The Pact

Chapter 26: Morpheus's Dream Becomes Reality

Kyon POV:

I walked up the hill to Camp Half-Blood, halfheartedly slicing monsters as they ran up to me. They would pop up every so often, not nearly as continuous as they used to be, as if Thesis was focusing on something else. That thought alone made me anxious, but I hoped that it was merely my mind on edge from the constant running and jump scares. My arms screamed in exhaustion; they still weren't completely rested from the two and a half week-long battles Ares made me go through.

I sighed as I walked to Peleus and patted his copper nose. He blew a bit of smoke at me in welcome. Smiling, I entered the camp; only then did I see how late it was.

Shit. The sun's down. Fuck. Wait, if the sun's down, then, where's Equus? Did I miss him on my way over?

I jogged down the hill and took in the passive faces of the campers. I didn't hear the usual laughter or screaming as I ran. They appeared almost dead, like ghosts. I was starting to get bad vibes. What did Equus do this time? I poured speed on; I had to find someone who I could talk to.

Thankfully, it didn't take long. I spotted a familiar lanky kid over by the strawberry fields and sprinted over to him.

"Ryan!" his head snapped up, and he smiled sadly. I came to a halt in front of him and rapidly fired the questions that were rushing through my head, "What's wrong? Where's Equus? What happened?" Ryan merely looked away, not making eye contact, and shuffled his feet. I felt my face fall; what happened that was so bad?

"Ryan, did Equus leave to find me? Did he hurt any of you?" I asked softly. I wasn't sure what had happened, but whatever did wasn't good. Ryan's head snapped up, eyes wide.

"No, no, no, Equus didn't do anything. He's actually still here," Ryan shouted but whispered the last part. I cocked my head to the side, asking a silent question. Ryan sighed and wrung his hands together.

"Thesis showed up while you were away. Pollux was the first to see him, and then we all came running. Pollux began fighting with the primordial, and Nico joined in after seeing him start to lose. Soon after, Equus showed up, and the fight paused. After the first few words, Thesis stopped talking out loud. Equus started getting antsy, I'm guessing Thesis did something, but I'm not sure what. Anyway, at some point, Equus began attacking him, and Nico and Pollux weren't able to help, so they came back to the crowd to watch. Equus kept talking out loud to himself, but after a few minutes, he stopped and sheathed his sword. Thesis did the same, and they shook hands. Then Thesis disappeared, and Equus collapsed asleep. Will got him into the infirmary right after, reacting before anyone else could." Ryan finished recounting the events. I quickly understood what was going on and ran past him towards the Big House.

I dodged campers as I sprinted. What did Equus get himself into this time? Couldn't he have done this while I was here? No, of course not. He had to make sure I wasn't here so he could do something stupid. I growled at my partner, and some campers whipped their heads at me, eyes wide. Honestly, I could care less if I didn't sound human at the moment; all I was focused on was how reckless Equus is. Well, it kind of made sense since he was in his Winter season, but I was still angry.

I quickly entered the Big House and burst through the infirmary doors. Will was taking out an IV from Equus's arm and placing a new one. I looked over Equus's body as cuts appeared and healed quickly as he slept soundlessly. His face held a small psychotic smile, but he grimaced every so often.

"How is he?" I asked, startling Will. He snapped around, thankfully, not holding anything with a point because I'm sure I would've been skewered. Will ran a hand through his blonde hair as he looked at the rapidly appearing and healing marks on Equus. Sighing, he turned and made eye contact with me.

"Well, he's in a comatose state. Scratches and gashes keep appearing on him. I'm trying my best to heal him, but I don't want to give him any nectar unless a large wound appears." Will gave me the rundown, and I nodded as he rubbed his neck. Will turned back to Equus when he let out a gasp of pain, and a gash appeared on his shoulder. Will quickly applied pressure and bandaged up the wound, making sure Equus didn't bleed out.

Then he grimaced again, and Will quickly got to work at bandaging up a cut along his right leg. I suddenly remembered this scene, the same scene that appeared in Morpheus' dream, Will mumbling and sitting beside Equus, who was dead asleep. I sighed; this must've been inevitable.

I plopped down in a chair by the side of Equus and waited. I wasn't sure how long it would take for whatever was going on between Equus and Thesis, but I would be here when he woke up. Will glanced at me a few times as he bandaged up the wounds appearing on his body.

Since Equus is in Winter at the moment, then right now, he's probably being extremely reckless, so that means more wounds. However, next, Equus'll be in Spring, so he'll think things through and use more techniques, so possibly fewer injuries tomorrow. Summer would most likely be a disaster, and Fall will most likely not end well. I winced at the last time Equus was in his Fall state; it wasn't pretty. Will raised an eyebrow at me, and I gulped a bit, trying to reign in my thoughts.

"If he's still in this state tomorrow, there is a possibility of fewer wounds," I said softly, and Will nodded, filing the information away. I sighed and sat back, knowing that this battle wasn't going to be a short one.