The Unexpected: Meeting Half Bloods: Book 1 The Lightning Thief

Chapter 6

Disclaimer I do not own anything all of the rights go to Disney, Marvel and to Stan Lee as well as to Rick Riordan!

Here is another chapter.

I would like to say that this chapter does retell a lot about the book, but I have made a few twists to it.

After this chapter however, I will stick mostly to Peter's point of view and third person.

The story continues forward like a river towards the sea….

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(Peter's Point of View)

The next thing I knew I was in a soft bed. I felt weak. I had a sharp pain in my gut I wearily looked around the room and I saw a male with a scar running across his left eye. He was tall and had dirty blond hair. My instincts told me not to trust him; he was dangerous stay away from him. I allowed myself to slip back into unconsciousness.

I woke up what seemed like moments, but I could just tell it had been a couple of hours. I saw the same girl that was there when Percy and I arrived. I sat up and the sheet fell off. I realized that I was shirtless and pantsless. All I had on was my Black pair of Boxers – Briefs.

She blushed and turned away immediately. I looked down and I saw all of my scars, but under the scars was pure muscles; there was not a trace of fat on my body. I laid back down and asked her "Annabeth, why is my clothes?"

She asked suspiciously "How did you know my name?"

I told her "I heard Chiron say it when I first arrived here with Percy."

She gave a nod accepting the answer. She said "So you must be Peter."

I gave her nod, not like where this was going.

Annabeth said "Percy talks a lot in his sleep."

I chuckled and gave her a nod. I asked her again "Can you get me my clothes?"

She blushed again and gave a nod she left the room. I shut my eyes and I felt the air and water around the area. I sensed there was a lake nearby and a stream.

A few minutes later Annabeth came back with my clothes and my boots. The clothes were neatly folded and stacked, the boots sat on top of the pile.

I gave her a smile and said "Thank you, milady." I smirked when I say that as she became slightly flustered. I chuckled.

Annabeth threw my boots at me for laughing at her. For a twelve year old girl she could throw hard! She turned on her heels and walked out of the room. I could tell she was prideful.

I put on my clothes; I made sure my weapons were where they should be. I put the gloves in my pocket. I walked out of the room. My body was protesting, but I forced myself to walk out of the room. I made it to the patio where I stood in the light of the sun. I could imagine the warmth of it. I could smell strawberries, wild honey, and nature. I took a deep breath in and I let it out. I sat down in a lounge chair just outside the door. I leaned back and shut my eyes. My breathing became steady, but I was still half conscience.

I felt a shadow pass in front of my face. I pulled out my dagger out of my boot and I lunged forward. We tumbled to the ground. When I opened my eyes I had the scarred, blue eyed, blond male. I stood up and said "Sorry, you startled me." Though I was truly not sorry, but I was easily able to lie. He brought the lie hook, line, sinker and all.

He gave me a smile and said "No problem friend!"

I felt a cold chill run up and down my spine. The pain in my gut flared. I bent over and clutched my stomach and let out a pained groan.

He came over to me and helped me stand up straight he asked me "You all right kid?"

I sat up and said with a slight cross tone "This 'kid' has a name Peter Perseus."

The boy raised his hands in surrender and said "Chill dude! My name is Luke."

I gave him a nod, I vaguely remembered a young man named Luke, but this was not him… I got a head ache trying to think, but I hid it well enough to hide it.

Luke flashed me a grin with his dazzling white teeth. He said "Come on Pete, time for you to meet Chiron." He reached down to give me a hand. I slapped his hand away and said coldly "My name is Peter, P – E – T- E – R. Peter."

Luke frowned and said "There is no need for hostility."

I shot him a mild glare he flinch and quickly left and called over his shoulder "Follow me."

I stood up and I shadowed him. I rounded to corner and I saw twelve cabins in a "U" shape, with a fire in the middle. I saw a girl who appeared to be about eight years old; I swear I saw her before…

The memory hit me like a lightning bolt! When my sister was dragging me away, I took one last look back and I saw a girl in the hearth. I thought I was crazy, and I almost forgot it! I smiled, the best smile I could and I gave her a wave.

The girl who was actually the goddess Hestia waved and gave a warm smile back.

I walked towards the hearth, but before I could get close enough to become in talking range, Luke said "Come on Pete!"

I growled at him. I muttered to myself "Need to see Hestia later…"

Luke lead me to the Big House where I saw a fat, pudgy man in an ugly Hawaiian shirt, I also saw Mr. Brunner.

Luke dropped me off and left, leaving me with the drunk and the cripple.

I stood there like a straight up, I had my hands crossed over my chest, and I glared at the man in the ugly Hawaiian shirt.

Mr. Brunner cleared his throat and said "You must be Peter-"

I said curtly "Cut the formalities Chiron."

His eyes widen for a second before reverting back to his normal faade, his own masquerade, and asking "How long did you know and HOW did you know?"

I smirked and said "The moment you came to school, no offence, but you smell like a horse! And Grover smells like a goat."

Chiron pondered what I said for a second before saying "You are one of the first one to guess that…"

I rolled my eyes and said "It is hard to miss! I mean I could smell you from the back! How those people in the front did not smell I will never know… Actually maybe it was the Mist…"

Chiron asked "Are you confused or have any questions?"

I sighed and asked "How many people saw me without my shirt?"

Chiron grimaced and said "Luke, Annabeth, myself and Will."

I gave a nod and said with a growl "Make them swear never to say a word about what they saw!"

Chiron flinched at the growl before calmly saying "They already agreed among themselves."

I gave a nod.

The fat man in the ugly Hawaiian shirt said boredly "Welcome to Camp Half Blood brat. Stay out of my way and obey."

I growled and said "Think I give a rat's ass?"

The fat man glared at me and I glared back it was not my death glare, but it was close. He eventually looked away. I smirked in triumph.

Chiron said "I will have Annabeth show you around."

I gave him a nod, still not happy about this Mr. D character. I do not care if he is Dionysus!

A few moments later Annabeth came and told me to follow her…

(Line Break)

(Percy's Point of View)

I I had weird dreams full of barnyard animals. Most of them wanted to kill me. The rest wanted food. I must have woken up several times, but what I heard and saw made no sense, so I just passed out again. I remember lying in a soft bed, being spoon-fed something that tasted like buttered popcorn, only it was pudding. The girl with curly blonde hair hovered over me, smirking as she scraped drips off my chin with the spoon.

When she saw my eyes open, she asked, "What will happen at the summer solstice?"

I would manage to croak, "What?" Completely confused.

She looked around, as if afraid someone would overhear. "What is going on? What was stolen? We have only got a few weeks!"

"I'm sorry," I mumbled, 'I don't…"

Somebody knocked on the door, and the girl quickly filled my mouth with pudding. The next time I woke up, the girl was gone. A husky blond dude, like a surfer, stood in the corner of the bedroom keeping watch over me. He had blue eyes, at least a dozen of them, on his cheeks, his forehead, the backs of his hands. I must have been seeing things….

When I finally came around for good, there was nothing weird about my surroundings, except that they were nicer than I was used to. I was sitting in a deck chair on a huge porch, gazing across a meadow at green hills in the distance. The breeze smelled like strawberries. There was a blanket over my legs, a pillow behind my neck. All that was great, but my mouth felt like a scorpion had been using it for a nest. My tongue was dry and nasty and every one of my teeth hurt.

On the table next to me was a tall drink. It looked like iced apple juice, with a green straw and a paper parasol stuck through a maraschino cherry. My hand was so weak I almost dropped the glass once I got my fingers around it.

"Careful there," a familiar voice said. I looked around and saw Grover was leaning against the porch railing, looking like he hadn't slept in a week. Under one arm, he cradled a shoe box. He was wearing blue jeans, Converse hi-tops and a bright orange T-shirt that said CAMP HALF-BLOOD. It was just plain old Grover. Not the goat boy.

So maybe I'd had a nightmare. Maybe my mom was okay. We were still on vacation, and we had stopped here at this big house for some reason.

I was cut out of my thought when Grover said "You saved my life," Grover continued and said. "I… well, the least I could do… I went back to the hill. I thought you might want this." Reverently, he placed the shoe box in my lap.

Inside the box was a black-and-white bulls horn, the base jagged from being broken off, the tip splattered with dried blood. It hadn't been a nightmare.

"The Minotaur…" I muttered, unable to believe it, though I was literally holding it in my hands!

"Um, Percy, it is not a good idea-" Grover said, but I cut him off and said "That is what they call it in the Greek myths, is it not?" I demanded. "The Minotaur: half man and half bull."

Grover shifted uncomfortably. "You have been out for two days. How much do you remember?"

"My mom. Is she really…" I could not bring myself to say anything, I could not bear the thoughts of it!

He looked down.

I stared across the meadow. There were groves of trees, a winding stream, and acres of strawberries spread out under the blue sky. The valley was surrounded by rolling hills, and the tallest one, directly in front of us, was the one with the huge pine tree on top. Even that looked beautiful in the sunlight.

My mother was gone. The whole world should be black and cold. Nothing should look beautiful.

"I truly am sorry," Grover sniffled. "I am a failure! I am –I am the worst satyr in the world!' He moaned, stomping his foot so hard it came off. I mean, the Converse hi-top came off. The inside was filled with Styrofoam, except for a hoof-shaped hole.

'"Oh, Styx!" he mumbled. Thunder rolled across the clear sky.

As he struggled to get his hoof back in the fake foot, I thought, 'Well, that settles it. Grover is a satyr.' I was ready to bet that if I shaved his curly brown hair, I'd find tiny horns onhis head. But I was too miserable to care that satyrs existed, or even Minotaurs. All that meant wasmy mom really had been squeezed into nothingness, dissolved into yellow light.

I was alone. An orphan. I would have to live with… Smelly Gabe? No. That would never happen. I would live on the streets first. I would pretend I was seventeen and join the army. I would do something.

Grover was still sniffling. The poor kid…? Uh the poor goat? Uh Satyr? Whatever! He looked as if he expected to be hit.

I said to him trying to calm him down and cheer him up, "It was not your fault."

"Yes, it was. I was supposed to protect you!" Grover exclaimed on the verge of crying.

"Did my mother ask you to protect me?" I asked.

"No. But that is my job. I'm a keeper. Or at least… I was..." Grover's voice died at the end.

"But why…" I suddenly felt dizzy, my vision swimming.

"Do not strain yourself," Grover said. "Here"

He helped me hold my glass and put the straw to my lips.

I recoiled at the taste, because I was expecting apple juice. It was not that at all. It was chocolate chip cookies. Liquid cookies. And not just any cookies – my mom's homemade blue chocolate chip cookies, buttery and hot, with the chips still melting. Drinking it, my whole body felt warm and good, full of energy. My grief did not go away, but I felt as if my mom had just brushed her hand against my cheek, given me a cookie the way she used to when I was small, and told me everything was going to be okay.

Before I knew it, I'd drained the glass. I stared into it, sure I'd just had a warm drink, but the ice cubes hadn't even melted.

"Was it good?" Grover asked.

I nodded.

"What did it taste like?" He sounded so wistful, I felt guilty.

"Sorry," I said. "I should have let you taste."

His eyes got wide. "No! That is not what I meant. I just… wondered."

"Chocolate-chip cookies," I said. "My mom's homemade ones."

He sighed and asked "And how do you feel?"

"Like I could throw Nancy Bobofit a hundred meters!" I said with a chuckle.

"That is good,' he said. '"That is good. I do not think you should risk drinking any more of that stuff for a while."

"What do you mean?" I asked, it was sooo GOOD I wanted just a little more!

He took the empty glass from me gingerly, as if it were dynamite, and set it back on the table. He said "Come on, Chiron and Mr. . D are waiting for us."

The porch wrapped all the way around the farmhouse. My legs felt wobbly trying to walk that far. Grover offered to carry the Minotaur horn, but I held on to it. I had paid a price for that souvenir the hard way. I was not going to let it go.

As we came around the opposite end of the house, I caught my breath. We must have been on the north shore of Long Island, because on this side of the house, the valley marched all the way up to Long Island Sound, which glittered about a mile in the distance. Between here and there, I simply couldn't process everything I was seeing.

The landscape was dotted with buildings that looked like ancient Greek architecture – an open-air pavilion, an amphitheatre, a circular arena except that they all looked brand new, their white marble columns sparkling in the sun.

In a nearby sandpit, a dozen high school-age kids and satyrs played volleyball.

Canoes glided across a small lake.

Kids in bright orange T Shirts like Grover's were chasing each other around a cluster of cabins nestled in the woods.

Some shot targets at an archery range.

Others rode horses down a wooded trail, and, unless I was hallucinating, some of their horses had wings!

Down at the end of the porch, two men sat across from each other at a card table. The blonde haired girl who had spoon fed me popcorn flavored pudding was leaning on the porch rail next to them.

The man facing me was small, but porky. He had a red nose, big watery eyes and curly hair so black it was almost purple. He looked like those paintings of baby angels… what do you call them, hubbubs? No, cherubs. That's it. He looked like a cherub who'd turned middle-aged in a trailer park. He wore a tiger-pattern Hawaiian shirt, and he would've fitted right in at one of Gabe's poker parties, except I got the feeling this guy could've out-gambled even my stepfather and that was not an easy feat!

"That is Mr. . D," Grover murmured to me. "He is the camp director. Be polite. The girl, that is Annabeth Chase. She is just a camper, but she has been here longer than just about anybody. And you already know Chiron…" He pointed at the guy whose back was to me.

First, I realized he was sitting in the wheelchair. Then I recognized the tweed jacket, the thinning brown hair, the scraggly beard. "Mr. . Brunner!' I called out.

The Latin teacher turned and smiled at me. His eyes had that mischievous glint they sometimes got in class when he pulled a pop quiz and made all the multiple choice answers B.

"Ah, good, Percy," he said. "Now we have four for pinochle." He offered me a chair to the right of Mr. . D

Mr. . D, who looked at me with bloodshot eyes and heaved a great sigh. "Oh, I suppose I must say it. Welcome to Camp Half-Blood. There. Now do not expect me to be glad to see you."

"Uh, thanks." I scooted a little further away from him because, if there was one thing I had learned from living with Gabe, it was how to tell when an adult has been hitting the happy juice. And if Mr. . D was a stranger to alcohol, I was a satyr! (Which I am not in case you are wondering)

"Annabeth?" Mr. . Brunner called to the blonde girl.

She came forward and Mr. . Brunner introduced us. "This is the young lady nursed you back to health, Percy. Annabeth my dear, why don't you go check on Percy's bunk now? We will be putting him in cabin eleven for now."

Annabeth nodded her head and said, "Sure, Chiron."

She was probably my age, maybe a couple of centimeters taller, and a whole lot more athletic looking. With her deep tan and her curly blonde hair, she was almost exactly what I thought a stereotypical California girl would look like, except her eyes ruined the image. They were a startling grey, like storm clouds; pretty, but intimidating, too, as if she were analyzing the best way to take me down in a fight.

She glanced at the Minotaur horn in my hands, then back at me. I imagined she was going to say,

"You killed a Minotaur! or Wow, you're so awesome!" or something like that.

Instead she said, "You drool when you sleep." Then she sprinted off down the lawn, her blonde hair flying behind her.

"So," I said, anxious to change the subject. "You, uh, work here, Mr. . Brunner?"

'Not Mr. . Brunner,' the ex Mr. . Brunner said. 'I am afraid that was a pseudonym. You may call me Chiron."

"Okay." I said totally confused at this point, I looked at the director, and asked "And Mr. . D… does that stand for something?"

Mr. . D stopped shuffling the cards. He looked at me like I had just belched loudly. "Young man, names are powerful things. You do not just go around using them for no reason."

"Oh... Right... Sorry." I said still not getting anything.

"I must say, Percy," Chiron / Brunner broke in, "I am glad to see you alive. It's been a long time since I have made a house call to a potential camper. I would hate to think I have wasted my time."

"House call?" I asked, confused as always.

"My year at Yancy Academy, to instruct you. We have satyrs at most schools, of course, keeping a lookout. But Grover alerted me as soon as he met you. He sensed you were something special, so I decided to come upstate. I convinced the other Latin teacher to… ah, take a leave of absence." Chiron explained.

I tried to remember the beginning of the school year. It seemed like so long ago, but I did have a fuzzy memory of there being another Latin teacher my first week at Yancy. Then, without explanation, he had disappeared and Mr. . Brunner had taken the class. "You came to Yancy just to teach me?" I asked.

Chiron nodded. 'Honestly, I was not sure about you at first. We contacted your mother, let her know we were keeping an eye on you in case you were ready for Camp Half-Blood. But you still had so much to learn. Nevertheless, you made it here alive, and that is always the first test."

"Grover," Mr. D said impatiently, "are you playing or not?"

"Yes, sir!" Grover trembled as he took the fourth chair, though I did not know why he should be so afraid of a pudgy little man in a tiger print Hawaiian shirt.

"You do know how to play pinochle?" Mr. D eyed me suspiciously.

"I'm afraid not." I said.

"I'm afraid not, sir." he said.

'Sir,' I repeated. I was liking the camp director less and less, I wonder how Peter dealt with this guy! Actually I think I do not want to know…

"Well," he told me, "it is, along with gladiator fighting and Pac-Man, one of the greatest games ever invented by humans. I would expect all civilized young men to know the rules."

"I am sure the boy can learn," Chiron said patiently.

"Please tell me" I said, "what is this place? What am I doing here? Mr. Brun – Chiron – why would you go to Yancy Academy just to teach me?"

Mr. D snorted rudely and said "I asked the same question."

The camp director dealt the cards. Grover flinched every time one landed in his pile.

Chiron smiled at me sympathetically, the way he used to in Latin class, as if to let me know that no matter what my average was, I was his star student. He expected me to have the right answer.

"Percy," he said to me "Did your mother tell you anything?"

"She said…" I remembered her sad eyes, looking out over the sea. "She told me she was afraid to send me here, even though my father had wanted her to. She said that once I was here, I probably could not leave. She wanted to keep me close to her."

"Typical," Mr. D said boredly "That is how they usually get killed. Young man, are you bidding or not?"

"What?" I asked at least I am saying what instead of a who, otherwise I might be mistaken for an owl as often as I am saying 'what'.

He explained, impatiently, how you bid in pinochle, and so I did.

"I am afraid there is too much to tell," Chiron said. 'I am also afraid our usual orientation film will not be enough."

"Orientation film? What orientation film?" I asked.

"No," Chiron decided completely ignoring me. "Well, Percy. You know your friend Grover is a satyr. You know –' he pointed to the horn in the shoebox – "that you have killed a Minotaur. No small feat, either, lad. What you may not know is that great powers are at work in your life. Gods – the forces you call the Greek gods – are very much alive."

I stared at the others around the table.

I waited for somebody to yell, Not! But all I got was Mr. D yelling, "Oh, a royal marriage. Trick! Trick!" He cackled as he tallied up his points.

"Mr. D," Grover asked timidly, "if you're not going to eat it, could I have your Diet Coke can?"

"Eh? Oh, all right." Mr. D said not paying too much attention.

Grover bit a huge shard out of the empty aluminum can and chewed it mournfully.

"Wait," I told Chiron. "You are telling me there's such a thing as God."

"Well, now," Chiron said. "God –capital G, God. That's a different matter altogether. We will not deal with the metaphysical."

I asked "Metaphysical? But you were just talking about-"

"Ah, gods, plural, as in, great beings that control the forces of nature and human endeavors: the immortal gods of Olympus. That is a smaller matter."

"Smaller!?" I exclaimed

"Yes, quite. The gods we discussed in Latin class." Chiron said.

"Like Zeus," I said. 'Poseidon and Apollo. You mean them." And there it was again distant thunder on a cloudless day.

"Young man," said Mr. D. "I would really be less casual about throwing those names around, if I were you." There was an air of warning in is voice.

"But they are stories,' I said. "They are mere myths, to explain lightning and the seasons and stuff. They are what people believed before there was science."

"Science!?" Mr. D scoffed. "And tell me, Perseus Jackson"

I flinched when he said my real name, which I never told anybody.

"What will people think of your "science" two thousand years from now?" Mr. D continued. "Hmm? They will call it primitive mumbo jumbo. That's what. Oh, I love mortals – they have absolutely no sense of perspective. They think they have come sooo far. And have they, Chiron? Look at this boy and tell me!"

I was not liking Mr. D much, but there was something about the way he called me mortal, as if… he was not. It was enough to put a lump in my throat, to suggest why Grover was dutifully minding his cards, chewing his soda can, and keeping his mouth shut.

"Percy," Chiron said, "you may choose to believe or not, but the fact is that immortal means immortal. Can you imagine that for a moment, never dying? Never fading? Existing, just as you are, for all time?"

I was about to answer, off the top of my head, that it sounded like a pretty good deal, but the tone of Chiron's voice made me hesitate.

"You mean, whether people believed in you or not," I said.

"Exactly," Chiron agreed. "If you were a god, how would you like being called a myth, an old story to explain lightning? What if I told you, Perseus Jackson, that someday people would call you a myth, just created to explain how little boys can get over losing their mothers?"

My heart pounded. He was trying to make me angry for some reason, but I wasn't going to let him. I said, "I would not like it. But I do not believe in gods!"

"Oh, you had better," Mr. D murmured. "Before one of them incinerates you."

Grover pleaded with Mr. D "P-please, sir. He has just lost his mother. He is still in shock."

"A lucky thing, too," Mr. D grumbled, playing a card. "Bad enough I am confined to this miserable job, working with boys who don't even believe!" He waved his hand and a goblet appeared on the table, as if the sunlight had bent, momentarily, and woven the air into glass. The goblet filled itself with red wine.

My jaw dropped, but Chiron hardly looked up when he said "Mr. D," he warned, "your restrictions."

Mr. D looked at the wine and feigned surprise. "Dear me." He looked at the sky and yelled, "Old habits! Sorry!"

More thunder.

Mr. D waved his hand again, and the wineglass changed into a fresh can of Diet Coke. He sighed unhappily, popped the top of the soda, and went back to his card game.

Chiron winked at me. "Mr. D offended his father a while back, took a fancy to a wood nymph who had been declared off limits."

"A wood nymph?" I repeated, still staring at the Diet Coke can like it was from outer space.

"Yes," Mr. D confessed. "Father loves to punish me. The first time, Prohibition. Ghastly! Absolutely horrid ten years! The second time – well, she really was pretty, and I could not stay away the second time, he sent me here. Half Blood Hill. Summer camp for brats like you. 'Be a better influence,' he told me. 'Work with youths rather than tearing them down.' Ha! Absolutely unfair!" Mr. D sounded about six years old, like a pouting little kid.

"And…" I stammered, "Your father is…"

"Di immortales, Chiron," Mr. D said. "I thought you taught this boy the basics. My father is Zeus, of course."

I ran through D names from Greek mythology. Wine, the skin of a tiger, the satyrs that all seemed to work here. The way Grover cringed, as if Mr. D were his master.

"You are Dionysus," I said. "The god of wine."

Mr. D rolled his eyes. "What do they say, these days, Grover? Do the children say, 'Well, duh!'?"

"Y yes, Mr. D." Grover stuttered.

"Then, Well, duh! Percy Jackson. Did you think I was Aphrodite, perhaps?"

"You are a god." I could not wrap my mind around it.

"Yes, child." He replied

"A god. You." I think I had too much information at once, my brain choked. It stopped working.

He turned to look at me straight on, and I saw a kind of purplish fire in his eyes, a hint that this whiny, plump little man was only showing me the tiniest bit of his true nature. I saw visions of grape vines choking unbelievers to death, drunken warriors insane with battle lust, sailors screaming as their hands turned to flippers, their faces elongating into dolphin snouts. I knew that if I pushed him, Mr. D would show me worse things. He would plant a disease in my brain that would leave me wearing a straitjacket in a rubber room for the rest of my life.

"Would you like to test me, child?" he said quietly.

"No. No, sir." I replied slightly shaken. I wonder if he did that to Peter.

The fire died a little. He turned back to his card game. "I believe I win." He said with a grin growing on his face.

"Not quite, Mr. D," Chiron said. He set down a straight, tallied the points, and said, 'The game goes to me."

I thought Mr. D was going to vaporize Chiron right out of his wheelchair, but he just sighed through his nose, as if he were used to being beaten by the Latin teacher. He got up, and Grover rose, too.

"I am tired," Mr. D said. "I believe I will take a nap before the sing along tonight. But first, Grover, we need to talk, again, about your less than perfect performance on this assignment."

Grover's face beaded with sweat. "Y yes, sir."

Mr. D turned to me. "Cabin eleven, Percy Jackson. And mind your manners." He swept into the farmhouse, Grover following miserably.

'Will Grover be okay?' I asked Chiron.

Chiron nodded, though he looked a bit troubled. "Old Dionysus is not really mad. He just hates his job. He has been… ah, grounded, I guess you would say, and he can't stand waiting another century before he is allowed to go back to Olympus."

"Mount Olympus," I said. "You are telling me there really is a palace there?"

"Well now, there's Mount Olympus in Greece. And then there is the home of the gods, the convergence point of their powers, which did indeed used to be on Mount Olympus. It's still called Mount Olympus, out of respect to the old ways, but the palace moves, Percy, just as the gods do."

"You mean the Greek gods are here? Like… in America?" I asked.

"Well most certainly! The gods move with the heart of the West." Chiron said.

"The what?" I asked.

"Come now, Percy. What you call 'Western civilization'. Do you think it's just an abstract concept? No, it's a living force. A collective consciousness that has burned bright for thousands of years. The gods are part of it. You might even say they are the source of it, or at least, they are tied so tightly to it that they couldn't possibly fade, not unless all of Western civilizations were to be obliterated." Chiron took a breathe and went into teacher mode. "The fire started in Greece. Then, as you well know or as I hope you know, since you passed my course the heart of the fire moved to Rome, and so did the gods. Oh, different names, perhaps Jupiter for Zeus, Venus for Aphrodite, and so on but the same forces, the same gods."

"And then they died?" I asked.

"Died? No. Did the West die? The gods simply moved, to Germany, to France, to Spain, for a while. Wherever the flame was brightest, the gods were there. They spent several centuries in England. All you need to do is look at the architecture. People do not forget the gods. Every place they have ruled, for the last three thousand years, you can see them in paintings, in statues, on the most important buildings. And yes, Percy, of course they are now in your United States. Look at your symbol, the eagle of Zeus. Look at the statue of Prometheus in Rockefeller Center, the Greek facades of your government buildings in Washington. I defy you to find any American city where the

Olympians are not prominently displayed in multiple places. Like it or not and believe me, plenty of people were not very fond of Rome, either America is now the heart of the flame. It is the great power of the West. And so Olympus is here. And we are here."

It was all too much, especially the fact that I seemed to be included in Chiron's we, as if I were part of some club. "Who are you, Chiron? Who… who am I?"

Chiron smiled. He shifted his weight as if he were going to get up out of his wheelchair, but I knew that was impossible. He was paralyzed from the waist down. "Who are you," he mused. "Well, that is the question we all want answered, is it noy? But for now, we should get you a bunk in cabin eleven. There will be new friends to meet. And plenty of time for lessons tomorrow. Besides, there will be toasted marshmallows at the campfire tonight, and I simply adore them."

And then he did rise from his wheelchair. But there was something odd about the way he did it. His blanket fell away from his legs, but the legs didn't move. His waist kept getting longer, rising above his belt. At first, I thought he was wearing very long, white velvet underwear, but as he kept rising out of the chair, taller than any man, I realized that the velvet underwear wasn't underwear; it was the front of an animal, muscle and sinew under coarse white fur. And the wheelchair wasn't a chair. It was some kind of container, an enormous box on wheels, and it must've been magic, because there is no way it could've held all of him. A leg came out, long and knobby-kneed, with a huge polished hoof. Then another front leg, then hindquarters, and then the box was empty, nothing but a metal shell with a couple of fake human legs attached.

I stared at the horse who had just sprung from the wheelchair: a huge white stallion. But where its neck should be was the upper body of my Latin teacher, smoothly grafted to the horse's trunk.

"What a relief!" the centaur said. "I had been cooped up in there so long, my fetlocks had fallen asleep! Now, come, Percy Jackson. Let us meet the other campers."

(Line Break)

(Still Percy's Point of View)

Once I got over the fact that my Latin teacher was a horse, we had a nice tour, though I was careful not to walk behind him. I had done pooper scooper patrol in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade a few times, and, I am sorry, I did not trust Chiron's back end the way I trusted his front.

We passed the volleyball pit. Several of the campers nudged each other. One pointed to the Minotaur horn I was carrying.

Another said, "That's him."

Most of the campers were older than me. Their satyr friends were bigger than Grover, all of them trotting around in orange CAMP HALF-BLOOD T-shirts, with nothing else to cover their bare shaggy hindquarters.

I was not normally shy, but the way they stared at me made me uncomfortable. I felt like they were expecting me to do a cartwheel or something.

I looked back at the farmhouse. It was a lot bigger than I'd realized – four stories tall, sky blue with white trim, like an up market seaside resort. I was checking out the brass eagle weather vane on top when something caught my eye, a shadow in the uppermost window of the attic gable. Something had moved the curtain, just for a second, and I got the distinct impression I was being watched.

"What is up there?" I asked Chiron.

He looked where I was pointing, and his smile faded. "Just the attic."

'Somebody lives there?' I asked.

"No," he said with finality. "Not a single living thing."

I got the feeling he was being truthful. But I was also sure something had moved that curtain.

"Come along, Percy," Chiron said, his lighthearted tone now a little forced. "There is a lot to see."

We walked through the strawberry fields, where campers were picking bushels of berries while a satyr played a tune on a reed pipe.

Chiron told me the camp grew a nice crop for export to New York restaurants and Mount Olympus. "It pays our expenses," he explained. "And the strawberries take almost no effort."

He said Mr. D had this effect on fruit-bearing plants: they just went crazy when he was around. It worked best with wine grapes, but Mr. D was restricted from growing those, so they grew strawberries instead.

I watched the satyr playing his pipe. His music was causing lines of bugs to leave the strawberry patch in every direction, like refugees fleeing a fire. I wondered if Grover could work that kind of magic with music. I wondered if he was still inside the farmhouse, being lectured by Mr. D.

"Grover will not get in too much trouble, will he?" I asked Chiron. 'I mean… he was a good protector. Really."

Chiron sighed. He shed his tweed jacket and draped it over his horse's back like a saddle. "Grover has big dreams, Percy. Perhaps bigger than are reasonable. To reach his goal, he must first demonstrate great courage by succeeding as a keeper, finding a new camper and bringing him safely to Half Blood Hill."

"But he did that!" I said, he did his best protecting me and Peter.

"I might agree with you," Chiron said. "But it is not my place to judge. Dionysus and the Council of Cloven Elders must decide. I am afraid they might not see this assignment as a success. After all, Grover lost you in New York. Then there is the unfortunate… ah… fate of your mother. And the fact that Grover was unconscious when you dragged him over the property line. The council might question whether this shows any courage on Grover's part."

I wanted to protest. None of what had happened was Grover's fault. I also felt really, really guilty. If I had not given Grover the slip at the bus station, he might not have got in trouble.

"He will get a second chance, won't he?" I half asked and half pleaded.

Chiron winced. "I am afraid that wasGrover's second chance, Percy. The council was not anxious to give him another, either, after what happened the first time, five years ago. Olympus knows, I advised him to wait longer before trying again. He is still so small for his age…"

"How old is he?" I asked curiously.

"Oh, twenty-eight." Chiron said as if it was normal.

"What! And he is in sixth grade?" Yup today I have gone insane, I fought Man Bulls, I met a centaur, I am a friend with a satyrs. Yup when I get back into the city I am checking into the nearest mental hospital!

"Satyrs mature half as fast as humans, Percy. Grover has been the equivalent of a middle school student for the past six years." Chiron explained.

"That is absolutely horrible!" I can barely stay in school at all. I have been to at least six different schools in the past six year, and I cannot go back to Yancy, meaning at least seven schools in six year! Great a new record!

"Quite," Chiron agreed. "At any rate, Grover is a late bloomer, even by satyr standards, and not yet very accomplished at woodland magic. Alas, he was anxious to pursue his dream. Perhaps now he will find some other career…"

"That is not fair,' I said. "What happened the first time? Was it really so bad?"

Chiron looked away quickly. "Let's move along, shall we?"

But I was not quite ready to let the subject drop. Something had occurred to me when Chiron talked about my mother's fate, as if he were intentionally avoiding the word death.

The beginnings of an idea a tiny, hopeful fire started forming in my mind. "Chiron," I said. "If the gods and Olympus and all that are real…"

"Yes, child?" He said waiting for me to continue.

I asked "Does that mean the Underworld is real, too?"

Chiron's expression darkened "Yes, child." He paused, as if choosing his words carefully. "There is a place where spirits go after death. But for now… until we know more… I would urge you to put that out of your mind."

I caught onto his words and asked "What do you mean, 'until we know more'?"

Chiron deflected the question and said "Come, Percy. Let's see the woods."

As we got closer, I realized just how huge the forest was. It took up at least a quarter of the valley, with trees so tall and thick, you could imagine nobody had been in there since the Native Americans.

Chiron said, "The woods are stocked, if you care to try your luck, but go armed."

"Stocked with what?" I asked. "Armed with what?" I tried looking deeper into the woods hoping to see a glimpse of something. I swear I saw a shadow move and a glint of sliver.

"You will see. Capture the flag is Friday night. Do you have your own sword and shield?"

"My own…" I began to say something, but Chiron cut me off.

"No," Chiron said. "I do not think you do. I think a size five will do. I will visit the armoury later."

I wanted to ask what kind of summer camp had an armoury, but there was too much else to think about, so the tour continued.

We saw the archery range, the canoeing lake, the stables (which Chiron did not seem to like very much), the javelin range, the sing along amphitheatre, and the arena where Chiron said they held sword and spear fights.

"Sword and spear fights?" I asked.

"Cabin challenges and all that," he explained. "Not lethal. Usually. Oh, yes, and there's the mess hall."

Chiron pointed to an outdoor pavilion framed in white Grecian columns on a hill overlooking the sea. There were a dozen stone picnic tables. I noticed that there was no roof and no walls.

"What do you do when it rains?" I asked.

Chiron looked at me as if I'd gone a little weird. "We still have to eat, don't we?" I decided to drop the subject for now.

Finally, he showed me the cabins. There were twelve of them, nestled in the woods by the lake.

They were arranged in a U, with two at the base and five in a row on either side. And they were without doubt the most bizarre collection of buildings I'd ever seen. Except for the fact that each had a large brass number above the door (odds on the left side, evens on the right), they looked absolutely nothing alike.

Number nine had smokestacks like a tiny factory.

Number four had tomato vines on the walls and a roof made out of real grass.

Seven seemed to be made of solid gold, which gleamed so much in the sunlight it was almost impossible to look at.

They all faced a commons area about the size of a soccer field, dotted with Greek statues, fountains, flower beds, and a couple of basketball hoops (which were more my speed).

In the centre of the field was a huge stone-lined fire pit. Even though it was a warm afternoon, the hearth smoldered. A girl about nine years old was tending the flames, poking the coals with a stick. She looked up at me and smiled and waved, I felt a surge of warmth and a feeling of home came to me.

The pair of cabins at the head of the field, numbers one and two, looked like his-and-hers mausoleums, big white marble boxes with heavy columns in front.

Cabin one was the biggest and bulkiest of the twelve. Its polished bronze doors shimmered like a holograph, so that from different angles lightning bolts seemed to streak across them.

Cabin two was more graceful somehow, with slimmer columns garlanded with pomegranates and flowers. The walls were carved with images of peacocks.

"Zeus and Hera?" I guessed.

"Correct," Chiron said.

"Their cabins look empty." I stated.

"Several of the cabins are. That is true. No one ever stays in one or two."

Okay. So each cabin had a different god, like a mascot. Twelve cabins for the twelve Olympians. But why would some be empty?

I stopped in front of the first cabin on the left, cabin three. It was not high and mighty like cabin one, but long and low and solid. The outer walls were of rough grey stone studded with pieces of seashell and coral, as if the slabs had been hewn straight from the bottom of the ocean floor.

I peeked inside the open doorway and Chiron said, "Oh, I wouldn't do that!"

Before he could pull me back, I caught the salty scent of the interior, like the wind on the shore at Montauk. The interior walls glowed like abalone. There were six empty bunk beds with silk sheets turned down. But there was no sign anyone had ever slept there. The place felt so sad and lonely, I was glad when Chiron put his hand on my shoulder and said, "Come along, Percy."

Most of the other cabins were crowded with campers.

Number five was bright red – a real nasty paint job, as if the colour had been splashed on with buckets and fists. The roof was lined with barbed wire. A stuffed wild boar's head hung over the doorway, and its eyes seemed to follow me. Inside I could see a bunch of mean-looking kids, both girls and boys, arm wrestling and arguing with each other while rock music blared. The loudest was a girl maybe thirteen or fourteen. She wore a size XXXL Camp Half-Blood T-shirt under a camouflage jacket. She zeroed in on me and gave me an evil sneer.

She reminded me of Nancy Bobofit, though the camper girl was much bigger and tougher looking, and her hair was long and stringy, and brown instead of red.

I kept walking, trying to stay clear of Chiron's hooves. "We have not seen any other centaurs." I observed.

"No," said Chiron sadly. "My kinsmen are a wild and barbaric folk, I am afraid. You might encounter them in the wilderness, or at major sporting events. But you will not see any here."

I asked him "You said your name was Chiron. Are you really…"

He smiled down at me. And said "The Chiron from the stories? Trainer of Hercules and all that? Yes, Percy, I am."

"But, shouldn't you be dead?" I asked.

Chiron paused, as if the question intrigued him. "I honestly do not know about should be. The truth is, I can't be dead. You see, eons ago the gods granted my wish. I could continue the work I loved. I could be a teacher of heroes as long as humanity needed me. I gained much from that wish… and I gave up much. But I am still here, so I can only assume I am still needed."

I thought about being a teacher for three thousand years. It would not have made my Top Ten Things to Wish For list. "Doesn't it ever get boring?" I asked.

"No, no," he said. "Horribly depressing, at times, but never boring."

"Why is it depressing?" I asked

Chiron seemed to turn hard of hearing again. "Oh, look," he said. "Annabeth is waiting for us."

The blonde girl I'd met at the Big House was reading a book in front of the last cabin on the left, number eleven.

When we reached her, she looked me over critically, like she was still thinking about how much I drooled.

I tried to see what she was reading, but I couldn't make out the title. I thought my dyslexia was acting up. Then I realized the title wasn't even English. The letters looked Greek to me. I mean, literally Greek. There were pictures of temples and statues and different kinds of columns, like those in an architecture book.

"Annabeth," Chiron said, "I have masters' archery class at noon. Would you take Percy from here?"

"Yes, sir." Was her reply.

"Cabin eleven," Chiron told me, gesturing towards the doorway. "Make yourself at home."

Out of all the cabins, eleven looked the most like a regular old summer camp cabin, with the emphasis on old. The threshold was worn down, the brown paint peeling. Over the doorway was one of those doctor's symbols, a winged pole with two snakes wrapped around it. What did they call it…? A caduceus?

Inside, it was packed with people, both boys and girls, way more than the number of bunk beds. Sleeping bags were spread all over on the floor. It looked like a gym where the Red Cross had set up an evacuation centre.

Chiron did not go in. The door was too low for him. But when the campers saw him they all stood and bowed respectfully.

"Well, then," Chiron said. "Good luck, Percy. I will see you at dinner." He galloped away towards the archery range.

I stood in the doorway, looking at the kids. They were not bowing any more. They were staring at me, sizing me up. I knew this routine. I had gone through it at enough schools.

"Well?" Annabeth prompted. "Go on."

So naturally I tripped coming in the door and made a total fool of myself. There were some snickers from the campers, but none of them said anything.

Annabeth announced, "Percy Jackson, meet cabin eleven."

"Regular or undetermined?" somebody asked.

I did not know what to say, but Annabeth said, "Undetermined."

Everybody groaned.

A guy who was a little older than the rest came forward. "Now, now, campers. That is what we're here for. Welcome, Percy. You can have that spot on the floor, right over there."

The guy was about nineteen, and he looked pretty cool. He was tall and muscular, with short cropped sandy hair and a friendly smile. He wore an orange tank top, cutoffs, sandals and a leather necklace with five different colored clay beads. The only thing unsettling about his appearance was a thick white scar that ran from just beneath his right eye to his jaw, like an old knife s***h.

"This is Luke," Annabeth said, and her voice sounded different somehow. I glanced over and could have sworn she was blushing. She saw me looking, and her expression hardened again. "He is your counselor for now."

"For now?" I asked.

"You are undetermined," Luke explained patiently. "They do not know what cabin to put you in, so you are here. Cabin eleven takes all newcomers, all visitors. Naturally, we would. Hermes, our patron, is the god of travellers."

I looked at the tiny section of floor they had given me. I had nothing to put there to mark it as my own, no luggage, no clothes, no sleeping bag. Just the Minotaur's horn. I thought about setting that down, but then I remembered that Hermes was also the god of thieves.

I looked around at the campers' faces, some sullen and suspicious, some grinning stupidly, some eyeing me as if they were waiting for a chance to pick my pockets. I also looked for something at would belong to Peter, but he like me, had nothing so pack or lose in this case.

"How long will I be here?" I asked.

"Good question," Luke said. "Until you are determined."

"How long will that take?" I asked.

The campers all laughed as if I told a great joke.

"Come on," Annabeth told me. "I will show you the volleyball court."

"But I have already seen it." I whined.

"Come on." She grabbed my wrist and dragged me outside. I could hear the kids of cabin eleven laughing behind me.

When we were a few meters away, Annabeth said, "Jackson, you have to do better than that."

"What?" Will someone please actually give me a straight answer?!

She rolled her eyes and mumbled under her breath, "I can't believe I thought you were the one."

"What is your problem?" I was getting angry now. "All I know is, I kill some bull guy-"

"Do not talk like that!" Annabeth told me. "You know how many kids at this camp wish they woul, had your chance?"

"To what? A chance to get killed?!" I exclaimed.

"To fight the Minotaur! What do you think we train for?!" Annabeth said frustrated.

I shook my head. "Look, if the thing I fought really was the Minotaur, the same one in the stories…"

"Yes…" She waited for me to continue.

"Then there is only one of them right?" I asked.

She said "Yes."

"And he died, like, a gajillion years ago, right? Theseus killed him in the labyrinth. So…"

"Monsters do not die, Percy. They can be killed. But they do not die." She explained.

"Oh, thanks. That clears it up." I said with sarcasm thick in my voice.

"They do not have souls, like you and me. You can dispel them for a while, maybe even for a whole lifetime if you are lucky. But they are primal forces. Chiron calls them archetypes. Eventually, they reform."

I thought about Mrs. Dodd. "You mean if I killed one, accidentally, with a sword…"

"The Fu… I mean, your math teacher. That is correct. She is still out there. You just made her very, very mad."

"How did you know about Mrs. Dodd?'

"You talk in your sleep." She said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, I remember Peter telling me o both drooled and spoke in my sleep, I thought he might have been joking until now.

"You almost called her something. A Fury? They are Hades' torturers, right?"

Annabeth glanced nervously at the ground, as if she expected it to open up and swallow her. "You should not call them by name, even here. We call them the Kindly Ones, if we have to speak of them at all."

"Look, is there anything we can say without it thundering?" I sounded whiny, even to myself, but right then I did not care. "Why do I have to stay in cabin eleven, anyway? Why is everybody so crowded together? There are plenty of empty bunks right over there."

I pointed to the first few cabins, and Annabeth turned pale. "You do not just choose a cabin, Percy. It depends on who your parents are. Or… your parent."

She stared at me, waiting for me to get it.

"My mom is Sally Jackson," I said. "She works at the candy store in Grand Central Station. At least, she used to…" I choked back tears that wanted to fall, I willed them to stay back.

"I am sorry about your mom, Percy. But that is not what I mean. I am talking about your other parent: Your dad."

"He is dead. I never knew him." I said.

Annabeth sighed. Clearly, she would had this conversation before with other kids. "Your father is not dead, Percy."

"How can you say that? You know him?" I asked half excited and half critical.

"No, of course not!" She said irritatedly.

"Then how can you say –"

"Because I know you. You would not be here if you were not one of us!"

"You do not know anything about me!" I said, once again growing frustrated.

"No?" She raised an eyebrow. "I bet you moved around from school to school. I bet you were kicked out of a lot of them."

"How-" She cut me off, she was on a roll.

"Diagnosed with dyslexia. Probably ADHD, too."

I tried to swallow my embarrassment. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"Taken together, it is almost a sure sign. The letters float off the page when you read, right? That's because your mind is hardwired for ancient Greek. And the ADHD; you are impulsive, can't sit still in the classroom. That's your battlefield reflexes. In a real fight, they'd keep you alive. As for the attention problems, that is because you see too much, Percy, not too little. Your senses are better than a regular mortal's. Of course the teachers want you medicated. Most of them are monsters. They do not want you seeing them for what they are."

"You sound like… you went through the same thing?" I asked forgetting about my anger.

"Most of the kids here did. If you were not like us, you could not have survived the Minotaur, much less the ambrosia and nectar."

I asked "Ambrosia and nectar."

"The food and drink we were giving you to make you better. That stuff would have killed a normal kid. It would have turned your blood to fire and your bones to sand and you would be dead. Face it. You are a half blood."

A half-blood. I was reeling with so many questions I Did not know where to start.

Then a husky voice yelled, "Well! A newbie!"

I looked over. The big girl from the ugly red cabin was sauntering towards us. She had three other girls behind her, all big and ugly and mean looking like her, all wearing camo jackets.

"Clarisse," Annabeth sighed. "Why do not you go polish your spear or something?"

"Sure, Miss Princess," the big girl said with a sneer "So I can run you through with it Friday night."

"Errete es korakas," Annabeth said, which I somehow understood was Greek for "Go to the crows", though I had a feeling it was a worse curse than it sounded. "You do not stand a chance!"

"We will pulverize you!" Clarisse said, but her eye twitched. Perhaps she was not sure she could follow through on the threat. She turned towards me. "Who is this little runt?"

"Percy Jackson" Annabeth said, "meet Clarisse, Daughter of Ares."

I blinked. "Like… the war god?"

Clarisse sneered. "You got a problem with that?"

"No," I said, recovering my wits. "It explains the bad smell."

Clarisse growled. "We got an initiation ceremony for newbies, Prissy."

"Percy." I said with a growl. I did not like cabin five at all now.

"Whatever. Come on, I will show you." Clarisse said.

"Clarisse-" Annabeth tried to say.

"Stay out of it, wise girl."

Annabeth looked pained, but she did stay out of it, and I did not really want her help. I was the new kid. I had to earn my own rep.

I handed Annabeth my Minotaur horn and got ready to fight, but before I knew it, Clarisse had me by the neck and was dragging me towards a cinder-block building that I knew immediately was the bathroom.

I was kicking and punching. I had been in plenty of fights before, but this big girl Clarisse had hands like iron. She dragged me into the girls' bathroom. There was a line of toilets on one side and a line of shower stalls down the other. It smelled just like any public bathroom, and I was thinking as much as I could think with Clarisse ripping my hair out that if this place belonged to the gods, they should have been able to afford classier toilets.

Clarisse's friends were all laughing, and I was trying to find the strength I'd used to fight the Minotaur, but it just was not there.

"Like he is 'Big Three' material," Clarisse said as she pushed me towards one of the toilets. "Yeah, right. Minotaur probably fell over laughing, he was so stupid-looking."

Her friends snickered.

Annabeth stood in the corner, watching through her fingers.

Clarisse bent me over on my knees and started pushing my head towards the toilet bowl. It reeked like rusted pipes and, well, like what goes into toilets. I strained to keep my head up. I was looking at the scummy water thinking, I will not go into that. I just won't!

Then something happened. I felt a tug in the pit of my stomach. I heard the plumbing rumble, the pipes shudder. Clarisse's grip on my hair loosened. Water shot out of the toilet, making an arc straight over my head, and the next thing I knew, I was sprawled on the bathroom tiles with Clarisse screaming behind me.

I turned just as water blasted out of the toilet again, hitting Clarisse straight in the face so hard it pushed her down onto her butt. The water stayed on her like the spray from a fire hose, pushing her backwards into a shower stall.

She struggled, gasping, and her friends started coming towards her. But then the other toilets exploded, too, and six more streams of toilet water blasted them back. The showers acted up, too, and together all the fixtures sprayed the camouflage girls right out of the bathroom, spinning them around like pieces of garbage being washed away.

As soon as they were out the door, I felt the tug in my gut lessen, and the water shut off as quickly as it had started.

The entire bathroom was flooded. Annabeth hadn't been spared. She was dripping wet, but she had not been pushed out the door. She was standing in exactly the same place, staring at me in shock.

I looked down and realized I was sitting in the only dry spot in the whole room. There was a circle of dry floor around me. I did not have one drop of water on my clothes. Nothing. I stood up, my legs shaky.

Annabeth began to ask me, "How did you…"

I told her the truth "I do not know."

We walked to the door. Outside, Clarisse and her friends were sprawled in the mud, and a bunch of other campers had gathered around to gawk. Clarisse's hair was flattened across her face. Her

camouflage jacket was sopping and she smelled like sewage. She gave me a look of absolute hatred.

"You… are… dead, new boy. You are totally dead!"

I probably should have let it go, but I said, "You want to gargle with toilet water again, Clarisse? Then close your mouth!"

Her friends had to hold her back. They dragged her towards cabin five, while the other campers made way to avoid her flailing feet.

Annabeth stared at me. I could not tell whether she was just grossed out or angry at me for dousing her.

"What?" I demanded. "What are you thinking?"

"I am thinking," She said, "that I want you on my team for capture the flag."

(Line Break)

(Flash Back: 36 Hours Ago"

(Peter's Point of View)

Annabeth tried to tell me about the camp and about the overall Greek Mythology and how most of it was real. I knew that much to be true! I have a gift of making people real angry really quickly. She stormed off, leaving me alone.

I chuckled when she stormed off; they warned me about the woods and how it can be dangerous, but me being me. I will take my chances. I mean what is the worst that happens? I die? Worse has happened already.

I wanted to keep as much of my weapons that I can unknown. My sister taught me that. She was the best…

A was walking in the woods when. I heard a crunch on the dead leaves. I formed a sword out of the shadows and darkness around me.

I could smell something in the woods, it was some sort of dog thing, but it was not a dog, it reeked, I cannot place the smell, but I smelt it from somewhere…"

It was NOT a Hell Hound, nor was it any wolf I had ever smelt. This creature was far faster than most things, I could tell there was only one, unless thing one was a distraction while the others sneak up, but that is very unlikely, I would have sensed other bodies of water.

I felt a tingly sensation on the back of my head, and it seemed as if time slowed down, my body moved on autopilot as I dove to the right, a huge gash appeared in the tree that was next to me a second ago.

I growled and said with a snarl in my voice "You want to play? Then let's play!" I crouched down and pulled out my eight inch silver double edged dagger from my right boot and I held it in reverse grip. That way not only was it a strong attack (though it lacked the range that a standard does) it was also defensive, when I held it, I held it so it guarded my inside of the forearm where all of the veins are.

I also formed a sword out of darkness and ice. I absorbed the moisture from the air then froze it into ice. It was a short sword, but it would pair nicely with the dagger.

I shut my eyes and I could feel something coming from behind, once again I felt time slow as the tingly sensation happened at the back of my head. This time my body jumped up and did a back flip, I landed on the…

Werewolf?!

I just landed on a freaking werewolf!

I back flipped, and then landed on a werewolf… Ok I am just going to accept it for now and worry about the remaining of my sanity later. Once I landed on the werewolf's shoulder I instinctively stabbed the werewolf in the head with the silver knife, while at the same time, I used my shadow and ice sword to stab him in the heart. The werewolf turned into a pile of golden dust.

I fell and almost landed on my ice and shadow short sword. I looked my body over for bites or any other injury. I found a actually relatively deep scratch on the back of my right elbow… Maybe I landed wrong when I dove out of the way right?

I once again pulled water out of the air and then I placed the pure water on my wound, it began to heal, it was healing slower than normal, but far faster than any mortal and faster than most half bloods. Once I was healed I felt my adrenaline rush die. I was exhausted, pulling water out of the air and turning it to ice takes a lot out of you. Maybe I should have let a person or two know where I was…

I saw a creek, I stumbled towards it. I made it to the creek's edge where my legs gave out, I face planted on the rocks, somehow I did not chip any teeth and I did not break my nose. I felt darkness coming, I tried to will the water to me, but I was too drained.

I must have drawn the attention of the naiad of the creek. I saw a face of a beautiful girl as I felt a pair of wet hands help me into the creek before I fell into darkness…

(Line Break)

(Time Skip: 3 Hours Later)

(Peter's Point of View)

I woke up sometime later underwater. I still felt tired, but I was no longer crippled by exhaustion. I looked around and I was lying on stones of a creek bed. I looked around and I saw the naiad that helped me before I fell. I tried to speak, but my throat was dry, which is not possible, due to me being under water… yet is his happening…

My voice was weak and pain as I croaked out "What happened?" I went into a coughing fit.

She swam over and rubbed my back, I flinched and froze the moment she touched me, but I quickly recovered and allowed her to try to help me.

She asked me "What happened to you? When you got here, you were nearly dead!"

I muttered an apology about being at death's door so close to her front porch. She gave me a look that my sister gave to me when she wanted answers that said 'shut up and give me what I want NOW!' I gave her a nod and told her about me being new to Camp Half Blood, and I told her about my old life, or parts of it.

She told me I could always come to the creek whenever I would like, and she would tell the other naiad and nymphs about me. I tried to convince her not to, but she would not take no for an answer, at least I know she cares.

I never did get her name; either that or she had no name.

She gave me some short of berry and apologized for not having anything better, I told her not to worry about it, and the berries were great, and they were!

We spoke for some time before I was ushered back into a deep slumber…

However, that sleep was not dreamless. I dreamed that was under ground with a blood red sky. The ground was made of broken black glass. The air was thick with sulfur that burned my throat. The air itself was murderous. There was a river of fire, no not lava, but literally a river of fire that was a scar on the dark landscape.

I saw someone, he was nearly six foot maybe six foot two inches, and between two hundred and two hundred and twenty pounds, pure muscles, not a trace of fat. He had brown hair and icy blue eyes. All he had was a pair of black skin tight pants. He had a few scars on his body, but they seemed to be fading. He had some sort of claw that looked like to be made of bone coming out of his middle knuckle; it was covered in red, liking like it was bloody.

He looked in my direction as he sheathed his claws within his forearm. He grinned and said "Hello my friend."

I was about to freak out, but a huge man in cruel black armor walked through me, I could sense power rolling off him in waves. He said in a deep calm voice, "Hello Peter. Next time contact me before blowing steam, I thought one of the monster were being releashed."

Peter chuckled darkly and said "One was…" I had a feeling they were talking about to different monsters…

I had a few questions; One, why am I dreaming this and why am I having a déjà moment? Two, why is this guy named Peter and why do I recognize this man in dark armor? Three, I have a feeling I have been there and done that, and so much more…

The scene changed from the from the cruel underworld of the Underworld.

I now stood in the center of camp, I walked around a little, and most of the tents were silvery in color. The moon was far brighter than I have ever seen it. The trees around looked like there were far older than a century. There was a fire in the center of camp; there were about ten tents, I looked around and saw nobody. I walked towards the fire and when I did, I saw a glimpse of silver and a shadow of black flash by.

I looked around and saw the same man standing in the shadows with a bow made out of two metals one was black and the other was a red metal. He was wearing some sort of mail armor that was black; on his chest was a white or maybe a sliver colored symbol of a star, moon, wolf and a spider. The main two were moon and spider. But at the same time it looked like a blank space, just all black. I had a feeling that, that was a trick of my mind.

A girl of about sixteen years old, but I could tell she was much, much older and far more powerful than a mortal. She said "Nice try Pete, maybe you can beat me next time."

Peter chuckled with a happy grin on his face "Maybe next time Arty? I thought I won because I spit a few arrows more than you did."

'Arty' blushed and said trying to be mad "I shot more arrows so I won!"

Peter chuckled and said "Whatever you say Arty, whatever you say."

Arty playfully push Peter's chest knocking him off the tree he was leaning on. Peter stumbled and fell on his backside, but I could tell he was playing around with her.

Arty rushed over and tried to help Peter up, but Peter pulled her down on top of him and locked his arms and legs around her. Peter whispered in her ear "I've got you now Artemis… What are you going to do now?"

Arty snuggled down into Peter's chest and muttered something that I could not understand. Peter chuckled as he sat up and carried her bridal style. Artemis muttered "I was comfy!" She pouted. She was SOOO cute when she pouted!

I then realized that if this was THEE Artemis she would either kill me or turn me into a jackalope should she find out I thought that!

Peter shook his head chuckling and walked into camp, he carried her towards the largest one. He walked in and about five minute later he walked out, alone.

Another girl between fourteen and sixteen ran to Peter and gave him a huge hug, she had a wolf pendant. Peter gave a hearty laugh and said "It's good to see you too Zoe!"

Zoe pulled away and asked concern filled her eyes "Peter are the rumors true?"

Peter asked "Which ones?"

"Are you going away again?" Zoe asked/

Peter sighed and said sadly "Yes, but I did come and visit with you Arty and the rest of the Hunt. I was not going to leave without giving you and Arty a heads up."

Zoe frowned and sighed "You just came back!"

Peter gave her a sad smile and said "Sorry Zoe, it is a curse the Wanderer must bare and must bare it alone. Maybe in time I can settle down, but now is not the time."

Zoe asked "Promise me you will visit me?"

Peter sighed and said "I will when I can, but you know what happened last time, it took nearly five decades for the thing to go right, then it took another fifteen years to remember! I will if I can, but please do not shoot me on sight if I do not remember you."

"When are you leaving?" Zoe asked him.

Peter said "Tomorrow, either after breakfast or shortly after lunch. I want to say goodbye one last time."

Zoe gave him a weak smile before hugging him one last time.

The scene faded away again.

I then dreamed I saw a man clad in red and blue crawling up a wall. I knew this guy; Spider Man.

He shot a web line and web slung away, my view followed him. He went to a tower with a giant "A" on it. He landed on the helipad and took off his mask, it was Peter!

(Line Break)

(Time Skip: 5 hours)

(Peter's Point of View)

I woke up with a start. The dreams seemed just too real. I felt as if it was me. I was dreaming about myself in third person. I think I am going crazy. I am already only half sane. I am only half crazy it is hard not to fall into full insanity.

I shut my eyes as I calmed myself down, I knew what I saw was real, it happened. But why was I viewing them? I have heard about demigod dreams, but this was not one of them, or at least one that that I have heard of.

I saw the naiad. She looked over to me, eyes full of concern. I told her "I had a nightmare" she believed it easy enough. I thanked her for her hospitality and I left the safety of the creek.

I walked into a shadow and closed my eyes; I pictured myself in my old room at Yancy. I vanished into the darkness.

I appeared in my old room, which was luckily still unused.

I walked out of the room, I had nothing in there. I knew I needed a new trench coat, maybe a Kevlar and leather this time.

I walked out of the room and then I began to walk out of the dorm. I walked until I was out on the street; from there I was able to go to the store.

I went to the store I walked in and glanced at the clothes, none of them spoke to me, and nothing caught my eye. I went to the back of the store where I had first found the trench coats. Lucky for me they still had them. However these ones had a few spikes on the leather, similar to "Ghost Rider". I also bought another pair of spiked gloves. I could not find any leather pants with spikes, but I did not need it.

I went to the pay counter and I purchased them using a black debit card with a skull on it.

I kept my old clothes, because I could patch up the hole later, but I needed new clothes anyway.

I went to the autoshop that was nearby. I walked in and I looked around a bit. It was funny to look at the people giving me queer looks. Let's look from their perspective. A twelve year old, in a sliver spiked, black, leather trench coat, walks into an autoshop. I do not blame them.

I found a good chain somewhere between four and five feet long, it was a little on the heavy side, but it felt nice. I walked to the counter, the clerk opened his mouth, I shot him a glare that told him to shut up and ring the cost. He swiped it and the total cost was $50.25.

I handed him the card, he looked at it skeptically but swiped through the machine anyway. To say he and everyone else was shocked would be a understatement.

I wrapped the chains around my left and right shoulder alternating between the two before leaving the autoshop.

(Line Break)

(Third Person Point of View)

Peter left the autoshop with the chain wrapped around him from the top of his left shoulder, and it wrapping under the right armpit two or three times. The chain was made of stainless steel; each link was about an inch long and a quarter of an inch thick. He wore his black, leather trench coat that had four spikes on each shoulder, and one on each elbow. Granted the spikes ranged from a quarter inch to a half inch. He wore thick, black leather pants.

The reason why he wears leather is not because he is a 'bad boy' (which he is) it is because leather is super durable, and strong. People use to wear leather armor, so Peter wore the leather as a form of protection.

Why does he wear black leather instead of say… brown? He takes after Hades in the fact he likes black, besides black blends in with darkness better than other colors.

Why does he have a hoodie? It is to help hide his face, to hide his identity. He would prefer if he could remain unseen and unknown. He is afraid if someone is able to look into his eyes, they could see what he is; a broken child.

Peter was walking down the street towards his dorm room, when he heard a faint cry for help. He wanted to say it was a mind's trick, or it was another Cyclopes trying to get him again, but deep down he knew it was not, he knew someone needed help, and he was going to be the One.

Peter ran into the shadow and shadow traveled towards the voice. It took four shadow travels, before he could easily hear.

He ran towards the wailing now, he could tell it was definitely female. Something inside him snapped, and his body went on autopilot. He ran right into the alley. There were two large men surrounding a girl about six years old. She was ginger headed, she was wearing a pair of ripped up and dirty jeans, and a filthy pink T shirt. Freckles covered her face and what he could see of her arms.

Peter said in a deadly cold tone will of rage and anger wanting to be unleashed, but it was controlled, but barely "Have you heard the saying 'pick on someone your own size'?"

Dude one said "Who's there?!"

Peter replied stepping out of the shadows "Your worst nightmare!"

Dude two said with a snort "We can take him Rob!"

Rob said with a growl "You are right Chuck!" He pulled out a knife.

Chuck turned around and held a crowbar in hand.

Peter smirked evilly and took a step back into the shadow and he disappeared.

Rob asked freaking out "Where is he?!"

"Right here…" Peter whispered from behind, he snapped the chain, cracking the man's right knee. The man fell hard holding his broken knee. Rob began to cuss. Peter made a wide arc and the chain hit Rob in the head knocking him out cold… for now…

Chuck charged Peter with the crowbar high over head.

Peter folded the chain in half and grabbed onto both ends.

Chuck swung down, Peter used the chain to block the strike, and Peter then used the chain to wrap around the crowbar as he spun out of the way.

The crowbar was ripped out his hands. Peter grabbed the crowbar and he swung at the man's left knee there was a sickening *CRACK* as the knee bent at a sick angle, but to Peter it was a sweet sound.

Chuck fell down and be began to beg for mercy.

Peter looked at him coldly and said "Sorry, I am fresh out of Mercy…" He brought the crowbar crashing down on his head smashing it into the concrete. Peter muttered something in Ancient Greek, the air seemed to become colder and the shadows darker. Chuck's body was swallowed by the darkness.

Peter turned to the little girl who was shaking in fear but was also in shock. She asked in a scared voice "Please don't hurt me!"

Peter's demeanor immediately soften, Peter knelt down to one knee and said softly "I am not going to hurt you, I promise."

The girl opened her eyes, eyes full of tears; she asked "Really?"

Peter gave her a soft smile "Really, I promise never to hurt you. I only hurt those two because they were bad people."

The girl looked hard into his eyes before giving him a shaky nod.

Peter asked "Can I have your name? My name is Peter?"

The girl frowned and said "You already have a name, why do you want mine?"

Peter chuckled and said amused "That means I would like to know your name."

The girl smiled and said "Brook"

The vigilante said to Brook "Do you have any place to stay?"

Brook shook her head and said "No."

The vigilante said "I think I know a place where you will like. It is a place where boys are not allowed, unless it is an extreme emergency."

Brook looked thoughtful before asking "Will I see you again?"

Peter gave a tired shrug and said "Maybe, maybe not. But the answer is probably yes, yes you will."

Brook gave him a smile and nodded her head and jumped up and down in excitement.

Peter put his hand on the ground and he pulled out a diamond. He made a rainbow by using it to refract the light. He tossed a Drachma into the rainbow the coin disappeared then he said "Iris please show me Lady Artemis."

A hologram appeared of a girl looking twelve years old with silver eyes and auburn hair appeared. Peter waited for her to finish taking her shot with the bow before clearing his throat. She shot an arrow straight into Peter's chest, but since it was a hologram it went straight through. Pete said with a bow "Lady Artemis, I have a young girl by the name of Brook, she would like to join the hunt if she could. I do not know where the Hunt is and I do not think I would be welcomed at your camp."

Artemis was speechless for a second, before quickly recovering and saying coldly "I would normally castrate any male her would dare interrupt me, but since you are helping a maiden I will over look it this one time."

Peter gave her another bow and said "Thank you milady." The sun went behind the sun cutting off the Iris Message.

Brook looked at Peter and opened her mouth, Peter said before she could utter a word "There is much to be learned, just know most everything you have been taught has been a lie."

She gave a nod.

Peter asked her while waiting for Artemis "So Brook, do you have any more family?"

Brook shook her head and said "My mommy left me with my daddy when I was born. My daddy died a few months ago. I was living with my mean uncles."

Peter gave her a sad smile and he said "I know your mother loved you. She had to leave to protect you." Peter handed her the diamond and said "Something to remember me by."

Brook smiled and she leapt into his arms, Peter caught, but he stumbled back and he tripped over a garbage can lid then he fell over and hit his head on the wall, knocking him out.

A few moments later, there was a bright silver flash and Artemis stood before them. She saw Peter and she quickly knelt at his side and shot a beam of silver energy into his chest.

Peter's eyes shot open, he relaxed when he saw Brook. He saw Artemis and gave her the best nod he could while lying on his back.

Artemis looked at Brook and they spoke about Greek Mythology and finally they spoke the vows; "I Brook do solemnly swear to sever Lady Artemis all of the days of my life from this day forth. I will turn my back on the company of man."

Artemis said "I accept your oath." She placed a hand on Brook's shoulder and Brook had a slight sliver aura about her.

Peter sat up so he was leaning against the wall. Peter smiled at Brook, happy for her.

Brook looked at Peter then at Artemis, Artemis gave her a nod. Brook gave Peter one last hug before whispering in his "Thank you…"

Peter hugged her back and whispered back "You are welcome Brook, may luck follow you."

Brook smiled before going to Artemis.

Artemis looked at Peter and said "I give you permission to Iris Message me whenever you have news of a maiden."

Peter gave her a deep bow and said "Thank you Lady Artemis!"

Peter looked away and shut his eyes before Artemis flashed herself and Brook away.

Peter heard Rob groan, Peter grabbed his chains, he began to twirl them, and they would hit the ground and spark, making deep gouges in the concrete. He stalked towards him slowly and deliberately. Rob tried to scoot back, but his back was against a wall. He opened his mouth, but Peter said cold "Because you have shown no mercy, none shall be shown towards you. I Peter Perseus curse you do the Field of Punishment, may you never fade and feel pain for the rest of eternity." He swung the chain down in a deadly downward arc killing Rob instantly.

Peter once again muttered in Ancient Greek and the darkness swallowed up the body and it cleaned up the blood stains.

A growl could be heard by Peter. Peter placed a hand on his empty and complaining stomach.

He sighed and walked out of the dark alley. He walked into a nearby fast food joint, he did not care what it was, it would be better than a lot of things he had to eat in the past. He bought double meat and double cheese hamburgers and two large fries, and a two liter bottle of root beer.

Peter sat in the back of the restaurant. He had hid his chains underneath his trench coat so no one would freak out too much more than they were already. Peter wolfed down his food. He left the restaurant just as quickly as he came.

Peter went to a few stores and bought a few chemicals from each store, his body went on autopilot as he got what he needed. He walked to his dorm put the chemicals and watches together as if he had done it before, he modified the watches and once he was done he crashed onto the bed, forgetting about Camp Half Blood.

(Line Break)

(Time Skip: Present)

(Percy's Point of View)

Word of the bathroom incident spread immediately. Wherever I went, campers pointed at me and murmured something about toilet water. Or maybe they were just staring at Annabeth, who was still pretty much dripping wet.

She showed me a few more places: the metal shop (where kids were forging their own swords), the arts-and-crafts room (where satyrs were sandblasting a giant marble statue of a goat-man), and the climbing wall, which actually consisted of two facing walls that shook violently, dropped boulders, sprayed lava and clashed together if you didn't get to the top fast enough.

Finally we returned to the canoeing lake, where the trail led back to the cabins.

"I've got training to do," Annabeth said flatly. "Dinner is at seven thirty. Just follow your cabin to the mess hall."

"Annabeth, I am sorry about the toilets..."

"Whatever." She said with a huff.

"It was not my fault." I said.

She looked at me skeptically, and I realized it was my fault. I had made water shoot out of the bathroom fixtures. I did not understand how. But the toilets had responded to me. I had become one with the plumbing.

"You need to talk to the Oracle." Annabeth said.

"Who?" I asked.

"Not who. What. The Oracle. I will ask Chiron." She said.

I stared into the lake, wishing somebody would give me a straight answer for once.

I was not expecting anybody to be looking back at me from the bottom, so my heart skipped a beat when I noticed two teenage girls sitting cross legged at the base of the pier, about five meters below.

They wore blue jeans and shimmering green T-shirts, and their brown hair floated loose around their shoulders as minnows darted in and out. They smiled and waved as if I were a long lost friend. I did not know what else to do. So I waved back.

"Do not encourage them!" Annabeth warned. "Naiads are terrible flirts."

"Naiads?" I repeated, feeling completely overwhelmed. "That is it! I want to go home now!"

Annabeth frowned. "You do not you get it, Percy? You are home. This is the only safe place on earth for kids like us!"

I snapped back and asked "You mean, mentally disturbed kids?"

"I mean not human. Not totally human, anyway. Half human." She explained.

"Half human and half what?" I asked.

"I think you know." She said flatly.

I did not want to admit it, but I was afraid I did. I felt a tingling in my limbs, a sensation I sometimes felt when my mom talked about my dad.

"God," I said. "Half god."

Annabeth nodded. "Your father is not dead. Percy. He is one of the Olympians."

"That is… crazy!" I exclaimed.

"Is it? What is the most common thing gods did in the old stories? They ran around falling in love with humans and having kids with them. Do you think they have changed their habits in the last few millennia?"

"But those are just –" I almost said myths again. Then I remembered Chiron's warning that in two thousand years, I might be considered a myth. "But if all the kids here are half gods…"

"Demigods," Annabeth said. "That is the official term. Or half bloods."

"Then who is your dad?" I asked confused.

Her hands tightened around the pier railing. I got the feeling I had just trespassed on a sensitive subject…

"My dad is a professor at West Point," she said. 'I have not seen him since I was very small. He teaches American history."

"He is human…" I stated, I thought about it I remembered other goddesses…

"What? You assume it has to be a male god who finds a human female attractive? How sexist is that?" She asked her temper showing.

" Ok who is your mom, then?" I asked.

"Cabin six." She stated somewhat proud.

"Meaning?..." I was waiting for an explanation.

Annabeth straightened. "Athena. Goddess of wisdom and battle."

'Okay,' I thought.' Why not?' I then asked "And my dad is?"

"Undetermined," Annabeth said, "like I told you before. Nobody knows."

"Except for my mother. She knew." I said proudly.

"Maybe not, Percy. Gods do not always reveal their identities." She said.

I told her convinced "My dad would have. He loved her."

Annabeth gave me a cautious look. She did not want to burst my bubble. "Maybe you're right. Maybe he will send a sign. That is the only way to know for sure: your father has to send you a sign claiming you as his son. Sometimes it happens."

"You mean sometimes it does not?" I asked, there were now slight ripple in the lake, but no wind was blowing, neither one of us noticed this.

Annabeth ran her palm along the rail. "The gods are busy. They have a lot of kids and they do not always… Well, sometimes they do not care about us, Percy. They ignore us."

I thought about some of the kids I had seen in the Hermes cabin, teenagers who looked sullen and depressed, as if they were waiting for a call that would never come. I had known kids like that at Yancy Academy, shuffled off to boarding school by rich parents who did not have the time to deal with them. But gods should behave better. "So I am stuck here," I said. "That is it? For the rest of my life?"

"It depends," Annabeth said. "Some campers only stay the summer. If you are a child of Aphrodite or Demeter, you are probably not a real powerful force. The monsters might ignore you, so you can get by with a few months of summer training and live in the mortal world the rest of the year. But for some of us, it's too dangerous to leave. We are year rounders. In the mortal world, we attract monsters. They sense us. They come to challenge us. Most of the time, they will ignore us until we are old enough to cause trouble about ten or eleven years old but after that most demigods either make their way here, or they get killed off. A few manage to survive in the outside world and become famous.

Believe me, if I told you the names, you would know them. Some do not even realize they are demigods. But very, very few are like that."

"So monsters can't get in here?" I asked.

Annabeth shook her head. "Not unless they are intentionally stocked in the woods or specially summoned by somebody on the inside."

"Why would anybody want to summon a monster?" I asked getting nervous about the woods where I had last heard where Peter was.

"Practice fights. Practical jokes." As if it was a common thing.

"Practical jokes?" I echoed not liking the idea in the slightest.

"The point is, is that the borders are sealed to keep mortals and monsters out. From the outside, mortals look into the valley and see nothing unusual, just a strawberry farm." She explained getting frustrated.

"So… you are a year rounder?" I asked.

Annabeth nodded. From under the collar of her T shirt she pulled a leather necklace with five clay beads of different colors. It was just like Luke's, except Annabeth's also had a big gold ring strung on it, like a college ring.

"I have been here since I was seven," she said. "Every August, on the last day of summer session, you get a bead for surviving another year. I have been here longer than most of the counselors, and they are all in college."

"Why did you come so young?" I asked half curious and half concerned.

She twisted the ring on her necklace and snapped "That is none of your business!"

"Oh." I stood there for a minute in uncomfortable silence. "So… I could just walk out of here right now if I wanted to?"

"It would be suicide, but you could, with Mr. D's or Chiron's permission. But they would not give permission until the end of the summer session unless…"

"Unless?" I asked

"You were granted a quest. But that hardly ever happens. The last time..."

Her voice trailed off. I could tell from her tone that the last time had not gone well.

I changed the subject "Back in the sick room," I said, "when you were feeding me that stuff-"

"Ambrosia." She filled in my unspoken question.

"Yeah that. You asked me something about the summer solstice."

Annabeth's shoulders tensed. "So you do know something?"

"Well… no. Back at my old school, I overheard Grover and Chiron talking about it. Grover mentioned the summer solstice. He said something like we did not have much time, because of the deadline. What did that mean?" I asked.

She clenched her fists. "I wish I knew. Chiron and the satyrs, they know, but they will not tell me. Something is wrong in Olympus, something pretty major. Last time I was there, everything seemed so normal."

" Wait, you have been to Olympus?" I asked.

"Some of us year rounders like; Luke and Clarisse and I and a few others, we took a field trip during winter solstice. That is when the gods have their big annual council."

I asked "But… how did you get there?"

"The Long Island Railroad, of course. You get off at Penn Station. Empire State Building, special elevator to the six-hundredth floor." She looked at me like she was sure I must know this already.

"You are a New Yorker, right?" She asked.

"Oh, sure." As far as I knew, there were only a hundred and two floors in the Empire State Building, but I decided not to point that out.

"Right after we visited," Annabeth continued, "the weather got weird, as if the gods had started fighting. A couple of times since, I have overheard satyrs talking. The best I can figure out is that something important was stolen. And if it is not returned by summer solstice, there is going to be trouble. When you came, I was hoping… I mean – Athena can get along with just about anybody, except for Ares. And of course she's got the rivalry with Poseidon. But, I mean, aside from that, I thought we could work together. I thought you might know something."

I shook my head. I wished I could help her, but I felt too hungry and tired and mentally overloaded to ask any more questions.

"I have to get a quest," Annabeth muttered to herself. "I am not too young. If they would just tell me the problem…"

I could smell barbecue smoke coming from somewhere nearby. Annabeth must have heard my stomach growl. She told me to go on, she would catch me later. I left her on the pier, tracing her finger across the rail as if drawing a battle plan.

Back at cabin eleven, everybody was talking and horsing around, waiting for dinner. For the first time, I noticed that a lot of the campers had similar features: sharp noses, upturned eyebrows, mischievous smiles.

They were the kind of kids that teachers would peg as troublemakers. Thankfully, nobody paid much attention to me as I walked over to my spot on the floor and plopped down with my Minotaur horn.

The counselor, Luke, came over. He had the Hermes family resemblance, too. It was marred by that scar on his right cheek, but his smile was intact.

"Found you a sleeping bag," he said. "And here, I stole you some toiletries from the camp store."

I could not tell if he was kidding about the stealing part, but I still said, "Thanks."

"No prob." Luke sat next to me, pushed his back against the wall. "Tough first day?"

"I do not belong here," I said. "I do not even believe in gods!"

"Yeah," he said. "That is how we all started. Once you start believing in them? It does not get any easier." He said bitterly.

The bitterness in his voice surprised me, because Luke seemed like a pretty easygoing guy. He looked like he could handle just about anything.

"So your dad is Hermes?" I asked.

He pulled a switchblade out of his back pocket, and for a second I thought he was going to gut me, but he just scraped the mud off the sole of his sandal. "Yeah. Hermes."

I asked "As in the wing-footed messenger guy?"

"That is him; Messengers, Medicine, Travellers, merchants, thieves. Anybody who uses the roads. That is why you're here, enjoying cabin eleven's hospitality. Hermes isn't picky about who he sponsors."

I figured Luke did not mean to call me a nobody. He just had a lot on his mind.

"Have you ever meet your dad?' I asked.

"Once." He replied

I waited, thinking that if he wanted to tell me, he would tell me. Apparently, he did not say anything more. I wondered if the story had anything to do with how he got his scar.

Luke looked up and managed a smile. "Do not worry about it, Percy. The campers here, they are mostly good people. After all, we are all extended family, right? We take care of each other."

He seemed to understand how lost I felt, and I was grateful for that, because an older guy like him even if he was a counselor should have steered clear of an uncool middle schooler like me. But Luke had welcomed me into the cabin. He had even stolen me some toiletries, which was the nicest thing anybody had done for me all day.

I decided to ask him my last big question, the one that had been bothering me all afternoon. "Clarisse, from Ares, was joking about me being 'Big Three' material. Then Annabeth… twice, she said I might be 'the one'. She said I should talk to the Oracle. What was that all about?"

Luke folded his knife and muttered "I hate prophecies."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

His face twitched around the scar. "Let's just say I messed things up for everybody else. The last

two years, ever since my trip to the Garden of the Hesperides went sour, Chiron has not allowed any more quests. Annabeth has been dying to get out into the world. She pestered Chiron so much he finally told her he already knew her fate. He had had a prophecy from the Oracle. He would not tell her the whole thing, but he said Annabeth was not destined to go on a quest yet. She had to wait until… somebody special came to the camp."

I echoed him "Somebody special?"

"Don't worry about it, kid," Luke said. "Annabeth wants to think every new camper who comes through here is the omen she's been waiting for. Now, come on, it is dinnertime."

The moment he said it, a horn blew in the distance. Somehow, I knew it was a conch shell, even though I had never heard one before.

Luke yelled, "Eleven, fall in!"

The whole cabin, about twenty of us, filed into the commons yard. We lined up in order of seniority, so of course I was dead last. Campers came from the other cabins, too, except for the three empty cabins at the end, and cabin eight, which had looked normal in the daytime, but was now starting to glow silver as the sun went down.

We marched up the hill to the mess hall pavilion. Satyrs joined us from the meadow. Naiads emerged from the canoeing lake. A few other girls came out of the woods and when I say out of the woods, I mean straight out of the woods. I saw one girl, about nine or ten years old, melt from the side of a maple tree and come skipping up the hill.

In all, there were maybe a hundred campers, a few dozen satyrs, and a dozen assorted wood nymphs and naiads. At the pavilion, torches blazed around the marble columns. A central fire burned in a bronze brazier the size of a bathtub. Each cabin had its own table, covered in white cloth trimmed in purple.

Four of the tables were empty, but cabin eleven's was way overcrowded. I had to squeeze on to the edge of a bench with half my butt hanging off.

I saw Grover sitting at table twelve with Mr. D, a few satyrs and a couple of plump blond boys who looked just like Mr. D. Chiron stood to one side, the picnic table being way too small for a centaur.

Annabeth sat at table six with a bunch of serious-looking athletic kids, all with her grey eyes and honey blonde hair.

Clarisse sat behind me at Ares's table. She had apparently gotten over being hosed down, because she was laughing and belching right alongside her friends.

Finally, Chiron pounded his hoof against the marble floor of the pavilion, and everybody fell silent. He raised a glass. "To the gods!"

Everybody else raised their glasses and echoed him "To the gods!"

Wood nymphs came forward with platters of food: grapes, apples, strawberries, cheese, fresh bread and yes, barbecue! My glass was empty, but Luke said, "Speak to it. Whatever you want nonalcoholic, of course."

I said, "Cherry Coke."

The glass filled with sparkling caramel liquid.

Then I had an idea. "Blue Cherry Coke."

The soda turned a violent shade of cobalt. I took a cautious sip. Perfect. I drank a toast to my mother.

She is not gone, I told myself. Not permanently, anyway. She is in the Underworld. And if that is a real place, then some day…

"Here you go, Percy," Luke said, handing me a platter of smoked brisket.

I loaded my plate and was about to take a big bite when I noticed everybody getting up, carrying their plates towards the fire in the centre of the pavilion. I wondered if they were going for dessert or something.

"Come on." Luke told me.

As I got closer, I saw that everyone was taking a portion of their meal and dropping it into the fire, the ripest strawberry, the juiciest slice of beef, the warmest, most buttery roll.

Luke murmured in my ear, "Burnt offerings for the gods. They like the smell."

"'You are kidding." I thought for real he was at the time.

His look warned me not to take this lightly, but I could not help wondering why an immortal, all powerful being would like the smell of burning food.

Luke approached the fire, bowed his head, and tossed in a cluster of fat red grapes. "Hermes."

I was next. I wished I knew what god's name to say. Finally, I made a silent plea. 'Whoever you are, tell me. Please!'

I scraped a big slice of brisket into the flames. When I caught a whiff of the smoke, I did not gag.

It smelled nothing like burning food. It smelled of hot chocolate and fresh baked brownies, hamburgers on the grill and wildflowers, and a hundred other good things that shouldn't have gone well together, but it did. I could almost believe the gods could live off that smoke.

When everybody had returned to their seats and finished eating their meals, Chiron pounded his hoof again for our attention.

Mr. D got up with a huge sigh. "Yes, I suppose I had better say hello to all you brats. Well, hello. Our activities director, Chiron, says the next capture the flag is Friday. Cabin five presently holds the laurels."

A bunch of ugly cheering rose from the Ares table.

"Personally," Mr. D continued, "I could not have cared less, but congratulations. Also, I should tell you that we have a new camper today. Peter Johnson."

Peter stepped out of the shadows on the far side of the building and cleared his throat, the air grew chilly as he said "Wrong name wine god!" He took a step back and he dissolved into the shadows leaving everyone speechless.

Chiron murmured something.

"Er, Percy Jackson," Mr. D corrected as if nothing had happened at all. "That's right. Hurrah, and all that. Now run along to your silly campfire. Go on."

Everybody cheered, but me I was still confused and where did Peter go and where did he come from?

We all headed down towards the amphitheatre, where Apollo's cabin led a

Sing along. We sang camp songs about the gods and ate toasted marshmallows and joked around, and the funny thing was, I did not feel that anyone was staring at me anymore. I felt that I was home.

Later in the evening, when the sparks from the campfire were curling into a starry sky, the conch horn blew again, and we all filed back to our cabins. I did not realize how exhausted I was until I collapsed on my borrowed sleeping bag.

My fingers curled around the Minotaur horn. I thought about my mom, but I had good thoughts: her smile, the bedtime stories she would read me when I was a kid, the way she would tell me not to let the bedbugs bite. When I closed my eyes, I fell asleep instantly.

That was my first day at Camp Half Blood. I wish I had known how briefly I would get to enjoy my new home.

(Line Break)

(Peter's Point of View)

I woke up from my nap. I found a note on my bedside it read:

If I were you, I would get back to Camp Half Blood before diner is over

-A

I had no clue who "A" was, but I knew whoever wrote it was powerful, there was an air of authority on the letter that told me I had best get to going.

I put on my long sleeved black polyester shirt, I wrapped my chain around myself again, this time make an "X" I wrapped the chain from my over my left shoulder, to my right armpit, then back up to the left, where I went down the other way and I looped around so it made an "X" on my front and back my side. I then put my trench coat on; I pulled on my spiked gloves. I shut my eye trying to remember the camp; I felt the shadows coming towards me.

I opened my eyes and I was leaning against the wall where the food was being severed. Since I just ate I chose to just stand in the shadow and watch. People began to come; I just stood there as I became one with the shadows.

I listened into their conversation, there were many.

I saw Mr. D speak up and say "Peter Jonson" or something like that. I chose then to make my presence known, my temper got the best of me when I said coldly as I stepped out of the shadows "Wrong name wine god!" I had enough sense not to insult him like I wanted, like "wine brain" or "grape bread" maybe "Captain Drunk". Once I said that, I took a step back and shadow traveled to Cabin Eleven.

I chuckled amused; I wonder how long it will take for them to figure out what happened.

I sighed as I began to make a few tweaks to the watches; I had one on each on, plus one inside each of my breast trench coat pocket. In short, I had the total of four watches; I had them modified to fit the purpose I required of them. What is its purpose? Well we will found out in time… I myself did not know what I was doing; my instincts took over when I began to design them.

A few hours later a felt people on the porch, I wanted to ignored them but I had a feeling that it would be best not to have people seeing my watches . So I as I hid my watches they came in the first one who came in was Luke. He did not have time to say anything because the kids behind him pushed him into the cabin; the last person I saw was Percy. He was too tired, so I left him be.

I saw most of them were already asleep. I gave a sigh.

Luke walked over to me and placed a hand on my shoulder he mouthed "Come with me"

I gave him a nod. He led us to the porch. From there he shut the door and asked "Where have you been for the last day and a half?"

I snorted and said "Why should I tell you? What I do is of no concern to you."

Luke sighed and said "As cabin councilor, it IS my business to know what the people in my cabin are doing; it is my job to know WHO they are."

I growled and said "I can be your worst enemy Luke, do not push me." I felt a burning sensation in each of my forearms; I felt something that almost felt like bone rubbing against bone. I took a few calming breathes and the pain and the movement stopped.

Luke said "Look, I am trying to look out for you."

"Then do yourself a favor, stop it. I took care of myself this far. I can stand alone, on my own two feet!" I said getting angry. The shadows agreed with me as they became darker, the night sky grew dimmer, the stars flashed angrily.

Luke either did not pay attention to the sky, or he was not concerned. He placed a hand on my arm and said "We are all family here…"

I snarled and I shook off his arm and said "My family died when my sister was murdered by a Manticore!" Was ready to strangle Luke with my bare hands, my temper was getting the better of my. I chuckled darkly and said "Luke, I prefer being in the dark, cold and alone. Darkness and the cold goes great together."

Luke said "Peter how do you feel about the go-"

I growled and said "It is not unknown that I openly resent most them. My mother was murdered by my step father and she herself was a demigod, who a god fell in love with. My sister was killed by the Manticore during a lightning storm next to the sea! I hold hardly any love towards anyone, let alone them!"

Luke smirked and said "You are not the only one who hates them Peter. You are not alone."

I growled I felt a sharp pain in my stomach. I knew this guy was a large threat against me, or will be. I said "Trust me, I know there are others who hate them even more than I do. I take it you are one of them?"

Luke smirk grew even wider when he said "You are smarter than you look, no offence, you could be a powerful ally."

I chuckled and said "I would rather not die in a bloody war."

Luke frowned and asked "What are you talking about?"

I grew bored and said "Just know, I may lack skill, but I adapt and learn real quick. I hold grudges; it is one of my fatal flaws." I was done talking; I disappeared in the darkness around me. Leave Luke confused.

I found myself in the woods again, but this time I was alone, I walked out of the woods. I heard the sound of beating wings. I quickly darted towards the water. I thought it would have taken me five minutes, but I ran there in about a minute. I drove in trench coat, military boats and all.

I sank to the very bottom of the lake. I took some time to take a few deep breathes of relief. I was safe in the water, my element (well one of them).

I realized that there were like a dozen nymphs in the lake around, at least they did not look angry, just confused and curious.

One of them asked "Who are you? And what are you doing here this time of night?"

I cleared my throat and said "My name is Peter Perseus. I came here because I heard a harpy coming my way. I apologize if I woke you up."

The nymph waved her and in a dismissive matter and said "We were awake any. We heard about you."

I rubbed the back of my neck nervously and asked "What did you hear exactly?"

The nymph said "The most recent is that you saved a girl named Brook, using some chains."

I blushed and said "Yeah… That was me…."

The nymph smiled and said "You did a good job!"

I asked "How did you know?"

The nymph said "Would travels fast about Artemis, by the way, coagulations on meeting Artemis and leaving in one piece."

I gave a nod. After a few seconds of silence I asked nervously "Could I spent the night here?"

The nymph smiled and she began to speak with the others. A few minutes later she turned back to me and said with a smile "We will be glad to have you!"

I smiled and said "Thank you!" My voice was full of gratefulness. I gave them a slight bow.

Some of them giggled at that.

My eyes grew heavy as unconsciousness began to take over and I fell into a deep slumber.

(Line Break)

(Percy Point of View)

The next few days I settled into a routine that felt almost normal, if you do not count the fact that I was getting lessons from satyrs, nymphs and a centaur.

Each morning I took Ancient Greek from Annabeth, and we talked about the gods and goddesses in the present tense, which was kind of weird. I discovered Annabeth was right about my dyslexia: Ancient Greek was not that hard for me to read (at least, no harder than English).

After a couple of mornings, I could stumble through a few lines of Homer without too much headache. The rest of the day, I would rotate through outdoor activities, looking for something I was good at.

Chiron tried to teach me archery, but we found out pretty quick I was not any good with a bow and arrow. He did not complain, even when he had to pull a stray arrow out of his tail. Then Peter was gifted when it come to the bow, me? I nearly hit him in the face when he was ten yard behind me facing away! I was cursed I swear! Peter made me promise never to touch a bow and arrow again especially in emergencies!

Foot racing? No good either. The wood nymph instructors left me in the dust. They told me not to worry about it. They had centuries of practice running away from lovesick gods. But still, it was a little humiliating to be slower than a tree. Once again Peter was ahead of me, well everyone, he outran the some of the nymphs!

And wrestling? Forget it. Every time I got on the mat, Clarisse would pulverize me. Peter? I have no clue where he was, I thought he might have been taking a nap in the corner's shadow, but it is hard to see him.

"There is more where that came from, punk!" she would mumble in my ear.

The only thing I really excelled at was canoeing, and that was not the kind of heroic skill people expected to see from the kid who had beaten the Minotaur. I knew the senior campers and counselors were watching me, trying to decide who my dad was, but they were not having an easy time of it.

I was not as strong as the Ares kids, or as good at archery as the Apollo kids (Hades! I could not even shoot straight!).

I did not have Hephaestus's skill with metalwork or (gods forbid) Dionysus's way with vine plants.

Luke told me I might be a child of Hermes, a kind of jack of all trades, master of none. But I got the feeling he was just trying to make me feel better. He really did not know what to make of me either.

Despite all that, I liked camp. I got used to the morning fog over the beach, the smell of hot strawberry fields in the afternoon, even the weird noises of monsters in the woods at night.

I would eat dinner with cabin eleven, scrape part of my meal into the fire, and try to feel some connection to my real dad. Nothing came. Just that warm feeling I had always had, like the memory of his smile.

I tried not to think too much about my mom, but I kept wondering: if gods and monsters were real, if all this magical stuff was possible, surely there was some way to save her, to bring her back…

I started to understand Luke's bitterness and how he seemed to resent his father, Hermes. So okay, maybe gods had important things to do. But could they not call once in a while, or thunder, or something? Dionysus could make Diet Coke appear out of thin air. Why could not my dad, whoever he was, make a phone appear?

Thursday afternoon, three days after I had arrived at Camp Half-Blood, I had my first sword-fighting lesson. Everybody from cabin eleven gathered in the big circular arena, where Luke would be our instructor.

We started with basic stabbing and slashing, using some straw-stuffed dummies in Greek armour. I guess I did okay. At least, I understood what I was supposed to do and my reflexes were good.

The problem was, I could not find a blade that felt right in my hands. Either they were too heavy, or too light, or too long. Luke tried his best to fix me up, but he agreed that none of the practice blades seemed to work for me.

We moved on to dueling in pairs. Luke announced he would be my partner, since this was my first time.

"Good luck," one of the campers told me. "Luke is the best swordsman in the last three hundred years."

"Maybe he will go easy on me?" I said.

The camper snorted.

Luke showed me thrusts and parries and shield blocks the hard way. With every swipe, I got a little more battered and bruised. "Keep your guard up, Percy," he would say, then whap me in the ribs with the flat of his blade. "No, not that far up!"

Whap!

"Lunge!"

Whap!

"Now, back!"

Whap!

By the time he called a break, I was soaked in sweat. Everybody swarmed the drinks cooler. Luke poured ice water on his head, which looked like such a good idea, I did the same.

Instantly, I felt better. Strength surged back into my arms. The sword did not feel so awkward.

"Okay, everybody circle up!" Luke ordered. "If Percy does not mind, I want to give you a little demo."

Great, I thought. 'Let's all watch Percy get pounded.'

The Hermes guys gathered around. They were suppressing smiles. I figured they had been in my shoes before and could not wait to see how Luke used me for a punching bag. He told everybody he was going to demonstrate a disarming technique: how to twist the enemy's blade with the flat of your own sword so that he had no choice but to drop his weapon.

"This is difficult," he stressed. "I have had it used against me. No laughing at Percy, now. Most swordsmen have to work years to master this technique."

He demonstrated the move on me in slow motion. Sure enough, the sword clattered out of my hand.

"Now in real time." he said, after I had retrieved my weapon. "We keep sparring until one of us pulls it off. Ready, Percy?"

I nodded, and Luke came after me. Somehow, I kept him from getting a shot at the hilt of my sword.

My senses opened up. I saw his attacks coming. I countered. I stepped forward and tried a thrust of my own. Luke deflected it easily, but I saw a change in his face. His eyes narrowed, and he started to press me with more force.

The sword grew heavy in my hand. The balance was not right for me. I knew it was only a matter of seconds before Luke took me down, so I figured, what the heck?

I tried the disarming maneuver.

My blade hit the base of Luke's and I twisted, putting my whole weight into a downward thrust.

Clang.

Luke's sword rattled against the stones. The tip of my blade was a couple of centimeters from his undefended chest.

The other campers were silent.

I lowered my sword. "Um, sorry."

For a moment, Luke was too stunned to speak.

"Sorry?" His scarred face broke into a grin. "By the gods, Percy, why are you sorry? Show me that again!"

I did not want to. The short burst of manic energy had completely abandoned me. But Luke insisted.

This time, there was no contest. The moment our swords connected, Luke hit my hilt and sent my weapon skidding across the floor.

After a long pause, somebody in the audience said, "Beginner's luck?"

Luke wiped the sweat off his brow. He appraised me with an entirely new interest. "Maybe," he said. "But I wonder what Percy could do with a balanced sword…."

Friday afternoon, I was sitting with Grover at the lake, resting from a near-death experience on the climbing wall. Grover had scampered to the top like a mountain goat, but the lava had almost got me.

My shirt had smoking holes in it. The hairs had been singed off my forearms.

We sat on the pier, watching the naiads do underwater basket weaving, until I got up the nerve to ask Grover how his conversation had gone with Mr. D.

His face turned a sickly shade of yellow. "Fine," he said. "Just great."

I asked "So is your career is still on track?"

He glanced at me nervously."'Chiron t - told you I want a searcher's license?"

"Well… no." I had no idea what a searcher's license was, but it did not seem like the right time to ask. "He just said you had big plans, you know… and that you needed credit for completing a keeper's assignment. So did you get it?"

Grover looked down at the naiads. "Mr. D suspended judgment. He said I had not failed nor did I succeeded with you yet, so our fates were still tied together. If you got a quest and I went along to protect you, and we both came back alive, then maybe he would consider the job complete."

My spirits lifted. "Well, that is not so bad, right?"

"Blaa – ha - ha! He might as well have transferred me to stable-cleaning duty. The chances of you getting a quest… and even if you did, why would you want me along?"

"Of course I would want you along!" I exclaimed looking t one of my best friends in the eyes.

Grover stared glumly into the water. "Basket weaving… Must be nice to have a useful skill."

I tried to reassure him that he had lots of talents, but that just made him look more miserable. We talked about canoeing and swordplay for a while, then debated the pros and cons of the different gods. Finally, I asked him about the four empty cabins.

"Number eight, the silver one, belongs to Artemis," he said. "She vowed to be a maiden forever until 'The One' came. So of course, no kids. The cabin is, you know, honorary. If she did not have one, she would be mad."

"Yeah, okay. But the other three, the ones at the end. Are those the Big Three?" I asked slightly excited.

Grover tensed. We were getting close to a touchy subject. "No. One of them, number two, is Hera's," he said. "That is another honorary thing. She is the goddess of marriage, so of course she would not go around having affairs with mortals. That is her husband's job. When we say the Big

Three, we mean the three powerful brothers, the sons of Kronos."

"Zeus, Poseidon, Hades." I relied remembering them from my Latin class with Mr. Brunner.

"Right. You know. After the great battle with the Titans, they took over the world from their dad and drew lots to decide who got what." Grover explained.

"Zeus got the sky," I remembered. "Poseidon got the sea, and Hades got the Underworld."

"Yup." Grover said.

"But Hades doesn't have a cabin here. Was he not an Olympian?" I asked.

"No. He does not have a throne on Olympus, either. He sort of does his own thing down in the Underworld. If he did have a cabin here…" Grover shuddered. "Well, it would not be pleasant. Let's leave it at that."

"But Zeus and Poseidon – they both had, like, a bazillion kids in the myths. Why are their cabins empty?"

Grover shifted his hooves uncomfortably. "About sixty years ago, after World War II, the Big Three agreed they would not sire any more heroes. Their children were just too powerful. They were affecting the course of human events too much, causing too much c*****e. World War II, you know, that was basically a fight between the sons of Zeus and Poseidon on one side, and the sons of Hades on the other. The winning side, Zeus and Poseidon, made Hades swear an oath with them: no more affairs with mortal women. They all swore on the River Styx."

Thunder boomed.

I said, "That is the most serious oath you can make!"

Grover nodded.

"And the brothers kept their word – no kids right?"

Grover's face darkened. "Seventeen years ago, Zeus fell off the wagon. There was this TV starlet with a big fluffy eighties hairdo – he just could not help himself. When their child was born, a little girl named Thalia… well, the River Styx is serious about promises. Zeus himself got off easy because he is immortal, but he brought a terrible fate on his daughter."

"But that is not fair! It was not the little girl's fault!" I nearly shouted, my anger getting the better of me.

Grover hesitated. "Percy, children of the Big Three have powers greater than other half-bloods. They have a strong aura, a scent that attracts monsters. When Hades found out about the girl, he was not too happy about Zeus breaking his oath. Hades let the worst monsters out of Tartarus to torment Thalia. A satyr was assigned to be her keeper when she was twelve, but there was nothing he could do. He tried to escort her here with a couple of other half-bloods she had befriended. They almost made it. They got all the way to the top of that hill."

He pointed across the valley, to the pine tree where I had fought the Minotaur. "All three Kindly Ones were after them, along with a hoard of hellhounds. They were about to be overrun when Thalia told her satyr to take the other two half-bloods to safety while she held off the monsters. She was wounded and tired, and she did not want to live like a hunted animal. The satyr did not want to leave her, but he could not change her mind, and he had to protect the others. So Thalia made her final stand alone, at the top of that hill. As she died, Zeus took pity on her. He turned her into that pine tree. Her spirit still helps protect the borders of the valley. That is why the hill is called Half Blood Hill."

I stared at the pine in the distance.

The story made me feel hollow, and guilty, too. A girl my age had sacrificed herself to save her friends. She had faced a whole army of monsters. Next to that, my victory over the Minotaur did not seem like much. I wondered, if I would have acted differently, could I have saved my mother?

"Grover," I said, "have heroes really gone on quests to the Underworld?"

"Sometimes," he said. "Orpheus, Hercules, Houdini."

I asked "And have they ever returned somebody from the dead?"

"No. Never. Orpheus came close…. Percy, you are not seriously thinking-"

"No," I lied. "I was just wondering. So… a satyr is always assigned to guard a demigod?"

Grover studied me warily. I had not persuaded him that I had really dropped the Underworld idea.

"Not always. We go undercover to a lot of schools. We try to sniff out the half bloods who have the makings of great heroes. If we find one with a very strong aura, like a child of the Big Three, we alert Chiron. He tries to keep an eye on them, since they could cause really huge problems."

"And you found me. Chiron said you thought I might be something special." I said, not very pleases with myself.

Grover looked as if I had just led him into a trap. "I did not… Oh, listen, do not think like that. If you were – you know – you would never ever be allowed a quest, and I would never get my license. You are probably a child of Hermes. Or maybe even one of the minor gods, like Nemesis, the god of revenge. So do not worry, okay?"

I got the idea he was reassuring himself more than me. That night after dinner, there was a lot more excitement than usual.

At last, it was time for capture the flag.

When the plates were cleared away, the conch horn sounded and we all stood at our tables.

Campers yelled and cheered as Annabeth and two of her siblings ran into the pavilion carrying a silk banner. It was about three meters long, glistening grey, with a painting of a barn owl above an olive tree.

From the opposite side of the pavilion, Clarisse and her buddies ran in with another banner, of identical size, but gaudy red, painted with a bloody spear and a boar's head.

I turned to Luke and yelled over the noise, "Those are the flags?"

"Yeah." He shouted back.

" Does Ares and Athena always lead the teams?" I asked.

"Not always," he said. "But often enough."

"So, if another cabin captures one, what do you do – repaint the flag?" I asked.

He grinned. "You will see. First we have to get one!"

"Whose side are we on?" I asked.

He gave me a sly look, as if he knew something I did not. The scar on his face made him look almost evil in the torchlight. "We have made a temporary alliance with Athena. Tonight, we get the flag from Ares. And you are going to help."

The teams were announced. Athena had made an alliance with Apollo and Hermes, the two biggest cabins.

Apparently, privileges had been traded – shower times, chore schedules, the best slots for activities in order to win support.

Ares had allied themselves with everybody else: Dionysus, Demeter, Aphrodite and Hephaestus.

From what I had seen, Dionysus's kids were actually good athletes, but there were only two of them.

Demeter's kids had the edge with nature skills and outdoor stuff, but they were not very aggressive.

Aphrodite's sons and daughters I was not too worried about. They mostly sat out every activity and checked their reflections in the lake and did their hair and gossiped.

Hephaestus's kids were not very pretty, and there were only four of them, but they were big and burly from working in the metal shop all day. They might be a problem.

That, of course, left Ares's cabin: a dozen of the biggest, ugliest, meanest kids on Long Island, or anywhere else on the planet.

Chiron hammered his hoof on the marble. "Heroes!" he announced. "You know the rules. The creek is the boundary line. The entire forest is fair game. All magic items are allowed. The banner must be prominently displayed, and have no more than two guards. Prisoners may be disarmed, but may not be bound or gagged. No killing or maiming is allowed. I will serve as referee and battlefield medic. Arm yourselves!"

He spread his hands, and the tables were suddenly covered with equipment: helmets, bronze swords, spears, ox - hide shields coated in metal.

"Whoa," I said. "We are really supposed to use these?!"

Luke looked at me as if I were crazy. "Unless you want to get skewered by your friends in cabin five. Here Chiron thought these would fit. You will be on border patrol."

My shield was the size of an NBA backboard, with a big caduceus in the middle. It weighed about a million pounds. I could have snowboarded on it fine, but I hoped nobody seriously expected me to run fast. My helmet, like all the helmets on Athena's side, had a blue horsehair plume on top. Ares and their allies had red plumes.

Annabeth yelled, "Blue team, forward!"

We cheered and shook our swords and followed her down the path to the south woods.

The red team yelled taunts at us as they headed off towards the north.

I managed to catch up with Annabeth without tripping over my equipment.

"Hey." I called out to her.

She kept marching.

"So what is the plan?" I asked. "Got any magic items you can loan me?"

Her hand drifted towards her pocket, as if she were afraid I would steal something. "Just watch Clarisse's spear," she said. "You do not want that thing touching you. Otherwise, do not worry. We will take the banner from Ares. Has Luke given you your job?"

"Border patrol, whatever that means." I said with a shrug.

"It is easy. Stand by the creek, keep the reds away. Leave the rest to me. Athena always has a plan." She said with pride.

She pushed ahead, leaving me in the dust.

"Okay," I mumbled. "Glad you wanted me on your team."

It was a warm, sticky night. The woods were dark, with fireflies popping in and out of view.

Annabeth stationed me next to a little creek that gurgled over some rocks, then she and the rest of the team scattered into the trees.

Standing there alone, with my big blue-feathered helmet and my huge shield, I felt like an i***t. The bronze sword, like all the swords I had tried so far, seemed balanced wrong. The leather grip pulled on my hand like a bowling ball.

There was no way anybody would actually attack me, would they? I mean, Olympus had to have liability issues, right?

Far away, the conch horn blew. I heard whoops and yells in the woods, the clanking of metal, kids fighting. A blue plumed ally from Apollo raced past me like a deer, leaped through the creek and disappeared into enemy territory.

Great, I thought. I will miss all the fun, as usual.

Then I heard a sound that sent a chill up my spine, a low canine growl, somewhere close by.

I raised my shield instinctively; I had the feeling something was stalking me.

Then the growling stopped. I felt the presence retreating.

On the other side of the creek, the underbrush exploded. Five Ares warriors came yelling and screaming out of the dark.

"Cream the punk!" Clarisse screamed.

Her ugly pig eyes glared through the slits of her helmet. She brandished a two meter spear, its barbed metal tip flickering with red light. Her siblings had only the standard issue bronze swords not that that made me feel any better.

They charged across the stream. There was no help in sight. I could run. Or I could defend myself against half the Ares cabin.

(Line Break)

(Peter's Point of View)

I woke up on the lake bed in a bed in the lake. No joking, it was a bed made up of kelp and seaweed.

I sat up in bed and stretched, I felt most of my energy restored. The water not only heals me, but it also replenishes my energy, at least some of it.

I saw a few nymphs still sleeping. I reached into my trench coat and placed a sand dollar on the pillow I was using, I just knew that, that it would mean something to them, I also placed a few Drachma on the pillow as will, I vapor traveled out of the lake and into the fog onto the beach.

The sun was just beginning to rise, the sky was pink and purple. The birds had yet to begin to sing.

I shut my eyes and took in the fresh, clean, morning air. I smiled before I broke into a quick paced jog, I ran into the woods.

I saw a few tree spirits and they looked slightly stunned to see me. I mean I guess I would be too, a kid wakes up with the sunrise, running in the woods in a black trench coat and in military boot, yet hardly making a sound.

As I ran I saw ghostly images flash, I knew it was in my mind, but it seemed so real. I saw myself running beside Artemis and a girl who could look like a Persian Princess. They both had silver bows, but I somehow I knew the one Artemis is using I made, a very, very long time ago, yet it look good as new.

I looked behind me, and then I ran into a hard oak tree. I hit it and fell flat on my back at least that was a regular oak tree! I laid on my back trying to remember, but I could not, it was like a dream. By the afternoon you cannot remember the dream.

I sat up and jogged back to the dining area.

Several minutes later I was there, I sat down cross legged in the shadows. I began to pull out my modified watches and I began to play with them.

A few minutes later a conch shell sounded and people began to swarm in, I chose to sit next to Percy.

Percy and I stayed close, but at the same time I stayed isolated.

I ran in the woods with him, but he ended up near dead last, while I lead the pack.

During archery, let's say Percy should never, EVER, touch a bow and arrow! He shot Chiron in the tale, when he was behind him. He nearly shot me in the face! If it was not for the tingling in the back of my head and the time slowing down, it would have stuck me in the eye! I made him promise never to use a bow and arrow until we figure out WHY he was so bad! If I remember correctly Apollo cursed all sons of Poseidon after Orion. Why could I shoot? I do not know, but I could.

I did not look like an Apollo kid, but my archery skill was very good.

Metal working? Percy had not much luck in that. Me? Once again I was gifted, though Percy did have fire resistance, but he lacked the skill. I did not look like a Hephaestus's kid either, but I had both heat resistance and skill in the forge. I did become good acquaintances with Charles Beckendorf. Head consoler of the Cabin Nine; Hephaestus's Cabin.

Though Percy did accel at canoeing and other water sports, I did as well, but I let him have the victories in that. I could not help but to laugh to myself, I mean Percy looks almost exactly like a baby Poseidon! A younger clone!

Wrestling with Ares' cabin? I skipped that, I would much rather not fight unless I have to. I know it seems weird that me, who killed a couple of men, not wanting to fight. I do not feel any remorse, I felt as though they deserved it. Though I did watch Percy become the punching bag of Clarisse. I would have stepped in, but Percy needed to learn how to fight back, he needed to learn how to take a beating and then get up for more. Though I did made sure she did not get too rough with him. Where was I? I was in the corner relaxing in the shadows, watching them and sometimes taking a nap.

Percy and Grover would weave baskets. I would leave the two of them alone when they did that. I would be in the forges working with Beckendorf. I modified the chains so they were Titanium, Silver, Imperial Gold, and Celestial Bronze. We put an enchantment on it so that it could never be broken and so that, it could grow to an infinite amount. It would also turn into either a gold chain necklace or a silver chain necklace.

Beckendorf agreed not to say a word about the chain to anyone. He was actually somewhat excited about working with something new, but he was hard to read. Because I knew the hard work it was I made sure to pay Beckendorf a handsome amount of Drachma and a good weight in Celestial Bronze.

Beckendorf said I could use the forge anytime I would like, and if I need a hand he would be willing to help.

I avoided Aphrodite's cabin. Though one of them seemed to be different from the others; Silena Beauregard. I could tell Silena and Beckendorf liked each other; it was amusing to see Beckendorf so flustered, just like his father! I helped them out a little. Percy and I got into a routine; we began to enjoy it, until Thursday night and Friday… Thursday night I was in a bitter mood, so I avoided the woods and the lake. So I went to the campfire area, also known as the hearth.

The fire low, when I got there. My very presence seemed to make the flames die; darkness surrounded me in a suffocating fog. I glared at the fire and it seemed to turn into a smolder with only red hot embers giving off a faint red glow. I was control my powers, storms, water, lightning.

However darkness and the cold were the things that I could not control.

My sixth sensed went off, I flipped off the log pulled out my silver knife and held it in a defensive position.

A girl looking no older than maybe nine years old appeared in the flames. I recognized her immediately as Hestia.

I put the knife back into my boot as I gave her a half hearted bow. I sat back on the log, I could feel the darkness surrounding me, and I could see the grass dying around me. I saw my breath in the cold air that surrounded me.

Hestia sat on the log next to me. She placed a hand on my shoulder.

I shrugged it off with a growl.

A flash of light happened in the corner of my eye, I refused to look. I felt a pair of arms wrap me up in a warm hug. Hestia had shifted into her older form; she was about twenty four years old.

I tried being respectful, but I held resentment towards her. Why? She was the last person I saw in my house the day my mother was killed. She could have done something!

As I began to think these thought, storm clouds began to form overhead, the ocean began to churn. The fire was beginning to die again.

Hestia whispered in my ear "I am so sorry…"

I wanted to shrug her off. I wanted to be left alone. But I knew I needed something more…

Hestia she whispered "Peter…"

I gave her a nod, because I did not trust my voice. I was on the verge of tears. The very presence of Hestia reminded me of home, of my family; my sister. I can barely remember my mother.

Hestia said still whispering "I am sorry about your mother and your sister, but the Ancient Laws prevents us from interfering mortals and demigods."

I snarled and said shaking her off me "Don't give me that! If that was the case than every single demigod is illegal! Than Poseidon's temper is illegal! It affects the mortals!" If it was possible the sky darkened even more before I continued "If I had a choice, I would go back in time and let myself die. I would have stopped fighting and let myself slipped into the land of the dead…"

Hestia had tears in her eyes; she looked down in shame and said "You are right…"

I was slightly surprised, but I held my poker face, I said coldly "I have no desire to fight; I wish to be at peace…" Tears were threatening to break out.

Hestia walked over and wrapped me up in a hug once again she became rubbing my back. I began to weep, I sobbed my eyes out. I was mourning for the first time. I was weeping over my mother, I was crying over my sister. I was mourning over the innocent child that died seven years ago. The dams broke and the floodgates were open. Hestia was there the whole time, letting me cry on her shoulder, she would rub my back and whisper soothing things in my ear.

I cried until I had nothing left.

Hestia allowed me to cry on her. When I was finally done crying she simply held me.

It could have been an hour or it could have been five hours I could not tell. When I was able to speak again I whispered "Thank you…"

Hestia gave me a kind, warm smile and said "You are most welcomed Peter."

I sighed as I snuggled closer into her warm body. Hestia began to stroke my hair trying to tame my hair. A few minutes of comfortable silence happened until she spoke up and said "Peter, I would like to adopt you, I know that-"

I cut her off and said "I would be honored my lady."

Hestia said "Just Hestia."

I smiled and said "Would mom work?"

Hestia's eye held a glint in them, a spark as she said "I would love it… son…"

I gave her a bone crushing hug, if she was not a goddess.

Hestia placed a hand over my heart and began to chant in Ancient Greek, an orange glow seeped into my chest feeling me with warm and hope… hope. It feels weird after going so long without it. I felt loved again.

Hestia kissed me on the forehead and said "I will see you soon Peter…"

I think I said good night, before a mind numbing pain I felt. Images began to surge into my head.

I began to remember who and what I was.

I know who I am now.

I am the Wanderer.

I am formerly the Spider Man.

I know who and what I am, I can faintly recall Percy and his tale. I

The fire seemed to surge in height. I summoned a piece of food and through it into the fire I said "Hestia, I am beginning tp remember who I am now, you unblocked my memory." I knew she heard me.

I made a rainbow by the moon light. I threw the standard offering into the rainbow before asked for Artemis.

Artemis was eating at a table with a group d girls.

I cleared my throat and I got several holographic arrows into me. I said "I remember Artemis. I may not remember most everything, but I remember giving you an Zoe my word and telling you when I began to remember. The Wander is back my lady!"

Brooke ran to me and tried to hug the image of me, she went right through, I chuckle and said "This is an Iris Message, pretty much a hologram. With Artemis permission I will visit the Hunt soon."

The older hunters remembered me and began to smile and grin some of the newer ones frowned and looked pissed off.

Artemis smile and said "Whenever you have the time, Peter."

I said "I have a feeling something big is going to happen soon, so it will not be until a bit later."

Artemis gave a nod and said "Is it about the missing bolt?"

I chuckled and said "Yes I believe it is. I am with a true child of Poseidon."

She gave a nod before saying "Ok, there is a meeting, I have to go."

I gave her a nod and waved through the image.

After I did that, I tried to remember the rest of my story, but I am unable to. I remember the Hunt. I can remember growing up on Delos with Artemis, Apollo and their mother Leto.

I remember being Spider Man, but that part seems more like a dream, but I know it is real.

I sighed as I rubbed my temple, I had a massive headache, 'Atleast I know some more about my limits now.' I thought.

I stepped into the flames and teleported.

(Line Break)

(Third Person Point of View)

Peter fire traveled to New York City, Manhattan. When he got there he was wearing the armor he saw in the dream, except that it was just black, with no other color or marking on it.

The suit was black; it was not made from this world, he could tell that much!

Peter got the watches and he put two fingers down, he shot a stream of webbing. Peter smirked, he reached back and lowered the hood and pulled down his mask (similar to Spider – Gwen's suit / mask with the hooded mask).

Peter said with a smile underneath his mask "The Spider is back!" He used his artificial, enchanted web shooters.

He began to web sling through the city, he was feeling the rush of web shooting. It has been years (more like centuries) since he last done it, but it still feels as good as it did for his first time, except without all the crashing.

Spider Man shut his eyes has he let his instincts and spider sense guide his movements. This was bringing back memories. He landed on the lightning rod of the Empire State Building, like he has done many times in his world, but the moment he touched it, he knew there was something very different about it.

He decided not to go back to the Empire State Building if you can help it, so there goes his perch!

Spider Man sensed a robbery happen down Broad Way; it was a high speed cop chase. Spider Man began to go that direction.

A few minutes later Spider Man stopped on the side of a building and waited about fifteen seconds for a speed car to zip by underneath him, he webbed the building across and gave chase.

After a few minutes of that he landed on the hood of the car.

There were two people, one of them shot a shot gun through the roof hoping to take out the guy on the roof, and Spider Man sensed this coming as he jumped to the side of a U - Haul truck.

The Spider shot some webbing in front of the car, the car hit the webbing and got stuck in it. Spider Man cut one end of the web, making them hit the ground.

Spider Man manipulated the Mist to show nothing, the car hit some loose cable wire from a construction site nearby, that wrapped up the vehicle causing it to flip.

He stepped into the shadows and disappeared.

He appeared on top of roof top. He looked down below and watched the city; this was in a former life HIS city. But that was ages ago in another world, in another life…

Spider Man looked at the Moon with longing, he wished he could have a simple, good life; without being a superhuman, a demigod, a meta- human, a mutant. He wanted to be a standard, average human male, with a loving family and a good girl friend. Is that too much to ask? To Peter it is. Will it kill someone if he had a bit better luck?

Peter snarled as he punched a water tower that was next to him. He fist went cleanly in. The steel contain crumpled like tin foil under his strength, his suit protected him for any injury he might have caused himself. He sighed as the sky began to change color, he knew dawn approached and night was fading.

Peter chose to vapor travel to Camp Half Blood, he willed his clothes to go back to his now usual trench coat.

Today was Capture the Flag, well tonight anyway…

(Line Break)

(Peter's Point of View)

WhenI got back to Camp Half Blood, I was in a worse mood than usual, I kept everyone at by with a simple look, not even Percy dared come to me when I was in this state.

I went to the forge and I releashed my stress by pounding the hammer on a piece of metal. The fire grew to match my temperament, it was raging, and the fire was blazing a red flame as I pounded mercilessly on the white hot Celestial Bronze.

In about six hours I finished a simple Xiphos. It was razor sharp, doubled edge in the shape of a leaf and the blade seemed to glow a faint light due it its metal. I put it in a completed weapon barrel.

After that I began the next blade, I made a Makhaira, it was a simple one edges straight blade. It was more or less a knife, rather than a dagger. I normally prefer double edged weapons. I made the Makhaira in about four hours.

I realized I skipped lunch and the sky was beginning to change color, so the sun was beginning to set.

I snapped my fingers and an apple appeared in my hand, I was thinking for some sort of hamburger or maybe a steak, but an apple will do for now. I began to munch on the apple as I looked at the two blades I made, they were balanced fine, both sharp, but it was not made for me.

I heard the cong shell horn sound signaling dinner. I gave a sigh as I left the forge. I smelled like fire, smoke, oil, metal and sweat. In short I smelled like Hephaestus and his kids.

I sat next to Percy, but neither of us said a word to each other, other than the standard greeting.

I sighed as I knew I had maybe an hour before Capture the Flag. I pulled out my MP3 and I played a old song that I liked as I began to sing with it; Three Day Grace: Pain

Pain, without love

Pain, I can't get enough

Pain, I like it rough

'Cause I'd rather feel pain than nothing at all

You're sick of feeling numb

You're not the only one

I'll take you by the hand

And I'll show you a world that you can understand

This life is filled with hurt

When happiness doesn't work

Trust me and take my hand

When the lights go out you will understand

Pain, without love

Pain, can't get enough

Pain, I like it rough

'Cause I'd rather feel pain than nothing at all

Pain, without love

Pain, can't get enough

Pain, I like it rough

'Cause I'd rather feel pain than nothing at all

Anger and agony

Are better than misery

Trust me I've got a plan

When the lights go off you'll understand

Pain, without love

Pain, can't get enough

Pain, I like it rough

'Cause I'd rather feel pain than nothing at all

Pain, without love

Pain, can't get enough

Pain, I like it rough

'Cause I'd rather feel pain than nothing

Rather feel pain

I know (I know I know I know)

I know that you're wounded

You know (You know you know you know)

That I'm here to save you

You know (You know you know you know)

I'm always here for you

I know (I know I know I know)

That you'll thank me later

Pain, without love

Pain, can't get enough

Pain, I like it rough

'Cause I'd rather feel pain than nothing at all

Pain, without love

Pain, can't get enough

Pain, I like it rough

'Cause I'd rather feel pain than nothing at all

Pain, without love

Pain, can't get enough

Pain, I like it rough

'Cause I'd rather feel pain than nothing at all

Rather feel pain than nothing at all

Rather feel pain

I must have sung a little louder than normal, because several of the campers were staring at me. I growled and turned on my heels and stormed towards the sea.

(Line Break)

(Peter's Point of View)

(Time Skip: 30 Minutes Later)

It was time for Capture the Flag. I overheard Percy and Luke talking about the teams.

Me? I was on my own team. I was going to work with Percy.

Percy was going to be guarding near the creek, so was I. You see I do not care what the orders or the instructions were. I was going to stay by my friend's side, at least shadow him…

I stayed in the shadows, where I sensed a few monsters, nothing much, only three Hell Hounds. I destroyed two of them before the third disappeared into a shadow. I gave a pissed off growl, I could have followed, but I will not leave my friend. My gut was telling me something was going to happen soon, so I stuck around.

A few moments later the entire Cabin of Ares came.

I saw the look on Percy's face, he thought he was going to take the whole group on his own. I let out a wolf howl that echoed through the forest. That stunned the group and caused them to look at me. I pulled out my long lost, but recently found blade; Blizzard.

I vapor traveled into the creek behind Percy and walked out of it feeling refreshed, the water clung to Blizzard like iron filings to a bar magnet.

I chuckled and said to Percy "I take the ones on the left and you the right?"

Percy gave me the look that said "You are joking right?"

I shook my head and got into a defensive position.

(Line Break)

(Percy's Point of View)

They charged Peter and. I managed to sidestep the first kid's swing, but these guys were not as stupid as Minotaurs. They tried to surrounded us, but Peter broke through the circle and took on half by drawing them away from me, by insulting them and taunting.

However Clarisse had a bone to pick with me from the bathroom incident she thrusted at me with her spear.

My shield deflected the point, but I felt a painful tingling all over my body. My hair stood on end. My shield arm went numb, and the air burned.

Electricity.

Her stupid spear was electric! I wished Peter fought her!

I fell back.

Another Ares guy slammed me in the chest with the butt of his sword and I hit the dirt. They could have kicked me into jelly, but they were too busy laughing.

"Give him a haircut," Clarisse said. "Grab his hair."

I managed to get to my feet. I raised my sword, but Clarisse slammed it aside with her spear as sparks flew. Now both my arms felt numb.

"Oh, wow," Clarisse said. "I am scared of this guy. Really scared."

She seemed to have forgotten about Peter; in fact I have not seen or heard Percy and the other half of the cabin…

I tried to by me more time by saying "The flag is that way," I told her. I wanted to sound angry, but I was afraid it did not come out that way.

"Yeah," one of her siblings said. "But see, we do not care about the stupid flag. We care about a guy who made our cabin look stupid."

"You do that without my help." I reported to them. It probably was not the smartest thing to say in the situation I was in…

Two of them came at me. I backed up towards the creek, tried to raise my shield, but Clarisse was too fast. Her spear stuck me straight in the ribs. If I had not been wearing an armored breast plate, I would have been shish kebabed.

As it was, the electric point just about shocked my teeth out of my mouth. One of her cabin mates slashed his sword across my arm, leaving a good-size cut.

Seeing my own blood made me dizzy, warm and cold at the same time.

"No maiming…" I managed to say.

"Oops," the guy said. "'Guess I lost my dessert privilege."

He pushed me into the creek and I landed with a splash. They all laughed. I figured as soon as they were through being amused, I would die. But then something happened.

The water seemed to wake up my senses, as if I'd just had a bag of my mom's double-espresso jelly beans (which I have done before!)

Clarisse and her cabin mates came into the creek to get me, but I stood to meet them. I knew what to do. I swung the flat of my sword against the first guy's head and knocked his helmet clean off. I hit

him so hard I could see his eyes vibrating as he crumpled into the water.

Ugly Number Two and Ugly Number Three came at me. I slammed one in the face with my shield and used my sword to shear off the other guy's horsehair plume. Both of them backed up quick. Ugly

Number Four did not look really anxious to attack, but Clarisse kept coming, the point of her spear crackling with energy.

As soon as she thrust, I caught the shaft between the edge of my shield and my sword, and I snapped it like a twig.

"Ah!" she screamed. "You i***t! You corpse-breath worm!"

She probably would have said worse, but I smacked her between the eyes with my sword's butt end and sent her stumbling backwards out of the creek.

Then I heard yelling, elated screams, and I saw Luke racing towards the boundary line with the red team's banner lifted high. He was flanked by a couple of Hermes guys covering his retreat and a few

Apollos behind them, fighting off the Hephaestus kids.

The Ares folks got up, and Clarisse muttered a dazed curse. "A trick!" she shouted. "It was a trick."

They staggered after Luke, but it was too late. Everybody converged on the creek as Luke ran across into friendly territory. Our side exploded into cheers.

The red banner shimmered and turned to silver. The boar and spear were replaced with a huge caduceus, the symbol of cabin eleven.

Everybody on the blue team picked up Luke and started carrying him around on their shoulders.

Chiron cantered out from the woods and blew the conch horn. The game was over. We'd won. I was about to join the celebration when Annabeth's voice, right next to me in the creek, said, "Not bad, hero."

I looked, but she was not there.

"Where the heck did you learn to fight like that?" she asked. The air shimmered, and she materialized, holding a Yankees baseball cap as if she had just taken it off her head.

I felt myself getting angry. I was not even fazed by the fact that she had just been invisible. "You set me up!' I said with a growl. "You put me here because you knew Clarisse would come after me, while you sent Luke around the flank. You had it all figured out. You are Lucky Peter does not follow orders!"

Annabeth shrugged. "I told you. Athena always, always has a plan."

"A plan to get me killed!" I exclaimed.

"I came as fast as I could. I was about to jump in, but…" She shrugged. "You did not need help."

Then she noticed my wounded arm. "How did you do that?"

"Sword cut," I said. "What do you think?"

"No. It was a sword cut. Look at it." She said while pointing at where the cut had been a few moments ago.

The blood was gone. Where the huge cut had been, there was a long white scratch, and even that was fading. As I watched, it turned into a small scar, and disappeared completely.

"I – I do not get it," I muttered in shock.

Annabeth was thinking hard. I could almost see the gears turning. She looked down at my feet, then at Clarisse's broken spear, and said, "Step out of the water, Percy."

"What?" I began to question her.

"Just do it.' She said getting frustrated.

I came out of the creek and immediately felt bone tired. My arms started to go numb again. My adrenalin rush left me. I almost fell over, but Annabeth steadied me.

"Oh, Styx," she cursed. "This is not good. I did not want… I assumed it would be Zeus.…"

Before I could ask what she meant, I heard that canine growl again, but much closer than before. A howl ripped through the forest.

The campers' cheering died instantly. Chiron shouted something in Ancient Greek, which I would realize, only later, I had understood perfectly: "Stand ready! My bow!"

Annabeth drew her sword.

There on the rocks just above us was a black hound the size of a rhino, with lava-red eyes and fangs like daggers.

It was looking straight at me.

Nobody moved except Annabeth, who yelled, "Percy, run!"

She tried to step in front of me, but the hound was too fast. It leaped over her – an enormous shadow with teeth – and just as it hit me, as I stumbled backwards and felt its razor-sharp claws ripping through my armour, there was a cascade of thwacking sounds, like forty pieces of paper being ripped one after the other.

Out of nowhere the water sprung alive and it formed a hand that drug the Hell Hound into the water, where it dissolved into golden mud.

By some miracle, I was still alive. I didn't want to look underneath the ruins of my shredded armour. My chest felt warm and wet, and I knew I was badly cut. Another second, and the monster would have turned me into a hundred and ten pounds of delicatessen meat.

Chiron trotted up next to us, a bow in his hand, his face grim.

"Di immortales," Annabeth said. "That was a Hell Hound from the Fields of Punishment. They do not… they are not supposed to…"

"Someone summoned it," Chiron said. "Someone inside the camp."

Luke came over, the banner in his hand forgotten, his moment of glory gone.

Clarisse yelled, "It is all Percy's fault! Percy summoned it!"

"Be quiet, child," Chiron told her.

Peter stepped out of the creek and said coldly "Percy and I had nothing to do with his, daughter of War."

"You are wounded." Annabeth told me. "Quick, Percy, get in the water."

"I'm okay." I said

Peter said gruffly "Just get in the water Perse!"

I frowned I thought he was on my side!

"No, you're not," she said. "Chiron, watch this."

I was too tired to argue anymore. I stepped back into the creek, the whole camp gathering around me.

Instantly, I felt better. I could feel the cuts on my chest closing up. Some of the campers gasped.

"Look, I – I do not know why," I said, trying to apologize. "I'm sorry…"

But they were not watching my wounds heal. They were staring at something above my head.

"Percy," Annabeth said, pointing. "Um…"

By the time I looked up, the sign was already fading, but I could still make out the hologram of green light, spinning and gleaming. A three tipped spear: a trident.

"Your father," Annabeth murmured. "This is really not good."

"It is determined," Chiron announced.

All around me, campers started kneeling, even the Ares cabin, though they did not look happy about it.

"My father?" I asked, completely bewildered.

"Poseidon," said Chiron. "Earth Shaker, Storm Bringer, Father of Horses. Hail, Perseus Jackson, Son of the Sea God."

Shortly after I was claimed, Peter was.

But I was very confused when he had a Skull, a Lightning Bolt and a Trident.

Peter gave a pissed off growl and said before Chiron or anyone could say a word "My great grandfather is Hades, my grandfather is Zeus and my father is Poseidon." He turned to me and said with a smile, he had a twinkle in his eyes that I have yet to see before. He said to me "Looks like you ARE my brother. I could not have had a better brother…"

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Here was the next chapter how was it?

If I can do better please leave a review or PM me!

PS: I am going to put a few twists in the plot, if you have any ideas of guesses for the future I would love to hear it!

Death Fury out!