There was noise everywhere, all around me like a prison from which I could not break free. I was used to the noise of the screeching city but that didn't keep me from wanting to claw my ears out. I would receive no silence from the city that never sleeps.
"Yo lady watch where your going, idiot," A man yelled at me as he pushed around me. I brought my attention back to the present, leaving my silent fantasies to dwell in the back of my mind as I focused my attention on walking through the herd of workers funneling into Starbucks. I walked briskly past the bustling coffee-house. I was just stepping into the school building when the bell rang. Great my first day of high school and I was late. I grumbled walking to the front office. I walk up to an old lady with curly brown hair and big round glasses.
"Name," she asked?
"Oh Naomi McFarlan," I stated. She nodded writing on a slip of paper.
"Come with me I will lead you to your class," the woman said. I followed her out of the office and down the halls. She led me around so many corners I had lost all sense of direction. By the time we stopped walking we were in a hallway with only one door, marked exit.
"This will do," the woman said.
"What," I asked looking up to see, not the little old woman that had been there a few moments before, but a half woman half bird thing hovering in the air. I was horrified and so said the first thing that came to my mind.
"What the fuck," I said?
"How rude," the bird thing screeched," someone should teach you some manners." With that she dove towards me clawing at my face and head. By this point I had gotten over the whole being shocked thing and had moved straight past terrified to thoroughly pissed off. I whipped around ready to face the bird thing when a boy appeared. He looked to about my age and looked fairly normal. At least I thought he did until I saw he legs. His fur covered goat legs. He turned to me motioning to the exit door.
"Run," he yelled grabbing my hand and running out the door the bird thing flying after us. As soon as we were out the door I whipped around slamming it shut. The boy goat whatever dragged a park bench over to the door that I was barely managing to hold shut against the bird thing that was ramming into it. We shoved the park bench against the door, hoping it would hold off that thing for a little while at least.
"Come on," the boy-goat thing yelled dragging me behind him.
"What was that thing, and what the hell are you," I asked?
"No time for questions we have to go now," the boy thing panted.
"Oh hell no I'm not going anywhere with you until you explain everything," I growl planting my feet in the ground.
"Fine but we have to keep moving, come on," he says.
"First tell me where we are going," I state.
"Long Island Sound," he states calmly.
"What," I shriek?
"Come on just trust me," the boy thing pleads. I stand there thinking about it, but then I realize I have nothing to lose.
"Okay but we do it my way, my rules," I growl. He just nods following me across the school lawn and over to the parking lot. I look around the cars and pick a black Mercedes. I walk over to it, and notice that the windows are rolled down just slightly. This was too easy.
"What are you doing," the boy goat thing asks?
"Getting us some wheels, there is no way in hell I'm walking all the way to Long Island," I state sticking my arm into the car and unlocking the door.
"But...but," he sputters.
"Just get in," I growl sliding into the driver's seat. He ducks his head and slides into the seat next to me.
"Start explaining now," I say.
"Okay my name is Cole and have you heard of the greek myths," he asks. I nod sitting up straight as the car starts to rumble to life.
"You hot wired it," Cole asks?
"Yeah continue your explanation," I answer unfazed.
"You first," he says motioning to the car.
"I grew up as an orphan on the back streets of New York, you do what you have to survive," I state pulling out of the parking lot and moving through the streets. The streets were as packed as ever and the entire time we were in the city Cole was silent. As we hit the highway I looked over to see him fiddling with his thumbs.
"Explanation, now," I order.
"Okay so greek myths they're all true, every one or them and I'm a satyr, half goat half human. That thing you saw back there was a harpie, half woman half bird."
"Okay what does this have to do with me?"
"Your not surprised about anything I've told you so far," Cole asks?
"I'm surprised but I saw it with my own two eyes, I'm going to give it a chance," I state.
"Okay well you know about greek gods. Well when they hook up with mortals they have half god half human children called demigods. These demigods have a certain scent that attracts monsters who want to eat them. So to protect the demigods they set up a training camp to train them, and the satyrs job is to bring the demigods to bring them to that training camp, called camp Half-Blood."
"Are you saying that I'm a demigod," I ask?
"Yes or else the harpie wouldn't have attacked you and you wouldn't be able to see through the mist."
"The mist?"
"The mist is what hides the monsters from the normal humans," he states.
"So I have a mother or father that is a god?"
"Yes usually demigods have one parent so it's easier to determine whether the god parent is a girl or a guy, but you said you were an orphan." I nod.
"So I guess it could be any of them," he says. We spend the rest of the time with Cole only speaking to give directions.
"We're here," Cole says.