I Take An Arrow To The Shoulder

Seth

So let me tell you, apparently having your most hated teacher about to give you a weeks worth of detention was not the worst thing that could happen. What was? I'll tell you later. After my teacher was blown to dust, the goat dude led me out of the school and into a taxi cab. Even though Connecticut doesn't really have taxi cabs, there was one waiting for us outside the school building, nevertheless. It took us 3 whole minutes to get from Ms. Brigham's classroom to the inside of the cab. It took me 3 whole minutes to finally start processing what was happening.

I started asking the goat guy what was happening. I may or may have talked a bit too fast, because within nineteen seconds I was out of breath and he looked confused, as if I was asking him rapid fire questions in Russian.

''Woah, slow down kid. Speak slowly you're giving me a headache!'' he said

''Um, I'm sorry? I didn't mean to, I just- what's going on? Why was Ms. Brigham trying to kill me? Is Isaac going to be okay? Does my mom know where I am?''

Suddenly I thought back to my mom. My sweet, caring, loving mother. God, I love her so much. Let me tell you a little about my mom. Her name is Susan Cage and she is the best mother in the world, no questions asked. She has brown flowing hair that reaches just below her shoulders, deep, kind blue eyes, and a smile so warm and inviting that it made you feel like the happiest person in the world. I know, cheesy right? My mom raised me by herself and worked as a janitor in one of the elementary schools. Her parents reside in the Netherlands but we're not in contact with them. They basically disowned my mom after she became pregnant with me. Her parents were those old strict fashioned people who did not accept that their daughter became pregnant before she was married and before she even had a stable job. So they ditched her, bought two plane tickets to the Netherlands, and decided to live the rest of their lives mourning over their ''failure of a daughter''. That made me mad, I promised to myself that if I ever saw them in real life I would do everything in my power to make their lives hell- just as they did to my mother. My mom did not deserve this, she was too kind and sweet to be beaten up by this unfair world. But she was strong. Even though her life fell hopelessly apart, she went on and tried to raise me as best as she could- without her parents and without my so-called father. We went through some rough times together, but I know I shouldn't complain because some others have it worse. Sometimes we didn't have enough money to buy food, so whatever we had she gave it all to me. Regardless, she still kept her smile up everyday and loved me unconditionally even though I was practically the reason her life sucked so much. It hurt me to know that, but she would never tell me that. She said I was the best thing to ever happen to her, which I found hard to believe.

''Slow down I said!'' goat man yelled

''I'm sorry! But at least tell me one thing. When can I see my mother again? Is she okay? Where is she, please tell me she's safe.'' I begged

I saw a glint of sympathy in his eyes.

''Momma's boy huh?'' he asked

My cheeks felt warm, ''I love my mom.''

His eyes looked sad, longing, ''I loved my mom too.'' he whispered

I decided not to ask, because that was probably a touchy subject with him. I did not want to intrude.

''Well?'' I asked

''Well what?''

''Is my mom okay. When will I see her?'' I said more desperately this time

''To be honest, I'm not sure. It's difficult, Seth, it really is. You see, when you're a demigod you just never kno-''

''A what?'' I asked, my turn to be confused

''A demigod is the offspring of a god and a mortal. You're a godling, kid.''

''You're kidding?''

''Nope, unfortunately. But, look on the bright side. It only gets worse from here on out!'' he said ecstatic

''Is this fake? Am I on like, a TV show or something? Is this Punk'd? Ashton Kutcher, come out! Very funny guys hahaha'' I said nervously

''That's called in denial Seth. But the gods, this-'', he gestured out with his hand, ''is all real, whether you want it to be or not .''

I figured that I shouldn't mention that I was an atheist, that seemed ignorant.

I stared out the window of the cab. Trees were passing by fast and no other car was on the road except us. I had a growing suspicion that this was, indeed, all real. My childhood was not what you would call ''normal''. In second grade our class took a trip to a nature education facility, it was beautiful. They had an open field filled with flowers in vibrant colors, a butterfly room with all kinds of butterflies, a hiking trail, and more. What really fascinated me was the lake. I can still remember it. It was wide and vast, the water was crystal clear, and the fish were all swimming about. In my mind, I could hear faint voices ''Master! Master! Child of the sea!''. I was horrified and yet in full bliss as I thought that the fish were actually talking to me, some dumb second grade kid. But what I saw next... it was amazing. I don't know in what other words I can put it besides ''fish pony''. Yes, I saw a fish pony. It was a long time ago, and my memory is fuzzy, but I know what I saw. It was a horse with the behind of a fish. Of course, no one believed me, but when I told my mother only she gave me a knowing look. Also, there was this time in 7th grade where I had a swimming competition in California. Fortunately, my team was able to help my mom and I get plane tickets. When we went up into the air, the plane shook and made stomach tingling dives, my mom looked as white as a ghost. One of her hands was holding onto mine,the other was grasping the arm rest- her knuckles white. ''What have I done, oh God, I am so so sorry Seth, I am so sorry.'' she said sobbing. I did not like to see my mom cry and I just kind of sat there holding in my stomach while patting my mom and saying things like ''Mom it's okay, we're okay, it'll be okay'' and ''It's just some turbulence, it's normal I swear.'' But that did not make her stop, nor did it stop the looks of the other passengers. The whole plane ride was hell, but when we finally made it into California I swear I could see kids flying in the air. They were all blonde, tall, and lean. I didn't know what to think of it so I just shut my eyes until we landed. There were times though, that were not so majestic as ''fish ponies''. I remember one time in 10th grade an upper class girl who was a cheerleader took me into the locker room. I know, most boys would go crazy for that but I didn't. She forced me to go in there, and when I got a good look at her my vision doubled-fuzzy, and she looked like a monster with glowing red eyes that had hair to match, fangs, claws, and one of her legs looked like it also belonged to a goat (seriously, what was up with the goat feet?). She leaned close to my neck and I stood there frozen in fear, a second before she was to take a bite a teacher stormed in and took her by the hand, dragging her away. I never did see her again.

I fell asleep for an hour and by the time I woke up I looked at the surroundings that seemed familiar to me, we were in New York, specifically in Long Island Sound. I've been here with my mother a couple of times for swim meets. I turned my direction to Goat Man.

''Where are you taking me? You mentioned a camp, what camp?'' I said cautiously

''It's called Camp Half Blood- a place made specially for you demigods. You live there along with other campers and train. You learn how to fight, kick monster butt, and yes- there are some other activities like arts and crafts- I mean, if you're into that thing. I personally love kicking monster butt, I don't know about you. And yes, your mom has been contacted. She knows where you're going. You know she wanted to send you to this camp for a long time, she's just glad you're safe now.'' He explained

I did not know what to make of this. The first thing that went through my brain was the fact that my mom was okay. The second was that I was unfortunately, not normal as I had hoped. I was this some sort of demigod thing person. The third was that I would be going to a strange camp filled with strange kids just like me.

''Wait, so this camp. Camp Half Blood, it's a place for demigods yes? The children of who exactly?'' I questioned

''Of whom, you mean. To answer your questions, the Greek gods. Ya know, Zeus, Poseidon, Hera, Apollo, you know them right?''

''Y-yeah, learned about them in 6th grade.'' I replied

I took a moment to take all of this in. The Greek gods, they were real. Does that make me not an atheist anymore? I guess so, considering the fact that I was the spawn of one of them. My stomach started churning. Does that mean... I could possible have a brother or sister? In Greek mythology I learned that the gods and goddesses always went around knocking up mortals and doing some crazy shit. But never did I expect this. Me, the kid of a poor mother- a son of a powerful god.

''You know'', I began ,''I never did get your name. I don't feel like calling you Goat Man, and I'm sure you wouldn't appreciate it either. So what's your name?''

''Gleeson Hedge, but call me Coach or Coach Hedge, whatever'' he said nonchalantly

''So Coach, you know.. that like, gods and goddesses have tons of kids. Does that mean, I have a sibling or?'' I asked, butterflies in my stomach and all

Coach Hedge broke out into a huge smile, doubling over and laughing maniacally. I started to question if this guy was sane and if he should be trusted around kids.

''You- you don't even know kid'', he started, ''you are related to the Savior of Olympus''

I let that sink in. On one hand, I was happy. I finally had someone to confide in, he or she must know what I'm feeling. On the other hand I was sad. Sad to know my dad cheated on my mom, even though they weren't exactly what you called ''official''. But still, thinking about your dad going around getting another woman pregnant. It disgusted me. Even more so that he or she was so-called the Savior of Olympus, whatever that means.

I stayed silent for the rest of the ride and enjoyed the scenery. It was probably another twenty-minute ride, according to Coach. It had occurred to me that I never asked what he was. He was most definitely not a human.

''Uh, Coach. What exactly are you?'' I asked the most politest way I could

''I'm a satyr!'' He practically screamed

''Oh cool, like a fawn right? Like in Narni-''

''BAH! Forget those fawns! What good are they? Can't you tell we satyrs are so much more qualified than those runt bags?''

''Um..no? Yes?''

''Forget it, you'll learn a lot in camp. About this world. In time of course''

We were nearing the camp. To the mortal eye, it looked like a normal strawberry farm, which I was told. We went up the winding road until we could no longer ride the cab, we stopped at the bottom of a hill. Coach paid the driver and he sped off into the distance, I was probably never gonna see him again.

Coach beamed up at me and said ''Welcome home kid!''

I felt a sense of pride and joy, and I was living in the moment, up until I heard a blood curdling noise.

''Holy Hephaestus!'' Coach said out loud, ''Run!''

He gripped my hand and started running up the hill. Now, I was pretty athletic, but this guy, man, I wish I had his speed. Sure he was part goat, but that was a crazy distance he covered in such a short time. We were almost up the hill, and I did not want to look back, for fear what was behind us.

It was my mistake to look back. The moment my head turned to survey the scene, an arrow was lodged into my shoulder. I crumpled to the ground and Coach was saying things that my mother would have washed his mouth out with soap for. His screams and profanities was beginning to get distant, and my sight was shutting down- the world around me melting into darkness. However, right before I slipped into consciousness I saw a vague figure of a black-haired guy running down with a sword, fighting off all the monsters chasing after us. My eyes then closed.

My eyes fluttered open and my body felt numb. I had this weird taste in my mouth and I was desperately in need of cool water to sooth my soar throat. I looked around and discovered I was laying in a cotton bed with a soft, velvety blanket draped over my body. There was a night stand next to me. On it was a brown messenger bag and a note which read:

Dear Seth,

Welcome to Camp Half Blood! You are currently in the infirmary, do not try to get up. When we feel you are ready to start touring we will come get you. For now, just rest. There is much to discuss. We have also given you a messenger bag to keep your belongings if should you ever need to. In it, there is four new CHB t-shirts, one pair of pjyamas, two pairs of pants (cargo and jeans), two pair of shorts (khakis), fresh underwear, one toothbrush, a bottle of ''Apollo Sun White'' Toothpaste, a small pack of ambrosia, one canteen of nectar, three pairs of socks, one set of black converse shoes, a stick of deodorant, and lastly, 20 gold drachmas.

Love,

Your friends at Camp Half Blood!

Specifically Annabeth Chase and Percy Jackson

The second I finished reading the note the door of the infirmary opened. Two teenagers stepped in. A boy with raven black hair (possibly the one who fought off the monsters earlier) gave me a warm smile, and a beautiful girl with blonde, princess curls. She gave me a pleased look, which made my stomach churn. She was insanely pretty. I then proceeded to pass out again.