The Titan's Curse

even lonelier than before.
    * * *
    I was pretty miserable at dinner that night.
    I mean, the food was excellent as usual. You can’t go wrong with barbecue, pizza, and never-empty soda goblets. The torches and braziers kept the outdoor pavilion warm, but we all had to sit with our cabin mates, which meant I was alone at the Poseidon table. Thalia sat alone at the Zeus table, but we couldn’t sit together. Camp rules. At least the Hephaestus, Ares, and Hermes cabins had a few people each. Nico sat with the Stoll brothers, since new campers always got stuck in the Hermes cabin if their Olympian parent was unknown. The Stoll brothers seemed to be trying to convince Nico that poker was a much better game than Mythomagic. I hoped Nico didn’t have any money to lose.
    The only table that really seemed to be having a good time was the Artemis table. The Hunters drank and ate and laughed like one big happy family. Zoë sat at the head like she was the mama. She didn’t laugh as much as the others, but she did smile from time to time. Her silver lieutenant’s band glittered in the dark braids of her hair. I thought she looked a lot nicer when she smiled. Bianca di Angelo seemed to be having a great time. She was trying to learn how to arm wrestle from the big girl who’d picked a fight with the Ares kid on the basketball court. The bigger girl was beating her every time, but Bianca didn’t seem to mind.
    When we’d finished eating, Chiron made the customary toast to the gods and formally welcomed the Hunters of Artemis. The clapping was pretty half hearted. Then he announced the “good will” capture-the-flag game for tomorrow night, which got a lot better reception.
    Afterward, we all trailed back to our cabins for an early, winter lights out. I was exhausted, which meant I fell asleep easily. That was the good part. The bad part was, I had a nightmare, and even by my standards it was a whopper.
    Annabeth was on a dark hillside, shrouded in fog. It almost seemed like the Underworld, because I immediately felt claustrophobic and I couldn’t see the sky above—just a close, heavy darkness, as if I were in a cave.
    Annabeth struggled up the hill. Old broken Greek columns of black marble were scattered around, as though something had blasted a huge building to ruins.
    “Thorn!” Annabeth cried. “Where are you? Why did you bring me here?” She scrambled over a section of broken wall and came to the crest of the hill.
    She gasped.
    There was Luke. And he was in pain.
    He was crumpled on the rocky ground, trying to rise. The blackness seemed to be thicker around him, fog swirling hungrily. His clothes were in tatters and his face was scratched and drenched with sweat.
    “Annabeth!” he called. “Help me! Please!”
    She ran forward.
    I tried to cry out: He’s a traitor! Don’t trust him!
    But my voice didn’t work in the dream.
    Annabeth had tears in her eyes. She reached down like she wanted to touch Luke’s face, but at the last second she hesitated.
    “What happened?” she asked.
    “They left me here,” Luke groaned. “Please. It’s killing me.”
    I couldn’t see what was wrong with him. He seemed to be struggling against some invisible curse, as though the fog were squeezing him to death.
    “Why should I trust you?” Annabeth asked. Her voice was filled with hurt.
    “You shouldn’t,” Luke said. “I’ve been terrible to you. But if you don’t help me, I’ll die.”
    Let him die, I wanted to scream. Luke had tried to kill us in cold blood too many times. He didn’t deserve anything from Annabeth.
    Then the darkness above Luke began to crumble, like a cavern roof in an earthquake. Huge chunks of black rock began falling. Annabeth rushed in just as a crack appeared, and the whole ceiling dropped. She held it somehow—tons of rock. She kept it from collapsing on her and Luke just with her own strength. It was impossible. She shouldn’t have been able to do that.
    Luke rolled free, gasping. “Thanks,” he managed.
    “Help me hold it,” Annabeth groaned.
    Luke caught his breath. His face was covered in grime and sweat. He rose unsteadily.
    “I knew I could count on you.” He began to walk away as the trembling blackness threatened to crush Annabeth.
    “HELP ME!” she pleaded.
    “Oh, don’t worry,” Luke said. “Your help is on the way. It’s all part of the plan. In the meantime, try not to die.”
    The ceiling of darkness began to crumble again, pushing Annabeth against the