Chapter 224: Definitely Related

[Third Person's PoV] 

"AAAAAAAAHHHH!!" Nico shouted, charging towards the Ares Cabin members guarding the flag, his sword raised high.

The group turned to him in disbelief as he sprinted forward, weapon poised to strike.

"Is… is he an idiot?" one of the male members muttered.

"Careful, it could be a diversion," Clarisse warned. "We should—"

"Who put you in charge?" an older member scoffed. "In case you've forgotten, you're dating the guy who beat our father. Your loyalties are a little questionable right now."

"Henry, this is not the time," Clarisse snapped through gritted teeth.

A female camper rushed at Nico, spear in hand. She gripped it tightly, thrusting forward. Nico dove, rolling beneath the attack before springing back to his feet.

She turned to face him, but before she could react, a black arrow sliced through the air and struck her leg.

"Ah!" she cried out, collapsing to one knee.

"You little shit!" one of the boys shouted, swinging his sword at Nico.

Nico blocked the strike but was pushed back. Before he could regain his footing, two more spear-wielders lunged at him.

'Visualize where I want to go. Visualize where I want to go,' Nico repeated in his mind, dodging and weaving between the spear thrusts. Then, he sank into his shadow.

A heartbeat later, he reemerged behind the kneeling girl. "Yes!" he exclaimed at his success—right before slamming the hilt of his sword into the side of her head, knocking her unconscious.

"One down~" he said smugly, spinning his sword in his hand.

"Focus on the brat!" Clarisse barked. "He's inexperienced, but don't forget about the one hiding in the trees! You archers should be dealing with her!"

The archers grumbled at having to follow her orders but obeyed as they made the most sense at the moment, shifting their aim toward the trees where the arrow had come from. They released a volley of arrows, but Bianca had already moved.

'First rule of being an archer—never stay in one place. Constant movement, constant position changes,' she reminded herself as she perched on another branch, watching the arrows slam into the tree she had just abandoned. 'Although… thanks for the free ammo.'

Meanwhile, Nico found himself surrounded.

"Now, wait," he said, holding up his hands in mock surrender. "Let's not do anything rash—"

A sword flashed toward his face. He barely blocked in time, sparks flying from the clash of steel. He pushed their clashing weapons to deflect a spear coming from the side—only for another spear to thrust toward him from behind.

Before it could land, an arrow whistled through the air and buried itself in the attacker's shoulder, making him cry out in pain.

Outnumbered and overpowered, Nico sank into his shadow again, using their momentum to escape.

"Damn it! That slippery bastard!" Henry growled.

Nico shot out of the shadows like a slingshot, launching into the air. He extended his leg mid-flight, kicking Henry square in the nose and knocking him flat.

As he landed, he rolled to absorb the impact, then sprang up, hooking an arm around Henry's neck in a chokehold.

With one swift motion, Nico drove his sword into the ground and pulled out his gun, pressing it against Henry's temple.

"DROP YOUR WEAPONS TO THE GROUND OR HE GETS IT!" he commanded.

"What?"

Nico's words and actions froze everyone in place as the atmosphere shifted. Their disbelief was palpable as they stared at the weapon pressed against Henry's temple.

Even Bianca gawked in shock from where she stood. "I… I'm seriously going to kill him. And then Lucian as well…"

"You think I'm joking around?! Drop your weapons! I'm feeling a little trigger-happy right about now!" Nico shouted, a crazed glint in his eyes.

"What are you doing… and why do you have a gun…?" one of the girls asked, bewildered.

"D-Dude… I-It's not that serious… We were just playing a game," Henry stammered, his voice laced with fear. Having a child—one of Hades' sons, no less—holding a gun to his head wasn't exactly comforting.

His life was quite literally in Nico's hands.

"You think this is all a game?!" Nico barked before raising the gun and firing into the air.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

"DROP YOUR WEAPONS!" Nico screeched, shaking his head maniacally before pressing the gun firmly against Henry's forehead once more.

A trail of black, wispy smoke curled from the gun's tip.

"Guys, please! Just listen to what he has to say!" Henry pleaded.

Reluctantly, they complied, tossing their weapons to the ground.

Clarisse watched with narrowed eyes, her lips twitching slightly. "Yeah… they're related, alright. Both batshit crazy."

Nico's gaze locked onto Clarisse, who stood closest to the flag. "Now you, curly. Grab that flag behind you and hand it over—nice and slow."

"Curly?" Clarisse echoed, unimpressed, raising an eyebrow.

Nico flushed but quickly masked his embarrassment by firing a shadow bullet at the ground near her feet before pressing the gun harder against Henry's temple.

"No," Clarisse said coldly.

"No?" Nico repeated, his finger tightening on the trigger.

"Clarisse! Come on! I know we're not best friends, but I'm still your brother, aren't I?!" Henry shouted in disbelief. "This game can't be more important than my life! I swear, I don't think this kid would hesitate to pull the trigger!"

Clarisse's expression remained unreadable as she spoke in a chillingly flat tone. "Pull the trigger. You think I give a shit whether that trash lives or dies?" Her eyes were devoid of emotion. "Go on. Pull the fucking trigger."

Nico's smirk faltered slightly. "You seriously leave me no choice, then…"

"CLARISSE!" Henry shouted.

At the same time, Bianca appeared behind Clarisse, emerging from the shadows. reaching for the flag.

But Clarisse was faster. She lashed out with a brutal kick behind her without any hesitation, striking Bianca in the chest and sending her tumbling to the ground.

"Thought so." Clarisse scoffed. "You and your brother are exactly alike. You both love putting on a big show for attention."

Nico grinned, rubbing the back of his head—the hand still holding the gun. "Aww! Seriously? You think so?"

Henry scrambled away and rejoined his cabinmates, still staring in disbelief. "Wait… so it was all an act?"

Seeing their expressions darken, especially Henry's, Nico raised his hands in mock surrender. "Alright, alright—calm down. No need to do anything rash. Let's not make decisions we'll all regret…"

His eyes flickered between them nervously. Especially Henry, who felt both enraged and humiliated from the events that have just transpired. 

"…Uh… Would you guys believe me if I said the gun made me do it?" he offered weakly.

…

Annabeth stood guard over her team's flag, a few members of her cabin stationed nearby as insurance. But instead of watching the road or the forest path like one might expect, her gaze was locked on the ocean, her storm-gray eyes narrowed.

She had a feeling.

And, sure enough, her prediction proved correct.

A few minutes later, Percy came into view, riding an ice-shaped surfboard atop a towering wave he had summoned. His trident was pointed forward, a wide grin plastered across his face as he sped toward them.

Annabeth felt her lip twitch in exasperation 'Looks like someone's been enjoying himself.'

With a flick of her wrist, the earth rumbled beneath her feet. Several rocks rose from the ground, converging midair to form a massive boulder. With a swift punch, she sent it hurtling straight at Percy.

Seeing the rapidly approaching projectile, Percy reacted instantly. He plunged the prongs of his trident into the wave, channeling a powerful torrent of water forward. The blast struck the boulder head-on, shattering it into countless fragments that scattered in all directions. Percy instinctively shielded his face with his arm as debris flew past him.

When he lowered his arm, he found Annabeth standing firm, her stance unwavering—and more boulders already floating beside her.

With no other choice, Percy let the wave crash onto the shore. His icy surfboard glided smoothly over the rocky sand before melting back into water as he stepped off.

"We can do this the easy way or the hard way," Percy said, twirling his trident with a confident smirk.

Annabeth scoffed, cracking her knuckles. "Who are you trying to act tough for? You do know I'm stronger than you, don't you?"

Percy shifted into a fighting stance, his sea-green eyes alight with challenge. "We haven't actually fought before, so I guess we'll find out."

Annabeth settled into a low horse stance, her hands slightly scooped, ready to strike.

She grinned. "I'm going to enjoy kicking your scrawny ass."

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