What happens when a daughter of Iris, a son of Apollo, and a son of Aphrodite have to team up with a few senior campers? We get…

…"The Secret Within".

(I am starting out with a chapter for Percy and a chapter for Leo because I need to just explain some things and get it started. As the story progresses I will center more on Iesha, Lewis, and Eric. I am also doing it in this style because the chapters are a little bit short, but don't worry there will be lots of chapters!)

Chapter 1 – Percy Recaps

Percy lay on his bed staring at the ceiling while listening to faint ocean noises. The war with the Giants had ended a few months ago but it felt like yesterday. He had also just turned 17. He missed Frank and Hazel who had gone back to the roman camp to lead the fifth cohort back to victory with the eagle he had recovered. He still worried fro Frank every day and prayed to the gods that Hazel would keep the stick safe.

He had befriended Jason, Leo, and Piper during their trip to Rome and now they stayed at camp. Officially, ever since the Argo II was made, the curse on cabin 9 had been lifted. Piper was now doing a very good job as head of Aphrodite and Jason was happy staying here instead of the roman camp. His girlfriend, Annabeth was finally done with the reconstruction of Olympus which was postponed during the war. Tyson was visiting right now and Rachel was going through a series of random prophecies.

'Whoa' He thought. Maybe he should not think of so much stuff at once. He had contacted his mom using the Iris messaging system earlier that day and she pestered him about staying for December break. It was already December 14th. He got up and looked at the crumpled shield and Minotaur horn that rested on his night stand. His thought was interrupted by the dinner bells. 'Was it really that late?'

He went outside and walked over to the cabin of Athena where Annabeth sat working on some blueprints, obviously unaware of the bell.

"Hey," He said, not wanting to startle her.

She looked up and a smile spread across her face. "What's up?" She asked in an innocent voice.

"The bells rang. You missed it again."

"Ugh," Her smile faltered. "Third time this week."

"What are working on this time? A chariot with secret compartments? The tallest building in the world, possibly?"

"Actually I was looking back on some papers we got in the labyrinth. I want to convince Chiron if we could build a replica here. It would be amazing for battles."

Percy laughed at this. Annabeth was always looking for more improvements for camp. "Well, if a petition needs signing you can grantee my name will be there."

"Thanks. We should probably go down before we're late."

They headed down to the pavilion while Annabeth described how they would put some monsters in there. She emphasized that they would have to be tamed first.

When they got down, Percy headed to his table while Annabeth went to sit with her brothers and sisters. Tyson was waiting for him when he got there.

"Brother!" Tyson exclaimed when his big brown eye spotted Percy. "I was very worried. Thought something was wrong."

"Don't worry I was fine, just talking to Annabeth." Percy had noted that ever since he saw Tyson again in California he was more protective of him.

They began to eat while wind nymphs brought out drinks that everyone likes. They all got up and put some food in the fire while saying a prayer to their parent. Percy sat back down, took a sip of his blue kool-aid, and began to talk to Tyson about his rank of general.

Chapter 2 – Leo

(I made this just so the story will go along easy.)

Leo was happy. For the past year he probably would have said he was either mad or anxious or both. The war affected a lot of people that way. He had never traveled out of the country, so when he heard they were going to Europe he was scared. He was afraid also because of the things he had heard of Rome and Greece. How since the gods had originated from there, the monsters were worse. They of course were right. He didn't like to think about it.

At the moment he was in bunker 9 trying to assemble a miniature Festus made out of scrap metal and some paper clips. He needed to get some bigger pieces to make a real one. He had kind of been in a depression since he died last year. Chiron had told him he was allowed to make a new one, which only made him feel worse. Because it wouldn't be real.

He tossed it into the trash bin that was now full with random little creations. He got up and decided to go for a walk around camp. As he came out of the woods he saw Jason walking from the big house. Leo sprinted towards him.

"Hey man, what's up?" Leo said in hopes it would be at least a little bit interesting.

"We got a new recruit. Her name's Iesha." They began to walk toward the lake.

"Hopefully Piper won't hear about this."

"Dude, she's like 14."

"Yeah, but we're only 16."

"17" Jason said with a prideful smile.

"It was yesterday, yes we know that. But frankly, to me, you still act a little immature."

"Yeah, says the guy who laughs every time someone says the word 'balls'"

Leo started laughing. He tried to stop knowing it was only proving a point, but he found it impossible to. "Oh, come on. You got to admit it is a little bit funny."

Jason smirked. "Speaking of Piper…"

"Ugh."

"As I was saying. Speaking of Piper, I don't see you with anyone lately."

Leo's smile faded. "Well, you know, I'm still recovering from the whole 'killing giants with Gods' thing."

"Okay, I'm just saying your sixteen..."

"…And six sevenths."

"Whatever. You should get yourself a girl." They got to the lake and sat down on a bench facing camp."

"It's not as easy as you think. I can't wake up one day, holding my future girlfriends hand."

Jason laughed to himself remembering the first time they met. "Well, what about her." Jason points to a girl about their age playing basketball. She had auburn hair and an athletic body. And by the looks of the game, she was wining. "I think her name is Jessica, and daughter of Apollo."

"Yeah maybe." Their conversation was cut short by the dinner bell ringing.

"We better go have dinner. I here there's going to be a game of capture the flag afterwards." Jason was full of excitement when he said this. Lately Leo thought this was all he looked forward to in day.

They headed down to the pavilion and said bye as they went to different tables. Leo went off to Hephaestus table while Jason went to sit at the head table. Since he was the only child of Zeus Chiron let him sit there with him, Dionysus, and the satyrs. Jason passed the Aphrodite table where he waved to Piper, who was smiling big for him. When he passed by everyone could hear them whispering about him, mostly good things.

They all settled down and Leo looked down at his barbeque, grapes, and cheese, and got up with his table to make an offering. He sat back down and began to eat. He had asked for a coke but by now he was well aware that the coke did not taste like coke.

Chapter 3 – Meet Lewis Dolby

(Now this chapter doesn't have much dialogue if any because he is a new character and I just want to develop the character first.)

Lewis was relatively new to Camp Half-Blood. He had arrived about a week ago with a girl named Annabeth and a satyr named Grover. He didn't freak out when he saw the satyr, which Grover said was strange. They had told him he was a demigod and had to go to Camp Half-Blood.

He wanted to say no. He led a good life. Apart from the ADHD and dyslexia he liked his life. He had a caring mother and step-father along with a nice step-sister 4 years younger. He was a kid at school when he wasn't getting yelled at. The teachers complained he fell asleep to much or had space out moments and never learned. He two friends, one was a girl Natalie and another guy Sean.

He knew everything about Demigods. In fact, two years ago when he was twelve another satyr named Gleeson asked him to go to Camp Half-Blood with him. He refused and ran until he lost him. His mom had told him even before that they would come for him and he should trust them, but something made him stay. He was glad because a couple months later his mother needed a blood transfusion and he was the only match in the family. After Annabeth got there, though, his mother forced him to go and train, saying it was too dangerous with the monsters.

On the way there he saw what she meant. Twice they were attacked. The first attack was by two Dracaenae which are the waist and above of beautiful women and the legs are those of disgusting sea monsters. The other attack was by these bird women mutations which Lewis later found out were harpies. He was so lucky that Annabeth and Grover were good fighters because he probably would be at camp right now, if it weren't for them.

Almost immediately when they passed into the camp's borders he saw a blue light fill the sir around him. Annabeth and Grover gasped and said he had just been claimed. Apparently there had been a bow and arrow symbol over head. His father was apparently Apollo. When he had gotten to his cabin he met the head consoler Jessica Kriegsmsan which apparently means 'Warrior' in Hebrew.

She was three years older than him and about 2'' taller. She showed him all the parts of camp. The borders, the dinning pavilion, the armory, the camp forge, the forests, the lake, the store, the big house, and all the cabins. During this time he was getting all caught up on the history of the camp and Greek mythology. They headed back and she introduced him to the male consoler of Apollo, James Lucas. He showed him his bunk and trunk he got for his stuff.

By the time he had finally gotten packed in that day, it was already dinner. He found out the hard way that his cabin leads the campfire sings along after dinner.

That night he made a note not to tell anyone about his curse. His mother probably would have called it a blessing or gift from the gods. It made sense that Apollo was the god of prophecies because strangely enough, Lewis got them. Not all the time in fact the last time he got one was about two days before he got to camp. He has never actually heard what he has said before but it still creeped him out. He was sure that no one would like him or even talk to him if he them. He figured they would lock him up in the big house to be used and put away.

Now he was sitting on the grass watching some of his 'brothers' and 'sisters' play a three on three basketball game. Jessica's team was wining by three points. She moved like a wild animal on the court. It was amazing. But He guessed being 5'9'' and very athletic paid off.

He had been there a week and still had not made a real friend. He had "Friends" but they never hung out with him, they never sat with him at meals, they never talked to him really.

He looked down at his watch that read 5:56 which meant they would ring the bells any second for dinner. And again he would be sitting alone. Sometimes he wishes he could go on a quest just so he could prove himself and show people that he wasn't just a shy guy. 'Ha' He laughed at his joke. Just like he predicted the bells rang and he sprinted off towards the other end of camp.

Chapter 4 – Meet Iesha Turk

(This chapter will be significantly longer than the first three. First, Iesha is the main character and I really want you to know her full background. Also, most of the future chapters will be about this length, or at least I want them to be.)

Iesha's head hurt. She hadn't hit it; it was more like getting too much information at once. You know one second you fine and dandy doing your homework when all of the sudden a horse lands in your front yard. Yeah, that's right, lands in the yard. It didn't have wings but it was defiantly flying a second ago. . Her first instinct was to stare. And she didn't even notice a guy get off the flying animal until she heard the door bell.

She opened the door with a suspicious look on her face. The boy looked like he was a little older than her and had blonde hair and blue eyes. He had a smile on his face.

Iesha finally spoke, "Can I help you?"

"Yes, is there an Iesha Turk living at this address."

"Yeah. Why?"

"We have filed a report and need to report her to Camp Half-Blood immediately."
"What?"
"Well, given the look on your face I am guessing you can see Tempest over there which also means you can see through the mist, which means you are Iesha Turk."

"What?"

"Do you know if your mother or father is home?"

"Yeah, let me get them for you. Come on in."

The boy with the blonde hair walked in and sat at the nearest couch. Iesha ran to the basement where her mother and sisters were doing the laundry. She had 4 sisters and 6 brothers, and no they were not all related to her. She lived in a foster home, ever since she was six years old, when her father died. She still has memories of her father but strangely none of her mother. Her father always said she left before she turned one, but he said it in a way that wasn't mean. Almost like her mother didn't want to leave.

She brought her foster mom, Sharon, up and showed her to boy. He introduced himself as Jason and asked if he and Sharon could talk in private. Sharon told Iesha to go to her room and she did as she was told. Iesha was scared.

She was scared because she knew they were taking her away because she was different. Ever since she turned eight, six years ago, she had been different. She tried to hide it, and so far it working pretty good. She hadn't had an outburst for two months. At least not as bad as an outburst as she had before. She was in her room that she shared with her sister Marina and sat down at her desk and began to draw. She enjoyed drawing, but it wouldn't get her mind away from the memory.

On the day after her eighth birthday she had gotten into a fight with a girl named Harper. She was a year older than Iesha and thought she was always in charge of her, ordering her around and telling her what to do. On that particular day she had enough, Harper had told her to get her and her friend Julie sodas with six ice cubes each. Iesha had been getting so sick of being their 'slave' but that day, she finally snapped. She screamed so loud her ear drums popped. She felt like boiling water she was so mad. She closed her eyes and began to yell at Harper, but opened her eyes when she felt wet.

A storm cloud was on the ceiling of the room and it was raining. Yeah, raining inside. Harper and her friend looked at her and seemed either mad, scared, or both. She had run to her room and ever since anyone who witnessed that had called her a witch or worse. She had to endear months, even years of torment and exclusion. She even scared away the only couple that was interested in adopting her.

She snapped out of her memory when she heard her name being called. She walked down the stairs and saw her mother and Jason sitting at their dining room table. She slowly approached the table and noticed that her mother's eyes were red and swollen. 'She had been crying. They are taking me away.' She thought.

"So," Jason began. "We talked and in the circumstance it would be in everyone's best interest if you leave for camp as soon as possible. Usually we get new recruits at age 12 or 13 so given you are 14 we should leave now." He faked a smile and could tell the level of stress in the air.

"Why? Why are you taking me away?" Iesha said trying to hold back tears.

"I'll explain on the ride to camp, and don't think of it as taking you away. It's more like a summer camp but all year for some kids."

And with that Sharon went up stairs with Iesha to help her pack all her clothes into a backpack. They didn't talk during this process but she could tell that Sharon was very sad due to the fact that she sniffed and three seconds and Iesha was pretty sure she didn't have allergies. They went back down stairs and with one last painful good bye she and Jason went outside. It was no use to say good bye to everyone else. No one would remember her anyway.

Jason approached the horse and jumped up almost as if her were gliding as he did so. She slung her backpack over her shoulders and looked up at him.

"Are you coming?" He asked while holding out a hand.

She looked down at the hand then back at his face. "I can't. I am very afraid of heights." She looked serious, though Jason had a smile on his face.

"You remind of my sister. Don't worry, it's not as bad and besides you can keep your eyes closed the entire time." He held out his hand again.

She took it reluctantly and climbed aboard the giant flying horse. She grabbed hold of Jason's waist which was very awkward and she shut her eyes tight.

She felt the horse take off and she felt sick to her stomach. She tried to think positive. Think about drawing or what she thought the camp would be like. She didn't want to think about the fact that she was on a horse flying what felt like 70 miles per hour, feeling sick beyond compare, and holding on to an almost complete stranger.

Chapter 5 – Meet Iesha Turk part 2

After what felt like forever she felt the horse get slower and felt her ears pop which meant she was going down. She opened her eyes and saw the horse above a big pasture of strawberries with a building in the distance. As they got closer she realized this was the camp. She saw cabins and a forest and lots of little buildings she guessed were the activities. She hoped they would have arts and crafts.

The horse slowed down and began to land next to the big house. Jason hopped off and helped Iesha get down. She was amazed at what she saw. There where people playing basketball and fighting with swords and, where those satyrs? She felt sick again. Jason motioned her over to the big blue house.

She sat down on a chair while Jason continued inside. She heard people talking inside but figured it would be best to stay out here. Eventually Jason came out with a man, except this man had the body of horse. A centaur, she believed they were called.

The centaur began to speak. "You may go Jason. You have done well. The satyrs will bring Tempest to the stables." Iesha saw Jason leave and go talk to a guy with curly hair. She turned back around.

"If you don't mind me asking," She began. "Where am I exactly?"

"New York, Camp Half-Blood." Iesha still looked confused. "You are home." He said with a smile.

"For thousands of years Greek and Roman Gods and Goddesses have been falling in love with mortals and having children with them. This camp is a safe place for those children, away from any dangers or monsters."

"So, um Mr.…"

"…Chiron."

"Mr. Chiron, you're saying that everyone here is a child of the gods."

"Demigods, is what they are called. And yes, to the exception of the satyrs, nymphs, and myself."

Iesha was still very confused and the headache began. The headache she got whenever she had to take in too much information.

"Tell me Iesha, have you ever had trouble in school? Ever had trouble reading or staying focused?"

"Well, yeah, I have. But, my foster mom said it just because I had…"

"ADD and dyslexia." Iesha was getting very annoyed by him cutting her off.

"Does that mean I'm a demigod? The reason I can't remember my mom is because she's a goddess?"

Chiron nodded his head. "But I will let someone else explain that." He motioned his hand and a girl stepped out of the doorway. She was about 16 and had bright red hair and a huge smile. She walked over to Iesha and shook her hand.

"Rachel Elizabeth Dare is the name," She began. "But, you can call me Rachel if you like. Come on, I'll show you around."

They began to walk off the porch while their conversation continued. Iesha started, "So who's your Godly parent?"

"Oh, no, I'm not a demigod." Iesha looked at her weird. "I'm the oracle of Delphi. Whenever there is a quest or whenever the spirit feels like it," Rachel rolled her eyes. "I have these visions where the spirit talks and tells a prophecy and the future."

Iesha was truly disturbed by this. "Don't worry it's not nearly as bad as it sounds." Iesha was pretty sure Rachel said something else under her breath like 'Most of the time'. They went on with the tour showing Iesha where they eat, where they train, where they have arts and crafts which apparently include saws and blowtorches. Finally they heard bells and Rachel told them that was the dinner bell.

"Come on, I'll walk you down." They came down to the big open pavilion and Rachel headed to the large table at the end where Chiron and the satyrs sat. "You'll sit with us since you haven't been claimed yet. You would sit at the Hermes table, where all the unclaimed demigods go. But ever since Percy Jackson got the Gods to claim their kids quicker they don't take strays, so to speak."

She sat down and soon found a big plate of grapes, cheese, and chicken in front of her. She saw everyone at her table get up and walk to the fire with their plates so she fired.

"You got to make a offering to the Gods." Rachel said next to her while scraping some of her cheese in the fire. Iesha didn't mind about tossing her chicken into the fire being a vegetarian and all.

She sat back down and was surprised to find her favorite drink in front of her, which was a chocolate milkshake with a cherry on top. It even tasted like her dad made it. She felt blissful while laughing at something a satyr said next to her.