Tyson

"You are not dead! I like it when you are not dead!"

- Tyson talking to Percy after finding him in The Son of Neptune

Tyson is a Cyclops, a son of Poseidon, and Percy Jackson's half brother. He is the current general of the Cyclopes army.

History
Tyson is a son of Poseidon, god of the seas, earthquakes, and the father of horses. His mother, however, is an unknown nature spirit. Not much is known about Tyson's past, except that he was one of the many homeless Cyclopes that lived on the streets of New York City.

Tyson spent the first seven years of his life living in alleys and the streets, in a large cardboard box. While living on the streets, he was attacked by the monsters brave enough to attack him. This resulted in many scars on his body, but mostly on his back. One of the monsters that attacked him was a Sphinx. Tyson would sometimes pray to his father for help.

Eventually, his prayers were answered as people from Meriwether College Prep found him living out of a refrigerator box. They took him in as a type of class project, where students would learn about homeless children and record their changes. While the school did take care of him during school hours, he still had to fend for himself outside of school. He eventually met and befriended Percy Jackson. Percy's mother, Sally Jackson, felt the school wasn't doing enough for Tyson, and would call social services to help, but they never found him in the alley where he lived.

While at school, it didn't take long for the other kids to notice that Tyson wasn't a fighter and he would be picked on by the other students. Percy was the only one that defended him, which resulted in his own isolation from the other students. Percy became Tyson's only friend, but since no one at the school could stand Tyson.

The Sea of Monsters
"He's more like a half-brother on the monstrous side of the family. Like... a half-brother twice removed or something."

- Percy

Tyson first appeared when Percy met him at Meriwether College Prep, the school they both went to. He was told he was a freak because of his homelessness and his "different" personality, and Percy would always defend him. Tyson and Percy were friends, and no one else wanted to be associated with them. That day at school, the English teachers had let all the kids in the recess without any adults in order to simulate a book they had to read called Lord of the Flies. The school bully, Matt Sloan, tried to give Tyson a wedgie, but Tyson became nervous and accidentally sent Matt sailing across the yard into the tire swing.

Later during gym class, Tyson asked Percy to watch over him while he got changed, as the other kids would sometimes pick on him. Percy noticed several scars on his back, but never asked about them as he lacked the courage. Once they entered the gym, Matt Sloan made himself and Percy team captains, but picked all the bigger and stronger kids for his team while Tyson ended up on Percy's. Tyson noticed quickly that the three new kids on Matt's side, Marrow Sucker, Skull Eater, and Joe Bob smelled funny.

It is quickly revealed that the three new students were actually Laistrygonian Giants, who started attacking the gym with flaming dodge balls. Just as Percy was about to be hit, Tyson stood in front of him and caught the two dodge balls heading in his direction. He then sent them back at Marrow Sucker and Skull Eater, who were quickly turned to dust. Joe Bob later managed to hit Tyson, sending him sliding against the back wall of the gym. Percy took the giant's attention away from Tyson, but was almost killed before Annabeth attacked the monster from behind, taking off her invisibility cap.

Annabeth told Percy and Tyson to follow her outside, as she knows they would be blamed for the destruction of the gym. Tyson called Annabeth pretty, which she reacts to with revulsion. Annabeth called on the Gray Sisters' Taxi, but they refused to take Tyson until Annabeth promised extra pay. During the entire ride to Camp Half-Blood, Tyson felt incredibly car sick and almost threw up.

Once arriving on Half-Blood Hill, Percy noticed that Clarisse La Rue was defending the camp from Colchis Bulls, which had managed to break into the camp's magical borders. Percy sprung into action, but he told Tyson to stay behind out of fear of him being hurt. However, Percy is quickly put in danger and almost burned alive, when Annabeth told Tyson to save Percy and giving him permission to enter the camp. Tyson stepped in between Percy and the bull, taking the blast of fire. However, he remained unharmed and smashed the head of one bull with his fists. It was then that Annabeth noticed that Percy didn't know what Tyson really was. She told him to look at Tyson closely, which Percy did and saw that he only had one eye, meaning he was a Cyclops.

Tyson is then introduced to Chiron, who was fired after the poisoning of Thalia's Tree. Tyson called Chiron a pony, which he took mild offense to and had to repeatedly tell the young Cyclops that he was a centaur. Then, during dinner, Tyson is forced to sit at the head table with the new camp director, Tantalus. When trying to find a place to place the monster, a hologram of a trident appeared above his head, meaning Poseidon had claimed him. Percy then made the connection that Tyson was his half-brother.

Percy didn't take this well, feeling that he went from a real hero at camp to the laughing stock of the camp. He would even try and distance himself from Tyson and say he was like a distant relative whenever Tyson wasn't around. This eventually lead to a fight with Annabeth while building a chariot, resulting in Percy and Annabeth building separate chariots instead of one like they had planned. Tyson used his knowledge of forging, which he had learned from Charles Beckendorf, to help Percy make the chariot while Percy calmed the horses. During the actual race, Tyson was Percy's protector, using a large club to scare away any other drivers who got to close, but his large weight slowed it down. They eventually lost the race, thanks to an attack by Stymphalian Birds.

That night, Hermes made Tyson think that Percy was calling for help, but it was only a trick to lure him to Percy so that he, Annabeth, and Percy could get on the Princess Andromeda. Poseidon helped by sending them a pod of Hippocampus and Tyson named his Rainbow. The climbed on board and found rooms to sleep in overnight. Once waking and finding that the ship had monsters on board, they tried to escape, but heard Luke Castellan talking to someone. Tyson used his abilities to mimic what he heard, but this upsets Annabeth greatly. However, Luke quickly caught on to them and sent Agrius and Oreius to capture them, who together were able to hold off Tyson. However, they managed to escape the ship when they separated the bear twins and Tyson fought them off before sailing off in a life boat with Percy and Annabeth.

While hiding from Luke and the coast guard in the James River Safehouse, Percy asked Tyson to look for donuts in the wilderness so he could talk to Annabeth alone. Tyson went outside and found a Monster Doughnut shop. Annabeth recognized this as a sign of a hydra being born, and it soon appeared and attacked them. They are only saved when Clarisse La Rue appeared in the CSS Birmingham to kill the hydra with fire.

Tyson was invited on board with the others as they sailed toward the Sea of Monsters. While passing by one of the entrances past Charybdis and Scylla, then engines started to overheat and Tyson went down to give the ship more power. Being immune to heat, he managed to give the ship more power while holding it together long enough for the ship to get through before it exploded. When Annabeth and Percy land on an island, Annabeth explained that Tyson could have survived, but it was half-hearted and Percy felt great guilt about the way he had treated Tyson.

Tyson however managed to survive the explosion and Rainbow saved him. The two then followed Percy all around the Sea of Monsters until they arrived on Polyphemus' Island. He then tossed a rock, which landed in Polyphemus' throat, causing him to choke while he was about to crush Percy. Being a Cyclops, Polyphemus' Sheep didn't attack Tyson while he went to grab the Golden Fleece, but became restless as he lead them away from the others so they could get to the Queen Anne's Revenge.

Polyphemus returned and called Tyson a traitor to his kind. Tyson said he was not and Polyphemus was not his kind. He then helped Percy fight the Cyclops by swatting away boulders and fending him off. Tyson eventually pushed Polyphemus onto the beach before swimming for the ship. However, because Clarisse kept insulting Polyphemus, he managed to sink the ship with a rock, but the Hippocampi arrived to bring them back to Florida.

Once they all noticed that Thalia's Tree would be dead soon as time passed differently in the Sea of Monsters, Tyson pulled out the money in his bag and gave it to Clarisse to fly back to camp alone, like it said in the prophecy. A moment later, Luke attacked the group with Agrius trying to attack Tyson, but Tyson pushed him aside. Luke then told Percy to call Tyson off or Oreius would bash Annabeth and Grover. Tyson stopped fighting, but was carried off when the Party Ponies ambushed Luke's army and took them to their own camp before taking them to Camp Half-Blood.

Once back at Camp Half-Blood, Tyson helped Percy and Annabeth on their chariots for the next race and gave Percy a Wristwatch Shield to protect himself from the other racers. After returning the Golden Fleece to camp, the other demigods treated Tyson like a hero and Percy dedicated his win in the race to Tyson. Tyson later said his goodbyes to Percy, as he had been offered an internship at the Underwater Forges Of The Cyclopes. With the war coming, Poseidon needed him to help make weapons for the Olympians. Tyson walked to the beach and headed down below the ocean on Rainbow.

The Titan's Curse
Tyson only appeared briefly because he was in the Underwater Forges Of The Cyclopes. Percy had sent Tyson an Iris message to see how things were going in the forges. However, when he asked how Annabeth was, Percy didn't tell him she had been captured. He attempted to hug Percy through an Iris Message, but it didn't work. Later, Percy sent Tyson another Iris Message and he told Percy that he was coming to camp the next summer.

The Battle of the Labyrinth
""Now we can eat peanut butter sandwiches and ride fish ponies. We can fight monsters and see Annabeth and make things go BOOM!""

- Tyson after meeting Percy again

Percy comes back to Camp Half-Blood to find Tyson already there cleaning the room for inspection (with a couple perks too: a metal flock of hippocampi, undersea plants that glow and scrubbed anemone that gleam in the light) and had mended Percy's shield. He greets Percy with a rib-crushing bear hug. Annabeth leads the quest into the Labyrinth, and is very excited since this is her first time leading one, and one of her dreams (along with being an architect). She broke the rule of only two companions on a quest, by choosing Percy, Grover, and Tyson. Annabeth descends into the Labyrinth with Percy, Grover, and Tyson to find a way to stop Kronos' evil forces from entering the borders of Camp Half-Blood by searching for its inventor, Daedalus. As they go into the Labyrinth, they face many dangers. Tyson then finds Briares, the Hundred-Handed One, but is disappointed to find out he is afraid of Kampê and refuses to fight. They split up and Tyson follows Grover who goes a different direction in search of Pan. They all reunite and flee the Labyrinth after the help of Rachel and Daedalus (or Quintus).

The fight begins the Camp is in danger and all seems lost until Briares and Daedalus arrive, Mrs. O'Leary and Quintus to help fight, once again all seems lost until Grover unleashes the cry of Panic, greatly disrupting — but not ending — the Battle.

The Last Olympian
Tyson meets with Percy again when he wakes up in Poseidon's palace after the explosion of the Princess Andromeda. Tyson finds Percy in the water, and consoles him when Percy learns about Beckendorf. He seems to want to fight in the battle and is sad because he has to work in the armory. When Percy leaves he states "Good-bye brother don't let monsters kill you dead!" When Tyson and a few other Cyclopes are having lunch, the armory wall explodes and a dozen Cyclops are blown in. Before he can help them, they turn to silt. He grabs a club from a fallen Cyclops and charges, saying an unintelligible phrase, as he has peanut butter in his mouth. It is known that he meant to say, "For Poseidon!" but, he said "PE-TAH-BUH" instead. The other Cyclopes in the armory, because they did not understand him, used the war cry, "PEANUT BUTTER!" Poseidon states that is a "strange battle cry". After this event, Poseidon comments that he is a good fighter, and lets him lead the force of Cyclopes that helped defeat Typhon, the gods' greatest enemy. Rainbow the Hippocampus asks for Tyson when he comes to take Percy to camp.

On Olympus, Tyson is promoted to general of the Cyclops army, and given a new club, which he calls "Stick!"

The Lost Hero
Tyson doesn't make an appearance, but is mentioned by Annabeth to be looking for Percy.

The Son of Neptune
Tyson is searching for Percy along with Mrs. O'Leary﻿. He appears twice in Percy's dreams, once when he is searching and wonders why Percy's scent is getting farther away and the next when Percy tells Tyson to find Ella and go to Camp Jupiter to wait for him. When Percy returns, he whistles for Mrs. O'Leary and the three appear. During the reunion, Tyson and Ella show some affection for each other and Tyson tells Percy that she is really pretty. Tyson then agrees to join the fight and puts on a Camp Jupiter banner so that the Romans won't consider him an enemy like the rest of the evil Cyclopes. He even manages to knock out Ma Gasket, who is confused by the Greek Cyclops. Tyson offers to help Percy fight Polybotes, but Percy claims he will be fine. Tyson is later seen celebrating the victory in the mess hall with Ella and consuming peanut butter sandwiches at an alarming rate. The next day during the Senate meeting, Tyson sees the Argo II coming and goes out to meet it.

The Mark of Athena
Tyson is recognized by Annabeth as a familiar face along with Mrs. O'Leary, something she is happy about. Tyson waves at her enthusiastically and Annabeth deduces that he and the hellhound are in good spirits. Later, while Percy, Annabeth, Jason Grace, Piper McLean, Leo Valdez, Hazel Levesque, Frank Zhang, Reyna Avila Ramírez-Arellano, and Octavian discuss the Prophecy of Seven, Tyson, followed by Ella and Mrs. O'Leary, interrupts their meeting to inform Percy that Ella did not want to go on the Argo II. Annabeth, once again, is happy to see them as they warm her heart calling Tyson family. Ella spots the demigod and recites a prophecy much to Octavian's amazement. Annabeth quickly dismisses the idea and tells Tyson to take Ella and Mrs. O'Leary someplace else. Reyna agrees and the Cyclops shadow-travels away. On the Argo II, following the attack on New Rome, Percy tells his companions that he sent Tyson an Iris-message, telling him to head to Camp Half-Blood. When they reach the Atlantic Ocean, Chiron tells Annabeth and Piper through a dream vision that Tyson, Ella, and Mrs. O'Leary had arrived safely, and, if necessary, Tyson could summon the Cyclops army to the camp's defense.

The House of Hades
Grover mentions that Tyson is dating Ella during the meeting with the Romans.

Personality
At his introduction, Tyson is a young, childish Cyclops who is known for crying and at times appears to be dense at a glance. He cares a great deal about his friends and is willing to risk his life for them if necessary. He is very protective of Annabeth in particular. Tyson is also somewhat naive in The Sea of Monsters as Polyphemus is able to trick him into lowering his defenses. He shows a strong love for pegasi and hippocampi, though the former are nervous around him. In spite of his naiveté, clumsiness and seeming density, Tyson is smarter than he appears and is incredibly skilled with weapons and machines.

In The Battle of the Labyrinth, Tyson is seen to mature though he still retains his innocence as can be seen when he first meets Briares. It is also revealed that Tyson has a love of peanut butter.

Tyson finds himself in Poseidon's kingdom helping oversee the making of weapons and the guarding of his father's kingdom from the Titan Oceanus. Tyson also takes on the stance of a leader in The Last Olympian and becomes less of a child in Poseidon's eyes as well.

Fatal Flaw
Tyson acts a little childlike, but he can figure things out very quickly (e.g. when Percy tries to tell him the reason why he can't tell anyone about Nico being the son of Hades in The Battle of the Labyrinth). He is a little clumsy and at first Percy was afraid to bring him on a quest in The Sea of Monsters because of this. He can easily become upset and cries a lot. He is also not sure of himself, as seen in The Sea of Monsters. Sometimes he forgets his own strength (e.g. when he hugs Percy, who feels as if his ribs are breaking). Also, he is terrified of Grover, a satyr who is also scared of him, because the "itchy goat fur" makes him sneeze, but as he got over it to maintain their friendship it is possible that he has gotten over his fear of Satyrs completely.

Appearance
Tyson is two meters tall (though he can grow up to 30 feet tall at will), and very broad shouldered, and has very messy brown hair. He has one large brown eye, but when he is in the mortal world he appears to have two because of the mist. This also happens when he is working in Poseidon's forges. He is known for not brushing his teeth. He has scars on his back caused when a Sphinx attacked him for being unable to answer its riddle.

Abilities
Tyson possesses typical Cyclopes and Children of Poseidon abilities:
 * Though young, Tyson is immensely strong, even among other Cyclopes. The most extreme example of this was when he managed to kill Ma Gasket (a female Cyclopes that also has very above average strength for her species) with only two punches. Tyson is well known for his strength. In The Sea of Monsters, Tyson beat two bronze bulls the size of elephants with his bare hands and was able to hold his own against a Hydra. In addition, in the Battle of the Labyrinth he freed Briares by ripping the door of its hinges with his bare hands "as if it was made of wet clay".
 * He posses innate talent with metal works.
 * He is immune to fire.
 * He posses sharp hearing and he can imitate voices.
 * He can survive Kampê's poison.
 * He can talk to Poseidon's children mentally while in water.
 * He can breathe underwater.
 * He is gifted with extra delicate hands allowing him to even make small items with remarkable precision and detail, he made the complex wristwatch for Percy with his big hands.
 * Tongue of the Old Times fluency: According to Tyson in The Battle of the Labyrinth, this is the ancient language that Gaea spoke to the Titans, Elder Cyclops and Hekatonkheires before the birth of the Olympian gods. Tyson can understand it perfectly and translate it.
 * In The Sea of Monsters, during a talk he was having with Percy, he seemed to know exactly what Percy was feeling. Because of this, Percy wondered if Tyson (and all other Cyclopes) could read emotions like satyrs could.

Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters
Tyson is portrayed by Douglas Smith.

The film depiction of Tyson differs greatly from the books. He appears to be more intelligent and more articulate, but is still incredibly clumsy. He also prefers to hide his status as a Cyclops by wearing sunglasses. He admits that he is afraid that he is the monster he is seen as, due to an incident where he smiled after scaring a group of Boy Scouts. In spite of feeling like an outcast because of what he is, he maintains a youthful outlook on life, having faith in his father and taking joy in the wild ride of the Chariot of Damnation. He also looks up to Percy and willingly puts himself in danger for him, believing Percy would do the same for him. Also in the film it is shown that Tyson is able to heal himself with water like Percy.

His past is not explored in great detail, but he reveals that when he was living in the mountains, he accidentally scared a group of Boy Scouts. He arrives in Camp Half-Blood on his own, having been guided there by a glowing triton. He enters the camp due to it's weakening defensive barrier. He presents himself first at the Big House to Mr. D and Chiron, who in turn informed Percy. Shortly after being teased by Clarrise, Tyson helps save her from a Colchis Bull due to his great strength and resistance to fire.

After Percy, Grover and Annabeth decide to go on the quest for the Golden Fleece, Tyson sneaks after them, making a great deal of noise due to his full pack. In spite of Annabeth's misgivings about having a cyclops on the quest, Grover is eager to have him accompany them after hearing from Tyson that the fleece is guarded by Polyphemus. Exasperated by Tyson's conspicuousness, Annabeth sprays him with a bottle of the Mist to hide his single eye.

After finding the location of Luke's ship, the Princess Andromeda, Tyson asks his father for help getting there, and is rewarded with the arrival of a hippocampus. On the ship they are quickly captured, and Annabeth believes that Tyson intentionally had them captured by making noise. They manage to escape from the ship in a life-raft, but Tyson's Mist-induced disguise wears off, returning him to his normal cyclopean appearance, which reminds him of his past of rejection. In an effort to cheer him up, Percy offers to let him steer the ship with the thermos of the four winds, which he accidentally drops into the Sea of Monsters.

On the island of Polyphemus, Tyson tried to reason with the giant cyclops but fails, since Polyphemus sees him as a traitor to their kid for siding with demigods. After trapping Polyphemus in his cave, Tyson takes a crossbow bolt meant for Percy, falling from a ledge into an underground stream. He latter returns to save Percy from Luke, revealing that the water had healed him. He returns with the other demigods and is told by Percy that he doesn't need to hide who he is anymore.

Ella
Tyson and Ella meet at the end of The Son of Neptune. Tyson takes a liking to her and blushes whenever she's mentioned. Tyson likes being friends with Ella despite the fact that she's a harpy and he's a Cyclopes and Son of Poseidon. Tyson states that Ella is pretty and seems to spend a lot of time with her. In The House of Hades, Grover states that Ella and Tyson are dating.

Rainbow
Tyson meets Rainbow, the hippocampus or "fish pony" as he calls them when he, Percy, and Annabeth embark for the cruise ship the Princess Andromeda. Tyson is upset that Rainbow (the name he gave the sea creature) can't follow them on board, but is convinced they will see each other again. Rainbow followed Tyson all the way to the Sea of Monsters and rescued him when the CSS Birmingham exploded. Tyson and Rainbow then went looking for Annabeth and Percy, eventually finding their way to Polyphemus' Island. After The Sea of Monsters, they meet at various instances throughout the course of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series.

Grover Underwood
Tyson knows Grover through Percy, but they did not feel comfortable around each other, due to Grover being scared of Cyclopes and Tyson sneezing from Grover's hair. However, while in the Labyrinth, Tyson goes with Grover to help protect him while they search for the lost god Pan. After this quest, the two seem to be on better terms with each other, but show little interaction after the events of The Battle of the Labyrinth.

Charles Beckendorf
When Tyson was first allowed at Camp Half-Blood, Beckendorf was one of the first demigods to actually accept Tyson. Beckendorf's father, Hephaestus, uses Cyclopes in his forges and Beckendorf offered to teach Tyson how to become a blacksmith at the camp's forges.

Annabeth Chase
Tyson became infatuated with Annabeth the first time they met. While he thinks Annabeth is pretty, she initially treated him harshly because she had a prejudice against all Cyclopes. However, after Tyson supposedly sacrificed himself to save the crew of the CSS Birmingham, Annabeth feels bad for the way she had treated him up until that point. When they are reunited, she is much kinder to him. Later during The Titan's Curse, after Annabeth is kidnapped and Percy calls Tyson while he is working in the underwater forges and Tyson asks how Annabeth is. Percy had to lie to Tyson and told him she was fine. Once Tyson learns the truth, he is overjoyed that Annabeth was rescued safely. Annabeth also trusted Tyson enough to bring him with her to the Labyrinth, even if it broke the sacred rule of only three people per quest.

Mrs. O'Leary
Mrs. O'Leary and Tyson get along very well, as Tyson is the only person that Mrs. O'Leary can play with without worrying about hurting him. During The Son of Neptune, the two team up in order to find Percy, who at the time was missing.

Poseidon
Poseidon is very protective of his son, much to Tyson's dismay. While Tyson wants to help his father fight Oceanus in The Last Olympian, Poseidon keeps him in the forges to make weapons. Poseidon does, however, allow him to help in the fight against Typhon and even leads the charge.

Percy Jackson
Percy and Tyson knew each other before they knew they were related as they went to the same school. Percy would try and protect him from bullies, but would never look at Tyson directly. After they found out they were related, Percy felt a bit ashamed of his new brother and wondered how they could be related. It wasn't until the ship they were on exploded that Percy began to think of Tyson as a brother. Tyson had tried to fix the ship by trying to fix the engine, but the ship exploded and Tyson was separated from Percy and Annabeth, Percy thinking he had sacrificed himself to save them. When they are reunited, Percy is happy and over the series, Percy treats him like a real brother and has come to accept even his bear hugs.

Etymology
"Tyson" is an Old French name meaning "high spirited" which could pretty much sum up his behavior as Tyson is very high spirited and childlike.

Trivia

 * It is unknown who Tyson's mother is, only that she is a nature spirit, as usual when Cyclopes like him are born.
 * Tyson is tidier than Percy, as seen in The Battle of the Labyrinth where he was cleaning up Cabin Three's mess and when Percy said he didn't have Tyson cleaning after him when he and Annabeth were inspecting the Cabins in The Last Olympian.
 * Tyson is terrified of Grover because his fur makes him sneeze.
 * Tyson is fond of pegasi and hippocampi (which he calls "chicken ponies" and "fish ponies" respectively), and other horses. He even has his own hippocampus, Rainbow. However, the pegasi do not feel the same way about him, as they regard him as dangerous.
 * Tyson is not a half-blood; according to Annabeth, half-blood means "half-human, half-god."
 * Peanut butter is his favorite food.
 * In The Sea of Monsters, Tyson realizes he is Percy's brother when Percy tries to explain that the Greek gods still exist and Poseidon is his father.
 * He has many scars on his back as seen in The Sea of Monsters that came from a Sphinx that he saw when he was young and on the streets.
 * He seems to idolize Briares.
 * In The Son of Neptune, he takes a liking to Ella, a harpy, and blushes when Percy mentioned her.