-CHAPTER 1-

-Percy's POV-

The air was stale. I felt a cold breeze whisper through the cracks of our roof. I shivered and pulled up the covers as far as I could without disrupting my little brother, Tyson. Sometimes, I felt like he was the only thing good left in this world, besides my mother of course. My mom was a goddess among mortals. She was the nicest person you could ever meet and had a voice sweeter than honey.

My mother, Tyson, and I lived in the shore part of Poseidon's, otherwise known as the Sea God's, district. The shore part was rumored to be full of nasty inhabitants like the Kraken and Ceto, the mother of sea-monsters. For fear of these beings, people started to pay more to be in the middle of town. It didn't matter to me anyways, I personally preferred being closer to the sea. I don't know why but, I had always felt calmest when I was near the water. Anyways, Poseidon's district was commonly known as District 3 because a myth about a summer camp for demigods, half-mortal half-god people, stated that Poseidon's cabin was the third one. I guess the new people who took over Olympia heard of the mythical summer camp and decided to assign the districts accordingly.

I hated the Titans. They were greedy and didn't care at all about the districts. All they did was turn the districts into slaves in order to reap the benefits. The Titans weren't always in charge. Years ago, even before my mother was born, there were 12 major Olympians who used to rule over Olympia. Though they weren't always the fairest rulers, I have no doubt in my mind that they were wayyy better than the Titans. Most people simply forgot about the Olympians, but my mother had educated Tyson and I to respect them.

The smell of cookies filled the air. Mom's blue cookies, I thought to myself before pulling off the covers and jumping out of bed. I shivered at the cool air that surrounded me without the warmth of the blankets, but I wasn't bothered. My mom's cookies could melt anyone's worries away with one bite. She had always made them for Tyson and I whenever we were feeling down. No wonder she was making them today.

Today was Reaping Day, the day where they selected a male and female tribute from each district to compete with the other tributes as a sacrifice to King Kronos and his Titan final tribute was declared a Victor and was given food and money beyond belief. But that luxury came at a cost. My family lived in a district where people were trained for these games, illegally I might add, because they considered it to be an honor to be chosen. Other districts however, were not as keen about these games. You could see it in their eyes when they were chosen that they knew that they had no chance at surviving.

I had practiced too, but not for the same reasons. I knew how the cruel minds of the Titans worked. I knew that they would rig the selection to choose my brother as a tribute. I loved Tyson but anyone could see that he was too soft and gentle to survive in the Games. That was why I woke up every morning to sneak out to the woods where I could train. My mom couldn't afford a Victor to mentor me, not that she would anyways. She, like Tyson, was so sweet and kind that I knew it would break her heart if I ever told her about the things I would do to keep Tyson safe.

Clearing my head and practicing a smile, I walked out of the room that I shared with Tyson and sat opposite of my mother in the living room. She had a cup of milk ready for me and a plate of warm cookies.

"Hi, Mom" I said wearily. She knew with one look that the smile I tried to fool her with was fake. I sighed and reached for a blue cookie. DId I mention why she made blue cookies? Once when the landlord came over, he made a remark about how there were no such things as blue foods. Ever since then, my mother has made all foods blue, just to prove him wrong. Anyways, back to the cookies. They were warm and gooey and filled your heart with a warmth that you couldn't recreate with anything else. I smiled, a genuine one this time, and peeked a glanced at my mom.

My mom, Sally Jackson, could make you feel like the best person in the world. When she looked at me, I no longer felt different or freaky. I felt… normal. Her kind eyes followed me as I gulped down the cup of milk and reached for another cookie.

"What?!" I asked. "Do I have something on my face?" I asked as I blindly rubbed my face.

"Here, let me." My mom said as she dabbed my mouth with a napkin. "There, you're all handsome now"

"Hey! Does that mean I wasn't handsome before?!" I said, pretending to be offended. My mom's eyes twinkled with amusement. I smiled back, happy that I was able to distract her, even if it was only for a little while.

We sat in comfortable silence for a few minutes until it was broken by a shrill scream coming from the room I shared with Tyson.

My mom and I shared a terrified glance at each other before scrambling for the door to Tyson's room.

"No, no, Percy, please! Don't do this, I don't want to lose you! Please Percy!" Tyson screamed as he sobbed and thrashed around in his bed. He continued to whimper and jerk. It pained me to see him in this state so I jumped on the bed and grabbed his shoulders. I shook Tyson until I saw his eyes pop open, still wet from the tears.

"Shhhh, shhhhhh Tyson. You're okay now. I was just a dream, baby bro. I'm right here see? Safe and sound." I said, trying to comfort him.

"You're okay, brother?"

"Yes I am, Tyson"

"Promise you'll never leave me again?"

"I promise, Tyson." And as I said those words, I had a feeling that I had just signed my death warrant.