Tyson moved right into the Poseidon Cabin, and I could tell that Ethan was bitter. Two years in a row. Two times a son of Poseidon has been claimed. Percy wasn't too happy with Tyson either, and didn't want him. He kept on protesting, "He's not my real brother! He's more like a half-brother on the monstrous side of the family Like…a half-brother twice removed, or something." I caught Percy one time before a Swordfighting lesson.

"Look, Percy." I started sternly, crossing my arms. "You should be lucky that you have a brother, especially on the Godly side of the family. Do you know how many of us in the Hermes Cabin wish we were in your position? Claimed, with people in your Cabin who share your blood? Don't take this for granted, Percy, or you'll regret it."

The next couple of days were the same sort of rotation for the Hermes Cabin. I took up guarding the Barrier alongside Clarisse. We didn't like Tantalus quite that much, and we bonded over fighting techniques. "My siblings don't know how to make a damn chariot." Clarisse grumbled one afternoon on border duty. "I mean, yeah, ad as many weapons as you can, but it's ruining the integrity of the chariot."

"Listen to you." I teased gently, my eyes scanning the treeline. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were a Child of Athena."

"Hey, no jokes." Charisse snapped. I couldn't help but chuckle under my breath.

"Alright, alright, no jokes. But, on a serious note, Clarisse, I have an idea."

"Yeah? What is it?"

"What if we made a chariot together?" Clarisse looked down at me, and I peered up at her. "You got the weapons, I got the horse-handling skills, we can build the chariot together."

"Alright." Clarisse said, waving her hand at me. "Alright, don't need to convince me. We'll start tomorrow." I smirked a little. This was going to be a Chariot Race for the ages.

TIMESKIP

After a power nap and a quick breakfast, Clarisse and I met up to start on our chariot. The Ares Cabin had one that was blood red. "I'm not riding that." I stated.

"Hey, I don't see you with a chariot." Clarisse snapped at me.

"Clarisse, we're not just racing for the Ares cabin here, we're racing for all us unclaimed kids in Hermes' too." I reminded her. "Look, I can fix this up."

"What are you gonna do with it?"

"I'm gonna give it a fresh coat of paint, a couple new screws here and there and it'll be good as new."

"As long as you don't break it."

"You can supervise, alright?" I approached the chariot, shedding my hoodie. I worked on the contraption with Clarisse peering over my shoulder. When I started to paint the vehicle, Clarrise spoke up.

"You're not going to take off the bandage?" She wondered. I turned to my left arm, where the pale bandage was still wrapped around my forearm, covering the entirety of it and coming around securely around my palm.

"Nah." I said. I turned to the chariot and started to paint the trim black.

"You'll get paint on it." Clarisse pointed out.

"And paint can wash off I have a dozen bandages."

"Why do you keep it on?"

"Well…" I sighed. "Before I came to camp, my Father was a had-ass, traditional as well. He taught me everything there was to know about traditional Japanese culture, I learned everything from how to walk in geta to the proper form when wielding a katana. I know that the world we live in is very dangerous and scars are common, but the one on my arm is the one I'm ashamed of."

"You shouldn't have to be ashamed of scars." Clarisse said gruffly. "They're a sign of strength, but do what you want." I finished painting the chariot, and stepped back, crossing my arms.

"There we go." I declared with a grin. "Just need for it to dry and we can fit it with weapons."

"Thanks, Mako." Clarisse said to me. My smile softened as I looked up at her. Clarisse had an unfamiliar glint of something in her eye. She cleared her throat and looked away. "Well, I'll see you tomorrow." And with that, Clarisse walked away. My shoulders slumped a little as I watched her go.

TIMESKIP

On the day of the Chariot Race, I was awoken by a gentle honking in my ear. It was the gosling that had hatched from the egg that I was given on my last quest. The bird was a nice companion, and I named her Pixie. Pixie was a nice addition to Camp life for me, giving me something to focus on other than training and my brother. The Stoll brothers told me that if Pixie had to go once she was larger than could fit in my bed.

I fed Pixie, and then managed to get in a warm shower before anyone in the Hermes Cabin, a sign from the Gods I'd say that Clarisse and I would win. Clarisse said that she had asked her Father for a pair of steeds for the race and that they'd be in the stables that morning. When I got to the stables, I didn't see the horses that Clarisse told me to expect, two skeletal stallions that looked to be powered by an internal fire. instead, I saw two… hippogriffs.

Sleek creatures, with the front half of an eagle, and the back half of a horse. I slowly approached them. The creatures turned to me, chirping and pawing the ground. I offered my hand to one of the creatures. The brown feathered hippogriff lent towards me and pressed it's beak into my hand. It had a worn rope around it's neck which held a note. I took it and read it over, the paper crumpling slightly in my hand. "Where's the horses?" Clarisse demanded. She was already in her armour, ready to race. "What's this?"

"It's a gift from my mother." I sighed, offering her the note.

"Your mother?" Clarisse snatched the note out of my hand and started to read it over. "'Here's some steeds that have more meat on their bones than…' Did your mother seriously call my Father that?" Clarisse then turned to me.

"My mother works in mysterious ways." I sighed.

"Your mother would give you a pair of steeds before she Claims you? Kinda whack, isn't it?"

"Of course it is. Look, let's just get these things secured to the chariot and prep for the race." I harnessed the hippogriffs, and lead them toward the chariot. I secured them, and they seemed docile enough. We approached the racing track, and I frowned at the sound of metallic screeching that permeated the air. They originated from the trees, where fat and lumpy grey and white birds that looked like pigeons rested. Their Morality meter was a dark red, but it wasn't the worst. I decided to keep my eye on them.

The racetrack was situated between the archery field and the woods. After having their heads bashed in, the bronze bulls that had attacked Camp were tame and even…friendly to some campers. The Hephaestus Cabin had used them to dig up the oval track for us to race on. Rows of steps had been made, and set up for those who wanted to watch. Tantalus, the Satyrs, Dryads and everyone who wasn't racing. Mr D never got up before 10 in the morning, so he wasn't anywhere to be seen.

"Right!" Tantalus announced as we situated our chariot. He was trying to grab a pastry from a tray that a Naiad had brought him, but the food raced away from his fingers. "You all know the rules, a quarter mile track, twice around to win. Two horses per chariot…" Tantalus noticed the hippogriffs. "Or…horse adjacent. Each team will consist of a driver and a fighter. Weapons are allowed. Dirty tricks are expected. But try not to kill anybody! Any killing will result in harsh punishment…no s'mores at the campfire for a week!" Tantalus smiled at us as if we were petulant children who needed to be scolded. "Now, ready your chariots!"

I looked over at the other chariots, the Heaphestus cabin, led by Charles Beckendorf, had a chariot made of bronze and iron, and magical automatons for horses. I was entirely sure that their chariot had a dozen and a half hidden compartments and tricks up their sleeves. The Apollo chariot was solid gold, and sleek, two Palominos pulled their chariot. Obviously, their fighter was armed with a bow, but promised not to use regular pointed arrows. The Hermes' chariot was green, rickety, and looked as if it hadn't seen the light of day for eons. The Posideon chariot was blue and white with wave designs and a trident in the front. Athena's chariot was white and grey, perfectly made with brown horses pulling it. As I was setting up my hippogriffs, gently strapping their wings to their bodies so we didn't accidentally take off, Percy approached me.

"Percy, focus on your own chariot." I said.

"Mako, listen, I have to tell you something." He insisted to me. "It's about Grover!" I paused what I was doing, turning to him.

"What?" I wondered softly. Percy went on to explain to me the dream he had the night before. Grover in a wedding dress, a monstrous voice in the dark, a powerful force that lured Satyrs to their doom, someone called Polyphemus, Percy mentioned an Empathy Link with Grover and that Grover himself was in the Sea of Monsters. "You're joking, right?" I asked.

"No, I'm not…why would I joke about something like this?" Percy demanded. "Grover's in trouble!"

"I get that, but you know we can't leave without a Quest."

"That's what Annabeth said.

"And you should listen to her." I suggested.

"Charioteers!" Tantalus shouted, breaking our conversation. "To your mark!"

"Look, we'll talk after the race, ok?" Percy nodded reluctantly and headed off. I hauled myself into the chariot. My small form easily fitting in next to Clarisse's larger one.

"You weren't giving Kelp Head any ideas, were you?" Clarisse asked me.

"Never." I told her. "Trust me. But, see those birds up in the trees?" Clarisse looked up to where the birds were sitting, and they seemed to have multiplied. "Keep an eye on 'em, there's more of them than last I saw."

"Got it." Clarisse nodded. The chariots lined up at the start line.

"Charioteers!" Tantalus called. "Attend your mark!" I gripped the reigns. Tantalus waved his hand and the starting signal dropped. I snapped the reigns and the chariots shot off. Hooves beating heavily against the dirt. I swerved to avoid the pile of wood that was now the remains of the Hermes and Apollo chariots. We were neck-and-neck with Percy and Tyson, avoiding Beckendorf's contraptions. We took the first turn sharply, a wheel rising off the dirt and hit the ground hard.

"Keep the chariot stable!" Clarisse snapped at me.

"What do you think I'm trying to do!" I snapped back. As we headed down the track again, we heard the screaming. The pigeons were swarming the stands, dive-bombing the spectators and heading for the other chariots. Beckendorf was swarmed quickly. His chariot veered off course and he ploughed through the strawberry fields. The birds turned on us next, but it seems Clarisse had a plan. She had managed to rig a flamethrower to our chariot, and was using it to blast away the birds as they got close. The sound was too much, and we couldn't hear anything. We crossed the finish line, and when we turned, I paled, the birds were even more of a problem than before. Clarisse noticed the Poseidon and Athena chariots veering towards the Big House.

"You're running?!" She demanded. "The fight is here, cowards!" She drew her sword.

"They probably have a plan." I told Clarisse, twisting my rings and letting my halberd form in my grasp. "Let's just get rid of as many of these as possible." I lept over the side of the chariot and charged. Clarisse and I fought side-by-side, dancing in a deadly harmony that was fatal to every bird that came near us. As we were fighting, I heard the tones of Dean Martin, and the birds went stir-crazy. Running into each other and abandoning the track altogether.

"Now!" Annabeth's voice cut through the air. "Archers!" My halberd dipped as arrows flew overhead, and in a couple of minutes, the track and the surrounding area was littered with dead birds, and those that survived the onslaught were barely a blip on the horizon. Dozens of people were wounded, and almost all of the chariots were destroyed. Those who seemed the most affected were the Aphrodite children, who seemed more concerned with their hairdos being ruined and the poop stains on their clothes.

"Bravo!" Tantalus' voice neared Clarisse and I, and I turned to him. I was surprised to see that he held two golden laurels in his hands. "We have our first winners!" He placed the laurels on our heads. I blinked owlishly at him. He then turned to Percy. "And now, to punish the troublemakers who disrupted the race." I looked up at Clarisse, who seemed as stunned as I was. Tantalus was going to be the death of Camp.