I open my eyes, coughing and gagging. I roll to my side and begin to vomit. Blood flows out like water. I try to stand, but my body is frail and my vision is a blurred mess. I begin to steady myself by gripping the pine tree.
"Shit… what happened?"
I look at the sky. It's dawning. Observing more closely, I see what appear to be strawberry fields.
I don't get it. At the hospital, that brief conversation took an entire day… but this one, which was much longer, felt like only seconds passed here. Is time faster there? Or slower? Go figure.
I start walking, and the system begins to beep.
[HIDDEN MISSION COMPLETE: REACH CAMP HALF-BLOOD ALIVE]
[WARNING: BODY IN COLLAPSE. SYSTEM RECOMMENDS IMMEDIATE REST...]
"Piece of shit… now you talk to me, you son of a—"
I don't finish. My legs give out on their own. I feel something warm leaking from me. Looking down, I see my blood. Dammit, I'm going to die if I keep this up.
[HOST HAS EXCEEDED BODY LIMITS. HOST IN CRITICAL STATE. ONE MINUTE UNTIL UNCONSCIOUSNESS. 59… 58… 57…]
I get up. I'm weak, so weak. I need to do something. I look to the side. There are several trees with very strong vitality, but one is different. It's the same feeling that makes me awake. I start walking toward it. Reaching it, my body practically gives way and I embrace it, trying not to fall. 10 seconds left, but my instincts don't lie. This might be the biggest stupidity of my life.
I release my divine power into it. Not attacking. I just let it flow straight into its roots. My nose and ears start gushing blood. My vision turns red. My body feels like it's shattering like glass.
"No matter how… help me…"
I only hear a bitter voice before blacking out.
"How bold…."
(POV: Adrasteia)
A demigod faints and wakes up in seconds—something unexpected. So much blood, how is he not dead yet? He begins to walk in my direction; coming close, he clings to me and pours out not just his power, but his vitality, and begs for help.
"How bold… yet brave."
I speak, already emerging from my dwelling and taking him into my arms. A few brats begin to approach.
"Do not interfere. I will look after him. Return to your lives."
How many centuries has it been since a demigod made me feel excited? I hold him, wrapping him close to my chest. I hold him firmly.
To avoid hurting these youngsters, I must be careful. In a blur of wind, I am already in front of the Big House.
Chiron is already waiting for me. He bows. I do as well. A sign of respect between us.
"My Lady, your visit is quite unexpected."
He speaks, already looking at the boy.
"Yes, a lovely surprise. Take good care of this child. He is a bold seed, but a strong one."
I say, handing the child to him, who holds him with care. Who would have thought fate would play such a trick on an old soul like me?
"Tell him my name is Adrasteia."
I speak before returning to my grove.
(POV Chiron)
An ancient dryad, a Meliae no less, bringing a child bleeding as if he were an infant. Looking at the frightened campers—it's normal, given she is an ancient being. But when she praised him and asked to reveal her name, a chill took hold of me. This can only mean this child is important, or a prophecy that will bring a massive shift to fate. I looked at the child:
"Call Lee Fletcher, tell him it's urgent."
I turned to carry him, but a light above, so intense it made the grass around my hooves grow in seconds, flared up. By the gods! I looked up: it was a sickle made of wheat stalks, glowing in an emerald green.
I leaned down so as not to harm the child, and the campers knelt, following the usual formality:
"Hail, son of Demeter, Lady of the Harvests and the Arable Earth."
The hologram vanished.
"Vittoria, call Lee Fletcher, tell him it's urgent. Alert counselor Katie or Miranda Gardiner, tell them I need to speak with them."
I began taking the child to the infirmary.
(POV Caleb)
Everything was dark, my body ached, but amidst the pain, I felt a warm sensation. I couldn't open my eyes. My hearing returned like a whistle, making my body recoil and causing even more pain.
"Vittoria, help me heal him. Kayla, get the damp cloth. Naomi, bring the nectar, we need to be quick."
"Lee, this kid is crazy... how is he still alive?"
"Doesn't matter, just concentrate. If he dies, we might suffer the wrath of a goddess."
The voices sounded like whistles to me. Shit... I think I overdid it, I can't even open my eyes.
"Open his mouth gently,Vittoria. Kayla, start the healing incantations."
I felt warm hands on my neck and mouth. I tried to help, opening my mouth, but my jaw felt stuck.
"You don't need to try and help, just keep your body relaxed."
The voice was pleasant, it sounded feminine. I obeyed and relaxed. She opened my mouth and a liquid, which tasted like a lemon milkshake, went down. Soon I heard a different kind of music, like a sedative. The pain began to stop, my body went numb, sleep took me... and I let it.
When I woke up, I was standing among tall trees. The wind blew softly. In the middle of the clearing, a large man with broad shoulders held a golden axe with root designs. It was my axe.
As if waiting for me, he began to move in silence: knees bent, body low, moving forward, backward, to the sides. What looked like the Leviathan wasn't on his shoulder, but in front of him, like a shield.
Then the man spun the axe in circles, drawing an "8". While spinning, he seemed to trace the same symbol on the ground, in sync with his hand.
I stood watching. He repeated it, slowly, then fast. He seemed to want to teach me. I don't know how much time passed, but I memorized everything. Was this the reward from the system's hidden mission? I didn't know, but I wasn't going to waste time. He wanted to teach me, and I wanted to learn. Days passed there, watching him repeat and repeat, until the training was etched into my mind. I blinked... and saw a wooden ceiling.
It was dark and silent; it must have been night or early morning. I looked around: it looked like a rustic wooden house. There was a small table with a plastic cup and a straw, containing a golden liquid. A row of empty beds, separated by white curtains. The silence was only broken by the sound of owls and crickets, along with the smell of strawberries. I started to sit up. My body only had a slight ache, nothing major.
I noticed I was wearing white pajamas. I looked at my wrist: my bracelet was still there—good. This silence... some might find it disturbing, but I felt at peace. I looked ahead and saw the system interface:
[REWARDS DELIVERED: TRAINING MANUAL — ELEUSIS DISCIPLINE]
It was exactly what I had memorized in the dream.
[YES, THIS IS THE BEGINNER LEVEL. ONCE YOU LEARN AND PERFECT IT, A NEW LEVEL WILL BE UNLOCKED.]
[STATUS PANEL]
NAME: Caleb Thorne
AGE: 11 years
DIVINE PARENT: Demeter (Claimed)
CURRENT RANK: D (21)
HP: 150/150
STAMINA: 80/80
STRENGTH: E (14/20)
SPEED / REFLEXES: E (12/20)
ENDURANCE: E (20/20)
INTELLIGENCE / PERCEPTION: D (22/60)
DIVINE POWER: D (30/60)
"Huh, 'claimed'? What changed, system? Why is it 'claimed'? What changed?"
[NOW YOU HAVE A MOTHER]
"Son of a bitch... nothing like a strength boost or some ability, you know?"
[NO, YOU ARE JUST A MOMMA'S BOY]
"This piece of shit... one moment you're cold, the next you're mocking me. You hate me, don't you? Just say it."
[NO ( ￣ー￣)]
I started to sit on the bed, put my foot on the floor. I might be at full health, but I'm sore all over. I stand up, give a stretch, hearing my bones crack. Curious, I lift my shirt, seeing my belly marked by a scar that looks like claws, but with very fine roots. Man, lucky it's not a hole; my power did a great job, it looks pretty cool.
"You should be proud, child. Not everyone survives an ambush. That scar is a trophy," I heard a voice in the corner of the room. A man stepped out, skin tanned by the sun, curly brown hair, short beard. Honey-colored eyes. He wears a polo shirt and is in a wheelchair, with a wool blanket over his legs.
"Yeah, the bitch almost killed me and killed my friend, but well, she must be in hell now," I said, already sitting back on the bed.
"So this place is the camp."
"Yes, you are at Camp Half-Blood. The only safe place for children like you. I am sorry about your friend."
"Caleb Thorne. You can call me Caleb. So the tree friend helped me."
He stared at me and began massaging his forehead.
"Caleb, you've barely arrived and I already see you're going to give me a headache. You may call me Chiron."
The Chiron from the movie is different. I already suspected because of the wheelchair. I think this isn't the movie universe; it must be the books. Shit, I'm screwed. I don't know anything about the books or the series, and worse, the movie was really funny.
"She told me to let you know: her name is Adrasteia. And please, do not call her a tree. She is a dryad and an Elder. They have existed long before civilizations. Do not speak with disrespect."
"Alright, Adrasteia. Great name. I'll thank her later."
Adrasteia reminds me of a game about a certain Spartan woman. Cool. Wait, this is Greek mythology, right? I wonder if she ever existed here? No, different universes.
"By the gods, do you know the Greek gods you heard about in school?"
"Of course I do."
He placed his hands on the wool blanket.
"They are not legends. They are alive. They adapt as civilization changes. Now, the center of it all is here, in the United States. You are a demigod. That means one of your parents is human and the other is a god. The fact that you have ADHD and dyslexia isn't a defect; they are combat reflexes and a mind hardwired to read Ancient Greek. The world out there is dangerous because monsters can catch your scent. The more you grow and discover who you are, the stronger that scent becomes."
"Well, I kind of knew that already. I mean, monsters hunting me isn't that much of a surprise if gods exist. But is this camp special? The giant that was chasing me went flying…"
"This camp exists for one single reason: to train you to defend yourselves. Without it, you wouldn't last very long alone. Inside here, it is safe because of the magical barrier that monsters cannot cross."
"Well, excuse me, but why leave here if we're safe? Sure, I'll go out and explore the world. I think. But there must be small kids? Honestly, after almost dying, I don't know who made this camp, but I'm grateful. There must be many kids younger than me being hunted right now, and knowing there's a safe place, whether they want it or not, is a form of hope for them."
I must have sounded like an idiot, but thinking about it, nobody probably has a system like me. And this world must be huge. How many kids must be suffering or afraid of monsters? And knowing they die… I might be an idiot, but it makes me angry. In my old life, I lived comfortably but didn't have attention, since my mother died and my father was very busy. I just lived on the computer. Also, those son-of-a-bitch monsters remind me of IT.
I looked at him, and he was staring at me. I stared back. We stayed like that for a few seconds.
"You know, this is kind of weird. You looking like that… you know, if you look at a kid like that, they can arrest you."
This guy really is crazy.
With a dry laugh, he shook his head.
"Well, forgive me. It's not every day one sees an 11-year-old being philosophical. But you were very injured; you practically spent the whole day here. It's already 5 in the morning."
"Well, I read a lot. Can you tell me today's date? You know, after so much running I got lost."
"No problem. It is September 23, 2004. Come, son, let's go meet Mr. D and I'll take you to your cabin. we set aside some clothes for you there, since, well… your old ones weren't in the best condition."
"Alright, but where is the director?"
"Follow me. And no jokes, I don't want him turning you into a dolphin."
"Alright," I said, following him.
Accompanying Chiron, who went ahead in the wheelchair. The hallway was all dark wood. The walls had some pictures of guys in togas I've never seen in my life.
We reached a staircase and he went down with the wheelchair as if it were magic. I thought it was cool. But in the movie, he's a centaur. Downstairs, the house looked even older. We passed a room that had a card table, a popcorn machine, and a very old TV in a corner.
What made me curious was a stuffed leopard head hanging over a giant stone fireplace. It looks like it's watching me. We passed an open door that looked like an office full of bookshelves up to the ceiling and leather maps on a dark wooden desk. Chiron stopped in front of a glass door that led to a huge porch that surrounded the whole house.
"The director is out there."
We went out onto the porch. It's still dark. Sitting at a wicker table was a short, fat man with a very red nose. He wore a tiger-skin shirt and was playing cards by himself. Next to him, there was a silver can with red letters that said Diet Coke. Is this guy really a god? It doesn't look like it.