Percy Jackson and The World of God
AN: The idea for this fic just came to me, and it wouldn't leave so here you have it.
I woke up feeling remarkably fresh, there was no bleariness in my eyes, and all my muscles were completely relaxed, but most importantly I wasn't alone. Laying on either side of me were two beautiful women, one with deep red hair and the other brownish black. Oh, and did I mention that they were both completely naked.
"Good your awake. We expected you to stay sleeping for a little while longer." Said the redhead, getting out of the bed and in the process giving me a great view of her rather large chest.
Now, as a Greek or rather half Greek I was used to nudity, most of our paintings were of naked men and women, and that's not even including how scantily some nature nymphs dressed or didn't dress as it were. That being said, when you wake up in bed with two naked and gorgeous women, your mind goes places that it probably shouldn't.
"Would you wake Akeno up while I get dressed please. Then we can explain what happened and what it means for you."
"Uhh, yeah. No problem." I replied, before getting out of the bed myself. Looking down, I noticed that I was still wearing my boxers. Maybe what I thought happened didn't in fact happen. Which was relieving even if I couldn't help but be a little disappointed. Shaking my head clear I walked to the side of the bed that Akeno was sleeping on, and gently shook her. Fortunately, she woke up right away, without too much prodding from my end. When she woke up however, she promptly got out of the sheets and started stretching. I tried to look away, but at the end of the day I was a guy, and my attempt was half hearted at best.
"You know, you can look freely. I don't mind. In fact, if you really want, you can touch too. Anywhere you want." She said, while grabbing her boobs and squeezing them. My mind promptly went blank.
"Akeno! Stop teasing him. Hurry up and get dressed." Said the redhead. "You're lucky todays Saturday, otherwise we would have been really late for school. Besides, we have to vacate the hotel room by noon, and it's already eleven thirty. Oh, I almost forgot, your clothes are in the closet, we had to take them off to heal you. They were a little ripped, so I had to fix them."
"Wait, what do you mean heal me?" I asked. Then last night started coming back to me, at once I noticed that my ever-absent memories were back, I could finally remember who I was. My name was Perseus Jackson, and I was the son of Poseidon. I was sixteen years old when I was kidnapped by Hera. After which I was kept asleep for around eight months. I finally woke up in this place called the wolf house. I'd left the wolf house around four days ago, after I'd spent a couple weeks training with this She-Wolf named Lupa and was on my way to this mysterious camp.
I had just about reached my destination, when the gorgons chasing me suddenly grew wings and lifted me up in to the sky. That was when shit hit the fan. I guess Zeus really didn't want me in his domain, as this huge storm erupted. The last thing I remembered was this massive gust of wind hitting my body and sounds of thunder, before I lost consciousness.
"Come, lets head to the clubhouse, we can grab some breakfast and explain your situation to you. Oh, where are my manners. My name is Rias Gremory." Said the redhead.
"Perseus Jackson, but you can call me Percy." I replied. Immediately after, Akeno grabbed my arm and this red light started to shine on the floor. Next thing I know, I'm in this gothic eighteenth century living room.
"So, I'll get right to it. There's no point in delaying. Percy, you died, and I resurrected you." She said, and my mind went blank once again. "You see, Akeno and I are Devils." Just as she finished the sentence, large black wings erupted from their backs. "And, when I brought you back to life I made you into one as well."
"What! Why would you do that?" I demanded.
"What do you mean? I saw you fall from the sky and die. It's not in my nature to let someone die if I can save them." She said.
"Well, when you put it like that I guess it's fine." I said, but I knew it wasn't. I had just died. "So what does this mean for me? Do I have to go around and convince people to sell me their souls or their firstborn child to survive?"
"Oh, not at all. We stopped tricking mortals into that kind of stuff thousands of years ago. Nowadays we mostly deal in money or objects, sometimes as the bargains get more complex we start to accept less tangible things, like favors or services. However, we try to avoid those kinds of deals, it's a lot easier for humans to back out of them then let's say if you bargain for ten thousand dollars."
"I think I get it. So … do you just reincarnate everyone who dies, or was I just special?"
"It is a little bit of both. You see a thousand years ago the three factions Devils, Fallen Angels, and Angels were all at war. This war greatly diminished our numbers. In fact, most of Devil society was wiped out. One of the upsides to being a devil is that we can live for nigh on forever, but as a consequence we have an extremely low birthrate. The rate is so low that a devil family will have a single child once every seven to eight hundred years on average. There are exceptions however, but they're extremely rare. To remedy this, Lord Beelzebub created something called the evil piece system, based off of the game chess. This gives high-class devils the ability to reincarnate up to fifteen people as devils."
"I see. So, I guess thanks for resurrecting me, but I have places to go so… I'll see you around or something." I said, before I started heading towards the door.
"You can't leave. At least not yet." Said Akeno, for the first time speaking up. "Here, take some tea sit and sit down. There are still some things that you need to know."
"Like what?" I asked.
"Well for starters, if you leave right now there is a small chance that you'll go insane your body will hideously deform, and you'll begin eating humans in a frenzied state, and if that happens, we'll have to hunt you down and kill you." Replied Akeno, and what is with that face she's making?
"Akeno!" Shouted Rias, before turning her head towards me. "What she said. If you leave right now bad things could happen." Said Rias.
"Why would they happen?" I asked more than a little nervously.
"Your body is using the Evil Piece I gave you in order to regulate the devil energy in your body. If you move too far from me for an extended period of timr, it won't be able to do its task and what Akeno said will happen to you."
"Oh, ok. So how long do I have to stay for. A day, week, month?"
"It's a little more complicated than that. You see, there are five ranks among devil kind. Low class, middle class, high class, ultimate class, and super class. Low being the weakest type of devil, middle being the most common, high class is what I am, ultimate being some of the strongest devils alive. Super class are devils that are so strong that ultimate class isn't a proper representation of how strong they are, there are only two super class devils as far as I know."
"What does that have to do with me?" I asked with a frown, I think I know where this is going.
"All reincarnated devils start off as low-class and have to climb their way up the food chain. Low class devils are required to stay near and serve the high-class devil that resurrected them. When you reach middle-class, you will no longer have to live near me, but you will still technically be my servant, but more independent. When you become a high-class devil, you are given your own evil pieces and required to build your own peerage. However, at this stage you no longer serve me, with one sole exception. That being, you still have to fight me in my rating games. You are required to do this until you have a full peerage at that point, you will have no obligation towards me at all."
"Is there a time limit on all of this? Like, how long do I have to be a low class devil in order to become a mid-class devil?"
"That pretty much depends on you. There is no time limit per-se, devils have extremely long lives, and we don't really like to rush all that often. For example I've been building my peerage since I became a high class devil when I was eight, Akeno was the first member of my peerage. To date, I only have five pieces. Akeno as my Queen, Koneko as my Rook, Kiba as my Knight, a Bishop, and now you." Said Rias.
"What do you mean by rook, knight and queen?"
"Well, you know how in chess there are different pieces?" Seeing me nod, she continued. "Do you know how all the pieces move differently?" I nodded once again. "Well, it's like that, but a little different. When you resurrect someone using the evil piece system, you can grant them different abilities. Knights get extreme speed and agility, Rooks get extreme strength and durability, Bishops get increased control over their magic, and Queens get all of it."
"Magic?" I asked.
"Yup, as a devil you gain the ability to use magic."
"Cool."
"Now I know this is a lot to absorb, so you have until Monday to sort yourself out. You can wander around most of this town and sleep here. Oh, and avoid the church as much as possible." Said Rias.
"I thought you said that if I leave, bad things happen."
"Oh, yeah that will happen if you go too far away too fast, but as long as you're in a one hundred and fifty-mile radius and see me at least once a month it should be fine. Any more, and we'll be taking a risk, I think. Oh, and just as a heads up, don't wander around at night unless you can't avoid it."
"Alright, I'll keep that in mind." I said, then turned around and walked toward the door.
"Are you sure letting him leave unsupervised is a good idea?" Asked Akeno.
"No, but he looks like he can handle himself. Plus, he has impenetrable skin, there's not much in Kuoh that could even hope to harm him." Replied Rias.
"Hmm, alright. I'll trust your judgement President." Replied Akeno. "I wonder though…"
"Wonder what?" Said Rias.
"If that impenetrable skin of his can stand up to my S side." She said, letting out a small giggle.
"AKENO!"
After leaving the clubhouse I immediately headed towards the beach. I needed the familiarity of the ocean to help me calm my nerves. Once I got there, I calmly walked in to the waves until I was completely submerged and then some. Once I reached a spot I liked, I just started floating aimlessly, watching the various aquatic life pass by me. Eventually I succumbed to Morpheus and went to sleep.
I woke up to the sensation of a shark gently nuzzling me. Once I gained my bearings, the shark started swimming away. Naturally I followed it.
"Percy!" Shouted someone from behind me. I turned around and saw that it was my dad, Poseidon.
"Dad? What are you doing all the way here?" I asked calmly, but internally I was extremely surprised. It was rare for him to visit.
"Can't a father visit his favorite child?" He retorted.
"I guess… What about the ancient laws?" I replied back.
"Oh, now that you're a devil there's nothing stopping me from interacting with you as much as I want. That was only back when you were mortal."
"Wait, you mean I'm not mortal anymore?"
"Well, sort of. Depends on how you define it." He said.
"You know I'm waiting for you to explain this to me, right?" I stated impatiently. He just chuckled in response.
"Well, you're sort of like Tyson now. As long as no one kills you, you can live for eternity, but if you die… it would be unpleasant. That being said, you're not easy to kill, even for a god." He replied.
"Are you sure, I mean one blast from the master bolt or any god really and I'm toast." I replied.
"Indeed, that would have been the case not even two days ago. However, whatever that Devil did to resurrect you mutated the Curse of Achilles. Have you not noticed that your mortal point is gone? That's not even the end of it actually, the very nature of the curse has been changed, to the point that calling it The Curse of Achilles is incorrect. I was thinking of calling it the Blessing of Perseus."
"Dad, you have to be more precise. You're not making much sense." I complained.
"Fine, I guess it's important that you know how this works. For starters, the speed and strength that the curse originally provided have been multiplied dramatically, and with a lot of training you might even be able to improve on upon it. With the Curse of Achilles, your abilities would have been static, never increasing or decreasing till the day you died. The other major change is that the invulnerability covers your whole body, weather this is a consequence of your new-found immortality or something else I do not know. The biggest change however is that you can consciously activate and deactivate the curse. Which I think you would find to be extremely helpful."
"How is that helpful? Wouldn't it be better if it was on the entire time?" I asked.
"Sure, I guess you could do that, but remember that the curse was never free. Keeping yourself invulnerable all the time has serious consequences on your stamina. You remember how you were after the war. You had to eat twice as much as you normally did, and the days you did something even remotely exhausting you had to sleep well over 14 hours. The only reason you weren't sleeping days at a time was because you could draw energy from water." He replied.
"Now that you mention it, I do recall being tired all the time after the war." I said.
"Percy, it was called a curse for a reason. Your stamina was being drained constantly, the human body isn't meant to take that kind of strain. It was manageable because you were my son, and because you were still young. After a certain age the human body starts to decline. I estimated that by the time you were forty your body would no longer be able to support the curse. You would have fallen into a coma, and never woken again."
"Huh, so when they said that Achilles was always either sleeping or fighting, they meant that literally?" I asked.
"Yes, during the Trojan war he was reduced to sleeping twenty hours a day, and he could only really fight for an hour or so at a time. That being said, in battle he had no equal until you and Luke took the curse."
"Well I guess that that's another positive of being reincarnated as a devil." I said.
"Yes, well I'm afraid it's not all rainbows and sunshine." He replied solemnly.
"What do you mean, the way I see it everything sort of worked out."
"It not that simple. I'm sure you've heard the new great prophecy." He asked, seeing me nod he continued. "That's the problem. Originally, you were to go to the Roman equivalent of Camp Half-Blood and win their loyalty while their leader did the same the same thing at Camp Half-Blood. Then with both camps unified, we would be able to somehow lull the Gaia back to sleep." Said Poseidon.
"So, why's that plan out of the window?" I asked.
"Well, when Zeus learned of Hera's plan he decided that he didn't like it, so when you reached the boundary of Camp Jupiter, he sent you flying."
"He killed me? Because his wife sent me somewhere?" I raged.
"Oh, no he didn't kill you. Unlike Hades, he knew that if he killed you it would mean bad things. I have a lot more … lets say pull when it comes to these things than Hades. Plus, you would've been revived the second your soul reached the underworld with Thanatos captured and all."
"Then what killed me?" I asked ignoring the last part, I really didn't want to know.
"When you landed here, you hit a power cable, which the curse protected you from. Until the curse sucked your stamina dry, and you died of exhaustion." He said.
"Never thought I'd die by something so ordinary." I replied back somberly.
"Yeah, me neither, I always imagined you fighting some ancient monster whose name was lost to history." He replied, talking like was talking like he would about the weather and not my death.
"Yeah, me too surprisingly." I replied back sarcastically.
"Anyway, there are a few things that you need to know about the situation that you're in right now and what it means for both you and the Greek pantheon." He said, his expression becoming serious.
"What do you mean?" I asked.
"Well, you've already had a little run in with the Egyptians, so you know that we aren't the only gods on earth. The typical policy in these types of encounters is to walk away and pretend like they never happened. That however, is not feasible in this particular situation." He said.
"Wait, so if we're the Greek Pantheon, then what pantheon do these devils belong to?" I asked.
"That's the thing, devils are one of the three Biblical Factions, and combined with the Angels and Fallen Angel, they create what is known as the Christian Pantheon." He replied.
"So, what's the problem here exactly?" I asked.
"It's not a problem in the usual sense. That being said, you becoming a devil complicates matters. Like I said, the usual procedure is to walk away and pretend that nothing happened. However, when you became a devil, your human half was reincarnated as a devil, but your godly half is present. So technically speaking you're a demi-devil and a demigod." He replied.
"I'm guessing that that's not good?" I replied.
"Let's just say that if you were anyone else, and that if the devil that reincarnated you was anyone else, you would have been incinerated." He said back, a faint smile playing at his lips.
"Well, I can sort of understand with me being the Hero of Olympus and what not, but why is Rias special?" I asked.
"Rias Gremory is both the heiress to one of the seventy-two pillar families of the underworld, and her older brother is Lucifer, one of the four Satan's." He replied, and now I've been told that I'm not the brightest guy around, but even I recognized those names.
"I see." I replied, a little unsure as to how I should reply.
"Regardless, the second you were reincarnated as a devil the Olympian Council and The Four Satans got together to decide upon a course of action. The majority of gods don't particularly like you right now, mostly because you turned down our offer of godhood, but that being said many of us still feel … indebted to you for your service, hence killing you wasn't and will never be an option. After which we considered trying to turn you back into a human, which as it turns out is impossible. Long story short, you are now the head of relations between Olympus and the Christian factions." He said, smiling brightly at the end.
"So, what happens if some other demigod gets reincarnated as a devil, would he automatically become an 'head of relations' too?" I asked, genuinely curious.
"No, you will be both the first and last demigod to ever get reincarnated in to the Christion Pantheon, no matter who's doing the reincarnating. Whether it be with the Evil Peace System like you were, or the Brave Saint System like the Angels use. If any angel or devil even tries to resurrect a demigod, they will be deterred by a warning. If they continue to try, then they will have to answer to the Satans. Alternatively, if any demigod tries to convince a devil or angel to revive him, he will have to answer to us. Let's not get ahead of ourselves however, the fact that this happened is extremely unusual in the first place."
After that I became quiet, and let a comfortable silence overcome us, and proceeded to think about how my life had changed. For the first time since I regained my memories I allowed myself to think. It only seemed like a couple weeks to me, but for everyone else eight months had passed since I last saw them. Annabeth had no doubt spent the last eight months looking for me, and now when it was time for her to and I to finally reunite, we couldn't because I had this leash around my neck preventing me. I wondered how much had changed since I left. I remembered that the last of the new cabins were being built. New demigods were arriving nearly every day. Then there was supposed to be the roman demigod at camp, whose job was to win the camps loyalty. I briefly wondered if he had succeeded.
"How are you dealing with all this?" Asked Poseidon, finally breaking the silence.
"I'm not too sure. To be honest, so much has happened so fast that I just haven't had the time to really absorb any of it you know. I mean, just last night I didn't even know who I was. In the span of a day, I regained my memories, died, and then got resurrected as a devil. Like, what the fuck?" I asked him.
"Perseus." He said, before taking a large breath. I briefly wondered if gods even needed to breath, but the thought left as soon as it came. "I knew the moment that you were born that your life would never be easy. I knew that the chance of you living happily was always going to be slim, so small in fact that I barley had any hope for it. However, all that was before I got to know you. Percy, you embody all that I love most about the sea, and I know that just like your namesake you're going to live the long and happy life your mother envisioned for you. Not because life will get easier, but because no matter what life throws your way, I know you will overcome it. Eventually, life is going to run out of challenges and you'll be free."
"Huh, thanks. I think I needed to hear that from someone." I replied back.
"Good. Anyway, now that I'm free to interact with you as much as I want there are a few things that I want to do." He said smiling brightly.
"That's alright, there's no need. Besides, I wouldn't want to bother you." I replied back.
"Nonsense, you're my son Percy, and now that there's nothing stopping me from aiding you as much as I can, there isn't a reason not to." He stated confidently.
"Thanks, I guess." I replied back.
"Well, first thing first, take this." He said handing me a black credit card that he pulled out nowhere. "You remember the card you got from the Lotus Hotel, well it's like that. Has an unlimited amount of money so feel free to buy whatever you desire. If you use your finger to write a number on the surface, it will produce that number of drachma. There is a limit of ten thousand drachma a month, it should be more than enough for your needs, but if you do need more you'll have to get the amount approved by Delphin. Just like Triton did when he was young. Oh, before I forget. The card is like Riptide, but it won't magically appear in your pocket. If you ever need it, just imagine holding it and it will appear in your hand."
"Wow, are you sure it's okay for me to have that much money?" I asked wearily.
"Why wouldn't it be? You're my son Percy, and it's a father responsibility to look after his son. Besides consider this an early birthday present. You are turning 17 soon." He said.
"Yeah, I guess I am. Hadn't really thought of that." I said.
"That's not all however." He said, his expression turning serious once again. "This time he reached into a pocket and pulled out a watch. This is something that the I deemed you should have." He said, before tapping the dial. I watched as the watch transformed into a sword, and I recognized it immediately. "This was the weapon that Gaia gave to Kronos, so he could slay his father Ouronus, it was then used by Zeus to defeat Kronos at the end of the Titan War, in the after math of which it was lost. When the weapon was thrown into the Hearth during your battle with the Titan Lord, it was recovered by Hestia and its ore was given to me as gift by the Council." He stated.
"Are you sure that it's okay for me to have that? I mean I'm perfectly happy with Riptide." I said nervously, apprehensive about owning a sword that had nearly killed me more than once.
"I am sure that it will be fine. If you had accepted our offer of godhood I would have presented it to as a gift then. In fact, the moment Zeus presented it to me I sent it to Briaroes to have to it re-forged. I wanted this to be your symbol of power."
"I don't get it. Why not Riptide, that would have been my first choice as a symbol of power."
"I know. It is a great sword, worthy of you. However, Anaklusmos was the Pleione's, Zoe Nightshade's mother and a minor sea goddess, Symbol of Power. Thus, it cannot be yours as well."
"Oh, so why didn't you give it to me after the war anyway?" I asked genuinely curious.
"It can only be wielded by an immortal Percy. Before you ask, Luke ate a golden apple from the tree." He said quickly.
"Oh, so wait? He was immortal the whole time?" I asked immediately.
"Well, immortal like you and the huntresses of Artemis. The apples don't grant godhood you know. Just immortality. Regardless, as I was saying before I had this remade for you after the war, but since you didn't accept godhood I couldn't give it to you. Now that your immortal however, I can. Keep in mind that unlike riptide this can harm both immortals and mortals, which will be useful to you in the near future, not all humans are powerless. That being said, this is a powerful weapon so be careful. It retains all of its abilities some of which you have already seen, and some you haven't."
"I will." I promised.
"Good, now I must leave for the moment. Feel free to visit Atlantis at any time, and if you ever need to reach me just remember I'm only an Iris Message away. Or you can just pray to me." He said, before he dematerialized. I mean literally, he just vanished.
With him gone however, I was left alone. Eventually curiosity overtook my senses and I tapped the glass on the watch Poseidon had just given me. Immediately the watch disappeared, and the Titan Lord's former weapon appeared in my hand. It was perfectly balanced. It didn't look like it used to however. It still retained the silvery-bronze glow that it did when Kronos and Luke wielded it, but unlike then it didn't have two distinct sides to it. Instead, it appeared as if someone had melted and mixed the two different metals. Another key difference was that the sword wasn't giving off any sinister vibes like it used to before. Now if I were to describe it, I would say that it was decidedly neutral if not a shade homely?
From there my thoughts went to what I should call it. Referring to it as Kronos's scythe or Backbiter didn't appeal to me. Not being able to think of anything at the moment, I decided to come back to it later. I was briefly confused as to how I should return it to its sword form, I even (briefly) entertained the thought of throwing it away and seeing if it would reappear on my wrist, but I decided against it. Eventually after lots of trial and error, I discovered that if I tapped the flat of the blade to my wrist it would transform back into a watch. Thankfully, it actually told the time, which I thought was pretty cool.
Later, after I was done playing with my new sword I swam back to the surface and prepared myself for a task which left me even more apprehensive than the prospect of facing Kronos. Talking to Annabeth. I could tell a storm was coming.
"Huh." I said out loud. I had a name for my sword. Storm Bringer.