The Unknown Guardian

| Chapter 13 || Preparations |

Chapter Thirteen

Preparations

*Third Person Point of View*

The next few weeks were quiet. Luckily, thanks to the guardians' and Percy's help, both camps were being trained more efficiently. The classes were dwindling from their overwhelming size now that the new campers were becoming quite skilled at wielding their chosen weapons. Surely, they would stand a fair fight against most monsters they would come across.

The defences on both camps, as well as Olympus, were coming along swimmingly as well. Large walls had been built around the perimeters of both camps. There were even walls that sectioned off different areas of each camp. That way, if they lost one part of their home, the enemy would still have to fight hard in order to overtake the rest. Therefore, they could always fall back if it was entirely necessary.

Percy believed that the changes were a good improvement, but he still couldn't help but feel even more distant from the camp that kept changing more and more from the place he'd once called home. He could hardly even recognise is once it got to the point of no return. He could no longer look over the rolling hills and admire the natural beauty of it from afar.

He still had his friends, though, and they were being very supportive of his choices. He even smiled every time he remembered meeting Annabeth's new family.

***

"Percy! Come on! I have someone I want you to meet!"

Annabeth had been nagging him all day. Finally, around noon, she'd given up trying to talk him into it, and resorted to grabbing his arm and dragging him to wherever she wanted him to go.

"Annabeth! Wait up! I'm coming, I'm coming!"

Once Annabeth ceased her incessant pulling, Percy was able to focus on where he was. The Athena cabin. It looked just as he'd remembered it. There were maps and scrolls everywhere: on the walls, on the tables, on the shelves. Though it had been extended to accommodate more campers, it still looked like the cosy brain-cabin he'd been in before. Wandering around the cabin were the blonds he was expecting. In the back, though, he could see a brunette man with a young boy sitting on what he remembered to be Annabeth's bed.

Percy vaguely recognised the two from the council meeting, and assumed them to be Annabeth's spouse and son.

Annabeth dragged him over to the two. "Percy, I want you to meet my husband, Ryan, and my son, Anthony."

Ryan stood up, finally noticing them. "Hello. It's an honour to meet you in the flesh. The first few years I knew Annabeth, you were all she talked about." Percy shook his hand; Ryan had a firm grip.

"I'm not really in the flesh. More like a ghost from the past," Percy joked.

A light, childish chuckle came from below, and Percy looked down to see the young blond boy, Anthony. He crouched down. "Hey, buddy! I'm Percy. I was friends with your mom back when we were both only a little older than you."

The boy frowned. His expression then became one that Percy recognised with nostalgia. Anthony's thinking face was nearly identical to his mother's!

"That can't be! You're way younger than mom!" he protested.

Percy chuckled as Annabeth flushed red. Her son had mentioned her age.

"No, I assure you it makes sense. You see, I went away fifteen years ago. When I went away, I stopped ageing. Your mom wasn't so lucky. Well... I can't say that. If she'd gone through the same as me, she'd never have you!" Percy ruffled the young boy's hair.