MASKS

Chapter twelve

Triton

I've never been this tense in my life. I could feel the gray hairs growing in. If this is what Pearl was causing before she's inducted into her birthright, I could not wait for when she steps into camp half-blood. I had no delusions; her chances of being the prophecy child all depended on what happens to the daughter of Zeus; as such, I had no illusions that Pearl had a higher chance of it falling on her. Zeus' children happened to have a nasty habit of being notoriously unreliable most of the time.

Father was in worse condition; mother seemed to be the only thing keeping him from having a panic attack. As the royal family, we were all expected to be present for this, including my other siblings: Proteus, Rhodes, Benthesikyme, Kymopoleia and Herophile. We were all sitting in the Royal box, which faced the gates, to see the order in which the competitors came in. My parents sat on thrones on the highest step, then my siblings and I sat on the step below them. I knew Proteus was curious about Pearl, while the other four were just excited about the prospect of having a new sister who was younger than them.

I knew the trail would be challenging, more so for Pearl since she wasn't used to her tail or the body armor the competitors had to wear. There were about 100 competitors this year and every time a competitor was rushed to the med bay, I could feel my heart jump to my throat until it settled after I confirmed it wasn't her.

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Percy

Getting dizzy and seeing double should have been my first sign that maybe it'd be a good idea to get my head checked out. Still, I wasn't halfway through this competition. I was not about to throw in the towel, 'maybe that's better than dying and being eaten by a shark or something else in the ocean before they find your body,'  whispered the traitorous part of my brain. It made sense, though; dying seemed better than doing all the crazy things on this list. 

The competition (when dumbed down) wasn't brutal. It was a treasure hunt until you knew a few more details. For example, competitors had to wear heavy armor (that seemed to do nothing but impair my ability to swim). The items had been spread throughout the entire city and neighboring fields. Let's not forget the one-day time limit. It made sense, in a twisted sort of way; it tested your agility, speed, strength, quick thinking, and problem-solving skills and, as an added benefit, gave the people free entertainment and a reason to come together. While we were out here doing our damned hardest to win, the people had a whole day carnival-type event including a buffet and different types of entertainment, so a full day party.

Currently, I am looking for a shark tooth. I can try to pretend that I know what it's for, but my list said I had to get it and I would get it. There was a cove marked out with a tiny shark; that's where I elected to begin. 

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"This is the one chosen?" one asked, staring as the girl swam behind rocks. She sneered, disgusted, "she doesn't look like much."

In a different place: a cave far from the ocean, sat three beings of immense power. They had an orb in front of them. The three women, commonly known as the fates, watched the little girl. They watched her struggle and get hurt, they watched her use all her energy reserves even though she could draw more from her surrounding, and they watched her fumble around like a blind person in a brightly lit room. They watched and commented, never doing anything to help.

"She is chosen and we cannot change that," her sister answered, and she too turned to the orb. "Her life was written before even us, but she will grow. She has power in her, power she has yet to know or learn about, but she will be what the world needs when she does. She cannot die yet." 

"The path written has changed. That blasted sea god has changed what was destined; he has unlocked futures that were locked before," the last sister complained. They turned to the orb as one and watched as the young girl snuck under the feeding sharks and grabbed a tooth 17 cm long. A wave of power swept between the three beings together with an understanding. 

"She has walked into her destiny a few years before expected, but she will do."

Lachesis, Clotho and Atropos watched as the girl tightened her hand around the tooth, a scared little thing with no idea what she was doing. Then, finally, Lachesis looked upon her, and for only a second, she saw the young girl standing tall. She saw her in armor with an army behind her, an aura of power rolling from her, eyes bright with intelligence and happiness. She saw her as a woman standing ready to defend those she loved. The same tooth on her waist. 

"Yes, she will do nicely," she said as the orb turned to something else, and she turned her sight from the savior. 

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Hey guys how are you? I'm good and happy sorry it's been a while and that this is short but I had a little trouble with this chapter hence the three povs. I wanted to communicate the gravity of the situation but I couldn't get the right vibe from any of them. Anyway, I hope you like it. Tell me what you think and or what you want to see next. Until then, happy birthday month to me and all the May babies. 

Wherever you are have a good day/ night. morning/ evening/ afternoon.

As usual, love

anglevil😈😇