2- Saved

When Aster woke up, he found himself in some kind of wooden room. Looking around. He could see multiple beds set up in the big tent, people lying on them bandaged up.

It was then he noticed that he was on such a bed and the fact that he couldn't see out of one eye. Panicking for a moment, he reached up to touch his eye before sighing. It seemed that the scratch he had received from the hound had been bandaged. Though whether he would be able to see out of it again was a mystery.

Looking to his right, Aster found a small bathroom. Getting up, he found a set of clothes in his size set out for him. Grabbing them and walking into the bathroom, he took a quick shower before changing.

As to why he took a shower in some unknown place full of unknown people? "It's not every day I get to take a hot shower. Or a shower at all for that matter."

Walking back to the bed he had woken up on, he found his utility belt sitting on the nightstand just to the side. Attaching it back to his waist, Aster started looking through the rest of the pockets.

And just as he sat down, he noticed something was in his pocket. Reaching in and pulling it out, he found Frostbite in pen form. 'Wasn't it a scythe when I passed out?' He asked himself.

'And why am I so calm right now?' Aster could feel the anxiety and fear swirling around in a spot near his heart, but he didn't act on them.

"Well, I'm sure that if whoever brought me here wanted me dead, they wouldn't have wrapped up my wounds." He rationalized, calming the emotions in his core.

"You are correct, young man." A baritone voice spoke from his left, where the door to the infirmary was. Looking over, what he saw was a middle-aged man sitting in a wheelchair.

The man had shoulder-length shaggy brown hair and a slightly unkempt beard. His eyes told of years of well-tested experience and a world of kindness.

"I'm Chiron. It's good to see you awake Mr..." He dragged on, silently asking for his name.

Aster debated telling a fake name but decided that there was no point. "Alba, Aster Alba."

Chiron gave a soft smile upon hearing his name. "Shining white star. That's a meaningful name son."

"Who are you?" Aster asked, tired of beating the bush.

Chiron sighed at his impatience, rolling himself forward to be in front of the youth. "Do you know what was chasing you?" He asked Aster.

The youth nodded his head. "Some kind of wolf."

Chiron gave a weak smile. "Not exactly. Do you believe in the Greek Gods, Aster?"

Aster paused for a moment before shrugging. "I guess. The orphanage used to say they were fake, but I believe that all gods are real."

"Have you noticed that you have some kind of strange ability or skill?" Chiron asked, fishing for information.

Aster shook his head. "No, not really."

"Hmm. What about reading, I'm sure that you have trouble understanding a lot of what's written down." Chiron suggested, and Aster could relate to what he was saying.

"I was diagnosed with dyslexia and ADHD from a young age." The youth told him.

A small smile spread across Chiron's face hearing this, getting to what he wanted. "But there is something that you can read quite easily." He said, pulling out a notecard from his jacket pocket and showing it to Aster.

Looking it over, Aster could tell it was the same note from last night, only now he could tell what was wrong with it. "It's in a different language." He concluded.

Chiron nodded. "Greek, ancient at that." He clarified.

Frowning, Aster shook his head not understanding. "But how can I read that so well? I don't even know Greek."

"You're a demigod," Chiron said, getting to the point.

Aster's thoughts froze for a moment, comprehending what Chiron had just said. "What? A demigod?"

Chiron stayed patient with the young man, nodding his head. Suddenly his figure began to rise out of the wheelchair, fur replacing where his legs were supposed to be.

From that fur, two hooved feet stretched out of the wheelchair, followed by a long body attached to two more. A horse's body. Attached to Chrion's torso.

"Wait. Chiron. Like THAT Chiron?!" Aster came to a sudden realization, remembering the stories his mom used to read to him before bed.

Chiron nodded his head from his higher position. "Yes. I am Chiron, a trainer of demigods. And you, son, are one of those demigods."

Quickly, all the strange happenings throughout his short life clicked into place, making much more sense in the context that he was a demigod.

"A patrol found you passed out just outside of our borders, a pack of hellhounds dead all around you," Chiron explained. "They brought you here to heal, where you have been for the past few days."

Thinking more about his situation, Aster quickly came to terms with it his confusion fading away. Leaving only one question.

"Then who's my mom?" He asked, hopeful that Chiron would know.

But he would be disappointed as the centaur sighed. "I don't know son. Without them claiming you, we can only presume."

Sighing again, he clapped his hands grabbing Aster's withering attention. "In the meantime, why don't I show you around?"

Nodding, Aster stood up and put Frostbite back into his pocket, having just noticed he was still holding it. Glancing at the concealed weapon, Chiron spoke up.

"That's quite the weapon Aster. Where'd you get it?" He asked, moving towards the door.

Aster shrugged. "When I was running I kind of asked for help. The belt appeared in my hands and had Frostbite inside of it." He explained. "Though I never had the chance to check out the other pockets."

"Hmm. Seems like the gods like you then. And I'm sure that they're impressed by the display you put on outside of camp." Chiron chuckled.

Grabbing his leather jacket, which was resting on a hanger near the door, Aster followed Chrion outside into the cold.

"Do you think Mom was watching?" He asked.

Chiron nodded, sure of himself. "I know she was. All gods watch their children throughout their lives." He exained. "I think she may have been the one to ask the other gods for whatever lay within that pouch too."

Aster fell silent, considering his words. "How do I thank them then?" He asked the old mentor, who was walking out of into the middle of a massive clearing.

The camp, as he had called it, was truly massive. The main structure was a long row of pretty sizable cabins, each having its own design. 12 of them in fact.

"At dinner. It's a tradition to give up a piece of your food to them as a thanks. Though many just send it out to their godly parents." Chiron explained.

"Moving on, these cabins are for all the 12 Olympian gods. From Zeus to Ares, they're all here."

That surprised Aster. "But aren't there more than 12 Greek gods?"

Chiron paused for a moment, before returning to his walk. "Yes, but we seldom have children from them."

But Aster pressed on. "And when you do?"

Sighing, Chiron shook his head. "I've suggested creating more cabins for the rest of the gods, but we didn't have half-bloods from other gods at the time so it didn't go through."

Going silent at his explanation, Aster was content to follow Chiron towards the end of the rows of cabins. Stopping at the final one, Chiron spoke up while knocking on the door.

"This is Cabin 11, home to children of Hermès and the yet unclaimed." The centaur explained.

The door opened to show a young man standing in the doorway. He was a few years older than Aster, with choppy blond hair and dark blue eyes.

"Chiron." He nodded at the mentor, then turned to Aster. "He's the new one, huh?"

Chiron nodded at the young man's assumption, waving his hand at him. "Aster meet Luke, counselor of Hermès cabin."

Luke stepped forward and held a hand out, which Aster shook tentatively. "Welcome to Camp Half-blood," Luke told him.

"If you're busy, I can give him a quick tour." The counselor suggested. Chiron nodded, sighing for the thousandth time today.

"That would be nice. I have so much paperwork to do today." Now that he looked closer, those years of experience in the centaur's eyes now seemed to be exhaustion. "I'll leave him in your capable hands."

Nodding his head once again, Chiron turned and clopped his way back towards the infirmary, probably to retrieve the wheelchair that he had neglected to walk with Aster.

"M-hmm." Aster turned his head to see that Luke had cleared his throat, likely to get his attention. "Well, why don't we get started?" He smiled at Aster. "I don't want to be in the cold for too long."