cover you now ; pjo

one ; i feel the earth move

The clouds gathered when everyone was at breakfast.

Gabi sat alone at the Zeus table, her fingers buzzing with electricity as she twirled her metal fork back and forth. The summer only campers would be arriving in a few days when school let out. Every once in a while, her eyes would wander over to the Hermes table but he'd always be looking away. The daughter of Zeus tried scooping eggs into her mouth, but they tasted metallic and bitter. The ends of her hair were sticking up. A storm was coming soon.

At table 6, Stefani and Anela sat side by side, the only black and brown haired kids in a sea of blonde. They could tell something was off when the clouds didn't skirt around the edge of the valley like they usually did, but converged, dark and flat, like Hades was laying a curse on the camp. Anela, the dark haired one, was busy staring at Peter, at the Hermes table. The brunette adjusted her glasses, and looked down at the newspaper in her hands. May 10, 1980.

A soft glow hummed from Carolyn, who sat at the Apollo table with her siblings. When Ella told a joke and she laughed, the light emitting from her spiked in brightness before subsiding quickly. She couldn't shake this feeling that something was wrong. Maybe it was that dream she had last night. About... no, it couldn't possibly be about that. Her bow lay near her knee. All her siblings left theirs at the cabin.

Ben debated switching tables to sit with the only other child of the Big Three, but he stayed put. He could hear it, even from deep inland. The waves crashing heavier and heavier onto Long Island Sound. He could hear the whispers of the naiads. The rain in the sky. "Hey," he called to the Zeus table. "Do you think your dad is ma-"

Rain gushed from the sky before he could finish the sentence.

The campers looked amongst themselves, shocked. Anela was snapped out of her trance, and Chiron stepped up in front of everyone. "Stay calm, everyone! I'm sure everything will is fine-"

Lightning struck the top of halfblood hill, and demigods drew their weapons.

It was eerily quiet for minutes, and no one dare spoke.

Then, a low, almost inaudible growl.

"I could not be held forever."

And over the hill came the monsters.

••••• 16 hours earlier •••••

"Serve the damn ball, Tomes!"

"Don't you worry your pretty little head, Ollie."

Gabi concentrated. She'd been trying out new things with her powers, maybe she could do one of those new tricks to impress him. Oliver Wood. It was only a volleyball game, but she was a daughter of Zeus! It was like she was born to be competitive. She had only chosen the best of the best volleyball players from camp to play. Ben, the quiet son of Poseidon who could really pack a punch if he wanted was her center front. Although it was selfish, she was kind of happy when he was claimed two years ago after spending three years unclaimed in Cabin 12. It was nice to know she wasn't the only "illegal child", since when she was claimed the entire camp had shunned her for almost a month. She also had Lizzy from Aphrodite as her center back, Anela, Stef, and Nicole from Athena (right front, left front, and left back respectively), and Carolyn the light up Apollo kid as a sub. She wasn't very good, per se, she was a bit slow on the uptake, but she was sweet and to be honest, Gabi had kind of adopted her when she came to camp. She tended to do that.
Zeus's daughter prepped herself to serve. She counted down from three in her head and then pushed herself off the ground, flying up a few feet and sending the ball sailing over the net. Peter Kavinski, a Hermes kid, caught it before it hit the ground, but the spectacle was enough.

"Hey! No flying! We talked about this last week!"

Gabi grinned. Mission accomplished.

•••••

"What. The. Fuck."

Rain poured down on the campers heads. Wind howled. Everyone held their weapons steadily as the monsters came closer and closer, and those who didn't bring their weapons held celestial bronze butter knives out like a dagger, and held up plates like a shield.

"How did they get past the border?" Bailey Miller from Demeter asked.

Lightning flashed, briefly lighting up Chiron's face. His brow was creased, and he had his arms on the shoulders of the youngest campers, a seven and eight year old. "I have no idea."

"Hold your positions! They're almost here!" A girl holding a butter knife shouted over the wind.

"What was that voice?" the girl next to Gabi whispered. She racked her brain to remember the girls name. Natalia.

The daughter of Zeus held up her dagger, which sparked with electricity. She was energized from the storm.

"We'll find out soon enough. I have no doubt in my mind that whoever that voice belonged to also sent our friends here."

"They're only 10 yards away! Try to take down as many as you can, but don't put yourself in danger unless you have to. Protect the younger campers above all," Head Athena counselor Persephone Litchfield cried, her voice shaking. The camp hadn't even attacked in five years.

The rain continued to pour, but it made no sound. It was quiet. Too quiet. The silence was tangible. Some campers lowered their weapons.

Someone screamed as a hellhound leapt out of the darkness.

And the battle began.