A Family's Love (Gladiators Sequel)

Chapter Three

A few days had passed, and Percy was anxiously awaiting the prophecy. He had avoided looking at the mirror ever since he got it- it unnerved him. When he looked at it, he got a weird feeling in his stomach, and he felt like something was pulling at his mind.

The remaining campers were sitting around a makeshift fire, eating stag again. It was a usual night. Tyson was nearby, talking to Ella. Annabeth and Thalia were close, not willing to leave the self-destructive Percy alone. Nico and Jason were on both sides of him, caging him in. On any other night, this would be comforting, but tonight he felt suffocated. He still was upset at what they had said.

Rachel was acting odd- more than usual- and wasn't talking to anyone. She just kept mumbling to herself. Percy was becoming heavily concerned for the redhead. Of course, everyone else was overly concerned about Percy, so perhaps he had no room to be concerned about others.

Percy stood up, ignoring his boyfriends protests, and went to sit beside Rachel. That brought her out of her thoughts, and she turned to Percy with curiosity.

"You okay?" He asked simply, unsure of what else to say. "I'm fine. The gods incessant chatter is driving me crazy. Apollo hasn't muted himself, apparently." Rachel grumbled, rubbing her temples now. She appeared annoyed- Percy guessed he would be too if people were constantly talking, and he couldn't get away.

"Sorry. What are they saying?" He asked, hoping she would know something about his mission. "Nothing that I can really make out quite yet. It's like their voices are muffled." Rachel replied, seeming exhausted.

"Tell me if you hear anything." He told her seriously, and she gave him a confused look. She shrugged her shoulders though, apparently letting it go. She had grown used to weird requests like that- everyone had their own agendas. It was all about knowledge- knowledge was power. Of course, this was the first time Percy had ever asked for knowledge of the gods' grumblings. Percy didn't crave power like others. Rachel couldn't help wondering what Percy's secret agenda had on it.

Once dinner was over, the group separated, going off to their posts for the night watch or to their tents to rest.

The next morning, Rachel had Chiron fetch Perseus for her. She'd had a dream, and she needed to tell him. Percy practically ran to Rachel's tent after Chiron told him that she wanted to see him. He'd left a very grumpy and sleepy Nico and Jason in their bed, both grouchy after being awoken by their boyfriend's hurried movements at such an early hour.

Percy raced to Rachel's tent, and Rachel looked like she had when she'd given him the quest to save Aphrodite's lover. Her eyes had rolled to the back of her head, yet she was still sitting straight up. When her mouth opened, the voice of the ancient Oracle poured out of her mouth.

"A lover trapped in granite,
A missing family,
A villainous trio combines forces with a deranged individuality,
The Unlucky Thirteen will travel the country,
An adventure to the Republic,
Where lions rule the arena,
To find the ones who have been taken."

Percy waited to see if there was more, but that was the end of it. Rachel went back to normal, shaking her head to almost shake off the ancient deity within her. "Who's the thirteen?" Percy asked, even though he knew she probably didn't know.

"I'm not sure." Rachel replied, her voice a bit groggy as she rubbed her forehead. Percy sighed and left, going towards the center of camp. There stood twelve other campers, all looking groggy and confused.

Two were Percy's boyfriends, Jason and Nico. They were leaning slightly on each other, their eyelids drooping. Leo was chatting about something with Nico and Hazel, and Frank and Clarisse were talking quietly. Thalia was talking to Jason, who looked like he was struggling to maintain the conversation. Annabeth, Grover, Calypso, Tyson, and Ella were talking quietly, all looking tired.

Somehow, Percy knew that these were the twelve people he was supposed to go on a quest with. Percy cast a glance up to the heavens, wondering how he was supposed to manage getting them all battle ready. They all were going to have to fight four villains, and Calypso, Ella, and Tyson have never even seen battle! Heck, Calypso and Ella had never even left the camp to hunt!

But, somehow, Percy was going to have to save his family and friends with this ragtag group. "Pack your bags- all of you." He announced to the group, and everyone turned to look at him with confusion. "We're going on a quest." Percy explained curtly, walking away from them.

The group exchanged incredulous glances, and Annabeth chased after him. "You can't be serious, Seaweed Brain. All of them? Percy, some of them haven't left the camp in ages! Most of us haven't seen battle in months!" Annabeth exclaimed quietly once she caught up to him.

Percy turned around, now walking backwards. "All of you, follow me! It's time to train!" Percy called back to them, then turned back around. "There, we'll teach them quickly," Percy replied to Annabeth, smirking. She huffed, shaking her head at him.

Calypso, Grover, Tyson, and Ella all followed quickly, and the others trailed behind reluctantly. Clarisse was hoping to beat Percy up in the ring, though, so she was a bit less reluctant than the rest. When they reached the arena, he tossed Ella a bow and some arrows, Tyson two clubs, Calypso a dagger, and Grover a bow and arrows as well. The others picked their normal weapons, some practicing a few moves.

"Now, I'll depend on the rest of you to help whip these four into shape." Percy said, holding Riptide in his hands.

"Of course," Annabeth said, holding two daggers- one was her own, and the other was Piper's.

"Calypso, watch Annabeth with those blades. Clarisse, show Tyson some moves. Frank, teach Ella and Grover what you know. The rest of you, we're going to run through drills while they trained. We are leaving camp tomorrow." Percy gave the orders, and everyone nodded, but Jason and Nico shared a glance that spoke volumes.

They both were doubting Percy.