Champions: A New Age

Elyse.

previously on Champions: A New Age:

(disclaimer this was 'Frost')

Someone behind her snickered. "Annie, do you always have to introduce yourself so formally? I mean, these guys just got here. Isn't it a bit too early to scare 'em off?"

Annabeth shot a cold glare at the guy who had spoken, and he immediately zipped it. She muttered something with the word Connor in it and sighed. "Welcome to Camp Half-Blood. The place where gods dump their kids for free babysitting."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~cont

Elyse followed the two brothers through the camp. They had introduced themselves as Connor and Travis Stoll, the Hermes cabin head counselors. Both of them had the same messy brown hair, sharp ears, crooked grin, and light blue eyes, but Travis was a bit taller and visibly slightly older than Connor. The twins walked Elyse through the camp, explaining each one in detail as well as adding their own "helpful advice, tips and tricks."

"Apollo kids." Travis said, as a golden arrow skimmed over their heads. They were walking past a long field, with straw targets standing at one end. "They love archery. Since they can't use their normal music or healing powers, they're turning to good ol' bows and arrows. But-" he dodged another stray arrow, "even their accuracy is a special ability, so expect a lot of deadly weapons whizzing around during your time here."

Connor and Travis both laughed when they saw Elyse's expression. "Don't worry, you get used to it...eventually." Travis joked.

They walked some more, and Elyse watched a group of kids play an intense game of tug-of-war. Eventually, one of the sides collapsed, and the other cheered in victory.

"If you value your hands, stay far, far away from the pegasi," Connor noted, gesturing towards a small, wooden stable filled with winged horses that they were passing. "They'll bite your fingers off if they don't like you." Connor said, glancing at a pegasi with a sleek, black coat, who was happily chomping on what looked like a chocolate-frosted donut with bright, rainbow-colored sprinkles.

Travis elbowed Connor's arm in a teasing manner. "What did you think was gonna happen? Blackjack obviously didn't appreciate you tying his hair into cute little pigtails, even if the pink ribbons were adorable." He laughed, but stopped suddenly when he saw something.
Connor gestured at a large, muscular-looking woman with choppy brown pigtails, his tone suddenly hushed. "Psst," he whispered to Elyse. "That's Clarisse. Most Aries cabin members are normally loud, rude, and obnoxious. But that one..." He shuddered.

Travis finished the sentence for him. "Let's just say that she has a tradition of giving newbies a 'warm welcome' by dunking their heads in the toilet and flushing it. Not pleasant. Not pleasant at all. Although-" he glanced at a passing camper with dark, ruffled hair and sea-green eyes, "I bet she'll think twice before doing that again. Amirite, Perce? You made quite the splash." He grinned.

All four of them quickly glanced at Clarisse cautiously, but luckily she was too busy dismembering a practice dummy with a spear to notice.

The boy laughed, but it sounded strained and forced. "I have swords practice in one minute. Gotta go. See you later, Travis."

Connor watched as the boy sprinted off. "That was Percy Jackson. Saved the world, twice. He's normally a really chill dude, but lately he's been a little stressed. Been training his butt off."

Travis jumped in. "Well, we all have lately, haven't we? 'Great darkness' coming over the world and all, I guess. And without our powers...we're even weaker than before. I've even heard rumors of the camp borders flickering on and off. We need to be ready to defend ourselves." He sighed through his nose. "That's why we came back. Me, Annie, Perce, Kate, even Clarisse...we needed to make sure the camp was okay. Even if it meant temporarily leaving college."