As Ashton was lying on his bed, a ray of sunshine blasted through his cabin. He got out of his bed and yawned "Demigod world huh?" He thought looking outside his window
"Well, I should probably go look around this camp and meet some of the other demigods, after all, dad didn't want me to be a loner," Ashton said, getting out of his cabin to look around. He wanted to respect his father's request, but he also had another motif
"Let's see, I should probably look around at the facilities, learning how to train here would be pretty useful," Ashton said
As Ashton went further into the camp, he saw lots of signs pointing in the direction of different facilities "Damn, they got a library, sword fighting arena, and even a stable!" He said reading the signs around him
The purple-eyed boy continued searching until stopping at a facility that intrigued him "Archery range eh? Guess I could look around it" He said staring at the sign
Ashton walked down the path for the archer range and ended up at a huge range full of targets. The facility consisted of 5 lanes and after each range, the distance grew significantly
As Ashton was looking around the range he heard the sound of a bow causing him to hide behind a nearby "Crap! There's somebody here!" He thought to himself
"I should probably get out of here before they notice me," Ashton said beginning to walk out of the facility before suddenly stopping
"Wait, I shouldn't be trying to avoid people! I'm finally free of my curse, I don't need to worry about them being scared of me!" Ashton thought in realization "I can make friends!"
Ashton looked at the person shooting the bow and arrow confidently and started marching towards them
The person shooting the bow noticed Ashton walking towards them "Hey! What brings you here?" They asked
As Ashton walked closer to them, he noticed it was the boy who said he was the son of Apollo "Hi! I just wanted to check the camp out, are you practicing your archery?" He asked
"Pretty much, I'm a son of Apollo after all"
"I don't use many weapons, actually I just woke up in this demigod world a few hours ago" Ashton replied trying to continue the conversation
The boy looked at Ashton shocked "Seriously? That's rough man, I was told a few years ago" They respond feeling sorry
"Well, It wasn't all that bad, by the way, what was your name again? Sorry I'm not good with names" Ashton asked "My name's Alex, it's a pleasure to meet you, hold on what do you mean by you're not good with names?" They responded
Ashton's expression softened as he answered "Well, my whole life, I was sorta isolated for my "curse", I've never really talked to many people other than my dad "
"Wait, what's this "curse"? " Alex asked, even more curious "Well, as I said when we met up a few hours ago, I am the son of Eris, the goddess of chaos" Ashton responded
"So essentially your "curse" was you not being able to control your mother's powers"
"Basically, I can control my powers now, so don't worry," Ashton said making sure Alex didn't feel scared
"Still I have to say, being able to control chaos is pretty cool, I haven't been able to use any magic from Apollo," Alex says
"Oh really? Did you inherit some bow skills?" Ashton asked looking at the bow he was holding. Upon Ashton saying this, Alex started smirking confidently
"Just watch," Alex says getting in position to shoot his bow
As Ashton observed Alex he noticed that he pointed his bow perfectly straight and had a balanced stance "He seems like he's done this for a while" Ashton thought while examining his form
Alex released his arrow, blasting it forward at an incredible speed "Look" Alex said pointing forward
Ashton looked at a target with nothing on it confusing him "What? You didn't even hit the target!" He said shocked
"Look further"
As Ashton looked further, he saw a target barely within viewable distance. Ashton looked a bit more carefully and noticed a small arrow on it "How the hell am I supposed to compete with this!?" Ashton says causing Alex to smile confidently "I plan on being the best fighter here"
"Do you think you could teach me how to shoot like that one day?" Ashton asks "I'm not sure if I'm a good teacher" Alex responded humbly
"Well, it was nice meeting you Alex, I'm gonna go explore more of the camp," Ashton said walking away
"Alright seeya, Ummm, Ash was it?" Alex waved
Ashton laughed "At least one of us can remember names!" He said causing the brown hared boy to laugh as well
"Ash huh? Seems pretty nice" Alex said to himself, thinking about his conversation with Ashton
The black-haired male continued searching the camp's facilities, eventually ending up at a huge building with a mouth-watering aroma of mutton
"What could this place be?" Ashton wondered curiously. He searched around and saw a sign that read "Mess hall and kitchen"
"Maybe, I can get some food here" Ashton though hungrily
Ashton entered the building and saw that the kitchen door was open "Is someone else here? Were they cooking" He thought to himself while walking towards the room
As he went closer, Ashton jumped from the sight in front of him "What the heck is that!?" He thought to himself horrified
Ashton saw a white-haired boy covered in blood chomping down on some mutton "What are you doing here!?" The boy said scared
"Getting food, but it seems like someone beat me to it" Ashton stated calmly "Please don't tell anyone about this okay!" The mysterious boy responded, pleading Ashton
As Ashton looked at the boy, he noticed that he was the crazy guy from when he first got to Camp Demigod "Yeah sure, hold on your craz- I mean the son of Ares, Tyrone right?" He responded
"Yes, What do you want to fight?" Tyrone asked, annoying Ashton
Ashton leans against the wall and sighed "What's up with you and wanting a fight?" He says, causing Tyrone to respond sadly "It's all I knew in the underworld"
Ashton looked at Tyrone puzzled "Underworld?"
"Well from what I can remember, my entire life was spent down there. I only escaped recently and ended up at this camp" Tyrone explained
Ashton looked at Tyrone interested "If he's fought with monsters in an underworld his entire life, then he's definitely one of the strongest in the camp, I should find about his weaknesses if I ever end up in a fight with him" He thought
"So I take it your probably one of the best fighters in the camp right?" Ashton asked
Tyrone held his mutton up and responded "Of course, I came here to dominate the other demigods!"
"Competitive, I can use that" Ashton mentally jotted down
"I just met a guy who can shoot a bow and arrow really well," Ashton said thinking back to Alex "I'll just break his arrows with my hands" Tyrone responded confidently, clenching his fist
As Tyrone was clenching his fist, Ashton looked at his hands and noticed that he was wearing a weird pair of rings on both of his hands
Ashton pointed at his hand "What are those rings for?" He asked
"It's an artifact I got from the underworld! They're called The Juggernaut Rings!" Tyrone explained
"What do they do?" Ashton asked, curious about his artifact
Tyrone looked at the rings on his hand and made them glow a bright red "Well, during my time in the underworld, I defeated a juggernaut beast that was indestructible, in exchange for me letting them live, they gave me the rings" He explained
Ashton looked at Tyrone intrigued "How did he make something that was indestructible beg for mercy?" He thought to himself
"So what? Do they make you indestructible or something" Ashton said jokingly
"Of course not! Don't be crazy" Tyrone responded laughing
Tyrone emitted a red aura around his hands and makes a fist"They let me control my war magic better" He finishes
"War magic?" Ashton said puzzled
"It's magic that makes you stronger and quicker, it amplifies the more violent you get" He explained "And well, that's not exactly a problem for me"
"Oh! So is it like an Ares thing?" Ashton asked
Tyrone responded "I'm pretty sure"
"That's pretty badass not gonna lie," Ashton said "Well it's getting late, so I'm gonna head on back to my cabin, you enjoy your meal"
"Sure, but before you go, do you mind telling me your name again? I only learn the names of people I think are powerful" He asked asked
Ashton looked at Tyrone confused "What makes you think I'm powerful?"
"Well first off you aren't scared of me, even when I'm using my magic" He responded, staring at the purple-eyed male intently, making Ashton laugh
"I'm supposed to be afraid of some red glow?"
Tyrone stops glaring at Ashton and explains "You see, war magic has a secondary skill of scaring people that are weaker than the user"
Ashton looks at Tyrone intrigued "Well, I'm more of the one to cause fear than to feel it, but my name is Ashton, you can call me Ash"
"Alright, goodbye Ash," Tyrone says smiling
Ashton left the cafeteria smiling "You know maybe he isn't as crazy as I thought" He thought to himself
Ashton came back to his cabin to unpack his stuff "Let's see, I got my clothes, cards, and my other random items"
"Oh yeah that reminds me, I had a weird purple ball in my bag, I should probably take that out as well," Ashton said to himself
He grabbed the ball out from his bag and placed it on his desk, he observed it to see if it did anything
Ashton sighed sadly as he watched nothing happen "It doesn't seem to do anything" He thought to himself, leaving the ball alone
All of a sudden, a strange idea struck Ashton's mind "Maybe I can use it to control my powers? It makes sense, purple does seem to be the color for Eris" He thought, comparing the color of his clothes with the ball
"The only problem is that I can't control my powers, let alone use them at will! Hold on, is chaos magic even a physical thing?" Ashton said groaning
"Maybe, I can use other types of magic? What else is Eris the goddess of though, from what I remember... Its chaos, discord, and strife" He lists
"They're all the same thing! Damnit! I thought I was onto something"
Ashton continued thinking of other possibilities "Maybe it isn't directly one of those things, it could be something similar to chaos"
"Let's see, what is chaos? It's hectic, maybe dangerous? No that can't be power, what about darkness" He said, continuing guessing
"No, darkness isn't a po- wait! Shadow, Shadow magic! Maybe Eris also has access to that type of magic?" Ashton thought in realization
Ashton started thinking of gods who can use shadow magic "Is there anyone who can use shadow magic in the camp? Let's see, there's Aphrodite, Poseidon, Artemis, no none of them are remotely related to dark magic"
"Who else is capable of shadow magic? Wait, maybe that Hades kid can do shadow magic!" He thought in realization
"We have a meeting with them tomorrow, after the meeting I can ask if he can use this orb!" Ashton planned
Ashton looked out the window and saw how late it was "Well I should probably go to sleep, it's getting late" He said to himself yawning
"First day at camp demigod went pretty good, seems like the rest of my stay here will be fun," Ashton said to himself before falling asleep
Ashton woke up and yawned "Alright, where were we supposed to go? Oh right, the arena!" He said before realizing the issue
"I DON'T KNOW WHERE THE ARENA IS!" Ashton shouted, rushing out of his cabin
"How did I forget to find where the arena is!?" He screamed to himself internally
Ashton started running around frantically, looking for the arena "Maybe, it's on the out-" Before he could finish he bumped into someone
"Oh, whoops! Sorry!" Ashton said embarrassed
Ashton realized that the person he knocked into fell over "It's okay, I was in a rush too" The girl responded calmly
He noticed the girl had wings and recognized them "Wait, your that Artemis kid with the wings aren't you?" He said pointing to her wings
"Yep, I'm part Harpy" She responded flapping her wings
"What was your name? Sorry I forgot" Ashton asked slightly embarrassed
"Just call me Marsh, I take it you don't know where the arena is either?"
Ashton responded shyly "Y-yeah"
"Why the heck am I so flustered!? It's probably just because I'm getting used to socializing a bit more" Ashton thought to himself
"Ash? What's going on?" Ashton heard behind him
Ashton turned around and saw that it was Alex, the person he chatted with the other day
"Oh hey, Alex! We're both kind of lost, we can't find the arena" Ashton explained
"Oh! I'm heading there now for the meeting if you wanna join me, I could take you there" Alex proposes, making Ashton and Marsh relieved
Marsh responded thankfully "Sweet! Thanks a bunch!"
"No problem, I'll lead the way!" Alex said walking to the arena
Ashton and Marsh followed Alex to the location of the arena. While walking, Alex tried to spark up a conversation with the two
"So! Marsh, you're the daughter of Artemis right?" Alex asked
"Yep, although I've never really met them before" Marsh replies
Alex looked at Marsh with starry eyes "So do you know how to use a bow!?"
"Yeah! I use it all the time when I'm hunting, I even use crossbows sometimes!" Marsh responded, "It's one of my primary weapons!"
Ashton laughed and looked at Alex "You really like archery don't you?"
"Well I also use stuff like swords and spears, it's just that I enjoy using a bow more" Alex explained to his friend
"Are you a good shot?" Marsh asked, making Ashton laugh
"I don't know, is hitting a small sand monster in a sandstorm 2 kilometers away accurate?" Alex bragged
"Yes, it most certainly is!" Ashton responded
"What weapons do you use Ash? I'm curious" Alex asked
Ashton looked up at the sky to think about it and responded "It depends on the situation"
"What does that mean?" Marsh asks "Do you use multiple weapons?"
"I use whatever I can find, but I guess as of recently I've used as a dagger" Ashton clarified
"Dagger?" Marsh questioned
"Oh, we're here!" Alex announced, cutting off Marsh from asking any more questions about Ashton's dagger
Ashton looked in front of him and saw a massive coliseum that had looked extremely worn out "Geez, this place is massive!" He stated looking at the building
"Alright, let's head in!" Marsh said marching into the arena, with Alex and Ashton trailing behind her
As the trio walked into the building they saw the demigods they met the other day, along with some new ones, that they hadn't met before
As all the demigods gathered around, Kate started speaking "Well looks like everyone is finally here! The reason I gathered you all here, is to announce the first trial!"
"I can't wait! I'm going to slaughter everyone!" Tyrone shouted overjoyed
"This should be interesting" A boy wearing all black commented
"O-oh g-god I hope I d-don't mess up" A girl with a beanie on said to themselves nervously
"The first challenge will be the trial of Ares, a free for all rumble! The two surviving demigods at the end will be the winner!" Kate announced
"Surviving!?" A silver-haired girl said shocked, only to be ignored
"So when exactly is this trial?" Marsh asked
"What are you talking about? The trial starts now!" Kate responded
The silver-haired girl quickly complained "Wait! I just got here! What's with this trial and fighting stuff!?" She said, only to be ignored again
"Are we allowed to use bows or magic?" Alex asked
Kate answered Alex's question "No, you have to pick one of the weapons from the side of the arena, you can even create your own weapon if you'd like!" She said pointing at the weapon stands on the side-lines
"Oh thank god, we stand a chance!" Ashton said, relieved at the "no bow" part of the rules
"You live today Ash" Alex said jokingly
"What about magic?" Tyrone asked
"Most magic is not allowed, but as long as it's purely physical you can use it" Kate answered
Ashton went over to the side to find a weapon he liked "What should I pick?" Ashton said looking through the weapons
"Wait! Kate said we could create our own weapons didn't she?" Ashton thought in realization
Ashton started combining some of the weapons "Let's see if I tie it with this... then I put it on my palm... Perfect!" He said, completing his weapon
"Hold on, Kate, What did you mean by die?" Ashton asked
Kate responded mischievously "All I can say is, you can't die," She said making Ashton smirk
"Just like I thought, there's a loophole with the system' Ashton thought to himself
Ashton looked at the weapon he created and thought to himself "Hopefully this weapon will give me a chance to win" He said
Marsh walked up to Ashton and looked at him confused "Hey Ash, why don't you have a weapon?" she said not seeing a weapon on him
"My weapon's invisible!" Ashton said shaking his hands jokingly
"Well, I hope you last long! I have a genius plan to guarantee my victory!" Marsh said proudly
Ashton responded intrigued "Well, what is it?"
"Well, since most magic is prohibited, I'm going to use my wings to fly around!" She responded
Ashton laughed hearing her plan "Oh! You haven't figured it out yet have you?" He asked
"Figure what out?" Marsh replied cluelessly
"Just watch out for Alex" Ashton warned before heading towards one of the corners
"Dad, you wanted me to win right?" He thought to himself, awaiting Kate's countdown
Kate began counting down from 10
"10!" Kate shouted
"Well don't worry," Ashton said out loud while waiting for the countdown to finish
"2" Kate continued, almost finished
"I swear, I won't lose" Ashton promised
"1!" She said, finishing counting
Ashton got his weapon ready and took a deep breath
"Let the trial of Ares commence!" Kate shouted