Thia's POV

The morning seemed to come too early as the sun peeked through the cabin windows much to my disliking. Dread seemed to follow the sunlight inside and I had a feeling I wouldn't like the day ahead. It was one of those things you couldn't help but notice. Not when your instincts were just screaming at you that things weren't going to be as pleasant as they normally were.

Then again, things hadn't exactly been pleasant as of late so how much worse could it get? It took a great amount of mental energy before I even opened my eyes to face the world but once I was awake there was no going back. It was like a switch flipped on in my head. I was awake, I had a lot of energy, and I needed something to do.

Sitting up I rubbed my eyes which were still heavy lidded from sleep and managed to stumble my way out of the top bunk and down the ladder in one piece. The first sign that things might have been a little off was the fact that I was the first one up.

Both my moms were still asleep, granted it was cute seeing them curled up in each other's arms, but I never ever got up before them. It was like some sort of unspoken ancient law: Thia was not to be up first. Deciding not to wake them I tried my best to be quiet getting dressed and trying to tame my bed head.

Once I figured I was at least semi presentable I steeled myself for the bright world that waited outside. Grudgingly, I slunk out the door squinting until my eyes were nearly shut to avoid being blind from Apollo's sun.

A few campers who were the early risers of their cabins were milling about, but for the most part things were quiet. It was kind of nice, if you listened closely you could hear the sounds of the woods or the running water of the showers. A pleasant harmony of background noises.

Stretching my arms above my head and sighing as my shoulders popped I set off to explore. I wasn't quite sure where I was going but I figured I'd eventually run into a familiar face.

Sure enough I spotted Jaxon in the arena holding a sword in a tight grip while Uncle Jason showed him a new technique. I'd never been one too into sword fighting or mastering a weapon. I figured my fists worked relatively fine but that didn't do good against monsters.

"Hey Thia," Jaxon waved, smiling like always.

"I see you got started on some early morning training." Skipping over I paused bouncing on the balls of my feet.

"Wanna join?" Jaxon offered.

"Nah I'm good. Not into the whole slashy slash thing." I pretended to wave around an invisible sword earning an amused look from my uncle.

"Slashy slash thing?" He asked, raising his eyebrows over his glasses. "You sound horribly like Percy."

"He has good taste," I smiled. "He once told me the difference between Greek style and Roman style fighting was that romans did stabby things and Greeks did slashy things."

"An expert analysis," Jaxon giggled. "Hey, isn't that your friend?"

Jaxon pointed to behind his dad where I spotted Andy examining the weapons racks. "Um yeah."

"He didn't seem too happy about being claimed." Jaxon frowned, scratching the back of his neck. Uncle Jason glanced over his shoulder to where Andy stood. I noticed that whatever blessing had been placed on him had yet to wear off. The outfit was still in place and he kept tugging at it awkwardly.

"Well, your mother had a similar situation, and it's not entirely fun having your style completely revoked and revamped." Uncle Jason adjusted his glasses.

"I bet mom was pretty," Jaxon smiled.

"She was. Still is." Rolling my eyes I kept my gaze on Andy wondering what weapon he'd pick, if any. He picked up a knife and tested its balance before placing it back. I was surprised when after the sixth attempted weapon he settled on an axe with a smile. "Interesting. Don't know many people who fight with axes."

"I don't know anyone," I admitted. My curiosity was starting to get the best of me. "Yo, Andy, do you even know how to use that?"

He seemed to notice the three of us for the first time and he recovered quickly from his look of surprise. "No but I'll figure it out."

"If he loses a finger I'm gonna laugh," I snickered earning a glare from my uncle. "I'm kidding! I promise I'll at least fake concern."

"You're horrible," Jaxon laughed, nudging me playfully. "Come ,on why do you hate his guts?"

"Hate is a strong word. I dislike him at times, but he's overall a really nice person. I consider him a friend." Jaxon nodded in understanding. His attentions shifted to Andy as did mine, and the three of us stood watching as Andy hacked away at a straw dummy. "He has strong arms and pretty good technique."

"Most people can't wield an axe so naturally," Uncle Jason agreed.

"He kind of looks like a frightening minor god," I mused. "What with the white dress and everything."

"That's not a dress," Jaxon corrected.

"Right, my bad fashion police," I teased. Jaxon huffed and crossed his arms. Our observations were interrupted by the sound of hooves pounding the ground. Chiron sauntered over to all of us his eyebrows knit together in a rather intense expression.

"Mr. Grace, may I request your aid in assembling the campers at the amphitheater for an important meeting." Uncle Jason nodded and left Jaxon and I behind.

"That's not good," Jaxon worried.

"Yeah." Full fledged camp meetings hardly took place unless it was something serious. And I mean really serious. "Come on let's go."

"What about him?" Jaxon asked, pointing at Andy.

"I'll get him. Save me a spot! I'll catch up with you." Jaxon gave me a thumbs up before sheathing his sword and running off. Shaking my head I jogged over to where Andy was. "Hey, there's a-woah!"

Ducking just in the nick of time I avoided being decapitated as he turned around to face me. "Be careful where you swing that thing!"

"Sorry, I wasn't expecting someone to run up behind me." I expected him to sound sarcastic but he seemed genuinely embarrassed.

"Eh, it's whatever. Anyways, as I was saying, there's this meeting we all have to go to. It's important." Andy nodded and tossed aside his axe.

"Alright then let's go," he smiled. Rolling my eyes I picked it up and put it back where it belonged before following him. When we got there I was hoppy to see that Jaxon remembered to save me a seat which I was thankful for.

"Any idea what's going on?" I asked, sitting down next to him and observing the crowd of people slowly filing in.

"If anything I bet it has to do with whatever Maria found yesterday," Jaxon whispered. Admittedly, I'd nearly forgotten our little discussion.

I observed the crowd and waved at Grey who was talking excitedly to his girlfriend about something. I hadn't talked to her much but she was a pretty girl from the Demeter cabin with bright blonde hair and crystal blue eyes. I think her name was Elise.

Maria was talking to Chiron who seemed to be listening intently to what she had to say as he stroked his beard in thought. I spotted Leah who seemed to have made friends with two or three Hermes kids. She seemed to be fitting in nicely contrary to Andy who was trying to hide in the back.

"Spot your parents?" I asked Jaxon who was also studying the influx of people.

"Um, no but I found yours! They're over there!" Jaxon pointed down towards the front and sure enough he was right.

"Cool. Wait, there's yours," I smiled, gesturing to a spot in the far right corner and waved, maybe too excitedly, at them. Jaxon laughed and tugged my arm down. "What? Am I embarrassing you?"

"As if," he scoffed before slinging an arm around my shoulders and tugging me into a headlock.

"Hey! No fair!" I laughed, punching him playfully in the gut. Our messing around was only interrupted when Chiron called for everyone's attention. It took a little while but eventually the talking subsided.

"Thank you all for coming. We will try to make this quick so that you may all proceed to breakfast." There was a collective sound of approval from the gathering campers. "Most of you have probably heard what's been happening by now despite my attempts at secrecy. It appears word gets around easily here."

An uproar of laughter ensued and even Chiron smiled. Nothing ever stayed secret around here. People always had ways of finding things out.

"Why would you trust a bunch of ADHD children with secrets?" Uncle Percy yawned. Chiron smiled to himself and chose to ignore Percy's remark.

"My young friend here has the floor. It appears she's discovered something very important." Chiron stepped aside and Maria took an awkward step forward. It was clear she wasn't exactly used to addressing large groups of people.

"Yes! That's my girl! You go honey!" I didn't even have to look to know that it was Uncle Percy making a big scene. Everyone laughed as Maria's cheeks flared with an intense blush.

"Dad. Seriously?" She whined. Percy gave her an enthusiastic thumbs up. "Anyways, I did happen to find something. So I'm assuming you're all pretty much up to speed on what's going on."

It seemed to me that despite the outburst and Maria's embarrassment Uncle Percy had effectively eased the tension and she seemed much more at ease now.

"Well, my cousins and I did a bit of snooping so to speak, and something caught my attention. So after a bit of reading I came across something rather important." Maria paused most likely for dramatic effect. "The cause of all this comes from one particular source. Chaos."

This piqued everyone's attention and murmurs of speculation created a cacophony of noise. Maria waited patiently for everyone to grow quiet. "See, the world right now is slowly being consumed by what looks to be this black encasing. Only it's not. The universe is just assuming its natural state of matter. Chaos is the natural order of things, order and uniformity is what balances it. When the mortal world lacks this balance the chaotic nature of things begins to creep in."

Not a single person moved or said anything. All attention was on Maria as every single mind tried to process precisely what she was saying.

"It does have a correlation to the instance in the Bible where the earth was flooded to wipe out the human race. See, once the balance is tipped it must find a way to re-establish uniformity. Hence the flood and the beginning of a second attempt at human life. Even in science with chemical equations reactions and products must be balanced. If they aren't, then the function doesn't work." Maria took a breath before continuing. "If our universe is not balanced, then it does not work. So, we need a way to fix this."

A hand shot up into the air at the conclusion of Maria's little segment of information. Maria nodded at them as an indicator that they could speak.

"How do we establish order for the entire planet? I mean, we can't just stop all crimes or things like that." There was a large murmur of agreement.

"Part of the problem is the lack of order on Olympus. Whether the mortals know it or not, our parents and grandparents effect the planet's stability. Disorder amongst them results in disorder here. For years now, even before I was born, the tensions have only mounted and they show no signs of getting better. Too much personal interest is placed into ruling the world and making decisions for mankind," Maria explained, trying her best to answer the question.

"So we just have to tell them that they have to stop bickering? I don't think that will go very well." Another camper pitched in their opinion. Maria shuffled her feet nervously. She didn't have an answer but it was clear everyone wanted one. I couldn't help but feel bad for her.

"I'll be honest, I don't exactly have a solution. It would be much easier with a prophecy or something but there isn't one." Maria's confident demeanor vanished at the collective grumbling. All eyes shifted to a different person however. Someone I knew well.

A very awesome and cool red headed oracle. She rolled her eyes and stood up to face the expectant crowd. "If I had a prophecy to give you all would've known about it by now. It's not like I can just predict when one's gonna happen. If I had that ability I think my life would be a whole lot easier."

Rachel Elizabeth Dare was as sarcastic as ever but there was one small problem. The universe enjoyed laughing at us. Just after sitting down her eyes sparked to life glowing a vibrant green. Everyone knew exactly what that meant but no one dared laugh at the sweet irony of it all.

"Did someone order a prophecy because I think Apollo delivered," I mumbled, trying to lighten the tension but not a single person laughed. "No? Bad joke? Okay."

The silence was eager and full of tension as everyone waited for the blessed and cursed words to be uttered from Rachel's mouth. We didn't have to wait long.

"Darkness rises from Chaos' land
Mortal world lacks Order's hand
Search for peace in Order's tomb
Purest blood be poured from wound
Half blood born not from man
Daughter of forgotten clan
Son of loveless god's domain
Perish one, to nature's reign
Lose another for freedom gain."

A shiver trailed its way down my spine as panicked chatter broke out amongst the amphitheater. Many campers stood and searched around like they were trying to pin point who the prophecy was for. It was useless.

Chiron shouted for order and though it took some time, peace was established once more. A long drawn out silence stretched over the crowd as Chiron gestured for a select few to join him in a discussion. Of course he picked Uncle Percy, and Aunt Annabeth, but he also selected mine and Jaxon's parents.

"Why do I have a bad feeling about this?" Jaxon whimpered, shifting closer to me.

"No idea but we'll find out I suppose." I tried to reassure him but my heart was hammering in my chest. Chiron nodded in agreement with something and his eyes settled on me.

"Thia, come here please. Bring your friends." It was uncomfortable feeling everyone stare at me but I stood up nonetheless. Leah got cautiously to her feet as did Andy. The three of us shared a silent look before awkwardly making our way down.

"So...got any ideas about what this thing is about?" I asked, trying to lighten the mood despite the metaphorical sword hanging overhead.

"Yes," Chiron nodded, running a hand over his face. "But I believe this should be discussed in private. I would like the three of you to join me at the big house please."

"Um...I don't like where this is going." Immediately my nerves flared up and I could feel it getting harder to breath. I tried to process the lines of the prophecy in my head. There was "Daughter of forgotten clan," that could be Leah. Then there was, "Son of loveless god's domain," that could definitely be Andy. Things didn't really click in my head for a moment until I repeated the prophecy in my head for a third time.

"Half blood born not from man." Me. That could be anyone though couldn't it? Tearing myself away from my thoughts I gave a pleading look to my parents but by Mom's lack of eye contact and the pissed off expression of Mama I knew my conclusion was correct.

"You think I'm-that it's about me?" Just getting the words out of my mouth took a great amount of effort. Chiron nodded slowly and his eyes held a sympathetic look. "No, I-I haven't done a quest before. I'm the least qualified! I can't-it said two people could die."

I shook my head unable to formulate words anymore as my breath became excruciatingly shallow. Now was not the time to have an anxiety attack but I couldn't help it.

"Relax, prophecies are often vague. We can discuss this-" Chiron rested hand on my shoulder but I backed away from it. Tears pricked at my eyes. How much clearer could it be? If there were three of us this was about, and two died, only one would come back. There was only a 33% likely hood that it would be me and if it wasn't, then Leah and Andy were going to die.

I felt like I was five all over again when I realized that I was terrified of snakes. Once again I felt the petrifying fear of seeing one. The kind where you couldn't move, couldn't breath, and just cried silently. I was painfully aware that everyone was watching and I felt guilty for not trying to comfort my friends but they were in the exact same boat I was.

The fear and realization was slowly sinking in. The worst part was, there was nothing we could do about it.