The next couple of days with our new cabinmate was a learning curve, however, we managed to settle everything pretty well. It was hard to find something Percy was good at. Archery? Nope, I had enough scars, I didn't need another. Foot Racing? The Wood-Nymphs left him in the dirt. Wrestling was a bad idea, Clarisse would pummel him into the ground any chance she got. He was surprisingly good at canoeing, not many people are. I was keeping an eye on him, as were all of the other campers, trying to deduce who his godly parent was. He didn't have the Ares' Kids' strength, he didn't have Hephaestus' forge skills, no vines seemed to creep towards him, so he wasn't Mr D's kid either.
One of the more relaxed day's of camp, everyone gathered around the hearth after dinner. Everyone was sitting around, talking to other campers and mingling. I stood, leaning up against one of the pillars with a cup of soda in hand. Lee Fletcher, the head Councillor for Cabin 7 started to play a familiar tune. I smirked, shaking my head as I took a sip of my drink and Luke started to sing, everyone turning to him.
Luke -
Oh, things couldn't be worse
When your parents run the universe
Everyone -
Oh, things couldn't be worse
When your folks run the universe
Luke -
My dad is Hermes
He messengers things
You'll know his sign by his shoes with those wings
I'd wait by the phone, but the phone never rings
Oh no
When your dad's a god, life can be tough
I met the guy once, and once was enough
"Annabeth?" Luke turned to the younger girl.
Annabeth -
My mom's Athena
She's smart and she's wise
She's sworn off gluten and she's sworn off guys
But if she came to camp, it'd be a surprise
Oh no
Luke and Katie -
Oh no...
Annabeth -
Oh, and my stepmom, she hates me, and my dad works all day
So I left Virginia and I ran away
"Wait, is that true?" Percy wondered.
"Everybody!" Luke cheered.
Everyone -
Oh, things couldn't be worse
When your parents run the universe
Oh, things couldn't be worse
When your folks run the universe
"Alright, who's next?" Luke wondered. A hand popped up.
"Oh! Okay, let me see…" Katie Gardner said. She was the head Counsellor for Cabin 4, the Demeter cabin. She stood and everyone turned to her.
Katie -
My mom's Demeter
Goddess of grain
She gets excited when it starts to rain
But planting and planting and planting's a pain
Oh no
Everyone -
Oh no...
Katie -
Right?
For their sixteenth birthday, my friends got a car
I got a fern in some dumb mason jar
"Ooh, ooh! My turn!" Grover cheered, jumping to his hooves.
Grover -
I'm a child of Pan
God of the wild
For those who love nature, they're often beguiled
He's not really my dad, but I'm sort of his child...
Oh no...
Everyone -
Oh no...
Grover -
He went for a hike to explore new frontiers
And no one has seen him for thousands of years
Everyone -
Oh, things couldn't be worse
When your parents run the universe
Oh, things couldn't be worse
When your folks run the universe
"How about you Silena?" Luke asked, swivelling over to her. The daughter of Aphrodite jumped up with a grin, her siblings cheering her on.
Silena -
The goddess of love
My mom's Aphrodite
She tries to be cool but mainly she's flighty
I'll bring home a boy, and she's there in her nightie
Everyone -
Oh no!
Silena -
It's so embarrassing, guys!
I tried to seek help from even the fates
Cause she steals my mascara and all of my dates
"Alright Percy, it's your turn." Luke stated. Percy flushed.
"If I tried to sing, it'll probably cause an avalanche." Percy admitted.
"Oh, we're all friends here. Come on, give it a shot."
Percy -
My mom was named Sally
She loved scary movies
And food that was blue
And-
"He's doing it wrong." Katie said.
"Yeah, who's your Godly Parent?" Silena asked.
"Oh... I don't know." Percy muttered.
"It's alright." Luke assured him, clapping the black haired boy on the back. "A lot of half-bloods never know their Godly Parent." Luke then turned to me. "Mako, do you wanna sing your verse giver Percy some time to figure out what to sing. I sighed.
"All right." I muttered. "Here it goes."
Mako -
Us unclaimed Campers, we've been here so long
Abandoned by Dad, or dropped off by Mom
If they came to camp, we'd be long gone
Oh no…
Everyone -
Oh no…
Mako -
I myself have been here, since I was eight
If Mom wants to claim me, it'll just be too late
The music then slowed as Percy started to sing.
Percy -
So my dad is some God
That's great I guess...
Did he not want me? Or not want the stress?
Too bad he's the worst, and my life is a mess
Oh no..
I hope he shows even a trace
Cause I got some choice words to throw in his face!
Everyone -
Oh, things couldn't be worse
When your parents run the universe
Oh, things couldn't be worse
Luke -
But I don't care where our parents may be
As long as you are here with me
Everyone -
We don't care where our parents may be
As long as you are here with me
As long as you are here with me!
TIMESKIP
Thursday afternoon, Percy had his first sword-fighting lesson. Luke was our instructor, and everyone from the Hermes Cabin gathered around the large training area. Percy was still in the beginning stages of training, so he was taught basic movies. As I Ethan and I were two of the oldest campers, we had the most training. As such, Luke paired us up to practice by ourselves. Ethan drew his sword. I pressed a button on the side of my ring and the metal expanded into a golden Halberd with a wooden shaft. I twirled it in my hands before pointing it at Ethan. There was a beat of silence before we lunged at each other, our weapons clashing and sparking. I was gaining the upper hand, and when I knocked Ethan's sword out of his grasp, he put his hands up in surrender. I lowered my Halberd from where it was pointed at his neck, pressing a button on the side of the shaft to let it retract back into my ring. Ethan and I smirked at each other, doing an elaborate handshake only the two of us knew how to do.
TIMESKIP
Friday Night. The night of Capture the Flag. The night started off like any other. The two winning Cabins of last week's game bought in their banners. Annabeth and her siblings bought in their silver banner with an owl and an olive branch present. From the other end, Clarisse and her siblings produced a red banner, with a bloodied spear and boars head shown. Percy was quizzing Luke on how the game was played. On Athena's side, was the Apollo and Hermes' Cabins. The other cabins were on Ares' side, Dionysus, Demeter, Aphrodite and Hephaestus. Chiron pounded his hoof on the marble floor.
"Hero's!" He shouted, gaining everyone's attention. "You know the rules. The creek is the boundary line. The entire forest is fair game. All magic items are allowed. The banner must be prominently displayed, and have no more than two guards. Prisoners may be disarmed, but may not be bound or gagged. No killing or maiming is allowed. I will serve as referee and battlefield medic. Arm yourselves!" Chiron spread his arms and an array of equipment appeared on each table. I strapped some armour onto my body, making sure the straps were secure and on right. I checked over Ethan when he was done, and he did the same to me. When we were all ready, we each donned a helmet with a blue horsehair plume.
"Blue team!" Annabeth shouted, "Forward!" Our team cheered, lifting their swords into the air and shaking them before following the 12-year-old down the path towards the south area of the woods. I was stuck on border patrol this round, it wasn't too bad, despite the fact that this night was a considerably warm night. My orange Camp shirt had ripped sleeves, so it was covered by my armour. I held one of the massive shields on my left arm, while my right hand held my Halberd in a tight grip. I scanned the forest with a critical eye, making sure to note everything that was happening. I could see Percy a little bit away's from me, looking ridiculous. But, that was a given, he was a newbie. There was a bristle, and I pressed the shaft my Halberd to my shield. My eyes widened for a second, then narrowed as Clarisse and a handful of her siblings.
"Irrumabo!" I cursed.
"Cream the punk!" Clarisse shouted, brandishing her spear. It was about five foot long, with the end sparking dangerously with red electricity. Her siblings were wielding Celestial Bronze swords. Percy, the stupid boy, decided to engage them in battle. I growled, abandoning my post to save the young half-blood. One of Clarise's brothers went to attack Percy's back, a real low move, but I managed to catch the blade with the gap between the axe blade and the spike.
"Bad form Mark." I snapped my hands upward and managed to pull the sword from Mark's grasp and fling it a good distance away. One of the other Ares children, Toni, let out a roar and charged at me. I pressed a couple of buttons on the shaft of my Halberd and it shrunk into a small, short spear, just in time to block the swing of her sword. The two of us fought in the creek, water splashing up and soaking mine and Toni's clothes. The battle ended when Toni pointed the point of her sword at my neck. "I yield." I flipped my short spear so I was holding the blade, offering the hilt to Toni. Toni lowered her sword, taking the weapon from me. The moment it left my hand, it shrunk back into it's ring. I pulled the other ring off my finger and handed it to her. Toni took that as well and pocketed them both.
There was a scream, and my head snapped over to the sound and I saw Luke, surrounded by some of his siblings as he held the Ares banner high. There were a couple of Appolo's kids behind him, firing at the Hephaestus kids to keep them at bay.
"A trick!" Clarise snapped, "It was a trick!" She stumbled towards Luke, but she was too late. Luke crossed the creek and the moment his foot touched friendly soil, the Blue Team erupted into cheers. The red of the Ares banner turned silver and the image of a caduceus replaced the grotesque boar head and bloodied spear. Chiron cantered out of the tree's, and upon seeing the Hermes' new flag, he blew the conch horn, signalling the match was over.
"Hey, tough girl." Toni called. I turned to her. She flicked her wrist and two shiny gold rings shot from her hands. I caught them easily, with a lazy smile.
"Thanks." I told her, slipping the rings back onto my middle fingers. There was a snarl, and the cheering instantly stopped. Everyone turned to see a Hellhound, it's red eyes trained on Percy.
"Percy! Run!" Annabeth shouted. The Hellhound lept over everyone and onto Percy. Without hesitation, I pressed a button on my ring, and my short spear formed in my hand. With a sharp snap of my wrist, the gold blade sunk into the Monster, only the leather-bound hilt visible, and the Monster rolled off Percy. The damage was already done, Percy's armour had been torn like a hot knife through butter, his shirt was destroyed, and the claw marks from the Hellhound could be seen.
"Di immortales!" Annabeth cursed. "That's a hellhound from the Fields of Punishment. They don't...they're not supposed to…"
"Someone summoned it." Chiron announced. "Someone inside the camp." Luke approached Percy, as I did as well to retrieve my weapon.
"It's all Percy's fault!" Clarisse accused, "Percy summoned it!"
"Clarisse, Percy's been here less than a week, he doesn't know how to let things into Camp."
"Be quiet, child," Chiron scolded. I rolled my eyes, kneeling down and retrieving my weapon just as the Hellhound melted into the shadows and sunk into the ground, disappearing in a matter of seconds.
"You're wounded," Annabeth said, looking at Percy. "Quick, Percy, get in the water."
"I'm okay." Percy insisted.
"No, you're not. Chiron, watch this." Percy backed into the creek at Annabeth's insistence, and the whole camp gathered around him. The moment Percy's feet landed in the water, the cuts on his chest closed up, and a symbol appeared, a glowing green trident hovering on top of Percy's mop of black hair. I tensed, my spine locking up.
"Look, I-I don't know why…" Percy started. "I'm sorry..."
"Percy...Um…" Annabeth tentatively pointed at now fading symbol above his head. "Your father. This is really not good."
"It is determined," Chiron announced. Slowly but surely, everyone started kneeling. I sunk to one knee, my head bowed towards Percy. Clarise grumbled as she plopped down next to me in the creek.
"My father?" Percy wondered.
"Poseidon." Chiron told him. "Earthshaker, Stormbringer, Father of Horses. Hail, Perseus Jackson, Son of the Sea God."