- 01. chapter four

It was quite easy for Amora to make friends. Since she hadn't been claimed yet, and therefore had no cabin to call her own, she floated between groups, forging bonds with campers from all across camp. There was a girl who she thought was pretty cool, her name was Lou Ellen, daughter of Hecate.

Still, at dinner she sat near the front of the pavilion with Jason and Annabeth.

The amphitheater steps were carved into the side of a hill, sloping down toward a stone-ringed fire pit that pulsed with flickering warmth. Around fifty or sixty demigods filled the rows, clustering beneath their respective banners like birds returning to their nests—red for Ares, gold for Apollo, and so on.

As Amora scanned the gathering crowd, her gaze landed on the Hephaestus kids shuffling in with grease-streaked hands and soot-smudged faces. Leo stood among them. He caught her eye and flashed her a playful grin, throwing in a wink for good measure. She smiled softly and gave him a small wave, her fingers flicking in a quiet hello.

Then, without warning, the crowd erupted into song. Amora jumped slightly at the sudden burst of noise.

A group of campers had taken their places at the front, wielding guitars, tambourines, and even old lyres strung with mismatched strings. They launched into a chaotic sing-along about pieces of armor—something about their grandma preparing for battle—and the entire amphitheater joined in. Campers clapped, gestured enthusiastically for each part of the song, and whooped with laughter.

Amora sat frozen, her smile slipping, feeling out of place as the chorus swelled around her. Her eyes scanned the crowd until—thank the gods—she spotted Piper arriving, flanked by Rachel Dare. Relief flooded through her.

The energy in the amphitheater climbed higher, and with it, the fire blazed brighter. It danced from red to orange, then gold, casting a warm glow over the campers' animated faces. When the song finally ended in a thunder of applause and stomping feet, Chiron trotted into view.

"Very nice!" he said, brandishing a long stick skewered with half-melted marshmallows like a victorious spear. "And a special welcome to our new arrivals. I am Chiron, camp activities director, and I'm thrilled that you've all arrived alive—and with most of your limbs still attached. In a moment, I promise, we'll get to the s'mores, but first—"

"What about Capture the Flag?" someone shouted from the back.

A wave of murmuring broke out from a group of kids in armor seated under the crimson banner of Ares, a boar's head emblazoned proudly in the center.

"Yes," Chiron said with the patience of someone used to chaos. "I know the Ares cabin is eager to return to the woods for our regular games."

"And kill people!" someone added gleefully.

Chiron raised an eyebrow but continued, "However, until the dragon is brought under control, that won't be possible. Cabin Nine—any updates on that?"

All eyes turned to the Hephaestus group. Amora's gaze naturally sought Leo again, but it lingered on the girl next to him. She wore a well-worn army jacket, eerily similar to Leo's, and her fiery hair was tucked beneath a red bandana.

"We're working on it,"

"How, Nyssa?" an Ares camper demanded.

"Really hard," the girl—Nyssa—shot back flatly before sitting down amidst a flurry of groans and complaints. The fire reacted to the tension, sputtering and crackling wildly as voices rose and tempers flared.

Chiron stomped a hoof against the stones—bang, bang, bang—and the amphitheater fell abruptly silent.

"We'll have to be patient," Chiron said, his voice calm but firm. "In the meantime, we have more pressing matters to discuss."

"Percy?" someone asked from the shadows.

What is it with this Percy dude?

Amora leaned forward slightly, her black hair falling like a curtain between her and the others. Immediately, the fire dimmed—its golden blaze shrinking to a low, uncertain flicker. Chiron gestured to Annabeth. She took a deep breath and stood.

"I didn't find Percy," Annabeth said. Her voice wavered slightly as she said his name, like it physically hurt to speak it aloud. "He wasn't at the Grand Canyon like I thought," she continued, swallowing hard. "But we're not giving up. We've got search teams all over—Grover, Tyson, Nico, even the Hunters of Artemis. Everyone's out there looking. We will find him. Chiron's talking about something different. A new quest."

"It's the Great Prophecy, isn't it?" a girl called out. Everyone turned.

The voice had come from a group in the back, sitting under a rose-colored banner with a dove emblem. They'd been chatting among themselves and not paying much attention until their leader stood up: Drew.

Everyone else looked surprised. Apparently Drew didn't address the crowd very often.

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

"Well, come on." Drew spread her hands like the truth was obvious.

Amora caught Jason's eye, her brows furrowing. He looked just as confused.

Talk of the Great Prophecy. Words that shouldn't have meant anything to her, but still made her heart stutter.

"Olympus is closed. Percy has disappeared. Hera sends you a vision and you come back with four new demigods in one day. I mean, something weird is going on. The Great Prophecy has started, right?"

Everyone's eyes fell onto Rachel Dare, the oracle.

"Well?" Drew called down. "You're the oracle. Has it started or not?"

Rachel's eyes looked scary in the firelight. She stepped forward calmly and addressed the camp. "Yes," she said. "The Great Prophecy has begun."

Pandemonium broke out. 

When the talking finally subsided, Rachel took another step toward the audience, and fifty-plus demigods leaned away from her, as if one skinny redheaded mortal was more intimidating than all of them put together.

"For those of you who have not heard it," Rachel said, "the Great Prophecy was my first prediction. It arrived in August. It goes like this:

Eight half-bloods shall answer the call,

The storm and the mockingbird shall risk it all–"

Suddenly, Jason shot to his feet. Amora looked at him. Wtf, dude?

His eyes looked wild, like he'd just been tasered. Even Rachel seemed caught off guard. "J-Jason?" she said, "What's–"

"Hostes arma portant Mortis," he chanted. "Jusjurandum extremum servavit spiritum et cantet pax in tentatione eius."

An uneasy silence settled on the group.

Foes bear arms to the Doors of Death,

An oath kept with a final breath,

And peace shall sing through her final test.

The words ran through Amora's head in translation like an enchanting ballad; it was Latin.

"You just...finished the prophecy," Rachel stammered. "Foes bear arms to the Doors of Death

An oath kept with a final breath

And peace shall sing through her final test. How did you–"

"I know those lines." Jason winced and put his hands to his temples. "I don't know how, but I know that prophecy."

"In Latin, no less," Drew called out. "Handsome and smart."

There was some giggling from the Aphrodite cabin.

Amora's eyes flicked to Piper. She mouthed, Are you okay?

Piper only nodded in response and gave her a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes.

The campfire was burning a chaotic, nervous shade of green. Jason sat down, looking embarrassed, but Amora put a hand on his shoulder.

Rachel Dare still looked a little shaken. She glanced back at Chiron for guidance, but the centaur stood grim and silent, as if he were watching a play he couldn't interrupt – a tragedy that ended with a lot of people dead on stage.

"Well," Rachel said, trying to regain her composure. "So, yeah, that's the Great Prophecy. We hoped it might not happen for years, but I fear it's starting now. 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."

Amora shifted. The words prickled under her skin. A strange chill crept up her spine.

The campers began to stir and mutter, looking at each other nervously, until a drowsy voice in the crowd called out, "I'm here! Oh...were you on calling roll?"

"Go back to sleep, Clovis," someone yelled, and a lot of people laughed.

"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.

"So pessimistic," Amora mumbled, making Jason chuckle next to her.

The campfire immediately turned dark purple. "What we do know," Rachel said, "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."

Shocked silence. Then fifty demigods started talking at once.

Chiron pounded his hoof again, but Rachel still had to wait before she could get back their attention. She told them about the incident on the Grand Canyon skywalk – how Gleeson Hedge had sacrificed himself when the storm spirits attacked, and the spirits had warned it was only the beginning.

They apparently served some great mistress who would destroy all demigods.

Rachel told them about Piper passing out in Hera's cabin and about Jason's vision in the living room of the Big House. Occasionally, Amora would lock eyes with Leo, as if she needed reassurance that this was all real.

"Jason," Rachel said. "Um...do you remember your last name?"

He looked self-conscious, but he shook his head.

Not surprising. She might have more memories than he did, but not by much. She didn't know what her family looked like. Didn't know why she was here. No parent. No answers.

"We'll just call you Jason, then," Rachel said. "It's clear Hera herself has issued you a quest." Rachel paused, as if giving Jason a chance to protest his destiny. Everyone's eyes were on him. So much pressure.

Jason set his jaw and nodded. "I agree."

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

"That's the council day of the gods," Annabeth said. "If the gods 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."

"The winter solstice," Chiron spoke up, "is also the time of greatest darkness. 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."

His eyes wandered over to Amora. The black-haired girl only scrunched her eyebrows in confusion.

"Okay," Annabeth said, glaring at the centaur. "Thank you, Captain Sunshine. Whatever's going on, I agree with Rachel. Jason has been chosen to lead this quest, so–"

"Why hasn't he been claimed?" somebody yelled from the Ares cabin. "If he's so important–"

"He has been claimed," Chiron announced. "Long ago."

Amora's confusion was no longer a fleeting thought—it had settled into her bones. Jason has been claimed?

But what about her? Why hasn't her parent claimed her yet?

Her thoughts were shattered when Jason flipped a coin into the air. When he caught it in his hand, he was holding a lance – a rod of gold about seven feet long with a spear tip at one end.

The other demigods gasped. Rachel and Annabeth stepped back to avoid the point, which looked sharp as an ice pick.

"Wasn't that..." Annabeth hesitated. "I thought you had a sword."

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

"Dude, I want one!" yelled somebody from the Ares cabin.

"Better than Clarisse's electric spear, Lamer!" one of his brothers agreed.

"Electric," Jason murmured, like that was a good idea. "Back away."

Annabeth, Amora and Rachel got the message.

Jason raised his javelin, and thunder broke open the sky. Lightning arced down through the golden spear point and hit the campfire with the force of an artillery shell. When the smoke cleared, the entire camp sat frozen in shock, half blind, everyone except Amora covered in ashes, staring at the place where the fire had been. Cinders rained down everywhere.

A burning log had impaled itself a few inches from the sleeping kid Clovis, who hadn't even stirred.

Amora raised an impressed brow. When her eyes met Jason's, she squinted and mouthed, 'Show off,' crossing her arms in mock disapproval.

He gave her a sarcastic smile in return. Then he lowered his lance and cleared his throat, "Um...sorry."

Chiron brushed some burning coals out of his beard. He grimaced as if his worst fears had been confirmed.

"A little overkill, perhaps, but you've made your point. And I believe we know who your father is."

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

It didn't surprise Amora. Not really. At least now, the chaos at the Grand Canyon made more sense. And the eagle tattoo—though that still felt off. A symbol of Jupiter, sure, but she'd never believed he was her father. She couldn't explain why, but the idea sat wrong in her chest. So why an eagle? Why brand her with something that didn't belong?

Everything broke into chaos, with dozens of people asking questions until Annabeth raised her arms. "Hold it!" she said. "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 didn't answer.

"The important thing," Rachel said, "is that Jason's here now. He has a quest to fulfill, which means he will need his own prophecy."

She closed her eyes and swooned. Two campers rushed forward and caught her. A third ran to the side of the amphitheater and grabbed a bronze three-legged stool, like they'd been trained for this duty. They eased Rachel onto the stool in front of the ruined hearth. Without the fire, the night was dark, but green mist started swirling around Rachel's feet.

When she opened her eyes, they were glowing. Emerald smoke issued from her mouth. The voice that came out was raspy and ancient – the sound a snake would make if it could talk:

"Child of lighting, beware the earth,

The giant's revenge the seven shall birth,

The forge and dove shall break the cage,

The legacy's heart will set the stage,

And death unleash through Hera's rage."

On the last word, Rachel collapsed, but her helpers were waiting to catch her. They carried her away from the hearth and laid her in the corner to rest.

"Is that normal?" Piper's voice broke the silence like a ripple in still water. She hadn't meant to speak aloud, and when she glanced up, every gaze was pinned to her.

"I mean...does she spew green smoke a lot?"

"Gods, you're dense!" Drew sneered. "She just issued a prophecy – Jason's prophecy to save Hera! Why don't you just–"

"Drew," Annabeth snapped. "Piper asked a fair question."

Annabeth's grey eyes narrowed thoughtfully. "Something about that prophecy definitely isn't normal. If breaking Hera's cage unleashes her rage and causes a bunch of death...why would 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 rose.  "I don't have much of a choice. She took my memory. And Amora's. If we want them back..." He hesitated. "Maybe she should come with me."

Jason shot Amora an empathetic smile.

Nyssa stood up. "But you should listen to Annabeth. Hera can be vengeful. She threw her own son–our dad—down a mountain just because he was ugly."

"Real ugly." snickered someone from the Aphrodite cabin.

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

No one answered.

Annabeth took a deep breath. "It's Jason's quest," she announced, "so it's Jason's choice. Obviously, he's the child of lighting. According to tradition, he may choose any two companions."

Someone from the Hermes cabin yelled, "Well, you, obviously, Annabeth. You've got the most experience."

"No, Travis," Annabeth said. "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 connected," Piper blurted out. "You know that's true, don't you? This whole business, your boyfriend's disappearance – it's all connected."

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

Piper's words faltered. Amora saw it—how hard she was trying, the way her hands clenched at her sides. Before the silence could stretch too long, Annabeth stepped 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."

"It says who I pick," Jason agreed.

The forge, the dove and a legacy was mentioned.

"The forge and dove shall break the cage. The forge is the symbol of Vul–Hephaestus."

Under the Cabin Nine banner, Nyssa's shoulders slumped, like she'd just been given a heavy anvil to carry.

"If you have to beware the earth," she said, "you should avoid traveling overland. You'll need air transport. The flying chariot's broken and the pegasi, we're using them to search for Percy. But maybe the Hephaestus cabin can help figure out something else to help. With Jake incapacitated, I'm senior camper. I can volunteer for the quest."

She sounded enthusiastic.

Then Leo stood up. He'd been so quiet, Amora had almost forgotten he was there—save for the glances they'd exchanged.

"It's me," he said. His cabinmates stirred. Several tried to pull him back to his sear, but Leo resisted. "No, it's me. I know it is. I've got an idea for the transportation problem. Let me try. I can fix this!"

Amora's chest swelled with something tender. It was sweet how he stepped forward.

Jason smiled. "We started this together. Seems only right you come along. You find us a ride, you're in."

"Yes!" Leo pumped his fist.

"It'll be dangerous," Nyssa warned him. "Hardship, monsters, terrible suffering. Possibly none of you will come back alive."

"Oh."

Suddenly Leo didn't look so excited. Then he remembered everyone was watching. "I mean...Oh, cool! Suffering? I love suffering! Let's do this."

Annabeth nodded. "Then Jason, you'll need to choose the third quest member. The dove–"

"Oh, absolutely!" Drew was on her feet and flashing Jason a smile. "The dove is Aphrodite. Everybody knows that. I am totally yours."

Piper stepped forward. "No."

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

"Maybe try using your brain," Amora said flatly, turning her head. "Piper had the vision. Not you."

Drew whirled. "Who even are you? Anyone can have a vision—"

"But what about the legacy?" Amora pressed, lifting her chin.

A murmur swept through the crowd like wind in long grass. Annabeth spoke again, "I'm not sure. But a quest usually requires three people. So I guess the legacy must be one of them."

Amora met Annabeth's eyes, green to grey. "But–"

"Can we get back to what's important here?" Drew snarled. "Fighting is all fine, I suppose. And people who build things..." She looked at Leo in disdain. "Well, I suppose someone has to get their hands dirty. But you need charm on your side. I can be very persuasive. I could help a lot."

The murmurs rose again. Chiron scratched his beard. Even some campers from other cabins looked swayed.

Amora rolled her eyes. "Oh, please. This is ridiculous."

"Well..." Annabeth said. "Given the wording of the prophecy–"

"No!" Piper herself insisted. "I'm supposed to go."

Then the weirdest thing happened. Everyone started nodding, muttering that Piper's point of view made sense too. Drew looked around, incredulous. Even some of her own campers were nodding.

"Get over it!" Drew snapped at the crowd."

"What can Piper do?"

Piper tried to respond, but didn't say anything.

"Well," Drew said smugly, "I guess that settles it."

Suddenly there was a collective gasp.

Amora's eyes widened at her friend's appearance. She was adorned in a beautiful white sleeveless gown that went down to her ankles, with a V-neck. Delicate gold armbands circled her biceps. An intricate necklace of amber, coral and gold flowers glittered on her chest, and her hair was lush and long and braided with gold ribbons down one side. She even wore makeup.

"Beautiful," Jason exclaimed. "Piper, you...you're a knockout."

Amora reached over and smacked the back of his head. "Dude." Her eyes wide, telling him to shut up.

Drew's face was full of horror and revulsion.

"No!" she cried. "Not possible!"

"This isn't me," Piper protested. "I–don't understand."

Chiron the centaur folded his front legs and bowed to her, and all the campers followed his example.

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

Amora stared, stunned. Piper, the dove. Leo, the forge. The prophecy was assembling itself like a puzzle. And she... wasn't part of it.

She hadn't expected to be. Not really. But part of her had hoped—softly, silently—that maybe she'd be asked. That, maybe, she wouldn't have to stay behind.

They were the only people she sort of knew. And now they were leaving.

It wasn't anyone's fault. That was just how quests worked. Still, the hollow feeling bloomed in her chest anyway. Not jealousy. Just a quiet sadness. The kind that came from watching something move forward without you.

The kind that felt too familiar.

She might have amnesia, but she remembered that feeling all too well.

── ⋆⭒˚🪐 ˚.⋆ author's note!

[14/4/25]

Hello! It's been over a month...Anyway, two Prophecy reveals! I know how dry these first few chapters are but trust me once the quest starts it'll get better, I PROMISE. My girl's a bit quiet and is giving thought daughter, but always standing on business when it comes to her friends.

Leo & Amora interaction next chapter. That's all, bye!