CHAPTER ONE: A NOT SO AWESOME BIRTHDAY

My name is Drake Anderson. I live in Chicago with my mom, Jackie Anderson, she works at the Chicago Tribune as a restaurant columnist, but she also makes big metal sculptures as a hobby. I never knew my father, I'm pretty sure he died when I was really young, but my mom tells me that I look just like him, which to me means that my dad was a really big guy.

I am only twelve but I look like I'm fourteen or fifteen because I'm so big. I'm a huge fan of music and I take my IPod with me everywhere especially the Gym. My mom decided to put me into a boxing program about 3 years ago since Chicago can be a dangerous city, and I'm really very good at it, my instructor said he's never seen anyone with so much raw talent for the sport in his life. Being good at boxing is also good outside of the ring as it helps keep the bullies away from me, they see the muscles I got from weight lifting and decide to try their luck elsewhere.

This most recent year has not been a good year for me; I'm failing most of my classes, because I have dyslexia and ADHD, aside from metal shop. Most of my teachers don't like me and I probably won't be asked back to the school next year. Then things got really weird, it was my twelfth birthday, my mom threw me a great party, and I had a few of my friends over. When I opened my presents they were mostly really cool, then my mom got out a small box and gave it to me.

"This was something your father gave to me for you, he said to give it to you when I thought you were old enough." I opened the box and inside there were two matching rings, they were wide silver bands with designs carved into them, they seemed to be Ancient Greek letters, the one had a dragon head on it and the other a lion head.

"Mom these rings are so cool, they must have cost a fortune."

"Actually your father made them himself for you." Mom said. I couldn't believe it, my father made these rings for me, incredible. I tried them on, the dragon ring on my left hand and the lion ring on the right, for some reason they just felt right that way. After the party we went to the arcade at the Chicago Pier.

Here is where the weird part of the day started, I was playing a shooting game with my friend Zach, he's a crippled kid that goes to school with me when suddenly he froze and started to sniff around like he smelled something bad.

"Dude what's the problem, did someone fart or something?" Then he turned around and his eyes started to bug out and he said.

"Drake run, run now", I looked at him like he had lost his mind "why?" then I turned and saw a woman walking toward us, she suddenly seemed to shift in front of me, she pulled a sword out of her coat and she suddenly had a dark green scaly face. Zach pulled me out of the way just as the snake lady slashed through the game we were playing.

Zach Yelled "Ms. Anderson we need to leave RIGHT NOW." My mom turned and saw Zach and me running and reacted instantly, she got in front of us and cleared a path, we left and headed for my moms car.

I turned to my mom and my friend "what the heck is going on? What was that thing the snake lady and where did that sword come from?" my mom ignored me and drove really fast out of the mall parking lot.

Zach was looking out the back window like he expected something to coma after us and said. "No time to explain everything Drake, but ill give you the short version, that was a monster, they are real and it wants to kill you."

"Are you insane? Monsters aren't real." But I didn't feel as certain of that fact as I had a few minutes ago. "How can monsters be real?"

"You know all those Greek Myths about gods and monsters and stuff like that?" He asked.

"Yes." I answered.

"Well they are all real, the Gods, the monsters all of it, and you're what's called a half-blood." I felt like I was in an episode of the twilight zone. I looked at my mom and she didn't argue with any of the things Zach had been saying, then she looked at me.

"Honey your friend Zach is telling you the truth, your...your father is one of the Gods of Olympus." When my mom dropped that on me I just couldn't take it anymore, I needed to get out, I yelled at my mom to stop the car and let me out. My mom stopped and did let me out. I got out and started to heave on the side of the road, when I was finished I looked around and saw that we were on the highway heading east. I turned just as my mom was handing me a bottle of water, I rinsed my mouth out and took a few drinks.

"Where on earth are we going?" Zach looked at me and said simply "camp." "Camp? I thought we were running from a monster?"

"You'll be safe at Camp Half-blood. But it's in Long Island so we're going to have to be very careful and drive fast." I don't know why but I believed Zach when he said that id be safe at this camp. Then Zach did something that almost made me faint, he took off his shoes and I saw that he didn't have feet, instead he had cloven hooves at the end of his legs. I looked from Zach's face to his hooves and he shrugged and said.

"Oh yeah I forgot to mention that I'm a Satyr, were the one's who go out into the world to look for half-bloods." I grabbed one of his shoes and looked inside, it was stuffed with Styrofoam and had a cut out for his hoof.

"This." I started "This is completely insane." But I just couldn't make myself believe it anymore, id gotten too many shocks in the last few hours.

"Honey you need to get back into the car so that we can get going, everything will be explained to you when we get to camp. We should be able to make it by tomorrow night." Between the two of them my mom and Zach got me back into the car and we drove off. After a little while sitting with Zach, and trying not to stare at his fake feet I started to calm down and think about the fact that my entire world had been turned completely upside down, I finally fell asleep.

I didn't wake up until the next evening just in time for my mom to point to the side of the road. "Were here." I looked out the window and saw we were on a country road looking at a strawberry farm.

"And where is here?" I asked.

"Camp." Was all Zach said.

Mom looked at me. "I'm sorry honey I can't come with you, the borders to camp only allow half-bloods through."

"So what happens to you?"

"I have to go back home, don't worry honey you will be fine, the camp will take great care of you. Ill be in touch." Zach and I walked up the road towards a hill where there was a huge pine tree at the top. I saw something shiny in the branches.

"Is that gold in the branches?"

Zach looked at it and just said "oh yeah that's the Golden Fleece, one of the campers retrieved it a few years ago, it protects the borders of camp." I was going to ask what protected the fleece when I noticed something large curled around the tree.

"What is…..th-thaaaa?" I stammered to a stop when the large thing raised its head and I saw that it was a huge lizard.

"Oh yeah that's Peleus, the dragon that guards the fleece. Come on Chiron will explain everything." We walked past the dragon it sniffed at us then decided to go back to its nap with smoke curling out of its nostrils. Then we headed to what Zach called the Big House, which was a large farmhouse with four stories and an attic. We were met before we got there by a man in a motorized wheelchair.

"Ah hello there Zach I see you were successful in your mission." He said.

"Yes Chiron this is Drake Anderson," then Zach turned to me. "Drake this is Chiron our activities director. Chiron I don't think that our regular orientation film is going to work. His mother didn't tell him anything at all."

Chiron looked over at me "I see well then I guess we'll just go ahead and get the biggest shock out of the way." And with that Chiron stood up and I almost fell over, from the waist up Chiron looked like just another guy with his tweed jacket and beard, but from the waist down he was a pure white stallion.

"You're a…a centaur?"

"Very good Mr. Anderson. I see you're up on your Greek Mythology. Yes I am a Centaur, I trust that your young friend showed you his true nature as well?" I nodded to Chiron, "well then why don't we have you meet Mr. D and then I will give you the full tour of camp." Then Chiron turned around and headed towards the Big House, before we got there though Chiron sat back down in his wheel chair and wheeled inside.

End Chapter One.