#warbraind

[madefate]

❛ think you can handle it? ❜ for JASON, from ANNIE! / @warbraind

Does he, actually ? Debatable. Jason has no doubts in his training as a legionnaire; he has the callouses and scars and battles and endless late nights as a testament to what Camp Jupiter had trained in all of its soldiers. He'd be a fool to diminish his own skill that much. And he's also had recent, and vast, experience fighting outside of formation. On his own, even when it feels like he's missing a limb.

But New Greece is strikingly different from everything his muscles have memorized. Clashing with Percy taught him that much: reasoned tactics and practiced formations can easily fail against the chaos and improvisation that seems to be the style at Camp Halfblood. He's learning it piece by piece, but he's no expert.

Besides that, Annabeth is like Reyna: smart, quick thinking, relentless. A Greek warrior with a Roman's tactical mind, which undoubtedly makes her far more imposing to spar against than Percy. Or, really, anyone else at Camp Halfblood.

Jason only grins, though, spine straight and gladiolus in hand. A son of Jupiter and legionnaire of Lupa is not going to show a glimmer of trepidation. And for that matter ? Neither will Jason Grace, as is.

❝ Of course, ❞ he replies mildly, expression caught between neutrally pleasant and determined. ❝ I'm not going to turn down a challenge. ❞

[bitethroats]

ANNABETH ( @warbraind ) // starter call

ᯓ☆ wisdom  never  favored  her.  it  was  always  war  which  found  its  way  to  lavender’s  side,  be  it  in  spells  that  wrapped  flames  ‘round  monsters  like  shawls  or  in  nails  that  clawed  marks  into  the  faces  of  the  forever  unforgiven.  ATHENA,  she  thinks,  would  sooner  turn  her  into  a  gorgon  than  she  would  grant  lavender  any  great  boon  or  gift  of  presence;  ARES,  though,  perhaps  he  would  see  matters  differently.  perhaps  violence  summons  violence.  

it  is  two  in  the  afternoon,  and  violence  has  summoned  wisdom.  

she  does  not  KNOW  annabeth  chase.  there  is  no  great  depth  shared  between  them,  no  stellar  bond,  no  deep  history  enriched  by  shared  trauma.  there  is  only  the  gnarled  branches  of  greek  mythos  tethering  the  two  together  in  any  kind  of  familiarity  and,  even  then,  it  is  only  the  awareness  one  leaf  has  for  another.  

she  sits  on  the  grand  steps  of  the  new  york  public  library,  beanie  pulled  tight  and  a  collection  of  books  stashed  away  in  the  side  of  her  messenger  bag.  evening  is  settling  over  the  city  and,  sooner  rather  than  later,  NIGHT  will  greet  them  proper.  with  only  a  few  precious  hours  left  to  plunder  through  the  library,  she  can  only  HOPE  that  wisdom  will  actually  show  up.

the  project  before  her  is  a  simple  one:  MYSTICAL  ARCHITECTURE.  specifically,  of  course,  lavender  wants  to  know  PILLARS.  buildings.  ruins.  places  of  worship  that  are  no  longer  standing  as  anything  more  than  SKELETONS  of  themselves.  the  more  she  can  get  from  ruins,  from  places  that  no  longer  are,  there  more  she  can  pry  INSPIRATION  from  its  murky  depths.

and  maybe  find  out  about  the  whole…  TOME  and  HORNS  side  of  the  equation,  but  MOSTLY  the  inspiration  angle.  

she  taps  the  heel  of  her  boot  against  the  stairs,  tips  her  head  back,  and  sighs.  

❝  the  one  time  i  reach  out  to  a  nerd  for  help…  ❞

[seabraind]

🌊    ³⠀(⠀…⠀)    ⠀    [    @warbraind.    ]    ⠀    ❝    i’m not sure this is the right fit for you. .   ❞ / open.

A DISGRUNTLED LOOK is flashed her way as his head whips to stare annabeth down. knee deep in pegasi shit is not how he expected to spend his sunday, but after one long fight with a certain hermes brother, he's found himself on stable duty. normally, he doesn't mind.

today, though? he minds. just a bit.

"this is your fault," he hisses, and yes, he's WELL AWARE that it isn't, and that they both know it, but in his defense! he WAS fighting earlier in her honor! she COULD say thank you! "are you gonna help me or just stand there and tell me i look bad in size HORSE POOP."

[pinetreesfate]

🌩️  ⁰¹⠀(⠀…⠀)    ⠀    [    @warbraind.    ]    ⠀    ❝i thought i told you i had this under control.     ❞ / open.

ISN’T  IT  FUNNY  WHEN  the  people  who’s  shoes  you  helped  tie  start  to  become  their  own  individuals?  yeah,  no,  thalia  didn’t  think  so,  either.  they  have  to  stop  their  own  attitude  from  seeping  through  words,  in  response  —  something  that  feels  like  a  feat,  considering  how  often  she  is  quick  to  snap  at  people  who  question  them.  but  then  again,  they  know  how  annabeth  can  get,  and  how  much  they  HATE  when  she’s  mad  at  them.  

stealing  a  breath,  thalia  turns  around  to  glance  back  at  the  other,  from  where  they’re  scanning  the  field  that  the  two  were  standing  in,  left  to  defend  their  flag.  well,  annabeth  was  left.  thalia  was  ..  well!  okay!  MAYBE  ANNABETH  WAS  RIGHT!

maybe  she  just  wanted  to  check  on  her  favorite  girl!  can  you  blame  her?  a  guilty  smile  works  its  way  onto  their  lips  as  they  shrug,  guilty  as  charged,  shield  and  staff  dropping  uselessly  at  their  sides.  “i  know  you  do,”  they  admit,  smiling  dissipating  as  lip  makes  it  way  between  teeth,  chewing  at  the  skin  —  a  nervous  tic  they  had.  “but  can’t  i  just  sit  with  you?  i  won’t  step  in.  i’ll  just  ..  be  here.  like  a  statue,  or  something.”  like  a  tree.  but  she  doesn’t  say  that.  too  soon?

[swordforgd]

🪖    ⁵⠀(⠀…⠀)    ⠀    [    @warbraind.    ]    ⠀    ❝you wanna tell me what happened here?    ❞ / open.

“NAH,”  GRITTED  TEETH  FORCE  THE  WORDS  out  between  them,  clenched  so  tight  that  one  could  practically  hear  the  squeak  of  enamel  scratching  against  one  another.  one  large  palm  lifts  to  neck,  and  as  the  large  man  rolls  his  neck,  his  hand  moves  to  steady  shoulder,  the  sheer  size  of  him  before  the  young  girl  almost  comical.  even  not  at  full  height,  he  stands  as  though  a  giant,  glowering  at  her  with  the  similarity  of  a  fire  blazing  in  his  eyes.  ares  was  NOT  looking  forward  to  facing  the  wrath  of  THE  architect  of  olympus,  and  yet,  it  was  inevitable,  with  how  he  had,  seemingly,  single  -  handedly  destroyed  a  portion  of  the  temple  she  had  built  most  recently.  

well,  in  his  defense,  he  hadn’t  TRULY  broken  it.  

he  usually  trained  over  here,  before  anything  stood  erect  in  his  way,  and  SHE  JUST  HAAAAD  to  go  and  put  something  over  there!  really,  he  should  be  the  one  yelling  at  her.  “s’not  my  fault  ya’  went  and  put  somethin’  where  it  ain’t  belong,  lil’  girl.”  lips  curl  into  a  frown,  gaze  flitting  to  her,  back  to  where  the  collapsed  side  of  building  now  sits,  his  face  impassive  and  unaffected.  “clean  it  up.”  bold,  for  him  to  demand  to  her,  and  yet,  what  would  she  do?  make  the  demand  BACK?

oh,  he’d  LOVE  to  see  her  try.