Born To Die

A goat takes us from westport to camp

A few nights later, after everything with Luke, I was still trying to wrap my head around what had happened between us. The weight of that kiss still lingered in the back of my mind, making everything else feel distant, unreal. We hadn't talked about it since, and I wasn't sure if that was a good thing or if it was just making the tension between us worse.

We were camping out near a small clearing, the fire crackling softly in the night air, when we heard footsteps. At first, I thought it might be another monster, and my hand instinctively went to my necklace, ready to turn it into a sword. Luke was already on his feet, scanning the darkness, Thalia beside him, tense and ready to fight. Annabeth looked nervous, her small frame shifting closer to Thalia for protection.

The footsteps grew louder, and then, from out of the trees, a figure stumbled forward—a boy, around our age, with wild brown hair and a strange, almost nervous energy to him. He was wearing what looked like a bright orange t-shirt and had something in his hands that looked like... reed pipes?

"Whoa, whoa, easy! I'm not here to fight!" the boy called out, holding his hands up in surrender, his eyes wide.

Luke stepped forward, sword drawn, his voice hard. "Who are you?"

The boy swallowed, shifting nervously on his feet. "My name's Grover. Grover Underwood. I've been looking for you guys for a while now."

Thalia raised an eyebrow, crossing her arms. "Looking for us? Why? We're not exactly the 'easy to find' type."

Grover shifted awkwardly, then looked at all of us, one by one. His gaze lingered on Annabeth the longest, something softening in his expression. "You're all demigods, right? I... I've been assigned to protect you."

"Assigned?" I asked, stepping forward, still cautious but curious. "By who?"

Grover sighed in relief, realizing we weren't about to attack him, and finally lowered his arms. "I'm a satyr. My job is to find demigods like you and get you to safety. There's a camp—a place where you can train, be safe from monsters."

I glanced at Luke, who still hadn't put his sword down, his jaw clenched. Thalia looked skeptical too, and Annabeth just stared at Grover like she was trying to figure him out.

"A camp?" I repeated. "For demigods?"

Grover nodded eagerly. "Camp Half-Blood. It's in Long Island. Chiron sent me to find you four after I heard about the monsters chasing you." He glanced at the remnants of our campfire, then back at us. "You guys have been through a lot, haven't you?"

Thalia snorted. "Understatement of the century, goat-boy."

"Satyr," Grover corrected, sounding slightly offended, though he didn't press it.

Luke finally lowered his sword, though his expression stayed guarded. "Why should we trust you?"

Grover looked a little desperate now, shifting nervously from foot to foot. "I know it's a lot to take in, but I swear, I'm telling the truth. I'm here to help. I've been tracking you guys for days. You've all got godly blood running through your veins, and that means monsters are gonna keep coming after you unless you get to safety."

I could tell Luke didn't fully believe him, and to be honest, I wasn't sure I did either. We'd been running for so long, trusting no one but ourselves. But something in Grover's eyes, the way he seemed genuinely concerned, made me pause. He didn't seem like a threat. And the idea of a place where we didn't have to keep running, where we could actually be safe, was tempting.

Annabeth, who had been quiet this whole time, finally stepped forward. "What about my family? Can they come too?"

Grover gave her a sad smile, shaking his head. "I'm sorry, Annabeth, but mortals can't come to camp. It's just for demigods."