𝐑𝐀𝐘𝐀 𝐑𝐄𝐋𝐎𝐀𝐃𝐄𝐃 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐓-𝐒𝐇𝐈𝐑𝐓 𝐂𝐀𝐍𝐍𝐎𝐍.

The Volleyball Championship tournament was starting, with Ares against Athena starting it off. Devon — the Ares Cabin head counselor, and owner of the t-shirt cannon — had allowed the Apollo Cabin to be in charge of it during their matches.

Raya had fought her siblings in an intense game of hide and seek, winning rights to the t-shirt cannon. Beckendorf from Hephaestus had added a reloading chamber large enough to fit twenty shirts. This way, Raya wouldn't have to keep going back and forth to reload it.

"Who's ready for the match?!" Noor grinned at the crowd in the stands, holding a giant megaphone.

The crowd cheered.

The rest of Raya's siblings were taking care of the ticket collection, getting everyone to their seats, and setting up the court.

Raya waved her t-shirt cannon in the air as Noor began to speak, "Louder! Whoever wants a t-shirt, I don't think Raya can hear you."

Raya made a show of pretending like she couldn't hear the cheers of the rowdy crowd. She aimed the t-shirt cannon towards random spots in the crowd, picking a younger girl who was screaming like her life depended on getting a shirt.

Raya pressed the trigger and let the shirt fly.

The little girl caught it, brandishing it to the campers who cheered in response.

Raya let a few more t-shirts fly, before heading away. She'd come back closer to the end of warm ups, and once again in between sets.

Slinging the t-shirt cannon over her shoulder, she walked over to Luke who just entered.

Raya knew Luke well enough to realize something was wrong. Beyond his perfectly plastered smile, she could see the conflict growing in his eyes. The other campers waved and giggled, not at all realizing, but Raya could see it.

"What's wrong?" she asked, looking up at him.

"Nothing," he plastered a smile on, giving her forehead a quick kiss. "Everything's great."

Raya narrowed her eyes at him. Without looking over her shoulder, she called for her brother, "Lee!"

Raya's twelve year old brother ran up to her, shaking his shaggy blond hair out of his eyes. He was going through a phase where he refused to cut it. "Yeah?"

"Why don't you take over with the t-shirt cannon for a bit?" Raya handed it over to a practically bouncing Lee. "There's more shirts by Leila, but don't empty the cannon at once, okay?"

"Okay!" he ran to the crowd, rapid-firing twelve t-shirts at people's faces.

Raya sighed, turning to Luke and linking their arms together, "Let's take a walk."

They left the volleyball court, beginning their aimless stroll along along the beach. Luke's hand slid down her arm, their fingers lacing together. Raya gave him a few moments to gather his thoughts.

"Wanna talk about it?" she asked, nudging him slightly.

"Not really," he shrugged. "But I should."

Raya waited.

"Chiron said my dad came to visit him yesterday," Luke sighed. "He wants to send me on a quest. To get a golden apple from the Garden of Hesperides."

"And?" Raya prompted once Luke fell silent.

"I agreed to it," he told her. "I told Chiron I'd do it, but... but I can't seem to wrap my head around it. Like, I'm honored my dad sought me out specifically, but what's the reason? Does he think I'm good enough? Or something else? And the quest itself, it's been done before."

"By Hercules," Raya recounted. "Luke, it's been done by the best Demigod of all time. Hercules is a god now, and he's the only one who's managed to get an apple. If your dad thinks you're as good as him... that means a lot, coming from a God."

"I know, but..."

"Yeah?" she prompted.

"I me—" Luke froze, changing the subject, "Forget it. I need to pick two people to come with me on the quest. Trevor the satyr volunteered, but I told him I'll get back to him. You wanna come?"

Raya grinned up at Luke, "Yeah, I'll come with you. But watch out for Trevor's reed pipes if you bring him along. He might look sweet and soft, but apparently he plays a mean tune."

"Now I'm kinda tempted to bring him along," Luke tilted his head. "I always thought he just used his songs to make plants grow or something. I never realized he could fight with it."

Raya laughed, "Of course he can fight with it. While he was bringing Elisha to camp, she said saw him kill two different monsters with it. Of course, she ran her sword through them to be on the safe side. But he killed two monsters."

Luke managed a small laugh at her statement, "We've got to head out next week. You wanna watch the volleyball tournament?"

Raya cast a glance towards the volleyball courts, imagining the Ares versus Athena game. Ares was strong, able to crush most of their opponents. But Athena played with strategy, sometimes able to outmatch Ares.

Raya looked back at Luke, seeing the worry in his features. The little crinkle by his eye, and the way he kept biting the corner of his lip. She made her choice.

"I'd rather sit with you," she pecked Luke, taking a seat on the beach.

Raya saw the tension leave Luke as he sat next to her. The entire Camp was going to find out about his quest soon. If the quests of previous demigods were anything to go by, they were all gonna smother him and talk about his possible death.

Luke smiled gratefully, pulling her into his arms as they enjoyed each other's company.

"You didn't mention just how warlike this guy was," Luke muttered.

Luke, Raya, and Trevor had somehow made it to San Francisco without dying. Considering how often Trevor liked to threaten the peaceful-ish monsters in their path, that was a feat in itself. 

"He looks up to Gleeson Hedge," Raya reminded him. "Be lucky we didn't bring him along."

"I thought you said he was the bravest satyr you'd ever seen?" Luke raised a brow.

They'd found a hotel to crash at for the night. Raya had her own room in the suit, Trevor and Luke sharing another. As soon as Trevor knocked out, Luke came over to the living room, sitting next to Raya on the couch.

"Okay, so maybe I was a little young and idolized him," Raya said, shrugging. "Can you blame me? Hedge was the closest thing to a hero I'd ever seen in action."

"Isn't your dad a Wizard?"

"Yeah, but he doesn't use his magic to fight things," Raya told him. "He mostly just uses magic for mundane tasks. Instead of putting his plate away, or getting up for the T.V. remote, he'd just mutter an incantation or wave his wand."

"That sounds so easy," he sighed as he leaned back. "Imagine not having to do this quest. Just waving a wand and having it done for you."

"Well, it doesn't exactly work like that," Raya shrugged. "You'd have to apparate to San Francisco. Then, you'd have to either put a full concealment charm over yourself, levitate the apple towards to secretly, or a strong knockout charm on the dragon."

"It's better than what we're given," Luke said.

Raya played with the sword charm on her necklace, silently agreeing with him.

She hadn't even realized she fell asleep, until she recognized herself in a dream.

She stared at her surroundings, trees stretching up and around her. It looked suspiciously like the Forbidden Forest at Hogwarts, but she wasn't too sure. She'd never been inside it before.

She watched as different animals passed around and through her. She was pretty sure she saw a unicorn in the distance, and a stag nearly passed through her. She watched the forest animals in awe, still confused, but amazed.

The forest and its animals bled away without warning, causing Raya to jump backwards. A dark black puddle sloshed at her feet.

Raya leaned closer as she heard a voice. Almost like it was calling her name.

"Raya," it whispered hoarsely, like a prayer. Like the speaker was dying, and they wanted their last words to be her name. "Raya."

"Hello?" she asked.

"Raya—" the voice mumbled something she couldn't understand.

"Hello?" she leaned closer.

The black puddle expanded, turning into an inky ocean with Raya standing on it's shore. She crept close to the dark water, never touching it.

"Can I help you?" she asked. "Tell me how to help. Who are you?"

The voice gasped quietly, repeating something too faint for her to understand.

"Hello?!" she called to the inky waters. "Where did you go?! Tell me how to help you!"

There was no response.

Raya sat on the shores for a while, occasionally calling out to the long gone voice. It wasn't the one from her previous dreams. This one was good. It meant something to Raya, she just couldn't figure out what.

She didn't know how much time passed before she felt it. A featherlight touch, so faint she thought she might be imagining it.

It stroked her back, from the top of her right shoulder blade, curving downwards and to the left, stopping halfway down her back.

She shivered, patting the area as best as she could, but she caught nothing. The touch pressed on harder and harder, until it felt like claws scraping her back. She searched for something to fight off the invisible attacker, but there was nothing except sand.

Raya screamed in pain, praying, "Wake up, wake up. Please wake up." 

A knock on her door had her shooting up in bed.

"Come on," Trevor yelled through the door. "Up you get, ya lazy cupcake. It's time to eat, make some plans, and then steal ourselves some loot from a dragon!"

Raya opened her room door, glaring at him, "You do know that we're only stealing an apple, right? Not some treasure."

"And that's where you're wrong," Trevor patted the top of her head — despite her being an inch taller. "It's a golden apple. Hera's wedding gift. It's perfect!"

"Whatever you say," Raya muttered. "Now go get some breakfast for us. I want toast!"

"It's three o'clock."

"I still want toast."

Raya closed the door as Trevor went — grumbling — to get her toast. She changed out of her pajamas, trying to remember how she got in her room last night. The last thing she remembered was talking with Luke about magic and demigods. Then her dream.

She shivered as she pressed a finger to her back. 

There was nothing there, but she could still remember the feel of the phantom slicing.

She slipped her shirt on, tying her hair up into a ponytail before heading out. Raya blinked as she checked the time. Turns out Trevor wasn't lying. It was three in the afternoon. Which meant they only had about five hours left to finalize their plans and enter the garden.

Trevor sat in the living room, passing Raya her toast as she arrived.

Luke was sitting on the floor of the living room, papers strewn about as he sketched out different attack plans. He was mumbling to himself, shaking his head as Raya came to the front.

"You good?" she sat next to him, taking a look at a few plans he'd began to draw out.

"I just don't understand how we're gonna get past the dragon," Luke muttered. "His job is to guard the tree, and he can easily stop anyone that gets in his way. It's practically impossible to kill, on top of all of that."

Raya sat next to him, picking one of his drawing up.

"This is a good plan," she said. "Two of us distract, while one grabs the apple. I've been practicing my light manipulation, and I can definitely hide you. The dragon might be able to smell you, but Trev and I can easily cause a distraction."

Trevor mumbled an agreement, his mouth full of pillow stuffing.

"Leave half the pillows alone, at least," Raya told him offhandedly.

He muttered something Raya didn't find reassuring.

"Wouldn't it be easier if you just concealed yourself?" Luke looked doubtful as Raya began making notes on the paper.

"Barely," she lied. "It's practically the same thing. Besides, it's your quest. We're just here as your companions."

The truth was, it would be much easier to conceal herself and get the apple. But this was Luke's quest, specifically from his dad. She didn't want to steal his turn in the spotlight. She was more than okay being the side character.

Luke sat up at the reminder, nodding to himself. "Yeah, okay. I'll get the apple quickly." He held her hand, "You stay safe near the dragon."

"We will," Trevor promised, shoving another handful of stuffing in his mouth.

Luke laughed lightly.

Raya smiled, "We've got this. Let's head out before we miss it."

Raya stared at the fog.

"So we just... walk through it?" she asked, staring warily.

The fog was thick, too thick to see more than a foot through it.

Luke's hand slipped into hers, giving her a weak sense of comfort. She gripped Trevor's arm, mostly to make sure he didn't run off into the fog screaming for everyone's death.

"We just walk through it," Luke affirmed.

He hesitated, stepping into the mist. Raya, still holding Luke, followed, dragging Trevor along behind them. 

Trevor adjusted his reed pipes, excited.

If it hadn't been for the enormous dragon, the garden would've been the most beautiful place Raya had ever seen. The grass shimmered with silvery evening light, and the flowers were such brilliant colors they almost glowed in the dark. Stepping stones of polished black marble led around either side of a five-story-tall apple tree, every bough glittering with golden apples.

Raya stared at the sight, unable to describe why they were so appealing to her — she wasn't a huge fan of apples. 

But as soon as she smelled their fragrance, she knew that one bite would be the most delicious thing she'd ever tasted.

"The apples of immortality," Raya said. "Hera's wedding gift from Zeus."

Her eyes fell on the dragon coiled around the tree, and judging by the way Luke and Hedge tensed, they noticed it too.

The serpent's body was as thick as a booster rocket, glinting with coppery scales. He had more heads than Raya could count, as if a hundred deadly pythons had been fused together. 

He appeared to be asleep. The heads lay curled in a big spaghetti-like mound on the grass, all the eyes closed.

Then the shadows in front of the three of them began to move. There was a beautiful, eerie singing, like voices from the bottom of a well. 

Luke reached for his dagger, but Raya put a hand on his arm, stopping him.

Four figures shimmered into existence. They all wore white Greek chitons. Their skin was like caramel. Silky black hair tumbled loose around their shoulders.

"Can we kill them?" Trevor asked.

"No," Raya said. "They're the Hesperides."

"And you are a half-blood," one of the girls coldly. "A Witch as well. Very rare. Odd company you keep."

"Another half-blood and a satyr?" Raya asked drily.

"It may not seem strange now, but you will learn," she sneered.

"Woah, hey," Luke stepped forward slightly. "I think we got off on the wrong foot. Let's try again? I'm—"

"Luke Castellan," she interrupted. Her glassy black eyes observed him. "We know who you are. It is up to you to be the hero or the villain. Choose wisely."

"What?" Raya furrowed her brows.

"Look, we'll — that's not's why we're here," Luke stuttered. "We're here on a quest. Can you help us?"

"We will not," the girl said. "Ladon will wake when you go. Stay clear of his teeth. They are poison."

"Can I kill them now?" Trevor asked.

"No," Raya hissed.

The Hesperides began to fade away. The center one stared at Raya, as if trying to give her the answers to questions Raya hadn't even asked yet.

"Well, that was something," Luke muttered.

"Can we kill the dragon now?" Trevor asked.

"Stick to the plan," Raya reminded him. "We're distracting the dragon while Luke gets the apple. Distracting. Not killing. It's imposs — we're gonna show some mercy today," Raya changed her words the last second, knowing Trevor would react better with the second idea.

"Alright," he muttered, not sounding too happy about it.

Raya turned to Luke, her heart stuttering. Even though he was going to be right there, even though she would be able to sense him through her powers, she didn't like being separated. Her back ached with the phantom pain from her dream.

"I love you," she said, kissing him quickly before concealing him with her magic.

She turned to Trevor, "I go right, you go left."

"On three," he nodded.

Raya counted to three, the two of them going to distract him. Raya pulled out 'Denebola', smirking as a good number of Ladon's heads turned towards her.

She attacked, ducking, rolling, swiping, then backing out of range. Trevor did the same on the other side. Slowly, but surely, they began to lure him away from the tree. Raya sensed Luke nearing the tree, about halfway there. Just a little longer.

She moved in closer, tangling the heads as she jumped through, over, rolling away when the heads got too close.

She was doing great, until the dragon's claws got too close, and it was too late. A sharp pain exploded on her back, near her shoulder. She felt the claw scrape the path drawn on her back last night, felt herself fall to her knees.

The world was going too fast, and yet not fast enough. The pain, her breathing, her vision... it was all wrong.

As the dragon reached down to make the killing strike, she was pulled back by a pair of arms. She heard shouting as Luke — now visible — raced towards the dragon, leaving the tree.

"No," Raya managed to cough, shushed immediately by Trevor who was dragging her away.

Luke took out his dagger, fending off the dragon as Hedge moved her away.

Raya fought the spots in her vision, trying to keep her head up. She tried to tell Luke to leave the dragon, to get the apples instead... but her voice wouldn't work.

The last thing she heard before succumbing to the darkness was someone yelling in pain.

REY WRITES!

thanks for reading!!

thoughts?

comments?

headcanons?

theories?