A/N: I don't own Greek mythology or any characters from Percy Jackson and the Olympians that might show up. All of the main characters are OC's.
A young man, mid-twenties perhaps, stood alone in a field that seemed to represent paradise. It was beautiful, flowers and trees, animals wandering, even a nice, clear view of a sky colored the deepest blue. The only thing out of place in the visible world was that the man did not look relaxed at all. Of course; the man was completely unaware that dangerous things were starting, nor how bad they could get. In the invisible world, a world only to be seen by those inhabiting it, figures appeared. For some odd reason, the figures could not see each other, or maybe they just didn't pay attention. After all, something else was quite more eye-catching.
"Argh! " The man growled in frustration, kicking up a bed of flowers. Squirrels came out and gathered up the flowers, replanting them as quickly and nicely as possible. Then they turned to the man and made noises as if they were scolding him. He looked abashed and nodded sheepishly once they had stopped their angry chitters. "Sorry about that. Just frustrated you know," he apologized, and the squirrels scampered off, annoyed. The invisible figures around the man reacted oddly to this seemingly normal exchange. Some giggled, some laughed nervously, hoping it was some sort of joke, but some just waited, knowing that wasn't the reason they were there. The sun broke out into the patch of sky, brightly illuminating the man. He had straw colored hair, his blue eyes closed in concentration. He no longer looked mid-twenties, but actually late teens or quite early twenties. If a woman saw him and wasn't paying attention to the way the sun made his skin literally glow, she might decide to proclaim her love right there. He wasn't all that interested in how the onlookers observed him, though.
"How is this possible?" he muttered to himself. "I am the god of prophecy! How can I not find the answers to the questions I have?" He paused, thought for a moment, and then began, "Riddles I ponder, No answers mean more questions, Not knowing sure sucks." He counted out the syllables on his fingers, much to the amusement of the onlookers, then sighed once again in frustration. "I need a new hobby. Poetry isn't helping at all." For some reason, this gave the invisible watchers a queasy feeling, like a vegetarian for decades suddenly said, "You know, this no-meat thing really isn't helping at all."
Suddenly, a vapor-y figure took shape, catching everyone, even the man's, attention. It took form in front of the man, and took the shape of a teenage girl with curly red hair and glowing green eyes. Neither the eyes, nor the green mist swirling around her feet matched the girl's casual outfit, though. She wore written on jeans, and a worn out shirt that had some faded words on it. Then the girl spoke, and they all knew she wasn't normal.
"Lord Apollo," The raspy voice started. "Everyone in Olympus is already worried about how strange Lady Hera's behavior was a couple of months ago, disappearing all of a sudden and not leaving word for months, and refusing to say a thing. Now Lady Artemis has disappeared for a considerable amount of time. Why would you leave so suddenly? You sent them into a panic." The man looked annoyed at the girl, and began pacing.
"It's obvious, isn't it? I'm worried about my little sister! I don't think she's in danger, because if there was even the remotest possibility, her Hunters would already have come around, demanding answers. When I asked, they informed me that she had told them not to worry." He looked scandalized, and then realized that the Spirit of Delphi probably wouldn't care about family matters. "Let Rachel out! I need a sympathetic mortal." The girl stared, shrugged, and the green mist dissipated, leaving behind the same girl, but a much more normal presence.
"Lord Apollo!" The girl gasped, blushing and dipping quickly in a bow. "I had no idea what was going on! I was just at the pavilion, eating breakfast for the last day of camp this summer, and then the Spirit of Delphi just took over! I didn't know what was going on! No one asked me a question or wanted a prophecy and the next thing I knew, she blinked and I was at Olympus! Then we blinked to a cliff edge (where we could see the sunrise beautifully, by the way), and then we were at Mount Tam. Or was it Mount Orthrys? It was somewhere in the bay area. Did you know that the Spirit of Delphi can take over even if it's not for a prophecy?" She said this all quite fast, most words running together. The man, Apollo, looked amused at the ramblings of the mortal.
"Yes, I knew it could, it just usually doesn't. It usually takes a liking to the host of the body it inhabits, so it probably wanted to avoid inconveniencing you as much as possible. Only in dire need does the Spirit of Delphi take such risks." He looked solemn, remembering that his sister was gone.
"Dire need, Lord?" Rachel asked timidly, looking confused. He snorted in anger.
"Of course, the gods have been keeping it quiet. My sister is missing. I have not seen her for at least a month. I'm worried…" His suddenly blazing eyes locked on Rachel's. "I need a prophecy." It was as if is words had activated an invisible switch. Green mist poured out of the girl's mouth and swirled around her like serpents, twisting and writhing. Her eyes were once again glowing green, and the god gave a grim smile.
"I am-" the raspy voice paused, then spoke as if she was skipping ahead, "Approach, Seeker, and ask." The god rolled his eyes; it was all very well that she skipped self-introduction, but having to ask for his own prophecy was actually quite degrading.
"I need you to tell me what is going to happen, to explain what has happened, and why." The onlookers had slowly begun to realize that this was what they were waiting for, and waited with bated breath.
Oaths are tarnished, bonds betrayed, and Confusion sweeps through all
If the Prodigy do, fail to understand, they will surely fall
Refuge is, no longer safe, with no one come to fend
The children are, the only way, to avoid true end
Parents will see, parents will know, it is no time for spite
For, to save their children, more than guessed, they must face the fight
A stunned silence fell upon the unseeingly crowded field as the redhead toppled, and the sandy haired man made no move to catch her.
"What could this mean?" He muttered, awestruck, and then a voice, a woman's voice, called out.
"Apollo? Please tell me you're here! Apollo!" The anguished voice shrieked. Apollo snapped out of his reverie.
"Artemis?" he called, half disbelieving, half joyous. "Artemis? Is that you?" He ran towards the edge of the clearing, where an auburn haired woman about his seeming age burst out of the trees, sobbing.
"Oh, Apollo! I couldn't- I didn't- what am I going to do?" she sobbed, wrapping her arms around him. He was bewildered at this show of affection, but patted her head all the same. If they had pulled away from each other, they would have noticed the figures of each onlooker dissolving. As they left the physical world completely, they momentarily became visible. There was a tall, statuesque girl, dissolving. A Latino boy with a mischievous grin disappeared. A dark girl who had the expression of deep concentration, as if she was sure the moment she woke up, she would write down the prophecy. A small figure, indistinguishable between a boy and a girl, seeing as they had a baseball cap pulled low over their eyes. A dirty blond haired girl, shifting from foot-to foot. A boy with dark eyes reflecting deep sadness in them. A slightly muscled, auburn-haired boy, fiddling with something in his hands. And others. They all disappeared, not quite realizing that they were futures, and that some of them hadn't even been born yet. No. They just knew, when the time came, they would remember this.
A/N: I actually started the second chapter first. Keep in mind that the only people you know in this chapter are Artemis, Apollo, and Rachel. All of the main characters are OCs. This is my second story, and I sure do hope I get more of a reaction from this one.