Solis

Chapter XVII

Tomorrow, Ron had a plan to find Annabeth and talk to her about why she was avoiding him. He couldn't stop thinking about it and it was bothering him so much that he couldn't sleep. Annabeth was like a friend and big sister to him. They had known each other for nearly six years, but suddenly she wasn't talking to him anymore.

Did he do something wrong?

Ron had been awake for a while, not knowing how long. The bunkbed was shaking a bit, so he sat up and looked at Austin, who was on the bunk above. Austin couldn't sleep either, just like everyone else. It was hard to sleep when their camp was in such a dangerous situation.

They were holding onto their weapons tightly, just in case something bad happened suddenly. Even though they weren't scheduled for patrol duty, Ron was concerned about the other campers who had chosen to stay awake and watch over everyone.

Ron sat up and made the decision to climb onto Austin's bed and lie down next to him. Austin didn't react much and continued to move around.

"Don't move.“ Ron complained.

“You're technically taking up a lot of space on my bed."

"I can't fall asleep."

"Me neither," Ron whispered, and they turned to look at each other. Austin appeared to be scared. His expression gave it away, "What's wrong?"

"I can't stop thinking about Tantalus' story..."

"Are you scared?" Ron whispered, "It's not really that scary…"

Austin rolled his eyes and accidentally bumped Ron's nose with his elbow. "You wouldn't get it! It's so scary, what if he's already planning to kill us and offer us as a meal... I don't want to end up as food for our dad."

"Don't worry, Tinny. We'd probably taste better with a little sugar and chocolate—"

"Ron!" Austin hissed in nervousness.

"—and we'll be fine." Austin groaned at thay and attempted to claim more space on his bed, but Ron resisted and tussled with him.

"Get back to your bed."

"I can't sleep!"

"Because you're here!"

"But I can't sleep!"

Then both of them yelped when Kayla's head appeared, she was already sleepy and she was clutching her bow with her. “Let me sleep with you guys.“

“—but there's no space anymore!“ Austin said.

“Doesn't matter.“ The girl tried to squeeze herself between Ron and Austin.

“Ouch, get off your armor, Kayla!“

“I can't breathe.“ Austin cried.

“Oh, c'mon, you two, just sleep!“

“I can't!“

🔆

Morning was worse. Ron didn't get enough sleep, like everyone else. Some campers were now sleeping at their tables in the Dining Pavilion while Nymphs served breakfast. They had bacon, eggs, and sandwiches, but Ron struggled to eat properly since Austin and Kayla's heads were leaning on his shoulder.

He also felt disappointed because he heard that Annabeth, Percy, and Tyson had snuck outside the camp. Harpies had ratted them out to Tantalus, so the man was furious and expelled them. Ron was angry at Tantalus for expelling them out—he told him its better if he just crawl his way back to where he came from—which, of course, is the Field of Punishment.

Lee and the others hit Ron on the head for this, so now he was the only one cleaning the stable.

But then he noticed that the campers were running toward the beach at Long Island Sound. Ron got curious and quietly followed them, and when he reached the beach, he saw a huge ship that he had never seen before. He knew what ships looked like from pictures—but this one was completely unfamiliar—and cool.

Just like everyone else, everybody was really excited while Clarrise was chatting with his half-siblings, and he suddenly realized she's the only one who's going. The other campers began to gather around her, and Ron joined in too, but some campers kept their distance from him since he had just come from the stables.

Clarrise just told them to take care of the camp while she's away, and so on, but she won't talk about the Oracle when they asked her.

They all watched her leave, and Ron remained on the beach, gazing at the ship until it faded from view. A question suddenly popped into his mind: What's it like to have a quest and be able to leave the camp and see the world outside?

That's why he quit scraping together food for his dad in brazier—every day, every month, every year. That was the only thing he used to pray for. He sort of just…lost hope, and there's this feeling that his dad doesn't really care about him, although he keeps pushing that thought aside. Maybe they were busy, as Annabeth had mentioned him before that their godly parents are often too busy to visit them.

It's been two days since Clarrise left, and the camp has been steadily growing weaker. Monsters are showing up nearby and without Clarrise's commands, it making things more difficult. Everyone is just…tired from trying to keep the camp safe, and whatever they do, the place remains unchanged and is worsening. 

Ron felt a strong urge to cry. This place was his only home, and he had to stay here because it was the only safe place for him. There was a reason why Chiron wanted him to stay inside—he needed to protect his home. 

There was still no word from Clarrise and the others, and days were slipping by quickly. A whole week had gone by, and Ron's anxiety was growing with each passing day.

Monsters continued to attack from within, and there were only a few of them to defend the camp. Ron and his half-siblings had to work together to treat the injured campers from the battles. None of them had a chance to rest, and Lee was quietly cursing as he rushed to assist another injured camper who was in pain.

Ron wiped the sweat off his cheek as he attempted to clean the wound of one of the campers. They had no other option but to help, even if they weren't fully knowledgeable about proper healing methods.

All of a sudden, a loud scream erupted from outside, and Ron did his best to prevent the injured campers from rushing out to see what was happening.

A Draco Aionious had somehow made its way to the Arts and Crafts area, and the other campers were struggling to fend it off. Unfortunately, it ended up setting the place on fire.

Kayla who were applying a bandage to one of the campers besides him, was in little tears. "I hate this... I really hate this," she muttered.

One day during lunch, Ron couldn't control his feelings anymore. Everyone was eating quietly, feeling hungry after enduring fights and patrols. Ron, feeling exhausted and with a numb hand, he attempted to pick up his sandwich when a loud voice suddenly echoed in the Dining Pavilion.

“Who poisoned Thalia’s tree, Luke?”

Everyone looked up and noticed a shimmering object just behind and above Mr. D and Tantalus. Ron also looked up slowly, and the sandwich he was holding slipped from his hand and fell off his plate.

“I did, of course,” Luke snarled. “I already told you that. I used elder python venom, straight from the depths of Tartarus.” 

“Chiron had nothing to do with it?” He heard Percy's voice but they couldn't see him there properly because it was Luke's back they were seeing.

“Ha! You know he would never do that. The old fool wouldn’t have the guts.” 

“You call it guts? Betraying your friends?Endangering the whole camp?” 

Luke raised his sword. “You don’t understand the half of it. I was going to let you take the Fleece ... once I was done with it.” 

“You were going to heal Kronos,” Percy said. 

“Yes! The Fleece’s magic would’ve sped his mending process by tenfold. But you haven’t stopped us, Percy. You’ve only slowed us down a little.” 

“And so you poisoned the tree, you betrayed Thalia, you set us up—all to help Kronos destroy the gods.” 
Luke gritted his teeth. “You know that! Why do you keep asking me?” 

“Because I want everybody in the audience to hear you.” 

“What audience?”

That's when Ron couldn't hold back his tears anymore and began crying. He shook as his half-siblings tried to comfort him. It finally made sense. This was the reason Annabeth avoided talking to him, because she knew the truth. She knew that Ron would be even more hurt, just like she had been.

🔆

Ron found himself once more in his favorite spot in the woods near the strawberry field. He had angrily thrown the bracelet bead that Luke had given him deep into the forest. The Dryads in the area were concerned about him, but he ignored their worries, which only fueled his anger.

As Ron had previously told Tantalus, the fallen camp director had somehow returned to where he was banished to by Mr. D. Tantalus was also present when Clarrise came back with the fleece. They all gathered on the hill and celebrated, cheering as life returned to the camp. The monsters were gone, and there were no more border patrols. The camp had been rescued, and Chiron resumed his role as the camp activities director.

Suddenly, Annabeth ran towards him and hugged him tightly. She didn't say anything, but Ron hugged her back and started crying.

"I'll always be here," Annabeth whispered, trying not to cry. "We'll be safe."

"Annie, please don't leave me," Ron sobbed.

Annabeth placed her hands on Ron's cheeks and said, "I will never leave you." Her determined grey eyes showed her commitment. 

"But... Luke..." Ron said, sniffling.

"Do you still trust him, Ron?"

Ron looked down at his sneakers and tightly gripped the hem of his shirt. "I... I dunno," he said, his voice trembling.

Annabeth was about to ask him again but she stopped himslef, she doesn't want to pressure the redhead, it only made Ron hurt so she just give a soft sigh to Ron. “I understand.“ She said. “But you had to think about that.“

Ron nodded, and Annabeth kissed his head. "Look at you, you've had grown taller already," she said, wiping the tears from his eyes as he managed to give Annabeth small smile.

In the following days, Chiron continued with the Chariot race, and campers who had come back right after the disaster kept asking them questions. Since it was already summer, the camp became crowded once more.

"What do you mean the camp was attacked!?"

"Huh? The Chariot race is back!?"

"Who's Tantalus!?"

Ron threw a bagel at Michael's face, who had been bombarding them with questions. The short boy glared at Ron and tackled him down, tickling him. Despite this, the camp returners were also excited about the return of the Chariot race. However, a few of them were still nervous due to what had happened before. (the birds)

Lee had finally eased his stress about patrolling the camp and tending to numerous injuries, but he found himself complaining to Michael. Michael Yew was the best healer they had, but the short boy was firing complaints back for not being around when the camp needed help.

Their argument continued until Ron intervened, placing a bunch of papers on the table in the middle of the cabin. He gathered his half-siblings around and announced, "Today, we're going to get our revenge!"

Kayla placed colored pens and markers on the table. "Let the designing begin!" she exclaimed and they all cheered. 

Despite their loss, it didn't bother Ron much. He had a great time, and the chariot race victory went to Percy and Annabeth. Thanks to Ron, his half-siblings formed friendships with Percy and Annabeth. Ron also got to meet Tyson, and they convinced the big boy to play with them.

"I knew it!" Ron exclaimed in excitement while watching Tyson work on a forge with Nyssa and the others. "You're so cool," he said, making Tyson happy. The redhead even allowed the cyclops to touch his hair, as Tyson had never seen hair like his before.

However, like everyone else, Tyson had to leave, which reminded Ron of Luke and made him bitter for the next two days.

On that very evening, after finishing his glass of milk, Ron lay down to sleep. He give his half-siblings a kiss on their cheeks and bid them goodnight before drifting off to sleep.

As soon as he drifted off into his dream, he was abruptly jolted awake by loud knocking on their door.

He couldn't quite understand what was happening outside, but he saw the other campers heading towards the hill in their pajamas and armor. Ron quickly grabbed his quiver and bow before he followed the others.

He was still sleepy since it wasn't yet dawn, and being woken up at the wrong time left him annoyed. They made their way to the top of the hill where Thalia's pine tree stood, joining the other campers who had already gathered around it.

He maneuvered his way to the front and came to a halt at the scene before him. Annabeth was kneeling beside an unconscious girl, tears streaming down her face as she looked at Ron.

Ron couldn't bring himself to move. He tried to walk towards the unconscious girl, but his feet remained rooted to the spot.

Then suddenly Percy appeared running towards the unconscious girl, kneeling besides her. “She needs nectar and ambrosia,” He said and looked at the others as he took her by the shoulders and lifted her into sitting position, resting her head on his shoulder. 

“Come on!” he yelled to them. “What’s wrong with you people? Let’s get her to the Big House.” 

But no one moved. Then suddenly the unconscious girl coughed. “Who—”

“I’m Percy,” Percy said. “You’re safe now.” 

“Strangest dream...” 

“It’s okay.” 

“Dying.” 

“No,” Percy assured her. “You’re okay. What’s your name?”

“I am Thalia,” the girl said. “Daughter of Zeus.”