All is fair in love and war (Mason)

The sound of a horn being blown echoed through the countryside towards Camp Half-blood. A single demigod ran through the undergrowth, her gladius in one hand, horn in the other. She glanced over her shoulder seeing the monster still chasing her. They had been pursing her for days, keeping her away from New Rome, forcing the demigod to run for the safety and shelter of another camp. Lizzie's limbs burned, her heart pounded, her chest ached with exhaustion. But Camp Half-blood was so close now, just a bit further. Yet, the monsters were not tired, nor did it seem likely that they would ever be. The cyclopes were gaining however, three of the biggest cyclopes she had ever seen. She blew the horn again, hoping that someone either Roman or Greek would hear her and come help. She couldn't fight them alone, not even if she was fresh. The ground ahead of the demigod exploded suddenly, the impact throwing her onto her back with a cry of pain. Lizzie groaned and rolled to her feet, feel dizzy. One of the cyclopes had just missed her with a stone, but the impact in the ground had been enough to throw her to the ground.

Lizzie started to run, but a cruel hand seized her legs and yanked her painfully to the ground. The impact stunned her, causing the demigod to dropped both her sword and horn. It held her upside down as it lifted her skyward like some sick trophy and roared a bellowing laugh of triumph. Lizzie screamed, desperation giving way to fear.

A few campers ran out of the camp, wearing armor, but not as if they were prepared. They were simply practicing and had heard the horn and screaming.

Jason was one of the campers. At 6'3" and 210 pounds, he stood out pretty well, only towered by one of the Ares kids with him. He saw the demigod in trouble, and drew his sword. "Guys, we need a pl-"

"CHARGE!" a daughter of Ares yelled, and went towards one of the Cyclopes.

Jason shrugged, and sent a freezing spell at the one holding Lizzie. He went up to it, having a bit of a test of strength before kicking it to the ground. It's feet froze to the ground, and Jason stabbed it in the abdomen, causing a burst of golden blood. The other campers dealt with the other two Cyclopes as Jason bent down to one knee, looking at the female.

"Don't worry, I gotcha," Jason said, taking off his helmet and smiling. His hazel-brown eyes studied her. "You look pretty beaten up, beyond what I can do with magic. Let's get you to the infirmary."

One moment, Lizzie had been staring death in the face, an end far from home, far from Camp Jupiter and then... The next Greek Demigods, seemingly from out of nowhere. She did not know who caused the Cyclopes to let go of her, or how she ended up on the ground, but she found herself staring up at a kind and very handsome face. She managed to grin wearily up at him, Lizzie wanted to say she was thankful, yet her exhausted body chose this moment instead to black out and slip into the bliss of unconsciousness.

Jason noticed her go unconscious and picked her, delivering her to the infirmary immediately. He told an Apollo kid what happened and he tended to her while Jason went off to tell Chiron or a camp director about the incidence.

Later that day, around 8 PM, Jason decided to check on the girl from earlier before curfew. He was now wearing a blue polo shirt and cargo shorts, which fit tightly against his large structure. He made his way into the infirmary, finding Liz awake. "Hi," he greeted. "How are you?"

Lizzie sat up in a comfortable bed, looking a little pale, but a lot better than she had been earlier. The young red head still looked exhausted though, heavy bags of exhaustion hung under her blue eyes. She flashed Jason a nervous smile when he entered and came towards her. Instantly, Lizzie felt her heart beat quicken. She always got tongue tied around guys, girls were easy to understand... Boys on the other hand. "Hi." She managed to reply, her voice quiet. "I am okay thank you... I... I was told that you were the one who saved me from the cyclopes." She felt her cheeks flush with colour. "Thank you for saving my life... I... I... I... I didn't think I was going to make it, I knew there was your camp nearby... I..." She trailed off, realising that she was rambling to him.

Jason laughed a little. "It's okay, really, no need to thank me. I wasn't going to let you just die out there. Have I seen you before? I recognize you from somewhere, but I haven't seen you around much." He sat on the edge of her bed. "I'm Jason Sungo, son of Hecate."

She felt her cheeks flush with colour as they grew hot. Lizzie looked down at the sheets as her hands played with them. If it was possible to blush even more, Lizzie would of then. "I... I'm from Camp Jupiter." Lizzie managed to explain, her voice quiet. She looked up at him. "I... I am Lizzie Maxwell, but my friends call me Liz. Daughter of Stimula."

"Oh, nice, you're Roman. I guess that makes sense in the context of this story," Jason said with a nod. "Nice to meet you, Liz. I'm glad you're okay. If you need anything, just let me know, okay?" he said with a smile. "I'm here to help. I don't have much to do anyway but hang out at the beach and play volleyball. Are you hungry?"

She nodded in agreement with him. Lizzie was cautious in speaking, fearing that she might say something stupid or stammer any more than she already had done. "Ni... Nice to meet you too." It was rare for Liz to spend much time talking to boys, even those in the Legion. Usually she hid behind her female friends, too shy and too nervous to speak much or indeed at all. Sadly, none of her friends were here now. Besides, she did not know anyone at Camp Half-blood, she did not want Jason to go away. He seemed to breath confidence, self belief, no doubt. "T... That's very kind of you to do that. Yes... Please." Her stomach let out an embarrassing little growl of hunger. Her muscles ached and screamed at her in protest, but she started to move, hanging her legs over the edge of the bed. "C.. Can... Can you stand by just in case I lose my balance? I... I've spent the last few days running... It's... It's a long story."

"Yeah, of course." Jason helped her up. "It might be better if I just bring the food to you though," he said. He studied the girl. He happened to think she was attractive, and seemed nice so far. "What type of food do you want?" he asked, grabbing some nectar off of the nearby nightstand. "How far have you ran? Hopefully not all the way from the Roman camp."

She felt herself grow warm at his help up. "No. I... I would like to move around a bit." Liz stammered hastily. "Er.... I don't really have a preference." Liz replied. "Whatever you would like to eat." She said before shaking her head at his question. "I... I was coming back home from seeing my mother." The red head said the word mother with some real venom as if it were an insult. Thing had gone anything but well, needless to say Lizzie would not be seeing her for a long time to come again, if at all.

"Let's just go to the Mess Hall and see what we can find. Here, use these crutches." Jason quickly grabbed them, helping her. "Wow, I can tell you do not like your mother. Don't feel bad, I'm not a huge fan of my dad's fiance either."

She felt embarrassed when he commented correctly about Lizzie and her relationship with her mother. Liz nodded slowly. "Y... You could kinda say that." She meant to try and patch things up, but no. Her mother still happened to be furious about how Lizzie ruined her career plans... So much for that option. She took the crutches gratefully. "Thanks... I... Sorry to hear about that." Once Lizzie would of found it impossible to go to discussing relatively normal matters, especially so close to her having died. Now.. Now it tended to be the norm for her, besides having come so close to dying, she wanted to talk about some normal things, do some normal stuff... It comes from having spent the last few days on the run for her life. Not for the first time, Lizzie wished she happened to have the life of a normal girl... Demigod problems were a little bit too much at times.

Jason started strolling to the mess hall with Liz. He waved at a few people as he passed them by. "It's okay, she's just a bit superficial. I can't stand superficial people. So many times in the past have superficiality and I banged heads, so to speak. It's difficult to explain." He shrugged, laughing it off. "People just tend to think I'm a jerk because of how I look and well...who my father is and all..."

She walked with him, wincing and gritting her teeth against the pain caused by moving. Pain was good though, it told her she happened to be alive. Liz listened quietly too him, nodding thoughtfully. Lizzie cast him a look,he was well... Attractive, any girl or guy if he happened to be interested in them would appreciate him. "Y.. Your not a jerk." Liz protested. "I... If... If it helps... I... Normally for me... I... Well talking to guys is a... Challenge."

"Thanks, I appreciate that," Jason said with a smile. "Well, being shy is alright, being offish is bad though. You don't seem offish though, you seem polite and thankful and if I'm to be honest with you, I think you're...well...hot," he said and laughed a little. He put a hand on her to try and keep her balanced. "Not to hit on you, but just to put it out there that you have no reason to be afraid of guys."

Lizzie's cheeks turned as bright a red as her hair. At first she did not know what to say or how to react to it. She said nothing, unable to find her voice or words. After a noticeable pause, Liz managed to stammer out. "Thank you... I'm not afraid... Just, some... You... Some of you are difficult to talk to."

"Some of us. Some is the key word. Not all," Jason said with a smile. He made his way into the mess hall, holding the door for her. He followed closely behind her, making sure she didn't. "Does some mac and cheese sound alright?"

"Normally it's guys I find attractive." Lizzie said without thinking. "I mean. Not that I don't find you attractive. I... Er.. Did it just get warm in here." Her cheeks reddened. "Some mac and cheese would be great." At least if she were eating she would not be embarrassing herself.

Jason laughed. He got her a plate of mac and cheese. "How old are you, Liz? How long have you been in the Roman camp?"

She stared at the food, pushing it around with a fork. "A year." Liz said quietly as the young demigod picked at her food. "I'm fifteen." Lizzie answered almost as an after thought. The red headed girl glanced over her shoulders, her eyes flickering around the camp. Liz felt uncomfortable, feeling eyes rest on her. She imagined that she happened to be the topic of particularly interesting news. The demigod hated with a passion, being the centre of attention.

Jason nodded. "Okay, cool. Isn't there a Legion or something in Camp Jupiter? Something like that, I know," he said, trying to make conversation with the quiet girl. He watched her pick at her food.

She nodded a few times, swallowing her mouthful. "That's correct, the Legion is at Camp Jupiter." Lizzie let a small smile cross her face. "I... I guess you could say that I am proof of that." The redhead took another bite of her food. "So... Er... Wh... What's it like at Camp Half-blood?" She inquired quietly, shuffling awkwardly in her chair, feeling herself to be the centre of attention.

"Well, it's like a summer camp, except constant training and the whole powers thing. Our's is really lowkey compared to the Romans."

She was silent for a few heartbeats considering what he told her. "The training is necessary however." The demigod told him, after all without the training they received at either camp, they would of been far easier prey for the monsters. Camp Half-blood possessed a different air to that of Camp Jupiter, Liz believed this was because Camp Jupiter had what could be interpreted as a military camp. Lizzie ate a few more mouthfuls of her food, her appetite gone in the face of many curious eyes. Nervously, she ran a hand through her long ginger hair, wishing that it was tied in her usual braided ponytail.

"How long have you been at Camp J... Half-blood?" The redhead demigod corrected herself hastily. Liz shuffled awkwardly on her chair, feeling much better than she did earlier, a bit more well rested, less in pain, more relaxed. Her spirits felt revived, a few hours where she was not being chased by monsters.