I do not own Percy Jackson or any of the characters.


Making Friends

I step out of the Apollo Cabin in silence. I was given a set of leather armor to train with, along with a sword and bow, which my half-siblings all claim is what we all get, since our father is an archer. I shift the bow on my shoulder, looking around. I'm supposed to be going to archery training, but the targets are all full, and besides that, there's a flat area off to the side where people are practicing with swords. And I can see a really pretty girl with an athletic build, wavy blonde hair, and tan skin that I really hope isn't a liar.

"Eye's front newbie," one of my half-brothers, Will Solace, says, clapping me on the shoulder. "No relationships until after you can defend yourself. Though, I will thank you for bringing Dad to visit."

I remain silent as he leads me to the archery area, the others present all looking over at us. Will introduces me and asks if we can steal a target so that he can teach me to shoot a bow. He tells me how to aim properly. Then, he demonstrates, hitting a near-perfect bullseye. He hands me an arrow and I pull the string back, surprised the bow is so easy to pull. Then, I release the arrow and it hits dead center of the target.

"Nice!" Will grins. "Bet you can't do it again."

I take another arrow and fire, the arrow shaving a feather off of my last arrow before hitting the target. Will cheered.

"That's awesome!" Will said. "You're even more of a natural than the rest of us!"

"Thanks," I say. "Is that because of Dad?"

"Yeah," Will nods. "All children of Apollo are naturals. Although, I think your skill is partially your own."

"Thanks," I say. "So, what now?"

"Think you can split an arrow?" Will grins.

We have a sort of competition. He comes up with a specific trick shot, and I perform it. Not all of them, but most. Enough that the others around me are watching me, impressed. And then, a girl I can only assume is the camp bully arrives. She's big. A few years older than me, wearing an orange shirt with "CAMP HALF-BLOOD" on the front under a camouflage jacket, and has long, stringy brown hair and a mean look.

"Hey newbie," she says. "You ready for initiation?"

"What kind?" I ask.

"Don't," Will warns.

"It's a ceremony to welcome you," she lies.

"Liar," I say. "I'm not doing it, so just go away."

She glares at me before smirking and walking away. Somehow, I have a bad feeling about her. Will tells me not to worry about it, and we continue archery for a while before Will takes me over to where there are racks of other weapons. Here, I struggle.

Swords I'm, apparently, naturally adequate with, being able to hold my own for a bit before losing. And I progress from there. Spears I'm atrocious with, and things like flails and clubs I'm even worse with.

After that is dinner. There, Will explained that we had to throw the best parts of our food into the fire as an offering to the gods, specifically my father. We got fresh fruit and vegetables, and barbecue. and then, at the fire, I gave my dad an offering of the full plate. I got a weird look from a lot of others, but I didn't care. He saved my life. I owed him.

The camp director, Diyonesus, nicknamed Mr. D, introduced me to anyone who didn't know, and then dismissed us to eat, Will getting me more food so I could eat. Probably the best part of the meal, however, was the magic cup that everyone got that filled with whatever drink I wanted as long as I said it, in my case, hot chocolate.

Once everyone was finished, we went to a bonfire where the rest of Apollo cabin led a sing-along, during which, I was silent. A few people noticed, including the girl I had seen earlier.

"Why aren't you singing?" the girl asked. "You're Apollo's son, right?"

"Yes," I say. "But I...I don't like singing in front of people. I get nervous."

"That makes you the only one," the girl says. "I'm Annabeth."

"Adam," I say. "Nice to meet you."

"You too," she says. "Ready for Capture the Flag tomorrow?"

"Not really," I say. "But I guess I don't have a whole lot of choice."

"Not really," Annabeth agreed. "If it makes you feel better, you're not the only new guy. The kid over there that looks completely lost, that's Percy Jackson. He just got here about three days ago. He hasn't been claimed yet."

I follow her gaze to a boy my age with dark brown hair and sea green eyes. He actually did look lost. Not because he was nervous, or stuck out, but because he looked unhappy, unlike everyone else. I nod and sigh. At least I'm not the only one.

"So, can you tell me about Capture the Flag?" I ask.

"It's a competition between the cabins," Annabeth says. "They team up under whichever cabins they want, this time it's Ares and Athena, then fight for the flag. Real weapons, real magic items if you have them, and there are real monsters in the woods."

"Great," I sigh. "I'm going to die, then."

"Killing's not allowed," Annabeth says. "But you'll probably be hurt. Don't worry. It's my cabin, your cabin, and the Hermes cabin."

"So even for numbers, but up against the Ares kids?" I ask.

"Pretty much," Annabeth says.

"Great," I sigh.

She walks away and I drift away from the others, back up to the pine tree that was apparently the border of Camp Half-Blood, and the location of a barrier that wouldn't allow monsters, mortals, or apparently inclement weather in. I rest a hand on the tree as I stare out at the world. After a bit, Will steps up beside me.

"It's a lot to take in, huh?" he asks.

"I'm Christian," I say, Will snorting in amusement. "What kinds of monsters will be in the forest?"

"Afraid?" Will asks.

"Terrified," I say. "I watched a scorpion the size of a Saint Bernard kill my mother yesterday."

"Giant scorpion," Will says. "There shouldn't be any of those. If there is, aim for the head. I'll make sure you have a bow. As for what you'll see, nothing too terrifying. Nothing as bad as a Giant Scorpion."

I nod and Will looks up at the tree.

"You know, this tree used to be a half-blood?" Will asks, chuckling when I instantly rip my hand off of it and stare up at it. "From the story I heard, her name was Thalia. She was the daughter of Zeus, and she and a couple others were being brought here when all of the Underworld's worst, all three furies, a horde of hellhounds, the works, caught up to them. Apparently, Thalia stayed behind to give the others a chance to live. then, as she was dying, Zeus took pity on her and transformed her into this tree to strengthen the barrier protecting the camp."

"That's...depressing," I say. "Really reassuring too."

"Relax," Will says. "She was a child of the Big Three. You're an Apollo kid. You don't have the same kind of monster magnet aura a big three kid would."

"Well, at least someone other than me thinks I'm nothing special," I sigh.

Will chuckles. Come on. It's almost lights out. I nod and we head back to the cabin. The next day, we spend time doing a bit of everything. Archery, swords, spears, running, canoeing, swimming, climbing the rock wall that spat lava and boulders at you, and metal-working. While metal-working, two good things happened. First, I accidentally fell inso a fire when I tripped over a helmet Clarisse had "accidentally" dropped in the way, and walked away having only lost a shirt. Apparently I'm fireproof, though my clothes aren't. Secondly, being fireproof, I managed to befriend a dark-skinned Hephaestus kid by pulling a sword blade he had been working on for days out of a fire before it could be ruined. So, he promised to give me a weapon specifically made for me as a repayment.

I also met Percy that day. He's a good guy. And he's kind of like me. Insecure about his status as a demigod, disliked by Clarisse, and his mother was killed by the minotaur just before Percy made it into Camp Half-Blood's barrier.

Then, finally, Capture the Flag started, Athena and allies team wore helmets with a blue horse-hair plume, and the other wore red. One flag was silver with Athena's symbol on it. The other had the symbol of Ares. The rules were simple. No killing, maiming, tying up, or gagging. Any monsters in the forest had apparently been removed, and the creek was the middle ground. The flags couldn't be hidden, and had to be prominently displayed.

Our gear is acquired about the same way we get drinks at dinner. Chiron waves a hand and the weapons and armor appear on the dinner tables. I grab a sword instantly, before putting on my armor and accepting a bow and a dozen arrows from Will. Then, we all head into the forest. Will says I'm on hunting duty, so as soon as Chiron blows his conch, I run into the forest with the rest of the demigods. I lose them almost instantly, however. I reach the creek after a bit and keep running. And running. And running. I stop after a while and look around. I'm lost. Completely. I don't even know where to go to get back. I sigh, heading the way that I think is back to the creek.

And then I run. And run. And run. I come out of the trees and slow to a stop, looking around. There's Half-Blood Hill, with Thalia's tree at the top. I turn away from it, but I'm not looking at Camp Half-Blood. I'm outside, I somehow went past the barrier.

I sigh. Navigation is not one of my strengths. I turn back to the hill just as something slams into the side of my feet, knocking them out from under me. I grunt as I hit the ground, rolling over to fin myself staring up at a massive lion with a human-looking face, if distorted, and a long scorpion tail. I shout in fear, staggering backward, and feel a pang of pain in my side, hurling myself to the side just before the tail impaled the ground where I had been, barely missing me. I scramble to my feet and sprint forward, up the hill. I come up just short of the barrier, however, as the manticore swipes my feet out from under me again. I turn, raising my bow as I stand, only for the monster to tackle me. Then, as I fall backward, the manticore is ripped away from me, its claws tearing gashes into my shoulders. However, the injuries are fairly shallow and meaningless. I stare at the manticore as it lunges at me repeatedly, stopping short as if it's hitting a wall every time. I look up, staring at the pine tree beside me, before looking back at the manticore. It growls menacingly before drawing back, watching me as it retreated for a ways before turning and fleeing into the forest.

I stare after it before standing and turning, jogging into the forest, casting a single backward glance at the tree before entering the trees and heading for the sounds of battle. After about three minutes, I drop a second before an Ares kid steps out, swinging a club, feeling like I might have already been cracked in the face with the club. As I'm sliding past the kid, I slam my bow into his legs, tripping him before beginning to run again. I reach the creek in time to see Percy smash his shield and sword into Clarisse's spear, snapping it, before slamming his shield into her face, sending her staggering backward. Then, Luke Castellan, a Hermes kid a few years older than me, runs out of the trees with the flag. Clarisse and the other four Ares kids around the area move to stop him, but it's too little too late. A moment later, blue team members are flooding out of the trees, cheering, and Chiron arrives a moment later, blowing his horn.

Then, amidst the celebration, I hear a loud growl and everyone turns to see a massive black dog running toward us. Except, it's staring directly at Percy. I'm not sure why I shoot. Maybe it's instinct. Maybe it's fear. But whatever it is, I put an arrow between the dog's eyes instantly.

Then, it swipes at Percy anyway. Percy takes the hit across the chest before everyone with a bow fires an arrow into the dog's back, my own second arrow pinning its snout closed just before it could bit a chunk out of Percy's shoulder.

The hellhound crashes to the ground, melting away quickly.

"Di immortales," Annabeth says. "That was a hellhound from the Fields of Punishment. They don't...They're not supposed to..."

"Someone summoned it," Chiron says. "Someone inside the camp."

"It was Percy's fault!" Clarisse says instantly. "He summoned it!"

"You're an idiot," I say. "Why would he summon a hellhound to attack himself. He's hurt badly from it."

"I'm fine," Percy says.

"No you're not," Annabeth says. "Quick, get in the water."

"I'm fine," Percy says.

"No you're not," Annabeth says. "Chiron, watch this."

Percy sighs and steps into the water. Instantly, several things happen. The water around him seems to be drawn to him. The gashes in his chest, which had gone straight through his armor, seal up rapidly. And lastly, a glowing green trident hologram appears over his head.

"I don't know why it happens," Percy says. "I'm sorry."

"Percy," Annabeth says, pointing at the trident. "Um..."

He looks up, eyes widening. I remember what Will had said about the Big Three's children attracting more monsters. Apparently even into a camp that was supposed to be safe.

"Your father..." Annabeth says. "This is really not good."

"It is determined," Chiron says, campers beginning to kneel, even the Ares brats.

I look around at them before also kneeling. I don't know if this makes Percy royalty or something, or if it's for Poseidon, but i'm not angering some ancient, super-powerful alien.

"My father?" Percy asks.

"Poseidon," Chiron says. "Earthshaker, Stormbringer, Father or Horses. Hail Perseus Jackson, son of the Sea God."


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