Nico di Angelo, Flowers of Death

Chapter 33

Ambers POV

Four hours.

Four bloody hours of complete hell.

On the third hour all hope was gone, only a few remained, exhausted and worn out, but still standing.

We were alone,  nobody was coming to our rescue. All iris messages to camp Jupiter went un answered. Had we been cursed? Was I to blame?

There were no monsters, no scratchy voices, only half dead campers slipping into a death like state. They crumpled unpredictably.

Only about 20 of us were still standing strong when a blaze of wind whipped all of our hair back. With sword and spears at the ready for an attack, one we had been waiting for all morning.

A blur of color whipped past our faces, stopping just in front of us. Smoke floated off the ground the blur had touched. I watched as I saw a brilliant horse standing at the top of the hill. It's black main steadily landed on its neck, as if the hair wasn't as fast as the horse.

On top of the horse was a girl in roman armor. Her helmet was bent in on her right side and blood was splattered on her chest plate.  It only took me a moment to realize the girl was Hazel.

Almost as quick as the horse was, Nico bolted to his sister.  The others and I followed quickly behind him. Nico helped her off the steed and steadied her wobbly legs.

"Hazel what happened" I asked bewildered. I came and gripped onto her other arm, helping to support her with Nico.

"Camp Jupiter was attacked"

There is a moment of realization, where you fully come to terms with your mistakes. Where you can see as clear as day just how badly you had fucked up. This was that moment for me.

The plan had never been to attack camp half blood, it was camp Jupiter they wanted. Something told me whoever the voices were, they had known I would end up destroying my own camp.

"Oh gods"

My mind spun with despair, and concern. I couldn't quite grasp all of my thoughts, I felt like I was on a sugar rush or caffeine.

"Is everyone okay" Percy asked. You could tell he was truly concerned, only I felt as if he had only asked about his friends.

"Jason, Reyna and Frank are fine, minor bumps and bruises. But we lost 5 good demigods in the fight." Hazel wheezed. I saw blood dripping out a gap in her armor.

"Hazel let's get you to the big house, you need some help." She opened her mouth to argue but Nico squeezed her shoulder and she nodded.

We sat her down on the couch, a realization struck Annabeth.

"We don't have any Apollo campers but we can try our best"

She fed Hazel a square of ambrosia, then instructed her to take off her armor.

The minor wounds were healing right before our eyes. While the major ones didn't seem very effected.

"I'm frightful of giving you anymore, you could burn up. But that burn is nasty, and I'm fearful of infection"

"lavender" I piped up before thinking.

"What" asked Percy, skeptical.

"Oh, uh. Lavender is good for burns, soothing, disinfecting" I repeat. They all look at me, some skeptical, others impressed. My eyes wanders to Nico, hoping i find something in them, reassurance.

His eyes are cold, as usual, but the cold is welcomed. I know that the cold is good, it means he is here, with us and that is enough reassurance i need. If his eyes were distant, lost, shrunken i'd know he wasn't really with us, he would be in Tartuse, or some other form of hell he has imagined. But he is here, with us, with me.

I find my eyes wandering, desperately grasping for more, more of him. Taking in just the way his hair falls around his face, how his pale skin illuminates in the harsh lighting of the room, the intoxicating form of his chest bellow the black shirt.

I want to reach out, slide my fingers across his tender skin, trace his color bone, cup his cheeks, place my lips on his tender ones. But I don't. I stand in my spot, across the room, staring with longing at a boy that will never notice me the way i notice him, never long for the taste of my lips, or picture just how my skin would feel pressed against his. Suddenly something Persephone had said to me comes back, like a burning frying pan to the face.

"You're cursed you know? Cursed so you will never find love,"

"Amber"! someone harshly speaks at me. I jump slightly, forgetting where I was for a second, instead of in the big house I was back in Duncan's house. Afresh batch of cookies was being pulled out of the oven. the delicious smell radiated around me, i felt sick because of it. It was only for a second however, then i was back in Camp Half blood. Everyone was staring at me.

"oh. Yeah sorry"

"So you agree" Piper asked.

"I uh, what?"

"I asked if you thought we should send a small group of demigods to help new Rome."

I thought for a moment, under any other circumstance I would have agreed, without a second thought. But if we were to send anyone they could fall under the spell like the other campers. And if we all end up like that, who will protect our camp.

"I don't know if that's the best idea" I say, hesitant, knowing how it makes me seem to not aid Camp Jupiter in its time of need.

"So what we should just ignore what's happening"Percy snaps at me.

"What no!-" I try to explain but Percy interrupts me.

"That what you just said though"

"What I meant is that what happens when they pass out? Besides we barley have enough people to help defend our camp. When everyone is asleep who will defend out camp?" I try to make them understand.

"She is right, you know" Nico speaks finally. I'm actually surprised he took my side. I watched him walk over to stand beside me. Everyone looks at him, including his sister.

"Nico, you don' t mean that" She says. Hurt in her voice.

"Well of course he does" Says a voice from the doorway. I turn my head sharply to see who it was.

The girl was about 13 . She wore a pair of black leggings and a white shirt with a silver jacket. Her auburn hair was tightly pulled back into a ponytail. But her eyes were what really caught my attention, they were silver, with speckles of yellow. They reminded me of a cat. She was stunningly pretty, too, for a 13 year old girl that is.

Slung over her shoulder was a bow and a pack of arrows.  I felt Nico tense beside me, as if this girls presence brought back something terrible. Something he didn't want to think about. Percy looked just as starled as me before he spoke.

"Lady Artemis"

An: Short, I had writers block for this part. It's gonna get really good after this.

**** realized I messed up a few things in previously chapters, editing them now*******