A/N: Typhoon Haiyan had just smashed through Philippine, killing at least 10,000 people so far. My country was expeted to be hit hard too. Luckily, this typhoon only visited Vietnamese northern sea shore a little before going north, into China. Due to heavy rain yesterday, all students in Hanoi were allowed to stay at home today, which allow me to complete this chapter.
This chapter was meant for Phillippine. I hope this country will recover from the Typhoon soon.
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PS: Thanks for review, PercyAnnabeth101. However, I'm looking forward for more people to review my story. Ideas and comments are all welcome
Chapter 3
Sophia's POV
Today can't get better. First, I was brought to the camp where Mommy and Daddy first met (and where they first laid in the same bed as Uncle Conner told me with a smirk). Then they left me here with Chiron and other campers. Zeus, it had been years since the last time they did that. They always thought I'm just a kid. Come on, I was a teenager than, being 13 means you want to do a lot of things without supervision from parents. They were much crazier than I was when they were 13. Let me see, my Dad killed a Minotaur with his bare hands, my Mom, well, she had been a run-away for 6 years. Do you believe that? She ran away from my grandpa – Professor (he was just a Doctor then) Frederick Chase with 2 step-brothers. Argh. They were all rule-breakers but they always forced me to follow the rule (I wonder why). But at least I could understand why they loved each other.
Now, I was talking to Chiron, who was taking me to the Big House where he lived in… and worked. We were on the doorstep of the Big House when an explosion came off. Soon, everything I saw was covered in smoke. Green smoke. Imagine a large green python moving to your place, shed its skin and make it 10 times scarier, you'll get what I meant.
And its smell, argh, the smell was terrible. It was a combination of dung, expired food, dirty clothes (which I could be sure that they hadn't been washed for… a few months? A few years? My head turned dizzy, which made me feel sick, very sick. Want to know how sick I was? Imagine this. You have just finished a 'decent' meal with rice, meat, fish, soup, vegetable and a lot of fruit. Then, ride the most dangerous roller coaster you know and take the front seat (the shotgun, isn't it?). Try it a few times and you will get what I mean. But trust me, you don't want to try that because I've already tried (my parents had a lot of stuff to take care then).
I heard a boy blurting very bad words. With me, it seemed that his friends had hosted a 'warm welcome party' to him. But I think they were a bit 'out of the box'. Why didn't they try throwing him into the Lake by installing a small, hidden catapult? Seeing him wet in the lake is much funnier than hearing him blurting bad words. Not to mention that my Mom will make me clean my mouth with liquid soap (or bar soap it my Dad was in charged). May be his parents weren't there, or may be they didn't hear him saying
But why did I have to think about it any more? The entire camp was blurting, seriously. Look like campers didn't like this prank very much. Some green smoke is okay. But adding some thing smells funny? Umh, I don't think so. Base on what I could identify among the words, the swears, I thought there were at least 5 languages in the Camp. Most of campers blurted in English (even though I believed I heard some one said 'F**k you' in Russian accent. Strange? Welcome to Camp Half-blood). There were also Russian, Chinese (why did we have Russian and Chinese campers in the camp? I don't know), French, Germany. And may be some Italian (I don't think the Pope will appreciate that. Vatican and Italy are proud about their politeness). But there were so many languages in the Camp. A result of globalization. Welcome to Camp Half-blood (again).
Then, suddenly, a fresh cool blow of air came out from the Cabin L. It was colorless but I could be sure about that. Mentally measurements regarding to speed, directions, strength… Cabin L seemed to be the best possible answer (and don't look at me like that, I'm a grandchildren of Lady Athena. I'm smart. OK?). The new jet of air blew the green smoke away, bringing the life back to the camp. Next to me, Chiron, who was still sitting in the chair, mumbled something with a not-very-easy tone:
- Oh, Zeus. Can't this camp be a normal camp like other summer camps? Can I have this for just one day? I think I'm messed up by now. Something always happens at Camp Half-blood, and when I say something happens, I mean craps happen.
- Poor my old centaur. But I don't think it will happen. After all, this is Camp Half-blood, isn't it, Chiron?
Well, I could say that my ADHD didn't help me from not being stalked this time. Normally, I could sense someone sneaking behind my back but not this time. It was like someone suddenly appears behind me, in this case, it was a man pop out of nowhere behind my butt. Initially, I thought he was just another 'old' demigod who was my parents' friends, or another Roman legionnaire demigod. Well, it turned out that I was wrong.
It was a delivery man. Why I knew he was one? Simple, he was carrying a mail pack (A/N: The pack which postmen put the letters in) and wearing sneakers. And were those Converse shoes? He was in 'white' – I mean, he had white pants, white shoes, white jacket, white hat. Seriously, which post company had such fashion style?
Chiron tried to transformed back into his real image – a large brown centaur. But that man waved his hand:
- Come on Chiron, I don't like formality. I'm on Greek territory now so you can just say 'Hi' to me, no need to stand up and bow. With me, that's Ok. If you don't want to say 'Hi', I can also accept 'Hello', 'Yo' or 'Whatzzup'
- What's up, white man? – Sorry fellas, I had the trend saying anything while I'm highly concentrated, just like my Dad when he first met Dadelaus (A/N: Do I spell correctly? He was the inventor in 'The Battle of Labyrinth') Not to mention that my dad's family had a (bad) reputation about their annoyance (thanks Lord Poseidon for that)
- Um. You must be Jackson's daughter. I still remember that attitude.
- So, are you their friends? – And I think I saw Chiron scowled a little, or I should say both of them
- No, I'm more like their cousins. So, dear Sophia Tratie Jackson, have you figured out who I am?
Back to square one. I forced my brain to operate at full power…
A delivery man. Check
Had an attitude toward my family. Check
Wearing white clothes. Check
Mischievous eyes. Check
And his pen… Were there 2 strings, no, not 2 string, 2 snakes around it? So, it was 2 snakes. Check
Sum up…
- Um, it's look like that you are a little dumber than you mom. I'd be glad about this. While your dad is one of my favorite demigods, your mom… not so much. It's good for her that she helped me to retrieve my stolen caduceus because I've wanted to blow her up
- So, you are Uncle Travis and Connor's father. You are the God of boundaries, travel, communication, trade, thievery, trickery, language, writing, diplomacy, athletics, and animal husbandry, named Hermes in Greece, and Mercury in Rome
- Hum, nice try. But I'd like to be called Lord Hermes first. And I don't think you should introduce me by saying 'Uncle Travis and Connor's father', it's a bit rude kid
Well, say that to my ADHD. I was highly concentrated then, I couldn't think clearly. How do you expect a 13-year-old demigod-legacy to speak exactly what you want? Unless you are a god, I'll punch your face immediately. And do I have to tell you that my Dad killed a Minotaur with bare hand when he was 12? If he had been able to kill a monster, I'd say that I am able to make you see the dentist
- But anyway, I'm here not to tell you that. I'm a god of delivery. I'm here because a goddess wanted me to give you this
With a flick, a box appeared next to my feet. There was nothing on it but a stamp, like a trademark, of the goddess. It had an image of a peacock on it. A beautiful male peacock with the colorful tail (well, not many people know that only male peacock had such beautiful feather. Female? They only have a white feather, too bad)
As far as I concern, my parents always complain about the goddess whose symbol is peacock and cows. This goddess, as least from what I learnt from history, didn't have a good reputation among heroes and heroines. In my family, she is called Hera the Annoyer.
- This gift comes from Hera, doesn't it? But I don't think my parents would appreciate this gift. I think you know the story behind that.
- Well, yes, it seems like you parents didn't like Hera very much. After all, she caused them lots of troubles. But first thing first, she said this gift is like an apologize for what she did to your parents in the past. She also said that this gift may help you quite much in your future quests. Second, I'd have to say that Hera did quite a few nasty things to your parents liked trick her mom on the quest that she leaded for the first time, took you Dad away for 8 months to complete a one-week quest… So, in short, she is very annoying to your parents.
I thought I was drooling and my mouth was opening because I heard Chiron saying something like 'Sofie, close your mouth please. Show some respect to him, shall you?' Hermes grumbled a little when he heard Chiron said that. Then, a pen appeared on his hand – shouldn't that pen be in his shirt pocket? – And said:
- Sign here, Sofie, I need your confirmation that you have received your package. Can you sign here please? And do that quick, I still have some stuff to deliver to Camp Jupiter as Mercury
I did as he said. But as soon as I grabbed the pen, I noticed the two snakes were trying to chase each other around. What were their names? I remember my parents telling me once. Oh, I remembered. 'Hi George, hi Martha. I'm Percy's daughter' those snakes stopped instantly. I heard a hiss in my head
She knows our names, George
Hey, do you have any rats?
GEOGRE!
What? Rats taste nice
Chiron spoke up:
- G, M, can you guys leave her a few seconds, she got a package to sign. Alright, that's finished
Hermes continued:
- Thank you, Sofie, for using H&M Express Service. If you have any questions or an order to deliver, just send that to Mt. Olympus with some golden drachmas. I'll try to reply as soon as possible. Chiron, I think you can continue your tour now. And… Let me see. Do I forget anything? Alright, Sofie, watch out for Cabin Eleven. My children are, umh, not vey nice, sometimes. Can you cope with that?
- Well, yes, my Lord, my name is Sophia Tratie Jackson, I am the daughter of the most powerful hero and heroine in the modern time, and I am also the granddaughter of Lord Poseidon and Lady Athena. Well, I should be fine with that. But do you mind if I punch them when they try to steal my purse?
- Not a problem, but don't hit them too hard. Oh, it's my time to leave now. See you again, someday.
With that, I feel Chiron's hand on my face, pushed me to look another direction. That's odd. I didn't remember my Mom telling anything about this. But when I was still wondering, Hermes disappeared in a glow of light, a warm one and I feel it was pure energy. Chiron opened his mouth:
- Don't look into a god when they are disappearing. That could kill you, remember that. Now, can you give me that package? I'll return it to you after campfire. Now, it's our tour. Let's visit Big House first.
The Big House, with me, was very much like a Headquarter. After visiting Chiron's office (so that he can put my package in a safe), he gestured me out of the room which is also his bedroom (how does he sleep in a human's bedroom? Don't ask me). The Big House had almost everything (Keyword: Almost, there is no dining room in Big House, it's in another Hall – Dining Hall). So we got five medic rooms (which always half-way filled up), memorial wall (for the most famous demigods, I also spotted many non-American demigods, who came from countries used to be America' enemy. Welcome to demigods' world)
Then came the cabin area. There were over 20 cabins for the gods there, 12 for the 'big gods' – the major gods (you've known their names already, right?). Then, I could see other cabins for the minor gods (built as a request from my Dad, long story). We have 5 cabins for 5 gods of wind: Aeolus – the boss of the wind, Boreas – the north guy, Eurus – the god of the east wind, Notus – enemy of Boreas, the south wind and Zephyrus – god of the west wind. Other than those, Cabin 17 for Iris, Cabin 18 for Hecate, Cabin 19 for Hercules (this guy was so famous), Cabin 20 for Hypnos, Cabin 21 for Nike (this cabin seemed glorious), Cabin 22 for Nemesis and Cabin 23 for Hebe (wasn't she Hercules's wife?)
There were also small temples for other gods, as Chiron said, who had faded away: Pan, Selene, Helios… or the gods and goddess never had children like the three goddesses of welfare, the four of seasons… And this area was new, I could say so, according to the brightness of the stone used to build the temple.
I saw my Cabin – Cabin L on the northwest corner. But there was another cabin opposite it. When I asked Chiron, he simply said: 'This is not the right time to talk about it'. Suddenly, I knew what I'd do that night. Man, I came from a crazy family, remember?
Near the Cabin Area was the Lake – where my parents had the first kiss underwater, thanks to some friendly stalkers then (was it 'some'? My mom said it was like the entire camp). But until now, it is still fun to hear my mom retell it.
The dining hall came next, right next to the Lake. Let me see. Having dinner/lunch/breakfast while enjoying the beautiful view of the Lake? Awesome. Just 5 minutes of walking from the Dining Hall is the Wall, where the campers are trained to be good at wall-climbing (or, in real situation, rock climbing). There was a 50-50 chance that I'd end up in medic room at the end of the day which I try this. Near that was the arena and amphitheatre (why do place for combat and learning situated next to each other? I don't know).
When I visited the stable, I think Chiron scowled a bit. May be that he is a centaur, seeing his half-blood in stable… But I could say that every Pegasus the stable were, like, suffering from ADHD. I heard voices in my head
Grandchildren of Lord Poseidon
Daughter of B's boss
Miss Jackson
Dear Sofie
Oh, it's my honor to meet you, S
The armory was situated right next to the Stable. Probably because campers want high mobilization for combats (they have experienced some, trust me). After that was the Strawberry fields, sun was shining, and it smelled good
But something was missing. I was looking around to find it. May be Chiron was reading my mind, or I wasn't the first one to be like this, he said, with a smile:
- Well, if you are looking for the Sport area, it's right under your feet
- Where? I don't see it
Then he took me to a small pit, next to the Big House and said: 'Sport Hall'. Right after that, my world when black. I feel like I was pulling down with enormous velocity. As soon as I regain my conscious, I realize that I was standing in a great hall where many sports can be played. Chiron clapped his hand, the entire area was brightened with electricity. He said:
- After the Giant War, our Supreme Captain of the Argo II, if you like to call Leo Valdez by that name, and his siblings discovered a cave by their tunnel system under their Cabin. They re-designed the cabin into a Sport Hall. I moved all sport down here so that campers can play a lot of types of sport. Football, rugby, badminton… even boxing – He pointed to a ring nearby – But I haven't found out why they put that in here.
I chuckled, Chiron had been living for thousands of years but he hadn't fully understood about us, teen demigods. Obviously, Leo and his siblings built that boxing ring so that demigods and their legacies can 'settle down' some business. Then, I found out that I was wrong. Chiron continued his talk:
- Or, as I think, Leo installed this ring so that other people, especially boys, can finish their disagreement in human's way. Fighting arm to arm. That sounds nice, even though fighting like demigods in the old days is better. I bet that this afternoon of tonight, Bob will challenge Dan and Jack on this ring, or in the arena. It'll be fun to watch, but it'll a busy time for medic team. I think I have to alert some Apollo campers then.
How wrong I was. Chiron had been teaching demigods and recently, legacies, for years. He must understand us very well. After all, he is the oldest and wisest centaur who was ever known. Suddenly, my stomach rang. I realize that it was already 11. I was hungry because the last meal I had was at 6.30, and I eat like a satyr, just like my Dad. Chiron noticed that sound, too. He said:
- Well, this is about lunch time soon. I recommend you to get back in Cabin L, settle down and go to Dining Hall. Lunch will be served in 20 minutes. The elevator is behind your back
With that, I came up to the ground, right next to the pit where Chiron took me down to the Sport Hall. I ran like flying to Cabin L, ready for lunch because I wanted to know how good the food was.
A/N: Next chapter will be a camper's POV (details will be told later). Review please! Oh, and I don't own Percy Jackson and his friends/enemy. Rick does