I was so shocked by what I saw that I stopped dead in my tracks. "Woww...," I said in awe. The dining pavilion was huge and it was made of marble pillars and columns that shone like silver. There were long tables, about 12 or 13 was my guess.
I looked around and found a table with mostly girls so I went to go sit at it. As I approached them, I saw that the camper that I had met earlier, Silena, was among them.
"Um, Hi, Silena. Could I maybe sit with you guys?" I asked shyly. "Hi, Alexa. Sorry, but the tables are organized by godly parent. Who's yours?" Silena said.
"My dad is Apollo," I replied, getting red in the cheeks. "Oh, Apollo's table is over there," she said, pointing to a table that had the symbol of Apollo on it.
"Thanks," I said gratefully. "By the way, who's your godly parent, Silena?" Silena pointed to a symbol at their table.
It was a heart that was a brilliant shade of pink. "It's the symbol of Aphrodite," Silena explained. "Oh," was my brilliant reply. I went and sat with my cabinmates.
"What's for dinner?" I asked Lee. "Oh, you'll have to wait and see," Lee replied, a mischievous smile on his face. Soon, the kitchen harpies passed out plates and I just stared into mine, noticing its strange emptiness. "Barbecued ribs, ketchup, Hot Cheetos, and a chocolate cupcake," Lee muttered next to me.
All of a sudden, his plate filled up with everything that he had listed. "Um, Lee? What am I supposed to do?" I asked, feeling embarrassed. "Just say what you feel like eating right now and it'll appear," Lee replied.
"Um, cheese pizza, french fries with ketchup, a Coca-Cola, and, uh, some chocolate cake for dessert," I said. My plate filled up with all the goodies that were requested.
Suddenly, Lee got up and headed toward the brazier next to the head table. "Where are you going Lee?" I said, catching up to him.
"You're supposed to give some of your food to your godly parent. Just scrape a portion of your meal off your plate and say 'Apollo'," Lee said. I watched Lee closely to see how he did it. When it was my turn, I scraped off a portion of my pizza, some of my french fries, and half of my cake.
"Apollo," I muttered under my breath. I returned to my table and finished up my dinner.
After I was done, I got up and started heading toward the campfire to have some fun. After all, my cabin was leading the sing-along, or so they told me.
I went and sat down next to a girl who was just staring at the campfire. "Hi. What's your name?" I asked shyly.
"Hi. I'm Raina," Raina replied. "Do you know who your godly parent is?" I asked Raina. "No, not yet. Do you?" she asked, gloomily.
"Yeah, my dad is Apollo," I said, feeling bad for Raina. "Don't worry, you'll know soon," I added. Raina merely nodded. Then, a blonde girl with green eyes walked up to us.
"Hey. Is anyone sitting here?" she asked. "No, nobody is. My name is Alexa and this is Raina," I said to the girl. "I'm Bella," Bella said. "Who's your godly par-" I was interrupted by a bright, blinding light.
"Whassup, kid? Yeah I'm talking to you, Alexa," Apollo said. I felt superly embarrassed. "Um, Dad?!" I asked uncertainly.
"I'm here on official godly business. As you know, Kronos is rising and monsters are attacking camp. Artemis has gone missing. The last time I saw her she was hunting a deadly monster that can kill the gods. We need her for the war council during the winter solstice, or all of our war efforts will have gone in vain. I wish to have my daughter, Alexa, lead a quest, with any two people she chooses, to save my sister," Apollo stated, with a superior air.
Chiron was watching the whole scene from behind Apollo. He cantered over to where Apollo could see him. "Lord Apollo, it certainly is a pleasure," Chiron said, bowing. "Ah, Chiron. I wish to have Alexa lead a quest. Artemis has gone missing. The Hunters are scattered, searching the globe for my sister and they can't find her. Alexa must lead a quest, she must!" Apollo exclaimed.
"Very well, Lord Apollo. Your wish is my command," Chiron said, a smile flickering across his face. "Thank you, Chiron. I don't know what we gods would do without you. Farewell, Trainer of Heroes!" Apollo said, and there was a blinding flash of light.
"CLOSE YOUR EYES EVERYONE! HE IS REVEALING HIS TRUE FORM!" Chiron shouted. The campers shut their eyes, and some turned away. The blinding light disappeared, leaving the campers blinking blind spots out of their eyes.
"Well, Alexa, you must begin your journey tonight. Pick your companions for your quest. You may pick only two," Chiron declared. "I'll pick, um, Raina and Bella," I said.
Just then, a glowing green trident appeared over Raina's head. "All hail Raina, daughter of Poseidon!" Chiron declared loudly. Chiron bowed and all of the other campers followed his example. Chiron turned to me.
"Well, my dear, it is time for you to visit the Oracle," Chiron said. He walked me to the big house that stood close to the strawberry fields.
"Go to the attic of the Big House and in there you will find the Oracle of Delphi, your father's very own Oracle," Chiron stated. "OK," I said uncertainly.
"Do not worry, I shall come with you if you wish," Chiron said. I nodded a yes. "Okay, then, let us go," Chiron said. Chiron and I went up the staircase and I pulled the attic trapdoor open.
"You must face the Oracle alone. She will give you a prophecy that could help you on your quest to save Artemis. Do not take its meaning to heart. You must tell me afterwards, and I will help you interpret its meaning. Now, go," Chiron said.
I climbed up and into the attic. At the end of the room, there was a mummy in a colorful summer dress. She opened her mouth and weird green mist billowed out of it.
"Daughter of The Sun, you shall fight
a Titan in the west, the Titan of the light.
The daughter of the lost titian shall shine bright
and suffer for the friends who are unable to fight.
She shall put up a courageous fight
against an powerful force and discover that she has a fate that she can't control.
The daughter of the sea shall rise
and shall found out a fearful surprise.
You shall go west and free the missing goddess that has been taken
but many casualties will be in your way..."
The mummy closed its mouth and the green mist disappeared. I was puzzled as I climbed out of the attic and went down to tell Chiron the prophecy.
He was reading an old, battered paperback novel, but as soon as I appeared he quickly put it away. "What was the prophecy, child?" Chiron asked grimly.
Quickly and quietly, I told Chiron everything that the Oracle had said. "Your friends are already packed, my dear," Chiron said. He snapped his fingers and there lay a duffel bag.
"In that duffel bag, you will find everything you need to survive. The magic plates from camp have also been provided for your convenience. They are unbreakable." Alexa was shocked. The man, who was obviously a centaur, was giving them so much help.
The centaur stood up and grabbed me, Raina, and Bella, and put us onto his back and started galloping toward the magical barrier that separated the camp from the mortal world.
He stopped at the foot of the pine tree and we hopped off his back. "Girls, I wish you well, but you must be careful. I have a couple of magic items that I would like to give you," Chiron said.
All of us shifted and fidgeted nervously. "The first magic item goes to Alexa. It is a magical bow and arrows that I have kept in store for the first child of Apollo who leads a quest. Your father wanted me to give it to you. He specified you by name. There you go."
"The next magical item goes to Bella. It is a weapon that can turn into other weapons around it, but if they are magical items they will not give your weapon their magical ,if you try hard you canmake your own weapon. This was a gift from your mom a while back. Be warned, you will need it in your future, I promise you that much.
"Finally, Raina, a gift from your father. It is a coin that turns into a sword when you flip it. Also, your father included this." Chiron declared, handing Raina a small horse medallion. We trudged down Half-Blood Hill, leaving our newly-found home behind.