“straighten your back. bend your knees.”

cain’s voice was commanding as he surveyed the camper in front of him, onyx eyes narrowed. he had only agreed to teach some of the other cabins proper swordplay techniques because he wanted a better challenge during capture the flag.

as the head of nike’s cabin he knew he and his half-siblings were generally feared due to their rather competitive spirits. they thrive on victory and will stop at nothing to achieve their goals, whether it be in battle or any other competition.

cain himself knew few would go up against him. not only was he competitive and relentless in nature, but he possessed many abilities passed down from nike, such as his enhanced athleticism, the ability to sense the potential for victory in situations requiring it, alongside other advantages like increased adrenaline and heightened awareness. it was boring, quite frankly, how everybody revered him for his skills to win but were too frightened to actually compete with him. these days the only thrills from victories he got occurred on quests.

“not like that, have you ever held a sword before?”

he approached your side, readjusting your grip. gods, the aphrodite cabin especially tended to be poor sword wielders. they were too used to using their other advantages and abilities to win or avoid fights altogether.

he ran a hand through his ravenet hair, the wavy strands falling back over his forehead the moment his hand dropped.

when you swung the sword he sighed, noting the lack of force behind the movement.

“you have to wield it like you’re actually willing to use it.”

he pointedly ignored the campers around the edge of the sandy fighting pits, well aware a good chunk of them were only there to watch him, not to actually learn