Perfect Illusion chapter 1
a/n hope you guys like this fanfic. Just something I've been wanting to write :) flames are accepted, not really writing for seriousness so don't expect perfection. I'll just give you my best with what I got.
=Return=
A man with dark black hair trudged to two large black doors that stood tall. The man knew what lay beyond those doors- he had been passed them many times before. This was different, though. He raked his fingers through his windswept and took a deep breath. He pushed the door open.
In front of him was a beautiful woman sitting in a throne. Her skin was dark, her hair in long twists down her side, covering her left shoulder. Her eyes were completely black like an endless abyss, but held several twinkles. Like stars. She encapsulated the universe. The night. Her black Grecian robe flowed down her body beautifully.
"Nyx," the man said with a bow.
Nyx acknowledged him with a nod and a kind smile.
She was truly beautiful.
"Perseus. I was not sure you'd actually come," she laughed. The man, Perseus, sighed and ran his hands through his hair once again.
"Well what did you expect? Your invitation wasn't exactly enticing. You could have at least said there was food," Perseus said.
With a wave of her hand, a human appeared in front of Perseus, floating above the throne room floor. Perseus' eyes lit up and he grabbed the human, bringing his teeth to their neck. Nyx caught a flash of the elongated canines before they disappeared into flesh.
"Have your fill before we go. I told Chaos that you'd not be in a mood to help, but she insisted and I cannot reject my mother. The nerve," Nyx scoffed. "Now, because you took your sweet time and were hungry, we're going to be late to the meeting."
Perseus stopped drinking and pulled his head up. Blood dribbled down his chin.
"What meeting? You only said there was an emergency," he said, wiping the blood from his face.
He dropped the human onto the floor, leaving it dry of any blood it had only seconds before. Seconds after it dropped, the dead human vanished.
"In the last hundred-fifty years, Manhattan has been evacuated. Monsters have overrun the island. Camp Half-Blood had lost many of its campers on missions to rid the island of these monsters. But in the last hundred years, they have only maintained that camp as a stronghold. In this time, Camp Jupiter was nearly overrun by monsters. They retreated to Camp Half-Blood, losing many elders, children and cavalry on the way. Today, only about two-hundred campers of both camps remain in Long Island.
"This massive attack only a few years after the last Giant war have led Chaos to believe her children are rising. The rest of them. Tartarus, Erebus, and Eros. She claimed the strongest soldiers from both camps and took them to train until this day. I, on the other hand, chose you. And now you're both required to train the demigods as well as help fight my siblings and whatever they throw at you."
Perseus stood shell shocked. Blood dripped from his chin onto the ground.
"Ew, Perseus. You need to clean your face before we go. I will not let my one of my most powerful vampires, an alpha nonetheless, go into battle while he perpetuates stereotypes."
Perseus shook his head and wiped his face with the sleeve of his shirt. Thank goodness it was black.
"I-I just don't understand! Why must I go? I refuse to go back!" he protested.
Nyx rolled her eyes. "You won't be going if you continue acting like a child rather than a seasoned warrior. Now go change your clothes into your combat gear. You'll need to make an impression."
Perseus sighed in defeat. "Fine," he said, trudging off to his room like a moody teenager.
Nyx let out a breath of relief. "He's going to be pissed."
The Olympian throne room was in disarray as usual. Gods were screaming or not paying attention to each other.
"We cannot defeat three primordial gods without the help of Chaos and her soldiers! It's illogical!" Athena screamed at Ares.
"Those twerps couldn't even hold a light to my children! I bet they are glorified demigods!"
"The sun is stupid!"
"Well at least I don't run a group of stuck up virgins!"
"How are you even sleeping right now, Dionysus?"
Unbeknownst to the gods and goddesses, a black portal opened up and several people stepped through in a single file. The wore all black and gray clothing: black combat boots with black pants, a gray long sleeve shirt with a black neck and small black shoulder pads. A women cloaked in galactic robes in tow.
"Ahem," she said.
The Olympians continued to bicker. The man who led the group in looked at the woman with a raised eyebrow. She gave a nod. The man clenched his fist and lightning began to crackle around it. In seconds, a ten-foot javelin of lightning formed. He drew back and threw it at the ceiling. When it hit, the room was silenced by a clap of thunder. Zeus turned and stared at the intruders, anger evident in his eyes.
"Was that my master bolt?! You mortals shall pay dearly-" Another bolt of lightning and clap of thunder cut Zeus off.
The cloaked woman stepped forward, her dress shifting as different stars and galaxies came into focus.
"Do you not recognize your own children? You gods are getting dull. In a war, it's important to be able to distinguish friend from foe," the woman chastised.
Zeus became red with anger until the man who threw the bolt stepped forward.
"Father, I haven't changed that much, have I?"
The man had blond hair that was cropped military style, glasses, and a small scar on the corner or his lip. He smiled fondly at Zeus- something the god hadn't seen in awhile.
A look of recognition crossed the gods' faces.
The man bowed and said, "Jason Grace, Commander of the Soldiers of Chaos. At your service."
Another man came forward, much larger than Jason. He had a similar haircut but his hair was black. He looked of Asian descent.
"Frank Zhang. Lieutenant and sniper," he said, following Jason's lead with a bow.
This time, a girl stepped forward. Her wavy, honey blond hair was pulled into a sloppy bun that Athena knew too well. The girl's gray eyes were piercing- like an oncoming storm.
She gave a small bow. "Annabeth Chase. Chief strategist and adviser."
"Leo Hot-Stuff Valdez. I build our transportation or anything we need. Takes some dope skill," he flaunted, flexing his slightly toned arms. Hephaestus laughed.
Another girl stepped forward. Her hair was dark and her eyes were volcanic.
"Reyna, weapons specialist," she said simply, stepping in line with the others.
"Nico di Angelo, covert operations and infiltration specialist."
Hades looked longingly at his son from his throne.
"Piper McLean, intelligence and interrogate-r I guess," she stumbled. Aphrodite squealed and waved excitedly at her daughter who awkwardly waved back.
"Hazel Levesque, mist-user and manipulator," she squeaked.
A blond boy with curly hair stepped forward. "Will Solace, medic."
The cloaked woman stepped forward and lowered her hood. Her skin was dark, her lips full. Her eyes were pure white, her hair was in dreadlocks. She smiled and showed her blinding white teeth.
"I am the creator. The first. I am all. I am-"
"Chaos," Athena awed. She instantly dropped to her knees. The gods and goddesses followed, Zeus and Ares grumbling as they did so.
"Please stand. We do not have time for formalities. I will say that I apologize for leaving a note and kidnapping your children. I knew nothing would happen when they were gone. And it was for the best."
Hera but in, "Do not apologize, Lady Chaos. There is no need."
"Yes, clearly it was for our benefit," Poseidon agreed. "But is this all you have to bring to us? Not that I do not trust our children with our lives- they have proved themselves more than capable on multiple occasions- but do you have reinforcements?"
Chaos grinned widely causing her soldiers to look at her suspiciously.
"Actually, yes. Your son should be here in a few minutes, Poseidon."
The soldiers all looked at Chaos in surprise and anger. Jason stormed up to Chaos, his eyes burning, lightning crackling around him.
"What do you mean Lady Chaos?" Jason asked.
"Well, Jason. I knew Perseus would be needed in the war to come. So I asked my daughter to take him in. She does live in Tartarus after all. I'm sure you're familiar with her, Annabeth," Chaos replied lightly.
Annabeth gaped. "Nyx?" Chaos nodded. "How are you able to trust your daughter after she tried to kill me?"
Chaos shrugged. "I don't. I also do not know what she has done with Perseus, nor do I care to. All I know is my daughter fights for who she believes will win. She believes we will win, and I have no doubt we will with Perseus' help."
The throne room burst into a shouting match once again. Even the soldiers were in a state of unrest.
"We banished him for high treason!"
"How are we able to trust Nyx?"
"That seaspawn is no good."
"What kind of monster has she turned him into?"
Jason marched towards Chaos in anger. "Why would you allow him back? He tried to kill all of us? Everyone at camp? You are putting our lives at risk!"
Chaos waved him off. "I would never put your lives at risk. Minutes ago you just threw a lightning bolt more powerful than Zeus' at him, and you're afraid of Perseus?"
Jason stayed silent, unsure of how to respond. Instead, he was consumed by his memories.
Camp Half-Blood always experienced sunny days thanks to the magical barrier. Sadly, sunny days did not mean happy days. Rather, the camp was nearly destroyed- either slashed apart, scorched or underwater. Demigods fled to the forest as several demigods fought to subdue the most powerful one in the arena.
"How could you betray me, Jason!? After all we've been through?" Percy screamed as he brought his sword down in a dangerous arc against Jason.
The son of Jupiter dodged easily enough. Percy was fighting recklessly, fueled by anger and hatred and sadness. That did not make the demigod any less dangerous, though. In fact, he had destroyed half of camp in his rage, nearly killing many demigods in the process. Jason was running low on energy and all his friends left standing were as well. Frank, Reyna, and Hazel had been knocked out. Annabeth tried to use her invisibility cap to drag them to safety, but she was knocked out too. Piper stood far enough away to avoid the mini hurricane surrounding both Percy and Jason as she tried and failed to charmspeak him. Nico and Will were both making sure all the demigods were safe in the forest.
"You are not who I thought you were, Percy. You betrayed us. Not the other way around. Look at what you've done to camp, Percy! Your home! Your friends!" Jason cried.
Percy faltered a bit, his hurricane disappearing for a quick second. His eyes looked shattered and tears poured from them onto the ground.
This was the only chance Jason would get.
Jason ran at Percy, put his hand on the boy's chest, and poured as much electricity as he could without killing the son of Poseidon.
Screams flooded camp. The pain was nearly unbearable as Percy began to roast. The extra amount of water in his body was not helping. After ten seconds, Jason stopped and Percy dropped to the ground, electricity crackling around him.
"You said you would never hurt me, Jason," Percy whimpered.
Jason glared at the boy and gave him a good kick to the stomach. Fire burned in Jason's stomach.
"You deserve what you got. You're a monster."
Percy went silent and stopped moving.
In the next hour, the gods appeared, captured Percy in celestial chains and held him there for trial. Every god, camper and creature came to see the verdict of the Olympians.
"Perseus Jackson, you have been deemed guilty for committing crimes of high treason and attempted murder as well as the overthrow of the gods. Your sentence? To live the rest of your life in Tartarus."
The throne room doors whipped open, taking Jason out of his thoughts. All the fire in the room went out- even the hearth was reduced to pitiful embers. The room became a darker and the temperature dropped. The gods and soldiers could see their own breath. Jason signaled his comrades to get ready for a fight. Each took a stance. Even the gods looked uneasy and gripped their thrones and weapons.
A beautiful woman walked in, her robe trailing. She resembled Chaos. Like mother and daughter.
"Oh Nyx, always one for the dramatic flair," Chaos chuckled.
Nyx grinned at her mother. "Well mother, the apple doesn't fall too far from the tree," she winked.
"I assume you brought him with you?" Chaos asked. The soldiers and gods began to relax, but were still on guard, knowing what might be coming.
"He's being a pain."
"But where is he?"
"Outside. He refuses to come in."
"Why don't you drag him in?"
"You're the one that wanted him here."
"Go get him or I banish you for a century to Tartarus. Probably long if the war is lost and Tartarus wants to keep you there."
"Perseus! Get your sorry ass in here before I rip your teeth out!"
The soldiers' eyes widened and their jaws slacked.
A man walked in. His hair was dark and windswept. His hands in the black trench coat that covered his suit shirt and tie. His skinny jeans were slightly dusty and he wore brown suede boots. Light glinted off of his few piercings. He refused to meet any eyes besides those of Chaos and Nyx. His eyes were a poisonous green. Dark. Deadly. Like a sea that was in despair and anger. Much like the man they belonged to. He gave a bow to Chaos and stood at Nyx's side.
"Say hello, Perseus. You have not seen these people in over a century and you will be working and living with them indefinitely. Get used to them," the goddess ordered.
Perseus went to the gods first, bowing to them all and giving an extra nod to his dad- he was the only one who fought for Perseus' case. Poseidon gave a sad smile. His son had changed so much, he just didn't know why. Or rather he refused to acknowledge why. Then Perseus turned to his friends.
"Long time, really don't want to see," he growled.
Jason stepped forward strongly, staring Perseus right in the eye. Jason saw a brief breakdown of his guard before it was built right back up. The green-eyes boy glared harshly at Jason.
"Can I help you?" Perseus spat. Jason glared right back.
"No, you can't. So feel free to go back to that pit. I think the nine of us can handle it."
Chaos coughed. "Uh, well, you need Percy."
"But why?" Jason protested.
"Well, Jason, he brings skills to the team that the soldiers just don't have. You'll need him," Nyx explained causing Jason to glare at her and look back at Percy. The boy smirked.
"You heard her: you guys need me. Might as well get used to me," Percy bragged, beginning to exit the throne room. As he reached the doors, Jason grabbed Percy's shoulder and spun him around. Oh how he wanted to punch the boy in the face.
"I want to see these so-called skills of yours. I was trained by the most powerful being in the universe and am commander of her army," Jason said. He drew his sword and pointed it at the young man in front of him.
"There will be no fighting in-" Chaos waved a hand and Zeus went quiet.
"Are you sure you're willing to lose, Grace?" Percy asked, taking off his trench coat and adjusting the cuffs on his suit coat.
Jason laughed, "I'm sure I'll take you down in seconds."
"I don't believe so. But to make it fair I will let you call for the help from the other eight at any point. Kay?"
Jason's face turned red with rage and he charged Percy at blinding speeds. The sword connected with an unfamiliar weapon- definitely not Riptide. The weapon was a pure black scythe that radiated anger and bloodlust and pure, raw power. There was a stark contrast with Jason's golden sword Excalibur.
Percy held the scythe in a way where the handle was behind his back but the blade curved around his body, protecting it.
"You're going to have to do better, Jason."