Aymee Parker - The Secret Tournament

Chapter 40 : Percy Gets Stung

It was departure day, so most of the other campers were packing their bags. This was not the case for Aymee, who was sitting at the Hermes table completing math exercises. As usual, she was drawing in the margin, thinking back to what had happened over the summer.

Aymee scribbled the Achilles of the fireworks in a corner. The 4th of July party was really successful this year. Beckendorf and the others had given their all. Aymee felt a pang of sadness as she remembered Grover leaving. She didn't allow herself to stay sad. It was what he wanted, his dream! She had to be happy for him! In addition the evening had been superb. Kosta had managed to find them a corner away so that they could talk without being heard. They had been playing guessing games and swapping lots of anecdotes until Chiron rang for bedtime.

Aymee fingered her pearl necklace. The Coverer was now well surrounded by six marbles to its left and one to its right. The one that had joined them the night before was black with a shimmering sea-green trident in the middle. She wondered if the Apollos had chosen those two colors to represent Percy's hair and eyes. Luke had also dedicated his speech to him. There had been a thunderous cheer and Annabeth had joined Percy in the spotlight. Aymee couldn't help but notice Luke's somber look. He had had it all summer. She had noticed him as soon as they passed each other in the arena. When she tried to talk to him about it, he always dismissed the subject. What could possibly bother him even during a party?

Aymee remembered when she had seen him in the morning. He was ruminating and hadn't even noticed that she had called out to him. He had gone straight into the arena and started taking it out on the poor models. Aymee had wide-eyed when she saw him struggling and had decided that it was best to leave him alone.

Aymee patted her cheeks to wake herself up. She must have been thinking about everything and anything for an hour instead of doing her math exercises. She didn't even have time to reread the instructions when Kosta and Lee, the Apollon's adviser, showed up like flowers to distract her.

They laughed together and chatted about anything and everything for a while.

"You don't have your bag, should I deduce that you are fleeing your British boarding school?" Lee asked with a dance of his eyebrows.

"You've got it all wrong. I will return. It's just that there is still a bit of time before school starts, so I have permission to stay here until then."

"So you're going back to your British boarding school?"

"Exactly."

Lee and Kosta exchanged a look. They still didn't quite understand why Aymee liked this prison so much without sports lessons. Although, as far as Kosta was concerned, it was more to say: don't look at me, I don't know. Aymee was still very grateful to him for leaving the subject in its box.

Suddenly, Lee sat up. He stared at something over Aymee's shoulder.

"Is that Jackson...?"

Aymee and Kosta turned: two wood nymphs were supporting an unconscious boy. Aymee recognized Percy and immediately noticed his purple, blistered hand. Aymee rushed off, running towards him.

"I'll get help!" Lee shouted as he left. "CHIRON! WILL!"

The nymphs lowered Percy to the ground. Kosta fell to his knees beside him and immediately took his swollen hand. Aymee knelt on the other side. As Kosta examined the hand, Aymee tried to call him, to get him to react.

"Percy? Percy!"

Percy's eyes fluttered before rolling back into their sockets. Aymee turned to the nymphs.

"What has happened?"

"A scorpion stung him," explained a nymph.

"The other boy said he only had 60 seconds..."