A Prophecy of Two Boys

Chapter 60

Chapter 60

Camp Half-Blood

Everything at camp had changed in the short week since Thalia's tree had been poisoned. The barriers had been noticeably weakening with every day as more and more monsters were able to breach them. Unfortunately, these weren't your everyday monsters like wind spirits or telekhines - they couldn't breach the barriers quite yet. No, it was the larger scale monsters - Cyclopes, Laestrygonians and Hellhounds. The older campers were run ragged just trying to protect their younger siblings who couldn't hold their own in a fight yet.

Mr D was as useless as ever, suggesting that if all the kids just got themselves killed he would be free from his punishment. Chiron had tried arguing with him, and pleading to the gods for some help, but the gods did what they do best in a crisis - ignored the desperate pleas of those who still honoured them. To make the situation worse suspicion was thrown upon Chiron for poisoning Thalia's tree due to his connection to the Titans, who were rumoured to be rising after Harry and Percy's quest last summer.

Zeus ordered Mr D to find a replacement for Chiron ASAP and then get rid of their old hero trainer. Better to be safe than sorry.

Of course, this did very little indeed to calm the couple of hundred worried kids in Mr D's unloving care. Their trainer - and the one responsible adult in charge at camp - was being kicked out and they were to be left at Mr D's tender mercy? Hardly the best situation. And knowing their oh-so-caring director, they could bet their new trainer wasn't going to be a particularly pleasant character either.

Leo mused over this as he lay in bed, too tired to change out of his clothes from that day. He'd only need to redress in a few hours anyway. Why waste the energy? The gentle hum of machines around him slowly lulled him into a daze, drifting on the edge of consciousness, but proper sleep evaded him for a while longer.

Leo was woken after a few hours of patchy sleep by his oldest brother Beckendorf, calling him for the early morning patrol. Clarisse was already waiting outside when he appeared fully armed from Cabin 9 five minutes later, still rubbing sleep from his eyes.

The borders were deathly silent as they patrolled them; not even the birds sang to herald the dawn. Something was wrong. Well, Leo supposed, it couldn't get worse right? The back of his neck prickled, like he was being watched, and Leo spun round, only to let out a quiet sigh of relief a moment later.

"Leo!" Harry and Percy called from within the rainbow tinted Iris Message, confused by his whereabouts at such a time in the morning. "What are you doing?"

Leo smiled tightly, relief plain on his face, especially at the sight of Luna and Annabeth beside Percy and Harry. After months and months of his friends trapped in a frozen state after an attack it was great to see them. "Percy, Harry - and Luna and Annabeth! It's great to see you again. We're patrolling the boundary. The border can't protect us anymore, so we have to do it ourselves."

"What are you talking about?" Annabeth looked horrified, disbelief ringing clear in their voice as she shook her head. "Thalia's tree protects the camp though."

Beckendorf and Clarisse noticed their friends in the Iris Message, recognising the familiar and friendly voices. Almost identical looks of guilt and sadness spread across their faces as they looked at Annabeth and Luna, understanding her close bond with the girl in the tree. "Thalia's tree... someone poisoned it. Annabeth, Luna... Thalia's tree is dying."

Annabeth recoiled at Clarisse's words, her sharp eyes misting over as Luna was forced to take control, despite her mental state being no better than her sister's. Their voice shook with shock and fear as Luna begged with her eyes for the joke to stop.