The Saviors of Olympus: The Lightning Thief

Alexa: Thalia's Tree

The next morning at breakfast I continued reading the book that Annabeth recommended. She seemed reluctant to give it to me, as if she was afraid of me but mentioned something about hoping I was 'the one,' whatever that meant. When I walked through the woods nymphs often cowered behind their source. Grover told me it was because I had an aura of death, and according to the book Annabeth lent me I had a high possibility of being the child of a minor death god, such as Thanatos or Erebus.

"Hey, Al, do you wanna hang with us today?" Luke asked with a hungry grin as if he wanted something, such as power. It sent shivers through my already ice cold body.

 "For starters, don't call me Al. Secondly, who is 'us'?" I asked, ignoring his unsettling smile.

"Just some of my brothers, we can maybe find monsters to fight," he replied smoothly, creepy grin replaced with a genuine smile and mischevious glint in his eyes. I had grown to interpret people's intentions based on actions and expressions, but Luke was like a book in alternating languages. I know the main idea but don't the intentions.

<Time Skip>

Luke and his brothers showed up by the creek. He told them to look for monsters and notify us so we can fight.

Luke sat down next do me and reached down to ruffle my hair. I grabbed his arm before it touched my head and he grinned.

"Keep those reflexes sharp or you'll be monster chow," he jokes.

"Like Percy's mom?" I grimace, remembering that if I was earlier I could have saved her. But I also had a feeling she hadn't died, like her soul hadn't reached the underworld.

"Look, you can't blame yourself for what happened. I'd know. I ran away from home because my father left my mom in a terrible state. She got excited when the mailman came and was always rambling about fate because she went crazy. I found Annabeth and Thalia, daughter of Zeus and they both ran away to escape their abusive household.

"A satyr, Grover found us to escort us to camp. We got lost and some Cyclops found us. By the time we reached camp they had gotten us. Thalia told us to go and that she would hold off the monsters. On the hill, she made her final stand and paid for her sacrifice with her life. We wouldn't have survived without her. Then, Zeus showed up," he said sadly.

"He saved her, right?" I asked, wondering how the fates could be so cruel.

"It was too late for that. He turned her into a tree. The very same pine tree that is on the hill. Zeus made it a barrier for camp making sure no more demigods would go the same way. The gods don't care about us Alex. Our parents didn't help us get to camp. It's because of them Thalia's gone," He finished with a dark look. It pained me knowing Luke was right.

"Thalia isn't dead though," I tell him. "She must be in a coma-like state or the tree would be dead. She lives as the tree."

Luke smiled a sad, dark smile. "You're right. She must be alive, even if it is barely. It makes it worse that the gods could help her, but are letting her stew underground."

A large bell sounds. Luke tells me it is time for the camp's favorite game, capture the flag.

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I don't own PJO or any of the characters except for OCs that I make.