You groggily blink your eyes open, the morning light filtering through the trees. The sounds of the camp stirring reach your ears—laughter, footsteps, weapons clanking. You stretch, feeling the stiffness from last night’s mission settle into your muscles. But something feels… different.

As you push off your makeshift bedroll, a chorus of gasps fills the air.

“What the—” Jason stares at you like he’s seen a ghost.

Annabeth’s eyes narrow, already calculating. “Since when were you that ripped?”

Leo nearly drops his tool kit. “Bro, did you swallow a demigod protein shake in your sleep?”

You frown, looking down at yourself. Yeah, okay, maybe your arms do look a little more defined in the daylight. But why is everyone acting like you just emerged from a chrysalis as a fully transformed bodybuilder?

Percy lets out a low whistle. “And here I thought I had some muscle. You’ve been hiding that under your armor this whole time?”

Piper nudges you with an impressed smirk. “Silent but deadly, huh?”

Even Nico, who rarely reacts to anything, raises an eyebrow. “Did you go through secret godly training while we weren’t looking?”

Will, standing beside him, just nods approvingly. “Respect.”

Reyna crosses her arms, giving you a once-over. “This changes things.”

Thalia smirks. “Not bad, newbie. Maybe you can keep up with us after all.”

Grover just looks mildly horrified. “Please tell me you’re not about to challenge a minotaur to arm-wrestle.”

You rub the back of your neck, suddenly feeling very seen. “Uh… I just have a sleeper build?”

Silence. Then—

Leo bursts out laughing. “A sleeper build? Dude, you look like you could bench press a centaur!”

Percy claps you on the back. “Alright, buff mystery person. Let’s get moving before Annabeth has an aneurysm trying to figure out how you pulled this off.”

Annabeth rolls her eyes. “We are already behind schedule…”

And just like that, the mission is back on. Only now, everyone’s watching you like you might pull off another crazy surprise at any moment.