Prince of the Seas, Lord of the Eclipse (Discontinued)

Chapter 15

I paced back and forth. The sand of the arena crunching under my leather boots. Luke entered and I looked at him. "You're late."

"You're early, mi'Lord," he grinned. He knew I hated that Lord shit.

I rolled my eyes at him. "Let's get started." We progressed through several new techniques. He was good. Easily the best swordsman on his generation. He had taught the campers before I got here and it was enough to get them by, but he wasn't challenged. Now, he was facing a god, one with millennia spent as a demigod fighting to survive.

And he could hold his own longer than some gods. That spoke volumes in my book. It was the reason I made him my apprentice. We stopped for a short break. "Uh...look....Perseus...wow I still won't get used to calling you by a normal name without Lord in front of it. I want to know why you wanted to train me personally. You said it was because you thought I would be a key to our winning, but I don't think that's what you really did it for."

I looked at him. He's not dumb. Maybe not a child of Athena, but the kid really isn't dumb. "You're right. While I do believe you will be essential to us winning, I didn't do this for us gods. I did this for you. As you know, I'm the balance of my brother and sister. Meaning I have sporadic access to their powers...during the eclipses'. When I was a demigod, I got dreams just like yours. But those dreams can be changed, altered or tampered with. During an eclipse, I saw this time. I saw two paths and you were standing there.

"On one side I saw a girl with black hair, a girl with blonde hair and you having a nice life. On the other, I saw you holding their dead bodies while Kronos laughed in the background, a leash connected to a collar at your neck.

"I'm no god of wisdom, but it doesn't take a demigod much to eventually add one plus one. So when I finally met you, I made my decision. I knew you could turn against us and kill us all. But I took a chance. By that point I knew of Thalia and I knew killing you in front of everyone wouldn't help anything. So, I did what I could to make sure you didn't become bitter and make a bad decision."

Luke looked at me, stunned. "You could have killed me and prevented all sorts of issues but you didn't. You aren't like your father at all. I...thanks. And for what its worth...I'd rather make you proud than my own dad."

I snorted, "Luke. I've talked with Hermes. You've already made him proud. You defied all odds and survived on your own with two other demigods for a year, one of which was s daughter of Zeus who was being hunted. You made it to camp and quickly became cabin leader and taught swordsmanship. Then out of all the kids here, I chose you, his son, to personally train and said that you would be a pivotal component to our survival. Trust me, Hermes is more than proud of you.

"I doubt any other child of his has made him this proud. And what you guys can't understand, and it isn't your faults, is that despite not being able to see any of you on a regular basis...all the gods love their children far more than you guys believe. Its just hard for them to show it. Its why they let me stay here instead of Dionysus. They knew I could protect you, with all my godly powers. I could fight while they can't."

He grinned. "I never knew. I didn't think about that. Well...could you tell him...tell my dad thanks."

I grinned, my eyes locked behind Luke. "Why don't you tell him yourself?" I ask, and walk away.

"Wha–" he started, turning around. "Dad," I heard him whisper as I left the arena. That would probably be the best talk of his life up to date. No need to be the awkward bystander.

"You make great speeches."

I rolled my eyes and looked at my sister. "What, come to spy on your older brother and your boyfriend?" I ask, grinning and wiggling my eyebrows.

"What?! No!" she yells, her face lighting up in a blush that was hard to miss.

"Uh huh...sure. You know, if you were jealous of me taking time away from you and him or you and me, all you had to do is say something."

A fist hit my stomach and I winced. If I were a demigod, I'd have been hunched over in pain. As it was, I still felt it. "Watch what you're swinging at there, sis. Any lower and you'd have to explain to your best friend why she wouldn't ever be able to have children," I joke.

If it was possible, her blush deepened and she choked out, "Why would you say that?! She's like my little sister! You are such a bad influence." I just grinned as we continued to walk.