Another god was waiting for me on the way out of Olympus. Athena stood in the

middle of the road with her arms crossed and a look on her face that made me

think Uh-oh. She'd changed out of her armor, into jeans and a white blouse, but

she didn't look any less warlike. Her gray eyes blazed.

 

"Well, Percy," she said. "You will stay mortal."

 

"Um, yes, ma'am."

 

"I would know your reasons."

 

"I want to be a regular guy. I want to grow up. Have, you know, a regular high

school experience." "And my daughter?"

 

"I couldn't leave her," I admitted, my throat dry. "Or Grover," I added quickly.

"Or — "

 

"Spare me." Athena stepped close to me, and I could feel her aura of power

making my skin itch. "I once warned you, Percy Jackson, that to save a friend

you would destroy the world. Perhaps I was mistaken. You seem to have saved both

your friends and the world. But think very carefully about how you proceed from

here. I have given you the benefit of the doubt. Don't mess up."

 

Just to prove her point, she erupted in a column of flame, charring the front of

my shirt.