Stranger in a Strange Land
By EgoSumERex
My feet shift from the gravel to dirt as I reach the forest. This is as far as I have ever gone. My teacher warned me about them. The half-bloods. Venis said that the Greeks will be extra cautious of me. Mortal, but with moor power than any demigod. I stop, and consider heading back. But, that is not an option. The Greeks know of my teacher's clan. Soon, they will come with swords and arrows, and I must stop them. So, I continue walking. For my teacher.
It is in a day that I reach the forest end. Partly why it took me so long is that I ran into an old friend. Xnit. The Greeks call him "A large fire-spewing spider". It is kind of sad. He is very kind, but the Greeks almost hunted his kind to eradication. When I was a boy, we would fight between class. With him, I learned how to make extra legs sprout from my back, and grow moor fingers. He would always say: "No fair!". I would always say in reply: "Why? You have eight legs, and I only have two."
Xnit is not doing so well. His children are starving, because it is in the middle of a drought. Just how we can change ourselves, we can change others. Xnit changes rain into food. Only the elders eat flesh. We hunt less gory things, unlike mortals, who slaughter anything that can walk and enjoy it too. They are odd like that.
When I leave the forest, trying to not look nervous. The feeling of attachment is not helping. The forest is all I know. Venis found me there as a baby, and took me in. When I was older, he told me that I was from a place called New York. He also said that I was a mortal. Venis taught me the myths of the gods, and how to channel the misfortunes of others into my gain. I was told to never go out of the forest. If I wanted to, I could enter camp. The sent of the gods was strong on me. Also, I could smell it. Whenever a gust of wind blew into the forest from camp, I can smell the sent of salt from a child of the sea. The sent of dirt from a child of Demeter. And the smell of asphalt from a child of Hermes. Each god had a different sent. I use to keep tally of how many demigods where at camp. Last year, I stopped, because the sent became fainter. I asked Venis about it.
"Mortals and Demigods are different from us monsters." my teacher had told me. "When they die, they can not come back. A god called Cronose is rising. He is killing demigods. The elders are on his side, but we are not."
That made me sad. The elders do not deserve to live forever. Fine demigods do. Gods do. Not them. They have overstayed there time on earth.
As I walk, not see anyone. I walk up to a large, white house that Venis told me about. I give three sharp knocks on the door. In a minuet, a centare opens the door.
"Hello." I say. "My name is West, and we need to talk."
Chiron assumes the worst: that the monsters are trying to invade camp.
"None of the sort." I explained. "I am here to make peace. You know little about monsters. We raise our young. We are intelligent. And, we want to live in peace with the demigods."
"But monsters always attack heroes." Chiron said.
"Yes. In the old days, we had to. Without misfortune, we perish. Now, there is no need. Only the elder monsters keep the habit. They are outcasts." I say. "Also, anyone can have the abilities of a monster. If needed, I can demonstrate."
"I will need to see that." Chiron said.
"That will be fine." I say.
Chiron brings me out to an arena. A tall, beefy girl is out there. In her right hand is a spear. In her left is a shield. I take my cotton shirt off.
"What are you? A hot topic modal?" the girl said.
"Excuse me? What do you mean by those words?" I ask. The girl rolled her eyes. I get reddy.
"Fight." Chrion called.
With a little bit of effort, I make a line of sheraded teeth grow in front of my normal ones. Two moor arms. I make my skin thicker, and darker. By the time, I am done, she is on me.
She tries to stab me, but I grab her spear, and pull her in. I grab her, and lift her up. She kicks my blond hair. I don't flinch. I throw her down, and put my foot on her chest.
"I win." I say.
I am introduced to the rest of the camp at dinner. The girl that I beat booed me. Venis was right. To them, I am odd. But to me, they all look like civilized barbarians, set on killing my family. I must change them. Undo the work of the elders.