We decided to show Piper the cabins next. A group of campers were playing basketball. Majority of the shots were three-pointers that weren't in automatically. I frowned. Usually, Percy was playing basketball at this time with Seth and his brothers.

"Apollo's cabin." Annabeth explained. "Bunch of show offs either missile weapons-arrows, basketballs."

"But she loves her show off boyfriend." I teased.

"Shut up." Annabeth shoved me, rolling her eyes.

"Seth?" Piper assumed. "He's the one with Jason, right?"

"Yeah, Seth is my boyfriend. We recently started dating a few weeks back."

"About time, too."

Annabeth ignored my jab as we walked past the central fire pit. Two campers were hacking at each other with their swords.

"Real blades?" Piper noted. "Isn't that dangerous?"

"That's sort of the point. Uh, sorry. Bad pun. That's my cabin over there. Number Six." Annabeth nodded to the gray building with a carved owl over the door.

Through the open doorway, bookshelves, weapon displays, and a computerized SMART Board were seen. Two of Annabeth's sisters were drawing a map that looked like a battle diagram. They must've been strategizing battle plans.

"Speaking of blades, come here." Annabeth led Piper around the side of the cabin, to a big metal gardening shed. She unlocked it to reveal all sorts of weapons- from swords to spears to clubs. "Every demigod needs a weapon. Hephaestus makes the best, but we have a pretty good selection, too. Athena's all about strategy- matching the right weapon to the right person. Let's see..."

Annabeth glanced at the weapons, trying to see which one would best suit Piper. Annabeth reached in and handed Piper a massive sword. Piper grabbed it and could hardly lift it.

"No." The three of us said.

Annabeth rummaged a little further in the shed. She brought out a shotgun. Piper's eyebrows shot up into her hairline.

"A shotgun?" Piper asked.

"Mossberg 500." Annabeth checked the pump action. "Don't worry. It doesn't hurt humans, it's modified to shoot Celestial bronze, so it only kills monsters."

"Um, I don't think that's my style." Piper admitted.

"Mmm, yeah." Annabeth agreed. "Too flashy."

She out the shotgun back and started poking through a rack of crossbows when something in the corner of the shed caught Piper's eye.

"What's that?" She pointed at something toward the back. "A knife?"

Annabeth dug it out and blew the dust off the scabbard. It looked like it had t seen the light of day in centuries. Annabeth side eyed me, her eyes looking like Piper shouldn't want that weapon.

"I don't know, Piper." Annabeth said uneasily. "I don't think you want this one. Swords are usually better."

"That's true." I agreed.

"You use a knife." Piper pointed to the one strapped to Annabeth's belt.

"Yeah, but..." Annabeth shrugged. "Well, take a look if you want."

The sheath was worn black leather, bouncy in bronze. The polished wood handle seemed to fit in Piper's hand perfectly. Piper unsheathed the weapon to reveal a triangular blade eighteen inches long.

"It suits you." Annabeth admitted. "That kind of blade is called a parazonium. It was mostly ceremonial, carried by high ranking officers in the Greek armies. It showed you were a person of power and wealth, but in a fight, it could protect you just fine."

"It really does suit you well, Piper." I nodded.

"I like it." Piper said. "Why didn't you think it was right?"

"The blade had a long story." Annabeth exhaled. "Most people would be afraid to claim it. It's first owner...well, things didn't turn out too well for her. Her name was Helen."

"Wait, you mean the Helen? Helen of Troy?" Piper questioned. Annabeth nodded. "And it's just sitting in your tool shed?"

"We're surrounded by Ancient Greek stuff." Annabeth told her. "This doesn't belong  ina museum. Weapons like that-they're meant to be used. They're our heritage as demigods. That was a wedding present from Menelaus, Helen's first husband. She named the dagger Katoptris."

"Meaning?"

"Mirror. Looking glass. Probably because the only thing Helen used it for." Annabeth shrugged. "I don't think it's ever seen battle."

Piper looked at the blade again. She stared at it only for a moment and then dropped the blade. Her face turned pale. Like really pale. I was afraid Piper was going to faint on us or get really sick.

"Piper." I took a quick step forward, worried something happened.

"Piper?" Annabeth shouted to the Apollo kids on the court. "Medic! I need some help over here!"

"No, it's-it's okay." Piper managed to say.

"You sure?"

"You look pale, Piper. It's okay if you need a medic."

"Yeah, I'm sure. I just..." Piper picked up the dagger with trembling fingers. "I just got overwhelmed. So much happening today. But...I want to keep the dagger, if that's okay."

The Apollo kids stopped playing basketball. They started to come our way. Annabeth hesitated. The both of us exchanged looks, not knowing if Piper was fine or if she was lying. Annabeth waved off the Apollo kids. With shrugs, they went back to the game.

"Okay, if you're sure. You turned really pale, there." Annabeth told her. "I thought you were having a seizure of something."

"I'm fine." Piper promised. "Is there...um, a phone at camp? Can I call my dad?"

Annabeth studied Piper. She was quiet for a moment. Most likely thinking of all the possible outcomes of letting Piper use her phone.

"We aren't allowed phones. Most demigods, if they use a cell phone, it's like sending up a signal, letting monsters know where you are. But...I've got one." Annabeth slipped out her phone from her pocket. "Kind of against the rules, but if it can be our secret.."

Piper too it gratefully. Her hands were still slightly shaking. She stepped away from us to call her dad. I crossed my arms and studied her. Something had to have happened for her to drop her dagger.

"How long did you sleep last night, Ives?" Annabeth turned to look at me.

"About 8 hours." I muttered, knowing where this was going.

"Last night?" Annabeth furrowed her brows.

"The past two nights." I winced out.

"Ivy!" Annabeth scolded.

"I can't sleep." I heaved a sigh. My hand ran through my hair in frustration. "I keep thinking about Percy. I'm worried about him. My mind keeps racing at night, and even when I do try to sleep... I wake up from nightmares of bad things happening to him. Annabeth, I...I'm really worried about him."

"Okay, after this, you're going to sleep. Ivy, you need rest. Lots of it." Annabeth frowned. "Why haven't you told me?"

"I don't know. I didn't want you to worry about me. We're all focused on Percy and I don't want..." I heaved a sigh.

"If you're having trouble sleeping, maybe Clovis can help." Annabeth softly suggested.

"Maybe." I glanced over at Percy's cabin.

We stood in silence waiting for Piper. My mind wandered back to Hera's dream vision, the Grand Canyon, Percy's disappearance and lastly the newer Great Prophecy. My stomach twisted at the thought. A sour taste was in my mouth and fear crawled up my throat. Did the Great Prophecy already start?

Piper walked back toward us. There was a scowl on her face. She handed Annabeth back her phone.

"No luck?" Annabeth asked. Piper didn't answer. I guess it didn't go through or it wasn't a good talk. Annabeth glanced straight her phone display and hesitated. "Your last name is McLean? Sorry, it's not my business. It that sounds really familiar."

"Common name."

"Yeah, I guess. What does your dad do?"

"He's got a degree in the arts." Piper said. "He's a Cherokee artist."

It sounded like Piper was withholding the full truth.

"Oh." Annabeth didn't look convinced either. She put her phone away. "You feeling okay? Want to keep going?"

"Sure." Piper fastened her new dagger to her belt. "I want to see everything."

"Ivy, once we finish the tour, you're taking a nap." Annabeth gave me a pointed look. "You need it."

"Fine." I sighed, too tired to argue.

"Yeah, hate to say it, but you have some dark under eyes." Piper motioned toward my face.

"That's great." I frowned, thinking back to Percy always pointing them out and telling me to sleep more.

We went to Cabin Eight. The silver cabin seemed to glow as if moonlight was reflecting off it.

"Artemis?" Piper guessed.

"Yeah."

"You know some Greek mythology." Annabeth noted.

"I did some reading when my dad was working in a project last year."

"I thought he did Cherokee art." Annabeth brought up, raising a brow.

"Oh, right. But-you know, he does other stuff too." Piper stumbled over her words.

"Anyway," Annabeth continued, "Artemis is goddess of the moon, goddess of hunting. But no campers. Artemis was an eternal maiden, so she doesn't have any kids."

"Oh." Piper sounded bummed out.

"Well, there are the Hunters of Artemis." Annabeth added. "They visit sometimes. They're not the children of Artemis, but they're her handmaidens-this band of immortal teenage girls who adventure together and hunt monsters and stuff."

"That sounds cool." Piper perked up. "They get to be immortal?"

"Unless they die in combat, or break their vows." I told her.

"Did I mention they have to swear off boys? No dating- ever. For eternity."

"Oh. Never mind."

Annabeth and I laughed. A small smile grew on Piper's face. We passed Cabin Ten. As we walked passed the doorway, the smell of perfume hit our noses. Percy's comment about docking points for how their perfume reeks came into mind, making me frown. My heart ached.

"Gah, is that where supermodels go to die?" Piper remarked.

"Aphrodite's cabin." Annabeth smirked. "Goddess of love. Drew is the head counselor."

"Figures." Piper grumbled.

"Drew isn't too bad. She has her moments." I told her. "She can be sweet...deep deep down.

"For some reason, she's taking a liking to Ivy. She's probably the only person she's ever been nice to. Besides, they're not all bad." Annabeth said. "The last head counselor we had was great."

"What happened to her?"

"Let's keep moving." I quickly changed the subject, my heart twisted at the thought of Silena.

Annabeth's expression darken. Silena was still a sensitive topic at camp. Half of the campers saw her as a hero while the others saw her as the spy who told Kronos everything. Drew made sure to tell her siblings that she was the spy. We continued the cabin tour.

"We started with the twelve Olympian gods." Annabeth explained. "Male gods on the left, female on the right. Then las year, we added a while bunch of new cabins for the other gods who didn't have thrones on Olympus-Hecate, Hades, Iris-"

"What are the two big ones on the end?" Piper asked.

"Zeus and Hera." Annabeth frowned. "King and queen of the gods."

Piper headed that way. Annabeth and I followed after her. A scowl grew on my face as we neared Hera's cabin. Zeus's cabin was white marble with big columns out front and polished bronze doors emblazoned with lightning bolts. Hera's was smaller in the similar style. However, the doors were carved with a peacock feather design that shimmered different colors.

"Are they empty?" Piper asked.

"Zeus went a long time without having children." Annabeth nodded. "Well, mostly. Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades, the eldest brothers among the gods- they're called the Big Three. Their kids are really powerful, really dangerous. For the last seventy years or so, they tried to avoid having demigod children."

"Tried to avoid it?"

"Sometimes they...um, cheated. I've got a friend, Thalia Grace, who's the daughter of Zeus. But she gave up camp life and became a Hunter of Artemis."

"My boyfriend, Percy, he's a son of Poseidon." I added. "And there's a kid who shows up sometimes, Nico-son of Hades. Except for them, there are no demigod children of the Big Three gods. At least, not that we know of."

"And Hera?" Piper looked at the peacock-decorated doors.

"Goddess of marriage." Annabeth's tone was carefully controlled. "She doesn't have kids with anyone but Zeus. So, yeah, no demigods. The cabin's just honorary."

"You two don't like her." Piper noticed.

"We have a long history." Annabeth admitted. "I thought we'd made peace after the summer."

"Once Percy disappeared...I got this weird dream vision from her."

"Telling you to come get us." Piper concluded. "But you thought Percy would be there."

"It's best if I don't talk about it." I eyed the cabin as if Hera was inside eavesdropping. "I've got nothing good to say about Hera right now."

"So who goes in here?" Piper looked down at the base of the doors.

"No one." Annabeth answered. "The cabin is just honorary, like I said. No one goes in."

"Someone does." Piper pointed at a foot print on the dusty threshold and pushed open the doors.

"Um, Piper," Annabeth stepped back, "I don't think we should-"

"We're supposed to do dangerous stuff, right?" Piper walked inside.

Annabeth and I exchanged looks. With a sigh, I followed after Piper. Entering the cabin, I was hit with the cold. A circle of white columns around a central statue of the goddess seated on a throne of flowing golden robes. There was a fire burned in a bronze brazier at the goddess's feet. A stone hawk sat in the goddess's shoulder and in her hand was a staff topped with a lotus flower.

Behind the statue, at a little altar in the back, stood a figure covered in a black shawl. Her hands were visible, palms up. She seemed to be chanting a prayer.

"Rachel?" Annabeth gasped.

Rachel turned around and dropped her shawl. Her curly red hair stuck out in the cabins she was dressed in a green blouse and tattered jeans covered with marker doodled. Despite the cold floor, she was barefoot.

"We just checked the cave and you weren't there." I said.

"Hey!" Rachel gave Annabeth a hug first since she was closer. The red head came to me next and brought me into a hug. She rubbed my back soothingly before stepping away. "I'm so sorry! I came as fast as I could."

"Anything?" I asked, desperation seeping into my tone.

"I haven't gotten anything." Rachel frowned. "Are the IM's still not working?"

"I've been trying every day, sometimes even at night." I admitted, ignoring the look Annabeth shot me. "Mrs. O'Leary has been trying to find him and nothing."

"Tyson is looking in the waters for us. Nico, Thalia, and Grover are searching everywhere, too." Annabeth added.

"Still nothing from the gods?" Rachel frowned. I shook my head. "Okay, explain to me what happened again."

I retold Rachel all that I knew about Percy's disappearance. Then I told her about the dream vision Hera sent me. I also brought up the three demigods we rescued from the Grand Canyon. Rachel furrowed her eyebrows.

"Why would Hera send you a dream if the gods have gone silent?" Rachel asked.

"You haven't seen anything?" I bit my lip anxiously.

"Nothing so far." Rachel shook her head.

"We don't know why Hera sent the dream to Ivy. We're assuming either she knows something or she did it." Annabeth stated.

"Or knowing her both. Anyways, we did find the guy with one shoe." I told her. Rachel tilted her head to the side as she sensed I was going to say something. "But, he's an amnesiac that knows about the gods when mentioned."

"We're being rude." Annabeth apologized, glancing at Piper. I had forgotten she was there, so caught up about finding Percy. "Rachel, this is Piper, one of the half-bloods we rescued today. Piper, this is Rachel Elizabeth Dare, our oracle."

"The friend who lives in the cave." Piper guessed.

"That's me." Rachel grinned.

"You're an oracle?" Piper asked. "You can tell the future?"

"More like the future mugs me from time to time." Rachel said. "I speak prophecies. The oracle's spirit kind of hijacks me every once in a while and speaks important stuff that doesn't make any sense to anybody. But yeah, prophecies tell the future."

"Oh." Piper shifted from foot to foot. "That's cool."

"Don't worry." Rachel laughed. "Everybody finds it a little creepy. Even me. But usually I'm harmless."

"You're a demigod?"

"Nope. Just mortal."

"Then what are you..." Piper waved her hand around the room.

"Just a hunch." The smile fell off Rachel's face. She turned to face Annabeth and I. "Something about this cabin and Percy's disappearance. They're connected somehow."

"I knew it." I muttered under my breath, glancing at Annabeth.

"I've learned to follow my hunches, especially the last month, since the gods went silent."

"Went silent?" Piper asked.

"You haven't told her yet?" Rachel frowned.

"I was getting to that." Annabeth said. "Piper, for the last month...well, it's normal for the gods not to talk to their children very much, but usually we can count on some messages now and then. Some of us can even visit Olympus. Ivy and I practically spent all semester at the Empire State Building."

"Excuse me?"

"The entrance to Mount Olympus these days."

"Oh. Sure, why not?" Piper said.

"Annabeth was redesigning Olympus after it was damaged in the Titan War." Rachel explained. "She's an amazing architect. You should see the salad bar- oh! And Ivy has been planning the grand opening party. The menu-"

"Anyway," Annabeth interrupted, "starting about a month ago, Olympus fell silent. The entrance closed, and no one could get in. Nobody knows why. It's like the gods have sealed themselves off. Even my mom won't answer my prayers, and our camp dictector, Ivy's dad, Dionysus, was recalled."

"Your camp director was the god of...wine?" Piper looked at me, unsure of how to word it.

"Yeah, it's a-"

"Long story." Piper guessed. "Right. Go on."

"That's it, really." Annabeth said. "Demigods still get claimed, but nothing else. No messages. No visits. No sign the gods are even listening. It's like something had happened- something really bad. Then Percy disappeared."

"And Jason showed up on our field trip." Piper supplied. "With no memory."

"And one shoe."

"Who's Jason?" Rachel asked.

"My-" Piper stopped herself before she could say boyfriend. "My friend. But Ivy, you said Hera sent you a dream vision."

"Right." I nodded. "The first communication from a god in a month, and it's Hera, the least helpful goddess, and she contacts me, one of her least favorite demigods."

"Pretty sure I'm her number one on that list." Annabeth grumbled.

"She tells me I'll find out what happened to Percy if I go to the Grand Canyon skywalk and look for a guy with one shoe. Instead, I find you guys, and the guy with one shoe is Jason. It doesn't make sense." I shook my head.

"Something bad is happening." Rachel agreed, looking at Piper.

"Guys." Piper started. "I-I- need to-"

Rachel's body stiffened. Her eyes started to glow green and she grabbed Piper by the shoulders. Piper tried to steps sway, but she couldn't get out of the red head's hold.

Free me, Rachel said in a different voice. It didn't sound like her usual oracle voice. It sounded like an older woman. Free me, Piper McLean, or the earth shall swallow us. It must be by the solstice.

Annabeth and I tried to separate Rachel from Piper. Green smoke enveloped us. No matter how hard we tried to pull Rachel away from Piper, nothing happened.

Our enemies stir. The fires one is only the first. Now to his will, and their king shall rise, dooming us all. FREE ME!

Suddenly, Piper's knees buckled.

"Piper!" I caught her before she could hit her head on the floor.

"We need to take her to Chiron, now."

So this was definitely a girl bonding chapter 😬😬😬