ME SAY G00D-BYE, S0RT 0F
Camp went late that summer. It lasted two more weeks, right up to the start of a new school year, and I have to admit they were the best two weeks of my life.
Of course, Annabeth would kill me if I said anything different, but there was a lot of other great stuff going on too. Grover had taken over the satyr seekers and was sending them out across the world to find unclaimed half-bloods. So far, the gods had kept their promise. New demigods were popping up all over the placeโnot just in America, but in a lot of other countries as well.
โWe can hardly keep up,โ Grover admitted one afternoon as we were taking a break at the canoe lake. โWeโre going to need a bigger travel budget, and I could use a hundred more satyrs.โ
โYeah, but the satyrs youย haveย are working super hard,โ I said. โI think theyโre scared of you.โ
Grover blushed. โThatโs silly. Iโm not scary.โ
โYouโre a lord of the Wild, dude. The chosen one of Pan. A member of the Council ofโโ
โStop it!โ Grover protested. โYouโre as bad as Juniper. I think she wants me to run for president next.โ
He chewed on a tin can as we stared across the pond at the line of new cabins under construction. The U-shape would soon be a complete rectangle, and the demigods had really taken to the new task with gusto.
Nico had some undead builders working on the Hades cabin. Even though he was still the only kid in it, it was going to look pretty cool: solid obsidian walls with a skull over the door and torches that burned with green fire twenty-four hours a day. Next to that were the cabins of Iris, Nemesis, Hecate, and several others I didnโt recognize. They kept adding
new ones to the blueprints every day. It was going so well, Annabeth and Chiron were talking about adding an entirely new wing of cabins just so they could have enough room.
The Hermes cabin was a lot less crowded now, because most of the unclaimed kids had received signs from their godly parents. It happened almost every night, and every night more demigods straggled over the property line with the satyr guides, usually with some nasty monsters pursuing them, but almost all of them made it through.
โItโs going to be a lot different next summer,โ I said. โChironโs expecting weโll have twice as many campers.โ
โYeah,โ Grover agreed, โbut itโll be the same old place.โ He sighed contentedly.
I watched as Tyson led a group of Cyclops builders. They were hoisting huge stones in place for the Hecate cabin, and I knew it was a delicate job. Each stone was engraved with magical writing, and if they dropped one, it would either explode or turn everyone within half a mile into a tree. I figured nobody but Grover would like that.
โIโll be traveling a lot,โ Grover warned, โbetween protecting nature and finding half-bloods. I may not see you as much.โ
โWonโt change anything,โ I said. โYouโre still my best friend.โ He grinned. โExcept for Annabeth.โ
โThatโs different.โ
โYeah,โ he agreed. โIt sure is.โ
In the late afternoon, I was taking one last walk along the beach when a familiar voice said, โGood day for fishing.โ
My dad, Poseidon, was standing knee-deep in the surf, wearing his typical Bermuda shorts, beat-up cap, and a real subtle pink-and-green Tommy Bahama shirt. He had a deep-sea fishing rod in his hands, and when he cast it the line went way outโlike halfway across Long Island Sound.
โHey, Dad,โ I said. โWhat brings you here?โ
He winked. โNever really got to talk in private on Olympus. I wanted to thank you.โ
โThank me? You came to the rescue.โ
โYes, and I got my palace destroyed in the process, but you knowโ palaces can be rebuilt. Iโve gotten so many thank-you cards from the other gods. Even Ares wrote one, though I think Hera forced him to. Itโs rather gratifying. So, thank you. I suppose even the gods can learn new tricks.โ
The Sound began to boil. At the end of my dadโs line, a huge green sea serpent erupted from the water. It thrashed and fought, but Poseidon just sighed. Holding his fishing pole with one hand, he whipped out his knife and cut the line. The monster sank below the surface.
โNot eating size,โ he complained. โI have to release the little ones or the game wardens will be all over me.โ
โLittle ones?โ
He grinned. โYouโre doing well with those new cabins, by the way. I suppose this means I can claim all those other sons and daughters of mine and send you some siblings next summer.โ
โHa-ha.โ
Poseidon reeled in his empty line.
I shifted my feet. โUm, youย wereย kidding, right?โ
Poseidon gave me one of his inside-joke winks, and I still didnโt know whether he was serious or not. โIโll see you soon, Percy. And remember, know which fish are big enough to land, eh?โ
With that he dissolved in the sea breeze, leaving a fishing pole lying in the sand.
That evening was the last night of campโthe bead ceremony. The Hephaestus cabin had designed the bead this year. It showed the Empire State Building, and etched in tiny Greek letters, spiraling around the image, were the names of all the heroes who had died defending Olympus. There were too many names, but I was proud to wear the bead. I put it on my camp necklaceโfour beads now. I felt like an old-timer. I thought about the first campfire Iโd ever attended, back when I was twelve, and how Iโd felt so at home. That at least hadnโt changed.
โNever forget this summer!โ Chiron told us. He had healed remarkably well, but he still trotted in front of the fire with a slight limp. โWe have discovered bravery and friendship and courage this summer. We have upheld the honor of the camp.โ
He smiled at me, and everybody cheered. As I looked at the fire, I saw a little girl in a brown dress tending the flames. She winked at me with red glowing eyes. No one else seemed to notice her, but I realized maybe she preferred it that way.
โAnd now,โ Chiron said, โearly to bed! Remember, you must vacate your cabins by noon tomorrow unless youโve made arrangements to stay the year with us. The cleaning harpies will eat any stragglers, and Iโd hate to end the summer on a sour note!โ
The next morning, Annabeth and I stood at the top of Half-Blood Hill. We watched the buses and vans pull away, taking most of the campers back to the real world. A few old-timers would be staying behind, and a few of the newcomers, but I was heading back to Goode High School for my sophomore yearโthe first time in my life Iโd ever done two years at the same school.
โGood-bye,โ Rachel said to us as she shouldered her bag. She looked pretty nervous, but she was keeping a promise to her father and attending Clarion Academy in New Hampshire. It would be next summer before we got our Oracle back.
โYouโll do great.โ Annabeth hugged her. Funny, she seemed to get along fine with Rachel these days.
Rachel bit her lip. โI hope youโre right. Iโm a little worried. What if somebody asks whatโs on the next math test and I start spouting a prophecy in the middle of geometry class?ย The Pythagorean theorem shall be problem twoโฆ. Gods, that would be embarrassing.โ
Annabeth laughed, and to my relief, it made Rachel smile.
โWell,โ she said, โyou two be good to each other.โ Go figure, but she looked atย meย like I was some kind of troublemaker. Before I could protest, Rachel wished us well and ran down the hill to catch her ride.
Annabeth, thank goodness, would be staying in New York. Sheโd gotten permission from her parents to attend a boarding school in the city so she could be close to Olympus and oversee the rebuilding efforts.
โAnd close to me?โ I asked.
โWell, someoneโs got a big sense of his own importance.โ But she laced her fingers through mine. I remembered what sheโd told me in New
York, about building something permanent, and I thoughtโjust maybeโ we were off to a good start.
The guard dragon Peleus curled contentedly around the pine tree underneath the Golden Fleece and began to snore, blowing steam with every breath.
โYouโve been thinking about Rachelโs prophecy?โ I asked Annabeth. She frowned. โHow did you know?โ
โBecause I know you.โ
She bumped me with her shoulder. โOkay, so I have.ย Seven half- bloods shall answer the call. I wonder who theyโll be. Weโre going to have so many new faces next summer.โ
โYep,โ I agreed. โAnd all that stuff about the world falling in storm or fire.โ
She pursed her lips. โAnd foes at the Doors of Death. I donโt know, Percy, but I donโt like it. I thoughtโฆwell, maybe weโd get someย peaceย for a change.โ
โWouldnโt be Camp Half-Blood if it was peaceful,โ I said.
โI guess youโre rightโฆOr maybe the prophecy wonโt happen for years.โ
โCould be a problem for another generation of demigods,โ I agreed. โThen we can kick back and enjoy.โ
She nodded, though she still seemed uneasy. I didnโt blame her, but it was hard to feel too upset on a nice day, with her next to me, knowing that I wasnโt really saying good-bye. We had lots of time.
โRace you to the road?โ I said.
โYou are so going to lose.โ She took off down Half-Blood Hill and I sprinted after her.
For once, I didnโt look back.