Claimed by Twelve

2. Questions

     "Hey hold on a second! Chiron, what– Hey!" My legs burned after running up that hill. I huffed as I tried to keep up with Chiron. I could hear Jason behind me somewhere, muttering something about getting Percy to come back here.
     "Chiron! Would you just listen to me for a– Chiron!" I growled in frustration as he ignored me. I wasn't going to get any answers from him. I stopped walking and sat down against the nearest tree. I leaned my head back against the rough bark.
     "He doesn't know." I jumped as Jason's voice came from behind me.
     "What?" I was confused.
     "He doesn't know what it means. So stop asking," Jason grunted then glanced down the hill toward the camp. I noticed the way the light from the setting sun reflected off the waves of the lake below. It made it seem as if everything was okay and none of this happened. I shook my head. All of this had happened. And I somehow knew none of it was okay.
      Jason sat down next to me. "You know that was a pretty cool trick you pulled back there." I kept my mouth closed. I didn't know what any of this meant. I didn't want to. I wanted to go home.
      Who was the monster talking about when they said they wanted the boy? Only one answer was in my head. Jason. They wanted Jason. Why? Gaea was gone, defeated by the Seven, which Jason was apart of. Maybe they wanted revenge. Maybe it wasn't Jason at all. I hated all of this Greek and Roman stuff.
      "Are you listening?" Jason's voice snapped me back to reality. I mumbled an apology. Jason nodded. "This is overwhelming to you, isn't it?" It was my turn to nod. Jason bit his bottom lip, which showed the scar he had on it.
      I squeezed my eyes shut. "I just want to go home." My voice was a whisper.
      "You know what tree this is?" Jason nodded to the one that I was sitting against. I shook my head. "This is Thalia's tree. My sister's tree. She–"
      "Was turned into a tree by Zeus. Blah blah blah. Became a Hunter. Blah blah blah. You get the point. " Jason and I both jumped to our feet at the sound of a voice behind us.
      A girl stood there, her lush black hair flowing down her back in waves. Her skin was pale, almost cold looking. She wore a pale blue, almost white, dress. She was beautiful.
      Jason obviously knew her. He took a step back. "Khione," his voice was a growl.
      "Oh do come out of there." Jason seemed to take a step forward against his will. The girl smiled. "It's good to know you haven't forgotten about me." She turned to me. "Come here." My feet move even though I didn't want them to. She smiled again when I was standing in front of her. I almost thought she was going to kiss me. "The prodigal child." A blast of cold air knocked me backwards. I stumbled and fell, my head hitting the ground hard.
      "Stop, Khione," Jason's voice was foggy.
      "I can't. You see we need him. And you would do nicely too," Khione's laugh echoed off the trees. It seemed to bounce around in my skull, too. "Stay." I heard Jason grunt at Khione's command. How was she doing this?
      Khione's face filled my vision. "Julian Glynn. Why are you so special? Hm? Well, if Olympus wants you, so do we." A wicked smile filled her face.
      "Why..." I struggled to get the words out. "Why me?"
      Khione twirled a lock of my hair around her finger. She leaned forward until her lips were by my ear. Her breath was cold when she spoke. "Because you, Julian, can topple Olympus with ease."
      "It's Jules," I whispered uncomfortably.
      She pulled back as another smile broadened across her face. "Jules." I didn't like where this was going. "Now," Khione looked back, presumably at Jason who hadn't said a word since she told him to stay, "both of you. Sleep."
      Darkness came crashing down around me as my eyelids closed against my will.