Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians and any of it's characters.
Chapter 3: Gretchen's POV
I stared at my mom talking to that weird girl, Mara. I was nervous. What were the talking about? I got the feeling I was part of it. They kept looking at me. Just then something outside the window caught my eye. I looked but didn't see anything. Probably just a bird. I looked back at my mom and Mara. They weren't saying anything but they were both looking at me.
"What?" I asked, a little annoyed.
"Honey, go pack a bag. You're going to camp," my mom said, a little somberly.
"What? Camp? I want to stay here!" I said, outraged.
"I'm sorry honey. You have to. You'll understand soon enough," she said softly.
"I want to understand now!" I shouted.
"I'm sorry but you can't know yet. It's not safe," she said it like my life depended on it.
"I won't go unless you tell me!" I said, desperate.
"Honey, get your bag," she said softly. Her voice wavered like if I kept fighting she would cry. I trudged off to my room and dug around for a bag and some things to bring. I finally came down with a bulging bag because I wasn't sure what I would need. Mara and my mom stopped abruptly, looking at me. I had a feeling they were talking about me. I threw myself down on a chair and waited, my arms crossed tight over my chest.
"Alright, you better get going," my mom said.
"Where is this camp anyways?" I asked.
"Long Island," Mara said. I was irritated at her. She had brought all this after all. She smiled a little sadly like she knew what I was thinking.
"It would have happened anyways," she said. I ignored her. I was too angry to bother with her.
"I'm sorry I can't come with you," my mom said. We didn't have a car so she couldn't drive me. "Take a bus to New York and a cab to Long Island. I think Mara knows were to go. Remember I love you, okay? Be safe."
"Yeah, mom," I said, a little embarrassed. She kissed me and gave me some money. Mara and I walked out the door and around the corner towards the alley where I first saw her.
Suddenly, something jumped out of the alley. It was huge with a lion's head, a goat's body, and a snake for a tail. Its nostrils appeared to smoke. An old lady was standing in the alley watching the beast. She had scaly, green skin and the pupils were almost reptilian, sideways slits. When she smiled I could see that her teeth were fangs and she had a forked tongue.
"Alright sonny, if you must," she said. Wait, sonny?
"A chimera! Di immortales, get behind me Gretchen!" Mara shouted. Now I was really confused. A chimera?
Mara slung off her backpack, dug around with much clanking, and pulled out a sword. How would a sword fit in that tiny backpack! I must be hallucinating. Mara swung the sword and attacked the beast. She seemed to be doing well, until the thing started breathing fire. I backed up, shocked. Mara started backing up, out of the line of fire. The monster seemed to think he'd won and let down his guard. Then, suddenly, Mara jumped to the side and slashed. The monster disappeared in an explosion of dust leaving a sulfurous smell. The weird old lady screamed a cry of sorrow and disappeared.
"Woah, what was that?" I exclaimed.
"Echidna and her son, the Chimera," Mara told me, looking around like she was expecting something else to attack us.
"Who's Echidna? And that Chimera was her son?" I asked, completely astonished.
"Echidna is the mother of all monsters," she said, glancing around nervously. "Now let's talk about something else before we make another monster attack us."
I decided I must be having some severe hallucination. The rest of this trip should be interesting.
