"Move it sunshine or the squirrels get first pick for breakfast," someone yelled from across the cabin.
I groaned and rubbed my eyes after hearing that. I swung my legs over the edge of the bunk, "New day. New chaos," I muttered to myself.
The Hermes cabin was a complete mess, of course. Trunks half-open, clothes all over the place, a couple of campers still half-buried under blankets, someone's shoe missing. A sign on the wall said: "Rules: Don't steal. Don't annoy. Don't get caught." Smaller letters added: Good luck, asshole.
I grabbed my pack, slung it over my shoulder, and headed for the door. Time to figure out what the hell this camp really looked like.
.
.
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[Third Person POV]
The mess hall was… overwhelming. Long tables, campers everywhere, trays clattering, mugs clanging, voices bouncing off the walls. Abel stepped in behind Thalia, Luke, and Annabeth, blinking.
"Uh… wow," he muttered. "It's… loud."
"Yeah," Thalia said, shifting nervously. "I thought cabins were supposed to be chaotic. But this… this is something else."
Annabeth peeked around the crowd. "We need to find a spot before it gets worse."
They managed to grab a table near the edge, empty for now. Abel took a plate and grabbed some scrambled eggs and toast. He glanced at the mess hall, taking in campers bumping into each other, some laughing, some looking bored, others clearly sizing each other up.
Luke poked at his pancake with a scowl. "Who cooks this stuff? Seriously. It's like… cardboard with syrup."
Thalia rolled her eyes, leaning back in her chair. "Stop whining. You're lucky it's edible."
Abel grinned from the other side of the table. "Hey, at least it's not trying to eat you back. That's already a win in my book."
Luke groaned. "I'd rather wrestle a monster than eat this again."
"So," Abel said to the group, "first breakfast. Thoughts?"
Thalia shrugged. "Intense. Also… kind of exciting?"
Luke snorted. "Exciting until someone spills syrup on your shirt or a tray lands on your foot."
Abel chuckled. "Sounds like my kind of place."
Annabeth nudged him. "You're strange."
"Thank you," Abel said with a grin, "I take that as a compliment."
They ate mostly in silence, watching the other campers and the chaos around them. There are a kid carrying a stack of plates tripped nearby, and everyone froze for a second. Abel muttered, "Yep, first chaos of the day." The kid recovered quickly and muttered a soft apology before hurrying off and Luke suddenly leaned towards me.
"You see that guy?" Luke whispered, nodding toward a boy balancing three mugs on a tray. "He's going down in ten seconds."
Abel squinted. "Bet he makes it twelve."
The boy tripped. Mug clattered, everyone gasped. The boy recovered, muttered a half-apology, and fled. Abel clapped slowly. "Twelve seconds! I'll give him that."
Thalia shook her head. "You're ridiculous."
"Ridiculous?" Abel grinned, leaning back in his chair. "I prefer… charmingly unpredictable."
Annabeth smirked. "That's one way to describe it."
Luke muttered, "We're going to get eaten alive in this place."
"You? Maybe," Abel said, nibbling a piece of bacon. "Me? I thrive on chaos. I even bring my own flavor."
Thalia rolled her eyes again but couldn't hide a small grin. "You're impossible."
Abel shrugged, smirking. "Maybe. But isn't that why you like me?"
Thalia blinked. "I do not—"
"—Yes, princess," Abel interrupted with a dramatic bow, bacon in hand.
Thalia groaned, swatting his arm. "Ugh. You're going to get us kicked out before we even finish breakfast."
Abel grinned. "Then it's a good thing I'm charming enough to get us back in."
Annabeth rolled her eyes, muttering, "I should have stayed in the Athena cabin…"
Luke snorted. "Nah, this is way more entertaining."
.
.
.
The training fields were buzzing. Campers ran drills with swords, spears, and bows, the clash of metal and thwack of arrows filling the air.
"Wow," I said, stepping aside as a spear whistled past a little too close for comfort. "This place really doesn't believe in warm-ups."
Thalia smirked beside him. "Don't get yourself skewered on day one."
"Noted princess," I replied.
My eyes drifted to the archery range. Targets were set at different distances, some close, some far enough that most arrows landed wide. A few campers were already shooting with somewhat mixed results. One kid groaned loudly after missing for the third time in a row.
I walked over before I could overthink it.
I grabbed a bow from the rack. Nothing fancy just a simple wooden bow. I rolled my shoulder once, more out of habit, then set an arrow.
Thalia leaned against a post nearby. "You sure you wanna do this in front of everyone? Can you even shoot it?"
"Relax," I said. "I'm just testing."
I drew.
The arrow flew clean.
Bullseye.
"…Huh."
I shot again.
Bullseye.
A third arrow followed. Same result.
I lowered the bow slowly. Behind me, someone shouted, "What the hell?"
Thalia straightened. "Okay. That one? Fine. But three?"
I exhaled and tried again, adjusting the distance this time. Farther target. Wind shifted slightly. I didn't think about it. Just pulled and released the arrow again.
Bullseye.
A couple campers outright stopped what they were doing now. One of them squinted at me like I'd personally offended him.
I scratched the back of my neck. "I swear this isn't how it usually goes."
"That is absolutely how it's going," Thalia said flatly.
One camper stepped closer. "You trained before?"
"Not really," I said. Which was… complicated, but not a lie. "Maybe I'm sort of a genius??" I grinned
Thalia stared at me for a long second. Then she snorted.
"Sure," she said. "Genius."
I handed the bow back to the rack and grab a sword.
"Yeah," Thalia said, crossing her arms. "You're not touching a sword until someone supervises you."
"Wow. Concerned already?"
She shot me a warning look, but there was a hint of amusement there. "Don't get cocky."
"Too late."
I glanced back at the targets, arrows buried dead center.
"Train later?" I asked casually. "Just sparring."
Thalia tilted her head, eyes sharp. "You really think you can take me?"
I smiled, slow and unapologetic. "Try me princess."
She scoffed. "You're ridiculous."
"Yet," I said, "you didn't say no."
She turned away, already heading back toward the field. "Don't make me regret that."
I followed, still feeling the pull of the bowstring in my fingers.
Yeah.
Lucky shot.
Sure.
[Third POV]
Thalia grabbed a practice sword from the rack, and tested the weight with a single flick of her wrist.
Abel didn't.
His eyes slid past the blades and settled on the lower rack for short weapons. He grabbed a pair of training knives with dulled edges, balanced for speed rather than reach.
He picked one up.
Thalia noticed.
Her brow creased. "You sure about that?"
Abel rolled the knife once in his palm, testing the weight. "Yeah."
That was all.
A couple nearby campers exchanged looks already forming a crowd. Someone muttered something under their breath. Luke, standing farther back with Annabeth, straightened slightly.
"That's a knife," Luke said. Not surprised. Just… attentive.
Annabeth didn't answer. She was already watching Abel's grip.
Thalia adjusted her stance, sword angled forward, feet grounded. She didn't underestimate him, she have seen Abel fight with knives before.
Chiron, on the far end of the field, had paused mid-step.
He turned.
The spar began without a signal.
Thalia moved first and damn she was very fast straight using a downward cut meant to end things early.
Abel didn't block.
He stepped inside the arc.
Steel passed where his shoulder had been a moment earlier. His knife flashed up. Not to strike, but to redirect. The flat of the blade slid along the sword's guard, deflecting the momentum just enough to slip past it.
Close. Too close.
Thalia twisted, pulling back before he could capitalize, boots digging into the dirt as she reset her stance.
Her eyes sharpened.
She pressed harder this time. Horizontal strike. Follow-up thrust. Clean technique, no wasted motion.
Abel flowed backward. Knife held low, body angled, minimizing target space and a sword rang against dirt as Thalia overextended for half a second.
Abel stepped in.
Not to strike her. To control the moment.
His wrist snapped up, knife tapping her forearm. Not cutting, just enough pressure to disrupt her for a brief moment. His shoulder checked her balance. He was already past her when she turned, blade swinging through empty air.
The field went quiet.
Annabeth's breath caught. "That fighting style—"
"—isn't something you got from practice only." Luke finished quietly.
Thalia exhaled sharply and attacked again.
This time, Abel didn't yield ground.
Their weapons collided. Knife against sword. He slipped inside her reach repeatedly, forcing her to adjust, to shorten her swings, to fight his distance.
She adapted fast.
But he adapted faster.
A feint left. She countered. Abel dropped low, rolled under her guard, came up behind her shoulder—
—and stopped.
The tip of his knife rested just beneath her ribs.
Still. Steady.
Point.
For a full second, no one moved.
Thalia froze, chest rising slowly as she processed it.
Then she stepped back and lowered her sword.
The sound returned all at once. Whispers, murmurs, someone swearing under their breath.
Abel lowered the knife immediately, backing off without triumph, without comment.
Luke let out a slow breath. "Okay. Yeah. Nope."
Annabeth stared at Abel like he was a puzzle that had just broken its own rules. "That wasn't instinct. That was someone who have fought a lot in the past."
Chiron had moved closer now, cane resting lightly against the ground. His gaze wasn't stern.
It was calculating.
"Where did you learn to fight like that?" Chiron asked calmly.
Abel glanced at the knife, then back up. "I didn't, really."
Silence pass through them.
Chiron didn't press.
Thalia finally looked at Abel. "You held back," she said.
Abel met her eyes. "So did you."
That earned a sharp, humorless huff from her. "Next time, don't."
He nodded once. "Deal."
Chiron's voice cut in gently, but firmly. "Abel. Walk with me later."
"Sure, sure." Abel casually replied.