Andromeda POV
The next morning there was a lot of excitement at breakfast, which YN and Lazuli weren't present for. Apparently around three in the morning an Aethiopian Drakon had been spotted at the borders of camp. I was so exhausted I slept right through the noise. The magical boundaries had kept the monster out, but it prowled the hills, looking for weak spots in our defenses, and it didn't seem anxious to go away until Lee Fletcher from Apollo's cabin led a couple of his siblings in pursuit. After a few dozen arrows lodged in the chinks of the Drakon's armor, it got the message and withdrew.
Lee: It's still out there. YN and Lazuli are tracking it down. Twenty arrows in its hide, and we just made it mad. The thing was thirty feet long and bright green. It's eyes...
He shuddered. Chiron patted him on the shoulder.
Chiron: You did well, Lee. Everyone stay alert, but stay calm. This has happened before.
Quintus: Aye. And it will happen again. More and more frequently.
I looked down, worried. YN and Lazuli were the strongest demigods... well, ever. They were probably on par with Hercules. And YN is really good looking... Andromeda slapped herself in the face a few times, trying to rid herself of those thoughts. The campers murmured among themselves. Everyone knew the rumors. Luke and his army of monsters were planning an invasion of the camp. Most of us expected it to happen this summer, but no one knew how or when. It didn't help that our attendance was down. We only had about eighty campers. Three years ago, when I'd started, there had been more than a hundred. Some had died. Some had joined Luke. Some had just disappeared.
Quintus: This is a good reason for new war games. We'll see how you all do with that tonight.
Chiron: Yes... well, enough announcements. Let us bless this meal and eat. To the gods!
He raised his goblet. We all raised our glasses and repeated the blessing.
YN POV
Lazuli and I strolled into camp, Lazuli carrying a Drakon tooth. We walked into the dining pavilion, and saw something interesting. Annabeth, sitting at the Poseidon table with Percy and Andromeda. At Camp Half-Blood, this was a big no no. She knew as well as I did that campers weren't allowed to switch tables. Satyrs were different. They weren't really demigods. But the half-bloods had to sit with their cabins. I wasn't even sure what the punishment was for switching tables. I'd never seen it happen. If Mr. D had been here, he probably would've strangled Annabeth with magical grapevines or something, but Mr. D wasn't here. Chiron had already left the pavilion. Quintus looked over and raised an eyebrow, but he didn't say anything. So while Lazuli went to sit at our table, I sat down next to Andromeda.
YN: Are we making camp history? I've never seen someone switch tables.
Annabeth: Great timing. Grover is in trouble. There's only one way we can figure to help him. It's the Labyrinth. That's what Clarisse and I have been investigating
Andromeda: You mean the maze where they kept the Minotaur, back in the old days?
Annabeth: Exactly.
Percy: So... it's not under the king's palace in Crete anymore. The Labyrinth is under some building in America.
Annabeth rolled her eyes.
Annabeth: Under a building? The Labyrinth is huge. It wouldn't fit under a single city, much less a single building.
YOU ARE READING
The Automatons (Percy Jackson)
AdventureYN and Lazuli Vomi. The twin children of Hephaestus, who were born ill. They'd have died if their father didn't take them in and make some... improvements.
