Clarisse yowled

I fell face-first into a pile of dead leaves, sword flailing out of my hand and my forehead banging onto my shield, creating an enormous welt. At least the leaves cushioned my fall. With luck like mine, I'll be lucky to live for another forty-eight hours.

Clarisse shrieked with glee. Her goons laughed, kicking me with their boots and wolf whistling. I winced.

I swear I will never listen to Annabeth again.

My first capture the flag, and I'm already being tagged as a weakling. Meanwhile, she was out there saving the world and cutting the reds to pieces, and I'm the one bearing humiliation the size of Atlas's load. I didn't even know what border patrol was, until I started getting pulverized. I mean, come on, can't anyone say 'heads up' anymore?

"Heads up, punk!" Clarisse yelled, and knocked me flat again with her shield.

Okay, I take that back.

The Ares kids were all over me, kicking and jabbing with their swords and spears. If I managed move a muscle, I'll be sliced to ground beef, no contest with the Minotaur. My armor was already deeply dented. I'd be relieved if I could even get it off when this was over.

Our troops weren't helping.

"Weakling! Weakling! Weakling!" Clarisse's yell soon became a chant, chorused all around me.

"No maiming," I managed to say as a sword grazed my arm.

"Oops," the Ares guy growled, smirking, "I guess I lose my dessert privilege."

I glanced blearily around. It looked as if most of the Ares people were there, laughing and mocking. Pray to the gods that Annabeth was smart enough to get the flag now.

Shut up, I told myself. She's the daughter of the Goddess of Wisdom and Strategy. Of course she's smart enough.

Suddenly, I was unmercifully shoved into a dead peony bush, snapping the thin branches as I crashed into the brittle leaves.

"Die! You will die for besmirching the name of Ares!"

Oh, gods. I swear that girl's part troll.

I couldn't move. I was trapped, the branches entwined in my arms and legs, Clarisse's stupid electric spear pointed to my chest. I felt all hope leaving me. It was over. I was going to die in the hands of a half god half troll moron with electricity on her side. No way was I going to get myself out of this.

In me, this little spark of decency suddenly ignited.

Look on the bright side, it crooned, at least you can use your abilities for revenge.

What abilities?

"Memento mori,' I said softly, abruptly. Clarisse jabbed her spear a little harder onto my chest and said, "What's that, punk?"

Suddenly, without knowing how or why, I yelled, "Memento mori!" and lashed from the branches. Clarisse staggered back, shocked. It would only be later I would realize I yelled 'remember you will die' in Latin. I didn't even know I knew Latin.

So much for all of Chiron's classes.

I jabbed and lashed, my sword twisting from bronze to solid black iron. The Ares folk yelled and stumbled back, but not before feeling my wrath. I stood on my shield; I didn't need it. Even Clarisse backed off when she realized I wasn't cowering anymore.

"Erre es korakas!" I yelled, the same thing I heard Annabeth tell Clarisse when I first met her. I stabbed with my sword, sending up sparks in their armour, deflected, dodged. I was in my own element, having the time of my life.

Thoink, thoink, thoink.

Oh, finally. Typical of Annabeth to send help when I didn't need it. The blunt arrows knocked agaianst the reds' armor, sending them tottering back, cursing. I grinned, ignoring the multiple deep cuts on my legs and forearms.

Curse you, Annabeth Chase. Curse you.

"Percy!" came her voice from behind me, and I turned to find her staring at my sword. "How did you do that?"

I noticed my iron sword.

"I…I don't know." A first wave of realization began to dawn to me. I had single-handedly pulverized the entire Ares cabin.

Whoa.

Annabeth looked disturbed.

"Black iron is Hades' metal. He…" Her eyes suddenly widened and she staggered back from me. "Oh, no…he…you…Chiron…"

A scream ignited behind me.

"Clarisse!"

I whipped around to find a lot of legs and fur. A growl worthy of the Minotaur shook the whole forest, a deep rumble of evil. A dog the size of an angry papa rhino was on top of Clarisse, jaws wide open, drool dripping –

" Stop." The word escaped my mouth before I realized what was happening. Annabeth was still backing off, mouth open. The hellhound turned toward me, and I wondered if this was a good idea after all.

"Um…sit?"

Oh, yeah, Percy. That was real smart.

The hellhound continued to stare at me, bloodred eyes filled with…curiosity?

"Sit." The monster sat.

This was so cool.

"Stand ready! My bow!" Chiron's voice sounded behind me, deeper, more warlike. I whipped around a second time.

"No! Don't kill it! I can...um…" Chiron stared at me. I blushed.

"Don't shoot it yet. Wait. I, uh…" I turned back to the hellhound. This was too embarrassing.

"Stand." Okay, let me explain the weird commands. I've never had a pet before, not one that actually listened to me, anyway, so this was sort of a chance to get the feel. My mom always said we were too poor, and Gabe wouldn't allow even a fish into our apartment since he moved in.

Thus this.

"Roll over." It rolled over – right in Clarisse.

"Get off Clarisse!" This came out harsher than I meant. The hellhound immediately got up off Clarisse, and it was…wimpering? Okay, this was getting weirder and weirder.

"Tell it to return to the Fields of Punishment." Annabeth's voice sounded beside me. "Tell it to go away."

I paused.

"Uh, I command you to return to the Fields of Punishment." It panted at me, wagging its tail. "Um, immediately."

It started melting into the earth, melting into a pool of shadow until it disappeared. I turned, where Chiron was looking at me oddly.

"This isn't good," Annabeth murmured beside me. I slowly walked up to Chiron.

"Show me your sword, Percy." I handed him my once-bronze-sword-turned-iron.

He stared at it for a moment, then said in a slightly quivering voice, "It is determined."

My heart skipped a beat.

"My…"

"Your father." Chiron sounded odd, almost mechanical. "Hades, Ruler of the Underworld, Master of the Furies, Lord of the Dead."

"Hail Perseus Jackson, son of the Mighty God of Death.