I'm Zaidia. Do you remember me? Well anyway, I hope you do. It's been like what, EIGHT MONTHS?! Yeah. Well, we all had a good time at camp. I still haven't gone back to camp yet... but, well frankly, after what happened this morning, I'm starting to wonder if I'll EVER go to camp.
I was sitting on the steps of my house. Today... just maybe today I'll be able to go back to camp. See all my friends, swim in the lake... Oh boy I felt like screaming. So darn excited.
"Come on Zaidi, swimming." My mom said from somewhere in the house. The pools had just opened, so there's another reason for me to be excited... hours and hours to spend underwater!
I got up and piled into the car. I had my flippers with me, which is all the I needed to swim now, considering I could breath underwater and open my eyes in the water.
We finally got the pool and I just jumped in.It's an absolutely MASSIVE pool with a deep end that goes to 12ft, a diving board, hot tub, AND a snack bar. I felt at home in the pool more than my actual home or (believe it or not) Camp Half-Blood. I began to swim around in the water, just happy.
Then, the unexpected happened.
When I was in the back corner of the pool, a faint image (kinda like a hologram) was suddenly in my face.
"What the heck?!" I tried to scream. Only bubbles appeared.
"Zaidia Black?" The image said clearly. I suddenly realized the image was Chiron.
"Chiron! How--? Oh well, when am I coming back to camp?" More bubbles.
"What? It's not safe for you to come to camp now. Too many--" His voice died off, along with the image. Then It flickered back.
"--you're being sent to your aunts house, it's to dangerous for you in Indiana. Your aunt has been contacted and will pick you up within an thirty minutes."
I allowed myself to flout to the top of the pool to look around. Everything was normal here, just a few people playing catch in the water, and a few doing laps. Why would Indiana (of all places) be dangerous? I shook my head and sunk back down the bottom of the pool in a pout, remembering the other thing he said. I don't get to go to camp yet.
"This sucks..." I thought. I slowing began to think of other things I could complain an about about, until something long and scaly tickled my leg. I quickly scanned the area. Nothing. I went up to the top of the water, looked around and went back into the water. Something didn't seem right.
I turn around to see three very long, very scary, snake like creatures swimming towards me. Terrifeid, I took of swimming as fast as I could towards the ladder. They were gaining on me. I felt my flippers being eaten away. Chuck by chuck by chuck.
I reached the ladder and climbed out. When I looked back in the pool, I saw there were at least ten of the snake like creatures with short stubby legs and very sharp thorn like things sticking out of there backs. And nobody else in the pool had seemed to notice them.
Monsters. Sea Monsters.
And they were slowly figuring there way out of the pool.
First thought: Oh my gods.
Second thought: HOW THE HECK DID THEY GET IN A POOL IN INDIANA?!
Third thought: I have no sort of weapon, shield, or armor.
Not good.
I took off in a run towards the pool office/changing rooms There had to be some sort of weapon like thing in the office. A letter opener, maybe an axe or something. Where this sudden boost if bravery came from, i do not know. The life guards all around me were blowing there whistles at me, but I kept on running. In the office I didn't see anything. I mean, I dought a thumbtack could kill monster. Well, you never know until you try...
After some more searching, I did find a letter opener. I was never good a close combat, but there's a first for everything, right?
I was about to run out of the office when the window shattered. The sea monsters all at once coming threw the window, hiss wildly.
This is the part of the sort where I freak out.
In some sort of mad rage I jumped forward and stabbed the rearing sea monster. It was gone in a puff of black smoke.
Within thirty seconds, I was covered in sweat, my blood and monster blood. There were no more sea monsters.
shaking, I stepped into the girls changing room and quickly turned the shower nob. The warm water felt good on my shoulders, washing away all the grime. I realized that none of the life guards had even bother to come after me. The mist. Thank gods.
But... Now what?
I turned around to see my Aunt Danisa right behind me.
"Girl, you have some explaining to do," She said tapping her foot in a puddle of blood/water. "Why is there blood everywhere?"
That's what, I guess.
6/22/12
I appear out of nowhere
Hi there. My name is Maeve. I usually live in upstate New York. Unfortunately that changed when the gorgons came after me. I didn't know what gorgons were until one came right up to my face and its rank breath decided to make me gag. Here's the story...
So it was a normal day at Prime Valley Middle School. I was hanging out with my friend Saige {who, by the way is the only other person on this planet who seems to understand me} under our tree of awesomeness at lunch. All the cool kids {meaning everyone but me and Saige} were in their usual huddles.
Saige and I spoke about Greek mythology and our struggles with ADHD, because they are the two things we have in common. Saige asked me if I'd ever seen a gorgon.
"Um... No? What's a gorgon?" I asked.
"A gorgon is a type of monster thing from Ancient times," she said calmly.
"Well then I obviously have never seen one," I smiled.
"You're about to," she said.
"I don't want to see your stupid myth-" I began, but Saige leapt to her feet and drew a sword from her skirt pocket.
"Whoa, Saige, you know you're NOT meant to bring weapons to school. That's just wrong," I blustered.
Suddenly a snake-haired lady came out from the playing field. She ran up to me faster than I could comprehend and I smelt her stale breath, causing me to gaga ferociously.
"I got her!" Saige screamed, slicing the gorgons head off. The gorgon crumbled to dust before me.
"What just happened?" I coughed. I looked around and noticed that no one had looked to see what was going on. "And why on earth has no one else noticed?"
Saige sighed and said "I'll explain later. We have to get out of here!"
6/8/12
My first day isn't necessarily the best
I woke up wrapped in a simple fleece blanket. I don't remember much of the experience, giving I had only regained most of my consciousness. I was outside, on a porch, with a plate on my lap. On the plate was a single... lemon square?
"I see you're awake." I heard a girl's voice behind me. A girl about 17 appeared next to me. She had blonde hair and stormy gray eyes. "I'm Annabeth." She introduced herself.
I didn't answer. I still felt drowsy. I just simply looked at her.
"Not the talkative type?" She implied.
"Annabeth," said a familiar voice behind me. I realized the voice belonged to the horse guy, who's name I believed was Chiron. That's when the memories came flooding back. The arrows, Dodds' evil mutation. It wasn't very nice. "Just leave Saffron alone."
"Urruugghhmmmmphhh?" I mumbled.
Annabeth sighed, picked up the lemon-square, and put it in my hand.
"Eat it." She commanded. I was expecting it to taste, like, well, a lemon square, but it turned out to taste like blueberry muffins. Annabeth then left.
"Do you feel strong enough to walk?" The horse guy appeared next to me, but in wheelchair form.
I nodded my head weakly, and then shook it. There was no way I was going to walk anytime soon.
"Then you should rest." He suggested gently.
I fell into a heavy sleep several minutes later.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Saffron? Saffron? Wake up." I felt hands shaking my shoulders. I opened my eyes to see Annabeth's face. Instead of me in a rocking chair, I was in a bed.
"I'm taking you on a tour!" She said happily.
I sat up and looked at her. "Where?" I asked.
"Well, Camp Half-Blood, of course. Come on."
I slowly crawled out of bed and steadied my feet. I followed Annabeth down the stairs to meet Chiron in the living room.
"So I heard you're taking Saffron on a tour?" Chiron asked Annabeth. She nodded. "I think that that's too soon. You've forgotten that she doesn't know yet."
Know what?!
Annabeth blushed and slapped her palm to her forehead. "Oh, yeah, forgot about that."
I felt like a third wheel as I stood there awkwardly next to her.
I felt so confused. I needed some answers.
"Where am I?" I asked simply and patiently. My grogginess had faded away.
"You are at Camp Half-Blood." Chiron answered. So this was how we were going to communicate.
"What was that thing that I killed?"
"A fury. One of Hades' minions." Hades. I had heard that name before. In school, at history class. We were learning about Greek mythology.
"Is this a dream?" I asked.
"No. This is all real, Saffron. Now, here's where you might get confused, or start to think I'm lying. I assure you, I would never lie to you." Chiron said this as if he knew me before the evil demon probation officer incident. "All those things that you've learned about Greek Mythology is all real." He paused, either to let it sink in or just for the dramatic effect. "Here at Camp Half-Blood, you'll train to live on your own. This is a safe refuge for demigods."
"So what's a half-god or demi-blood or whatever and why am I here?" I asked. He wasn't answering directly, which made a knot form in my stomach.
"Well, here's where it gets confusing." Chiron said uneasily. "You're mother or father is a..... Greek God."
Another pause. I couldn't confirm nor deny what Chiron said. I didn't know who my parents were, I lived in an orphanage until they kicked me out when I was only 10. I learned to live on my own and try to survive on the streets of New York. Luckily, I stumbled upon an old friend from the orphanage a year ago, so I at least had a roof over my head. To cut it short, I hadn't had an easy life. I was 12 now and... you know the rest.
"I never knew my parents." I said quietly. "I'm not sure if you're just playing a joke on me, or if I'm just going insane, or just..." I didn't consider the third choice. Were these people telling the truth? Annabeth seemed oretty nice, but what about the horse dude?
"If you need more proof," Chiron said. He sounded almost desperate. "Just say so. Do you need more time to think about it?" He asked. It's a good thing that I catch on easily.
"No. But can you start showing me the strings of the camp?" I asked, taking a deep breath. This was a lot to take in. "I mean, this is going to be, like, my home for the rest of summer break." I had just started the break, only three days in.
Chiron nodded and began to explain.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"So this is the Hermes' cabin, where you'll be staying until you're claimed." Annabeth gestured toward a wooden cabin with a caduceus. Chiron already explained the camp terms to me. Iris messages were like Skype video calls, golden drachmas were currency, and if you were claimed, that means your godly parent is, well, claiming you as their own child. "Good luck. You're gonna need it..."
I walked into the building, instantly engulfed into a cabin of torture.
"NO!!!!!!" Someone screamed. "THAT'S MINE!!!!!!!!" And that was only a fraction of the noise.
The noise was deafening, and it was extremely crowded. And I mean, like, worse than the orphanage. It stank like dirty feet and.... hot dogs?
"EVERYBODY SHUT UP!" I heard a very authoritative voice interrupt the insanity that was the Hermes cabin. "WE HAVE A NEW ADDITION!" There was a long train of groans coming from the campers. I stood there awkwardly as I was shot dirty looks from all around. "BE RESPECTFUL!" The voice belonged to a 17-year-old boy who was stepping out of the crowd. He had dirty blonde hair and a mischievous twinkle in his pale blue eyes. Another boy, looking exactly like him, followed.
He held out his hand. "I'm Travis, the counselor of the Hermes cabin. And you must be Saffron."
"And I'm Connor. "The other boy said. "The.... other counselor."
"Yes. Nice to meet you Travis." I shook his hand. "And Connor." I shook his hand,
"I saved a spot for you." Travis led me over to a bunk bed in the back. "And sto-- bought you some toiletries." He handed me a plastic baggie filled with a toothbrush, toothpaste, and a bottle of water. "Chiron should have have your stuff here soon. Just be careful..." He lowered his voice. "Hermes is the god of thieves." He chuckled and started to walk away.
"Hey." I stopped him. "What time is it?"
"2:30 in the afternoon." I climbed up the ladder to my bed and sat down. The screaming had started up long before I was finished talking to Travis. This was going to be a long day.
"Annabeth," said a familiar voice behind me. I realized the voice belonged to the horse guy, who's name I believed was Chiron. That's when the memories came flooding back. The arrows, Dodds' evil mutation. It wasn't very nice. "Just leave Saffron alone."
"Urruugghhmmmmphhh?" I mumbled.
Annabeth sighed, picked up the lemon-square, and put it in my hand.
"Eat it." She commanded. I was expecting it to taste, like, well, a lemon square, but it turned out to taste like blueberry muffins. Annabeth then left.
"Do you feel strong enough to walk?" The horse guy appeared next to me, but in wheelchair form.
I nodded my head weakly, and then shook it. There was no way I was going to walk anytime soon.
"Then you should rest." He suggested gently.
I fell into a heavy sleep several minutes later.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Saffron? Saffron? Wake up." I felt hands shaking my shoulders. I opened my eyes to see Annabeth's face. Instead of me in a rocking chair, I was in a bed.
"I'm taking you on a tour!" She said happily.
I sat up and looked at her. "Where?" I asked.
"Well, Camp Half-Blood, of course. Come on."
I slowly crawled out of bed and steadied my feet. I followed Annabeth down the stairs to meet Chiron in the living room.
"So I heard you're taking Saffron on a tour?" Chiron asked Annabeth. She nodded. "I think that that's too soon. You've forgotten that she doesn't know yet."
Know what?!
Annabeth blushed and slapped her palm to her forehead. "Oh, yeah, forgot about that."
I felt like a third wheel as I stood there awkwardly next to her.
I felt so confused. I needed some answers.
"Where am I?" I asked simply and patiently. My grogginess had faded away.
"You are at Camp Half-Blood." Chiron answered. So this was how we were going to communicate.
"What was that thing that I killed?"
"A fury. One of Hades' minions." Hades. I had heard that name before. In school, at history class. We were learning about Greek mythology.
"Is this a dream?" I asked.
"No. This is all real, Saffron. Now, here's where you might get confused, or start to think I'm lying. I assure you, I would never lie to you." Chiron said this as if he knew me before the evil demon probation officer incident. "All those things that you've learned about Greek Mythology is all real." He paused, either to let it sink in or just for the dramatic effect. "Here at Camp Half-Blood, you'll train to live on your own. This is a safe refuge for demigods."
"So what's a half-god or demi-blood or whatever and why am I here?" I asked. He wasn't answering directly, which made a knot form in my stomach.
"Well, here's where it gets confusing." Chiron said uneasily. "You're mother or father is a..... Greek God."
Another pause. I couldn't confirm nor deny what Chiron said. I didn't know who my parents were, I lived in an orphanage until they kicked me out when I was only 10. I learned to live on my own and try to survive on the streets of New York. Luckily, I stumbled upon an old friend from the orphanage a year ago, so I at least had a roof over my head. To cut it short, I hadn't had an easy life. I was 12 now and... you know the rest.
"I never knew my parents." I said quietly. "I'm not sure if you're just playing a joke on me, or if I'm just going insane, or just..." I didn't consider the third choice. Were these people telling the truth? Annabeth seemed oretty nice, but what about the horse dude?
"If you need more proof," Chiron said. He sounded almost desperate. "Just say so. Do you need more time to think about it?" He asked. It's a good thing that I catch on easily.
"No. But can you start showing me the strings of the camp?" I asked, taking a deep breath. This was a lot to take in. "I mean, this is going to be, like, my home for the rest of summer break." I had just started the break, only three days in.
Chiron nodded and began to explain.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"So this is the Hermes' cabin, where you'll be staying until you're claimed." Annabeth gestured toward a wooden cabin with a caduceus. Chiron already explained the camp terms to me. Iris messages were like Skype video calls, golden drachmas were currency, and if you were claimed, that means your godly parent is, well, claiming you as their own child. "Good luck. You're gonna need it..."
I walked into the building, instantly engulfed into a cabin of torture.
"NO!!!!!!" Someone screamed. "THAT'S MINE!!!!!!!!" And that was only a fraction of the noise.
The noise was deafening, and it was extremely crowded. And I mean, like, worse than the orphanage. It stank like dirty feet and.... hot dogs?
"EVERYBODY SHUT UP!" I heard a very authoritative voice interrupt the insanity that was the Hermes cabin. "WE HAVE A NEW ADDITION!" There was a long train of groans coming from the campers. I stood there awkwardly as I was shot dirty looks from all around. "BE RESPECTFUL!" The voice belonged to a 17-year-old boy who was stepping out of the crowd. He had dirty blonde hair and a mischievous twinkle in his pale blue eyes. Another boy, looking exactly like him, followed.
He held out his hand. "I'm Travis, the counselor of the Hermes cabin. And you must be Saffron."
"And I'm Connor. "The other boy said. "The.... other counselor."
"Yes. Nice to meet you Travis." I shook his hand. "And Connor." I shook his hand,
"I saved a spot for you." Travis led me over to a bunk bed in the back. "And sto-- bought you some toiletries." He handed me a plastic baggie filled with a toothbrush, toothpaste, and a bottle of water. "Chiron should have have your stuff here soon. Just be careful..." He lowered his voice. "Hermes is the god of thieves." He chuckled and started to walk away.
"Hey." I stopped him. "What time is it?"
"2:30 in the afternoon." I climbed up the ladder to my bed and sat down. The screaming had started up long before I was finished talking to Travis. This was going to be a long day.
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