Thieves Of Olympus

58

FAITH

Sakto ang pagdating ng ibang campers pagkatapos namin kumain. We had an orientation about the origin of life. From Chaos to the Titanomachy until the established kingdom of Olympus. Pinakilala din sa amin ang heirarchy nito—Olympians and Chtonic Gods alike. Some creatures were also told dahil mayroon ang iba dito. Even the first generation of Demigods who were the first residents and founders of the camp were mentioned.

All I got is information overload.

We went on a tour around the place. Hindi na nakakapagtakang madaming namamangha sa lugar na ito. Halos kumpleto kasi ito at nature friendly.

Makikita sa bungad ng entrada ang vegetable garden, stable barn na katabi ang greenhouse. The parking is located at the southeast part of the entrance. A burning fire pit with bleachers is in the middle of  the semicircular houses; a villa in the middle and six cabins at each side. Kaharap naman nito ang lawa na may boardwalk sa silangan. Walking further there's a dining hall (Northeast) near the lake beside the training grounds with a weaponry and a decent clinic, magkatabi naman ang templo at Hall of wisdom sa Northwest. An entrance to the forest is located to the north.

The tour is lead by a satyr and nymph. Nakakita ako ng mga nagsasanay sa obstacle courses. Their ages are between eight to fifteen years old. Iris' children waves at me. I wave back as we pass them by.

"Don't come close to the weapons. Those are sharp," the satyr warns.

May mga nagreklamong gusto nang umuwi pero hindi sila pinayagan. Most of the new faces are younger than me. Bilang lang sa kamay ang halos kaedad at kasing tanda ko.

"Hi! Anong pangalan mo?" tanong ng lalaking kasing edad ko. He has a curly brown hair and expressive eyes. "Ako nga pala si Gio."

"Faith," I give him a small smile.

Siniko niya ang babaeng katabi. She is remarkably pale—except for her hair and peach colored lips. Her honey brown eyes is cold, "Nieves."

Is she a human aircon? Kahit ang boses niya ay malamig!

I give her a curt nod and face forward again. Nakikinig sa sinasabi ng mga guide namin.

An animal with beast that had the front legs, wings, and head of a giant eagle and the body, hind legs and tail of a horse. It's orange eyes didn't even flinch when it landed in front of us. May natakot, nagulat at nagtaka sa amin.

"Oh newbies!" a boy with an undercut grins at us. He has his armor on and a sword on his waist, "Hintayin niyo lang ang mga nakatira sa villa. They are scarier than me."

"Report to patrol Jasper! hindi manakot ng mga bagong salta," sita ng babaeng nakaponytail ang buhok.

"Eto na! Take the other hippogriff kanina pa nasa ere ang isang ito," he gently pulls the bridle of the creature.

We continued to go on. Binisita namin ang stable barn kung saan naroon ang mga hayop. Para silang may zoo sa laki nito! They have cows, chickens, goats... And some exotic and rare animals.

"Was that a bull?" turo ng isa sa bakal na hayop.

"It's an automaton—a mechanical bull. Ginawa ng anak ni Hephaestus but he's not here. So we don't come near that. Nagbubuga iyan ng apoy," the nymph explains.

"Astig!"

"Kailan kami uuwi?"

"Dito na ba talaga kami titira?"

The satyr clears his throat, "All right! Get rest everybody. Pwede kayong makigamit sa cabin ng iba pero hindi sa Cabin 1. Pabalik na ang may-ari noon. Understand?"

"We have a bonfire later. You'll be lucky if you are claimed tonight. If not... pray that your deity knows you. We'll send you to the Dark Shadows Institute if you don't get claimed until tomorrow," paalala ng nymph.

They murmured about transferring again. Pero wala silang magagawa tulad ko. I got rejected there so dito ang bagsak ko.

What if I am rejected here too?

What a joke! Iniwan na pala ako ng dalawang tao na importante sa akin... Na ginawa ko din kay Mitzy. Ginawa ko din ang ginawa nila sa akin.
Nakakatawang isipin dahil nasa dugo na yata namin ang mangiwan.

We had a feast for the safe arrival of others. Kasama ko ang magkakapatid sa harap ng bonfire. I watched at everyone who is claimed and sorted to their cabins. Ang iba ay hihintayin hanggang bukas. Kung hindi ay ililipat sila.

"Another sibling!" tuwang-tuwang sabi ni Pinky.

"H-hello..." nahihiyang kaway ng bagong dating, "Danna nga pala."

"Babae na naman?!" reklamo ni Dino.

Rizza rolls her eyes, "Magreklamo ka kay Mama. Wag sa akin."

They welcomed her warmly at hinila agad paupo. She smiles and eats with us. Kinuha pa nila ng inumin. I feel infuriated and insecure seeing them be happy with her. I buried what I feel dahil hindi ko pa kontrolado ang "ability" ko. Baka magkagulo pa sila dito.

When the feast ended ay natulog agad ako. Nanlalamig na ang loob ng dibdib ko na lalo pang pinalamig ng hangin sa labas. Kahit siguro ilang patong ng kumot ay walang magagawa.

Nagising ako sa komusyon na mayroon sa labas. The empty void I have is filled with loud voices from the outside.

"Hala nakakatakot yung hayop!"

"Sino sila?"

"Sinakyan nila iyan?"

"Andito na sila!"

"Foreigner ba iyan?"

"Padaanin niyo na sila!" usal ng isang babae.

Kusang lumayo ang mga umiisyoso sa kanila. Hindi ko makita ang mga itsura nila but I can see a pair of black haired teens and a lone blonde head. Mukha silang galing sa malayo. They have weapons with them. One with a quiver on her waist.

"Take care of Beck. He needs a bath," the girl nuzzled with the creature before turning her back.

"Magpahinga na kayo. Ako na ang bahala sa kanya. Let's go Beck!" masigla niyang hila sa hayop.

Naririnig ko pa ang mga pag-uusap nila. They want the boy with them to stay in the guest rooms. Narinig ko pang matutulog sila sandali at may pupuntahan pagkatapos.

Nagtalukbong ulit ako ng kumot pagkahiga sa kama. Kaso may humila noon galing sa paanan ko.

Ang lamig!

"Get up Faith!"

Niyakap ko ang unan, "5 minutes more..."

"Tsk. You can't survive if you'll sleep all day."

"Tch."

"Tayo na! Magtetraining tayo."

Napabalikwas ako ng tuluyan sa kama. What did she say?

Training?!