Monster Hunters

[Axel Gauthier]

It was well after hours, and much of Camp Half-Blood was fast asleep. Peaceful dreams of godly adventure filled the cabins, and under the protection of the Golden Fleece all seemed at ease. All, it seemed, except for the armory shack in the corner of the training fields. There, under cover of night, a bit of ginger-headed chaos was brewing. "Not ready yet..." a small voice muttered, barely audible above the rather noisy shuffling of weaponry. "I'll show them. I'll show all of them."

Most of the world may have been sleeping, but Axel Gauthier was wide awake. Spite left no time for sleep. It had all started earlier in the day during combat training. They'd been warned not to stray too far into the forest - a wise idea he'd considered it. That was, until an older camper had decided to lean in and whisper, "Yeah, you little guys don't have the strength for that yet. You wouldn't stand a chance" If there was any way to light a fire under the child of Nike, it was to tell him he wasn't capable of something. In that instant the fair warning had become a challenge and one he didn't intend to lose.

"Ah... this'll work." He rested his hand on a rather new-looking sword. Less beat up than the others around here at any rate. Perfect. It was suitable weapon for decapitating a monster. That was the idea behind this little excursion. He was going to prove them all wrong. He'd go out into that forest and not only come back alive, but walk into the next training carrying the head of a fearsome beast. That would shut them up! In his eagerness though, he hadn't realized he was making quite a bit of noise for what should have been a stealth mission...

[Krystal Rose]

Krystal couldn't sleep, she had been tossing and turning all night. Thoughts flooding her mind that she couldn't get to stop, after tossing around for the hundredth time she finally gave in and got up. Going over to her closet she found some sweatpants and a long sleeve shirt, throwing them on she snuck out of the cabin. Krystal figured a walk in the night air would help clear her head and she might be able to get some sleep. She had been walking around camp for about ten minutes, when she spotted something red at the forest line. Her curiosity getting the best of her, she cautiously stalked closer. The closer she got, the more of the red dot became present, and she started to notice a figure attached to the red spot.

As she got closer, she heard the voice of a younger boy. She couldn't make out what he was saying, but she knew he shouldn't be about this late. Walking up on the boy she realizes that it's one of her half brothers, a newer boy that just joined the camp not that long ago. "Hey hun" she says sweetly as she puts her hand out onto his shoulder, crouching down next to him. "What are you doing out here?" she questioned him. "You know you shouldn't be here, specially without an older camper with you. You could get hurt" her comment is sincere, she worries about her younger siblings, and she is honestly happy that she couldn't sleep and found him out here. 

[Axel Gauthier]

"Ack!" Axel lept back, startled by the sudden contact. He'd been so absorbed in finding the perfect weapon that he hadn't heard the older camper coming up behind him. He quickly gathered his bearings though. Jumping around blindly in the armory shack was a good way to get himself impaled. "O-oh!" The boy stammered, a gimmer of recognition crossing his face. "Ey sis! You're up late." He'd seen the girl before around the Nike cabin, hence the honorifics. Of course he'd know his own cabin leader (though not by name). Even if he didn't know them, every child of Nike was "sis" or "bro" to the young kid. Perhaps it was because he'd always longed for a real sibling. His half-brother and stepdad back home had always made it clear that he wasn't really one of them, but his half-siblings here had so far been nothing but welcoming. He wanted to get closer with them - eventually. When he could figure out how to talk to people.

"I... I was..." Well, there was no point in lying. Excuses did not come easily to him. Besides, he liked to consider himself an honest young man. "Well, I was looking for a weapon." He showed her the sword he'd picked out. "In trainin' today they said there's a bunch of monsters out there, just past he barrier. Figure if I can take out a couple of 'em the world gets safer for everyone, right?" That wasn't necessarily a lie either. While he was largely driven by spite, there were grand and noble notions turning in his head as well. "That's our job here, ain't it? Learnin' to fight and killin' the monsters? Might as well be the best at it!"

A slightly mischevious grin broke across his face. If anyone would understand his constant drive to be the best, he figured it'd be his fellow Nike members. As for her warning about the rules... "Well you're an older camper, ain't ya? Wanna come with?"

[Krystal Rose]

Krystal stumbled back a little at the boys reaction, she wasn't meaning to scare him, which is why she had spoken the same time she laid her hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry hun, it wasn't my intention to scare you" she says as she stands up, and smiles sweetly at the boy when he shows her a fairly nice sword that he had picked out. "Do you know how to weld a weapon yet? Especially one of that size?" she questions him. He was a small boy, and even though she has seen some small children weld a weapon that size, it wasn't many. As he explained his intentions, she cocked her head and narrowed her eyes at him. Krystal was good at reading people, and she could tell that what he was saying wasn't exactly the full truth. Granted he wasn't wrong, we are at this camp to learn how to fight monsters, but to protect ourselves. "I see, but if it was solely for that reason, you wouldn't be sneaking around at night" she comments. 

Seeing the smirk come across his face, she realizes the position she has put herself in. Which was validated when the next words to come out of the young boys mouth was to ask her to come with him. Krystal sighed, and looked at the boy cautiously trying to figure out what to say. "You tell me the real reason you are out here, and I will consider joining you, or taking you back to the cabin" she says with a slightly stern voice. 

[Axel Gauthier]

"Of course I do!" He replied a bit defensively, though he did take a second  look at the sword in his hand. It was bulky to be sure. Nothing he couldn't handle though. Perhaps it would qualify as a longsword to a full grown man, but to the little boy it was a hand-and-a-half sword at least. The thought made him chuckle. A bastard sword for a bastard son. Seems fitting. He grabbed a matching sheath from the nearby wall, ignoring the fact that the belt barely fit at it's shortest setting. If his cabin leader didn't believe in him, then she was one more person he'd have to prove wrong.

"Well... but... that's..." She was right of course. There was no need to sneak out at night if he really just wanted to take out a few monsters. The truth was, he needed to do it himself, and he knew full well that the wide awake camp councilors would have tried to stop him. "Well it's not like they'd let me go. And I do want to make this place safer. Really. But also..." He pictured the face of the taunting boy. Even the thought of the incident sparked a flame in his eyes. "They said I was too weak. That I couldn't hack it out there. And that - well, that don't sit right with me, y'know?" He made a broad, sweeping motion toward the forest. "If what they said in trainin' is true then monsters sometimes drop bits and pieces when they die. Like trophies. I come back with one of those and they gotta knock it off with the teasin'. "

He hated to admit it, but the words had really gotten to him. He was used to his accomplishments going unrecognized because of his age. It had never ceased to piss him off. He knew he could beat that older kid in practice if he kept doing all his extra trainings. But they'd just make some excuse. "Beginners luck" or worse "I was just letting you win." This was the only way he could see to prevent that. Monsters didn't let people win. The boy wasn't used to being vulnerable with people, but it wasn't like he had a choice here. He knew full well he couldn't outrun his own cabin's leader. So his only option was to make an earnest plea and hope she'd understand his feelings. "I know it's dangerous, but I'm good with a blade. Honest! And... I can't go back empty-handed. Nothin' will change. I... I just can't!"

[Krystal Rose]

Krystal sighed and smiled brightly at him, even gave a little chuckle at him trying to put a belt to big for himself on. Krystal walked closer to the boy, took the belt off of him, and hung it back up. "Put the sword back, and grab yourself a bow and some arrows" she tells him in a stern voice really wanting him to listen to her. When the boy admitted to what happen, Krystal felt horrible for the poor boy, and she completely understood his feelings. But she still did not want him going that close to a monster right now, specially with a sword he thinks he can weld and is just trying to show off to her. "Look kid, you don't need to show off to me. Your young, and it wasn't right of those other campers to pick fun. I will take you out and track a small monster that you can prove your skills with a bow" she says to him. She knew this was going to make him upset, but she also knew as a cabin leader, and older sister she can't consciously let him just go running out with a big sword and swinging it hoping he gets lucky.

"I know that isn't what you want to hear, but I am trying to compromise with you. If you don't like it, then your other option is to head back to the cabin, and then tomorrow morning we can handle those boys in a different way." Krystal loved to help her younger siblings, and to see her little brother hurt and mad enough to put his life in danger makes her very upset. "Oh, my name is Krystal, what is yours?" she questions him, totally should of introduced herself from the start but she was more preoccupied with what was going on. 

Holding her hand out to the boy "So what do you say?" she says smiling at him.

[Axel Gauthier]

"But... but I..." Axel looked down at the sword in his hand. He really could wield it. He knew he could. But he couldn't think of a way to convince the cabin leader of that, save for bringing it with him into battle. It was clear she wasn't about to let that happen. "I really am better with swords," he insisted, even as he placed it back among the other blades. He made note of its location for the next time his cabin went to combat practice. He'd have to prove himself then. In the meantime, it wasn't like he was a bad shot or anything. Most of his extra practices had been dedicated to bladework, but he'd dedicated a few days here an there to mastering the bow. Perhaps due to his Nike blood he'd found enjoyment in every weapon style he'd tried so far. He took one from the rack and slung it over his shoulder, then reached for a quiver full of arrows.

"We'll do it your way, sis." Not that he had much of a choice. Still, he did admittedly feel much safer with her tagging along. An older, stronger camper would inevitably be more versed in monster-tracking than he was. And if things went awry.. Well, he had his pride alright, but he didn't have a death wish. And siblings standing up for each other, fighting side by side, was exactly the sort of relationship he had long wished for in his prior life.

"Krystal. Cool. I'm Axel. So uh... what kind of umm... small monster should we track down." His tone made it clear that he wasn't too happy with the size of their prey, but he was fully willing to cooperate. 

[Su Mei Lin]

Mei Lin was up writing her weekly letters to her friends and family. The rest of her half siblings were all fast asleep so a little lamp light was not going to wake them up. Each letter was done with fine penmanship and decorative ornaments with a personalized finished for every recipient while she included copies of the letter written in her native language for her mother and grandmother. It was one of the ways to get around her dyslexia and her friends from back home would expect spelling mistakes. A dictionary can be found right on top of a short pile of paper for her use if she was going to practice her writing again. She thought of every word and even read the letters over again as if she is the recipient. It was obvious that English wasn't her first language but she was surprised that some campers helped her out and taught her in Clover's stead. Once she was settled on her pronunciations, any further attempt to sleep had failed. Perhaps she took a nap earlier in the day and had some warm tea after dinner but she felt the energy that was brewing within.

And what better way to unwind with a weapon form? It didn't have to be swift and strong but elegant and graceful - qualities that made her stand out as a competitor. Dressed in a Rilakkuma sweater and matching gray sweatpants, it may be somewhat hard to spot her if she didn't have a light. The young lass made her way to the shed only to hear voices from the inside. One... no. Two campers are already here? Mei Lin was rather surprised. It's rare she'd find presence at this time of the night. Knocking by the entrance, she appeared from the torso up - a cordial smile curling the corners of her lips. "Hey! I'll just pick up a weapon and I'll be out." She wasn't too familiar with the ginger haired boy as opposed to the older Nike child. "Dustin's... friend, right? ... Krystal?" She made a full appearance as she went inside when the name finally came to mind. Shooting a glance over to the boy, she continued. "Apologies for barging in your little conversation. I suppose you guys can't sleep either."

Edited November 4, 2022 by Su Mei Lin

[Axel Gauthier]

"Something like that," Axel replied, glancing over at the cabin leader. Well, this certainly wasn't going as planned. Not only had me been caught, but now he'd been caught by two people. His secret operation was quickly becoming less and less secret. He wondered for a moment what he should say to the new arrival. He didn't recognize her, though that went for pretty much everyone at camp. The girl appeared to be a bit older than him, though not by too much. She had long dark hair and her outfit looked comfy - well-suited for moving about. From it and her comment about a weapon he could pretty easily guess her intentions. "Getting in extra practice, huh?"

That was something the boy could certainly relate to. Ever since arriving at camp, nearly all of his time had been spent on the training grounds. Quite frankly, it was all fascinating. He loved the feeling of a weapon in his hand, and the thought that he might actually make a difference filed him with a sense of pride he'd never known before. When it came to practicing, he was as serious as a man twice his age preparing for war. Though perhaps it was a different kind of seriousness. Noble, childlike notions unjaded by experience, yet every bit as motivating. He couldn't help but wonder if this new person shared his passion. She was, after all, practicing in the middle of the night. "What ya lookin' for? I could help." Axel had spent a good while searching the weapon shack himself, so he had an idea of where various things were kept.

"I'm more of a blade guy myself, but there's javelins and bows n' stuff too." As he said this, he gave Krystal another sideways glance. He still wasn't happy about her dictating his own choice of weapon. He also searched her face for some kind of reaction to the new kid. What would she do? Play it cool? Invite her along? The boy coked his head to the side as if to ask a question, but didn't speak it aloud. Should we tell her?

[Krystal Rose]

Krystal could see the disappointment in Axel's eyes, but she just couldn't let it happen. If he was to get hurt because she let him doing his way, she would feel awful and they would both be in a world of hurt. Smiling sweetly at him "I'm sorry, but if you get hurt, we are both in trouble. Your lucky I am willing to take you out in the first place, instead of taking you back to the cabin" she tells him trying to make him understand. Krystal knew she could get in trouble for this too, for not stopping it even if the boy doesn't get hurt. 

The boy introduced himself and asked about the type of monster we would track, and honestly Krystal really didn't know what kinda monster she wanted to try for him, there are so many that even small are hard to battle. As she thought about it, she looked around for her own weapon of choice. Just as she was about to pick up a weapon, the door opened and in came a little Ares girl, who seem to recognize her thanks to Dustin. Krystal dropped her arm that was reaching for the weapon, smiled at the girl and took a breath "Hi sweetheart, yes I am Dustin friend" she stopped with a sigh at the mention of Dustin out of her own mouth, then continued "Couldn't sleep? Same here, we were just going to practice some, Axel here wanted to practice his aim with a bow. So I told him I'd help him out. Help yourself, we were just headed out" Krystal moved over to the bows grabbing herself one with some arrows, reaching down grabbing a target, to convince the girl that was what they were doing. Looking over at Axel she nodded her head over to the door "You ready Axel?"

Krystal was very hesitant on whether or not we should tell her, she didn't know her that well, and it was obvious that Axel didn't know her either.

[Su Mei Lin]

"You could say that."

Mei Lin knew very well that campers shouldn't be out this late when everyone else is asleep. It was for their own safety but she had been out like this a couple times since her inception. Going to the shed like this wouldn't be her first rodeo. As for those two, she was a bit curious on why they are out here as well. She could assume that they are also getting in the extra practice but she knew very well campers preferred to stick their practices during the day. Video games was also an option but exposing her eyes to such stimuli would take her to a groggy next morning. The boy didn't look that much older but more so younger than her. Was this the same boy who was claimed by Nike? It would probably be rude to ask at the moment when she intruded in their conversation.

She knew Krystal because of her half-brother. The two of them hasn't talked much - just exchanged words here and there. "I'm good with any weapon but I do have a bias with blades." Like many campers, she felt empowered once she gets her hand on a weapon. She believed that any weapon she wields is an extension of herself, helping her to reach several more inches or feet than her arms could. Her master also showed that he could turn certain everyday objects into weapons too but she hasn't gotten near that area of study yet. She could get in some practice with a bow for that long range... but she simply felt more comfortable with a short range at this time of day. "Then could you get me umm..." Her eyes began poring over to the weapons of all shapes and sizes. They all certainly look manageable but there was one that looked like could fit her craving of sorts. She was about to mention its name in her language but she held back knowing they wouldn't know so she pointed at it instead. "That thing over there."

"So you wanted to practice with a bow... during the dark? How can you see that target? I'd stick with a weapon that you align with the most though I applaud you getting out of your comfort zone in such an odd way." The more she thought about it, the more it didn't sit well with her. It was kind of amusing. "If you tell me what really brings you two here, then your secret is safe with me." 

[Axel Gauthier]

"Sure," Axel shrugged, grabbing the polearm from the corner of the shed. He spun it around with a somewhat showy motion, offering the girl the non-pointy end. They were pretty useful weapons - great for keeping an enemy at bay. Though the glaive was originally designed to counter cavalry, it's lighter weight made it more versatile for ground combat than some of the larger polearms. With good aim, that hook meant to unhorse and dismember an enemy horseman could be used to disarm an opponent... or slaughter a monster. When it came down to it, a pointy stick was a pointy stick, and all could be used effectively if you knew how. Yet even though he knew his, Axel couldn't help but crack a lame joke. "What'ya fightin? A centaur?"

"Well, you're right on that one." He said with another longing glance to the longsword. The boy laughed, thrilled for another excuse to talk about his favorite subject. "Huh? There's all sorts of ways to track a target n the dark. The movement, the sounds, sometimes even the smell. I can't imagine they smell all that great -" Crap! There he went, running his mouth again. Letting it slip that they were after a living, breathing target sure made it clear they weren't out there for the standard shooting practice. He gave his cabin leader an apologetic look. "Well, I guess I gave it away, huh? We're gonna track down a monster."

[Krystal Rose]

Krystal stopped in her tracks as Axel started to ramble on, giving us away. She takes a breath, putting the target she grabbed down and gave Axel a very unhappy look. She then looks over at the girl with a sweet smile on her face "Look, I caught him out here, and he made a good argument so I am taking him to find a small monster and then we are headed back to the cabin. Please do not say anything. I don't care if you come with us, but I do not need to be in trouble" she tells the girl with pleading eyes. She maybe the older one and a cabin leader, but she was also agreeing to do something she knows isn't right. At this point krystal wanted to just get this over with. 

"If your coming with get your weapon and lets go" she tells the girl, as she turns toward and Axel and gently gives him a small nudge to get him out the door. "We need to hurry this up, before someone else catches us. If we get caught by one more person we aren't doing it, got it Axel" she says sternly to him, specially with his mouth. 

[Su Mei Lin]

Axel's joke bought upon a chuckle on her lips. Such weapon, she couldn't agree more, are typically used to fight larger beasts. Horses, for example, their legs can be cut off and the blade can take the life of the rider. Or so her master has told her. Going by that logic, it made sense to her but she wasn't going monster hunting as she had intended to perform a form of it was taught by her martial arts discipline. To the outside observer, it may seem like a dance routine but she did not mind the classification. Seeing him give it a spin and offering her the non-pointy end, she was grateful at the way it was given to her. If it was the other way, she could pass it off as an accident. "Chiron wouldn't appreciate that." She quipped as she grabbed her guandao. 

The daughter of Ares gave the ginger-haired boy a coy smile.

She already knew that every camper gets training to work around the night with their five senses. She didn't know exactly what was their true purpose but she had a gut feeling they aren't just up after hours just for target practice. She had no intention of revealing their secret anyway, not being one to tattle. "I'm already in trouble by being here but I've gone out a couple times like this. It's nothing new but a monster hunt does sound enticing... I'm in. We'll just find a monster and kill it. Easy." Though what caught her attention was the argument he had made to her when she caught him in here. What sort of thing could convince her, an older camper, to get herself in trouble for him? She wondered about it but decided to let it go for now.

"Come on. We've got monster to hack."

[Axel Gauthier]

Axel laughed aloud at the girl's response. He hadn't really expected his joke to land, so the jovial reply was a pleasant surprise. Heck, sometimes it seemed people were more likely to take offense than to laugh at his lame attempts at humor. But it seemed she l knew a thing or two about weapons, which made him incredibly happy. What was meant to be a solo mission was turning into... well... the closest thing Axel had had to a social event in quite some time. He might even get some friends out of this whole thing! Maybe after this he could ask her to show him some stances with that polearm...

Krystal's comment about getting caught broke his train of thought. Right. As glad as he was to meet new people, they were technically breaking the rules here. She was right, they should probably get a move on. "S-sorry. I'm not too good at talkin'" He admitted. She seemed upset about his slip of the tongue. Reasonably so. Still, one more person couldn't hurt, right? And she seemed as eager for the fight as he did!

"Hell yeah! Oh, I'm Axel.. uh... guess ya knew that, huh? You?"

[Krystal Rose]

Krystal sighed at the two kids, the exchange was sweet in her eyes. "Alright you two, lets go get us a monster!" she encouraged even though in the back of head she couldn't figure out why she got herself into this. And now....now she has two kids to watch out for and they are her responsibility. As Krystal walked out of the shed, she headed toward the woods with the two younger campers in tow. When they were at the edge just before the berrier, she turned back and looked at the two campers. "Alright you two, listen up. I have just a couple rules, and you both need to follow them please!" she say sternly. Krystal was always so nice and sweet, and asserting herself was not something she did often, only when she knew that she had too and this was one of those times. 

Krystal took a breath and began to voice her rules. "1 we are going after a small monster, 2 only one monster, 3 we will do our best to be quite and track only the on monster and not attract another monster, and 4 this is the most important rule...You stay within sight of me, you do not take off on me" finishing her rules, she smiles at the two and turns back toward the barrier. "Lets go get us a monster!" she says excitedly. 

[Su Mei Lin]

The fact that her after hours training had turned into a monster hunt was quite the development she did not expect earlier but she nevertheless felt thrilled by the prospect. She considered it like a sport and some could call her competitive about it though she decided to exercise more caution when it's dark out. She very much preferred letting loose during the day. Her current attire was not exactly fit for monster hunting but she didn't want to spare a trip back to the Ares Cabin. No monster is going to wait for their opponent to be prepared, she believed. "On the contrary. I think you're doing just fine." As the three of them left the shed, Mei tagged along in their stroll towards the camp's magical barrier that acted as a boundary. Hidden from mortals, hidden from the more dangerous monsters.

"Yes, I did. You just told me." She helped herself to a grin and resumed her cordial tone. "I'm Mei Lin. Nice to meet you, Axel."

If things went awry, Dustin would probably be one of the first ones to know and she would rather train than hear him scolding her. She resolved to follow her made up hunting ground rules but a part of her wanted to seek out a bigger monster. Or a horde of small ones. "Okay, but what sort of creature were you expecting to see out there anyway? It's not like we're going to meet the Minotaur or something."