Rick Riordan Percy Jackson and the Olympians
get us all killed . On the other hand , the sound of the harpies was getting closer .... " We can ' t leave him ," I decided . " Tantalus will punish him for us being gone ." " Percy ," Annabeth said , trying to keep her cool , " we ' re going to Polyphemus ' s island ! Polyphemus is an S-i-k ... a C-y-k . .." She stamped her foot in frustration . As smart as she was , Annabeth was dyslexic , too . We could ' ve been there all night while she tried to spell Cyclops . " You know what I mean !"
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" Tyson can go ," I insisted , " if he wants to ." Tyson clapped his hands . " Want to !" Annabeth gave me the evil eye , but I guess she could tell I wasn ' t going to change my mind .
Or maybe she just knew we didn ' t have time to argue . " All right ," she said . " How do we get to that ship ?" " Hermes said my father would help ." " Well then , Seaweed Brain ? What are you waiting for ?" I ' d always had a hard time calling on my father , or praying , or whatever you want to call it , but I stepped into the waves . " Urn , Dad ?" I called . " How ' s it going ?" " Percy !" Annabeth whispered . " We ' re in a hurry !" " We need your help ," I called a little louder . " We need to get to that ship , like , before we get eaten and stuff , so ..."
At first , nothing happened . Waves crashed against the shore like normal . The harpies sounded like they were right behind the sand dunes . Then , about a hundred yards out to sea , three white lines appeared on the surface . They moved fast toward the shore , like claws ripping through the ocean .
As they neared the beach , the surf burst apart and the heads of three white stallions reared out of the waves . Tyson caught his breath . " Fish ponies !" He was right . As the creatures pulled themselves onto the sand , I saw that they were only horses in the front ; their back halves were silvery fish bodies , with glistening scales and rainbow tail fins . " Hippocampi !" Annabeth said . " They ' re beautiful ." The nearest one whinnied in appreciation and nuzzled Annabeth . " We ' ll admire them later ," I said . " Come on !" " There !" a voice screeched behind us . " Bad children out of cabins ! Snack time for lucky harpies !"
Five of them were fluttering over the top of the dunes — plump little hags with pinched faces and talons and feathery wings too small for their bodies . They reminded me of miniature cafeteria ladies who ' d been crossbred with dodo birds . They weren ' t very fast , thank the gods , but they were vicious if they caught you . " Tyson !" I said . " Grab a duffel bag !" He was still staring at the hippocampi with his mouth hanging open , " Tyson !" " Uh ?" " Come on !" With Annabeth ' s help I got him moving . We gathered the bags and mounted our steeds . Poseidon must ' ve known Tyson was one of the passengers , because one hippocampus was much larger than the other two — just right for carrying a Cyclops .
" Giddyup !" I said . My hippocampus turned and plunged into the waves . Annabeth ' s and Tyson ' s followed right behind .
The harpies cursed at us , wailing for their snacks to come back , but the hippocampi raced over the water at the speed of Jet Skis . The harpies fell behind , and soon the shore of Camp Half- Blood was nothing but a dark smudge . I wondered if I ' d ever see the place again . But right then I had other problems .
The cruise ship was now looming in front of us — our ride toward Florida and the Sea of Monsters .