I had a love-hate relationship with the Feast of Seven. Sure, it was the one time of year I got to see Cleo, but it was always a bittersweet moment for us. It was a reminder of what we'd lost, of who we'd lost.

Regardless, it was good to see the people from Camp Jupiter. I was never close with them, but I always heard stories of my brother Jason from Reyna. She seemed to see a lot of Jason in me somehow. Maybe it's the glasses?

It was going to be three months since Iskall and Mumbo came to Camp, which meant this was their first feast. Mumbo was eagerly helping his siblings plan every moment of the Feast, making sure it was going to go perfectly no matter what might happen. Iskall, on the other hand, seemed to be not-as-excited as his brother.

I felt that, in all honesty. This year the feast made me feel.... Anxious. I was anticipating something, something... big, but I wasn't sure what. It was like, when you drink milk, and you're lactose intolerant, and you're just waiting for the stomachache to hit you.

Or something.

Regardless, I hardly slept the night before the feast. Nightmare slept soundly just a few beds away, which I envied her for. She seemed to sleep through the night most of the time, while I had to deal with laying in bed and staring at the white marble ceiling of our cabin that was more like a temple.

I sighed, debating sneaking out early. Sure, the cleaning harpies might eat me alive, but I'd at least have something to do. Maybe I could raid the forest for a monster fight. A good adrenaline-fuelled battle might help me relax a bit.

I decided on this course of action, slipping out of my bed soundlessly. I tried to be quiet while throwing on a clean orange shirt and some jeans, so to not wake my half-sister, and slipped through the door of my cabin into the misty morning.

I snuck along the cabins, heading towards the edge of the massive forest that overtook half of our camp. The camp was buzzing with energy even at this early hour, most people just excited to see their friends and family from across the country.

I made it to the treeline when the wind blew past my face. I paused, turning to face the direction it blew to see someone sitting at the edge of the water. The small figure was sitting on the sand, dramatically looking across the ocean.

I sighed, making my way across the greens to the beach quickly. The closer I got to the water, the more I recognized the scruffy brown hair, the slouch in their shoulders as they sat lost in thought. It was Iskall.

"Issie, what the Hades are you doing out at this hour?" I hissed, getting closer to my cousin. He flinched, turning to face me with a worried look in his bright green eyes. "It's like... 4 in the morning!"

"Why are you up at this hour?" He shot back, frowning slightly.

"I asked you first." I crossed my arms a bit, keeping my ears out for any sign of the cleaning harpies in our area.

Iskall huffed, turning away from me. His hand ran under the cold sand, and only then did I register the sag in his shoulders wasn't just bad posture, he was tired. His hair was a mess just as his clothes were rumpled from tossing and turning all night. I sighed, taking a seat next to my cousin.

"What's on your mind?" I questioned, looking out over the ocean as well. The waves were small, the water dark in the faint light of the sunrise.

"Everyone's been talking about the Feast today," Iskall mumbled, messing with the sand, "But... what are the Camp Jupiter kids even like?"

I wrapped an arm around Iskall's shoulders. "Hey, you're good. The romans are... something to get used to. Very formal, military. But once they relax a bit, there's a lot of chaos."

"Like what?" Iskall looked up at me curiously, and I sighed.

"My favorite story is when the Stolls and the Mercury kids decided to follow Chiron around with coconuts making fake horse hoof noises. Second favorite is when Nico Di Angelo, son of Hades, got dropped into the lake. His boyfriend fished him out, and the Mars kids responsible got their arses handed to them."

"Oof." Iskall replied, smiling. "So they're good?"

"Yeah. They're good." I hugged Iskall closer to my side, looking out over the lake. That feeling of unease hit me again, but I tried to shove it aside.

"What about the Amazons? And the Hunters of Artemis?" Iskall asked, now buzzing with questions, like always.

"Well, the Hunters... I'd say avoid at all costs. They kinda hate most (all) men, and will fight anyone that flirts." I considered a bit. "Also avoid the Amazons. Well, not Cleo. Cleo is a good friend. But for the most part, Amazons tend to use men as servants and... honestly, probably deserved."

"They sound a bit scary." Iskall admitted, looking back at the water. "But... you talked about Cleo before."

"I did mention her, didn't I?" I smiled down at my cousin, glad he remembered. "Man, I missed her."

"Do you miss Parker too?" Iskall's voice sounded a bit sharper than before. "The friend who you lost?"

"Of course I do, Issie." I unhooked my arm from Iskall.

"You don't seem like you do." His voice morphed a bit, sounding deeper. "If you did, you would have died in their place."

"I tried to," I responded, confused at the shift in conversation. "I promise, I wanted to save them!"

"You should have done more," His voice grew deeper and deeper with each word, turning gravelly and rough as well. "You could have saved them!"

"Iskall, what's wrong with you?" I backed away as he stood, growing larger than life. A shadow overtook his body, the ground shaking between us.

"You should have saved them!" Iskall shouted, the ground tearing open. I stared into the growing void, unable to stand, to move. "Grian Lurette, you should have saved me!"

"Parker?" I felt the ground below me vanishing, and I scrambled for any bit of purchase in the sand. "I tried!"

The ground officially vanished, sending me into the depths of nothing. A cold laugh echoed all around as I fell, the sky above me fading to a speck.

I have awoken.

I fell to the floor of my cabin in a huge thump, startling Nightmare awake from her bed nearby. I sat up, feeling the shake in my shoulders. Honestly, screw whoever decided demigods get that vivid of dreams.

"Grian?" Nightmare looked over at me. "You... okay?"

"Dream. Really, really bad dream." I rubbed my head a bit, hating what that bad dream could say about how today would go. The conch shell outside signalled breakfast, and the near arrival of everyone from anywhere in the demigod world. "Come on, let's eat."

~

The whole day was incredibly stressful for me. Every time I tried to talk to someone, they were busy, or they didn't want to listen to me jitter anxiously. I found myself isolated when the time came for the feast, right up until a familiar redhead with a peg leg took a seat next to me.

"Hey, airhead," Cleo greeted, punching my arm harshly. "What the Hades have you been doing all day? Avoiding me?"

I smiled at my friend, shaking my arm out a bit. "Not on purpose, Cleo. I promise."

"Then why haven't you talked to me?" She demanded, angrily messing with the bracelet on her arm.

"Just... nerves, I guess." I watched the other campers laugh and devour food happily, unable to join in on the shared excitement. "I had a dream last night that... shook me up."

"Same here." Cleo admitted, resting her hand on mine. "It was about Parker."

"Mine too." I sighed, resting my head on Cleo's shoulder. "I... I guess we just miss her."

"Maybe." Cleo shifted a bit, resting her chin on my head. "But... maybe there's something else going on here."

"Like?"

She shrugged. "I dunno. I can feel... something. Something is wrong around here... and I want to know what."

By this point, people were making their way to the campfire for the continuing festivities. I had mostly picked at my food over eating it, not particularly hungry, so I took the movement as an excuse and dragged Cleo to some places close to the campfire, right near Rachel Dare.

I had never been uncomfortable around Rachel, finding her... reassuring, in a weird way. It was like she was so confident with knowing the future that I was sure everything had to turn out alright.

That was before her mouth opened. Before the familiar green smoke poured out. Before her eyes scanned the crowd, almost chillingly staring into my soul far longer than nearly anyone else. Before the prophecy slipped out, a chilling reminder of my dream.

Split at the roots, a schism of truths

Divided it began, may divided it end

A darkness untold, dug deep down below

Tangled in lies, no heroes left to show

Might it be hope, that by end win it all?

Or will it be shadows, whose curses befall

I found myself standing immediately, catching Rachel as she passed out. Cleo helped me settle her on a log, and I knew the counselor meeting would be soon. I barely noticed Iskall guiding Mumbo to the Athena cabin, the smaller boy trembling in his brothers arms as they walked amongst the panicking crowd.

I walked to the Big House in a daze, spotting Xisuma and Doc ahead of me. I avoided anyone's gaze, staring fiercely at the ground.

This wasn't going to end well... for anyone.

~~

This was supposed to go up about 5 days ago, but I was on vacation with no wifi. Sorry this is a bit late, but I hope you all enjoy it!

Also, lemme know what you think of that big prophecy! Agathia worked really hard on it, so make sure to check her out! (Tag is in the first part)

~Parker