The Olympians

Camp Half-Blood

The boy, whoever he is, keeps a pace so quick I can barely keep up. We come to a stop in the middle of the woods, surrounded by nothing but trees. He stands and waits expectantly like coming to a stop in the middle of nowhere should elicit some big reaction.

"I don't get it." I frown.

"Look closer."

I scowl at his vagueness. How can I look closer if I don't even know where to look? Unless it's invisible. As soon as the thought passes, my view of the forest is different. It's as if I've stepped into another world, one made of magic.

"Welcome to Camp Half-Blood." the boy grins at my awestruck countenance. "My name is Percy Jackson."

I'm still not entirely convinced that this is real but dazed, I offer my hand to him. "Elise Hui."

He grips my hand, his skin callused and warm. "Pleasure to meet you Elise. You look like you could use a shower."

A shaky giggle escapes my lips, full of nervousness and disbelief. "I would very much like a shower."

He tentatively stretches his hand out and at first I think he's reaching for mine but just before our flesh can touch he quickly grabs my sleeve instead. He walks slowly, as if anticipating my reluctance to move. But then he pulls me past, past the tree where a golden blanket hangs, a sinuous dragon like creature circling it, and I've stepped inside this strange world.

It's hard not to be awed by everything I see, simply because everything in this camp is incredible. The architecture is distinctly Greek. Smooth white columns line almost every building, stretching to impossibly high heights. We pass a perfectly constructed pavilion, an amphitheater, and an arena, making me feel less like I'm in Long Island, more like I'm living in the time of an ancient civilization.

"What is this place?" I gasp.

"Camp Half-Blood."

Several people mill about, all teenagers and all human. Some of them do double takes when they see me, like they know I don't belong. I want to shrink into the shadows, fade into the ground. Anything to get away from their stares. I thought I would be overjoyed the day I became visible once again. The hope that it would ever be a possibility dwindled as the years passed and I survived alone. Now that that day had come, I shied away. The feeling of human eyes watching me, not intent on killing me, was so strange I could hardly stomach my unease.

"Where are we going?" I ask, suddenly feeling impossibly young.

When he turns to look at me, the flinty look has left his eyes and he gazes at me with a look of mischievous delight. "We're going to see someone. My mentor, I guess you could call him."

"Will he answer my questions?"

Percy Jackson frowns. "I can answer your questions."

"Let me rephrase. Can he answer my questions well?"

A scowl settles back on his face and he gives my sleeve a hard tug. "We'll see."

And then he's leading me into one of the buildings. Big and sky-blue, vinyl siding with a deck stretching around, it vaguely resembles a suburban house. However, I doubt many suburban houses have what seem to be finger bone relics upstairs.

"Chiron!" Percy yells. "We have a code... unclaimed demigod!"

I don't understand half the words he's just said. "Where are we? And what's a Chiron?"

"You mean who. And we're in the Big House. Administrative office of Camp Half-Blood."

At that precise moment, a man walks out. Or, I should say, trots out. Because while he has the torso of a human being, his bottom half is a horse. My mouth falls open. I can't say I'm surprised to see something other than human in this place, but I didn't expect it to be a middle-aged horse. A dim memory flickers in my mind. Not horse, centaur, I think.