This time, the mythological monster that was trying to attack Camp was not just one, but two Colchis bulls. These bulls were obviously made by the God, Hephaestus, because they were the size of elephants and were made of unbreakable bronze and to make this better: they breathed fire.
As soon as we took our departure from the taxi, the Grey Sisters accelerated out of the chaos and back to Manhattan, where life was safer. They didn't even wait for their extra drachma payment.
The battle was getting worse and worse. "Oh, man." I said.
The bulls were trampling all over the border and campers- which they shouldn't have even been able to pass through the protective borders, something wasn't right and I was going to find out.
One of the campers yelled, "Border patrol, to me!" A gruff voice which was very familiar and I was glad that she was in charge at this point, especially since she was the daughter of Ares, God of War.
"It's Clarisse." I said. "Come on, we have to help her."
Under normal circumstances, I wouldn't think of rushing to Clarisse's aid and we weren't on the best of terms considering the events of last summer. However, this was a matter of Camp burning up in flames or it being partially burnt- and I didn't like either too much although the second option would be the best.
Campers who were assisting Clarisse were scattered about the hill, scurrying in panic as the bulls charged and burst out tunnels of blazing inferno. Around Thalia's tree, large patches of grass were burnt to ashes. A hero, who I recognised as Kyle from the Apollo cabin, was running around screaming whilst waving his hands above his head – the pummel on his helmet was raging in flames. Clarisse wasn't doing so well herself: her armour was charred in places, her shaft was broken, and the other end was embedded in the metal joint in a bull's shoulder- utterly useless.
Percy uncapped his pen and riptide morphed out of it. "Tyson, stay here. I don't want you taking any more chances."
"No!" I said, he would be quite useful- considering he's a monster himself and Cyclopes have un-human strength. "We need him."
Percy stared at me. "He's mortal." Oh my gods, Percy- how much kelp is in his brain? "He got lucky with the dodge balls but he can't – "
"Percy do you know what those are up there? The Colchis bulls, made by Hephaestus himself. We can't fight them without Medea's Sunscreen SPF 50,000. We'll get burned to crisp."
"Medea's what?"
I remembered collecting some potion to help with fires from one of my camp field trip to Olympus. I rummaged around in my bag, searching for it. But it wasn't there. "I had a jar of tropical coconut scent sitting on my nightstand at home. Why didn't I bring it?"
"Look I don't know what you're talking about, but I am not going to let Tyson get fried."
"Percy-" I tried to explain.
"Tyson, stay back." Percy cut in. "I going in."
The Cyclopes tried to protest- which I had no argument too- but he was already being the total Seaweed Brain he was and raced up the hill towards Clarisse, who was bellowing at patrol, trying to get them into phalanx formation.
I retrieved my cap from my pocket and then turned to the Cyclops, who was staring at my hair like it was some treasure or whatever. "Creep." I muttered, and then proceeded to climb up the hill to be of assistance, racing past Percy who was still climbing.
I managed to distract one of the Colchis bulls into chasing me, by taunting, over to the other side of the pandemonium. Clarisse had time to fight the other bull while I distracted this one from attacking. Just before it caught up to me (it was deadly fast for something of that size), I stuffed my cap onto my head- instantly turning invisible. The bull was confused at my sudden disappearance so it started to sniff, using its large snout to smell instead of its fist-sized ruby eyes to seek.
As I climbed a tree, out of harm's way, the Colchis bull unfortunately lost interest in locating me. It turned, wheeling around behind Clarisse on her unprotected side.
Percy shouted to Clarisse, but it only startled her instead of warning her. The first bull slammed into her shield, and the phalanx broke. Clarisse went flying backwards and landed in a smouldering patch of grass.
I decided to take charge due to Clarisse being unable at that moment and the warriors needed some kind of order.
I started shouting to them to spread out- this would keep the bulls distracted so they wouldn't know which camper to charge at or flame. After a while of this, bull number one got bored and ran in a wide arc and back to Percy and Clarisse who were also getting charged at by bull number two. Percy attacked bull number one with a large swipe of his sword but it only placed a thin gash in his hind. Bull number two then decided to blast white-hot flames at Percy but, luckily, Percy rolled to the side. His foot got caught on a tree root as he spun and he tripped falling to the ground but giving one last attempt to swipe at the bull- he managed to cut his snout of. It galloped away, wild and disoriented. A few campers attacked the bull while they had a chance. Percy tried to stand but his leg buckled underneath him and he fell yet again. His ankle was most likely sprained- badly.
Bull number one charged at him- but he was helpless.
I shouted. "Tyson, help him!"
The Cyclops charged up the hill and wrestled with the border line. "Can't – get – through!"
I was the only way to help Percy.
"I, Annabeth Chase, give you permission to enter camp!"
Thunder shook the hillside. The Cyclops barrelled towards Percy yelling, "Percy needs help!"
He dived between them just as the bull released a nuclear firestorm.
"Tyson!" I heard amongst the flames.
When the fire died down, the Cyclops stood there totally unharmed. The bull must've been shocked as much as Percy's face showed because it unleashed a second blast, but the Cyclops balled his fists and slammed them into the bull's face, bellowing "BAD COW!"
I couldn't see what effect the Cyclops had made on the bull from this angle, but two small flames shot out of the bull's ears. The Cyclops punched again and the bull crumpled like foil.
"Down!" The Cyclopes yelled.
The bull staggered and fell on his back. As soon as I was certain that the bull was down and wasn't rising any time soon, also that Clarisse was taking care of the second bull, I ran over to check on Percy.
He healed up considerably well once I had given him some of my Olympian nectar to drink from my canteen.
"The other bull?" He asked.
I pointed to where Clarisse had taken care of the other bull. She'd impaled it through the back leg with a celestial bronze spear. It was more or less down as it stumbled around the field with it snout half gone.
Clarisse pulled her helmet of and marched towards us. A strand of her stringy brown hair was smouldering, but she didn't seem to care. "You – ruin – everything!" she yelled at Percy. "I had it under control!"
After what we had just done to save her! "Good to see you too, Clarisse." I grumbled.
"Argh!" Clarisse screamed. "Don't EVER try saving me again!"
"Clarisse," I said. "You've got wounded campers."
My plan worked, even Clarisse cared about the soldiers under her command.
"I'll be back." She growled then trudged off to assess the damage.
Percy stared at the Tyson. "You didn't die."
Tyson looked down like he was embarrassed. "I am sorry. Came to help. Disobeyed you."
"My fault," I had to give some credit to Tyson who had just saved my best friends life. "I had no choice. I had to let Tyson cross the boundary line to save you. Otherwise, you would have died."
"Let him cross the boundary line?" Percy said. "But-"
"Percy." I said. "Have you ever looked at Tyson closely? I mean ... in the face. Ignore the mist and really look at him."
Percy examined his face and then stammered, "Tyson... you're a ..."
"Cyclops," I offered. "A baby by the looks of him. Probably why he couldn't get past the boundary line as easily as the bulls. Tyson's one of the homeless orphans."
"One of the what?"
"They're in almost all of the big cities," I said distastefully. "They're ... mistakes, Percy. Children of nature and spirit gods... well, one god in particular, usually ... and they don't always come out right. No one wants them. They get tossed aside. They grow up wild on the streets. I don't know how this one found you, but he obviously likes you. We should take him the Chiron, let him decide what to do."
"But the fire. How – "
"He's a Cyclops." I said yet again. I picture in my memory of when I saw my friends hung from the ceiling- with the Cyclops in to corner smiling at me hungrily. "They work the forges of the gods. They have to be immune to fire. That's what I was trying to tell you."
Percy sat there, still completely stunned.
Whilst he was thinking- his brain slowly processing everything- Clarisse came back over and wiped the soot of her forehead. "Jackson, if you can stand, get up. We need to carry the wounded back to the Big House, let Tantalus know what's happened."
"Tantalus?" Percy questioned.
"The activities director."
"Chiron's the activities director. And where's Argus? He's head of security. He should be here."
Clarisse made a sour face. "Argus got fired. You two have been gone too long. Things are changing."
"But Chiron... he's trained kids to fight monsters for over three thousand years. He can't just be gone. What happened?"
"That happened." Clarisse snapped.
She pointed to Thalia's tree.
I gazed at where she was pointing to; the pine tree – that held the life force of my best friend, Thalia, who had died to save mine and Luke's lives- was different for some reason. I looked closer and then I noticed it: it needles had turned a sickly yellow, a huge mound of dead ones littered the base of the tree. In the centre of the trunk, a metre from the ground, was a puncture mark the size of a bullet hole, oozing green sap.
A tingle shot up my spine and I shivered involuntarily. The camp was in danger because the magical borders were failing due to the puncture that was filled with nothing but trouble.
Thalia's Pine was dying: someone had poisoned it.

(A/N How good is that? Finishing two chapters in two days! Haahaaha)