Many thanks to:

TheOnyxDragon12

Blackjackxx

Chapter 1

We are at war…

Who am I? I am a soldier. I am a tactician. I am one of eleven commanders fighting against the children of the Roman Empire. The oncoming war will be a deadly one and unfortunately I shall lose many comrades, many friends, are you sure you want to read this diary? If not turn away but if the aspect of battle excites you, if the idea of bloodshed intrigues you then I have one thing to say to you. You are either a bloody idiot… or a child of Ares.

I have lived in Camp Half-Blood since the sixth year of my life. I am at the age of sixteen and during these ten years I have grown considerably. I am no longer a clueless child unaware of the curse I, along with many others, have been born with but I am strong. My body has been trained for combat since the very first week I have lived in camp. These ten years have strengthened me for this situation; our very country is on the brink of Civil war and even us Demigods have had to choose a side. Either side with the southern states and join the confederacy who oppose the abolishment of slavery or remain with the Union; the upper states who fight for the freedom of the black man.

This conflict has revealed how 'strong' our people are and how we stay together over a disagreement; brother against brother – Demigod against Demigod. Not only have the southern states banded together but many of our Roman brethren have also aligned themselves with their foolish cause. There are a few Greeks and Romans that have exchanged sides or have decided to remain passive however most Demigods have stayed to fight in their own quarter. We all feel a great conflict arising but all I know is that Hades will need more room below the Earth after the day is done.

Today our camp was visited by the two praetors of Camp Jupiter, a sickly girl called Margret, her partner: a short stout guy called Charles, and their escort party. The escort had about ten centurions in ranks of two, standing in perfect order. I was in the armoury when the Romans arrived, each centurion had a stern glare upon their faces, and they appeared to be scanning the area for any signs of possible trouble. I have got to admit the Romans are quite efficient if a little over-bearing at times. Our activity leader Chiron trotted up to meet the group. Chiron is the centaur from many of the ancient Greek myths training many heroes for the challenges ahead of them and he is now the general of our army. By his side stood each cabin leader, acting as the commander of their cabin. There are twelve cabins within Camp Half-Blood however there are only eleven commanders who stand by Chiron.

As I mentioned before I am one of the eleven commanders however I am not the eldest of my cabin. The usual way someone is declared leader of their cabin is based on age. The eldest are declared leader by default however our old leader was a tyrant, a wealthy girl named Rebeca, so I challenged her position of power by an act of combat. Long story short I defeated the old leader in a dual so I took up her role but this was long ago and now I regret my rash decision.

The reason why there are only eleven commanders despite the twelve cabins is due to Hera. Hera is the goddess of marriage so to commit adultery is against her very nature. Every other god or goddess is allowed to fall in love with a mortal but not Hera. She stands faithfully by the side of my father no matter what he does because of her nature. I pity her sometimes. She is enslaved by her role in the world. She can only love him, no matter what sin he would commit…

By Chiron's side stood Juliet; one of my best friends. When I first arrived in camp many of my cabin mates were bitter due to Rebeca's control so many of them took out their frustration on me so I didn't have many friends. I was the punch-bag so to speak. I am socially awkward as well so that didn't do me any favours however Juliet who is about my age took pity on me so we became fast friends. Juliet is the head of the Cabin of Athena, the intelligent children of the camp so they are trained more in tactics and leadership however Juliet is deadly with a trident, when anyone insults her for being a daughter of Athena she turns into a one woman army. Her father has apparently read every piece of Shakespearian literature thus her name is based from Romeo & Juliet.

Stood close by Juliet is another girl called Ingrid, My other best friend. Any sane person would guess that she would be a daughter of Athena based on the amount of literacy she has read however they would be wrong. Ingrid is the eldest daughter of Ares; she is vicious and calculating on the battlefield and only person I have yet to defeat. Her aura on the battlefield screams death however when she is on the side-lines she is as gentle as a forest spirit. To see her face is a miracle as her nose is usually buried within either a novel or The Art of War.

As Margaret stepped closer to Chiron, Ingrid's hand shifted to the dagger strapped to her waist. Even if it was out of instinct it attracted the attention of one of the Roman escorts who began to glare at Ingrid as if to say 'You dare and you're dead…' I jogged over to see how the situation would play out (and even to lend a hand if the Romans got aggressive. Again)

Chirion took another step towards Margaret as if he was silently challenging her. Margaret took two steps back, like a scared animal, and nodded toward Charles. Charles then reached out behind him and pulled out a rolled up scroll. Charles cleared his throat before reading what was written on the scroll

'This scroll is a declaration of war. Camp Jupiter and its leaders believe the only just way to determine which belief is of a just cause is to use combat as a judge. May Mars and Bellona side with the just of causes.' Charles and Margaret smirked as Charles rolled the scroll back up. Chiron's face contorted from a face of shock to a face of pure anger.

'You Romans think a real war is just a game!? You foolish children! How on the face of Gaia herself did Lupa approve of this nonsense?' Chiron glared at the group of Romans, scolding them as if they had just played a nasty prank.

'All through my life I have seen many children die at the hand of war but never have I seen children through their lives away for what? Glory? Honour?' Ingrid and the Cabin head of Apollo had to restrain Chiron from trampling a terrified Margaret into the dirt. I had never seen Chiron like this however many of us don't really know that much about him, how could we? As I step forward, taking Chiron's place, I glance back at him. He had stopped bucking and jumping but I could still see the fury in his eyes.

As I am about to ask Chiron how we should pursue this course of action the head of the cabin of Ares, an arrogant boy named James yells 'Here's our answer!' before stabbing Charles in the abdomen with a large, bronze spear. Charles looks into my eyes with a glance of disbelief mixed with anger or fear, it all happened too fast to truly tell.

As soon as James pulled his spear head out of Charles the entire Roman convoy burst into action, pulling out swords from gods-knows-where and leaping at people in all different directions. I was too stunned to move until some unknown force knocked me to the ground. Once I regained focus I saw that Margaret was straddling my chest. She held her sword, a Gladius, against my throat. She had a vicious look in her eye, a strand of greasy black hair escaped from her bun and hung down her face.

'I knew you Greek where trouble as soon as I heard about you! You will never defeat us Romans, you lack order! You lack strength!' As soon as Margaret spat out her little monologue she raised the Gladius, ready to strike at my neck until a booming voice rang from behind her

'This strong enough for ya?'

The next thing I heard was metal vibrating as Margaret flew off me, landing somewhere to the left. In her place stood Ingrid, a crazy light in her eye and a gigantic book raised above her head. As I looked over at Margaret's crumpled body I was afraid Ingrid was having one of her berserker moments and in a moment I'd too be unconscious thanks to that book of hers. Considering that the book created a giant dent in the side of Margaret's helmet I didn't want to see the results it would have on my skull. Luckily Ingrid just stuck out her hand for me instead; I silently thanked the gods as she pulled me up. By the time I was on my feet Ingrid was chasing after another terrified Centurion.

'I am really glad she is on our side'. I muttered to myself. Suddenly I heard a blood curdling roar from behind me.

As I reached for the pencil in my pocket a gigantic centurion began to charge towards me. He was at least seven meters tall and I swear the ground shook around us with each step he took. The pencil was in a stygian iron casing with a button at the top to expel a pencil lead from the bronze nib at the other end. Once I pulled out the pencil I immediately pressed the button at the top causing the metal nib to extend about two feet longer and an inch wider. The pencil body itself thickened considerably as endless amounts of iron plating latched onto the body forming a sleek bronze and iron katana. As the hulk of a centurion charged toward me I held out the blade of my blade defensively, preparing to strike.

As suddenly as the centurion leaped toward me I stepped to the side of his muscular body and slashed at his calf causing it to separate from the shin upwards. As the surrounding forest filled with the screams of the one-legged centurion I pulled a short pen knife from my pocket and stabbed it into the ground through the collar of the centurion's armour. After restraining the sobbing giant I glanced around, looking for any other opponents ready to fight however most of the Roman convoy were incapacitated on the ground and many campers were trying to holding James and his bloody spear back. As suddenly as I turned my back Margaret was on her feet again, this time unarmed fortunately. As I raised my blade toward her she screamed 'Vile Greeks' in our direction before muttering some peculiar Latin incantation. Suddenly every one of the Roman soldiers was bathed in a red aura before vanishing before our eyes. James spat at the ground as Charles' corpse teleported along with the band of unconscious centurions and one furious Margaret.

-Much later that evening-

Chiron called everyone to the campfire for an important announcement. Each of the eleven commanders, minus James, stood behind Chiron atop a wooden stage with the campfire burningly ferociously behind us. As Chiron stepped forward I could swear he had a tear in his eye but he blinked it away immediately. Chiron has never liked to reveal his past but I have a sneaking suspicion that it involves death, quite a lot of it too.

'As many of you heard, a band of Romans came to visit today!' Chiron declared, many in the crowd booed and jeered once they heard the word Roman. I didn't 'hate' the Romans but I sure as hell hated some of their ideals.

'Anyway…' Chiron continued. 'The Romans came with a message, and not just any message. They came with a declaration of war.' Many campers and other residents interrupted Chiron again, this time with floods of questions. The only people who seemed to be happy was some of the Ares cabin however some of the older kids seemed a little concerned as well; which is in no doubt surprising.

'The leaders of Camp Jupiter have aligned themselves with the confederacy. Their position in this conflict is now obvious to us and it is time for us to decide where we stand. Many lives shall be reaped but in order to survive we will need to raise an army! This is more than a fight for land, wealth or people. This is a fight for our freedom and our home! We all need to help each other through this!'

Chiron was a little shocked by the reaction of the crowd who began to chant the name of their home, the name Camp Half-Blood. I stood up and began to applaud and cheer and to my surprise many other residents joined me. I don't care what I'll have to do to get through this war but the reason was great enough. I want to protect my family the same as every other person does, including James. If Camp Jupiter wants to take away the people I love then I'll give them war. I'll send them to the pits of Tartarus. Chiron actually shed a smile as we all cheered into the night.

It would have been terrifying for anyone else to see a bunch of kids, goat-men and green fairies screaming in the night.

I hope the Romans are well prepared for the battles ahead because we will give them hell.