Rick Riordan
The Last Olympian - 05
first arrived at Camp Half-Blood.
That thought depressed me. This kid was getting brainwashed—trained to hate the gods and
lash out because he'd been born half Olympian. Kronos was using him, and yet the kid thought I
was his enemy.
No way was I going to hurt him. I didn't need a weapon for this. I stepped inside his strike
and grabbed his wrist, slamming it against the wall. His sword clattered out of his hand.
Then I did something I hadn't planned on. It was probably stupid. It definitely jeopardized our
mission, but I couldn't help it.
"If you want to live," I told him, "get off this ship now. Tell the other demigods." Then I shoved
him down the stairs and sent him tumbling to the next floor.
I kept climbing.
Bad memories: a hallway ran past the cafeteria. Annabeth, my half brother Tyson, and I had
sneaked through here three years ago on my first visit.
I burst outside onto the main deck. Off the port bow, the sky was darkening from purple to
black. A swimming pool glowed between two glass towers with more balconies and restaurant
decks. The whole upper ship seemed eerily deserted.
All I had to do was cross to the other side. Then I could take the staircase down to the
helipad—our emergency rendezvous point. With any luck, Beckendorf would meet me there. We'd
jump into the sea. My water powers would protect us both, and we'd detonate the charges from a
quarter mile away.
I was halfway across the deck when the sound of a voice made me freeze. "You're late,
Percy."
Luke stood on the balcony above me, a smile on his scarred face. He wore jeans, a white T-
shirt, and flip-flops, like he was just a normal college-age guy, but his eyes told the truth. They were
solid gold.
"We've been expecting you for days." At first he sounded normal, like Luke. But then his face
twitched. A shudder passed through his body as though he'd just drunk something really nasty. His
voice became heavier, ancient, and powerful—the voice of the Titan lord Kronos. The words
scraped down my spine like a knife blade. "Come, bow before me."
"Yeah, that'll happen," I muttered.
Laistrygonian giants filed in on either side of the swimming pool as if they'd been waiting for
a cue. Each was eight feet tall with tattooed arms, leather armor, and spiked clubs. Demigod
archers appeared on the roof above Luke. Two hellhounds leaped down from the opposite balcony
and snarled at me. Within seconds I was surrounded. A trap: there's no way they could've gotten
into position so fast unless they'd known I was coming.
I looked up at Luke, and anger boiled inside me. I didn't know if Luke's consciousness was
even still alive inside that body. Maybe, the way his voice had changed . . . or maybe it was just
Kronos adapting to his new form. I told myself it didn't matter. Luke had been twisted and evil long
before Kronos possessed him.
A voice in my head said: I have to fight him eventually. Why not now?
According to that big prophecy, I was supposed to make a choice that saved or destroyed
the world when I was sixteen. That was only seven days away. Why not now? If I really had the
power, what difference would a week make? I could end this threat right here by taking down
Kronos. Hey, I'd fought monsters and gods before.
As if reading my thoughts, Luke smiled. No, he was Kronos. I had to remember that.
"Come forward," he said. "If you dare."
The crowd of monsters parted. I moved up the stairs, my heart pounding. I was sure
somebody would stab me in the back, but they let me pass. I felt my pocket and found my pen
waiting. I uncapped it, and Riptide grew into a sword.
Kronos's weapon appeared in his hands—a six-foot-long scythe, half Celestial bronze, half
mortal steel. Just looking at the thing made my knees turn to Jell-O. But before I could change my
mind, I charged.
Time slowed down. I mean literally slowed down, because Kronos had that power. I felt like I
was moving through syrup. My arms were so heavy, I could barely raise my sword. Kronos smiled,
swirling his scythe at normal speed and waiting for me to creep toward my death.
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