Let the rain be blood! ( War Game )

Sleeping in the Safest Place Ever (Totally Not Dumb)

Okay, Percy, you need sleep. 

Like, right now. 

Preferably before your body decides to quit on you.

After sneaking out of the Aphrodite cabin, bandaged up with the cutest heart-shaped band-aids ever, I knew I needed to find somewhere safe to crash for the night. And by "safe," I mean not in a cabin, because those are basically death traps at this point.

If I was going to make it through the night, I had to be smarter than that. And let's be real, staying on the ground was just asking for someone to come along and end me while I was dreaming of blue pancakes. So, I had a genius idea.

Trees. 

You know, those tall, leafy things that no one ever thinks to check because who in their right mind would sleep up there?

Exactly. That's why it was perfect.

I surveyed the area around me. There were plenty of big trees scattered throughout the camp, but I needed one that was sturdy, high, and not likely to break under the weight of a demigod with a serious need for a nap.

After a few minutes of searching, I found the perfect one. A massive oak, its branches thick and sprawling, with plenty of cover to hide me from prying eyes. No one would think to look up there.

This is gonna be great.

Totally not dangerous or completely insane.

I gripped my daggers, my tired brain already working out how I was going to pull this off. Climbing trees wasn't exactly a demigod specialty, but I figured it couldn't be that different from climbing a rock wall in gym class, right?

I stabbed the first dagger into the bark and pulled myself up.

Easy peasy.

I climbed higher, alternating between using the daggers and grabbing onto the branches. My muscles screamed in protest, but I kept going. The ground below was getting farther and farther away, which meant one thing: safety. Well, sort of.

By the time I reached a solid branch about thirty feet up, my arms were jelly, and I was ready to pass out right then and there. But I wasn't going to give up. I settled myself against the trunk, wedging my back against the thick bark and letting my legs dangle on either side of the branch.

This is actually kinda nice. 

It's like... my own personal treehouse. 

Without the house part. 

Or the safety part.

I stashed one of my daggers in my belt and kept the other close, just in case someone did decide to check the treetops for no reason. My eyelids were already drooping, but I knew I needed to keep myself awake for just a little longer. I took a deep breath, trying to calm my racing thoughts.

Okay, Percy. 

Think of it this way: You're high up, which means no one's gonna climb up here and find you. 

The Ares kids don't strike me as tree-climbing types. 

And if anyone from Athena cabin tries, well, I've got this handy dagger.

Yeah, sure, the plan wasn't foolproof. But it was better than lying down on the forest floor, waiting to get taken out by some random camper with a grudge. And honestly, the higher up I was, the less chance anyone would hear me snoring. Yes, I snore. Don't judge.

I shifted a bit, finding a position that wasn't too uncomfortable, though I couldn't exactly stretch out. But hey, beggars can't be choosers.

Me: High ground is the key to success, right? I mean, Anakin didn't have it and look what happened to him. I'm definitely the Obi-Wan in this scenario.

I let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding and closed my eyes. The wind rustled the leaves around me, and for the first time in what felt like forever, I started to relax. The adrenaline from the day's chaos was finally wearing off, leaving nothing but exhaustion in its place.

My arm throbbed from where I'd bandaged the cut, but it wasn't anything I couldn't handle. I leaned my head back against the trunk, letting the branches sway gently in the breeze.

See? 

Totally not a dumb idea. 

It's like nature's hammock.

Despite everything—the blood, the fighting, the constant danger—I felt safe up here. Almost peaceful. Well, as peaceful as you can feel in a camp-wide war game.

My thoughts started to blur, the edges of my consciousness slipping away as sleep finally took hold. But before I drifted off completely, one last sarcastic thought crossed my mind:

If I fall out of this tree in the middle of the night and die, I'm going to be really, really annoyed.

With that, I let sleep claim me, nestled high up in the branches, hidden from sight, and—hopefully—out of harm's way.