The Writer's Games 2014: Mission #4 Entries

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By: Parisluv

*Note: This is a PJO and HOO fan fic.

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"Caleb!" I yelled. My hands were slippery with sweat and the edges of the cliff were crumbling away.
"Hold on Maya!" Caleb yelled back. "I'm coming!"
I tried to find a foot hole on the cliff face, but it was useless; the rock just crumbled away. Below me was an endless chasm of darkness. I couldn't see the bottom, nor was I interested in it. My hands were slipping on the cliff edge.
"Caleb!" I screamed. I suddenly felt his strong hands on mine. He pulled me up and we collapsed on the ground, breathing heavily. Caleb had a cut on his right arm and had a bit of dust from the monster he had sent back to Tartarus on him, but other than that he was okay. We moved away from the crevice and leaned against a tree, trying to calm ourselves.
I looked at Caleb, the two of us couldn't look more different. Caleb has powerful muscles, deeply tanned skin, black eyes, and messy, wavy, light brown hair; which looked like it would soon need a hair cut. I have pale skin, a delicate build, ice blue eyes, and long, straight, black hair in a loose braid. Caleb's jeans had a few tears, but that was all. I looked down at my clothing. My jeans got ripped a bit, but my boots and shirt were still in perfect condition.
"That was too close," Caleb said.
"Almost as close as when we first met," I commented.
"Ah yes, the lair of the cyclopes brothers," Caleb said in a reminiscent way.
"I totally saved you."
"I had it under control."
"Yes, almost being turned into soup is under control; super under control."
We both laughed and breathed a sigh of relief, the things we had survived...
"We should get going," Caleb interrupted my thoughts.
"Where to?"
"You tell me, Snow Queen."
I rolled my eyes at his comment, I could create snow (no clue why or how) so he had decided to nick name me Snow Queen. We stood up and I looked around, checking the surrounding area for monsters.
"Let's keep heading east," I decided.
"Whatever you say," Caleb picked up his sword and sheathed it. He had found a Celestial Bronze sword at the lair of the cyclopes brothers; it was called Ta kárvouna, Embers. I picked up my bow and quiver of arrows, each arrow tip made of Celestial Bronze; I somehow never run out. I slung my quiver on and turned my bow back into the crescent moon shaped barrette, I placed it in my hair.
As we headed through the woods, I halted when we neared the edge. Somewhere near by, a twig broke. Caleb drew his sword and I knocked an arrow.
"Come out," I said. "Now."
"You know a monster isn't going to listen to you," Caleb whispered.
"Don't shoot," a male voice said. "I'm a friend."
Out trotted a boy, no a satyr (I remembered them from Latin class), he had goat legs and hooves; from the waist up, he had fair skin, wild blonde hair, green eyes, and a sprinkle of freckles over his nose, he wore an orange t-shirt with something written on it that I couldn't see because he also wore a black jacket.
"Who are you?" I demanded.
"My name is Lief," he said gently. "I'm a protector."
"You look even younger than me, and I'm 16."
"It's a long story, can we just talk?"
After Lief explained everything to us, Caleb and I were a little shocked.
"So, we're half god?" I asked in disbelief.
"That's why all these monsters have been chasing us?" Caleb asked.
"And we need to get to a place called Camp Half-Blood to be safe again?" I double checked.
"Correct," Lief nodded, then froze in place.
"What is it?" I asked.
"Monsters," Lief whispered. "They're heading for us."
There was a loud roar to our left, back towards the chasm. I looked and saw the Minotaur looking straight at me.
"Don't move," Lief whispered. "He has poor eye sight, perhaps he can't see us."
The beast lifted his snout into the air and began to sniff. He then looked me in the eye, roared and charged.
"Hold it," Lief said, we all tensely stood still. "Move!"
We all jumped to the side right before he reached us, I was cut off from the others. He looked around for me and I jumped up into the tree. I climbed and settled myself onto a branch before drawing my bow back. I looked towards the ground. Caleb and Lief were on the ground with the Minotaur. Lief was playing a pan pipe and vines were growing up through the ground, trying to wrap around the Minotaur's hooves. Caleb was fighting it with his sword, but the Minotaur knocked his sword aside. Caleb was now defenseless, he backed away from the Minotaur; looking for something he could use. Before he could though, he tripped on a log and hit his head on a rock. Caleb fell to the ground. Anger surged through me and ice traced its way along my arrow, only leaving the tip unfrozen. The Minotaur turned into monster dust; going back into Tartarus. I slid down the trunk and raced to Caleb's side. He was breathing but his head was badly hurt.
"Come on Caleb," I whispered, tears stinging my eyes. "Wake up."
"He's fine, just a little injury; give him this," Lief handed me a canteen. "It's nectar, in small doses it can heal demigods."
I trickled some of the drink into his mouth; I heard and understood what Lief had told me, but I was still so scared. The bleeding stopped and he slowly awoke.
"What happened?" Caleb asked groggily.
"Thank goodness," I said, hugging him tightly.
"We'll explain everything," Lief said.
-Two Weeks Later-
The dracanae and she turned into monster dust.
"Maya come on!" Caleb yelled. "Let's go!"
"I'm coming!" I called back.
We were almost to Camp Half-Blood, Lief estimated about a day of travel. However, some dracanae had found us. The snake women were chasing us to Camp. We were down to five arrows, which was excellent considering we started off with ten. Lief had feinted during the fight, probably from lack of sleep since he wasn't letting us take watch at night, and Caleb was carrying him.
"We need to find somewhere to rest," I panted, running beside Caleb.
"Where exactly can we do that?"
"I don't know!"
We were running down an abandoned country road. I looked around for somewhere to hide, we were loosing daylight fast. I saw a large willow tree up ahead.
"Caleb," I whispered urgently, "I'll distract these guys, you take Lief and hide him behind the willow branches. Then, come and see if I need help."
"You'll need it," Caleb said.
"Highly unlikely."
Caleb ran to the tree and I halted. I turned to face them as they did their weird slither, walking towards me. I hit another one. One of her companions tried to jab me with her spear but I dodged it and fired again. Two of them came at me at once I did a back flip and they ended up hitting each other. Yep, just another day as Demigod. I looked around for the last one when I heard something behind me. I turned around and saw the final dracanae turning to dust, her spear clattered at my feet. Caleb stood with his sword drawn, he had sent the finale dracaenae to Tartarus.
"I thought you would need help," he said calmly.
"I was fine," I said.
"Sure you were."
"I was."
We went back to Lief and set up camp. Soon, Lief stirred awake.
"I'm sorry guys," he said after we explained what happened. "It's my job to protect you, not the other way around."
"We're friends," I said. "We help each other in times of need."
"Why don't you get some rest," Caleb said to me. "You look exhausted."
I didn't need any convincing. I laid my head on the book bag I had with me and was soon asleep. My dreams were strange and confusing. I saw a palace covered in snow, a women with black hair, and the words Your destiny is fast approaching echoed through my mind. I saw the outline of a monstrous beast, it prepared to attack me. But before it could, I woke up.
"You okay?" Caleb asked.
I was sitting bolt upright in a cold sweat. It was at least the middle of the day. I breathed deeply, calming myself.
"Yeah," I said. "Just a nightmare. Why didn't you ever wake me up?"
"Lief and I traded off," Caleb answered. "I didn't see any reason to wake you."
"Why did you let me sleep so long?" I demanded.
"You needed it," Caleb answered simply.
"Where is Lief?" I asked.
"Right here," Lief answered. He walked through the canopy of leaves with a basket of apples. Close behind him was a women with green hair, green eyes, and a pixie like build. She wore a green dress with a pair of sandles. "Maya, this is Willow. She is a Nymph, this tree is actually her home, she helped me convince a friend of hers to give us some food."
"I'm always happy to help Demigods," Willow said kindly.
"Thank you Willow," I said.
"According to Willow," Lief began as he and Willow sat down with us; passing us each an apple. "Camp Half-Blood is just five hours down this road."
"You should be there by evening," Willow said.
"We need to leave soon," I said. "Before any monsters show up."
"Yes, my friends have been understanding but they will not remain so understanding if monsters begin showing up."
After we ate and packed up camp, we thanked Willow again and headed towards Camp Half-Blood. We were nearly there when we heard footsteps behind us. We turned and saw three cyclopes coming straight towards us. They were each roughly 10 feet tall.
"Run!" Lief yelled.
We ran as quickly as we could, but they closed in on us in just a handful of strides. Caleb slowed down, ducked, and cut the angle of one of them and the monster was vaporized; going back to Tartarus. Caleb quickly caught up to us as Lief played and ran at the same time, causing tree roots to reach for the monsters.
"Follow me," he yelled and returned to playing.
We crossed the road, but the cyclopes were trying to grab us. Luckily they're clumsy and hadn't reach us yet. I stopped, sending him to Tartarus and away from us.
We ran up a hill with the other cyclopes right behind us. At the top, a white pine tree stood with a fleece flowing on its branch and something golden wrapped around its trunk. I couldn't make out what with only the light of the half moon to guide us. We nearly reached the crest when the monster stepped in front of us. I heard a howl and saw a giant black dog bounding up behind us; it's eyes glowed a wicked red. I faced the dog while the guys faced the cyclopes.
"What do we do?" I whispered urgently.
"You tell me, Snow Queen," Caleb answered.
"Think you can get him?"
"Maybe, he seems a bit smarter than his fallen brethren."
"I'll take care of the dog, try and get the cyclopes."
This dog was huge, at least three times my size, it jumped at me. I rolled aside just in time. It watched me closely, looking for a way to get to me. We continued to do the same routine, it launched at me and I moved aside. I noticed that the guys weren't fairing any better than I was, this cyclopes was definitely the smartest of the three. I was getting frustrated and the temperature around us began to drop. I continued fighting, barely noticing the snow falling all around us; I tripped and fell, hitting the ground hard, but I got right back up. I began to feel the energy draining from me, but so did the monsters. It was like the snow was making them weaker. The dog slashed towards me and I dodged to the side, as I moved. I turned and released it, sending the beast back to Tartarus. I collapsed to the ground, breathing heavily; I had a cut across my stomach and I was pretty sure I had broken something. My vision blurred and then vanished.

"She's waking up," a familiar voice whispered.
I slowly opened my eyes, my vision was blurry. I blinked a few times before it was clear. I was in a building that I was unfamiliar with. Caleb sat next to me, his hand on mine. On my other side Lief stood next to a man in a wheel chair; the man had graying brown hair and a beard, he wore a white shirt with a brown tweed jacket.
"Where am I?" I whispered.
"You, my dear, are at Camp Half-Blood," the man in the wheel chair explained.
"We made it?" I asked Caleb.
"Yeah, we made it," he answered; I noticed a few tears glistened on his cheek; he was wearing an orange t-shirt that said Camp Half-Blood with a black Pegasus on it.
"What about the cyclopes?" I asked and tried to sit up, but pain seared through my body; I noticed that I, too, was wearing a Camp Half-Blood shirt.
"I don't think so," a boy with blond hair and blue eyes said as he walked over. "Your ribs and cuts are still healing."
"Who are you?" I asked; it seemed rude to be so blunt but I had no idea who this guy was.
"I'm Hayden," he replied. "I'm the reason you're alive."
"Thanks," I said before turning back to Caleb. "What happened?"
"Chiron," Caleb gestured to the man in the wheel chair, "came and saved us. He defeated the cyclopes."
"Chiron?" I said, the name jogging a memory. "Are you the Chiron?"
"Yes, Maya, I am," Chiron answered. "You don't seem shocked?"
"After what we've seen," I said. "I don't think we can be."
"Well, it's great to have two new campers," Chiron said. "Especially since summer just started."
"You won't make us go back?" I quickly asked. "To our families?"
I thought about my father and shuddered, I couldn't go back to him. I knew that there was no way Caleb would go back to his Mom.
"No, not if you don't want to," Chiron said. "We have a few other year rounders here."
After a day of resting and Caleb telling me all about the camp, night had fallen. Lief came in and spoke quietly to Hayden before coming over to us.
"Hayden said you can come to the bonfire if you're up to it," Lief said. "You might find out who your godly parents are."
"What do you say, Maya?" Caleb asked.
"Let's go," I decided.
We headed towards the amphitheater, which was glowing with light. I could hear music coming from it. Caleb and I walked in and everyone fell silent and looked curiously towards us.
"Everyone," Chiron said; except this time he was in his full centaur form, his bottom half that of a white stallion. "This is Maya and Caleb, our newest campers."
Some campers clapped, others began whispering. I caught what some of the people closest to us said, they were wondering which cabin we would be in. Suddenly everyone gasped. I looked up at Caleb and saw a glowing red hammer above his head.
"It looks like we have a new member for the Hephastus Cabin," Chiron announced. A group of muscular kids stood up and cheered, a girl came down towards us.
"I'm Tara," she said. "Head Counselor for Hephastus Cabin. Great to have a new member."
"Thanks," Caleb answered.
"You're welcome to come and sit with us," Tara offered.
Caleb looked down at me and said, "I think I'll keep Maya company."
"You don't have to," I said quickly.
"Why don't you both come and sit with us?" Tara smiled.
"Thanks," I said.
We sat with the Hephastus cabin and listened to the songs, none I had ever heard of. It was fun. Everyone was laughing and joking around. It felt nice. All through the night, I was distracted though, who was my mother? It was finally time for bed, but I still didn't know. Tara, Caleb, a boy from the Hermes cabin, Marcus, Chiron, and I stood in the empty amphitheater.
"Should Maya come and stay with us for now?" Marcus said. "Over in Cabin Eleven."
"I suppose so," Chiron said. "I guess-"
Chiron stopped and they all looked at me.
"What?" I asked, suddenly feeling self conscious. Caleb pointed above me and I looked up. An ice blue and white snowflake glittered above my head and slowly faded away.
"Well, well," Chiron said. "You are quite rare."
"What do you mean?" I asked, unaware of who had claimed me.
"You are daughter of Khione, Goddess of Ice and Snow. There are only five other children of Khione that we are aware of."
"It's quite odd that you two are here together," Tara noted.
"Why?" I asked.
"Hephastus is the God of FIre. Usually their children don't get along."
I shrugged and they showed me to Khione's cabin. The walls were ice blue and seemed to glitter, the windows looked like ice, and snow sparkled on the roof.
"I guess I'll see you tomorrow?" I said to Caleb.
"We're home now," Caleb said. "We'll see each other every day."
"Good night," I said.
He nodded and I gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. He looked shocked and I headed towards the cabin. I thought about what Caleb had said, he was right, we were home.
~The End (Maybe, probably not)~