Chapter Nine~Talking about the Training Field

  Annabeth




    "Man, what will it take to wake you up? You've been sleeping on that couch soo long, it's already 12:00 p.m!" A voice shouted in my ear.
    I opened my eyes, seeing Sara sitting next to me, her arms crossed. Her seashell earrings somehow seemed from pink to red. Lucas was sitting on a recliner, holding a plate filled with macaroni and cheese with a hot dog on the side. He was smirking, amused seeing me wake up so late.
  "Sorry." I mumbled, sitting up. "You don't have to yell in my ear like that."
  "Ha! She already knows that, rookie!" Max was coming out of the elevator, holding a battle axe in one hand.
   "Max, get your nose out of this conversation!" Sara shouted at him.
   Sara and Max began arguing.
   "Oh, for the love of Zeus, even the campers outside can hear you argue!" A boy looking 11 walked out of the backdoor. He had glossy brown hair with energetic, curious green eyes. He wore winged armor, probably meaning he was a son of Hermes. "I was just busy slaying these hellhounds when suddenly, I hear, 'Wake up sleepyhead!' 'Ok, jeez!' 'Haha! Rookie!'" The boy first showed his bloody staff, then mimicked us.
   "Sam! Be quiet!" Sara told the boy. She turned to me. "Do not, under any circumstances, trust him. He's a dirty liar, pranker and thief!"
   I stared at Sam's innocent eyes, then nodded.
  "What exactly is in the backdoor and elevator?" I asked Sara.
  "The elevator holds the infirmary, bathroom and meeting room. The backdoor holds the actual training camp." Lucas finished the last bite of his hot dog, then walked into the backdoor.
  "You could go there, if you dare!" Sam and Max laughed. "Have you even fought before?"
  "Yes!" I answered smugly. "Me and Lucas killed the Nemean Lion, just us! And I cut Medusa's head off, also!"
  Sam widened his eyes, and Max' jaw dropped. Sara had an impressed look on her face.
  "If you can do that, that's baby talk compared to the training camp!" Sara punched me in the belly, as best as she could in a joke. "The campers are careful not to kill you, but when it comes to fighting each other and competition in Capture the Flag, we show no mercy."
   I gulped.
   "Capture the Flag is dangerous!" Sam agreed. "You use your weapons! You kick each other's butt! You could get killed, but the person who killed you would get fed to the Underworld, apologize to your soul and then die! I got a battle scar because of the rough game!" He showed a long, but shallow scar on his wrist.
   "Just go to the training field!" Sara said. "But be careful when you step outside."
   I nodded and opened the backdoor. Outside was a beautiful field, dotted with tiki torches and daisies. There were orchards in the east, a lake and 12 cabins in the north,  and a forest filled with monsters and training dummies in the west. On the lake was a bridge going to an island in the center of the lake, holding a house with green mist circling it eerily. Above was a blue sky with fluffy, white clouds and a mama and her baby dragons were flying in the sky. It was breathtaking.
   Suddenly, a camper wearing a rusted helmet and swinging a spiked and flaming mace, ran toward me. "INTRUDER!!!!" The camper yelled, hit me with the mace, and knocked me out unconscious.