The Battle of the Labyrinth

roasting marshmallows. I ran toward it.
    Before I even got there I heard Chiron making an announcement. When I realized what he was saying, I stopped in my tracks.
    “—assume he is dead,” Chiron said. “After so long a silence, it is unlikely our prayers will be answered. I have asked his best surviving friend to do the final honors.”
    I came up on the back of the amphitheater. Nobody noticed me. They were all looking forward, watching as Annabeth took a long green silk burial cloth, embroidered with a trident, and set it on the flames. They were burning my shroud.
    Annabeth turned to face the audience. She looked terrible. Her eyes were puffy from crying, but she managed to say, “He was probably the bravest friend I’ve ever had. He . . .” Then she saw me. Her face went blood red. “He’s right there!”
    Heads turned. People gasped.
    “Percy!” Beckendorf grinned. A bunch of other kids crowded around me and clapped me on the back. I heard a few curses from the Ares cabin, but Clarisse just rolled her eyes, like she couldn’t believe I’d had the nerve to survive. Chiron cantered over and everyone made way for him.
    “Well,” he sighed with obvious relief. “I don’t believe I’ve ever been happier to see a camper return. But you must tell me—”
    “WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?” Annabeth interrupted, shoving aside the other campers. I thought she was going to punch me, but instead she hugged me so fiercely she nearly cracked my ribs. The other campers fell silent. Annabeth seemed to realize she was making a scene and pushed me away. “I—we thought you were dead, Seaweed Brain!”
    “I’m sorry,” I said. “I got lost.”
    “LOST?” she yelled. “Two weeks, Percy? Where in the world—”
    “Annabeth,” Chiron interrupted. “Perhaps we should discuss this somewhere more private, shall we? The rest of you, back to your normal activities!”
    Without waiting for us to protest, he picked up Annabeth and me as easily as if we were kittens, slung us both onto his back, and galloped off toward the Big House.
    * * *
    I didn’t tell them the whole story. I just couldn’t bring myself to talk about Calypso. I explained how I’d caused the explosion at Mount St. Helens and gotten blasted out of the volcano. I told them I’d been marooned on an island. Then Hephaestus had found me and told me I could leave. A magic raft had carried me back to camp.
    All that was true, but as I said it my palms felt sweaty.
    “You’ve been gone two weeks.” Annabeth’s voice was steadier now, but she still looked pretty shaken up. “When I heard the explosion, I thought—”
    “I know,” I said. “I’m sorry. But I figured out how to get through the Labyrinth. I talked to Hephaestus.”
    “He told you the answer?”
    “Well, he sort of told me that I already knew. And I do. I understand now.”
    I told them my idea.
    Annabeth’s jaw dropped. “Percy, that’s crazy!”
    Chiron sat back in his wheelchair and stroked his beard. “There is precedent, however. Theseus had the help of Ariadne. Harriet Tubman, daughter of Hermes, used many mortals on her Underground Railroad for just this reason.”
    “But this is my quest,” Annabeth said. “ I need to lead it.”
    Chiron looked uncomfortable. “My dear, it is your quest. But you need help.”
    “And this is supposed to help? Please! It’s wrong. It’s cowardly. It’s—”
    “Hard to admit we need a mortal’s help,” I said. “But it’s true.”
    Annabeth glared at me. “You are the single most annoying person I have ever met!” And she stormed out of the room.
    I stared at the doorway. I felt like hitting something. “So much for being the bravest friend she’s ever had.”
    “She will calm down,” Chiron promised. “She’s jealous, my boy.”
    “That’s stupid. She’s not . . . it’s not like . . .”
    Chiron chuckled. “It hardly matters. Annabeth is very territorial about her friends, in case you haven’t noticed. She was quite worried about you. And now that you’re back, I think she suspects where you were marooned.”
    I met his eyes, and I knew Chiron had guessed about Calypso. It was hard to hide anything from a guy who’s been training heroes for three thousand years. He’s pretty much seen it all.
    “We won’t dwell on your choices,” Chiron said. “You came back. That is what matters.”
    “Tell that to Annabeth.”
    Chiron smiled. “In the morning I will have Argus take the two of you into