Chapter One
The Senior Centurion of the Fourth Cohort
Amelia "Amy" Roberts absentmindedly made the room snow. Over in the corner, Lily, a daughter of Mars, noticed her staring and shot her a look of contempt. She hastily pulled a jacket over her blue Doctor Who t-shirt. Unfortunately, Amy recognised the shirt.
"Hey!" She said, standing up and walking over to Lily. "That's my shirt you're wearing, you know. Quit stealing my clothes and buy your own in New Rome." She yanked Lily's jacket off and checked the t-shirt tag. Sure enough, it had Amy's initials on it.
Lily sneered, whipping the shirt off and throwing it into Amy's face. "What power does a girl with only a dad have over a girl who's a real demigod?" She pulled another shirt, one of her own, on, and yanked the jacket out of Amy's hand. "But I suppose I have to obey you, since you're the senior centurion." She smirked and pranced out the door.
Amy felt the hatred and anger churning inside of her. It was true-her father was a mortal, and he refused to tell her who her mother was. He had simply told her that she shouldn't worry about it, only that she was a demigod, but was also descended from many of the gods, and a long line of half-bloods. In fact, a few of her ancestors were the hero Perseus, son of Jupiter, and Hercules, the strongest man on earth. But even so, she had no idea who her mother was-no one could think of any Roman god of magic. She put the t-shirt into her drawer, stuffed some denarii into her pocket, clipped her magic keychain flashlight onto her jeans, and went outside, heading out to New Rome.
"Hi!" Her friends, Caleb Potwell and Susan Greenville, hurried up to her, grinning. "Come on, let's go get some coffee at the cafe." They took either of her arms and dragged her away.
Over the coffee, Amy told them what Lily had said. Susan snorted. "What a snappy retort. I honestly do not know how she thinks of them It's so original." They laughed. She shook her head. "Really, though, she doesn't have to rub it in. Anyways, who listens to Lunatic Lily?" Amy shrugged and took a sip, then added more cream.
After the coffee, they headed back outside. Caleb was unusually quiet. "Caleb, what's up?" Amelia asked.
"Huh? Oh, nothing. I just did some research of Greek gods last night."
"And?" Susan urged.
"Well...Amy, you have ADHD and dyslexia, right?"
"Yes…" Amy said slowly.
"I met a Greek demigod over Facebook, and he said that Greek demigods have ADHD and dyslexia. The ADHD helps you in battle, and the dyslexia means that your brain is meant to read Ancient Greek. Oh, and you attract monsters. You have some kind of special scent."
"So...you mean I'm Greek?" Amy asked, afraid of the answer.
Caleb's eyes were dark, his expression serious. "Yes, that's what I mean. More research said that your mother might be Hecate, a minor goddess-the goddess of magic and crossroads."
Amy's heart sank. Was she Greek? Was that why she could never find her mother, why she could never fit in correctly? Suddenly, a piercing alarm screeched. The alarm for intruders. "Quick! Get back to the cohorts!" Amy ran off to the Fourth Cohort, while Caleb and Susan ran towards the First Cohort. She burst into the room, where the rest of her Cohort was getting ready for battle. She put on her armor and helmet, then unclipped her keychain flashlight and pressed the button. It sprang into her sword, which was half Celestial Bronze and half Imperial Gold, and grabbed her shield. She also slapped on her elastic bracelet with the bow and arrow charm on it, then rushed out. "LEGIONARIES! FORM YOUR RANKS!" She shouted, raising her sword. The Fourth Cohort got into position. They started off to the entrance of Camp Jupiter.