"WHERE ARE THE FLAGS?" Clarisse demands. I pick up each individual flag from the table where I had sat them. "Right here, why?" I ask. Thalia comes forth smiling. "Chiron may I?" She asks, pointing to the two laurel wreaths in his hands. "You may,"he says, handing them to her. Thalia turns to the other campers. "Campers! We have our winners! Selene get over here. You too Nico." Thalia says. I walk over and she places a golden laurel wreath in my hair. She does the same for Nico. "MAKE THEM WEAR TOGAS!!!!" a camper yells. "No!" Nico and I say at the same time. Drew Tanaka, Daughter of Aphrodite steps forward. She waves her hands and suddenly I'm in one of those ladies' togas where one cloth is like a small skirt then a separate one is like a crop-top with a cape looking thing connected by two small gold plates at the shoulders. Drew went as far as to make my boots into sandals. Those tall lace-ups. I pull out my knife and gag at my own reflection. All my make-up was removed then re-applied but fancier. I don't like to wear make-up because it draws too much attention to me but lately I've found that it makes me feel more confident. There's a light peach lipstick on my lips perfectly and I have to admit it looks good but it isn't me. It's not my style. A pale-ish color eyeshadow is blended with a peachy color. I let my eyes wander over to Nico who has his sword drawn ready to decapitate Drew. He has a regular white toga and gladiator sandals on but he looks even more uncomfortable than me. And that's saying a lot. I'm about to get into a fight with Drew when Leto appears in front of me and Drew. The air smells like freshly bloomed honeysuckle. Leto smiles kindly, her long brown hair curled and over her shoulders. She wears her usual blue jeans, white blouse with Adidas tennis shoes on. "My beautiful girl," Leto says. "Lower your weapon." she pleads. I put my knife away, and Leto snaps her fingers. My clothes return to their original form. "Thanks," I say appreciatively. "You may be wondering why I am here, Love," she says. "Well I wasn't, but now I'm curious." I admit. Leto laughs gently. "My love, I am here to guide you on your quest. Zeus has allowed me to help only because he doesn't believe you three 'mere mortals' could do it without the help of a god or Titan, in my case." she sighs. "I believe you could do it, but I foresee that if you tried without assistance one of you would die." she says sadly. Leo steps forward and looks up from building his small little project. "Look lady, I've already done this whole dying thing, and I gotta say I'm not a fan." he says, rolling his wrist as he speaks, making his screwdriver look like a magic wand. "Leo Valdez," Leto says with just a hint of admiration in her voice. "You defeated Gaea, you and that bronze dragon, Festus, was it?" she asks. Leo's eyebrows raise a little bit. "You know my name? And Festus'?" he asks. Leto laughs. "Of course! I pay attention to the people in My daughter's life. I don't want Selene to have a friend like Luke Castellan." she says. The name 'Luke Castellan' sends a ripple through the crowd of campers. Percy and Annabeth return just as those two words were spoken. Percy gets a sad,angry,annoyed look in his eyes. Annabeth looks like she's about to cry which is rare. "Luke…?" Annabeth asks, with just the slightest hint of hope and just enough doubt in her voice. Percy looks like he's been punched in the gut, because Luke has always been a sensitive topic. He had pretended to be Percy's friend but had been a member of the Titan army the whole time. Well, the evil Titans anyway. Luke had hosted the spirit of the titan lord Kronos and had tried to recreate the world to fit Kronos's wants. At the end, Luke had sacrificed himself to save the world. At least that's what everyone thought. You see, I had been on Olympus when it happened. Leto raised me on Olympus until Apollo had met Naomi, My adopted mom,in which Leto knew she could trust Naomi with me. But anyways, Luke had indirectly confessed his feelings for Annabeth as he was dying so yeah, you can see why that would be such a sensitive topic. "Luke is dead, right?" Percy asks, his voice unusually nonchalant. "Yes, of course, that poor boy." Leto says. Annabeth punches Percy in the gut. "Anyways, Selene, you must leave immediately. Morpheus may have sided with the Titans, but he is still descended from Olympus," Leto says. "I will not leave my own behind," she adds. I nod. "And you're right," I say, "But isn't Thanatos Hades' assistant?" I ask. "That would put him in charge of the escaped souls."I add. Nico clears his throat loudly. "Is that supposed to mean something?" he asks. "Well, would you like it to mean something?" I ask. "No but my point is you act like Hades is such a bad person," he says. "It's insulting and I don't even think you're trying to be insulting," he says. "So I'd appreciate it if you'd not slander my father for having to rule the underworld," he says. "Hm, maybe, just to let you know, I'm happy to deliver insults at any time, no charging fees and shipping is free," I say. Leto clears her throat. "Anyways dear you must pack up to-"
Then there was darkness.