Hey guys, Jack here with the first revamped chapter of Son of Fire. I'll try and get them out as quick as I can at least until I've caught back up to where the story left off, but I make no promises.

As usual, I own nothing within the Percy Jackson universe.

The sun filled the sky with a vast golden light as it began to peak over the sea. It was quiet in the valley at Camp Half Blood, with hardly anyone moving around at this early hour. On the slope of Half Blood Hill, a lone figure made it's way toward the pine tree at the top. He was tall and broad, unusually so for his age of fifteen or sixteen.

A piece of leather armor covered his midsection, resting atop an off color white T shirt. Dirt, grease, and grime stained the legs of his faded blue jeans. The blacksmith hammer he had stuck thru his belt shined without a trace of rust, however. His brown eyes showed no signs of sleep depravity, and seemed to glow with a warm kindness, while his hair remained cropped close to his scalp.

"Shift change, Clarisse," he said to the lone armored figure standing at the base of the tree, offering a breakfast roll and a small canteen. The daughter of Ares was wearing full Greek armor, eyeing the newcomer up and down with a scowl before taking the things that were being handed to her.

"You're underdressed," she grunted.

"I'm just covering till breakfast. I think I'll be fine," he replied, patting his hammer affectionately. Clarisse rolled her eyes before taking a bite out of the roll.

"Just make sure to have my shield done by the end of the week, Green," she said with a mouthful before starting down the hill.

"You can't rush art, Clarisse," he called after her while plopping himself down at the base of the tree. The position of guard had only recently been brought into existence thanks to someone poisoning the tree he was leaning against, threatening the Camp's protective borders. With the entire Camp now in danger of being overrun and destroyed, someone put forward the idea of finding the Golden Fleece and using it's healing magic on the tree. Luckily, Percy Jackson, Annabeth Chase, and Clarisse had gone on a quest to recover the Fleece, which was currently resting on a branch over his head.

So far, it seemed that the Fleece was doing it's job and returning tree to proper health. For that, he was grateful. Not just for his safety and the safety of his fellow campers, but also because he had a personal attachment to the tree. Leaning his head back against the bark, he peered upward thru the branches, his eyes losing their focus as he drifted off into his own world.

This was one of the few places he could come to for quiet. The sound of hammers and steam in the camp forge were good for drowning out just about everything, including the ability to think. Cabin 9 was the same, always someone testing a new idea or device, regardless of the time of day. Up here, though, he could sit and look out over the place he'd called home for the past seven years without anyone bothering him.

The chaos of the past couple of weeks was hopefully behind them now. Maybe he could finally finish a project without having to take time out of his day to smash in the skull of some monster that was raiding the Camp.

"Oh, Jack, I didn't see you there," came a new voice. He was brought out of his thoughts and looked up at the newcomer. A satyr was standing over him, eyeing the Fleece and him with interest.

"Morning, Grover. Didn't you get your fill of that thing on your trip?" he asked. The satyr, Grover, shook his head.

"No. It's the closest thing I've felt to..to.."

"To Pan?" he asked. Grover nodded, looking at his hooves out of embarrassment. Jack gave his friend a warm smile.

"Take your time. Just don't try to run off with it, or I'm gonna have to play whack a goat," he said, patting his hammer to make his point. With that, the two settled into a kind of silence, Grover studying the Fleece, and Jack off in his own little world again. About an hour passed before another figure in hoplite armor started up the hill toward them.

This person was smaller than Clarisse, younger too. Her blonde hair hung out from under her helmet as she approached the two.

"You're under dressed," she called, earning an eye roll from Jack.

"That's a matter of opinion," he replied as he got to his feet. Despite the difference in height, she removed her helmet and gave him a friendly hug.

"Sorry, we haven't gotten much of a chance to talk since we got back," she said, cradling her helmet in the crook of her arm.

"It's been busy for everyone, Annabeth, don't worry about it," Jack replied with a wave of his hand. Annabeth gave him a grateful smile.

"You should have come on the quest, we could have used you," she said. He shook his head with a smirk.

"I'm no good on water, you know that," he said, "besides, you had Tyson."

"It's not the same," Annabeth lamented. All three of them fell silent as they looked down the hill toward the road.

"Hard to believe that it's been seven years," she said quietly. Jack's eyes fell toward his boots.

"Yeah, I know," he said, just as quietly, patting her on the shoulder. For Jack, he could still hear the events of that day as if they'd just occurred. The demonic barking of hellhounds, the screech of the Furies, and probably the most painful of all, Her cries as she told them to run.

"Um, guys," Grover said nervously. The two looked at him, before following his line of sight to the base of the tree. There, where Jack had been lounging just minutes before, was a young woman about their age. She had spiked black hair and was wearing punk attire. Jack felt his heart clench in his chest, but found he couldn't muster anything to say. Annabeth was in the same stupor he was, staring with her mouth hanging open.

Finally, Jack inched his way forward. He stretched his hand out, his heart pounding in his chest. If this was some kind of trick…

His hand brushed against hers, and he released a breath he didn't realize he had been holding.

"Grover. Go get someone," Jack said over his shoulder. The satyr was much faster than either one of them, so sending him made more sense.

"Like Chiron? Or?" he trailed off.

"Chiron, Percy, someone, anyone, just go!" Jack snapped, a little harsher than intended. Grover didn't need to be told twice, taking off down the hill toward the cabins like a shot. Once he was gone, Annabeth swallowed and managed to find her voice again.

"Is..is she?" she asked hesitantly. Jack reached up and pressed his fingers to the new girl's neck.

"She's alive," he reported, feeling a pulse beneath his fingertips. With that, he moved his hand up and gently cupped her cheek.

"Thalia?" he asked. She stirred before opening her eyes slowly. A look of confusion crossed her face.

"Jackson?" she asked. A relieved smile crossed his face.

"Hey, Thals," he said. A look of panic crossed her face.

"The others…"

"Are fine. Look, Annabeth's here. Grover's off getting some help," he said, leaning back some so that she could see Annabeth. The look of confusion only intensified on Thalia's face.

"You two grew up," she said. He could only shake his head with a slight grin.

"You don't know that half of it."

Six Months Later.

Hephaestus. The Greek god of fire, forges, machinery, and volcanoes. Vulcan to the Romans. To just about everyone these days, he's apart of a much larger set of stories that once belonged to a religion that was centered around the Mediterranean Sea a few thousand years ago. Something to base a book or a movie off of, maybe tell your kids as a bedtime story.

To me, it's much more personal and closer to home than that. The god of fire holds many titles; husband of Aphrodite, forge master of Olympus. But to me, there's a title that's so much simpler, and yet carries much more weight than any of the others.

Father.

My name is Jackson Green. I'm what you would call a half blood, or demigod for those who don't want to get offended somehow. The product of some higher being and a mortal's one time fling. My mom died when I was six, and my dad being, well, you know, I wound up on the streets. I was a rail thin kid back then, constantly going hungry, being cold, doing my best to stay alive.

There was a time or two I ended up in foster care. But it always ended the same, with me running off and being in the next town before anyone realized I was gone. It's pretty easy for me to do, too. Cars, trucks, any kind of machine, I got a natural instinct for running it. So more often than not, I'd swipe a car, drive it to the next town, and switch again. No one would ever suspect a little kid of being a car thief, at least not until it was too late anyway.

For three years, that was my life. Starving, shivering, and running. More running than anything else. If it wasn't from the police or some angry shop owner, it was from the monsters. See, it's not just the gods that are still around from those old stories, it's the creatures as well, and more often than not, they are hungry.

You don't stay alive at a young age by doing things alone. I had help, people willing to give me a meal or a place to sleep for the night. Often times I was gone again before they got the chance to turn me over to social services. Then, finally, I met some others that were like me.

It was somewhere in Philadelphia when I ran into them, quite literally. A group of four kids, well, three kids and a stayer, making their way north. Annabeth, Thalia, and Grover were three of them, the fourth was a guy named Luke Castilian. They took me in without question, and together we traveled north toward a place that was supposedly safe.

The monster attacks got worse and worse, until finally we'd reached Half Blood Hill with an army of hellhounds quite literally nipping at our heels. Five of us climbed the hill from the outside of camp. Only four made the decent into Camp Half Blood. Thalia was stuck down on that hill, fighting to give the rest of us a chance. Her father, Zeus, took pity on her as she lay dying and turned her into the tree that still stands there today.

For seven years after that, I trained in combat and built armor and weapons, doing whatever I could to try and prevent what had happened to Thalia from happening again. Now, the Daughter of Zeus was back, and I wasn't quite sure how to take that.

Don't get me wrong, I was overjoyed to have my friend back. But Thalia hadn't stopped aging while she was in the tree. She'd been twelve when she went in, and she was suppose to be almost twenty now. Instead she looked like she was somewhere in the middle, a teen just like the rest of us, and believe me, I'd noticed a time or two.

Now for the first time in years, I felt compelled to step beyond the bounds of Camp. Thalia wanted to go to California and find out what had happened to her mother while she'd been in the tree. I went with her, partly to watch her back and partly to satisfy my own selfish wish to get out of Camp.

We found out that she'd died in a car accident. Thalia was somewhat sad, more about the fact that she didn't get the chance to say goodbye than anything else. See, her relationship with her mom was strained at best. She didn't talk about her much when we were younger, and she pretty much never mentioned her now. Even using her mom's surname, Grace, was a punchable offense.

Heading back to Camp was done almost entirely in silence. I tried to be a good friend and be there for her, but when it came down to it, I just didn't really know how. Machines were easy. They break, you fix, it's that simple. But people, they're much harder to work with. If a person falls apart, they're not so easily put back together. There's no manual to follow, and every person is different from everyone else.

After we got back, Thalia went to the same boarding school as Annabeth, and that was how she went back out into the real world. Me, I went back to the Camp's forge, silently wondering to myself if I'd even been any help to her. Percy offered me a place to stay at his apartment if I wanted to enroll in a school somewhere in the city. But, I declined. Honestly I didn't feel like crashing on a couch in a cramped apartment, at least not if I couldn't contribute to the rent or the groceries anyway.

Now, a little over a week before Christmas, I'd gotten a call.

Grover had been off up north in Maine somewhere, keeping an eye on a possible demigod. Everyone else had been in the city, and I'd been spending my days churning out weapons and armor for camp. Now, Grover had sent out a distress call, apparently requesting pretty much anyone available.

Which brings us to the point where Percy, Annabeth, Thalia, and myself were all crammed into Percy's mom, Sally's car for a five hour road trip to Maine in the snow. I was stuffed into the back seat with Thalia in the middle and Annabeth on the driver's side. Percy was enjoying the space of the front seat. Well, tolerated would be a more appropriate term. Sally had spent the entire car ride telling every embarrassing baby Percy story she could think of, leaving the Son of Poseidon wishing he could melt into his clothes by the time we rolled into Bar Harbor.

I'd given up really paying attention by this point, instead having resigned myself to leaning my head against the window and watching the snow fly past. I wasn't really even suppose to be along on this trip. I'd never officially gone on a quest, and had always been the guy that stayed behind and fixed everyone's gear when they came back. Now, both Annabeth and Thalia had insisted that I come along, although I got the feeling that it had been more so Thalia.

"What about you, Jack?" Sally asked, bringing me out of my thoughts.

"Your car needs an oil change," I said, before blinking and realizing what had come out, "Um, sorry, can you repeat that?"

"I asked if you're planning on attending a school next year," Sally said. I shook my head and went back to looking out the window.

"No, Ms. Sally. Camp's the best place for me," I answered. Aside from Percy, I was the only one who referred to her as something other than 'Ms. Jackson'. I found it too weird to be saying my first name when addressing her, so I just settled for Ms. Sally. Thankfully she didn't seem to mind as Westover rolled into view outside. The place was huge, black, and made of stone. It looked like a castle that belong to an evil lord who lived along the sea.

"Oh yeah, this is gonna go great," Thalia muttered.

"You sure you don't want me to wait?" Sally asked. I didn't wait for an answer, as I climbed out of the car and into the cold and snow. Five hours of having my large frame folded up in the cramped back seat had gone from uncomfortable to down right torture, so being able to stand up and stretch out was absolute bliss.

It was at that moment that a flurry filled breeze blew in off the sea, and I remembered why I hated winter so much.

"Five hours and I already miss the forge," I said, folding my arms around myself and letting off a shiver. The car doors opened and then slammed closed again as the others got out, and Sally drove away.

"Your mom is so cool, Percy," Thalia said. Percy shrugged.

"She's pretty okay. What about you? Did you ever get in touch your mom?" he asked. Oooh, bad move mentioning the mom there, buddy. Thalia turned toward him with a look that could have sent a cyclops crying for help.

"If that was any of your business…" she started.

"We'd better get inside," Annabeth interrupted, "Grover will be waiting." As we started toward the building, Percy hung back some with the intention of talking in private.

"What's up with Thalia?" he asked, keeping his voice low so that the other two wouldn't hear. I doubt it would have mattered much, as we were down wind from them and in the middle of a winter storm.

"Her mom is a really sore subject. It's best to just let it go," I advised.

"But you guys did find her this summer, didn't you?"

"It's not my story to tell, Percy. Keep your head in the here and now, we're about to go into the lion's den," I answered. The massive oak doors groaned open, and we stepped inside in a flurry of snow. I got to say, I was impressed. The Entrance Hall was huge, and adored with all kinds of battle flags and weapon displays. Battle Axes, Battle Rifles, and a bunch of other stuff adorned with dust that probably drew blood at some point.

"Whoa," was all Percy could seem to muster, and I have to admit I was right there with him. Both he and Thalia went for where they had their weapons hidden, but didn't draw them outright. My hand brushed against my hammer, which was tucked through my belt under my jacket. If they were on edge, that put me on edge.

"I wonder where-," Annabeth started, but the sound of the doors slamming closed behind us cut her off. In terms of freakiness, this place was getting a higher and higher as the minutes ticked by.

"Okay, guess we'll stay awhile," Percy said before turning back to the dark hall before us. Dance music was coming from somewhere ahead, so it only made sense to go in that direction. After stashing our overnight bags in a corner, we started in the direction of the music, only to get cut off by a pair of teachers.

Well, I figured they were teachers, anyway. It had been a very long time since I had been to any form of school that wasn't apart of Camp's curriculum. Seeing how it was a military school, it only made sense that's what they were. They wore black uniforms with red trim, had their gray hair in short military cuts. Funny enough, the woman had facial hair while the man was clean shaven. Someone should probably check regulation on that.

The two marched out of the shadows like they were on their way to a parade event. They moved in such a rigid sync that it was clear that they were military. Or they were well programmed automatons. Either way, I finally understood why the punishment of being sent to military school was the punishment that it was.

"Well, what are you doing here?" the woman demanded. My hand slid toward my hammer again. We hadn't planned on what to say if anyone intercepted us, which in hind sight wasn't very smart on our part. It was a military school at night, there were bound to be teachers on patrol.

"Um, Maim we're just…" Percy started, trying to stumble his way through an excuse he was making up on the spot.

"Ha! Visitors are not allowed at the dance! You shall be ee-jected!" the man snapped. His accent reminded me of the Aphrodite Cabin when they wanted to talk amongst themselves and would slip into French. It's an inborn ability they have, don't ask me how they do it.

Thalia raised her hand and snapped her fingers. The sound reverberated around the hall, and a gust of wind raced outward from her hand, rustling the banners on the walls.

"But, we're not visitors, sir," she said, her voice containing a hint of an echo, "we go to school here. You remember: I'm Thalia, and this is Annabeth, Percy, and Jack." For a moment, it looked like the male teacher would throw us out into the snow for both lying and trespassing. Instead, he blinked in confusion, and I realized for the first time that his eyes were two different colors; one blue, and the other brown.

"Mrs. Gottschalk, do you know these students," he asked, turning to his female counterpart. I held my breath, praying that whatever Thalia had done would pay off. Thankfully, the female teacher took a breath as if she had just plunged into the sea, and blinked really hard.

"I…yes sir, I believe I do," she replied before turning to us, "what are you four doing away from the dance?" Before we could come up with something, Grover came running up to us.

"You made it! You…Oh Mrs. Gottschalk, Dr. Thorn, I, Uh…"

"What is it, Mr. Underwood?" Thorn asked, clearly annoyed by his presence, "What do you mean they made it? These students live here."

"Yes, sir. Of course, Dr. Thorn. I just meant that…they made the punch! It's really great!" Grover said.

"Yes, the punch is great. Now run along, all of you, you're not to leave the gymnasium again," Gottschalk ordered. With a course of 'yes sirs' and 'yes maims', and a sloppy salute from Percy, we followed Grover to the gym. Once inside, we happily greeted Grover properly. Both the girls gave the goat boy in disguise a hug, Percy gave him a high five, and I gave him a fist bump.

"Thank the gods, you all are here," he said in relief.

"What's so important that I had to be dragged out of the forge and five hours up the coast?" I asked.

"I found two," Grover replied after a deep breath. That got all of us to raise our eyebrows.

"Two demigods? Here?" Thalia asked in amazement. Finding one half blood was rare enough, two was unheard of.

"A brother and a sister. They're ten and twelve, I don't know their parentage, but they're strong. We're running out of time, I need help," Grover said.

"Monsters?" Percy guessed.

"One," Grover said nervously, "the Vice Principal, Dr. Thorn."

"The Frenchman with the weird eyes? Somehow that doesn't surprise me," I said.

"Are the demigods here at the dance?" Thalia asked, ignoring me.

"Yes."

"Alright, let's dance then," she said.

Say what you will about military schools, they knew how to party. Maybe it's got something to do with the rare chance to let loose from the strictness. The siblings we were after were called Bianca and Nico di Angelo, a pair of olive skinned kids sitting on the bleachers and staying out of the main party.

"Have you told them?" Annabeth asked as we watched from the far side of the gym. Grover shook his head.

"You know how it goes. Once they know, their sent grows stronger," he said.

"So let's grab them and get out of here," Percy said as he started forward, but a hand from Thalia stopped him. At the far end of the gym, Dr. Thorn had entered and was leaning against a wall, watching us. It seemed that Thalia's little magic trick hadn't worked on him after all.

"Don't look at the kids!" Thalia warned, "we have to wait for a chance to get to them. Throw him off the scent."

"How?" Percy asked.

"We're four powerful half bloods, our presence should confuse him. Mingle, act natural. Do some dancing, but don't let those kids out of your sight," Thalia said.

"Dancing?" Annabeth asked.

"Yeah, it's a dance, so dance," she answered before cocking her head and making a face.

"Who requested Jessie McCartney?" she asked. Grover got a hurt look.

"I did."

"Gods, Grover, why couldn't you request something good? Like Green Day?" she asked.

"Green who?"

"Never mind. Come on," Thalia said before grabbing my hand and pulling me out onto the dance floor. My face went hot, and I wasn't standing anywhere near a forge.

"I can't dance," I protested.

"Then it's a good thing I'm leading," she replied as she turned to face me. She guided my hands to where they need to go, and we began to sway to the tempo of the music. Amazingly, I was able to avoid stepping on her toes.

"I never thanked you for what you did this summer, going with me to California," she said quietly, low enough so that only I could hear her.

"You think I'm going to let you do something like that on your own?" I asked.

"I wanted too, at first," she admitted. I couldn't help but give her a small smile.

"We're a team, Thalia. Always have been. I got your back, you got mine." She lowered her face so she was looking at our feet, but I still caught the glimpse of a smile of her own.

"You grew up, Jack," she said.

"You did too."

"Doesn't feel like it," she muttered before leaning her forehead into my chest, "I missed you."

"Camp hasn't been the same without you around. It's a little too quiet," I confessed. She looked up at me with a cocked eyebrow.

"Isn't it always loud in the forge?" she asked.

" Random noise isn't the same as 'American Idiot' to annoy Chiron at three in the morning." That earned a laugh from her. Being with her, at this moment, it felt nice. Even if that moment was about to vanish in a puff of smoke.

Thalia suddenly stiffened against me.

"The di Angelos are gone," she said in a hurried tone. I spun on the spot and realized she was right. We'd gotten so wrapped up in the moment that we hadn't seen them slip out. As I looked around to locate the rest of the team, I realized that Percy was also missing. With a curse, my hand fell to my hammer.

"Come on, let's find them before things get out of hand," I said.

And cut, that's all for this time around. Let me know what you thought of the changes. Leave a review, send a PM, or a telegram or whatever, and I'll see you all next time.