GODS AND MONSTERS , pjo

11 , my dream island

      "The gods are worried about something I'll do when I get older," he guessed. "Something when I turn sixteen."

      I looked over at Aella. She was looking at me until I looked over at her, then she looked away.

      Annabeth twisted her Yankees cap in her hands. "Percy, I don't know the full prophecy, but it warns about a half-blood child of the Big Three-the next one who lives to the age of sixteen. That's the real reason Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades swore a pact after World War II not to have any more kids. The next child of the Big Three who reaches sixteen will be a dangerous weapon."

      "Why?" Percy and I asked at the same time.

      "Because that hero will decide the fate of Olympus. He or she"— she loooked over at me—"will make a decision that either saves the Age of the Gods, or destroys it."

      I looked back into the sea. I don't mean to sound mean, but I hope it's Percy, I don't think I'd be able to make a decision like that.

      "That's why Kronos didn't kill me last summer" Percy said.

      She nodded. "You could be very useful to him. If he can get you on his side, the gods will be in serious trouble."

      "But if it's me in the prophecy—"

      "We'll only know that if you survive three more years. That can be a long time for a half-blood. When Chiron first learned about Thalia, he assumed she was the one in the prophecy. That's why he was so desperate to get her safely to camp. Then she went down fighting and got turned into a pine tree and none of us knew what to think. Until you came along."

      On our port side, a spiky green dorsal fin about fifteen feet long curled out of the water and disappeared.

      "This kid in the prophecy...he or she"—he looked over at me—"couldn't be like, a Cyclops?" Percy asked. "The Big Three have lots of monster children."

      Annabeth shook her head. "The Oracle said 'half-blood.' That always means half-human, half-god. There's really nobody alive who it could be, except one of you."

      I let out a groan, allowing my head to fall. I'm really hating this half-blood stuff.

      "Then why do the gods even let us live? It would be safer to kill us."

      "You're right."

      "Thanks a lot."

      "Percy, I don't know. I guess some of the gods would like to kill you, but they're probably afraid of offending Poseidon. Other gods...maybe they're still watching you, trying to decide what kind of hero you're going be. You could be a weapon for their survival, after all. The real question is what will you do in three years? What decision will you make?"

      "Did the prophecy give any hints?"

      Annabeth hesitated.

      Maybe she would've told us more, but just then a seagull swooped down out of nowhere and landed on our makeshift mast. Annabeth looked startled as the bird dropped a small cluster of leaves into her lap.

      "Land." she said. "There's land nearby!"

      Half of us sat up. Sure enough, there was a line of blue and brown in the distance. Another minute and I could make out an island with a small mountain in the center, a dazzling white collection of buildings, a beach dotted with palm trees, and a harbor filled with a strange assortment of boats. The current was pulling our rowboat toward what looked like a tropical paradise.