Chapter Eight - I Crash Land
Posted: Saturday December 16th 2023

We settled into yet another pattern. But as the Spring came and went and Summer began I began to become more restless.

I was overwhelmed by the need to get out of the house, which I had now been cooped up in for almost a year. I was also overwhelmed by the magnitude of my growing feelings for Apollo.

He saw my restlessness. He heard my complains about wanting to leave the house and so when he offered to take me for a ride in the sun chariot one day in early July, I was all for it. It was a chance to see more of the world which I had only begun to explore before I had been forced to retreat to the house.

The sun chariot took the form of an actual chariot for the day. Apollo said that he didn't want to overwhelm me with the newfangled technology that was a mortal automobile.

"They're more comfortable," he said as he urged the flaming stallions, which pulled the chariot, forwards and we galloped across the sky. "But sometimes a chariot simply can't be beaten."

I saw coastline approaching, we were cursing relatively slowly, so we were able to fly quite low as Apollo had explained to me that speed was what created the heat. As the coastline sailed beneath us, I saw a valley splayed out beneath us. There was a lake and several odd looking buildings sprawled out amongst fields filled with fruit.

"Do you trust me Ri?" Apollo asked. He had taken to calling me that, I didn't really mind. He said that it was manageable than my full name.

"What?" I asked.

"Forgive me? It's for the best." Apollo shot me a winning smile before he pushed me off the back of the chariot.

Hurtling through the air, I didn't think I would be able to forgive him because I would be dead. I only had a few moments to think this though before I hit the surface of the lake I had seen earlier.

The impact was beyond painful, it felt like all of the air had been forcibly knocked from my lungs and my limbs had turned to jelly. I had no way to control my limbs as I struggled to wrap my head around why on earth Apollo had just pushed me out of the chariot.

The faces of beautiful women appeared in front of my face, all of the looking at me with curiosity as I floated deeper into the lake, still being carried down by the force of my impact, but unable to do anything about it.

Just as I thought I was going to pass out and die from a lack of oxygen. Something, or should I say someone, grabbed my arm and pulled me upwards. My head broke the surface and I pulled in a massive gulp of air as the person who had saved me dragged me onto the shore.

"What is it Percy?" A girl's voice said. There was water in my eyes and I blinked rapidly as I continued to gasp for air.

"It's a girl," A boy's voice said. The water cleared from my eyes and my surroundings came into focus. I was dripping wet and lying at the side of a lake near a wooden jetty which had some canoes tied up to it. The area around the lake was green and luscious, like the weather was always perfectly balanced so that the plants could thrive. I had never seen so much green in one place.

The boy who had spoken was kneeling beside me. He had a mess of black hair and was wearing an orange T-shirt. Somehow he was completely dry. The girl who had spoken was making her way towards us from the end of the jetty. She too had an orange T-shirt on, and blonde curly hair which was pulled back in a ponytail.

"You're alive?" The boy asked when he saw my eyes darting around, "that must've been quite a fall, where in Hades name did you come from?"

I blinked again, trying to make my brain focus, "uh, the sky." I said stupidly. I wasn't sure where I was, but I didn't think I could explain my predicament without completely freaking any mortal out.

"Are you okay?" The girl asked, she had joined the two of us at the side of the lake, "geez Percy she's hurt, go and get an Apollo camper, and Chiron!" The girl spoke with an authority that left no room for debate. The boy, Percy, shot me a second look and then hurried away, presumably to do what the girl had told him to do.

The name Chiron pulled at a distant memory which I couldn't quite put my finger on.

The girl took Percy's place and crouched down beside me. With her closer to me I was startled to see my father's grey eyes staring out at me. Athena's eyes.

"Don't worry, Percy is getting a healer," the girl said, "does it hurt too much?"

I hadn't noticed the pain, my head was too busy wrapping itself around what had just happened, but I noticed a dull ache in my whole body when she mentioned it. Pain was something I was familiar with and my threshold was higher than most. I pushed myself into a sitting position despite the protests of my body.

"Don't move!" The girl said, "you might have broken something! I don't want you to die before an Apollo camper can heal you up."

"It's fine," I managed.

"Who are you?" The girl asked.

"Where I am?" I countered. Not willing to answer any questions until I established exactly where I had crash landed. The mention of Apollo campers gave me a pretty good idea, but I wanted it confirmed before I worked out what my approach would be.

"Camp Half-blood," The girl said, "I'm Annabeth. What are you? Are you a demigod?"

I blinked at her, "Camp Half Blood," I repeated. I knew the name. My father had told me stories of this place and Apollo had mentioned it in passing. This had been my father's home before he had been sent on the quest which had wound him up in Tartarus. I understood now why the name Chiron had rung a bell. He was the immortal centaur who trained demigod heroes.

"You're a daughter of Athena?" I asked the girl who was looking at me as if i were about to blow up.

"How did you know that?" She demanded.

I was certain that telling these demigods the full truth would wind up with me locked in a dungeon somewhere. How would they react if I just went 'oh hi my name is Ariadne and I'm a daughter of the Primordial Nyx, I also accidentally married Apollo who just pushed me off of the sun chariot and now I'm here. Also apparently I'm going to kill Zeus, how are you.'

I settled on telling a partial truth.

"My father was a son of Athena," I said.

The girl blinked at me, I wasn't sure if this camp saw many second generation demigods, but from the expression on her face I could tell it most certainly wasn't the norm.

"I'm Annabeth," the girl said, "what's your name?"

"Ariadne." I replied.

I heard hooves approaching and looked around to see who I assumed to be Chiron galloping towards us at full pelt with Percy and another boy charging behind him.

"Annabeth," The centaur spoke, "what happened?"

"We were just sitting on the jetty," Annabeth said, "and then she fell from nowhere and hid the lake. Percy dived in and grabbed her. Will, she needs medical attention!"

"I'm fine!" I protested, although I really wasn't. The dull ache had grown in power and it was becoming more and more painful to move.

The boy who wasn't Percy, so therefore had to be Will, ignored me and made his way over to me, beginning to assess my injuries. He had to be a son of Apollo because he looked so much like the sun god I almost wanted to kick him for Apollo's actions. I held myself back as I didn't think kicking campers was the best way to introduce myself.

"Is she a demigod?" Will asked. "Can I give her ambrosia?"

"Yes," I groaned, "please."

He stuffed a cube of ambrosia in my mouth and I chewed it, the warm feeling of the food of the gods spread over my body and my aches and pains dulled.

"Thanks," I said. I scrambled to my feet, not enjoying lying in the muck of the lake shore.

"Hey I need to examine you, if what Annabeth said is true you must have some serious injuries!" Will said.

"I'm fine," I assured him.

"Who are you?" Percy demanded. Narrowing his eyes at me. I figured I was about two years older than him and about the same height. I probably would have found his gaze intimidating if not for the fact that I had faced off against the worst Tartarus had to offer.

"My name is Ariadne," I said.

"Are you like a god or something ?" Percy asked.

"No I'm mortal," I responded

"How in Hades did you survive that fall?" Annabeth asked, "better yet, where did you fall from?"

I ignored them and looked at Chiron. The centaur was regarding me with a face that exposed none of his emotions.

"Go back to your activities," Chiron told the three campers, "I will speak with Ariadne and learn her story."

"But Chiron-." Annabeth protested.

"We will see you at dinner," the centaur said sternly. The three demigods didn't protest anymore, they each shot me looks and then left, mumbling to each other.

The centaur fixed me with a look.

"Well you definitely know how to make an entrance daughter of Nyx."