CHAPTER FOUR
( DEATH WISH )

        IT SEEMS THAT, to gods who literally had all the time in the world, soon did not mean in a few minutes. It meant in a few hours. Davina stood next to Percy, watching as Bianca broke the news of her joining the Hunters to her brother while he told Thalia and Grover what happened when they were with Artemis. Nico looked crushed.

Grover paled. "The last time the Hunters visited the camp, it didn't go well."

"How'd they even show up here?" Percy wondered. "I mean, they just appeared out of nowhere."

"And Bianca joined them," Davina could hear the complete and utter anger in Thalia's tone. "And now they want Davina to join them? It's all Zoë's fault. That stuck-up, no good–"

"Who can blame her?" Grover asked. "Eternity with Artemis?"

Thalia rolled her eyes as Grover let out a dreamy sigh. "You satyrs. You're all in love with Artemis. Don't you get that she'll never love you back?"

"She's like a little celebrity crush," Davina defended, crossing her arms. "It's kind of. . . cute, I guess. In a way."

Percy tilted his head at her. "Since when did you become an Aphrodite kid?"

"I'm not heartless, Barnacle Boy," Davina spat, narrowing her eyes at him.

"She's so. . . into nature," Grover swooned before Percy could respond.

"You're nuts," Thalia shook her head.

"Nuts and berries," Grover responded breathily. "Yeah."

Eventually, the sky began to lighten.

"About time," Artemis muttered. "He's so lazy during the winter."

"You're, um, waiting for sunrise?" Percy questioned.

"For my brother, yes," Artemis answered. There was a moment of silence as Percy thought. "It's not exactly as you think."

"Oh, okay," Percy let out a breath of relief. "So, it's not like he'll be pulling up in a–"

There was a burst of light and a blast of warmth. "Don't look," Artemis instructed. "Not until he parks." Davina closed her eyes. Parks? She waited until the light died down before she opened her eyes.

There was a car in front of them, the snow around it melted in a perfect circle. The driver got out and Davina felt like she might melt. She could practically feel her pupils turn into hearts as she gawked at him. Apollo was–

"Wow," Thalia finished, blinking. "Apollo is hot."

"Yeah," Davina agreed absentmindedly. She found it hard at that moment to wrap her head around the fact that the guy in front of her – who looked no older than 16 – had tons of children running around. One of them even happened to be her other best friend.

Apollo was the perfect mix of buff and lanky. His eyes were a stunning blue – the same blue as the sky – and his hair was golden blonde.

"He's the sun god," Percy stated, missing their point.

"That's not what we meant," Thalia responded.

"Little sister!" Apollo called out, smiling. His teeth were so white they could've blinded them. "What's up? You never call. You never write. I was getting worried!"

Artemis sighed, clearly already annoyed with her brother. "I'm fine, Apollo. And I am not your little sister."

"Hey, I was born first."

"We're twins! How many millennia do we have to argue–"

"So what's up?" he interrupted. "Got the girls with you, I see. You all need some tips on archery?"

Artemis sucked in a breath. "I need a favor. I have some hunting to do, alone. I need you to take my companions to Camp Half-Blood."

"Sure–" he raised his hand in the stop motion. "I feel a haiku coming on." The Hunters groaned as Apollo cleared his throat. "Green grass breaks through the snow. Artemis pleads for my help. I am so cool."

Davina's smile faded. Nevermind. Apollo grinned at everyone, waiting for them to clap.

"The last line was only four syllables," Artemis told him, staring blankly at him.

Apollo's brows furrowed. "Was it?"

"Yes," Artemis nodded. "What about I am so big-headed?"

"No, no, that's only six syllables," he shook his head and started muttering to himself.

Zoë turned to them. "Lord Apollo has been going through this haiku phase ever since he visited Japan. 'Tis not as bad as the time he visited Limerick. If I'd had to hear one more poem that started with there once was a goddess from Sparta–"

"I've got it!" Apollo announced. "I am so awesome. That's five syllables." He bowed for them, pleased with himself. "And now, Artie. Transportation for the Hunters, you say? Good timing. I was just about ready to roll."

"These demigods will also need a ride," Artemis pointed at them. "Some of Chiron's campers. Also, do not called me Artie."

"No problem!" Apollo's eyes went over each of them, ignoring her last statement. "Davina, right? You're friends with my girl, right? Cassie?" She nodded and he moved to Thalia. "Let's see. . . Thalia, right? I've heard all about you."

Thalia's cheeks reddened. "Hi, Lord Apollo."

"Zeus's girl, yes? Makes you my half-sister. Used to be a tree, didn't you? I hate it when pretty girls turn into trees. Man, I remember one time–"

"Brother," Artemis cut in. "You should get going."

"Right," Apollo began nodding but then he looked at Percy and his eyes narrowed. "Percy Jackson?"

"Yeah. I mean. . . yes, sir."

Apollo studied Percy quietly for a few seconds. "Well. . . we'd better load up, huh? Ride only goes one way – west. And if you miss it, you miss it."

"Cool car," Nico complimented.

"Thanks, kid."

"But how will we all fit?"

"Oh," Apollo's eyes flickered to the car. "Well, yeah. I hate to change out of sports-car mode, but I suppose. . ." He took out his car keys and hit a button, making the alarm go off. The car glowed for a moment and when it stopped, the car had been replaced with a school bus. But not the plain yellow school bus, it was golden yellow and practically glowed. "Right, everybody in."

Zoë ordered the Hunters to start loading. When she picked up her camping pack, Apollo made the mistake of offering to help her and calling her sweetheart. Zoë recoiled from him and her eyes flashed dangerously, like she would've strangled him right there had he not been a god.

"Brother, you do not help my Hunters. You do not look at, talk to, or flirt with my Hunters. And you do not call them sweetheart," Artemis chastised.

"Sorry, I forgot," Apollo raised his hands in surrender. "Hey, where are you off to, anyway, Artie?"

"Hunting. It's none of your business."

"I'll find out," Apollo promised. "I see all. Know all."

Artemis snorted, amused. "Just drop them off, Apollo. And no messing around!"

"No, no! I never mess around!"

Artemis rolled her eyes. "I will see you by winter solstice. Zoë, you are in charge of the Hunters. Do well. Do as I would do."

Zoë straightened. "Yes, my lady."

The goddess then knelt to the ground. "So much danger. The beast must be found." She sprinted towards the woods and disappeared.

Apollo turned and grinned, jangling the car keys on his finger. "So, who wants to drive?"

The Hunters crammed into the back of the bus. Bianca joined them, leaving Nico behind. He didn't seem to mind all that much as he bounced in the driver's seat. "This is so cool! Is this really the sun? I thought Helios and Selene were the sun and moon gods. How come sometimes it's them and sometimes it's you and Artemis?"

"Downsizing," Apollo answered. "The Romans started it. They couldn't afford all those temple sacrifices, so they laid off Helios and Selene and folded their duties into our job descriptions. My sis got the moon, I got the sun. It was pretty annoying at first, but at least I got this cool car."

"But how does it work? I thought the sun was a big fiery ball of gas?"

Apollo chuckled and ruffled the boy's hair. "That rumor probably got started because Artemis used to call me a big fiery ball of gas. Seriously, kid, it depends on whether you're talking astronomy or philosophy. You want to talk astronomy? Bah, what fun is that? You want to talk about how humans think about the sun? Ah, now that's more interesting. They've got a lot riding on the sun. . . uh, so to speak. It keeps them warm, grows their crops, powers engines, makes everything look, well, sunnier. This chariot is built out of human dreams about the sun, kid. It's as old as Western Civilization. Every day, it drives across the sky from east to west, lighting up all those puny little mortal lives. The chariot is a manifestation of the sun's power, the way mortals perceive it. Make sense?"

Nico shook his head. "No."

"Well then, just think of it as a really powerful, really dangerous solar car."

"Can I drive?" Nico tilted his head.

"No," Apollo immediately replied. "Too young."

"Ooh! Ooh!" Grover raised his hand.

"Mm, no," Apollo shut him down. "Too furry." His eyes focused on Thalia. "Daughter of Zeus! Lord of the Sky. Perfect."

☆ ★☆

LETTING THALIA DRIVE was the worst decision ever. Davina didn't get carsick because of her dad being the god of travel but she felt like she was going to throw up as she stumbled out of the bus. She let out a breath, her hand on her heart. "I've never been this happy to be alive."

"Is that a climbing wall?" Nico wondered.

"Yeah," Percy nodded.

"Why is there lava pouring down it?"

"Extra challenge," Davina answered breathily as she straightened, her heart still racing in her chest. "Hurts like hel– heck, but it works."

"I'll introduce you to Chiron," Percy offered. "Zoë, have you met–"

"I know Chiron," Zoë told him. "Tell him we will be in Cabin Eight. Hunters, follow me."

Grover immediately jumped at the opportunity to 'guide' the Hunters around camp. Before Bianca followed them, she whispered something in Nico's ear and looked at him for an answer. He simply scowled and looked away, making Davina frown.

"Take care, sweethearts," Apollo called after the Hunters. He winked at Percy. "Watch out for those prophecies, Percy. I'll see you soon."

"What do you mean?"

"Nice meeting you, Davina. Say hi to Cassie for me," he ignored the son of Poseidon. "Later, Thalia. And, uh, be good." He closed the door to the bus and revved the engine. Davina closed her eyes as he took off.

"Who's Chiron?" Nico inquired, still looking upset by what Bianca had told him. "I don't have his figurine."

"Our activities director," Percy replied. "He's. . . well, you'll see."

"If those Hunter girls don't like him, that's good enough for me," Nico grumbled. Percy, Thalia, and Nico all started walking away. When he realized Davina wasn't following, he paused and turned around. "Are you coming?"

"Do you want me to?"

Nico thought for a second before he nodded. "Yeah."

"Okay," she shrugged.

Percy watched them, utterly confused by the girl. She was the most easily irritated person he knew, yet she answered all of Nico's questions happily and even gave him a mini camp tour on the way to the Big House.

Chiron smiled when he saw the four of them. "Percy! Thalia! Davina! Ah, and this must be–"

"Nico di Angelo," Davina finished.

"He and his sister are half-bloods," Percy added.

Chiron let out a relieved breath. "You succeeded then."

"Well. . ."

The centaur's smile then fell. "What's wrong? And where is Annabeth?"

"Oh, dear," Mr. D let out in a bored tone. "Not another one lost."

"What do you mean?" Thalia asked. "Who else is lost?"

Before Chiron could answer, Grover ran into the room, sporting a bruised eye and a bloody lip. "The Hunters are all moved in!"

"The Hunters, eh? I see we have much to talk about," the centaur looked at Nico. "Grover, perhaps you should take our young friend to the den and show him our orientation film."

"But–" Grover went to protest but quickly stopped. "Oh, right. Yes, sir."

"Orientation film?" Nico looked around at all of them. "Is it G or PG? 'Cause Bianca is kinda strict–"

"It's PG-13," Grover answered.

"Cool!"

Davina couldn't help but let out an amused breath as she watched the boy walk out of the room with Grover. She turned back to Chiron.

"Now," Chiron began. "Perhaps you three should sit down and tell us the whole story." So they did. When they were finished, Chiron turned to Dionysus. "We should launch a search for Annabeth immediately."

"I'll go!" all three of them immediately volunteered.

Mr. D sniffed. "Certainly not." They all started to argue with him, but the god held up his hand and the three quickly shut up. "From what you have told me, we have broken even on this escapade. We have, ah, regrettably lost Annie Bell–"

Davina rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. Mr. D never called anyone by their actual names, no matter how long they'd been at camp. She'd been called several different names by Dionysus. Daisy Santiago and Danielle Sherman were the most common. Very rarely had she ever actually been called Davina by the god.

"Annabeth," Percy corrected.

"Yes, yes," Mr. D waved him off. "And you procured a small annoying boy to replace her. So I see no point in risking further half-bloods on a ridiculous rescue. The possibility is very great that this Annie girl is dead."

Davina sucked in a sharp breath. She knew he was right, that Annabeth was most likely dead, but she didn't want to believe it. She reached up and began to undo her braids, giving her hands something to do.

"Annabeth may be alive," Chiron countered, but even he was having a hard time believing himself. "She's very bright. If. . . if our enemies have her, she will try to play for time. She may even pretend to cooperate.

There it was. It was small, but it was enough to fuel her. Chiron had just given Davina a small sliver of hope. He was right. If she had survived the fall. . . Annabeth was brilliant. She was a child of Athena, after all. And she was stubborn, so there was no way she'd go down without a fight.

"That's right," Thalia agreed. "Luke would want her alive."

"In which case," Dionysus stated. "I'm afraid she will have to be smart enough to escape on her own."

Percy jumped up. "Percy," Chiron warned.

"You're glad to lose another camper!" Percy exclaimed. "You'd like it if we all disappeared."

Mr. D stifled a yawn. "You have a point?"

"Yeah," the boy growled. "Just because you were sent here as a punishment doesn't mean you have to be a lazy jerk! This is your civilization, too. Maybe you could try helping out a little!"

"Jackson," Davina hissed. She was also angry, but messing with a god was not something he wanted to do. No matter how much luck he'd had in the past.

Percy wondered how the girl was staying so calm. Didn't she care about Annabeth – the girl who was supposed to be her best friend? He wanted to scream at her. Why aren't you helping me? Why aren't you angry? Why don't you care?

Just before he actually did scream at her, Nico and Grover burst into the room. "So cool!" the boy yelled, looking at Chiron. "You're. . . you're a centaur!"

Chiron forced a smile. "Yes, Mr. di Angelo, if you please. Though, I prefer to stay in human form in this wheelchair for, ah, first encounters."

Nico turned his attention to Mr. D. "And, whoah! You're the wine dude? No way!"

"The wine dude?" Mr. D repeated, taking his eyes away from Percy.

"Dionysus, right? Oh, wow! I've got your figurine."

"My figurine. . ."

"In my game," Nico explained. "Mythomagic. And a Holofoil card, too! And even though you've only got like 500 attack points and everybody thinks you're the lamest god card, I totally think your powers are sweet!"

"Ah," Mr. D blinked. Nico had just accidentally saved Percy's life. "Well, that's. . . gratifying."

"Percy," Chiron interjected. "You and the girls go down to the cabins. Inform the campers we'll be playing Capture the Flag tomorrow evening."

"Capture the Flag?" Percy furrowed his brows. "But we don't have enough–"

"It's tradition," Chiron told him. "A friendly match, whenever the Hunters visit."

"Yeah," Thalia muttered. "I bet it's real friendly."

Chiron glanced nervously at Mr. D, who was still listening to Nico talk about his game. "Run along now."

"Oh, right," Thalia nodded. "Come on, guys." She led them out of the Big House.

"What the hell was that back there?" Davina demanded, stepping out in front of Percy. The girl stood at a whopping 5 '0, so she shouldn't have been so intimidating, but if looks could kill, Percy Jackson would be a goner. "It's like you have a death wish!"

"Yeah," Thalia joined the girl's side. "I mean, you've already got Ares on your bad side. Do you really need another immortal enemy?"

Percy swallowed. "Sorry," he apologized. "I couldn't help it. It's just so unfair."

"Okay well, life is unfair, Jackson," Davina shot back. "Doesn't mean you can be making gods your enemies everywhere you go!"

"What is your problem?" Percy stepped towards her. "It's like you don't even care that Annabeth is gone!"

Davina faltered, face falling for a fraction of a second before hardening once more. "Fuck you," she spat before walking past him, shoving her shoulder into him as she did so.

How could he even think that? He'd known Annabeth for a year. One year. Davina had known her for six. Of course, she wanted her best friend back – more than anything – but picking a fight with a god wasn't going to make that happen.

Davina was thinking of all the best ways to kill Perseus Jackson when an arm swung around her shoulder. Cassie Clark grinned at her but it quickly fell when she saw the glare on her best friend's face. "What's wrong?"

Davina bit the inside of her cheek. "Annabeth's gone."

Cassie's eyes widened a bit. "What?"

Davina quickly recounted all the events that had happened, having to swallow down the lump in her throat a few times. "And then he has the nerve to say that I don't care? I mean, what the fuck?"

Cassie frowned. "You both are just grieving."

Davina huffed and rolled her eyes. Deep down, she knew Cassie was right. Even if she had known Annabeth longer than Percy, they both just wanted her back in the long run.

"By the way, your dad says hi."

𝒎𝒆𝒍 𝒎𝒆𝒍 !!
davina and nico are so cutesie i love them <33

what a shame they don't stay that way for very long