Percy had had enough.

It was bad enough when his half-brother came, but worse when what happened did happen. The worst moment of his life.

Betrayal. That was all he could feel.

He glanced in the direction of the other cabins forlornly. But his wistfulness soon turned to spite. His eyes narrowed, his gaze turning into a glare.

Revenge. It was creeping into his thoughts.

But… he couldn't. They were his family. How could he hurt them?

Heartbrokenness. Self-pity. Waves of emotions captured him.

If only Maximus hadn't come.

Anger. Percy clenched his teeth as it washed over him.

His fingers curled into a fist. An aura of negative emotions radiated from him, and a splosh from the Poseidon cabin confirmed the pipes had burst. But it stayed out of Percy's notice.

Fury. It burst out from his heart, creeping to every corner of his body.

He pulled his belongings closer, clutching the hilt of his sword, Riptide.

Determination. It filled his mind. Time for the start of a new chapter of his life.

He cast one look back at his own cabin.

It all started that one fateful day when Poseidon came down from Olympus. Percy felt the events of that life-changing scene unfold in his mind.

-Flashback-

Waves crashed against the bay treacherously. The tides pounded against the rocky coast of Long Island. Out of the storm, two figures stepped out. Their black silhouettes stood out against the foamy white waters, the clouds of fog filling the air.

One was evidently taller than the other. He walked with a certain authority. He was wrapped in a swirl of water, folding around his figure. Percy had immediately recognised his father, Poseidon.

"Dad!" he called, evidently surprised by the sea deity's appearance.

Most of the campers were on their knees. An Olympian's visit wasn't a typical day-to-day happening. Percy followed suit, seeing he got no reaction from his father.

He was ignored. The blue-clothed figure strode on, his chin straight. The smaller figure behind him wore the same expression, as if everyone was beneath him. Percy took a certain dislike of the boy. He hoped it wasn't a recruit for Camp Half-Blood. And if it was, it would be what - child of Triton? Amphitrite? Poseidon himself? Percy hoped not.

However, it seemed his luck wouldn't last.

Poseidon walked to Chiron, exchanging a few words. Whispers ran through camp, wondering why Poseidon had come. All eyes were trained on the conversation. Finally, Chiron nodded. Poseidon then turned, announcing to the demigods, "This is my son, Maximus. I expect you to be polite to him, as he is my most precious son, and he has my blessing."

With that, he flashed out in a geyser of crystal clear seawater, leaving the camp in shock.

Huh, what's up with Dad today? Weird, Percy thought, then his eyes switched their attention to the leaving figure of his father. Wait a minute, clear water? Isn't Poseidon's colour blue? His brows furrowed. Something was off.

It was the newcomer who broke the silence. "Hi everyone! I've heard so many wonderful things about all of you! So happy to meet you at last!"

The camp responded immediately, racing up to introduce themselves. Only some more experienced campers, those that fought in the Second Titan War, stayed back. This included Percy.

He felt a wave of doubt washing over him, followed by suspicion. Why was this camper so friendly? Could he have ulterior motives? He didn't have a good feeling about this. More questions popped up. He heard about us? How?

Over a while, these feelings soon turned to dislike. Poseidon had said his most precious son. Surely he, Percy, defeater of Kronos and Gaia was Poseidon's favourite son. Even Poseidon himself had said so. But then he thought back to the way Poseidon had ignored him. Maybe it was true…

He shook his head. That was stupid. Why would he have ulterior motives? He was probably just downright friendly, trying to get used to camp.

He turned his attention to Maximus, who was surrounded by a group of Aphrodite and Ares campers. The Aphrodite girls, as expected, were gawking at him, and were evidently flirting. Percy managed to scoop out some pity for Maximus.

However, this new half-brother of his seemed to be enjoying the attention. He was talking to a Hermes camper animatedly, and waved to an Apollo camper, who nodded and ran off, coming back with Maximus' things, which Poseidon had brought along.

Percy's eyebrows creased. Who was Maximus to be ordering people around already? He had been here for what - two hours? Annoyance washed over his features. He turned away in disgust and scorn for Poseidon's excuse of a son.

"I'll take it all away from you, Jackson. You don't deserve any of this. I do."

A tap on his shoulder alerted Percy someone was talking to him. He whirled around to see Maximus striding away. What did he mean?

It was worse the next day. Everyone, even some senior campers, were trying to be friends with Maximus. Percy didn't mind much about that. But Percy felt a sudden dislike for Maximus when he walked up to his table of friends.

Next thing he knew, half of his friends had turned against him.

Firstly, right after breakfast, the Stoll twins approached him.

"Hey Jackson, what do you mean by it's our fault Luke turned evil?"

"Yeah, bet you thought you were being funny when you told Maximus we encouraged Luke, I suppose?"

Both the twin's voices were cold as steel, sharp as a needle. Then, as quick as they had come, they left, though not before landing a punch of Percy's face.

Percy stared at their leaving figures, bewildered. What had happened? He hadn't told Maximus anything.

Fate seemed to be against him.. The Apollo cabin refused to heal his automaton attack wounds courtesy of Jake Mason, head of Hephaestus, as apparently he had broken half their bows and stolen their ambrosia. And he neither did ask to get an electric spear charge from Clarrise nor did he break her armour.

That week steadily got worse. Whether it was being strangled by a grapevine or a normal vine because he had broken the pipes and plumbing of both the Dionysus and Demeter Cabin, he kept finding his friends gone from him. His feelings grew darker by the day.

-End of Flashback-

Percy sighed as he left a hastily scribbled note at the door. He read it once more.

Dear Chiron,

I'm sorry, but I'm leaving. I can't understand what's happening. All my friends betrayed me.

I hope you understand this isn't your fault. I'm suspecting it's Maximus, but don't accuse anyone. It doesn't matter anymore.

Thank you for your tutoring and counselling at camp and in my mortal school. You're like a father to me.

With love, hope and regrets,

Perseus Jackson.