Alexandra dragged me through the forest. I caught a glimpse of a lot of big buildings, they looked like they could be cabins. There was another breach in the weeds and bushes that opened up to what looked to be the center of a semi-circle of cabins. I dug my heels into the ground. "Whoa, stop, what is this place? Are they cabins?" I asked. "Yeah, one for each of the gods." She had her arms crossed and she was tapping her elbow. "Come on!" She reached for my forearm again. "Hey, I have legs, I can walk." I said, yanking my arms out of her reach. She rolled her eyes and beckoned me to follow her. She led me to this big - house - with blue siding and white bordered windows. Alexandra opened the door and we both stepped inside. "Chiron!" She called. "Here," A man rolled out in a wheel chair. He had a scruffy beard and he wore thin wire rimmed glasses. "Chiron, this is Tony Bishop, he's a demigod, but I've never seen him before." Alexandra told him. "Ah, I see." He looked me over. "A purple t-shirt. Tony, who's your godly parent?" I hesitated, "Neptune." "He means Poseidon." Alexandra corrected. I had an epiphany. "Wait. You're Chiron, right? That means you're /graecus/!" I drew my knife. "Yes, Tony, but we're not going to hurt you." Chiron held his hand out. I looked at it skeptically. /I can't trust these /graecus/! What will they do to me if they find out I'm Roman?!/ I did the smartest thing I could think of. I ran. I raced out of the Big House and through the clearing of cabins. I turned back for only a moment and then I met a huge being blocking my path. I had the wind knocked out of me and I fell backwards, my glasses were knocked askew. I fixed them and looked up to see a one-eyed being staring down at me. "Cyclops!" I scrambled backwards and raised my knife. "Stay back!" "Huh? Demigod smells like Roman." The cyclops said. "Tony!" I looked around and I was surrounded by campers with strung bows and extended swords. "I'd advise you to drop your knife."
Canva Rick Riordan
