Epilogue:
Frozen, but warm.  I’m frozen in ice.  Except, I’m warm.  I don’t know how I’m warm, but it doesn’t matter.  I can see everything around me move while I stay still.  I try to break out of my frozen state without much success.  I stay utterly paralyzed while nobody notices me, or the man who’s coming toward me, ready to throw the final blow.  I am Troy, and this is how I die.
Beforehand, let me give you a little background to my life.  I live in San Jose, California.  When I was born, my father left my mom.  I had no idea why and my mom always told me it was to protect me.  I never believed her.  I still don’t.
Then I started receiving all these powers at age ten.  I started turning into a wolf.  Let me tell you, turning into a wolf is completely painless and in my human form, I could lift objects that were twenty times the weight of my own.  Then when I was at school one day, I started seeing things.  Weird things.  Certain people started to have one eye.  Teachers were starting to spy on me, and some of them started growing wings or fangs.
When I turned sixteen, we went to the Happy Hollow Park & Zoo for a field trip, and I was attacked by one of the guides.  I faintly saw his nametag, and it said Cyclopes.  I didn’t understand why the older man with a bald head and raggedy clothes was attacking me.  I didn’t understand why people never noticed, but it didn’t matter to me at the time because he was attacking me.  Then my teacher, Mr. Hartly, came, and snapped Cyclopes’ neck.   I stared as the person with the broken neck laid there, motionless, still, and paralyzed.  In the next couple seconds he started to… disintegrate.  I watched as his remains turned to dust, and disappeared out of thin air.  I looked back at the man who killed the man named Cyclopes.  He looked unfazed by the events that happened.
“Hey, are you ok?” asked the man out of breath.
“Yeah,” I replied.  “But who are you really?”
“I’m Austin and I was sent to watch over you.  I’m also supposed to bring you to the fort when need be.”
“What fort?”
“Fort Demigod.  It’s one of the safe places for demigods like you and I.”
“Wait! Demigods as in like Hercules and stuff like that?”
“Yeah exactly.  Now we have to get outta’ here before more Cyclopes’ come.”
“There are more of those?!” I exclaimed.
“There are lots more of those,” Austin chuckled.
Before I could ask any more questions, Austin grabbed my arm and pulled me out of the zoo.  I felt dumb by the fact I didn’t know there were any more of those one-eyed freaks.  I knew I wasn’t ready to fight them as good as Austin did but I knew I was ready to learn.
Chapter 1: Seventy Two Hours before Death
As we approached the front of the fort in Los Angeles, there was a sign made of thick steel that was written in a different language but then it formed into “Fort Demigod”.
I whispered, “What?”
“It’s weird isn’t it?” asked Austin.
“Yeah I mean the words were in a different language I didn’t know and then I could read it,” I replied knowing I must’ve whispered a little loud.
“It’s the dyslexia.  Because you’re a demigod, you’re dyslexic but it jumbles up words written in Greek so that you’re able to read it.”
“Oh, nice.”
As we past the sign I felt like I went through a bubble or landed face first on the floor of a bouncy house.  Then I feel a little pop, and I realize that the fort is protected by a force field.  I am able to smell burning metal, most likely from the welders I saw passing the first building on the left.  I’m also able to smell fire and rain.  When Austin, and I reached the center of the fort I looked around, and I just saw a bunch of steel buildings.
A bonfire pit, big enough to fit an elephant or two in the flames was sitting in the dead center.  Everybody was laughing and conversing between one another.  For a moment, I felt at home.  Then, when a shorter woman with tan skin, dark brown hair and wearing camouflage pants and jacket saw me, she raised her arm, and everyone became quite.  She walked over to me, and everyone else watched her carefully, like she was their master.  I then realized that she had beautiful hazel eyes as she approached me, and grabbed my arm.
“Hi,” she said excitedly.  “You must be Troy.  Austin has told me a lot about you.”
“Come on Serena!” Austin complained. “The boy just got here.  You don’t need to be all up on him like that.”
“I can do whatever I want!” Serena retorted as she looked at me with the most amazing smile I’ve ever seen.  She turned to the crowd who looked like they have seen a ghost.
Before I could ask why Serena starting talking, “Everyone, this is Troy.  He is new so let’s get the ceremony started.”
I started to ask but then people lifted me up, and carried me down to the fire.  As I got closer I actually didn’t get warmer.  Instead, I got colder.  When I reached the fire the people who were carrying me set me down.  I was so curious with the fire that I put my hand in.  It was as warm as it was back up by Austin and Serena.  I took off the blue furry sweatshirt I was wearing, and my shirt.  Stupidly, I jumped into the fire.
I heard everybody screaming, and cheering so loud that I thought for sure the next couple towns could hear.  All of a sudden I smelt raspberries and blueberries, and could see the color of the flames change color.  The flames started to turn into a navy blue as they wrapped around me like they were my own clothes.  Everyone looked at me as they backed up and gasped.  Serena came down and pulled me out.  She said something under her breath I couldn’t hear.
“Well, surprisingly you’re now the son of Apollo.”  She explained.
“What do you mean ‘now’?” I asked confused as ever.
“I’ll explain later but for now you need to put a shirt on, and come put your stuff in the Apollo cabin.” Austin replied quickly, as if he didn’t want Serena to answer.
I threw my shirt on, grabbed my bag and trudged away from the fire looking back at Serena.  I thought to myself “I’m going to like it here.”