Looking at the wood of the structure, which was covered in teeth marks and cracks, I cracked a smile. I glanced at Drew, who was already heading out to grab the hay, and touched the wood without channeling my power yet.
I closed my eyes; I wanted to feel the structure of the wood, but that wasn't all. Through my Seismic Sense, I felt someone watching me from the woods. My sense had improved, I guess, since I could perfectly feel everything around me.
"I opened my eyes, looking directly her way." I could hear Drew breathing heavily as she dropped two bales of hay onto the ground. She threw me a terrified look and bolted back to fetch some more.
"You know, I don't really appreciate being spied on."
I felt the person take a step back, but she stayed put. Raising an eyebrow, I held up my hands. Within seconds, roots erupted from the ground at high speed. Judging by the high-pitched shriek, it had to be a girl. The roots tangled around her, trapping her completely.
"Wait!" she said, her voice laced with panic.
I stood there and clenched my fist, locking her down for good. I walked over to the flora that was covered in flowers—a solid hiding spot. I looked at the girl and saw it was Annabeth, flushing a bright pink with embarrassment as she tried to break free from the roots.
"Seriously? You're gonna spy on me in an area that's literally nothing but plants? Ya know, I'm a son of Demeter."
Her expression shifted from embarrassment to pure rage on the spot, but then she turned serious, catching me off guard.
"What's going on?" Drew asked, already heading over to us.
Stopping by my side and seeing Annabeth trapped, Drew let out a mocking sneer. It was like seeing Annabeth like that was an absolute treat for her.
"Well, well... The know-it-all, Luke's little protégé, spying on Caleb Thorne, the psycho? I wonder what Luke is going to think about this."
Surprised by the sheer audacity of this girl, I stared at her. But out of the corner of my eye, I saw Annabeth's face twist from red into pure, unadulterated fury.
"You wouldn't dare!" Annabeth snapped, making Drew smirk even wider.
With a sigh, I released the girl and the roots fell to the dirt. I turned to Drew and grabbed her arm.
"What do you want from me? Let's talk," Drew questioned, confused.
"No, no breaks. Go get the hay. The Pegasi should be coming back soon, and it's almost lunchtime."
I answered her, and she let out a frustrated shriek, yanking her arm back. I walked into the stable and, with a sigh, pressed my hand against the wall, feeling the wood. I channeled my divine power, tapping into my wood manipulation, and opened my eyes.
My divine power penetrated the dry fibers of the broken, scratched-up parts and the horse bites. Blood started to trickle from my nose. This was hard; it felt like I was sinking. That was when my power began to bleed through my hands.
The emerald energy pulsed through the wood like a heartbeat. My body started to shake, and my head felt like it was going to explode from the pain. Blood gushed from my nose, completely blurring my vision.
But the scratches, the holes, and the damage from the horse bites began to regenerate right before my eyes. The wood fibers stretched, intertwining and fusing all on their own, stitching up every crack as if the wall were healing a wound.
I let go of the wall and took a few steps back. My head was pounding violently. I closed my eyes for a few seconds, wiped the blood from my mouth and nose, and when I opened them again, I already saw the system alert floating there:
[ALERT: (-25 STAMINA)]
I don't know if it's because the camp is blessed by the gods, or because the nature here practically belongs to my mother, but I'm recovering fast. And in the fight I had earlier, I also had way more control over my power.
"Are you okay? You really are a psycho," I heard Drew say, her tone turning melodic.
I just pulled myself up and, using the hoe, started clearing the spiderwebs from the ceiling, since the wood now looked brand new.
"Start lining the floor with the hay," I ordered.
Drew then began to spread the hay across the ground with more care than I thought she was capable of.
"How did you do that?" I heard Annabeth ask from a distance.
"You're still here? Don't even waste your breath, I'm not answering you," I replied, without even turning around.
A few minutes passed in an uncomfortable silence, until I heard the sound of flapping wings. Brushing away the last spiderweb, I turned around. To my surprise, Drew was already standing there, finishing up spreading the last bit of hay.
The Pegasus that had stared me down landed next. Seeing the clean stable, he actually looked impressed. His white coat was radiant. The other winged horses began to arrive right behind him, neighing to one another.
"We're done. We're leaving," I told the lead stallion, who just nodded his head.
Then I set off, walking out of there and completely ignoring both girls.
"You should have gone easier on the Ares kids," I heard Annabeth call out from behind.
Without turning around, I just flipped her the bird as I kept walking.
"You're dangerous and cruel, I don't trust you. And I'll be watching your every move," Annabeth said, her voice sounding dead cold.
"Thanks for the compliment," I replied, now holding up both hands, giving her a double middle finger in the air.
I began to walk briskly toward my cabin. I am starving.
My stomach growled, bringing me to a sudden halt. I turned around, catching the girls off guard, and walked back toward the dryad's tree. Annabeth, flushed and furious, watched me closely. Drew, already guessing what I was about to do, just stood there.
"Hey, beautiful, could you give me my stuff back, please?" I asked calmly, tapping my hand against the tree bark.
I didn't channel any divine power, but as if the bark were a door, she stepped out from inside, holding my brush, my toothpaste, and my towel. I took everything with a smile, "Thanks for the help."
I gently patted her head as I spoke. The dryad's cheeks flushed pink, and without a word, she melted back into her tree. With a smirk, I completely ignored Annabeth, whose brain was still processing what had just happened. But I froze when I spotted Lucas sprinting toward us, wheezing and drenched in sweat.
"Caleb..." Lucas panted, completely out of breath.
I walked over to him, clapping him on the back.
"Take a breath and slow down. What happened?" I asked.
"Big House... Go... Chiron said... Call you."
Letting out a sigh, I tried to calm him down.
"Chill out, just breathe first," I said, giving him a few more pats on the back.
He took a slow, deep breath. A few seconds passed, and Annabeth and Drew stepped up to my side.
"DREW!" a voice shouted.
I recognized the counselor of the Aphrodite cabin. Looking over, I saw Silena walking slowly toward us with a cold expression. A heavy scent of strawberries drifted in with her.
"Come on, Chiron called for us. Everyone already knows about your little game with the Ares kids, and as for you..." Her blue eyes turned to me with icy contempt. I just raised an eyebrow. "I hope you get expelled."
"Caleb, Chiron is calling you because of what you did to the Cabin 5 guys," Lucas chimed in, turning red the second he saw Silena, who completely ignored him.
"Let's move, Lucas," I said, walking away and ignoring all of them.
Annabeth followed, observing my every move. Silena and Drew started whispering right behind us. As we walked through the camp, I noticed the other campers looking at me with fear, and even a few satyrs steered clear of my path. Reaching the Big House, I could already hear familiar voices shouting inside, so I picked up the pace.
"A FIGHT? THAT WAS MUTILATION! MY BROTHER ALMOST DIED, AND WORSE, HE LEFT HIM BLEEDING IN THE CREEK!" Clarisse screamed.
"STOP PLAYING THE VICTIM! IF YOUR BROTHERS WERE DOING THEIR CHORES INSTEAD OF AMBUSHING A ROOKIE SERVING PUNISHMENT, NONE OF THIS WOULD HAVE HAPPENED! AND EVERYONE HERE KNOWS YOUR CABIN'S REPUTATION!" Katie yelled back, nearly out of breath.
"VICTIM? WE'LL SEE WHO THE VICTIM IS HERE, FARM GIRL!" Clarisse snapped.
I stepped into the room and saw Mr. D playing cards with a bored look, a blond man covered in eyes all over his body, and Chiron standing right in front of Clarisse and Katie.
"Careful there, farm girls lift a lot of weight," I interjected, making both of them glare at me with pure rage, which actually surprised me.
"You little piece of shit... I swear I'm gonna avenge my brothers!" Clarisse spun around to face me.
"No vengeance. Let us lower our voices and have a civilized conversation," Chiron reprimanded.
"Or we could just turn everyone into dolphins. Or orchids," Mr. D grumbled.
His words made the air grow thick, and a sharp scent of sour grapes took over the room. Everyone went dead silent. Katie walked over to me, grabbing my arm and pulling me to her side.
"Now, we may proceed. We have a complaint from Cabin 5. Dave is currently unconscious in the infirmary, but Michael, along with Lucius and Diogo—your brothers, Miss La Rue—have filed a complaint against Cabin 4 and Cabin 10," Chiron spoke slowly, politely, looking each of us dead in the eye. Seeing the silence, he continued:
"Michael informed us that you, Miss Tanaka, used charmspeak on Dave, forcing him to ambush Mr. Thorne."
Drew turned pale on the spot. Chiron shifted his gaze back to me.
"And you, Mr. Thorne, used unnecessary violence, leaving them trapped to die. So we are here to clear up any doubts, and I want the truth. Only the truth."
As he finished speaking, a chill ran down my spine. I felt my muscles stiffen, making me shudder slightly. Not just me—Clarisse seemed to be breaking out in a cold sweat too. I looked at the rest of the people, and they seemed completely normal. What the hell was that?
"Mr. Thorne, please, your side of the story," Chiron requested. I cleared my throat.
"Well, I was cleaning the stables, and to actually get it clean, I went to fetch water with Drew. The first trip was fine, but when we came back, Dave and his brothers were waiting there, threatening me. He attacked me, I knocked him out, and, well... he had this pink glow in his eyes when I dropped him and he passed out," I said calmly, making Clarisse grind her teeth.
"You bastard!" Clarisse barked, furious.
"Miss Tanaka, I expect the truth," Chiron demanded, making Drew tremble.
"If she lies, I'll cut her off," Silena said, looking extremely serious.
"I just wanted to scare Caleb, I didn't think he would almost kill Dave! I take some of the blame, but... but Caleb went psycho and tried to murder them!" tears began to stream from her eyes.
I glanced at Silena, who remained dead silent, making me raise an eyebrow.
"Mr. Thorne, why didn't you help them or at least inform someone to take them to the infirmary?" Chiron asked me.
"Why should I? I was serving my punishment in peace. Drew, along with them, set up an ambush for me. I just defended myself."
Chiron looked deep into my eyes.
"I see," Chiron said. His expression was calm, but I felt a sting of disappointment radiating from him, as if I were some kind of bitter memory.
"Drew Tanaka, you are found guilty of Mind Manipulation. Your punishment for using mind-control magic to make allies beat each other up is considered high treason against the peace of this camp. Your sentence will be extended by two years. You will be confined to your cabin, only allowed to leave for hygiene purposes and to complete your cleaning duties."
Chiron spoke with a firm voice, leaving Drew in total shock. She snapped her mouth shut under Chiron's severe glare. He then turned to Clarisse.
"Dave is in the infirmary, but his actions are your responsibility, Miss La Rue. And the punishment for Cabin 5 as a whole will be a loss of camp points, along with a ban from the upcoming swordplay drills. Furthermore, you will all take on extra, humiliating kitchen duties to pay for the shame you've brought."
Clarisse stayed quiet, but when she turned her face toward me, I could see the unbridled rage in her eyes. I shifted my gaze back to Chiron, who was staring right at me.
"As for you, Mr. Thorne... Dave did attempt to assault you. However, intentionally breaking an ally's leg with thorns and leaving them to die violates the most sacred rule of unity in our camp. Your punishment: this is no longer just a chore; you will lose all roaming privileges. From this moment on, you will be watched by a satyr, and you are only allowed to go directly from Cabin 4 to your punishment under this escort. And consider not mutilating anyone else. Of course, you may take care of your personal hygiene, but you are strictly forbidden from training alone. You have lost that right."
I kept staring at Chiron, who just watched me back in silence.
"One question... Can we go out at night? Ya know, when it's bedtime?"
Chiron raised an eyebrow.
"I wouldn't recommend it, Mr. Thorne. At night, monsters are permitted to eat campers who are out of bounds. I expect you to stay in your cabin; otherwise, we won't be able to help you."
I nodded. Chiron looked around at all of us.
"Please, you are dismissed, and I hope we do not have these arguments again."
Katie grabbed my arm along with Lucas's, and we began to leave.
"Honestly, Caleb, I don't know why you're acting like this. Couldn't you just knock them out or trap them? You're skilled and smart, stop acting like a psycho," Katie scolded me.
I stayed silent, just walking back to the cabin under the glares of all the other campers... but where was Annabeth?
We made it back to the cabin. Aside from me, only Katie and Lucas were there. Lucas was already on his way out, but as he left, he threw me a terrified look, trembling slightly. I sat on my bunk in silence with Katie standing right in front of me.
"What is your problem? Just tell me why you always have to cause all this chaos," Katie asked, which actually made me feel a bit ticked off.
"Are you serious? Should I have just stood there and let them beat the crap out of me? And honestly, I didn't kill them—I just didn't want to help," I shot back, making her look at me with a wave of subtle sadness.
"You're eleven years old and you already have that kind of mindset, Caleb. Please, it didn't need to go that far. If it weren't for the satyrs, Dave could have died, and the blame would be entirely on you," Katie said, staring deep into my eyes. "And it doesn't matter what excuse you use, nobody's going to accept it. Didn't you see the reactions out there? Lucas, your own brother, is terrified of you—and the guy is twelve."
I stood there, clenching my fists. Just as I was about to open my mouth, she pressed her finger against my lips, signaling for me to shut up.
"Listen first. Most of the kids here already have enough problems with their divine father or mother... Most of them have nowhere else to go, and nobody wants to get devoured by monsters." Katie grabbed a thick book and set it down next to me. "A satyr is going to bring your lunch since you weren't here for breakfast. Read it. Learn. I don't want excuses; I want you to get better. I'm heading out to the fields with our siblings. No more trouble. I'm not saying this to dump the blame on you—I'm saying it to protect you. I don't want more gods finding reasons to send you on a suicide mission."
Without waiting for me to answer, Katie started to walk out. I stayed quiet, a ball of anger tight in my chest, but with a sigh, I cracked open the book.
Looking at page one, I was caught completely off guard:
Μοῦσαι Πιέριθεν ἀοιδῇσι κλείουσαι δεῦτε, Δί᾽ ἐννέπετε σφέτερον πατέρ᾽ ὑμνείουσαι· ὅν τε διὰ βροτοὶ ἄνδρες ὁμῶς ἄφατοί τε φατοί τε, ῥητοί τ᾽ ἄρρητοί τε Διὸς μεγάλοιο ἕκηti. ῥέα μὲν γὰρ βριάει, ῥέα δὲ βριάοντα χαλέπτει, ῥεῖα δ᾽ ἀρίζηλον μινύθει καὶ ἄδηλον ἀέξει, ῥεῖα δέ τ᾽ ἰθύνει σκολιὸν καὶ ἀγήνορα κάρφει Ζεὺς ὑψιβρεμέτης ὃς ὑπέρτατα δώματα ναίει. κλῦθι ἰδὼν ἀΐων τε, δίκῃ δ᾽ ἴθυνε θέμιστας τύνη· ἐγὼ δέ κε Πέρσῃ ἐτήτυμα μυθησαίμην.
οὐκ ἄρα moῦνον ἔην Ἐρίδων γένος, ἀλλ᾽ ἐπὶ γαῖαν εἰσὶ δύω· τὴν μέν κεν ἐπαινέσσειε νοήσας, ἣ δ᾽ ὀνομαστή· δίχα δ᾽ ἑκάτεροι ἔχουσιν θυμόν. ἣ μὲν γὰρ πόλεμόν τε κακὸν καὶ δῆριν ὀφέλλει, σχετλίη· οὔ tis τήν γε φιλεῖ βροτός, ἀλλ᾽ ὑπ᾽ ἀνάγκης ἀθανάτων βουλῇσιν Ἐριν τιμῶσι βαρεῖαν.
τὴν δ᾽ ἑτέρην προτέρην μὲν ἐγείνατο Νὺξ ἐρεβεννή, θῆκε δέ μιν Κρονίδης ὑψίζυγος αἰθέρι ναίων, γαίης ἐν ῥίζῃσι, καὶ ἀνδράσι πολλὸν ἀμείνω· ἥ τε καὶ ἀπάλαμόν περ ὅμως ἐπὶ ἔργον ἐγείρει. εἰς ἕτερον γάρ τίς τε ἰδὼν ἔργοιο χατίζων πλούσιον, ὃς σπεύδει μὲν ἀρόμμεναι ἠδὲ φυτεύειν οἶκόν τ᾽ εὖ θέσθαι· ζηλοῖ δέ τε γείτονα γείτων εἰς ἄφενος σπεύδοντ᾽· ἀγαθὴ δ᾽ Ἔρις ἥδε βροτοῖσιν. καὶ κεραμεὺς κεραμεῖ κοτέει καὶ τέκτονι τέκτων, καὶ πτωχὸς πτωχῷ φθονέει καὶ ἀοιδὸς ἀοιδῷ.
The letters were in a completely different language, but I knew exactly what they meant. With a dry throat, I began to read out loud:
"Muses of Pieria, you who grant glory through your songs, come near. Sing of Zeus, your father, and chant his praises. It is through his will that mortal men become famous or forgotten, revered or ignored by the grace of great Zeus. For easily he strengthens the weak, and with equal ease he crushes the mighty. He humbles the illustrious and exalts the obscure; he straightens what is crooked and destroys the proud. Zeus, who thunders on high and dwells in the highest mansions. Hear, see, and understand, and guide judgments through true justice according to divine laws; meanwhile, I wish to tell real truths to Perses.
Understand that there has never been only one kind of Strife upon the earth. In truth, there are two across the whole expanse of the world. Any man using reason would praise one of them, while the other is worthy of blame, for they possess completely separate minds and natures.
The first of them is cruel. She fosters evil war, hatred, conflict, and destruction. No mortal man loves this first Strife, but all are forced, by necessity and the will of the immortal gods, to pay a heavy toll and honor this dark and painful Strife.
The other Strife, however, was born long before, fathered by dark Night. The son of Cronus, who reigns high in the heavens, placed this second Strife deep within the roots of the earth, and she is far better for mortal men. She rouses even the lazy and incapable man into action and effort. For when a man without possessions looks upon his neighbor who is wealthy, who rushes to plow the earth, plant, and organize his own home, he feels the urgency to work for himself. Neighbor competes with neighbor toward wealth. This Strife is good for human beings. Because of her, the potter feels envy toward the potter, the craftsman rivals the craftsman, the beggar competes with the beggar, and the singer with the singer."
As I finished, I heard cracks of thunder rumbling across the sky, but my attention snapped to what was standing right in front of me: a satyr, but unlike Lennon, this guy's lower half was way more robust, covered in thick, coarse, completely white fur. His hooves were cracked and dark. He had a long, tangled beard littered with dead leaves, twigs, and a few food crumbs. The top of his head was bald, which made his horns stand out even more; they were massive, curving backward, and covered in ridges. His pupils were horizontal slits, and his eyes were a dark amber color. Sizing me up from head to toe, he asked me:
"Demigod, do you want to die?"
Still sitting down, I raised an eyebrow. "Die?" I asked. The two of us just stayed there, locked in a silent stare-down.