CHAPTER THREE:
PRICE TO PAY

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KIT STAYED AT THE lake way past sundown. Fortunately, no one was around to bother him; or if they were, they just knew to leave him alone if they didn't want their head bitten off. Leo hadn't followed him again. He must've found a new tour guide. Kit was relieved. The boy had given him quite the headache, or maybe it was Jake Mason that caused it. Either way, he was in a foul mood even as night fell and the chatter of excited campers rose. He heaved a heavy sigh, and with reluctance left his patch of moonlight on the rocks to join them in approaching the Amphitheatre. The campfire was the worst part of Kit Dempsey's week. Chiron never let him miss it, almost like he knew of the boy's distaste for the colourful flames and the passionate Apollo children's sing-along. It was a small punishment, but nonetheless got on Kit's nerves.

He stopped on the way to grab a black hoodie, tugging it over his head as he slipped into the crowd undetected. The rest of his siblings were already sitting beneath the Ares flag, heads held high with armour strapped to their bodies and swords at their sides. Kit was definitely the outlier in his black clothing, but none of them spared him a glance as they hummed along to whatever song the Apollo kids were playing on their guitars and lyres. Finally, the torture (sorry, music) ended, and Chiron trotted up to address the rowdy crowd.

"That was very nice, I must say," he smiled at the Apollo kids as they returned to their own section of the Amphitheatre. "Now, a special welcome to our new arrivals. I am Chiron, camp activities director, and I'm happy you have all arrived here alive and with most of your limbs attached. In a moment, I promise we'll get to the s'mores, but first--"

He was cut off by a boy from the Athena cabin yelling out, "What about capture the flag?" Kit's brothers echoed his frustration with grumbles of their own. Kit couldn't care less, but he knew they -- Andrew and Nolan especially -- were eager for the games to return.

"Yes," Chiron sighed. "I know the Ares cabin is anxious to return to the woods for our regular games."

"And to kill people," Nolan called out, his dirty blonde hair so long it hung in front of his eyes. Kit rolled his eyes, sinking back into his chair as he caught Piper's gaze amongst the Hermes children. She was looking at him curiously but quickly turned away when she noticed him glaring back.

"However, until the dragon is brought under control, that won't be possible. Cabin Nine, anything to report on that?"

Oh. So that was what Jake had meant.

Nyssa stood uncomfortably to address the attentive crowd. Her army jacket looked a lot like the one Kit had noticed Leo wearing, and her dark hair was covered in a blood red bandana. "We're working on it."

Andrew and Nolan immediately grumbled, Nettie joining in this time. She called out, "How, Nyssa?" and more murmuring ensued.

"Really hard."

The rest of the cabins echoed their yelling and complaints, the fire spitting bright orange as Nyssa sat back down with her eyes averted to the ground. Chiron huffed at the chaos, stamping his hoof until everyone went quiet like kids being scolded by a parent.

"We will have to be patient. In the meantime, we have more pressing matters to discuss."

"Percy?" somebody asked. The tension immediately shifted. The flames were now purple.

Annabeth watched them with narrowed eyes before standing. "I didn't find Percy," she said. "He wasn't at the Grand Canyon like I thought. But we're not giving up. We've got teams everywhere. Grover, Tyson, Nico, the Hunters of Artemis -- everyone's out looking. We will find him. Chiron's talking about something different. A new quest."

"It's the Great Prophecy, isn't it?"

Kit looked up in surprise. It wasn't often that Drew Tenaka said anything worth listening to.

"Drew?" Annabeth frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Well, come on," she spread her manicured hands like the truth was obvious. "Olympus is closed. Percy's disappeared. Hera sends you a vision and you come back with three new demigods in one day. I mean, something weird is going on. The Great Prophecy has started, right?" All eyes went to Rachel, including Kit's. Rachel Dare was the oracle of Camp Half-Blood, discovered by Percy Jackson not long before the Titan War. If anyone was to know something about the prophecy, it was her, and Drew knew it. "Well? You're the oracle. Has it started or not?"

The redhead inhaled sharply before nodding. "Yes. The Great Prophecy has begun."

Everything erupted into chaos. Kit sat in silence as his siblings stood up in rage, one of his hands drawing up to pinch the bridge of his nose. Another war, so soon after the first one. What would his role be this time? Villain, again? Would he even have a choice?

Eventually, the demigods went quiet again. Kit looked up in confusion and meet the eerie eyes of Rachel Dare. She was standing close to the fire, the flames casting shadows on her face as she looked right at him. No one seemed to notice the direction of her stare, but he had.

"For those of you who have not heard it," she said, and finally tore her gaze away to survey the crowd. "The Great Prophecy was my first prediction. It arrived in August. It goes like this... Eight half-bloods shall answer the call. To storm or fire, the world must fall--"

Suddenly, the blonde boy who accompanied Leo to camp stumbled to his feet. He looked out of it, unhearing of Rachel's off-guard queries of concern and the crowds' murmurers of uneasiness. "Ut cum spiritu sacramentum dejuremus," he chanted, his words sharp but precise, like he knew them well. "Et hostes ornamenta addent ad ianuam necem."

"You just finished the prophecy," Rachel stammered in disbelief. She looked to Chiron for assistance, but the centaur had his head hung low. "... An oath to keep with a final breath, and foes bear arms to the Doors of Death. How did you..."

"I know those lines," the boy, Jason if Kit remembered correctly, murmured before wincing and holding his head like it hurt to speak. "I don't know how, but I know that prophecy."

"In Latin, no less," Drew gasped. "Handsome and smart."

The Aphrodite cabin giggled, much to the chagrin of Kit and his siblings. Dominique, the closest to Kit, leaned her head close and hissed, "Remind me to go for Barbie when capture the flag starts again. Maybe, if I knock out enough of her teeth, she won't be able to talk." Kit smirked though didn't acknowledge what she said as she leaned away with a frown.

Jason had sat down again with an embarrassed blush. Annabeth was whispering something to him, but they couldn't hear what it was over the nervously spitting fire and Rachel murmuring to herself. She didn't know what to do. Well, that was a first.

"That's the Great Prophecy," she eventually said. "We hoped it might not happen for years, but I fear it's starting now." Another look at Kit. This time, Dominique and Jae noticed, and they looked between them with narrowed eyes. "I can't give you proof. It's just a feeling. And like Drew said, some weird stuff is happening. The eight demigods, whoever they are, have not been gathered yet. I get the feeling some are here tonight. Some are not here yet."

Was Kit one of them? Is that why Rachel kept looking at him? Did she know something he didn't and was keeping it to herself?

Suddenly, a drowsy voice yelled out, "I'm here! Were you calling roll?"

"Go back to sleep, Clovis," Nolan scoffed, evoking a shaky laugh from everyone else. At least they weren't so tense.

"Anyway," Rachel continued. "We don't know what the Great Prophecy means. We don't know what challenge the demigods will face, but since the first Great Prophecy predicted the Titan War, we can guess the second Great Prophecy will predict something at least that bad."

"Or worse," Chiron murmured, the first words he'd spoken since Jason's interruption. He looked up, and Kit swore his heart dropped. He couldn't remember the last time Chiron had looked so sombre.

"What we do know is that the first phase has begun. A major problem has arisen, and we need a quest to solve it. Hera, the Queen of the Gods, has been taken."

It wasn't possible. Even Kit sat shocked, his mouth hanging open. Hera, the ruthless wife of Zeus, had been kidnapped? Kit couldn't picture the woman allowing such a thing to happen, or Zeus not wreaking havoc to get her back. But the way Rachel said it made it seem like she'd been gone for a while, and it would make sense...

Taking advantage of their silence, Rachel told them about the incident at the Grand Canyon involving storm spirits and Leo, Jason and Piper. All eyes were on the three new demigods, and where Jason and Piper sat bashfully in their chairs, Leo was beaming with pride. Kit rolled his eyes and turned away. Of course he was. He treated everything as a joke.

Rachel finished by telling them about Gleeson Hedge, a satyr who'd been sent to the Wilderness school to watch over the new kids. Apparently, he sacrificed himself when the storm spirits attacked, and they had warned them that it was only the beginning. And just when Kit thought she was finished, there was more to tell. In the one day they'd spent at Camp, Piper had passed out in Hera's cabin and Jason had a vision in the living room of the Big House, a vision of Hera asking the blonde boy to free her. What a fucking mess.

"Jason," Rachel said when she was done. "Do you remember your last name?"

He shook his head, though the movement was a little too fast for Kit's liking. He'd gotten good at seeing deceit for what it was, and while Jason was a pretty good liar, he wasn't perfect. Rachel didn't notice it, though. Not even Chiron seemed to suspect anything as he watched in silence.

"We'll just call you Jason, then. It's clear Hera herself has issued you a quest."

"I agree."

"You must save Hera to prevent a great evil. Some sort of king from rising. For reasons we don't yet understand, it must happen by the Winter Solstice, which is only four days from now."

"That's the council day of the Gods," Annabeth explained. "If they don't already know Hera's gone, they will definitely notice her absence by then. They'll probably break out fighting, accusing each other of taking her. That's what they usually do."

Was that how the second war would start, Kit wondered, the Gods fighting amongst each other?

"The Winter Solstice is also the time of greatest darkness," Chiron added while glowering to himself. He looked tired, like he could sleep for days and still be exhausted. "The Gods gather that day, as mortals always have, because there is strength in numbers. The Solstice is a day when evil magic is strong. Ancient magic, older than the Gods. It is a day when things... stir."

Annabeth breathed out an annoyed sigh. "Thank you, Captain Sunshine." When Chiron just looked away from her, she shook her head and turned to Rachel. "I agree with Rachel. Jason has been chosen to lead this quest, so--"

From a few chairs away, Kit heard Andrew huff out a breath. He stood up suddenly, all eyes drawing to him. "Why hasn't he been claimed yet?" he demanded, Nolan and Nettie nodding along with him. "If he's so important..."

"He has been claimed," Chiron retorted. "Long ago." Now, that caught Kit's attention. Who was this boy? "Jason, give them a demonstration."

He stepped forward slowly, reaching into his pocket for a coin of some sort. A moment later, he had a lance in his hand, a giant rod of gold that was about seven feet long with a spear tip at one end. Kit stared in awe. He was always more partial to a trusty sword, but he admired a weapon such as Jason's, not to mention it was fucking gold. Annabeth, on the other hand, didn't seem to share the excitement of the Ares cabin. She hesitated at the sight, a confused frown tugging at her brows.

"I thought you had a sword."

"Um, it came up on tails, I think," Jason said. "Same coin, long-range weapon form."

"Dude, I want one," Nolan yelled out in delight.

"Better than Clarisse's electric spear, Lamer," Jae and Kit shared a smirk.

Clarisse would've had Jae's head on a stick if she heard him saying that, but the jab had given Jason an idea. His eyes were bright as he gestured for Annabeth and Rachel to give him some room. Not a sound was heard as everyone waited. This would prove his parentage, why it should be him of all demigods to save the mighty Hera. A rumble of thunder echoed as the sky opened. Jason instinctively raised his javelin to greet it, and a jarring bolt of lightning arced towards the point to create a glowing blast. Kit's lungs burned as smoke filled the Amphitheatre. His siblings were coughing, waving their hands around in the hopes of clearing the dark grey air. Finally, a gust of wind roared through and they could see again. Kit spied a sheepish Jason smiling at Chiron as he patted burning coals out of his beard.

"A little overkill, perhaps," he was saying. "But you've made your point on who your father is."

"Jupiter," Jason said before correcting himself, "I mean Zeus. Lord of the Sky."

But Annabeth wasn't so quick to believe it. "How can he be the son of Zeus? The Big Three... their pact not to have mortal kids. How could we not have known about him sooner?"

Chiron just bowed his head. Another secret for him to keep.

"The important thing is that Jason's here now," Rachel murmured. "He has a quest to complete, which means he needs his own prophecy."

That was enough to momentarily distract Annabeth. She watched attentively as Rachel swooned, her body falling backwards into the arms of two waiting campers. A third ran outside to grab her bronze stool, returning just a minute later to help situate her beside the empty fire-pit. Kit hadn't noticed it in the chaos, but Jason's blast had put out the flames, casting them in eerie shadows from the night sky. If it wasn't for the emerald smoke that seeped from Rachel's eyes and mouth like tears, he wouldn't have been able to see her.

"Child of lightning, beware the earth. The giant's revenge, the eight shall birth. The forge and dove shall break the cage, death unleashed through Hera's rage. The traitor to pay for the blood he spilled with penance earned by fire's yield."

In that moment, Kit swore he saw Luke standing in the firepit. The heels of his boots pressed against hot coals, a grim smile on his lips. Kit gasped, though the sound was swallowed whole by murmurs of the crowd trying to figure out who the different members of the quest were. Two were obvious. The first was Jason, the son of lightning. The other would be Kit, the traitor. Who, from the sounds of it, was going to die in penance for his betrayal. At last, the Gods had found their way to punish him.

"Is that normal?" Piper asked, watching as the three campers carried a woozy Rachel into the corner. She turned around at the silence, flushing when she realised everyone was looking at her. Clearly, she hadn't meant for her question to be heard. "I mean, does she spew green smoke a lot?"

"Gods, you're dense," Drew scoffed. Her followers giggled again. "She just issued a prophecy -- Jason's prophecy to save Hera. Why don't you just--"

"Drew," Annabeth snapped in warning. "Piper asked a fair question. Something about that prophecy definitely isn't normal. If breaking Hera's cage unleashes rage and causes a bunch of death, why should we free her? It might be a trap, or -- or maybe, Hera will turn on her rescuers. She's never been kind to heroes."

Jason frowned. "Well, I don't have much of a choice. Hera took my memory. I need it back. Besides, we can't just not help the Queen of the heavens if she's in trouble."

They definitely could, but they'd have hell to pay for it.

Nyssa faded out from the background, sharing a wary look with her siblings. "You should listen to Annabeth, Jason. Hera can be vengeful. She threw her own son, our dad, down a mountain just because he was ugly."

"Real ugly," one of Drew's sisters snickered.

"Shut up," Nyssa growled. "Anyways, we've also got to think, why beware the earth? And what's the giants' revenge? What are we dealing with here that's powerful enough to kidnap the Queen of the heavens?"

Annabeth sighed. Nyssa had good points, but in the end it was Jason's decision. "It's Jason's quest," she said. "So it's his choice. Obviously, he's the child of lightning. And, according to tradition, he'd choose any two companions, but this request is asking for three. One's already a given so you have two more people to choose."

"Wait, what do you mean?"

All eyes flitted to Kit. He sighed, ignoring the stares as he stood and marched down the steps towards Annabeth. She watched him impassively, though Jason seemed to refuse. "Kit Dempsey, right?"

"So you've heard of me," he mustered up his best smirk. If he was going down as the traitor in front of everybody, he might as well play the role.

"Honestly? Not really," Jason shook his head. "I just remember you from the lake."

"So Jason and Kit," Annabeth cut in before Kit could reply. "The forge and the dove remain."

The look on Jason's face would've been amusing had there been less people to scrutinise every breath Kit took. Instead, he just stood and glared at every person he noticed, eventually coming across Leo watching him curiously. Kit was amazed no one had told him sooner. Jason, too. Piper didn't look surprised, so clearly Drew or someone had gotten to her. Well, it didn't matter now. Kit had a quest to think about.

"I think the obvious choice here is Annabeth," Travis yelled from under the Hermes flag. "You've got the most experience."

Annabeth shook her head. "No, Travis. First off, I'm not helping Hera. Every time I've tried, she's deceived me, or it's come back to bite me later. Forget it. No way. Secondly, I'm leaving first thing in the morning to find Percy."

"It's got to be connected," Piper blurted out. "You know that's true, don't you? This whole business, your boyfriend's disappearance. It's all connected."

Drew scoffed. "How? If you're so smart, how?"

Before Piper could respond, Annabeth was stepping in. "You may be right, Piper. If this is connected, I'll find out from the other end, by searching for Percy. As I said, I'm not about to rush off to rescue Hera, even if her disappearance sets the rest of the Olympians fighting again. But there's another reason I can't go. The prophecy says otherwise." That was why Kit was there. If he had the choice, he wouldn't even be at the blasted campfire.

"It says who I pick," Jason agreed. "We have... the traitor. So the forge and dove. The forge is the symbol of Vul--Hephaestus."

All eyes went to Nyssa expectantly. "If you have to beware the earth, you should avoid travelling overland," she sighed in defeat. "You'll need air transport. The flying chariot's broken and the pegasi, we're using them to search for Percy. But maybe Hephaestus' cabin can help figure something else to help." She nodded to herself, as if mustering up every bit of courage she had. It was obvious she didn't want to, but it was on her. "With Jake incapacitated, I'm senior camper. I can volunteer for the quest."

Then, out of nowhere, Leo intervened. Kit shook his head at him but he went ignored. "It's me," he said, surprisingly confident for someone who'd only known about his father for a day. But despite his siblings' protests, he refused to let it go. "No, it's me. I know it is. I've got an idea for the transportation problem so let me try. I can fix this."

No one said anything as Jason studied him for a minute. Eventually, he nodded, his blank stare replaced by a grin. "We started this together, Leo. Seems only right you come along. You find us a ride, you're in."

Kit closed his eyes in frustration as Leo celebrated. He had no idea what he just got himself into. And now, Kit was stuck with Leo bloody Valdez every minute of the next few days. So much for never having to see him again.

"Jason, you only need to choose the third quest member," Annabeth declared. "The dove--"

"Oh, absolutely," Drew simpered. "The dove is Aphrodite, everybody knows that. I'm totally yours."

"No way," Kit immediately protested. "If she's in, I'm out."

Annabeth shot him a pointed look. "You don't have a choice here, Kit."

"Don't care."

Piper seemed to agree with him. She stepped forward stubbornly. "No."

"Oh, please, Dumpster Girl," Drew rolled her eyes. "Back off."

"I had the vision of Hera, not you. I have to do this."

"Anyone can have a vision. You were just at the right place at the right time." She turned to Jason then. "Look, fighting is all fine, I suppose. And people who build things..." She looked Leo up and down in disgust. "Well, I suppose someone has to get their hands dirty." And then at Kit, smirking to herself as he snarled at her. "As for Kit, we've all gotten used to his treachery. Whatever he does, I'll be ready for."

Kit's face fell before he schooled his expression into one of cool indifference. Was that what he was supposed to do? Betray them again?

"You need charm on your side," she finished. "I can be very persuasive. I could help a lot."

"Well," Annabeth murmured thoughtfully. "Given the wording of the prophecy..."

Even Kit had to admit Drew had a point. He despised her even more than he despised Leo, but he knew she could be convincing when she wanted to be. That would be useful for them when everything undoubtedly went to shit.

But Piper wasn't backing down just yet. "No," she shouted. "I'm supposed to go."

Hm, so she could be convincing, too. Perhaps they didn't need Drew.

"Oh, get over it. What can Piper do?" When the girl's face faltered, she smiled, knowing she'd won. "I guess that settles it."

Kit shook his head as everything snapped back into focus. He scowled to himself. He wasn't stupid, he knew charmspeak when he heard it. He wasn't immune to it, but the rich baritone of the speaker's voice and the dazed feeling in his chest didn't go unnoticed. But both girls had managed to convince him. And that would mean she was...

Almost like she heard his thoughts and wanted to prove a point, a sudden reddish glow surrounded Piper. Everyone gasped in awe as her choppy hair morphed into delicate curls, her face clear and precise with makeup. No longer was she wearing her jeans and top, but a beautiful white gown instead. She looked ethereal, like Aphrodite herself. Just as her mother intended.

"Oh, god," she groaned. Drew was crying in outrage. It didn't take much to put two and two together. "What's happened?"

"You're beautiful," Jason murmured. "Piper, you're a knockout."

The girl blushed, much to Kit's disgust. It felt like a scene in one of those rom-coms he knew Dominique liked, cringe and entirely unnecessary. To make it worse, Chiron folded his front legs and bowed to her, prompting the rest of the campers to follow his example. Kit reluctantly dropped down on one knee, though he didn't look pleased to be doing so. He just wanted to get out of there.

"Hail, Piper McLean. Daughter of Aphrodite, lady of the doves, goddess of love."

And there they had it. Jason, Leo, Piper and Kit. Lightning, forge, dove and traitor.