STRENGTH
━━ act two, chapter thirteen.

ˏˋ°•*⁀➷

   THEY ARRIVED AT LONG ISLAND IN A PRETTY SHORT AMOUNT OF TIME, though now night, courtesy of the centaurs' travel powers. Earlier, they had stopped at a trailer park to heal up. Chiron had bandaged Nabi's wound on her hand, and fed her ambrosia as she tried her best to forget about the Princess Andromeda. Luke, Chris... She pushed it all to the back of her head. Right now, she needed a break.

Nabi had rode on a centaur called Jeremy, who was most definitely high as fuck—he'd asked a question when they were fleeing from Luke and his warriors.

   "You ever rode a centaur before?" Jeremy asked.

   Nabi shook her head, furiously. "No, but we should hurry up, or I'm probably not gonna get the chance to ride one ever again!"

   He snorted, with half lidded eyes. "Dude, you're kinda like... so real."

   That was pretty much proof. Definitely high.

When they made it to camp, it was only a short while after Clarisse had. Nabi jumped off the centaur to run over to her, almost tripping in her haste to do so.

"You completed the quest!" Nabi exclaimed, ecstatic as she bounced up and down.

Clarisse shook her head, a grin of her own plastered on her face. She lifted Nabi up and spun her around with one arm, like the princesses got to experience in movies—it made Nabi's head spin too, in a completely different way. It was also pretty impressive with how heavy the Fleece must've been in the other arm.

   "We completed it."

The centaurs were pretty anxious to meet Dionysus. They'd heard he threw some really wild parties, but sadly, Mr. D wasn't in the mood to celebrate as the whole camp gathered at the top of Half-Blood Hill.

The camp had been through a rough two weeks. Apparently, the arts and crafts cabin had burned to the ground from an attack by a Draco Aionius—a big lizard monster that could blow stuff up just by breathing—which didn't help with the Big House already overflowing with wounded campers. The kids in the Apollo cabin, who were the best healers, had been working their butts off performing first aid.

Everybody looked weary and battered as they crowded around Thalia's tree.

"Please," Chiron announced, "Clarisse la Rue, do the honours."

The moment that Clarisse draped the Golden Fleece over the lowest bough, the moonlight seemed to brighten, the dull grey hues transforming into a liquid silver. A cool breeze rustled in the branches and rippled through the grass, all the way into the valley.

   Everything came into sharper focus—the glow of the fireflies down in the woods; the smell of the strawberry fields; the sound of the waves on the beach. Gradually, the needles on the pine tree began transfiguring from the sickly brown to a soothing green.

Everybody cheered. It was happening slowly, but there could be no doubt—the Fleece's magic was seeping into the tree, filling it with new power and expelling the poison.

"From now on," Chiron said, "there is to be a constant guard duty on the hilltop! I shall place an ad in Olympus Weekly, as soon as possible."

Everybody cheered once more.

Nabi let out a yelp as, suddenly, her and Clarisse were carried on her cabin mates' shoulders down to the amphitheater.

"That's our girl! Make way, Nabster's coming through!" Connor yelled.

She laughed as Connor and Travis held her up higher, hollering and screaming everyone's ears off. Travis yelled, "Come on, people! Our heroes have finally arrived!"

Nabi was a little grateful that the Ares kids were carrying Clarisse close enough for them to hold hands, all the way up until they were to be put down and honoured with laurel wreaths.

One look at Clarisse's face—grinning from ear to ear, a little pink in the cheeks from all the attention and pride swelling within her chest—made Nabi realise that the entire quest was totally worth it.

Clarisse was a hero. That was all she had ever wanted to be. And all Nabi had ever wanted was for her to be happy, so really, it was a win for them both.

Nobody gave Annabeth, Percy or Tyson a second look. It was as if they had never left. Nabi knew that was for the best—if they admitted to sneaking out of the camp, Dionysus would've had to expel them. But still, she mouthed a quick 'thank you' to them, anyway. Percy flushed pink, and gave her a thumbs up, whilst Annabeth and Tyson gave her their own supportive nods in return.

   "To Clarisse la Rue and Nabi Cho-hee," Chiron bellowed, a smile on his old features, "the heroes who saved the camp; who retrieved the Golden Fleece from the mighty Polyphemus' hands! Kleos!"

   "Kleos!" The entire camp yelled.

   It was really, really good to be back.

【 🦋 】

   THE NEXT MORNING, AFTER THE CELEBRATION INVOLVING S'MORES AND GHOST STORIES BY THE CAMPFIRE, Silena and Clarisse came knocking on the Hermes cabin's door. Silena was carrying a certain silly cat in her arms, and Nabi had never been more grateful to see her.

"I missed you." Nabi said, closing the door behind them. Honey lunged into her own arms with a soft meow, and she laughed.

Silena smiled. "I missed you too."

"Well," Nabi jokingly huffed, "I was actually talking to Honey. But you're important too, I guess."

"Ha, ha," Silena said, "really though, camp was boring without you and Clarisse."

   Clarisse said, "I bet it was. You probably missed losing to me during sparring matches."

At that, both Silena and Nabi rolled their eyes. Clarisse just chuckled at their simultaneous reactions.

Silena seemed better than she was before they had left—maybe she had gotten close to Beckendorf like Nabi had told her to, or Honey had kept her good company. Whatever it was, Nabi was glad. The Aphrodite girl was someone that, no matter how long or how short of a time they were apart, Nabi always missed.

They had talked all night, at the campfire, but it was mostly about the crazy quest, surrounded by all the other campers who listened to Clarisse and Nabi's story with rapt attention. Nabi really wanted some girl time with them, later.

"I'm starving," Clarisse said, "let's hurry and get to the dining pavilion."

   Honey meowed. Nabi gave her a kiss on the head. "We'll get you something too, cutie."

   "As soon as you left, Connor and Travis ran to the Aphrodite cabin to give her to me," Silena said, "she's not half bad when she's not being a demon."

   "Honey is never a demon!" Nabi pouted.

"Not to you, at least." Clarisse grumbled.

When they'd made it to the dining pavilion, they all headed to their tables. Connor and Travis were still as raucous as always, cheering and whatnot, patting the seat next to them to get Nabi to sit down.

   It wasn't long until Chiron was clearing his throat for an announcement—Dionysus, now that he could slack off on his job again, was no where to be found. He was probably sleeping.

   "Campers!" Chiron said, "First, I would like to thank you all for a kind welcoming back. You have all been missed, dearly."

A chorus of cheers rung throughout. He continued, "I would also like to state that, now that the... party ponies, are on their way back to Florida—the chariot races shall go ahead as scheduled! A race that is fair and fun for all campers."

   There were a few murmurs. Nabi was surprised, as were a lot of others. They had all figured that the chariot races were history now that Tantalus was gone... but Nabi supposed that completing them did feel like the right thing to do, especially now that Chiron was back and the camp was safe. Eventually, the hushed talk became loud shouts of excitement.

   "Aw, yeah!"

   "We're gonna come out on top again, losers!"

"The Athena cabin's winning, this time!"

Through all the yelling, Chiron's hand rose to signal everyone's silence. He pointed to Percy, who had awkwardly raised his hand. "Uh, Chiron, are we... allowed to team up with other cabins?"

His eyebrows rose, then furrowed as he stroked his beard. "I suppose if the two cabins can come to an agreement on possible rewards as winners—no side of war can leave victorious without strength in teamwork, after all."

"Then, can the Poseidon and Athena cabins team up?" He asked.

Nabi glanced at Annabeth. She was a little flustered, that much was obvious, but it looked like she wasn't going to protest about Percy's plan.

Chiron hummed. "I shall allow it."

Percy gave Annabeth a goofy grin. People grew louder as they spoke to each other, already coming up with their game plans.

   "Since the Aphrodite and Demeter chariots were sadly destroyed by Tantalus," Chiron said, "we shall have the cabins team up with others who already have a chariot, if they cannot make one in time."

   Nabi watched as Beckendorf's eyes flitted to Silena, who gave him a casual nod and a small laugh. He tried to act all nonchalant too, but she could see him fiddling with a metal creation of his under the Hephaestus table. It seemed that they really had gotten close; he had helped her a lot with whatever she was going through.

"Hey, wait a minute," Clarisse said, "that's stupid! If they get to team up, then I want Nabi on my team."

Chiron pretended to mull it over. "Yes, hm. That is fine, too. If Nabi agrees."

"But I'm not even the Hermes head counsellor, or even a Hermes kid myself." Nabi blinked.

Connor patted her shoulder, grinning. "So? You're as good as a Hermes kid to us, which means you're fine. And teaming up with Clarisse basically makes sure we win! We can split the prize of no chores for the rest of the month with the Ares cabin."

   "We don't mind not driving and all that, just this once," Travis said, "as long as you leave the dirty tricks with the chariot to the rest of us!"

The other Hermes campers had matching mischievous looks. That sounded pretty good... having no chores. Plus, Clarisse was giving her a pleading look that Nabi couldn't really say no to. She was almost as bad as Honey, when no one was looking.

"Yeah," Nabi nodded, "the Hermes and Ares team sound like a good combo. I'm in."

【 🦋 】

   THE CHARIOT RACE HAD FILLED EVERYONE WITH EXCITEMENT. It was a beautiful summer day, only a week later, with blue skies and plenty of sunshine—Nabi half expected to see the Stymphalian birds again, but they didn't appear. The meadows were green and lush; the white columns gleamed on the Greek buildings; dryads played happily in the woods.

   Nabi guided Clarisse to park onto the track and get their chariot in place, like a marshaller signalling an airplane. Clarisse laughed at her funky, robotic arm movements, which Nabi thought was pretty offensive.

   In her opinion, she made a pretty good guide.

   The carriage gleamed with bronze reinforcements from the Hermes kids, mixed with a deep red from the Ares campers. The wheels were realigned with magical suspension, so they glided along with hardly a bump, and they were using the Ares cabin's skeletal horses just like in the last race, which were still as deadly and terrifying as ever. The Hermes campers had managed to stick true to their word; the chariot had a couple tricks up its wooden sleeves.

Chiron was at the starting line, ready to blow the conch as everyone took to their positions. "Charioteers! Take your marks..."

   "You ready?" Nabi asked.

"Get set..."

Clarisse smirked. "Ready."

"Go!"

Chiron blew the starting signal. The horses knew what to do. They shot down the track, with Nabi's arms wrapped in the leather reins as Clarisse held onto the rail. The wheels glided beautifully, but it wasn't smooth sailing for long.

   Immediately, Clarisse had unsheathed her sword to fight off the Hephaestus team's javelin attack, with extra metal spikes thrown here and there because of Beckendorf's expert craftsmanship—Nabi had to admit, it was pretty cool. But the 'being attacked' part? Not so much.

   "Sorry, guys," Beckendorf chuckled, as Silena shot them a wink from beside him as she drove, "but just because you came back from that quest, doesn't mean we'll take it easy on you!"

   "Good!" Clarisse barked back, parrying two flying javelins at once, "Wouldn't want it any other way!"

   Nabi swerved the chariot as the Hephaestus chariot shot out a mechanic drill—aiming straight for one of their wheels—which they managed to evade, just in time.

"Look out!" Clarisse shouted.

Nabi just barely dodged the other chariot that had came up behind them. It was Percy and Annabeth.

   "We've got 'em!" Percy yelled, as he flashed them a smug grin, their chariot speeding ahead.

   He spoke too soon. Annabeth cried, "Incoming!"

Nabi watched as the Athena girl threw her javelin. It transformed into a wicked grappling hook, knocking away a lead-weighted net that the Apollo chariot had thrown their way.

Whilst they were distracted, Nabi pulled ahead. She decided now was a good time to use Connor and Travis' tricks. "Clarisse, press that button next to you!"

Clarisse pressed it. A small compartment slid out, dropping small bombs onto the track. They heard the loud hiss as they prepared to go off. Both of them grinned as Silena yelped and just barely was able to swivel their chariot, effectively slowing them down.

"Those little elf shits really came through!" Clarisse laughed like crazy.

They passed the starting line. In the lead, and on their final lap.

But as they rounded the corner, Nabi saw that behind them, Annabeth had thrown a javelin straight into the Apollo driver's chest. It was a Demeter boy, since their cabins had paired up. He cried out as he was knocked against Michael Yew, sending them both toppling out of their chariot in a backward somersault.

Yeesh... that had to hurt.

The horses felt the reins go slack and went crazy, riding straight for the crowd. Everyone scrambled for cover as the horses leaped the corner of the bleachers and the golden chariot flipped over. The horses galloped back toward their stable, dragging the upside-down and ruined chariot behind them.

   "Di immortales..." Nabi hissed, as both Percy and Beckendorf somehow appeared, neck and neck with them—the race was close.

   Though, the Poseidon chariot's wobbling wheel was making them lose speed, even though the horses were exceptionally fast. The poor thing creaked and groaned.

   Beckendorf grinned as he pressed a button on his command console. Steel cables shot out of the front of his mechanical horses, wrapping around both the opposing chariots' back rails. His winch system started working—pulling the two other teams backward while Beckendorf pulled the Hephaestus chariot forward.

   Clarisse cursed, and hacked at the cables with her sword. They snapped like a kite string, and Nabi's control slipped for a moment. Woah. Alright, Clarisse's strength was attractive, okay?

   Nevermind that. She slipped back into focus.

   The Hephaestus chariot was now dangerously close, their horses about to trample them underfoot. It was at that point that Percy and Annabeth swapped places in their chariot. After a bit of struggle, Percy managed to break off the cables too, and lurched forward.

Silena swung their chariot close enough for Beckendorf and Percy to engage in a fight. He slashed at Annabeth, and Percy parried the blade away.

"See ya, Percy!" Beckendorf yelled, "Here's a little parting gift!"

He threw a leather pouch into their chariot. It stuck to the floor immediately and began billowing green smoke. Nabi was incredibly glad that he hadn't decided to aim for them, instead.

"Greek fire!" Annabeth yelled, "Get rid of it!"

   Percy tried to kick the leather pouch away with his foot, but he couldn't. It was stuck fast. It seemed like there wasn't anything they could do, and with them distracted, Nabi urged the skeletal horses to go faster.

   They were about to overtake them.

   That is, until Percy pressed a button on the watch that he had on. Nabi hadn't noticed it before, but it had been on his wrist the whole time.

   Instantly, the watch changed. It expanded, the metal rim spiraling outward like an old-fashioned camera shutter, a leather strap wrapping around Percy's forearm until he was holding a round, war shield—four feet wide, polished bronze engraved with intricate designs.

   Percy raised the shield, and Beckendorf's sword clanged against it. His blade shattered.

   "What?" Beckendorf shouted, "How—!"

   He didn't have time to say more, as Percy knocked him in the chest with his new shield and sent him flying out of his chariot, tumbling in the dirt.
He was about use Riptide to slash at Silena, when Annabeth yelled, "Percy!"

   The Greek fire was shooting sparks. Percy shoved the tip of his sword under the leather pouch and flipped it up like a spatula. The firebomb dislodged and flew into the Hephaestus chariot at Silena's feet. She screeched.

   In a split second, she made the right choice: Silena dove out of the chariot, which careened away and exploded in green flames.

   Clarisse yelled, "Nabi!"

   "I got it!" Nabi cried.

  Yet, as she attempted to dodge the burning wreckage, they were slammed into by one of the large, metal gears that were part of the Hephaestus chariot.

   Nabi tried to steady their chariot, but it gave the other team just enough time—Annabeth spurred their own chariot further, and they crossed the finish line.

   The crowd roared.

   Once the chariot stopped, everyone mobbed Percy and Annabeth. Nabi and Clarisse crossed the finish line, soon after.

   "We would've won," Clarisse muttered, "I just let them."

   Nabi laughed, a little shaken with all the adrenaline. "You're such a sore loser."

   Clarisse hopped out first, offering Nabi a hand to take for her to jump down. Everyone started chanting Percy and Annabeth's names, but Annabeth yelled over the noise: "Hold up! Listen! It wasn't just us!"

   The crowd didn't want to be quiet, but Annabeth made herself heard, "We couldn't have done it without somebody else! We couldn't have won this race or gotten the Fleece or saved Grover or anything! We owe our lives to Tyson, Percy's—"

   "Brother!" Percy said, loud enough for everybody to hear, "Tyson, my baby brother."

   Tyson blushed. The crowd cheered.

   Even Clarisse was clapping for them, and Nabi giggled at her pouty expression. Annabeth planted a kiss on Percy's cheek. The roaring got a lot louder after that. Nabi thought they totally deserved the win, and that Percy totally deserved that kiss.

   "How does he get a kiss?" Clarisse huffed.

   Nabi blinked. Was Clarisse being all jealous? "You want a kiss from Annabeth?"

    "No, dumbass," Clarisse shook her head, "Nevermind."

Nabi's heart did a little funky stammer—maybe she was being too hopeful.

   She shrugged, then tugged Clarisse along. "Let's go help carry Percy and Annabeth to the winner's platform, c'mon!"

   As Percy and Annabeth were given their laurel wreaths, and everyone around her cheered and hollered—with Chiron exclaiming that the golden campfire would be bold and bright tonight—Nabi couldn't help thinking once more: IT WAS REALLY, REALLY GOOD TO BE BACK.

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

𝗥𝗜𝗞𝗔'𝗦 𝗡𝗢𝗧𝗘𝗦!

જ⁀➴ tell a friend, to tell a friend ... she's back !! 🙈 so, i've been dead for the entire past month and i wanna apologise 😖 exams r finally over which means i can get back to writing! but school is still on sighh, tho i js wanted to say thank u all to those who came back, tysm cuties! i missed all ur comments and everything guys !! i also want to say i'm so so happy that 'strength' has reached 4k votes + almost 80k reads, lurv u all so, so much & i'm so grateful !! <3

no one talks abt how rick never added the aphrodite or demeter cabin in the races, so i needed to fix that. and if u thought clarisse would let percy and annie team up w/ out getting to team up w/ her own girl ?? silly goose ofc she would 😛

also wanna say that i share a cute, joint acc w/ lars and lexi called -kqlopsia !! we haven't done anything on it yet, but if u guys r interested, we might ? lol idk mby a qna regarding our characters or smth 🤷‍♀️ but anyways, let me know if this chapter was up to the same standards as the others lol, i'll see u guys in the next one, bye my lovelies !!