A Demigod Tale

Chapter 4: The First Day

Jordan took his seat at the Apollo table. As he looked at everyone else sitting with him, he realized they were all his half-siblings. Then it dawned on him that Issac, Bethany, and Ceirra were only half-siblings as well, not full siblings. He was a bit saddened by this, but pushed it aside.

After breakfast Jake grabbed his arm and began dragging him somewhere. "Whoa, man! Where are we going?" Jordan asked.

"To the archery range! If you're a child of Apollo you've got to be good with a bow!" Jake said excitedly. He seemed to be excited a lot of the time.

Jake kept dragging Jordan until they arrived at the range. Jake lead Jordan over to a table littered with bows of many different styles and sizes. "We need to find the right bow for you. Try this one!" Jake said, shoving a bow into Jordan's hands. It was just slightly shorter than Jordan, which was still pretty long.

Jake helped Jordan load the bow and demonstrated how to fire it. Jordan copied him. The arrow sailed way  above the target, nearly hitting a satyr relaxing in a tree. Jordan winced and shouted, "Sorry!"

Jake took the bow away and gave Jordan a different one. This one was about half as tall as Jordan. Jordan missed again. This time the arrow didn't make it far enough and fell about three inches from the target. The cycle continued, Jake handing Jordan a bow and Jordan failing to hit the target. At last Jake handed Jordan the right bow. It was just slightly longer than half his height, and was made from a reddish-brown wood. Jordan loaded it and fired, hitting just outside a bulls-eye.

"Woo-hoo! We found it! Great shot, man! With a little practice you'll be hitting bulls-eyes in no time!" Jake shouted. He then proceed to do a dance of triumph, making Jordan laugh. Jordan joined in, both of them dancing terribly and cracking up.

Next Jake dragged Jordan over to close combat training. "Alright, we better find you a good sword or something in case you're ever caught without your bow. I asked one of the other Apollo campers to put your bow on your bed, by the way. Anyway, a knife might be best. It's easy to conceal and more portable than a sword. "

Jake brought Jordan over to a table littered with knives. Jordan shivered, not really wanting to pick one up. However, before he could object, Jake put a knife in his hand.

It was a standard double-bladed  Celestial Bronze knife, nothing fancy. The only notable thing was the single ruby right at the bottom of the handle. Jordan felt weird holding it, and found it difficult to stop looking at it. He didn't like how he felt while he was holding it, so he threw it. He threw it at a nearby tree, in which the knife embedded itself. The wood nymphs weren't to happy about that, and shot Jordan some dirty looks.

"Um, why did you throw it? I mean, good aim and all, you didn't accidentally throw it into someone, but why?" Jake asked, really confused.

"I don't know. It was kinda freaking me out. I didn't like how it felt in my hand."

"Why? Did it feel uncomfortable?"

"Yeah. Kinda. I guess. I mean, it fit in my hand fine. It just felt wrong."

"Well, if it fits then maybe it's the right weapon. I mean, you apparently know how to throw it, probably related to how you're pretty good at archery,  but if you don't like holding it it can be a last resort, okay?"

Jordan hesitated. " Yeah, sure," he said finally, still a bit uncomfortable with the idea of using the knife. Jake took it out of the tree and put it in a scabbard. He put the scabbard on a belt which he then gave to Jordan. "Thanks," Jordan said. He put on the belt and made sure to keep his hand as far away from the knife as he could.

The rest of the day was filled with random fun activities. Jordan went canoeing, attempted to play volleyball and failed, talked to some of the other campers, and pretty much exhausted himself. When he got back to the cabin he put on his pajamas, put the belt and his bow at the foot of his bed, and fell asleep.

He dreamt he was in the Big House again. This time, along with Chiron, Percy, and Annabeth, they're was a satyr.

"What do you think, Grover?" Percy asked, addressing the satyr.

"I don't think it's possible. Even surrounded by five mortals we should've been able to find him. It doesn't make sense!" Grover responded. Chiron sighed in frustration.

"Perhaps Apollo would know. He is his father, and the god of prophesy and knowledge," Grover suggested. 

"Hm. Perhaps so, Grover. However, it would be very difficult to ask him." Chiron said. Chiron, Annabeth, and Grover became silent, each deep in thought. Percy, however, seemed distracted. His eyes wandered all around the room, and for one moment Jordan thought Percy could see him.

The dream dissolved and Jordan bolted awake. It was still night. He quietly got up and walked over to the window nearest to him. He looked out at the camp, wondering why he was having these dreams and if he should tell someone about them.