Blurred Lines

Chapter 1

“Hey, wake up.” Coral’s eyelids fluttered open. Standing over her was a boy with shabby blonde hair and stormy blue eyes, smiling at her. Coral frowned, squinting. She was laying on a cot, bandages wrapped around her arms and right leg. The boy smiled again, amused at her confusion. “Hey, Taya!” A tall girl with honey-colored hair and warm brown eyes raised her head from where she was kneeling beside a cot a few feet over. “What now, Rowan? If you say it’s because you need—” Taya stopped mid-sentence as she noticed Coral sitting up, staring at her. Taya soon recovered, however, and jogged over to where Coral and the boy were. Taya immediately knelt down next to Coral and put her hand on Coral’s forehead. Taya removed her hand and looked Coral over. “How are you feeling, love?” Coral looked around the room. It was filled with cots, most of them occupied. Some of the teenagers had armor on, but everyone had a bright orange t-shirt on, with or without armor. Coral looked down at herself. She too was wearing the same shirt. The words on it read Camp Half-Blood. Where was she? “Confused.” Taya laughed. “I can’t blame you, love. This part was hard for all of us,” Taya gestured to the other teenagers in the room. “We were all once like you, lost and—” the boy cut her off. “C’mon, Taya. She just woke up. No one wants to here our “dramatic backstories” and how we “discovered our purpose in the world.” Taya scowled at the boy before returning her gaze to Coral. “So, would you like to hear the story now or later, love?” The boy opened his mouth, but Taya shot him a look and he closed it immediately. “Now, I guess.” Taya smiled, evidently pleased with Coral’s answer. “Well, first off, what’s your name, love?” Taya cocked her head to one side. “I’m Coral Sardothien.” The boy smirked, and Taya nodded. “I’m Taya Ramirez. And this,” Taya gestured to the boy, “is Rowan.” Rowan threw his hand up, smacking a passing camper, who flashed him a death glare. Rowan just cringed and turned away. Taya rolled her eyes. “Well, let me explain where you are, Coral love, and what happened to you.” Coral laid down on the cot again, earning another smirk from Rowan. Taya ignored this. “This place is called Camp Half-Blood. All these people are demigods; half-god, half-mortal.” Coral held up her hands. “Hold up. All these people are half god?” Taya smiled. “Yeah. Half-god, half-mortal. Gods will find pretty/handsome mortals and have affairs with them. The results of that,” Taya gestured to the other people in the room, “are us.” Coral’s brows furrowed. “This is so weird. Anyway, go on.” Rowan smiled. Taya continued. “These people—demigods—never have easy lives. Monsters can scent us very easily, so we are always on the run. Camp Half-Blood is a sanctuary for all demigods. Monsters can’t scent us here.” Coral made small “o” with her mouth, but didn’t speak. “So, this morning, three of us were sparing by the perimeter of the camp when a satyr bolted into the camp, carrying a girl with an insane amount of hair.” Coral smirked, flipping her knee-length, curly black hair. Rowan yelped when it smacked him straight in the face, and Taya laughed, covering her mouth to cover her snorting. “Wait. What’s a satyr?” Rowan clarified for her. “A satyr is a half-goat, half-human. They are sent out to retrieve demigods and bring them here.” Coral arched a brow. “That’s super weird, but you do you.” Rowan opened his mouth to respond, but was once again cut off. “Anyway,” Taya butted in, earning a smack in the shoulder from Rowan. “The satyr was bolting for the infirmary, screaming like a maniac. When we looked back, there was this huge lizard crashing through the forest.” Coral cringed. She remembered that thing. She had named it Barry, after her annoying and very disgusting cousin. “The three of us had to fight it, hurt it enough so it would leave.” Rowan leaned back, evidently pleased with himself. Taya rolled her eyes. “Did you kill him?” Coral peered at Taya and Rowan. She did not look concerned, just curious. “No. We could’ve, but then our powers would be pretty drained. And we need them,” Taya responded, gesturing to the activities going on outside of the infirmary. “Wait, how do you know it’s a boy?” Rowan looked like he might puke all over her, eyes wide. Coral snorted, covering her mouth, but doing nothing to block the sound. “You’re disgusting! No, I’m just guessing. I named it Barry, after my loud, fat, disgusting cousin.” Rowan laughed, eyes dancing with humor. It dimmed, however, when Coral’s own clouded with confusion. “Wait, who was the third person that was with you two?” Coral raised her eyebrows when Rowan smirked at her. “What?” “Her name’s Raven.” Coral furrowed her brows. “That’s all?” Taya chewed her lip. “She’s a daughter of Ares, love. Head counselor of her cabin.” “And?” Rowan grimaced. “Apparently, you’ve never met her before.” Coral shook her head. “Well, Raven is fourteen, and she’s, like, three feet tall.” Coral cracked a smile, but Taya rolled her eyes. “She’s about five feet tall. And she’s also the fiercest, wildest, most cutthroat warrior at camp. No one messes with Raven, love.” As if they had summoned her, a short girl with fiery red hair and stormy grey eyes strode into the infirmary. When she spotted Taya and Rowan, she ran over, smiling. “Hey, guys.” Raven was about to speak again, but then she noticed Coral sitting up in her cot, staring at her. Raven’s frightening grey eyes widened. She stumbled back a step, clutching the base of her throat. Raven threw herself at Coral, grabbing her arm and hauling her out of her cot. Taya and Rowan ran after her, but Raven was faster. She darted out of the infirmary, one arm gripping Coral’s and one on the pommel of her sword. Coral twisted, slamming her free elbow into Raven’s stomach. She groaned, letting go of Coral’s arm to grip her stomach. Coral stood in front of her, golden eyes glowing with fierce intensity. Raven slowly looked up, stormy grey eyes full of rage. Coral just stared her down, not one ounce of fear in her stance. Raven began to glow, the edges of her frame becoming fiery red. She reached for her sword, but Coral did not yield one step. Raven drew her blade, and Coral just raised her hands in front of herself. She wasn’t sure what she was doing, but something deep within her, a wild, unchecked part of her, opened a cunning eye and began to whisper in her ear, its voice young and ancient, beautiful and beastly. Coral listened. She focused, focused on that beast within her, a beautiful, deadly thing with a shrewd mind and a kind heart. The beast with a keen eye and a loving soul. Coral concentrated on that beast, listening to its whispers. Coral considered its words, and decided to trust it. Her hands began to shake, but Raven continued to stalk forward, young face contorted with rage. A blast of water shot from Coral’s palms, slamming into Raven and knocking her down. Coral stumbled back a step, staring at her hands. Raven groaned, struggling to stand up. A few campers came to help her. She simply stared at Coral, still angry, but slightly confused as well. Taya rushed out of the infirmary, Rowan in tow. They stopped as they took in Raven, dripping wet, and Coral, shaking and pale. Taya immediately wrapped her arm around Coral’s shoulders, shooting a wicked glance at Raven. Rowan walked up to her and dragged her aside, obviously angry. “What was that about? The girl needs to rest, and you drag her out here and, what, fall into the lake or something?” Raven snarled at him. “She’s the—” the young girl stopped herself. Rowan frowned, about to ask her about her sudden stop, but Raven had already slipped away. Rowan sauntered over to where Coral and Taya stood, the former shaking and pale as snow. “What happened?” Rowan asked her. Coral looked up at him, golden eyes bright. “I elbowed her so that she would let me go, and then she got really angry. The edges of her body started to glow red, and she grabbed her sword. I just held my hands out in front of me, like it said—” Coral stopped herself, taking in a deep breath. “Anyway, I just held my hands out, and then this burst of water shot from them, right into Raven.” Coral shook her head. “It was terrifying to watch water of all things shoot out of my hands.” Taya nodded, silently communicating with Rowan. He nodded, taking off to the Big House, where Chiron currently was. Taya simply guided Coral back into the infirmary to rest. Coral just stared at her hands, frowning. The shakiness had worn off, and her face had returned to its normal golden-brown color. However, the fright was still present, a sickly sweet caress down her spine. Coral fingered her necklace, an aquamarine stone with a gold chain. It had been a gift from her father, though Coral had never met him. With her hand still clasped around the necklace, Coral fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.