Fire boy and water girl

Fishy relatives

  The roof of the temple was a big open deck that had been set up as a command center.

  A mosaic on the floor showed an exact map of the palace grounds and the surrounding ocean, but the mosaic moved.

   Colored stone tiles representing different armies and sea monsters shifted around as the forces changed position.

  Buildings that collapsed in real life also collapsed in the picture.

   Standing around the mosaic, grimly studying the battle, was a strange assortment of warriors, but none of them looked like the man that appeared in my apartment last August.

   I searched for a big guy with a good tan and a black beard, wearing Bermuda shorts and a Hawaiian shirt.

   There was nobody like that.

   One guy was a merman with two fishtails instead of one. His skin was green, his armor studded with pearls. His black hair was tied in a ponytail, and he looked young.

   Standing next to him was an old man with a flowing white beard and gray hair. His battle armor seemed heavy on him.

   He had green eyes and smile wrinkles around his eyes, but he wasn't smiling now. He was studying the map and leaning on a large metal staff.

   To his right stood a chick in green armor with long black hair and strange little horns like crab claws.

   And there was a dolphin—just a regular dolphin, but it was staring at the map intently. I guess dolphins were smarter by Poseidon.

   "Delphin," the old man said. "Send Palaemon and his legion of sharks to the western front. We have to neutralize those leviathans."

   The dolphin spoke in a chattering voice, but I could understand it: Yes, lord!

   It sped away.

  Okay someone has to bite "Dad?"

   The old man looked up.

   "Hello, Kids."

"What—what happened to you?" Percy asked  surprised as Tyson nudged him. He was shaking his head so hard I was afraid it would fall off, but Poseidon didn't look offended.

   "It's all right, Tyson," he said. "Percy, excuse my appearance. The war has been hard on me."

   "But you're immortal," I said quietly. "You can look...any way you want."

   "I reflect the state of my realm," he said. "And right now that state is quite grim. I should introduce you two—I'm afraid you just missed my lieutenant Delphin, God of the Dolphins. This is my, er, wife, Amphitrite. My dear—"

  The lady in green armor stared at us coldly, then crossed her arms and said, "Excuse me, my lord. I am needed in the battle."She swam away.

   I was pretty awkward, dad had an a affair on her with mom. Amphitrite probably didn't like that much.

   Poseidon cleared his throat. "Yes, well...and this is my son Triton. Er, my other son."

  "Your son and heir," the green dude corrected. His double fishtails swished back and forth.

  He smiled at us, but there was no friendliness in his eyes. "Hello, Perseus and Adelaide Jackson. Come to help at last?"

   He acted like we were late or lazy.

  I never backed out from someone hurting my pride

   "Tell me what to do," I said.

   Triton smiled like it was a cute suggestion, as if I was some defenseless chick who couldn't be taken seriously.