THE FLEECE MORKS ITS MAGIC TOO MELL
That afternoon was one of the happiest Iโd ever spent at camp, which maybe goes to show, you never know when your world is about to be rocked to pieces.
Grover announced that heโd be able to spend the rest of the summer with us before resuming his quest for Pan. His bosses at the Council of Cloven Elders were so impressed that he hadnโt gotten himself killed and had cleared the way for future searchers, that they granted him a two- month furlough and a new set of reed pipes. The only bad news: Grover insisted on playing those pipes all afternoon long, and his musical skills hadnโt improved much. He played โYMCA,โ and the strawberry plants started going crazy, wrapping around our feet like they were trying to strangle us. I guess I couldnโt blame them.
Grover told me he could dissolve the empathy link between us, now that we were face to face, but I told him Iโd just assume keep it if that was okay with him. He put down his reeds pipes and stared at me. โBut, if I get in trouble again, youโll be in danger, Percy! You could die!โ
โIf you get in trouble again, I want to know about it. And Iโll come help you again, G-man. I wouldnโt have it any other way.โ
In the end he agreed not to break the link. He went back to playing โYMCAโ for the strawberry plants. I didnโt need an empathy link with the
plants to know how they felt about it.
Later on during archery class, Chiron pulled me aside and told me heโd fixed my problems with Meriwether Prep. The school no longer blamed me for destroying their gymnasium. The police were no longer looking for me.
โHow did you manage that?โ I asked.
Chironโs eyes twinkled. โI merely suggested that the mortals had seen something different on that dayโa furnace explosion that was not your fault.โ
โYou just said that and they bought it?โ
โI manipulated the Mist. Some day, when youโre ready, Iโll show how itโs done.โ
โYou mean, I can go back to Meriwether next year?โ
Chiron raised his eyebrows. โOh, no, theyโve still expelled you. Your headmaster, Mr. Bonsai, said you hadโhow did he put it?โun-groovy karma that disrupted the schoolโs educational aura. But youโre not in any legal trouble, which was a relief to your mother. Oh, and speaking of your motherโฆโ
He unclipped his cell phone from his quiver and handed it to me. โItโs high time you called her.โ
The worst part was the beginningโthe โPercy-Jacksonwhat-were-you- thinking-do-you-have-any-idea-howworried-I-was-sneaking-off-to-camp- without-permissiongoing-on-dangerous-quests-and-scaring-me-half-to- deathโ part.
But finally she paused to catch her breath. โOh, Iโm just glad youโre safe!โ
Thatโs the great thing about my mom. Sheโs no good at staying angry.
She tries, but it just isnโt in her nature.
โIโm sorry, Mom,โ I told her. โI wonโt scare you again.โ
โDonโt promise me that, Percy. You know very well it will only get worse.โ She tried to sound casual about it, but I could tell she was pretty shaken up.
I wanted to say something to make her feel better, but I knew she was right. Being a half-blood, I would always be doing things that scared her. And as I got older, the dangers would just get greater.
โI could come home for a while,โ I offered.
โNo, no. Stay at camp. Train. Do what you need to do. But youย will
come home for the next school year?โ
โYeah, of course. Uh, if thereโs any school that will take me.โ โOh, weโll find something, dear,โ my mother sighed. โSome place
where they donโt know us yet.โ
As for Tyson, the campers treated him like a hero. I wouldโve been happy to have him as my cabin mate forever, but that evening, as we were sitting on a sand dune overlooking the Long Island Sound, he made an announcement that completely took me by surprise.
โDream came from Daddy last night,โ he said. โHe wants me to visit.โ
I wondered if he was kidding, but Tyson really didnโt know how to kid. โPoseidon sent you a dream message?โ
Tyson nodded. โWants me to go underwater for the rest of the summer.
Learn to work at Cyclopesโ forges. He called it an interโan internโโ โAn internship?โ
โYes.โ
I let that sink in. Iโll admit, I felt a little jealous. Poseidon had never invitedย meย underwater. But then I thought, Tyson wasย going? Just like that?
โWhen would you leave?โ I asked. โNow.โ
โNow. Likeโฆnowย now?โ โNow.โ
I stared out at the waves in the Long Island Sound. The water was glistening red in the sunset.
โIโm happy for you, big guy,โ I managed. โSeriously.โ
โHard to leave my new brother,โ he said with a tremble in his voice. โBut I want to make things. Weapons for the camp. You will need them.โ
Unfortunately, I knew he was right. The Fleece hadnโt solved all the campโs problems. Luke was still out there, gathering an army aboard theย Princess Andromeda. Kronos was still re-forming in his golden coffin.
Eventually, we would have to fight them.
โYouโll make the best weapons ever,โ I told Tyson. I held up my watch proudly. โI bet theyโll tell good time, too.โ
Tyson sniffled. โBrothers help each other.โ โYouโre my brother,โ I said. โNo doubt about it.โ
He patted me on the back so hard he almost knocked me down the sand dune. Then he wiped a tear from his cheek and stood to go. โUse the
shield well.โ
โI will, big guy.โ
โSave your life some day.โ The way he said it, so matter-of-fact, I wondered if that Cyclops eye of his could see into the future.
He headed down to the beach and whistled. Rainbow, the hippocampus, burst out of the waves. I watched the two of them ride off together into the realm of Poseidon.
Once they were gone, I looked down at my new wristwatch. I pressed the button and the shield spiraled out to full size. Hammered into the bronze were pictures in Ancient Greek style, scenes from our adventures this summer. There was Annabeth slaying a Laistrygonian dodgeball player, me fighting the bronze bulls on Half-Blood Hill, Tyson riding Rainbow toward theย Princess Andromeda, the CSSย Birminghamย blasting its cannons at Charybdis. I ran my hand across a picture of Tyson, battling the Hydra as he held aloft a box of Monster Donuts.
I couldnโt help feeling sad. I knew Tyson would have an awesome time under the ocean. But Iโd miss everything about himโhis fascination with horses, the way he could fix chariots or crumple metal with his bare hands, or tie bad guys into knots. Iโd even miss him snoring like an earthquake in the next bunk all night.
โHey, Percy.โ I turned.
Annabeth and Grover were standing at the top of the sand dune. I guess maybe I had some sand in my eyes, because I was blinking a lot.
โTysonโฆโ I told them. โHe had toโฆโ
โWe know,โ Annabeth said softly. โChiron told us.โ
โCyclopes forges.โ Grover shuddered. โI hear the cafeteria food there is terrible! Like, no enchiladasย at all.โ
Annabeth held out her hand. โCome on, Seaweed Brain. Time for dinner.โ
We walked back toward the dining pavilion together, just the three of us, like old times.
A storm raged that night, but it parted around Camp Half-Blood as storms usually did. Lightning flashed against the horizon, waves pounded the shore, but not a drop fell in our valley. We were protected again, thanks to the Fleece, sealed inside our magical borders.
Still, my dreams were restless. I heard Kronos taunting me from the depths of Tartarus:ย Polyphemus sits blindly in his cave, young hero, believing he has won a great victory. Are you any less deluded?ย The titanโs cold laughter filled the darkness.
Then my dream changed. I was following Tyson to the bottom of the sea, into the court of Poseidon. It was a radiant hall filled with blue light, the floor cobbled with pearls. And there, on a throne of coral, sat my father, dressed like a simple fisherman in khaki shorts and a sun-bleached T-shirt. I looked up into his tan weathered face, his deep green eyes, and he spoke two words:ย Brace yourself.
I woke with a start.
There was a banging on the door. Grover flew inside without waiting for permission. โPercy!โ he stammered. โAnnabethโฆon the hillโฆsheโฆโ
The look in his eyes told me something was terribly wrong. Annabeth had been on guard duty that night, protecting the Fleece. If something had happenedโ
I ripped off the covers, my blood like ice water in my veins. I threw on some clothes while Grover tried to make a complete sentence, but he was too stunned, too out of breath. โSheโs lying thereโฆjust lying thereโฆโ
I ran outside and raced across the central yard, Grover right behind me.
Dawn was just breaking, but the whole camp seemed to be stirring. Word was spreading. Something huge had happened. A few campers were already making their way toward the hill, satyrs and nymphs and heroes in a weird mix of armor and pajamas.
I heard the clop of horse hooves, and Chiron galloped up behind us, looking grim.
โIs it true?โ he asked Grover.
Grover could only nod, his expression dazed.
I tried to ask what was going on, but Chiron grabbed me by the arm and effortlessly lifted me onto his back. Together we thundered up Half- Blood Hill, where a small crowd had started to gather.
I expected to see the Fleece missing from the pine tree, but it was still there, glittering in the first light of dawn. The storm had broken and the sky was bloodred.
โCurse the titan lord,โ Chiron said. โHeโs tricked us again, given himself another chance to control the prophecy.โ
โWhat do you mean?โ I asked.
โThe Fleece,โ he said. โThe Fleece did its work too well.โ
We galloped forward, everyone moving out of our way. There at the base of the tree, a girl was lying unconscious. Another girl in Greek armor was kneeling next to her.
Blood roared in my ears. I couldnโt think straight. Annabeth had been attacked? But why was the Fleece still there?
The tree itself looked perfectly fine, whole and healthy, suffused with the essence of the Golden Fleece.
โIt healed the tree,โ Chiron said, his voice ragged. โAnd poison was not the only thing it purged.โ
Then I realized Annabeth wasnโt the one lying on the ground. She was the one in armor, kneeling next to the unconscious girl. When Annabeth saw us, she ran to Chiron. โItโฆsheโฆjust suddenly thereโฆโ
Her eyes were streaming with tears, but I still didnโt understand. I was too freaked out to make sense of it all. I leaped off Chironโs back and ran toward the unconscious girl. Chiron said: โPercy, wait!โ
I knelt by her side. She had short black hair and freckles across her nose. She was built like a long-distance runner, lithe and strong, and she wore clothes that were somewhere between punk and Gothโa black T- shirt, black tattered jeans, and a leather jacket with buttons from a bunch of bands Iโd never heard of.
She wasnโt a camper. I didnโt recognize her from any of the cabins.
And yet I had the strangest feeling Iโd seen her before.โฆ
โItโs true,โ Grover said, panting from his run up the hill. โI canโt believeโฆโ
Nobody else came close to the girl.
I put my hand on her forehead. Her skin was cold, but my fingertips tingled as if they were burning.
โShe needs nectar and ambrosia,โ I said. She was clearly a half-blood, whether she was a camper or not. I could sense that just from one touch. I didnโt understand why everyone was acting so scared.
I took her by the shoulders and lifted her into sitting position, resting her head on my shoulder.
โCome on!โ I yelled to the others. โWhatโs wrong with you people?
Letโs get her to the Big House.โ
No one moved, not even Chiron. They were all too stunned.
Then the girl took a shaky breath. She coughed and opened her eyes. Her irises were startlingly blueโelectric blue.
The girl stared at me in bewilderment, shivering and wild-eyed. โWho
โโ
โIโm Percy,โ I said. โYouโre safe now.โ โStrangest dreamโฆโ
โItโs okay.โ
โDying.โ
โNo,โ I assured her. โYouโre okay. Whatโs your name?โ Thatโs when I knew. Even before she said it.
The girlโs blue eyes stared into mine, and I understood what the
Golden Fleece quest had been about. The poisoning of the tree. Everything. Kronos had done it to bring another chess piece into playโย another chance to control the prophecy.
Even Chiron, Annabeth, and Grover, who shouldโve been celebrating this moment, were too shocked, thinking about what it might mean for the future. And I was holding someone who was destined to be my best friend, or possibly my worst enemy.
โI am Thalia,โ the girl said. โDaughter of Zeus.โ