et advenæ

To Tessa, Kaden Gray was Nathaniel Hawthorne's definition of romance. That was to say, the feeling of something so familiar just on the brink of unfamiliarity. He was your bedroom shrouded in silvery moonlight, he was the soft touch of a stranger becoming a stranger no more, he was mystery and he was intrigue and he was familiar. But only just.

A knowing, playful smile stretched across Tessa's lips at the thought. Where some people withered beneath the weight of rumors and whispers, Kaden wore it like a finely tailored suit with a charming smile and wink to match. He was everything he should have been as a son of Aphrodite, and while it made him irresistible, it also made him dangerous.

As if sensing he was on her mind, Kaden slid his emerald eyes over towards Tessa and a smirk of his own spread across his face like daybreak. "What're you thinking about?"

Tessa quirked an eyebrow at him. "Me?"

Kaden rolled his eyes and threw a pillow at her, which she promptly dodged. "Yes, you!" He wagged a finger at her knowingly, an impish look in his eyes. "You've got that dreamy-yet-slightly-chaotic look in your eyes that means you're either plotting murder or something's on your mind."

Tessa snorted, sitting up in her bed to face Kaden properly. It was a routine dance they did, given camp's rules about being alone with other campers. So on sweltering summer days like this one, Tessa would flop onto her bed, Kaden would set up camp at her desk chair, and with the door and windows cracked ajar, they'd bask in the salty breeze from Long Island Sound. After the night she'd had, it helped to have someone with her lest her mind begin to wander. She met Kaden's inquisitive gaze and found herself rolling her eyes. "I wasn't thinking about anything."

"Bullshit."

Tessa cocked her head at him. "You really wanna call that bluff?"

"So you admit you're bluffing?"

"Kaden!"

Laughing, Kaden put his hands up in surrender. "Alright, alright, I relent," he said. "But I'm still curious."

Tessa flopped back on her bed, folding her arms across her chest. "Then stay curious."

Kaden groaned, hanging his head. With his arms outstretched over the back of the chair, the motion was enough to stretch out his muscles, which the sunlight filtering in through the window made virtually impossible not to notice.

Tessa cleared her throat very inconspicuously, averting her eyes to the far corner of her cabin. Even with the abundant sunlight, shadows still seemed to claim that corner. The light couldn't touch it. Tessa frowned at the thought, feeling the familiar prickles of paranoia at the back of her neck.

She must have visibly paled or something because Kaden was suddenly up and at her side. "Tess? You okay?"

Tessa looked up, spooked ever so slightly. "Oh, um, yeah...I'm..." She blew out a breath, closing her eyes. What had that nightmare done to her? "I...I've been a little paranoid lately."

Kaden frowned, but there was no judgment in his eyes. "Why's that?"

Because I keep seeing faces and figures in the shadows everywhere I go. Tessa opened her mouth to speak but couldn't find the words. She took another deep breath, but before she could try again, shouts and jeers floated in from the open door and both hers and Kaden's attention flew to it.

"Should we...?" Tessa asked, eyes on the door.

"Probably," Kaden said, blowing out a sigh. "Do I want to? No, not at all."

Together, they got to their feet and hurried out of Cabin Three, leaving the shadows behind them. Tessa squinted at the sudden shift in light but surveyed the central green. It didn't take her long to find the group of campers gathered outside of Cabin Five, just next door.

Tessa glowered at the sight. "You've got to be kidding me." Kaden in tow, she stomped over to the group. One by one, the campers gathered there noticed her approach, and all smiles and traces of laughter dissolved. They cleared out, revealing a young man whom Tessa despised cornering a girl against the wall.

"Matthew Baines." Tessa spoke the name like a death sentence, watching as the son of Ares went rigid at the sound of her voice. For all the hatred she had towards people's perceptions of her, she did enjoy seeing her enemies quake in their boots in her presence, and Matthew Baines was no different. "Somewhere a court-mandated anger management course is missing its star member. Should I call to find out which?"

Slowly, Matthew turned around, everything but murder in his pale eyes. "Beat it, Brennan."

Tessa slid her gaze over to the girl, who, despite the much bigger boy before her, had her chin raised in defiance. Tessa racked her brain for the girl's name, especially since her violet eyes seemed so strange and familiar but came up short. She admired her pluck, regardless. "What did he do?"

The girl acknowledged Tessa, her violet eyes boring into her. At last, she said "He tried."

"Tried?" Tessa repeated. "Tried what?"

"Tried to put more than four syllables together without having a meltdown," the girl said, each word swift like a jab to the gut. She cocked her head to the side, obsidian hair cascading over her shoulder. "Clearly didn't end too well."

Tessa's eyes widened. Behind her, Kaden coughed to mask a laugh.

Matthew didn't seem too happy about that comment. His expression darkened. "Who the hell do you think—" He cut himself off and made the worse move he could have made in Tessa's book: he drew a weapon.

Tessa's instincts took over as she reached into her hair and drew her pin from her brown locks. In a swift flash of light, the pin elongated into her bronze sword, Tempest. She swung, knocking Matthew's dagger from his hand and pinning the point of her own sword beneath his chin. "Did you seriously think that was going to do you any favors?"

Matthew glowered at her. "You've got a mouth on you, Tessa. If only you would have let me fill it with something—"

Fury welled up in Tessa's core so swiftly that she didn't think twice about slashing Matthew quickly across the cheek, not even when an angry red scratch formed across his skin. He stumbled backwards, palming at his face. "What the hell?!"

"Make another lewd comment about me or any other person in this valley and I'll give you one to match somewhere the sun doesn't shine," Tessa said in a low voice.

Matthew glared at Tessa. "This isn't over."

Tessa laughed, folding her arms across her chest. "I'm afraid it is. Now beat it before you say something else you'll regret."

For a moment, Matthew stood, intransigent. His dark eyes appeared to flicker with flames in the sunlight, and just when Tessa thought he would try to make another move, he stalked away. Most of the campers who had gathered to watch scattered; Matthew's siblings—the children of Ares—shot Tessa looks as they filed into their cabin.

"Friendly bunch," Kaden muttered, watching them go.

Tessa pocketed Tempest, now in its pin form, and clapped Kaden on the shoulder. "Yeah, your mom picked a real winner."

Kaden grimaced. "Don't."

"Excuse me."

Tessa blinked, spinning back around to face the girl with the violet eyes. Now that there hadn't been the energy of a dozen odd half-bloods surrounding her, this girl's energy seemed to have a life of its own. It captivated Tessa, making her feel something akin to vertigo. She shook her head as if trying to shake away the feeling, but it only decreased marginally.

"Thank you," the girl said, as if the words were foreign to her.

Tessa shrugged. "No need to thank me. Matthew's the campus plague—no matter how hard we try to keep him out, he somehow finds a way in."

The girl blinked again, then stepped forward with a sigh. "I'm Adhara Wren, daughter of Nemesis."

"Nemesis?" Tessa echoed. "How long have you been here?"

"Just a few days," Adhara said, her voice like a haunting lullaby. "I'm still finding my way around."

"I'm sorry you ended up near Matthew and his goons," Kaden chimed, stepping forward.

Adhara began to hold up a hand but froze as Kaden approached. Her violet eyes narrowed, as if there was something about him she couldn't place. "You..." she mumbled under her breath.

Tessa frowned, glancing at Kaden, who appeared just as confused. His emerald eyes seemed harder than diamonds as Adhara continued to stare at him. Before Tessa could ask, Adhara seemed to have shed her momentary lapse, and was walking briskly past them and towards the center of camp. "See you around."

"Well, that was weird," Kaden said after a moment.

Tessa huffed a breath. "You think?" She glanced in Adhara's direction, but the daughter of Nemesis had virtually disappeared. "Strange girl. Do you know her or something?"

Kaden furrowed his brow but eventually shook his head. "I certainly don't recognize her. Maybe she's seen me around during the game, or something."

"You're just that memorable," Tessa said with a roll of her eyes. In the distance, a horn blew, marking that within minutes a swarm of campers would be assembling on the hilltop pavilion for lunch. "Come on, we'll be late."

Tessa tugged on Kaden's arm despite his protests and they started towards the pavilion. Even as they walked, Tessa couldn't shake the chilling feeling Adhara Wren had given her and the piercing look she had given Kaden. Strange girls and whispers from the shadows, all haunting her in the daylight.

--

Lunch was, as always, chaotic. While Tessa sat alone at her table, eating her meal silently, the other nineteen tables generated enough noise, laughter, and chatter to drown out even the loudest of her thoughts. Normally, Tessa would have despised such rancor but after the night she'd had and the lingering feelings of her encounter with Adhara Wren, she basked in the noise.

She raised her golden goblet to her lips, taking a sip of the ice water within it. The water reinvigorated her ever so slightly, and she used the clearing of her senses to survey the pavilion casually. She'd just been listening in on one of the louder conversations at table five when two figures sat down across from her at the stone table.

Tessa's sea green eyes widened in sudden surprise but quickly relaxed upon seeing her other two best friends, Dale Alcander and Mark Akagi. "You both do realize that if Mr. D sees you both sitting here, you'll be on kitchen duty for a month."

Mark snorted, snatching a Dorito off of Tessa's place and popping it into his mouth. "Bold of you to assume I'm afraid of Mr. D." His dark almond eyes glinted impishly as if he had a hidden artillery of snappy comebacks at the ready. Which of course, he did. "The man's too busy reliving the glory days with Chiron."

Tessa craned her neck to catch a glimpse of their camp directors at the head table. Sure enough, Mr. D was in the midst of recounting an animated story to Chiron, who appeared as if he couldn't get away fast enough. Tessa laughed to herself, turning back to her friends. "It does appear that 400 BCE was where it was at."

Mark cackled, but Dale remained silent. Tessa glanced at the daughter of Demeter only to find that her friend did not appear to be present. Her golden eyes were locked on a point beyond Tessa's shoulder, deeper into the pavilion.

"Dale," Tessa said. "What's up?"

Dale blinked, turning back to Tessa. "Nothing," she cleared her throat. "I'm not looking at anyone."

Mark squinted. "She didn't specify a person, Carnation." Despite Dale's glower at her middle name, Mark continued. "What're you looking at?"

"Nothing!" Dale refuted.

"What're we looking at?" Kaden asked eagerly, sliding across the bench to sit beside Tessa.

"Dale's watching someone," Tessa reported, leaning back.

"Ooh, who?" Kaden asked.

"I'm not watching anyone!" Dale protested.

"Then who were you looking at?" Mark inquired.

"No one!"

"Liar!"

"Who's a liar?" Reese asked, approaching with his lunch in his hands.

"Dale," Tessa, Mark, and Kaden chorused. Reese nodded. Dale groaned, burying her head in her hands.

"You guys suck," she said from behind her makeshift veil.

Tessa laughed, reaching across the table and pulling the daughter of Demeter's hands from her face. "You mispronounced 'you guys rock.'"

Dale evidently couldn't fight a smile. "You suck most of all, Tessa Brennan."

Tessa shook her head, laughing. She ran a hand through her dark hair, glancing at Reese, who had sat down beside Mark and Dale on the opposite side of the table. "Did Mr. D take back the laurel wreath so soon?"

"Ha-ha, funny," Reese deadpanned, taking a dramatic bite of his apple. "I didn't want to insult you by wearing it to lunch."

"But he's taken enough victory selfies to commemorate the moment," Mark nodded. Reese choked on his apple, turning to face Mark promptly and throwing the rest of it at him.

"Easy!" Mark exclaimed. "Do I look like one of your targets, Merida?"

"You very easily could!"

While they bickered, Kaden leant into Tessa's side. "He's right though. We didn't want to embarrass you too much."

Tessa rolled her eyes playfully, turning to face him despite their faces being inches apart. "How considerate of you, Gray."

"Why thank you, Brennan."

"Get a room," Mark coughed from across the table. He pounded a fist against his chest, feigning a deep cough. "Man, something's in my throat."

Tessa shot a scathing glare at Mark, scowling. "I hope it stays there," she hissed.

Mark grinned. For a son of Iris, the kid was too much like a Hermes kid, what with his mischievous looks and snarky remarks. Yet somehow the group hadn't managed to collectively murder him in the three years of their friendship, which Tessa imagined Mark was definitely fine with.

Tessa shook her head, taking another sip from her goblet as she scanned the pavilion. Maybe she could see who Dale was looking at, if they were still acting shady. But as Tessa's eyes flitted across the tables and columns, she did not expect to see a figure borne of shadows emerge from the far side of the pavilion.

Tessa's goblet clattered to the ground as every ounce of her strength faded from her body.

The shroud watched her without eyes, taunted her without words. The whispers lurked in the back of her mind where this thing appeared to have had made a dark home. Even in daylight, she could not be free of this nightmare.

"Tessa?" Kaden's voice sounded like it was coming from miles away. "Are you okay?"

Sound rushed back into Tessa's head, and she spun around as if snapping out of a trance. Her friends jumped at the reflex, eyeing her warily.

"Yeah," Tessa breathed, feeling as if her lungs were about to collapse. She glanced back over her shoulder to find the shadow still standing there—and no one else could see it. People glanced over to look at her, likely after her outburst. Her cheeks reddened, her heart rate quickened. "I'm fine." She shoved to her feet, unsure as to how she could stand without her knees giving out. "I just need to go."

"Go where?" someone asked, but Tessa couldn't place who. Everyone's voices sounded the same and she needed to run.

So she did.

The pavilion blurred past Tessa as she hurried down the hilltop, away from the crowd and away from that thing. Where could she go? Nowhere was she safe from this thing, not even in the middle of the day. Fear compelled her to move, to race past the nymphs and satyrs dotting the trails, to collapse in the amphitheater as her strength finally gave out.

The whispers grew louder, and with an unrelenting shiver in the midsummer heat, Tessa knew she had been followed, and not by something human.

She pushed herself to her feet, bolts of fear riveting her in place as she beheld the shroud. It stood just on the outskirts of the amphitheater, far enough to give her space yet close enough to make its presence known.

"What do you want?" Tessa shouted. "What are you?"

The incoherent whispers seemed to grow louder, but rising within Tessa's soul was instinct, fueled by fury. It had dared to reveal itself to her in the daylight. It had crossed a line, whatever it was. Tessa searched the amphitheater for something, anything. Tempest wouldn't be enough to fight this thing; she needed something more. She needed power.

And she found it. Surrounding the firepit of the amphitheater were great bronze bowls of water, and while their purpose was to put out the enchanted fire each night, Tessa put them to other use. She flexed her hands and that unmistakable connection between her and her father's domain strengthened at her will. Each atom obeyed her command until each of the four bronze braziers had emptied into a wall of foaming water behind Tessa.

Voices shouted from somewhere Tessa couldn't see. Human voices, like those of her friends at camp. People were approaching, people were watching, but no one could see what she was about to extinguish. The thought only enraged her more.

Tessa screamed and threw her hands forward. The tidal wave obeyed her command, rushing towards the shroud which dissolved into nothing as it made contact. Whether she'd extinguished it or it had simply disappeared, Tessa wasn't sure, but what little strength she'd had left dissolved from inside of her and she collapsed to the sandy ground. The last thing she remembered was the sound of a whisper in the back of her mind before the world went black.