The Daughter Of Night

Chapter Nineteen - Annabeth Brings Home Some Strays

Chapter Nineteen - Annabeth Brings Home Some Strays
Posted: Wednesday 20th March 2024

Search parties were sent out from camp that day. It was Winter Break, so the camp was fuller than it was whilst school was on, but not as full as during the summer. Everyone was rattled by the idea that Percy had simply vanished with no trace, most of all Annabeth.

I hurried to camp the moment she called me, our friendship had grown in the last months and I was worried about her. She and Percy had been through so much and I couldn't bear seeing how this was driving her insane. A problem she couldn't fix.

The woods were searched and yielded no results. The surrounding areas of the camp also came up with nothing.

"He might be in the sea," I suggested to Annabeth as we stood atop Half-Blood Hill looking out over the valley.

"Yeah," Annabeth agreed halfheartedly. Her eyes were full of worry as she surveyed the camp as if Percy was going to jump out from behind one of the cabins below and yell 'Boo!'.

I followed her gaze. The camp had changed a lot in the last three months. With the gods' promise to accept the minor gods and honour them, new cabins were being added to represent the minor gods who had children at camp, the original U shape of cabins now had two wings of cabins jutting out on either side of it making a Greek Omega.

"He's done this before right, disappeared and turned up completely fine," I assured her, remembering the story she had told me about Percy's two-week disappearance before I had arrived at Camp.

"Sure," Annabeth said. I could tell she was only half present, her mind was racing, considering all of the possibilities.

I sighed and put my arm around her shoulders.

"I have a bad feeling," Annabeth said, "that prophecy- the prophecy Rachel spoke when she first became the Oracle- I know Apollo said it probably won't happen in our lifetimes, but what if- what if-." She burst into tears and I pulled her into a hug.

It was clear that her nerves were frayed after all she had been through, she was at the end of her tether of bad things happening and would always expect the worst.

I patted her back, "It'll be okay," I assured her, "We'll find him."

*

Three days later, we had no news from Percy. Annabeth strode into the big house with a purpose I had never seen before.

I was staying in the big house now, no longer considered a camper but instead a trainer I had been offered the use of one of the guest bedrooms. I had never used it before the last few days, but with the search for Percy in full swing I hadn't had the energy to return home to Olympus. The doors to Olympus via the Empire State Building were sealed, Apollo had confessed to me that Zeus was worried of a stirring. What that stirring was I wasn't sure, but the only way for me to access Olympus now was via shadow travel, and when I tell you that shadow travelling to Olympus is hard- I mean it, so I had been staying at camp more often than not recently.

Chiron and I were just tucking into breakfast when Annabeth stormed in and demanded permission to leave Camp.

"I had a dream," she declared, "Hera said I need to go to the Grand Canyon and look for a guy with one shoe." She had a wild look in her eye and I could tell she hadn't slept well since Percy had disappeared. "That's how we find Percy."

"That's all Hera said," Annabeth continued. "Will said we could use the Apollo cabin's chariot, Butch is going to come with me, we just need permission to go."

Chiron and I exchanged a look, we had both vocalised to each other how worried we were about Annabeth, she was going to drive herself into the ground if she wasn't careful.

Chiron sighed, "I see no reason not to allow it. Besides I believe we have a Satyr out that way, a Gleason Hedge who has two half-bloods under his protection. You could also retrieve them on this excursion."

"Thanks," Annabeth said. With that, she left the Big House and I didn't expect that she would stop walking until she was in the chariot flying away from camp.

*

Annabeth returned to camp several hours later with three new campers in tow. I watched their chariot crash into the lake from the arena where I was teaching a beginner's sword fighting lesson for some of the newer year-round campers.

"I think that's the end of class today," I told the group, "go entertain yourselves, and remember not to stab each other please!" The four young campers I had been teaching sprinted off, excited about their now free afternoon as I headed over to the lake.

It seemed that their crash landing arrival had attracted a lot of attention and as I walked up I saw a group had gathered around the shore where there were three new faces I didn't recognise. As I neared, one of the newcomers was claimed. Claiming was no longer uncommon at camp and most new campers were claimed on their first day, so this did not come as a surprise. He was a son of Hephaestus.

Annabeth was looking at the small Latino boy and telling him, "Leo you've just been claimed-."

"- by a god. That's the symbol of Vulcan isn't it?" Said a second newcomer. Also a boy, he had blonde hair, piercing blue eyes and a small scar above his lip. What gave me pause when I noticed him was the purple T-shirt he was wearing. Combined with the use of Hephaestus' Roman form's name, he made me uneasy.

"Jason, How do you know that?" Annabeth asked, eyeing the boy with suspicion.

"I'm not sure," he admitted.

I narrowed my eyes and felt a desperate need to change the subject. Seeing what I assumed was a Roman demigod standing in the middle of Camp Half-Blood couldn't mean anything good.

I had learned of the Roman Camp whilst fulfilling my role as a spy in Kronos' army and Apollo had described it to me, but I knew that if the Greeks and Romans discovered that each other existed it would likely mean trouble.

"Will," I interrupted, "Why don't you show our newcomer around? Introduce him to Cabin Nine."

"Who are you?" The small boy asked.

"I'm Ariadne, one of the instructors here," I told him, "What's your name son of Hephaestus?"

The boy eyed me with caution. This was the look that many new campers gave me, Half-Bloods were notorious for not getting on with authority figures. Luckily, Annabeth answered.

"Ri, this is Jason, Leo and Piper," she said, gesturing at each of them as she spoke.

I grinned at Leo and Piper and tried to grin at Jason, but it came out as more of a grimace.

"Welcome to Camp Halfblood," I said, "Leo, Will will show you around and take you to meet your cabin mates."

Leo began babbling questions at Will as the two headed off together.

It seemed that this interaction had only diverted Annabeth's attention away from Jason for a bit as after eyeing him for a bit longer she said, "Hold out your arm."

Jason did so and I sucked in a breath as I saw a tattoo on his arm that I knew to be from Camp Jupiter. Twelve lines, twelve years of service in the legion, and the distinct symbol of Zeus, or I suppose Jupiter. Another child of the big three was at camp, and a Roman one at that.