Son Of None

He Really Thinks He's All That, Folks

Tantien Soter was not a stupid kid by any means.

He knew he couldn't outrun the outsiders that Jackson had brought into Camp Half-Blood. It was only a matter of time before he tripped up or they caught up to him, unless he pulled a fancy move.

Luckily, Tantien specialized in fancy moves.

He'd stolen his first wallet when he was six. By his eighth birthday he was a proficient pickpocket and rivaled the Stolls. He'd 'borrowed' a scooter when he was ten. The list went on and on, mostly because Tantien was smart, quick, small, and didn't back down from a challenge.

The Hermes kids had their father's natural talent, but Tantien could outplay them any day of the week.

Now he had to use that to keep his life, for real this time. This wasn't a game of Capture the Flag, this wasn't him running from joking threats to kill him for a prank, this was his actual death impending.

Maybe he wanted to die, but not before he accomplished what he'd wanted for years now.

Tantien slowed to a jog, peering around. All he needed was a patch of completely flat ground, then he could do this.

There!

He veered off the course he was taking, grabbing a stick off the ground. Quickly he drew a circle, trying to keep it as close to perfect as he could.

Pulling out a little black stone, Tantien tipped his head back. He laid the small rock on his forehead and closed his eyes, murmuring quietly in ancient Greek for a few moments.

He wasn't sure if it had worked right away, because when he opened his eyes everything looked the same. Then as he looked around, he spotted a distinctive tree he remembered running past earlier.

"Like a save point in a videogame." Tantien grinned. Now he just had to hope that the daughter of Atlas and the god of trickery had already run past him.

Sound in the bushes behind him informed him that he had not, in fact, gotten away yet. Not knowing what else to do, Tantien dashed over to the nearest tree and hauled himself up into the branches. He yanked his zip-up sweatshirt closed over his bright orange shirt and tugged the hood over his head to hide his hair.

He saw the daughter of Atlas first. She was moving quickly, but looking down. Following his tracks.

Sure, Tantien had done his best to make it hard to follow him, but it wasn't possible for him to completely disappear into the forest.

The god of trickery followed her, scanning the area around them more than the ground. Tantien pressed himself against the tree trunk and hoped that the thick branches above him cast enough shadow to hide him from those prying eyes.

He could practically hear what Marco would have said. 'As if you weren't shady enough, Tanny.' 

Gods, Tantien missed him.

The two below passed by without seeing him and he let out a silent sigh of relief.

He had to wait to keep them from hearing him, but he also had to get a head-start so they didn't catch up to him when he started off again.

Finally, he climbed down from the tree and headed off Southeast. He had to get back to camp now, they'd chase him all the way to the other coast if he didn't. He had to finish this.

"What are you doing?"

Tantien slapped a hand over his mouth to muffle an Ancient Greek curse.

"Lady Nyx. My apologies, I was being followed."

"I'm aware." She did not look happy. Tantien took a deep breath and bowed quickly.

"You not only allowed yourself to be discovered, you allowed the very dangerous talismans and items that I gave you to accomplish this mission to fall into the hands of the very man you are meant to kill. You have failed me, you have lost my dagger, and you are no longer of use to me-"

"I didn't lose the dagger." He protested sharply.

Lady Nyx raised her eyebrows, a terribly condemning expression that should have told him he was in great danger.

Well, it did, but he had never really paid attention to the whole 'GUESS WHAT DEMIGOD YOUR LIFE IS IN DANGER AGAIN' thing after he turned ten.

"You do not have it on your person."

"No, but I didn't lose it. I'm going back to the camp with it and I will do what is asked of me. Give me four days."

"This is your last chance. I am making that clear now, son of Nike."

He nodded quickly. "I understand, Lady Nyx."

And just like that she was gone.

Tantien took a couple deep breaths, leaning against the tree.

"Right. So I just lied to an extremely powerful goddess. Time to fix that issue."