Sam's POV

Something about Katie had been bothering me all day. It wasn't that she was being particularly annoying or anything. Well, maybe a little given how she insisted on, keeping me within sight like a watchdog.

Well it wasn't too odd. Since the start of the semester Katie had kept her eye on me as if I was some weird science project. She had been my first and only real friend. Katie was a half-Filipina girl with long brown hair that she almost never combed and chocolate brown eyes that always seemed to bounce around. But she was also tough, loyal and we liked a lot of the same comics, so I decided to stick with her,

If I didn't know any better I would have assumed she had a crush on me. But I already seem enough of her pictures with her scary boyfriend to know that wasn't the case.

Katie was a lot of things, but a cheater wasn't one of them.

But still she seemed on edge today. She was always glancing over her shoulder and keeping her head down. Her eyes constantly darted back and forth with what was possibly fear. Even the way she walked was brisk and difficult to keep up with.

It was almost like she was avoiding a fight. And Katie was always looking for a fight.

Every time I asked her what was wrong she'd just grunt the same noncommittal response she had done the whole day. "Oh nothing." She said once again pulling her hood up and leading me down an alley that lead to my apartment.

Katie glanced over her shoulder to look at the crowds of people walking on the street. "Come on Pipes." She said quietly enough that I almost didn't hear it. I wanted to ask her about it, but I knew that she would give me the same answer. Instead I force my mouth shut and decide to wait until we got inside and she's calmer before bringing it up again.

We were about halfway across the alley when I understood what she was looking at. Someone was followings us.

I stopped beside her, yet the loud splash of feet hitting a water puddle was still audible. Then a man began walking into the alley behind us. He could easily be in the Army or Marines, he was huge, almost six and a half feet tall and rippling with muscles that were barely contained in his black muscle shirt. His ruby red hair was trimmed in a buzz cut.

Time seemed to slow down as he covered the distance between us. The sounds in the streets were drowned out and the only noise I heard was his combat boots hitting the pavement. I instinctively took a step back from him when Katie placed an arm in front of me.

She turned to me and nodded grimly. Was this what Katie was so scared of? I knew she did some shady things like sell fake movies, but I never thought she'd get into this kind of trouble. The Filipina growled and reached down into her sneaker and pulled out a switchblade. "Get back you bastard."

The mans scar-flecked face tugged upwards in a smile. "Now Katie. Is that anyway to speak to your Great Uncle? I would have thought my nephew would raise you better than that. But from what Luck told me, he wasn't much of a father."

Katie bristled now and tightened her grip on her knife. Whatever he said seemed to have struck a nerve. She pointed her knife at him, trembling slightly. "You want some advice Pallas? Never mention that name around me again."

Something in the back of my mind clicked. That name sounded so familiar, almost like a distant memory tugging at me to get free. Where have I heard that name before.

Pallas, as I guess he was called stopped a few feet from us and pulled out a huge hunting knife that made Katie's switchblade look a lot more like a butter knife. Still that didn't stop her from advancing a step forward.

"Katie are you sure it's smart to fight the mean man with a knife." I questioned nervously.

"No, it's not." She turned and grinned at me. "Once I move run."

Katie suddenly sprinted forward, easily covering the distance between them in a matter of seconds. She ducked under his arm as his knife flashed above her and slashed her own blade across his face. I tried to turn and move, but my legs were like jelly and wouldn't respond to me.

Pallas touched the long cut across his face and growled. Instead of blood, it was liquid gold that trickled out. He jabbed his hunting knife again but Katie easily sidestepped it. She threw a pair of punched at his outstretched arm which caused him to drop his knife.

I felt a grin form on my face as the man stumbled back. Katie advanced closer triumphantly, twirling her knife. Pallas leg suddenly came up and slammed into Katie's knee.

She doubled over in pain, her knees buckling underneath her and she dropped like a stone. Her knife clattered to the side.

Pallas pounced on her, pinning her against the pavement grabbing her cheeks. "You shouldn't have done that Katie." He pressed his knife against face, leaving a thin line of blood. Katie grimaced and bit her lip, resisting the urge to scream.

I scrambled to the side and picked up her knife. Gripping it with both hands I pointed it at him, trying to control then shaking in my hands. "And what do you plan to do with that?" Pallas said mockingly, turning to me.

Thankfully I didn't need to answer, the lid garbage can came flying out of nowhere and hit him square in the face. He was thrown off Katie in a daze, his head spinning back and forth. Pallas stumbles to the side and fell with a loud crash onto some garbage cans.

"Katie!" A voice shouted from the alley. Another girl came sprinting past me and kneeled down to her. Katie managed to sit up, blood trickling from the side of her face and her nose was bent in an odd angle, but otherwise she looked fine.

The new girl turned to me, her choppy and uneven chocolate brown hair bouncing as she moved, her eyes were like looking at a kaleidoscope, always changing color and never focusing. She was dressed in jeans and an orange T-shirt that said Camp Half-Blood. I could have sworn I saw Katie wear something like that.

"Are you alright?" She asked, running up to me.

I stare at her, open mouthed for a second before her question registered in my mind. "Y-ya. Ya I think I'm alright."

"Good. Listen I know you're scared and confused but-" Camper girl was abruptly drowned out by a high pitched shriek. We turned around and instantly felt my blood run cold. Pallas stood behind Katie whose face was white as chalk and eyes stared blankly. Sticking out of the side of her body was several inches of serrated metal.

Pallas sneered at her and released the blade, letting Katie fall with it. He stood up, still struggling to stand properly and likely still dizzy from the girls flying garbage lid maneuver.

Fiery rage blinded my vision as I pushed then girl aside. Katie's dagger was still in my hand. I raised the small blade and hurled it with all my strength. I fully expected my throw to be a complete miss, yet it flew straight and true to Paas's face.

The dagger slice through the side of his face, grazing through the left part of his head and leaving his golden blood flowing freely. Pallas screamed in agony, one hand cupping his wound, trying to close it up get the golden liquid flowed through his fingers.

"Curse you heroes! Consider yourself lucky that my power has not yet fully returned." He raised both his hands in the air as a glowing aura began to surround him.

"Get down!" The new girl screamed and threw herself at me, sending both of us sprawling behind a dumpster. A brilliant explosion of golden light ripped through the alleyway. I peered over the dumpster and saw a circle of ash and soot where Pallas stops moments before. Katie was still there, sprawled on the ground, laying face first.

The girl and I ran over to her. She reached her fist and flipped her over, pressing her fingers over Katie's neck. After a few seconds she sighed in relief. "I feel her pulse, she's alive but we need to get her some help."

I wanted to sob in relief. I kneeled down and helped the girl lift Katie up. She was still unconscious and slumped into our arms. As we walked I turned to the other girl. "Who was that guy who attacked her? And who are you?"

She lead us through an alley and began heading to a Central Park. The camper girl took a deep breath and looked as if the what she was going to say wasn't easy. "Alright I think it's best to start from the beginning. First of, my name is Piper. And do you know all those stories about Greek mythology?"

I nodded.

"Well what if I told you that those stories, the gods, monsters and heroes were real."

My legs hit against each other and I nearly fell over. I stared at Piper for any sign of amusement, or anything that told me that this wasn't true. But judging by her look I could tell that she was dead serious.

I stopped running and Piper nearly dropped Katie. "Please tell me you're joking." My voice was barely above a whisper.

"No. Why do you say that?" Her voice was filled with concern. "What do you know?"

"Well there was this incident a couple months ago at the start of the school year." I admit, keeping Katie slung on my shoulder and beginning to walk. "I was out in the courtyard when I was approached by some guy in a trench coat. He tried giving me this letter, he said something like it was from a relative."

"And?" Piper questioned.

"And, when I looked up at him I saw that he only had one eye." I pointed at the center of my forehead. "Right here."

Piper walked beside me. "A cyclops then. What did he do to you?"

I chuckled and nudged Katie's head softly. She groaned softly in response. "Kaite. She scared the guy away with a knife."

Even Piper gave me a sad smile. "Ya that sounds like here. I hope she'll be ok." She stops and pulls out a baggie of little yellow bars about the size of a piece of gum. She picks one up and makes Katie swallow it. "This should help. Its ambrosia, the food for the gods. It can help heal her injuries."

"Well where are you even taking us?" I asked as she lead all of us to the edge of the forest.

"Here is good." A small smirk played across Piper's face. She moves Katie to me as she stepped forward and placed two fingers in her mouth as she blew a high note like one I used to call Taxis.

There was a soft sound of clopping hooves coming from the trees. Shadows and shapes parted from a bush and a horse stepped out. It was a magnificent white stallion, but what was a horse doing out here. But as he stepped out of the woods, I saw he was more than any stallion. He had a pair of massive white dove wings growing from his flank. His wingspan was probably longer than I was tall.

Another horse joined him shortly after, a shy looking mare with fur the color of ginger. I looked at both of them admiringly. Piper stepped behind me and patted my back. "Have you ever gone horseback riding?"

Again I shook my head. But I looked at the horses again and gave her a grin. "But I think in this case I'll learn quickly."