Answers to reviews:

tanklesscoder: Still debating that.

Nicholas: Oh, he may end up doing worse.

danealgrainger: No. She's his stepmother, and wouldn't look at him in that way. She only tolerates him for her daughter's sake.

OrkinEX78: Well, least everything is back to normal now.

Guest: Don't worry, Andie won't be joining the Hunters this time around.

Guest250: Jakob isn't capable of banishing spirts back to the Underworld.

boogbryant98 phs2016: Thanks.

sniperbro1998: Doubt it. Odin's ways are subtle.

Nitroman98: Good thing the site's foxed itself... except for the views. They are still stuck at the same amount and not increasing.

Guest02957: Thanks.

branphillips001: Meh, Jakob will give Tantalus his just desserts if he pisses him off.

Arch-Angel-Writer Never happening, not this story.

Bromega2477: Thanks.

Disclaimer: I do not own God of War or Percy Jackson and the Olympians. I only own the OC Jakob Thorsson.

The next few days at camp were hell for some, while others made due with what they had. Jakob spent time catching up with Silena, Katie, Beckendorf, the Stoll Twins and his other friends before he restarted his training routine. He wasn't going to let Tantalus' presence bother him, though he did worry about the camp's protection. More often than not, Jakob would glance at Thalia's tree, idly wondering if Thalia's spirit still lived inside and was dealing with the pain of poison eating away at her.

The son of Thor's mind was racing to think of anything that could cure a tree, but nothing was coming up. Even the vast knowledge he learned in Odin's study back on Asgard didn't have anything that could help. Maybe some Vanir Old Magic, but he wasn't well versed in magic. Maybe he could go to the children of Hecate and remedy that. He always did have a desire for knowledge, with Odin as grandfather anyone would, but unlike the Allfather, Jakob would learn the knowledge to protect those he cares about.

Right now, Jakob was in the arena, doing push-ups and sit-ups, having smashed some training dummies in with his fists and the Leviathan Axe. He was just approaching his 100th push-up when he heard a feminine voice call out his name.

"Jakob!"

The son of Thor looked up to see Silena running up to him. Smiling, Jakob ceased his exercise, got to his feet and greeted his friend. "Hey. What's up?"

Do you want to be partners in the chariot race in a few days?" She asked, suddenly nervous. "I mean, I know you've the mindset of a serious warrior, would probably find this a waste of your time and not suitable for you, but I was wanting to know if-"

"Silena." Jakob put a finger to her lips, an amused smile on his face. She was cute when she was rambling. "While it's not my type of thing, sure, I'll partner up with you."

Siloena's expression brightened. "Oh thank you!"

Jakob nodded. "I take it your siblings won't be building the chariot."

"They're not," Silena said angrily. "I know it might be too much of a hassle..."

"Don't worry, we;ll work on it together." Jakob assured her. Out of the corner of his eye, Jakob saw Annabeth, Andromeda and Tyson down at the beach... with a group of Aphrodite's sons approaching them which made him mentally groan. "Looks like you're brothers are going to be idiots."

Silena looked over and sighed. Unlike most of the campers, she was one of the few who didn't mock Andromeda for having a Cyclops for a half-brother, not did Katie, Beckendorf, and some others. But the majority of the campers mocked and insulted Andromeda and Tyson at any given chance.

"Why can't they just grow up?" The daughter of Aphrodite grumbled.

"Beats me." Jakob sighed. "I'll take care of this."

"Please don't rough them up too badly," Silena said worriedly.

Jakob shrugged. "I make no promises."

And with that, Jakob jogged towards the group, just in time to hear one of the Aphrodite boys say something to Andromeda. "Hey, Andie. Do you need eyeliner for your eye... sorry, eyes?" he asked cruelly, the other boys snickering beside him.

Jakob's eyes narrowed. Well, looks like he wasn't going to be pulling his punches.

He crept up behind the boy who had spoken. Tapping the boy on the shoulder, he got him to turn to face him, before Jakob punched him in his right eye.

The boy screamed, dropping onto the ground pathetically, holding his eye in his hands as the other boys, as well as Andromeda and Annabeth, were shocked at what happened. Jakob ignored them as he glared down at the boy on the ground. The Aphrodite boy looked up, angry. Suddenly, his anger wilted upon seeing who it was that punched him.

"Guess what? Now you're the one who needs eyeliner for your eye," Jakob said sweetly, making reference to the boy's now closed black eye.

"What the hell did you do that for?!" the boy screamed in pain and anger. He flinched when glowing emerald eyes bore into his skull.

"Next time," Jakob said, sneering, "don't talk about things you have no idea about. You might end up having to break a nail. Or worse." He said the last part mockingly, knowing that sons of Aphrodite were just as girly as the girls were.

The other boys beside him prepared to fight, only to freeze when Jakob turned his glare to them. He made a shooing motion with his hand, as if they were dogs. "Now, go on. Shoo. And next time, be careful of what you say around people."

The other boys quickly picked up their brother, who looked like he was going to attack Jakob, and went away. Jakob scoffed when they went away. "Pussies."

"Jakob, what the hell was that about?!" Annabeth screamed in his face. "You don't just go around punching people! That doesn't work out! And for what?! Just because you're defending a mon-"

"Don't. Finish. That. Sentence. Annabeth." Jakob warned, pointing at her sternly. "I get that you have a problem with Tyson. Problems that go deeper than the typical hate around here. But if you have nothing nice to say to Tyson, then don't say anything at all. Simple."

Annabeth glared at him, but it didn't even make him flinch. She huffed, and walked away, stomping her feet while doing so.

Jakob sighed and shook his head before looking at Andromeda. "Alright, spill. Why have you been looking so broody and glum since Tyson was claimed as your half-brother?"

Andromeda frowned at him. "I'm not... brooding." She shook her head with a frustrated sigh. "Just leave me alone, Jakob."

"No, talk. Don't bottle it up." Jakob said sternly, crossing his arms.

At this, Andromeda snapped and stood up, getting into the son of Thor's personal space but Jakob barely blinked or moved. "Do you not get what it means to have a monster for a sibling, Jakob? Do you even fathom how embarrassing it is to be told by my dad, via claiming, that I have as much standing as a monster?"

Jakob stared at Andromeda with a blank expression on his face, arms still crossed. He had gone so still he could be a statue. "Do you know the difference between an animal and a monster?" Jakob finally asked after a moment of silence while staring into the angry daughter of Poseidon's green eyes.

"What?" Andromeda frowned, confused at the question.

"The difference between an animal and a monster." Jakob repeated. "An animal is something that doesn't hide what it is from the world, it doesn't pretend to be something it's not, it doesn't justify its actions. It does the purpose nature gave it upon its birth. Animals come in all shapes and forms. Wolves, bears, lions, eagles, tigers, deer, humans, gods. Animals do what they do because that is their nature, wolves hhunt and devour because that is their nature, bears hunt and devour because that is their nature, deer graze and eat grass because that is their nature. Humans... humans go to war, destroy each other and commit cruel actions because it's their nature. A monster, on the other hand... there is no rhyme or reason to what they do other than that they just have this compulsive need to cause as much pain and suffering as they can if for nothing else to help validate their existence. And they will never change, no matter how hard you try. That... is the difference between an animal and a monster."

"W-What is the point of all this?" Andromeda asked quietly, unable to muster any of her anger, struck quiet at Jakob's explanation.

"My father is a monster. My brothers are monsters. Two of my uncles are monsters. My grandfather is a monster." Jakob said coldly. "If you think I don't understand what it's like to have monsters for family... you clearly don't know me. I'd advise you to study Greek legends hard, girl, because you'll learn of the many kids Poseidon has sired over the centuries... not all of them are human. Want examples? Arion, a black-maned horse born from the union of Poseidon and Demeter after Poseidon turned himself into a stallion and mated with Demeter, who took the form of a mare to hide from him while searching for her daughter, Persephone. Then there's Despoina, Arion's sister. There's also Polyphemus, the one-eyed giant who was born from the union of Poseidon and Thoosa. There's also Orion, the one who raped several Hunters of Artemis and even tried to force himself on Artemis herself. Poseidon's lineage is almost as bad as Zeus', from creatures to rapists to complete filth across the Greek pantheon. Tyson is innocent, only mocked and shamed for what he is rather than who he is. Compared to the rest of your siblings, Tyson's a saint. He saved your life, has done nothing wrong and is one of the best sons of Poseidon, simply by being who he is. Maybe you should actually take a step back and look at him as a person, and not judge him on his species. Believe me, I've faced that kind of judging for most of my life because of who my father is. Consider my words, get your act together and remember; you're the child of a god, it's not as happy and ordinary as you probably want to believe."

With that, Jakob strode pass Andromeda, leaving the daughter of Poseidon with a lot on her mind.

"Hold the line!" Alabaster, son of Hecate, yelled as he along with several of his siblings created several magic barriers surrounding camp. They weren't as strong as the previous barriers, but they at least kept some of the attacking monsters out. With the children of Hecate were children of Apollo, whow ere working on healing Thalia's tree.

Tantalus hadn't done anything about the lack of magical barriers. There had been no patrols going on, as he had banned them. So the Hecate children, as well as some other campers, had decided to take priority into their hands. The Hecate children had tried to supply a strong magical barrier, while some of them tried healing Thalia's tree, but with no success. The poison was too strong for any healing rune or healing ability from the Apollo kids.

"What have we got?" Jakob asked as he came to a stop next to Lou Ellen, a daughter of Hecate, having been called after working on the chariot he and Silena will be using in the Chariot race.

"Hellhounds." Lou said, just as several Hellhounds leapt up, striking the magical barriers. One lucky one struck against the barrier. It held for the first few times but cracked and crumbled on the next one. "Shit!"

Jakob took the Leviathan Axe off his back and threw it, striking the Hellhound directly in the skull, to which it dissolved into golden dust soon after and Jakob recalled the Axe to other Hecate children returned fire with their own attack spells, getting rid of the other hell hounds.

"Not bad." Lou complimented. "Wish you were experienced in the arcane arts."

Jakob snorted and glanced at her. "That an offer to teach me magic?"

Lous shrugged with a smirk. "If you've got the patience for it, that is."

Jakob chuckled and patted her shoulder before turning around. His mood turned sombre, however, when he spotted out of the corner of his eye Will Solace and a few Apollo kids struggling with healing the tree. They'd tried prayers, rituals, medicine, even poison to counteract the one in the tree. Nothing worked.

Jakob walked up to Will. "Any luck?" he asked the son of Apollo.

Will shook his head. "Nothing. I've tried everything, every antidote and healing incantation I know. Nothing. I tried praying to dad but..." here, he scowled, and Jakob didn't need to know that from him that Apollo didn't answer his prayers.

He sighed. At this rate, unless they could heal Thalia's tree and fix the magical barriers, camp would soon be overrun. Maybe they could find the object that could help them...

"A word, brother, in private." Mimir suddenly said from the back of Jakob's hip. The son of Thor walked away from the others until they had privacy, to which he then took Mimir off his hip. "I think I've got an idea as to how we can heal the tree, but it's not an easy one."

Jakob frowned. "Explain."

"Tell me, ever heard of the Golden Fleece?"

Later that night, Jakob had a strange dream. It was like the other dreams Andromeda had described with Grover.

The satyr was wearing a wedding dress. ...Wow. Jakob would've laughed if he didn't know that the situation was serious. It didn't seem to fit him very well. The gown was too long and the hem was caked with dried mud. The neckline kept falling off his shoulders. A tattered veil covered his face.

He was standing in a dank cave, lit only by torches. There was a cot in one corner and an old fashioned loom in the other, a length of white cloth half woven on the frame. And he was staring right at Jakob, and what seemed to be another person, like it was a TV program he'd been waiting for. "Jakob! Andie! Thank the gods!" he yelped. "Can you two hear me?"

Jakob turned to look at the other person and saw it was in fact Andromeda.

Andromeda was slow to respond, still not believing what she was seeing…even in her dream. However, Jakob was able to answer, "Wow, Grover. I haven't seen you for all this time, and you get married? And you didn't even tell us! Am I the best man while Andie's the bridesmaid?"

"You're a riot," Grover deadpanned. "Andie! Please respond. Can you hear me as well?"

"I hear you," Andromeda said. "Grover, what's going on?"

From behind the boulder, a monstrous voice yelled, "Honeypie! Are you done yet?"

Grover flinched. He called out in falsetto, "Not quite, dearest! A few more days!"

"Bah! Hasn't it been two weeks yet?"

"N-no, dearest. Just five days. That leaves twelve more to go."

The monster was silent, maybe trying to do the math. He must've been worse at arithmetic than Percy was, because he said, "All right, but hurry! I want to SEEEEE under that veil, heheheheheh."

"Well at least you wear the pants of the relationship," Jakob laughed.

"This isn't funny!" Grover roared, a bit freaked out as he turned back to the two demigods. "You have to help me! No time! I'm stuck in this cave. On an island in the sea."

"Grover," Jakob said with a deadpan, finished with his laughing, "there are a lot of islands in the sea."

"Where?" asked Andromeda.

"I don't know exactly! I went to Florida and turned left."

"Wait what?" Both demigods asked, not getting it.

"It's a trap!" Grover said. "It's the reason no satyr has ever returned from this quest. He's a shepherd! And he has it. Its nature magic is so powerful it smells just like the great god Pan! The satyrs come here thinking they've found Pan, and they get trapped and eaten by Polyphemus!"

"Wait, what?" Jakob blinked. "Andromeda's brother?"

"Right!" Grover said hurriedly. "I almost got away. I made it all the way to St. Augustine."

"But he followed you," Percy said, remembering his first dream. "And trapped you in a bridal boutique."

"... I still can't believe you did that," Jakob said after thinking about it. He chuckled. "You got to admit that it's kind of funny."

"Don't remind me." Grover cried. "My first empathy link with the two of you must've worked then. Look, this bridal dress is the only thing keeping me alive. He thinks I smell good, but I told him it was just goat-scented perfume. Thank goodness he can't see very well. His eye is still half blind from the last time somebody poked it out. But soon he'll realize what I am. He's only giving me two weeks to finish the bridal train, and he's getting impatient!"

"Wait a minute. This Cyclops thinks you're-"

"Yes!" Grover wailed. "He thinks I'm a lady Cyclops and he wants to marry me!"

The two stared at their goat like friend in seriousness. Well, Jakob bit the inside of his cheek to stop himself from laughing, but Grover sounded scared.

"What can we do to help?" Jakob asked, finally getting rid of his laugh.

"I am in the Sea of Monsters! GET ME OUTTA HERE!" Grover cried, making Jakob's eye twitch that his friend had gotten stuck there of all places.

"Where is that?" asked Andromeda, confused as hell.

"Your best bet would be the Bermuda Triangle," Grover said before he looked at them nervously. "And, I am sorry about this you guys, but this empathy link ... well, I had no choice. Our emotions are connected now. If I die...,"

"Don't tell me, we'll die too." Andromeda deadpanned.

"Oh, well, perhaps not. You might live for years in a vegetative state. But, uh, it would be a lot better if you got me out of here," Grover said, making Jakob growl.

"Honeypie!" the monster bellowed. "Dinnertime! Yummy yummy sheep meat!"

Grover whimpered. "I have to go. Hurry!"

"Wait! You said 'it' was here. What?"

But Grover's voice was already growing fainter. "Sweet dreams. Don't let me die!"

With that, Grover disappeared from the dream, but Andromeda and Jakob were still there. "What did he mean though?" Percy asked.

"It's the Golden Fleece," Jakob said, making Andromeda's eyes widen. "It's the only thing that's... nature-y that could attract Grover. Mimir believes it's healing capabilities may heal Thalia's tree." As Andromeda contemplated this, Jakob spoke again. "Andie, let's wait to tell Annabeth and the others about this later. Knowing Tantalus, he won't care. So let's make sure either one of us win that race tomorrow. We could say that we want a quest to save Grover in which we'll do that and find the Fleece."

"Right. Good Luck." Andie said.

Jakob smiled and nodded. "You too."

And with that, the two disappeared from their dream.

The morning of the race was hot and humid. Fog lay low on the ground like sauna steam. Millions of birds were roosting in the trees - fat grey-and-white pigeons, except they didn't coo like regular pigeons. They made this annoying metallic screeching sound that reminded the campers of submarine radar.

The racetrack had been built in a grassy field between the archery range and the woods. Hephaestus's cabin had used the bronze bulls, which were completely tame since they'd had their heads smashed in and their back blown out, to plow an oval track in a matter of minutes.

There were rows of stone steps for the spectators - Tantalus, the satyrs, a few dryads, and all of the campers who weren't participating. Mr. D didn't show. He never got up before ten o'clock.

"Right!" Tantalus announced as the teams began to assemble. His face was still puffy from the beatdown that he had received from the nymphs, well as some scars from injuring himself many times . He still had the bruises as well. A naiad had brought him a big platter of pastries, and as Tantalus spoke, his right hand chased a chocolate eclair across the judge's table. "You all know the rules. A quarter-mile track. Twice around to win. Two horses per chariot. Each team will consist of a driver and a fighter. Weapons are allowed. Dirty tricks are expected. But try not to kill anybody!" Tantalus smiled at them like they were all naughty children. "Any killing will result in harsh punishment. No s'mores at the campfire for a week! Now ready your chariots!"

"He doesn't mince words, does he?" Mimir commented from his place on Jakob's hip.

"Nope." The son of Thor shook his head.

Beckendorf led the Hephaestus team onto the track. They had a sweet ride made of bronze and iron-even the horses, which were magical automatons like the Colchis bulls. They had no doubt that their chariot had all kinds of mechanical traps and more fancy options than a fully loaded Maserati.

Jakob and Silena's chariot was pretty cool, even if it did have pink in it. There were lightning bolts on the side, with blue and pink swirled together on the front. It had the symbol of a hammer and a dove encircled together. Jakob had been against the inclusion of the hammer, but Silena said that if there was anyone worthy to do good with Thor's legendary hammer, it would be Jakob. That actually flattered Jakob and stunned him that somebody thought he'd wield Mjölnir better than his father and with good intentions, despite the hammer's already bloody history and the destruction it's caused alongside the God of Thunder.

Ares's chariot looked like someone just painted their fists red and punched the chariot instead of painting it. A blood tipped spear was in the centre of it. Clarisse and another Ares camper got onto their chariot.

Apollo's chariot was trim and graceful and completely gold, pulled by two beautiful palominos. Their fighter was armed with a bow, though he had promised not to shoot regular pointed arrows at the opposing drivers.

Hermes's chariot was green and kind of old-looking, as if it hadn't been out of the garage in years. It didn't look like anything special, but it was manned by the Stoll brothers, and but some campers shuddered to think what dirty tricks they'd schemed up.

That left Annabeth's and Andromeda's. Jakob looked to see them arguing and he saw Annabeth pale a bit at one thing he said. "I told her to tell her later." Jakob mumbled out. He sighed. "I am not surprised."

"You're not surprised at what?" Silena asked as she got in the chariot.

"Nothing," he muttered, not wanting to tell Silena about the Golden Fleece or Grover. It's not that he didn't trust her, it's just that he didn't want to give her false hope about the Fleece. It was only an idea, a possibility wasn't a definite solution.

The conch horn sounded.

"Charioteers!" Tantalus called. "To your mark!"

Jakob and Silena gained a determined look on their face as they got ready to the race to begin. Silena was driving while he was fighting since he was the better fighter, that actually reminded him... he should see if Silena would like to start training with him. She clearly did some training before, as he could see signs of muscle on her, though she said that was from training with Clarisse for a bit.

Looking around, Jakob saw a multitude of odd looking evil pigeons on the edge of the track, surrounding them. He noticed that he himself and Andromeda were the only ones that noticed them. How the hell was that possible? "Please tell me you see those birds," he said, pointing to the flying birds.

"Yeah, just ignore them " Silena said. "They won't attack unless provoked. They are called Stymphalian birds."

"Wow, deadly chariot races, deadly birds. I'm sensing a pattern here," Mimir pondered.

"Oh, shut up. I doubt anything bad is going to happen," Silena said. Jakob palmed his face, hard. "What's the matter now?" she asked, hand on her hips.

"You just invoked Murphy's Law. You should never do that, especially when you're a demigod." Jakob said, removing his face from his palms. "Now you've doomed us all."

"Oh, come on, you're overexaggerating." Seeing his serious expression stay in place, Silena's face fell slightly. "... Oh gods, you're serious, aren't you?"

"Let's win this race, Silena," he said with mock enthusiasm. He turned on his chariot to ready it.

"Wait, hold on!" Silena exclaimed, but the chariot race was starting.

Soon, Tantalus signal for them all to go and go they did. They all shot off, determined to win.

However, they soon found out that this race was more of survival instead of what they first thought because the birds attacked. "I told you so," Jakob said, while Silena had a freaked out expression on her face.

"Just shut up and kill those things!" Silena yelled out.

"Right!" Jakob stood, summoned bolts of lightning in his hands, and began throwing them like javelins at the birds, striking them and killing them instantly.

Out of the corner of his eye, Jakob saw Beckendorf get mobbed. His fighter tried to bat the birds away but he couldn't see anything. The chariot veered off course and plowed through the strawberry fields, the mechanical horses steaming. It was basically the same for the other chariots except for Andromeda's and Annabeth's, who seemed to be planning something to get rid of the annoying birds. He saw them head for the Big House to get something.

Seeing that most of the competitors were gone from this little race and were fighting for their lives, Jakob decided to help out a bit. By his command, the sky darkened and rumbled with thunder, lightning streaking across the sky before Jakob commanded it to strike multiple times, aiming for the birds and being sure not to accidentally strike a camper.

Thankfully, Andromeda and Annabeth decided to return and put on some music. Jakob smirked. Annabeth really knew her stuff. Back in the day, Hercules uses sound to drive them off and it was still working. On a side note, he saw that Tantalus wasn't really do anything but chasing around some food like a mad man.

The two used Chiron's CD, as 'The All-Time Greatest Hits of Dean Martin' began to play. Suddenly the air was filled with violins and a bunch of guys moaning in Italian.

The demon pigeons went nuts. They started flying in circles, running into each other like they wanted to bash their own brains out. Then they abandoned the track altogether and flew skyward in a huge dark wave.

"Now!" shouted Annabeth. "Archers!"

With clear targets, Apollo's archers had flawless aim. Most of them nocked one arrows each. Within minutes, the ground was littered with the dead bronze-beaked pigeons.

The camp was saved, but the wreckage wasn't pretty. Most of the chariots had been completely destroyed. Almost everyone was wounded, bleeding from multiple bird pecks. The kids from Aphrodite's cabin were screaming because their hairdos had been ruined and their clothes pooped on. Silena sighed as she looked at her siblings, glaring at Jakob when he chuckled at their plight.

"Bravo!" Tantalus said, but he wasn't looking at Andromeda or Annabeth. "We have our first winner!"

He went over the finish line and awarded the golden laurel for the race to a stunned looking Clarisse. However, she, Jakob and Silena were the last ones in the races and actually won... but Tantalus awarded Clarisse, seeming to spite Andromeda, Annabeth and Jakob.

Then Tantalus turned and smiled at Andromeda, which was a bit creepy. "And now to punish the troublemakers who disrupted this race."

"That's it." Jakob muttered. Before Silena could stop him, a beam of lightning shot from Jakob's hand and struck Tantalus much to everyone's shock as their eyes widened. Once Jakob held it for about ten seconds, he stopped. Smoke drifted off Tantalus as he stumbled in place before he fell over, unconscious but not dead.

Seeing the looks on everyone's faces, Jakob shrugged. "What? Like none of you would't have done the same in my position."

Nobody was going to argue with that.

And that's it for this chapter. Yeah, a bit of a lot happened in this one... ish. For one, Jakob confronted Andromeda on her thoughts on Tyson. In the book, Percy is embarrassed that Tyson, a Cyclops, was claimed by Poseidon and since Andromeda is a female Percy they'd have the same thought process. But Jakob, who knows what a real monster is considering his family are monsters, set her straight by reminding her that Poseidon's got kids who aren't human, and told her the difference between an animal and a monster.

Let me know what you think of this chapter in the reviews.

Harem: Silena Beauregard, Thalia Grace, Katie Gardner, Annabeth Chase, Andromeda Jackson (Female Percy), Bianca Di Angelo, Zoe Nightshade, Thrúd, Piper McLean, Hylla, Freya, Aphrodite, Artemis, Athena, Hestia, Skadi.