Camp Half-Blood (A Percy Jackson Fanfic)

Chapter 9: Death's Door

I was in a bush. And I mean literally in a bush. Capture the flag was really different than how I thought It'd be like. Armor and swords weren't high on the list of things that I was thinking of. All of us had swords, sheilds and armor. Some of the other campers had magical items, or other kinds of specialized weapons.

Some of the Apollo kids had enchanted bows that shot jelly arrows that couldn't harm you, but they instead splattered strawberry jelly on them.

That was what I had cradled in my hands. The counselor had given it to me for a loan because I was an ok shot. And we were on the same team, so bonus for them.

Percy had Anaklusmos and Luke had his newly forged sword, fresh from the camp armory, Pyrkagiás, which meant "fire starter" in Greek. It had apparently been a childhood prank he'd played on Percy and Nico. That had, yah caused a disturbance with the wood nymphs. Who still glared at him every time he walked by.

Both Anaklusmos and Pyrkagiás had their names carved into the blunt of the blade.

I was using Luke's old sword, his way for apologizing for the fainting thing. Even though it wasn't his fault he'd been poisoned, or collapsed on me.

There was no name carved into the blunt of my sword, but Chiron and Luke assured me that when I discovered a name bat fit, then we could get it carved into the blade.

"Over here!" I heard someone hiss. I looked over to see Percy calling to someone. Muffled footsteps and harsh breathing followed. Percy was leading a group of five people. He was the blue team captain.

I loaded the first arrow. It's golden shaft almost radiated with light. The bushes were one of the few hard places to hide. I shot at the first camper.

And jelly splatted across her armor. Yes! Bullseye!

You weren't supposed to make any noise when you got shot or if you saw the "enemy" afterwards. After all, dead people couldn't reveal the enemy to you. They were just supposed to fall down and play dead. The girl did exactly that.

"Ambush!" Percy called.

I loaded the second arrow and got him too. He had a surprised look on his face when he fell, but "died" exactly as the rules called.

The remaining four campers, lost without the guidance of their leader, scrambled in the dark like flies by a trap and were easy pickings.

But where was Luke with the flag?

I heard Percy snort and say, "Knew it was you. No one could've gotten all of is that easily."

"I could have."

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I saw the girl first. She held a large dagger and a shield, and she was looking directly at me.

And step by step, she made her way into the small clearing. Her armor was completely torn and her hair was a mess, but the thing that really scared me was her eyes. Glowing red-gold and giving off an almost hardened ice quality to them. I couldn't look more than two seconds before she lunged at me, blade in hand.

Percy immediately jumped up and grabbed his sword, lying only a few feet away, and ran for the girl.

She lashed the dagger along the side of my face, the only reachable part of my body not covered by armor. And I screamed.

Where is everyone? The people I saw with Percy?

Percy ran head first into the girl like a battering ram, knocking her dagger away and leaving her weaponless.

Her once-grey now red-gold eyes pierced with anger and hatred. And she charged Percy. Kicking him over and wrestling him for his sword. By the time she got it, Percy was in fits of something, poison maybe, I couldn't see. Blood stained my vision and clouded my senses. I tried to get away, but tripped, and a sharp pain arose in my ankle.

Oh gods, please don't let it be broken.

"SHUT UP!" I heard the girl roar. "I'M TIRED OF ALWAYS HEARING YOU IN MY HEAD! GET OUT!" She grabbed at her hair and wrenched it out. I could hear it breaking from where I lay on the ground.

I struggled to move, even the slightest bit, just to reach an arrow. It'd hurt her if I used it as a dagger, and besides, she wasn't a friend anymore.

My hands scraped along the dirt, pulling me further away from her.

"You aren't going anywhere Melanie." And she plunged Anaklusmos through my armor.

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Water.
Water.
Ice cold and fire.
But fire was hot.
Wasn't it?
Maybe it was air.
Light air.
But was it heavy?
Air wasn't heavy?
I could move though.
So not heavy?

Smell?
Sweet.
Sickly sweet.
Gross sweet.
Sour?
Like lemons.
Clean like vanilla?
Mint?
I liked the smell of mint.
And vanilla.
And of water.
Ice cold water.
Like fire.
But this felt so wrong.

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"Chiron. It's been days. Maybe she won't wake up."

"No, give her more time." the second voice answered.

"We found her almost bleeding to death by the Labyrinth's entrance. Whoever dragged her body there must have escaped when they heard us coming. We all heard her scream."

"Not whoever. She." A third voice joined in.

"Then we have to go after the girl who did this. She wasn't alright in the head. She did that to Melanie!"

Oh, they were talking about me?

A cool hand touched my face. Lifted up my chin, and poured some water down my throat.

But I didn't want it. It choked me instead of helping. The liquid just dribbled down my chin.

"Her body is even rejecting nectar now." Sadness. Why was this voice sad? Who was 'her'? Was it the same one who wouldn't wake up? Or someone else? That was nectar? It just tasted like water.

Oh, me.

I tried to listen on what they were saying.

"Her parents. Her godly parent. All of her friends." A voice grieved. I imagined the figure sitting at a chair with their face in their hands.

The figure slowly grew horns and goat legs and a fuzzy little tail.

Grover?

"She won't ever be claimed." The first voice choked out. The figure slumped over a table. Holding something. A hand?

My hand felt warmer.

"She won't ever have a future. There was more she could have been than just another Demigod." The third voice said. Taking up an object in his hand. Another hand?

My dream was becoming clearer. Grover sat on a chair. Face in hands. The older voice was waking out of the room. And the other two voices were close to me. Pressure rested on both of my hands.

My hands.

They were holding my hands.

Chiron.

Grover.

Percy.

Luke.

I gasped, the voices becoming clearer.

"We can't give up on her." Luke.

"Never." Percy agreed.

Both of my hands were becoming warmer. The pressure increased. Both of them were holding my hands?

And not fighting? I laughed at the thought.

"Did you hear that?" Luke and Percy.

"Yah."

The voice on my left turned away from me to the open door. "Chiron! We heard her!"

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