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“You have lost your mind,” Hades sneered, shaking his head. “Eons of terrible ideas from you, nephew, and this might just be your worst yet.”
“But it makes sense!” The god pleaded in return, following hot on Hades’ heels through the Underworld, past the guards, and towards the interior of Hades’ Palace. Their footsteps echoed through the deafening silence and the god couldn’t understand how Hades hadn’t gone mad yet. Well—
“No, I won’t do it.” Hades shook his head, turning on his heels to face his nephew. “This goes against everything I am. Why would I help you with such an act after denying millions of others before?”
“Because I am begging you,” the god looked so desperate, so weak and full of embarrassing hope. He’d never groveled to another god. Never had to, really. This was different. “Hades, I will indebt my existence to you for this.”
Hades tilted his chin up ever so slightly, analyzing the god’s pleas. Just then, Nico arrived and offered an apprehensive wave and a soft ‘hello’ to his father before knowing his place and retreating. Hades watched his son leave like he had for decades and suddenly, he understood. He thought of May Castellan too. How Hermes had lost the love of his life to his curse on the Oracle.
“I’ll do it,” Hades relented and the god before him fell to his knees from relief. “One condition…”
“Anything,” the god looked up, eyes wide.
“He will remember nothing.”
☤ ☤ ☤ ☤ ☤ ☤
Luke woke up in a train with no idea how he’d gotten there.
The sleeper car was dark, the curtains drawn. Luke sat up wearily on the mattress, his head pounded and he desperately tried to adjust his eyes to the darkness. How had he gotten here? Where had he been before this and where was he going?
He tried to think back, but it was as if he’d hit a dead end with no way through to his memory. It frustrated him so greatly, he let out a grunt of disapproval.
He looked around the car now for anything that might give him an answer to where he was going. He found a single backpack and reached for it. Inside, there was some cash, snacks, a jacket, weird gold coins he’d never seen before — were they for a game? —, and a pocket knife. Nothing really gave him an answer. It seemed as if he’d packed for a day trip. But why was he driving somewhere overnight?
He tossed the bag down and heard something metal fall to the floor. He couldn’t see it in the dark, so he found the light and flicked it on. When he looked down, he found the weirdest thing to date. A sword lay strewn across the floor. It must’ve fallen off the seat when he threw the bag.
Tentatively, he picked it up. The hilt felt comfortable in his grasp, natural. He studied the metal. It was a strange shape; curved slightly on one end. Looking at the sword though, something felt almost wrong about having it in his hand. As if he’d lost it once before and he probably shouldn’t have it back. Right at the base of where the hilt met the metal, the initials L.C. had been carved. It looked new, he thought. Specs of metal dust still lingered around the shabby lettering and he wondered if he’d done that himself.
But that begged his next question: what was his name again?
That alone should roll easily off anyone’s tongue. No one simply didn’t just know their own name. All he knew was that his name started with an L, nothing more.
Luke moved over to the window and pulled the curtains open. Daylight was just breaking, casting a pinkish purple reflection on the world. There wasn’t much around here, just open fields and… were those half humans half horses?
“Ixionidae,” he muttered to himself. Was that ancient Greek? He couldn’t remember when he’d seen one before or why it felt like such a normal occurrence for him to speak such a language. Then again, the sword gave him a clear indication that his life was nothing near normal. Maybe those coins meant something too.
He needed to take a walk.
Stepping out into the hallway, Luke wandered down the narrow path, bumping his broad shoulders as he walked against the jostling of the train. He found the bathroom first. Maybe a cold splash of water would do the trick. He slid the door shut and stared mutely at himself in the mirror. The first thing he noticed was the scar across his cheek.
How had he gotten it? Surprise, he couldn’t remember. He looked tired, like he hadn’t slept in a while. His cheeks were hollow and he presumed they usually weren’t. His hair was cut short and neat, though for some reason he hated it and already couldn’t wait for it to grow out. His clothes were clean though. His shirt was orange and old, the lettering faded and whatever design was on it, he couldn’t make it out. Must’ve been some national park shirt or a band. He wasn’t sure if he liked orange either.
Had he been kidnapped? Is that what this all was?
It would make the most sense. To have been starved and tortured so badly, that when he had made his escape with only a random sword as a weapon, that his mind had blocked out all the trauma. He certainly looked like he’d been kidnapped and dragged through hell itself.
The thought of hell, the underworld, sent an odd spike of pain through his head. Almost like a warning to stop thinking about it. How strange.
Without wasting more time, Luke splashed his face with cold water, waking himself up a bit.
His next plan was to find someone who worked here. He’d moved into the dining area which was mostly desolate aside from the workers, and approached a small group.
“What can I do for you, Sir?” One woman smiled.
“This might sound strange,” Luke paused for a moment. His voice sounded so far away, so foreign to himself. “But uh… where are we going again?” The woman’s smile faltered, looking almost worried at the question. “It’s just that my friends put me on here for a surprise trip for my birthday and I’m getting kinda antsy. I don’t like not knowing.” He didn’t even know when his birthday was. Did he have friends? He doubted that part, or else someone would’ve been with him.
“Oh,” the woman laughed, clearly relieved. “Well don’t tell them I told you then, but we’re headed to San Francisco. Just about two hours until our arrival.”
“Ah, thank you.” Luke smiled and took a step back. “My lips are sealed.”
San Francisco? What would he have to visit there? Did he live there? Was that where his parents were? He had a sinking feeling that he was nowhere near where his parents lived, which was why he felt even more unsettled.
He thought of getting food now, or coffee. He had enough cash, but the kitchen wouldn’t open for another thirty minutes, they said. He returned to his room and dropped down on the small bunk bed. Maybe he could take a quick nap and he’d wake up and everything would go back to normal…
Luke dreamed of a woman.
She was dressed in black robes and a goat skin cloak, carrying a Roman gladius. While her eyes couldn't be seen, they glowed in the darkness that enveloped her from the shadow she stood in.
“Who are you?” Luke asked, cracking the silence. They were surrounded by rubble here and two wolves could be seen slowly approaching as if they were about to pounce their prey. It felt like time was running out, but he couldn’t grasp why.
“Young hero,” she announced. “The course has changed. Everything has shifted because of you. You must continue to your destination. Follow the elements that guide you, but remember this: do not fall in my fated path for the true hero of this journey. You will begin again, but you will not interfere.”
“I don’t understand,” Luke frowned. What was this crazy lady on about? She looked important, she sounded terrifying, but something about her annoyed him to his very core. Something deep rooted.
A flash of annoyance crossed the woman’s features. Was she a goddess of some sort? She sure looked like one. “I cannot say much else. You’ve already disrupted my plans with your arrival, though I cannot blame you wholly for this, there are other elements at work here.” She flickered, like some sort of hologram before him. She looked weaker by the second. “Steer clear of the true hero. You’ll know when you see him. Goodbye, young hero.”
The woman hit the tip of her gladius to the stone ground just as the wolves snarled and Luke woke with a jump.
He was still on the rickety bunk bed in the train car. The sun was up now and he could hear people bustling about, ready to get off when the train stopped. He was sweating through his shirt, but had nothing to change into. He tried to think of his name, but nothing came to light.
Who was that woman?
It was a dream, he knew that much, but it felt slightly more than that. As if the woman had stepped into his head to speak with him. Had he always had strange dreams like that? His biggest question though, was why she had called him a hero. She didn’t look all that fond of him, and at that very moment, he didn’t feel like much of a hero either.
But it would explain the scar and the sword. Kind of.
Everything was a little blurry. The closer he seemed to get to answers, the more confusing it got for him. A bit like a prophecy, he thought and then frowned. How did he know a prophecy was like that?
He sighed, lightly hitting the back of his head against the wall.
Back to square one.
***
San Francisco was bigger than Luke thought.
Walking out of the train station now, he knew for a fact that he’d been here. So far, he’d had weird sporadic moments of recognition, but everything here sparked that. This only unnerved him further.
He walked through the city, unsure of where he was going exactly. But when he passed the first coffee shop he saw, he slipped inside, desperate for proper food.
He waited in line, looking around. The place was quaint, but popular. He studied the menu and frowned. Everything was so expensive. He checked his backpack. He didn’t have enough cash for something to eat and a water, so he turned around and left. He’d just have to find somewhere cheaper. Maybe the further he got out of the city.
He walked through crowds of people on their way to live their lives and Luke silently loathed them all for knowing where their next destination was. He came to a traffic light and instead of crossing, he turned left. He wasn’t sure why, but he was trusting his instincts like that creepy woman had told him to.
He crossed through more people waiting outside a gallery and that’s precisely the moment he knew he was being followed. The last two turns had shown him two women in his peripheral vision. They could’ve been random people going on about their days, but when he turned down an alley and saw them follow, that’s when he knew he was in trouble.
He turned to face them, reaching for his sword from his backpack, the hilt poking out. He flicked it between his fingers, but he had no time to be impressed by his own skills. Instead of facing the two men he’d seen, he was faced with… bears?
“There you are, little traitor,” one snarled and Luke raised his sword. The bears eyed it warily, as if they too didn't trust it.
“Look, I don’t know who you are, but I’m no traitor.” Luke called out, but the bears were getting closer and he knew he was a traitor. He didn’t know what he’d done, but he knew these monsters were right.
“You hear that, Agrius?” One nudged the other, laughing. “He says he doesn’t remember us.”
Agrius snorted, clearly amused. “And to think we spent months with you on that insufferable ship for nothing, eh Oreius? Kid gets saved by the gods and suddenly he’s too high and mighty for us.”
“The gods?” Luke asked, a frown clouding his features. “L- Look, Oreius… Agrius? I don’t remember anything . I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
The bears stepped closer and Luke stepped back. He only had so far he could go before he hit the dead end. He should’ve just ran.
“Of course you don’t,” Agrius tsked, raising his sword that was the size of Luke. “But we’ll make you remember.”
“We’ll make you feel it, little traitor.” Oreius lunged without warning, but Luke was quick. Thankfully. He ducked from the blow, missing the sword by mere inches. He swung his own sword, slicing at Oreius’ ankle. Agrius slammed his sword right by Luke’s chest, who rolled onto his stomach just in time and hauled himself up. It was a miracle he still had his backpack on, but he tossed it aside for now. First, he needed to kill these assholes.
He wasn’t sure where the rage had come from, but it came fast and strong, filling Luke and making his nerves stand on end. He let out a yell as he ran right towards whichever bear it was. They were so identical, he couldn’t tell them apart now that they’d moved around.
Everything became a blur of weapons and fur for the next ten minutes. Luke kept pushing them towards the street, but the twins kept pushing back harder. Something in Luke was screaming at him to keep going. He wasn’t tired though, as if he was trained for long battles. Fighting like this now, he knew he’d been in much worse situations which helped at least.
Luke managed to slide in between one of the bear’s legs and got the twins tangled as they tried to turn around. Luke took the opportunity to jump up, slamming his sword down into one’s shoulder. Within seconds, the bear disintegrated and Luke stumbled to his feet on top of the pile of dust.
“You’ll pay for this!” The other growled, refueled with rage, but Luke tipped his head to the side as he shrugged.
“Somehow, I don’t think so.” He flung his sword, slashing at the bear’s cheek, who doubled over, clutching its face. Luke drove his sword through its side, watching it disintegrate too.
There was a short pause before Luke grabbed his bag and bolted down the alleyway and back onto the street. This time, he didn’t stop to walk or find somewhere to eat, he just kept sprinting through the city. He knocked into some people, but didn’t care to apologize. Whatever those fucking things were, Luke knew there were more of them. Many more.
Luke made it out towards the open neighborhoods and dropped onto the grass right beside a park. He thought he’d be exhausted or at least out of breath, but the only indication that he’d been running for so long, was his sweat that dampened his skin. Otherwise, he felt fine. A little tired, but better than expected.
He propped himself up against the tree and the first thing he did was open his backpack to shove his sword inside. But when he peered in, there was something new.
It was a brown paper bag. He pulled it out cautiously in case one of the bears had slipped something explosive inside while he was preoccupied, but on the side, it had the logo of that coffee shop he’d gone into.
He opened the bag and found two sandwiches, two muffins and a bottle of water.
“What the…” Luke frowned, studying the food for a second longer. He didn’t steal anything, he knew that much, so how did this get into his backpack? It was definitely not the bears. Why would they feed a dead kid?
Luke’s hunger was insatiable, so he disregarded the questions and thanked whatever force had given him the food. He dug into the first sandwich, devouring it like he hadn’t eaten in months. That would explain why he looked so sickly. He finished the sandwich in seconds flat and reached for a muffin. He hesitated then. Maybe he should save the rest. He didn’t know how long he’d be without food for, so he reluctantly put the food back into the paper bag and into his backpack.
He looked around now for any threats, his senses on high alert. The park was empty. He didn’t know what day it was, but it must’ve been a weekday if there were no children. He hated how he could remember trivial stuff like that, but not his own name.
He knew he was a traitor, though. That left a sour taste in his mouth.
He thought about what the twins had said. How the gods had saved him. What gods? Jesus? Norse gods? All religions or specific ones? Greek? At the thought, spikes rammed through his head again and he winced.
Okay, so Greeks then. That would explain how he knew the centaurs name in Greek. That would explain the strange sword. He reached for the coins in his backpack and pulled one out of the ziploc. It was gold with an owl on it. Athena’s symbol. Definitely Greek.
He dropped the coin back into the ziploc and sighed. What was he supposed to do with Greek currency that was probably eons out of date? What was he supposed to do with any of this? He zipped up his bag again and dropped his head against the tree, closing his eyes and counting to ten. He needed to get going soon before something else caught up to him.
“There he is,” a female voice cooed and Luke shot up like lightning, sword at the ready. “The Titan’s little play thing in the flesh.” The girl was blonde, young. About Luke’s age? But Luke didn’t even know how old he was. Beside her, was another girl with darker hair. They looked harmless, beautiful, but Luke knew it was a trap. Where had he seen them before?
“The Titan’s what?” Luke asked, pointing his sword directly at them, but they kept walking closer.
“Silly me, I forget how much you hated that nickname.” The blonde giggled.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Luke shook his head. “I told those bears the same thing. I have no idea who any of you are.”
“Uh huh,” the dark haired girl hummed, clearly amused and not believing a word he said. “What has the Lightning God got you doing now? Or has he completely cast you aside after your betrayal?”
“The Lightning God? Zeus? ” Luke asked, almost laughing. The girls didn’t laugh in return. “You can’t be serious.”
“You really don’t remember anything?” The blonde slowed her pace, a frown fluttering onto her features.
“Like I said, no.” Luke glared at the girls. “How do I know you?”
“I was your girlfriend,” the blonde smiled sadly and dare Luke say he saw a tear roll down her cheek. “I- I’m Kelli.”
“Yeah right,” Luke scoffed, keeping his sword in place. “You didn’t sound too pleased to see me a few seconds ago.”
“Because I thought you’d betrayed us!” Kelli insisted, whining a little. Her voice grated at Luke’s patience. “But if you really don’t remember anything, that means you never did…”
“Kelli, it could be a trap.” The other girl said in a warning tone.
“Shut up, Tammi!” Kelli huffed, moving closer to Luke. “I can help you remember, if you’d like.”
“Y- Yeah, actually…” Luke lowered his sword, allowing Kelli to come closer. “I’ve been so scared since I woke up. I have no idea what’s going on, but… I trust you, Kelli.” He reached for her hand and she beamed at her victory.
“We can help you remember, right T-” Kelli gasped, her words cut short just as Luke’s sword went right through her. Her body flickered, showing Luke her true form of all fangs, fiery hair and… goat legs?
“Traitor!” Tammi shrieked as her friend turned to dust. She turned into her true form now too.
“Yeah, I’m quite liking that title now.” Luke replied, swinging his sword and running right at Tammi. She was stronger than she looked, faster too, but Luke dodged most of her hits, nicking her a few times with his sword. She managed to sink her teeth into his neck though, sending him to his knees as she fed. He was weak as it was, so his energy was draining fast.
“Not so scary are you now, huh?” Tammi laughed, diving back into his flesh and Luke let out a cry of agony. His grip weakened on his sword, but he forced it up. It shook with his limbs, but as his vision went blurry, he closed his eyes and summoned the last dregs of energy he had and shoved his sword back, right into Tammi’s stomach as she fed on him from behind.
“You will pay for this, Luke Cas-” Tammi cried out, but she disappeared before she could finish his name. Luke had barely heard it. The second she was dust, there was nothing to hold him up and he dropped like dead weight.
He stared up at the sky, watching it spin and spin. All of that for nothing, he thought dizzily. He should’ve known he was a dead man walking.
A shadow hovered above him now and he groaned.
“Just kill me,” Luke muttered weakly, thinking it was another monster. “I’m a… a traitor, whatever, I get it. Just kill me.”
The shadow crouched down and tilted Luke's head up carefully, pressed a glass vial to his lips. Drink, it said, but not out loud. Luke heard the voice in his head. Luke didn’t care if he trusted the shadow or not. He was dead anyway, so he drank.
And then everything went black.
Luke woke up with a start.
He gasped, sitting upright and clutching his throat as if it burned. When he swallowed, it felt like sandpaper, but he was alive and the shadow he’d just seen was gone. The sun was too. How long had he been out here?
He reached for his backpack — unstolen, which was a shock too — and grabbed the water. He took greedy sips, not caring if he needed to save it. He stopped when he’d finished half and stuffed the bottle back into the backpack.
Luke.
That was his name. Luke C. He thought of Tammi now. “You will pay for this, Luke Cas-” Luke Cas… the more he thought, the less he got closer to knowing his surname. But having this was better than nothing. His name was Luke. He knew it meant ‘light-giving’ though that didn’t feel very accurate to who he was as a person. He felt like he’d stolen the light somehow. He wasn’t sure…
He wanted to dwell on everything that had just happened, but he knew he had to keep moving. So he stood up and hauled his sword with him. That's when he saw the shadow between the trees on the other end of the park.
“Hey!” Luke yelled out, breaking into a run to catch up. He made it to the border of the forest and the shadow was slipping off further to the right. “I just want to talk!” Luke tried again, jogging after the shadow, who didn’t look back. Whoever this person was, had just saved his life. They seemed to be the only person who didn’t want him dead and Luke had questions.
You’re not safe, the shadow spoke in his head again.
“Yeah, I got that, thanks.” Luke replied, still following the shadow. Everytime he got closer, the gap grew again.
When Luke came out on the other side of the forest, he was on the side of a highway and the shadow was gone.
“Fuck,” he hissed, kicking some dirt up with his shoe.
That's when he heard a rustle behind him. He spun around, sword up. Gods, he was getting really tired of this now. Two figures emerged and Luke gulped.
“I killed you two,” he whispered, clenching his sword tighter.
“The Doors of Death are open, traitor. Can’t kill us for too long.” Oreius grinned.
“Ready for round two?” Agrius asked as he ran at Luke. something told him to run, so he did.
He spun around and bolted across the highway, missing a few cars by pure luck. The bears had a slow start, avoiding the cars by jumping on and over them so they didn’t get hit.
Now Luke was faced with a problem. He glanced east. Just as he’d figured, a hundred yards uphill the highway cut through the base of the cliff. Two tunnel entrances, one for each direction of traffic, stared down at him like eye sockets of a giant skull. In the middle, where the nose would have been, a cement wall jutted from the hillside, with a metal door like the entrance to a bunker.
It might have been a maintenance tunnel, but Luke saw something strange. Three kids in armor flanked the entrance. They wore a bizarre mix of plumed Roman helmets, breastplates, scabbards, blue jeans, purple T-shirts, and white athletic shoes. The guard on the right looked like a girl, though it was hard to tell for sure with all the armor. The one on the left was a stocky guy with a bow and quiver on his back. The middle looked taller than the other two, and stood with an infectious sense of confidence. His sword glowed and Luke’s radar went off.
He knew that sword.
The twins were halfway across the highway now, and Luke made a b-line for the direct middle just ahead and began his sprint towards the three people. He knew they were Roman and if he was Greek, this was probably not the greatest historical choice, but what other choice did he have?
“Damn you, son of Hermes!” One bear screamed as they bounded after him. Cars honked and tires screeched as they avoided hitting Luke with their cars. That was enough to catch the three Roman’s attention, their heads snapping up to alert.
“Run!” Luke yelled at them, gaining speed as he got closer. One of the bears swung their claws out at Luke, missing his back by inches.
Faster, Luke, the shadow’s voice willed him, but he couldn’t see the shadow anywhere.
“I’m fucking trying!” Luke snapped back with a grunt and surged forward. What had the bears just said? Son of Hermes? Wasn’t he the god of travelers? Maybe that’s how Luke could run so fast. Or maybe they were lying, but he had a feeling they had no need to lie.
The three Roman’s had drawn their weapons and the stockier boy had raised a bow and arrow. Luke prayed it wasn’t for him.
It soared over his head, hitting one of the bears square in the shoulder.
“Hurry up!” The girl yelled out for Luke, uring him forward. “Why does this keep happening to us!”
“Twice in three days!” The stockier boy yelled out, but the taller one was silent, watching them with tensed unease. He couldn’t see the boy’s face under the helmet, but he had to know him. All three of them, if they were protecting him.
The bear who’d gotten the arrow, pulled it out and Luke cussed. They weren’t dying anymore. Or maybe it was just his sword that could kill him, though even then they didn’t stay dead.
What was that about the Doors of Death being open?
“Not again!” The boy with the arrows cried out, already backing up towards the door.
Luke made it to the three and had to put his hand out to stop himself from running right into the concrete.
“Get him inside!” The taller one shouted the orders and the girl shoved Luke through the door.
“Will the door hold them?” Luke asked as soon as all four of them were cramped in the tunnel.
“Absolutely not,” the girl blinked as if she too was having deja vu. “Run and don’t stop until I say so.”
Luke didn’t have to be asked twice. The four of them bolted in a single line. Luke was behind the tall one, who was quick, but Luke felt like he had to slow himself down a bit for the kid. The girl cursed in Latin and Luke winced. Definitely Romans. He couldn’t even pretend he was. He knew nothing about the Romans. Then again, he didn’t know much about the Greeks either.
The solid rock tunnel, resembling a school hallway in width and height, initially appeared as a standard maintenance passage. It featured electric cables, warning signs, and fuse boxes on the walls, with wire-caged light bulbs illuminating the ceiling. As they ventured deeper into the hillside, the cement floor transitioned into a tiled mosaic. The lighting changed to reed torches, emitting smokeless flames. Several hundred yards ahead, Luke spotted a square of daylight.
Luke could hear Agrius and Oreius yelling out for Luke. Someone was fighting them off, but Luke didn’t dare look behind him.
“Keep running,” the tall one yelled from ahead of Luke, who noticed the kid had created a fairly decent gap between them. Luke needed to stop getting so distracted. “We’re almost there!”
“Where is there, exactly? This tunnel is never ending!” Luke replied.
“Rome!” The kid yelled out and Luke thought he’d officially gone mad. Or perhaps they had. They were most certainly not in Rome.
The glow at the end of the tunnel grew brighter, and finally they burst into sunlight.
Luke stopped just as the other boy did and they crashed into each other. Luke felt a shock roll through him at the touch. Who was this kid?
Spread out below him lay a bowl-shaped valley stretching for miles. Its floor was adorned with rolling hills, golden plains, and patches of forest. Meandering through the center was a small clear river, curving like a capital G from a lake at its heart to its outer edges. Nestled by the lake was a quaint city, boasting white marble structures topped with red-tiled roofs. Some resembled national monuments with domes and columned porticoes, while others resembled palaces, boasting golden doors and expansive gardens. In the midst of the valley, an open plaza adorned with free standing columns, fountains, and statues caught his eye. Glinting in the sunlight stood a towering Roman coliseum adjacent to a long oval arena reminiscent of a racetrack.
Across the southern side of the lake, another hill boasted even grander structures—likely temples, Luke surmised. Stone bridges spanned the river as it meandered through the valley, while to the north, a line of brickwork arches stretched from the hills into the city, resembling an elevated train track, which Percy realized must be an aqueduct.
Directly below him, the most peculiar sight unfolded. Just across the river, about two hundred yards away, lay a military encampment. It spanned a quarter mile square, surrounded by earthen ramparts lined with sharpened spikes. A dry moat, also spiked, encircled it, while wooden watchtowers manned by sentries armed with oversized crossbows rose at each corner. Purple banners fluttered from the towers, and a wide gateway led towards the city while a narrower one remained shut on the riverbank side. Inside the fortress, activity buzzed—dozens of youths traversed between barracks, carrying weapons and polishing armor. The clang of hammers at a forge mingled with the aroma of meat cooking over an open fire.
Luke should not be here.
“Welcome to Camp Jupiter,” the boy huffed, slightly out of breath.
“Camp?” Luke frowned, staring at the kid with the helmet on. Something flickered across his face. “I’ve been to a camp before… I think.”
The boy looked down at Luke’s shirt and even under all that armor, Luke could see he’d gone pale. “That shirt…”
“No time!” The girl yelled, shoving the boys along down the hill. “Move!”
Luke powered on. His questions couldn’t be answered if they were all dead. They ran and ran and ran until they got to the river.
“The Little Tiber,” the other boy called out from behind them. “Boundary for camp. Cross it and get to the gates and we’ll be safe!”
But the twins were gaining on them and Luke was not about to let some strangers die because of him. “Go!” He yelled to the trio. “Get across! I’ll handle this.”
“I’m staying,” the familiar boy yelled above the ruckus of the twins. “I work best in water.” Was he like Luke? Son of a god? Like Hermes?
Luke couldn’t think too much though. He gave the kid a decisive nod and both drew their swords. They seemed to be the only two with swords. Interesting.
Luke and the kid moved in sync. When Luke jabbed left, the kid jabbed right in the same pattern, as if they’d trained together before. Luke seemed to know when the kid would dip to the side, and he’d step back to give him space, and the kid knew when to duck so Luke could swing his sword.
They killed the bears in under a minute together.
There was silence for a moment before Luke realized they were both knee deep in the river. They shared a look.
“Come on,” the kid turned and rushed towards the other side. He didn’t even struggle in the water, but Luke had to push through with a little more force. He spotted a herd of armored kids by the gates and the second they crossed it, the kid had Luke pinned to the gate.
“Who are you?” He asked, eyes ablaze. Luke had seen that expression before. It made him want to smile, but he didn’t.
“I- I’m Luke. I think…”
“You think?” The kid shoved Luke again, but the girl got in between them.
“He’s got the same shirt as you!” She gasped, pointing at the orange shirt with the faded design. “And the necklace too…” She looked up slowly, a worried expression on her face. “How’d you get here?”
“I don’t know,” Luke whispered, feeling terribly vulnerable. He hated being scared, that much he was aware of and right now, he knew he wasn’t supposed to be here. Something was wrong. And it wasn’t just the fifty or so fully armored kids pointing their weapons at him. “I don’t remember anything. I woke up with no memories.”
“Just like me…” the kid slowly let go of Luke, taking a dazed step back so he could fully survey Luke. “What did you say your name was?”
“Luke,” he repeated.
The kid pulled off his helmet, letting it drop to the floor and Luke felt the world drop beneath him. That face…
“I’m Percy Jackson.”