one would stop for a rest. They'd just keep going. All were affected by the 10 dead campers. Grief affected all of their decisions. Even if they didn't know the campers personally, they were affected. These were kids who were enjoying their regular mortal life. Their regular school day was interrupted by Gaea kidnapping them. We don't know if she hurt them, tortured them, starved them. We didn't know anything. We still don't know anything. Across the Atlantic was strangely quiet. No monster sightings, no strange weather. Nothing. All were on edge when they saw land in the distance. This was Gaea's turf. She could be keeping her entire army on the shore, all ready to murder them the second they cross over Gaea's territory.

A screech sounded in the distance. What could have been mistaken as a regular flock of blackbirds was actually a flock of Stymphalian birds. And they were all headed towards the Argo II and the demigods that were preparing to fight.

Blood. That's all Percy could see. Mostly because the cut on his forehead was gushing blood that was dropping into his eyes.

Pieces of scrap metal were everywhere. Leo was collecting them and was going to try to make some sort of weapon out of them. Hazel was lying on a cot. She was covered in bandages and Frank was hand-feeding her ambrosia.

Piper stood by herself near the edge of the ship, looking down at the ground they were flying over. As Percy was beginning to walk over to her, Jason got there first. Without looking at each other, they both held hands.

Annabeth was sitting on the deck. Her head was tucked into her chin and it looked like her eyes were closed. Percy grabbed some ambrosia and nectar and headed over to her. He threw himself down on the ground near her and rested his hand on her thigh. Her eyes opened slowly. He gave her a small smile which she returned after a few moments. He gave her the ambrosia and nectar that she looked at hungrily. Immediately, her wounds began to heal.

She was exhausted. Her head began to nod and her eyes fluttered, trying to stay open. She fell asleep with her head in Percy's lap.

This team had problems. Drama was around every corner, and sometimes personal relationships got in the way of their fighting and their quest. But after all the drama that had happened lately, the 7 were tired. Sitting on this quiet war machine that flew over the land controlled by their most dangerous enemy yet, there was peace. Jason and Piper had made amends, Jason and Percy had made amends, Annabeth and Percy were friends again, and everyone was able to carry on their mission without anger and feelings towards their quest-members getting in the way.

They were a team. And they were ready to face Gaea.