HORIZON ⸺ jason grace

i. demigods take a polar plunge

THERE HAD BEEN a total of five lake-related incidents since the end of the Titan War, and honestly, Violet was starting to feel like a volunteer lifeguard—because she was unplayed, not because she had offered to take up the role.

She was the best candidate for the job, being able to breathe underwater and all, but come on, demigods, you could learn how to swim!

All things considered, it was barely a surprise when the sixteen-year-old daughter of Poseidon found herself staring at a flaming chariot that was currently spiraling towards the canoe lake. Her week so far had turned out to be pretty unlucky, even by demigod standards. At this point, she shouldn't be expecting anything less than chaos.

"Oh, Hades," Violet grumbled in annoyance, as she took in the falling mass of wood and pegasi.

"My chariot!" yelped Will Solace, son of Apollo, from beside her.

"Our chariot," his sister, Nia Rivera, corrected.

"Whatever!"

The trio took off running across the snow-covered grass that lay between them and the lake. A slight edge of panic set in as Violet remembered that Annabeth was also about to crash into a body of water at full-speed. She didn't know much (or, really, anything) about physics, but she could assume that kind of impact wasn't going to be a pleasant experience.

The blonde-haired daughter of Athena had left earlier in the morning, chasing after a dream in hopes of finding Percy Jackson at the end of it. Violet assumed that her friend hadn't purposefully chosen to make such an entrance, so something must have gone awry.

What else was new?

Huffing out the cold winter air, they'd managed to reach the edge of the beach just as a massive FLOOOOOOM sent the freezing water skyward, dousing a nearby Katie Gardener and Travis Stoll.

"Holy shit," Nia gasped.

But the other girl was undeterred. Without missing a beat, Violet kept running, and dove straight into the lake.

Chiron should definitely be paying her for this.

Despite her powers, the chill set in almost immediately, which was definitely worrisome for Annabeth, Butch, and whoever else had been with them. Feeling the water around her, she willed it to guide her towards the impact site.

As Violet rushed toward the sinking chariot, she passed a group of naiads—the inhabitants of the lake. They were watching the disaster with a sort of interest and absolutely no urgency.

A little help here? Violet implored.

Oh yes, of course, Ariel! They responded enthusiastically.

Violet grumbled unhappily. She'd never stop cursing Percy for that nickname. Her hair wasn't even red!

The naiads moved in teams of two, towards the broken pieces of Will (and Nia's!) chariot. They latched onto various floundering Pegasi and four teenaged demigods. The spirits, however, made no move towards the fifth, a blonde boy who was sinking quickly into the depths of the lake.

This wasn't typical for the naiads, who were some of the friendliest mythological creatures she had ever met. Why they refused to go near the boy was beyond her, and also slightly concerning. Violet could see now that Annabeth had not found her brother at the Grand Canyon, and the pang in her chest was not one that could be healed by the water around her.

The boy kept sinking. Violet could worry for Percy and ponder on the strange behavior of the naiads later, but she had an unpaid job to do.

Locking her arms around his torso, she rocketed them towards what was hopefully the shore. They hit the sand harder than she had intended, but, hey, they were both alive.